Ever since I was a little one, I have always had a single dream – And that was to become a champion at something. And after all this time, I have finally acquired the skills and what I need to attain that dream.
No matter how anyone gets in my way, I will never surrender and I will not allow myself to fail. It may seem like saying something like that would not be probable, and I admit that I'm not perfect enough to say that I won't face hardships in my quest for greatness, but no matter what, I will not let my dream fall.
After all, this dream of mine isn't just for me – No, it's for more than just a selfish dream, it's for the one person who helped me attain what I needed to get this far. I swear to fulfill these goals for him…
For you, my brother…
I hope you're watching me, from wherever you are now…
TTTTTTTT
Draw 6
Deep Sea Diva
TTTTTTT
Time: 8:13 p.m.
Location: Shadowchaser'sBase – Brooklyn Branch, Living Room
It had been a few hours since Hardin had to deal with Teufel's demonic pleasures, but it didn't take long for the NYPD to get to the scene. Of course, when Hardin had reported the scene, she made sure to request Lynne Wystern to arrive so that there would be no problem with explanations and such.
Of course, there was a need to answer a few questions, some of them referring to the bloodied armor and Thirteen who had clung around Hardin's waist throughout the entire questioning. But, eventually, the dark clothed Shadowchaser was allowed to leave and head back to the main base…
… However…
"Great, another runt," Taiga sighed loudly as she fell into the couch of the living room. "And Kuroi was already getting on my nerves."
Hardin narrowed her gaze at Taiga as she felt Thirteen hide behind her, "Enough Taiga, what was I supposed to do? She doesn't seem to want to get too far from me…"
"Yeah! Bleh!" Thirteen added with her tongue sticking out at Taiga.
A small blood vessel appeared on the side of Taiga's head when she saw Thirteen's tongue stuck out at her. "You lousy little…"
"That's enough Taiga," Hardin scolded with her eyes narrowed down at the cat eared Shadowchaser, and then turned her gaze towards Thirteen who was pulling down her lower eyelid as well. "And Thirteen, don't provoke her."
"I'm sorry," Thirteen muttered with a downcast look.
"In any case, Taiga," Hardin continued as she turned back to Taiga. "Where's Irving? And by that same matter, where's our guest, Mr. Vayne?"
"Irving went out to get Kuori from the hospital," Taiga explained as she lifted up the remote control from the nearby coffee table. "And the grizzled old coot's in the study, looking over some cases that Irving gave him before he headed out. Why, you wanna ask Irving if you can keep your new pet?"
"Very respectable Taiga," Hardin replied as Taiga pushed a button on the remote and turned on the television in the living room. "There's a matter that I need to discuss with Irving concerning the tip you got from your sources. I think that the BackDraft Corps have been aiming to create some sort of artificial soldiers in order to bolster their…"
"Blah, blah, blah," Taiga spat as she used her free hand to mock a mouth moving. "Mind keeping quiet for a while? I'm watching the highlights from the duel last night."
"Highlights?" Thirteen questioned with a few blinks of her eyes. "What are those Mister?"
Hardin sighed loudly as she led Thirteen towards another chair in the room, "They just basically tell what happens with events – Like sporting events, or even dueling."
"Ooh! Does that mean we'll see you on the glowing box?" Thirteen questioned pointing towards the television. "You dueled earlier and…"
"Don't hold your breath, kid," Taiga interrupted as she waved the remote a few times in the air. "The highlights only show pro duelists – And while me and Hardin are on equal footing with some of these so-called 'pros', we're not the ones getting paid or getting our faces out in the public spotlight."
"W-What?" Thirteen asked with several question marks popping over her head. "Public spotlight? Pro duelist?"
"Don't worry Thirteen, I'll explain it later to you," Hardin explained as she sat Thirteen in the chair, Hardin on the other hand sat on the armrests.
"Welcome to NYC News!" The overly chipper announcer declared from the television screen as the camera zoomed in on her. "And as you just saw, that was the duel of last night – Between the current regional champion Leorina Childsman and the up and coming rookie Gerald Strings – And what a match it was! I feel sorry for anyone who missed that duel!"
Taiga nearly crushed the remote in her hands when she heard that, her eyes narrowing down at the TV screen. "…"
"Taiga, take a deep breath," Hardin sighed slightly with a shake of her head. "Remember the last time you got mad at the TV? You threw the remote right into screen and broke it, we don't want to replace the TV again…"
"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Taiga sighed as she tossed the remote down on the table. "Humph, first the Tivo craps out in recording the damn duel, then I don't even get to deal with the information that I had to deal with ninja lame-master Frank with, and now I can't even watch the highlights! Son of a…!"
Hardin quickly placed her hands over Thirteen's ears just before Taiga could finish her sentence.
TTTTTTTTTT
Meanwhile…
Jin slowly walked through the darkened halls, one of his large hands grasping gingerly at a mass of papers. It had only been a few minutes since he returned to his base, and already he was heading for his boss's room. Although, it didn't take too long for the refined Blood Ogre to make his way to the office, he had been working in the base for the last two and a half years and had already learned the layout of the mysterious building.
Although, when he reached the office, he was rather surprised to see that the door was gone. There was nothing to prevent anyone from walking into the room or provide any sense of privacy for those inside.
So, slowly, Jin raised his hand up and knocked the doorframe with his free hand, "Uh, sir? Are you in?"
"Can we just drop it? He wasn't in the movie!"
Jin staggered back slightly with a raised eyebrow. He instantly recognized that voice, it belonged to his boss. "Uh, sir?"
"And I say that Bill Paxton was in Navy Seals," another voice, one that Jin never heard before, but clearly discerned that it was female. "Look it up if you don't believe me."
"We would, if it wasn't for the fact that you broke my laptop!"
"Not my fault that cheap piece of crap couldn't handle my mad skills."
Jin lowered his head and walked into the office, trying to make sure that he didn't bump into anything in room. "Sir, I hate to interrupt your thrilling conversation but…"
"Great, we can get someone actually intelligent to settle this."
"Indeed, Jin, we need you to settle a bet here."
Jin blinked a few times behind his sunglasses before he stared at his boss, his golden blonde hair slightly messy and his eyes narrowed at the other side of the room. "Raiden, sir, I don't think this is really the time or the place for this. I have the items that were requested by our benefactor and…"
"Oh just stuff it, ya big galoot," the feminine voice sounded out ot Jin, drawing the Blood Ogre's attention towards the second person in the room, this one a smaller, thinner person compared to both Jin and Raiden, and dressed in a blue hoodie that covered up the upper part of her body and face (the figure and voice did give it away that this was a woman) and a pair of worn out jeans. "It'll only take a second."
"Very well," Jin sighed again with a roll of his eyes behind his sunglasses. "I can assume that this is referring to the movie, Navy Seals, and if Bill Paxton was in it, right?"
"Yes," Both Raiden and the mysterious girl answered at the same time.
"Unfortunately sir, Bill Paxton was in Navy Seals," Jin answered as he pushed up his sunglasses. "Charlie Sheen was also in that movie if I remember correctly."
"Sonva…" Raiden growled as he grounded his teeth a few times.
"Ha! Pay up golden boy!" The girl laughed loudly as she held her hand up, which Jin took notice that the girl's hand had black claws for the finger nails.
"Fine!" Raiden groaned loudly as he reached into his pocket and slapped a fifty-dollar bill in the girl's hand.
"Easiest fifty bucks I ever earned," the girl cackled as she pocketed the money. "Now then, let's get down to real business. The big guy here has the stuff that my boss wanted, right?"
"I can only assume so," Raiden sighed as he fell back into his chair. "Give her the stuff."
Jin shrugged slightly before he held the papers to the girl. "Here you are madam."
"Madam?" the girl scoffed before she snapped the papers out of the Blood Ogre's hand, and placed her other hand on her hip. "You need to take them shades off and get your eyes check, ogre – I'm a young, sexy lass, then again, I don't think I old codgers like you and golden boy over here to understand that."
"Old codger?" Jin muttered under his breath as he raised a hand to his hair, sure, that streak of white was natural and was slowly spreading, but he wasn't that old.
"Golden boy?" Raiden questioned.
"Anyway, later you two prunes," The girl chuckled as she slowly sauntered out of the office, waving the papers over her shoulder. "I got some plans, and I'll leave it up to your imagination to figure out what they are. And by the way, you'll be getting the goods later, use them well, 'kay?"
As soon as the girl was out of earshot Jin turned towards Raiden and sighed loudly, "Women these days."
"Tell me about it," Raiden moaned as he threw his head back. "In any case, I can assume that you gave her everything that the windbag wanted, right?"
"But of course, sir," Jin replied with a slight bow. "However, it took quite a deal of effort to acquire that research material. Were you aware that those alchemists had experimented with demonic and vampiric blood to create a sadistic living armor?"
"Who knows?" Raiden replied. "If you ran into anything like that, my bad. I didn't know anything save for what those losers gave us – supplements, cash, and other crap. Best not to think too hard on the matter."
Jin pushed up his sunglasses with one of his large fingers, "Well sir, it kind of does warrant some concern. Especially if that one man is involved with this situation, you can never be sure of what he is capable of."
"Yes, but that is of no concern for us," Raiden replied as he stood up from his desk and began to walk towards Jin. "It's a simple case of working with the devils, during the Cold War America sided with a number of allies to prevent the Soviet Union from trying take over other countries. And while there were a number of faults with the aftermath, we're only on a business terms with the windbag. And once our business transactions are over with, we won't have to deal with the same sort of troubles."
"All I am saying sir," Jin retorted with his hands lifted up. "Is to keep an eye on him, I worked with him before and even though he was higher ranked than I in my previous job, my previous boss had more trust in myself than him…"
"Jin, I trust you," Raiden sighed as he stood in front of Jin. "For the past two and a half years, you've shown nothing but loyalty to me and my brother, even if this stupid feud is causing a small rift between me and my brother…"
"Sir…" Jin interrupted.
"Right, don't need to go on another tirade again," Raiden muttered under his breath. "In any case, I'll trust your judgment Jin, but I've been at this game for most of my life – I know a snake when I see them and I know who to and not to trust. As for him… Well, I'm still rendering my judgment."
Jin sighed loudly, "… I'm taking that week off now, please excuse me sir."
"Bring me back a souvenir please!" Raiden requested with a warm smile on his face.
TTTTTTTT
Time: 8:30 p.m.
Location: Midtown Manhattan, Hudson Bar
Midtown Manhattan – A major subdivision of the famous borough, and home to a number of world famous hot spots, Rockefeller Center, Times Square, and Broadway. Truly, it was a section of the city where anyone could spend the best hours of their nightlife burning the midnight oil. Tonight was no exception to these trends, the streets were filled with the brim of cars and pedestrians who traversed under the glimmering streetlights. An orchestra of street sounds filled the air, accompanied by the various tunes that poured out of the various clubs and bars that lined the streets.
One such bar was known as the Hudson Bar, situated within the Hudson Hotel, which was one of the more hot and trendy bars that the night owls of the city flocked too. With its up-lit white floors, the large ceiling painting done by Francesco Clemente and the trendy drinks and music filling the atmosphere, it was a place to be where the young could enjoy their youth and widen their horizons.
Although, currently, the entire bar was being rented out to a private party, filling the entire bar to the brim with some of the most eccentric of people – all of them dressed in the latest of fashions and soaking in as much as the festive air as they possibly could.
For what reason?
Well, the reason for the night's festivities was seated at the bar, with a number of the patrons congratulating her. She was young and beautiful, with long blonde hair that was braided all the way down past her backside and ended with a heart like charm tied to her hair. She was dressed in a sea blue dress that hugged her slim figure while having a slit up to her mid right thigh to show her toned legs (they certainly did draw a lot of people's eyes) and a small white jacket. Her face was trim and seemed to be sculpted by the angels themselves, and the smile on her face only added to her beauty.
"Once again, congratulations on your recent win Miss Childsman!"
The young woman blushed slightly as she turned to the side to see that it was a random guest who had congratulated her. "Uh, thank you very much, I really appreciate it."
This was Leorina Childsman, the current regional champion of the United States, she was a young lass who managed to capture the hearts of many people in the country with her rise to fame. It had only been a year and a half since she had started in the American Pro Leagues, however, she had managed to become a rising star on the tracks of the riding duel circuit.
However, while this party was in honor of her latest victory to keep her title and she was the life of the party, she wasn't very interested in being a part of the festivities. Still, she had to put on a happy brave face for her sponsors, supporters and those lucky fans that managed to either be put on the list to get into this party or managed to crash at the last minute.
With one last sip to empty her drink, Leorina sighed loudly before she shook her head. 'Fans, money, and parties that go into the late night – This is what most New Yorkers dream of. All my hard work paid off and still…'
"Dis-amn Angel Fish! Ya gotta be a bummer at yer own party?" A deep voice sounded right behind Leorina, making the young duelist jump slightly. "That just ain't gunna fly, Angel Fish. Yer a champ! Ya gotta mingle with the high life!"
Spinning around, Leorina was met with someone who definitely stuck out of the party group inside of the Hudson Bar – By a very big contrast. While everyone was dressed in a fancy suit or dress, this tall man was dressed in a fur-lined coat with a black feathered fedora atop of his head of short, messy white hair. Despite his white hair however, this dark skinned man had a muscular body that had a pair of khaki pants and a tank top that hugged his muscular body. And around his thick neck was a long necklace that had a large red and black star-shaped charm whipped as he moved around. "C'mon Angel Fish, show some love for this crowd – They here just fer ya, ya know."
"Jersey, please," Leorina sighed with a slight grimace on her face. "I'm just tired, I'm trying to be cheery, but…"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, I thought we were clear on the title, Angel Fish," 'Jersey' stated with his hands lifted up, waving them a few times. "Jersey doesn't hit well with the ladies, J Devil on the other hand, now that's a stone cold classic."
"Sure, whatever you say J Devil," Leorina sighed to herself as she pushed her empty glass away on the counter.
Jersey Devins, or J Devil as he referred to himself as, was actually a man who held quite a standing in the American dueling league – Both as a chairman on the main board and as a major contributor to the league, both in funds and in ideas. While the dueling circuit in North America wasn't has hot as it was in Japan a few years back, time and a little bit of elbow grease to this eccentric man has managed to acquire the attention of the American viewing public back onto the dueling scene of America.
However, the man himself…
…
…
… Well, he made conversations all the more interesting…
"Thatta girl," J Devil cackled as he sat down in a seat next to Leorina. "But that aside, damn girl, you are lookin' so fine in that dress. Get that as a gift for your win from your old man?"
"You realize I could claim sexual harassment with that last statement, right?" Leorina questioned with a flat look in her eyes.
"Hey, hey, hey, that was just a compliment," J Devil nervously replied with his arms crossed in front of him defensively. "No need to play the lawsuit card against the Devil! I got enough on my plate as it is!"
"Just relax J Devil," Leorina chuckled slightly with a roll of her eyes. "I'm not that kind of person, you know that, my fans know that, practically everyone knows that about me. I'm not that cheap of a person."
"Ya never know now-a-days," J Devil sighed with relief.
"So, what's the pleasure of this conversation?" Leorina questioned as she watched the bartender provide a second drink for her.
"Can't a representative of the league just stop by the say congrats on your win?" J Devil questioned as he drew back slightly.
Leorina once again rolled her eyes at J Devil, "From any other representative, yes. From you, not so much."
"That stabs deep girl, real deep," J Devil moaned with his head lowered. "Whatever. It doesn't really matter, keep giving me your cheap shots so they stay off the duel lane – What I came to talk to you about was that one of our ad sponsors had a simple request to meet you. Gotta keep the corporate sponsors happy ya know, can't really say no to them off the bat.
"So, here I am, aiming to get ya to meet him and to get him off of my case."
This was nothing new to Leorina. Ever since she became a pro league duelist she was met with a number of sponsors and fans who wanted a piece of her – Sometimes it would be literally. Sponsors tended to be a bit classier than fans for the most part, at least they didn't weren't hounding her for autographs. "Which sponsor are you talking about? Not to sound ungrateful, but a couple of those guys kinda rub me the wrong way."
"Heh, don't worry," J Devil replied with a sparkling smirk. "This guy's quite legit, he's the representative for that one medical company, Valva… Valvato…"
"Valvatore Corporation," Leorina finished with a droplet of sweat rolling down the side of her head.
"Yeah, that bitching company," J Devil cackled with a wide grin on his face.
The sweat droplet alongside Leorina's head grew slightly, "J, I think you might be over doing it a little bit with this act of yours."
"Act? What act?" J Devil questioned with an eyebrow raised up.
"Never mind," Leorina replied as she swirled the drink in her hand. "So, what does this Valvatore representative want with me?"
"Why don't ya ask the man yourself?" J Devil retorted as he pointed past Leorina. "He's sitting right next to you."
"Indeed I am, I am quite surprise you didn't notice I was right behind you."
Leorina jumped slightly as she spun on her seat to look at the man who sat behind her – With a cocktail glass in his gloved hands, he was a tall, if not slim man dressed in a fancy dark blue business suit with a long white scarf that hung around his neck. He had a chiseled face that was topped off by rich auburn colored hair that was feathered back on his head to show the man's oddly yellow eyes. He smiled after he took a long sip of his cocktail. "Hmm, I didn't even know this place made Manhattans here. Still, a good job…"
The auburn haired man placed his almost finished drink on the counter and slowly turned towards Leorina with his gloved hand extended, "Miss Childsman, it is an honor to make your acquaintance. I am Nathaniel Z. Carine, I am a market representative for the Valvatore Corporation as you no doubt have guessed while you were speaking to your… Colleague?"
"I like to consider myself as one of Leorina's bosses," J Devil cackled loudly as he lifted up a tall glass from the bar.
Leorina rolled her eyes before she took Nathaniel's hand and shook it gently, "It's good to meet you. What can I do for you Mr. Carine?"
"It's nothing too serious," Nathaniel replied as he released Leorina's hand. "Just a business proposal concerning your dueling, the CEO of Valvatore Corp is quite interested in your dueling ability Miss Childsman. I am simply here to make a business proposal."
"Business at a party," Leorina sighed under her breath. "You must be quite the quite the lively partier."
Nathaniel chuckled slightly before he drank the remainder of his Manhattan, "Oh, my apologies. This celebration is to mark your latest victory to maintain your champion duelist status, congratulations on that matter once again. However, we still have an interest in your skills, and I would really like to have a few moments of your time in order to work out a deal with you."
"I don't know," Leorina replied with her eyes closed. "I am committed to my current sponsors and…"
"Oh, I have no interest in sponsoring you in your dueling career," Nathaniel interrupted as he stood up. "Rather, I would like to propose a duel for charity."
"A fundraiser or something?" Leorina questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"Actually," Nathaniel corrected as he placed a card on the bar in front of him. "It concerns your older brother in jail."
Leorina's eyes widened when she heard that, however, before she could confront Nathaniel, the auburn haired man was already walking away from the bar with his arms folded behind his back. Leorina would've given chase after the blue suited man, but he quickly disappeared into the crowds.
With her eyes narrowed, Leorina lifted up the card that the mysterious man had left on the counter, as it turned out, it was a business card that gave the basic information about Nathaniel Z. Carine. But, the young pro flipped the card around and saw that there was a handwritten message on the back that read:
Dear Miss Childsman,
If you want answers, in an hour meet me at the Sky Terrace on the 15th floor.
Be sure to bring your dueling equipment and dress warmly.
From, Nathaniel Z. Carine
'What in the world is this about?' Leorina thought to herself as she looked at the card. She turned towards J Devil to get a few answers, but the eccentric chairman was preoccupied with a fancy little number who had sat next to him at the bar.
Once again, Leorina looked down at the card she held in her hand – Whoever this guy was, he knew of her older brother's prison status, and even she didn't know all the details about his incarceration, all she knew was that roughly three and a half years ago, her older brother was arrested on some weird charges.
"… J," Leorina stated as she tapped the loudly dressed man's shoulder.
"Yeah, Angel Fish?" J Devil chuckled, not taking his sight off of the woman who was sitting right next to him.
"I'm gonna turn in for the night," Leorina replied as she slipped the business card into her jacket's pocket. "Thanks for having this party."
"Aw come on, Angel Fish, ya can't be wanting to leave this party so soon," J Devil complained, turning his head to look at Leorina out of the corner of his vision. "Yer the life of the party! If ya leave, ya take the life with ya!"
"Can you blame me?" Leorina replied with a sigh. "I didn't get any sleep for several hours after the late night duel, I'm practically running on steam at the moment."
"Humph, fine," J Devil replied with a wave of his hand before he turned back to the young woman he was talking with before. "So, how about you slip me your digits girl?"
Leorina rolled her eyes before she walked towards the exit, 'Same old Devin… Acting like a playa, but is really just a little kid desperate for attention. Thank goodness I got a room here with a change of clothes and my stuff.'
TTTTTTTT
Time: 9:23 p.m.
Location: Hudson Hotel, Sky Terrance
The Sky Terrance of the Hudson Hotel was known to be a very beautiful scene in the hotel, giving anyone a breath-taking view of New York City while enjoying the calm serenity that accompanied the terrace's basic design and would be the source of a number of social events during the day to the guests of the Hudson Hotel.
But this was the night, and as such, was closed off to regular guests. Only those with connections and those with deep pockets were able to access the terrace at this time at night, and those who were invited by those very same deep pockets.
"The night is beautiful…"
Standing in front of the doors to the inside of the hotel was none other than Nathaniel Z. Carine, his gaze focused on the moon that pended in the sky above him and his hands folded behind the small of his back. Nathaniel sighed once more as he pulled his left hand up to his eyes to leer at his watch. "Hmm, almost time. And here I was thinking that she would be interested in learning more about…"
"Alright what did you want?"
Nathaniel blinked a few times when he realized that Leorina was standing directly in front of him. With a surprised yelp, Nathaniel staggered back with his arms in the air, "ACK! How'd you do that?"
Leorina shrugged her shoulders, "Science fiction?"
Nathaniel slowly regained his composure and realized that while it was indeed the same girl he had meet down on the ground floor of the hotel, she had changed drastically. Instead of the dress, Leorina was now dressed in a pair of tight black jeans and a long sleeved black shirt with a baggy white jacket with silver trim on it. Around her thin waist were a few white belts, she had her braided hair draped over her right shoulder, and the gentle look in her eyes had melted away to reveal a fierce, but still beautiful, pair of eyes that leered directly at Nathaniel's.
With a slight cough, Nathaniel immediately folded his hands back behind him, "So good you could join me, Miss Childsman. Or can I call you Leorina?"
"Let's keep this formal, shall we?" Leorina replied as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Now, you have information about my brother? How much will it cost me to hear it?"
Nathaniel smiled warmly as he lifted up his hand, allowing a small rod-like device to pop out of his sleeve. A small beep echoed through the air before a holographic screen emerged from the device to display an extensive amount of data, "Oh, I'm not interested in monetary gain, Miss Childsman. I am merely a man who desires to see the happiness of others, and injustices such as yours are things that I seek to right.
"Marcus Childsman, current age – twenty-eight years. Occupation – Former loan shark and manager of S. Reef Lender. Current status – Incarcerated in the countryside of Yorkshire, Britain. List of offenses – My, that's quite a rep-sheet he has…"
"Is that all you had to say to me?" Leorina asked with her eyes slightly narrowed. She had heard this from an official report that her family was given by officials when her brother was arrested a few years back. "I've heard this before."
"No doubt about that," Nathaniel replied as he snapped his arm to the side, recalling the holographic device back into his sleeve. "But don't you think it's strange? That your brother is being forced to live out his punishment in a separate country? Especially since his crimes were committed in the territory of the United States?"
"Well, yes, but I would assume that…" Leorina started.
"Assumptions are not worth mentioning," Nathaniel stated with his finger raised up to Leorina's lips, interrupting her. "Neither is the supposed truth that the so called bringers of justice presented to you. Tell me something Miss Childsman, do you see the real truth? Or are you trapped in the mist, with the truth blockaded from you?"
"What? What kind of nonsense is that?" Leorina questioned as she stepped back slightly.
Nathaniel rolled his head slightly, his smile still on his face. "Miss Leorina, do you remember the days when you first met your brother? Did he not look different when you grew older? Did he not look… More like a creature of fantasy?"
Leorina was about to speak up, but her head pounded slightly. It was if her mind was fighting itself trying to recall what her adoptive older brother looked like when they were kids – A majority of her mind was telling her that he looked just like he did when she last saw him, albeit younger of course.
But…
There was a small part in the back of her mind that was whispering to her that preconception she had were wrong…
"I… I don't know…" Leorina replied as she stepped back slightly.
"I see, so you haven't awaken," Nathaniel sighed as he turned to the side. "Not yet it seems. The truth is at your fingertips, but there is something holding you back. Miss Childsman, would you care to learn the truth? Not just about your brother, but also about this world?"
"What in the world are you talking about?" Leorina questioned.
"What is real?" Nathaniel asked as he raised his hand up towards the sky. "How do you define real? If you're talking about what you can feel, what you can smell, what you can taste and see, then real is simply electrical signals interpreted by your brain."
"Let me guess, you're going to offer me the red pill and the blue pill now?" Leorina guessed with a flat look on her face as she kept her hand on her face.
"Of course not," Nathaniel chuckled. "But I am going to offer you a choice Miss Childsman, you are on the edge of discovering the truth of this world, but I am not going to force you to accept this truth. That is your decision.
"You can learn the truth of this world, but I must warn you, that you will not be able to return to your simple life, you'll see a number of people in a different light than you have ever seen before and I will not lie, it will be frightening at times. Or you can remain like as you as right now, on the road to being a champion – Unaware of the challenges that plague this world, and you will never learn the truth behind your brother's incarceration."
Leorina took a deep breath and pulled her hand away from her face, but it was pretty obvious that she was still a little uncomfortable, "Let's say I'm interested in this truth, what would I have to do in order to gain this truth?"
The smile on Nathaniel's face began to grow, "I informed you that I was interested in a deal, in addition, I also requested that you bring your dueling equipment. The truth is a beautiful gem that everyone is entitled to, but it must be earned."
"You want me to duel you to learn the 'truth'?" Leorina questioned with a raised eyebrow. "Are you one of those businessmen who want to make it big by taking down a champion?"
"I never said you would be dueling against me," Nathaniel corrected as he lifted up his free hand. "A duel between champions present and past is what I seek."
Leorina didn't know what that meant, but crossed her arms over her chest, "I'll ask this then, what do you gain?"
"Well, let's just say I'm testing something," Nathaniel explained. "I have a duelist here who needs some 'fine tuning'. Against a fresh champion would be the best test for him, after all, it's been a while since he's dueled."
"Is he a duelist your company is sponsoring?" Leorina questioned as she reached into her pocket.
"More like I'm a private sponsor for this particular duelist," Nathaniel stated. "So, would you be interested in the truth? All it will cost is one little duel."
Leorina sighed loudly as she pulled out a small pocket duel disk from her pocket and lifted it up in front of her, "You're on, but I want to know everything about my brother if I win."
"Oh, but of course," Nathaniel stated as he snapped his fingers loudly. "Now, allow me to introduce your opponent for the evening Miss Childsman. You can come out now sir!"
Footsteps echoed through the air, drawing Leorina's attention to the side, where a third person was slowly walking out from the shadows. When the man stepped into the light, Leorina's eyes widened at the man.
He was rather tall, but was in his late teens or early twenties, and had a slim body that was covered with a black overcoat with white trim and seemed to be lined with sharp edges on it over a tight black shirt and pants. Around his waist was a belt that had a gunmetal gray belt buckle on it with the letter 'R' centered on it. His face, while handsome seemed to have an enraged/sadistic look to it, and was topped with dark blue hair that had three layers to it, with his enraged blue eyes right underneath his bangs.
On his left arm was an older, bulkier duel disk that was a silver color, yet had a dark blue trim to it, and had a deck loaded into it.
For the third time that night, Leorina stepped back, "What the…? How is that even possible!"
"Are you my opponent?" The blue haired man questioned with his sharp eyes narrowed down. "A scared little girl who quivers at the sight of me?"
"Carine, what the hell is this?" Leorina snarled at the blue suited businessman who was now leaning up against the doors that led to the inside of the hotel.
Nathaniel merely shrugged his shoulders, "What seems to be the problem? Not many duelists now-a-days get the chance to duel against the one and only Hell Kaiser – Marufuji Ryo. Not only do you get a chance to duel to learn the truth, you get to test your skills against one of the most powerful duelists of all time."
Leorina took a deep breath, 'Alright, calm down girl, there's no way that this guy is the actual RYO MARUFUJI. It's been generations since the Ryo passed on dueling, even if he were still alive, he'd be an old man. More than likely this guy is just some poser who idolized Ryo…
'Still, the guy really does look like the Hell Kaiser.'
"Whatever you say, Carine. I'll take down this wannabe duelist!"
Ryo's eyes narrowed even more as he lifted up his duel disk, "You'll regret those words, girl. Let's duel!" (RLP: 8000)
"That's my line!" Leorina retorted as she snapped her dueling deck into her duel disk and immediately allowed the device to shuffle the cards. (LLP: 8000)
'And so it's begun,' Nathaniel thought to himself as he folded his hands behind his back again.
"Your choice on who begins," Ryo stated as both duelists pulled off the five cards from their decks.
"Fine by me, you can take the first turn," Leorina replied with her eyes closed. 'The thing about copycats is that they tend to think like the duelists they copy. So, I can guess that this 'Ryo' would probably play the same as the Champion he's copying. I'm not interested in dealing with Cyber Dragons right on the first turn.'
Ryo was silent as he drew his sixth card and nodded at the cards, "… Very well, then the first move will be this – The spell card, Dark World Dealings! I doubt I have to explain what this card is capable of to you."
"Of course you don't," Leorina replied as she and 'Ryo' plucked a single card from the top of their decks. After a few moments, Leorina pulled one of the six cards from her hand and slipped one of them into her duel disk's graveyard slot. "I'll discard Mermaid Sirens."
"And I'll discard Proto Cyber Dragon," Ryo answered back.
'Predictable,' Leorina thought as she watched Ryo look at the last five cards in his hand. 'Cyber Dragon decks may be cheap as hell, but they make it so easy to see what's coming next.'
"Now, I summon Cyber Hydra!" Ryo announced as he slapped a card onto his duel disk.
Several roars echoed through the air as several beams of blue light erupted behind Ryo's body, allowing a large, three-headed, futuristic cybernetic dragon erupt behind him connected to a large body that had a single large tail and a pair of short stubby legs on it. All three of the metallic heads aimed their visor covered eyes down at Leorina before they roared once again (2000/1500).
'Okay, didn't see that one coming,' Leorina thought to herself as she looked at the weird creature.
"From the look on your face, you're surprised," Ryo stated as he fitted two cards in his hand into his duel disk, which made them appear in front of him. "If I possess no monsters and have one light machine monster in the graveyard, I can normal summon this card without tribute. Turn end."
"So you've got a new trick up your sleeve," Leorina replied as she drew the top card from her deck. "I'll show you how real pros do this! I summon Cure Mermaid in attack mode!"
Several bubbles fluttered around Leorina's side of the field, immediately allowing a beautiful, golden haired mermaid with a red scaled tail and dressed in a silky blouse. The mermaid smiled brightly before she clasped her hands together (1500/800). "And next, I'll go on the attack! Cure Mermaid! Attack the Cyber Hydra!"
Ryo narrowed his eyes as he watched the Mermaid bring her fingers up to her lips and blew a kiss towards the Cyber Hydra, which created a large pink bubble that was in the shape of a heart that flew towards the Hydra. "It's barely the second turn and you're already trying to insult me?"
"It's called strategy!" Leorina replied as she lifted up a card from her hand. "During the damage step, I can play this! The spell card Shrink! Now your monster loses half of its attack points!"
The large three-headed cyber monster shrunk down to roughly the size of the Cure Mermaid (2000/1500 – 1000/0), and the heart-shaped bubbles crashed into the machine. The three heads roared loudly before the entire monster shattered into millions of pixels that flew past the Hell Kaiser. (RLP: 8000)
"Wait, what in the world…?" Leorina questioned as she looked at the duel disk.
Ryo swiftly drew a card from his deck before he gestured towards one of the face down cards that was on his field that had lifted up – Defense Draw. Leorina sighed to herself as she slipped a card into her duel disk, "Really? You're using a trap like that his early?"
"It wasn't for defense," Ryo stated as he looked over the three cards in his hand. "It was for reinforcements."
"Sure, you keep telling yourself that," Leorina replied as her face down cards appeared in front of her. "Two cards set and I'll end my turn!"
Once again, Ryo was silent as he drew, but then he immediately tossed the card into his hand and threw his hand over the remaining face down card. "At this moment, my trap card activates – Cyber Photon Blaster."
'Again, another card I haven't seen before,' Leorina thought to herself as she watched the card transform into a large three cannoned, cybernetic rover that's resembled Ryo's trademark monster – the Cyber End Dragon. 'This certainly doesn't seem like Ryo Marufuji's style, let alone Hell Kaiser's. If it was, there would be more of a dependence on the Cyber Darks, but seeing as how they belong to Sho Marufuji's family, there's no way that this wannabe would have them.'
For a moment, Ryo tapped his foot against the ground, "If you're done having your head in the clouds, allow me to tell you that this trap is useless at the moment. However, that will change as soon as I give it some ammunition. By removing one spell card from my hand, the spell card Cybernetic Data Excavation summons a level four or lower LIGHT monster from my graveyard. So, revive Proto-Cyber Dragon!"
A powerful surge of light erupted in front of Ryo, which allowed another cybernetic monster appear on the field, this one a small serpent that looked to be the beginnings of a machine with wires sticking out of its body (1100/600). "And, since this monster was just special summoned, I am allowed to play the spell card – Inferno Reckless Summon! This spell instantly summons all copies of the monster I just summoned, while at the same time you get to summon all copies of the only monster on your field."
"And I just happen to have two more copies of Cure Mermaid in this deck," Leorina replied as two cards popped out from her deck and she slapped the cards onto her duel disk. In two flashes of light, two more Cure Mermaids appeared next to the original one, the two of them winking towards Ryo (1500/800 x2).
"And now, my summons," Ryo stated as he held his hand to his deck and caught a few cards, but then lifted his hand up to his graveyard slot, taking a card from it as well. "As you are no doubt aware, my Proto-Cyber Dragon's effect makes it act as a Cyber Dragon while on the field, and thus, thanks to Inferno Reckless Summon…"
Several roars blasted through the air as three large, white armored cybernetic serpents flew over the field, each of them glistening in what little light there was on the terrace (2100/1600 x3). But what made Leorina step back in surprise was the fact that the three headed Cyber Hydra reappeared back on the field (2000/1500), all three of its heads roaring loudly.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Leorina shouted as she lifted her hands up towards the Cyber Hydra. "I get the Cyber Dragons, but how is that back?"
"While in the graveyard or on the field," Ryo explained as he kept his attention towards his Cyber Photon Blaster, which was beginning to glow brightly. "My Cyber Hydra treats itself as a Cyber Dragon, meaning it's an applicable choice for the Reckless Summon. But enough about that! Cyber Dragons! Destroy the pitiful defenses she called! Triple Strident Blast!"
All three of the Cyber Dragons opened their mouths, and within them were bright blue lights that signified their attacks. Then, several blue flames erupted from the Cyber Dragons' mouths, all of them flying towards the three Cure Mermaids. However, Leorina lifted up her duel disk and pushed a button on her duel disk, and a powerful dimensional vortex appeared in between the three mermaids, which absorbed the flames. "Negate Attack, you're going to have to try harder than that to take me down!"
Ryo seemed unconcerned as he slipped a card into his duel disk, making it appear behind his five monsters. "One card set, and now, during my end phase, my Cyber Photon Blaster's effect now activates! For every Cyber Counter on the field, you're blasted with five hundred points of damage!"
The futuristic cannon hummed to life and immediately fired a powerful blast of blue energy that crashed into Leorina's torso. For a moment, Leorina's eyes widened at the surprising sensation that struck her – the burning sensation of pain! "URK!" (LLP: 7500)
'I was wondering if that little ability would still be active after that event,' Nathaniel thought to himself as he watched Leorina breath slightly to deal with the slight pain. 'But yep! Looks like even the influence will still be active. Oh well, at least we learned a few other things about this thing…'
"Miss Childsman, are you alright?"
"Just peachy," Leorina growled back as she stood up straight and exhaled an exasperated sigh from her mouth. 'Feels like I just got socked in the stomach…'
"Can't even take a five hundred point burn?" Ryo stated with his arms crossed. "And you call yourself a pro duelist… You even have the gall to call yourself a duelist at all."
Leorina narrowed her eyes down on Ryo and she immediately plucked off the top card from her deck, "No one questions my ability as a duelist, I don't care if you're real or if you're a fake of Ryo Marufuji."
"If I'm a fake, then you should have no trouble defeating me then," Ryo replied as he held his hand up. "If you're a real duelist, then you should be able to quench that thirst for battle!"
"Quench? How about I drown you in it instead?" Leorina stated as she threw her hand up into the air, making all three of the Cure Mermaids blow kisses into the air, creating several heart shaped bubbles around their duelist. "Since it's my stand by phase, my Cure Mermaids grant me a gift, I gain eight hundred life points! Since you gave me the other two on my field, I'll just gain back what I just lost and then some!" (LLP: 9900)
"Oh my, its over nine thousand," Nathaniel chuckled to himself with a small grin on his face.
"You be quiet," Leorina growled as two of her Cure Mermaids glowed brightly. "As for what's happening next, I'm releasing two of my mermaids in order to summon Queen of the Seven Seas!"
The sound of a single drop of water echoed through the air, which garnered the attention of both Nathaniel and Ryo, both of them lifted their gaze to see that there were several orbs of water that had mysteriously appeared over Leorina's head. The orbs of water immediately slammed into each other and combined into a larger orb of water until there was one gigantic watery orb that pended dangerously a few inches over Leorina's head.
The young pro duelist lifted her hand over her head and snapped her fingers, which made the orb of water shatter into a torrent of water that crashed into the terrace's floor. However, that wasn't the only thing that landed on the terrace, for along with the water was a beautiful mermaid that landed in front of Leorina, this amazon of the sea with long seaweed colored hair that was topped with a shell-like crown and over her upper body was light coral-like armor that was adorned with shells and fins from various sea creatures and her hands was a long trident that had what appeared to be a 7-Colored Fish wrapped around the staff and up to the head of the trident (2600/2400).
Nathaniel whistled at the aquatic monster. But Ryo on the other hand…
"Is that all?" The Hell Kaiser scoffed at the sight of the creature. "That effort to summon one creature?"
"Not at all," Leorina stated as she lifted a card up from her hand and slipped it into her duel disk's graveyard slot. "You see, my Queen of the Seven Seas has domain over each denizen of the deep and can call them at will. By discarding one water monster from my hand, I can instantly summon another water monster from my graveyard. So, I'll ditch Draw Slime in order to special summon this monster!"
Leorina reached into her graveyard slot, pulled out a single card from it and slammed it onto her duel disk. A small geyser of water erupted from the terrace and from the water, a trio of mermaids popped from the geyser. All of them seemed to be in their teens and were dressed in starfish adorned clothing, but each of them had different hair color to them, one had short blue hair, the second had long black hair, and the third had strawberry blonde hair that brushed her shoulders. Each of the three mermaids clasped their hands together and began to sing a small cheery tune (1000/1800). "The Mermaid Sirens, which you so generously allowed me to discard. And speaking of discard, because I discarded Draw Slime, I gain another draw from my deck."
Leorina pulled the top card from her deck as a graceful blue aura slowly shifted from the Mermaid Sirens (1000/1800 + 400/0) and into both the Cure Mermaid (1500/800 + 400/0) and the Queen of the Seven Seas (2600/2400 + 400/). "And I should also mention that while my Mermaid Sirens are out on the field, all Water monsters gain four hundred attack points, but I'm not done, not by a long shot! It's at this time that I activate my trap card – Stage of the Sea!"
One of the face downs on Leorina's field flipped up, and revealed a trap that depicted the Mermaid Sirens singing on a decorated rock on the sea that had a lot of glowing lights and sea-like charms around them. It was then that the Mermaid Sirens began to sing even louder, empowering all of the mermaids on the dueling field (1400/1800 + 300/0) (3000/2400 + 300/0) (1900/800 + 300/0). "And as long as this traps out, all of my Water Monsters gain an additional three hundred attack points, and now…
"I GO ON THE ATTACK! Queen!"
The trident wielding mermaid spun her weapon around before she snapped the weapon towards one of the Cyber Dragons and unleashed a powerful blue light that flew from the air and slammed into one of the Cyber Dragons. For a moment, the attack seemed to do nothing until rust began to appear over the metallic dragon's body and it fell into millions of pieces. (RLP: 6800)
"Cure Mermaid! Blast the Hydra!"
The Cure Mermaid brought her hands up to her lips and blew another kiss towards the Cyber Hydra, with a flurry of heart shaped bubbles that crashed into the three headed machine, and shattered the monster. (RLP: 6600)
"And finally, Mermaid Sirens, take out the Proto-Cyber Dragon!" Leorina ordered as the three mermaids all leapt into the air and threw their hands forward. From the Sirens' hands erupted three shots of water that crashed into the Proto-Cyber Dragon's body, shattering it into millions of parts.
"Proto was in defense mode," Ryo replied with his arms crossed. "So my life points were unharmed by that last attack."
"Maybe so, but your cybernetic monstrosities were taken down a few soldiers," Leorina stated as she slipped a card into her duel disk. "And the difference in our life points certainly makes up for that. One card set, and my turn is over!"
Ryo slowly pulled the top card from his deck as immediately a golden light began to flutter down in front of him. Ryo snapped his arm forwards and turned the item around to reveal a spell card in his hand, "During my stand by phase, the card I removed from play last turn activates its effect – Treasure from a Different Dimension. Now it returns to my hand, and both of us draw two cards from our decks."
"I'm fine with that," Leorina muttered under her breath as she flicked off the top two cards from her deck while Ryo did the same. 'Now there's a move that I remember Ryo Marufuji used religiously to resupply his resources. Either this guy's got some deep pockets, or… No, it's not possible.'
"Now then, I think it's time I started getting serious," Ryo stated as he looked at the six cards in his hand. "You've demonstrated enough skill for me to see the full extent of your abilities, so its only fair that I do the same."
'Oh crap, here come the fusions,' Leorina thought to herself as she lifted up her duel disk. 'But, if he busts out either Twin or End, my face down Bottomless Trap Hole will destroy it and remove it.'
"So, I summon a second Cyber Proton Dragon!" Ryo announced as a second copy of the Cyber Dragon in the works appeared in front of him (1100/800), which made the Cyber Photon Blaster hum even louder. "So my blaster gains another Cyber Counter, and now I play the spell card Polymerization! And I'll fuse my three Cyber Dragons on the field…"
'Here it comes,' Leorina thought to herself as she watched a large vortex appear over all three o the machines on Ryo's field.
The three cybernetic dragons flew into the vortex, which created a large amount of electrical energy that made the vortex cackle loudly. Leorina slowly placed her finger on the button of her duel disk, her eyes focused on the three headed cyber dragon that would emerge from the vortex. A loud mechanical roar blasted through the air as Leorina bit her lower lip in anticipation.
However, when a pair of cybernetic claws erupted from the vortex, Leorina's eyes widened, "What the, that's not Cyber End Dragon!"
The rest of the cybernetic creature dropped from the vortex, this one a titanic Cyber Dragon that had a larger torso with two short stubby mechanical legs. The cybernetic dragon also had what appeared to be a large missile with the bio-hazard symbol labeled on it and on the dragon's chest was a small screen that had the number '3' displayed on it (0/0). Ryo smirked slightly as he crossed his arms. "Of course, while the Cyber End Dragon is a powerful weapon, the Cyber Meltdown Dragon is a weapon of mass destruction at my disposal."
'That thing has zero attack points and required three monsters to summon,' Leorina thought to herself as she eyed the large missile on the monster's back. 'And with that… Thing strapped to its back, that's just plain bad news.'
"One card set," Ryo stated as the back row card appeared in between his Blaster and the other face down card on his field. "Turn end."
"What?" Leorina questioned when Ryo said that. "Really?"
"Of course, during my end phase," Ryo stated as he threw his hand towards his Cyber Photon Blaster, which was charging up again. "My Blaster fires off another shot, this time it gained two more Cyber Counters this turn, but my Cyber Meltdown Dragon has three Cyber Counters on it, so that means that you'll get blasted with a thousand points of damage now!"
The blaster immediately fired off a quick shot of blue energy that crashed into Leorina's stomach, and forced her back a few feet. "URK!" (LLP: 8900)
"Now my turn is over," Ryo stated with his arms crossed.
Leorina held her head, the pain she experienced from the Cyber Photon Blaster felt worse this time (as if someone was wearing cleats and kicked her in the stomach with them) and the headache she had ever since she stepped onto the terrace was on par with a jackhammer slamming into her mind every time her turn came around.
What was happening to her?
"Are you going to duel, or are you just done?" Ryo growled with his eyes narrowed down at Leorina.
"If summoning that waste of cardstock is your best," Leorina stated as she drew from the top of her deck. "Then I'd hate to see your worst!"
'Still, considering everything he did to bring that out, he must have another reason for having it out… I've got a few monsters in my hand, but with those two face down cards, I'd rather not risk summoning or using Queen of the Seven Sea's effect until I know what he's capable of. But that doesn't mean I can't do some damage!'
Once again, the Cure Mermaid turned towards her duelist and blew a kiss towards Leorina, allowing a pink heart-shaped bubble that popped over her. (LLP: 9700)
"Now that I've gotten refreshed, it's time to take you down!" Leorina announced as she threw her hand forward. "Cure Mermaid! Attack the Cyber Meltdown Dragon!"
The Cure Mermaid winked and immediately blew another kiss, only this time it was aimed towards the large monstrosity with the bubbles flying towards it. However, a large glowing barrier appeared in between the Cyber Meltdown Dragon and the attack, energy slipped from the barrier as Ryo threw his hand towards the side, "I activate my trap card at this moment, the powerful Mirror Force, now your attack is deflected back at you and your monsters shall pay the price!"
Leorina lifted her arm up as the barrier shattered, and immediately several lights flew through the air back towards her monsters and crashed at the ground in front of each of the monsters, creating several explosions that rocked the terrace. Smoke erupted from the ground and blanketed all of Leorina's field.
"Oh my, what a waste," Nathaniel sighed to himself as he shook his head. "And those monsters were rather splendid as well."
"I wouldn't count my monsters out just yet."
The smoke began to clear from Leorina's field, and it was revealed that the Queen of the Seven Seas was still on the field, her beautiful face narrowed down at Ryo (2900/2400). "You see, when my queen would be destroyed by a card effect, by releasing another water monster on the field, my queen survives!
"So, by sending my Mermaid Sirens to the graveyard, she lives to continue the fight against your mechanical monstrosity! Queen!"
The Queen of the Seven Seas leapt into the air, and spun around as she brought the trident down on the large variant of the Cyber Dragons. However, when the attack collided, only sparks began to fly off of the large imposing machine that flew onto Ryo's body, and the Cyber Meltdown Dragon remained standing. (RLP: 3700)
"What the?" Leorina questioned as her Queen of the Seven Seas landed back in front of her. "How did that thing survive?"
Ryo smirked slightly as he held his hand up towards his Cyber Meltdown Dragon, which had a few sparks fly from the screen that was on its chest – Which was now displaying the number '2' now on it. "It's Meltdown Dragon's effect, as long as it has at least one Cyber Counter on it, it cannot be destroyed. It's almost like your Queen, only more effective since it doesn't need to sacrifice another weakling to survive."
"Weakling? I'll show you who's weak," Leorina growled as she lifted a card up from her hand. "It's my second main phase now, and I can use my Queen's effect! By discarding Unshaven Angler from my hand, I can instantly summon back out a familiar trio of faces!"
Once again, a geyser of water erupted from the ground in front of Leorina, allowing the three Mermaid Sirens to appear back on the field, each of them signing cheerfully (1000/1800 + 400/0 + 300/0) (2900/2400 + 400/0). "Next, I'll set a monster face down, and end my turn!"
The young rising star of the pro leagues had recovered her field for the most part, and raised her duel disk in preparation for Ryo's next assault. With his fingers place atop of his deck, Ryo pulled off the top card from his deck and held it in front of his eyes. "The countdown has reached zero."
"What?" Leorina questioned as she held her duel disk up a little closer to her body.
"Meltdown Dragon," Ryo stated as he held out the card he just drew from his hand. "Has a unique ability, as I stated, it has three counters on it when fusion summoned and while they protect my dragon from destruction, they act more like safeguards to prevent destruction. Normally, you'd have to attempt to destroy it two more times for it to unleash its devastation onto the field.
"However, there is a way to access the destructive power of my monster. I play the spell card Counter Transfer. A rather mundane name, but it delivers what it promises. It allows me to move the counters on one card to another. So, the two remaining counters on the Cyber Meltdown Dragon are transferred to the Cyber Photon Blaster."
The screen on the Meltdown Dragon's chest surged with electricity with the number two replaced with the number zero. It was then that the Cyber Meltdown Dragon's body began to shudder and shake as steam blew from the cracks in the cyber monster's armored body. "And now, it is time for the end! With the limiters removed, Cyber Meltdown Dragon! Annihilate!"
It was then that the Cyber Meltdown Dragon's body glowed a bright blue and immediately erupted into a powerful explosion that spread across the terrace. Leorina's eyes widened at the sight of the blue explosion and watched as it surged over the field and engulfed every monster on her field. With her arms held up, Leorina braced herself from the powerful repercussion that was caused by the blast, but she was still forced off of her feet and landed on the ground. "GAGGH!" (LLP: 9700 – (2600 + 1000 + 1400) = 4700)
As the remains of the blast began to falter, Leorina pushed herself up to see Ryo simply standing there, waiting. (RLP: 3700)
"What… What just happened?" Leorina questioned, her gave shot directly towards the black clothed duelist in front of her.
"My dragon went nuclear," Ryo explained as he held up the fusion monster in between his fingers before he slipped it into his graveyard slot. "In game terms however, when there are no counters on it, my Meltdown Dragon sends every monster on the field to the graveyard. And the owners of the monsters take damage to the total original attack points of the monsters that were sent to the graveyard.
"Cyber Meltdown Dragon had no attack points, so I was unharmed by the blast, you on the other hand had three monsters, each of which had their own individual attack scores."
"I'm curious though," Nathaniel spoke up with one of his hands brought up to his chin. "What was that face down monster of yours?"
"… Red Archery Girl," Leorina muttered under her breath. 'And since they were sent to the graveyard and not destroyed, I couldn't use my queen's effect to keep her on the field. And then there's the damage, I was in control of the duel just last turn, but all of a sudden he pulled this move and he's only a thousand points lower than me.'
"Now to continue this duel!" Ryo announced as he threw his arm forward, making his face down card flip up. "Call of the Haunted activates! Revive my Cyber Hydra!"
A powerful burst of light erupted from the ground, unleashing the three headed cyber monstrosity back onto the field (2000/1500).
"No you don't!" Leorina shouted as she waved her hand to the side, making one of the face down cards disappear while a large hole appeared underneath the Cyber Hydra's body, drawing it into the powerful vortex. "I play Bottomless Trap Hole! Now your monster is removed from play!"
Ryo merely narrowed his eyes at Leorina as he simply slipped a card into his duel disk. "One card set, turn end."
It was then that the Cyber Photon Blaster hummed loudly, and fired off another shot through the air and right into Leorina's stomach once more, and once again, the air was knocked right out of her once again. (LLP: 2700)
"Even if I do not attack, it is only a matter of time until you fall," Ryo stated as he closed his eyes. "Surrender now, unless you wish to experience more pain."
With her head lowered slightly, Leorina began to speak slowly, "I should surrender, any normal person would when facing against someone like you…"
She slowly placed two fingers atop of her deck.
"But…"
Leorina snapped her head up and pulled the top card from her deck, "I'm a duelist! There's no way in hell I'll give up that easy!"
"Then by all means," Ryo stated as he threw his arm to the side. "Prove that you're a duelist to me! Show me the strength that you've got!"
"I intend to!" Leorina snarled as she snapped the card she just drew in front of her eyes. "And this is just the card that I need to do it! I play, Monster Reborn! Now revive… Cyber Dragon!"
As Leorina slipped the card into her duel disk, a powerful light erupted in front of Leorina, forming into the serpentine metallic dragon (2100/1600), the machine roared loudly at its former master.
Ryo just narrowed his eyes at the sight of his signature monster on his opponent's field. "I see, you aim to defeat me with my own monster?"
"I'm gonna try," Leorina replied as she held her hand up, pointing her finger towards Ryo. "Cyber Dragon, do the honors! Burn his life points down!"
The mighty cybernetic dragon unleashed a flurry of blue flames that cascaded through the air towards Ryo, who just stood there, the blue fire slipping past him. The Hell Kaiser didn't even bat an eye as the flames licked away at his life points. (RLP: 1600)
When the flames began to die down, Ryo's face down card lifted up, and revealed a familiar trap card, "I now play Shock Draw, and thus, since I took over two thousand points of damage, at the end of this turn I'll be able to draw two cards."
"Yeah, but I'm not done," Leorina replied as she slipped a card into her duel disk, making the Cyber Dragon disappear into a bright blue mist that floated around her body. "I play Mystik Wok! Now, your monster's strength becomes mine!" (LLP: 4800)
And with the last two cards in her hand, Leorina placed the cards onto her duel disk. "And I'll set a monster and one card face down, turn end!"
Ryo immediately snapped off the top two cards from his deck, followed by a third draw for his regular draw, giving him five cards in his hand. "You're going to regret your choices girl, you had a shot to defeat me, but you failed to do so, and I shall make sure that you realize that! I activate the spell card, Power Bond!"
"Power Bond?" Leorina questioned as the infamous spell card appeared, sparks flying from the card's border. "But, unless you have other cyber monsters in your hand…"
"I don't need any monsters in my hand!" Ryo shot back as he lifted up another card from his hand. "Cause now I'm playing the spell card, Cybernetic Fusion Support! Now, by relinquishing half of my life points, I can remove the necessary components from my graveyard. So, all three of the Cyber Dragons, begon!"
As the three cards slid out of Ryo's graveyard slot, a powerful bolt of blue electricity crashed in front of Ryo, with three loud mechanical roars echoed throughout the air. From the burst of electrical energy, three large cybernetic dragon heads erupted from the energy, each of them resembling the Cyber Dragon's, only with some minor details, such as the number of mechanical eyes. Two large wing like protrusions erupted from the light as well, revealing that the three heads were connected to a large body with a long tail to it (4000/2800). "Cyber End Dragon, arise!"
"I was wondering if I'd see the big guy tonight," Leorina admitted with a nervous laugh as she eyed the large mechanical monstrosity. "Mecha-King Ghidorah was always a personal favorite of mine in the movies, and I always wondered how he'd look in real life… Or in this case, holographically."
"Consider your curiosity quelled," Ryo stated as several light blue sparks erupted from the joints of the Cyber End Dragon (4000/2800 + 4000/0). "And don't forget, thanks to Power Bond, Cyber End Dragon's attack doubles! So now, Cyber End Dragon! Finish this!"
The large, three headed Cyber Dragon roared loudly before it aimed all three of its heads towards the face down monster on Leorina's field, and without a moment of hesitation, all three of the heads fired powerful bursts of blue energy that flew towards the only defense on Leorina's field. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as the blasts connected with the face down card, which revealed a blue haired mermaid armed with a crossbow while she was atop of a turtle-like creature (1200/200), the mermaid gasped before the blast crashed into her.
"And just like that, this duel is done," Ryo stated as the energy flew around the terrace.
However, Ryo raised an eyebrow as he watched the energy circle around the terrace and in front of Leorina who held her hands up, "How right you are, cause I've got my trap card – Dimension Wall! You may have destroyed my Mermaid Archer, but since that battle was going to give me damage, my trap card inflicts the damage to you instead!
"SAY BYE!"
With her hands around the energy, Leorina threw the powerful blast towards Ryo who's eyes widened as the warping energy flew towards him and crashed into his body. When the moment of contact arrived, Ryo's eyes widened as he was thrown off his feet and flew into the wall that was behind him, the energy smashed him into the wall to create a web of cracks that raced across the wall until the energy subsided. After a few moments, Ryo fell from the wall and crashed into the ground, sparks racing over his body. "GARGH!" (RLP: 0)
Leorina sighed loudly as she fell to the ground, her hands landing on the concrete, "I… I did it… Wow…"
The sound of a single pair of hands clapping echoed through the air, which drew Leorina's attention towards Nathaniel as he walked over to Ryo's sparking form. "Bravo, bravo Miss Childsman, I knew that you had talent hidden up your sleeve, I just didn't know it was on par with one of the world's most dangerous duelists. Still, I have to wonder something."
Nathaniel slowly knelt down and plucked the three remaining cards from Ryo's hand and fanned them in front of himself. His eyebrows raised slightly as he ran a finger on the cards, "Hmm, interesting, would you care to see Miss Childsman? It is quite fascinating to see what this man was capable of."
Leorina was back on her feet and took a few steps to see the cards that Nathaniel was holding were all spell cards. One was Treasure from a Different Dimension, the second one was My Body as a Shield, and the third was a card she never saw before…
"Shield Cracker?" Leorina muttered as she leaned forward to get a better look at the card.
"Shield Cracker," Nathaniel stated as he spun the cards around in between his fingers. "A quick play spell card that can be activated when a card effect that would negate an attack is activated. This card negates the effect and can destroy the card, then the battle would continue normally. A good card against Scrap-Iron Scarecrow or Magic Cylinder.
"Your skill in having that Dimension Wall was impressive…"
"Alright, spill it!" Leorina spat as she grabbed Nathaniel by the collar of his shirt. "Just who the hell is that guy? There's no way I just dueled against Ryo Marufuji!"
"Well, you are correct," Nathaniel stated as he slapped Leorina's hand away to adjust his collar. "But in a sense you're wrong. This duelist was designed to duel as Ryo Marufuji, and was programed with his personality, strategies and even his ferocity. It was well done too, and I'm not the best when it comes to computers either."
"Programmed?" Leorina questioned as Nathaniel popped the cards into his pocket and knelt down to Ryo again.
Silently, Ryo placed his hands onto Ryo's face and lifted the Hell Kaiser's head up, and then, Nathaniel began to pull the duelist's face with a great deal of force. Leorina's eyes widened as she stepped forward, "Hey! What the hell are you doing? If you do that…"
Before Leorina could finish, Nathaniel stood up and lifted up a flesh colored substance in his gloved hands, Leorina gasped when Nathaniel turned around and lowered the item in his hand…
It was the hollowed out face of Ryo, his skin torn where it was pulled from.
Leorina's eyes widened as she stepped backwards.
"Now, now, now, Miss Childsman," Nathaniel chuckled as he dropped the face and stepped to the side. "Still your fears, it's not like I have a fascination with butterflies, made your opponent put the lotion on his skin and put it in the basket otherwise he'd get the hose again, and my name is not Hannibal…"
Nathaniel took a second to catch his breath before he held his arm out towards the fallen Ryo, "… But rather, look at your opponent."
Leorina was rather reluctant to look, but when she did, her heart began to beat regularly – Mainly because there was no blood, no bone, and no gore… But she was still surprised when she realized something.
"M-Metal?" Leorina questioned.
For a third time, Nathaniel knelt down next to Ryo to reveal that where his face was once, there was now a second face, this one completely metallic with a wig and bits of false skin still attached to it. "What in the world is that… Thing?"
"This Miss Childsman," Nathaniel chuckled as he stood up once again. "Is a remnant of the Diablo, or individually known as a Ghost – An artificial duelist from the times of the WRGP, and from the incidents that occurred during its events. They were known for their mimicry of duelists, and thus, when I managed to acquire one of these dueling robots, I elected to test it out.
"As for why I chose Ryo Marufuji… Cyber Dragons don't normally get much love any more in the pro-leagues on their own, so I elected to try that out. And while he did show a good about of promise, it would appear that artificial cannot defeat natural. At least in this instance."
"D-Diablo? Ghost?" Leorina questioned under her breath. 'Just who in the world is this guy?'
"But enough on that, we had a deal," Nathaniel stated as he walked towards Leorina. "You wished to learn the truth about your brother's incarceration… And I can easily answer that, for you have already taken the second step to learning the truth."
"Just what the hell are you…" Leorina started…
BA-DUM!
"Urk!" Leorina groaned as she grabbed her forehead, her eyes widening as she fell to her knees. "M-My head… It's… It's on fire!"
Nathaniel smirked as he watched Leorina growl and twist in pain loudly. 'Hmm, showing the classic signs already, although, there has to be something done about the pain issue. Oh well…'
It was then that Leorina fell forward and passed out at Nathaniel's feet, Nathaniel cleared his throat and crossed his arms behind his back. "You can come out now, I believe she's unable to see at the moment."
From the shadows, a large form walked forward, but the shadows kept the person's details hidden, "Nah, man, I'd rather not take any chances. So, what ya think?"
"Considering her brother," Nathaniel stated with a warm smile. "And her skills, I definitely see that she can be used for our plans. Do me a favor good sir…"
Nathaniel held out his hand and produced a single business card, "On here is a date and location, I wish for her to be there on the written time, and not a moment sooner. I don't care how you get to appear, but it's vital that she does show up."
"Not a prob," the shadowed man replied as he took the card. "Shouldn't be too much of an issue, so, what are you going to do about that tin can you've got?"
Nathaniel looked over his shoulder towards the duel bot and sighed, "It still has uses, just need to tweak it a little bit."
"Damn, I was hoping to modify it to look like Mai Kujaku, that'd be awesome," the shadowed man chuckled with a lick of his lips.
"… How vulgar," Nathaniel sighed loudly.
Unbeknownst to the two conversing men, a red-eyed creature watched them from the top of the doors to the terrace, its bat-like wings wrapped around its small body as it watched the whole scene play out in front of it…
TTTTTT
Card Stats
Cybernetic Fusion Support / Quick-Play Spell / Effect: Activate only when you would Fusion Summon a Machine-Type Fusion monster. Pay half your life points. When you Fusion Summon that monster, you can remove from play, from your side of the field or Graveyard, Fusion Material Monster that are listed on that Fusion Monster, and use them as Fusion Material Monsters.
Image: A futuristic lab with a large amount of blue energy surging through it.
Treasure from a Different Dimension / Normal Spell / Effect: If this card is removed from play, return it to your hand during your next Standby Phase. If this card is returned to the hand this way, both players draw 2 cards.
Image: A card appearing in a weird machine with bolts of yellow energy surrounding it.
The previous two cards were used by Ryo Marufuji/Zane Truesdale in Yu-Gi-Oh! GX.
Cyber Hydra / Light / LV. 5 / ATK: 2000 / DEF: 1500 / Machine/Effect: While this card is on the field or in the graveyard, treat this card's name as 'Cyber Dragon'. If you have no Monsters on your side of the field and have at least one LIGHT Machine-Type monster in your graveyard, you may normal summon this card from your hand without tribute.
Description: a large, three-headed, futuristic cybernetic dragon erupt behind him connected to a large body that had a single large tail and a pair of short stubby legs on
Cyber Photon Blaster / Continuous Trap / Effect: Whenever a LIGHT Machine-Type monster is summoned, place one 'Cyber Counter' on this card for each monster that was summoned. During each of your End Phases, inflict 100 points of damage to your opponent's life points for each 'Cyber Counter' on the field.
Image: A large three cannoned, cybernetic rover that's designed to resemble the Cyber End Dragon.
Cybernetic Data Excavation / Normal Spell / Effect: Remove one Spell card from your hand to activate this card. Select and special summon one Level 4 or lower LIGHT Machine-Type monster from your graveyard in defense mode. A monster special summoned with this effect cannot be used in a Synchro Summon.
Image: Kozaky working on a computer that has the Cyber Dragon on its screen
Cyber Meltdown Dragon / Light / LV. 12 / ATK: 0 / DEF: 0 / Machine/Fusion/Effect: [Cyber Dragon + 2 Machine-Type monsters] This card can only be special summoned except by Fusion Summon. When this card is Fusion Summoned, place three 'Cyber Counters' on this card. If this card would be destroyed (either through battle or by card effect) while in face up attack position remove one 'Cyber Counter' from this card instead (all battle damage is done normally). During your main phase, if this card has no 'Cyber Counters' on it, send all cards on the field to the graveyard. Then both duelists take damage equal to the total original ATK of their monsters sent to the graveyard with this effect.
Description: a titanic Cyber Dragon that had a larger torso with two short stubby mechanical legs. The cybernetic dragon had a large missile with the bio-hazard symbol labeled on it and on the dragon's chest was a small screen that had the number '3' displayed on it
Counter Transfer / Normal Spell / Effect: Select one card on the field that has counters on it, and place those counters on an appropriate face up card on the field. After this effect is used, place this card at the bottom of your deck.
Image: A Sand Gambler holding up a bunch of counters in his hand as he exchanges them for cash.
Queen of the Seven Seas / Water / LV. 8 / ATK: 2600 / DEF: 2400 / Fish/Effect: This card cannot be special summoned. Once per turn during your Main Phase, by discarding one WATER monster from your hand, you may Special Summon one WATER monster from your graveyard. When this card would be destroyed by a card effect, you may destroy one other face up WATER monster on your field to prevent this card's destruction.
Description: a beautiful mermaid that landed in front of Leorina, this amazon of the sea with long seaweed colored hair that was topped with a shell-like crown and over her upper body was light coral-like armor that was adorned with shells and fins from various sea creatures and her hands was a long trident that had what appeared to be a 7-Colored Fish wrapped around the staff and up to the head of the trident
Stage of the Sea / Continuous Trap / Effect: As long as there is a 'Mermaid' monster face up on the field, this card cannot be destroyed by card effects. Increase the ATK and DEF of all face up WATER monsters by 300 points. When this card is removed from the field, remove it from play.
Image: The Mermaid Sirens singing on a water bound, neon-glowing stage
Mermaid Sirens / Water / LV. 3 / ATK: 1000 / DEF: 1800 / Fish/Effect: While you possess another face up WATER monster, this card cannot be attacked or targeted by monster effects. While this card is face up on the field, increase the ATK and DEF of all face up WATER monsters on your side of the field by 400 points.
Description: A trio of young mermaids each of them dressed in starfish adorned clothing, but each of them had different hair color to them; one had short blue hair, the second had long black hair, and the third had strawberry blonde hair that brushed her shoulders
TTTTTTTT
Childsman…
A name that rings a number of tolls in the minds of a few Shadowchasers…
What are the plans for this Childsman?
As more light is bled onto this mystery, it can be quite an arduous task and can bring its toll on those trying to solve these webs of deceit…
But even in a moment of relaxation and meeting old faces, the job is never done.
Next time on Dark City Chronicles:
Draw 7
Symbols of Duty
