Dalton woke to silence.
His eyes opened to a sky he had never seen before—an endless dome painted with three suns and a tapestry of stars, even though it was clearly day. The air itself felt alive, vibrating faintly with invisible power.
"…Where… am I?"
His voice sounded strange. Deeper. Resonant. It wasn't until he shifted that he noticed the weight of his body—massive wings folding against his sides, scales gleaming like midnight, claws cutting grooves into the stone beneath him.
Dalton froze. He caught his reflection in a fragment of broken marble nearby.
A dragon stared back.
Not just any dragon—its body was covered in golden sigils that shimmered like flowing constellations, each glyph shifting into new forms: swords, staffs, serpents, knights, gods. With every breath, the space around him wavered, as though countless silhouettes of other beings flickered at the edge of sight.
"…No way."
Memories surged—an image of a card from Yu-Gi-Oh, the legendary 10,000 Dragon, a monster from his favorite card game And now, somehow, that was him.
Dalton—no, 10,000 Dragon—rose to his full height. His wings stretched wide, kicking up a storm of dust and magic.
"So… I've become this." His draconic eyes narrowed, then a small laugh rumbled from his chest. "A pure-blooded dragon. And not just any—an embodiment of a worldview."
He began testing himself.
With a thought, golden light flared around him, and one of the sigils on his body detached, forming into a spectral knight wielding a blade. Another thought, and the knight dissolved, replaced by a horned fiend with wings of shadow.
Dalton exhaled sharply. "So the spirits live within me…"
He tried again, this time focusing on the image of a dragon he had known since childhood. Blue-white flames crackled, and the air split with a roar as the mighty Blue-Eyes White Dragon manifested beside him, its form radiant but translucent.
Dalton grinned, awe and satisfaction mixing. "It's real. They're not just cards here… they're alive."
He willed the spirit back, and the Blue-Eyes dissolved into motes of light that sank into his body. His mind buzzed with possibilities.
Not only could he summon the spirits—he could feel them. Thousands of them. Like an endless chorus whispering at the edge of his consciousness, waiting to be called. Each one carried strength, personality, and potential.
"…So this is my power." He flexed his claws, testing the flow of energy through his body. "all spirits and power from Yu-Gi-Oh."
He looked to the horizon where distant banners of unknown communities fluttered.
A smile—sharp, draconic, yet unmistakably human—crossed his face.
"This world runs on Gifts, right? Then let's see how far mine can go."
The dragon that was Dalton spread his wings. Power rippled outward, and for the first time, Little Garden felt the presence of the one who would change it forever.