Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-gi-oh!5D's
Chapter 33 – Reap. Sow.
– The choices we make are ultimately our own responsibility – Eleanor Roosevelt
When my eyes fluttered open, darkness greeted them.
My back was pressed against something solid and icy. I shivered, only to wince as my upper torso throbbed.
My chest and ribs ached.
I squeezed my eyelids shut as memories of my abduction slammed into my consciousness all at once.
A tired chuckle escaped my lips, the sound breaking off into a short, frustrated sob.
It happened again.
I'd been taken hostage by an unknown entity once more.
It was like an overused joke – one where I was the punchline.
Nevertheless, it would be better to mull over that thought later. There were currently more important things to accomplish – the first being finding out where I was.
I took a deep breath, grunting when the action elicited pain – I was definitely bruised in some places. I forced myself upwards, bracing against my elbows and as I did so, a sharp clinking sound reached my ears.
Suddenly, I became all too aware that my right arm felt markedly heavy. After exerting a bit more effort to sit up entirely, I brought the fingers of my left hand to inspect my arm. The movement was slow, tentative.
The fact that I couldn't see made the situation all that more unnerving.
When the pads of my fingers finally made contact with my limb, it was cool to the touch. Something bulky and metallic was bound to my arm – around my wrist.
Doing the best I could to steel my nerves – panicking would get me nowhere – I gave the thing around my wrist a deliberate tug – to no avail. The device…whatever it was… was firmly attached.
Okay.
"Okay," I shuddered, bending my legs and bringing them closer to my chest. I wrapped my arms around them to keep them as they were, despite the discomfort that resulted.
My stomach tightened.
"Okay, I'm okay," I repeated, my voice sounding strained.
My heart hammered against my ribs and my breaths came out in short, rapid bursts.
"…Okay."
I'd been alone in the dark before, in more ways than one…but that didn't change the fact that I hated it.
I hated the dark.
I really did.
"No," I murmured into the oppressive stillness. My shoulders sagged as I curled into myself even more, "I am not okay."
My miserable admission was met with a sinister chuckle, one that had my head turning in different directions as I tried to pinpoint its source.
"Good."
All at once, my surroundings became flooded with lights, dazzling my vision. Removing my arms from around my legs, I brought them to my eyes, mindful of the metallic gadget on my wrist.
"Acceptance is the first step," the voice continued, filled with a wicked sort of mirth.
A queasy feeling arose in my gut and my mouth dried.
It was a wonder – why that silvery voice evoked such a reaction. Albeit that was the voice of the person who kidnapped me, so whatever fear I felt in response was natural.
Nonetheless, I couldn't help but question why the person sounded so…familiar.
The clacking noise of heeled shoes echoed throughout the room as said owner presumably began to close the distance between us.
I rubbed furiously at my eyes in a bid to hasten their adjustment to the sudden lighting, blindly shuffling away from the oncoming footsteps. I grunted as my retreat halted when my back hit against a solid structure – a wall.
Fortunately, I regained some measure of sight and the footsteps had stopped as well. Still, that provided little comfort. Then again, my comfort most likely wasn't the concern of the person that loomed mere feet away from me.
Finally, I was able to catalogue the physical aspects of my kidnapper.
He was a sharp dresser – grey trousers and turtleneck shirt paired with a black jacket and black and grey wingtip boots – I'd give him that much.
As my gaze travelled from the ground up, my throat constricted – recognition becoming a noose tightening as each second passed.
My attention shifted next to his face – namely the gruesome scar that marred its right side. Olive green eyes peered down at me – cold, hostile.
"Greetings."
The man's lips curled and the visage presented was one of cruelty and viciousness.
My pupils dilated.
"I am Divine."
Adorned in her pj's and her stuffed Kuribon wrapped within her arms, Luca sat quietly on the living room couch. Her eyes were fixed on the digital clock that was set on the coffee table before her. It emitted a low buzz as the time finally changed to '9:00 pm'.
Luca's face brightened when she heard the opening of a door behind her. Putting her Kuribon aside, she turned to watch the front door right away.
Her shoulders drooped when she realized that the noise hadn't come from the entrance, but from Lua exiting the bathroom.
"Luca," her brother mumbled, "I thought you were going to bed."
Luca settled on the sofa once more.
"I'm waiting for Nii-san."
"Maybe she's still with Yusei," Lua offered as he trudged closer to his sister.
Luca's lips pursed as she reached for her Kuribon once more. She squeezed its plush body to her chest.
"Maybe."
Nonetheless, the young girl did not attempt to move towards her bedroom nor did she comment when her brother plopped onto the cushion beside her.
"But?" Lua probed patiently.
"I've always been able to…feel Nii-san."
Her eyes flitted over to him, a nervousness suddenly welling up in her.
Lua rolled his eyes and scratched at his hair, exasperated at her hesitance.
His reaction made her tension give way to embarrassment. Admittedly, they'd had many conversations like this previously – more so in the past few months. It was still surreal to her at times – that she and Lua were at the place where they could speak about her powers candidly.
Luca presented her stuffed toy as a peace offering.
Her brother grinned cheekily, grabbing the plushy from her to use it as an armrest. Lua tilted his head and she took it as her cue to continue.
"It's not just Nii-san. I've been able to sense Aki-nee, Yusei, Jack and Crow too."
Luca's gaze fell on her brother again.
"I've been able to sense you too."
Lua was the first person she'd ever been able to sense. She'd thought he'd be the only one, but then Nii-san and the other Signers came along.
She'd thought that it was because he was her brother – maybe it was because they were related. But then again she didn't have that same bond with her parents. She couldn't perceive them as she did Lua.
Sometimes she felt the same kind of connection to Lua as she did with the other Signers.
Sometimes.
She'd yet to share that knowledge with him though.
Luca's lashes fluttered as she lowered her eyes to conceal the abrupt swell of emotions.
"It's like a pipe that's always on," Luca expounded, "Sometimes a lot of water will come out…other times it'll only be a trickle…but something is always flowing and I'm still always aware. But it feels like something is blocking the pipe."
The green-haired girl pressed her hands against her temple. She was still for a few moments before she sighed in defeat.
"Lua…Nii-san is really quiet."
"Are you sure?" her brother fidgeted at her declaration, "You don't have full control of your powers yet Luca."
"But I'm better than I was!" she exclaimed, "Aki-nee and I have been practising."
"I know, but…" Lua groaned, ruffling his hair. He pursed his lips unhappily as he mulled over her words.
It wasn't long before he leapt from the sofa.
"You know what…Nii-san was supposed to be home for dinner."
Luca nodded, wondering what her brother was getting at.
"She can't just suddenly go on a date and not come back on time."
"You think it was a date?"
Luca's brows furrowed.
"That's what Crow said," Lua shrugged, "Anyway, I'm going to call Nii-san and demand an explanation."
With that, the teenager reached for the telephone that was beside the digital clock. He punched in the necessary numbers and put the device to his ears.
Luca shuffled closer to her brother when he moved the phone from his ears to stare at it perplexedly.
"Voicemail…it went straight to voicemail."
His utterance did nothing to quell the feeling of dread that Luca had been nursing in the pit of her stomach.
"Maybe her battery died."
The smile he gave was half-hearted at best.
She snatched the phone from his hand.
"I'm calling Yusei."
"You…you're–"
"Alive."
I flinched at Divine's hard tone.
"After you left me for dead. Yes."
His gloved hands curled into fists before he just as quickly unfurled them. It was like watching a wave of anger crash over him where after the initial, violent onslaught, the waters temporarily settled.
Tugging at the lapels of his jacket he continued, this time his voice was more relaxed.
"I have to admit, I could hardly believe that such a seemingly righteous girl would make such an appalling decision."
The flippant way he spoke belied his heavy and critical words – each one hammering away at the defences I had set up within my mind.
My clenched hands trembled and my teeth clattered.
Like a captive desperate for freedom, a time that I had painstakingly locked away clamoured to be released – to makes its way to the fore.
That last time in Arcadia…
That last time I had seen Divine…
That last time he…
"Help me."
"No!"
Whether I was shouting at the person before me or at the memory of him I wasn't sure. And it didn't matter. My head was noisier than it had ever been in a long time. To be honest, I'd much rather welcome the overwhelming silence I had woken up to than this moment.
My eyes burned as I recalled the experience of having a building collapse around me – the darkness that had blanketed me upon the successive bursting of lights that had been flickering gloomily above, how the ceiling and walls had groaned as the tremors that tore through them caused them to crack and rupture, how repressive and stifling the air had become.
(There had been the malicious power that was the Dark Signers, not to mention the dread and anguish of the hundreds of souls that had been snatched from the earth.)
Fear had clung to my body as the ground threatened to crumble beneath my feet. It would have been a death I saw coming – a slow and agonising one if I was particularly unlucky.
Then there had been Divine – the sound of his rasping breaths, the smell of his blood as it pooled beneath him, the image of him pinned beneath rubble – reaching towards me with a mangled hand.
I covered my mouth as I heaved, suddenly overwhelmed by a bout of nausea.
"I've been watching," Divine's lips curled into a smirk that held a mixture of malice and ridicule, "You've been living happily considering that you're a murderer."
"I'm not a murderer!" I snapped, lowering my hands from my face.
"Only because I'm so resilient," he parried, at the ready. His brows furrowed as if he were observing a caged animal with distant concern, all while he was trying to bait it out of its corner. Without a doubt, I was playing right into his hands with how reactive I was being to his provocations.
I should be insulted. But seeing his scarred skin wrinkle with every word, with every smirk made my stomach twist. No…more accurately it was the role I had in it being there that was sickening.
The smile on his face faded as he realized where my focus was. He angled his head so that long tufts of burgundy-coloured hair covered his scar. The eye that remained visible proceeded to pin me against the wall.
A competitor assessing a cornered opponent.
My nostrils flared and a fresh surge of adrenaline swelled in me. Using the wall as support, I shakily and slowly got up. I rose with the weight of my pain, with the heaviness of my fear and with the burden of my guilt.
I rose to my feet, on guard.
Because it was my only option.
Because I had to.
Whatever he had planned for me, I had to do my best to counter it.
Divine leered as he advanced.
"Now, let's test your resilience shall we?"
And then he lunged.
Yusei twisted his D-wheel's throttle.
His body vibrated as the engine roared and the motorcycle sped up. His D-wheel raced across the asphalt, the motion almost as smooth as a pen being run against paper. It was a sensation that – especially when he was embraced by the icy tendrils of the night, when there were fewer drivers and vehicles to guard against – brought him unending thrill and comfort.
But that was only when he was out riding just for the sake of it.
To either side of him, the whirring of both Jack and Crow's D-wheels sounded as they accelerated to keep pace with him.
Minutes earlier Luca had called in a fluster. Skylar hadn't returned home and they couldn't get through to her. Uncertainty had set in his voice, as panic had heightened in hers, when he relayed that he'd seen her off hours before.
Yusei's immediate response had been to pacify the twin's fears. There were several places that Skylar could've gone – back to her apartment, to the park, to school even – and while it wasn't her style to not give her charges a heads up, the worse didn't have to be assumed.
But that was what Yusei had thought before Luca had expressed just how muted Sky was on the other side of her mark. That was enough to warrant the warning bells in Yusei's head going off.
Just to be sure, he'd called Sky's usual taxi company and rattled off the license plate of the car she had taken. He'd taken note of it – Martha had always said that one could never be too careful.
Turns out it hadn't been one of their registered vehicles.
Yusei tightened his grip on his motorcycle's handlebars, forcing his mind to the present. Not for the first time since they'd left their apartment, he glanced down at his D-wheel's monitor.
He'd locked onto Sky's last known location using the last cell tower her phone would've transmitted to before the cell was shut down.
The signal came from an area in the Outer Rim. That in and of itself wasn't very promising information, but it was all that he had.
"I called Aki," Jack's voice filtered through his D-wheel's coms. "She's on her way to stay with the twins."
That was the best course of action.
"Shouldn't we notify the Security Bureau?" Crow queried.
"It hasn't been 24 hours yet," Jack replied. "As far as they'll be concerned, we're just being paranoid and Sky's out having a good time. To them, this could be nothing."
"Well it sure feels like nothing." Crow griped, "And that's the problem."
Yusei knew where he was coming from. He glanced at his right arm, picturing the mark that was beneath his glove.
It was like realizing that the dulcet background music – a soothing melody that had always been playing – had abruptly stopped.
Of all the Signers he, Jack and the Crow were the least…aware. Personally, without an extreme amount of concentration, it wasn't an easy thing to sense his fellow mark bearers. He hadn't thought it was a problem, not before now at least.
Over the coms, Crow and Jack were still debating.
"Then we can call in a favour with Ushio and Mikage! They owe us!"
"We'd still need proof, Crow."
"Guys," Yusei announced, filling the sombre lull that had settled, "The signal's coming from someplace up ahead of us."
He slowed his motorcycle, turning unto the slip road that came up to their immediate right. The turbo duellist absently noted that they were close to the entrance to the highway.
As he and his foster brothers rode on, he gave his surroundings as careful a scan as he could manage.
They'd entered a business district. There were multiple low-rise to mid-rise office buildings painted in muted colours on either side of them. The streets were lined with a small number of trees, just as many streetlights and even fewer bus-stops. This probably meant that after most of the day's workforce got off from their jobs, save for those who worked late and the security guards tucked away in their booths, the place was devoid of commuters.
Considering when the car would've driven though, there might've only been a few witnesses – if any at all.
"Yusei what about that car over there?" Crow raised his arm to point ahead of them. "Further ahead, right beside that building."
Yusei couldn't make out many details – the dull glow of the building's spotlight wasn't much to work by. "One way to find out."
The trio speedily pulled up to the building. Yusei didn't notice much barring the fact that the edifice looked unoccupied though not necessarily abandoned. There also seemed to be additional floodlights, however, whether they were non-functioning or just switched off, Yusei couldn't tell.
Stopping some distance away from the car, Yusei dismounted from his D-wheel and Jack and Crow followed suit. After taking a few moments to search their respective D-wheels for their flashlights, they warily approached the vehicle.
The moment he got closer, Yusei quickly confirmed that the car was the same make, model and colour as the cab Skylar had taken.
"It's a match," Yusei stated grimly once he got a view of the car's licence plate.
Crow hastily sidled up to the passenger's side door.
"Locked!" he groaned as he yanked on the door's handle. He pressed his face against the glass, squinting. "But it doesn't look like anybody's inside!"
Jack positioned himself by the rear of the car. "Yusei, get the trunk open."
Yusei walked towards the driver's side, pulling out a set of lock picks from his jacket's inner pocket as he crouched to be at eye-level with the lock. Holding his flashlight between his teeth, with practised ease, the Satellite-raised man tampered with the mechanism for only a handful of seconds, before the door clicked open. Yusei tugged at the unlocked door and reached inside to press the trunk release button.
The tell-tale sound of the trunk being popped open followed. Jack shone his flashlight into the storage compartment. A handful of seconds later, he declared, "She's not in here."
Yusei hadn't known precisely how wound up his body had been until after he'd heard Jack's statement. His shoulders became a little less hunched, the white-knuckled grip he'd had on the car door loosened and the tension that had been steadily building behind his temple while it wasn't gone, there was less of a headache there.
At the very least, they hadn't found her lifeless body in the trunk.
At the very least there was the chance that she was alive and okay.
That hope was something that he could work with.
Yusei fiddled with the driver's side door with renewed fervour and unlocked the remaining doors.
A low grunt sounded from the rear passenger seats as Crow entered the car. He wasn't inside for long before he scrambled out, hand clutching onto an all too familiar device.
Yusei and Jack moved to stand on either side of their younger foster brother, both peering down at the red cellphone. Crow carelessly tugged at the cell's strap – a gift from Aki – that had Skylar's name sewn into it.
"Guess we found our proof," Jack grimaced, moving to examine the rear section once more. "The seatbelt around here's been cut."
Yusei strode to the front of the car and pressed his hand against the hood. Eventually, the hand atop the bonnet curled into a fist. "It's cold."
Crow swore, turning to kick at the tyre closest to him.
Jack folded his arms across his chest, his fingers grasping his forearms tightly. He forced himself to take a deep breath, stamping down the urge to lash out as Crow had. He turned his focus to Yusei, who'd yet to move from the car's bonnet. "Where do we go from here?"
No sooner had he spoken than the whine of a D-wheel engine was heard and their surrounding became bathed in light.
"I can give you an option."
The three males tensed at the unexpected modulated voice. It came from directly in front of them, as did the light source – no doubt a bike's headlights.
"Hey! Kill the high-beam lights there would ya?" Crow groused, having raised his arms to shield his eyes.
To his surprise, his demand was met straight away. The lights before them dimmed considerably, but at that time the entire area became illuminated.
Crow raised his head, squinting at the floodlights above them.
"These lights would have helped earlier," he complained, tucking his flashlight away in his pant's pocket as Yusei and Jack did the same.
Moving his gaze forward, Crow let out a low, appreciative whistle. "Check out that D-wheel. It almost looks like a flaming horse."
Giving the vehicle a brief once-over, Yusei found that Crow's description was fitting. The D-wheel had the look of a white steed – if said steed was a hybrid motorcycle with flaming razor-like protrusions in place of a mane and had red and gold highlighted side armour instead of saddlebags.
"Not now Crow," Jack chided.
Yusei brows furrowed as his eyes settled on the individual that stood beside the D-wheel.
If the motorcycle hadn't been enough of a clue that they were dealing with a turbo duellist, then the outfit would have been a clear giveaway. The figure donned a white rider uniform with red accents complete with a dark-coloured chest protector. The uniform also had the typical guards for the shoulder, elbows, shins and knees. An orange visor extending from a red helmet covered the top half of the duellist's face while their mouth protector obscured the lower part.
But while Yusei couldn't make out the person's eyes, he had the distinct impression that he was the rider's main target.
There was also the unsettling realization that none of them had heard anyone approach – which implied that up until the duellist made their presence known, they'd been monitoring them.
"Yusei Fudo, I've been waiting."
"Well that isn't creepy at all," Crow murmured.
Yusei's lips pursed.
"What do you mean?"
"And why are you only addressing Yusei?" Jack interrupted, "He isn't the only one standing here."
"I know who took your friend," The masked duellist continued as if Jack hadn't spoken, "I know where she is as well."
"Are you telling me that you watched her get kidnapped?" Crow growled, his stance widening as he lowered his body to the ground.
Jack's body too had stiffened. His eyes narrowed as he unfurled his arms. He let them fall to his sides though he balled his hands into fists.
Standing between the two of them, Yusei hurriedly placed a hand on each of their shoulders. Both were ready to pounce at a moment's notice, but Yusei knew that they had to keep a level head – for Skylar's sake.
"Why?" Yusei pressed, "What could you have possibly gained just by watching?"
"Leverage."
The reply stunned the trio of duellists. In the silence that ensued, the masked rider mounted their D-wheel.
"I challenge you Yusei Fudo to a turbo duel."
"You're joking right?" Crow's tone was incredulous, his head swinging as he looked between Yusei and the mysterious turbo duellist.
"Be quiet," the duellist ordered, snappish, before they returned their regard to Yusei. "The terms are simple. If I win, you join my riding team for the World Prix–"
"Oh, so you're back to spouting more nonsense," Jack sneered.
"–and If you win, I tell you where your friend is."
"How can we trust you?" Yusei spoke up, "How do we even know that you're telling the truth?"
"That's right!" Crow remarked, "For all we know you're bluffing and this is a waste of time – time that could be better spent looking for Skylar."
The duellist tilted their head disparagingly before they turned and rummaged somewhere behind their D-wheel.
A sleek, metallic tablet was tossed at them, which Yusei effortlessly snatched from the air.
The three Signers regarded each other briefly. Upon seeing Jack and Crow nod in consent, Yusei tacitly switched the device on as the three of them peered over it.
Immediately, footage of a prone Skylar being moved into a nondescript black van played across the screen. There were only two other persons in the video. One was the driver of the taxi, who upon exiting the vehicle, doubled as the lookout. At first glance, the second person resembled a casually dressed female.
Yusei stared icily at the sight of the woman unceremoniously hauling Skylar from the taxi as soon as she arrived on the scene. The woman gripped Skylar by her waist, pulled one of her arms around her neck and shifted her weight so that it came across as if Skylar were leaning on her for support. It didn't take long for Sky to be dragged into the back of the van before both kidnappers entered the vehicle themselves.
"Those bastards!" Jack hissed, gnashing his teeth.
Next, the video feed skipped and another person was shown stealthily advancing towards the rear of the van. It was a herculean male with short, spikey hair who oddly enough appeared to be dressed in a suit. He seemed to tamper with the undercarriage of the van for a split-second before he disappeared from view.
"What did that guy just do?" Crow exclaimed as the feed cut and the gadget powered off.
"He placed a tracker on the van."
The response was firm yet impatient.
The mysterious duellist cranked the throttle of their D-wheel, the engine's sound riotous – thrashing against the stillness of the night.
"As I said, if Yusei defeats me in a duel, I will tell you where your friend is."
Yusei stared down at the tablet. The image of Skylar's motionless body being hauled away replayed in his mind. His jaw clenched and the device trembled in his tense hold.
"The choice is yours, Yusei."
He – they – didn't know what kind of danger Skylar was in. His choice would be to circumvent all of this – the mystery, the uncertainty, duelling on a whole.
Jerking his head upward, Yusei lobbed the device towards its owner who promptly caught it.
He stared unwaveringly at the duellist, determination and adrenaline beginning to quell his anger and anxiety.
If duelling was the only way for him to find out where Sky was, and get to her that much sooner, he wasn't about to back down.
"I accept."
Word Count: 4483
A/N: It's been a while, I know. Slow going as it might be, it is my plan to finish this story.
Thank you to everyone that has followed, favourited and/or reviewed. I appreciate it.
Constructive criticism/comments/queries/suggestions are welcomed.
Thanks for reading.
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