Chapter Text
Yuri was walking silently in the cold black void, nothing but the mixture of screams of pain from the fallen Xyz scum and the cheers of victory of Academia filling his ears. All of them praising and congratulating him for being such a good soldier, a loyal son of Academia, a hero for their glorious dream
At some point, a barrage of powerful Ancient Gear cards started to fall all around Yuri like if they were snow. Filling up the hollowed floor he was walking, scaling up until they got to his midriff making it a more and more challenging to walk properly
Yuri at first was annoyed with the scaling ocean of cards, but he soon started to feel the one thing an Academia soldier like himself should never feel
Fear
The cards did nothing but continue to pile up until they now started to reach his elbow area, and Yuri tried his best to remain afloat and not drown on this Ancient Gear sea. He tried his best to speak, but his words were drowned by the voices all around him
The cheering from Academia just got more overwhelming, all of them continue to praise Yuri while ignorant of his struggle. All telling that it was a great honor to drown in the glory of their institution. The screams of pain from the Xyz had now turned into sadistic jeering, all of them screaming for blood and for him to drown in his own weapons of war
Eventually, Yuri stopped struggling and calling out for help. He stopped doing something so meaningless, knowing it will never happen
He was alone, not only on this dream but on his whole life
Yuri was Academia’s pride, something to be feared and respected but at a distance. He and the rest of his classmates were leagues apart and he was well-aware of that. In Academia it was every man for themselves, and that’s even more settled in once you reach the very top like himself
And he knew that the Xyz wouldn’t help him, not when he had destroyed their home. They were all anticipating his demise with glee
This was the only way, being drowned by Academia’s might like he and countless other had done in the past
Yuri closed his now-faded pink eyes with a look of conformity, the cards finally managing to go above his head and starting to slowly and tortuously suffocating him. He absentmindedly wondering is this what was all his victims felt when his Predaplants all sucked the air out from them
Yuri didn’t even attempt to gasp out for air, knowing it was all pointless. No matter how much he attempted to scream, no one will reach out to him. It was better this way, at least he’d give himself a tolerable way to die than to waste more precious air
This was for the best…
"Yuri!!"
A new voice that Yuri didn’t recognize that didn’t belonged to the cheering Academia or the jeering Xyz called out, muffling the other noises. His empty eyes widened in surprise when he felt a strong yet kind hand grab his own, pulling him up
"Don’t worry, I got you!" The hand’s owner said, with the same voice that Yuri had heard earlier. His faded eyes still couldn’t see very well of who exactly was helping him, but he knew for a fact it wasn’t anyone he knew
"Why are you doing this…?" Yuri said with what little voice he had left, "I deserve this. I had shown weakness and this is my punishment for it. I had already accepted it”
"But you’re wrong, Yuri" The stranger insisted, his tone a kind gentleness that Yuri had never experienced. Not even with the Professor, who had been like a 'father' to him for as long as he could remember
"Feeling sad or scared isn’t showing weakness. It’s normal for you to feel that, you’re just a kid after all" The stranger wasn’t mocking him, rather he was saying a kind truth, "You don’t have to be punished for any of it"
"Let me help you, Yuri…" The stranger continued to pull him up with hope in his voice, and Yuri could see a tiny speck of light on the darkness of this abyss. That’s where the stranger was pulling him up, to a joyful freedom
A few glimpses of hope also started to tinge Yuri’s empty eyes, allowing himself to feel genuinely hopeful in his life. But unfortunately a new voice invaded his ears, a voice that he recognized very well
"You had listened to his voice, Yuri. Now listen to mine" Leo’s dark rumbling voice declared, to prowling red eyes looking up at him in the ocean of darkness to contrast the joyful light the stranger was trying to pull him out from
"Even if you were to try and attempt to leave Academia, there’s no place for you in the world" Leo declared, black tendrils wrapping around Yuri’s legs and dragging him down just like the stranger continued to attempt to lift him up
"You’re nothing but a monster, Yuri. A monster such as yourself will never be accepted" Leo’s harsh words just seem to add another dark tentacle of self-doubt onto Yuri, and the slight glimmers of hope on him were all being extinguished as even the stranger was struggling to keep helping him
'Poor naive fool', Yuri thought pityingly, 'I told him it wasn’t worth helping me. Now he’s also dragging himself into this mess'
But then, a second hand was wrapped around his wrist. This wasn’t the stranger’s, as it was more calloused but it still held the gentle assertiveness of the first, not willing to give up no matter the storm
"You’re wrong, Akaba. The only monster here is you" The new stranger’s voice was deeper than the first with an air of maturity that the former didn’t had, but there was the same hope from his other companion
"Don’t give up, Yuri! We’re nearly there!" The two strangers helped each other out to continue lifting him up, but even their combined strength weren’t able to move Yuri from the inky tentacles. In the end, it all depended on Yuri and his own will of being free
"It’s impossible. You heard him already, haven’t you? This is what he wants" Leo’s voice echoed all over the void, "Try to lift him all you want, he himself will just continue to weight himself down. Hahaha!"
"Maybe, but this is Yuri’s decision isn’t it?“ The second stranger defied the dark voice of Leo, "Yuri, you aren’t a monster. You just let yourself get manipulated by the true culprit here"
"Even if that were true, the Professor’s right on something. There’s nowhere else in the world that could accept me" An odd liquid flowed out from Yuri’s empty eyes, but he didn’t knew they were tears, "Not after everything I had done…"
"I know what you did, Yuri. I had experienced it first hand" The second stranger said cryptically, but with no less fondness, "Yet, I forgive you. I forgive everything you had ever done to me and to my people”
"But you also have to learn how to forgive yourself, Yuri“ The tightness of his wrist hardened with force, not to injure him but to encourage him further, "This is a nice first step for it"
A few tendrils let Yuri go, symbolizing him gaining his small flickers of hope amongst the darkness of deception. With him letting go of some of his doubts, the two strangers now had an easier time lifting him higher into the light of freedom
"If a stranger I don’t know or can’t see accepts all of my faults and forgives my errors regardless of the past…" Yuri murmured with a small smile, a few more of the tendrils letting go, "…Then I myself can also start to let go…"
"That’s the spirit, Yuri. Let yourself free" The first of the two strangers said, voice tender and gentle, "Now c’mon, we’re almost out"
"NO!!!!" Leo screeched like a banshee, more of his tendrils attaching all over Yuri’s body like leeches, "I had gotten so far!! I won’t allow you to merge to recreate that monster again!!!"
"Monster…?" Yuri murmured to himself in confusion, but the tightening grip all over his body making him shout with pain interrupted his thoughts. "You’ll never be free, you hear me you little demon!! I will never allow it!!!" Leo drawled, more and more tentacles darkening his vision
"That’s not for you to decide, asshole!" One last final hand reached out, this one grabbing his forearm. It was also slightly calloused but not like the second one, and his voice was energetic and cheery but still defiant
"As long as someone believes themselves to be free, then they will always be free no matter the oppression they suffer under" The newest voice declared, hand playfully jabbing Yuri’s forearm as he continued to lift him up, "And you want to be free, dont'cha Yuri?"
”…Yes" Yuri finally admitted, his empty eyes finally returning to full-glow, "I want to go far away from here!! I don’t want to suffer under his lies any loner!!!"
"You said it, my man! Let’s show this bastard what we got, 'kay?" With the help of the third stranger and Yuri’s own newfound courage, the grip of Leo started to lessen more even if the professor continued to try and drag Yuri down
"Yuri!!! Do you even know where they’re leading you!!!" He screeched with anger and…desperation?, "They don’t want to help you!!! They only wish for you to join something even worse than me!!!"
"Well, any place would be better than by your shitty side!!" Yuri shouted back at him, trying to pry himself away from the tendril attack, “At least they’re trying to reach out to me, unlike you!!"
"You’ll pay for this, little brat!!" Even more tentacles, looking like a massive mob as they started to hound against Yuri with Leo’s cold backslash echoing at every angle, ”I made you!! You were no one until I found you!! You’re very existence belongs to me!!! Yet this is how you repay me!!!!?"
"Don’t listen to him, Yuri!” The first of the voices reassured him, "You don’t owe anything to him! You aren’t his perfect warrior or his tool, you’re you! You always were!"
"You had the freedom to make your own choices! It is your life, isn’t it?!" The second voice followed, "Then it’s time you take it by the reins and steer it into the direction you want it to go!"
"Yeah Yuri, the battle isn’t over until you decide it to be!!" The third finished, "But you don’t have to do it alone! We’ll help you out! Don’t give up just yet, because we will never give up on you!!"
"Silence, you little monsters!!" Leo thundered, and to their horror their grip on Yuri was starting to falter as his tendrils applied even more force, "You aren’t allowed to be in here!! BEGONE AT ONCE!!!"
“Yuri!!" The first of the voices kept his grip for as long as he could as Yuri continued to be gulped down by the darkness, "We’ll find you! We swear that we’ll find you no matter what!!"
"Until then, don’t give up no matter whatever happens!!" The second voices shouted with desperation, "We won’t give up on you either, Yuri! So please don’t give up on us!"
"Keep fighting to the very end, Yuri!!" The third finalized with his grip getting weaker and weaker, "We love you, and we know that we will one day be all reunited"
"It may not be today, or tomorrow, nor the day after, but we will be finally reunited…" The first of the voices said, and Yuri felt their tears graze the small part of his face that had yet to be fully covered by Leo’s grasp, "We love you Yuri, never forget that…"
Was the final thing that Yuri heard before he was fully consumed by the black and returned to the coldness he had grown in all throughout his life…
Yuri gasped as he sprang from his sleeping position with a shock, gasping for air. But before he did that, his eyes were glowing a bright pink for a bare moment before they went back to normal
"What the hell…" He grumbled to himself, seeing that he was on his room with everything still in place. His gasps turned into an annoyed sigh, directed at himself for having such a childish reaction to something so trivial
Why was he screaming out for something as petty as a dream? A dream he couldn’t remember in the slightest
He had no idea what happened in that dream, his mind a total blank of all the details that happened on it. But he didn’t gave it much thought, after all today was the day he had to prepare to go to Standard for his newest mission
Yuri got up and prepared himself to head out, draping his special high-ranking coat over his shoulders like a cape. But as he finished buttoning it up and lifted his head to graze himself on his basic mirror, something caught his attention
Specifically, on the way he always stylized his coat. Yuri didn’t knew where he got that whim on putting it over his shoulders like a cape, but he never gave it much thought. Until now, that is
It felt almost…like he was copying someone else’s dressing style
Suddenly, Yuri’s reflection was changed. His sharp pink eyes were now a soft ruby, his lilac and pink hair green and red, and his clothes more carefree and goofy than the militaristic ones he was wearing. Most importantly, he had a white coat over his shoulders in the same cape-like position and he was smiling giddily
Something Yuri never did
He blinked, and suddenly his reflection went back to normal like if nothing happened. He frustratedly rubbed his eyes, making sure he wasn’t seeing odd things. He couldn’t show weakness at an especially important time
Yuri rummaged through his things to make sure he was ready for his mission when he saw those strange cards he had found the other day laying on his desk. Huh, he had forgotten to throw them away
Rosegazer and Thorngazer, cards Yuri had never seen before with from method he had never seen before. He would otherwise throw them away or reports this to the teachers or the Professor but for some reason he cling to them like a stubborn child
Maybe it was because he saw some…potential in them
But that wasn’t what caught Yuri’s attention to them. It was the fact that they seemed to glimmer for a brief second before they returned to normal. He definitely needed to book an appointment with the Doctor to found a way to deal with all of this shitty hallucinations
Thankfully his status as a high-ranking Academia student will stop the old coot from spreading rumors of his momentary moment of weakness
Yuri just swiped the cards from the table and shoved them on his deck not sparing them a glance. When he returned he’ll hand them over to the Doctor to finally get rid of them but until then he’ll hang onto them for now
With that out of his way, Yuri stormed out from his cell-like room, not looking at his own reflection
"Dammit!" Yuya cursed as they all left Dream Space, eyes glowing a furious crimson, "So close. So fucking close!!"
"Yuya! Blood Ruby, you have to calm down!!" Yuto called out to him, grabbing his brother’s arm in and attempt to call him down. His Blood Ruby wasn’t the type to get angry, but in the rare times that he did Yuto knew he could be terrifying
"Don’t tell me to calm down, Yuto! This is the third time this week we had all tried to reach out to Yuri!" Yuya argued, his hair starting to sprang up in his fury, "This was the closest we’d managed to help him out! Yuri was starting to believe us! And yet…!"
"Yuya, Peony Meadow, I get that you’re pissed. We all are" Yugo reminded him, putting his own hand on Yuya’s shoulder to reign him down. Some tears flowed down from his pinkish cheeks, and the furious crimson light slowly started to dim down until they returned to a woeful ruby
Yuto gave his Blood Ruby a empathetic look and gave him a side hug in an attempt to comfort him, kissing his temple as Yuya hiccuped silently. The Dragon Prince of Pendulum had always been the most emotional out of the three of them, after all
"But rather, did you heard the stuff that Akaba was saying during Yuri’s dream?" Yugo pointed out, gaining their attention, "All the other times it was just Yuri’s insecurities in the form of Akaba, but this time it talked about something different"
"Hoe he knew where we will bring him or our place to 'reassemble' Father" Yugo’s explanation left them all thinking, and a loving hand pat his head in congratulations. "And those foolish Tops believe that you aren’t smart, Summer Wind" Zarc cooed and Yugo was preening at the praise
"Still, if what Summer Wind says it’s true then that means those weren’t Yuri’s words talking" Zarc hummed in thought, "But rather Akaba’s own words somehow appearing on our Dark Bloom’s dream"
"But how’s that possible, Father? As far as we know, Akaba is but a mere mortal no matter what other sorts of earthly powers he may have" Yuto pointed out and Zarc’s eyes furrowed in a disgusting possibility
"Perhaps, but Akaba has always been a cheater even back in my previous life as a human. If he had managed to retain his memories from when the world was just one, then he must remember that cards actually hold living Dueling Spirits" Zarc’s clawed fists clenched together
"He must’ve somehow managed to find Duel Spirit magic that allows him to enter dreams. Worst case scenario, he’s exploiting Duel Spirits themselves at the cost of their own lives to do it" Yuya gasped horrified, Yuto’s face remained neutral but his fists tightened white, and Yugo clicked his tongue in distaste
"If that’s the case, then we should probably lay low by now. I don’t like that prospect of this, but…" Yuto sighed defeated, "…We may need to stop dream walking with Yuri, just to lower Akaba’s suspicions"
"…If it’s for the best" Yuya said weakly, not liking the idea but knowing there was no other option. Not with Akaba already having an idea of what were they doing and potentially hurting both his final brother and other innocent Duel Spirits
Yugo grabbed his hand with a light squeeze and a small reassuring smile, something that Yuya tried to give back. "Okay we may need to lay low for now, but once things are back on track I’m heading first to Yuri’s head“ The Turno Duelist declared and made everyone chuckled at his announcement
"Of course you will, my love. You’re always the first in the rise of battle" Zarc chuckled, "It is one of your most endearing qualities"
“Aww shucks Dad, you’re gunna make me blush" Yugo said with a blush already, not really used to this kinda praise the way he had grown up with but slowly starting to love the affection and possessiveness his Flight gifted him with
Things were going to be challenging now that they couldn’t take the easy way out in dream walking to reach Yuri out faster, but now that they knew that Yuri was coming to Standard things just may change for the better
Surely, they will change
It may not be today, or tomorrow, or the day after that, but the Flight of Heavenly Dragons will one day be finally reunited