Chapter 4: Dilemma (Pt. 1)
Panting, the thief played the final card in his hand.
'I… I summon the Giga Smasher,' he said breathlessly. A two-feet tall golem, whose tip of the head nearly touched the ceiling, emerged out of a white ring. Luckily, the wide empty space outside the apartment was enough to accommodate its bulky body size. It was placed in Defense Position, and had a Defense of 2000 Points.
'I… I end my turn.'
'My turn!' his opponent, the man in white robes, smirked in triumph. 'I activate Dark Hole! Destroy all the monsters on the Field!' As the name of the card suggested, the only monster on the field was sucked by a miniature black hole and it vanished into an abyss of darkness, its roar never to be heard again.
'Spell Card, Fusion,' the man ignored the cries of the pitiful thief, whose fate of defeat was already sealed, and proceeded with his next step of assault.
Yuchi witnessed the duel from the corridor of his apartment in awe. It's only the second turn and the man had already ensured his victory. Normally a 'genius' like himself would take three to four turns to achieve such a feat.
'I send both Astro Blader Jupiter and Astro Ranger Juno to the Graveyard,' the man placed two cards from his hand into the graveyard slot of his Duel Disk. Yuchi's heart was thumping. He knew that something epic was going to appear.
'Fusion Summon! Appear now, Superior Astronomic Fighter!' The earth trembled and even the ceiling lights in the apartment shook in fear, as a gigantic space monster emerged at the back of the man in white robes. It had a computer screen for a face, displaying weird messages in a pink alien font. Its brown armor shone under the sun, which had finally awoken from its slumbers and provided life to the drenched land.
Superior Astronomic Fighter had merely 2000 Attack Points, which was a low number considering that it was a Level 8 Fusion Monster. But Yuchi knew for sure that it would have a very powerful effect that would allow it to overcome its weakness.
The thief had 3000 Life Points left, meaning that he would still survive if he took the attack from the monster.
'Superior Astronomic Fighter's effect,' the man declared, confirming Yuchi's doubts. 'Take it! Ultimate Destroyer Beam!'
The thief's mouth widened as the hideous monster stomped nearer and nearer to him. He did not expect this from the beginning. To him, Security's men were all weak little bastards with no concept of 'dueling' at all. But his opponent this time was special.
The next thing he knew, he was flying off the ground. Assaulted by the gigantic monster, who was nothing but a hologram. Just a hologram. A freaking hologram!
Yuchi, who had been watching the duel so far, applauded for the great duelist silently. He never thought that he could witness such a magnificent duel in his life.
'You,' the man pointed his revolver at the thief lying on the ground, and proceeded to shoot a bullet into the earth just a few inches away from his head, scaring the thief that he let out a sissyish cry. '… Go away, and don't let me ever see you again.'
'…Y …Yes sir!' screamed the terrified thief. He picked himself up hurriedly and ran away, tripping over a few times before he could completely vanish himself from the vicinity.
The man in white robes looked up to Yuchi and greeted him again with a smile, 'Hajimemashite, Candidate Code No. 0005 Yuchi Kendai.'
'H…Hajimemashite,' Yuchi mumbled the complementary greeting.
'My name is Wiles Euclid. Master Sergeant of the Neo Domino Air Force and a Pilot of U.N.D.E.A.D.' the man pressed a button on his robe, revealing a holographic identity card.
'S… So you're not a Sector Security member?' Yuchi was surprised by the man's words.
'Of course not,' laughed Wiles. 'I couldn't possibly reveal my true identity, right?'
Yuchi thought so. It was the first time he had met an U.N.D.E.A.D. member, and it was also the first time that he had understood that it was such a secretive organization, completely different from when it was established years ago.
'But why have you come for me?'
'To take you to the U.N.D.E.A.D. Headquarters, of course,' Wiles smiled. 'Didn't you dueled with the person named Tenshi just now?'
'Y… Yes, but how did you know?' asked Yuchi, who was still ignorant about Tenshi's true identity.
'It's the card,' explained Wiles. Yuchi recalled the plain card that Wiles threw to him just now. 'Tenshi gave you that card just now, am I correct?'
'Y… Yes, you are,' Yuchi couldn't stop mumbling his words.
'Great. Bring along that card and I'll take you to the Headquarters,' Wiles said. He pressed another button on his robe and a black sports car, in autopilot mode, drove into the empty space where he was. Yuchi had never seen that kind of technology before.
'Mr. Kendai, I believe you have known what U.N.D.E.A.D. is, correct?'
Wiles, or to be respectful, Master Sergeant Euclid asked Yuchi so as he was driving both of them in his posh sports car.
Yuchi was looking at the view outside the window. Being asked such a question, he quickly turned his head to face Wiles.
'Y… Yes, Master Sergeant Euclid!' Yuchi replied in a formal tone. 'It is an organization serving under the M.R.D. sector of Kaiba Corporation, I believe so.'
'Excellent, Mr. Kendai. Now do you know what's a Unit?'
The car sped through an underground tunnel and swerved into the highway.
'I don't quite really understand, but at least I know that it's a robot incorporated with the Duel Monsters system built to protect Neo Domino City from the people who violate the Asimov Treaty.'
'Correction,' replied Wiles. 'We don't call them "robots". Other than the basic land machines, many different types of Units have been developed by M.R.D., some can fly in air and some can operate under water. We call them all "vehicles". Vehicles, simply because they can only move in the various mediums when operated by man.'
'You have quite a substantial amount of knowledge with Units and their affiliated organization, Mr. Kendai,' commented Wiles.
'T… Thank you,' Yuchi blushed. Being praised after losing a duel seemed strange.
Strangely, Yuchi wasn't particularly excited or nervous about being introduced to the U.N.D.E.A.D. Headquarters. 'It is supposed to be my dream, but why isn't my heart thumping at the very least?' Yuchi asked himself, putting his right hand on the left side of his chest.
'Nervous?' Wiles asked.
'N… Not really.'
'Losing your confidence after the duel with Tenshi, Mr. Kendai?'
'N… Not really,' Yuchi knew that what he had just said were all blatant lies. How could he have not lost all his confidence after losing the duel? He didn't want to duel anymore after what had happened.
The car sped through the highway, past a few shops and tall buildings. The city was getting more and more prosperous, as many construction sites were set up along the highway. Yuchi wondered where could the Headquarters be at. The Kaiba Corporation tower? That would be too obvious for such a secretive organization. But there weren't other places that could fit it either.
Finally the car stopped before what looked like a big shop. On the signboard it said 'Sweet and Fruity Smell Shop'. Yuchi thought about what would it possibly sell.
Wiles braked his car and pressed the big black button to his right. A holographic screen jumped out in front of both of them. A woman's voice asked, 'Welcome to Sweet and Fruity Smell Shop. Please enter your password.'
Yuchi was confused. What password? He looked at the shop. It was just an ordinary shop, and a few customers were even choosing the merchandise sold.
Wiles took out a small calculator-like device from his pocket, and pressed the numbers '0', '1', '0', '1', followed by the button 'enter'.
'Password confirmed. Master Sergeant Wiles Euclid. Please enter the password for the other person,' said the woman's voice.
'Mr. Kendai, looked at the card Tenshi gave you,' Yuchi immediately took out the card and scrutinized it. He found a string of words printed on it with small silver font that said, 'Password: 0231'.
'Take this, and input the password printed on the card,' Wiles handed to Yuchi the device. The latter keyed in the numbers as stated.
'Password confirmed. Candidate Code No. 0005 Yuchi Kendai. Please enter through the backdoor.'
Yuchi was even more confused. Backdoor? Was that where U.N.D.E.A.D. would be? In such a shop?
'Don't worry, it would surely surprise you,' assured Wiles. He drove his car round the shop and reached its backyard. A big metal gate was located at the back of the shop, enough to fit a car through it.
The gate somehow sensed the presence of the car and automatically creaked open. Wiles drove the car through the gate and into the 'shop'.
'The shop is just a cover,' explained Wiles.
'But wouldn't anyone have noticed it?' asked Yuchi, who was curious about how the U.N.D.E.A.D. system worked.
Wiles let out a small cackle. 'Watch,' he said to Yuchi.
The inside of the 'shop' was pitch black, contrary to what Yuchi just saw at the front. The woman who made the voice just now suddenly emerged in the holographic screen and greeted both of them. 'Good afternoon, gentlemen. Welcome to U.N.D.E.A.D. Headquarters. This is the lift.'
Yuchi was astonished. Lift? Did she mean that the Headquarters were located underground?
'Please select the level you wish to go,' continued the woman.
'Underground Level, sixteen. Password: Lupine Almighty,' said Wiles.
'Thank you. Underground Level Sixteen, U.N.D.E.A.D. Commanding Centre,' said the woman.
The lift suddenly creaked and moved downwards, sending the car to the underground levels. Like the 'back' of the 'shop', nothing could be seen in the first few levels underground. There were no lighting facilities at all. The surroundings were pitch black, much like inside Yuchi's apartment at midnight.
'These levels are mainly used for security purposes,' Wiles explained the question in Yuchi's mind. 'There are surveillance bots hidden around here, all monitoring the actions of the people boarding this lift,' he said, pointing to the dark surroundings. Yuchi could imagine the robots watching him from all sides, armed with weapons, ready to shoot him down if he tried to do anything funny.
The lift moved further downwards.
At level six underground, everything could finally be seen. Yuchi gasped in awe as the magnificence of the U.N.D.E.A.D. Headquarters came to light for him. He originally thought the Headquarters would be, at most, some sort of skyscraper build underground. But he was wrong.
Rather than 'Headquarters', 'Fortress' would be a much suitable term to describe what Yuchi was seeing. What entered his eyes was just, in a word, massive. Under Neo Domino City could he never imagine that there was such a manmade space, miles deep and wide. The space had the shape of a semicircle, with the curved edge downwards. At the base below was the real 'skyscraper' that Yuchi had imagined. The tower reached high above the cloudless 'sky', almost touching the rigid ceiling of the manmade space that separated the ground above from there.
The black sports car was literally hanging on the 'sky'. The lift changed its course, from going downwards to going diagonally, transferring the car along a long moving belt that would eventually lead to the topmost floor of the tower in the centre of the space. Unlike the previous levels, the space was brightly lit, contributed by not only the lights from the tower itself but also the gigantic yellow spotlights that hanged on the walls and ceilings of the space.
Yuchi heard the sound of metal chains creaking as the belt moved along its way to transport the lift and the car on it. But the noise did not care him so much. The epic underground space had already overwhelmed his thoughts.
'Mr. Kendai, that tower,' Wiles pointed to the tall structure, 'is the true U.N.D.E.A.D. Headquarters. It's where all the Units owned by Neo Domino City are built and stationed there.'
'Master Sergeant Euclid,' Yuchi replied. 'What are those drone-like things outside the Headquarters?' He was referring to the machines that seemed to be flying round and round the tower.
'Oh, you mean the Air-Medium Units? Those are the Units that are specially developed to operate in air. I think they are having a test flight now. You know, we can't possibly let them fly on the airs of Neo Domino City in case something like decades ago happens again.'
Yuchi understood what Wiles meant. Around that time, the Units were still newly developed, and much media coverage of them followed. However, it seemed that U.S.A. and China somehow got hold of M.R.D.'s highly confidential technology, and they started to build their own Units too. Since then, news about the Units became less and less.
'That's why the United Nations initiated the Asimov Treaty,' followed-up Wiles. 'To prevent any country from using the Units for war purposes.'
Which meant that by the Asimov Treaty, countries could only use the Units for self-defense.
'See below,' Wiles suggested Yuchi to look at the base of the tower. He saw the Units, those 'robots' that he had seen on newspapers, heard in school, watched on old Mr. John's television.
Two Units were marching around the base of the tower. Their lightweight design and small body size suggested why they could move so fast on land.
'Powered by the "Fortune" Reactor above the land,' Wiles explained to Yuchi a fact that he had already known.
'You mean… the one built by the late Professor Yusei Fudo?' Yuchi reconfirmed his knowledge.
'Exactly.'
Fifty years ago, Professor Yusei Fudo saved the city from two massive disasters that would have wiped out the whole of Neo Domino City. After that, he built the 'Fortune' Momentum Reactor together with a team of scientists to save the city from destruction. Thanks to that achievement, Neo Domino City had an endless supply of energy ever since.
The lift slowly reached the tower and changed its course again, moving down the tower this time. As it moved down each storey of the tower, the woman's voice in the holographic screen informed them of its contents.
'Underground Level Thirteen. Weapon and Firearm Research Centre.' Yuchi heard a few vague 'zap' sounds coming out of the large glass door, followed by a man's shriek of 'Eureka!'
'That's Sir Bowman, the lead scientist of that department who invents something new everyday. Will introduce you to him afterwards,' explained Wiles. Yuchi was reminded of his mad Professor Bonaparte in his school and let out a short giggle.
'Underground Level Fourteen. Canteen and Staff Lounge.'
'That's where all of U.N.D.E.A.D.'s people have their meals and relax everyday.'
'Underground Level Fifteen. Medical Wards and Rehabilitation Centre.'
…
'Underground Level Sixteen. Commanding Centre.' The lift stopped with a clear tingling sound. A creaking noise was then heard and the glass door leading into the tower slid open, revealing a narrow corridor that could fit only a few people through.
'Please leave your vehicle here,' said the woman's voice.
'Let's go, Mr. Kendai.' Wiles extinguished the engine of his car and both he and Yuchi got off it. They stepped out of the wide metal platform, through the glass door and into the tower. A creaking noise was heard again and the lift and the car moved further downwards.
'The lift will take care of the car, don't worry,' assured Wiles.
'Master Sergeant Wiles,' Yuchi wished to ask him a question, 'what happens if another vehicle wants to enter through that shop?'
'Oh, don't worry, see that?' Wiles pointed to a vertical belt further away from the one that they just got off. It reached to the topmost level of the space and was somehow connected to the other diagonal belt.
'We don't have only one lift. In fact, there are many of those moving platforms. That structure, transports the empty platforms that went downwards back up to Underground Level One,' Wiles explained.
'Wouldn't it be pretty obvious if many vehicles got into the back of the shop all at once?'
'Not really. U.N.D.E.A.D. Headquarters has a quota that limits the number of vehicles coming in through that entrance every period of time. Once the quota is reached, no more new lifts will be provided.'
'What about people? And goods?' Yuchi needed to disguise his lack of confidence with enthusiasm in front of his idol, an U.N.D.E.A.D. member.
'Oh, we have another lift for human beings and goods. It's just right at the other side of the Headquarters, straight down this corridor,' Wiles turned to face the interior of the tower, making it easier for him to explain.
'Anyway, time's running out, so we better get going,' Wiles looked at his watch and realized that he had been wasting too much time on the subject of lifts. He ushered Yuchi to follow him along the corridor.
Yuchi looked around his surroundings as he walked along the corridor. Everything was white and clean: the walls, the ceilings, the floor. It looked as if every corner in the long pathway was fitted with white lights, as it was so luminous there.
'So unlike my house,' he thought to himself. 'But am I really worthy enough to walk along here? My abilities are so poor.'
The button was pressed. That red, glowing button on the right side of the control panel.
'You know, my dear Fate?' asked a young girl's sharp voice.
'Yes, my Mistress?' replied the deep, hoarse voice of a shadowy figure.
'Red means dangerous, am I correct?'
'Exactly, my Mistress,' bowed the shadowy figure. 'As soon as this red button is pressed, our very own Darkness Units will hit towards Neo Domino City, and…'
'And what, my dear Fate?'
'…and I'm afraid that the whole world would belong to you then, my Mistress. Everything will go according to the laws set by your father, my Mistress.'
He cleared his throat, and proceeded, 'our great king, the creator of Al-Magnum.'
Preview of Next Chapter
In the next chapter, Yuchi will be faced with two choices!
It's indeed a difficult choice to make!
What will he choose?
In the next chapter, two new characters will also debut!
One is a girl and another is an old man!
Who are they?
Don't miss the exciting Chapter 5: Dilemma (Pt. 2)!
Unit, Launch!
Card of the Chapter
Empty Duel Monsters Card
The entry pass to U.N.D.E.A.D. Headquarters.
Password: 0231
Candidate Code No. 0005 Yuchi Kendai
...
A Note from the Author
This chapter took a bit longer to finish than Chapter 3, although I did promise that I would speed up.
It took me many hours to come up with a description of the underground space.
In fact, I rewatched Episode One of Neon Genesis Evangelion to get the inspiration for the design.
Yeah, if you haven't realized yet, there already have been and there will be more references to that awesome mecha anime.
One is Yuchi's friend. Kaworu Ikari. You found it?
Another is the focus on the psychology of the characters. Yuchi's fear of losing. Kaworu's concern towards his best friend.
But this is not a crossover fanfiction. Mirai no Sekai will still have an original story, I assure.
Anyway, today the main villains finally appeared. Al-Magnum.
The name, Al-Magnum, is a combination of the initial 'Al-' from 'Al-Qaeda' and 'Magnum' from 'Magnum Opus'.
That's all for this chapter. Remember to review, Arigatou!
- Project M.G.