Episode 6: Soul of the Beast!
It was a weekend and Yumi really had nothing to do. She sighed in her bed as she looked out the window, bored out of her mind. Suddenly she heard a knock on her door. She got up from her bed and opened it to see her father.
"What's up, dad?" she smiled.
"Thought I'd let you know that Yuji's downstairs, in the restaurant," Nekoi replied.
Yumi's face lit up like a candle, "Really?" She then slammed the door, hurrying to get changed. Nekoi shook his head in amusement as he walked to the office to go through some files.
Inside her room, Yumi rummaged through piles of clothes. Once she was satisfied with what she had on, she smiled and made her way down stairs.
Down in the "My Pleasure" restaurant, Yuji sat at the bar with a glass of orange juice in his hands. He didn't notice a pair of hands covering his face, blocking his sight.
"Huh? Who turned out the lights?" He then felt something soft push against his back and his body stiffened.
"Guess who?" a female voice giggled from behind him.
Yuji recognized the voice and smiled, "Yumi."
Yumi restored Yuji's sight and hugged him from behind, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "So, what's up?" she asked.
She was wearing a red turtle neck, a jean skirt, and beige Timberland boots
Yuji turned his head to face her, "Well I was wondering if you..." He trailed off as he noticed Yumi's impressive chest, staring back at him square in the face, and he turned red and tried to look away. 'Boy, oh boy... First-years are getting big these days...' he thought.
"I'm a C-Cup."
Yuji sputtered, "W-Wait a sec...! Did I say something that I don't remember saying."
"Because you were checking out my boobs," Yumi blushed.
"Yeah, but I wasn't thinking anything like that," he blushed as he turned away from Yumi's face.
"Not at all?" she asked childishly, "Not even a little?"
Yuji tried to explain himself rapidly, "Well, I'd be lying if I said nothing, but- No! Must stop! Not a hentai!"
Yumi giggled, "You're so cute, Yuji-sempai!"
Yuji sweat-dropped, 'This coming from her...' He then relaxed and changed the topic. "Anyway, I wanted to know if you wanted to come over and meet my family."
Yumi blinked, "Your family?"
Yuji nodded, "Yuki and the others are over at Smart Brain right now. Tou-san, Kaa-san, and Luca-neesan work there, so I was wondering if you would like to meet them."
Yumi's eyes sparkled, "You mean I get to meet Fudo Yusei AND Izayoi Aki?" Yuji nodded. "I am SO IN!"
Yuji and Yumi rode on the Ebon Vajin to Smart Brain's main building. Yuji was a special operative so Yumi got easy clearance. Yuji and Yumi came across Jasmine, Yuki, and Rachel who were sitting in the lobby.
Rachel looked up to see them and smiled. "Hey, you made it!"
Jasmine and Yuki got up from their seats. "Ready to head downstairs?" Jasmine asked.
Yumi blinked, "Downstairs? But isn't this the lobby?"
Rachel laughed while Jasmine and Yuki giggled. Yumi was even more confused.
"Let's go to the elevator," Yuji advised.
Yumi complied and the teens made their way to one of the many elevators. When they got inside, Rachel, Jasmine, and Yuki quickly took hold of the rails while Yuji walked up to the button. He pressed most off them as if he was typing out a code. When he finished, a panel opened from under the buttons to reveal a lever.
Yuji took hold of the lever and looked to Yumi, "You may wanna hold onto the railing."
"Huh? Why?" Yumi asked in confusion.
"Just do it!" Jasmine panicked.
Yumi shrugged and took hold of the railing.
"Going down," Yuji said as he pulled the lever down.
"So where does this-KYAAAAA!" Yumi screamed before she could finish her question as the elevator dropped like a rock to unknown depths.
"MAKE IT STOP!" Jasmine cried, literally.
"WOOHOO! FASTER, FASTER!" Rachel pleaded at the top of her lungs.
Apparently Rachel got her wish because the elevator began to accelerate. After a few more seconds, the elevator stopped and its doors opened, sprawling Yuji and the girls out to the floor in a heap.
Jasmine crawled out of the pile and kissed the floor, "Thank the Crimson Dragon! Solid ground!"
"What the heck was that?" Yumi groaned as Yuji helped her up.
"One of the best rides on the friggin' planet..." Rachel said in a daze, trying to regain her bearings. "Look at the pretty birdies..."
"I see the elevator needs some more fixing."
The teens turn to see Luca, in a lab coat, walking up to them in a smile.
"For lack of a better word..." Jasmine groaned.
"I'll make sure to work on it," Luca nodded. "It's nice to see you guys down here." She looks to Yumi, "And it's nice to finally meet you, Yumi-chan. I'm Luca."
Yumi blushed at how beautiful Luca was. "I-It's nice to meet you, Luca-san. I'm Omura Yumi," she bowed.
Luca giggled, "Cute, and polite." She turned to Yuji, "You've made a good choice, Yuji-kun."
Yuji blushed, "Luca-neesan... You're embarrassing me..."
Luca giggled again, "Sorry. Well, Yumi-chan, I'd like to welcome you to Smart Brain's Research & Development Division!"
Luca and the teens walked to a conveyor belt on the floor and were carried through a hall, with walls consisting of windows. Yumi saw all the kinds of experiments that were going on in the rooms. Yumi saw Orphenochs of different forms using their powers, Smart Troopers testing different weapons, and other activities. Her eyes widened when she saw Mana in a shooting range testing, what looked like, a high-powered rifle.
"What's Mana-san doing here?" Yumi exclaimed.
"Mana-kun helps in testing Smart Brain's weapons, to see that they're safe for Smart Troopers to use," Luca answered.
"Sugoi!"
Mana shot off another round into an Orphenoch shaped target. She took off her headphones and turned to the window. She saw Yuji and the others and waved. Luca and the others waved back as they proceeded with the tour.
Luca lead the kids into what looked like a giant garage. Towards the center, Yusei and Aki were working on his D-Wheel while Satomi was typing away at a laptop.
"Fudo-sensei," Satomi called, "Everything checks out."
Yusei nodded, "Yosh. We'll take a break here." Yusei looked up to see Yuji and the others and smiled. "Hey guys."
"Thought we'd drop by," Rachel smiled.
Yumi was absolutely star-struck. She was now face to face with two living legends. "Oh my gosh, I think I'm gonna faint," she blushed.
"I assume you're Yumi-chan?" Aki smiled.
Yumi nodded rapidly, "Yes mam! I-I'm Izayoi Yumi... er... I-I mean Omura Yumi!"
Aki giggled, "Just relax. I'm not going to bite."
"Sorry..." Yumi blushed, "It's not everyday I meet celebrities."
"So, you're in Duel Academy?"
Yumi nodded, "Class 2-A. Are you a teacher, too?"
Aki nodded, "I teach class 2-C. I'm off right now, so I decided to help Yusei work on his D-Wheel."
Yusei walked up to Yumi and shook her hand, "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Yumi."
Yumi blushed, "Oh my gosh... I'm shaking Fudo Yusei's hand...!"
"Otuo-san is in charge of Smart Brain's Engineering Branch," Yuji informed.
"And Yusei took Satomi-chan as his apprentice," Aki added.
"So Mana-san and Satomi-san work here, too?" Yumi asked.
Satomi nodded, "Hirosaki-san is the one who recruited us."
"Hirosaki-san?"
"Hirosaki Karei-san is Smart Brain's official recruiter," Yuji explained, "She recruits Orphans who still wish to retain their humanity. She also recruits people of vast skill."
Luca turned to Yumi, "Well, we've got one more spot I wanna show you, Yumi-chan."
Yumi nodded and the group walked out of the garage, with Aki and Yusei watching.
"She's a nice girl," Aki smiled.
Yusei nodded, "I can tell she's a good duelist too."
The group entered another room with several monitors and computers. There was also a rectangular window that showed a bigger room that appeared to have no doors or windows.
"This is the training room," Luca introduced, "Operatives use this room to train in hand-to-hand combat and live fire practice." She looked through the window into the battle area and smiled, "Looks like it's already in use."
Inside the battle room, two Orphenochs were doing battle.
One Orphenoch had gray, Greek-style, armor covering his body. On his shoulders were horse heads on the pads. A large gray horse shoe rested on the center of his chest. He wore a horse-shaped helmet that had a horn and white hair cover the back in a vertical line.
The other Orphenoch looked like a gray lion and was muscular. His armor was also a mixture of white and gray, in color. He had a white fur collar around his neck, acting as the mane. He was armed with sharp claws on his fingers and toes and had sharp fangs. He also had a long tail that swished back and forth as he was in a pouncing like stance.
The Lion Orphenoch lunged forward and the Horse Orphenoch side stepped the attack. The Lion Orphenoch turned and spread his hands out to the side, allowing a set of claws to extend from the valley of his knuckles. The Horse Orphenoch saw this and lifted his right hand, as a medieval sword materialized in his hand. The two Orphenochs charged and their weapons clashed, sparks flying from the contact of metal. The Lion Orphenoch swung his claws and the Horse Orphenoch blocked the swift strikes, dancing around each other as one tried to land a blow on the other.
Yumi watched, in awe, at the display of power as Yuji and the others watched with interest. Luca smiled as she read the readings the computer recorded and spoke into a microphone, "OK guys, that's enough."
The two Orphenochs looked up to the window and nodded. They undid their transformations to reveal their human forms.
The Horse Orphenoch was a Haitian American boy who had messy, neck length, black hair with red and silver highlights. He has deep brown eyes and wears small reading glasses. He wore a gray buckled vest, black jeans, studded fingerless gloves, and gray tennis shoes.
The Lion Orphenoch was a boy of Asian descent who had brown shoulder length hair and gold eyes. He wore a sleeveless white shirt that had Smart Brain's logo, a silver dog tag, black cargo pants, and black combat boots.
The Asian boy sighed, "That was a good workout. Don't you think so, Marcus?"
Marcus stretched for a second before replying, "Yup! Would've gone on a little longer and I definitely would've kicked your ass, Leo." He looked to the observation window and saw Yuji and the others and waved.
(A/N: Marcus's seiyuu is Handa Kento and Leo's seiyuu is Peter Ho)
A wall opened up in the combat room and a girl walked in. She had white shoulder length hair, sky blue eyes, and is around Marcus's height. She was dressed in a sleeveless white yukata with sakura designs on it and comes up to her thighs. She also wore a white scarf, white arm sleeves under black arm guards, white leg warmers, and white sandals. She also had an impressive bust, firm and perky C-Cup breasts. In her hands were cans of Tropicana.
"Good work guys," the girl smiled as she handed Marcus and Leo the drinks.
"Thanks, Tsubasa," Leo nodded before taking a swig.
Tsubasa then stood next to Marcus and planted a kiss on his cheek. "So, how's the leg doing?" she asked Marcus.
"Much better," he replied. "Maybe later we can find someplace quiet and you can help make it feel better," he suggested while giving the girl a flirtatious wink.
Tsubasa blushed and swatted Marcus upside the back of his head.
"Don't push it buster," Tsubasa warned, "That act is reserved for the special moments."
(A/N: Tsubasa's seiyuu is Mizuki Nana)
Marcus rubbed the back of his head and whispered to Leo, "I love it when she plays hard to get."
Tsubasa shot Marcus with a death glare, "What was that?"
Marcus paled and shook his head in a panic, "Nothin' babe..." Leo shook his head, pitying his friend for his clownish shenanigans.
The three teenagers walked to the entrance of the combat area and took an elevator to the observation room. When they got there, they met up with Luca and the other teens.
"Yumi-chan," Luca spoke, "I'd like you to meet Marcus Amos, Katagiri Tsubasa, and Leonard Maxton. A.k.a. Team Shroud."
The three teens saluted and Yumi bowed.
"I'm Omura Yumi," Yumi introduced, "It's nice to meet you."
"So, you a new recruit?" Leo asked.
Yumi shook her head, "Oh, no, I'm just here on a tour."
"Well, it's nice to have another girl to talk to," Tsubasa smiled.
"So, how did you guys become Orphenochs?"
Marcus, Tsubasa, and Leo looked at each other and Yumi caught what she said.
"Oh my gosh, I'm sorry! I shouldn't have asked something so personal," she apologized.
"I died in a car accident," Marcus answered nonchalantly.
"I can't remember," Leo shrugged.
"I fell down the stairs in a park," Tsubasa chirped.
Yumi sweat-dropped, "You fell...?"
"She's a klutz," Leo and Marcus answered in unison, earning them a swat upside the head from Tsubasa.
Marcus rubbed the back of his head, "You see, what happened was..."
*Flashback 1*
Marcus ran through the street in the rain and in a panic. He tripped and fell, his face in the dirt. He got on his knees and stared at his hands, that were soaked with the blood of his brother and girlfriend. He was believed to be dead after the accident that happened two years ago. He was actually in a coma and awoke to find HIS girlfriend in the arms of his own brother. Driven by anger and sorrow, he transformed into the Horse Orphenoch and killed them on the spot. He ran after that.
"What the hell is happening to me?" Marcus cried to himself. "What the hell am I!"
"You've become an Orphenoch. Think of this as a second chance at life."
Marcus turned to see a beautiful young woman, dressed in a funeral gown, holding an umbrella over his head. Her veil blocked her eye color but her face was still visible.
"Who are you?" Marcus asked with uncertainty.
"Someone who wants to give you a chance at being human again," the girl answered with a smile.
"How can I trust you?"
"Would you rather be in a warm home? Or die out here, in the rain?" she retorted softly. "There is a place where people like you can use your gifts and be appreciated."
Marcus thought about his options for a minute... and took the girl's hand.
*End Flashback 1*
*Flashback 2*
Tsubasa sat under a bridge, her eyes glazed over with despair. She's been abused by her parents and sister all her life because of her fascination with shinobi. Then she suddenly tripped and broke her neck the other night and miraculously revived. Being tormented by her sister and friends for the last time, Tsubasa transformed into the Crane Orphenoch and slaughtered all the girls, including her sister, in her school's gymnasium. Now she didn't know what to do.
"Where am I supposed to go..." she sobbed to herself. She didn't expect an answer, since she was alone. Or was she?
"Hey," a male voice called.
Tsubasa turned to the source of the voice behind her and saw a young boy with messy, neck length, black hair with red and silver highlights. He had deep brown eyes and wore small reading glasses and looked at Tsubasa with a soft smile.
Tsubasa got into a defensive crane stance and asked, "Who are you?"
"Someone like you," the boy answered.
"Like me?"
The boy confirmed this by transforming into the Horse Orphenoch and shifted back into his human form. Tsubasa's eyes widened with shock and surprise that someone was could change, like her.
"Can you show me yours?" the boy asked politely.
Tsubasa was a little reluctant, but gave into the boy's request and became the Crane Orphenoch.
"Wow," he boy breathed, "What's a beautiful young lady like you doing under a bridge?"
The Crane Orphenoch blushed and shifted to become Tsubasa once more. "I'm not beautiful," she protested, but her blush not fading, "I'm a freak!"
The boy walked up to Tsubasa and cupped her cheek gently, turning her to face him.
"Know what I see?" Tsubasa shook her head. "I see a beautiful little angel who's waiting to break out of her cage and soar to the heavens."
Tsubasa blushed even harder. "Would you get to the point?"
The boy chuckled, "How about you come with me and work on putting our talents to good use?"
Tsubasa quirked an eyebrow, "And what's in it for you?"
"Maybe getting to know you a little better," he winked. Tsubasa giggled. "I'm Marcus. What's your name?"
"Katagiri Tsubasa."
"So beautiful, what's your choice?"
Tsubasa answered by taking Marcus's hand.
*End Flashback 2*
"And that's how it happened," Tsubasa finished.
Yumi was brought to tears. "That's... so beautiful..." she sobbed.
Marcus locked Tsubasa's fingers with his, "The two of us have been together ever since." He turns to Yuji, "By the way, Yuji, I believe you owe me a rematch."
Rachel got in between the two boys and stared down Marcus, "Not so fast, buddy-boy! I believe you owe ME a rematch! I've come a long way and I'm ready to kick your ass!"
Marcus nodded, "Cool. Then let's take this into the combat room."
Rachel nodded and they took the elevator to the elevator to the combat area. When they got inside, they took their places, a distance away from each other and activated their Duel Disks.
Rachel's was orange with black Monster Card slots and a green glass for the LP counter.
Marcus's Duel Disk was white with blue slots and a red LP counter glass.
"Duel!" they both called.
Rachel: 4000
Marcus: 4000
"Ill start," Marcus called as he drew a card. "I Summon Magical Exemplar (1700/1400) in Attack Mode!" A woman in green robes appeared next to Marcus. "Next I play the Field Spell, the Magical Citadel of Endymion!" Marcus inserted the card into the field spell slot and the ground began to shake. A giant archaic building rose from the ground and stood behind Marcus, with glowing circles floating above him and Rachel. "This handy little spell gains a Spell Counter every time a Spell Card is played. But since I played one right now, Exemplar gains 2 Spell Counters." Exemplar's necklace began to glow bright and Marcus grinned. "Now I'll activate her Monster Effect and Special Summon a Spellcaster-Type monster from my hand. So say hello to the Tuner Monster, Night's End Sorcerer (1300/400)!" This time, a young boy, dressed in a black cloak and holding a scythe, appeared on Marcus's left.
"Wow," Yumi gasped. "Marcus-san is good."
"Marc-kun is good at utilizing Spell Counters," Tsubasa explained.
"It's not over yet," Yuji said.
"Now, it's time for a tune up!" Exemplar and the little sorcerer nodded as they flew into the air. Sorcerer twirled his scythe before turning into 2 green rings and traveled down Exemplar's body. Her body became transparent and 4 orbs of light were visible. While this was happening, Marcus began to chant, "Oh, holy magics, let your energies flow through this mortal body and bestow upon her the power of Darkness! Synchro Summon! Slice through the shadows, Tempest Magician(2200/1400)!" A pillar of light engulfed the orbs and a new being emerged. She resembled Magical Exemplar but appeared to be more mature, had darker robes, and carried a larger version of Night's End Sorcerer's scythe. "Next I play the Spell card, Spell Power Grasp! This lets me add a Spell Counter to one card on the field that can store Spell Counters and I choose my Citadel. The Citadel also gains a Spell Counter since I played a Spell card" The circle above the citadel began to glow brighter. Also, Marcus's deck shuffled itself and another copy of Spell Power Grasp emerged from the deck. "I can also add another copy of Spell Power Grasp from my deck. Next I'll activate Tempest Magician's Monster Effect and discard 1 card from my hand to add a Spell Counter to 1 card on the field, namely Tempest Magician." Marcus sent a random card to the Graveyard and Tempest Magician's scythe began to glow. "Next, I'll activate her second effect and remove all my spell counters on the field to inflict 500 damage to you!" Tempest Magician focused all the Spell counters into her scythe. With a quick "slash", she sent out a blade of energy, striking Rachel but she didn't flinch as her Life Points dropped.
Rachel: 2000
Marcus: 4000
Marcus smirked, "I'll set a card and end my turn." He set the card and the Solid Vision image lay face down.
Rachel smirked back and said, with a toothy grin, "That was your only chance to hit me."
Marcus quirked an eyebrow, "Huh?"
"Watashi no turn!" Rachel said as he drew her card. "I play the Field Spell, Gladiatorial Sanctuary of the Elements!" The citadel crumbled and was replaced by a Colosseum that had 6 pillars surrounding the field in a hexagonal pattern. The pillars were colored red, green, blue, black, purple, and yellow. "As long as this card is on the field, Gladiator Beasts can't be destroyed up to 2 times a turn. Also, a Gladiator Beast that's Normal Summoned is treated as if I summoned it through the effect of another Gladiator Beast. Next I summon Gladiator Beast Jovian (2400/600)!" A centaurian figure, wearing Roman armor galloped out of a purple portal and stood by Rachel. But he won't be here for long, cuz I'm gonna play the Quick-Play Spell, Elemental Storm! This lets me release Jovian and Special Summon up to 2 Level 4 or lower Gladiator Beasts from my hand or Graveyard and they gain their effects as if they were summoned by a Gladiator Beast. So say hi to Gladiator Beast Jovian and Gladiator Beast Arcadius (1700/1300)!" Jovian disappeared and a second Jovian took his place. The second monster that was summoned looked like a female humanoid leopard dressed in gladiator attire. She snarled and flexed her fingers, revealing deadly claws.
Yuji palmed his face, "Oh man, I should've know she was gonna do this..."
"That little fool!" Jasmine exclaimed. "It's too early to use that deck!"
Yumi blinked, "I've never seen those Gladiator Beasts before."
"Oh...This can't be good..." Marcus grimaced.
"It gets worse," Rachel smirked. "Sanctuary increases the ATK and DEF of all Gladiator Beasts by 200 for each different Attribute in the Graveyard."
Gladiator Beast Jovian: 2600/800
Gladiator Beast Arcadius: 1900/1500
"Battle! Jovian will attack Tempest Magician!"
"Not so fast!" Marcus denied. "Trap Card open! Magic Cylinder! This negates a monster's attack and inflicts damage equal to the monster's ATK."
"Arcadius's Monster Effect activates! When he's Special Summoned through the effect of a Gladiator Beast, you can't activate Spell or Trap cards during the Battle Phase!"
"Say what?" Marcus exclaimed as his trap went back to its face down position.
Jovian galloped and thrust its spear into Tempest Magician's chest, exploding into dust of light.
"When Jovian destroys a monster, there's no damage. Now I'll have Arcadius attack directly!"
Arcadius grinned and charged at Marcus, slashing Marcus in the arm.
Rachel: 2000
Marcus: 2100
"Now, at the end of the Battle Phase, I'll return Arcadius to my Deck in order to Special Summon Gladiator Beast Nero (2900/1400)!" A ring of fire erupted on the field and a large tiger humanoid, covered in flames and donned with curved horns on his head, emerges and looks down on Marcus, standing at 15 feet tall and wearing Roman armor.
Gladiator Beast Nero: 3100/1600
"OH MY GOD, that's a BIG BITCH!" Marcus cried.
"OK, I definitely haven't seen that thing before!" Yumi exclaimed.
"That's because these Gladiator Beasts are new," Yuki explained calmly.
Tsubasa cringed, "Marc-kun is gonna be in for a world of hurt..."
"And that's putting it mildly," Leo quipped.
"Now, Gladiator Beast Nero's Monster Effect activates! When he Special Summoned through the effect of a Gladiator Beast, I can Special Summon 3 Gladiator Beasts from my Deck. So I summon Gladiator Beast Honorius (1400/1100)!" Three pillars of light burst from the ground and 3 humanoid doves flew out of them, and perched onto Nero's shoulders.
Gladiator Beast Honorius: 1600/1300
Yumi blinked, "Doves?"
Jasmine shrugged, "She's a furry after all."
"I heard that!" Rachel screamed, shaking her first at the observation window. "Anyway, I'll end my turn."
Marcus cringed, "OK, I'm gonna have to dig deep for this one. I draw! I Summon Night's End Sorcerer!" Another sorcerer appeared to the field. "Next I play the Spell, Magical Dimension and release my sorcerer to Special Summon Endymion, the Master Magician (2700/1700)!" A gold casket rose and enclosed on the sorcerer. A bright light shone through the crevices and a new figure arose. It was a tall male, dressed in dark robes, trimmed with gold, and adorned with archaic runes and orbs on the clothing. In his hand was a large scepter with an orb floating in a gap. "Magical Dimension's effect activates! I can select 1 monster on the field and destroy it, and I choose Gladiator Beast Nero!" Endymion pointed his scepter at Nero and blasted him with dark energy. However, the energy was deflected by a barrier and dissipated. "Crap, I forgot about that sanctuary card," Marcus muttered. "Oh well, Endymion, attack Honorius!" Endymion charged at one Honorius, and again Endymion was pushed back by the barrier. "He may not be destroyed, but you still take damage!"
Rachel: 900
Marcus: 2100
"I'll set a card and end my turn!"
"That's right, Marc-kun," Tsubasa cheered.
Rachel clapped and had a smile on her face, "Wow, you hit me twice." Her smile turned into a murderous glare, "It WON'T happen again..."
Marcus paled under her gaze, "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Watashi no turn! Battle! Nero, annihilate Endymion!" Nero dashed over to Endymion to rip his head off.
"Trap Card open!" Marcus called. "Magician's Circle! I can Special Summon a Spellcaster from the Deck, and I choose Defender, the Magical Knight (1600/2000) in defense mode!" A knight in blue armor appeared and took a defensive stance.
"I repeat: Nero, attack!" Nero, once again, charged and grabbed Endymion and held above his head.
"Defender's Monster Effect activates! I can remove a Spell Counter from the field and Endymion can't be destroyed by battle!"
"That means nothing!" Rachel yelled. "Honorius's Monster Effect activates! When a Gladiator Beast battles an opponent's monster, I select 1 "Gladiator Beast" monster and send this card back to the deck, and that monster gains ATK equal to Endymion's ATK and DEF!"
"Say what!"
"Oh, I forgot to mention, I'm returning all THREE of my Honorius'! Now take this, my soul of the beast!"
Gladiator Beast Nero: 16,300!
So, as I said before, Nero proceeded to rip Endymion in half, virtual blood and guts splattering all over the combat room.
Rachel: 900
Marcus: 0
Up in the observation room, Tsubasa and Leo gaped at what they just saw.
"Wow, zero," Yuji whistled. "That was generous compared to all her practice duels."
Leo turned to Yuji, "She's done worse?"
Jasmine nodded, "She broke Smart Brain's Life Point counter every time she dealt damage before today." Leo and Tsubasa could only nod dumbfoundedly.
Marcus sighed, "Talk about overkill..." He walked over to Rachel and shook hands, "Great game, Rachel."
Rachel nodded, "Yeah, I haven't felt that pumped up in a while!
Suddenly, the alarm blared. "Attention, there is a Rogue Nest near Neo Domino City's harbor sector! Team Shroud, please scramble!"
Marcus left the combat room, while Tsubasa and Leo left the observation room.
Yumi blinked, "Rogue Nest?"
"It's we call a group of Rogue Orphenochs," Luca explained as she typed at some keys. A screen opened in the wall to reveal the harbor in question and everyone in the room watched as vans parked and Sart Troopers ran out of the van, surrounding one of the warehouses.
At the harbor, a man in a Special Ops uniform stood quietly. He had spiky green hair, dark red eyes, and a jagged scar on his right cheek. He heard a van pull up and smiled as Marcus, Tsubasa, and Leo piled out of the van and saluted. "Hey guys," the man greeted.
They all saluted and said in unison, "Team Shroud, reporting for duty, Commander Kiba!"
Kiba nodded, "OK, you guys are gonna head in first and take out as many Rogues as you can. Leave the leader to me."
(A/N: Kiba's seiyuu is Suwabe Junichi)
The teens nodded and scrambled. Tsubasa hopped several crates and landed on the fence, her sandals concealing her movements as she nearly glided on the roof. Marcus snuck to the left wing of the building and ducked under a window. Leo casually walked up to the front door and knocked.
"Who is it!" a guard from inside demanded.
"Pizza," Leo replied.
"What the fuck?" The guard opened the door, "Nobody ordered a pizza!"
Leo grinned and stabbed the guard with a clawed hand, a mixture of blood and sand spilling from the wound. Leo removed his hand and transformed into the Lion Orphenoch and walked into the warehouse, staring down thirty-one individuals. The leader was a large, bald, man with a buzz cut.
"Shit! It's Smart Brain!"
Ten men turned into Orphenochs and charged at the Lion Orphenoch. The Lion smirked and charged, with great speed, and started ripping off limbs and stabbing the Orphenochs with his claws. The Lion was surrounded by several Orphenochs. The Lion grinned and stood on his hands, spinning himself and slashing at the Orphenochs with his clawed toes, shredding their guts and reducing them to ashes.
One guy was standing by the window, "Let's get outta-" He trailed off as he coughed up blood.
He looked down to see a sword sticking out of his chest. The sword went up and sliced his head in half, reducing him to ashes. The Horse Orphenoch crashed through the wall and galloped into the warehouse, using his elevated height to lop off heads as he galloped through the crowd.
Tsubasa was the next to "drop in" as she fell through the building's sky light and flung several shuriken at her targets in a graceful manner. She transformed, in midair, into the Crane Orphenoch and flapped her wings, launching kunai-like feathers at the rest of her targets. Her weapons pierced nothing but vital spots, reducing every Orphenoch she hit to ashes.
Only the boss was left and he was sweating like a pig and eyed the three Orphenochs. "A crane, a lion, and a horse..." he counted nervously. His eyes widened, "No way! You guys are..."
"That's right!"
The boss turned to the entrance and saw Kiba, staring the boss down with a feral grin.
"We are... Team Shroud!" White markings appeared on Kiba's face as he transformed. His body gained much muscle that was covered in grayish white armor and scales. On his arms were large gauntlets shaped like dragon heads. His head was also dragon-like, with two long horns extending from the side. His red eyes shone in the dark as he eyed his prey with eagerness. "And you're gonna die," the Dragon Orphenoch growled.
In a panic, the boss roared and turned into an Orphenoch, resembling a warthog, and charged forward.
The Dragon Orphenoch sighed and popped his neck from side to side. He then inhaled, and blew green fire from his mouth, engulfing the Warthog Orphenoch. The Orphenoch wailed in pain as he too, like his men, was reduced to smoking ashes.
The Dragon Orphenoch shifted back to his human form and popped his neck again. "Good work guys," Kiba congratulated.
The Orphenochs returned to their human forms and smiled and saluted.
The vans parked into a Smart Brain garage and Marcus and the others emerged from one of the vans, to be greeted by Yuji and the others.
"Welcome back," Yuji smiled.
Marcus nodded, "Glad to be back."
Kiba hopped out one of the other vans and approached the group, "Hey guys."
Yuji bowed to Kiba and smiled, "Good work out there, Kiba-san." He turned to Yumi and introduced, "This is Kiba Ryuuho-san, leader of Team Shroud."
Yumi bowed, "It's nice to meet you, I'm Omura Yumi. That battle was awesome!"
Ryuuho laughed, "I'm flattered, but my team did most of the work." He then turned to the exit, "Now if you'll excuse me, I've gotta be on my way. I already sent my report to the boss." He turned to Yumi, "By the way, It was nice to meet ya, Yumi-chan." And with a wave, he walked off.
In another part of the city, Nnoitra sat in a bar called "Bar Clover", grinning his usual maniacal grin. Next to him was a muscular African male in a suit, petting a dog. Behind the counter was a young woman with long blond hair, blue eyes, and dressed in a gothic attire, mixing drinks. The door opened and the three individual s turned to see Ryuuho walking in.
Nnoitra grinned, "Yo, Kiba."
"Ah, welcome back, Ryuuho-kun," the gothic woman greeted with a smile.
Ryuuho nodded, "Just got off work, Misa-chan." He then took a seat next to the black man and smiled, "How are you, Mr. J?"
Mr. J turned to Ryuuho and nodded, "I'm well, Kiba."
Ryuuho nodded and looked to the dog in J's arm and smiled, "Hello, Chaco-chan! And how are you this evening?" The dog barked and Ryuuho chuckled.
Misa bent over the counter and cupped her chin in her arms. "So, any leads on the King?"
Ryuuho sighed, "Sadly, I hit another dead end."
Nnoitra laughed, "Ha! I figured as much!"
"At least I'm actually doing something, Jiruga," Ryuuho glared. "While you lost all your subordinates to children."
Nnoitra slammed his fist on the table, "Those bitches caught me off guard, is all! Next time I see them, they're all dead!"
"Calm yourself, Jiruga. You had your turn." Ryuuho turned to J, "I think it's Mr. J's turn to say "hi" to Faiz and his friends." J only nodded as he stayed silent. Ryuuho smiled, "Good! All we have to do is take our time and search for the King. Once we find him, we can take this city and the world! He he he he... HA HA HA HA HA!"
To Be Continued...
Today's Key Card:
Gladiator Beast Nero
Fire/Beast-Warrior/Effect/LV8/2900/1400
If this card is special summon by the effect of a Gladiator Beast you can special summon up to 3 Gladiator Beast monsters from your deck. Each monster special summoned by this effect gains its effect as if it was special summon by the effect of Gladiator Beast. If this card attacked or was attacked, you can return it from the field to the Deck at the end of the Battle Phase to Special Summon 2 "Gladiator Beast" monster from your Deck, except "Gladiator Beast Nero".
Bushido: And there you go! Dueling and an all-out Orphenoch brawl! Also, there seems to a secret plot working behind the scenes! What are Ryuuho's plans for Faiz? Stay tuned. The Gladiator Beasts in this chapter were created by my friend, Profound 3! Misa is from Death Note. And Marcus Amos is an OC suggested by Kamen Rider DIBRAVE! R+R! Ja ne!
Next Episode: Stay out of the Water!