Episode 3: Path to the City

It wasn't long before Yusei pulled up next to me on his bike, I hadn't even been looking for the others all that long. I was a bit surprised to be honest when he slowly came to a stop beside me and took off his helmet, "I saw the security with the broken disk back there. That was you?"

I nodded, "No big deal, he relied too much on raw power to win. There was no strategy to his play. You lost those other guys awfully fast."

"No big deal." he quoted me with a slight smile and lifted a spare helmet out of a compartment on his bike, offering it to me wordlessly.

It didn't take a genius to guess he was offering me a ride, "We can't just run forever, they'll get Rally eventually."

Yusei shook his head.

"Ah, you dealt with that too then."

He nodded, holding out the helmet again.

"No thanks, That thing isn't for two. I can walk back to the hideout myself."

Yusei didn't show much emotion, but I could see he was concerned, "The Satellite is a dangerous place, Koyou. Especially if you've lost all your memories."

I had to laugh a little at that, "I'm sure I can walk a few blocks safely if I'm careful. People live here after all, so it can't be too dangerous for that." to avoid his concern I added,"I will keep on my toes though. I may be amnesic but I'm not dumb."

Yusei nodded and put the spare helmet away before putting his own back on. In that moment I decided that he was best friend material. Even if I didn't know anything myself, the quiet but covertly expressive duelist was far too fun to read to not hang out with.

"Tell the others I'm fine if you see them first, and keep an eye on Rally for me. This isn't the only trouble he got into today."

He nodded again and revved his bike. Again I was shocked that he wasn't annoyed at all by Rally's apparent tenancy to attract trouble. In fact, Yusei seemed more like a disappointed older brother, than a bothered friend. The vibe the duelist gave off reminded be of someone, but I couldn't remember who. I dwelled on that frustrating fact as my new friend rode off in the direction the others had headed and turned a corner. Big brother huh? Maybe I had one? Maybe I was one? I had no way to know and even less idea how to find out.

A couple of days later, Yusei agreed to the insistence of his friends that he should field test his duel runner in a turbo duel. To be honest I was a bit sad that I didn't have one of my own to take him on, especially so when I joined them at a place near the bay called the "Waterworks" a system of pipes that formed a complex network of paths for a whole city block before going underground. According to Tank the plant at the center not only processed the waste that leaks into the water from the factory, but also used oil. Whatever the use, it had plenty of platforms I imagine are really for maintenance for people to watch and the pipes themselves made an admittedly cool track for the elite riders in the area. I wasn't entirely sure what a turbo duel was myself, but I must have at some point considering my knowledge of duel runners themselves.

Rally stayed close as we walked with Yusei, who himself was wheeling his bike alongside him rather than riding in into the packed 'prep area' (which actually amounted to a flat area that was a good starting point for a race on the pipes). Rally was looking excited, and soon revealed one of the reasons why, "So, Koyou, if you know about runners, maybe seeing a turbo duel will jog your memory."

"I hope so. Right now I'm not even sure what a turbo duel is."

Tank – apparently the biggest 'turbo geek' of the group – spoke up, "Since we have a straight course rather than an actual race circuit, we use Street Duel rules. No Speed World, no speed counters, no auto-pilot, no limitations. The damage simulators are on their highest safe settings too. In a Street Duel, you race from point to point. You win the duel either by reaching the goal first or taking out your opponent's life points, which are usually half the normal if the course is short like this."

"So it's racing while dueling?"

Tank nodded, "Exactly, it can get pretty dangerous, someone who doesn't know what they're doing can easily crash from a big enough simulated attack."

"And what's this Speed World you mentioned?"

"A field spell for Circuit Duels. You can't activate regular spells, only speed spells. Speed spells need Speed Counters, which build up as the duel goes on. Speed Spells are usually more powerful than regular spells and some banned cards are actually allowed in Speed Spell form."

"Sounds interesting." I admitted.

Nervin chuckled in agreement, "Yeah, we rarely use that kinda duel though. It's just to make up the difference in levels of excitement. Going around in a circle can only be so thrilling ya know."

"I imagine so."

Suddenly, a voice called out, "Aniki!" (aniki is a term for 'other brother' and is often used in gangs to address superiors).

Reflexively, I turned around to the source, ever though I didn't recognize the voice. The face of the speaker was just as foreign to me. It was some younger person that I could tell was a rider like Yusei by the clothes and safety gear he was wearing. The kid looked just barely old enough to legally turbo duel. Based on how unfamiliar the voice and face were to me, I assumed I turned on instinct. If that was the case, then my earlier thoughts of being an older sibling were on the money.

Yusei smiled slightly and lifted a hand from his runner to wave, "Sect, how ya doing?"

"You've finally got the new runner working?" the boy got straight to the point.

Yusei nodded and grunted affirmatively.

"Good! Now we can finally have our rematch!" the young turbo duelist looked over at me, "Who's the new guy? I haven't seen him around."

Rally smiled brightly, introducing me. It felt strange, because I kind of got the feeling she was presenting something cool and shiny she'd found to a friend. "This is Koyou! He knows tons about runners."

"Runner computer hardware a least." I admitted. Somehow the mechanical bits didn't sing to me quite as much.

"Ah. Maybe after my duel with Yusei you can tune my bike?"

"Sure, Sect. I don't mind."

Rally laughed, "Look at that! More and more friends every day! Not bad for someone with no past."

Sect ignored that comment and turned back to the object of his admiration, "So Yusei, I-"

"Sure, I'll accept your challenge."

Sect thrust his fist into the air in victory with such force that he propelled himself upwards, "Yes. I'll show you my skills, Aniki! Meet you at the starting line!"

As the young rider hurried off, Nervin laughed, "That Sect. Back when Yusei built his first duel runner he was pretty big on the turbo duel scene. Sect idolized him, kept challenging him constantly."

"This can't have been to long ago. Sect still looks a bit wet behind the ears."

"It was early last year, before Jack ran off with the first runner."

Yusei wheeled away suddenly and headed for the starting line. I could tell the memory annoyed him. Not that he held it against this Jack person. Having heard the tale and getting to know Yusei, I figured he blamed himself more than he did his former friend. I'm not sure I would react with so little hate. After all, Jack had endangered one of their friend's lives to distract Yusei and steal not only his first bike, but his ace monster. That kinda stuff... stealing something so personal to a person is just low, but the loss to that man in a duel that made the memory bad for Yusei. I didn't know for sure what was going on in his head, but I knew that much.

Making our way to a good viewing spot, I ignored the people teasing Sect and cheering for Yusei. Instead I focused on the duel. I couldn't hear what the two duelists were saying, but from what I'd relearned about runners I knew that we'd be able to hear them when the duel started thanks to some mobile speakers that were set up to receive from special microphones in the runners. Purely a luxury for the spectator. The pageantry of it was amusing. I was already into the idea before even re-seeing a duel like it.

The flag was drop and Yusei shot off the starting line like a bullet and onto a pipeline. Sect was a little ways back but I had to had it to the little guy for not having any trouble driving on a surface like that. Yusei took a path leasing higher, while Sect took a plain straight path. It was a small bit of psychological warfare, physically putting himself above his opponent. Even Sect was in awe of his runner and skill with it.

Yusei took the first turn, "I'm leading, so I'll go first. Draw!" A card was pulled from the deck slot mounted on his wrist and went right into his hand. A different card was quickly lain on the runner's play field, calling forth a dark and metallic swordsman to the field. The monster had a respectable build and a solid 1800 attack points, "I summon Junk Blader!" the drawn card was promptly fetched from the hand and deployed, giving Junk Blader a rusty but powerful looking sword, "Next I equip the equip spell 'Rusted Blade – Last Edge, to Junk Blader! It raises his attack by 800 points."

Sect was taken aback, "What? 2600 on the first turn?"

Yusei's voice was calm and serious, "I place this card face down and end my turn."

Some of the audience shouted at Sect to give up while he was ahead, but anyone with any sense should know better than to jump the gun. I analyzed Yusei's move, wondering why he would bother to field so much power so early. The sword probably had another effect, and that face down card probably protected it.

Sect went into motion, drawing a card at the start off his turn, "I've worked hard to surpass big bro! Today I finally get the chance to show him my full power!"

Yusei looked back, genuinely happy to hear it, "Bring it on, Sect!"

A robot bee was summoned to the field, "I summon Armored Bee! With his effect I can half the attack of one of your monsters once per turn! Poison Needle! FIRE!" A stinger was shot out, bringing Junk Blader down to 1300 attack. "Now I'll attack!"

1600 beats 1300 any day, and Junk Blader was torn in half, but the small amount of resulting damage didn't slow Yusei down in the slightest. In the resulting explosion the rusted sword flew towards Sect and stabbed him, causing the young rider to cry out in pain and shock. Yusei explained, "When the monster equipped with Rusted Sword – Last Blade is destroyed, you take 800 damage. And," thrusting out his hand, he activated his trap, "I activate Warrior's Pride. When a warrior monster I control is destroyed it is special summoned. For the rest of the turn it cannot be destroyed."

Looking at the numbers, Yusei had come out on top, but Sect was smiling, "I thought you'd use that card, Aniki!"

Yusei was shocked, "You did?"

"I activate Territory! When my opponent special summons, I can special summon an insect from my hand by offering every monster on my field. I tribute Armored Bee to summon my ace monster! Poseidon Giant Beetle!" A huge ocean god in beetle armor appeared boasting a hefty 2500 attack, "I attack! Oh, and when Poseidon strikes an attack position monster and that monster isn't destroyed, he can attack again. Up to three attacks!"

Junk Blader was battered by the bigger monster but remained steadfast on the field. Yusei however wasn't looking as good, slowing down under the assault as his life points went down to 1600. Sect took the chance and passed him as the junk wielder came down a pipe ramp. "Good one, Sect. I felt that one."

Sect smiled, "Your own card backfired one you, Aniki! Turn end!"

Yusei revved up, "That's my be so, but I'll still be the one to win! I'm going to put all my sould into this next draw!" I got a strange feeling as he placed his hand on his deck to draw. It was kind of familiar. Because of that feeling, I could believe his words. His entire soul was in that draw, a fact proven when he used that drawn card, "I summon the tuner monster Junk Wrenite!"

Sect gasped.

"So I tune my level 3 Junk Wrenite to my level 4 Junk Blader!"

Sect went wide-eyed, as the two monsters ascended to the heavens "A synchro summon!"

""Clustering strength will call upon a new force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Arrive in light, Lightning Warrior!"

A large warrior in high tech armor appeared as a bolt of lightning struck the earth. Sect raised his eyebrow in confusion at its attack points, "But my monster's attack points are still higher!?!"

Yusei smiled, "We'll see." suddenly Junk Wrenite flew out from the grave and knocked away Poseidon Giant Beetle's trident, "When used for a synchro summon Junk Wrenite lowers an enemy monster's attack by 500! That's not all! I activate Arms Recycle!"

I knew that card, it was in my deck too, "With that, Yusei can use an equip spell in the graveyard!"

Yusei did so, raising Lightning Warrior's attack to 3200 with Rusted Sword – Last Blade. Sect flinched but Yusei wasn't done, "I activate next: Treasure Card of Charge, which boosts one monsters attack by the number of cards in our hands times 500."

"Say what?" Sect looked o his hand, "Mine's at three!"

"And I'm at one, and that's four all together for a boost of 2000!"

Sect stammered, "Fi-fifty-two hundred!"

"I use Lightning Warrior to attack Poseidon Giant Beetle!" revving his engine, Yusei jumped the bike onto an nearby pipe, driving fast enough to drive along it nearly horizontally."

Nervin shook his head, "That Yusei, he's really taking Sect serious! Accelerating and amplifying the effect of the virtual impact."

Yusei sprang his bike off the wall and steered so Lightning Warrior's strike would impact to maximum effect, Sect looked like he was trying to cry out, but no sound came out. Yusei proclaimed, "My maximum force, Sect! Try it out! Lightning Punisher!"

The strike ended Sect's life points and sent his runner tumbling. Sect flew a short distance but rolled with it, coming to a stop flat on his back in a safe place. Yusei crossed the finish line soon after as pulled back around. Rally pulled me down the stairs and towards the defeated duelist as Yusei dismounted and walked over.

Sect groaned, but it was happy pain, "Agh. Aniki's impact borders on criminal."

Yusei helped him up, "That was a fine duel. Good enough for me to consider you a rival."

"Really, Aniki? You mean it?" Sect beamed, "Then I've made up my mind! I'm gonna beat you one day!"

Rally gave the young duelist a pat on the back, "Good duel, Sect!"

I smiled at the happy moment, and looked over to Yusei, who had that big brother look on his face again. "This is a bit off-topic, but you really remind me of somebody, Yusei. I just wish I knew who."

"Really?" Yusei inquired, mildly curious, "I wonder who it is."

I shrugged and Rally beamed, "Maybe we can all meet up with Koyou's family when he find them."

"I'd like that." I answered honestly. Rally went with Sect, forcing him to deal with the crowd that wanted to congratulate him on his performance, while I went over to Yusei and his runner, "You think it'll get you to the city?"

Yusei nodded, "Yeah. I already have a plan. But now I'm sure it'll work." He looked at me wih concern, "I'm not sure if I should go though. What about you?"

"I'll be fine."

He pointed to the runner, "Part of me wants to teach you to ride it and let you take a crack at it."

That caught me off guard, "Why?"

Yusei pointed at the distracted crowd, "Look at all their duel disks, and mine too. They're all old models. Your's is the latest kind. You can't find that in the Satellite. You also know more about computers than me."

"So I must be from the city?"

He nodded.

In reply I shook my head, "No, I can't take your chance either way. Besides, what would I do when I got there? I have no memory. I need another way."

Yusei didn't say anything, but he knew I was right.

I turned to him and held out my hand, "How about we meet up over there when I find my own way to the city?"

Without hesitation he grabbed my hand in friendship, "You got it."

Suddenly, the peace was broken by a familiar voice. "There you are, Rally! I see your punk friend over there too!"

Turning, I instinctively mocked the bothersome Danny, ignoring the friends he'd brought that I'd not seen the last time, "Hey, that's no way to talk about Yusei!"

"I'm talking about you, moron!"
"Really?" I feigned disbelief, "I'm shocked. You really think I'm a punk and a moron?" A non-existent tear was wiped from my face.

Tank looked over at me harshly, "Koyou! Don't provoke them! He's got Ida and Kameno with him!"

Yusei stepped in front of me protectively, poised to move over and protect Rally as well if need be, "No trouble here guys, you know the rules here. This is always neutral ground."

"Exactly. We came here to settle a dispute the Satellite way. A turbo duel, winner take all like last time."

I laughed that nonsense off, "I don't even have a duel runner to ante up."

Danny pointed at Yusei's, "Your pals have always seemed willing to bet on you. How 'bout you borrow that nice looking one there?"

Yusei stopped me before I could tell the guy off, "So if he wins, he gets your duel runner?"

"And if we win, I get yours. Come to think of it, that's probably where all tha great parts Rally promised me went. It's rightfully mine anyway."

Yusei wordlessly took his deck out of his disk and handed the device to, which I knew was needed to start the thing. I refused, "Yusei, are you nuts? I don't even know if I can drive one of those!"

He turned to me, "People like you don't loose to people like him."

"You know, I actually said that same thing to Rally a few days ago."

Yusei pushed the disk towards me again, "Take it."

Reluctantly, I accepted Yusei's trust, then turned to the ever annoying Danny, "We do this on flat ground though, I won't give you any chances to cheat using th terrain."

"You've got yourself a duel then!"

Next Chapter: Gemini Accelerate!