Chapter 15: Get With The Program
sakuraphoenix: What's up, doc? Bugs Bunny jokes aside, this is sakuraphoenix here, and we are finally back!
Detroid: Yeah but I'm thinking about changing my penname a bit but it's Rabbit Season!
sakuraphoenix: No Bugs Bunny references
Detroid: You made one so why couldn't I? *looks away*
sakuraphoenix: I can't joke with you?
Detroid: You can *smiles* Anyway…. two things. One, disclaimer and two… this will start 4 hours before Lazar steals the prototype duel runner engine from Yusei and you'll see why I say 4 hours since it's going to start in Grace's POV
Disclaimer: We do not own Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's. Just our OC's.
sakuraphoenix: Like my boyfriend said, this will start in Grace's POV
Detroid: Enjoy!
I was sleeping peacefully in my bed, trying to get a good night's rest, since it's been a long tiring week. In fact, I was sleeping so peacefully that I didn't even notice that someone had broken into the house!
Downstairs…
Lazar's POV
"Let's see if there is anything I can steal from Grace." I said to myself
Unless I had a hammer and a lock picking kit, there was no way I was getting into this safe until I saw Grace's deck on a table nearby. Maybe she has a rare card I could steal from her. I picked up Grace's deck and went through it to see if there was any…. BINGO! Jackpot! She has the only card left of Slifer the Sky Dragon?! I could make big bucks with this card as I slid it into my pocket. Uh-oh… I think I set off an alarm when I nearly tipped over the China Cabinet
Grace's POV
I soon woke up due to the alarms as I got up and went downstairs and saw nobody was there at all. Like, they vanished without a trace but why would they…. as I saw my deck and cards were moved around in it and I saw one card that was missing from my deck. The only card I had left from my mother. Slifer the Sky Dragon. Okay… WHOEVER TOOK THAT CARD IS DEAD!
"WHO TOOK MY CARD!" I yelled with anger which caused my psychic powers to go way out of control and destroyed 3 city blocks of windows
In any case, time for a repair job. This could take a while.
Present Time, Sakura's POV
"I just can't believe it. Lazar? It doesn't make sense. Why would he want to steal our engine design program?" asked Yusei
"I don't know Yusei, but come on. Proof is proof, and his prints were here so that means he must've been here too." said Jack
"Maybe he had something to do with Grace destroying three city blocks earlier?" Crow asked
"Yeah, maybe, but remember he is one of the big sharks on the food chain when it comes to the government. Not exactly the breaking and entering type. No one will believe us if we just started pointing fingers and said 'Lazar stole our program and we should throw him into the Facility'." I said
"True but…" Crow started to say when Grace just entered, all pissed off still as everything was going haywire from her
"Where is he?!" Grace exclaimed angrily
"Whoa! Cool the jets! Uh, no offense Jet." I said as I saw him behind Grace
"None taken but I never seen her this mad before." Jet explained
"I'll say it again. Where is he?!" Grace said angrily again
"One, calm down. Please. You're scaring Flamvell Baby. Two, that's what we're gonna find out." I told Grace
"Lazar stole my more treasured card from that was given to me by my mother!" Grace explained
"That explains the three blocks of destruction this morning." I said
"He stole… Slifer The Sky Dragon from my deck. The only copy of Slifer that Yugi used years ago… she gave it to me since I could use it's powers for good and… when I really need him most… I would be able to draw it…. That card is my most treasured card from my deck." Grace said
"You mean… THE SLIFER THE SKY DRAGON?!" Jack, Yusei, Crow, Bruno and Mel exclaimed at once
"That's the one…." Grace sadly spoke while looking down as her psychic powers where stopping the haywiring that was going on
"Okay, good reason to get pissed. You should've seen me when those Orichalcos freaks stole Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder from my place." I said
"When my mother gave me Slifer….. I felt Yugi's bond from it when he used it… Like… Slifer wanted me to control it's power…" Grace said
"Very few people can control the God Cards. Though… I thought they were destroyed a long time ago." I said
"Not Slifer's… See… my mother told me a story….. About Yugi when she was helping him in the old days…" Grace trailed off
"Okay." I said
*Flashback, 3rd Person, Domino City*
"You see... this happened right after with Yugi winning against the Orichalcos." Grace explained
A woman who looked similar to Grace, but with a different hair color and style was speaking to the Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle, and he was giving her Slifer
"Y-You want me to have this card pharaoh?" Alexia asked him while looking at Slifer
"Yes. I believe Slifer will be better off in your hands, Alexia." The Pharaoh said
"But it's your card. I can't accept your card." Alexia said
"I believe that the Orichalcos may one day rise again. Something Dartz told me isn't sitting well. If they believe that the God Cards were destroyed, it would delay them for a period of time. In reality, they'd be hidden with my closest of friends. Alexia, please, keep Slifer safe from them." The Pharaoh told her
"I… I will. Thank you and if I have a son or daughter then I will tell this story to one of them." Alexia said while accepting the card and smiling
*Flashback ended*
"And that's how I ended up with Slifer." Grace finished explaining
"Whoa. Talk about one heck of a responsibility. Wait… how do you know it was Lazar who took it?" I asked
"Because… he left this in my deck.." Grace said as she pulled out one of Lazar's clown monsters from her deck
"Jester Lord? No doubt he's going crazy right now. I mean the card's his favorite next to instant noodles." I said
"That's how I know he stole the card from me." Grace said
"Then we're going on a manhunt for the clown. Once we do, we'll get his testimony for stealing the engine design and Grace's card, and then it's slammer time." I said
"But why would he confess? After all, if the guy's a thief, and it's a safe bet, he's gonna be a liar as well." said Bruno
"Look, if he stole the program and Grace's card, then he's gotta be planning to do something with them. What if we followed him?" asked Mel
"I don't care if you guys come or not but I'm getting my card back with or without you guys." Grace said as she left and rode off on her duel runner
"Well, there goes that plan." said Crow
"No, the plan can still work. I'm going after her." Mel said
"Can you even drive a Duel Runner?" I asked her
"I don't remember but… I can try. We can't lose her since she must help us find Lazar." Mel told me
"You do that, I'll find out where he is now." Bruno said as he started to type on the computer before Yusei put his hand on Bruno's shoulder before he said:
"Bruno, this program is about more than lines of code." said Yusei
"We all know that." Mel said as she put on her helmet
"Then you know we have to get it back at any cost." said Yusei
"Go get Grace, Mel." Crow said
"Will do. Call me when you found him." Mel said as she left
Grace's POV
I'm going to find Lazar and beat him to where he doesn't want to mess with me anymore. Not with me being so pissed off at him for stealing my mother's card! When I find him…. I'm going to kick his butt into next year! That is until I heard a duel runner stopping in front of me and it's… Mel?! What is she doing here?!
"Why are you stopping me?" I asked her
"Easy. We found the clown." Mel told me
"Where is he?" I asked, starting to get pissed off at Lazar once more
"To quote Sakura, in his hidey hole called an office." said Mel
"Thanks for the tip." I said before I went ahead of Mel
We drove to Lazar's office building, and we saw everyone else there, waiting for the clown, seeing how Sakura was biting her nails the way she was.
"Sakura… why are you biting your nails?" I asked her
"I can't help it. I bite them when I'm nervous." Sakura replied to me
"Then maybe I should place a spell on you to where you don't do that." I said in a playful and serious tone
"Nah. When Grunika's not busy scaring the pants off Sayer in the Facility, he's charring the ends of my hair." Sakura said while looking worried
"Fine!" I said while looking away
"It's a joke. He doesn't really do that." Sakura then said
I was still looking away, feeling hurt and didn't realized it was a joke as I was just heading back to my Duel Runner, that is, until I saw Lazar's limo pull up. Now it's time for revenge!
"I've been waiting for you…" I trailed off
I could've used Jet to mess up his hair, but that clown looked like he was in a hurry. Maybe if I'm lucky, I can intercept him before he makes his delivery.
"Come back here you!" I yelled as I ran after him
Too late for me, the limo started driving! Plan b.
"Jet. Can you catch him?" I asked him
"It's like asking if you can catch a snail!" Jet exclaimed
"Okay!" I said as I activated my duel disk and activated the "Type-J" spell card
Jet was about to fly after them when I saw Sakura, Yusei, Crow, Jack, Bruno, and Mel tailing his limo. They really don't know how to be discreet, do they?
"Let's follow them Jet." I said as I got on my duel runner and went after them
"Aye, aye, captain!" Jet said while flying after them on his Extreme Gear
We soon caught up to Sakura and them at some mall. Why would Lazar come here? To the mall nonetheless? I got my answer when Lazar tried giving the others the slip, but got distracted by instant noodles.
"Hey! Clown face!" I exclaimed as I walked up to him
Lazar looked shocked as he saw me, then got held in place by Jack and Crow! I owe them one.
"Stop! Unhand me! Don't you nincompoops have any idea who I am?!" Lazar exclaimed angrily
"Sure do. You're the guy who stole our program." said Yusei
"And my most treasured card that I got from my mother!" I added in
"So give them back!" exclaimed Bruno
"Or it'll get messy, quick." Mel said as she cracked her knuckles
"Uh, what program and card would they be?" asked Lazar
"Cut the routine! We found your fingerprints in our garage! We know you were there!" exclaimed Crow
"And I found your Jester Lord in my deck!" I exclaimed
"Uh-oh." said Lazar
"That's right! I guess this isn't the first time your appetite and organizing your deck got you into trouble. That noodles to go-go was mine by the way!" Jack exclaimed as he rubbed Lazar's head with his elbows
"So give them back!" I exclaimed even more as I was getting pissed off
"Sorry ladies and gents. I'd love to stay and chat, but I'm all out of breath." Lazar said as he held his breath and did some kind of clown routine, like Houdini getting out of a straight-jacket before he said:
"See you on the flip side. Ta-ta."
And he started running away! That clown!
"Stop!" exclaimed Jack
"After him!" exclaimed Crow
We almost caught up to him when he jumped to the next floor!
"Why window shop when you can window hop?" Lazar asked as he scared some people
"No you don't!" I exclaimed as I did the same thing as Lazar did and continued after him… only to see that he split into three just as the others showed up again!
"I WANT MY CARD!" I exclaimed in anger
"And we'll get it, Grace. Guys, pick a Lazar and go after him!" Sakura exclaimed as we split up
I didn't pick one as I just went after one that was dropping his deck of jester's that the real one would have done as I founded the one I was following to an abandoned factory. Great… why here of all places… just as I was about to head inside, Yusei, Bruno, Mel, and Sakura showed up.
"Guess we were all thinking the same place, right?" I asked
"Yeah, but talk about being careless. He had a hole in his pocket, which caused his whole deck to fall out." said Sakura
"Anyway…. we have to split up in the factory here… Yusei, how about we team up?" I asked him
"I'd rather stay with Bruno, to be honest. He, Sakura, Mel, and I worked together on that program. Besides, Sakura's better at tracking cards than I am." said Yusei
"I see…" I trailed off while looking away
"Grace, stick with Yusei. He needs you more than me, and no arguments, Yusei." Sakura told Yusei
"No, if he wants to stick with Bruno then I'll go by myself." I said as I went ahead, alone
"Grace, wait. The reason why I wanted you to go with Sakura was because you're my friend, and I don't want you to get into a sticky situation." Yusei said as he grabbed my wrist
I forced myself out of Yusei's grip and went ahead by myself, not listening to Yusei. I'll just do this by myself with no one's help. I'll just find my card by myself as I was trying not to cry or even show it as I entered the factory by myself. But not long after entering, alarms were going off like crazy! Like mine at home, but if I didn't make it through that door, it would be game over for finding my card! I kept walking in the hallway by myself until I heard Yusei's voice a bit behind me since he was separated from Bruno, Mel and Sakura but I just didn't want to listen to Yusei at all as I put in my earplugs to block out Yusei. Just as I got to the end of the hall… I literally ran into the clown! The force of our impact knocked the earplugs out of my ears, but he was so toast!
"Lazar! Give me my card, now!" I said as I grabbed him
"Uh, what card? Whatever are you talking about?" Lazar asked in an innocent voice
"Give me back Slifer the Sky Dragon!" I asked him once more in a more angry tone
"Or else!" Yusei exclaimed as he came into the room
"What are you doing here but more importantly, why did you follow me?" I asked him
"I got separated from Bruno, Mel, and Sakura on the way here. Sakura isn't with Bruno or Mel, and they're contacting Jack and Crow. As for him, he's got to give back your card and our program." Yusei said before he slammed Lazar into the wall before he said:
"Or else."
"Or else I'll kill him right where he's at." I said as I summoned my Psychic Dark Sword
Lazar then panicked before we heard a shaking, and some giant robot appeared!
"Great…" I trailed off
Sakura's POV
Okay, I know I should cut my hair, but I'm not willing to let it go. No reference to the song, fyi. Anyway, it took a small pair of scissors to trim the ends of my hair so I could be free from the metal door.
"Sakura!" Mel exclaimed as she ran up to the door behind me
"Mel. You okay?" I asked her
"I'm fine but I should be asking you that." Mel said
"My hair took a trip to the barber shop, but other than that, I'm fine." I said
"That's good but guess we lost Bruno, Yusei and Grace." Mel said
"I'm sure they're fine. I'm going to run ahead, see where this path leads. You try to contact Crow and Jack." I said
"Alright!" Mel replied
I ran ahead to the next room… to be surprised to see a Duel Arena!
"A Duel Arena?! Really?! Just… really?" I asked out loud
"Welcome… Sakura Phoenix to your… doom." a voice said since it was coming from all around
"Who's there?!" I exclaimed
"You don't remember me at all, Sakura. I'm hurt." said a mysterious person who walked into the light from the other half of the room
"Who are you? And how do you know me?" I asked
"I'm really hurt but let's have a duel and go down into memory lane shall we?" the person said
"Fine." I said as I placed my deck in the deck zone of the Duel Arena
"Let's duel." The person said as she put her deck in the deck zone as well
Mysterious Person LP 4000/ Sakura LP 4000
"I'll let you go first, Sakura." The person said
"Thanks. My draw! I summon a classic from my deck, Flamvell Dragnov! (ATK: 1100/ DEF: 200/ LV: 2) I'll place two cards face down to wrap it up." I said
"My draw! And I'll do the same thing as well and end my turn." The person said
"Sakura! You in here?" Mel exclaimed as she ran into the same room I was in
"Mel! I wouldn't advise being in this room right now." I said with an angry look on my face
"You still don't remember me, Sakura? An old friend from Duel Academy." The person said
"Duel Academy?" I wondered out loud
"Make your move but before you do, I activate from my hand. Ally Memory." The Person said
"Okay, that's a new one." I said
"Remember, I was your only friend at Duel Academy when your sister, Dawn was killed by Sayer." The Person said
"I would've remembered someone like you." I said
"You were alone when I talked to you. I was your only friend and with Ally Memory. We both special summon 1 level 3 or below Ally of Justice monster from our deck." The person said
I then held my head in pain. What was I… remembering?
*Flashback, Mary's POV*
I was new to Duel Academy and saw a Girl with pink hair, sitting by herself on a bench as I walked up to her and said:
"H-Hi… W-what's your name?"
"It's Sakura. What do you want?" She asked me without looking up from her book
"M-my name is Mary and… and I'm new to the school plus… I saw that you were alone and was… wondering if you want to be friends with me?" I told Sakura
She then looked surprised at what I said, as if the concept was foreign to her before she looked away then said:
"So you can betray me later? I don't any friends, nor do I want any."
I then heard the bell ring as she gathered her books and walked off to wherever her class was.
"W-wait! I… I don't know where this class is since I just transferred to this school today." I told her as I had the same class as Sakura
"Just follow me and you'll know where to go." Sakura then said
"Why would you say that I might betray you later. To be honest… I never had friends when I was growing up… my mother and father always wanted me to be a nobody..." I said to Sakura as I was following her
"You really don't know, do you?" Sakura asked me as I saw people were backing away from Sakura, as if they were afraid of her
"I heard about people being psychic duelists but…. I had only one friend who was a psychic duelist before my parents banned me from seeing her again and…. I was never afraid of psychic duelists at all… The person I was friends with was someone named…. Akiza…. was my only friend when I was 4 years old." I told Sakura
"Well… you'd be the first to not be afraid of me." Sakura said while slowly smiling
"So please… may I be your friend… so you won't feel alone, Sakura?" I asked her
"I can't say no. Welcome to Duel Academy." Sakura said while smiling
"Thank you." I replied while smiling
*Flashback End*
Sakura's POV
"I bring out from my deck, Ally of Justice Jet Summoner (LV: 2/ ATK: 400/ DEF: 500/ Dark/ Machine) in defense mode." The person said
"I summon Ally of Justice Cyclone Creator in Attack mode! (ATK: 1400/ DEF: 1200/ LV: 3) What did you make me see? Answer me! I hate having my mind messed around with!" I exclaimed angrily
"I'm trying to have you remember me, Sakura. You're my only friend and I'm hurt that you don't even remember me after all the years we've been together at Duel Academy?" The person said to me
"I would remember someone like you. Unless you don't know me, I have a good memory. I never forget a face." I said
"We had the first same class together at Duel Academy when I transferred there but if you don't remember me then I activate the spell card from my hand, Harness Justice." The person said as the card appeared on the field as I saw the picture which was a girl, scared to lose her best friend
I then held my head in pain again. Why… why did this hurt so much?!
*Flashback, Mary's POV*
I was walking with Sakura to our first class but I saw she was worried about something as I asked her:
"Sakura, what's wrong?"
"Huh? Did you say something?" Sakura asked me
"What are you thinking about? You know that I can't afford to lose you, my first friend in a long time." I said
"I'm fine, really." Sakura told me
"Please, tell me? You know that I worry about you as your best friend." I said to Sakura
"Someone broke into my house last night. They didn't steal anything, but I spent the whole afternoon cleaning the place and calling a locksmith. Whoever did it wanted to sent me a message." Sakura told me
I soon hugged Sakura in a best friends way, making her see that I was there for her.
"You know that I'll always be there for you, no matter the danger." I told Sakura
Sakura looked shocked before she smiled
"Thanks Mary. I'm glad to know someone has my back." Sakura said while smiling
"That's what best friends are for, aren't they?" I replied while smiling
"Yeah." Sakura said while smiling
*Flashback End*
Sakura's POV
I growled angrily as I saw the last of that… whatever it was. If she was trying to play tricks with me, it wasn't going to work!
"Still don't remember me, bestie." The person told me
"Don't you dare call me that! I don't know who you are and these… whatever they are you're showing me! I don't know you!" I exclaimed angrily as a psychic wind started to blow
I saw tears hitting her side of the arena, like, the picture of her newest card she played was…. it.. it couldn't be… of me, could it and it having to do with the person I'm dueling? When I saw the card… a sort of floodgate of memories opened. It's all coming back to me now. I know you… and now I remember why I forgot you. Mary White… my best friend… I remember why I forgot you now.
*Flashback, Mary's POV*
I was about to get onto Duel Academy grounds with Sakura when I saw a limo coming up to us but it couldn't be…. as I was getting scared, like I was going to lose my best friend.
"W-we better go, now." I told Sakura
"Yeah, I agree." Sakura said in agreement
Before we could leave, I saw my parents exiting the limo. No, not them.
"What do you two want?" I told my parents in a cold tone
"You're leaving this school, Mary. We don't approve of your friend." My mother told me
"Excuse me, but are you in charge of Mary's decisions?" Sakura asked my mother
"Sakura…. these are my parents that I told you about…." I said as I looked away before saying in a cold tone to my parents:
"You don't control my decisions anymore! I don't want to live a life where I have no friends! You chased away, Akiza, my only friend I had when I was 4 years old and now, you're doing it again with my new best friend! I'm not leaving this school at all. Sakura and I are almost graduates of this school."
"She is a monster." My father then told me
"To you she is but to me, she is a normal human being like the rest of us. If you can't accept that truth then get out of my life!" I yelled at my parents while trying to hide tears
I then felt tears hit my hands, but they weren't mine… they were Sakura's. I was about to talk with her when she let go of my hand and ran away while she was still crying.
"See what you have done! Sakura, wait!" I yelled as I ran after Sakura
I kept running after her until we both reached the docks, watching the sunset when Sakura finally stopped running and strapped on her Duel Disk.
"Sakura, please. I was defending you." I told Sakura
"I know." Sakura said as I saw that she was still crying
"Don't cry, for me?" I said as I walked up to her before grabbing one of her hands and wiping away her tears with the other one
"It's just… I thought… maybe the world wouldn't see me as a monster anymore… and I could finally be normal, but there are people out there who will still see me as one no matter what. If the monster is all they see… maybe that's what I should embrace." Sakura said as she kept crying
I soon hugged Sakura before strapping on my duel disk and walking away from Sakura before turning to her and said:
"Like I told you when I first came to Duel Academy, I don't fear psychic duelists like you. I treat them like normal beings and I challenge you to a duel to prove it! To prove that I'm still here for you whenever you need it!" in a determined tone that a best friend would recognize
Sakura looked shocked before she smiled as she activated her Duel Disk
"I'm warning you, I'm not holding back, Mary." Sakura told me
"And neither am I." I told Sakura
"Let's duel!" Sakura and I exclaimed in unison as we drew our cards
*Flashback End*
Sakura's POV
"I… I'm remembering." I said to myself as I felt tears flowing from my eyes
"What are you talking about Sakura and do you know that person?" Mel said while pointing to Mary who Mel didn't know
"The memories are slowly coming back to me now… but… why did I forget you? How did I forget?" I wondered before I held my head in pain once more
*Flashback, Mary's POV*
Mary LP 250/ Sakura LP 0
"Great duel Sakura… You were the first person I ever went my hardest against." I said
"And you're the first person I lost too." Sakura told me before I heard what sounded like groaning metal above us
"Sakura… what's going on?" I said in a scared tone
We both then looked up and saw a rusty crane just starting to fall, and it looked like it was going to fall on top of Sakura!
"Sakura!" I said while crying as I pushed her out of the way and into the water as the crane fell on top of me
"Mary! Hold on! Hold on!" Sakura exclaimed as I started to black out
"Sakura…. Please…. live a good life… for me…" I said as I passed out, tears came down my cheeks
Sakura's POV
"Mary! I'm not leaving you here!" I exclaimed as I used Lightsworn Sabre to cut the metal that was on top of her so I could carry her to the hospital
"Sakura…." Mary said while still passed out
"You're gonna be okay. I promise! I'm not losing my best friend when I already lost my sister!" I exclaimed
"Please… leave me… I'll only slow you down…" Mary said
"I'm not leaving you!" I exclaimed as I used Teleport to get us to the hospital
"Y-you are truly… a good best friend." Mary said while smiling weakly
I smiled as I ran inside, which scared the receptionist seeing Mary.
"Please. My friend needs help." I said while crying
I saw the nurse getting a couple of doctors to take Mary into the emergency room as I waited when I saw Mary's parents coming up to me, looking pissed off.
"What did you do to Mary?" Mary's father said to me
"I didn't do anything!" I exclaimed
"You're lying. Whatever you did is of no importance, but we forbid you to see our daughter ever again." Mary's mother told me
"Fine, then tell her this. Tell her I've embraced the monster you see in me." I said before I walked away
As I walked out of the Hospital, I heard Mary's voice saying:
"Sakura… Hope…. we can… see each other…. soon…. don't lose hope since I still don't think of you as a monster. Hope in the future… we can…. continue to be best friends…"
"Mary… it's better this way. If I can't see you… it's better if I forget you…" I said while holding up a card
"I'll sneak around my parents but please… don't forget me but if you do then do this for me… Live a good life… for the both of us." Mary said while crying in my mind
"I will… Mary… can you do me a favor?" I asked her
"What is it?" Mary asked me
"It'll cause me pain if I can't see you again, so… I'll seal away my memories of the times we spent together, but the seal won't last forever. Once I see you again, my memories will return, so… if you don't mind. When that happens, act like you hate me, so I can remember this day. Knowing me, if my memories return without me knowing, I'll think you're playing some kind of trick on me. Making me think that you're out to get me for a reason I don't know. Your tears will be the thing I need to break the seal. I'll miss you Mary." I said while crying
"I'll do it and I'll miss you to Sakura…. BFF." Mary said
I cried as I knew I wouldn't remember Mary, but I knew we would meet again.
"Past Image! Seal my memories!" I exclaimed as I activated the trap card
*Flashback End*
Sakura's POV
"I remember… Mary…" I said as I was crying
"Who are you talking about?" Mel asked me
"She's my best friend. Because of me, she got hurt, and I was forbidden to see her again. To cope with that pain… I sealed away my memories of her. The seal would be broken if I saw her again, but only if she cried, so… I asked her to act like she hated me, and it worked. I remember you." I said while crying tears of joy
"Glad you finally remember me but…. I changed when I made that promise to you…. Before I fully end my turn. Harness Justice allows me to make both of my monsters, level 5 and then I activate the field spell card, The Seal of Orichalcos!" Mary exclaimed as she removed the cloak
"Not that! Mary, if you lose, you lose your soul!" I exclaimed as the Seal activated
"Like I said, I've changed when I made that promise to you all of those years ago…" Mary said
"I can't… I won't! I won't duel you! I won't lose my best friend again!" I exclaimed
"After I made that promise to you…. and after a year had passed…. my legs never healed and the doctors told me that I would never been able to walk again until they showed up…" Mary trailed off
"The Orichalcos… they promised that they could help you walk again. It's all my fault… if you didn't push me into the water… you wouldn't have accepted that deal." I said while crying
"It's too late…. make your move." Mary said
Mary LP 4000/ Sakura LP 4000
"I can't fight you… but surrendering isn't my style. I switch Cyclone Creator and Dragnov into defense mode and end my turn." I said
Mary LP 4000/ Sakura LP 4000
"Ever since you sealed away the memories of me, you grew soft when we dueled but I grew stronger! I draw! For this trick, I summon out Neo Flamvell Origin! (ATK: 500/ DEF: 200/ LV: 2) and now, I tune Neo Flamvell Origin with my two level 5 monsters to synchro summon!" Mary exclaimed
"A level 12 monster… it's nothing I have, unless…" I started before I widened my eyes
"I synchro summon Ally of Justice Destruction Gate! From Past to Present. Let pain rise again! Bring down your sorrow and doubt! Arise from my pain from my past! Synchro Summon! Ally of Justice Destruction Gate! In attack mode! (LV: 12/ Machine/ Dark/ ATK: 4000-4500/ DEF: 3200)" Mary exclaimed
Is this my retribution? For forgetting Mary? If so, I'll gladly accept it. I hurt her when I forgot about her. I deserve this. I deserve to have my soul taken from me.
"Destruction Gate….. Attack Sakura's….." Mary started to say when she saw a tear coming down my cheek before saying:
"I want to show you something before I end this duel. I completely forgot to show it when we started."
"I'm going to lose my soul anyway. Just make it quick." I said while crying
"Just take a look." Mary said as a screen popped up and I saw Grace and Yusei dueling a robot!
"A robot?" I asked out loud
"It's more like Yusei and Grace dueling against themselves." Mary said
Grace's POV
"Why does this feel familiar Yusei?" I asked him
"What is that?" Yusei asked as him, Lazar and I saw a robot coming up from underground
"I was wondering that same thing Yusei." I said as that Robot was looking at me and Yusei
"Visual Identity confirmed. Yusei Fudo identified and… unable to identify female subject. Initiate premises lockdown. Premises lockdown complete. Yusei Fudo. The only way to override the lockdown protocol systems is to by defeating me in a duel." The robot said
"A duel?" Yusei and I asked in shock and in unison
"Wait, so unless I beat this bot in a duel. I'm going to be locked in this factory forever!" Yusei said
"It's not your duel as well Yusei. I'm helping you." I told Yusei
"No! Not just you. Grace and I as well, and spending the rest of my life here doesn't sound too appealing, so get dueling already." Lazar then said
I am so ready to punch him onto the duel field.
"How about you duel with us mister clown of a stealer." I told Lazar
"I would, but I mysteriously lost my deck on the way, and I don't have my Duel Disk either." Lazar then said while sweating
"Computing all alternative options for Yusei Fudo and probability of accepting duel conditions. Probability is 100 percent." The robot said
"See? You've got no choice but to duel, and he did the math!" exclaimed Lazar
"Enough out of you!" I told Lazar
"Analyzing female subject. Analyzing female subject finished as Grace Baxter. Computing all alternative options for Grace Baxter and probability of accepting duel conditions." The robot started to say before saying:
"Error! Error! Probability is not in my database!"
"Talk about a useless bucket of bolts." Lazar said while shrugging
"He must not have my dueling history since I never dueled much in my past." I said
"Then we can use that to our advantage Grace." said Yusei
"Right! Let's do it then Yusei." I said before Yusei and I jumped down as him and I said in unison:
"You want a duel, you got one!"
Sakura's POV
"How are you watching Yusei and Grace about to get beat by Yusei's own dueling history in the bot's database?" Mary asked me
"Just end this duel. I don't deserve to have my soul after all I put you through." I said as I was crying
"Well if you want…" Mary started to say before remembering the times how I saved her from trouble at Duel Academy before she said:
"No… I activate the trap card, Defense Charge…. with this card, I can change my monster to defense mode but he loses all of his defense points for 10 turns…. and with that… I end my turn…"
"Why would you do that? You could've won the duel in a few turns! Just take my soul already. I don't deserve it anymore." I said while crying
I soon saw that Mary was starting to cry and I believe she did it because she remembered the number of times I saved her at Duel Academy… S.. She's still in there. The best friend I knew and loved as a best friend. But… I can't fight against her. Part of me wants to duel to win her back, another wants me to give up, and accept the punishment I had inflicted onto her. What should I do?
"Please…. just make them take my soul instead…." Mary told me while crying
"I can't do that to you. I deserve to have my soul taken. Not you." I said while crying
"Is that the sister I know and love?" I heard a voice say in my head
"Dawn?" I wondered out loud
"That's right. Is this the sister I know and love? One who just gives up a duel so easily? No, it's not. The one I know and love is where she duels till the last card is played." Dawn told me in my head
"You try dueling against someone you're close to and the stakes are higher than ever." I told her
"Did that stop you from dueling me when I was a Dark Signer?" Dawn told me in my head
I then widened my eyes in shock. She was right! I could've given up right there and let that vision Dawn showed me come true. I could've turned my back on the Crimson Dragon and the world! But I didn't, and now I know why. It's because I never stopped believing in what was right. If I surrender this duel, if I give into the Orichalcos, I'll never forgive myself. Okay, start thinking Phoenix. Mary's monsters are Flamvell Dragnov and Ally of Justice Destruction Gate. If I attack with my Dragnov, we'll both take 500 points of damage when they're destroyed, then if I used Cyclone Creator's ability to send the Orichalcos back into her hand, neither of us would lose our souls! But I need one card to turn this duel around. Heart of the cards, guide my hands.
"It's my draw!" I exclaimed
Mary LP 4000/ Sakura LP 4000
"This is going to get interesting. Make your move." Mary told me
"For my first trick, I summon Flamvell Grunika! (ATK: 1700/ DEF: 200/ LV: 4) Next, I activate the spell cards Fairy Meteor Crush and Double Summon! Now I can summon once more this turn, and I summon out my Flamvell Magician! (ATK: 1400 - 1800/ DEF: 200/ LV: 4) And now, I activate this spell card, Card of Sanctity! This lets us draw until we have six cards in our hands!" I exclaimed
"Fine with me because this duel will be over in 2 more turns." Mary said as she drew her cards
"Actually, it ends now, because I activate Cyclone Creator's special ability! Now, by discarding a card in my hand, I send your face-down and The Seal of Orichalcos back into your hand!" I exclaimed
"Very clever but I've become smarter! I activate my facedown card! Seal of Protection! Sorry but my field spell card isn't going anywhere!" Mary exclaimed
Great, so much for plan A. Plan b.
"Alright, Flamvell Grunika attack her Destruction Gate!" I exclaimed
"Let them rip, boys!" Grunika exclaimed as he shot a Flamethrower at Destruction Gate
"Destruction Gate has a special ability of it's own!" Mary exclaimed
"And what's that?" I asked her
"If Destruction Gate has zero defense points then all of the damage I would take is dealt to you." Mary said
Mary LP 4000/ Sakura LP 2300
"Let's hope it's only battle damage, uh, it is just battle damage, right?" I asked her
"Yep, all battle damage during this turn would be dealt back to you with Destruction Gate's special ability." Mary told me
"What about Effect Damage?" I asked her as she started to look a little pale
"T-that's different." Mary said in a bit of a scared tone
"Well thanks for answering it, because Grunika's ability activates! Because your Destruction Gate was destroyed in battle with him, you take damage equal to your monsters level times 200!" I exclaimed
"Feel the heat!" Grunika exclaimed as he hit her with an Ember attack
Mary LP 1600/ Sakura LP 2300
"No!" Mary exclaimed
"Now that was some hot stuff. Get it? Because I'm a Fire Attribute?" Grunika asked her
"Drago is cuter than you." Mary said to Grunika
"You mean Pyrus Dragonoid? He and I go way back, I agree with you right there." Grunika said while putting his claws behind his head
"Let me rephrase. Preyas is more cuter then you." Mary retold Grunika
"Preyas?! Don't you dare bring up that excuse of a Bakugan! He once put expired mayonnaise in my scales! Do you know how long it took for me to get it all out?!" Grunika exclaimed
"At least he's more cuter then you are you overgrown fire lizard." Mary said
"Fire lizard?! Let me at her! Let me at her! Let me at her!" Grunika exclaimed as Dragnov and Magician held him back
"Calm down Grunika, or I'll use you to summon Flamvell Commando!" I exclaimed
"Uh… okay. I'm cool." Grunika said as he turned completely white
Mary was laughing at what was happening.
"You should turn him into a commando lizard, Sakura." Mary told me
"I already have that position, unofficially." said Grunika
"I meant with this card." Mary said while holding up the card before saying:
"I activate Commander Soul Swap!"
"What does that do?" I asked her
"Since you destroyed an Ally of Justice monster of mine, I can take control of the one who destroyed it for the remainder of the duel!" Mary exclaimed
"H-help!" Grunika exclaimed as he was dragged over to Mary's side of the field
"And there's more. I can summon out a powerful monster even though it's still your turn." Mary told me
"Oh boy. This isn't going to end well." I said
"So I tribute Flamvell Grunika to bring out Ally of Justice Omni-Weapon from my hand! (ATK: 2200/ DEF: 800/ LV: 5)" Mary exclaimed
"Oh boy. I gotta stop that card from attacking, otherwise, I'm going to have to deal with an army of Allies of Justice!" I exclaimed
Grace's POV
"It is time to duel." The robot said
"Yusei, ready?" I asked him
"Yeah. Let's do this! From my hand, I activate the spell card, One for One! Now by sending Speed Warrior to the graveyard, I can summon this monster. Level 2 Level Eater from my deck to the field in Defense Mode (ATK: 600/ DEF: 0/ LV: 2) Next I summon out Junk Synchron from my hand! (ATK: 1300/ DEF: 500/ LV: 3) Then, thanks to Junk Synchron's ability, I'm allowed to summon Speed Warrior from the graveyard to the field in Defense mode! (ATK: 900/ DEF: 400/ LV: 2) Now level 3 Junk Synchron tune with level 2 Speed Warrior! From two come one and from one come great power! Watch as they merge their might, combine their power to Synchro Summon Junk Warrior! (ATK: 2300/ DEF: 1300/ LV: 5)" Yusei chanted
"Oh my, a Synchro Summon on his very first turn? We'll be out of here in no time." said Lazar
"There's more! Since there's a Level 2 or below monster on my field, Junk Warrior's attack points now increase by the attack points of that monster, so since Level Eater has 600 so Junk Warrior gains 600. (ATK: 2900) Finally, I'll end my turn with a facedown." Yusei said
"Of course! That's why he summoned out the lowly Level Eater, so he'd gain the attack point bonus. Well done, Yusei." Lazar said while clapping
Can someone put a sock in his mouth?
"The probability of Yusei Fudo initiating a Synchro Summon during the first turn of this duel is… 45 percent." The robot said
"I'll go next!" I exclaimed
Grace LP 4000/ Yusei LP 4000/ Bot LP 8000
"Yusei, may I use your Synchro?" I asked him
"Go ahead." said Yusei
"I summon out Jet the Master in attack mode! (ATK: 1700/ DEF: 1900/ LV: 4)" I exclaimed before saying:
"To make it more harder for you to do anything, I'm destroying Yusei's Level Eater for me to bring out Wind Master Shao Kahn from my deck thanks to Jet's effect if it's alright with you, Yusei?"
"It's fine." said Yusei
"So now, here comes Wind Master Shao Kahn in attack mode! (ATK: 2500/ DEF: 2300/ LV: 5)" I exclaimed
"It's great to be on the field Grace!" Jet exclaimed
"Now then, I activate from my hand a brand new card. I activate the spell card, Directional Wind! With this card, if I control two or more wind monsters on my field then I can decrease my monster's level by up to 3 and I'll decrease both my monster's levels by 3!" I exclaimed
"Let's see if you can catch the wind you piece of scrap! You're not even worth Wave's time to turn you into an Extreme Gear!" exclaimed Jet
"Now then, I activate the spell card, Tuner of Wind. See, if Yusei played a Tuner monster during his last turn then I can make one of my non-tuner monsters into one!" I told the bot
"Atta girl Grace! We'll be out of here in no time!" exclaimed Lazar
"I tune my level 1 Jet the Master with my level 2 Wind Master Shao Kahn and Yusei's level 5 Junk Warrior to Synchro Summon something new from something old! Stars and Planets from afar, your Night and Day becomes one! Let your stars bright bring Light into this duel! Synchro Summon! Star Junk Master! (LV: 8/ ATK: 2700/ DEF: 1500/ Dragon and Warrior/ Dark/ Synchro) In attack mode!" I chanted
"Nice monster." said Yusei
"You'll love it's effect. See, it has the same effect as Junk Warrior but with an added bonus to it. Instead of monsters being on the field for the effect. It gains all the attack points from every monster in both Yusei's and my graveyard that's level 7 or below." I said
"Bravo Grace! Bravo! Now sent that robot to the junkyard!" exclaimed Lazar
"So, Junk Warrior has 2300 attack points plus Level Eater's 600 attack points plus Speed Warrior's 900 attack points plus Jet's 1700 attack points and finally plus Wind Master Shao Kahn's 2500 attack points are added to Star Junk Warrior's attack points!" I exclaimed
(2700 - 10700 ATK)
"I end my turn with a facedown." I said
"Now configuring retaliatory strategy." The robot said
"Say what?! I don't like the sound of this!" exclaimed Yusei
"But without my dueling history, that will be a bit hard since Star Junk Warrior has a special ability which allows it not to be affected by spell cards that make it not able to attack." I told the bot
"To counter, the actions I must take during the second turn of play is to neutralize high level monster." said the robot
"Go ahead and try because like I said, Star Junk Warrior has a special ability which allows it not to be affected by spell cards that make it not able to attack." I told the bot again
"I can still negate other high level monsters." said the robot
Grace LP 4000/ Yusei LP 4000/ Bot LP 8000
"My turn. From my hand, I activate the spell, Level Limit - Area B. Due to the effect of Level Limit - Area B, all Level 4 and higher monsters on the field must switch from attack to defense mode." said the robot
"Star Junk Warrior stays in attack mode because of it's special ability so, try again buddy." I said to the robot
"I now place three cards face-down and end my turn." said the robot
Grace LP 4000/ Yusei LP 4000/ Bot LP 8000
"Do it Yusei!" I said to Yusei
"It's time to end this duel!" exclaimed Yusei
Sakura's POV
"Your friends are going to lose." Mary said as the screen showing Grace and Yusei dueling was still popped up
"I wouldn't count your chickens before they hatch, Mary. They've all been through a lot together, my friends. We have a bond that binds us all together, so when one of us is in trouble, another comes in to help the other out. Isn't that what we did when either of us were in a jam before?" I asked her
I saw that Mary widened her eyes of what I said.
"Still… those days…. are over…. It's my move! I draw!" Mary exclaimed
Mary LP 1600/ Sakura LP 2300
"I summon to the field, Flamvell Grunika!" Mary exclaimed
"Hey! Quit summoning my favorite card, will ya?!" I exclaimed
"Oh but this one is different because he is about to get a power boost…." Mary trailed off
"How so?" I asked her
"I activate the spell card, Flamvell Transformation!" Mary exclaimed
"That's new." I said
"Think of it as the spell card that allows Dark Magician to go into Dark Magician Knight but more for Flamvell Grunika." Mary told me
"You mean Knight's Title?! In any case, now I'm mad!" I exclaimed
"So by sending my Flamvell Grunika to the graveyard to bring out Flamvell Fire Knight (ATK: 2100/ DEF: 200/ LV: 6/ Fire/ Warrior) in attack mode!" Mary exclaimed as I saw a new Grunika standing on his back legs as if he were a person, holding a sword
"Hey! Now that's just wrong!" I exclaimed
"I activate Flamvell Fire Knight's effect! He can change his type once a turn." Mary told me
"Great…" I said sarcastically
"I make Flamvell Fire Knight a spellcaster! so I can activate this card, Flamvell Ritual!" Mary said
"What does that do?" I asked
"It can only be equipped to a Flamvell monster who is a spellcaster which gives the monster double its attack points. (ATK: 4200)" Mary explained
"Oh come on!" I exclaimed
"This duel is over Sakura! Flamvell Fire Knight, attack Sakura's Flamvell Magician!" Mary exclaimed
"We interrupt this attack for a special trap card! Flamvell Firewall! If I sacrifice a Flamvell Monster on both of our fields, then we take damage equal to their attack points, so I destroy both of our Dragnov's!" I exclaimed
"Even so, you lost." Mary said
"Check your math, we're both still in the duel. We take damage because of the monster I destroyed, so say I had Grunika, I would take 1700 life points of damage and you would take 1100." I said
"I mean, my attack is still going on is what I was saying." Mary explained
"Check the card. The attack is negated." I said
Mary LP 500/ Sakura LP 1200
"Very clever but still, your soft to what you were years ago and that you're a monster." Mary said
I then widened my eyes as I heard that before I started crying. No… Mary would never see me as a monster. It's the Orichalcos that's talking, not her.
"Well then, if I'm a monster, then that's what I should embrace!" I exclaimed
We then heard alarms going off. What was going on around here?
"Attention. This factory will self-destruct in 10 minutes. Advise that all persons vacate these premises immediately. Repeat. This factory will self-destruct in 10 minutes. Advise that all persons vacate these premises immediately." said an automated voice
"This duel is a draw Sakura." Mary said as she grabbed her cards and left
I then noticed something was up with the arena, and before I could warn Mary, the arena shocked her, literally!
"Mary!" I exclaimed
"N… no… they should know that if this place blows up while the Seal is still in place…" Mary trailed off
"The Seal prevents us from leaving, and prevents anyone else from entering. I don't think it's strong enough to withstand an explosion." I said
"N… no… I mean that we would be blown up with this place…" Mary told me in a scared tone
"Mary… we're going to get out of here! Both of us!" I exclaimed
"J… just leave… I surrender…" Mary said as she was about to place her hand on her deck to surrender
"Is this the best friend I knew back from Duel Academy? The one who never gave up on me?" I asked her
"B… but…. even if we kept dueling…. we won't have time to escape…" Mary said as she started to cry, still in a scared tone
"We will. Just have faith. We'll get out of this situation alive. Don't you dare give up on me! You didn't give up on me before, now it's my turn to return the favor." I said
"A… alright…" Mary said, still crying and in a scared tone
"Don't be scared. We're going to be okay. I know we will." I told her
"R-right." Mary said
"In any case, it's still your turn Mary." I told her
"I… I…" Mary started to say while looking at her only 2 cards she had left in her hand and they were useless to use before she said in a scared and defeated tone:
"I end my turn…"
"My draw! And I summon Flamvell Archer! (ATK: 1000/ DEF: 200/ LV: 3) And next, I activate The Eye of Timeaus!" I exclaimed
"G… go ahead and win…" Mary said in a defeated tone while looking down and saying:
"Just win…"
Grace's POV
"This place is gonna blow in ten minutes?!" exclaimed Yusei
"Ah! Actually, not even! The clock's already ticking, and we're… locked up in this little room!" Lazar exclaimed in a scared tone
As much as I loved seeing Lazar scared, we needed to get out of here!
"We have to get out of here Yusei and I know one way of doing it and you may hate me for this." I told him
"Yusei! Saki! Grace! Mel! Can you four hear me?!" exclaimed Crow
"Huh?" Yusei wondered as we looked up
"I think they heard you." said Jack
"Yusei, Sakura, Grace, Mel, are you four alright?" asked Bruno
"Yeah! We're fine Bruno!" I yelled to Bruno
"What are you, Yusei, and Sakura doing dueling?" asked Jack
"Don't you guys know that this place is gonna blow? We've gotta find a way out of here!" exclaimed Jack
"We can't escape! Yusei and I is what I'm meaning but yeah, Yusei and I have to defeat a robot to open the way out!" I yelled at Jack
"But we're stuck here!" Lazar exclaimed
"Well, get unstuck! You don't have much time left!" Crow exclaimed
"Yusei, I may have the card that can allow us to win but, it's risky…" I told Yusei
"Exactly! As much as I'd love to get out, I'm stuck in a Seal duel! I can't get out until I end this thing in a tie!" exclaimed Sakura
"Just let the Seal take my soul… I don't deserve to live anymore…" A female voice sadly told Sakura
"I'm not abandoning you! I did it once when I sealed away my memories with Past Image. I'm not doing it again." Sakura said in a determined voice
"It's too late for me…." a female voice told Sakura
"Yusei, since it's still your turn, I could help you out with this. I activate my facedown card! Star Summoning! See, if I control a monster that has Star in it's name then either Yusei and I can bring out another synchro that has Star in it's name as well. So Yusei, wanna do the honor?" I asked him
"Sure. I summon out the mighty, the majestic, Stardust Dragon! (ATK: 2500/ DEF: 2000/ LV: 8) in attack mode!" Yusei said
"But forget about us. You three go!" I told Jack, Crow and Bruno
"What?!" exclaimed Jack
"No way. We're not leaving you guys behind!" exclaimed Crow
"Trust him. We'll be okay." said Sakura
"We'll be okay?! What about me?! I'm here too!" Lazar exclaimed as he started to panic
"We know what we're doing, now just go." said Yusei
"That goes double for me." said Sakura
"Same here!" I said
"Meet you outside Sakura." Mel said as she ran to get out
"Fine then. Crow, Bruno. Let's go. We're leaving." Jack said
"No way! I'm staying here. If you wanna go, fine." said Bruno
And I'm guessing I wasn't the only one who heard Jack slug Bruno to the ground.
"Ow! That hurt! What's your problem?" asked Bruno
"You think this is easy for me?! Those happen to be my friends in there!" exclaimed Jack
"So why leave?" Bruno asked
"Because Bruno, we have to believe in them." said Crow
"Huh? Believe?" Bruno asked
"Mm-hmm." said Jack
"Okay… If you say so." Bruno asked
"Believe?! What?!" exclaimed Lazar
"Yusei, Sakura, Mel, Grace, we'll see you outside." said Crow
"Uh… Mel said she was waiting for Sakura on the outside of this place meaning she already left." I told them
"In other words, get going already!" Sakura exclaimed to the boys
Sakura's POV
"Just…. Just please… leave me! I don't deserve to keep living this life…." Mary said as she cried while scared and in a defeated tone
"Mary. I'm getting out of here, even if it costs me my life, and you know what? I'm not scared. I'm not scared of getting myself killed, as long as it means that you'll be okay." I told her
"No… you have a world to defend…." Mary said in a defeated tone as she was about to touch her deck
"And you're a part of that world, Mary. So I have to defend you too." I told her
"You have the Crimson Dragon to help… If you saved me… I would only get in the way…" Mary said
"So? You're not a burden Mary, and I'll show you how! I'm using the Eye of Timeaus to fuse with the Flamvell Archer I summoned to bring out Blazing Dragon Archer! (ATK: 2000/ DEF: 1500/ LV: 5)" I exclaimed
"I activate my facedown card…. Flamvell Lost…." Mary sadly said
Flamvell Fire Knight (ATK: 21000-0)
"Just finish me…." Mary told me as she looked away, trying not to cry
"I'm finishing something, this duel! I activate Blazing Dragon Archer's special ability! I can target one Flamvell Monster in my hand, and if I send it to the graveyard, we both take damage equal to its attack points! I send Flamvell Commando to the Graveyard to end this duel in a draw!" I exclaimed
Mary LP 0/ Sakura LP 1200
"Wait, what's wrong with my gear?" I wondered out loud
"Goodbye… Sakura…" Mary said as tears hit the floor as the seal circled around Mary
"No! Mary!" I exclaimed as I tried to reach her
Mary's POV
"Please… save this world…. for me…" I told Sakura as a final tear hit the floor as the Seal was taking my soul
It's over now. I don't have to see Sakura hate me anymore. I'm… glad. I'm glad she will live a better life without me. Just as I was lamenting, I saw these images in my head of Sakura outside of my room in the hospital just after she sealed away her memories of me. Even when you forgot… you still visited me?
"Goodbye Sakura…." I told her
Just as I felt the Seal taking my soul, Sakura somehow got inside and held me close to her in a bear hug, which was causing the Seal to have trouble taking my soul! Why? Why was she doing this? If she did, her soul may be taken instead of mine! Plus, this place was going to blow!
"Sakura… please... let me go so you can escape!" I told her
"I'm not leaving without you Mary!" Sakura exclaimed as she held onto me as I saw the Seal trying to take her soul instead
"I..I'm sorry but… I don't want to have pain that I felt for years after you sealed away your memories of me once again…" I told her as I tried to push her out of the seal
"You don't get it, do you? I'm saving you because you're still my best friend. Although I didn't remember you, something inside of me couldn't let this go." Sakura told me as she showed me the earrings I gave her for her birthday
"Y-you're still... wearing the earrings I gave you?" I asked her
"I never once took them off, well, except for when I needed to go to sleep, but the point is, I still wore them, and I wore them every day for the past few years." Sakura told me
"But the seal can't take your soul after all, I lost the duel, fair and square." I told Sakura
"I don't follow the rules. I bend them. I'm using my powers to make the Seal think I'm you." Sakura told me
"Y-you can't…. You can't leave your sister! She deserve you more than me." I told Sakura while crying
"You're my best friend Mary. This way, I can atone for what I did to you." Sakura said as she was still crying
"You have to escape and be with your sister." I said as I pushed Sakura at the last second out of the seal
Before the seal could finish taking my soul, Sakura grabbed my hand and pulled me out of it as the seal disappeared and I saw Sakura hugging me. Why? Why did she have to save me? I… I just don't want this pain again in my heart.
"Mary, you don't get it, do you? This whole time, I thought I was missing something, and I wasn't sure what, but now that my memories have returned, I finally realized what it was. It was your friendship I was missing. Nothing in the world could've replaced it, not even the friendship I have with my friends, not when I was missing my best friend." Sakura told me as she was still hugging me
"I… I'm sorry but… I can't be around you… since I made a deal with the Orichalcos…. I have to return to them…" I told Sakura
"Then what's up with your necklace? The one that had the stone in it? It looks broken." Sakura told me
"What are you talking about?" I asked her
She then pointed at my necklace, and the Orichalcos Stone that was embedded in it had shattered into a million tiny pieces! I was free!
"C… come on… we have to escape… let's go to your place… okay?" I asked Sakura
"Hold on tight to me then. Emergency Teleport!" Sakura exclaimed as I held onto her
Grace's POV
"Yusei, let's end this together!" I said to Yusei
"Yeah. Stardust Dragon attack that Robot directly!" exclaimed Yusei
Grace LP 4000/ Yusei LP 4000/ Bot LP 5500
"In this scenario, the probability of Grace Baxter and Yusei Fudo winning is… 100 percent." The robot said
"Star Junk Warrior, end this duel with Junk Star Blast!" I exclaimed
Grace LP 4000/ Yusei LP 4000/ Bot LP 0
"Attention, this factory will self-destruct in ten seconds." an automated voice said
"Let's go!" exclaimed Yusei
"Run!" exclaimed Lazar
"Right!" I exclaimed
At the last second, when the factory blew, Lazar saved us with a trick up his sleeve! Literally! He had a balloon hidden in there!
"Thanks Lazar." I said
"Always keep a spare balloon, that's what I say." said Lazar
"Lazar, you are truly one in a million." said Yusei
"And it was a million to one shot that we were going to beat that bot at his own game. Thanks for saving the day, and though I'd love to stay and chat, I really must be leaving." Lazar said as he let us go
"Lazar, when we land, you still better have my Slifer The Sky Dragon card since it was from my mother who knew Yugi back in her days." I told him as I held onto him
"And what did you do with our program?!" exclaimed Yusei
"For starters, get off me, and secondly, I don't know what you two are talking about." Lazar said while shrugging
"If I know what happened to my card, I'm coming for your hide!" I told him as I let go and landed next to Yusei
"Trust me you two, it's far better that you don't know. You simply have no idea who and what you're up against. My advice is to just let it go and forget this ever happened. Seriously! I'm not full of hot air here! Get it? Hot air? Like a balloon?" Lazar asked us before he laughed
"Mother… I…" I trailed off, looking down and tried not to cry
"We'll get your card back Grace, I know we will." Yusei told me
"It… it was my job to protect Slifer in case the Orichalcos came back when my mother told me about it… and I failed my mother…" I said as I just started to cry
"On the bright side, we know the Orichalcos doesn't have it, so in a way, you still are keeping your promise to your mother." Yusei told me
"Y-you're right!" I said
"Yusei! Grace!" Bruno exclaimed as he, Crow and Jack ran up to me and Yusei
Dawn's POV at the Phoenix place
I was just finishing up cleaning when I heard a thump coming from Sakura's room. I ran to see Sakura and a girl I didn't recognize on the ground, holding onto each other tightly.
"That was hairy but I hope your friends made it out…" the girl trailed off in a sad tone
"They did. I know they did. They're tough nuts to crack." Sakura told the girl
"Hey sis… who is that girl?" I asked Sakura while pointing to the girl
"I'll leave if you want me to Sakura." the girl said
"Mary, it's okay. Dawn, this is Mary. She's my best friend." Sakura told me
"How come you never mentioned her?" I asked my sister
"Because… I forgot about her. After she got hurt because of me, I sealed away my memories of her, so I wouldn't hurt her again… but that only made things worse." Sakura said while looking down
"Don't make me duel you Sakura." Mary told Sakura before saying to me:
"I met your sister when…. you were killed by Sayer at Duel Academy… But… then something happened one day that changed our friendship…"
"And it was that thing Sakura just briefly mentioned, right?" I asked her
"No… I read the newspaper when I have the time so I knew but didn't bring it up when I first met your sister but… my parents are a different story…." Mary told me while looking away
"They saw her as a monster, didn't they?" I asked her
"Not just her… they saw every psychic duelist as a monster when I made friends with one… when I was 4 years old… only friend I had was Akiza before they drove her away from me…." Mary said while trying not to cry
"Akiza? You know Akiza?!" I exclaimed in shock
"Y-yeah… Her and I were close before my parents drove her away because they didn't want me to be friends with monsters of psychic duelist but when I met your sister here at Duel Academy. I was new and scared and didn't know where my classes where, she and I talked and I told her that I never thought of psychic duelists as monsters. I treat them like if they were normal humans and that's how Sakura and I became friends then BFF's." Mary said
"I'm glad you met her." I said while smiling
"Thanks…." Mary trailed off before her phone rang and she answered it by saying:
"What do you want mother… father..." in a cold tone
I didn't hear the conversation, but it sounded like they wanted to make sure she wasn't with any 'monsters' as they like to call me, my sister, and Akiza.
"You don't control my life anymore! So just leave me alone!" Mary exclaimed into the phone as I saw tears running down her cheek, like they are forcing her to stay away from 'monsters'
After she hung up the phone, I then said:
"If you want, you can stay with us for a while."
"I-I'm sorry…" Mary said as she ran out of my sister's room and out of the house, crying, knowing that she would have no friends at all, not that she knew that she was completely wrong
Sakura's POV
I ran after Mary before she could use the elevator and stopped her as she pressed the down button.
"You don't have to listen to them anymore." I told her
"B.. but if I don't… they'll send me to the facility for hanging out with 'monsters'." Mary told me while crying
"They can't send you there for being with a Psychic Duelist." I told her
"Oh yeah? When Goodwin was around, he assigned my father to be the new headmaster of the facility so my father can send me there if he wanted to…" Mary said as she kept crying
"He can't do that to you. If he wants to send you there, he has to get through me! I'm not losing my best friend twice." I told her
"He did it to me when I tried seeing you after he told me that he banned you from seeing me…. He'll do it once more…" Mary said while crying even harder
"Not if I know the head of Public Security Bureau, which I do." I told her
"And who would it be?" Mary asked me while tears kept coming down
"Her name's Mina, and she's got the authority to fire your father if you present your case to her." I told her
"Knowing my dad… he can sue anyone who tries to get him fired..." Mary told me
"Not if she did it because of discrimination laws. There's been a new branch of the law added to protect Psychic Duelists from discrimination, and subsequently, if he does sue, he'll lose because I'll be there to testify against him for what he put us through." I told her
"T-thanks… BFF… Let's go to her… right now… I want my father and mother out of my life right away…" Mary said
"And it'll happen now, like, right now. I promise, you won't have to live in fear of them again." I told her
"Thanks." Mary said as we left to visit Mina
At Mina's office…
After we told her what happened, Mina was deep in thought, as if she was thinking really hard.
"I.. if you don't want to help me… I understand…" Mary said while trying not to show that she's hurt on the inside while trying not to show her tears as she walked away
"Now hold it. It's not that I don't want to help you, it's that I need time to build a case file against your father, time that was on my side. I've gotten a lot of complaints about how unfairly he treats his employees, most of whom are Psychic Duelists whom are working at the Facility." Mina told us
"Wow…. but… he… he'll just do it again if he saw me with any Psychic duelist… I tried to stand up to him but… he'll always lash at me by hurting me in someway…" Mary said
"And he won't this time. I assure you, we'll make sure your father doesn't get away with what he's doing." Mina told me
"My mother knows Lazar who outranks you…." Mary said
"Unfortunately, he can't help with her. I tried calling him earlier, but he hasn't returned from lunch break." said Mina
"You mean… he's AWOL?" I asked her
"Still… my father threw me into the facility for just trying to see Sakura years ago…." Mary trailed off
"He can't abuse his power like that. I'll see that he can't hurt you anymore." Mina told me
"Thank you…" Mary trailed off as her mother entered Mina's office and saw Mary with me, a 'monster' as she and her husband liked to call me before Mary said to her:
"M-mother… what are you doing here?" in a scared tone
"It's not like you couldn't hide from me or your father. We have a GPS in your phone." Mary's mother told her
"I'm not your child anymore! I don't need you to tell me who my friends are or not!" Mary exclaimed to her mother
"You little miscreant!" Mary's mother exclaimed as she was about to slap Mary when I caught her arm
"Mother! I had enough of you telling me on who my friends are or are not! You banned my only best friend years ago because you and father couldn't accept the fact that she was a normal human being like we are! I had enough of it! I'm not listening to you or father anymore! End of story!" Mary told her mother
Her mother just stood there shell-shocked, like she was just told that she couldn't shop at her favorite store because she didn't have any money.
"I dare you to try to have father send me to the facility because it won't work this time! I'm staying with Sakura and her sister until I find a place of my own!" Mary told her mother
She just stood there shocked as we left Mina's office.
"After seeing you help me from almost losing my own soul, that allowed me to stand up to my parents after what you said at the elevator at your place." Mary told me
"Really?" I asked Mary
"Yeah! Guess you haven't changed a bit, have you." Mary asked me
"Is that a bad thing?" I asked her playfully
"Let's catch up at your place and… race you there!" Mary said as she starting running
"Hey! No fair! You started first!" I exclaimed as I ran after her
At the Phoenix Residence...
"So... that's what you did for when you sealed away your memories of me, right?" Mary asked me
"Yeah. Believe me, I would've rather gone back to those days than be a guinea pig for Goodwin to discover the secrets of my mark, at the time it looked different though." I told her as I showed her my Signer Mark
"Guess you did keep your promise to me about living a good life for the both of us." Mary said while smiling
"What promise is she talking about sis?" Dawn asked me
"You didn't tell her, did you before you came after me?" Mary said
"I was more focused on stopping you at the time." I said while sweat-dropping
"Dawn... the promise your sister made to me years ago before she sealed her memories away of me was… for her to live a good life… for the both of us…" Mary said
"In a way, I guess I did keep my promise, and Mary… I'm going to keep that promise for the rest of my life. We're friends after all, and we'll still be best friends. Today, tomorrow, and always." I told her
"Yeah and hopefully, I can find a place of my own…" Mary trailed off
"If not, you can still stay with us." I told her
"Thanks!" Mary said happily
"Hey, what are friends for?" I asked
"Hey! That was my line years ago!" Mary exclaimed
That got all three of us laughing. It was such a good feeling... I really missed this.
"It's great to finally laugh again." Mary said
"It's great to have you back Mary." I said while smiling
"Yeah but I wonder if my parents would want revenge on me for what I told my mother." Mary said
Third Person POV
In the Facility, Sayer was tied up in a straight jacket, his Zuko-like scar actually looking a lot better in the darkness, not that anyone could tell. He was wearing a helmet that looked a lot like a Nervegear, which was used to dampen his psychic powers.
"Sayer Divine." Mary's father said as he walked up to his cage
"Is it time to straighten my jacket again? Or are you here to call the rest of us prisoners a monster like you usually do?" Sayer asked him
"No actually. You're free to go but I do have a job for you to do because of what my wife told me and was hoping you could do my revenge for me." Mary's father told him
"I'm only interested if there's a certain pink-haired Phoenix involved in it." Sayer told him
"Actually, it is. See, I have a daughter who knew someone by the name Sakura years ago and was friends with that monster but she treats them like normal beings so, I want you to kill my daughter in anyway you can since she's friends with Sakura Phoenix." Mary's father told him
"Killing isn't really my speciality, and technically, I'm banned from having my deck and duel disk, so unless you can come up with a way for me to have both items while covering up my escape, I'd be more than happy to make your daughter… disappear." Sayer said while smirking evilly
Mary's father soon opened Sayer's cage and lead him to the exit of the facility where he hid his deck in his pocket since he kept it hidden in his suit before slipping him a Duel Disk as well before providing him a key to a Duel Runner.
"There you go Sayer. Free to go." Mary's father told him
"I'm in your debt." Sayer said while smirking evilly
Unknown to the duo, a mysterious figure was watching them from the comforts of the lost city of Atlantis… and was not liking what was happening.
"So, it seems like I have a few rats I need to trap. No matter. It was thanks to her stupidity that she's now linked to the Orichalcos itself. That link was created when she tried to save her soul. Already, time is sticking to its original course. All I need is for her to play the Seal in a duel, and she will accept her destiny as I have." The mysterious figure said as she smirked evilly
Detroid: Well, that wipes this up. Get it? Memory Wipe?
sakuraphoenix: That wasn't even funny.
Detroid: Really?
sakuraphoenix: I can't tease my wonderful boyfriend? My adorable Raichu? *nuzzles you*
Detroid: *blushes* Anyway… What will happen to Mary but more importantly, Sakura? That is for us to know and for you to find out!
sakuraphoenix: But you won't have to wait for long! Hopefully. Did I just write a Kristoff reference?
Detroid: Yes you did but my cute Fennekin is right because… We're doing a quadruple update for this story!
sakuraphoenix: Four chapters for the price of one update! How cool is that?
Detroid: This is Detroid…
sakuraphoenix: And I'm sakuraphoenix. Both of us saying we heart you, signing off for now.
Detroid: See ya!
Card Stats:
Ally Memory
Type: Continuous Spell Card
Effect: Allows both players to special summon one level 4 or below Ally of Justice monster from their deck to the field.
PS: Think of Misty's Sad Story - Sorrowful Memories card
Ally of Justice Jet Summoner
Type: Machine
Attribute: Dark
Harness Justice
Type: Continuous Spell Card
Effect: Allows you to make both of your monsters level 5 if you control two monsters
PS: Think of Misty's Sad Story - Unwavering Truth and Sad Story - Atrocious Day cards
Ally of Justice Destruction Gate
Attribute: Dark
Type: Machine
Synchro
Effect: If this card has zero defense points then all battle damage you would take is dealt to the opponent instead
Requirements: Spell cards "Ally Memory" and "Harness Justice." 1 tuner + 2 non-tuner monsters
Defense Charge
Type: Spell Card
Effect: Changes one of your monsters to defense mode and they lose all of their defense points for ten turns
Seal of Protection
Type: Continuous Trap Card
Effect: Can only be used when the field spell "The Seal of Orichalcos" is activated. This card protects your field spell from being destroyed by card effect, spell or trap card.
Commander Soul Swap
Type: Quick-Play Spell Card
Effect: When an Ally of Justice monster you control is destroyed then you can take control of the monster who destroyed it and allows you to summon out a level 5 or 6 monster when it's still your opponent's turn.
Directional Wind
Type: Spell Card
Effect: If you control two wind monsters then you can decrease their levels by up to 3
Tuner of Wind
Type: Spell Card
Effect: If the person last turn played a tuner monster then you can make one of your non-tuners into a tuner
Star Junk Warrior
Type: Dragon and Warrior
Attribute: Dark
Synchro
Requirements: Junk Warrior + 1 tuner + 1 non-tuner monster
Effect: This monster gains all of the attack points from every monster in both yours and your teammates graveyard
Flamvell Transformation
Type: Spell Card
Effect: By sending Flamvell Grunika to the graveyard, you can special summon from your hand or deck Flamvell Fire Knight
Flamvell Fire Knight
Type: Warrior
Attribute: Fire
Effect: Once a turn, you can change this card's type
Flamvell Ritual
Type: Equip Spell Card
Effect: Can only be equipped to a Spellcaster 'Flamvell' monster. Double the equipped monster's attack points
Flamvell Firewall
Type: Counter Trap
Effect: If you and your opponent controls a Flamvell monster, tribute them both to negate an attack, except for the attacking monster. When the attack is negated, both you and your opponent lose life points equal to the monster's original attack points
Star Summoning
Type: Trap Card
Effect: If you control a monster that has Star in it's name then you or your teammate can special summon another monster that has Star in it's name from your extra deck and the newly summoned monster isn't affected by the spell or trap cards your opponent has in play already
Blazing Dragon Archer
Card Type: Fusion
Type: Warrior
Materials: Eye of Timeaus + Flamvell Archer
Effect: If you have a Flamvell monster in your hand, you can discard it to deal damage to both you and your opponent by the monster's original attack points
Flamvell Lost
Type: Trap Card
Effect: If your opponent activates a card effect that deals damage to both you and the opponent then this card decreases your monster's attack points down to zero and protects your opponent from losing life points