"Hey, Jexi. How are you doing?" Ace asked as he sat next to Jexi's bed.
"He's still sleeping, Ace." Chopper said.
"Ah, so how's his condition?" Ace asked.
"I've flushed all the toxin from his body. He should be able to move and wake in a matter of days." Chopper said.
"That's good. Thank you for taking care of him Chopper, and I wanted to thank you for helping Stoj as well since I never got the chance to." Ace said.
"Aw...I don't need your thanks, you big dummy." Chopper said.
"Hehehe. I don't know why you always do that but it's pretty adorable and funny." Ace said as he booped Chopper's nose.
"Ace...come into the lounge. I've called Carlson about a few things. There's something he needs to share with us." Hope said.
"Alright, hold on!" Ace said. "I'll see you later." He said as he left the room. "What did you want to share with us, Officer Carlson?"
"It's about the next opponents, Sakate and Alonz." Carlson said. "For Alonz, turns out he's got a long criminal record. Alonz the Recruiter...according to this he was a cultist who had a talent for getting people on his side to go along with any insane thing he came up with. I didn't even realize who he was because his record was so well hidden."
"But why is he here? Could he be planning something?" Azura asked.
"According to the records, he and four other crooks had major connections with the currently deceased Harlequin. This seems more for revenge but I can't help but feel there's more than that." Carlson said.
"Who is Harlequin, was he a demon or a human?" Ace asked.
"He was someone who worked for my family when it was still a top criminal syndicate." Hope said.
"How did he die?" Leon asked.
"Truth be told, one of his own men did the deed, not Hope. I'm not sure why they believe Hope did it but I can tell you that ain't true." Gemini said.
"But why would his own men do such a thing? It sounds like treason to kill your own leader." Papelne said.
"I dunno why he did. Spade sort of vanished before I could ask and he doesn't even remember. Oh...and I mean Spade of the Flux Family, not this Spade here." Gemini said.
"I don't mind at all, it's kinda hard to say someone's name when there's two or three people that have it." Spade said.
"Now...enough on Alonz. Next is Sakate, it took some digging...but we believe he has ties with the Chaos Control Company." Carlson said.
"Chaos Control Company?" Nami asked.
"Just call them Chaos Company. They're a company that has created a number of monster related apps for a lot of games, including Buddyfight." Twilight said. "They do have a mysterious feel about them. Their leader is this guy called Wisdom." She said showing a photo of a man with long gray hair in a white coat.
"..He reminds me of someone a bit." Al said.
"Also...this isn't definite yet...but we believe Chaos Company had some sort of connection with ARIA's berserk nature during the Grand Prix." Carlson said.
"Yeah, I believe so too. There were some signs, but he's the most likely suspect." David said.
"Given Wisdom's technological prowess...I have to agree. He has to be the culprit." Carlson said.
"So that bastard's the one responsible for what happened to ARIA." Ace said.
"Wait...that symbol for the company logo...it's the same one that was on Kid Ibuki's card...and on Sakate's hood." Nagi said.
"Hey, yeah, now that I look at it closely, the symbols are definitely the same." Mari said as she held up a picture of the symbol.
"Then it's confirmed. Sakate works for Chaos Company." Carlson said.
"And given his participation...he's likely after the Mirage Card." Ichiro said.
"Well our main priority is to make sure one of us wins the card so Sakate or Alonz don't get their hands on it." Ace said. "It's like you said Hope, the card can be dangerous if in the wrong hands."
"Well we'll be fighting tomorrow. So no worries. I got things." Yoko said holding her deck. "I'm prepared for this."
"Be sure to kick Alonz's ass for us." Kagura said.
"And mine. And Carlson… have the Universal Police on standby." Hope said.
"I've already made the call. We don't plan on letting Alonz escape us so easily." Carlson said.
"So, it falls on you, Yoko. It won't be enough for Gao to take down Satake. You have to defeat Alonz, too." Mana said.
"I'll keep an eye on the different parts of the stadium from here." Anna said.
"Right...it all comes down to me and Gao." Yoko said.
The next day…
"Welcome one and all to the final battle in A block. This match will determine who moves on to the finals! But who will it be? Sakate and Alonz? Or Gao and Yoko?" Paruko said as both fighters entered the arena. "This is gonna be so exciting."
"Let's do this. Rise up! Almighty dragon! Luminize! Demon Lord Dragon of Tempest!" Gao shouted.
"To devour people is to walk the Path of Oni! Let bloom, the Flowers of Evil! Luminize! Scroll of the Oni Rascals!" Sakate said.
"Countless stars that wander the heavens, unite and rain down your majestic embrace! Lumenize, Prismic Future!" Yoko said.
"The virtues of the gods are nothing without sins! All will tremble before my power! Luminize! Ancient Sins!" Alonz said.
"Here we go! Buddy…" Paruko said.
"FIGHT!" the crowd cheered.
"Raise the flag!" they said.
"Dragon World!" Gao said.
"Star Dragon World!" Yoko said.
"Katana World!" Sakate said.
"Ancient World!" Alonz said.
"Gao and Yoko have the first move!" Paruko said.
"Okay...I equip Arc Dragon Sword!" Gao said doing so as he slashed at Sakate.
10-8
"I guess I'm up then. I call Black Crystal Dragon, Lucien Black to the center, White Crystal Dragon, Rizzling to the left and White Crystal Dragon, Vioneir to the right!" Yoko said. "When Lucien Black enters the field, I send two cards from my deck to my gauge. And my White Crystal Dragons' effects activate since I have a size 3 Prism Dragon on the field. Viognier lets me gain a life, while Rizzling lets me draw a card."
10-11
"Now, strike him, Lucien Black!" Yoko said.
10-8
End of Move.
"Now...we can begin with your judgment as well." Alonz said. "Draw. Charge and draw. I'll start by calling Phantom Dragon Emperor, Lucus Vision to the right. Then Blowout Emperor, Las Volganon to the left. Finally, call Poison Dragon Emperor, Misty Envy to the center. Then I set the spell Hundred Demons Sorcery, Banryufuto. Now all monsters on my left and right gain an extra 1000 power and defense. Now...Lucus Vision ...destroy Lucien Black!" Alonz ordered as the dragon charged.
"Cast! Radiant Shell!" Yoko said blocking the attack.
8-7
"At the cost of 1 gauge, not only does Yoko nullify the attack, but Alonz takes 1 point of damage instead." Paruko said.
"Fine. Las Volganon...destroy Lucien!" Alonz said as Lucien was shattered. "Now Misty Envy...attack the fighter!"
"Cast! Proto Barrier!" Yoko said blocking.
"Whoa...Incredible! Yoko has blocked all of Alonz's attacks and takes no damage! Incredible!" Paruko said.
"Although, Lucien Black was still destroyed." Yoko muttered sadly.
"You...I see it now...you've prepared your deck to make sure I don't get a single edge on you." Alonz said.
"You really think...you can toy with me like you did Hope? Sorry...but I'm not some pawn you can manipulate." Yoko said.
"Ignore her. I got things now. I call Pale Yellow Fiend, Kid Hoshiguma to the right and then Red Fiend, Kid Kaneguma to the left. I put a card face down in Hoshiguma's soul and then equip Black Arms, Soaring Blade!" Sakate said. "Now...link attack the fighter!"
10-6
"Hoshiguma uses double attack!" Sakate said.
6-4
"Now here I come!" he said charging.
"Cast! Green Dragon Shield!" Gao shouted.
4-5
End of move.
"There's no doubt about it. He's set up an ambush." Gao said.
"Be careful, Gao. I can sense that he's got something up his sleeve." Yoko said.
"Yeah. Right. Let's give it our all! I call Raid Officer, Delta to the right and Replenisher, Pentar to the left! Now Delta, attack Hoshiguma!" Gao said as Delta slashed through.
"Ambush has been triggered! Now calling another Kid Kaneguma!" Sakate said.
"So Kid Ibuki isn't the only one with Ambush." Flamberge said.
"With his ability...I destroy a monster!" Sakate said destroying Pentar while Gao destroys the newly called Kid Kaneguma.
"That's all for me. Yoko!" Gao called.
"Got it! Draw! Charge and Draw!" Yoko said. "First I'll equip Red Gem Ball."
11-10
"Then I'll pay 2 gauge to call Shiny Crystal Dragon, Vermolt!" Yoko said. "When this monster enters the field on my center...I can destroy one of your monsters!"
"What?" Alonz said.
"And I destroy Phantom Dragon Emperor, Lucus Vision." she said.
7-6
"And Alonz takes damage from Lucus Vision's lifelink!" Paruko said.
"Lifelink?" Zan asked.
"It's an ability with Dragon Lord attribute monsters...when they get destroyed, the fighter pays the penalty with their life." Toma said. "David and Yoko's strategies are similar. They may not be that great against most fighters...but it does spell bad news for Ancient World fighters. And Yoko's still got her attack phase."
"Nice." Aya said.
"Rizzling, Vioneir, take down his monsters!" Yoko said.
Both white crystal dragons flew as they destroyed the remaining Dragon Lord.
6-5
"Vermolt, it's time for a link attack!" Yoko said.
"You no good…." Alonz said as damage was dealt.
5-1
"Whoa, Alonz is hanging on by a thread right now." Mana said.
"It's all going perfectly on Yoko's end. Next turn, he's toast." David said.
"But now the turn is over." Lacy said.
"This is a challenge...sent before me by Lord Harlequin." Alonz said. "I shall see to it that I pass it!" he said. "Draw! Charge and draw! Now...the time has come. Pay 1 gauge and buddycall to the center...Hundred Demons General, Yomotsugozuryu!" he shouted as appearing in the center was a creature with two snake like heads as it roared.
1-2
David shivered at the sight of it. "That is one slithery sight that suits his nature."
"Snake? Snake? SNAKE!" Stoj said.
"She's scared of snakes too?" Rarity asked.
"It seems so, even I didn't know." Ace said.
"Now...I'm going to cast a spell you are familiar with. Havoc in Dragonland!" Alonz said. "Destroy Vermolt!" he said as Vermolt vanished. "Now...Yomotsugozuryu...destroy Rizzing!" he said.
"Why's he going for the other monsters? Yoko's wide open." Nami wondered as Rizzing was destroyed.
"When Yomotsugozuryu attacks a monster and destroys it...I can call a size 0 monster from my deck without paying the call cost. I call Misty Envy to the right. But I won't stop there. Yomotsugozuryu has double attack! Destroy Vionier!" he said as Yomotsugozuryu striked down Vionier. "His ability activates again!" he said. "Call another Misty Envy. Now...both attack the fighter!"
"Alonz...you are a fool." Yoko smirked. "I still have one last card to play."
"That means...does she have it?" Hope asked.
"I pay two gauge and call from my hand...Spirytas!" Yoko said as Spirytas appeared in center, blocking the attack and counterattacking, destroying them.
"And here's the kicker. Spirytas' effect means that you have lost. When he is called from my hand on my opponent's turn, they take 2 points of damage!" Yoko said.
2-0
Game over, Alonz! Winner: Yoko Tachibana.
"SHE DID IT!" Hope cheered.
"ALRIGHT YOKO!" Ace cheered as well.
"To lose in this manner….." Alonz said before putting his hands together as he started to chant something as a portal appeared under him as he started to sink into it.
"He's getting away!" Gemini said.
"Not a chance. PDEE BARMA!" Simon chanted as Madama Butterfly's hands grabbed Alonz and pulled him out.
"I will not….go like this." Alonz said revealing bombs under his jacket. "Lord Harlequin...I will be coming to you!"
"Simon, call her back, now!" Sectonia said.
Simon snapped his fingers as her hands disappeared.
"I may have fallen here...But heed my words...you will never stop all of us!" Alonz said before they detonated into a black substance, consuming Alonz leaving no trace of him.
"Oh my god…" Ruenheid muttered in shock.
"Stubborn to his cause to the very end… He would rather die than face the consequences of his deeds." David said.
"Fool." Altera added.
"Now...it's my turn. That guy was a fool...but I'm not." Sakate said. "I call White Fiend, Kid Toraguma to the right! Then place a card face down in his soul. Now...let the bloodbath continue!" Sakate said as his monsters attacked Gao.
5-2
"Here I come!" Sakate said charging.
"Cast! Blue Dragon Shield!" Gao said blocking.
"Not done yet. Cast! Optics Operation: Shrouded Strawcoat! I put a soul from one of my cards into the dropzone. Now...I buddycall...Oni Boss, Kid Ibuki!" Sakate said as his gigantic buddy appeared in the center.
"He was able to call Kid Ibuki without the use of Ambush?!" Hope said.
"This isn't good, Gaos wide open!" Erica said.
"This is over! Kid Ibuki, ahnillate him!" Sakate called as Ibuki's hulking mount prepared to strike.
"Gao!" Hope shouted.
"Cast! Arc Dragon Shield!" Gao said blocking.
"Double attack the runt!" Sakate said.
"Cast! White Dragon Shield!" Gao said blocking once more.
"Now Sakate's turn has ended!" Paruko said.
"All right...let's end this! Draw! Charge and...DRAW!" Gao shouted. "Buddycall to the right...Demon Lord Dragon, Batzz!" he shouted as Batzz appeared.
"Not so fast...Cast! Ninja Arts, Snake Gaze!" Sakate said as Batzz was forced to rest. "Hahaha! See? Even I can stop him! The Demon Lord Dragon that destroyed Dragon World has been stopped and the world is saved!" Sakate said laughing.
"He would never try to hurt anyone! I fought alongside him enough to know. I believe in him! I cast...Batzz X Again!" Gao shouted.
Batzz then rose, now free of Snake Gaze as he roared. He charged as he destroyed Kid Ibuki while attacking Sakate twice.
8-6
6-4
"Now let's have some real fun!" Gao said slashing Sakate.
4-2
"Now...Final Phase! I cast!" Gao shouted activating his impact. "Thunder Lance X Tempest Buster!"
2-0
Game over! Winner: Gao Mikado!
"And the winner of this hardcore match...is the team of Gao and Yoko! With this victory...they move on to the finals!" Paruko said.
"Alright! I knew she could do it!" David said.
"It's still a shame that Alonz committed suicide before we could get a hold of him…" Francisca said.
"I'm sorry, if I had known he had explosives, then Madama Butterfly would've been able to dispose of them before he had the chance to use them." Simon said.
"Those weren't explosives. I recognize the design. They're called Lost Bombs. It creates a strange substance that banishes the target to another universe. Universe 0 to be exact." Carlson said.
"Universe 0?" Emiya asked.
"I didn't think mortals would even know of it." Madoka said.
"Madoka...what's Universe 0?" Hope asked.
"Well...in theory...it's a non travelable universe that exists in nothing. It's a place no normal person can travel to." Madoka said.
"So it's basically a universe in limbo, right?" Al asked.
"In a way. No life, nor death exist within it. People cannot enter it through normal means like ships or other vehicles. We simply call it...the Lost Universe." Madoka said.
"I guess Umbran Witch portals are out of the question too." Simon said.
"Even if it were possible, you wouldn't have been able to get back out anyway." Madoka said. "Once something enters, all powers within are negated leaving any individual inside trapped for all eternity."
"Why does such a universe like that exist?" Atro asked.
"It's hard to pen down. At the same time, it both exists and doesn't exist. It was created when the first 20 universes were born. A by product if you think about it." Madoka said.
"Hence to Al calling it a Limbo Universe." Papelne said.
"And since we can't travel to it without becoming helpless shells, let's just leave it at that for now." Sectonia said.
"Agreed, I don't think any of us plan on going there." Ace said.
"Besides...Alonz can't escape either. So we should be fortunate. But...what he said. Seems he wasn't alone in all this." Carlson said.
"I fear that's the case. *sigh* Can't even have a single card game tournament without some kind of conspiracy." David said.
"Speaking of which, the final battle in the B Block is between Mana and Ace." Hope said.
"I see." Ace said. "Honestly I was hoping for the same thing as David, but it seems like we'll be in for another adventure after this, but for now, let's try to enjoy the rest of the tournament."
"Maybe he's right. With Alonz stuck in limbo, we don't have much to worry about now." David said. "By the way, what did you mean when you said you were hoping for the same thing as me?"
"With the Ex Grand Prix, I was hoping we would all enjoy ourselves after the battle with the titans, but after what happened later on and now, it's seems to have gotten a bit farther." Ace said.
"You'll find that it happens a lot." David said.
"Still, no reason to get worked up. No matter what happens, no hard feelings, Ace." Mana said.
"Of course." Ace said. "I guess the match will be happening today then?"
"Probably tomorrow, but who knows. Win or lose, have fun, Ace." Hope said.
"I know." Ace said.