Aster walked out of the wayshrine and was found himself in the countrysides of Thara, home of the great banking families and the Termnnain Trading Guild. If Emboldor was the crown of the world, then Thara was its pocket. For now anyway. With the war against Forrest in the North and Prince Hector in the South, their funds have started depleting their funds with countless demands for loans, many of which were never paid back on the count of their customers losing their lands to King Forrest.
Aster slipped a grey poncho his cloak over the expensive, mastercraft leather armor King Antilles had made for him. His red, diamond-shaped shield was polished until it reflected like a mirror and his new sword was fit snuggly on his back with a baldric.
"You're looking healthy," Double Dude said from the D-shaped pendant around Aster's neck. "Plasma's power has healed you of all your ailments. How do you feel?"
"Peachy," Aster said, not in the mood to talk. The Heart of HEROES no longer stung him like it used to. For once in his life, Aster felt what it was like to have a normal, beating, heart. He walked down the hill towards the logging town of Pinehold where he began to ask around for information on the Rare Hunter said to dwell here. Naturally, nobody knew a thing. Even though the Rare Hunters disbanded after Yugi defeated Marik in Battle City years ago, they were still shadowy characters, hiding like rats in the underbelly of the world to keep from being found.
He should have known better than to believe it was going to be easy to find him. But, if Antille's sources could confirm he was around here, then perhaps someone knew something. He kept pressing on until dusk fell. By then, he asked everyone in town. He sat down on a wooden bench, exhausted.
"Nobody knows a thing," he grumbled.
"You had the dream again last night, didn't you?" Double Dude asked.
"Now is not the time!"
"Hush, dear boy. People might think you're insane if they see you speaking to no one. Have you ever considered...you know? Getting laid for once."
"Shut up. I'm not into that kind of thing. Not now."
"You obviously felt something for that Francesca girl. You dream erotic things about her every night. She was the closest thing you had to a love interest, don't you think? The night you woke up to her beside you, you couldn't help but have a warm fuzzy feeling inside of you."
"I try my best to ignore it. She got close to me and look what happened. She's gone and there's nothing I can do about it."
"You're really just giving up on her?"
"It's been too long," said Aster. "I know what Gremlin does to people he doesn't like. Beautiful girls aren't safe from his malice. Once he has his fun with you, he ends you. For all I know, her head is mounted on his wall as he promised."
"I see. You just assume she's dead to make things easier on yourself."
"It's for the best. I'm not interested in love. My only duty now is to the king. If Francesca got caught, that's her fucking problem. I told her not to get too close to me. I'm moving on, don't bring this topic up again."
"I understand. If she is out there, I feel so sorry for her."
"Not my fucking problem anymore. That's life. You can't save everybody. And I'm done trying."
"We Destiny HEROES may punish those who go against justice, Aster, but it is still our duty to protect the innocent. Regardless of what The D has taught you, we are not mindless killing machines."
"Plasma disagrees with you. He is proud of what I'm doing. His opinion matters to me. Yours does not. Now shut up and leave me alone."
Aster didn't hear a thing after that. He got up from the bench and looked at the stars forming in the darkness of the void above. "I told her not to get close to me. I warned her. It's not my fault she got turned into a strumpet."
"Looking for me," someone said behind him.
Aster turned and saw a hooded figure standing on the other side of the fountain garden behind the bench he was sitting on. It was a Rare Hunter all right. His cloak was tattered and dirty, the hem caked with mud. He removed his hood to reveal a man with tan skin, a pointed nose, and spiked violet hair. He held up a standard Battle City Duel Disk that was out of shape. It was scratched, cracked, and was mended with duct tape.
"I know you!" Aster chuckled. "You're the Rare Hunter Yugi beat in Battle City. So now you've reduced yourself to selling information on Prince Yuri, eh? That's some pretty classified information. One that only Yugi and the Heroes of Rassay know about. How do you know where they've been hiding him?"
"Information is a commodity that can be easily be traded," said the Rare Hunter.
"That is true if someone has the lips to make that information said commodity," Aster countered. "Who told you the whereabouts of Prince Yuri?"
"It doesn't matter now! I've already revealed his location to my Master Marik!"
"Marik!? He's back?!"
"Yes, and we've established a new order of Rare Hunters who have knowledge of the new rules and new cards."
"I suppose that gives you a reason to come back after all this time. The rarity in the cards has doubled since Battle CIty."
"You are correct. Thanks to the Gremlin, we know you hold the rare Destiny HEROES."
"Rare-shmare," said Aster. "Pegasus made them mainstream not too long ago. They're a brand new archetype for the game in the new Duelist Packs, which, of course, has me on the cover, if you haven't noticed."
"Yes, the Destiny HEROES have been printed in the thousands now, but you hold the very first ones," said the Rare Hunter. "That alone makes them very valuable. Your cards also hold a magical power that my master wants. And I will take them from you the old fashioned way. With a Duel!"
Aster scoffed. "You're not going to face me with fake Exodia cards, are you?"
"Fool! I've come a long way since then. Now, let's begin!"
"You first," said Aster.
LP 8000
"Very well, I shall begin! I play the spell, Banishment of the Dark Lords to add a monster to my hand! Next, I use Trade-In to discard this Level 8 monster and add two cards to my hand. Next, I use the effect of Darklord Amdusc. I discard it and another Darklord to add a Darklord to my hand from the Graveyard. Then, I use Trade-In to send the Darklord to the grave and add two cards to my hand. Now, I use Darklord Contract to special summon Darklord Superbia!"
Darklord Superbia
ATK/2900 DEF/2400
"Now, Aster, with Superbia's effect, I can special summon this card from the Graveyard. Darklord Nasten!"
Darklord Nasten
ATK/2600 DEF/2600
"Now, I have two powerful beasts on the field. And with Nasten's effect, I pay 1000 of my Life Points to pick a Darklord Spell or Trap in the Graveyard and apply its effect. I choose Banishment of the Dark Lords and add Darklord Ixhcel to my hand. And I'll discard her to add two cards to my hand. Now I summon Darklord Ukoback. Now, I'll use him and Superbia to Link Summon, Wee Witch's Apprentice! So long as she's out on the field, all DARK monsters gain 500 points, raising my Nasten's attack to 3100! I end my turn."
"My turn! I play Destiny Draw! I discard a Destiny Hero to draw two cards."
"You won't! Thanks to my Ash Blossom, your spell is canceled out."
"Fucking hand traps," Aster grumbled. "Fine. I play Fusion Destiny. Now, I send two Destiny HEROES from my deck to the Graveyard to Fusion Summon Destiny HERO - Dangerous!"
Destiny HERO - Dangerous
ATK/2000 DEF/2600
"Nice! Now, from the Graveyard, I use Elemental HERO Shadow Mist to add a DARK monster to my hand. Now, I summon Elemental HERO Solidman!"
"I use the effect of my Naster. By paying 1000 of my Life Points, Naster will activate this trap card from my Graveyard, The Sanctified Darklord. When you activate a monster effect, this trap will cancel it out and my Life Points will increase by your monster's attack points."
"Fine!" Aster grumbled again, feeling irritated that his stuff was being negated. I'll use Dangerous's effect to discard a card and send a Destiny HERO to my Graveyard from my deck. Now, I'll tribute him and Solidman to Link Summon, Xtra HERO Cross Crusader!"
Xtra HERO Cross Crusader
ATK/1600
LINK-2
"Xtra HERO?" said the Rare Hunter. "I thought there were only Destiny and Elemental HEROES?"
"Oh, there's more. Let me show you. Using Cross Crusader's effect, I special summon Destiny HERO Drawhand from the Graveyard. Because he was summoned this way, we can both draw a card."
Aster summoned two more Destiny HERO monsters and used the spell, Masked Change to summon Masked HERO Danki! Now there were Masked HEROES the Rare Hunter thought. Aster summoned them over and over and over again until he had just what he needed to wipe out his field and finish him. He tributed three of his D-HEROES and summoned Plasma to take control of the Rare Hunter's Naster.
And that, as they say, was the end of it. Even though all the monsters vanished from the field, Plasma remained. Aster drew his sword and walked towards him slowly. Plasma held up his dragonic arm and snapped its jaws.
"Come on," said Aster. "You and I hare going to have a little chat."
The Rare Hunter laughed. "Really? You think I'm afraid to die? I'll tell you everything, but it won't do you any good. As I said, the Neo Rare Hunters are on their way to hunt Yuri and his Black Tyranno down."
Aster laughed. "Neo Rare Hunters, huh? Come on, you guys can do better than that. Oh, well. Start talking, chump. Who is giving out the info about Prince Yuri."
Before the Rare Hunter could say anything, he crunched on a toxic pill.
"WAIT!" Aster shouted.
Too late. The Rare Hunter was already foaming at the mouth. "Long...Live…Anubis."
His eyes rolled to the back of his head. He was gone. His skin was turning pale and his veins turned black, blood poured out of his nose.
"Damn. He's gone."
As Aster stumbled off into the forest, he was being watched. The vile form of Yami Marik sniggered as he hid behind a fence where he watched the Duel. He rubbed the sphere of his Millennium Rod and looked at a boy who scoffed at Aster's performance. He was a priest with a red-visored mask and red and black armored robes leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.
"What did you think?" Yami Marik asked.
"He's got some skills," said the boy. "An amateur at best. Destiny HEROES aren't that good. They're a cheesy archetype promoted by Aster Phoenix's screaming fangirls. But that's not why I'm here. You got to watch your Duel, now can we get down to business? I need my card."
"Of course," said Yami Marik. "I understand you have a lot of work to do. Bakura has placed a lot on your shoulders, hasn't he?"
"It's nothing I can't handle," said the masked priest. "The card. Please."
Yami Marik took out a ritual monster from his pocket and gave it to the masked priest. "The Dark Being is no ordinary card," he said. "You do best to take great care in this task, young one. You could end both our enemies and us. Good luck to you."