Hello everyone and welcome to my side story to Stand Up, the LRIG! Now much like the main story I'm writing, the time of setting is around the same as established in that fic, but it begins around two weeks prior to Kai's arrival in the world of Wixoss. One thing I will want readers who haven't read Stand Up, the LRIG! or watched Selector Spread Wixoss at least up to Episode 10 to take into account that there will be major spoilers as this fic goes on. Other than that, I hope you enjoy the first of many chapters to come into this side story.
The Planet Cray. A rather strange and fascinating location to say the least to people across the vast universe who had some basic knowledge of it beforehand. Certain others would say that it would be home to the wonders of science and sorcery, especially given the divide of the two subjects amongst a large number of its denizens. Who those were would be the first thing to come to mind of the inhabitants of one particular Planet Earth, given the representation of Cray and said denizens through the popular game known to players across that world as Cardfight! Vanguard. As proven to one person who had his life changed forever by that game and a few other players, the Planet Cray itself is more than just simple backbone lore to Cardfight! Vanguard.
Many battles waged on the surface of the planet have had an impact on that Earth in particular, including the battle between the Royal Paladins and the Shadow Paladins and the Invasion War when Link Joker attempted to conquer Cray and all of its denizens in the name of the Void. To those who would ask about this strange presence would know very little. Most would reply that it was simply a dark enemy who as of yet had no physical presence of its own with Link Joker as its avatar, before certain event which had involved the manipulation of two timelines resulted in a majority of its forces being accepted as a clan by Cray itself. Whilst those accepted by the Star Gate nation were no longer a hostile threat to an extent, the remaining Star-vaders had disappeared into obscurity, making certain individuals uncertain as to when they would strike next and how.
But even after those many battles and their aftermaths had eventually passed over, no one could imagine what would happen next. An event that would occur within one of the six nations of Cray, the United Sanctuary to be exact, would eventually place the planet, the Earth that was already well acqainted with it via the game it was represented through and one other world in the middle of a conflict that would decide that fate of not just those three worlds, but possibly the whole universe.
Even now with this great amount of knowledge did a certain individual overlooking one of the vast expanses of Cray take into account as if he was searching for something. The figure was mostly clad in white armor with several green lines running across and several gems of that colour littered across the front of his armored robe and the front of his white hat. He knew not of how exactly this event would affect the future of the planet, but he was certain that whatever had arrived at this very moment could be the factor that would determine the fates of all Cray and wherever it came from.
A loud noise was heard throughout one of the many rocky plains that was usually commonplace in the divides between the nations of the Planet Cray. This one was the source of a loud explosion that shook the ground, with several streaks of dark energy seeping out of the large dust cloud that was formed from the blast. Emerging from the dust cloud was a human like figure, panting heavily as she ran away from the source of the explosion as fast as she possibly could. Her clothing seemed to resemble nothing more than black coloured tights that went up as far as just beneath her neck and she also wore two black gloves that went up the lower halves of her arms.
Her clothing had been covered in scratches and small patches had been torn off, most likely from the impact of the explosion that she came out unscathed from and maybe some other near misses of that kind. She had brown eyes and straight jet black hair, as if it was to compliment with the colour of her outfit for some strange reason, though she alone had already known that reason. Hearing a loud roar suddenly sound out from the dust cloud behind her, the girl knew that her pursuer was not far behind her and that she was already running out of stamina to keep ahead of it. 'It' was a perfect description to describe the being that was chasing her across the surface of Cray, right towards a certain portion of the nation that she was in to be exact.
A large shadow rose out of the dust cloud that had now mostly disappeared and took flight into the air above her. From what she had seen earlier before she had now found herself in the situation she was in, the Planet Cray, unbeknowst to her, was definitely not the place that she was usually acqainted with. That she already knew from the vision of various moons and planets seen in the distance from Cray's blue skyline amongst the few clouds that were there. The girl's pursuer appeared to be a large black dragon with shades of very dark purple and various bits of gold littered on its nails, legs, body, the spikes on its long tail, various parts of the head including the front of its upper jaw and the edges of its wings. There were several red lines etched into the dragon's body, resembling patterns of some sort that couldn't quite remain complete as some of the patterns' ends were essentially 'leaking' off in streams of small red energy.
The winged creature stared down at its prey from the air with its sharp dark green eyes before unleashing another loud roar that caused several small winged creatures observing the chaos from a nearby outcrop to flee in panic, not wanting to incur this dragon's wrath upon them. The girl could only glance for a brief moment as she saw the dragon's gaze had been brought upon her once again. Looking out in front of her, she turned her attention towards a large structure that she could see that wasn't too far from where she currently was. Before she had been chased, she ventured out towards it in search of life from where she had found herself and needless to say, that was when her tall, dark and gruesome pursuer had decided to attack her.
She had no idea to say the least why she had somehow incurred the wrath of this dragon that was now trying to get at her, but all she knew was that the sooner that she could make it to that structure, now seemingly appearing to be more like a fortress the closer that she was getting towards it, the sooner that she could possibly find help in driving off the beast or hopefully hide out there long enough for her to lose it. That thought was brought to a brief halt as the girl instinctively leaped forwards just in time to avoid being hit point blank by a large dark blue fireball from the dragon pursuing her, some small dirt and debris hitting the back of her outfit from the blast being that close to hitting her.
Needless to say, if the girl had already guessed that said structure was some kind of fortress from the start, she would have already been correct. Deep within one of the rooms within the interior lay a large throne of some sorts. It wasn't exactly regal or grand as 'another one' to say the least, but to the elf that was currently sat on it with his eyes closed felt that it suited the atmosphere around him and the 'others' well, considering who they were and what a majority of them once were. He was mostly drabed in black armor with several blue gems embedded, including the single head piece that he wore within his murky silverish hair and slightly hung up on his back was what appeared to be some red fabric that had been furled up so that it wouldn't get crinkled from sitting on it.
"You really need to stop falling asleep more often, Mordred."
The elf, now addressed by that name, opened his red eyes without so much effort as some would have expected. He could see in front of him the person that had spoken out to him. He was also clad in black armor and had that same red coloured fabric hanging down his back, almost like a cape. Etched into both his armour and the large blade that he carried were several neon-like turqiose colored lines and some dark red gems embedded into the sword near the front of the hilt, the chest armour and the top front of the helmet. His dark green eyes were directed towards Mordred, his gaze expressing a serious manner much like the tone that he had spoken out in.
"Indeed," the elf replied "It would appear that has become a rather unfortunate habit of mine, Junos."
The black swordsman's expression seemed to grow what appeared to be a hint of annoyance, but a closer glance could tell that he felt somewhat pained from being addressed this way, as if he didn't like being called by that name.
"I understand how you feel," Mordred spoke, bringing the swordsman's attention back down to Earth, or as the saying would go, back down to Cray in that regard. "What we did in the past with the Royal Paladins has long been behind us. Your real name should not bear any issue in that regard anymore."
"Yet, you don't feel this way, even if a part of you was a part of the monster that originally founded our clan?"
The elf sighed heavily. Although this topic had not been a common recurrence in previous conversations that the two of them had, it was one that even he felt that the swordsman was being overly concerned about from his perspective. He rose up from the throne upon which he sat, allowing the red fabric on his back to unfurl, revealing it to be a cape much like the one that the swordsman had down his back.
"Junos... or rather, Blaster Dark as you prefer," he spoke "I understand the burden that we, the Shadow Paladins, have all felt since the end of our struggle against Royal Paladin. As you have already pointed out, I am aware that part of me belongs to the evil that was once called Phantom Blaster Dragon. However, that part was the light that once existed within that dragon before it became the tyrant we were all aware of and that malice does not exist within any portion of my power or veins. Even before most of us originally joined the clan, we all had one thing in common. We were merely outcasts, thieves and bandits as the rest of the United Sanctuary had percieved us and rightly so at that time. Your story as to how you came into Shadow Paladin is different than the others, since direct manipulation from Phantom Blaster itself was involved in that 'incident'."
The swordsman, who had now been prefered to have been referred as 'Blaster Dark' said nothing in response, still recounting the days that he spent as a Royal Paladin himself before ambition and enviness along with outside manipulation had resulted into him joining the clan that he remained a part of to this day. Truth be told, the swordsman wasn't proud of the things he had done in the past and after spending enough time around the people and beings that he would eventually to this day still regard as comrades, he could see that a majority of them much like himself felt the same way after the war between them and the Royal Paladins ended with the 'Swordsman of Light' bringing down the monstrousity known as Phantom Blaster Overlord.
Since the fall of the tyrant that had founded the Shadow Paladins, a few who had joined the clan out of similar methods that were like those done to Blaster Dark by the dragon itself had gone back to their Royal Paladin allies, now free of the darkness that had plagued them through the negative energies of the weapons that they carried. Blaster Dark however, feeling that it was his responsibility as one of the higher ups of the Shadow Paladins at that time decided it was his duty to help reform the clan after everything that happened to them throughout that conflict. It took a long while for the rest of the United Sanctuary to have assurance that they would no longer be a hostile threat, but eventually by the time that the Revengers had been formed after the events of 'another' conflict, the other clans of that nation were somewhat at ease with the idea that they would defend the Sanctuary, from deep within the shadows.
"Dark-san!"
Blaster Dark then turned his attention towards a female voice that had sounded out from the doorway to the throne room, interrupting both his inner thoughts and his conversation with the leader of the Revengers. Mordred simply looked over towards the person that had called out towards the 'Sword of Determination'. She had murky brownish red hair, was clad in black armor whilst holding a sword with an azure shine to it and much like the other Revengers wore the traditional dark red cape that they had always worn since the day that Blaster Dark himself had established the group.
"It's here again!" she called "That beast's driving what appears to be a civilian towards the gates of our fortress!"
"I see Tartu," the black swordsman replied "Mobilize the troops with Mordred. I'll head to the walls above the front gates to intercept it."
"Understood!"
Blaster Dark nodded in response and ran out through the doors, heading through the corridors towards the walls of the fortress to intercept whatever threat was chasing this 'civilian' towards their gates. The fact that Tartu had addressed the beast to be 'it' in particular again had him feeling very uneasy, as if he had known about this particular threat to the United Sanctuary once before.
Back outside, just a long distance away from the gates to the fortress, the girl had been almost tired out by the long chase that she had been involved with, evidenced by her heavy breathing and her gradual decrease in running speed as she got closer towards her destination. The black dragon that was in the sky above that was originally behind her at a considerable distance was now nearly on top of her, as if she could almost feel its breath coming down her neck. She knew at the rate she was going about the situation that she was in, unless she could somehow lose her pursuer at this very moment, her chances of not being essentially 'dead meat' would be none to nothing. That thought had unfortunately distracted her long enough to give the dragon a chance to unleash another dark fireball from its jaws right at her.
The girl briefly gasped at how close the attack was coming in towards her before it struck the ground right behind her, the impact being enough to throw her into the air before tumbling back down to the hard earth until she was right on her back, now too weak to even get back up to try and run away again. She breathed as hard as she could, just as the dragon came down onto its feet with a large thud that shook the area. It walked on all four of its claws towards its prey, the situation appearing hopeless for the girl as she looked right into its menacing green eyes.
So this is how it all ends... she thought First, I am no longer the person everyone wanted me to be just as I wished... now after uncovering the cruel truth of 'that place'... I end up in this strange place and meet my end by... this beast.
The dragon, now mere inches away from her was about to thrust its head with the jaws open wide before a loud yell had caught both it and the girl's attention all of a sudden.
"Gust Blaster!"
Despite her weakened state, the girl could just about attempt to sit up on her lower arms, just in time to see Blaster Dark leap past her and slash at the right side of the dragon's jaws. The beast screeched loudly in some form of pain as it now turned its attention towards the one who attacked it and growled loudly under its breath. The girl could hardly believe her eyes as to who had just saved her before the pain in her body from both the running and the close calls that she had from the dragon had eventually got the better of her as she fell unconscious. Before her back hit the dirt once again, she was caught in the arms of a human like figure that Blaster Dark had called onto the scene.
He didn't wear a cloak like the Revengers, but even so, he was still a well acqainted and trusted comrade that the black swordsman knew well from his first days as part of the Shadow Paladins, back when it was seen as nothing more than a terrorist uprising under the rule and founding of Phantom Blaster Dragon as like him, this sage had also once been part of the Royal Paladins. He wore black robes with several blue lines and patterns to contrast in his appearance. He looked on towards Blaster Dark himself and nodded, to assure him that he had the girl safe in his hands. The black swordsman then briefly nodded back.
"Charon, get her back within the fortress walls!" he called "I'll hold off Gust Blaster until reinforcements arrive!"
"Understood!" he called. He then heaved the unconscious girl onto his back and ran back to the fortress gates. The dragon briefly glanced behind before turning its attention back to the opponent in front of it.
"Junos..." a loud voice boomed out from the black dragon, now identified as 'Gust Blaster'. "It would appear that your loyalties have still remained in question."
"I am no longer the puppet that you once used for your gain!" Blaster Dark replied, taking up a stance for battle. "Neither are the rest of Shadow Paladin or the citizens of the United Sanctuary that you still attempt to devour for their power!"
"Come now," Gust Blaster continued "You have been aware of my policy since I took you in under my original self. The weak have no right to exist within MY clan and their lives, their power, belongs to me and that girl has been no exception!"
"What do you mean?!" the black swordsman demanded "I haven't had word of her being part of the Shadow Paladins!"
"Perhaps, but even so, I sensed I great dark power deep within her not of Cray in all of my years," the dragon responded "She would be a worthy sacrifice so I can increase the power I have in this state ten-fold, to the point where I surpass even myself before the fall to that 'Swordsman of Light'! You made a grave mistake betraying me to your former comrade Junos and now, I shall make you see the error of your ways!"
The black dragon then let out a loud roar which caused Blaster Dark to dig the heels of his boots into the earth to stand his ground before charging towards his enemy. Gust Blaster then unleashed several dark fireballs towards the black swordsman, who dodged some of them in succession whilst reluctantly having to slash away at two of them, which resulted in said two being detonated a bit too close towards him for his comfort. Ignoring the damage to his armor and his cape from the impacts of the blasts, Blaster Dark continued on towards Gust Blaster, letting out a loud battle cry as he did so. The dragon roared and leaped into the air, before suddenly lashing out its tail from the right.
The black swordsman, having been caught off guard briefly by this sudden maneuver was knocked to the side by the spiked tail. Landing on his back, he quickly rolled out of the way from another lash of the tail and leaped back onto his knees as the dragon was now in full flight by this point. Gust Blaster roared loudly as it unleashed another fireball towards its prey, intending for it to land dead center this time around. However, Blaster Dark had anticipated this counterattack and leaped up into the air to dodge the flaming projectile just in time as it hit the ground beneath his feet and continued through the air with a large yell as he brought his blade up high into the air, intending to land a direct hit on the dragon's body.
Gust Blaster however, was more than prepared for this. Growling fiercly, it charged straight towards the swordsman before ramming the top of its head straight into him, causing Blaster Dark to fall back onto the ground beneath them. He quickly straightened himself in mid fall before just about landing perfectly on his two feet, the heels on his armored boots digging into the earth beneath his feet upon impact from the descent. Gust Blaster then landed on its feet and charged towards him, prompting the swordsman to leap out of the way multiple times in succession before thrusting up the side of his blade to clash with the horn at the front of the top half of the dragon's head, allowing the two to literally face off up close and personal.
Both rammed their horn/weapon against one another until Blaster Dark quickly leaped backwards to avoid being overpowered immediately by this immense opponent. He panted as he observed the situation in front of him.
"So, have you finally accepted your fate, traitor?" the dragon growled beneath its breath.
"I see even in this form with pure insanity being your driving force, you haven't changed a bit," Blaster Dark spat back.
Gust Blaster simply ignored the comment before taking flight once again and charging towards the black swordsman who stood on guard, prepared to try and block another front on attack from the air. However, another roar from his right had suddenly caught their attention as a new dragon suddenly tackled into Gust Blaster from that direction. Unlike it, this dragon appeared to be more used to standing in a bipedal position as it landed onto the ground. It was covered from head to toe with black armor and much like Blaster Dark, his armor also had turqoise patterns littered all over the various platings and possessed a red cape on its back, just in front of the wingspan. It carried what appeared to be a mix between a lance and a giant purple spiked blade, like a halberd of sorts.
"Is she safe at the fortress?" Blaster Dark asked.
"She'll be okay!" called a voice from not far behind. The black swordsman turned his head to see Tartu along with a few others alongside her coming to join him and the dragon that had interrupted the battle. "Charon's bringing her to the front gates now."
"We must ensure that she recovers from her wounds," he spoke "There's some questions that I need to ask her about. For now..."
Blaster Dark and the others that stood alongside him in the turning point of the battle stared off against Gust Blaster who merely gazed upon them and then took flight. Before the dragon that interrupted the fight could strike him, Gust Blaster dove into the ground, seemingly into his own shadow before somehow swiftly using said shadow to retreat from where the battle had now taken place, much to the fury of a few of the troops and said dragon.
"Calm yourself, Raging Form!" Blaster Dark called "There's no point in pursuing it now. For now, we have other matters to attend to."
Reluctantly, Raging Form growled beneath its breath before flying over to join him, Tartu and the rest of the troops that had shown up, albeit a bit too late to do anything else of value to help favour the outcome.
As Charon hurried up towards the large gate that blocked his entry into the fortress, the metal barricade was quickly winched up by a nearby footsoldier up on the battlements above it. Mordred then came into the view of the Black Sage with another figure beside him. This figure was female, having light pinkish hair, much more black clothing and armor than Tartu, bearing the cloak of the Revengers and wielding a large blade and bright green orb in each respective free hand. The Black Sage panted as he eventually stopped in front of the leader of the Revengers and the current Grandmaster of the Shadow Paladins.
"J... Junos sent me back here with her," he said, briefly shrugging the shoulder that held the girl he had been carrying, who remained unconscious. "He wanted to make sure that she was safe."
"I see," Mordred replied before glancing down to his associate. "I imagine he would want her to recover. See to it."
"I understand," the female replied as Charon handed the girl he was carrying to her before she left for one of the inner chambers of the fortress. Looking back into the distance, he and Mordred could see that in the far distance, Gust Blaster was no longer visible and that Blaster Dark, Tartu, Raging Form and all of the troops that the Dark Cloak Revenger had brought with her were now coming back to the gates.
Little did anyone else from the gates know was that from a far off corner of one of the fortress' rooftops from out of plain sight, no one from the ground could have seen that a large figure that had watching over the entire battle that had played out before its eyes in the distance. The only distinguishable feature could have easily been seen was the blade it carried, stained in a claret red colour that was mounted on its back, behind the black cloth that it had worn. The obscured figure's size made it very apparent to anyone who would have seen it, that this observer was not human.
"That power I sensed is not of this world or of 'them'..." it spoke, a rough exterior to its voice "I must confront that girl about it."
And there we go! 'The Outcast and the Sword of Determination' has officially begun! Now, I am aware that Gust Blaster originally existed exclusively to the manga lores, but the recent lores in Dragruler Phantom and the Break Ride Phantom Blaster Dragon suggested that both Mordred and Gust Blaster existed in the same timeline. Also, I have a feeling you can guess who's been watching the battle and Iona from high up and out of sight. That aside, I hope you've all enjoyed the introductory chapter to this side story and I would really appreciate it to hear your thoughts. If I've done anything wrong to contradict the lores, please let me know and I'll do my best to correct those errors. Feel free to also favourite and/or follow and I'll see you next time.