[February 28th and Amnesty Day] [Yu-Gi-Oh! and Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds] Various fics
Title: I've Known Dark Before, But Not Like This
Day/Prompt: February 6th - One for the Road
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh! and Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds
Character/Pairing: Kalin Kessler, Radley, Yusei Fudo, Jack Atlas, the Big Five, Lawton, Barbara, Atem
Rating/Warning(s): T/PG-13, hurt/comfort, angst, death, grief, hate
Kalin ran through the castle doors just in time to see Radley and Lawton still facing off on the ledge high above him. His heart thumped wildly in his chest. There was barely any ledge left to stand on; one of Lawton's sadistic conditions for the duel-that they face off up there-was now approaching its inevitable climax. The other condition-that he would use his newfound magic to make all damage real-was also at work. Both duelists were clearly hurt, with Radley having taken the worst of it.
Kalin clenched a fist. Lawton's escape from The Facility had resulted in a complete catastrophe. Somehow he had discovered a magic force that had enabled him to try taking over the Duel Monsters' realm and force them to be his slaves. Ancient Fairy Dragon had called on Luna to help. But that had only been the beginning. When they had all cornered him, he had gotten the drop on them and stolen Radley's pendant to go back further in time and take over the Duel Monsters' world further back in the past. They had gathered their friends from that period to try again to overthrow Lawton. They had defeated his subordinates, including Malcolm. Now there was only him and Barbara left.
Radley had felt responsible for some of the mess since Lawton had used his pendant to cause it. He had cornered Lawton on an upper level of the castle to duel him for the freedom of the realm. Lawton had agreed, but had sadistically applied these cruel conditions for their battle. Maybe he had thought to defeat Radley in one turn like before. But Radley had held out and fought valiantly, bringing them to this moment.
Radley drew, and stared at his new card with a mixture of conflicting emotions. Hope and dread were simultaneously crashing through his eyes. Whatever he had drawn was good, but . . .
"Radley!" Kalin yelled.
Radley drew a shaking breath. "It looks like this is it, Kalin," he said.
"It?!" Lawton mocked. "Of course it is, for you! Your wimpy Crystal Beasts have been shattered by my raw power over and over again. Even your best card, Hamon, was finally taken out. And now on my next move, it's curtains for you when Gattling Ogre unleashes his effect again!"
"No," Radley replied. "Now you're about to witness the true power of the Crystal Beasts."
Kalin's heart twisted in horrified realization. "Radley, if you do this . . . !"
"I know," Radley interrupted. "But there's no other way to stop him, is there?" He managed a genuine smile. "I once said that your only good quality was your dueling style. I was wrong. Thank you, for allowing me to experience the light of your friendship. No matter what happens to me after this, I'll never forget that."
Kalin stared at him. "Radley . . . you've been a good friend too. One of the best I've had." He clenched his fists. "And I don't want to lose you."
"I don't want to die," Radley said. His hands were shaking in his fear and dread. "But Lawton has to be stopped, doesn't he? He won't stop with this world; he'll come after ours too. I don't want to see that happen. I know you don't either."
Lawton took a step back. "You're not really going to endanger yourself just to get rid of me?!"
"Why not?" Radley countered. "You were willing to risk your safety to bring down Kalin, Yusei, and the kids on the mountain."
"I knew I'd pull through," Lawton insisted.
"You humiliated me last time and didn't let me get off one move," Radley said. "Now you're going to see what would have happened had we dueled properly back then. Hamon is only one of my ace monsters. I use all seven unique Crystal Beasts on the field and in my graveyard to Summon Rainbow Dragon!"
Kalin was transfixed, staring in shocked awe as the magnificent beast appeared. Lawton, too, was unable to refrain from some level of admiration. "4000 attack points?!"
"That's right," Radley smirked, "and thanks to my Spell and Trap cards, you can't activate any of your cards' effects this turn. You're done for."
"That may be," Lawton said, "but so are you."
Kalin clenched a fist. "Radley . . . !"
Radley drew a deep, shaking breath. "Kalin, I'm sorry you'll have to see this. I don't know what else to do. Rainbow Dragon . . . attack."
The beast roared, blasting away Lawton's hateful monster and the rest of his lifepoints. The remainder of the ledge rumbled under them and broke, sending them both plunging downward into the water far below.
"RADLEY!" Kalin ran forward, his heart pounding. Somewhere behind him he heard Barbara screaming, but he paid little attention. By the time he got down to the shoreline, he couldn't see either man or any of the debris from the blast.
"No. . . ." His coat was flung high in the next moment, swirling into the grass as he leaped into the water. But it was dark and cold and he could barely see. He surfaced, gasping for air. "Radley, where are you?!"
"Kalin!"
He looked over as Yusei made his way down from the rocks on the other side of the shore, followed closely by Lector. Both were worried, and neither looked hopeful.
"I have to find him, Yusei!" Kalin cried. "He went down around here somewhere! He . . ." He trembled and dove under the surface again. His lungs were burning before he resurfaced again.
By now Yusei was at the shoreline. "Kalin, you can't go down again!" he exclaimed. "You're being too reckless!"
"He'll die if I don't find him now, Yusei!" Kalin snapped.
"Kalin, you're going to die if you keep this up!" Yusei countered.
Ignoring that, Kalin dived again. He swam farther this time, and deeper, reaching out as far as he could, praying to feel another person and praying that it wouldn't be Lawton. But there was nothing. His lungs were burning again, but this time he didn't surface. He had to find Radley. He had to . . . !
The lack of oxygen was getting to him, pulling him under to a watery grave, when he was suddenly and abruptly pulled to the surface choking and gasping. "Kalin, this isn't helping," Yusei told him. "You're almost dying yourself. You know Radley wouldn't want that!"
Kalin coughed, slumping in resignation against his oldest friend. "You're always saving me, Yusei." He shut his eyes tightly, trembling against the cold and the heartache and the grief that was threatening to engulf him. "I can't find him. I can't. . . ."
Yusei drew a firm arm around the shivering boy as he guided him back to shore. "I know." His voice caught in his throat.
Lector was waiting at the shore, holding out Kalin's coat. He wrapped Kalin in it and drew him close, rubbing his back through the coat. "We have to get you inside, Mr. Kessler," he said quietly.
Kalin just went silently, saying nothing more.
****
Kalin didn't know how long he had been sitting in front of the fire in one of the castle's many rooms, staring blankly into the flames. Most likely it had only been minutes, but it felt much longer. He had experienced such eternities all the time in The Facility, when he had been deliberately starved and left alone in the dark again and again. As he had told Yusei, he had seen Hell. He had spent most of that time thinking about their friendship through the long years and how he had mistakenly believed that Yusei had betrayed him.
This . . . this was a new kind of Hell.
"Kalin . . ."
He only glanced up briefly at Yusei's concerned voice, then back at the blaze.
"He's dead," he spoke at last. "He's dead and I just stood there and watched him die!" A fist started to clench. "There had to have been another solution, another way to stop Lawton. Why couldn't I think of something?!"
Yusei sat down next to him. "I tried to think too," he said. "I couldn't come up with any way to get up there to them without Lawton seeing. He promised to blow up the whole area if anyone interfered with their duel, and after Crash Town, we both know he would have done it."
Kalin snarled. "He had us on the ropes again! He forced Radley to do what he did!" He shut his eyes tightly. "Radley was so afraid. . . . I saw him shaking. But he went through with it anyway."
". . . We don't know he's dead," Yusei said. "The Big Five and some of the others are dragging the bay. Maybe . . ."
Kalin punched the floor. "Maybe isn't good enough!"
He quickly fell silent. He hadn't meant to blow up at Yusei. For so long he had been reserved and aloof; the burning, vengeful part of his personality had been all but buried since the Dark Signers' evil had left him. He hadn't wanted to ever let it out again, afraid of what might happen or what he might do. But now, lost in heartbroken grief, he could feel it surfacing. The more he thought about Lawton's evil, the more he wasn't sure he could control himself.
". . . It was a lifetime ago when I found him dead from being tortured in the mines," he said, quieter again. "We weren't friends then, or even close at all. I had never even wanted to be around him more than I had to be, and darn little of that. But . . . being with him during those next weeks, months, with my mind clear . . . I was happy again. You had your life back in New Domino City, Yusei, and I couldn't take you away from that. I wouldn't have wanted to. And I had a new life in Satisfaction Town. I wanted to stay there and rebuild the town and help Nico and West. Radley was there with me every step of the way. We rebuilt the town together and made it something to be proud of. We rebuilt something inside ourselves too. Radley formed the gang in the first place because his family had thrown him out and he was alone and scared. He wanted a family that wouldn't turn against him. And I . . . I'd found a purpose in my life again and I was glad, but . . . I still wanted a friend nearby too. We gave each other what we needed."
"I know you guys became close," Yusei said softly. "I was glad you had someone. I wanted to get out and visit, but it seemed like it was one thing after another-the Grand Prix, and then the Ark Cradle mess on top of that. . . . And then everybody started going their own way. I was the only one who wanted to stay in town."
"And then you did come out and visit because you were grieving over the loss of Bruno," Kalin remembered.
Yusei nodded. "So I understand at least some of what you're going through now. I was right there too, and I couldn't save him. . . ."
Kalin shook his head. "It's . . . it's a horrible feeling. I felt like my soul had been torn in pieces when I thought you betrayed me. I didn't think there could be another pain that could feel so devastating. But to lose someone to death . . . that's just as horrible in its own way."
"It is," Yusei agreed.
"I'll have to just leave him here and go home without him. And . . . I don't know how I'm going to stand being there, and remembering. . . . I'll think I hear him in the next room and he won't be there. Or he'll be talking, but he won't. . . ."
"The silence can get really loud," Yusei said. "Before I went out to see you, I kept hearing Bruno everywhere and seeing reminders of him. I couldn't take it." He looked at his old friend. "If you want to come home with me for a while. . . ."
Kalin slowly nodded. "I might do that. . . ." He looked up. "Thank you, Yusei."
Yusei nodded too. "Any time you need me, I'll always be there for you."
"I know." Kalin leaned back. "I don't know how I ever convinced myself that you betrayed me."
"You weren't thinking clearly back then," Yusei said. "What you saw looked bad."
"I still should have known better," Kalin said.
Without warning Nesbitt burst in, obviously with something urgent on his mind. "A body just washed up on shore," he announced.
Kalin stiffened. "Which one?!"
"Dressed in black," Nesbitt said.
Kalin leaped up. "Radley!" He ran outside with the quilt he'd been wrapped in before anyone could protest.
"Kalin, wait!" Yusei exclaimed. He tore after his friend.
Jack and Atem were already down at the water's edge, staring at the bedraggled form laying prone in the grass and the rocks. There was no movement, and the dark hair fell eerily and sadly over the pale face. The water moved forward, then back, as if constantly nudging the body it had ejected from its depths. One hand desperately clutched the missing pendant, apparently recovered either during the fall or in the water. Also present was the red orb Lawton had used to exert control over all the Duel Monsters. Radley's final act had been to get it away from him.
"There's no way he's alive," Jack said to Atem. "You can see he couldn't possibly have survived."
"Yes," Atem said. "I'm afraid you're right. But still . . ." He started to bend down. "We must make sure." He took the orb in his arm and reached with his other hand to feel for a pulse. As they had known, there was nothing.
Kalin ran past them and crashed to his knees, wrapping his friend in the quilt and lifting him into his arms in one motion. "Radley . . ." He brushed the sopped hair away from the closed eyes. He bent over to listen, but he already knew there wouldn't be a heartbeat. "Oh Radley . . . no. . . ." He cradled the body closer. "Please . . . come back, as you did once before. . . . Please. . . ." A rare sob choked in his throat. Radley had been given a miracle once. He wouldn't be allowed another . . . would he?
But . . . Kalin had come back twice. Why couldn't Radley? . . .
"Kalin!" Jack barked. He stepped back, clearly feeling helpless.
Atem laid a hand on his shoulder. "Give him a moment."
Jack clenched a fist. "I've never seen him like this."
Yusei hadn't either, but then, there had never been a situation quite like this before. He watched Kalin with worry in his eyes.
Kalin laid Radley back in the grass and pressed down on his chest. Water trickled out of his mouth, but otherwise there was no response.
"It's no use, Mate," Jack insisted. "He's gone."
Kalin pressed again, more desperately. More water, but still no reaction.
"He must have swallowed half the bay," Jack muttered.
"He sacrificed himself to free this world of Lawton's evil," Atem said grimly.
"And he shouldn't have had to," Kalin said fiercely.
A sharp footfall brought everyone's attention up. Barbara was standing nearby on the rocks, her whip at her side. Hatred and rage flashed in her eyes. "He's been put down like the dog he was," she said darkly. "Lawton always knew he was a pathetic puppy. He proved that in Crash Town."
Kalin got to his feet, his eyes filled with danger. "Lawton didn't even give him a chance to fight," he snarled. "This time he fought, and he proved that Lawton was wrong about him. He proved his deck was strong enough to defeat him. And he would have survived if it hadn't been for Lawton's sadistic choice of duel arena! It's Lawton's own fault he's dead. I won't forgive him for this. And since I can't take him down . . . I'll have to settle for you."
"Funny, I was just thinking the same thing," Barbara snapped.
Yusei stiffened. "Kalin!" He stared at his friend in alarm. "You're in no condition for a duel right now! Your mind isn't clear!"
"Oh, it's clear, alright." Kalin stepped forward. "I'll finish what Radley started, because as long as Barbara's free, she could just pick up where Lawton left off. And that is unacceptable. I won't have anything diminish Radley's sacrifice." He took out his duel gun and unfolded it into a duel disk. Barbara was doing the same.
"I don't like this," Jack said. "Do you feel that dark aura coming from him?"
Yusei nodded. "Losing Radley like this . . . is pushing him dangerously close to the edge. And no matter what, I can't let him lose himself again. Not for his sake . . . or Radley's." He started forward.
"What are you going to do?" Jack frowned.
"I haven't figured that out yet," Yusei said. "For now, I'll just be here for him."
The duel began with both parties fiercely throwing their monsters down and setting up effect damage. It didn't take Barbara long to start tearing Kalin apart with her Harpies. But it wasn't so easy to land the blows; Kalin was darkly vicious in turn, only barely managing to contain his anger and rage. Barbara, on the other hand, didn't care about containing hers. As time went on, Kalin grew less and less concerned with restraining himself. Eventually an attack landed that had Barbara screaming in pain. Blood dripped down her arm.
Yusei gasped in shock. "What the . . . ?!"
Kalin was smirking, his eyes dark, his hair faintly blowing in the night breeze. "You weren't expecting that, were you?" he said to Barbara. "I said I'd make you pay for what Lawton did. I know you were all in too."
Yusei's heart pounded in his chest. He had only seen this sort of thing from duels involving one other person. "No," he whispered.
It was clear now that Kalin was a Psychic duelist, like Akiza. And however strong he was, he was strong enough to deal real damage. In his current frame of mind, he certainly had no qualms about it.
Crow ran over, followed closely by Joey and Tristan. "What's going on?!" Crow exclaimed. He looked from Radley's body to the duel in progress. "Oh no. . . . I'm seriously out of the loop here."
"Kalin's going berserk," Jack said. "He just inflicted real damage to that woman. Not that I can blame him, but I doubt he's going to stop there."
"Real damage?!" Joey exclaimed. "Like in a Shadow Game or something?!"
"Maybe in a way," Yusei said grimly. "I just realized now-he's a Psychic duelist. He can choose to deliver real damage if he wants to. And right now, he wants to."
Joey cringed. "Oh boy. You mean this is what Espa Roba would've been like if he'd actually been psychic?!"
"Maybe." Yusei didn't know who Espa Roba was and really didn't care at the moment. He was riveted on the duel.
Barbara finally straightened, wiping her hand on her skirt. "What are you?!" she gasped.
"Right now, I'm an angry friend," Kalin replied. "And that's all you need to know."
Her hands shaking, Barbara placed a monster in defense mode and laid another card face-down. "Lawton was right about you," she spat. "You're creepy."
"Maybe, but I hardly care what you think," Kalin said. "I just want you to feel pain, like the pain Radley must have felt when Lawton used real damage on him, and the pain he must have felt when that ledge broke under him."
Barbara snarled. "You know, he chose to attack! It's his own fault!"
"If he hadn't attacked, Lawton would have taken him out with effect damage, only killing him but sparing himself," Kalin said. "Radley knew he was done for either way, so he decided to go out by taking Lawton with him. Otherwise, Lawton's control over this world would have gotten worse. And he was no doubt right that Lawton then would have turned his attention to our world."
"So you think he's a hero because he killed Lawton," Barbara snapped.
"He's a hero because he did what he had to do to save two worlds," Kalin said. "But he never should have been put in a position where that was his only choice. I can't do anything for him now, but I can finish what he started by stopping you." He gestured at his field. "Your facedown card is destroyed. And I have two monsters now. Unfortunately for you, one of them is Infernity Destroyer, and I have no cards in my hand. Your monster may be in defense mode, but his special effect deals 1600 points of damage to you after he destroys your monster. And thanks to my effect, you'll feel each and every one of them."
Barbara threw her arms up to protect her face, screaming as the damage hit. When the dust settled, her clothes were torn and blood was dripping from multiple wounds on her arms and exposed midriff.
Yusei ran forward. "Kalin, you have to stop!" he exclaimed.
Kalin didn't look away from Barbara. "Why should I? She needs to pay for what she did! How is it any different from what Radley did?!"
"Radley did what he did to save worlds," Yusei said. "Ask yourself, is that why you're doing this?"
Kalin clenched a fist. "She'll pick up where Lawton left off! We already know she's almost as bad as he was!"
"Kalin . . ." Yusei drew a shaking breath. He didn't want to say this and bring up the past, but it felt important. "You're falling into your darkness again, letting it cloud your mind. You're acting like when you got obsessed with bringing down Sector Security. I don't want to see that from you again, and neither do Jack and Crow! And if Radley were here, he wouldn't want to see it either!"
"She's dangerous!" Kalin snapped.
"Yeah, she is," Yusei agreed. "And she has to be stopped. But . . . if you stop her with your heart full of hate . . . you're stopping yourself too."
". . . I'm not like you, Yusei." Kalin's voice was quieter now. "You go up against all these people who selfishly want to destroy the world, including me, and somehow you do it without hating them. I can't be like that."
"When we dueled Lawton, you focused on the justice of stopping him to save the town," Yusei said. "You didn't let yourself be consumed by sadism even though you were outraged at what Lawton had done. You proved you were better than he was!"
"Things were different then." Kalin looked to where Atem was kneeling beside Radley's body. "I hadn't lost someone I deeply care about."
Yusei sighed. "I know it's hard. I've got no right to expect that you can not hate these people or what they've done. I hate what they've done too. But . . . I don't want to lose you to the darkness again. Defeat Barbara, Kalin, but please . . . not this way."
Kalin trembled. One rare tear slipped down his cheek. ". . . Alright, Yusei," he said at last. "I'll try."
Barbara gave him a look of utter hate. "I only wish I had your power so I could inflict real damage on you," she said.
"But you don't," Kalin said. "And my other monster still hasn't attacked. Infernity Archer, finish her off."
Barbara tensed, bracing herself for another round of pain. But as the final blow hit, the real pain didn't accompany it. She dropped to her knees, partially from shock, as her lifepoints hit zero. Kalin had kept his word.
Kalin turned away from her. "Take her away."
Yusei tensed. "Kalin, look out!"
Kalin whirled back just as Barbara was unfurling her whip to curl around his neck. He grabbed it, holding it away from him and pulling it taut until Barbara lost her balance and fell over into the grass.
Jack was furious. "What's the matter with you?!" he snapped at Barbara. "Kalin spares you, and that's how you repay him?!"
"I still hold him responsible for Lawton's death," Barbara hissed. "He's the only one I can punish for it." She trembled, shutting her eyes tightly.
Crow frowned. "I guess she must've really loved him. Who'd have thought?"
Nesbitt immediately ran forward and pulled Barbara's arms behind her back. She glowered at him over her shoulder, but didn't fight him off. Instead she said, "You haven't seen the last of me."
Nesbitt just grunted. "If Kalin had followed through with his original plan, we would have."
Barbara just stumbled to her feet and didn't say more.
Kalin wasn't speaking now either. He walked back over the grass and lifted Radley's body into his arms. Without a word, he carried his friend into the castle.
****
Kalin had been sitting in a chair in a castle room for he didn't know how long now. He had laid Radley on the bed next to it and had just been staring at the man without fully seeing him. His thoughts had been wandering through many of their experiences and some with Yusei, Jack, and Crow. He'd had wonderful friends during his short life. For years he had thought he had lost Yusei to betrayal. Now they were together again but he had lost another friend to death. His heart was still broken.
". . . I didn't think this would be it," he finally spoke. His whispered words sounded loud in the cold room. "I know you didn't either. You gave yourself up to stop Lawton when he backed you into a corner. I tried so hard to find you, but I couldn't." His voice cracked. "I thought I'd have to leave you here. Now you came back, but . . . it's not really you. I can take your body home, give you a proper burial, but that's all. You're still gone.
"I almost lost myself in darkness because of my grief. I still hate Lawton, and Barbara. But . . . thanks to Yusei, I didn't keep acting on that hate.
"I never thought I would ever come to feel so deeply about you. But after everything we've been through together, we got close. I'm thankful for your friendship too. You turned out to be so much different than I ever thought you were."
His voice cracked and he reached for one of the limp hands. Normally Radley had been the one who liked physical contact while Kalin didn't so much, but now Kalin didn't want to let go. He trembled, shutting his eyes tightly as he clasped the hand in his and brought it to his forehead. "If there was only some way to get you back again. . . . I died twice and was revived both times. Why can't you?"
He sensed rather than heard the other presence in the room. It felt warm and good, but it was still startling. He looked up with a jerk, only to see a small child with mint-green hair and an ethereal glow on the other side of the bed.
"Who are you?!" he demanded. Was this a Duel Monster he didn't recognize?
She just smiled. "You and your friends always get into so much trouble, don't you?"
"This is the worst kind of trouble," Kalin said. "It can't be fixed." He frowned. "And how do you know about my friends?"
"I know about all of you." She leaned over the bed, placing her hand on Radley's heart. After a moment, a soft glow emanated from her palm and was absorbed into Radley's chest. He gasped and coughed, his eyes flying open.
Kalin leaped out of the chair in one motion. "Radley?!"
Radley looked up at him. "Kalin?! . . . I'm alive?!"
Kalin stood over him, shaking, still trying to comprehend that this was actually real and happening. Radley was breathing, and sitting up and feeling the bed, then running his hands down his jacket in disbelief. He seemed as stunned or moreso than Kalin himself.
"You're alive," Kalin whispered. Uncharacteristically he reached out, pulling Radley close in a hug. Stunned by that as well, Radley slowly but then firmly returned it.
The child stepped back with a satisfied smile. Kalin looked to her with sudden realization. "You're . . . an angel," he gasped.
Radley looked over with a jerk. "What?!"
"I'm Kasumi," she said. "Take care now." She blew them a kiss and vanished as she had come, in a soft light.
Radley sank against Kalin, still shaken and stunned by what had transpired. "I was healed by an angel," he said in disbelief.
"And now you're back where you belong," Kalin said. He hugged his friend close. "Welcome home."
"You really missed me, huh?" Radley said.
"Yeah," Kalin said. "I really did."
Would you believe I wrote this one way ahead of time but didn't post it here on the correct date? Oy. So it had to become part of the Amnesty Day post!
Title: The Night After
Day/Prompt: February 23rd - The End of the Whole Mess
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds
Character/Pairing: Kalin Kessler, Radley, Yusei Fudo, Jack Atlas, Crow Hogan, Jordan, Nico, West
Rating/Warning(s): K+/PG, lots of hurt/comfort
Link to AO3 copy: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29484408
Title: All the Things He Said
Day/Prompt: February 28th - The Things They Left Behind
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds
Character/Pairing: Kalin Kessler, Radley, Jordan, Nico, West, Radley's Bunch, a former Malcolm Crewmember
Rating/Warning(s): K/G, mention of a disturbing near-death experience, deep conversations
Link to AO3 copy: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29774049
Day/Prompt: February 6th - One for the Road
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh! and Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds
Character/Pairing: Kalin Kessler, Radley, Yusei Fudo, Jack Atlas, the Big Five, Lawton, Barbara, Atem
Rating/Warning(s): T/PG-13, hurt/comfort, angst, death, grief, hate
Kalin ran through the castle doors just in time to see Radley and Lawton still facing off on the ledge high above him. His heart thumped wildly in his chest. There was barely any ledge left to stand on; one of Lawton's sadistic conditions for the duel-that they face off up there-was now approaching its inevitable climax. The other condition-that he would use his newfound magic to make all damage real-was also at work. Both duelists were clearly hurt, with Radley having taken the worst of it.
Kalin clenched a fist. Lawton's escape from The Facility had resulted in a complete catastrophe. Somehow he had discovered a magic force that had enabled him to try taking over the Duel Monsters' realm and force them to be his slaves. Ancient Fairy Dragon had called on Luna to help. But that had only been the beginning. When they had all cornered him, he had gotten the drop on them and stolen Radley's pendant to go back further in time and take over the Duel Monsters' world further back in the past. They had gathered their friends from that period to try again to overthrow Lawton. They had defeated his subordinates, including Malcolm. Now there was only him and Barbara left.
Radley had felt responsible for some of the mess since Lawton had used his pendant to cause it. He had cornered Lawton on an upper level of the castle to duel him for the freedom of the realm. Lawton had agreed, but had sadistically applied these cruel conditions for their battle. Maybe he had thought to defeat Radley in one turn like before. But Radley had held out and fought valiantly, bringing them to this moment.
Radley drew, and stared at his new card with a mixture of conflicting emotions. Hope and dread were simultaneously crashing through his eyes. Whatever he had drawn was good, but . . .
"Radley!" Kalin yelled.
Radley drew a shaking breath. "It looks like this is it, Kalin," he said.
"It?!" Lawton mocked. "Of course it is, for you! Your wimpy Crystal Beasts have been shattered by my raw power over and over again. Even your best card, Hamon, was finally taken out. And now on my next move, it's curtains for you when Gattling Ogre unleashes his effect again!"
"No," Radley replied. "Now you're about to witness the true power of the Crystal Beasts."
Kalin's heart twisted in horrified realization. "Radley, if you do this . . . !"
"I know," Radley interrupted. "But there's no other way to stop him, is there?" He managed a genuine smile. "I once said that your only good quality was your dueling style. I was wrong. Thank you, for allowing me to experience the light of your friendship. No matter what happens to me after this, I'll never forget that."
Kalin stared at him. "Radley . . . you've been a good friend too. One of the best I've had." He clenched his fists. "And I don't want to lose you."
"I don't want to die," Radley said. His hands were shaking in his fear and dread. "But Lawton has to be stopped, doesn't he? He won't stop with this world; he'll come after ours too. I don't want to see that happen. I know you don't either."
Lawton took a step back. "You're not really going to endanger yourself just to get rid of me?!"
"Why not?" Radley countered. "You were willing to risk your safety to bring down Kalin, Yusei, and the kids on the mountain."
"I knew I'd pull through," Lawton insisted.
"You humiliated me last time and didn't let me get off one move," Radley said. "Now you're going to see what would have happened had we dueled properly back then. Hamon is only one of my ace monsters. I use all seven unique Crystal Beasts on the field and in my graveyard to Summon Rainbow Dragon!"
Kalin was transfixed, staring in shocked awe as the magnificent beast appeared. Lawton, too, was unable to refrain from some level of admiration. "4000 attack points?!"
"That's right," Radley smirked, "and thanks to my Spell and Trap cards, you can't activate any of your cards' effects this turn. You're done for."
"That may be," Lawton said, "but so are you."
Kalin clenched a fist. "Radley . . . !"
Radley drew a deep, shaking breath. "Kalin, I'm sorry you'll have to see this. I don't know what else to do. Rainbow Dragon . . . attack."
The beast roared, blasting away Lawton's hateful monster and the rest of his lifepoints. The remainder of the ledge rumbled under them and broke, sending them both plunging downward into the water far below.
"RADLEY!" Kalin ran forward, his heart pounding. Somewhere behind him he heard Barbara screaming, but he paid little attention. By the time he got down to the shoreline, he couldn't see either man or any of the debris from the blast.
"No. . . ." His coat was flung high in the next moment, swirling into the grass as he leaped into the water. But it was dark and cold and he could barely see. He surfaced, gasping for air. "Radley, where are you?!"
"Kalin!"
He looked over as Yusei made his way down from the rocks on the other side of the shore, followed closely by Lector. Both were worried, and neither looked hopeful.
"I have to find him, Yusei!" Kalin cried. "He went down around here somewhere! He . . ." He trembled and dove under the surface again. His lungs were burning before he resurfaced again.
By now Yusei was at the shoreline. "Kalin, you can't go down again!" he exclaimed. "You're being too reckless!"
"He'll die if I don't find him now, Yusei!" Kalin snapped.
"Kalin, you're going to die if you keep this up!" Yusei countered.
Ignoring that, Kalin dived again. He swam farther this time, and deeper, reaching out as far as he could, praying to feel another person and praying that it wouldn't be Lawton. But there was nothing. His lungs were burning again, but this time he didn't surface. He had to find Radley. He had to . . . !
The lack of oxygen was getting to him, pulling him under to a watery grave, when he was suddenly and abruptly pulled to the surface choking and gasping. "Kalin, this isn't helping," Yusei told him. "You're almost dying yourself. You know Radley wouldn't want that!"
Kalin coughed, slumping in resignation against his oldest friend. "You're always saving me, Yusei." He shut his eyes tightly, trembling against the cold and the heartache and the grief that was threatening to engulf him. "I can't find him. I can't. . . ."
Yusei drew a firm arm around the shivering boy as he guided him back to shore. "I know." His voice caught in his throat.
Lector was waiting at the shore, holding out Kalin's coat. He wrapped Kalin in it and drew him close, rubbing his back through the coat. "We have to get you inside, Mr. Kessler," he said quietly.
Kalin just went silently, saying nothing more.
****
Kalin didn't know how long he had been sitting in front of the fire in one of the castle's many rooms, staring blankly into the flames. Most likely it had only been minutes, but it felt much longer. He had experienced such eternities all the time in The Facility, when he had been deliberately starved and left alone in the dark again and again. As he had told Yusei, he had seen Hell. He had spent most of that time thinking about their friendship through the long years and how he had mistakenly believed that Yusei had betrayed him.
This . . . this was a new kind of Hell.
"Kalin . . ."
He only glanced up briefly at Yusei's concerned voice, then back at the blaze.
"He's dead," he spoke at last. "He's dead and I just stood there and watched him die!" A fist started to clench. "There had to have been another solution, another way to stop Lawton. Why couldn't I think of something?!"
Yusei sat down next to him. "I tried to think too," he said. "I couldn't come up with any way to get up there to them without Lawton seeing. He promised to blow up the whole area if anyone interfered with their duel, and after Crash Town, we both know he would have done it."
Kalin snarled. "He had us on the ropes again! He forced Radley to do what he did!" He shut his eyes tightly. "Radley was so afraid. . . . I saw him shaking. But he went through with it anyway."
". . . We don't know he's dead," Yusei said. "The Big Five and some of the others are dragging the bay. Maybe . . ."
Kalin punched the floor. "Maybe isn't good enough!"
He quickly fell silent. He hadn't meant to blow up at Yusei. For so long he had been reserved and aloof; the burning, vengeful part of his personality had been all but buried since the Dark Signers' evil had left him. He hadn't wanted to ever let it out again, afraid of what might happen or what he might do. But now, lost in heartbroken grief, he could feel it surfacing. The more he thought about Lawton's evil, the more he wasn't sure he could control himself.
". . . It was a lifetime ago when I found him dead from being tortured in the mines," he said, quieter again. "We weren't friends then, or even close at all. I had never even wanted to be around him more than I had to be, and darn little of that. But . . . being with him during those next weeks, months, with my mind clear . . . I was happy again. You had your life back in New Domino City, Yusei, and I couldn't take you away from that. I wouldn't have wanted to. And I had a new life in Satisfaction Town. I wanted to stay there and rebuild the town and help Nico and West. Radley was there with me every step of the way. We rebuilt the town together and made it something to be proud of. We rebuilt something inside ourselves too. Radley formed the gang in the first place because his family had thrown him out and he was alone and scared. He wanted a family that wouldn't turn against him. And I . . . I'd found a purpose in my life again and I was glad, but . . . I still wanted a friend nearby too. We gave each other what we needed."
"I know you guys became close," Yusei said softly. "I was glad you had someone. I wanted to get out and visit, but it seemed like it was one thing after another-the Grand Prix, and then the Ark Cradle mess on top of that. . . . And then everybody started going their own way. I was the only one who wanted to stay in town."
"And then you did come out and visit because you were grieving over the loss of Bruno," Kalin remembered.
Yusei nodded. "So I understand at least some of what you're going through now. I was right there too, and I couldn't save him. . . ."
Kalin shook his head. "It's . . . it's a horrible feeling. I felt like my soul had been torn in pieces when I thought you betrayed me. I didn't think there could be another pain that could feel so devastating. But to lose someone to death . . . that's just as horrible in its own way."
"It is," Yusei agreed.
"I'll have to just leave him here and go home without him. And . . . I don't know how I'm going to stand being there, and remembering. . . . I'll think I hear him in the next room and he won't be there. Or he'll be talking, but he won't. . . ."
"The silence can get really loud," Yusei said. "Before I went out to see you, I kept hearing Bruno everywhere and seeing reminders of him. I couldn't take it." He looked at his old friend. "If you want to come home with me for a while. . . ."
Kalin slowly nodded. "I might do that. . . ." He looked up. "Thank you, Yusei."
Yusei nodded too. "Any time you need me, I'll always be there for you."
"I know." Kalin leaned back. "I don't know how I ever convinced myself that you betrayed me."
"You weren't thinking clearly back then," Yusei said. "What you saw looked bad."
"I still should have known better," Kalin said.
Without warning Nesbitt burst in, obviously with something urgent on his mind. "A body just washed up on shore," he announced.
Kalin stiffened. "Which one?!"
"Dressed in black," Nesbitt said.
Kalin leaped up. "Radley!" He ran outside with the quilt he'd been wrapped in before anyone could protest.
"Kalin, wait!" Yusei exclaimed. He tore after his friend.
Jack and Atem were already down at the water's edge, staring at the bedraggled form laying prone in the grass and the rocks. There was no movement, and the dark hair fell eerily and sadly over the pale face. The water moved forward, then back, as if constantly nudging the body it had ejected from its depths. One hand desperately clutched the missing pendant, apparently recovered either during the fall or in the water. Also present was the red orb Lawton had used to exert control over all the Duel Monsters. Radley's final act had been to get it away from him.
"There's no way he's alive," Jack said to Atem. "You can see he couldn't possibly have survived."
"Yes," Atem said. "I'm afraid you're right. But still . . ." He started to bend down. "We must make sure." He took the orb in his arm and reached with his other hand to feel for a pulse. As they had known, there was nothing.
Kalin ran past them and crashed to his knees, wrapping his friend in the quilt and lifting him into his arms in one motion. "Radley . . ." He brushed the sopped hair away from the closed eyes. He bent over to listen, but he already knew there wouldn't be a heartbeat. "Oh Radley . . . no. . . ." He cradled the body closer. "Please . . . come back, as you did once before. . . . Please. . . ." A rare sob choked in his throat. Radley had been given a miracle once. He wouldn't be allowed another . . . would he?
But . . . Kalin had come back twice. Why couldn't Radley? . . .
"Kalin!" Jack barked. He stepped back, clearly feeling helpless.
Atem laid a hand on his shoulder. "Give him a moment."
Jack clenched a fist. "I've never seen him like this."
Yusei hadn't either, but then, there had never been a situation quite like this before. He watched Kalin with worry in his eyes.
Kalin laid Radley back in the grass and pressed down on his chest. Water trickled out of his mouth, but otherwise there was no response.
"It's no use, Mate," Jack insisted. "He's gone."
Kalin pressed again, more desperately. More water, but still no reaction.
"He must have swallowed half the bay," Jack muttered.
"He sacrificed himself to free this world of Lawton's evil," Atem said grimly.
"And he shouldn't have had to," Kalin said fiercely.
A sharp footfall brought everyone's attention up. Barbara was standing nearby on the rocks, her whip at her side. Hatred and rage flashed in her eyes. "He's been put down like the dog he was," she said darkly. "Lawton always knew he was a pathetic puppy. He proved that in Crash Town."
Kalin got to his feet, his eyes filled with danger. "Lawton didn't even give him a chance to fight," he snarled. "This time he fought, and he proved that Lawton was wrong about him. He proved his deck was strong enough to defeat him. And he would have survived if it hadn't been for Lawton's sadistic choice of duel arena! It's Lawton's own fault he's dead. I won't forgive him for this. And since I can't take him down . . . I'll have to settle for you."
"Funny, I was just thinking the same thing," Barbara snapped.
Yusei stiffened. "Kalin!" He stared at his friend in alarm. "You're in no condition for a duel right now! Your mind isn't clear!"
"Oh, it's clear, alright." Kalin stepped forward. "I'll finish what Radley started, because as long as Barbara's free, she could just pick up where Lawton left off. And that is unacceptable. I won't have anything diminish Radley's sacrifice." He took out his duel gun and unfolded it into a duel disk. Barbara was doing the same.
"I don't like this," Jack said. "Do you feel that dark aura coming from him?"
Yusei nodded. "Losing Radley like this . . . is pushing him dangerously close to the edge. And no matter what, I can't let him lose himself again. Not for his sake . . . or Radley's." He started forward.
"What are you going to do?" Jack frowned.
"I haven't figured that out yet," Yusei said. "For now, I'll just be here for him."
The duel began with both parties fiercely throwing their monsters down and setting up effect damage. It didn't take Barbara long to start tearing Kalin apart with her Harpies. But it wasn't so easy to land the blows; Kalin was darkly vicious in turn, only barely managing to contain his anger and rage. Barbara, on the other hand, didn't care about containing hers. As time went on, Kalin grew less and less concerned with restraining himself. Eventually an attack landed that had Barbara screaming in pain. Blood dripped down her arm.
Yusei gasped in shock. "What the . . . ?!"
Kalin was smirking, his eyes dark, his hair faintly blowing in the night breeze. "You weren't expecting that, were you?" he said to Barbara. "I said I'd make you pay for what Lawton did. I know you were all in too."
Yusei's heart pounded in his chest. He had only seen this sort of thing from duels involving one other person. "No," he whispered.
It was clear now that Kalin was a Psychic duelist, like Akiza. And however strong he was, he was strong enough to deal real damage. In his current frame of mind, he certainly had no qualms about it.
Crow ran over, followed closely by Joey and Tristan. "What's going on?!" Crow exclaimed. He looked from Radley's body to the duel in progress. "Oh no. . . . I'm seriously out of the loop here."
"Kalin's going berserk," Jack said. "He just inflicted real damage to that woman. Not that I can blame him, but I doubt he's going to stop there."
"Real damage?!" Joey exclaimed. "Like in a Shadow Game or something?!"
"Maybe in a way," Yusei said grimly. "I just realized now-he's a Psychic duelist. He can choose to deliver real damage if he wants to. And right now, he wants to."
Joey cringed. "Oh boy. You mean this is what Espa Roba would've been like if he'd actually been psychic?!"
"Maybe." Yusei didn't know who Espa Roba was and really didn't care at the moment. He was riveted on the duel.
Barbara finally straightened, wiping her hand on her skirt. "What are you?!" she gasped.
"Right now, I'm an angry friend," Kalin replied. "And that's all you need to know."
Her hands shaking, Barbara placed a monster in defense mode and laid another card face-down. "Lawton was right about you," she spat. "You're creepy."
"Maybe, but I hardly care what you think," Kalin said. "I just want you to feel pain, like the pain Radley must have felt when Lawton used real damage on him, and the pain he must have felt when that ledge broke under him."
Barbara snarled. "You know, he chose to attack! It's his own fault!"
"If he hadn't attacked, Lawton would have taken him out with effect damage, only killing him but sparing himself," Kalin said. "Radley knew he was done for either way, so he decided to go out by taking Lawton with him. Otherwise, Lawton's control over this world would have gotten worse. And he was no doubt right that Lawton then would have turned his attention to our world."
"So you think he's a hero because he killed Lawton," Barbara snapped.
"He's a hero because he did what he had to do to save two worlds," Kalin said. "But he never should have been put in a position where that was his only choice. I can't do anything for him now, but I can finish what he started by stopping you." He gestured at his field. "Your facedown card is destroyed. And I have two monsters now. Unfortunately for you, one of them is Infernity Destroyer, and I have no cards in my hand. Your monster may be in defense mode, but his special effect deals 1600 points of damage to you after he destroys your monster. And thanks to my effect, you'll feel each and every one of them."
Barbara threw her arms up to protect her face, screaming as the damage hit. When the dust settled, her clothes were torn and blood was dripping from multiple wounds on her arms and exposed midriff.
Yusei ran forward. "Kalin, you have to stop!" he exclaimed.
Kalin didn't look away from Barbara. "Why should I? She needs to pay for what she did! How is it any different from what Radley did?!"
"Radley did what he did to save worlds," Yusei said. "Ask yourself, is that why you're doing this?"
Kalin clenched a fist. "She'll pick up where Lawton left off! We already know she's almost as bad as he was!"
"Kalin . . ." Yusei drew a shaking breath. He didn't want to say this and bring up the past, but it felt important. "You're falling into your darkness again, letting it cloud your mind. You're acting like when you got obsessed with bringing down Sector Security. I don't want to see that from you again, and neither do Jack and Crow! And if Radley were here, he wouldn't want to see it either!"
"She's dangerous!" Kalin snapped.
"Yeah, she is," Yusei agreed. "And she has to be stopped. But . . . if you stop her with your heart full of hate . . . you're stopping yourself too."
". . . I'm not like you, Yusei." Kalin's voice was quieter now. "You go up against all these people who selfishly want to destroy the world, including me, and somehow you do it without hating them. I can't be like that."
"When we dueled Lawton, you focused on the justice of stopping him to save the town," Yusei said. "You didn't let yourself be consumed by sadism even though you were outraged at what Lawton had done. You proved you were better than he was!"
"Things were different then." Kalin looked to where Atem was kneeling beside Radley's body. "I hadn't lost someone I deeply care about."
Yusei sighed. "I know it's hard. I've got no right to expect that you can not hate these people or what they've done. I hate what they've done too. But . . . I don't want to lose you to the darkness again. Defeat Barbara, Kalin, but please . . . not this way."
Kalin trembled. One rare tear slipped down his cheek. ". . . Alright, Yusei," he said at last. "I'll try."
Barbara gave him a look of utter hate. "I only wish I had your power so I could inflict real damage on you," she said.
"But you don't," Kalin said. "And my other monster still hasn't attacked. Infernity Archer, finish her off."
Barbara tensed, bracing herself for another round of pain. But as the final blow hit, the real pain didn't accompany it. She dropped to her knees, partially from shock, as her lifepoints hit zero. Kalin had kept his word.
Kalin turned away from her. "Take her away."
Yusei tensed. "Kalin, look out!"
Kalin whirled back just as Barbara was unfurling her whip to curl around his neck. He grabbed it, holding it away from him and pulling it taut until Barbara lost her balance and fell over into the grass.
Jack was furious. "What's the matter with you?!" he snapped at Barbara. "Kalin spares you, and that's how you repay him?!"
"I still hold him responsible for Lawton's death," Barbara hissed. "He's the only one I can punish for it." She trembled, shutting her eyes tightly.
Crow frowned. "I guess she must've really loved him. Who'd have thought?"
Nesbitt immediately ran forward and pulled Barbara's arms behind her back. She glowered at him over her shoulder, but didn't fight him off. Instead she said, "You haven't seen the last of me."
Nesbitt just grunted. "If Kalin had followed through with his original plan, we would have."
Barbara just stumbled to her feet and didn't say more.
Kalin wasn't speaking now either. He walked back over the grass and lifted Radley's body into his arms. Without a word, he carried his friend into the castle.
****
Kalin had been sitting in a chair in a castle room for he didn't know how long now. He had laid Radley on the bed next to it and had just been staring at the man without fully seeing him. His thoughts had been wandering through many of their experiences and some with Yusei, Jack, and Crow. He'd had wonderful friends during his short life. For years he had thought he had lost Yusei to betrayal. Now they were together again but he had lost another friend to death. His heart was still broken.
". . . I didn't think this would be it," he finally spoke. His whispered words sounded loud in the cold room. "I know you didn't either. You gave yourself up to stop Lawton when he backed you into a corner. I tried so hard to find you, but I couldn't." His voice cracked. "I thought I'd have to leave you here. Now you came back, but . . . it's not really you. I can take your body home, give you a proper burial, but that's all. You're still gone.
"I almost lost myself in darkness because of my grief. I still hate Lawton, and Barbara. But . . . thanks to Yusei, I didn't keep acting on that hate.
"I never thought I would ever come to feel so deeply about you. But after everything we've been through together, we got close. I'm thankful for your friendship too. You turned out to be so much different than I ever thought you were."
His voice cracked and he reached for one of the limp hands. Normally Radley had been the one who liked physical contact while Kalin didn't so much, but now Kalin didn't want to let go. He trembled, shutting his eyes tightly as he clasped the hand in his and brought it to his forehead. "If there was only some way to get you back again. . . . I died twice and was revived both times. Why can't you?"
He sensed rather than heard the other presence in the room. It felt warm and good, but it was still startling. He looked up with a jerk, only to see a small child with mint-green hair and an ethereal glow on the other side of the bed.
"Who are you?!" he demanded. Was this a Duel Monster he didn't recognize?
She just smiled. "You and your friends always get into so much trouble, don't you?"
"This is the worst kind of trouble," Kalin said. "It can't be fixed." He frowned. "And how do you know about my friends?"
"I know about all of you." She leaned over the bed, placing her hand on Radley's heart. After a moment, a soft glow emanated from her palm and was absorbed into Radley's chest. He gasped and coughed, his eyes flying open.
Kalin leaped out of the chair in one motion. "Radley?!"
Radley looked up at him. "Kalin?! . . . I'm alive?!"
Kalin stood over him, shaking, still trying to comprehend that this was actually real and happening. Radley was breathing, and sitting up and feeling the bed, then running his hands down his jacket in disbelief. He seemed as stunned or moreso than Kalin himself.
"You're alive," Kalin whispered. Uncharacteristically he reached out, pulling Radley close in a hug. Stunned by that as well, Radley slowly but then firmly returned it.
The child stepped back with a satisfied smile. Kalin looked to her with sudden realization. "You're . . . an angel," he gasped.
Radley looked over with a jerk. "What?!"
"I'm Kasumi," she said. "Take care now." She blew them a kiss and vanished as she had come, in a soft light.
Radley sank against Kalin, still shaken and stunned by what had transpired. "I was healed by an angel," he said in disbelief.
"And now you're back where you belong," Kalin said. He hugged his friend close. "Welcome home."
"You really missed me, huh?" Radley said.
"Yeah," Kalin said. "I really did."
Would you believe I wrote this one way ahead of time but didn't post it here on the correct date? Oy. So it had to become part of the Amnesty Day post!
Title: The Night After
Day/Prompt: February 23rd - The End of the Whole Mess
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds
Character/Pairing: Kalin Kessler, Radley, Yusei Fudo, Jack Atlas, Crow Hogan, Jordan, Nico, West
Rating/Warning(s): K+/PG, lots of hurt/comfort
Link to AO3 copy: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29484408
Title: All the Things He Said
Day/Prompt: February 28th - The Things They Left Behind
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds
Character/Pairing: Kalin Kessler, Radley, Jordan, Nico, West, Radley's Bunch, a former Malcolm Crewmember
Rating/Warning(s): K/G, mention of a disturbing near-death experience, deep conversations
Link to AO3 copy: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29774049