Starting Notes:
Welcome back! I saw some confusion in the reviews about the Q&A, so I'll respond to those questions at the bottom. For now, enjoy the chapter! It's a short one, since it mostly follows up on last chapter (and the whole arc in general.)
Chapter 22: What Comes After?
Yuno walked out of Reiji's office, his resolve slightly hardened. It was only now, when he had recovered a little, that he realised how hungry and dehydrated he was. He searched for a vending machine on the LDS campus. The familiarity of the place sent a pang through his heart—after all, for this school to be familiar, he had to have spent a lot of time here.
In other words, a lot of time not at home.
His sister and father were probably worried sick about him…
He stared at the vending machine, and then a person reached over their hand from next to him, putting a few coins into the machine and pressing a button. The person didn't press the confirmation button though, turning to him with an expectant look.
Yuno pressed the button for grape soda, and the two cans dropped down. Next to him, the person leaned down, taking out the two cans and holding one out to Yuno.
"Thanks," Yuno said.
"No problem," Yuto replied. "Hey. Are you alright?"
Yuno internally grimaced. Along with Hitoda, Yuto had been the only one to truly see how much he had broken down in that paralysing moment, when he had thought that Miharu was gone for good. Everyone else must have heard his scream, but they hadn't truly seen him at that desperate moment, except Yuto and Hitoda.
"I will be," he said, deciding not to lie. He smiled. "I just have to find her. She's not completely lost. And if I know her, she might even make her way back before I manage to find her."
Yuto patted his shoulder. "At least you're telling the truth," he said. "I was worried for you and Yuya… I didn't handle it well either, when Ruri was taken." He sighed. "I went over to You Show to see if I could help, but apparently, Yuya's mum is handling it there."
"Well, she always seemed like a cool woman." Yuno had never really had a mother, so he couldn't exactly judge someone else's mother. (He could judge fathers though, since his father was the best.) "So, you came to find me then, huh?"
"Yeah." Yuto smiled reassuringly at him. "Do you have anything to do?"
"Not particularly?"
"Come with me then."
Yuno followed Yuto, somewhat confused by what exactly was happening. They ended up in the front courtyard of LDS, where several other people were. Yuto's sister, Nue, was casually lounging on the top of a brick fence, chatting quietly with Kyorin, who was seated on the bench in front of her. Kurosaki was standing stiffly next to them, while Hitoda was seated on the grass, crunching some of it between her fingertips. Perhaps the oddest presence there was Serena, though, who was standing slightly apart from the rest.
"I thought you went to get Sakaki," Kurosaki said.
"He's occupied."
"Alright." Nue leaned her head back with a lackadaisical look on her face. She was wrapping a bandage around her wrist. "Oh, Sugisaki. I have a message from my opponent."
Huh? When would Yuno have met her opponent before—
"Something about how she would repay you for a match you had in the Link Dimension. Her name was Shino Gitsune? Magenta hair, green eyes."
… oh, what rotten luck.
Yuno sighed.
They had finally reached the origin of how they were discovered in the first place. Of what exactly had led the Fusion Dimension to come to their home and use that face recognition program to search for them—of how they had known that Yuno Sugisaki was Boundless Sea, instead of just searching for him in real life.
It all went back to that duel in the crowd.
Wait, she dueled me without Fusion Summoning, and her deck still pulled off summoning four monsters with high attack points in a single turn?
Insane.
"I may or may not have dueled her while she was spying on the Link Dimension for the Fusion Dimension," Yuno said after a moment. "Not that I knew that at the time—or that I even thought much about it until now."
"Fair. She's a dangerous opponent." Nue shrugged. "Every non-Standard person is currently here. What do we do then?"
Yuto glanced at Yuno with a worried look—clearly, he was concerned that reminding Yuno of Miharu's absence might send him into a slump. Yuno, however, simply nodded and smiled.
"If no one has a suggestion," Serena said, "then I have something to say." She walked towards Kurosaki. "I… wanted to talk about your sister, Ruri."
Yuto and Kurosaki both tensed up. Nue just tilted her head from behind Kurosaki.
"She's doing fine," Serena shared. "She and the two other girls that share her face are both being treated carefully by Academia. She is still trying to escape. Even though Academia told her that you all were dead, she refused to believe it. Even now, she wants to return to the Xyz Dimension, to fight alongside all of you to protect your home."
"... Ruri…" Kurosaki clenched his fist.
"Then, no matter what, I will find her again," Yuto said, slightly more composed.
Serena nodded. "I apologise that I didn't understand your sister back then," she said. "I should have helped her escape. Instead, I…"
"It was not your fault," Kurosaki said, interrupting her. "But if you feel guilty, fight alongside me to defeat Academia."
"Yes," Serena said. "I intend to. To make up for my mistakes, I will." She held out a hand. "But before that. Shun Kurosaki, will you duel me?"
"Why?" Kurosaki asked after a moment of silence had passed.
"Because I want to understand you," Serena said after a moment. "I don't know how to stop feeling like I owe you. And I want to know what Ruri Kurosaki's brother is like. Because she's one of the people that saved me in the first place."
"... acceptable reasons." Shun took a few steps back. The rest of them shuffled backwards, letting the two have some space.
After all, this was a fight that existed between these two—Fusion and Xyz, for all that they had clearly put aside their differences.
Why would anyone here interfere, knowing that?
Serena took a deep breath. Alright. She had put up a pitiful duel against Ruri Kurosaki, because she couldn't see her opponent as just another person.
This would be her attempt to redeem herself.
[DUEL!]
Shun Kurosaki: 4000LP
Serena Akaba: 4000LP
[Turn 1: Serena] [H:5]
"I'll start!" Serena declared. "I'll Normal Summon Moonlight Emerald Bird!" The green dancer appeared, floating in front of her.
[Moonlight Emerald Bird (4*/1200/1000/DARK/Beast-Warrior/Effect)]
"With her effect, I will send a "Moonlight" monster from my hand to the graveyard and draw a card!" She glanced at the card. "I will set two cards and end my turn!"
"Oh?" Kurosaki raised an eyebrow. "Seems rather defensive for you."
[Turn 2: Kurosaki] [H:6]
He drew a card.
At the side, Yuto leaned over to whisper to Yuno. "She doesn't know it, but that's a brilliant move against Shun. After all, his ace is meant to destroy Special Summoned monsters."
Kurosaki glanced through his cards briefly. "I will Normal Summon Raid Raptors - Tribute Lanius!" A bright blue and white mechanical bird appeared in front of him. There were guns on its wings like cannons. Its head lifted up with several bright blue lights on it like eyes.
[Raid Raptors - Tribute Lanius (4*/1800/400/DARK/Winged Beast/Effect)]
"I will activate Tribute Lanius's effect," Kurosaki continued. "Since it was Normal or Special Summoned this turn, I can send a "Raid Raptors" card from my deck to the graveyard. I will send Raid Raptors - Mimicry Lanius from my deck to the graveyard." He revealed the card—a golden mechanical bird whose image on the card seemed to be shrieking. "And since Mimicry Lanius was sent to the graveyard this turn, I can banish it from the graveyard to add any other "Raid Raptors" card from my deck to my hand."
He revealed the card that he had added to his hand.
"Since I control a "Raid Raptors" monster other than a monster with the same name as this card, I can Special Summon Raid Raptors - Fuzzy Lanius from my hand!" A sleek purple bird made of metal appeared, with cobalt blue metallic plates beneath its purple wings as 'feathers' as well, the wings turning grey at the ends.
[Raid Raptors - Fuzzy Lanius (4*/500/1500/DARK/Winged Beast/Effect)]
"I cannot Special Summon monsters on the turn that I activate Fuzzy Lanius's effect, except for "Raid Raptors" monsters. Now, I will activate the Continuous Spell, Raid Raptors - Nest." He placed down the card, and feathers appeared in the Solid Vision, floating around him. "Since I control two "Raid Raptors" monsters, I can add another "Raid Raptors" monster from my deck or graveyard to my hand. I will add another "Raid Raptors" monster from my deck to my hand!"
He snapped his fingers.
"I will overlay the Level 4 Fuzzy Lanius and the Level 4 Tribute Lanius. Avian hunter of the afterlife, seek the truth with your dark eyes, and grasp glory with your sharp talons! Xyz Summon! Take flight! Rank 4! Raid Raptors - Force Strix!" In front of him, a mechanical owl made out of brown and dark blue metal appeared, letting out a few quiet mechanical whirrs and chirps.
[Raid Raptors - Force Strix (R4/100/2000/DARK/Winged Beast/Xyz/Effect) (OU:2)]
"100 attack points…" Serena, having had to face perhaps the most infuriating opponents out of anyone here so far, stared at the bird suspiciously. "What overpowered effect does this monster have then?"
"Oh, you can really tell that she dueled Ruri," Nue said dryly.
"Really?" Yuno blinked. "I thought that was a reaction unique to those who had dueled Miharu…"
Kurosaki cleared his throat, effectively shutting everyone up. "I will detach one of Force Strix's Overlay Units to add a Level 4 DARK Winged Beast monster from my deck to my hand," he said. "Nest Calling!" He swiped up a card from his deck. "And since Fuzzy Lanius was sent to the graveyard, I can add another copy of Raid Raptors - Fuzzy Lanius from my deck to my hand!"
[Raid Raptors - Force Strix: OU:2 - 1 = OU:1]
Seven cards in hand…
"I will Special Summon Raid Raptors - Singing Lanius from my hand, since I control an Xyz Monster." A small, golden bird appeared on the field next to Force Strix.
[Raid Raptors - Singing Lanius (4*/100/100/DARK/Winged Beast/Effect)]
"Then, I will target Singing Lanius and take damage equal to its attack points in order to Special Summon Raid Raptors - Pain Lanius from my hand!" A green and white mechanical bird with a bulging, spherical centre of its body appeared. At the same time, Kurosaki's life points fell by a frankly miniscule amount.
Kurosaki: 4000 - 100 = 3900LP
[Raid Raptors - Pain Lanius (1*/100/100/DARK/Winged Beast/Effect)]
"Then, Pain Lanius's Level becomes the same as the targeted monster's Level," Kurosaki explained.
[Raid Raptors - Pain Lanius: 1* → 4*]
"And since I took damage, I can Special Summon Raid Raptors - Avenge Vulture from my hand!" A long-necked, bronze-themed mechanical bird appeared.
[Raid Raptors - Avenge Vulture (4*/1700/100/DARK/Winged Beast/Effect)]
"And since I control three other Winged Beast monsters, Force Strix gains 500 attack and defense points for each of them," Kurosaki explained.
[Raid Raptors - Force Strix: 100 + 500 x 3 = 1600ATK; 2000 + 500 x 3 = 3500DEF]
"Force Strix will attack your monster!"
So he wanted to push through Emerald Bird first, huh? But he was leaving an awful lot of monsters in Attack Position right now…
Emerald Bird was destroyed, as Serena shielded herself.
Serena: 4000 - 400 = 3600LP
"I will activate my set card!" Serena called. "Moonlight Reincarnation Dance! I will add two "Moonlight" monsters from my deck to my hand when a monster is destroyed."
"Avenge Vulture, Pain Lanius and Singing Lanius will attack you directly!" The three birds all bombarded Serena individually.
Serena: 3600 - 1700 - 100 - 100 = 1700LP
"I will then overlay my Level 4 Pain Lanius and my Level 4 Singing Lanius," Kurosaki called fiercely. "Come to my side again, faithful hunter—Xyz Summon, Rank 4, Raid Raptors - Force Strix!" Another copy of Force Strix landed next to the first. This one had been Xyz Summoned in Defense Position.
[Raid Raptors - Force Strix (x2): 100 + 500 x 2 = 1100ATK; 2000 + 500 x 2 = 3000DEF]
"I will use the effect of the Force Strix I just summoned as well. Nest Calling!" He added another Level 4 DARK Winged Beast to his hand.
[Raid Raptors - Force Strix (2): OU:2 - 1 = OU:1]
"I will set two cards facedown," Kurosaki said. "Over to you."
Hmm. So it seemed that whatever she had done on the first turn had stopped Kurosaki from doing his usual strategy. However, he had just facilitated hers.
If she brought out her Cat Dancer, she could end this duel in a single turn.
But would Ruri Kurosaki's brother really not be able to deal with that?
She would have to see.
[Turn 3: Serena] [H:5]
"Draw!" Serena declared fiercely. She glanced at the card that she had drawn. "I will Normal Summon Moonlight White Rabbit!" The girl in the white rabbit hoodie appeared, leaning back and stretching with a loud but cute yawn.
[Moonlight White Rabbit (2*/800/800/DARK/Beast-Warrior/Effect)]
"And with White Rabbit's effect, I will Special Summon a "Moonlight" monster from my graveyard in Defense Position! Come back—Moonlight Emerald Bird!" The bright green dancer appeared, her cape drifting out behind her. Serena then immediately placed down another card. "Spell Card, Fusion Substitute!"
At the name of the card, Kurosaki, Yuto and Nue all bristled instinctively.
"I'm sorry," Serena said. "But Fusion is how I fight. It's my strategy. If I could throw my Fusion Monsters away, I would. But for now, this is the only way I can duel."
"Just go on," Kurosaki said reluctantly.
I will show them that they can trust me, even though I use Fusion. Serena raised a hand. "I will fuse Moonlight Emerald Bird and Moonlight White Rabbit! The lively white rabbit illuminated by the moonlight! Emerald feathers that shroud the sky! Spiral into the moon's gravity and become a new power! Fusion Summon! Come to me! Beautiful beast that dances in the moonlight! Moonlight Cat Dancer!"
The pale-skinned dancer appeared, gracefully pulling ribbons through the air as she eyed Shun's field with a smirk.
[Moonlight Cat Dancer (7*/2400/2000/DARK/Beast-Warrior/Fusion/Effect)]
"Emerald Bird's effect," Serena called. "Since she was sent to the graveyard for a card effect, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower "Moonlight" monster from my graveyard or which is banished! Come—White Rabbit!" The white-hooded dancer appeared again. "And I will tribute White Rabbit to activate Cat Dancer's effect! She can attack every monster you control twice each, and they are not destroyed by the first attack! Lunatic Frenzy!" White Rabbit dissolved into white particles that floated around Cat Dancer.
"That's similar to Rise Falcon," Kurosaki muttered.
"I will have Cat Dancer attack Avenge Vulture! Full Moon Cresta!"
"You're naive if you think that will work," Kurosaki said. He flipped over a set card. "Rank-Up-Magic Battle Up Force! I will target a "Raid Raptors" monster and Rank Up that monster by two Ranks. I will Rank Up Force Strix!" The small owl dissolved into two dark streaks of light, flying up. "Prideful falcon. Spread your wings, dyed in the blood of heroes, and charge through the path of revolution! Rank Up Xyz Change! Appear! Rank 6! Raid Raptors - Revolution Falcon!"
In front of him, a large silver falcon appeared, thrice the size of Force Strix. It was imposing, the yellow orbs on its body glowing brightly. Two bright lights orbited the falcon.
[Raid Raptors - Revolution Falcon (R6/2000/3000/DARK/Winged Beast/Xyz/Effect) (OU:2)]
"Rank Up…" Serena repeated. "Using an Xyz Monster to Xyz Summon a monster of a higher Rank?"
"This is the power of the Xyz Dimension," Kurosaki said. "The main weakness of Xyz Monsters is the limit on the number of their Overlay Units. However, with the Rank Up, we can take on a stronger form, and continue fighting on with new strength! The Resistance never runs out of strength, and we never falter!"
Serena stared at the new monster. So that monster symbolised his resolve to be stronger?
"Since Revolution Falcon was summoned using a Rank 5 or lower "Raid Raptors" monster as material, I can destroy a Special Summoned monster you control and inflict damage to you equal to half its attack points! I will destroy Moonlight Cat Dancer! Blitzing Bombardment!" Large bombs shot towards Cat Dancer, and Serena responded immediately.
"Trap Card, Moonlight Reinforcement Dance! Cat Dancer can't be destroyed by card effects this turn!" A bright glow surrounded her monster, protecting it.
"Counter Trap Card, Raptor's Gust," Kurosaki replied. "I will tribute Avenge Vulture to negate your Trap!" Serena's Trap shattered. "And thus, Revolution Falcon's effect continues!" Cat Dancer blew up, and Serena shielded herself.
So this was Shun Kurosaki's strength? He had easily predicted her moves and countered her immediately…
Serena: 1700 - 2400 / 2 = 500LP
"I will activate the effect of Moonlight Reinforcement Dance, banishing it and Moonlight White Rabbit from my graveyard to add a "Moonlight" monster from my deck to my hand." Serena glanced at the cards in her hand. "I will set a card facedown again. Over to you!"
"Just like that?" Kurosaki raised an eyebrow. "Well, let's see if that set card is enough to save you on my turn."
[Turn 4: Kurosaki] [H:4]
"Draw." Kurosaki gestured to his remaining Force Strix. "I will detach an Overlay Unit from Force Strix to add another Level 4 DARK Winged Beast monster from my deck to my hand. Nest Calling!"
[Raid Raptors - Force Strix: OU:1 - 1 = OU:0]
"Then, since I control two "Raid Raptors" monsters, I can use Nest's effect to add a "Raid Raptors" monster from my deck to my hand." He refilled his hand to six. "I will Normal Summon Raid Raptors - Sharp Lanius!" A bright crimson mechanical bird appeared in front of him.
[Raid Raptors - Sharp Lanius (4*/1700/1000/DARK/Winged Beast/Effect)]
"I will change Force Strix to Attack Position. Sharp Lanius will attack you directly!"
Scouting out with his new monster first, huh?
"I will Special Summon Moonlight Sapphire Dolphin from my hand!" Serena declared, the blue dancer appearing in front of her in Defense Position.
[Moonlight Sapphire Dolphin (4*/600/1800/DARK/Beast-Warrior/Effect)]
"And with her effect, all damage is halved this turn!"
"Sharp Lanius's attack will stop," Kurosaki said. "Revolution Falcon will destroy your monster. Revolutional Air Raid!" The bird fired off multiple cannon shots that slammed straight into Sapphire Dolphin, destroying her. "And Force Strix attacks directly!" The small owl swooped in towards her again. Since Kurosaki controlled two other Winged Beasts, Force Strix's attack points remained the same as before.
"I will activate the Trap Card, Moonlight Exchange! I will negate the damage and gain life points equal to twice the damage I would have taken!" Moonlight shrouded her field, healing her instead. Since the damage would have been halved, she just gained life points equal to Force Strix's attack points.
Serena: 500 + 1100 / 2 x 2 = 1600LP
"I will move to my second Main Phase," Kurosaki continued, still unrelenting. "Sharp Lanius's effect. Since it declared an attack this turn, I can revive a "Raid Raptors" monster. Return to the field, Raid Raptors - Tribute Lanius!" The blue bird reappeared next to Sharp Lanius. "I will activate Tribute Lanius's effect to send another "Raid Raptors" monster from my deck to the graveyard. And then, I will overlay the Level 4 Tribute Lanius and Sharp Lanius!" He didn't even bother with the summoning chant this time. "For the third time, emerge, avian hunter! Raid Raptors - Force Strix!" The third Force Strix appeared, in Defense Position.
So, Kurosaki was bringing out one of them in Defense Position for… well, defence. Just in case his more aggressive monsters fell, it was there as insurance and back-up.
Serena bit her lip.
… she could stand to learn a little from that. If she could have a monster that could protect her if Cat Dancer was destroyed, the way that it had been destroyed earlier…
"I will activate Force Strix's effect," Kurosaki said, for what felt like the billionth time this duel. "Nest Calling!" The second Force Strix on the field—since one of the others had been Ranked Up into Revolution Falcon—glowed, one of its Overlay Units dissolving into feathers.
[Raid Raptors - Force Strix (2): OU:2 - 1 = OU:1]
"I will set two cards and end my turn," Kurosaki said. "Over to you. You survived this turn. If you truly want to use that detestable Fusion in front of me, if you insist that you will use it because it makes you strong…" He raised a fist in the air. "Then, show us what meaningful strength you can conjure up with it! Or are you simply using an excuse because you don't want to change as a duelist?"
Meaningful strength…
What did it mean for strength to be meaningful, anyway?
Serena glanced at her cards. She was strong. She knew this. She had always known this. But her strength had entirely been for her self-satisfaction—to prove herself worthy of something, to make herself feel confident in the person that she currently was.
That was the meaning that she had sought for herself. It was the meaning of her strength in the past, but it wasn't meaningful.
"I don't know what it's like," Serena said after a moment, "to have strength that exists for something other than itself."
Everyone was staring at her, but she had never been the kind to feel self-conscious about herself. She just spoke the truth.
"The more I hear about what you all think, the more I realise what I lack. To be honest," Serena said, "I don't think I deserve to feel safe here. I'm the one that thought that Academia was noble… and yet, I'm the only one that was allowed to be safe, while the rest have all been captured. Isn't it unfair to them, to be happy or safe?"
As the only one still here…
But I already promised that I would help to get them back.
What am I so afraid of?
Afraid that I am not enough, that I am inferior to them because they understood what was wrong long before I did?
"… you didn't wrong us," Kurosaki said after a moment. "You being safe and Ruri being safe are not mutually exclusive. You are allowed to be happy."
"You don't need to be kind to me just because I look like Ruri Kurosaki," Serena said. "I am fully aware that I am the one who least deserves to be happy."
"I give you my word as Ruri's brother," Kurosaki replied immediately. "You are not at fault. If you were, I would blame you and hate you. And you are a victim of Academia, are you not? From what Nue told me about Academia, most of you are victims as well. Stop hating yourself, and start hating them. Maybe then, your anger will be of some use to our cause."
Serena stared at him, and then, she smiled.
Yes.
She was not alone in this crusade. All of them wanted to defeat Academia.
There is no need to be afraid that I am not enough.
There is always more. And if I falter, if I'm somehow not good enough to save them…
There will be someone to offer me a hand, and we will fight together to bring them home.
"Then," Serena said, "I think I do have a way to conjure up something meaningful with my dueling here." She narrowed her eyes. "Here I go!"
She thought that she saw some kind of approval in Kurosaki's eyes as she drew a card.
[Turn 5: Serena] [H:3]
"Draw!" She declared. "I will activate the Spell Card, Moonlight Fusion! I will Fusion Summon using monsters from my hand and field! Also, since you control a monster, I can use a monster in my Extra Deck or deck as material as well! I will fuse Moonlight Panther Dancer in my Extra Deck with Moonlight Crimson Fox and Moonlight Yellow Marten in my hand!"
The three monsters turned into a dark spiral.
"Elegant beast dancing on the moonlit wilderness! Crescent-tailed moon creature that dances through the night! Crimson cunning hiding in the shadows! Swarm in a vortex of the moon's gravity and revive with a new power! Fusion Summon! Come forth! The king of beasts dancing atop the summit of the moonlight wilderness! Moonlight Lio Dancer!"
Serena's strongest monster appeared on her field, fiercely letting out a roar. Her blade glinted with the white light of moonlight.
[Moonlight Lio Dancer (10*/3500/3000/DARK/Beast-Warrior/Fusion/Effect)]
"... that's very strong," Kurosaki agreed.
"Yellow Marten's effect! I will add a "Moonlight" Spell or Trap from my deck to my hand! And Crimson Fox's effect! I will change Force Strix's attack points to 0!" Crimson energy surrounded the Force Strix in Attack Position, changing its attack points.
[Raid Raptors - Force Strix (1): 1100 → 0ATK]
"Force Strix? Not Revolution Falcon?" Yuno sounded surprised.
Serena smirked. "Moonlight Lio Dancer attacks Force Strix!" Her monster leapt forward. "Shredding Moonlight Blades!"
"I will activate the Trap Card, Raid Raptors - Readiness!" Kurosaki called. "I reduce damage to 0!" The bird was destroyed—but then, Serena's grin widened.
"Got you," she said. "When Moonlight Lio Dancer finishes her first attack, all monsters you control are destroyed! Lunatic Fury!" The entire field exploded, moonlight flooding across it.
"Trap Card, Raid Raptors - Desperate! I will negate an effect that would destroy cards on the field while I control a "Raid Raptors" monster, and I will draw a card!"
… he had an answer to everything, huh?
Looked like she would actually have to confront Revolution Falcon directly then.
"Moonlight Lio Dancer can perform a second attack every turn! She attacks Raid Raptors - Revolution Falcon! Shredding Moonlight Blades!"
"Revolution Falcon reduces the attack points of Special Summoned monsters that it battles to 0!" Kurosaki called with a fierce look on his face.
Serena took a deep breath, and then she spoke out her last trick. "Moonlight Lio Dancer is unaffected by your card effects!"
"What?" Kurosaki (and several of their spectators) exclaimed.
Lio Dancer slashed straight through the falcon, destroying it.
It was oddly satisfying.
This is my real strength. I've laid it all out—the strongest card I have. And this—
Metallic feathers fell and faded into particles of light.
—is the impact I can make!
Kurosaki: 3900 - 1500 = 2400LP
Kurosaki was knocked back. He let out a pained sound, and for a moment, Serena froze in horror.
Seconds later, he got back up.
"Well done," he said. "Is that the end of your turn?"
"Yes," Serena said.
"Then it's mine."
[Turn 6: Kurosaki] [H:6]
"Draw!" Kurosaki glanced at the cards. "I see your strength. But you still have far to go before you catch up to me. It's still not quite enough. Rank-Up-Magic Raid Force!" He revealed the green-bordered card in his hand. "I will Rank Up my Force Strix by 1 Rank!" The owl turned into dark streaks again. "Ferocious falcon. Break through this fierce battle and spread your wings! Destroy our gathering foes! Rank Up Xyz Change! Appear! Rank 5! Raid Raptors - Blaze Falcon!" A large red and black bird appeared on his field, the vibrant red catching the eye immediately.
[Raid Raptors - Blaze Falcon (R5/1000/2000/DARK/Winged Beast/Xyz/Effect) (OU:2)]
"Next, I have two Equip Spells. Raid Raptors - Iron Heart and Raptor's Ultimate Mace!" Two Spell Cards appeared on his field. "Iron Heart gives Blaze Falcon 500 attack points, and Ultimate Mace gives it 1000 attack points."
[Raid Raptors - Blaze Falcon: 1000 + 500 + 1000 = 2500ATK]
"But you still haven't reached Lio Dancer's attack points…"
"I don't need to." Kurosaki smirked—there was an almost friendly look on his face for the first time, something gentle still existing beyond his determination. "While Blaze Falcon has Overlay Units, it can attack you directly!"
Serena's eyes widened, and she glanced at her life points.
"Attack directly, Blaze Falcon! Raptor's Break of Thunderclap!"
Blaze Falcon flew forward, crashing right past her strongest monster and blasting away her life points. Serena fell back on the ground, and the holograms began to fade from around them.
Serena: 2250 - 2500 = 0LP
Winner: Shun Kurosaki!
Serena lay on the ground.
He just… circumvented her monster.
"Hah… hahaha!" She laughed, feeling oddly free in a way that she hadn't felt in a long time.
So that was what it felt like to lose, after dedicating all of her strength to something? And yet, she was still alive.
Losing didn't always mean death after all. It had been proven to her twice now.
And now, she could see a path forward, to become someone stronger. She had never found a person with a dueling style quite so similar to hers—these savage, strong monsters, destroying everything in their path on the way to the opponent. At the same time, in Shun Kurosaki's dueling, she had found what she lacked, and it had been shown to her so clearly.
Kurosaki walked over, reaching out a hand to her.
"Let's work together to defeat all our enemies, Serena Akaba," he said.
Serena gripped his hand, letting him pull her to her feet. "Just call me Serena," she said. "I think I'm done with that man, for now."
She glanced to the side. Yuto and Nue had approving looks on their faces as well.
"We have two days here before we set off," Nue said, raising a hand. "None of us are natives of this place. Anything you kids want to do before we go?"
"You're only one year older," Yuto commented.
Serena raised her hand. "I read about something that seemed really fun," she said. "Can we try it out?"
Everyone seemed surprised at Serena's suggestion, but they started walking towards the place anyway—Hitoda had searched it up and found a place that would be open until early the next morning.
Serena hung back, and the person that she was trying to talk to noticed immediately, dropping back to talk to her.
"What do you want?" Nue Kamisoka asked.
"What did you mean by us all being victims?" Serena asked. Kurosaki had said that Nue had been the one to tell him that, after all. Nue shrugged, not meeting her gaze.
"It was something that Gitsune told me," she said. "Something about how you were all told how to think by someone that you thought was a saviour. Was she wrong?"
Someone that I thought was a saviour…
The man that adopted me because I was a key to his plans, and then ignored me for years.
"No," Serena said. "But there are some real villains. Like—"
Like him.
Or is he also a victim of Academia? Come to think of it… I may not have been a very good friend to him after all.
I don't know where he came from. I don't know if he suffered from the war too. I don't know why he was always so eager for the Professor's approval.
Did I ever really know him at all? Or was I just selfishly imposing my wishes on him?
"Like who?" Nue asked.
Serena shook her head.
She might need to think a little more on that matter herself.
"We're here!" Hitoda called. Everyone looked forward.
They were truly here.
"Excuse me, sir!" Yuno called, stepping into the building before any of them. "Room for seven!"
The next morning:
Yuya, Gongenzaka, Sawatari, Dennis, Tsukikage and Mion all stared wordlessly as the seven people from other dimensions walked into the room. Six of them had faces at various different levels of half-asleep—while Yuno had a sunny look on his face, as per normal. "Hi, everyone!" He called, sitting down. Kyorin collapsed into a chair and promptly fell asleep on the table next to him.
Reiji cleared his throat, seeming completely unaffected. Sitting next to him was Reira, who just looked mildly confused.
"What happened to you all?" Sawatari exclaimed. "You look like you fistfought a door, and the door won!"
"Thanks," Kurosaki said sarcastically, but it came out like a growl.
"We went for a karaoke session," Yuno said serenely. "Apparently, Serena's never gone to one with friends before." He tapped his cheek. "Everyone was really reluctant initially, but they all got really into it!... uh, then we ended up staying there from nine at night to seven this morning. So we may or may not have gotten around sixty thousand yen charged to Reiji Akaba's credit card."
Reiji twitched slightly.
"But it was fun!"
Nue tripped and faceplanted the ground. Yuto, who always looked tired anyway and thus seemed to have no noticeable difference to the expression on his face, helped her up.
"... Yuno, you're really the most cheerful person I've ever met," Yuya said, sounding mildly amazed at how Yuno wasn't affected by everything happening around him.
"Anyway," Reiji said, "I thought that we could do introductions."
Hitoda's head slipped off the table, falling into her lap.
"... do you all need coffee?" Reiji said, raising an eyebrow.
After the delivery of six cups of coffee and a cup of hot chocolate (for Kyorin), everyone there was a little more awake.
"Let's do introductions," Reiji said, still sounding rather stony. "Of course, that is assuming that you all have agreed to be Lancers."
Noticeable silence filled the room.
"Very well. Let us begin. Introduce yourself, where you're from, and your playstyle. I'm Reiji Akaba. I have already met all of you before. I am the CEO of the Leo Corporation. I focus on multiple Special Summons at once. This is my sibling, Reira Akaba. They will be joining us."
"A child?" Kurosaki exclaimed, sitting right up and smacking his head against a lamp on the desk.
"Reira is very capable. I dare say that they would be capable of defeating any opponent that any of you have defeated." Considering that Kurosaki was currently suffering from a mild concussion (ok, probably not, but he had definitely gotten a headache from hitting his head against the lamp), Yuno took it upon himself to address Reira directly.
"Reira-san," he said. The young child made eye contact with him, before glancing away. "Are you alright with that?"
"... yes," Reira said after a moment. They were very quiet—he reminded Yuno of Miharu, in a way.
"Alright then." Mion reached over, patting Reira's head. "I'm Mion Myojin. I think I've met about half of you by now—I'm from the Standard Dimension, and I'm a student of LDS. My deck focuses on Spells and Spellcasters."
"Dennis Mackfield!" Dennis winked from next to her. "I'm also a student of LDS, though I'm not quite as illustrious as Myojin-san here. I'm an Entertainment Duelist, and I use Spellcasters and Xyz Summons!"
A very tired Nue raised her head. "... Nue Kamisoka of the Xyz Dimension," she said, sounding like her spirit had left her body. "Trap user."
Yuto cleared his throat. "Considering the state of my comrades, I think it's best if I introduce us," he said, glancing at Kurosaki, who had collapsed on the table from head pain. "I am Yuto Kamisoka of the Xyz Dimension. Our home was invaded by Academia and completely razed to the ground. This is Shun Kurosaki, my best friend. Nue's my sister. After my girlfriend, Ruri Kurosaki, was kidnapped by Academia, we crossed over to Standard to look for…" He hesitated, glancing at Shun. Clearly, there was something that he wanted to hide.
"They were looking for me, to use me as a hostage against my father, the Professor, Leo Akaba," Reiji filled in. That caused a ripple effect through the room. "Unfortunately, I had to inform them that my father does not care about me or my family, and that we similarly do not care about him. I am dedicated to stopping him."
"... fair enough," Hitoda said from next to Kurosaki, stopping any impending explosions from happening. "I am Hitoda Makishima." She looked tired, but not to the same extent as Nue and Shun. "From the Link Dimension!" She smiled pleasantly and kindly. "I'm a Charisma Duelist, just like Yuno here. They call me Soothsayer back there. My dueling is dueling that doesn't allow the opponent to do anything."
"You and three others at this table," Yuno muttered. Mion, Nue and Kyorin all blinked, while Hitoda laughed in acknowledgement.
From next to Hitoda, Sawatari spoke up. "Well, I'm the great Shingo Sawatari! I'm from this dimension, which makes it the best dimension. And I now use Pendulum Monsters!"
Crickets chirped.
"This man, Gongenzaka, is very pleased to meet all of you," Gongenzaka said. "I hope that we can work together to defend our worlds from invaders." He completely failed to actually introduce himself, but due to his third person description of himself, his name was at least communicated to everyone.
"Uh, yeah." Yuya raised a hand. "I'm Yuya Sakaki. I use Pendulum Summoning." He ducked his head, somewhat shy. "I'm an Entertainment Duelist too…"
From next to him, Serena stared forward, though she was clearly mentally clocked out. "Serena Akaba," she said. "The Professor adopted me, but I have since disowned him as my father and guardian. I was born in the Fusion Dimension."
Kyorin sipped at her hot chocolate, shyly looking away. "Um, I'm Kyorin Rinsoka… I'm from the Ritual Dimension."
"Wait, you're not from Standard?" Sawatari interrupted. "Whoa… you otherworldly refugees sure have been here for a while!"
Kyorin leaned away from the table, clearly intimidated by being questioned. "Um, yes… I ended up here after…"
She hesitated.
"Well, I guess there's a small lie that I have to confess to. I didn't end up here by picking up a card from an Academia agent and getting teleported here."
"There's no card that can do that," Serena, the resident Academia expert, said.
"Yes." Kyorin shook her head, slightly shy. "I… don't remember how I got here. I was just standing in the park, and then suddenly, I was here."
"You can't have teleported out of nowhere," Mion said, sounding somewhat incredulous.
"No, I believe her," Yuno said, and everyone turned to him. "Miharu, Hitoda and I were randomly teleported here by my dragon. Maybe she was teleported here by one of her Duel Monsters and she just didn't know it." He cleared his throat. "But while you're looking at me, I'm Yuno Sugisaki of the Link Dimension! Like Hitoda, I'm a Charisma Duelist. I go by Boundless Sea!" He pressed his hands together. "Nice to meet you!"
"How are you so cheerful?" Dennis asked. "You can't have more than two hours of sleep!"
"I've had no sleep, actually!" Yuno beamed. "It's not a problem. I've gone five days without sleeping before." At the other's curious look, Yuno recounted what happened. "I was doing a charity livestream alongside some other Charisma Duelists, and two of them cancelled at the last minute for their slots due to real life events. I decided to fill in their slots as a result. Miharu tells me that I almost exposed my real life identity five times!"
Crickets chirped once again.
"Is he always like this—" Nue started to ask, but then, Dennis interrupted her loudly.
"I admire you!" He said loudly. "Sacrificing your mental health for entertainment? Amazing!"
Yuno and Dennis beamed at each other, flowers of friendship practically forming and floating around them. Everyone else cleared their throats awkwardly.
"Now that introductions are done, I have decided to properly introduce you all to the mission," Reiji said. "First, we will head to the Synchro Dimension, to hopefully secure an alliance from them."
Kurosaki leapt to his feet, clearly ready to protest, but next to him, Nue sharply tugged on the side of his coat. Kurosaki looked back at her, and then after a moment, he sat back down, seeming at least willing to hear Reiji out.
Reiji continued speaking calmly. "While I understand the urgency that you may have to go directly after the Fusion Dimension, it is important to first establish the safety of the other dimensions. The Synchro Dimension, from our current information, is the only dimension currently uninvolved with the war. However, at this point, Academia has already made contact with four other dimensions. Thus, it's likely that they already have a spy in the Synchro Dimension as well. If we can act now, we can hopefully protect the Synchro Dimension from the same fate that has struck the Xyz and Ritual Dimensions."
Kyorin flinched.
"Then, my hope is to slowly eradicate Academia's presence in the other dimensions," Reiji continued. "That way, they are forced to consolidate all their forces in one place. And we can confront and eradicate them in one go."
Kurosaki gritted his teeth. He looked like he was about to loudly argue, and considering that he was one of the scariest people there, no one seemed eager to stop him.
No one except one person.
Nue gently patted his shoulder. "I agree with him," she said.
Kurosaki stared at her.
"I know you're anxious to save Ruri," Nue said. "But there are plenty of people who will lose their lives if we go straight for Academia. And we already know that they have some insanely strong duelists, Shun. If we go in on our own, it may only destroy us. We may not even be able to save Ruri on our own. And I don't want to lose either you or Yuto."
Kurosaki bit his lip—extremely hard. He looked very reluctant, and then finally, he nodded.
Nue didn't let go of him—clearly, she was worried that he would go off the rails. Yuto also seemed concerned for him.
"Thank you for your support, Kamisoka," Reiji said.
"Only because it's a logical plan."
Reiji cleared his throat. "We have some Pendulum Monsters for each of you that are being made, along with some Link Monsters as well," he said. "Most of them began production even before this—I was already planning on recruiting most of you, after all. We depart from here at 10a.m. sharp tomorrow. Don't be late. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. Otherwise, you may go."
"Yuya!"
Yuno caught up to his red and green-haired friend, who turned around to look at him.
"I found out something from Reiji Akaba yesterday night," he said. "I assume that you have some resolve now?"
"Yes." Yuya clenched a fist. "I will fight Academia for Yuzu's sake, and the sake of You Show Duel School. I won't look away anymore, and I won't unjustly blame myself—I will bring her back here to my homeland."
"Yes." Yuno made direct eye contact with Yuya, feeling indescribably proud. It seemed that Yuya had managed to pick himself back up too. "Yuya, the thing is… Yuzu and Miharu weren't taken by Academia. They were rescued by a duelist from the Synchro Dimension. They are in the Synchro Dimension right now."
"Synchro?" Yuya's eyes widened. "So when we go to Synchro…"
"Yes." Yuno smiled. "We'll find Yuzu and Miharu again."
"Thank goodness…" Yuya looked relieved.
"Well, I'll leave you to spend time with your family now," Yuno said, smiling. "See you tomorrow!" He turned around, intending to go and look for something to do.
"Yuno!"
The orange-haired boy stopped. Yuya walked closer to him.
"Thank you," his Standard counterpart said, smiling at him. "I know that there's probably a lot of things that I don't know about you. But even so… you helped me through a lot of things. Even if things didn't turn out perfectly, I am glad that I met you."
"... well, don't talk like that," Yuno said with a chuckle. "You make it sound like we're not going to see each other again." He walked forward, and he pulled Yuya into a tight hug. "I'm really glad to have met you too, Yuya."
He let go of Yuya, smiling at him.
"And after this war, let's make a promise, alright? You, Yuzu, Gongenzaka, and all of the LDS kids. You can all come to Den City. I'll put on a performance as Boundless Sea, and I'll show you what being a Charisma Duelist is like. You might have fun, too—and it might help you figure out what kind of Entertainment Duelist you want to be."
"It's a deal." Yuya raised a hand. "Let's do this. For the people we wish to protect."
Yuno returned the high-five.
"Nue," Shun said. Nue looked back at him. The two of them were currently in one of the upper floors of LDS—they hadn't gone out. They were too tired to do so, anyway—even though Nue was slightly more lucid now, she was still somewhat tired. "Do you truly agree with Reiji Akaba's plan?"
Nue raised an eyebrow. "What makes you think that I don't?"
"Because you're not altruistic in the slightest."
Nue cracked a smile. "You do know how to compliment a girl, don't you?" She shook her head. "It's certainly not because I give a shit about any of the other dimensions. I only care about what's mine, after all. So in normal circumstances, I wouldn't care that the other dimensions have been destroyed, only that we take revenge for ours." She folded her legs. "But what happens if we go on like this, Shun?"
Shun blinked.
"You and Yuto love Ruri so much that you will throw yourself into danger for her," she said. "And if I lose both of you, the people that I care for the most… I don't know what I'll do."
"Nue…"
"Don't rush into things, Shun," Nue said. "If you end up carded, it'll hurt Ruri so much to know that you hurt yourself for her sake."
… right.
Ruri would never forgive herself.
And Shun would never forgive himself if he hurt Ruri like that.
"I dreamed the other day that Yuto vanished, and I couldn't find him," Nue confessed. "So… in a way, I approve of anything that would make you two stay a little safer."
"I promise you that I will… try to be less reckless."
"That's alright then."
Nue looked at him. He looked back. They were both tired.
And Nue could tell how emotionally exhausted Shun was. Meeting Serena, a version of Ruri that was indoctrinated by Academia, couldn't be that easy.
"Come here," Nue said. Shun frowned, taking a step closer in confusion. Nue rolled her eyes. "Sit down next to me."
He sat down on the couch next to her. Nue gently laced her fingers through his.
"You're tired," she said soothingly. "We have a day, Shun. Slow down. Lie down."
"... wake me up if anything happens," Shun said, and Nue nodded. "So, do you mean…"
"Mm." She shifted backwards on the couch.
Shun's face went extremely red, but neither of them commented on it. He laid down on the couch, resting his head in her lap. Nue brushed her fingers through his hair.
The next day, they would get right back to fighting.
However, for now, they would just rest.
"Myojin-san! Your hand…"
Mion smiled, understanding Kyorin's concern. "It got a little busted up in the Battle Royale," she said. "I sent it in for emergency repairs. It'll cost a hefty fee, but it should be fine, I think. What about you? Holding up well?"
"Holding up well…" Kyorin nodded. "I'm doing fine. I think."
She sat down.
"Still thinking about Yuji…"
Mion tilted her head to the side. After all, she hadn't exactly met this 'Yuji'. "What exactly did he do?"
"... well, I think he's being coerced to fight for Academia," Kyorin said. "And that's… awful, but it's also revealed some things about him that I never realised. I just thought he was a quieter bookworm, antisocial and unsure how to talk to people. But I think there were some issues that he had that I never saw."
The blue-haired girl stared at her lap, her fingers interlocking nervously as she fidgeted.
"And I just feel guilty."
Mion looked at her. She sighed. "Why don't you blame him then?" She asked.
Kyorin flinched, before looking up indignantly. Despite her nervousness, she seemed ready to argue for Yuji's innocence.
"I don't mean that he's at fault for being coerced," Mion explained calmly. Kyorin seemed to calm down, though she still seemed confused. "I'm saying that blaming yourself for not seeing the signs is wrong. If you have the time to blame yourself, blame others too. Otherwise, you'll go through life as a nervous wreck."
"... I kind of already do," Kyorin said shyly, and Mion sighed again. She seemed to be doing that a lot more recently. But to be honest, what other reaction could someone like her, completely normal in all aspects, have to something like this?
"Not the point. In the end, Rinsoka, if someone's words are cold and don't convey what they really mean, then it's no one's fault but their own." Mion patted her head with her single hand, making eye contact with the blue-haired girl. "If someone is truly crying out for help, then they have to say it. And if they can't say it, then they can't blame others for not hearing it."
"... you feel like you're a lot older than me, suddenly," Kyorin said with a small smile.
"I'll take it as a compliment," Mion replied. "I just have a lot of experience when it comes to wrangling people who are stubborn, don't mean what they say and blame others constantly."
"... that sounds like a very bad thing and you should maybe avoid people like that—" Then, Kyorin was plucked from her seat. "Ahh—"
Mion lifted her head to see Kyorin being pulled onto a trapeze, with Dennis smiling at her from the trapeze. "Hello!" He greeted her loudly. "I saw that a pretty girl like you was frowning, and that's no good! What say you join me in a little performance?"
Mion couldn't help but smile—it was a kind thing to try, but her main worry was that Kyorin might be a bit too skittish for something like this—
"Oh!" Kyorin seemed rather happy to be on the trapeze. "Sure!"
Dennis came to a rather comical stop. "Say what?"
"My guardian really liked the circus, so he used to bring me there all the time!" Kyorin smiled. "It always looked so fun!"
"... well!" Dennis quickly smoothened his surprised face into a wide smile. "Looks like we have a rather enthusiastic audience member! I, Dennis Mackfield, will invite you into the best performance you've seen then!"
The two of them moved to an area with more space, and Mion couldn't help but laugh for a moment.
Yeah, she'd be fine.
"You're there, Shingo," she called behind her after a moment. "Not hanging out with dear old dad on the last day?"
Shingo sulkily revealed himself. "He'd just fuss over me," he said.
"But he wouldn't tell you not to go," Mion said dryly. "Because it makes good press for him to be mayor."
Shingo frowned. "You're… not telling me not to go either."
"Would you listen to me if I did?" Mion raised an eyebrow. "I'll just have to watch out for you when we leave. Don't get in too much trouble—our father's reputation means nothing in another world." She chuckled. "You're going to have to learn what it's like to live like a normal person for once. I can't say that I envy you."
"... is it fun?"
Mion turned to him, blinking. Her half-brother looked somewhat uncertain. Had he come to her because he was actually having doubts over all of this? Well, she wasn't going to tell him to go or not go.
In the end, he had to be responsible for his own choices. That was part of growing up—something that he had never quite had to do, under their father's wing.
"... might be, might not be," Mion said. "I guess there's some benefits to living a life with no worries. But, I always enjoyed seeing new things, even if they were dangerous."
"… I still don't like you," Shingo muttered, but there was a different tone to it now—the petulant voice of a teenager, rather than genuine hostility.
Aww. He was actually listening to her now.
She patted him on the head. "I think I can live with that," she said.
In the Fusion Dimension:
"So, it seems that we've both failed our missions."
"First time?" Yuji said after a moment, as Yuri looked at him with an expectant expression. The purple-haired boy had approached him while he was eating one of the sandwiches from the cafeteria, while sitting alone in the courtyard. There was a large berth given to them by everyone around them, evident by the fact that no one else was in the courtyard—clearly, everyone was scared of Yuri.
(Yuji failed to consider that the people there were also afraid of him, because he had been described as the partner of one of the scariest students at Duel Academy.)
(Serena had been the first person to inform him that he had apparently gotten a nickname by others. He hadn't even known that until she had said it—after all, he didn't talk to anyone.)
"Yes, actually." Yuri sat down. He looked hesitant for a brief moment, before he went back to his usual careless smile. "… tell me, Fujita, what makes you tick?"
"I wouldn't tell you."
"But I want to know." Yuri folded his arms. "I would think that you and I would get along."
In what universe would—
Yuji didn't reply verbally. He just raised an eyebrow.
"I mean, you seem like the kind of guy that thinks other people drag him down with their expectations." Yuri kicked his feet in the air lazily. "You just do what you want, and you just want everything to remain normal and uncomplicated."
He was entirely correct, but just to be contrary, Yuji didn't reply.
"I would never place expectations on you! I am perfectly willing and capable of dealing with all complications. And also, I'm the kind of guy who loves the unexpected! Like back then, when you assaulted the Doktor's Lab, I covered for you, you know."
Yuji's head shot up in surprise.
"Please, Fujita." Yuri chuckled. "You were the most likely suspect. Do you really think that no one suspected that it was you? I gave you an alibi for the time when the Professor asked, and Shino erased the camera footage of the day completely. I don't know what you did to get her on your side, but you're lucky. Regardless, it's through our combined effort that you were 'proven' innocent."
"… why did you help? It's clearly not for me."
"Because those little bugs of the Doktor's are so boring," Yuri said. "I want to fight some real duelists. If we just brainwash everyone, it's not fun."
"… liar." Yuji stared at Yuri intently. "The prototypes created weren't stabilised yet. It would have taken a while longer than that."
Yuri seemed to be wrestling with something. Unbeknownst to Yuji, he was thinking about Shino's words to him.
"It's fine to joke with someone in an attempt to make friends with them—but not if you made the worst first impression known to mankind. Perhaps if you think someone is enough like you, to the point that you want to get along with them, you need to be honest for once. Then, you can go back to insincerity afterwards. I mean, you already fucked up your relationship with your best friend beyond repair, so you can't mess this up any more than you messed that up. Or you can choose to continue on the way that you are. No shame in that. I'll just judge you."
"… they all look like Serena," Yuri said after a moment. The truth, for once. "And I know I left her behind, but they all have the same fire that she had… and the idea of it being snuffed out angered me."
… acceptable.
Yuji lifted his head, making direct eye contact. Usually, he would reject the idea of trusting someone. He had already been burned by this before.
However…
He thought about Yuno's face again. That unconditional kindness.
"Because knowing that someone understands might make your path a little easier."
He answered, truth for truth. "I think we could have been friends, if we met in any other way. But not like this."
Not after you hurt Chiaki.
"… then, is there a way to make up for that?"
"Probably not," Yuji said bluntly. "Not now that it's come so far."
"… oh."
Silence.
"Come with me," Yuji said after a moment. Yuri frowned. "When we have the chance to leave this war. I may not like you, but…"
I would like the chance to choose to forgive you.
"… I don't know how to live without war," Yuri said, almost as though he was lost in thought. "I never, ever, knew a time without war. But I must have known, because otherwise, why would I once have had a name? Why did I have a home once?"
And then, Yuji understood.
You can't stop carding people because it makes you feel alive. More than anything else, it makes you feel alive…
Everyone in this school should have seen this, and yet they let you become this way.
… is this grief? Knowing that you and I could so easily have been friends, but that possibility is now locked off to us. I don't like you. I don't even tolerate you, most days. And yet, I still wish that I had that chance.
"Then, I'll kill two birds with one stone."
Yuri turned to look at him. There was no smile on his face.
"To save you from this hell you live, and to avenge the person most important to me, who you hurt." Yuji met Yuri's gaze. "I will kill you."
Yuri looked at him, and then he laughed. That smile spread across his face again—the one that everyone hated. Yuji suspected that even Yuri hated that smile. "Sure," the violet-haired boy said. "Fight on! Gather every last bit of your strength! That will make my victory all the sweeter."
Yuji stared at him, closed his eyes and said nothing more.
He wasn't some kind of saint, trying to save others from their bad mistakes.
He just wanted to live.
"... boys!" Shino clicked her tongue for a moment, before turning away from the two in the courtyard. "All of them have communication issues, I swear to—"
She cut herself off as she spotted a familiar figure along the corridor, who was given perhaps an even wider berth than Yuri. She immediately sped forward, her wheelchair clicking against the ground as she caught up to him—though he had noticeably slowed down at the sight of her.
"Fancy meeting you here!" She said with a wink. "So the Professor finally recalled you from the Link Dimension? Did negotiations go that well?"
"They are going extremely poorly." The figure said with a sigh. He was a man with dark blue hair, a rather calm expression, and a very cool-looking black outfit. "Considering how obstinate the Grandmaster Council is being, let alone the SOL Corporation, the Professor deemed that it would be better to not waste so much manpower there for now. How about things with the Standard Dimension? I haven't received the mission brief yet."
"Oh, we failed completely," Shino said cheerfully. A less regal person would have faceplanted the ground. Hell Kaiser Ryo Marufuji, however, simply raised an eyebrow.
"You failed? I can understand the Professor's newly recruited Ritual Duelist being a bit unreliable, but what about you and Yuri?"
"I… got pulled into a draw! So I had to come back here, yup."
Ryo gave her a very unimpressed look. "So you took the first opportunity to leave, is what you're saying."
Shino shrugged, still beaming at him. Her lack of conviction in Academia's goals had never been a secret when it came to the people she cared about. "I at least made sure to distract the two strongest opponents first!"
The person who held the strongest conviction about Academia's goals sighed. "Did they force the draw, or did you?"
"W-ell," Shino said, dragging out the word. "They forced the draw, but in all fairness, they could've won!"
"Your tone makes me think that you're lying."
"Me? Lie to you?" Shino giggled. "Not in a million years, Ryo-kun! After all, I'm in love with you!"
Ryo rolled his eyes, though Shino saw a small smile form on his face. "I can't ever get a read on you," he said, clearly taking her words as a joke. Not a surprise, considering that Shino had been saying that for the three years that they had known each other. (It was very much not a joke, but if he ever found out that she was serious, Shino would spontaneously combust with embarrassment.) "Are you alright, though? You aren't normally sent out into intense combat situations."
"Eh, I was bait."
"You were what—"
"Shino-chan!" Another voice chirped. Someone came by and dropped a dragon plushie into her hands. Shino grinned, holding onto it as the figure skipped in front of her.
"Fubuki," Ryo said, sounding very unimpressed.
"Finally got back from the Ritual Dimension! Man, that took a while." Fubuki Tenjoin grinned. "Got you a plushie though!"
"We should go to the Professor," Ryo said immediately. "He mentioned that he had some urgent news for us."
"Alright!" Fubuki patted Shino's shoulder. "See you!"
Shino watched the two of them go. She closed her eyes for a moment, memorising Fubuki's bright-eyed look and Ryo's calm smile.
After all, it was likely that she wouldn't see those expressions again for a long time.
… the news that the Professor was about to give them was clear, after all.
Almost seven months ago, Asuka Tenjoin, Johan Andersen and Sho Marufuji had defected from Academia.
… but life went on.
Alright. Who else should she check on?
In the Standard Dimension:
Kyorin giggled as they landed on the ground. "That was fun!" She said enthusiastically. Dennis bowed, grinning as well. "Thanks!"
"No problem! Always happy to help a pretty girl wish her worries away!" Dennis grinned. "Uh, but that Yuji guy… is he your boyfriend?"
Kyorin couldn't help but laugh, even though it was clearly a genuine question. "Nope! I'm staying in my lane. He and Chiaki are made for each other. I've known that since the start." They walked along the street. "I had a crush on another guy, actually. I didn't know him for long, but… he was a good person. Sweet to me, and to everyone, really…" She closed her eyes. "... and then, he turned out to be from Academia."
Dennis blinked. "... no way!" He said, sounding rather choked up.
"Yeah." Kyorin shrugged. "I only know this from what Yuji told me during our duel, but he had no reason to lie to me. Apparently, our friends, Asuka and Johan, were spies from Academia who were only there to kidnap Chiaki and Yuji." She tightened her grip on the fabric of her skirt, feeling… disappointed. "I really liked Johan, but if he did that to Chiaki and Yuji, who never did anything to really hurt anyone… I can't forgive him for that."
"So the guy you liked betrayed you, huh?"
"Mm."
"And yet you're still so trusting towards people?"
"I mean," Kyorin said, "I believe that there are good people in the world!" She glanced back at him. "There's a coffee shop up ahead! Last one there has to buy the other one coffee!" She raced off through the snow, never noticing the conflicted look on Dennis's face before he followed her.
"I didn't expect to see you here."
"Serena?" Yuno blinked. He was currently adjusting his chain link bracelets—he had bought a few more pendants to put on the chain links, after all. However, the shop that he was currently at wasn't selling those pendants. "Perfect timing! Come over!"
The purple-haired girl with Miharu's face walked over. "What is it?"
"Which one do you think looks nicer?" Yuno lifted up the two objects that he had been looking at. One was a cute snowglobe in the shape of a light bulb, filled with glitter. The other was a colourful, kaleidoscopic butterfly hair clip.
"The hair clip is more practical," Serena commented. "You're getting something for her? Are you sure? It might be a while before you can give it to her…"
"… Miharu's birthday is in a week," Yuno admitted. Serena's eyes widened. "She's born on Christmas… and wow, saying it now makes me realise that none of the Lancers are going to be able to celebrate Christmas with their families." He tugged at the scarf around his neck—the long blue scarf that Miharu had knitted for him. On impulse, he picked up both items and bought them both.
He would give both of them to Miharu when they met again.
"Anything here that you like?" He asked Serena, who blinked. "I mean, it's Reiji Akaba's wallet, so feel free to spend his money. I certainly am, to get back at him for hiding things from us."
"… I want everything," Serena decided, immediately agreeing with him.
Yuno held up his hands with finger guns. "Nice," he said. "Let's get going!"
"… I thought that you would be with your family."
"I couldn't rest."
"Yeah. Neither could I."
Yuya and Yuto looked at each other. Yuto walked over, taking a seat next to Yuya. Yuya held out Dark Rebellion, and Yuto took him back. The two of them sat next to each other, a fountain spraying the air around them, cooling it somewhat. It was winter, so both of them were wrapped up in multiple layers. The moon was high in the sky.
"Thank you for lending me your strength," Yuya said. He chuckled. "Without you…" He took out Odd-Eyes Rebellion Dragon from his Extra Deck. "I don't know if I would have survived. I still have to figure out a way to thank Kurosaki too…"
"I'm just glad you're alright." Yuto firmly met Yuya's gaze. "You embody Ruri's belief—that duels should be fought for smiles."
"Is that the only reason why you helped me?"
"No." Yuto met his gaze. "… I just think that in another life, you and I could have been good partners. Dark Rebellion seems to like your Odd-Eyes."
"… I think so too." Yuya lifted a fist. Yuto returned the fist bump.
"Are you scared?" Yuto asked. He sounded concerned. "Not to insult you, but you are an entertainer. Our reality of war… once you step in it, it's hard to go back."
"I am scared." Yuya took a long, shuddering breath. "I am scared… but I will take a step forward with courage. I won't be afraid anymore."
Yuto smiled. Like a shadow, he simply sat there. The two boys looked like reflections of each other, to anyone walking past them.
They didn't speak anymore. The clock ticked to twelve.
And then, it was a new day.
[Six Dimensions - Standard Arc: Complete.]
[Loading Disc 2: Synchro Arc…]
[LOADING FAILURE.]
[Loading Intermission.]
Duel 1 Summary: Serena Akaba vs Shun Kurosaki
Duel Format: Normal Duel
Turn 1: Serena Akaba
Serena Normal Summons Moonlight Emerald Bird. (4*/1200/1000) She uses Emerald Bird's effect and sends a "Moonlight" card from her hand to the GY to draw 1 card. She sets 2 cards facedown and ends her turn.
Turn 2: Shun Kurosaki
Shun draws. He Normal Summons Raid Raptors - Tribute Lanius (4*/1800/400) from his hand. With Tribute Lanius's effect, Shun sends Raid Raptors - Mimicry Lanius from the Deck to the GY. With Mimicry Lanius's effect, Shun banishes it from the GY to add a "Raid Raptors" card from his Deck to his hand. Since he controls a "Raid Raptors" monster, he Special Summons Raid Raptors - Fuzzy Lanius (4*/500/1500) from his hand. He activates the Continuous Spell, Raid Raptors - Nest. With its effect, since he controls 2 "Raid Raptors" monsters, he adds another "Raid Raptors" monster from his Deck to his hand. He uses Fuzzy Lanius and Tribute Lanius to Xyz Summon Raid Raptors - Force Strix (R4/100/2000/OU:2) in Attack Position. He uses Force Strix's effect, detaching Fuzzy Lanius to add a Level 4 DARK Winged Beast from his Deck to his hand. (RRFS: OU:2 - 1 = OU:1) Since Fuzzy Lanius was sent to the GY, Shun adds another copy of Fuzzy Lanius from his Deck to his hand.
Shun Special Summons Raid Raptors - Singing Lanius (4*/100/100) from his hand since he controls an Xyz Monster. He then Special Summons Raid Raptors - Pain Lanius (1*/100/100) from his hand by taking damage equal to Singing Lanius's ATK. Then, Pain Lanius copies Singing Lanius's Level. [SK: 4000 - 100 = 3900LP] (RRPL: 1* - 4*) Since he took damage, he Special Summons Raid Raptors - Avenge Vulture (4*/1700/100) from his hand. Force Strix gains 500 ATK for each Winged Beast he controls, other than itself. (RRFS: 100 + 500 x 3 = 1600ATK) Force Strix attacks and destroys Emerald Bird. [SA: 4000 - 400 = 3600LP] Serena activates Moonlight Reincarnation Dance, adding 2 "Moonlight" monsters from her Deck to her hand. Avenge Vulture, Pain Lanius and Singing Lanius attack directly. [SA: 3600 - 1700 - 100 - 100 = 1700LP]
Shun overlays Pain Lanius and Singing Lanius to Xyz Summon a second copy of Force Strix in Defense Position. This second copy, deemed Force Strix 2, uses its effect. (RRFS(2): OU:2 - 1 = OU:1) Shun sets 2 cards facedown and ends his turn.
Turn 3: Serena Akaba
Serena draws. She Normal Summons Moonlight White Rabbit. (2*/800/800) With White Rabbit's effect, she revives Moonlight Emerald Bird. Then, she activates Fusion Substitute, fusing Moonlight White Rabbit and Moonlight Emerald Bird to Fusion Summon Moonlight Cat Dancer. (7*/2400/2000) Emerald Bird revives White Rabbit. Cat Dancer tributes White Rabbit to activate her effect, allowing her to attack every monster Shun controls twice this turn. Cat Dancer attacks Avenge Vulture. Shun activates Rank-Up-Magic Battle Up Force, Ranking Up the Force Strix in Attack Position into Raid Raptors - Revolution Falcon (R6/2000/3000/OU:2) Using Revolution Falcon's effect, he targets Cat Dancer to destroy it. Serena activates Moonlight Reinforcement Dance to protect Cat Dancer. Shun activates Raptor's Gust to tribute Avenge Vulture and negate the Trap. Revolution Falcon's effect resolves. [SA: 1700 - 1200 = 500LP] Serena banishes Reinforcement Dance and White Rabbit from the GY to add a "Moonlight" monster from her Deck to her hand. She sets a card facedown and ends her turn.
Turn 4: Shun Kurosaki
Shun draws. He detaches 1 Overlay Unit from the remaining Force Strix to add a Level 4 DARK Winged Beast from his Deck to his hand. (RRFS: OU:1 - 1 = OU:0) He Normal Summons Raid Raptors - Sharp Lanius (4*/1700/1000) from his hand. He changes Force Strix to Attack Position. Sharp Lanius attacks directly. Serena Special Summons Moonlight Sapphire Dolphin (4*/600/1800) from her hand, halving all damage that turn. Shun stops Sharp Lanius's attack. Revolution Falcon attacks and destroys Sapphire Dolphin. Shun controls 2 other Winged Beasts, so Force Strix has 1100 ATK. Force Strix attacks directly. Serena activates Moonlight Exchange, negating the damage and gaining LP equal to twice the damage she would have taken. [SA: 500 + 1100 / 2 x 2 = 1600LP] Shun uses Sharp Lanius's effect to revive Tribute Lanius, overlaying the two of them to Xyz Summon Raid Raptors - Force Strix for the third time in Defense Position. (RRFS(2): OU:2) Using Force Strix's effect, she adds a Level 4 DARK Winged Beast monster from her Deck to her hand. (RRFS(2): OU:2 - 1 = OU:1) Shun sets 2 cards and ends his turn.
Turn 5: Serena Akaba
Serena draws. She activates Moonlight Fusion, fusing Moonlight Panther Dancer in her Extra Deck with Moonlight Crimson Fox and Moonlight Yellow Marten in her hand to Fusion Summon Moonlight Lio Dancer. (10*/3500/3000) Crimson Fox reduces Force Strix's ATK to 0, and Yellow Marten lets her add a "Moonlight" Spell/Trap from her Deck to her hand. (RRFS(1): 1100 - 0ATK) Lio Dancer attacks Force Strix. Shun activates the Trap Card, Raid Raptors - Readiness, reducing damage to 0. Lio Dancer's effect triggers to destroy all monsters Shun controls. Shun activates Raid Raptors - Desperate, negating the effect that would destroy cards on the field and drawing a card. Lio Dancer attacks and destroys Revolution Falcon. [SK: 3900 - 1500 = 2400LP] Serena ends her turn.
Turn 6: Shun Kurosaki
Shun draws. He activates Rank-Up-Magic Raid Force, Ranking Up Force Strix by 1 Rank into Raid Raptors - Blaze Falcon (R5/1000/2000/OU:2) in Attack Position. He activates Raptor's Ultimate Mace and Raid Raptors - Iron Heart, increasing Blaze Falcon's ATK. (RRBF: 1000 + 500 + 1000 = 2500ATK) Blaze Falcon attacks directly. [SA: 1600 - 2500 = 0LP] Shun Kurosaki wins.
OC Cards:
Moonlight Reinforcement Dance
(Trap)
Target 1 DARK monster on the field: It cannot be destroyed by card effects this turn. You can banish this card from your GY, along with 1 DARK monster; add 1 "Moonlight" monster from your Deck to your hand.
Moonlight Sapphire Dolphin
(4*/600/1800/DARK/Beast-Warrior/Effect)
Once per turn, during your opponent's turn (Quick Effect): You can Special Summon this card from your hand in Defense Position, and if you do, this turn, all damage you take is halved. If this card is sent to the GY by a card effect: You can add 1 "Moonlight" card or "Polymerization" from your GY to your hand. You can only activate each effect of "Moonlight Sapphire Dolphin" once per turn.
Moonlight Exchange
(Trap)
If you would take damage: You can gain LP equal to twice that amount instead. You can banish this card from your GY: Special Summon 1 "Moonlight" monster from your GY. You can only activate each effect of "Moonlight Exchange" once per turn.
Different Card Effects from TCG:
Raid Raptors - Rise Falcon - Anime effect.
Rank-Up-Magic Battle Up Force - Anime effect
Raid Raptors - Revolution Falcon - Anime effect
Moonlight Lio Dancer - Anime effect
Moonlight Cat Dancer - Anime effect
Raid Raptors - Readiness - Anime effect
Raid Raptors - Desperate - Anime-only card
Rank-Up-Magic Raid Force - Anime effect
End Notes:
It stings that Serena and Shun never got a canon duel. It was such a missed opportunity. So yes, this is my way of compensating for that. It was going to happen during the Friendship Cup, but I got a much better idea. Plus, I think I prefer that duel in the context of this part of the story—where Serena is the single 'safe' Bracelet Girl, since at this point, she still thinks that Yuzu and Miharu have been captured by Academia. Serena's motivation in this story, once again, is to save Yuzu and her other counterparts, and also to maybe punch the Professor for lying to her. At the same time, she's now seeking to become as strong as Kurosaki as well.
Most of Kurosaki's cards get their TCG effects, since their TCG effects are just less situational forms of their anime effects. I did mention that I've been playing Raidraptors for years on end, and Raidraptors are amazing. I did have to restrict some of the cards I allowed him to have here, but I couldn't help but give him some of the powerful Main Deck monsters.
I might write the karaoke session as an omake if I'm ever bored.
They get to know that Leo Akaba's the enemy right now, because there's really no reason to hide it. Also, it made no sense to me that they found out about things on the day they left. Here, they get to know things before, so that they have time to process it.
*clears throat* Everyone is human. Even Yuri. I want to say especially Yuri, in the context of this story. He is still the insane boy we see in the anime, but there is some kind of justification and personality behind it all. Some of the fics that I like best try to redeem Yuri at the end of the story, but I've always been of the strong belief that there is no such thing as 'defeat equals friendship'. So yes, while Yuri is going to still be the enemy for quite a while, I'm sowing the seeds for some stuff in the future. I want to clarify—Yuri is fucked up, and that does not change. Yuji has not forgiven him. He has done a lot of fucked up shit, and he has a long road to make up for what he's done.
Kyorin: "Oh, Yuji and Chiaki never hurt anyone." All the bullies that Chiaki beat up: "Excuse me?"
In case it's not clear, the intermission is just the Q&A chapter. Just a little meta there, heh. Now, time to answer all your questions about the Q&A! Hope you don't mind that I'm just answering them in one mega paragraph. Normal review responses will be below. Thanks to those who have favourited, followed and reviewed!
Q&A for Chapter 23:
Rules: Reviewers may submit as many questions as they want, to any character that has currently showed up in the story, whether they are canon or an OC. So characters like Ryoken, Asuka and the Professor fit the requirements, while characters like Jack, Crow and Zarc are not. If the reviewer has a general question, they can address it to more than one character as well, or just toss the question directly at me. All questions will be accepted until the 1st of February, 11.59, UTC-5 time (aka 12am in Washington, DC). If you submit any questions after them, they might squeak in, but don't count on it. :) Chapter 23 will come out sometime after that, depending on how many questions there are.
Now, review responses!
To Beelzemon and i love it, thank you for your votes!
For Combo Enthusiast, thank you for your compliment! That's so sweet, heh. I don't necessarily judge the writing quality/grammar of people on this site too much, especially because we're all such different people. I mean, fun fact, my English is my second language, but I mean, look at this fic and tell me that you would know that from my writing. I love reading a lot of Yu-Gi-Oh! fics though, I just wish there were more of them. I checked out Revz and his videos are quite intriguing! Halfway through the nuzlocke series he made right now. No comment on lore speculation. Summoning methods are a bit too complicated to come up with. I think the most creative person in that aspect was Donjusticia, with Signs of Renewal. I do like OC archetypes though. Good card effect speculation! I won't confirm anything. Thank you for your vote. :)
For T.V. 2000, glad you enjoyed Yuji vs Yuno! I have a lot of new stuff planned for the Synchro Arc, so I hope you'll enjoy that.
For Unlucky-Fausto, there will be a two week or so break between Standard and Synchro, so that's about to happen soon, heh. (I say break, but some shorts and the intermission Q&A have already been planned for that.) Thanks for the comment on Yuno and Yuya's friendship—I had a lot of fun creating dynamics between all the characters that would become Lancers, and I really hope it showed! Tbh, I forgot about Sora's sister until now, heh. Glad you enjoyed Reiji/Mion. When I read that review, I had just finished Chapter 22's first draft, and I had to seriously reevaluate whether or not this was a fic with too many pairings. (Jk, jk, I'm having too much fun with them.) I have a lot of plot reasons why Seto Kaiba cannot show up in this fic, but I share your pain at him not being here. Pegasus is… interesting. Can't comment too much on the role he'll play in the Ritual Dimension Arc.
For marcusns. mills, the poll for canon characters to be given more time will be put up when Chapter 23 is posted. Zarc and Ray getting more screen-time is a given. No comment on Zarc's appearance—it's too far in the future. (Also, I don't know if you've noticed the space I put between your name, but for some reason, ffnet keeps removing the second half of your name, so I kind of have no choice. Sorry about that.)
For Grachi400, my favourite archetype in this story differs a bit. Favourite that has been used in this story so far? Predaplant or Raid Raptors. Favourite to write a duel for? Phantom Knights or Lyrical Luscinia. Favourite overall (not including spoilers) is probably going to be Speedroids. I don't think I've ever expressed how strongly I love Speedroids until now, but Speedroids are actually my most-played Master Duel deck. They rival Predaplants in terms of how much I love the deck.
To Burning abyss, glad that you enjoyed Yuji's arc. No comment on the fusion, but I won't kill off a character until I make full use of them. You can be sure that Yuji will be around for quite a while, as a result. I've also already said that the Yu boys won't fuse for a long time. *gestures to a very alive Yuto*
To HunterHQ, you're correct, I assumed that Clear Wing was a female because of that. I thought about a trivia section for cards, but I thought the card section would be too long. Maybe I'll do that in the future, but it'd be too much work to retroactively change things now. :D I do have a lot of trivia for most of the OC cards in this story though.
To Kurenai. lui, I won't confirm whether those duels will show up in the main story proper, but I do intend for Yuno vs Ryoken or Yuji vs Shino to happen at some point, whether before or after the battle with Zarc. No comment on the other duels that you want to see, but I hope that you'll be entertained.
To phantomdragons, thanks for your vote! You got it right for your reading of the significance of Cherubini. I also write a lot. I mentioned to an earlier reviewer that English is my second language, but writing is my passion. Also glad that you love Empty Abyss so much. I was going to make a joke that Mion and Reiji are perhaps the least complicated pairing in this entire story (*cough* look at all those pairings lmao) but then I realised that Yuno and Miharu are sitting right there.
That's it! And that's the end of the Standard Arc too. Reminder to cast your vote for the poll if you haven't, and send in any questions! Signing off now!