Hey everyone, it's Never An Honest Word here with the first official chapter of my 5D's fic based off of YuGiOh 5D's Reverse of Arcadia! As far as I know, nobody has ever done Reverse of Arcadia, but if they have, sorry! I got the idea to do Reverse of Arcadia after reading Fenikkusumaru's Stardust Accelerator fic (it's awesome. Very awesome.) and I've been developing this for almost a year actually. I hope you all enjoy, and without further ado, let the story... BEGIN!
"Sir! The patient's brain waves are erratic," a woman's voice reports. "Do you think he's...?"
"Communicating with the Spirit World. Excellent." a voice, a cold, male voice replies.
I am unaware of my surroundings; suddenly, their voices fade to mere whispers, and I hear another voice, this one sounds like a little girl's: "Help me! Can anybody hear me? I'm trapped in the Spirit World!"
Spirit World...? What is that...?
I open my eyes when a soft breeze brushes over my skin. I'm in the middle of a forest, and a few sunbeams stretch down through the canopy. The green leaves dance in the wind, stretching toward the sun like little green fingers. The trees are some of the tallest I've ever seen, standing at least 80 meters high for the shortest, and probably about 140 meters for the tallest. There are a few small hills scattered around the place, but other than that it's a purely flat, green forest floor.
There's a small puddle on the ground, and I look into it at my reflection: I have long black hair that stretches down to around my neck and slightly covers one of my blue eyes. I have fairly light skin and a few freckles here and there, and a small golden necklace with an oval locket hangs around my neck.
It's all so beautiful, but... "Where am I?" I wonder.
"You're in the Spirit World, my friend," a kind voice says. I turn around, looking for the source of the voice, but I can't see anyone-or anything.
"The... Spirit World?" I ask. "Am I... dead?"
"No, no, young one. This is the Spirit World of Duel Monsters; where Duel Spirits reside." the voice says chuckling slightly. I can't determine whether it's a man or a woman.
"I'm sorry, but... who are you?" I ask quietly.
"My name... I shall tell you my true name when it is time... but for now, call me Taizen," the voice says, "and I would show myself to you, but I am trapped with Ancient Fairy Dragon, whose soul you are connected to." Taizen, as he is now called, is now obviously a male. "I can, however, show you a false form of myself, if you are more comfortable with that."
"That would be nice," I say, and then I ask, "do you know who I am?"
"You do not?" Taizen asks softly. "Pity... I do not know who you are aside from your name and age... you are Shuya Yamato, age eighteen. And now, I shall appear to you..." The form Taizen takes on is that of a warrior in shimmering white armour, carrying a golden staff with a circle with a star in the middle on it (A/N: It looks like the staff a Haos Siege carries.). His helmet has a golden star stenciled onto it, and his chestplate has golden lines along it; his back appears to have white and gold wings stretching out from it.
"Shuya..." I say; I look down at my own form after staring at Taizen: I'm wearing a robe that's mostly white with navy blue trim as well as white and blue sneakers. "So... what do you want with me, exactly?" I ask quietly.
"I needed to speak with you," Taizen says kindly. "I needed to tell you that there is another human in this world... her name is Luna. You must save her, my boy..."
"Save her... but how will I do that?"
"Yujin, you must find your way to Zeman's castle... but soon, you must wake. When you next visit here, find the town of Schwank... seek out Torunka. He shall guide you as far as he can... take this, my young friend," he says, handing me his staff, which transforms into a small, sheathed knife. "It has taken a lot of my energy, but you shall be needing this soon... but now... mezameru." Taizen's voice begins to fade; the world begins to shimmer in and out, becoming random colours, until my whole vision is white.
I bolt straight up in a cold sweat; I'm not in the "Spirit World" anymore. I'm in a dimly lit room with various computer monitors and machines, and I'm sitting in a pod, with a tube sticking into my arm. I'm wearing the robe that I was in while I was in the Spirit World, and in the inside pocket, I can feel the sheathed knife that Taizen handed me. His voice rings through my mind again, "You shall be needing this... soon..."
"Ah, you're awake."
I look around, and a man with brown hair stands there, smiling in a seemingly benevolent way at me. He's wearing a green vest over a white shirt, as well as black pants. Standing beside him is a woman with brown hair who is wearing similar robes to mine, except hers are bluish-green with gray trim.
"You've been asleep for hours, my friend. Can you stand?" the man asks, taking my arm and helping me to my feet. My knees are a little shaky, but after a few minutes I can stand firmly. "That's good, that's good. Don't overexert yourself, stay calm."
"W-who are you?" I ask cautiously.
The man smiles again. "My name is Sayer. I'm part of a movement towards the equality of people like you. People like us."
"Like... us...?" I repeat.
"Who have... different abilities." Sayer says. "Abilities that other people don't... understand."
"...Oh," I say.
"What is your name, my friend?"
"Shogo Kawada," I lie. Despite his kind appearance, Sayer exudes a malevolent and untrustworthy aura. Sayer appears as if he's not buying it.
"Shogo Kawada... I feel like I've heard that name before..." Sayer says narrowing his eyes. "Are you sure that's your name? You seemed to have hit your head pretty hard when I found you."
"I'm absolutely sure."
"Hmm... alright then. Seria!" he says to the woman. "Take our friend here to his room, and be sure to return his Deck to him."
"Yes sir," the woman says, gently taking my hand. "Come with me, please."
She leads me out of the room and down a series of labyrinthine hallways, all painted the same bland shade of a tan yellowish-brown with little adornment besides a few random flowerpots with virtually colourless plants. We stop at the end of one of the hallways and in front of a brown door with a steely-grey doorknob, and a polished brass number "896" on it. She turns to me and says soothingly, "This is where you'll be staying from now on," her voice sounds sincere and not at all malevolent, like Sayer. "If you have any questions, ask your roommates. Here, take this..." she hands me a deck of cards. "These belong to you, as well as this..." she hands me a round device shaped like a half-circle. "It's your duel disk. We haven't quite figured out how to activate it though," she laughs a little. She has a cute laugh. "And lastly, this is standard issue for all members of the Movement," she hands me a gray device that looks like a PDA. "Use it for... pretty much whatever you like. We psychics can use our powers to project things onto that."
"...Thank you," is all I can say. I'm not exactly sure what else to say, so I just open up the door and walk inside. The room is a lot like the hallways in the area of colour, aside from a lone movie poster that's faded beyond recognition. There are three medium-sized beds with black sheets and white pillows and finally a tan couch.
"Can I help you?" a male's voice says. A boy of about 16 or 17 is standing in front of me; he's not as tall as me, and he's got short blonde hair and dark eyes. He's wearing similar robes to me, and there's another boy of the same age wearing the same robes with dark hair and dark eyes, also wearing glasses.
"Sorry for the interruption, boys," Seria says, "but this is your new roommate, Shogo. Shogo, these are your new roommates, Liquid," she nods to the blonde boy, "and Okita. You three take good care of each other," she says with a smile.
"So, Shogo, eh?" Liquid asks, looking me up and down. "Good to meet you, man," he says with a slight grin, extending his hand. I shake his hand, and then Okita adds, "Same," and he extends his hand, which I also shake.
"So, you're a Psychic duelist too?" Okita asks, and afterward I can tell he regrets it, because Liquid Gibbs-slaps him on the back of the head.
"Baka! Of course he is, why would he be here if he wasn't?" Liquid says, shaking his head slightly.
"Oh, yeah," Okita says, rubbing his head and chuckling sheepishly. "Sorry about that... so where are you from, Shogo?"
"...I don't know," I say softly.
"You don't know?" Liquid asks. "What's up with that?!"
"Kyodai, perhaps he has amnesia?" Okita offers in explanation.
"Very possible," Liquid replies. "Sorry about me kinda blowing up there. I've got a bit of a temper."
"Ya don't say," I say sarcastically. "So... what exactly are we supposed to be doing?"
"From what I heard, Sayer is going to be sending the Movement on a mission soon, and to wait for our orders," Okita says. "So... perhaps a duel would be in order, you know, to pass the time?"
"Yeah, that ain't a bad idea, man!" Liquid says. "You up for it, Shogo?"
"Um... sure," I say. Perhaps this could unlock something in my memory?
"Alright, it's settled then," Okita says, placing a device on my arm similar to the one Seria told me was a Duel Disk. He activates it and from a slot, a mechanical crescent pops out. "I'll go against Shogo first."
I look down at the Duel Disk that Seria gave to me and examine it further: Its got a silverish-white glass dome that rests upon what appears as a light blue platter. In the middle of the dome, there's a golden star, similar to the one on Taizen's helmet. However, it appears to rise slightly higher than the dome... I wonder... I press the button, and from two different slots in the Disk, mechanical half-crescents that look like angel wings-faux feathers and all-pop out and snap together in front of the middle of the Disk.
Sweet.
"Whoa, man, that's one epic Duel Disk," Liquid says. "Anyway, I'll be the 'official' referee for this duel, and guys, try to keep your powers in check, I don't want to mess up the room, I've finally got it properly feng-shui'd."
"Whatever, Liquid," Okita says, breaking his quiet genius act. "Let's go! You can take the first round, Shogo."
Shuya: 4000 LP
Okita: 4000 LP
"Don't mind if I do, but don't blame me if I'm slow," I add quietly. "I've got amnesia, remember?" I draw five cards, then a sixth. I analyze my hand for a few moments, before finally saying, "I summon 'Shining Warwolf' in attack mode! And when Warwolf is summoned, I can add 1 'Shining' monster from my deck to my hand, and I choose 'Shining Lancer.'"
A hulking, bipedal wolf with bright white fur and golden lines streaking across its body appears on my field, wielding a battle axe (3/1600/0) and lets out a mighty roar.
"Finally, I'll place 1 card face-down and end my turn." I end by placing my reverse card, Totem Pole, face-down.
"My move," Okita says, drawing a card. "I'll summon 'Telekinetic Shocker' in attack mode!" A short creature in a red and black bodysuit with a silvery helmet appears. Its bodysuit is streaked with several yellow lines, forming a sort of thunderbolt... kind of (4/1700/700). "Now I'll have my Shocker attack your Warwolf! Go, Psychic Thunder!"
The short creature extends its arms toward my Warwolf, and blasts out a lightning bolt.
"Not so fast, I activate my reverse card! Totem Pole!" I say as the Native American totem pole appears, and the lightning bolt strikes the pole, knocking out the bottom section. "It can block your attack three times in a row, but then it's destroyed. So I'll use one of the three blocks in order to save my Warwolf."
"Kuso! You got lucky this time. I'll place two face-downs and end my turn." Okita says slightly irritated.
"I draw," I say quietly, taking a card from my deck. "I summon 'Shining Lancer' in attack mode!" A knight who is about as tall as me-6' 2", to be exact-appears on the field next to Warwolf. He's clad in pure white armour and he carries a large white lance with golden spiral markings on it (4/1800/1200). A sharp jolt strikes my mind, and I cringe for a moment; I suddenly see myself standing in front of a man who looks like a hooligan: He's got a purple mohawk, and he wears a purple jacket and pants, with multiple piercings and tattoos. He's down on one knee, glaring at me, while a regal-looking man in a pure white chestplate and trousers, wearing white combat boots and a white and gold crown, carrying a shimmering white sword.
Perhaps that was part of my past...? Then I notice something out of the ordinary on my Duel Disk: Next to the deck slot is a small opening. I hear some gears grinding for a moment, and then... a card pops out! I take it and examine it: It's a Synchro monster... another sharp jolt strikes me: I hear a voice saying, "A Synchro monster can be Synchro Summoned by sending a Tuner monster and a non-tuner monster that meet specific requirements to the Graveyard. The monsters used for the Synchro summon, their levels must equal that of the Synchro monster." I look closer at the monster, and... it's the monster in my first flashback!
It's a level 7 monster named Shining Sovereign... wait, Warwolf is a level 3 Tuner... and Lancer is level 4... I can Synchro Shining Sovereign!
"Hey, Earth to Shogo?" Okita says, waving his hand. "We're waiting."
"Oh, yes, sorry..." I say, now more sure of myself. "I tune my level 4 Shining Lancer with my level 3 Shining Warwolf!" Shining Warwolf transforms into three green rings which envelope Lancer, who in turn becomes four stars and line up in the tunnel of rings.
"Kuroi bēru o tōru hikari kantsū no ken! Ten'nō no taitō o mokugeki! Shinkuro shōkan, shainingusoburin!" (1)
I allow a small smile to stretch across my lips as the king in his armour appears, holding his large sword double-handed (7/2700/2000). He swings the blade once at Okita threateningly. Okita whimpers a little and says quietly, "Y-you have a Synchro monster?"
"Looks like it," I say, smirking a little. "Now his effect activates! When he's Synchro summoned, I can special summon up to two 'Shining' monsters from my deck, as long as they have less than 2000 ATK! And I'll choose Shining Knight and Shining Shinobi!" Two more monsters, a knight in white and gold armour carrying a broadsword (5/1500/2100) and a ninja clad in a white bodysuit carrying a silver kunai dagger (4/1500/800) arise next to Shining Sovereign, flanking him like bodyguards. "However, they're gone during the end phase, so I've got to make up with the time I have them! Sovereign, attack his Telekinetic Shocker! Go, Shining Blade!"
The king slowly walks forward, eying the short creature in the red bodysuit. He stops in front of it and slashes the creature several times, who tries to fend the blade off with weak electric shocks, which are conducted by the gleaming metal of the sword. Eventually, the creature stops struggling and Shining Sovereign pierces its chest with his sword, causing Telekinetic Shocker to break into pixels. Shining Sovereign gives me a slight grin as he turns and walks back, and when he returns to his position between Knight and Shinobi, he turns and gives me a thumbs-up.
Shuya: 4000 LP
Okita: 3000 LP
"I activate the trap, Numinous Healer! Whenever I take damage, I gain 1000 life points! And I'll chain that with the effect of my other trap, Curse of the Flames! Whenever I gain life points, you take damage equal to the amount of life points I gain!" Okita says, smirking.
Shuya: 3000 LP
Okita: 4000 LP
As a green, shimmering aura surrounds Okita, a fire surrounds me and I can actually feel it burning me; in fact, it leaves a scorch mark on my left arm and slightly singes my eyebrows. I wince in pain, but I refuse to permit any other sign of agony. "Hurt enough?" Okita says with a slight smirk.
"No... but this should! Shinobi and Knight, attack directly!" I cry, pointing at Okita. Knight lowers his sword and points it at Okita, and charges him while Shinobi disappears into the shadows. Shinobi is the first to strike: I can see the silver of his kunai glint dangerously in the artificial light as it stabs into Okita, who cries out. Knight jumps into the air and for some reason spins in midair before slashing across Okita's chest.
Shuya: 3000 LP
Okita: 1000 LP
"Whoa, he brought you down to 1000 life points in one turn," Liquid says, impressed. "Even I can't do that in just one turn."
"Anyway, I'll end my turn," I say confidently, and then I add, "but because of Sovereign's ability, Shinobi and Knight are destroyed." My ninja and knight are disintegrated as my turn closes.
"My move," Okita says, cringing a little and drawing a card. I can tell that he's trying to figure out his next move... then he smiles a little. "I activate Emergency Teleport! I can special summon 1 level 3 or lower Psychic-type monster from my deck or my hand, and I choose Krebons!"
A small mechanical jester in a purple and green bodysuit with a computer screen for a face appears (2/1200/400), juggling three small green balls. He throws one of the balls at me and sticks his tongue out, mocking me.
"Now I'll summon my Psychic Snail in attack mode!" Okita says as a humanoid with the body of a snail appears. Its shell is a beige colour with flashing green lights on it, and the human part of its body is purple and green (4/1900/1200). "And I'll show you my own Synchro monster! I tune my level 4 Psychic Snail with my level 2 Krebons!"
Krebons transforms into two green circles and surrounds Psychic Snail, who becomes four stars.
"Akumu wa, tatakai no yume ni hairu! Kyōfu o kanjiru! Shinkuro shōkan, saikikku akumu!" (2)
A demon-bat-thingy bursts into being. It has a purplish head with fangs and yellow-green hair, as well as purple skin and a golden loincloth, as well as black bat wings (6/2400/1800).
However... despite its frightening appearance, judging by its current stats it would be useless to attempt to fight my Sovereign.
"Now, I activate his effect!"
Shit. I knew he'd say that.
"I choose one card in your hand at random, and I say if it's a spell, trap or monster. If I guess right, Nightmare gains 1000 ATK!" He points at the card on my far right, which is Shining Supernova, a spell card. "I guess... spell card!"
'Damn it!' I shout mentally as his nightmarish creature gains another 1000 attack points. (2400 - 3400) Now it can destroy Sovereign... it's a good thing I still have Totem Pole.
"I activate Heavy Storm! Since I don't have my traps on the field anymore, I'll play this to get rid of your damn Totem Pole!" A sudden gust whips up and destroys my Totem Pole, leaving Shining Sovereign defenseless... but I've got a plan for next turn, as long as I get a good card.
"Psychic Nightmare, attack his Sovereign! Nightmare Rend!" Okita cries as his monster flies forward, flapping its batwings and slashing swiftly at my king, who attempts to fend off the claws with several strikes from his own sword, but is eventually caught by several scratches and killed.
Shuya: 2300 LP
Okita: 1000 LP
"Lucky shot," I growl, wincing in pain; a slash mark appears on my arm, above the scorch mark. Is this what's so different about Psychic duels?
"This'll all be over soon," Okita says, smirking. "I end my turn."
'I need a miracle right now...' I think. "Draw...! YES!" I yell. "I activate Monster Reborn! I get to bring back Sovereign from the graveyard!" And the king returns to the field, smirking and shouldering his sword. Then I look at another card in my hand: Shining Fairy... and then another card pops out of the same slot Sovereign emerged from. I take it: Light End Dragon... this card is extremely familiar. Another strong jolt runs through my mind, and a sad male's voice says, "Light End Dragon, take good care of my son..." and then there's an explosion, and I'm on my knees, clutching my head.
"You okay, man?" Liquid says. "You need to end the duel?"
"N-no, I'm good," I say, returning to my feet. "I summon my Shining Fairy in attack mode!"
A tiny fairy in a white and gold bodysuit with small silver pixie wings appears. She has long red hair and brown eyes, and she winks at me (1/300/100).
"What good's she gonna do? Neither of them can defeat my Nightmare!" Okita says arrogantly. VERY against his nice-guy persona.
"This! I tune my level 7 Sovereign with my level 1 Fairy!" I say.
"Shit." Okita says.
"Saigo ni, doragon no shutsugen wa chikaidesu! Kare wa kare to issho ni kage o fusshoku suru chikara o motte kuru! Anata no hikari kagayaki, raitoendodoragon o shiyou!" (3)
A long white dragon streaked with gold appears. It has large white wings, four to be exact, a gold helmet with a circular pattern, and a gold back and upper chest protector (8/2600/2100). It lets out a mighty roar, and then it winks at me. I notice something: the circular pattern on its head contains a star like the one on Taizen's staff...
'You're figuring things out fast, Shuya.' It's Taizen's voice! 'How ya doin', buddy?'
I grin a little. 'Ready to end this, Tai?'
'Damn right!'
"I attack your Nightmare with Light End Dragon!"
"But it'll be killed!" Okita cautions.
"Not with it's effect! My dragon loses 500 attack points, and your monster loses 1500! I'll also add in the effect of Honest! I discard it to the graveyard to have Light End Dragon gain attack equal to your Nightmare's!"
LED: 2600 ATK - 6000 - 5500 ATK
PN: 3400 ATK - 1900 ATK
"Light End Dragon, finish this with Light Pulsar Blast!" I yell, and from his mouth Taizen looses a large golden beam of light with fluctuating bands of energy, which pound harshly on Psychic Nightmare, which unsuccessfully tries to dodge. It's quickly blown to bits.
Shuya: 2300 LP
Okita: 0 LP
Okita sinks to one knee as our monsters disappear and our Duel Disks automatically deactivate. "I... lost..." he says quietly. I walk over to him and place a hand on his shoulder. "You played a great game, man," I say, smiling a little. "You had me for a while. If I hadn't gotten Reborn, it would've been all over. Just remember, Okita, it's not about winning or losing, it's about having fun."
Okita smiles at me. "Thanks, Shogo. That's something I'll have to remember." He stands up and we shake hands. "That was the most fun I've had dueling in a while."
"Alright, now it's my turn-" Liquid begins, but suddenly the door opens and Sayer's standing there.
"Okay everyone, it's time for the mission. We must infiltrate the Sector Security-sanctioned event, the Fortune Cup, in order to ensure the victory of this girl here, Akiza Izinski," he says, making way for a pretty girl who is about my age. She's got semi-pale skin and long crimson hair, and she wears a blouse and skirt, both red and white, as well as black boots. "I don't care how you do it, but we must make her victory happen. By any means necessary," Sayer adds, dropping his voice to a growl. "Anyway, we're moving out!"
Sayer leaves, but Akiza stays for a moment and she stares at me for some reason. We look each other straight in the eyes, not blinking or saying anything, before Sayer cuts in, "Akiza! Come along, we don't want to be late."
"Yes, Sayer," Akiza says. She glances at me for another moment before walking off with Sayer.
"What was that about...?" Okita says.
"Yeah, seriously. What the hell was that?"
"I have no idea." I say simply.
'I know what that was,' Taizen's voice says in my mind. 'I think she wants in your pants, man.'
'Whatever, Taizen,' I say mentally, laughing it off inwardly. Although... she is very pretty...
'Heh, I think you want the same thing, Shuya.'
'Shut up, just shut up.'
'Yup, you definitely do.'
I seriously need to figure out how to ignore him...
"Come on, Shogo, we gotta go," Liquid shouts. I realize that they're already out the door!
"Thanks for waiting, guys!" I yell back, running after them. I don't know what this is all about, but I should just do what I'm told for now, I suppose.
Translation Time!
(1) The sword of light pierces through the black veil! Witness the rise of the Emperor! Synchro Summon, Shining Sovereign!
(2) The nightmare enters the dream of battle! Feel the fear! Synchro Summon, Psychic Nightmare!
(3) Finally, the advent of the dragon is near! He brings with him the power to dispel shadows! Let your light shine, Light End Dragon!
Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this first chapter of the story! Woo, 11 pages, 4500+ words! But I can't promise I'll be uploading as much as I want to, and as large chapters as this one, because I start college soon, but I'll do my best. And if you liked the story, be sure to review, favourite, and alert! Until next time y'all, take care, brush your hair, and I'll see ya when I see ya. Ja ne, everyone~!