So, yeah… First fanfic. First piece of literature I've shared to a community. This will be fun.
The story takes place sometime after Stride Gate. I couldn't find an official date for when that happened so I'm gonna make a guesstimate here and say that was 9 months ago. Anyways, point is: This follows the CFV continuity up till then and should probably be able to ignore Next. I dunno, I still need to finish that season (Why am I making fanfics about this when I haven't even finish it? Ah well, if it becomes a problem, I'll just say Next never happened, but to be fair, this is in the US, and Next is in Japan. Should be able to work. Besides, if I really wanted to, I could just retcon this and make it work with Next. Either way, it seems I'll be doing a small bingewatching session after I introduce Francisco in the next chapter).
I'll go more in depth about these things at the notes on the bottom, but for now, only other thing I have to say is that these characters are all OCs and they will not be using fanmade clans and cards for now. I may bring in some minor characters from the anime, and maybe Aichi and Rati since they're in the US, but that'll be it. Later on, I may make a fanmade card for some characters cause plot.
Cardfight! Vanguard…
Many claim it to be the game that took the world by storm. Those people usually all live in Asia or Europe. While there is a major Cardfight tournament here in the United States known as the United States Royale, or simply the Royale, but it was no more competitive than some sections of the Asia Circuit and the players were definitely quite far from being Euro League level. The Vanguard Association only had a building in some cities for most states, and some states, usually the heavily conservative ones like Utah, had none of these buildings. Not to mention the market for it in rural towns was small, and usually to the point of non-existence. But even still, Farmer's Games and Cards tried as hard as it can, it's owner, Leonard Farmer, convinced that he could bring Vanguard to his small town of Angel Peak, Oregon, and today was his lucky break.
Behind Leonard, framed so it could stand on a pedestal, was a ticket to the Pacific Coast Cardfight Tournament, the regional tournament for teams in Washington, Oregon and California who wish to earn the spot as players in the Royale. After petitioning the Association so many times despite Leonard not being able to set up quests in Angel Peak, he finally received one to give out to the winning team of his local shop tournament. He hoped that the buzz this would cause would help promote the game and he was right. Before Leonard's very eyes was the largest crowd Farmer's has ever attracted for a Vanguard tournament. With only five minutes left before the first round and before the sign ups were over, the tension and excitement in the air left a smile on Leonard's face, a feeling of joy he felt like he had forgotten since he left his family's card shop in Portland to make his own.
The excitement almost caused him not to notice the team of three that had just arrived. All three were males, not one of them could've been more than seventeen years old. One had this overly excited aura to him, an aura that was so excessive that it was kind of creepy. He had blue eyes and blond hair cut short on the sides and back and was allowed to grow out a little on the top, and he was dressed very awkwardly, with jeans and a white shirt with a plaid coat. The second looked so moody that it was actually quite annoying and Leonard had to stop this sudden impulse to punch him. After all, this one had visited this shop about five times in the past three weeks. Like his companion, he had blue eyes, but he had black hair that he cut short all around, and dressed simply: Jeans and a dark blue polo shirt. The third was actually one of Leonard's regulars, a man named Francisco. He was latino, and had multiple facial piercings and tattoos on his torso and arms, including a large one on his left shoulder of a skull with vines all over it that had roses growing from it. His dark brown eyes somehow matched his hair that was dyed black with green at the tips of multiple points. Not that there was much point in dying his hair, as he wore a ball cap backwards that hid most of his hair, along with black shorts and a black shirt that was sleeveless with holes that went from the arm holes to the bottom of the shirt.
"Hey there. Got a team for the tournament, Francis?"
"Yeah man. We in time?"
"Calling it a little close, but yeah, you can still sign up. Give me twenty-five for the entry fee and your team's name as well the names of the members and you'll be good to go."
In response to this, the creepy one steps up and puts down two tens and a five.
"Team WLB. Kyle Reeves, Skylar Kaminski and Francisco Abrantes."
"WLB? Okay, you're in. What does that mean, by the way? Team Winning Limit Breakers?"
"No," the moody guy replies. "It means Team We Lost a Bet."
Alright bros, we gonna go back two weeks
Nothing wrong, just telling ya the stuff before this
-Francisco (Who cries because he's no longer in this chapter now)
- The Eurydice Arc Begins -
"Tap 5."
Boring.
"Woah woah, what the hell is that?"
"4/4 Haste Flying. When it attacks, I can exert it to deal 4 to any non-dragon you control."
"Wait, what!? But you already got that guy that allows you to attack again!?"
Boring.
"Well, dang. I got nothing. Good game."
If this were that game, you could've tried shooting for a heal trigger. But now you're stuck.
"God dang, Kyle! You sure you don't play in the Grand Prix? You just got here last week and you kicked all of us to the curb," one of the spectators said, chewing on one of the pizzas the lunch ladies gave the students for lunch time. It seemed to add some color to the current environment: A rather large high school with multiple buildings with the walls in all of them being painted a bland, pure white.
"Thank you, but nah. I'm just a cut above average," Kyle replies as he got up to shake his opponent's hand. She smiles awkwardly at him. He was somewhat attractive, with his blue eyes and blonde hair cut around the sides and back and was allowed to grow at the top. Even then, there was something about him that was off, but it was hard to tell what, not to mention his sense of fashion was kinda… terrible. And from the smell of it, he wore Axe deodorant, and not the rare good kind of it, either. And there was this subtle feeling that he was disappointed about everything and everyone around him.
To her credit though, she was right. Kyle had just come here from New York City, where his favorite card game could be found. He tried other ones, both ones that were in person and online, but nothing could match the euphoria that one game inspired in him. But when he moved here, to this back alley town of Angel Peak only days before the school year started, he could only find two card shops, and not one of them sold that game. So, he spent his first week of the school year playing games that were in his mind just bland and boring, and soon he would've spent the second week doing just the same. He hated it, but there was nothing he could do about it.
However, that didn't mean there wasn't anything someone else could do about it.
"Hey, your name's Kyle, right?"
Kyle turns around in surprise to look at the speaker. He recognized him as a person named Skylar, another boy in Kyle's grade new to Angel Peak, which was pretty surprising as most people don't come into this town. Skylar was a moody kid, and effectively caught the attention of everyone in high school as being some kind of emo loner boy that refused to talk to anyone. To be fair though, if it wasn't for his attitude, he could've actually been well received in this community: His body was well built and taken care of, and his body posture was amazing. Even more astonishingly, Kyle couldn't find a single pimple or some other kind of blemish on Skylar's somewhat tanned skin. His clothing was simple yet somehow pleasant looking, being nothing but jeans and a white polo with two blue lines running across it, which worked with his short black hair and blue eyes quite well.
"Yeah, my name's Kyle. And yours is Skylar?"
"Mm-hmm."
"Did you need anything, Skylar?" Kyle asks while looking at his card game friends. They were too busy laughing about some kind of joke to notice this conversation.
"I heard you were good at card games and was wondering if you played a certain game I liked. I can find a community for it, but I couldn't find another player in our grade."
"I might. What's the name?"
"Cardfight! Vanguard," Skylar says, holding out a deck to show Kyle.
All of a sudden, a certain light was lit in Kyle's eyes. And not in a positive way. Whatever side of Kyle's personality that was somewhat ordinary was completely overpowered by this absolutely haunting smile and a manic look in his eyes. It sent shivers down Skylar's spine, and caused him to wonder if he made a mistake.
"Yeah... Yeah, I play that one. I even have a FICA and a deck with me right now. Would you like to move somewhere a little more private for a game?"
Skylar awkwardly chuckles. He didn't need to answer, Kyle wasn't gonna let him go without one. This much was clear.
The place that Kyle and Skylar, having slipped away from Kyle's friends without their notice, decided to play at was a small outdoor alcove made between the school's gym and library. Outside of the alcove, the pair could see the wind blowing leaves and such down the concrete paths that help guide students to each of the buildings. Kyle sets up his FICA's table and begins to shuffle his deck. Skylar does the same in reply.
"Stop," Kyle suddenly says.
"What?"
"Is that deck using your original clan?"
"No. Why does that even matter?"
"Hard to explain. All I can say is that I'd appreciate it if you'd use your original clan if you can."
"Well… That sucks. I- I don't have it," Skylar says looking away.
"You're a terrible liar. Come on, it's not like I know what it is. It can't be that bad to play it."
"It's just… It's just that I have some issues with it, alright?"
"Please? I'd do anything that'd help."
Skylar sighs, realizing that Kyle wasn't gonna give up on this.
"Fine. Just don't laugh, okay?"
"That's it? Okay. I won't laugh."
Skylar shoots a glare at Kyle, "Good. Remember that. If you laugh, I'll kill you."
Kyle chuckles lightly. Soon enough, the two have their decks shuffled, and their cards redrawn, as well as choosing Kyle to start this game. They were watching each other as they did all of this. They learned more about a player than one would think: They both shuffled skillfully and quickly, their cards were sleeved with Kyle using red and Skylar using blue, and their decks both had 16 G-units. From all of this, they could tell that neither one would be an easy opponent.
"Ready?" Kyle asks as Skylar nods. "Then, stand up! Baby Camara!
Baby Camara / Grade 0 / POW: 5000 / Tachikaze
"S- Stand up," Skylar says hesitantly and awkwardly, "Sweet-PR ISM, Tytis!"
Sweet-PR ISM, Tytis / Grade 0 / POW: 5000 / Bermuda Triangle
So, it's Bermuda Triangle, Kyle thought to himself. I can understand why Skylar was so embarrassed to play it. Even still, I'm at a disadvantage here in that I've rarely played BT, and I've only ever heard about the PR ISMs since most players play Lauris. But then again, from his expression, I don't think Skylar's played against a lot of my clan, either.
It was true. Kyle could see the sweat rolling down Skylar's face as he was doing mental calculations in his head, trying to figure out how Kyle was most likely going to attack. Not that it was gonna help Skylar to overthink it: Kyle's strategy was simple. It was only a matter of whether or not Skylar could figure it out.
"Draw! Ride, Cold Dragon, Freezernyx! I call Baby Camara from my soul to my back-left circle. That'll end my turn," Kyle smiles.
(Cold Dragon, Freezernyx / Grade 1 / POW: 7000 / Tachikaze)
"Draw," Skylar replies.
2nd turn (Skylar's POV)
Kyle
Hand: 5
Damage: 0
Field:
Back row: Empty / Empty / Baby Camara
Front row: Empty / Freezernyx / Empty
Front row: Empty / Tytis / Empty
Back row: Empty / Empty / Empty
Skylar
Hand 6
Damage: 0
"Ride! Brand-New-PR ISM, Emeral! I call Tytis to my back-center circle from the soul. Then I call PR ISM-Promise, Princess Leyte to my front-right circle from my hand."
(Brand-New-PR ISM, Emeral / Grade 1 / POW: 7000 / Bermuda Triangle)
(PR ISM-Promise, Princess Leyte / Grade 1 / POW: 7000 / Bermuda Triangle)
"I'll begin my attacks now, starting with Princess Leyte!"
"..."
"Are you gonna guard or…?" Skylar asks.
"You're not imagining it."
"Huh? Uh, no, you can't mean…"
"I do. Imagine it, this fight."
"But that's just something they tell kids to get them riled up."
"Do. It."
All of a sudden, Skylar found himself in a clearing. All around were exotic plants and trees, and in the distance a volcano was erupting. To his right was Princess Leyte, who had a much darker skin tone, with purple hair and red eyes, all while wearing a wedding dress. Behind him was Tytis, who had white hair and purple eyes, as well as a lot of purple clothes with white fluffy balls on them. He wondered how they were on land when they were mermaids, but then he looked down at their tails and saw a platform made up of bubbles under each of them, holding them up. Across from Skylar was a half-mechanical raptor with the eyes of Kyle and two freeze rays on it's back and near it was a tiny little dino with an egg shell helmet and a pair of laser cannons on it's back.
Wait a minute, there's something missing here. Where's my… vanguard…? Skylar thinks while looking down. The shock was enough to bring him back into reality. His mind was working hard to remove that image from his memory.
"A- Alright. I don't know what that was, but fine! I'll hop in, so long as I do it on my own terms."
"Very well, then." Kyle smiles innocently.
Kyle, in his raptor body, stares down at the opposing vanguard, a mermaid with a green tail, green clothes and even incredibly long green hair that was braided. However, it didn't have Skylar's eyes. Kyle looked to the edge of the field, and saw a ghostly version of Skylar sitting on a rock, looking over the field.
"Uh, Skylar..."
"What now?"
"Your astral body. It's separated from your vanguard."
"I'm not turning into a mermaid pop idol. I have my limits."
"Oh. Okay."
"Anyways, what about Princess Leyte's attack. Gonna guard or not?"
"Uhh, no guard."
(Princess Leyte (7000) - Freezernyx (7000))
Princess Leyte hopped off of her bubble platform and summoned another below her, and again and again at a fast pace until she was close enough to smack Freezernyx with her tail. The dinosaur looked surprise that it got slapped by a mermaid.
"Damage check!"
Damage Check: Explosive Dragon, Sarcoblaze
"Now with a boost from Tytis, my vanguard attacks Freezernyx!"
Emeral charges in a similar manner to Princess Leyte.
(Emeral (7000) + Tytis (5000) = 12000)
"No guard!"
(Emeral (12000) - Freezernyx (7000)
"Drive check!"
Drive check: Dreamer Dreamer, Kruk (Stand Trigger)
"Stand trigger! I give all effects to Princess Leyte."
Princess Leyte gets up after crouching for a bit.
(Princess Leyte: 7000 - 12000)
"Damage check," Kyle replies, flipping over the top card of his deck.
Damage check: Prism Bird
Freezernyx is surprised to have been slapped by a mermaid. Again.
"Princess Leyte attacks your vanguard!"
"No guard!"
(Princess Leyte (12000) - Freezernyx (7000)
Princess Leyte hops high in the air, and slams down on Freezernyx's head with her tail.
Damage check: Savage Healer (Heal)
"Heal trigger! I heal Explosive Dragon, Sarcoblaze and give the power to Freezernyx."
"Not that the power's gonna do much right now," Skylar replies. "End turn."
"Draw," Kyle chuckles awkwardly. If he didn't flip that heal, he'd have started out this turn with 3-0.
3rd turn (Kyle's POV)
Skylar
Hand: 5
Damage: 0
Field:
Back row: Empty / Tytis / Empty
Front row: Princess Leyte / Emeral / Empty
Front row: Empty / Freezernyx / Empty
Back row: Baby Camara / Empty / Empty
Kyle
Hand: 6
Damage: 2
Prism Bird (U), Savage Healer (U)
"Ride," Kyle begins, "Explosive Dragon, Sarcoblaze! Then I call to my front-left circle Blade Dragon, Jigsawsaurus! Afterwards, I call Prism Bird to my back-center circle!"
Kyle's vanguard changes from a raptor to a giant, alligator like dinosaur in armor with three cannons and two guns on it's back. Around him spawn an armored dinosaur with blades on it's back and a heavily armored bird. The bird, Prism Bird, begins to emit a form of blue energy.
"Prism Bird's ability," Kyle explains. "I can reveal a grade 3 in my hand and search for a grade 3 with 'Gaia' in its name and add it to my hand. If I add a card this way, I have to discard a card."
Kyle reveals a Frenzy Emperor Dragon, Gaia Desperado from his hand and then searches and pulls out an Emperor Dragon, Gaia Emperor and adds it to his hand after a quick shuffle. Finally, to pay the cost, Kyle discards a Fullfire Elk.
(Explosive Dragon, Sarcoblaze / Grade 2 / POW: 9000 / Tachikaze)
(Blade Dragon, Jigsawsaurus / Grade 2 / POW: 9000 / Tachikaze)
(Prism Bird / Grade 1 / POW: 7000 / Tachikaze)
"Now, with a boost from the Baby Camara, Jigsawsaurus attacks Emeral!"
(Jigsawsaurus (9000) + Baby Camara (5000) = 14000)
The bladed dinosaur charges at the puny little mermaid.
"No guard!"
(Jigsawsaurus (14000) - Emeral (7000))
Jigsawsaurus tackles Emeral, sending her flying backwards.
Damage check: Sweet-PR ISM, Rupina
"Now, with a boost from Prism Bird, my vanguard attacks yours!"
(Sarcoblaze (9000) + Prism Bird (7000) = 16000)
"No guard!" Skylar announces
Sarcoblaze lowers its weapons and aims them right at Emeral. The mermaid prepares for the attack as Kyle performs his drive check.
Drive check: Prism Bird
"No trigger," Kyle sighs.
"Damage check!"
Sarcoblaze lets loose its weapons on Emeral as Skylar reveals the top card of his deck.
Damage check: PR ISM-Image, Sunshine Rosa
"And that'll be the end of my turn," Kyle declares, clearly relieved he got the game to an even 2-2.
However, Skylar doesn't even look phased as he draws his next card, which he looks and smiles contently at.
4th turn (Skylar's POV)
Kyle
Hand: 4
Damage: 2
Prism Bird (U), Savage Healer (U)
Field:
Back row: Empty / Prism Bird / Baby Camara
Front row: Empty / Sarcoblaze / Jigsawsaurus
Front row: Empty / Emeral / Princess Leyte
Back row: Empty / Tytis / Empty
Skylar
Hand: 6
Damage: 2
Rupina (U), Sunshine Rosa (U)
"Let's begin. Ride! Orient-PR ISM, Ayari! Then I move Princess Leyte back and call another Ayari in front of her! Finally, I'll call a PR ISM-Promise, Princess Celtic to my front-left circle!"
Emeral turns into a mermaid with a blue tail, black hair, green eyes and white blue oriental clothing with a red umbrella to hold as an accessory. Princess Leyte's bubble platform moves back and a copy of the new vanguard appears to the vanguard's right, and a mermaid with green hair and a wedding dress appears to her left
(Orient-PR ISM, Ayari / Grade 2 / POW: 9000 / Bermuda Triangle)
(PR ISM-Promise, Princess Celtic / Grade 2 / POW: 9000 / Bermuda Triangle)
"My, my, being a little aggressive here, aren't we?" Kyle jests.
"Well, you'd do the same, wouldn't you?"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"You do realize that I know 3 of the 4 cards in your hand, and two of those are grade 3s, right?"
Kyle's shocked expression told Skylar all he needed to know.
"Ah well, your mistake," Skylar sighs. "Princess Celtic attacks your vanguard."
"Uh… Uhm… No guard!"
(Princess Celtic (9000) - Sarcoblaze (9000)
Princess Celtic charges at Sarcoblaze, and whacks it with a wedding bouquet. It wouldn't have normally hurt, except there were thorns.
Damage check: Savage Healer (Heal)
"Heal trigger," Kyle shouts and heals Prism Bird from his damage zone. "I'll give the power to Sarcoblaze."
(Sarcoblaze: 9000 - 14000)
"Princess Celtic's ability! Counterblast one and return Princess Leyte to my hand and draw a card!"
"Wait, what!? Without Princess Leyte, your rearguard Ayari won't be able to attack my vanguard without a trigger."
"It's a risk I'm gonna take," Skylar says as he turns over Sunshine Rosa for the price. "Now, Princess Leyte's ability activates! Countercharge and soulcharge!"
He turns over Sunshine Rosa, and then flips the top card of his deck. It was a PR ISM-Miracle, Canary. In other words, a critical trigger. Skylar grimaces a little, and Kyle breathes a sigh of relief. Skylar turns Tytis and the vanguard Ayari on their side.
"With a boost from Tytis, my vanguard attacks Sarcoblaze!"
(Ayari (9000) + Tytis (5000) = 14000)
"No guard."
"Drive check!"
Drive check: PR ISM-Image, Sunshine Clear (Critical)
"Critical trigger! I give the critical to my vanguard, and then the power to my Ayari on the rearguard!"
(Ayari: 9000 - 14000)
(Ayari (14000) - Sarcoblaze (14000))
Ayari jumps up high and then closes her balloon and drills it into Sarcoblaze's head as it made contact.
Damage check: Dragon Emperor, Emperor Gaia & Cannon Fire Dragon, Sledge Ankylo (Draw)
"Draw trigger! I draw and give the power to Sarcoblaze!"
(Sarcoblaze: 14000-19000)
"Tsk. And I was even lucky enough to flip that trigger during my drive. Oh well, Ayari can't attack this turn, so I'll end it here."
Kyle takes a deep breath and announces, "Draw."
5th turn (Kyle's POV)
Skylar
Hand: 5
Damage: 2
Sunshine Rosa (U), Rupina (U)
Field:
Back row: Empty / Tytis / Empty
Front row: Ayari / Ayari / Princess Celtic
Front row: Jigsawsaurus / Sarcoblaze / Empty
Back row: Baby Camara / Prism Bird / Empty
Kyle
Hand: 6
Damage: 4
Prism Bird (U), Savage Healer (U), Gaia Emperor (U), Sledge Ankylo (U)
"Well, this looks bad for me, but I have one thing to be glad for."
"Oh?" Skylar inquires.
"I have someone to play Vanguard with. I checked both of the card shops in Angel Peak but neither of them held tournaments or even sold cards for it. With no one else in this school playing it, I was thinking that it would be time to box the game for a bit."
"'Both?'"
"Is something wrong?"
"Angel Peak has three card shops."
"... What?"
"And the third sells cards for this and even holds tournaments. It's the least frequented of the three, but that's only because it tries to capitalize on games that aren't popular in this town."
"And there's tournaments?"
"Yeah. Sunday next week they're holding a big one apparently. The prize is a ticket for one team to participate in the PCCT."
"The PCCT? That's the regional this state is apart of, right?"
"Mm-hmm," Skylar nods in reply like it was common sense, an action he would come to regret.
Kyle's smile somehow grew even wider, and the insanity on his face was like watching a devil from an old JRPG. He chose a card from his hand and slammed it down on his vanguard. The level of mania in these actions terrified Skylar even more that Kyle already had.
"Ride! Emperor Dragon, Gaia Emperor! Then call to my front-right Frenzy Emperor Dragon, Gaia Desperado!"
His vanguard is all of a sudden replaced by a triceradon like dinosaur with a pale bronze scale color and six eyes. Two of his three horns were cannons of a sort and his head was covered in a multi-colored frill of sorts. Next to him a similar dinosaur appeared, but this one was the color of steel, with clear physical improvements made on his body.
(Emperor Dragon, Gaia Emperor / Grade 3 / POW: 11000 / Tachikaze)
(Frenzy Emperor Dragon, Gaia Desperado / Grade 3 / POW: 11000 / Tachikaze)
"Now, let's begin! Gaia Desperado attacks your vanguard!"
(Gaia Desperado (11000) - Ayari (9000))
"No guard! Damage check!"
The weapons on Gaia Desperado's head aims at the vanguard Ayari and fire a pair of high-powered blasts. The poor mermaid is overwhelmed by the dinosaur's power.
Damage check: PR ISM-Miracle, Canary (Critical)
"Critical trigger! I give all effects to my vanguard!"
(Ayari: 9000 - 14000)
"With a boost from Prism Bird, Gaia Emperor attacks your vanguard!"
(Gaia Emperor (11000) + Prism Bird (7000) = 18000)
"No guard!"
"Drive check!"
Drive check: Cannon Fire Dragon, Sledge Ankylo (Draw)
"I draw and give the power to Jigsawsaurus," Kyle announces as he goes to do second check.
Second drive: Cannon Fire Dragon, Sledge Ankylo (Draw)
"Double draw!?" Skylar exclaims in surprise.
"I draw and give the power to Jigsawsaurus," Kyle declares.
(Jigsawsaurus: 9000 - 19000)
(Gaia Emperor (18000) - Ayari (14000))
Gaia Emperor charges at the mermaid, and then scoops her up and throws her into the air with his snout. His cannons aim at her flying person and open fire.
Damage check: Sweet-PR ISM, Rupina
"Finally, with a boost from Baby Camara, Jigsawsaurus attacks!"
(Jigsawsaurus (19000) + Baby Camara (5000) = 24000)
The power's now at twenty-four thousand. I could guard against if I wanted to, but it would take some serious effort out of me, Skylar begins to think. I may wind up using cards I need if I defend now. Let's see, it won't hurt to take it. I'm only at four, and it may help to have a fifth point of damage on the chance I flip a heal trigger, which I haven't done so so far. Afterall, a misplaced heal next turn could ruin my strategy. I have all but one card that I need to win this game next turn, and that card's just stride fodder. If I don't draw it, I'm sure I could easily improvise.
"No guard, damage check," Skylar shrugs.
(Jigsawsaurus (24000) - Ayari (14000))
Once more, Ayari finds herself abused by giant dinosaurs with really big guns. Because Tachi.
Damage check: Dreamer Dreamer, Kruk (Stand)
"Stand trigger. Power to my vanguard, and my rearguard Ayari stands."
"Well, that's the end of my turn."
"Draw," Skylar says, drawing his card, and smiling contently at it.
"Tell me, Skylar, you're new to this town like me, right?"
"Yeah. I came in from Washington State. Tacoma specifically."
"So, have you found a team for the shop tournament then?"
"You make it sound like this is a prom date," Skylar sighs in response. "No, I wasn't sure if I was gonna compete in it."
"Why not?"
"I dunno. I was hoping to find a more groupy kind of thing to do here. I had issues making friends back in Tacoma. Evidently, I'm what you would call 'socially awkward,' so I figured I need to do something so impressive everyone would want to be my friend. Going up to a crowd of people and telling them I play in tournaments for games they probably never heard about isn't gonna do much."
"You'll make friends in the tournament."
"Friends who live in a different corner of the country, no one I can hang out with in class and spend my time talking to."
"I'll hang out with you."
"Not sure if that's a good thing."
"Is there really no way I can get you to make a team with me?" Kyle begs with pleading eyes.
"Ugh, fine. Let me tell you one thing: I'm gonna end this game this turn. I'll set one action I wanna see out of you, and I'll give no clue about what it. You do that action, and I'll make a team with you as the leader. Deal?"
"Deal," Kyle says with enthusiasm.
"You casually accept the odds being against you like it's nothing."
"I'm more curious about what you mean about ending it. If you think I'm gonna go down like nothing, try again. Also, I really like the idea of being the team leader."
"God, let's just end this!"
Turn 6 (Skylar's POV)
Kyle
Hand: 8
Damage: 4
Savage Healer (U), Savage Healer (U), Gaia Emperor (U), Sledge Ankylo (U)
Field:
Back row: Empty / Prism Bird / Baby Camara
Front row: Gaia Desperado / Gaia Emperor / Jigsawsaurus
Front row: Princess Celtic / Ayari / Ayari
Back row: Empty / Tytis / Empty
Skylar
Hand: 6
Damage: 5
Sunshine Rosa (U), Rupina (U), Canary (U), Rupina (U), Kruk (U)
"First, Ride! PR ISM-Image, Vert!"
Skylar's vanguard is replaced by another mermaid, this one with green eyes and pink clothes. She had long brown hair and like the other mermaids, a very cheery personality.
(PR ISM-Image, Vert / Grade 3 / POW: 11000 / Bermuda Triangle)
"Now, I pay the cost for Stride!" Skylar exclaims as he discards a grade 3 for the stride. "Show me a brighter future, one where everyone can stand together and smile! Stride Generation! PR ISM-Image, Sunshine Vert!"
Vert is all of a sudden replaced by a newer version of herself, one wearing a two piece that's white with orange plaid decorations. However, Kyle didn't care all that much about the stride unit. Rather he was analyzing what Skylar said; Not the fact that Skylar said anything at all, any serious Vanguard player would have a stride chant for moments like this. Rather it was what Skylar said for his chant.
(PR ISM-Image, Sunshine Vert / Grade 4 / Stride / POW: 15000+ / Bermuda Triangle)
"Now, I call Princess Leyte to the back-left circle, and then call Dreamer Dreamer, Kruk to the back right circle and begin my combat phase."
The mermaid in the wedding dress reappears on the field behind Princess Celtic, and now a blonde who was clearly a student stands behind Ayari.
(Dreamer Dreamer, Kruk / Grade 0 / Stand / POW: 4000 / Bermuda Triangle)
(PR ISM-Promise, Princess Leyte / Grade 1 / POW: 7000 / Bermuda Triangle)
"Now, the first attack! With a boost from Princess Leyte, Princess Celtic attacks!"
The mermaid begins it's charge...
(Princess Celtic (9000) + Princess Leyte (7000) = 16000)
"Guard!" Kyle says, putting an Ancient Dragon, Dinodile onto the guardian circle.
(Gaia Emperor (11000) + Ancient Dragon, Dinodile (10000) = 21000)
(Princess Celtic (16000) - Gaia Emperor (21000))
… only to be stopped by a large dino-gator thing that pounces at her and scares her off.
"No damage done. Very well, defend against this! The second attack, Ayari attacks your vanguard with no boost. Ayari's generation break! Counterblast 1 and return Princess Leyte to my hand. Ayari gains 5000 power! Princess Leyte's ability, countercharge and soulcharge!" Kyle exclaims, flipping over the top card of the deck, which was Princess Celtic, and sending it into the soul.
(Ayari: 9000 - 14000)
"Guard!" Kyle says, slamming Freezernyx down, even though he was concerned about why Skylar didn't boost with Kruk.
(Gaia Emperor (11000) + Freezernyx (5000) = 16000)
(Ayari (14000) - Gaia Emperor (16000)
Before Ayari can do an umbrella wack, the cheeky little raptor comes out of nowhere and creates an ice wall with his freeze rays that wards Ayari off.
"Now the third attack! Sunshine Vert attacks with no boost!"
Kyle slams down a Savage Guardian onto the guard circle while he shouts "Perfect Guard!"
Skylar watches one of the Sledge Ankylos get discarded and shrugs as Sunshine Vert is stopped by a woman with red hair and tribal clothes that summons a barrier stopping the pop idol from reaching Gaia Emperor
"Triple drive."
Drive check: Brand-New-PR ISM, Emeral & Sweet-PR ISM, Rupina & PR ISM-Image, Sunshine Clear (Critical)
"Critical trigger. I give all effects to Tytis! And now, Sunshine Vert's Limit Break!"
"Limit Break!? On a stride unit!?" Kyle exclaims in surprise.
"Turn a facedown Sunshine Vert faceup and then discard three cards," Skylar says, ignoring Kyle and discarding Princess Leyte, Emeral and Sunshine Clear. "Now, I may choose up to two cards on the rearguard and return them to my hand, but for now I'll choose no one. Then, I may reveal a grade 3 in my hand. If I do, I move Sunshine Vert to the G-Zone face up and then ride that grade 3 as standing."
Kyle looks in surprise as Skylar reveals a unit named PR ISM-Promise, Labrador, and then sends Sunshine Vert to the G-Zone and rides Labrador. The two piece Vert goes back to the pink dress one and then turns into a mermaid with a very flamboyant poofy yellow dress and a giant yellow ribbon.
(PR ISM-Promise, Labrador / Grade 3 / POW: 11000 / Bermuda Triangle)
"Now, for Vert's break ride, I return Ayari and Princess Celtic to my hand and give 10000 power to Labrador!"
(Labrador: 11000 - 21000)
He's chaining his abilities, and considering how he left Tytis open to take those triggers and use the power to boost Labrador, he had this in mind for a while, Kyle notes. He's pretty good at this clan.
"With a boost from Tytis, Labrador begins the fourth attack. Labrador's Limit Break! Choose up to three units in my hand and call them. If I call three units, Labrador gains another 10000 as well a critical. I call Ayari to my front-right, then Princess Celtic to my front-left and finally Rupina to my back-left! Labrador's boost is active!"
(Labrador: 21000 - 31000 / Crit 2)
(Labrador (31000) + Tytis (10000) = 41000)
Kyle takes a deep breath, and then throws another Ankylo Sledge into the drop zone and announces, "Perfect Guard!"
Labrador's charge is interrupted in the same manner as Sunshine Vert's, causing Skylar to grimace a bit but he regains his composure soon after.
"Alright then. You only have two cards in hand. I wonder if you can really stop all of these attacks," Skylar says as he begins the drive check.
"Watch me. You'll be shocked," Kyle smiles awkwardly.
Drive check: PR ISM-Promise, Vert, Teacup Fairy, Ruhuna (Heal)
Skylar smiles warmly at the heal trigger, and then declares, "I'll give the power to Princess Celtic and then heal Sunshine Rosa from my damage zone."
(Princess Celtic: 9000 - 14000)
"Well, that's just rubbing salt in the wound."
"Now, the fifth attack! Princess Celtic attacks with a boost from Rupina!"
(Princess Celtic (14000) + Rupina (7000) = 21000)
"Generation guard! Iron-Armored Chancellor, Dymorphalanx! Dymorphalanx's ability! Since I have more open rear-guard circles than you, he gains 5000 shields for a total of 20000!"
(Gaia Emperor (11000) + Dymorphalanx (20000) = 31000)
Princess Celtic swings her bouquet at Gaia Emperor but is stopped by a giant, metallic dinosaur that fires a flurry of bullets at her, effectively scaring her off.
"Now the sixth attack, Ayari attacks with a boost from Kruk. Ayari's ability! Counterblast 1 to return Rupina to my hand and give Ayari 5000 power. Rupina's ability! Counterblast 1 to return Princess Celtic to my hand and draw a card."
(Ayari: 9000 - 14000)
(Ayari (14000) + Kruk (4000) = 18000)
I can't block, Kyle thought to himself. As of current, I've only got 5000 shield left in my hand and the disparity between Ayari and Gaia Emperor is 7000. Hopefully, this is the last attack that Skylar can pull off.
"No guard, damage check," Kyle replies.
(Ayari (18000) - Gaia Emperor (11000))
Ayari closes the distance on Gaia Emperor, and before Gaia Emperor could defend himself, she smacks two of his eyes real hard with her umbrella, the lowest blow one could imagine.
Damage check: Louder Ammonite (Stand)
"Stand trigger! I give the power to Gaia Emperor and Jigsawsaurus stands."
(Gaia Emperor: 11000 - 16000)
"Huh. You saved yourself. I suppose it was good that I chose Rupina's card advantage over the attack that Sunshine Clear would've given me, but I still have one more attack."
"What!?"
"Kruk's ability! I put her on the top of my deck and then return Ayari to my hand. Now I shuffle my deck and call PR ISM-Image, Vert from my hand to my front right circle. Now, attack Gaia Desperado with Vert."
Seven attacks, and had he played it a little differently, he could've done eight. This guy's played cards to attack with and then returned them to his hand so he defend with them next turn. However, that's not what it's important here: Do I need to save Gaia Desperado? I lose a lot of attacking power if he dies now, but the card in my hand can change the game, Kyle ponders, before realizing something and then smiles.
"No guard," Kyle shrugs.
(Vert (11000) - Gaia Desperado (11000))
Vert jumps in the air and then lands on Gaia Desperado's head and bends over to find his ears. She inhales, and then releases a high-pitched sound that surprises Gaia Desperado to the point that it harms him internally. He dies of a heart attack, turning into a bunch of pixels that disappear into thin air.
"And that will end my turn. Evidently I spoke a little early," Skylar shrugs. "Even then, you're down to a card. I don't know much about Tachi's units, but I do know their strategy: Their abilities eat each other to gain power and other effects. With only three rear-guards, there aren't many options available to you as far as 'eating' goes."
Kyle laughs in a rather strange way, as if he wasn't creepy enough.
"Yeah, that's my clan's strategy. The superior devour and bully the inferior, the way it should be in life. After a bit, the inferior grow tired of it and find ways to become superior themselves. After a while, a society becomes stronger by feeding on itself. It's perfect is it not?"
"It's pathetic and flawed if you're talking politics, and I'm not a fan of letting Darwinism take over society. It takes a village afterall," Skylar snaps, tired of being disturbed by this guy.
"And that tells me all I need to know about you," Kyle replies. "Prepare yourself, Skylar! After this turn, you'll be in a team with me! Draw!"
Turn 7 (Kyle's POV)
Skylar
Hand: 6
Face Up In G-Zone: 2
2 PR ISM-Image, Sunshine Vert
Damage: 4
Rupina (U), Canary (U), Rupina (U), Kruk (U)
Field:
Back row: Empty / Tytis / Empty
Front row: Vert / Labrador / Empty
Front row: Jigsawsaurus / Gaia Emperor / Empty
Back row: Baby Camara / Prism Bird / Empty
Kyle
Hand: 2
Face Up In G-Zone: 1
1 Iron-armored Chancellor, Dymorphalanx
Damage: 5
Savage Healer (U), Savage Healer (U), Gaia Emperor (U), Sledge Ankylo (U), Louder Ammonite (U)
Kyle smiles at the drawn card.
"If you don't like a society dominated by the superior, Skylar, then let me show you it's beauty so that you may understand it," Kyle exclaims as he drops a Prism Bird into the Drop Zone. "Prism Bird's ability: It gains +2 to it's grade when I use it for the Stride cost. Now: Turn the hands of the clock not forward but backwards, back to a time where superiority was the greatest law of all! Stride Generation! Absolute Ruler, Gluttony Dogma!"
Gaia Emperor is replaced by a massive t-rex covered in white, sci-fi armor and with a plethora of cannons on his back.
(Absolute Ruler, Gluttony Dogma / Grade 4 / POW: 15000+ / Tachikaze)
"Now, Emperor Gaia's stride ability activates! Counterblast and until the end of this turn, Jigsawsaurus and Baby Camara gain the ability to return to the rearguard after they're retired this turn. Now call another Emperor Gaia to my front-right circle! Finally, I move onto my combat phase! Jigsawsaurus attacks your vanguard with no boost! Jigsawsaurus's generation break! Counterblast and retire Baby Camara! Jigsawsaurus gains 5000 power and if his attack hits I get to draw a card. In addition, I get to retire a rearguard. I choose Vert!"
(Jigsawsaurus: 9000 - 14000)
The flesh on Baby Camara turns into pixels that fly into Jigsawsaurus, giving him an ominous red aura and leaving Baby Camara's bones behind on their own and still standing. Jigsawsaurus crouches, exposing his back, and fires a blade at Vert. The blade pierces through her stomach, killing the idol and turning her into pixels.
"Now, Baby Camara's generation break! Counterblast and superior call Ancient Dragon, Geoconda from my deck to my back-right circle! Then, the ability that Gaia Emperor granted Baby Camara activates. Call him back to my back-left circle. Then Geoconda's ability activates! Soulblast 2 and in return countercharge 2!"
A white-ish snake with red designs on his scales comes out of the ground behind Gaia Emperor. Immediately afterwards, Baby Camara's flesh and armor reappears around it's bones. This catches Skylar by surprise.
(Ancient Dragon, Geoconda / Grade 1 / POW: 6000 / Tachikaze)
He fed his rearguard to activate a chain of benefits, such as getting rid of Vert and filling up that empty rearguard spot. This might get a bit more difficult than I expected. I should be safe though: He has long since passed the time to fill that condition, and I have the shields to guard myself, Skylar observes.
"Guard!" Skylar says, putting down Rupina onto the guard circle.
(Labrador (11000) + Rupina (5000) = 16000)
(Jigsawsaurus (14000) - Labrador (16000))
Jigsawsaurus starts barreling right at Labrador, but Rupina appears out of nowhere and smacks his face. The dinosaur is so caught off guard by this that Labrador is given the chance to escape.
"Now, I'll attack your vanguard with Gaia Emperor boosted by Geoconda!"
(Gaia Emperor (11000) + Geoconda (6000) = 17000)
He's not attacking with his vanguard before his second column. That's not good if I think about card abilities and such, but nothing I can do right now except this, Kyle thinks as he slams down Sunshine Clear onto the guard circle.
(Labrador (11000) + Sunshine Clear (10000) = 21000)
(Gaia Emperor (17000) - Labrador (21000))
The six-eyed triceratops aims it's cannons at Labrador, but then Sunshine Clear appears in the line of sight. Her pleading eyes guilt trip Gaia Emperor to the point he couldn't attack.
"Now to finish this!" Kyle yells. "Gluttony Dogma attacks! Engorge!"
"Engorge!?" Skylar says in confusion in anxiety.
"Engorge activates when a unit attacks. In short, when it activates, I can choose to feed that unit any number of rearguards, retiring them. For Gluttony Dogma… Hmm… I'll feed everyone to him."
All of the rearguards under Kyle's control break into pixels, with only Jigsawsaurus's bones being left behind. They fly into Gluttony Dogma's open mouth and from the t-rex a powerful red aura that made him seem much more taller than he really is is released.
"Now, generation break! Since I fed at least three units to Gluttony Dogma's Engorge, I can turn a facedown Gluttony Dogma in my G-Zone faceup and he gains 10000 power and an ability that says that at the end of this battle, if I fed five units to his Engorge, he stands and loses a card on his next drive check."
"What!?"
"In addition, Baby Camara's generation break! Counterblast to call Cold Dragon, Freezernyx to my back-left circle. And then the ability that Gaia Emperor gave Jigsawsaurus! I call him to my front-left circle. And finally," Kyle takes in a deep breath, "I concede. Good game."
"Huh?" Skylar blinks as Kyle packs up his cards.
"I concede."
"But why?"
"That was the condition to join my team, wasn't it?"
"Even if it was, why would you pick now to do it?"
"Hmm… Simply put, I just wanted to put on a show of force. It's a good idea to know your team leader's strength, isn't it?"
"But how did you come to the conclusion that the condition was to concede?"
"There were several reasons. All of them led me to conclude this about you: You really are just socially awkward, and not emo or any of the other rumors about you."
"There are rumors about me?"
"Lots of them. Anyways, I started to suspect your true personality after your stride chant: 'Show me a brighter future,' was it? That got me wondering about your body. It's well built, but I could tell you weren't the type to enjoy doing sports. So, why are your muscles as toned as an athlete's? And then I saw one of the finishing touches: Your heal trigger. I don't know a lot about the PR ISMs, but I do know they have their own heal trigger, and there's more of a point to run that over Teacup Fairy, Ruhuna, who's just a simple vanilla heal trigger. Finally, your finishing combo is a team effort between three different cards, and you said in our conversation that it 'takes a village.' That was when the dots connected. You don't hate playing Bermuda Triangle, you actually love it more than anyone else. The problem is that a male Bermuda Triangle player would face certain stigmas, and you're afraid of those stigmas. It's unfortunate since it's theme of smiling pop idols matches you so well: a person who's devoted themselves entirely to the pursuit of happiness. Your body's so well taken care of because it makes you happy to workout, and your posture's fantastic because you probably participate in activities like yoga and martial arts, definitely for a similar reason as the workout. You also enjoy Bermuda for the adorable art. Not saying you're some creepy otaku of course, but some of the art really is what people would call 'cute,' and those cards make you happy."
"And I suppose that's the reason you think I run Ruhuna?"
"No, and yes. It's so adorable that it's an added bonus in your eyes, but you wouldn't run it over a PR ISM heal trigger for that alone. I'm guessing Ruhuna is either your first and/or your favorite card, and probably the reason you started out playing Bermuda Triangle. It makes you feel, once again, happy when you play it and draw it. Everything you do is out of your wish to be happy. Therefore, I concluded that your condition was to concede, and let you win this game. Was I wrong?"
"You were… completely wrong," Skylar replies, looking down, hiding his expression even though to Kyle it was obviously a smile. "However, you still somehow got it right, and I'm a man of my word. I guess I'm in this team thing, then."
"Good, just one condition," Kyle begins. "You have to throw away all shame and play Bermuda Triangle. Can't have a team member who's too embarrassed to play something he's so good at."
"Hmm… That'll be really tough, but I think I can pull it off," Skylar says, still looking down as he begins to pack up his deck.
"Well, then, I'll start heading to my next class since lunch is almost over. Meet me at the gate to the bus stop, I'll give you my phone number there. Later."
"Later."
After Kyle leaves, Skylar is shocked to see that he subconsciously put Ruhuna on the bottom of his deck, where it'd be easiest to find it and see it. Kyle was dead on: Ruhuna was Skylar's first and favorite card, and he truly did love playing it and Bermuda Triangle. But that got Skylar thinking: Why did he get dragged into what he could only assume to be Kyle's imagination when he originally refused to "imagine"? And even more importantly, why did it seem like their minds were connected? Skylar hadn't noticed it in the brewing intensity of the fight, but Kyle pointed out that Skylar separated his astral body from his vanguard. There's no way that Kyle would've seen that unless Skylar had said something. It was odd considering the only time something like that happened was some odd number of months ago, back when a mysterious pillar of light came down from the atmosphere and landed on Japan. Until towards the end of the day after the pillar disappeared, players all over the world reported "connected imaginations" much like what Skylar was beginning to realize that he and Kyle shared.
Kyle himself doesn't notice this had happened until towards the end of his last class, causing him to yell in surprise and getting him a write up from the teacher for disturbing the class.
So, an analysis of these guys' "avatar" cards, just for fun!
Teacup Fairy, Ruhuna - Grade 0 / Heal Trigger / POW: 5000 / SHD: 10000
That's it. That is really all Ruhuna is. Skylar is a man who adores simple and cute things. He'd be that one boy from elementary school who would play with the other girls and his own Hello Kitty dolls. However, it was Skylar's first card, and what not only brought him into Bermuda Triangle, but Cardfight! Vanguard as a whole. In addition, it's absolutely adorable beyond all belief. That's why, even though there are more reasons to not run it over running it, Skylar still plays a full playset of her in his deck. And that's why you should effectively consider the vanilla heal to be Skylar's avatar. I mean, to be fair, Aichi uses a grade 2 for his avatar, you know.
Absolute Ruler, Gluttony Dogma - Grade 4 / POW: +15000
Stride
[Auto] VC/RC: Engorge
[Auto] VC GB2: [Choose a facedown card named "Absolute Ruler, Gluttony Dogma" from my G-Zone and turn it face up] When this unit becomes engorged, if the number of units retired this turn due to the effect of this unit's engorge ability is three or more, you may pay the cost. If you do, until end of turn, this unit gets [Power]+10000 and "[Auto] VC [1/Turn]: At the end of the battle that this unit attacked, if the number of units retired this turn due to the effect of this unit's engorge ability is five or more, Stand this unit, and this unit get drive -1 until the end of turn."
While I did not copy and paste this from the wiki, as tempting a thought as it was, I did type it verbatim from there, so credit to the Cardfight! Vanguard wiki.
Anyways, Kyle's a guy who enjoys being powerful. If he is in control, if he has the biggest thing on the field, he is the happiest man alive. That's why great picks for him were Dimension Police (And yes, that was at one point considered along with Murakumo and Angel Feather (At that point I was still fleshing him out and he was a normal little mc that did normal mc things)) and Tachikaze. However, Tachikaze's focus on eating each other for power and having dinosaurs with cannons and lasers matched Kyle's love of superiority and his yet-to-be-introduced love of history, namely the history of groups like the Spartans and the Romans. Gluttony Dogma, a monster that boosts its attack and attacks twice by eating everyone else, is an even more perfect fit for Kyle in a clan that already fit Kyle perfectly. That's why Gluttony Dogma is considered Kyle's avatar.
Now that that's over, lets talk about stuff! To begin with, this is a series, starting with what's called the Eurydice arc, and I have a full storyline figured out that'll take up at least 2-3 arcs in total (We can assume that the arcs would be at least 20 chapters each. Who knows? I could be dead wrong and the average would be at least 25, or even 30, or perhaps just 15. We'll see).
Anyways, if you have something to criticize during all of this, whether it be certain plot holes or maybe awkward wording or pacing you did like, tell me in a review. I'll take all criticism you can give since that'll make these chapters better, even if it only works in small increments of improvement. However, I can't get better if I don't know what the problem is. In short, don't hold back.
Finally, hi! I'm lazy. For this, however, I use actual decklists that I made myself in order to keep the fighting more realistic (If you can count double draw being realistic) and to help me organize what I hope you guys will find to be interesting fights. However, the Eurydice arc alone will have four main teams, a total of 12 players, and there'll be main characters not in a team who need a deck. In addition, there are background and supporting characters who'll be needing decks. As such, if you guys wanna pm me a decklist you'd like to see a character play or if you just wanna make a decklist and an OC for me to use to help fill out the supporting cast or the two of the four main teams in Eurydice who only have a leader figured out and not their team members, that'd be great, and I'll even give your name out so others would know your work. There's no guarantee what would happen to your deck or your OC, however, and for the characters I do have figured out but are still in need of a deck, I'll be looking for a specific kind of deck. For example, one character will be running an Aqua Force deck that focuses on the generic multiple attack combo strategy that we all know the clan for, and another will be running a "Maidens of" Neo Nectar deck, and when that character is introduced, I'll be picking what I think is the best decklist of that kind given. In addition, nothing fanmade for now, but you know, feel free to use them Cray Elementals. None of the three mcs use them so far (Those three have all been playing for at least a year, some for much longer, but they're still only semi-competitive level (Yes, the decks for Kyle, Skylar and Francisco are already made)), and they're never seen in the anime series. Gotta give them some love. Thank you for reading these notes and for reading the story! Love ya! Later!