Grey: Ok...Just to clarifiy...This isn't my fault!
Free: Well it's not mine. I did my part.
Grey: Well we need somebody to blame!
Free:...Crow?
Grey: I can live with that!
Crow: Hey! I'm a fictional friggin being! You can't blame your ruts on me!
Grey: Just do the disclaimer bird boy.
Crow: Don't ignore me! Ugh these two don't own yugioh or any of it's affiliates...
Having previously been Mr Atlas' assistant for the past two years, Mina Simington had no problem keeping her composure in front of the current Champion Yusei Fudo and the infamous Black Rose aka Akiza Izinski along with everyone else currently residing in the Izinski residence. Initially, she had just come to see if Akiza Izinski had returned to her parents after the demise of the Arcadia Movement building. She had not been expecting to find her and the two other people Director Goodwin was wanting her and Lazar to locate.
"Mr Fudo, Miss Stevens, I see you're here too. That's great." She said acknowledging the presence of Yusei and Luna before continuing on. "Mr Fudo, Miss Izinski, Miss Stevens, Director Goodwin would like to see you now."
While most of the people present looked at her in surprise at her words, Mina's keen eyes noted that Yusei Fudo and the orangette beside him seemed to tense up as if her words had offended the two.
"What does he want with us?" Yusei asked her calmly.
"He has something very important to discuss with you regarding the Crimson Dragon and the Signers." Mina replied repeating what Director Goodwin had told her in his office before she had left for the Izinski residence. "There is a car waiting for you all outside. If you would like to follow me."
Mina watched as Yusei glanced first to the orangette then Akiza before turning back to face her.
"We'll be out in a minute." Yusei replied curtly.
Catching the subtle request, Mina nodded politely before about facing and following the servant back the way she came secretly hoping that they would be following along shortly and would not have to report to the director that the three people he was looking for were refusing his invite.
She had already lost one job this month, she did not want to lose another so soon.
The moment the bluette had left her field of vision, Will turned on her friend with an intense gaze.
"Are we really going to just go walking into the belly of the beast?" She asked Yusei.
After hearing all of what had happened to Yusei, Jack and...Kari, Will was under the distinct impression that this Director was behind most of all the events that had happened from Jack's betrayal right up to the Fortune Cup final. At this point, she would not have been surprised if the very event was rigged just to find these Signer people.
Akiza was with Will on this. Before receiving her invite to the Fortune Cup, she had been spending most of her time in Arcadia Movement going out during the evenings on occasion to test herself where she inadvertently began to earn her dark reputation. To her, asides meeting Yusei, the Fortune Cup had been nothing but a setup for everyone to see her get taken down and for psychic duelists to be slandered and victimised.
"Yusei, do you really think we can trust Goodwin?" She asked of him worried that whatever happens next was to just be a repeat of the Fortune Cup or even worse, her duel with Misty Tredwell.
"I know he's already done much to all of us, but none of us have a clue as to what to do next. If Goodwin really does have information concerning us and the Crimson Dragon, we're going to have to go see him." Yusei said.
He was just as unhappy as the others with what the Director had done to him and his friends, too much for him to forgive the man right off the bat. But the vision he had seen during his duel with Jack in the Fortune Cup felt too real to him to merely shrug off the idea of Satellite disappearing amongst the flames of destruction. As the only person he knew of with information concerning Signers and the Crimson Dragon, Yusei had no choice but to go along with Goodwin's plans for the time being.
Will let out a frustrated sigh as she scratched the back of her head.
"Fine- but I'm tagging along too. I only just found you and myself again so no way I'm gonna let you disappear on me again." Will said prodding Yusei in the chest several times in the process and earning confused looks from the twins.
Secretly grateful that his friend would be joining him into the belly of the beast as she called it, Yusei looked over at Akiza who, despite looking unsure of what to do, nodded her consent agreeing to go see Goodwin with them also apparently encouraged by the fact that Yusei and Will would be there too.
"If...you're all going, then I'll come along too." Luna spoke up getting their attention. As much as she would prefer staying here and letting the grown ups, she was a Signer also meaning that if this concerned Yusei and Akiza, then she would have to go also even if she was scared.
Still, it was not like she was going to be the only kid going to join them and no sooner had she spoken out-
"If Luna's going then so am I!" Leo quickly proclaimed before anyone else could get a word in.
He had been unable to be there for his sister one too many times now allowing Mido to steal his place as Luna's protector. Whether or not the taciturn teen tagged along also, Leo was not going to allow him to get any closer to Luna than he already was if he could help it.
"Oh no you don't, little miss! After all you've been through in both worlds this past week, you and your brother are staying right here where Aki's parents and Seria can keep an eye you." Will reprimanded the greenette.
Even though that blue haired skank had said that Luna was required to be at this meet with this Director jerk, Will's 'protective big sister' vibe was screaming to keep the little girl as far from his clutches for as long as possible and she did not care who said what otherwise.
"Why do I have to stay also? I could go in her place!" Leo protested. "I can even-mmm-mmmmph!"
Realising what her brother was about to blurt out, Luna quickly slapped a hand over Leo's mouth as she dragged him to the other side of the room trying her hardest to ignore the stares they were bound to be getting now from everyone else. Sure, Yusei knew about Leo dressing up as her and taking her place for one of her matches in the Fortune Cup- and maybe that psychic doctor Seria- but for reasons her heart could not comprehend just yet, Luna desperately did not want Will and the others to know she had let her brother dress up in her clothes despite the fact most of the embarrassment would be solely on Leo's shoulders not hers.
"Don't ever- ever- tell anyone you pretended to be me during the Fortune Cup please!" Luna half demanded half begged in a low voice to her brother so that no one else could hear them. "I'll give you my pudding for a week if you do."
With his sister's hand still covering his mouth, Leo could not properly voice his opinion over Luna's request but was smart enough to know that she was dead serious about wanting to keep this between the two of them and Yusei- especially if she was willing to give him her puddings.
"Mmph-mmf!" Leo mumbled holding up two fingers indicating he wanted her puddings for two weeks.
"...Fine. Just promise me you won't tell anyone, please?!" Luna pleaded.
"Mff!" She could feel him smirking triumphantly against her hand as he gave out a thumbs up in confirmation. Making her roll her eyes as she finally removed her hand.
Now that her brother was dealt with..."Well what should we do? Goodwin won't be happy that not only am I skipping out-" She really hopes she's saying that correctly. "But you're bringing along Will too." She's never met the man but from what she's heard, he likes his plans to go smoothly.
"Well...We'll just send somebody as your proxy or whatever." Will shrugged. Going in numbers would probably be safer anyway. "Hey Mido, you up for an intimidation tactic!?" Not just one, but two psychic duelists should make Goodwin behave.
Mido looked at Will as if she had just asked him something stupid. Just because he had honored their agreement and sheltered them, along with accepting Akiza's father's proposal and invite, did not mean he was part of this little circus troupe.
"Come on, stop insulting us with your mind." Will rolled her eyes at the look. "It's better to have strength in numbers, even you can't argue that."
"Just have 'Brambles' summon her garden gang then." Mido pointed out earning looks of confusion from the twins until they realised he was refering to Akiza.
"Really? Brambles?" Akiza's nose scrunched up slightly in distaste. She was expecting the more common nickname like Red or Aki...
"Point. But think of it this way, if you go, we can make an excuse that you're acting as Luna's lia.. Lia..." Will put a finger to her chin as she tried to find the word to describe it.
"Liability?" Leo provided helpfully to Will.
"No that's not it." Will hummed. Her nose scrunched up in hard thought.
"Liaison." Luna sighed.
"Yeah! That fancy word she just said." Will grinned, her face relaxing again as she crossed her arms.
"Doesn't explain why I must do it. I only let you lot stay with me cause you got me out too- fat lot of good that did." Mido added glaring Akiza's way briefly before turning back to Will.
He held a good point sans the destruction of his home. If one was to ignore that not-so-little titbit, Mido and Will's deal was considered done and they could now both go their separate ways- or at least could were they not all staying under the same roof albeit for different reasons this time.
"Oh, you need an explanation..." Will nodded as if that explained everything. "Well for starters you only stopped one of the shadow dudes. Two, that painted a big, bright, vvvvery appealing target on your back for dark spirit mojo. Three, you can get payback for almost becoming a very burnt stick in the mud. And lastly, you get the satisfaction of helping out your new friends." She seemed like she had to resist grinning an awful lot when she said friends.
Mido was silent as he glared at the orangette. It was clear the girl was pushing his buttons but she had pressed so many he did not know whether to knock her out again or agree to being Pinky's liaison and likely bodyguard later on no doubt. Yes, he had only managed to stop one of the intruders and yes he wanted to get back at them for invading his domain- while it had still been standing- but that did not mean he was their friend even if he had agreed to be so for one of their number.
"FRIENDS!?" Leo exclaimed loudly for all to hear on the far side of Satellite while staring at Will in horror. "He kept beating me and made me get shocked by what's-his-name's thing-a-ma-jig! There is no way me and Luna will ever be his friends!" He declared pointing an accusing finger at Mido. He could care less whether or not everyone else was friends with the mecha Psychic jerk but there was no way he was ever going to consider Mido as someone he would call a friend for a long, long time- or at least until he could beat him.
"Thanks for reminding me Leo!" Will grinned, making Leo gape at her as his entire tirade was ignored. "You also owe him." Will reached over and ruffled Leo's bangs with her fingers as he blinked slowly in confusion.
"Wait...so...that means..." Leo muttered as he tried to figure out what Will was going on about.
"Nothing." Mido interrupted. "He may have gotten hurt from our duels, but I was going to take him with me when I sprung out had you not shown up."
He might be a monster to everyone, but that did not mean he was a cruel one like Sayer and Akiza- at least when in 'witch' mode. He disliked what the man had made him do to Loudmouth and knew that if he did not escape along with the greenette, he was certain the boy would not be living much longer. The only problem had been trying to find out where Loudmouth had been imprisoned. It would have easier using his powers but knew they were watching him like a hawk in order to gauge how much psychic power he possessed, likely for whether or not to use him as a training dummy against Brambles when she was in 'Witch' mode or maybe even to brainwash him into another one of Sayer's puppets like those two he had dueled during their escape.
Of course, that was before he knew of Pinky's existence...
"Aahhh but I did show up. And is Mido one to leave an elephant like that lingering to strike?" There. Will knew she had him now. It may be petty, it may even be insulting to him. But she didn't care, she'd use any means to get them more numbers against the bastard who likely orchestrated all these events. She can apologize to him later maybe. Probably. Assuming they all survive to the end of this.
"What does she mean by elephant?" Leo asked out loud.
"Mido was feeling guilty about what happened to you during your duels, Leo, so he was going to get you out when he figured out how to escape also without alerting Sayer." Yusei explained for the male greenette.
"Only me?! He wasn't going to rescue Luna and take her away from me?!" Leo exclaimed too surprised by what he was hearing to be angry at the teen he was sure was trying to steal his sister away from him.
"Let's not go into any deep dark hypothetical whatchamacallits and just skip to the part where Mido agrees to come with." Will waved off Leo's shout as Luna elbowed her brother in the side glaring at him for those comments silently.
If looks could kill, Will was likely to have been killed many times over with the one Mido was giving her who looked like he was trying his hardest not to turn her into a red stain on the underside of a Gundam's foot.
"...Fine. I'll go as Pinky's rep to this meet- and as her bodyguard to Satellite." He added getting surprised looks from everyone. "You wouldn't be wanting me to know the enemy otherwise." He pointed out.
Yusei would not be surprised if Will had planned it this way. At least this meant that Luna and Akiza would have back up when it came to combating the Dark Signers later on in the form of Mido and Will respectively.
"So it's agreed. Myself, Will, Akiza and Mido will go to see Goodwin while everyone else stays here." Yusei said.
"Good luck, please come back safely." Luna said quietly.
Yusei nodded before he took the lead, everyone moving out the door downstairs to where the car waiting in front of the gate to the house. But Yusei and Will slowed down when someone walked out to meet them. A man who could never be mistaken for anybody else. Jack Atlas, former Enforcer, and the former Turbo Duel king. That is until Yusei usurped him. He didn't seem to be petty about it to Will, but with the look in his eyes, something must've happened in the time between when he lost and now. She had never seen him like this, with that sort of pain in his eyes.
"What's with you? You're actually going to take Goodwin's bait?" Jack grunted at his rival, who he saw first as the group was in a diamond formation. With Will at the back, Mido, Yusei, and Akiza at the front.
"Yes, if it means I get to find the truth behind that vision we saw in the stadium." Yusei said in a firm voice. The same vision that they all saw, all the signers saw. "and if the Satellite is really in danger, I'm going to do what I can to stop the threat."
"You're saying that's the fate of the signers?" Jack snorted, eyes cold. Having already gone through the speal the first time when Goodwin sold him that story. "By the way, behind you, isn't that-" He moved his head to see past Yusei, but he didn't need to as Will came up next to Yusei.
"Hey Jack. Long time no duel, huh?" Will joked lightly as the former king looked in shock.
"Will! You bugger! That's what you say after two years?!" Jack snorted as he quickly got over his shock. "Well at least you're still alive. That's good...Depending on your perspective." As expected, Will snickered slightly. The air noticeably lighter now. "What happened to you anyhow."
"Oh you know, a cult-" Akiza cleared her throat and looked at Will with a raised eyebrow. "Er, a misguided group, the Arcadia Movement captured me."
"Well imagine us meeting again in a place like this." Jack hummed before he looked at the floor with a sad expression. "Listen, about Kari I-"
"Don't." Will looked away with a wince. "Just...Don't." She didn't want to talk about it. Not here, not now.
"Excuse me." Mina walked back into the building to stand next to Jack. "Any more conversation can be conducted on the way to Director Goodwin."
"...Let's get going." Yusei sighed as Akiza put a hand on Will's shoulder in a comforting manner.
If Goodwin was surprised or even perturbed by the line up in of visitors in his mansion instead of the four people he had searched for, he kept it well hidden from the three Signers and two street duelists. Still, he was certain the fourth Signer child was with them. Perhaps not here where he had hoped but definitely with them nonetheless.
"I am pleased you are all here today. After the events at the Arcadia movement building-" Goodwin began.
"Yeah, yeah. Save the written speech stuff for your supporters and get to why you're wanting my friends. And don't you dare say you just wanted to have a tea party." Will cut over Goodwin impatiently.
Same old Will, were the words going through Yusei and Jack's minds at her outburst glad that she had voiced what they all were likely thinking when Goodwin began speaking. Like Jack had mentioned earlier, Goodwin was likely getting them all together for something most likely to do with the Dark Signers and perhaps even Satellite if what he had seen during their Duel along with the other Signers.
"I see there is not much love for me in this room, is there." Goodwin stated dryly easily deducing that beating around the bush may actually incur a proper beating on his person. "Very well then. Let's move to the topic at hand. Observe…"
Pressing a button on his desk, a panel on the wall to the left slid away to reveal an impressive television screen. Blinking into life, the screen showed what looked to be the remains of an ancient, perhaps Aztec tower surrounded by a large ring in the shape of a dragon.
"This is the temple that lies beneath the mansion." Goodwin explained.
"Is that…?" Akiza began recognising the claws that looked just like the one on her arm.
"Indeed. It is the Crimson Dragon from ancient legend in its complete Signer bears on his or her right forearm a single part the Dragon as is passed down from the Legendary Signers you all succeed. Akiza Izinski and Luna Stevens, the claws; Jack Atlas, the wings: Yusei Fudo, the tail." Goodwin explained. "I am sure you three and Miss Stevens witnessed that vision at the Fortune Cup. That vision, along with those Marks, are all part of the path It laid out for us."
"You mean the path you laid out for them! Yusei and Jack wouldn't be here had you not inflated Jack's ego." Will interrupted once again.
"Excuse me?! I'll have you know I never let my ego get in the way of my duelling career!" Jack snapped at Will before turning on Goodwin. "And besides that, I chose to accept your offer. I could have just as easily turned my back on that little clown of a minion you have under your thumb.!"
They were both right. Had Goodwin not played on Jack's desire to be a better duellist than all of his friends, Yusei would not have followed after him and they may still be in Satellite right now which might have been better considering the danger their home looked to be in.
"That, in itself, is the destiny brought forth by the power of the Crimson Dragon." Goodwin countered smoothly. "What you believe is up to you but, as long as you are all Signers with power granted to you by the Crimson Dragon, you cannot escape fate."
"Well, destiny and fate can take a hike for all I care!" Will grunted not into all that fate and destiny baloney.
"You mentioned everyone having a piece of this red dragon. Who has the head?" Mido spoke up.
He had heard Goodwin mention Pinky, Brambles, Crabby and Hightower getting parts of this mythical dragon but had left out the head of the dragon. Obviously, the person who sported the dragon head was likely the head Signer so did that mean that Goodwin wielded it? It would certainly explain how he seemed to know so much about all this in Mido's opinion.
"The fifth Signer already knows of his power." Goodwin assured them.
"Then who is it? I can sense the bonds I have between Jack, Akiza and Luna whenever one of us are dueling and them me but never this fifth one." Yusei pointed out thinking along similar lines from Mido and he was sure his fellow Signers were wondering that also now.
"You will meet in due time." Was all Goodwin said in reply.
"Fine! Then tell us why this Signer feud is all about!" Will snapped growing impatient from all this cryptic mumbo-jumbo.
"Very well. A few thousand years ago all was nearly destroyed by evil incarnate, the King of the Underworld. However, the Crimson Dragon descended and sealed away that evil into the ground. Those are the Nazca Lines- or rather, how they came about." Goodwin explained. "The Dark Signers have recently began to revive them using the powers of the underworld to revive the King of the Underworld's minions sealed within those lines."
"Power of the Underworld?" Yusei repeated in confusion before realising Goodwin was referring to- "Shadow Duels?!"
Yusei suddenly remembered his duel with the Dark Signer underling. Not only had he mentioned that their duel was a Shadow Duel but he had used a Dark Synchro monster which required a high level tuner to be subtracted from a low level non-tuner bringing the Dark Synchro out as a negative level monster. It was as if the Dark Signers were drawing upon the powers of darkness and death compared to the bright light and hope a Synchro monster wielded as it appeared upon it's master's call.
"Yes. Shadow Duels. Where life and death hangs upon the outcome." Goodwin confirmed. "Recent events both in New Domino City and Satellite have suggested that things are progressing quickly through the initial stages."
That got Will, Yusei and Jack's attention.
"Soon, the Dark Signers will revive the King of the Underworld bringing about the end of the world as we know it."
"And as Signers, we've all been gathered to stop that from happening." Jack finished.
"Correct. The key to revive the King of the Underworld is in the Old Ener-D reactor situated in Satellite. Surrounding it, are four control stations that monitor and control the power of the reactor." Goodwin explained. "As long as we can retake these towers and seal them, the King of the Underworld cannot resurface."
Everyone was silent as they took this information in. For three of them, having lived in Satellite all their lives, none of them were aware that the Ener-D reactor, the ground zero of the Zero Reverse catastrophe, was still even remotely in existence having thought it had perished like the rest of Domino City.
While they lamented on this, Akiza, having stayed silent all this time, spoke up to the first time.
"How are we supposed to seal the reactors?" She asked Goodwin. As good a psychic as she was, she was still only a teenager going through school. Calculators, duel disks and her alarm clocks were the only machines she knew how to use effortlessly unlike a control tower which was undoubtedly extremely complex.
"All Signers should each have a Dragon Synchro monster card. Unlike regular cards these ones were specifically created by a card designer who was good friends with Professor Fudo who headed the Ener-D reactor project." Goodwin told her.
As if on reflex, Yusei, Jack and Akiza pulled out their respective signature monsters: Stardust Dragon, Red Dragon-Archfiend and Black Rose Dragon. While not in the room, Will was certain Luna's was the Ancient Fairy Dragon although she did not recall ever seeing the card.
"What's so special about our cards?" Jack asked as he held up his Red Dragon-Archfiend.
"When the Crimson Dragon fought the King of the Underworld, It was aided by six dragons. Like the legendary card designer Maximillion Pegasus who based many of his cards on ancient hieroglyphs he discovered in Egypt, including the three Egyptian God Cards wielded by the King of Games Yugi Muto, Yamamoto Midorikawa designed and created these cards, four of which Professor used as emergency cut off keys for the four control rooms." Goodwin explained. It really did seem like he had looked over and rehearsed any and all questions they might ask going by how quick his response times were.
"Hold the phone a second. You just said Midorikawa, right?" Will asked the surname sounding very familiar to her and everyone else in the room apart from Jack.
As one, all heads turned to stare at Mido. The taciturn teen himself was frowning slightly as if angry that he was being dragged further into this than he already wished.
"Never did tell you my real name, did I? Not that I wanted to." Mido muttered before raising his voice slightly. "My name is Gozaburo Midorikawa. That man the director just mentioned, he was my father."
Free: A nice long chapter ending with a cliffy. Should keep whatever followers we have left for this story.
Grey: What followers? (pointing out into a deserted viewing theatre, crickets chirping in the background)
Free: You never know.