Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's: Rainbow Stardust (OLD)

Chapter 18: I'm Not Alone

(To be honest, I can't be bothered to write the duel from Yusei's point of view, considering there's nothing to really add to it with the way the story is going right now. At least, not until later. That's why you're not going to see quite a bit of the duel here. Sorry!)

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The door was locked. My window was far too high up, and too small to see through. The floor I was on was... terrifyingly elevated. Just one look through the window, even from my small height, told me more than enough, and I could barely see any buildings, with only the tallest skyscrapers in New Domino City just barely peeking into my vision.

My wrists were cuffed, I had a device of some kind on my head, and the shock collar that they'd given Liquid and Okita was now strapped to my neck, too. The only real upsides to my situation were that I still had sunlight and the bed was surprisingly comfortable, even with all of my uncomfortable accessories and positions.

I hadn't been fed yet, but I didn't mind as much as I should've. Most of my time in that room, I spent curled up on the bed, in the same corner as I would've been in on Liquid's bed. There was a tempered glass window beside me, but the room it peeked into was empty, so at first, I didn't bother giving it a second glance. But boredom and helplessness got to me, so I ended up staring at that room, as empty as it was, hoping to at least see something change.

Liquid and Okita were the ones guarding my door, holding me captive. Somehow, Sayer had found out about my conversation with them. Actually, now that I think about it, it would only make sense that he'd put bugs in our dorms, to make sure we stay in line.

What was I thinking?

No, I did what I needed to. I doubted myself again, still spiraling with thoughts about what I'd pulled off today, but... no. This needed to happen.

For the time being, although I wanted to feel safe with Liquid and Okita guarding the door, I knew they couldn't protect me against Sayer, but at the very least, they were within arm's reach. I could call out to them at any time and they'd respond, even if it wasn't in the way I wanted. They were there, and they were alive.

Despite it still being daytime, with the vague memories of what I'd done in the stadium that whole day... I couldn't help the exhaustion I felt. The pain, the fear, the sheer intensity of my emotions, and the toll it took on my mind and the pounding headache that came with it... It had to have been all of these that made me doze off and practically pass out on the bed in the room they shoved me into.

"Make yourself comfortable," they told me. "You'll be here for a good long while, just so long as Mr. Sayer gets what he needs."

I didn't care to think about how roughly they handled me, how they didn't give me bandages or change them when my scars began to bleed again. My cards--all of them, even the Psychic ones--were confiscated, and I didn't know where my Duel Runner was stored. My room was no longer mine. The blankets in the dorm we shared were most likely removed after I was placed in here. It looks and feels just like a repurposed guest room, but...

It's still a prison, through and through. No matter how comfortable the bed is or how soft the carpet may feel, I was still trapped. I was still chained down and hurt.

And after such a painful, eventful day, the least I could do was allow myself to sleep for a few hours.

o ~ o ~ o ~ o

A sharp, piercing flash of pain seared through my right arm, and when my eyes flew open, I wasn't in my room anymore. I... didn't know where I was, but it certainly wasn't my room. It was too dark to see anything, so it was possible that I wasn't anywhere at all, and I was just in a black void, floating about, wondering where to go.