Welcome to Chapter 5! Last chapter was a big one huh? We also got quite a ton of action as well. This chapter might not have a lot of action however. Though this one will also be a long one.
Don't worry! Zero will be dueling in the next chapter, that I guarantee! Our heroes need to rest and recuperate after all, especially Yuto and Zero. Although, I really doubt they'll get that much rest. It's just in their luck. Speaking of the last mission, it's about time we see what Zero will find on that drive. Now onto the story!
Ch.5: Double Trouble? Wait, WHAT.
It had been almost twelve hours before Zero and Yuto arrived back at the base. Each not taking any chances and zigzagging across most of Heartland. When Zero and Yuto did return to the museum after that scuffle with Edo, their friends had been sent into a frenzy. Zero had said that Edo had cornered them near the exit, but they managed to enter a tie with the Commander-in-Chief and escape. Shun and Ruri fussed over Yuto, getting the Phantom Knights user to tell what had REALLY happened. When they had learned how Edo forced Yuto into a brutal duel and electrocuted Zero, all heads turned to the masked man. Zero himself had been busy tending to some of his wounds, having gained electric burns from being temporarily paralyzed.
At the moment, Zero had slip off one of his black gloves, and taken his arm out of his suit to put some burn cream on it. Sensing everyone's eyes on him, Zero looked up at them all and saw their angered expressions.
"Um." Zero drawled. "Is there something you need?"
"You." Shun pointed at the masked man. "Were literally electrocuted, and you didn't plan on telling us."
"So?" Zero tilted his head, almost like a confused puppy. "I'm tending to my injuries right now, so I don't see the problem with it."
"What you told us was a lie." Kaito crossed his arms and gave a disappointed look. "Lying to us while wearing that mask isn't going to make trusting you any easier. We just got over that hurdle."
"I don't want you to worry about me." Zero rebuked strongly, and wrapped his burnt arm in a gauze. "If people were to find out their leader was injured, panic would insure. Therefore, I just have to suck it up and deal with it."
"Zero!" Yuto looked at his masked friend as if he'd grown two heads. "That's absolutely-"
"Stupid." Shun interjected, and walked right in front of the masked man. As fast as a snake, the Raidraptor duelist grabbed Zero's arm, causing the masked man to wince, and dragged him to his feet. "For someone as smart as you, you can be rather stupid at times."
"What are you doing!" Zero tried to pull his arm free, but Shun just tightened his grip. "Let go of me right now! That's an order." Everyone else watched the display in surprise.
"Screw that." Yellow eyes glared into Zero's faceless mask, there was a small hint of something there, but it was gone in an instant. "We're getting you to the medical center back at the resistance's base."
"What!" Everyone else exclaimed at once, even Zero was surprised.
"I can't go over there!"
"You can and you will, Zero." Now those yellow eyes were narrowed in determination. "You may be our leader, but you won't be for long if you drop dead. Those burns are serious, and they need to get checked." Shun turned to look at Yuto. "The same goes for you Yuto, and don't you dare deny it like this guy."
Yuto raised his hands in surrender, not desiring to get on Shun's bad side. Zero looked at the Phantom Knights duelist, as if silently asking for help. In return, Yuto just gave a small smile and shrugged.
"You traitor." Zero grumbled, but it was more in a joking manner. The masked hero looked up at Shun, being slightly shorter than the rebel. "I'm not going over there. They'll literally force my mask off, and I'm not exposing my identity to them no matter how much they beg or whine."
"Shun's right on this though Zero." Kaito finally spoke up, looking into Zero's medkit he always had in his office desk. "These supplies can handle 1st degree burns, but what you have is 2nd degree, and I'm sure you're hiding some 3rd degree burns as well. You were electrocuted, there's bound to be a few you're trying to hide from us."
Zero's silence was all of the others needed for an answer. Zero huffed, annoyed at their persistence yet thankful for their concern. It didn't stop Zero's pride from getting in the way though. "I'm still not going over there, even if you have to drag me."
"That can be arranged." Shun moved closer to the masked revolutionary.
Zero looked up at Shun's words. "What?"
A blur of motion occurred, caused mostly from Zero's cape. When everything could be seen more clearly, Yuto almost laughed at the sight. Shun had scooped the masked man up, and was lifting him over one of his shoulders as if he was a bag of potatoes.
Zero was NOT pleased. "Excuse me?!" Zero hit Shun's back in embarassed anger. "Put me down right now! I am NOT some damn damsel in distress or princess!"
Everyone could see Shun's smirk, he was enjoying every bit of this immensely. "Hmm, I don't think so, your majesty."
There was a flicker of real rage emitting from Zero at that comment, but it was gone in an instant. Though Shun could feel how Zero tensed uncomfortably at those words, and decided not to say them again.
"This is absolutely embarrassing." Zero huffed, and slumped down in surrender. The masked man too weak to truly fight back against this sudden turn of events, and crossed his arms. He could still feel his entire body thumping with pain, every cell in his body screaming at him to rest.
Shun turned to address the rest of the group. "Are you coming? I'll probably need some help with the mob that's bound to form from the 'oh so mighty' Zero's presence. The rest of the resistance is dying to see this guy after all."
Yuto sat up from his seat, carefully cradling his injured arm. Those chains had created some burns, and those electric shocks didn't help the teen either. Ruri hovered by his side, eyeing his injury worriedly. Kaito sat up from the desk he sat on, and Allen smiled mischievously. Sayaka was back at the Duel Sanctuary, taking her shift on serving the food.
Allen pulled out his duel disk, and started recording Zero on Shun's shoulder. The short teen snickered behind his hand, and Zero immediately noticed. Being recorded in this compromised position caused Zero to tense up again.
"Turn that off." Zero spoke, voice too calm for anyone's comfort. The man having gone through enough of Milly's attempts to get blackmail.
"What?" Allen asked innocently. "It's not everyday you see our miraculous leader being carried like luggage."
"I will take your duel disk, erase the footage, and then destroy it just for the hell of it if you do not do as I say right now." Zero threatened, hissing almost like an angered cat. The thought of using geass very tempting.
"Now now children." Shun spoke up as he left the museum. With Kaito, Yuto and Ruri watching with amused smiles on their faces. Shun's voice was full of sarcasm. "Settle down and stop fighting back there, or there will be problems."
Begrudgingly, Allen did put his duel disk away, allowing Zero to relax as he was forcibly carried through Heartland. Their journey mostly in silence as the group stayed on full alert. In Zero's opinion, he would rather be electrocuted again then being carried like this. It was embarrassing, and it took a big hit to the man's pride.
Speaking of embarrassing. "Zero, how much have you been eating exactly? Because you literally weigh less than a feather." That was true as well. The fact that Shun wasn't having any problems carrying his leader, who was wearing a long cape that was dragging against the ground and a heavy mask, worried the Raidraptor duelist.
Zero groaned, and put a hand on his mask. "I assure you Shun, I've been having three square meals a day. I made sure to keep one of the crates full of food for myself. I didn't want you guys to get on me for not eating, like you are now."
"Still doesn't change the fact that you have the figure of a girl." Shun remarked, causing Zero to balk at him. Shun could feel Zero's eyes boring into his head at that remark. "No offense Ruri, but this guy is lighter and thinner than even you."
"Why you-" Zero started, having trouble forming words in his anger. "I'll have you know that I've been working hard thank you very much!"
The group got to hear Zero's angered ramblings about his weight and fitness for almost the rest of the way there. To be honest, it actually warmed their hearts at seeing the masked man's true nature. That, or it was just seeing Zero so embarrassed. Probably more of the latter, if just slightly.
. . .
Edo sat on his throne, alone. No one else was in the throne room besides himself, even the Deputy Commander. All of them were sent outside and ordered to do something else. The Commander-in-Chief put a had on his forehead gently, his head still thumping from the concussion he had gained twelve hours prior.
Edo sighed, just about tired and done with all of the shit that had been happening recently. The resistance was getting stronger, and they were succeeding more often now that Zero had appeared. Though the Commander doubted that Zero had planned most of the chaos, just his presence in the Xyz Dimension was enough. People were getting bolder, more courageous in their attempts, especially the Clover and Spade Branches of this Dimensions schools.
That wasn't the big issue though. The big problem was that Edo was late on reporting to the Professor, and that was a serious problem in Academia. The Commander was hoping to have captured Zero and Yuto before reporting in, but that plan had exploded in his face.
Keeping a calm facade, Edo watched as the big screen flickered to life. A tan man with dark violet eyes and purple military uniform covered most of the screen. The man's bald head had a strange metal contraption on the left side of his head. In the background, there was a window that showed some strange machine glowing a strange lime green color. Small objects, being the people who were carded in Heartland, floated down and into the strange machine.
Dark purple eyes glared at calm blue.
"You're late in reporting, Phoenix." The Professor spoke, voice booming over the speakers of the throne room in the Xyz Dimension. The fact that the Professor was using Edo's last name did not pass the Commander. He knew that he was getting into some deep shit angering the Professor.
"I apologize for that Professor, but we had some unwanted company at the time I was going to report." Edo lied smoothly. "Zero decided to grace us with his presence for a second time, and here no less."
The Professor raised an eyebrow, slightly impressed at the mysterious man's daring. Ever since the Professor had heard of the masked man's presence, he had been curious. When he saw a picture, even if it was blurry, on the man himself, he had become intrigued.
"What happened." The Professor demanded an explanation.
"Zero and an ally, Yuto Raiden, entered the command center and stole countless amounts of classified data and information on Academia's plans." Edo bluntly stated, watching the leader of Academia's eyes widen in actually surprise, and panic? The Commander-in-Chief wasn't entirely sure what else he saw, but he was sure there was a bit of worry in those violet orbs.
Then again, with the information Zero now had in his hands. Edo would be panicking as well. Thankfully, the Destiny-HERO duelist had a calm head on his shoulders. Otherwise, he wouldn't of gotten the position of Commander-in-Chief in the first place.
"What did he get."
"From what I know, everything."
The Professor actually showed some rage now, and hit his fist on his throne in the Fusion Dimension. "Dammit." He swore. Just great. Now someone he didn't even know had too much information. Now he had to send someone to go find and assassinate this guy who wore a mask, and could easily blend into a crowd should the situation call for it.
This was bad. Everything he, Leo Akaba, had worked for could come undone in almost an instant if this Zero found out too much. Time was of the essence.
"How could you let them get away with such dangerous info!" The Professor snapped at Edo.
"I didn't exactly allow them to just walk out of the building." Edo scowled, trying to keep his tongue in check. The pain in his skull increasing at the Professor's shouting. "I managed to incapacitate Zero, but Yuto managed to get a draw against me in a duel. By the time anyone else arrived, they were long gone and I had gained a minor concussion. Rest assured that I have droves of Academia soldiers scooping all of Heartland out in an attempt to find them. After all, I want these two caught and carded as much as you, Professor."
The adult managed to regain his composure, and narrowed his violet eyes at Edo. "Your incompetence will cost you Edo. However, I won't be demoting you from Commander-in-Chief, your progress in the Arc-V Project is most magnificent. Though, I will be sending a group of Obelisk Force over into the Xyz Dimension. Those brats you call soldiers won't do a thing against someone like that."
Edo frowned at the Professor's words, calling his soldiers brats. These brats give up their chance at a normal life, heck, maybe their lives in general, to help please you Professor. They fight for Academia, and its goal, for a unified dimension. Yet you call them brats, imcompitent?
Edo shook that thought aside, thinking such things would get him in trouble. It was treason. "As you wish Professor."
"If that is all then I'll be-"
"Actually Professor." Edo interjected calmly, watching as his superior's eyebrow twitch. Better not push it. "There are two more things, one is actually a rather interesting development."
The Professor noddeed, letting Edo continue. "One of our soldiers, Chazz Princeton, believes that there is a traitor within our forces." This didn't surprise the Professor in the least. "Zero managed to do a clean and successful mission on raiding one of our popular warehouses, without a single casualty."
The Professor put his chin in his hand, eyes blank. "I'll be sure to send extra supplies over in the next dropoff. But such a trivial thing should've been discussed at the beginning of our little meeting Phoenix. What is the second thing?" The adult asked carelessly.
"You see Professor." Edo pulled up some graphs, each one showing an extremely large spike. "Just around a month and a half ago, there was a huge spike of energy somewhere around Heartland, Sector 19 to be exact." Now the Professor leaned in, interested. "This spike of energy is unknown, even our greatest here couldn't figure out just WHAT that energy was. I sent a squad out there to check it out, but when they got there, there was nothing."
"So?"
"Now, this energy spike happens. Then, around a month later, a masked man with no identity shows up out of nowhere. Our spies in the resistance have never seen or even heard of this guy, and even people in Academia didn't know that this guy existed. Hell, WE didn't know this guy existed until he showed himself. Now, you would think a guy who wears a costume like that would stick out like a sore thumb. That people would remember and speak about him." Edo gestured to a picture of Zero that had appeared at the bottom corner of the screen, this one more clear, and from the Data Room that he and Yuto had stolen the information from. "So why is it that this guy suddenly appears out of literally thin air and is kicking our ass?" It annoyed Edo to admit it, but it was true. Zero WAS kicking their ass, and was becoming a huge thorn in their side. "If he was from the Xyz Dimension, this guy would have fought back at the beginning. Instead, he shows up near the end. Why is that?"
The Professor seemed to be getting what Edo was trying to say. "He's not from the Xyz Dimension."
"Exactly." Edo looked at the graphs now, and increased their size on the big screen. "I think he was transported here on the same day that energy spiked. That spike of energy WAS Zero arriving to the Xyz Dimension."
"If he's not from Xyz, then where did he come from?"
"I doubt he came from the Fusion Dimension." Edo rubbed his forehead, exhausted. "He can use Xyz, so that would cross out Synchro, so that only leaves the Standard Dimension." The Professors mouth made an 'o', as if he had just suddenly figure out a puzzle. "Did you figure something out Professor?"
"Reiji." Leo hissed, rage bubbling. So his own son was getting in the way of his plans? Well, it didn't matter to him, Leo would just turn that boy into a card. He had more important things to worry about, like the real reason he went to Academia.
"Reiji?" Edo repeated, confused.
"He's my son." The Professor growled out, teeth grinding. Edo looked at the Professor in surprise at the revelation. "He tried to intervene with my plans before. Now it seems he's doing it again." It all made sense. 'Zero' wore a mask so that no one would figure out he's the son of Academia's leader. His intelligence seemed to have increased with the years that had passed by, but that came with running a company like the L.E.O Corporation at the age of thirteen.
"Your own son is fighting against you Professor?" Edo had to make sure he got that straight. The Professor's own SON was fighting against what his father was doing.
That made Edo's view shift a bit. He had some things he had to rethink. His own son. He has a son? How come he lives in the Standard Dimension, and when the last time the Professor has seen his kid?
"I'm afraid he is. This changes things." Leo regained his composure, and stared at the screen impassively. "I want Zero brought to me alive, and NOT as a card. Do I make myself clear? I want to punish the boy myself."
Edo did a quick salute. "Yes sir! I had planned on capturing Zero alive in the first place sir."
The Professor nodded, and looked off screen for a moment, as if someone had gained his attention. "Good. Report to me again next week on the progress of the Arc-V Project."
With that, the Professor ended the call, and Edo could finally relax. With a sigh, the Commander-in-Chief slumped in his throne. Sometimes, leading this entire Arc-V Project wasn't even worth it. It was so stressful and taxing. Edo stood up from his throne, and made his way towards his private quarters. The Commander deciding that he needed to get some rest before he passed out on the floor.
He had a lot to think about.
. . .
The medical bay made in the Duel Sanctuary was beginning to get crowded with people, both citizens and resistance members alike. Each person had one thing in mind, and that was finally seeing this mysterious Zero that had gifted them a win against Academia. Shun and Kaito were both watching the door that held Zero and Yuto within. Allen and Ruri going to help Sayaka with her shift. The Kurosaki siblings still have not resolved their debate. Kaito and Shun not batting an eye unless someone tried something to get a peak at who Zero was, or interrupt their medical check.
Zero had actually fallen asleep before they arrived at the Duel Sanctuary. The masked man finally giving in to his injuries and exhaustion, and went silent after his angry rants about his weight and figure. It was so unnerving that Yuto had Shun stop so he could check the mans pulse. It relieved the group knowing that Zero was finally getting some rest, especially Yuto since he learned that the masked man had insomnia.
So when the group of six walked into the resistance base with a masked man in a costume slung over Shun's shoulder, people instantly recognized them. Each member of Zero's 'Inner Circle' slowly losing their happy moods at the constant pestering and questions. Is that Zero? Why's he unconscious, is he okay? Do you guys know who he is under that mask? Who is he? Whose under the mask?
Take off his mask while he's asleep so we can see who he is!
That person was extra stubborn. The idea of betraying the masked man's trust so easily, at the earliest opportunity Zero had finally relaxed around them, angered them. Yuto and Shun especially wanted to take a crack at who said those words, but they were lost in the crowd that had formed from the rumors.
One person even tried to slip the mask off himself, and he almost succeeded. The group couldn't get a clear view of the teen's face, but they could easily see the boy had bright orange hair. If it wasn't for Kaito grabbing the boy's wrist at the last second, Zero's mask would have slipped and hit the floor with a loud 'thump'.
The kid got scolded, along with most of the crowd there, severely. Yuto could still remember what Shun had said when that happened.
"Who gives a damn about what the guy looks like? He's helping us kick Fusion's ass, and that's all we need to know. Sure, no one knows who this guy is, or where he came from. But if he wanted to betray us all to Academia or kill us, he would have by now. Instead, he helps us more, gives us supplies from Academia, makes operations, protects us, and this is how you repay him? By trying to find out who is while he's unable to defend himself? That's something Academia would do, and we are NOT like them!"
"So the guy likes his privacy, big deal? He saved my sister from a horrible fate, and I thank him for that, I'm in his debt for it. If you guys try and push too hard on finding out his identity, he just might disappear. And then where would we be? Thing is he's done so much for us, the least we could do is allow the guy some respect and privacy. Not this."
Now, most people knew better, and scattered, but there were still some that refused to give up, that were stubborn. Those were the ones currently waiting for a chance to strike outside Yuto and Zero's medical room. It was annoying the doctors and nurses greatly at the sudden and unwanted blockade to their patients.
Yuto's checkup wasn't to bad. The only thing the grey eyed teen had suffered was small rope and electric burns brought by the chains. Those would disappear by the next day or two. No, the problem was Zero's checkup.
When Zero had awaken on the medical bed with doctors and nurses hovering over him, the masked man had FREAKED. He almost seemed to have teleported sitting upwards, and grabbed the doctor closest to him. A distinct 'flick' filled the air between the unsuspecting people watching the scene with wide, terrified eyes. Zero had pulled out a pocket knife hidden on his person, most likely it was hidden in his cape, that thing was able to carry a freaking LAPTOP. The knife's sharp end gleamed in the light as it was held against the doctor's throat, not leaving any room for the man to maneuver.
"Get the hell away from me!" Zero spoke, voice quiet and cold, making the people around him panic even more. "Who the hell are you. Where am I?"
"I-I-I-" The doctor couldn't even speak, only stutter out the word I as he clenched his eyes shut. The knife moved closer to the man's throat and-
"Zero!" Yuto waved above the crowd of nurses and doctor's managing to catch the masked man's eye. The masked man relaxed slightly, but didn't release the doctor.
"Yuto." Zero spoke, puzzled. "What's going on?"
"You're at the Duel Sanctuary, the resistance's main base of operations." Yuto spoke calmly, before gesturing to Zero's knife and his hostage. "They were just going to do a checkup. They're the doctors and nurses that managed to survive the invasion."
"They were going to remove my mask!"
"No, they weren't." Yuto insisted calmly. "They were debating about doing the checkup when you wake up or not." Yuto's eyes flickered to the knife uneasily. "Now, please put the knife down. No one has seen your face, you're fine."
Reluctantly, Zero released his grip on the doctor, and with uneasy precision, flipped the pocket knife closed and hidden it away on his person again. No one asked for the man to put the knife on the table, everyone knew that the only person Zero seemed to trust was Yuto. So it wasn't going to happen. The man's paranoia being thrown into overdrive.
Zero scooched back against the headboard of the medical bed. "Sorry about that." He at least apologized to the people he had badly scarred, especially the man he almost murdered for no reason. "I'm not used to people being that close to me, especially those who I'm not familiar with. Unfamiliar faces tend to put me on edge, along with unfamiliar locations." Zero groaned loudly, before he put his head in his hands. "Why am I the only one that wakes up in unfamiliar locations with unfamiliar people surrounding me?"
Yuto watched, as one of the nurses took a step back. The movement caused Zero to flinch, and look up at the woman as if a predator was watching prey. The girl flinched, and shook like a frightened mouse at the display. Thinking quickly, Yuto got up, causing Zero's attention to shift, and walked over to the injured masked man. He said nothing as he sat down beside Zero, and grabbed hold of the flash drive that contained classified information.
Yuto held the drive as if it was a peace offering. "They're going to have to do a checkup eventually Zero. You're too injured, and it's why we brought you here in the first place. So they're going to have to get close to you, you realize that right?"
Zero huffed. "You make it sound like I'm a frightened child. Of course I realize that, and as long as they don't remove my mask I'm fine with it. I'll take care of my face myself, I'm not completely useless."
"No one said that." Yuto persisted. "If it'll make you more comfortable, I'll stay here with you until they're done."
Zero had crossed his arms, shoulders tense through the entire thing. His mask staring into Yuto's eyes, as if searching for any molecule that would hint towards deceit, before relenting. Zero took the piece offering, and set it on the table beside his duel disk, before grabbing one of his black gloves and pulling it off of his hand.
"If I start to feel uncomfortable, you better back off." Zero warned, glaring at each doctor and nurse carefully, before he exposed his arm and shoulder to the group. "Let's get this shit over with, can you plug the flash drive into my duel disk Yuto? I want to look at the information while this is going on."
"You like to multitask then?" Zero looked at Yuto as if saying, 'That's a stupid question and you know it.' which caused Yuto to laugh before doing what the masked man asked. "You just can't seem to let go of that info, huh?"
"Please." Zero almost snorted, but just barely stopped himself. "I thirst for knowledge as much as everyone else thirsts for water. Someone like me can NEVER get enough information." Zero scrolled through the countless files on the big flash drive. "I would say that it's my favorite hobby, but that's been taken by chess-"
Zero tensed up in an instant and hissed, his mask making it sound like a snake's. Pain laced through Zero's words as the doctors checked up on the masked hero.
Shun was right in forcing Zero to come to the Duel Sanctuary. The man was suffering through more than a few 3rd degree burns, no wonder it hurt to even twitch at times. Yuto felt bad for the man, seeing as these burns might scar all over Zero's body. Though Yuto didn't bother telling Zero that, the teen knew that Zero wouldn't take those words kindly. It would make the masked man think Yuto saw him as someone weak, when it was really the opposite.
Someone who can push through all of that pain has to have some serious pain tolerance, or are just that freaking stubborn.
It took almost an hour before the doctors were completely done. A few bruises from the rubble that collapsed on top of Zero and the rest were 2nd and 3rd degree burns. With most of his injuries bandaged and taken care of, the masked man immediately shooed them out of the room. The doctors and nurses relieved at finally being able to leave, seeing as Zero almost murdered one of their comrades.
They scurried out of the room, amusing Yuto at how they almost trampled over themselves to get out. Yuto leaned over to whisper into Zero's masked ear. "You've got them running like a herd of terrified gazelle."
"It happens a lot." Zero stated casually, in much less pain now than he was before as he casually read over some information on the hierarchy structure of Academia and those in the Xyz Dimension. "Some people just can't handle the pressure. After all, this costume and mask was made so that they couldn't read my body language, figure out my identity, and intimidate my enemies."
With everyone but Yuto and Zero out of the room, Kaito and Shun entered. They made sure that the door was locked, and even put a chair under the doorknob, because someone was going to try and pick the lock. Seeing that he knew these two, Zero relaxed even more and put his duel disk down.
"So." Shun spoke up first. "2nd and 3rd degree burns huh?" Yellow eyes gleamed with mirth. "I believe I am owed something."
Zero grumbled. "Thank you for bringing me to the Duel Sanctuary."
Shun leaned over slightly, and put a hand to the side of his ear dramatically. "I'm sorry. What was that? I couldn't hear you."
Seeing a way to get some small vengeance. The masked man grabbed the collar of Shun's trenchcoat, and pulled him down lower before screaming in his ear. "I SAID THANK YOU!"
With that, Zero released the Raidraptor user, leaving him to stumble back and hold his ear. Which was still ringing with that modulated voice in his head, as if mocking him. Kaito and Yuto laughed at the small display of camradire.
Shun rubbed his ear a little more, before getting serious again. "Yeah. Anyway, the doctors said you really had 2nd and 3rd degree burns. Are you sure you're alright?"
Zero smiled from beneath his mask. "Besides the surprise I got when I woke up, I'm completely fine. A few days of rest and then I'll be up and running like nothing happened. Thankfully, there won't be any scars."
He didn't want to explain to his friends back at Ashford why he suddenly came back after who knows how long with burn scars.
"Though." Zero paused, and looked down. "I still need to do my, well, face." He gestured to his mask. "The doctors left it alone since I asked them to."
"Asked them?!" Yuto sputtered, doing a double take at Zero. "You call almost slitting a man's throat asking! You almost bit their hands off, even with your mask on! If you call that asking then I'm a freaking angel of death."
"That's not the point right now Yuto." Zero quickly brushed THAT topic aside. "The thing is I need to fix my real face, but I'll need someone to help me get the stuff I'll need." Now Zero looked down, almost wanting to play with his fingers, but his pride refused. It almost looked like Zero was hesitant, scared even. "Could you guys help me?"
Silence.
"You guys don't have to. Besides, it'll only be a minute! I-" Zero began to ramble, but was silenced by Kaito this time.
"We'll help you." Kaito answered for the others, but they still nodded nonetheless. "Just tell us what you need, and we'll give it to you, with our backs turned."
No one else said anything, and Kaito, Shun, and Yuto each turned their backs to face the wall. It was quiet for a moment, before there was a loud hiss that filled the air as Zero's mask retracted. Before a clicking sound was heard, signifying that Zero had taken off his mask. It was quiet, before Zero finally spoke without his modulator.
It was surprising to say the least. "Could you hand me some burn cream Shun? It's on your left with the red cap." All three boys tensed at Zero's real voice. It sounded so YOUNG, it was absolutely nothing like they had thought it would be.
Shun almost looked back, but Yuto quickly hit the teen's shoulder, snapping him out of his stupor. "Oh, uh, right." Shun quickly handed Zero the burn cream, making sure to cover and close his eyes even as he handed it backwards.
It was quiet for a few more moments, before Kaito spoke this time. "So." He drawled, trying to find some way to breach the subject all three boys wanted to talk about. "Your voice."
"It's nothing like you three expected, is it?" The voice asked, and each teen nodded sheepishly. Zero chuckled. "I can understand that. No one would think that an expert tactician like me would be so young huh? Especially since I have experience in this field. Yuto, hand me some gauze and bandages." Yuto said nothing, and just did as he was asked.
"It's just that-" Kaito cut himself off.
"I sound like you." Zero finished solemnly. "Like a child, a teenager around your age to be exact."
"Well, yeah."
"You won't tell anyone, will you?" The voice sounded hesitant, and Zero carefully put on a bandage across his left cheek, it having a small 1st degree burn. In truth, Zero's face was emotionless, the masked man debating if he should geass these three to forget what just transpired. Though he decided against the idea, seeing as if they found out, the trust they had just started forming would shatter and become irreparable.
"I doubt they would believe us even if we tried, which we won't." Yuto looked at Shun and Kaito, both agreeing as well. "So I suppose your secret is safe with us, Zero."
"... Thank you." Zero was truly grateful for it as well. Once the bandage was taken care of, Zero picked up his mask, wiped the purple glass quickly, and put it back on. The distinct hiss almost acting like a safety blanket of sorts to the masked man. "You can turn around now."
They talked about a couple more things, mostly on what to do about the literal mob hanging outside of the door. Seeing as the masked man had insomnia, along with a dangerous weapon on his person besides his duel disk. Zero allowed Kaito and Shun to relax, saying that he would watch anyone come in. Besides, the man had some classified information to snoop around, and that alone would keep the masked man awake for as long as need be. Yuto himself was ordered to some bed rest by the doctors, so he would be resting with Zero in case the man did get overwhelmed.
The dude did have some serious 2nd and 3rd degree burns after all, they wouldn't heal instantaneously.
With that out of the way, Kaito and Shun left. The Raidraptor duelist going to find his sister and make sure she was alright before apologizing. Kaito decided to go and check up on his family. Leaving Yuto and Zero, although the latter was too tired to really talk much. He mostly focused on looking at the information he had 'borrowed'.
Or stolen, either way.
By the time Zero was almost done reading all of the information a couple of days had already passed. At the moment, it was way past dark, and Yuto, who was going to be released in the morning, was currently asleep.
"Alright, just two more files." Zero scrolled down to the bottom of the drive, these ones being the oldest files added.
The sounds of sheets shuffling gathered Zero's attention, and the insomniac looked up at the noise. Seeing Yuto struggle with his bedsheets made Zero quirk an eyebrow in amusement, before the Phantom Knights duelist fully stood.
"Hey. What are you doing up so late? Are you having trouble sleeping again?" Zero asked, tilting his head slightly. Lately, Yuto was struggling to get some real rest, which was one of the main reasons why he was still in the Medical Bay of the Duel Sanctuary. Zero would be released around the same time as Yuto, which was this coming morning. Sometimes, Yuto would wake up in a fit, mostly from a nightmare he couldn't remember. But what he did remember was seeing his dragon, along with three others. The others were blurry, though all four would roar loudly as one, and then Yuto would feel an intense pain in his chest before waking up.
It made Zero wonder if the teen would become an insomniac like him. He certainly hoped not, those first nights with no sleep were horrible.
Yuto didn't say anything. He just stood up, took his duel disk with his deck, and walked out of the room. The strange silence caught Zero off guard, but he brushed it aside, thinking Yuto had woken up in a bad mood.
With that out of the way, Zero focused on his work once more. The names of the files caught him off guard however. "Arc-V Project? Revival Zero? What the hell." Zero muttered, a bit concerned with the 'Revival Zero' file. Lelouch had named his masked counterpart Zero after all, and it worried him greatly. Did these guys plan on bringing me here from the start?
Zero disregarded that thought. No, that would've been foolish, seeing as I don't side with Academia. Besides, I've never met anyone that's involved with Academia in my entire life. It must be based on something else.
Deciding to leave 'Revival Zero' for last, Zero opened the 'Arc-V Project' first.
"The Arc-V Project was created by our Professor, Leo Akaba, to help reunite the four dimensions back into one. Using the power of Fusion, along with the necessary amount of energy that can be brought by turning people into cards, Academia can unite Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, and Standard into one dimension, the Unified World. Here, once all dimensions have been reunited, peace, prosperity, and joy will prosper. The United World will become a living paradise, a utopia where all people from various dimensions can live happily." Zero read outloud, the constant reading starting to hurt his eyes, even through his mask. Zero clicked his tongue. "More like bring a one sided massacre of innocent people and force the other dimensions into a single entity. Whoever thought this would bring paradise is an idiot, this is just a dictatorship." Though Zero memorized the Professor's name, Leo Akaba. It made him think of his father, and that did NOT give this man any favors.
In fact, it only made him want to shoot the man. Unfortunately, there are no such things as guns with 'bullets' in this dimension, and Zero dropped the gun he had taken from Suzaku in shock of the Avalon. So he was out of luck on that department.
I either have the Devil's luck, or its a literal pile of shit. It tends to switch and be moody. Zero cringed, remembering the entire 'Arthur Incident' back at Ashford. He was almost exposed as Britannia's most wanted criminal by a cat, a CAT.
If that didn't say words about his luck, then Zero didn't know what would.
Zero looked up at the door. Ten minutes had already passed since Yuto left, and the masked revolutionary was beginning to wonder when he would return. Zero looked back down at his duel disk, and his finger hovered over the 'Revival Zero' file. For once, the masked man hesitated on wanting to read something. What exactly would he find in here? There were some things that people were not meant to know. Sometimes, information could scar people, and he didn't want to fall victim to anymore scars. Physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual. Zero already had enough problems trying to open up to people back in his dimension. He always wore a mask there, and he couldn't properly express himself. His emotions being stunted by the horrible attack that claimed his mother's life. He couldn't feel.
Zero looked up at the door again, fifteen minutes since Yuto left. Perhaps he was getting something to eat? Why was he even worried? The rebel was in the heart of the resistance, he would be fine. Unless a spy for Academia had somehow entered the resistance. Now Zero knew his paranoia was rearing its ugly head again.
But it wasn't impossible. In fact, it was rather likely that there WAS a spy weeded in here somewhere. These rebels weren't exactly doing background checks on people when they wanted to sign up. They needed all the help they could get, especially with fighting the sheer number Academia had.
Zero snapped his thoughts out of that rabbit hole, and clicked on the last file. "Snap out of it. It's just a freaking file. What's the worst that could happpennn…" Zero trailed off, his jaw dropping open at what was in the file. Black gloved hands shook slightly. "W-What the fucking HELL is THIS!"
There wasn't any words on the file, just a few pictures. As Zero scrolled down all of them, he grew even more freaked out. There were four boys and four girls in the picture. Each having two pictures, one when they were a child, and another at their current age.
There was a boy with blue hair and yellow bangs that was swept to the side. As if it was constantly being blown by the wind. He had aquamarine eyes, and he seemed to be just a bit too thin as a child and even in his teens. In both pictures, there was a girl with almost apple green hair and orange eyes beside him.
The next boy had green and red hair, and it seemed to make him look like a watermelon or tomato. A large pendulum crystal that was too big for his neck as a child laid on his neck. Scarlet red eyes full of joy as a big grin was spread across his face. He was reaching out to someone who was mostly likely his father in his child picture, but that figure wasn't present in the next one. As a teen, the child had grown an almost female figure, which Zero could sympathize with. However, his smile didn't quite reach his eyes anymore.
The third boy had purple hair with magenta highlights along with purplish pink eyes. He didn't smile in the first picture as a child. Where he wore a purple dress shirt with bronze buttons. When he DID smile, it looked like a smile one would see on a slightly unstable person slowly coming undone. It wasn't a real, happy smile. It was a smile that enjoys others suffering, and those eyes... He wore a more complex purple military uniform with a cape. A red jacket hanging off of his shoulders.
The last one started making Zero freak out slightly.
"Yuto?!"
Yuto was on the list for 'Revival Zero'. It showed two pictures of his childhood and his life now. The drastic change made the masked man feel empathetic. In the first picture, Yuto looked genuinely happy. Like he was living a life of bliss. Zero had never seen Yuto smile that brightly in the present. It most likely being robbed by the invasion that destroyed his home. Like how my mother's life and my sisters sight and legs were stolen from me.
Quickly, Zero looked over at the list of girls as well. Because I've already gone this fucking far, might as well finish it.
The same girl with green hair and orange eyes was first. It didn't surprise the masked man seeing as this girl seemed to be close to the blue haired teen. Each of them seemed to be wearing a track suit of sorts in their current years.
Another girl with pink hair tied into pigtails smiled at something away from the camera. She had periwinkle eyes, and wore a sleeveless white and blue shirt with a dark pink skirt in her teenage years. She seemed to have no worries.
The next girl had long indigo hair tied up into a ponytail by an orangy yellow ribbon. She had green eyes, and never smiled into the camera. It looked as if she was unhappy with something, in both pictures. She currently wore a long red jacket with red shorts.
Then Zero's suspicions were confirmed on who the last girl was.
It was Ruri, no questions asked. That long dark purple hair with magenta side tails was a dead giveaway in and of itself.
There were names underneath the pictures of the people, and it just freaked Zero out even more. Even he felt uncomfortable under these circumstances. Yugo was the name of the blue haired boy. Rin was the name of his female companion. Yuya was the name of the tomato haired teen, and Yuzu was the name of his female friend. Yuri had the purple and magenta hair and was slightly unhinged. The female's name being Serena.
Then there was Yuto and Ruri. Both of their names were in the database as well.
The strange thing Zero had noticed offhandedly, was that each girl seemed to be wearing a bracelet. Ruri wore a bracelet that seemed to have wings, which fitted well with her deck. A yellow stone was embedded in the middle. Rin wore a silver bracelet that had the wind scratched into its design. Though a green gem was in the middle instead of a yellow one. Serena's bracelet looked like a crescent moon, and had a giant blue gem in the middle where the moon didn't shine. Then, Yuzu's bracelet had a pink gem in the middle. With two streaks of silver metal making an 'X' formation with her bracelet.
"I feel like a stalker." Zero commented, and quickly excited out of the file. It still didn't stop Zero from cringing. Who the hell watches- No. STALKS. Eight kids for who knows how long until they turn into a teenager! WHY is the Professor stalking these kids? Why is he stalking Yuto and Ruri? Zero stilled. Please if there is a God do NOT let this guy be a pedophile. PLEASE! Oh God what do I do? What can I even DO with this information? Is there anything I can do? Fuck, fuck, FUCK!
Zero may be panicking slightly at this disturbing turn of events.
Revival Zero. That's what its called. Revival is the restoration of a body physically or mentally. That or giving life to a once dead person or consciousness… Wait, so is this guy going to SACRIFICE these kids?! They all wore the same face. The boys could pass as quadruplets, and the same could be said for the girls. Seeing three other people with the same face as Yuto and Ruri made Zero feel WRONG. Are they all clones or something. I swear, what the hell have I gotten into. What is this Sci-fi cloning shit!
Did Yuto even know he was being stalked? Did Ruri?
….
That changes things.
Looking up, Zero practically commanded Yuto to walk through the door at that very moment, but he never came. It had been almost half an hour and now Zero was a mess. Did Academia kidnap Yuto?
Now, that may have been a little bit excessive, but give the man a break. He was just about to be relieved from 2nd and 3rd degree electrical burns, found out TWO of his friends are being stalked for at least a couple of years, and Yuto left without saying a single word. Zero had a right to be panicked.
Zero went to the call list on his duel disk, having only a couple contacts made it easier to use since he was still used to a Britannian cellphone. The masked revolutionary held the duel disk up awkwardly to his head as he heard it rang.
The call picked up, and someone groggily answered. "Zero? What the hell man, do you know what time it-"
"Shun." Zero spoke a bit too loudly, his sheets ruffled as Zero struggled to get out of them. "Get the hell over here right now. We have a serious problem. Yuto left the room around thirty minutes ago and I don't know where the fuck he is. He didn't say anything to me, and just walked out. I thought he was in a bad mood, but I found something from the information Yuto and I stole and I think he's in serious danger."
NOW Shun was wide awake. The teen having practically fallen out of his bed as he quickly put his trench coat on. "Shit. He must of been sleep walking again. Dammit! I forgot to tell you about that. I'll be over in a second. Meet me out by the front of the Duel Sanctuary, because I know you're not going to just sit there."
"Bring Ruri with you. This is important to her too." With that, Zero hung up. His agitation and fear for his newfound friend made his rage boil over. With a quick yank, the fabric teared as Zero threw the ripped up sheet aside carelessly. Throwing his legs over the side of the bed, Zero stood up with a huff.
And immediately hit the floor with a thud.
Zero growled. "God fucking dammit. This isn't the time!" The masked man grabbed the side of his bed, and shakily stood up on his legs. They screeched in protest, some of the burns and slightly healed blisters being agitated by the action, but he didn't care. Making sure to always have ahold of something steady, Zero grabbed his duel disk and deck before leaving the room. Leaving the flashdrive and pocket knife he had been practically ordered to take off of his person by Yuto behind.
Leaning against the wall, Zero shakily stumbled around the Duel Sanctuary. Geassing a random person he didn't care about to give him directions to the front entrance. His cape dragged on the floor and echoing loudly across the silent and empty halls.
When Zero had finally made it to the front entrance, Shun was there waiting for him. Though there was a problem.
"Where's Ruri. I asked you to bring her along." Zero tripped slightly, and Shun had to catch the masked man before he fell to the floor and further injured himself.
"We got into another fight." The teen admitted sadly. "She's been ignoring me ever since. I don't know where she is. The last I checked she was going to get some water." The Raidraptor duelist watched as Zero hit the wall before speed walking outside. Shun followed, his yellow eyes lighting with fear. "Why? What's wrong, and what the hell is going on?"
"The Professor has been stalking four boys and girls." Zero stated bluntly. "It's called 'Revival Zero' or some shit. Anyway, the name is not the problem. The thing is that these people all have the same face."
Zero turned to look at Shun, panic coming off of him in waves. "Shun. Yuto and Ruri's pictures were in there. THEY were ON the list."
Shun was drilled to a halt. "What."
"The Professor has fucking pictures of them, both as a child AND as they are now. He's been stalking eight kids and I have no clue why, but I doubt its anything good." Zero started walking away, Shun not a step behind him. The dark blue haired duelist finally seemed to snap out of what daze he had entered after Zero's words. Yellow eyes were filled to the brim with fear and panic, both for his childhood friend AND little sister.
Shun rubbed his face, as if trying to wake up from a nightmare. "Wh-what the shit. You're serious. Some stranger has been watching my little sister and best friend for who knows how many years?!"
"I may be many things, but SICK isn't one of them. I'm not sadistic Shun. I wouldn't lie or joke about this kind of crap." Zero looked around, seeing absolutely no hint about where Yuto OR Ruri where. Frustrated, Zero turned around to face Shun again. His cape struggling to catch up with the motion. "We're going to have to split up. We can cover more ground that way, and we both can take care of ourselves."
Shun nodded, desperate to find his sister. "You look for Yuto, I'll go and find Ruri. I'll be looking South of Heartland Tower, you look North."
"Right. If either of us finds anything, contact the other IMMEDIATELY. Call if you haven't found them within an hour." Zero turned and walked the other way, desperately hoping that his luck wasn't a pile of shit right now.
. . .
"Ow!" Yuto woke up with a start, having tripped over some rubble and almost falling on his face. The Phantom Knights duelist blinked and drearly rubbed his grey eyes. "Ugh, hey Zero? What-"
The black and purple haired boy stopped talking when he realized that Zero was nowhere in sight. In fact, Yuto wasn't even by the Duel Sanctuary. He looked around, honestly confused and lost for a second before he realized what had happened.
"God dammit." Yuto slapped his forehead, he grit his teeth. "I can't believe I did it AGAIN. I can't believe I forgot about it too." Yuto looked up at the blocked out sky. "Man, Shun is going to be PISSED when I come back. That's not even talking about what Zero will do."
Suddenly, there was a bright glowing light that blinded the Phantom Knights user for a second. Yuto covered his eyes, and quickly put on his duel disk in case this was Academia he was dealing with. When the light went away, Yuto rapidly blinked his eyes, and looked up. On the roof of one of the buildings still standing, was a stranger on a… motorcycle?
The engine to the motorcycle almost seemed to purr, which was a sign that it was in good condition. It was mostly white and yellow, and had black stripes that seemed to make it look like a bee or wasp. The person on top of the motorcycle wore a white and blue track suit that had red trimmings. The suit acting as a second skin, the man wore a small jacket that was cut around his chest. The white helmet he wore hid most of his face and what he looked like, a blue visor covered his eyes. He seemed a little too thin in Yuto's eyes, and was probably just a little bit taller than him by an inch.
A bit of blue hair poked out from under the helmet, and the stranger looked around wildly before he zeroed in on Yuto. His shoulders tensed, and the teen spoke with a slightly deeper voice than Yuto's own. "So it's you again. I finally found you!"
Yuto gave the stranger an elegantly raised eyebrow. "Found me? I don't even know you." Yuto glared at the stranger. "Or are you from Academia, from the Fusion Dimension?"
The stranger leaned over his ride, and yelled at Yuto. "My name is NOT Fusion! It's Yugo dammit, stop getting my name wrong! Now tell me where Rin is and I'll let that mess up slide."
"Are you from Fusion or not?" Yuto spat, getting annoyed with this guy.
Yugo growled, clenching the controls on his motorcycle. "IT'S YUGO! That's it, I'm going to pound you into the ground first and then get you to tell me where you took Rin!"
Rin? Who the hell is Rin?
A duel blade appeared on the motorcycle, and Yugo revved up his engine. The motorcycle spun quicky, before diving off of the roof of the building and heading directly towards Yuto. The Phantom duelist acted quickly, and activated his own duel disk before standing his ground.
"DUEL!"
The motorcycle hit the ground, which caused a bunch of dust and ash to rise from the floor in a cloud. Yuto stepped to the side just in time to avoid being flattened, before he pulled out a card from his deck.
YUTO LP- 4000
YUGO LP- 4000
No words were said as the two battled. Yuto quickly pulled off a Rank 4 Xyz Summon to bring forth his Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon onto the field. Yugo himself performed a summoning method Yuto had never seen before. Synchro? What the hell is a Synchro Summon?
A dragon that had four transparent cyan green wings rose onto the field with a mighty roar. Black stripes covered its white body, matching Yugo's motorcycle, and had sharp yellow eyes and LOTS of teeth.
The two dragons roared in unison, and Yuto's chest suddenly started to burn as if he was on fire. The black caped teen grabbed a hold of his chest, right where his heart lay, and winced. Though Yuto never took his eyes off of his opponent. What he didn't notice was that Yugo was doing the same thing, because his chest was burning as well.
The two dragons flew at each other, and attacked with all of their might. The force sent Yuto and Yugo backwards a bit, and more smoke flew around the field. Thankfully, all of the smoke and destruction going on managed to attract Shun's attention, who ran over to the scene as quick as he could.
When Shun finally arrived, he saw Yugo trying to run Yuto over and flatten him like a pancake, but the Xyz user kept jumping and rolling out of the way.
"Yuto!" The two duelist stopped fighting when they saw Shun had arrived. The guy on the motorcycle revved his engine once again, before glaring at Yuto through his visor.
"This isn't that last you'll see of me!" Yugo snapped. "I'll take you down and then make you tell me where you took Rin after you kidnapped her! I swear!"
Both Yuto or Shun could reply to Yugo's statement. Yugo took off on his motorcycle faster than either could blink, the duel having ended with no winner.
YUTO LP- 4000 DRAW
YUGO LP- 4000 DRAW
Yuto looked over at Shun. "Thanks for arriving when you did." He sheepishly put a had behind his head. "And sorry for the scare, again. I didn't mean to walk out of the Duel Sanctuary like that."
Shun looked around frantically, only paying half of his attention towards Yuto. Not finding what he was hoping for, Shun looked Yuto in the eyes finally. Seeing Shun's fear caused Yuto to tense up, something was wrong.
"Where's Ruri? Is she with you?"
Yuto blinked. "Uh, no. I got all the way out here sleepwalking, which I'm sorry about still by the way. I haven't seen her if that's what you're asking." Yuto saw Shun clench his fists. "Why, what's wrong?"
"Zero found something on that drive you guys stole. He's saying that Ruri is in danger and I can't find her anywhere. She's not in the Duel Sanctuary either."
Yuto reeled back at this information, it hitting him like a bus. "What!"
Shun messed with his duel disk, beginning to contact the masked man himself. "He can tell you himself. Besides, I'm still confused on it as well, and I should be calling him now to tell him that I've found you anyway." Shun glared at his childhood friend, who flinched back. "WE, are going to have words once all of this shit is over."
Before Yuto replied, Shun's duel disk accepted the call, which was on speaker. It sounded like Zero was moving a lot, his breathing was erratic and he seemed to be struggling with something.
"Why do you insist on struggling, Zero?" An unfamiliar, and slightly creepy voice spoke through the duel disk. Both Shun and Yuto tensed up at this stranger's words. They didn't know this guy, did he have Zero's duel disk? "I'm only following orders. Can you blame me for that? The Professor wants me to kidnap Ruri so what choice do I have, hmm?"
"You don't have to follow the Professor's orders if you don't want to, we both know that you're lying. You just want to do this because you're having fun." Zero spat, his modulated voice slightly fuzzy over the duel disk. There was the sound of an explosion, and a girl's cry made it through the speaker. Both boys recognized that voice coming from Ruri.
Shun and Yuto looked at each other, a silent conversation going on between them.
This guy probably doesn't know Zero accepted a call, and Ruri is there with them. He's silently asking for backup, this guy must be dangerous.
Quickly, Shun pressed a few more buttons on his duel disk before figuring out Zero's location. With that out of the way, Shun and Yuto started running towards Zero and Ruri's destination.
"Don't worry Zero." Shun finally spoke into his duel disk. He heard the stranger give a disturbing 'Hmmmm?' before speaking again. "We'll be there in just a few minutes, don't do anything stupid."
"I'll try. I can only promise you that because all of the stupid shit seems to come to me." Zero grumbled, before both sides hung up.
Shun looked to Yuto. "Let's hurry. We gotta catch this creep before he gets away."
Yuto nodded, scowl on his face and eyes hardened at the thought of battle. "Right."
. . .
Around the same time Yuto was meeting Yugo. Zero was walking around aimlessly on the Northside of Heartland's tower. So far, he had found no hide nor hair of both Yuto or Ruri, and it was not doing wonders for his paranoia. The masked man looked left and right, up and down, even through the most tiniest of crevices and ridiculous hiding spots.
It had almost been an hour and he still hasn't seen either of them.
Zero was grinding his teeth. "Dammit, where could they be. They couldn't of disappeared in the drop of a hat!" Unless Academia already captured both Yuto and Ruri and had transported them both to Academia. THEN they can disappear at the drop of a hat.
Zero growled, before making his way around one of the corners of a collapsed building. "Still nothing." The corner led to a dead end, with no where else to go. Doing a quick check and finding nothing, the masked man turned around again to back track. "Hopefully Shun is having better luck tha-"
He couldn't finish the rest of his sentence. Because all of a sudden, something had collided with him and both were sent tumbling across the ground. Zero groaned, his injuries screaming at him for taking the tumble and not watching where he was going. Opening one eye, Zero could only see long dark purple hair that was thrown in his masked face.
That was enough for Zero to know he had found Ruri.
"Ruri!" Zero almost cried out with relief, and helped the girl stand back up. "For a second I thought that Academia had-"
"P-please help me Zero." Ruri stuttered. Zero just now seeing the state the Kurosaki sibling was in. She seemed a little more roughed up than usual. Her breathing was erratic, as if she had just ran a marathon, and her eyes. She was afraid.
"Why? Is someone after you?" Zero deduced, and Ruri nodded frantically.
"Yeah!" She pointed behind her, hand shaking. "And he looks just like-"
"Oh I do hope you're not spreading rumors about me dear Ruri." A voice chuckled, and a person hidden by a black cloak appeared around the building from where Ruri ran from. "Gossip is such a naughty thing to do, and I thought it was beneath you. I don't want any new guests to think badly about me now do we?"
Zero straightened his shoulders, and reached for his pocket knife. Only to remember that he left it behind. God dammit. I hate my luck sometimes. So instead of his pocket knife, he slowly withdrew his duel disk and deck.
The stranger's hidden face stared into Zero's faceless mask. It was quiet as the two had their stare down.
"I spy with my little eye a masked man." The stranger suddenly blurted out and laughed, acting like they were old friends. When in reality Zero didn't know who the hell this guy was.
"I spy with my masked eye someone whose about to get their ass kicked if they don't back off." Zero spat, not in the mood for games.
"Oh how rude!" The stranger seemed to pout, before smiling again like nothing had happened. "I just wanted to have some fun." He said innocently.
Silence was his only response.
"So, care to introduce yourself? Or do I have to do the honors?" The stranger almost cackled as if nothing was wrong. "Let's not be rude now."
Carefully, Zero put Ruri behind him to shield her from view. "I am Zero. Although I'm sure you already knew that since you're from Academia." Zero felt Ruri grab his wrist, as if he was her only lifeline. "What do you want with Ruri?"
"Now, it's rude to ask questions and demand of a stranger you don't even know." Violet pink eyes and a face similar to Yuto's appeared from underneath the cloak. A wicked smile on his face. "Besides, I'm only following orders. I could care less what becomes of Ms. Kurosaki."
Zero frowned within his mask, but his anger was reduced slightly from shock at who this person was. "You're-" Zeros mind went back to the third boy he saw in Revival Zero. "You're Yuri."
Yuri gave Zero a surprised look, before masking it like an extinguished flame. "So you know about me? Strange, because this is my first time here in Xyz." Yuri gave that creepily calm smile again. "Why I dare say that you're not from around here, are you Mr. Zero." It wasn't stated as a question, because both boys knew the answer
Yuri laughed and clapped his hands as if a giddy child. "I'm correct aren't I?" He tilted his head, the cloak falling off of his head and revealing his purple and magenta hair. "Then may I ask which dimension you are from?"
"Yeah." Zero crouched slightly, figure tense. If this guy is eerily similar to Yuto, or if he is a clone or some shit, then he's probably as good as Yuto. I'll have to take him seriously, especially since he has Ruri so frightened. "It's called 'None of your business'."
Yuri pouted. "Aw, and here I thought we were going to be civil about this." That predatory grin was back, and Yuri took a step forward. Zero and Ruri took a step back, until they both realized that they were cornered, and had nowhere to go.
Zero clicked his tongue in annoyance. "You'll have to go through me first if you want to get to Ruri, Yuri." With that, the masked man started his duel disk.
Deciding that the cloak was too bulky for his liking, Yuri removed it with a flick of his wrist. His duel disk also starting up, and had a purple sword for a blade. "Oh don't worry. I plan to, and once I defeat you I'll turn you into a card just as the Professor ordered me to and take Ruri away to Academia." Yuri's voice had gained a playful edge as he stared straight at Ruri. The Xyz girl flinched back and Zero blocked the Fusion user's view of her. "After all, the Professor is desperate to meet you Ruri."
"Enough of your creepy tactics." Zero snapped as both of their screens turned on.
Yuri shrugged casually. "Oh well." Pinkish purple eyes shrunk as he gave an almost insane grin. "As you wish, Zero. I'll let that be your final request before you become another card in my collection." Yuri licked his lips. "People like you, who are an actual threat, are so rare to come by nowadays. Especially those who wear masks, those are ultra rare."
Yuri could tell, just by seeing this guy in real life, that he was dead serious. He knew that Zero would cause problems right away if he wasn't dealt with swiftly and harshly. Though Zero wouldn't admit it, he could tell the exact same thing when it came to Yuri. He would became a dangerous threat if not disposed of. That, and the guy was unnervingly creepy, even in Zero's opinion and standards, and he met C.C.
"I do hope you won't hold back, because that would just insult me." Yuri deadpanned.
"Please. Just focus on your own survival, because I'm not going to lose this match."
Yuri smiled, as if he was thoroughly enjoying this banter between rivals. "Good luck with that, I haven't lost once in my entire life since I've started dueling!"
"Good." Zero wouldn't tell Yuri that he only started dueling around two months ago. "Because neither have I."
ZERO LP- 4000
YURI LP- 4000
"DUEL!"
There's Chapter 5 folks, hope you enjoyed. I wanted to give a chapter that had some friendship bonding in it, because character building and progress. However, there's one thing I just couldn't wait to add in this story.
YURI!
Oh my GOSH I've been dying to introduce him into this story. Let me tell you, these two boys are going to be butting heads often. As stated in the story, they're rivals. I believe I did a good job on doing Yuri's character, and I'm proud. :)
Though, there seems to be a lot of confusion and misconceptions going around! Leo thinks that Zero is Reiji, Yuto battled with some stranger, and Zero seems to have run into Yuri. Some crap is going to go down in the next Chapter, I can tell you that much! Though I can't be the only one thinking that Zero and Reiji seem to have a lot in common. And who the hell almost revealed Zero's identity?! I bet most of you know, I know. What am I saying? I'm writing the damn thing! Anyway, if I found out that some leader of a major army like Academia was stalking two of my friends. I would be absolutely probably have a panic attack, what about you? Hope you guys can't wait for Chapter 6! -MoonlightWright
