//------------------------------// // Turn 25: A Quest for Redemption // Story: Yugioh EQG: Ω Zenith // by Banshee531 //------------------------------// "That's great to hear," Flash smiled as he sat in his hotel room. He was staring at his Duel Disk, which was showing the picture of Rainbow. It'd been several days since Rainbow had defeated Guto and freed him from the Dominator's control. The four teens had returned to Canterlot and dropped Guto off at a hospital before reporting to Cold, telling him in every detail what'd happened. With that over, the seven colour haired girl had contacted Flash and told him the good news. "You should be really proud of yourself," he continued to tell her. "Thanks," Rainbow nodded. "It wasn't easy, but I'm glad all that hard work finally payed off." "So what's happening with the Zenith Dragon?" "Already taken care of. Cold had somebody pick it up and take it to the base where the other one's being held." "Who was it?" Flash asked, wondering who Cold would trust with the safety of the Zenith Dragon more then Rainbow and her friends. Nevada. It was night time in that part of the world, the desert air cold while blowing strongly and kicking up large clouds of sand. And from out of that sand came a fancy black car that was rolling down a road that looked like it was hardly used. Inside that car, Shining Armor and Cadance were sitting quietly as their driver lead them to their destination. Cadance had a black metal briefcase on her lap, which was handcuffed to her to prevent it from being taken. The married couple were keeping a vigilant eye out, staring out into the desert to make sure they saw if and when someone would attack them. Eventually, their car came into view of the place they were heading too. It was a large compound surrounded by high cliffs. It had an attack on titans vibe with three large circular walls surrounding it, with only one entrance and multiple guard towers shining spotlights into the darkness constantly. it would be impossible to sneak into the place. The car pulled up to the gate and Shining lowered the window to show the guard his access badge. The guard scanned it and after a few seconds, nodded before the gate opened the the car drove up to the next gate. There, Shining's ID was verified and they were allowed through to repeat the process a second time. When the third gate opened, they were treated to the sight of what looked like a large office building. And standing infront of said building, Sunset Shimmer, Starlight Glimmer, Sunburst, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie and Maud Pie stood with smiles on their faces. Shining and Cadance got out of the car, Pinkie rushing over to and hugging the two of them. "It's so good to see you." "It's good to see you too," Cadance smiled back as Pinkie pulled back and allowed Maud to talk to them. "We're sorry about Twilight," she placed her hand over her heart. "We know what it's like to lose someone like that." The two frowned back but Shining quickly shook it off. "We can't change what happened," he told her. "All we can do now is whatever it takes to keep Midnight from getting her hands on the Zenith Dragons." "Then you'd better come with us," Sunset told them before they all headed into the building. "I see," Flash nodded in understanding. He should have known Shining would want to be near the Zenith Dragons. If Midnight wanted them, then she would likely try to take them back personally. Shining was trying to be the one to free his sister. "Cold's actually sending me, Soarin, Gilda and Fluttershy to another location he thinks might be a Zealot base. He's trying to make the Zealots sweat, not letting them have a moment to breath so they can't do anything to cause more problems." "That makes sense," Flash agreed. "Just be careful. The Zealot might try to use this to take you out with traps." "Don't I know the half of it," Rainbow sighed. "We barely managed to make it out of the last little surprise they left for us after I beat Guto." She then looked at him with a serious look. "Don't worry about us. Right now, all you need to focus on it getting your deck back." Flash frowned but nodded, "I know." "Any ideas how you're gonna do that?" "Not really," Flash got off his bed and moved over to the window. He pushed the curtain and stared out at the desert he was expected to cross. "Cold sent me and my family here to Egypt, but he didn't give us any other instruction other then to met this guy. I'm not really sure who he is or how he's suppose to help me get my deck back." "Well I'm sure Cold knew what he was doing sending you there. Listen, I've gotta get going. Our flights about to start boarding. Tell Scootaloo I said hi." "Will do," Flash turned back to the Duel Disk before the two cut the call. When they did, Flash pocketed the device and turned to his backpack. He opened it up and checked its contents, nodding as he noted everything within that he'd need for his trek into desert. Once the bag was zipped up, he hoist it onto his back before heading out of his room. He headed down to the lobby and there, he spotted his sister and mother standing there with their own bags. "You ready?" Misty asked him, Flash nodding. "Then let's get going." They headed out of the hotel and Misty quickly lead her children over to an open top land-rover that Cold had prepared for them. They climbed up onto it before Misty kicked the engine into life, driving towards their destination. "Mom?" She turned back to Scootaloo, "how'd you know where to go?" "Yeah," Flash realised, "Cold didn't tell us a location...did he?" Misty smiled back. "I know where he wants us to go. I've known since I saw where the plane tickets were sending us." This confused her children even more, both wondering why she'd keep that information to herself. "Trust me, you'll be pleasantly surprised when you she where we're going." Again, the kids were confused but Misty refused to tell them anything else as they turned off the road and began heading into the desert. Back in Nevada, Sunset was showing Shining and Cadance through the facility. It turned out the building was just the tip of the iceberg, as most of the place was underground. Riding an elevator down, Sunset explained why the cards were to be kept there. "This facility has a special kind of experimental energy shield that's impossible to get passed as long as its active. It's powered by four different generators that's connected to different energy systems. There's no way to take them all out at once. And as long as one generator is active, the shield will remain in tact." "Plus both da'h shield and generators are in the lowest part of the compound," Applejack explained. "There's no way they're gonna get to them before running into us." "Exactly," Sunset nodded as the elevator came to a stop. When it opened, everyone found they were in a long hallway with turns on both sides every couple of feet. "This place is also a maze," Rarity told the two as they made their way through the labyrinth. "Even if they managed to get down here, they'd have trouble navigating their way to the generators of the shield room." They eventually arrived at a door and when Sunset opened it up, they found it lead into a round room with computers all over the place. "Welcome to home base," Sunset another before moving over to a door that was on the other side of the room. She opened it up and the group found themselves stepping into a giant hanger like room, which was so large you could fit a jumbo jet inside of it. And on the far end of it was a doom like structure made of black metal with a single door on the front of it. Four large metal cables came down from the ceiling and was connected to the dome. "Is that it?" Shining as as the stepped towards it. "Yup," Starlight nodded. "That's the energy shield. A lead structure designed to keep the energy contained." "It's quite a remarkable feat of engineering," Sunburst explained as he pushed his glasses up his nose. Maud replied say, "as long as it keeps the Omega Zealots from getting these Zenith Dragons, that's all that matters." The others nodded in agreement as they stepped up to the doom, Sunset quickly pressing buttons on the keypad besides the door. It took almost thirty whole seconds before she got the whole code typed in, causing the door to finally open and allow them to look inside. The room was filled with red lightning that was coming off the walls and circling an orb of empty space in the middle of the room, thought it wasn't exactly empty. Inside the orb, the Zenith Dragon of Endless Inferno was floating in the air. Sunset took out her Duel Disk and pressed something, "get ready to toss the card inside." Cadance nodded and undid the briefcase, opening it up so Shining could take out the card. He held it up as Sunset deactivated the energy field, "now!" Shining tossed the card into the room, right as the red lightning stopped. The card flew through the air until it reached the area Perfignis was floating. When it got there, the energy returned and trapped Marventus inside with Perfignis. Sunset closed the door, trapping both cards inside. "There," she smiled one the lock was set, "there's no way those cards are getting out of there." Shining frowned. "Even so, we shouldn't let our guard down." They headed back towards the control room, "the Omega Zealots can be unpredictable. Who knows what they'll do in order to get these cards back. They might even try to blow the whole place up." The others went wide-eyed at this. "I hadn't considered that," Sunset told him. "But wouldn't blowing the place up destroy the cards?" Pinkie asked, Cadance shaking her head. "If those cards can survive what Cold put one of them through, they'll survive an explosion. Even so, I doubt they'd want to go that far. Even if they survive the explosion, they'd be buried beneath the rubble and possibly lost forever." "I'm just saying it's a possibility," Shining explained as they entered the control room. "We need to stay on our toes and be ready for anything." The others nodded as Sunset placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry," she assured him. "We won't let them get close to these cards. And we'll get Twilight back as well." Shining nodded back with a smile, turning to the others. "While we're waiting, let's get some practise in. We'll need every trick we can com up with if we won't to show those Omega Zealots why messing with our planet's a mistake." The others nodded and took out their decks, ready to start practising and making any changes to their deck. Those Omega Zealots wouldn't know what hit them. Flash let out a cough as he wrapped his scarf around his face and nose, his mother and sister doing the same. They were driving at such a speed that it kicked up a bunch of sand, which flew into their open top car and made things difficult. "Couldn't Cold have gotten us something with windows?" Scootaloo asked as she put on a pair of goggles. "This was kinda last minute," Misty told her as Flash put her goggles on over her eyes. "We're lucky he managed to arrange anything at all." "I just wish you'd tell us where the heck we're going," Flash stated. "What's so special about this place anyway." "You'll find out soon," Misty said as she looked ahead. "We're almost there." The two followed her gaze and spotted a small mountain in the distance, with seemed to have a bunch of buildings infront of it. As they got closer, they saw the buildings were in ruins. Many had large holes in the walls while others had simply collapsed and were nothing more then stacks of stone. "What is this place?" Scootaloo asked. "We're not sure," Misty told them. "We think it was a village that was under the protection of a great pharaoh. The same pharaoh that originally learned how to open a doorway between our world and the Duel Monster Spirit World." This shocked her children as she pulled the jeep to a stop. The three got out and looked around, Flash and Scootaloo still completely lost about why they were there. "So what now?" Flash asked, Misty looking towards the mountain. Flash and Scootaloo did the same, but couldn't really see anything through the sand that was being blown by the wind. They stayed like that for about thirty seconds and Flash was about to ask what they were doing, when suddenly he noticed something appearing through the sand. It was a figure dressed in a brown cloak, who was moving through the desert towards them. Flash and Scootaloo turned to Misty in concern, but she looked positively calm as this figure got closer and closer. Eventually, he got within a few feet of them and stopped before standing perfectly still. "I've been waiting for you." "Who are you?" Flash asked, still cautious as he heard the figure laugh. "You know who I am Flash." This got the teen really worried. "How do you know my name?" "Why wouldn't I know your name," he reached up and removed his hood. "I'm the one that gave it too you." Flash and Scootaloo's eyes went wide when they saw the face of a man they hand't seen in over a year. One they'd only seen for real once before. The face of Trail Blazer. "DAD!" Scootaloo rushed over to her father and leapt into his arms, Trail managing to catch her and pull her in close. "Hey Scoot!" He hugged her tightly for several seconds before pulling back and looking her over, "have you gotten bigger. Must have. You've shot up a whole foot since I last saw you." Scootaloo blushed at this as Misty stepped up to him. "Hello beautiful." Misty smiled before hugging him, the two quickly sharing a kiss. "I've missed you." "I've missed you too," he told her before turning his attention of his son. "Hello Flash." Flash just stared at him for several seconds before looking away. "Hey." Trail frowned at this but decided not to push it, Scootaloo catching his attention instead. "What are you doing here?" Trail smirked before turning away from them. "Come with me. I'll show you why I'm here. It'll explain why I haven't come home yet and why you've been brought here." He became to make his way towards the mountain, his family following after him. They continued to trek through the desert until they arrived at the base of the mountain, Trail leading them around it until they came across a cave-like opening leading down into the darkness. "Here it is." "It's a hole," Flash pointed out. "Not just any hole," Misty told him. "This is the entrance to an ancient tomb. And not just any tomb." Trail nodded. "This is the tomb your mother and I were exploring with Sombra before he betrayed us." Flash and Scootaloo's eyes went wide when they realised what they were getting at. "You mean-" "That's right," Trail interrupted Scootaloo before patting the cave. "This is the place Misty and I first entered the Duel Monster Spirit world from." "No way," Flash whispered as he looked into the cave. "This is also where I first returned to this world," Misty told her children. "Thanks to Vail Pixie, I returned to this tomb and met your father before returning home. Trail turned to his soon. "I hope you're ready." Flash raised an eyebrow, "the trek into this cave will be a long one. You up for it." "I... um..." Flash turned away for a second while scratching his knows, only for Scootaloo to slide up next to him and thrust her elbow into his side. "Ah!" He cried before turning back to his dad and faking a smile, "I got plenty of rest on the plane and in the hotel. I'll be fine." Train nodded, "then lets go." With that, they headed into the cave and began to navigate the tomb. The cave system had many different turns, either going left or right. Trail seemed to be able to navigate it without a second's thought, though Flash did notice an old rope on the ground that went the same way they were going. Eventually, they found themselves heading down a slope and when they reached the bottom, they found themselves staring at what looked like a stone door that's been blown apart. Rocks were scattered across the ground and the edges of the hole in the door were chard. "This is it," Trail explained. "In there is the tomb that once held a breech between our two worlds." He turned back to Flash. "It there's any chance of you getting your deck back, it's only by reopening that breech and sending you through it." Flash's eyes went wide. "You want to send me to the Duel Monster Spirit World?" "We don't want to," Misty stated. "But if you really want to get your deck back, this might be the only way." "Are you up for this?" Trail asked, seeing an uneasy look on Flash's face. But after a few seconds, he took a deep breath before nodding. "Let's do this." The others nodded before making their way through the doorway, finding themselves in in a large open room with a bridge leading out from the doorway to the center of the room. It was there that the bridge stopped, looking like it'd been destroyed by an explosion if the singe marks were any indication. "So what do we do now?" Trail frowned. "To be honest, I'm not sure." Flash turned to him. "This is the only spot we know a breech has opened naturally. After Sombra's defeat, I chose to stay here and be ready encase another breech opens. But in the year I've been here, this tomb as been as silent as the grave." He turned back to Flash, "but I'm sure we'll find a way to reopen it. All we have to do is work together." Flash didn't say anything and instead focused on the room itself, the teen truly wondering if he could actually open a breech to the Duel Monster Spirit World. "Let's give it a try," Misty told him as they stepped forward. Flash slowly made it to the end of the bridge and stared down at the bottom of the room. "Just close your eyes and focus." Flash did as he was told. "Now, imagine it. A breech. A portal to the other world. Just like the ones you've seen Vail Pixie create." As she said that, Flash's mind suddenly broke from the image he was trying to create. Instead, he saw Vail Pixie's face infront of him mind. And the expression on her face was the one he'd seen when he'd pushed her away. The face of betrayal from him using the Zenith Dragon despite her warning. Misty noticed the troubled expression on Flash's face knew he wasn't doing what he suggested. "Flash," his ears twitched at this, "you need to stay calm and focus on the breech." Flash nodded and tried to force himself to do so, but as he did the image of Vail Pixie's expression and Flash Heart keeping his back turned from him kept blinking infront of him mind. "Focus on the image of the ruins you've seen in the Duel Monster Spirit World. Envision a doorway with that place on the other side. You can do this." "I'm...trying," Flash grunted as he clutched his head to try and force himself to envision it like she was suggesting. "Don't force it," Trail told him. "That won't work. You have to let it flow naturally. Remember, the world you're trying to enter is the one you were born in. It's a part of you. So dig deep and feel yourself connect with that world." "I don't know how," Flash told him. "Yes you do," Trail nodded. "The way to do it is inside of you. Just reach within your soul and you'll find the answer." Flash had no idea what he meant by that and kept trying to force it like he had done before, but the image of his monsters kept flashing infront of his mind. Each one had a betrayed looked on their faces, or simply kept their backs turned away from him. Manga Wolf, Lunara, Solaris, Vail Pixie, Flash Heart, and so many others who'd stood by him through thick and thin. And he'd simply pushed them away. The monsters he once said he'd die to protect, he betrayed and risked without a second's thought. "Flash!" Trail placed a hand on his shoulder, but Flash quickly jerked away and stepped back. "I can't do this!" He cried while turning to them, "I can't open a portal to the other world." "Yes you can," Misty told him. "You just have to-" "No!" Flash almost yelled, "this was a stupid idea." He rushed forward and pushed through them. "Even if I managed to go there, they'd never forgive me." With that, he headed out the door and followed the rope back to the surface. As he left, his family shared a worried look as they turned to one another. "What do we do?" Scootaloo asked. "Something's clearly wrong with him," Misty stated. "And unless we find a way to help him through it, he'll never be able to open a breech." Back outside, Flash rushed out the cave and power walked towards the ruins. Once there, he stopped and just stood there as he let all his bottled up emotions slowly raise closer and closer to the surface. And eventually, the cap burst off the bottle. "AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRHHHHHHHHHH!" He fell to his knees and started panting after his outburst. He stayed like that for several minutes, the intense heat of the sun washing down on him. Eventually, he sensed a presence appear next to him and looked up to see his father standing besides him drinking from a canteen. "Here," he said once he'd finished his drink, "it's never a good idea to be out here without something to drink." Flash hesitated for a second before taking the bottle and drinking it down, all the while keeping his back turned to his dad. "It's clear you have a problem with me." Flash glance back at him. "I wish I could say sorry, but I don't even know what it is." Trail turned away from him, "I hope you'll tell me what I did so I can apologise." With that, he walked off and left his son alone to drink his water while moving over to Scootaloo and Misty. Flash just stood there, having finished his drink and removing he canteen from his lips. His vision remained on his father before he finally turned away, not wanting to lock eyes with him. Hours passed and Flash remained where he was, though he'd moved over to a more shady spot. Meanwhile, the rest of his family had set up camp. Scootaloo and Trail laughed as he showed her how to make a campfire, while Misty simply smiled at the two before turning to her son and frowning. "Oh Flash." Flash continued to just sit there watching as the sun slowly began to set, the light of the campfire the only think keeping away the pitch darkness. He remained like this for several minutes until he noticed someone step up to him, looking up to see his mother smiling down at him while holding a bowl of food. "Hungry?" She asked, offering it to him. Flash took the bowl and started eating, Misty taking this chance to sit down besides him. "You don't have to stay here you know. You'll probably be much warmer by the fire." Flash didn't say anything as he ate. "If there's something wrong, you can tell me." Flash stopped eating a just stared into the bowl. "Remember what Cadance told you. You're not alone in this. If you're having issues, you can tell us." Flash stayed quiet as Misty got up, "please come sit with us. This is the first time our family's been together. Don't waste that time." With that, she returned to the campfire and watched Scootaloo and Trail's Duel. Several minutes passed until, finally, Flash came over and sat with them. The others stared at him for a few moments before sharing a look, Trail then speaking up. "Flash-" "You never came to see us," he interrupted. This surprised them as he went on. "You were here, in this world. You had Vail Pixie. You could have easily come and spent time with us when we were growing up." He turned to Trail. "But you didn't. You left gramps to raise us, even though you could have spent time with us while stopping Sombra." He looked down, "you could have taught us how to Duel. Heck, you could have given me my deck yourself. I could have had years learning to master my cards. Summoning the stronger ones here. But I didn't." "Flash," Trail whispered, "it wasn't that simple." He looked into the flames of the fire. "I wanted more then anything to come and see you. But I was scared." "Scared of what?" Scootaloo asked. "Scared that Sombra would learn of you and try to do something. He knew your mother and I were trying to stop him, but he didn't know about you until you entered the Celestic Cup. He was keeping an eye on me, so I couldn't risk being around you. That's why I entrusted Cold with the deck and your training. I kept Sombra distracted while Cold worked on helping you get stronger and summon the monsters needed to defeat him. If I had communicated with you, he might have tried to do something. Kidnap you as a way to stop us from fighting back. Forced us to exchange you for the deck." Trail turned back to Flash, "I was trying to protect you. That didn't mean I didn't want to be with you. That's all I've ever wanted." He looked back at the mountain, "but I had to make sure this world wasn't put in danger." Flash frowned while staring into the flames, feeling terrible about being mad at him. "I'm sorry." "You have nothing to apologise for," Trail told him. "Yes I do." His hands clutched together, rubbing against one another. "You and mom trusted me with the deck, a deck you made and brought to this world, but I was willing to throw it away for the sake of power." "Flash," Misty placed a hand on his shoulder, "you did what you did because you felt you had too. The one you loved was in danger." "That doesn't mean I had the right to put my friends on the line." Flash felt tears well up in his eyes, "if it was dad-" He turned to his father, "or mom-" He turned to his sister, "or someone you loved. If they had been possessed and you were trying to save them, do you think it's right to put the cards you've formed a connection with on the line. Those cards that symbolise your friendship with them. That connects you too them." The three took out their decks and held the cards, each now understanding just how much guilt Flash must be feeling. "You see," Flash looked back to the fire. "Vail Pixie tried to warn me against doing it, but I didn't listen. I even pushed her away." The others frowned hearing this, all knowing how special Vail Pixie is...was to Flash. "The look on her face. Every time I close my eyes, I see it. The betrayal she felt." "That wasn't you!" Scootaloo told him, "you wouldn't do something like that. It had to be the Zenith Dragon. Or...or Void. Remember what that guy said. Inside Void, a person's connection to their Duel Monster erodes. If you hadn't been in Void, there's no way you would have done that." "No," Flash shook his head, "I'm not blaming this on someone else. I chose to use that card. I chose to put my deck on the line because at the time, I didn't care about the consequences. I didn't care about what happened to them." "So that's it," Flash looked up at his father. "That's why you couldn't open a breech. You didn't want too. You didn't want to face them again." This statement made Flash realise he was right. "I can't face them again. Not after what I did." "Flash," Misty whispered, "you made a mistake. A big mistake, yes, but a mistake none the less. Just because you did what you did, that doesn't mean you should hide away from them. Making a mistake is one thing, but not trying the fix what you did is another mistake." "But how am I suppose to fix what I did?" "Maybe you can't," Misty told him. "But you still have to try. Vail Pixie and the others deserve an apology. You have to go there and tell them you're sorry. Then, it'll be up to them. If you're genuine and speak from the heart, I'm sure they'll forgive you. But even if they don't, at least you tried." Flash sighed, letting what his mother told him sink in. He slowly nodded while still looking into the fire. "You're right. I do need to at least try to apologise. Those monsters have gotten me through more scraps then I can count. They do deserve an apology." "And maybe you can convince them to help you save Twilight," Scootaloo told him. Flash frowned. "I do wanna save Twilight, but I can't force them to work with me again. If they don't want me as their Duellist, I'll have to let someone else save her." He turned back to the mountain. "But what if I can't open a breech. Even if I want too?" "We'll find a way," Trail told him. "This time, you won't be doing it alone." He looked around at his family. "The four of us are all connected to the Duel Monster Spirit World. Your mother and I spent years there. And I was the anchor for Vail Pixie. Flash was born in this world and even Scootaloo has the power to communicate the Duel Spirits like her mother." He looked up at the sky, seeing the many stars that filed it. "Our family is as much apart of that world as it is this one. That's why we must do whatever it takes to stop Zeronull and the Zealots. Not just for this world, but for the other one." They all nodded in agreement as Trail looked down at them. "That's why, by working together, I'm sure the three of us will be able to open a breech. Again, they nodded. The four all understood that together, they would be able to open a breech and help Flash find a way into the Duel Monster Spirit world. The next morning. As soon as the sun rose, the family of four returned to the mountain and headed down into the cave. Once they were back in the tomb, Flash stared out at the bridge. He once again felt an uneasiness about the idea of entering the other world. He then felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to his dad, Trail smiling at him. "You ready?" "I'm not sure I'll ever be ready," Flash told him. A serious look then appeared on his face, "but I won't let that stop me." No matter what, he was going to the Duel Monster Spirit World. He would go there and finally apologise to his monsters. Whatever happens after that, he would accept. "I'm ready." "Then let's do this thing," Trail reached into his cloak and pulled out an honest to god grapple gun. He pointed it at the ceiling and fired, the harpoon slamming into the rock and connecting. "Hop on kiddo." Scootaloo laughed before jumping on Trail's back, the man leaping forward and swinging over to the over side of the bridge. Once there, he tied the rope to the bridge and turned back to his son and wife. "You ready?" Flash nodded as Misty stepped up to the edge besides him, Scootaloo and Trail standing on the other edge. The four of them closed their eyes and held out their arms. "We must focus on the same place." "Just imagine it," Trail went on. "Try to picture it in your mind." They did so, the lot letting their imagination run wild and mould at Trail's description. "Imagine a tunnel, which starts at this very point and pushes passed the dimension boundaries. It passes through the void and eventually connects to the Duel Monster Spirit World. Pushing its way through that worlds barrier and slowly descends down into the ruins you once saw." They followed his instructions and focused on that image, unaware that the four of them were slowly starting to glow. "It's a long, long tunnel. So long that you could wrap it around the earth over a thousand time." 'Please,' Scootaloo thought. 'If you can hear us, please respond.' 'For the sake of both our world and yours,' Misty thought as the glowing got brighter and brighter. Slowly, the light began to fly off of them like misty. Floating out of their hands, the four trails of light slowly met in the center of the bridge gap and began spiralling together. Flash's mind once again fell upon the image of the monsters he'd betrayed. But he didn't let that stop him. Instead, he let it fuel his imagination as he focused on what had to happen. 'Flash Heart... Vail Pixie... everyone. We used to share a vision for the future. One where humans and Duel Monsters can live, together, on either world. I threw that vision away, but I know now that that was a mistake. So please... please...' "Let me have that vision back!" He cried as the light coming off the four exploded with brightness as their opened their eyes. They all gasped when they saw the ball of light floating between them. After a few seconds, it began to fall towards the ground and when it hit the floor, it exploded and caused a crack to appear that was floating above the ground and made entirely out of light. "That's it," Flash realised. "The breech. On the other side of that crack is the Duel Monster Spirit World." "That's right," Trail nodded as he and Scootaloo swung back over to their side. "And I'm afraid you're on your own from this point." "Can't we go with him?" Scootaloo asked, her parents shaking their heads before looking down at the crack. "By the looks of things, that breech is very weak." Misty turned to Flash, "it'll barely support one person going through it. If we all go, the connection will probably brake and we'll be lost between worlds." "So only one person can pass through it," Flash reasoned with his parents nodding. Misty stepped over to him and placed one hand on his shoulder and the other on his cheek. "You don't have to do this if you don't want to." "No," Flash shook his head, "I have to do this." He looked down at the breech, "I owe it to them." Misty sighed and nodded before pulling him into a hug, holding him tightly. Flash hugged her back as Scootaloo got in on it, Trail being the last to put his arms around the three. Flash basked in the comfort of his family until the three finally pulled away from him. "I'm ready." "Not yet you're not," Trail reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a familiar deck of cards. "Here." Flash's eyes went wide as he took the cards. "These are..." He turned them around and saw they were his dad's Blazing Soul cards, "are you sure?" "Who knows what you'll run into through that," Trail told him. "Better to be prepared. And this way, you'll have a piece of me with you." Flash smiled at this and nodded before taking out his Duel Disk and placing the cards inside. As he did, Misty reached into her pocket and pulled out another card. "Here," she held it out to him. Flash took it and saw it was Divine Sky Angel, "a piece of me to take with you as well." "Me too," Scootaloo held out our cards. Flash saw they were Rush Raptor and her two Xyz cards, along with the Rank-Up-Magic. Flash smiled as he took them and added them into the deck, then remembered something and reached into his own pocket. He pulled out the Dark Portal Master card and after a second, placed it in with the rest of his cards. "Okay," he turned to the edge of the bridge, "now I'm ready." The others nodded and stepped aside, allowing Flash to move to the edge and look down at the breech. He stayed still for a moment before taking a deep breath and letting himself lean forward, gravity eventually taking hold and pulling him over the edge. His family watched as he fell towards the portal, arms out and eyes closed. When he finally reached the breech and touched it, the crack exploded with a bright light that filled the entire room and blinded his family. They all cried out as they shielded their eyes, waiting almost a minute before the light completely cut out. Opening them up again, the three stared down at where the crack had been and were shocked to see it was gone. "What happened?" Scootaloo asked. "The breech closed," Trail told her. "But Flash made it through." He let out a sigh and placed a hand on Misty's shoulder, "he's on his own now." Misty nodded before staring back at where it'd been, "be strong Flash." Flash opened his eyes and found himself in a strange void willed with every colour he could imagine. It was a long tunnel, just like his father had described. And at the end of it, the world he was born in was waiting. "I'm coming guys," Flash told them. "I'm coming to apologise."