"What is she doing?!" Sakuya almost shouted, looking at the situation before them. Hibiki and Tsubasa were engaged in a duel, Tsubasa having initiated it due to her own rage.
"Ah, the fires of youth." Ryoko said. "I remember when I was a hot-headed, hip and young duelist."
"You were?" Ogawa asked, before receiving a quick kick to his stomach.
"Should we stop them?" Aoi asked, turning to Genjuro.
The man kept his arms crossed, frowning.
"Let them continue."
"I'll take the first move!" Tsubasa shouted.
"Um, shouldn't we flip a coin for it?" Hibiki asked, looking at said feature that the interface had.
"Shut up!"
"Shutting up now!"
"I summon Silent Swordsman LV3 to the field!" Tsubasa said.
On Tsubasa's field appeared a kid in a blue coat, holding a serrated sword on his shoulder.
"And then I place two cards face-down and I end my turn." Tsubasa said.
"Okay!" Hibiki said, tapping on the screen. "I draw!"
She looked at her hand, before deciding her next move and tapping a card.
"I summon Rapid Warrior in attack mode!" Hibiki said, summoning a mechanical warrior of blue with a metallic tail. "With Rapid Warrior's ability, I can attack your life points directly!"
Tsubasa said nothing in response, her anger clouding her other emotions.
"Go! Rapid Warrior! Attack Tsubasa-san's life points directly with Whiplash Wallop Bean!"
Rapid Warrior sped forward past Silent Swordsman LV3, whipping around its tail right at Tsubasa.
"Naive!" Tsubasa shouted, activating a face-down. "I activate the trap card, Negate Attack!"
Rapid Warrior was thrown off by a gust of wind, forcing it back to Hibiki's field.
"Did you really think that would work on me?" Tsubasa asked.
"I set two face-down cards and end my turn!" Hibiki said.
"My turn! I draw!" Tsubasa tapped her interface. "I send Silent Swordsman LV3 from my side of the field, to summon Silent Swordsman LV5 from my deck!"
Silent Swordsman LV3 disappeared, before being replaced by an older, taller version of itself, complete with a bigger sword.
"And then I'll summon The Six Samurai - Zanji!" Tsubasa added.
A samurai with orange armor and a blade on a stick appeared next to Silent Swordsman LV5.
"Battle!" Tsuabsa held out an arm. "Zanji! Attack Rapid Warrior!"
Zanji charged forward with his blade, ready to cut Rapid Warrior into ribbons.
"I activate my trap card!" Hibiki shouted. "Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!"
The scarecrow of junk and iron rose to defend Rapid Warrior, but Tsubasa had prepared for that.
"I activate my counter trap card!" Tsubasa declared. "Trap Jammer!"
Scrap-Iron Scarecrow was blasted by a magical circle from below, turning it into rust before it crumbled.
"Huh?!" Hibiki yelled.
"Trap Jammer negates and destroys a trap card activated during the battle phase." Tsubasa explained, before pointing again. "Zanji! Continue your attack!"
Zanji swung its blade outwards, cutting Rapid Warrior in half, before the monster exploded, bringing Hibiki down to 3400 life points.
"Now, Silent Swordsman LV5! Attack her directly!" Tsubasa shouted. "And hold NOTHING back! SILENT SWORD!"
Silent Swordsman LV5 charged at her, raising its massive blade. It swung down, but Hibiki activated another trap of her own.
"I activate my trap card, Defense Draw!" Hibiki said.
Silent Swordsman LV5's blade passed right through her, doing no damage.
"Defense Draw negates all battle damage to me, and I get to draw one card!" Hibiki said, doing just that.
Tsubasa frowned. "I end my turn."
If only Silent Swordsman LV5 managed to inflict damage with that direct attack, then I would be able to summon Silent Swordsman LV7. Well, that's not an issue in the long run. With three cards in my hand by next turn I'll be able to do so-
"My turn! I draw!" Hibiki looked at her hand before smiling. "My preparations are complete!"
"What?" Tsubasa shouted. Impossible.. I played right into her hands?!
"I activate the spell card, Monster Reincarnation!" Hibiki said. "I discard one card, and bring back one monster from the graveyard into my hand. And I choose the only monster in there, Rapid Warrior!"
Hibiki swapped the cards, before tapping another.
"Then, I'll follow things up by activating the spell card, Double Summon!" Hibiki said. "This card lets me normal summon two times this turn!"
Two summons? What is she planning to-?
"Then I activate the spell card Star Blast!" Hibiki shouted. "I'll pay 500 life points to lower Rapid Warrior's level by 1!"
Tsubasa frowned as Hibiki's life points dropped to 2900. But that monster doesn't need a tribute-
"I normal summon Rapid Warrior, and Nitro Synchron!" Hibiki declared.
The blue warrior sped onto the field once more, as a pink and animated gasoline tank appeared next to it.
So she's planning on Synchro Summoning. Tsubasa thought. But she doesn't have the monsters needed in order to summon the monster requires that tuner-
"And since I have a tuner monster, I activate Quillbolt Hedgehog's ability from the graveyard and I special summon it!" Hibiki shouted.
"What?!" Tsubasa yelled.
The hedgehog with bolts as quills appeared onto the field.
"How did that get in your graveyard?!" Tsubasa demanded.
"When I discarded it for the cost of Monster Reincarnation!" Hibiki revealed, before holding out her arm. "With my level 3 Rapid Warrior and level 2 Quillbolt Hedgehog, I tune them both with my level 2 Nitro Synchron!"
A bead of sweat went down Tsubasa's brow, as she saw the rings and stars align.
"Gathering feelings will now become a new force! Become the path its light shines upon!" Hibiki chanted, before a beam of light hit the ground behind her. "Synchro Summon! Blaze on, Nitro Warrior!"
A massive green warrior with volcanic-like features took the field, letting out a proud roar.
"Because I Synchro Summoned a Nitro monster using Nitro Synchron, I get to draw another card!" Hibiki said, taking the bonus and increasing her hand to three. "I'll set one card! Now, Nitro Warrior! Attack Silent Swordsman LV5! Dynamite Knuckle!"
Nitro Warrior charged forward, before slamming a heavy fist into Tsubasa's swordsman, lowering her life points to 3500.
"That'll end my turn, Tsubasa-san!" Hibiki said. "It's your move!"
"I draw." Tsubasa drew and made her hand three. She chuckled darkly, as Hibiki raised an eyebrow. "This folly is over. I'll set one card face-down, before I activate the ritual spell; Black Luster Ritual!"
Hibiki swallowed, as the familiar pots and tablet materialized.
"I'll sacrifice Zanji on the field, as well as Nisashi in my hand!"
A green samurai appeared, before being engulfed by the ritual pot with its other fellow samurai, creating the geysers of water.
"One soul shall merge with light! The other soul shall merge with the darkness! Between light and darkness, the gate to chaos is opened! Ritual Summon!"
The tablet rose and shattered, as the soldier took the stage.
"The Black Luster Soldier descends!"
"Uh oh…"
"Black Luster Soldier, destroy Nitro Warrior!" Tsubasa shouted. "CHAOS BLADE!"
The soldier slammed its blade into the ground, unleashing a wave of energy that tore Nitro Warrior in half. Hibiki's life points fell to 2700.
"I end my turn." Tsubasa said, her hand empty. "Go."
"I draw…" Hibiki said softly. She didn't look at the card she drew. Before she continued the duel, she spoke up to Tsubasa. "Why… why do you hate me so much?"
"Why?" Tsubasa repeated. "The answer is obvious. Kanade should be standing here, not you!"
The words stung Hibiki. She could tell that Tsubasa was still torn up over her loss, and she was taking it out on her. Tsubasa probably thought that beating her would give her at least some sense of closure, or to prove that Kanade made a mistake saving her.
If that was the case, Tsubasa was in for the biggest disappointment of her life. Hibiki breathed out, her hair slightly getting messier.
"You might be someone I look up to, Tsubasa-san… but this duel is over." Hibiki said.
"You're outmatched, Tachibana." Tsubasa said.
"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard." Hibiki said, her voice slightly deeper. "I haven't lost. I still have options… and I'll start with this spell card; Red-Eyes Fusion!"
"Fusion Summon?!" Tsubasa's eyes widened at seeing that card again.
"I'll fuse the Red-Eyes Black Dragon and Dash Warrior in my deck!" Hibiki declared.
The two monsters appeared on the battlefield, before disappearing into a swirl of light together.
"The black dragon with eyes of red! Inherit the will of the warrior and shred through my enemies!" Hibiki shouted, striking a very familiar pose.
K-Kanade…? Tsubasa saw Hibiki strike Kanade's signature summon pose, and her expression was currently a dead-ringer too.
"Fusion Summon!" Hibiki shouted. "Slash into action! Red-Eyes Slash Dragon!"
From the burst of light descended what appeared to be Red-Eyes Black Dragon, except it had gained armor on its body; the armor of a warrior. It let out a huge roar, causing Tsubasa to hold up her arms.
This is the card Kanade gave her…?
"I activate an equip spell card, United We Stand!" Hibiki said. "Red-Eyes Slash Dragon gains 800 attack points! Then I activate my set spell card, Raigeki!"
"What?!"
Lightning tore across the battlefield, destroying Black Luster Soldier.
"Go! Red-Eyes Slash Dragon! Attack Tsubasa-san's life points directly!"
Red-Eyes Slash Dragon flew forward with 3600 attack points, ready to cut his foe down to size.
"I activate Red-Eyes Slash Dragon's ability!" Hibiki shouted.
To Tsubasa's shock, Nitro Warrior appeared, before landing on Red-Eyes Slash Dragon's back, mounting the dragon like a steed as its attack points went to 3800.
"Red-Eyes Slash Dragon can equip warrior monsters to itself whenever a Red-Eyes monster declares an attack." Hibiki explained. "And that gives him a 200 attack point boost!"
"You're a fool, Tachibana! I activate my trap card!" Tsubasa shouted. "Magic Cylinder! With this, you lose-"
Tsuabsa raised her arms as the two magical tubes shattered.
"What happened?!" Tsubasa shouted.
"Sorry Tsubasa-san, but that isn't gonna cut it! Red-Eyes Slash Dragon can also send any card equipped on it to the graveyard, to negate and destroy anything that tries to target it!" Hibiki explained as Nitro Warrior shattered.
"N-No…" Tsubasa muttered. "That can't… this isn't…!"
"Go! Red-Eyes Slash Dragon!" Hibiki shouted. "End this duel! Red-Eyes Slash!"
The armored dragon flew forward, slashing Tsubasa in the stomach for massive damage. Tsubasa was knocked off her feet, crashing into the ground behind her as her life points dropped to zero.
Hibiki's hair and expression went back to normal. She quickly ran over to Tsubasa, the girl's eyes wide with shock as she laid on her back. "I… lost…?"
Hibiki held out her hand to Tsubasa. "Um… good game. Do you need some help?"
Tsubasa stared at the hand, shakily reaching out to it, before briefly clenching her fist and batting it away. She quickly stood up, brushing the dust off her clothes.
"Tsubasa-san-" Hibiki spoke up.
"Just… leave me alone." Tsubasa said, turning and walking away.
Hibiki sighed. She should have expected Tsubasa to act like this, but she didn't have to like it.
Her new job would be a lot more stressful now, wouldn't it?
Turns out, yes. It was very stressful. Her normal school life all but disappeared; as she dueled Noise more than duelists. It was a nice break whenever she was at school, as she ended up being constantly called away to help take on the threats.
"Sorry I'm late!"
Hibiki found herself in Sector Two HQ again, sitting down on one of the seats for the briefing. Everyone else was already waiting for her.
"It's fine, you came right on time." Ryoko said. ""Now that we're all here, let's all be friends and talk."
Ryoko pulled up a map of the area, which had dozens of red dots.
"Any opinions?" Genjuro asked.
"Uh, that's a lot of red blips!"
The man laughed. "Yes, I suppose so. The red spots are all the Noise sightings within the past month. How much do you know about the Noise, Hibiki?"
"Just the stuff I've seen on TV." Hibiki said. "I think they said that they're emotionless, kind of like machines and only go after people. Their appearances are random, and they somehow have a basic understanding of Duel Monsters. If you lose to them, you get sent to the Shadow Realm. And I think they're labelled as a global threat?"
"Hmm, if Lydian had the students write reports on this sort of thing, I'd have given you an A+." Ryoko said. "Everything you two have said is correct. The Noise were first recognized by the UN about 13 years ago, but they've been observed since long before that."
"There are countless records dating back to ancient times from all over the world." Genjuro said. "I believe even the legendary Nameless Pharaoh fought them at one point in his life."
"Whoa, so that's like… 5000 years ago." Hibiki said.
"3000 years." Ryoko corrected. "I don't understand why so many people keep making that mistake. But anyways, actual Noise outbreaks are quite rare, even in areas with a lot of dueling traffic. The recent string of outbreaks is unnatural, no matter how you look at it."
"Lydian Private Duel Academy's High School lies between all the outbreaks." Tsubasa said, speaking for the first time in the meeting. "The center is right above us. Someone or something is targeting this area for what lies in Sacristy D: Artifact Durendal."
"Artifact Durendal?" Hibiki asked. "Is that a card?"
"Indeed it is, which we keep below us on a level called the Abyss." Aoi said. "We've been researching it under the supervision of the Japanese government. That's Artifact Durandal."
"Artifact Durendal belongs to the Artifact archetype, but the rest of the cards have been lost to time." Fujitaka said. "That's the only card left."
"So what's so big about it?" Hibiki asked.
"The Artifact cards are among the few cards in Duel Monsters history to have some sort of divine property without being a God Card itself." Ryoko explained. "You are aware of what the God Cards are, correct?"
"Uhh." Hibiki counted them on her fingers. "Slifer the Sky Dragon, Obelisk the Tormentor and uh… some kind of Mega Ultra Chicken?"
A few people in the room comically fell over.
"The Winged Dragon of Ra!" Ryoko practically shouted. "I can't believe you'd besmirch a God card like that…"
"Sorry! I just don't remember that card as much compared to the other two." Hibiki said, rubbing the back of her head. "There was just too much stuff to read about it in our textbooks."
"Regardless, cards that have divine properties are extremely valuable, as they have tremendous amounts of power that can be an asset against the Noise." Genjuro explained. "However, the problem is that we can't use it."
"What? Why not?" Hibiki asked. "What's the point of having a card if you can't use it?"
"While Duel Monsters may have reached new heights in Japan, the game did originate from America." Aoi said.
"The remnants of Industrial Illusions had rebranded from a game company into a group that monitors the Noise as well as the Duel Disk system. We're working with them, and they agreed to give us Artifact Durandal as a symbol of the agreement." Fujitaka explained. "While we are running tests on it, the moment it touches a Duel Disk, the agreement becomes null and void."
"Commander Kazanari." Ogawa spoke up.
"Oh, is it that time already?" Genjuro asked.
The young man nodded, before turning to Tsubasa. "We need to sort out the finer details of your next album, before going over some of the changes I suggested to your deck."
"Huh?" Hibiki asked. "What are you talking about?"
"Oh, to the public, I'm the manager of popular Idol Duelist Tsubasa Kazanari." Ogawa said.
He handed Hibiki a card, who fangirled over it. "This is the first time I've been given a business card! Ooh, and it looks nice too!"
"Well, as a former Pro League Duelist, I think my business cards should have a bit of style to them." Ogawa said.
"You're a former Pro Duelist?" Hibiki asked. "Then we should duel sometime!"
"I look forward to it." Ogawa said, before he and Tsubasa left the room.
Hibiki turned back to the others. "So someone is calling the Noise to stir up some problems? I hate to think that people are using Duel Monsters for evil purposes."
"Well, this isn't the first time that's happened as the past has shown us, but regardless; never fear!" Ryoko said. "This place is a stronghold of mankind, designed by yours truly. The design makes it impossible for Noise, or rogue Duel Monsters to get in."
"Well, that puts me at ease." Hibiki said. But still… someone's causing all this… do we have to fight? Duel Monsters are meant for having fun...
"Scrap Fist!"
Junk Warrior flew forward, slugging the examiner in the gut. The holograms faded, as the examiner wrote on a clipboard.
"Hibiki Tachibana, you've passed."
"Yes!" Hibiki whooped, before she skipped out of the room.
Miku was waiting for her in the hall. "How did it go?"
"I passed with flying colors!" Hibiki grinned, holding up a hand. "Hooray! I'm so tired!"
Miku smiled, hi-fiving her friend, before the examiner yelled from inside the room for them to be quiet.
"So does this mean we can go see the meteor shower now?" Miku asked.
"Of course!" Hibiki gave her best friend a thumbs-up.
"Okay, let me just go get my bag first." Miku said, before running off.
Hibiki couldn't stop smiling. Today was going great so far. She had aced that dueling exam, and now she and Miku were going to go see the meteor shower together. Nothing could possibly-
Beep beep.
She didn't even get to finish that thought. Sighing, she placed the D-Gazer on her ear. "What's up?"
"We've received Noise reports throughout the city." Genjuro said. "Tsubasa's already been deployed to handle one swarm, and we need your support with the other swarm."
"...I understand."
Hibiki sighed, as she slot her deck into her Duel Disk and quickly ran outside towards the location displayed on her visor.
"Sorry, Miku." Hibiki apologized into her phone. "I really wanted to go with you, but something came up and…"
"...I understand." Miku said. "Don't worry, I'll be waiting for you at home."
Hibiki ended the call, slipping her phone back into her pocket. "Road Warrior! Lighting Claw!"
Road Warrior shredded through a rogue Duel Monster, doing the same to dozens of others that were attempting to attack his master. They swarmed the
"It's because of you guys… I couldn't go see the meteor shower with Miku!" Hibiki yelled, slamming another card onto her Duel Disk as Max Warrior joined Road Warrior in obliterating every one of the Duel Monsters. One of them came in from behind her, but she quickly activated her Scrap-Iron Scarecrow trap card to defend herself.
"Lightning Claw!"
The last group of rogue Duel Monsters were sent launching through the ceiling, breaking through to the road above.
She had made quick work of them, breathing heavily once the threat was gone. Max Warrior stared at her, not saying anything (if he could even say anything). Road Warrior knelt down and gently placed a hand atop Hibiki's head.
"I'm fine. Thanks, Road Warrior." Hibiki said.
The mighty Synchro monster stood up, nodding at her. Max Warrior looked up through the hole in the ceiling, before noticing a flying dragon. On its back was a familiar blue-haired girl that quickly disappeared into the distance.
"We should go to her." Hibiki said. "I need to talk to her."
Road Warrior nodded, as he picked up Hibiki into his arms. He and Max Warrior took off to follow the Idol Duelist.
"Hell Flame!"
Curse of Dragon reared its head back, before unleashing a stream of fire upon the land. Every single rogue Duel Monster in the way were incinerated by the flames. Once all of them were ash, Curse of Dragon swooped down. Tsubasa hopped off of the back, before looking around. While her D-Gazer told her that there were no more enemies, she put a finger to the communicator.
"Are there any others?" Tsubasa asked.
"No. All Noise and rogue Duel Monster signatures have faded." Aoi reported.
Tsubasa let out a breath, as Curse of Dragon softly roared. She rubbed her hand on its head, comforting it.
"Tsubasa-san?"
Tsubasa turned around to see Road Warrior and Max Warrior land nearby, the former putting Hibiki down.
"I've taken care of the Noise and Duel Monsters here." Tsubasa told her. "The work here is done."
"That's not why I'm here." Hibiki said.
Tsubasa turned back to tending her dragon. "What scathing comment do you have for me?"
"Eh?"
"Considering how I treated you, I'm sure you have quite a few things you'd like to say to me." Tsubasa said. "Go ahead."
"Okay. Um, thank you."
Now this caused Tsubasa to raised a brow as she turned around. "What?"
"Back at the concert, the way you dueled had inspired me to become a better duelist." Hibiki said. "And you saved me from being sent to the Shadow Realm that day."
"...I didn't do any of that." Tsubasa said. "Kanade did. She was also the one that deemed you worthy of the Red-Eyes Black Dragon. You proved yourself superior to me. She should be the one you're thanking..."
Hibiki shook her head. "No, Tsubasa-san. I'm thanking you. I've always looked up to you, and I still do."
"...why? Why would you still look up to me after all the things I've said?" Tsubasa asked.
"Well I uh… I can't really explain why." Hibiki admitted, shrugging. "I guess it's because I know that this isn't the real you, Tsubasa-san."
Tsubasa wasn't sure how to respond. She wouldn't get that chance anytime soon either, as a voice rang out.
"Are you two done already? I was getting tired of waiting."
The two and their monsters turned to the trees. Leaning against one of them was a girl with lavender white hair in a red dress. She was shuffling a deck, wearing a custom silver and violet Duel Disk.
"I hope you weren't gonna launch into some lame friendship speech or something." The girl said, slipping her deck into her Duel Disk. "I might've barfed."
"Who are you?" Tsubasa demanded.
"Name's Chris Yukine." The girl said, activating her Duel Disk before turning to Tsubasa. "Duel me."
"Uh, I'm still here." Hibiki said.
"Does it look like I care?" The girl now named Chris said, placing on a D-Gazer. "I'll give you the chance to get out of here."
"Well, I'm not going anywhere." Hibiki said. "I'm staying to help Tsubasa-san! And it's two-on-one, so don't think-!"
"I don't have time for this." She held up her arm. "Solomon's Duel Disk!"
Chris held out her Duel Disk, before it shot several green lasers at the two. They jumped out of the way, as the blasts summoned several hordes of Noise.
"Huh?!" Hibiki yelled.
"That ought to even the odds, don't you think?" Chris chuckled, as the Noise summoned Rogue Duel Monsters that targeted Hibiki.
"She summoned the Noise…" Tsubasa angrily turned to Chris. "Are you the one behind everything?!"
"Beat me and I might tell you." Chris said. "Though you've got a zero chance of doing so, just so you know."
"Those seem like good odds to me." Tsubasa said, activating her Duel Disk as Curse of Dragon faded away. "Tachibana! Hold out as long as you can!"
"I'm working on it!" Hibiki yelled back, as Road Warrior and Max Warrior fought the monsters. "Kick her butt, Tsubasa-san!"
"Gladly." Tsubasa and Chris stared each other down, as the Noise and rogue Duel Monsters made a circular border for the two of them to duel uninterrupted. The wind kicked up around them.
"Duel!" They both shouted.
A/N: This one took a little longer to come out. Song of the Cards is unfortunately at the back of my priority list, as not only do I have to write the duels (I had to re-write this THREE TIMES), but I need to retread Symphogear (which I'm already doing for Symphogear X2), and change the terminology to match this story. It's quite a slog. But at the same time, writing the duels are quite fun, and it does motivate me to continue this fic.
As you may have seen, there will be some changes compared to Symphogear canon. Instead of Genjuro interrupting things, we have Hibiki defeating Tsubasa. Now, before you call me out on plot armor bullshit, I have perfectly good reasons on why I chose Hibiki as the winner. Tsubasa wasn't thinking straight, and was channeling her rage over her strategy. Hibiki herself isn't an inexperienced fighter like in Symphogear canon, and an actual competent duelist in this story. Combined with Tsubasa stubbornly using older cards instead of keeping up with the current meta (which is around ZEXAL in rules), meant she was doomed to fail.
And besides, things are going to head in a different direction since this uses card games, and several elements from canon just wouldn't translate well into this story.
With that said, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, and prepare yourself for the next duel; Tsubasa vs Chris. Will things go the same route as canon, or will the cards of fate change the story?
Feel free to leave a review. See you all next time.