Card Capital
Back at the road that was in front of Card Capital, Kamui along with all the spectators observing the fight could only stare with eyes wide at the situation he was now in. His opponent had not just called upon Schwarzschild to deal with him, but she left Fumio's body and entered a cybernetic one that had now combined with the Cyber Dragon, intending to take him out with her own hands in a literal sense of the meaning. Kiyoi and Shin watched on anxiously, having been startled by the turn of events and could only ponder about what Futase had planned to do next.
"... Right now, Kamui only has one rear-guard," she pondered "Even if Futase Locks it and then Dominates it, she will only get one extra attack."
"But there's worse to come..." the manager replied "Even with only one rear-guard..."
He then gazed at the ground in shame, feeling terrible that he allowed more of Misaki's units to be lost to Mayu's forces and worse still, all of those that were taken from most of his customers that were also watching the fight. The LRIG that was suspended above Schwarzschild through the electrical beams then held out a hand towards Fumio's body, causing it to move like a puppet as it began to respond to her command, continuing with her turn as Lanthanum and Niobium appeared on her rear-guard.
"Schwarzschild's skill activates!" she announced as the possessed body paid the cost "I Lock Dual-flare!"
(Cardfight! Vanguard G NEXT OST: Dominate)
As this happened, Schwarzschild roared loudly as a pair of black rings enveloped the giant blue Battleroid, sealing it away in a small black sphere and causing the card on Kamui's table to turn face down.
"Lanthanum and Niobium gain 2000 power!" Futase continued "Futhermore call!" Mulepton then appeared to the left of her and Schwarzschild, her visor flashing red upon making her appearance. "Mulepton's skill activates! Choose a card from your hand and put it into your back row behind Dual-flare in a Locked state!"
"What?! Now they're Locking from my hand?!" Kamui exclaimed before growling as he put down a card onto his rear-guard, the only thing appearing on the field being a sphere surrounded by a pair of black rings.
"I call another Anne! Mulepton retires!"
Once again, Anne appeared on her rear-guard with a blank expression, causing Schwarzschild to chuckle darkly as the LRIG raised her staff, shooting out a beam that struck the Lock and freeing Dual-flare. Both of the rings shocked it intensely as its eyes turned red and its power increased to 11000.
"Dual-flare attacks your Vanguard!" she commanded with a sneer as the Battleroid turned towards Glory-hand and began charging its cannon "If you guard this attack, Dual-flare will be Locked again!"
The Nova Grappler user could only groan as he looked at his damage zone and the cards he held, sensing that he would not be able to escape this turn as unscathed as he thought. Clenching his teeth, he made a decision.
"Guard!" he cried out "Minimum Raizer!"
The smaller red Raizer then appeared between the two units, getting struck by the impact of the weapon's blast before vanishing from the battlefield. The black and blue coloured Battleroid then stared at Dual-flare as the black rings above it sealed the unit back into the sphere it was formerly within.
"Defiant I see," Futase muttered "No matter. Anne retires and I call Fumiose!"
As Anne vanished from the battlefield, a Cyberoid then appeared bearing a strong resemblance to someone that was almost in front of them. Everyone gasped once they noticed the resemblance of the hair and face despite the visor covering over the eyes.
"The Star-vaders made a clone of the real Fumio?!" Shin muttered.
"But what does this mean?" Kiyoi pondered, puzzled by this stranger turn of events.
"Fumiose's skill," the LRIG spoke "Since you have two Locked cards, call the top two cards of your deck to the rear-guard."
The top two cards of Kamui's deck hovered up towards him, causing him to stare at them intently having realized that his opponent was only forcing him to call more rear-guards so she could Lock them and unleash the full extent of the Dominate ability all at once.
"I call Transraizer and Cannonraizer...!" he muttered as the two Battleroids from his earlier turns appeared onto his right side column.
"Right now, you have 4 cards on your rear-guard circles," Futase continued "I draw 4 cards, discard cards up to the number of units I made you call and if 2 or more were discarded, I turn over the same amount of cards from my damage zone."
As Fumio's motionless body performed the actions that she listed, everyone could only stare towards her drop zone, realizing that aside from turning over cards in her damage zone face up, she had met the conditions she sought.
"She has more cards other than her Annes in her drop zone!" one of the younger boys on the sidelines gasped.
"Then next is..." an older one groaned, gritting his teeth.
"Seek mate!"
A black and red aura enveloped Schwarzschild and the LRIG, resulting in four cards from the drop zone hovering on top of the deck and a file of light scanning through the pile, resulting in it pulling out the card she wanted into the puppeteer-ed body's right hand.
"The stained soul that fights on my behalf, descend now and destroy all who oppose you!" Futase announced "With my fourth Anne, Legion!"
A black and red version of the Legion symbol flashed as Anne descended from above, hovering alongside Schwarzschild and the LRIG, completing their union and signalling the beginning of the end for their opponents in this fight.
Enigmatic Star-vader, Schwarzschild Instrumental Dragon & Despairing Melody Star-vader, Anne/POW: 20000
"Now they have Legion too...?!" Kamui gasped.
"Robin Knight's skill!" his opponent continued with a crazed smile "Since our union is complete, I Lock your final two rear-guards!"
She then brought her hands together inches from each other as two Locks manifested between her palms and shot out with a thrust from her arms, surrounding Transraizer and Cannonraizer before sealing them away. Lanthanum and Niobium's blazing claws glowed brighter as they powered up from the seals that were cast upon their unfortunate victims.
Demon Claw Star-vader, Lanthanum/POW: 9000 - 13000
Furious Claw Star-vader, Niobium/POW: 11000 - 15000
"So primitive boy... any last words?"
"Yeah, I got some for you!" the Nova Grappler user snapped back "You think a few Locks and extra attacks are gonna keep the great Kamui down?! As long as I've got units to keep fighting with, the only way we're going down is if take me down to six damage!"
"Heh, fitting for a human of your kind," Schwarzschild sneered as it stared down towards him "Futase, finish this farce."
Futase only smirked in response as two cards in her damage zone turned face down and another copy of Schwarzschild was discarded from the possessed Fumio's hand. She then brought her hands together again as a strange eye like symbol manifested between them.
"The power to bend even armies of Cray to my will, courtesy of the associate Gastille!" she announced "Legion Skill! Unlock and Dominate!"
The Locks on Kamui's side of the battlefield broke apart as each of the Battleroids along with Cat Butler writhed in pain before their eyes flashed red and they turned their attention upon Glory-hand. The Nova Grappler user looked around in worry before glancing to his damage zone and hand, realizing he was put in a tough bind. If he defended himself, not only would his board be Locked again, but Lanthanum and Niobium would power up again. If he chose to let all of them through however, he would be at six damage and there was no telling if there would be any damage triggers to save himself.
"First, Cat Butler!" she declared "As all of your rear-guards are Dominated, you cannot intercept until all of them have attacked!"
The small and smartly dressed Warbeast then bared its fangs as it leaped high into the air and illuminated its claws in a bright red glow. As it descended towards Glory-hand, Kamui closed his eyes, still unsure of what to do. Even though he still had seven cards left in his hand, he knew that they could all disappear in a blink of an eye. He then thought back to what he said to Kiyoi before he challenged Futase to this fight and widened his eyes, realizing the answer was in front of him this whole time. He then turned back towards Schwarzschild and the two LRIGs, a newfound confidence now brimming within him.
"Forgive me Glory-hand... but hang in there for me!" he called out "Damage check!"
He then turned over the top card of his deck to reveal Energy Charger, no trigger marking being present on the card. At the same time, the Dominated Cat Butler then slashed down the front of the black and blue coloured Raizer, causing it to stumble back with seemingly minimal visible damage on the armour.
"But this will not save you," Futase sneered with a crazed expression in her eyes "Cannonraizer attacks next!"
"No guard!" her opponent replied as Glory-hand took the attack head on with armour plating being blown off from the impact.
"Next! Transraizer!"
Transraizer then began to turn towards the giant Battleroid that loomed slightly above it, preparing to strike as it reeled back its fist and gathered energy to deal the perfect blow.
"There's no way you can tank my remaining four attacks and this one," the LRIG replied "Your triumph over Remember was only a sleight of luck and these finishing blows are proof of that!"
Kamui remained silent as he did not pay attention in the slightest to Transraizer's coming attack as the green and white armoured Raizer leapt into the air and began to descend. He then pulled away the top card of his deck as Glory-hand took the full brunt of the fully charged fist attack of its comrade, wobbling ever so slightly as it tried and only just about regained its balance.
"Given up already?" Futase scoffed "I knew you were nothing special for a primitive being. It's time you accepted your fate by either my hands or that of your last rear-guard."
"I'm not going anywhere yet!" he replied.
He then slammed the card he pulled from his damage check into the trigger zone in front of his deck, revealing it to be Red Lightning, shocking everyone present in the battlefield. Now it was the Nova Grappler's turn to smirk as he put the card into his damage zone.
"I give all the effects to Glory-hand!" he announced as the black and blue Battleroid powered up "And I believe you have one more dominated attack to take a shot at!"
At this moment, Dual-flare then charged up its cannon and shot straight towards Glory-hand who easily endured through the blast without so much of a further dent or scratch. The rear-guard then was sealed up back into the black rings as Futase's right eye twitched in shock, having not expected this to have thrown a wrench into her perfect formation as Lanthanum and Niobium powered up from the recent Lock. The red glows in the eyes of Kamui's other rear-guards vanished, causing them to fall to their knees out of tiredness.
"I don't understand...!" she muttered indignantly "Saving your rear-guard by taking all the hits is not your optimal choice...!"
"I already told my friends earlier and you should have listened!" the Nova Grappler user replied "We Nova Grapplers always charge together until we get the job done! That's proof we're not fighting alone outside of the Selector Battles and proof enough for me!"
"Proof enough for what?!" Futase snarled.
"Proof enough that I'm gonna win this fight because I trust my units, just like how I counted on Red Lightning to help smooth out those bruises just now!" he replied before pointing a finger at her and Schwarzschild "You're only strong at the moment because you have the gall to try and stab me in the back with my own cards, just like how you stabbed Anne and Fumio's already!"
(End Music)
BA-DUMP!
Electricity coursed across Futase's cybernetic body as she froze up in disbelief to Kamui's accusation, the surge causing her to spasm and freeze up briefly as her eyes began flashing erratically, much to Schwarzschild's displeasure.
"Mayu," it muttered quietly to itself "It seems we have a problem..."
Photon's Lab
Meanwhile within the twisted laboratory of one of the Star-vaders' surviving commanders, Mayu and the Cyberoid in question were observing a screen that detailed statistics regarding the state of Futase's cybernetic body and how it was coping when it fused with Schwarzschild's black ring. Warning signs flared up on the screen as sirens blared out loudly whilst the mastermind of the Selector Battles could only frown.
"I warned her that letting her emotions run wild would cause instability..." she muttered.
"It would seem that Futase has overestimated her potential," the Cyberoid interjected coldly before he glanced down at the Cyber Fairies in the room "Stabalize Futase's form this instant."
None of them hesitated as they began working away at the monitors to correct this short circuit, none of them daring to anger Mayu if they had failed to do so and that Kamui would escape unharmed because of a technicality in her underling being unable to continue the fight.
Card Capital
Eventually, the bolts of electricity calmed down as Futase drooped downwards for a moment before regaining her body's movements and glaring down towards Kamui, angered that he could cause something like this to happen to her.
"How dare you...!" she hissed "How dare you question my ambitions for Fumio-san! For that... I'll crush you! Niobium attacks Transraizer!"
Niobium's claws ignited brightly as it dashed over towards the defenceless green Raizer before slashing it apart, removing it out of the way from the battlefield. Schwarzschild then opened its jaw as energy crackled within whilst Anne pointed her staff in the direction of Glory-hand, the eye like frame at the tip glowing brightly as this happened.
"Guard!" Kamui called out as Cannonraizer and Raizer Girl, Kate appeared in front of the giant that loomed above them.
"The total shield is 31000!" Shin muttered.
"Even without his intercept or a Sentinel, a double trigger won't be enough for Futase to break through," Kiyoi calmly interjected.
Futase only hissed as she motioned for the possessed body of Fumio to conduct her Twin Drive, revealing Star-vader, Quark Shoebill and Rejection Dragon, with Fumiose glowing brightly as she recieved the trigger effects. The combined attacks of Schwarzschild and Anne struck the guardians head on and vaporized them in an instant, but the Vanguard they defended came out unharmed once again. Futase growled as she turned her attention to the only unit she had left that was available to attack with and held out her right arm wide.
"End this, Fumiose!" she commanded, the Cyberoid clone rushing towards Glory-hand with a small dark red dagger in hand to strike down the giant Battleroid with.
"Not gonna happen!" Kamui responded as another Minimum Raizer came to the defence, stopping Fumiose in her tracks and forcing her to retreat.
Schwarzschild growled under its cold breath as it realized the plan to finish the fight this quickly had come to an abrupt end, but regained its composure and chuckled to itself, much to the Nova Grappler user's discomfort.
"Well done, Katsuragi Kamui," it sneered "I must admit, it isn't any hour you can see the consecutive Dominate attacks cut abruptly by a single damage trigger from one like you. But this is where your luck ends as on our next turn, our union will evolve even further!"
End of Turn 6
Kamui vs Futase
Hand - 4 : 5
Damage - 5 : 4
Soul - 2 : 0
Kamui's Formation:
Ultimate Raizer, Dual-flare (Locked) - Ultimate Raizer, Glory-hand - EMPTY
Cat Butler - EMPTY - Cannonraizer
Futase's Formation:
Warp-bending Star-vader, Fumiose - Enigmatic Star-vader, Schwarzschild Instrumental Dragon (Legion with Despairing Melody Star-vader, Anne) - Furious Claw Star-vader, Niobium
Demon Claw Star-vader, Lanthanum - EMPTY - EMPTY
"The great Kamui stands and draws!" Kamui announced drew his next card, smiling in relief upon seeing it "Dual-flare, Cat Butler, come here!"
Another copy of the small and smartly dressed Warbeast along with the familiar blue Battleroid joined the battlefield, much to the annoyance of Futase who had noticed the particular symbol on Glory-hand's card earlier on in the fight and knew that this was proving problematic after the first one had been Locked.
"Seek mate!"
(Cardfight! Vanguard G OST: Kamui Fight)
A golden aura from the giant black and blue Raizer unit rose into the air and created a blinding white flash as four cards from the Nova Grappler user's drop zone, all of them being trigger units rearranged themselves on top of his deck. A file of light then scanned through his deck and pulled out the card he was looking for into his hand.
"From the vastness corners of the universe, the Glory's right hand guy will put a shock to your system! The great Kamui's super-ultra-mega Legion!"
He then threw the card named Ultimate Raizer Speed-star onto his Vanguard circle as the dark red Battleroid appeared beside the black coloured giant with neon blue lights shining brightly from various places on the mechanized fighting machine. The two gleamed brightly as the Legion symbol appeared to all, completing their union as Dual-flare powered up from the arrival of the reinforcement.
Ultimate Raizer Glory-hand and Ultimate Raizer Speed-star/POW: 20000
Ultimate Raizer Dual-flare/POW: 9000 - 14000
"So this is Kamui-san's new Legion..." Shin murmured "It certainly looks impressive, but even with Dual-flare's skill, he still has a Locked column to stop him from attacking with another unit."
"But what puzzles me is the use of the Cat Butlers," Kiyoi pondered "They're Grade 0 units without the forerunner ability or a trigger effect, so why would he use them?"
Even the nervous marked fighters watching from the side grew confused as to the adjustment Kamui had made to his deck in this manner, having been more aware of the skill from experience in Vanguard's early days or so they believed. Even Futase who had regained her composure could only stare in confusion, believing her opponent had wasted valuable shield and taken a risk in potentially missing out his Grade 1 ride on his first turn.
"What you wrote in those novels...!" he called out to her "Are you saying all of that's worthless?! You only think of it as a doomsday proheptsy or whatever, but that's wrong!"
"Nonsense!" she responded, not bothering to correct his grammar "I wrote those novels just to show you how even the smallest bit of hope would run out, just like how I put them on hiatus intentionally with nowhere further to go with Fumio's wish."
"Well there is hope for us!" Kamui replied "Even if it's vague, you've given us a way of understanding that head honcho and that system a little better! And it's that info that's gonna lead to all of you guys' downfall! Dual-flare attacks Schwarzschild without a boost!"
The dark blue coloured Battleroid took aim at Schwarzschild who merely snarled as it stared at the Nova Grappler user who still continued to act defiant in its presence compared to before. Anne remained motionless, not saying a word or moving a muscle as the attack fired away. As it hit, the Cyber Dragon and the two LRIGs cried out aloud in pain as the cybernetic body drooped before Futase gave out a command to Fumio's possessed body.
"Damage Check!" she called out, revealing Star-vader, Paradigm Shift Dragon "Critical Trigger! I give all the effects to ourselves!"
Enigmatic Star-vader, Schwarzschild Instrumental Dragon/POW: 11000 - 16000/Critical: 1 - 2
"With a boost from Cat Butler, Glory-hand and Speed-star attack Schwarzschild!" Kamui declared as the cannons on the Legioned pair began to charge up "Dual-flare's skill! Stand and add 5000 power! Then Legion Skill! Add 5000 power every time a unit other than Glory-hand stands!"
"So then with the boost with the Cannonraizer, Dual-flare's power will be 26000," Kiyoi murmured "Schwarzschild's power is 16000... If Kamui wants to whittle Futase's hand, he'll need more than one trigger."
Once the cannons' charge had reached full power, the two Raizer units were about to open fire at the Legion in front of them, just as Star-vader. Rejection Dragon manifested in front of the trio and generated five green circles around itself.
"Quintet Wall!" the LRIG announced as a card in her damage zone turned face down.
At this moment, Schwarzschild Instrumental Dragon, Weiss Soldat, Quark Shoebill, Anne-ThiЯd and Paradigm Shift Dragon appeared with Rejection Dragon in front of her and her Legioned units, projecting a barrier that surrounded the entire half of her field with ease, though this didn't seem to annoy Kamui in the slightest compared to previous turns.
"Twin Drive!" he called out as he revealed the first card as Shieldraizer before moving onto the second check. He then turned over the top card of his deck to reveal Raizer Girl, Kate "Heal Trigger! I recover one damage and add power to my Vanguard!"
"What?!" gasped Shin as he watched the Legioned Raizers power up "But Glory-hand doesn't have a skill to Stand! What's going on?!"
The cannons of Glory-hand and Speed-star fired away and struck the barrier hard on for several long seconds before the beams evaporated along with the units that had vanished.
"What was the point of that misplay?!" Futase demanded "The only unit that you can attack with that's left is Dual-flare and I can easily guard it!"
"That's where you're wrong!" the Nova Grappler user replied "And I have my Cat Butlers on the rear-guard to allow that!"
"That may be, but you don't have a Grade 2 Vanguard!" the LRIG snapped back "You cannot use their skills!"
That was when her opponent decided to smirk as the two Cat Butler cards on his table then shone brightly, much to the surprise of everyone who was watching the fight. As one of the Warbeasts on the battlefield looked up to the Legioned pair, he reached into his suit and pulled out a pair of electronic pads.
"Catch, my Vanguards nyah!" it called out as it tossed them, before vanishing as a result of the cost.
The patches stuck onto one of each of the unit's barrels for their cannons before they shot out a discharge of energy that replenished their strength in an instant, causing them to begin to recharge their weapons as their cards on the Vanguard circle at the same time shot out sparks before they stood together, much to the shock of everyone present.
"W... What is this?!" Schwarzschild exclaimed in fury.
"Hey, if your so-called student is a master of the Legion ability, how didn't they see this coming?" Kamui replied whilst cheekily wagging a finger at the commander "My units may have to attack as one and not separately whilst they in Legion, but they still Stand and Rest together on the Vanguard circle. And since the Vanguard circle makes all units on there as Vanguards, I get all the benefits of having two units together. Translation, when Cat Butler stood the Speed-star treated as a Vanguard, it also stood Glory-hand and powered up with the Legion skill!"
"WHAT THE HELL?!" shrieked Futase whose right eye twitched in utter disbelief.
"Hey, that Asia Circuit champion still has another Cat Butler," one of the younger fighters in the crowd murmured "Does this mean...?"
"It does..." Shin interjected, sharing their utter awe "If Futase has to guard the next attack to stay alive, Glory-hand and Speed-star can charge at her for a third time."
"I must admit... I'm impressed," Kiyoi replied, blinking once as she stared at the sight.
Futase scowled as she looked at the cards in her hand, hissing at the prospect of having to guard 3 more consecutive attacks to stay in the game thanks to the unexpected development of a bonus Nova Grappler had exclusively from using the Legion ability. Kamui placed his hands on the Legioned cards and looked ahead up to the LRIG, no longer shaken by the threat of the Dominate ability as now it was her turn to suffer from consecutive attacks from an unexpected source.
"Glory-hand, Speed-star, fire away!" he declared as the cannons of the two Raizers charged up fully and shot out four more beams in the direction of his opponents.
"Quintet Wall!" she snapped as two Anne-ThiЯd, Neon, Pixie Powder and Weiss Soldat formed a defensive barrier around the trio again, deflecting the attack with ease "Even with your newest tricks from the Planet Cray, it means nothing to the Selector System or the one that helped Mayu to bring it into reality!"
(Music Abruptly Ends)
"You're talking about the Void, aren't you?" Kiyoi asked, glancing up at the LRIG and catching Shin's attenion.
"That would be one way of calling it that, but it goes by a true name only those have the privilege of learning before the end of a universe," she sneered, glancing down at Schwarzschild and Anne "Even if you still had been the LRIG of Misfortune Kiyoi, neither it nor its surviving apostles from an age long ago would have much use of you!"
(Selector Spread Wixoss OST: Battle ~ Consternation)
She then chuckled softly as she began reminiscing of the time she had the pleasure of meeting such a being for herself, before her small chuckles erupted into slightly larger crazed laughs.
"That's right... I first learned of the limitless nature of the Void itself from Valeos..." she began "A force that consumes all in its wake originates from a single source that demands resurrection... I saw a glimpse of it through Fumio's memories and on that fateful day, I saw its essence within nothingness for myself."
Flashback; Futase' POV
A scared Futase as a regular LRIG looked around the endless black expanse with only the Blue Wave Marshal and the surrounding fog around her for company as they awaited the arrival of the Void's originater, even if it was only through essence and not its true presence. The dark fog began swirling around the pair as it took on the same silhouette that Fumio herself had seen before she became an LRIG herself. A six pointed crest that was identical to the symbol displayed on the Marks of Penalty shone brightly from behind its head as two bright red eyes gleamed out from the shadows, staring down at the two beings before its ethereal form.
"I brought her as our associate instructed, my Lord," Valeos spoke as he bowed before the swirling mass.
"W... What are you?" Futase breathed.
The strange being said nothing at first, as if it was observing the frightened LRIG at the time with seemingly a blank expression in its current form. It then spoke out in an archaic tone much like how it did when it saw Fumio back then.
"Thy am nothingness," it answered "Thou seeks only the truth. Therefore, thou will understand everything about existence."
"At first, I was terrified of its presence, but the more I fought and marked fighters of their units, I began to understand how your pitiful world isn't so much different from ours. As such, I could see why Valeos respected such a slumbering-esque, yet transcendent being, responsible for Link Joker's existence and that of the Selector Battles."
Several days later, Futase through Fumio's body continuously racked up victories from all of the cardfights she held against them, watching as all of their dominated units attacked their own Vanguards one after another, her expression slowly becoming crazed as she began to relish in the 'justice' she believed she was bringing as retribution to all cardfighters and her own world."
"Soon Fumio-san... Anne-san..." she breathed raggedly "These ugly worlds shall be silenced by the true master of the Void...!"
"If using this power means justice for Fumio and all those around her...!"
Present
"Then I would cling to it!" she concluded, her arms raised and outstretched.
"Glory-hand attacks again!" Kamui declared.
The Legioned units charged up their cannons for one final onslaught before they fired away, sending four large energy beams that hurtled closer and closer towards the opposing trio.
"Quintet Wall!" Futase announced as Rejection Dragon projected a barrier along with two Pixie Powders, Quark Shoebill, Fumiose and Lanthanum joined the assault, the combined shield value being just enough to ward off the attack.
"She got me there...!" the Nova Grappler user muttered before conducting his Twin Drive, the only results of it being a Screamin' and Dancin' Announcer, Shout and Red Lightning.
He watched as both of the trigger effects powered up Dual-flare, the blue Battleroid shining brightly as this happened. He clenched his teeth as he looked up at Futase who was still looking down smugly at him.
"Your Cat Butlers certainly caught me off guard, but this is where your luck runs out!" she sneered "Heal Triggers? Who says I need them?!"
But... her damage zone and drop zone has... Kamui pondered as he looked down to the opposing table before shaking his head and proceeding to the next attack "Get her Dual-flare!"
"Perfect Guard!" his opponent responded.
Her final Sentinel appeared in front of her, Schwarzschild and Anne, revealing itself as Barrier Star-vader, Promethium who vanished after the attack was deflected. The black rings around the other Dual-flare then broke apart, signalling the end of the turn. Everyone in the crowd could only gasp, realizing that Futase had managed to survive all of the Nova Grappler user's consecutive attacks with four Sentinels in a row and could only grow in worry, realizing what was coming next.
"He couldn't finish it this turn..." Kiyoi muttered "Next is..."
(End Music)
Shin could only clench his teeth, agreeing with the former blue LRIG on her sentiment and understanding why Futase had Schwarzschild and Anne cloaked in shadow at this moment until the previous turn of this fight.
"Stand and skip the draw phase!" Futase declared "Now I'll show you... how the three of us will now evolve even further and truly become one! FINAL TURN!"
(Cardfight! Vanguard G Z OST: Zeroth Dragon)
The card that was face down in the bind zone on her table began to glow in a blinding purple light as the possessed body of Fumio emotionlessly moved its right arm and took ahold of it, holding it high into the air before slamming it down onto the Vanguard circle, resulting in Anne's card there moving to the soul. At the same time, Schwarzschild was enveloped in a blinding glow of the same colour as Anne on the battlefield turned into an orb of light that hovered up to the silhouetted dragon's jaw who then immediately chomped down on it, much to the shock of everyone else present.
"Two souls of despair including thyself, unite with the dragon of dark flames and symbolize the ultimate union of fighter, LRIG and Link Joker!" Futase's voice echoed loudly from the light "Limit Override!"
Black coloured sparks raged across the silhouette as the shapes of Schwarzschild's armour and black ring began to change before a portion of a figure began to emerge from the top of where its head was. The light then broke apart like shattered glass to reveal that this time, Anne was suspended from the black ring from where Futase previously was as several electrical beams were wrapped around her body. Futase herself however was now atop the head of Schwarzschild, up to her waist inside the metallic armour of the sinister commander who cackled loudly upon being allowed to display a form only it would consider, magnificent as the former LRIG announced the name out aloud.
"Twisted Union Star-vader, Schwarzschild and Anne!"
Twisted Union Star-vader, Schwarzschild and Anne/Grade 5/Triple Drive!/POW: 15000/Link Joker/Cyber Dragon;Human;LRIG/Star Gate
"Now even Anne's fused with Schwarzschild?!" Kamui exclaimed.
"Skill activated!" Futase declared as Schwarzschild's Grade 3 form left the soul "I Lock all the rear-guards in your front row! Add 4000 power to Lanthanum and Niobium!"
She then manifested two pairs of Locks in her arms and thrust them towards the blue Battleroids, sealing them away to power up her formation and more importantly, cripple Kamui by stripping him of his only Intercepts. Before he had time to process this, a black coloured aura then manifested around his arm much to his shock before he suddenly found it being pulled towards his deck.
"My arm...!" he cried.
"With our combined power," Schwarzschild explained in a devious tone "We bind all cards that are either named Schwarzschild and Anne from our drop zone face up. Then for each of those cards bound..."
"Your next trigger checks you will perform up to that same number... are dominated!" Futase concluded.
As Kamui could only gasp out in horror, Shin could only tense up upon realizing that the Nova Grappler user was now forced into the same worst case scenario that had cost him the Oracle Think Tank units he had used in the previous fight.
"Dominating his checks?" Kiyoi pondered "Does that mean...?"
"Yeah," the manager replied "Kamui will be forced to perform trigger checks and apply the effects to his opponent. Then the checked cards are put into the drop zone."
The former blue LRIG grimaced in response, knowing that the only trigger that would be wasted at this point would be a Stand Trigger, but she had no idea if Kamui had any at all in his deck and that was what concerned her. Meanwhile back at the battlefield, Kamui reluctantly allowed his controlled arm to perform the first of his Dominate Checks, turning over the top card of his deck to reveal Screamin' and Dancin' Announcer, Shout.
"The second," Futase continued, smiling deviously as this happened.
All her opponent could do was perform the next check, unveiling Raizer Girl, Kate as the next card, much to his annoyance.
"I recover one damage and give power to Fumiose," the former LRIG confirmed "Third check."
The next card turned over was Minimum Raizer, one that anyone but the Nova Grappler user's opponents had prayed to not see. Schwarzschild cackled loudly as it and its two partners recieved all of the Trigger effects. Kamui then turned over the next card to reveal another Red Lightning, causing him to growl in annoyance as Niobium took all of the stolen trigger's effects. Turning over the fifth card, it was Shieldraizer with no trigger marking to worsen things for the present. Turning over the sixth card, it was yet another Minimum Raizer much to his displeasure as Fumiose glowed brightly as a result of the Trigger Effects. Finally, he checked the last card to reveal Ultimate Raizer, Mega-flare, having no further trigger markings to worsen things as they already were. When the aura around his arm vanished, he put the seven checked cards from his table's Trigger Zone to his drop zone.
"This is bad...!" Shin gasped "All of her front row units have a Critical of 2!"
"And what's worse, she, Schwarzschild and Anne haven't performed Drive Checks of their own..." Kiyoi interjected as she looked towards Kamui, a hint of worry in her eyes.
"This time, it's the end!" Futase announced "A primitive fighter like you was only lucky that you survived the rear-guard Dominate! However, with the Dominate ability on your Triggers, your fate is sealed!"
"I'm not giving up!" Kamui replied "You may have stripped me of four of my triggers, but you're at a disadvantage too. If you guarded my first attack on the last turn and took the attack of Glory-hand then, you would've had cards in your hand to boost two of your units. But because you didn't account for Cat Butler, your front row isn't as effective as you make it out to be."
"That hardly means a difference," she replied "Tokura Misaki was too weak to make a difference with me and she fell too quickly for me to even unleash this true union against her. But this time, you'll be the first to fall to this form outside of the shadows. Prepare your final will, because when this fight is over, because you've been marked before, losing to us means a further punishment is in order."
"Further punishment?" he pondered "What do you mean?!"
"Experience it firsthand for yourself!" Schwarzschild announced before it opened its jaw, charging up energy for an attack whilst black sparks raged across Anne, causing her to scream out in pain much to the shock of Kiyoi and Kamui.
(End Music)
"Futase, what are you doing to Anne?!" the former blue LRIG exclaimed.
"I'm simply siphoning power from her from this next attack," Futase replied "But that's a small price to pay when this attack is all it takes to end this. Prepare yourself, Katsuragi Kamui!"
The Nova Grappler user then hung his head down as the attack began charging up even more, thinking all about what his opponent had said over the course of the fight and what she was doing up to this point. He clenched an open fist as he heard Anne's screams eventually cease before he glared back up at Futase and Schwarzschild.
"Guard!" he called out aloud as Red Lightning, Cannonraizer and Shout appeared in front of Glory-hand and Speed-star, projecting a barrier in front of them in preparation for the worst "I've met all kinds of people in that other world involved with what the hell's been going on there... but I never thought you were that heartless compared to Remember and Urith!"
"And why is that?" she asked, seemingly unconcerned with his statement.
"Wasn't Anne your LRIG?!" he yelled "It's one thing to lie about her being taken ill when we first met, but you allowed the bad side of Link Joker to mess her up like that! If anything, you're no better than those other two I just mentioned because you see Anne as disposable because you think that would make Fumio happy!"
(Selector Infected Wixoss OST: Battle ~ Even if I Hurt Someone)
BA-DUMP!
Sparks flew across Futase's cybernetic body as she froze up for a few seconds in response to the Nova Grappler user's words having an effect on her conscience once again, much to Schwarzschild's displeasure as it glared up at her before unleashing its attack straight at the guardians he called. Once the former LRIG was no longer paralyzed, she growled loudly before glaring at her opponent, the attack slamming hard against the barrier with cracks beginning to form around it.
"Shut up you worthless human!" she screamed out "Your little excuse of an insult has only brought your shield to 31000! All I need is three triggers and I can put you down for good with a one-way trip to the White Room!"
"... The White Room...?!" Kiyoi gasped "Is that what she meant when she said an additional punishment then...?"
"Bring it Futase!" the Nova Grappler user declared "Let's see if stealing Triggers from me will get you far!"
"Triple Drive!" his opponent responded as Fumio's possessed body turned over the first card to reveal Paradigm Shift Dragon "Critical Trigger! I give all the effects to myself, Anne and Schwarzschild!" The second card was revealed to be another Paradigm Shift Dragon. "Critical Trigger! I give the power to ourselves and the Critical to Fumiose!"
Twisted Union Star-vader, Schwarzschild and Anne/POW: 25000 - 30000/Critical: 2 - 3
Warp-bend Star-vader, Fumiose/Critical: 2 - 3
As the hand of Fumio's body reached out for the third card, everyone tensed up as they were worried about the seemingly predetermined outcome for this fight as they knew one of any Trigger was enough for Schwarzschild's attack to break through the shield was was barely holding up against the force of the blast. As the card was slowly being turned over, Futase glared down at Kamui as if she regarded him as nothing more than an insignificant, yet annoying bug in her presence.
"Katsuragi Kamui! This is the end!" she screamed "I give all the trigger effects to...! WHAT?!"
Everyone looked at the table to see the third card was not a trigger like she had so immediately assumed, but in fact another copy of Fumiose meaning that her efforts to power up the force of the attack was for nothing. The beam then broke apart once it had been repelled with Schwarzschild roaring angrily at the result whilst Shout, Cannonraizer and Red Lightning remained unharmed.
"That was certainly a close call for us yo!" the Alien announced in his microphone before vanishing with the other guardians.
"You tell me..." Kamui muttered, letting out a large sigh of relief as he did so.
"It's still too early to celebrate!" Futase replied angrily "Niobium, get him!"
"Kate!" he responded as the Raizer Girl deflected the Cyberoid's claws by landing a large kick in its stomach.
The former LRIG's right eye could only twitch as she found each of her powered up attacks being deflected with the greatest of ease and Schwarzschild could only growl even louder in annoyance as it found its opponents being far more defiant and persistant by the second.
"Futase, I'm gonna pull through this whether you like it or not and I have my comrades here to thank for that!" Kamui called out "That's why you're not gonna win, no matter how many deals or deceptions you're gonna pull on me or your own partners!"
"AAAAAAAGHHHHH!" Futase screamed as more electricity enveloped her body in response to her increased emotions "THAT GARBAGE...! THAT WORTHLESS BELIEF...!"
As Fumiose ran towards Glory-hand and leaped into the air, ready to deliver the final blow with her enlarged dagger as a result of the power it absorbed from the Critical Triggers. However, Twin Blader suddenly appeared in front of her and immediately disarmed her of the weapon, forcing her to retreat as Futase could only look on in horror at the prospect of her final turn ending in failure before holding out a hand towards where the table was and summoning it to where she was atop Schwarzschild's head.
"At the end of the turn... if I bound cards for the cost of the Dominate Check ability and fewer triggers were activated from both of us in total this turn...!" she began with her deck suddenly spreading itself out and hovering out in front of her, revealing all her remaining cards to everyone else and picking out two of them "As many triggers as possible from my deck... and any from my drop zone to make up a deficit of the bound total... LEAVE THE GAME!"
She then angrily threw the seven cards of her choice from the triggers gathered into the flames that made up the boundary around the battlefield, incinerating them to a crisp and signalling that they were gone from the fight, forever.
"Her triggers are now all gone..." Kiyoi breathed, partly out of disbelief.
"This must be the price that is paid if she fails to activate the same number of triggers as the number of Annes or Schwarzschilds she binds that turn," Shin murmured "In addition, the only Heal Trigger she has left is stuck in her damage zone."
(End Music)
Kamui could only stare in disbelief at the drawback of Futase's failure to defeat him before shaking his head and getting his focus back together, noting the cards that were still in his opponent's hand.
Even if she has no Triggers in her deck... he muttered in his thoughts If I don't finish her this turn, Schwarzschild can bind more cards of that name from the drop zone to affect my Triggers again.
(Cardfight! Vanguard Unreleased Soundtrack: Soulmate Legion)
"Here I come Futase!" he announced as he drew his next card "I ride Glory-hand again! Seek mate!"
The two units that were already Legioned glowed brightly as the two actions were performed, keeping their union intact as if nothing had changed, despite the addition of more cards to the Nova Grappler user's deck.
"Using the Soul Blast of my Legion, I Soul Blast 4 cards!" Kamui continued "Add 8000 power to the Legion! And call!"
Screamin' and Dancin' Announcer, Shout appeared into the left circle of his back row before he immediately rested the card and discarded Mega-flare from his hand. He then reached out to his deck and closed his eyes before pulling it away, hoping that he had gotten what he was looking for. Upon opening his eyes, he smirked as he glanced up to his annoyed opponents who could only glare at him.
"Bad news Futase," he spoke cheekily before turning around the card and placing it behind his Legion "Look who I just drew!"
"RGH! Another Cat Butler?!" the former LRIG screamed.
As the Warbeast joined the battlefield for the third time, it bowed once in service to the Raizer pair before they turned their attention towards the triple union before them, ready to deliver the final blows needed to end the fight.
"With a boost from Cat Butler, Glory-hand and Speed-star are coming in!" Kamui declared.
Futase could only scream loudly as sparks raged across her cybernetic body as a result of her more unstable emotions, realizing that even if she was to guard the attack, not only would the Legion stand, but it would also power up to 33000, the same amount that was currently in effect from Cat Butler's boost. And with all of her Heal Triggers gone to her damage zone and drop zone, there was nothing she could do to stop the inevitable.
"Watch this Futase!" the Nova Grappler user announced "This is what a REAL Trigger Check looks like!"
Moving onto his Twin Drive, both of his checks revealed Minimum Raizer and Red Lightning respectively, resulting in further accumulation of power for Glory-hand and Speed-star and more than enough Criticals needed to end the fight. The two Raizers unleashed the full power of their cannons which resulted in Schwarzschild being caught in the combined beam whilst Futase screamed loudly as she felt her body sustain heavy damage from the attack with no signs of stopping.
"This can't be!" she screamed "I can't lose to a worthless human, least of all KAMUI!"
Her essence then suddenly vanished from the body as it exploded before she gasped for air, finding herself back inside Fumio's body, just as her sixth damage came out as Mana-shot Star-vader, Neon. Schwarzschild fell out of the air backwards and crashed onto the road, shaking the ground on impact as Anne vanished from the battlefield along with all other units present.
"This is what you get for messing with my friends and units!" Kamui called out as he raised his fist into the air "Have a taste of the medicene you stole from the Quatre Knights! Judgement!"
He then slammed down his fist onto the Vanguard circle, causing Schwarzschild's cracked black ring to emit sparks of electricity from the black orb in the center before it struck Futase who could only scream loudly as the walls of the battlefield began to fade out, much to the relief of everyone else watching on the sidelines. Unbeknowst to his opponents, a sudden spark emerged from the orb before something shot out of it and gently landed beside Kamui's feet, much to his surprise as he finished gathering up his cards. Upon looking at what it was, he quickly hid it inside his jacket pocket, just as Judgement ended and Schwarzschild vanished from the road. Futase staggered back to her feet as she panted heavily, looking towards Kamui angrily as Kiyoi and Shin walked over to join him.
(End Music)
"You were just lucky...!" she panted "But I can assure that none of you, not even Tokura from within my world, will have a chance of succeeding again! We will meet again Ka...! Huh?!"
She then searched her pockets, frantically trying to find something she suddenly realised she had lost in the chaos of the fight's result. Whilst Shin and Kiyoi could only stare in confusion, Kamui snickered and brought out the blank card that had landed beside him moments ago, answering their query much to the manager's humor. When Futase noticed however, she snarled at them.
"Give that back...!" she demanded as she tried to walk over to them, but stumbled as a result of being exposed to Judgement.
"Not a chance!" Kamui replied as he looked to his left "Kiyoi, when I say the word, follow my plan!"
"What plan are you even talking about?" she muttered in confusion.
"Futase's not planning on letting us go with her teleport card thingy that easily," he replied "But whilst her legs are like that, we've still got a chance to get this to Chris."
"And I'm assuming that's just one chance?" Shin asked.
Kamui nodded grimly, but soon smirked upon looking at Futase who had managed to struggle back to her feet, much to her frustration as she trudged slowly towards the trio, her cybernetic lens lighting up dimly as she did so. The former blue LRIG waited for her friend's so-called plan to take effect patiently growing slightly concerned with the hesitation as their foe slowly and very surely drew closer and closer until the Nova Grappler user grabbed her arm and...
"RUN FOR OUR LIVES!" he cried out aloud as he ran down the street, dragging a startled and very bewildered girl behind him as this happened.
"D... Did you have to grab my arm for that?!" Kiyoi exclaimed as she finally found her footing, unable to stop a surprised blush making its way onto her cheeks.
Soon, she pulled her arm free from his grip and the two hurried down the street to find the mall where they were to find the gateway and deliver the card to Christopher Lo, hoping he could make sense of its properties and get them back to the other world. Back at the entrance to Card Capital, an angered Futase turned her attention to Shin and the other customers of the store, intending to deal with them one way or another before her cybernetic lens flashed brightly without her initial command to do so, much to her shock.
"W-Wait Mayu!" she screamed "I can get the card back...! Wait...!"
But her voice echoed into nothingness as she vanished from the road in an instant, presumably to be summoned immediately back to the White Room by Mayu as punishment for failing to defeat Kamui and losing her Blank Card to his clutches. Shin could only stand at where he was, shocked by what he was now witnessing in person for the first time and now having the full knowledge that none of Mayu's forces could be afforded to be underestimated.
And there we go! Kamui succeeds in defeating Futase and inadvertently also ends up relieving her of her Blank Card, believing that Christopher and Tetsu can make sense of it to help in their efforts of returning to the other world. Before the disgruntled servant of Schwarzschild can take it back, he employs a certain technique to get him and Kiyoi out of range and to a safe distance to plan their next move. What will happen now that they are in the possession of such an important item to Mayu's forces? 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, I look forward to hearing from you and more importantly in these current times, stay safe.
Story Original Cards debuting this chapter:
Twisted Union Star-vader, Schwarzschild and Anne
Grade 5
Triple Drive!
POW: 15000
Link Joker
Cyber Dragon;Human;LRIG
Star Gate
[Limit Override](Bind Condition: Any starting Vanguard with "Star-vader" in its card name|Ride Condition: Any [Legion] or Grade 4 Vanguard with "Schwarzschild" or "Anne" in its card name)
[AUTO](VC): When placed, {COST|Soul Blast (1) Grade 3 with "Schwarzschild" in its card name}, Lock all of your opponent's rear-guards in their front or back row. They must have no Locked cards for the ability to activate.
[ACT](VC)[Limit Break 5][1/Turn]: {COST|Soul Blast (1), Then choose and bind all cards with either "Anne" or "Schwarzschild in their card names in your drop zone face up}, for each card bound by the COST, your opponent puts the same amount of cards from the top of their deck into their trigger zone and you activate any triggers revealed as if they were your own. Your opponent then puts the revealed cards into their drop zone. At end of turn, if both players activated fewer triggers than the number of cards bound, reveal your deck to your opponent, remove as many triggers as possible from there along with any from your drop zone as a deficit until you've removed the same amount as the number of cards bound for the COST. Then shuffle your deck.
[AUTO](VC): If a trigger effect was activated that was originally owned by your opponent, Counter Charge 1.
Warp-bend Star-vader, Fumiose
Grade 1
Boost
SLD: 5000
POW: 7000
Link Joker
Cyberoid
Star Gate
[AUTO](RC): When placed, if your opponent has a Locked card(s), they look at cards from the top of their deck equal to the number of Locked cards, calls as many of them to open (RC) as possible and puts the rest on the bottom of the deck. Draw cards equal to the number of cards your opponent has on their (RC), discard cards equal to the number they called by this ability and if two or more were discarded, Counter Charge the same amount of cards.
