"You know what? I really miss this." Takumi says, finishing his second bottle of beer.
"I mean, yeah." I reply. Though, this venue brings a lot of bad memories. The Psycho nightclub actually functions as a bar during the day. As if alcoholism wasn't enough of a problem among psychics. It was here that my whole relationship with Raiden actually started. There were two separate times if I'm being honest. The first, I realised that I liked him more than someone I just looked up to. The second, I realised that the feeling was mutual.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Takumi asks.
"Some bad memories." I say, sipping my vodka.
"Raiden isn't going to come back, he's gone. You don't have to worry about him anymore." Takumi tries to comfort me. I know that's not the truth.
"If you're gonna comfort me, don't lie to me."
"We'll face him together then. That's the least I could do." There's a strange look in Takumi's eyes. He's knows where I'm coming from. "We're nearly done." He told his story once in the wee hours of the morning when the alcohol started to fade away. He had joined the Onyx Slicers about the same time I joined Black Flag. He had helped Kenta through some rough shit, it's wasn't his place to say he said. The Jackals had taken out their leader in a particularly bloody battle. The title of leader got passed around a few more times. Then finally, Takumi had the bloodied crown forced onto his head. There was no one else left to lead. With Kenta as his right hand man, they managed to stabilise the gang. Takumi still bears the scar from his first fight as leader, a long line cutting right down the center of his chest.
"I suppose." I take another sip. "We're a lot alike, you and me."
My phone rings on the desk beside me. I groan, pulling the pillow over my head. Then I realise it's the middle of the night. I pat my nightstand, reaching for the phone. Not moving from my spot on the bed, I answer.
"Yusei, you do realise it's two in the morning?" I sigh.
"Yuuka, Jack just got arrested!" I squint despite it being pitch black. He sounds pretty panicked which makes me know that this isn't a weird dream. "They have footage of him crashing into duelists on the highway."
"What?" I sit up, throwing my jacket on.
"I don't know either." Yusei answers as I turn on my lamp. "We're driving to Security HQ now, will we meet you there?"
"Yeah. Give like ten minutes."
I run into where they're keeping Jack. I greet Yusei, Crow and Bruno on the way in as Ushio and Mikage bring up a monitor.
"This is security camera footage from the highway." Mikage switches on the footage of the Wheel of Fortune crashing into many different duelists.
"Wheel of Fortune!" Crow exclaims.
"Red Daemon's Dragon?" Yusei questions the oddly coloured Red Daemon's Dragon.
"He's clearly trying to make his opponent crash during the Riding Duel. There were already three incidents in the past week." Ushio turns off the footage.
"Can it be...?" Crow mutters.
"Do you remember something?" Ushio jumps slightly at the chance of some testimony.
"About a week ago... The three of us were doing tag riding training for the WRGP." Bruno explains.
"Basically, Jack didn't want to do the whole playing as a team thing, there was arguing. Then, Jack quit the team and drove off." I give them the short explanation. Crow moves the railings, looking over the pit where they're keeping Jack. A little inhumane, I think. It's more like a zoo than a prison, it even has the layer of glass.
"Jack, how could you do that? I misjudged you!" Crow shouts through the glass at Jack. Jack stands in the middle of the containment with his back facing us.
"I didn't do anything!" He merely says back.
"That sounds wrong! Red Daemon's Dragon is a unique card. You have the only copy in the world! Who else would have it?" Crow grits his teeth, gripping the railings harder.
"I don't know. Anyways, I didn't do it!" Jack's aura, he's telling the truth.
"Heh, I know your plan." There's a twisted smile on Crow's face. "Since you can't do anything alone, you decided to hurt our team's reputation so that we can't enter the WRGP!" I gasp softly at his accusation. Jack would never do that. He might be an asshole sometimes, but he'd never stoop that low. Jack turns around slightly.
"How dare you!" Jack finally shouts back. He fully turns around, looking up at Crow. "Do you really think I would do that?"
"Yeah. You destroy everything you hate!"
"Hey Crow!" Yusei puts his hand on Crow's shoulder only for him to shrug it off. Right, that's it.
"You're a selfish kid who wants to inherit the world!" Crow keeps shouting.
"Crow, stop it!" I grab Crow by the torso, pulling him away from the railings.
"Take it back! Apologise!" Jack shouts up at us. Security officers grab him by both arms.
"Be quiet!" One of them says, pulling him off.
"I'll never apologise to you!"
"Crow, that's enough!" I manage to get Crow off the railings, despite his protests.
"Crow, calm down!" Yusei says, moving in front of him.
"Yusei, you should tell him off too!" Crow points to the glass wall, before turning around to me. "You too, Yuuka!" Anger bubbles up inside me. Without thinking, my hand moves on its own, slapping Crow across the face. I hear Yusei gasp.
"Jack is our friend!" I grit my teeth. "You should be defending him, not treating him like this!" Crow's mouth still forms a hard line. I sigh. "I'm going home."
"So, you couldn't ask him anything." Aki huffs. We got back from Security headquarters to find Aki, Rua and Ruka camped out on the couch in the kitchen. Yusei must have called them after he called me earlier, or maybe it's a Signer thing.
"Yeah." Yusei sighs.
"It's Crow's fault." Bruno says, turning to him. "You didn't have to talk to him like that."
"Yeah, I'm sorry." Crow sighs, seems like I slapped some sense into him. "I lost my temper."
"Can't anything be done?" There's a tone of desperation in Rua's voice.
"Since Jack's arrest, there's been no sightings of the D-Wheeler who caused the accidents. Furthermore, Jack doesn't have any alibis during the times when the D-Wheeler appeared." Yusei moves his hand to his mouth.
"In other words, according to the evidence, Jack is in a bad situation." Bruno sighs.
"Oh no..." The twins cry out in sync.
"Isn't there anything we can do?" Aki questions.
"The only thing left is to prove Jack's innocence." I say, crossing my arms and leaning on the kitchen countertop.
"I got it! Let's find the real criminal! There's someone pretending to be Jack and doing bad things!" Rua suddenly jumps up.
"How are we going to find him? We have no leads." Ruka interjects.
"Unfortunately, we have to let Security handle this." Yusei sighs. Rua sits down quietly.
Yusei's phone ringing alerts me to the fact that I fell asleep on Aki's shoulder. I suddenly move before she realises, not that I think she'd mind too much.
"What?" Aki stirs at the sound of Yusei's voice. "Jack escaped?" She suddenly jumps, throwing Rua off her lap when he had been sleeping. "Understood?"
"He escaped?" Aki repeats.
"From Security?" There's a hint of disbelief in Ruka's voice.
"How could he do something so stupid?" Crow's voice raises a little.
"Crow, it's Security HQ." I sigh. "I doubt he could have broken out by himself, I think the real culprit is luring him out."
"That means that he's probably searching for the real criminal!" Rua clenches his fist.
"That means Jack is heading towards…" Yusei's words trail off.
"The highway." I finish.
Yusei, Crow and I speed down the highway looking for Jack. I keep an eye for any duel lanes, cause I know Jack and he would duel the heck out of the person pretending to be him. When we turn, the lane above us is a duel lane.
"There's duel up ahead." Yusei says, stating the obvious.
"It might be Jack." Crow responds. We start speeding, getting onto the lane once the duel ends. We stop when we spot the Wheel of Fortune and Red Daemon's Dragon in front of us. I spot the broken barrier behind Jack, another victim?
"Jack!" Yusei shouts. Wait, this isn't Jack. The aura...
"Why did you escape?" Crow practically screams. Jack raises his hand, flicking his wrist. The rather purple looking Red Daemon's Dragon sends a plume of fire at us. It doesn't hurt us, but it's enough to blind us for a split second. When it finally clears, he's nowhere to be seen. What is going on here?
"The suspect, Jack Atlas, escaped last night and his current whereabouts are unknown." The morning news drones on. "Security has increased their highway patrols. They're warning citizens against using the highways." Bruno switches the streaming service off on the desktop in the kitchen.
"Where did Jack go?" Rua asks. I'm squished beside Aki on the couch again. Yusei sits on the arm of the couch next to me with his hand holding the back of the couch. This is the closest we've actually sat together in days. I don't think I can last much longer.
"Yuuka, Yusei, Crow." Aki looks to the three of us in turn. "Didn't you meet Jack yesterday?"
"Yes, but…" Yusei trails off.
"That wasn't Jack." I stand up. "I'm certain of it. The aura wasn't the same. Besides, for a supposedly Red dragon, Red Daemon's Dragon seemed awfully purple, didn't it?" We've heard nothing about the apparent crash that took place there. What if…? I take my phone out of my pocket, I dial up a number that I've never used myself. "Carly? It's Yuuka. I need your help."
"I'm so glad you think Jack is innocent too." Carly says once I get into her car.
"I know he is." I sigh.
"Jack claims that he is, so I believe him." I smile, shaking my head.
"How are things going with you and Jack? I never asked you after I gave him your number that one time." I swear I see her face flush a little, she just focuses on the road.
"Good, good. We're talking now at least." She smiles.
"Anything else?" I grin at her, which makes her more flustered.
"Maybe, I don't know. You never know with Jack, do you?" Her smile seems more awkward now.
"Ain't that the truth." We laugh.
"Before we look at where you saw Jack this morning, I have to go talk to some people who say that have some important footage that might crack our case."
"Ooh, what kind of footage?" I purse my lips, sounds like we have a lead. Carly drives into a carpark, just off the highway. She knocks on the window of the only car in here. The window lowers to reveal two hippies that look vaguely familiar. I swear I've seen them in the background of news broadcasts before.
"What have you got?" Carly asks as I lean my forearm on the roof of the car.
"Right." The man in the driver's seat starts talking with his hands, which is never a good sign. "We were driving just now, and we saw two Wheel of Fortunes! Two! Can you believe it?" My eyes widen.
"Are you sure that's what you saw?" I ask, leaning down.
"Yeah, it's true." The man pulls out his camera and shows us a still frame from a video. He's right. "See? There's no doubt! They're both Jack Atlas's D-Wheels." Looks like my instinct was right. But does that mean that Jack…?
"They were driving very recklessly!" The woman inside the car comments. My eyes widen and I gulp.
"Why are there two of them?" The man ponders. I see Carly's eyes twinkle behind her glasses.
"Could you please send me that video?" Carly gets a piece of paper out of her bag and a little pen. She writes furiously, before handing the man the piece of paper. "Here's my e-mail. I'll get in touch with you again later. We're in a rush, goodbye!" Carly drags me by the arm into the car. "Can you call Yusei for me? Tell him that we've on our way over, we've got to tell him the news."
"Two Wheel of Fortunes?" Crow squints at us, confused, as we explain the pictures which Carly had just received.
"There's only one Wheel of Fortune in the world. The D-Wheel only belongs to Jack." I nod. "Since there are two…" Yusei's eyes widen, making the same realisation that I did. "The Jack we saw was a fake!"
"Then where's the real Jack?" Crow asks.
"The barrier behind the fake Jack was broken like someone crashed through it." I say.
"Then…" Crow goes suddenly silent. He starts running inside to go get his D-Wheel. We follow him. I wave back at Carly who just sighs.
We follow the coast until we spot the broken barrier. Crow slides down the small cliff to the waterfront.
"Crow!" Yusei calls after him as we both follow him.
"It's…" He mumbles before kneeling down and picking up a card on the rocks.
"That's Trust Guardian!" Yusei gasps. It's as I feared. It's almost as if Crow collapses in on himself.
"Jack fell into the ocean!" Crow drops the card. I take a deep breath, close my eyes and focus. I can feel Jack's aura nearby.
"Crow…" I say before he ignores me.
"Damn! How could I say those things to him? Jack!" There's a clear anguish in Crow's voice. Yusei kneels down beside Crow, picking up Trust Guardian.
"Jack…" Yusei mumbles as my phone starts to ring.
"Hey Carly, what's up?"
"Big trouble! Big trouble! Jack appeared on the highway again!" Yusei quickly turns around to look at me, hearing Carly screaming over the phone.
We manage to get our way onto the lane Carly told us about, a miracle to say the least. We enter a tunnel, only to find a crash pile of Security bikes. I know we're going in the right direction. We find the Security officer who Jack accidently made crash because we let the Cross Syndicate keep doing illegal shit even though we took their territory.
"Stop!" Crow shouts at the fake Jack.
"Yusei! Crow!" The officer shouts back to us. I've never actually met this guy before, but I'm rolling with it.
"How dare you kill Jack!" Pure venom spills from Crow's lips.
"He killed Jack? What do you mean?" And we wonder why Security gets nothing done.
"That Jack is a fake!" Yusei answers.
"What?" The officer exclaims. The fake Jack laughs at this.
"What a funny thing to say! I'm the real Jack Atlas!" Wrong. As much as he looks like Jack, the aura is all wrong. There's hints of Jack in there, but it's not the real deal.
"Whatever! You're not Jack!" I hear the tears in Crow's voice. "Jack is arrogant, selfish and a gigantic idiot! But he's a dear friend who battled alongside us! But I didn't believe him! I have to apologise to him! That's why I'm going to get Jack's revenge!" As weird as it sounds, I sense glimpses of Jack's aura in the air. I look around us. He's nowhere to be seen, but I feel him.
"Go ahead and try!" The fake Jack slows down, moving in Crow before backing into him. Crow's D-Wheel flies backward, with him going with it.
"Crow!" Yusei and I scream.
"Pummeling and devouring the weak is proof that I'm Jack Atlas!" I grit my teeth as the fake Jack laughs.
"Wrong! If you're the real Jack, you would know that true power is caring about your friends!" Yusei shouts.
"A King doesn't need that! Being alone means that you're standing alone at the top!" Exhaust smoke starts pouring in our faces.
"Yusei!" The officer screams. The fake Jack starts moving in front of Yusei. I panic. I bang into the side of Yusei, pushing him away. The other Jack moves between us for a split second before moving behind us. We accelerate, leaving the tunnel.
"I'm following the suspect north through the Center Field District. There are injured people. Please provide backup!" I hear the officer talking over his microphone. The fake Jack speeds ahead of us. I take a deep breath in anticipation. Wait.
"Yusei! Yuuka!" I hear Jack's voice shouting. A second Wheel of Fortune jumps into the lane ahead of us, crashing into the fake Jack. "I won't let you do whatever you want, you phony!"
"Jack?" Yusei's eyes widen. I smile.
"There are two Jacks?" That smile fades. Security, I swear.
"Here!" Yusei manages to get Trust Guardian to Jack.
"You really want me to use this." Jack smirks, putting the card in his deck.
"This all started because you wouldn't use this card, so yeah, we'd want to use it, yes." Jack just accelerates away from us towards the faker. "You said that my current self can't defeat my former self! If you're my former self, then I'll show you that you can't defeat my current self! Duel me!"
"Field Magic, Speed World 2, set on!" Both of the Jacks talking at once is confusing my senses a little as they sound the exact same.
"Duel Mode, on." The automated voice chimes. Light shines around the two Wheel of Fortunes in an infinity symbol.
"It's this light again. Duel damage becomes real." My eyes widen at Jack's words. The lane changes around us with the usual warnings.
"Riding Duel!"
"Acceleration!" They both shout, starting the duel.
"My turn!" The fake Jack takes the first turn. "I summon Archfiend Interceptor(ATK:1400)! I set one card and end my turn! Entertain this King, pitiful clown!"
"You shouldn't be overconfident! My turn!" Jack starts his turn as their Speed Counters become 1. "When monsters are only on my opponent's field, I can Special Summon Vice Dragon(ATK:1000)! Then, I summon the Tuner Monster, Trust Guardian(ATK:0)!"
"Jack!" Yusei and I look at each other, smiling. Glad to know this shitshow of the last 24 hours ended in something good happening.
"Level 3 Trust Guardian tunes Level 5 Vice Dragon! The pulse of the King forms a line here! Witness the power of the rumbling heavens! Synchro Summon! My soul! Red Daemon's Dragon(ATK:3000)!" Red Daemon's Dragon, the real one, appears, flying overhead.
"You're not allowed in the duel lane!" The officer shouts back at Carly's car which has appeared behind us.
"Don't be nitpicky!" She screams back.
"Battle! Red Daemon's Dragon attacks Archfiend Interceptor! Absolute Powerforce!" Jack declares his attack.
"Due to Archfiend Interceptor's affect, you take 500 points of damage when it's attacked." The faker smirks as Jack's life points drop to 3500.
"But your Archfiend Interceptor is destroyed!" The faker's life points also drop, this time to 2400. "I set one card and end my turn!"
"My turn!" The faker starts his turn, with their Speed Counters at 2. "When monsters are only on your side of the field, I can Special Summon Vice Dragon(ATK:1000)!"
"It's coming!" Jack exclaims. What must it be like dueling someone with the same deck as you?
"Next, I summon the Tuner Monster Flare Resonator(ATK:300)! Level 3 Flare Resonator tunes Level 5 Vice Dragon! The pulse of the King forms a line here! Witness the power of the rumbling heavens! Synchro Summon! My soul! Red Daemon's Dragon(ATK:3000)!" The faker summons his version of Jack's dragon.
"The fake version appeared!" I was right. That dragon is definitely purple.
"Two Red Daemon's Dragons?" Confusion is evident in Yusei's voice.
"This is indisputable proof!" Carly exclaims, I hope she has her camera out.
"Since Flare Resonator was used as Synchro Material, my Synchro Monster gains 300 attack points(ATK:3000-3300). Battle! Absolute Powerforce!" The faker attacks, leaving Jack at 3200 life points.
"But since Trust Guardian was used as Synchro Material... I can lower my Synchro Monster's attack by 400 points to negate its destruction(ATK:3000-2600)!" I smile. All of this will be worth if Jack learns to work with us, I think to myself.
"I set one card and end my turn!" The faker scoffs. "You decreased Red Daemon's Dragon's attack points to avoid destruction? Coward!"
"Say whatever you want! A person who relies too much on power will be defeated by power!" This experience was already worth it, I smile. "My turn!" Their Speed Counters go up again. "Battle! Go, Red Daemon's Dragon! Erase the fake from the field!"
"Yours has fewer attack points. What are you going to show me?" The faker scoffs.
"The Continuous Trap, Assault Spirits! I send a monster with 1000-or-fewer attack points to the graveyard. For my turn only, that card's attack points are added to Red Daemon's Dragon(ATK:2600-3300)! Vanish, fake shadows!" Jack flicks his wrist as Red Daemon's Dragon roars.
"It would normally be mutual destruction, but…"
"That's right! Trust Guardian's effect! By lowering its attack points by 400, my Red Daemon's Dragon isn't destroyed(ATK:3300-2900)! I set one card and end my turn! Assault Spirits's effect ends(ATK:2900-2200)!"
"That monster is so hurt that it's no longer Red Daemon's Dragon! I'll show you the King's ultimate strategy!" The faker taunts, starting his turn. "My turn! When monsters are only on your side of the field, I can Special Summon Big Piece Golem without releasing another monster(ATK:2100)! Next, I activate the Speed Spell - Angel Baton! I draw two cards from my deck and then send one card in my hand to the graveyard. The Continuous Trap, Powerful Rebirth! I Special Summon the Level 4-or-below monster Small Piece Golem from my graveyard and equip it with this card(ATK:1100). Due to its effect, its Level and attack points increase(ATK:1100-1200/LV:3-4). When I have both Big and Small Golems, I can Special Summon Medium Piece Golem(ATK:1600)!"
"Are you going to use Speed Fusion to Fusion Summon Multiple Piece Golem?" Jack asks.
"Don't kid yourself! Your trap card, Assault Spirits, is paid as a cost to Special Summon Trap Eater(ATK:1900)!"
"A Tuner?" Jack exclaims. He couldn't be…
"Level 4 Trap Eater tunes Level 4 Small Piece Golem! Synchro Summon! Red Daemon's Dragon(ATK:3000)!"
"A second one!?" I shout, looking at Yusei. This version of Red Daemon's Dragon has a definite blue tint.
"Since I successfully Synchro Summoned, I can Special Summon Synchro Magnet from my hand(ATK:1000)! Synchro Magnet tunes Big Piece Golem!" No way. "Then, the Continuous Trap, Reincarnation Ring! By releasing Level 4 Medium Piece Golem, I can Special Summon a monster from my grave that has double its Level! Appear, two Red Daemon's Dragons!" Two dragons, purple and yellow, appear overhead.
"He summoned three Red Daemon's Dragons!" Jack shouts.
"No way!" Yusei exclaims.
"Incredible!" The Security officer says, more amazed than anything.
"This isn't possible!" I shout.
"This is unprecedented! This is the climax of the greatest show on Earth!" The faker laughs. "The three Red Daemon's Dragons attack your decaying Red Daemon's Dragon!" The first two dragons attack, leaving Jack at 1200 life points.
"Hang in there!" Jack shouts up to his own Red Daemon's Dragon, whose attack points sit at 1400 due to Trust Guardian's effect.
"This is the end! The third Red Daemon's Dragon attacks!" The faker points his hand to the sky.
"If this attack succeeds, Jack will run out of life points!" I grit my teeth.
"This is bad!" The Security officer mutters under his breath.
"Don't lose, Jack!" Carly screams, still trailing behind us. The faker laughs, as Jack disappears in the plume of flames. I spot the wings of Jack's Red Daemon's Dragon peeking out of the flames as they subside. The real Wheel of Fortune as the path clears.
"Jack!" I sigh in relief. Jack emerges from the fire with a measly 400 life points.
"You activates Ray of Hope and halved the damage." The faker tuts, hoping he had taken down Jack once and for all.
"Red Daemon's Dragon, you hung in there(ATK:1400-1000)!" I hear a smile in Jack's voice as he speaks to Red Daemon's Dragon. "As long as you're around, my soul will never break! Ray of Hope's other effect! After the end of the Battle Phase, I Special Summon a Level 1 monster from my hand! I Special Summon Dark Bug(ATK:100)!"
"Hmph, I end my turn." The faker scoffs. "Red Daemon's Dragon withers every time it takes an attack, losing its claws, fangs and desire to battle. That symbolises your current state!"
"You're wrong! My previous self was a foolish man who only believed in his power!" I remember how Jack acted when he was King. It seems so long ago now. "But now, I have friends that I can trust! Despite being hurt, Red Daemon's Dragon continues to battle, and Trust Guardian continues to protect it! That's the proof of our bond!"
"Jack…" Yusei and I smile.
"Since I understand true power, I won't yield to my own ghost!" I feel my heart throbbing wildly as Yusei's Signer Mark starts to glow beside me. "I received your bond!" Yusei's Signer Mark disappears, causing the full brand of the Crimson Dragon to appear on Jack's back. "I'll show you the current Jack Atlas's true power! My turn!" Jack starts his turn as he gains another Speed Counter. "Appear, Savior Dragon(ATK:0)! Let's do this together, Red Daemon's Dragon! Level 1 Savior Dragon tunes Level 8 Red Daemon's Dragon and Level 1 Dark Bug! The polished superior light! Illuminate the land as the true ruler! Shine bright! Synchro Summon! The great soul, Savior Red Dragon(ATK:4000)!"
"What's this glow?" The faker asks. The power of the Crimson Dragon. Something inside me twitches at this bright light.
"Savior Red Dragon's monster effect! It gains attack points equal to one of your monsters until the End Phase! Power Gain(ATK:4000-7000)!"
"7000 attack points?" The faker exclaims. I gasp.
"The evil illusion that confuses the light! Vanish in the cracks of time! Ultimate Powerforce!" Jack raises his hand to the sky. The faker's life points drop to 0. The flames cause a blinding light. I watch the faker. What? His skin melts off to reveal a metal frame underneath. Another robot? As quickly as I see it, the robot disintegrates into nothing.
"This one is also a robot?" Yusei turns to me, looking for confirmation. I nod shakily. The flames turn into smoke, pluming up into the sky. The faker's card spill out onto the lane. I spot the three Red Daemon's Dragons falling together. They start disintegrating too, their remains being swept into the wind. Yusei and I disembark our D-Wheels. Jack drives back towards us.
"Jack!" Yusei smiles as Jack stops in front of it.
"Well done, buddy." I smile, sighing in relief.
"You did it!" The officer cheers as Carly takes pictures of Jack. "I'll vouch for you that a copycat committed all the crimes."
"Jack will be acquitted…" I hear Carly sniffle. Crow screeches to a stop beside Jack, and takes his helmet off.
"Jack!" Crow exclaims, I hear the tears threatening to fall in his voice.
"Crow." Jack smiles.
"You're alive?" Crow wipes his face using his gloves, too late. "I guess if you were someone who'd die easily, we wouldn't have to go through all this trouble." He shrugs his shoulders, smiling.
"I said it wasn't me from the start." Jack smirks. "Come to think of it, weren't you going to apologise to me?"
"How did you know that?" Crow huffs. We all laugh at Crow's expense, as usual.
Jack explains that after he crashed into the sea, he woke up in a cave, concealed by steel doors. We return to the spot he escaped from. Everything looks completely normal.
"Is this really the place?" Crow asks with a hint of disbelief in his voice.
"Yeah, but everything is gone. What's up with that robot? Who created a copycat robot to challenge me to a duel?"
"I have no idea, but I have a feeling it's connected to that Luciano kid. It's reminding me of how his mansion disappeared all of a sudden." I pout slightly.
"Since it was a robot, does that mean it's the same as Ghost?" Crow ponders.
"Probably." I answer. I'm starting to feel like a pawn in some greater game. Something inside me tells me that it's only going to get worse from here.
"It takes incredible skill to copy Red Daemon's Dragon and create a robot that looks like Jack." Yusei says. He looks right into my eyes as if I have an answer. "What's happening around us?"