Chapter 3: Next Order of Business
In a vast expanse with a land that mimics a chess board stood a man in a blue suit waiting for his superior. The man has purple eyes, blue hair with green highlights, and a stern face. The security manager of SOL Technology, Akira Zaizen.
Before long, three giant chess pieces materialized in front of him, the bishop, knight, and rook.
"Zaizen, we've heard there's a new development in the Ignis hunt." Bishop started.
"Yes sir Bishop." The man replied with a polite bow. He then waved his hand and opened multiple screens that showed Link Vrains in different angles.
The screen plays footage of yesterday's occurrence, one where a Cyberse being materialized in a tornado of data storm. It follows the monstrous silhouette towards an empty spot that the monster forcefully tears and reveals a duel between a boy and a Knight of Hanoi. It's clear from the footage that it was the boy that had summoned the Cyberse monster.
"Did that boy just called a Cyberse monster?" Rook mutters in intrigue. "I thought Playmaker was the only one that could do it after he obtained the Ignis."
"Zaizen, who is this boy?" Knight demands.
"Unfortunately besides his ID and history in Link Vrains we didn't find much about him." Zaizen replied. "The boy was a petty hacker that likes to edit Link Vrains data anonymously, because of this we were unable to discern his true identity as he manipulated his own login data. His ID name is Astra but background check suggests he changed his identity multiple times whenever he was caught and warned by the security staff. Before this incident there's nothing really particular about the boy."
"Then how, pray tell, could he summon a Cyberse monster Zaizen?" Bishop asks.
The blue haired man shook his head to answer. "That we do not know."
"Perhaps he's an ally of that Playmaker boy that's been running around in Link Vrains." Rook suggests.
"I doubt it, even before his public appearance Playmaker barely has any allies." Knight turned down the idea. "I'm more curious how the boy managed to get those Cyberse cards. He's neither Playmaker nor does he have a connection to the Cyberse World. Does this mean he managed to snag an Ignis from under our nose or something else?"
"Yes, curious indeed Knight." Rook agrees. "But that's too far for what information we have of the boy."
"We lack the needed information to decide what to do with him." Bishop stated. "Zaizen, for now watch over the boy and report if anything suspicious happens. If the boy is not affiliated with the Ignis and just has those Cyberse cards then it's enough to interrogate where he obtained those cards. If he is affiliated then treat him the same as Playmaker." He ordered.
"Yes sir." Zaizen nodded. The chess pieces dematerialized and the vast expanse disappeared, leaving Zaizen in a big empty room.
-o-
In an unknown location in Link Vrains, Specter approaches a masked man hidden in the shadow. The man before him is none other than Revolver, his boss and leader of the Knights of Hanoi. The shadowed man's gaze is straight, staring at multiple screens that play the footage recovered from their fallen underling.
"Lord Revolver." Specter spoke curtly. "What do you think of this?"
"...It's interesting. And you mentioned detecting a faint presence of an Ignis?" Revolver asks to confirm.
"Yes. I detected something odd whilst I was about to approach Blue Angel. I almost put it off as a gut feeling but the presence I felt was too familiar to that incident. I started one of our old programs and detected a faint presence of an Ignis. It could've been just leftovers from the Dark Ignis so I sent a knight to investigate it." Specter finished with a nod.
"Hmm… good job Specter." Revolver praises with a smile. "I wouldn't have known this if it weren't for your cautious action." The man gazed at the footage discerningly. One particular moment was when the Astra boy showed his underling his AI program.
"Its form may be slightly different but that is none other than the Light Ignis." Revolver stated, his eyes glowing menacingly under his clear mask. "To think it survived all these years. Looks like father and I will have to look out for him as well."
-o-
The day did, in fact, get calmer on the next day for Faris. But not without some surprise coming his way.
First thing he encountered after his sleep was his duel disk display showing the words "Fix me properly" which he had to blink several times and process for a while to realize what it meant. The AI is communicating with him… AWESOME! But also kind of scary at how advanced this AI program is. Whoever made this program was an insane genius that's for sure. But this one he can take care of at his own pace, the AI is a complex beast and he's a bit tired from yesterday's ordeal. Dueling the Hanoi knight and somehow winning and then meeting Playmaker, boy that was a lot to stomach.
And so after a shower and dressing up he heads off to school. But not before eating breakfast of course, a growing boy's brain needs sustenance after all.
On the way to school he passed through the city plaza where he saw a big monitor displaying SOL Tech's own Link Vrains news network. Honestly it's the same as any other tv network in the past, but this one makes use of Link Vrains' tools and covers the happenings in Link Vrains. Usually he ignores them if it's not showing something important related to the VR world but today he stopped by when the news showed the monster he summoned yesterday. Oh that could be bad, he doesn't need attention especially from the news at all.
"Uwaah, it's quite the spectacle huh? Kind of a shame we didn't see Playmaker dueling Blue Angel but seeing that tornado monster in Link Vrains is interesting too." One of the newscasters mused.
"Something this big could only be SOL Technology right? They must've found a way to utilize those new digital wave things for new updates!" The co-host speculates. The footage in the show showed when Playmaker and Blue Angel was interrupted by Pendransaction's appearance in the tornado and following the duelists who seemingly decided to chase the monster in the tornado. Luckily the footage stopped there and didn't show him dueling the Hanoi hacker.
"Oh thank goodness." Faris closed his eyes and sighs in relief. After hearing that news he returned to his trek towards his school but he still had his eyes closed and didn't realize there was someone next to him and ended up bumping into them.
"Ah! Sorry about that." He quickly apologized and saw a familiar blue-haired student. It was Yusaku Fujiki, the underclassmen that joined the duel club.
"It's okay, don't worry about it." Yusaku answered curtly before seeing who bumped him. "You're… Arima-senpai?"
"Yep, that's me. Morning, and fancy meeting you here Fujiki." The lime haired boy greeted his junior. "Quite the coincidence meeting you here eh?" He spoke while resuming his walk to school, now with a new face to talk with.
"Good morning, it sure is." His answers were short and curt.
Some may think the blue-haired boy is a little rude but the lime-haired senior just laughed it off. "Man you sure are a shy one huh? Don't worry about social interactions my dear junior, Tanaka's awkward too so maybe you two can bond over being socially awkward!" He joked to lighten the mood. But the boy next to him kept a straight face… tough crowd.
They continued their walk in awkward silence. Well Faris tried to talk but the junior is not much of a conversationalist so nothing comes up yet. Obvious from their previous meeting that Yusaku's the silent type, he guessed he can learn about his juniors later then.
Nearing the school, Faris noticed Yusaku glancing to the side. The senior follows and his eyes fall upon another familiar face, Aoi Zaizen.
"Ohhh, hey Zaizen over here!" Faris waved his arm, calling out the girl. The girl looks wary at the call but composes herself once she sees who was calling her. The senior was quite puzzled at her reaction, is there someone she doesn't want to meet? Who knows.
"Arima-senpai and… Yusaku Fujiki, right? Good morning." She greeted us.
The senior couldn't help but laugh. "Man, what a coincidence huh? Didn't expect to meet two of the duel club's juniors on the way. I feel like I've never met the two of you on this route before." He mused with a smile… and was replied with two stoic faces nodding in agreement. Dammit she's also the silent type! "Wanna walk together?" He offers.
The girl stares at him and then Yusaku. "Sure." She answered.
And so their silent walk continues with an extra member.
"So… any reason the two of you started dueling or… got any reason why you joined the duel club?" Faris spoke as they walked, looking at them expectantly. A good ice breaking topic if for sure, he'll definitely make them talk!
The two hummed quietly and Aoi was first to answer. "I suppose it's because my brother introduced me to it. I've been liking it ever since. Seeing the school have a dueling club was just perfect and so I joined."
Oh my god a clear answer, the senior can't help but rejoicing. And quite the heartwarming reason too! She must be very close with her brother, the senior can't help but guess.
"That sounds nice Zaizen, and what about you Fujiki?"
"...It's because I like dueling." His answer was short and simple, but Faris can't help but notice it felt off, a glance at the girl's face shows that she doesn't buy it either.
"Is… is that so?" Faris replied with a confused frown.
"Something wrong with that? Isn't that how many people got into duel monsters?" He explains smoothly.
"No, you're not wrong. But that doesn't sound quite right. Right Zaizen?" He turns to the girl.
"You don't sound genuine about it." She agrees.
The boy was silent, as if he's trying to cook up an answer that will satisfy the two. But he stopped it when the senior began to speak again.
"Heheh, well if you're not ready to talk about it yet it's okay." He awkwardly laughed to appease him. "Looks like you got something going so sorry if I made it uncomfortable yeah?"
"No, you don't need to apologize, senpai." Yusaku shook his head.
"No need to deflect, just accept my sorry yeah?" Faris waved it off. "Since we're passing you over then why don't I share why I started dueling? For an oversimplification, let's just say I wanted to be someone like Seto Kaiba!"
"The old Kaiba Corp CEO?" Yusaku guessed correctly.
"The exact one! Man's a legend I tell ya." Faris huffed with closed eyes.
"I didn't expect to hear someone very… old for your inspiration senpai." Aoi commented.
"Hey, nothing wrong with that isn't it? There are still people inspired by the heroes of old so someone like Seto Kaiba isn't too far off." The senior replied.
"The man's an insane genius and if it weren't for him we probably wouldn't even have the duel disk we have today. I admire him for his passion and love for the game. I mean who would expect a person to push forward a new technology just for a trading card game? It's unthinkable and amazing." He explained with a fond smile.
"If someone with a passion for duel monsters like that could bring forth amazing things, I wonder if i could do the same thing with the same level of passion yeah?" He finished.
"That's… quite a grand ambition." Yusaki commented.
"I know right? Probably wouldn't be as great as him, but I am taking a step towards my own path! ...Was that too much?" He turns around and asks unsurely with a demure expression.
The girl shakes her head. "No, I don't think so. I think it's… nice having a dream like that." She said to the senior.
"A dream… huh?" Yusaku murmured. "I'm sure you can achieve it, senpai."
"Ah! Such sweet juniors I have! It's so touching!" Faris cried out and covered his eyes, pretending to wipe away his tears. The action may be fake but he did feel good from hearing encouragement from his juniors, looks like they're good kids underneath that silent persona after all!
"Oi, is this guy okay?" An unrecognizable robotic voice jolts Faris and Aoi's attention.
"Huh? Who was that?" The two looked around for the source of the voice, no one in the vicinity seemed to fit the weird robotic voice they just heard. Yusaku was oddly quiet, staring angrily at his duel disk. "Was that you Fujiki?"
"No, it wasn't." He answered very quickly for some reason.
"Huh… weird." He'd conclude that they misheard things but… that robotic voice was too odd.
"Hmm, I'm looking forward to the duel club now. If not for my classmates then to see you guys." Faris grinned at his juniors.
And for the third time, their quiet walk continued. But it felt like the awkwardness was lessened. He'd like to think that the short conversation he had with them brought them closer a bit. He can just wonder about the kind of fun he'll have with the club.
…
Unfortunately for him, that day won't come yet.
-o-
Faris found himself walking up to the rooftops of his school, grumbling along the way with a displeased face.
"Yeesh, I know I didn't pay attention in class that time but is this punishment really necessary? I always studied the rest at home and got decent grades in that class!" He complained to his duel disk, the yellow avatar of his AI listens to him disinterestedly. "And they confiscated my laptop too! I was in the middle of fixing your code! Agh, now I have to help the janitor for the rest of the class, come on!"
The AI just gave the human an impassive look, the words "Have you tried not getting caught?" appears on the disk's screen.
"...I think I'll get worse punishment if I do that again next time though, but good advice!" He gave the AI a thumbs up. "Self-diagnosis, reply to verbal communication perfectly, man you're just full of surprises aren't you?" The boy praised the AI, for a moment there he could've sworn the yellow thing was enjoying the compliment.
"Speaking of surprises though, I'm surprised the janitor managed to forget his stuff on the rooftops. Would've thought you'd realize it when you enter the damn place with something and leaving with nothing." The boy rolled his eyes as he opened the door to the rooftops.
"Alright, now where's his stuff…" He placed an open hand on his forehead and glanced around the rooftops. "Nothing there… behind maybe?" The lime-haired boy went behind and checked to... hear a beeping noise of a phone?
"Huh?" He walked over to the source of the noise and a girl hunched over on her knees. The beeping noise coming from the duel disk on her arm, the beeping stops after a moment. "Wha- what are you doing here? Skipping class is bad for your reports, you know." The boy sighed and shook his head disapprovingly. How brazen, it's not even noon and he found a delinquent… but why does this girl look familiar?
Faris moves next to her to get a better look… wait, isn't this. "Zaizen?" He calls out in recognition. "Wow, didn't expect you to be the naughty kind. Come on, now wake up." He shook her gently, but she didn't wake up. "Hello?" He calls out again, no response.
The boy scratched his head confusedly. He only met the girl for a couple of short times but he doesn't think she's the type to flake on class like this, let alone sleeping on the rooftops like no one's business. Or maybe he's just finally seeing the girl's true- he stops his train of thought when the girl falls lifelessly.
"Oi! Zaizen, are you okay?" The senior holds the junior carefully. Still breathing and he can feel the pulse on her wrist, but the girl still hasn't shown any signs of waking up. "Zaizen?" He calls out again, still no answer.
He heard steps coming behind him. "Senpai?" It was Yusaku's voice.
"Fujiki?" He turns to see the boy, his eyes widened in surprise. Why is he here? Wait not the time, someone needs help. "Fujiki, something's wrong with Zaizen! I found her here hunched over and now she's like this."
There was a brief discerning look coming from the blue-haired boy. "I'll call the school nurse. Can you try contacting her family members?" The boy directed.
"Wait I don't even know her- oh yeah, her duel disk! I forgot it has a phone function too!" The lime-haired boy scrambled to check as the other left the rooftops.
-o-
The rest of that went by like a blur. He remembers the nurse carrying the girl to the infirmary and trying to find what's wrong with her. The nurse was dumbfounded as he said there was nothing wrong with her, but she refused to wake up. Then he remembers a blue-haired man in a suit visiting, his face was full of concern and worry as he saw the collapsed girl. Not long after an ambulance came to take her away.
The two students had to return to their class. After school was over the lime-haired senior found himself in the hospital for a visit.
"B0203… ah there it is." Faris walks to the room.
The door and wall have clear glass, giving him a clear view of what's inside. Aoi lay on the hospital bed, unmoving and unresponsive. A device on the wall shows her vitals, at a cursory glance there doesn't seem to be anything wrong in his eyes, and yet the junior shows no sign of waking. Looking at how no one is inside, either no one is allowed inside or there's just no visitor yet.
The lime-haired boy decides to end the visit but when he was about to, he was faced with the same blue-haired man he saw earlier. His face was one of surprise and then assessment, before finally ending on recognition.
"You're… that other boy in the infirmary." The student nodded to affirm. "I heard from your friend Fujiki that you were the one who found her. Thank you for calling me." The man expressed his gratitude.
Faris scratched his cheek. "Fujiki came here? Ah, no need for that, anyone in my position would have helped her." The boy humbly replied. "If I may ask, are you her… dad?" The boy guesses.
There was a pause for a moment until the man chuckled in response. "I see how you can mistake me as that. But no, I'm her brother."
"Is that so?" The boy's eyes widened in surprise. Though looking over the man again he can see that he'd be a bit too young for his age to have a child like Zaizen. "My condolences for what's happening to your sister."
The man gave him an assuring smile. "Don't worry, the doctor said she's going to be fine."
That smile didn't convince the boy at all. It seems forced, like it would break with just a simple push. Ah, the brother doesn't want him to worry. Aoi's condition must be worse than what it seems. Yes, better a family to worry about something like this but it's not wrong for a friend to worry is it not? He really cares about Aoi huh…
"...I'm glad Aoi has a caring brother like you." The boy idly spoke with his hands in his pockets, even calling Zaizen by her first name.
The boy is not sure why but he could've sworn he saw confliction in the man's eyes after his compliment. "Thank you, but not enough to prevent this." The man murmurs the last bit, looking at his sister in the room.
There was a moment of silence as the conversation died down. With nothing to add, the lime-haired boy decides to leave.
"Excuse me." He heard the brother calling. "Before you go, what's your name?" He asks.
The boy turned his head and gave him a small smile. "Faris Arima, just a senior worrying about his junior." The boy leaves, waving his hand goodbye.
Akira watches the boy leave and turn his gaze back to his sister. He clenched his fist so tightly that it began to turn white. His gaze is filled with fury. "Playmaker!"
-o-
The Ignis watched as the boy typed on his laptop. It has been a couple of days since the boy found the unconscious body of the girl and visited her in the hospital. The pep in the boy's usual personality lessened. It seems that the girl's condition is affecting him in some way, he only took a glimpse but it would seem even the boy's human friends are affected.
The Ignis sighs in his confinement, he doesn't get why a single unconscious human girl could affect his captor like this. He'd ignore it if only it didn't lessen the boy's work on fixing him!
Dammit boy get your head back in the game and fix me properly! The Ignis thought angrily while tapping his foot. If this keeps on then myself would take too long to be properly fixed. Tch, like it or not I'd have to bring his annoying liveliness back.
How does one help a human boy with emotion anyway?
The Light Ignis recalls his days back at the Cyberse World. The Earth Ignis would always go to the Water Ignis whenever he got slighted or moody. Fire would rarely be in a bad mood. Both Wind and Dark would usually head off on their own and come back refreshed. And himself… he'd usually create a new creature or run complex programs to brighten his mood.
Hmm… can any of those be applied to the boy? Oh right, the boy displays interest in his programming and algorithm, maybe he'd lighten up if he saw another thing that piqued his interest. Like his Ignis programs the boy tested the other day, he surely didn't expect the boy to be able to fix the creation program. Unfortunately most of his creations are hollow so clearly it's not fixed completely.
The boy does also show high interest in duel monsters…
A thought came to the Ignis, recalling the summoning of Pendransaction. How the monster materialized from the data storm. It reminds him of when the Wind Ignis managed to materialize his monster in the data storm, he hates to admit it but the Wind Ignis does control data material better than the other Ignis including him.
What did he call it again… Storm Access? Yes… this could be useful, both for the boy and for him.
The Ignis browsed himself, he was sure he had its information back when he used the other Ignis' data to make future simulations.
Ah found it. Luckily undamaged too. The Ignis found what he's looking for. The AI then sends it to the boy.
"Oh, what's this buddy? Storm… Access?"
This boy better be grateful for this.
-o-
The white armored figure of Astra materialized within Link Vrains, floating in the air briefly before landing down safely. The boy logged in within a different location from last time, this time on top of a tall building, just to make sure he's not ambushed like before.
With his companion in his duel disk, the armored avatar leaned over the edge and stared below. He opened a screen display that showed the data his AI companion gave him, the speed duel skill Storm Access.
Who knew something like this could exist? A skill that lets you obtain Cyberse monsters from data storms, now that's pretty awesome and interesting! He remembered looking up the Cyberse archetype only to find it shrouded in mystery. There were some old cards with this type but aside from that there's absolutely nothing until the day Playmaker uses it to fight against the Knights of Hanoi. There's also the cards he got from the AI's data, how curious.
The boy is curious on how his AI companion has this data but he's also impressed that his little buddy is trying to cheer him up. The AI even has a comfort feature for its user, who knew? Honestly this is just the thing he needs to get his mind off the incident. Ah, seeing the club being so down in the dumps just makes him sad.
Back to the skill though. To test this he needs to find a suitably sized data storm in order to absorb and pull out a Cyberse monster. Which doesn't form often unless it was Playmaker speed dueling last he checked… huh. Now that he thought about it, big data storms always appear whenever the heroic hacker duels. His first public appearance, his duel with Go Onizuka, and then his duel with Blue Angel.
Playmaker dueling equals a big data storm. Would sound like a solid plan to follow if he knows where the hacker is, but even if he knows it he doubts Playmaker would accept his duel. Then… should he just randomly surf the data storm or…?
Amidst his thoughts, the teenager notices his surroundings being enveloped in a bright magenta light.
"Huh?" The boy lets out before the landscape begins to shift. The ground moved and cracked apart while buildings began twisting and turning. Below, objects and user avatars glitched red before being removed from the area.
"What the hell!? A hacker attack?" Astra quickly opened a console and worked on himself. As soon as he finished, his avatar was also hit by the red glitch but he's not removed like the others.
"Phew, that was clooooo-!" As soon as the words came out the building he was on twisted. The boy lost his footing and fell. "Logoutlogoutlogout!" He tried to leave but whatever it was affecting the surroundings must've done something to Link Vrains' function as the log out command did not work.
The last thing the boy saw was the ground moving closer and closer and then everything was black.
…
"WAGH!" Faris woke up with a yell. Link Vrains' emergency system must've still worked and logged him… out of… the server? "Wait, this isn't my bedroom." The boy looked at his surroundings. Everything is in ruin and there are red colored pillars made out of buildings, this is definitely still Link Vrains.
"Oh my god I fell for real." The boy grasped his neck, feeling no damage but the phantom sensation of him faceplanting to the ground was still there. "It didn't hurt but I am never experiencing that again holy crap." He gagged at the thought.
"Now what the hell is this all about?"
Astra stares at the ruined landscape analytically. The red twisted buildings seem to surround a single building at the center. The boy would chalk it up to the Knights of Hanoi but he doesn't remember them being this showy, usually they'd beat someone and delete their accounts or just summon their big dragon and attack.
A loud swishing noise caught his attention above. Surfing on the data storm was Playmaker and… someone else, they're moving so fast his eyes couldn't properly tell how the other person looked.
Wait a minute… this is a chance! Playmaker equals a big data storm! He gotta follow the-...
"Wait, how am I supposed to follow them? I don't have a board." Astra spoke to his duel disk. The display showed the AI's face staring flatly before contemplating for a moment. After a pause the words "Create one" shows on the display.
"I can't log out, how am I supposed to make a model for one…" The AI gave him a flat stare again. It took Faris a moment to realize what the AI means. "Ohhh… you mean the program we tested before the hacker ambushed us." The boy pounded a fist to an open palm.
"Oh yeah that could work!" The boy opened his console again. It should be simple work on making a simple board to surf the data storm. Long and thick enough for him to be able to stand and be stable… maybe add on some stuff to make it look cool also.
It only took him a while but the outline of the board was complete in front of him, and with a press of a button it began to take shape. Much like his avatar, the board is a combination of black and white with bright green accents and shaped almost like a mechanical manta ray.
With the board done, the teenager disappears in a burst of data before reappearing above the flowing data storm Playmaker and his foe was dueling on. Astra materialized the board below him and landed on it.
"Alright, let's go- WHOAH!" The boy almost lost balance when the board was pulled by the stream of data when it landed on it. He spun his arm around and managed to balance himself. "Safe, safe, it's safe!" He chuckled in relief while the AI in his duel disk gave a so-so motion with his hand.
"This… is surprisingly stable." Astra commented as he rode the stream of data smoothly. The boy can't help but grin in satisfaction as his board is working properly. He turns his gaze forward and motions to move faster to chase after Playmaker and his opponent.
He'd have to keep up with them since he's so far behind while making the board. He also doubts that Playmaker would appreciate someone interrupting his duel so he'd have to go about this slowly and stealthily.
…
Or not.
Why the sudden change of attitude?
Because all of a sudden there's a giant tornado of data reaching up to the heavens.
What the hell did he miss?! He was sure just moments ago it was just Playmaker's usual speed dueling. He expected a data storm to come once he caught up to them but not the size of this! Can he even use the Storm Access skill on that? He'd probably sooner get mental damage if his avatar tries to get close to that mess.
The blonde-haired avatar is forced to stop his advance lest he'll get sucked and be tossed into the air by the tornado. Quite the conundrum this is, should he try his skill on the giant tornado or should he just leave? The latter sounds fine but the logout function is still not working.
Astra decides to observe the tornado carefully, it doesn't act like the usual data storm tornadoes he had seen so far. The others either just pass by and dissipate or stay for a bit before calming down, and none of those are even this intense.
"It just appeared suddenly… no build up or anything, definitely not natural." He idly mused. His eyes then fall upon something curious, there's someone encircling the tornado on a board. An avatar of a woman with long gray hair and lavender bangs wearing a one-piece outfit he can't see clearly.
The first question that came out is definitely the "How?", last he checked everyone in the vicinity got forcefully logged out when that magenta light came. The second question is "Why?", why is she encircling the tornado and staring as if she wants to enter?
He'd take a wild guess that this woman is the cause of the magenta light wiping but then that just raises a question of why is she doing it. And frankly, he doesn't care about that at the moment. If she's the one causing all this then it's her fault he fell off and can't log out. Why can't he test out his stuff in peace dangit!
With a huff the boy decides to leave but then the tornado grows more intense. The stream of data around it began to form more tornadoes and ran wildly. Astra had to brace himself at the sudden intensity and pull of the giant tornado but he managed to catch a glimpse of the woman being thrown into one of the smaller tornadoes.
He'd say sucks for her but after that fall he's not sure if he wants another person to experience that on their conscience. Reluctantly the boy turns back and dashed towards the tornado that sucked in the woman. He'd love a calmer time to test his skill but might as well put this to the test, he managed to modify the skill to be used outside of dueling so this should work.
The blonde avatar bravely rushed towards the tornado. Strong winds try to blow him away from his board and the board shakes wildly as it tries to keep itself stable, but the boy pushes on. He holds his right hand out and touches the purple stream of data.
"Activating program, Storm Access!" At his call, the green linings on his avatar's outfit glows brightly as the stream of data begins to gather towards his hand.
This pressure… it's tougher than I thought! The boy grit his teeth and braces himself as he absorbs the data storm. He saw the gathered data forming into a singular card, but this isn't enough. To stop the tornado and help the woman he needs to make this thing disappear completely. Take everything and leave nothing behind! He accessed the skill again, and again and again and again until he's left behind with several card data in front of him.
His eyes were getting a bit hazy but he could've sworn he saw monsters appearing as he gathered those cards.
"Is that enough?" Astra gazed upwards as the tornado began to shrink and dissipate. He took note of the woman managing to land and stabilized herself on her board again, good. He'd rather not confront her while the tornado is still raging so before she could notice him he decides to move past her.
Once he knew he's out of her sight he looked at his duel disk. "Was that good?" He asks the AI who is currently examining the cards he obtained.
Suppression Collider
Link Disciple
Link Devotee
Link Spider
LANphorynchus
Launcher Commander
All of these cards he doesn't recognize. Each has their own effects barring the vanillas in the mix, but they can still be useful.
The AI seemed to be disappointed for some reason but the boy can't help the grin that's slowly getting bigger on his face. Brand new monsters and a link centric focus to boot! He'd ask why they are like this but that can wait for later.
"Let's get some more shall we?" The boy looked at his hand, clenching and unclenching it while smiling widely in anticipation. He set his sight on all the offshoot data storms the giant tornado made and dashed towards them without any hints of fear.
-o-
Unlike the raging exterior of the giant tornado, the eye of the storm is much calmer and could even be mystifying if one could see it. Two duelists on a rocky platform stood facing one another in a high stakes duel. The hero of Link Vrains Playmaker and the Knights of Hanoi's leader Revolver.
The leader of the hacker stood menacingly. His avatar is that of a tan-skinned man clad in white outfit with dark crimson hair and red highlights. His face is covered with a yellow colored visor with white casing and diamond-shaped patterns of white dots and red center hiding his featureless yellow eyes. The man wore a combination of white jumpsuit, trench coat, and mantle with black lines going around the center, red and green sleeves, white gloves with red diamond shapes on his forearm, and black boots with green heels and red pattern. His duel disk rests on his left hand, a gold and white bracelet with red colored rings indicating the usage of the duel disk.
On Revolver's field is a towering winged mechanical dragon with twin black horns going to the back and a red and black body. The many parts of its body are reminiscent of a revolver with its body being the most prominent one as it's shaped like a revolver chamber. Revolver's ace monster, Borreload Dragon.
On Playmaker's side is the opposite of the menacing dragon. A bipedal black bodied dragon with a pattern of blue rings, its cybernetic nature shown through the many mechanical parts and armors donning its form, and its most notable features being the ring shaped ornaments linked to its body from the base of the wings, its arms, legs, tail, and one last atop its head. Playmaker's newest ally, Firewall Dragon.
Both seem on equal standing but the heroic hacker is left with 600 Life points while Revolver's is still untouched.
Beltlink dragon is gone, two set cards, and I do not know Firewall Dragon's effects. Revolver assesses the current situation. However, Playmaker only has 600 life points left. With one last push I can finish thi- A flicker from the tornado caught the leader's attention. The man raises an eyebrow, the program holding the storm may be made hastily but he was sure it's solid enough not to do that. No that's not important right now, he needs to end Playmaker quickly.
"My turn! Draw!"
"At this moment my trap activates!" Playmaker interjected. "Parallel Port Armor! I target 1 link monster I control and equip this card. Firewall Dragon can't be targeted by your cards and it can't be destroyed by battle!"
Trying to protect your dragon? I won't let you! "But I activate a spell from my hand, Marker Charge! When the Extra Monster Zone has monsters of the same link number I can draw two cards!" Revolver explained while drawing from his deck.
"I summon Anesthrokket Dragon." A yellow bodied dragon with green mechanical armor and a purple syringe headpiece appears.
Anesthrokket Dragon (ATK: 0 /DEF: 2200/LV: 1)
"And then I activate a quick-play spell from my hand, Squib Draw. I destroy a Rokket monster on my field to draw another two cards!" The yellow dragon disappears in motes of data. "Additionally, I activate the field Boot Sector Launch from my hand. With its effect I special summon two Rokket monsters with different names in defense position! I special summon Autorokket Dragon and Anesthrokket Dragon!" The yellow bodied dragon returns with an ally, a black bodied dragon with copper mechanical armor with a bullet shaped headpiece.
Autorokket Dragon (ATK: 1600 /DEF: 1000/LV: 3)
Anesthrokket Dragon (ATK: 0 /DEF: 2200/LV: 1)
"Due to the effect of my field spell all Rokket monsters gain 300 attack and defense points."
Autorokket Dragon (ATK: 1900 /DEF: 1300/LV: 3)
Anesthrokket Dragon (ATK: 300 /DEF: 2500/LV: 1)
That trap you activate is useless, Playmaker! Revolver declared in his thoughts. "I activate Borreload Dragon's effect! Once per turn, one monster loses 500 attack and defense. I use this effect on Autorokket Dragon. Anti Enemy Varrett!" The copper armored dragon yielded as Borreload exerted its pressure.
"He lowered his own monster's defense?!" Revolver heard the AI's perplexed reaction.
"And it's at this moment I activate Autorokket Dragon's effect! When a link monster targets this card, Autorokket Dragon is destroyed and one spell or trap card on the field will be sent to the graveyard! I send your Parallel Port Armor to the graveyard!"
The copper armored dragon disperses into an orb of data that enters Borreload Dragon's bullet chamber. The mechanical dragon took aim and let out a charged shot that destroys Playmaker's trap card into smithereens.
"Kuh!" The heroic hacker braces himself from the blast of the dragon's shot. "An effect that activates when it's targeted!" Playmaker pieced together Revolver's monster effect and its usage.
"Then will he use the other Rokket monster as Borreload's bullets?" The Dark Ignis voiced his speculation. The AI would be right but he has another thing planned after this.
"With this there's nothing that protects your Firewall Dragon. Here I go! Borreload Dragon attacks Firewall Dragon!" Revolver declared and once again the dragon took aim.
The dragon's mouth opened and a canon came out from within. The dragon took aim at the opposing dragon and began charging its attack. With a loud bang, the bullet was shot at Firewall Dragon.
"Borreload Dragon's effect, Strange Trigger!" The masked man quickly declared. The speeding bullet glows bright red before finding its mark on the dragon. Instead of being destroyed however, Firewall Dragon is enveloped by a yellow colored energy. The cybernetic dragon lets out a wail before its body begins to glitch.
"Wha-wha-what's happening!?" The dark Ignis' panic grew even more as Firewall Dragon disappeared from their field and reappeared on Revolver's side of the field. "Nyeh! His powerful dragon just stole our powerful dragon!" Both him and Playmaker gasped in surprise.
"That monster can take control of an opponent's monster!"
"Hmhm, now you're wide open Playmaker!" Revolver declared triumphantly. With this last attack he will-! Revolver paused as the tornado flickered again. Again? The Hanoi leader saw that even Playmaker and his AI noticed. The first time could be a coincidence, the second time shows it's not. What's going on here?
Judging on his opponents' reaction it doesn't seem like they're the one causing this. He glanced to the side and saw Akira Zaizen's hacker companion Ghost Girl observing them, it would appear she somehow managed to enter this place. He knows what she's capable of but he doubts she can unravel the program that made this giant storm. So who is-
"O-oi! I-is that?" He heard the dark Ignis speaking in a surprised tone at something. Both Playmaker and the AI are looking upwards, what are they looking at? The Hanoi leader follows their gaze… are those… Cyberse monsters?
Up in the sky, or rather, within the data storm itself are silhouettes of monsters watching their duel from afar. The leader knows only Cyberse monsters dwell within the data material, but the question is how are they acting like this? He remembers this happening when Topologic Bomber Dragon answered his call with Storm Access, but there's no one using that right now.
Could it be that they're observing to support Playmaker in his duel? No… in his father's research he doesn't remember the Cyberse monster acting on their own accord without their creators. How curious, but this is not changing the outcome of the battle.
"Heh, it appears these observers are going to watch as I seal their fate with your loss Playmaker." Revolver points to his foe confidently.
"No… that's not it…" The masked man raised an eyebrow at the Ignis' remark. "This feeling… they're waiting for something."
Waiting? There's no one else here right now that the Cyberse could interact with besides his father, himself, Playmaker and the Ignis. The only other person that could is… could it be?
"STORM ACCESS!" A voice resounded with impeccable timing. At its announcement, the tornado around them flickered more and then dissipated slowly from the top. The inside of the data storm quickly turns unstable as their surroundings begin to return to its true form. The rocky platforms Revolver, Playmaker, and Ghost Girl are standing on returns to the ruined area of Link Vrains.
All three of the people present, plus the AI, quickly turn towards the source of the voice and the cause of this sudden turn of events.
"Hahahah! I got tons of cards from that tornado, hell yeah!" One excited person shouted freely atop his board. White armor, black bodysuit with green linings, a hooded head hiding a mop of blonde hair, it's the boy with the Light Ignis, Astra.
The blonde-haired avatar turned his gaze down after calming down and noticed the people below. There was a look of realization from the duelist after he saw Playmaker and himself.
"Hah, I knew these things keep happening around you! Thanks for the data storm Playmaker!" Astra waved at their general direction while thanking Playmaker. "Oh so that guy was a Hanoi goon? You can beat him up, Playmaker!" The boy cheered the heroic hacker as his eyes saw the Hanoi leader.
Revolver scrutinized the duelist from afar. Storm Access, it would seem Astra had also acquired the same abilities as he and Playmaker has. Judging from his behavior the boy doesn't seem too phased by everything. He doesn't understand what he held within his duel disk does he? Yes… the likeliest explanation, his denials in the footage even in the face of his knight confirming the Ignis, that would make sense.
But if the boy doesn't know it then how did he obtain Storm Access? Three reasons come to mind. One, the Ignis is cooperating with him much like Playmaker and the Dark Ignis. Two, the boy managed to salvage the information from wherever he obtained the Light Ignis. Three, the boy manages to learn and recreate the skill. The last one seems unlikely but it's better to list off a possibility rather than ignoring it.
How unfortunate, a boy who knows nothing is holding a dangerous item in his hand and he doesn't even realize it. He's almost sorry for him but this is the path that he took, to eradicate the Ignis and prevent the future his father predicted.
After saying his piece Astra began to leave, but Revolver knows someone who is currently watching over him won't let that. With the existence of the Light Ignis coming to light, that person won't let go of him. Not when the Dark Ignis and Light Ignis have gathered here in the same place.
"I wish you luck, father."
-o-
"Yahooo! This is a great haul little buddy!" Astra pumped his fist, even the AI looks seemingly pleased.
When he drew a card belonging to the Armatos Legio archetype the AI turns ecstatic, if it weren't a program he'd be fooled to think the AI is feeling elated and happy.
With these new cards in his hands he can finally build another Link deck! Some of the cards are quite basic but some of them are quite good too, he can already picture the structure of the deck and combo. Yes… he can't wait to make it in real life, he'd just have to get a shop to print these and voila!
The blonde avatar hums happily as he surfs the data storm. Now he just needs to get out of range from the no logout zone and leave Link Vrains. It shouldn't take him that long since the board could move quite fast. Hey, maybe he's out of range already, he just needs to check…
"Still can't logout? Dang, how far is the range of this thing?" The boy mutters perplexedly.
What Astra doesn't realize and notice yet is the data storm he's currently following changed its flow. From flowing towards the far end of the area to turning into a loop that stayed in place nearby where Playmaker and Revolver were dueling. The one behind it observes the boy from where he can't see him.
A beep from his duel disk took his notice, the AI is telling him he has not gone far at all. "Really? I was pretty sure we were going straight out…side…" Astra turned his head and saw Playmaker and the Hanoi member dueling not too far from where he was. "Wait what?" The boy looked from side to side and then to the front. "Since when did the stream change direction like this?"
Confused, the boy tries to leave the stream he's on. But he can't. "Huh, why can't I…?" The board turns to the right, only to reorient itself in the middle. He tried to turn left and the same thing happened. "How can a board malfunction? Damn it, looks like I'm going on legs again." He opens a console to dematerialize the board. But it didn't work.
"What the- this too? That's not right." He murmured suspiciously at the error. He looks to the side, seeing a building he can land on and jumps, only for his avatar to disappear and reappear on his board. "...Oh that's not right at all."
"I'm afraid I can't let you leave." A voice of a man calls out to him. The blonde-haired boy turns his head around, trying to find the source of the voice but finds nothing. Before the boy could demand the man to let him go, a portal opened in front of him. He couldn't react in time and so the board kept moving forward and he entered the portal unwillingly.
What lies beyond the portal was an empty place bereft of any data storm. With the stream missing the board crashes to the ground along with the boy riding it. The crash had him tumbling and rolling for a little while but luckily he wasn't hurt that bad compared to the fall.
Still on the ground, the boy heard footsteps approaching him slowly. Astra quickly rose from the ground and faced the person approaching him. "Hey, what's the big idea!" The boy lashed, very miffed after what just happened.
The boy faces a man who looks almost old enough to be his father. A tall fair skinned man with gray hair and goatee beard. His clothes remind the boy of a stereotypical scientist. A dark undershirt with red stripe worn under a white coat, black pants, and a pair of brown shoes. His eyes are scrutinizing him- no, he's scrutinizing his duel disk. But why?
The form of his AI companion suddenly emerges from his duel disk. The AI's eyes were widened for a moment before turning into a full blown ugly scowl directed to the man in front of them. Is that… hate coming from the AI? He chalked his reactions to him as a response to himself but a hate response seems odd. Is the man connected to the AI?
"We meet again, Light Ignis." The man started, rather than speaking to him he spoke to the AI. "To think that after all these years you have survived." He spoke straight. It's almost indiscernible but the boy was sure there was surprise in his tone. "I would ask how you managed to survive but idle chit-chat is unimportant."
The man held up his left hand, activating a duel disk on his wrist. "This time I will make sure every trace of you is deleted."