Hello everyone and welcome back to Stand Up, the LRIG! After a long wait, we're finally starting off the first half of Arc 4 as we focus on the world of Vanguard soon to enter its newest crisis due to Kai's involvement with the Selector Battles since the start of the story. For now, I hope you enjoy this first chapter to kick things off! So then, without any further ado, let the first half of the arc... begin.
Singapore
(Selector Infected Wixoss OST: Akira)
As the long night continued to settle over the island state, all was mostly quiet as there were now fewer people amongst the streets of the otherwise busy city. Near the sea on a set of large steps leading towards the water's edge beside a large fish shaped fountain, sat Futase who gazed upon the reflection that was present because of the bright moonlight far above her. She seemed rather strained in her expression, as if she had been conflicted throughout everything she had been doing for Mayu and for not just her own sake, but for others she knew well. She had moved the large strands of Fumio's hair to cover over the metallic lens that covered her left eye, hiding it from sight.
But even with that, just her own visible eye was enough for anyone to tell that she was not alright, no matter how much she chose to deny it to them. Part of the inner turmoil she was feeling was the weight of her own guilt for various reasons, one that Misaki had nearly unearthed during their previous cardfight.
I don't know why you are doing this, but throughout this fight, I've noticed your conviction seems to waver. You seem uncomfortable with using the cards you have and don't seem certain with what you are doing.
Clenching her teeth at the Genesis user's words, knowing that she had very much hit the nail on her behaviour with what she was doing, Futase could only stare into the distance across the horizon, knowing that this world would eventually bear the brunt of more attacks like the previous one on Foo Fighter. All because of a bounty that Mayu had personally declared on all of the cardfighters and the units they held in retailiation for losing to Aichi and Kai and for their interference in her plans.
"They don't deserve to be involved..." she spoke softly to herself, almost sobbing as a tear trickled down her left cheek from underneath the hidden lens "But if this isn't done... Fumio-san will..."
Moving her hand down towards her neck, she tapped her hand over a new device that had now been fastened around her neck. It appeared in general shape and presumed purpose to be a collar of some kind, imbued with the usual colours found on nearly any Link Joker unit and she knew what that exact purpose was meant to serve for.
Schwarzschild... Mayu... Is this 'massacre' of Kai's world really necessary?
"Having second thoughts, are we?"
Silently gasping for a second, Futase immediately turned around and looked up to the top of the large steps to see Ulith standing at the top, sneering as usual as she gazed down upon one of her partners in crime for their coming mission.
"N... not at all..." she replied unconvincingly, her earlier tone having gotten the better of her "I'm just..."
"You know what will happen to Fumio if you disobey Schwarzschild, let alone fail again," the cruel demeanoured Selector replied as she playfully shrugged "Though frankly when the battles begin, I don't really care it's you or your opponents suffer for whatever you do next."
"I know...!" Futase hissed as she glanced down at the collar fastened to her neck "This is all for Fumio's sake! No one else's!"
Ulith simply scoffed in response, keeping her eyes closed before opening them back up and looking out towards the city in front of her. She opened her mouth to deepen her sneer, the temptation to disobey the initial plan and simply go wild on giving her form of entertainment to the unsuspecting cardfighters within Singapore being almost irresistible enough to make her lose her patience.
"Now then, how many of them lie in wait?" she pondered to herself "Which ones out there can make me relish in their screams?"
Futase then got up from the steps she was sitting from and left the cruel demeanoured Selector on her own, wanting to be alone for the time being. She then brought out the deck she had in her pocket and gazed down at Schwarzschild Dragon's card which was at the top.
"That's right..." she breathed "This is for Fumio-san... no-one else."
(End Music)
Soryu Island
On the island that was home to the 'Child of Soryu' and two of the people he could ever consider to be the closest thing he would ever have to a family, the dark blue night was already upon the shores as the tide had eventually covered over a certain pathway that had been traversed earlier in the day. From atop the fortress ruins, once a sanctuary of those that wielded the 'Wind' in ancient times before the sealing of Aqua Force, a harsh breeze had whistled throughout the air, normally bringing a somewhat bitter chill to anyone that would be standing up there, especially at this current hour. Such temperatures however were not ones to easily bother the person who was alone at the very top of the ruins by herself.
Kiyoi was sat on a small rock beside a slightly taller formation, gazing up towards the starry sky and silently contemplating the scenario that she and a few others had found themselves within on this world that was alien to her. After reliving another memory from when Sakaguchi was still alive, she had turned down Kamui's offer to teach her the game of Cardfight Vanguard, much like how he, Kai and Sharlene were helping Ruko at this point. In truth, despite being annoyed at the Nova Grappler user earlier for indirectly disclosing the girl's death to Remember's hands without her consent, she knew that he wasn't the reason she had decided to be on her own for the time being.
Why did I relive that memory...? she murmured in her thoughts That Selector and those girls are nothing like Sakaguchi... and yet...
"There you are!"
The former blue LRIG turned around to see that Sharlene had come up to the top of the ruins in her usual happy mood.
"Oh, it's you..." she murmured dryly in her usual monotone "What is it that you want?"
"Eh? Isn't it not wrong to be worried for someone?" the younger twin pondered.
Kiyoi only sighed for a brief instance, having known that the girl in front of her could sometimes be in her own little world when talking with someone, though she knew that Sharlene meant little harm in whatever it was she was saying.
"I presume Katsuragi has already told you about my past and my time as Piruluk," she muttered.
"Well, he did say that you were an LRIG like Tama for nearly a year or something and that you and this 'Remember' that came here as you have a history," Sharlene said whilst pondering over the details "Other than that, he didn't say much else."
"I see..."
Getting up from where she had been sitting, the former blue LRIG gazed at the person standing before her closely, her stern gaze unwavering and seeking out anything about Sharlene that she did not immediately find the least bit suspicious to her. Eventually, after studying the younger twin's befuddled and somewhat confused expression from just now, she could silently confirm that she was telling the truth at least.
"Where is he now?" she asked.
"He's helping Ruko put one of her decks back together," Sharlene replied happily "Jillian's still keeping dinner warm if you're feeling hungry."
Kiyoi then closed her eyes and rose up from the rock she had been sitting atop, a decision having come to her mind at this point as she walked past the younger twin who simply stared at her.
I suppose watching... would not be a waste.
(Cardfight! Vanguard OST: BGM 1)
Meanwhile within the kitchen space, everyone else had finally finished up dinner and previously turned their attention back to the slight dilemma that they had at hand before them. And that very task was for Ruko to decide on what cards she would choose to use in reassembling her two decks. Looking back through all of the transformed cards she previously had in her two decks, the Selector soon had no trouble in deciding which cards she would wield from the many units for Tama for the time being, until she was certain she could get used to the many twists and turns the game of Vanguard would have to offer her. Whilst Kamui was busy helping her with her choices from the selection that Jillian and Sharlene had available to them, Kai watched the pair closely along with the real Tama and Yuki.
The Kagero user's gaze although not sharp, was somewhat serious as he knew that if they were going to encounter any of Mayu's associates who had previously attacked his world, Ruko would have to be ready to defend herself in the event of another attack planned by the mastermind of the Selector Battles. Held in his right hand was the Kagero deck he had modified and battled with throughout his time in the Selector Battles, after previously losing his Perdition deck when Takuto had summoned him to that world. On top was Dragonic Overlord's card which he turned his trail of sight upon once more for another time this night.
"You're thinking about Overlord after the battle, aren't you."
Kai then turned to Yuki who had chosen to voice her presumption on why he was in somewhat of a state after the previous battle with Miyako before they were all sucked back into his world inadvertently from Ayumu's efforts to prevent her from escaping.
"I sensed that I haven't completely regained Overlord's trust in me, no doubt from what happened previously with Noriko and Aichi," he answered "I imagine it must have much to think about now that it has returned to Dragon Empire."
"Tama feels bad about Ru though," the girl of white spoke "Kai knows... about Ru's mother."
After a mere few moments of silence however, Kai clenched his open right fist as memories of the previous battle began flashing through his head again. He knew deep down he could hardly forgive the woman for her treatment and views of both Ruko and Ayumu, seeing them as nothing more than disposable pawns for her schemes and even having no qualms with leaving her own daughter to die as the truth behind the incident six years ago had proved. But that was not what had angered the Kagero user the most as he reflected over everything that transpired previously. Miyako not only had the gall to try and manipulate his feelings with memories of his parents when they were still alive, but also reveal that she had bigger plans for him had he continued down his path of Reverse, even going as far as offering him the 'sanctuary' of a new family in exchange.
Then there was the matter of Chaos Breaker having a hand in the creation of the Selector Battles in the form they were today, after the Void had made contact with Mayu's spirit when she had died according to the woman's story. With how long Miyako had been serving the mastermind behind them for, he couldn't help but wonder if the Clown had come to him during his seclusion in Reverse for this reason or something else that he still had no knowledge about.
Just how long have you known about me? he muttered within his mind as he closed his eyes.
"Looks like you're sorted for Tama now!"
Upon hearing Kamui's voice, Kai broke out of his trail of thought and looked back to the table ahead of him to see him and Ruko finish sorting out the finishing touches to the deck she wielded around Tama.
(End Music)
"Thank you very much Kamui," she said "I just hope this all works out."
"No problem!" he replied with a grin "Do you want to try it out now or start work on that other deck?"
The Selector then looked down at the deck she held in her right hand with the card Tama, New Moon Miko at the very top before gazing to Yuki's cards and the remainder of the cards that she used as the deck around her in Wixoss, feeling unsure of what to do next.
"I don't mind you willing to test the changes to your first deck," Yuki spoke as she looked to her "Perhaps a personal experience might help you in understanding how deck construction works in this world."
"Yuki..."
Feeling like a burden had been lifted from her shoulders, Ruko nodded in response as she looked over to Kai who rose from his seat and walked over towards her. Initially, it seemed that the Selector's first opponent in Vanguard had been decided until...
"I'll be your opponent."
She and Kamui then turned around in slight surprise to see that Jillian had returned back into the room with her own deck in hand, proclaiming the sudden challenge to her at this very moment.
"I'm interested to see what one of those LRIGs can do," she said "If the people behind the attack on Foo Fighter show up again, we all need to be ready to keep our units safe from them."
"S... Sure," Ruko replied, still somewhat surprised from the sudden challenge that was given to her.
Eventually after clearing some space from the large table and acquiring a playmat to use for the fight, both of them had already began the necessary preparations for them to start the fight. The Selector, although feeling a little disoriented at first, immediately recalled everything that had been taught to her and set the one card she knew would be her starting Vanguard. As the two of them were preparing their starting hands, Kiyoi and Sharlene came into the kitchen with the latter immediately joining Kai and Kamui at the side of the table.
"They're starting already?" she asked.
"Yeah," Kai replied "With this... Ruko's test in utilizing Tama in the realm of Vanguard has truly begun."
"Battle Ru!" Tama cheered "Tama's with you!"
With the girl of white's encouragement acknowledged, Ruko smiled kindly back in response before turning back to face Jillian who was gazing down at the cards she held before she returned her gaze.
"You ready for this?" she asked.
"I am!" Ruko called as they reached out for the cards they laid as her starting Vanguard.
"Stand Up, Vanguard!"
(Cardfight! Vanguard OST: Kinkou)
Within moments, it had not taken long for the two of them to image themselves on the surface of the Planet Cray in one of the many rocky plains that made up a majority of its landmass. Although the Selector felt somewhat disoriented at first from imaging herself in an actual cardfight for the first time, let alone as Tama in her initial appearance and dress, she immediately regained her focus and called out the name of the girl of white's Grade 0 form.
"Tama, New Moon Miko!"
Looking across the battlefield, she could see a short humanoid figure with greenish blue hair and eyes dressed in what appeared to be a white naval uniform of some kind. The short Aquaroid carried a large firearm that was much larger in length than even his own height as it glanced over towards his opponent. Jillian called out the name of the unit she had chosen to begin with as her facial features became present through the image Ruko was seeing.
"Blue Storm Cadet, Marios!"
As everyone else in the kitchen gazed onto the table as the fight was beginning, Sharlene could not help but ponder in confusion in regards towards the particular unit her older twin was using.
Marios...? she murmured in her thoughts I don't remember Jillian using that before...
"I'll go first then," Jillian spoke as she drew her single card "Ride, Wheel Assault!"
After placing the card down on top of Marios, she immediately took ahold of the other card and placed it onto the rear-guard circle that was directly behind the unit that was now her current Vanguard. Ruko blinked for a moment, having been caught off guard by this sudden maneuver.
"Huh...?" she pondered "How did she...?"
"Marios, much like most Grade 0 units have an ability known as Forerunner," Kai interjected "By riding a unit of the same clan on top, she can call Marios to any of the five rear-guard circles to have it support her units' attacks or act as an extra attacker itself."
"I see..." the Selector murmured, looking back at Tama's card on her Vanguard circle Tama doesn't have the Forerunner ability herself... but something feels...
"Turn end."
Upon looking back to Jillian who had announced the end of her turn, Ruko immediately focused her attention back onto the fight itself as she gazed over to the older twin's units. She knew all about Aqua Force's capabilities from watching her grandmother battle Leon previously and given how that had managed to help him attain victory then, she knew she couldn't take her opponent lightly. Drawing her first card and looking amongst it and the other five she held, the Selector could only ponder on what she could do next.
I don't have Tama's Grade 1 form, but if I don't Ride now, I'll just be trailing behind... she muttered in her thoughts All I can do is hope I can get back to her later on!
"What's wrong Ruko?"
Upon hearing Yuki's voice, she looked back to the LRIG who was gazing upon her along with everyone else watching from the sidelines, minus Kiyoi who was out of sight from her.
"This isn't like you to hesitate apprehensively," the girl of black stated "Just go with what you believe is right."
"Battle, Ru!" Tama called.
"I got it!" she replied as she picked out one card from her hand and placed it right down on top of Tama's own "Ride!"
On the imaged battlefield, a brilliant light enveloped the Selector as Tama's form disappeared and in the girl of white's place, Ruko now stood as a different figure with blue coloured hair and wielding a large wooden shield above her head. She mustered up as much of a determined expression as she could get in order to shake off the worst of her intial worries of her situation.
"Round, Small Shield!"
Round, Small Shield/Grade 1/Boost/POW: 6000/SLD: 5000/?/United Sanctuary/War Spirit: Arm
After finishing her Ride, Ruko then looked down to Tama's card, having remembered seeing something on it when she was reassembling her deck with Kamui's assistance.
"Um... with Tama's second skill," she spoke "Since I didn't ride another Tama, I can call her to the rear-guard like you did with Marios!"
Back on the image within both her's and Jillian's minds, Tama reappeared alongside Round as she jumped for joy from being called back into battle. Shortly afterwards, the white SIGNI Bow, Shooting Bow appeared on the field behind the LRIG, priming her weapon for battle.
"Here I come, Jillian!" Ruko called as Round leaped into the air and hurled her shield towards Wheel Assault.
Effortlessly, the Aquaroid held out both of his blades out in front, blocking the assault of the shield itself with the greatest of ease as it stood its ground. Upon regaining her senses in reality, the Selector quietly gasped in confusion as to why this was happening, given that Jillian had not called a guardian to defend for Wheel Assault.
"You might want to take a closer look," she said.
As Ruko glanced down to the table, she immediately cringed upon realizing her early mistake. Round's power was only 6000 and with at least 1000 more, Wheel Assault was easily fending off her attack for the moment.
"T... that wasn't part of the plan..." she winced "But at least I have Tama's attack next."
"That's true," said Jillian "But seeing as I have no intention of guarding anyway, aren't you forgetting something Ruko?"
"Ah yes!" the Selector replied as she looked to her deck "Drive Check!"
And with that, she picked up and turned over the top card of her deck, revealing it as Tama, Silver Screen Miko. Although it sadly was not a trigger to allow her attack to deal any damage, Ruko was at least relieved that she had a card that would allow her to have Tama as the Vanguard again later on in the fight. Back on the imaged battlefield, Wheel Assault knocked back the shield and sliced it into pieces with the two blades that he carried, bringing up a cloud of smoke that vanished shortly after a few moments.
"Come at me!" Jillian's voice echoed.
"Let's go Tama!" Ruko called as she looked to the girl of white to her left.
"Now it's Tama's turn!" 'Tama' replied.
Assuming that the voice she heard now was from the real Tama giving her view on the fight so far influencing her image in a way, the Selector smiled as she then looked back to Wheel Assault on the far side of the plain.
"With Bow's boost, Tama attacks!" she declared.
The LRIG was then enveloped in a bright aura as she then ran across the battlefield towards Wheel Assault who remained motionless as she came closer and closer. With a mighty cry, Tama leapt into the air and landed a hard kick on the Aquaroid, knocking him back a little. Back in the kitchen, Jillian smiled a little, feeling somewhat happier that Ruko was at least starting to get the hang of the game thus far.
"Not the best of starts, but damage is still damage," she replied as she revealed her first damage as Blue Storm Marine General, Spyros.
"Tama did it!" Tama cheered "Tama got Ru's first damage through!"
"She does realize that it was an imaged version of her that did it, right?" Kamui murmured offhandedly.
"I wouldn't worry about it," Yuki replied "If anything, I'm beginning to see what the meaning was in that lesson of imaging Aichi had given Ruko."
Kai said nothing in response, instead choosing to focus on observing Ruko's performance for the remainder of the fight. In truth, he knew it was still too early to judge on her skills thus far, but it appeared that things were progressing smoothly despite a rough start so far. Jillian then immediately started her next turn as she drew her card and looked towards Ruko.
"You're not doing badly yourself," she spoke "But this is where I get serious now!" She then took ahold of two of her cards and threw them towards the table. "Ride and call!"
Back on the battlefield, a torrent of water rose up around Tidal Assault until he vanished from the battlefield as a new blade cut away at the column, revealing the new unit she rode. It was Blue Storm Soldier, Tempest Assault, just as Ruko had previously recognized from Leon's own deck and appearing to the unit's left was Tidal Assault, another unit the Selector was also acquainted with.
"Tidal Assault attacks!" Jillian called.
Through her image of Round, Ruko could only watch helplessly as Tidal Assault summoned a large wave of water that came roaring towards her. Bracing herself for the worst, the Aquaroid then leapt into the air and slashed down one of his two blades upon her. An afterimage of the card, Arc Tlet, Iron Fist, flew past her as she winced in the fact that she did not manage to acquire a trigger at this point.
"I stand Tidal Assault and attack again!"
Tidal Assault/POW: 9000 - 4000
Immediately after the roaring wave had dispersed, Tidal Assault immediately lunged towards Round again as she manifested a shield in front of him to block the attack with ease. Not concerned with the result, the Aquaroid retreated immediately as Tempest Blader primed both of his blades in preparation for combat. Ruko on the other hand was confused as to why Tidal Assault attacked again when he couldn't her or even Tama for that matter.
"Next, Tempest Assault!" Jillian continued.
"I guard with Epona!" the Selector called as she placed down the card on the Guardian circle.
"Alright, Ru's blocked it!" Tama cheered.
"No..." Yuki muttered, causing the girl of white to turn to her in confusion.
Upon hearing her two LRIGs, Ruko tensed up a little as she assessed the situation, wondering if she had already made another mistake right now after her previous blunder on the last turn. She then looked back up to Jillian who was already in the midst of starting her drive check.
"There's nothing inherently wrong with playing defensively," she said "But if you spend too much time defending early on, you won't have enough cards leftover to survive my later attacks. And when guarding against the Vanguard, you also need to take any possibilities into account for you and your opponent."
And with that, she flipped over the top card of her deck, revealing Blue Storm Soldier, Missile Trooper.
"Critical Trigger! I give both effects to my Vanguard!"
Upon gasping for a moment, Ruko within her image of Round could only stare up at Tempest Assault as he slashed past Epona with his left blade before landing down right in front of her, slashing down with the other blade it carried in the result. Crying in pain for a moment, the SIGNI stumbled backwards across the plain, just as the Selector herself fumbled a little backwards in the kitchen.
"Hey, you okay?!" called Kamui.
"Just a little shaken...!" she replied as she regained her focus "Damage check!"
Ruko then immediately revealed the first card as Flash Shield, Isuelt before moving it straight to her damage zone where Arc Tlet already was. She then reached out for her deck upon remembering the effects of the trigger itself before turning over the card. This time, she had managed to obtain Yggdrasil Maiden, Elaine as it flashed brightly for a moment.
"Heal Trigger," she murmured "The power won't help... but at least I can recover one damage."
(End Music)
Whilst Kamui, Sharlene and Tama watched the Selector anxiously, hoping her confidence had not been shaken after the setbacks she had been through so far, Kiyoi from where she was standing on her own simply glanced at Jillian's table. She knew there had to be a reason that the older twin had made the second attack with Tidal Assault on purpose when her trigger could have ensured that it would have enough power to attack either Round or Tama again, assuming that Ruko had not decided to guard then.
"Marios' skill," she spoke "When the boosted attack hits and it's the third battle or later, look at 5 cards from the top of my deck..."
Upon picking up the top five cards of her deck, she gazed at each one of them left to right, her eyes immediately became focused on one card as she immediately shuffled back four of them straight back to where they had come from.
"Four return to the deck," she continued as she picked up the card she had chosen and slowly turned it around until it was revealed to everyone "And I add this to my hand!"
Upon seeing the very card that was picked, whilst Ruko had gasped that Jillian already managed to secure herself a Grade 3 to ride to in the next turn, the card itself however was a surprise to both Kamui and Sharlene. The name of the card she had added to her hand was Blue Storm Dragon, Maelstrom, a unit that was normally associated with someone else the twins were close with. Although he wasn't shocked like them, even Kai could not help but be slightly curious as to why the older twin had this particular card in her deck now, considering who had used it. That was, until he recalled something earlier from his time in the other world after Aichi and the rest of the group had arrived there in their search for him.
"Maelstrom?!" Kamui exclaimed.
"But... why isn't it with Leon...?" Sharlene murmured.
"I believe I know."
Everyone then turned to the Kagero user as he voiced out his opinion, believing he had found out the reason as to why this seemingly confusing scenario was the case.
"When we returned to my apartment in that other world on the night Aichi battled Ulith, we all inspected each other's decks," he spoke "Given that Leon mentioned he had his reasons for not bringing Maelstrom, would I be correct to assume that he entrusted you with protecting it, Jillian?"
Jillian nodded in response, confirming Kai's reasoning to be true as she began to recollect the time in which Leon had entrusted her with safekeeping Maelstrom.
Flashback
On the night before Aichi and his group departed for the other world in their search for Kai, not knowing the battle that all of them were about to step into, Leon was glancing over the cards he had whilst he was in the midst of rebuilding his deck. He knew that there had to be a reason behind Takuto's capture and why he initially intended to summon the Royal Paladin user to his aid, otherwise he wouldn't have been the first person to contact through his PSY Qualia. Jillian saw that her companion was deep in thought over the whole scenario and the only thing that made her more anxious about it was that there was no telling how long it would take for him to return with both Kai and the Cray being in tow from the other world.
Sharlene was absent from their hotel room, having wanted to be busy polishing up her cardfighting skills for the time they had within Japan before they would start their 'watch duty' back from the island, awaiting to see if their mission was successful within the following two weeks after Leon's departure, leaving the older twin alone with their companion. Wanting to clear her doubts, she quietly cleared her throat before choosing to speak up.
"Is everything alright Leon-sama?" she asked.
Upon hearing her, Leon stood up from the small desk he was seated at and turned to Jillian. As she could easily tell, he had his serious gaze and with everything that had been happening around this point in time, who could blame him for feeling the way he was.
"Jillian, can I trust you with a favour in my absence?"
Blinking for a moment, Jillian could only nod once, having not expected Leon to ask something of her given the current circumstances. But with his departure the day after, she knew that it had to be important and going back on this promise would not be an answer he could take. The Aqua Force user then dug into his pocket, taking out a handful of cards and holding them out to the older twin. He looked back at her, as if he was expecting her to take them.
"Maelstrom?" she breathed "But... this is one of your key units...! I can't just take it from you if you're heading out for some other world!"
"I'm not asking for you to simply take it," he replied calmly "I'm asking for you to keep it safe until my return. If anything happens to me and the enemy that has captured Takuto comes to our world, then I need someone I can trust to keep a majority of Aqua Force safe from harm."
Initially, Jillian felt very hesitant at first, knowing that Maelstrom was one of her friend's strongest units and simply taking it from him just didn't feel right then. But after carefully listening to his reasoning along with the knowledge that there was no telling how long it would be until he and Aichi returned from the other world with Kai and Takuto, she eventually slowly reached out with her right hand, to which Leon then handed the cards over to her.
"You can count on me Leon-sama!" she called "I'll keep Maelstrom safe until you return!"
He smiled warmly, happy that the older twin was willing to take up such a responsibility for the duration of his mission to find Kai and Takuto and uncover more about the conflict that was ongoing in the other world.
Present
All had fallen silent within the kitchen itself, now that the clarification for Jillian having Maelstrom in her possession had been cleared up, Kamui and Sharlene were no longer confused as they were earlier. If anything, they were now only a little surprised that Leon willingly left the unit behind for her to protect in the midst of his mission in the other world.
"With this... it will be as if Ruko is fighting Leon himself," Yuki murmured.
"Ru..." Tama pondered in concern.
For the time being, the kitchen atmosphere remained silent as Ruko glanced down at her field, assessing the dire situation she had found herself in at the start. Then upon lifting her head to face Jillian once more, she was smiling. It was certainly her usual smile, but there seemed to be something different about it in regards to the fight itself. She could feel her empty right hand trembling, but at the same time it wasn't out of fear. Kiyoi glanced closely upon noticing this, wondering what it was that was causing the Selector to feel this way.
"So... this is Vanguard..." she breathed as she regained her composure "This is the game of Kai's world..."
Looking back to the Kagero user himself, he simply glanced back at her with his usual serious expression.
"I don't know why but... I think I'm starting to understand why I'm feeling this way now."
"You have found your reason then," he spoke.
She then nodded once before turning her attention back to the fight and drawing her next card to begin the fourth turn. Her previous Heal Trigger had lessened the gap between her and Jillian, but even she knew that this wasn't simply going to be an easy battle. Upon seeing what card it was that she drew, she looked back to her two LRIGs who blinked for an instance.
"Tama, let's fight together now!" she called.
"Nyah!" Tama cheered.
"Here I come Jillian!" the Selector declared as she immediately placed down her drawn card onto Round's own ."Ride!"
(Selector Infected Wixoss OST: Battle ~ Call Out the Name!)
In a brilliant flash of white light, Round vanished from the imaged battlefield of the Planet Cray before Ruko re-emerged in the form of Tama once again, only this time with the pair of boots each having a white coloured wing that hung off from the top. She landed on her feet as she took up a fighting stance in preparation to go head to head with both Jillian and Tempest Assault.
"Tama, Half Moon Miko!"
Tama, Half Moon Miko/Grade 2/Intercept/POW: 9000/SLD: 5000/?/United Sanctuary/Human;LRIG
Through the image of the Aquaroid, Jillian could not help but silently question the sudden burst of energy that the Selector had to put her in such a mood, especially in this stage of the fight. Back in the kitchen, she blinked for an instance as she watched her chatting a little with Tama in regards to the successful ride, much to her slight exasperation on the girl of white's excitedness on the subject.
You really have found an interesting person over in that other world Kai she muttered her thoughts I wonder if she's really gotten the hang of things now.
"Call!" Ruko declared as she placed down Brionac, Medium Spear and a second Round, Small Shield onto her rear-guard circles.
On the imaged battlefield, two brilliant lights summoned the War Arm SIGNI alongside the Selector herself, the other Tama she already had from the beginning and Bow who all turned to her, awaiting her command to continue the fight.
"Brionac attacks Tidal Assault!" she called.
Brionac ran across the battlefield with her spear in tandem glowing a bright blue as she rushed over towards her target, Tidal Assault. As she leapt into the air and was about to slash down on the seemingly defenceless Aquaroid when a new figure came between them to intercept the attack. The figure was a mermaid as evidence by her half-humanoid and half-fish tailed appearance and she wielded what appeared to be a pair of dishes as a means for defending against the War Arm SIGNI.
"Mallika guards!" Jillian's voice echoed.
Although slightly annoyed from her first attack of the turn failing again, Ruko was still in high spirits as she then turned her attention towards Tempest Assault, deciding to focus her next attack against the other Aquaroid.
"Tama attacks your Vanguard with Round's boost!" she declared as she gained a white aura around her.
Tama, Half Moon Miko/POW: 9000 - 15000
Tempest Assault simply remained motionless as evidenced by Jillian's unwavering gaze through the image as she contemplated her options before making a decision.
"No guard," she spoke.
Back in the kitchen, Ruko then immediately flipped over the top card of her deck and placed it just a little in front of the pile itself face up for everyone to see. Upon seeing what it was herself, she felt a little more uplifted that things were seemingly starting to go her way now. The card she pulled was in fact a second copy of Bow with everyone being aware of what it would now do.
"Draw Trigger!" the Selector called as she drew her single card "Power to my rear-guard Tama!"
Back within the imagined battlefield, Ruko as Tama manifested a solid blade of light using the aura she had gained from Round's earlier boost as she dashed towards Tempest Assault and Jillian for an inevitable clash. Immediately, she and the older twin were swinging at one another, hoping to overpower the other as neither one was seemingly able to break this stalemate. Eventually though, the Selector had managed to parry away one blade away enough for her to knock away the other and slash past the Aquaroid, finally dealing another point of damage.
Jillian then revealed the top card of her deck as a second copy of Blue Storm Battle Princess, Electra with no trigger effects being present to help her prolong another attack. Upon seeing what was before her, Ruko began to carefully consider her options, knowing that the older twin was bound to ride Maelstrom in the next turn and she would have to think about what to do right now.
If Jillian's using the same strategy as Leon, she's aiming to reach the fourth battle for a skill to go off... she murmured as she reached out for the other Tama that was still on her front left rear-guard circle. In that case...
"My other Tama attacks Tidal Assault!"
"Missile Trooper!" the older twin responded, placing the card down on the Guardian circle "I'm not letting you shut off the way to the fourth battle that easily."
Despite the outcome not being as she wanted, Ruko was still happy in that she managed to force some Shield out of Jillian's hand if it meant making it difficult to defend against either dealing damage to her Vanguard or mowing down the rear-guards to make it difficult to land the fourth attack on each of her turns. Kai simply gazed at the Selector, having observed the fight closely since the beginning. He smiled upon seeing that she had managed to gain control of her earlier nerves and was seemingly starting to make some progress in fighting back against the might of the Blue Storm armada.
"Turn end," she spoke.
End of Turn 4
Ruko vs Jillian
Hand - 4 : 3
Soul - 1 : 1
Damage - 2 : 2
Front Rows : Tama, New Moon Miko - Tama, Half Moon Miko (VG) - Brionac, Medium Spear : Tidal Assault - Blue Storm Soldier, Tempest Assault (VG) - EMPTY
Back Rows: Bow, Shooting Bow - Round, Small Shield - EMPTY : EMPTY - Blue Storm Cadet, Marios - EMPTY
As Jillian stood all of her units back up and drew her next card, she immediately looked to Maelstrom that she had been holding onto since the last turn. She still felt unsure of using it so carefreely, given that Leon himself had given her the strict task of protecting it and the Blue Storm armada until he had returned from the world that her opponent came from. The older twin then immediately cast her doubt away as she faced Ruko head on once again.
"You're doing good so far," she said "But from here on out, I'll show you no mercy in the presence of one of Leon-sama's prized units!"
(End Music)
"I'm looking forward to it, Jillian!" the Selector replied with a somewhat excited smile as she watched her opponent hold the card high into the air.
"Behold! Wash away all vice in the flow of furious flood. Its name is righteousness!" she declared before placing the card down on top of Tempest Blader. "Ride! Blue Storm Dragon, Maelstrom!"
(Cardfight! Vanguard OST: Kai's Determination)
As this was happening, Kiyoi's gaze had then became transfixed on the fight before her that she didn't realize until a few seconds later that her surroundings had seemingly changed in a flash of light. When she opened her eyes once more, she blinked to find herself as nothing more than an Astral spirit, unknowingly having imaged herself onto the Planet Cray in the midst of her closely watched observation. Looking to her left, still in disbelief from the sight that she had seemingly conjured up, the former blue LRIG could see a column of water erupting from the ground as the shadow of a great beast began to rise with a loud roar to follow on as the water dispersed to reveal the unit known as Maelstrom.
The Tear Dragon's body was mostly composed of light blue colours with a hint of purplish coloured scales and a pair of wings that did not seem natural or organic to its own body. The attachments that the wings were fixed to each had a large barrel with multiple hexagon shape openings, indicating that it was a weapon that the Vice Admiral of the Blue Storm armada and the Aqua Force clan itself would use in battle.
Blue Storm Dragon, Maelstrom/Grade 3/Twin Drive!/POW: 11000/SLD: 0/Aqua Force/Magallanica/Tear Dragon
Immediately, two more units appeared onto the battlefield, each looking vastly differently from the other. The first unit appeared to look like a shark of some sore with multiple barreled artillery attached to its underbelly. The other one was an Aquaroid that appeared to be standing atop a hovercraft of some kind as it hovered above a swirling portion of water that manifested beneath him.
"With Shark Soldier's skill, Maelstrom's Limit Break is released when I have fewer than 4 damage!" Jillian called.
"So then..." Ruko breathed.
"She can set off a Limit Break without the damage requirement?!" Kamui exclaimed.
"Now Maelstrom can unleash it's power earlier than expected," Yuki interjected "And that's not good for Ruko."
Kai simply kept his gaze upon Ruko for a moment, pondering how she was planning to respond to this situation before looking a little to his left. Upon noticing Kiyoi beside the doorway, still transfixed to the fight itself, he couldn't help but wonder if she was imaging the battle before her without even realizing it. Jillian then reached out for one of the rear-guards she had called.
"Spyros attacks!" she declared.
"Guard!" Ruko replied as she revealed Bow's card from her hand.
"Spyros' Counterblast!" the older twin continued as she turned Electra's card in her damage zone face down "At the end of the first or second attack, it stands! Next, Tidal Assault with a boost from Shark Soldier!"
On the battlefield, Ruko through her image of Tama could only grit her teeth as she braced herself for impact from Tidal Assault's blades once again. The Aquaroid slashed down upon her as she screamed in pain before stumbling backwards. A bright aura enveloped her as an afterimage of the card Bringer of Good Luck, Epona flew past her, powering her up to recover. At the same time, Tidal Assault powered down as a side effect of using his skill to stand.
Tama, Half Moon Miko/POW: 9000 - 14000
Tidal Assault/POW: 9000 - 4000
Despite that outcome however, he immediately lunged at her again. This time with the added power from her damage trigger, Ruko caught the hilts of the blades, wrestling back against Tidal Assault until she was able to shove him back enough for the Aquaroid to retreat. A loud roar caught her attention as she glanced up to see that Maelstrom was already upon her, preparing to attack next.
"Limit Break!" Jillian declared "Add 5000 power and if the attack hits, draw 1 card and retire one of my opponent's rear-guards!"
The Selector could only grit her teeth as she glanced over the cards in her hand, wondering what to do next as the Tear Dragon already came upon her in an instant. Deciding not to waste any Shield at this point, she hung her head down, preparing for the worst.
"No guard..."
"Twin Drive!" the older twin called revealing the first card "Heal Trigger! Power to Spyros!"
Blue Storm Marine General, Spyros/POW: 9000 - 14000
"Second check."
The second card was revealed as Blue Storm Battle Princess, Electra with no further trigger effects available to affect the outcome of the battle in any way. Maelstrom roared loudly as it unleashed a barrage of missiles straight towards Ruko who braced herself for impact as the missiles crashed all around her. The resulting explosions sent her flying straight into the air before crashing back down onto the hard rocky plain. Before she could recover however, a large wave of water suddenly erupted from the ground and spread across the battlefield, knocking her back even further and sweeping away the rear-guard Tama who vanished in a flurry of bright sparks.
"With the Limit Break, your other Tama retires and I draw 1 card!"
But the impact of the wave was far from finished on all of its targets on the battlefield. Kiyoi who was still witnessing the fight thus far and bearing witness to Maelstrom's full power, could only watch as the slightly shortened wall of water immediately swept her up in an instant as well. She immediately caught the edge of the doorway to the kitchen to regain both her senses and balance after becoming disoriented as a result of the image she had unintentionally chose to experience. She then blinked to regain her foresight as she saw Jillian look at the top five cards of her deck.
"Marios' skill," she spoke as she revealed one of them before shuffling the other four back "I add Glory Maelstrom to my hand."
"She's now set up for a Crossride on the next turn!" Kamui muttered.
"That's true," Kai murmured "But Jillian is at two damage. Shark Soldier's skill cannot release an Ultimate Break, therefore she may not ride it immediately unless Ruko can deal her three damage on the next turn."
"You're hanging in there," Jillian spoke as she rested Spyros' card once again "But can you stop this next one?"
"I can!" Ruko replied as she threw down Tama's Grade 1 form onto the Guardian circle.
(End Music)
The older twin smiled, seeing that something as mighty as Maelstrom's Limit Break was clearly not enough to dampen the Selector's spirits in the beginning of the later stages of the fight. Tama cheered loudly upon seeing that she had managed to survive through the five attacks that her opponent had sent her way and was feeling more hopeful that things would look up from here. Yuki glanced up to see that Ruko was turning around to face her.
"Yuki... do you remember that first battle we had, when we thought you were Iona?" she asked.
"I do," the girl of black replied "Back then, before you thought more about the consequences of the Selector Battles and the people getting hurt by them, it seemed like you were having the time of your life. Watching you here now, it seems like that's happening again."
"That's true..." the Selector murmured, thinking back to then "But here... even with the events Kai and the others got caught up with, I think I can see why I'm feeling like this again."
She then closed her eyes as she began to recount various memories she had during and before her time in the Selector Battles, feeling that her experiences up to this point were the influence behind how she was feeling now.
"Before I went into the Selector Battles, I used to worry grandmother and onii-chan from not making any friends and he gave the Wixoss deck containing Tama, hoping I would be able to fit into a crowd of them a little better. Even though I had been close companions with Hitoe and Yuzuki for a long while by then, I didn't understand what they and anyone could be going through because I was ignoring it in favour of enjoying myself without even knowing until it was already too late."
"And I believe that has influenced the goal you wish to achieve once we have stopped Mayu," Kai spoke.
"Yeah," she replied "I know not everyone would be open to the idea, but with how much fun I was able to enjoy with Wixoss outside of the Selector Battles with my friends and my remaining family, I want to help as many people as I can to find that without putting anything on the line. No wishes, no hidden clauses, just a game where they could enjoy themselves."
"And I believe that's why you're having fun fighting Jillian now," Yuki interjected "With imaging being your power in Vanguard and no hidden tricks to a normal cardfight, you're finding it easier to relish in the moment."
As the Selector nodded back in response, Kamui smiled brightly, seeing that her transition to the game he enjoyed in this world had gone smoothly and that she was finally able to enjoy herself now, despite the situation that still loomed over all of them in the long run. Upon hearing a slight noise with no one else seemingly noticing, he turned around to see Kiyoi still clutching her head, seemingly still trying to process what she had initially witnessed. As she continued to ponder on why this was, more memories of Sakaguchi Ayumi and how much fun she was having playing Wixoss with her other classmates continued to flash in her mind, causing her to scrutinize within her expression.
"Hey, you okay?" the Nova Grappler user asked as he came over to her.
"It's nothing of your concern..." she muttered to herself as she eventually regained her focus and remained where she was.
Kai and Sharlene also noticed this, wondering what exactly had put the former blue LRIG in such a mood. Whilst the younger twin was seemingly unsure of the exact circumstances, pondering if she had a headache or something similar, the Kagero user on the other hand was beginning to suspect that there had to be something more to the situation. In addition to his earlier theory of her imaging part of the fight so far, he knew that there had to be something that she was not willing to share at this point and that approaching her now, especially after the day's earlier events surrounding Remember and Amika would yield little results at this point in time.
Ruko, although visibly worried for Kiyoi's condition at this point, eventually decided to turn her attention back to the fight and begun her next turn, hoping her friends would do something about this later when they had the time. Taking ahold of one of her cards, she held it up into the air as she called out her next ride chant.
"Gleaming white, light that pierces through the shadows of doubt, descend now!" she called as she placed it down on top of Tama's card "Ride!"
(Cardfight! Vanguard Unreleased Soundtrack: Triumphant Limit Break)
On the battlefield, Tama's dress glowed a bright cyan blue colour as the ribbons in her hair transformed into newer feathered versions and materializing in her right hand was a long and sharp pointed speared which gleamed brightly at the very tip. Grasping ahold of it tightly within her image, Ruko then twirled it around as she then landed back on her feet and pointed it towards Maelstrom, preparing for battle against the mighty Vice Admiral itself.
"Tama, Silver Screen Miko!"
Tama, Silver Screen Miko/Grade 3/Twin Drive!/POW: 10000/SLD: 0/?/United Sanctuary/Human;LRIG
"So this is Tama at Grade 3 now..." Jillian murmured.
"Tama's skill!" the Selector called "Discarding 1 card from my hand, I can add any non-LRIG unit from my deck straight to my hand with no restriction on what it is!"
Discarding a single card from her hand, she immediately brought up her deck and looked amongst all the cards present until she picked out Flash Shield, Isuelt and put it straight into her remaining cards before shuffling her deck.
"She's able to get a Perfect Guard just like that?!" Sharlene gasped.
"Nice one Ruko!" Kamui cheered.
"Next, I use Brionac's skill!" she continued, turning three cards in her damage zone face down "She retires herself and I add two more Arm units from my deck to my hand!"
Jillian could only watch in slight surprise that Ruko had that kind of skill available to her as she began to search her deck for the cards she had in mind. Now the older twin was seemingly beginning to regret choosing to retire the rear-guard Tama over Brionac when Maelstrom's attack hit her head on. After shuffling her deck, the Selector immediately called out the two units she added, those being Bonya, Small Bow and Hastall, Medium Spear.
"With Bonya's skill, I look at the top three cards of my deck," the Selector continued "After that, I put them back in any order I want."
She's setting up a trigger... the older twin muttered in her thoughts And with a Perfect Guard now in her hand, her defences will be hard to crack.
Everyone but Kiyoi watched on anxiously, knowing that whatever action Ruko had planned to take next, could very well decide the course of the fight at this very moment.
(End Music)
And there we go! Arc 4 has finally begun its cardfight oriented first half! Ruko initially starts off rusty in her efforts, but soon manages to regain control of finding her own flow within the game of Vanguard as she keeps pace with Jillian. But to everyone's surprise, the fight takes a turn for the unexpected as it is revealed that Leon entrusted Blue Storm Dragon, Maelstrom to the older twin until his return from the Selector's world which now appears center stage on the battlefield! Can Ruko overcome the trial that has been laid out before her or has Jillian already sealed the result with the acquisition of Glory Maelstrom? Find out next time on Stand Up, the LRIG! Please share your thoughts and criticisms in the reviews and I'll see you next time! Until then!
Cards of the Chapter:
Tama, Silver Screen Miko
Grade 3
Ability: Twin Drive!
Shield: 0
Power: 10000
Critical: 1
Nation: United Sanctuary
Clan: ? (United Sanctuary in TCG)*
Race: Human/LRIG
Unit Type: Normal Unit
[AUTO](VG): [Choose a card from your hand and discard it]: When this unit is placed on (VG), you may pay the cost. If you do, search your deck for up to one non-LRIG card and add it to your hand. Then shuffle your deck.
*In the story, the clan boxes for the LRIG and SIGNI cards that were transformed into units bear the nation colours, but no names. If the changed cards were ever to be proxied for casual cardfights, they would follow the same clan naming conventions as the Zeroth Dragons in regards to belonging to all clans of a specific nation.
Blue Storm Dragon, Maelstrom
Grade 3
Ability: Twin Drive!
Shield: 0
Power: 11000
Critical: 1
Nation: Magallanica
Clan: Aqua Force
Race: Tear Dragon
Unit Type: Normal Unit
[AUTO](VG) Limit Break 4 (This ability is active if you have four or more damage):When this unit attacks a vanguard, if it is the fourth battle of that turn or more, until end of that battle, this unit gets [Power]+5000 and "[AUTO](VG):[Counter Blast (1)] When this unit's attack hits, you may pay the cost. If you do, draw a card, choose one of your opponent's rear-guards, and retire it.".
[CONT](VG/RG):If you have a non-«Aqua Force» vanguard or rear-guard, this unit gets [Power]-2000.
