Everyone pitches in to help Yumi get ready for the most important duel of her life.

Since trying to build a deck in the middle of a bustling crowd wasn't the best idea, humanity's last hope returned to the facility. The next two hours were spent debating over different cards as various soldiers trucked in pallets of additional cards. They took a brief break to call in some ramen reinforcements, several bowls delivered by Kyoko who proceeded to join them. Suzy also tagged along when she heard who placed the order, having been in the area when things went down. Yumi's grandmother would also come not long after, having turned over takoyaki making to Kazuhiko's mother while she went for a break.

"What about this?" Kazuhiko asked as he held up a pair of cards. "If he's still got Pendulum stuff, this would be a strong combo."

"Should we be building around that assumption, though?" Kyoko wondered. "He might have changed his whole deck around, right?"

"We need more draw power," Sakuya said as she looked over their choices so far, all spread out across a table.

"Focus on being strong on your own, not just countering," Yuu said.

"Is there a way to search out these Ritual Cards?" Rio asked. "That new card seems like the best way to set up your field."

Hideo sorted through several cards, holding up a few that would do that job. "If we're focused on Rituals, should we add more support for it?" Suzy added, looking through a pile for something like that.

"That one has nice art," Kenji said, Yumi's grandmother nodding sternly as both tried to be helpful despite being far out of their depth.

Yumi sat cross-legged in a chair in the middle of all of them, eyes closed and humming loudly as she tried to sort through her thoughts. Everyone was making good suggestions, but after this long, they'd barely even figured out the core of the deck. This was easily the most important duel of her life, and that pressure was making it impossible to think clearly.

Pulling her hair, Yumi shouted, "I don't know!" Pouting, she slumped onto the table. "Sorry, I don't know what to do. There's so many options."

"That's very true!" Ms. Fukukado said, giving Yumi a pat on the head. "Sometimes, all you can do is trust your instincts and make the best deck you can!"

"Yeah, but I just don't know what the best deck is in this situation," she replied, sitting up only to quickly lean over onto Sakuya's shoulder. "I know there's something. Just some thing that's going to make it all click into place. I just don't know what that is."

"We all believe in you," her grandmother told her, squeezing one of her hands. "You don't have to be finished for a while, right? Let's just take our time with this."

"Thanks," Yumi said. "Thanks, everyone. This really is a lot easier with everyone helping. I don't know what I would do if I had to do this all by myself."

"We've all got your back," Kazuhiko said, giving a thumbs up along with Hideo.

Having so many people to rely on really did make this easier. Whatever mental block was stopping her from completing this deck would eventually pass. When it did, all of them would be there to help her build it. They were all in this together to the very end.

Then she had a thought. Sitting back up, she scanned the cards set out in front of her. "That...then that...and…" She muttered to herself as everyone else leaned in, realizing she was having some kind of epiphany.

"I've got it!" Yumi exclaimed, already grabbing cards to sort them into little piles. "I think it's going to work! This feels like the way to go!"

Sakuya nodded. "Right, that one, plus that." She leaned as far as she could in her chair, reaching out towards something on the other end of the table. Kyoko handed it to her so that she could subsequently give it to Yumi. "This one, right?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "This is good. It's coming together like I thought."

"Oh, I get it!" Suzy said beside her.

"This is good," Rio echoed, the rest giving similar affirmations as the deck came together. It would take another hour, plus a good bit more for some quick testing, but by the end, Yumi's deck was finished.

"I guess this is it," Kazuhiko said. "You feeling confident?"

"Definitely," Yumi said, sorting through her cards again. A good portion of the deck was similar to her usual builds, but she was hoping a few key changes would be able be able to tip the scales once the duel started.

"What do we do now?" Yuu asked.

"I'm not really sure," Yumi replied. "Izar didn't give us an actual time limit."

"Not like you've got his number, either," Kyoko said.

"I can be of assistance with that," came a voice from the doorway. "Before that, though, I did have a suggestion." Of course, it had to be Alramech.

"What is it?" Yumi asked as she stood up from her seat.

Alramech stepped forward. "I think we all know that Izar doesn't intend to play fair in this duel," he said, possibly making the understatement of the entirety of human history. "So, I propose something to make things a bit more fair."

"Like what?" Sakuya asked, already losing patience with his vagueness.

"I'd like to create a card," he said. "One to increase your power."

"Yeah, that sounds okay," Yumi replied. "What kind? Do you have it?"

"That would be the complication I need to discuss with you," he said, everyone suddenly growing worried. "I can't lie. I don't have much time left. My energy reserves are low and I have no way to restore them at this point."

He sighed, then continued. "I can't create a card in this state."

"Then what do we do?" Yumi asked.

"If you couldn't do it, why even bring it up?" Kazuhiko scoffed.

"If I am to do it," Alramech said, his voice deadly serious as he knelt down to Yumi's level, "I would need your help."

"What can I do?" Yumi asked. If it would help her beat Izar and protect the world, she'd do virtually anything.

"I can use as much of my power as possible," Alramech explained, "but I would need you to provide the rest. With your control of Chaos, it should be possible. That said…" His pause had to mean bad news. "Even with that, it's likely that your own energy will be added to the equation."

"What does that mean?" she asked.

"It means that creating this card would be using your own life force," Alramech said. "I can't say how much. Maybe a little, perhaps most of it. It's impossible to say, but the effects could be devastating."

After a moment, Yumi asked, "How devastating?"

"By my estimation, you would only have a few years left to live at worst."

"That's not happening," Yumi's grandmother said. "If you have to take from someone for whatever this is, take it from me."

"You can't do that!" Yumi shouted.

Her grandmother took her by the hand, shaking her head. "Yumi, I won't let that happen to you. I'm not letting you give up your life like this. Besides, how much…" She stopped herself for a moment, realizing what she was about to say. "I'm old already. I've lived my life. You still have to live yours."

While most were stunned into silence, Sakuya managed to speak up. "Would splitting it work?" she asked. "If you took it from more than one person, what would happen?"

"Sakuya, no!" Yumi told her. "I'm not letting anyone die because of me."

Alramech thought on that despite Yumi's objections, replying, "For what it's worth, it shouldn't be an issue. Drawing energy from more than one source was the plan already."

"So it wouldn't take as much from just one person," Sakuya concluded, her plan now becoming clear.

"Hey, that's a good idea!" Kazuhiko said. Slamming his hand on the table, he shouted, "Then that settles it! Count me in, too! Suck me dry, space man!" Hideo nodded in agreement, giving a thumbs up to signify they were just as onboard with this plan as he was.

"Use whatever you need from me," Yuu told him.

"Me, too," Kyoko said. "I've probably got some soul energy to spare, or whatever."

"And me," Suzy agreed. "I can't just let you go in alone."

"I'm just here for the food," Kenji joked, adding, "but, yeah, take a little off the top. Still don't understand it, but I like helping my friends."

"At this point, I'd just feel bad if everyone else donated and I didn't," Rio quipped.

Ms. Fukukado nodded. "It's been my responsibility to help Yumi become the best duelist she can be, so this isn't too much different!"

Yumi was stunned into silence at all of this. Everyone she cared about was ready and willing to give up their lives just to help her. Needless to say, she was getting emotional, realizing just how loved she really was.

She sniffed, wiping some tears from her eyes. "Are you really sure?" she asked them all.

"Of course we are," Sakuya told her. "You're fighting for all of us, so it's not right for us to just stand back and watch."

Yumi laughed, a few more tears making their way down her cheeks. "Thank you. Thank you all so much."

"Well, if everyone is sure of this," Alramech said, raising a hand. He lowered it again, though, when he heard movement from outside the room.

"There you are!" Ami shouted, bursting in. "I was looking everywhere! Yumi, what are you doing here?"

"Ami?" she stammered back. "What are you doing here?"

Sighing heavily, she ran up and pulled Yumi into a hug. "I figured the last big energy signature had to know something, so I came here as soon as I could get a lock on it." That explained some things but ultimately just raised many more questions. "Have you been here this whole time? Everyone's been so worried."

"It's a long story," Yumi said. "But still, how did you end up here? And why are you in your cosplay outfit? But also, it's super pretty!"

Ami released her, taking a silent step backwards. As Yumi had just said, she was dressed in a short, soft orange, frilly dress, the rock normally held around her neck now set into an elaborate broach pinned at her collar. "Really?" she sighed. "Yumi, I'm a magical girl. I've been trying to get you to understand that since last year. Did you not figure it out?"

Yumi blinked a few times, then answered, "What? Yeah, of course." Then her eyes went wide. "Wait, the cosplay stuff and the magic stuff were the same this whole time?"

"Are you serious?" Ami screamed.

"You knew, too?" Suzy hollered from behind. "I thought you didn't, so I never said anything!"

"You both knew?"

"You're very bad at hiding it!" Yumi screamed back. "I just thought it was two different things, okay? And I've been super mad you didn't show me any of your cosplay before, but now I finally get it! The cosplay was just a cover story!"

"What is going on?" Sakuya finally shouted.

Yumi, Ami, and Suzy all looked to each other, then back at her. "We're just clearing up a misunderstanding," Yumi said. "Anyway, that's so cool! What have you been doing this whole time?"

"Well, me and my team have been trying to get a handle on everything that's been happening," she replied. "Things happened so fast, so until today, we never even saw any of those guys."

"Constellations?" Yumi asked. "You met one?"

"I think that's what she said. It was someone named Prima."

"Are you saying that you're the one who defeated Prima?" Alramech asked with obvious curiosity. "How is that possible?"

"It wasn't easy," Ami told him, everyone looking at her in a mixture of amazement and confusion. "She was so strong. After a lot of fighting, though, I think something we said changed her mind. At the end, she stopped and then just...faded away." She scratched her head. "I don't know if she's alive or not, and I'm not sure how to feel about that."

"That should be impossible," Alramech said. "If this is true, then that kind of power would be enough on its own." Catching Ami up on what they'd been discussing before, he asked, "Would you be willing to use some of that power in conjunction with my own?"

"Normally, yeah," Ami said. "Right now, though, we're all pretty drained." She touched the rock in her broach, explaining, "All of our Lovely Stones need time to recharge after a battle. That one was super intense, too. I don't know if I have much energy to offer."

Ami thought fast as she saw everyone becoming disheartened, seeming to come up with a workaround. "Wait, I might have an idea." Touching her stone, it glowed a bright orange. "Hey, I figured some things out and I know how we can help," she said, the rock apparently acting as a communication device. "Come find me and I'll explain."

They only had to wait for a few seconds, a trio of colorful lights bursting in from the hallway to drown out the amazed and troubled screams of people they passed on the way down. These lights quickly condensed into who must have been Ami's teammates.

"What is it now?" a boy in a blue dress said, seemingly unconcerned about the end of the world given his attitude.

"Ignore him," said a shorter girl in red, a large birthmark covering half her face. "You figured something out?" Something about her commanding voice and overwhelming confidence gave the impression she was the leader.

"So many people…" a tall girl in pink muttered, apparently very anxious even in this small crowd.

Ami went over the details quickly, Alramech filling in what she missed to help the three in understanding the current situation. "So if we all help out, my friend has a better chance of beating the last guy."

"Doesn't seem like we can do much," the boy sighed, continuing his streak of being dismissive.

"Every bit counts," Ami insisted. "And it's not like we can fight him ourselves."

"Makes sense to me," the leader said, nodding. "We'll do what we can." Suddenly, she felt something tug at her sleeve, looking up to find her teammate trying her best to cower behind her. "What is it?"

"That one keeps looking at me," the tall girl whispered, pointing at Yuu as she stated wide-eyed and stone-faced at her.

Yumi laughed nervously. "Sorry, she's not good with people."

"I like her," Yuu said very seriously, apparently enraptured by this new magical girl.

The boy gave a smug laugh, slapping his comrade on the back. "Look, you finally have a fan."

"I don't know how to deal with fans," she moaned.

"A heartwarming scene," Alramech said, the slightest hint in his voice that he might be losing patience with their new allies. "But overall, you agree with our plan, correct?"

"Yeah, we'll help," the leader repeated. "Just tell us what we need to do."

As the others discussed all this, Hideo wrote out a message and nudged Kazuhiko. Reading it, he nodded quickly. "Hey, that's smart," he said. "Hideo had an idea!"

With everyone looking their way, he said, "Why don't we get everyone to help? Like, the whole city."

"We can't just ask a bunch of randos to give up their energy like that," Kyoko said. "They didn't ask for this."

"Yeah, but we are involved now," Suzy told her, evidently the ambassador for everyone in Chiba otherwise unconnected to the war. For what it's worth, Kenji did nod in agreement.

"It's like she said before," Rio added, pointing to Sakuya. "Yumi's fighting for everyone, so we should all do what we can to support her."

"I don't know if that's right," Yumi said.

"It's not like we're going around robbing people," Kazuhiko said. "Give them a choice."

"That seems like a fair decision," Alramech agreed. "Between everyone in this city, I'd imagine the energy siphoned from each person would only be a bit more than negligible."

"What does that mean in practice?" Sakuya asked him. "Are we all still going to die after?"

"Eventually, of course," he replied like a smartass. "But in terms of the effect it would have on your longevity, it shouldn't be more than a few days for everyone."

"Shit, I'm sold," Kazuhiko said, Hideo nodding beside him. "So I die a couple days before I'm supposed to, so what? That's like eating a couple extra hot dogs over the course of my life."

"I can think of far worse things that could happen to us!" Ms. Fukukado agreed. "Like total annihilation!"

Yumi looked around the room, realizing how serious everyone was. "I guess that's what we'll do," she said. "But it can't be forced. It has to be people's choice, like we said."

"Of course," Alramech said. "I'll start the process and alert the people of this city. I should still have the power to do that much." He gestured her over, holding his hand out in front of him like he wanted someone to hand him something. "If you wouldn't mind, I'd like you to call on the Chaos now."

"Oh, okay," Yumi said, taking a breath before shouting, "Chaos Mode!" Like before, she was overtaken by a shifting aura, hair standing up as power coursed through her.

"Now, let's begin," Alramech said, taking a reda crystal from his pocket. A light formed in the palm of his hand where it sat, Yumi's aura being pulled into it. At the same time, his voice began to echo through everyone's minds. "Attention, people of Chiba City. If you have the will and ability, we humbly request that you provide us with energy. The process will not be painful, but will require a small amount of your life force. If you can face the challenge of shortening your life by a small amount, raise your hand to the sky. If you do, Takano Yumi can surely defeat the world's final enemy and bring an end to this war."

Presumably, this went out to everyone within the city, not just those present in the room. "That's what we have to do?" Kazuhiko asked, already raising his hand. As soon as he did, a shimmering ball of yellow light emerged from his palm, red flashing around him for the briefest moment before it floated into Alramech's grasp.

Everyone else followed suit immediately, each one donating a similar ball of energy. Ami and her team joined in then, their stones glowing and projecting a color-coded stream of energy into the equation. A few seconds later, a flood of other balls came in from around the facility.

"You can do it, small child!" said someone's voice.

"You're the only one who can win this," said another.

"I'm a fan for life if you can win this!" came a third.

"What is that?" Yumi asked, her Chaos still being siphoned into Alramech's hand.

"The feelings of those giving up their energy," Alramech explained. "From the people in this facility, specifically."

With a bit of effort, Yumi was able to make out a few of them among the chorus of voices.

"It was an honor serving under you." That had to be Arisagawa.

"We've got a lot more stories to tell, kid." Shigeo.

"Seriously, don't misplay this time around." Masakawa hadn't changed at all.

"You've gone far, Yumi." That was Minerva's voice.

"Never give up." Now Rafael.

"Pick up where I left off, okay?" That was...Ren?

"I may not believe in this world, but I believe in you now." Of all people, that was Taniguchi. This one was followed by another four messages, all begrudgingly supporting her at risk of being wiped out with the rest of the planet. Had he somehow convinced the other emissaries, too?

Before long, everyone from the facility had given their energy. When they did, it all seemed to stop. "Is that it?" Sakuya asked. "Shouldn't there be more?"

"Is no one else going to do it?" Kenji wondered.

"What the hell?" Kazuhiko shouted. "This is a big city, come on!"

They waited, seconds turning to minutes. It seemed like not a single person in Chiba was up to the task of providing their energy. It was hard to blame them, though it was certainly frustrating. This was a big ask, not to mention pretty vague. Suspicious mind voices asking for dangerous favors weren't to be trusted in most situations.

Almost as soon as they began to give up hope, though, another ball of light entered the room. "I hope this helps, Yumi." That was Megumi.

Appropriately, a second came not long after that. "I need you to win, otherwise I can't get married!" If nothing else, Koichi had his priorities in order.

Whatever had held them up earlier must have no longer been an issue, as the floodgate official broke. Thousands of energy orbs poured in, the voices a deafening roar of support. They kept coming and coming to the point where it really seemed that everyone in Chiba had taken up the call.

"I've been a fan since last summer!"

"Come back to school soon!"

"Didn't you fog up my card case a long time ago?"

"I know your father would be proud."

"Tell Mitsu to come back or mom will be mad."

"Save the world like you saved Miss Rio."

"Try using Desertapir!"

"Good luck, miss lady!"

"Sad I lost at the tournament, since I always wanted to duel you!"

"You'll inspire people more than you'll ever know."

"Win or I'll flunk you, Takano!"

"If you lose, my Madolches will be sad…"

This went on for what felt like forever, though it had to have only been a few minutes. People she knew were in there, but even complete strangers were sending her all of this encouragement. If not for the Chaos and her focus on funneling it into Alramech, Yumi would have been brought to tears all over again.

"That's it!" Alramech shouted, the last of the energy absorbing into his palm. Closing it, a bright flash of light accompanied by a loud hum filled the room. Both slowly died down, with Alramech saying, "It's done."

When her vision cleared, the first thing Yumi saw was the card they'd all worked so hard to make. It slowly spun around on a corner just slightly above Alramech's hand. While the back was there, its front was blank, shiny particles floating across its surface.

Taking it, Yumi looked it over. "What happens now?" she asked.

"Well, the card needs a bit more time to fully form. 'Time in the oven' as I've heard people amusingly say. It should be ready soon, though."

"So, that's it?" Yumi gave the card another look, then slipped it into her deck. "I guess I should get ready."

"Should we leave you alone for that?" her grandmother asked.

"For a little bit, yeah." No one seemed like they wanted to do that given the gravity of the situation, but if space was what she needed to get ready, space is what they'd give her.

Everyone slowly filed out of the room, Sakuya staying behind for a moment. "Can I say something?" she asked Yumi as everyone else left.

"Sure, what?" Yumi replied, suddenly being pulled in by the collar and having a kiss planted on her lips.

"Just that," Sakuya said with a smile, holding out just long enough to wheel away before she turned completely red.

Yumi smiled, touching her lips before she hopped up and down across the room. Having more of that waiting for her in the future was definitely motivating her to win, not that she really needed more of a reason to save the world. Once she calmed down, she took a seat back at the table and sorted through her deck.

She wasn't planning to make any changes at this point, but running through it all one last time would help her focus. These were the cards she was trusting with her life, the same ones all of Earth's hopes were riding on. The weight of that responsibility wasn't something she took lightly.

And yet, in spite of that, part of her was actually excited. These were the highest stakes of any duel ever (as far as she knew, at least). Of everyone alive right now, it was her who got to take on that challenge. Maybe it was inappropriate to be thinking like that, but there was a thrill to that. Even now, she couldn't help but have fun playing Duel Monsters.

Coming to the end of her cards, she put them back their case at her belt. Heading outside, she found Rio waiting for her. "Everyone else is up ahead," she told her.

"Oh, okay," Yumi replied. "What are you doing here, then?"

Rio shuffled her feet nervously, scratching at her face. "I just…" Taking a breath, she finally said. "I had something to ask."

Yumi tilted her head to the side. "Okay. Ask."

Rio was clearly having trouble speaking her mind, a rare occurrence to say the least. After a good bit of making incoherent noises and scrunching her face, she finally took another breath and said, "Yumi, when this is over, will you go out with me?"

This sudden confession completely shut off Yumi's brain for a good ten seconds. When it finally rebooted, she squatted down, holding the sides of her head. "Oh no," she whimpered.

"What?" Rio asked, beginning to panic. "Ah, okay. I get it. You don't feel the same. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything." Despite the monotone overtaking her voice, she was clearly about to lose it.

"No, no, it's…" Her face turning red, Yumi stood back up and clarified, "I'm already with someone."

Now it was Rio's turn to malfunction. "Huh?" She had the expression of someone whose entire life was flashing before their eyes, though this instance was likely more focused on figuring out who had beaten her to the punch. "Wait, it...it's her, isn't it?"

Yumi nodded. "Yeah, it's Sakuya. Sorry."

Rio bit her bottom lip, pulling on her hair and finally shouting, "Damn it!" As soon as the words left her mouth, she covered it with her hands. For what may have been the first time in her entire life, she'd just said a curse word.

"I'm sorry!" Yumi said through her laughter.

Rio pulled her hair even harder. "Okay, I change what I want to ask!" she shouted. "Lose! Lose hard!"

"What?"

"Lose so no one ever has to remember any of this!" Rio shrieked into the air, finally losing strength and crumpling to the floor.

Yumi kept laughing, picking her back up and giving her a hug. "Let's talk about it after this is over, okay?" she said, patting her on the head.

"Okay," Rio said, her horror and disbelief beginning to cool into a tired acceptance. While it was certainly a weight off her soul to finally have that confession out there, the results were an unmitigated disaster.

They walked towards the surface, finally rejoining everyone else. "Is everything okay?" Sakuya asked. "I heard screaming."

"It's fine," Yumi said, stifling another laugh. "I'll tell you later."

Upon hearing that Yumi would be telling other people about this, Rio stiffened, then walked over to fall into Ms. Fukukado's arms. "Find Fukuro," she mumbled. "Someone needs to put me down. I want it to be him."

"Putting that aside," Alramech spoke up, "are you prepared for battle?"

Yumi took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. Nodding, she gave a determined, "Yeah!"

Alramech smiled. "Then we shouldn't waste any time." He and Yumi walked out of the garage and up to the surface, the latter quickly recognized as their world's champion. In no time at all, the citizens of Chiba were cheering for her as she walked through the crowd.

"Any second thoughts?" Alramech asked over the applause and well-wishes.

"A lot," Yumi admitted. "I'm not going to run away, though."

"That's good to know," he said, looking to the sky. A second later, his hair blew back, whatever message he'd sent being received. The clouds overhead parted, a light shining from up above.

Unfolding before them was a staircase of light, the final step coming down directly in front of Yumi. "I guess this is it," she said, taking a deep breath. Truth be told, her anxiety was spiking now that everything was set out right in front of her. As she said, she wouldn't be running, but taking that first step was proving to be harder than expected.

Looking back, she saw the people of her city who had all given her their energy. Further back, she saw all of her loved ones who had helped her reach this spot. She couldn't be afraid with all of them watching. In fact, all the fear she was feeling was starting to disappear. They were all behind her now, so she absolutely couldn't lose.

"I'm going now," she said. Looking up to Alramech, they nodded to each other. Yumi took her first step, testing to make sure it was even there. It seemed solid enough, so she tried the second step, then the third.

Soon enough, she was walking. Trying hard not to look down for fear of discovering some latent acrophobia, she picked up the pace at the halfway mark. Feeling her confidence grow with every step, she soon broke into a run.

"I'm coming, Izar!" she shouted into the sky, going up and up into the clouds and through a black doorway at the end.

Creating that card is one of my favorite scenes. Everyone showing up to help and really reaffirming the themes of the story all in one go with those last little messages from the supporting cast. It made me happy.

Kept all the actual deck building vague for obvious reasons. It's fun to speculate about what some of the options would have been, though. Imagine Yumi rolling up to the final battle with Tearalaments. Suddenly she becomes the villain.

Some would call introducing three new characters at the very end of the story bad writing. I would say, "Relax." I hope the joke is clear that Ami and the others are all "bad" magical girls who don't fit the standards of the genre. Ami is fat, Suzume has a big birthmark over her face, Mayuko is trans with severe anxiety, and Hikaru is a guy. No good chance to have their names come up since they don't normally go around telling everyone their real identities, so here we go.

Very satisfying as her mom to see Yumi go from being a nobody to having an entire city cheer her on as she heads into battle. Her arc's come full circle.

The joke with Rio was another one I've had planned since basically forever. I always knew that's how I wanted the detail about her avoiding swearing to end. It's always been a joke I'm unsure of how to translate, since I usually plan things like that with a "Japanese equivalent" in mind to make it feel more authentically like something that's been localized. I guess the closest would be that she only uses formal language, so now she breaks and finally starts speaking informally.

That's about all we have for now. Next is the start of the final battle for real this time no take backs or do overs.

Thanks for reading. Share if you're enjoying. Always remember to prepare fully before you rush into things.