Hello everyone! Apologies for the long delay, but it is with great pleasure that I can finally and officially welcome you to the 100th chapter of Stand Up, the LRIG! For those who have followed up to this point, I want to give you all a big thank you as we delve into this great landmark for the fic going forward and I hope you enjoy everything to come this point. Now a rivalry once dormant between Selector and Cardfighter since the beginning of the story reawakens for the first time in a long time and I hope you all look forward to seeing how it plays out. For now, feel free to enjoy the chapter!


Card Shop PSY

(Lostorage Incited Wixoss OST: Slightly Uneasy)

After the fight had concluded and Kiyoi's feet had been freed from the icy binds Remember had placed during the course of their confrontation, the group of four hurried Kamui back to Card Shop PSY so they could keep him warm from the aftereffect of his time being encased in ice from the cage's curse. Though he wasn't pleased with the notion, he reluctantly complied with not wasting his energy after a chill had still remained inside him during the journey there. Eventually when they arrived back at the place, Kourin had immediately went off to grab a towel for the Nova Grappler user whilst Rekka and Eiji set up a portable heater, deciding to question them on the events that that had transpired after he was settled in for recovery.

After Reji had taken Kamui elsewhere to change him into a new pair of shorts, they felt thankful that no melted ice had penetrated his hoodie's waterproof pockets and damaged his cards. Once he was 'half-dressed', he was immediately brought back into the shop's interior to remain dry and warm by the accomendations the others had made for him. By then, as he was left to rest up with the towel covering up the top half of his body, Kiyoi told Suiko and Rekka about what had happened over the course of the fight, what she had learned about Remember's true nature and what had happened to the Nova Grappler user to put him in the state that he was in. Reji and Eiji looked away in shame, feeling guilty for what had happened to their friend after Remember had used them as a bargaining chip to haunt the former blue LRIG. Noticing this, she walked over to them and put a hand on each of their shoulders.

"What happened to Kamui wasn't your fault," she said "We all didn't expect Remember to resort to taking hostages in that fight, let alone cheat."

"Either way, it sounded like you guys went through some really scary stuff out there," Rekka replied.

"Considering that body swapping seems to be a common occurrence in the world that Kiyoi came from," Kourin muttered "I can't help but share her frustration at Remember's lightened fate for the present."

Kiyoi said nothing in response to what she had brought up, having managed to contain much of that feeling within herself and not allowing it to get the better of her judgement. She then turned away from the group and walked away from the entrance corridor, entering the next room through the curtain, leaving the five that remained staring at where she had gone through. Seeing that they were on their own, Kourin then brought out her phone and motioned for the others to come closer.

"In any regard... I think there's something from the battle you need to hear, even if some of it has already been told," she said.

Meanwhile in the larger area of the shop where the large fight table was present in the center, Kiyoi had found Kamui sitting on a step with a towel wrapped around his upper body and a heater standing next to him, warming him as quickly as it could. Though part of her wanted to scold him for his reckless, yet successful attempt in freeing Reji and Eiji from their prison, the former blue LRIG couldn't find the irritation in her to do it. That was when the Nova Grappler user who had finally managed to stop his teeth from chattering saw her.

"Hey Kiyoi...!" he shivered "Y... You holding up alright?"

"I feel like I should be the one asking you that question," she bluntly replied, walking over and sitting on the step next to him.

"I g-guess being frozen in sub zero ice for several minutes can really do a number on you," Kamui muttered "But at least my cards are fine and t-the heater Suiko found's doing it's job well. My clothes on the other hand are a different story."

When he had finished his answer, he saw that Kiyoi's expression had turned into a noticable frown much to his confusion. Before he could speak or move any closer to her, she immediately grabbed one shoulder, stopping him from doing so.

"How can you be acting this casual after playing the hero that recklessly?!" she scowled "I... We could have lost you if Akira had not informed Valeos that Remember had been cheating the whole time!"

"But she got busted in the end and we saved Reji and Eiji from her trap!" he replied "If I didn't do something, they'd be the ones frozen and Remember would have goaded you into forfeiting the fight for a deal she wouldn't even keep her end of!"

Sensing that another argument would likely ensue between the two of them with their points made, the former blue LRIG could only huff in response as she turned her head away from the Nova Grappler user, though her grip on his shoulder remained and tightened up a little.

"Look, I saw what happened when the cage began closing in on my pals," Kamui spoke "You suddenly froze up, began blanking out and started getting a real bad case of deja vu."

"A 'bad case' that only worsened when you chose to take matters into your own hands," she muttered "How am I supposed to fight my own battles when I have to worry about you and Amika, especially with those night...!"

She suddenly paused in her rant when she realized what she was about to say, soon causing her companion to realize why she had been rather on edge about the subject during the one-sided fight she had recently emerged victorious from. He then looked over to the curtain she had entered the room through and bent forwards to look at her scrutinized face, getting the impression that she had let something slip out of her mouth that she was very reluctant to discuss about with him.

"Hey, it's alright," he said "Everyone else is next door. You can tell me what's really going on with that nightmare you had last night and I promise I'll keep my lips sealed this time."

Although she felt hesitant to do so, Kiyoi wanted to believe that Kamui had truly learned his lesson from their explosive disagreement back on Leon's Island. Softening her expression and glancing back at the curtains to check that no one else had been listening in on what little of a conversation they had, she gazed back at him.

"If there's one being I cannot stand other than Remember, it's the one that gave me those cursed lenses when I became an LRIG," she began, closing her eyes and letting the image play out before her "Even now, its laughter is still haunting me from the back of my mind."

"Wait, you don't mean..." he breathed.

"Yes," the former blue LRIG answered "Even if Remember is who I despise the most, the one that has been playing on my greatest fear... is Chaos Breaker."

Neither one spoke another word for the present as the Nova Grappler user could only visualize what he had seen through her memories. On the day she had recieved her greatest despair and motivation for vengeance, she also had the most unfortunate pleasure of meeting the despicable Clown for the first time face to face. It was only then did he have a faint idea on what Kiyoi's greatest fear truly was, further confirmed in his mind when he felt her grip on his shoulder tighten slightly before loosening shortly afterwards.

(End Music)

"I get it," he muttered "If you were that worried about Amika, let alone me, you should've just said so. I'm worried a little about her as well you know."

"... Maybe it's because I didn't want to admit that," she replied, thinking back to the time she spent with Amika as her LRIG along with earlier portions of her past "At the time, I thought distancing myself from the two of you would give Remember less of a reason to ruin your lives, but it seemed I was just running away from my past this whole time instead. As annoying as I found you back then, the truth is... I could see some of Sakaguchi's persistence within you."

"Huh?"

Kamui pondered in confusion at what Kiyoi had just said before suddenly finding himself pulled away from the heater and into her arms, the towel almost falling off the top half of his body as this happened.

"Just as she was aiming to be my first true friend until the very end, you and Amika weren't willing to give up on me either," she said, glancing down at his somewhat flustered face from how close he was to her "That's why... I don't want to lose either of you."

The Nova Grappler user had not been very sure on how to react to where he was now, in spite of his appreciation for how much the former blue LRIG cared for him and Amika. He had been used to dealing with unwanted hugs in the past from a certain persistent Daimonji Nagisa and he was almost certain that any attempt he would make with Emi, assuming he could even grab her attention the way he wanted, would result in him shutting down completely as he was certain of doing now. But to his surprise, he felt his face cool down after another ten seconds, leaving him with much to ponder about. Kiyoi soon let go to allow him to shuffle back to the heater, just as Kourin came through the curtain.

"Is everything alright?" she asked.

"I'm... a little better thank you," Kiyoi answered.

"Same here," Kamui interjected, smirking as he flexed one of his recovering arms "Just need a few more minutes and I'll be good as new."

The Ultra Rare member smiled in relief before she stepped over to the former blue LRIG, bringing out her phone as she did so. Kiyoi stared at her, confused at the sudden notion at first before Kourin kneeled down to meet her gaze, her expression becoming serious once more.

"As it stands now, the authorities in your world cannot convict Remember for the murder of your old friend without you being the one that gets the punishment due to her use of your body," she spoke before handing over the phone to her "But, this audio should help you if you feel ready to confront her in the realm of the law."

"You mean... you recorded all of Remember's gloating during the fight... and she didn't realize it?!" Kiyoi gasped quietly.

"I can only assume she was too focused on trying to make you suffer for her to notice," Kourin replied "Even so, I hope this is enough to help do justice for you."

She then turned to Kamui who then realized she had something else on his mind that he needed to give an explanation for. He smiled sheepishly and began to talk.


Ride 100: Those Prideful Violet Flames


City Streets

Aoi Akira stopped in her footsteps, hearing the sound of crows flying above her in addition to the loud scream that had caused this. Recalling the tone very closely, she merely resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the prospect of the very cheater she had called out earlier to lose another fight immediately and instead chose to reflect on the path she took during the previous night and the morning to reach the point she was at now. She knew there was no turning back now that she desired to fight Kai and Dragonic Overlord once again on her own terms with the very unit she now commanded. The lack of a voice from an LRIG she knew had helped her to collect her thoughts as she brought out her deck and gazed upon the top card, Dragonic Dark Overlord.

Ever since she picked up the blackened shadow of Kai's unit with her own hands, she had felt incredible power course through her which had at the time increased her lust for her aim to take away the real Dragonic Overlord from the Kagero user for herself once more. However, that did not mean it had come with its own drawbacks as she had constantly experienced up to this point, even resulting in the sudden change in her personality that Urith and Kiyoi had been somewhat shocked about.

"Power is not for mere enjoyment. It is something you must grasp with your own hands."

"Hmph... it seems as if you weren't talking complete crap after all," she muttered to herself, recounting those words that had stung her since that battle "Kai Toshiki, today is the day we finally settle our long overdue score."

"So did you succeed in what you set out to do?"

Akira then turned around to face the source of that voice that spoke out to her before immediately catching a bunch of cards that had a small ribbon wrapped around keeping them together. She then looked up to see that Urith was the one who had given these to her, keeping a cool and confident smile upon her lips whilst her eyes were closed.

"Yes," she answered "Remember couldn't grasp the fact that my old LRIG had changed from their previous partnership and even resorted to cheating in an effort to outpower her. Even if she had any interest in my opponent, he wouldn't allow himself to be defeated that way that easily."

"My," the cruel demanoured Selector replied "I never thought that you would be that insightful. Are you certain that your earlier training with Dark Overlord's power hasn't put your mind under stress?"

(Selector Infected Wixoss OST: Negativity)

Akira merely turned away, hiding a small scowl from Urith as she did so and calling back to very recent memories earlier in the day.

Flashback

Within one of the many dark and mysterious areas of the enigmatic labyrinth known as the White Room, violet coloured flames erupted everywhere as the sound of a certain shadowed unit roared throughout the arena before it and its wielder. Akira was feeling the extent of the strain that came with wielding the full power of Dragonic Dark Overlord as veins began popping out in various parts of her body with a raging dark purple aura around her to symbolize the struggle she was enduring through at this point. Once more, like at the end of her previous fight with Miwa the night before, she was finding her consciousness beginning to waver under the immense pressure that her body was experiencing.

Slowly, her vision began to blur as various Franciums slowly began advancing from the far side of the arena towards her and Dragonic Dark Overlord who continued to wildly spew violet flames at the group, only succeeding in incinerating a few with a single attempt. That was when the Selector who was on the verge of blacking out once again took a deep breath and clenched her right fist, her once blurred vision now changing to an image of the two opponents she wanted to face so desperately. The forms of Kai and Dragonic Overlord the End appeared within crimson clad flames and with stern gazes directed towards her. This had brought back bad memories of her respective defeats to the Kagero user and Hitoe when she had the Wind of the Apocalypse in her possession during that moment. At the same time however, this sight had stirred up something within herself.

I see now... All this time, I've just been borrowing the strength of Hanayo as plain cards since I got to that world... when I should really be using Dark Overlord with my own power! If this is the shadow of the real Dragonic Overlord... then why not surpass it?

She then screamed loudly as she stood back up from her hunched position and allowed the aura enveloping her body to rampage throughout. More veins began popping out, but the Selector no longer cared as Dragonic Dark Overlord then sensed her conviction and roared loudly.

"Incinerate all before you!" she commanded under the strain before managing to thrust out her arm in a wide motion "Eternal Violet Flame!"

The darkened unit then took flight towards the group of Franciums that had been advancing towards its side of the arena and unleashed a more concentrated attack of violet coloured flames that engulfed some of the Cyberoids before it sweeped its head across slowly to the left, eventually incinerating the remainder of them save for one that leapt out of the inferno towards Akira. Before its blade could strike her, Dragonic Dark Overlord moved in front and slashed down with its own, shattering its opponent's weapon and cleaving right through the cybernetic body, splitting in half before dropping to the ground motionlessly. The battlefield remained eerily silent after that for a few moments before the sound of slow clapping could be heard as Urith approached her companion with a smile.

Before she could approach Akira closely enough, a loud roar sounded out from Dragonic Dark Overlord as it began to glow a bright yellow and revert back into the shadowy mass that it was born from. But instead of vanishing completely, it was beginning to change shape leaving her pondering on what was going on. The cruel demanoured Selector had certainly planned on her 'associate' eventually withstanding the pressure exerted by the shadowed unit for her own schemes, but this was something completely unexpected to her.

"Don't... interfere...!"

The words of Akira broke Urith from her brief stupor before the light eventually faded to reveal the silhouette of whatever it was that Dragonic Dark Overlord had become. From the shapes admist the darkness, it had four arms and multiple jagged spikes littered around it and the only things visible were its weapons of choice; two scythes and two firearms.

Present

When that memory had concluded, the Selector then placed the cards she had recieved along with nearly all of her deck into a pocket on the robes that covered most of the lower half of her body. All that was left in her right hand was a single card that had changed and brought her forward to the battle she now desired to have.

"There can only be one supreme Overlord in this battle, only one!" she declared before revealing the card to Urith "This Dragonic Dark Overlord and its potential!"

"Very well," Urith scoffed "If you feel you're ready, then I won't stop you. I wish you the best of luck... Aoi Akira."

Akira merely turned around and immediately resumed her search for Kai, keeping her back turned to the cruel demanoured Selector who simply watched on until she was out of sight with a seemingly normal glance, before her cool smile deepened into a wide sneer.

"The best of luck for yourself that is."

(End Music)


Meanwhile elsewhere in the city, Kai and Ruko had reunited with Miwa and Neve and had also set out in search in Akira herself, knowing that there was no way to avoid this fight now that she had previously managed to defeat a small, but effective majority of their circle on her own. The Selector however wasn't feeling as optimistic as she had once been since the mention of Miyako and her deceased father back at the Sendou Household and it had been taking its toll on her as the others could notice.

"Are you alright Ruko?" Miwa asked as the group stopped in their footsteps.

"I'm... just going to need some time to myself if that's alright," she murmured "I'll meet you back at Card Capital later."

As she walked away from the group down the street in the opposite direction, Kai could not help but narrow his gaze as he watched her disappear around a corner, gaining the attention of his two companions.

"Is something troubling you?" Neve asked, noting his grim expression.

"I always knew the subject of Miyako could take its toll on Ruko," the Kagero user answered "But... ever since she chased after Morris like Shingo said, she's been acting rather strange lately."

"She did claim she lost his tail though, so who knows?" Miwa pondered.

(Selector Spread Wixoss OST: Iona and Akira)

Knowing that they would have to question her on the subject later after this coming confrontation would have blown over, the three of them resumed their search for Akira so that Kai could finally take the fight to her. Eventually after a few minutes, they came into a large open square of the city and saw that the Selector in question had indeed been waiting for them. Once they stopped at a distance from her, she opened her eyes and turned her gaze upon the opponent she was finally able to fight once again after all this time.

"We finally meet again Kai," she spoke in her recent serious tone "This pleases me."

"Huh...? Weren't you acting all power hungry last night?" Miwa pondered in confusion, taken aback by the change in behaviour he saw from the Selector that had previously defeated him before his eyes narrowed "Or did you finally realize your head had a few screws loose?"

"Of course, Miwa," the Selector replied bluntly, breaking his serious gaze apart.

"That wasn't the answer I was expecting..." he said, dumbfounded somewhat at what he had now been seeing.

"So this the Selector that has been seeking to defeat you Kai," Neve spoke "Judging by your friend's reaction, I take it she's not usually like this."

Kai did not answer back, confirming the former Quatre Knight's suspicions as he looked out to Akira and began walking slowly towards her. When he was close enough at a distance, he watched her pull out a sharp pen from her robes, causing him to stop and tense up, as did Miwa and Neve who remained on guard and ready to step in if things were going to get ugly if word of past experiences around her was true enough. Then, she suddenly dropped it onto the pavement before stepping on it, crushing it beneath the heel of her shoe.

"I don't need cheap tricks to beat you and Overlord," she spoke "Not when I'm no longer the same person I used to be."

"What are you talking about?" Kai asked with an intense stare.

"The old Aoi Akira was not aware of her desire for superiority or her place in this universe," the Selector answered "She believed that if she did not stand above all others by any means, either in Wixoss, Vanguard or any other fields, then she would be dragged back into the hellish life she tried to escape from."

"That hellish life being one of poverty, like Yuki said," the Kagero user concluded "Just when it seemed like you were able to escape it, Iona and eventually that LRIG posed a threat to not just your career as a model, but your life itself."

"That's correct," Akira replied with a small frown forming on her lips, yet no malice seemed to be contained in her expression compared to usual "But I've moved on from petty things like social standings or the envy of the Urazoe fortune."

Silence became present between the two for the present as Kai's expression had not changed in the slightest, still suspecting that the person in front of him that he had knew from his first night in the other world couldn't have changed her behaviour that drastically so simply. There had to be more to the situation that he was unaware of and it was something that even he wished he knew.

"I'm different from the old Aoi Akira," she continued "I respect you and the unit I once desired to possess. It's as Dragonic Overlord once said to me when I stole it from you then, that strength can only be grasped with one's own hand. You have it and I have its shadow as a result of this."

"But if you have Overlord's shadow as your power, then what has become of Milulun?" the Kagero user questioned.

"Milulun is gone," the Selector answered "She is now in the possession of a new Selector since this morning. It was a necessary step to discard her from my hand to start anew."

"So you say you're different, yet you throw out your LRIG for power," Miwa muttered "If that's not the definition of hypocrisy, then I don't know what is."

Akira didn't respond to him as she wordlessly held out her right arm with the bracelet upon her wrist shining brightly as the purple flame boundary rose up and encircled the four occupants, the red tables then appearing shortly afterwards as she placed her deck and starting Vanguard there.

"Oh how long I've waited for this moment," she murmured to herself as she drew her starting hand before looking over to Kai who had done the same "Let us settle this score between us once and for all."

(End Music)

And with that, both combatants reached out for the cards that they had laid down on their Vanguard Circles.

"Stand up, the Vanguard!" the Kagero user called out as he along with his wordless opponent revealed their starting Vanguards.

(Cardfight! Vanguard V Series Unreleased Soundtrack: The Beginning of the End)

"Red Pulse Dracokid!"

A small dragon armored dragon with white and red coloured fur along with purple eyes and wielding a small pair of firearms appeared in front of Kai's table and took up a defensive stance as it along with its wielder looked towards the Selector's field as the dark red and black aura vanished to reveal her first unit.

"Cyber Reptile, Udron!"

Upon calling out the name, the unit in question was a humanoid like lizard coated in cybernetics and the usual black and white armor that the Star-vaders were known by with the black rings behind its back and around its arms being no exception to that rule. Upon seeing the stance along with the resemblance to the blades it held, everyone but Akira gasped slightly as they stared at the unit in utter bewilderment.

"Hey, that unit looks just like Undeux!" exclaimed Miwa.

"This is just like when Aichi had Blaster Joker," Neve muttered "Only this time, it must be centered around Dragonic Dark Overlord."

Kai did not utter a word, but one could tell he was somewhat unnerved by this turn of events and upon seeing that the card itself was part of the Link Joker clan from what little he could see of the text from his distance, that had done little to make him feel any easier.

"I will go first," Akira announced calmly as she drew her first card before placing down a different card from her hand on top of Udron's "Ride! Hollow Twin Blades, Binary Star!"

Upon moving her starting Vanguard's card to the back row, the Cyber Reptile disappeared from sight before reappearing behind a dark rainbow coloured aura that faded out to reveal one of the more common Cyberoids associated with Link Joker. Binary Star primed its blades in a defensive stance as its holder said nothing more, allowing Kai to proceed with his first turn. Upon drawing his first card, the Kagero user threw it immediately onto his Vanguard Circle.

"Ride!" he declared as Red Pulse hovered to the back row using its wings "Cuélep, Phantom Dragon!"

A bright red flash appeared in the battlefield for several moments before a humanoid female bearing draconic features emerged from it, letting out a loud yawn as she stretched her limbs. She bore bright yellow nails and spikes and bore green coloured limbs, wings and a tail in addition to hair of her own with a similar shade and a pair of pinkish eyes and black horns.

Cuélep, Phantom Dragon/Grade 1/Boost/SLD: 5000/POW: 8000/Dragon Empire/Dragon Beast/Dragon Empire

"Huh...? That unit wasn't in his deck before," Miwa pondered in surprise.

"So he's finally decided to put aside his pride enough to start using the SIGNI he acquired in the other world for his deck," Neve murmured.

"Cuélep attacks your Vanguard!" Kai announced as he rested her card.

The Dragon Beast SIGNI in question then opened her mouth wide before spitting out a large fireball that went hurtling towards Binary Star who remained motionless along with its wielder. As Akira remained completely silent, the Kagero user revealed the top card of his deck for his drive check, unveiling Blue Ray Dracokid.

"Got a Critical Trigger!" he confirmed.

As the fireball exploded on contact with the Cyberoid, the force of the blast knocked the Selector back as she drooped a little, much to the confusion of everyone else as two cards named Imaginary Orthos and Lady Keeper of Virtual Reality entered her damage zone. As some of the veins in her hands bolded out, much to Miwa's disgust, she nonchantly drew her next card and placed it down onto her Vanguard circle. Binary Star vanished from the battlefield to reveal a new unit that was unfamiliar to her opponent, that being a giant Cyber Beast that resembled that of a bird not common to those who had recognized what it was. No black rings surrounded any part of its body, a red visor obscurced its eyes and pink crystals were embedded in its black and white body with two chained like daggers sprouting from either side of its body beneath the wings.

"Albedo Condor attacks!"

Albedo Condor screeched loudly before soaring across the battlefield towards Cuélep who tried to shield herself with her wings, only for the talons of the Cyber Beast to pry them apart and slash across her body with the daggers that were on both sides of its body. Both Dragonic Burnout and Gattling Claw Dragon entered Kai's damage zone, he merely kept his gaze on his opponent's trigger zone as he drew his card, noting the card that was there.

"Asteroid Wolf..." he quietly pondered before Akira added the card to her hand "A Link Joker trigger unit that isn't a Star-Vader."

"What's wrong?" she muttered "It's your turn."

The Kagero user decided to heed her words and continue the fight for the present, suspecting the questions that were on his mind would be answered soon enough.

"Ride!" he declared "Kannya, Phantom Dragon! Come, Dragonic Neoflame!"

Cuélep vanished in a bright red light as a smaller humanoid dragon dressed in various shades of blue appeared in her place with red eyes and a pair of horns as electricity crackled all around her. To her left appeared the familiar snake like Neoflame who growled lightly beneath its breath as several burning crystals hovered beside it. Kannya then unleashed several bolts of electricity towards Albedo Condor, shocking it greatly as it screeched loudly in pain until the attack had concluded. Neoflame then sent several of the flaming crystals hovering beside it crashing into the Cyber Beast before following that up with a mighty stream of flames that struck it, causing a small explosion that caused Akira to stumble backwards and droop slightly once again as Beloved Child of Superstring Theory entered her damage zone.

The Selector drew her card from the trigger effect whilst Kai could only keep his gaze upon her, thinking more on what had happened to her since the night before when she had barely defeated Miwa. She breathed in and out as more veins across her left cheek bolded out before she clutched her other cheek where her scar was, feeling a small sting where it was.

What's wrong with Akira? he thought Did the damage Dragonic Dark Overlord inflict to her body affect her will? Dragonic Dark Overlord and what few cards revolve around them... I can sense the influence of Chaos Breaker and Photon from them. However, those other cards without the Star-vader name, even if there's a chance that they're from the portion of Link Joker accepted by Cray... where did she get them from?

"Something's not right..." Miwa murmured, causing Neve to turn to him "Akira's usually more aggressive than this."

"She could be waiting for Kai to drop his guard like the time she stole his deck," the former Quatre Knight interjected "However, it would seem the damage her body suffered from using Dragonic Dark Overlord has had some side effects on her."

Kai merely watched for the present as his opponent drew her next card before her eyes glanced at it, a smile forming on her lips once she could confirm its identity. A black aura then enveloped her much like the last time she had used it, however, there was no further changes occuring to her body for the time being.

"So you already have it," he spoke "The card that's set you down this path."

"Heh. You know me all too well," she scoffed lightly as she placed it into her hand "Now then... here I come!"

The Selector then held out a different card into the air before throwing it down onto her Vanguard Circle, causing Albedo Condor on her side of the battlefield to become swallowed up by a series of bright colored auras. After several seconds, they rose up to reveal a Battleroid wielding a firearm and a large blade with black rings surrounding its limbs and hovering behind its back, the appearance seeming somewhat familiar in spite of how different it now appeared.

"Binary Star, Twin Gunner!"

Binary Star, Twin Gunner/Grade 3/Twin Drive!/POW: 11000/Link Joker/Cyberoid/Star Gate

"Binary Star again...?" Miwa pondered.

"She did not ride Dark Overlord to not render its skill unusable..." Neve interjected "Just what abilities does this unit have?"

As if she had already known about the former Quatre Knight's question in advance, Akira then held her open right hand over Binary Star's card with her previous smile having faded back into a blank serious gaze.

"Limit Break!" she announced as she turned two cards in her damage zone face down and moved the only two cards in her soul to the drop zone "I Lock Neoflame and Red Pulse!"

Immediately after a dark red Vanguard circle flashed in front of Binary Star, it pointed one of its firearms towards the two Flame Dragons, shooting out a pair of the imprisoning black rings one after the other. The projectiles hit their targets, sealing them within at once as their cards at the same time turned face down on Kai's table.

"She's Locked my rear-guard already..." he breathed, having not expected her to do so before he had even gotten to Grade 3. And to make matters worse for him...

"Furthermore, I call!" she announced as she threw three cards onto the battlefield, manifesting their presence onto the battlefield.

(End Music)

Two of the units she called represented yet more units from Kai's deck as both the Kagero user and Miwa could immediately tell by their presence. The first was a Cyberoid that carried a large halberd with several black rings surrounding the tip of the blade along with a giant pentagonal shield in its other arm. The other two ressembed a certain demon clad in armour, wielding a large blade whilst black rings covered their black and white armour from head to toe. The last unit was the Cyber Beast that had been previously identified from her first attack as Asteroid Wolf. Yet despite the Link Joker name being attached to it, there was strangely a lack of any black rings that the clan was known for.

"So you also have clones of Bahr and Nehalem," he muttered to himself "Which means..."

(Insert Music: Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS Unreleased Soundtrack: Bohman)

A black aura once again appeared around Akira as she held out a certain card, causing a dark shadow to appear on the ground to the right of Binary Star with all too familiar features from the night before when this unit had been used against her last opponent. As more veins around her right hand began to bold out, a column of purple flames erupted from the pitch black in front of her table before the shadow was absorbed into the inferno.

"Appear, shadow of the Wind of the Apocalypse!" Akira chanted as she placed the card into her final open Rear-Guard Circle "Call the rear-guard!"

The flames then burst apart to reveal the black Dragonic Overlord that she had been bound with had finally made its appearance in this cardfight meaning that the inevitable would soon come, Overlord vs Overlord and only one of them would come out as the winner.

"Dragonic Dark Overlord!"

Dragonic Dark Overlord/Grade 3/Twin Drive!/POW: 11000/Kagero;Link Joker/Abyss Dragon/Dragon Empire

A horrid sounding growl sounded from the shadow unit, enough to make Kai feel unnerved that a portion of his unit was being used against him in that fashion. Normally, he would have been expecting Akira to be overjoyed by now, gloating in the face of one of her hated adversities that she was using a Dragonic Overlord of some kind at least to fight against his own. However, their small conversation before the fight had begun along with the way she had been behaving throughout had been causing him to feel confused. Had she truly changed herself in spite of still being his enemy or was this simply another trick of outward appearances like any Selector unaware of her real nature would have discovered the hard way.

"And now to battle," she spoke before resting one of the new units she had called "Neharan attacks your Vanguard!"

As the Cyberoid based on Nehalem pointed its halberd towards Kannya who was immediately startled by the sudden motion of offence. Neharan then unleashed a series of black and red sparks that went flying towards the Dragon Beast SIGNI.

"Guard!" Kai declared as Gattling Claw Dragon appeared in front of Kannya to take the brunt of the attack, vanishing shortly afterwards.

"Binary Star!" Akira commaned "With the skill, move Asteroid Wolf to the soul and add 5000 power!"

The Cyber Beast howled loudly before turning into a orb of black and red which was immediately absorbed into its blade, powering the large Cyberoid up by more as it also in turn recieved the boost from Udron.

Binary Star, Twin Gunner/POW: 11000 - 16000 - 21000

"No guard," the Kagero user replied.

And with that, the Selector immediately moved onto her Twin Drive, turning over the first card as Lady Keeper of Virtual Reality. The card that followed up revealed itself to be Pulse Monk of the Quaking Foot.

"Critical Trigger!" she announced "I give power to Dragonic Dark Overlord and the Critical to Binary Star!"

The two units recieved both effects simultaneously as the Abyss Dragon growled loudly whilst the Cyberoid then slashed down the front of Kannya who screamed loudly in pain as Perdition Emperor Dragon, Dragon Overlord the Great and Bolshack, Phantom Dragon entered Kai's damage zone. He watched Akira closely as she then rested Dragonic Dark Overlord's card, signalling to the shadow that it was its turn to attack. She coughed as more veins bolded out on her left cheek before Dark Overlord itself then took flight and soared towards Kannya, slashing down it with its blade, causing Perdition Dragon, Dragonic Neoflame to land in his damage zone.

"Five damage already?!" gasped Miwa "But Kai's still at Grade 2 and she still has another attack with Dragonic Dark Overlord!"

"What are you doing Kai?!" Neve called as he clenched a fist "You're not a fighter that's so easily distracted like this!"

Kai did not respond to the pair, instead choosing to keep his attention focused on the fight as Dragonic Dark Overlord then disappeared into dark particles that swirled around Akira and her entire table as she took the card off the table and put it into her hand. She clenched her teeth in pain for a brief moment before resuming with her current action.

"By retiring 3 rear-guards and discarding a card to make up a fourth..." she spoke "I superior ride Dragonic Dark Overlord with 10000 power!"

As the remaining three rear-guards vanished from her side of the battlefield by disintergrating into scraps of metal that disappeared into purple sparks, Dragonic Dark Overlord reappeared from the dark matter it had transformed into previously when it had left the rear-guard, causing Binary Star to vanish from the fight as it did so.

Dragonic Dark Overlord/POW: 11000 - 21000

"That's not all!" she continued "From the drop zone, as Neharan, Bahron and Udron were retired from my rear-guard, their skills activate! First off, I Lock all rear-guards in the same column that Neharan was in previously!"

"But I have no cards in that column..." Kai replied "In other words..."

"In addition, if 1 or less cards were Locked in that column," Akira interrupted before pointing towards him "You must Lock cards from the top of your deck to that column equal to the number of open rear-guard circles there!"

The top two cards of his deck hovered up and viewed themselves in front of him, causing him to slightly scowl as among them was the Critical Trigger unit known as Magnum Shot Dracokid. He placed it along with Cuélep, Phantom Dragon face down onto both of the rear-guard circles on his table, Locking them immediately before they could even manifest on the battlefield.

"If my opponent has 3 or more Locked cards after I use this skill, I draw a card," the Selector spoke "Next with Bahron, I Omega Lock Neoflame and draw a card since it has the same condition. Finally, Udron lets me put this card into the soul from my drop zone and add a Dragonic Dark Overlord card from my deck to my hand and draw a card."

"She's Locked Kai's columns and added 4 more cards to her hand?!" gasped Miwa.

Akira then fanned out her deck and picked out one particular card from among them, the chosen one radiating a black aura from it as it left the remaining cards which were shuffled and placed back onto the table. She then slowly revealed the card to Kai and the others, causing them to gasp upon seeing what it was. It seemed to look similar Dragonic Overlord the End to an extent as the firearms and shape of Dark Overlord seemed to now ressemble that with the armour now being littered with wild spikes and a large chest piece that appeared like a skull in addition to the swords being replaced by a pair of scythes. After putting into her hand and drawing a card to fulfill Udron's skill, she calmly closed her eyes.

"From there... I end my turn."

"What?!" exclaimed Kai.

"She's ending her turn?!" Miwa interjected.

"But if she's doing so... why isn't Dragonic Dark Overlord's power dropping?!" Neve muttered.

At this point, the Kagero user suddenly also began to notice that Dragonic Dark Overlord's power bonus from the Superior Ride had not worn off like he had thought from the end of his opponent's turn.

"You've only realized it?" Akira murmured "Dragonic Dark Overlord's power won't drop from its skill until the end of the next attack it wages, not the end of my turn."

"So you've ended your turn on purpose to keep the power for defence on my turn," he concluded "I must admit you have learned to stratagize better since our Selector Battle, but that dark power that has been eating away at you since your fight with Miwa... can't you understand that Urith is merely using you as a tool and not concerned about your well being?"

"That doesn't matter. As long as I am able to fight you fairly on even terms, what happens to my body is of no concern to either of us."

(End Music)

Upon finishing her sentence, she then began to think back to the morning in her world after she had managed to supposedly master the power of Dragonic Dark Overlord for herself, in spite of suffering from the lingering effects of its power.

Flashback

Earlier that day within her own world, Akira was standing before a bewildered girl with black hair and orange eyes dressed in her white coat with her deck in hand. She was confused as to why the supposed part time model, with the scar to her right cheek would appear before her, but upon recognizing her and knowing what she was capable of, she remained on guard.

"What is it you want?" she asked "If it's about Hitoe kicking your sorry butt because you stole Kai's deck that one time, she isn't here."

But the Selector remained silent, not responding to the further wounding of her pride from that battle, not just from her loss to Hitoe but the stinging words of what Dragonic Overlord had said to her then. She then held out the deck to her, with Milulun then becoming confused from the notion as she looked up from her card.

"Aki-lun?" she pondered.

Akira then placed the deck along with the LRIG's card into the hands of Sakuya, much to her sudden surprise before she stepped back and turned her back to the girl.

"Take her," she spoke "I cannot carry her with me for my rematch."

"Huh?" the girl blinked.

"Akira?!" Milulun gasped "What are you saying?!"

"You heard me Milulun," the Selector replied, her back still turned to the two "It's time for me to settle the score with my own strength, nothing else."

She then began to walk away from Sakuya and Milulun with her robes flowing behind her with each of her footsteps in the wind that surrounded them. The Selector on the other hand wasn't quite finished with what questions were on her mind.

"Wait!" she called out, causing the girl in front of her to stop in her tracks "What do you mean about this rematch?! Do you know where Kai is and where Aichi can find Urith?!"

"The answer should be obvious to you," Akira muttered as she brought out her blank card and announced "Open!"

And with a blinding white light, she left her world and returned to the one where she would fight Kai and settle her matter once and for all.

Present

And with that reminiscense complete, she returned her focus to the fight, opening her eyes and returning her seemingly blank gaze to her opponent. Kai did not know what to make of the silence that had befallen the fight temporarily, but he wasn't going to let the opportunity provided to him by the premature end of Akira's turn go to waste.

"Stand and draw," he spoke, glancing at both the card he drew and what he held in his hand before picking out one "At the end of an endless quest, you arrive the final evolution! Sublimate your savage soul and show your true form! Ride the Vanguard!"

(Cardfight! Vanguard V Series Unreleased Soundtrack: Kai Fight)

A tempest of flames erupted beneath Kannya, causing her to vanish as a familiar shadow with four arms burst onto the battlefield, the embers fading to reveal the evolved form of the true Dragonic Overlord. It wielded its two large firearms in addition to a pair of swords as its weapons of choice and roared loudly to signal its arrival, almost as if it was snarling towards Dragonic Dark Overlord to which the latter did in turn.

"Dragonic Overlord... the End!"

Dragonic Overlord the End/Grade 3/Twin Drive!/POW: 11000/Kagero/Flame Dragon/Dragon Empire

"At last..." Akira breathed as her lips formed a smile.

"I call Calamity Tower Wyvern!" Kai declared as the red coloured Winged Dragon appeared behind the End "I attack your Vanguard!"

As Dragonic Overlord roared loudly and pointed its firearms towards Dragonic Dark Overlord, the Abyss Dragon merely let out a low growl in response as its counterpart glared venomously towards it.

"But Dragonic Dark Overlord still has 21000 power!" Miwa exclaimed "Without a trigger, the attack won't go through and Akira has more than enough cards to guard it!"

"No guard."

Both he and Neve gazed upon the Selector once she had made that declaration, realizing that one way or another, she was planning to take this attack head on without any effort to defend against it.

"But if she doesn't guard... then a Critical Trigger will be enough for Kai to end the fight," Neve murmured "Unless..."

"Drive check!" Kai announced as he turned over the first card as Dragon Knight, Gimel. He then revealed the second card as Mother Orb Dragon. "Heal Trigger! I recover one damage and give the power to the End!"

Dragonic Overlord the End then roared loudly as it began charging up its firearms in response to recieving the trigger effects with its shadow snarling loudly in frustration that its defense had been surpassed even with the lack of guardians. Then, the Wind of the Apocalypse let loose its fury as twin streams of fiery bullets struck Dragonic Dark Overlord, causing it to scream in pain whilst Akira remained still, not flinching in response to the attack going all around her. She clutched her right hand in pain briefly as the familiar black aura enveloped her for a few seconds before performing her damage check, revealing Lady Healer of the Torn World.

"Got a Heal Trigger as well," she spoke, moving it to her damage zone and taking out a face down card "I give 5000 power to Dragonic Dark Overlord."

Dragonic Dark Overlord/POW: 21000 - 26000

The Abyss Dragon snarled as a green aura enveloped it, removing all signs of injury and dirt as it snarled beneath its breath, glaring towards Dragonic Overlord the End as did the latter, as if it was furious to be fighting against its own shadow.

"Not yet!" Kai commanded as he turned two of his four damage face down and discarded another copy of the End from his hand "Persona Blast! Stand up once more, Overlord the End!"

The Wind of the Apocalypse roared loudly as a whirlwind of flames surrounded it and gave it newfound strength as its card in turn stood up in a fiery aura, preparing to do battle against its dark doppelganger.

"It doesn't matter if you or Mayu's forces have created a doppelganger of my true self," he continued "But I won't allow you to continue out her's and Chaos Breaker's will! The End attacks again!"

"Guard," Akira calmly replied as the Cyberoid known as Blast Monk of the Quaking Foot appeared in front of Dark Overlord, kicking away the fireballs that had been launched by the firearms of Dragonic Overlord the End.

"Damn it! She practically took no damage this turn!" Miwa muttered.

"But, Kai has managed to acquire more defensive cards from the End's second attack and force her to use one of her Heal Triggers and 10000 point shield," Neve replied "And now that his turn has come to an end, three of his four Locks are now undone."

The Locks surrounding Red Pulse Dracokid, Cuélep and Magnum Shot Dracokid broke apart, freeing the Dragon Beast SIGNI and the two Flame Dragons leaving Dragonic Neoflame as the only unit that was trapped.

End of Turn 6

Kai vs Akira

Hand - 9 : 7

Soul - 0 : 1

Damage - 4 : 4

Kai's Formation:

Perdition Dragon, Dragonic Neoflame (Locked) - Dragonic Overlord the End - Cuélep, Phantom Dragon

Red Pulse Dracokid - Calamity Tower Wyvern - Magnum Shot Dracokid

Akira's Formation

EMPTY - Dragonic Dark Overlord - EMPTY

EMPTY - EMPTY - EMPTY

"Aoi Akira, I have a question for you," Kai spoke.

"What that may be?" she replied.

"Was it all worth it?" he asked "Picking off weaker Selectors to call yourself strong when Kiyoi was your LRIG. Becoming Urith's willing puppet and throwing away Milulun to claim Overlord's shadow for yourself. Yet you claim you're no longer the same person you were and have understood true strength. Is it really that satisfactory?"

"Naturally," the Selector answered "I wanted to face you again and I would do whatever it would took to be in this position. I put away all of my grudges against the Urazoe fortune and your party for this one fight, where I will finally beat you. And if I have to use the shadow of the avatar I craved to have as my own, so be it."

(End Music)

Sensing that she had indeed answered his question and that he had heard most of what he wanted to hear, the Kagero user merely remained still as he kept his gaze upon her. As she began her turn, the cards in her hand suddenly began radiating a strange aura of black and violet colours as she picked out the card she had added with Udron's skill. And everyone besides her had already knew as they began to tense up.

(Insert Music: Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS Unreleased Soundtrack: Patriarch of the Next Generation (Bach Fague))

Then suddenly, she fell to her knees as her irises shrunk, writhing in pain as Dragonic Dark Overlord evaporated into nothing but darkness and began to change shape. At the same time, the veins on Akira's face had completely bolded out as she coughed in pain.

"C... Come! The evolution of my avatar and the peak of my strength!" she announced, fighting back against the pain as she clutched her arm "Cross Ride!"

"Akira! That power is destroying your body!" Kai called "You may not survive with what Chaos Breaker's efforts are doing to you!"

"If that's what it takes to beat you, so be it!" the Selector replied as she slammed down the card onto her Vanguard Circle.

The shapes of Dragonic Dark Overlord began to rematerialize with the new armour along with the firearms and the scythes that had been depicted in the card's artwork when she had added it to her hand. Soon, it let out an even horrider sounding roar as Akira's right arm became affected greatly by the Abyss Dragon's power, having caused more veins to pop out, making the extent of the damage to her body visible to all.

"Dragonic Dark Overlord... THE ABYSS!"

Dragonic Dark Overlord "The ABYSS"/Grade 3/Twin Drive!/POW: 11000/Kagero;Link Joker/Abyss Dragon/Dragon Empire

Both Dragonic Overlords of flesh and shadow stared off with one another and began arming each of their weapons by charging up the barrels of their respective firearms with flame and darkness. Miwa and Neve could only watch nervously from the sidelines whilst Kai braced himself for the onslaught to come, knowing full well now that Akira was willing to risk everything for the sake of her long awaited triumph over him.

(End Music)


There we go! Sincerest apologies once again for the extensive delay. My original plan was to have it be the entire fight and resolution a double length chapter in time for the fic's fifth anniversary, but after being bogged down with other things and being unhappy with the pacing of the original draft, I had to go with the multi part chapter update and push the fic as a whole back until this day. In any regards, I hope you have all enjoyed the opener to Kai and Akira's rematch and I look forward to hearing your thoughts. Until then, I'll see you next time on the next chapter of Stand Up, the LRIG! and here's to one hundred chapters!


Story Original Cards debuting this chapter:

Cyber Reptile, Udron
Grade 0
Boost
POW: 5000
SLD: 10000
Link Joker
Cyber Beast
Star Gate
[AUTO]: Forerunner
[AUTO]: When put into the drop zone from (RC) for the COST of your card named "Dragonic Dark Overlord", {COST|Put this card into your soul}, search your deck for up to one card with "Dragonic Dark Overlord" in its card name and put it into your hand. Then if the number of Locked cards your opponent has is three or more, draw a card.

Full-armoured Demon, Bahron
Grade 1
Boost
POW: 7000
SLD: 5000
Link Joker
Cyberoid
Star Gate
[AUTO]:
When put into the drop zone from (RC) for the COST of your card named "Dragonic Dark Overlord", {COST|Counter Blast (1)}, choose one of your opponent's Locked cards, it does not unlock during their next end phase. Then if the number of Locked cards your opponent has is three or more, draw a card.

Dark Blaze Striker, Neharan
Grade 2
Intercept
POW: 9000
SLD: 5000
Link Joker
Cyberoid
Star Gate
[AUTO]: When put into the drop zone from (RC) for the COST of your card named "Dragonic Dark Overlord", {COST|Soul Blast (2)}, Lock all of your opponent's cards in the same column as the circle this unit was previously on. If one of less cards were Locked, your opponent looks at cards from the top of their deck equal to the number of open (RC) in that column and puts them on those open (RC) in a Locked state. Then if the number of Locked cards your opponent has is three or more, draw a card.

Re-adapted cards debuting this chapter:

Cuélep, Phantom Dragon
Grade 1
Boost
POW: 8000
SLD: 5000
Dragon Empire
Dragon Beast
Dragon Empire

Kannya, Phantom Dragon
Grade 2
Intercept
POW: 10000
SLD: 5000
Dragon Empire
Dragon Beast
Dragon Empire