DDR CITY Enter The Standard Realm
By
Darkness Shade
A/N: Anything I use is that isn't mine is copyright it's original creator(s). The special cameo is copyright herself…even though her in story deck was created by my mind. And yes, I'm well aware I said DDR HEARTS 2 would be the next story in the series, but hey, I needed a little in-between thing to help set things up and to keep me from getting rusty…and this was the best way I could think of doing it. I may write another chapter under this new title, but I'm not sure…my mind is having trouble thinking up fic ideas.
Unknown Location
"Ugh…damn that Sephiroth." Ryan said, shaking his head, "I really thought he was gone."
Ryan looked around at his surroundings and didn't see any of his friends.
"Where the hell did everyone go? Grr, when I find Sephiroth, I'm going to pluck his feathers off one by one." Ryan shouted, "Well, this direction seems as good as any."
Ryan flew off, unaware of the presence watching him.
"Finally…the one has arrived…it is time to see if he is as good as the legends say." Said the figure before following him.
Ryan landed and surveyed the area around him.
"This almost looks like DDR CITY, but things seem…redder…for some reason." Ryan said.
"How observant of you." Said the figure, landing opposite of Ryan.
"Who the hell might you be?" Ryan said, drawing his Keysaber, "Are you another lackey of Sephiroth's?"
"Heh, heh…no, no…I have nothing to do with that man." Said the figure, "I am here to test your skills and see if you really are who they say you are."
"Then who are you?" Ryan said, putting his Keysaber away, "I'm starting to get tired of this game."
"You may call me…" the figure said, removing her cloak, "Zelda Rose!!"
"A girl?! That's different." Ryan said, slightly surprised, "So, what is it that you want?"
"Why, my dear Ryan, a duel of course." Zelda said, showing her duel pad.
"Very well…that's fine by me." Ryan said, readying his duel pad.
"There is…one little rule, though." Zelda said as her duel pad launched, "We will play here…in the 'Standard Realm'!"
"The 'Standard Realm'? Explain this nonsense to me." Ryan said.
"Very well…as the name suggests, in this duel you can only play Standard level steps for songs." Zelda said, "However, you can still play Heavy steps through character sacrifices."
"So basically, to play harder songs that summon harder characters, I have to give up lower level characters?" Ryan asked, drawing his first hand.
"Exactly…now let's duel!" Zelda shouted, "My move."
Zelda played the song 'Bad Routine'.
"Now I summon 'Afro (5th Mix)' (1700/1400) to the field in attack mode." Zelda said, "And I use this magic card, 'First Stage', to attack you directly without having to wait. Attack his life points directly 'Afro (5th mix)'!"
"Baby, you outta time!" said 'Afro' in a deep voice as he landed a kick to Ryan's head.
"Argh…" Ryan said, reeling from the kick, "It wouldn't be bad if he didn't wear those damn platform shoes."
A screen with the number 6300 appeared in front of Ryan, showing his life points.
Ryan played 'Cartoon Heroes (Speedy Mix)'.
"I summon 'Sora' (2100/2300). Now, attack 'Afro' with your Strike Raid!" Ryan shouted.
"Disco is dead!" 'Sora' shouted as his Strike Raid attack sliced 'Afro' in half.
"Grr…you are good." Zelda said, her life points dropping to 7600.
"My turn!" Zelda said, drawing her next card, 'Ah, good…this one will help.'
Zelda played 'Afronova' and summoned 'Shadow (SA2B)' (2000/1650) in attack mode.
"I'll also lay two cards face down. Your move, Ryan." Zelda said with a smile.
'Heh, that smirk of hers is cute…but now isn't the time.' Ryan thought, drawing his next card, 'Ah, 'Legend'…I'll need you in a bit.'
"Any day now, Ryan." Zelda said, tapping her foot in impatience.
"Very well." Ryan said, playing 'So Deep (Perfect Sphere Mix)', "I summon 'U1' (1300/1200) to the field…but I now sacrifice both 'Sora' and 'U1' to play a song on Heavy mode.
'Clever…but you'll get yours soon enough.' Zelda thought with a smile.
"I also play the magic card, 'Joint Premium'." Ryan said with a smile.
"What? What does that card do?" Zelda asked.
"Simple, it allows me to play any song, with its double step set." Ryan said with a grin.
'Oh, crap!' Zelda thought, as Ryan's 1 pad turned into 2.
Ryan played 'Genom Screams' and summoned 'Ryan the Keysaber Master' (4000/3500) in attack mode.
"Let's see you avoid this attack!" Ryan shouted as 'Ryan' charged at 'Shadow'.
"I don't think so. Reveal facedown card, 'Chaos Control!'." Zelda said.
"Dammit!" Ryan shouted as 'Ryan' froze and his attack was negated, "That'll save you for the moment…but you won't be so lucky next time."
'We'll just see about that.' Zelda said, drawing her next card.
Zelda played 'Candy Star' and summoned 'Amy Rose' (1400/1700) in defense mode.
"Now I'll sacrifice 'Shadow' and 'Amy Rose' to play a Heavy song." Zelda said, choosing and playing 'Do It Right (80's Electro Mix)'.
"Now I summon 'Devil Paladin Zukin' (2800/2400) in attack mode." Zelda said.
"What good will that do you? My character is stronger than that one." Ryan said.
"Heh, we shall see." Zelda said, "So go ahead and make your move."
"Very well." Ryan said, drawing his next card.
Ryan played 'Frozen Ray' and summoned 'Charmy 3rd Mix' (1500/2000) in defense mode.
"Now I'll use the magic card, '1.5x Speed'. This card allows my character to move fast enough to bypass your character card and attack you directly.
'Damn…I wasn't expect this.' Zelda thought.
"Now take this!" Ryan shouted as his sped up card self lunged at Zelda, taking away a good chunk of her life points.
"Grr…" Zelda said, her life points dropping to 3600, "Heh, heh, heh…"
"Care to clue me in as to what is so funny?" Ryan asked.
"Why, just look at your character card." Zelda said.
"What the hell?!" Ryan shouted, "What's wrong with my card self?"
In case the viewer is wondering, Ryan's card self was having a rather terrible fit as he apparently was self-destructing.
"Damn!" Ryan shouted, as his card blew up, "Why did that happen?"
"Heh, I can easily explain that if you wish." Zelda said with a smirk.
"Very well…I suppose we can extend this duel even further by doing this, it always worked for Yu-Gi-Oh." Ryan said, winking at the audience.
"Remember, this is called the 'Standard Realm'." Zelda said, "So any character summoned by a Standard level song step is going to be stable…however…"
"However, " Ryan said, catching on, "Any special summoned characters using Heavy level song steps aren't stable…"
"Exactly…after two turns, they can no longer exist…and thus they expire." Zelda said, "Which leaves you with only one character card to protect yourself with."
"Heh, we'll see how well I'm protected." Ryan said, placing a card facedown, "Your turn!"
"Very well." Zelda said, "I invoke the special ability of my 'Dark Paladin Zukin' to summon forth 'Princess Zukin' (2000/1800) in attack mode."
'Damn, now I'm gonna lose some life points.' Ryan thought.
"Now, 'Princess Zukin', attack his 'Charmy 3rd Mix' with Royale Barrage!" Zelda shouted.
'Princess Zukin' outstretched her arm as a vast amount of the members of her court proceeded to plow all over 'Charmy 3rd Mix'.
"Wait, since her attack points match my cards defense points, why isn't she gone as well?" Ryan asked.
"Simple, 'Princess Zukin' gains an attack bonus when other Zukin type characters are on the field. Since 'Dark Paladin Zukin' is also on the field, 'Princess Zukin' gains a 500 point attack bonus, raising her attack to 2500." Zelda said.
"Damn…" Ryan said.
"And I'm not finished yet, 'Dark Paladin Zukin', attack Ryan's life points directly!" Zelda shouted, "Say goodbye to a chunk of life points."
"Maybe not, reveal trap card, '.5x Speed'." Ryan said.
"What does that card do?" Zelda asked.
"Simple, by slowing the speed of your character, it also halves it's attack points…lowering them to 1400. So while I still lose some and drop to 4900, it's not as bad as it could've been." Ryan explained.
"That was pretty clever of you." Zelda said, "Especially since my 'Dark Paladin Zukin' now fades away after being on the field for 2 turns."
"I try my best. My move." Ryan said, playing 'PARANOiA Survivor'.
"And now I'll summon 'PARANOiA Survivor' (2600/2400). Now say goodbye to your 'Princess Zukin'." Ryan shouted as 'PARANOiA Survivor' tore through 'Princess Zukin'.
"Heh, heh, heh…" Zelda said.
"Why the hell are you laughing?" Ryan asked, till he noticed his life points dropping.
"Because I played this card, 'Reverse Destruction'." Zelda said, "This card takes any life points I would lose and subtracts them from you. So you just lost 600 life points on that."
"So what? I'm down to 4300. Still more than you." Ryan said, "And I'm still a better DDRist, so you won't last for long. Your move…"
"We'll see about that." Zelda said, playing 'PARANOiA Survivor MAX' and summoning 'PARANOiA Survivor MAX' (2800/2400).
"Heh, you're pretty good…" Ryan said, "Let's see how good."
"Very well…say goodbye to your card." Zelda shouted as 'PARANOiA Survivor MAX' attacked 'PARANOiA Survivor'.
"Argh…so what… that's only 200 life points." Ryan said, his life points dropping to 4100, "I think we've fooled around long enough. Time to put you in your place."
"Do what ever you think will help, you fool." Zelda said, "You shan't win."
Ryan smiled evilly as he selected 'The Legend of Max'.
"What? You've got to be kidding me!" Zelda said, 'What can he possibly be doing picking that song?'
Ryan played 'The Legend of Max', full-combo-ing it on Standard.
"Heh, heh, heh…you know what that means…" Ryan said, playing his 'Legend of Max' card (5000/5000) in attack mode.
"You…you have a Max Brother card?" Zelda said, shocked, 'Damn…'
"Yes…and you can say goodbye to your 'PARANOiA Survivor MAX'. Attack, 'Legend', with you Boost Arrow Blitzkrieg!" Ryan shouted, as the arrow barrage mowed down 'PARANOiA Survivor MAX'.
"Dammit!" Zelda shouted, her life points dropping to 1400.
"Feeling a little in over your head, my dear?" Ryan asked.
"Perhaps I did underestimate you…" Zelda said, drawing her next card, 'Damn…if only I'd have gotten this card sooner.'
"So…are you going to do anything? Or shall I finish this?" Ryan asked, till he saw Zelda's hand on her deck, "I see…I accept your surrender."
Ryan recalled his duel pad and walked over to Zelda, hand held out, "Good match."
Zelda recalled her pad and shook hands with Ryan, "Yes…you are definitely who I thought you were."
"Which reminds me, why did you need to challenge me? What's going on?" Ryan asked.
"This place…I've been here so long." Zelda said.
"How? How did you get here?" Ryan asked.
"I once lived in the same world you come from…and always aspired to be as good as you." Zelda said, "One day, though, I came across a rather curious item."
"An item?" Ryan asked, "What kind of item?"
"It was a golden object…in the shape of an arrow." Zelda said.
"You mean, like this?" Ryan said, pulling out his Bemani Arrow.
"Exactly! Where did you find this?!" Zelda asked, grabbing hold of it.
"Ugh, can't breathe!" Ryan shouted as the crowd holding his Bemani Arrow was pulled against his throat.
"Oh, sorry." Zelda said, blushing.
"It's okay…" Ryan said, "Anyway, continue if you will."
"Yes…after touching it, I was whisked away to a world not of my own." Zelda said, "It was an interesting place…ruled by a man known as Ansem."
"Ansem…? I don't know an Ansem, but I did know an Ansemian." Ryan said.
"You knew here? She was Ansem's younger sister." Zelda said.
"What?! She has two brothers?!" Ryan said, "Great…I wonder if the other one is as crazy as Sephiroth."
"Wait…Sephiroth is Anse's brother?!" Zelda said, shocked, "Jeez…things never are how you think they are then. Anyway…one day, Sephiroth vanished, where I don't know. This slowly drove Ansem mad and well, then he disappeared. After that…"
"Ansemian went insane about being the best DDRist in the universe and used the Heartless to cause all sorts of trouble." Ryan said.
"That's right…how did you know?" Zelda asked.
"I was the one who beat her…along with my friends." Ryan said.
"I really have been here for too long…" Zelda said.
"You never did say how you got trapped here." Ryan said.
"That was Anse's doing…she didn't mean it, I'm sure of it…she was just mad with power. One day I tried to talk her out of the insanity she was doing and…she banished me here." Zelda said, "I've waited here so long for someone who might help me…when I saw you appear, I felt I'd finally be freed from this hellhole. Hence why I had to test you. I needed to be sure it was really you."
"I'm still not sure how I can help." Ryan said, "How can I get you out of here, let alone myself as well?"
"This way, follow me." Zelda said, taking off.
"Here we are." Zelda said.
"This thing almost looks familiar." Ryan said, staring at the beam of light, "Like the ones at the end of the world."
"As far as I know, this is the only way out of this place…however, I've been unable to break through whatever is protecting it." Zelda said, "Every time I try, I just get pushed back by some unknown force."
"Let's see if I can push through." Ryan said, charging at it…only to get knocked back, "Damn…guess I'll have to go Super then."
Ryan gathered his ki and then powered up, his hair turning gold and giving off a silverish aura.
"Let's try this again!" Ryan said, charging straight at the pillar, pushing against it, "Come on….!!!!"
Ryan was thrown back and landed on his head, "Ow…."
"It's no use." Zelda said, "We'll be stuck here forever…but at least now, I'm not lonely anymore."
Ryan smiled, and shook his head, "I won't give up, the two of us are getting out of here even if I have to go all the way!"
Ryan concentrated even harder, the lightning crackling off him and bouncing on the pillar of light.
With a loud scream, Ryan's hair grew longer, his aura turning to a more gold-bronze color, and his power going through the roof.
"Holy…Holy Shit…I managed to go Super 3." Ryan said with a grin, "I'm not giving up, I will get us out of here!"
Ryan flew full force at the barrier surrounding the light, pushing hard, "It's still not enough…time for more push. Zelda, stand clear now!"
Zelda flew out of the way as Ryan put his hands together.
"Light Force Attack!!" Ryan shouted as he let loose with a massive ki blast, giving him enough force to break through and shatter the barrier.
Ryan collapsed from fatigue and turned back into his normal self.
"Ryan, Ryan! You did it, you did it!" Zelda said, rushing over to help Ryan up.
"Yeah, Now…hurry…we have to get through. I'm not sure if that barrier will come back or not, but I don't want to find out." Ryan said, using the last of his strength to walk.
Zelda nodded and helped pull Ryan through the pillar of light.
"I'm finally free…" Zelda said as she and Ryan were lifted upwards through the pillar.
A Grassy Plain
Ryan and Zelda were lying unconscious in an open field, as the sun slowly rose in the sky.
"Ugh…what happened?" Ryan said, then seeing Zelda there made everything come back, "Hey, we did it…I don't know where we are, but it's definitely not the 'Standard Realm.'"
Zelda began to stir and opened her eyes.
"Hey…I recognize this place. This is where I first appeared all that time ago." Zelda said, standing up.
"Then that would mean we're back on…figures…I wonder if the others are here?" Ryan said, standing up.
"I'm not sure, but if they were they'd probably be at the castle with the others." Zelda said, "You good to fly?"
"Yeah…let's go. I have a feeling we need to find them fast." Ryan said, taking off, "Something does not bode well with me."
"I know what you mean…something feels off…and I don't like it." Zelda said, following Ryan.
Unbeknownst to them, a familiar figure had been watching.
"I see…that foolish boy saved her. I should've known that even he could free them from the 'Standard Realm'. I suppose I shall have to do much like my sister and brother did…the universe shall soon quake in fear." Said the figure as he disappeared.