Welcome back and thanks for sticking with Dual Guardians. We're moving on with the War of the Planets arc, and I'm sure you're wondering who the next unlucky contestant is. And, if you're me, whether the next Legendary Planet has as much of a point as the last two did haha. As always, shout out to Eneko95 for all her hard work making this story presentable.

Chapter 41

Dazzling Flame

Part I

Duel Academy

Night

The island forest was usually peaceful and still after sundown. True, there were nocturnal predators about, but none of the ones on Academy Island really posed a threat to the groundskeeper crew and occasional students sneaking out. On this particular night, however, the animals had a unique disturbance to process.

The sound of beeping echoed as Meryem and Kanoa continued forward, following their tracker to another possible Duel signature.

In the half hour they'd been searching this part of the forest, they'd found three active signals from Duelists, none of whom were the ones they'd been actually looking for. Each time, the teachers had scolded them for breaking curfew, gotten their info, and sent them on their way.

They kept on in tense silence, especially from Kanoa.

'And don't forget, I wasn't the one who ended things between us.'

Meryem sighed internally. Guilt and Kanoa's bitter not-quite-parting words were eating at her every step of the way.

She wasn't frustrated with him, not really, but she'd unloaded on him when he had only been trying to explain himself. Almost every time someone had criticized her for her stubborn approach, they'd cited the possibility that she'd end up hurting someone she actually liked if she kept at it.

Today, that prediction came true.

'I really should apologize… But it would be weird if I just brought it up right now, wouldn't it? Should I have apologized immediately after he said that? No, that would've just sounded like I was making excuses… Is there a right time to apologize? Where's the difference between too soon and too late?'

Her tablet started beeping rapidly, replacing her uncertainty with excitement that they'd found another signal. They followed it through some bushes into a clearing and found…nothing.

"Damn it," The Head of Slifer muttered to himself. "Another dead end…"

To her surprise, he turned to her and held out the tablet. "You're better with this thing than I am, is it working?"

Meyrem was a little hesitant, but steeled herself and took her tablet back, checking some of the settings just in case.

"It's working. There was a Duel here, but whoever was involved left the area after it ended," she replied. "The signal tends to stick around for a while after a duel ends, like residual heat on a burner. Let's see if we can find their footprints or other signs of movement to track them."

He didn't answer, but turned on his phone flashlight and started examining the plants and ground near him.

Taking a deep breath, Meryem decided to finally speak up.

"Kanoa, about earlier… I really am sorry. Implying you don't care about the students was uncalled for. If you didn't care you wouldn't have gotten hired at all," she said. "I'm just frustrated and out of my depth. I focus so much on finding tangible, sound explanations for everything around me, and this whole situation doesn't have one. I don't deal with multiple unknowns very well."

The blond straightened up and turned to look at her again. Clearly Kanoa had done some thinking about this too, because rather than say something petty or brush her off, he simply took a deep breath in and out before speaking.

"Thank you. If it helps, I'm as on edge as you are. We're scientists and professionals, like you said. You don't get where we are without habitually wanting explanations for everything as soon as possible," he began. "But with all this, plus hearing about what happened with the other victims… I have to wonder what's really going on. Are we missing the critical piece of information, or is someone trying to keep us from putting everything together properly?"

Meryem shivered a bit. She hated how ominous he could sound in more serious moments.

Regardless, the two knew talking wouldn't really help them get a handle on it, and continued to search for signs of life. She hoped that their luck would improve the next time her tablet went off.

Elsewhere in the forest…

Boom, boom, boom, boom.

Something large was on the hunt, and the nearby animals ran out of its way in fear. Whatever it was, it was fast and just hidden enough to avoid being seen.

The creature reached a particularly tall tree and, after only a slight pause, began scaling it with barely any slips, as if this was an old and well-ingrained habit.

Upon reaching the top, the being held with one arm to the tree, stretching outward as if it was trying to catch a glimpse of something in the forest.

A cloud passed by, allowing moonlight to reach the higher treetops. This in turn revealed the mysterious creature as none other than Takashi. His Duel Disk was strapped to his back, along with a makeshift holder for a small bunch of ripe bananas he'd likely found somewhere on the island.

People tended to jokingly warn others about a runaway animal when they saw the Slifer barreling through a hall to return something or get to class in a hurry. It didn't bother him, though. He knew they meant well, and he didn't look that animal-like anyway.

His long trips into the forests back home to play were starting to pay off. Besides the obvious benefit of knowing where to find food (and how to tell if it was safe to eat), it was easy for him to find and follow any traces other people had left on their way through. He wasn't even that tired for how long he'd been out here looking for his friends.

Not seeing any other signs, Takashi easily let go of the tree, propelling down while grabbing branch after branch to slow his descent to the ground. Eventually, he landed safely with another, heavier thud, brushing bits of dirt and bark off his hands.

"Sheesh. You'd think after five laps around this forest I'd have found some sign of them," he muttered to himself. "At least I found a snack on lap four."

The mention of food caused his stomach to growl as the teen grabbed one of the bananas, eating it whole without even peeling it and smiled in delight at the taste the fruit had. Though that smile turned to a frown as he looked up to the sky once more.

"Please be OK everyone," he remarked with a sigh of worry.

Something rustled in the undergrowth nearby. Takashi quickly turned towards the sound and dropped into a defensive position. 'Judo training, don't fail me now.'

The something rustled again, and an owl flew out holding a strip of muscle in its beak. It landed on a tree branch and swallowed its prize with one smooth head-toss.

Takashi relaxed, laughing sheepishly. "Whoops. Well, if I had to get surprised by anybody, I'm glad it was you, Mr. Owl. Sorry if I interrupted your hunting earlier."

The large student always seemed to have a sort of protective aura that surrounded him, like if anyone was in trouble and he was there, they'd likely feel safe.

However, it didn't seem to be working for the owl. Its feathers puffed out, and it turned its head completely around, clearly trying to pinpoint something behind it.

"Yeah, I feel ya. I don't like being here either." Takashi looked in that direction, not really surprised when he didn't see anything spooking the owl.

What he did feel, on the other hand, was a vague sense that something was waiting for him that way.

The bird flew away, and Takashi began walking towards whatever had scared the owl. He assumed it was part of the group hunting his friends, but even if it wasn't, he figured fighting would be in his interest. The deeper he went, the stronger that sense of something potentially dangerous ahead got.

Before long, Takashi passed through two peculiar trees that stood as if they led into a new path, dispelling the illusion that was placed as the normal path of the forest returned.

Then a mysterious stranger dropped out of a nearby tree and summoned a magic circle under themselves, disappearing in a pillar of darkness.

Purgatory

As he pressed on, Takashi got an increasing sense of being in a dream. Trees around him looked more majestic, the dirt road he walked was now a fine red carpet, and after a certain point the animals started coming up to the path and bowing at him.

Soon enough, Takashi was no longer in a forest at all, but in a magnificent dining hall lit by elegant brass lamps on the walls and a crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling. It reminded him a little of a reception dinner, especially with the yakiniku grill just a few steps from a giant circular buffet table. Smaller square tables dotted the room, each with four full place settings and luxurious red chairs.

The buffet table was a work of culinary art all on its own. Loaded with all kinds of finger foods and salad ingredients and side dishes and who knew what else, he was genuinely surprised the table could support such a bounty.

He was so taken in by the sights and smells, in fact, that he barely processed the sound of footsteps coming down a hallway and entering the room.

"Greetings, young master," said a polite older voice.

Takashi snapped out of his daze and turned to the source.

The gentleman before him was about average height (so about a head shorter than Takashi), with neatly trimmed blue-grey hair and a deep green tie. His eyes were hidden behind a pair of sunglasses, and his navy suit made the crisp white button-up underneath it stand out that much more.

The large student tended to take things at face value, for better and/or worse. But something in the back of his mind said there was more going on here than met the eye.

"Who are you?" Takashi questioned as he kept his guard up.

"You may call me Mr. Crockett, or Croquet if you'd like," the man replied with a brief bow. "I am someone who helps weary travelers with this humble offering of food and drink to allow them to regain their stamina. You seem to have been traveling for quite some time, if the dust and sweat clinging to your form is anything to go by. If it is agreeable to you, please feel free to partake of this rejuvenating meal I have prepared here."

"It all does look and smell incredible… hey, have you seen anyone in uniforms like mine come by here?"

Croquet did a mild double-take. "Pardon?"

"My friends and I got separated on our way back," Takashi explained. "I tried calling them but their phones died, and I figure they'd need a snack as much as anybody else who got lost in here."

"I apologize, young sir, but you are the first young man I've seen here." Croquet smiled like he was sharing an inside joke. "Hopefully my meal gives you the strength to find them."

Takashi took a few steps towards the display, not trying all that hard to hide the drool. He picked up a slider…

And put it back down, pulling one of the bananas out of his pocket instead.

"Thank you for the offer, but I really should get going. I'll try to find you again once I've reunited with my friends. It's no fun sharing all this food with just one person, after all!"

With that, Takashi waved at the old man (and some of the birds) and left the dining hall without a second look.

Croquet calmly walked over to the buffet table and upended it. After a brief but spectacular crashing sound, all the food and cutlery on all the tables shriveled away into rotted fruit and dead branches. The lamps blew themselves out of existence.

The old man's uniform vanished in a burst of darkness, leaving a mysterious stranger in loose black robes. "Aww. And I worked so hard on that illusion, too."

The stranger placed their hand on the ground and blended into the shadows. As the animals fled, trees and darkness closed in on the now-empty dining hall.

Takashi had lost track of how long he'd been walking. He hadn't come across so much as a fallen tree since leaving that hall, let alone an actual break in the forest. It felt a little like he was in the natural equivalent of an abandoned subway line. Miles and miles of exactly the same scenery with only one path, and turning around wouldn't help your chances of getting out.

But spooky ambiance or not, his friends were in danger. He would cross the world and move Heaven itself if it helped the people he cared about be safe. And so Takashi pushed onward through the trees.

Eventually, he found himself standing in front of two large, heavy-looking golden doors engraved with small beetles holding a sun disk in their mandibles. Takashi raised a hand to knock, but the doors opened on their own, shedding brilliant light into the forest.

After the spots in his eyes faded, he once again found himself somewhere both beautiful and completely different from where he'd been. This time the "somewhere" was a sandstone room with animal paintings on the walls and columns designed to look like palm trees. They even had carved leaves at the top where they met the ceiling. He got the sense whoever owned this room mostly used it to host parties. Then he saw what exactly had given off all that light earlier.

A pile of partially-open treasure chests filled with coins and gems in more colors than he thought precious stones came in, shining gold jewelry, and even a scepter or three in the piles of riches.

"Holy…!"

"Hahaha! Impressive, yes?" a deep, smooth voice said close by.

Takashi looked around for a bit before he noticed a very peculiar man sitting at the center of all the jewels and treasure. The person sat up, giving a cheerful smile before walking towards the Slifer student.

He was a tall, heavyset Egyptian man (almost the same build as Takashi, really) in a simple black vest and long red coat over loose pants and golden slippers. If there was any hair on him other than the light gray mustache and soul patch, it was hidden by a tightly-wrapped white turban.

"As-salaam 'alykum, fellow traveler! I'm called Bobasa, and welcome to my domain!" he said. "It has been some time since someone has set foot in this place."

"Pleasure to meet you, sir," Takashi replied politely. He had a handful of questions and no idea which one to ask first.

"Likewise. Such a talented and polite young man, especially in this day and age. I can think of no one better to offer the riches I gathered here."

Takashi did a double-take. "You're serious?"

"Of course! I certainly can't carry all these artifacts and coins on my own! Think of it as a reward for finding me, if that helps." The older man gestured grandly at his fortune. "Go ahead, take as much as you like! My treasure chests have a little of everything in them; crowns, sapphires, emeralds, diamond rings… even the chests themselves are worth a small ransom!"

Takashi eyed the treasure for a few minutes. It almost felt like Bobasa was watching him too, like he was expecting Takashi to go for a particular object.

Of course, since Takashi had no way of knowing which object Bobasa was expecting, he decided to answer the implied question with "none of the above".

"I thank you for such a generous offer, and while your treasure is beautiful, I cannot accept it," Takashi began, bowing politely. "I'm looking for someone very important to me. I wouldn't want them to think I valued shiny things over their health and safety. Thank you again for your kindness, but I must be going."

Bobasa said nothing, but stared after the departing student with a comically shocked expression.

As soon as Takashi was out of sight, the palace walls turned back into trees, and the treasure chests and all they contained transformed into dead leaves and completely ordinary rocks.

And as before, the robed figure dropped their disguise in a swirl of darkness.

They clenched their fists in a brief moment of anger, despite the lack of any observers. Once they'd settled down, they stepped into a tree's shadow and disappeared again.

After another indeterminate stretch of walking with only that disturbance guiding his way, Takashi was starting to wonder if that sense of being in a dream was more accurate than he'd thought. The scenery hadn't changed once since this leg of the walk. Granted, the forest was a lot bigger than he'd thought (nor was he really expecting to suddenly find himself, say, facing that banana tree from before), but this was on another level entirely.

The student couldn't find any other kind of path. No sign of animals or even insects. It only had the appearance of a forest, but not substance.

Before he could ponder further, he spotted a tall orange-red torii gate just off the path. The stone walkway underneath it looked well-kept, and there was even a bird's nest in one of the gaps.

"Huh. Maybe I thought too soon."

Takashi rinsed his hands and mouth in the fountain, left a handful of coins, and walked through the gate with renewed determination. 'Hold on a little longer, everyone. I'm on my way.'

As he went on, he polished off another banana and let himself relax a little. He was still lost, but at least he knew he hadn't left the real world. Strange detours notwithstanding.

Then a chorus of cheerful laughs rang out from up ahead.

'Good! More people means I'm definitely on the right track!' He pressed forward into a clearing, half-expecting to find the horror movie club testing something.

What he found instead was an open-air onsen, complete with a small waterfall in the background and an array of bathing women as far as he could see. The laughs had come from one of the smaller pools, where a trim redhead and two softer-looking blondes were having a glorious splash fight. Takashi couldn't help a cheerful grin at their enthusiasm.

The grin faded a little when he realized that not only was he in his (somewhat dirty) uniform, he didn't see any signs pointing to a men's area. He just hoped there was a way to ask one of them where to change without coming across as creepy.

However, Takashi wouldn't have that choice as suddenly, all eyes were on him.

Until now, he wouldn't have said you could be frozen in place by uncertainty before. The feeling only increased when he noticed a few women blushing slightly. A soft, cool breeze against his back made him shiver.

'Wait a minute…'

Takashi looked down and the fifty-yen coin finished dropping. He was almost naked except for a large towel wrapped around his waist Tarzan-style.

"Ah!" he shouted in shock, trying to cover himself a bit from the wandering eyes of the girls in front of him.

"Now, now, nothing wrong with enjoying a nice view," a new voice remarked.

Unlike the previous "hosts," the voice's owner this time was a young blonde woman with sharp green eyes and a black-and-white striped kimono. She'd pulled her hair into a loose bun held in place by a comb about the same shade of reddish-purple as her obi.

"Where-where am I and who are you?" Takashi managed. "And when did I get naked?"

"You've found yourself in the Lotus Springs, a lovely place for travelers to restore their mind and body," she replied. "My name is Angela. I'm afraid I don't have an answer to your third question, but…" Angela giggled to herself. "Previous guests have mentioned strange things happening at the springs. Mostly a sense of time passing more slowly here than the outside, more… peacefully, you might say."

Takashi was enamored, seeing all the girls looking at him with great enthusiasm. Even for someone like him, having this much attention was a pleasant feeling.

"As you can see, we've gathered ladies here from all over the world and in all kinds of shapes and sizes," Angela continued proudly. "Of course, each of them also has their own particular skill set to better assist travelers. Conversation, performance art, intimate massages… I can safely say we have someone here for everyone's tastes. Go ahead, talk to whomever you like. They're all very eager to please."

He couldn't help but take a few steps closer to the pools, smiling as the girls called out to him.

Just before he actually entered the water, though, a new thought came to mind. A person he wanted to protect before anybody else.

He wouldn't deny that the women were appealing, but that wasn't the same as being really attracted to someone. Only one person made him feel that pull on his heart, and she wasn't in the Lotus Springs.

"Nervous, are you?"

Angela's voice once again brought Takashi back to the present moment. He shook his head and looked back at his host.

"I appreciate the offer, and am flattered, but have to respectfully decline," he said. "There are people somewhere out here waiting for me, and I cannot let them down."

Angela was silent for a moment. "…is your head as thick as the rest of you? How can you look at something a man might literally kill for and walk away?! And don't act like you weren't interested, I saw you drool over Croquet's meal and perk up when my girls gave you a group once-over! I'm appealing to the most base of base desires and you still didn't fall for it!? Are you even a real man?! How stupid are you to miss blatant honey traps?!"

As she was saying this, the waters behind her were giving off more and more steam. Most of the smaller ladies had gotten out and were trying to dry themselves off as quickly as possible.

Before he could respond to any of it, or even ask what was really happening, a deep and powerful rumble shook the ground beneath him. "Uh-oh."

He got about two steps back before all the pools erupted. The sheer noise of it was incredible, even at a relatively safe distance. He could only watch in a kind of terrified awe as the spring-turned-geyser engulfed every single tree around them. The girls weren't spared either. In or out of the pool, they melted away with almost inhuman wails Takashi couldn't bear hearing.

Eventually, the geyser collapsed into what was left of the largest pool and evaporated. The clearing had become uniformly dark and empty-looking.

'Well. That explains why it wasn't feeling real anymore,' Takashi realized.

This time, when he looked at himself, he was back in his regular, very definitely real clothes.

However, the same could not be said for his host.

Angela had changed into most of a golden platemail suit. While her torso and legs were well-protected, and accented with round red stones here and there, her arms had only a few layers of white fabric wrapped around them. Her helmet, featuring both wings on the sides and a pair of horns curving behind it like a halo, was particularly striking. Indeed, Takashi might not have recognized her as Angela if it hadn't been for the mask under her noseplate accenting her eyes.

The large student felt an authority radiating from her he hadn't felt before. As if she was a queen in her castle, wiser and stronger than everyone around her and well aware of that.

Everyone, that is, except for him.

"Trick the fat one into staying in Purgatory, they said. It'll be easy and weaken the Guardians' resolve, they said!" she snarled. "But no! You had to be the one weirdo who completely ignores his animal instincts and wrecks my plan! You irregular lunkheaded pig!"

"Well, I wouldn't call myself normal," Takashi replied. "Irregular is definitely a first. A bit rude for a total stranger, but a first nonetheless."

The armored woman snarled again, then forced herself to simmer down.

"I am in complete control of your surroundings, pig. You should thank whatever gods you believe in that I haven't already struck you into the center of the earth. Or, if you prefer, thank them that I allowed you to make it this far."

Her left wrist glowed brightly, and the familiar shape of a Duel Disk materialized on top of a golden bracer.

"That said, I am as merciful a goddess as my powers are vast," she continued. "Surrender now, mortal, if you wish to be spared the wrath of Venus."

Despite the veiled threats, Takashi didn't falter once.

"Even if you were a goddess, I wouldn't surrender to anyone so spiteful and angry," he refused confidently. "I swore not to let my friends down if they ever needed me, and they need me now. If you want to make a Duel out of it, then you'll get a Duel!"

He quickly grabbed his Duel Disk, attaching it to his right arm and pointing it up.

Venus just smiled coolly.

Translations:

As-salaam 'alykum: an Arabic greeting meaning "Peace be upon you," equivalent to saying hello.

And with that, we will begin the fifth Duel of the Arc, leaving only Nick and Barclay left! (Hears cheers in the Distance) Thank you kindly. Anyway, thank you once again for continuing to follow and read our story, or if your newcomers who got to this point, welcome and we hope you are enjoying the ride. Until next time.