This is the moment I've been waiting for… It's time for the Movie Arc! Once again, thank you to each one of you who gave me tips and links to different sites where I can watch "Yu-Gi-Oh! 3D: Bonds Beyond Time" sub version. It was a very big help for me.
I hope you will enjoy my new version of "Bonds Beyond Time"; it's going to be way different compared to the Movie Arc in the old version of "Crimson Star Priestess".
We have the 850 shout-out winner! Since an old winner wrote the review, they won't win again, so the actual winner is Jessi gates! Congratulations! The next shout-out will be by the 875 review.
Disclaimer: I do not own any Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's characters! I only own my OCs!
Chapter 60: Bonds Beyond Time – Part 1
A few days had passed since the Meklord Emperor Skiel encounter and telling Sherry about my friends' experience with Iliaster. I still felt a bit uneasy, but this morning felt too tense. The clouds outside were dark as if a storm was coming.
I was standing outside on the balcony as I stared at the clouds. Was this a sign of something was coming? I placed a hand on top of my right arm where my Mark was. Ever since I woke up in the morning, I felt some stinging feelings coming and going. Was it a forewarning? But what was coming?
I rubbed my forehead as I tried to remember what was coming next in the chain of events in the Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's plot. Things had been mixed up and not going according to the main story.
I nearly jumped off the balcony when my smartphone rang in the pocket of my jacket. I picked it up and saw it was Carly calling. What could she want?
I answered the call and rested the device against my right ear. "Hello?"
"Estelle, it's Carly."
"Is everything okay?" I asked, noticing something was off with her voice.
"Umm… I'm helping Leo and Luna on a history project, since it was literally one of the very few subjects at school I managed to get A's, and we-"
There was some noise before Leo's voice yelled in the phone. "Estelle, we have to see Yusei right now!"
"What? What's going on?" I asked, moving the smartphone away to not let the scream hurt my ear.
"Leo, don't yell at the phone!" I heard Luna's voice in the background before the phone was passed to her. "Sorry about Leo, but we found something that's very confusing and worrisome."
The gears were beginning to move in my head. History…
"Okay, let's gather at the garage", I nodded. "I'll be there in five minutes. Have you called Aki?"
"Yes, she'll meet up with us there", Luna replied.
"Got it. I'm coming right away."
I ended the call and hurried inside to grab a handbag to store my keys, smartphone, badge, and other minor stuff. I ran to the garage to get on my Duel Runner and drove out to the streets.
My memories went to the movie "Bonds Beyond Time". What if that was about to happen?! Then the Signers and I needed to act as quickly as possible.
I quickly got changed into some new clothes that Aki's mother had made for me. She got inspired by my old clothes that I used to wear back during the Dark Signers war, so she gave me a new set of clothes with more style than what the old and plain outfit had. The new outfit consisted of a navy blue spaghetti-strapped top with three red and white stars across the chest, very dark grey pants with a belt above the hips, long black boots, a red jacket that had the feeling of a biker's jacket, except mine wasn't made of leather, and a pair of black fingerless gloves with golden bracelet cuffs.
XXXXXXXXXX
I met up with the twins, Aki, and Carly outside of the garage. Yusei, Jack, and Crow's Duel Runners were parked next to the clock shop, so we knew they were at home. Carly had an holographic notepad with her and she quickly showed me an old article about Duel Monsters appearing across Europe twenty-one years ago and Stardust Dragon got caught on camera. It confirmed Paradox had arrived and stolen the Signer Dragon from Yusei.
"We need to show them ASAP", I nodded.
"Do you know something about this, Estelle?" Aki questioned.
"Only a little bit", I replied. "I'll explain inside."
Leo hurried to the twin doors and pushed one of them open. "Yusei!"
Luna, Carly, Aki, and I followed him as we walked into the garage. Yusei, Jack, and Crow were standing together as all three of them had concerned auras.
"What do you want?!" Jack sighed irritably. "We don't have time to sit and entertain you guys right now."
"Oh, come on!" Leo growled. "We just landed a big scoop!"
"What did you find?" Yusei asked.
"We were researching the history of Duel Monsters with Carly when we found…", Luna began, but stopped as she looked very concerned.
Carly switched her notepad on and touched a few things before holding it out to Yusei. "We found some interesting data, but I think it's best you read it yourselves."
Yusei took the notepad as Jack and Crow looked over his shoulder to read the articles themselves. "Quite an old article you got there", Crow commented.
The first article was from Yugi's era when he won a Duel Monsters tournament sponsored by Pegasus J. Crawford. The first King of Games was holding a trophy he won and shook hands with Pegasus while his grandfather cheered in the background. Pegasus was smiling to the camera while holding a thumbs up.
"I know this man", Jack stated as he pointed at Pegasus. "He's the president of Industrial Illusions, Pegasus J. Crawford. He's the creator of Duel Monsters."
"Who's the guy there with him?" Crow wondered.
"You don't know…?" I mumbled to myself a bit dumbfounded.
"That would be the Duelist once said to be the strongest in Duel Monsters history, Muto Yugi", Yusei said. "It was rumored that he had the soul of the Nameless Pharaoh."
"Awesome!" Crow commented in awe. "So he got mumbo-jumbo magic like we do!"
"What I would give to fight him once…", Jack mumbled before shrugging his shoulders. "I suppose so, seeing as how it's impossible without a time slip or something."
"You came here to show us this?" Yusei questioned.
"No, look at the next article", Aki shook her head, sounding serious.
Yusei tapped on the screen to scroll to the next page and his jaw almost dropped when he saw the photo of Stardust Dragon with Rainbow Dragon and Cyber End Dragon. "Stardust Dragon?!"
"What is it doing in their era?!" Jack exclaimed in disbelief.
"That's what I was gonna ask!" Leo intervened.
"Okay, let's see…", Crow mumbled as he scanned the article next to the photo. "'Dragons that have suddenly been appearing all over Europe have been assaulting Duelists one after another'… Huh? What the 'ell?"
"Stardust Dragon was brought to the past…", Yusei mumbled in disbelief. "And it's assaulting Duelists too…"
"I've never even heard of this absurd piece of history", Aki pointed out.
"It's like it just popped up out of nowhere!" Carly added.
Yusei's eyes narrowed as he enlarged the photo from Venice and spotted a masked man with long blonde hair. "It's that masked man from before!"
It confirmed my suspicions. Paradox of Iliaster had made his first appearance.
"That man…", I began, getting everyone's attention. "…is Paradox of Iliaster."
"He's with Iliaster?!" Crow exclaimed in disbelief.
"And you knew he was coming?! Why did you warn us?!" Jack yelled angrily.
"I didn't know when he was going to appear", I defended myself. "He only made one appearance in a movie part of the anime when he stole Stardust Dragon-"
A loud rumble from the outside interrupted me. I looked out the large windows of the garage and saw black dust and debris floating outside. We hurried out to be met by an apocalyptic sight. The once grey clouds had now turned into charcoal black with black ash falling down like snow. The tall buildings of New Domino City slowly crumbled down into molecules as hysterical cries echoed from downtown with people panicking and hurrying to a safe place.
"What is…that?" Luna's voice trembled in fear by the sight.
"The city is…dissolving…", Leo's voice had the same tone as his sister's.
"Why…?" Aki questioned worriedly.
"This is just my conjecture, but it might be that history is starting to change due to Stardust Dragon appearing in the past", Jack concluded.
"That's crazy talk!" Crow argued.
"But Jack's right!" Carly defended the blonde Signer. "Synchro Monsters were created one year after the year of this…this…false historic article!"
"Our city…is crumbing away", Yusei mumbled to himself before he gasped in realization. "I see! It was his doing!"
I nodded, "Because Paradox has changed the past, the future is changing! We have to stop him!"
"But how?! We don't have a time machine!" Leo pointed out.
It was then the six Marks of the Dragon began glowing before the complete seal appeared on Yusei's back. My Star Mark started glowing before it vanished, only to feel something warm on my back.
"The Crimson Dragon's Seal in on Yusei's back!" Aki said.
"And Estelle's Mark is on her back!" Crow stated. "What's going on?"
I noticed something glowing and turned around to see both my and Yusei's Duel Runners glowing with red aura. It was the Crimson Dragon's doing.
"And their Duel Runners are glowing too!" Aki added.
"Is it the Crimson Dragon's power?!" Jack exclaimed.
The Crimson Dragon briefly appeared among the aura before he vanished. Yusei and I looked at each other and nodded, both of us knowing what we had to do. "Let's go, Yusei!" I told him.
"Yeah!" Yusei nodded before we hurried to the Runners.
"Yusei! Estelle!" Aki called in shock as we left our friends behind.
"The Crimson Dragon's calling for us!" Yusei yelled.
I quickly put the helmet on and got on my Runner before turning on the engine. I backed from the spot I had parked it and turned to my friends. "Hurry and evacuate to a safe spot! And look after my boys if you spot them!"
"Wait, where are you guys going?!" Crow called.
"To repair the damage!" I replied.
Yusei got on his Duel Runner and turned it on before he drove away from the Fountain Plaza. I followed him without hesitating, leaving the others to fend for themselves. We drove to the highway without any interference, except for a few falling boulders from tall buildings, but we managed to dodge them. Once we made it to a safe place, the Crimson Dragon appeared next to us as if he was leading the way.
"Crimson Dragon, take me to where Stardust Dragon is!" Yusei begged.
The Crimson Dragon replied with a roar as I noticed a change of the energy. The God was preparing himself to use his power to transport us back in time.
"Let's rev it up!" I yelled.
I put my attention ahead of the road as everything else around me slowly vanished, as if I had fallen into a trance. The Mark on my back kept spreading its warmth as the Crimson Dragon activated his power to send us to the past.
XXXXXXXXXX
The Crimson Dragon managed to bring me and Yusei to Venice and used his body to shield Yuki Judai from Stardust Dragon's Cosmic Flare attack. When we tried confronting Paradox, he decided to leave the GX timeline on his Duel Runner instead of facing us, but he left a warning that Judai's era will also fall to ruin.
The aftermath of the attack in Venice had left its traces and some mini fire was still smoking. To avoid curious eyes, Yusei, Judai, and I hid on the rooftops while the Duel Runners were hidden in an alleyway. We tried to learn more of what happened in the GX era by asking Judai some questions and telling him how we ended up in his era.
"Will you be all right?" Yusei asked as I checked Judai's bruises and a few cuts on his face.
"Yeah, they're just scratches- Ow!" Judai yelped as I applied some disinfectant ointment on his cuts. "That hurt!"
"It means the ointment is working", I said calmly before I closed the lid of the container. "There. That should do it."
"Thanks", Judai grinned as I moved back while putting away the container in my handbag. "So, just to make sure, you two came through a time slip from the future, using the power of a Spirit God, in pursuit of that white dragon the guy in the oddball mask stole… Is that about the gist?"
"That's correct", Yusei nodded. "I know it sounds hard to believe…"
"I believe!" Judai smiled excitedly. "Traveling through time is the kinda stuff that gets me pumped, you know!" His smile dropped as he tried figuring out our names. "Uh, err…"
"My name is Fudo Yusei", Yusei introduced himself.
"And I'm Estelle Goodwin", I nodded.
"I'm Yuki Judai", Judai officially introduced himself. "Nice to meet'cha." He glanced down at the two red Duel Runners in awe. "By the way, I've been curious for a while now… Are those the future Duel Disks?"
"You could say that", I replied with a small smile.
"Awesome!" Judai gaped in awe. "It's evolved that much?!"
The spirits of Banner and Yubel appeared next to the GX protagonist. "I bet you want to ride it, huh, Judai?" Banner chuckled. His cat, Pharaoh, yawned as he stood next to Judai's backpack.
Judai looked at the spirits a bit surprised. "Hey, I told ya not to show up without warning. You'll freak Yusei and Estelle out!"
"Seeing us won't be enough to freak them out", Yubel chuckled.
"Huh?" Judai raised an eyebrow confusedly as he turned to me and Yusei, seeing we weren't surprised by the appearance of the two spirits.
"They also have strong Spirit powers in them", Banner added.
Yusei removed his right glove to pull up the sleeve of his jacket to reveal his Mark. "You must mean this Mark."
I pulled up the sleeves of my jacket and top to reveal my own Star Mark. "We've both been blessed by the dragon God that brought us here."
"It means you two are Duelists chosen by the Duel Monsters as well", Judai said before he stood up.
"By the way, why were you and Paradox fighting?" Yusei asked as he put the glove back on.
Judai looked at the damage caused by the battle between him and Paradox. "Lately, there's been a spring of incidents of Duel Monsters cards going missing around here… I went in pursuit of the cause and that's when I encountered him… Paradox."
The way his eyes looked told me there was something more than just Duel Monsters cards being stolen. From what I remembered, Rainbow Dragon belonged to one of Judai's best friends, Jesse Anderson. Some people in my world speculated he and Judai were something more than just friends, but nothing had been officially confirmed.
"Judai…", Yusei spoke up. "I must retrieve Stardust Dragon. If we just leave Paradox be, my city…" He shook his head to correct himself. "No, not just my city! History will be thrown out of whack and the world will meet its doom! Judai, please lend us a hand!"
"Of course!" Judai nodded determinedly. "I'll be damned if I back out now after getting run through the ringer like I have!"
"Thank you very much!" Yusei said in relief.
"So… How're we supposed to look for it?" Judai asked. "Paradox's probably gone into the past."
"We need to find some articles or clues about any kinds of distortion in the past", I suggested. "Like in Muto Yugi's era. You've got a laptop or a portable device?"
"Now I get it", Judai nodded. "All we have to do is find that distorted recollection!" He grabbed his backpack and pulled out a laptop which he activated and began typing key words. "Maybe we can find that article if we access the Manjoume Group's database… And there we go!"
Each one of us gasped in horror at the new article. It said that the same Dueling event Yusei and I saw in our era had been interrupted by Duel Monsters dragons that killed everything and everyone. Several names were on a casualty list next to the article and we spotted two familiar names; Muto Sugoroku and Pegasus himself! If the creator of Duel Monsters got killed, that meant the Duel Monsters in the future would no longer exist!
"What a disaster! That was his goal!" Judai exclaimed in shock.
"If this were to really happen…!" Yusei began.
"Don't tell me…!" Judai gasped as he picked up Neos' card, but the Duel Monster vanished from the artwork. "Neos is disappearing!"
"Because Pegasus got killed, the Duel Monsters are no more in this era!" I said.
Seconds later, the sky turned black with heavy clouds and black ash was falling once again. The buildings in Venice were slowly crumbling apart as the famous bell tower in Piazza San Marco collapsed to the ground, throwing up dust and dirt. The whole place shook as I almost lost my balance, so I grabbed Yusei's shoulder to keep myself steady.
I may have never been in Venice before this event, but it was a horrific sight to see one of the oldest and famous cities on the planet get destroyed because of the history distortion.
"The apocalypse has reached this era too!" I told the boys.
"So this is what you were talking about…", Judai said in fear as he witnessed the destruction.
"Let's hurry!" Yusei said.
"Right!" Judai nodded.
The GX protagonist put away his stuff and Pharaoh in the backpack as Yusei and I climbed down from the rooftop to get to the Duel Runners. They were still safe, so we turned the engines on and rolled them out to the open streets. Judai jumped down from the rooftop and landed gracefully on his feet.
"Get on!" I called as I moved a bit forward on my Runner. "My Runner can hold two people!"
"Coming!" Judai called as he ran to me.
He got on the Duel Runner and wrapped his arms around me as Yusei revved the engine of his Runner to see all was clear. "Let's you, Estelle, Judai!"
"I'm ready!" Judai shouted.
"Me too!" I nodded. "Crimson Dragon, lend us your power one more time!"
On that signal, my Mark began glowing as it resumed its place on my back while the complete Seal of the Dragon appeared on Yusei's back. The Crimson Dragon appeared in the sky with an echoing roar.
"Wow! Awesome!" Judai said in awe at the sight of the God.
"Hold on tight, Judai!" I called.
Yusei and I simultaneously pushed the gas before we drove down the streets. Next thing I knew, I was in that same trance again as before as everything around me disappeared.
It was time to meet the third Hero of Time; Muto Yugi.
XXXXXXXXXX
I got snapped out of my trance when the Crimson Dragon removed his power from me when Yusei, Judai, and I made it to Yugi's era. I fell from the sky with my Duel Runner and caught sight of a rooftop where a familiar figure was leaning against the railing. Yusei landed first on the rooftop with his Runner before I followed him. Judai yelped in surprise as his hold on my waist tightened a bit as I landed with a slight skid on the tires. The grip lightened up when we came to a halt.
Judai got off the Runner as he and Yusei rushed to Yugi who looked very confused of what just happened. I parked my Runner before I joined the boys, but I made sure to grab my Duel Disk and strap it on my arm and insert my Deck for just in case.
Yugi blinked confusedly as he looked down to see people had started gathering for the Duel Monsters event at the plaza. "What happened? What happened to Grandpa and Pegasus?" he asked frantically.
"They're safe, Yugi", Judai smiled.
"We're in the same place, 30 minutes prior to when that incident occurs", Yusei added.
"So everyone are safe", I ended.
"30 minutes?" Yugi mumbled in disbelief as he calmed down.
Judai held a finger up as he realized something. He pulled Neos' card out to see the Duel Monster was back on the artwork. "Alright! Our cards are still safe!"
"But it's just a matter of time before Paradox appears and try changing history again", I pointed out.
"Who are you three?" Yugi asked.
"I'm Fudo Yusei."
"I'm Yuki Judai!"
"And I'm Estelle Goodwin. It's an honor to meet you, Muto Yugi."
"Yusei, Judai, and Estelle?" Yugi repeated. "Why do you know me?"
"We've come here from the future", Judai revealed.
"The future?" Yugi blinked confusedly.
"Yes, here to save everyone from the tragedy that happens in another 30 minutes", Judai explained.
"We saw it in a future newspaper", Yusei added.
"Does it have anything to do with that masked man I just saw?" Yugi's eyes widened in realization.
"It does!" Judai nodded. "His name's Paradox and he is trying to eliminate Chairman Pegasus."
"Pegasus?" Yugi said in shock.
"Without Chairman Pegasus, the history of Duel Monsters…", Yusei began before correcting himself. "…no, the history of the world, too, will change drastically!"
"Around the world in the future, Duel Monsters area already starting to vanish…", Judai added with a sad voice. "…and whole cities are meeting their ends!"
"And people are vanishing as the future is changing because of the past events", I added. "We must stop the distortion before it's too late."
"No way…", Yugi mumbled as his eyes got a bit teary by hearing the terrifying news.
"Fight together with us, Yugi!" Judai begged.
"Let's protect the world with our combined efforts!" Yusei added.
Yugi nodded as he got up on his feet, the rest of us following him. "Okay! I understand the situation. Judai. Yusei. Estelle. If I'm all it takes, I'll gladly cooperate with you! Let's combine our efforts and fight; the four of us!"
"Thank you, Yugi!" Yusei said in relief.
"Heck yeah!" Judai cheered joyfully. "With Yugi with us, we've got the strength of a hundred guys!"
"But first we need to get all those people out of the area", I spoke up. "We can't have them involved with this."
"I've got the perfect plan for that!" Judai grinned. "Yubel!"
Yubel's spirit appeared behind him. "I understand, Judai."
"Whoa! What is that?!" Yugi exclaimed, surprised to see the Duel Spirit.
"Yubel is one of Judai's Duel Spirits", I explained. "She's like his guardian angel, just like the rest of his Duel Monsters."
"Only people with powers of the Spirits can see them", Yusei added. "Estelle and I, and some of our other friends in our era, have powers too."
Yugi grabbed the Millennium Puzzle and held it close to his heart. "Maybe it's the Puzzle's power that makes me able to see Duel Spirits…"
We hurried down to the plaza, but hid in the shadows as Yubel used her power to send energy balls at the stage and scare people away from the area. No one was hurt and nothing got damaged because Yubel made sure to keep her powers to a minimum.
"Everyone! Hurry up and run!" Judai yelled to encourage people to run away. "Hurry on up and evacuate the plaza!"
It didn't take long before everyone else had evacuated the plaza. Yubel snorted before she vanished to leave us alone to take care of the rest.
"I get it. If the tournament is stopped, then that incident won't have a chance to occur!" Yugi said.
"All we need to do now is contact Chairman Pegasus", Yusei nodded.
"I can't allow that", a familiar voice echoed from the sky.
The four of us looked up to see a wormhole opening in the sky before Paradox drove out of it on his Duel Runner and landed at the other side of the plaza. The three young men stood tall and ready to use their Duel Disks. I was about to join them, but Yusei blocked my view as if he wanted to protect me.
"You're that guy from earlier!" Yugi exclaimed angrily.
"Oh ho… To think that the King of Games is among our company…", Paradox chuckled underneath his black and white mask.
"Just who are you?" Yugi demanded. "Why are you doing something so terrible?!"
"Why?" Paradox repeated before he snorted. "Very well." He removed his mask to reveal his true face. "My name is Paradox."
"Just as I thought…", I growled.
"I have traveled time and space in search of the best history", Paradox said. "I have been investigating any and all possibilities in history and experimenting them."
"The best history?!" Yusei exclaimed furiously.
"What you're doing is just plain destruction!" Judai yelled.
"Are you trying to say that slaughtering everyone for gain is the right thing to do?!" Yugi questioned.
"Destruction and slaughter?" Paradox said with a pure confused voice before he chuckled. "I see. Is that how it seems to you guys? But that is incorrect. The future you consider correct is incorrect, and the future that you may first consider incorrect is, in fact, correct. But, just take a moment to think. Even without my actions, the world is riddled with contradictions."
I knew, at this point, he was talking about the future he was aware of and had to live with it with his three other comrades to regain the peaceful future and protect the mankind from the massive destruction.
"Environmental destruction, world disputes, human discrimination…", Paradox continued. "Aren't all of these things your so-called 'destruction' and 'slaughter'? How would any of you resolve these contradictions?"
"Even if they can't do it right away, they'll resolve them eventually!" Yusei retorted.
"That answer is nonsense", Paradox shrugged.
"But we took a ruined city-", Yusei began.
"…and revived it!" Paradox interrupted, knowing what the Signer would say, but he now began sounding frustrated. "You brought Satellite and the city together as one. I am well aware of that fact, Fudo Yusei! I have come from a distant future. A future where the world is in ruins."
"A future where the world is in ruins…?" Yusei gasped in disbelief.
I couldn't help but place a hand on his left shoulder to give him comfort, knowing he was still being haunted by the facts that his father involuntarily contributed to the destruction of New Domino City almost eighteen years ago.
"Right", Paradox nodded. "If I leave history as it is, the world will be destroyed. I have come here to change that hopeless future. By analyzing various data in time, I have ascertained that Duel Monsters hold a mysterious power. And it gave me the idea to correct history."
"Change the future?" Yusei mumbled as his shoulders tensed up, making me let go of him. "And to do so, you plan on destroying New Domino City? No, that's not all! All the people living there now! Chairman Pegasus, Yugi's grandfather… Are you saying it doesn't matter what happens to them?!"
"So minuscule of a sacrifice is nothing more than a trifle process in my grand experiment", Paradox said with a cold voice.
I growled as I thought how cruel he was, but then again Paradox was secretly an android. Maybe he was programmed to not feel empathy for other living beings, and only focus on fulfilling his mission.
"A trifle process?!" Judai growled.
"Everyone should have the right to live their future!" Yugi shouted angrily.
"People have the power to change the future! That's what I believe!" Yusei added.
"People can come together and change the present for a better future!" I called as I decided to join in, standing between Yusei and Judai.
"Intriguing", Paradox snorted amusingly. "If you are saying you all have the power to deflect any kind of hopeless future, then prove it to me."
"Paradox, let's Duel!" Yusei demanded. "Let's settle the score!"
"Very well. Allow me to crush the Duel Monsters you stake so much faith in…"
On that command, Paradox's Duel Runner shifted into an aerial craft that floated up to the sky. However, the tip of the two wings began glowing white as they collected energy. That never happened in the movie!
"Guys, heads up!" I yelled.
"Is he going to hurt us before the Duel?!" Yugi gasped in shock.
"No, I will just…even the field", Paradox said.
He swung his arm before the two energy beams were fired from the wings, but they combined into one in midair before the light engulfed me and the three main protagonists. My hair ruffled hard as I shielded my face with my arms and Duel Disk. It looked like the world around me faded before I was hit by a slap of unconsciousness.
XXXXXXXXXX – Yusei's POV
I shielded my face from the bright light as I had my eyes closed. I didn't feel any pain from the beam, but I was still ready to get hurt. The beam slowly died down and I opened my eyes to see what happened. It didn't look like things had been changed, so I turned to Yugi to see if he was okay. He looked fine, so I turned to check Judai and Estelle. Judai was okay, but Estelle was nowhere around!
"Estelle?" I called as I looked around, trying to find her. "Estelle?!"
"She's just gone!" Judai exclaimed in disbelief.
"Did you kill her, Paradox?!" Yugi yelled angrily.
"No, I told you I was going to even the field", Paradox chuckled.
I growled as I turned to him with a glare. I was almost shaking by all the anger in me. "Where is Estelle?! What did you do to her?!"
"I merely sent her to the future, so her Priestess powers do not affect the Duel", Paradox chuckled.
"What?! You sent her to the future?!" I exclaimed in disbelief.
"Let's see if she can survive in my era with the power of miracles", Paradox laughed. "If you wish to see your beloved again and have your dragon back, defeat me in the Duel and I may consider bringing Estelle back to you."
He was trying to use Estelle as a bribe while putting her in danger at the same time? How could he sink so low?!
But the fear of losing Estelle while knowing she's in a ruined future…
No.
I couldn't let that happen! I had to bring her back! I had to rescue her before it got too late!
Because I… I…
I shook my head, trying not to let the emotions get over me. I prepared my Duel Disk along with Judai and Yugi.
Estelle… Please be safe until I can save you!
XXXXXXXXXX – Estelle's POV
I grunted as I slowly woke up from the dreamless sleep I had. My body ached because the ground was very uncomfortable. I slowly opened my eyes to see the ground looked like there had been an explosion. The air was dusty and it smelled a bit like fire and gun powder. I pushed myself up with one hand so I could sit and rub my heavy eyelids. I fixed my glasses and looked around, only for my eyes to widen in shock as I gasped in shock.
I was greeted by the sight of a ruined city; almost every single building was leveled to the ground. I got up on my feet and brushed the dust off before I took a closer look. The area looked like the plaza in Yugi's era and the one thing that confirmed it was the plaza clock. It was still standing in the middle of the plaza, but it was no longer working.
There was no question about it. Paradox had sent me to the distant and apocalyptic future.
But why would he do that? Was it to distract the three main protagonists or was it for something else?
I shook my head, trying to think of my next move. What or where should I go? Was this the era when Z-one became Yusei and tried rally people of the world to spread positivity to stop the Meklord Emperors or was this the future when Z-one was left alone after the real Aporia, Paradox, and Antinomy passed away?
I had to start look around and find clues about this era, but first of all I had to find a safe place to use as shelter. I made sure my Duel Disk was properly strapped before I felt the plaza to enter the now unrecognizable New Domino City.
I looked around and tried finding survivors, but there was none so far. I flinched and even cried out sometimes in shock when I spotted skeletons and rotten corpses in the middle of the trashed road. I held back the sour belch that came up my throat as I tried blocking the smell of the bodies while picking up the pace.
Seeing so many corpses and skeletons of children, adults, and animals alike made me wonder if this era was around the time when the Meklords came to life because of the rapid evolution of humanity.
I rubbed my forehead as I tried remembering something. What did they call this incident back in my world?
Meklord Emperor Genocide.
It weirdly reminded me of the song from "Symphogear GX" that contained the word "genocide"; Senkin Dur da Blá. It may be a song about destruction, but it kinda fit the atmosphere here.
I looked into buildings to see if there were any supplies that could be used, but many stores had already been ransacked or the food and drinks had already been spoiled. I continued walking when my ears caught a new noise in the background. I turned around and saw something large coming from the horizon. I gasped softly as I recognized its shape.
It was a Meklord Emperor Wisel!
It must have sensed me and was coming for me. I didn't hesitate a second and began running as fast as I could. I looked over my shoulder as I ran and felt my eyes widen in shock as I saw a Meklord Emperor Skiel and Meklord Emperor Granel had joined forces with the white Meklord Emperor.
"Shoot!" I cursed as I picked up the pace.
I could hear how one of the machine Monsters started loading energy, but I didn't have time to look over my shoulder to see which one. My heart was pounding so hard in my chest in panic. I almost forgot that I had powers and maybe could fight back with my Duel Monsters.
I quickly activated my Duel Disk and drew the top five cards. I spotted Mirror Force among them and inserted it in the device. Meklord Emperor Skiel fired a large laser beam towards me, but the Trap card had already set up an invisible mirror shield that bounced back the attack. The beam split into three that shot through each Meklord Emperor in the chest. Seconds later, they exploded into pieces.
XXXXXXXXXX – Unknown POV
I was in the middle of scouting, looking for survivors in the ruined city. There wasn't much left of it after Zero Reverse occurred and destroyed not only New Domino City, but also the rest of the world. Not long ago, I saved someone named Johnny who had lost so much hope he almost jumped in front of a Meklord that had survived the catastrophe to commit suicide. I saw him in time and destroyed the machine, saving him from doing something foolish. He cried in relief, joy, and disappointment at himself and told me he felt new hope sprout within him after seeing me. Having nowhere to go, he asked me if he could join me and help save the world.
I appreciated the offer and let him join forces with me. We built together a replica of his old Duel Runner, since he used to be a Turbo Duelist, and I added a cannon that was effective against the Meklords; the same kind my Duel Runner had.
The Meklords were not in the area where I scouted, but also no survivors. I sighed softly and was about to leave when I heard an explosion in the distance. I quickly looked up and saw a large and heavy cloud of smoke several blocks away.
Did the Meklords find someone and tried killing them? Without hesitation, I pulled the throttle as I drove towards the direction of the explosion. The streets were empty, so I had no issues getting to the area in record time.
The smoke was clearing up as I spotted a tall and slim body standing in the middle of the street. They had their back turned to me, but they looked safe. I noticed something red on their arm, but it looked like a device.
I parked the Duel Runner a couple of meters behind them. I got off the Runner and took a few steps forward to see if they were okay, now seeing it was a woman. When she turned around, my eyes widened in shock as I froze in my tracks.
No… It couldn't be!
It was impossible, and yet here she was standing in front of me.
XXXXXXXXXX – Estelle's POV
I sighed in relief as I saw I managed to destroy the Meklord trio. Encountering them in the future either meant the major Zero Reverse hadn't happened yet or it did, but there were still Meklords roaming around.
But what about survivors? Were there really no human beings here?
The noise of a Duel Runner broke the silence around me. I slowly turned around to see who it was and felt my eyes widen in surprise.
My heart almost sang in joy, since for a moment I thought I would never see him again.
"Yusei…"
XXXXXXXXXX
Estelle's new outfit is designed by FlowersHeart17 who has designed different outfits for my OC that I will use in the future. Thank you very much for your help! The outfit can be found on my DeviantArt account.