Hello, everyone. Here is the next chapter in the story. I've had the chance to plan ahead with this story, which is why I have been posting these chapters so quickly. That probably won't keep up, but there aren't many chapters left with this story. Yes, I know. This story will be ending (finally) soon.

Let's get to the Japanese-English names.

Aki = Akiza
Divine = Sayer
Misty Lola = Misty Treadwell
Tobi = Toby Turner
Ruka = Luna
Rua = Leo
Ushio = Trudge
Ms. Sagiri = Ms. Singleton

DISCLAIMER: Same as always. Don't own Yugioh! or Android: Netrunner, do own OC's/custom factions/designs/cards, etc.

Onward to the Chapter.

=EPSILON'S POV
APPROX. 30 MINUTES EARLIER

My feet pound against the broken stone and dust. I move on autopilot, my eyes on the giant lizard geoglyph in the sky. Aki is there, which means the glyph must be Misty Lola's doing. The famous fashion model that Andromeda worked alongside one time serves an Earthbound God. This angers me—the Earthbound Gods can apparently influence anyone to their side. I'm an exception only because the Crimson Dragon wants to keep me alive after they try to kill me.

If anything, the Crimson Dragon must be upset with how many times I've needed its help. But, it wants me alive for some reason. I want to know why, but I also know I don't have the time right now to answer that question. I tried asking it before, and I got nothing in return. Aki, and my other current goals, are more important.

I race through the "MONSTER WORLD" entrance without slowing down. The broken and abandoned rides here go by with no reaction from me. I am sure that nothing hides in the shadows here, waiting to attack me. I go down the same path as when I left this place, reentering through the same back entrance. My feet just turn on their own, my mind focused on other things right now. For example, how will Aki react to me being at this Duel? From what I saw in that pool, she isn't herself right now.

[Proceed with caution,] my guidance implant advises me. [If Aki regards you as a threat, reckless actions will only lead to trouble.]

'You don't need to tell me twice. But, I will take any chance to bring Aki back to normal.'

[Do not let emotions cloud your judgement.]

I click my tongue at the implant, even though that won't generate a response. I pass the entrance to a broken roller coaster ride. The geoglyph grows more prominent in the air the closer I get to the source. I catch sight of a broken Ferris wheel just as the ground shakes wildly. A giant glowing heart appears beneath the geoglyph, almost too far in the air for me to recognize it. It starts to throb and pulse—an Earthbound God must be coming.

The shakes turn into quakes as a massive form rises above the park attractions. It's a black-skinned lizard with green lines, a long prehensile tail, and five-fingered "hands". Its green eyes move independent of each other as it fully appears. It lets out a roar through its wide mouth at something smaller than itself, something I can't see right now.

That's an Earthbound God, for sure. Things just got a lot worse. I need to get to Aki and Misty, now!

I break into a sprint. My limbs ache from all this moving. I try to keep a rhythm, like I did back in that one factory in Satellite. Like several times before, I go through the motions with little thought on them. A bigger concern is what I will do to help Aki when I get to her. I'll trust my guidance implant's words on this one and stay alert.

The Earthbound God provides an even larger beacon for me than the geoglyph. At least the God doesn't span miles upon miles across the entire park. Everything else fades away, the God's mere presence taking my near-full attention. I don't feel anything form my false Signer mark this time around, which helps me concentrate on the current situation. I get to the Dueling field quickly, but not quickly enough for my tastes.

Ruka, Rua, Ushio, and Ms. Sagiri all stand at the upper entrance to some ride I don't care about. They all watch the ongoing Duel between Aki and Misty. The giant lizard, the Earthbound God, looks down on the Duelists while it stands behind Misty. She and Aki stand inside some kind of rainbow-colored dome, but the dome looks like the shards of a shattered rainbow fused together against their will. I can barely see the Duelists inside, or the cards on their fields, but I can certainly feel their emotions.

Misty radiates some kind of fury, sorrow and grief joined together. I feel a heavy weight on her thoughts that I don't understand. Aki's emotions press a lot harder on me. Her fury, her anger, are directed towards her enemies. Right now, that enemy is Misty Lola. What if that changes after Misty is defeated? Can Misty be defeated in Aki's current state?

No, no, don't think like that! You need to trust in Aki if you want to help her. Even if she could probably kill you with a single gesture. Don't think about that stuff!

An explosion comes from nearby. I turn to another risen building as smoke trails out of the broken windows. Someone must be hurt up there. I can go up and help them, rather than try to interfere in a Duel with a Dark Signer. I race up the steps two by two and barrel inside through the empty doorway. Yusei Fudo stands against the far wall, and opposite him is… Divine.

"Divine!" I shout the moment I see that man. "You're behind all of it. All of Aki's suffering is because of you!"

Divine looks at me with the same "second head" look I've seen from other people before now. He mutters, "What is this? Your mind should be crushed!" A second later, Yusei shouts, "Epsilon! Watch out!" as Divine places a card on his Duel Disk and yells, "Die, already!"

A fireball flies at me as a Spell activates and hits me in the chest. I only see orange and red for a few seconds as burning heat envelops me. When it clears, I am still standing. What's more, a flickering white bubble surrounds me.

I look Divine in the eye, his shock matching mine. He also has an insane look, like the traitor agent Exile had when I Dueled him. I feel his emotions bleed off him, emotions I don't want to deal with. Divine wants to kill me.

I shout, "Aki! I'm coming!" as I race back down the stairs. Just as I reach ground level again, Yusei's voice comes from my Disk: "Did you really kill Tobi?"

[Unknown audio transmitter detected. Source: Yusei Fudo's Duel Disk]

My guidance implant pops in just as I look at my Disk. A blue light I have not seen before blinks in the center gem. I don't ask how this is happening, or even why. I can now hear every word Yusei and Divine say, and Divine quickly starts to rant to the Satellite Riding Duelist.

"Yes, I did kill Tobi. It was through an electroshock experiment I made to test people's Psychic Dueling limits. Tobi could not withstand the pain of the experiment. He had limited potential, especially when compared to Aki. Her power is limitless, and she will always rise to my expectations. I won't have it any other way."

"You monster!" Yusei shouts. A loud crash comes out next, and then a pained shout. Another explosion makes my Disk's speaker crackle. I turn to the upper room, and my jaw drops when I see Yusei hang onto a metal beam with one hand. He dangles two stories above the ground – if he falls, he'll probably break several bones at least.

"I admire your persistence, Yusei," Divine says as he walks out to stand over the man. "But, it was useless to challenge me." He then activates, and draws out, a very realistic "Psychic Sword".

I yell out, "Yusei!" as Divine angles the sword's tip at Yusei's head. I don't want him to die, too! I've already been a part of so many problems, I do not want to add this one to the list.

To my surprise, Yusei just laughs. He actually cracks up while staring his death in the face. Divine eventually asks, "What's so funny?"

"My Duel Disk is homemade." Yusei brings his Disk up to show Divine just what he means. "My Multi-Disk Audio Transmitter just recorded every word you said to everyone here. Misty knows the truth!"

I whip my head around to Misty, to see if Yusei's words are true. My blood runs cold when I see the anger plastered on her face. Her body shakes from head to toe in rage, and probably also grief. The words, "If looks could kill…" automatically pop in my head.

"Divine…" Misty growls out between clenched teeth. "You killed my brother!"

Divine responds, in far too confident a tone against someone this angry, "Tobi was too weak to join the Movement. I have no use for the weak in my army."

"Bastard!" Misty shouts before she points a finger at Divine. "Devour him, Earthbound God Ccarayhua!"

Divine takes a step back as the God's growl blows some dust off the ground and by me. I look up at the God, so tiny before it and so glad I am not its target. I blink and see the God lash out its tongue at Divine. He gets scooped up as the appendage envelops him. I clearly hear his screams as the lizard pulls its tongue back. Its jaws clamp shut, and it swallows Divine whole.

Disgust at what I just saw blends with satisfaction at his screams as they ring in my ears. This is probably a bad feeling to have, but I don't try to block it out. For every bad thing Divine has done, he just got what he deserved. But, my problems aren't all wrapped up just yet.

I look back to Aki and Misty. Aki stands in place, her earlier insanity replaced with a blank stare. Misty looks to the ground with a sorrowful expression. I actually feel sorry for her, and what she just had to learn. I shouldn't feel this way about a Dark Signer, but I can't block it out.

"Aki Izayoi," Misty says to her opponent, "I see you aren't the problem, after all. I no longer wish to fight you."

Wait, what's going on? Is Misty going to surrender? What will that mean for Aki, and the rest of us?

Misty moves her hand over her Deck, only for her hand to freeze up. The marks on her face glow a sinister purple as she crumples to the ground. She gets out, "The darkness! It's too strong!" as a purple aura spreads over her body. It looks like she doesn't want that aura around.

"Misty!" Yusei shouts from somewhere behind me, "Your vengeance has been earned. You can't let the Earthbound God win!" That confirms my earlier thought; the Earthbound God Misty summoned is trying to take control of her. It probably wants the Signers dead, and if its agent won't do it willingly…

I shudder, unable to think of a way to help her without risking my soul again. As much as I want to stop the Gods, I do not want to lose my soul again. I turn my focus back to Aki as I tell her, "Aki, you need to wake up!"

Aki does not respond, to me or anything else around her. She just stares straight ahead, petrified at something I don't see. Her hair is disheveled, her face pale. I walk towards her, passing through the strange warp-field without slowing down. I get within touching distance of her and don't sense any of her psychic powers. She feels so empty without them, so key to who she is to me. Not because of her "Black Rose" persona, but as an actual person.

I grab her arm to try and get her moving again. I almost jump back as an electric spark burns my fingers. At the same time, Aki's eyes regain their color and she takes a breath. I hear a quiet, "Epsilon?" from her lips before she looks at me. I'm too happy to say anything back, so I just smile and nod. She smiles back, and that smile fills me with all the hope I need.

"Aki!" We both turn to face the Dark Signer as the aura grows even thicker on her body. "I can't fight it anymore! I—!"

Misty's words end in a pained scream. Her head snaps back almost too fast to see; thankfully, I don't hear any bones break. A moment later, she lowers her head back at us with a grin too wide for her face. My gut drops as I see the purple marks on her face glow with their own light, her eyes now the same color.

Aki mutters, "The Earthbound God…!" I just try to breathe normally. Rutger didn't have this happen to him. Did he fully trust these Gods, or something? No, this isn't the time to think about that.

"It is the Dark Signer's Duty to destroy the Signers!" Misty shouts to Aki in a distorted voice. "I will destroy you, Signer Aki Izayoi!"

"You're the only one that can defeat her, Aki," Yusei explains before I can say or do anything to help her. "You are the chosen Signer to fight her."

Aki shakes in place, unable to move. I squeeze her arm with my hand, which gets a shudder. I had expected better results than that. I look to her and shudder myself when I see how pale her face is. The power she just had is gone, replaced by an empty void. I want to fill it with anything I can, but

"We all believe in you," I tell her. "You are not alone. Remember that."

She looks me dead in the eyes and takes a shuddering breath. I reluctantly release my hand from her arm. I don't want her to do this, but Yusei is absolutely right. I can't do very much at all against an Earthbound God if I wanted to keep my soul in my body.

I repeat the words, "I believe in you," at Aki in my head several times as I walk out of the Dueling field. Aki does not show any reaction to my thoughts as she tries to stand tall against the possessed Dark Signer. Her skin has a bit more color as she pushes her hair out of her determined eyes.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: The following Duel is shown from Epsilon's point of view. Therefore, Life Points/hand size/turn counter will not be fully shown. I am doing this because Epsilon's guidance implant is capturing the current situation, not the full Duel. Besides, this Duel is just like the one in the Yugioh! 5d's anime; you can follow along by watching the episode.

Onward to the Duel

[DUEL RESUMES]

[TURN ?: Misty] [HS: ?] [LP: ?]

"You're finished!" Misty instantly declares. "My God attacks directly!"

The God loudly roars as it reaches a hand towards Aki. She is miniscule against the creature, the mere presence of its hand cracking the ground beneath it.

"Trap Card, open," Aki calls out as one of her Set cards reveals itself, "Ground Capture! I take only half of the Battle Damage from your God's attack!"

A stone hand rises against the God's own. Their fingers grapple and push for dominance. The God eventually wins by shattering the other hand into jagged shards. I let out a panicked, "Aki!" as I see her fall to the ground by the shard's force (Aki LP: ?-200).

Aki takes a moment to stand up before she continues: "Ground Capture's second effect; If I take 1000 or more points of Battle Damage from the attack, I draw a card."

"You only have 200 Life Points left," Misty coldly remarks as Aki draws the card her Trap provides. "Nothing you do will help you. I Set one card and end my turn."

Misty's facedown card increases my anxiety a bit, only a bit against the Earthbound God. But, I am still confident in Aki's Dueling skills. If these two are destined to Duel, then Aki deserves the chance to show her strengths. It's only equal, right?

[Equality is not often used in combat, such as in so-called "dirty fighting".]

'You're not helping.'

"It's my turn!" Aki draws for her turn, and smiles at what she sees. Whatever she drew must be good.

[TURN ?: Aki] [HS: ?] [LP: 200]

"Copy Plant's effect!" Aki states as she looks to the humanoid plant on her field. "It's Level becomes the same as Dark Verger until the End Phase. I then Normal Summon Hedge Guard!"

The first mentioned plant morphs into a mimic of the two-eyed plant also on Aki's field (LVL: ?-2). Then, a wall of thorny vines rises from the ground before turning a shade of blue (DEF: 1300).

"I activate the Trap, Shining Rebirth! This lets me Synchro Summon one Monster from my Graveyard by sending the Synchro Materials to the Graveyard."

"Alright," I call out. "The dragon is coming!" I then realize the irony of what I just said, and blush in embarrassment. To think someone once said that in fear, and now I say it in delight!

"I send, and Tune, my Level 2 Dark Verger, Level 3 Hedge Guard, and Level 2 Copy Plant!"

Aki's Graveyard swallows the three cards, and then ejects a single card from its depths. A red-and-pink light shines in front of her as she recites a chant I remember, but still a bit different…

"Tsumetai honoo ga sekai no subete wo tsutsumikomu. Shikkoku no hana yo, hirake! Shinkuro Shokan! Fukatseyo, Burakku Roozu Doragon!"
(Chilling flames engulf the entire world. Pitch-dark flower, set into bloom! Synchro Summon! Resurrect, Black Rose Dragon!)

With a roar, the dragon emerges onto the field. Rose petals flutter in its wake, a testament to its power I know all too well. The hairs on the back of my neck rise a bit when I remember what this dragon did to me. Hopefully, it will prove just as powerful, and maybe even better, against the Earthbound Gods (ATK: 2400).

"When Black Rose Dragon is Synchro Summoned," Aki explains, "it can destroy all cards on the field. However, Shining Rebirth's effect prevents Black Rose Dragon from being destroyed this turn."

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Misty asks without losing her smile. "If you defeat me, this girl will die as well."

"I will defeat you, not Misty!" Aki points at Misty as she says this. Actually, I think she points to the dark force possessing her body. "Black Rose Dragon's effect activates: Black Rose Gale! Destroy Earthbound God Ccaryahua!"

"You think only destroying me will save her?" the possessed Misty taunts. "I won't let that happen! Activate Trap, Doom Gazer!" The revealed card causes a small cyclone of purple energy to manifest on the field, even as the "Black Rose Gale" moves to destroy every other Solid Vision creation here.

"Since you are activating an effect that destroys cards on the field," Misty states, "this Trap will deal you 300 points of damage for each card destroyed and sent to the Graveyard this turn."

Misty's eyes bug out as her voice sharply rises. "7 cards will be destroyed! So, you take 2100 points of damage!"

"No!" I cry out. "Aki!" The cyclone's winds take my words away from me. The "Black Rose Gale" spreads across the field, but doesn't destroy "Doom Gazer's" cyclone. That turns into a purple arc angled right at Aki by one of Ccaryahua's hands.

I start to lunge towards Aki, but stop before I take a single step. Something changes before my eyes. Someone floats in front of Ccaryahua's hand. Someone who looks like Misty, but… cleaner. It's like the real Misty Lola, the one I briefly saw after Divine was eaten. But, that would be impossible, right? Whoever this is, she says something to Aki that makes her cry.

"Activate Trap," she then shouts as one of her Set cards reveals itself, "Nature's Reflection! This redirects your card's damage back at you!"

Misty shouts, "Impossible!" as a giant slab of rock and concrete rises in front of Aki. The purple wave strikes the slab, and then bounces right off. The wave trails back towards Misty before she can move away. An explosion of energy envelops Misty's form. Ccaryahua groans as its body slowly disintegrates along with the lizard geoglyph above it. The pressure on my mind fades along with the God.

(Misty: ? LP-0) [WINNER: Aki]

The sensations I feel when I see Aki's victory makes my legs shake. Joy is the biggest emotion, followed by relief. Maybe this relief is for Aki being safe, or the rest of us all staying alive in the aftermath. I don't care, and it doesn't matter. I keep my eyes on Aki as she quickly walks to where Misty used to be. She isn't there, anymore; there's not even dust to mark her passing. She picks something up from the dust that I can't see clearly.

I clearly see the tears she sheds onto the object. I try to remind my feet to walk, and it takes three tries for me to move closer to Aki. My conscience tells me that I should leave her alone, leave her with her grief for a time. My gut instinct, my hope to make Aki happy, tells me to talk to her. Right now. Hope conquers logic this time around.

I quietly ask, "Aki?" Her tears stop, but she doesn't answer. I ask again, "Aki?" She sniffs a few times and looks at me. Her sadness hurts me, but I force myself to keep talking. "Aki, are you okay?"

She answers, "I don't know," with a sigh. "I just don't know. People I know are dying around me. I try to help them, and they still die. Divine, the Arcadia Movement, everyone." She looks at her right arm, her Signer mark glowing slightly through her tattered sleeves.

"This mark," she mutters. "This cursed mark!" Tears resume their descent down her cheeks as she sputters, "Why am I destined to face this much sorrow?!" These words tear through any concern I have for my personal safety.

I hug Aki from behind. She becomes completely rigid in my arms. Whispered words slide from my lips as I feel a familiar heat from my right arm: "You aren't cursed, Aki. Believe me. This is your destiny because you deserve something better. I know that, and I want to help you know."

Aki talks back in a low voice. "How? You aren't a Signer, you said so yourself. You don't have the same destiny as me. How can you help me?"

"I can help you be happy. That's a good start, isn't it? It doesn't matter how. I care about you, despite all you have done. You deserve to be happy."

Aki's psychic power flares suddenly. I fear she is about to lash out at me. Instead, to my surprise, she whirls around on her feet, without breaking my embrace, and hugs me back with equal strength. She quietly sobs into my shoulder, which brings me to tears. Her sorrow overwhelms me, raw emotion too strong to contain.

Then, my head throbs. Pain lances through the sorrow. Familiar pain. I stifle a groan and pull back from Aki. The pain doesn't let up. I hear Aki ask something, but don't understand her words. The pain is too strong for me to make words. Another lance joins it, then another, and another. My ears roar with voices as four symbols, logos, flash behind my eyes. When they finally go away, I fall to the ground with a choked gasp.

Aki is at my side in an instant. Her hands shake my already-shaking body as she asks, "What is it? What's wrong?" I can't answer while my brain reconnects itself back together with my legs. I breathe in quick bursts, my eyes wide as I stare at a space beyond the storm-filled skies. I get the word, "No…" out as a bolt of lightning gives the clouds some new light.

Then, the ground shakes stronger than I have ever felt before. My head tilts to the left, my eyes looking toward Neo Domino City. Golden light shines from that place, even as all other lights there go dark. Something large and red flies towards Satellite at a slow pace. It's shaped like a blast wave, or maybe a giant cloud of red dust.

Other human voices cry out various exclamations like, "The City!", "The lights have gone dark!" and "What's that golden light?" No one else notices the wave. It washes over me, and probably everyone else here too. Information flows through my brain, filling in the gaps the lancing pain made. The culmination of this information is a single image. A picture of a gigantic purple condor clashing with an equally-gigantic red-colored and red-eyed tentacle monster.

[Transmission identified] [Source: Neo Domino Network] [Subject: Server infiltration] [Result-]

"Dead." I interrupt my implant to state those words, out loud, to myself. "They're all dead."

Aki gasps quietly behind me. She knows what I am talking about, she has to know who I mean. I don't look back to confirm my theory as the golden light fades. A giant purple geoglyph, shaped like a condor, replaces it as Neo Domino's electrical grid begins to recover.

Alright, that's all for now. I am sure many of you know what is coming next. The next chapter will come when I have it ready. Sorry for being blunt, but I will work on these last few chapters when I get the chance to.

As usual, any reviews/comments/constructive criticism/feedback is well appreciated.

Draconos is taking off.