I hear Crow's voice in the garage as he comes back in. I stare absentmindedly into space as I wait for the kettle to boil. Two of Team Unicorn's riders managed to crash in their next match, disqualifying them. A team that strong not making through the preliminaries seems unfair to me, or maybe that shows how strong the competition is. Those crashes seemed off from the clips I've seen of them. I feel bile rising in my throat at the thought of all this. My gut instinct is telling that something bigger is happening.
I hear the voice of that one guy from Team Unicorn, Breo I think it was? I stir my coffee as I walk into the basement. I spot a USB stuck into the laptop Bruno was using. Jack and Carly have joined us too.
"What? There was strange data on the D-Wheel memory chip?" Crow turns to Breo.
"I couldn't believe that Jean and Andore would both crash, so I checked it. Look right there." Breo points at a dip in a graph displayed on the screen.
"It's saying that the wheels locked." Yusei raises his eyebrows.
"Locked?" Crow echoes.
"Yes, as if something was caught in the wheels." Bruno explains.
"That would explain why they crashed." Jack adds, but the reality is that, this only raises more questions.
"Does that mean they jammed something into the wheels?" Carly asks.
"But they can't do that during a duel." Breo sighs. You've got to feel sorry for the poor guy. Crow suddenly gasps, remembering something.
"What is it?" I turn to him.
"When my Blackbird crashed, I felt my wheels locking for an instant."
"Does that mean?" I mutter as Bruno brings data up on the screen.
"This is the data." Bruno puts the data from Crow's crash next to Team Unicorn's.
"It's the same." Jack comments.
"It means that they cause the Blackbird to crash!" Crow shakes, his fist clenched. "Damn! I won't forgive them!"
"Calm down, Crow." Yusei raises his hand in an attempt to settle him. "This isn't enough evidence to prove that Team Catastrophe is to blame."
"But how did they do it?" Bruno turns around in the chair. "It's hard to lock the wheels without their opponents noticing."
"And no one saw anything during the duel." If no one saw anything, it's unlikely this was the work of a psychic. It would take an incredibly powerful to use their powers with that level of precision. I doubt even I could do that.
"Oh yeah! I have video of the duel between Unicorn and Catastrophe, so let's look at it!" Carly takes a USB out of her bag. "We might learn something!" Everyone stares at her, I just sigh. "Did I do something wrong?"
"If you have a video, hurry up and show us!" Jack takes the stick rather forcefully. I frown. He should really be nicer to her, given what's going on between them.
"I'm sorry." Carly blurts out.
"This is video of the duel between Andore and Team Catastrophe's Nicholas." Crow says as the first video starts to play. Andore seems to randomly swerve and crash out of nowhere.
"Let's look from another angle." I'm questioning how Carly managed to pull these angles off, but I try not to think too much about it. This time, we look at Andore head on.
"Show that part again." Yusei mumbles. Bruno zooms in and replays the part at which Andore swerves. I can't see a reason why Andore suddenly crashed, or why his wheels locked up.
"I didn't see anything."
"Next is Jean's footage." Bruno sighs, bringing up the next video. "This is the duel between Jean and Team Catastrophe's Hermann." Hermann's monster attacks, causing Jean to swerve.
"Huh? He's already affected. We haven't learned anything." Crow pouts.
"What concerns me is this monster." Yusei points at Team Catastrophe's only monster on the field. "It's already summoned by the time the wheels lock."
"The monster's name is Hook, the Hidden Knight." Bruno explains, bringing the card up on the screen. "Level 4, 1600 attack points, 0 defense points. According to the duel records, Andore crashed when his D.D. Unicorn Knight tried to attack it. Jean crashed during the opponent's turn. It happened right after the monster's effect activated." Bruno replays the footage again. "See? Something just moved."
"This must have something to do with it." Jack nods.
"Jack and Yusei, be careful." Carly says. It's then I realise that Aki's still driving around the highway for practice. "They already attacked Crow. You don't know who they'll attack next."
"Oh no." I mutter.
"Someone isn't here." Crow turns to me. There's a genuine fear in his eyes, and a sinking feeling in my stomach.
By the time we find her, it's too late. We go into her room in the hospital. I'm frozen in place the moment I see her. She's okay. That's what her parents say. She was found on the highway, already unconscious. Bandages are wrapped tightly around her head. I spot a bruise forming on the side of her face. I wonder if this is how Yusei felt, not once, but twice. A sense of paralysing fear.
"We told her Riding Duels were dangerous." Her father curses, looking towards us as if we're to blame.
"Your daughter has faced worse before." I scoff. "No thanks to you." Her parents seem rather taken back. "You should be supporting her, that's the least you could do. But hey, you can't even seem to do that right." Aki's father scrambles for a response. Only to be interrupted by Yusei's phone ringing. Yusei steps out of the room to answer it. I assume it's Bruno. He went to the scene of the accident to get the data from Aki's D-Wheel. I scoff before following Yusei out of the room.
"Yeah, we're fine." Yusei answers. "I just spoke with Aki's parents. She's badly bruised but her life isn't in danger. How are you? Were you able to retrieve the data? That means…" Jack and Crow enter the hallway.
"There's evidence that the wheels locked." I hear Bruno's voice over the speaker. I feel myself tense. I close my eyes in an attempt to not lose my shit entirely.
"I understand." Yusei pinches the bridge of his nose and hangs up.
"Those punks!" Crow storms off in a fit of rage.
"Crow!" Yusei calls after him.
"Where are you going?" Jack asks.
"I'm going to find them and beat them up!" I start following him.
"Stop, Crow!" Yusei passes me, catching up to Crow. He stands in front him, stopping him in his tracks. "I know how you feel, but if you do that, we're no different from them!" I sigh. They will never learn if we don't take the fight to them. They'll come for Yusei and Jack next. I can't let that happen.
"But we have to do something!" Crow cries out. He looks to me, as if I would be the one to listen. There's a sense of desperation, of guilt.
"We'll deal with them in a duel!" Yusei answers.
"Fine." This seems to quell Crow. "And I'll be the one to deal with them!"
"You?" Jack raises his eyebrows.
"I can't stay quit after what happened to my teammate!" Crow throws his sling to the ground. "Besides if I didn't mess up in the first place, this wouldn't have happened." He throws off his jacket and clenches his fist. "I'll get Aki's revenge!"
"I still think it's a terrible idea." I say, after calling out Crow outside. "I don't think you're healed enough."
"What do you suppose we do?" Crow's brow furrows. "We can't do this as a two person team."
"I take your place." Crow seems taken aback. "Aki is your friend as much as she is mine."
"Now, you're being stupid." Crow immediately shoots back. "This is my fight, Yuuka. I owe it to her. She didn't deserve any of this. It's my fault, y'know. None of this would have happened if it weren't for me. I need to make things right, Yuuka. At least give me that. I need this."
Crow lowers his hand. His eyes pierce mine. There's something there I recognise. Maybe his feelings for Aki were a lot stronger than I had realised. I think Crow just realised that too. Every move of his seems more calculated, more fearful. I close my eyes, sighing.
"There's nothing I can say that will change your mind, right?" A smile breaks out on my face. "As much as I'd like to fight, I'll let you have this one. Besides." I chuckle. "What kind of hypocrite would I be to stop you fighting despite your condition?"
"Thank you, Yuuka." Crow sighs in relief.
"Now, let me just say." Crow's eyes widen slightly. "If you feel the slightest pain, you will pass on the baton, you hear me? If I find out that you don't, you'll have a lot more to worry about than a broken arm."
"Is that a threat?" Crow laughs nervously, scratching the back of his neck with his good hand.
"You better believe it."
"Hello everybody! Are you excited?" The MC's voice booms over the speakers as the crowd cheers. "The World Riding Duel Grand Prix's preliminaries to crown the world's best Riding Duelists are almost over! There's an astounding card today! I'll introduce the teams! The first team won by making Team Unicorn crash! Team Catastrophe!" There's mostly a negative reaction as they walk out, but they still wave anyway. "Facing them is the team led by Fortune Cup winner Yusei Fudo! Team 5D's!" Yusei, Jack and Crow lead us as we walk out into the stadium. The crowd cheers for us. The twins make me wave to the crowd as the rest of us are. Team Catastrophe freak out as they realise Crow is the first wheeler. Crow sports a cheeky grin on his face as he walks over to them.
"Shouldn't you be in the hospital?" The leader of Team Catastrophe turns around to face him. "What do you want?"
"I just wanted to say hi." There's a glimmer in Crow's eye. "I'll get revenge for Jean, Andore and Aki!" The members of Team Catastrophe turn to each other in a moment of panic. "Oh, and I also have to get my revenge. I don't know what magic you're using, but I won't fall for it twice! Prepare yourself!"
"We should say that to you. Your body just healed, so you should take care of it." The leader of Team Catastrophe steels himself long enough to make a comeback.
"Thanks for the warning. See you later." Crow waves before walking back towards us. He holds his fist out to me for a fist bump.
"They aren't psychics. Be careful." I say.
"No need to worry about me." He has this grin that I recognise from our days at Martha's. The one that was normally followed by shouting from Martha, which lead to Crow and I cleaning the bathroom.
"The match is about to begin!" The MC returns as we settle down inside the pit. "5D's first wheeler is Crow, and it's Hermann for Catastrophe!"
"Speed World 2 set, on." The computer generated voice drones.
"Beating up the injured isn't nice, but I like doing bad things." Hermann taunts. "Don't get mad at me, kid."
"Will Crow be okay?" Ruka turns to us. "His shoulder hasn't healed yet."
"We have no choice because he won't listen to us." Jack sighs.
"It's true." I add. "He didn't even listen to me, his favourite person ever." Yusei and Jack turn and look at me almost instantly. Their deadpan expressions clearly say that they don't agree with me, and, personally, I'm offended.
"Crow will be okay." Rua comforts.
"Rua's right." I turn to look at Ruka. "Crow's too stubborn."
"It's about to start." The MC screams as the countdown begins. "Riding Duel! Acceleration!" The pair burst forth from the starting line. "Whoa! Crow is off to a slow start!"
"Crow!" The twins cry. I grit my teeth. Already?
"I can withstand this pain." I hear him mutter before he accelerates.
"He's speeding up and catching up to Hermann! Crow and Hermann have entered the first corner simultaneously!" Hermann purposefully knocks into Crow. "This is a fierce battle to see who goes first!" Hermann elbows Crow in his bad shoulder in an attempt to get ahead."Whoa! Crow is behind! Hermann took the first corner!"
"That was dirty!" I grit my teeth.
"The duel now begins!" The MC proclaims. "Hermann goes first!"
"Duel!" They chant simultaneously.
"My turn." Hermann declares. "I summon Hook the Hidden Knight(ATK:1600)." Gasps fill the pit. "I set one card and end my turn."
"I was waiting for that crooked monster! I'll defeat you! My…" Crow flinches as his arm moves towards his deck. I sigh, feeling the pain in his aura. "My turn!" Their Speed Counters appear on the large screen. "I summon Blackwing - Sirocco the Dawn(ATK:2000)!"
"Good!" Rua grins. "Sirocco the Dawn has higher attack points!"
"Sirocco the Dawn is a high Level monster, but I can summon it without tribute when only the opponent has monsters!" Crow explains. "Bring it on! I'll find out how you lock the wheels! Sirocco the Dawn attacks Hook the Hidden Knight! Dark Wing Slash!"
"Crow is attacking." Jack states the obvious. "Watch closely." The footage of the Team Unicorn duel showed one of them crashing after attacking this monster. Will it happen again? I hope not.
"That attack can't defeat me!" Hermann exclaims. "I activate Hook the Hidden Knight's effect! Shadow Hook! If you attack this card when it's in attack position, both of our monsters switch to defense position(ATK-DEF:1600-0/2000-900)!"
"Defense position?" Crow echoes.
"Since they're both in defense position, the battle is negated!" The MC explains.
"When Hook the Hidden Knight switches from attack to defense position, you take 800 points of damage." Hermann grins deviously. "Take it!" A bright light surrounds Crow, leaving him with 3200 life points. I jolt, feeling Crow's aura twinge. That was real damage. As the light starts to fade, he stabilises.
"Whoa! Crow lost his balance! Will we see the same tragedy that happened to Team Unicorn?" My eyes widen as I spot a hook emerge from the shadow of Crow's D-Wheel, reaching for the wheel. Crow swerves to the right, dodging it. I gasp. "Crow managed to survive!" The MC screams.
"It was that monster's hand!" "Impossible!" Everyone exclaims in unison. "How can it come out of the shadows?"
"I don't know, but there's no mistake!" Yusei grits his teeth.
"That's creepy." Ruka holds a hand to her face.
"That monster isn't a Solid Vision hologram?" Rua mutters.
"I set four cards and end my turn!" Crow tuts. Their D-Wheels race past the pits.
"Crow is rushing this battle." Jack comments.
"His shoulder must hurt more than we thought." I sigh.
"I won't miss this time. My turn." Hermann starts his turn as their Speed Counters increase to 2. "I switch Hook the Hidden Knight to attack position(DEF-ATK:0-1600). Then, I summon Dark the Hidden Knight(ATK:800)! This card can attack you directly. Dark the Hidden Knight attacks you directly!" Crow's life points drop to 2400.
"Crow!" Rua cries.
"Then, Hook the Hidden Knight attacks Sirocco the Dawn! Devil Hook!" Hermann declares.
"Here it comes!" I feel my entire body clench. The tension releases when Crow dodges the hook for a second time. I see Crow move his hand to his bad shoulder.
"You punk…" Hermann scoffs.
"Whoa! What happened? Is there a problem with Crow's D-Wheel?" The MC questions as if what's going isn't visible.
"I set one card and end my turn." Hermann's mouth forms a solid line.
"Did you see that Yusei?" Bruno turns in the chair.
"Why is a shadow attacking?" Yusei ponders.
"He can't battle with that shoulder! Make him make a pit stop!" Jack turns to Rua, who in turn, runs off to flash the sign at Crow before he passes us again.
"They want him to make a pit stop! There must be a problem with his Blackbird!" The MC roars.
"Crow, make a pit stop! Leave the rest to me!" Jack stands up, shouting at Crow as he approaches us.
"No! I'll at least destroy this monster!" Crow roars back at him.
"Crow!" Jack exclaims as Crow passes by us.
"Crow ignored the pit stop and kept going!" The MC says in disbelief.
"Yusei!" Ruka turns to Yusei in confusion.
"This is Crow's decision. Let's believe in him." Yusei puts on a smile.
"I won't be held responsible for what happens to him!" Jack crosses his arms, rolling his eyes. I just sigh.
"My turn!" Crow declares as his Speed Counters reach 3. "I activate the trap, Blackback! I can Special Summon a Black Feather Monster from my graveyard with 2000 or less attack points! I summon Black Feather - Sirocco the Dawn(ATK:2000)! Then, I Special Summon Black Feather - Gale the Whirlwind(ATK:1300)! When a Black Feather Monster is on my field, I can Special Summon it from my hand! I activate Gale the Whirlwind's effect! Once per turn, your monster's attack and defense points are halved! I halve Hook the Hidden Knight's attack points, and Gale the Whirlwind attacks it(ATK:1600-800)! Black Scratch!"
"But if he attacks it, it will use its effect again." Rua turns to us in confusion.
"Maybe he wants that." I answer. Rua stares at me in confusion. "Watch and see."
"You never give up." Hermann scoffs. "I activate Hook the Hidden Knight's effect. When it's attacked while in attack position, this card and the attacking monster both switch to defense position (ATK-DEF:800-0/1300-400)! Then due to its effect, you take 800 points of damage!" Crow's life points drop to 1600. Crow lifts his D-Wheel in air to miss the hook, once again, appearing from the shadows. "He's unbelievable."
"That's why he shouldn't have attacked it!" Rua turns back to me, not seeing Crow's logic.
"But that monster is now in defense position." I explain. "That monster can't be defeated as long as it's in attack position. But if it's in defense position, it can't use its effect to negate the battle."
"So Crow did that to switch his monster to defense position!" Ruka exclaims, and I smile.
"Sirocco the Dawn attacks Hook the Hidden Knight!" Crow declares. "Dark Wing Slash!"
"That's not going to work!" Hermann smirks. "I activate Dark the Hidden Knight's effect! When a monster in defense position is attacked, I can switch it to attack position by tributing this card(DEF-ATK:0-800)."
"Ah, it's in attack position again!" Rua grits his teeth.
"Then, I activate Hook the Hidden Knight's effect(ATK-DEF:800-0/2000-900)!" I clench my fist, knowing the shadow hook will appear again. I see it sneak up from the ground. The wheels on the Blackbird extend, propelling it off the ground. The hook extends, an arm, and a body of a monster appearing after it. It reaches for the Blackbird, barely missing it.
"That monster was hiding in the shadow!" Bruno exclaims.
"Since I know your tricks, it won't work!" Crow grins as he lands.
"But you take 800 points of damage!" Hermann sneers as Crow drops to 800 life points. He's at the safety line now, he needs to be careful.
"Here I go!" Crow is still grinning regardless. "I send Black Feather - Etesian of Two Swords from my hand to the graveyard to activate its effect! When a Black Feather fails to destroy a monster in battle, you take damage equal to its attack points!" This leaves Hermann with 2000 life points.
"What incredible offense and defense!" The MC shouts in awe. "Crow took 1600 points of damage in order to deal 2000 points of damage!"
"Well done, Crow!" Rua cheers.
"Then I activate the trap, Urgent Tuning! I can Synchro Summon one Synchro Monster during the Battle Phase!" Crow declares.
"I won't let you do that! I activate the Continuous Trap, Shadow Concealing Darkness! Monsters in defense position can't be destroyed in battle!" I grit my teeth. Of course, it couldn't be that easy.
"Level 3 Gale the Whirlwind tunes Level 5 Sirocco the Dawn! Black whirlwind, your secret thoughts appear on your wings! Synchro Summon! Take flight, Black Feather Dragon(DEF:1600)!"
"Good! It's Crow's ace monster!" Rua pumps his fist.
"But why is it in defense position?" Ruka questions. Crow must have a trick or two up his sleeve, he always does.
"You tightened your defense because you know you can't win." Hermann taunts.
"That's not what I did!" Crow has this smirk on his face, my instinct was right. "I activate the trap, Defenders Intersect! During the Battle phase, we both negate a defense monster's effects until the end of this turn, and they're switched to attack position (DEF-ATK:0-800/1600-2800)!"
"Good! Now he can't use his Shadow Hook effect!" Yusei smiles.
"And if it's in attack position, he can deal damage." Bruno adds.
"2800 attack points?" Hermann's eyes widen slightly.
"He only has 2000 life points left! Crow will win!" Jack grins.
"I will never forgive you! How dare you hurt Jean, Andore and Aki!" The wings of Black Feather Dragon turn black as Crow speaks. "Black Feather Dragon attacks Hook the Hidden Knight! Noble Stream!"
"I activate the trap, Revival Kight!" Hermann interrupts as his life points hit 0.
"It's over!" The MC cheers. "Crow made a come from behind victory! According to the tournament rules, the duel enters the End Phase!"
"Hooray!" Rua cheers.
"I won't lose like this!" Hermann shouts. "I activate Revival Knight's effect! At the End Phase, I can Special Summon a Knight in defense position that was destroyed in battle this turn(DEF:0)." He cackles. "I won't let you destroy this monster! Taste the power of a shadow card!"
"Shadow card?" Yusei echoes. Shadows extend, creating another monster which reaches for the Blackbird.
"I activate the trap Gravity Collapse!" Crow interrupts. "By sending one Synchro Monster on my field to the graveyard, I can negate the summoning of a monster that has equal or fewer attack points and destroy it!"
"What?" Hermann exclaims.
"Can it be?" Bruno mutters as Hook the Hidden Knight is destroyed.
"Alright Crow!" Yusei cheers.
"You destroyed Hook the Hidden Knight!" Jack pumps his fist.
"I'm at my limit." Crow's voice is quiet over the sound system as he holds his shoulder. He better turn in now or he's going to get it from me. As if hearing my mental threat, Crow pulls into the pit.
"Crow makes a pit stop with 800 life points left!" The MC shouts. "Did something happen to the Blackbird?" We all run over to Crow, knowing that Jack is up next.
"I got their revenge." Crow says, taking off his helmet. He shakes like he's in serious pain. He hands the team logo to Jack, who takes it.
"Leave the rest to me, Crow!" Jack says, running to his D-Wheel and putting his helmet on.
"Team 5D's switches to their second wheeler Jack Atlas! According to the rules, if you pass the baton when you still have life points left, you forfeit those life points! Therefore, Jack starts with 4000 life points! Team Catastrophe also passes the baton to their second wheeler!" The MC explains.
"Oh geez!" Crow exclaims as I stick an ice pack underneath his jacket. "Did you have to do that? You could have warned me! Geez!"
"Let's battle, Jack Atlas!" Nicholas, their second wheeler, says.
"You're so disrespectful that you used a shadow card!" Jack scoffs. "Jack Atlas will teach you what a real duel is about!"
"Duel!" They chant in unison.
"My turn!" Nicholas takes the first turn, their Speed Counters at 4. "I set one card and end my turn."
"One set card?" Bruno questions, as they race past the pits.
"He's not going to summon a monster?" Crow raises an eyebrow. That set card must be important.
"Do you think you can beat Jack Atlas with one set card? My turn!" Jack shouts. "I send Level 2 Dread Dragon in my hand to the graveyard to Special Summon Power Giant(ATK:2200)! I can Special Summon it by lowering its Level equal to that of the Level 4 or below monster that I sent to the graveyard(LV:6-4)! Go, Power Giant! Attack him directly!"
"It's coming!" Nicholas interrupts. "I activate the trap, Doom Ray! When your monster attacks me directly, we both take 800 points of damage for every card in my hand!"
"Since he has five cards in his hand, 800 times 5 equals…" Rua starts counting on his hands.
"4000 points!" Ruka exclaims, doing the math for him.
"If he does that, both players will have 0 life points!" Rua's eyes flicker around in a panic.
"What are you thinking?" Jack sneers.
"Jack Atlas, you and your D-Wheel will crash due to the power of the shadows!" Nicholas cackles. What is he talking about?
"Power of the shadows?" Jack echoes.
"Hook the Hidden Knight isn't the only shadow card." Nicholas smirks.
"No way! That trap card is also a shadow card?" Yusei exclaims. A bright light fills the track. I can make out skulls floating around their D-Wheels.
"Jack!" I hear his screams of pain. I feel my temples throb. I raise a hand to my forehead.
"What? Why am I also affected?" I hear Nicholas scream.
"Jack…" Crow mutters.
"I activate Power Giant's effect! When this card battles, I don't take effect damage!" I hear Jack exclaims. I squint and see a forcefield surrounding Jack. I close my eyes at the sound of an explosion. I open them to see a smoke cloud. Something flies from the cloud, hitting the barrier. Engine parts litter the track.
"Jack!"
Jack flies out of the smoke cloud on his D-Wheel, carrying Nicholas.
"Jack Atlas won't lose to the power of the shadows!" Jack declares, as the crowd cheers.
"It's over!" The MC roars, making my head hurt more. "Nicholas' D-Wheel took serious damage! He can't pass the baton to the next wheeler, so his team is eliminated! With two consecutive victories, Team 5D's advances to the finals!"
"Why did you save me?" The audio still continues playing from the track. Nicholas stands next to the Wheel of Fortune.
"Why? Isn't it obvious?" Jack points directly at Nicholas. "It's because you aren't worthy of dying! A duel is a clash between souls. You don't believe in your own cards and resort to using shadow cards. You have no right to duel!" Nicholas sighs, hanging his head in shame.
"Jack…" Yusei mutters.
My vision starts to cloud over. A familiar churning feeling in my stomach returns. My hands start shaking. I blink and for a second, I see that man from that strange factory. The one that knocked me out, the one made of steel. My heart starts racing. I know this feeling. I know what it means.
"We won!" Crow cheers. "Team 5D's is going to the finals. We need to take a picture for Aki." Crow looks to me and his eyes widen. "Yuuka, your nose is bleeding." My hand fumbles to my face. My fingerprints are stained a wet crimson. The feeling of bile in my throat returns. I start coughing. Blood splatters onto my hands and drips down my chin.
"Come on, Yuuka. I'll take you to the infirmary." Yusei gently grabs my arm and helps me stand. My whole body has started shaking. It's a struggle to stand. Bruno grabs my other arm in an attempt to stabilise me. The Machine Emperors flash in my mind. I hear screams of men, women and children alike. I cough again. This time, blood splurts directly onto the ground. I feel my knees collapse.
"Where did you get that card?" I turn around to see Sherry grabbing Nicholas by the front of his riding suit. "Was it Yliaster?" I look to Yusei. The throbbing in my head becomes uncontrollable. The last thing I see is the man within the machine in that vast, white emptiness.