Buddyfight Virtua!

Chapter One: Core Issues

"Game over. Winner: Gaigrander." The red-clad hero's opponent, a brawny man, dropped to his knees, and his core gadget returned to its usual form as a core deck case. The winner moved to pick up the deck case, pulling the cards from it, before crushing the deck case itself with his bare hands, utterly destroying it.

"Try continuing your criminal activities now, scumbag..." It was then that the sounds of weapons being primed surrounded them, and the now-familiar voice of Tsurugi Takihara fell onto the hero's ears.

"Freeze!" Takihara's weapon wasn't pointed at the criminal fighter, however; it was pointed at the hero in red.

The one who called himself Gaigrander waved it off as if it was nothing, turning to leave. "He's all yours. I'm done with him already."

This was clearly not being taken well by Takihara, who had apparently assumed that the hero was the villain today. "I said freeze! We're going to take you in, even if I have to Buddyfight you."

"Not interested. I'm outta here." And as the hero spoke, a shine came from the core gadget on his wrist as a semi-mechanical voice spoke. "Buddy Skill, on." A flame-like outline appeared in front of the visor of his helmet, and he began to rise up into the sky.

Another familiar voice, however, caught the hero off-guard. "Yoshiro!" The hero stopped abruptly, turning to look at the face of the blue-haired Buddy Cop boy wonder, Tasuku Ryuenji. Takihara looked surprised, too, looking over at Tasuku in shock. "Yoshiro, please. You won't be in trouble, but Commander I needs you to come in... We all need you."

Takihara cleared his throat at Tasuku. "Tasuku, in case you haven't noticed, I'm trying to apprehend a crimina-"

The Buddy Police's senior officer was interrupted by the hero. "You're after the criminal fighter, so quit trying to take me in. He's on his knees over there." With a finger, he pointed at the man he'd just defeated. "I shoulda known it'd be you he sent, Tasuku. It's been a long time... But I told him, I'm done with the Buddy Police. I can't work inside the law when so much gets ignored by it. Tell him to-"

This time, Yoshiro was the one interrupted, as Tasuku butt in with his own words. "You won't have to work inside the law. In fact, he specifically said it had to be you because what he needs done can't be done by the Buddy Police. There's a whole new type of crime to fight that the Buddy Police can't go after... But you can. Have you ever heard of a HIC?"

Yoshiro was intrigued now. He'd never hated his former allies at the Buddy Police, he just couldn't stand by and watch as crimes were committed that the Buddy Police did nothing about. If this fell into that... "You've got my interest, what's a HIC?"

"Holographic Immersion Core. It's the latest buddyfighting technology. Designed by a company owned by the Gaen Financial Group, it's perfectly safe... Supposedly. The latest in Core Deck Case technology, instead of generating a Buddyfight field around you where people can see, it puts you into a virtual Buddyfight field. It's significantly different from regular buddyfighting, as I understand it, and could be a challenge even for a seasoned veteran like you... But we need you to do it, Yoshiro."

Yoshiro studied Commander I's face very carefully, taking in his expressions and attempting to deduce any attempts at trickery. But Commander I had always been rather straightforward, and he couldn't believe that he'd have brought Tasuku in on any deception, regardless. Perhaps his time alone had simply made him paranoid. Running a hand through his dark hair, Yoshiro looked up at Commander I, then nodded. "Yeah, okay. I get it. The Buddy Police don't have access to these cores, can't regulate them, and can't use the Buddy Police Barrier inside the virtual field, right? So you can't deign authority until the red tape's gone, so for now, all the criminals that go to the virtual field get off scot-free. That about sum it up?"

With a nod from Commander I, Tasuku presented Yoshiro with a rather unassuming cardboard box. "That's about the gist of it, yes. Will you help us?"

Yoshiro nodded, sighing as he took the box from Tasuku's hands. It felt weird being back in the Buddy Police HQ. "Alright, I'll do it... Under a condition. And before you get snippy with me, Commander, hear me out. My condition is that there's no Buddy Police interference. You can point me in the right direction if you want, but after that, you get the hell outta my way. If I'm going to do it, it'll be my turf, my rules. I'll co-ordinate only when I deem it fit. I'm not playing shadow agent, I'm not playing errand boy. I'm doing what I've done since I donned the suit, and that's working alone. If we've got a deal, then show me what I need to do and I'll do it."

Commander I nodded at Yoshiro with a smile. "Tasuku, show him how to use it." With that, Commander I left the room, and Yoshiro opened the box. Inside, he found something he had not expected: A new core deck case. It was interestingly different from his old one, sleeker, and orange instead of red, with a red gem instead of blue. It was also in some kind of additional, external case with the same orange color...

Tasuku smiled at him. "I thought you'd like the deck case. It's in the colors of fire, after all. You really seem to like those colors. The HIC comes in parts."

Yoshiro nodded in response, pulling out the core deck case and looking over the outer case it was in. "How do I take out the Core Deck Case? And does it work normally, too?"

Tasuku pointed at a button on the top of the outer case. "You remove the Deck Case from the Core Loader with this button. Just push it in and the Core Deck Case should slide right out... And yes, it still functions as a normal deck case." As Tasuku spoke, Yoshiro was already pulling the Deck Case out, looking over the two pieces in wonder. The Core Loader had half of the Deck Case's gem on it, which really caught Yoshiro off-guard. It seemed that was happening a lot, today...

"Core Loader? That's a new term. What's it do?" Yoshiro's eyes had turned back to the box, even as he spoke, looking over the pair of gloves that were still inside, each with their own piece of core gem on it.

"The Core Loader lets you Load-In your deck and deck case... Basically, without it, you can't get your deck into the virtual world. The Core Loader and the Core Deck Case are a pair. You can't Load-In with someone else's Deck Case. And the gloves are what you use to load yourself in. Just like how the Core Deck Case takes a form based on your desires, the Core Gloves give you a virtual avatar based on how you see yourself... It can be a little tricky to track people down in real life when they can look completely different outside the virtual arena."

"Alright, I get it. Where do I put the Core Loader? Does it matter?" He seemed completely at a loss at the moment. Tasuku laughed, unused to seeing the normally composed and overly serious Yoshiro thrown for a loss. Taking the Core Loader from him, Tasuku affixed the Loader to a strap and ran that strap over Yoshiro's left shoulder so that the core loader hid neatly under his jacket, but readily accessible. With a smile, Yoshiro nodded at him. "You know, that's not a half-bad idea, Tasuku... Too bad we went our separate ways... It's not too late for you, you know..."

As Tasuku smiled sadly at him, Yoshiro began to put on the gloves and switch his deck into the new Core Deck Case. "I'm going to stay with the Buddy Police, Yoshiro. But good luck, okay? Remember that in the virtual world, you won't always know who you're fighting. And the simulations will be designed to represent various locations on the other worlds that monsters come from. There are effects all throughout the terrain that can change the flow of battle so use them wisely."

Yoshiro nodded a sad nod, slipping his new Deck Case into his pocket before turning to leave. "Got it... Well, I guess I'll see you around... Buddy Cop Boy Wonder." Before Tasuku could say anything in disdain, he ran out of the room, and left the Buddy Police HQ for what he hoped would be the last time.

"Well, I suppose if it's so much more difficult in the virtual world, I should go see what all the fuss is about." By this point, Yoshiro had made it back home, and was sitting in his bedroom, decidedly bored. But if this was really going to be a challenge for him, he decided he should make sure he was up to it before he actually went after any criminal fighters. With a sigh, he pulled out his deck case, taking a good look at his buddy card before sliding the case into the Core Loader with a click. "Load-In!"

The world pixelated and vanished around him, replaced after a few short moments of darkness by a rocky, desolate wasteland. By the look of it, he supposed he was in a Danger World simulation. Stepping out from behind a rocky outcropping, a thin but well-built man with hair as black as night and no shirt pointed a spear at him. "You there! What are you doing here?! I don't like a man who won't show his face! Buddyfight me or leave!"

Yoshiro tipped his head, wondering what he meant by "a man who won't show his face". It dawned on him after a moment that he was wearing a helmet of some sort, but he hardly cared. Grinning, he called out, "A Buddyfight suits me just fine!"

The man leapt down in front of Yoshiro and drew his Core Deck Case from his Core Loader. "Flames of disaster, spread your apocalyptic fire across this world! Awaken God of Fire! Luminize, Iblis Trigger!" As he spoke, the Deck Case glowed and shifted into the man's Core Gadget, a hovering disk, and pulled glowing, floating cards from the gem in the center. If Yoshiro had to guess, the core gadget would be a chakram.

Yoshiro drew his own Core Deck Case, moving it to his arm as he did so to transform it into his own Core Gadget: a bracer. "Feel the furious flames of justice burning in my fists! Luminize! Blazing Creed!" Drawing out his own hand, Yoshiro was ready to begin.

Together they called out the ritualistic opening lines. "It's time to raise the flag!" The man Yoshiro faced threw his hand into the air. "I fight for Danger World!"

Yoshiro rolled his eyes, suddenly legitimately thankful for the helmet which covered his eyes. "I'm with Hero World!" It was typical that he'd be fighting a Danger World user first... This did appear to be Danger World, after all.

"I'll go first! Charge and draw!" Moving one glowing card from his hand, he tossed it into the larger, floating area to the side, touching his Core Gadget's gem to draw another card. "I equip Infinite Armament, Dangerous Cradle! Paying 1 gauge, I place another copy from my hand into its soul!" One of the large glowing cards vanished from the gauge, as did a card in the man's hand, as what appeared to be portals with weapons poking out of them appeared behind him. Drawing one such weapon from its portal, the man threw it at him as he jumped up to higher ground. The spear struck Yoshiro, and a life indicator appeared in the form of a number 10 above his head, breaking apart into a 9, then an 8. The man seemed to be moving away from him, yet his cards and gauge moved with him. Yoshiro was starting to be very confused.

"My turn! I draw, then charge and draw!" Looking over his hand carefully, Yoshiro planned out his move. It wasn't exactly the best hand to start with, but it'd have to do. "With burning blood and steel fists, I deliver justice! I pay 1 gauge, and Transform! Buddy Call!" As he lifted the card up, he placed it against the core gadget on his wrist, and light engulfed his form as the card equipped itself to him, transforming him once more into the red-clad hero, Gaigrander. "I am Gaigrander 01! And with my special ability, I search my deck for another Gaigrander card by paying 2 gauge! I add Gaigrander 02 to my hand!" Placing the card in his hand, his hand shuffled automatically. He lifted another card up, and it dissolved. "I discard Rescue Dragon, Projet Gunner to activate its skill, placing two more cards in my gauge!" His now-empty gauge filled with two more cards, arriving from his core gadget as sparks of light. "To the left, I call my brother-in-arms, Gaigrander 02!" A card vanished from the gauge, disappearing into the monster as it came out. "His skill activates, bringing another Gaigrander card to my hand! I choose to add Gaigrander 'Analyze Form' to my hand! Next, I call Cyber Police, Commander Gale to the right, then cast! Hyper Energy!" Four new sparks of light from his core gadget moved to his gauge, increasing the number of cards there to 5. Clearly, his opponent was unimpressed. "My brother-in-arms, go attack the fighter!" The blue fighter beside him raced up the rocky slope before them, striking the opposing fighter for 2 damage. "Next, it's your turn, Gale. Go attack the fighter!"

As Commander Gale rushed towards the man, he lifted a card from his hand, and a card vanished from his gauge. "I cast! Demon Slay Slash!" He drew another of the seemingly-endless weapons from the portals at his sides and slashed through the on-coming Commander Gale with the axe he'd pulled, which then vanished as Gale shattered into light.

"Tch... Fine then, let's see how you handle my fist!" Racing up the slope himself, Yoshiro punched the fighter, dropping his life indicator to 6. Yoshiro jumped back, but not back to where he'd stood, as he raised another card from his hand. "Now! Crimson Spin!" A card vanished from his gauge as his form was consumed in fire, and he'd transformed into a new form: Gaigrander "Finish Form". "You think you're so tough, don't you!" The opponent stepped to his right, and as Yoshiro closed in for a second punch, a fissure opened in the ground, air rushing up out of it, temporarily taking the form of a phoenix. Though Yoshiro's hand passed through it and struck the fighter, his swing had been slowed, and instead of the 3 damage drop Yoshiro had expected, his opponent's life indicator now read 5.

The staggering stance Yoshiro had as he stumbled back into position told his opponent everything he needed to know. "What, this is your first time Loading-In? Well, don't look so shocked, because this is how the game works in here... That was Phoenix Wall... And it's part of the virtual terrain. How you use the terrain to your advantage will play a huge role in how well your fights with the Holographic Core go! Allow me to show you what I mean! Draw! Charge and Draw!" Even now, Yoshiro's unnamed opponent ran down the side of the slope, as if looking to grab something. Flicking a card from his hand up, a gauge vanished and he rolled along the ground as he spoke. "Cast! Survival Chance! With this, I draw two new cards." He came to his feet, then flicked another card from his hand out to the field before him. "Call Armorknight Gargoyle Ace to the right!" Reaching down, he picked up what appeared to be a weapon of some sort on the ground. As he did, it glowed and turned into a card, which he placed in his hand. "And that, if you couldn't tell, was an Armor Reuse spell... It let me get an Armorknight from my drop zone..." Flicking the new card onto the field, he grinned. "Armorknight Tiger Ace, to the left! Now, Gargoyle Ace! Tiger Ace! Demonic Equip Combination!" The two monsters rushed from the field into the open portals that were Infinite Armament, Dangerous Cradle, and the man laughed. "Now awaken, God of Fire! I buddy call Armorknight Iblis to the left!" As he called Iblis, a card vanished from his gauge, leaving it empty, and another spark of light left the gem of his core gadget, merging with the glowing shape of Iblis as it solidified. "To the right, I call Armorknight Little Drake... And with his special ability, I put Gargoyle Ace from my Drop Zone into Dangerous Cradle's soul... Scared yet? If you don't know what you're doing, you should be! Little Drake! Go attack Gaigrander!"

Even as the man gave orders, he darted across the battlefield yet again. Armorknight Little Drake was charging towards Yoshiro, but he lifted a card from his hand. "Not so fast! Counter Transform! Behold! Gaigrander 'Analyze Form'!" As the puny monster was rebuffed, the man laughed. "No worries..." Drawing a spear from one of the portals beside him, he threw one of them at Gaigrander 02, who shattered into light and vanished. "Now, Iblis... Go attack the fighter!" As Iblis charged in and attacked him, Yoshiro could only put his arms up to block as his life was reduced to 7. "We're not done yet... Iblis, show him your Double Attack!" The demonic creature slashed at Yoshiro again, reducing his life to 5.

"Tch... this is nothing. I've had far worse. I draw! Charge and draw! Grand RuLer, Silbarrier to the right!" A card disappeared from his gauge, and a new one appeared in his hand. Yoshiro nodded his thanks to Silbarrier, and then lifted his next card. "Red Warrior, Road Blader, to the left! Road Blader, take out that troublesome Iblis!" Road Blader slashed his sword through Iblis, who shattered into light, then re-formed.

"Soulguard!" The opponent seemed unfazed, for better or worse.

Of course, NOW he tells me... "Well, we'll just have to fix that! Road Blader, go take out Iblis!"

"Gargoyle Ace, protect Iblis!" A ghostly image of Armorknight Gargoyle Ace appeared in front of Road Blader, blocking the attack, before shattering into light.

"Fine. Silbarrier, with me! Link attack on Iblis!" The two rushed towards Iblis again, and found yet another ghostly image of Gargoyle Ace before them, before it, too, shattered into light.

"You didn't really think I'd let you take down my buddy, did you? Are you going to use that little trick of yours to attack again?" Before Yoshiro could answer, the core gadget spoke.

"End of move. Your move."

The man grinned at Yoshiro, climbing up the slope to stand high above him. "Guess not. Draw! Charge and draw! I'll pay 1 gauge to add another Dangerous Cradle from my Drop Zone to the soul of the one I have on the field... Now, Little Drake, go attack Silbarrier!" Yoshiro had totally forgotten about his opponent's size 0 monster in the last round, having opted to try and remove his biggest threat from the board. Now, however, it was whittling away at his forces. As Silbarrier shattered into light, Yoshiro was starting to realize this guy was no slouch... And that this world would, in fact, be more challenging to Buddyfight in. Getting used to working with the cards hidden in the virtual world would take time... Time he may not have, especially in this fight. "Alright, Iblis, I think it's time we end this. Link attack with me on the fighter!"

As Iblis drew closer and the opponent threw another spear at him from a distance, Yoshiro knew it was time to think fast. With a roll to his left, he flicked up a card from his hand. "I've Seen Through Your Moves!" The counter spell saved him from what would otherwise have been a loss, but was he safe yet?

The opponent sighed, almost as if bored with him. "I guess it's not over yet, hm? Oh well. Iblis, go attack Road Blader!"

Yoshiro wasn't ready to let this demon beat him, though. "Not today! Justice Will Prevail!" Leaping up from the ground, Road Blader slashed through Iblis with his sword, and the monstrous demon shattered into light and vanished. Score one for Yoshiro... Now all he had to do was finish off the fighter's remaining 6 life... "I draw. Charge and draw! Road Blader, go attack the fighter!"

"Not so fast! Shredding Battle Wall, cast!" The fighter's life indicator rose to 7, and Road Blader's attack was rebuffed.

Yoshiro had to admit, the opponent was using the terrain well. He had to get back in this. Turning his attention to the opponent's other monster, he mowed down Little Drake himself, and the tiny dragon shattered into light as well. "Hmph! Crimson Spin!" Transforming once more into his Finish Form, he turned to rush at the fighter, climbing the slope to his opponent, who sent him flying back down it.

"Shredding Battle Wall!" Once more, Yoshiro's opponent had gained another life point, now back at 8. "I draw. Charge and Draw! You didn't think my buddy was done yet, did you? Armorknight Iblis, to the left!" Pulling yet another of those infinite spears from his equipped item, the fighter threw one at Road Blader, who shattered into light and vanished. "You're finished. Iblis, go attack the fighter."

"Not so fast, yourself! I've Seen Through Your Moves!" As he raised the spell from his hand, Iblis was knocked back from being able to harm Yoshiro. Yoshiro knew that the card he had left would have been more potent if he'd used his last gauge to counter transform when Road Blader had been attacked, but he also knew that he couldn't afford to keep doing that unless he drew into another gauge spell, which he didn't foresee with his small hand size. He'd have to hope for the best...

"Iblis, I think he's forgotten about your Double Attack. Show him again, for me?" Iblis swung in yet again, and Yoshiro threw a card up from his hand.

"I think you've forgotten something yourself! Justice Will Prevail!" His fist rose as Iblis connected, hitting Iblis in the jaw and shattering him into light as Yoshiro's life counter dropped to 3. Iblis reformed quickly, though.

"Hmph. Soulguard. You think you're doing well, but you're just not. You have no idea how to use the world around you, do you?"

Yoshiro had to admit, at least to himself, that his opponent was right. He didn't know how to do that, not yet. But he had to try. Circling around the slope his opponent stood on, he edged to the side, hoping to find something, anything to help him. "I draw." Looking at his hand, he had drawn another copy of "I've Seen Through Your Moves!". But he knew that he needed monsters if he was going to get through the turn. Reluctantly, he charged his Analyze Form card, hoping to get another copy of his brother-in-arms, Gaigrander 02. No such luck; he'd drawn "Hero Climax!" With a sigh, he knew that he didn't stand much chance, but he refused to give up. If he could take out Iblis and reduce the number of attacks his opponent had, he'd get another chance to try and draw into a good card... "I'm attacking Iblis!" As he rushed in and punched Iblis, the monster shattered into light and vanished, and Yoshiro quickly moved to find a new place to stand, a good distance away from his opponent. He didn't know if distance made a difference here...

"Hm. An interesting, but desperate, choice. I draw. Charge and draw... Hm... All of your struggling is for naught. I call Armorknight Iblis to the left area once more!" Yoshiro let out a groan at this; that had been his only chance. He started running, hoping the terrain would give him some sort of cover, anything, really. "I send Armorknight Tiger Ace from Dangerous Cradle's soul to the Drop Zone... Time to finish it for real, this time! Iblis, go attack the fighter!" Yoshiro felt the blast hit him; Iblis hadn't bothered to chase him, instead he attacked from afar, reducing his life to 1. "Iblis... Double Attack."

In a move of desperation, hoping for more time, Yoshiro flicked up one of his last cards. "I've Seen Through Your Moves!" He tripped over himself in the process, rolling into a rock and bumping his head.

"Well, that's not going to save you... Although your desperation makes it all the sweeter... I'll finish this myself!" The opposing fighter threw another spear at Yoshiro, who had just pulled himself to his feet. Refusing to give up, even at the last minute, Yoshiro punched the incoming spear, and a circle of light appeared around him, rebuffing the attack. "Hmph. Well, 'Gaigrander', even Battle Aura Circle can't save you now... Behold my Double Attack!" Drawing an axe from one of the portals floating behind him, the fighter leapt from the top of the rocky slope, slashing down at Yoshiro and shattering his life counter, his flag, and his transformation into light."

"Game over. Winner, Tatsuhiro Haruka."

Yoshiro pulled himself to his feet, worn out from the fight. He hadn't lost in a long time now... Was this going to be the level of intensity he could expect from all of the fights in this world? "Y-y-you're good..." Yoshiro realized he was panting as he spoke.

"You've got spirit, kid... But still... I don't like a man who won't show his face..." The man crossed his arms over his chest, and Yoshiro removed his helmet in response.

"I'm Yoshi- Yoshiro... Hayashi... Phew... That really takes a lot outta ya, doesn't it?"

Tatsuhiro grinned, patting Yoshiro on the shoulder. "Tatsuhiro Haruka. Pleasure to meet you, kid... And yes, when you're still new, it can. Why don't you want people to see your face..?"

"Why does any hero want to hide their face? Secret identity. Duh." He grinned slightly, still out of breath, before looking to the helmet. It was a typical motorcyclist's helmet, the kind he remembered wearing to hide his identity back when he used to... Shaking his mind away from those thoughts, he put the helmet back on, and nodded at Tatsuhiro. "How do I...?"

"Get out? Just put your Deck Case back in the Core Loader and do it the same way you Load-In... And don't worry, kid. You'll get used to this... I'll be here once you get the hang of this... I'd like to see you once you're at full strength."

Yoshiro could only nod as he panted away, pulling his Core Gadget from his arm as it changed back into his Deck Case. Sliding into his Core Loader with a click, he touched the gems on his Core Gloves together, and panted out the words, "Load-Out."

Danger World shattered and the blackness returned, giving way after a few more moments to the familiar sight of his bedroom. Before he knew it however, the world was turning to black again as he collapsed onto his bed and passed out.