On that warm fall night, the confusion and chaos of the invasion ended in an instant. What was once harsh, almost evil moonlight now felt benign, almost gentle to the touch as it filtered down from the silent heavens. Duelists, both academy-aligned and not, collectively stopped and stared at the sight.

There was a brilliant shooting star soaring through the sky, and some sort of dust was falling from the heavens to the ground. It was like snow, but not snow. It was much too warm for snow.

Zane blinked. His eyes were foggy with confusion. One moment it felt like the dream would never end. He had been dueling, not for pride or honor, but to hurt. The voice commanded him to hurt his brother. To hurt the little sister of his best friend. It screamed and rambled incoherently for blood. Then the next moment it was gone. Silenced. His body still hurt. Stinging wounds, no doubt collected from the numerous shadow duels he had participated in since the attack began.

His eyes refocused and Zane glanced at Atticus. The duel was still ongoing. Cyber End Dragon stood proudly on his field, while Atticus’s Red-Eyes Black Dragon stood paused mid-attack. Words were not needed between the two friends – no, between the two brothers. It was a shadow duel. They were in a shadow duel with two kids they dearly cared about.

Both teens raised their hands as one. Neither one was slower, nor faster than the other. It was as if the movement was pre-planned and well-practiced. Their hands rose and fell to rest on top of the decks residing in their respective duel disks.

“I surrender.” Zane and Atticus spoke as one, their minds finally their own once more. A crashing impact smashed into their chests and the world went dark.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Crowler closed his eyes. His whole body burned like a bonfire raged across his limbs. Dimly, in the corner of his consciousness, he could feel Midori’s weary head resting on his broad shoulder. If he had the strength to open his eyes right now, he had the feeling the sight would probably be quite humorous – the stern yet caring headmaster of Slifer Red resting her head on a shoulder that was probably either close in size or outright dwarfed her skull.

“You two took quite the punishment.” A cat’s voice, sounding just as exhausted as Crowler felt, wafted into his ears. “It would seem that somehow we can make it out from this catastrophe, though.”

Crowler’s lips trembled in an approximation of a smile. “I truly am glad we spared you, my friend.” His eyes opened a crack. It was all he could do. Opening them fully was simply beyond even Crowler’s formidable physical might at the moment. He could see, in what little of his vision that could make it past that cracked eyelid of his, that the tawny cat professor was lying on the ground, his flanks soaked in blood that was being gently cleaned off with a series of casual rasping tongue swipes.

At the very last stages of the duel, when the minds of Vellian Crowler and Midori Hibiki had been made their own once more, Lyman Banner had immediately grasped the situation. Instead of continuing the duel (which would have been far safer for the cat, considering his opponents barely stood), Banner simply smiled a complex smile, placed his paw over his deck, and surrendered. The backlash of the shadow game was brutal. Brutal, but somehow survivable. For how threatening the energy had once seemed as it gathered over Banner, once it actually struck, it felt rather diminished. As if there was someone, or rather, something nearby that drew away a partial amount of the punishment for losing the shadow game like a terrifying lightning bolt being redirected by a copper rod on the very top of a tall tower.

“I am grateful for your mercy.” Banner eventually replied. His tail flicked against the side of a gramophone and the faint sound of scratchy jazz notes emanating from its horn finally quieted.

Near the back of the room by the teacher’s desk and standing quite unnoticed in the commotion was a spire of pure black iron. It glowed a soft cherry red in the darkness.

All of that went unnoticed, however, as sturdy wooden hands gently lifted both headmasters into their grasp and began the short journey to the makeshift infirmary.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

The beds in the makeshift infirmary were completely full. Well, they weren’t quite beds. More like donated uniforms and whatever other scraps of spare clothing or fabric Nurse Fontaine could get her hands on to stuff with various soft bits and bobs Banner had lying around. Quite a fair number of those bits and bobs had come from that freaky laboratory of his, under the classroom. Nurse Fontaine had point-blank refused to go down there. Nor were any of the students allowed to see it either, so Banner had to make multiple trips.

That had happened before the bombardment had ceased.

Now her infirmary was filled with various students sporting injuries from shadow duels – ranging from mere exhaustion to large cuts or even broken bones. Two ‘beds’ were reserved for Vellian and Midori. Banner had carried them in not long after the madness stopped, almost getting brained by Fontaine’s baseball bat for his troubles.

She still felt kind of bad for that one. Banner, however, had shrugged the attempted assault off with his usual carefree attitude, voicing his thoughts that he understood her wariness, considering the door to the room was dented from possessed Light duelists trying to get in.

Strange wooden hands immediately followed the professor, each hand clutching a teacher in its grasp. Stalwart Vellian, barely conscious. Frankly, she was impressed that the man had survived his mad trek into the jungle. Fearless Midori, bloodied but alive. Even now the woman’s exhausted eyes burned with a watchful fire, as if she was still on the lookout for anyone who dared harm her students.

Those wooden hands had carefully deposited the headmasters on the ‘beds’ Nurse Fontaine pointed out, and then the cat took his leave. Annoyingly enough, that leave had been taken before Fontaine could order him to rest as well.

Zane and Atticus stumbled in next, supported by their siblings. The boys weren’t in great shape, but they could still move with help. Fontaine considered that a plus. The minus was how she was forced to shoo Syrus and Alexis out of the room. She didn’t blame them for their worry, but it was simply too crowded already.

Soon after that, a woman Fontaine had never seen before walked into the infirmary. For a moment she almost grabbed her bat from where it was resting against the wall. The woman was strange. Clad in a fancy white dress, though one that was smeared with dirt, and sporting a warm tan, it was obvious she was not a student. Nor was she a teacher, for Fontaine would have recognized her.

The fact that Phillip Jenson was in her arms was what stayed Fontaine’s hand. The boy was motionless, but faintly breathing. That was enough for Fontaine. Immediately she had motioned for the woman to set Phillip down, though to do it gently.

Amid the steady stream of students entering the infirmary, Fontaine kneeled next to the boy. His vitals were there. Barely. There were several brutal gashes, his chest looked like someone had used it as a drum, and there was blood coming from his eyes, nose, and mouth.

Blood wasn’t supposed to come from those areas.

Still, Fontaine was a professional. She knew even without asking that Banner had most likely left in order to establish some form of communication with the mainland. The sooner the better, she figured, because the floor of a classroom was no place for these duelists. Phillip, Vellian, and Midori all needed a stay at the hospital in Domino City. Then there were the students with burns from when the artillery hit the dorms, or who had gotten nailed with shrapnel.

The strange woman left quickly enough, right before Fontaine was about to shoo her out. Her movements were fluid, almost as if she was used to this. To the destruction, to the feel of field hospitals.

Fonda Fontaine shook her head, barely even noticing the tiny green tadpole poke its head out of the pocket on Phillip’s battered Ra Yellow jacket. She would do all she could with what she had. All she could hope was that Banner could get a helicopter over soon.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Waves crashed against the cliffside. The sound was distant but regular. To Jaden’s tired ears, it was like a lullaby tempting him to sleep. He shook his head violently. No sleep. Bad sleep. Sleep is bad. Sleep was for later. Sleep was for the weak!

His right arm was looped around Sartorius’s shoulder. The man had collapsed right after the duel. For a moment, Jaden didn’t know what to do upon seeing that sight. Yubel, standing by his shoulder, cried out for Jaden to finish off his enemy before he could rise again and strike. Jaden's heart said otherwise. It said that no matter if Sartorius was a victim or a willing participant, he deserved mercy all the same.

Jaden’s heart won out, causing Yubel to spit in disgust, though they remained otherwise silent. He walked up to Sartorius just in time to see tears filling the man’s eyes.

"What… what have I done?" Sartorius had whispered in horror. The man had his fair share of wounds, but nothing was debilitating that Jaden could see. The seer was simply lying there. Laying in his grief, in his horror over the terrible things he had taken part in. A part of him appeared broken. Like the Light had left him just enough control to see what his own body was doing.

“I don’t know, dude.” Jaden had awkwardly replied. A memory had sparked in his mind, something Phil had said. “You were in a freaky brainwashing cult, right? I call all this the Light’s fault. Come ‘ere, I’ll help you get back. Bet it feels good being free.”

Sartorius had stared at him. Seconds passed into minutes and Jaden’s outstretched palm went unfilled. Then, just as he was about to pull away, Sartorius placed his hand in Jaden’s.

“Yes. Yes it does.” Sartorius suddenly murmured. Jaden tilted his head toward the man questioningly.

Sartorius was silent for a bit longer before he turned to look at Jaden. The question was obvious in Jaden’s gaze.

“It feels good to be free.” Sartorius croaked, elaborating on his words. “You have no idea… what it feels like to have a god screaming in your head. For your limbs to move without your brain ordering them to move. For your mouth to open and speak words that are not your own. To hurt people that you don’t want to hurt.”

Jaden looked away, back at the jungle before them. They had a bit of a hike ready and waiting. It would take a while. Much longer than it had taken for Jaden to get there.

But that was okay. He had a feeling, a gut feeling.

Everything was going to be alright.

“That’s good.” Jaden smiled. The motion was like a beam of light from his face, a spotlight that cleared away the darkness of the night. “That’s good. It feels good to be free.” Jaden repeated.

Then they walked. A boy of Slifer Red and the former Seer of the Light walked through the jungle to the ruined campus beyond.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Thus the long night ended. Within hours several Kaiba Corp helicopters arrived from the mainland to begin taking students not to the Domino City Hospital, but to an even greater Kaiba Corp facility near the city center. Ms. Hibiki was up and walking a few weeks after that, though she had to be careful in her movements. That hardly bothered her. It allowed her to spend more time with her recovering brother, Koyo Hibiki, who had woken up from his long coma during the summer.

Professor Crowler took longer. With his combined injuries from shadow duels and being poisoned, the professor wasn’t cleared by the doctors for several months. In that time he was physically weakened from the bedrest and had a long road to recovery in rehab before him. Crowler only saw that as another challenge, though, and swore that he would get even bigger than he was before. Those months of rehab were filled with much vigor and crowds of students joined him in the exercise room as Crowler regained the use of his might. A large number of those students followed in his path, exercising right next to the headmaster of Obelisk Blue. Together it was like an infinite loop of encouragement that saw many an amateur bodybuilder created. Of course, those bodybuilders never lost their passion for dueling, instead bringing a new era to the game that prized not only mental ability, but physical ability as well.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Zane and Atticus were out and about after only a few days in bed. They didn't stick around long, only making sure that their siblings were safe, along with their peers. Soon after that, they disappeared into the mountains to train. Rumors followed the pair. Of fantastic beasts fought. Dojos stormed, defeated, and collected under the same banner of honor and strength. Eventually, the number of people under them became so great that the brothers in all but blood formed a tournament circuit of their own, in which duelists came from all across the world to participate in.

Chancellor Sheppard was found in the rubble of the administration building. He was bloodied, but alive. He too only stayed in the hospital for a few days before also disappearing into the mountains.

Phil took several months to recover from his various injuries. His condition got a bit dicey on the helicopter ride off the island, but the efforts of Nurse Fontaine kept him alive. D.3.S. Frog never left his side, being a constant presence in the hospital room with its watchful gaze. Though at this point it might have been more accurate to call him D.3.S. Tadpole. Lumina also camped out there – literally. Still invisible, aside from when she spoke with her newfound acquaintances among Phil’s friends, Lumina set up a small bedroll on the floor in the corner of the room. The accommodations weren't great, but she constantly claimed it was better than sleeping on a freight train. Princess Rose was also a constant fixture in the room, claiming that she needed to see her knight to perfect health, as was her duty as a princess. She often spoke to Phil about the land he was given and how he was always welcome on her family estate. Yes, as it turned out, she was very serious about Phil being a landed knight.

All throughout Phil’s stay at the hospital, Bastion, Chazz, Jaden, Syrus, and Alexis visited constantly to the point that the boys kept getting kicked out of the building for being too rowdy, and then amused themselves by sneaking back in almost immediately. They grilled Phil for details about his past life, who he was, and the details of his mission to remove the Light and Yubel as threats. Initially, they also spent time trying to convince them to stay, but eventually stopped once they realized how much Phil missed his family.

Many sleepovers were conducted. At the same time, much avoidance of the hospital staff was also conducted, as visitors were not allowed to stay overnight. That hardly stopped Phil’s friends. Bastion quickly discovered how easy it was to unscrew the covers on the air vents with a simple Phillips-head screwdriver concealed in a back pocket. He was just slim enough to fit, though Jaden would always have to help get him out. Syrus found he was smaller than many of the potted plants around the building and could use them for hiding spots, Chazz and Jaden holed themselves up in forgotten janitor’s closets, and Alexis took the more dignified route of disguising herself as a nurse. After a quick lecture on random medical jargon from Bastion, few could tell the difference between her and a licensed professional.

Chumley visited too, but not as often. He was quite busy in the weeks after the invasion. Somehow, despite all the chaos that had happened, his application to Pegasus's card design contest went through. It won first place, giving Chumley not only the grand prize of being allowed to meet the man himself but also a job as a card designer. It wasn't for an entry-level position either. Chumley was high-ranked and highly regarded, but he never did end up graduating from the academy, citing that there wasn’t much point now that he had achieved his dream.

Kaiba did not tarry long in space. Once the Light was defeated, he hopped on a shuttle back to the surface to better handle the aftermath. The island was damaged but intact. That wasn’t the main focus, however. Five students passed away in the invasion. Countless more were injured to some degree. Along with that, the mental trauma of being possessed was no small issue.

Somehow, Kaiba kept it all together. Each surviving student was brought to full health on Kaiba’s own dime by the hands of the best medical professionals in the world. Now that they knew the full dangers of the world, the students of his school did not falter. The parents took some convincing, but the students knew the truth.

They knew the world needed protection. Nearly every student came back the following year. They came back stronger, more determined, more vigorous than ever. The division between the dorms was almost nonexistent, from where there had once been countless incidents of bullying and various other conflicts. The island was united under the shared experience of the invasion and the fire of Kaiba’s passion. It wasn’t just the island. For years after, the alumni stayed in contact, ready to form groups whenever needed. From then on, the academy became well-known for molding experienced duelists equally ready to play in the pro leagues and deal with terrifying threats in the darkness at the same time. The world was made ever safer, at least for a time, for given enough of that, the memories of men will inevitably fade.

Phil, however…

Phil never ended up graduating. He left before the end of his second year. Not to pursue something else.

No, it was to go home.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

The windows of the bar and grill shone with a warm light escaping out into the evening air. The outside was quiet, mostly taken up by a variety of cars, motorcycles, and a very large van. A large, bald man leaned against the side of the building, enjoying a cigar amid the night air. It was a far cry from the clear mountain air, but sometimes it was worth it to come down from his dojo. Besides, he even got a nice show out of it.

In the parking lot were two older teens, facing each other with duel disks ready. On one side flew a snarling black dragon. On the other, a pristine mechanical drake. Both teens faced each other with excited smiles on their faces, enjoying a nice duel amid the festivities of the night.

Inside the bar it was far rowdier. Vellian Crowler balanced five full-sized casks of ale on his arms in a feat of strength, nearly fully recovered from his long stint in the hospital. Beside him, Midori Hibiki held her head in despair at her colleague's strange antics, but a careful observer would also notice her hand was hiding a gentle smile.

Chumley excitedly spoke with Banner in the other corner. On the table were countless sheets and diagrams that showed snippets of what appeared to be a fully jazz-themed monster archetype that was the brainchild of both student and teacher. Next to the drawings was an open flip phone from which Maximillion Pegasus's playful voice could occasionally be heard emanating in response to a particularly excited comment from one of the other two.

The bar counter was a bit more crowded. Phil sat on one stool, his hands wrapped around a steaming cup of warm tea as he told a particularly dirty joke, causing the nearby Princess Rose to slap his head while Bastion, Chazz, Jaden, Alexis, and Syrus roared with laughter. Yubel merely sat, a silent but steady presence at Jaden’s side. They never spoke, not a word. That didn’t prevent Jaden from occasionally offering a cookie or a well-cooked piece of meat from the bar’s kitchen to his duel spirit, who always accepted each and every tribute. Lumina sat nearby as well, enjoying a spot of tea from her thermos in between tossing pretzels into the open mouth of D.3.S. Frog, still residing in Phil’s breast pocket.

It was a moment that all who were present wished was frozen in time to be enjoyed forever. It went on for hours upon hours, deep into the night, into the early morning, until day finally broke.

Lumina placed a hand on Phil’s shoulder, and he nodded before getting up from the bar stool. An unspoken conversation passed between them.

All around Phil the bar fell silent. Each one of his friends drew together into a group hug that Phil sank into like the world's most tired man falling on a perfectly comfortable beanbag chair.

“Jaden, Chazz, Syrus, Alexis, Chumley, Rose, I’ll miss you guys. Bastion, my brother…”

Bastion nodded. His eyes were full of unshed tears. He offered his hand, closed in a fist that Phil, and then the rest of the group bumped fists of their own against it.

“Goodbyes suck…” Phil muttered and revealed a shaking smile, “So how about something that sounds better? Fellas, ladies, until we meet again.”

“Yup!” Jaden slugged Phil on the shoulder with his usual friendly smile plastered across his face. Yubel remained silent all the while, neither particularly happy that Jaden’s attention was being taken away, but also clearly unwilling to make Jaden sad by interfering.

Princess Rose put her hands on her waist, attempting to form a stern, princess-like look on her face. She wasn’t quite successful. Her trembling lips and watery eyes betrayed her to even the casual observer.

"You'd better visit! I still have to show you your land! And my father wishes to meet you."

“You aren’t even giving me a chance to even the score.” Chazz sneered. Those words were spoken with the most affection anyone had ever heard from the normally prickly and proud teen before. “What, afraid you’ll fall behind my dueling might? What a nerd this fellow is.”

Alexis drew Phil into another hug. It was a bear hug, tight enough that he could feel his shoulders pop. “Don’t forget about us, ay?” She gently smiled and stepped back.

“I’ll design a card that’s as crazy as you are dude!” Chumley shouted. The force of his voice was not enough to distract from the tears on his face.

Syrus simply nodded; his voice was too choked up to speak.

“This delinquent thinks he can just head off on his own.” Ms. Hibiki grimly shook her head. “And a dropout at that. How did we ever deserve such a student to keep us teachers running this ragged.”

Crowler smirked. “Because he knows if he stayed longer, I would force him to weight-train.”

“And what a terrible way that would be to go.” Banner lazily replied. “Run boy, run! Before Vellian forces you to finish your schooling! He may see the campus as far too quiet without your presence.”

“Brother.” Bastion took Phil’s hand in his own and shook it before echoing Phil’s own words. “Until we meet again.”

“Until we meet again.” Phil repeated on last time. He turned to each one of his friends, so dear to him in the two years he had spent in this world. Then he nodded once, placed his duel disk on the bar counter, and then followed Lumina into the kitchen. No one had voiced that it would likely be impossible for them to ever meet again. It was an unspoken, tacit agreement, that if the doubts were left unsaid, then perhaps the universe would be kind. Perhaps then they could see their friend again.

Perhaps.

There was no grand device. No giant hole, nor crackling machine. It was just a blue portal, no more than a circle in the air, resting beyond the open door of the walk-in freezer.

“Huh.” Phil mused. “I thought it would be…”

“Budget cuts.” Lumina interrupted with a knowing smile.

“Budget cuts.” Phil laughed. “Fits for a corporation. So do I just walk through it?”

“Yeah.”

A moment of silence passed between the two, duel spirit and reincarnator.

“So this is it.”

“Two years went by in a flash.”

“So fast but so slow at the same time.”

"You know… it's not too late. I could fudge the paperwork, say that you died after finishing the job. Then you could stay."

"Tempting," Phil admitted. "But I can't. As much as it hurts to leave, I miss my family too much. I had a life back there. It was a good one. I can’t let down the people from that life that care about me.”

“I know.” Lumina didn’t even sound surprised. “It’s a shit deal. Losing the life you found here for the one you had back home.”

“Yeah. Say, I’ve always wondered…”

Lumina looked at Phil expectingly.

“What will happen to this guy?”

“What guy?”

Phil gestured to himself. “The guy whose body I woke up in.”

“Oh.” Lumina chuckled, “That’s just a body the Lightsworn Corporation prepared. Think of it like an empty shell we stuffed your soul in. Once your soul leaves, we’ll put it in cold storage for if this happens to you again.”

Before Phil could raise an eyebrow, Lumina burst out in a fit of laughter.

“Sorry, sorry. That’s a bit of a tasteless joke. We’ll just find another use for it.”

“How comforting.” Phil hummed in thought. “And my old body?”

“We repaired it the best we could. You’ll have recovery still, but you’ll live. Maybe with a few recurring headaches. We couldn’t find all the little bits of your brain, after all. It shouldn’t be as bad as the soul damage you experienced after your reincarnation.”

“Fun.”

“So… until we meet again?” Lumina questioned. Her voice faltered slightly.

Phil nodded and grunted in surprise as Lumina drew him into a crushing hug.

“Yeah.” He patted her back and hugged her with equal force. “Until we meet again.”

Once Lumina released him, Phil turned to the portal in the walk-in freezer. It was a small thing. Barely large enough for him to walk through at his full height. In fact, he would have to stoop slightly. Still, the edges were smooth, it only crackled a little bit, and it at least wasn’t particularly creepy.

Phil raised his hand over his shoulder in farewell one last time toward the people watching through the kitchen window and wordlessly stepped through.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

A soft beeping sound filled the air. Phil’s eyes cracked open. The air was sterile. Annoyingly so. A hospital. He was a prisoner in a hospital once more. The thought was almost enough to make Phil growl in irritation.

At least, until he saw his dad sleeping in a chair nearby. The room was dark, but enough light came through the blinds for him to make out his stocky figure. Phil squinted and then winced. There was a pounding pain in his head. Yet, it wasn’t as bad as what he had experienced in most shadow duels. The soft beeping continued. His hearing sharpened. The beeping was there, but there was something… more. Another sound.

Movement grabbed his vision and he looked for the source. It was pretty easy to find. The TV, hung high on the wall, was on for some reason. Probably so his dad wasn’t bored to tears sitting by him. Or maybe his mom turned it on. Her purse was on the table. She was probably out getting some air.

His eyes focused on it. Whatever was playing, it was familiar. But how? It was some sort of cartoon, that was for sure. It was bright, and many fantastical monsters littered the screen. There was a man in a green costume with a pair of white-feathered wings at his back, facing fearlessly against a tall metal giant.

‘Try this on for size, you Slifer slacker!’ A strange, yet very familiar man yelled, his face caked in white makeup.

Jaden’s face filled the screen next. He said something about a rad play and how he was super excited about what would happen next in the duel. Then, as the spell card Polymerization was revealed to fusion summon Elemental Hero Flame Wingman, Phil closed his eyes and leaned back. For a moment, the only emotion that filled his mind was that of pure sorrow over what he had gained and then lost.

“Hey Dad.” His voice, hoarse from disuse, muttered. The man in the chair sleepily blinked open his eyes. “I’m home.”