Big thanks to Elbarto4000, Unknowedz, aqua9597, Ulrich362, matrixnis, Playerhood18, Yuka Kuroshiro, dvdryms, SSJGamerYT, Big duels, GamingGuy84 for reviewing the previous chapter!
Hopefully you'll enjoy reading this chapter.
PATH 3 – UNDERGROUND PRISON – AMOSIS CITY – CANTIDEL EMPIRE – ARTIFICIAL DIMENSION
"You confessed to Yuya?!" Ruri shouted out in surprise after hearing what happened last night before the whole false arrest, causing Yuzu to put a hand on her mouth to silence the Xyz counterpart.
"Sshh! Not too loud!" Yuzu said with reddened face. "I said that in a spur of the moment! I'm not even sure if he took it as a confession! You know how dense he can be!"
Ruri sweat dropped at that. She really wanted to say that Yuzu herself was also as dense but she held it back. "No. With the way he is now, I'm sure he'll take that as a confession." She told her Pendulum counterpart. It was clear as day that Yuya has realized he has feeling for Yuzu since the championship a year ago.
"If he does…what should I do? What if things become awkward between us?! What if he rejected me and we can't become friends anymore?!" Yuzu went into panic mode; beginning to mumble the various worst-case scenarios she could think.
Ruri patted her back. "Calm down, Yuzu. That won't happen. I'm sure Yuya will answer to you feelings properly. Don't be too pessimistic. Have a little bit more hope." She told her. Yuya would 100% return her feelings since the feeling was mutual, so rejection would be the last thing that will happen.
Yuzu nodded, trying to calm herself. She has known Yuya since they were children, and he was not a type of person who would just cut off their ties because of something like that. Things may get awkward if she got rejected, but they'll still be friends. And if Yuya returns her feelings…she'll be very happy.
"By the way, it has been a while but, there are not so many guards now, aren't there?" Yuzu noticed after snapping out from her thoughts. They have walked for a while; beating guards one after another, but now there weren't so many.
"Now that you mention it, yes. Does this mean we have defeated all the guards?" Ruri wondered as well. It was nice thing that they didn't need to fight more guards to get to Aoi, but the atmosphere was suffocating and gave them shivers as the farther they went, they darker it became. The hallway in front of them was almost pitch black and the end there was a door. It was a little eerie when they crept through the hall as silently as possible...only to find that there wasn't a single person standing on guard.
"Maybe she's not down there," Yuzu said. She wondered if there were haunting spirits here. People would have normally told how ridiculous she was, but with the existence of Duel Monster spirits in this dimension, no one could blame her for thinking that way.
"Only one way to find out." Ruri moved forward first. Yuzu was grateful for how proactive Ruri was being, because Yuzu felt like she could only go through the motions. Ruri pried the door open, letting Yuzu slip down.
"Clear," Ruri whispered back up, and Yuzu slithered down too, pulling the door closed behind them.
It was incredibly dark in the tunnel, but this time, it wasn't a problem. Yuzu dug into her pocket and took out a flashlight. Since they were going underground, she has anticipated it would be dark so she brought several flashlights in case like this. It did come in handy. She held the flashlight ahead of them, Ruri clinging to her hand behind her this time as she lead the way back down the hall.
The door was unlocked. This was too easy; Yuzu found herself thinking, heart fluttering. Why was it so easy? Was this a trap? Were they hoping that whoever had broken in before would be lured back for some reason, and were trying to catch them?
But she pushed the door open anyway, and they made their way through the eerie room of vials and shelves. She opened the next door as carefully as possible, peeking through to make sure there were no guards. Maybe they didn't guard this place because they knew there was no way anyone else would know about it. Yuzu would have never guessed without the map provided by Ryo.
They didn't have much time, so Yuzu and Ruri didn't bother to second-guess themselves. They didn't bother with the side that had the medical rooms—all of those had been the same kind of hospital room, and likely wouldn't be able to imprison anyone. They took the other hallway instead, the one where they had found record rooms. There had to be something here, something that they hadn't seen in the dark on their travel through. They pushed the door open, and one at a time; Ruri and Yuzu checked each room. They passed that first record room they had gone into before, and Yuzu didn't miss the tiny shudder that Ruri gave in response. It wasn't until the very last room of the hall that Yuzu's breath caught at what appeared under the glow of her flashlight.
She saw the bars first, and then her light fell between the bars, and she saw the hunched shadow within the single, small cell.
"Aoi-san!" Yuzu shouted as she saw the very person they were looking for. Aoi was sitting in the cell with dejected look until she called her. Aoi stood up and became alarmed when they saw the two of them. Knowing she didn't recognize them with their cloaks and masks still on, Ruri stepped forward.
"Don't worry, it's us!" Ruri revealed herself, pulling down the hood and took off the mask to assure Aoi, which followed by Yuzu. Aoi became even more surprise.
"Ruri?! Yuzu?! What are you doing here?!" Aoi asked in shock. How did they get in here in the first place? This place was supposed to be heavily guarded! There were lots of guards exchanging shifts to guard this place, so how did these two have gone this far?
"We'll explain later, let's get out of here first!" Ruri raised her Duel Disk, activating the hacking mode programmed into it. After several press on the touch screen, the bars were opened, allowing Aoi to come out.
Aoi have so many questions she wanted to ask, but she agreed that she'd save them for later. If they spent so much time talking, the guards may come and bust them. Having her arrested was one thing, but Ruri and Yuzu? She couldn't let them be imprisoned too, especially when they were doing this for her sake. She knew that the charges against her were just a ploy to corner her brother's position and ruin Heidel's faction's reputation. During her stay in the cell she has prepared for the worst to happen, but Ruri and Yuzu have nothing to do with it. She definitely didn't want them to stay in this dark and cold place.
"Wait!" Yuzu suddenly said and stopped. She told them to be quiet a little and she then heard it. "There are voices..."
"Voices? I don't hear anything." Aoi said. She tried to concentrate, but her ears heard nothing. However, Ruri seemed to think otherwise.
"No. There are voices...it's coming from there." Ruri pointed at the door near Aoi's cell.
"That door…the guards took several prisoners there and the prisoners never came back." Aoi said. She recalled the last night she stayed in her cell. She saw the guards passed by taking prisoners into the room, and not a single prisoner came back, only the guards. She has a bad feeling about this.
They weren't imagining things. Yuzu and Ruri were sure of it. There were voices. The voices sounded so sad and in pain that it made both girls who heard them paled. They didn't know what these voices were, but they couldn't ignore them. They couldn't explain, but they just couldn't ignore those voices. They were crying. They at least knew that much.
"Ruri, you go ahead with Aoi-san. I'll check for a little bit. I think it's important." Yuzu said and turned to the door, but Aoi then grasped her arm. She turned to the older girl with determined face. She knew Aoi would try to stop her, her expression said it all. But she wouldn't back down either no matter what Aoi said.
Aoi was taken aback by how determined Yuzu was. She knew that going there was a bad idea, but she also knew that Yuzu has no intention to listen to whatever she was going to say. She will still go into that room. Aoi sighed. She sometimes was stubborn herself once she decided on something.
"No. We're coming with you. It's too dangerous to be here alone." Aoi finally said. She couldn't leave any of them. The least she could do as the one who was older would be watching over them.
Yuzu and Ruri were grateful for Aoi's understanding, and the three of them proceeded. In the dark, there was a sense of unease draped over the quiet study. It was surprising. They never thought there would be something like this in the underground prison. The carpet was thick enough to hide their footsteps as they walked around the desk, and Yuzu glanced around nervously for signs of life. The door was closed, though, and probably locked from the inside. If someone came along, they'd have a few seconds to hear. Yuzu walked to the bookcase on left wall, tongue sticking out slightly. It was getting very dark, very fast, and Ruri and Aoi could only see the faint glimmer of her eyes.
"What are you doing?" Ruri said.
"It's always behind the bookcase, isn't it?" Yuzu said.
She knelt down, ran her fingers over the books, and then grabbed one that looked pretty much the same as all the others, maybe a little smaller than the rest. She pulled on it—but it didn't come out all the way. There was a soft sound, and then the sound of something winding and creaking. Yuzu bit down on her tongue and put her hands over her mouth, as though that would make the sound quieter. Her eyes flicked to the door. She hoped that there were no guards here.
"Or, not behind the bookcase, but the bookcase is the key," Yuzu said, standing up and dusting off her knees.
"What did you do?" Aoi said.
Yuzu pointed behind them, and the other two turned around. A hole had opened up in the corner of the floor, with a thin, steep staircase leading down into the dark. Ruri and Aoi felt their hearts clench. Was that...? Yuzu didn't hesitate. She marched towards the staircase and started to make her way down. Ruri and Aoi froze for only a half second. Did she even want to know what was down there? What were they going to find out?
They swallowed.
They needed to know.
Ruri bolted forward before Aoi had started moving, and followed Yuzu down the stairs. She had to duck to get around the ledge underneath, but once they were in, it was easy to stand up—but incredibly dark.
Yuzu hand felt back in the dark and grabbed Ruri's.
"Hang on, go slowly, and watch your step," she said.
"Right," said Ruri. She reached back to find Aoi's hand, and then in a chain, they made their way down into the dark.
At the bottom of the stairs, there was a single, unlit torch. Yuzu released Ruri's hand to fumble in her pocket for a match, and lit it up. She wiggled it free from the bracket to hold it up and light up their surroundings. It looked like a very strange underground lobby. It was a fairly large room, with a desk on one end, and plenty of books on the shelves behind it. A roll of parchment and cards lay left behind on the desk, held open by the quill resting across it. There was a door directly behind the desk, and two others on either side.
Aoi licked her suddenly dry lips, following Yuzu and Ruri inside. The room was almost entirely white, and from the dull torchlight, it looked kind of eerie and sterile. Aoi walked ahead to the desk, looking at the parchment.
"Names," she said. "The prisoners' names."
"Is there anything else on the list?"
"Some short hand I don't understand."
Yuzu perked up—something that she could do. She trotted over to look at what Aoi was reading.
"It's...appointment times and locations," She said, squinting. She learned this from one of her studies with Johan, and she was sure that Rio taught the same to Ruri. "And… I'm not sure about this part. It looks medical, maybe."
Ruri's face looked white even in the dark. "What did they do here?" She mumbled.
Ruri bit her lip. Yuzu caught their attention by gesturing with her flashlight, though.
"Come on," she said. "The voices are coming from this way."
She took the left door, opening it up and letting the other two go in front of her. There was a short hallway on this end, with doors on either side. The three of them almost ran all the way down, not even bothering to check the other doors. They were getting really worked up, Yuzu thought. Yuzu couldn't blame them. Yuzu took it a bit slower, trying the other doors. They were all locked. Her stomach twisted as they got closer and closer to the last door—Ruri was already standing in front of it, her hand frozen over the knob.
Before Yuzu or Aoi could get there, however, Ruri steeled her face, grabbed the handle, and opened it up. She stepped through, but stopped as soon as she was over the threshold. Yuzu picked up the pace until she was standing behind Ruri, looking over her shoulder. The room looked like a small laboratory, with just cot, some cabinets, a scribbled list hanging from the wall, and capsules. Tubes and apparatus hung from the ceiling, and they led down to...
Ruri let out a thin, strangled sound, and Yuzu and Aoi felt like throwing up.
A prisoner that Aoi recognized was one of the ones taken by the guards was laying prone on the bed with tubes shoved into his arm and some kind of breath mask over his face, his eyes closed. He looked pale, like he was losing blood, but they weren't sure how that was possible—and she had no idea what to think. Yuzu pushed the flashlight at Ruri and shoved between the two of them, marching across the room, leaning down towards the list pinned to the wall while Ruri and Aoi checked the prisoner.
"This isn't shorthand," Yuzu said, her voice sounding a bit dead. "This is a list of tests."
Ruri couldn't keep her curiosity and fear in check, so she scrambled forward, leaving Aoi near the prisoner. She held the flashlight up and leaned in to read the list.
"'Blood testing'," she read. "It's not checked off yet."
"That's probably what they're doing now," Selena said. "Look at the rest of it."
Yuzu licked her lips, afraid—but she had to know. She read the rest of the list. Half blood replacement. Soul extraction. Soul union. Duel Monster bloods and souls.
"What does that mean?" Ruri wondered.
"I-I don't know…" Yuzu replied.
"E-everyone…" Aoi said with trembling voice with equally trembling hands. She pointed at something not far from them on the side. When Yuzu and Ruri turned the flashlight to make it clearer, they nearly screamed as they saw several capsules containing lifeless Duel Monsters in physical bodies.
"D-Duel Monsters?!"
Yuzu didn't even need to answer for them to know. Her hands were shaking so badly that she was probably going to drop the flashlight. Ruri gently extracted the flashlight from her hands.
Ruri waited for Yuzu to hurry out of the room, then she walked through and closed the door before leading them back down. She took the door on the opposite side of the room this time, leading them into another hallway with a few more locked doors. She took them to the middle one. This room was also unlocked by some miracle. Neat file cabinets filled the entirety of the room, which was not too much bigger than the hospital beds. Ruri passed the flashlight to Aoi this time, walking inside and making a beeline for one towards the back. She jiggled it open and flipped through.
Yuzu and Aoi wandered closer as Ruri wiggled free a thin slab of black glass, propping it up on the top of the cabinet.
"Video tapes." She said.
"They must be keeping records, I guess," Aoi said.
"Someone is coming!" Yuzu said with a whisper, pushing the other two to hide and be quiet.
There were two guards and two people wearing white lab jackets. Aoi blinked when she noticed something imprinted on the jackets. The emblem imprinted on the jackets to be precise. It was the emblem of Aberforth Enterprise. That means these people were working for Heidel. But it was impossible. There was no way that Heidel would work together with the nobles like Count Oslow. Did Heidel implant spies? That might be the case, but it still doesn't explain how and why Heidel's men would be here in some secret laboratory.
The prisoner made a soft groan. His wrists clamped down to the arms of the chair and his ankles to the legs. Darkened visor was placed over his eyes, and his fingers gripped at the arms of the chair so tightly that they were going white, his jaw clenched and teeth flashing slightly in a grimace.
"Turn it up. Just one setting."
The prisoner made a soft, pained moan before his head snapped up, and he started to gasp for breath. He started to gasp and pant.
"What are the readings?" The researcher asked.
"The air's getting hot in there. His soul is enhancing into temperature manipulation."
The prisoner's hair started to flap a bit at the ends, like there was a wind gusting around him.
"Don't turn it off. The soul is starting to fit together. Is this going to hold?"
"Doesn't look like it. It's unstable."
The prisoner let out a thick, strangled moan. And then the prisoner let out a thick screeching sound, and his head dropped to his chest, making him go still. Something then came out from his body…like a soul. The body slowly disintegrated while the 'soul' was starting to reform itself. His once human form slowly changed into bearing the likeness of a beast. It was as if he became…
…Duel Monster?
The cries Yuzu and Ruri heard intensified. They heard them more clearly than before. They were so sad and so in pain. The prisoner who became a beast then turned into particles that went into a card that being held by one of the researchers. More cries came. The girls felt like they were going to throw up. Did...Did they just saw what they saw?
Aoi actually let out a thin whine.
"T-they...they're experimenting…the prisoners…!"
Neither Yuzu nor Ruri could talk. They could barely even breathe. They couldn't believe they had just seen that happen. Automatically, Ruri reached for one of Yuzu's hands, grabbing it and squeezing it tightly. Yuzu's head felt so dead and empty. She couldn't even be angry. She didn't know how to feel. She could just grip onto Ruri's cold, clammy, shaking hand as tight as she could. It was all so horrible. To think that Heidel's group was secretly doing such inhumane experiments beneath this city without anyone knowing.
"Who's there?!"
They pressed themselves automatically into the corner. Selena quickly remembered the torch and stabbed it against the stone floor to put it out. They were left in total darkness, huddling together. However, then, somewhere down the hall, they heard voices. They heard…screams. There were various broken noises too and the screams sounded so horrified and terrified until it went silent. The girls' hearts thumped in their chests. They couldn't hear anything again—would they come this way? When the footsteps went to the opposite direction and slowly disappearing, they thought they have left, so the three girls decided to make their leave now. They walked slowly and opened the door slowly…
"Now, this is unexpected."
The girls gasped when the voice came right beside them. They jumped back, but out from the room where they were hiding. Yuzu and Ruri gasped as they recognized the two intruders other than them. They were Rowan and Shing. They recognized them from the file that Celica had once showed them when she explained about Apophis and his group. These two were classified as two of the most dangerous of Apophis' Duelists. While Aoi didn't recognize their faces, she recognized the robes they were wearing. It was the robe worn by the Duelists serving Apophis.
"You're Apophis' Duelists!" Yuzu exclaimed, preparing her Duel Disk, and so did Ruri.
The girls gasped when they noticed the exit was hanging open, actually ripped from its hinges—there were...there were claw marks on the other side like some kind of animal had been let loose. The desk was overturned, papers flung all across the room. The tubes and capsules were crushed. The Duel Monsters trapped inside the capsules, like the prisoner, got absorbed into the cards held by Rowan and Shing. But what sickened them the most were the bodies of the guards and the researchers from earlier. They were dead. Oh god, they were dead. Their eyes shone glassy off to the side, stomach down on the floor. Their clothes were torn and bloody, their throats slit with what seemed to be giant claws. Rowan and Shing killed them.
"We came here because we have an Intel about Heidel is running a secret experiment, but who would have thought we will meet you here." Shing said, crossing his arms and eyed the girls with amusement.
"W-what exactly happened just now?! That person! What happened to that person?!" Ruri asked, still having a hard time to believe of what happened to the prisoner.
"As you can see, that prisoner has just been reborn as a Duel Monster." Rowan replied while holding out the card of the former prisoner.
"Reborn as...Duel Monsters...? What does that mean exactly?" Yuzu asked again.
"The soul of a human who died can, given the right trigger, be reborn as a Duel Monster." Rowan revealed, shocking the three girls.
"What?! Then, that person...truly became a Duel Monster...?!" Ruri exclaimed, covering her mouth to try not to wretch.
"You've seen it yourself with your own eyes. Do you still find it hard to believe?" Shing pointed out. "If you can't believe us or what you saw yourself, then why don't you just ask Celica and Yuno? They knew that dead humans could be reborn as Duel Monsters. Some of their monsters were formerly humans." He suggested. Not like they could though.
"Celica-san and Yuno-san's monsters too?!" Yuzu was almost dumbstruck.
"But I can assure you at the very least that they didn't do something like this. They would never have the heart to do something like this." Rowan added.
"You said a human soul could be reborn as Duel Monster given the right trigger. Is this something that happens frequently?" Yuzu asked again. She tried to be as calm as she could, but her trembling body was saying otherwise. It was hard to keep calm after seeing that.
Shing shrugged. "Unfortunately, we don't have the answer to that question. Even we don't know how or why humans reborn as Duel Monsters naturally. But with His Excellency's power, forcing human's souls to be reborn as Duel Monsters to serve us is an easy task." He explained while waving the cards he just got from the room.
"It seems that Heidel is conducting his own research to acquire strong Duel Monsters to fight against us and spread his influence. However, for human being like him, it's not something that can be made to happen easily like how His Excellency does." Rowan added while looking around the room, picking one of the papers containing the detail of the experiments. Heidel was an ordinary human being who doesn't have any godly power like their master, so he resorted to science and little bit magic to find his own way to turn humans into Duel Monsters that he wanted. It was still pale in comparison with their master's or people who became one naturally though.
"Lord Heidel...would go this far...?" Aoi said in disbelieve. She knew that Heidel was a strong leader who ruled with iron fist, but to do something like this? This has gone too far! Prisoner or not, it was wrong to mess around with human lives. And she and her brother have been working under someone who would do something to inhumane, supporting his propaganda.
"That's terrible..." Ruri said. Her face became paler.
"Heidel and you...both of you are just the same!" Yuzu exclaimed furiously.
"Can't deny that since we got our bodies by sacrificing the real owners. But let's stop right there, shall we?" Shing said, raising his Duel Disk.
"The both of you are on our list to be disposed of. I have nothing against you, but His Excellency's order is absolute." Rowan said, raising his Duel Disk as well to Duel.
"Aoi-san, please stay back! We'll handle this!" Ruri said, stepping protectively in front of Aoi, preparing to Duel together with Yuzu.
"B-but they're Apophis' servants! They're too dangerous! We have to run!" Aoi objected. They could get themselves killed if they dueled against them who were not even humans.
"They are faster than us. Even if we run they'll get to us quick. It's either fight now or doing nothing at all." Yuzu retorted. Escaping from these two were next to impossible. They'll catch up to them even if they run away. Dueling is the only option they have at the moment.
"That's right. You're not stupid. Good. Let us begin." Shing stated, gesturing the two girls to come at them.
"Then we'll go with Tag Duel rule." Rowan proposed since there were four of them.
"Very well." Ruri replied as she and Yuzu activated their Duel Disks, beginning the Duel.
[DUEL!]
"I'm taking the first Turn! I summon Luce the Melodious Diva (ATK: 1500 / DEF: 2000 / LV: 4)!" Yuzu summoned a Luce in Attack Position.
"I activate Equip Spell: Diva's Baton! A Melodious Monster equipped with this card will gain 600 ATK!" Yuzu increased Luce's ATK to 2100.
"I set 2 cards and end my Tun." Yuzu finished.
"My Turn! From my hand, I summon Knight of the End (ATK: 1400 / DEF: 1200 / LV: 4)!" Rowan summoned Knight of the End in Attack Position.
"When this card is summoned, I can send a DARK-Attribute monster from my Deck to the Graveyard." Rowan sent Ritual Djinn Demolisher (ATK: 1500 / DEF: 600 / LV: 3) from his Deck to his Graveyard.
"I activate Ritual Magic: Ritual of Salvation to perform Ritual Summon." Rowan revealed his Ritual Spell Card, but before he performed Ritual Summon, he pressed the screen of his Duel Disk that showed Djinn Demolisher in the Graveyard.
"When I'm about to Ritual Summon, I can banish Ritual Djinn Demolisher from my Graveyard as 1 of the monsters required for the Ritual Summon." Rowan banished Djinn Demolisher, allowing its spirit to appear by Knight of the End's side as a white altar bathed in light appeared on the Field. Both monsters became flames that lit the altar.
"I use Knight of the End and Djinn Demolisher! Ritual Summon! Appear! Level 7! Beautiful Goddess of Salvation – Northwemko (ATK: 2700 / DEF: 1200 / LV: 7)!" Rowan summoned Northwemko in Attack Position.
"Battle! I attack Luce the Melodious Diva with Northwemko!" Rowan declared attack, pointing at the Melodious Monster. Northwemko shot a blinding destructive white sphere towards Luce who held its baton tight as it faced the incoming attack.
In response, Yuzu opened her first facedown card. "Trap Card: Melodies of Spirit! I negate Melodious Monster's destruction by Battle!" As she did this, Luce twirled its baton, dissolving the sphere, though Luce was still pushed back from the attack.
YUZU & RURI LP: 4000 = 3400
"I Set a card and end my Turn." Rowan concluded.
"My Turn! From my hand, I summon Lyrical Luscinia – Cobalt Sparrow (ATK: 0 / DEF: 100 / LV: 1)!" Ruri summoned Cobalt Sparrow in Attack Position. Aoi blinked when she saw the all too familiar monster.
"If I control a Lyrical Luscinia Monster, I can Special Summon Lyrical Luscinia – Sapphire Swallow (ATK: 100 / DEF: 0 / LV: 1) from my hand and one Level 1 Lyrical Luscinia Monster!" Ruri summoned Sapphire Swallow along with another copy of Cobalt Sparrow in Attack Position.
"I activate Cobalt Sparrow's Effect! I can add a copy of Cobalt Sparrow from my Deck to my hand!" Ruri added another copy of Cobalt Sparrow to her hand.
"And then I activate the Effect of another copy of Sapphire Swallow in my hand!" Ruri once again Special Summoned another copy of Sapphire Swallow and Cobalt Sparrow in Attack Position.
"I overlay all my five Monsters! Birds with beautiful wings! Gather on the battlefield and take brilliant flight! Xyz Summon! Dance in the sky! Xyz Summon! Rank 1! Lyrical Luscinia – Assembly Nightingale (ATK: 0 / DEF: 0 / RNK: 1 / ORU: 5)!" Ruri summoned her ace Monster in Attack Position.
"Those monsters... Ruri...you're..." Aoi stared hard at Ruri's back. Those were Canaria's monsters. Then that means Ruri is…
"I'll explain everything later, Blue Angel-san." Ruri responded with a soft smile at Aoi briefly before returning to the Duel.
"There will be no later because the two of you are going to die here." Shing scoffed Ruri's statement.
"We'll see about that! Assembly Nightingale can attack directly a number of times for each Overlay Unit it has! There are 5 Overlay Units, so it can attack you directly 5 times!" Ruri activated her Monster's Effect. As said by Ruri, Assembly Nightingale swung its wings towards the Tyler Sisters, unleashing gust of winds five times that drastically decreased their LP.
ROWAN & SHING LP: 4000 = 1500
"I end my Turn." Ruri finished her Turn.
"My Turn! I activate Magic Card: Inverz's Pheromone! I can special summon a Level 4 or lower Inverz Monster from my hand!" Shing summoned Evil Cell of the Inverz (ATK: 0 / DEF: 0 / LV: 1) in Attack Position.
"When I control no Magic or Trap, I can special summon Scout of the Inverz (ATK: 200 / DEF: 0 / LV: 1) from my hand, but in exchange I can's special summon other monster this Turn!" Shing summoned Scout of Inverz in Attack Position as well.
"I release Scout of the Inverz to Advance Summon Inverz Giraffa (ATK: 2600 / DEF: 0 / LV: 7)!" Shing tributed Scout of Inverz, summoning Inverz Giraffa in Attack Position. As the former has left the Field, he can special summon again.
"I activate Inverz Giraffa's effect! I can target a card my opponent controls and send it to the Graveyard! Also, I gain 1000 LP!" Shing pointed at the Xyz Monster. Inverz Giraffa summoned countless of bugs that swarming towards Assembly Nightingale. The Xyz Monster cried out in pain as its body dispersed, being destroyed by the insects.
ROWAN & SHING LP: 1500 = 2500
"I also activate Magic Card: Inverz Recognition! When I control an Inverz Monster, I can perform Normal or Advance Summon for the second time. I release Evil Cell of the Inverz to Advance Summon Inverz Horn (ATK: 3000 / DEF: 0 / LV: 9)!" Shing once again performed Advance Summon, summoning Inverz Horn in Attack Position.
"I activate Inverz Horn's effect. Once per Turn, I can pay 1000 LP to destroy a monster on the Field." Shing decreased his and Rowan's own LP by 1000 to allow Horn to destroy Yuzu's Luce.
ROWAN & SHING LP: 2500 = 1500
Shing pointed at Luce. Inverz Horn flapped its wings, sending a brown-colored dust towards the Melodious Monster who visibly got weakened when made contact with it. Yuzu, however, already prepared for that as well and opened her second facedown card.
"Trap Card: Storm of Melodies! When a Melodious Monster I control is destroyed, my opponent cannot attack until the end of this Turn!" Yuzu opened her second facedown card, sealing Inverz Horn and Northwemko's attack. With this they won't be able to make a direct attack against them.
"Heh. Not bad. So you've prepared in advance. I set a card and end my Turn." Shing concluded as he praised the pink haired girl. "You two are not as fun as Yuri, but this will do well. I won't get bored."
"You need to pay more attention to our LP, Shing. Don't forget that this is a Tag Duel. We're sharing LP." Rowan reminded, indirectly chastising his partner.
"Chill out, Rowan. I know that you have a backup for the loss of LP. This is not the first time we do a Tag Duel." Shing said dissmissively, not showing any indication he will do as Rowan told him to, which made the latter sighing in exasperation.
"You're holding up all right, Ruri?" Yuzu asked her partner.
"This is just getting started. We have been through worse, weren't we?" Ruri reminded.
"You made a good point. My Turn! I activate Storm of Melodies' second effect! I banish it to summon back the Melodious Monster destroyed to trigger this card's activation!" Yuzu revived Luce from Graveyard in Attack Position.
"From my hand I activate Magic Card: Fusion! I Fuse Luce the Melodious Diva on my Field and Sonata the Melodious Diva in my hand! Echoing melodious voice! Flowing Melody! Guided by the baton, gather your power! Fusion Summon! Now, come to the stage! Meisterin Schubert the Melodious Maestra (ATK: 2400 / DEF: 2000 / LV: 6)!" Yuzu summoned Meisterin Schubert in Attack Position.
"I activate Meisterin Schubert's Effect! I can target cards in either player's Graveyards that were used for Fusion Summon and banish them to increase the ATK of Meisterin Schubert by 200 for each card banished!" Yuzu banished the Fusion Materials in her Graveyard, increasing Meisterin Schubert's ATK to 2800.
"Battle! I attack Northwemko with Meisterin Schubert!" Yuzu declared her counter attack. Meisterin Schubert moved its baton, creating a tornado wave whirled by musical scores.
Rowan opened his facedown card. "Trap Card: Divine Grace! When Ritual Monster I control is destroyed by Battle, I can negate the damage and add half of the ATK of the destroyed Ritual Monster into LP while inflict damage equal to the recovered LP!"
ROWAN & SHING LP: 1500 = 2800
YUZU & RURI LP: 3400 = 2100
"Now our LPs are close. But we will change that soon in the next Turn." Shing stated confidently, glancing at his partner to emphasize it.
"We won't lose! Don't underestimate us! I set a card and end my Turn." Yuzu concluded.
"My Turn! I activate Magic Card: Djinn's Magical Lamp! I can add a Ritual Djinn monster from my Deck to my hand." Rowan added Ritual Djinn Presider (ATK: 1800 / DEF: 1400 / LV: 4) into his hand.
"I summon Ritual Djinn Enforcer (ATK: 1300 / DEF: 500 / LV: 4)!" Rowan summoned Djinn Enforcer in Attack Position.
"I activate Djinn Enforcer's effect. When this card is summoned from my hand, I can add 2 Magic or Trap Cards into my hand." Rowan added a Magic and Trap into his hand.
"By discarding a Level 5 or higher monster, I can special summon Dark Grepher (ATK: 1700 / DEF: 1600 / LV: 4) from my hand!" Rowan summoned Dark Grepher in Attack Position after discarding Ritual Djinn Presider from his hand.
"And then I activate Ritual Magic: Ritual of Destruction. Once again when I'm about to Ritual Summon, I can banish Ritual Djinn Monster from my Graveyard as 1 of the monsters required for the Ritual Summon." Rowan banished Djinn Presider that he has sent to the Graveyard to use it as a Material.
"I use Dark Grepher and Ritual Djinn Presider! Ritual Summon! Appear! Level 7! Demon King of Destruction – Garlandolf (ATK: 2500 / DEF: 1400 / LV: 7)!" Rowan performed another Ritual Summon, summoning Garlandolf in Attack Position.
"I activate Garlandolf's effect. When this card is Ritual summoned, all face-up monsters on the Field with DEF less than or equal to this card's ATK are destroyed and this card received 100 ATK for each destroyed monster!" Rowan revealed. Garlandolf crossed its arms in front of its face as dark energies were gathering around its body. It lowered its arms to reveal its glinting eyes before finally opening its arms, unleashing the energies throughout the area that destroyed both Shing's Inferz Horn and Yuzu's Meisterin Schubert as both monsters' DEFs were lower than Garlandolf's ATK. As two monsters were destroyed, it gained 200 ATK. Its ATK was increased to 2700.
"Yuzu and Ruri's Field are wide open now!" Aoi remarked in dismay. They were open to attack now, and their LP was at 2100. Garlandolf's single attack was more than enough to finish the two off. Aoi clenched her hands thight together. If only she has her Duel Disk and Deck with her, she would have joined the Duel!
"Battle! I attack directly with Garlandolf!" Rowan declared. Garlandolf joined its palm together and started to form black sphere as opposed to Northwemko's white sphere. However, Garlandolf's sphere was twice bigger than Northwemko. Garlandolf shot the blast straight at Yuzu and Ruri.
Yuzu clicked her tongue before opening her facedown card. "Trap Card: Maestra's Concerto! I can banish a Melodious Maestra or Meisterin monster in my Graveyard to lower the damage equal to its original ATK!" She banished Meisterin Schubert, lowering the damage she and Ruri took by 2400. They got blown away as the sphere hit them, giving them considerable bruises and cuts from the impact. At least they still survived the Duel.
YUZU & RURI LP: 2100 = 1800
"I set a card and end my Turn. I praise your tenacity, but it won't be long." Rowan told the two girls.
"Yuzu! Ruri! Are you okay?!" Aoi kneeled to Ruri and Yuzu who were lying on the floor, struggling to stand up.
"D-don't worry… We won't lose to this kind of attack…!" Ruri told Aoi as she slowly stood up, being helped by Aoi. She smiled at Aoi despite the pain throughout her body. "We will get you out of here safely, Aoi-san. Please trust us."
"Ruri…" Aoi couldn't say anything anymore. She frowned. She felt so useless.
"Before we start again, I want to ask one thing. What have you done to my brother?" Ruri asked the two.
"You mean Shun Kurosaki? Dunno if he is still alive or dead, but we are sure Tsukasa defeated him when the portal at the temple first opened." Shing answered.
"Tsukasa left him after he defeated him. Since you said he was not seen again after that, I can only think that he went into the portal and Chase after Tsukasa, which he failed to do. Who knows where your brother is now." Rowan explained in more detail.
"I see..." Ruri gazed down sadly before raising her head again with steeled resolve.
"My Turn! I activate Magic Card: Nightingale Tweets! I can add 2 Level 4 or lower Lyrical Luscinia Monsters from my Deck to my hand!" Ruri added Sapphire Swallow and Ruby Reed to her hand.
"I summon Sapphire Swallow from my hand!" Ruri summoned Sapphie Swallow in Attack Position.
"When I control a Lyrical Luscinia Monster, I can Special Summon Lyrical Luscinia – Ruby Reed (ATK: 100 / DEF: 200 / LV: 1) from my hand!" Ruri summoned a Ruby Reed in Attack Position.
"When Ruby Reed is Special Summoned, I can Special Summon one Level 1 Lyrical Luscinia Monster from my Deck!" Ruri summoned Lyrical Luscinia – Emerald Nuthatch (ATK: 100 / DEF: 100 / LV: 1) in Attack Position from her Deck.
"I overlay Sapphire Swallow, Ruby Reed, and Emerald Nuthatch! Birds with beautiful wings! Gather on the battlefield and raise courage with your dance! Xyz Summon! Dance in the sky! Xyz Summon! Rank 1! Lyrical Luscinia – Recite Starling (ATK: 0 / DEF: 0 / RNK: 1 / ORU: 3)!" Ruri summoned Recite Starling in Attack Position.
"I activate Rank-Up Magic: Lyrical Luscinia – Egg Hatch! I can use this card and a Lyrical Luscinia Xyz Monster as Xyz Materials to special summon an Xyz Monster from my Extra Deck with one Rank higher than the Xyz Monster I control!" Ruri opened the Overlay Network using Recite Starling and the Rank-Up Magic Card.
"Birds with colorful wings! Gather on the battlefield and sing the song of hope! Xyz Summon! Rank 2! Lyrical Luscinia – Opera Nightingale (ATK: 200 / DEF: 200 / RNK: 2 / ORU: 2)!" Ruri summoned Opera Nightingale in Attack Position.
"It's the same monster she used against me!" Aoi remarked. Her hope rose up. Opera Nightingale has strong effect. They could turn the tide with it.
"I activate Opera Nightingale's effect! If this card is Xyz summoned, it gains 400 ATK for each Level 3 or lower Lyrical Luscinia monsters in my Graveyard!" There were 8 Level 1 Lyrical Luscinia monsters in her Graveyard, so its ATK became 3400.
"I activate Opera Nightingale's effect! I detach an Overlay Unit to lower my opponent's monster's ATK equal to half of Opera Nightingale's current ATK!" Ruri decreased Garlandolf's ATK by 1700, making its current ATK 1000.
"Battle! I attack Garlandolf with Opera Nightingale!" Opera Nightingale flapped its wings, sending gust of winds coated in green sparks of energies, making it look like a pixie dusk.
"Trap Card: Divine Protection! I banish a LIGHT Ritual Monster from my Graveyard to negate the destruction of a Ritual Monster I control and halve the damage!" Rowan banished Northwemko, creating a shield that blocking Opera Nightingale's wind from Garlandolf.
ROWAN & SHING LP: 2800 = 1600
"We almost have them…!" Ruri gritted her teeth in the edge of frustration.
"Too bad, girlie. You need to do more than that. Hurry up end your Turn so I can make my move." Shing told the Lyrical Luscinia user.
"I end my Turn." Ruri concluded. At this moment, Opera Nightingale's effect ended, returning Garlandolf's ATK to normal.
"My Turn! Draw!" Shing looked at the card he drew and his grin widened. He turned to Rowan. "Hey, Rowan, you don't mind me using your monster, right?"
"If that can lead us to win this Duel, then you may do as you please." Rowan replied.
"From my hand, I activate Magic Card: Inverz Generation. I can special summon a Level 4 or lower Inverz Monster from my hand or Deck." Shing summoned Inverz All-Purpose Form (ATK: 1000 / DEF: 0 / LV: 2) in Attack Position.
"Inverz All-Purpose Form can be treated as 2 tributes. I release it to Advance Summon Inverz Gazus (ATK: 2800 / DEF: 0 / LV: 8)!" Shing summoned Inverz Gazus in Attack Position.
"I activate Inverz Gazus' effect! When this card is Advance Summoned using 2 Inverz monsters, I can either destroy all monsters on the Field beside this card or destroy all Spell and Trap on the Field." Shing revealed.
"Another effect that destroy monsters on the Field?!" Aoi exclaimed in disbelieve. To make it worse, the effect doesn't require LP to be activated like other inverz monsters.
"Of course, I destroy all monsters on the Field except this card!" Shing declared, activating Gazus' effect. Inverz Gazus' body was covered in sinister red energies as the monster crossed its arms in front of it. Its eyes glinted briefly before it opened its arms, unleashing red energy waves that shook the entire room.
"Nightingale Tweet's effect! I banish it from Graveyard to negate destruction of a Lyrical Luscinia Monster I control until the end of this Turn!" Ruri banished her Magic Card, allowing Opera Nightingale to endure the destructive wave, leaving only Garlandolf to be destroyed.
"Too naïve." Shing stated as he picked a card from his hand. "I activate Quick-Play Spell: Inverz Machination! When an Inverz Monster I control destroyed non-Inverz monsters either through Battle of card effect, the Inverz Monster gains that Monster's half of its ATK when destroyed!" Shing added half of Garlandolf's ATK to Gazus, increasing its ATK to 4150.
"An ATK of 4150?!" Yuzu exclaimed in surprise.
"It's higher than Opera Nightingale!" Ruri remarked in dismay.
"Battle! I attack Opera Nightingale with Inverz Gazus! Even though Opera Nightingale cannot be destroyed, you'll still take damage!" Shing reminded as Gazus made its attack at the Xyz Monster. It punched Opera Nightingale on its chin before throwing it down by grabbing its head and crushed it to the floor. The floor shook from the impact of the fall, causing Yuzu and Ruri to lose their footing as they received the damage.
YUZU & RURI LP: 1800 = 1050
"Due to Inverz Machination's effect, Gazus can attack one more time!" Shing revealed as Gazus continued to repeatedly punch Opera Nightingale, not giving the Xyz Monster the chance to recover, punching it further down to the floor.
YUZU & RURI LP: 1050 = 300
"I end my Turn. Phew. That was stress relieving. Our next Turn will be the end for both of you. I suggest you say your prayers now, girls." Shing told Yuzu and Ruri.
"The Duel…is not…over yet…!" Yuzu insisted as she stood up again.
"We have promised that we will take Aoi-san out of this place…and we intend to keep that promise…!" Ruri responded.
Yuzu and Ruri knew though, that despite saying that, they were clearly at the corner. Neither of them has any card on their hands nor set card. Even if they use Opera Nightingale's effect to defeat Inverz Gazus, Rowan and Shing will still have enough LP to turn the tide again once Yuzu's Turn was over. This Turn would be their decisive Turn. The card that Yuzu will draw this Turn will determine the outcome of this Duel.
Yuzu prepared to start her Draw Phase when a voice halted her. Ruri, Shing, and Rowan seemed to hear the same thing. The voices came like whispers, echoing throughout the whole room. And then they saw them. Shadowed figures began to appear one after another, surrounding them. Yuzu and Ruri recognized their voices. They were the voices they heard when they freed Aoi. These voices belonged to them. Belonged to the people who became Duel Monsters in this place.
"I see. They are fragments of Duel Monster spirits that ended up as failures and being disposed." Rowan stated as he looked at the spirits.
"Failures?" Yuzu's head shot up.
"Yeah. They died and reborn as Duel Monsters, but they were deemed as failures, not strong enough for use, so they were disposed than being kept as unnecessary luggage." Rowan explained.
"Start as trashes and end as trashes. Fitting for them." Shing sneered dismissively at the spirits.
Yuzu's blood boiled. Yuzu couldn't take it—her blood was boiling and she felt so angry she could hardly see. The ones who were deemed failures here, while they were criminals, she sensed kindness within them. They did crimes not because they wanted to, not because they liked it.
"People like us who are able to hear their voices and communicate with Duel Monsters are the ones who should have understood this more than anybody. It's not something you can understand just by somebody telling you. You must realize it on your own. Then you take that trust and use it to deepen the bond you have with your monsters."
Yuzu recalled Johan's words. These Duel Monsters wanted to fight. They wanted to prove themselves and then found their peace. She knew what she must do. She will take that feeling, and carry them from now on.
"Please, lend me your strength." Yuzu said.
The spirits then gathered together and entered Yuzu's Extra Deck, making it shine bright. Yuzu then saw a silhouette. The silhouette of the monster, born from the combined lost souls. They were answering her.
"My Turn!" Yuzu finally began her Draw Phase. With Shing's Turn ended, Inverz Gazus' ATK reverted to normal. She looked at the card she drew. Her prayer has been answered.
"From my hand, I summon Edea the Melodious Diva (ATK: 1200 / DEF: 300 / LV: 3)!" Yuzu summoned Edea in Attack Position.
"When Edea is normal summoned, I can add a Melodious Monster from my Deck to my hand!" Yuzu added Prodigy Mozart into her hand from her Deck.
"Appear, the circuit of our harmony!" Yuzu opened the Link Circuit.
"Arrowhead confirmed! The summoning condition is one Melodious Monster! I set Edea the Melodious Diva and Lyrical Luscinia Opera Nightingale in the Link Marker! Circuit Combine!" Yuzu set Edea on the Right arrow while Opera Nightingale on the Left arrow.
"Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Prodigy Stradivarius the Floral Melodious Maestra (ATK: 2000 / LINK: 2 / LM: Right, Left)!" Yuzu summoned a female monster crystal-blue hair and green eyes. Its skin was fair, and its delicate attire was extravagant yet modestly elegant. It was wearing a large, decorated white dress adorned with a large, pink rose on its chest, as well as a luminescent, bridal-like veil that follows peacefully down its back. Its petite crown rests atop its head, surrounded by a large, white bow that compliments its dress. It was holding a blue-colored violin.
"The spirits fused into 1 Link Monster?!" Shing expressed genuine surprise.
"Something like that was possible?" Rowas was also visibly surprised.
"I activate Prodigy Stradivarius' effect! On the Turn this card is Link Summoned, I can special summon a Melodious Monster to the zone pointed by its Link Arrow from my hand but it cannot attack this Turn!" Yuzu summoned Prodigy Mozart in the zone pointed by the Right Arrow.
"Battle! I attack Inverz Gazus with Prodigy Stradivarius!" Yuzu declared attack.
"I activate Prodigy Stradivarius' effect! When there's a Monster pointed by its Link Marker, it cannot be destroyed by Special Summoned Monsters and any destruction and Battle Damage involving this card is inflicted to the opponent instead!" Prodigy Stradivarius played its violin, creating soundwaves that cleared the dark atmosphere inside the room.
ROWAN & SHING LP: 1600 = 800
"We still have LP–" Shing pointed out, but got interrupted by Yuzu's sharp look.
"When Prodigy Stradivarius destroyed a monster, it can inflict damage to the player by 900 for each monster pointed by its Link Arrow!" Yuzu revealed as Prodigy Stradivarius played a new song, unleashing colorful musical notes that surrounded Rowan and Shing and exploded, depleting their LPs.
ROWAN & SHING LP: 800 = 0
"You won!" Aoi cheered, running towards Yuzu and Ruri who were close to exhausted. Rowan and Shing were still trying to get ahold of themsleves after the explosion. They couldn't move. "This is our chance! Let's get out of here!"
"Right! Let's–"
A blast shocked them, which followed by another explosion. The room started to be engulfed in burning flames, burning all the records and data kept there. As the girls were thinking what happened, they heard a low moan and turned to see one of the researchers. One of them was still alive and was holding a remote. Explosive remote. It wasn't difficult why he did so. He intended to keep this place a secret. To make sure the public won't find out, any witness must be eliminated.
"We have to get out of here! Now!" Yuzu yelled in panic.
The girls went towards the exit as quicly as they could. Shing and Rowan have disappeared first. They seemed to have retreated the moment the explosion occurred. The three girls went upstairs, Yuzu at the front and Ruri on the back. Yuzu came out first. Before Aoi and Ruri could come out, the ceiling above fell. Ruri pushed Aoi forward, allowing her to get out. However, she got hit by the falling ceiling, causing her to stumble down.
"Ruri!" Aoi tried to reac for her, but the exit was blocked by the falling ceiling. More flames then came out, forcing them to move back.
"Ruri! We have to help her!" Aoi told Yuzu, her hand trying to reach for where they came.
"I know! But if we go now we will be burn as well!" Yuzu yelled back. She wanted nothing more but to help her Xyz counterpart, but at this rate the flame will reach them.
"Stand back."
Yuzu and Aoi jumped from shock when they herd voice behind them. A person in light blue robes was standing behind them, raising Duel Disk. The two girls, not understanding why themselves, opened path for the mysterious person.
"Come forth! Raid Raptors – Napalm Dragonius!"
Yuzu and Aoi were taken aback when the person in light blue robes all of a sudden summoned his monster. But Yuzu was even more surprised by the monster he summoned. There was only one person she knew who used that monster.
"Kurosaki?!" Yuzu called out, but she was being ignored.
Napalm Dragonius created path intot he exit and went down with its master. Yuzu and Aoi were too dumbstrucked to do anything let alone reacting further. They coud only stand there, staring at the path until Napalm Dragonius came out again. The Raid Raptors' master was holding Ruri in bridal style. She was uncoscious from the fall. The Raid Raptors Monster then took Aoi and Yuzu onto its wings as they made their way out from the hallway.
"Kurosaki! You're Kurosaki, right?!" Yuzu called out again, but he didn't respond. Vein popped on her head at being ignored. "Answer me, Shun Kurosaki!"
"Shun Kurosaki?" Aoi blinked. Wasn't that the name of Ruri's missing brother? And that also makes him Yuzu's older brother since they were twins. So why did Yuzu called him 'Kurosaki'?
"Yuzu! Look!" Aoi pointed out as she noticed people ahead. One of them was Rio.
"Johan-san! Rio-san!" Yuzu called out as Johan and Rio waved their hands.
Napalm Dragonious then landed right in front of Johan and Rio, safely delivering the girls to them. The flame won't reach them here as he has turned on the sprinkles that were not provided in the hallway where Aoi was being held, but near here, there were many. The flames would died out soon enough.
"Thank goodness the three of you are okay!" Johan said in relief.
"I-I'm sorry! We'll explain everything later! But first, Yuya and the others…" Yuzu didn't get to finish as Johan rubbed her head.
"Don't worry. Yuno and the others will help them." Johan assured her.
"Ruri is okay. There are bruises and burns, but it's not life-threatening." Rio assured Aoi and Yuzu after checking her student and gave some first aid kit. Ruri was uncoscious from the hit and inhaling smoke, but she'll recover with clean air and some rest.
"Thank goodness…" Aoi fell on her knees from relief. She was on the verge of tears. If something worse happened to Ruri, she could never forgive herself.
"Wait, Kurosaki!" Yuzu shouted as she noticed the young man in blue robes jumped onto Napalm Dragonius' back again.
"Kurosaki, why won't you say anything?! Where have you been?! Why didn't you appear before us sooner?!" Yuzu asked again and again, but she still received no respond from him. Why was he being all silent?
"…Brother…"
The man flinched when Ruri called out weakly. They turned and saw she was still uncoscious. She must have said it in her sleep. Yuzu noticed 'Kurosaki' raised his hand as if trying to reach for Ruri, but he then clenched it and placed it back to his side. He nodded at Napalm Dragonius who shot Fire Bomb above, creating hole until the top, revealing blue sky above. He and his monser then flew up, ignoring shouts that demanded him not to go. He didn't look back for even a second, leaving the people below bewildered.
"I don't understand…Kurosaki…" Yuzu murmured in concern, wondering the cold shoulders given by the Raid Raptors user.
HALLWAY – UNDERGROUND PRISON – AMOSIS CITY – CANTIDEL EMPIRE – ARTIFICIAL DIMENSION
"Ouch, ouch! That hurt…" Shing said lazily while licking his wound.
"I didn't expect that the spirits could do that either. This would be a useful information for His Excellency." Rowan said calmly while bandaging his burn arm.
"How about Tsukasa and the others?" Shing asked.
"They're still on their way to their target." Rowan replied as he checked his Duel Disk.
"And our spy?" Shing asked again.
"We'll meet with him after this mission is over." Rowan replied again as he finished his bandage before standing up. He looked down at Shing who was still tending to his wounds. "Make it quick. We still have one more thing to do."
"Perhaps you would be amenable to telling me where that rendezvous point is," came the cold, angry voice.
Rowan and Shing tended. They felt their own hearts almost slide into their throats as they looked up, and found their way blocked by the silhouette of the third member of The Brotherood's The World squad.
"Ryoga Kamishiro…"
NEXT CHAPTER PREVIEW:
Hypocritical Forgiveness – Yuto and Yugo receives Yuya's message of the false path, so they decide to return. However, to their surprise, Geist and Neon appear before them as they learn more about the secret experiments done by Heidel.
FANFIC ORIGINAL CARD MEMO:
Inverz Recognition: When you control an Inverz Monster, you can perform Normal or Advance Summon for the second time. (Magic Card)
Storm of Melodies: When a Melodious Monster you control is destroyed, your opponent cannot attack until the end of this Turn. You can banish this card to summon back the Melodious Monster destroyed to trigger this card's activation. (Trap Card)
Divine Grace: When Ritual Monster you control is destroyed by Battle, you can negate the damage and add half of the ATK of the destroyed Ritual Monster into LP while inflict damage equal to the recovered LP. (Trap Card)
Maestra's Concerto: You can banish a Melodious Maestra or Meisterin monster in your Graveyard to lower the damage equal to its original ATK. (Trap Card)
Divine Protection: You can banish a LIGHT Ritual Monster from your Graveyard to negate the destruction of a Ritual Monster you control and halve the damage. (Trap Card)
Inverz Generation: You can special summon a Level 4 or lower Inverz Monster from your hand or Deck. (Magic Card)
Inverz Machination: When an Inverz Monster you control destroyed non-Inverz monsters either through Battle of card effect, the Inverz Monster gains that Monster's half of its ATK when destroyed. The targeted Inverz Monster can attack one more time. (Trap Card)
Edea the Melodious Diva: (ANGEL / LIGHT / EFFECT / ATK: 1200 / DEF: 300 / LV: 3). When Edea is normal summoned, you can add a Melodious Monster from your Deck to your hand.
Prodigy Stradivarius the Floral Melodious Maestra: (ANGEL / LIGHT / LINK / ATK: 2000 / LINK: 2 / LM: Right, Left). On the Turn this card is Link Summoned, you can special summon a Melodious Monster to the zone pointed by its Link Arrow from your hand but it cannot attack this Turn. When there's a Monster pointed by its Link Marker, this card cannot be destroyed by Special Summoned Monsters and any destruction and Battle Damage involving this card is inflicted to the opponent instead. When Prodigy Stradivarius destroyed a monster, it can inflict damage to the player by 900 for each monster pointed by its Link Arrow.
Finish! Not sure about the Duel, but I personally felt satisfied with Yuzu's first Link Monster. Hope you like it. I actually thinking hard whether to make Yuzu and Ruri win or lose, but then I remembered that for the past few chapters, they have been losing, so I decided to make them win this way. The fanfic original cards will be included later. And sorry for any mistake/error, that will be checked and fixed later.
Please don't forget to review this chapter~
