【38 - Guerrilla Warfare and Leaving the Coal Province City!】
Unexpectedly the gangsters offered them a lift home. Simon and Lisa sat beside each other awkwardly while Pello and an intimidating henchman faced them in the seat opposite. They drove quietly through dilapidated city.
Lisa pursed her mouth and her fingers fidgeted, eyes down. Simon looked at Pello, who looked back, then Simon met eyes belonging to the scarred mug of the other mobster. Simon cleared his throat quietly, wriggling into his seat.
"I want to apologize for any pain my family has caused you, Lisa" Pello began.
"it's okay…"
"Everyone in the gang missed you when you were gone. They missed your charm and wit, the warmth you had when tending to injuries." Pello stated as another silence filled the car. "I didn't know you were unhappy with us. But these past weeks we've lost plenty of men, and the military is taking more of our territory each day."
"How's your father?" Lisa thought to ask.
"He passed on Thursday. It was peaceful."
"Well that's good," Simon answered but then realized it probably wasn't, seeing as the man had been a brutal criminal his whole life.
They jostled over another pothole. At the passing of notorious Pello Senior, shriveled and out his mind on a clinical deathbed, the triads were officially over. The old Axe leader was killed in a warehouse shoot-out and the old Sword leader was gunned down in his own office. The mafia bosses were no more and soon the gangs would be totally stamped out. It was the end of an age.
"What are you going to do?" Lisa asked her old colleague.
"Well the men could never even conceive of giving up, we spent our lives running this city. I'm staying strong for them. For now we're just biding time, seeing how it all plays out."
"Yeah a left down here, thanks!" Simon called to the driver and they turned down a corner.
"Keep in mind, Lisa." Pello warned "this is the last kindness we can give you. Consider it a 'thank you' for all your service, but from here on out I can promise nothing. If you see a Knife gangster you consider them just like any other. In these days not even brandings matter."
Both teens became self-conscious of their hidden tattoos. Simon's crossed swords in a circle on his ribs. Lisa's crossed knives in a circle on her back. When the journey ended the cab pulled over outside Mr Barrow's shop.
"Thanks for the lift," Lisa said and the teens left the car and headed for that frosted-glass door. The cab sped off and away.
It was still early in the afternoon when they entered the front room. Old Mr Barrow turned to stare at them, Diego stepped over and wrapped Lisa up in his arms. Heidi stormed over and put hands on her hips "where have you two been!?"
Both teens wore elated expressions as Simon answered "just taking care of a lieutenant. Another one bites the dust. Now we just have Magris Slade to deal with."
In the coming days the military advanced further until they'd finally pushed all remaining mobsters to the edge of the city. Distant explosions and shoot-outs could be heard throughout the day and it frightened the children who no longer wanted to leave the house to play. Ambushes, sabotage, raids and hit-and-run tactics filled the neighborhood. Diego helped Mr Barrow repair a handheld radio, it had a long antenna held together with tape. The static voices relayed messages to the residents, telling them to sit tight until an evacuation sight was established, then they were to follow instructions. Mobsters fought military units and even ordinary civilians banded together to defend their homes and families.
"I think we need to leave for the bunker," Simon declared as they stood in the kitchen, under a low ceiling with hanging wires. They were surrounded by loose-hinged cupboard doors.
"It's not a good time for her to move, she's really sick this week" Lisa explained.
"And my back's playing up," Mr Barrow grumbled "even so, we got to leave. We better start packing some essentials for the trip and go."
That day was spent getting ready, Amira helped while Heidi raced around to get the most done. However it turned out they wouldn't be taking anything with them, even medicine. The front door was barged open, breaking the lock and a group of suited men with sub-machine guns spilled inside. The inhabitants all fled out the back, through the piles of rubbish and behind the caravan. While Simon pulled out his pocket-knife and began cutting a hole through the chain-link fence behind them, they peered around at the house. There were crashes and bangs as the men dug around for supplies.
"At least we got out quick…" Amira stated. The three kids were huddled around Lisa who tried to keep them calm.
"You got the charge for the garage explosives?" Mr Barrow had the handheld radio. Diego opened his jacket, revealing the detonator. "Good boy. Let's get some more distance before we blow it."
"They're looking for another hideout. They would've killed us," Amira stated. While Pluto was ice-cold reacting to the neighborhood's death, in Heidi's pocket Mars was heating up in reaction to all the battles taking place.
After Simon cut his way through they all climbed out and headed across the dirt until they were at a safe distance. Diego looked back and thumbed the detonator. It was an impressive blast, fire blazed and then black smoke rose skyward in a thick pillar. The caravan and vans shook wildly. The children stared with teary eyes as their home burned down, Mr Barrow looked saddened as well.
"I don't like us being out in the open. Let's go," he spoke gruffly and they went to leave.
Heidi lingered, something caught her eye and she blinked at it "hey what's that!" The others turned back around. "Someone's over there!"
"Nobody could've survived that, Heidi." Diego told her.
"Look!" At where she was pointing a figure emerged from the smoke and walked towards them.
He was wearing a straight-jacket but his arms were free, the long white sleeves trailing at his sides. He was bald and pale, wearing a gas mask. He was walking straight toward them.
"Is that another freak…?" Diego murmured "he doesn't look like a normal mobster."
They watched as he closed the distance between them, finding the way out in the fence, straightening back up and stepping closer. He had what looked like pins sticking out his head on all sides. The kids were frightened of him, hiding behind their guardian.
"Do we run?" Simon murmured.
"I can't run. My back's killing me" Mr Barrow murmured back.
The weirdo stopped a few paces away, reached up and stripped off the mask and let it fall to the ground.
"Who are you!?" Heidi demanded.
"They call me the Mad Duelist."
"That must be the guy Kurushi was talking about…" Amira spoke worriedly. "The most dangerous criminal she broke out of prison. The third criminal, it looks like she broke him out of some kind of criminal asylum!"
"I know this man," Mr Barrow took a protective stance in front of his children "he was locked away ten years ago. Back then he was all over the news, a homicidal maniac."
"He must be dangerous" Amira added "if unlike Larkin he was never seen around Kurushi."
"But he's also a duelist!" Heidi pulled out her deck, unable to resist Mars's thirst for conflict. Her hand blazed red "you guys go on to the bunker! Get more painkillers for Mr Barrow's back, I'll deal with this guy and run after you, meet you at the junk piles!"
"Heidi-"
"I'm sure!" she turned with an eager grin, revealing her hunger for the battle.
Her comrades had no choice but to leave and the Mad Duelist allowed it. He reached around and began pulling up a long sleeve, revealing a deck that burned with purple darkness.
Heidi challenged "kettou da, you bastard!"
"Yoshi, chosen fire duelist…" he began chuckling in a way that reminded her of every thriller movie she'd ever seen. It was the laugh of a maniac, but to be in the presence of someone who was criminally insane brought a shiver down her spine.
Heidi stepped back so their tables could appear. The man prepared his deck, his posture stooped. Soon they were ready, sapphire shields sprang forth and they began.
"I summon Raijin Dragoon!" Heidi declared, her two mana cards turned and her third tyranno drake emerged. A red-gold lizard fighter that had 5000 power while attacking other creatures.
The Mad Duelist chuckled and charged with yet another rainbow card, it was added to his mana tapped.
"Go Cocco Lupia!" Her orange bird chirped with glee. "Raijin Dragoon ike!" Red light rippled out as the card turned itself, responding to her will. The lizard pounced and raked his nails through a bursting panel.
This time he added water mana and his three cards turned "Tajimal, Vizier of Aqua is a blocker that has 8000 power while battling fire creatures." A liquid chimera in gold armor stalked forth. Heidi scowled while the man raised his pinned head "you know little girl, I've been daydreaming in my cell for ten years about my payback and now I can finally have it…"
"What is this, a delusional episode?"
"The duelist who put an end to my killing spree was your father" he explained, shocking her. "Since he died on that cruise I'm going to have to settle for his daughter. You really don't know anything, do you?"
Heidi remembered photos of her adventurous young parents, smiling together. She remembered her old teacher Narciel mentioning her mother when they dueled, and now this psychopath knew her father? Her earliest memories of her parents were too fuzzy to recall, she was much smaller and they were just big affectionate blurs.
"I summon Ambitious Dragon for three mana!" Her third creature entered play, a metal-winged dragon in orange armor "he gets extra power from my fire birds in play. 6000 still isn't enough… I end." The dragon roared across the dirt expanse, between her lizard and bird.
"I summon Sea Mutant Dormel!" He'd added rainbow mana once more, then another rainbow creature scuttled forth on 4000.
Heidi drew and charged "Disturbing Chuusa!" her skating mouse with the metal helmet skidded out into view. Heidi stared across the field and bit her lip while contemplating. He only has one blocker, I have a double-breaker and two other creatures that can attack. I could do a lot of damage… but I can't win this turn and he'd have nine cards in his hand! If I hold back from rushing in and wait one more turn I could beat him all at once… "I end…"
"I summon Marinomancer." A babyish cyber lord appeared, playing with electricity in its hands. "I reveal the top three cards of my deck and add all light and darkness cards to my hand! Since my deck is almost completely full of multi-colored cards…" he revealed them then added all three to his hand. "Sea Mutant Dormel ike!" It flexed its feathery appendages before scuttling over and striking a panel.
Heidi raised her hand as the shards reformed into a glowing red card "shield trigger! I evolve Raijin Dragoon and Ambitious Dragon into… Asteroid Gauss, Flame Comet! That's right, my third phoenix is also a shield trigger!" Fire and energy surged forth, wrapping her two creatures and pulling them together. The red phoenix lowered its blades, a flaming sun smoldering beneath it. 11,000 power.
Heidi drew her only card and used it for mana "Asteroid Gauss attack Dormel!" It pointed its sword and fire leapt out.
"Tajimal blocks!" The Mad Duelist shrieked. The watery chimera ruptured into steam, its gold plates bouncing and warping from the heat.
"Disturbing Chuusa breaks a shield, ike!" Her mouse skated over and used its pointy helmet to break the glass.
"Shield trigger, Aqua Skydiver!" A water-light blocker landed on the field with 1000 power.
"Cocco Lupia attacks!"
"Skydiver suicide and block!"
A cataclysm of multi-colored ripples. There was a squawk and mess of orange feathers, more gold armor broken into bouncing pieces.
"Heh… your move."
"I cast Terror Pit to destroy Gauss." The lunatic raised the card but his eyes bugged when he saw it wouldn't activate.
"While Disturbing Chuusa is tapped neither of us can play spells!" Heidi pointed to her mouse-fighter.
"In that case… Bluum Erkis, Flare Guardian!" A rainbow battleship on 8500 raised itself with a sonic howl. "Whenever it breaks shields I get to use your triggers instead of you, so you won't get saved by them again!" he swished the loose sleeve of his straight-jacket. "Sea Mutant Dormel attacks Disturbing Chuusa! Marinomancer breaks a shield!" His creatures got to work, Heidi's mouse getting flattened by the sea-monster and the cyber lord stretched childish palms, firing a bolt through a rectangle. Now they both had three shields each.
"I fortify my shield with Balzark, Sword Flash Fortress!" Her newest card shone red as she placed it atop a shield. The mechanical dragon-head emerged, cannons pointing in all directions. "My creatures break twice as many shields! So my phoenix can break four shields at once!" Heidi reached for its card then hesitated. With a double-breaker and two other creatures he could win next turn, especially since my shield triggers can't help me. I… have to slow down. I can't give him more cards when I can't win this turn. "Asteroid Gauss attacks Dormel, ike!" The fire duelist felt the rush of power as her 11,000 creature burned up before sweeping another line of fire to exterminate the mutant. A card popped off the Mad Duelist's table and landed in his graveyard.
"My turn…" his eyes bulged weirdly again, skittering about like the inside of his brain was pinballing. "Pointa, the Aqua Shadow!" A skeletal being encased in liquid stepped forth. "I get to look at one of your shields!" One of Heidi's panels darkened as it revealed itself to him "Not a trigger… in that case I'll leave that one to Marinomancer, while Bluum Erkis attacks your other two!"
"No!"
"Ike!" he laughed, suddenly deranged. It made Heidi's skin crawl. His battleship charged up before firing a plasma laser. Two shields splintered and Heidi noticed among them a red trigger, she reached for it but the card floated away to her opponent's zone before activating. In the scarlet light a huge robot wheeled up and raised its cannon fingers. "…uh?"
"Burst Shot destroys all creatures with power 2000 or less!" Heidi shouted victoriously "so that means Marinomancer and Pointa!" Bullets sprayed the creatures, his cyber lord whined while the shadow howled. Two cards landed in the Mad Duelist's graveyard while Heidi's spell drifted back to her tabletop. The lunatic was hunched forward and grinding his teeth at her.
"My move!" Heidi declared and drew her second card. "I summon Express Dragoon and Explosive Dude Joe!" Her seven mana cards turned, a purple drake lunged forth and so did a red humanoid spinning a bladed yoyo. "Asteroid Gauss attacks Bluum Erkis and you now have no creatures left!" This time her phoenix opted for a close encounter, sailing forth over its molten sphere. It sliced the guardian into pieces that fell in a smoldering heap.
Her opponent drew his sixth card, setting more rainbow mana before growling "I summon two more Tajimal, Vizier of Aquas!" The 8000 blockers stomped forth. "Turn end."
Heidi touched her deck and felt a surge of heat. She drew Supernova Mars Disaster and could feel his eagerness. She smiled, not adding mana but leaving the card in her hand. "Asteroid Gauss break his last three shields!"
"Tajimal block!" one of the liquid quadrupeds jumped into the flaming wave and evaporated, leaving an empty shell of armor.
I know he still has a Terror Pit, my other two creatures are double-breakers thanks to Balzark but I need to keep them for evolution bait. Heidi declared "turn end!"
He drew his fourth card "Now's the time for Terror Pit to take out Asteroid Gauss!" The darkness spell shone, a multitude of pale hands reached up and pulled Heidi's phoenix to its doom. He still had one Tajimal defending him "Turn end."
"Come on…" Heidi drew "yes! I summon Brawler Zyler! I galaxy vortex evolution him with Joe and my Dragoon… Supernova Mars Disaster!" Heidi was swallowed by red energy, slamming her chosen phoenix onto the table as three cards slid under it. She felt Mars's presence fill the surrounding wasteland. Fire shot upward and exploded, the red-orange phoenix spread its wings and emitted its songbird cry. Heat and red rippled, it lowered its burning white eyes. "Mars triple-breaks and uses meteorburn! Since Tajimal doesn't get extra power until they battle, it's wiped out before it can block! Go! Ike!" At the chosen's command her phoenix flew into action, its heatwave wingbeat melted the blocker before it even got close.
A pillar of fire splintered three shields without triggers and as the roaring fire died down Heidi could hear her opponent cackling madly. His pinned head was thrown back, torso shaking under the straight-jacket.
"…you are insane" the girl commented with disgust.
He quietened down somewhat and began his turn "like father like daughter… but I won't lose for you see… I summon another Marinomancer!" the babyish cyber lord emerged and he drew until he was holding seven cards in his hand. "Then I cast Sundrop Armor and gain an extra shield." Soft light rippled outward and he added a shield from his hand. "Turn end."
"You've lost!" Heidi declared and the maniac simply laughed once more. She drew her only card and found a cross gear. It could be useful if he played another blocker "I generate Crimson Rifle!" The futuristic gun assembled itself and hovered in wait. "Supernova Mars Disaster breaks your shield and uses meteorburn again! Ike!" Another songbird shriek as the cyber lord melted. The sleeves of his straight-jacket caught alight as he tried shielding himself from the blaze.
He swept the smoking material aside to laugh "I planted another Aqua Skydiver!" The blocker landed and he began his turn. It was unnerving for Heidi to see someone so messed up in the head to laugh in the face of a burning death. Everyone else who'd been in situations like this against Mars had frayed from stress. This guy was truly out of his mind.
"I summon Phal Eega, Dawn Guardian!" A bronze jet flew into play but it wasn't a blocker nor over 4000. "It lets me return a spell to my hand, allowing me to recast Sundrop Armor!" His shield rebuilt itself once more. "Aqua Skydiver ike!" The gold figure flew out and sliced her last shield with its arm-blade. Her Sword Flash Fortress vanished.
Heidi ducked under the pelting glass and straightened back up with surprise. She didn't expect the 1000 creature which was a shield trigger and blocker to be able to still attack players as well.
She drew and both creatures in her hand were humanoids that'd be wiped out by meteorburn so there was no need to summon them "Alright! Mars attacks again! Third meteorburn to take out Skydiver and Phal Eega! Ike!" The card was bright and red-hot under her fingers, she added her power and turned it. The last card flew out and the attack was the most devastating yet. Her opponent was thrown off his feet, he rolled his body to put out the fire and was still laughing all the while. Mars leaned back majestically and Heidi's fists clenched "as I keep telling you this game is done! It's time for you to get put out of your misery, you murderous psycho!"
As he climbed back to his table something strange caught Heidi's attention. The man had two glowing cards return to his hand, not just one.
"Didn't you notice…?" the madman stopped his giggling to ask. "Aqua Skydiver has a third ability. When it's destroyed it returns to my hand. The first Skydiver I played had been in my hand this entire time…"
"First Skydiver…?" Heidi murmured and realized the second trigger he'd planted with his spell had been another copy of the creature.
"Aqua Skydiver, ike todomeda!" The gold figure flew at her, beneath her phoenix, and barged Heidi hard enough to send her flying several feet.
"Oof!" she dragged through dirt and blinked as Mars shrieked before retracting. The creatures and tables vanished - the duel was done. Heidi managed to fight herself from slipping into unconsciousness "…I lost?"
Her stooping enemy was unharmed, despite the singes on his straight-jacket. His bald head was facing her, those frightening pins sticking out of it. He leered and licked his lips with a freakish tongue.
No… Heidi's body wasn't responding. I… have to get out of here! I have to… Move! She struggled to turn herself, wincing from what was sure to become more bruises. The murderous psychopath began to slowly step toward her, that dripping tongue hanging loose. He started humming a loopy, incomprehensible tune. Fuck, move! Heidi pushed her limbs into gear, skidding to her fallen cards and sweeping them into a dusty pile. She shoveled them into her pocket and looked up. He watched her with dark, pinprick eyes. The girl scampered up and tried to run but her limp made it difficult. Heidi was absolutely terrified as she looked back. Instead of running after her he stood there, stooped and watching. She saw his head turn back to Mr Barrow's ruined house. Then she faced away and focused only on her escape. Pushing her aching limbs until she was running, however painfully, to catch up with the others who'd left for the junk fields. The whole time she was terrified the psychopath was going to catch her, maybe drive over in one of the vans. Or maybe he was going to barge into her any second now, climb on top and bite off her nose while giggling all the while.
Heidi ran, but for whatever reason he never came after her.
For what could've been an hour, Heidi ran under the sun. To the far east was the city, to the far west the forest's edge. She was travelling in the sparse expanse of death, the flat dusty dirt where nothing grew. The taste of dirt was in the back of her mouth. Who knew if this landscape was caused by chemical poisoning or radioactive waste, or maybe it was simply being in proximity of such destitution. A metaphorical hole of crime, poverty and hopelessness. Heidi gasped, mouth dry and she was sweating. She slowed to a brisk walk once more; the thought of dying terrified her. She'd been running for the towering piles of rubbish and junk, the ones she'd walked by when first arriving at this city. A place of darkness and despair, now fear clutched her heart like it did Amira's. Distant explosions could be heard from the city, now it was chaos.
"Heidi!" then Simon was running toward her. She felt enormous relief, he took her arm and they headed back to the hidden bunker. Ten minutes later the blonde announced "found her."
The bunker wasn't much, as expected. It was a crate hidden under a mountain of rubbish, inconspicuous and stocked with food and medical supplies by the forward-thinking Mr Barrow. Everyone had hunkered down and on a little table was the handheld radio giving updates and announcements of the casualties. Lisa and Diego were distracting the three kids, sitting on a blanket with some broken toys. Amira sat by the radio, arms wrapped around her legs. There they waited, forbidden from going outside for more than a minute lest anyone see them. They had their last sleep in the city atop old blankets and awoke before dawn when Mr Barrow exclaimed it was time to go.
"A civilian aircraft pick-up nearby! Wake up, we're getting out of here."
As the teens began to rouse and stand, Heidi looked over at the hooded Amira "ready to finally get out of this city?"
"Yes. It's not the same safe haven I could easily hide in anymore" she replied.
So they left and travelled together. It was chilly, the towering rubbish was darkened to silhouettes. Nine individuals walked together: five teens, an old man and two unhappy children that complained whenever their small attention-spans got exhausted again. Lisa carried the girl on her back, snot was leaking down her face and she couldn't stop coughing. The pain meds were giving her sleepy eyes.
"There it is!" Diego pointed "we're almost out of here!"
Ahead armed men in uniform were just visible, waiting by a passenger plane. It was almost too good to be true, escape was finally in reach. Then a van sped between the junk piles to cut them off.
"It's the Mad Duelist!" Heidi yelled.
"No…" Amira responded as the door was pulled open. "It's Magris."
"So you are here!" the final lieutenant stepped out, the spikes of his orange hair defying both gravity and sense. He held the trademark weapon of his gang at his side, an axe. His bad arm was still in that cast. "I knew you'd run! You always run! You're not going anywhere!"
"Leave her alone, you creepy stalker!" Heidi yelled, stepping forward.
"That plane won't wait around forever, we got to get around him" Amira whispered quickly.
"This is our chance to stop him!" Heidi yelled back.
"Then let's get to the evacuation site so the soldiers can shoot him for us. Mr Barrow and the kids still need to get out of here. Let's play it smart, Heidi." Amira instructed.
"You are not getting away!" he charged and the group split. The old man and kids went one way while the teens went another. Thankfully Magris pursued them around the rubbish, focused solely on who he sought.
Amira Hashiru was fast however, faster than all of them. Raccoons scampered away, tins fell and ripped open black bags, spilling plastic and bottles. Heidi jumped over a rusted tire and looked back, shocked to see that Magris was quite the athlete himself. They weren't far from the site, it was just beyond the next pile, they were so close… Amira was going to outrun him and when Magris realised that he hurled the axe. It spun and embedded itself in Diego's back, he stiffened and fell forward.
"No!" Lisa screamed.
They all slowed to a stop. Even Amira who was much further ahead than everyone else, looked back with wide eyes. Magris was panting, his orange eyes full of a vicious satisfaction.
Then there was a skirmish behind them, the soldiers running to give their aid after being told of the attacker. They yelled orders with guns in hand. Magris looked conflicted before retreating back through the junkyard to his vehicle. The friends gathered around Diego as he lay in Lisa's arms, she clenched his hand and wept as his eyes faded to dull.
『AN: Thank you kindly for the reviews Azure! I'm glad you liked the appearances your characters made in the META cross-over part! Now that it's back to business we got some serious things to wrap up before the ending of the arc. And it seems that... unfortunately... this means death scenes! So how in the world is this going to conclude? Who will be dueling who in the next chapter? Did I seriously pull a 2x 3x meteorburn combo!? Did Heidi seriously lose her first on-screen match since Tsukumo!? What does the Mad Duelist know about her parents!? The mysteries and questions are unbearable! Unless you happen to know all the answers... hehe』
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