Out of the Darkness/Dark Side of Dimensions

Prologue

He had not slept well in the last few weeks. The dark circles under his eyes were permanently tattooed onto his face, and the shadows in his eyes could not be dispelled with his usual passion. His sleep was an endless cycle of restless nightmares, a mental state teetering on collapse like a shaking house of cards.

The person whose footsteps had marked out his path to success for him was gone now. The person who had become the center of his obsession as well as the rock on which he rested, was gone. No matter how confusing life became, he needed only to think of this person to focus his mind and push through the obstacles in his way. No matter how alone he felt, he needed only to face this person to see the same pride and burning desire to win reflected in his eyes, as well as the same crippling fear of failure that nipped at their heels like hellhounds. That person was gone, and he was alone now. in his place was a foreigner whose mind he did not know and whose methods he was unprepared against. In his place was someone who shined like the sun and smiled with its warmth and seemed to carry no demons inside his heart. He had never been fully aware of his dependency on that person, but now it was painfully obvious.

It was like he himself had died. Without that person to reflect his soul, he traversed through life like a ghost without feet to rest on solid ground. He spoke little, ate little, and slept even less. Gradually he dwindled, trapped in a spiral of despair he could not escape from or fully understand. He was painfully, painfully alone.

His brother tried to talk to him, tried to help him sleep, but nothing worked. When he caught himself almost taking a near-fatal dose of sleeping pills out of desperation, he stopped. He flushed the pills down the toilet, and turned on the light.

The small part of himself that still carried a glimmer of life within it (he suspected it was his conscience) began to imagine what the others would say if they saw him out. What his brother would say. What the other person would say.

He had no choice, he growled aloud. He would have no peace otherwise if this terrible dread didn't stop devouring him from the inside out. He turned on the computer, and he began to work.

He was too important to follow that person to the other side. There were a lot of people relying on him. So the only solution would be to drag the other person back.

Chapter 1

"Yugi, you're going to be late!" Solomon called up the stairs. He waited for a reply but nothing came. After a bit longer, he sighed and trudged up the stairs before turning to the small bathroom.

Sure enough, there was Yugi staring in confusion at his own reflection while his hands constantly fiddled with his bangs. He was the same height as Atem now, and his voice and appearance had also followed suit.

"Sorry Grandpa, I'll be right there." Yugi shot Solomon a sideways glance and Solomon's heart jumped in shock. Yugi's hand dropped and his bangs fell back down his face. Yugi gave him a bittersweet smile.

"I really look like him now, huh?" Yugi asked. Solomon shook his head.

"When we knew him, he was using your body," Solomon replied. "You're still my Yugi." Yugi smiled at that and checked his phone. He gasped.

"Now I will be late," he muttered before barreling past his grandpa and running out the door. Solomon ran after him but before he could say anything Yugi was gone. He sighed.

"He'll probably run into Téa on the way..."

Yugi let his mind go blank as his feet went on autopilot. He joined the crowds of people heading off to work and school and relaxed. Despite his dramatic hair and celebrity status, no one paid him any mind. He rounded the corner and saw into Téa waiting up ahead on some steps. Yugi cleared his throat and slowed his steps.

"Téa," he announced.

Téa looked over at him and faltered. "Good morning Yugi," she replied.

He smirked and dropped his head down. "Are you sure about that?"

Téa stared at him in confusion. A second later Yugi burst into laughter and Téa let out a squawk of indignation.

"Yugi! You do this all this time!"

"Sorry Téa!" Yugi giggled. Téa huffed with embarrassment. "Let's hurry." The two of them sped off to class.

When they got there, Joey and Tristan were waiting at the gate. Joey sported a fresh bruise on his knee and bike had a few new scratches. Yugi marched up to them and slapped Joey on the back.

"What happened to you Joey?" Téa asked.

Joey shrugged. "I fell off my bike."

"What took you so long?" Tristan asked.

"Getting used to being alive takes a while, you know." Joey and Tristan both jumped and then pounced on Yugi. Tristan pulled Yugi back while Joey ruffled Yugi's bangs.

"We know it's you Yugi!" Joey shouted in mock anger. Yugi fell into helpless laughter as his friends retaliated by tickling him.

"No more, no more!" Yugi squirmed out if their reach and raced up ahead. He was still laughing joyously when he broke through the mob of girls in front of Ryou and pulled him to safety.

"Thanks Yugi!"

"No problem Ryou!" Yugi didn't bother trying to prank Ryou. There was an unspoken agreement between them, and Yugi suspected Ryou had privately sworn to never pretend the spirit of the Millennium Ring was back. Like Yugi, Ryou's face had changed as he grew older to more resemble his darker half but his eyes were clear and innocent unlike the spirit's malevolent orbs. As they headed into class, Yugi wondered if Ryou also stared at himself in the mirror, thinking about what they had lost.

The bell rang signaling it was time for lunch, so Yugi and his friends filed out of the classroom behind their classmates and headed up to the roof as usual.

"How have your college applications been going Téa?" Yugi asked.

Téa sighed. "It's a lot of work for each one. All the schools want personalized essays. And I'm still studying English."

"You have the best English grades in our school, you'll be fine." Tristan took a drink from his water bottle before he continued. "At least you'll probably get a scholarship. I won't be able to afford college at this rate."

"Tristan..." Yugi started but Tristan held his hand up.

"I said I'll think about it, but I don't want to take your money Yugi. You could use it to go to college too." Tristan sighed. "I guess I'm stuck with my old man's business after all."

"I just want to help with the game shop, and learn more about games. One day I want to make my own," Yugi said quietly. "One that can bring people together the way Duel Monsters has."

His friends all grinned at that. "We know you can do it," Joey replied. "Even if I wish you'd still become a pro duelist with me."

Yugi shook his head. "I already have the King of Games title. I'll have plenty of chances to duel anyway when I have to defend my title from Kaiba. Speaking of which, did Kaiba-kun come to school today?" Yugi asked.

Joey scratched his head. "He hasn't been here for a few days now."

Yugi sighed. "I called him yesterday but he didn't answer."

"Try calling Mokuba," Téa suggested.

"I'll try calling Kaiba again first," Yugi pulled out his cell phone. A few seconds later, KaibaCorp's dramatic Duel Disk jingle came on and Yugi's friends laughed.

Yugi heard a click. "Yugi," Kaiba's voice was coarse and unused like a rusty door.

"Kaiba-kun! Are you sick? You've missed almost a week of classes now; do you want to borrow my notes?"

"No," Kaiba replied tersely.

"Oh," Yugi said. "Have you been sick the last few days? Should we come visit you?"

"No."

"Ok…are you going to make up your classwork?"

"No. I don't care about school."

Yugi's eyes narrowed. "Kaiba-kun, you have to finish school to stay as Mokuba's guardian. What are you doing that's so-"

"Yugi," and his name was said with such disgust that Yugi paused. "Don't be deluded into thinking you have any right to tell me what to do. As far as I'm concerned, you're a 'nobody.' Don't call me again." Then he hung up.

Yugi lowered the phone from his ear, forehead furrowed in confusion.

"Yugi? What did he say?" Joey asked. Yugi didn't reply.

He was about to dial another number when the bell rang. Students began to file back inside. Yugi sighed.

He waved off his friends. "He's fine. I'll deal with this after school."

Yugi spun his pencil absentmindedly, his eyes unfocused as the Teacher lectured on. His notebook sat untouched. Although his body sat in Domino, his mind had flown hundreds of miles away, back to Egypt…

There is no 'Other Yugi' anymore. You are the only Yugi in the whole world…

It is a message. The dead should not linger in this world…

You are the only Yugi in the whole world…

Even if I never regain my memories, I want to stay with you forever…

I will share all my memories with you…all of them…

Yugi's cell phone suddenly sprang into life and the classroom was blasted with tinny rock music. His classmates laughed as Yugi jolted back to earth and turned red.

"Muto…" His teacher warned. Yugi fumbled for his phone and checked the caller. Then he stood up.

"I'm sorry Teacher, but I have to take this." Without another word he stepped outside and closed the classroom door. Joey, Tristan and Téa all looked at each other for a moment.

The teacher went back to his lecture, but now everyone was distracted. A few minutes later, Yugi walked back in with a carefully blank expression. He happened to meet eyes with Tristan, who raised his eyebrows questioningly.

Yugi's expression turned grim. Ishizu, he mouthed. Later, he added.

"What did Ishizu-san call you about?" Téa asked the second school was over.

Yugi thought for a few minutes as the four of them made their way out of the school gates. "Just…she said there were people digging up Atem's burial site. There is a chance they will find his sarcophagus and the Millennium Items."

His friends paused. No one minded mummies in the museum when you didn't know them personally, but this one they did.

"Are you ok with that?" Tristan asked.

"…No. I want him to rest. Ishizu said she had put that area under her protection to prevent such a thing from happening, but someone came in and took control of that piece of land."

"Who?" Téa asked. Yugi stopped walking.

Joey crouched down a little (less than he used to) and grabbed Yugi by his shoulders. "Yugi, let us help you. Atem was our friend too."

"I don't want anyone to know it's him," Yugi explained. "I want to stop him before he goes any further."

"Who is it?" Joey insisted.

"Kaiba-kun," Yugi mumbled.

Joey straightened up. "Kaiba? Why is he trying to dig up the past?!"

"I don't know. I need to call Mokuba." Yugi pulled out his phone once more and the four of them started walking again. Yugi waited as the phone rang once, twice. Mokuba did not pick up.

Finally, Yugi hung up. "That's strange. Mokuba always answers his phone."

"Maybe he had to go to the bathroom?" Tristan suggested.

"It's glued to his fingers," Joey shot back. "He uses it in the bathroom too. He sent me a toilet snapchat once." The other three looked at him in shock. "He really did!" Joey insisted.

Suddenly Yugi's phone vibrated, alerting him of a text. He began reading but then drew back. A flood of texts were coming in.

"Why is Mokuba texting me all this when he could have just answered my call?"

"Is he in danger?" Téa asked, but Yugi shook his head.

"He said he's fine, but -" Yugi kept reading. Joey peered over his shoulder but Yugi turned away so they left him in peace. When Yugi finished reading, he put his phone away.

"I need to do something before I head home," Yugi announced. "You three go on ahead without me."

"Yugi, where are you going?" Téa asked.

Tristan rolled his eyes. "If you're about to do something crazy, at least tell us so we know when to bail you out."

"You need someone to punch Kaiba for you?" Joey cracked his knuckles.

Yugi smiled. "Thank you, but no. Mokuba just wants me to swing by KaibaCorp for a few minutes, but he told me to come alone."

"That sounds fishy," Tristan added.

"I'll be fine. If I need help, I have my cell phone." Yugi headed off in the opposite direction, and his friends reluctantly let him go.

Isono had just stepped outside the building for some fresh air when Yugi Muto appeared in front of him. Isono lowered the cigarette he had just pulled out and greeted him.

"Muto-sama, are you here to see Kaiba-sama?" He asked.

"Good afternoon Isono-san," Yugi said politely. "Yes. Kaiba-kun asked me for help on his little project. He told me not to wait for him, and go inside first."

Isono nodded. "Of course. I'll take you in myself." He could take his break later.

Isono led Yugi inside and watched as the King of Games confidently strode in and punched the elevator button. Then he waved at excited onlookers, and Isono smiled. Even Kaibacorp employees were fans of Yugi Muto.

The two of them stepped inside once the elevator doors opened and Isono punched in the secret code. The elevator smoothly shot down into the earth, deeper and deeper. Beside him, Yugi stood unmoving.

The elevator let them out in an underground bunker. When Yugi entered, many overworked and exhausted engineers looked up at him and started shouting.

"Yugi Muto! Yugi Muto!"

"Could someone show me where it is? I'm here to help."

A woman with coffee stains on her shirt and bags under her eyes hurried forward and took Yugi away from Isono. "You are a godsend Muto-sama," she babbled. "We are all going mad over this project! No matter what we do, we can't get him to work."

"I know," Yugi smiled at her. "You can relax now." The woman's shoulders slumped with relief and she gave him a giddy smile back.

They walked past the other engineers until she got into air locked door. She deftly pulled out her key card and swiped it, before entering a password and submitting to a fingerprint and retina scan. Then the door finally opened and Yugi gasped.

The room was dark and devoid of people, because the entire floor was covered in thick cables. Some were insulated and secured in place with metal strips, while others were covered with messy tape. Yugi gingerly crept in over the cables to the center of the room, where a giant supercomputer waited. The woman began typing on the interface, and the hologram burst to life.

"This is ," the woman introduced. A young man with yellow eyes and spiky blue hair waved at Yugi, and Yugi waved back. Yugi let his eyes travel over the AI's dramatic clothing design and Egyptian-themed accessories.

"Kaiba-sama had us begin development on a dueling AI designed to help duelists improve their skills. We have spent the last few weeks developing its programming so that not only can it learn every Duel Monsters strategy ever, it is capable of coming up with its own."

"That's amazing," Yugi murmured.

"But this is not Kaiba-sama's main purpose in developing this AI," she admitted. Then she pulled up another password screen, and typed in a string of letters.

MynameisAtem

Yugi watched in shock as changed from a young blue-haired youth to a young man with tanned skin, a pharaoh's garb and hair to match Yugi's. The AI opened his red eyes and Yugi looked into the face of his other half.

"This is ," the woman continued. "He has the same programming as , but for some reason he doesn't work. Anytime someone tries to start a duel with this interface, it malfunctions after a few minutes. Kaiba-sama himself has been working on this interface day and night but we don't know why it isn't working."

Yugi's eyes did not move from Atem's face. "Maybe the problem is that it is working."

"Excuse me?" She asked. Yugi smiled and grabbed her arm before steering her back out the door. It immediately slid open and Yugi pushed her through. When she turned around, the door had closed.

"Muto-sama? You can't be alone with it-" She pulled out her key card but the light flashed red instead of green.

"What-? Muto-sama? Muto-sama!" Yugi turned back to the computer. He looked up again at Atem and his eyes softened.

"Just wait, other me. I'll free you." Yugi reached down and grabbed a handful of the cables. They resisted for a few seconds, and then ripped off the ground and out from the computer with a terrible bang.

The engineers all raced to the door and frantically tried their key cards, but the door didn't open. They banged on the door and shouted in alarm as Yugi methodically destroyed their setup. They watched in horror as Yugi piled the sparking cables in a corner like a pile of discarded vines from a garden.

"Call Kaiba-sama!" The woman shouted. "Tell him Yugi Muto is destroying the AI!"

Yugi meanwhile was typing on the computer. He looked up and saw that Atem was staring down to watch what Yugi was doing. Yugi smiled and Atem fixed his stare at Yugi.

"I look like you now," Yugi said gently. "Can you tell?" Atem kept staring, but his face stayed blank.

A new screen popped up, showing two rows of five rectangles each. Yugi pulled out his deck and drew out the Dark Magician. He set it down in the first row. Atem's interface rippled.

Dark Magician appeared on every engineer's computer, startling one so bad he spilled hot coffee onto his pants. He yelped and jumped up, and then sat back down screaming in horror. The image of Dark Magician was shooting off magical blasts inside his computer, wiping out his code line by line.

"Save the backups!" He cried, and all the engineers ran to their computers to try and rescue their files. Yugi set down two more cards and Atem's image rippled again.

Chain of Destruction shot across their screens and their backups disappeared one by one. Then Dark Magician Girl appeared and joined Dark Magician in decimating their computer files and locking out the engineers. The engineers could only watch helplessly as Yugi's entire deck appeared on their screens and wiped all their files.

"If they get into the network, they'll destroy everything!" The woman shouted in alarm. Just then, the door behind them slid open and Kaiba ran in with a brown box. His gaunt and bloodless face was twisted in anger and panic.

"Kaiba-sama! He's in there!" Someone shouted and Kaiba ran towards the AI room and pulled out his key card. It beeped once, and then flashed red.

"Yugi!" Kaiba banged his fists on the door. Both Yugi and Atem looked up and turned to look at Kaiba. Yugi quietly walked across the now-pristine floor until he and Kaiba were face to face.

"Yugi! What are you doing?" Kaiba shouted.

"What are you doing?" Yugi shot back. "You are trying to bring a dead man back to life – for what? For your pride?"

"You have no right to judge me!" Kaiba screamed.

Yugi surveyed him for a moment, and then shrugged. He turned around.

"Don't you dare Yugi!" Kaiba shouted. "Don't you dare! You can't do this!"

"Gandora, Dragon of Destruction!" Yugi called out. He slapped the card down. This time, Atem disappeared and in his place was a giant black dragon with red orbs all over its bodies. It roared with fury and red beams shot out from its body in all directions. As his engineers scrambled in vain for a solution, Kaiba could only stand there speechless. Every file, every line of code destroyed felt like a knife wound in his gut.

Gandora disappeared and Atem returned. But his image was weak and transparent, unlike the life-life interface Yugi had first seen. Yugi pulled out one last card and played it. A white-haired magician formed in front of Atem. They stared at each other.

Silent Magician raised her staff and pointed it directly at Atem's heart.

"Noooooo!" Kaiba screamed.

"Silent Magician, attack!" Yugi ordered. Atem shattered like glass and the supercomputer gave a great rumble before exploding and falling apart like a pile of bricks.

Yugi stood up unharmed, coughing from the dust. With a beep, the door slid open and Yugi slowly walked out, still waving his hands from the smoke.

Kaiba's hands shot out to grab Yugi's collar but Yugi slapped his hands angrily away. Kaiba was so stunned his hands dropped to his side and did not come up again.

"Where is the puzzle?" Yugi asked.

"The…puzzle…" Kaiba muttered.

"Ishizu-san told me you've been secretly digging up Atem's grave to find the Millennium Items, and you had the nerve to conceal it from her for weeks!" Yugi angrily raised up his hand. "I know you brought it back. I want you to hand it over."

"I'm not giving it to you," Kaiba muttered. Yugi scoffed in annoyance in a way that was so like Atem, Kaiba had to resist the urge to run screaming from the room.

Yugi scanned the room until his eyes fell upon the brown box Kaiba had brought in with him. He grabbed it and ripped the packaging open. The underground bunker light reached through and hit a myriad of gold puzzle pieces. Yugi closed the box with triumph.

"I'm taking this," Yugi said.

"Like hell you are," Kaiba snarled.

"I am going to return this to Ishizu and Egypt," Yugi continued.

"You walk out of this room and I'll kill you!" Kaiba shouted.

"Ni-sama!" Mokuba raced into the room and stood in front of Kaiba. "You can't!"

"Mokuba, he destroyed my work and he's taking the puzzle! I'm going to make him pay-"

"I destroyed your AI!" Mokuba shouted. "I called Yugi and asked for his help! I helped him destroy the AI!"

"Mokuba, why?!" Kaiba groaned.

"Because you've lost your mind!" Mokuba shouted, and both Yugi and Kaiba were struck by how much Mokuba had grown. "This obsession is ruining your health, and I can't let you do this anymore! I won't let anyone hurt my brother, even if it means I have to save you from yourself!"

Kaiba reeled back as if Mokuba had physically struck him. "My own brother…" he swayed on his feet. "No one understands me…. none of you are on my side…"

"I'm your brother!" Mokuba shouted. "I'm always on your side!"

Kaiba raised one shaking finger at Yugi. "This Saturday, you and I are going to have a duel. If you win, you can keep the puzzle. But if I win, I will remake that AI and none of you are going to stop me!"

"Fine but you won't win," Yugi said confidently.

"Pray that I don't," Kaiba replied ominously. "Because you're nothing but his vessel to me. If I win, I'm going to use you to bring him back."