Yu-Gi-Oh 5Ds: The Judgement of the World

Written By: Lady Lunar Phoenix

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"This is why you don't ride automated helicopters..." Zalinka groaned in irritation.

The other older Dragons had reached Crow's location some time after the street lights fully lit up as night time settled in around them. With a chill in the air, Crow had produced a blanket for Zalinka, which she was grateful for.

His gloves kept him from feeling how cold her skin was, and it was an irritating cold, physical like she was sick. It wasn't something her father had described when he tried to explain summoning, so the sensation felt like an irritation induced betrayal. Still, her head was clear, her vision too, she was just shaking like a leaf. So much so that Ryu, bless his dear heart, had climbed into the blanket with her to serve as a second source of heat for her.

She needed it as well.

"But you 'could' be..."

Zalinka could hear Aki sounding rather amused to the side, her gaze irrationally elevated as though she was talking to something towering over her.

"Any clue what she's talking about?" Zalinka asked, her teeth chattering against her wishes as Yusei pulled off one of his riding gloves and began checking her head.

"Jack's dragon being used as a hot water bottle," Yusei answered simply. "But she has a point, Zalinka is too cold at the moment, even if she was fit to ride on Bloody Kiss. 'And she's not', she's cold enough that I would feel better if she was carried by a dragon associated with fire for..."

Yusei was suddenly cut off, jerking back in surprise as Witch materialized between himself and the new Psychic. "Hello Witch."

"Hi hi... Oh oh I see, yeah you've got the right of it Yusei, she needs fire, which seems backwards but it makes sense..." Witch gave Yusei a back handed wave before floating close enough to start patting Zalinka on the cheek.

"If you're going to play doctor, can you give a few more details?" Zalinka asked as Witch floated about. She didn't have a proper deck of her own, and she wanted a spirit just like Witch with that personality!

"Well, see... Your spirit seems to have a shield mechanic. They're a shield themed spirit if you will..." Witch floated right into Zalinka's face and stared deeply into the girls' eyes.

Which was creepy for Zalinka as she found herself staring into what appeared to be two inky black voids for the witches' 'eyes'.

"Looks like your spirit tried to shield you and got pushed hard. That's why you're so cold, your spirit is an 'ice' themed spirit too, and you people aren't exactly thrilled when your bodies drop below a certain degree. Whatever hit you basically shoved your spirits 'shield' into 'you' in a sense. You're cold because you're feeling the effects of your own spirits' magics."

"More over I don't think she didn't got attacked by a 'normal' spirit..." Witch pointed out.

"Yubel? Was Yubel or maybe Trueman here?" Yusei asked with a frown that deepened as Witch nodded to his question. When they had pulled up, Crow had already been taking care of the pair, and the heat from the crash swamped the area. So feeling how cold Zalinka 'was'...

"They didn't fire the blast, however; it feels a lot like the spirits that would be with Judai back in school."

"Which is probably why we're still alive," Ryu remarked. "Given what was described, Yubel or Trueman can do a lot more damage than the other Spirits. Probably because of Yubel's status as the partner to the Gentle Darkness."

"I can't get over that title. It sounds like something a kid would come up with," Crow chuckled as he leaned against the car parked behind the one Zalinka was resting against.

"Says a guy named 'Crow' and not even the Japanese version. The 'western' version," Zalinka taunted.

"Hey it means the same thing!" Crow pointed out before sticking out his tongue in cheeky defense. For which Zalinka answered by sticking out her own tongue.

"Oh wow still cold..." Zalinka muttered as she put her tongue back in her mouth and rehunkered herself down into the blanket.

"Huh... maybe yeah, Archfiend should get over himself if you're 'still' cold from that..." Crow acknowledged worriedly.

Archfiend manifested, looming over the group with the lava exposed veins coursing over his body. The seriousness of its expression, the stony way it fixated on Zalinka...It began to reach down towards Zalinka, while three of the present Dragons simultaneously rolled their eyes and rolled their heads to look up at the dragon...

"I have no idea what he said either," Crow confessed as the dragon slowly curled its fingers around the cars and began lifting it up.

"Or we could just help her out so you could just lift her up," Crow pointed out as he stepped back.

Just the presence of that large clawed hand was pleasantly warm. Zalinka sat in quiet awe as the dragon moved without orders. As intelligent as any human, his hand was warm as he reached down and gathered her, Ryu and Crow up. It was amazing with the scales hard and smooth, making resting against it a pleasure. Warmth seeped into her limbs, enough that she could actually feel Ryu curled up by her side, if only the pressure of his presence and not his actual warmth.

"We're sitting in the paw of a dragon," Ryu noted as he looked up, wonder and curiosity coloring his expression. "Uncle's Blue Eyes doesn't really have 'hands' like Archfiend. But I wonder if she is just as warm..."

'Blue Eyes is a Light monster though, unless its 'sun'light I can't be sure...' Zalinka thought as the weight of her eyelids suddenly intensified. "Huh, wonder why I'm so tired all of a sudden..."

"You probably over exerted yourself. Being warmed up now, you're starting to feel its effects," Ryu theorized.

"Kids' probably right," Witch supported as she flew in beside them. "Aki says he'll hold you until you're normal temperature so just take a nap! We'll take you... well when Aki and the others figure out where."

"Why not Kaiba mansion or the office?" Ryu asked as the cool touch of Zalinka's clothes finally warmed up.

"Well they were thinking the condo, but the twins are there and we don't know who exactly attacked you. So you should rest up, cuz once he puts you down, I think the others will want as much of a detailed report as they can get. They don't want the twins in danger after all, but you both can't just stay out here until... Hey kid, does your father know you're here...?" Witch explained only for her voice to drift into silence at the expression on Ryu's face. "Oh come on. Have you met your father when he's angry? He's going to be angry isn't he?"

"Not at you... or me... He tends to internalize it," Ryu admitted with a wince. "He's in Tokyo at the moment, got a suite there. We just borrowed the helicopter for a little spin," he confessed.

"Hearing about Yubel and the others with the attacks getting closer to the Projects made us worry about the one here." Zalinka confessed as she sat there. The warm bed of smoothed scales at her back and the warm air swirling around her was sleep inducing. "Some of the scientists have been worried that if this one gets damaged it could cause a chain reaction to the others and another Zero Reverse isn't what anyone wants."

"And Fudo is a ghost if you will. There's speculation in the community that only he would be able to stop that. Its incredibly stupid though because they're ignoring the fact that Zero Reverse happened when Fudo was a baby. So he never had a chance to see or work on the project." Ryu added with a shrug.

"How stupid..." Witch began when Ryu waved it away.

"Not necessarily, its possible that the Momentum Project was linked to Yusei somehow. There was some notes found written by Dr. Fudo suggesting there had been plans to link the Project to his son. When the baby was old enough to understand the importance of the action. Its assumed he never managed to reach that point. But the theory is that if he 'did' have that in the plans, then somewhere in the structure of the program, it is set up to receive the connection." Ryu explained patiently, "there was more to it, but it went beyond me..."

"Yeah, it talked about how Yusei is supposed to 'bind everyone together' and read kinda jerkish if you ask me." Zalinka added, "taking a new born and assuming that they're always going to sustain this even, emotional base. What is 'wrong' with scientists? They're so up in their heads they don't realize that the world isn't built on ones and zeros and just screw around with everything..."

"I can see your point," Crow agreed, folding his arms across his chest in an effort to look 'grown up'. "Sounds like Yusei turned out the way they would have liked, but this isn't him..." The memory of 'the' duel played back in Crow's mind. The guilt and shame that Yusei felt as he accepted responsibility over what happened. 'He's not this somber guy because he wants to be. Its because he still blames himself for the deaths of millions. Linking it to him now would only cause a slow burn into another Reverse I bet.'

Below them, the other three Dragons stood silently waiting as Archfiend graciously gave them a cliffnotes version of the current conversations.

"Bind the Momentum to you? Yusei, your father was brilliant but also an incredible imbecile." Jack didn't even bother with preamble.

'I'm siding with Jack on that one,' Aki thought to herself as she looked up at the dragon. Archfiends hands were cupping the trio and perhaps it was the human traffickers from before, but she began to look around. In case someone showed up with intentions to attack, or if Yubel or one of their victims.

Yusei didn't react to the comments though, he just stood there getting this information and quietly processed it. 'Alternate realities exist though. So there's probably several realities where that happened... I wonder what happened to them.' "Should we take them back to their families or bring them back to the condo first?"

"Probably the condo," Aki answered, "at least there we'll be safe to give her a proper look over and there's warm blankets and food. Especially since we don't know where or how far we have to take them to get them back safely."

"Yes, I need to go back to my own apartment," Jack agreed before shouting. "Archfiend! Drop them off at the twins condo then come back!"

"Wait!" Yusei and Aki replied in unison, for all the good it did. Amid the darken space now that night had fallen, it was near impossible to see the large dragon. He was more a physical presence rather than a visual one for the pair. But when he stretched his wings there was 'no' mistaking the power of that action. Archfiend may have been grumbling through the act all together, but he was taking off and the pair really...

"He's gone isn't he..." Yusei asked quietly, it was a foregone question, more asked just to have the calming sound of Aki's voice than any true need for confirmation. That first downward push of the wings would send Archfiend easily into the air. But it would also send any effort to yell at the dragon away from the beings ears. Aki could yank him down, but that was rude and Archfiend wasn't her dragon so...

"Do you want to alert the twins or shall I?" Was the rueful answer she gave before rolling her head to glance over at Jack. The blond was already striding towards Wheel of Fortune and Aki couldn't bring herself to be annoyed at the sight of the guys' back. It was getting late and Carly was home alone. 'If' Yubel or their group was in the area, he would want to be with her...

'But maybe we need to get Carly to the condo as well?' she found herself pondering, 'is it wise to be split up?'

Yusei took to walking to YuseiGo, so while he was busy calling the twins, Aki took the time to summon Black Rose. While the dragon didn't 'like' being used like a mule to carry stuff. Leaving the BlackBird here while Crow was carried off was just irrational. If someone damaged his ride, Crow would be upset. Black Rose grumbled, but that was the extent of it. Instead she extended her vines and gathered up the D-Wheel with all the enjoyment of carrying a cumbersome purse.

"They know to keep an eye out for Archfiend," Yusei called out, watching as Aki walked to the Bloody Kiss. Only to get a face full of dragon when his eyes began to run down the curves of her riding suit... He didn't even try to have a stare down with Black Rose. Unlike the other dragons, while he was pretty sure she wouldn't kill him...

It was Black Rose.

There was pain...

Then there was pain that would leave him laid up for months while there was work to be done.

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"Oh there's Archfiend!" Rua called out and pulled on the condos' sliding door to go out. Ruka came up behind him as the large dragon hovered near the building. It was a quick deposit, the dragon placed his cupped hands down and let the trio tumble to the ground. Then he was gone, the warmth that he naturally generated evaporated on the evening winds.

Ruka appeared with a blanket stacked ridiculously high up in her arms but she made it to the trio sorting themselves out. Her brother grabbed the top of the blanket and began pulling it down for Zalinka.

"Oh, thanks kids," the Egyptian thanked the pair, already grateful that she was able to talk without her teeth chattering non stop as she had when she came to her senses. The blanket was thick and fluffy, that style that she adored despite having no use for it back home. Wrapped up with it by the amazingly attentive twins she pushed herself to her feet and looked about at the group. Witch was gone, but Witch couldn't speak dragon anyways.

Crow had the causal stance of a teen who was regularly here, while Ryu was striving for that eternal 'business casual' stance. Further beyond, Zalinka could see what looked to be a D-Wheel under construction. "Wait are you guys building another D-Wheel? Are you that bored with how things are now?"

"Nah, its for Carly," Crow answered with a shrug. "We're actually almost done, but we're waiting for Jack to make a finalized design for it. Can't make the shell until we know how its going to look. So we can't finalize the interior because we don't know what to put where," the red head explained.

"I heard about the attack on her, I suppose that is also distracting him?" Ryu asked politely as they walked to the building.

"Yeah," Crow let the weight of the past weeks expel out in that one word. The light of the condo was inviting after being outside. It was also incredibly normal looking, like when they were making Bloody Kiss that he could forget about that swath of absent stars above them or the smell of a distant helicopter that crashed.

"So why isn't she here? Archfiend left, shouldn't he have stayed? Isn't it safer to be together if you got roving bands trying to capture and sell people?" Zalinka asked as they passed the threshold into the condo.

"It was meant to be a surprise," Rua explained. "She's supposed to come for a visit and have it presented to her."

"So that's why big sister Aki goes to visit Carly. So she has someone with her and doesn't feel alone," Ruka added as she shut the sliding door.

"But we all know that it can't last, she needs to come here," Rua admitted a bit of uncertainty in his voice. "Which makes the whole design issue a bigger problem."