I had mean to get this chapter out earlier, just I'm currently right in the middle of my end-of-semester exams so I apologise for the delay. I also aim to have the next chapter out in about a week's time. For now, enjoy, and as always, if you want to give me any feedback please do so.

Chapter 22 - Bond of Synchro

By the time Jorann caught up to Yugi and Jaden, they were already caring for Tanion in a room that seemed to be directly below where he had been sleeping. As he gingerly made his way into the room, he noted the sophisticated hospital technology surrounding the bed, all of which was connected to Tanion in some form. He didn't need to look at the monitors, though, to see that he was in a bad way.

"How's he holding up?" Jorann asked, slightly out of breath.

"His body can't take much more of this, according to Yubel," Jaden answered. "Is there anything you can do for him, Yugi?"

"I can try to stabilise his Duel Energy, but I'm afraid that if I try and subdue it it will peter out," Yugi said through clenched teeth. "He could die."

"Look at him," Jorann protested. "He's going to die anyway. We have to take a risk here."

"But I could kill him."

"Help him, Yugi. It's what you do. He needs you."

Yugi sighed, relenting. "We really don't have a choice hey?" he said, exhaling heavily. "Alright, I will see what I can do. Just so you know since you haven't seen it yet Jorann, I will be unable to perceive the real world in any way whilst I'm doing this. Don't freak out."

"I won't, just help him," Jorann said with assurance.

"Right. Well, here goes nothing."

Yugi knelt beside Tanion's bed, the boy's skin covered in sweat, his face creased and strained. Placing a hand on Tanion's chest, Yugi closed his eyes and breathed out slowly. At that moment, Jorann felt a slight shift in the temperature of the room, as if someone had dropped the temperature by a couple of degrees. Jaden seemed to notice this, and appeared almost surprised by it.

"You felt that, did you?" he asked the old man.

"I did. What happened just now?" Jorann asked.

"Whenever Yugi goes into this state, he seems to affect the environment around him in some way," Jaden answered. "Yubel and Yusei have hypothesised that it's because he is tuning in to the natural energies of our world, thus affecting them and thus affecting the perceivable world because of this. However, no one else has really ever reacted to it, so we aren't sure how true that is."

"How come I could feel it then?"

"You can talk to spirits, can't you?"

"In a way."

"You must have a very strong bond with them then," Jaden noted. "Since you're so in tune with your monsters, it's possible that you are also more in tune with the energies of the world. I don't know though; I know very little on the matter to be honest."

"Just guessing then," Jorann said.

"Pretty much, yeah," Jaden answered with a slight chuckle.

Jorann allowed himself a small chuckle before turning back to look at Tanion as he lay in bed, on the precipice of death. We never should've brought him into this cursed world, the old man thought to himself as he took a seat to rest his tiring legs. Felirae insisted that we try and draw people in from Eden to help, but I remember what I thought back then. What good was it going to do? I still don't have an answer to that. Sure, he saved Yusei and I, but to what end? What can we do without the Synchro users we've lost? Was this boy's life really worth ours? Two men from a dying time fighting to return what was lost… Jorann shook his head slightly, dispelling the thoughts somewhat. It had been a long time since he'd stopped to think about the war as a whole, and he wasn't about to fall into that trap again.

"He will be fine," Jaden said assuredly.

"This coming from the guy who has no idea how he's alive in the first place," Jorann said bitterly.

"I'm just trying to be nice," Jaden said, taken aback slightly. "I'm going to check on Yusei."

"Hopefully he's alright too," Jorann said lowly as Jaden left.

Noting that Yugi hadn't moved an inch since he had begun the containment process, Jorann decided to help out how he could. Getting a towel, he took the sheet off Tanion's body and began to soak up the sweat that completely covered him. He knew the right thing to do now was for Tanion to get some fluids into him, but he couldn't see any way of doing so without a drip, so he replaced the sheet and rung the towel out over a basin. I gave him such a hard time when he first arrived, Jorann recalled. He was quite arrogant though. Beating both Darrien and Elise must've inflated his ego a bit. But I'm surprised how quickly he took to our world's way of doing things. I suppose he did keep referring to things like spirits and the like as things 'from the anime', so I suppose he was already used to them a little bit…

"Jaden!" Jorann called out, confident that neither Yugi nor Tanion would complain about the volume of the shout.

"What is it?" he heard the man call back.

"Where's Tanion's deck?" he shouted.

"Bedside draw!"

"Thanks!"

Moving to the opposite side of the bed that Yugi was seated on, he opened the draw to find Tanion's deck pouch seated neatly beside a few books that Yugi had stored in there. Taking the deck out, he fanned the cards on the table, eyeing them off with a keen eye.

"I know you're real," he said to the cards to no reply. "You're real, and yet you came from Eden. I sensed you guys the moment you arrived, and I know why you're important. But why this deck? What's so special about the Knights?"

The cards themselves seemed no different from the cards he and everyone else of this world had, so he decided to turn to the spirits for guidance. Taking up a meditative position as best he could, he allowed his mind to wander, and soon he began to feel something on the edges of his sense, like the whisper of power. There's something there, similar to Stardust Dragon but much less powerful, he realised. These cards… do they have their own Duel Energy? Is this something that has been carried over from Eden, or is this something to do with the Knights themselves?

Jorann opened his eyes. He had learned something from his journey towards the Spirit World, but that something was precious little. If I just had Edilisna and Stardust here, perhaps using their energy and guidance I could get closer to the spirits and thus closer to the truth behind these cards, he theorised. As one of the few people who knew the truth about the cards, if there was even the slightest chance that he could find out what they were, then he had to take it.

"I can't believe neither Yubel nor Jaden remember giving that warning," he said to himself. "Just what the hell are you, Knights?"

A sharp pain suddenly shot through Jorann's head. Crying out in pain and grabbing his right temple, he collapsed sideways as the pain wracked his body. It felt as if a hot needle had pierced his head, driving its way deeper and deeper into his head. The pain grew, his body hot, sweating. Terrified.

Gone.

"What… what the hell was that?" he managed to say as his body adjusted to being normal again.

Looking over at Tanion's deck, he noted that nothing had changed about them, apart from one tiny detail. Righting himself, he picked up the Royal Knight card from the table. It was glowing brightly, almost like it was trying to convey a message. Tanion's favourite monster… his ace… just what do you want from me?

"Jorann?"

The voice came from the hallway, and the old man was shocked to see Jaden standing there, a barely conscious Yusei draped over his shoulder. He hadn't heard them approach, but he noted something odd about the way Jaden was supporting Yusei, and then he saw it. In one hand, he carried a card, glowing just like Royal Knight was.

"You felt it too, Jorann?" Yusei whispered.

"The sudden pain?" he asked. "What was that?"

"Our monsters… calling to us," Yusei rasped, and Jorann noted that he held Stardust Dragon in one hand.

"So that's –"

"Edilisna," Jaden finished. "Take her. Yusei says it's important."

"Why are our cards glowing?" Jorann asked as he joined Yusei beside Tanion's bed.

"Our monsters… coming to his aid," Yusei managed to grate out.

"Tanion? They can sense his pain?"

"They want to save him," Yusei explained quickly. "Stardust… take my hand, Jorann… and hold your dragon."

At that moment, Yugi was suddenly thrown back from Tanion's body, eyes flashing open as he did so. Fortunately, Jaden had been there to stop him flying into the wall, but it was clear that something had gone wrong with whatever he had done. The man's eyes said it all.

"His energy is wild," Yugi gasped. "It's only minutes from tearing him apart."

"We will stop him," Yusei assured them, placing Royal Knight on Tanion's chest.

"What are you going to do?" Yugi asked him.

Yusei simply huffed. "Whatever the spirits tell us."

The lightning strike happened for the 15th time. Inside Tanion's mind, flashes of what he could perceive as reality came into his vision, almost like he was reconnected to the world and then disconnected in an instant. His perception of being a formless nothingness was getting better, although he missed having a body. It was like he was an abstract thought, neither existent nor non-existent within the confines of his own mind. It was terrifying beyond belief, and yet somehow comforting in its simplicity.

A light. It appeared in the distance, like a firefly floating on the very edge of his vision. What did it want? Was it even there? I have to find out, Tanion thought, and then he stopped. Thought? When could I think? Am I becoming myself again? He looked down. Legs. Arms. A body. When did…? The firefly fluttered on the edge of his vision again, urging him to follow. Without a word, Tanion began walking towards it.

A brick path. Unsure of how long he had been following its course, nor if he had always been walking it, Tanion continued to follow it through the darkness. Another lightning strike. The 16th. This time, it seemed to linger the air, the passage of time almost irrelevant. In it, he briefly saw the flash of something in the hands of a young adult male.

"That was me," he spoke aloud. "Was that a memory? Wait, I can speak now?"

Another flash, this one longer the last. In it, he could see a pack being opened, the first card being Marksman Knight. I remember that moment, he thought to himself. I remember laying my eyes on that card and immediately wanting to build the deck. I think Handmaiden and Defender were in that pack too. Good thing they were all commons I suppose…

As he walked along the path, more lightning strikes appeared. Soon, he began to see them not as lightning strikes, but tears in the dark sky, reminding his of his own past. No, not just my past in general, these are the moments that built my deck. He relived every one, feeling every emotion he had the first time. Joy at pulling Shadow of the Knight. Frustration at getting a 5th Defender. Turning to eBay to buy some of the more elusive 3-ofs. Eventually, tears covered the entire sky, all showing different moments throughout the past year of collecting the deck.

"Why am I being shown this?" he wondered aloud. "Am I dead? What is this? Can anyone hear me?"

A roar suddenly sounded in the distance. Wait a minute… I recognise that roar. Increasing his speed, Tanion followed the path until it's end, where it pushed him into a garden of some sorts. Much to his satisfaction and relief, he saw a dragon sitting amongst the roses. Fortunately, he knew the roar of this dragon all too well.

"Stardust," he said with a smile, rubbing its cheek as it lowered its head. "Why are you here buddy?"

The dragon motioned tenderly for Tanion to get on its back, and so he obliged, hanging on as best he could, his memory of riding Edilisna with Jorann coming back in a flurry. Just what is going on? he thought to himself. Is this supposed to be my final ride? I don't understand what is happening. Why is Stardust even here?

Another roar could be heard in the distance. Leaning to his left, he saw another dragon approaching very quickly. However, he quickly realised which dragon is was. White, ancient, and with wavy silver hair atop its head, the dragon was unmistakable. Edilisna too… why are Jorann and Yusei's dragons here? Where is here? I'm so confused…

He shut his eyes in surprise as the darkness suddenly gave way to light, gasping and putting one hand over his face as he did so. As he gave them time to adjust, he slowly began to see what was around him. The wind rushed past him, adrenaline running through his body from head to toe. Below, a picturesque valley spread out as far as the eye could see, with lush fields and deep forests. At the far end of the valley, on the very edge of his field of vision, he could see a castle, one that seemed to be up and running.

"I really am dead aren't I," he said to no one.

He soon realised that the dragons were flying directly for the castle. Keeping his head down and arms tucked tightly around Stardust, he moved with the rhythm of the dragon below him as the descended into the castle courtyard, Edilisna taking perch upon its main tower. After they had successfully landed, Stardust lowered its head to the ground, and Tanion took this a gesture to dismount. Once he had done so, he began to realise exactly where he was.

"That looks just like Charger," he gasped as a horse in the stable on the edge of the courtyard whinnied. "Wait, is this castle…?"

The doors to the courtyard flew upon, and Tanion froze. Walking towards him, in a set of white and golden-trimmed armour, was the Synchro card that he had trusted to finish so many duels in the past. And now, just like he had been on that night on Devil's Lake, was right in front of him. Tanion could tell from the way he was walking. This was the real deal.

"I… it's you," he blurted out, stepping towards Royal Knight. "I don't know what to say."

The Knight stopped in front of Tanion and held out his armoured right arm. Somewhat surprised by the fact that the man hadn't said a word, Tanion took his hand in his own nonetheless, and he immediately felt something warm and rejuvenating surge up his arm and into his body.

"What are you –"

Before he could say another word, everything went white.

"Tanion? Can you hear us? Tanion?"

He felt his chest rising and falling. The soaked bed beneath his back. The sheet pressing against his chest. His eyes flittered open, taking a while to adjust to the world around him. Eventually, he could see that he was in a wooden room of some sorts. Around him, relieved faces filled the room. Jorann. Yusei. Jaden.

"Yu… Yugi?" he said before a violent coughing fit engulfed him.

"Have some water," Yugi said, pouring is down his parched throat as he swallowed greedily.

"What happened?" he said once he had had his fill. "Why can't my body move?"

"It's part of the recovery process," Yugi explained. "You'll slowly regain control, I promise."

Tanion looked around the room, and he realised that something must've happened to him. I remember Jorann and Yusei losing to Seto and Irene, and then we escaped on Charger, he thought, straining his brain. Then… nothing? No, a firefly, and… a castle. Dammit, why is everything so hazy?!

"What happened to me?" Tanion asked.

"I'll explain in time," Jorann said softly. "Rest for now, we're safe here."

"Where is he?"

Jorann simply smiled. "I'll explain everything to you, don't worry. Welcome back, Tanion."

Coming Soon - The Twin Commanders