"So, Kaze…" My head drifted up towards the mirror in front of me so I could see my partner behind as I finished buttoning up my uniform. Rei bit her lip, absentmindedly scuffing her feet on the floor as she seemed to struggle with what she had to say next. Not wishing to rush her, I busied myself with fixing my hat, making sure to keep my gaze at her though for when she spoke again. "Today's the graduation duel," Rei eventually muttered, causing me to pause.
That's right… and that means that today is the last day of our partnership… I…
"After this… Look, Kaze, I just wanted to say that… I…" Once again Rei's words fell short, and so I finally turned around to face her, giving her my full attention.
"Rei, what is it? You know you can tell me anything. Even if I'm graduating, I'm still your friend," I reassured her.
"… Never mind, forget it. It's nothing." Rei gave me a wry smile, which concerned me. Having spent two years with Rei now, I could tell that something was bothering her. "Your graduation duel is more important. I can't be holding you back," Rei continued.
"Rei, I…" I paused, briefly considering my words. I didn't want hurt her feelings by doubting her, but at the same time…
"Can we talk about it after the duel, though…? Before you… leave," Rei muttered. It was a relief to hear that she was willing to open up to me about whatever was on her mind, so I quickly nodded.
"Of course, Rei. We can talk right afterwards," I insisted before glancing over at my clock. "Ah! We should probably get going though. We don't want to be late."
It was a rather silent walk from the Osiris dorm to the duel field, which reignited my worry about whatever was on Rei's mind. Usually Rei would fill the silence with some story or talk about Judai, but she was simply staring down at the ground as we walked.
Whatever she was thinking about really seemed to take a hit on her mental state… but she insisted on talking after the graduation duel so there wasn't much I could do, right…?
Could she be worrying about how the duel would go? Since the school was still implementing the partner system, they decided to have our graduation duels be tag duels as well with our partners. Could it be that since she was younger than the rest of us that she was afraid she would drag me down and cause me to lose the duel?
I hope that isn't the case. Despite her age, Rei is an amazingly talented duelist, one that I'm proud to call my partner. There's no reason for her to feel that way at all.
As such, as we finished making our way to the duel arena, I tried to make some light conversation with Rei, reminding her of all the duels we won and how this duel would no doubt be the same. Thankfully, it seemed to snap her out of whatever rut she was in, as soon enough my partner was back smiling and adding her own tales to the mix.
I had to admit, I'd miss Rei and the way her smile just seemed to light up the whole room.
"Testing, testing, ladies and gentlemen! Our first graduation duel is about to begin!" Cronos de Medici called out into the microphone, causing the chatter in the crowd to die down as everyone listened to hear what the first match up would be. "On the left, we have the Maiden in Love and Knight of the Wind!" Our professor made a grand wave towards where we would be positioned at, and so Rei and I made our way towards the field as the crowd cheered. "And on the right, we have the Dino Heroes!"
I tried my best to hold back a chuckle as Kenzan and Judai walked on to the opposing side of the field. "Ha, I knew it," Rei smiled wearily as she glanced my way. Of course we'd be pitted against Judai.
"Hey guys! I can't believe that you'll be our opponents! I was already so pumped for this duel! I almost didn't sleep last night when I thought about it!" Judai exclaimed, his hands balling into fists.
"M-me too," Rei laughed awkwardly as she scratched at the back of her head. "Only… for a different reason." I slowly turned towards my partner at hearing the comment she made under her breath. What was that supposed to mean…?
"Come on, Rei, chin up! You made lots of memories with everyone before this, yeah? They'll be with you forever," Kenzan grinned at Rei, seemingly noticing her nervousness and wanting to cheer her up.
"Yeah… Yeah, you're right," Rei muttered before clenching her hands and looking up. "Judai's the only one I have left! Once I get over Judai, I'll be fine!" Rei insisted, her bright smile back on her face.
I couldn't help but find myself staring at her. As much as I said I enjoyed seeing that smile… It still hurt. I know that Rei likes Judai. I've known that for years now, and I've accepted it, but… I kind of wish that I was the one that she would have to get over… After all, we've spent two years together now always by each other's side, and…
I quickly shook my head, forcing myself to look away from Rei and back towards our opponents. There's no time for that right now. I have a graduation duel to win. And besides… I already vowed that I'd help her no matter what.
"Hm, is this a new strategy?" Judai asked, somehow still missing the intent behind her words. "That just gets me all the more pumped!"
"He really never catches on," Kenzan sighed as he shook his head.
"That's just who he is! It's why I like him," Rei continued to beam at Judai as she always did.
That's right… That's the smile that I vowed I would protect… even if doing so meant that I had to let her be happy with someone else. After this duel… maybe I'll be able to get over Rei as well… so I can finally support her with all my heart.
I was drawn out of my thoughts when I noticed Rei staring at me, her lips in a slight frown. Upon realizing that I caught her staring, though, she quickly blushed and turned away.
"O-okay, let's go! I'll show you the true power of a maiden in love!" Rei called out as she activated her duel disk.
"C'mon then, give it your best shot!" Judai shouted with just as much vigor as he too activated his duel disk.
"Ha… It's not even her duel and she's still more pumped than you," Kenzan sighed, causing me to laugh a bit.
"True, but her determination is why I always keep coming back to be her partner." I smiled fondly at my partner as both Kenzan and I finished activating our duel disks as well.
"C'mon, Kaze! We've got just one last memory to go! Let's make it my first victory over Judai!" Rei insisted.
"Of course! I hope you two are ready!" I said.
"Bring it on," Judai exclaimed, hands balling into fists excitedly again.
"Then let's duel!"
[Kenzan and Judai: 8000 LP]
[Rei and Kaze: 8000 LP]
"I'll start things off for us!" Kenzan declared. "I'll summon Black Veloci in attack mode, and set one card face down," Kenzan continued as a black dinosaur with spikes across its body appeared. [Black Veloci: 1800 ATK] "That will end my turn."
"Then I guess I'll go next," Rei said while taking her draw. "I'll set one card face down before summoning Lyla, Lightsworn Sorcerer! That's not all though! I'll equip her with Lightsworn Sabre to increase her attack by 700 points!" Rei shouted as a black haired woman clad in white robes appeared on our side of the field. Her staff slowly faded away and was replaced with a sword that radiated a blue light. [Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress: 1700 ATK - 2400 ATK] "Lyla! Attack Black Veloci!"
"Given Black Veloci's effect, that means its attack is decreased by 400 points when we attack, right?" I asked our opponent as Rei's monster began charging forward.
"That's right… Sorry, Judai," Kenzan muttered as his monster was destroyed with ease. [Black Veloci: 1800 ATK - 1400 ATK]
"Hey, don't worry about it, Kenzan! It's just the first turn! We'll still turn this thing around, don't you worry!" Judai grinned at his partner, which seemed to invigorate him once again.
[Kenzan and Judai: 7000 LP]
"That ends my turn," Rei stated, which allowed Judai to take his draw while she discarded the top three cards of her deck as per Lyla's effect.
"Alright! I'll start my turn off with summoning Elemental Hero Prisma!" Judai said as a humanoid creature made out of crystals appeared on his field. [Elemental Hero Prisma: 1700 ATK] "Then I'll use his effect. By showing you one of my Fusion Monsters from my Extra Deck, I can send one of its Fusion Materials to the Graveyard and then having Prisma take on the monster's name until the end of the turn! Let me introduce you to my friend Elemental Hero Magma Neos so that I can send Elemental Hero Neos to the Graveyard!"
I found myself instantly dreading what was coming next. I had dueled along Judai enough to know exactly what his next move was going to be.
"Now that Neos is in my graveyard, I activate O - Oversoul, which allows me to Special Summon Neos from my graveyard! That's not all though! See, I also activate the Field Spell Neo Space! This field spell increases the attack points of all monsters named Elemental Hero Neos or include him in their Fusion Material by 500!" Judai did exactly as I feared, warping the field into an array of rainbow colors as one of his favorite monsters came onto the field. [Elemental Hero Neos: 2500 ATK - 3000 ATK] [Elemental Hero Prisma: 1700 ATK - 2200 ATK]
"Alright! Let 'em have it, Judai," Kenzan cheered. I sent a glance towards Rei, trying to gauge her reaction. I could see my partner doing her best to hold back a smile, which was all I needed to see to know that everything would be alright.
"Elemental Hero Neos! Attack Lyla!" Judai commanded.
"Not so fast!" Rei shouted as she quickly took a card from her hand and held it out. I recognized it as one of the cards I had gifted her a while back. "I activate Honest's effect from my hand! When a Light monster on my side of the field enters battle, I can discard this card to increase its attack points by the Attack of your monster! Which means Lyla gains an additional 3000 Attack Points!" Rei grinned at our stunned opponents. [Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress: 2400 ATK - 5400 ATK]
"W-what!? No way!" Judai cried out as our monster easily defeated his massive hero.
[Judai and Kenzan: 4600 LP]
"That was an amazing comeback! I thought I really had you there! This just makes me so excited! Is this the power that your teamwork can bring?" Judai asked eagerly, causing Rei and I to turn towards each other once more.
"You haven't even seen the half of it! Just wait until Kaze finally gets his turn," Rei smiled.
"Alright, then. I'll end my turn with that. Show me what you've got, Kaze!" Judai called out. [Elemental Hero Prisma: 1700 ATK] [Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress: 5400 ATK - 2400 ATK] As I drew my card, I ran through several different strategies in my head. There was no doubt that Rei and I had to end this quickly. Judai's combo on his first turn was enough of a sign that if we let this duel drag out, then our chances of winning would decrease drastically.
Thankfully, as a countermeasure to such a situation, we both added quite a few cards that would allow us to deal quick damage to our opponents, like Honest.
That being said, Rei had done more than her part, taking out nearly half of their life points. I had to return the favor and end things this turn.
"I summon Deep Sea Diva in Attack Mode! I also activate her effect, which allows me to Special Summon a level 3 or lower monster from my deck when she's summoned! Of course, I choose Spined Gillman, who boosts the attack all Fish, Sea Serpent, and Aqua-Type monster I control by 400 points," I began with a combo of my own as the two monsters appeared on my side of the field. [Deep Sea Diva: 200 ATK - 600 ATK] [Spined Gillman: 1300 ATK - 1700 ATK]
"Don't get too used to them, though. I equip Deep Sea Diva with Synchro Boost, which increases her level by one and increases her attack by 500 ATK! Then I tune my Deep Sea Diva with my Spined Gillman! He who was born from the blizzards of the past! Break your frozen shackles and freeze all who dare get in your path! Synchro Summon, Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier!"
My other partner let out a roar as he burst forth in a gust of chilling wind and bright light. [Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier: 2300 ATK] I silently turned towards my partner, finding her smiling widely at me while nodding, which caused me to smile as well. We really were great partners, weren't we? We already knew exactly what the other was thinking.
"I activate Brionac's effect! By discarding any number of cards from my hand, I can return the exact same number of cards from the field to their owner's hand. I discard two cards so I can return your face down and Prisma to your hand," I declared as I placed two of my cards into my graveyard.
"If that's the way you're gonna play, then I activate our trap first!" Kenzan shouted. "I activate Survival Instinct! I can banish any number of Dinosaur-Type monsters from my Graveyard, and I gain 400 Life Points for each card banished! I banish Black Veloci to gain 400 Life Points," Kenzan said, taking me aback. If that was the case… then I wouldn't be able to end things this turn…!
[Kenzan and Judai: 5000 LP]
Since the card was already activated, Survival Instinct was sent to the Graveyard, but Prisma returned to Judai's hand after being blasted by a gust of wind Brionac created with his wings.
"Even so, your field is still wide open! Brionac and Lyla, attack them directly!" I instructed, prompting our monsters to charge forward, preparing their attacks. Kenzan let out a pained grunt as Lyla sliced her sabre at him and Brionac showered him in a flurry of ice.
[Kenzan and Judai: 5000 LP - 2700 LP - 300 LP]
"Nice job, Kenzan! We're still in this! Let's do our best to turn this around!" Judai insisted. Kenzan nodded before turning his attention back to me.
"With one card face down, I end my turn," I said while removing three cards from the top of my deck for Lyla's effect.
"Then it's my move! I'll summon Sabersaurus in Attack Mode and then I'll activate Monster Reborn! I'll bring back Elemental Hero Neos with it! Of course, with Neo Space still in play, Neos will gain an additional 500 Attack Points!" Kenzan declared as a red dinosaur and Judai's Elemental Hero appeared on the field. [Sabersaurus: 1900 ATK] [Elemental Hero Neos: 2500 ATK - 3000 ATK] "That's not all though! I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Lightsworn Sabre!" Kenzan continued as a gust of wind shattered the sabre into dust. [Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress: 2400 ATK - 1700 ATK] "Now, Elemental Hero Neos! Destroy Brionac! And Sabersaurus, destroy Lyla!" Kenzan commanded, and his monsters quickly obliged, rushing forward and easily shattering our monsters with one blow.
[Rei and Kaze: 8000 LP - 7300 LP - 7100 LP]
"With that, I'll end my turn," Kenzan concluded.
"Don't worry, Kaze, I've got this! There's no way we can lose now!" Rei insisted as she drew her card. I didn't doubt that, because after all, her very first face down was… "I activate my face down trap card, Glorious Illusion! With it, I can Special Summon one 'Lightsworn' monster from my Graveyard in Attack Mode! Of course, I'll Gragonith, Lightsworn Dragon, which Lyla had me discard from my deck earlier," Rei said, and as the majestic white beast with a flowing yellow mane appeared on our field, I knew instantly that we had won. [Gragonith, Lightsworn Dragon: 2000 ATK]
"Gragonith has a special effect of his own! You see, he gains 300 Attack and Defense for each unique 'Lightsworn' monster in my Graveyard. Only Lyla is there right now, but just one monster is all I need to defeat you!" Rei's smile widened as a light enveloped her dragon. [Gragonith, Lightsworn Dragon: 2000 ATK - 2300 ATK] "Gragonith, attack Sabersaurus and end this!"
With a roar, the dragon rushed forward, raking its claws through Kenzan's dinosaur and sending its dust flying back at him.
[Kenzan and Judai: 0 LP]
There was a moment of silence as we all watched the monsters fade from the field.
"W-we… We did it…?" Rei whispered breathlessly as the crowd broke out into cheers and thunderous applause. "We did it…! We actually did it…! Kaze!" Rei cried out before suddenly tackling me. Rei was laughing giddily as I stumbled back a few feet, her head buried into my chest. Once I regained my footing, I returned her embrace.
After several seconds though, Rei didn't let go. I found my face starting to heat up despite myself. Thankfully before I could get too embarrassed, Rei pulled away, revealing herself to be blushing too, before she latched onto my hand and dragged me away.
Ah, that's right… Whatever was on Rei's mind… We promised to talk about it right after the duel.
When we were outside behind Duel Academy's main building, Rei finally let go of my hand and took a few steps forward.
"I did it…! Thanks to you, I finally did it! I defeated Judai and got new memories with all the graduating students." Rei smiled so cheerfully that I couldn't help but return one of my own.
"I'm glad. If you're happy, then that's all that matters," I said. At this, Rei seemed to pause a bit, simply choosing to stare at me with that same smile on her face.
"But now… I have to say goodbye to everyone, right…?" Rei muttered. "Well, I guess it's okay. I got to duel everyone before they graduated after all, right?" Rei spun around a bit as she spoke, arms behind her back. "Thank you so much for being my partner through it all, Kaze! My own personal knight!"
"Honestly, it was nothing. Seeing your wish come true and seeing you so happy is all the thanks I could ever need," I insisted, and it was true. With just this alone, I was happy. Even if we only remained dueling partner, if Rei could continue to smile like this, then that was all I could ever ask for.
"Even so… it… really meant a lot to me." Rei seemed to sober up a bit at this, kicking her feet at the ground as she spoke. "You know, it feels like you've been my partner forever, Kaze, even though it's only been a few years… I… always took that for granted. I thought I had learned my lesson back then, when you went on your transfer and… … but I still took it for granted again. You're leaving, just like last time, and I…" Rei trailed off, apparently struggling with the fact that after two years of partnership, we were now going to have to go our separate ways.
"Rei, it'll be alright, I-" I made to comfort her when I saw the tears beading up in the corners of her eyes. Rei seemed to notice them at that moment too, as her eyes widened in surprise before she hurriedly wiped the tears away with her sleeves.
"No, no…! I… I told myself I wouldn't cry today…! That I wouldn't have you thinking I was a crybaby before you left," Rei whispered, but doing so only seemed to make the tears pour down harder.
"Rei… It's alright to cry. It's natural to cry when you're hurt," I murmured while slowly reaching out and brushing a few tears away. "It won't be forever, though! We'll still talk! We can email each other, and when you graduate, we can hang out again! So don't worry, it's not like our partnership is over," I said with a smile.
Rei just remained as she was, her body slowly beginning to tremble.
"I've made up my mind!" Rei cried out suddenly, causing me to draw my hand back. "I'm quitting the academy! I'm quitting and following you! Then we can always be together!" Rei declared with a smile of satisfaction on her face.
"No!" I snapped without thinking. Rei quickly drew back, her smile dropping as she stared wide eyed at me. "You can't do that, Rei! You have so much more to do with your life! Don't quit the academy just because of me, it'll be fine!" I tried to explain my reasoning so she would understand where I was coming from.
"So… you don't like me…?" Rei whimpered, the tears threatening to overflow once more.
"Don't say that either, Rei…! Of course I like you! You're my partner! We've been together through thick and thin! There's no way I could hate you! I-" I bit my lip to prevent myself from saying what I was about to say next. There was no way I could say that. Telling her the way I felt about her would only make things worse. This wasn't the time for that. "I mean it… That's the truth…" I finished.
"Kaze, I…" Rei trailed off, cheeks turning red as she stared up at me.
"So… please don't say stuff like that, Rei. You don't understand what you'll be giving up. You're an Obelisk. Don't you know what that means? When you graduate, you'll get all kinds of opportunities for jobs and duels. Your hard work will all be meaningless if you drop out now," I gently brought up what we were debating about before, hoping to dissuade her since she seemed to believe what I was saying now.
"But I want to be with you!" Rei cried out. "What good are duels, jobs, money, or anything without you!?"
I found myself unable to speak as I watched the tears pour from her eyes again. If I had told myself earlier that I would have made Rei cry like this, I never would have believed myself. It was something I never would have dreamt of doing and honestly didn't want to do even now… but for Rei's sake… I had to stay strong.
"Rei, please, I… Just graduate. I'll come back for you after you graduate. You can do that, right? It's just one year. So please… just don't give up on your future," I insisted. Rei slowly looked down at the ground, the only sound coming out of her mouth being her choked-back sobs.
Had I finally gotten through to her…?
I realized the error in my assumption when I saw the faint shaking of Rei's head.
"No…" Rei whispered. "No, I can't do that…!" Rei's voice raised a bit, but she seemed unable to look at me in the eyes.
"Rei…!"
"I can't do that! I can't do that at all, because the truth is… The truth is…!" Whatever confidence Rei seemed to have built up seemed to crumble apart as she finally looked up at me. She bit her lip as her hands began trembling.
"Rei…?" I asked softly, my concern for my partner outweighing my initial thought to remain silent and let her speak when she was ready.
"I.. I love you!"
Before I could even process what Rei had said, I felt a pair of arms wrap around my neck and a pair of lips meeting my own.
All too quickly, the warmth was gone, and I could see Rei's form retreating into the distance.
W-what… What just happened…?
I slowly raised my fingers up to my lips, trying to put the pieces together when everything just suddenly crashed down at once.
'I love you!'
Rei… Rei just confessed. Rei just confessed…! And all I did was sit there like a fish out of water…!
I began sprinting after Rei's form in the distance. The only thought on my mind was catching up to her and trying to make things right. I knew it was foolish, I knew I had no chance of finding her like this when she had such a head start, but it didn't stop me from blindly trying.
In my hurry, I failed to notice someone walk in front of me, causing me to crash into them.
"A-ah! K-Kaze, what are you doing here? The boat is the other way," Kenzan said as he rubbed his hand against his head.
"I-I'm sorry, Kenzan, but I… Rei is…" I trailed off, unable to piece my words together.
"What about Rei?" Kenzan probed.
"I just need to find her!" I insisted. Kenzan seemed to notice the panic laced in my voice and reached out, placing a hand upon my shoulder.
"Look, Kaze, whatever is going on with Rei, I'll handle it," Kenzan reassured me softly.
"You don't understand…! I… I'm the only one who can-" I started to explain but Kenzan lightly shook his head.
"I know you were partners with her for two years, but Rei's my friend too, alright? I promise you, I'll handle everything. She'll be fine. You, however, won't be if you don't go get on your ship right now," Kenzan continued. He seemed to know I wasn't going to budge so easily, though, as he let out a sigh before retracting his hand. "Look… Whatever is going on with Rei, do you think she would really want you to miss your boat and be stuck here for the whole summer or maybe even more? So long as she's not in any physical danger, everything will work out if you just go get on that boat. I can call you if something goes wrong, alright?" Kenzan tried with a different approach.
Meeting Kenzan's gaze, I found myself unsure of what to do. I glanced between where I saw Rei's figure retreat and the harbor, where boats were waiting to take the graduating students away.
Slowly, I found myself faced with the truth. It was far too late now.
Rei was right about one thing… A maiden in love can do anything, even make themselves scarce. There was no way I'd be able to catch Rei now, and even if I did, would it change anything? She probably just needed some time to herself… I'd only hurt her by going after her…
"Promise me… Promise me that you'll find her, alright? That you'll take care of her?" I pleaded with Kenzan. A smile worked its way onto his lips upon realizing that I was agreeing to go to my ship.
"Of course, buddy. Don't worry. I'll watch after her with all the might of a t-rex."
Giving my thanks to Kenzan, I reluctantly turned my attention towards the harbor once more and began running towards the ship.
I barely made it in time, and I was left on the dock panting for breath afterwards. In an attempt to calm myself down, I turned towards the island that I've called home for three years, which was slowly receding into the horizon.
I… I was going to miss it. I was going to miss everyone. I-
My thoughts were cut off by my phone suddenly starting to ring. I reached towards my pocket to see who it could be, but upon seeing the name on the screen, I found myself freezing.
It only lasted for a second before I quickly lifted my phone up so I could see what was written in the text message.
From: Rei Saotome
I'll do it. I'll graduate at the top of my class. I'll make you proud. I'll become worthy of you.
Until then… There's someone that you need to meet. Someone that's in trouble and needs you. Someone that will be a better partner than I was.
They're in Neo Domino City. Go after her. She's waiting. Waiting for you, Kaze.
Elsewhere…
Rei let out a sigh as she hit the send button. She slowly reached up and wipped her tears away before putting her phone in her pocket and looking out towards the horizon, where a boat was fading into the distance.
"'If you love something, let it go. If it comes back to you, it's yours forever. If it doesn't, then it was never meant to be.' Isn't that how the phrase goes…?" Rei murmured to herself with a bitter smile on her face. "Only… last time… last time didn't count. Something happened to Kaze… so I'll give you a fair chance this time… We'll see who's really destined to be with Kaze…"
"… Hey, Aki, right…? Don't make me regret this."
Notes:
- Just so you're all aware, I actually lost my copy of Tag Force 3 a while back, so this duel was planned out by hand/using a RNG and trying to work some magic to manage the effects and all that. If there are some mistakes, feel free to let me know and I'll do my best to fix them, should it not involve re-writing the whole duel or something like that.
Reviews:
First of all, to everyone, I'd like to thank you once again for your continued support and feedback. It really helps me keep my motivation with working on my story. Now, to answer the questions though:
Kyokushin 0: At this point, as this marks the transition from Tag Force 3 to Tag Force 4, Kaze will definitely have a new deck from now on. That being said, Brionac is his spirit partner, so Brionac will remain in his deck while he changes from the Tag Force 3 default deck to the Tag Force 4 default one. In terms of whether Brionac will be changing into a new dragon, I think this kind of already answered that in the sense of Kaze won't just replace his partner like that, but in case you mean the other sense of the word, as in Accel Synchro or something like that, I haven't even considered something like that, since it involves creating new cards.