Okay, I am not 100% sure how long it is between Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's and Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal, but for the sake of the story, it will be a couple hundred years. Especially because of all the technological advancements. Also the story will be about a year after Astral returns to Astral world after his duel with Yuma.

Chapter 1: Her Highness Awakens

Yusei P.O.V.

I have no idea how I found this place, but I feel as if it was here for us... for this cave was illuminated by a strange, blue eerie glow that came from a small pond occupying the center. Natsumi lied on a stone altar to the far right of it, surrounded by blue roses that needed no soil, water, or sun to grow. They just naturally grew there, creating a bed of roses for my little sister. Between that and the Egyptian clothes that she wore, she appeared to be a sleeping goddess. Which she might as well have been, as well as me. Neither of us had aged a day since I fought with death, and neither of us needed food, water, or access to a bathroom. The wants felt natural and we still obeyed them, and I hadn't even realized they weren't they necessary until my "death". I had only been in that state for a few years, Natsumi had been like that for... almost two hundred now. Which is the reason for her Egyptian attire. It was the only thing that remained intact all these years. Her flowers would somehow manage to destroy any other outfit I might try.

Lately she had been stirring in her sleep. Only slight things like eyes squinting tight, a pinky twitching, but something major had started to happen in the last year. Her monsters had started to come out on their own and they filled the surrounding forest, scaring anyone who entered. I couldn't understand them, but they cried out at random times, almost like they were begging for her to return. I could only hope that this was a sign that she would soon awaken from her long slumber.

Yuma P.O.V.

"Sweet move, Bronk!" I yelled out to my best bud as his Tin Archduke destroyed my Achacha Archer, bringing my life points down to 2600.

"You haven't seen anything yet, Yuma!" He replied, looking ready to use a trap or spell he had lying on his field, but a large roar from the nearby forest shook the ground and scared the wits out of both of us.

"W-what was that?" Bronk stuttered.

"I-I don't know..." My mind flashed back to a story Tori told me, something that had happened to her recently. "Actually... I think I might know."

"What?"

"Tori went into that forest the other week with Cathy, looking for something, but about a quarter of a mile in, they came across a real, living Toon Summoned Skull, that what she claimed at least."

"Oh man."

"I didn't believe her until now, but my sister has also has been working on stories about real live duel monsters living in a forest."

"Just imagine how many monsters could be in there," Bronk commented fearfully, "I mean, Toon Summoned Skull is an ancient card. All of the copies have been put in a museum. If a monster that old is wandering the forest, who knows what could be in there."

"Not all the copies were placed in a museum." A voice spoke from behind us. We turned to see Shark standing behind us.

"Hey, Shark! How's it going?" I called out.

"There is one copy they never found, they also never found one Toon World magic card and one Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon they never found. All of these cards belonged to the same person who was last known to use Toon Summoning and Toon Monsters." He continued, ignoring my greeting.

"Who?" Bronk asked.

"Natsumi Calico. Her body, deck, dueling disk, and duel runner went missing the day she was reported dead, along with her adopted brother's. His grave appeared to have been dug up... from the inside." He finished spookily.

"Hey, how do you know so much about this?" I pouted.

"Maybe because I actually pay attention in class instead of showing up late or snoozing through it!" He snapped.

"And how is this relevant to monsters in the forest?" Bronk questioned.

"It isn't, it just annoys me when people can't get their facts straight."

"No wonder why Yuma annoys you so much."

"Hey! What is that supposed to mean?!"

"Nothing, Yuma." Bronk replied.

"What's a duel runner?" He had mentioned it earlier, but I had no clue what that was.

"A duel runner is something that duelist would ride as they dueled during the days of Yusei Fudo, Natsumi Calico, and Jack Atlas. It was called turbo dueling, but it eventually went out of style due to the extra danger that was involved. While in the duel, an attack could cause a duelist to lose control and crash, and at the end, the loser's dueler runner would shut down and lock the wheels, causing a stop that could also lead to a crash if not controlled correctly."

"Wow." Bronk and I said in unison.

A chorus of roars, screeches, and cries shook the ground, originating from the forest. Bronk's and my remaining monsters on the field twisted their heads in the direction of the forest, and once the noise had quieted, in an almost hopeful tone our monsters asked, "Our Queen?"

Even Shark looked startled at the strange phenomena.

"When can monsters speak?" Shark questioned in disbelief.

"I do not believe they can under normal circumstances." An old, but not forgotten voice commented.

I looked to see Astral suddenly appear right next to me.

"Astral!" I cried and I tried to hug him, but I ended up hitting the ground hard, forgetting that I couldn't touch him.

"I missed you too, Yuma." Astral responded calmly, with a soft smile on his face.

"What do you mean "normal circumstances"? What makes now not normal?" Shark asked as I got up and dusted myself off.

"I do not know, but a strange powerful spike of energy occurred. One that Astral World has not detected for well up to 200 years. They are quite similar, except this more recent one appears even more powerful, but both, even the one from 200 years ago, are remaining steady and constant."

"And you think this is the cause of the monsters talking?" Shark continued.

"Yes, one of the elders believe it might be that the most powerful of all monsters has awoken, the ruler of all monsters."

"What about the older spike in energy?" Bronk asked.

"It was too long ago to know what the beings of Astral World thought of it, but we currently believe it may be the ruler's knight or protector. I was sent to investigate exactly what they are. Also, I had spent the most amount of time on Earth and I have connections."

"You mean Yuma?" Shark asked sarcastically.

"How's that a bad thing?" I questioned Shark.

"It's a bad thing because-" Shark suddenly stopped, staring at something behind me, staring at the forest.

I turned around to see a woman, who was obviously distraught, storm out of the forest followed by a man who ran to catch up with her. He quickly grabbed her wrist and pulled her to face him. The four of us were quick to sneak towards them, hiding behind a sign that warned of wildfires.

"I want to see them again, Yusei! I want to see Jesse, Mimi, Kenshin, Sakura, Yuki, Jack, Crow, Akiza, and everyone else again! I want to die! Why can't they just let me die?! I've already completed my destiny!" The woman cried. Her hair was long and golden, she wore strange clothing, and strange gold marks and scars decorated her body. Her outfit consisted of a white tube top with gold lining and a long, flowing white skirt with golden trimming on the waistline and a pair of sandals. There was a deck holder strapped to her right thigh.

"I know." The man, Yusei, replied, pulling the taller woman into his arms. She bent her head down so she could bury her head in his shoulder. "I felt the same way for a while, but the spirits urged me to get you before you were buried too. I still feel the same way, but what if we are here for a reason? Death told me that you still had much to give to the world." He wore a strange outfit as well. He was wearing a long-sleeved blue jacket with a high collar and amber gems, over a sleeveless black shirt with a red symbol, and wears gloves below his elbows with an amber gem on them, black jeans with amber knee pads, a belt with two Deck holsters, and calf-high motorcycle boots.

"I don't want to give any more, Yusei! I've given enough, don't you think? I just want to see my husband, my children, my grandchildren, my great grandchildren, and my friends again." She sobbed into his shoulder.

"You have given so much, Natsumi." Yusei assured her.

Bronk, Shark, and I exchanged glances. Yusei and Natsumi, Natsumi and Yusei. Coincidence? I think not.

Astral noticed our exchanged glance and having not been present for that conversation asked, "Why are you exchanging glances?"

Natsumi and Yusei whipped around and saw us peaking from behind the poster board. We hid behind it.

"Crap! Yuma, I thought only a few people could see and hear Astral." Shark commented harshly.

"I thought so too."I agreed, scared of the people who talked about death as if it were an actual person and saying that they wish they were dead. I mean, how much more depressing and creepy can you get?

"Yusei, why am I dressed like a freaking Egyptian?!" She shouted. "Those kids just saw me with barely anything on!"

"You just noticed?! After storming through the forest, in that outfit, you just barely noticed?!" Yusei retorted.

"Well, I was just trying to get over the fact that I took a two hundred year long nap instead of dying peacefully in my sleep to go see my loved ones!"

"Aren't I one of your loved ones?!"

"Of course, you idiot! Now why am I freaking dressed like an Egyptian?!"

"What's an Egyptian?" I whispered to Shark.

"Pay attention in class and you might know, and right now isn't exactly the right time to discuss that." He hissed.

"Because your roses tore everything else apart!"

"How do flowers destroy clothing?!"

"I don't know! They're your freaking flowers! I didn't plant them! They weren't already there! I just laid you down on the altar and they magically bloomed around and underneath you!"

"I think it is time we stepped in." Astral commented.

"Why?" I asked.

"Because we are the ones who were eavesdropping and turned their "them" time into a fight."

"Ugh, fine." I pouted.

The four of us stepped out from our hiding place and the arguing pair stopped instantly. They looked torn between intimidating us with hard glares or trying to laugh the whole thing off, causing them to have a weird scowl/grimace on their face.

"Sorry if we interrupted anything-" Astral began, since they obviously could hear him.

Natsumi waved it off and gave a goofy smile and laughed, "Oh, you didn't interrupt anything! My brother and I are just filming for a school history project. It's based off of what a historical figure(s) would do if they were still around."

"Really? Sounds awesome! Send me the link when you're done!" I exclaimed.

"Yeah, the only idiot who would fall for that is Yuma." Shark commented flatly.

"Whaaat? You mean this isn't for a history report?"

"Yuma..." Astral sighed.

Both historical figures had fallen into stern and cold expressions, their bodies matching their grim faces. Even I could tell that they were debating on what to do with us. The air was filled with so much nervousness and tension you could only cut it with a butcher's knife.

"H-hey, if it makes you feel any better, we promise not to tell anyone." Bronk offered nervously.

"I think I know of a way we can make sure you are not lying." Natsumi commented grimly.

"What?" I asked.

"Don't do it, Natsumi." Yusei discouraged.

"Nin-Ken Dog, come out and serve your queen." She commanded.

Four stars shot out from her deck and shined brightly. All of a sudden and dog/human ninja thing was kneeling in front of her.

"It has been too long, my highness. How may I serve you?" It questioned with reverence.

"Even though you have metamorphosed, you still have the abilities of a dog, right?"

"Yes, mi'lady."

"So, could your nose detect if someone was lying? Or at least judge their sincerity?"

"If that is what you wish."

"It is. Smell these humans as they vow to secrecy, and whatever that glowy, floaty fellow is."

"As you wish."

We each vowed not to reveal their existence without their permission, including Astral, though the dog/man/ninja looked kind of perplexed as he sniffed Astral. When the dog/man/ninja sniffed me, it felt very real. The cold, wet nose was no projection.

"Wait a second, are you the reason the forest has become full of monsters that are real?"I asked.

Natsumi looked confused and was about to answer when Yusei spoke first.

"Yes, it was her." He confirmed to us and then turned to Natsumi. "A few months ago you started to summon monsters from your deck in your sleep. I could do nothing to stop them, but they didn't cause any casualties, they just chased away anyone who entered the forest."

Natsumi still looked torn, but pushed it aside and turned to her monster.

"Their results?"

"All of them told the truth. None intend to betray you. The floating one smells very strange however."

"Makes sense," She shrugged, "I'm guessing he's either an alien or a being from another dimension. I don't sense that a monster named Astral exists."

"So, you can make monsters become real?" Astral questioned.

"Technically, monsters already exist in the Duel Monsters Spirit World, I just make them physically exist in our world." She explained.

"What are we going to do, Natsumi?" Yusei asked. "We can't stay in that cave forever, but we have no way of sustaining ourselves in this world."

"You can stay at my place!" I exclaimed.

"Yuma, shouldn't you ask your parents first?" Astral asked.

"Oh, yeah."

Sorry for the weird ending, but I had to stop or I would go on forever. Please be patient with me on updates. I am on winter break, but I am writing two other stories, one is on a different account, and I also am working on writing a book that I will hopefully have published before I graduate high school. Point is, I have a buttload of stuff to worry about even when I am not on vacation, so please have patience.