This chapter was originally meant to feature the Duel between Z-one and Aporia, but it got very long, so I split it up in two parts. The next chapter will be up tomorrow.
The chapter begins in Yusei's point of view.
Disclaimer: I do not own any Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's characters! I only own my OCs!
Chapter 107: The Leader of Iliaster; Z-one
"YUSEI!"
Antinomy's cry still echoed in my ears after he saved me from getting swallowed by the black hole that appeared in the middle of our Turbo Duel on that cosmic course. I still couldn't wrap it around my head that Antinomy had been none other than Bruno! One of my closest and best friends! We had shared so much together, but it had been nothing but an act to make me reach horizons I was unable to grasp before, to surpass my potential and limits, just to fulfill Iliaster's objective and bring the Ark Cradle to my timeline and destroy New Domino City to save their future.
I remembered how Bruno told me about the destruction he witnessed in the future involving the Meklords and the massive Zero Reverse. He stayed alive to find hope to restore the humanity and protect the world for further destruction along with his other allies in Iliaster with Z-one who resurrected them as androids after they passed away. I can't imagine what he and his allies had to endure in their timeline.
There were no traces of Antinomy's existence in the now dark Planetary Gear, except for his broken visors that somehow ended up with me after he pushed his Duel Runner to maximum speed to save me from the black hole, sacrificing his life so I could protect the future. I picked up the broken visor and stared at it with glassy eyes. My heart felt broken after losing someone close to me, but that was soon replaced by determination after I wiped my eyes clean.
Antinomy… Bruno… I swear I will save the future! For everyone's sake! I will use everything I've learned from you, both Accel Synchro and Delta Accel Synchro summoning, to protect the world I live in and the people I love with my Clear Mind!
My Duel Runner was still functional after crashing it when Bruno pushed me out of that cosmic universe. I pocketed the visors and got onto my Runner after picking it up from the ground and drove out of the Planetary Gear. I had to get to the Sun Gear to join everyone else so we could confront Z-one together. I hoped they were okay after their Duels.
It didn't take long to reach the Sun Gear where my friends were waiting in front of an open door. My heart eased itself after seeing they were unharmed. I parked my Duel Runner in front of them and removed my helmet before greeting them. "Everyone, you're okay", I said in relief.
"Yeah", Aki replied.
"Yusei, I got to be a hero just like you and Jack!" Leo exclaimed with a wide smile.
"Yusei, I wish you could have seen Leo's Duel", Jack said with a proud smile.
"If it wasn't for Leo, we couldn't have stopped the Planetary Gear", Luna added.
Leo looked a little embarrassed by all the praise he was receiving. "Well…", he giggled sheepishly. "You're exaggerating!"
I smiled proudly at the young boy and clapped his shoulder. "Leo, well done", I told him.
"Yusei", Leo giggled happily.
"Leo isn't the only hero here", Crow spoke up before he threw a thumb over his shoulder. "We were in quite the pickle ourselves, but Sherry saved us from getting destroyed by Paradox."
"Not only that, but she received her Signer Dragon too!" Aki said with a big smile.
Sherry smirked softly by the praise. "I only did what I need to do to fulfill my role as a Signer…and protect New Domino City", she said.
"You said you got your Signer Dragon, Sherry?" I asked.
The blonde nodded in response before she held up the card of her Signer Dragon. "It's this card", she stated.
I took a closer look at it and recognized the dragon on the artwork. "Isn't that the dragon we saw last year when the King of the Netherworld was resurrected?" I asked.
"It is, but it looks like it's now a Signer Dragon", Crow answered.
"Estelle's powers might have cleansed Beelze, so she's an ally now", Aki theorized.
"More of her 'miracle' powers…", Jack said sarcastically.
Speaking of… "Have you found or even heard from Estelle?" I asked.
My friends shook their heads with concerned expressions. This was getting worrisome. I too hadn't found traces of Estelle nor sensed her presence through my Mark for a long time now. Did something happen to her? What if she was hurt and she was somewhere in the Ark Cradle that was impossible to reach?
"Don't worry, Yusei", Crow snapped me out of the trance. "Knowing Estelle, she might've gone ahead to deal with Z-one."
"But the door was closed when we arrived here", Luna pointed out. "How could she have made it past the doors?"
"Unless Z-one invited her or something?" Leo suggested.
"Why would the enemy invite any of us?" Crow questioned.
"I might have an idea, but I hope that's not the case", I said. "We must hurry. We don't know how much time we have left."
"Yusei, where's the guy with the sunglasses?" Aki asked after realizing Antinomy wasn't with me.
I lowered my head as the sadness in my heart returned after it had almost disappeared. "He's gone", I told my friends as my hands shook by my emotions. "He was the guardian of the Planetary Gear. He was…Bruno."
Everyone exclaimed in shock when I revealed Antinomy's identity. "Bruno?" Crow asked to be sure he heard it right.
"Yeah", I nodded as I looked away.
"What do you mean?" Aki asked as her voice trembled by confusion. "Why Bruno?"
"Bruno's real name is Antinomy", I answered. "Like Aporia, Z-one sent him here in order to change the future."
"Just like with Paradox!" Sherry exclaimed in realization.
"Bruno was Z-one's servant?" Jack asked in anger.
"Does that mean Bruno was our enemy?" Luna asked in concern.
"No!" I shouted with the tone of my voice almost out of control. "It's true that Z-one sent Bruno. However, Bruno really did want to battle alongside us. That's why Bruno taught me something while he battled me. A new power I need to battle Z-one."
"A new power?" Jack asked.
"It's called Delta Accel Synchro", I replied.
"Delta Accel Synchro?" Leo repeated.
"He sacrificed himself to save me", I continued.
"That means Bruno is…", Aki trailed off as everyone quickly figured out what happened to him.
"Yeah…", I said quietly as I looked down. "He entrusted us with the future."
I did my best to hold back the tears that wanted to accumulate in my eyes. I had already cried enough for today and the burden to save the city was still onto my shoulders. I couldn't lose control of myself just yet.
"I'll make him pay!" Crow roared out loud angrily. "How dare he use Bruno to guard the Planetary Gear?!"
"Let's go and confront Z-one once and for all!" Jack exclaimed with a deadly glare. "We'll get Bruno's revenge! I won't stay quiet after he used a friend as a shield!"
Hearing my friends' determination on defeating the leader of Iliaster brought me out of the grief in my heart. "Yeah, let's go!" I called out, ready to put this to an end. "To Z-one!"
We hurried back to our respective Duel Runners and climbed onto them before taking off to our final destination. The twins strapped themselves onto their Duel Boards and held onto Jack's Duel Runner instead of sitting behind Aki and Crow on their Runners. We drove into the Sun Gear and drove up a spiral stairs that felt it kept going eternally. The walls glowed by the Ener-D and there were several gears made by the same energy. They didn't even have physical forms.
"What is this place?" Leo asked through the intercom.
"How far do we have to climb?" Luna wondered.
"Look at that!" Crow suddenly called.
I glanced up and looked to my left to see what appeared to be an Ener-D Reactor. The Ener-D was clearly active, but it had negative spin which explained why the Old Ener-D Reactor was spinning in the opposite direction. Not only that, but I recognized its structure. It would explain it since we've confirmed the Ark Cradle was the ruins of New Domino City from the future.
"It's the old Ener-D Reactor!" I said.
"The Old Ener-D Reactor's energy is powering the Sun Gear", Aki stated.
This was also a clear reminder of my destiny. It wasn't over yet, but I was getting close to it. All I had left to do was to defeat Z-one. That alone might stop the structure from destroying our home.
After what felt like eternal, we finally reached the exit and drove out to the last area of the Ark Cradle. I got surprised to see heaps of scraps scattered all around and also giant stone tablets that looked like petrified Duel Monsters cards. This place was a scrapyard with debris that had lots its true shape long time ago.
"What is this place?" Crow asked after we had parked our Runners.
"It's full of junk", Leo said.
"Welcome, Team 5D's", a familiar robotic voice echoed in the area.
I quickly pinpointed where the voice came from. "This way!" I yelled to the others before driving ahead.
We drove to the largest scrapheap in the center of the area where there were more stone tablets buried in the trash. I skid my Duel Runner to a halt and jumped down while ripping my helmet off. I ran ahead and stopped by the base of the large scrapheap and looked up to see Z-one peeking out from the top. His machine was half-buried in the heap, but I could still see his masked face.
"Z-one!" I yelled.
The others joined me as soon as they had parked their Duel Runners. "You finally showed yourself!" Jack shouted at the leader of Iliaster.
"That's Z-one?" Luna asked in surprise.
Leo gasped softly with a surprised tone. "Guys… The back of Z-one's thing looks like the curve on Yusei's Duel Runner!" he called.
I hadn't paid much attention to the construction of Z-one's machine, but now that Leo mentioned it… It looked awfully similar to my Runner. Even that mark on the left side of Z-one's mask greatly resembled my marker.
"I've seen your Duels", Z-one spoke up. "Team 5D's, you fought well."
"For the sake of the future, we'll eliminate you!" Jack exclaimed determinedly.
"We won't let you destroy New Domino City!" Crow added with the same type of tone in his voice.
"I promised Bruno that we would save the future!" I called out.
"With Antinomy?" Z-one frowned. "What do you think you can do? Not even your precious Priestess was able to stop me."
"Estelle?" Aki gasped softly.
"So she did end up getting here…", Sherry mumbled.
"Where is she?!" I demanded angrily. "What did you do to her?!"
I swear if he did something to Estelle…! He was going to pay tenfold!
"I simply accepted her challenge to a Duel", Z-one responded. "She said she didn't want to be the only one doing nothing while you fought my allies. She thought she could defeat me, and I admit she was close to, but I drew the right cards at the right time. As for where she is… Why don't you take a closer look around you?"
I heeded his cryptic message and looked around at the scrapyard. The others did the same to try locating Estelle. It only took seconds when Luna gasped out loudly. I turned to her and saw her pointing at something nearby with big eyes. "H-Her Runner…", she stuttered.
I followed her finger and spotted Estelle's Duel Runner by a stone tablet. It was crushed into scrap metal and split in two, obviously by the stone tablet, but how did that even happen?
"Okay, her Runner's here, but where-", Crow began, only to cut himself off.
I turned to my foster brother and saw him staring at something intensely, but with a shocking expression. I followed his eyes and found something red among the scraps. I took a few steps forward before my feet started running. The closer I got to the red color, the more I saw of Estelle's figure.
"Estelle!" I yelled before I reached her.
She was lying on her stomach with her face buried in the trash. I kneeled down and gently turned her to the side. Her glasses were broken with glass splinter scattered across her face. A trail of dried blood had run down from the corner of her mouth. She even had a few scratches on her face by the sharp edges of the scrap metal. Her clothes were also tattered, which indicated her Duel with Z-one had been real as it was now normal whenever we faced someone from Iliaster. I carefully brushed the glass splinter off her face before I rolled her onto her back and immediately saw her left arm was twisted in an unnatural way. Her Duel Disk was strapped onto the arm and some of hew cards had scattered around her.
"Estelle?" I called, hoping my voice would wake her up.
She didn't respond at all. She was breathing, so it was a sign she was still alive.
The others gathered behind me before they analyzed Estelle's condition. "I-Is she okay?" Luna asked worriedly.
Leo let out a noise that sounded like he was holding himself back from hurling. "H-Her arm…", he gagged.
"It's broken", Sherry confirmed my suspicions. "It must be a clean fracture for the arm to be twisted like that."
I was silent as I picked up the cards I found next to Estelle and removed her Deck from the Deck holder before I put it in a pocket of her jacket, just to make sure she didn't lose it. With that done, I carefully moved Estelle's broken arm so it rested on her abdomen before I picked her up bridal style and held her close to me. Her head rested against my collarbone as she wheezed softly whenever she breathed in and out of her nose. I was holding back my anger at Z-one for what he had done to her.
I turned to Z-one and hoped my glare would intimidate him. He was going to regret harming the woman who had caught my heart. "You…", I growled.
Z-one didn't appear to be fazed by my glare. "The Synchro summon that you're using led the world to destruction", he spoke up, completely ignoring the current situation. "Fudo Yusei, if there was no Synchro summoning, the Ener-D Reactor that your father invented wouldn't have gone out of control. Humanity wouldn't have perished."
I held back my feelings as I listened closely to every word he said. I needed to hear from Z-one himself of how the future became so dark and destructive.
"The Ener-D and Synchro summoning led to a future of destruction and despair. In order to change that future, I caused Zero Reverse to destroy the Ener-D Reactor, which was the source of the problem. I also sent Paradox to destroy the reason for everything; Duel Monsters."
"Paradox? That was you too?" I asked as I remembered the events involving Paradox and the time travel that led me to meet Yuki Judai and Muto Yugi when they were around my age.
"My plan that used Aporia and Antinomy is now about to be fulfilled. By dropping the Ark Cradle on New Domino City, both the city and the Reactor will be destroyed."
I gritted my teeth in anger as I finally understood Z-one's plan. "That's why you erased Bruno's memories and sent him to us", I said. "You think you had the right to do that? Because of you, Bruno was…"
I had enough of seeing and hearing any more sadness. I couldn't let more people suffer than what they already have; so many lost their lives and their loved ones during Zero Reverse. The people of the city was evacuating with uncertainty in their hearts whether they could return back home or they will lose everything. I wasn't going to allow Z-one to destroy the city again!
"I'll stop the Ark Cradle!" I yelled determinedly. "We live in this city! Bruno lived in this city! We won't let you destroy it!"
Z-one merely chuckled amusingly at my words. "Fine. Then defeat me in a Duel. I am linked to the Sun Gear that powers the Ark Cradle. If you don't defeat me in a Duel, the Sun Gear won't stop."
"I'll take you on, Z-one!" I shouted.
But before that…
I walked to Jack and carefully held Estelle to him. "Jack", I said.
My older foster brother nodded with a soft hum. "I'll look after her", he said as he gently grabbed Estelle and held her in his arms.
"Yusei, are you sure about this?" Crow asked concernedly. "If Z-one hurt Estelle this badly… Who knows what kind of injuries you'll sustain!"
"Crow's right", Aki nodded. "We should Duel together."
"The probability of defeating Z-one will only increase if we battle together", Sherry added.
"No", I shook my head. "This is now personal, so I'll fight Z-one alone."
The others exchanged worried expressions, clearly wanting to argue, but I wouldn't leave any room for that. The twins, however, ran to me and hugged my waist while they were softly crying.
"Don't get hurt, Yusei!" Luna told me.
"W-We don't want to see you die!" Leo cried.
I smiled very lightly before I patted their heads. "Don't worry. I won't die", I assured them.
The twins didn't look convinced, but they still wiped their tears after they removed their arms. Just as I was about to run back to my Duel Runner to strap the Duel Disk on my Wrist Dealer, a new voice spoke out loud.
"Wait, Fudo Yusei."
I looked up and saw the mangled figure of Aporia. His frame was broken and some cables were sparkling due to the damage he had sustained in the Duel he had with Jack and the twins. He was standing next to the scrapheap where Z-one was.
"Aporia!" I exclaimed in surprise.
"You're alive?" Jack called out confusedly.
I assume Aporia was going to stand in my way and stall me by forcing me to Duel him first before Z-one. It was probably to give the Ark Cradle more time to crash onto the city. However, instead of facing me, he turned to Z-one.
"Z-one", Aporia said. "I'll be your opponent."
"What?!" the rest of us, minus Z-one, exclaimed in pure surprise.
"Why?" Leo asked.
"Why Aporia?" Aki wondered.
Aporia turned back to us before giving us an explanation as of why he wanted to Duel his own ally. "We survived together in the apocalyptic future, so it's my duty as his friend", he explained.
"Duty?" Jack repeated. "What do you mean?"
"By Dueling you, I discovered an answer", Aporia replied.
"Answer?" I asked.
"Why did I continue to live when I suffered so much despair? I lost my parents and my girlfriend, so I was alone in the world. Even though I suffered three despairs, I kept walking. That's because…", Aporia stopped himself before giving a clear answer. "Even though I suffered despair, I didn't lose hope."
His answer actually affected me. I had suffered a lot in my childhood because of the discrimination and the loss of my friends, but I still kept going because I didn't lose hope of creating a better future by one day uniting Satellite with New Domino City.
"That's right", Aporia said as he saw the knowing glance in my eyes. "I was searching for hope. That's why I was able to keep walking. Because I believed that within despair, there was still hope! I realized that when I Dueled you." He turned back to Z-one after his speech. "Z-one, I want you to remember. Remember the hope you had for Yusei!"
I blinked my eyes in pure shock. Z-one once had hope for me? What exactly is going on? He was supposed to be our enemy, right?
No, wait. Estelle mentioned a while ago when she told us everything she knew about Iliaster. She briefly said that Z-one still believed that the mankind could change the present with the help of guidance… That was Bruno's mission from the beginning; to teach me Accel Synchro and Delta Accel Synchro so I could save the city.
"Z-one has hope for us?" Aki spoke up confusedly.
The person in question refused to confirm that as he remained silent.
"In order to complete the Circuit and make the Ark Cradle appear, you sent me to New Domino City", Aporia told Z-one. "In order to perfect the Circuit, you sent Antinomy to help Team 5D's grow. But why did you erase Antinomy's memories? Because it would only hinder your plans. They've evolved so much that they're now trying to stop the Ark Cradle. Maybe this evolution is what you were hoping for!"
"Z-one wanted us to evolve?" Crow asked out loud.
"5D's may be able to evolve far enough to change humanity's future", Aporia continued his monologue with Z-one. "Since that's what you thought, you sent Antinomy to Yusei. You entrusted your final hope to humanity's potential! So why are you trying to kill them when they've evolved and can now be entrusted with the future?"
Z-one didn't even answer to his ally's question.
"Z-one!" Aporia shouted in frustration.
The leader of Iliaster remained silent for several seconds before he gave Aporia an answer. "Hope is an illusion", he claimed.
"But you held on to hope", Aporia retorted as he pointed at Z-one. "I want you to remember that!"
A sparkle erupted from his arm and forced him out to yelp in pain. He was in such a bad condition that it was a wonder he was still standing.
"Aporia!" Leo called out worriedly.
Aporia recovered from the pain and opened a compartment by the right wrist, which turned out to be a Deck holder with his cards. The golden bar on his back levitated up and floated over to the front and was activated as his Duel Disk.
"Let's battle, Z-one!" Aporia yelled.
"But your body is…", Leo said.
Aporia turned to him with a nonchalant expression that scared the boy, but I was sure it wasn't intentional. "Kid, I saw hope in you", he said. "I learned that your growth and your bond with Team 5D's were the hope I was looking for. As long as there's hope, I can fight!"
"But-"
"Let him battle", Jack interrupted Leo. "This is his decision."
"You really want to battle me?" Z-one asked Aporia who responded by not giving a clear answer, but it was enough. "Then it can't be helped. I will bury you first, Aporia."
The marker on Z-one's facemask glowed just as the area began shaking. I braced myself and looked up to see a huge compartment fly up from the scrapheap in front of me. I was about to run back to the others when the compartment released a bright light and a shockwave that threw us back. I crashed onto the hard ground and rolled onto my backside to see what was happening. Z-one was now floating in the air in the machine that kept him alive while the weird compartment split into three parts; two of them transformed into huge arms and the third and smallest compartment turned out to be a Deck holder. The stone tablets scattered around floated up and flew around the Deck holder as the concrete was removed from them before they were stacked into a Deck in the Deck holder that shuffled the cards.
Aporia had jumped away in time before he could get hit by the shockwave and receive more damage to his artificial body. He positioned himself as he and Z-one were ready to Duel. This could actually give me an advantage if I had to Duel Z-one. I could analyze his Deck in this Duel and figure out how to counteract it with my cards.
We took a few steps back so we wouldn't get struck by any of the realistic attacks. Jack hadn't let go of Estelle as she was still in his arms. I made sure to stay next to Jack so I could act if she would wake up.
"Watch, 5D's", Aporia called. "This is Z-one's power!"
