Ulrich362
Angel: "Thank you for the kind words! We're actually doing three chapters this time around since the story for Antihero and Apparition are the same as it was in the original collection. So we're also doing a fan favorite, Appleshipping!"
queen of stars
Angel: "I believe the shipping name between Declan and Shay is Hostageshipping, but that ship is a pretty far down the list so it'll be awhile before we get to that one."
Shay: "Oh thank Ra."
(Angel looks through a list she is holding.)
Angel: "However, we do have Compromiseshipping coming up. And that ship has you, Declan, and Celina."
Shay: "Why do I keep on getting paired up with Declan?!"
Declan: "Why are you saying it like it's an insult?"
(Angel shrugs.)
Angel: "Ask the fans. I didn't make the list. But until then we still got Apparitionshipping!"
Yuya: "Who's in that ship?"
Angel: "You, Yuto, and Shay."
Shay: "...I swear this is a new form of torture."
Angel: "Only if you let it be."
Pen: "Doggy!"
(Pen explodes behind the curtain and begins petting Shadow.)
Pen: "Such a cute doggo! Yes, you are! Yes, you are!"
Angel: "Heh, sorry. Pen loves dogs. Anyway, you three..."
(Angel points at Yuya, Yuto, and Shay.)
Angel: "On stage!"
RvB Universe
Pen: "Guys, meet...yourselves."
(Pen said, bringing the Bracelet Girls and Dragon Boys over to meet their alternate selves.)
Yuya: "Oh, hi other me! How are you..."
(Everyone stops, seeing the weapons they all carried.)
Yugo: "Uhh...is that...allowed?"
Pen: "Not typically, but they insisted."
Rin: "Honestly, the only one I'm worried about is Yuri..."
Pen: "Oh, no. They're all trigger happy."
Yuto: "Seriously, why is this allowed?"
(Yuto whispers to Pen.)
Pen: "I'm sure none of them will shoot as long as you don't startle them. That was my mistake the first time I went first met them."
Lulu: "Only if you're sure, Pen..."
Pen: "Now you guys have a nice chat, but remember, it's almost show time."
Yuya: "Don't worry! We won't forget!"
(Pen leaves, leaving the two groups alone with each other.)
Yuri: "So...Red's the better team right?"
Everyone: "Yuri!"
Yuri: "What? It's an honest observation."
Yugo: "Screw you! Blue's better!"
(Rin face palms.)
Rin: "You two are ridiculous."
Angel: "Welcome back, everyone! For today, we're gonna be posting three chapters since the two upcoming ships have the same exact story as they had in the original collection! First up, we got Antiheroshipping! The shipping name for Aster Phoenix and Kite Tenjo! This AU also follows the canon story line up until Yuya is to duel Aster. But instead of Yuya, it's Kite instead! This story is also a 'songfic'. The song being sung is called On My Own by: Ashes Remain."
Ship Name: Antiheroshipping (Kite Tenjo x Aster Phoenix)
Name Reason: Named so because they are both considered antihero archetype characters.
On My Own
Kite and Yuya had won the duel against the three Obelisk Force members. Kite didn't card them.
He knew better now.
Kite walked over to the group, ready to help Shay to his feet and get him some medical help when he noticed the fearful look on one of the Lancer's faces.
Sylvio, he believed his name was.
"Guys! We got company!" He shouted. Kite glanced behind himself to see a whole crowd of Obelisk Blue students coming towards them. There was a lot of them, but not enough to overpower him.
"You get Shay out of here." Allen says to the crouched Yuya who was by Shay's unconscious body. "I'll hold off these buffoons."
"No, Allen!" Kite is a bit taken about by Yuya's sharp tone. "I will."
"You will do no such thing!" A new voice shouted. Kite then spotted something out of the corner of his eye. Could it be? No!
With quick reflexes, Kite pushed Yuya out of the way and holds up his duel disk in defense to the oncoming projectile. The duel anchor connects to Kite's duel disk, locking into place.
"Generating Action Field: Crossover." Kite's duel disk said as the floating blue platforms returned.
"What?! NO!" Everyone looks up to see that the outrageous cry had came from a male. He had gray hair with dark blue eyes and wore a ridiculous getup that made him look more of a clown than Yuya.
"Aster?!" Yuya gasped in shock as did the others.
"No, no, no! That chain was meant for Yuya Sakaki! Not some nobody!" Kite narrowed his eyes and raced forward, allowing the chain to guide him to his opponent.
"Yuya! I'll handle this clown! You worry about the others!" Kite shouts behind him as he leaped up a few platforms so that he could stand on the same ground as Aster.
Aster faced Kite, a cold look in his eyes.
"I didn't come all the way out here to face some Xyz Loser." Aster snorted.
"Well that's too bad." Kite counter, drawing his opening hand. "Looks like you're stuck with me. I know what a duel anchor is. This won't release me until the duel has concluded." Aster bit his tongue. He didn't have time for this!
"Whatever! First I'll deal with you! Everyone! Don't let Yuya escape!" Aster shouted to his soldiers.
"Yes Commander Phoenix!" The soldiers said in unison as Aster finally drew his opening hand.
"Let's duel!" They both shouted together.
Kite Tenjo vs. Aster Phoenix
Action Field: Crossover (You can use Action Cards, but you can only have 1 Action Card in your hand.)
[Turn: 1]
Kite: 4000 LP [Hand: 5]
Aster: 4000 LP [Hand: 5]
"I'll make the first move!" Aster declared. "And choosing which monster to summon was an easy decision to make! Come out, Destiny Hero Decider!" Aster shouted as the fish-like Warrior-Type monster back flipped out of the portal and landed in front of him.
"Yuya Sakaki, once I get past this idiot, I'm bringing the curtains down on you and your father's dueltaining!" Aster thought while looking down at his hand to the torn bottom half of Smile World. "You two think dueling is all about making people smile? Well after I get through with you, you'll never be smiling again." Aster glared up at Kite.
"Yuya and the others don't have time for this. I better make this fast." Kite thought as he drew from his deck.
"My move! I draw!" He shouted.
"I use one Overlay Unit to activate Galaxy-Eyes's special ability. Cipher Subjection!" Kite's ace monster absorbed the glowing ball of light into his body. He then fanned out his large wings, colorful sparks flying everywhere like fireworks. "I gain control of your monster and transform it into a Galaxy-Eyes!"
Destiny Hero Dystopia, a Fusion Warrior-Type monster on Aster's field disappeared and reappeared on Kite's side of the field.
"What?!" Aster gasped as he watched his ace monster transform into a clone of the first Galaxy-Eyes, also having his attack bump up to 3000 like the original Galaxy-Eyes.
"Now go! Galaxy-Eyes! Attack Aster directly! Cipher Stream of Destruction!" Both Dragon-Types fired off their attacks, both of them making contact and sending the commander flying.
Kite Tenjo vs. Aster Phoenix
Action Field: Crossover (You can use Action Cards, but you can only have 1 Action Card in your hand.)
[Turn: 7]
Kite: 1400 LP [Hand: 2]
Aster: (1600 - 3000) = 0 LP [Hand: 1]
"Aster!" Yuya cried out in concern. He and the others have dealt with the Obelisk Blue students easily and were now watching the duel between Kite and Aster. As the monsters and the field faded away so did the chain that binded Kite to Aster. Kite rubbed his wrist where the metal cuff had dug into his skin and approached Aster as he did so.
"Wait! Kite! Don't do it!" Kite heard the other Lancers call to him. Did they think that he was going to card the Fusion Commander? Probably. Kite stops in front of Aster, who was now sitting on his knees. He hanged his head with a look of defeat. Kite could hear Noro freaking out in the background.
"No. I wasn't supposed to lose." Aster murmur to himself.
"Well, you did." Kite stated simply. Aster glared up at Kite with complete and utter rage. "Calm down. Defeat isn't everything." Aster's mouth hangs open for a minute.
"What are you talking about? Winning is everything!" Aster shouted. "The Professor said so! He knows everything!" Kite raised an eyebrow at him.
"Have you ever consider that the Professor could be wrong?"
"The Professor is never wrong!" Aster barked back.
"Aster, tell me something. Do you do anything on your own?"
"Ex-excuse me?" Aster asked, stun by the question.
"Have you ever had a thought of your own accord? Without the Professor?"
"Of course I have!" Aster snapped.
"Then tell me this. Why is he right? Why is the Professor right?" Aster froze for a minute. That was just the reaction Kite expected. "You don't even know, do you? You're just blindly following him and his ideals."
"I am not!" Aster shouted stubbornly. "The Professor is my superior and my leader! He plans to unite the dimensions and…!"
"Does this looks like unity to you?" Kite gestured at their destroyed surroundings. "How is this going to unite the dimensions? How is this helping anyone?" Aster blinked and looked around himself. His eyes widen as if he finally noticed for the first time the destruction that laid before him. "Just because someone says they're right doesn't mean they are."
Aster blinked a couple of more times. No….Mr. Sakaki and Kite….they had to be wrong. They just had to be!
"No, no, no! The Professor is ALWAYS right! His word is law! AHHHHH!" Aster screamed into the air. Kite waited calmly for him to regain his senses.
"Hey! Mister McFrowny!" Kite and everyone else looked up to see that it was Grace that was speaking to them. "There was a rumor a long time ago. You didn't always follow after the Professor's words. Like, rumor has it that you actually tried to go against him."
"Whoa, really?" Yuya gasped. Grace nods.
"But it's just a rumor." Gloria spoke up, her arms crossed over her chest. "It's not actually true. Is it?" Everyone looked back at Aster to see that he has gone silent. He was staring at the ground.
"It's true." He finally said. "I did try and go against the Professor….once."
"Well, then what happen?" Sylvio demanded. Aster looked away to the side, not daring to meet anyone's gaze.
"It was a long time ago...I was just starting out as a Commander, but I didn't understand the role too well. I asked him what were we doing in the Xyz Dimension. What was our purpose for carding everyone." Aster's eyes darken with past pain. "He beat me in four different duels back to back. I hardly remember how it happen. It...it hurt so much. His monsters tossed me around like I was a rag doll. After it was all over he told me that we were there to root out the weak. There was no room for weaklings in his perfect world." Aster swallowed a lump in his throat. "He told me it was my destiny to do this."
"And you believe him because he beat you?" Kite asked. "Just because he beat you in a duel doesn't make his ideals okay or justified. They were just as fucked up at the end of the duel as they were in the beginning." Kite steps closer to Aster and held his hand out, offering it to him. "Look, you don't have to fight alone anymore. Trust me, I've learned my lesson on that." Kite glanced back over at Yuya and the still unconscious Shay that Gong was now carrying.
Yuya smiled and nodded at him. Aster stared at his hand like it was a foreign object.
"We're going to fix the dimensions, Aster. Let's do it together!" Yuya shouted. Aster stared at Kite's hand for a moment longer but slowly reaching out for it. Flashbacks of Yusho holding out the Smile World Spell Card to him replayed in his mind. Aster then narrowed his eyes and harshly smacked Kite's hand away. Everyone watched as Aster stood up on his own.
"Lies! My pride just got the better of me that day! The Professor's plan is way bigger than me or anyone else! It doesn't matter how we do it!" Aster then holds up his duel disk. "Everyone, retreat!" And with a flash of light everyone, including the Obelisk Force and Obelisk Blue students were gone. Kite lets out a sigh.
"Damn. I was close to getting through to him." Kite was pulled from his thoughts by Grace and Gloria's arguing voices. Apparently, Grace wanted to stay and help out the resistance, but Gloria didn't really agree. Noro was freaking out, as always. Kite started towards the group. "Guess I better check into this."
Word has it that Grace, Gloria, and Noro wouldn't be returning. They had joined sides with Yuya Sakaki and his friends.
"Fools." Aster thought. "All of them are fools."
"Uhhh, sir? Where are you going?" An Obelisk Blue student asked.
"Out." Aster replied swiftly, throwing on his white hood. "Call the Professor and tell him about the traitors."
"Yes, Commander Phoenix." Aster then exited their home base. Maybe if he was lucky he would run into Yuya Sakaki and finally duel him. Then he can show Kite and the others that once and for all the Professor's teachings were superior.
Aster walked around the destroyed dimension, trying hard not to think of what Kite had told him. That's when Aster spotted something among the rubble. It was pink and looked out of place in the gray, dark, landscape.
Aster picked up the pink object and realized that it was a doll. A child's doll in fact. It probably belonged to a little girl with the way the doll was designed. Aster was going to call out, to see if the child was still nearby but the words got caught in his throat.
How could the child be nearby? Only two things could have happen to anyone in this dimension. Either they were turned into a card...or they were in hiding. Neither option sat right with Aster the more he thought about it. He threw the doll on the ground and let out a cry of frustration.
Why were they doing this? None of it made any sense! Why did the Professor dueled him instead of giving him a straight answer?! To weed out the weak? Sure, it sort of made sense on paper, but did that include the elderly? The children? Others with a physical or mental disability?
Maybe Grace was onto something by joining the resistance. Or maybe she wasn't? The Professor was a powerful individual. Could they even stand against such a man?
Aster ripped off his hood, now wanting nothing to do with it. He allowed the hood to fall to the ground and continued walking. He didn't know how far he walked nor did he know how long. He just kept on walking straight without looking back.
Aster finally reached the remains of what looked like a main square. A large marble fountain stood at the center. It might have actually been beautiful, but most of it was destroyed, Large chunks of it had been broken off and laid scatter. Hopes of rebuilding it has became dust. Aster found himself sitting down on the edge of the fountain, on one of the more intact sides. Aster closed his eyes and sighed. When has his life become this?
For one reason or another, Aster began to sing quietly to himself.
Aster: ["There's gotta be another way out. I've been stuck in a cage with my doubt. I've tried forever getting out on my own."]
Despite being alone, Aster continued to sing to himself.
Aster: ["But every time I do this my way, I get caught in the lies of the enemy. I lay my troubles down. I'm ready for you now. Bring me out!"]
Aster somewhat shouted the last line to the empty air. He then stood up from his seat and continued singing.
Aster: ["Come and find me in the dark now! Everyday by myself I'm breaking down. I don't wanna fight alone anymore. Bring me out! From the prison of my own pride. My Ra I need a hope I can't deny. In the end I'm realizing I was never meant to fight on my own!"]
Aster began walking, leaving behind the destroyed fountain. As Aster was singing his mind flashed back to Kite. The one who was trying to talk some sense into him.
Aster: ["Every little thing that I've known is everything I need to let go. You're so much bigger than the world I have made. So I surrender my soul. I'm reaching out for your hope! I lay my weapons down. I'm ready for you now. Bring me out!"]
As Aster hit the chorus he wasn't aware of someone watching him. Kite's eyes sharpen with interest upon spotting the commander. He thought he had heard singing coming from this direction, but it was almost too crazy to believe. Who could be singing in a place like this?
Kite kept himself hidden, not wanting to show himself quite yet.
Aster: ["Come and find me in the dark now! Everyday by myself I'm breaking down. I don't wanna fight alone anymore. Bring me out! From the prison of my own pride. My Ra I need a hope I can't deny. In the end I'm realizing I was never meant to fight on my own!"]
Kite was bit surprised. Was Aster actually asking for help?
Aster: ["I don't wanna be incomplete. I remember what you said to me. I don't have to fight alone. Bring me out! Come and find me in the dark now. Everyday by myself I'm breaking down. I don't wanna fight alone anymore. Bring me out! From the prison of my own pride. My Ra I need a hope I can't deny. In the end I'm realizing I was never meant to fight on my own!"]
"So do you usually sing out loud when you're stressed or is this just a one time thing?" Aster nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard that voice.
"K-Kite! What are you doing here?!" Kite raised an eyebrow at him. The Xyz user had approached him, but since Aster was too busy...singing he hadn't noticed Kite until he had said something.
"This is my dimension, you know. I sort of live here." Aster could feel heat raising to his cheeks.
"I…uhh…"
"So I take it that you finally understand?"
"Uhh….may-maybe a little." Aster admitted. "I still don't understand how dueling can be used to make people smile. Winning duels is all I ever known."
"Well, I'm sure Yuya can help with that." Kite turned around and began walking away. "Come on." He called. Aster blinked a few times before stumbling after him.
"Where are we going?" Aster asked.
"You and Yuya have a duel that's long overdue."
"Oh." Was all Aster said. They walked in silence for a couple of minutes. "Hey, Kite? Thanks."
"For what?"
"For...getting through to me. We….I've done some terrible things and made bad mistakes. You had every right to want to turn me into a card, yet you didn't."
"Aster, nobody is born perfect. It's not human to not make mistakes or bad choices. I've made a lot myself actually." Kite let out a sigh. "The Professor just put you and a lot of others down the wrong path." Aster watched as Kite gripped his duel disk tightly in his hand. "I just wished I've learned that sooner."
"Hey, no worries." Aster said gently. "Those who have been turned into cards….I think we can change them back."
"Really?" Kite quickly turned to face Aster, his eyes wide. "No joke?" Aster nods.
"Turning people into cards is just a way to capture and contain their life force. I'm not exactly sure why the Professor wants them like that. I...I never question that either." Aster coughs awkwardly. "But umm….if we can get them back I'm sure we can find a way to change them back to their old selves."
"So my family will be as they once were? And all the soldiers I carded?" Aster nods once more.
"Yeah." For the first time since they've met Kite actually smiled and Aster didn't understand why, but that made his heart beat a little faster.
"Thank you, Aster."
"H-huh?!"
"You gave me hope that everything can go back normal. And I'm sure the others will think so too." The thought of giving others hope instead of fear brought a smile to Aster's own face.
"Hey, look! Kite's back!" Aster looked up to see the same group from before and that included Yuya. Yuya and the others were shocked to see Aster with Kite.
"Kite, are you okay?" Yuya called down to him. Kite nods.
"I'm fine, now put the duel disks away. Aster isn't a threat." Kite said. Everyone looked at each other confused, but they did lower their duel disks. "Yuya, you got a calling."
"Uhh…?" Kite let out an annoyed sigh which nearly caused Aster to laugh. Almost.
"A duel, Yuya. A duel. Aster doesn't know what it means to duel with a smile and I figured you would be the one to show him." A bright smile lit up Yuya's face.
"Of course!" As Yuya raced down the rubble to join Aster Kite began leaving to watch the duel with the others.
"Good luck." Aster was stun to hear that Kite wasn't speaking to Yuya, but to him.
"Uhh..thanks." Aster says, fighting to keep the raising blush from his face.
"Alright, you ready, Aster?" Yuya asked. Aster nods, activating his duel disk. Now wasn't the time to be blushing like a schoolgirl. Now it was time to duel.
Yuya: "I didn't know you could sing, Aster!"
Aster: "Eh, it wasn't that good."
(Aster blushes and shrugs.)
Kite: "Even so, it still takes a lot of courage to sing like that on stage."
Pen: "Yeah. I know I wouldn't be able to do that. Singing in front of people scares me."
Angel: "Speaking of fears, oh Shay!"
(Angel calls in a singsong voice. By the snack table, Shay winces.)
Shay: "Yeah, yeah. I know. My turn...again."
Angel: "Yuto? Yuya?"
Yuto / Yuya: "Coming!"
