The Hunt Begins
It's been 5 minutes since Cody, Jeremy and Cindy left the park, and headed to a place where they could watch the next message. A place where the officer figured would be a good place without eyewitnesses...
"Well, this place should be good." She said as the trio found themselves on the top of a parking house. Cody and Cindy's duel runner were parked at the corner.
"Are you sure this is safe?" Jeremy asked.
"I don't think anyone will see us watching the message."
"Then let's take a look at it." Cody said as he picked up the metal box and placed it on his runner. He looked at the paper with code and typed the numbers on the lock. The locked beeped as the sound of a click was heard, and the box opened itself. When he looked inside, there was another memory card. But there was another object inside the box. It looked like a card of some kind. It was white with a black strip at one edge. "What is this?" He picked up the card.
"I think I've seen that kind of card before." Cindy said, eyeing on the card.
"Really?" Jeremy asked curiously.
"It looks similar to a key card I use when I put my belongings inside a locker at the headquarters."
"Which makes me wonder where my parents stored the next clue." Cody said as he handed the memory card to Jeremy, who inserted it into his laptop. And after a moment...
"Okay, here's the next video." At that, he clicked on the file, starting the video that showed Cody's parents.
"Cody, we hope that you found this message, because this is important." His father said with a serious tone.
"As we mentioned before, we found some old documents." His mom reminded him. "They hardly had much information that was worth looking into. However, we found out that those documents were related to the Morningstar Foundation."
Cody quickly paused after hearing the sentence. "Morningstar Foundation? What's that?"
"It's a successful data company." Cindy explained. "The people there work with data programs that are quite helpful for computers, electronics, and other machines. They even help with system programs for duel runners. The company is so big, that it's divided into multiple buildings that are spread out all over the country."
"That's interesting." Jeremy commented.
"Anyway..." Cody started the video again.
"In case you don't know, Morningstar Foundation would have some business with our company from time to time..." Cody's dad mentioned.
And now it was Jeremy's turn to pause the video. "Your parents owned a company?" He asked, surprised.
"Sounds like it." Cody replied. He then started the video again.
"After all, New Domino Techno Corp is well known for our technological products."
"But given the fact that we found those documents while trying to trace the people who attacked us, we can assume that the Morningstar Foundation is somehow connected to all this." Cody's mom said. "We'll see what we can find. And here's the place where you'll find the next message..." The image changed as the video showed a tall building with a big sign with the word 'SECURITY'.
The trio gasped, especially Cindy, who seem to recognize that building. "But that's..."
"This is the Sector Security's headquarters." Cody's dad said. "And if you manage to get down to the basement of this building..." The video showed a storage room of sort, and then zoomed into a corner where a hole was hidden behind a large box. "You can find a hidden room that no one has entered for a long time. Your mom and I found this place when we once visited the Sector Security but kept quiet about it. And inside that room, there's a locker that you should be able to open with the key card you found."
"Good luck, and be careful, Cody." Cody's mom said right before the video reached its end.
"This is unbelievable." Cody muttered.
"I know." Jeremy agreed. "Who'd ever thought that you had parents who owned a company?"
"Well, I may not know about everything regarding New Domino Techno Corp, however..." Cindy trailed off for a second. "I've heard that after the previous owners passed away, someone from the Morningstar Foundation took over the place."
"Whoa! There's just one coincidence after another." Jeremy commented.
Cody narrowed his eyes. "If it even is a coincidence. We have to find out how they are involved in this."
"And then, there's the situation of the next hidden message." Cindy held up a finger. "It's somewhere in the basement of the Sector Security's headquarters. And of course, having you two enter there is out of the question."
"Huh?" Cody and Jeremy turned to her.
"Hello! The two of you are Satellites. And for that reason only, you are criminals in their eyes, so if you two go in there, then you might as well turn yourself in."
Jeremy frowned. "She's got a point there."
"So you're going there alone?" Cody asked.
"Well, are you two Sector Security officers?" Cindy asked rhetorically. "Obviously, I'm the only one who can walk in there and get the next message without getting myself into trouble."
"That's true." Cody nodded.
"And as for you two..." Cindy reached into her pocket and pulled out a key. "You head back to my apartment and wait there while I head over to the headquarters."
Cody grabbed the key. "Alright then."
"Just be careful." Jeremy said, concerned.
"Don't worry, I won't fall that easily." Cindy replied with a wink, making Jeremy blush a bit. At that, the trio got ready to take off.
But little did they know, that two men wearing black suits and shades were on the top of a nearby building watched them. One of them, who was simply bald, was using binoculars. "The target is on the move."
"Then let's go." The other guy, who had short grey hair, replied.
Moments later, Cody and Jeremy were on their way to Cindy's apartment. "I hope Cindy's gonna be fine." Jeremy muttered.
"Don't worry, she can take care of herself." Cody replied. "For now, we just head back and take it easy."
As they drove, a black suited man acting as a sniper was on top of a building, aiming at the runner. "Target in sight." He said, waiting for a response from his earpiece.
"Fire at will." Someone replied.
At that, the man pulled the trigger...
BANG!
And fired just as Cody turn left, which caused the bullet to hit the rear end of the runner.
"What!? What was that!?" Jeremy exclaimed, looking around.
"Is someone shooting us?" Cody wondered. Then it dawned on him. "My parents' murderers! They're on us!"
The sniper who shot them touched his earpiece. "Number 12. He's headed to your position."
"Roger." Another sniper replied, getting his rifle ready. He saw Cody and Jeremy and aimed at them.
"So what do we do?!" Jeremy asked worriedly.
"Let's try to shake them!" Cody replied. "Hang on tight!" He then turned right.
BANG! And it was at that moment the one called number 12 pulled the trigger.
"Gah!" Cody cried out as the bullet managed to scrape his left arm. "Damn it!" He then maneuvered in attempt to avoid any more shots.
"This better not get messy." Cindy muttered as she parked her duel runner in an alley. She took off her helmet and walked out of there, eyeing at the very building she was heading to. "Alright, let's do this." With determination, she walked towards the Sector Security headquarters.
But she was unaware of someone hiding in the shadows, watching her. The stranger approached her duel runner and placed a small, electronic box on its right side.
Once inside, Cindy walked quietly through the main hall, trying her best to not get some attention from the people who walked around there. Some of them were people in business suits, while others were Sector Security officers.
As she walked, some officers passed by, and she happened to hear what they said. "So, how did it go during your shift?"
"Well, I just caught some Satellite scum who caused problem."
"Is that so? Well, they better get what they deserve."
"Yeah. Of course, all Satellites are scum. They're nothing more than trash. Just like the dump they live in."
"You got that right. They're just freaks."
Cindy couldn't help but scowl at their words. 'Jeez. They really hate Satellites for no reason at all. Judging them just because they're not born here in New Domino City. Kinda reminds me of...' She trailed off as something came to her mind.
Flashback
A much younger Cindy, wearing a grey, ripped shirt that reached down to her knees, was sitting at a wall in rainy day, sobbing silently.
Flashback end
Cindy shook her head. 'Stop it! This is no time for that. I need to focus.' At that, she kept walking.
"Well, this is the place." She commented as she entered the storage room. "Now where to find that hidden room?" She walked around a bit, noting the many different objects that were piled up in here. And when she glanced at one of the corners, she smiled when she saw that hole behind the box. "Bingo." She approached the large box and grabbed it. "Hah!" With some effort, she managed to move it a bit. "Alright then..." She then got behind the box and walked through the hole.
"Whoa!" She looked around the hidden room, which turned out to be a very old locker room. It was dusty and some of the lockers appeared to be damaged, while others seem to be out of power, considering that the lights on the locks are off. "When Cody's parents said that no one hasn't been here for a long time, they weren't joking. So then..." she picked out the key card. "Which locker does this card work on?" She looked around when her eyes landed on one locker at the far back. "Well well..." From the faint light of the lock she noticed, Cindy assumed that it might be it.
She walked over to the lock and placed the key card against the locker. And then...
BEEP! CLICK!
"Score!" Cindy smirked as she opened the locker. She looked inside and found a small, red box on the shelf. She grabbed and opened the lid. What she found inside, was another memory card. "Looks like we're lucky once again." At that, she closed the box and quickly left the place.
As she exited the building, she walked back to her duel runner, revved it up and took off. But, not too long after she left, someone else on their own duel runner came after her. The person was wearing a basic black racing suit, and a matching black helmet with a visor that obscured their eyes. The duel runner didn't look that much special. It just almost looked like a regular, black motorcycle with a logo on its left side. The logo looked like a hexagon with an A and M.
"This is getting annoying!" Cody muttered as he and Jeremy still tried to avoid those who were shooting them. Cody kept performing some maneuvers while avoiding cars and other vehicles.
BANG!
Another sniper shot them, almost hitting one of the wheels.
"There's no shaking them."
Jeremy looked to the right and paled. "Um, Cody! I think it's about to get worse!"
Cody followed his gaze and gasped when he saw a black van driving right next to his duel runner. The driver was a black-haired man in his early thirties, wearing a black suit. And judging from his evil grin, he was one of those chasing them.
Cody was about to accelerate when he suddenly saw something ahead of them. "You weren't kidding about things getting worse!"
Jeremy turned and suddenly had a look of disbelief on his face. "No way..." Apparently, what Cody saw was another black van, with its cargo hatch open, revealing more men in black suits.
Cody gritted his teeth. "Hang on tight!" At that, he violently turned left and avoided more vehicles as he and Jeremy took off on another road. But the vans didn't give up the chase.
Meanwhile, Cindy was on her way home. "Alright then. Now I just have to meet up with the guys. This was way too easy..."
But as soon as she said that, the black clad stranger appeared from nowhere and rammed her from the left.
"Ah!" The force was enough make her duel runner spin around. But she managed to make it stop and regain control. "What the hell was that?" She turned and saw the stranger driving right next to her. "What did you do that for?! Are you trying to kill me?!"
The black clad driver didn't say anything. Instead, they pushed a button on their runner. And then, its screen showed the image of the Speed World card. "Duel Mode engaged: Autopilot deactivated." At that, everything turned purple.
Cindy raised an eyebrow. "You want to duel? Sorry, but I don't have time for that."
"You don't have a choice." The stranger replied with a strange, slightly masculine, and electronic voice. He then pulled out some kind of trigger from his pocket. And when they did...
There were suddenly sparks all over Cindy's runner. "What?! What's going on?!" She looked around until she accidentally found the source: the electronic box. "Where did that thing come from?!" She wondered. But just a second later, she narrowed her eyes and turned to the black clad driver. "Are you behind this?!"
He chuckled. "Sorry, but you're not allowed to back down."
And then, the screen on Cindy's duel runner turned on. "Duel Mode engaged: Autopilot deactivated."
Cindy started to get frustrated. "Just who are you?!"
"You can just call me Blade, and you're about to get crushed!" The person now named Blade declared and drew his opening hand.
"Don't get ahead of yourself, whoever you are!" Cindy replied and drew her opening hand.
Cindy: 4000
Blade: 4000
"Ladies first." Cindy said and drew her sixth card. "First I summon Flying Kamakiri #1 in attack mode!" With a shriek, a big, four-armed vaguely humanoid insect appeared. (ATK: 1400 DEF: 900 LV: 4) "I place one card facedown and end my turn." Cindy concluded as a card briefly appeared right next to her duel runner.
"Then it's my turn!" Blade drew.
Cindy: 4000 SC: 0-1
Blade: 4000 SC: 0-1
"For my first move, I summon X-Saber Anu Piranha in attack mode!" A beautiful, blonde-haired female warrior in red and black armor appeared. (ATK: 1800 DEF: 1100 LV: 4) "Now squash that bug! Or better yet... slice it to pieces!" The woman dashed towards Cindy's insect monster and gracefully swung with her blade, cutting it in half, and shattered it into pixels.
Cindy: 4000-3600
"You just triggered my Flying Kamakiri # 1's effect. After being destroyed in battle, it lets me summon a wind attribute monster with up to 1500 attack points! And I choose Kujakujaku!" From a portal, a blue peacock with blue and brown feathered wings appeared. It had green and blue tail feathers and there were some shadows shaped like snakes on them. (ATK: 1200 DEF: 900 LV: 3)
"You think that little birdie's gonna scare me? Don't make me laugh!" Blade inserted a card into his console. "I place one card facedown and end my turn."
"My turn!" Cindy drew.
Cindy: 3600 SC: 1-2
Blade: 4000 SC: 1-2
"Maybe you're not afraid of this birdie, but you might be afraid of the next one! I release my Kujakujaku in order to advance summon Troposphere!" The peacock's body turned into a rainbow colored portal, from which a new monster emerged. It was a blue humanoid bird clad in white armor with golden linings. (ATK: 2400 DEF: 2000 LV: 6) "And next I activate Kujakujaku's special ability! Since it was sacrificed and sent to the graveyard, I can add 1 level 4 or lower wind attribute monster from my deck to my hand." Her deck shuffled briefly before letting the top card slid out a bit, letting Cindy draw it and add it to her hand. "And now it's time for Troposphere to attack. Go get him!" The humanoid bird took flight and dived toward the female warrior.
"You just triggered my trap!" Blade said.
"My Troposphere is immune to all trap cards, so you can't stop my attack." Cindy replied.
But Blade chuckled. "That's where you're wrong! I'm not using my trap on YOUR monster! I activate At One With the Sword!" His facedown card flipped up. "Since I only have one monster on my field, and it happens to have the word X-Saber in its name, I can equip it with this card and increase its attack points by 800!" Anu Piranha faced Troposphere and readied her sword, which glowed brightly. (ATK: 1800-2600) And when the humanoid bird got close enough, she struck it with one swing. After a brief moment, the bird exploded.
Cindy: 3600-3400
Cindy clicked her tongue.
"And that's not all. Every time my equipped monster destroys another monster in battle, I get to draw an extra card from my deck." Blade drew. "And here I thought you would be a challenge. But it looks like this duel will be over in a mere moment."
"Don't count on it." Cindy muttered quietly while inserting a card into her console. "I end my turn with one facedown."
BANG!
"What's with these guys!?" Jeremy asked hysterically as he and Cody were still trying to get away from the vans and avoid any sniper who'd be shooting them. Right now, they were in a part of the city that was dirty and vandalized.
"They're so persistent!" Cody muttered. "No matter where we go, we just can't shake them off!"
As they kept driving away from their pursuers, there was a nearby building where another of those black suits was waiting.
"Number 16, they're headed to your position." Someone spoke up via his earpiece.
"Roger." He nodded as he picked up his weapon. But, instead of a rifle like the others used... this guy had a bazooka! He placed it on his left shoulder as he aimed at Cody and Jeremy. "Now we have you." Was all he said before he launched a rocket.
Cody and Jeremy heard the sound of that and wondered what it was. And not too soon, they saw the rocket heading straight to them so quickly that it was getting real close.
"Aaaah...!"
"My turn!" Blade drew.
Cindy: 3400 SC: 2-3
Blade: 4000 SC: 2-3
"And I summon XX-Saber Emmersblade!" The monster that appeared next to the female warrior was a big mantis wearing a cape. Some amount of its body was green while the rest of it was covered in silver armor with blue linings. (ATK: 1300 DEF: 800 LV: 3) "Now it's over for you! Anu Piranha, you'll get to strike her first!" The female warrior charged toward Cindy.
"Nice try! But you just triggered my trap card, Wall of Disruption!" One of Cindy's facedown cards flipped up. And when it did, it created some kind of energy wall. "Since you let your monster attack, my trap makes each monster you have in attack mode lose 800 attack points for every monster you control."
"What!?" Blade exclaimed.
"And since both of your monsters are in attack mode, they both lose 1600 attack points!" The female warrior struck the wall with her sword, but caused some vibrations that sent her back. (ATK: 2600-1000) And the vibrations also reached the mantis, making it cry out a bit. (ATK: 1300-0)
Of course, the attack caused the wall to release some vibrations that hit Cindy as well.
Cindy: 3400-2400 SC: 3-2
And with her speed counters reduced by one, Blade moved ahead of her. "Hmph. Lucky move. I'll just end my turn with a facedown!" A card appeared briefly near his duel runner.
"My move!" Cindy drew.
Cindy: 2400 SC: 2-3
Blade: 4000 SC: 3-4
"First I activate the speed spell, Angel Baton! With at least two speed counters, I can draw 2 cards and discard 1 card from my hand." Cindy drew two cards, and looked over hand before discarding a card. "And now I summon Harpie Lady 1 in attack mode!" The dark-pink haired Harpie clad in a purple body suit appeared. (ATK: 1300 DEF: 1400 LV: 4)
"I don't think so!" Blade interrupted. "I activate the trap card, Saber Hole!" His facedown card flipped up. With an X-Saber monster on my field, I can negate the summon of a monster and destroy it!" A dimensional hole appeared under the Harpie's feet and she was sucked into it. "There's no way I'll let you attack me!"
But Cindy smirked. "Do you wanna bet?" At that, her Troposphere card slid out of her graveyard slot. "By removing a wind monster from my graveyard, I can summon Garuda the Wind Spirit to the field." From a whirlwind, a bird-like creature appeared. It had a greenish, humanoid body with its bird-like head and wings full of brown feathers. (ATK: 1600 DEF: 1200 LV: 4) "Now attack his Emmersblade!" The winged monster charged toward the giant mantis and landed a right hook on its stomach, shattering it into pixels.
Blade: 4000-2400 SC: 4-3
And now that Blade lost a speed counter, Cindy was now driving right next to him. "Bet you didn't see that coming, did ya?"
But to her confusion, Blade chuckled. "Hehehe! On the contrary. I was expecting this might happen! I activate Emmersblade's effect! When it's destroyed in battle, I can summon a level 4 or lower X-Saber monster from my deck. So her comes X-Saber Pashuul!" From a flash of light, a warrior with long black hair appeared. He was some kind of cyborg with purple armor, wielding a big sword with an 'X' mark on its blade. (ATK: 100 DEF: 0 LV: 2)
Cindy narrowed her eyes and inserted two cards into her console. "I place two cards facedown and end my turn."
My turn!" Blade drew.
Cindy: 2400 SC: 3-4
Blade: 2400 SC: 3-4
"Before you make a move, I discard one card in order to activate one of my facedown cards!" Cindy slid her remaining card into the graveyard slot before one of her facedown cards flipped up. "It's one of my personal favorites: Hysteric Party. With this, I can summon as many Harpie Ladies as possible from my graveyard."
Under his helmet, Blade scoffed. "What good would that do? You only have one Harpie in the graveyard."
But Cindy smirked. "Actually. I've got three."
"Say what!?"
"I discarded one card when I used Angel Baton, remember?" She reminded him. "And I also discarded my remaining card when I activated this very trap card. So..."
"Damn!"
"Here comes Harpie Lady1! And also... Harpie Lady 2 and Harpie Lady 3!" From a portal, Harpie Lady 1 emerged, along with two other Harpies. One of them had red hair with one bang on the left side of her face being longer than the one on the right side. The other one had blue spiky hair. (ATK: 1300 DEF: 1400 LV: 4) x3 "And with Harpie Lady 1 on the field, all wind monsters on the field gain 300 attack points!" All three Harpies glowed with a green aura. (ATK: 1300-1600) x3
"If that's the best you can do, then you won't survive this turn! First, since I have two X-Saber monsters on the field, I can summon XX-Saber Faultroll!" From a flash of light, another warrior appeared. This one was wearing a red, mechanical armor with a red cape, wielding a big sword. (ATK: 2400 DEF: 1800 LV: 6) "And now my Pashuul is gonna give Anu Piranha a tune up!" The cyborg warrior's body turned into 2 stars, which circled around the blonde female warrior before turning into circles of green light.
"A synchro summon!" Cindy's eyes widened.
Blade chuckled as Anu Piranha's body became transparent and revealed four stars that lined up. "Got that right! I tune X-Saber Pashuul with X-Saber Anu Piranha in order to synchro summon XX-Saber Hyunlei!" The stars created a beam of light that expanded. Moments later, another warrior appeared. It was female warrior wearing golden armor with a red cape, wielding a sword with a part of its blade being blue. She was wearing a golden helmet with a blue visor that covered her eyes. (ATK: 2300 DEF: 1300 LV: 6)
"Now that's just great." Cindy muttered sarcastically.
"And now I activate her special ability! When she's synchro summoned, I can destroy up to 3 spells or traps on the field! So there goes Hysteric Party and your two facedown cards!" The female warrior swung with her sword, sending an arc of blue energy.
"I activate my trap! Harpie's Feather Storm!" One of Cindy's facedown card flipped up and released a mix of feathers and a whirlwind that blew the energy arc away.
"What the...!?"
Cindy smirked. "Sorry, but thanks to my trap, any monster effect you'll try to activate this turn is negated. Now, what was that I won't survive this turn?"
It was a silent moment. Blade wasn't saying anything at all the time. But then, he started to tremble. He was trembling... with anger. "You little... How dare you mock me? Don't you underestimate me!" There was then a gust that emanated from him. "I'll teach you! I summon XX-Saber Boggart Knight!" A beastial warrior in silver armor with a red cape, wielding a sword with an energy blade, appeared. (ATK: 1900 DEF: 1000 LV: 4) And as soon as it appeared, it roared and cut off a light pole with its blade.
That was something Cindy certainly didn't expect. "No way...!?"
"Now let's end this! Now my monsters, attack!" All three of Blade's monsters charged forward, raising their swords.
Cindy got over her shock and made her move. "I activate my trap! Three of a Kind!" Her facedown card flipped up, and released a white aura that surrounded her three Harpies. "I can only activate this card when I have three monsters with the same name. And even though my three Harpies have different looks, they have the ability to have the name Harpie Lady. Which means my trap card can destroy three cards on the field!" At that, her three Harpies took flight and each of them slashed their respective opponent with their claws. Harpie Lady 1 destroyed Hyunlei. Harpie lady 2 destroyed Faulttroll. And Harpie Lady 3 destroyed Boggart Knight.
"No! You can't!" Blade protested in anger and disbelief.
"I just did! And now it's my turn!" Cindy drew.
Cindy: 2400 SC: 4-5
Blade: 2400 SC: 4-5
"Now my Harpies, attack him directly!" The Harpies charged toward Blade and landed slashing strikes on his duel runner.
Blade: 2400-0000
And then, Blade's duel runner released some smoke from its frame and stopped, letting Cindy get away. And as she got further away from him, he trembled in anger once again. "Dammit!"
As for Cindy, she sighed in relief. "Phew, that duel was pretty tough. I still got it." She then frowned. "But I wonder who that guy was." She pondered on it for a while but couldn't figure it out. Eventually, she dropped it and headed home.
After a while, she arrived at the apartment building. "Can't wait to tell the guys what I've been through."
"C-Cindy..." Someone called out with weak voice.
The former dueling pro turned and gasped when she saw the person who called out. It was Jeremy, and he had bruises almost all over his body. He was leaning against the wall, trying to stand on his feet. "Jeremy!" Cindy ran over to him and caught him as he was about to fall. "Jeremy, what on earth happened to you!?"
"We... we were on our way back here, but then... we were ambushed." He explained.
"What!? By who?" Cindy asked before she realized something. "Wait, where's Cody?"
"He... he..." Jeremy struggled to say the words. "He's been taken. They took Cody..." At that, Jeremy passed out.
"No..." Cindy was shocked to hear those words.
Somewhere, inside a big dark room, there was a giant screen that was on, facing a person who stood in the middle of the place. That person was none other than Blade. As for the screen, it was showing a person who appeared to be inside some kind of tube. But it was difficult to make out their appearance.
"What you did today was foolish, Blade." The person on the screen said with a dark voice.
"What? What did I do wrong?" Blade asked, irritated.
"When I took you in, you were supposed to follow my orders. And I ordered you specifically to not make a move before the time is right."
"That's just stupid!" Blade snarled. We have the power, so I don't see why we should wait for-"
"SILENCE!" The man in screen roared as Blade was suddenly pushed back by an invisible force and pinned him against a wall. "As I told you before, I have seen the future. A big threat is approaching to our world. And as long as that threat is in presence, it would be reckless to commence with our plans at this moment. Therefore, we won't do anything until that threat is out of the picture. Do I make myself clear?"
Blade grunted as he struggled to break free, but no matter what he did, he was stuck. Eventually, he gave up and lowered his head. "Alright, fine. I'll stay put."
"Good." The man in the screen said as Blade was released from the invisible grip. "Now wait patiently. Eventually, we will get our chance..."
Almost a month since my last update. But I hope this chapter was worth the wait. Until next time.