*~ Petrichor ~*

Chapter 1

Starring: Aki I.

Genre: Angst / Action-Adventure

Rating: T

Time Setting: Tag Force 4

A Prequel to: Echo

Prompted by: Supertediousy

Type: Multichapter

It was now 00:02 in the morning.

Aki tore her gaze away from a massive clock on the wall, her eyes shifting focus to the rows of people that were forming a reluctant queue outside of the arena. The poorly lit underground coliseum was full today, and that was to be expected, since today was the day when the underground tournament was going to be held. Two female employees—who were scantily dressed—were busy checking people's tickets. Armed men stood close by, ready to throw troublemakers out of the room.

Standing behind a black curtain on an indoor balcony overlooking the entire place, Aki could see everything clearly: the white Duel Ring that stood in the middle of the vast area; the empty seats which were waiting eagerly to be occupied; an also a VIP room on the second floor that was reserved for rich gamblers.

For a moment, anger and resentment built up within her chest. Those ignorant fools. They were the kind of people who sat and enjoyed other people's struggle from thrones—people who looked at her kind with a sneer in their eyes. She'd met a group of gamblers who specifically enjoyed hunting psychic duelists some weeks ago. They were the rich who were willing to spend millions of yen to see whose 'gladiator'—or so a psychic duelist under their wings was called—was stronger.

She'd heard many things from these so-called gladiators. Some of the people who were protected by the Arcadia Movement from the world had been once gladiators, and the stories they brought were unpleasant; sickening, even. Their masters would not hesitate to use any form of torture to nurture their psychic abilities, and for that, a young girl who had escaped with her older sibling had ended up dead due to blood loss at Arcadia's doorstep. She had rushed to help, along with some of Divine's personal attendants, but they had been too late. Only the older brother had survived, and how she wished she hadn't listened to the boy's story of their captivity.

Aki loathed those mad men with passion. She'd secretly sworn, that were she to rise to the top and gain access to their manors, she would use all that was within her power to destroy each every one of them.

"It's almost time," a bulky man who stood close to Aki said. He was a big man with serious muscles whose appearance and accent signified his status as a foreigner; a foreigner she even doubted had an official ID card. The man checked his wristwatch and looked at her with narrowed eyes. "I don't know who you are, little miss, but once you step into the ring, you'll play by our rules."

The hooded cloak that Aki was wearing concealed her face almost completely from view, but the man seemed to acknowledge her silence as a 'yes'. He grunted as he lit a cigarette. "Your name will be called to draw, and if you lose twice, you're out," he explained. "Understand?"

Again she nodded her yes. She'd already known the rules, of course. Divine had briefed her personally.

Her mission was simple and clear: win, and make her powers known. She had done this before in another sector, and truth to be told, everything was awfully simple and easy once she'd known how to time the use of her psychic power. Control she may lack, but it was a child's play to work the timing of her attack toward perfection.

The big man picked up his vibrating cellphone and muttered something under his breath in a language Aki wasn't familiar with. Judging from his expression, he seemed to be spitting out some curse words. After he'd slipped the gadget back to his jeans, he said to Aki, "There's been a change of rules. You won't have to draw again. Everything has been set up. You will go against one of the duelists there when your name is called." He pointed the burning end of his cigarette at a balcony protruding from the high wall located across the room. The man shook his head. "Some rich guy must have requested this personally. Randomized turn is a rare thing down here."

Aki hid a smile. Of course, Divine must have pulled a string. Now it was up to her to bring his plan into motion.

The clock rang thrice, the sound booming and echoing throughout the area. People cheered, and the lights were out. Four beams of light struck the ring, and a flamboyant guy with a mic appeared from the biggest platform overlooking the area, looking pathetically overexcited to host the show. His amplified voice filled the place as he greeted the enthusiastic crowd.

"There is a little change in the system for this tournament," said the MC. "Participants' names shall be picked randomly before each round, and so, we won't need the block system anymore."

Murmurs could be heard spreading over the people like wild fire. This must be a new thing here. Tournaments often used block systems to ensure that duelists were fairly distributed—which meant smaller chance of having a very skilled duelist to go against another of equal strength in the get-go. Randomization would make all things possible. It would make things unpredictable. Wild, even.

Nothing was more cherished and valued than the essence of wildness in the underground world. An unpredictable duel was always something that was captivating to watch, everyone would agree, but down here, people expected more. These were the people who had witnessed and suffered more than what a person living in Neo Domino could ever imagine. Their lives hung by a thread, threatened each day by random factors that could snatch their loved ones or their own lives away; they were the downloaders, afterall. And so, they expected duels to also go like their lives: wild, harsh, blood-pumping; unpredictable.

Now such unpredictability was going to be in her favor tonight. Divine would make sure of it.

The largest screen in the room flashed to life, showing a list of names divided in two rows with a large 'VS' standing between them. The MC swept a hand dramatically as he whirled around. "We will now pick two random names to start this tournament! Hold your breath, everybody, and pray that the goddess of fortune would pick the best duelists to ignite the fire tonight!"

The computer began to shuffle the names on both rows, and the room went quiet in anticipation. "A~nd... Stop!"

The screen stilled.

Two names froze on the top of both rows with a loud 'bang' from the speakers. J the Shredder and Black Rose were highlighted with red and yellow. People cried in excitement.

"Oh, oh, oh! It seems we will get a spectacular opening!" the MC beamed. "Would the two duelists please come down to the ring?"

The big man folded his massive arms and grumbled. "Some scary luck you have, being picked right at the start against J." At Aki's silence, he smiled wryly. "He's a popular guy around here. He's got some skills. Owns a tricky deck too."

"It doesn't matter," Aki said in a low voice as she turned around to leave for the ring. "His deck won't even scratch mine."

She could hear the big man laughing, the sound deep and heavy. "So you're not mute, after all."

She didn't bother to reply and proceeded to descend the staircase. She put on the white mask she'd been keeping for years and lowered her hood.

All right. This was her time.

"Just do everything like usual and it will soon be over," she remembered Divine's words just before she'd entered the place. Of course, it would soon be over: both this duel and their suffering. "You will be our beacon of hope; our liberator. You will show the world just how special you and your brothers and sisters are. You will show them how wrong these ignorant people have been."

Aki strode past the people who steered away from her. She climbed into the ring, which had this cage-like bars surrounding the white arena, a measure of 'protection' that would keep duelists locked inside. 'No participant would be allowed to back down in the middle of a duel' was a common rule in any underground tournaments.

A guard dressed in black let her get inside through the cage door. She heard a clicking sound; the cage mechanism seemed to be designed to lock the cage door automatically once the duelists were inside. Standing across the arena was a lanky guy with ragged jeans and vest. He looked about mid-twenties, but judging from the scars he had on his face, he'd been through the deepest part of Satellite and survived its harsh life.

"Wearing a cloak to hide your appearance ain't gonna make you look cooler," J taunted with a mocking sneer, his voice loud enough to be heard by the all the people. He turned toward the crowd and said, "Someone has a lack of confident here."

The people laughed. Aki ignored it; she'd learned that arrogant duelists were likely to get more confident if you kept silent, and the more confident they got, the more reckless they would be.

As she had expected, J took her silence as an inability to retort. "The silent type, are you?" He grinned as he activated his Duel Disk. Aki activated hers. "Well, Black Rose, let's see if your nickname is as fancy as your skills!"

The MC took his cue and said, "Uh-oh! It seems they're ready to tear each other apart!" He beamed. "Are you guys ready~?"

The crowd shouted their 'Yes' in a deafening shout, then, without missing a beat, the MC cried:

"Let the Duel begin!"

(Black Rose – 4000) vs. (J – 4000)

"I'll go first! Draw!" J announced as he drew his sixth card. "I summon a monster from my hand!"

(XX-Saber Emmersblade 1300 / 800 / 3) A large insect in armor showed up on the field. It swung its swords as it made its stand.

"I set up two cards face-down and end my turn."

Turn 2 (Black Rose – 4000) vs. (J – 4000)

Aki drew her sixth card silently and looked at her hand. J was displaying this crooked smile openly, a sign that he had something under his sleeve for whatever attack she may launch.

She would play it slow to see what kind of deck he was using then. "I summon Botanical Lion to my side."

(Botanical Lion 1600 / 2000 / 4) As the hybrid lion emerged to reality, Aki quickly activated its effect and said, "My monster's effect shall increase its original attack point for each Plant-Type monster I control, and so, its attack point is now made 1900." Of course, this would mean nothing. Divine had told her not to rush; fear and terror were instilled longer and deeper if carved slowly.

"Botanical Lion, attack his monster!"

The lion growled and jumped into action. It clawed at the helpless insect with ease, and the moment the piercing damage was dealt, J was forced to stagger backward. Everyone gasped in shock upon seeing this.

"Oooohh! What has just happened?" shouted the MC in disbelief. J was now kneeling, his bare arm bloodied as if it had been clawed, his expression was contorted in both fear and shock. "Did we see it correctly—J was wounded!"

The underground coliseum was thrown into chaos in mere seconds. Everyone was voicing their disbelief in raged shouts, clearly appalled by the effect of her psychic power. This must be the first time they had witnessed a psychic dueling, then.

Aki stood unflinching as she absorbed everything in. This was what she and Divine had intended from the start: for her gruesome powers to be shown through duels. She had done this several times before. She had heard the screams, seen the terror and hatred in people's eyes, and felt their intense dislike of her unnatural ways of dueling. There was nothing new about this; any sane people would react the same way to the display of her powers.

Yet the hollow in her heart kept gnawing open, threatening to swallow her whole.

A group of people raced to the cage, they were some sort of emergency medic team, it seemed. But the rules had backfired upon them, for the cage was programmed only to open once the duel held inside it had reached conclusion. The door wouldn't even budge. The MC turned to seek explanation from those who had orchestrated this tournament but found no answers beside a grim nod that told him to let the duel continue.

"Duelist J," he called, his voice shaking a little. "Are you able to stand up?"

With a heavy grunt, J struggled to stand on his feet. He was clutching his bleeding arm as he rose up. "Yeah... I can still stand." He raised his good hand to indicate that he was willing to go continue the duel. "You—" he fixed his attention on Aki, his eyebrows knitted in fury and pain, "—what have you done to me?!"

She said nothing. The cloak and mask ensured that no one saw the sting of guilt that she felt inside.

J mouthed a curse as he gathered his thoughts and emotions to resume the postponed phase. "Not even up to tell us what tricks you're hiding beneath that cloak? Hah. I wouldn't let you have your way!" He said. "Now that you've destroyed my monster, I can activate its effect to Special Summon one Level 4 or lower X-Saber monster from my deck!" A card was shuffled to the top of his deck, and he drew it. "I Special Summon X-Saber Galahad!"

(X-Saber Galahad 1800 / 800 / 4) This time, a warrior clad in golden armor showed up. The curved blade he was holding was pointed directly at Aki, perhaps sharing its master's burning rage and hatred. J didn't stop at this. "The piercing damage you've dealt allows me to activate my Trap: Damage Condenser!"

One of his traps flicked open, revealing a voltaic gate that sparked to life. "I took 600 damage from your attack, which means I can now Special Summon a monster from my deck whose Attack Point is equal or less to the damage. Come now, Palomuro!"

(X-Saber Palomuro 200 / 300/ 1) The newly summoned monster was small in size, its appearance resembling that of a strange reptile with silver and green scales. Looking at its star level and Attack Point, it must be a Tuner Monster. "I tune Galahad with Palomuro to summon a 5-star synchro monster: Saber Wayne!"

(X-Saber Wayne 2100 / 400 / 5)The heavily armed warrior appeared from the green circles with vicious roar.

Not bad. He had truly managed to absorb the damage and use it as a catalyst to synchro-summon.

Aki set up two cards. "I end my turn."

Turn 3 (Black Rose – 4000) vs. (J – 3400)

"My turn," J announced through gritted teeth. He drew a card and didn't even glance twice at his hand to move to the next phase. "With Wayne's effect, I can summon one level four or lower Warrior monster from my hand—come forth, Airbellum!"

(X-Saber Airbellum 1600 / 200 / 3) The rogue emerged, and Aki quickly studied it. It was a Warrior-Type monster with a decent abilities, and if her hunches were right, this J was aiming for another synchro-summoning now that a new tuner had been called to the field.

"I'm not finished!" J said as he placed another card on his Duel Disk. "I summon another monster to my side: Saber Garsem!"

(XX-Saber Garsem 1400 / 400 / 4) The newcomer was an odd creature that resembled a goat. A goat clad in armor, to be precise. "I shall ask you once again," J said to Aki before he proceeded to take the next obvious step. "What have you done to me? That damage you dealt before was real... What kind of magic are you—"

"Not magic," she said, voice calm and low.

"Then what the hell are you?"

Aki allowed herself a half-smile. The mask concealed it, but there was no point of holding it back, wasn't there? After all, it was the very same question that had turned her life upside down, thrown her into the streets, made her groping in the dark. Only to find that there wasn't a light at the end of the journey. There had been no light in the tunnel, no doors, no hope. But experience had taught her better than to simply wander aimlessly or beg for a miracle.

She had crafted a new identity in an attempt to tear down the tunnel wall. An identity that may be attached to her soul; a name that she could hold on to.

Aki gestured at the large monitor behind her—where a name she and Divine had agreed on to submit into this tournament was shown on the screen: 'Black Rose.' J looked up and saw the letters on screen. He jeered, "A name that suits you, little witch. Yeah, just hide behind that mask of yours, and I'll be the one to tear it down to pieces! I will now tune Airbellum with Garsem!"

The rogue jumped to the air, closely followed by the goat-in-armor, and circles of green light began to appear around them. The crowd was cheering madly by the time the two monsters had merged into the light.

"Synchro Summon—Come and destroy these tentacles of evil! Shed your light, Urbellum!"

(X-Saber Airbellum 2200 / 1300 / 7) Emerging from the light was a tall warrior that was clad in thick armor and ragged crimson cape. He was wielding two swords which were glowing luminously in the dark underground arena.

J had summoned both Wayne and Urbellum in attacking position, which meant that he was not going to hold back any longer. Sure enough, J didn't waste any time ordering the two warriors to smash Botanical Lion to bits. "Now you're gonna pay for what you've done, freak!" he shouted. "Begone!"

X-Saber Wayne stomped heavily, hissing a breath as he moved a step, and raised his massive sword at the defenseless Botanical Lion. The sword swung down and met her lion.

Aki may have not been able to fully control her powers at will, but she had exercised caution: she knew how to use her psychic powers to defend herself, at least. Past experience had taught her how to always keep her guard up.

The piercing damage was done. Her monster shattered to pieces, but no real damage could harm her while she was shielded by her psychic barrier. The second attack was aimed directly at her, but the warrior's blades too were stopped an inch before they could touch her. Her Life Point decreased, but she noticed how this little stunt had simply pumped up people's boiling rage; they were screaming louder and louder, chanting curses of her downfall. J too had seen the futility of his attack on her person—and snarled.

These people were wishing for a payback, of course. A mere decrease of LP, it seemed, wasn't going to satisfy their bloodlust. Justice didn't work that way. They were wishing for her to suffer.

It was always the same, people's reaction. No matter where she went or how she dueled, everyone would always view her as a monster—as a witch needed to be put on a burning stake. She had despised it, wondered why she was cursed with a mark that seemed to always bring malice and torment. Until she realized that why's wouldn't stop the curse from haunting her. There was no need to ask questions anymore. She would no longer doubt or care. She knew who she was, and she would show the world that she was more than capable of rising atop the ashes.

"Running out of fancy cards?" J said. "Play nice and I'll be nice too, Black Rose. I set up one card and end my turn."

Turn 4 (Black Rose – 1400) vs. (J – 3400)

Her opponent was a lot more aggressive—in both his moves and words—now that he'd seen what her monsters could do to him. Perhaps her last attack had awakened an instinctive thought that the best defense was a good offense. Aki was sure that he would do anything in his power to win the duel should she let him another turn.

"My turn," she said, drawing a card. A quick glance at her hand and she knew that she could outwit J with what she had. "First, I shall activate my Spell Card: Mark of the Rose!"

A rose tattoo appeared on Saber Wayne's armor. The monster wriggled in fear, but it didn't stop the mark from spreading all over its body. "This card will let me borrow your monster for this turn. You see, I can play nice if I want to," she added with an amused touch to her voice.

J looked more than irritated than when he'd discovered what powers she had. Aki was sure he was running out of curse words by now.

"Surrender yourself, O' mighty warrior!"

Wayne tried to struggle one last time before he finally knelt down. The tattoo had enveloped him whole, and in the next second, he was warped to stand on Aki's side of the field. One necessary material gained. "Now come and do my bidding! I summon Twilight Rose Knight!"

(Twilight Rose Knight 1000 / 1000 / 3) A dark armored knight of a short stature appeared on the field. People were shouting louder upon its appearance, aware that the monster was a Tuner. But Aki did not have any intention to Synchro Summon just yet. "Twilight Rose Knight's special effect allows me to Special Summon one level 4 or lower Plant-Type monster from my hand." She paused to let the words sink into J, and said, "Come to think of it, my deck is not that different from yours, isn't it? The compositions are the same, and so is our style of dueling..."

"I'd rather die than to have my deck compared to that lowly deck of yours!" he hissed.

"So be it." With the Tuner's effect, Aki Special Summoned Lonefire Blossom. (Lonefire Blossom 500 / 1400 / 3) The strangely shaped plant grew until it was of the same size as the Rose Knight, and Aki traded the newly summoned plant to call upon:

"Revival Rose!"

(Revival Rose 1300 / 1300 / 4)The head of Lonefire Blossom bloomed and let out another plant—a red rose with thick petals. One last deal. Aki picked a card from her hand and activated it. "To complete this ritual, I activate a Quick-Play, Seed of Deception!" The spell would Special Summon one level 2 or lower Plant-Type monster from her hand, and this was what she had been waiting for: for all the materials to gather up. "I'll Special Summon a Tuner Monster with this Spell. Come to my aid, Spore."

(Spore 400 / 800 / 1) The fluffy ball of fur made its stand beside the other three with a bounce.

J was the type of duelist who would, in this kind of circumstances, be mocking her for summoning such a petty monster. But seeing how he only stood with one monster while she had two tuners and two normal monsters, he wisely kept his mouth shut. A good decision, especially when he was about to witness what Aki had planned on doing with all these monsters all along.

Circles of green light glowed as they surrounded the four monsters. "First, let me thank you for this mighty warrior here," she said as she waved a hand towards Saber Wayne. The circles of light were focused on the warrior and Spore, and once they had been enveloped by green light, they jumped into the air and merged. "I tune Spore with X-Saber Wayne..."

The circles of light flashed brightly, illuminating the arena with one white explosion. "O great hunter who dwells in the woods... Reveal yourself and let your whip rule over this arena. Come forth now! Synchro Summon! Splendid Rose!"

(Splendid Rose 2200 / 2000 / 6) The woman clad in green was the very embodiment of elegance. Even the maddening crowd took a breath at the sight of her. But this was not the end. "It's not over yet," Aki said as she ordered the reamaining Tuner to perform the last Synchro-Summon. Complying, the petite knight nodded and jumped, taking along the planted rose which was forced to depart from the ground. Green lights lit the place once again.

"Flames of darkness engulfs the entire world. Bloom amongst the decayed! Roar, Black Rose Dragon!"

(Black Rose Dragon 2400 / 1800 / 7) Blood-red petals fell from the dark gorge that hung over the arena. A vicious roar thundered through the place, the sound deafening, silencing everyone who had, a second ago, been shouting and screaming. Aki felt her pulse quicken at the sight of her dragon. It materialized from the gorge, its snake-like head moving in a graceful way as it slithered through the air and descended on the ground with a mighty flap of its wings. Yes, this was it. The dragon which had brought her both salvation and curse. The dragon which she despised with all of her being; the dragon which had given her the name and identity she'd desperately craved for.

This was her dragon.

And now that it was here, she would show the world what terror truly meant.