【68 - The Supervillain of Aurellia! What was Life like Aboard a Cosmic Meteor!?】
Historical records in the archive's database state that once upon a time the invaders had a planet of their own. With a voice command you could watch their holographic library flicker all the way back to its earliest entries. In the dim room the cyan glow of neat records would whiz by, gradually changing to blue bulks. Over a millennia of inputs before the first jumbled and confusing ones. Photos and videos must've decayed, or scrambled over time, or most likely – the need to evacuate was so urgent that none of the defectors included any. They commandeered their space chunk and hurtled away, out into their interstellar neighbourhood. What is known about the invaders' origin is they were very technologically advanced and were always a warring race. It would explain why their planet was destroyed. And it would explain their bizarre, symbiotic relationship with the cosmic entities known as the Gatekeepers of the Outer Path.
The meteorite was no longer than a hundred kilometres in any of its dimensions. Ninety percent silicate rock and ten percent water ice. It was shaped like a potato and made to spin fast enough to create gravity via centrifugal force. The colony's population was ten million. Its architecture – strict utilitarian greyness. Everything was metal, there was no colour, even the populace was made to wear grey uniforms that were near-identical. A mix of races existed, further prompting the idea they once had a planet. Everyone had bright, featureless eyes of varying colours – but rules and conformity were enforced with an iron fist. In many ways they were as controlled as the people of Solvus City, with the key difference being their gods lived among them.
At the highest elevation was a dome. It was deeply sacred, as the generals – the highest ranking in society – would go there to convene with their gods. At appointed times they would enter, heads bowed as they ascended stairs. Whispers could be heard, and the shifting of dimensional gaps sliding against each other. They'd kneel at the top and raise their eyes to a churning mass of cosmic matter. The mere fingerprint of a galaxy-eating monster. Then one of their gods would whisper commandments, and that was how communion was made.
"Filthy beggar!" a teenager yelled, throwing his younger victim against the side of an alleyway.
He crashed against a trash incinerator, sliding to his butt and instinctively covering his face. Carefully he opened amber eyes to peek at his aggressors: a gang of smirking boys. One sitting up on a building's power box, he slid off and landed on his feet, joining the others in surrounding him.
Young Urobach had not been bothering anyone. He'd been sifting through the trash for food, his family being among the poorest of the colony. They weren't a compassionate people, and he'd never expected kindness from anyone. A hovercraft throttled by, not seeing or caring to see. He'd been searching for breakfast, praying for indifference, but he longed for the same thing everyone did: freedom.
Everything about their life was the same. No rain, no trees, no colours, no breezes, no fun, and no hope. While Urobach was scared he was also apathetic in his hopelessness. This wouldn't be his first beating. All he could do was wait until they were satisfied, left, and then he could get up and limp his way home. But the leading boy flicked out a knife and he realised they were more than ordinary hooligans. He'd tried and failed to keep that flashing piece of steel away from his face.
After the trauma of that incident, Urobach was sitting up on a table and staring out in a treatment room. His amber eyes were in a deadpan gaze, he only winced occasionally while the medic dabbed at his fresh scars. The disinfectant cloyed in his nostrils. His mother stood watching him and crying. Urobach declined to see his reflection when asked, he could already feel the damage. It wasn't until months later that he saw himself in a well-shined surface of metal.
He stepped up and turned his ruined face. Tears fell, tracking the bumps and ridges, and he let them. He'd been short for his age, and a poor kid, but at only thirteen years old he'd not known if he was going to grow up to be attractive. It was the one good thing he might've had going, but now he'd never know. His hair was unkempt but couldn't hide the ugly scars. People in the walking zones would wince or avert their eyes. Many seemed afraid of him, this short young boy, as if he were dangerous. Or contagious.
Would the kids who attacked him regret what they did in later life? No. It wasn't that kind of world here. Similar to how many species had to learn they weren't the centre of the universe, the colony had to learn that space beyond wasn't a chaotically spinning mayhem. It was in fact them, spinning while stuck in a world of bleak and unchanging indoors. At best the ones who ruined his life would quietly admonish their actions, mentally sweep what happened under a rug, and move on with lives that were better than his. Nobody who did the wrong thing cared, for whatever reason. Urobach had learnt that himself when he started stealing. If you're the one doing the wrong thing it feels fine, almost humorous. Doing the wrong thing starts to make everything else okay…
"I can't get through to him anymore." His mother was saying to her brother in their shitty apartment. It was a few years later. Walls were thin and he could hear their discussion late at night.
"He should be working. Boys his age are supposed to have jobs and contribute like the rest of us."
"Nobody will hire him." She whispered back to his uncle. "…it's because of his face. They take one look and he can't even get an interview…"
His uncle sighed with understanding.
"…There's the factories."
"Clock out, sleep and clock back in again? What sort of life is that for someone so young?"
"Our Daddy did it."
"He'll live till he's fifty and die of smoke inhalation."
"…" They paused, listening for a sign of noise from his room.
She started up again "…He used to be such a sweet boy. Always wanted to be by my side."
"I know. And I told you other boys would take advantage of that."
"He's changed." And then she burst into tears. God he hated when she did that. His ugly face contorted uglier as he lay on his bedding, on his side. He barred his teeth, but the tears were flowing freely from his eyes as well.
The most any young person could aspire for was the honour of attending the lieutenant academy. They were soldiers trained specifically in ways to recruit from the local populace of worlds. This way they could conquer from within and have the advantage of insider knowledge. A requirement was the ability to harness kaijudo energy, and Urobach had never even held a deck before. Aside from that candidates simply weren't chosen from the bottom rungs of society. His only opportunity was being a menial worker, and it was seeming more and more likely he'd have to work in the oily, choking undergrounds, charged with keeping their ancient technology running.
They were a harsh and miserable people – but they were the strongest. They invaded countless worlds, dimensions and timelines. Any planet with a kaijudo signature could be transformed into a conduit, thus giving the Gatekeepers the power to reach more and more realities. This is what it took to be the greatest conquerors: you won by being the meanest. So in a way, they all understood why life had to be this way, because it ensured they were at the top of the universal food chain.
Urobach profited off his thieving for years, until the day he got caught.
He was making his way out of an alleyway with a freshly stolen gadget at his side. Stopping at the sight of guards nearby who immediately gave chase, pinning him down before he got as far as the next building. Bound by his own shitty limitations since birth, and now he was physically bound by those who imposed the law.
There was only one punishment in the colony, and it was the same for every crime.
Though many would beg for execution, all rule-breakers were added to the list of reaping. It was done in bulk, so many could wait for as long as three months before meeting their fate. Urobach waited one month. In that time his mother cried even more profusely; apparently she and his uncle had a sister who when young was also taken. In the meantime Urobach was given a technological anklet that would prevent him from leaving the house or committing suicide. Then on the correct date, guards came to his place and removed the device, then helped him into the secure back of a hovercraft. Urobach remembered seeing children from around the block, peering as he was taken away. Then the doors shut and locked. He hated being confined, but maybe he'd finally experience freedom in death.
They were escorting him to the Gatekeepers.
Reaping was a grizzly affair.
There were screams, but they came from those scared to die. The deaths themselves were painless, or at least were over quickly. When Urobach was let out the guards stayed close to his sides with firm grips as they escorted him, implying that at this stage many people ran. Urobach realised where they were – the sacred dome. To be made a tribute for reaping was something of an honour, so that could explain how most people vacantly took the steps one after the other, pausing then slowly climbing again. After being added to the line they let Urobach go and he was supervised with the others by a row of guards alongside them.
They stood with hands behind their back, some smirking beneath their visors. This was also normal for their culture. When people weren't in their professional realms they were often laughing at the misfortune of others, like teenagers seeing their fellow fall into a puddle. Loyalty was a foolish concept nobody bothered with. Since there was so little to derive pleasure from, it was found at the expense of others. As a people they didn't have many principles, so in a way nobody matured beyond an adolescent way of treating each other.
As Urobach continued to climb, he could soon hear the squelching. The popping and dripping of innards. Then a scene that was almost comically gory. Bits of bone, dribbles of intestine and lots of blood was making its way down the stairs. They had a device for scooping at the top. Clearing away the mess after each failure so the next person could step on up; of course the procedure was too messy to catch everything. And yet with hazy minds, they all moved ahead like cattle to be slaughtered.
The bursting before his own was the most visceral. He winced at hearing the meat, slush and bone of the squat fellow who'd been standing ahead of him just before. He saw some of the blood fly. Then it was already his turn and he was pulled by the shoulder along the platform, stumbling over meat chunks the scooper had missed, then pushed to his knees.
Urobach raised his eyes to a formless mass of energy. A pulsating rip in the fabric of reality. It was colourful, otherworldly, and at least it would be a beautiful final sight before he too painted the floor, stairs, and was unceremoniously scooped away with bits of everyone else. A ribbon of light flexed to him, then poked inside his skull.
He didn't rupture.
Dark powers flooded his being and he howled at the hidden ceiling. His mind expanded, seeing galaxies and unknowable things fly by. Black fire burned around him but it was as cold as the void of space. The display of power retracted, but it remained a part of him. Electric ice.
"General Urobach…" it was an ethereal voice that seemed to come from everywhere at once. "Serve us well…"
The guards were shocked as they walked over. Eyes hidden by visors, but mouths open.
"A General? This sewer rat?" At a hard look from a superior he backed down.
"I… passed the reaping?" That possibility hadn't even gone through Urobach's head. He was pulled to his feet, now less forcefully.
"One out of every thousand do. Let's get him out of here and into his new uniform." They helped him away.
His old life was over that day. He went from being a nobody to somebody, and it was all because of circumstance falling into his lap. Whatever genetic quirk that defined whether someone could be a conduit, he had it. It wasn't the lieutenant academy he was being shipped off to, it was an institute for generals. A place that even money couldn't buy someone into. Urobach spent over a decade there, relearning his position in the colony. His curriculum was advanced, and he was taught how to master his new abilities: establishing psychic links with others, transporting himself and other objects, and carving for himself his own pocket dimension. He cut his hair short and neat. He talked the talk and walked the walk of a general.
Most shockingly, he even fell in love. He was expected to leave the colony behind one day and command a battalion of lieutenants to a glorious victory. Finding a partner and starting a family was out of the question. No, he still wasn't free, not until he left the cold shackles of his society behind and took a new world for his own. But even this couldn't keep him from the startling and profound connection he felt with Pietra. Like him she was a scarred woman. And although everyone Urobach met respected his title, he knew they were intimidated by his face. Only Pietra could understand him deeply. And as he pressed her sobbing head against his chest in a gesture of comfort, he felt a moment of terror at how much she made him feel. If it weren't for her, he'd have gone through life never connecting with anyone. He'd have believed it was impossible. But it wasn't, because it happened with her. This woman was scarred and blind in one eye from somebody's cruel gag of splashing acid in her face while she was just a teenager. To Urobach she was the most beautiful person he'd ever seen, scars included.
Being forced to walk away from her killed him. But it wasn't his choice to make.
"So here is the lucky last, number fifteen of my battalion." Urobach spoke, sitting on a computerised throne. He scrolled through data on his holo-pad, checking out her unimpressive stats.
She was dressed in a grey uniform like everyone. Coffee coloured skin and short dark hair.
Urobach lazily read aloud "Henka… fifteen years old, but not the youngest they've sent me… failed physical endurance tests, though not surprising given your stature… scored moderate on intelligence quizzes, average duel scores…"
Henka bowed to her new employer. Then she straightened with a question "General Urobach, Sir… doesn't a battalion contain hundreds of soldiers?"
"In our case it's fifteen. I'm just lucky I got one genius in the bunch. You didn't think someone with your lousy scores would be assigned to a general tasked with conquering an important world, did you?"
"I suppose not, Sir… Sir, what world will we be invading?"
"Some reject offshoot timeline with barely any people and only the TCG."
"Oh."
"We're all set to take the jump." It was the colloquial term for the one-way ticket journey to their assigned worlds. "But first I require a duel test." He put the holo-pad down and stood.
"Duel test? Sir, I failed my final test. That's why they registered me here."
"This isn't a test by the colony. This is a test by me. As your general I will personally examine the strengths of all my lieutenants." He took out his deck and it shone with purple energy. He turned to lead her out toward one of the hangers.
Henka followed, fumbling with her pockets until she could take out her cards. They walked a few corridors before arriving. The metal room was mind boggling in its size, with spacecrafts able to fly in and out without disturbing each other. The left wall was a transparent field that kept in air; outside was the grey featureless landscape above and the stars twirling by below.
"Here we won't disturb anyone." Urobach turned to face her and tables appeared. Shields flashed out. Urobach's smile darkened with anticipation and suddenly a burgundy sphere appeared between them. It twittered with black electricity before blowing up in size, surrounding them in a brown dome. Urobach enjoyed her bewilderment as she looked around. "This field is called Forbidden Star ~ World's Last Day ~. It is bestowed to those granted the prestigious role of general." Four gold tablets with alien inscriptions landed at the outer corners of their game. "You will go first."
Henka snapped herself out of it and drew her hand.
They both charged for several turns until Urobach went.
"I cast Reload Charger and discard Redzone X to draw." When finished the spell flipped off the table and landed upside-down in his mana. "Turn end."
"I generate the cross gear Immortal Blade!" Henka declared and a double-ended lance appeared, it was red and shrouded in darkness. "When it's not crossed with a creature, all creatures in the battle zone have slayer!"
"When it's not crossed hmm…? Curious." He drew from his deck. "I summon Evil Heat, Screaming Demon Dragon!" It sure did scream. A horrible sound that was almost-human, before revealing itself as a skeletal dragon with purple flowers blooming off its carapace, skulls centred in each. "He's a command, so I remove the Second Seal to give him slayer for the turn."
"Second Seal?" Henka asked as a tablet behind her exploded into rubble.
"Yes. Aside from the final seal, I can break the others in any order I wish." He swished his gloved hand "I mill one then return a creature to my hand. I choose Redzone X, turn end."
Henka drew. How strange of him to summon a speed attacker and not attack with it. She wasn't very familiar with Dormageddon or its strategies. Without enough mana to get into her deck's main strategy, the best she could do was slow him down.
"I summon Jenny the Dismantling Puppet! Show me your hand!" As the white haired doll raised her scalpel-blade and giggled, Urobach sternly presented his cards.
Redzone X, Tigernitro and Slash Charger.
"Discard Redzone." She had to slow down Dormageddon.
"My move. I summon Tigernitro, Explosive Devil and mana arms 5. I end my turn and you must discard all but one of your cards." A tiger plush toy appeared with sticks of dynamite in both hands. He snickered as the fuses lit, then hurled them at her table.
Henka grunted against the explosion, then let go of Apocalypse Day. It was the core of her deck, but as she drew Pharzi she knew there was always a way for it to come back. She charged Pharzi for her next play.
"I fortify one of my shields with Silver Glory, Invincible Fortress!" The magnificent construct was spiked silver, but also red, blue, green and gold. "My creatures win all battles! Turn end."
"So first all creatures were slayers and now yours win all battles. Curious." Mildly so, it seemed. Urobach drew "I summon Dorhakaba, Final Forbidden Delta!" A purple robot in a red cape appeared, its head like a skull. "I remove the Third Seal and give Tigernitro +2222 power." Again he chose a seal whose ability was rendered meaningless, the other tablet on Henka's side exploded into rubble as well.
"He's a speed attacker! Dorhakaba, shield break!" It lunged and aimed a punch at Henka's fortress.
"When Silver Glory is attacked I choose another shield instead!" Henka yelled and another panel swerved protectively in the way. A card popped up and she saw Apocalypse Day. A shield trigger, but there needed to be six creatures in play before she could use it - at the moment there were only four. "Evil Heat, shield break!" Once more a panel intercepted the attack. "Turn end."
Urobach knew that Dormageddon's removal resistance only worked twice, and with him gone the game was over. But as a triple breaker he'd be able to wipe out that pesky fortress in one hit. He smiled "And don't forget Tigernitro's Mana Arms ability is still in effect. Discard all but one of your cards."
"...I summon Perfect Galaxy, Immortality Elemental!" A blue mecha arose, orbited by electronic circles of light. "Shield force! I choose Silver Glory's!" A glowy shield symbol appeared on the fortress. "Now Perfect Galaxy has blocker and can't leave the battle zone while that shield is in play!" Then Henka hesitated. Jenny could wipe out either of his creatures and remain safe, but with five in play she needed one more creature before it was time to turn the tables. "...turn end."
Urobach drew and put the card straight into mana. A smile crossed his scarred face. "I'll give you another turn to try out this strategy, hmm? We'll see how effective it is."
He'd seen her discard Apocalypse Day twice now. Henka was sweating as she drew.
"I summon Perfect Madonna, Channeler of Suns!" It was like a giant glamerge egg, opening jaws while its top sprouted wisps of purple energy. "A blocker that can't leave the battle zone as long as it has over zero power!"
Yes! An inexperienced Henka was thinking. All I got to do now is use my spell! My creatures have removal resistance so will stay, then I can take him out!
"Turn end!"
"Your strategy is far too slow." Urobach criticised and she lost her smile.
"Sir?"
"Instead of darkness, I would suggest a different civilization to complement light. Water for draws, or nature for ramping. Not that it matters. As once we get to Aurellia we'll be limited by the amount of cards we can transfer beyond the first twelve sets. That being said…" he drew harshly from his deck. "Under my employment I expect no failures! The consequence will be immediate execution!"
He slammed a card down "Kizamu, Forbidden V!" A silver humanoid with spikes for arms lunged out. "First Seal is removed! I choose not to battle with his effect and end my turn!"
Henka prayed to draw her spell or Pharzi the Oracle, but she didn't.
"...I summon Necrodragon Guljeneraid." The rotting beast crawled forth. "Turn end."
"Disappointing." His words cut like knives. "I evolve Kizamu into Deadzone S-Rank Zombie." A giant of purple crystal took shape on 12,000. "With that, I Big Bang Liberate! Emerge from the cosmic void! Dormageddon X, Forbidden Armageddon!"
Silence. Blackness. Chaos.
The dome was torn away to make room for the floating titan of molten rock. At his appearance shrine gates fell upon her three creatures. They struggled uselessly against the ground.
"Now that your creatures are sealed and ignored there are technically only five creatures in play right now. Apocalypse Day cannot activate! I brought the apocalypse! Dormageddon X breaks your final shields!" Now everything was muted by white.
Henka felt space tremble as 999,999 power vanquished her final defences and her fortress.
She looked up to see Urobach point "I won't accept failure! Deadzone, todomeda!" A huge hand came down and Henka could only brace before it swatted her. She flew, her back skidding against the smooth ground until she came to a stop, feeling sore all over.
"Oof…" She blinked up until she saw Urobach standing there. She thought he was going to offer a hand, but he merely stared.
"Get up."
"Yes, Sir…" Henka turned over, struggling to stand. It took her several seconds.
"Aurellia's core has not evolved properly to handle Kaijudo energy. So until it can be made into a proper conduit, duels there will be lethal. Another reason to maximise the advantage our limited OCG pool will give us."
"I…" She found the strength to face him despite the pain she was in. "I won't let you down, Sir."
His amber eyes regarded her in his cold face.
"I should hope not." Then he turned away and strolled off.
The day came when it was time for their jump. Their society fuelled itself by irradiating material from the asteroid and using it to charge their technology. It took a lot of that juice to open portals to other worlds, but it was feasible for one-off one-way transports. Urobach gathered in the chamber with the fifteen men in his crew, and he had to admit to himself they looked like a sorry lot. A jumble of varying ages, physical strength and skill levels. The lieutenant academy, like the rest of their colony was proficient in some procedures, but careless and haphazard with others. They were a single civilization moving through space, they weren't going to have trouble at their borders. So they naturally neglected certain things like caring for their young or vulnerable. This meant some lieutenants fell through cracks in the system and bumped to graduation before they were probably ready. They just got assigned to their general and shipped out.
Urobach knew that fear was necessary to keep everyone in line, and nobody was going to give complete obedience otherwise. As such within the first month of arrival he killed one lieutenant for reporting he lost a duel and killed one other for speaking out of turn. After that his underlings were sufficiently terrified of him and he knew they were tightly under his thumb.
In a rich meadow by a crystal lake, black fire erupted and the general stepped out. He breathed the fresh air in deeply. Wildflowers danced and deer were drinking at the other side, one lifting its head at his sudden appearance. Urobach couldn't help but smile at the abundance of nature. All of this beauty… was what made the native species so weak. But using limited resources: his powers, a small group of underlings, some OCG cards and his own wit, he was going to conquer this entire planet and remake it in his image. All of this natural beauty would be his.
A great disturbance made him grave. He turned around.
Behind him was a motionless man, facing away. Long black hair tied at the nape of his neck, straight like his bone-thin frame under the silk kimono. Onyxes hung from chains at his ears. He stared ahead, stars and galaxies going by within his dark eyes. Then he woke up to his surroundings and turned to face Urobach.
"It cannot be…" But it was. Urobach could feel the otherworldly power from this entity, and he could sense his core resonating with the source of his Gatekeeper powers. When the shock diminished he dropped immediately to one knee and bowed his head.
"What entertainment shall I find with this passing whimsy."
Urobach raised his head; he was trembling with fear. Even back at the colony the Gatekeepers were a mystery. Somehow in the past a contract was made between their species. Since humans were infinitesimally smaller the invaders were relied upon to do jobs the Gatekeepers felt beneath them. Together they conquered and expanded, endlessly, as that was what life did.
Never had a Gatekeeper taken on a human form, it was unheard of. Never had they taken direct part in an invasion before. Not only was Aurellia a mediocre timeline, but Urobach was a mediocre general. As prestigious as his position in society was, among his peers he certainly didn't stand out, hence his placement. So of all the dimensions why would he come here? A Gatekeeper could destroy a planet quickly and with little effort. Urobach wasn't certain of whether or not he was about to die.
"Passing whimsy… Sir?"
When those eyes flicked to him Urobach's atoms felt frozen in place.
"I am Gatekeeper Pluto. You are to keep me updated on your invasion. You still have free reign to conquer as you wish, but I will remain on this planet as a silent observer."
"Yes…Sir."
Then he was gone, but the residuals of his power tainted the area.
It felt like for all his achievements, all his escaping, Urobach still couldn't avoid the looming hand of oppression that hovered invisibly over his shoulder. He still wasn't free. Not completely…
『AN: Mandatory villain chapter established. I forgot to say in the previous chapter but now I'm beyond two-thirds of the way completed. We're back on track with the current stuff but I hope yall enjoyed this divergence. Thanks to Acuma for reviewing, and helping me with decks by recommending me something from a buddy of his. Oh yeah, with permission I've started uploading our roleplay onto AO3. That's Archive of Our Own, for those of you who don't know. My username there is Kien5. Not much else to report on, am on Uni holidays but have been working a lot of extra night shifts. Can't show as much raw enthusiasm now while sleepy I'm afraid P: Until next time!』
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