Now I can see, truly see.
And what I see is a green liquid. A tube connecting a breathing apparatus to my mouth.
But what is really important is the feeling of power. I had power. I could destroy.
And the destruction would start now.
The glass containing me shattered as I begun. The liquid fell to the floor. I felt the coldness of steel on my bare feet, the pain as my feet were barely supporting me, unused for who knows how long.
So I lifted myself, a feeling of ecstasy washed over me. Power… Such POWER!
I allowed some to leak out, steel crumpled from the impact all around me. I allowed my sight to explain the surroundings. A complex made entirely of steel. Large corridors, big enough for about twenty people side-by-side, one on each side of the rectangular room.
And then, I turned to see him.
There he was, even now hurriedly taking off a mass of wires that had been on his head. I could sense his fear. He was going to try and escape me.
I could crush him now, I could just concentrate on him and he would crumple like the steel around me. Perhaps I could even be more creative, a little more time and perhaps I could use my powers in other ways.
A nearby explosion made me frown. Perhaps I was less in control then I thought. The power I had was leaking out in far larger quantities then I had thought I allowed. My vision was weak as well, it was nothing wrong with my eyes, it was just my body only vaguely registered my senses.
Still, I had plenty of power left. Divine had seen to that.
My thoughts were interrupted by the revving of a motorbike. Aahh yes, Joseph was trying to run.
I can't allow that.
I flew towards him. Hmm, not a motorbike, but a Duel Runner.
The Duel Wheeler was already on the move, I followed in pursuit. He had taken the corridor to the left, and even now took a right turn. Did he know the way out? Probably, and to make it worse, he was beginning to gain ground. My power could only make me go so fast, it seems. Soon I would lose sight of him.
I will not allow that.
I could only imagine his surprise when the Duel Runner slowed down, the duel disk activating. Speed World was active.
That would slow him down, at least as long as I kept his speed counters down.
Bringing an arm in front of myself, I called for my deck. It came in a flash of light. My brother had been right, perhaps. Perhaps a deck truly was an extension of the soul.
…No, it was merely a display of my power, nothing more.
(JLP: 8000-0)
(NLP: 8000-0)
I was right next to him, smiling. 'Well now, brother. How have you been?'
'You don't have to do this.' He didn't look at me, he kept his eyes on the road. Perhaps he didn't trust the autopilot. Well, this place wasn't designed to be a duel arena I guess, so an accident was possible.
'Oh no, brother. After all you've done. I think I deserve vengeance.'
'And then what; serve a dead man?' He spat the words out.
Dead… Man…
I screamed. Divine, dead? No, I can hear his voice. I can hear him.
The scream let out a torrent of energy, ripping chunks of steel out of the walls and flinging them in random directions. My brother narrowly avoided one particularly close chunk and skimmed on the left wall.
I drew a card.
(JLP: 8000-1)
NLP: 8000-1)
'I summon "Derelict Yem" (4/1800/200)'
No theatrics, no dramatic entrance. It just appeared. It was a statue with ungainly large arms and legs for its humanoid body. every movement the parts grinded together, causing dust to flow from its body into the air.
'A set card concludes my turn.'
Now my brother, seeing he had little choice, drew his hand. 'I really thought what I was doing was for the better.'
'Many people think that, few are actually right.'
'And who is to judge this?'
'Just make your move!' I snapped. 'You had your chance to talk when you had me captured, now is my chance for action.'
Shrugging, my brother set a monster and two face-downs. 'That's all from me, brother.'
(JSC: 2)
(NSC: 2)
Typical move from him, he always started carefully. His deck was never one to rush into things. No, he would survive and adapt against his opponents who rushed him with heavy hitters.
So if he was careful, I would be too. But I was still going to be forceful.
I drew. 'I attack!'
My monster drew closer, the left arm rose, bringing a cloud of dust with it. The hand slammed into the hidden monster, a flash of light forced me to avert my gaze.
When I looked back, there was no monsters on both our field.
'My monster's effect. If destroyed in battle, it destroys what destroyed it as well. If it were destroyed by a card effect, it would have destroyed one card on the field and moved you to your second main phase, and if it were returned to my hand, your turn would have simply ended.'
'Is there a reason you're telling me its whole effect? I only needed to know what happens when it is destroyed in battle.'
'There is always more to the story, Numiu. Always, that didn't use to be a problem with you. Now…' He trailed off.
'Now I am focused, I have a goal and I strive to complete it. Something you could never do.'
'I tried to save you, didn't I?'
I tried to ignore him, but the sudden burst of energy that tore massive chunks of steel from the wall probably betrayed my anger. 'Well, the effect of Yem activates when he is destroyed. I can add a "Derelict" monster from my deck to my hand, so long as I discard all other "Derelict" monsters in my hand.'
Now, after so long, I could look at my deck. Smiling, I looked through it. 'So long… it is my deck, unlike what you gave me before.'
'The deck was an extension of your fragmented mind. It was closer to you then your current deck!'
'None of these decks are like me!' I snapped back at him. 'I merely prefer this deck because it is the one I serve Divine with! And I shall continue doing so.'
I picked a card from my deck. 'And since I have yet to summon anything, I call upon "Derelict Des" (1/0/0).'
Sand flowed out of my duel disk, it formed a vague swirling humanoid figure, but there was little to it.
'A set card and that ends my turn.'
(JSC: 3)
(NSC: 3)
'Numiu, do you remember when we were kids?'
I eyed him warily as he drew a card. 'I remember some of it.'
'I remember it too. I remember the kid who always dreamed of something great; to be a magician, a performer, a person people could look up to in amazement. Tell me, when did that change?'
'I…' My palm went to my forehead as a burning sensation sent ripples of pain through my body. 'I… don't… remember…'
'Your memory is still damaged; you weren't in stasis long enough for us to repair everything.'
'What I don't remember… can't hurt me… JUST MAKE YOUR MOVE!'
Why was I even dueling him? This man was hurting me, I should just kill him, crush him. End the pain now.
…No, I need to do this. Crushing him wouldn't make him suffer enough. I must crush his hopes, his dreams, as he attempts to crush mine.
'I summon "Cycle Den" (1/0/0).'
A circle shimmered into existence in front of my brother, coming out of it was an odd creature, a bright silver coloured body with a spherical head with no features, and instead of hands it had spades.
'Attack Derelict Des.'
'That seems a bit pointless brother.' I eyed the creature drifting towards my own. 'My monster cannot be destroyed in battle.'
'Nor can mine, and as a bonus, whenever it battles it gains a Cycle Counter.' My brother gritted his teeth.
'I'm curious, brother. If you think a deck represents the soul, what does your deck say about you?' For some reason I felt like idle chatter, completely at odds with the destruction surrounding us.
'Honestly, I'm not entirely sure. I've seen the symbolism with friends, but never myself.' He looked at the monster he had on the field. 'These cycle monsters… What they represent feels like it has little to do with me. I understand a cycle, but if my life is a cycle, I have yet to see the whole thing.' His eyes lit up in amusement for a brief moment. 'But I can see the loneliness in your deck, the desolation. And what your cards spell out.'
'Oh , you couldn't be more wrong.' I could see it, Divine's face, his smile, his warm hand on my shoulder. 'I am NEVER alone.'
'What you are is delusional…' He sighed, his voice was weakening, I noticed. Perhaps he was finally starting to question why he was doing this, why he was such an idiot. 'My turn is over now, Numiu. You can make yours.'
'And I intend to.' I drew. 'And I summon "Derelict Ight" (4/1850/1200).'
I didn't see what I had summoned, but from the horrified look on my brother's face, he was scared of what I had called on.
'Now, strike that monster, and in doing so my brother!'
A sand-shrouded fist launched into my vision, tore right through the circular creature, and slammed into my brother, who struggled to hold on as even the duel runner skidded from the strike and started grinding against a wall, narrowly avoiding grinding his leg to shreds.
A pity, but I have plenty of time.
(JLP:6150-2)
'You're not holding back, are you?'
'You thought, despite everything, that I would?'
'Wishful thinking, I guess…' He laughed. 'Perhaps everything I did was for nothing, hey? Searching for a part of you that no longer exists.'
I could vaguely hear a beeping noise. My brother glanced to something in his pocket. 'And that… Is my cue to give up and leave. I'm sorry brother.'
It was my turn to laugh. 'You honestly think I'm letting you escape?'
'I'm not sure if you know what you've done, but your destruction has destabilized the core.'
'…The core? The Momentum core that powers the entire city?' This is bad, Divine wouldn't want such a thing to happen! He wanted control, not destruction.
'Oh no, this core is a different energy. Not as good, but if you want a hideout you can't exactly use energy controlled by the high-ups.'
'So, you built this?'
'I'm not skilled enough for that, Numiu.' He chuckled. 'Glad you have so much faith in me though. No, this was a base of the Arcadia Movement, abandon about a week after…' He hesitated. '…After complications arose.'
'So, this core is going to explode?'
'Yeah, but we have enough time to get clear of the blast if a boost my engines, the core was nearly depleted anyway, although it's still going to level a large area.'
Well, this was… interesting.
'Well, that gives you an incentive to win, doesn't it?'
The expression on his face… There was the horror, the pain, I wanted him to feel.
'You can't be serious!'
'Oh, but I am.' I smiled, this was perfect, so perfect. Revenge was within my grasp. 'You're not getting away. Let's continue the duel, shall we? It's your move now.'
Nearing the end, hope you enjoy it.
