Yūgi had trekked down the castle stairs and around one of its sides before he spotted Kaiba's lifeless body. Yūgi bent down and carefully took Kaiba's deck out of the duel disk. Many of the cards were now spattered with Kaiba's blood, but Yūgi knew he couldn't leave this deck here. This deck was special. This deck was built by Kaiba's hands. Not to mention it also contained the three legendary Blue-Eyes White Dragons. Yūgi had been considering what to do with this deck the whole journey down, and only one option felt right. Mokuba, Yugi thought. Mokuba should have this. Yūgi tried to reach out for the spirit to get his opinion, but he still couldn't sense him. I must have to go into the puzzle to find him. I can't do that right now. I'll just have to meet Pegasus alone.

Yūgi joined the others waiting at the castle entrance, but someone else was there talking in a heated conversation with Joey.

"He'll be coming back eventually. You should probably just ask him," Joey said.

"I certainly will!" Mai Valentine responded.

"I guess you already told her what happened," Yūgi said, announcing his presence to the group. They all turned to look at him.

"Tell me you didn't really kill the president of Kaiba Corp!" Mai shouted.

Yūgi glanced away. He wasn't expecting to explain his other self's actions again. Instead, he held out the blood-stained cards face up to show one of Kaiba's Blue-Eyes. Mai looked at it in shock. Yūgi didn't know what to do if she asked more questions.

"I tried to save him," Yūgi said, hoping Mai wouldn't press him about it further.

"So, that's what you were doing," Tristan said, finally understanding. Yūgi nodded sombrely.

"And you already have 10 star chips!" Mai pointed out examining his duel glove.

"Fifteen, if you count Kaiba's," Yūgi corrected. Yūgi saw the look of disappointment on Mai's face, and glanced away.

"We should probably head into da castle," Joey said, which Yūgi appreciated. Maybe this would finally stop everyone from throwing questions at him as they enter the castle's courtyard. They all walked to the castle's front door in silence and saw one of Pegasus' guards standing there.

"Oh, no! No way you brats won 10 star chips each!" the guard exclaimed.

"Oh, boy," Téa groaned.

"Get lost!" the guard growled. "This isn't some clubhouse. It's a place reserved for the duelling elite."

"Mmm, I guess that means we'll fit right in," Mai said, showing off her duelling glove to guard. Joey and Yūgi followed her lead, proving they were top duelists. The guard stood in shock, clearly lost for words.

"Next time, don't underestimate someone based on their looks," Joey said, uncharacteristically solemn.

Mai placed the star chips in the custom lock and turned the dial. The door accepted the star chips and opened up to reveal a long hallway. Mai walked inside with Joey and Yūgi following but as the others tried to enter, the guard blocked the path.

"No, no, no!" The guard exclaimed. "You three don't even have duelling gloves." Bakura looked away sheepishly, while Tristan looked furious.

Great, another problem, Yūgi thought. Man, did he want this day to be over.

"But, you have to let us in," Téa pleaded. "We're the cheerleaders."

"Cheer what!?" The guard asked, livid. "What do you losers think this is, a high school football game!? No star chips, no entry! You got that?"

"You're saying you couldn't do us this one little favour?" Mai asked in a sweet tone.

Looks like Mai is back to here old tricks, Yūgi thought.

"Not even for me? Hmm?" Mai continued.

"Uh… absolutely not," the guard said turning around to face her. "Pegasus gave me explicit instructions not to let anyone—" but before he could finish his sentence, his friends had seized upon Mai's deception and ran around the guard and into the castle.

"What? Hey!"

By that time, Mai was already running inside and Yūgi, with the help of his friends, was closing the doors on the guard. Yūgi was hoping that the only way in was to have 10 star chips and he doubted that guard had any. Joey pulled down a metal locking system, that appeared to lock the door from the inside.

"Stop!" the guard called, his voice slightly muffled as the doors closed on him. He started saying something else while bashing on the door, but Yūgi had already walked off with his friends behind him.

The sooner I find Pegasus, the sooner I can find my grandpa and Mokuba, Yūgi thought. After walking through hallways and up a flight of stairs, they found themselves on an indoor balcony staring at a familiar face.

"Bandit Keith," Joey said. "I can't stand dis guy." Yūgi didn't like him ether. The last time they had met that sunglasses-wearing thug, he had trapped them in a cave.

"If it isn't big, tough Joey and his whole crew of duelin' dummies," Bandit Keith taunted. Yūgi could sense Joey was about to make one of his stupid decisions again.

"You slime bucket!" Joey growled. "I've been waitin' to find ya ever since ya left us trapped in dat cave." Joey ran forward too fast for Yūgi to react, and threw a punch at the American duelist. Bandit Keith block the attack and caught Joey's hand with superior reflexes.

"Please, please!" Pegasus interrupted, braking up the fight. "Save you energy for the games tomorrow."

The group turned to look at Pegasus, who they hadn't noticed was standing on another balcony across from them. His long, white hair covered his left eye but Yūgi knew what was hiding under there.

"Welcome to the final phase of the duelist kingdom competition! Of course, it's getting a bit late now, but I assure you that tomorrow we will have named the duelist kingdom champion! I have prepared you all accommodation for the night and a splendid dinner before the semi-finals in the morning. I trust that you all have your playoff entry cards. These, of course, being Glory of the King's Hand and Glory of the King's Opposite Hand."

Pegasus held up two familiar-looking cards. One showed the art of a pile of golden coins and jewels. The other was completely blank. Just a white background. The only other thing on the card was its name.

"Glory of the King's Hand is needed to claim the ¥3,000,000 prize and Glory of the King's Opposite Hand, well... that's to challenge me in the finals."

So that's what they're for, Yugi thought. He had found it weird that those cards were included in the invitation.

"You must have one of these to participate in the final tournament," Pegasus continued. "Those without them will be disqualified." Pegasus moved his gaze from Bandit Keith to stare at Joey.

Does Pegasus already know that Joey doesn't have one, Yūgi thought. Maybe his millennium eye can do more than I thought.

"But, of course, you four should have nothing to worry about," Pegasus said, maintaining his jokey, confident demeanour. "So, please, relax. Enjoy the fabulous dinner I have prepared, so you all can be at your duelling best for tomorrow's games!"

Pegasus walked away and out of sight. Yūgi looked over at Joey who was clearly worried about not having either card. Yūgi reached into his pocket and pulled out the Glory of the King's Hand card.

"Here," Yūgi said, handing the card to Joey.

"Yūg, I can't take dat card," Joey said. "You need it."

"The rules never said we needed both cards to compete, so we each only need one," Yūgi explained.

"Yeah," Joey said, hesitantly.

"If you give up now, who's going to save your sister?" Yūgi asked. "You should at least try to win the prize money. And besides, Joey, think about the odds. If we're both in the tournament, it doubles our chances of winning the entire thing. So, take it."

"Take it," Téa encouraged.

"Okay," Joey said, reaching out his hand to grab the card. "You're a real pal, Yūgi." Yūgi felt the same way about Joey.

"Finalists," interrupted a new voice. "I am Croquet. Maximillion Pegasus asked that I show you all the way to the dinner room."

Yūgi had been watching Joey and Tristan devour the expensive assortment of foods. However, Yūgi himself didn't feel that hungry. He was pretty sure that Téa had been the only one to notice.

"Attention, duelists!" Croquet announced suddenly. "To make tomorrow's tournament interesting, your host has added a special ingredient to your soup."

Yūgi looked down and to his surprise, a golden eye similar to Pegasus' emerged from his soup. Based on the reactions of the other three finalists, they had got one too.

"Could dis day get any worse?" Joey muttered.

"Open up the eye and look inside it, if you will," Croquet suggested. "Each of you has been randomly assigned a letter." Yūgi obeyed Croquet's instructions and found a small piece of paper inside the eye. He unfolded it, revealing the letter A written there.

"What's this for?" Yūgi asked.

"And now, the island's computer will pair up the letters to determine tomorrow's duel match-ups."

"Gee," Téa thought out loud, "I wonder who's going to face who?"

A giant computer behind Croquet began showing the draw for the duels that would take place tomorrow. "And tomorrow's duels are as follows: A versus B. C versus D."

"Who has C?" Joey stood up and asked.

"Me, runt," Bandit Keith responded.

That must mean Mai's got B, Yūgi thought.

"Alright!" Joey cheered. "It's payback for trapping us in dat cave."

"Once I crush you, you'll wish you were still in that cave," Bandit Keith retorted.

Yūgi looked over at Mai, confirming that she indeed was holding B.

"Looks like it's you and me, Mai," Yūgi stated.

"I'm looking forward to this duel," Mai commented.

"Yeah, me too," said Yūgi, "and may the best duelist win."

Yūgi may have sounded confident but inside, he was second-guessing himself. He still hadn't talked to the spirit yet. Yūgi knew he couldn't duel Mai without him. What if he won't duel? Yūgi thought.

"The duels are set," Croquet began. "Yūgi Mutō versus Mai Valentine, and Bandit Keith versus Joey Wheeler. Please enjoy the rest of this feast because for three of you tomorrow, your long journey will end in failure."

After dinner, Yūgi headed into his reserved room, finally getting a moment to himself. He, plus his friends and the other competitors, would be staying in this wing of the castle for the remainder of the duelist kingdom tournament. He sat down on the soft bed, taking in the silence. He felt like just going to sleep, but deep inside he knew that wasn't going to happen.

Despite how tired he felt, sleep was the furthest thing from his mind. He had to talk to the spirit. Now. He needed to make sure that the spirit would actually come out of the puzzle again. Yūgi was a competent duelist in his own right, but the spirit seemed to be a master of his craft. If Yūgi was going to win back his grandpa's soul from Pegasus, he was going to need the spirit to duel for him.

He could tell that there was a connection between himself and the spirit, as if they shared some kind of mental link. Whatever this link was, it allowed the spirit to leave the puzzle and temporarily take over his body whenever he was duelling, or in some kind of peril. If the spirit was able to exit the puzzle, at least for a time, then surely it was possible for Yūgi to enter the puzzle himself using their connection. It would probably take a lot of willpower, but Yūgi figured that if the spirit could do it, he could too.

Well, other self, I'm coming to get you, Yūgi thought. Yūgi closed his eyes, focusing hard. I want to enter the puzzle. I want to enter the puzzle...

When Yūgi opened his eyes, disappointment immediately washed over him. He hadn't even moved from his position on the bed. Then, with a start, he realised he wasn't where he was before. He was in his bedroom. Not the one he was staying in temporarily in Pegasus' castle, but his actual bedroom at home, above Grandpa's game shop. How had he not noticed sooner? However, something was wrong.

Yūgi stood up and began looking around, trying to find out what was different. Though the room felt familiar, there were slight changes from his actual room. Noticeably, small objects, like pens, were missing from his desk, and the same of his shelves. He also realised his door was a different colour. Weird, Yūgi thought. Where am I?

He opened the door hoping to find out more, but was greeted by a strange sight. It opened into a long corridor stretching out from his right, with a wall marking the end of the corridor to his left. Just across from him was a room made of bricks and covered in all sorts of green mosses. The door to that room bore a golden eye symbol on it's front. He looked down the corridor to see if there were more rooms, but there wasn't. Just an endless corridor that seemingly went on forever.

Yūgi slowly made his way towards the door with the eye on it, but as he got closer, he realised there was no handle. Maybe you just push it? Yūgi thought. But before he could even attempt that, the door slowly opened all on its own.

The inside of the room was nothing like Yūgi had ever seen before. There was no furniture. The room was instead made entirely out of stone. There were doors everywhere he looked. A series of staircases led up to more doors, perhaps to other rooms, while others clearly led nowhere. Yūgi noticed some of the staircases were sideways or upside down, as were the doors. Moss covered everything from the ground to the walls. Yūgi got the distinct impression that this was one of those impossible mazes. He entered cautiously, scanning the area. His footsteps echoed through the empty chamber.

"Hello?" Yūgi asked, then almost immediately regretted opening his mouth. What if there was something dangerous in here? Suddenly, a door to his left creaked open, revealing a figure standing there. They quickly closed the door behind them, preventing Yūgi from seeing inside. Yūgi didn't know what to do. He found himself backing up a couple of steps, ready to run at any moment.

"So, you figured out how to enter the puzzle," said a familiar voice. Yūgi's suspicions were confirmed. The spirit walked into the light.

Even in the puzzle he has my form, Yūgi thought. As the spirit got closer, Yūgi noticed his eyes were red, as if he had just been crying. Yūgi tried to sense the spirit's feelings. but couldn't read his thoughts. He quickly realised he mustn't be able to do so in this form.

"This is what the inside of the puzzle looks like?" Yūgi asked.

"This is my room," the spirit explained. "I assume you started in yours," he added, gesturing to the room across the hall.

Yūgi wasn't sure he fully understood what the spirit meant by that, but he nodded anyway. He was still trying to wrap his head around this. What was this place? Was this some kind of spirit realm? Yūgi had so many questions for the spirit and yet, he felt there were more pressing matters at hand.

"We're in the finals now," Yūgi said, trying to change subject. The spirit simply looked away. "You are going to help me right?" Yùgi asked. Again, the spirit stayed quiet. "You know—" Yūgi was about to use the spirit's name, but quickly realised he had never even asked for it. "I've been so stupid. I haven't even asked you for your name yet."

The spirit looked up at him with a pained expression. "I have been called many things through the ages: Pharaoh, Yu-Gi-Oh, but you can call me Yami," the spirit said.

"Yami?" Yūgi asked. "Doesn't that just mean darkness?"

The spirit looked sorrowful. "In all truth," he explained, "I do not know my real name."

Yūgi had never even thought about that before. The spirit had told him he had no memories before Yūgi had put the millennium puzzle back together, but for some reason Yūgi hadn't thought of that.

"Well, Yami," Yūgi began, "you don't have to have a real name for you to be my friend."

He tried using the spirit's suggested name in the hopes of reassuring him. From his expression, Yūgi couldn't tell if it had worked or not.

"Friend?"

"Yeah!"

Yūgi couldn't believe the spirit was actually questioning this.

"Yūgi, we barely know each other. You only assembled the millennium puzzle a few weeks ago."

"That's about as long as I've known Joey. Remember? In fact, I'm pretty sure you made that happen."

"I don't remember doing something like that."

"Well, when I first began assembling the puzzle, I wished that it would give me a best friend. Grandpa said that the ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics stated that whoever managed to complete the puzzle would have their wish granted."

The spirit gave Yūgi a half-hearted smile.

"You're not a bad person," Yūgi said. "Have you forgotten all the things you've done for me already? You gave me the courage to make friends with Tristan. Remember how I had my doubts about him?"

"You sure did, though I'm still not sure why."

"Oh, come on!" Yūgi complained. "Just because Joey suddenly had a change of heart doesn't mean that Tristan would too."

The spirit chuckled slightly at Yūgi's comment. It was the first time he'd let his guard down since Kaiba's death. Yūgi could tell he was starting to relax more, so he continued. "You helped save Téa from that creep. You comforted me after Pegasus took Grandpa's soul. It was you who convinced me we should go to duelist kingdom in the first place, and you were the one who saved all of us when we fought that 'other Bakura' in a shadow game."

Yūgi paused for a minute to let the spirit take it all in. "You will be there to help me against Mai too, right?"

Yūgi could tell this change of subject had upset the spirit in some way.

"Only if you'll let me, Yūgi. I vow never to go against your wishes again."

Judging by his tone, Yūgi could tell that the spirit really meant what he said. For the first time since his duel with Kaiba, Yūgi felt a renewed sense of trust in the spirit. The spirit's name might have been darkness but for some reason, Yūgi got the impression that he wasn't as bad or as evil as those that gave him that name claimed. Besides, if they had any chance of bringing justice to Pegasus, then they were going to have to work together.

"Good, because I can't rescue Grandpa without you."

When Yūgi had returned to his body, it was very late. He had been in the puzzle for longer than he expected. He glanced around, and sure enough he found the spirit leaning against the wall of the bedroom.

"You should probably get some sleep, Yūgi" his other self suggested.

"Good plan," Yūgi said. This time he hadn't bothered with their mental link. Yūgi lay down trying to relax. He closed his eyes hoping to drift away into sleep.

Yūgi woke up to a familiar voice calling his name.

"Yūgi. Yūgi!"

Yūgi gasped when he realised who it was.

"Grandpa! Is that you?" Yūgi asked. He frantically sat up and scanned the room. However, when he did so, there was no one in sight. Where did that voice come from? Yūgi thought. The voice had sounded weirdly echoey.

"Yūgi, I must speak with you."

There it was again. That was definitely the sound of Yūgi's grandpa.

"Grandpa, where are you!?"

"Follow my voice."

Yūgi could tell the voice's origin wasn't in his room. It was coming from outside it. He got up and quickly opened the door into the corridor. He looked to his right, but it was just an empty corridor. No sign of his grandfather at all.

"Grandpa!"

"Yūgi, beware of Pegasus."

Yūgi turned around when he realised the voice was coming from behind him.

"You must stop him, or he could destroy the entire world."

"Pegasus?" Yūgi asked, following the voice down the corridor. He couldn't possibly have that power, Yūgi thought.

Yūgi followed the voice outside into one of the castle's courtyards. The voice was close now. However, there was still no sign of Yūgi's grandfather.

"Grandpa! Where are you? I can't find you!"

"Yūgi! Beware of Pegasus," the voice repeated.

Now, the voice sounded like it was just below him. Yūgi looked down, but saw only a duel monsters playing card. This card had a picture of his grandfather where the monster would normally be.

"Pegasus wields shadow powers of incredible strength, much stronger than anyone could have imagined."

The voice appeared to be coming from the card. Yūgi knelt down to pick up the card with his grandpa's face on it.

"But how? How's that possible? Grandpa, tell me, how can Pegasus' shadow magic still be growing in power?"

"Every soul he traps in the shadow realm increases his strength."

"Wait, but hasn't he only trapped you!?"

Suddenly, Grandpa's card was thrust out of Yūgi's hands. Yūgi watched in horror as the card flew backwards out of his grasp and attached itself onto a cross. There was a second cross too, right next to Grandpa's, also with a card attached. To Yūgi's astonishment, it was Mokuba. He appeared to be trapped in a playing card just like Grandpa. Did Pegasus steal Mokuba's soul too? Yūgi thought. "This is wrong! This is terrible!"

"Save me, Yūgi!" Mokuba called out. "Otherwise, you'll be next. He wants you, Yūgi!"

"Why is Pegasus after me!?" Yūgi asked. He felt dizzy. He felt breathless.

"Pegasus unlocked tremendous magic with a single millennium item," Grandpa explained. "How much power do you think he will wield if he has your puzzle?"

Realisation filled Yūgi's mind. It had all been for me, Yūgi thought. The tournament, kidnapping Grandpa's soul. It's all been to get me to face Pegasus in the finals so he could steal my puzzle.

"Grandpa, how can I stop Pegasus?" Yūgi asked.

"Just as Pegasus has learned to harness the magic of his millennium eye, you must also learn to control the power of your own millennium item," Grandpa explained.

"My puzzle?" Yūgi couldn't think of any power that the puzzle could possess.

"Yes, Yūgi," Grandpa continued, "your millennium puzzle."

Apart from containing my other self inside, the puzzle doesn't have another power, Yūgi thought. Unless he means the wish, but I've already made it!

"But how?" Yūgi asked.

"That, you must discover on your own," Grandpa explained. "Whatever it takes, Pegasus must be defeated. If he wins, with his unlimited shadow powers and the magic of the millennium items, he can unleash armageddon upon the entire world!"

Suddenly, blue flames burst out from the ground. Yūgi had to duck and cover his eyes as the light from the flames illuminated the entire courtyard in bright blue. He could feel the heat from the inferno on his skin as the blaze set fire to both crosses. The blue flames combined into an enormous wall of fire, preventing Yūgi from reaching the cross that had the playing card with his grandfather's face on it.

"Grandpa!" Yūgi yelled, desperation in his voice.

"You can do this, Yūgi! I believe in you!" Grandpa's voice echoed. "Yūgi!"

"Grandpa!" Yūgi cried again. His words were in vain. There was nothing he could do. A wave of panic swept through his entire body. His grandfather was so close yet so far. He couldn't reach him. The flames were too hot.

"Unlock the secret of the millennium puzzle. Only then can you defeat Pegasus."

Grandpa's words were still vague and confusing. Yūgi was too frightened to work out what it all meant. What was Grandpa trying to say? What secrets did the millennium puzzle hold?

"Yūgi!" he heard Mokuba cry. The flames were starting to consume the pair of crosses right in front of Yūgi's eyes. All he could do was watch.

"The millennium puzzle, Yūgi," Grandpa repeated.

Grandpa seemed insistent, but what did he mean? What did the millennium puzzle have to do with all of this? Was the millennium puzzle the key to restoring Grandpa's soul? If it was, then how?

Before Yūgi had a chance to take this all in, the blue flames burned through the top of the crosses and ascended high into the air. The playing cards with Grandpa and Mokuba on them were engulfed in the giant blaze. Yūgi was terrified, but his legs wouldn't allow him to move. He couldn't walk, nor could he run. All he could do was scream.

"Grandpa!"

Yūgi was left standing as the entire courtyard began to shift and stretch out in front of him, disappearing into the distance. The whole world vanished into darkness before he suddenly awoke in a state of terror. He flung his eyes open and found himself sitting up in bed. Panting, Yūgi tried desperately to regain his breath. He was back in the bedroom he'd been assigned to by Pegasus. As he sucked in deep breaths, Yūgi could now hear another voice calling his name. A familiar voice. A calming voice.

"Yūgi," he said, "are you alright?"

The spirit was standing over him, slight panic in his eyes. Yūgi finally caught his breath. Slowly breathing in and out, he looked over at the spirit.

"I'm okay," Yūgi said. "It—it was all just a dream. A bad dream."

Yūgi tried to sound confident in an attempt to reassure the spirit, but as soon as the words left his mouth, he already had his doubt. The flames, Yūgi thought. It felt so real. Even now he felt like the flames were still burning his skin.

The spirit placed a hand on Yūgi's shoulder. "Do you… want to talk about it?" he asked.

Yūgi glanced out his window. It was still dark out, but he felt certain he wasn't getting back to sleep anytime soon.

"Was it about Kaiba?"

Yūgi subconsciously flinched at the sound of Kaiba's name. Besides the fact that Kaiba's deck now sat on the cabinet in the room, he hadn't needed to think about what had happened for a while. He hadn't wanted to think about it.

"No!" Yūgi quickly blurted out. "I mean, no, it's...it's not that. It was about my grandpa."

Yūgi was hoping this would change the subject.

"Oh," the spirit commented, though by his expression, it was clear that he thought Yūgi was lying.

"It didn't feel like an ordinary dream though," Yūgi explained. "I don't know how, but I know Grandpa was trying to send me a message from the shadow realm."

"How is that possible?" the spirit asked.

"I don't know," Yūgi pondered. His thoughts turned to the millennium puzzle and the power that Grandpa mentioned. "Hey, Yami?" he asked, turning to face the spirit, who was clearly taken aback by the use of his placeholder name. "What?" Yūgi asked. "Do you not want me to call you that?"

"No, it's fine" said the spirit. "Just... different."

Yūgi could tell that the spirit was starting to feel more at ease. He seemed to appreciate how much Yūgi accepted him, despite the fact that neither of them knew who he really was. Yūgi got the impression that simply by having a name, the spirit felt more like him. More human. To Yūgi, it felt like the spirit was slowly becoming more hopeful.

"Anyway," Yūgi continued. "I was wondering if you knew anything about the millennium puzzle."

"I'm afraid I might know less about the puzzle than you do," Yami answered. "I didn't even know about the promise of a wish until you told me."

"I was afraid of that," Yūgi sighed.

"Why did you want to know?" Yami asked.

"Well, in my dream, Grandpa told me that I had to unlock the secret power of my millennium puzzle to defeat Pegasus," Yūgi explained.

Yami thought hard about this. "I'm sorry, Yūgi, but even I don't know all of the powers the millennium puzzle possess."

"Then, I guess we'll just have to work it out together," Yūgi said.

"I suppose we will," Yami agreed.