Earlier that afternoon...

Japan: City Streets

Kamui and Kiyoi panted heavily as soon as they came to a stop, eventually certain that Futase had not chosen to pursue them despite being somewhat unaware of the latter's current predicament in response losing the card she needed to go between the two worlds and the White Room. Once the pair had eventually caught their breath, the Nova Grappler user was the first to speak.

"That was sure a close one, huh," he panted, smiling triumphantly at his most recent successes.

"If a strategic retreat was your idea of a plan, then that's probably the least characteristic action I'd assume you'd take," the former blue LRIG replied somewhat bluntly.

"Hey, even I have my moments," Kamui replied with a cheeky smile.

He stood back up and held out the blank card that he now held outside of Futase's possession, pondering about how such a tiny object could be used to steal the units of Cray from the cards held by those who wielded them. Kiyoi took ahold of it, glancing closely at it. For several long seconds, she glanced at the card on both sides before handing it back to the Nova Grappler user.

"It's faint, but I can sense some kind of presence within this card," she murmured.

"So do you think you could get it to work?" he asked.

"I doubt it, but I don't believe it's impossible to tamper with," the former blue LRIG replied "If Chris' reputation in this world doesn't precede him, then he may have some success with it."

"I guess," Kamui replied as he put the card back in his pocket "By the way, you didn't answer my question before we ran to Card Capital then."

Kiyoi frowned for a moment, but ultimately relented as she huffed once to relax herself before turning to him, deciding to put her initial reactions of his past to rest.

"You could say I am a little homesick since I got my body back from Remember," she spoke "But I'm certain that I won't be missed if she's done other things I've been unaware of within my family, let alone what little I see of it."

"What do you mean?" asked Kamui.

"My parents are usually overseas, busy with work or so I usually hear," Kiyoi replied "The only one presently caring for me would be my grandfather. Goodness knows how he will feel when he's discovered I'm stranded here."

She then looked away from him for a moment up to the sky, pondering how life was continuing for everyone back in her home world and where it was taking all of its individuals to.

"I suppose finding out you were adopted with no knowledge of any of your relatives and the fact it doesn't bother you as your present father says it used to was enough to make me ponder about my own for one instance," she mused, though one could tell that her dry tone wasn't present in her voice.

"Hey, it's just like I said," the Nova Grappler user chuckled "It doesn't get all lonely. Whether I still have real folks out there or not... as long as I've got people I can trust and talk with, I don't see the point of constantly worrying about it. Now what's say we get this card to Chris before one of Mayu's goons snatches this back."

Kiyoi nodded in agreement and the two set off for the mall to find the Great Nature user and deliver the card to him, unaware of what he was currently attempting to achieve at this very moment.


Mall

Inside the underground area, several large pieces of hardware were littered around the room with several cables being connected from them to the empty spot of the gateway where the keystone had previously been. Christopher was at his laptop making final arrangements for the upcoming test whilst Ratie was watching over his shoulder, curious about what he was typing.

"So what are you doing?" she asked.

"Neve told me that despite being made from an alloy that only exists on the planet Cray, the technologies for activating it were used from Earth," he explained "If I can use the hardware we have brought over from Foo Fighter Headquarters to simulate the keystone and use something of Ruko's from her world, I might be able to acquire the coordinates needed for us to travel to her dimension."

"And what if you can't do that?" the former Quatre Knight continued.

"Well then... Ruko and Kiyoi might as well be stuck here for a very long time," he said "But I've nearly got the systems of the gateway accessed. Just need to make a few adjustments and... there we go!"

The Vanguard circle mural, save for the empty spot of the missing keystone, began to illuminate brightly much to the pair's relief as they gazed at the monument. So far, it appeared that things were going according to plan and that the gateway was at least beginning to receive power without the need to try and contact a powerless Takuto. Christopher knew however that the pair weren't out of the woods yet as despite his confidence boost from the loss of his Mark of Penalty and the return of his stolen units from Akira's defeat to Kai, there was still a chance that their experiment would not quite yield the results they hoped for. He then looked to the room's entrance just in time to see Ruko and Tetsu walk inside.

"Glad you could make it this quickly," he said cheerfully "I've got everything linked up and managed to start feeding power to the gateway."

"That's excellent Chris," the Dark Irregulars user replied before turning to the Selector "It's all up to you now. Head over to our modified fight table and we'll see what happens next."

"Got it," she replied as she held out the Jetting Knowledge spell card in her hand, ready to begin the experiment.

She then walked over to the specialized fight table that was also hooked up to the empty keystone slot, standing in front of it in preparation for whatever was about to happen next. Although she was feeling hopeful that there was a chance she could finally be going home, a part of her felt rather nervous as there was no telling what could happen next.

"Alright Ruko, I'm going to need you to place the card you've got onto the Vanguard circle that's directly in front of you," Christopher spoke "I should be able to handle the rest from here."

"Right then," she replied, placing the card she held on the spot and taking a step back away from the table "Let's see what you can do."

With a press of a key from his laptop, the Great Nature user began to initiate a program that began to siphon power from the large towers of hardware all around him. The cables that lead out from each of them began to have several neon blue lights flow across their length, causing the gateway's Vanguard mural to glow brighter and brighter. Tetsu having brought out an electronic tablet to monitor the energy rate looked down at several gauges, noting what was happening across them.

"Energy output is going steady," he said "60%... 70%... 80..." He kept his eye on the slowly rising number, watching it rise up until it reached 100% "Keep it there Chris! Initiating the table's connection... now!"

Upon pressing a button, the table that was in front of Ruko began to glow brightly as the Vanguard circle's mural shone out a red light that scanned across the card, feeding details of its orgin and make back to Christopher. Normally, the functions on fight tables such as these would be used to ensure that cards were being played properly on top of them and made it so that Tetsu could be alerted if any counterfeit cards were being used in a game. With the modifications made however, this scan could affect the power in the gateway so that it could find the dimensional origin of the Jetting Knowledge card that Ruko had placed on the Vanguard circle.

At first, everyone watched grimly as nothing seemed to be happening despite the amount of power that was being used to turn the teleporter on. Then in a matter of moments, electricity began to sprout in the center of the gateway as a tiny white glow slowly began to expand from just above the mural.

"It's working!" Ratie cheered "It's working!"

"It looks like the small rip we've made into Ruko's dimension is expanding steadily," Christopher said, gazing to an open window on his laptop "I'm receiving data from transmissions on the other side..."

A screen then popped open, revealing an image of what appeared to be the Planet Earth. Looking over it, he knew that whilst this was indeed true, this data he had just acquired was of the Earth that existed in Ruko's dimension. Whilst the rip wasn't large enough to enable safe passage at all between the two dimensions yet, it seemed for the present that success was on the horizon.

"I've got coordinates for the other Earth acquired!" the Great Nature user announced.

"That's great!" Ruko replied "See if you can lock onto a spot in Tokyo for us to jump through the rip to!"

"I think I can... but I'm going to need more power than what we've got to center the rip there, let alone expand it..." he muttered in response "Tetsu, can you siphon more power from the towers around us?"

"Are you sure about this?" asked Tetsu "There's a chance we could overload the hardware if we try and push the output."

Everyone in the room remained uneasy at this notion, despite the earlier success of managing to acquire the coordinates to the other world. They knew deep down if they were to try and expand the rip without a defined target on that Earth, they could end up absolutely anywhere with no knowledge as to what they could expect, let alone prepare themselves for any danger in wherever they landed. Despite this however, Ruko shook her head and looked to the Dark Irregulars user.

"You can do it Tetsu!" she called out "We just need a bit more power and we'll be there!"

"... Very well then Ruko," he replied grimly "Increasing power output now..."

As the neon blue lights that flowed through the cables began to accelerate faster and faster, Christopher began to input coordinates that would lead them towards Tokyo on the other side of the rip, hoping that neither he nor his assistant were making a grave error in pushing the hardware towers beyond their limit, even if it seemed ever so slightly. The rip on their side began to expand in the air across the span of the gateway, glowing brighter and brighter until a clear image began to manifest into view. Tetsu, Ratie and Ruko gathered around in front of the newly formed portal, gazing at the sight which whilst blurred as a result of the smaller input of power. That was when the Selector realized that the sight before them was very familiar to her.

"That's the park we disappeared from!" she exclaimed "You've done it Chris!"

Before she could step forward to try and touch the portal, a familiar loud noise from the other side had caught their attention.

"WOW! Just what is this thing?!"

Then in front of their view of the park appeared a familiar face who gazed curiously at them from close up. It was Chiyori as evidenced from the goggles that sat atop her head from what little they could see.

"Chiyori?!" gasped Ruko.

"You know this girl?" asked Ratie.

"A Selector we've met sometimes," she answered before turning back to the portal "I know we've only saw eye to eye... but I'm really glad to see you!"

"Well, you've missed out on a whole lot of crazy things since you and Kai left!" Chiyori pouted before loosening her expression "You've got a giant black ring above Tokyo that only Selectors can see and Reversed ones seem to have been popping up a lot more! If only your circle would let me at'em!"

Horrified gasps emerged from the former Quatre Knight and Christopher, having not expected that the Reverse pandemic that they had faced so long ago was now seemingly more rampant in the other world in the days that had passed since their Selector companion had entered their world.

"Stay back Chiyori!" called Ruko "I'm coming through!"

"Wait Ruko...!" Tetsu cried out "The portal might not be safe to...!"

But his warning fell on deaf ears as the Selector ran straight towards the portal with the intent of entering, only to seemingly crash into thin air and fall backwards. It was like she had ran straight into an invisible brick wall without seeing it and as a result, she had not only had no success in entering the rip, but it appeared that it wasn't stable enough to allow her entry. Chiyori then began knocking on it from her end, soon finding out that it was indeed the case.

"Did you leave your new door locked?" she pondered.

"The portal's not allowing us entry... but why?" the Great Nature user pondered, before seeing a warning screen pop up in front of him "Uh oh..."

"What's wrong Chris?" asked Ruko.

"Chris, the gateway's become self-sustained and is siphoning more power!" Tetsu exclaimed "Shut it down before the portal becomes unstable!"

"I'm trying!" Christopher replied as more signs popped up on his screen "It won't let me shut off the power!"

The rip suddenly began to emit large sparks everywhere, as bolts of lightning struck the ground around the gateway. Ruko could only panic as she saw the image in front of her begin to blurr, resulting in the Selector on the other side grow puzzled.

"Chiyori, listen to what I have to say!" she said "Get as far away from where you are as you can! Find my brother and Hitoe! Tell them we're alright! All of us are!"

"What are you going to do?" Chiyori asked, her voice being partially lost in the static noise created by the portal's instability.

"I'll find another way back!" Ruko replied "Just find my brother and tell him I'm alright! GO!"

As soon as the younger Selector had taken in the information, she ran off out of view, just as the view of the park vanished and replaced itself with a blinding white light, forcing everyone to cover their eyes. Christopher unplugged his laptop from the cables attached to it and hurried over to the remainder of the group, just as a bolt of lightning struck the fight table, completely destroying it and the card on top of it. A strong gale like force then began to pull everything that wasn't secure on solid ground towards the unstable rip, forcing everyone to try and stand their ground.

Ruko having been caught unaware by it however saw the force pull her two LRIG cards from her hoodie's right pocket and straight towards what appeared like certain doom.

"Tama! Yuki!" she cried out, jumping to reach out for them.

As she fell towards the vortex, her left hand had managed to successfully pull back the card containing the girl of black towards her, only for the girl of white's card to slip right through her fingers, much to her horror. As Tetsu grabbed her, pulling her to safety, Tama's card entered the vortex with the only sound being left behind by the LRIG being a loud "RUUUUUUUUU!".

"Tama!" Ruko cried out in horror, wriggling to try and get free of the Dark Irregulars user's strong grip "Let me go Tetsu, please!"

"It's too late Ruko!" Yuki called out from her card "Unless we keep a safe distance, I fear we might share the same fate!"

As the remaining towers had the last of their power siphoned from them, the unstable vortex then erupted in a brilliant explosion of multicoloured light, blinding everyone in its presence as the reversed gale like wind abruptly came to a stop. For the next minute or so, everything was a complete rainbow like blank until all that was left was grey smoke covering where the gateway was. Everyone looked ahead to see the aftermath of what had happened, realizing that despite having success in making contact in Ruko's dimension with the teleporter, the power needed to generate the rip was too great and as a result, the towers along with the modified table and Jetting Knowledge were completely destroyed.

"Tama..." Ruko sobbed sadly, weakly lowering her head in sorrow for her lost LRIG.

"I'm sorry Ruko..." Tetsu muttered, letting her back to her feet.

"I guess Neve was right all along..." Ratie said sadly "We do need another keystone after all..."

Before Christopher had a chance to share his readings from the failed experiment, a loud coughing noise was heard from the center of the room as the grey smoke eventually began clearing up, revealing a familiar shadow in the distance. The LRIG card with a background of a starry blue night flew down in front of the group, containing no LRIG within its borders. Sharing looks of confusion, they all looked back in the direction of the gateway where more of the smoke began to clear up, revealing the unscathed and undamaged teleporter itself along with several broken cables, until finally...

"N... No way..." Ruko breathed in disbelief.

"But it is..." Yuki interjected, sharing in her Selector's initial confusion.

The smoke then disappeared at last to reveal that it was Tama standing on the gateway, coughing loudly as she waved away the last of the smoke around her. Her appearance as an LRIG was exactly the same as it was before, only she now appeared to be the exact size of what one imagined her to look like as a human. She then turned her head towards the group, noticing their confused looks and feeling rather puzzled. Then she looked down at herself and back at them, realizing what it was about.

"Tama isn't in a card..." she said looking over herself before looking back to them, excitement building up inside her as she smiled brightly "Tama's free! Tama's free!"

"Tama!"

Ruko then smiled as tears leaked from her eyelids before she ran over to the girl of white, embracing her tightly in a large hug as she did so.

"Tama... I thought I lost you..." she sobbed "Thank goodness..."

Tama wasn't quite sure as to how to react to this sudden turn of events, having not been accustomed to how she thought humans had behaved in her own experiences. But nonetheless, she was happy to be in the Selector's presence and returned the embrace, feeling happier that she could be amongst her and her companions outside of her card now. When they eventually parted, Ruko picked up the blank LRIG card and looked down to Yuki.

"What just happened?" she pondered.

"I'm not sure myself..." the girl of black replied.

"Well, if I were to hazard a guess," Christopher interjected "When the gateway started siphoning power on its own, it must have absorbed the table's properties and scanned Tama's card, creating a new rip between our world and the card she was inside of."

"So then... we could free the other LRIGs if we can recreate the conditions!" Ratie replied "Our failed attempt actually did us some good!"

Tama then ran over to the group and began looking over them excitedly, much to their slight discomfort of her close proximity. But they ultimately didn't mind however once they got to know her better personally, deciding to let the girl of white have her fun after being confined to her card and Mayu's domain for so long.

"I've found you, my former fleshling."

Ruko suddenly turned around to find that Tokoha had approached her in a emotionless manner, walking in a manner that seemed to be resulting in her barely using her body strength to stay even remotely upright.

"Now I will not ask again," she spoke, her once normal voice being overlapped by the one who had sent the young girl to do her bidding "Give me the LRIGs or suffer my wrath!"

"Miyako...!" Yuki muttered "She's taken control of that girl!"

"Very perceptive girl of black," the voice of the general, leaving both Tama and the Selector feeling bewildered by her presence this way "I see even Gust Blaster Dragon's madness in what you stole hasn't changed you in the slightest."

"We don't have to do this mother!" Ruko cried out "Let this girl go and we can talk together!"

But Miyako remained silent, not uttering a word in response to the Selector's request through Tokoha's lips leaving the atmosphere in front of the young girl eerily quiet for several long moments. Then she held out a hand holding the deck the General had assembled to use through her to outline her challenge towards her opponent of choice, leaving everyone in the room tense.

"What shall it be?" the woman's voice echoed out with Tokoha's own tone overlapping with hers.

"... Fine," Ruko muttered as she brought out one of her two deck cases and took the cards out of there Sorry Morris... but this is something I need to find out for myself! Just wait mother, I'll get you back!

"Ru, Tama wants to fight!" Tama cried out "Tama knows the rules for a fight!"

"What?! The girl of white outside of her card...?!" Miyako exclaimed as Tokoha emotionlessly glanced towards her "How is this possible?!"

"Tama..." the Selector breathed before giving a sincere smile to her "Thank you, but I need to fight mother to free that girl and to see if what he said was true."

The girl of white frowned for a moment, but upon looking back at Tokoha and sensing Miyako's mere presence through the cardfighter in front of her, she couldn't help but feel nervous all of a sudden. She knew how much of a toll this subject could be to her Selector, even if she herself didn't fully understand it .

"Tama has no problem!" she cheered out "Tama wishes Ru luck!"

"T... Thank you Tama," Ruko replied, feeling better that she had her encouragement by her side before turning to face Tokoha "Let's go mother!"

(Cardfight! Vanguard G Z/Shinemon Unreleased Soundtrack: Apostle Fight)

"Very well then," Miyako replied coldly "Even outside of her card, the girl of white will be mine when victory is acquired."

The mark of penalty that was engraved on the cardfighter's right hand lit up as she raised it, causing a boundary of violet coloured flames to soar across the room, encircling the area and cutting off all means of escape for the fight's duration. Christopher and Tetsu could only tense up at this familiar sight whilst Ratie grew worried, praying that the Selector would be successful in this endeavor, lest she risked losing both Yuki and Tama to her opponent's clutches.

"Be careful Ruko..." she murmured nervously.

"Tama, please hang onto Yuki," Ruko spoke as she handed the girl of black's card to the LRIG now human.

"Tama's got it!" she cheerfully replied as she hurried to a safe distance where the other spectators were.

The fight tables then manifested in front of the two combatants as they placed down their decks and starting Vanguards face down, eyeing one another as their starting hands were gathered in preparation.

Wait for me... mother! Ruko muttered in her thoughts.

"Stand up, Vanguard!" both announced aloud as they turned the cards on their Vanguard circles face up.

Two auras of black and greyish red appeared in front of both fighters as their starting Vanguards began to take shape to begin the conflict between them.

"Let's go Yuki!" the Selector called out as a image of the girl of black's current form manifested in front of her table.

Iona, Zero/Maiden/Grade 0/Boost/SLD: 10000/POW: 5000/Dark Zone|Shadow Paladin/Human;LRIG/Dark Zone

"Involution Star-vader, Carbon!" Miyako responded as a short statured Cyberoid wielding a black coloured blade appeared on Tokoha's side of the battlefield.

Involution Star-vader, Carbon/Grade 0/Boost/SLD: 10000/POW: 5000/Link Joker/Cyberoid/Star Gate

"She's using the Star-vaders like in our last fight..." Tetsu murmured "But that unit seems like it's new."

The air remained eerily still as Ruko drew her first card to begin the fight, staring intently at her starting hand and considering the options before her as she remained deep in thought, praying that she would be able to break through to her mother like Morris had told her. It was a slim chance like he had suggested and she still believed that was the case, but she knew she had to take this opportunity whilst she still could.

"Ride!" she announced as the imaged Yuki's outfit turned black "Iona, Crescent/Maiden! With Zero/Maiden's skill, I search my deck for a Iona or Yuki named card and add it to my hand!"

Fanning out the cards that made up her deck on the table, she picked out the one that depicted the girl of black's recent evolution in the Selector Battles before the Selector herself and her two LRIGs came to this world. It was indeed the card that went by the name, Dragmiko Yuki, Eclipse/Maiden and its Grade was depicted as the number three much to Tama's confusion.

"Why is Yuki's card Grade 3? Wasn't that Level 4?" Tama pondered aloud as she looked down to the card containing the other LRIG.

"It seems Crossride Units from Kai's world were made Level 4 to symbolize a further evolution," Yuki replied "Though I can sense that the usual 2000 power from this bonus isn't the only part of that effect in Vanguard."

The girl of white could only blink in wonder, now curious to see how this would play out in the coming turns as she turned her attention back to the battlefield, just in time to see the possessed Tokoha drawing her first card.

"Ride. Turmoil Star-vader, Zinc," she spoke emotionlessly "Carbon moves back. Attack."

As Carbon retreated to the back row, a female Cyberoid with white coloured hair, several black rings around her shoulders and wielding a pistol shaped weapon appeared in its former space, taking aim at the Vanguard Yuki almost immediately as its finger gripped the trigger. It then pulled back, firing a blast of black energy at the imaged LRIG, causing her to cringe in pain as Knight of Resistance, Limwris entered Ruko's damage zone. The Selector cringed slightly at losing a key defensive unit early in the game, but she shook herself to clear her nerves and proceed with her next turn. After drawing her next card, she took ahold of a different one from her hand, placing it down on top of Yuki's card.

"Ride! Knight of Darkness, Rugos!" she announced as the imaged LRIG vanished for the familiar Shadow Paladin she wielded several times as a SIGNI appeared in the former's place, lacking some of the weapons and the signature Revenger cape from before "I call Skull Witch, Nemain and use her skill!"

As Nemain manifested onto her rear-guard, a black coloured owl with neon blue lines littered across its wings and a visor of the same colour over its eyes appeared behind her, letting out a loud hoot as it hovered above the ground.

"With a boost from Howl Owl, she will attack Zinc!"

In response to Ruko's command, the Skull Witch chuckled darkly as she held out the skull in her fingertips towards Zinc before unleashing bolts of purple coloured electricity that shocked the Cyberoid painfully. The first point of damage that emerged in Tokoha's damage zone was Disorder Star-vader, Iron with neither the girl nor the woman possessing her seeming concerned in the slightest. That unnerved Ruko a little, but she shook her head and continued on with her attacks.

"Rugos attacks your Vanguard!" she declared as the Knight of Darkness charged towards the downed Zinc.

"No guard," Miyako replied.

"Drive check!" the Selector called out as she turned over the top card of her deck to reveal Deadcrash Dragon "Critical Trigger!"

A yellowish aura glowed around Rugos as he leapt into the air and brought down his large blade across his opponent, causing her to scream in pain as Eclipse Star-vader, Charcoal and Star-vader, Pixie Powder entered the damage zone, the latter glowing brightly as it landed.

"Heal Trigger," the General muttered calmly "I recover one damage."

The Selector did not react as she watched her opponent reducing her damage count to two, having expected a Heal Trigger could easily show up once or twice in the early stages of a cardfight. Tama on the other hand could only frown in worry as she watched Tokoha through Miyako's influence draw her next card and picking out a different one from her hand to ride.

"Ride!" she announced "Disorder Star-vader, Iron! I call Niobium!"

Zinc disappeared as a new unfamiliar Cyberoid descended onto the battlefield wielding two blades with red lines and patterns running all over its body as well as the black ring behind its back in addition. Niobium manifested to its right as it then leapt towards Nemain and slashed right past the Witch, causing her to scream in pain as she vanished.

"Next," Miyako continued.

"No guard..." Ruko muttered.

The possessed Tokoha then turned over the top card of her deck to reveal Star-Vader, Weiss Soldat which was enough for her to reverse the position of the game. Iron clashed with Rugos blow for blow until it received both effects of the Critical Trigger, allowing it to overpower its opponent and knock him back, causing a second copy of Rugos and Howl Owl to enter Ruko's damage zone.

"Draw Trigger!" she called out "I draw one card!"

Iron then returned to Miyako's side of the field as her turn came to its conclusion, allowing her opponent to make some progress in starting up her counterattack to push her way forward. Over from the observing crowd, Tama who had joined with the others couldn't help but be curious about something from the previous attack.

"Huh? Miyako attacked the 10000 power Rugos with Miyako's 9000 power Iron... why didn't Ru guard?" she pondered aloud.

"It's likely she didn't want to waste any cards from her hand to block an attack that has a 50/50 chance of revealing a trigger," Chris replied "Even if she was willing to spare 5000 shield from losing her intercept, she could also use the damage accumulated for her skills or seeing if a lucky Draw or Heal Trigger could mitigate the gamble in this early stage."

The LRIG now turned human glanced at her companion in wonder before turning back to the fight that was unfolding, holding up her free arm and shaking her fist up and down.

"Go for it, Ru!" she cheered in encouragement, causing the Selector to turn around and smile to acknowledge her.

"Thanks Tama!" Ruko replied, appreciating the encouragement.

Turning back to the fight to begin her next turn, she looked amongst the options in her hand and looked over towards Tokoha, thinking back to when Miyako had battled Kai in her world and what she had seen then.

If I let this drag out, Chaos Breaker will gain hand advantage from sealing my rear-guards she thought with a narrowed glance But if I can end the fight quickly, then I can get closer to finding out what's really going on with mother.

Picking out a card from her hand, she turned it around to reveal that she was about to ride into Yuki after previously letting Rugos handle her Grade 2 turn. Looking over to the Knight of Darkness on the battlefield in front of her, he turned around and nodded once to comply with the Selector's next action. A veil of darkness surrounded Rugos, causing him to vanish from the battlefield as the imaged LRIG, this time form known on the card as Iona, Pale/Maiden, appeared in his place. To her right appeared a new Labyrinth SIGNI that she had not used at all following her Selector Battle with Ayumu. She had long green hair tied at the back with aspects of her dress designwise bearing resemblance to the landmark referenced in her card name with several small gold crosses dangling from the edge of her skirt.

"With Seredu's skill, I select Niobium as the target!" Ruko announced.

Code Maze Seredu snapped off several of the crosses on the edge of her dress and hurled them towards the Star-vader on Iron's right. The Cyberoid's claws suddenly started sparking as electricity crackled, much to the Cyberoid's utter shock.

"With this, Niobium will lose all of its skills until the end of the turn!" the Selector continued "In addition, he also loses all abilities including the one to intercept!"

"So you've taken note from the previous battles with Link Joker, despite this being your first experience against them," Miyako commented through Tokoha's lips.

"In addition, I call!" Ruko continued as a second copy of Iona, Crescent/Maiden behind the Vanguard Iona, leaving Tama once again baffled.

"Tama's still not sure Tama will get used to that..." the girl of white murmured.

Seredu ran across the battlefield towards Iron and leapt into the air, attempting to land a hard kick from above on the Cyberoid. Miyako however had other ideas as she placed down a card on the Guardian Circle, allowing Pixie Powder to manifest and take the full brunt of the Labyrinth SIGNI's attack, much to the latter's frustration.

"Yuki will attack next!" Ruko declared as the imaged Iona took flight on her white feathered wings and began charging up a multicoloured beam of black and white in her hands.

"No guard," Miyako replied coldly.

The Selector then moved straight onto her Twin Drive, revealing the first card as Skull Witch, Nemain and the second card as Abyss Grail, the latter shining brightly as it came into view.

"Heal Trigger!" she called out "I recover one damage!"

The imaged Iona then fired her beam straight at Iron, striking the Cyberoid dead in the chest and sending him flying backwards past Tokoha who watched without empathy as Star-vader, Chaos Breaker Dragon entered her damage zone. Miyako glanced through the girl's eyes at her situation, putting her at three damage to her opponent's two, before turning her head to face Ruko who could only stare back in determination, not wanting to let her opportunity slip away now.

(End Music)

"Morris certainly prepared you, didn't he," she spoke coolly, her voice overlapping with Tokoha's once again.

"Snap out of this!" the Selector cried out "I believe there's still the mother I know inside you and so does Morris! Please, stop these attacks and let us go back to onii-chan and grandmother!"

"Hmph," Miyako huffed "I don't know what our disposable pawn told you, but I can assure you that your 'hope' is a wasted one. I will take back the girls of black and white so that Mayu can accelerate her plans and lay waste to these three miserable worlds. And I can assure you that beneath their ashes will be your lifeless corpse and all those that stood against me."

Tetsu and Ratie stared towards Tokoha, knowing full well that whilst Ruko's mother was in control of that body, the woman herself sounded every bit as despicable as Kai had described to them. Tama looked on in worry whilst Yuki frowned from her card, wondering if what Morris had told them the night before was nothing more than empty promises.

(Cardfight Vanguard G Z OST: Unrest)

Miyako then drew her next card, glancing closely at it before a voice echoed in the back of her head, that only she could hear.

So far, every stage of your plan has reached completion it spoke, chuckling darkly afterwards Ruko has taken the bait and now, it is time we gave her my usual present. After we gauge her abilities first of course.

The woman did not respond to the familiar tone, deciding not to risk anything in giving away this plan that it had spoken of now that she had Ruko fighting her, only not as face to face as the latter would have liked. Using Tokoha's body as she commanded it, she took a card from her hand and placed it down the Vanguard circle in a swift motion, causing Iron to vanish from the battlefield and a familiar red and black aura to start swirling around her side of it.

"Ride!" she announced.

From the swirling red mass, a large humanoid Cyber Golem clad in Link Joker's usual cybernetics and bearing large razor sharp talon esque wings descended onto the floor, wielding a scythe whose design bared similarity to a certain unit. Pressure from its aura sent a mild gale across the room, forcing everyone to briefly shield their eyes as Miyako through Tokoha's lips announced the name of this new unit.

"Star-vader, Chaosbringer!"

Star-vader, Chaosbringer/Grade 3/Twin Drive!/POW: 11000/Link Joker/Cyber Golem/Star Gate

"Chaosbringer?" Ruko breathed.

"It looks like Chaos Breaker, only..." Tetsu murmured, glancing closely at the Cyber Golem with narrowed eyes.

All within the area glanced up at Chaosbringer, its shape and weapon bearing an all too familiar clown whose appearance and sneer was still fresh in their minds, especially with that of the Dark Irregulars user who was presently the only cardfighter in the room to have fought it directly to this day.

"Chaosbringer's skill!" Miyako announced, turning over a card in her damage zone and pointing a finger from Tokoha's right hand towards her opponent's formation "Lock!"

A pair of black rings enveloped the rear-guard Crescent/Maiden, causing her to cry out in pain as she was sealed within a black sphere with her card on Ruko's table turning face down at the same time. Sparks flew from the card as Ruko could only clench her teeth, now seeing the ability of Lock for herself up close in combat for the first time as Niobium powered up.

"Next, I call Disorder Star-vader, Iron!" her opponent continued as the Cyberoid that was previously her Vanguard reappeared beside Chaosbringer "With its skill, I Lock Seredu! Niobium gets 2000 power!"

The signature Lock enveloped the Labyrinth SIGNI who could only stare at the black rings before becoming imprisoned by them, her card also turning face down on Ruko's board with sparks flying off the backing.

Furious Claw Star-vader, Niobium/POW: 11000 - 13000

"Furthermore, I call two Volt Lines and by moving Carbon to the soul, Superior Call Charcoal from the deck!" Miyako continued as the three familiar Cyberoids appeared, causing Tetsu and Ratie to gasp in worry.

"Not good!" the Witch user exclaimed "If Ru-kin lets any of the Volt Line boosted attacks through...!"

"One of her Locked cards will be Omega Locked..." the Dark Irregulars user summarized.

Tama could only stare in worry upon realizing the situation upon seeing the board state as could Yuki from her own card within her hands. The way Miyako had made Tokoha place out her rear-guard had put Ruko in a difficult spot where she would have to take the Vanguard's attack to receive damage for Counter Blast and ensure he cards could Unlock at the end of her turn normally and Guard the rear-guards to ensure they weren't Omega Locked. She felt thankful that she still had an empty column to call units to during her next turn to get going on the counterattack.

"With Volt Line's boost, Iron attacks!" Miyako announced.

"Deadcrash Dragon guards!" the Selector responded as the Abyss Dragon manifested and unleashed a purple haze of flames from its jaws to ward off Iron.

"Next, with Charcoal's boost, Chaosbringer!" the General declared.

Chaosbringer took to the air and pulled back its scythe in preparation for its own attack as it stared down at the Vanguard Iona who could only brace herself for the coming onslaught. Ruko however remained resolute, deciding to do the same as crossed her arms out in front and braced herself for the coming impact.

"No guard!" she called out.

"Twin Drive," Miyako spoke out through Tokoha's lips, revealing the first card as Star-vader, Nebula Captor "Draw Trigger. The power goes to Niobium and I draw. Second check." She then unveiled the second card as Star-vader, Weiss Soldat. "Critical Trigger!"

Niobium radiated a bright dark red colour as it received the power boost from both trigger effects whilst a golden aura enveloped Chaosbringer, giving it the Critical effect to inflict extra damage. It swung the blade of its scythe straight into the Vanguard Iona, knocking her backwards before slashing down the front of her, dealing two points of damage which came out as Seredu and Grim Reaper, the latter shining brightly as it rested in the damage zone.

"Critical Trigger!" Ruko announced "I give the effects to my Vanguard!"

Iona, Pale/Maiden/POW: 10000 - 15000

"A Trigger effect at this timing will give Ruko a chance to guard with less shield," Christopher murmured "At least Chaosbringer wasn't being boosted by one of those Volt Lines."

"But now comes the tricky situation before her," Tetsu interjected "Ruko now has four damage and if she attempts to take another Vanguard attack to bring her to five in order to avoid an Omega Lock, she risks having another Critical Trigger coming her way."

"And what's worse, Charcoal allows Miyako to use Limit Breaks at three or less damage..." Ratie said worriedly "Chaosbringer must have a powerful one if she called it out now."

All eyes returned to the battlefield as Tama rather loudly continued to cheer and encourage Ruko in her own manner of speaking, even if it sometimes resulted in her just spouting out "Battle!" randomly like she had done in her early days with the Selector. Miyako through Tokoha's eyes briefly glanced sharply at the girl of white, causing her to freeze on the spot and almost drop Yuki's card as the General then turned back to the cardfight.

"With a boost from my other Volt Line, Niobium attacks your Vanguard!" she declared.

The Cyberoid ignited its claws and ran towards the Vanguard Iona who had gotten back onto her feet and stared out towards the rear-guard that was coming closer to her at an alarming pace. The black Angel named Abyss Grail and a black coloured panther had come between the two units and immediately restrained Niobium, blocking its attack on the Selector's Vanguard as she had placed the cards on the Guardian Circle. The High Beast that had assisted in repelling the attack was named Wing Edge Panther on one of the cards that depicted it. Ruko stared up at Chaosbringer as her Guardians vanished, her eyes narrowing upon sensing a somewhat familiar presence radiating from the unit itself.

(End Music)

The Cyber Golem remained motionless and emitted no vocals or sounds at all, unnerving her as she knew it felt similar to an all too familiar clown, one she intended to defeat in an effort to free her mother from its clutches or so she had been told. She then looked ahead to Tokoha as Miyako raised her right hand, gesturing for her to proceed with her next turn.

"Mother, no matter what Chaos Breaker is making you do, I'm not giving up on you!" she cried out "I will free you from him and we can end the Selector Battles together! Please, let us go home so we and onii-chan can be a family again!"

"It's your turn," Miyako responded sharply in an impatient manner, dismissing her daughter's proclamations "Try and 'break me free' if you dare."

"Mother!" Ruko called out.

"It's your turn," the General spat, repeating her words to make the Selector continue the fight one way or another.

The young girl shuddered at the tone she had been addressed by, making all on the sidelines within the boundary of flames watch on nervously as they knew only her decisions would determine the fate of herself, Tokoha and her two LRIGs, even if one of them was outside of her card now.


And there we go! After an extensive wait, the next chapter of Stand Up, the LRIG! is finally here as the first of three chapters of a triple update over the next three weeks. As we turn back the clock to when Kamui and Kiyoi ran from Futase, they discover that despite not being able to access the blank card's powers, a failed attempt by Chris, Tetsu and Ratie to get Ruko back to her home dimension results in an accident where Tama is freed from her card and seemingly unharmed. As the LRIG adjusts to her new surroundings however, Tokoha now possessed by Miyako challenges Ruko to a cardfight by wagering both her LRIGs and all of her units within her possession. As the fight draws into its endgame, what will the outcome be and who will it favor? Find out next week on Stand Up, the LRIG!'s next chapter. Please share your thoughts and criticisms and I look forward to hearing from you. Until next time, I'll see you around.


Custom Cards debuting this Chapter:

Knight of Resistance, Limwris (Pre-V Series)
Grade 1
Boost
SLD: 0
POW: 6000
Shadow Paladin
Human
United Sanctuary
[CONT]: Sentinel
[AUTO](GC): When placed, {COST|Choose a card from your hand and discard it}, choose one of your Shadow Paladin units and that unit cannot be hit until the end of that battle.

Adapted Cards debuting this Chapter:

Iona, Zero/Maiden
Grade 0
Boost
SLD: 10000
Dark Zone/Shadow Paladin
Human;LRIG
Dark Zone
[AUTO]: When rode upon by a card with "Iona" in its card name, search your deck for up to one Grade 2 or greater card with "Iona" in its card name and add it to your hand. Then shuffle your deck.
[AUTO]: When rode upon by a card without "Iona" in its card name, call this card to (RC).

Iona, Crescent/Maiden
Grade 1
Boost
SLD: 5000
POW: 7000
Dark Zone/Shadow Paladin
Human;LRIG
Dark Zone
[AUTO](RC): When placed, {COST|Choose a Grade 3 card from your hand and discard it}, search your deck for up to one Grade 3 or greater card with "Iona" in its card name and add it to your hand.

Code Maze Seredu
Grade 2
Intercept
SLD: 5000
POW: 9000
United Sanctuary
Labyrinth
United Sanctuary
[AUTO](RC): When placed, if you have a Vanguard with "Iona" in its card name, choose one of your opponent's rear-guards. It loses all of its skills and abilities and cannot gain new ones until end of turn.

Iona, Pale/Maiden
Grade 3
Twin Drive!
POW: 10000
Dark Zone/Shadow Paladin
Human;LRIG
Dark Zone
[AUTO](VC): When placed, {COST|Counter Blast (1)}, choose one of your opponent's rear-guards and it gets [Power]-2000 until end of turn. If your opponent's Vanguard was not chosen by an ability that would reduce its [Power] during this turn, you may choose that unit as a target instead.
[CONT](VC): All of your opponent's units must attack and boost if possible.