Pipe Dreams
"Alright, here's what I've been working on for the past few months." Jeremy said as he placed a big piece of paper on the table, were the others could see it clearly. It was blueprints of...
"A submarine?" Nervin asked.
It was a submarine indeed. Well detailed blue prints of a submarine. The guys were certainly not expecting this.
"You actually built a freaking submarine?" Tank questioned.
"Yup." Jeremy said, smiling proudly.
"That's actually pretty cool!" Rally complimented. "You really outdid yourself, Jeremy."
"I'll say." Yusei added.
"What's with that bike?" Blitz asked as he pointed to the middle of the blueprints. True to his words, there were sketches of a bike, right in the middle of the submarine.
"Oh yeah, it's used to drive the submarine." Jeremy explained.
"Really?" Cody asked curiously.
"Originally, I was hoping to find an engine, or at least parts I could use to build one. But no such luck, so I decided to improvise."
"Well it looks like it takes a lot of space." Blitz noted.
"Yeah, it looks like there's barely room for one person." Nervin added.
"It's true." Jeremy replied, rubbing the back of his head. "If I could, I would have made the sub bigger. But I couldn't find better parts."
"But still... a submarine. That's awesome." Tank said with a smile. "You actually have your own way out of here. I'm jealous."
"And once I get to the city..." Jeremy faced Cody. "I'm coming with you, and find the clue your parents left."
Cody frowned. "I don't know, Jeremy. You remember what they said in that video. I'd be putting myself in danger if I do that..."
"Even more reason for me to come with you!" Jeremy countered. "Because if there's one thing that would make this mission more dangerous... it's trying to do it all by yourself. You're going to need all the help you could get!"
"He's got a point there, Cody." Yusei spoke up. "We really don't know how dangerous the people who attacked your parents are. It's too risky to do it alone. And I believe Jeremy could be really helpful with this."
Cody looked down to the floor, letting Yusei's words sink in. On one hand, Cody didn't want to risk his friends' safety while following his parents' clues. On the other hand, there was no guarantee that he could manage all alone. That much he could tell. When he looked up, he faced Jeremy. "Are you absolutely sure you want to do this?"
"I am." He said, determined. "I'll do anything I can to help you! I know the risks, but I know we can pull it off!"
Cody stayed silent for a moment before a small smile formed on his face. "Okay, so be it. I'll let you come."
Jeremy smiled. "Thanks, Cody."
"Now that that's settled..." Yusei spoke up, getting everyone's attention. "...we got a lot of preparations to do before midnight. You guys ready?"
"Yes!" Everyone said.
Later on, Cody watched as Jeremy packed a few things in a bag. "Okay, it's possible that there's a port in the city, facing to the Satellite's direction. So once Yusei and I get to New Domino City, I'll get to the port and wait for you there. Sound good?"
"Sounds like a plan." Jeremy planned.
"You know Jeremy, I'm actually surprised. You really were insistent to help me with the search for my parents' clue. I don't think I've seen you so serious before."
"That's because..." Jeremy trailed off before giving him a soft look. "I really want to help you. After all, you helped me a lot since we first met."
"Yeah well, you've been helpful as well. Especially when you helped me and Yusei with our runners."
"But you've done much more to me. I really mean it. Before I met you guys, I was different...
Flashback
"I grew up on the streets in the Satellite, without anyone who cared about me. There was no one for me to care about. I was completely alone."
A younger Jeremy was wandering on the streets, looking worn out and hungry. He tripped and fell onto the ground. He slowly got up and coughed a little.
"Since I had no one to spend time with, I usually passed the time by trying to fix some old things I could find."
Jeremy walked around in the junkyard and picked up some random things. Scrap metal, circuit boards, cables, etc.
He was then sitting at the corner of an old building, tinkering with an old monkey-like wind up toy. He then winded it up and placed it on the floor as it clapped with its cymbals. Jeremy smiled at his work.
"That's how my life used to be. Me and my machines. I always believed that I could only rely on myself to survive. That is, until that day..."
"OW!" Jeremy yelped as he was pushed by three guys. He fell to the ground and moaned as the bullies looked down to him. They were all wearing matching grey hoodies. The one on the right had white hair. The one on the left had brown hair. And the one in the middle, presumably the leader, had red hair. And he was leering at Jeremy.
"Now listen here, shrimp. This is our territory! And no one is welcome here." He then held up the wind up monkey Jeremy fixed. "Especially tech geeks like you!" He then dropped it on the ground.
Before Jeremy could reach it, the leader stomped it really hard, crushing it completely. Jeremy was staring at the remains of his toy. He then lowered his head and gritted his teeth.
The bullies noticed this and laughed. "Aaww, is the little geek upset?" The white-haired boy taunted.
"Are you gonna cry?" The brown-haired boy added.
"How about asking your mama buy you a new toy?" The leader cracked. They all laughed louder afterwards... "Ooofff!" But only in a brief moment before the leader was suddenly tackled. He groaned before he looked up. "Hey, what the-gah!" He tried to speak, but was interrupted by a fist.
And that fist belonged to Jeremy, who looked furious. "Shut up!" He then punched him again. "Shut up!" And again. "Shut up shut up SHUT UP!" He bombarded him with lots of punches on his face. He punched him over and over... "Ah!" Before he was dragged by the other two bullies, who then held him down. "Hey!" He struggled in their grip.
The leader then got up, his face full of a few bruises. He then spat out some blood before giving Jeremy a hard glare. "You little punk! You're going to reg-OW!" He was suddenly hit a by rock coming from behind. "What the...!?" He and the others turned around and saw Crow (younger) who held another rock in his right hand, giving them a hard look.
"You guys leave him alone!"
The leader gritted his teeth. "Oh yeah? And what if we don't!?"
"Agh! OW!"
He blinked before he turned back, and was surprised that Jeremy was free from his lackeys' grip. But what surprised him even more, was that they were pinned down by Yusei and Jack (younger) "What the hell? Where did you punks come from!?"
"Why don't you ask me!?" Someone called out
The leader turned to the direction the voice came. "Ooofff!" Only to get a hard kick on his stomach and then fell onto the ground. The person who kicked him was Cody (younger), who looked at him firmly.
Later
Eventually, the bullying trio ran away in fright.
"That's right! You guys better run! And don't come back!" Crow called out with a grin.
"Done already? I was getting warmed up." Jack said, crossing his arms.
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, Jack." Yusei replied.
Cody approached Jeremy, who was sitting on the ground, staring at the remains of his wind up monkey. "Are you okay?"
"!" Jeremy flinched and moved away from him.
"Calm down. We're not gonna pick on you. We're not like those bullies from earlier."
"Yeah right." Jeremy muttered and looked away. "Like I'd believe that. The Satellite is full of greedy crooks. In this place, you can only trust yourself in order to survive."
"Not all people are like that." Cody continued. "It's true that the Satellite is a rough place. But in a rough place like this, you can rely on your friends to make your living."
"Shut your mouth!" Jeremy yelled. "You don't know what you're talking about! You don't even know I feel about this hellhole!" Jeremy lowered his head as tears ran down his cheek. "My parents... they got sick when I was like 5 years old. I was left alone. How would you know!? How would you know how that kind of loss feels!?"
Everyone was quiet after that. No one said a word after a while. Especially Yusei, Crow and Jack, who watched their friend. Cody closed his eyes, letting Jeremy's words sink in. And finally, he spoke up. "I'm afraid I don't know. The truth is... I don't even know if I had parents to begin with."
Jeremy looked up curiously.
"One day, I woke up... with no memories from my past. I don't remember my parents. I don't remember if I was born in the city, or in the Satellite. I just... have no idea about my life."
Jeremy was a little surprised. He never met someone who couldn't remember their past.
"But... my friends have always been with me. Supported me. Even tried to help me remember my past. They even try to help me today. They're always there for me. They're like my second family." He then held his hand out to him. "And that's something you could get as well. We don't want a nice mechanic like you be all alone." He finished with a smile.
Jeremy stared at Cody's hand, thinking hard about this.
"That was the day that changed my life. At first, I was still a little distrusting."
Jeremy's hand reached Cody's slowly and grabbed it.
"But as my time with you guys passed, I started to feel at ease."
At Martha's place, Jeremy found himself at a table in the dining room. The elderly woman placed a bowl of steamy soup. Jeremy eyed on it before giving Martha a curious look. The woman smiled and nodded to him. Jeremy then grabbed a spoon and tasted the soup. When he did, he smiled as he enjoyed the meal.
Yusei and Cody were sitting on the floor in one of the bed rooms and played Duel Monsters. Jack, Crow and Jeremy were watching from the sidelines. Jeremy was fascinated by this.
"For the first time for a long time, I was happy."
Jeremy was tinkering with an old duel disk that he and Cody found. The latter watched him working on it. And so did the others.
Cody and Jeremy were standing outside the orphanage, staring to the night sky.
Flashback end
"I became the guy I am today thanks to you and the others, I can't thank you enough for that."
"Jeremy..." Cody muttered.
"That's why I want to come with you. That's why I want to help you!" He finished with a determined look.
Cody couldn't help the small smile that was formed on his face. "Thanks Jeremy."
"No problem." He smiled back.
"Then I'll leave things here to you. I'll be waiting for you in New Domino City." Cody held up his right fist.
Jeremy nodded and bumped it with his on. "Got it."
Later on, Yusei and Cody were preparing their duel runners. Their dangerous journey was about to begin.
"You've only got on shot at this, guys." Nervin told them. "The maintenance hatch opens at midnight, and only stays open for three minutes after that."
"They know..." Rally said.
"Then they flood the pipeline with garbage."
"They know!"
"And as soon as you jump over the sewage plant's fence, the security will-"
"THEY KNOW!" Rally snapped. "Try being positive for once, Nervin."
"I thought I was."
"Hey guys." Blitz called, getting their attention. "Can you really do this?"
"A test run is one thing, but... The real thing is something else." Nervin added. "If the they catch you, it..."
"Don't listen to these guys, you two." Tank intervened. "Just... I don't know. Hit the gas and don't ever look back."
"Almost forgot!" Rally said before he ran to Yusei and Cody. He then handed a card to the former. "Here! For good luck!"
"What is it, Rally?" Yusei wondered, looking at the card.
"Turbo Booster!"
"Wasn't this your father's card?" Yusei questioned.
Rally nodded. "I want you to take it. Like my dad always says; you never know when you might need a boost. I just hope it can help you get back your Stardust Dragon from Jack." He then walked over to Cody. "And while I'm at it..." Rally held up another card. "I want you to have this!"
Cody took the card and looked at it. "Glow-Up Bulb?"
"Trust me, I'm sure that card's gonna help you a lot!"
Cody smiled to his smaller friend. "Thanks, Rally." At that, he sat on his runner and put his helmet on.
And so did Yusei. "You gonna be on the monitor?"
"Mhm." Rally nodded. "We'll go topside so we can get a clear signal. Now rev it up!"
"And don't slow down for nothin." Blitz added.
And at that, Yusei and Cody revved their runners and took off.
'It's time to settle the score, Jack.'
Passing the stairs, the two duel runners catapulted from the entrance and raced across the street towards the sewage plant. But unbeknownst to them, they were being watched...
By the people at the Sector Security office.
"We have movement! Yusei's gone topside!" An officer informed Trudge. "We picked up the homing signal from the stolen chip!"
"So where is he?"
"He's in the east sector! Switching to satellite imaging now!" The screen monitoring Yusei's movements turned from a map to a high def. image of Yusei and Cody riding across Satellite.
"Where do you think you're going?" Trudge asked watching the screen. "Lock on to that chip!" He ordered, running out to the door. "Then open up a com link and update me! Do not lose him!"
Moments later, as Trudge rode on the street...
"Trudge, they just turned off Montague heading south on Davis Drive!"
"On my way, Central!" Trudge replied.
"The maintenance hatch opens in 4 minutes!" Blitz pointed out, looking at his watch. "Let's book it!"
"Wait up!" Tank called out tiredly as they ran up a flight of stairs.
The four of them came to a ladder. "Careful." Nervin warned.
"Not now, Nerv!" Blitz reprimanded.
They made it to the rooftop. Blitz peered through his binoculars.
"Can you see them?" Rally asked.
Blitz noticed just a couple of seconds after he asked. "There they go! Aw yeah!"
"We've got a clear signal on the monitor." Nervin reported as the laptop he held showed images of both Yusei and Cody. "Looks like they're approaching the sewage plant!"
True to his words, Yusei and Cody were getting closer, as the towers of the sewage plant grew in the distance. However...
"Warning! Warning! You are entering an unauthorized zone! Turn back immediately!" That was the alarm for the sewage plant. They could even hear sirens blaring.
And while that happened, Trudge came out from nowhere and slammed into Yusei's left side. "Pull over, Yusei!"
"Trudge?! How did he find us?" Cody wondered.
"Where do you think you two are going? Don't you know it's two hours past curfew, or can you still not tell time? Pull over!"
"You're not our boss, Trudge!" Cody retorted. "Why don't you just-Huh!?" He was interrupted by another Sector Security duel runner appearing on his right. And the person driving it was someone he recognized instantly. "Officer Storm!?"
"Nice night for a drive, huh Cody?" She asked jokingly.
"What are you doing her, Storm?" Trudge questioned.
"I happened to be nearby when I saw you chasing these two." Cindy gave him a smug look. "And considering how poorly you performed the last time, I figured you need some reinforcements."
The taller officer gave her a dirty look. "Just don't get in my way!" He then glared to Yusei and Cody. "Now, I repeat! Pull over!"
But they ignored him and accelerated and drove towards the closed gate of the sewage plant, leaving the two officers in their dust.
"Kids these days." Trudge muttered. "Never do what they're told." It was then he finally noticed where they were heading to. "Are they going for the sewage plant?"
"But why?" Cindy wondered.
The boys rode straight through a parking meter, destroying it and jumped high above the fence.
"So far so good." Nervin commented as he and the others watched this.
"Hanson, come in! Open the security gates and do it quick!" Trudge ordered in his com link. And just like he ordered, the gates opened, letting him and Cindy inside.
"They're heading for the compactors!" Hanson warned.
"We're on it! They won't get far! There's nowhere they can go!"
"That depends on their luck." Cindy replied.
"Shut up!"
Despite of the sharp turns Yusei and Cody made and that led them to a secluded and clear pathway within the plant, the officers were right behind them.
'This should be fun.' Trudge smirked. "You may have beaten me in our last duel, but I got something special planned for you and this time, I'm taking you down." Yusei looked back curiously. "See with that chip you installed I can now force you to turbo duel!" At that, Trudge pressed a button. "Duel Mode engaged; Autopilot standing by."
"I won't let you hog all the fun, Trudge!" Cindy said and pressed her own button. "Duel mode engaged; Autopilot standing by."
And so, the Speed World field spell was active, and Yusei and Cody's duel runners acted on their own. "Overriding suspect's duel runner."
"Not this again!" Cody said as the duel mode was turned on.
"Autopilot engaged."
"This wasn't in the plan!" Tank complained.
"Trudge and Storm hacked in somehow." Rally said.
"Well, the guys need to get un-hacked. There's no time to duel!" Blitz protested.
"I let you off the hook last time, Yusei! But this time... me and my special pursuit deck are gonna haul you to the facility for good!"
"Obsessive much?" Cindy asked.
"I told you to shut it!" Trudge snapped.
"Fine, whatever." Cindy rolled her eyes. "In any case, we hacked into your duel runners' main frame, and if you want to break free, you guys have no choice but to defeat us!"
Yusei: 4000
Trudge: 4000
Cody: 4000
Cindy: 4000
"Guess we have no choice." Cody muttered.
"Trudge is obviously after me." Yusei pointed out. "Do you think you can handle Officer Storm?"
"She's probably learned a few things since our last duel, but I'll be fine."
"You should be more concerned about yourself, Yusei!" Trudge called out. "Because I'm about to show you what my special pursuit deck is made of!" He drew his sixth card. "I summon Gate Blocker in defense mode!" In a flash of light, something appeared right in front of Yusei, blocking his view. It was a giant slab with an eye ornamented on it. It was orange and dark grey. (ATK: 100 DEF: 2000 LV: 4)
"Anyone know what that thing does?" Nervin asked nervously.
"I've never heard of that one." Rally admitted.
"Now, with perimeter secured, I place one card facedown and end my turn." Trudge concluded as a card appeared beside him.
"That card is not really my style." Cindy commented and drew her sixth card. "But I do take my job seriously, so I'll bring out my own Gate Blocker to the field!" And so, a second Gate Blocker appeared right in front of Cody. (ATK: 100 DEF: 2000 LV: 4)
"Huh? How come you have one as well?" Trudge questioned. "Did the captain give you a special pursuit deck of your own?"
"Not quite." Cindy shrugged. "I explained to the captain that I prefer my own personal deck. But he insisted to add something to it."
"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you would try to earn some points from him."
Cindy rolled her eyes again. "If you want to be an idiot and think that, then be my guest. Anyway..." She inserted a card into her duel disk. "I end my turn with a facedown."
"My move then." Cody drew. But then...
Cody: 4000 SC: 0
Cindy: 4000-SC: 0-1
"What!?"
Yusei drew as well.
Yusei: 4000 SC: 0
Trudge: 4000 SC: 0-1
"No way!"
"Are you surprised?" Trudge asked smugly. "Did you just notice that your speed counters aren't increasing? Well they're not going to! See it's all part of my plan! In our last duel I underestimated the power of your deck and almost wound up back on traffic duty. But unlike you, I learned from my mistakes. And this time, you won't be surprising me. but have I got some surprises for you... Such as my Gate Blocker monster card which has your gears stuck in neutral. Seems like an appropriate effect, wouldn't you say?"
"Why's that?" Yusei asked.
"Because, just like in life, you're going nowhere, unless you count being sent to the Facility as 'going somewhere'. Only this time it isn't going to be some little vacation like your visit to the reeducation center. See, this time, Yusei, you're gonna be locked away for a very, very long time!"
"Assuming you can catch me."
"And me." Cody added as they both revved it up.
As the duel went on, the clock just struck twelve, and the pipeline shut down.
"Uh oh! Is it midnight already?" Tank asked.
"In 3 minutes, they'll be closing the hatch, and then Yusei and Cody won't be able to make it through to New Domino City!" Nervin pointed out.
"Man, Officer Trudge is always getting in the way!" Rally complained.
"Hey Yusei. Do you think we can still get to the pipeline in time?" Cody asked.
"We have to! If I get out-dueled down here, I may never get another chance to settle the score with Jack, and Jack will never have to answer for what he did! I can't let that happen!"
Cody nodded with a determined look. "Then let's take those two down quickly!"
"Come on, guys!" Tank called out.
"Break away!" Rally added.
"The green light's mine! And I summon Speed Warrior in attack mode!" The monster that appeared on Yusei's field was a tall figure in a metal grey speed suit and had wheels on its feet. (ATK: 900 DEF: 400 LV: 2)
"Ha! I remember that little toy from our last duel!" Trudge said. "And I remember that its attack points double on the turn it's summoned. But like last time, it's just too weak. I guess you still haven't learned how to add, have you?" (ATK: 900-1800)
But Yusei wasn't done yet. He looked at another card he had. 'Okay Rally, let's see what this card of yours can do.' He thought. "I special summon Turbo Booster in attack mode!" His Speed Warrior was joined by a yellow machine monster with a traffic light on its puffy yellow hat and turbo rockets for arms with a bronze top for a bottom. (ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1)
"He actually played one of my cards!" Rally grinned.
"Power up!" At Yusei's command, Speed Warrior placed his feet on Turbo Booster's arms, which fired away with Speed Warrior still on them. "Speed Warrior, Release!" He then launched himself from them and went straight toward Trudge's Gate Blocker.
"So? That don't scare me!"
"It should, cuz now Speed Warrior can attack using Turbo's special ability!"
"That's so awesome!" Rally cheered. "I had no idea he could do that with Turbo Booster!"
"They might be able to take out Gate Blocker, which means they might be able to break free, which means they might be able to kick into overdrive, which mean they might still make it..." Blitz spoke. "...of course, they might not."
"Not good enough!" Trudge pointed out. "Even if you destroy Gate Blocker with that boost of yours, Gate Blocker's defense is still too strong! And just like our last duel, you're gonna get hurt in this blast, not me." And it was true. Even though Speed Warrior destroyed it with a strong kick, Yusei took damage.
Yusei: 4000-3800
"Boom, Vroom, Kaboom!" Rally cheered. "I just knew my Turbo Booster card would help him out!"
"Yeah! Go Yusei!" Tank cheered.
As Yusei was focusing on his match, Cody was focusing on his own. "Let's see..." He looked over his hand for a moment before deciding what to do. "First I summon Glow-Up Bulb in defense mode!" A bulb with one eye eerily place in its center adorned with a white flower appeared. (ATK: 100 ATK: 100 LV: 1)
"Hey, that's the card I gave Cody!" Rally pointed out.
"But can that thing really help?" Nervin questioned.
"I place two cards facedown and end my turn." Two cards appeared beside Cody.
"You're going to need something better than that. Let me show you how it's done!" Cindy drew.
Cody: 4000 SC: 0
Cindy: 4000 SC: 1-2
"I summon Phantom Gryphon in attack mode!" A portal opened, from which a big gryphon emerged. Its main body was blue while its head and wings had golden feathers. (ATK: 2000 DEF: 0 LV: 4) "Now take down that bulb!" The gryphon screeched and took flight. It then slashed it to pieces with one of its talons. Cindy smirked. "That was too easy."
"Well it won't be so easy for you, once I activate this!" One of Cody's facedown cards flipped up. "The trap card, Evenly Matched! At the end of the battle phase, you'll be forced to remove a number of cards you control from play so you control the same number of cards as I do. So with my trap card itself and my other facedown card, that's two! And since you currently have 3 cards in play, you have to get rid of one of them!"
Cindy grimaced.
"Nice." Yusei smiled.
"So then, which card will it be?" Cody asked.
Cindy closed her eyes as if thinking. And when she opened them... "I choose Phantom Gryphon!" The named monster vanished.
Cody narrowed his eyes. 'Looks like she's not gonna let me gain any speed counters.'
"I end my turn." Cindy concluded.
"My move then." Cody drew.
Cody: 4000 SC: 0
Cindy: 4000 SC: 2-3
"And first I activate the trap card, Shapesister!" His facedown card flipped up.
"I remember that." Cindy said. "That trap card is also a monster!"
"Which means she's now summoned to my field!" At that, the scary woman made of metallic substance oozed out of the trap card. (ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 2) "But she won't be here for long, because now I release her..." Her body turned into a rainbow colored portal. "...in order to summon Chthonian Emperor Dragon!" And from the portal, a towering dragon emerged. It was hellish with a serpentine, armored body, massive wings, an arrow-shaped head coated in bony plates, and crimson eyes. (ATK: 2400 DEF: 1500 LV: 6)
"2400 attack points!" Cindy noted.
"And that's enough to break through your defense! Now attack!" The dragon spat out a torrent of concentrated flames that drilled through the Gate Blocker. It then exploded, giving Cody a clear view in front of him.
And with that, Yusei and Cody turned left and accelerated. They then saw what they were looking for. "There it is! The main pipeline!" Yusei pointed.
"We may still have enough time!" Cody added. And so, the two duel runner swerved off the road and landed towards the pipe, and sped into it. "Alright, we're in!"
Unfortunately, the two officers were still right behind them. "Hanson!" Trudge called.
"Sir!"
"They've gone into the waste disposal system! Switch to the security cameras down there! Don't lose them!"
"Uh oh! It looks like Trudge and Storm aren't giving up." Nervin noted.
"Don't worry, they'll shake them!" Rally replied confidently.
"There's no way to shake them now." Blitz disagreed. "The pipeline's a straight shot!"
"Ready for another surprise?" Trudge asked and pressed a button on his console. "I activate my Broken Blocker trap so I can play two Gate Blockers!" And from a beam of light coming from Trudge's trap card, two more blockers appeared right in front Yusei. (ATK: 100 DEF: 2000 LV: 4) x2
"Oh man! More roadblocks!" Tank complained.
"What made you break curfew tonight, Yusei? Are you trying to escape the Satellite?" Trudge questioned.
"And what if I am?"
"Don't you know that your kind don't exactly fit in in New Domino City?"
"I'm not going there to 'fit in'!"
"So what's your plan? We both know you got some enemies in very high places. You trying to get to New Domino City to settle some score?"
"Something like that." Yusei inserted two cards into his duel disk. "I place two cards facedown and end my turn."
"And I think I'll end my turn as well." Cody added.
"Only two minutes left!" Nervin pointed out. "And eight miles of pipeline to go!"
"They'll make it." Rally said. "We did six test runs. Yusei and Cody know what they're doing."
"Security wasn't harassing them on those test runs!" Tank countered. "And by this point, they were much closer to the goal!"
Because of the Gate Blockers getting in the way for Yusei, Cody was barely getting ahead of him. And Cindy was passing by Trudge, not that he noticed or cared. "There's no escape, Yusei!"
'If I don't find a way around those blockers fast, I'll never make it to the hatch in time!'
Cody shared his worry. 'I might be lucky enough to get to the hatch in time, but with the way Trudge is playing, Yusei could get caught!'
"Hey Cody, eyes on me!" Cindy called out and drew.
Cody: 4000 SC: 0-1
Cindy: 4000 SC: 3-4
"I summon Harpie Harpist in defense mode!" The familiar Harpie with red hair and a harp appeared. Although, since Jeremy never told him about his encounter with Cindy, this monster was new for Cody. (ATK: 1700 DEF: 600 LV: 4) "And that's all for now!"
"Okay then." Cody drew.
Cody: 4000 SC: 1-2
Cindy: 4000 SC: 4-5
"For starters, I gemini summon my Chthonian Emperor Dragon!" The dragon roared as it glowed white.
"Okay, what kind of ability does this one have?" Cindy wondered.
"Well, since my dragon can use its ability now, it's able to attack twice each turn!"
"What!?"
"Which means it can take out your monster and some of your life points! Chthonian Emperor Dragon, attack!" The spat out another torrent of flames that burned Harpie Harpist to ashes. Cindy had barely enough time to recover from the assault before a second fire attack struck her directly.
Cindy: 4000-1600 SC: 5-3
When the flames died down, Cody looked back to see how it went for Cindy. And to his surprise... she was smiling.
"An impressive attack, I'll you give that. But unfortunately, you just triggered my trap! Damage Condenser!" Her facedown card flipped up. "By simply discarding one card from my hand, I can summon a monster from my deck, as long as its attack points are equal or less than the damage I took!"
"No way!" Cody's eyes widened.
"So I'll discard this..." Cindy slid a card into her graveyard slot. "So I can summon the Harpie Lady's best friend..." And then, an intimidating whirlwind was formed. A roar was heard from within it. And then, a big, dark pink dragon emerged from it. It had wings on its arms and a golden collar and chain around its neck. "Harpie's Pet Dragon!" (ATK: 2000 DEF: 2500 LV: 7)
"That's quite the beast." Cody commented.
"Trust me, you ain't seen nothing yet!" Cindy replied.
"You'll never escape, Yusei!" Trudge said, entirely focused on his target.
Yusei: 3800 SC: 0
Trudge: 4000 SC: 1-2
"And to make sure of it, I'm calling in some backup, by radioing Gonogo to come to the field in attack mode!" His new monster was a dark-green giant ball with a pair of eyes and a pointy nose. (ATK: 1350 DEF: 1600 LV: 3) "Gonogo, move in and take out Speed Warrior!" At his command, the giant ball charged forward. It appeared to be rolling, even though its face didn't appear to roll along with it. One moment later, and it rolled over Speed Warrior.
Yusei: 3800-3350
"Ha! Your loss is my gain!"
"Come on, Yusei!" Rally called out.
"Now it's my move!" Yusei drew.
Yusei: 3350 SC: 0
Trudge: 4000 SC: 2-3
He was silent for a moment before he smirked. "It's go time! I summon the Junk Synchron tuner monster!" From a portal, some kind of humanoid machine figure in orange scrap metal outfit appeared. It had glasses and a white scarf. (ATK: 1300 DEF: 500 LV: 3) "Then I activate the Graceful Revival trap card!" One of his facedown cards flipped up.
"What are you planning!?" Trudge demanded.
"Let me show you! See, Graceful Revival lets me summon a level 2 or below monster from my graveyard, so I'm bringing back Speed Warrior!" The warrior in speed suit appeared again. (ATK: 900 DEF: 400 LV: 2) And then, in a flash of light, Junk Synchron was replaced by three rings of green light. "Now I tune my Junk Synchron with my Speed Warrior to synchro summon Junk Warrior!" The rings lined up before Speed Warrior went through. His body became transparent and revealed two stars. They lined up and created a ray of light. "Let's rev it up!" And then, the light faded and revealed Yusei's trusty, purple armored warrior with its right oversized knuckle. (ATK: 2300 DEF: 1300 LV: 5)
"Atta boy, Yusei!" Tank cheered. "Now finish up Trudge and get out of there!"
"Hes gonna take out Trudge's Gonogo now!" Rally added.
Junk Warrior made a backflip so he was right behind the giant ball. And then, turned on the jets on his back and charged forward. "Go, Scrap Fist!" And finally, he used his right fist and delivered a punch that shattered Gonogo into pixels.
Trudge: 4000-3050
"Ha! You pulled the same move last time we dueled! You're getting a little predictable, Yusei!" Trudge said. "But now I'm gonna speed things up!" He drew his next card.
Yusei: 3350 SC: 0
Trudge: 3050 SC: 3-4
He smirked when he saw what he got. "You're not the only one who knows how to soup up your monsters! I summon Jutte Fighter!" The monster he summoned was a small near-sighted samurai holding a jutte and a lantern on his back. (ATK: 700 DEF: 900 LV: 2)
"That's a tuner monster!" Yusei realized.
"Sure is and there's still more surprises to come. Jutte Fighter! I tune you to my Gate Blocker in order to Synchro Summon Goyo Guardian!" The little samurai turned into two rings of green lights and lined up, letting one of the blockers go through. It became transparent and revealed 4 stars. They lined and created a ray of light. And from it, a taller figure appeared, dressed in samurai garments and kabuki makeup. He wielded Jutte Fighter's jutte on the end of a rope. (ATK: 2800 DEF: 2000 LV: 6)
Yusei was really surprised that Trudge summoned something so strong.
"It looks like you underestimated my deck this time, doesn't it? Now attack!" Goyo Guardian swung his jutte and impaled Junk Warrior with it. However... "Hahahaha! Goyo Guardian is a special monster! See, when it attacks, it doesn't destroy anything, it just takes control of them and uses them to do its bidding!" True to his words, Junk Warrior was still on the field, only wrapped up by Goyo Guardian's rope. (ATK: 2300 DEF: 1300 LV: 5)
Yusei: 3350-2850
"Kinda like the relationship you have with Jack Atlas. Huh, Trudge?" Yusei joked.
"You Satellites, you never know when to stop talking back."
"One minute 40 seconds left!" Nervin pointed out.
"Come on, guys, hurry!" Rally urged. "You're running out of time! Come on, go!"
"Now as for me..." Cindy spoke up. "Thanks to Harpie Harpist's special ability, at the end of the turn she was sent to the graveyard, I can add a level 4 winged beast type monster with up to 1500 attack points to my hand." Cindy took a card from her deck and placed it in her hand. "And I think I'll bring it out to the field now!" She drew.
Cody: 4000 SC: 2-3
Cindy: 1600 SC: 3-4
"Now say hello to Harpie Lady 1!" The Harpie with long, dark-pink hair in purple outfit appeared. (ATK: 1300 DEF: 1400 LV: 4) "And thanks to her special ability, all wind monsters on the field gain 300 extra attack points!" A green aura surrounded her monsters . (ATK: 1300-1600) (ATK: 2000-2300) "And before you say anything, you should know that my dragon has a special ability as well. You see, for every Harpie Lady on the field, it gains 300 more points!" The green aura intensified when Harpie Lady grabbed the dragon's chain. (ATK: 2300-2600 DEF: 2500-2800)
"No way!" Cody muttered.
"Now, Harpie's Pet Dragon! Destroy his Chthonian Emperor Dragon with Fearsome Fire Blast!" The dark-pink dragon reared its head back before spitting out a torrent of flames that engulfed Cody's dragon completely. There was nothing left of it afterwards.
Cody: 4000-3800
"And now, Harpie Lady 1! Attack him directly!" The named monster made her way to Cody's runner and slashed him with her talons.
Cody: 3800-2200 SC: 3-2
"And if you think I punished you enough this turn, think again!" Cindy held up a spell card. "I activate the speed spell, Sonic Buster! Since I have 4 speed counters, I can use this to give you damage equal to half the attack points of one of my monsters!" Harpie's Pet Dragon was enveloped in pink light. And then it opened its mouth and fired a beam of pink energy, hitting Cody's runner hard.
Cody: 2200-0900 SC: 2-1
"And finally, I place one card facedown and end my turn!" A card appeared beside her.
"My turn!" Cody drew.
Cody: 0900 SC: 1-2
Cindy: 1600 SC: 4-5
"And I activate the speed spell, Angel baton! With two speed counters, I'm able to draw 2 cards, as long as I send 1 card to the graveyard." Cody drew his extra cards, looked at them and then slid one of his other cards into his graveyard slot. "And next I summon Evocator Chevalier!" From a ball of fire, a warrior in red armor appeared, wielding a sharp sword. (ATK: 1900 DEF: 900 LV: 4) "Now attack her Harpie Lady!" He dashed towards the Harpie and cut her in half with a single slash.
Cindy: 1600-1300
"And with her gone, your dragon gets weaker!" (ATK: 2600-2000 DEF: 2800-2500) "And now I place three cards facedown and end my turn!" Three cards appeared briefly.
'You better be careful, Cody.' Yusei thought.
Trudge checked on his speed counters and smirked. "Nice! With my speed counters at 4 I'm now able to crank this hot pursuit up to the next level by activating a speed spell from my hand. Go, Sonic Buster!"
"He's got one, too?" Cody asked.
The spell fired a beam of pink energy that enveloped Goyo Guardian. "When you said you were full of surprises, you weren't kidding." Yusei commented.
"Well I'm glad I didn't disappoint. And guess what, Yusei, I won't be disappointing my superiors either. Because this time, I'm not gonna let you just walk away when the last card is played!" Goyo Guardian unleashed his dormant energy at Yusei.
Yusei: 2850-1450
"And with that attack, it's only a matter of time before your life points are running on empty! Now to make sure you don't pull some fancy maneuver, I'm using a second Sonic Buster to slow your game down!" And just like before, Goyo Guardian was filled with energy from the spell card before unleashing it on Yusei.
Yusei: 1450-0050
"Looks like your friend is not doing so well." Cindy noted. "And you might not be so lucky yourself, because now I discard one card..." She discarded one her cards. "In order to activate the trap card Hysteric Party!" Her facedown card flipped up.
"Hysteric Party!" Cody repeated.
"That's right, pal. I can now summon Harpie Ladies from my graveyard." Cindy smirked. "And in case you are wondering, I managed to gather 4 Harpies in there!" From a flash of light, Her dragon was joined by 4 Harpies indeed. One of them was Harpie Harpist. (ATK: 1700 DEF: 600 LV: 4) Another one was Cyber Harpie Lady. (ATK: 1800 DEF: 1300 LV: 4) As for the other two... (ATK: 1300 DEF: 1400 LV: 4) x2
"Two copies of Harpie Lady 1?" Cody asked, surprised.
"Yup, so with two of them in play, all wind monsters gain a total of 600 more attack points!" (ATK: 1300-1900) x2 (ATK: 1700-2300) (ATK: 1800-2400) (ATK: 2000-2600) "Oh! And since there are 4 Harpie Ladies on the field, my dragon gets a lot of more points!" Cyber Harpie grabbed the dragon's chain as it roared with an intense green aura surrounding it. (ATK: 2600-3800 DEF: 2500-3700)
"Uh oh! Cody's in trouble now!" Blitz pointed out.
"Gah! Now they'll never clear the hatch!" Tank panicked.
"I'm afraid I'm taking you in now, Cody!" Cindy declared. "Now it's my turn!" She drew.
Cody: 0900 SC: 2-3
Cindy: 1600 SC: 5-6
"Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack!" The dragon fired another stream of flames from its mouth.
"I activate my trap! Defense Draw!" One of Cody's facedown cards flipped up and blocked the fire attack. "Nice try, Officer! But thanks to my trap card, the damage from your attack becomes 0, and I get to draw a card." Cody drew.
"Then I'll just strike you down with one of my Harpie Ladies! Cyber Harpie, get him!" The black armored Harpie took flight.
"I activate Call of the Haunted!" Another one of Cody's facedown cards flipped up. "This lets me summon a monster from my graveyard in attack mode! And I'll bring back Chthonian Emperor Dragon!" The armored serpentine dragon appeared again. (ATK: 2400 DEF: 1500 LV: 6) "And now I'm safe!"
Cindy smirked. "You sure about that? Because I disagree. For in case you have forgotten, I have a whole group of Harpies. So even though my Cyber Harpie and your dragon have the same amount of attack points, I'll just have them take each other out before letting the others finish you off!" The black armored Harpie proceeded.
But then, Cody smirked. "I haven't forgotten about your Harpies. You, on the other hand, forgot something."
Cindy narrowed her eyes. "And what's that?"
"My last facedown card!" The card in question flipped up. "Gemini Booster! This trap card can act as an equip spell, and give my gemini monster 700 more attack points!"
"What!?" Cindy exclaimed as yellow energy came out of the trap card and was absorbed into the serpentine dragon's body. (ATK: 2400-3100) And then, it spat out a torrent of flames that obliterated Cyber Harpie. "No way!"
"Didn't see that coming, did you?"
Cindy: 1600-0900 (ATK: 3800-3500 DEF: 3700-3400)
Cindy got over her shock and gave him a smirk. "You may have survived this turn, but I assure you, your luck will eventually run out!" She declared and inserted a card into her duel runner. 'And my facedown card is gonna do the trick. Cody knows that the only way to take out my dragon is to destroy my Harpies. And that's where my Covering Fire comes in. Once he attacks one of them, I can use it to transfer one of my other monsters' attack points to her and win this duel. Sorry pal, but I'm about to lock you away!'
As for Yusei, he was slowing down, ending up right next to Trudge. "You won't beat me this time, Yusei, and neither you or your friend will escape from the Satellite, cuz once I win, I'm taking you in! I can't wait to see you get locked up!"
Even though the situation was bad, Yusei didn't lose his confidence. "Well, you're gonna have to keep on waiting, Officer Trudge, cuz I'm about to put the pedal to the metal!"
"But I've got all the power!" Trudge retorted.
Yusei: 0050 SC: 0
Trudge: 3050 SC: 4-5
"You sure about that?" Yusei questioned and began his turn. "I summon the tuner monster, Nitro Synchron!" The monster that appeared was a red and white nitrogen tank. It had arms, legs and a strange-looking face. (ATK: 300 DEF: 100 LV: 2)
"Another tuner monster? You never were one to give up without a fight. Too bad I got your speed counters all locked up!"
"That's what you think." Yusei replied, confusing Trudge. "I activate a speed Spell! Dash Pilfer!"
Cindy heard this and turned her attention to them. "Wait a minute! I used that card last time. With at least 4 speed counters, that speed spell can take control of a monster that's in defense mode!"
"No way!" Trudge protested. "With my blockers on the field, you don't have enough power to play a spell!"
Yusei smirked. "You should double check your screen."
Trudge did just that. And... "What the!?"
Yusei: 0050 SC: 5
Trudge: 3050 SC: 5
"But... but... that's impossible! You shouldn't have any speed counters! How can this be!?"
Flashback
"Nice! With my speed counter at 4, I'm now able to crank this hot pursuit up to the next level by activating a speed spell from my hand! Go, Sonic Buster!" As Trudge's speed spell took effect, a facedown card near Yusei's runner flipped up.
"Oh no! When I played that speed spell, you must've countered with something!"
Flashback end
"I sure did, so if you think you're the only one full of surprises, guess again! Now I know you're not one for detail, but this little oversight is gonna cost you big time! See, while you were so busy trying to hold my game down, I played Slip Stream, which gives me the same number of counters you had when you played your second Sonic Buster! So by trying to slow me down, you only made me faster!" Yusei raced across the pipeline with his newfound speed.
"That's just like you!" Trudge shouted in anger. "Waiting for handouts, latching on to someone else!"
"Dash Pilfer, get in there and rescue Junk Warrior!" By getting hit by green energy from the speed spell, Junk Warrior got the strength to break free from Goyo Guardian's rope. "Trudge, after all these years, you still don't know anything about me. All you ever see are rules and them being broken, but you never stopped to ask why, have you? I guess it pays well to be ignorant, doesn't it?"
"This is no time to be lecturing!" Blitz retorted. "You've only got 35 seconds!
"They're almost there!" Rally said.
"All you gotta do is slip through that side hatch before it closes, guys!" Tank added.
Sure enough, all four drivers were getting closer to the hatch, which Trudge noticed. "That hatch! You're planning on using that to escape from the Satellite!"
"Took you long enough to figure that out." Yusei smiled. "Guess nothing gets by you, does it Trudge? That is, nothing but me and my duel runner!"
"Well, I'm just one move away from proving you wrong and locking you up for good!"
"Not gonna happen cuz I'm about to rev things up one more time!" It was then Nitro Synchron was glowing with a green aura.
"Another synchro summon?" Trudge questioned.
"That's right! Now Nitro Synchron, give Junk Warrior a tune up!" The tuner monster's body turned into 2 rings of light that surrounded Junk Warrior. His body became transparent and revealed 5 stars that lined up before creating a ray of light. "I synchro summon Nitro Warrior!" The light died down and revealed a giant green warrior. It had a pair of bull horns on its head, and a giant rocket booster on its rear end. (ATK: 2800 DEF: 1800 LV: 7)
"Incredible!" Cindy said.
"Got that right!" Cody replied. "And I've got something for you! Just watch this!" He drew.
Cody: 0900 SC: 3-4
Cindy: 0900 SC: 6-7
"Remember when I played Angel Baton? Well, I did send a card to the graveyard because of its effect. But my Chthonian Emperor Dragon is gonna help me bring it back!" The named dragon was now enveloped in a purple light. "You see, if I have a level 5 or above monster on my field, I can reduce that monster's level by 1 and summon forth Level Eater!" (LV: 6-5) A ball of light came out of the dragon's body and floated right next to it. And then, it died down and revealed a big red insect resembling a ladybug. But instead of a bunch of dots, this bug had a single star on its back. (ATK: 600 DEF: 0 LV: 1)
"And how's that gonna help you?"
"A lot, because for my next move, I summon Gemini Soldier!" The little warrior in green armor, carrying his dart appeared. (ATK: 500 DEF: 300 LV: 2) "And now it's time bring back my Glow-Up Bulb!"
"Say what!?" Cindy exclaimed.
"You heard me, Cindy! Since I have my Bulb in the graveyard, I can summon it to the field by sending the top card of my deck to the graveyard!" As soon as Cody slid a card into his graveyard slot, the one-eyed bulb appeared again. (ATK: 100 DEF: 100 LV: 1)
"Oh! Cody summoned it back to the field!" Rally said.
"And since Glow-Up Bulb is a tuner monster, I can give my dragon and soldier a tune up!" The bulb turned into one ring of light. The dragon and soldier went through it and became transparent and revealed a number of stars. 5 from the dragon, and 2 from the soldier. They lined up and created a ray of light. "Black Brutdrago, time to accelerate!" The light died down as Cody's dragon synchro monster let out a mighty roar. (ATK: 3000 DEF: 2600 LV: 8)
"That thing is huge!" Trudge commented, noting the situation of Cindy's duel for the first since for a while. His attention was dragged to Yusei again.
"Trudge, I got one last surprise for you! If my Nitro Warrior attacks on the same turn a speed spell was used, it gains a thousand attack points!"
"It what!?" (ATK: 2800-3800)
"And with that, your Goyo Guardian is a goner!" Nitro warrior turned its rocket booster and charged forward. "Nitro Warrior, attack with Dynamite Crunch!" The warrior's arms glowed with green energy that expanded took the form of a pair of giant arms. The fists took down Goyo Guardian like he was nothing.
Trudge: 3050-2050 SC: 5-4
"This ain't over yet Yusei!" Trudge growled.
"Oh yes it is." Yusei countered. "See, Nitro Warrior comes custom-made with a special ability. When it destroys one of your monsters, and you've got a monster in defense mode like Gate Blocker, it forces it into attack mode!" The block lost its blue color.
"But then I can't protect myself!" Trudge panicked.
"And even though my Nitro Warrior loses 1000 attack points, it's still strong enough to destroy Gate Blocker and win this duel!" The green warrior gave the blocker a strong punch and shattered it into pixels, while wiping out Trudge's life points
Trudge: 2050-0000
And so, his runner shut down.
"Whoa! Trudge is down!" Cindy noted.
"And once I use Black Brutdrago's special ability, you're going down as well!" Cody declared and took a card from his hand. "Once per turn, I can send one gemini monster from my hand to the graveyard in order to destroy one of your spells and traps!"
"Say what!?" Cindy questioned.
"So I'll send Goggle Golem to the graveyard, and destroy your Hysteric Party!" The familiar stone golem with goggles appeared in front of Black Brutdrago. As it charged forward, the dragon spat a torrent of flames that enveloped it. The burning golem flew like a rocket and crushed Cindy's trap card as it collided with it.
"Oh no!" Cindy watched as her Harpie Ladies screamed in agony and vanished one by one. 'Without Hysteric Party, all my Harpies are destroyed. And now that my dragon is alone, my trap card is useless now!'
"And now that your Harpies are gone, your dragon loses all its extra points!" (ATK: 3500-2000 DEF: 3400-2500) "Alright Black Brutdrago, destroy her Harpie's Pet Dragon! Brutal Fireball!" Cody's black dragon spat out a big fireball at Cindy's dragon. It roared in pain as the attack blasted it to oblivion.
Cindy: 0900-0000
But instead of shutting down like Trudge's runner, Cindy's runner sparked and let out of smoke. "What's happening!?" There were small blasts all around her runner and she started to lose control.
"They won!" Yusei and Cody's friends cheered.
"They made Trudge and Storm wipe out!" Blitz said.
"Too bad they couldn't stop. the clock!" Nervin pointed out as the clock the laptop showed dropped to 0. "The hatch is gonna close!"
"And that means Yus and Cody won't be able to escape!" Tank said worriedly.
"Rev it up, you guys!" Rally called out.
As Yusei and Cody got closer to the side hatch, it started to close itself. And at the same time, the large hatch in front of them opened, unleashing a barrage of giant piles of scrap.
"AAAH!" Cody heard the scream, turned around and saw Cindy struggling with her duel runner. And once he saw this, one thought crossed his mind.
He turned around and drove back.
"Come on!" Cindy muttered as she did her best to gather her cards. Apparently, whatever malfunction her duel runner was suffering, it caused some fire a few places around it. "There!" She managed to gather them all. But then...
BOOM!
The duel runner's rear exploded, sending the officer flying. "AAAAAHH!"
"I got you!" Cody called out as he made it just in time to grab her hand and pulled her onto his own runner. "Are you okay?"
Cindy didn't even have time to recover... "Look out!" And it was because of all the pieces of scrap coming straight to them.
It took Cody a lot of concentration to dodge them. He even did a loop to avoid some of them before he caught up with Yusei. And just then, a giant storage came straight to them. And that gave the drivers only one option. "Hang on tight!" Cody warned as he and Yusei leaned over their runners to pass it.
'Come on, stay on target!' Yusei thought as they got closer to the hatch. It was only inches away from closing, but by some extreme luck, they managed to slip through right before it closed.
"AAAAAAAAHH!" Unfortunately for Trudge, he was swallowed by the incoming tsunami of trash. "CENTER! OVERRIDE THE TRASH COMPACTOR! OVERRIDE THE TRAA..." He was pushed away from the pipeline.
"What happened to Yusei and Cody?" Tank wondered.
"Don't know. The screen went blank." Nervin said.
"They made it through the hatch." Rally said optimistically. "I just know they did. I just know it."
"But if they didn't...?" Tank asked.
The gang started to think the worst before...
"Hey, what's that?" Blitz asked, hearing a beeping sound from the laptop. When they all looked at it, they saw two flashing blips being shown.
"It's Yusei and Cody!" Nervin said. This made everyone relieved and happy.
Especially Rally. "I told you! I so told you! Yeah!"
"They did it! They actually made it through to New Domino City!" Tank cheered.
"That's right! I never had a doubt!" Nervin added.
Meanwhile, Yusei and Cody were riding towards their destination in silence. Eventually, they made it outside New Domino City's sewage plant and stopped their duel runners.
Cody let out sigh of relief. "That was too close. But we made it."
"Yeah." Yusei nodded. It was then he finally noticed Cody's passenger. "Officer Storm!?"
"Hold on a second!" Cody stood up between Yusei and Cindy. "Her duel runner malfunctioned and got destroyed. I just couldn't leave her, even if she is from Sector Security."
Yusei calmed down a bit. "I see. And Trudge?"
"Even if I wanted to save him, I didn't have enough time to do that." Cody shrugged. "Of course, given how stubborn he is, I wouldn't be surprised if he survived."
"I just hope we don't run into more obstacles before getting what we came for."
They then heard groaning from behind and turned to its source. Cindy started to recover. "Hey, are you okay?"
They waited patiently for her to give a response. And then...
"Heh... hehehe..." She then threw her head back and laughed. "Hahahahaha! That was so awesome! I never had so much fun since my days in the world of the pros! I gotta admit, you guys sure know how to make things really exciting!"
Yusei and Cody blinked. They actually didn't expect this kind of reaction from the officer. "Glad you enjoyed the fun, I guess." Cody replied.
Cindy calmed down and spoke up again. "Well, I guess I blew this pursuit as well." She rubbed the back of her head. "Man, I don't really look forward reporting this to the headquarters."
Cody turned to Yusei. "So then, how do you plan to find Jack?"
"Actually..."
"Yusei!" An all too familiar voice called out.
"I think he already found me." And true to Yusei's words, all three people saw the very person staring down to them, right above on a bridge. The blonde man wearing a white tailcoat who betrayed Yusei, Cody and their friends: Jack Atlas!
"Hello Jack." Yusei greeted with slight venom in his voice.
"Long time no see! How've you been?" The blonde greeted back before letting out a chuckle. Noticing that Yusei didn't respond at all, Jack spoke up again. "What's the matter, Yusei? Aren't you happy to see your old friend Jack?" He then continued to chuckle. Cody didn't share his humor. And neither did Yusei. This was the moment he's been waiting for a long time.
And that's that. This was a little tricky, but I'm glad it's finished. And as I once promised you, I gave you guys Jeremy's backstory. As much as I want to write the next chapter of this story, I have to follow my writing schedule. So, I'll return to my GX story and write its next three chapters before continuing this one.
Until next time.