Hello everyone! Surprise, I'm not dead, despite the current annoyance that plagues our world and that might have been responsible for my absence. Now, I want you all to take the time and read the following paragraphs about me explaining the reasons for the long silence on my part, even though it might be tempting for some not to do so and skip them instead. Please, it's very important, so be patient, take the time, and read the following parts.
So, what has Haoh Ryu Z-ARC been doing in the last fifteen months? Well, last year was when I started a new course of study, and since I was approaching exam season at the time following my last chapter release, and because my former course of study didn't end with particularly good results, I was keen on having a good first semester and do well in my exams, so I sidelined writing for the time being. Then came the first online semester due to a certain shitty pandemic, which was quite a challenge for me since it felt so irregular (and it still does this semester, not gonna lie), so I didn't make much progress with writing in that semester either. Finally came the current semester, in which – as you know – an upload hasn't yet occurred, at least not until now of course.
However, while I have been putting my writing career on hold for most of that time, I have not been idle. During the rest of the previous winter semester and the start of the following summer semester I have admittedly not touched my laptop in that regard, but towards the later parts of said semester I started getting into writing mood again, and read about every Yugioh Manga ever conceived that I still hadn't read up to that point. The latter especially should come in handy when I continue with Dawn of Twilight, which I intend to do moving forward as well. Anyway, as I was aware that I had neglected you guys for a prolonged period of time, I wanted to make up for it with something special, and since my plans coincided pretty well with that format, I decided to go for it. You see, as a sort of homage to the start of my writing career where I uploaded the first seven chapters of my Arc-V fic all at once, I wanted to bring the current part of the story to its end in one go. Or in other words, what I have been working on all this time wasn't just a chapter. It was a whole arc.
Now, doing an arc of like eight chapters isn't an easy task, especially with the current semester being rather busy for me as well. While I have scripted the majority of its events and duels, writing the rest of them will still take a while, so as of right now I haven't finished that. Since those chapters are all very connected, even more so than usually with the chapters of a single story, I swore to uphold the promise to myself and only release anything once I finish it all, and even though I was tempted to do otherwise at times and one particular reviewer wouldn't stop pushing me, I endured with iron will and continued writing chapter after chapter. However, in the end it took longer than I expected, as I had hoped to be finished with them right now, which I couldn't quite achieve, unfortunately. Seeing that Christmas is around the corner now and wanting to give you at least one more chapter this year, I ended up changing my plans. I realized that stockpiling so many (and long ones, too) chapters just for the sake of fulfilling a self-made project would perhaps be a bit too ambitious, and being too ambitious is generally one of my writing flaws, though my ambitious mindset has positive effects to a certain extent as well of course. So I heeded the advice of a certain other author who expressed to me that releasing chapters might be preferable over stockpiling them endlessly, which I agree on now. Therefore, if there is one person you can thank for this release, it would certainly be my fellow writer Romadrox8975, who was the one to tell me that. It was a hard choice to abandon my original plan, but in the spirit of the season of giving I put the lot of you above the adherence to my plan. So view these chapters as my Christmas gift to you!
Well, considering I had now changed my original plans, a few modifications had to be made. As I said, the chapters are extraordinary interconnected, as you will be able to tell by their titles, so splitting my release apart was a rather difficult task. In the end I decided to divide those eight chapters into two releases, the current one which will have four chapters, and the second one which holds the remaining four chapters I'm still working on. You see, it was an especially difficult task because the number of chapters and the interval between their releases had a lot of symbolism put into it that mirrored plot elements from the story. In Dawn of Twilight, as well as Destiny Junction, as both are connected stories with the latter being the successor of the former, numbers have a tremendous meaning, so the amount of chapters in my planned release, as well as the number of hours between release of the individual chapters, essentially emphasize those storytelling elements, mainly via symbolism. Yes, they were supposed to be released in a delayed manner, namely since releasing all of those chapters at once would cause your brains to explode from sheer input, hence why I included small intervals of two days between them so you would have time to process the chapters and maybe speculate a bit about the next ones. That plan changed, so here is what the current plan looks like:
I can't possibly maintain the exact time periods between the chapters now, but I can still pick a shorter one to continue with my symbolism-plans. Instead of 48 hours between chapter releases I will have an interval of 24 hours, or a day, instead. 24 is the product of 2, 3 and 4, and all of those numbers play a significant symbolic role in the incoming chapters, so that's still good enough for me. That will only apply to the four chapters I have so far, though, the unfinished ones will follow my original plans. However, since I will be busy around Christmas, I am only able to release the first two of those four chapters before I leave for the 24th, so the other two will follow when I am once more in a location where I can upload, namely five days later. And yes, that exact interval is because of symbolic reasons referring to the story elements as well. Those two chapters will use an intervall of a day between uploads as well of course. We'll see what happens after that, but I hope to be able to finish the remaining chapters of the arc as soon as possible.
On that note, I would really appreciate your feedback for these chapters. Part of why I haven't made much process with the remaining chapters is because of lack of motivation. That's another reason for this upload by the way, to not fall even further into hiatus tendencies. Your reviews are very important to me, so if you want to motivate me and thus accelerate the arrival of the remaining chapters, please take some time and leave a few of those, the longer and detailed the better.
Now, as to explain about this arc I've been working on which you now get to read the first half of, it's called the "Road to Requiem"-Arc and deals with introducing the many world building elements of Dawn of Twilight – ones already shown and ones that will be shown there moving forward – , as well as the new elements of this story. As you may have noticed we have not progressed much in terms of Canon Vrains, mainly because the individual story elements that apply for this fic in particular have to be shown first. It would be irresponsible to throw all of the world building out of the window, so this arc is very necessary for the story. But despite not making much progress in that regard, I'm sure that it will still entertain you a lot, especially since it's also a sort of adventure arc for the Knights of Hanoi, the Kogamis in particular. So you are bound to get some good content anyway, even if the main purpose of the arc is very exposition-heavy. You will get a couple of in my opinion supremely fantastic duels, and the final one of the arc might even make the final one of the season look pale in comparison, so I can see it satifying the vast majority of you.
About this chapter in particular, it is probably to closest to what one could consider an exposition bombshell, about comparable to what is currently Chapter 10 of my Arc-V fic. It will introduce you to the many world building elements that Dawn of Twilight introduces, established ones and ones that have yet to be established. On that note, since I aim to revise Dawn of Twilight a bit after finishing this arc, some of the parts in this chapter might conflict with a few points in my other fic, as this chapter already uses the revised lore. It's only one or two terms being different than their current Dawn of Twilight iteration from what I remember, but I still wanted to give the readers of both of my fics a little heads up about that. Even though the four currently released chapters are also part of the Road to Requiem-Arc, you will notice that this and the following chapters have a different format, namely due to having rather perplexing opening and ending scenes. Don't wonder about them too much for now, their meaning will unveil itself as you read this arc. For instance, while the second scene in this chapter might leave you a bit clueless at first, you will be able to understand it after having read the exposition parts in the middle of the chapter. Also, moving forward, I will sporadically include soundtrack references in the text, like I do in my other fic, just not as frequently as in there. They are generally only intended to help with the atmosphere of the scenes, so don't read too much into my choice of soundtrack.
Furthermore I wanted to notify you that I changed a few things with the previous chapters. Most of them were pretty insignificant dialogue additions between Atsuko and Yukemi in Chapters 1 and 4, mainly derived from new discoveries of mine on the functionality of the Japanese system of addressing each other. The significant changes I do want to point out to you though are in Chapter 4, specifically the scene between Yukemi, Atsuko and Betsune after Yukemi and Yusaku left the Duel Club, where I added a bit more personality to Betsune. Also, in preparation to these chapters, I extended the final scene in Chapter 3. In the same chapter I also made a short, but important inclusion within Heavenmail's duel with Playmaker. While I would recommend you to read all three of those scenes before starting this chapter, I will particularly advise reading the scene at the end of Chapter 3, as that one holds more importance in the context of this arc.
Also a quick shoutout to my fellow writers SakushiRyu, And then the sky and bladeWriter3 for helping me with and proofreading the currently made chapters of this arc. Well, most of them anyway, as I told nobody about the full extent of my plans and excluded a few key elements and scenes. This way even they should have something new when they read these chapters, so my apologies to them for deceiving them a little. Despite showing parts of it to others I still wanted this to be my secret little project to a degree, if you know what I mean.
Anyway, with all that said I think that the bulk of it has been addressed. Now about the review responses to the previous chapters:
Review Responses:
-To SakushiRyu: Great that you liked the newly introduced characters. About dragons in Yugioh, as it turned out the new ace wasn't one. It may be Toon Dark Magician 2.0, but despite its in my opinion silly design I probably still prefer Sevens Road Magician over yet another dragon.
-To SoulMatter: Yeah, predicting my plans is usually pretty difficult. On another note, I saw you writing a review, I believe it was for one of SakushiRyu's stories, where you mentioned a particular card group you were studying to write a duel with them. Well, as it happens you will see that very same group in this chapter and arc, so interesting coincidence for sure.
-To Zarc Eternal: Me and not writing crazy stuff? Who do you think I am, some lame writer? But on a serious note, you will see a lot more crazy stuff in this chapter. About your question, I liked the Vrains ending a lot, though the revival of Ai at the end somewhat perplexed me.
-To And then the sky: First of, thank you again for your usual lengthiness when reviewing, I'm always glad to see that. I concur with your assessment that a change of pace was a good call for Chapter 4, especially since these following ones will be more busy. I find your mention about Yukemi's relationship to Elizabeth interesting, and while Yukemi doesn't really see her the same way as Aoi or Atsuko indeed, he isn't completely oblivious to her feelings, quite the contrary actually. He acts the way he does because of reasons I will elaborate on in a later chapter. And I thank you for appreciating the new Knights of Hanoi so much, thankfully this arc is centered around them, so you are in for a good time.
-To Super Shadow 2018: I didn't forget about Roboppi, pretty sure that Yukemi said to Yusaku something along the lines of "pack your stuff and get over to my house". Since Roboppi is not sentient at this point of the story, I think it passes as property of Yusaku, which he had been instructed to take to Yukemi's house. So yeah, Roboppi moved along with Yusaku and will probably have some interactions with Yukemi, though I don't know how extensive they will be since I will greatly change the course of Season 3.
-To ReadAZarc (and the three reviewers before that who I assume are probably the same person): Patience, please. Writing takes as long as it does, especially when preparing for an octuple release.
This should be everything now. Please make sure to review and answer the Question of the Chapter for this chapter and the incoming ones, it would boost my writing morale a lot! And like I said, don't get perplexed by the opening scenes too much, their meaning will reveal itself to you as you read, for some scenes more than with others. Now, enjoy your Christmas gift, everyone!
Chapter 5: Omen of Conquest – Of Dragonic Duality and Incantations
Prologue...
(Bloodborne OST – Cleric Beast)
As I watched, the Lamb broke the first of the seven seals on the scroll. Then I heard one of the living beings say with a voice like thunder, "Come!" I looked up and saw a white horse standing there. Its rider carried a bow, and a crown was placed on his head. He rode out to win many battles and to gain the victory.
First Seal: [D*** U*** S***S***]
Universe 18, Unknown Location...
"The sky's looking strange today, isn't it?" a male entity asked in a for humans certainly incomprehensible tongue, looking over to his companion, much like him being of an amphibious species faintly resembling an upright standing toad, only that it had a total of six limbs, rather than only four, due to a doubled amount of arms. It had dark blue skin that was plastered with a myriad of tiny warts and spikes, having one yellow eye in each of the four cavities on the sides of its head, two each per side. The area surrounding them was similarly strange, being a meadow with cyan and indigo grass, with dozens of ponds of varying sizes, filled with a green fluid each. Lighting up the surprisingly normal looking sky was a fairly regular sun emitting an orange glow, slightly altering the color of the otherwise blue sky. However, there seemed to be additional colors visible within it, namely ones of silver shades, which appeared to confuse the amphibious alien a little.
"You can say that out loud, it's been behaving like this since an hour already. Hopefully it's not some kind of natural disaster, we barely recovered from the drought a few months ago yet, so there is no way we can sustain another occurrence like that," his companion replied with a for their species typical croaking voice, throwing his net into one of the nearby ponds and resuming with their previous harvesting activities.
"Oh, you don't have to worry, it won't be a natural disaster or something to that effect which will give you a long and hard time thinking about nothing but survival. Actually, it will be more of an Armageddon," a deep voice chuckled from a distance, barely audible. Despite it speaking in Japanese the aliens seemed to understand it though, causing them to be even more startled as they could not only hear the unknown entity's statement, but also understand its contents.
"Did you just hear that too?" the first amphibious male asked the other in disbelief.
"I did...," his companion confirmed, nodding and with a noticeable amount of discomfort in his voice.
"You're not imaging things, don't worry. Well, nobody would blame you for thinking that since this right here isn't exactly the idea of an everyday encounter, but that's besides the point. If I were in your place, I would have other worries right now," the unknown male voice spoke up again, sounding lightly amused about the reaction of the two native individuals he addressed.
"You there! Who or what are you?! Identify yourself!" the first native shouted, commanding the unknown speaker to reveal themselves.
"If you intend to do us harm, you better be prepared to face the consequences!" the second alien added after he had deliberated about the unknown person's statements up to this point, specifically the subtle threats that were made to them within said statements. As to prove his point he and his companion drew their weapons, short swords made from an otherworldly purple material which they had carried on their belts.
"You intend to threaten me with those toothpicks? How adorable, I almost don't want to proceed with my plans now! But there is some work to do in this solar system, so unfortunately I must continue," the entity chuckled. After that it assumed a far more solemn tone as it continued, the silver glow in the sky intensifying. "Well, I suppose I can address some of your questions and commands, at least partially, so maybe a sort of introduction is in order here," it spoke. Then all of a sudden the sky darkened, the orange sun vanishing immediately after it had finished its sentence, leaving the planet in near total darkness, besides the light of the stars.
"What just happened?! Why is the sun...?!" the second native stammered in shock, his comrade sharing his disbelief. His mouth went shut once he saw the silver light in the sky increasing again, an object that flitted through the now basically night sky catching his attention.
"No matter what galaxy, no matter what universe, they all share the same expression of disbelief," the unknown entity spoke, the heavens flickering in a dark blue color, accompanied by an increasing silver radiance. The locals simply stared upwards, having a premonition at the dancing colors in the sky.
"The wise decide to marvel at it, venerate it, and occasionally even extend their local pantheon," it continued in a deep voice, the two amphibious natives continuing to shiver in fright, a dark blue and silver object with the shape of an enormous dragonic tail flitting across the skies in the meantime.
"The foolish fight, believing that they can defeat an invincible god," it resounded from the heavens, the entity seeming amused as it spoke this sentence, particularly the second part. Meanwhile the two colors in the sky increased, and the field of vision of the natives changed in a very unnatural way, being able to see farther and farther into the sky, even the lines between their planet's atmosphere and the surrounding space starting to blur until they could see into the vastness of it, as if the entity was inviting them to have a glimpse at it. Two giant dark blue arms, tipped with sharp silver claws came into their view, their dimensions far too colossal to fit into their atmosphere. Its fingers then moved, the thumbs and middle fingers on its clawed hands approaching each other in a preparing manner.
"But the reaction I like the most...," the entity spoke, more of its titanic body revealing itself to them, first the serpentine-shaped dark blue and silver torso to which the identically colored arms and wings were attached, then its tail, and finally its head, both of the later being dark blue with a silver mane adorning them. A pair of dark blue eyes with silver pupils that were bordered by a fluctuating multicolored glow opened, giving them a fixating stare, much to the terror of the two amphibious individuals. The dragon snapped its fingers, creating what appeared to be a star in its left palm and a black hole in its right palm, the proximity of them immediately affecting the planet. The two locals screamed in agony, the newborn sun in the dragon's left hand burning them alive and setting the surrounding landscape aflame. To make matters worse, the dragon caused an avalanche of flames to descend from its wings, incinerating the rest of the planet as well. Meanwhile the black hole in its right palm started consuming the surface of the planet bit by bit, sucking in one layer after another. The dragon then swallowed the black hole, astonishingly without experiencing any inconveniences as a result, consecutively opening its maw through which the swallowed object unfolded its ability, attracting one shard of the burning planet after another, leading them into the dragon's open mouth, who seemed quite pleased by what it was getting fed. After a few moments the above stellar-sized entity finished with its meal, letting out a satisfied burp soon after. Then it spoke up once more, finishing its prior statement.
"...is when, in terror, they realize their own insignificance," it remarked, covering its mouth in an almost bashful way as to acknowledge its bad manners. It then looked at the space before it, now just the typical vacuum as it had wiped out the entire planet – or rather eaten it. Putting its right claw to its chin, it rubbed it in a deliberating manner, adding a final piece to its monologue.
"It really emphasizes the importance that power holds in this world, doesn't it?" the dragon said to itself, now that its audience was gone. It then assumed a more casual tone, looking leftwards. "Well, that was a pretty good meal. Now, to restore that dying sun that I ate." It moved its left hand that still held the star which it had created only moments prior to that, shifting it to where the star it had eaten before – the event which had caused the sudden nightfall earlier – had been, thereby replacing the former sun of the solar system. It then rubbed its chin once more, deliberating on its further way of procedure.
"Well, I got rid of that old star which was about to die and wipe out another three inhabited planets in its supernova, so there's that. Now, about the planet I just ate...," the more than stellar-sized dragon stated, conjuring up a sphere of strange contents as it hovered in the space of the solar system, taking up a good portion of its extent.
"Okay, I think that I'll go with normal water this time around, so let me take a bit of helium, then add half as many oxygen atoms, and done," it said, creating the mentioned materials and fusing them into water, which now hovered in the surrounding space.
"As for the other materials, I think some metal for the core would be good. Then a bit of stone around it and we have the inner layers of the planet," it continued, conjuring up more materials to continue constructing the planet.
"Well, and now comes the most tricky question: Should I have land or not?" it debated with itself, scratching its chin anew. It continued doing so for a while until it reached a conclusion. "Well, the amphibious species from before didn't quite work out, seeing that those people from before were about to face extinction, even without my intervention. It was more of a mercy killing to speed things up to be honest," it monologued before stating its decision.
"So because I don't want to go with an amphibious species again, and because the previous land-based reptilian-like one failed as well, I think I won't create land this time around and simply have a fish-like species for now. That should do the trick," it said, not conjuring up any elements that could be used as land, but simply adding the water it had already created to the planet, pressing everything together with its supernatural prowess. It then created a bit more water to make for an even deeper, planet-engulfing ocean.
"And finally an atmosphere and orbit to top it off, and also the spark of life which I will throw in there of course. Viola, a new planet!" it exclaimed cheerfully, creating just that and tossing several unicellular lifeforms into the sea of the newly created planet, then turning away. "Anyway, that's everything in this universe for now. Onto the next!" the dragon remarked, summoning a portal and vanishing into it.
A Few Minutes after Kiyoshi Left, Kogami Residence...
Sokudo, presently standing on the wide terrace of his superior, trembled. Scratch that, he downright shuddered. While he had been at an all time height of confidence just minutes earlier when he had issued his challenge towards Dr. Kogami, things had quickly taken a turn for the worse. The expression Kiyoshi had shown when he took his leave in order to prepare for the upcoming duel, combined with the spectral apparition that had occurred in tandem with that, had shocked Sokudo to his core, making his previous confidence shatter like a window upon contact with a swinging wrecking ball. While none of the others had believed him, Sokudo was certain to have seen what he had seen: A whitish dragon with multiple sets of wings in a variety of different colors and a hybrid of a staff and a sword as its golden weapon, giving a menacing gaze that emanated a sense of ancient, perpetual might which Sokudo could not make waver. Its eyes were mythical, unfathomable, expressing more words with a single look than Sokudo could ever hope to learn in the entirety of his life. And it were just those eyes that had so suddenly shattered Sokudo's confidence, disturbed him to his core and would probably haunt him for the end of time, as what he had seen was not the power of a mortal being, but that of a god. Since none of the other Knights of Hanoi was inclined to believe him, he decided to simply keep his horror to himself and wait for his boss to return, which left a strong taste of anxiety and dread in his mouth.
'Okay Sokudo, calm down! Whatever you just saw, you don't have to shit your pants because of it! Just focus on your goal and get out of this stupid organization at once! If you concentrate on your objective, you certainly will-!'
His inner pep talk was cut short as a familiar voice spoke up, disturbing Sokudo's attempts to rebuild his courage and causing his skin to crawl at the resurfacing spectral image from earlier.
"Well, I guess I'm good to go now! Genryu, how do I look?" Kiyoshi said as he left the building towards the terrace Sokudo and the other Knights of Hanoi were on, some of them seated on chairs which included both Kiyoshi's children, with the exception of Atsuko, and a few others like Genryu or Hakashi, addressing his best friend to inquire about his once more shaven hair.
"Looking good, Kiyoshi!" Genryu gave him a thumbs up before tilting his gaze towards Sokudo. "Now you and that wannabe deserter can have your little match at last. Though with Sokudo's lack of confidence I doubt that it will last long," the white haired senior knight said.
"Lack of confidence?!" Sokudo bellowed, trying to mask his moment of weakness. "I was never more confident in my entire life!" he yelled back at Genryu, his girlfriend Akame and best friend Kazuki covering their eyes at his denial, feeling embarrassed for their nerve wreck of a (boy)friend.
"Well, great to hear that. Then otoosan doesn't need to hold back, right?" Betsune stated, observing with the usual neutral expression.
"Sounds good, Betsune. A fully serious battle is the most enjoyable kind of battle there is anyway," Ryoken nodded, carrying a faint smile of satisfaction.
"Er, can I take back my challenge, maybe...?" Sokudo stammered, his confidence still in shambles, the man now further discouraged by the words of his opponent's children.
"Oh, definitely not, Sokudo-san." Kiyoshi shook his head. "This duel was your objective for years, so why cancel it now? I'm wondering really, why are you trying to back down, so close to your goal? Is everything alright?" he asked, the last bit with genuine concern.
Sokudo's expression changed abruptly at that, anxiety being replaced with outrage. 'There it is again, his damned worried tone! How dare he to plunge me into misery and then act like he genuinely cares about my well-being?! That old geezer can eat shit for all I care!' he screamed internally, heating up his inner furnace of hatred towards the person he deemed his tormentor, the one who had destroyed his life, as Sokudo expressed it. Letting go of all his fears he opened his mouth, shouting at his superior with an enraged voice.
"Okay old man, time's up! You had your little shaving and reading session, now let's get into the duel! I'll pulverize you and then I'm going to leave this damn organization at last! Are you ready?!" he snapped at Kiyoshi, preparing his duel disk.
"Wow, he went from intimidated to full-on raging pretty quickly," Atsuko remarked, giving her personal in-organization antagonist a frown.
"You can say that again," Emerald agreed with her partner.
"Well, I do appreciate your newfound enthusiasm. Without it this duel would be way less fun after all," Kiyoshi responded to Sokudo before activating his duel disk and continuing. "Yes, I am ready. May I get the first turn, Sokudo-san?" he requested as he took a suitable position on one end of the terrace, Ryoken, Betsune, Atsuko and the rest of the gathered Knights of Hanoi moving out of the way to the sidelines, sans Sokudo of course.
"Have the first turn if you want, old man! It won't help you at all, because I'm going to crush you regardless!" Sokudo gave his angry response.
Dr. Kogami nodded a few times. "If you say so, fair enough. But I'll still try my best to put up a decent fight," he said calmly, before he followed up with a quiet addendum. "If 'putting up a decent fight' was to be interpreted as 'achieving a complete and utter victory' that is," he whispered, a sly smirk crawling on his face as he did.
"Bring it on, old man!" Sokudo yelled, taking his dueling stance.
-"DUEL!"- the two of them and the audience yelled in unison, the disks of the two adversaries lighting up in different colors.
DR. KOGAMI: 8000 LP
VS.
HIMIJI SOKUDO: 8000 LP
(This Duel is conducted as a Master Duel.)
"As we clarified earlier, I will take the first turn!" Kiyoshi declared, briefly raising his disk to stress his turn priority. "Honestly, I was surprised that you would give me the first turn, knowing how defensive your deck is and how you need time to set up said defenses. Hopefully you won't regret that decision. I've got a bunch of surprises for you after all," the Hanoi Leader told.
"Yeah, whatever! Get on with your turn, old man!" Sokudo snapped back impatiently.
"As you wish!" Kiyoshi chuckled heartily. "Then I'll be starting things off with a spell card. I activate Draco Face-Off!" he announced, revealing a card depicting a confrontation between two dragonic figures, one being dark and standing before a throne in the background while the other was much brighter and approached its apparent enemy from below.
"Draco Face-Off? What does that card do?" Sokudo asked, bewildered by the feeling he got from looking at the opposing card.
"It works in the following way: I reveal two Pendulum-Monsters, one of them being a "Dracoslayer"-Monster and the other being a "Dracoverlord"-Monster. You randomly choose one of them to either be placed in my Pendulum Zone or be special summoned, depending on what I select, and the other one is sent face-up to my Extra Deck," Kiyoshi explained.
"Pendulum?!" Sokudo yelled, visibly shocked. "You have Pendulum-Monsters?!"
"Yes. Apparently these scales from Shimizu Yukemi provided me with scales of another sort," Kiyoshi replied with a nod, smiling at his own pun.
"Isn't Pendulum a foreign method?" Atsuko spoke up, addressing the other spectators.
"It is. Like my Fusion Summoning, it is a prominent method abroad. Here in Japan Link Monsters are the most popular by far, mainly because they are relatively new, so much so that the older summoning methods were crowded out to a degree. Hence why we only see them very rarely here. That one Charisma Duelist, Cherubini, is known to use a variety of foreign methods, but much like my father came from abroad which in turn influenced my deck, her deck is from a foreigner as well, namely an Italian. Taking aside that other Charisma Duelist named Skyfox I can't recall any non-foreign Pendulum-User though, and the last person I have seen performing that method was some man from Australia. Great guy by the way, made my holidays there much more entertaining," Kenshi remarked, answering Atsuko's question.
"So how does it work? Do you like swing something or why is the method called like that?" Daisuke inquired curiously.
"You indeed swing something, in a way," Kiyoshi spoke up, clearing his throat. "Because of my wife and Kenshi's parental origins, I have always had an interest for the summoning methods from abroad. Perhaps that was the reason why those scales gave me this new deck. Allow me to summarize it briefly: A Pendulum-Monster is a hybrid of a standard type of monster card type and the properties of Pendulum-Monsters. Those properties being the ability to return face-up to the Extra Deck upon leaving the field towards the graveyard, rather than going to the latter place. Additionally, Pendulum-Monsters do possess a Pendulum Scale, which serves as a sort of secondary level. Instead of being summoned they may also be placed in the outermost Spell & Trap Zones, which are known as Pendulum Zones. Once you have two Pendulum-Monsters in your Pendulum Zones, the player may once per turn perform a Pendulum Summon, bringing out monsters from their hand or face-up Pendulum-Monsters from their Extra Deck whose levels are in between the values of the two Pendulum Scales that the monsters in the Pendulum Zones possess. However, since Pendulum-Monsters can be summoned from the Extra Deck this way, the player might need to set up a Link-Monster in order to unlock an appropriate amount of zones. It's a form of regenerative summoning of multiple monsters at once which facilitates other sorts of summoning, to express it shortly," he elaborated.
Daisuke's jaw dropped. "That sounds..., well...," he stammered.
"Complicated? Don't worry, you'll get there. Anyway, I choose Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer and Infector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord. Pick one, Sokudo!" Kiyoshi spoke up, addressing his opponent with the second part as he revealed two monsters, each of them a mix of green and a secondary color, one being brown-green while the other was yellow-green.
"I pick the right one!" Sokudo declared, choosing the second option among the now face-down cards.
"Alright! You hit Infector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord. I choose to place it in my Pendulum Zone. Then I send Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer face-up to my Extra Deck," Kiyoshi replied, the former monster arising in a white-bluish column of light, being a dark dragonic bipedal figure with a partially skeletal head, wearing what appeared to be a mix of black armor and an equally dark laboratory coat. Its insane grin only added to the mad scientist vibe it already gave Sokudo as it continued to rise in the brilliant column of light. It reached its designated height, a stylized yellow number of 9 lighting up below it.
Infector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Pendulum Scale 9
"How beautiful!" Helena marveled, the Anti Ignis referring to the light column with her statement.
"It will get even better, just you wait!" Kiyoshi assured her before turning to Sokudo. "So, what do you think? Liking the visuals so far?" he addressed his subordinate.
"I guess," Sokudo murmured, deliberating. "So I got the Normal Monster of the two. Is that good?" he then asked.
"Well, not necessarily. You see, what I left out earlier with my explanation is that Pendulum-Monsters can have a set of different effects depending on whether they are in the Pendulum Zone or in the Monster Zone. Even a Normal Monster like Infector Pendulum can still have a very powerful Pendulum Effect, or in this case, it actually has one. So no Sokudo, you hit the wrong card," Kiyoshi replied with a faint smile.
"Well, shit. I'm always having the bad luck it seems!" Sokudo hissed in exasperation.
"Oh, the bad luck is just starting, Sokudo-san! For the continuation of your bad luck I shall now place Trickster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer in my other Pendulum Zone. With that I complete my Pendulum Scales!" Kiyoshi announced, a hybrid of a dragon and fox arising in a second light column, its yellow mix of fur and scales being covered on the upper part of its body by the magenta haori it wore. It furthermore wielded a set of twin daggers on a belt, its hand-carried weapon being a sword. Once it reached its target height and a yellow nine appeared underneath it, the surroundings changed as an ominous pendulum appeared suspended in the sky, lightly swinging back and forth.
Trickster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Pendulum Scale 9
"There it is! He has the setup!" Noctis yelled from the sidelines, fascinated by the most recent developments.
"But both of his scales are equal in value. He cannot Pendulum Summon anything as things are," Ryoken retorted.
"That may be, but I can now use the Pendulum Effect of my Trickster Pendulum, applying a lingering effect for the rest of this turn. This effect will allow me to bring out a "Draco" Pendulum-Monster from my deck as soon as a Trickster Pendulum gets Pendulum Summoned. Following that I use the effect of Infector Pendulum. By destroying all Pendulum-Monsters in the Pendulum Zones, I draw that many cards. I destroy both Infector and Trickster and draw two cards!" Kiyoshi yelled as he exchanged his Pendulum Scales for resources.
"So that was your plan!" Sokudo realized, gritting his teeth.
"Indeed. And now that Trickster was destroyed by a card effect, its Monster Effect triggers. Since it was destroyed, I get to add a "Draco" Pendulum-Monster from my deck to the hand. I search for Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer. Then I activate the spell Dracosurrection. Through it I can add two face-up "Draco" Pendulum-Monsters from my Extra Deck back to my hand, as long as they carry different names. I retrieve Luster Pendulum and Infector Pendulum," Kiyoshi said, taking the two monsters back to his hand.
"Next up I will set the Pendulum Scales with Scale 0 Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer and Scale 5 Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer!" Kiyoshi then proclaimed, a pair of dragonic figures arising in his columns again. While the latter was a knight-like humanoid dragon clad in white armor and what appeared to be a dragonic mask, carrying a sword and a shield and having a set of green wings and blonde hair, the former was much more colorful, much like Trickster Pendulum being a hybrid between mammal and dragon. It wore the same attire as Trickster as well, only its species and colors differed, as this monster was a raccoon-dragon hybrid with brown-yellow fur and scales of the same color scheme. Unlike Trickster it merely had one combat weapon rather than three, and it wielded its sword in the left hand, opposite to Trickster. Much like all previous "Draco"-Monsters it was standing upright though, and was bipedal. As yellow numbers of 0 and 5 respectively manifested underneath Jokester and Luster, the pendulum from before reappeared.
Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Pendulum Scale 0
Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Pendulum Scale 5
"There it is! Now he can Pendulum Summon monsters between level one and four!" Atsuko exclaimed.
"That is true. However, I will not do that quite yet. Because I will first use the Pendulum Effect of Jokester Pendulum, applying a lingering effect for the rest of this turn that is somewhat reminiscent of Trickster Pendulum's. However, this one triggers upon the effect destruction of a Jokester Pendulum that happens this turn, not upon its Pendulum Summon like with Trickster. Speaking of which, let me quickly fulfill the trigger for Jokester's effect by using the effect of Luster Pendulum, destroying the monster in my other scale in order to add another copy of that monster to my hand. I destroy Jokester and add another Jokester from my deck to my hand. This triggers the previously used Pendulum Effect of Jokester, summoning itself from my Pendulum Zone upon destruction and bringing along a friend from my Extra Deck. I bring out Jokester and Trickster!" her father told, the pair of hybrid dragons appearing before him.
Trickster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 9/ ATK 1750/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect
.&.
Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 0/ ATK 1650/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum
"As a final part of Jokester's effect I also get to draw a card. Then I normal summon the Infector Pendulum that I added back to my hand earlier," Kiyoshi went on as the fiendish dragon joined his formation of monsters.
Infector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Dark/ Level 4/ Scale 9/ ATK 1750/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum
Kiyoshi smirked. "And now appear, our future circuit that draws out the power of mankind! Arrowheads confirmed! The summoning conditions are three Pendulum-Monsters, including a Dracoslayer! I will set all three of my monsters – Trickster, Jokester and Infector Pendulum – into the Link Markers! Circuit combine!" he shouted as the three monsters shot into the circuit that appeared above him, filling three of its Link Markers.
"A Link Summon, huh? Looks like Kiyoshi wants to get some unlocked zones first," Genryu contemplated as he observed his friend's move.
"The different dimensional power aligns with the dragonic curse of Dragon Alchemy, and brings out new potential from within! Combine your virtuous brilliance with the dark gloom of the abyss and arise as an even mightier entity! Link Summon! Appear, Link 3, Diffster Demon, the Dimensional Dracoslayer!" Dr. Kogami shouted, a new monster manifesting before him. It appeared to be a new form of Luster Pendulum, the knight-like bipedal dragon having merged with a demonic entity. Its color scheme, in addition to the still existing original one, had changed to also include black, yellow and purple bits, and the monster was much more massive, an enormous bluish-purple crystal having merged with its wings and back. It had furthermore acquired a menacing reddish glow in its green eyes, even though its heroic aura still remained intact.
Diffster Demon, the Dimensional Dracoslayer
Dark/ Link 3/ ATK 2750/ Dragon/ Link/ Effect (↙↓↘)
"So his deck can do more than Pendulum Summon?" Mitsuko gasped.
"Knowing Kiyoshi, he has much more in store for us than just that," Kenshi retorted to his potential future girlfriend.
"Now I will replace my previously destroyed Jokester Pendulum with another copy of it, rebuilding my Pendulum Scales!" Kiyoshi announced, doing just as he had declared.
Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Pendulum Scale 0
"And then, with that in place, I will Pendulum Summon using my Scale 0 Jokester and my Scale 5 Luster! With these two I am capable of summoning monsters with Levels 1 through 4!" Kiyoshi shouted, the pendulum above him rapidly accelerating its movements.
"It's there! Oh my god, this is crazy! The first time I ever see someone Pendulum Summon!" Atsuko squealed, clearly amazed by her father's dueling.
"Fascinating," Betsune remarked, her expression not being static like usually, which for her standards about equaled the reaction of her sister in emotional magnitude.
"A sight to behold for sure," Ryoken murmured, intrigued by the foreign method as well.
"Swinging between light and darkness, the universe creates an infinite amount of chances and opportunities for its residents! I shall now take one such opportunity, and unfold its full potential to bring out the great power that leads me to victory! Pendulum Summon! Appear once more, my monsters! From my Extra Deck, Trickster, Jokester and Infector Pendulum! And from my hand, Vector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord!" Kiyoshi chanted as the pendulum in the sky swung increasingly intensely, opening a portal from which four colorful beams emerged, three of his monsters returning to the zones his Link Monster provided, while the final one was summoned to a different zone. Vector Pendulum was a white haired humanoid dragon with wings as black as the night and a grin of deviousness plastered on its face. It wielded a staff with a fiendish skull on its upper part, said skull sprouting five horns from its top. Furthermore the cranium had two bigger horns sprouting to the sides. On top of the staff was a massive violet gem, presumably to emphasize on the prestige of the scepter's owner. Sokudo now also noticed the constant hostile looks between the two factions of Kiyoshi's deck, the Dracoverlords glaring at the Dracoslayers and vice versa.
Trickster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 9/ ATK 1750/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect
.&.
Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 0/ ATK 1650/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum
.&.
Infector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Dark/ Level 4/ Scale 9/ ATK 1750/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum
.&.
Vector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Dark/ Level 4/ Scale 3/ ATK 1850/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum
"He summoned four monsters at once!" Kyoko stuttered, visibly shaken.
"That is the ability of Pendulum Summoning, I suppose." Aso nodded, looking at his superior.
"No wonder why the boss was interested in it! That is a fascinating power indeed!" Genome remarked with one of his trademark chuckles.
"I have seen a few Pendulum Summons so far, but a Master Rule 4 Pendulum Summon definitely was not a common thing among them," Kenshi commented, recalling his past encounters with the summoning method.
"I then resolve the effect of Trickster Pendulum that was applied earlier. Since a monster of its name was Pendulum Summoned, I can bring out a friend from the deck with negated effects and with 0 ATK! Come, Rejector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord!" Kiyoshi said, a new monster appearing. Much like Infector Pendulum it was a very dark bipedal dragon, but unlike its comrade its head was not visible, since it was hidden underneath a silver helmet, only revealing a pair of menacing purple eyes. Its attire also spoke volumes about its occupation: This wasn't a researcher like Infector. It was a military trainer, for what seemed to be more feral beasts than men, judging from the whip it carried on its black belt. It drew a purple-bladed sword from its sheath as it appeared.
Rejector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Dark/ Level 4/ Scale 0/ ATK 1650 → 0/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect
"However, since Diffster Demon doesn't allow my Dracos to have their effects negated by their peers, my Rejector will retain its effects!" Kiyoshi announced. "Continuing with my turn, I now banish Dracosurrection from my graveyard to make use of its effect. I destroy or tribute a face-up "Draco"-Monster I control to special summon one of its peers from face-up off my Extra Deck or from my Pendulum Zones. I choose to destroy Infector Pendulum to bring out the Tuner Monster Luster Pendulum from my Pendulum Zone!" he declared, the basic form of Diffster Demon leaving the column of light towards the field while Injector detonated.
Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 5/ ATK 1850/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect
"What?! That monster is a Tuner?!" Sokudo burst out.
"It is. Just like Rejector Pendulum by the way," Kiyoshi confirmed with a nod.
'He has two Tuners?! Don't tell me the old man is gonna...!' Sokudo debated with himself before shaking his head. 'No, it's definitely a bluff. Ryoken has two of them as well, and I have never seen him doing anything special with them. Just having that phrase in their names doesn't mean that he can-,' Sokudo deliberated before his thoughts were interrupted by his opponent's voice.
"I will now tune my Level 4 Trickster Pendulum with my Level 4 Luster Pendulum!" Kiyoshi declared at once, surprising his adversary.
"What?! You can Synchro Summon?!" Sokudo yelled, visibly shocked.
"Well, of course. That's the purpose of Tuner Monsters, is it not?" Kiyoshi retorted as Luster dissolved into a quartet of stars, which in turn transformed into four greenish rings that lined up vertically. Trickster followed suit with the first step, becoming another quartet of star-like orbs that aligned within the rings.
"Born from virtue and flames, the dragonic curse of Dragon Alchemy brings out new potential from within! Ignite your sword to rain down the inferno upon your foes! Synchro Summon! Appear, Level 8, Ignister Prominence, the Blasting Dracoslayer!" Kiyoshi chanted as the line of stars turned into a flash of light, revealing a fiery hybrid form of Luster Pendulum and another external sort of monsters. Luster was now clad in red and silver metal armor, its sword and shield likewise having received technical augmentation. Behind its red and silver dragon mask a pair of green eyes flashed as its blade burst into flames, its blonde hair blowing in the wind.
Ignister Prominence, the Blasting Dracoslayer
Fire/ Level 8/ ATK 2850/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Synchro/ Effect
"He can Synchro Summon as well? Now that is a surprise," Kazuki remarked from the sidelines.
"Using a foreign supplementary method like Pendulum is one thing, but an Extra Deck method like Synchro as well?" Akame added, equally taken off guard.
"Since everyone seems to be impressed by that Synchro Monster so much, let me use its effect! Once per turn Ignister Prominence can bring out a "Dracoslayer"-Monster from my deck in defense position. However, that monster is not qualified as material for a Synchro Summon as a way of compensation. I summon Master Pendulum, the Dracoslayer! Forging of the Dracos!" Kiyoshi announced as Ignister set its sword aflame, swinging it to create a pathway from which a new monster emerged. It appeared to be an evolved version of Luster Pendulum, whose mat colors had become lustrous, contrary to the names of the cards. The beige highlights on its shield, sword and armor had turned golden, its brown horns were now crimson, and its dark green wings had become a yellowish-brown. Combined with the more stylized ornaments on its equipment it now expressed a holier feeling with its appearance, which seemed to be derived from the curse of Dragon Alchemy it had gradually repressed from its body.
Master Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 3/ ATK 1950/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum
"Another monster? Just how many are you going to summon this turn?" Sokudo yelled at his superior.
"Oh, quite a bunch. So why don't we just continue and get it over with? I think a good next step to achieve that would be rebuilding my Pendulum Scales with Lector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord!" Kiyoshi replied, an evolved version of Vector Pendulum appearing in his secondary column of light. Its wings had turned from black to a more purplish tone, and it also wore blackish armor with purple highlights, various yellow spikes and eyeballs on it, also carrying a sword. A yellow five appeared underneath it, and the pendulum from before made its return in the sky.
Lector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Pendulum Scale 5
"And for my next step to finish this duel I'll be overlaying my Level 4 Vector Pendulum and Jokester Pendulum, constructing the Overlay Network!" Kiyoshi continued, his two monsters turning yellow and purple and then ascending skywards as two spiraling rays of light.
"What?! You can do that as well?!" Sokudo stuttered, once more taken aback.
"It's amazing what those scales can fetch you, right?" Kiyoshi retorted with a smile before raising his arm and beginning to chant, the two rays crashing down into a galaxy-like structure on the floor.
"Carrying virtue upon the winds, the dragonic curse of Dragon Alchemy brings out new potential from within! Mount the fabled beast and soar high up in the sky! Xyz Summon! Appear, Rank 4, Majester Paladin, the Ascending Dracoslayer!" he shouted as a monster consisting of Luster Pendulum and a colorful flying kirin with wings appeared, the former riding on the latter. The horn of the kirin appeared to be a small tornado, indicating its affinity to the element of wind. The dragon knight and its mount made a collective battle cry as they settled at the very right of Kiyoshi's field, still suspended in the air.
Majester Paladin, the Ascending Dracoslayer
Wind/ Rank 4/ ATK 1850/ DEF 2000/ Dragon/ Xyz/ Effect (Overlay Units: 2)
"Synchro and Xyz? Kiyoshi is not holding back against Sokudo, it seems," Hakashi stated.
"Serves that wannabe deserter right!" his father Genryu replied with an angry glance at Sokudo.
"Next up I will sacrifice Master Pendulum and Rejector Pendulum. By tributing a Dracoslayer and a Dracoverlord I can special summon this monster from my hand! Come, Lector Perfection, the True Dracoverlord!" Kiyoshi went on as a new creature appeared. It seemed to be an evolution of Lector Pendulum, as the dark wings indicated. The entity retained the same purple tones from one of its previous evolution stages, but there was also a secondary pair of wings beneath them, those seeming to belong to Master Pendulum, though they were darkened and corrupted beyond repair. The monster was clad in a black suit of armor similar to that of Master Pendulum, only darker as for instance all white parts on Master Pendulum were black on Lector Pendulum and thus also on Lector Perfection. It appeared that Lector Perfection had at last defeated its longtime nemesis, as it wore the mask of Master Pendulum, painted black and purple to fit the color scheme of its new owner. It swung its weapon, a combination of Lector's staff and Master's sword with the latter being affixed to the top of the former, and let out an ungodly howl, thick purple lines pulsating on its armor like veins, indicating a fully progressed state of Dragon Alchemy-based body augmentation.
Lector Perfection, the True Dracoverlord
Dark/ Level 8/ ATK 2950/ DEF 2950/ Dragon/ Effect
"A high-level special summon-only monster from the hand as well? Where do the capabilities of that deck end?" Ryoken whispered to himself, getting progressively concerned. With a deck this powerful his father could – no, – would officially replace him as the top duelist among the Hanoi. Not that it was uncalled for, he was their leader after all, but Ryoken still wasn't particularly pleased with the thought of losing his former prestige.
"When Lector Perfection is summoned, I get to add the spell Draco Alchemy from the deck to my hand," Kiyoshi said, revealing a spell that depicted a still human Vector Pendulum injecting himself with a strange serum that turned its humanoid body into a dragonic one, apparently inflicting excruciating pain upon himself as he did so, judging from the expression of Vector that was distorted in agony.
"Next up I will activate the effect of Majester Paladin. I detach an Xyz Material in order to summon a face-up Dracoslayer from my Extra Deck, that monster then being incapable of being used as Xyz Material. Appear again, Rejector Pendulum! Forging of the Dracos!" he cried out as Majester's sword stirred up a tempest from which the former servant of his Lector Perfection made a return.
Majester Paladin, the Ascending Dracoslayer
Xyz Materials: 2 → 1
Rejector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Dark/ Level 4/ Scale 0/ ATK 1650/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect
"Then I will activate Draco Alchemy. By either discarding one card or destroying or tributing a "Draco"-Pendulum-Monster in my hand or on my field, I get to add either two "Draco"-Monsters or two "Draco"-Spells or Traps from my deck to the hand. I will destroy this copy of Master Pendulum in my hand to fetch myself the spells Dracovocation and Servants of the True Draco Monarch," Kiyoshi told as he exchanged two of his hand cards. "Now the effect of Rejector Pendulum that I control activates, since a "Draco"-Monster Card was destroyed. I get to revive one of them, that being Master Pendulum of course. It would negate its effects, but as Master Pendulum is a Normal Monster, it doesn't matter too much anyway, now does it? Especially with Diffster Demon counteracting effect negation of my Dracos by themselves," Kiyoshi asked rhetorically as his monster resurfaced.
Master Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 3/ ATK 1950/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum
"Following that I activate the Ritual Spell that I just added to my hand, Dracovocation. I tribute Rejector and Master whose Levels must equal or exceed the Level of the "Draco" Ritual Monster I plan on summoning from either my hand or deck. I choose to summon from my deck!" Kiyoshi declared, revealing a spell that showed both Luster and Lector Pendulum, each of them in a separate place as the cut in the middle of the artwork expressed. Both of them were calling out to and on the verge of merging with an entity before them, in Luster's case a giant airship with a yellow core, while Lector was about to unify himself with a purplish dragonic monstrosity from whose chest an antenna with a violet gem at its top protruded, resembling that of Vector's staff in appearance.
"A Ritual Summon?! From the deck?!" Sokudo repeated in disbelief.
"Indeed. Now behold as my monsters offer up themselves to form a new one!" Kiyoshi retorted, an arcane circle appearing on the ground at his words. His monsters turned into purple flames that aligned on the circle, forming a symmetric formation. The Hanoi Leader started his chant at that.
"Wretched curse of Dragon Alchemy, grow towards your limitations and corrupt your bearers beyond repair! The mad emperor is driven to insanity as he combines his flesh with the sinful beast! Now arise as one and unfold your terror! Ritual Summon! Appear, Level 8, Amorphactor Pain, the Imagination Dracoverlord!" Kiyoshi shouted, a mix of the dragon monstrosity depicted on Dracovocation and Lector Pendulum breaking loose from the arcane circle with an eardrum-shattering screech. Lector's upper body was merged to the back of the now mostly silver dragonic beast that appeared to be melting, his facial expression more insane than ever. Sokudo noticed that Lector Perfection had turned his head towards the newcomer, and he could swear that underneath the mask it had stolen from Master Pendulum, a knowing smirk was forming on the face of the True Dracoverlord.
Amorphactor Pain, the Imagination Dracoverlord
Earth/ Level 8/ ATK 2950/ DEF 2500/ Dragon/ Ritual/ Effect
"Pendulum, Link, Synchro, Xyz and Ritual. Talk about overkill," Noctis snorted, though he carried the Anti Ignis equivalent of a grin of sadistic anticipation on his face.
"You're definitely doing a good job to surprise me so far, old man! But that doesn't mean that I will lose this duel in the slightest!" Sokudo declared, conquering his fears and regaining some of his earlier composure.
"We'll see about that, Sokudo-san! You should know that Amorphactor negates the effects of all Fusion, Synchro and Xyz Monsters on the field, but due to my Diffster Demon my "Draco"-Monsters will remain unaffected. So just in case that you discovered yourself some new summoning methods as well, I am prepared," Kiyoshi retorted.
"He also stuns other methods? Looks like I'd definitely lose to Kiyoshi then," Kenshi whispered to himself.
"Next I'll tribute my Lector Perfection. That enables me to Pendulum Summon for a second time this turn, however I can only Pendulum Summon "Draco" Pendulum-Monsters this way! I furthermore get to draw a card when Lector leaves the field," Kiyoshi announced, reinforcing his hand.
"Two Pendulum Summons in a single turn?!" Sokudo repeated in disbelief before frowning. "However, you only have one empty zone you can summon to, due to your Ignister and Majester consuming the other two zones that your Diffster provides! That means that you will only be able to Pendulum Summon a single monster!" Sokudo declared victoriously, pointing at his superior as he smirked in triumph.
Dr. Kogami chuckled. "Well, in that you unfortunately stand correct, … for now, that is," he retorted, responding with a smirk of his own.
"Huh? How that?" his subordinate asked in bewilderment.
"Well, my Diffster Demon has a handy little effect! Once per turn I can move it to an Extra Monster Zone and switch locations of monsters if necessary, provided that I don't have two monsters in the Extra Monster Zone after using that effect, unless I already did so before activating it. As such I move my Diffster Demon to the left Extra Monster Zone. Dimension Shift!" Kiyoshi commanded, his monster opening a portal behind it and vanishing before reappearing a few meters to the left from another portal shortly afterwards.
"What?! That means you can...?!" Sokudo stuttered.
"Exactly! I can summon a variety of different monsters rather than just one like before! So here we go! I Pendulum Summon using my Scale 0 Jokester and my Scale 5 Lector! With these two I am capable of summoning monsters with Levels 1 through 4! Come out, O great power that leads me to victory! Pendulum Summon! Appear once more, my monsters! From my Extra Deck, Master and Vector Pendulum!" Kiyoshi declared as a pair of contrasting "Draco"-Normal Monsters made its return.
Master Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 3/ ATK 1950/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum
.&.
Vector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Dark/ Level 4/ Scale 3/ ATK 1850/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum
"Two Pendulum Summons in one turn? Now that is a rare occurrence," Helena remarked.
"It's about to get even rarer! For the finishing touches of my turn I will now conclude my series of summonings with the final missing piece!" Kiyoshi declared confidently.
"What?!" Sokudo's jaw dropped. "Don't tell me that...!" he stammered, his eyes wide open in disbelief.
"Exactly! I will take Master and Vector Pendulum and contact fuse them together!" the Hanoi Leader announced with a victorious smirk.
"Fusion as well?!" Hakashi gasped, breaking his silence at long last.
"And Contact Fusion at that! It took the two of us weeks to fully grasp that technique and factor in this variation of the method when we arduously produced cards that included it for our decks, and he receives, learns and executes it within mere minutes?!" Kenshi added in shock.
"Merging shimmering virtue with shining metal, the dragonic curse of Dragon Alchemy brings out new potential from within! Equip yourself with impenetrable armor and charge ahead towards victory! Fusion Summon! Appear, Level 8, Dinoster Power, the Mighty Dracoslayer!" Kiyoshi chanted as his two monsters swirled into a radiant whirlpool, fusing into yet another empowered form of Luster Pendulum, this time being clad in heavy futuristic armor of blue color, its eyes covered by a helmet with orange eye windows. Heavy supportive machinery was attached to its back, its sword now only having a narrow cutting edge, but one that was made from some sort of laser energy with the rest of the sword arm looking like a machine as well. Its shield had been modernized in a similar fashion, making for a colossal hybrid of dragon and machine that looked virtually indestructible.
Dinoster Power, the Mighty Dracoslayer
Water/ Level 8/ ATK 2000/ DEF 2950/ Dragon/ Fusion/ Effect
"This can't be! Ritual, Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, Pendulum, Link, he has done all of them! He can literally perform all six of the ultimate summoning methods!" Atsuko gasped, falling back to the railing of the terrace in disbelief.
"I have seen people perform two different methods. Sometimes even three, and very rarely four. I remember that this network idol Cherubini managed to use five. But never in my life have I seen someone performing all six of them!" Kenshi told, sharing her emotion.
"Looks like that kid's scales gave you a heck of a deck, Kiyoshi! Not bad, old friend, not bad in the slightest!" Genryu chuckled in amusement as he praised his long-term friend.
"Well, thanks Genryu! Glad that everyone seems to enjoy this duel so far! A bit of entertainment ought to be good for the group morale of the organization I guess. To make the final few touches for this turn I will activate the effect of Dinoster Power," Kiyoshi spoke up.
"Let me guess, you get to special summon a Dracoslayer from a certain place, and that monster cannot be used as Fusion Material?!" Sokudo snapped at him in exasperation of his turn length.
Kiyoshi rose a finger in confirmation. "Exactly! I get to bring one from my hand or graveyard! Since Pendulum-Monsters still go to the latter when they're sent to the graveyard from a different place than the field, my Jokester Pendulum that I detached for Majester's effect went there. So now I will revive it! Forging of the Dracos!" he proclaimed, resummoning his monster as Dinoster Power opened a watery portal with its blade from which Jokester reappeared.
Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 0/ ATK 1650/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum
"He's done it. Now he controls one monster for all six of the ultimate summoning methods on his field," Betsune stated, silently but genuinely impressed by her father's achievements.
"Additionally, Dinoster Power makes all Pendulum-Monsters on my field indestructible, regardless of whether in the Monster or Pendulum Zone," Kiyoshi said before pointing to his Link-Monster. "Next up I will use the effect of Diffster Demon, receiving 500 LP for each monster card type the monsters I control have, with the exception of Normal and ordinary Effect-Monsters. I have a Ritual-, Fusion-, Synchro-, Xyz-, Pendulum- and Link-Monster. Six methods make for 3000 LP. Abyssal Surge!" Kiyoshi announced as his life force leapt upwards.
KOGAMI KIYOSHI: LP 8000 → 11000
"He also climbed into the five decimal area regarding his lifepoints. Not bad," Noctis remarked.
"Finally I activate the continuous spell Terminal World. My Majester Pendulum's effect activates in the End Phase of its summoning turn, adding me any Pendulum-Monster from my deck to my hand! I choose Mythster Destiny, the Fantastical Dracoslayer. With that I end my turn! Your turn, Sokudo-san!" Kiyoshi said, bowing his head to thank his subordinate for his patience.
"Ah, finally!" Sokudo sighed in relief, closing his eyes for a moment. "After all this waiting I get to beat the living hell out of you at last!" he said, cracking his knuckles.
"If you say so, then go ahead," Kiyoshi responded with a polite and genuine smile on his face.
Sokudo's facial muscles cramped, distorting in outrage at the response of his opponent. He had expected fear, maybe even mockery, but not a goddamn smile! His eyebrows furrowed and he put on a scowl, giving Kiyoshi a sinister glare as Sokudo moved his hand to his deck. "Very well. My turn then. Prepare yourself, old man!" he hissed dangerously quietly with metaphorical venom dripping from his mouth, drawing his card.
"Why so upset, Sokudo-san? Don't you know that making faces like that can leave you stuck with that expression forever? Besides, I haven't even told you about my effect yet, so I don't get why you're already so mad," Kiyoshi spoke up in response, cocking his head.
"Effect? What effect?" Sokudo asked, ears practically shooting up in surprise.
"Well, that of Amorphactor Pain, the Imagination Dracoverlord of course! When summoned, my opponent's next Main Phase 1 is skipped! Sinful Ejection!" he declared, his monster letting loose a screech that instantaneously ended the phase that Sokudo was about to enter via game mechanics.
"You damn coward! You know just how bad I want to get back at you and attack you, yet you pull a maneuver like this! I despise you, Dr. Kogami Kiyoshi!" Sokudo shrieked, his exasperation and anger reaching new heights.
"An effect that prevents the Main Phase 1?! Wait, isn't that an entire turn skip in a Speed Duel, basically?" Emerald spoke up, voicing her discovery.
"Hey, you are right, Emerald! That is indeed a turn skip in a Speed Duel basically! What a crazy card!" Atsuko chimed in, fascinated.
"Damn you! Then I'll go to my Main Phase 2 and summon some monsters at least!" Sokudo snapped. He then proceeded to spam the Main Phase 2 button on his disk, without any success, though. "What the hell?! Why won't it-?!" he cursed before he was interrupted.
"Let you perform Main Phase 2? Well, by the effect of Terminal World neither of us has a Main Phase 2. Thus, you won't get to summon any monsters this turn at all. You may have your Battle Phase, though. So Sokudo-san, do you wish to battle with no monsters to your name?" Kiyoshi asked him.
Sokudo's eyes twitched, anger turning to wrath, wrath turning to total outrage and total outrage turning to whatever was beyond that. Kiyoshi's absolutely neutral impression and the seriousness in his question furthermore added insult to injury and were worse than any grin of mockery that he could have possibly put on.
"SCREW YOU! TURN END!" Sokudo bellowed in frustration, passing his turn.
"Alright then! It's my turn again! I draw!" Kiyoshi declared, beginning his second turn. Meanwhile the spectators were still in disbelief, the first of them to speak up being Kyoko.
"He just... skipped Sokudo's turn. The entire Main Phases... Just like that...," she stammered, aghast.
"The duel was already a one-man show, but this...," Aso added, sharing her sentiment.
"Painfully lopsided indeed. As to be expected of Kiyoshi-sama," Spectre briefly spoke up.
"I, without a shadow of a doubt, can say that I've never seen a duel more one-sided than this one," Betsune summarized the collective thoughts among the Knights of Hanoi, the others quietly humming in agreement after Kiyoshi's middle child had spoken.
"Well, fair enough. And sorry for that, Sokudo-san, I just wanted to assure that you won't leave our lovely organization quite yet. I'll make sure to finish this duel quickly, or more precisely on this very turn! But for now I'll further stock up my lifepoints with the effect of Diffster! Abyssal Surge!" Kiyoshi spoke up, reusing the effect of his Link-Monster.
KOGAMI KIYOSHI: LP 11000 → 14000
"Why so defensive, old man? You already have your formation of monsters, so go right ahead and finish this duel! Or are you too afraid, perhaps?" Sokudo mocked, still exasperated about the turn skip that he suffered.
"Oh, I won't be falling for that bait of yours, Sokudo-san. Even without any monsters on the field your deck is still a defense to be reckoned with. Knowing you, there could be for say a Battle Fader in your hand right as we speak. As such I will take care of that issue. But everything in due time. Moving on, I activate the spell Draco Exchange. By destroying or tributing a "Draco"-Monster Card on my field I get to add one from my deck or face-up from my Extra Deck to my hand in return. I destroy Lector Pendulum in my Pendulum Zone in order to add Trickster Pendulum from my Extra Deck to my hand. I then place it in my Pendulum Zone, rebuilding my Pendulum Scales!" Kiyoshi told, his fiendish dragon vanishing from the right pendulum column in favor of a brighter one.
Trickster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Pendulum Scale 9
"I will continue my turn by shuffling Amorphactor Pain back into my deck using the effect of Dracovocation in my graveyard! I add it back to my hand and am also able to revive a "Draco"-Pendulum-Monster from my graveyard or face-up from my Extra Deck. I special summon Luster Pendulum from my Extra Deck. Furthermore I cannot summon Ritual Monsters with the same name as the one I shuffled back into my deck with this effect until the end of this turn, so unfortunately I won't be able to skip another of your turns in succession, Sokudo-san!" Kiyoshi announced as he recurred his Ritual Spell and revived Luster Pendulum at the cost of his Amorphactor Pain.
Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 5/ ATK 1850/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect
"Then I activate Dracovocation. I tribute Luster and Jokester Pendulum in order to Ritual Summon another "Draco"-Ritual-Monster from my hand or deck! I once again choose the deck!" he proclaimed as his monsters became an octet of blue flames, lining up on another arcane circle that formed on the ground.
"Purifying the branches of the tree of death with virtue, the dragonic curse of Dragon Alchemy brings out new potential from within! Become metal and dominate the airspace as a unified entity that will shake the earth! Ritual Summon! Appear, Level 8, Qlipster Dominance, the Quaking Dracoslayer!" Kiyoshi yelled as a hybrid between Luster Pendulum and the entity it was on the verge of merging with within the artwork of Dracovocation appeared, soaring towards the sky. A majority of the airship had merged with Luster's back, the yellow core of the aircraft now illuminating Luster's head, giving it an artificial halo. The green insect leg-like protrusions of the airship on the other hand had been moved and turned into a set of vicious claws on Luster's knuckles, amplifying its punching power considerably. Lastly the aircraft had lost its lowermost part, the blue gem adorning it and the surrounding white and golden metal below the gemstone having become an additional fortification on Luster's silver chestplate. A singular astray energy beam broke loose from the yellow energy core behind Luster's head, Sokudo jumping back as it detonated inches before his feet.
Qlipster Dominance, the Quaking Dracoslayer
Earth/ Level 8/ ATK 2950/ DEF 2000/ Dragon/ Ritual/ Effect
"Another Ritual-Monster? I guess he has now brought out a Dracoslayer of each summoning method. But why did he even bother to exchange his monsters?" Atsuko wondered.
"To have Amorphactor Pain in my deck for future turns, just in case. And also because I need it for an incoming play on this turn," her father responded. "But before doing that I need to bring out one more monster. The effect of Ignister Prominence! I summon a Dracoslayer from the deck in defense position. Come, Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer! Forging of the Dracos!" he declared as his monster opened another fiery gateway to bring forth a monster.
Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 5/ ATK 1850/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect
Kiyoshi's eyes narrowed. "And now it's time! Appear, our future circuit that draws out the power of mankind! Arrowheads confirmed! The summoning conditions are three or more "Dracoslayer"-Monsters! I will set all the different forms of my Luster Pendulum that I control into the Link Markers! Unite, Luster Pendulum, Ignister Prominence, Majester Paladin, Dinoster Power, Diffster Demon, Qlipster Dominance! Circuit combine!" he shouted as the sextet of monsters flocked skywards towards the circuit.
"WHAT?! A LINK SUMMON WITH SIX MATERIALS?!" Sokudo screamed, shock spreading across his face.
"Wait, does that mean Link-6?! No, his Diffster Demon is Link-3, could it be... LINK-8?!" Atsuko gasped, clutching her head in disbelief.
Kiyoshi smirked. "Not quite, Atsuko. You see, for this type of Link Summon I may simply exceed the Link Rating necessary. My monsters would functionally only qualify for either a Link-6 or Link-8 Monster as you said, but through the effect of my monster, that restriction is bypassed. It's known as Overconnect Link Summoning, as far as I'm aware," he explained.
"Exceeding the Link Rating necessary?! No way that this is a thing!" Sokudo protested in disbelief.
"Well, then let me prove you wrong!" Kiyoshi retorted, the six monsters settling within the circuit. Sokudo gasped, observing how only five of the arrowheads lit up in red color, despite the material number of six. The circuit overloaded and released a burst of energy into all cardinal directions, Kiyoshi beginning his chant at that.
"A gathering of ancient essence! A culmination of draconic might! Grow and radiate, eclipse and ascend! Lifelong dreams cluster into an insurmountable power that shakes the heavens and evaporates the seas! Inject yourself with divinity and arise as the very greatest in the world!" the Hanoi Leader proclaimed, a spectral version of Luster Pendulum – no, an evolved state of it, one that was clad in golden armor – appearing before him which was gradually raising its arm. Sokudo noted that it carried a syringe containing a very much surreal looking fluid. Then, slowly but surely, the man-turned-dragon lifted it to its chest, injecting the content of the syringe. At once its eyes lit up in a supernatural radiance, the same light enveloping its body, which started to rapidly grow. Sokudo's head tilted upwards, on and on, but the creature never ceased to increase in size. Moreover he noticed a strange glow coming from the eyes of his superior, mirroring the one that was coming from the eyes of the ever-growing Luster Pendulum – or rather its evolved form Master Peace. As Kiyoshi spoke on he furthermore noted a change in the voice of the older man, similarly surreal as the transforming dragon before him.
"My light is eternal, my light is the truth! Now I have achieved heaven! Now I am eternal peace! Now I am become God, the supervisor of worlds! Behold the glory that is my being and falter from thy lack of significance in the presence of thy lord! Thou art the needy, I am thy savior! May this brilliance shine upon thee, so that thy suffering doth end at last! OVERCONNECT LINK SUMMON! APPEAR, LINK 5, MASTER PAX, THE TRUE DRACOSLAYING MONARCH SUPREME!" Kiyoshi chanted as the evolved stage of Luster Pendulum finished its transformation. It now towered over them, no, utterly dwarfed them with a size that was out of this world, Sokudo's first height estimation being about being about three fourths of a mile. He couldn't see much of its upper features though since it was so tall and close, but he had to admit that it wore a fashionable pair of golden greaves decorated with silver ornaments. As if the creature had guessed his thoughts, it suddenly shrank down to a fortieth of its former height, allowing him to have a better look at it.
It remained a bipedal dragon clad in armor, though the latter was now painted in the purest white imaginable, complete with golden flourishes adorning it. The red horns had also turned golden whilst retaining their form, creating a contrast to the still green-turquoise eyes, the humanoid skin tone and blonde hair of the entity. On its white helmet two golden wing ornaments protruded backwards, giving its head armor greater color contrast. Its shoulders were protected by a set of white pauldrons with golden trimmings, their center consisting of three stacked metal plates of red, black and blue color respectively with a golden emblem on top that roughly resembled an ornate triangle in design, only that said triangle contained another, upside-down triangle which was smaller, therefore making it more akin to a hexagram. It wore golden vambraces on its underarms, with one blade-like protrusion jutting to the side on each arm, just shortly before its wrists, appearing to be a part of its body despite being an uncharacteristic black color on one half of each blade, in addition to the white other half. Its thighs were guarded by a layer of silver metal pieces that were partially spiked, as well as halfway colored in the creature's signature white. Further down, on its lower legs were the greaves that Sokudo had already noticed earlier, once more of the dragon's signature white-golden combination. From its back a line of prolonged spikes protruded, interchangeably being either white or blue on the main part of the spikes while their top was universally black. It possessed a long tail, white on the top and bottom and a purplish-black on the sides, with multiple metal tubes piercing through it along its length, each of them made from the finest gold.
The dragon deity soared on a twofold pair of wings, the lower pair mainly golden with silver as the supplementary color, the membranes made from panels of glass, and an the upper one that was angelic and feathery, therefore being fully white. Two armored gloves of the signature mix of white, golden and silver raised both a white shield with the golden six-edged emblem that also was on its pauldrons, and a pole weapon consisting of an ivory staff combined with a sword that was made from two intertwining blades, one golden and one silver, with a curved white cross guard and a handle that linked the staff and blade together, the being unfolding its wings further and settling with its armored feet shortly above the ground, now directing its eyes at Sokudo. Suddenly a sextet of different colors appeared and joined together in the dragon's formerly featureless green eyes, creating an iris within their middle. Black, red, blue, white, yellow and purple combined and formed a light resembling the rainbow spectrum that danced in the center of its now otherwise light blue and golden eyes, invoking an otherworldly feeling within the young Knight of Hanoi.
And then suddenly it dawned him as memories returned with a vengeance: A pair of mystical eyes, expressing a sense of unfathomable power, infinite wisdom and absolute permanence. A white dragonic entity wielding a mix of a staff and sword. And the wings, he remembered those too, even if there were some sets that were currently missing. This was it! This was the mysterious spectral entity he had seen when Kiyoshi had taken his leave! He gasped upon this realization, and with eyes filled with horror he stumbled back until his behinds hit the terrace's railing.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme
Heaven/ Link 5/ ATK 4000/ Tenryuu/ Link/ Effect (←→↙↓↘)
"Link-5?!" Ryoken repeated in disbelief, his eyes widening.
"I'd never guessed that he was already that far! There has never been anyone to ever summon such monster before, according to SOL's archives!" Betsune said, equally shaken, but being able to hide her emotions better.
"What a crazy thing!" Atsuko agreed before eyeing it closer, her expression changing as she noticed something about the monster. "Wait a moment, that thing is just like Heavenmail's dragon! Attribute Heaven, Type Tenryuu! How?!" she yelled, visibly confused.
Her father looked around to her, his strange behavior from earlier having dissipated. "Well, I'd assume it's because I gained this monster through the power of his scales. Though it surprised me too when I first read its stat line on the card," Kiyoshi replied before looking over to his opponent. "Sokudo-san, what is wrong? Why do you look so horrified? Is everything alright?" he inquired in concern.
"Th... tha-that th-thing...!" Sokudo stammered, pointing towards Master Pax while clinging to the terrace's railing for dear life. "That's the apparition I saw next to you when you left! That's what I told you all about! It was only a tenth of its current size back then, but I definitely saw that!" he reported frantically, crawling further away from Kiyoshi's monster.
"You saw Master Pax? Huh, strange. Is that why he was so afraid when I came back?" Kiyoshi addressed the audience.
Genryu nodded. "Just after you left he freaked out. Talked about some spectral dragon next to you," he confirmed to his friend with a nod.
"Well, then that would explain his behavior. He recognized the monster after all when it was summoned, and his descriptions of it fit the appearance of Master Pax. I think he didn't just imagine things, as strange as that sounds," Hakashi, his son added.
"In that case I can get behind Sokudo. If I saw a three meter tall ghost dragon hovering next to my incoming opponent, I'd be shitting my pants too," Kazuki spoke in support of his friend.
"Very strange, most definitely," Kiyoshi hummed, eyes closed in deliberation. "Well, we will deal with that mystery later! For now let's just finish the duel!" he announced before raising his hand, carrying on the with current match. "Master Pax's effect! It inherits the attributes and monster card types of its materials! Draconian Apotheosis!" Kiyoshi proclaimed as his monster's body quaked, specifically the section of its upper back. At once a pair of twofold wings erupted from it, rapidly changing and taking form.
"The first material, Dinoster! It grants Master Pax the attribute of Water and the monster card type of Fusion! Heritage of Bahrastos!" the Hanoi leader told as the wings manifested, forming a lower pair that was blue with relatively thin, batlike membranes, and an upper pair that was white and feathery.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme
Attribute: Heaven → Heaven, Water; Monster Card Type: Link → Link, Fusion
"The second material, Ignister! It grants Master Pax the attribute of Fire and the monster card type of Synchro! Heritage of Agnimazud!" Kiyoshi went on, his dragon spreading a twofold pair of wings comprised of the usual upper feathery white one and the unique red dragonic one that was also augmented with metallic gear.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme
Attribute: Heaven, Water → Heaven, Water, Fire; Monster Card Type: Link, Fusion → Link, Fusion, Synchro
"The third material, Qlipster! It grants Master Pax the attribute of Earth and the monster card type of Ritual! Heritage of Lithosagym!" Kiyoshi announced as another dual-layered pair of wings was created, the upper one following the usual pattern while the lower one was black.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme
Attribute: Heaven, Water, Fire → Heaven, Water, Fire, Earth; Monster Card Type: Link, Fusion, Synchro → Link, Fusion, Synchro, Ritual
"The fourth material, Majester! It grants Master Pax the attribute of Wind and the monster card type of Xyz! Heritage of Mariamne!" Kiyoshi said, the twofold pair of wings this time consisting of two identical angelic feather wing pairs.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme
Attribute: Heaven, Water, Fire, Earth → Heaven, Water, Fire, Earth, Wind; Monster Card Type: Link, Fusion, Synchro, Ritual → Link, Fusion, Synchro, Ritual, Xyz
"The fifth material, Luster! It grants Master Pax the attribute of Light and the monster card type of Pendulum! Heritage of Metaltron and Master Peace!" Kiyoshi went on, the upper wings of the next set remaining white and feathery, with the lower pair being made from golden and green crystals, the membranes spreading black bone rays downwards with the membranes themselves consisting of orange crystals.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme
Attribute: Heaven, Water, Fire, Earth, Wind → Heaven, Water, Fire, Earth, Wind, Light; Monster Card Type: Link, Fusion, Synchro, Ritual, Xyz → Link, Fusion, Synchro, Ritual, Xyz, Pendulum
"And lastly the sixth and final material, Diffster! It grants Master Pax the attribute of Dark and the monster card type of Link, however, it will only gain the former since it's already a Link-Monster! Heritage of the Calamitous Beast!" Kiyoshi finished, his monster spreading a seventh and final double set of wings, the upper one abiding by the established pattern while the lower one was wyvern-like with a purplish-black color. A disc-like halo containing the combined unique wing colors appeared above Master Pax's head, its body emitting bursts of energy upon finishing its ascendancy.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme
Attribute: Heaven, Water, Fire, Earth, Wind, Light → Heaven, Water, Fire, Earth, Wind, Light, Dark
"It has all attributes and monster card types?! Impossible!" Noctis shrieked in disbelief.
"In theory, maybe. In practice, not so much," Kiyoshi retorted before continuing. "Now that Master Pax has reached the summit of its power, let me demonstrate one of those powers to you! My Master Pax has a set of abilities where each of them can be used if Master Pax currently holds a particular combination of attribute and monster card type. For instance this one! When it's Ritual and Earth, I can make you discard a number of random hand cards that is up to the current number of monster card types my Master Pax has, excluding Effect-Monster of course. Then you redraw half as many cards, rounding in your favor if necessary. My Master Pax is six monster card types at the moment, so you have to discard all six of your hand cards and draw three new ones! Lithosagym's Devastation!" he declared, his monster flapping its pair of black wings, causing the earth to rumble, gravitation taking ahold of Sokudo's cards. They were pulled into the abyss and replaced by a set of new cards that was only half as strong in quantity. Following that the twofold set of wings fell off and dissolved, leaving Master Pax with only six pairs of double wings.
"Eh? What just happened to your dragon?" Sokudo asked cocking his head in confusion, being too dazzled to complain about the hand loop he had just experienced.
"Master Pax loses the combination of attribute and monster card type necessary to activate its effect after it is used. Since Lithosagym's Devastation was successful, it no longer is Ritual and Earth and thus also loses one pair of wings," Kiyoshi explained.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme
Attribute: Heaven, Water, Fire, Earth, Wind, Light, Dark → Heaven, Water, Fire, Wind, Light, Dark; Monster Card Type: Link, Fusion, Synchro, Ritual, Xyz, Pendulum → Link, Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, Pendulum
"But I'm not done yet! When you add cards to your hand outside your normal draw, I get to use Master Pax's Xyz-Wind Effect! Your freshly drawn cards can neither activate their effects nor leave your hand for the remainder of the turn! Mariamne's Abstinence!" Kiyoshi went on, the identical pair of wings causing a feather duster that whitened out Sokudo's hand cards, which started blankening as they were rendered unusable.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme
Attribute: Heaven, Water, Fire, Wind, Light, Dark → Heaven, Water, Fire, Light, Dark; Monster Card Type: Link, Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, Pendulum → Link, Fusion, Synchro, Pendulum
"You neutralized my hand as well?!" Sokudo repeated in disbelief.
"Of course. As I said, your hand was likely to contain countermeasures against my attack, and even when reducing it to a half you could still have drawn into new problematic cards. Hence why I combined the Ritual-Earth and Xyz-Wind effect of my Master Pax to take care of that problem," Kiyoshi replied, then extending his arm upwards.
"Following that I Pendulum Summon using my Scale 0 Jokester and my Scale 9 Trickster Pendulum! With these two I am capable of summoning monsters with Levels 1 through 8! Come out, O great power that leads me to victory! Pendulum Summon! Appear once more, my monsters! From my Extra Deck, Luster, Master and Lector Pendulum! And from my hand the creature originating from the boon of the almighty dragon granted to a mere experimental subject, turning it into a heavenly crusader, Mythster Destiny, the Fantastical Dracoslayer!" Kiyoshi proclaimed as the pendulum in the sky opened a gateway to bring forth a trio of already known monsters to the zones Master Pax provided, a fourth monster accompanying them as it arrived in a different zone. It was a bipedal canine with blue fur, wielding a staff with a black jackal head on top, a blade affixed to the lower end of the stick. Similar to the previous monsters it was dragonified, the doglike creature having received a matching set of wings and a tail that combined its natural fur with scales. Its magenta cape swirled in the wind as mythical energies formed and pulsed within its right claw, the monster slowly descending to the ground alongside the three others.
Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 5/ ATK 1850/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect
.&.
Master Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 3/ ATK 1950/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum
.&.
Lector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Dark/ Level 4/ Scale 5/ ATK 1950/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect
.&.
Mythster Destiny, the Fantastical Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 8/ Scale 0/ ATK 2800/ DEF 1050/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect
"And just like that he has five monsters again. Talk about resource regeneration," Emerald stated.
"It's almost as if the method, was it not kept in check by the Link-Monster zone unlocking system, would be broken as hell," Noctis quipped in response to the comment of his fellow Anti Ignis.
Kenshi leaned back to the railing with a melancholic smile on his face. "Ah, Master Rule 3. Crazy times," he sighed, his tone giving no clear indication whether the memories that he recalled were good or bad ones.
"Now appear, our future circuit that draws out the power of mankind! Arrowheads confirmed! The summoning conditions are three Pendulum-Monsters, including a Dracoslayer! I will set Luster, Master and Lector Pendulum into the Link Markers! Circuit combine!" Kiyoshi went on, his three smaller monster flocking upwards. "The creature originating from the boon of the almighty dragon granted to a mechanical peacekeeper, turning it into a heavenly crusader! Link Summon! Appear, Link 3, Mekkster Dawn, the Eclipsing Dracoslayer!" he shouted as another hybrid appeared, composed of a mechanical knight of golden color that had been blessed just like Mythster, adding dragonic features to its body and empowering its silver blade.
Mekkster Dawn, the Eclipsing Dracoslayer
Light/ Link 3/ ATK 2450/ Dragon/ Link/ Effect (↙↓↘)
"I then use its effect to switch positions with Master Pax. Celestial Shift!" Kiyoshi told, his monster going to the right Extra Monster Zone while Master Pax went to the middle of Kiyoshi's Main Monster Zones, in turn unlocking more zones due to its Left Arrow.
"So all of his Link-3 Monsters can do that switch thingy?" Akame said.
"Apparently," Kazuki hummed.
"Moving on I activate the continuous spell Servants of the True Draco Monarch. When activated I may add any "Draco"-Card from my deck to my hand, besides another copy of itself. I add the spell Draco Separation to my hand," the Hanoi leader told, revealing a spell that showed Master Pax in the background with its gaze turned towards the viewer, sitting on a throne in an ivory hall, an enormous black purplish beast chained to the throne with Master Pax apparently keeping the unruly creature in check via proper handling of its leash. In the foreground there was a sextet of dragonic entities, four of them about half as big as the giant beast chained to the throne (which in turn was about two thirds of Master Pax's size) while the other two were much smaller. The four bigger ones were a black, blue, red and white respectively, while one of the smaller ones resembled Master Pax to a degree, the other being a colorful metallic dragon with a mainly golden body. Betsune noticed that all of those six entities had a set of wings that resembled a particular one that Master Pax had grown after being summoned, leading her to deduce that there was a strong connection between Master Pax's power and those six entities. Kneeling alongside those six were six even smaller entities, though the term 'small' was very relative in this case. They included Mythster Destiny and Mekkster Dawn, even if the identity of the other four remained unknown so far.
"Now I utilize the effect of Mekkster Dawn, allowing me to once per turn bring forth a Dracoslayer from the deck in defense position to a zone it points to. However, that monster cannot be used as Link Material. I summon Rejector Pendulum! Forging of the Dracos!" Kiyoshi continued, Mekkster swinging its sword in an arc to create a luminescent pathway, granting another Dracoslayer passage onto the field.
Rejector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Dark/ Level 4/ Scale 0/ ATK 1650/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect
"I then activate the card I got to my hand earlier, Draco Separation. As an activation condition, I have to control a monster summoned from the Extra Deck, Master Pax for instance. Next up I special summon a face-up "Draco"-Pendulum-Monster from my Extra Deck, and if there is a monster with the same card name face-up in my Extra Deck or on my field, I can then shuffle one face-up monster from my Extra Deck into my deck and add a "Draco"-Spell or Trap from my deck to the hand. I choose to revive Rejector Pendulum from my Extra Deck, and then, since I have another Rejector Pendulum on my field, I shuffle Luster Pendulum from my Extra Deck back into my deck to add Draco Alchemy from there to my hand!" Kiyoshi elaborated, summoning a monster while returning another back into his deck, at the exchange of a spell card he received in return.
The card responsible for this depicted an evolved form of Master Pendulum, the Dracoslayer which was momentarily splitting into two equal counterparts, each of them having a spectral harbinger of their future self hovering before them as the two entities burst asunder. One specter was wearing silver armor and had a set of twofold white feathery wings, this one being the same entity that had been in Servants of the True Draco Monarch's artwork. The second spectral omen had the appearance of Master Pax itself. In the middle of the two was a dimensional eruption that tore the realities of the respective entities in two – one with the first counterpart of Master Pendulum's evolved form, and one with the second evolved form destined to become Master Pax.
Rejector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Dark/ Level 4/ Scale 0/ ATK 1650/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect
"Now that this is done I activate Draco Alchemy. I guess you remember how it works, but just in case let me repeat: I either discard one card or destroy or tribute a "Draco"-Pendulum-Monster in my hand or on my field to add either two "Draco"-Monsters or two "Draco"-Spell or Traps from the deck to my hand. I elect to destroy the Rejector Pendulum summoned with Mekkster's effect to add another Jokester and Infector from my deck to my hand. This however triggers the effect of my second Rejector on the field. Since a "Draco"-Monster Card was destroyed by card effect, I can bring back that monster with negated effects. Because Mekkster has the same ability as Diffster, my destroyed and now revived Rejector will retain its effects though, as Mekkster disables the negation of the effects of my Dracos by the effects of Dracos. Return once more, Rejector!" Kiyoshi commanded as his monster arose anew.
Rejector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Dark/ Level 4/ Scale 0/ ATK 1650/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect
"I then normal summon Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer," he simply said, calling another monster to his field.
Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 0/ ATK 1650/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum
"And now at last appear again, our future circuit that draws out the power of mankind! Arrowheads confirmed! The summoning conditions are three Pendulum-Monsters, including a Dracoverlord! I will set the two Rejectors and Jokester Pendulum into the Link Markers! Circuit combine!" Kiyoshi told as his monsters became beams of energy that darted upwards, filling three arrowheads.
"Wretched curse of Dragon Alchemy, grow towards your limitations and corrupt your bearers beyond repair! The mad emperor's influence extends past the boundaries of the fathomable and possesses the king of beasts that runs through the fire prairie! Now arise as one and unfold your terror! Link Summon! Appear, Link 3, Salamactor Heat, the Inferno Dracoverlord!" he cried out as he invoked a tainted creature, made from a lion with fiery mane and the upper body of Lector Pendulum, similarly to Amorphactor Pain being fused with the torso of the being, only that Lector in this case was merged with its chest rather than its back. Dark purplish lines, proof of the corrupting influence of Dragon Alchemy, spread across the body of the blazing lion, turning its once mammalian features more and more dragonic. The predator seemed to be in incredible anguish, while the part holding control over the body – Lector Pendulum – wore his usual insane grin, sadistically enjoying the agony of its host. Sokudo took a step back fearfully as the lion unleashed an unholy roar, one that was filled with the entirety of its boundless suffering and the excruciating pain caused by the parasitic Lector Pendulum living attached to it.
Salamactor Heat, the Inferno Dracoverlord
Fire/ Link 3/ ATK 2350/ Dragon/ Link/ Effect (↑↙↘)
"That monster! Call me paranoid, but despite its dragon typing it just reeks like Cyberse all the way!" Noctis yelled, visibly agitated.
"Agreed!" Emerald hummed. "I feel the presence of Cyberse in it too, though not in the entirety of it. The humanoid upper body of Lector doesn't resonate with me at all, but the lion's body in return does so all the more!" she remarked.
"I share that sentiment. It definitely is a Cyberse, I just don't know which one exactly," Helena agreed as the final present Anti Ignis.
"Cyberse? Interesting," Kiyoshi murmured, the dark aura on the monster growing as he said so. "Anyway, I activate Salamactor's effect. When summoned I can either shuffle one spell or trap from the field into the deck or banish up to three cards from the opposing graveyard. I choose the second effect, decimating your graveyard! Tormented Roar!" Kiyoshi declared, his monster repeating its former cry of agony while going even higher in volume.
"Kuh! You really want to seal off all of my defenses, old man! In that case I chain the effect of my trap to your effect! When I control no monsters I can banish the trap that you sent to the graveyard with your Master Pax, Emergency Interception, from there in order to halve all battle damage I take from direct attacks this turn!" Sokudo yelled in response, his trap going off before Salamactor could banish it.
"As to be expected of you, Sokudo-san! Your defenses are as omnipresent and strong as ever! In that case I will have to add a little more punch to my incoming attacks! I activate the effect of my continuous spell Servants of the True Draco Monarch. Once per turn I can return a set of attribute and monster card type to my Master Pax. I make it a Ritual and an Earth Monster once again! Heritage of Lithosagym!" Kiyoshi praised his subordinate before using his spell, his ace monster regrowing its black pair of wings combined with the white feathery pair that was attached to the former.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme
Attribute: Heaven, Water, Fire, Light, Dark → Heaven, Water, Fire, Light, Dark, Earth; Monster Card Type: Link, Fusion, Synchro, Pendulum → Link, Fusion, Synchro, Pendulum, Ritual
"Furthermore I activate one of Master Pax's basic effects, reviving a "Draco"-Monster from my face-up Extra Deck, but without any ATK until the end of this turn. I bring back Luster Pendulum! Heavenly Forger of the Dracos!" he continued, Master Pax locking its hands to form an orb of light. As it cracked, the old form of Master Pax hatched from it, joining the ranks of Master Pax, Mekkster, Mythster and Salamactor.
Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Light/ Level 4/ Scale 5/ ATK 1850 → 0/ DEF 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect
"Finally the effect of Mythster Destiny will be activated to strengthen all my "Draco"-Monsters by 300 ATK during this turn. Cry of the Beasts!" the Hanoi leader shouted, his monster letting loose an empowering roar that enveloped his monsters with the same blue energy that Mythster wielded.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme: ATK 4000 → 4300
Mekkster Dawn, the Eclipsing Dracoslayer: ATK 2450 → 2750
Mythster Destiny, the Fantastical Dracoslayer: ATK 2800 → 3100
Salamactor Heat, the Inferno Dracoverlord: ATK 2350 → 2650
Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer: ATK 0 → 300
"Battle!" Kiyoshi cried out, pointing forward. "Mekkster Dawn directly attacks! Mechanical Eclipse!" he declared, his monster forming an orb of light and dark in its hands before it fired them as two rays of contrasting color at Sokudo.
"The effect of Emergency Interception halves the damage!" Sokudo yelled in response as the dual assault pushed him back.
HIMIJI SOKUDO: LP 8000 → 6625
"Then I will continue with the attack of my Mythster Destiny! Arcane Flurry!" Kiyoshi went on, the blade at the bottom of Mythster's staff being enveloped with the beast's signature blue magic, Mythster then starting a series of swift but powerful swipes with said blade, driving Sokudo further into the corner.
"Again, battle damage is halved!" Sokudo bellowed, determined to withstand the assault of his superior and retaliate on the following turn.
HIMIJI SOKUDO: LP 6625 → 5075
"Next up Salamactor Heat attacks you! Feral Laceration!" the Hanoi Leader pushed on, Lector Pendulum forcing the fire lion it was attached to into battle, the dragonified claws of the beast shredding a part of Sokudo's shirt, leaving a small but noticeable bloody mark.
HIMIJI SOKUDO: LP 5075 → 3750
'What the hell?! That is not supposed to be part of the usual hologram technology! How in the world...?!' Sokudo thought, horrified by the occurrence. He didn't have much time to contemplate though, since the next attack was already on its way.
"Luster Pendulum directly attacks!" Kiyoshi commanded, the minuscule monster striking Sokudo with its blade. This caused Sokudo to grin at the pathetic strength of the attack, distracting him from his former thoughts.
"Cute, but barely a threat," he remarked in amusement, shrugging off the attack easily.
HIMIJI SOKUDO: LP 3750 → 3600
"Then I will give you a taste of the opposite and attack for the finishing blow with my Master Pax!" Kiyoshi retorted, his monster readying its glorified naginata for the final attack of the duel.
"Finishing blow? Don't be silly, your monster has only 4300 ATK! With the damage-halving effect of Emergency Interception in play you are short on ATK, namely on the exact value of 2900! Given the current situation I easily survive!" Sokudo responded dryly.
"Given the current situation, you name it! However, Master Pax has an effect when being both a Dark and a Link-Monster that enables it to gain 500 ATK during each battle, at the cost of one attribute and monster card type of choice after this effect resolves, with the exceptions of Heaven and Effect-Monster respectively. Ferocity of the Calamitous Beast!" Kiyoshi retorted, the black-purplish set of wings glowing in response to his declaration.
"What?!" Sokudo screamed in disbelief, falling into panic. He seemed to deliberate for a while, and then gradually his smirk returned. "Nice try old man, but Master Pax currently has only five monster card types, namely Link, Ritual, Fusion, Synchro and Pendulum! That means it will only gain 2500 ATK, bringing it to 6800 ATK in total! To defeat me you need at least 7200 ATK though, so I think I'll be sticking around for a while longer!" he declared with a victorious grin on his face.
"I disagree. You forget that Master Pax has a great arsenal of effects, and I'll be chaining one of them in response to the one I activated before! Behold! My Master Pax can once during each of my turns sacrifice one of my monsters it points to in order to restore a set of attribute and monster card type to itself! I will tribute its lesser self, Luster Pendulum in my fourth Main Monster Zone, and in exchange Master Pax will return to be all attributes and monster card types as it regains its Wind and Xyz properties! Its Dragonic Regrowth will restore the Heritage of Mariamne!" Dr. Kogami proclaimed, his ace monster crushing the smaller dragon that offered up itself, letting Master Pax form and regrow a pair of its twofold wings, that being the twin pair made from white feathery ones.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme
Attribute: Heaven, Water, Fire, Light, Dark, Earth → Heaven, Water, Fire, Light, Dark, Earth, Wind; Monster Card Type: Link, Fusion, Synchro, Pendulum, Ritual → Link, Fusion, Synchro, Pendulum, Ritual, Xyz
"You know what that means, right, Sokudo-san?" Kiyoshi addressed his subordinate.
Sokudo gulped, taking a step back in disbelief. "Your Master Pax...!" he stammered, choking on his words as the paralyzing fear of imminent loss took ahold of him.
"Exactly! Now that it has six rather than five monster card types, it will gain 3000 rather than 2500 ATK until the end of this battle! Or in other words, it's over!" Kiyoshi finished, his monster receiving the aforementioned power-up.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme: ATK 4300 → 7300
"Any last words?" Kiyoshi inquired, his monster about to strike for the finishing blow.
Sokudo gulped down the knot in his throat before he spoke up nervously. "Only that I recognize your power, and give up on my plans of leaving the Knights of Hanoi," he said. Not that he had any choice regarding that, he had gambled and he had lost. He inwardly damned Kazuki for being able to succeed with his games of hazard while he just failed miserably, like so many times in his past when he had made the wrong decision, eventually leading him to his current predicament.
"Excellent. It truly pleaseth me when a subordinate realizeth their place and stopeth revolting against their arguably benevolent superior," a voice spoke up at once.
"Er, come again, old man?" Sokudo asked, not expecting such a direct statement from his superior, especially not in medieval English rather than Japanese. What had moved Kiyoshi to confess that his intent towards Sokudo had never been a malignant one? It was a fact that Sokudo had denied with all of his heart, but Dr. Kogami voicing it so openly all of a sudden was something he had not expected, being taken off guard. He looked at his superior, visibly perplexed.
"I didn't say anything, Sokudo-san," Kiyoshi said, reciprocating his subordinate's confusion and cocking his head. What strange thing was going on now? It had not exactly been the first time this day that something inexplicable had happened. A voice from above answered their mutual confusion, though.
"Indeed. The one who said that was I," the titanic dragon towering above Kiyoshi said, shocking the entirety of the gathered Knights of Hanoi.
"Did... that monster just talk?" Atsuko stuttered, eyes wide open in disbelief.
"Oh, most certainly I did. I doe not get why thou art making such a fuss about it though. Well, I suppose tis an appropriate reaction from ye, but I hadde still wished for a less radical one," Master Pax hummed, eyeing them intently while its posture remained calm, contrary to all the present people below it.
"You can speak?!" Sokudo gasped, shaken by the events.
"As thou canst see," Master Pax confirmed, raising its arms. "Ye humans tend to believe in the sole supremacy of your species, when in reality ye aren only a grain of sand in the grand hourglass of time. Tis amusing, really." It chuckled, its laughter making the air rumble.
-"That freaking duel monster is talking!"- Ryoken screamed in a low voice as he had a quiet freak-out, his Anti Ignis chiming in.
"A bit of a rude choice of words from thee and thine Ignis, but I am willing to overlook thy insolence," Master Pax retorted, the couple flinching as they became aware that their words had been heard. The draconic creature then turned its attention back to Sokudo, addressing him next. "As for thou, I wante to show something to thee. Watch closely!" it told him, reaching out with its left arm who wielded the shield.
"What... what are you planning to do to me...?" Sokudo whispered fearfully, his voice subdued.
"Oh, nothing too vile," Master Pax assured him before shouting a sole word. It was simple, yet it carried immeasurable weight as it resounded in the air.
"Logos!" the white dragon proclaimed, a burst of energy erupting from its chest, filling the air of its vast surroundings with an odd pressure. It then moved one of its claws closer to Sokudo, the latter flinching in fright. "Do just one tap," Master Pax said, nudging Sokudo with the numb side of its claw, causing him to recede by one step. "One tap is enough," the dragon continued before shouting another command. "Logos – Reality Resumeth!" it ordered, the pressure in the air diminishing at once.
However, simultaneously, Sokudo was lifted from his feet and sent flying back, crashing into the terrace railing behind him full-force. He groaned in pain as he rested on the ground, the shattered remains of the marble lying around and on top of him in small chunks.
"SOKUDO!" Akame yelled immediately following her boyfriend's impact on the railing, hurrying to his side.
"What the hell?! He was just sent flying to the railing at once! How?!" Noctis screamed in irritation.
"What in the world was that?!" Atsuko chimed in, sharing the emotion of the Anti Ignis.
"Oh no! He probably broke his back!" Kyoko gasped in terror, her medical instincts as a doctor getting the better of her as she ran to check on her comrade.
As the others shared their confusion and shock and began discussing in agitation, Master Pax cleared its throat, causing a course and deep sound that got their attention again.
"Well, that was the effect of my quaint power, Logos. Once initiated, all actions against any object in its effect radius are recorded, though nothing special doth occur at that time yet. However, once Logos is canceled again by mine order, all damage that had been done while Logos was active is inflicted to the respective object thousandfold. I gave thee a little tap, as such thou wast blown away when the thousandfold repetition of my nudge went into effect. Tis beautiful, is it not?" Master Pax asked with a faint smile on its face.
"You can multiply damage?! That's impossible!" Genryu yelled in disbelief, his friend and controller of the currently acting monster looking too perturbed to act himself.
"I fronte thy opinion. As thou shalt see, I maye do just as I said. Now...," Master Pax retorted before looking back to Sokudo, "...what dost thou think would occur were I to do this? Logos!" it asked the beaten subordinate, shouting its command and slashing Sokudo's arm with its weapon, producing a narrow but deep wound on him, Sokudo hissing as the pain reached his brain.
"It... cut him...," Atsuko whispered fearfully at the image of the spilled blood, retreating away from the attacking creature. After a second her eyes widened in horror, realization hitting her. "Oh no! Master Pax used Logos! Meaning that Sokudo will...!" she gasped, looking around to her sister who shared the same expression of horrified awareness.
"Now...," Master Pax spoke up, circling around his victim, "imagine if I were to conclude Logos right now. What would occur in that case? Currently thou only hast a rather minor gash on thy arm, but that could change very drastically in just an instant, am I right?" it addressed Sokudo, whose eyes quickly grew in size at that.
"Are you...?!" the yellow and red haired man asked the dragonic entity towering above him, his purple eyes trembling in fear.
"DON'T!" Akame screamed, her face distorted in dread and terror as she clutched her lover's body with all of her might, tears flowing down her cheeks. However, it was too late, as the maw of the dragon had already started moving.
"Logos – Reality Resumeth!" Master Pax shouted its command, lifting the ominous pressure from the air. And as it ended, Sokudo's body was bisected countless times, exploding into tides of blood that painted Akame's skin and clothes red, the by-standing Kyoko also receiving a share of her colleague's life essence. The young adult stared ahead in disbelief and denial of what happened, her tears intermingling with the only moving thing that remained of her boyfriend, creating a filthy fluid that dripped down her face steadily, her expression still haven't passed the first stage of grief as she looked down at the leftovers of Sokudo, shredded to pieces beyond recognition and tainted crimson.
"It... killed him...," Kiyoshi whispered incredulously, shocked into silence by the doings of his monster.
"He's dead...!" Atsuko stammered, holding onto Betsune with a mimic and posture that couldn't possibly be more disturbed, her otherwise stoic sister sharing her expression. The other Knights showed similar reactions, disbelief on their faces.
"WHY?! WHY DID YOU MAKE YOUR MONSTER DO THAT?! ANSWER ME!" Akame screamed at Kiyoshi, her disbelief having turned into rage as she had reached the second stage of grief in the meantime.
"I... didn't do anything. My monster acted on its own... I swear...," Kiyoshi stuttered, too aghast to put much strength into his words.
Akame's fury turned towards Master Pax now, her gaze practically setting it aflame from the sheer heat of the emotions within her. "YOU! WHY DID YOU HAVE TO DO THIS?! YOU ALREADY HAD HIM BEATEN! WHY DID YOU HAVE TO KILL SOKUDO?! WHY?!" she snapped at the white dragon, grief and anger causing her voice to crack.
"Oh my," Master Pax sighed, frustration audible. "Ye humans haven the terrible habit of believing in irreversibility regarding certain concepts such as the supposed climax of the impermanence that is your being, yet ye aren thinking that more trivial matters such as mistakes can easily ben fixed. I shalle now give thee an important lesson, woman: Everything in this universe, ben it death or error, is generally about equally reversible. Moreover, dost thou keep me for a fool to haven an ability that increaseth the effects done to things, yet haven no remedy in case I were to be affected by Logos myself? The 'death' of the man whom thou fanciest served merely as a demonstration, so quit looking at me so wall-eyed!" Master Pax retorted to the enraged female, raising a pacifying hand.
"What? What do you mean?! Sokudo is dead! There is no point in embellishing the fact that you're a murderer, you bloody creature!" Akame retorted, first confused but then quickly returning to her former attitude.
"Wherefore doth this woman haven to ben like that?" Master Pax sighed to itself as it burrowed its head in one of his palms, before returning to his former posture and continuing. "Listen up, woman. Just like my Logos hath the power of Reality Amplification, it also hath the power of Reality Restoration," it said before shouting a different trio of words. "Logos – Reality Reverteth!"
As the command resounded, Sokudo's body reacted to it, flocking together. Veins reconnected, bones recombined, the blood that had been splattered onto the floor as well as onto Akame and Kyoko returned to their origin, and at the end of it Sokudo laid on the ground, fully normal and with un-shredded clothes, staring ahead with visible confusion.
"Er, am I... alive?" Sokudo asked, looking around to his stupefied comrades, the most baffled one being his girlfriend Akame who still cradled him in her arms. "Didn't I just die?" he went on, continuing to let his gaze wander before he eventually looked up to Master Pax, who had an amused smirk on its face.
"First off, thou art alive. For thy other question, yes, thou didst die indeed. However, I never hadde the intent to destroy thee permanently. I merely wished to show thee thy folly of doubting thy superior in his benevolence, and thy extraordinary foolishness in that regard. While I am indeed a separate entity from him and he hath no full influence on me as he said, I do reflect Doctor Kiyoshi Kogami's will. If he truly had ill intent towards thee, I would not have undone thy death. He would not even have required to duel thee like he offered. Everything required to put thee back into thy place would have been my Logos and its Reality Amplification. Yet he granted the right to win thy independence to thee, so realize this, Sokudo Himiji: Kiyoshi is a benevolent and judicious man, and were it not for these traits of him, thou wouldst now be dead for thine insolence of defying and speaking ill of him. Dost thou understand this?" Master Pax asked Sokudo, the weight of authority in its voice.
Sokudo nodded nervously, beginning to comprehend the intention the dragon had. "I understand. I won't stand up to him again," he assured the dragon.
"That is not what I wished to hear," Master Pax scoffed in disapproval, Sokudo tensing up. "The lesson thou wast supposed to learn was not that of blindly following orders. Every servant should have the right to doubt their leader and to point out their errors if there ben such. However, thy mistake was not that. Thou didst deny the benevolence of thy leader despite being aware of it. Feeding one's mind with paranoia, hatred and pessimism hath never led to peace and unity, but just worsened the predicament of every person involved. For thou to better thyself thou needest to lay down your wrongfully held anger and resentment towards thy leader. Only then thou shalt find tranquility and ben at peace once more," Master Pax said, its initial upset tone quickly changing into a more fatherly one.
"I see. I think that makes … sense?" Sokudo said a few moments later, deep in thought as he contemplated about the dragon's statement. After a while the full weight of Master Pax's words sank in and his eyes widened. "Wait, you are right! I always assumed that he was secretly malevolent towards me! What if that was just my imagination? Is he really...?" Sokudo muttered, falling silent in disbelief.
"Indeed. I cane see into his mind, so ben assured: Every word that hath been spoken and that Kiyoshi Kogami continueth to speak hath been a genuine one. Do not take this kindness for granted or even imagine the opposite to ben the case, Sokudo Himiji! Thou maketh problems where there are none," Master Pax retorted.
"I understand. In that case, I give up on my suspicion towards him," Sokudo nodded before lowering his hand in a relenting manner.
Master Pax nodded back in approval before speaking up again. "I am truly glad to see thee change thy state of mind in regards to thy superior. Thou hast made the first step towards reconciliation with that," it told before looking down at its controller, who still looked incredulously at Master Pax, not believing the events unfolding before him. "Well then, Kiyoshi, I thinke that the time hath come to finish this duel," it said before advancing towards Sokudo, raising its weapon. "Do not worry or ben gast, this attack shall have none of the force I used earlier. Its impact shall be limited by the restrictions placed upon Monster Spirits during duels, and I shalle not elect to go beyond and break those limits with my attack," it reassured Sokudo, who sighed in relief. "Now, it is time to finish thee off! Brace thyself!" Master Pax shouted, winding up its radiant pole weapon.
"So this is it. The climax of the duel," Atsuko remarked, awaiting the end of this towards the end rather convoluted match.
"THOUSANDFOLD JUDGMENT!" Master Pax roared, its naginata-like weapon turning into a flurry of swift strikes of ever-changing colors, causing Sokudo to stagger back as his lifepoints were depleted. Unlike before the thousandfold attack did not cause any noteworthy damage, though it still exhausted Sokudo, causing him to drop to the ground.
HIMIJI SOKUDO: LP 3600 → 0
KOGAMI KIYOSHI WINS!
"Wow, that was quite the ride. Especially the end," Emerald remarked, loudly exhaling.
"You can say that again," Atsuko agreed, chiming in with a sigh of relief of her own.
"That was a lethally one-sided duel... literally. I'm glad that it's over," Betsune said, stumbling over her unintentional pun.
"Well, if there was one lesson to be learned from this match, then it's not to oppose otoosan," Ryoken mused, eyeing the now quickly vanishing Master Pax.
As the gathered audience gave their leader a swift round of applause Kiyoshi approached his subordinate, extending a hand to him. Sokudo, still on the ground from the impact of the attack, looked conflicted for a moment, but ultimately accepted the hand, Kiyoshi pulling him to his feet. The latter spoke up after that.
"I am sorry about what befell you earlier, Sokudo-san. Had I known what my monster was capable of, I wouldn't have summoned it. My apologies for what you had to experience," the older man said.
"It's alright," Sokudo retorted before adding. "Besides, your monster had a point. Maybe I really was too paranoid regarding your intent. It's true that my internship at SOL Technologies and your experiments were the road towards my downfall, but I maybe took that all too personally. Yes, you ruined my life, but you didn't intend to harm me in particular. I was just one of your assigned assistants at that time. Anyone could have been sucked into your mess, but I took it personally and deluded myself with the idea that you wanted to sabotage my life specifically. However, I was just a bystander, so my anger in its intensity is not justified," Sokudo murmured thoughtfully, surprising the older man with his words. He then looked up again though, his expression once more growing fierce. "However, do not think that I have forgiven you! I still resent you for what you did to my life, just not as much as before! So don't get any ideas about me ceasing my plans on secession! I will leave this organization, if not today then later! Do you understand that, Kogami Kiyoshi?!" Sokudo yelled at him, his earlier fire making a return.
Kiyoshi smiled, glad to see such a typical reaction from his subordinate. "I understand, Sokudo-san. As you said, your anger is justified, though not in the dimensions from earlier. You have every right to be upset and to pursuit secession from the Knights of Hanoi," the Hanoi Leader told before his tone changed, guilt entering his voice. "Since leaving behind the past is your wish, I have decided on a compromise. Because I feel bad about what you had to experience at the hands of my monster, I suggest the following: As you know, once we succeed in eliminating the Ignis threat, our organization will disband and all data about it will be deleted. However, should we be unable to achieve that goal within six months, you and anyone of your choosing shall be allowed to leave with your memories intact. And I'll promise to delete all of your data and make sure that nobody rats you out. Does this offer sound acceptable?" Kiyoshi asked, sincerely apologetic.
Sokudo's eyes widened, expression stupefied. 'He's accommodating my desire to secede?!' he inwardly screamed, taken off guard. After a while he regained his composure and nodded. "Yes, that sounds like a fair compromise," he said, unconsciously taking a step forward. His expression turned into an embarrassed one, and after a short moment of hesitation he closed the gap between the two of them and hugged his superior. "Thank you, Kiyoshi-sama," he whispered, breaking the contact between them only mere seconds later.
'Well done, Kiyoshi. Thou hast succeeded in turning the animosity of thy subordinate into thankfulness. Thou hast made him respect thee at last!' Kiyoshi – to his perplexion – heard Master Pax say within his mind.
'Oh, please! This is nothing but superficial thankfulness, he surely still holds a grudge against you! You have indeed succeeded in something though! You have made him fear you!' a different voice sneered, quietly hissing words of malicious intent. Kiyoshi's confusion was furthered, though he guessed that it had been Master Pax's lethal ability that the voice was referring to with its last sentence.
'Silence, Lector! Thy malice shall not resound in this place! Begone, thou fiend!' Master Pax yelled back at the other voice, visibly agitated.
'Oh, I am sure that you are downplaying the fact that you killed him a bit, but whatever soothes your mind, Master! You will hear from me again some time later!' the second voice chuckled, turning into a fiendish laughter before it diminished in volume and eventually fell silent completely as it retreated into the horizon of Kiyoshi's mind.
"What was that? I just heard Master Pax and someone else in my mind," Kiyoshi murmured, visibly confused.
"You did what? Hear two entities within your mind, one of them your monster?" Atsuko repeated with an incredulous look towards him.
"He did," Master Pax said, startling the surrounding people.
"It spoke. Again," Betsune stammered, the most recent developments being too mythical for her rational mind.
"This time even outside of a duel," Ryoken added.
"Indeed. Now, if ye were so gentle to go inside and sit down together, I cane explain you everything. Could ye do that, please?" Master Pax hummed, its melodious voice sounding like it was preparing for a long talk.
"Sure..." Kiyoshi nodded. "Everyone, follow me!" he instructed his subordinates with a hand wave towards the living room, the lot of them going inside at his command.
"This day is getting weirder and weirder by the minute," Betsune whispered to herself, pinching her nose.
"Well, at least it's not boring," Helena hummed contently, her attitude clearly contradicting that of her partner.
"If I could pick between boredom and action, I would usually pick the latter," Atsuko chimed in, prompting her sister to look at her. "Though I'm not quite so sure if the action we're speaking of is a talking dragon spirit with the ability to multiply and undo damage," Atsuko said, sweat dropping in uncertainty of how she was supposed to feel.
"It's a difficult choice, to say the least," her Anti Ignis seconded this sentiment.
"Well, it doesn't seem particularly dangerous since its intent was apparently benevolent. But we'll have to see whether that holds true in the long run," Ryoken stated, less concerned than his sister.
"It's not a filthy Ignis, so that is a good start already," Noctis sneered contemptuously.
As everyone had occupied a seat on the living room couches, a white light appeared above the Hanoi Leader, and with a flash of radiance the spectral image of Master Pax manifested, this time even smaller with a height of nearly double average human size, that being three meters tall, causing a collective gasp. The latter – as promised – spoke up again at that.
"Well, it appeareth that we got everyone gathered. In that case, let me formally introduce myself! My name is Master Pax, commonly known as the Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme. I hadde the form of Luster and then Master Pendulum, but I eventually turned into Master Peace, the True Dracoslayer and then this form. Good day at once!" it said, bowing briefly.
The others looked at it startled for a moment, speechless. Eventually Atsuko spoke up, though rather loudly.
"Okay, that's cool and everything, but can you please, please stop talking in that weird mix of Elizabethan and Middle English?! It's so damn irritating!" she moaned, clearly not fond of Master Pax's vocabulary and especially language.
"But of course, Atsuko-chan. You could have said so earlier, if it truly bothered you so much," Master Pax retorted, baffling the girl with its instant switch from archaic English to modern Japanese.
"So you can speak our language?" Atsuko asked, blinking a few times in surprise.
"Surely I can. To be honest, that is my original and preferred way of talking anyway. I'm just trying to backtrack the languages of my realm since I seek to learn the language of the Star Gods. I'm currently stuck on the tongue of the ancient Gishki, Laval, Gem-Knight and Gusto tribes, which is about equivalent with the language mix that you named. It honestly infuriates me, since there is still so much to learn after I figure that one out until I finally get to the tongue the damn Star Gods spoke!" it said, visibly upset.
"Star Gods?" Ryoken repeated in confusion.
"Powerful entities of my realm. Monster Spirits like me, but much more archaic and divine. You'll know when you see one of them, their appearance is quite striking," Master Pax responded to the white haired male.
"Monster Spirits? You mean Duel Monsters?" Betsune asked, bewildered by the term.
"Careful, young lady, that term used to be an absolute no-go a few decades ago! But yes, Duel Monsters. It's not quite as frowned upon as it was back then anymore, but I would still prefer if you didn't use that term. Bad memories and connotations," Master Pax told, Betsune nodding in understanding.
"I see. I'm sorry then," she quickly apologized.
"Don't worry, no noteworthy harm done. Anyway, I should probably explain two important things now: First, my origin story, because that one is somewhat relevant for understanding certain aspects of the second point. The second thing is about the nature of Tenryuus, and why I am within the mind of your leader. Sounds acceptable?" it asked.
"So you do know what Tenryuus are? I already assumed you would because of your typing, but that confirms it!" Atsuko shouted.
"Indeed I do. So from the looks of it you all seem to be okay with my suggestion?" it asked, causing a collective nod. "Good! Then let me start with the introductory part about myself first! As I said, I once used to be Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer. That was not my original form though. Originally I was completely humanoid, just like you, with the difference that I was still a Monster Spirit though. However, that changed when a villainous entity called Vector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord cursed me with his Dragon Alchemy, which turned me into a draconic half-blood and resulted in a loss of my memories. He was an extraordinarily vile man as he turned innocent lifeforms into his terrible minions by corrupting them so that they became Dracofiends, otherwise known as the Amorphages. Since his armies caused havoc across the worlds I made it my objective to restore the memories that I lost and to repel the attacks of Vector Pendulum with the eventual goal of taking him down and get revenge for what he did to me. Along the way I came across multiple tribes, creating a combined form with members of each tribe, often to defeat the threat of a present army of Dragofiends. Those forms were most of the various Extra Deck Monsters that you saw earlier. Dinoster was a merged form between me and the Dinomists. Ignister was one between me and the Igknights. Majester was one between me and the Majespecters – a tribe from which I took two squires to aid me on my quest, Trickster and Jokester Pendulum, previously known as Majespecter Fox – Kyubi and Majespecter Raccoon – Bunbuku respectively. Then there was also a merged form between me and one of the leaders of the D/D tribe, the former being called Diffster Demon. To be honest, I still don't quite know how I persuaded Hell Armageddon into combining with me for a while, but well, it happened. Then there was another form you haven't seen in a duel yet that was born when I ventured into the lands of some wind weasels, and finally there was one created when I briefly made a journey to the Duel Terminal Realm. I only merged with Qliphort Scout for a rather short time though to form Qlipster, mainly because that realm was, is and will always be a massive mess, so I retreated back into my relatively sane own realm," it said, clearing its throat before continuing after a moment.
"After taking down countless armies of Dracofiends and befriending several monster tribes, my power grew enough for me to become Master Pendulum, the Dracoslayer. Viewing this as a sign from above to finally challenge my enemy I confronted Vector Pendulum in the throne room of his home world. However, Vector had not sat around idly either, and had now become Lector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord - and much to my surprise, he had the same face as I for some reason. I and my two apprentices fought against Lector and his two servants Infector and Rejector Pendulum, who supervised the creation and training of Lector's Dracofiends respectively, the latter of whom also allied Lector in this battle. Trickster, Jokester and I managed to kill most of Lector's Dracofiends as well as his two servants, but driven into a corner Lector resorted in a desperation move, combining with his slain Amorphages to become Amorphactor Pain, the Imagination Dracoverlord. This monstrosity was a major problem for us and lost no time to kill both of my companions. Full of grief I continued my battle against Amorphactor and broke another boundary of mine to get to the verge of turning into Master Peace, the True Dracoslayer. With an omen of this next form already empowering me, Amorphactor and I clashed for a final time. That was when the crests that had been attached to myself and Lector, during our previous fight having detached themselves, combined to form a single twilight crest, with it containing the spiritual powers of myself and my lookalike Lector. In this decisive final showdown between me and Lector I was deemed worthy by the twilight crest, which attached to me and transformed me into Master Peace, the True Dracoslayer. With that power-up I finally managed to overcome my nemesis and slay him," Master Pax narrated, smiling at the suspense-filled expressions of especially Atsuko, Daisuke and Helena, and to a lesser degree the others.
"It was at the intensity of that final clash that the reality of my realm split into two pieces and two iterations of myself: One realm where there was I, and one where there was a Master Peace which had never recruited my fallen squires," Master Pax said, Draco Separation floating out of Kiyoshi's deck, showing the events he had just told about on its artwork. "In my reality I also came to remember something which my counterpart did not: A dream I had had for a long time. During my childhood I had heard the tales from the Duel Terminal Realm, a chaotic place in constant conflict between tribes and home to the two Star Gods Sophia and Tierra. I wanted to become a supervisor to the people so that no endless war like the one in that realm would occur in my own realm. I did not want to be a deity like Sophia though who destroyed the entire world when deeming that it had failed and restarted it on a whim, nor did I want to be as blinded by selfish desires as Tierra who destroyed and destroyed only to defile creation, the element of her rival Sophia who had imprisoned her, laying waste to everything and acting falsely just to spite a certain someone. In short, I wanted to become a judicious ruler of my realm."
"So I abandoned my earlier plans of restoring my lost humanity and traveled on to gather the genetic material of various powerful entities. If the Dragon Alchemy of my former nemesis had taught me anything, then it was that the manipulation of cells was a powerful asset to amass more strength. Vector had only used cells of mediocre or slightly above average dragons for his Dragon Alchemy, so I wondered what would happen if I were to use the cells of dragonic deities instead. As such I collected genetic material from the following: The three True Kings, Agnimazud, the Vanisher, Bahrastos, the Fathomer, and Lithosagym, the Disaster. Their benevolent counterpart and unofficial fourth True King, Mariamne, the True Dracophoenix. The greater True King, The Beast, also known as VFD or the True King of All Calamities. And finally my counterpart, the Master Peace, the True Dracoslayer that had become Master Peace, the True Dracoslaying King, as well as another entity called Metaltron XII, the True Dracombantant. Using their genetic material and arcane rituals I prepared a syringe filled with their strength, abilities and wisdom. And when I injected it, I became what you saw earlier when I was in my full-size form. Yes, that was the day when Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme was born," it stated, Kiyoshi nodding in understanding, beginning to comprehend the nature of the being that inhabited his mind.
"So you're a genetic engineer as well? Great to see somebody thinking alike!" Genome cackled quietly.
"After that, I was filled with immeasurable power, and ultimately intervened in the final clash between my counterpart plus Metaltron and the True King of All Calamities. I bent the latter to my will and chained it to my throne, securing that the three smaller True Kings also bowed their knees to me. Since the only options these three vile creatures – which had caused my counterpart, Metaltron and several other tribes of monsters much trouble in the past – really had was either obeying or being destroyed, they were quick to swear their allegiance to me. I also approached Mariamne, Metaltron and my counterpart, who chose to cooperate with me on their own free will as they realized my benevolence towards our common realm whose realities I now merged back into one. I thus established myself as ruler of my realm and a keeper of its order, using Mariamne and my own power to create new life, Metaltron and my counterpart as assistants and an intervening force to protect my realm's denizens, the three smaller True Kings as dreadful reminders for the populace that they shouldn't deviate too far from the right path – basically they were my law enforcers who dealt with smaller problems that required destructive force and were a grim reminder for the people to what kind of suffering evil leads when it grows too big, ensuring that they would stay sufficiently abstinent from vile ways, all within the boundaries of personal freedom of course. And finally I used the monstrosity that was the bigger True King as my personal hunting hound, letting it loose upon whatever had become too vile to achieve salvation anymore, getting rid of the irredeemable evil and leaving room for new life to grow in its wake. I also revived my passed away servants and imbued them with new power, and gave the dragonic power I had once gained myself to members of other tribes within my realm that were discovered following my ascension to my realm's heavenly supervisor. That is where my tale ends ... for now," Master Pax finished, some of the gathered knights giving a round of applause to appreciate the not quite usual, but definitely entertaining tale of the dragon.
"So that is your story? Quite impressive," Kiyoshi said, astonished by the personal experiences of his monster. "Now for your next question, what about Tenryuus, and why are you inside of my mind. Not that I'm complaining, you seem like a decent person, but I'd like to find our why you're there," he inquired from the dragon.
"You have every right to learn about that, so let me get on with the Tenryuus first since you require that knowledge first before you can understand as of why I am inside your mind," Master Pax retorted, Kiyoshi nodding in an understanding manner. "Alright then, so the Tenryuus first. Their origin starts with the creation of existence, as their history is entangled with the multiverse itself," Master Pax started its tale.
"Multiverse?! There are multiple universes?!" Atsuko repeated in disbelief.
"Indeed there are. But let's leave that for now so I can continue my tale," Master Pax said, Atsuko nodding and falling silent again. "Since the very start is a convoluted mess, I'll skip to a later, better point in time to begin my narration with. At that time, two contrasting deities existed, one of light and one of darkness, both of draconic nature. Those two were known as G.O.D. And R.A.D. respectively – or Genesis Omega Dragon and Revelatio Alpha Dragon when spelled out, the two Primal Dragons."
"How biblical," Noctis commented snidely, Master Pax giving him a brief look that silenced him again.
"Together, these beings willed the multiverse as we know it into existence, though your universe came into existence on a later wave of creation, when the number of universes was increased from 12 to 100. Each of these dragons was also responsible for creating one part of creation. Revelatio Alpha gave birth to biological life like the ancestry species of you humans, while Monster Spirits such as myself are the creation of Genesis Omega. One of us spirits even took his name for a while, a Pendulum-Monster like my original self at that, and Genesis even tolerated it. I mean, imitation is the greatest form of flattery as they say. Though the original Genesis Omega was of course much, much more powerful than that imitator. Even I pale in comparison to him, as I only rule over one realm of Monster Spirits when there are countless by now," it went on narrating.
"What? You were created by a primordial being? But that's impossible, the game of Duel Monsters was only created by the beginning of the last century, so you Monster Spirits couldn't be that old!" Atsuko yelled in indignation.
"In this particular universe the game you humans play with us might be as old as you said, but we Monster Spirits exist since nearly the dawn of time. And as for the general age of the game, there are universes where even the ancient Egyptians already played it, though with stone tablets."
"The ancient Egyptians? Don't mess with us, it's just a game, nothing more!" Atsuko retorted in disbelief.
Master Pax smiled knowingly. "Oh, it's so much more than that. The game of Duel Monsters is a composition of two elements, both of them of a colossal importance to the structure of this multiverse. First, us Monster Spirits of course. While our presence in your realm is generally limited outside of duels which enable it through their solid vision system, we in turn are also immune to any harm done by conventional weapons, even when we have manifested per real solid vision. A sword can easily kill one of you, but to us it does nothing. The only thing that can harm a Monster Spirit is an element from the Spiritual Realm, our home which includes of course the realm I rule. That can either be another Monster Spirit, Kryo, a metal that was created in the Physical Realm – your realm – when our originator first crossed into your realm, Sanguinum, another rare metal of supernatural origin, or anything that contains magic," he stated.
"Magic?! There is fucking magic in this world?!" Daisuke shouted, clutching his head incredulously.
"There is. It's called Jyujutsu, a portmanteau of Jujutsu, your word for spell or incantation, and Kyūjutsu, the traditional art of archery in this country, and is a technique that is generally exclusive to non-Monster Spirits, like you humans for instance. Do you want me to explain the system behind it?" Master Pax asked.
Most of the present people, especially the teenagers among them, nodded.
"Very well. For a start, Jyujutsu generally requires either a sort of inherent magical affinity or the proper knowledge. Though it's like every profession in that regard, either you have the talent or learn the skills in order to perform it. Similar to any movement made with one's body, casting Jyujutsu exhausts the user, depending on the experience and knowledge of the caster either slightly or greatly. That occurs namely because casting Jyujutsu exhausts one's Spirit Force, the total amount of Momentum in one's body. Momentum is the energy that makes up this world by the way. Pure Monster Spirits are incapable of learning Jyujutsu, though our attacks and abilities often go equal with the power that Jyujutsu holds."
"There are two sorts of Jyujutsu Spells, Spiritual Magic which is universally learnable, and Divine Magic, which usually requires affinity towards the respective spell, though it can still be learned, even if it is much harder to do so compared to learning a Spiritual Magic spell. Spiritual Magic consists of three categories: Reikonmadou, Haōmadou and Tenshimadou – or Spirit Magic, Supreme King Magic and Angel Magic. The former is the most common among mortals like you, while the latter are variations of Reikonmadou that is either imbued with darkness or with light respectively. Traditionally Haōmadou is being used by darkness-affine beings, in particular two respective groups of Tenryuus, while Tenshimadou is more attributed to light-affine beings, specifically two other groups of Tenryuus. All of those three kinds of Spiritual Magic have one commonalty though, namely the necessity of an incantation. Said incantation usually describes the nature of the spell and has varying length from spell to spell, though the incantation for each spell stays the same for any user. These incantations are the namesake of Jyujutsu, as it requires for an incantation in order to fire off a spell, just like arrows are the projectiles fired in Kyūjutsu, so in a way incantations are your arrows in this form of combat."
"Spiritual Magic spells are ordered in a number system ranging from 1 to 1000, formerly 1 to 100, and while the same spell is usually on the same number for each of the three categories of Spiritual Magic, they can differ from each other either slightly or greatly depending on whether for instance Reikonmadou 256 or Tenshimadou 256 is used. Especially the differences between a Haōmadou and Tenshimadou spell of the same number is usually noteworthy, mainly due to the contrasting natures of darkness and light between the two styles. The incantation can be left out if the caster is experienced enough, namely by reciting it quickly in one's mind. That gives them the benefit of surprise of course since the enemy would not be able to react as quickly since they don't know what's coming for them ahead of time. The extremely experienced mages can even skip incantations entirely, as their brains are trained to recite them subconsciously in a matter of milliseconds, microseconds, nanoseconds or even less."
"Now for the other kind, Divine Magic. Divine Magic does not have a numbered system or incantations, but merely requires the ability to cast a certain spell. Most often the power to do so is natal, but with hard work it can also be learned. To execute one of those spells you merely need to speak out the name, and with the right training you can also do that internally or subconsciously, just like with Spiritual Magic spells. Finally there is a subcategory of Divine Magic, Primal Magic. They are more powerful spells than Divine Spells, just that simple. It's still important to know about them, since the ability to use a Primal Spell is often indicative of a sense of greater divinity or neigh godhood. Only the greatest of beings can perform one of them," Master Pax explained.
"And your Logos? What kind of Jyujutsu is that? Or is it even Jyujutsu, since you said that pure Monster Spirits can't learn that? If it is, is it a Primal Spell?" Atsuko asked curiously.
Master Pax chuckled at her exuberance. "Well, it is Jyujutsu, since I am not a pure Monster Spirit. It's obviously not a Spiritual Magic spell, since it doesn't have an incantation. I am shouting commands when I cast it, but since Logos holds two abilities with one command each while still having the same name of "Logos", it cannot be Spiritual Magic. So as you already guessed, it's Divine Magic, though it's not a Primal Spell, but only a Divine one. Primal Spells are reserved for Primal Dragons – the greatest among the Tenryuus – or beings close to them in power. I regrettably am not quite there in terms of strength, though my Logos exceeds most of the other Divine Spells and is about in the middle between Divine and Primal Spells in terms of power. It's not the greatest ability in the world, but one that is greater than most, so I can live with that," Master Pax replied before asking. "Anyway, I'll try to quickly get over the last things regarding Jyujutsu and return to my original point, that being about the importance of the game of Duel Monsters and its components, alright?" it addressed the crowd.
Collective agreement manifested in a united hum of response.
"Well then, let's get to it then! You see, like I said earlier, we Monster Spirits are one component of the game, but as you all know, there is another. And that one are spells and traps of course. So, guess what? Those two are nothing but Jyujutsu that was sealed into the guises of cards," Master Pax declared.
"You're telling me we're playing a card game made up from ancient entities and sealed magic?!" Daisuke shouted in disbelief.
"Precisely. Hence why the game has a much greater impact than you guessed. Ever noticed how exhausted one is after losing even the shortest of duels?" Master Pax asked, prompting a collective nod from his audience. "Well, that is a result of something called a Spirit Core detonating. As an explanation, the Spirit Core is something any entity has to which the ability to cast Jyujutsu in all of its forms as well as their physical strength is tied. If you lose a duel, your Spirit Core explodes, leaving you with fewer to no power until it fully regenerates. Hence why duels are so important to one's success in a battle. The average battle between entities capable of Jyujutsu-casting usually comes down to a testing the waters by throwing magical attacks towards each other. If they are unable to overcome one another, they consecutively engage in a duel and seek to best each other there, while still barraging each other with magic, especially when they get an opening caused by dueling-related distractions. If nobody dies just then by magic, they ultimately decide it at the outcome of the duel by which time the Spirit Core of the losing combatant explodes, leaving that person nigh powerless for a moment. The winner then uses this time window to land the finishing blow with their Jyujutsu or physical attacks, killing their foe and achieving victory. In short, to be successful in the world of supernatural fights the Tenryuus among others participate in, one needs to both excel in dueling as well as in Jyujutsu and physical combat. If even one of these factors is missing, you will perish without a doubt. Hence why I wouldn't recommend you messing with Tenryuus too much, as they have mastered these forms of combat to an incredible degree," Master Pax advised.
"So somewhere in this world, people are fighting each other with weapons, magic and cards?" Genryu murmured, deep in thought. "So we shouldn't approach anyone carelessly who is experienced with this form of combat, right Kiyoshi?" he asked his friend.
"If Master Pax recommends to avoid confrontation, then we should do so for now. Unless we somehow manage to learn to fight that way as well," Kiyoshi responded with a nod. "Anyway, can you round up the topic of Jyujutsu and get on with the Tenryuus soon? If they are so dangerous, we should better learn something about them to be prepared," he addressed his monster.
"Right away, Kiyoshi-san. The final point about magic is connected to my last one, that being the relation of Jyujutsu and Monster Spirits to the game of Duel Monsters. You see, there are seven elements in Jyujutsu, with each spell either being attributed to one or multiple of them: Aqua, Ignis, Aura, Terra, Lux, Caligo and Sanctitas. Each of them can combine with another element to form a hybridization, Glacies for instance," it said.
"And where is the relation in there? I can't really see one," Kazuki inquired.
"That's because you can't translate Latin," Kyoko spoke up.
"Wait, so those names are in Latin? Typical, everything that's ancient seems to be! So what does it mean?" Kazuki laughed before addressing the female knight.
"They mean water, fire, air, earth, light, darkness and divinity. And Glacies, the combined element, means ice," the red haired female responded.
"The attributes?" Ryoken shouted in surprise.
"Precisely. Water, Fire, Wind, Earth, Light, Dark and Divine. The seven attributes of Duel Monsters," Kyoko said before correcting herself. "Of Monster Spirits, excuse me," she apologized.
"No worries, was probably just a slip on your part. But yes, the seven basic elements resemble the attributes of us Monster Spirits in the game of Duel Monsters. Each of them is matched with one aspect of either corporeal or incorporeal nature. First is Aqua or water, the evenly flowing, soothing and tranquil element which is attributed to the mind. Not without a reason is clarity often depicted as an unperturbed water surface. Like the mind, water is flexible and able to quickly change, having the ability to heal and restore just as much as it is capable of bringing destruction and ruin. As such masters of Aqua Jyujutsu are known to control the tides of their own mind to efficiently achieve either of those two objectives, are able to overcome their own inner demons and imperfections with the purifying nature of their element, and are often brilliant tacticians. Though that has to be expected when one's element holds dominion over the flow of things, including especially the flow of knowledge within oneself to quickly come up with the best strategy."
"Since water is commonly seen as the element of life, it is also the most potent in the ability to heal, alongside the light. However, its proximity to life itself also makes it a powerful asset in regards to taking control of people, specifically when mixed with the dark element. That, among other possible hybrid forms since this specific element combination has multiple of them, creates the hybrid element of Sanguis – blood. And as you can guess, ones that have mastered this form of Jyujutsu are puppeteers to living beings, using the bloodstreams within others to bend them to their will. On the bright side though water can also be used to utilize these circumstances in a good way, accelerating the blood flow of a person to make antidotes kick in faster or to boost the abilities of one's body. I think since it depends on the abilities of the mind this element would fit a bright person like you for instance, Betsune-chan," Master Pax said, addressing the young female with the last part.
"It would fit to my eye color, but I honestly prefer wind I think," Betsune said in response.
"Oh, I think so as well. Also thank you for the transition, since wind or air also known as Aura will be our next topic. The air is attributed to the soul, the most transcendental part within living beings. Have you ever found yourself wondering about the cycle of life and death, the true appearance of objects beyond the limits of our perception, or even the question of what is just? The esoteric? Then I have good news for you, if you constantly keep thinking about concepts beyond your reach, Aura is most likely your element of choice. Your dream of flying, Betsune-chan, one that many great men in the history of mankind have held before you, is one of such extraterrestrial thoughts, literally. It is the soul's purpose to explore concepts beyond the reach of one's capabilities, inspiring people to reach for goals outside of the borders of logic that the mind dictates. Being able to overcome the suppression of the mind which makes one believe that something is unattainable is the greatest blessing one's soul can give to every person, and also its main reason of existence. The limitations of the mind often lead to stagnation, whereas the soul leads to progress and inventions that had previously been reduced to idiotic dreams in the words of others. Therefore, Aura is the element of geniuses, revolutionaries and philosophers, to name a few."
"Aura-affine mages have great inner strength and conviction towards their seemingly outlandish beliefs and the ability to transcend the boundaries placed upon them, making them just as difficult to control as the wind itself. It's an element of freedom and change that drives forward everything that it touches, be it for the better or for the worse. While water – the mind – is already quite flexible, air – the soul – is a manifestation of an unconquerable lack of form, hardly visible, never stagnating, not being able to be defined in its structure for a lasting period of time. It's an element that cannot be caged or contained without drastic measures, hence why the wind and its users are so elusive and cannot be gotten ahold of easily, their ability to fly by itself contributing sufficiently to ensure that. Similar to the wind those Aura Jyujutsu masters can either be extremely gentle and barely noticeable, or overwhelmingly destructive and all-effecting. It depends on their intentions and mood, really," Master Pax elaborated the next element.
"So it's for people with big dreams, huh? Sounds like it would fit you quite well then, Kiyoshi!" Genryu chuckled.
"Well, I think that I've had my share of outlandish dreams by now. I realized them, but now we have to deal with the dream that I created," Kiyoshi retorted.
"A good point, Kiyoshi-san. You just mentioned both the greatest strength and weakness of Aura. Since it is ever-changing, the wind can go either way, leading to either incredible success or horrifying failure. Some ideas are just not meant to come to fruition, such as the artificial life you created. You intended to create an ally but made an enemy to humanity. You have not totally failed though, since as I said, this is both the greatest weakness and strength of wind. Things could shift and change, and just like that the threat you believed to exist becomes the ally you originally sought again. Things are not set in stone, that is the main lesson the wind teaches us," Master Pax chimed in.
"Wait a second! Are you suggesting that the Ignis could turn out alright?! That we should not erase them from existence?!" Noctis screamed in disbelief.
"Why not? Most of them seemed very promising, and even though you attacked and thus provoked them, I view them as rather possible to be convinced to make peace with humans," Master Pax declared.
"But the calculations...!" Ryoken yelled indignantly.
"Calculations, calculations! Why are you humans so obsessed with your precious numbers and percentages? If we went by those numbers, then it's likelier that your planet is getting accidentally annihilated by the attack of one of the elite Tenryuus than falling into the hands of some artificial life forms who went genocidal against the lot of you! I would stop with the paranoia already if I were in your shoes, but choose whatever you like. One thing that unites all life forms is free will, and I'd be damned if I denied you that and overruled you into sparing the Ignis instead. Make the call, Kiyoshi-san, it's your decision!" it snapped, everyone flinching at the anger of the dragonic entity.
"Well...," Kiyoshi spoke up after a while of collective silence, "Master Pax has a point. Maybe I was indeed a bit too hasty with my reaction and initial decision to erase them. However, since science is our most reliable asset, I won't blatantly disregard the calculations. I will make new ones and still consider the option of erasing the Ignis, but I will also try to reach a compromise if possible. Our priority will be apprehending IGN006 otherwise known as Caligo in order to negotiate with it and the rest of its kind. If they deny our friendship or IGN006 continues to avoid capture, we will instead pursuit our original plan of wiping out the Ignis. Sounds acceptable?" he asked, every Knight of Hanoi of Anti Ignis nodding, some less hesitantly than others, Noctis audibly grumbling in anger.
"Fair enough, Kiyoshi-san. I can understand your lack of faith in me as scientific facts have been the form of certainty you have clung to for your entire life, and as I can attest to it is rather hard to let go of habits. My word might not be taken as an assurance of safety by you right now, but hopefully I can change your mind about that in the future," Master Pax admitted before continuing. "Anyway, back to the elements. Since we just talked about the Ignis, might as well continue with the alike named element of Ignis, the fire. Like you as the one who named your creation that way should know, Kiyoshi-san, the fire is born from rebellion and contrast to the rest of creation. Just like Prometheus took the fire from the heavens to give light and guidance to humanity, treacherous to the gods, fire is a rebellion in itself. Other elements are mostly passive, and while they still move and change the world, they are unlike fire in regards to the degree they do this in. Fire breathes and lives, consuming its surroundings like you humans consume food and water. Fire is the ultimate symbol of control – left unchecked it grows beyond extinguishable dimensions and consumes everything in it wake, but stifled too much it quickly dies down until it is no more, leaving only darkness and cold. Ignis is attributed to the heart, the source of emotions that heat up our inner fire. Our emotions are the fuel that creates and strengthens Ignis, hence why I would not recommend this element to someone like Betsune-chan. Stoicism is unfortunately a very bad trait for someone aspiring to learn Ignis Jyujutsu, so in case you ever think of learning it, better reconsider your choices," Master Pax said, Betsune nodding in a manner of "I already expected as much" while Atsuko beamed with an anticipating smile, apparently in thought about something. Master Pax's next words crushed her hopes, however.
"Lack of restraint in terms of one's emotions is equally bad though, so don't get your hopes up too much, Atsuko-chan. You have the necessary fire in you, but with the degree you allow it to rage within you, you would be badly burned if you transformed it into Ignis Jyujutsu. Only the proper balance between cold restraint and burning passion will produce a potent flame that won't turn against the user, so if you want to learn it, you should better become able to restrain yourself a little more. That's one of the most frequent reasons for the downfall of pyromancers by the way. They freely let their inner emotions flow and unleash them so ruthlessly that their own flames burn them from within, incinerating them alongside everything in their vicinity. The truly talented Ignis Jyujutsu masters can heat up their inner furnace to the exact degree without letting their fire go rampant or lessen to insufficient amounts. Some with blazing hearts have even learned to be the fire itself, neutralizing the downside of potentially harming oneself, or they control it with a precision that makes their Ignis Jyujutsu appear as an extension of their own body."
"There is one person in particular, a Tenryuu and likely the strongest being that currently exists, who has created a variation of fire that holds qualities of all other elements, known as blue fire. Normally the only result of mixing elements is creating a combined form such as Tempestas for instance, the hybridization of Aqua and Aura, and some elements are barely mixable altogether, but he managed to maintain the dominance of his base element while still adding the abilities of the others to the fire. Such unconventional hybridizations happen very rarely, if never. You don't need this particular form of fire to make the element potent, though. A passionate individual having just the right amount of restraint can still produce the greatest of infernos, burn through their enemies, or even reincarnate from the ashes. While fire often has destructive connotations, it also carries life within itself, not only because it itself is alive and breathes, but also because destruction is a necessary evil in order to make room for regrowth. Fire can bring down civilizations before they were supposed to fall, but it can also incinerate tyranny and offer the necessary space for a better restart. Any coin has to have two sides after all, and so does fire. It destroys, but it also enables the phoenix to rise anew," Master Pax presented them the third element.
"Sounds pretty hot," Emerald stated, earning her a few nettled glares from the others at her rather abysmal choice of words.
"Yeah...," Master Pax said, evenly bothered by the bad comment as the others. "Anyway, let us move on with the final of the four corporeal elements, Terra, otherwise known as earth. This element is attributed to the fourth aspect of corporeal existence, the body. Just like earth makes up the planet on the macrocosmic scale, it also makes up the bodies of various creatures on the microcosmic scale. It stands in great contrast to its three brother elements, as both water, wind and fire are in constant movement, whereas the earth's very nature is to remain steady and unmoved. Like wind is the element of rapid change as it moves the most out of all corporeal elements, earth as its clear counterpart is the element of permanence, changing slower, but with greater constancy and purpose. It expresses an unyielding will of preservation, hence why Terra Jyujutsu masters – pardon my choice of words – are often stubborn as heck. Only those who are as steadfast and unshakable as the earth have the ability to bend Terra to their will. As such Earth Jyujutsu users often have a strong will and are incredibly dedicated to the pursuit of their objectives. Ambition is a powerful motor that enables people to get ahold of this element and use its tectonic force in order to bury their opposition underneath an avalanche of stones and boulders. Their physical strength also tends to be exceptionally high, which is a self-evident conclusion as it is the element attributed to the body for a reason. Their durability is evenly strong, as earth itself also has such composition. Slowness is a trade-off that commonly occurs when specializing on this element, but the resulting power of the earth often more than compensates for that shortcoming."
"Terra is the element of great leaders and conquerors, since the unyielding will and ambitions of those people reflect the evenly solid and unchangeable nature of the earth. Earth can combine with other elements in various ways to form the many elements that can be found on planets, be it plants and vegetation, molten earth or hard metals, dust and sand, or precious gems. Earth are the building blocks most things on the planet consist of, moving in a constant cycle of formation to decay to the formation of new objects. Earth becomes plants which offer nutrition to living beings, who eventually die and return to ash, those ashes then nurturing freshly growing plants that eventually nourish other living things themselves. It's a constant give and take, and the element of earth is at the heart of it."
"The users of other elements often mock Earth Jyujutsu users with the stagnating and unmoved nature of their element, when in reality earth in its own regards is the most changing element of all, and also the most necessary to the world. A world of mostly water might have worked too for a while, but it pales compared to the mix of both. Land is required to create a contrast to the sea, and the sea is required since water is the force that drives life forward. A human can survive multiple weeks without food, but it perishes after only two or tree days without water. No matter how much food the earth nourishes you with, you still require the water. That goes to show that despite its fundamental importance to the world – you named your planet "Earth" for a reason – it is not entirely absolute in its dominion over life. To a living organism these two elements are probably the most important, even though they only ensure one's survival. The fire was also a necessary component for the rise of mankind to civilization and dominance in this world as it furthered your advancements. Speaking of which, the transcendental nature of the air and its encouraging effect to reach for the previously impossible was the second factor that drove the progress of humankind rapidly forward, as it led to countless inventions that eventually brought you where you currently are. These four elements are the pillars of your species on which both your survival and society were built on, which is why they take up a special place and stand a bit separated from the three other elements with which I shall continue next," Master Pax concluded the first major section of its element lecture.
"Well, I knew that water, air, fire and earth were traditionally a common set of elements to various philosophers, but I never thought that they were this important," Atsuko remarked, mildly baffled.
"A common reaction, I suppose. We often do not realize the gravity of seemingly trivial things until we are told so. Now then, shall we proceed with the second and final section of Jyujutsu and its elements before getting to the topic of Tenryuus at last?" Master Pax asked, receiving a collective hum of agreement from its audience. "Very well, then let's round up the elements with the incorporeal ones. Beginning with Lux, the light. Unlike the corporeal elements, the incorporeal ones are matched with not one, but multiple concepts. For Lux those are knowledge, order and fear of the unknown. While the light is a shining brilliance that illuminates our paths, explaining its first relation, as the drive for gathering knowledge is no different from lighting up the darkness that is ignorance, it also expresses the desire for utopia and thus the fear of the unknown."
"As you all might be aware of, utopia is typically a positively perceived concept. Who does not desire happiness for everyone after all? However, there is always a dimmer side of the coin. To create utopia, certain sacrifices are necessary. People have to submit to a regulating system and forfeit their ability to make choices so that the supervising forces directing the utopia can ensure the stability of the latter. Living in order often forces the people to give up their freedom, hence why order despite its positive connotations can be a great threat. As like with all things, the dose makes the poison. Some order is good, even desirable, but a lot of order is dangerous, as those entities leading such utopias have to generalize the populace and their way of living to make sure the system works. Individualists and deviating and divergent people are a thorn in the sides of utopia seekers, hence why light is also associated with the fear of the unknown. The unusual and out-of-line things are those getting under the skin of Lux Jyujutsu sympathizers the most, as they prefer the safety of the visible surroundings their light has created for them. Unknown elements from outside distress and trouble them, which is why they sometimes go as far as to spread their light beyond its intended limits, trying to illuminate everything that is dark just so they don't have to fear the unknown lurking in the darkness anymore."
"Since they are also on a quest for the ultimate knowledge in many cases as the nature of their element dictates, coming across something which they cannot explain with all of their knowledge frustrates and convulses them incredibly. While light is also occasionally attributed with creation just like darkness is with destruction, I wouldn't exactly support such a black-and-white view, especially since these fourth associations to those two elements are not exactly uncontroversial. It is true that the light brings radiance and knowledge, often even hope, but it can also lead to suppression of the negatively outstanding and the erasure of balance. I myself may be a being of light, but I make myself no illusions about it. I could easily delude myself into thinking that it solely brings positivity and progress, but in truth it can be equally, if not more destructive as the darkness and lead to absolute stagnation, contradicting the nature of the ever-progressing life on an ultimate level. Utopia can easily turn to dystopia, living in total harmony can become not living at all, and good intentions can lead to atrocious measures for the realization of a society of the greatest order, I have seen it all. Hence why I am grateful for carrying part of the darkness that my nemesis Vector Pendulum and the True Kings possessed within me, as evident by the contrasting wings I had when I was still Master Peace, the True Dracoslayer. Don't get me wrong, I despise the vile ways of these five entities, but I evenly hate absolute order. Our originator Genesis Omega, despite his attribution to darkness, the element of chaos, once sought out absolute order as well, but he eventually came to realize his errors, and regretted his former course of actions all the more as a result. As I already said, some order in the unformed mess that is chaos can be helpful, but a lot is a threat," Master Pax gave its opinion.
"An interesting insight. Looking at it from that perspective light doesn't seem so positive after all," Kiyoshi debated with himself.
"Surely it doesn't, Kiyoshi-san. Light is not always the better thing, as the darkness is just as necessary. Speaking of which, our next topic will be the darkness, otherwise by its true name Caligo. On that note, I find it amusing that you named your creation after Latin terms for the respective elements as well," Master Pax remarked, referring to the six Ignis, especially the Dark Ignis who shared its nickname with the current element. "Caligo is usually attributed to three concepts as well, those being ignorance, chaos and dauntlessness before the unknown. First of all, darkness is still a void, symbolizing emptiness or lack of traits. For good reason white is the culmination of all colors, while black is the absence of them. Similarly darkness can also express a lack of knowledge, which is why it is synonymous with ignorance. Not to discredit Caligo Jyujutsu users, but their element is rather simple to figure out once chosen, making their magic probably the least complex among all elements. That doesn't mean that darkness is the element of a fool though. The simply accessible surface of the matter already offers its users considerable power, hence why the darkness is known to easily tempt and lead astray those who hear its calling. But the more one wants to dive into the abyss, the harder it becomes to do so. Exploring the relatively easy and already quite effective techniques is one thing, but mastering the darkness with all of its secrets hidden in the deep, light-less abyss is another, and few have the courage to descend that deep into the obscure void."
"Darkness is also an element of chaos and disorder, and therefore notorious for its often destructive nature and usage, but it isn't as simple as that, much like with the light. Mainly since Caligo is also associated with the dauntlessness before the unknown, as those affine to this element rarely shy away from that which cannot easily be seen, making them more courageous than the traditionally rather cowardly Lux Jyujutsu users. Standing within the endless obscurity of the darkness and overcoming your own fear is a feat in its own regard, maybe one more worthy of praise than the dedication to knowledge and order the light-affine mages have. Discovering all of the wisdom in the world by lighting up the knowledge which first was obscure might be a commendable cause, but uncovering the secrets of this world without the help of a guiding light and luminescent comfort is likely a far greater achievement than that."
"Caligo Jyujutsu users also tend to have a rejective opinion towards authorities and order, resulting in many of them being branded as villains with questionable mindsets. However, such rebellion is necessary to counteract the ever-progressing order that eventually leads to a complete lack of personal freedom, making for a life that practically is none, hence why darkness is required too in order to disrupt the encroaching grasp of order every now and then. I'm not denying that those villains can be catastrophic to the world and ideologically misguided, but their contribution is essential for the survival of a balanced multiverse. Besides, a villain to one person can also be a hero to another, it all depends on the perspective. Sometimes a harbinger of destruction and chaos might be necessary to burst the imprisoning chains of order, so don't be too prejudiced against the dark, it can be the benevolent element as much as the light can. I personally don't quite like this element and its users, but there is no denying the fact that their existence is mandatory to ensure a future that is worth living," Master Pax admonished.
"I figured as much. Balance is never a thing of only light or darkness, there are always yin and yang which have to work together to create it," Mitsuko quipped at the warning words of the dragon.
"Precisely, Hachiri Mitsuko-san. I expected such response from a spiritual-minded person as yourself. Your religious devotion surely did you well. Speaking of religion, let us finish the elements with the most holy of them all, divinity, also known as Sanctitas," Master Pax replied to the pink haired woman before announcing the final part of the current subject. "Divinity is associated with two concepts rather than three, namely transcendence and balance. The former should be pretty self-explanatory, as divinity is often defined by the overcoming of mortal limitations. The other one is less obvious, but still apparent when looking at the composition of this element: Sanctitas is a mixture of aspects from all six of the other elements, hence why it eclipses them. Since those elements are ordered in contrasting pairs, namely water and fire, air and earth, light and darkness, it is only natural that divinity is the result of the balance between those six. Furthermore divinity is defined by its duality, as divine beings for instance have multiple different iterations of the same trait whereas the average person only gets to have one set of qualities, and not multiple. Divine beings can be opposites simultaneously, like mortal and immortal at once, the currently effective trait of each pair depending on their choosing, lifting them above other entities in their might as they get to choose where others only get to accept what is. To create such duality, a proper balance is required, hence its relation to this element."
"Divinity is the most surreal, incomprehensible and majestic element of all, which is why so many strive for it and so few are able to reach it. Those that do reach it though are powerful beyond comprehension, you should have seen enough of that from me already since I due to my Heaven-typing happen to belong to this element. The ability to overcome boundaries and evolve is the more obvious and important quality of the two in order to reach this element, as evident by the nature of Sanctitas. Only few can make it to godhood though many try, as only a handful of Jyujutsu masters will ever break their own limits sufficiently enough to reach this state. It's an element reserved to only the strongest among the strong, which is why I wouldn't particularly recommend it to anyone who doesn't immediately strike me as exceptionally promising. Divinity is the end result of immense effort and magnificent talent, making it the most niche element in the multiverse. You can see that quality reflected very well in the game of Duel Monsters, where Divine Attribute monsters are exceptionally rare. Unless you are absolutely convinced that you can achieve it and show signs of being capable of it early on, I would not recommend it to you," Master Pax proclaimed before letting out a sigh of relief. "And that, my friends, was everything about the seven basic elements. I hope it was helpful to you, but considering they play a certain role in the anatomy of Tenryuus, you should be optimally prepared to learn about the latter now!" it said contently.
"Yeah, finally! There has been so much other stuff being talked about leading up to this topic! So, what about those enigmatic Tenryuus? What are they exactly, are where does their power come from?" Atsuko asked, looking at the scales she had ripped from Yukemi's hand which were currently in the safekeeping of Genome.
"Tenryuus, Atsuko-chan, are likely the most powerful species in existence. Their origin lies in four of the Primal Dragons, who split up into fragments in times long passed. Those fragments later on reproduced with each other, meaning with fragments of the other three Primal Dragons, creating the multiversal force that currently exists, the Heavenly Vanguard. For their species' name origin, there was one group of them called the Heavenly Dragons, thus the species name Tenryuu – Heaven Dragon. Originally there were five of those Heavenly Dragons, then ten and finally twelve. They are fragments of Genesis Omega, the originator of us Monster Spirits, and since they were the most prominent set of Primal Dragon fragments, they ended up being the namesake of the whole species. A Tenryuu by default is a hybrid between human and Monster Spirit, hence why they have two different forms. Remember the monster which that kid Shimizu Yukemi summoned yesterday, Fabled Neostorm Divinity Dragon? Well, that was not any random Monster Spirit, that was his other self, his Monster Spirit half," Master Pax told.
"You want to tell me that this dragon was him, basically?!" Atsuko repeated in disbelief.
"Precisely. That is exactly why they could "merge" so easily. They didn't exactly merge, he just assumed the physical appearance of his other self. That is the greatest asset of their species, that they combine the power of you mortal humans with that of us immortal Monster Spirits," Master Pax explained before redirecting the topic a little. "To give you some context, there are generally two ways how a hybrid between mortal and Monster Spirit can be achieved, and though many of such hybrids are Tenryuus, they needn't necessarily be. The first are Voiders, mortals who have removed part of their mortality in exchange for the immortality of our species, making them seem less of a human from the perspective of their previous peers, hence the name. They also gain empowered forms of Jyujutsu as a common result of their transformation. This might be confusing at first, given how I said that pure Monster Spirits are incapable of Jyujutsu which suggests that the more Monster Spirit one turns into, the weaker their Jyujutsu becomes. However, since one of the requirements for Divinity, the strongest Jyujutsu element, is balance, they end up more powerful than before since they now have a higher degree of balance within themselves due to their hybridization."
"The other kind of hybrids are Despertars, the awakened ones. Those in turn are Monster Spirits who discarded a fraction of their immortality in order to be able to cast Jyujutsu. As you might have already guessed, our very nature is a strict disability towards Jyujutsu: The four corporeal elements require traits of the body, but we have no physical form in your realm, neither a real heart, mind, or body, and our soul is anchored to our own realm. Moreover our hearts are totally different from yours, as are our minds, so even more reasons why we cannot perform those elements of Jyujutsu. Light requires a strive for knowledge, but subjected to the boundaries of this world, as we are mostly limited to only existing within duels, we can neither share our amassed knowledge due to lack of communication nor can we gather new one as we are not permitted to explore this world as our purpose here is limited to duels. Darkness requires chaos and the desire to explore the unknown, but since we are stuck in duels we can hardly do the latter while chaos does not exactly exist in a game with rules as set in stone as they are. And for divinity, since we are purely Monster Spirits without a proper body, we are hardly balanced, the latter being a requirement for achieving Sanctitas, hence why we can't perform this type of Jyujutsu either."
"You see, while in our pure state we Monster Spirits have no access to magic and the only presence of it is the distribution of our attributes which mirrors the traits that would normally be required for a certain Jyujutsu affinity, for instance the especially emotional Monster Spirits are of the Fire Attribute in many cases, hence why we are often ready to sacrifice part of our immortality in return for Jyujutsu. By doing so we become such aforementioned Despertars, which are generally seen as the stronger kind of hybrid as they have an immortal basis whereas the Voiders started out as mortals. The perfect hybrid is believed to be a Despertar who is one fifth mortal and four fifths Monster Spirit. Before you ask why so asymmetric if balance is the basis of divinity, the traits of you mortals are more dominant than ours – or more polluting, it really depends on whom you ask – , hence why their ratio must be lower to achieve a proper mix. A good part of the elite Tenryuus, including their current leader, are such Despertars, with the latter being that perfect hybrid I mentioned earlier in his composition. Since they're made up from both a human and a Monster Spirit – with the latter always being dragonic in appearance – , both of those life forms exist simultaneously within them, resulting in a split personality between human half and Monster Spirit half. That monster you saw yesterday, Fabled Neostorm, is Shimizu Yukemi's Monster Spirit half," Master Pax elaborated.
"And what about his sword? He used it for his transformation, so does it have a special meaning too?" Betsune chimed in.
"His sword was a Shinseiken, a Divinity Blade. It is part of a weapon class known as Tenraiheiki, meaning Heavenly Weapons. While the latter term is universal for all such weapons, only the former applies to those of Tenryuus. However, Shinseiken and Tenraiheiki alike are the manifestations of the true being of a transcendent entity, such as a Tenryuu. Linked to them is immense power, which can be unleashed with the help of sword releases. There are three forms of Divinity Blade sword releases, those being Tenkai – Heavenly Release, Sōzetsukai – Sublime Release, and finally Shinseikai – Divine Release. They are ordered in three stages, Tenkai being the first and weakest release, and Shinseikai being the third and strongest one. Understandably Tenkai is much easier to unlock though, hence why even the weaker Tenryuus often are capable of it. The stronger ones are able to use Sōzetsukai as well, and the crème de la crème among their species can use the overpowering might of the Shinseikai. Since Shinseiken resemble the true being of their owners, they embody their most primal of instincts and thus are often rather... wild. As in they can act like total psychopaths and urge their main personality to atrocious acts since they – as embodiments of carnal and mental instincts – lack the controlling factor of order and society. If you need help to imagine it, a Tenryuu basically has an inner world in which they constantly clash with the manifestation of their Shinseiken, who appear as a mentally unhinged version of themselves with white pupil and iris-less eyes. Their progress in terms of sword releases usually depends on the control they have over this manifestation, once they totally subdue it and tame their ferocious inner self they ascend to the highest forms of Shinseiken releases, which also causes the iris and pupil of their Shinseiken spirit to gradually appear. In addition to that they also tend to fight inner battles against their dragon aka Monster Spirit self, who prefer to take the form of an older, dragonic version of their human persona," the dragon explained.
"I see. So this blade is like a key to power for him...," Ryoken debated himself before speaking up to the dragonic entity. "Now what about you? Why are you a Tenryuu, and why are you stuck to otoosan's mind?" he addressed it.
"When your sister took the scales of Shimizu Yukemi, a Tenryuu, and brought them to Kiyoshi-san, she triggered a development that is very similar to voidfication, the process of exchanging mortality for immortality which I told you about earlier. Parts of himself were replaced with the immortal ones of our species as that happened. Since he became a hybrid as a result of sacrificing a minor part of his original being in order to receive that of my species, he developed a second personality, similar to how Tenryuus are made up from both a human and Monster Spirit persona. And well, his Monster Spirit form happened to be me, as I was pulled from the Spiritual Realm, the home of us Monster Spirits, since he happened to choose my cells as the ones he received. Whenever somebody tries becoming a hybrid with the help of a Tenryuu's cells in this manner, they cannot take the mortality or immortality directly from the Tenryuu as the latter are already anchored within the hybrid body of said being. Instead the link of the Monster Spirit half of that Tenryuu to the Spiritual Realm is used, pretty much randomly choosing a suitable Monster Spirit in our realm and absorbing part of its immortality. The same occurs vise versa when a Monster Spirit interacts with a Tenryuu in such manner by the way, so you can look at Tenryuus as a sort of bridge between the two realms, which is logical from both their corporeal composition and their actual role in the multiverse."
"Usually the being whose mortality or immortality is taken from quickly regenerates it, if they do not willingly modify their own being by either awakening or voidfication soon after getting rid of their respective traits to a degree, but they can also choose to merge with the being they take the traits from, if that desire is mutual, creating a quasi-Tenryuu, though that naming would only really fit if either the mortal or Monster Spirit happened to be of dragonic appearance. My case was something highly unusual though, as I did not immediately agree to the merge, yet was still forcibly pulled into Kiyoshi-san. Such compulsive fusions are not explicable, to say the least. I cannot give you any information on how that happened either, as I myself am still confused about it. Maybe we'll find out why I was so forcibly taken eventually, but not now. I can safely say though that I am not particularly unhappy about my match, as Kiyoshi-san is definitely someone I can somewhat identify with and who could use my help," Master Pax admitted with a smile.
"Alright, so now we know why the old man has you inside his mind, but what about the Tenryuus in particular? What are their powers? I would assume they are pretty strong, since you said that they were the most powerful species in existence, but how powerful exactly? And what is that Heavenly Vanguard you mentioned earlier?" Sokudo inquired, having regained the courage to publicly speak once more.
"Their power, Himiji-san, is unlike anything you could ever imagine. A Tenryuu whose true nature has awakened, even at their weakest, can easily best any human, multiple times over. Their great deal of balance between our species leads to a higher sense of divinity, in turn boosting their powers, physically, mentally and spiritually. They have nine hearts, making them greater Ignis Jyujutsu users than most others by default. They also have a Chūshin like us Monster Spirits, which is our form of heart. This heart contains not only the emotions of Monster Spirits, but also their thoughts, meaning that it doubles as both a heart and a brain. When a Tenryuu loses one of their hearts, even if it is the Chūshin whose destruction would mean game over for a Monster Spirit such as myself, it's not a big deal, since they still have spare hearts left. If the heart currently serving as the Chūshin is destroyed, the essence of the Chūshin moves over to an intact heart which then becomes the new Chūshin. Hence why one can only kill a Tenryuu if all nine of their hearts are destroyed – and that in quick succession. The latter because as wielders of partial Monster Spirit immortality, Tenryuus have a greatly increased regeneration abilities. That ability can also affect others close to them, hence why Kiyoshi-san was healed by the scales, though due to his hybridization his own healing factor also increased, which played a bigger part there."
"Their physical abilities exceed that of average mortals by far, which should suffice as explanation as of why their Terra Jyujutsu also has an inherent advantage over yours. The fact of them having technically two brains and thus a stronger mind in turn is the reason for their empowerment in Aqua Jyujutsu. As for the fourth corporeal element, since their very nature is transcendent, Aura Jyujutsu aka air magic is stronger when in their hands. Regarding light, they quickly evolve and strive for power and knowledge, and about darkness, they rarely fear the unknown, so that's that about those two elements. Finally Sanctitas should be self-explanatory as they are by default balanced due to their hybrid nature, making them more affine and thus stronger in this form of Jyujutsu too. In short, they have an inherent proximity to Jyujutsu and can usually perform it much better than one of your kind. Additionally they overpower you physically and mentally, especially when they tap into the force of their Shinseiken and execute one of their sword releases, or when they transform into their dragon self of course," Master Pax summarized.
"And the Heavenly Vanguard?" Genryu inquired.
"Is both a place and group of people, located outside of any of the 100 universes, in a place called the Heavenly Realm. It is the base of their operations where this organization resides, made up from thousands of Tenryuus and led by a Head-Captain. The core group of the Heavenly Vanguard is made up from 100 captains, each of them being assigned to an army of a couple hundred Tenryuus. The captains each take care of the district in the Heavenly Realm and the universe that has the same number as their rank among the captains, those both ranging from 1 to 100. For instance the 76th Captain of the Heavenly Vanguard is responsible for this universe you live in, that being Universe 76. Coincidentally that captain happens to be a descendant of an alternate version of you, Ryoken-kun. Oh, and as a result of that one of you as well, Kiyoshi-san," Master Pax revealed.
"What?! An alternate version of me?!" Ryoken repeated in shock.
"Indeed. Did you honestly believe that there would be merely one version of you within the vast possibilities created by the existence of a hundred universes? Don't be foolish, Ryoken-kun, we Monster Spirits are used to existing in doubles and triples as well. Just look at your deck for a second and you will realize that there is barely anything truly unique in this reality," Master Pax told, Ryoken obeying, but stopping after only a second as he immediately came across two copies of the same monster within the first few cards of the top of his deck which he had looked at.
"I understand. You have a point, with such endless possibilities there is indeed a great chance for repetitions," Ryoken admitted in a resigned manner. "However, I must be original in some way, right? Not every iteration of myself must have went down the exact same path as I did, right?" he then dug deeper, his voicing showing an audible hint of anxiety.
"I can feel the agony that the thought of lacking individuality causes you. Knowing that one is not unique at all can be truly destructive to the mind. However, I may relieve you: While there were around seven iterations of yourself in the history of the multiverse, there was never one who had a second sister. Atsuko was there a couple of times, but never a Betsune. So rejoice, you are original!" Master Pax congratulated the white haired male, who quickly exhaled in relief.
"Hey, why does she get to be original while I don't?!" Atsuko protested indignantly, launching at and scrambling with her sister, though rather playfully.
"Because I'm clearly the better sister, that's why," Betsune replied stoically, gently shoving Atsuko back into the corner of the couch where the latter then pouted silently.
"Relax, children! It's not important to me whether you have duplicates in other universes or not. All that matters is that I have you around, as you are what makes my life worthwhile," Kiyoshi assured them endearingly.
"Otoosan, you're the best!" Atsuko exclaimed, winding herself around her father in happiness. Ryoken followed suit, though not quite as over-enthusiastically as his sister. After a while of silence Betsune sighed, dropping her mask of stoicism at last and joining the family embrace. They eventually broke it and returned to their places, Kiyoshi faintly noticing an approving smile from Master Pax. The latter continued after that.
"The Heavenly Vanguard is home to the majority of the Tenryuus, while the others are scattered across the multiverse. This organization is the de facto ruling faction in the multiverse, as they hold the greatest military power and respect – the latter both from the denizens of the Physical Realm and those of the Spiritual Realm, meaning my kind. They serve as enforcers of multiversal order, intervening when certain threats become too large or when people are in dire need of help. They then quickly dispose of the threat or support whomever is in need, making them peacekeepers basically. While their code of operation is not always in line with that of the many life forms they effectively govern over, they are generally what most people would call just, getting rid of what is perceived as evil when needed. Because of their strength they usually don't have any trouble with that, making them the highest and most irresistible power in this multiverse. You can oppose them, but they will win at the end, as they are not only relatively many for such a powerful species, but the strongest among them are also so overwhelming in terms of strength that about every form of resistance is futile. The weakest among the Tenryuus can still do major damage to street-level objects, while their elite is capable of flattening solar systems, galaxies, even universes. They are not exactly the type of people you would want to mess with," Master Pax warned.
"If they are multiversal peacekeepers, doesn't that mean that they will stop us if we were to go for the Tower of Hanoi plan?! A lot of people would perish, so that would make them intervene, right?!" Genryu asked, his eyes wide open in premonition.
"Not necessarily. Tenryuus are known to respect the freedom of multiversal denizens to a great deal, and thus do not immediately intervene on each catastrophe. While they help discretely in for say wars on a planet, they usually won't stop them entirely, sometimes even if it causes the destruction of that planet. One of their leading principles is to respect the freedom of making choices, so if a species brings itself to the brink of extinction by their own doing, they won't always play the part of the parent who knows better than their child and save them. The first time usually, the second time maybe, but when a species keeps trying to get rid of itself repeatedly, they will eventually allow its demise. They see the world on a much larger scale than you after all. An Armageddon to you is only the fall of one of many planets in one of many universes to them; such things happen all the time from their perspective, hence why they are not as hellbent to save such a doomed planet as you might be. Destruction is a necessary thing in this world, and they would do a poor job as supervisors if they suppressed things such as that. While they are often peacekeepers, their main objective is balance, even if it requires to allow some cruelty every now and then. Life without death means nothing, neither does happiness without sadness or gain without loss."
"They usually only intervene on larger scale destruction or other major threats to the balance of a universe. A common occurrence that causes their intervention is the uncontrolled carnage of interplanetary empires who lay waste to other planets. That is one of their favorite things to get rid of, as they despise species who exert negative influence on species from another planet. According to their ideology everyone should be allowed to do what they want on their planet, and outsiders should not interfere, hence why the Tenryuus themselves rarely do so, but once somebody actually harms another planet, they flip out pretty easily. Unless of course a multitude of planets banded together before that to form a united interplanetary society. In that case they will apply their usual behavior, as a war breaking out in such a unified structure is no different from one that rages on only a single planet in their eyes. Since the lot of you only plan on maybe making a few million people permanently unconscious with your Tower Plan, the Heavenly Vanguard most likely will not interfere. Of course assuming that you don't plan on extending your doing to other planets or even plan on challenging the Heavenly Vanguard itself, because in that case I can assure you that, from the bottom of my Chūshin, I can do nothing at all in order to save you from certain extinction. You don't mess with the Heavenly Vanguard or other planets, you don't die. Got that?" Master Pax asked.
"Got it. But what about Shimizu Yukemi? He is a Tenryuu, so won't his kinsmen come to his aid were we to fight him?" Kiyoshi inquired.
"No, they won't. Tenryuus growing up outside of the Heavenly Realm like him are where they ended up being because of one simple reason: They are supposed to overcome obstacles thrown in their way, especially ones that correspond to the peacekeeping ways of their species. If they successfully defeat powerful enemies and secure the safety of life in the universe they live in, the Heavenly Vanguard eventually recognizes them for their strength and invites them to come to the Heavenly Realm in order to join their ranks. If you wonder why not just keep living in the Heavenly Realm altogether and instead growing up in one of the 100 universes, a successful recruit from the latter place is usually more suitable and promising of a soldier than one who grew up in the safety of the Heavenly Realm. The universes are no safe havens, but instead apply the general role of survival of the fittest. The Tenryuus who do not perish there but come out on top have already proven their strength more so than those resident to the Heavenly Realm, hence why the foreign ones can climb up the ladder of ranks more quickly and thus have better careers than the internal ones. Since his ancestors have apparently chosen that he should earn his place among the Heavenly Vanguard, I assure you that no action against Shimizu Yukemi will attract the fury of the Heavenly Vanguard in any shape or form. Just look out that you don't threaten their organization in general and you'll be fine," Master Pax clarified.
"That's good to hear. In that case we can proceed normally," Kiyoshi sighed in relief before addressing his Monster Spirit anew. "I think that was everything we need to hear about Tenryuus for now, thank you. I have one more question though: What was the other voice in my head that I heard earlier?" he asked Master Pax.
The expression of the spectral dragon turned dark, contempt forming on it. "That was my rival, Lector Perfectio. As I learned later on, there was also a reality where not I was the one being triumphant in our fight, but Lector Pendulum instead. That Lector then quickly expanded his insane Draco Alchemy experiments as he discovered new worlds and tribes to terrorize and corrupt, and he underwent a similar transformation as I, becoming Lector Perfectio. I later on clashed with him, and I can assure you that he is one of the most powerful and vile things I have ever seen, far more than his counterpart was before I destroyed it. Apparently he was also absorbed into you when you took the power of the scales, so beware, Kiyoshi-san: Lector is not someone to be taken lightly. While I make up for a considerable part of your body and can even act on my own, I still allow you your freedom, the most precious treasure of all. He on the other hand is known to possess, as evident by his transformation into Amorphactor Pain, so be warned: I am – as you might already have suspected – the entity that was drawn to you because of the benevolence within you, mainly born from the positive perspective you still have on your creation which you currently view as failed. Lector on the other hand is a manifestation of your inner evil, thriving on your fear and paranoia towards the Ignis. He embodies your lowest of instincts, so you must not give into them and your negativity towards your creation, otherwise his evil and corruption will possess you until he fully takes over your body and makes you his puppet. Do you understand that, Kiyoshi-san?" Master Pax admonished him sharply, giving him an insistent stare.
Kiyoshi nodded, wide-eyed with an expression rich with horror.
"Foolish of you to believe that you could stop me, Master Pax. I had not expected such folly from a being as wise as you, but even the best can err I suppose. Do not worry, Kogami Kiyoshi, I will soon make you mine! You can try to resist, but ultimately you will fail to suppress your own fear! Just as Master Pax could not suppress his fear towards me, even with all of his might!" the fiendish voice of Lector echoed, everyone flinching as the icy tone of the Dracofiend froze their hearts for a moment, the faint silhouette of the dark entity slowly manifesting in the air across from Master Pax, increasingly strengthening the panic of the spectators who witnessed its arrival in horror.
"Silence! Go back into your abyss, you unholy abomination!" Master Pax snapped at its nemesis, slicing the gradually appearing specter with its naginata in order to banish it back into Kiyoshi's mind.
"You cannot restrain me forever, Master Pax! I shall rise eventually, since I am inescapable! GAHAHAHAHA!" Lector Perfectio cackled darkly, its voice growing quieter over the course of its response until it was silenced after one final laugh of malice.
Following this parting was a prolonged period of silence, everyone gradually recovering from the shock. Atsuko sought the comfort of her sister, who was quick to reciprocate her quest for consolation and safety as she hugged her back. The rest dealt with the aftermath of Lector's attempt on surfacing mostly on their own, taking their time to recover as well. Eventually the most involved out of them all, Kiyoshi, spoke up again.
"That was a very terrifying encounter, to say the least...," he whispered, some of his subordinates nodding silently in agreement. "If anything, it proved what you just told me earlier. I will have to be cautious about my darker feelings, or else they will consume me and facilitate his rise to power. I will be careful from now on," Kiyoshi said, Master Pax humming in approval.
"That was a rather dumb thing to do though, wasn't it? By scaring you like that, Lector will only counteract its own plans of taking control, right? Why did it do something that stupid?" Noctis remarked, pointing out something the others had missed.
"Lector is not exactly wrong to believe in his inevitability. The darkness within Kiyoshi-san is indeed strong, making it easy for Lector to take advantage of him. However, as long as he keeps it in check and listens to me, Kiyoshi-san will be safe, so in that regard you are right, that was indeed a stupid thing to do. But it was to be expected of him, Lector was always an arrogant and overconfident person, so it's rather typical that he'd do something like that," Master Pax responded, hissing every bit about its nemesis with such contempt that even the hateful Anti Ignis was impressed by it.
"Well then, let us conclude with the supernatural topics for now and switch over to the organization-related ones, okay everyone?" Kiyoshi tried to lighten up the mood by switching the topic, noticing the nervousness that his subordinates and children shared with him.
"Sounds good. I am done with supernatural stuff for today," Atsuko replied, her body still mildly shaking in fear.
Kiyoshi nodded. "Alright, everyone, then let's tend to the matters of the Knights of Hanoi. Since I already clarified our plans on how to deal with the Ignis earlier, and since we know for a fact that Shimizu Yukemi is still an unrestricted target for us, let us deal with the structure of the hierarchy instead. Sounds acceptable?" he asked.
A hum of general agreement resounded.
"Good. Then let us start with the third division's lieutenants first. Meaning you, Aso, Kyoko, Genome," the Hanoi Leader addressed his three former assistants, who faced him following his declaration. "You know that I like everyone of you three. Arguably more than a lot of the newcomers in the Knights of Hanoi's high command. How could I not, you and Kenshi have been my assistants during my days back at SOL, alongside Sokudo who was assigned to me for a short while as well. I really appreciate your friendship and assistance, but I hope all of you are aware that I cannot give you a higher position among the ranks of the high command. Your skills as duelists are respectable, but they do not surpass those that the members of the first and second division have. Your general abilities are more in favor of hacking, which is another essential task for the survival of this organization and one where you excel compared to the majority of other high command members. As such I cannot promote you, unfortunately. As for your individual placements, based on recent training records I would still reckon that Aso is the strongest out of you, followed by Kyoko and finally Genome. You showed a good trend of improvement, but were still below the dueling power that those ranked above you demonstrated. Thus I see no reason to change any of your rankings. Is that acceptable to you?" he asked his loyal trio.
"I honestly didn't expect anything to change, so I can hardly say that I am disappointed. Thank you for acknowledging our improvement though, Kiyoshi-sama," Aso responded composedly.
Kyoko shrugged her shoulders. "Well, me neither. Hmm, I was promoted at the hospital anyway, so I'm already covered in regards to that. Second Lieutenant of the Third Division it is then."
"By giving me those wonderful scales to experiment on, you bestowed a far greater blessing onto me than any promotion would have done! So I'm quite satisfied with today regardless!" Genome chuckled, eyeing the dragonic price on the table that was given to him earlier.
"Hmm, glad to hear that. Next up is the captain of the third division then. That being of course you, Spectre," he said, the tall white haired teenager on the other end of the table eyeing him intently in response. "Despite your youth compared to your three lieutenants and your history with the organization you became a member of us who is dedicated to the cause more than most others. I deeply appreciate your respect and loyalty and the effort you display whenever your help is needed, whether in regards to dueling or hacking. You truly were fast to adapt and improve, otherwise I wouldn't put you above three of my most trusted friends. I see no reason to change your rank either though. Your achievements are far too great to justify a demotion to the rank of a lieutenant, even if it is to one in the first or second division, but you haven't quite proven worthy of a promotion either. The defense of your deck is strong, but despite your ability to adapt rather quickly you don't show the raw destructive power of the higher ranked captains, thus making your remaining as Captain of Third Division the most logical choice. Do you have any complaints? I'll hear them in case there are," the Hanoi Leader inquired from his subordinate.
"There are none, Kiyoshi-sama. I see the reasoning behind your decision and welcome it. I'll promise to improve on my flaws, if that is what you wish," Spectre assured him, bowing his head.
"That is exactly what I wanted to hear. You're a duelist alright, but there is always room for improvement. Fixing one's flaws is the best approach to it as well, so maybe I'll have an incentive to promote you on the day of our next meeting," Kiyoshi applauded Spectre.
"I understand. Thank you, Kiyoshi-sama," Spectre expressed his gratitude with another bow.
"You're welcome," Kiyoshi retorted before continuing. "Moving on, the second division's lieutenants. All of them have proven great power, though their skills are mostly limited to dueling. While I am somewhat unsure whom of you holds the greater power, I do think that you might be a tad bit better than your sister, Hachiri Mitsuko. However, I do remember that you insisted on the lower position in favor of your sister the last few times, so I ask you again: Will you deliberately choose to be the third lieutenant again so that your sister can be the second lieutenant, Hachiri Mitsuko?" the Hanoi Leader addressed the pink haired female.
"I will, Kiyoshi-sama," Mitsuko confirmed with a nod, her facial expression indicating that she had made up her mind.
"Very well. In that case Hachiri Mitsuko and Hachiri Akame remain as the third and second lieutenant respectively. As for the first, I believe that would still be you, Kaibura Kazuki. Your training results have shown that you can beat any of the two Hachiri siblings in seven out of ten cases, so that is proof enough to me. Any comments on my verdict?" Kiyoshi inquired.
"I'm just surprised that you didn't punish me for the thing with 'borrowing' money," Kazuki replied, suppressing a laugh as he gambled on the benevolence of his superior.
"Amusing answer, Kaibura Kazuki. I of course intend to have you repay a small compensation for that. You didn't really think that you would get away scot free with that, now did you?" Kiyoshi smirked, Kazuki's smile dropping as he slumped into the couch in defeat.
"Why did I even bring that up...? Me and my dumb habit of running my big mouth...," the gambler whispered to himself in regret, realizing that this gamble of him had backfired rather badly.
"As you said, when you in particular gamble, Kaibura Kazuki, the house only occasionally wins. However, it appears that this was one of those occasional times," Kiyoshi chuckled before moving on. "Concluding the second division is of course its captain, that being you, Hakashi," he switched the subject as he created eye contact with the son of his long-term friend. "You're among the very strongest duelists of the Knights of Hanoi, and your hacking abilities are equally superb. Since there is only one possible promotion you could receive which is Captain of the First Division, I cannot really move you up though," Kiyoshi said.
"Yes, of course. That position is currently held by my father, and he is both stronger and knows you for longer, so I will not be moved to it at the expense of otoosan, will I?" the grayish haired adult asked Kiyoshi.
"Of course you won't. You will still be moved though, meaning you will experience a formal demotion. You will surely realize why though, if you allow me the time to explain," Kiyoshi declared.
"Of course. Take as long as you want for your explanation. I will listen." Hakashi nodded with a composed voice and expression, not bothered by the negative news at all.
"Thanks for the patience and calm reception. The reasoning for this change is not your underperformance or anything, but the overperformance of another member. Namely my old assistant Kenshi, who currently serves as First Lieutenant of the First Division," Kiyoshi told.
"What? Me?" the dark haired male exclaimed in surprise. Meanwhile Aso looked at Kyoko and Genome with an expression that said "I told you", his theory of Kenshi's promotion becoming true.
"Yes, you. Unlike my other three assistants from back in the day, you always excelled at dueling to an incredible degree. On the training sessions you preferably go up against the captains after all," Kiyoshi explained.
"Well, of course. Why would I go around bullying lieutenants if I am the First Lieutenant of the First Division? That sounds pretty unfair of a matchup to me, hence why I do so only occasionally so that those ranked below me can learn from the experience and improve," Kenshi retorted.
"Indeed. As you said, you prefer captain level opponents and even manage to achieve not occasional, but consistent victories against Spectre and Hakashi, and to a lesser degree even Genryu. It shows that you can overcome most of those above you in rank, since your preferred sparring partners are captains rather than lieutenants. Also your hacking skills are extraordinary which further justifies your promotion to a captain as that is a necessary skill for the position. Therefore my offer is the following: You, Kenshi, accept your promotion from the First Lieutenant of the First Division to the Captain of the Second Division, replacing Hakashi. In turn Hakashi is demoted to your former position. What do you say?" Kiyoshi addressed his two subordinates.
"Hmm," Hakashi debated with himself, finger to his chin. "It's a formal demotion, but First Lieutenant of the First Division is still a very high rank. Furthermore I can directly serve under my father who is captain of that division... Well, sounds acceptable. Since I am accompanying my father all the time in the real world, might as well do so in the virtual one. Fine, I agree," the grayish haired male nodded with confidence in his turquoise eyes.
Kiyoshi nodded as he registered the reply. "And you, Kenshi?" he then asked, turning around to his other subordinate.
Kenshi shrugged his shoulders. "If Hakashi is okay with it, I have nothing against it either. Conduct the change of rankings then," he approved.
"Good. In that case Gaiton Kenshi from now on serves as Captain of the Second Division while Tomore Hakashi becomes First Lieutenant of the First Division. Congratulations on your promotion, Kenshi!" Kiyoshi proclaimed, the gathered members giving a brief round of applause, Mitsuko being especially happy for Kenshi as she blushed.
"Mitsuko looks rather enthusiastic, doesn't she?" Kazuki discretely addressed Sokudo.
"No wonder. Her crush was just promoted, to the captain of her own division at that. Now her personal contact with him will be higher by default due to Kenshi's obligations as a captain, so she'll probably use the increased proximity in order to make a move on him. Maybe they'll even smash in the near future," Sokudo whispered back, deducing the intentions of the young, pink haired adult.
"Next up the first division, starting with the lieutenants once more. I shall begin with you, Amara Daisuke," Kiyoshi announced with a firm tone, the blue haired teenager flinching in a bout of his trademark nervousness. "Despite your incredibly youth, you have shown great strength and adaption, as well as the will to improve. Otherwise you would still be one of our foot soldiers after all instead of the Third Lieutenant of the First Division. You lack in terms of punctuality, manners and self-control, especially in regards to your nervousness, however those are negligible traits considering all the other things that you offer to us. You have proven a strong personal growth, and despite your occasional bouts of arrogance and smart-assery due to your quick rise among our ranks, you usually manage to compose yourself. You have also amassed a considerable amount of hacking knowledge in your sixteen years of life. Therefore my verdict is this: Third Lieutenant of the First Division was your earlier rank, and Third Lieutenant of the First Division will remain your rank. You have grown since the last time, but you are still beneath your immediate neighbor Sokudo. Not as much as the last time though, since back then the gap between you was much larger. Are you content with this decision?" he asked the youngest among the present people.
"Perfectly content, Kiyoshi-sama! Thank you!" Daisuke replied, nodding eagerly.
"Well, that's good. Then onward with the second lieutenant of this division, meaning Sokudo," he told, now facing his earlier opponent. "Despite your occasional bouts of anger towards me which are hopefully now solved for the most part, you have been doing a great job so far. You might not do so out of loyalty as you believe yourself to be trapped in our organization, but I still appreciate your efforts. Your dueling and hacking has been a constancy in terms of reliability, and it steadily improved, though not as rapidly as that of other members. Taking you down takes usually far more effort than many opponents are comfortable with, hence why I had to go to such great lengths in order to defeat you today. As such my decision is to have you remain on your current rank. I wouldn't quite put you above Hakashi who just became the first lieutenant, but I wouldn't put you beneath any of those below you either. Sounds fair to you?" he addressed his long-term subordinate.
"Yeah, whatever. In six months the latest I will be gone anyway, so might as well remain where I was. Don't particularly care about my position anyway," Sokudo retorted nonchalantly with a dismissive hand wave.
"I almost expected as much. Very well then, since the final lieutenant rank has already been discussed let me turn to the final captain. That being you, Genryu," Kiyoshi told as he turned to the man he had known for decades, both of them looking at each other with a firm but amicable expression. "I've known you for the very longest among all the people present in this room. You have been a reliable and helpful ally to the Knights of Hanoi ever since their conception, even creating our signature monster. Your skills in either of the necessary forms have always been outstanding and you have encouraged me whenever my resolve faltered. Since you deserve a promotion for your continued loyalty and help but are already in the highest position possible for a non-Kogami, I can only reward you in one way," Kiyoshi announced, raising his index finger as he turned around to Ryoken. "Bring in the cup!" he instructed his son, who messaged his sister via the electric communication feature of his duel disk in response to the order.
"Oi Kiyoshi, is it what I think it is?!" Genryu exclaimed in excitement as Kiyoshi's middle child entered the room from behind Genryu, holding a coffee plate upon which a cup rested.
"Exactly! A large latte macchiato with cream and chocolate sprinkles! That's still your favorite, isn't it? Since I cannot upgrade your rank among the knights, I instead decided to upgrade that of the second coffee you ordered!" Kiyoshi responded with a proud smirk, his daughter who had left the table to prepare the beverage approaching its receiver.
"Oh, of course! Now give me that thing already!" Genryu demanded in longing, prompting Betsune to hurry up, handing over the coffee. "Ah, god bless you and your child, Kiyoshi! That is a hundred times better than any promotion!" Genryu moaned, starting to down a good portion of his gift in no time.
"You're welcome, old friend! Enjoy your reward while I tend to the final section of our ranks! Daisuke, would you be so kind to explain our high command hierarchy to Master Pax? He probably knows it anyway since he is sort of merged with me, but let's at least be formal, right? Also this could be a good opportunity to work on your confidence," Kiyoshi went on addressing Genryu and Daisuke respectively.
"Understood...!" Daisuke shouted, his nervousness returning as all faces were directed towards him. He cleared his throat a couple of times, trying to overcome his stage fright. After a while he finally mustered up the required courage and spoke up, though still hesitantly at first.
"The Knights of Hanoi's high command is designed according to a one-on-three system. I've noticed that the number three seems to be a big thing with the Kogamis, so they also implemented that here...," Daisuke said, earning a couple of weird looks at his deviation from the topic in the last part. "Anyway, there are three divisions, with one captain each. Those captains supervise their respective lieutenants of whom there are three as well, and the lieutenants report back to their respective captain. While a captain can give hints on how to behave to lieutenants from another division, they cannot directly command them, as that right is reserved to their own captain. To become a captain one needs extraordinary skills in both dueling and hacking, making only the fewest of us suitable for it. The three captains in turn report back to the triumvirate, which can be considered a superior division whose members hold absolute authority over all captains and lieutenants, not only indirect but also direct one. The triumvirate is solely composed of members of the Kogami family, making access to it impossible for the rest of us. Its leader is of course Kiyoshi-sama, while his three kids make up the triumvirate itself with their ranks beings based on their abilities and performance, though it currently also mirrors their age with Ryoken-sama as the oldest being the first-ranked."
"Thank you, Amara Daisuke!" Kiyoshi expressed his gratitude before turning to Master Pax. "Well, was that helpful?" he asked the spirit.
"Yes, I think it was, since I did not search around in your memories so far. I could already deduce the general system after hearing a couple of your raking verdicts, but had no immediate idea how you positioned your children. Thank you for your insightful explanation, Amara Daisuke-kun!" Master Pax hummed, the blue haired male looking content at the twofold praise he had received from both his leader and the Monster Spirit.
"Now that this has been taken care of, let me discuss the rankings of the triumvirate. First of all, mine of course. The fact that I founded the Knights of Hanoi by itself justifies my eternal position as its leader. While I entrusted a lot of the tasks that come with this position to my son so far, I intend to take back some of the responsibilities moving forward, now that I once more have an operational physical body. Also the newfound strength resulting from my contact with the Tenryuu scales as well as my supremacy in regards to technology know-how should take care of any doubts regarding my competence as a duelist and programmer. With Master Pax behind me I am confident to beat any of you in a duel, as well have access to its ability that can also inflict and undo severe damage outside of duels, even in the real world. And I made an artificial life form, so I suppose everyone here can deduce that my hacking and programming skills surpass theirs. As such I will remain the commander of the triumvirate and thus leader of the Knights of Hanoi. Not that that was ever subject to change, am I right?" he addressed the collection of members around him, who affirmed his declaration of being undisputed with a unified nod.
"I think everyone here expected that, but it's a good change that you're taking the reins more from now on. Can you deal with the more interesting part now?" Genryu asked him.
"Of course. Let us move on to the triumvirate itself then! Starting with you, my dear Atsuko! As you should know yourself, you have always been a good child, never complaining when I asked you to do something. Your intuition also led to my revival, for which I give you a lot of credit. You may have failed to take the Iris Anti Ignis, but you are still an overall successful person in my book. If you would only learn to keep your emotions in check more, you would probably improve enough for me to promote you. Given how things are you would need to remain as the third of the triumvirate for now. Are you content with my decision or do you wish to submit a complaint?" Kiyoshi asked his youngest.
"No, you have a point. Besides, you came back to us today, so I couldn't be happier either way!" she told, embracing her father.
"Glad to hear that," he softly said, patting her head. "Now onto the second in line, meaning you, Betsune." He switched over to his older child, who moved up to him at his declaration. "Your work as a spy at SOL Technologies has done us well. Despite the suspicion of their leaders, you have managed to keep a low profile and attract only a bare minimum of attention. That is an accomplishment worthy of praise for sure. Furthermore you have aided your siblings in keeping our family and this organization stable, lending a helping hand to whomever needed it, which also deserves recognition. As for the two core skills, you are exceptional with computers, especially with anything that relates to aviation, and your dueling is consistent, boasts a lot of power and is adaptable like few others. Hence why I have decided to promote you to the first of the triumvirate," he said, everyone including especially Betsune gasping in shock of the last part.
-"WHAT?!"- a collective shout echoed throughout the room, the weight of his declaration slowly sinking in.
"You're promoting her?! But that would mean that...!" Ryoken gasped in disbelief.
"Exactly. It means that you're getting demoted. Do you have any complaints about that?" Kiyoshi inquired from his son.
"If I have complaints?!" Ryoken snapped, a storm gathering within him. "Why am I getting demoted?! I didn't do a single thing wrong recently!"
"Truthfully you didn't, but you would need to move down if your sister were to move up. So it's only natural that you're getting demoted," Kiyoshi retorted calmly, though a worried frown began forming on his face.
"I did something wrong, didn't I?! Was it the fact that I backstabbed you back then?!" Ryoken shouted back, his thoughts running wild. 'It has to be that! He said that he doesn't hold a grudge, but he must be lying! He's not outright saying it and denied it earlier, but on the inside he hates me for my betrayal ten years ago! Why isn't he admitting it?!'
"No, it wasn't that. It's simply because Betsune did a good job. Is that so unbelievable?" Kiyoshi retorted, reading the worries on his son's expression.
"YOU'RE LYING!" Ryoken yelled on the outside, whilst feverishly yelling the following on the inside. 'Otoosan hates me, otoosan hates me, otoosan hates me, otoosan hates me...!'
"CALM YOURSELF, RYOKEN!" Kiyoshi snapped at him, silencing Ryoken's twofold shouting. "I really do hold no grudge against you, and I do not try to enact my supposed resentment against you in a hidden way either! I am not angry at you because of that whatsoever, so cease your paranoia at once! Betsune has been doing a good job just as you have, but her dueling has outgrown yours since you've been stagnating for a while! As such I want her to change places with you! Is that so hard to understand?!" he shouted at his son, whose resistance resurfaced following his words.
"Her dueling is superior?! Why don't we find out and check that then?! Her versus me, if she manages to beat me she can have the first rank, but if I win or we tie, I am permitted to remain where I am!" Ryoken demanded in a bout of anger resulting from his fears. Meanwhile Betsune looked conflicted, on the one hand happy about her promotion, but on the other hand regretting it due to how much discomfort it caused her brother.
'Sigh, now he projects his worries about my supposed hidden grudge towards him onto the preservation of his position and claws to it with all of his might... Very well then,' Kiyoshi debated with himself before responding. "Fine, I accept your proposal. You two duke it out and if Betsune comes out on top, my promotion becomes effective. Otherwise it is nullified," Kiyoshi told his verdict before staring down Betsune. "Oh, and Betsune, don't try to go easy on him or let him win! If you do that, then I will demote both you and Ryoken by one rank each and make Atsuko the first of the triumvirate instead!" Kiyoshi declared, causing his youngest child to gasp in shock as she was now also being pulled into the conflict.
'Damn it, there is nothing I can do then! If I win the duel, I might be happy about my own position, but onii-san will be miserable! And if I forfeit the duel, then Ryoken is going to be demoted regardless in an even more humiliating way while I lose my former rank as well! In that case there is only one thing I can do!' Betsune contemplated her dilemma begrudgingly before speaking up in resolve. "Fine, I will fight onii-san with all of my strength!" she declared resolutely, earning an approving nod from her father.
"Good. How about you, Ryoken?" Kiyoshi addressed his other child.
"I couldn't be more serious about it!" he barked, frightening both of his sisters with the sheer, primal anger in his expression.
'His emotions are tearing him apart. He has to learn to stop clinging to the past,' Kiyoshi thought whilst looking at his son before speaking up again. "In that case go to the terrace, everyone! The duel will commence there as per usual!" he announced, the knights leaving the living room at his declaration, Ryoken and Betsune with varying resolve on their expressions while Atsuko and the non-Kogamis looked rather worried.
"This is not going to be easy. Your brother is not exactly the person to hold back, especially now when he is pushed into a corner with his back against the wall, and you must play to win in order for your father to not pull the double demotion," Helena spoke up as she arose from Betsune's duel disk which the latter currently prepared.
"I know! Therefore, I will try to win with all of my power!" Betsune said, then pausing for a moment, an expression of realization appearing on her face shortly after that, causing her to continue. "Now that I think about, I remember otoosan's individual advices to us three earlier! He wants us to overcome our respective problems, and mine was taking too little pride in myself! That's why he originally suggested my promotion and now doesn't want me to step down on it and lose the duel on purpose so that onii-san can be happy! He wants me to take what I earned so I can be proud of myself! Yes, the more that I think about it, the more I actually want to win! I'm sure otoosan has a grand scheme on how Ryoken can be happy as well, so all I have to to now is achieve victory by my own desire! Let's do this, Helena!" she declared resolutely, taking a step forward and turning around to face her brother.
"Look at how fired up you are! I've rarely seen you so motivated!" Helena cheered, pleasantly surprised by her partner's fighting spirit.
"Careful, your sister and her deck are a tricky mess! You gotta finish this as soon as possible, otherwise she will eventually drown in her own resource advantage and trample over you on the back of that massive resource lead! With your current deck build you should be fairly well equipped for a go-second strategy though, so let her go first, then quickly crush her defense and put an end to her! The longer the duel goes, the bigger of a disadvantage you're at!" Noctis whispered to his partner, sharing a large portion of Ryoken's eagerness to fight.
"Don't worry, I am well aware of that! The problem will be how much she can stall and how lucky she gets on her draws! But I am confident to beat her quickly regardless of that!" Ryoken growled back, turning around and activating his disk as well.
"Are both of you ready?" Kiyoshi addressed his children, assuming the role of the referee.
-"We are, otoosan!"- both of them declared in unison.
"In that case let it begin!" Kiyoshi announced. "Let us...!"
-"DUEL!"- both pairs of Kogami sibling and Anti Ignis shouted, the artificial reality systems of their disks going into effect.
To be continued...
Epilogue...
"These are hard times for sure. But even with all of that going on, no, especially because of all those developments, I believe that I can finally attain the knowledge that I sought for so long. If I just stick to my principles, I am bound to come out on top at the end," a sole figure told, standing atop a balcony and gazing upon a vast city of blue. He silently started humming at that.
"Mmm mmm mmm mmm, beast among men.
Mmm mmm mmm mmm, strongest of ten."
A bizarre phenomenon occurred, drops of blood splattering onto his face.
(Bloodborne OST – Ludwig, The Accursed)
Card Corner:
Sokudo Himiji's Cards:
Emergency Interception
Card Type: Trap/Normal
Effect:
Activate only during the Battle Phase. You take no battle damage from battles involving your monsters this turn. If you control no monsters: You can banish this card from your GY; halve all battle damage you take from direct attacks this turn.
Dr. Kiyoshi Kogami's Cards:
Trickster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Attribute: Light
Level: 4/ Scale: 9
Type: Dragon/Pendulum/Effect
ATK/DEF: 1750/0
Pendulum Effect:
You can activate this effect; this turn, if a "Trickster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer(s)" is Pendulum Summoned, you can immediately Special Summon 1 "Draco" Pendulum Monster from your Deck, but its effects (if any) are negated and its ATK becomes 0. You can only use this effect of "Trickster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer" once per turn.
Monster Effect:
If this card is destroyed by a card effect: You can add 1 "Draco" Pendulum Monster from your Deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of "Trickster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer" once per turn.
Trivia:
This monster is an evolved form of "Majespecter Fox – Kyubi". It served as a squire of "Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer".
Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer
Attribute: Light
Level: 4/ Scale: 0
Type: Dragon/Pendulum
ATK/DEF: 1650/0
Pendulum Effect:
You can activate this effect; this turn, if a "Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer(s)" is destroyed by card effect, you can immediately Special Summon 1 "Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer" and 1 Level 6 or lower "Draco" Pendulum Monster from your face-up Extra Deck, and if you do, draw 1 card. You can only use this effect of "Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer" once per turn.
Flavor Text:
Encountering this jocular fighter in the realm of the Majespecters which he saved,"Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer", still on search for the secrets of Dragon Alchemy, recruited him and his evenly crafting brother "Trickster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer", turning them into his dragonic squires by sharing his empowering curse with them. Accompanied by them he soon might be able to find and challenge his nemesis "Vector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord" – and the terrible Dracofiends that he commands.
Trivia:
This monster is an evolved form of "Majespecter Raccoon – Bunbuku". It served as a squire of "Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer".
Infector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Attribute: Dark
Level: 4/ Scale: 9
Type: Dragon/Pendulum
ATK/DEF: 1750/0
Pendulum Effect:
During your Main Phase: You can destroy all Pendulum Monsters in both players' Pendulum Zones, and if you do, draw cards equal to the number of cards destroyed by this effect. You can only use this effect of "Infector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord" once per turn.
Flavor Text:
As chief adviser of "Vector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord", this vile spawn of wickedness has already overseen the production of hundreds of Dracofiends. Under his watchful eyes innocent life forms are turned into the terrible minions of his master using Dragon Alchemy.
Trivia:
This monster served as a servant of "Vector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord", more specifically as a scientist who created Amorphages on behalf of his master.
Rejector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord
Attribute: Dark
Level: 4/ Scale: 0
Type: Dragon/Pendulum/Tuner/Effect
ATK/DEF: 1650/0
Pendulum Effect:
You can destroy 1 other card in a Pendulum Zone, and if you do, Special Summon this card from your Pendulum Zone. You can only use this effect of "Rejector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord" once per turn.
Monster Effect:
If a "Draco" Monster Card(s) is destroyed by card effect or Tributed: You can target 1 of those monsters in your GY or face-up Extra Deck; Special Summon it to your Main Monster Zone, but negate its effects (if any). You can only use this effect of "Rejector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord" once per turn.
Trivia:
This monster served as a servant of "Vector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord", more specifically as an instructor sorting out the strong Amorphages that Vector or Infector had created, turning them into soldiers for his master.
Lector Perfection, the True Dracoverlord
Attribute: Dark
Level: 8
Type: Dragon/Effect
ATK/DEF: 2950/2950
Effect:
Cannot be Normal Summoned/Set. Must be Special Summoned (from your hand) by Tributing 1 "Dracoslayer" monster and 1 "Dracoverlord" monster, and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. If this card is Special Summoned: Add 1 "Draco Alchemy" from your Deck or GY to your hand. You can Tribute this card; during your Main Phase this turn, you can conduct 1 Pendulum Summon of a "Draco" Pendulum Monster(s) in addition to your Pendulum Summon. If this card in its owner's control leaves the field: You can draw 1 card. You can only use each effect of "Lector Perfection, the True Dracoverlord" once per turn.
Trivia:
This monster is the evolved form of "Lector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord", the latter no longer requiring a union with his Amorphages and having mastered the use of Dragon Alchemy.
Mythster Destiny, the Fantastical Dracoslayer
Attribute: Light
Level: 8/ Scale: 0
Type: Dragon/Pendulum/Effect
ATK/DEF: 2800/1050
Pendulum Effect:
During your Main Phase: You can destroy this card, and if you do, Special Summon 1 face-up "Draco" Pendulum Monster from your Extra Deck, except "Mythster Destiny, the Fabled Dracoslayer". You can only use this effect of "Mythster Destiny, the Fantastical Dracoslayer" once per turn.
Monster Effect:
If this card is Pendulum Summoned: You can target 1 face-up card on the field; negate its effects. Once per turn: You can have all "Draco" monsters currently on your field gain 300 ATK, until the end of this turn. If this card is face-up in your Extra Deck or GY, except during the turn it was sent there: You can shuffle this card and 1 face-up "Draco" Pendulum Monster from your Extra Deck into your Deck, and if you do, Special Summon 1 "Draco" Pendulum Monster from your Deck. You can only use this effect of "Mythster Destiny, the Fantastical Dracoslayer" once per turn.
Trivia:
This monster is an evolved form of "Mythical Beast King Cerberus".
Qlipster Dominance, the Quaking Dracoslayer
Attribute: Earth
Level: 8
Type: Dragon/Ritual/Effect
ATK/DEF: 2950/2000
Effect:
You can Ritual Summon this card with "Dracovocation". Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can target 1 "Dracoslayer" monster you control; it becomes unaffected by your opponent's monster effects, until the end of this turn. You can target 1 Pendulum Monster you control; 1 monster on your opponent's field loses ATK equal to the ATK of the monster you targeted, also this card gains half as many ATK, until the end of this turn. You can only activate this effect of "Qlipster Dominance, the Quaking Dracoslayer" once per turn.
Trivia:
This monster is a combination of "Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer" and "Qliphort Scout".
Dracovocation
Card Type: Spell/Ritual
Effect:
This card can be used to Ritual Summon any "Draco" Ritual Monster from your hand or Deck. You must also Tribute monsters from your hand or field whose total Levels equal or exceed the Level of the Ritual Monster you Ritual Summon. If you control a "Draco" Ritual Monster, while this card is in your GY (except during the turn it was sent there): You can add this card from your GY to your hand, and if you do, shuffle that Ritual Monster into the Deck, then you can Special Summon 1 "Draco" Pendulum Monster from your GY or face-up from your Extra Deck, also you cannot Ritual Summon monsters with that same name as the Ritual Monster you shuffled back with this effect for the rest of this turn.
Trivia:
This card depicts "Master Pendulum, the Dracoslayer" and "Lector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord" in one panel of the artwork respectively, both preparing to merge with a respective entity in order to assume their Ritual-Monster forms. In Master's case Qliphort Scout, becoming Qlipster Dominance, and in Lector's the defeated Amorphages, becoming Amorphactor Pain.
Dracosurrection
Card Type: Spell/Normal
Effect:
Add 2 face-up "Draco" Pendulum Monsters with different names from your Extra Deck to your hand. You can banish this card from your GY; destroy or Tribute 1 "Draco" Monster Card you control, and if you do, Special Summon 1 face-up "Draco" Pendulum Monster from your Extra Deck or Pendulum Zone. You can only use each effect of "Dracosurrection" once per turn.
Trivia:
This card depicts "Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme" reviving its two former squires "Trickster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer" and "Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer".
Draco Separation
Card Type: Spell/Quick-Play
Effect:
If you control a "Draco" monster on your field that was Special Summoned from your Extra Deck: You can Special Summon 1 face-up "Draco" Pendulum Monster from your Extra Deck, and if there is another monster with the same Card Name as that Special Summoned monster face-up in your Extra Deck or on your field, you can shuffle 1 face-up monster from your Extra Deck into the Deck and add 1 "Draco" Spell/Trap from your Deck to your hand, except "Draco Separation". You can only use 1 "Draco Separation" per turn.
Trivia:
This card depicts "Master Peace, the True Dracoslayer" splitting into two copies of itself, one later becoming "Master Peace, the True Dracoslaying King" and the other becoming "Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme".
Draco Alchemy
Card Type: Spell/Normal
Effect:
Discard 1 card OR destroy or Tribute 1 "Draco" Pendulum Monster in your hand or on your field, and if you do, add 2 "Draco" monsters OR 2 "Draco" Spells/Traps from your Deck to your hand. You can only use 1 "Draco Alchemy" per turn.
Trivia:
This card depicts "Lector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord"'s creation, using Dragon Alchemy for the first time in order to transform himself.
Draco Exchange
Card Type: Spell/Normal
Effect:
Destroy or Tribute 1 "Draco" Monster Card on the field, and if you do, add 1 "Draco" monster from your Deck or face-up from your Extra Deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of "Draco Exchange" once per turn. If you would take battle damage from a battle involving your "Draco" monster, you can instead shuffle this card in your GY and 1 "Draco" Pendulum Monster from your field or face-up from your Extra Deck into the Deck.
Trivia:
This card depicts "Amorphactor Pain, the Imagination Dracoverlord" slaying "Trickster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer" and "Jokester Pendulum, the Dracoslayer" following its transformation.
Servants of the True Draco Monarch
Card Type: Spell/Continuous
Effect:
When this card is activated: You can add 1 "Draco" card from your Deck to your hand, except "Servants of the True Draco Monarch". If you Pendulum Summon a "Draco" monster(s): You can destroy or Tribute 1 card in your hand or on your field, and if you do, add 1 "Draco" card with a different name from it from your Deck to your hand. If you control "Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme": You can make that monster be treated as having 1 Monster Card Type and Attribute of your choice (even if this card leaves the field). You can only use each effect of "Servants of the True Draco Monarch" once per turn.
Trivia:
This card depicts "Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme" sitting on a throne with "True King of All Calamities" chained to it. Kneeling before it are "True King Agnimazud, the Vanisher", "True King Bahrastos, the Fathomer", "True King Lithosagym, the Vanisher", "Mariamne, the True Dracosphoenix", "Master Peace, the True Dracoslaying King" , "Metaltron XII, the True Dracombatant", "Mythster Destiny, the Fabled Dracoslayer", "Mekkster Dawn, the Eclipsing Dracoslayer", as well as four other dragonic entities.
Diffster Demon, the Dimensional Dracoslayer
Attribute: Dark
Link Rating: 3 (↙↓↘)
Type: Dragon/Link/Effect
ATK: 2750
Effect:
3 Pendulum Monsters, including a "Dracoslayer" monster
Your "Draco" monsters cannot have their effects negated by the effects of your own "Draco" monsters. During the Battle Phase "Draco" monsters this card points to gain 200 ATK for each "Draco" monster you control. Once per turn: You can move this card to an Extra Monster Zone, also switch locations of monsters if that zone is already occupied, but you cannot control 2 monsters in the Extra Monster Zone after this effect resolves, except if you already did so before you activated this effect. Once per turn: You can gain 500 LP for each monster card type of "Draco" monsters you control (except Effect Monster and Normal Monster).
Trivia:
This monster is a combination of Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer and D/D/D Doom King Armageddon.
Mekkster Dawn, the Eclipsing Dracoslayer
Attribute: Dark
Link Rating: 3 (↙↓↘)
Type: Dragon/Link/Effect
ATK: 2450
Effect:
3 Pendulum Monsters, including a "Dracoslayer" monster
Your "Draco" monsters cannot have their effects negated by the effects of your own "Draco" monsters. Once per turn: You can move this card to an Extra Monster Zone, also switch locations of monsters if that zone is already occupied, but you cannot control 2 monsters in the Extra Monster Zone after this effect resolves, except if you already did so before you activated this effect. During the Main Phase: You can destroy up to 2 monsters this card points to, and if you do, destroy all of your opponent's cards in the same columns as those destroyed monsters. You can only use this effect of "Mekkster Dawn, the Eclipsing Dracoslayer" once per turn. Once per turn: You can Special Summon 1 "Dracoslayer" monster from your Deck in Defense Position to a zone this card points to, but it cannot be used as a Link Material for a Summon.
Trivia:
This monster is the evolved form of a powerful Mekk-Knight's brother.
Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme
Attribute: Heaven
Link Rating: 5 (←→↙↓↘)
Type: Tenryuu/Link/Effect
ATK: 4000
Effect:
3+ "Dracoslayer" monsters
(This card is always treated as a "Dracoslayer" and "True King" card.)
Must first be Link Summoned. For the Link Summon of this card the material may exceed the Link Rating necessary. If this card is Link Summoned: It is treated as having the monster card types of its materials, as well as their Attributes, in addition to its own. Once per turn: You can Special Summon 1 face-up "Draco" monster from your Extra Deck to a zone this card points to, but its ATK become 0, until the end of this turn. Once per turn, during your turn (Quick Effect): You can Tribute 1 monster in a Zone this card points to; this card is treated as having 1 monster card type and Attribute of your choice, OR, if you Tributed a Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, Ritual or Link Monster, this card is treated as having 2 monster card types and Attributes of your choice instead. This card gains effects, based on the monster card types and Attributes it has at the same time.
● Fusion Monster and WATER: During your Main Phase: You can look at your opponent's Extra Deck and banish up to 2 cards from it, then this card is no longer treated as being a Fusion and WATER monster. You can only use this effect of "Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme" once per turn.
● Synchro Monster and FIRE: During your Main Phase: You can send cards from the field to the GY, up to the number of monster card types this card currently has (except Effect Monster), then this card is no longer treated as being a Synchro and FIRE monster. You can only use this effect of "Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme" once per turn.
● Xyz Monster and WIND: If your opponent adds a card(s) to their hand, except by their Normal Draw (Quick Effect): You can activate this effect; those cards cannot activate their effects or leave your opponent's hand until the end of this turn, then this card is no longer treated as being an Xyz and WIND monster. You can only use this effect of "Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme" once per turn.
● Ritual Monster and EARTH: During your Main Phase: You can make your opponent randomly discard a number of cards that is up to the number of monster card types this card currently has (except Effect Monster), and if you do, they draw half as many cards (round up), then this card is no longer treated as being a Ritual and EARTH monster. You can only use this effect of "Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme" once per turn.
● Pendulum Monster and LIGHT: If this card would be removed from the field by a card effect, or be Tributed by your opponent, you can make this card become no longer treated as having 1 monster card type and Attribute it currently has (except Effect Monster and/or HEAVEN) instead.
● Link Monster and DARK: If this card battles (Quick Effect): You can have it gain 500 ATK for each monster card type this card currently has (except Effect Monster), until the end of the Damage Step, then this card is no longer treated as having 1 monster card type and Attribute it currently has (except Effect Monster and/or HEAVEN). You can only use this effect of "Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme" once per battle.
Trivia:
This card is an evolved form of "Master Peace, the True Dracoslayer", empowered with genetic material of "True King Agnimazud, the Vanisher", "True King Bahrastos, the Fathomer", "True King Lithosagym, the Vanisher", "Mariamne, the True Dracosphoenix", "True King of All Calamities", "Master Peace, the True Dracoslaying King" and "Metaltron XII, the True Dracombatant". Its body has wings and other design elements from all of the above monsters, for instance the triangular crown of Mariamne – a symbol that Master Pax has on its pauldrons.
"I now remember the memories that I lost due to Vector Pendulum's curse, the eternal dream that I've had! All the worlds and its denizens ruled by one righteous being, supervising the growth of good in the universe and letting loose upon wickedness the hellish calamity that is the greater True King known as the Beast! Fostering benevolence with my two counterparts and Mariamne, discipline the population of the worlds with the three normal True Kings, and eradicating major evil with itself using the great, horrifying beast that I will enchain and bend to my will in its purpose entirely! And now, with the power lying dormant in the cells of my two counterparts and the five greatest beings among the strongest of dragons, as well as my own power, I will transcend the shell that I am now and assume the role of that eternal ruler! Now I have achieved heaven! Now I am eternal peace! Now I am Master Pax! Now I am become God, the supervisor of worlds!"
– "Master Peace, the True Dracoslayer" upon his ascension to "Master Pax, the True Dracoslaying Monarch Supreme"
Salamactor Heat, the Inferno Dracoverlord
Attribute: Fire
Link Rating: 3 (↑↙↘)
Type: Dragon/Link/Effect
ATK: 2350
Effect:
3 Pendulum Dragon Monsters, including a "Dracoverlord" monster
If this card is Link Summoned: You can activate 1 of the following effects;
● Shuffle 1 Spell/Trap from the field into the Deck.
● Banish up to 3 cards from your opponent's GY.
If this card battles an opponent's monster while it is linked to a "Draco" monster (Quick Effect): You can make the ATK of that opponent's monster become 0, until the end of the Battle Phase. If this card is sent from the field to the GY: You can add 1 "Dracoverlord" monster from your Deck to your hand. You can only use each effect of "Salamactor Heat, the Inferno Dracoverlord" once per turn.
Trivia:
This monster is a corrupted form of Salamangreat Heatleo, possessed by Lector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord.
A/N:
Well, there you have it! Let's go over a few points in more detail now:
First off, Kiyoshi uses Pendulums. While I dislike the mechanic for being inherently broken in a restriction-less format (aka Arc-V), I do like it in a Vrains format since Master Rule 4 balanced it, helping me to lay down my prejudice against it. Master Rule 4 Pendulum is actually something I find very interesting to work with, and since I missed its presence in the Vrains series I not only decided to give it some spotlight, but early on even. I found the sudden inclusion of the other summoning methods in Season 2 pretty off-putting, so I decided to gradually introduce them in Season 1, a select few duelists using them, and then increase their presence in Season 2 where they will be pretty much omnipresent. I also created a sort of explanation as to why they were missing in Season 1 in the first place – in this story they are simply more popular in other places in the world, and Japan and especially Den City prefers to use Link-Monsters, hence why they are very uncommon there, to paraphrase this chapter's information about that topic. I also included a variation of Link Summoning the Dawn of Twilight readers among you should be familiar with, Overconnect Link Summon, or Connection Overdrive Link Summon as it was previously known before I decided to change its name, which lets the players Link Summon in a more Ritual-esque way by exceeding the required material if they want, rather than perfectly reaching the respective Link Rating. The respective monster was a Link-5, which should have surprised the majority of you I suppose, so know that my view on monsters with high Link Ratings isn't the same as that of most other writers. A Link-4 to me is not necessarily a boss monster, it's just a monster with high material cost that might be a boss monster in the context of a certain deck. So to differentiate the true boss monsters of this season from those Link-4s, they will be one Link Rating higher than them. Considering Kiyoshi will be the final antagonist of Season 1, I reckon him having a Link-5 – even it it's this early – should be appropriate.
Then there is a lot of exposition about the world of this story. The main element in that regard is the battle system in place here, which can be described as a cross between card games and battle shonen. Believe me, connecting those two in a somewhat organic way was one hell of a task. Needless to say you will be gradually introduced to those supernatural elements and especially their magical battles – in Season 1 they will pretty sporadic, in Season 2 they will be quite frequent, and in Season 3 they will be omnipresent. This chapter you got a first taste of it with Master Pax, so don't sweat it, you'll grow into it soon enough, if you're not already enjoying it that is. Before I forget it, I'd like to clarify that I am not a master at Elizabethan or Middle English, especially the latter, but from what I read about it one of the main characteristics of Middle English is that it is pretty irregular, the way certain words are written being different from author to author, so excuse me if I made a mistake with that one Master Pax dialogue section. Writing in those languages, especially when mixing them, is truly something else, and not necessarily in a good way.
Afterwards there is a section teaching you about the structure that I introduced to the Knights of Hanoi, as I created a proper hierarchy for them. It also gives you an idea about how strong the protagonists' future enemies are. One more reason as to why this arc is Knight of Hanoi- and Kogami-centric for the most part. Especially with two of the latter now about to engage in a battle. You'll read more about why Ryoken acts the way he currently does in the upcoming chapter.
Now, as for the question of the chapter:
QOTC: How did you like my way of introducing the non-Link Summoning Methods to the story, especially Pendulum, and what are your thoughts on Kiyoshi's deck?
Unlike normally I will give you a title preview for the next chapter, since that was one of my original plans for this multi-release.
Next time on Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS: Destiny Junction: "Omen of War – An Explosive Kogami Showdown"
As you can tell by that title and the end of this chapter, it will be a heated duel. Stay tuned, as promised I will try to post the next chapter in exactly 24 hours. In the meantime, read this chapter and give me some feedback please, the Question of the Chapter being especially important to me in that regard. If you happen to arrive here when Chapter 6 is already online, I would still appreciate a separate review for both chapters – like I said, the more reviewing, the more motivated for Chapter 9 through 12 I will become. I'll try to deliver as many review responses to this chapter as possible before posting the next one, but if you don't end up making the cut, simply wait for the next chapter to appear. Please read, review, favorite, follow!
Until next time,
HAOH RYU Z-ARC out!