Chapter 2

Cleaning Time

A single pair of bright, gleaming blue eyes. Like a pair of candle flames they hovered unwavering in the darkness, staring straight at Yuichi, not human eyes, but strange, diamond-shaped ones that held only a single color within, no hint of a pupil or white in their brilliant blue. They did not blink. They did not shift their gaze. Just staring him down.

They always just stared at Yuichi, every time. He was floating in the shadows, nothing under his feet, just frozen in space across from the eyes. And like every other time, it played out exactly the same. The second he reached out, the space between the eyes glowed with a harsh red light. The eyes widened, gaining ferocity like none Yuichi had seen before as the red light grew brighter and brighter.

He raised his arms, covering his eyes as an earth-shaking roar ran through his entire body, the light swallowing him whole.


Yuichi jerked, the movement waking him from his uneasy sleep as he slipped down, his back rubbing uncomfortably against the side of his D-Wheel. He rubbed at his eyes, looking blearily around the wasteland. The sky was just beginning to brighten, indicating dawn had hit. The difference between day and night was subtle, but you could recognize it if you really looked. The sky was yellow today; a miserable yellow that coated the ashy wasteland in a light that made it appear the land was coated in piss. It wasn't doing wonders for his mood.

Yuichi stood, taking his tattered jacket from its position covering his body and slinging it on, his left arm easily poking out of the sleeveless side. He looked at it in distaste. He would have gotten rid of the jacket ages ago for the silly look he felt it gave him, but it was the only jacket he had to last through the cold Blight nights. That and other reasons.

After a few minutes spent eating some walnuts and stale bread, he climbed aboard his D-Wheel, revving the throttle experimentally to test if any ash had gotten into the engine overnight. Satisfied his ride was fine, he gunned it, shooting off into The Blight.

As he rolled across the wasteland, he tried to shake the dream from his head. He had it every few days, and just when it seemed to have drifted completely from his mind, it would turn back up again and disturb his sleep. He never dreamed about anything else, just that.

"I wish I could dream about wherever I was… before all this," he muttered to the empty air that was whirling past him. Like everyone else in The Blight, he had no memory of the time before. He was fortunate in that he could actually remember his last name. Some people didn't even have that. "Not just some stupid eyes."

There were some who didn't think they HAD existed before The Blight at all, that they had been created for this hellhole. Yuichi wasn't convinced about that. Not with the way they had all begun the first day within its seemingly infinite bounds…


Yuichi slowly swam into consciousness, his head heavy and slow as he struggled to open his heavy eyes. He felt drained, exhausted. He hadn't been this tired since… He didn't know. The tail end of his thought was seemingly there, but it drifted off before he could connect it.

He turned over, eyes squeezing open to see another person was sleeping next to him. She was a girl, maybe a bit older than he was, a tall pale one with dark black hair that had fallen across her face, its streak of royal purple splashing a bit of color over the drab gray ground they rested on.

That caught his attention. They appeared to be lying on a sandy surface, but the sand was gray. Almost like-

"Ash," he said with surprise, sitting up and pawing at the ash, the girl beside him stirring at his words. It was only then he saw what surrounded them, and his eyes widened in shock and confusion.

One, the sky was green. A neon green, even, with lightning roiling in electric lime clouds above the sharply contrasting landscape below, which was ashy and dead-looking. Second was the sheer volume of bodies around him. To either horizon stretched a veritable sea of people, clustered in groups of twenty or thirty. Many were asleep, but some were sitting up like him, looking around them in confusion, panicked voices beginning to rise as everyone took in the world around them, the one that would become all too familiar to them in the coming months. The people were a sharp contrast to the land, varied and coming in all shapes, sizes, and colors. And attached to each of their arms, Yuichi included, was a very old model of Kaiba Corp Duel Disk, each holding a complete deck.

The girl finally sat up, silver eyes flying open as she looked around them, looking as confused as Yuichi probably did right now. She turned to Yuichi, her face shifting into concern.

"Are… are you okay?" she asked, reaching out and grabbing his hand. Yuichi barely registered it. He himself was starting to panic, like most of the people around him. His breath quickened, his head getting lighter as he tried in vain to process everything going on around him.

"Hey… Hey, listen, my name's Houki. Are you gonna be okay?" The girl's steady voice slowly began to penetrate the haze of panic that covered Yuichi's mind. He turned to look at Houki, only able to get out his own name as he tried to recover. The looming elephant in the room was still very much dominating his thoughts: Where the hell were they?

"Greetings." The panicked roar that had built around them was drowned out by a very simply spoken, but very loud, salutation. Everyone quieted down almost instantly, cowed by the presence of the loud, phantom voice. Yuichi and Houki looked up at the Technicolor sky, where the voice had sounded from.

"Is it… God?" someone close to them could be heard asking timidly.

"Welcome," said the voice, cutting off any further discussion. It was deep, and male, dignified and crisp, the diction precise. "Welcome… to The Blight."

"Blight?" someone asked, their worried query echoed across the ocean of people.

"Shut up, shut up, shut up." Yuichi looked to see that Houki was pursing her lips in irritation, looking up at the sky. "Let him TALK," she whispered fervently.

"Surely you all are… a touch confused," the voice continued, almost as if it was speaking directly to Houki. "After all, you're in the middle of nowhere with nothing but Duel Disks and millions of people. No idea how you got here either, if things went smoothly."

It was at this point Yuichi realized the voice was right; not only did he have no idea how he had gotten there… he had no memory of anything before waking up. The panic began to set in again, and he hyperventilated as the voice only made it worse.

"You see, these people are with you for a reason. You are all equipped with your own personal Deck. You are here… to duel." Murmurs sounded out across the crowd, murmurs of surprise. "Now, this won't be dueling as you know it. Your Life Points will be carried with you across every duel you partake in. They will never be restored between duels, which will be in Battle Royale mode. Taking the Life of players via death blows and the various cards scattered across The Blight are the only ways to restore life. They carry effects that replenish lost Life Points, and are invaluable, I assure you. Because once your Life Points hit zero… you will die."

The yelling started up again at that. They had been uneasy as this unusual duel style had been explained, but now they reacted with horror, people screaming as everyone scrambled to their feet, calling out in anger or fear.

"Now, now, now," the voice continued, somehow still audible over the clamor. "Let me finish. For those thinking they can avoid conflict by not dueling, well… Let's say certain measures that DISCOURAGE that will be enforced." As he spoke, the clouds above began to thunder, growing louder and louder as emerald light built up within them. Finally with a deafening roar, a sheer flood of lightning erupted from the sky, falling to the earth and bathing the populace within it, homing straight for their Duel Disks. The cries suddenly hit an apex, shrieks of panic and fear as the light faded, most of the crowd fallen to the ground in shock, as their Life Point counters flew down, hitting 3900. The silence that followed was deafening.

"100 points of damage will be inflicted on each player in The Blight at noon each day," the voice continued, more acerbic, angrier. "So hiding will do you no good. Your only chance is to fight! It's your only way out of The Blight!" A pause, and then the voice returned, more composed. "There are ten million of you within the boundaries of The Blight. You will remain there… until that number is reduced to ten."

Horror streaked across the faces of everyone there. They looked around, distrust in their eyes as they saw everyone around them. Yuichi found himself instinctively gripping Houki's hand. He looked up to meet her gaze. The taller girl looked down at him, before nodding, reassuringly squeezing his hand as she raised her arm, Duel Disk at the ready, and her expression grim, prepared.

" Again, only ten of you will leave The Blight alive… and only those ten will find out why," the voice continued. "I wish you all luck… you will need it."

Silence reigned as the voice fell quiet. Everyone was looking shiftily at those around them, Duel Disks activating left and right as people stood in standoff. Houki's Duel Disk was activating as well. Yuichi looked around him at all the determined, angry faces around him, and he swallowed hard. He didn't even know what cards were in his deck! This was crazy!

"Hey." He was startled out of his stupor by Houki squeezing his hand hard. "When I say go, we run, okay?" she whispered. "We're in the middle of everyone, we're sunk if we try to fight our way out. Just try to get through with as few duels as you can manage, oka-"

"DUEL!" The first cry was heard, and thousands sounded out immediately after. Houki's scream was barely heard, but it kick-started Yuichi's legs as he dumbly ran after Houki, barely even registering the three who blocked them, Duel Disks out, his own disk activating as he drew his hand, barely aware of anything as chaos built higher and higher into utter insanity.


Yuichi leaned sideways off the D-Wheel, grabbing hold of the card sticking out of the ash and holding it up to get a good look at it. It was a Blue Medicine card, nothing to write home about, wherever THAT was. He considered just using it now, but decided there was little point. His Life was already at 4800. Best to save it for when it would count, especially as his store was dwindling after his encounter with the group Kilik had attacked the day before yesterday.

He was in a particularly crater-heavy portion of The Blight, finally seeing a visual difference from the sheer unending flatness he was used to. He weaved through the craters, keeping an eye out for any sign of movement. Izzie wasn't exactly helpful, but she had told him to keep an eye out for an area with a high number of craters towards the northwest. So long as what she considered northwest matched with the prevailing opinion, he should be fine.

He sighed heavily, not for the first time in the last few days. If Izzie had steered him wrong in this village-

His thoughts were interrupted by a distant shape rising from one of the craters several hundred feet away. Yuichi quickly killed his speed as he turned the D-Wheel sideways, pulling into a controlled skid to drift to a stop. It was a young man rising from the crater, blond-haired and older than him, sprinting out of the crater. He was running towards the wasteland to Yuichi's right, but he turned his head to see Yuichi and adjusted, running and waving his arms.

"Help!" he yelled. "Take me with you, please!"

Yuichi squinted through his visor, trying to get a glimpse of what was chasing the man. He didn't have to wait long. With a mighty roar as the man drew closer, another D-Wheel soared from the crater into the air. It was similar to Yuichi's, but sharper, crisper. Blue and white as opposed to blue and black.

"Oh, shit," Yuichi swore, watching as something shot from the figure atop the D-Wheel, zipping down towards the man and impacting on his left leg. Yuichi instantly kicked the D-Wheel back into drive, screwing the handle to get as much speed as he could as he shot past the man, who was struggling to get the clamp around his thigh removed.

He looked up as Yuichi passed him by, devastation in his face. Yuichi met his gaze for a second, then looked away in shame. The clamp was on him; best he could do now was get away, avoid getting hooked himself. He had already defeated enough Cleaners; he was not willing to risk dueling another.

He kept his speed as high as he dared as he continually checked over his shoulder for the sign of another D-Wheel. It wouldn't take long before the Cleaner dispatched the other duelist. In fact, as he had that thought, he heard the clap of thunder behind him, gritting his teeth as he imagined the duelist swallowed by lightning. He gritted his teeth, bending over the dash to try and coax the tiniest amount of speed possible out of the D-Wheel.

"Duelist located. Engaging conflict."

Yuichi jumped in surprise as a distorted, high-pitched robotic whine sounded in his ears, as if the Cleaner was in the helmet with him. He jerked the controls in his shock, the D-Wheel momentarily losing control. He struggled to right the wobbling cycle, looking over his shoulder to see the Cleaner was fast approaching, only a thousand feet behind him at most.

The Cleaner was an unnaturally thin figure, torso only a foot in circumference at its widest point. Its arms sprouted from spindly shoulders, funneling out to giant, three-fingered clamps. They reached out towards the fleeing Yuichi, the D-Wheel piloted without their control. Sprouting from the body of the cycle were four similar appendages, each one clanking open and shut loudly. A gray helmet enclosed a perfectly smooth, spherical head, which was featureless but for the number 398 emblazoned in green upon its lower right half, and a single dark red mechanical eye, staring blankly at Yuichi.

"Back off, trash can!" Yuichi yelled, a hint of desperation in his voice. "I didn't start anything, leave me alone!"

"Engaging duel," was the only reply he received. A loud clank was what followed. Yuichi looked behind him to see that one of the Cleaner's clamps had closed itself around the back left edge of his seat. He swore as he heard his Duel Disk activating, rising from the recesses of his dashboard and sparking.

"Cleaner penalty: Over-capacity Life," it chirped, the Life display falling from 4800 to 4000. Yushiro growled in frustration. In The Blight, Life could go as high as you could manage, but any Cleaner could reset it to 4000 if they roped you into a duel. The blade sparked on, a violet blade of energy sweeping out before him as a slot in the dealer on his wrist pulled back, exposing his deck. "Speed World Blight, activating," the disk continued, as dozens of lightning bolts suddenly rained from the sky around them, the inside of this manic strobe light their battleground.

He glared at the Cleaner, who had drawn level with him. "You'll be paying for every point you just took from me," he swore, pulling five cards from his deck and sliding them into his dealer. The Cleaner offered only one reply, one Yuichi spoke in unison:

"RIDING DUEL, ACCELERATION!"

Yuichi (4000) vs Cleaner 398 (4000)

"The first turn will be mine." The Cleaner reached to pull a card from its hand. "Summoning Karakuri Soldier mdl 236 'Nisamu,' Attack Position," it said in its horrid, static-filled whine. From the air beside it, a humanoid figure composed entirely of gnarled wood held together by iron bands, a barrel held atop its back. Red eyes embedded in its wooden skull glowed to life, as the monster raised its spear protectively in front of it.

Karakuri Soldier mdl 236 "Nisamu", Level 4 EARTH, Machine, 1400/200

"Activating Continuous Magic Card: Karakuri Anatomy." A scroll appeared from thin air now, looping through the air to coil around Nisamu. "Placing two reverse cards," the Cleaner continued, emotionlessly as two cards materialized before it briefly, before disappearing. "Turn end."

Yuichi looked briefly at his hand, then back at the Cleaner's Nisamu. He smiled with satisfaction. "Looks like preparing to fight you guys payed off," he called back to the Cleaner. Naturally, it didn't respond. Yuichi grimaced in annoyance, turning back to look ahead at the road formed by the walls of lightning that fell around them. "You guys suck… at least give me the trouble of talking to me while you try to kill me! Draw!"


"Dr. Morgan! We have Kawasaki Yuichi's location; One of the Cleaners found him."

Morgan rose from his office chair, pushing the sandwich he had been eating to the side as he straightened his tie, following after Jan as she ushered him down the bustling hallway, the lab-coated scientists parting like a wave for the pair as they turned into a massive room occupied by hundreds of computer monitors.

A scientist sat at each monitor, eyes flicking to and fro across the screens sluggishly. Despite their large numbers and the impressive setting, many of them didn't appear too invested in their work. They regularly turned to chat with someone to their side, discussing mundane topics and in general not paying their screens much mind. Morgan couldn't blame them. After six months and little interaction between them and those they monitored, boredom was understandable.

"Where is he?" he asked, looking up at one of the enormous, eight-foot monitors that lined the upper walls, looking at the view presented. He could see the D-Wheel Yuichi had fashioned for himself, the Cleaner's gaze turned to accommodate his view of the boy. A bar floated on the screen beside Yuichi's face, giving his Life Point count and the number of cards he was holding in his hand.

"Sector nineteen seventy-two. In the-"

"The northwest, yes," Morgan interrupted gently, raising a hand to halt Jan. "Isn't he in the neighborhood of that village where the Researchers set up shop?"

"Yes, Doctor," said one of the scientists at the monitor closest to them. "He's a few miles out from their location now. We think he might have been en route when this unit found him. Do you want me to have the Cleaner route him away from them?" he asked, sounding a little sour. "We have him clamped and our D-Wheel has more power, it's possible. God knows we don't need to give any numbers to those people…"

Morgan raised a hand again, shaking his head. "No need, Tachibana," he assured the man. "I'm actually intrigued what he thinks he'll find there. Keep him on the same track. We'll see what Mr. Kawasaki makes of these Researchers."


"I summon Twin-Sword Marauder!" Yuichi threw down his first card, this one a human figure cloaked in purple cloth and thick armor, thick blades strapped to both his arms. His monster leveled his blades at the Cleaner, smaller daggers flipping out to form a three-pronged weapon on both limbs.

Twin-Sword Marauder, Level 4 DARK, Warrior, 1600/1000

"Analyzing. Twin-Sword Marauder," the Cleaner spoke up, eye blinking briefly. "Capable of piercing damage and two attacks if it battles a Defense Position monster first."

"That's right, Mr. Clean," Yuichi said, not without a hint of smugness. "And I've learned enough from your Cleaner decks to know that all those Karakuri monsters you use," he called to his opponent, raising a hand to point at Nisamu, "have an ability that FORCES them to change their battle modes when they're attacked!" He clenched his pointing hand into a fist. "Nisamu's defense points are 200, and Twin-Sword Marauder's attack points are 1600! And I'll be able to attack twice! With this attack I'll knock you down to 1000 Life with one shot! Go, Twin-Sword Marauder, attack Nisamu!"

The Marauder pounced, swinging its right-hand blade down with swift precision. It cleaved straight through the spear Nisamu raised to defend itself like it was paper, the blade descending to score a massive gouge in the body of the monster. It reeled back from the impact, shattering into motes of light that flew back, battering at the body of the Cleaner as small lightning bolts reached out from the surrounding walls, playing over the pale contraption as its Life Points fell.

Cleaner 398: 4000 – 2600

"And now the second attack! I-" Yuichi cut himself off as he saw that not all of Nisamu had vanished. The barrel it bore atop its back was still hanging in midair, spinning slowly in the absence of its carrier. "What gives, you riding junkyard?" he asked, eyeing the barrel with caution.

"Activating Nisamu's effect," was the droning reply. "When destroyed by battle, this monster allows the summoning of a Karakuri monster from one's deck, as long as a Level below 5 is held by the summoned monster." The Cleaner's deck ejected a card, which slid directly onto the D-Wheel's red holoblade. "Summoning Tuner Monster Karakuri Komachi mdl 224 'Ninishi,' Attack Position."

"Attack mode?!" Yuichi yelled as the barrel cracked open, the top flying off as a beflowered womanly figure rose from the barrel. The kimono and hair it bore were womanly, anyway. The wooden body and emotionless red eyes were not.

Karakuri Komachi mdl 224 "Ninishi", Level 3 Tuner, EARTH, Machine, 0/1900

"In addition, the effect of Karakuri Anatomy activates with Nisamu switching to Defense Position," the Cleaner continued as Yuichi looked at the new monster with stunned silence, the Cleaner's scroll now floating about Ninishi, glowing with a pulsing golden aura. "When a Karakuri monster changes battle positions, this card gains one Karakuri Counter."

Yuichi looked back at his hand and Duel Disk. If I attack Ninishi, it'll just change into defense mode, he thought to himself. Twin-Sword Marauder can't beat its defense points of 1900… I'll have to get ready for his next turn, go on the defensive.

"I'll leave my Battle Phase," he began, reaching into his hand. "I'll play a card face-down, and then end my turn!"


"Heh. This is the kind of target you came up with?"

Morgan took a deep breath, sighing lightly. "Good afternoon, Benga," he said, not bothering to turn to acknowledge the raspy-voiced boy. "I assure you, you've seen very little of what Mr. Kawasaki here is capable of."

"And it looks like I won't be seeing any more after this next turn," was Benga's reply, the boy flopping into a chair at an unoccupied monitor, elbows on the desk beside the keyboard as he looked on at the duel playing out before them. He was restless, face set in an expression of boredom. But his eyes were sharp, and bright. "You've seen the Cleaners duel even more than I have, hell, you had a hand in designing their decks. This guy won't last the turn."

He yawned obnoxiously. "This kid has no chance of standing up to that. No way he's one of the Signers. He's a lost cause, is what he is."

The scientists around them shuffled uncomfortably away from Benga, eyeing the youth with a touch of unease. Morgan and Jan were the only ones that were unshaken by Benga's presence. Morgan smiled good-naturedly, leaning back in his chair and turning to face Benga.

"Well, I don't guess there's any harm in you watching the rest of the duel, Benga? See if I'm wrong?" He raised an eyebrow rakishly. The others awaited Benga's decision, nervously clutching their clipboards and papers to their chests and avoiding the restless gaze he sent drifting across the people assembled.

"Fine," he said sharply, standing from the chair and walking to the nearby wall, away from the screen, leaning against it to get a better look. "But this guy has nothing on the Cleaners. In fact… how bout we make this interesting?" His face split into a grin, one that was almost predatory.

"Interesting? Benga, what are you getting at?" Jan asked knowingly, her tone gently rebuking the boy in advance. But Benga heard the undertone, the edge that she was really feeling. He tilted his gaze towards her, sidelong.

"If that kid loses to the Cleaner," he said, pointing to the screen, "You let me into The Blight."

"Benga!" Jan snapped, the others hurriedly turning away to busy themselves with imaginary tasks. Jan was about to go on, but Morgan's hand went up, cutting her off.

"And what should happen if he wins, Benga?"

Benga shrugged. "I stop asking you to send me in there," he offered. "I'll behave, if he survives… which he won't," he finished, leering at the pair as they sized him up in kind, Jan's face pinched and angry, Morgan's thoughtful. After a few moments, he nodded wordlessly. Benga's grin widened, and he turned back to watch the duel with renewed interest.

Jan leaned down to speak in Morgan's ear quietly. "Dr. Morgan, are you sure this is a good idea?"

"I'm confident Yuichi will win," Morgan assured her under his breath. "Don't worry about Benga. He's not ready for The Blight, he's just eager." Jan shook her head, turning with Morgan to view the screen again as the duel continued.


"Draw. Switching Ninishi to defense mode and placing a second Karakuri Counter on Karakuri Anatomy." The scroll floating about Ninishi collapsed in on itself, disappearing in a hail of sparkles. "By sending this card with two Karakuri Counters on it to the Graveyard, two cards can be drawn," the Cleaner said, two cards sliding from the deck and being added to its hand.

"Summoning a second Karakuri Soldier Nisamu," it droned, a doppelganger of the monster Yuichi had previously destroyed appearing on the field beside Ninishi.

"So it's a Synchro Summon you're after, huh?" asked Yuichi balefully. "If I know you guys, you won't stop at one… you never do."

"Monster effect of Ninishi activates," the Cleaner answered. "An additional Karakuri monster can be summoned each turn. Summoning Tuner Monster Karakuri Watchdog mdl 313 'Saizan' in attack position."

"I knew it!" Yuichi snarled as a wooden dog bearing two large cannons atop its back pounced from the ash behind him, barking raucously as it chased after him.

Karakuri Watchdog mdl 313 "Saizan", Level 4 Tuner, EARTH, Machine, 600/1800

"Tuning level 4 Karakuri Nisamu with Level 3 Karakuri Ninishi," the Cleaner went on, his kimono-wearing monster dissolving into a trio of green rings, Nisamu rising into the column they created. "Synchro Summoning Karakuri Shogun mdl 00 'Burei' in Attack Position."

With an explosion of light, Yuichi grimly watched an armor-clad figure emerge onto the Cleaner's field. It stood eight feet tall, constructed of wood, but with the clanking and turning of gears audible from inside its body. Armored like a samurai, it's head bore a helmet bearing a golden gear atop it, turning slowly as its eyes gazed out at Yuichi, their iron frames turning to and fro as it raised the red metal shield before it.

Karakuri Shogun mdl 00 "Burei", Level 7 Synchro, EARTH, Machine, 2600/1900

"There's his Synchro Monster," Yuichi muttered, looking worriedly at his Life Point counter. He knew what was coming next, and it didn't look good for all the Life Points he had built up.

"Burei's monster effect: A Karakuri monster can be Special Summoned from the Deck. Special Summoning Karakuri Bushi mdl 6318 'Muzanichiha' in Attack Position." This one was a hat-wearing monster wielding a long samurai sword, running along the ground in a crouched battle stance.

Karakuri Bushi mdl 6318 "Muzanichiha", Level 4, EARTH, Machine, 1800/600

"Activating set Continuous Trap, Limit Reverse," the Cleaner went on, a card flipping up as his Ninishi reappeared on the field. "A monster with 1000 Attack or less is summoned from the player's Graveyard. Tuning Muzanichiha with Ninishi. Synchro Summoning Karakuri Shogun mdl 00 'Burei' in Attack Position."

"Craaaaaap," Yushiro hissed as he watched a second Burei appear on the field, two powerful monsters staring him down. His grip on the D-Wheel handlebars tightened, and the image of a giant, dissolving bolt of lightning swallowing him whole swam through his head. He shook his head, trying to clear it of that sight.

"Another Muzanichiha is summoned by the effect of the second Karakuri Burei." The Cleaner continued, heedless of the mental battle he was having, anther monster appearing beside Saizan, which then vaporized, splitting into four tuning rings. "Tuning Muzanichiha with Saizan. Synchro Summoning Karakuri Steel Shogun mdl 00X 'Bureido' in Attack Position."

Yuichi growled as a final third Karakuri shogun appeared to stare him down. This one was even bigger than the Bureis, standing nearly ten feet high. Armored in steel dyed red, its red coat flapped in the wind as it raised high two gleaming katanas, the points glimmering in the reflected light of the lightning around them.

Karakuri Steel Shogun mdl 00X "Bureido", Level 8 Synchro, EARTH, Machine, 2800/1700

"Bureido's effect," the Cleaner went on monotonously, deck ejecting yet another monster. "A Karakuri can be summoned from the deck. Special Summoning a second Karakuri Saizan." The same dog he had used to make Bureido appeared on the field, once again bounding after Yuichi tirelessly. "Effects of Burei and Bureido. Using Burei, Saizan is switched to Defense Position. Bureido allows a card to be drawn once when a Karakuri monster changes battle positions. Using second Burei, Saizan is placed back in Attack Position."

Yuichi swallowed. His throat was dry. "Well then… Come on, then!" he yelled, his voice a little strangled. "Bring it on, you tin can!"

"Battle. Karakuri Saizan attacks Twin-Sword Marauder."

Saizan lunged forward, bark morphing into a howl as Marauder turned to face the incoming monster. It raised a sword, Saizan's teeth closing around it.

"When in Attack Position, Saizan cannot be destroyed by battle," the Cleaner said, Marauder trying vainly to cleave through the beast. "When battle damage is taken from battle involving Saizan, all Karakuri monsters have Attack and Defense Points increased by 800 for one turn."

"800, huh?" asked Yuichi as the attack power of the Cleaners monsters soared to 3400 and even 3600. He inhaled sharply as another Trap flipped up on the Cleaner's field.

"Continuous Trap: Clockwork Countdown," the Cleaner beeped. Gears started turning in Saizan loudly, enough that Yuichi could hear them now with the Burei. Saizan suddenly began sparking, and Yuichi winced as sparks began arcing over his own body, slumping down over his D-Wheel dash, fighting to regain control as he wobbled precariously.

He pushed himself up to look down at his Life Counter, seeing it fall by 200 points.

Cleaner 398: 2600 – 2800 – 1800

Yuichi: 4000 – 3800.

"Clockwork Countdown will inflict 200 damage to a player attacked by a Machine-Type monster," said the Cleaner, as Yuichi's Marauder finally shook Saizan off, throwing it to fall back behind the Cleaner's forces. "And the monster's owner will regain the same amount. Karakuri Shogun Burei attacks Twin-Sword Marauder and Clockwork Countdown activates."

Burei grabbed hold of its shield, gripping it by the sides as it approached Marauder, beginning to spark. Yuichi winced again as he began sparking as well, gritting his teeth through the pain as Burei slammed the bottom edge of its shield into Marauder's head. Yuichi's monster reeled as it's helmet was dented inward, shattering into fragments as Yuichi was thrown back by the shockwave, yelling out in pain as his D-Wheel began to spin out, the metal tube extending from the Cleaner's clamp lifting into the air, flexing to avoid being twisted around his out-of-control D-Wheel.

Cleaner 398: 1800 – 2000

Yuichi: 3800 – 3600 – 1800

"The second Burei attacks directly," the Cleaner declared, eyes pulsing as the second Burei raised a hand as it flew at Yuichi, the boy catching glimpses of it as it spun past his vision dozens of times.

He struggled to reach forward, fighting the force of his spin to reach his Duel Disk screen. "Activate Trap!" he yelled, finally landing his finger on the screen as a card flipped into existence between him and Burei. "Pinpoint Guard! Be revived, Twin-Sword Marauder!"

With a flash of purple light, Yuichi's fallen monster lunged from the card, swords crossed as Burei slammed into it, forming a wall between Yuichi and the attacking monster. Yuichi yanked at the handlebars of his D-Wheel, killing his spin and pulling him into a very unsteady forward direction. He gasped for breath, getting maybe two in before his body was awash with electricity, arcing from Burei to him as it pushed against Yuichi's monster.

"Clockwork Countdown activates," the Cleaner went on, as if nothing had happened. "200 damage is inflicted while the player recovers 200 Life Points."

"Big deal," Yuichi spat, finally righting his D-Wheel and keeping it from wobbling. "Monsters summoned by Pinpoint Guard can't be destroyed by battle! And my Marauder is in defense mode, so I won't lose any Life Points!"

"Negative," the Cleaner blipped. "Battle. Karakuri Shogun Bureido attacks Twin-Sword Marauder. Clockwork Countdown activates." Sparks once again flew around Yuichi, darts of pain shooting through him as Burei moved aside, Marauder thrown through the air by the sweeping blades of Bureido's swords.

Cleaner 398: 2000 – 2200 – 2400

Yuichi: 1800 – 1600 – 1400

"Setting two cards in reverse," the Cleaner said, as Yuichi righted himself in his D-Wheel seat, one eye shut with the pain coursing through his body. "Turn end."

Yuichi coughed, aches shooting through his chest. "You guys… really are a piece of work, you know that?" he asked his silent adversary.


Benga laughed aloud, throwing his head back as he applauded mockingly. "He endured the turn, did he?" he asked derisively. "He's lost a lot of life for that, though, eh, Morgan?" he asked pointedly, crossing his arms behind his head.

"He's not at zero Life yet, Benga," Morgan assured him. "He's still very much in this duel. After all… now he has a monster in play."

"A weak one without a chance of taking out anything on his field. Unless… Ah, I see." Benga narrowed his eyes at the screen. "You think he's going to go for a Synchro Summon as well."

"Indeed I do. And Mr. Kawasaki has a very interesting approach to how he utilizes Synchro Summoning, so take notes, Benga."

"Whaddaya mean by interesting?" asked Benga. Morgan only smiled, and Benga huffed in annoyance as he looked down at the dragon claw mark on his arm.

"Go on, then," he said to himself. "Prove you're worthy of one of these, ya wimp."


"My turn!" Yuichi declared, drawing from his deck. He turned the card around to see it was-

Menace Mantle! He looked over the Baleful Blackguard card, thoughts running through his head. With this card, he thought, eyeing his crouching Marauder, I can Synchro Summon Vengeance Vanguard. He now turned to examine the Cleaner's field full of monsters. Menace Mantle imparts the ability to attack every monster, and Vengeance Vanguard can decrease the attack power of an opponent's monster by 300 for every instance of a monster being placed in the Graveyard. With this, I can end the match right here!

His eyes fell now to his D-Wheel screen, and he scowled. But that asshole has two cards face-down… one of them could stop my attack from connecting, or power up his monsters! I can't take that chance… He looked over the cards in his hand, one Magic card catching his eye. Hmmm… maybe this'll help me get what I need!

"Magic card, Blackguard's Oath!" Yuichi declared, placing Menace Mantle into his hand as he did so, taking two more cards from there instead. "Now by discarding the Baleful Blackguard – Somber Shield Tuner monster from my hand, I can draw two cards!" He took a deep breath, placing his hand atop his deck. Come on, I need something good, he thought quietly, before drawing two cards aggressively.

He turned the cards over, smiling with satisfaction as he saw what they were. "Activating Continuous Magic: Shadow Armory!" he declared, sliding the card into his disk.

"Next, I summon Baleful Blackguard – Menace Mantle!" From the sky before Yuichi, a long, ragged black cloak floated down, flapping in the wind as a pair of blue flaming eyes materialized within its empty hood.

Baleful Blackguard – Menace Mantle, Level 3 Tuner, DARK, Warrior, 300/300

"Activate Magic card: Tuning Exchange," he continued, his Duel Disk glowing with a soft purple light. "This card lets me summon one Tuner monster from the Graveyard, so long as I lower the level of a monster of the same type by the level of that Tuner. I lower the level of Twin-Sword Marauder to 3. Be reborn, Baleful Blackguard – Somber Shield!"

Marauder threw out his chest as a glowing orb of white light flew from within his body, exploding into brilliance and fading to reveal a dark purple circular shield, two points of violet fire appearing along its upper border and tracing themselves down in intricate designs along its surface.

Baleful Blackguard – Somber Shield, Level 1 Tuner, DARK, Warrior, 100/100

Yuichi smirked now. He wasn't running away from the Cleaner anymore, trying to survive against the repeated onslaughts. Now he could go on the offensive.

"At this moment, I use the effect of Shadow Armory!" Somber Shield's flames pulsed once, then twice, then died out. "Each turn, I can revoke a Blackguard's status as a Tuner, so now I can tune Twin-Sword Marauder and Somber Shield with Menace Mantle! Go!" Menace Mantle obeyed his command, glowing with harsh green light as it split into three rings, aligning horizontally in the air above Yuichi's head as Somber Shield and Marauder leapt between them, vanishing to leave behind four glowing orbs.

"Rise from the shadows," Yuichi chanted, eyes afire. "Strike back against those who hurt those you would protect! Rise and fight! Synchro Summon! Level seven, Baleful Blackguard –Vengeance Vanguard!"

Fading into existence above Yuichi, his monster bled into sight from deep shadow. Coated in black armor, silver tracing about its joints and fingers, burning twin points of blue flame spawned within its helmet as it spun its trident before turning to point it aggressively at the Cleaner.

Baleful Blackguard – Vengeance Vanguard, Level 7 Synchro, DARK, Warrior, 2400/1700

"The effects of Menace Mantle and Somber Shield activate! Baleful Blackguard Tuner monsters all transfer effects and attack points to any Synchro Monster summoned with them." He chuckled. "Even if they aren't Tuners anymore, like Somber Shield. Vengeance Vanguard gains 400 attack points!" Materializing around Vanguard were Menace Mantle and Somber Shield, the Mantle settling around the warrior's shoulders, Vanguard's left arm being clamped on to by the shield, Vanguard's eyes glowing brighter as its Attack Points rose to 2800.

"Now… Vengeance Vanguard activates its effect!" Vanguard's trident began to glow dimly, flickering in and out as translucent images began to float about the air. Monsters that were very familiar to both Duelists. "One monster on the field loses 300 attack points for each time a monster was sent to a Graveyard since your last Standby Phase!"

Yuichi raised a hand, raising fingers as the figures he spoke of finally swam into clear view. "Since your last move, Karakuri Nisamu, Karakuri Saizan, and Menace Mantle have been sent to the Graveyard, and Karakuri Ninishi, Karakuri Muzanichiha, Twin-Sword Marauder, and Somber Shield have been sent to the Graveyard twice each!" The ghosts of all their monsters floated around Vanguard's trident, all compressing into one sphere of shadowy mist. "That's eleven instances of a monster hitting the Graveyard, and Karakuri Steel Shogun Bureido loses 3300 attack points!"

With sudden velocity, the sphere of ghosts blasted from the end of the trident, flying erratically through the air at Bureido. As it approached, an octagonal barrier of blue light flashed into existence in front of the shogun. The sphere impacted against it, flying apart into wispy fragments that quickly faded away.

"Dammit!" Yuichi yelled, slamming a fist on the dash. "What did you do?" he yelled back at the Cleaner, examining his screen to see a Trap image floating next to Bureido on his display.

"Skill Prisoner prevents a monster from being targeted by monster effects for a turn," the Cleaner beeped emotionlessly. "Vengeance Vanguard's effect is rendered null and void."

"Yeah, but my attacks aren't!" Yuichi flung out a hand, Vanguard pouncing on his command. "Vengeance Vanguard can attack all my opponent's monsters by the effect granted it by Menace Mantle! Go, Vanguard! Revenge Retaliate!" Eyes pulsing, Vanguard pulled its trident back, diving forwards and sweeping its weapon through the air. The Burei raised their shields, which crumpled under the onslaught like paper, the monsters exploding into motes of light that battered against the Cleaner's smooth white body.

Cleaner 398: 2400 – 2200 – 2000

Vanguard dived for Saizan next, the dog jumping to and fro to try and avoid the probing prongs of the trident. "Saizan's monster effect activates," the Cleaner interjected. "Upon being attacked it switches to Defense Position." His dog monster finally stopped running, crouching with tail high as Vanguard's weapon found its mark, skewering the beast and blowing it to smithereens.

"Battle!" Yuichi continued, leveling a raised finger at Bureido. "Attack Steel Shogun Bureido! Revenge Retaliate!"

Bureido raised its blades to form an X, slashing them as Vanguard approached. But Vanguard's shield intercepted the blow, the blades glancing off, flying away through the air as Vanguard slammed them aside, thrusting its trident deep into the body of Bureido, the turning of gears suddenly cutting off as the monster exploded. From the smoke cloud, Vanguard loomed, slowly drifting back to fly by Yuichi's side.

"Baleful Blackguard – Somber Shield's effect!" Yuichi declared, pulling a card from his hand as the turn moved to his second Main Phase. "A monster Synchro Summoned with this card gains the ability to avoid being destroyed by battle once each turn, so Vanguard survives even though it and Bureido's attack points are equal! I set one card face-down! My turn is over!"


Benga was paying rapt attention to the duel now. Gone was the flippancy with which he had been observing before. He leaned forward now from his spot against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, eyes fixated on the screen.

"It's fascinating, isn't it?" asked Morgan, sounding smug. Benga made a noncommittal grunt. "Yuichi's Tuners impart their strengths upon the Synchro Monsters he possesses," Morgan went on, seemingly unbothered by Benga's lack of response. "Of course, you can only Synchro Summon with a single Tuner monster, but Yuichi has managed to use a loophole in Synchro Summoning by revoking his Tuners of their status as such."

"And he imparts multiple powerful effects on them by doing so," Benga finished, stepping forward and placing his hands at his waist. "All while fueling the effect of Vengeance Vanguard," he added, lowering a hand to a monitor and quickly browsing through the data available. He smirked at what he found.

"So I admit the guy has some good dueling tactics," he conceded, turning back to face Morgan, hands in the air as he shrugged. "You got me there. But this guy isn't a Signer."

"Oh?" asked Morgan, raising an eyebrow. "And how can you tell that?"

"Easy," Benga answered, reaching to a brown leather box attached at his belt. He pulled a card from within, flipping it around to reveal it to Morgan. "I just checked out all the data you have on Kawasaki Yuichi's Extra Deck, and you know what he's missing? One of these." He grinned viciously, eyes locked challengingly on Morgan's own calm set. "If you're so convinced this guy is one of the Signers… where is his dragon?"


"Draw. Activating Magic Card Synchro Supremacy." The Cleaner was naturally completely unflapped by Yuichi's sudden reversal, making its move as if it was still in complete control and nothing had gone wrong. Yuichi glared at the Cleaner, eyes narrow and full of distrust.

You guys don't have to experience this like we do, his mind tossed out venomously. Your Life will restore back to 4000 if you win. Mine won't. Stupid machine, you don't even realize how much I hate you!

As if it was hearing his angry thoughts, the Cleaner's head tilted towards him, eye looking dead at his own. Yuichi looked away uncomfortably. "Synchro Supremacy activates when my opponent is the only one controlling a Synchro Monster," it said. "It summons one Synchro Monster from my Graveyard, with both Synchro Monsters having their effects negated. Summoning Karakuri Steel Shogun mdl 00X 'Bureido' in Attack Position. Bureido and Vengeance Vanguard both have their effects negated."

The lightning around them suddenly spat several bolts out to strike a point in the air before the Cleaner. Even more coiled around Yuichi's Vanguard, and it slumped, its cloak coming loose and barely holding on to its armored collar, its shield sliding down its arm. Yuichi growled in irritation.

"Activating effect of Speed World Blight," the Cleaner went on. Yuichi felt his grip on his handlebars tighten. It was using a Speed Effect?!

"First Speed Effect: By paying 500 Life Points, one of the owned monsters will gain 500 Attack points for one turn. Bureido will have its Attack Power increased to 3300!" The Cleaner accelerated, Bureido following, the tube connecting it to its clamp drawing out longer and longer, from within the recesses of the D-Wheel's body. The walls of lightning stretching before them sparked louder and louder, small bolts flying out to strike the Cleaner, sending it into jitters in its seat. Bureido was awash with them as well, raising its blades in the air as its attack power began to rise.

"Oh, no you don't!" Yuichi yelled, accelerating himself. "I won't let you! Activate Trap, Shadow Spell!" His Trap flipped up from beneath Bureido's own feet, chains blasting from its surface and reaching up towards Bureido. "This card will prevent Bureido from attacking, and cause it to lose 700 attack points!"

"Counter Trap," the Cleaner responded, a card appearing in midair between Shadow Spell and its target, the chains rebounding off the card and shattering. "Karakuri Rout Formation. An opponent's Trap is negated and destroyed by banishing Karakuri Saizan from my Graveyard."

"No!" Yuichi could only watch as his Trap fizzled, Bureido standing tall with more than 3000 attack points.

Cleaner 398: 2000 – 1500

"Battle! Bureido attacks Vengeance Vanguard!" Bureido crossed its swords, advancing quickly to slam into Vanguard. With a sickening rending of armor, its blades pierced through, lifting Vanguard into the air, the monster slumping onto their hilts. Yuichi looked up at the spectacle, face white and drawn.

"With the effect of Synchro Supremacy, Vengeance Vanguard loses its effect of avoiding being destroyed by battle," said the Cleaner. "In addition, at this moment the Continuous Trap Clockwork Countdown activates once again."

Bureido erupted in a corona of electric sparks, and as Yuichi's Vanguard exploded into shards of light, his monsters remains flew at his body, sparks of electricity coating them. Yuichi screamed in pain as his body was stabbed with hundreds of pinpricks of pain, like wasp stings pelting into his body at high velocity. He fell back in his D-Wheel, almost sliding off onto the ground below, only staying aboard by his weak grip on the handlebars. Breathing heavily, he struggled to sit upright, sweat running all over his body.

Yuichi: 1400 – 1200 – 700

Cleaner 398: 1500 – 1700

"Setting one reverse card, turn end."

Yuichi gasped for breath, trying to keep his vision from blurring. He took a hand from its handlebar, punching the dash repeatedly. His sight gradually cleared, but all that gave him was the view of the single Magic Card he had in his hand. He looked away from it at the lightning that coated their track. What was he supposed to do with just a single card against that Bureido? Now that Vengeance Vanguard had been defeated…

"There's nothing I can do," he whispered angrily, clenching his fists. There wasn't a single card in his deck that he could draw to turn this around. He had no monsters. "I lasted six months to go out like this?" he yelled. He raised his head to glare at the Cleaner.

"You son of a bitch," he spat. "Why the hell are you Cleaners here? Why does anybody have to die?!" He shouted this at the top of his lungs, eyes watering. He looked down at the dash, and saw that the hand there was shaking. He picked it up, pressing it to his chest to try and still it. "Why… why do I have to die?" he asked weakly.

He wasn't expecting a response, even though it didn't really answer his question.

"New entry: Third participant."

Yuichi looked down at his Duel Disk, surprised out of his desperation. He looked down at the Duel Disk screen to see three rectangles on the screen, each holding a picture and a Life Point count. The first two were of himself and the Cleaner. And the third…

"What the hell?" he asked, looking over his shoulder, the Cleaner doing likewise. Even now he could hear it: The sound of another approaching D-Wheel as it came into view.

The D-Wheel was huge. Huge and pure white. It was at least ten feet long, its seat half a foot higher than Yuichi's own. It was sleek, seemingly crafted from a single smooth piece of metal that coated the inner workings. Two spherical white pods connected to the body by thick rods held the arms of the figure upon the D-Wheel, and what a figure it was.

The rider was massive, only of modest height but built as wide as a wall, shoulders impossibly wide, forming a perfect contrast to the Cleaner's own narrow frame. Muscles bulged beneath the all-white riding suit, a suit lined with gleaming golden thread that matched the blade of the rider's Duel Disk, nestled in the dash and active as the rider drew five cards.

"Who… who are you?" Yuichi asked as the rider drew parallel with him on the left, the opposite side of the Cleaner. The rider turned his head, one coated entirely in an oblong golden helmet, face shielded by a tinted visor that he pointed at Yuichi.

"Not important," he said, with a resonating voice deeper than an ocean. "Someone who wants to see you through this duel. Is that good enough for you?"

Yuichi took a few seconds to respond, his surprise still evident in what the rider would be able to make of his expression through the face gap in his helmet. But he quickly regained his composure, nodding. "Sounds good to me."

"Very well then. DUEL!"


Morgan was no longer the picture of calm. He slammed his fist on the arm of his chair as he stood up, turning to yell across the room: "It's him! The unknown rider is interfering with the duel between Kawasaki and Cleaner 398! Focus the Cleaner on him now, have it devote all resources to taking him down. And get all Cleaners in the area to converge on him!"

Benga was standing below the screen now, gazing hungrily up at it. "Long time no see, you son of a bitch," he growled, his hand touching his right arm. "So you've survived since then, have you?"

"Jan!" Jan whirled at the sound of her name, looking nervous for the first time as Morgan stormed up to her. "How long before any other Cleaners can attack the rider? We have to get him away from Kawasaki as soon as possible."

Jan stammered, listening frantically to her earpiece. "Errrr… Not going to be any less than ten minutes, Doctor Morgan-"

"Damn!" he cursed, turning away from her and pacing back and forth frantically.

Benga laughed, cackling as he turned to watch the spectacle. "Lost your cool, Morgan? What's it matter, I told ya this asshole ain't a Signer. He's safe."

Morgan turned on Benga, looking down at the shorter boy, who was unperturbed by his anger. "Benga, we have no way of knowing that for sure!" he barked, pointing at the screen. "If Yuichi is indeed a Signer, then…" He paused, eyes fixed on the screen. His gaze shifted to Benga's arm, then back. His stormy expression changed to one of contemplation. The scientists and Jan all had stopped what they were doing, nervously awaiting what he would say next.

"If he is indeed… a Signer…" Morgan murmured, eliciting a frown of confusion from Benga. He nodded lightly. "This… this might actually prove if he is… Thank you, Benga," he said, relaxing his tensed body, turning to face the room.

"Everyone back to work," he called, the assembly rushing to do so. "We've got an opportunity, ladies and gentlemen…" He turned back to face the screen, worry creasing his face as Benga and Jan observed him with confused expressions. "Let's just hope Yuichi doesn't come off the worse for it," he murmured.


Yuichi (700) vs Cleaner 398 (1700) vs White Rider (4000)

"He has a D-Wheel and full Life?" Yuichi found himself whispering in surprise.

"My turn. Draw!" The rider barely even seemed to look at the card he had drawn before he made his move. "I summon White Warriors – Hail the Iron Hammer!" A toga-wearing man with green hair and cape appeared, taking a massive silver hammer in his grip and leveling it to point forward. Yuichi couldn't help getting nervous as he realized the rider could easily just attack him directly now and claim the remainder of his Life.

White Warriors – Hail the Iron Hammer, Level 4, LIGHT, Warrior, 1800/1600

"Analyzing. White Warriors – Hail the Iron Hammer," the Cleaner began, whirring. "Capable of destroying a monster when it destroys another-"

"When a White Warriors monster is Normal Summoned," the rider went on, ignoring the analysis of the Cleaner, "I can summon this card from my hand. Come, Tuner Monster, White Warriors – Dew the Morning Knife!" This monster also bore a toga, though this one was a little closer cut and covered more of the monster's feminine body. A turquoise cape flapped in the wind as she drew a small, elegant dagger from her belt.

White Warriors – Dew the Morning Knife, Level 3 Tuner, LIGHT, Warrior, 800/300

"I'm tuning my Level four Hail the Iron Hammer with my level three Dew the Morning Knife!" The rider clenched his hands into fists, throwing them out to his sides as his monsters began to rise in the air. "Sting of cold iron, blast through the wasteland! Pierce the hearts of the unworthy! Synchro Summon! White Warlord – Blizzard the Arctic Blade!"

His monster was similar to his other two, bearing a toga upon her body, slim but powerful. Her hair was a deep shade of blue, swooping back behind her for several feet in an elegant trail, shards of mottled ice the size of Yuichi's hand speckled throughout. A golden circlet rested atop it, a single sapphire resting in its center over sharp green eyes. Her long white cloak flew out behind her as she drew from thin air a long saber of gleaming metal, slashing it through the air as she gave out a sharp battle cry.

White Warlord – Blizzard the Arctic Blade, Level 7 Synchro, LIGHT, Warrior, 2500/1600

"Wow," Yuichi breathed. "What a monster…" He lowered his gaze, face pensive. He turned to look at the rider. "I don't suppose you have a way for that thing to beat a monster with 2800 attack points, do you?" he asked pointedly.

"Battle! Blizzard the Arctic Blade, attack Steel Shogun Bureido!" Raising her sword high in the sky, the rider's monster let out a righteous scream of fury. The air around the three duelists suddenly grew cold and harsh, Yuichi shivering in the sudden freezing gale he found himself in the middle of. Blizzard's blade glowed harshly as she turned downward to descend, the saber aimed at Bureido's chest.

"Blizzard's effect," he called. "When she battles an opponent's monster, I banish one monster in their Graveyard! Then, half the banished monster's attack points are deducted from Bureido's! I banish Karakuri Shogun mdl 00 'Burei', bringing the attack power of Bureido to 1500!"

Ice crusted on the armor of Bureido, the scarlet overtaken by frozen water. Bureido shuddered, the clockwork within it slowing to a crawl as it fell to a knee. Blizzard took the opportunity, sweeping down and slicing her blade through Bureido's chest. Bureido erupted into a flaming explosion, Blizzard flying free from the fireball.

"Yes!" Yuichi yelled, raising a fist in the air. "Now his field is empty!" He readied a hand over his deck to draw. "Now all I have to do is draw a monster and you're fucked!" he yelled at the Cleaner.

"Activate Trap, Damage Penalty." The smoke froze in midair, before being swept away into the Cleaner's latest Trap. Standing in the draining smoke cloud was Bureido, a giant rend in its chest, but otherwise standing strong. Yuichi balked at the sight.

"This card prevents the destruction of Bureido, while halving battle damage and inflicting 1000 points of damage," the Cleaner went on as the Trap turned to face the rider. The smoke suddenly reappeared, streaming out to slam into the rider, who threw up an arm against the onslaught.

Cleaner: 1700 – 1200

White Rider: 4000 – 3000

"I place two cards face-down," the rider said solemnly, two cards appearing on the ground in front of his D-Wheel before fading away. He hung his head, turning his visor to Yuichi. "I'm sorry," he said sadly. "I did all I could."

Yuichi looked down at his screen, considering things. "That may have helped…" he admitted. "You have a powerful monster on the field, I don't. It may go after you next turn." He looked at his hand. "I can hold on until then. Sound good?"

The rider nodded. "I'll see what I can do."

"Here goes then! Draw!" Yuichi turned the card over to see it was his Baleful Blackguard – Sepulchral Sword. Cool! I can stop two attacks now! He paused, looking at his hand. Or maybe I should save this… he thought, taking another look at the screen. He paused when he caught a glimpse of his own field. An idea swam into his head.

He laughed with relief, the rider tilting his head in confusion. "I have a plan," Yuichi declared, tossing his monster onto the Duel Disk. "And it's all thanks to you, my mysterious cohort! I summon Baleful Blackguard – Sepulchral Sword! Attack mode!"

A violet blade materialized in the air, a broadsword wielded by a cloud of shadows in the shape of a man.

Baleful Blackguard – Sepulchral Sword, Level 4, DARK, Warrior, 1700/1100

"Attack mode? What happened to holding on until my turn?" the rider asked.

"I got a better idea," Yuichi responded simply. "Activating the effect of Shadow Armory!" The air around him distorted, darkening as a series of weapons and pieces of armor began to float around him in a circle, small candles floating between each piece unsupported.

"This card can also be sent to the Graveyard to summon a Baleful Blackguard Tuner monster from the Graveyard," Yuichi explained. "However, I can't summon a monster with a level higher than the number of Blackguards on my field. Currently, I have one," he went on, as Sepulchral Sword floated towards the circling armory, with a gauntlet, a breastplate, and a battered helmet passing by as it reached for a very familiar shield. "I summon the level one Somber Shield!" The shield flashed with bright violet flames, being reborn onto Yuichi's field as the remaining weaponry faded away.

"I'm tuning my level four Sepulchral Sword with my level one Somber Shield! Souls of the fallen, vanquished but not forgotten! Your powers passed on shall avenge you! Synchro Summon! Level five, Baleful Blackguard – Phantasmal Fighter!"

Yuichi's monster was a silver-armored warrior, black filigree traced over his enormous, cavernous breastplate. A helmet hid his face, but it did not stop the mane of black hair that escaped from beneath it. Most notable were the giant arms that sprouted from the giant pauldrons atop its breastplate: Arms of burning blue flames.

Baleful Blackguard – Phantasmal Fighter, Level 5 Synchro, DARK, Warrior, 2000/1900

"Somber Shield's monster effect!" Yuichi declared. "Phantasmal Fighter gains 100 attack and can't be destroyed by battle once each turn! Phantasmal Fighter's monster effect!" Yuichi reached for his Duel Disk, a card ejecting from his Graveyard. He held it up to reveal it was his Vengeance Vanguard.

"By returning a Baleful Blackguard monster from my Graveyard to the deck, Phantasmal Fighter gains its effects for one turn!" The flames that made up Phantasmal Fighter's arms reared up, a fiery image of Vanguard appearing behind it to represent what effect it now held.

"I use the absorbed effect of Vanguard! Bureido now loses attack power equal to the number of times a monster has been placed in the Graveyard times 300 points! Vengeance Vanguard, Sepulchral Sword, Somber Shield, Hail the Iron Hammer, and Dew the Morning Knife have all been sent to the Graveyard since your last Standby Phase! Bureido loses 1500 attack!"

"Using the graveyard effect of Skill Prisoner," the Cleaner interjected. "By banishing this card, a monster is unaffected by monster effects of the opponent. Targeting Bureido."

"Trap activate!" The rider now spoke up, a trap flipping up to unleash a bolt of black energy that struck Bureido, coating it in a black shell around its body. "Nightmare Guard prevents an opponent's Magic or Trap cards from penetrating the shell this card places around a monster," the rider explained, not without some satisfaction, as Bureido tried vainly to cut the dark orb it resided in.

Yuichi smiled nervously. "Eh, thanks, guy," he said, a little put off by the struggles of Bureido. He returned his attention to the Cleaner. "Bureido's attack power decreases!" he yelled, the flaming visage of Vanguard tossing it's trident into the heart of the orb, a blazing weapon burying itself in Bureido's chest as it was weakened.

Bureido's attack is 1300, Yuichi thought, knowing what he had to do and not liking it one bit. If I attack now, he'll be left at 400 Life… He scowled petulantly. "Son of a bitch," he muttered, before raising his voice and turning the throttle on his D-Wheel. "I activate a Speed Effect! I give up 500 Life Points for Phantasmal Fighter to gain 500 attack points! Phantasmal Fighter, attack now!" Lightning lanced through Yuichi, the boy grunting with effort as his monster was fed by that same lightning, swooping forward and winding back an arm, to deliver a massive punch to Bureido. The monster was blown through like wet paper, and it wasn't far to hit the one who rode behind it.

Cleaner 398: 1200 – 0

Yuichi: 700 – 200 – 1400

"I absorb all your Life that you had left!" Yuichi yelled, as the clamp that tethered him to the Cleaner released, flying back to the owner, which was suddenly exhibiting a lot of flashing lights, it's eye pulsing red over and over. "The duel is over!"

"Life at 0. Initiating self-destruct in ten, nine, eight…" the Cleaner's D-Wheel lost control, spinning out and flying to the side, the walls of lightning raising into the sky to hide up inside the clouds as the Cleaner shot under them. Yuichi and the rider accelerated, to get away from the giant fireball that issued from the Cleaner as it detonated. Even from this distance it hurt Yuichi's ears a bit.

After the explosion had stopped ringing in his ears, Yuichi took a deep breath, leaning back in his seat as the rider slowed to match his decreasing speed. Yuichi looked over to the giant, raising his visor as he nodded to him. "Hey!" he called over the sound of their engines. "Thanks."

"Happy to help," the rider said noncommittally. "Anyone in the Blight is an ally to me, as far as I'm concerned, barring a select few."

Yuichi raised his eyebrows. "You got enemies in here too, huh?" he asked, halfway curious. "I've ticked off a fair few people, how 'bout you, big guy? Who are you, anyway?"

The rider shrugged. "Oh, you know," he said casually, holding up his fist so his right upper arm faced towards Yuichi. "I'm just looking for a few people who don't need to be here anymore. Who don't need to be anywhere. It's a sort of… mission I've undertaken."

"A mission, huh?" asked Yuichi, a little puzzled. "Okay, um, that's cool, I guess, what exactly do you-"

He was interrupted by the rider's forearm glowing with a red light, a strange, long design that gleamed brightly in the dim light of the Blight. It coincided with a sudden, harsh flash of pain in his right forearm, with no apparent source. He let out a surprised shout, taking one hand from the controls of his D-Wheel and clamping it over the aching arm, the ache already starting to fade. "What the hell…?" he asked, doing a double take as he looked back to the strange arm.

The rider was staring directly at him now. He lowered his arm, shoving it back into the pod that contained his handlebar, then violently jerking his D-Wheel to the side, slamming it against Yuichi's. Yuichi yelled, pulling away as hard as he could, his smaller machine pushed a dozen feet away by the impact alone. "What the hell are you doing?!" he yelled, pulling ahead of the rider as he tried to slam into him again, drawing up behind him as the rider kept his sightline glued to Yuichi's D-Wheel.

"You! Signer!" the rider yelled, his voice no longer relaxed and friendly. His bass voice echoed with hatred and disdain. "I've been looking for you!"

"I dunno what you're talking about!" Yuichi yelled in frustration. "I've never even met you before!" He accelerated to avoid another push by the rider. "Just let me go, please!"

"No!" the rider thundered, raising his arm again. "You aren't even worthy of this hell! Disappear!" His arm once again glowed with a thick red light, and Yuichi's arm was blasted with pain, as if he had thrust it into flames. Yuichi's eyes actually crossed momentarily, his body slumping as he howled with agony, trying to pilot the D-Wheel one-armed as his arm slumped in his handlebar casing.

He tried desperately to clear his blurring vision, but something kept clouding his sight, two objects hovering in the middle of them. They were two diamonds that refused to disappear, no, not diamonds, but eyes, the eyes from his dream. But… no, they weren't the same eyes. The ones from his dream were blue, but these were the deepest, darkest black.


"Get those Cleaners to Kawasaki's location now!" Morgan yelled, his shouting almost drawn out by a strangled cry from behind him. He whipped around to see Benga falling to his knees, hand clenched around his forearm, which was glowing with the same light as the rider's. "Benga!" Morgan ran to his side, but Benga shook his head as he started to kneel down, raising his head to reveal a face twisted with pain.

"I'm fine," he struggled to get out, one eye shutting in the effort of speaking. "Goddamn, that shit hurts!" he hissed, slumping back against the wall. Morgan nodded to Jan, who quickly knelt next to Benga, hand on his shoulder. Morgan looked over the shoulder of Tachibana, brow furrowed.

"How quickly till they reach him?" he asked simply. Tachibana shook his head.

"I don't know. We don't have trackers on either of their D-Wheels. Four minutes at most, I think." Morgan nodded wordlessly, standing and breathing deeply as he paced back and forth, waiting for new developments to be given to him.


"Trap Card!" The rider shouted, words barely even filtering into Yuichi's brain as he struggled to steer his flailing D-Wheel, teeth clenched in agony. "Nightmare Flaying!" Yuichi's head lolled to the side, and he saw now that the eyes floated in the air behind the approaching rider. As if seeing him too, a high-pitched shrieking roar sounded in his ears, the pain in his arm surging once again, causing him to yell loudly.

From the space the eyes occupied, a black tentacle lashed out, striking Phantasmal Fighter. His monster vaporized as the tentacle poised itself over Yuichi. "This trap destroys an opponent's monster that has battled this turn, then inflicts damage equal to half its attack power! Take 1300 damage!" The tentacle whipped down, striking Yuichi directly on his screaming arm.

The eyes pulsed in Yuichi's mind, and he turned his head, yowling in pain, his widened eyes seeing some thing taking shape behind the rider, around the glaring black eyes. It was transparent, only barely visible around the edges. Something massive, enormous. The eyes slowly rose up above the mass, a slim trunk connecting them to the giant body below. Reaching a point in the air above Yuichi, he heard that high, shrieking roar again as the rider's arm glowed even brighter, as another red glare sparked in the corner of Yuichi's vision, but his eyes were glued to the shape.

Yuichi: 1400 – 100

His vision started getting erratic again, shuddering to and fro like he was viewing a shaking camera view. He lowered his head to his dash, screaming as he tried to focus his eyes, D-Wheel wobbling dangerously. Through the jittering sight, he caught sight of his Life meter, reading only 100. He had no monsters and almost no life. He had to protect himself, that he knew.

Head remaining on the dash, he moved his right arm, the limb pulsing with agony in protest. He yelled loudly, fighting through it as he clumsily grabbed the card in his hand.

"Activate Magic card!" His shout morphed into words as he forced the card into his Duel Disk. "Fiend's Sanctuary! I summon a Metal Fiend Token!" He let his arm fall to the side, gasping for breath and yanking his listing D-Wheel back into as straight a line as he could, a being composed of metal spheres materializing between him and the rider. The rider's reflection stared out at him from the shiny surface, hook hands poised at its side.

"Metal Fiend Token? So you hide behind a monster that reflects battle damage?" the rider asked. "If you think that'll save you, you're wrong! My ultimate monster will sweep it and you aside! My tu-"

"It's my turn!" Before the duel disk alert of "New entry: Third participant" could even finish, the start of a new turn had been declared by the young man riding the D-Wheel that skidded up close to them, bouncing off the side of the rider's machine. He took a card from his hand, playing it quickly.

"I summon Grapple Blocker, and its effect seals Blizzard the Arctic Blade!" he yelled, Yuichi dimly aware of a humanoid form appearing and swallowing the rider's monster in its massive tentacles. "Turn end!"

"New entry: Fourth participant. New entry: Fifth participant. New entry: Sixth participant." The duel disk in Yuichi's D-Wheel announced these as more D-Wheels flanked the pair, a girl speaking up as she played a monster.

"I summon Raging Flame Sprite! Attack directly!" She turned to Yuichi, who was struggling to sit up, his arm dangling down by the side of the D-Wheel. "You're real close, just keep going!" she assured him, peeling off from him as he raised his eyes, seeing something looming in the distance. A wall, of some sort, just a blur of gray to him along with everything else around him.

Wait! There it was… a gap! Yuichi accelerated against his better judgment, his D-Wheel zigzagging to and fro, struggling to aim at the gap through his hazy sight.

"You won't get away!" He yelped as he felt his D-Wheel suddenly slow, looking over his shoulder to see the rider had clamped his enormous hand on the back of his D-Wheel seat, the glowing arm directly in Yuichi's face. He heard the shouting of the other duelists behind him, as they yelled frantically at each other to push him off somehow.

Yuichi struggled to speak, managing to squeeze out: "I got a mission too, buddy." He leaned forward, then jerked back with a yell of exertion. The back of his helmet slammed into the rider's fingers, and he let out a shout of pain himself. Yuichi allowed himself a weak smile. It felt good to return the favor.

His grip loosened, finally being jerked off as Yuichi accelerated again, back wheel skidding. He fought to keep straight, but his D-Wheel hit a bump, and was sent flying. He soared off, spinning through the air close to the ground, skidding through the gap in the wall, D-Wheel careening above him.

"Close the gate!" he heard before he hit the ground, slamming into the ashy ground and bouncing, rolling through the air before finally sliding to a stop at the base of… something, he couldn't tell. He dimly heard two crashing noises. One was his D-Wheel… was the other the gate he had heard about?

As his vision slowly darkened, a face swam into view, a boy crouching over him. About his age, black, about all he could tell… "Get him to David!" came a distant voice as the boy's mouth moved. Yuichi didn't hear anything else after that. All he could hear was the fading roar of the thing that had been behind that rider, all he could see were the fading black eyes, and the pulsing red light that slowly grew darker and darker, the red symbol that had been traced upon the rider's arm: The traced image of a dragon's head.


Dead silence. Everyone in the room was watching Morgan, who stood in the center of the room, repeatedly taking deep breaths, hands on his hips as he slumped into a seat.

Benga finally stopped tensing up, slumping on the floor as he tried to get back his breath as well. His face was red, irises small in his wide eyes. He struggled to rise up on all fours, Jan helping him up from the floor and into the chair Tachibana pushed over quietly. Benga's head hung over the chair's back, looking over at Morgan.

"Well?" he asked, voice ragged. "What now, Doc?"

Morgan raised his gaze to meet Benga's, sighing. "Well, Benga… I think we have ourselves a Signer."


Diary of Kawasaki Yuichi

Day 196

What the FUCK.

So much happened yesterday I can't explain. I fought a Cleaner, that was the easy part! This weird rider helped me out, but then his arm glowed and he was trying to kill me… my arm hurt like NOTHING I've ever felt before, I almost passed out getting to this village. And I saw the eyes from my dream, I think… but they were different, if that makes any sense? I dunno what the hell just happened.

The guy in charge here, guy called Sipho, told me when I woke up today that he'll tell me about the guy later this evening. Got knocked down to only 100 Life, but they used some of the Life Point cards I had left to patch me up by 800 before noon hit. Still, I hate losing that much Life to that damn Cleaner.

Hopefully Sipho can fill me in on what the hell happened to me on my way here to this village. I dunno what these "Researchers" are planning, but if rumors are true and it helps us escape, awesome, I don't care. Hopefully I can help these guys with what they're trying to do. I'll write later, when I have more info on that damn white rider. Yuichi here, signing off.