And you thought this was over?
Sorry for my sparse update schedule, COVID has given my muse a thorough beating the last few years. But hopefully I can keep this going a bit longer with all this extra time on my hands. In the meantime, our first Turbo Duel is coming up! Make sure you avail yourself of the changes to Turbo Duels made in the first chapter.
...yeah, that'll just about do it. ROLL TAPE!
Duel Three: Sector Security's Galloping Knight
Liam often took laps in and around the old highway at sunset, trying to get used to riding Trombe again. He was concerned that he couldn't remember his father's name. Or his mother's. And who was that girl in his dreams? He knew it was the same girl he'd seen when he remembered his name, but why was she calling out to him? Why did she want him to go to the City? It'd be more helpful if she found a way of crossing eight miles of water just to get to the City, because nobody else seemed to know. Or care for that matter.
How'd things come to this? It's almost like the people here are just resigned to their fate, Liam thought to himself as he turned back towards the nearest subway tunnel. I keep hearing something about a BAD Area and not to go there, but nobody I've talked to wants to elaborate...I really don't have patience for more questions.
As twilight turned to actual night, Liam turned off onto the west tunnel where the shack was. As he did, he saw Yusei going down the same tunnel, pushing his Runner along the twisted tracks. Liam slowed down, bringing Trombe alongside Yusei and his Runner. "Hey, Yusei. How goes?"
Yusei said nothing, except roll his eyes towards his Runner. The engine compartment was slightly smoking. "Blew again? That's like what, the third chip this week you're on?"
Yusei said nothing. Liam shut off Trombe's engine and got off, pushing it alongside Yusei. "Constantly blowing like that can't be good for the engine. What's the point of running it so hard?"
"I need to," Yusei said. "It's the only way I'm going to get out of here. If I can't make a certain benchmark running through the tunnels, then my plans are basically worthless. But the Momentum regulator chips I've been using can't keep up running at top speed for long distances. Once I reach maximum power, it overheats and starts lagging, and the engine gets so unstable the whole thing blows out and triggers emergency shutdown."
"Ouch," Liam winced. "You know, if you want to, you can use mine. It's been holding up pretty well up until now, maybe it'll serve you better where you're going."
"Thanks, but that's not necessary," said Yusei. "I'll find something. It's just a matter of time."
The two of them made it back to the shack. It had been extended with another darned blanket to make room for Liam's Runner, but other than that, nothing had really changed in the days that followed the incident with the Kameno Gang. Blitz, Tank, and Nervin were inside, watching something on a nearby computer.
"Mr. Atlas! Can we get a word please? Ever since you honored the scene with your first Duel Runner, the competition hasn't been able to keep up. Is it the power of your ride that has catapulted you to the number one ranking in the world?"
Jack snatched the microphone right out of the man's hand and turned towards the crowd in the stands. "Let me make this clear: it's not the power of the Runner, it's the rider! I'll take on anyone on any ride and I'll still be victorious! You got that!?"
Liam whistled. "Oi! Guys!" He was ignored.
"One more question: do you have anything to say to those who dream of challenging you one day?"
Liam looked over at Yusei. Yusei simply grabbed the throttle and twisted it once. The engine's quick roar got the others' attention.
"Yes! Bring. It-"
"Oh, uh, hey!" Tank hit a button and the broadcast shut off. "Sorry about that, Yuse. We wanted to watch the duel somewhere else, honest. But this is the only place our cable signal is any good."
"Jack was amazing, as usual," said Nervin.
"Nervin, can it, would you?"
"What? What'd I say, Blitz?"
"Nobody wants to hear about how amazing Jack Atlas was!"
"Oh. Sorry."
"It's fine. Only one person needs to be sorry around here," Yusei grunted as he pulled the motherboard out of his Runner.
"That's right," Blitz nodded solemnly. "Jack still owes you for what he did."
"Huh? You guys never told me you had bad blood with Jack Atlas," Liam said as he rested on the seat of Trombe.
"It ain't your fault, Liam. It just never came up," said Tank. "After all, we all knew Jack before he was famous, before he went all snake-in-the-grass-"
"Tank!" Blitz snapped.
"What!? I didn't say anything that wasn't true!"
"Just drop it! Nobody needs to keep hammering on about it!"
"Fine, fine..." Tank grunted. "So, where were you two?"
"The tunnels," said Yusei. "Testing another regulator chip."
"I took another lap around the old highway. Found Yusei on my way back," Liam replied.
There was a slight pause as Yusei pulled apart his Runner's engine block, digging around the electronics. This was clearly a touchy subject, but something about it made Liam curious. If Jack was from Satellite, why was he only hearing this now? His PR team must have nightmares about that scenario. But still, why hide it...?
"...so, you are going to tell us if the new chip worked or what?" asked Tank.
"Duh, Tank, does it look like it worked?" asked Blitz.
"I guess not," sighed Tank. "Though hey, your other Runner looked great on TV-"
"Tank, shut up!"
Tank rounded on Blitz. "Look, we're all mad at Jack, okay? That was a Runner Yusei built for all of us! I mean, if Jack didn't turn on Yuse and jack his ride, then Yuse would be the King! But no, Jack got all greedy and took his Runner, and now he's got all the fame, fortune, and glory now!"
As Blitz and Tank argued, Liam turned Yusei and murmured, "Is all that true?"
Yusei nodded, but said nothing further. He ejected the regulator chip (which was still smoking even after they arrived) and took it out with a pair of tweezers. It was here a familiar voice came down the stairwell. "Yusei! Liam!"
"Rally! Down here!" Liam called out. "What's all the fuss about?"
Rally came sprinting in, out of breath but very excited. "Just what until you see what I got for Yusei!"
"Uh, why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Nervin said, nervously raising a hand.
"That's because you've had a bad feeling about everything since the incident with Liam's Runner," retorted Blitz.
Rally reached into his pocket and held out a black chip with dark blue symmetrical curves on it. "Check it out! It's a Skylon-30!"
"No way that's a Skylon!" Nervin exclaimed. "Probably a Chinese knockoff or something."
"Bring it over, Rally," Liam made his way over the table and grabbed an extra pair of tweezers. He gently took it from Rally's hand and held it to a magnifying glass mounted on a lamp stand. He was expecting to see something that would suggest it wasn't, but the words Skylon-30 Momentum-Regulator Processor Unit were printed on small print in the corner. "...my God. It's legitimate."
"What!?" Nervin asked in shock.
"Can't even call it barely-used. It looks fresh out of the packaging," Liam continued. He turned towards Rally, a concerned look on his face. "Rally, this chip commands seven to eight figures on the open market. How'd you get your hands on one?"
"Don't tell me you stole it," Blitz growled at Rally.
"I didn't steal nothing! I found it in a junk pile in North Side! Maybe someone bought an extra and just dumped it."
"Someone bought an extra top-flight chip by total accident and threw it in the trash," Blitz repeated skeptically. "That's what you're going with?"
"Rally, come on. Nobody leaves stuff just lying around here in a place like this." said Tank.
"Besides, if they were watching," Nervin said, poking the triangular mark on Rally's check. "We'd all get marked just like you! And yellow ain't my style at all!"
Yusei finally had enough and made his way over. "Lay off, Nervin. Liam, hand me that chip."
"What? Okay," Liam dropped the chip in Yusei's hand. Yusei then took the old chip he had (which was still smoking slightly) and tossed it to him. Liam had to hot-potato juggle the chip to the table. "OwowowowchJesusChristonaDuelRunnerthatshot!"
Yusei looked over the chip for a moment, and then nodded. "It's just what I was looking for."
"You can't use that, Yusei," Nervin insisted.
"Make Rally take it back, it's not worth the trouble," agreed Blitz.
Rally ignored them. "I knew you'd like it! I knew it! It'll definitely get some extra horsepower out of that engine for sure!"
"Well, with that logic, maybe he shouldn't return it-" Tank mused.
"Tank! Don't encourage him!"
"What!? Just saying..."
"Yuse, we know how you feel, but you gotta let things go. Move on, forget about Jack Atlas," Nervin tried a different tack. "We never needed him anyway."
"But Jack also stole Yusei's best card, too! No way anyone's gonna forget that!" said Rally with a pout.
"Sure, but there's no point walking a tightrope over what's legal and what's not!"
"Except for standing up for yourself and having pride in who you are!"
Nervin waved Rally off before turning back to Yusei. "Yusei, there's no point in doing what you're doing. Satellites like us, we should just stay here where we belong."
"Jack didn't stay. Why should I?" Yusei countered, typing away on the laptop.
"Easy, bro. Don't waste your freedom for some wheels and a card," Blitz said. "Nerv's right, Yuse, we just need to keep the past where it is. Can't ever heal if you won't stop scratching."
Yusei put the motherboard, with his new chip, back into the Runner. Then, he went over to the throttle and gave it a quick twist. The engine roared once again, but it was not only a lot smoother than before, it was also loud enough to make the floorboards thrum a little. Blitz, Nervin, and Tank's jaws all hit the floor while Liam blinked several times in succession.
"That's...definitely got a few more cc's than before," said Liam.
"You said it!" Rally agreed, grabbing Yusei's helmet from nearby. "Take it for a spin, let's see what it can do!"
And then, a bright light shone down through the crack in the street.
"The hell is that?"
Nervin ran out of the shack, holding a hand up to the light. "It's Sector Security!"
"Who!?" Liam asked.
"Law enforcement in the Satellite and in New Domino City," Yusei explained. "Although calling them that is..."
"Identification: AWX86007! Rally Dawson, you are in possession of stolen property! Escape is not an option! We have you surrounded and your tracker is active!" A voice boomed down into them.
"Rally, you idiot! Look what you did-" Blitz raised a fist.
"I didn't do nothing!" Rally cried, holding up Yusei's helmet to defend himself. He then turned to Liam and Yusei. "Liam! Yusei! Please! You gotta believe me! I didn't steal that chip! It was in a junk pile and nobody was around!"
"Can you prove that you didn't!?" Blitz asked.
"Can you prove that he did?" Liam asked.
Yusei came between Blitz and Rally with an outstretched hand. "That's enough, all of you." He was oddly calm, despite the situation.
"You got a plan?" Liam asked Yusei.
"What plan?" asked Tank. "That mark on Rally's face ain't just for show, there's a transmitter under his skin! As long as it's on, he's gonna be lit up like a Christmas tree anywhere he goes!"
"And I'm already taking care of it," Yusei said, hitting a few buttons on the laptop. There was a slight keening noise in the air amidst the chopper's blades. "There. I've jammed the signal for a few minutes, but it won't stay that way. You guys head for the east tunnel. Liam, you're with me. We're gonna draw them off. Besides, I feel like taking this chip for a test drive!"
"Sounds like a plan," Liam grabbed his helmet and put it on. Yusei tore off down the tunnel, with Liam right behind on Trombe.
"You heard the man, let's bolt!" Blitz said.
Sierra Akers was not a happy Security officer, having been forced to deploy ten minutes before the end of her shift. Still, it was hard to deny the perks of the job: government paycheck, free top-of-the-line Duel Runner, and most importantly, the badge. To be the one worthy for the pursuit of justice. Unfortunately, she was not happy she was going to have to wait to get back to the barracks, to her beloved dog, and a nice hot meal.
"What's taking so long?" she said to her partner. "Can't we just get in there and blast them all?"
"I told you, Akers, there's a priority target down there. The fact the signal got jammed is a sign we're on the right track, we just have to see what their reaction is."
Sierra rolled her eyes. Tetsu Trudge was a bit of a hardass, always trying holding her back. Probably because he was hungry for the same promotion that she'd been gunning for the last three weeks. Still, he at least was competent at dueling...most of the time. She blew out a sigh and folded her arms, but right as she turned her head, she saw two motorcycle-shaped objects come flying out of the stairs headed down to the abandoned subways. "Trudge! Contact right!"
"See? Told you that intel was perfect!" said Trudge. "Central Command, this is Trudge. Akers and I have suspects on the run headed south. Lock on to our signals!"
Sierra and Trudge gave chase, followed by one of their cruisers and the chopper they had in the air. Whoever these guys were, they were fast, but justice was faster.
Yusei and Liam had managed to get off of the cracked streets and onto a large bridge, with Yusei leading the way. Yusei knew that Skylon-30, stolen or not, was going to be a massive benefit to this Runner, but it had exceeded all of the expectations he'd had. Everything's better. The torque, the balance...even the transmission is smoother than before! And even at this speed, it's still running smoothly...it's practically perfect!
The spotlight finally came over the two Runners. "You in the Runners! Pull over! There's nowhere to run!"
"They sure didn't waste time catching up to us!" Liam pulled in alongside him. "So we did step one, what's two through ten?"
"The East Side! They finished repairing the roads over there!" Yusei replied. "We'll separate at the off-ramp, I'll go left, you go right! If you escape, head for the old highway! And don't worry if you have to duel your way out!"
"They'll go for that?"
"Some of these officers are greedy and overconfident! They'll take it if they think you're not a threat!"
"If you say so!"
Liam pulled away from Yusei, separating at the off-ramp as per the plan. As expected, one of them pulled in after him while another followed Yusei in the opposite direction down the road. He was on his own now, and he wasn't quite sure what to expect out of the people who were coming next.
"Pull over, criminal! There's no escape!"
And that also didn't bode well. Still, with nothing else for it, Liam swung Trombe in the other direction, hitting the brakes. A cloud of dust followed as he came to a stop, followed by the the appearance of the Securities officer that had been chasing him. She dismounted, and removed her helmet. A head of chestnut brown hair appeared in its place, tied in a ponytail. "So, you must be the one they call 'the Redcoat' around here."
"Evening, officer," Liam said cheerfully. "How goes the beat?"
"You're certainly chipper for someone about to be arrested," said Sierra, leaning forward.
"And you're fairly confident for someone who pulled off something that's clearly entrapment," Liam countered. "I thought it was weird someone left a top-flight chip like that in the middle of this godforsaken place. And from the way you're acting, that only makes me even more suspicious of the whole deal."
"Really? I'd like to see you prove it. Then again, even if you could, you're just another criminal, just like all the rest of these people. Nobody would believe you even if they could! ...or should, for that matter," Sierra said with a careless shrug. "Besides, once I send you and your little friend Rally off to the Facility, it's not like it'll even matter anyway."
Liam's eyes narrowed. This woman's twisted sense of justice was one thing, but threatening Rally was a step above that. "You'll only get Rally when I'm cold, dead, and rotting. Besides, I'm your opponent here."
"My opponent? Ha! Like a Satellite like you could even hope to match a member of Sector Security! You're probably too poor to afford a deck anyway! Besides, didn't your parents teach you anything about obeying the rules?"
Liam smiled and nodded once. "Yes, yes they did." And then, he reached into his deck case and pulled out his deck. "But they also taught me to stand up for what I think is right. And I'm pretty certain that standing up to you and your thug-like behavior is absolutely the right thing to do."
Sierra scowled. Just who did this redcoat think he was, lecturing her about justice? She was the law around here, not him! And what was with his accent? He was speaking fluent Japanese but it was accented with something European. English, maybe?
"That being said," Liam added. "I'm willing to turn myself in, with my deck and Runner included, if you beat me in a duel. But if I win, you'll let me go, and you'll drop the investigation into Rally and the chip. You winning could get you bumped up a rank or two. Just saying."
Sierra smirked. "That confident, are you? Well, if a duel is what you want, then you'll get it! And you're going to regret taking on Sierra Akers in a duel!" She then went back to her Runner and pulled in across from Liam. Liam spun Trombe around to face the road, using the faint markings of a crosswalk to mark a starting line. "Activating Turbo Duel protocol!"
Speed World activated. Duel Mode engaged. Auto-pilot standing by.
"LET'S RIDE!"
Liam: 4000
Sierra: 4000
The two duelists immediately charged down the road.
"First one to the end corner gets first turn!" Sierra called out.
"Taken!"
The corner in question was about a mile down the road. Liam had the inside line, but Sierra was keeping him crowded towards the line to prevent him from making the turn properly. So Liam did the only thing he could: as they approached the corner, he hit the rear brakes and the gas at the same time, then turned left. It had the desired result. Liam and Trombe fishtailed, swinging the rear wheel into Sierra's Runner. Sierra swore and pulled away, and in that instant, Liam let off the brakes and corrected, getting just enough to get around the corner ahead of her.
"Are you insane!?" Sierra shouted. "You could've killed us both!"
"Then give your opponent space next time! You're not going to win playing chicken with me!" Liam shouted. "In the meantime, I'll take the first move!" Liam drew as three cards appeared on his Duel Runner screen. "And I'll start by summoning Noble Knight Medraut in attack mode!" A blonde knight in silver armor with a red scarf shot out onto the field, soaring alongside Liam. (LVL 4/ATK: 1700) "And then I'll set two cards face-down and end my turn!"
"Knights, huh?" Sierra asked. "Well, you're not the only one who rides with those! Draw!"
Liam: (1 SPC)
Sierra: (1 SPC)
"From my hand, I summon to the field Arisen Gaia the Fierce Knight!" A blue-and-red armored knight came galloping out of the card, thundering alongside Sierra as they rode, armed with two lances. (LVL 7/ATK: 2300)
"Hold it! How on earth did you summon that monster without any Tributes?" Liam asked.
"Arisen Gaia can be Normal Summoned without Tributes if you have a monster and I don't!" Sierra said. "And that means I have an easy way to take the lead! Arisen Gaia, attack Noble Knight Medraut! Iron Spear Spiral Strike!"
Arisen Gaia charged the extra distance, bearing down on the blonde knight in front of him.
"Not happening! I activate my face-down card, Armory Call!" Liam countered as one of his face-downs lifted. A green portal suddenly opened next to Medraut. "With this card, I can instantly take an Equip Card from my deck and add it to my hand, and then I can equip that same card to an eligible monster! So I'll equip Medraut with Noble Arms of Destiny!"
The silver sword and shield from Liam's duel with Kameno came flying out of the portal, and Medraut caught them both just as Arisen Gaia's lances struck the knight head-on.
"All that for an Equip Spell with no point gain? Don't tell me you forgot the basic rule of Duel Monsters!" Sierra taunted.
"Maybe you need to learn some new ones!" Liam countered as Medraut broke away, Noble Arms ready and still up.
Liam: 3400
"What!? How did your monster survive?"
"Noble Arms of Destiny prevents the equipped monster from being destroyed, either by battle or card effects!" said Liam. "I still take damage, but Medraut lives to fight another day!"
"Okay, so you got lucky this time, but how many more times?" asked Sierra. "I set a card face-down end my turn!"
"That starts my turn!" Liam said, drawing a card.
Liam: (2 SPC)
Sierra: (2 SPC)
"First, something you should know about Medraut is that when he's got a Noble Arms in hand, he tends to be quite different! When he's equipped with a Noble Arms card, his attribute becomes DARK, he gains 1 Level, and he gains an effect!" Liam said, as Medraut's skin turned from white to brown and his hair from blonde to white. (LVL 5) "By destroying a Noble Arms card on the field, I can Special Summon a Noble Knight monster from my deck in defense mode! So here comes Noble Knight Ivyanne!"
Medraut's sword and shield shimmered before ultimately shattering. The shards then coalesced into the green-armored knight that had defeated Kameno. (LVL 4/DEF: 1600)
"And that's not all! Whenever a Noble Arms card is destroyed, it's never gone for good! As long as there's another Noble Knight card to take it up, it'll jump right into their hands! So Noble Arms of Destiny will instead equip itself to Ivyanne!" The silver sword and shield reappeared, falling into Ivyanne's hands. "This activates Iyvanne's effect! When it's equipped with a Noble Arms equip spell, I can Special Summon a Noble Knight Token to the field, this one also in defense mode!"
Another knight, clad in the same green armor as Iyvanne, appeared on the field next to him. (LVL 4/DEF: 1000)
"And finally, I activate the effect of Infernoble Knight Roland from my hand!" Liam flipped over a card in his hand. "With Roland's effect, I can equip him to a monster as an equip spell that grants a monster, like, say, Medraut, an extra 500 attack points!"
A white-clad knight, armed with a large red sword of flames, appeared only briefly before he vanished, leaving only his sword behind as it fell into Medraut's hands. (ATK: 2200)
"And now, we fight! Medraut, attack Arisen Gaia!" Medraut took Roland's sword and charged, flying at the horse-bound knight. The two knights clashed, lance and sword cutting a pair of swathes through the air.
"Looks like you forgot Gaia is stronger!" taunted Sierra.
"Look again," countered Liam.
And no sooner had he said than Gaia erupted into a mass of fire before shattering.
Sierra: 3600
"Impossible!" said Sierra. "I had 100 points on your Knight!"
"Oh, that's because of Noble Knight Iyvanne," said Liam. "You see, if Iyvanne has a Noble Arms card equipped to him, then all Noble Knights on the field gain extra 500 attack points, putting Medraut over the top at 2700! I'll then set another card facedown and end my turn!"
Sierra drew another card. "You won't be so lucky this time! Draw!"
Liam: (3 SPC)
Sierra: (3 SPC)
"And I think I know just what to do," Sierra smirked. "Because you have a monster with more than 2300 attack points, I can Special Summon Lord Gaia the Magical Knight in attack mode!"
Another horse-bound knight shot out onto the field, but this version of Gaia had a long blue cape around his shoulders and his steed was dark red as opposed to the usual blue. (LVL 7/ATK: 2300)
"And this activates his effect! When he's Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 5 Dragon monster from my deck! And the monster in question is going to be Curse of Dragon, the Cursed Dragon in defense mode!"
A large, yellow, skeletal dragon rose up from behind Sierra, spreading its wings over the buildings as it bore down on Liam and his gathered knights. (LVL 5/DEF: 1500)
"And since Curse of Dragon was Special Summoned, I get to add a certain kind of Spell Card from my deck to my hand!" Sierra continued, as her Duel Runner spat out a card for her to take. "But don't worry about knowing what it is. I'll be activating it right now! Go, Spiral Fusion!"
"A Fusion card?" asked Liam.
"Yes! And with it, I'll now combine Curse of Dragon the Cursed Dragon and my Gaia the Magical Knight!" Both knight and dragon suddenly shot up into the air into a swirling vortex summoned by Sierra's card. "Fusion Summon! Descend, Sky Galloping Gaia the Dragon Champion!"
Whatever Liam was expecting to see out a retrained Gaia the Dragon Champion, this monster was not what he was expecting. The dragon was a bright red, hellfire surging across its skeletal body. The knight itself was also a bright yellow with red accents, and his twin lances were bright orange. But that didn't make the monster any less intimidating as the dragon roared, menacingly hovering over the field like a red harbinger of doom. (LVL 7/ATK: 2600)
"Christ on a Runner, that's something," mumbled Liam.
"And that's not all it can do! When Sky Galloping Gaia is summoned, I can add a particular spell card to my hand! And that spell card will also be activated right now! I activate Spiral Spear Strike!" Another spell card appeared on the field.
"But that's only meant to only empower the actual monster Gaia the Dragon Champion!" said Liam.
"Well, you are correct, but Sky Galloping Gaia also counts as the regular Dragon Champion while it's on the field!" said Sierra. "And with its effect, I inflict piercing damage when I attack with my monster! So now, Sky Galloping Gaia, attack his Noble Knight Token! Hellfire Spiral Spear Strike!"
The red dragon soared upward and then dived, spiraling straight down at Liam's Noble Knight token. It mercilessly piledrove the monster on its horned nose across the ground before flinging it upward, where it shattered.
Liam: 1800
"And since you lost 1000 life points, Speed World's effect activates! You lose one Speed Counter, and then I inflict an additional 100 points of damage to you because I have one more Speed Counter than you, and I draw a card!"
As they rounded the corner onto another street, a large steam eruption suddenly flew up from a nearby manhole, showering Liam in hot water.
Liam: 1700 (SPC 2)
"Now, seeing as I inflicted battle damage to you, Spiral Spear Strike's effect activates, allowing me to draw two cards, then discard one, meaning I get two cards for putting you in your place!" Sierra said, taking two more cards and then putting one into her graveyard.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're getting quite a bit of enjoyment out of this," Liam quipped.
"Why wouldn't I? This is exactly how the world is supposed to work!" Sierra replied. "You break the law, I come to punish you! That is the purest nature of justice! Scoff at me all you like, Redcoat, but you and I both know the world is full of people like you and many of them get away! I just try to tip the scales!"
"And if you get innocent people along the way, it's just collateral damage?" Liam asked. "You know nothing of how justice works."
"Well, you'll have plenty of time to debate me about that once I put you in the Facility. Because now I reveal the other effect of Spiral Fusion! If I Fusion Summoned Gaia the Dragon Champion with it, that monster now gains two attacks during the Battle Phase instead of one!"
"It what?" asked Liam, horrified.
"Now, Sky Galloping Gaia, attack Noble Knight Medraut!" The red dragon turned its eyes to Medraut. "Oh, and if you're counting on your higher attack points to save you some pain, don't count on it! When Sky Galloping Gaia attacks, I choose your monster's mode, and I say defense mode!"
The dragon roared, and Medraut stumbled as the shockwaves ripped by, turning blue as he took a knee. (DEF: 1000)
"Sorry, but I don't intend to die that quickly!" said Liam. "I activate my facedown card, Horn of Olifant! It has two effects that I can choose from, but I'll use its effect to banish Noble Arms of Destiny from my field to destroy a card!"
"So you intend to destroy my Sky Galloping Gaia?" Sierra asked.
"...well, actually..." Liam scratched the side of his face with a finger as Iyvanne tossed the silver sword and shield into the air, and then blew into a ram's horn. The sword and shield shattered, turning into a hail of silver shrapnel that flew past Sky Galloping Gaia and took out Spiral Spear Strike.
"My spell card!?" asked Sierra. "But your monster will still be destroyed!"
"Yes, but there's no piercing damage anymore, or extra cards in your future," said Liam. "Meaning my Life Points are safe even if I lose Medraut!"
Sky Galloping Gaia pierced right through the blonde knight, shattering it and Roland's sword, but nothing further happened.
"Will that be all?" asked Liam.
"...fine! One card facedown and I end my turn!"
"And that activates Roland's effect! Because he's in the graveyard due to being sent there during your turn, I can get a FIRE Warrior monster from my deck to my hand!" Liam accepted the card that came out. "And now I draw!"
Liam: (3 SPC)
Sierra: (4 SPC)
Liam looked down at his screen, at the three Speed Spells there. He had three cards in his hand, but what could he do with them? Should he even use them at all? The last thing he needed was to open him up to more burn damage from Speed World.
"You're being too conservative."
It happened again.
He was older again. He was at a track with his father.
"I don't understand. Conservative how?"
His father stuck his hands into his suit jacket. "It's something I've seen out of you for a while now. You're trying too hard to force a scenario into your favor rather than just playing in the moment."
"Dad, I have to. If I can't account for everything, then I can't act. I just want to feel like I can duel like Mom does. Just feeling like you have control."
"Your mother plays a deck that allows her to do that and she knows how to use that well. But you're not the same as her, and you shouldn't be, anyway. Stick to your strengths. Take the initiative and go for broke. The rest will take care of itself."
"And I guess, trust in the Heart of the Cards, as well?"
His father laughed. "Now you're starting to get how your mother duels."
Liam blinked. For as long as that felt, not much time had passed since it happened. Hopefully it would not happen again in a Turbo Duel, as nice as the feeling was. He looked down at the card he drew.
...perhaps…
"I activate a Speed Spell!"
"You what?" Sierra asked.
"I activate the Speed Spell, Count-Up!" Liam said, using a joystick on the top of his handlebar with his thumb to select it. "It costs me two Speed Counters, but for every card I discard, I can gain two more! So I discard two cards from my hand and gain 4 Speed Counters!"
Liam put two cards into his graveyard as Trombe accelerated slightly, pulling ahead of Sierra.
Liam: (5 SPC)
"Next, I activate the effect of Inferoble Knight Oliver from my graveyard! By sending a FIRE Warrior or an Equip Spell from my hand to the graveyard, I can Special Summon him to the field as a Level 1 monster!"
Another red-armored knight, this one red-haired and wielding a pair of flaming shortswords, came onto the field. (LVL 1/ATK: 1000)
"It's all well and good, but you're really thinking you can take on my monster with something that weak?" asked Sierra.
"Not by themselves, certainly, but if I were to, say, use Oliver as a Tuner monster..." Liam began.
"...wait, did you say-?"
"I now tune my Level 1 Oliver with my Level 4 Iyvanne!" Oliver spun his short swords, creating a circle as he disappeared while Iyvanne dashed through, turning into four stars.
"The bards of yore give rise to the hero of divine wisdom! With twin blades in hand, smite thy enemies! Synchro Summon! Level 5! Lead the way, Infernoble Knight Captain Oliver!"
Oliver reappeared, taller and more heavily armed, and the twin swords he had were longer, and blazed with even hotter flames than before. (LVL 5/ATK: 2000) Liam had to admit the look of shock on her face was equal parts confusing and satisfying.
"You have a Synchro Monster!? Impossible! No one in Satellite can afford one of those! Unless..." Sierra nodded to herself a few times, as if confirming something in her head. "That must be it! You're a criminal from the City who's been hiding out here in Satellite, waiting for the heat to cool down!"
"That's a load of bollocks you just made up!" Liam countered.
"I'm sure of it! And when we take you in for processing at the Facility, it'll prove it!"
"You'll do no such thing!" Liam said. "Because I now equip Captain Olivier with Noble Arms – Clarent!" The flames of Oliver's swords turned from red to a menacing black. "With Clarent's effect, I now pay 500 Life Points, and now Oliver can attack directly this turn!"
"What!?"
"Sure, Life Points are at a bit of a premium, but I'll happily take it to put a massive dent in yours!" said Liam.
Liam: 1200
"Now, Oliver, attack directly! And this activates Oliver's effect! If he attacks while equipped with something, I can destroy a card on your field! So your Sky Galloping Gaia can job on anyway!"
Oliver seared past the massive dragon, swinging both swords in a black arc of flames. The dragon shattered instantly as the flames consumed Sierra's Runner.
Sierra: 1600 (SPC 2)
"And since you lost 2000 life points, you lose 2 Speed Counters, and that means I get another card and you take another 200 points on top of that!"
A nearby scaffolding tipped over, sending steel pipes ringing down on top of Sierra.
Sierra: 1400
"I'll end my turn and let the rest take care of itself," said Liam.
Sierra, however, did not reply. Her body was shaking with what looked to Liam like barely-contained rage.
"It's your turn, officer," Liam said nervously.
"I've HAD IT!" Sierra's eyes suddenly were agleam with...well, Liam wasn't sure what it was, but it was something that was mighty unsettling. "I AM GOING TO MAKE SURE YOU GET RIPPED TO SHREDS AND THEN DUMPED ON THE FLOOR OF THE FIRST EMPTY CELL I GET YOU TO!"
"Ye gods, there's no need to shout!" said Liam. "...well, no more so than-"
"CAN IT, CRIMINAL! I'LL SHOW YOU THAT JUSTICE IS INESCAPABLE! DRAW!" Sierra drew.
Liam: (SPC 6)
Sierra: (SPC 3)
"Yes, this is perfect! I activate my facedown card, Spiral Reborn! This lets me bring back a Level 7 or lower Dragon monster from my graveyard, and I'll use it to resurrect my Sky Galloping Gaia!" The massive red dragon and its rider reappeared on the field. (LVL 7/ATK: 2600) "And what's more, you can forget about trying to take it out! It's invincible to card effects and can't even be targeted by them!"
"Well, that's just maddeningly broken," grunted Liam.
"You can shut up! Sky Galloping Gaia, purge that Captain Oliver!" The dragon dived once more, bearing down on Oliver with lance bared. Oliver didn't stand a chance.
Liam: 600
"And now that I have you wide open, I'll activate the effect of a monster in my hand! By Tributing a Dragon Fusion Monster from my field, I can Special Summon Soldier Gaia the Fierce Knight to the field!" The knight atop the dragon suddenly abandoned its steed, and transformed into another knight, this one in blue and gold, with a long blue cape and red spikes on its sholders. Its twin lances was replaced with a long pike. (LVL 7/ATK: 2600)
"As it's still my Battle Phase, you're now officially done! Soldier Gaia, attack directly!" Soldier Gaia dived on Liam, only to be interrupted by the appearance of a gout of flames from nowhere. "What!? What is that!?"
"Unfortunately, you're not going to get me this time! The card I activated was Until Noble Arms Are Needed Once Again, which I discarded with Count-Up earlier. By banishing it from my graveyard on a turn other than the one it was sent there, I can Special Summon a Noble Knight monster from my deck that's different from any on my field or in my graveyard! And the perfect choice was simple!"
The flames slowly took shape of a familiar robed man with a flaming staff, impaled on Soldier Gaia's pike. "Infernoble Knight Maugis!"
Maugis grinned, then shattered.
"And since Maugis was sent to the graveyard, I now activate his effect! I can now send any combination of three FIRE Warriors or Noble Arms cards that are banished or in my graveyard, shuffle them back into my deck, and then draw a card!" Liam took three cards. "So I'll be putting back Roland, Noble Arms of Destiny, and Noble Arms - Clarent!"
"Damn you, Redcoat! I end my turn!"
"Damn me? Damn you for thinking you were even in my postal code!" Liam countered. "Draw!"
Liam: (SPC 7)
Sierra: (SPC 4)
"Time to end this! First, I summon to the field Squeaknight in attack mode!" Liam's brave mouse warrior appeared on the field. (LVL 1/ATK: 500) "But don't be fooled by his looks, Squeaknight has some tricks up his sleeve! Especially when combined with Captain Oliver! See, if Captain Oliver is in my graveyard, I can simply take a monster I control, and then Special Summon Captain Oliver using that monster as an Equip Spell that grants him 500 attack points!"
Squeaknight leaped up into the air as Captain Oliver reappeared in a blaze of red flames, and Squeaknight landed on Oliver's shoulder. (LVL 5/ATK: 2000 → 2500)
"It's still not strong enough to stand up to Soldier Gaia!"
"Yes, but one thing at a time. For you see, Squeaknight has the neat little ability to unequip himself while he's equipped and Special Summon himself back to the field!" Squeaknight leaped off Oliver's shoulder, taking the field once again. "But because I Special Summoned Squeaknight, he becomes a Tuner monster!"
"Another one!?"
"And then I'll summon to the field Infernoble Knight Astolfo!" The red-haired bishounen knight appeared on the field as well, taking a stance next to his captain. "I now tune my Level 1 Squeaknight with my Level 1 Astolfo and my Level 5 Captain Oliver!"
Squeaknight summoned another circle, jumping through it as Captain Oliver and Astolfo followed, turning into a combined six stars.
"The bards of yore tell of one sword for seven stars in the sky! Golden knight of the Pleiades, rise up! Synchro Summon! Level 7! Draw your swords, Seven Swords Warrior!"
A golden knight appeared from the pillar, wielding two small swords in either hand. However, four more swords were hanging from two shields hanging from his shoulders, and one sword was slung over his shoulder. (LVL 7/ATK: 2300)
"I now activate Maugis's effect, equipping himself to Seven Swords Warrior!" Maugis's ghostly form appeared, putting his flaming staff in his hands. "This activates Seven Swords Warrior's effect! Once per turn, if he's equipped with something, you take 800 points of damage!"
The knight swung Maugis's staff, showering Sierra in a fiery torrent.
Sierra: 600
"But that's not all! I activate Seven Swords Warrior's effect, which lets me send Maugis back to the graveyard! But with his next effect, once per turn, when he does so with an Equip Card, I destroy a face-up monster on your field! So Soldier Gaia goes vamoose!"
Seven Swords Warrior's eyes gleamed as it took Maugis's staff and launched it at Soldier Gaia, who exploded into red flames and shattered.
"And thus the battle is mine! Seven Swords Warrior, attack directly! Seven Sword Storm Assault!"
The Seven Sword Warrior dived at Sierra, throwing both of his short blades ahead of him before reaching up into his bladed shields, showering her with the four blades hidden therein. Then, as he came down, he reached behind him and finished her off with one final stroke of his seventh blade.
Liam: 600
Sierra: 0
WINNER: Liam O'Hara
Sierra's Runner exploded in an eruption of steam, and she was forced to pull over. Liam came up alongside her, exhaling as Seven Swords Warrior vanished.
"Why…? Why did I lose to this Satellite trash…?" Sierra slumped against the front of her Runner.
"Disrespecting your opponent all day long probably had something to do with it," said Liam. "That's Duel Monsters 101. All the trash talk in the world means nothing if you can't back it up. Real duelists keep their heads down and focused on their hand more than where his opponent's from." With another wave, he left, driving off towards the old highway. "Just some food for thought!"
Sierra watched him leave, gripping her handlebars a bit tighter. Just you wait, Redcoat! I will hunt you down and make you pay for this!
Liam reached the old highway with no further incident, and saw Yusei parked off on the shoulder. He drove on over and stepped off of Trombe. "All good?"
"All good," Yusei grunted. He was staring out over the water towards Neo Domino City, across the ocean.
"You think Rally actually stole that chip?"
"I wouldn't be surprised if he did. But I'll let it slide this time."
"Really?" Liam asked, taking off his helmet. "You typically make friends with pickpockets?"
Yusei chuckled. "Rally's a bit overeager sometimes, but he just wants to help. He's the kind of person Satellite will need in the future."
There was a pause, as the two of them continued looking out to sea.
"Hey, Yusei. Something's been nagging at me since we split up," Liam finally spoke up.
"Shoot."
"Are you...leaving? Because that's what it sounded like from what you guys were talking about earlier."
Yusei nodded. "That's the plan. I'm leaving Satellite and going to New Domino City. I'm going to find Jack and make him answer for what he did to us."
"You have a way out of here?"
"I've got something. I need to be sure if I can pull it off, though, so I won't be leaving for another couple of days."
Liam nodded and turned to Yusei. "Take me with you."
Yusei blinked. "Why?"
"Well, for one, you'll probably need help where you're going. For another...I feel like destiny calling me there."
"Destiny?" Yusei asked, turning towards Liam now.
"...I've been seeing someone, in my dreams. I'm always here, and she's always hovering over the water. And when she leaves, she always heads back to New Domino City. If you know a way out of here, then take me with you," said Liam. "I'm sure Trombe can keep up with you."
Yusei thought for a moment. "You sure about this? This is incredibly dangerous. And that's even before we get to the city proper."
"Danger and I are old friends," Liam said with a wry grin.
Yusei nodded and turned back towards the city in the distance. "Then let's do it."