Chapter 36: The Strength of Bonds! Friend and Family!
"Yuto? You're a dragon now?" Yuya asked in confusion.
"No," The little black dragon shook his head. Junior curiously poked at his fellow, and Yuto shied away. "Stop that!" he whined.
Yuya protectively placed a hand over his dragon. "I can sense that my spirit still resides in your body," Yuto explained. "But it also appears that I can take control of this," the small dragon waved his claws in confusion. "Whatever this is,"
"Yuya?" A familiar baritone voice interrupted the conversation. "Why are you talking to a tiny dragon?"
He turned in surprise to see Gong peering at the two little dragons over his shoulder. "I thought you only had one of those," he commented.
"You are . . . Gongenzaka, right?" Yuto asked. He had vague recollections of seeing him before, but had never met in person.
The martial artist blanched. "Why is a dragon talking to me?"
The door swung open and all three looked as Flare entered the room. Having overheard the man's last question, she couldn't help a small smile cross her face at the irony of the statement, before realising exactly what had been said.
"Ryuna?" Yuto asked in surprise, recognising her as a friend of Ruri.
Flare blinked, knowing that the voice was familiar, but not quite placing it. "Do I know you?" she slowly asked, squinting at the little dragon, before placing the resemblance. "Yuya, why do you have a dragon that looks like Dark Rebellion?"
"This is not my actual form," Yuto patiently tried to explain. "It is merely the only way that I can communicate with anyone other than Yuya,"
"By becoming a baby dragon," Gong commented.
"Well, by possessing a baby dragon, but yes," Yuto sighed.
A yawn interrupted their conversation. Yuke sat up, and gently stroked his sister's hair. Katie's tongue fell out of her mouth as she snoozed in Yuke's lap. "Morning everyone," he waved, rubbing his eyes.
He paused, seeing the second little dragon. "Am I still dreaming?"
"Nope," the redhead shook her head. "Who are you again?" Flare asked the dragonet, already feeling sympathetic for him and not paying Yuke another thought..
"Yuto. I'm a friend of Ruri's brother, Shun?" He tried to jog her memory. Junior nosed at the other dragon, and Yuto shied away as the fog cleared from Flare's memory. "Oh, right! Didn't you have a Night Phantom Deck or something like that?"
"Phantom Knights," he corrected her, breathing heavily. "I cannot keep this up. I will talk to you all when I have regained my energy," Yuto decided. His eyes closed and the little dragon slumped to the ground for a second. Yuya felt energy return to his body.
The little black dragon suddenly opened its eyes and picked itself up, looking around wide-eyed. "I thought you were resting?" Flare blinked.
The dragon squealed in surprise at the unfamiliar faces and dashed to a spot of refuge.
Behind Sawatari's sleeping form.
"I don't think that's Yuto anymore," Gong shook his head as Yuya rescued the little dragon before Sawatari could wake up.
"Shame. Would have liked to talk to him more," Flare sighed.
"Who's Yuto?" Yuke demanded,
Behind then, Shun walked into the room.
"Shun? Is something wrong?" Yuya immediately asked.
"No?" the man raised an eyebrow, before looking around. "Did I hear something?"
"Nope," Flare shook her head.
"You're smiling," the green-haired boy observed.
"Yes. So?" Shun demanded, the smile wiping from his face in an instant.
"That's the Shun I recognise," Gong nodded, standing up straight.
"Whatever," he groaned, opening his Duel Disk's Extra Deck and pulling several cards out of it. He took a deep breath. "I've decided that I trust you. All of you," he declared.
"Even me?" Yuke questioned.
"Yes, even you," Shun nodded, passing around the cards he had taken from his Extra Deck. "This was the power given to me to save this dimension. And . . . I've decided that I can't do that without your help. The Number cards are the symbols of hope for Xyz Dimension, and I'm proud to trust all of you not to misuse them," he told them, a small smile crossing his face as he slipped a trio of Numbers into Sawatari's hand.
"Whoa," Yuya breathed. "Number 74: Master of Blades," He looked up at Shun. "Thank you,"
Flare closed her eyes, holding up one of the cards Shun had given her. "I can sense this card has a dark past," she realised, rubbing the back of the card with her finger, "but that doesn't mean it lacks the potential for good," It could have been her imagination, but it almost looked like Number 92: Heart-eartH Dragon winked at her from the card.
"So," Gong, ever the pragmatist, frowned, holding up Number 55: Gogogo Goliath. "I appreciate it, but what makes these so special?"
"Can't you sense their power?" Flare frowned.
"Yeah," Yuke nodded, squinting at Number 51: Finish Hold the Amazing, tilting it back and forth to see how it reflected in the light. "It's weird,"
"What's that smell?" Katie muttered, stirring in her sleep. Yuke waved Number 59: Back the Cook under her nose, and she sniffed. "Pancakes?"
"Numbers are hope," Shun explained. "Hope for peace, for freedom. For a better tomorrow for everyone,"
Gong frowned at the cards Shun had given him. "Interesting,"
Katie flicked her tail, sitting up, and pulled the card out of Yuke's hand. "Hope smells like pancakes," she sleepily commented.
Yuya added Number 74: Master of Blades and Number 82: Heartlandraco to his Extra Deck. His pendulum flashed as he smiled. "Shun. I don't know what to say,"
"Say that you'll use them in your Duelling, Yuya," Shun nodded. "Use these cards to Duel with smiles,"
"Oh yeah. We're gonna put Heartland City back the way it's meant to be," Flare grinned, making the necessary modifications to her Extra Deck to accommodate the Numbers Shun had given her, as her friend handed Number 15: Gimmick Puppet Giant Grinder and Number 78: Number Archive to Katie, and Number 42: Galaxy Tomahawk to her brother.
Shun pulled a card from his Extra Deck and looked at it forlornly. "If only Kite would listen to me," he sighed, looking at it. Yuke, Gong and Flare peered at the card. Number 95: Galaxy-Eyes Dark Matter Dragon.
Sawatari stirred in his slumber. "Huh? Wha - hey, what're these?" he sleepily moaned, registering the three cards Shun had given him.
Shun shook his head, slipping Number 95 back into his Extra Deck and instead pulling out another couple of cards. "Now, I've got to go give these to Allen and Sayaka," he decided, holding Number 16: Shock Master and Number 81: Superdreadnought Rail Cannon Superior Dora in his hand as he left.
"Whoa," Katie breathed. "I have my own Xyz monster! And it's a freaky-awesome Number!" she cheered.
"It's also a chef," Yuke pointed out with a sly smile.
"But he's a super badass chef!" Katie protested.
"Oh yeah? Well, look what I've got! Way better than a cook!" Sawatari grinned, holding out his own Number.
"It's a box," Katie deadpanned.
Sawatari blanched. "What?" He snatched Number 85: Crazy Box back and took a look at the card. "Aww man, he gave me a dud!"
Gong chuckled, watching the less mature members of their group's antics as he added his own Numbers to his Extra Deck. "You two get anything cool?" he asked Yuya and Flare.
"This one's kinda creepy, but I guess it's cool?" Flare shrugged, holding out Number 11: Big Eye for Gong to see.
"And there's this," Yuya shrugged, holding up Number 82: Heartlandraco. Gong chuckled. "Cute,"
"Yeah. I guess she is," Yuya nodded to himself.
Underneath his neck, his pendant swung back and forth, glowing brightly.
Flare's eyes suddenly lit up in memory. "Oh, that reminds me! I should go check on the kid,"
"What kid?" Gongenzaka frowned.
"I found a kid named Cyril in the ruins yesterday, while I was looking for my stuff. I should probably go make sure he's okay," Flare decided, turning to leave.
"Where is that stuff of yours?" Gong frowned.
"Oh, uh, I couldn't find it. I think someone must have stolen it," Flare lied, smooth as embossed foil on a card printed in Ultra Rare. With that, she turned and left.
"Something don't sit right with me about that girl. I think she's hiding something," Gong frowned, voicing his suspicions to Yuya.
Yuya cast him a skeptical look. "Gong, even if she does have a secret or something, it's her business. If she wanted us to know something, she'd tell us. And if she doesn't want us to know something, she won't. It's that simple," he shrugged.
"Remember Dennis? We trusted him too, and look how that turned out," Gong reasoned.
"We still can't just push her to tell us all her secrets, which are probably completely unrelated to the war anyway," Yuya reasoned.
"Maybe. Maybe not," Gong frowned, thinking. "That Allen guy's known her for years, right? Maybe he can shed some light on things,"
Behind them, Katie, hearing every word, gulped. 'I should warn Flare that Gong might be onto her. And first, I need to tell Allen, so he can prepare for Gong's questions,' she decided, adding the Numbers to her Extra Deck (previously nonexistent, but Flare had donated a couple of Synchros and Xyzes for her and Yuke) and stood up. "I, er, need the toilet," she declared, dashing out of the room.
"What, it her time of the month or something?" Sawatari frowned.
Yuke promptly slapped him.
X
"Allen!" Katie squealed, rushing up to the boy, who looked at her in surprise. "Er, Katie, right?"
"I need to talk to you. Alone," the fox girl told him, as serious as she could be.
"About what?" Allen blinked.
"Ryuna," Katie deadpanned. "I know about her powers, she told me," she whispered.
The boy frowned. "Come on," he decided, leading her into a side room and closing the door behind her. "Is something the matter?" he asked.
"It's Gong. He doesn't know, but he does know that Flarems hiding something. He's gonna ask you for information. Be ready," Katie informed him.
"Got it. I've known Ryuna since we were eight. I'm not betraying her trust," Allen reassured her. Katie nodded and smirked.
Allen suddenly looked away awkwardly. "So, uh, is there any particular reason you dress like a kitsune girl or something? With the fake ears and tail?"
She blinked, ears twitching nervously. "Er, I'm not quite sure how to say this, but," she trailed off, before rushing out, "They aren't fake,"
"Oh," the short Duelist nodded, processing this, before his eyes widened in shock. "Wait, what?!"
X
Flare rushed around the room in rising concern. "Come on, where is he?" she muttered, growing antsy in her search for Cyril.
"Who're you looking for?" a man in maroon robes asked her.
"Kid named Cyril. Short, silver hair, green eyes, Duels with Cyber Dragons," Flare rushed out.
The man's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "You know him?"
"I wouldn't say that," Flare shook her head. "I found him in the ruins yesterday and brought him here,"
The suspicion cleared, replaced by a look of sadness. "Oh. Well, I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but the kid was an Academia spy. He used Fusion, I saw it with my own eyes,"
Flare paled. "He what? Oh crap, he said something about trying to learn Fusion, but I didn't think he'd actually do anything about it!" She stared the larger man straight in the eye. "Where is he?"
"Somewhere out in the ruins, I dunno. Definitely not here, though," he shrugged.
X
Flare dashed back into the room where the Lancers had slept. "Everyone, listen up. We've got a rescue mission on our hands," she declared, before pausing. Sawatari and Yuke were practising, setting their cards out on one of the mats like a kiddie Duel, while Yuya and the two little dragons that had become his shadows watched. "Where is everyone?"
"What rescue?" Sawatari stood up. "Is there a girl in trouble? Because I, the brilliant and heroic Shingo Sawatari, will happily rescue a damsel in distress!" he declared, striding forwards - and tripping over one of the sleeping mats, sprawling on the floor.
"No," Flare shook her head. She forced herself to prevent the fire within from getting loose, and explained the situation to the three boys.
"I'll get Shun," Yuya declared, springing up. The two dragons squeaked in agreement - and both promptly transformed into cards. The entertainer wordlessly scooped both cards up and placed them in his Deck, then pulled his cape-like coat back on and strode out. "I'll find Katie," Yuke declared, packing his cards up and standing up.
Sawatari winced as his stomach rumbled. "I'll get us all a packed lunch," he added.
"What about Gong?" Flare frowned.
"Eh. I'll probably run into him in the kitchen. Someone that large has to eat a lot," Sawatari shrugged, picking his cards up and following the other two boys.
Flare groaned to herself and left the room.
X
The seven Lancers met up outside the Sanctuary, Allen in tow. "Good luck, you all. I'd come, but I've gotta stay and help out around here," he sighed.
"Wait," Shun cautioned him. The boy turned back, and Shun handed him two cards. "These should help," he nodded.
Allen looked at the two Numbers and smiled. "Thanks, Shun," And with that, he dashed back into the building.
"What's the plan?" Yuke asked.
"What are we even doing?" Gong questioned.
"Looking for someone who I said I would protect, and I failed," Flare explained, disappointment in herself evident in her tone. "He's somewhere down there in Heartland. We need to find him before Obelisk Force does,"
"Then what are we waiting for?" Yuya questioned, turning to dash down the steps. "Let's go,"
"Hey! Don't just take off like that!" Sawatari shouted, dashing after his rival.
"That's our cue," Yuke grinned. "You bet, bro!" Katie matched his expression, following the two Lancers.
"Split up and look around! He won't have gotten far!" Flare hollered, running after them.
Gong looked after the five, a wry smile on his face. "You have to admit, their hearts are in the right place," he told Shun.
"I know," he agreed. "I just hope that that's going to be enough,"
"Well, I'd be lying if I said I completely trusted Flare, but she has the right idea. We should go," the martial artist declared, following his friends. Shun hastened after him, and the two men took a slower pace down the stairs than their comrades, conserving energy. "What do you mean, you don't trust her?" the black Duelist asked.
Gong shrugged. "Well, she seems like the real deal, but so did Dennis," he reasoned. "And I can tell she's hiding something," he added. "Where do you think she was last night?"
"If I had to guess, paying her respects to her father," his colleague told him.
"Or meeting with the enemy," Gongenzaka responded immediately, but paused thoughtfully. Shun's idea actually did sound like something Flare might do.
"I've known that girl for years," Shun told him, his gaze sharp and steady. "The war's affecting her, it's affecting us all. Maybe she just needed to let off some steam and didn't want us around to see it. But I won't even consider the possibility that someone like her would ever side with Academia," he declared.
"Well, you have known her longer than me," Gong admitted.
"Five years," Shun agreed. "She's one of the most passionate Duelists I've ever met,"
"If you say so,"
X
Cyril ran through the ruins, not knowing where he was going and not really caring. "How curious. I did not believe myself capable of becoming so upset as to cry, but I am having difficulty holding back my own sadness," he observed. "It is quite strange how I am capable of observing my own emotional vulnerability as though from a third-person perspective, but I suppose it is to be expected," the boy continued. "Emotional vulnerability is a weakness," he reasoned to himself. "The logical course of action is to distance myself from my own emotional values, but that could have long-term repercussions on my own capabilities," Cyril told himself.
He rapidly thought through the ramifications of all possible courses of action. "The most logical possibility is to locate a temporary refuge in order to restabilise my own mentality and proceed with any and all appropriate actions from that point onwards," Cyril decided, stopping and looking around. "Where could I locate refuge in this situation?"
A sound made its way to his ears and he froze. In one fluid movement the boy swiped his finger across the button to activate his Duel Disk as he whirled to face the challenger, and in the same second calculated that a touch of melodrama might be the most appropriate method to scare off whatever foolish human dared to interrupt him now. "I shall smite all that dare to interrupt me! Begone!" he shrieked.
Edo Phoenix started backwards in shock. Seeing the wild look in the boy's eyes, he held up his hands in a soothing gesture. "Hey, hey, calm down. I'm not going to hurt you," he placated the child, slowly stepping forwards.
"Whom art thou?" Cyril barked. After a second, he realised what he had said. "I mean, who are you?"
"My name is Edo. Edo Phoenix. What is the matter, child?"
"Curious. You refrain from typical human use of contractions. I approve," Cyril commented, trying to decide how much to tell this newcomer. He at least seemed nice. "I . . . I got kicked out of the refugees' Sanctuary," he admitted.
Edo's eyes widened. This child knew where the refugees were hiding? He banished the thought for later, and asked, "Why?"
"Because I successfully attempted to reverse engineer the principle of Fusion Summon based on observing Obelisk Force's utilisation of the technique and incorporate Fusion-based stratagems into my Deck. They banned me from the premises because I was attempting to utilise a weapon that is not evil in itself, merely used for evil by Academia and has potential for good," Cyril fumed.
"That's sad," Edo nodded, both sympathising with the child, and feeling impressed by him. If he spoke the truth, then he had single-handedly taught himself to Fusion Summon just by studying Obelisk Force. "What's your name?"
"Cyril," the boy shortly introduced himself.
"How about a quick Duel? I'd like to see exactly how good you are with Fusion Summon," the man suggested, arming his own Duel Disk.
Which was a mistake on his part, as Cyril immediately recognised the light-blue sword shape. "You're with Academia," he blinked.
Edo looked at the Duel Disk in mild surprise, but sighed. "I was hoping to keep that fact secret a little while longer, but I suppose I must now admit it. Yes, I am," He hastened to reassure the boy. "But Academia is not, as you put it, evil,"
"Then what do you call all this?" Cyril demanded, gesturing at the ruins around them as the Duel started.
"We normally don't condone destruction on this scale," the commander sighed. "We had some discipline issues during the first attack, some of the troops went a little, ah, out of hand. The ones responsible have been punished, but sadly that does not fix the damages. Even so, while there are a few rough patches in the ranks, no force is perfect. And on the whole, Academia's intentions are noble," he explained.
"And those are?" Cyril raised a suspicious eyebrow.
"The creation of paradise," Edo smiled broadly.
"I see," the boy slowly nodded, running intense algorithms of incredible complexity in his head. "We will conduct a Duel. I will use that to discover your true motives,"
"Very well," Edo agreed. "You may take the first move,"
"I shall. My turn," Cyril said, his voice rapidly dropping into the emotionless state he adopted when Duelling. "I Normal Summon Cyber Dragon Core from my hand," he declared. A segmented black body, glowing with red energy, appeared. 400 ATK. "When Cyber Dragon Core is Normal Summoned, I can add one Cyber Spell or Trap from my Deck to my hand," he explained. "I add Cyber Fusion," the boy declared, pulling a Spell from his Deck. "I immediately play Cyber Fusion, and fuse the King of the Swamp in my hand, who acts as a substitute for Cyber Dragon, with my Cyber Dragon Core, whose name is treated as Cyber Dragon while on the field," he declared.
"Fusion on the first turn? Not bad for an Xyzian," Edo commented.
"This world is not my home," Cyril declared, energy sparking in his eyes as the two machines merged and reconstructed themselves. "Initiate circuitry graft! Engage secondary fusion procedures! Level 8 weaponry activated! Cyber Twin Dragon, deploy!"
The summoned monster resembled a wingless version of Cyber End Dragon, but with the middle head removed. Two angry heads screeched in place of arms, metal grating on metal as the card's 2800 ATK was revealed. "I Set one card and end my turn," His burst of energy over, Cyril's emotionless composure reasserting itself.
"Not bad, not bad," Edo nodded. "Now, let's see if we can't tip the scales. My turn! Draw!" he declared, taking a card from his Deck. "I Normal Summon Destiny HERO - Decisionguy from my hand!" he declared. An insect-like warrior with 1600 ATK appeared. "Now, Decisionguy's ability! I will add a HERO from my Deck to my hand at the end of my turn," Edo continued. "I Set one card and end my turn. Now, during my End Phase, I add Destiny HERO - Diamond Dude from my Deck to my hand!"
"Very well," Cyril intoned. "My turn. Draw," he declared. He scanned his hand.
"Decisionguy cannot be targeted for attacks by monsters Level 6 or higher," Edo informed him.
The boy raised an eyebrow. "Is that so? How interesting," he commented. "I use the effect of Cyber Dragon Neon to Normal Summon it from my hand without Tributing a monster, for the price of forgoing its attack for the turn," he declared, a silver machine with lines of glowing green energy running down its body appeared. Edo paused for a second. It might have been his imagination, but Cyril's eyes . . . they were the exact same colour as Neon's energy.
"And now, I use the effect of Cyber Dragon Blade to Special Summon it to the field while I control a Cyber Dragon," A smaller dragon with propeller blades around its neck appeared. 1400 ATK. "I activate Cyber Dragon Neon's effect. I can target one Cyber Dragon I control and change its level to anything between three and five, so I will make Neon change to level four,"
Neon reared up to the pop-up that revealed its stats and bit away one of the five level stars. "I will now Overlay my Level 4 Cyber Dragon Neon with my Level 4 Cyber Dragon Blade," he declared, the two monsters entering a spiralling Overlay Network streaked with red, blue, yellow and green. "Come, great machine warrior, champion of gear heroes!" Cyril commanded. "Rise, Gear Gigant X!" A tall blue warrior with blue plating over a green skeleton and red weaponry, with a large silver gear on his back, appeared on the field and pounded its fists together. 2300 ATK.
"Gear Gigant is an Xyz monster. He does not have a Level. Therefore he is immune to your monster's effect," Cyril emotionlessly commented. "Gear Gigant. Attack,"
Edo blinked. He hadn't expected the child to respond so . . . effortlessly to his primary defence. So he watched as the Xyz monster destroyed his HERO, somewhat in shock as his LP was cut to 3300. "I can survive Cyber Twin Dragon's attack," he thought to himself.
"Cyber Twin Dragon, attack. Twin Evolution Burst," the silver-haired eleven-year-old commanded, and the machine obediently charged. Even though his LP was reduced to 500, he raised an eyebrow. "Not bad," he agreed. "Shame you can't finish it,"
"Cyber Twin Dragon can attack twice during the same turn," Cyril passionlessly told his opponent.
Edo blinked, before a smile crossed his face. "Well done," he smiled.
"No," Cyril shook his head.
The man blinked. "What?"
"I can tell that you are going easy on me. You are a member of Academia, the odds that you did not have a backup plan should I circumvent the effect of Decisionguy are nonexistent at best," Cyril snorted. "Add to that the fact that you possess a Set card that you seem to have no intention of using, and it is painfully obvious. You are going easy on me,"
"I did not suggest this Duel in order to take you on," Edo shook his head. "I suggested it in order to gauge your strength and see if your claims are correct. It is obvious that they are,"
"Your reasons are irrelevant. A Duel is a battle of strength, of abilities. I refuse to claim a victory that I did not earn!" Cyril declared.
Edo raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? Well then," he smiled genuinely for the first time, a broad grin splitting his face. "I suppose I'll just have to go all out,"
A/N
A/N
Yes! My first mid-Duel cliffhanger! I'm so excited! :) Plus, I hit the 150,000-word mark! Woo-hoo!
So, to recap, Edo has 500 LP and one face-down, while Cyril has Gear Gigant X and Cyber Twin Dragon, who has another attack at the ready.
Wait, what am I saying? You know all this. XD Speaking of that, I hope everyone likes my choices for which Numbers Shun gave the others. He kinda skimped when giving them to Yuya because he knows that Yuya already has freaky-tiki dimensional dragon stuff, not to mention the fact that he's no longer even surprised by the fact that Yuya has baby dragons following him around. That in itself says a lot. Also, a lot of the Numbers work surprisingly well for everyone. Gogogo Goliath's DEF boosting is brilliant for Gong, Heartlandraco works perfectly with Yuya's Pendulums, Sawatari's gonna love Shadow Lich as an extra on his stage, and the Spider Numbers (Ravenous Tarantula, Pain Gainer and the Seven Sins) are awesomely synergetic with Raidraptors . . . . then again, Shun's gonna be altering his Deck to focus on Utopia soon, so that might not be such a brilliant idea . . . Eh. XD
So, new cards;
Cyber Dragon Blade
Level 4/LIGHT/Machine/ATK:1400/DEF:700/Effect
If you control a 'Cyber Dragon' monster; You can Special Summon this card (from your hand). This card's name becomes 'Cyber Dragon' while on the field. You can Tribute this card to target one 'Cyber' card in your Graveyard, except 'Cyber Dragon Blade'; add that card from your Graveyard to your hand.
Cyber Fusion
Quick-Play Spell Card
Fusion Summon one 'Cyber' or 'Chimeratech' Fusion monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand or your side of the field as Fusion Materials.
And reviews! Well, review singular, but better than nothing, right?
Yes, yes he is, Leafeon. Go Utopia! :) And not quite, but I think you know that by now.
Pea - wait, wait, wait. I just had an idea. OPFan, I hope you don't mind me borrowing this, but I'm gonna start asking a question for reviewers to answer! First question; should Cyril get Numbers, and if he should, which ones? Pe-eace!