Sorry for the long delay between chapters guys. Just as a heads up, the plans I had for this chapter have been changed. Just letting you know why this chapter isn't like I previewed.
It's a warm summer's day in Japan. The long-anticipated Fighter's Royal Tournament is only a couple days away. Announcements are being made across the country to build anticipation, meanwhile, the girls of Team K3 spend what little time they have left beforehand to get ready. At a small house in a suburban area, Yui sits on top of her two-story bed as she sorts out her deck. "Maybe I'll use this and… no that won't work." She says to herself as she shakes her head furiously, and then puts her hands on her head in frustration and says, "Ugh… this is so hard!" as she flops over and hangs her head and arms upside down off the edge of her bed.
Just then, she hears the door to her room open. She looks over to see her mother walk in, carrying a plate with a sandwich, as well as Yui's baby sister, and followed along by her younger brother, all of them having the same shade of white hair she has. "Are you okay Yui?" her mother asks as she sets the food on the desk by the bed, "I've never seen you stay in your room this much." Her little brother then tries to steal the sandwich, but the mother pulls his hand away, "No Kiryu, that's for your sister." She reprimands him in a soft but commanding voice.
Yui giggles at her brother's antics and climbs down the latter on the side of her bed. "I'm fine mom." She tells her, "I just want to make sure my deck is in top condition for the tournament."
"Your deck?" her mom asks and then smiles, "Yui?"
"Hmm?" Yui mutters as she bites into the sandwich.
Her mom then kneels down and pats her on the head as the baby coos in her arms. "I'm glad you were able to find something to passionate about."
"Haha… thanks mom." Yui replies.
Opening Theme – Just Fly Away (Gundam Build Fighters TRY OP2)
Drive 18 – Night before the storm
Meanwhile… at Card Capital 2, Rina is currently in a fight against Taiyou. "Relena attacks your Vanguard!" Rina declares.
"Complete Guard with Mage of Radiant Shield!" Taiyou responds as Rina's attack is stopped dead in its tracks. Rina clicks her teeth in frustration as Taiyou looks up at her. "Are you okay Rina?" he asks her.
"I'm fine." She answers in a huff, "I just… don't want to make any mistakes. We're going to be facing so many strong opponents in Fighter's Royal, so I need to be at the top of my game!"
Taiyou thinks for a moment and asks Rina, "What did you enter Fighter's Royal for?" Rina gives him a confused look, "What made you want to enter this tournament with Alex and Yui? Was it for the prize money, or maybe so you cand them could be recognized as a team, but knowing you, it was probably something else?"
Rina thinks for a moment and replies with a heavy expression, "I… I'm not sure, I just kinda got roped into the team by Alex. But ever since I learned about Vanguard, I've always wanted to get ahead of my dad, but on my own terms."
"Oh?" Taiyou replies.
"I wanted to develop a style of my own… and I knew if I took lessons from him, I'd eventually just end up copying what he does."
"Well then I think you have your answer." Taiyou tells her and Rina looks at him, even more confused, but quickly realized what he's trying to say.
"Oh, I get it. By using Fighter's Royal, I can show my dad the new style I've developed for myself."
"Exactly." Taiyou then draws a card from his deck and asks, "Are you ready to continue?"
Rina corrects her posture and looks at Taiyou with a newfound determination in her eyes, "Yes! Bring it!" Rina tells him.
"Alright then. Ride! Radiant Sun King, Gurguit! Let me see this new style you've made Rina."
"I intend to!" Rina replies, and the two continue to fight.
Elsewhere… Alex walks down the street, carrying her deck while looking around, and eventually spots her destination. "Ah! There it is!" she says as she runs up to the building labeled Card Capital, "So this is the original Card Capital." She looks at her deck and says, "Alright! Let's do this!" to psyche herself up, and then walks into the store. The store was a rather small room that still looks like it has a design style from 10 years ago. Red walls and a light gray tiled floor. There were only about two fight tables, compared to Card Capital 2's six tables, the rest were just normal tables, with cheap chairs. "Excuse me." She says as she walks up to the counter to get the attention of the man stocking the shelf behind it.
The man was a little surprised to see her so he finished stocking and said, "Ah, hello there." In a rather calm and attractive voice. The man appears to be just a little older than Alex and had spiky blue hair, a strong build, and wearing a dark blue t-shirt, black pants, and the apron of the shop. "I haven't seen you around here before," he continues, "are you new?"
"Yeah," Alex replies, "it's my first time in this shop. I'm trying to look for new cards to improve my deck, but so far, no card shop has any in stock."
"Well maybe I can help." The man tells her, leaning on the counter to look at her head-on, "What clan do you use?"
"Gear Chronicle."
"Gear Chronicle?" the man responds in surprise and then chuckles, "That's a pretty unique clan. I might have a few packs in the back, let me check." The man then walks into the back room. A few minutes later, he comes back carrying a box full of the latest set containing Gear Chronicle. "Here you are. How many do you want?"
"As many as you can give me." Alex tells him with a smile. She gives him some money and he gives her the proper amount of packs as a result. She takes the packs and walks out the door, but not before waving goodbye to the man and saying, "Thanks again."
"Have a good day miss." The man replies as she walks out.
"She seemed friendly." A young boy with brown hair that spikes straight up says, turning away from his card fight.
"She did." The man replies, "I wonder if we'll have to face her in the tournament."
"She uses Gear Chronicle, so it'd be interesting if she did." The boy says. Just then, his opponent reprimands him for not paying attention to the fight.
"Focus on the fight." A boding voice says.
"WAHH! Sorry." The boy nervously says. His opponent was a middle-aged tall man with spiky brownish-gray hair and a slight beard.
"Now go! Flames of the Apocalypse! Burn everything to ash!" the man exclaims in a rough and powerful voice, "RIDE!" In their imagination, the silhouette of a giant dragon bursting into flames appears and lets out a deafening roar.
Later that evening, Rina and Yui stand in front of Card Capital 2, waiting for Alex to arrive. "Where is she?" Rina asks as she taps her foot in annoyance, "She's the one who arranged this meet up, you'd think she'd be on time."
"Maybe the trains were running late? She did have to travel across the country." Yui tells her to try and get her to calm down. Just then, they hear Alex's voice from the other end of the street.
"HEY GUYS!" she shouts as she runs to them.
"About time." Rina says, "What took you so long?"
Alex rubs the back of her head in embarrassment. "Well I uhh… I kinda fell asleep on the train and missed my stop. I guess that's what I get when I stay up all night fixing my deck." She explains and then laughs awkwardly. Rina sighs in annoyance as Yui giggles along with Alex.
After this meeting, Alex takes her friends to her house for a small celebration to them getting into Fighter's Royal. Alex opens the front door and shouts "Mom! I'm home!" as she takes off her shoes.
Tokoha, who is in the kitchen stirring in a wide pot, looks over to see Team K3 walk in the door. "Welcome back Alex." She greets them as she puts down her spoon and walks over to them, "And Rina, Yui, it feels like it's been ages since I've seen you two."
"It's nice to see you too Mrs. Shindou." Yui says politely as she bows.
"L-Likewise…" Rina says and bows as well, but glances up at Tokoha's chest and sighs with jealousy.
"Dinner's almost ready, so make yourselves at home." Tokoha says as the girls head elsewhere to continue preparing for the tournament.
Later, at dinner, the hotpot sizzles on top of a portable stove that sits on top of the table as the four girls sit around it. Alex sits next to her mother, as well as across from Rina, who is sitting next to Yui. "A hotpot?" Rina questions, "isn't it the wrong time of year?"
"Warm or cold, a hot pot is always the best meal before a big event." Alex tells her with a cheerful smile, and then looks at her mom, "Right Mom?"
Tokoha laughs and says, "I have certainly trained you well."
Rina glares at them and says, "Great… now there's two of them."
"Regardless, I'm proud of you three getting into Fighter's Royal." Tokoha tells the three.
"Well… it sure wasn't easy to get here." Rina explains.
"Yeah," Alex replies, "especially after we thought you were gonna leave us at one point."
"And we almost had to force you to join." Yui adds.
"Okay, would you guys stop making it seem like I'm the villain here?!" Rina exclaims in annoyance and everyone else laughs.
Yui then turns to Tokoha and asks, "Oh! Mrs. Shindou…" to get her attention and then puts on a smug face, "What was Alex's childhood like?"
"Eh?" Alex mutter is shock.
"I only ever saw what she was like when we hung out together, but what was she like the rest of the time?" Yui continues.
"Now that you mention it, I'd like to see that too." Rina says.
"You too Rina?" Alex questions.
Tokoha thinks for a minute and says with a cheerful, yet mischievous expression, "Well I could show you girls the scrapbook I have from Alex's youth."
"WHAT?!" Alex exclaims, "No! Absolutely not!"
Later, after dinner, Tokoha sits on the couch between Yui and Rina as she holds open the old scrapbook for them. "This was Alex when she was 3 years old when we went to a Water Park on vacation."
"Aww," Yui moans, "look how cute she is!"
"She barely had a swirl back then it looks like." Rina examines the picture… meanwhile Alex huddles herself up on the other couch in embarrassment and puffing her cheeks.
Tokoha turns the page in the scrapbook and Yui points to a specific picture, "Who is this?" she asks. The man in the picture she points to has spiky red hair with a pink swirl that looked similar to Alex's.
Tokoha looks at the picture and puts on a weak smile. "That's… that's Alex's father." She explains, and both Yui and Rina look intently, even Alex's interest has been piqued.
"That's her dad?" Rina questions.
"Yep, back when he was still with us." Tokoha continues.
Alex hesitates for a moment, but then looks at her mother and asks, "So mom… what was my dad like? I only have very vague memories of him from when I was little, and… I wanna know."
Tokoha smiles at Alex's question and closes the scrapbook, "Well… it's quite a long story."
"Your father and I met in our 2nd year of junior high." Tokoha explains, "Back then, I thought he was just a rude and impulsive boy who was always in a bad mood, but then I learned from my brother that he played Vanguard, and when I saw him playing, I thought I was looking at a completely different person. He was smiling so innocently, like he was actually having fun. It was then I decided to try and become friends with him, I even remember that the day I found out that he played Vanguard, he had a tooth ache."
"For real?!" Alex asks in surprise and Tokoha nods in response before continuing with her story.
"I also remember when I saw him fight for the first time. He was playing against one of my best friends at the time and giving her some pointers. He still had his tooth ache, so on his final turn, as he was about to perform a stride, he accidentally played a Dentist Appointment."
The girls burst into laughter at this story and Rina says, "What an idiot."
"That was something I'll never forget." Tokoha continues, "So after seeing what he can do in a fight, I decided I really wanted to become friends with him, and the best way to do that, is through Vanguard. One day, I caught him buying some croquettes from the bakery, thinking he was buying them all for himself. He got a little heated and overreacted a lot, and eventually we decided to fight for the snacks."
"Fighting for croquettes…" Alex says, "That definitely sounds like something I'd do."
"At the time, I was still in the shadow of my brother, but during that fight, Chrono was the first person who saw me as someone unique, not as Mamoru's little sister, but as Tokoha, and even though he won the fight, he still let me have the croquettes, saying 'I deserve them'."
"Wow!" Yui exclaims, but Tokoha continues.
"Oh, there's plenty more. A few weeks later, a friend of ours tried to make a team out of us."
"You mean Team TRY3?" Alex asks.
"Yes, but back then we weren't called TRY3. We were thrown together so haphazardly, Chrono, myself, and Shion still had no chemistry. We'd do things that would get on each other's nerves, but we eventually decided that we can work together, and so we worked harder and harder to mix, until we did. Though at one point, it felt like our team as gonna get disbanded before we even had a chance to make it big. At a local tournament, we were far in the lead, but Chrono caught one of the opposing team members cheating and tried to call him out for it, but… he did it in a rather violent way. He shoved the kid into one of the fight tables and disrupted several fights. He was then kicked out of the tournament and lost all his fighters' points… returning him to grade 0."
"Yikes, I'm glad I didn't have to experience that." Alex says.
"Did those boys ever get found cheating?" Yui asks.
"Yeah they did, Shion did some detective work and was able to work out their lies. Soon after that, Chrono decided he was going to quit the team and Vanguard all together because he had hit rock bottom and he was never going to get enough points in time for the tournament, but somehow, he had a change of heart and decided to come back to us. I was actually very relieved he came back. We then scrambled to get him back up to grade 3 in time. It took a lot of effort and loss of sleep, but we did it, we got into Nationals. That's when things really took a turn for the worse. It was our first match in the second round, and we were up against a really professional team. Chrono won his fight, but I lost mine. After my opponent made several cruel remarks about my brother, I lost my temper again and ended up losing, and then Shion lost his match, and so we were out of the tournament."
The other three girls continue to listen in awe.
"I got really down in the dumps, but Chrono was able to cheer me up to an extent. At this point, it felt like our team was going to be disbanded again, and this time it felt more likely, but Chrono worked his absolute hardest to keep our team going… to cheer us all on, and eventually… we got the chance to face off against that professional team again, and this time we won! We had gone through so much, and we finally made to where we dreamed to be, and it was all thanks to his love and determination. Then I finally realized that, maybe I do have feelings for him."
"So that was when you saw him as more than just a friend?" Rina asks.
"Yes. About a year later, we entered a new tournament called G Quest, and that was what made us big. We won the whole thing, blowing past every other team. Then we wrapped up in the business of an evil organization called 'Company', they even kidnapped Chrono. I was worried out of my mind that if something were to happen to him… well… I don't want to think about what would have happened. Thankfully he was saved, and if he wasn't… I don't think any of you would have even been born."
K3's expressions drop hearing this.
"I know that's scary to think about, but everything's fine now. Soon after we finished dealing with Company, I decided to go study abroad in France. It wasn't easy moving away from Chrono, especially after we had done it together, but it was something I wanted to do. So we said a tearful goodbye as I left for Paris, France.
"So how did you and dad end up getting back together?" Alex asks.
"I'm getting to that. While I was in Paris, I met another boy by the name of Miguel, and honestly, I can't believe I'm saying this now, but I didn't know who I loved more. Chrono and I had been together for almost 2 years, but Miguel was so kind and charming, even if there was something strange about him, but only a day or 2 after I met him… he died. I then decided to come back to Japan and take part in a tournament called Under 20 in memory of him. Looking back on it now, it was a stupid reason, but that tournament was where I was able to solidify my love for your father, where he and I fought again for the first time in almost year. A lot happened during that fight, but I was able to finally express my love for him openly." *
"So that's how you two got together?" Yui asked.
"Pretty much. A few years later, we finally got married and then gave birth to Alex, but then soon after that… Chrono… left us."
"Where did he go?" Alex asks intently, even getting up off the couch to sit on the floor in front of her mother, "Come on, you gotta know something."
Tokoha hesitates for a moment and explains, "Let's just say that he has some important business to take care of, and when he gets done, we'll finally be a family again." She then pats Alex on the head. She then sighs and says, "Well it's getting late. Yui, Rina, you two should head home before it gets much darker."
"Yes ma'am." Yui and Rina reply. Alex then sees them off by the front door. After the two of them are out of sight, she closes the door and locks it.
"Hey mom." Alex asks and Tokoha looks over at her, "I know it's late, but can you do me a favor?" Alex then turns her whole body toward Tokoha and asks, "Can we have a Cardfight?"
Tokoha is nearly frozen by Alex's words, "You want to fight me?"
"Yeah," Alex answers with a nod, "I wanna know where I stand on my skill level right now, and I figured, you being part of a legendary team, would help judge me on that."
Tokoha thinks for a moment, then smiles and answers, "Okay… one game, but that's it."
"That's all I need!" Alex states.
Later, the two of them sit in the middle of the living room where Tokoha told the story about Chrono. They both sit on the floor and on opposite ends of the coffee table like it was a fight table. "It's been a long time since I fought anyone, even for fun, so I might be a little rusty." Tokoha explains.
"That doesn't matter," Alex tells her, "give me everything you got!"
"Okay, you asked for it!" Tokoha taunts as they both reach for their starter and declare in unison, "Stand up… VANGUARD!"
"Steam Maiden Kashima Early (G0/5000)." Alex declares.
"Maiden of Winter Bloom, Ozu (G0/5000)." Tokoha declares and takes the first turn, "Ride! Serene Maiden, Diane (G1/8000). Using her skill, I call a Plant Token (G0/5000)."
"My turn! Ride! Steam Mechanic Amba (G1/7000)! Using Kashima Early's skill!" Alex binds her and looks at the top seven cards of her deck and puts Kashima into it, then draws a card. "Next I use Amba's skill! Bind and draw (BZ: 1-2/G0-1). Next I call Steam Maiden Nanniya (G1/8000). Nanniya boosts Amba and attacks (7000-15000)!"
"No guard." Tokoha declares. (Tokoha: [])
"Using Nanniya's skill. Put her into my soul and draw a card." Alex states and ends her turn.
"Ride!" Tokoha declares, "Blossoming White Lily, Cela (G2/10000). Using Cela's skill (Soul 2-1). Call two Plant Tokens (G0/5000) (G0/5000). I call Serenity Fairy, Katrina (G1/8000) and White Tenacity, Noel (G2/10000)."
"She's already got a full board?!" Alex says to herself, starting to panic.
"Boosted by Katrina, my Plant Token attacks your Vanguard (5000-13000)!" Alex decides to take the hit (Alex: []). "Boosted by the Plant Token, Cela attacks the Vanguard (10000-15000)! Drive Check (Critical). Critical Trigger. Power to Noel (10000-20000). Critical to Noel (15000/Crit 1-2)." (Alex: [][][]) "Boosted by the Plant Token, Noel attacks (20000-25000)."
Alex decides to take the hit, "Damage Check (Heal)! Heal Trigger! Recover 1 damage!" (Alex: [][][]). "Ride! Steam Maiden Susuda (G2/10000)! With her skill (BZ: 2-3/G1-G3) add 5000 power (10000-15000). I call Steam Mechanic Nabu (G2/10000) and Steam Fighter Memenne (G1/6000)! Susuda attacks the Vanguard!"
"No guard." (Tokoha: [][]).
"Boosted by Memenne, Nabu attacks the Vanguard (10000-16000)!"
"Guard (10000)."
"I end my turn." Alex declares.
"Then it's my turn." Tokoha says with a calm smile as she draws a card from her deck. She looks at the card she drew and smiles. "Fluttering White and Pure blossoms dancing in the radiant sun light… for a heart that longs to be whole once again… Stand up and become the light that keeps me strong! Ride! Ranunculus of Argent White, Ahsha (G3/12000)!" Ahsha appears in a white attire reminiscent of a wedding dress with white lily flowers. "Now, due to Ahsha's skill, all of my rear-guard circles become Plant Sanctuaries."
"Plant Sanctuaries?" Alex questions.
"Yes… the new power Ahsha has received after her many trials and challenges. Now, I can have as many rear-guards as I want on a Sanctuary."
"Wait seriously?!" Alex exclaims in surprise, "Like three units on one circle?!"
"Yes, exactly. I have my Plant Token and Katrina switch places. I activate Ahsha's skill ([X][]). I call three Plant Tokens! One to each of my back row circles (G0/5000) (G0/5000) (G0/5000)."
Board State
(G2/10000) (G3/12000) (G1/8000)
(G0/5000|G0/5000) (G0/5000|G0/5000) (G0/5000|G0/5000)
"Two units on one circle…?!" Alex says, still trying to wrap her head around this situation.
"Not only that, but if there are multiple units on one circle, they act as one. I activate Katina's skill (Soul 3-2). Retire her and call three more Plant Tokens, to the same circles. Next I call Holly Maiden, Anelma (G2/10000). Using her skill. When she's called, call two plant tokens, and if she's called to a Plant Sanctuary, those tokens gain 2000 power each. I call them to her same circle as Anelma (G0/5000-7000) (G0/5000-7000)."
Board State
(G2/10000) (G3/12000) (G2/10000|G0/7000 x2)
(G0/5000 x3) (G0/5000 x3) (G0/5000 x3)
"Boosted by three Plant Tokens, Noel attacks (10000-25000)! Noel's skill ([X][X]). When she attacks, and she's on a Plant Sanctuary, all of my Plant Tokens gain 2000 power!"
"I guard (10000+15000)!" Alex declares.
"Boosted by three Plant Tokens, Ahsha attacks the Vanguard (G3/12000-33000)!"
"No guard."
"Twin Drive (Critical/Draw). Double Trigger. 20000 power to Anelma, critical to Ahsha, and draw a card (G2/10000-30000) (G3/33000/Crit 1-2)."
"AHHHH!" Alex screams on Cray as Susuda is hit by Ahsha's attack. "Damage Check (none/Draw). Draw Trigger! Power to the Vanguard and draw a card (10000-20000)!" Alex looks at the card she drew and is shocked. (Alex: [][][][][])
"Boosted by three Plant Tokens, Anelma and two Plant Tokens attack the Vanguard (total power: 49000)!"
"Complete Guard!" Alex declares.
Tokoha, taken aback by Alex's play, smiles and says, "I see. You must have drawn that Sentinel with your draw trigger. Because otherwise, you would have used it to block my Vanguard's attack."
"Maybe, or maybe I saved it because I knew if I blocked your Vanguard with it, I wouldn't have had enough to block Anelma." Alex explains, drawing to bluff her.
Tokoha giggles and says, "If you say so. Now I believe it's your turn."
"Yeah. Stand and draw. Let's go! To the perfect future I desire! Ride! High Steam Maiden, Kashima (G3/12000)! Using Memenne's skill! Discard a card and draw a card." Alex looks at the card she drew and grins, "I discard Steam Gunner Riche from my hand to activate Kashima's Soul Drive this turn!"
"Hmm…" Tokoha whispers, intrigued by Alex's play, "But the units in your Bind Zone only total to Grade 3.
"Right now, but due to Kashima Early's skill, she is treated as a grade 1 in the bind zone!"
"I see." Tokoha says.
"Let's move forward! To a work of infinite possibilities! Kashima's Soul Drive… ACTIVATE!" Alex declares with deep passion and imagines Kashima on Cray throwing off her goggles as mechanical wings sprout from her back as she flies above the ground and spreads them wide (G3-4/12000-15000/drive 2-3) (BZ: 3-0/G4-0). Next, I call Steam Maiden Susuda from my hand (G2/10000). Bind the top card of my deck (BZ: 0-1/G0-3) and add 5000 power (10000-15000)." Alex looks at her hand and field and realizes she may have messed up, "Ugh… now I don't have enough cards in my hand to do anything else…"
Board State
(G2/10000) (G4/15000) (G2/15000)
(G1/6000) (XXXX) (XXXX)
"Alex?" Tokoha gets her attention.
Alex smacks her face to get herself to focus and looks at Tokoha's hand. "She only has 3 cards in hand, but she also has a ton of units in play…" Alex thinks for a minute. Then gets an idea, "Okay! Nabu attacks Noel! Using Nabu's skill (BZ: 1-2/G3-5). You can't guard this attack with Grade 1 or greater units!"
"No guard." Tokoha declares.
"Nabu's other skill. Put her into the soul and draw a card." Alex thinks for a moment and grins at her mother with confidence. "Let's go! Kashima attacks your Vanguard! Using Kashima's skill ([X][][][][])! Bind the top card of my deck (BZ: 2-3/G5-7), and call a unit from my Bind zone. I call Steam Scara Nanum (G3/12000) (BZ: 3-2/G7-4), and since I called a Grade 3, Kashima gains 1 drive (15000/drive 3-4)!"
Tokoha thinks about her situation and declares. "No guard."
"Quadruple Drive! First check (none)! Second Check (Critical)! Critical Trigger! Power to Nanum (12000-22000), and Critical to Kashima (15000/Crit 1-2)! Third Check (Draw)! Draw Trigger! Power to Susuda and draw (15000-25000)! Fourth Check (Critical)!" Even Alex is surprised by the outcome, "Critical Trigger! Power to Memenne and Critical to Kashima (6000-16000) (15000/Crit 2-3)!" On Cray, Kashima dives at Ahsha as she prepares to block the attack, but Kashima cuts right through her anyway.
"AHHHHH!" Tokoha screams as she's hit (Tokoha: [X][][][][]).
"I can do this!" Alex tells herself, "Susuda attacks your Vanguard!
"Guard (15000)!" Tokoha declares.
"Boosted by Memenne, Nanum attacks the Vanguard (22000-38000)!" Alex declares.
She imagines her units flying towards Ahsha together, ready to put an end to this game. There is the sound of clashing steel, but as the smoke clears on Cray, her attack was stopped by a singular unit. "Complete Guard." Tokoha declares.
Alex stares at the sentinel with a look of defeat. "I completely forgot about that…"
"That's why I've told you it's best to memorize your opponent's drive checks." Tokoha tells her as she draws a card, "But don't feel too bad. You had a good idea in mind. While you did rely a lot on those triggers, you almost pulled through in the end."
"I… I see." Alex says, "Thanks mom."
Tokoha smiles back and then holds up a card, "Now it's getting late, so why don't we finish this fight?" Alex is taken aback by her words as she chants (Music: "Hidamari Rhodonite" by Roselia), "Heavenly argent flowers… bloom and show me a world without despair and loneliness. Heavenly White Ahsha's Soul Drive… ACTIVATE!" Tokoha retires 3 plant tokens in her back row as the white lilies on Ahsha's dress begin to bloom and expand as a large storm of white and silver petals flow through the air. "Ahsha gains 3000 power, 1 Grade, and 1 Drive (G3-4/12000-15000/drive 2-3)." Tokoha then retires 2 more Plant Tokens on the circle with Anelma. "Liberating the Generation Zone (Soul 2-1)!" Tokoha imagines herself in a starry vortex with her body covered in a bright white light. She holds her hands over her heart and chants, "White petals of radiance and purity, show me a future where I never lose what's important to me! Generation Stride!" The vortex is then overtaken by a white light. Back on Cray, Ahsha has gotten a longer dress and scythe as the petal storm around her gets more intense, "Ranunculus of Radiant Dream, Ahsha (GX/27000)! Ahsha's skill ([X][X][][][]) (Soul 1-0). I can now call five Plant Tokens to my field."
"FIVE?!" Alex exclaims as Tokoha calls a token to each of her circles.
"And if I have 10 or more rear-guards, all of my rear-guards gain 3000 power. Next I call Anelma from my hand (G2/10000) Call two more Plant Tokens and those units gain 2000 power each. Now since I have 15 rear-guards, Ahsha gains 1 Critical (15000/Crit 1-2)."
Board State
(G0/8000|G2/10000|G0/7000) (GX/27000/Crit 2) (G2/13000|G0/8000|G0/7000)
(G0/8000|G0/8000|G0/8000) (G0/8000|G0/8000|G0/8000) (G0/8000|G0/8000|G0/8000)
"Boosted by three Plant Tokens, Ahsha attacks the Vanguard (27000-51000)."
Alex panics for a second, but declares, "Complete Guard!"
"Triple Drive (none/Critical/Critical)! Double Critical. Give each one to both Anelmas (13000-23000/Crit 1-2) (10000-20000/Crit 1-2). "Boosted by three Plant Tokens, my weaker Anelma, and two tokens attack your Vanguard (35000-59000)!"
Alex looks at her hand and realizes she does not have enough to guard the attack and simply says, "No guard…" Anelma's attack cuts through Kashima. (Alex: [X][][][][][])
The mother and daughter look at the state of their board as Alex asks, "Well mom, how did I do?"
Tokoha smiles and says, "Alex… I think you already know that answer."
Alex looks down at her Avatar, smiles, and says, "Yeah. Just watch me mom, we're going to win Fighters Royal and become champions like you and dad!"
"Yes. I believe in you Alex." Tokoha tells her.
Later that night, after Alex has gone to sleep, Tokoha sneaks into her room. She looks at her sleeping daughter and smiles weakly before reaching into her shirt's breast pocket and pulls out a card. She then places it on Alex's nightstand, kisses Alex on the forehead, and walks out of the room. The card seemed to depict an older version of Kashima…
As Tokoha was getting ready to sleep herself, she hears her phone ring. She picks it up and tenses up when she sees the caller ID. She answers it and says, "Hello?"
An older gentleman's voice comes through and asks, "Did you give her the card?"
Tokoha sighs and answers, "Yes."
"Then everything is set." The voice says, "All we can do now is leave it up to them and hope they don't interfere."
"Yeah… I just hope they're ready for what's to come should they win…" Tokoha states her concerns.
"I hope so too Tokoha… I hope so too…" the man replies.
Ending Theme – Play the World (BOFURI Ending)
[Next Time]
It's the beginning of Fighter's Royal! All the teams participating gather at Japan's biggest stadium as the announcement to begin the world's biggest Vanguard tournament ever commences. All the fighters scatter throughout the city seeking to become the world's best Vanguard team! Next time on Vanguard X: "Fighter's Royal begins!" Don't miss it!
Alex & Rina's Card Corner
Alex: Hello everyone! Sorry for such a delay between chapters, but don't worry! Vanguard X is back and here to stay!
Rina: We realize there is a brand new Vanguard series coming out soon, Vanguard Overdress, but the card game in this series will not be changing at all from what it is now.
Alex: With that out of the way, let's move on to our card of the day!
Rina: It's Tokoha brand new ace, Ranunculus of Heavenly White, Ahsha!
Grade 3 / 12000 Power / Twin Drive / Neo Nectar / Bioroid
Alex: Her Soul Drive can be activated by retiring three rear-guards, and she gains 1 Grade, 3000 power, and 1 Drive. Now that may sound like a lot, but wait until you hear her next effect!
Rina: While she's your Vanguard, all of your rear-guard circles become Plant Sanctuaries, which allow you to have any number of units on that circle as you want.
Alex: And those units all boost, attack, Stand, and Rest as if they were one unit.
Rina: One drawback is that, if your unit on a Plant Sanctuary would be affected by an opponent's card effect, all units on that circle are affected as well.
Alex: This includes retiring, so if a unit would be retired by a card effect, all units on the same circle are retired as well.
Rina: Her second effect is an effect that lets you counterblast 1 to call 3 Plant Tokens and then Ahsha gains 5000 power for each of your rear-guards and if she's driven, she gains +1 critical.
Alex: So what do you think? You like this card?
Rina: If you wanna discuss the fanfic or any of the author's other fanfics, you can join us on the author's Discord server at
discord . gg/ mFfHPMz
Rina: Just paste this link into your internet browser without spaces. We look forward to seeing you there!
Alex: In the meantime, always remember…
Alex & Rina: Stand up the Vanguard!
*This will be explained in a future spin-off series to Vanguard X, yes it is in the works.