Hi there! I've been thinking about this fic for a while now and thought I'd post it and give it a try. This is my first time writing (or trying to write) a Yu-gi-oh! GX fic. This story takes place in the Dark World, and Jaden is the prince of the Dark World. This is not really a take on his past life as prince. It's more of an original adventure done by me, with some similarities to his past life. This is for the most part a Jaden and Jesse adventure friendship fic, but I might include some mild Jaden/Jesse moments. Just nothing drastically yaoi like a kiss, as this is my first time trying such a thing.

Well, anyway, I hope you like it. Here is Chapter 1.

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Chapter 1 - The Wanderer

Jaden ran through the streets of the village. He glanced up at the blue glowing path of the meteor. The meteor was the light of the Dark World. Its path was like the sunlight to the Dark World's vast desolate terrain. As it streaked across the sky, it acted like a clock as well, depending on which way it was going. Right now it was heading north. Jaden had spent a lot of time learning about its flight path and knew that right now it meant he was late in getting back to the castle. His father was probably going to give him a lecture about how princes shouldn't wander outside the castle. But even though he was the prince, Jaden hated being cooped up inside the castle walls all day. Not when there was so much to explore and adventure to be had outside. He was always sneaking out to have fun in the village just east of the castle. He enjoyed playing games with the kids there. Jaden looked up at the meteor again. It was way ahead of him now, heading off into the north and leaving a blue light trail in its wake. Jaden picked up his pace.

A few minutes later, he arrived back at the castle and snuck in through a side door in the east wall. Sure that no one saw him, Jaden tipp-toed toward the main door. He was surprised to see a young boy sitting on the steps in front of it.

"Ooh, you're busted," the boy said, grinning at Jaden.

Jaden relaxed slightly and let go a sigh of relief. It was just his best friend Tory. Tory was Jaden only friend inside the castle and was also the only one that Jaden told about his adventures outside the castle walls.

"You snuck out again?" Tory asked grouchily. "I was waiting here almost all day to be able to play a game with you."

Jaden put his hands behind his head, giving a playful frown. "Aw, lay off, will you? There's just so much to do out there, whereas in here it's boring. Life is more than studying, you know."

"Yeah, I know. Chores can be boring too." Tory said, giving a sigh. "I'm just a servant, but you're the prince. You can get away with anything."

Jaden laughed. "Almost anything. I may be the prince, but I'm not allowed to sneak out either."

"So, why do you then?"

Jaden pondered this for a second and then shrugged. "Hmm, good question. I suppose because it's fun."

"Really?" Tory asked.

"Sure," Jaden replied, grinning. "Tell you what, tomorrow we can both go. I can introduce you to my friends in the village and we can play some games."

Tory's expression suddenly went cold. "Friends? You made friends out there?"

Jaden nodded, pretty much ignoring the cold tone in Tory's voice. "Yeah, I bet you'll like them. C'mon! It'll be fun."

"Fine," Tory agreed.

"Good," Jaden said, putting his hand on Tory's shoulder and heading off to the door. "Now, let's go to bed. I'm exhausted and I have a feeling tomorrow's going to be very exciting."

The next day, Jaden met up with Tory by the east wall. He showed Tory the small side door. The door was painted the same colour as the stone castle walls, that Tory wouldn't even think that there was a door there if Jaden hadn't opened it. Jaden went out first, checking to see that none of the Fiend Soldiers were patrolling around. Why the King had Fiends as guards, Jaden could never figure out. They were big and mean and pretty much nobody liked them. If they ever caught him sneaking out and ignoring his duties as prince, they would for sure take him before the King. The King would give him a stern lecture that Jaden never looked forward to. The coast was clear today, so Jaden motioned for Tory to follow him. He then closed the door as soon as Tory came out.

"All right, let's go!" Jaden cheered.

The two boys ran off east along the path, Jaden leading the way. The village was about three or so kilometers away. A short while later, they arrived.

Tory looked at the small bricked buildings of the village, trying to understand what was so special about it. The buildings didn't even look all that great. In fact, some of them looked like they were falling apart. And most of the people seemed to be ordinary, ragged people like the castle servants.

"And you find this exciting to come here every day?" Tory questioned.

Jaden nodded. "Of course," he said, giving a broad grin. "The kids here are fun to duel against. They're pretty good."

"They don't take advantage of you because you're the prince?"

"Nope. And you worry too much. I'm fine. Look."

Jaden pointed to his outfit. Tory noticed that Jaden didn't have his royal gold wrist bands on; and the gold clips that held his red cape to his shoulders had been replaced by a rusted brass buckle that fastened a brown cloak about Jaden's shoulders instead. Jaden had obviously thought that this was enough of a disguise because he kept the pants and shirt of his regular prince outfit on. Tory then suddenly noticed that Jaden wasn't beside him anymore. He looked ahead and saw that Jaden was entering the village without him.

Jaden turned and looked back at his friend. "Hey Tory, what's the hold up?" he called. "C'mon!"

Tory ran to catch up and they entered the village together. Jaden right away led Tory over to some kids where having a duel by a fountain. Strength in the Dark World was mostly measured through dueling and Jaden liked nothing better than to have a game with the best of them.

Jaden called out to the group of kids, waving cheerily. The kids all smiled and ran to greet him. He was obviously very popular around here. Tory tried not to frown at kids that were so friendly with Jaden. He couldn't help it really. Jaden was his best friend, and he didn't really like to share him. But Tory knew that could also be difficult as Jaden could make friends easily with almost anybody.

"Hey guys, are Syrus and Alexis around?" Jaden asked the kids.

"We're over here, Jay!"

Jaden looked over to where a short, light-blue haired boy and a tall blonde haired girl were standing in front of a grey-stoned house. He waved to them and they came over to join him and Tory.

"Hi, Jaden," Syrus greeted. "Here to duel some more?"

Jaden smiled. "Sure. I'm ready to roll anytime you are."

"Jaden, do you have to duel?" Tory interrupted, frowning. "We both know that no one can beat you."

"Maybe you're right," Jaden agreed, bursting out laughing.

"Who's your friend?" Alexis asked.

"This is my best friend Tory," Jaden answered. "Tory, these are my friends from the village, Alexis and Syrus."

"Hello," Tory, Alexis, and Syrus all greeted to one another.

"So, Jaden, are we going to duel?" Syrus asked. "I think I've finally found a strategy to beat you."

"All right, Sy, let's go!" Jaden agreed.

"But Jaden..." Tory tried to protest.

Jaden smiled back over his shoulder at Tory, as he followed Syrus off to a spot to duel. "Lighten up, will you? You know, you should get in on the action too. Why don't you face Alexis? The winners of each duel can face each other."

Alexis took out her deck. "Hey, sounds like fun. You wanna duel Tory?"

"Fine," Tory said, sighing and taking out his deck too.

The duels didn't last long. Tory was never that much into dueling as Jaden was. He lost to Alexis pretty quickly, getting crushed under her effective use of spells. Tory didn't like to lose either, but Jaden often told him that if he didn't even try hard, than that's what happens and you just have to find a better strategy for the next time. Tory and Alexis turned to watch the duel between Jaden and Syrus. Syrus had his Stealthroid on the feild and no magic cards in play. Jaden had FlameWingman on his feild, and had just played Hero Oversoul to call out Bubbleman. Well, Syrus fought hard, but in the end, Jaden won. As far as Tory was concerned, Jaden and his deck of Elemental Heroes was unbeatable. No one has yet won against him. Well, several duels later, Tory was getting bored and insistent that they move on to do something else.

"C'mon, Jaden, let's go get something to eat," Tory said, grabbing Jaden's arm and tugging him away.

Jaden gave a cry of surprise at being pulled away so suddenly. His stomach then gave a loud grumble and he grinned.

"Well, now that you mention it, I am hungry. We can eat at the market."

Jaden then led the way off to the market, which was close to the south end of the village. On the way, something caught Jaden's attention not far away. A bright, teal-haired boy appeared in view in the intersection off to Jaden's right. The boy seemed to be in a terrible hurry. He glanced behind him breifly, gave a shout, and ran off again. A group of Demon Soldiers then appeared close behind, chasing after him. Jaden didn't know why the Demon Soldiers were chasing the boy, but he decided that he had to help the boy out. He was about to run off after them, when he felt Tory grab a hold of his hand in a tight grip.

"Tory... what?" Jaden asked urgently.

"Jaden, come on." Tory said. "Let's go to the market. I'm starving!"

Jaden frowned. "Didn't you see that? That guy is in trouble."

"So?" Tory questioned coldly.

"So, I have to help him," Jaden replied, wrenching his hand out of Tory's grip.

Tory frowned. Jaden relaxed slightly and let go a quick smile.

"Go on ahead to the market without me. It's just a couple blocks that way." He pointed south-east from where they were. "I'll meet you there later."

With that, Jaden ran off after the Demon Soldiers and the boy.

Meanwhile, the boy had gotten cornerned by the demons on the edge of a forest. He had his back to a tree and was glaring defiantly at his harassers.

"Leave me alone!" The boy snapped. "What do you want?"

"Just give us the Rainbow Dragon," one of the Demon Soldiers (probably the leader based on his tough posture) ordered, "and maybe we'll let you go."

"I don't know what you're talking about. And even if I did, I wouldn't give the Rainbow Dragon to the likes of you."

The Demon Soldier leader pointed his jagged sword at the boy. "I know for a fact that you can use the Crystal Beasts. They are connected to the Rainbow Dragon. That means you must have the Rainbow Dragon. Give it to us! Now!"

"No!" the boy cried, keeping up his defiant glare.

A blueish cat with a red jewel on the end of its tail then appeared by the boy's feet. It hissed angrily at the Demon Soldiers. The demons seemed unindimidated by its attempt to protect the boy.

"What's this thing? Your pet cat?" one demon asked, snickering.

"Aw, look. It thinks it stands a chance against us," another jeered.

The blueish cat was now showing its teeth at them in a growl. The demons advanced on the boy and his cat, grinning wickedly.

"Hey!! Leave them alone!" a new voice shouted.

The Demon Soldies all turned to see who had interrupted them. Jaden stood there behind them, a rock in his fist.

"Why should we?" the leader Demon Soldier asked, frowning at Jaden. "And who are you?"

"Me?" Jaden inquired, pointing to himself. "I'm Jaden. Now why don't you guys stop harassing this kid and beat it."

"We're not leaving until he give us the Rainbow Dragon!"

Jaden cocked his head in confusion. "The what?"

"Enough talk!" The Demon Soldier leader shouted. He leaped at the boy, raising his sword to strike. "Give us the Rainbow Dragon!"

"No! Stop!" Jaden yelled. He quickly called out FlameWingman. "FlameWingman, stop these demons with your Fire Blast!"

FlameWingman reved up his fire to shoot at the demons. But Jaden then realized that the flame would not only strike at the demons, but the boy too, and might also cause a forest fire. He quickly called back FlameWingman, and then tried Plan B of hitting the demons over the head with the rock. He hit one and the demon fell to the ground out cold. But during this time the Demon Soldier leader had gotten to the tree, where he had his sword against the boy's throat. The boy was refusing to bend under the leader's interrogations and the leader was losing his patience. He pressed his sword harder against the boy's throat, causing a small amount of blood to flow. Jaden quickly called out Neos. Neos charged at the Demon Soldier leader, but got blocked by the rest of the group. Jaden groaned. Saving the day was a lot harder than it looked.

Suddenly, the bluelish cat (which everyone seemed to have forgotten about after Jaden showed up) jumped at the demon leader that was hurting its master. It scratched at the demon leader's legs in an attempt to help. The demon leader turned his attention to the cat, raising his sword.

"No! Don't hurt her!" the boy cried out desperately.

"Hand over the Rainbow Dragon, and maybe I won't kill her," the demon leader said wickedly, pointing his sword at the cat.

"Ruby!" the boy yelled.

The blueish cat, Ruby, hissed at the demon leader and arked her tail forward. The red jewel on the end of her tail glowed brightly. Something in the boy's haversack, that was slung over his shoulder, then glowed brightly too. It was a yellow crystal, which floated out of the haversack. It stopped in between the boy and the demon leader, morphing into a big white tiger with yellow jewels on its sides. The tiger roared and then pounced on the Demon Soldiers, striking out with its strong claws. Soon, the Demon Soldiers were dealt with, vanishing in flashes of light. The tiger disappeared too, going back into its crystal form.

The boy picked up the crystal from where it landed on the ground and put it back in his haversack. The blueish cat, Ruby, remained and she scampered up onto his shoulder. Jaden smiled and came over to join them.

"That was amazing!" Jaden exclaimed. "Are you okay?"

The boy nodded. "Yeah. And thanks for trying to help, uh... Jaden."

Jaden shrugged sheepishly. "Well, I didn't exactly help. And how do you know my name?"

The boy smiled. "You told it to those Demon Soldiers when you appeared to help me."

Jaden grinned back. "Oh yeah! By the way, who are you?"

The boy sighed. "I'm no one really. I'm just a wanderer, not really belonging anywhere."

"A wanderer, huh? Wow!"

Jaden then noted the boy's clothes. The boy wore a grey-brownish shirt, baggy navy blue pants with a purple patch on one knee, a long blue jacket with green patches on the elbows, and soft grey boots. Jaden looked into the boy's smiling face and was a bit surprised to see such clear emerald eyes. They were so clear and bright, almost as bright as the boy's spiky teal-coloured hair. He wondered why those Demon Soldiers were chasing the boy anyway and what the Rainbow Dragon could be. That it was a dragon was obvious. But what did it do that creatures were after it with force? The boy also seemed to have many mysteries about him. But having just met him, Jaden didn't know what to make of all this. Nonetheless, he smiled at the boy again and held out his hand for him to shake.

"Well, hi there, Mr. Wanderer," Jaden said cheerfully.

The boy laughed and shook Jaden's hand. "Just call me Jesse."

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Well, there you are. Yeah, I know the duels I only breifly mentioned in the middle of the chapter were kind of lame. But dueling is not my strong point about Yu-gi-oh! GX; so I'm sorry that I couldn't give you more. I will try and do better the next time. I know that Tory was kind of a rude friend in wanting Jaden all to himself, but that part of his personality plays a key part in the story later. I don't the real name of Jaden's best friend in his past in the Dark World, so I just called him Tory. And yay! Jaden and Jesse have met each other! The part when Ruby used her powers to call out Topaz Tiger was probably my favourite part. It was alot of fun to write. Well, as to the powers to the Rainbow Dragon and it's connection to Jesse, you'll have to wait to find out. Please review after reading, okay? Remember this is my first time writing a Yu-gi-oh! GX fic, so please go easy on me. Constructive criticism is accepted, but don't flame please! Well, that being said, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of this fic and will come back to read more. I hope to have the second chapter up soon. Cya then!