I'm back! Side note: Upon reflection, I gave some thought to the current LP standings. I did some tests and decided to go to the original 4000-point start instead of 8000, so I can get the duels written faster and put out chapters more quickly. That said, you know that old saying about pipe dreams? Neither do I! So let's get this story started!
Chapter 2: "The Great Satellite Escape"
The evening was drawing closer as the sun began to set. Many, like our protagonists, found shelter during this time in the dark crevices of urban environments, like vermin or roaches. Our view is cast not on them, however, but towards another pair, who rose to their place of power through betrayal and deceit. In the more hygienic location of Jack and Ryoga's penthouse, Jack looked over the view of New Domino City, holding on to a single card and contemplating his title of King. Ryoga was training against a robotic opponent in a boxing ring that seemed to really disrupt the classy demeanor of the suite. Jack's eyes fell upon the card he stole from Yusei, Stardust Dragon, and then shifted his gaze past New Domino and in the direction of Satellite. His calm disposition shifted to one of loathing and fury, soon to be directed towards another as he heard the doors to his suite open.
In walked the gray-haired Head of Sector Security Rex Goodwin and his jester of a right-hand man Lazar. Ryoga, not noticing the two, delivered a sharp roundhouse kick to the animatronic training dummy, knocking its head clean off its shoulders and disabling it. The head soared threw the air and landed right at the feet of director Goodwin, who only sighed at the sight.
"Must you always break your most expensive toys so frequently, Ryoga?" Lazar chided, picking up the head and dropping it into a nearby recycle bin, already filled with busted robot parts.
"If they would put up a decent fight, you wouldn't have to keep replacing them," the bandana-wearing warrior countered, drying off the sweat from his face with a towel. Exiting the ring, he walked over to the sofa and sat down, putting his feet up on the coffee table, much to the chagrin of his employer.
"Why on earth director Goodwin invests so much time and money into your martial arts training, I'll never know," Lazar nagged. "It's not as if it will further your dueling skills, so why bother?"
Ignoring the face-painted imp, Ryoga took his cards out of his deck holder and searched through them, constructing future strategies and letting his muscles relax after their workout.
"Jack," Goodwin spoke, turning his attention to the brooding king, "it does not do one well to dwell in the past, lest they miss the golden opportunities of the future. You should forget about your life in Satellite and focus on your next matches."
"If I had my way," Jack replied, glaring at the filthy reminder of his upbringing, "Satellite would have been destroyed long ago." Ryoga could help but shoot a glance at Jack before returning to his cards.
"Jack, Neo Domino needs Satellite just as much as Satellite needs Neo Domino," Goodwin explained, joining Jack in staring at the city. "The chosen here in Neo Domino send their trash to Satellite, where it is recycled and used by its denizens. The two are symbiotic, unable to function without the other." Ryoga let out a chuckle at this statement, prompting Goodwin to ask what he found funny.
"Speaking from experience, sir," he answered smugly, "there are quite a few people in both areas who would prosper greatly should the other disappear."
"Be that as it may, Director Goodwin speaks for society as a whole, not just for a few urchins or aristocrats unhappy with one another," Lazar defended, sneering at the Duel Kaiser.
"We may speak of philosophy another day," Goodwin announced, silencing the three, "but now we must discuss Jack and Ryoga's next opponents." With great aim, Jack tossed Stardust Dragon into the center of his deck, resting a few feet away on a table.
"Until you find me an worthy opponent like Ryoga," the King snarled, "I refuse do waste my skills and time entertaining the masses."
"Don't be such a downer, Jack," Ryoga sighed as he selected a single card from his deck. "You're not the only one who's grown a bit bored by his opponents. But we both have an obligation to our fans and foes to give the best fight we can give, even if the outcome is clear."
"I deserve nothing less than the best," Jack growled, ending any attempt to sway his decision. Goodwin and Lazar decided it was best to leave the King and Kaiser to themselves and reopen discussion another time. As soon as the two left, Ryoga spoke up.
"You're still focused on Yusei and Ranma. You should just leave the past behind you, like Goodwin said, and focus on your future. After all, that's the whole reason we left Satellite and came here in the first place."
"We betrayed our comrades for fool's gold," Jack lamented angrily. "No one in this city challenges me, let's me grow stronger. The only one who could ever come close, who had any potential, was Yusei."
"And we left them behind to further ourselves and let our skills shine in the light rather than waste away in the dark. It's true what they say about the grass being greener, isn't it?"
"I could care less about Satellite!" Jack roared, slamming his fist on the coffee table. "I just want a challenge and power earned from it! You can stick with ruling the earth, Ryoga. I want the power to rule the heavens!"
"Greedy brat," Ryoga snarled, grabbing his cards and readying his disk. "We betray everyone we know to gain a better life, and you just can't count your blessings and be satisfied! Look around you, where you're standing. How many people, not just from Satellite but anywhere would do anything for a penthouse like this? We're living the good life, but you don't care.
"You're just like that dragon of yours, never satisfied until it's crushed everything. Not caring about what it's taken, only concerned with what it doesn't have. Sometimes I think I should have never done what I did to the gang to get here!"
Jack sighed as he calmed down, picking up his cards and heading towards the door. "You said it yourself," he replied, as the doors opened, "we can't change the past. You're here because of what we did, so we should enjoy this life while we can live it. I'm still not satisfied, though, and that's why I left Satellite, 'cause I wasn't satisfied there either. I'm going to take a few laps around the track in the Wheel of Fortune, practice a few moves and clear my head a bit. See you in a while."
With that he left the room and the doors closed behind him, leaving the martial artist alone with his cards to cool back down. Ryoga took the card he looked at earlier back out of his deck and thought about it.
"Gaia Knight, the Force of Earth," he said to himself as he looked at the card, "The first Synchro monster I ever had. You got me through many a duel, old friend, and you're all I have left of my life in Satellite. I wonder how the others are doing now?"
Night had fallen upon the Satellite area and New Domino City, cloaking the two in a veil of darkness disrupted only by the occasional streetlamp. Most denizens would head for home at this hour, but that is not the case for a certain pair in the depths of the subway system, as our view falls back upon the heroes hidden in refuse.
Following the duels of Ranma v. Boris and Yusei v. Trudge, it was decided that tonight was the two's only chance to escape. The garbage system would be momentarily shut down at midnight, allowing a risky, yet plausible shot at the city, so every little detail had to be accounted for.
At one point in the evening, a bully had sought to steal Yusei's duel runner, and though Ranma could've made short work of him, Yusei dueled him for ownership instead. The outcome: obvious. Yusei made quick work of the punk and his gang retreated.
But why are we still talking about the past, when it is the present that we are concerned with.
"Yusei!" Ranma yelled, clutching the back of his friend for dear life, "Have I ever told you that you're a complete lunatic?!" The two were currently upon the Yusei Go barreling down the garbage pipe, swerving past any jutting out refuse at 75 mph. Back in the hideout, the rest of the gang watched the escape attempt on Yusei's computer, breath held and anxious about the outcome.
"We don't have long before the system restarts, Ranma!" Yusei yelled over the roar of the engine. "After midnight, our escape route seals up, and over 15 tons of waste and garbage will flood the sewers! And I'd rather not be in this place when that happens!"
"The tunnel closes in less than 10 minutes, Yusei!" Blitz told the two through the radio on the Yusei Go. "If you're not on the other side of that door by then, the two of you will never get this chance again! Hurry!"
Say that again when you're driving down a sewer pipe at break-neck speeds! Ranma thought bitterly. If the two could make it without any interruptions, it looked like they would reach the exit with time to spare, but suddenly…
"Stop right there, Satellite Scum!" a familiar voice barked. Ranma looked back at were that voice came from and was met with a really unwanted surprise. Charging right behind the two was none other than Trudge, dodging obstacles on a Security runner, same as them.
"Why now of all times!?" Ranma groaned as Yusei tried to out run Trudge. However, before any significant distance could be made, Ranma and Yusei heard the last words either of them wanted to hear at such a moment.
"Duel Mode Engaged," Yusei's computer acknowledged, "Speed World Activated." The sewer walls took on the purple tint of Speed World as Yusei and Trudge's duel disks activated. How our duo were going to make it out of this one is a mystery, unless you've already seen the show.
Back in the city, as Jack raced around the track, he felt a presence he had not felt for a long time but could never forget.
"Yusei," he growled, stopping his Duel Runner. Ryoga, who had been watching the run, walked up to Jack, also feeling a presence.
"Ranma and Yusei," he confirmed, closing his eyes and hearing the roars of the monsters in both duelists' decks, "they're almost in the city. What do you want to do?"
"It's only fair we go out and greet our old friends," Jack sneered wickedly, as he placed his helmet back on his head, revved his runner, and started off. Ryoga decide to follow suit, walking over to the private DR garage.
Dozens upon dozens of the latest parts lined the walls of the garage for DRs in the city, and in the center of it all stood Ryoga's very own Duel Runner. He thought back upon how he had escaped their prison of a home with Jack on the duel runner they stole from their former friends, and how they both had little in the city until Goodwin discovered them. "Times have changed a lot since back them," he thought aloud, turning his attention back to the motorcycle.
It was of similar design as the one they took from their friends, as so that Ryoga would never wish to forget where he came from, unlike Jack. The difference between the two was that Ryoga's was customized with black-and-yellow stripe designs to match his bandana, and rather than be made of scrap like the original, it was all top quality material under the hood. Grabbing a black helmet with a yellow stripe circling the top, Ryoga mounted his ride, revved the engine, and took off after Jack.
Some time later, our heroes emerged from the pipelines, having defeated Trudge and escaped the avalanche of refuse. Though they could not see for sure, they knew their friends were cheering for them back in Satellite. For so long, they all had dreamt of this city, and now the pair would make that dream reality, rising to the top and facing the King and Kaiser of Neo Domino.
But then, the two spotted something overlooking them from the highway. The mix of emotions within the two at the sight of the traitorous Jack and Ryoga created a storm within the two, and now, as each fiercely stared each other down, that storm would unleash itself upon all of Neo Domino!
To be continued…
Finally! After so long I finish this chapter! It was a long road with many difficulties, but we're here! Next time, Jack and Yusei face off, while Ryoga reveals the story of his betrayal, and Ranma may just well have his revenge. Until next time…