Court of Betrayal
"Is that Hanoi's endgame?" Aqua asked.
Currently, I, Avice, Vermilya, and Evan were in the garage on the first floor of the Greysons' house, watching as a massive tower with a purple core was converting everything within LINK VRAINS into data, including the users that were desperately trying to run away from it. I couldn't stand it, so I turned toward another screen that was currently being used for a live chat with Kusanagi and Yusaku. Even they were staring at the thing that happened in LINK VRAINS with terror in their eyes. It was awful and the part that made it worse from the Another Incident was that this time, users couldn't escape from it!
"The Knights of Hanoi finally went and took control over LINK VRAINS, didn't they?" Evan said. He and Avice were the only people among us that remained unfazed by the horrific scene.
"Did you expect that to happen?" Kusanagi asked.
"I expected it to happen a lot sooner." What!? I glared at Evan. "I told SOL multiple times that they should update their defenses, but they didn't want to hear about it, so it was to be expected from a hacker group such as Hanoi to take control of the platform."
"Isn't there anything we can do to stop it?" Yusaku asked. "If you expected this to happen, you must have prepared some form of defense against it."
"The Knights of Hanoi are better programmers than you think." So what? We had to just watch as LINK VRAINS and everyone inside disappeared? "Your only way to end this is by facing the enemy head-on, Playmaker." Evan stepped forward and placed a black flash drive into the computer. "Here's all of the data that my scout AI and Ghost Girl have been able to gather before this tower appeared. If you're able to scan it, then we might have a fighting chance."
"Alright, I and Kusanagi will do our best!" Ai appeared on the screen and waved at us.
"I and Firera won't just stay back and let the Dark Ignis do all of the work." Aqua popped out of my Duel Disk with Firera following suit.
"I'll help out as well." Avice joined in. "There needs to be a person to watch things on this end while the rest of you're in LINK VRAINS, right?"
Everyone was working together to stop Hanoi's plan. I was only disappointed in myself for not being able to help out more than what I was doing, but our roles would be important as well. Playmaker, PhantomFire, Blaze Rose and I, we would be the last group of users able to fight against Revolver and the Knights of Hanoi. In the past, if I have heard a superhero movie with this kind of summary, I would have laughed at how silly it sounded, but now I realized that the things shown on the screen were more relatable than what I thought. Maybe not in the literal sense of the word, but now I realize what it's what to be fighting for something you believe in, to have people who believe in your abilities and whom you want to protect from harm.
"So, any last minute additions you want to give us before we jump into the eye of the storm?" Vermilya looked back at Evan.
"I haven't made any new oGear cards for anyone in this room," Evan stated, putting on his Duel Disk. "You'll have to count on the cards you have from before. The Knights of Hanoi now have Picaro on their side and he knows all about us, so be extra careful when you run into a Knight of Hanoi, understood?"
"Right!" I and Vermilya nodded. Picaro was going to be our biggest problem going into VRAINS, wouldn't he? Hopefully, I wouldn't have to face off against him, but if it came down to it, I would do everything I can in order to stop Hanoi's plan from succeeding!
"The analysis is finished!" Ai exclaimed. That was definitely a fast analyst, but with two Ignis on our side, it wasn't a surprise to hear that Ai and Aqua did a fast job. We all looked at the new information and… I didn't understand anything but judging by everyone else's surprised expressions, it wasn't anything good!
"So that's why it's called the Tower of Hanoi," Evan commented, crossing his arms.
"Tower of Hanoi?" Kusanagi blinked. "Like the Hanoi game?"
"Legends say that when the Hanoi's game ends, the world will be destroyed," Yusaku commented. Wow, that was quite the legend to base a game around.
"If my memories on the subject are good, then these rings around the tower must be substituted for discs." Avice clicked a few buttons, opening a blueprint of the giant structure. "And what do you know, the pillar expands from the underground erasing system that we visited."
"Worse than that, the top is connected to LINK VRAINS network," Kusanagi added. "The pillar's lighted portion is the erasing system's core. Since appearing in LINK VRAINS, this core has continued to absorb the surrounding data."
"That's a huge amount of data!" Ai cried out.
"And that's bad news." Firera crossed her arms, um, claws. "It's not slowing down either. From the look of it, Hanoi's plan must be to release high-density data to external networks."
"Um, and that's bad because?" I scratched the back of my head. "They will release data, not erase it, right?"
"It's bad because systems can't withstand such a high-density data." Evan looked at the screen, but his hands clenched into fists. "Programs connected to the networks will begin to vanish, power plants will shut down, all the important hospital equipment will be rendered useless, instantly killing any patient who needs them in order to live. Even transportation will be affected, planes will fall from the sky and traffic will become a bloody nightmare. All of the technology that humanity once used to survive would be rendered useless."
That sounded like a nightmare. Planes falling from the sky, people screaming and running with upside down vehicles and bodies covering the streets. Only an insane person would go so far to destroy six defenseless AIs!
"But we're safe as long as we don't connect to the net." Ai pointed out.
"I wouldn't believe that." Aqua shook her head. "If they're willing to go so far in order to destroy us, I'm sure that they have a plan for that possibility as well."
"The high-density data will take down major devices in a chain reaction," Kusanagi informed us. "The resulting pulse will be magnified and transmitted."
"The tower will act as a makeshift EMP weapon." Avice leaned back in the chair. "In other words, even if a device isn't connected to the network, it's still going to be affected by it."
"How long do we have before the Tower's activation?" I asked.
"With this shape, it'll create six rings, one per hour," Kusanagi explained.
"Then there's no time to waste," Vermilya stated. "I'm unable to contact any of the users in my friend list, including Shining Ruby. This means that they must have already been turned into data."
"Then we don't have any time to waste," Evan said and looked at the live chat. "Playmaker, are you ready to team up with us for this one?"
"Despite what happened, I can't let Hanoi do as they please," Yusaku stated before nodding. "Working together is the only way we have a chance against all of Hanoi's remaining members."
"The team-up of the century only here, in Den City!" Avice joked from her position. "Ok, boys and girls, me and Kusanagi will control the things from here and send you updates about the status of the Tower of Hanoi. Make sure to get there in one piece, everyone."
"Right!" Everyone nodded. We all held out or Duel Disks and placed our decks inside of them. "Into the VRAINS!"
3rd POV
Inside the dark room of Hanoi's base, Revolver had already assembled the remaining Knights for their last mission. Picaro, MetalX, Nulline, and Heliac were waiting for their orders and Specter had just returned after he was ordered to take out the trash called Kitamura.
This was the final line for all of them and every person in that room knew about it. By a coincidence or not, destiny gathered these duelists to stand side by side as their names went down the history as the ones who caused the destruction of the network. Or that was how Revolver was seeing the situation. But in reality, he was surrounded by hungry wolves, who waited for a chance to backstab him, with his only defense being Specter, his ever so royal servant, and friend.
"Today is the last time we'll see each other." Revolver began, looking over the remaining Knights of Hanoi. "I know that each one of you joined this group for one reason or another. I'm not going to question your goals, nor will I try and stop you if you want to quit now. After all, it's too late for anyone of you to really make a difference."
Specter remained next to Revolver silently, watching the remaining members. Picaro turned toward the rest of his team and all of them nodded before everyone turned toward Revolver.
"We joined to ensure humanity's future," Picaro said. "This hasn't changed now. I can promise to you that all of us, will fight to the end for humanity's sake."
"I see…" Revolver muttered, looking away. "Playmaker and his comrades are soon going to enter LINK VRAINS, I want all of you to go out there and slow them down as much as possible."
"Your order will be followed." Picaro bowed with his allies following him.
It was part of their plan. MetalX, Nulline, and Heliac would go outside, fight against the enemy and get Revolver's attention off Picaro, who would use the chance to take over the Tower of Hanoi and free his friends if they suffered defeat by the hands of Playmaker and PhantomFire's team. It was a plan that they had carefully tried to shape into motion for the last months, hiding in the shadows so that no one would listen to their plans.
Revolver waved them off with his hand and the four knights bowed one final time before they left the main room. Heliac and Nulline walked down the barely lit corridor without saying a word. They knew that Kogami and Revolver have installed cameras to watch the Knights and ensure that no one was leaking information. But that system did have a few blind spots, and once they came near it, MetalX and Picaro slowed down. The Samurai duelist pulled out a small chip and pressed it against Picaro's black claw.
It was their perfected and fully customized version of the Another Virus, one that would need a differently coded cure to be deactivated. Picaro looked at his claws, long, sharp, with them he would be able to take down the remaining Knights without the need to get close.
"Use this to eliminate Specter and Revolver while they aren't watching," MetalX warned. "Dr. Kogami alone won't be able to stop us. Also, make sure to use the force-back command to teleport us back on the tower before you fire all of the data at the gate."
"With this, the goal that all of us united behind will finally be achieved," Picaro stated, lowing his claws. "I'm sorry for everything I made you do until now, for making you join the Knights of Hanoi, for making you eliminate innocent people to keep our plans a secret, no matter how much I apologize, it won't be enough. So instead, I want to now thank you for standing by my side so long. Without friends like you to back me up in this war, I would have surely collapsed."
"Don't say that." MetalX smiled. "We all joined you because what you proposed to us, was a dream worth fighting for. If it means creating a world where children won't have to suffer for the greed of adults, then all the bad things we had to do were justified."
"In order to create a world where Miyu could be happy and with all of her friends, I'm ready to give up my own life!" Nulline added.
"To ensure that people would no longer be used as puppets for the pleasure of the men standing at the top." Picaro continued, clenching his claws into a fist. "Ok everyone, be careful out there. Even though I'm going to rescue anyone who's fallen to the Tower of Hanoi, I don't want to witness any of you getting defeated by our enemies."
"Understood."
MetalX, Nulline, and Heliac nodded, a green circle appeared under their feet and the trio teleported away. Their victory was so close, yet it had such a bitter taste. If only he had the ability to postpone the activation of the Tower of Hanoi, Picaro would have used that power in order to help reunite Roxy with her family. Sadly, the world didn't care about the wishes of the small people. Sighing, Picaro turned his back and headed off toward a different location.
Proxy's POV
We all gathered inside LINK VRAINS. The place looked like a ghost town with no one but our little group remaining behind to fight against the Knights of Hanoi. The Tower of Hanoi was in clear sight before us, looking so small and insignificant due to the large distance between us and it, but able to cause so much destruction.
"We shouldn't waste any time." Playmaker instructed us. "We must be moving."
"Wait." PhantomFire walked before him, stopping Playmaker. "Not everyone is here, the other two should come soon."
"Other two?" I raised an eyebrow; who was he referring to?
"Playmaker!" someone shouted from the left and we turned to see Go Onizuka running toward us.
"Go Onizuka." Playmaker said.
"And not just him." PhantomFire stepped to the side and gestured behind himself.
"So you predicted that I would join?" Blue Angel stepped forward and looked at PhantomFire with a smile.
"Why are you here?" Playmaker asked, looking between the two Charisma Duelists.
"That's what I was going to say." Go spoke up and pointed at Blue Angel. "Especially you, Blue Angel. I thought that you only fought for yourself."
"I learned something from my Duels." Blue Angel replied. "There're people believing in me, so I have to fight for them. And more importantly. There're people very close to me that I must fight for, and a friend to whom I must show the light. That's what Blue Angel fights for from now on!"
"I'm the same." Go stated. "There's a friend who I must save by defeating Hanoi. It's my mission as LINK VRAINS' hero to protect this place!"
"I'm sorry for what happened to Makoto." Blaze Rose stepped up and put a hand on Go's shoulder. Was there something that happened without my knowledge? "I promise to help you with everything I can in this fight."
"Thanks." Go smiled a bit.
"And I promise to help everyone with the best I can," I added. Even though I was easily the weakest Duelist in this group, I would do my best not to be dead weight.
"What about the rest of you?" Blue Angel looked at the rest of us. "Why are you here?"
"For three reasons." Playmaker responded. "One, I'll stop the Tower of Hanoi that's causing this. Second, I'll rescue Ghost Girl who gave us info about that tower." I saw PhantomFire rolling his eyes at that one. "And third, I must end it with the person behind this incident."
Blue Angel's expression turned more worried and she spoke up again. "Did something happen to Ghost Girl?"
"She got herself beaten by Revolver," PhantomFire stated. "He also turned her into data the same way that he did to the rest of the people in LINK VRAINS."
"No way." Blue Angel covered her mouth.
"But we should be going now." PhantomFire sighed and turned toward the rest of us. "For those who weren't with us before, the information you need to know is that Revolver plans to use the Tower of Hanoi to destroy the entire network, along with the consciousness of everyone he captured, including the victims of the Another incident."
"The only way to stop is by defeating Revolver." Playmaker added.
"Our time limit is six hours." Ai pointed out.
"Everyone, please do your best in this fight!" Aqua placed her hands over her chest.
"The rest of you should go home." Playmaker stated. "It's too dangerous for you."
"Sorry, Playmaker, but I must decline." Blaze Rose crossed her arms. "We're all here for our own reasons. Among everyone here, at least you or PhantomFire should be able to defeat Revolver."
"Hey!" Go shouted. "What about the rest of us?"
"Sorry, Go." Blaze Rose sighed. "Revolver is too powerful for someone like you or me. The best we can do is make sure that the other Knights of Hanoi won't get in the way."
"Sorry, but I'm not here to face off against Revolver." PhantomFire closed his eyes. "There are other things that need to be taken care of in LINK VRAINS. The best I can do right now is support you, but defeating Revolver would have to fall on someone else's shoulders."
"Then we'll add do our best to end this with our own strength!" Blue Angel stated.
"Once all of this is done, let's all of us meet once more," I added.
Everyone looked back at me and smiled, well, except for Playmaker of course. Afterward, each one of us headed down different roads with me following behind Blaze Rose. I only looked back once and saw PhantomFire standing there, waiting.
3rd POV
Back to the Tower of Hanoi, Picaro was at the core, typing all of the access codes that Kogami had put into his super weapon to ensure that it wouldn't be stopped easily. Unfortunately, the dark knight didn't have the chance to inject Revolver or Specter with his updated Another virus – both of them had left the main room right after Picaro and his team did, leaving the TurboGear Duelist to wonder where they have gone.
But that wasn't his main concern at the moment. If he took control of the Tower, he would be able to turn them into data without the need of the Another virus. Typing away the last access code, Picaro pressed the enter button and waited for the machine to accept it.
["Access Denied!"]
"What?" Picaro's eyes widened behind his mask for a moment. "I see, so that's how it's going to be?" Kogami trusted him, even more than he did in Revolver. The old man wouldn't give false codes to Picaro, which left only one possible culprit.
"I must say that I'm not surprise to find you here, traitor." A voice called from behind, prompting Picaro to turn around and face Revolver.
"You never trusted me, did you?" Picaro asked. "I've miscalculated you, I always thought you disliked me because Dr. Kogami trusted me more than he trusted you, but I never thought that you would see me as an enemy because of that."
"You know, as well as I, why we're here." Revolver narrowed his eyes. "Since the day you joined the Knights of Hanoi, I knew that there was something more to you, something deceitful. I didn't deal with you until now because of how useful you were, but now that your use is done and I have the proof needed, I can eliminate you without remorse."
"Eliminate me?" Picaro tilted his head to the side. "And proof? What're you talking about, Revolver?"
"I've been looking into your past records since you joined us," Revolver admitted. "But recently, I found some information that someone has tried to get rid of. Data about a Charisma Duelist called Rocketeer, the apprentice of a user called PhantomFire."
"I see, now…" It all made sense for Picaro. Revolver was peeved by PhantomFire interrupting his plans, so he began to research him and found out about the link between Rocketeer and PhantomFire. What didn't match with his story was the data. According to Revolver, someone tried to delete it, but Picaro never had any interest in hiding his past from Hanoi.
"You've been manipulated, Revolver." Picaro sighed and raised his claw, activating the Duel Disk that was attached directly the wrist. "Can't say that I'm surprised, you've been nothing more than a puppet throughout your entire life."
"I'm enlightenment." Revolver stated, raising his left arm, with the Duel Disk glowing. "Unlike you, I know what danger awaits humanity if the Tower of Hanoi falls."
"Danger? Is that how you justify destroying an entirely new species? A species that YOUR father created?" Picaro asked. "Just call them dangerous because they're better than you then attack them! Hey fool, if they're really as powerful as you believe, won't they be able to stop the attack? Won't they have retaliated during the five years in which you kept searching for the Cyberse World?"
"You're just a fool." Revolver stated. "A dangerous fool that I'm going to feed to the Tower of Hanoi!"
"Duel!" the two Duelist shouted, a Master Duel Field appeared between them.
『Picaro LP: 4000, Hand: 5 (VS) Revolver LP: 4000, Hand: 5』
"I'm going to take the first turn!" Picaro declared. "When there're no monsters on my field, I can Normal Summon TurboGear Carrier (Lv.5, ATK: 1200) without any tributes!" A slim robot covered in light green armor appeared in the middle zone.
"Your deck relies on the opponent having monsters to attack." Revolver noted. "Your TurboGear deck focuses on taking battle damage to develop its strategies, why would you choose to take the first turn?"
"The deck I have is much more than what you've seen." Picaro pointed out, pressed two other cards in his hand. "I'm going to set two cards and end my turn! Now show me, how much better you're!"
"Gladly. My turn, draw!"
『Turn 2 [Revolver] LP: 4000 Hand: 6』
"First, I'm going to Normal Summon Sniffer Dragon (Lv.2, ATK: 800)." A red dragon with armor covering its head appeared before Revolver. "When Sniffer Dragon is summoned, I can add another copy from my deck to the hand, then I'll discard it to Special Summon Defrag Dragon (Lv.3, ATK: 1000)!" A black and red dragon with green wings flew over Revolver's head.
"It seems that running random DARK dragons has finally backfired on you," Picaro stated, smirking behind his mask. "Your Link Two monsters require Rokkets as materials, and you don't have enough materials to make any of your more powerful Link Monsters!"
"If I didn't have a plan, then I wouldn't be doing this." Revolver sneered. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell, Quick Launch. Through its effect, I can Special Summon a Rokket monster from my deck, but it's destroyed during the End Phase. Come forth, Autorokket Dragon (Lv.3, ATK: 1600)." A brown dragon with bullet-shaped head appeared.
"Now that's something else," Picaro commented. "Of course, I expected at least that much from you, so this is no surprise at all."
"Allow me to surprise you then." Revolver smirked raising his arm toward the ceiling. "Appear, the future circuit that lights up my path!" A circuit appeared over the leader of Hanoi. "Arrowheads confirmed! Summoning conditions are two or more monsters, except Tokens. I set Autorokket Dragon, Sniffer Dragon, and Defrag Dragon in the Link Markers! Link Summon! Link Three! Triple Burst Dragon (ATK: 2400, Link-3)!"
"Triple Burst, huh?" Picaro tapped his chin in thought. "That monster can negate the activation of a card or effect during the Damage Step, but there aren't many traps that activate during the Damage Step, are there? You're playing with your luck."
"Let's check out how my luck will respond!" Revolver shouted, throwing his arm forward. "Battle! Triple Burst Dragon attack TurboGear Carrier!"
The three cannons on Triple Burst's chest glowed and it fired three bullets that pierced through Picaro's monster, destroying it. Picaro raised his claw, protecting his face from the shockwave that knocked him back.
『Picaro LP: 4000 - 1200 → 2800』
"Not bad…" Picaro muttered, then threw his claw to the side, several green lines appearing all over it. "At this moment I activate my Trap Card - Soft Recovery! When I take battle damage, this card allows me to activate one Continuous Spell Card directly from my deck!"
Soft Recovery (Trap) Normal
Activate this card when you take battle damage from a battle involving an opponent's monster: Take 1 Continuous Spell from your Deck and either add it to your hand or activate it.
The index and middle fingers of Picaro's claw arm glowed and a card materialized in-between them. "Here I go! Continuous Spell activate! Elemental Lords of oGear - Mask!"
Elemental Lords of oGear's Mask (Spell) Continuous
When this card is activated: You can add 1 "oGear" monster from your deck to the hand. During each player's End Phase: Gain LP equal to ¾ of the damage inflicted to you during that turn. While you control only "oGear" monsters of one Attribute, those monsters are unaffected by the effects of monsters with a different Attribute.
A card showing a black mask with two golden clock gears attached to the front of it as eyes appeared in front of Picaro and his black helmet transformed, turning into a copy of the mask depicted in the artwork of his card.
"I'll now show you the full strength of my TurboGear deck, Revolver!" Picaro shouted. "When Elemental Lords of oGear's Mask is activated, I can add one oGear monster from my deck to the hand! I choose TurboGear Jetwheel!"
TurboGear Jetwheel
Level: 7/Attribute: WIND/Type: Machine/Effect
ATK: 0/DEF: 1000
Effect: If your LP is lower than your opponent's you can Special Summon this card from your hand. You can Tribute this card: Special Summon 3 "TurboGear Tokens" (Machine/WIND/Level 1/ATK 0/DEF 0) to your side of the field in face-up Defense Position. You cannot Special Summon monsters the turn you activated this effect, except WIND monsters.
"Hmm, so you took that damage for a few miserable searches?" Revolver put a hand on his hips and smirked. "Your dueling is just like you, underhanded and deceitful. If one looks at just the surface of your deck, they would find a beat-down focused mess of weak monsters that detract their own user's Life Points."
"Are you going to bore me with your analyzes of my deck, or are we going to duel?" Picaro asked. "I've got a work that has to be done, you know?"
"Your work was already canceled, so don't think about your traitorous plans." Revolver stated. The Leader of Hanoi pressed a card next to his palm and it appeared in front of him, face-down. "I set a card and end my turn."
"During the end of your turn, the other effect of Elemental Lords of oGear's Mask activates!" the mask on Picaro's face rotated and a green aura surrounded the user. "I regain three-fourths of the damage I suffered during your turn!"
『Picaro LP: 2800 + 900 → 3700』
Revolver frowned. As he said, Picaro's deck was made to reflect his deceitful personality.
"Now it's my turn and I'm going to use it in order to end you!" Picaro pointed at his opponent. "Here I go. Draw!"
『Turn 3 [Picaro] LP: 3700 Hand: 4』
"First off, I'm going to activate the Field Spell, Turbo World and use its effect – when this card is activated, I draw a card." Picaro's claw glowed and it emitted a card that the duelist caught before turning it around to show it. The card he drew was Turbo Synchron.
"Turbo World's additional effect." Picaro continued. "If the card I drew by this effect is a Turbo monster, I can reveal it to Special Summon a different Turbo monster from my graveyard in defense position. Rise again, TurboGear Carrier (Lv.5, DEF: 1200)." The green robot rose from the ground and stood up in front of Picaro. "Next, I Normal Summon Turbo Synchron (Lv.1, ATK: 100) and when my Life Points are lower than yours, I can Special Summon TurboGear Jetwheel (Lv.7, ATK: 0) from my hand!"
A green truck appeared on the field. The vehicle had six wheels with four jet engines and its front window has shaped as black sunglasses.
"Three monsters, including a Tuner. How is he going to play it out?" Revolver wondered out loud. The limit of a Synchro monster's Level was 12 and Picaro's monsters' total level was 13…
"Here I go, Revolver!" Picaro declared. "I release Jetwheel to Special Summon three TurboGear Tokens (Lv.1, DEF: 0) on my field!" the large truck disappeared from the field and three small robots made of three gears with a green armored plate on their backs took its place.
"I don't want to waste time, so I'm going to end you in one swift strike! Appear, the circuit of heaven's wind!" Picaro yelled, summoning circuit made of metal plates placed into a square with eight laps attached to the sides. "Arrowheads confirmed! Summoning requirements are at least two Turbo monsters! I set my three TurboGear Tokens, in the Link Markers! Link Summon! TurboGear Speedstar (ATK: 2200, Link-3)!"
"So it's a Link Monster appeared first." Revolver commented.
"Did you expect me to use a Synchro just because I had a Tuner?" Picaro tilted his head to the side. "But as a Charisma Duelist, I hate to disappoint my fans, so here, I'll let you see my Synchro Monster as well. Level Five TurboGear Carrier, tune with the Level One Turbo Synchron!"
The monsters dissipate into energy, which then reforms into two sets of rings. One of the top being red in color whilst the other five below it, were green. Afterward, they changed to a dark green color before merging together into a thin ring, forming a tunnel formation that rotated counter-clockwise.
"I call the warrior born in the eye of the storm! Life to the extreme! Synchro Summon! TurboGear Warrior (Lv.6, ATK: 2500)!" the red Synchro Monster appeared on Picaro's field, landing at Speedstar's bottom left zone.
"And now, TurboGear Speedstar's effect activates! When it points at a Synchro monster, both of my monsters are going to gain five hundred extra attack points! Wild Engine!"
TurboGear Speedstar, ATK: 2200 + 500 → 2700
TurboGear Warrior, ATK: 2500 + 500 → 3000
"And now, I activate Speedstar's secondary effect." Picaro continued. "Once per turn, I can target a monster on your field and halve its attack points, as well as negate its effects! Plus, when Speedstar points at a Synchro Monster, you can't activate a card or effect in response to it!"
Picaro's monster threw its claws at Triple Blast Dragon, tearing through its chest. The red dragon cried out in pain and collapsed on the field, paralyzed in pain.
Triple Burst Dragon, ATK: 2400/2 → 1200
"Battle now!" Picaro shouted. "TurboGear Speedstar, attack Triple Burst Dragon!" The Link 3 charged at Revolver's monster, swinging its claws to cut the dragon down to size.
"Hmm, did you really expect such an easy victory?" Revolver frowned. "Disappointment! I activate my set card! Mirror Force!"
"Oh no!" Picaro yelped, eyes staring wide as a semi-transparent barrier appeared around Triple Burst Dragon, absorbing Speedstar's attack, then fired an array of light beams through Picaro's field, destroying all of his monsters.
"To think that you would have a card like this…" Picaro gulped. Two of his strongest monsters, one of which was his ace, were taken down like they were nothing!
"Since two of your monsters were destroyed, I can Special Summon Overflow Dragon (Lv. 1, DEF: 0), as well as one Overflow Token (Lv.1, DEF: 0)." A dragon surrounded by six flames and another smaller dragon made of flames appeared in front of Revolver, filling up his field.
"You must never let your guard down in a fight." The Knight of Hanoi stated, turning to the side. "Optimistic thinking, such as yours will lead you to nothing but despair."
"It seems I must applaud for managing to survive this turn." Picaro clapped twice. "But fortunately for me, Triple Burst Dragon's still going to go down! Trap open! Miracle Storm! Since a monster was destroyed by a card effect and sent to my graveyard, I'm able to bring one of them back to my field. Come back, TurboGear Warrior (Lv.6, ATK: 2500)!"
Miracle Storm (Trap) Normal
Target 1 monster that was destroyed by a card effect and sent to your GY this turn; Special Summon it.
Revolver bit his lips at the unfortunate event. He expected that Picaro might have something up his sleeves, but he didn't expect this.
"Go, TurboGear Warrior! Accelerated Crash!" The crimson warrior leaped forward and swung its claws, cutting Triple Blast Dragon's head off.
『Revolver LP: 4000 - 1400 → 2600』
"Even when you give your best, you're still playing by my rules." Revolver chuckled, pressing another card in his hand. "Because a monster I control was destroyed, I can Special Summon Fairy Dragon Larvalaur (Lv.1, DEF: 0) from my hand." A monster that looked like a baby Firewall Dragon appeared on Revolver's field. "Next, I discard Sniffer Dragon from my hand to target a monster on the field, and add a monster with the same type and attribute as that target from my deck to the hand. I target Overflow Dragon, which means that I can add a DARK Dragon monster to my hand."
Triggering Wurm formed in Revolver's arm and he took it. Picaro looked at the last card in his hand, TurboGear Slipscream. If Revolver summoned a stronger monster next turn, he wouldn't have anything to protect TurboGear Warrior with…
"…I end my turn." Picaro finished.
"Do you see how useless fighting against me is?" Revolver asked. "You choose to betray me, to betray everyone, for nothing! No matter what you try to change, if the Ignis are allowed to exist, humanity will have to go extinct!"
"Oh please, these talks about the end of the world have existed for as long as the human civilization was a thing." Picaro chuckled, leaning to the side. "You're the one who's short-signed. Even Dr. Kogami feel to see the obvious solution to all of humanity's problems! The Ignis were never a solution, there was never a necessity for a successor of our race. Even now, when Kogami found the solution, he's still denying the truth to you!"
"Truth, huh?" Revolver crossed his arms in amusement. "Tell me please, what would that truth of yours be?"
"Digital consciousness!" Picaro yelled. "Don't you realize it? Humanity's evolution didn't stop! The next step in our existence is to conquer the digital reality. By uploading our consciousness on the network, we'll be able to finally abandon these prisons we call our bodies! We'll become something more, something unimaginable!"
"And what will you do once something in this world breaks?" Revolver asked, his smirk never leaving his face. "You're delusional to think that uploading our consciousness to the network will help humanity to evolve, and I'm gladly going to prove it to you in this duel. My turn, I draw!"
『Turn 4 [Revolver] LP: 2600 Hand: 2』
"Appear, the future circuit that lights up my path!" Revolver threw his arms forward, summoning another circuit. "Arrowheads confirmed! Summoning conditions are two or more Dragon monsters! I set Overflow Dragon, Overflow Token and Fairy Dragon Larvalaur in the Link Markers! Link Summon! Link Three! Flash Charge Dragon (ATK: 2300, Link-3)!" A large purple dragon with cannons on its back appeared out of the circuit and landed in the Extra Monster Zone.
"Because Fairy Dragon Larvalaur left the field, it's banished." Revolver explained. "I'm now going to Normal Summon Triggering Wurm (Lv.2, ATK: 600)." A red and orange dragon that was shaped like the trigger of a gun appeared on Revolver's field.
"Appear, the future circuit that lights up my path!" The square opened in the air once more and Revolver's monsters flew into it, filling up all of the bottom arrows, as well as the center top one. "Arrowheads confirmed! Summoning conditions are two or more Effect monsters! I set the Link Three, Flash Charge Dragon and Triggering Wurm in the Link Markers! Link Summon! Come forth, my new power! Topologic Bomber Dragon (ATK: 3000, Link-4)!"
The giant red Cyberse Monster emerged from the portal and landed in the Extra Monster Zone that Flash Charge Dragon used to be into just a few moments ago. The monster looked down at Picaro and roared, sending a chilling feeling down the duelist's body.
"So, Topologic finally made an appearance, huh?" Picaro smirked. "But will it be enough to defeat me?"
"Triggering Wurm's effect activates!" Revolver ignored his opponent. "When this card is used as Link Material for the summoning of a DARK Link Monster, I can Special Summon it. Then, Topologic Bomber Dragon's effect activates! Since a monster was summoned in one of its zones, all monsters in our Main Monster Zones are destroyed! Full Overlap!"
Energy crackled around Topologic's body and a set of green energy wings appeared on its back. The Cyberse monster roared and the energy in its wing shot forward obliterating both Triggering Wurm and Picaro's TurboGear Warrior.
"Since Trigger Wurm was destroyed by the effect of a Link Monster, I draw a card!" Revolver did so, not even bothering to look at the card he got. "Now take the anger of my Topologic monster!" Revolver roared and pointed at Picaro. "Battle! Topologic Bomber Dragon, attack the opponent directly!"
The Cyberse monster clenched its fists and unleashed a beam of green energy from its eye, washing over Picaro. The dark knight cried out as his body was flung back and slammed into the wall behind him before collapsing on the ground.
『Picaro LP: 3700 - 3000 → 700』
"Shit!" Picaro cursed, slamming his fist against the ground. "Damaging me like this… You bastard…"
"I end my turn." Revolver finished. "At the end of my turn, the effect of your Continuous Spell will heal most of the damage you suffered, right?"
『Picaro LP: 700 - 2250 → 2950』
"This is enough," Picaro muttered, standing back up. "Do you think I'll let you ruin everything I've worked for so hard? I knew all about your tactics, Revolver! About your strongest monsters, I've prepared for all of them. My turn, draw!"
『Turn 5 [Picaro] LP: 2950 Hand: 2』
"There it is," Picaro smirked. The card that would grant him victory has appeared! "You might think that things are going in your favor because you were able to defeat TurboGear Warrior, but I've got a monster stronger than it! I Normal Summon TurboGear Slipscream (Lv.2, ATK: 100) and activate its effect! When I use it as Synchro Material for the summoning of an oGear monster, I can use a monster in my hand as the other material! I tune the Level Two TurboGear Slipscream with the Level Six TurboGear Accelerate Blast in my hand!" The two monsters appeared in front of Picaro and turned into rings of energy
"A Synchro Summon using a monster from the hand as material?" Revolver raised an eyebrow.
"Storming Wind! The untapped wild power of the sky take form and become a machine of terror! Synchro Summon! TurboGear Airstream Dragon (Lv.8, ATK: 3000)!"
The large bipedal white and red robot dragon flew out of the rings and landed in Picaro's Extra Monster Zone, roaring.
"Airstream Dragon's effect activates!" Picaro threw his claw forward. "When this card is Synchro Summoned, I negate the effects of all monsters you control and halve their attack power!" Airstream Dragon's core began to rotate and fired an EMP that hit Revolver's Cyberse monster, deactivating it.
Topologic Bomber Dragon, ATK: 3000/2 → 1500
"So that's the power of Synchro Summoning…" Revolver chuckled. "And I always thought that the other summoning methods were useless."
"A big mistake on your part," Picaro stated. "Battle! Airstream Dragon, attack Topologic Bomber Dragon! Storm Wing Slash!"
The jet engines on Airstream Dragon's back began to work and the engine on its chest tripled the speed at which it rotated. Sparks of electricity shot through the blades on its back and projected a giant pair of green wings. The robotic dragon roared and charged forward, flying through Topologic Bomber Dragon, cutting its body in half.
Revolver took a step back and held his shoulder in pain. This time it was different, this Airstream Dragon was causing more pain than a monster should be able to.
『Revolver LP: 2600 - 1500 → 1100』
"Why?" The leader of Hanoi asked. "Why did I feel so much pain from your attack?"
"Why, because of my program of course." Picaro crossed his arms. "Do you remember, the one I used when I dueled Playmaker a while ago? The one with which I was able to throw him around the city like a rag-doll? Sadly, the program isn't able to be used on more than one monster, but I knew that you would be more than a match for TurboGear Warrior, so I installed the program into Airstream Dragon!"
"Go to hell, traitor…" Revolver hissed.
"Sadly, once I fuse my consciousness with the network, I'll no longer be able to die and go to hell," Picaro replied. "But you'll be the one who's going to visit it, so why don't you sent me a mail from there? I heard that it's hot at this time of the, well, eternity."
"You really think that you have a chance to win, don't you?" Revolver smirked.
"Of course I do!" Picaro argued. "Airstream Dragon is unaffected by the effects of all your monsters with attack power less than its own, in addition to that, my Continuous Spell protects it from the effects of all monsters that aren't WIND. There's nothing you can do anymore and during the End Phase of this turn, I can activate the effect of TurboGear Slipscream to add TurboGear Ravening Engine from my deck to the hand. Now, my monster is protected even from battle!"
"Pathetic." Revolver chuckled. "I expected more from you. No matter how much defense you put between your monster and me, I'll still find a way to crush it and take you down to hell. My turn, draw!"
『Turn 6 [Revolver] LP: 1100 Hand: 3』
"Let's end this." Revolver commented, pressing a card in his hand. "I Normal Summon Gateway Dragon (Lv.4, ATK: 1600) and activate its effect to Special Summon Hibernation Dragon (Lv.3, ATK: 600) from my hand." The two dragon monsters appeared in front of Revolver. "Now Hibernation Dragon's effect activates! I add Defrag Dragon from my graveyard back to the hand, and then discard Drop Draco to Special Summon it." The black and red dragon with green wings appeared back on Revolver's field.
'He used up all the cards in his hand.' Picaro thought. 'He must be thinking to end the duel this turn, but how's he planning to do that?'
"Appear, the future circuit that lights up my path!" Revolver threw his arms into the air, summoning a square. "Arrowheads confirmed! Summoning conditions are two Level Four or lower Dragon monsters! I set Defrag Dragon and Gateway Dragon in the Link Markers! Link Summon! Link Two! Twin Triangle Dragon (ATK: 1200, Link-2)!"
A dark brown dragon with triangles around its arms flew out of the circuit and landed in Revolver's Extra Monster Zone. Picaro looked on silently, wondering what sort of move the Leader of Hanoi would pull next.
"Twin Triangle Dragon's effect activates!" Revolver declared. "I pay five hundred Life Points to revive a Level Five or higher monster from my graveyard with its effects negated. I choose Drop Draco (Lv.5, DEF: 2200)!"
『Revolver LP: 1100 - 500 → 600』
"So that's what you're going for," Picaro commented, realizing what his opponent was after. "But do you believe that Borrelsword Dragon will be powerful enough to face against Airstream Dragon?"
Revolver narrowed his eyes. Ignoring his opponent's words, he summoned another square.
"Appear, the future circuit that lights up my path! Arrowheads confirmed! Summoning conditions are three or more Effect Monsters!" All of Revolver's monsters turned into bullets and flew into the arrows around the square. "I setHibernation Dragon, Drop Draco and the Link Two, Twin Triangle Dragon in the Link Markers! Link Summon! Come forth, my mightiest monster! Borrelsword Dragon (ATK: 3000, Link-4)!"
The more offensive variation of Revolver's ace monster appeared on the field and growled, its blades reflecting light in the room, causing them to shine in the dark.
"Next, I banish three copies of Sniffer Dragon to Special Summon Defrag Dragon (Lv. 3, ATK; 1000) from my Graveyard!" The black and red dragon flew over the field once more, landing behind Borrelsword Dragon. "It's over, Picaro!"
"Come and beat me then!" Picaro laughed.
It was true that Borrelsword Dragon could defeat Airstream Dragon, but Picaro had planned for it. His plan's name was TurboGear Accelerate Blast, a monster with the ability to banish itself from the graveyard in order to revive another one of Picaro's monsters from the graveyard and turn the attack target to it, saving Airstream Dragon.
He had this duel in his sleeves!
"For the last time…" Revolver muttered, raising his arm toward the ceiling. "Appear, the circuit that leads to the future!"
"What!?" Picaro screamed. What was Revolver doing!?
"Arrowhead confirmed! Summoning condition is one Level Four or lower DARK Dragon monster." Revolver stated as Defrag Dragon flew into the bottom left arrow. "Link Summon! Miniborrel Drake!"
A golden bullet appeared before Revolver. A pair of blue arms grew out of its sides and a red metal tail hanged from its bottom. The tip of the bullet was split into two with sharp teeth covering the inside and a single green eye glowing behind the monster's jaws.
Miniborrel Drake
Attribute: DARK/Type: Dragon/Link/Effect
Link Markers: Bottom Left
ATK: 400, Link-1
1 Level 4 or lower DARK Dragon monster
Effect: When this card is Link Summoned: You can target 1 of your Dragon monsters that are in your GY; Special Summon it to your zone that a Link Monsters point to. If a monster effect is activated during the Battle Phase (except during the Damage Step): You can target 1 monster you control; negate the activation, then destroy that target.
"A Link 1 Borrel Monster?" Picaro blinked. "I have never heard of such a card before!"
"That's because I've created it recently." Revolver admitted. "I realized that I needed more variety in my Extra Deck, so I created a few more supporting Link Monsters to help me in the fight. But enough with the explanations. Let me show you what my new Borrel is able to do! I activate Miniborrel Drake's effect to revive Autorokket Dragon (Lv.3, ATK: 1600)!" the brown Rokket reappeared on Revolver's field.
"This can't be…" Picaro gulped.
"Battle!" Revolver shouted. "Borrelsword Dragon, attack TurboGear Airstream Dragon! At this moment, I activate Borrelsword's effect to change Autorokket to Defense Position and Autorokket's effect activates, sending your Elemental Lords of oGear – Mask to the graveyard! Zero Bullet Fire!"
Autorokket turned into a bullet and flew into Borrelsword's chest. The large Link Dragon roared and fired a bullet from its mouth, blasting Picaro's head. The dark knight cried out, collapsing on his back as the mast that covered his face fell apart revealing the head of his Rocketeer avatar underneath it.
"Damn it, then I'll discard TurboGear Ravening Engine from my hand to activate its effect!" Rocketeer shouted, sending the last card in his hand to the graveyard. "By discarding this card during the damage step, I'm able to negate my monster's destruction!"
Airstream Dragon roared and placed its arms in front of itself, blocking Borrelsword's blades. The two creatures glared at each other and roared.
"Borrelsword Dragon can't be destroyed by battle due to its own effect." Revolver stated. "Furthermore, at the end of the damage step, Borrelsword gains half of your monster's attack points, and your monster loses the same amount of attack!"
Borrelsword Dragon, ATK: 3000 + 1500 → 4500
TurboGear Airstream Dragon, ATK: 3000/2 → 1500
"During the turn in which Borrelsword used Zero Bullet Fire, it's able to attack a second time." Revolver smirked. "It's over, traitor! Battle! Borrelsword Dragon, attack TurboGear Airstream Dragon!"
"I can still fight!" Rocketeer sat up. "I banish TurboGear Accelerate Blast from my graveyard to revive a different oGear monster from my graveyard and make it the new attack target!"
"Do you really believe that I missed that?" Revolver said with a sly smile. "I already knew about your Accelerate Blast's effect. This is why I have this, Miniborrel Drake's effect activates! When another monster's effect activates during the Battle Phase, I can target a monster on my field, negate this effect, and then destroy my targeted monster! I target Miniborrel Drake itself!"
"What!?" A screen appeared in front of Rocketeer showing TurboGear Accelerate Blast with a large red 'X' in front of it. Miniborrel Drake raised its head and roared before exploding, leaving Borrelsword the only monster on Revolver's field.
"Now finish this match!" Revolver shouted. "Electric Varrel Sword Slash!"
Borrelsword roared and swung its sword at Rocketeer's dragon, stabbing the Synchro Monster through the core in its chest. Airstream Dragon roared, the core in its body exploding, causing another explosion to tear a hole through its back and neck. Rocketeer lowered his head and chuckled.
『Picaro LP: 2950 - 3000 → 0』
『Winner: Revolver』
Borrelsword Dragon vanished from the field and Revolver deactivated his Duel Disk. The Leader of Hanoi looked down at his opponent.
"In the end, fate chooses to abandon my cause," Rocketeer muttered. "But… I'm not the only traitor in this room."
Revolver narrowed his eyes but remained silent. He wasn't going to let Rocketeer play his mind games with him.
"It's true that PhantomFire was my teacher, but I joined the Knights of Hanoi because he's my enemy as well," Rocketeer explained. "You don't realize it yet, but you played right into his hand by eliminating me, the only person familiar with the rest of the oGear decks and the ways to beat them. With this, you secured your and your father's defeat!"
"Even if there is a bit of truth in your words, I'm still going to fight until the end." Revolver stated.
"The end, huh?" Rocketeer looked at his claw. "I guess there's no better moment for this."
Raising his hand, Rocketeer opened a small screen and typed a small message on it before closing it.
"You sent a message…" Revolver narrowed his eyes. "To whom?"
"You weren't small enough to block transmissions from the room, were you?" Rocketeer laughed, his body starting to turn into red data and fall apart. "Don't worry, it wasn't someone dangerous! It's just a death wish! I'm going to wait for you in hell, Revolv-"
Rocketeer's voice was cut off as the last part of his avatar turned into red data and flew past Revolver, entering the core. The Leader of Hanoi stood there for a few moments, thinking through what the former Charisma Duelist told him before choosing that it wasn't of importance anymore. It didn't matter what enemies he would have to face from here on, as long as he could buy enough time for his father's last wish to be fulfilled, nothing else mattered.
Proxy's POV
The Tower of Hanoi was so far away! Without any Data Storm to create wind, our D-Boards were out of commission, which meant that the only way to reach it would be on foot. I would have to sprint all the way through just to make it in time, and let's not talk if a Knight of Hanoi jumped in our path. With Blaze Rose, Aqua and Firera on my side, I was confident that I would be able to take down any opponent, as long as they weren't Revolver or Picaro, or someone that was on their skill level.
Beep!
"You got a message," Firera informed me. "It's from someone called… Rocketeer."
"Rocketeer?" Why would he message me now, and so suddenly? A part of me was worried that this might be a trap, but my trust in him was stronger than these worries. "Open the message."
"If you want me to…" Firera made a loud sigh and faded back into the Duel Disk. She wasn't trusting him as much as I was, but that was understandable. After a few moments, a message appeared in front of my face.
If you're reading this message, then it means that I have been killed. You're probably confused what all of this is about, but you remember the promise I made to you, don't you? I found a lot of stuff on the matter, all of my research so far is attached to this message. Sadly, I must leave the rest of this to you, but I want you to know one thing: Don't trust the Greyson family!
Your appearance, it never really made sense! Me, Vermilya, Arme, we didn't have anyone to rely on until they found us! We had no relatives who cared about us, no place to call our home, we were unwanted trash that he collected from the street. But what about you? A young girl with a family, with friends, why did they take you in?
I know, it must seem to you that I'm trying to make you turn on them because I don't like them. I won't lie and say that this isn't the result I hope for. Everything you need to pierce the truth behind your sudden appearance in Den City will be among the files that I sent to you. Along with them, I'm giving you a card that I have been working on for a while now.
Good luck.
"Rocketeer…" I closed the message and looked through the files. There were a lot of files attached, and all of them were long, I wouldn't be able to read all of them now. But there was also the card that Rocketeer has made for me.
Requiem of the Maiden
It was a card meant to… defeat Link 5 monsters? Did those even exist!?
"What're you doing?" Blaze Rose hit me on the shoulder, and I quickly returned the card to my deck.
"Thinking…" I muttered, trying my best to not look her in the eyes. "I'm sorry for being so slow. Let's go!"
Thank you for everything you did, Rocketeer. I promise I won't let your sacrifice be in vain!
And so, Rocketeer leaves the stage for the rest of VRAINS' heroes and villains, but that doesn't mean that his presence has completely disappeared. Also a fun fact, but the 'Betrayal' in the title of his chapter is referring to Rocketeer and Revolver, both of which have betrayed Hanoi's cause in this chapter, though the latter did it unknowingly.
On another news that people who are following the card game should know, our next structure deck will be for Revolver, which... I'm not really hyped about, but I'm happy to hear about it as someone who plays Rokkets from time to time. Right now the Rokket deck is full of problems, but if a Structure Deck was enough to turn Salamangreats from garbage to Tier 0, then I'm going to hope the same to happen with Rokkets.
Also, minor spoilers from the VRAINS anime, but hearing that Yusaku has an emotional connection to Decode Talker made my heart skip a beat out of happiness.
But anyway, thanks to Redder45 and Twelfth Night101 for following and favoriting this story!
Diabolic Tracer out!