Chapter 37: Trouble Afoot! The Key To Being Number 1!
Shun felt something calling to him, from somewhere in the ruins, as he walked with Gong. "Do you hear that?" he looked at the martial artist.
"Hear what?" Gong frowned.
"There's something . . . that way," Shun surmised, pointing in towards what had once been the suburbs of Heartland.
"Is it related to these?" Gong raised an eyebrow, instantly pulling Number 55: Gogogo Goliath from his Extra Deck and holding it up.
"I assume so," Shun nodded, breaking into a run.
"Any idea what we're looking for?" his teammate questioned, sprinting to catch up.
"I assume that we'll find out when we get there," the black duelist responded.
X
"I activate my Trap, D - Fusion!" Edo declared, his Set card flipping face-up. "With it I fuse the Destiny HERO - Drillguy and the Destiny HERO - Dynamiteguy in my hand for a Fusion Summon!" he commanded, an orange vortex appearing. "Heroes who pierce through the bedrock and blow your enemies sky-high! Become one now and reign supreme in the pitch-black future! Come on! Destiny HERO - Dystopiaguy!" he declared. A warrior clad in a purple jumpsuit with golden shoulder armour and mask appeared, standing tall and pressing his palms together, elbows outstretched. 2800 ATK. "Dystopiaguy's ability! When he is Summoned, I can inflict damage to you equal to the ATK of a Level 4 or lower Destiny HERO in the cemetery! I choose the 1600-ATK Decisionguy!" Edo instructed. The Graveyard portal appeared beneath Dystopiaguy and he pulled the body of Decisionguy out, and bodily threw it over Cyber Twin Dragon and towards Cyril. The boy neatly sidestepped as the damage registered, and the Graveyard sucked it back up.
"Proceed with your turn," Edo commanded Cyril.
A small smile crossed Cyril's face. "Very well. I attack Destiny HERO - Dystopiaguy with Cyber Twin Dragon," he declared, his monster charging the other card.
"He would not sacrifice his own monster just to get rid of mine," Edo reasoned. "He will activate an effect to boost that monster's ATK. Surely,"
But no such effect was forthcoming, and the two monsters obliterated each other. The Academia lieutenant raised his eyebrows in surprise.
"I now activate the effect of Gear Gigant X. By using one Overlay Unit, I add one Level 4 or lower Machine from my Deck to my hand. I add Cyber Dragon Drei," Cyril intoned, pulling the card from his Deck. "I Set two cards and end my turn,"
"Interesting," Edo nodded. "My turn. Draw," he smirked, seeing the card he had drawn. "I play Pot of Greed and draw two cards,"
"A staple of Obelisk Force plays," Cyril nodded.
"Now I activate my Field Spell, Clock Tower Prison," A tall, brick-built tower rose into being behind him, with a massive clock face that read 11 o'clock behind him. "Now, I Normal Summon Destiny HERO - Diamond Dude from my hand," A warrior clad in green with chunks of diamond covering him appeared. "I activate the effect of Diamond Dude. I reveal the top card of my Deck, and if it is a Spell, I can send it to the Graveyard. Then that effect will be activated during my next turn's Main Phase, skipping any activation costs," Edo revealed the top card of the Deck. "How helpful. The revealed card is Dark Hole. Which means that during my next turn's Main Phase 1, all monsters on the field will be destroyed,"
"Really?" Cyril raised an interested eyebrow.
"But I cannot allow you to attack with that Gigant, otherwise you might defeat me before that effect is activated," Edo mused. "I Set one card and end my turn,"
The boy's eyebrow raised higher as he drew. "He is trusting that facedown to defend himself," he noticed.
"Clock Tower Prison's effect. Every time your Standby Phase is conducted, it gains a counter," Edo explained. The bell tolled, and the hands swung from 11:00 to 11:15.
"But I cannot forget his Field Spell," Cyril noted, carefully observing it. "If I am to assume that symbolism was in play when that card was designed, then its effect will trigger when it hits midnight, which requires another three counters. Therefore I have two more turns to get rid of it after this one," he determined. "It can wait. I activate Gear Gigant X's effect! By using his last Overlay Unit, I add another Cyber Dragon Core from my Deck to my hand,"
His opponent shrugged.
"Now, I activate the effect of Cyber Dragon Core in my Graveyard," the boy commanded. "By banishing it from the Grave, I Special Summon a Cyber Dragon from my Deck," he decided, and the 2100-ATK monster rose to the field with a screech. "I now Normal Summon Cyber Dragon Drei from my hand," The golden-pulsing machine joined its comrade. "Drei's effect. When he is Normal Summoned, all monsters I control with the name 'Cyber Dragon' become Level 5. And Drei's continuous effect means that his name is treated as Cyber Dragon on the field, so his Level is now changed to five,"
'How strange,' Edo raised an eyebrow, thinking to himself. 'Changing the names of monsters through abilities is a Fusion strategy, but this boy casually uses that tactic to aid in Xyz plays. No wonder he is adept at Fusion,'
"I now Overlay my two Level 5 Cyber Dragons!" Cyril commanded. "Engage auxiliary systems!" the boy barked, thrill and excitement flashing across his face as his cool shell was shattered for the Summon. "Initiate Xyz core coupling! Rank 5 power levels! Prepare for deployment! Cyber Dragon Nova! Power on!"
The hodgepodge machine rose to the field with a triumphant roar and 1600 DEF. "Battle Phase. Gear Gigant X, attack," Cyril declared.
"I activate my Trap, Mirror Force," Edo declared. "All monsters you control in attack position are destroyed,"
"As anticipated," Cyril snorted as Gear Gigant X was obliterated. . "I was aware of the existence of that card and knew it to be likely that you possessed at least one copy, therefore I summoned Nova in defence position,"
"Impressive," Edo nodded in amazement. "Most Duelists would not think to plan for such a possibility,"
"My research into the strategies of Obelisk Force indicated that it was a card all members utilised. It was logical to establish counter-stratagems. Had I been incorrect, Gear Gigant X would have been sufficient to claim victory, and Cyber Dragon Nova would not have needed to attack regardless," Cyril shrugged. "I end my turn,"
"My turn, draw," Edo nodded. "Now, Destiny HERO - Diamond Dude activates Dark Hole from the Graveyard, and all monsters on the field are destroyed," Black energy swept through the fiend, tearing through Diamond Dude and Cyber Dragon Nova. "Nova's effect! When he is destroyed, I can Special Summon a Machine-Type Fusion monster from my Extra Deck!" Cyril barked as his machine was obliterated, Overlay Units vanishing. "Initiate three-way coupling! Fusion network, initiate!" he commanded. The ground around him glowed with white energy, crackling with electricity, as three lights appeared, swirling around his head, red, blue and green. "Set power level to 12! Cyber End Dragon, fire when ready!"
The ground erupted in front of him as his massive Level 12 Fusion rose to the field and roared. 4000 ATK.
Edo's jaw dropped. "That is incredible," he breathed.
"Power is not incredible. It is not something to marvel at. A weapon is a weapon. Nothing more, nothing less," Cyril shook his head, his pale green eyes steady and unblinking.
Edo frowned, consulting his hand. It was empty. "I . . . can't do anything," he blinked. "I end my turn,"
"As anticipated," Cyril snorted. "My turn," He added the card he drew to his hand without even looking at it. "Cyber End Dragon. Attack. Eternal Evolution Burst,"
The massive monster attacked, and Edo nodded as the Duel ended. "Well done,"
"If only I could say the same," Cyril shook his head.
Edo slowly walked towards him, smiling. "I want you to come with me,"
"To what? Obelisk Force?" the silver-haired boy snorted.
"To Academia. A Duelist as powerful and intuitive as you would be of great interest to Leo Akaba,"
"And what makes you think he is of any interest to me?" Cyril questioned. "You are the commander of Obelisk Force, and I defeated you. Therefore, it is logical to conclude that Obelisk Force is not a threat to me, and I fail to see why your intention of creating a utopia is of any relevance to myself,"
Edo blinked. "Is that . . . really how you want to live all your life? Alone, wandering, Duelling into the ground anyone who crosses your path for no reason beyond boredom?"
Cyril opened his mouth to respond, but no words came out.
"With Academia, you could have purpose. Friends, people who care about and respect you. Where else are you going to find that, after the Resistance rejected you?" the man reasoned.
"You construct a convincing argument, however . . ." Cyril trailed off. If Edo had told the truth about the noble intentions of Academia, and that the destruction of Heartland was a mistake of trigger-happy soldiers . . . he didn't want to be alone.
Cyril took a deep breath and shut down his emotions, feeling himself dangerously close to having an emotional breakdown. He closed his eyes and thought with logic alone. It would be beneficial to his mental health to be capable of engaging in proper human interaction, however it would not be beneficial to be associated with potential psychopaths and mass murderers . . . however that was a theory that may well be incorrect. However, given that Edo Phoenix, who was obviously important in the ranks of Obelisk Force, was prepared to vouch for him, it was almost guaranteed that they would realistically accept him, which was more than could be said for the Resistance.
"I shall come with you for now, however I reserve the right to leave at any time," Cyril declared, stepping forwards.
"I doubt we could stop you if we tried," Edo joked, smiling broadly. As he did, Ryuna's face flashed in his mind. 'Sister . . . .' The thought flared through his brain, before freezing in place. Illogical.
Delete.
X
"Keep digging. It's somewhere in here," Shun commanded.
Gong cast a look at the sign to the plot of land they stood in. Once a proud building, it had been reduced to rubble by the attacks. The sign read 'Tsukumo Household'. "What's so special about this place?" he asked.
"I don't know," Shun shook his head, helping Superheavy Samurai Gigagloves lift a chunk of wall out of the way. The two had started a Duel, and were using it to keep their monsters around so that they could help with the excavation. Raidraptor - Rise Falcon snatched up a charred and broken wardrobe in one claw, and the smashed remnants of a car in the other, and towed them away, as Superheavy Samurai Kabuto used its mallet as a fulcrum to lever more wreckage out of the way. "Thanks, you two," Gong smiled.
"It's here!" Shun shouted, pulling a bedside table out from where the wreckage was. "A dresser?" his partner blinked.
The Number duelist slid open the top draw of the dresser and pulled out a folded towel. "A tea-cosy," Gong deadpanned.
Shun unfolded the fabric and pulled a small golden object from underneath it. "This," he declared, holding it up.
"What is it?" the martial artist asked, terminating the Duel. The three monsters vanished.
"I don't know," Shun shook his head, holding up the golden object. It almost looked like a key, with a pyramid on the end and inscribed with hieroglyphics. "But it's important to the Numbers, I can feel it,"
"Looks like a necklace to me," Gong shrugged. "Kinda like Yuya's pendant, but gold and key-y,"
Shun shrugged, and hung it around his neck. "We'll figure it out,"
X
"Spade, huh? Yuto's old Duel School," Yuya recognised the place Yuto had guided him to.
"Yes," His counterpart's voice echoed through his brain. "I thought that I would never see it again,"
"Well, we're here now," Yuya grinned. The two little dragons peeped out of his pockets and squealed.
"Where did they come from?" Yuto questioned. "Beats me," Yuya shrugged, climbing the steps and pushing open the door, which promptly fell off the only hinge it had left. "Ouch," he winced, carefully stepping over it. "What are we looking for?"
"My spare Deck," the other voice explained. "I left it in my locker. Hopefully it's still there,"
"Right," Yuya nodded. "Good cards?" he grinned.
"Best I got," Yuto responded. "I lost my Deck when we . . . whatever happened, but the one I left here is an almost perfect replica. There's only one card I had in that Deck that isn't in this one, and that's only because it was one of a kind,"
"Dark Rebellion?" his friend knowingly smiled.
"Got it in one," the boy good-naturedly agreed.
"Up these stairs," A hand trailed on the dusty railing as Yuya picked his way over chunks of rock. The boy paused as he passed a gaping hole in the wall and stairs, carefully keeping back from the edge. "That was Mr. Kitano's office," Yuto narrated. "Never thought I'd miss the old man and his Crashbugs,"
"Crashbugs?" Yuya questioned, not recognising the word.
"The cards Mr. Kitano Duelled with. It doesn't matter," his counterpart shrugged it off. "The lockers are just up here. Mine's the fourth one down,"
Yuya smiled, seeing the majority of the lockers were unharmed. He paused, bending down to squint at the dusty combination lock. "What's the combination?"
"4-25-20," Out of habit, Yuto whispered, even though no one else could hear him. Yuya muttered the numbers to himself as he twisted the dial, before grinning as the lock came off and the door swung open. "Nice jacket," Yuya nodded, pulling the black leather fabric from the locker. "Don't touch that," Yuto snorted.
Yuya picked up a small box, about the right size for a Deck. "Is this it?"
"That's the one," his friend agreed.
The entertainer smiled, pocketing the Deck, before pausing. "Hey, Yuto. You got any Rank 3s in there? Because I've got a lot of Level 3s in my Deck, and after learning to Xyz Summon, I was kinda hoping . ."
"Take a look," Yuto suggested.
Yuya opened the Deck box up, and reached into the Extra Deck section. Fourteen cards. He shuffled his way through Downerd Magician, Adreus, Keeper of Armageddon, and Caingorgon, Antiluminescent Knight, before reaching a card with three golden stars. "The Phantom Knights of Break Sword," Yuya grinned. "Rank 3,"
"All yours," Yuto told him. Yuya replaced the Extra Deck and went to close the Deck box, but Yuto cautioned him. "Wait. I've got a couple of other cards you should add to your Deck,"
X
"So, sweetie, what are you doing?" Yuri questioned, sidling into Kisara's room. His girlfriend was sitting at her desk, fiddling with a pile of cards. "Upgrading my Deck," she responded.
"I thought your Deck was already the best it could be?" Yuri frowned.
At this, Kisara threw her head back and laughed. "There's no such thing as the best a Deck can be. Remember when I demolished those Security guys in Synchro Dimension?"
"You knocked them down like dominoes," Yuri recalled.
"I realised that while I have become extremely skilled in Fusion, my Synchro skills could use work," Kisara explained. "And even though they're paltry compared to me, Security was pretty good by Synchro Dimension standards. So I started picking through their Decks, see if I could find anything good," the white-haired girl smiled.
"I take it you did," Yuri nodded knowingly.
"Yes, I did. Normally, I wouldn't bother with Synchro shit no matter how good it is, buuuuuut," A slightly insane grin etched itself into Kisara's face. "Goyo monsters have effects that steal the opponent's monsters,"
"And you like that," Yuri nodded.
"You know me so well," his girlfriend grinned. "Next time I face off with that Black Flare bitch, I'm gonna kill her with her own monster. I might even be able to absorb her spirit if I do it that way,"
"She's like you, isn't she?" the purple-haired boy asked, leaning over her desk.
"Yeah, she is. I know it. I can feel it in the bond she has with her dragons. No human could be so in synch with their cards," Kisara growled, and clenched her fists. She pulled a card from her Extra Deck, one that Yuri didn't recognise. It was marked 'Goyo King'. "I'm gonna tear that bond to shreds,"
Yuri smiled. "You're hot when you're bloodthirsty,"
In an instant, her mood radically altered. "Aww, thanks," she grinned, dropping the cards in her hands and swinging around to pull him into a kiss.
"You know," Yuri lowered his voice to almost sultry tones and stared into her deep blue eyes, a sly smile slipping onto his face. "I don't have anything planned,"
"You're right!" Kisara declared, standing straight up. Yuri, surprised by the sudden change in position, narrowly avoided collapsing to the floor. "I need to test out the new additions to my Deck," she decided.
The Fusion Duelist picked himself up. "I might have an idea," he smirked. "What do you say we go do some pest control?"
"Sounds good," Kisara replied. She cocked her head as a thought struck her. "Why don't you bother learning any Extra Deck Summons outside of Fusion? I'm sure Daddy wouldn't mind making you some Synchros or Xyzes,"
Yuri smirked, taking her hand and guiding her towards the door to her quarters. "Simple. I'm too good to mess around with that nonsense. Xyzians and Synchronians can have their paltry black and white cards. But purple's where it's at,"
He looked up, hearing what sounded like a growl of disapproval from the soldier marching up the corridor of the Dragon's Nest that housed Yuri and Kisara's quarters. "Did you say something, soldier?"
"Uh, no, er, sir. Completely irrelevant, don't worry about it," he responded
Kisara stopped, squinting suspiciously. "This tower is off-limits to the rank-and-file. What are you doing up here?"
"I have a message to deliver to a, uh," The soldier fished an envelope out of his pocket and shivered in fear at being so close to two very dangerous people. A lock of platinum blonde hair fell out of his helmet as it did. "Kisara Akaba,"
"That would be me," the girl smirked coyly, stepping forwards to reach out to take it, but paused. "Actually, just slide it under my door. I'll get it later,"
"Yes ma'am," With that, the two Dragon Duelists passed the nervous soldier, who didn't shop shivering until they were gone. "Isn't it cute how they're scared of us?" Kisara giggled.
As soon as they were out of earshot, Yugo took a deep breath and pulled off the stolen helmet. "God I hate these stuffy things!" he fumed. "Almost as much as I hate that stuffy purple bastard,"
He paused, and looked up and back the corridor to make sure he was alone, before dashing down the corridor to Yuri's room. "Time to see what you're hiding, purple bastard," he smirked, pulling out a bobby-pin and picking the lock, before swinging the door open. "There's gotta be a clue to where Rin is in here,"
But, after fruitlessly searching for half an hour, and turning Yuri's room upside-down in the process, Yugo was forced to admit there was nothing there. "Dammit!" he cursed.
X
Crow sighed to himself. Things had been looking up in the City ever since Jack Atlas' defeat at Yuya Sakaki's hands. The road to recovery was long and hard, but they would make it.
But he still felt sad. His friends, the Lancers, had vanished because of that Jean-Michael bastard's stupidity. And no one had any idea where they were.
"Not so," a familiar voice rumbled in the back of his head.
Crow was immediately alert as the dragon-head mark that had appeared on his forearm only two days ago started to burn. "Crimson Dragon?" he questioned.
"Your friends are in trouble in another world," the god's voice roared. "I can send you there, but be warned. My power wanes outside my home,"
"No magic dragons. Got it," Crow nodded.
"I wouldn't say that," The orange-haired man frowned as a card slowly manifested in front of him. He plucked it out of the air. "This card will let you call my power wherever you may be, and grant you passage between dimensions. Do you feel you can use it?"
"You got it," Crow nodded. His D-Wheel's blades flared to life, and he sent a quick message to a friend of his to watch the kids while he was away.
The man placed the card on his Duel Disk, and red energy flared to life, covering his bike and jumpsuit. The mark on his forearm burnt, but he ignored the pain, revving his bike's engine. The machine leapt forwards, flickering red flames in its wake as it accelerated down the highway. "Let's see if we can't hit eighty-eight miles per hour," Crow joked, remembering an old movie he'd seen once.
White energy created a slipstream around him, the machine transforming into a streaking blur of red. A white veil manifested in front of him, and before Crow could even react, the bike smashed into it, tearing through the wall between dimensions and breaking out of Synchro Dimension entirely. The light was blinding, he couldn't see anything. "Engage the flight mode!" the Crimson Dragon commanded, and Crow obeyed, muscle memory guiding his fingers to the correct button, causing the wings mounted on his bike to unfold.
There was another massive boom and suddenly Crow could smell salt. He dared open his eyes - and gasped in shock.
His D-Wheel was gliding above an ocean of deep, navy blue. A few kilometres away there was a town, but he could barely make out any details. It just looked like a lot of grey, with a storm hanging over it. "The glider only works on momentum, there's no thrust," Crow muttered to himself, killing the engine to conserve fuel. "Will it make it that far?
"Trust me," And with that, the Crimson Dragon was silent.
Crow paused, but nodded. He looked up at the ominous grey clouds that obscured the sky as far as the eye could see and gulped. "Looks like rain,"
A/N
A/N
Surprise! You all thought I was just gonna leave Crow lying around in Synchro until canon called for him again, didn't you? :P I'd never forget the Last Signer.
I DID, however, forget Yugo. Sorry, blondie! XD
No new cards, (which is a bit of a surprise. I did expect to have to create new D-HEROes for Aster).
Review time;
Interesting idea, Leafeon, but . . . Numbers 13 and 31 are Rank 1. Cyril can't use Rank 1.
And the chapter question. Oh, that reminds me. Just because I've updated already, doesn't mean you can't or shouldn't respond to my questions. A lot of stuff is still up in the air, it could be another twenty chapters before the 'should Cyril have Numbers' question is resolved.
Anyway, this time, the question is (as much as I hate to have two questions about Cyril in a row) should Cyril stay with Obelisk Force or not, and either way, what should happen to him?
Peace!