Hi all! Hiyuusha here with another chapter of Yu-Gi-Oh: Tag Force!


Last time...


"Enzo… look at this." The teen whispered, his eyes bulging as he stared down through the window.

"Look at… what?" Enzo asked, his voice trailing off when he saw just what Konami was referring to.

A great black mass was erupting from the earth; dark blue lines lining its sides as it grew and grew, growing until it towered over most of the city, staring down at the purple flames burning beneath it with its single evil eye.

"What… is that?" Enzo asked, stumbling away from the window in shock. "It's enormous!"

"That," Konami grimaced, "is an Earthbound Immortal."

The hulking mass roared -despite the lack of a mouth- and stomped forth, ignoring the plane in its entirety as it focused on something far more important.

"This is it Yusei!" Kalin Kessler cackled from below, "The final attack!"

Yusei grimaced, his Duel Runner barely staying on the road due to the unnatural damage it was forced to endure. The numerous Infernity attacks… the power of Kalin's Hundred Eyes Dragon… and now this… thing. Glancing at his Life Points, the boy frowned. He had no defenses, and less than 1000 Points left. He was finished.

"Go Ccapac Apu!" Kalin snarled, "Send this bastard to the Netherworld! Wicked Trample!"

The Earthbound Immortal roared once more, one of its black hands rising up through the earth, tightening into a hulking fist and slamming it down towards Yusei's Duel Runner. The crab-head grimaced, closing his eyes in defeat.

"This is it…! I'm finished!"

The fist smashed down, meeting the top of Yusei's Duel Runner with a great crack as a burst of red erupted from the man's arm, engulfing him and everything around him in a crimson orb that blew the Earthbound Immortal back. Kalin's eyes widened in surprise, his own Duel Runner skidding off to the side as the wave of crimson light overtook him.

"What the hell?!" the Dark Signer spat, closing his eyes in fear of blindness, "Yusei!"

But the crab-head couldn't hear him, for by the time the Crimson light had died down the purple flames, Kalin's Earthbound Immortal, and Yusei were gone.


And Now…


-Chapter Fifty Two-

Fly


A hulking black beast, a thunderous clap, and crimson light… that was all Konami saw as he stepped away from the jet's window. Tumbling backwards as another wave of turbulence announced the plane's eventual descent; the teen grimaced, wondering what the implications of such a monster's presence would be. Surely, someone, anyone, would have had to have seen that creature, that beast! Despite this being an overwhelming fact, there were no sirens, no strange sounds or lights typically used to warn citizens of imminent danger or close threats. It was almost as if… no one had even noticed.

Quickly, Konami turned, slapping his hand down on Enzo's shoulder and snapping the boy from his stupor. The brunette gulped as if coming back to his senses and he too turned, his eyes swinging about wildly before settling on Konami's form.

"R-Red Hat," he acknowledged quickly, not quite composed enough to call the boy by his name, "What was that… that thing?"

"That," Konami grimaced, "Was an Earthbound Immortal. That was our enemy, our foe. What did you think it was?"

Enzo made a noise and shrugged, displaying the fact that he had no clue of what he just saw. Konami shook his head at the boy's movement, sweeping past him to stare through another window back towards the scene they had just passed.

"It's wrong." He said suddenly, frowning and glancing through yet another window, "None of this really… feels right."

As the other passengers began to stare at him Konami paced down the corridor; glancing towards another section of the city and cursing once more. Idly, Enzo stepped forward, gathering what little of his wits he had left and raising his voice to speak.

"Uh… What's wrong?" he asked, taking another slow step towards Konami.

"What do you mean "what's wrong?!"" Konami scowled, "You saw it! You were there! Something that big, something that large, and not one person bothering to investigate it? We're right on the city outskirts for Horahkty's sake! Where are the news copters? Where are the hordes and hordes of Sector Security?! It makes no sense! We must be missing something… something important."

"Something important?" Enzo repeated, "You mean about that black thing we just saw? That… Earthbound Immortal?"

"Obviously." Masakazu drawled, "What did you think he was talking about, the number of souvenirs you brought back from Peru?"

Konami snapped, pointing at Masakazu wide-eyed. "That's it! Peru, it's always been about Peru, hasn't it?" he turned to Enzo to continue his tirade, "You got to have a bit more fun out there than I did didn't you? Go on, remind me about your time there. You must've had some fun, what with you seeing the Nazca Lines… getting in a Duel with Sayer…. Tell me, how did that particular encounter go again? I know you skimmed over it with me several times but what about the details? We could always do with a few more of those, couldn't we?" he turned to the other passengers and earned a group of nods in agreement. "See?"

Enzo frowned at being thrown into the spotlight, not sure what was going on in Konami's head at the moment. It was like someone flipped a switch that should have never been flipped, and the teen was running about with far more energy than he should have.

"Uh…" Enzo began, rubbing his head sheepishly, "Well, it started when I caught of glimpse of Maia and him heading off towards some empty plot of land back by the Nazca Lines… I had to chase them for quite a while, and for a few moments I was pretty sure I lost them. Sayer had been… feisty, pulling her across the desert until he reached his pre-determined destination… turns out it wasn't as empty as I thought it was. The second he stepped foot in that area, all this weird stuff started to happen. The world lit up in purple flames, and all these lights started to fill the sky-"

"Were they purple lights?" Konami butt in, "Like the lights we just saw here?"

Enzo nodded, "Yeah… now that you mention it, they looked almost exactly alike."

Red Hat nodded, throwing that particular piece of information into the back of his mind for a few seconds. "Alright, what happened next?"

"Well…" Enzo gulped, "There was a lot of groaning and moaning… then this red thing showed up behind Sayer."

"The Crimson Devil," Konami remembered from Enzo's previous explanation, "You can stop now."

Enzo nodded, still confused about what was happening. He turned to Maia and the gathered butlers, but none of them seemed to have an answer either. Seeing no other choice, he turned his head back to the manic Konami, never seeing Masakazu slip out the back to have a few words with the pilot.

"Enzo, would you say the people in Peru disappeared before or after the Crimson Devil showed up?" Konami asked, "Think about it carefully. It's very, very important."

"Uh…" the teen frowned, "I think it was just before actually… why?"

"Ah…" Konami frowned, pressing a hand on the window as he glanced down toward the scorched landscape, "Then it makes perfect sense doesn't it? No wonder there's no noise. There can't be… not when there's no one around to make it."

"What are you talking about Konami?" Enzo asked, "You've been muttering gibberish for a while now! Speak sense!"

Konami quickly looked back at Enzo, as if only just remembering he was there, "Well it's obvious isn't it? Think about what you know from your time spent in Peru. Come on Enzo, purple lights, screaming…. The arrival of a monster only minutes later…."

Enzo, lacking any detailed knowledge into the working or rules of a Shadow Game frowned, not understanding what it was Red hat wanted him to see. "I-I don't… I still don't understand!"

Konami sighed, rubbing his brow between two of his fingers. "You said the tourists disappeared before the Crimson Devil showed up. Purple lights, screaming… it's obvious they were used as sacrifices."

"Well, yeah…" Enzo nodded, "But I thought we already established that?"

"Oh we did," Konami agreed, "Something so simple… we knew exactly what had happened but we forgot about it so completely…" he turned back to the window and frowned, "You see Enzo, the question isn't about the sacrifices… It's how they managed to get so many sacrifices all the way out here. There aren't any Nazca Lines, no altars or sacrificial chambers for them to use… and they certainly aren't going around defeating thousands of citizens in Shadow Duels all at once. So how could they be draining all these people so quickly….? Unless…"

Konami paused, turning back to the group holding his hand out authoritatively, "Someone give me a cellphone, preferably one with camera or video-taking capabilities."

There was a moment of silence amongst the crowd, until a small maid in the back of the group held up her hand.

"I-I have one!" the woman cried, tossing her pink cellphone forward, straight into Konami's hands.

"Great, this'll work perfectly!" Konami announced, flipping the phone open and quickly taking several pictures of the rapidly disappearing landscape. When done, he leaned back, unceremoniously dumping the phone in Enzo's hands. "Look at that and tell me what you see."

Enzo's face scrunched up in confusion, fumbling around with the maid's phone until he could do as Konami had asked. He stared at the picture with a frown.

"Well?" Red Hat asked hastily, "What do you see?"

"Simmering flames… a scorched patch of grass?" Enzo shrugged, "I don't know."

Konami was about to mutter something along the lines of worthless when Maia spoke up, having been looking at the picture from behind Enzo.

"W-Wait… I see, K-Konami-san, i-is this really possible? I know it can't be here but…" she traced the outline of what she was seeing on the phone, "Isn't this a Nazca Line? T-The Giant, if I remember correctly…."

Konami's eyes widened, quickly running between them and staring at the picture himself. "OF course… it all makes sense. Purple flames, purple lights, Earthbound Immortals, and stolen souls…."

Enzo swallowed, still confused as to why Enzo was acting so strange, "What makes sense?"

Red Hat paused, taking on a serious expression before explaining. "These Earthbound Immortals… they've been trapped in the Nazca Lines for centuries, right? When something that big is stuck in one place for a long time… it's bound to be hungry when it gets out right? They'd have to be… especially if they wanted to function correctly for their host. The tourists disappearing… the purple lights that appeared when we saw them…. They aren't just side-effects of the Earthbound Immortals being summoned… they're conditions! Or, a condition, rather, seeing as they're both the same thing."

The group looked at Konami strangely, still not quite getting the picture.

Red Hat sighed. "They're eating people's souls! The Dark Signers, they've been feeding the Immortals human souls, setting them up like pigs for slaughter so they can use the Earthbound's power to its fullest potential!"

"B-But… how can they do that?" Maia asked, "Div-Sayer had to journey to the Nazca Lines just to make something like that happen! Why wouldn't the other ones have to?"

"Because of what you just saw." Red Hat explained, "You yourself said it looked like the Giant's Nazca Line right?"

The girl frowned, "Y-Yes… but that's impossible! The Nazca Lines… they're in Peru!"

"That's right." Konami agreed, "Which is why they had to do this. That's not the actual Nazca Line you're seeing there. It's a fake, a copy… an artificial means to an end so the Dark Signer can successfully summon their signature Earthbound Immortal to the Field in a Shadow Duel. They've been using these to connect to the real ones, feeding the Immortals souls through these sacrificial drawings. Still…" he frowned, "That doesn't quite explain why there aren't any sirens… even if these things take numerous souls, one summon at the edge of the city shouldn't be capable of eliminating-" Konami's voice died, his hands dropping behind him in shock and surprise as he stared through the window towards the heart of the city. "….Oh."

Not wanting to be left out of the loop, the rest of the passengers glanced out their own windows, only to be astounded by what they saw. Outside, gripping the side of the Arcadia Movement building, was a giant black lizard with green lines running down its body. Similar to the giant they saw moments earlier, a purple copy of a Nazca Line burned brightly beneath it.

"A giant soul-sucker in the middle of the city…" Konami grimaced, "No wonder there's no noise."

"Hey… Konami?" Enzo asked, glancing towards the trembling Maia cautiously, "Hate to be the bearer of bad news… but if that thing's on the Arcadia Movement building… then wouldn't Akiza be the one who's in danger?"

Konami glanced up, staring at Enzo for several long seconds before brushing past him towards the cockpit.

"Konami," Enzo followed, realizing he probably shouldn't have said anything in the state the teen was currently in, "Konami!"

"Pilot," Konami greeted as he stepped inside, "Masakazu…" he glanced through the windowsill into the city below, "What are you doing?"

"Just got orders to start circling overhead." The pilot explained as if it were obvious, "I'm not risking a landing with that thing stomping about."

"Nope, can't do that." Konami disagreed, "I need to get down there now."

Masakazu snorted. "Get down there? Are you insane? You'd be killed in an instant! And I'm afraid I have been given explicit orders from Lady Wisteria to return you alive, loathe I may be to do so."

"Well," Konami shrugged, "I suppose I'll just have to make sure I don't get killed when I'm down there won't I?" he turned back to the pilot, "So, can you do it? Land near the Arcadia Movement I mean."

The pilot frowned, "Boy, didn't I just say I'm not landing nothing? Even if you have a death wish, there are too many other people on this plane. You plan on risking all their lives too? I don't think so."

Konami groaned in frustration, "Then just… I don't know, ship me down or something! It can't be that hard!"

"Hey!" Enzo shouted, joining the three in the room, "Konami, what're you doing? You've been acting pretty weird-"

"Psycho wants me to land by the Arcadia Movement," the pilot explained, "Not that I could, even if I wanted to. Listen brat, this isn't some Sci-Fi movie. We don't have anything that can "beam you down" or whatever."

Konami sighed, realizing his folly in saying such things. "Yeah… I suppose not." He glanced towards the green reptile through the windowsill and then towards something laying in the corner. "You can't beam me down… but you can throw me."

Enzo face-palmed, realizing what Red Hat was staring at. "No, no, no… That's a really bad idea Konami, and I mean a really, really, bad idea."

The teen just laughed, slugging the emergency parachute onto his back, "All my ideas are bad. Doesn't mean they don't work. Come on pilot, I won't be endangering anyone on the plane if I jump down from here right? You can just throw me out the loading bay and…" he tossed his arms in the air eagerly, "Geronimo!"

The pilot stared at him as if he were crazy then shrugged. "Your life kid. Not my place to tell you not to waste it." He sighed, "I'll have someone ready for you in the back."

Enzo blinked at the pilot in shock. He was actually going along with it? What happened to being sane and responsible? From the looks the butler was giving, Masakazu seemed to agree.

"Great!" Konami chirped before clapping the pilot on the shoulder, "I'll get going then!"

Enzo stared after the teen as he left the room, quickly making to follow. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! You're not really about to do this are you Konami? I mean, I know you do some pretty crazy stuff at times but Konami, Konami… this is insane."

Red Hat rolled his eyes as he stopped to look at his friend. "Well what other choice do I have Enzo? You yourself said that Akiza might be in trouble down there. And if you really think about it, odds are you're right. She's a Signer and a Psychic, and if that lizard is one of the Earthbound Immortals like I think it is, she's the only person it could possibly be going after right now! Besides, Sayer might be going after her too. Especially now that he's got the Crimson Devil…."

Enzo groaned in agony at the words. "Konami, you might think she's down there, but what proof do we have?! And even if we did have proof, what reason would you have to save her? She's fought you every step of the way, and hell, she even put you in a coma the last time! When are you gonna get a clue and back off? She obviously doesn't want any help!"

Konami seemed to sober at this, the sound of the loading bay opening lost on his ears as he focused on Enzo entirely. "Doesn't want my help? Bah… if you had been paying attention you would have seen that she's practically begging for it! All these years she's been marching on alone, having no one to rely on but Divine. All these years she's been asking for help, hiding her tears behind that pale white mask that Divine had forced upon her… Her life has been nothing but tragedy after tragedy… and I may not know what that feels like, but I'll be damned before I stand by and let someone suffer through it, even if that someone claims to hate me."

Konami turned around, facing the bird's eye view of the city as he prepared to leave. The wind roared through the loading bay violently, nearly knocking those present off their feet as they held onto the safety rails for all they were worth.

"What about your vow to stop being hot-headed?" Enzo shouted after him, a last-ditch attempt to stop Red Hat from doing something ridiculous.

The teen in question paused, glancing between Enzo and the city one last time. Smiling, he turned, spreading his arms back as he fell out the jet and down towards the Arcadia Movement.

"I lied."

-5D's-

Yusei groaned, rolling over and gazing up into the dark world that surrounded him.

"Where am I?" he found himself asking, rising to his feet. "It's so dark…."

"Then why not turn on a light?"

Yusei's eyes widened at this, and he swiveled, turning around in the deepest darkness in hopes of facing his addressor.

"Who said that?!" he called out, "What's going on here?!"

As if to respond to the man's question, a pale light illuminated the area from above, revealing to Yusei a slim, yet hideously long corridor. Squinting, Yusei began walking down the hall, making out the silhouette of a spiky-haired man who promptly turned the corner and disappeared. Of course, being who he was Yusei gave chase.

"H-Hey!" he shouted, turning down the hall and following the man through another, "Wait! Where are you leading me?!"

The silhouette said nothing, and still Yusei followed, helpless in the never-ending game of hide and seek. A left turn followed by a right… then another right followed by a left…. Eventually, Yusei found himself in a well-lit chamber, filled with rows and rows of consoles and data imagery. In the center of the chamber stood a slender cylinder, protruding down from the ceiling above and deeper still into the floor below.

"And at last… he has arrived." The voice called out, prompting Yusei to swivel around once more and come face to face with the silhouette.

Slowly, agonizingly so, he took in the man's appearance. He was tall, to say the least, well-built muscles masked behind a long lab coat as long tendrils of hair stood firm in the sky, defying gravity as Yusei's own hairstyle did so often.

Indeed, if it hadn't been for the lack of a marker and the nonexistence of yellow highlights, Yusei might've actually thought he was staring at his future self. But as it stood… there was only one person this could be.

Yusei took in the man's appearance twice more before parting his lips to ask the question to which he already knew the answer.

"Who are you?"

The man smiled, fingering something within the folds of his coat as he replied. "Perhaps I am an image… of a time long past. Maybe I'm nothing more than the fragment of a memory brought to the forefront of your mind. I can be many things Yusei… But you may call me Hakase… and yes, I am your father."

Yusei's eyes didn't bulge nor did he flinch. The answer the man had given was the same one he had been expecting, nothing more, nothing less. Instead, Yusei opted to reply with another question.

"Where am I?"

"The bowls," his father began, "of the deepest, darkest pit the Universe has ever created. This my son… is the Shadow Realm."

Yusei did flinch at that, his body slumping and eyes drooping as he thought of the implication of such words.

"So… that's it then. I lost…" Yusei frowned, "Kalin succeeded."

"Well…" his father mused, "I wouldn't go that far. You may have lost the Duel Yusei, but your fallen friend certainly didn't succeed. Think back… recall what really happened."

The crab-head blinked in surprise, instinctively grasping his forearm as he recalled a crimson light engulfing him. "That's right, the Crimson Dragon it-"

"-saved you, yes." Hakase confirmed, "It is only due to its intervention that you are in the position you are in now."

"And what position would that be?" Yusei found himself asking.

"Ordinarily, when one enters the Shadow Realm there is no going back." The elder Fudo explained, "But with you… your extraordinary connection with the Crimson Dragon has kept you tethered to the human realm. This connection, has given you a chance few others have… a chance to go back."

Yusei frowned. "Go back… to do what? Duel Kalin again? Lose, again?"

"No." Hakase spoke solemnly, "To win. The Dark Signers are not invincible, my son. They can be defeated like any other Duelist…. It simply takes more… effort."

"Effort?" Yusei asked, "I gave it my all against Kalin, and even then I could barely defend myself. His Infernity monsters and that Earthbound Immortal of his… they're too powerful!"

"Then surpass them in strength. Break through your limits. Make use of something new to bring forth something old." Hakase kept his face calm, holding up a copy of Yusei's Stardust Dragon.

Yusei's eyes widened, and his hand flew to his Deck, wondering when the man had taken it.

"Tell me Yusei," Hakase mused, the Stardust Dragon shifting into an elegant white Duel Disk, "Do you have what it takes to surpass your old man?"

To be honest, Yusei didn't know. He'd never heard any stories of his father dueling, and he didn't know if he had the skills to defeat him or not. But he did know that the man had somehow snatched Stardust Dragon, and if he wanted it back, he'd have to Duel.

"That's the spirit…" Hakase smiled, seeing Yusei step forward with a raised Duel Disk, "Now… let us begin."


-Chapter Fifty Two-

END


Falling through the sky, Konami sets his sights on the crumbling Arcadia Movement! He plans to save Akiza, but how is he to know that three more of his female companions are present at the scene? And what of Yusei? Will he reclaim Stardust Dragon from the mysterious vision of his father, or will he be left to rot in the Shadow Realm? Find out, next time, on Yu-Gi-Oh: Tag Force!