Moving his gaze from side to side Anthony looked through the crowd, but didn't spot the person he was searching for.
Elizabeth.
After her match with Teressa had ended she had chased after her, and in turn both he and Eric had followed her to lend their support.
During the match both of them felt the ominous aura coming from Teressa, and since they had no clue what it meant they didn't want Elizabeth to confront her alone. Which is why they chased after her.
But now they had lost track of her.
As soon as the two of them exited the corridor all they saw were spectators from the crowd. They didn't see Teressa or Elizabeth at all.
Which is why after a few moments of searching together Eric suggested they split, and Anthony agreed that was the best course of action.
So while Eric searched the west half of the arena, Anthony was searching the east half.
He also had his phone out and was calling Elizaeths' number. But all he got was her voicemail.
'Come on Ellie, where are you?' Anthony thought. He continued searching but no matter how hard he looked he couldn't stop her, or Teressa. It was frustrating him to no end.
"Damn, this is getting me nowhere," Anthony cursed under his breath.
As the seconds flew by he became more and more frustrated with the whole situation. He even wished for just one sign to point him in the right direction.
And that's exactly what he got.
Someone bumped into Anthony.
He didn't fall. He was able to keep himself up right.
After he took a few seconds to recover he turned around to see who had bumped into him and it turned out to be Elizabeth herself.
'Thank you universe.' Anthony thought.
"Hey Ellie, talk to me." Anthony said. He moved to grab her shoulders because he noticed her legs were shaking.
"Ah Anthony, thank you." Elizabeth said. She used him to steady herself. She then leaned on him for support. "Sorry, I hope you don't mind."
"Not at all." He said. "You've just had a pretty stressful hour after all."
Elizabeth looked Anthony right in the eyes, the worry evident on her face. "Anthony, I-I don't know what happened to Teressa, but that unit Angelica is evil. I mean I saw… I don't know how to explain it, but there is something going on here, and Teressa is in trouble. I need to find her, I need to save her, I ne-"
"Shh." Anthony interrupted. "You're all over the place. You need to calm down. You won't be good to Teressa if you confront her like you are now."
Anthony quickly looked around and saw a nearby bench. He then started moving Elizabeth towards it. "Let's take a seat, and think things through, alright?"
Elizabeth nodded. "Yes, you're right."
She didn't want to stop her search for her friend. But she also knew that what Anthony was saying was the truth. She wouldn't be any good to Teressa with her emotions clouded. So she took Anthony's advice and moved over to the bench and sat down.
Anthony doing the same, since Elizabeth was still leaning on him for support.
As the two sat down Elizabeth started to take deep breaths to calm herself. Meanwhile Anthony didn't say anything. He just let her lean on him, and rubbed her back gently to help calm her down.
A few moments later Elizabeth had released some of the tension in her body. Which allowed her to sit up by herself and stop leaning on Anthony.
"Better now?" Anthony asked.
Elizabeth nodded. "Yeah, thanks." She said, looking him right in the eyes.
"I mean what are friends for?" Anthony questioned. "So anyway, something strange happened to me and Eric during your fight with Teressa." He then went on to explain the burn sensation both of them felt on their right palms.
Elizabeth widened her eyes after learning this. "That happened to me too." She said. She then explained her vision of being in space and meeting Angelica face to face, and also how Crom Cruach appeared in it as well.
"This is just getting stranger by the second." Anthony mused. He then put a finger on his chin. "I think we should meet up with Eric and the others and discuss this."
"The others?" Elizabeth mused.
"Yes." Anthony said. "Just think about it. If the three of us experienced the same sensation, then chances are Cera did as well."
Elizabeth instantly realized that Anthony was right. Cera was in the same boat as the three of them, having experienced her own vision. So it stood to reason she also felt the same sensation on her palm during the match between her and Teressa.
"I see what you mean." Elizabeth said. She then showed a sad smile. "Still, I don't want to stop looking for Resa. I need to find her."
"Don't worry we will. I promise." Anthony said. He then showed Elizabeth a small smile.
"Thanks." Elizabeth said. Showing her own smile.
As the two sat there on the bench just smiling at each other Elizabeth suddenly leaned in closer to Anthony without even realizing it.
Then before either of them understood Elizabeth had connected her lips to Anthonys' sealing them in a chaste kiss.
The kiss continued for a few seconds.
However after that Anthony widened his eyes in utter shock. Seeing this Elizabeth did the same and immediately broke the kiss, turning her head away to look in any other direction but Anthony's.
Anthony doing the exact same thing.
'What was that?!' Anthony thought. He touched his lips lightly and ended up in a slight daze.
'I can't believe I just did that!' Elizabeth thought. Her entire face turned beat red and steam started coming out of her head.
Thus the tender moment between the two of them became incredibly awkward.
They couldn't even look at each other after a few minutes passed. Which was only making the entire situation even more awkward.
'Someone, please come and break this silence!' Both of them thought at the exact same time.
"Hey, you guys didn't think to call me?"
Their prayers were answered when Eric walked up to them.
As he did he instantly saw the awkwardness between the two and narrowed his eyes. "So, did something happen?"
"Nope!" Anthony instantly answered.
"Nothing at all!" Elizabeth almost shouted.
'Yeah, something definitely happened.' Eric thought. But he decided to leave that for later. Considering the situation they were in. "Ok then. So, I had no luck spotting Teressa on the entire west side of the arena, but then again this place is huge and I'm only one person. If we had some help things could go a lot faster."
"Actually we were just discussing that." Anthony spoke up. Hoping he didn't sound awkward or flustered. "We wanted to call in the others to help us look."
"Great idea." Eric said. "Except you forgot, we have another match later today."
Anthony and Elizabeth then both remembered they had a follow up match if they beat their first opponents.
"That's right." Anthony said.
"I totally forgot." Elizabeth mused. She then clenched her fists in anger. "Damn," she muttered. She wanted to continue the search for Teressa, but she also wanted to be there for her team. She wanted to win the preliminaries and go to the main tournament two after all.
Elizabeth was stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Or so she thought.
Eric walked up to her and placed his palm on her head. He then looked her directly in the eyes. "I can tell what you're thinking. And I'm telling you this. There's no need for you to worry. Anthony and I can handle the next match. So you meet up with the others and search for Teressa. We've got this. I promise. Put some faith in your teammates."
Seeing the determination in Eric's eyes Elizabeth simply nodded. "Ok."
As for Anthony he showed a smile.
Eric may be lazy, and a pervert. But when things are serious or anyone he cares about is in trouble he instantly gets serious himself and always pulls through.
That's one of his best qualities.
It's also one of the reasons that Anthony has no issues being his best friend.
Standing in the arena, Anthony and Eric looked across to the other side at their opponents.
Once everyone else arrived and they had explained the situation the two of them headed off to make it in time for their next match.
As the two of them observed their opponents certain thoughts came to mind in an instant.
"Those guys are ninjas right?" Anthony asked.
"Yeah, they are." Eric answered.
The opponents Anthony and Eric were looking at were dressed in al black ninja garb, meaning they could only be one thing.
Ninjas.
"Ok folks, it's time to start the next exciting match of the day." Cecilia spoke into her mike. "Team Victories, who had a sweeping win against team Grimm Fairy Tales, are about to face off against the masters of deception and stealth. Team Shadow Walkers! Pay attention, because we have no idea how this match will turn out."
The crowd cheered.
As for the teams they sent out their first fighters.
From Victories Eric was up first this time. As for team Shadow Walker one of three walked up and took their place at the fight table. But since all of them looked exactly the same and none of their facial features were showing, it was hard to tell if it was a man or a woman.
Eric eyed his opponent. "So, you guys are ninjas huh?" He asked
His opponent didn't say a word. Instead they reached up and pulled off their mask. Revealing them to be a girl Eric's age. She has short straight-black hair to the nape of her neck and matching black eyes.
"Ah much better, that thing is so hot it's not even funny." The girl mused. She then looked at Eric. "And to answer your question the proper term is shinobi." The girl said. "Also my name is Honoka Miyamura, it's a pleasure to meet you."
"The same." Eric said. "So I have to ask, what's with the shinobi cosplay?"
"It was my elder sister's idea." Honoka said, pointing to one of the remaining shinobi on her team's side. "She's really into Japanese culture, even though our family has lived in Los Angeles for the past two generations. Anyway I think that's enough about personal information. Let's fight."
"Sure." Eric said.
The two of them then played rock, paper, scissors, and Eric won, meaning he is going to go first.
Their boards set the two spoke in unison.
"Stand up. Vanguard!"
"Stealth Rogue Apprentice, Souei."
Stealth Rogue Apprentice, Souei
Grade 0, Power +5000
"Disciple Stealth Rogue, Minosuke"
Disciple Stealth Rogue, Minosuke
Grade 0, Power +5000
"Oh and it looks like we have a shinobi showdown folks!" Cecilia spoke into her mike. "Murakumo vs. Nubatama, which set of these shadow warriors will claim victory in this match?"
While the duel between shinobi was beginning, the search for Teressa was still taking place.
Once Eric and Anthony left to attend to the match Elizabeth and the others split up into teams to cover more ground.
Elizabeth paired up with Cera.
Sylvia paired up with Lucian.
Joshua paid up with Sebastian.
As for Christina she paired up with a distraught Allison.
The teams then split up and began to search, using their phones to keep in constant contact with each other.
While Cera and Elizabeth looked in a section outside Elizabeth kept stealing glances at Cera, who noticed this without any trouble.
Stopping what she was doing Cera turned to Elizabeth. "So, is there something you want to ask me?"
"Yeah, actually there is." Elizabeth said. She then looked at Cera, her face gaining a hint of pink in her cheeks. A few seconds later she started lightly pushing her fingers together. "So um Cera, when did you know...you know...when did you realize that you liked women?"
Since opening up to the others about her past and coing to terms with it Elizabeth came to learn a lot more about them, including Cera was gay.
"Why are you asking me that?" Cera asked.
"It's um...well it's…" Elizabeth stammered. She then sighed. A moment later she walked up to Cera, and whispered into her ear that she had kissed Anthony earlier. Once she told her secret she stepped back.
Upon learning this Cera gained a blush on her cheeks.
*Ahem*
She also fake coughed into her fist. "Well um, that's...it's just...give me a moment."
"Sure. No problem." Elizabeth mused.
Cera took a moment to center herself before looking at Elizabeth again. "So about your question. That is a hard one to answer. I guess it all started back when I was fourteen. I saw this girl that I knew going out with this guy. At first it didn't bother me, but as time went on I started getting a sickening feeling in the pit of my stomach. Soon I realized it was jealousy. But not for the guy, for the girl. So I took these new feelings and explored them. I also talked to my sister Blaire about it, and then everything just clicked for me. I knew I was gay. There's just no other way for me to explain. Sorry."
"No, that helped a lot actually." Elizabeth said. "Thanks."
"No problem." Cera said, showing a small smile.
"Right, so let me ask you another question. During the match did you feel a burning sensation on the back of your palm?" Elizabeth asked.
"Yes." Cera instantly answered. "And I can't help but feel that all these mysterious events are connected in some manner."
"I know." Elizabeth agreed. "And I'm really getting tired of it." She mused.
She wanted answers, and she's not going to stop until she gets them.
"I draw." Eric said. "I then ride. Stealth Dragon, Chigeregumo."
Stealth Dragon, Chigeregumo
Grade 1, Power +7000
"Souei moves back and I end my turn."
[Damage: Eric (0) Honoka (0)]
"I draw." Honoka said.
[Turn 2: Hand; Eric (5) Honoka (6)]
"I then ride. Stealth Beast, Mangy Shooter."
Stealth Beast, Mangy Shooter
Grade 1, Power +6000
"Minosuke moves back. Then with a boost from Minosuke, Mangy Shooter attacks your vanguard."
(6000+5000=11000)
"No guard."
"Drive check. No trigger."
"Damage check. No trigger."
"I end my turn."
[Damage: Eric (1) Honoka (0)]
"I draw." Eric said
[Turn 3: Hand; Eric (6) Honoka (6)]
"I then ride. Stealth Beast, Tamahagane."
Stealth Beast, Tamahagane
Grade 2, Power +9000
"Then with his skill I will bind Minosuke." Eric explained.
Honoka moved Minosuke to her bind zone.
"I then call. Chigeregumo and Teruyoshi. Then Chigeregumo will attack."
(7000)
"I'll guard that."
"Next up with a boost from Souei, Tamahagane will attack."
(9000+5000=14000)
"That's a no guard."
"Drive check. A critical trigger. Critical to Tamahagane and power to Teruyoshi."
"Damage check. No triggers."
"Teruyoshi, attack the vanguard."
(9000+5000=14000)
"Guard."
"I end my turn." Eric said. "Minosuke returns to your hand. As for me the cards with "Afterimage" return to my hand."
[Damage: Eric (1) Honoka (2)]
"There are folks. The signature Afterimage ability of the Nubatama ninjas. After dealing devastating blows to an opponent they retreat to the shadows waiting for their next opportunity to strike." Cecilia announced.
"Stand and draw." Honoka said.
[Turn 4: Hand; Eric (6) Honoka (6)]
"I ride. Stealth Dragon, Duel Weapon."
Stealth Dragon, Duel Weapon
Grade 2, Power +9000
"I also call Minosuke once more. As well as Stealth Rogue of Envy, Ikyuu. With a boost from Minosuke, Dual Weapon attacks."
(9000+5000=14000)
"That's no guard."
"Drive check. No trigger."
"Damage check. No trigger."
"Ikyuu is up next."
(9000)
"Guard."
"I end my turn."
[Damage: Eric (2) Honoka (2)]
"Stand and draw." Eric said
[Turn 5: Hand; Eric (6) Honoka (4)]
Looking at the top card he drew from his deck Eric couldn't help but smile. After all he had been wanting to test his new partner against a skilled cardfight and this was the perfect opportunity.
"Here we go. Drown the enemies in your sea of darkness. Lead your clansmen to glory with grace and strength. I ride. Torrential Demonic Stealth Dragon, Shiranui "Hanzo"!"
Eric slammed the card down in his vanguard. He then appeared in spirit form as his body was engulfed by a beam of multicolored light. When it faded in his place was Shiranui, but now he wore jade green armor, and had two katana blades secured at his waist behind his back. There were also three orbs of water floating behind him in a triangular formation.
Torrential Demonic Stealth Dragon, Shiranui "Hanzo"
Grade 3, Power +11000
"With a boost from Souei, Shiranui "Hanzo" will attack your vanguard."
(11000+5000=16000)
"No guard."
"Twin drive check. First check. A draw trigger. Power to Shiranui "Hanzo" and I draw one card. Second check. No trigger."
(11000+5000=16000)
"Damage check. No trigger."
"I end my turn."
[Damage: Eric (2) Honoka (3)]
"Stand and draw." Honoka said
[Turn 6: Hand; Eric (7) Honoka (5)]
Taking a card from her hand Honoka smirked at Eric. "Your Nubatama ninjas are quite formidable. But people seem to be forgetting one important thing. They aren't the only ones who can play that game. I ride. Stealth Rogue of the Trial, Yasuie!"
Stealth Rogue of the Trial, Yasuie
Grade 3, Power +11000
"Then generation stride! Rogue Deity of the Third Realm, Yasuie Gouma!"
Rogue Deity of the Third Realm, Yasuie Gouma
Grade 4, Power +15000
"Stride skill!" Honoka counter blasted one card. "I select one rear-guard unit and superior call a unit from the deck with the same name. The unit I chose is Ikyuu." She explained. She then called Ikyuu behind her other Ikyuu. "The skill of Yasuie Gouma." Honoka said. She then took a Yasuie Gouma from her G zone and turned it face up. "Now I can call a face up Yasuie Gouma from the G zone."
"And there it is, folks, the power of Murakumo. While Nubatama focuses on retreating, the Murakumo multiply and overwhelm their opponent." Cecilia explained.
"Here we go," Honoka began. "The Yasuie Gouma on the vanguard circle will attack first."
(26000+5000=31000)
"Complete guard."
"Triple drive. First check. A draw trigger. Power to Ikyuu in the front and I draw one card. Second check. No trigger. Third check. No trigger. Ikyuu in the front, attack the vanguard."
(9000+5000=14000)
"I'll guard that as well."
"The skill of Ikyuu now activates. Since the attack did not hit I can select one rear-guard unit and give it an additional +2000 power. The unit I chose is the Ikyuu in the back. Also that unit gains the ability to attack from the back row. So now that Ikyuu will attack your vanguard. In addition since the vanguard is "Yasuie" he gains another +2000 power."
(9000+2000+2000=13000)
"No guard. Damage check. No trigger."
"The other Yasuie Gouma will now attack."
"No guard again. Damage check. No trigger."
"I end my turn." Honoka said. "The Yasuie Gouma both return to my G zone, and Ikyuu in the back returns to the bottom of my deck."
[Damage: Eric (4) Honoka (3)]
"Stand and draw." Eric said
[Turn 7: Hand; Eric (5) Honoka (7)]
"Good showing." Eric said. "But let me show you how we Nubatama do battle. Generation stride! Rikudo Stealth Rogue, Atagolord."
Rikudo Stealth Rogue, Atagolord
Grade 4, Power +15000
"Sride skill." Eric counter blasted one card. "Bind one of the opponent's rear-guard units, and the opponent must also discard a card from their hand." Eric explained. "I will bind Ikyuu."
Honoka placed Ikyuu in her bind zone and discarded a card from her hand.
Watching the match Anthony shook his head. He knew that Eric was well familiar with the playstile of Murakumo, so he knew what he was doing last turn. He took damage on purpose to build up ways to pay for the cost of his unit's abilities.
'Just like his clan, he's incredibly sneaky and cunning.' Anthony thought.
"In addition to that I can look at the top three cards of my deck, and if any possess the "Afterimage" ability then I can add one of them to my hand." Eric looked at the top three cards and added one to his hand, before putting the others back into his deck and shuffling it. " Now I call. Chigieregumo. And also Stealth Dragon, Shikui. The skill of Shikui. The opponent must bind either a card from their field or from their hand."
"I'll bind Minosuke." Honoka said, sending it to the bind zone.
"Excellent. Now the skill of Chigeregumo. Look at the top three cards of the deck and if one of them has the "Afterimage" ability then I can call that unit." Eric looked at the top three cards again and chose a unit. "I call Kegareshinmyo. Kegareshinmyo's skill, add +3000 power to Chigeregumo. I call Fuuki. I then use his skill." Eric placed Fuuki into his soul and counter blasted one card. "Pick a card at random from the opponent's hand and they must bind it for the rest of the turn. I pick the one on the far right."
Honoka placed the card in her bind zone.
"The skill of Souei." Eric said. He then placed him at rest. "For every card in my opponent's bind zone all front row units gain +1000 power until the end of the turn. Since there are three, all my units in the front row gain +3000 power. Now Shikui will attack your vanguard. Also his skill. He gains +2000 power for every unit placed in the opponent's bind zone until the end of the turn. So that's an additional +4000 power."
(9000+3000+4000=16000)
"I'll guard."
"Atagolord will now attack the vanguard."
(26000+3000=29000)
"Also his skill." Eric counter blasted one card, and then flipped over a copy of Atagolord in the G zone. "The opponent must pick a card at random and place it in the bind zone."
Honoka did that, clicking her tongue in the process.
"Since my opponent has three or less cards in their hand, then add one critical to Atagolord."
"Complete guard!"
"Triple drive check. Heal trigger. I recover one damage and the power to Kegareshinmyo. Second check. No trigger. Final check. Stand trigger. Shikui stands, and he gains another +5000 power."
"Kegareshinmyo will attack with a boost from Chigeregumo."
(11000+3000+7000+3000+5000=29000)
"No guard. Damage check. No trigger."
"Shikui, once more."
(9000+3000+4000+5000=21000)
"No guard. Damage check. A heal trigger. I recover one damage."
"I end my turn. The bound cards return to your hand, and the cards with Afterimage return to mine." Eric explained.
[Damage: Eric (3) Honoka (4)]
"Stand and draw." Honoka said.
[Turn 8: Hand; Eric (7) Honoka (5)]
"Don't think I'm giving up just because you have the lead." Honoka said with determination.
"I wouldn't have it any other way." Eric retorted.
"Then you are a true cardfigher." Honoka said, placing a card in her drop zone. "For that I give you my respect. Now, generation stride! Once more! Rogue Deity of the Third Realm, Yasuie Gouma!"
Rogue Deity of the Third Realm, Yasuie Gouma
Grade 4, Power +15000
"This time I will fogo stride skill. Instead I'll straight to Yasuie Gouma's skill!" Honoka explained. She then flipped over a copy of Yasuie Gouma in the G zone. "Now I superior call the two face up Yasuie Gouma units from my G zone." Honoka placed them both in the front row. "I then call. Minosuke. I also call two Stealth Dragon, Mangy Shooter."
'She's going for an all out attack.' Eric thought. 'Bring it on then. I'll still come out on top.'
Looking at Eric's eyes Honoka was basically able to hear his thoughts at this very moment.
"That's fine by me. I wasn't planning on giving you any less." She murmured. "With a boost from Minosuke, my vanguard Yasuie Gouma will attack."
(26000+5000=31000)
"Generation guard! Jinx Stealth Fiend, Abudatashi!"
Jinx Stealth Fiend, Abudatashi
Grade 4, Shield +15000
"With her skill, since you have three or less cards in your hand, then she gains +5000 to her shield. In addition, guard and intercept." Eric said. He then placed down the stand trigger from earlier along with Shikui.
"Triple drive. First check. No trigger. Second check. Critical trigger. All effects to the Yasuie Gouma on the right. Final check. Another critical trigger. All effects to the Yasuie Gouma on the left!" Honoka exclaimed.
"Oh and Honoka Miyamura just might pull out an upset victory folks. With both of her units possessing criticals unless Eric Luzin guards carefully he's done for!" Cecilia shouted into her mike.
'Looks like her deck is responding to her.' Eric thought.
"Yasiue Gouma on the right will attack the vanguard with a boost from Mangy Shooter on the right."
(15000+5000+6000=26000)
"Guard!" Eric exclaimed. He then used four of the remaining five cards in his hand to withstand the attack. But in the end he made it.
"I see." Honoka said. "Yasuie Gouma on the left, attack."
"No guard. Damage check. No triggers." Eric said.
"Oh and he survives." Cecilia mused. "It was so close, but in the end Eric Luzin pulled through. Now the question is can he finish it next turn?"
"I end my turn." Honoka said. She then placed all three Yasuie Gouma face up on her G zone.
[Damage: Eric (5) Honoka (4)]
"Stand and draw," Eric said.
[Turn 9: Hand; Eric (2) Honoka (4)]
Honoka looked at the board. 'This is fine. So long as I can make through this turn with one damage I'll finish him off next turn. I definitely will.' She thought with determination.
"Shiranui "Hanzo" generation break two. Since I have three or less cards in my hand, I can force my opponent to bind cards from their hand to pay my cost for stride." Eric explained, pointing a finger directly at Honoka's hand.
As for Honoka, her mouth was agape in shock.
"Oh, what a terrifying skill." Cecilia exclaimed. "Not only do you remove a card or cards from the opponent's hand, but you can also stride without reducing your own hand. Such impressive play."
Honoka took a few seconds but she regained her senses. She then placed the grade three in her hand in the bind zone. 'It's fine, I can still make it through this turn.' She thought, without losing an ounce of determination.
"Generation stride. Rikudo Stealth Dragon, Sezemarikan."
Rikudo Stealth Dragon, Sezemarikan
Grade 4, Power +15000
"Stride skill." Eric counter blasted one card. "The opponent must discard a card from their hand and bind one rear-guard unit. I also look at the top three cards of my deck, and choose one unit with the "Afterimage" ability and add it to my hand." He explained.
While Eric placed a card in his hand, Honoka bound a rear-guard and placed a card in her drop zone.
"The skill of Sezemarikan." Eric said. He then counter blasted one card and flipped over a copy of Sezemarikan in the G zone. "He obtains a skill. I then call. Kegareshinmyo and Kokujyo. With a boost from Souei, Sezemarikan will attack your vanguard."
(26000+5000=31000)
"Also, the skill he obtained now activates. For every face up card in my G zone, the opponent, if able, must bind the same amount of cards from their hand." Eric explained.
Hearing that Honoka knew what the outcome of the match would be. However she wasn't that sad. She enjoyed the fight to the fullest. So she simply placed her remaining cards in her hand on the bind zone and waited.
"Triple drive. First check. No trigger. Second check. No trigger. Final check. A critical trigger. Power to Kegareshinmyo and critical to Sezemarikan."
"Damage check. No triggers."
[Damage: Eric (5) Honoka (6)]
As the fight ended and Eric and Honoka collected their deck, Eric gave her a thumbs up.
Honoka gave him one back.
It was a show of respect between the two fighters.
"And there you have it folks, team Victories has claimed another first-round wim." Cecilia said.
The crowd then started cheering.
As for Eric he simply walked back to his side of the field and sat down on the bench.
"Good job." Anthony said.
"Thanks." Eric replied. "Ellie is counting on us after all. Besides, there's no way I could lose after talking like that earlier."
"Right." Anthony said. He then stood up. "Guess it's my turn then." He mused.
He then walked towards the fight table to face his own opponent.
Sitting on the edge of one of the many fountains all around the stadium Cera and Elizabeth did not have happy expressions on their faces.
That's because no matter how hard they searched they couldn't find a trace of Teressa anywhere. She had literally disappeared into thin air.
"Dammit." Elizabeth muttered in frustration. "If only we had one clue. Just one." She murmured.
"I hear you." Cera said.
The two sat in silence, thinking of what to do next about the entire situation. But that silence was utterly shattered when Cera's phone started running.
Taking it out of her pocket Cera looked at the caller ID but didn't recognize it. So she declined the call. She then went back to thinking of ways to find Teressa. But that only lasted for a moment before her phone rang again. She looked at the caller ID and saw it was the same number from a moment ago.
Now curious, Cera decided to answer the phone to see who was calling her.
"Hello," she said, putting her phone up to her ear. "Who is this?"
"Emilia." Emilia said on the other end of the line.
Cera's eyes widened in shock. "Why are you calling me? No, how did you get my number?" She asked.
But Emilia didn't answer.
"I can't tell you that." Emilia responded. "But I do have information on the friend of your friend Elizabeth." She said.
As soon as Emilia told Cera this she put her on speakerphone and tapped Elizabeth's shoulder. Who turned to look at her.
"On the phone right now is that girl I told you about. Emilia. She says she has information about Teressa." Cera quickly explained.
"It's the truth." Emilia said.
"Talk, right now." Elizabeth said in a cold voice. "And you better not lie to us."
"I won't." Emilia said. "So here it is. You aren't going to be able to find your friend. No matter how hard you look."
"How do we know you're telling us the truth?" Elizabeth asked.
"Just have to trust me." Emilia mused.
"Heh, you and trust are not in the same book for me." Cera said.
"I understand why. I also know you have no reason to trust me, but I'm asking you to." Emilia said. "Also, it's not like you won't see Teressa again."
"But you just said we won't be able to find her." Elizabeth retorted.
"Right." Emilia answered. "Instead she'll find you. But listen, you need to be extremely careful around her. She's not herself at the moment."
"We know." Elizabeth said. "Does this have something to do with those visions we've been having, and those Paragon things your friend Ryan mentioned to Eric."
"Yes." Emilia answered, giving a straightforward answer. "However I can't tell you more than that."
"Why not?" Elizabeth asked, almost screaming.
"The rules set by my benefactor. And other reasons." Emilia said. "But I can tell you this. If you want to know the whole truth about the dreams, your friend, and the paragons that idiot Ryan mentioned there is a way. Win the American preliminaries and earn a spot in the main tournament being held in Athens. Once that happens me and my group will tell you everything."
"But if one of our teams wins, then that means the others will be left out." Cera pointed out.
"It depends on the circumstances." Emilia said. "Anyway that's all I can say for now. Also don't worry too much, your friend Teressa is in a bad situation, but trust me, it could be much worse. As it stands at the moment she's not in any immediate danger. But again, be careful. And if anyone else like her should appear, exercise extreme caution. Goodbye for now."
Emilie then hung up.
"Hey wait." Elizabeth shouted. But she was too slow. So she hit re-dial on Cera's phone, but all she got was voicemail. She tried calling the number four more times but got the same thing each and every time she tried.
"Damn," Elizabeth cursed. "This is only making less and less sense the deeper we get into it."
"Yeah, but one thing is clear. If we want to know what's going on, then we need to keep winning in the tournament and go all the way." Cera said. "If we do I know we'll find the answers we seek."
Elizabeth nodded.
It's not like she had any other choice at the moment.
So despite her urge to search for Teressa she was going to believe in Emilia's words and focus on the tournament.
Because it looks like winning is her only option now.
Leaning against the wall of an alley Teressa was breathing heavily, holding onto the top of her right palm.
"Did you have fun?" A distorted voice asked.
Teressa moved her eyes and saw a pair of eyes glaring at her in the shadows of the alley.
"Well, answer me. Was it fun for you?" The distorted voice asked once more.
"It was supposed to be." Teressa answered.
"Don't get cheeky with me. Not in this situation." The voice said. "Because of your actions, you might've put everything in play in jeopardy."
"I know that." Teressa answered back, seriously. "I just didn't think one of them would be that strong yet."
"Then let this be a lesson to you. Never underestimate your opponents." The voice. "Come on along now, we've got work to do."
"Yes." Teressa answered.
She then walked into the shadows, following the mysterious figure, disappearing completely like she was never there at all.
A/N:
That's chapter 12 folks.
Also my birthday just passed to yay to me! It' also the reason I'm bringing in so many chapters, and there will be many more in the future. Now that I have some time you can try and expect regular updates.
As for the story itself you can see the mystery is deepening as things progress. But don't worry, you'll know some of the answers soon enough, I promise.
Next Time: As the preliminaries continue to heat up Sylvia and Team Crusade come face to face with a cardfighter who needs a lesson in humility and fast. A job they're more than happy to take on.
Face Off with Number Two
Stealth Rogue Apprentice, Souei
Grade 0, Power +5000
Forerunner (RC): Generation Break 1: [Place this unit in your soul.] The opponent must send a card from their hand to the bind zone, and then choose a card from their bind zone and send it to the drop zone. [Rest this unit.] For every card in the opponent's bind zone, add +1000 to all front row units until the end of the turn.
Grade 2:
Stealth Dragon, Shikui
Grade 2, Power +9000
Skill [Auto] (RC): Generation Break 1: When this unit is placed on the board the opponent must bind a card either from their hand or from their field. When this unit attacks an opponent's vanguard and your vanguard has "Shiranui" in its name, he gains an additional +2000 power for every card placed in the bind zone, while he is on the board until the end of the turn.
Grade 3:
Torrential Demonic Stealth Dragon, Shiranui "Hanzo"
Grade 3, Power +11000
Skill (VC): Generation Break 2: When you have three or less cards in your hand, you can force the opponent to bind cards from their hand to pay for your cost to stride that turn. (VC): [Counter blast (1) card.] When a G unit stride you may bind one of the opponent's rear-guard units until the end of the turn, and they must discard a card from their hand. Also, you may look at the top three cards of the deck and select one with the "Afterimage" ability and add it to your hand while placing the remaining two cards back in the deck and shuffling it.
Grade 4:
Rikudo Stealth Dragon, Sezemarikan
Grade 4, Power +15000
Skll [Auto] (VC): [Counter blast (1) card and flip over a copy of Sezemarikan in the G zone.] When this unit attacks for every face up card in the G zone, the opponent must bind the same number of cards from their hand until the end of the turn.