Starting Notes:
Welcome back! Most of this chapter was written on a very high fever, so forgive me for any spelling errors. I did check it over, but once again, I'm not in the best condition, unfortunately. Also, fever means no duel summary. Am tired. :) But I've been redrafting this chapter for two weeks, and if I didn't just give up and just touch up, I would never continue the fic. So, it's the best that I can do currently. (For context, even though there's like three days between chapters nowadays, I do have drafts for chapters done a while before I actually write them properly, but this one ate up all my backlog.) Warning for some Synchron combo related trauma :D I decided to actually give Sherry more Synchrons for fun, since I was tired of writing the exact same starting plays for Sherry.
Chapter 48: Drowning?
Two years ago:
It had happened that Chino was handling a case, and Arisu was not free that day, so instead of the partner that she was already used to, she got stuck with the tacit newcomer. (Not so new now, considering that the girl had been here for about a year. But Makoto was the one that the girl tended to talk to more, and so, Chino had barely gotten to talk to her at all.)
The job was simple—one of the Commons had trespassed on the property of a businessman, and so they were sent to retrieve him, and to hear what reparations the businessman wanted. The first half, where they went to talk to the 'wronged victim', was unbearable enough, and Chino zoned out even as Kaname took careful notes. At the same time, she spotted how the businessman looked at Kaname with distaste, as though she was nothing in front of him, and even though she barely knew the girl, she felt a sense of unease at the way that the other girl was treated.
Then came the part that should have been slightly less unbearable—arresting the interloper. (And yes, Chino understood how completely fucked up it was that arresting someone who had barely crossed the line could be considered easier than listening to someone's rambling.)
The poor man, who spat out confused insults towards them as dogs of the Tops—
The poor man, who hit the Ghost in the face before she calmly stunned him with a taser.
Chino glanced at the white-haired girl as she heaved the man up with a kind of strength that a fifteen-year-old should not have. "I heard that Makoto trained you in basic self-defence," she said. "That man was clumsy. He shouldn't have been able to hit you, with what I've seen from your reflexes."
Kaname tilted her head.
"You let him hit you," Chino said, and Kaname shrugged. It was basically a confirmation, considering how little she ever expressed at all. "You—why?"
Kaname glanced at her. There was a small red mark on her face, but considering that the mask covered most of it, Chino could only see the edges of it. It wasn't likely that anyone else would notice, because this girl was unnoticeable unless she wanted to be. Chino furiously tried to read the expression in that single, exposed eye, before another thought occurred to her.
"Do you let them hit you?" She demanded. "Why? Is it guilt? Because we're just doing our jobs. We can't be blamed for that—"
Another shrug.
Chino exasperatedly covered her face. "Let's just bring him back," she said, giving up. "If you won't talk about it…"
In the present:
As the sun finally set and the sky was tinted purple, it was the time for the final duel. There was a slight pause there, however, between the previous duel in the round and that final duel. Ostensibly, it was for the crowd to get more water and snacks to watch the final duel of the match.
However, preparations were being made from behind the scenes.
Roget raised his phone, the buzzing continuing, before the person on the other end picked up. "You know what the mission objective is, don't you?" He asked conversationally. "Win against that woman. Crush her in exactly the way that I intended. She cannot be allowed to go further."
There was no response except for a tap against the phone—a signal for 'yes'.
"Good," Roget said. "As usual—all my plans hinge on you. As long as you do as I say, things will work out."
He hung up a moment later. He leaned over the table, smirking to himself.
… of course, if you lose, I do have backup plans too.
I'm sure you know that. That's why you won't lose.
Earning your allegiance was perhaps the smartest decision I made when I came to this dimension.
"Hmm. Intriguing proposal, if that's how you want to save him. You don't have the eyes of a child." Roget tilted his head. "Adopting a Commons child would be bad for my reputation though. And if I want to advance further—"
A slip of paper slid across the table. Roget lifted it, reading out the words. "'Not if I'm the strongest.' You… is that arrogance, or genuine confidence?" This girl didn't seem like the kind to exaggerate anything about herself. And if she was truly the strongest…
He'd have to test that, but…
The girl wrote down something else, pushing it over to him. 'You aren't from here.'
A chill ran down Roget's spine for a brief moment.
He should just get rid of her. Even if she was a child, even if there was no conceivable way that she could guess where exactly he came from… she was a risk just because she could tell that he wasn't a native to the City.
But…
Well, if his experiments worked out, he could certainly use a strong duelist under his thumb.
"Well," he said after a moment, "let's see if you're telling the truth."
"You know," Sherry said conversationally, "I never expected to face you again in such an official capacity."
Kaname glanced at her neutrally from where she had been looking over Sherry's D-Wheel. She tapped the side of Sherry's duel disk in a manner that almost seemed annoyed. She lifted her hand, before turning away, walking over to start her D-Wheel. She adjusted her helmet slightly.
"You remember me, don't you?" Sherry tilted her head. "Arisu Kirijo may have arrested Kiryu, but you were the one that arrested me back then." She laughed to herself. "It shocked me. A girl, still a child, winning against me?... I guess that's not as odd of a feeling now, because of you."
A slight shrug.
"I'm still surprised. The fact that members of the Commons can ever support Security… I suppose that shows your selfishness, no? Wanting a better life for yourself instead of others?"
Kaname started her D-Wheel, riding out and heading to the starting line, leaving Sherry behind. Sherry caught up after a moment.
"Sensitive about it?" She asked. "Or did Roget do something to you to make you want to be his child? Who are you, anyway? Where did you come from?"
Kaname glanced forward. The announcement started. Both D-Wheels raced forward—they were keeping up with each other quite well. Kaname swerved to the side, cutting close to the wall—but Sherry caught up in her slipstream, trying to cut forward. In the end, it was so close that the audience couldn't tell—nor could the announcers from above.
It didn't matter though.
Both Kaname and Sherry knew who had won.
"Well, I'll be starting now," Sherry LeBlanc said, clearly confident that Kaname knew that she had won too. "En garde—traître de classe." Her eyes, as usual, were harsh, and her tone was sharp and serious.
Class traitor.
Tch.
Kaname didn't show any surface response though. She simply glanced away, acknowledging Sherry's victory of the first corner. But she would not allow the blonde woman to win over her with words. After all—sticks and stones could break her bones, but words would never break her. She was far too used to anything that someone else could say to her at this point.
[DUEL!]
Sherry LeBlanc: 4000LP
Kaname Mizuchi: 4000LP
[Turn 1: Sherry] [H:5]
"I will banish Noble Knight's Shield-Bearer from my hand to add a Level 6 or lower WIND Beast monster from my Deck to my hand," Sherry said. She gestured to her deck, the options showing up on her duel disk. She was naturally about to add White Steed of the Floral Knights to her hand, but to her surprise, there was a new option that she hadn't yet seen in the cards. She read its effects, slightly confused. Swift Horse of the Flower Knights?...
Where had that card come from?
She selected it instinctively, adding it to her hand. She read its effect…
What was a Fusion Summon? Why was this card in her deck if she couldn't even use it?
Fusion Summon a Fusion Monster… she glanced at her Extra Deck, only to blink. What was this doing in her Extra Deck? She definitely hadn't put it there…
Its first effect though…
"I will activate the Continuous Spell, Synchro Dilemma," Sherry said. "I will immediately use its first effect. By sending a "Synchron" monster from my hand or field to the graveyard, I can Special Summon a monster from my hand." She discarded a card, before swiftly revealing the card that she had just added to her hand. "I will Special Summon Swift Horse of the Flower Knights from my hand!" The strange red horse appeared in front of her, wearing shimmering armour that was tinted slightly green-gold. It was wearing a white banner with red swirls on it.
[Swift Horse of the Flower Knights (3*/400/800/WIND/Beast/Effect)]
"When Swift Horse of the Flower Knights is Normal or Special Summoned," Sherry said, still somewhat doubtful of the card—after all, it had shown up out of nowhere—but willing to give it a chance, "I can add a LIGHT "Noble Knight" monster from my deck to my hand. I will add Noble Knight's Spearholder from my deck to my hand." She revealed the card. "Then, I will Normal Summon Noble Knight's Spearholder." A knight in round white armour appeared, holding onto a long green metal blade.
[Noble Knight's Spearholder (2*/800/400/LIGHT/Warrior/Effect)]
"When Noble Knight's Spearholder is Normal or Special Summoned, I can target a Level 8 or lower monster on my field. Its name becomes "Fleur Synchron" until the End Phase, and it's also treated as a Tuner. I will choose Swift Horse of the Flower Knights!" The strange monster glowed. "I will tune the Level 3 Swift Horse of the Flower Knights, treated as 'Fleur Synchron', to the Level 2 Noble Knight's Spearholder! Body born from speed, gather these clustering wishes, and bring them forth for the collective revolution! Synchro Summon! Level 5! Junk Speeder!" A white and blue robot figure appeared, punching a fist in the air.
[Junk Speeder (5*/1800/1000/WIND/Warrior/Synchro/Effect)]
"When Junk Speeder is Synchro Summoned, I can activate its effect, but I cannot Special Summon monsters from the Extra Deck this turn, except Synchro Monsters! With Junk Speeder's effect—" Sherry pointed out with a finger. "I can Special Summon as many "Synchron" Tuner monsters with different Levels as possible from my deck in Defense Position!" All five of her Main Monster Zones lit up.
She had pulled off this move a few times before, when she had drawn the right cards to do so. Even so, she could never shake the feeling that she could hear Yusei's voice echoing behind hers every time she used it, like a ghost right behind her.
"Five monsters at once?" Yugo muttered from above. "That's—so cool!" He pouted. "Now I kind of want to duel her too, myself…"
"First—Level 1! Jet Synchron!" A blue and white machine powered by a fiery reactor appeared first.
[Jet Synchron (1*/500/0/FIRE/Machine/Tuner/Effect)]
"Second! Level 2! Fleur Synchron!" Sherry's signature bright orange Tuner appeared on her field as well.
[Fleur Synchron (2*/400/200/LIGHT/Machine/Tuner/Effect)]
"Three! Level 3! Steam Synchron!" A black, stiff machine with steam emerging from the top of it emerged.
[Steam Synchron (3*/600/800/WATER/Machine/Tuner/Effect)]
"Four! Level 4! Hyper Synchron!" A blue action-figure robot lumbered forward.
[Hyper Synchron (4*/1600/800/LIGHT/Machine/Tuner/Effect)]
"And five," Sherry concluded. "Level 5! Quickdraw Synchron!" The monster dressed up as a cowboy leapt forward, brandishing two guns.
[Quickdraw Synchron (5*/700/1400/WIND/Machine/Tuner/Effect)]
"Five monsters at once?" Yuno said, eyes widening. "She didn't use that against me…"
Sherry, who hadn't had an easily accessible Level combination to use to summon this card back then, sighed. "Tuning the Level 1 Jet Synchron to the Level 5 Jet Speeder. With your powerful metal fists, rain down anger on those that oppose you. Synchro Summon—Level 6, Mighty Warrior!" A metallic warrior appeared, made of blue and white shining metal, with one arm being a long and thick blue metal cuboid that slammed through the air violently.
[Mighty Warrior (6*/2200/2000/EARTH/Warrior/Synchro/Effect)]
"But he's not staying around for long. I will tune the Level 2 Fleur Synchron to the Level 6 Mighty Warrior. Body born from speed, the time for revolution has come! Bring victory into my hands! Synchro Summon! Shine, Fleur de Chevalier!" The pink-haired, androgynous knight appeared, a sharp and dark blade by her side.
[Fleur de Chevalier (8*/2700/2300/WIND/Warrior/Synchro/Effect)]
"Since Fleur Synchron was used as Synchro Material, I can Special Summon a Level 2 or lower monster from my hand," Sherry continued—unrelenting, as per normal. "Come—Junk Converter." A grey robot with large and colourful drills serving as its claws appeared in front of her as well.
[Junk Converter (2*/400/200/EARTH/Warrior/Effect)]
The truth was, it had always surprised Sherry how easily Yusei's cards had fit into her deck. Stardust had gone to Kiryu, of course—why wouldn't it have gone to Kiryu, who carried his grief and guilt so openly while she did her best to suppress it deep inside her locked heart? But many of Yusei's cards, over time, had found their place in her deck—at first, just one or two Synchrons, then Speeder, then more and more until she had forgotten what her deck had looked like before the mechanical wires had slipped between the flowers.
"I will tune the Level 5 Quickdraw Synchron to the 2 Junk Converter!" Sherry didn't bother with courtesies, launching into her fourth Synchro Summon of the turn. "Under the holy light, bless others with the power of your cross! Synchro Summon! Level 7! Fleur de Vidame!" A woman with her hair curled up in a honey yellow flower appeared, holding onto a silver metal cross, resembling the staff of a cleric. Sweeping out an arm half-covered by a white robe, she cast a bright light across the field.
[Fleur de Vidame (7*/2000/2200/WIND/Warrior/Synchro/Effect)]
"When Fleur de Vidame is Synchro Summoned, I can add one of four specific cards from my deck to my hand. I will add the Continuous Trap, Pennant of Revolution to my hand!"
Sherry swiped up the card swiftly. Kaname watched her attentively.
"Junk Converter's effect. I can revive a Tuner monster, but it cannot activate its effects this turn." Quickdraw Synchron reappeared in Defense Position. "I will set a card and end my turn. Over to you, ghost." After that long turn, Sherry now had Fleur de Chevalier in her Extra Monster Zone in Attack Position, with Fleur de Vidame in Attack Position as well, while Steam Synchron, Hyper Synchron and Quickdraw Synchron sat in Defense Position, a set of defensive shields for her to use.
[Turn 2: Kaname] [H:6]
"Draw." Kaname's text-to-speech program declared for her as she lifted the card. "The player activates the Spell Card, Graceful Charity. They can draw three cards and discard two cards. Then, they will activate the Continuous Spell, Dimensional Fissure."
Sherry's blood ran cold.
Dimensional Fissure. Was there ever a card that destroyed floaters as much as one that stopped any monsters from going to the graveyard at all? One that banished them instead of letting them be sent to the graveyard… that affected pretty much Sherry's entire playstyle, considering… well, everything, from Necro Fleur to Fleur de Sorciere, and even Baroness. At least she had already gotten some cards into the graveyard, but even so.
Then again, that card was likely a blessing to this girl, queen of all that was banished. And it only affected monsters, meaning that Kaname herself was barely affected.
Kaname had of course moved on with her turn while Sherry was thinking. "The player Normal Summons Paces, Light of the Ghoti." The ghastly jellyfish appeared in front of her, floating with an ethereal glow around it.
[Paces, Light of the Ghoti (2*/0/0/WATER/Fish/Tuner/Effect)]
"The player activates the effect of Paces, Light of the Ghoti. By banishing itself from the field, the player can Special Summon a Fish monster from their hand. The player Special Summons Shif, Fairy of the Ghoti from their hand." A small feminine monster appeared, translucent with a crown of golden flower anemone, dots across her 'dress' and circular head.
[Shif, Fairy of the Ghoti (2*/0/500/WATER/Fish/Tuner/Effect)]
"Since a monster was banished, the player activates the effect of Ixeep, Omen of the Ghoti in their hand. They can Special Summon that monster from their hand." The guppy surrounded by fins that were fanning out around it appeared, red dots dancing across its water-like scales.
[Ixeep, Omen of the Ghoti (4*/1500/0/WATER/Fish/Effect)]
"The player tunes the Level 2 Shif, Fairy of the Ghoti to the Level 4 Ixeep, Omen of the Ghoti." The two monsters were immediately banished as they left the field. " Appear in a burst of adrenaline and rend all with your hellish waves! Synchro Summon! Level 6! White Aura Dolphin!" A large white dolphin appeared on the field, seeming to almost glow.
[White Aura Dolphin (6*/2400/1000/WATER/Fish/Synchro/Effect)]
"The player activates the effect of White Aura Dolphin. They can target a monster and have their attack points become half of their current attack points. The player chooses Fleur de Vidame."
Sherry raised an eyebrow. Fleur de Vidame's attack points were doubled when facing a Synchro Monster in battle. Clearly, the white-haired girl knew that much. At the same time—
"I will activate the effect of Steam Synchron," Sherry declared. "I will immediately perform a Synchro Summon using it and cards that I control. I will tune the Level 3 Steam Synchron to the Level 7 Fleur de Vidame." The two monsters were banished, but at the same time, Sherry dodged White Aura Dolphin's effect. "The one who leads the revolution of the people. Crush the foolish oppressors—and declare, with your elegant lance, the execution of all! Synchro Summon! Level 10! Fleur de Baroness!" The older version of Fleur de Chevalier appeared, gloriously sitting on horseback, a dazzling figure on the field in front of Sherry.
[Fleur de Baroness (10*/3000/2400/WIND/Warrior/Synchro/Effect)]
The crowd cheered for her.
"Go, Sherry-san! Show them the Tops' strength!"
"Sherry-san, beat up that Security dog!"
Two different statements from two different groups, both born out of their respect for her—
And their lack of respect for the girl in front of her, despite her clear strength.
Not for the first time, Sherry found herself intrigued by Kaname Mizuchi. She knew her own words and her own conviction, after all.
"My monsters are based around revolution. The wish to change that which is set in stone. It's a symbol, I suppose. This society wants us to wilt with grace, to fade away and stop speaking up, to allow ourselves to be crushed by the injustice that we see and deal with every single day. I imagine that I don't even know half of what they have gone through—I am a member of the Tops, after all. But even so, I refuse. As I once told the person who I care for the most, if they try to kill my spirit, I will only ever bloom into a greater foe."
She had been suppressed, but this girl was someone who had borne the hatred and scorn of both sides—one side for her supposed betrayal of them, and the other side simply because of what she had been born as. And even so, she carried on with life, as though none of that bothered her at all.
What was the straw that would break the camel's back?
Kaname dismissively slashed a hand through the air, ending her turn, much to Sherry's surprise. Why—
This was nowhere near the deadly force that she had seen from this girl so far, not just in the tournament, but when she had been arrested back then.
Sherry felt a sense of unease stirring in her stomach.
Something's not right.
What is she doing?
Why is she in this tournament anyway, if Roget has never tried to interfere with the Friendship Cup before this? What is the purpose of putting her in this environment when he barely gains anything from it? If she wins, she is the only one who benefits—unless Roget is planning on using her as a puppet? But if she loses, she loses face for the whole of Security, and she only validates the criticism she receives. This is completely illogical, no matter whether she is participating for Roget or for herself.
Whatever.
Sherry drew a card.
If her opponent was playing suboptimally, it was none of her business. Just like with Tsukikage Fuuma, she would overcome them.
[Turn 3: Sherry] [H:2]
"Draw." She had to keep in mind that her opponent already knew what some of her cards did, which was probably why Kaname hadn't attacked with White Aura Dolphin—Pennant of Revolution would have protected her monsters and destroyed the slim fish instead. Even so, to leave her with so much field advantage…
"During the Standby Phase, the player can Special Summon Shif, Fairy of the Ghoti and Paces, Light of the Ghoti to the field with the effects of both monsters." Sherry could negate it with Baroness's effect, but she stayed her hand. "With the effect of Ixeep, Omen of the Ghoti, the player can add a "Ghoti" Trap that is banished or in the graveyard to their hand."
"A "Ghoti" Trap that is banished or in the graveyard…" Sherry narrowed her eyes. "That's the card that you discarded for Graceful Charity then." However, she also allowed Kaname to pick the card up. "And? Anything else?"
Kaname shook her head.
"Alright then. I will activate the effect of Fleur de Baroness. Once per turn, I can target a card on the field and destroy it. I will target Dimensional Fissure. Blossoming Execution!" The Continuous Spell exploded into pink petals that scattered in the wind. That meant that her monsters would no longer be banished when they went to the graveyard—and nor would Kaname's own monsters. "And I will Normal Summon Flower of Death - Necro Fleur!" The dark sapling appeared on the field, limply leaning to the side.
[Flower of Death - Necro Fleur (1*/0/0/DARK/Plant/Effect)]
"I will tune the Level 4 Hyper Synchron to the Level 1 Flower of Death - Necro Fleur. Brave warrior enduring the fury of battle. Adapt and overcome! Synchro Summon! Level 5! Scarred Warrior!" A tanned warrior appeared, dressed mostly in silver armour and white cloth. He was seated in Defense Position.
[Scarred Warrior (5*/2100/1000/EARTH/Warrior/Synchro/Effect)]
"You're playing oddly," Sherry said quietly. "I'll force out whatever it is that you're hiding. I will have my—"
"During the end of the Main Phase," that cold text-to-speech said, "the player activates the effect of Paces, Light of the Ghoti."
To Synchro Summon, correct? And there was no point in negating that, since Kaname had two of those Tuners on the field. If she negated one, the white-haired girl would just use the other effect—it was a waste of Baroness's negation.
So Sherry stayed her hand.
"The player tunes the Level 2 Paces, Light of the Ghoti to the Level 6 White Aura Dolphin. Spinning around, descend now with high velocity and rend this field like the waves you create. Synchro Summon. Level 8. White Aura Whale." The enormous white fish crashed down on the field, a white-tinged torrent of water swirling around it.
[White Aura Whale (8*/2800/2000/WATER/Fish/Synchro/Effect)]
"That monster…"
"The player activates the effect of White Aura Whale. When White Aura Whale is Synchro Summoned, all monsters in Attack Position on the opponent's field are destroyed." White waves crashed forward.
"I will activate the effect of Fleur de Baroness," Sherry said swiftly. "Once while face-up on the field, I can negate the effect of a card and destroy that card. Declaration of Liberty!" Fleur de Baroness dashed forward, spearing the whale right through its midsection, destroying it.
"That's it!" Someone in the crowd cheered.
"Don't show her any mercy, Sherry-san!"
Sherry grimaced.
No, you fools. She's the one that forced my hand.
"When White Aura Whale is destroyed by an opponent's card, the player can banish a WATER monster from the graveyard to revive it back to the field." Kaname revealed Paces, banishing it, before White Aura Whale reemerged, albeit without its field nuke effect.
"Is that it?" Sherry asked, still somewhat unimpressed. "It won't last against my Baroness."
Kaname raised an eyebrow very slightly. You know that's not fully it. But you're welcome to try.
"I guess that's a 'that's fine' then. Fleur de Baroness attacks your White Aura Whale."
The pink-haired woman sliced through the large alien whale, inflicting a small amount of damage to Kaname.
Kaname: 4000 - 200 = 3800LP
"The player can banish a WATER monster from their graveyard to revive White Aura Whale from the graveyard, since it was destroyed by an opponent's card." Kaname picked up White Aura Dolphin from her graveyard, banishing it. White Aura Whale reappeared, as Sherry had known that it would.
"Fleur de Chevalier attacks Shif." The smaller monster was destroyed, but since it was in Defense Position, Kaname didn't take any damage. "Your move."
[Turn 4: Kaname] [H:4]
Kaname swiftly drew a card. "The player activates the effect of Paces, Light of the Ghoti. During the Standby Phase, they can Special Summon it back to the field, since it was banished last turn."
"During the Standby Phase, I can return Fleur de Baroness to the Extra Deck to Special Summon a Level 9 or lower monster from the graveyard," Sherry explained. "Return to the field, Mighty Warrior!" The white and blue Synchro Monster from earlier reappeared.
Kaname shrugged. "The player Normal Summons Lifeless Leaffish." A white, rather translucent looking leafy seadragon appeared, ghastly leaf-like fins drifting through the air. It looked like seaweed, adrift in the air.
[Lifeless Leaffish (4*/1500/1600/WATER/Fish/Effect)]
"The player activates the effect of Lifeless Leaffish. When summoned, the player can send a Fish monster from their deck to the graveyard." She gestured to the field. "The player tunes the Level 2 Paces, Light of the Ghoti to the Level 4 Lifeless Leaffish. "Slumbering, glowing moray sliding through the darkness of the distant, deepest abyss. Now, as the world falls into your grasp, bare your fangs and show off your luminous glow. Synchro Summon. Level 6. Arionpos, Serpent of the Ghoti." The long, slithering serpent appeared, blue and purple scales brightly luminescent.
[Arionpos, Serpent of the Ghoti (6*/2100/0/WATER/Fish/Synchro/Effect)]
"When Synchro Summoned, Arionpos, Serpent of the Ghoti's effect triggers." The serpent let out a sharp hiss. "The player can banish a Level 6 or lower Fish monster from their deck." Yet another monster was banished. "The player will then activate the effect of Lifeless Leaffish in the graveyard. By banishing it from the graveyard and returning three Fish monsters from their graveyard to the Deck, they can draw a card. The player returns the card that they sent with Lifeless Leaffish's first effect, Shif, Fairy of the Ghoti and the second card they discarded with Graceful Charity to the Deck to draw a card." Kaname sharply drew the next card from her deck.
Now, Sherry had Quickdraw Synchron and Scarred Warrior in Defense Position on her field, along with Mighty Warrior and Fleur de Chevalier in Attack Position. Meanwhile, Kaname had White Aura Whale and Arionpos, Serpent of the Ghoti in Attack Position.
"Spell Card, White Mirror. The player can Special Summon a Fish monster from the graveyard and add a copy of that card from their Deck to the hand. The player Special Summons Paces, Light of the Ghoti from their graveyard." She also added a copy of it from her deck to her hand, obviously. "The player tunes the Level 2 Paces, Light of the Ghoti to the Level 6 Arionpos, Serpent of the Ghoti." The two monsters shot up, Paces turning into two rings of ghastly light that the serpent swam through, dissolving into particles that floated around them. " Beautiful flying fish floating in the reaches of the extraterrestrial oceans, crush the universe beneath your beautiful, pale power. Synchro Summon. Level 8. Askaan, the Bicorned Ghoti." The long, beautiful pale fish appeared, twin long horns emerging from its head, its head glowing with bright red light.
[Askaan, the Bicorned Ghoti (8*/2700/0/WATER/Fish/Synchro/Effect)]
"Since Arionpos, Serpent of the Ghoti was sent to the graveyard for a Synchro Summon, the player can banish a Fish monster from the graveyard to add a Fish monster with an equal or lower Level from the Deck to their hand. The player chooses to banish Paces itself to add a Level 2 or lower Fish monster from their Deck to their hand." Kaname picked up a card from her deck. "Then, the player activates the effect of Askaan, the Bicorned Ghoti. When Synchro Summoned, the player can banish a card the opponent controls and a Fish monster that they control. The player banishes Askaan, the Bicorned Ghoti from their field and Fleur de Chevalier from the opponent's field."
The two monsters vanished from the field.
"When banished from the field, Askaan, the Bicorned Ghoti's effect triggers. The player can banish a Fish monster from the graveyard to Special Summon it back to the field. The player banishes Paces from the graveyard." Askaan reappeared on her field, but Fleur de Chevalier was obviously still gone. "Battle Phase."
"While I control Scarred Warrior, it is the only Warrior monster I control that you can attack, and it cannot be destroyed once per turn!" Sherry declared.
Kaname nodded, gesturing to Scarred Warrior. "White Aura Whale attacks Scarred Warrior. When White Aura Whale attacks a monster in Defense Position, it deals piercing damage to the opponent."
Sherry shielded herself from the damage, even though her monster was not destroyed.
Sherry: 4000 - 1800 = 2200LP
White Aura Whale could attack monsters twice every turn—and if Sherry destroyed it with Pennant of Revolution's effect, she would just end up taking another two attacks to the face. Better to wait for Askaan to attack—
Kaname set a card and ended her turn immediately.
Not taking her second attack? A second attack with White Aura Whale was essentially free—Sherry would never have used Pennant of Revolution on it, since its effect was once per turn. And yet… this girl had essentially sacrificed free damage on her. She hadn't even bothered to actually destroy one of Sherry's monsters! If she had attacked Quickdraw Synchron, she would at least have taken one of Sherry's monsters out.
This didn't make any sense…
[Turn 5: Sherry] [H:2]
"Draw," Sherry said.
"During the Standby Phase, the player Special Summons Paces, Light of the Ghoti back to the field." The small octopus reappeared on Kaname's field. Now, Kaname had Paces in Defense Position, along with Askaan and White Aura Whale in Attack Position, along with a set card. Meanwhile, Sherry still had Quickdraw Synchron, Scarred Warrior and Mighty Warrior on her field.
"Fine," Sherry acknowledged. "I will tune the Level 5 Quickdraw Synchron to the Level 5 Scarred Warrior—return to the field, Fleur de Baroness!" The beautiful knight on horseback reappeared, looking just as majestic as ever.
"The player activates the Continuous Trap, Ghoti Fury."
That Trap of hers that banished a monster from both players' fields until the next Standby Phase… "Fleur de Baroness will negate the activation of your Trap and destroy it! Declaration of Liberty!" She used Baroness's one-time negation, getting rid of the Continuous Trap before it had the chance to be problematic. "And with the other effect of Baroness—I will destroy Askaan, the Bicorned Ghoti! Blossoming Execution!"
"... the player uses the effect of Paces, Light of the Ghoti. The player will tune the Level 2 Paces, Light of the Ghoti to the Level 8 Askaan, the Bicorned Ghoti."
"You have a Level 10 Synchro Monster?" Sherry blinked in surprise. "That's… unexpected."
"Glistening light sleeping in the depths below. Mythical creature with galaxies and emptiness within your frame. With those eyes that see and comprehend the start and the end, rule over the deepest, most distant depths with the power of the Big Freeze of the universe, where all is silent. Synchro Summon. Level 10—Ghoti of the Deep Beyond."
From a portal beneath them, a slender, mostly transparent serpent made entirely out of water appeared. There were various spots of the serpent that had a differently-coloured tint to them—green, purple, blue—like clouds of stardust dancing within the serpent's body. Luminous long fins slowly glided through the air. The end of its body was made out of an infinite number of long tendrils that all blended into each other. Its entire body seemed to blend into the area around it, like a watercolour painting.
[Ghoti of the Deep Beyond (10*/?/0/WATER/Fish/Synchro/Effect)]
"When Ghoti of the Deep Beyond is Synchro Summoned during the opponent's turn, all cards on the field are banished."
"Banished?" Sherry exclaimed sharply. So Ghoti Fury was there to bait out Baroness's effect, and the real trap was here all along? No matter what—"
She was going to lose all her cards, no matter what?
A tsunami of water rushed over the field. For a moment, Sherry felt actual water landing on her—not just a hologram. A light spray of water struck her hair and clothes. For a moment, she smelled the ocean breeze in the air—saltwater, seafoam.
Everything was wiped out—as though it was melting under some kind of acid, every monster and card on the field lost form, dissolving under the waves. Even the monster that had brought this destruction in the first place was not spared from it. Only the leftover puddles on the ground, when the holograms ought to have faded, convinced Sherry that what she had felt was real.
A Psychic Duelist, correct? But she hadn't felt anything from the other monsters. Was this monster just powerful enough that despite the girl restraining her own power, it would still seep through?
"I see," Sherry said. "I will activate the Spell Card, Reinforcement of the Army. I will add a Level 4 or lower Warrior monster from my deck to my hand. And I will discard a card from my hand to Special Summon Jet Synchron from my graveyard." The strange engine-like monster reappeared on the field. "And I will Normal Summon another copy of Noble Knight's Shield-Bearer." The knight wearing white and gold armour appeared in front of her.
[Noble Knight's Shield-Bearer (4*/800/1300/LIGHT/Warrior/Effect)]
"And I can banish Noble Knight Joan from the graveyard to draw a card." That had been the card that she had sent from her hand to the graveyard to bring back Jet Synchron. "I will tune the Level 1 Jet Synchron to the Level 4 Noble Knight's Shield-Bearer! Arrogant nobility, raise a blade to cut down those who you deem unworthy! Synchro Summon! Level 5! Fleur de Vavasour!" A girl with yellow and orange petals for her hair appeared, holding up a high parasol and twirling in the air, a haughty look on her eyes.
[Fleur de Vavasour (5*/2000/2000/WIND/Warrior/Synchro/Effect)]
"Jet Synchron is banished when it leaves the field after being Special Summoned from the graveyard with its own effect. Then, when Fleur de Vavasour is Synchro Summoned, I can add a Level 4 or lower monster from my graveyard to my hand!"
If Sherry was honest, she didn't have many options left. Her stronger monsters, her signature monsters—Baroness and Chevalier—both of them had already come out and been banished. She just had to regroup—but she had no clue what she could do from here. She glanced at the available cards in her graveyard, and she picked up one after a brief moment of confusion.
"I will have Fleur de Vavasour attack directly!"
The attack hit directly. Kaname looked completely unaffected.
Kaname: 3800 - 2000 = 1800LP
"I'll set a card and end my turn," Sherry said.
[Turn 6: Kaname] [H:5]
"Draw." In front of Kaname, a swirling whirlpool emerged. "During the Standby Phase after the turn that Ghoti of the Deep Beyond was banished from the Monster Zone, the player can Special Summon it back to the field." The large liquid-like serpent reappeared on the field. Water swirled around it.
"It has unknown attack points…" Sherry murmured.
"... the original attack points of Ghoti of the Deep Beyond are the number of banished monsters times 500."
Sherry's eyes widened.
How many monsters had this girl banished from the field at this point? How many had Sherry herself banished? Why had she never used this card before?
From above, Yugo's eyes widened. He had never seen this card before. And he felt that way about a lot of the things that his sister was playing, to be honest…
He didn't understand.
"The player has five. The opponent has eight." Kaname snapped her fingers—a sharp sound. The serpent leaned back its head, and a glow bloomed from within it, stardust seeping around it.
[Ghoti of the Deep Beyond: ? → 500 x 13 = 6500ATK]
Vavasour stopped Special Summoning of monsters with higher attack points than itself from the Extra Deck. But Sherry hadn't expected this girl's literal field nuke to summon itself back to the field after the job was done.
It reminded her a little of Aki's monster.
The thing was—it was always hard to remember that this girl was technically an acquaintance of Aki's. She was a Psychic Duelist, after all. But it was just so easy for this girl to slip from the mind—Sherry didn't remember a single thing that Aki had told her about this girl.
And that much was suspicious too. A foot in every group, and yet so forgettable in every way except for how she was hated. No one remembered her appearance, most of her cards, or even her personality or what she did.
People didn't just completely forget someone. Someone shouldn't be this easily forgettable.
There was something very odd going on here.
"Trap Card, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow," Sherry said. "I negate the attack and set this card back facedown."
Kaname nodded. Her face was completely turned away from Sherry. Had she expected the attack to be negated?
Then, why did she even attack instead of doing literally anything else?
It was all just messing with Sherry's head slightly.
Kaname raised a card from her hand. "The player activates the Spell Card, Fish and Swaps. Since the player has three or more banished Fish, Sea Serpent or Aqua monsters, the player can banish a card on the field. The player chooses Fleur de Vavasour." The other Synchro Monster was banished, much to Sherry's annoyance. "The player Normal Summons Paces, Light of the Ghoti. Then, the player activates the Spell Card, Moray of Avarice. By banishing a Fish, Sea Serpent or Aqua monster they control, they draw two cards." Paces vanished, and Kaname drew two cards.
Ghoti of the Deep Beyond's attack points continued shooting up.
[Ghoti of the Deep Beyond: 6500 + 500 x 2 = 7500ATK]
"The player sets two cards and ends their turn."
[Turn 7: Sherry] [H:2]
And Sherry realised, as she drew the next card from her deck, that she had no options left. All of her monsters had been systematically banished and removed from the field.
A completely empty field, except for Scrap Iron Scarecrow, which simply would not work if Kaname brought out another monster.
What an awful, soul-sucking way of dueling.
Without Sherry noticing, all of her options had been exhausted.
… except one.
Except an option that she had never had before.
How had these two cards even ended up in her deck again?
"I will Normal Summon Swift Horse of the Flower Knights!" The red horse appeared on the field once again. It was clearly the monster that Sherry had added to her hand with Vavasour's effect. "And I will add a LIGHT "Noble Knight" monster from my deck to my hand."
She breathed out.
Figure it out. Read the card text. It's a monster in the Extra Deck. If it's materials—I can just send them from my hand to the graveyard as well—similar to a Synchro Summon, except that I can use materials from both my hand and field, and the Levels don't have to match?
I don't want to lose against someone who is toying with me.
"I will activate the effect of Swift Horse of the Flower Knights!" Sherry declared. "I can perform a Fusion Summon using materials in my hand and on my field!"
And that declaration sent waves through the crowd. However, while the crowd was just mildly confused that Sherry had access to one of the strange summons—
The other remaining participants had a much more… explosive reaction.
"She has access to Fusion Summoning?" Shun exclaimed, narrowing his eyes as he glared at the screen. "Who is this woman, and how is this possible at all?" As someone who didn't know Sherry well, his thoughts had immediately jumped to the worst conclusion.
And that perhaps applied to most of the Lancers, except two.
"... but Sherry-san was confused by my Link Summoning," Yuno murmured to himself. "So… I don't think she could have faked a reaction like that so easily, right?"
"... impossible," Miharu said, glancing away from the screen. "... someone's covering things up."
Down below, Sherry continued. "I will fuse the Level 3—" Wait, this didn't seem to require Levels. "I will fuse Swift Horse of the Flower Knights on the field with Noble Knight's Spearholder in my hand!" She jammed the two cards in the slot for the graveyard, and it seemed to work—she pulled out the new card from her Extra Deck immediately. "Beautiful knight of the shining blade. With justice and vengeance at war in your mind, strike down any that dare to oppose your holy might! Fusion Summon! Level 6! Centaur Mina!" A pink-haired centaur appeared, a stern look on her face. She was wearing golden armour, with a sword and shield in her hands. Her bottom half was that of a literal dark horse, with a long dark tail swishing behind her. There were two thin, delicate wings of light spreading out around her.
[Centaur Mina (6*/2200/1600/LIGHT/Beast-Warrior/Fusion/Effect) ]
And she succeeded.
And even as, for a brief moment, Sherry felt a sense of satisfaction from doing something that she had never done before—
The trap swung shut.
In his chambers, Roget laughed, a smirk on his face.
And in front of Sherry, face hidden behind layers and layers…
Kaname Mizuchi's lips quirked up slightly.
Objective one complete.
That certainly took her a while.
Now, just for the easier part.
"Once per turn, during my Main Phase, Centaur Mina lets me Special Summon a Level 2 or lower monster from my hand or graveyard," Sherry declared. "Return to the field—Fleur Synchron!" The small orange machine reappeared.
Sherry just needed to use her new monster for a Synchro Summon, and that would settle it.
"I will tune the Level 2 Fleur Synchron to the Level 6 Centaur Mina!" She declared.
(Never considering how natural she sounded—never considering how suspicious that might seem.)
"Lovely maiden who once waited on the sidelines. Now, charge forward into battle alongside those chosen to be warriors! Synchro Summon! Level 8! Fleur de Chevaleresse!" A woman with a large red rose blooming on the top of her head appeared, dressed in sleek white and pale green armour. She had colourful rose corsages around both wrists. Raising a rapier, she readied herself for battle.
[Fleur de Chevaleresse (8*/2400/1800/WIND/Warrior/Synchro/Effect)]
"When Centaur Mina is used as Synchro Material for a WIND Warrior Synchro Monster, I can destroy a face-up monster on the field! I will destroy that large water snake of yours!"
And the terrifying serpent exploded into water that scattered all around them.
"... she seems far too comfortable with that monster…" Serena gritted her teeth. "As though she's used to using its effects!"
(In a world of war, there was no such thing as 'too convenient'. Emotions ran too hot for that.)
(So when seeing someone Fusion Summon out of the blue when they were losing, when seeing them use each effect without hesitation at all—)
(In a sense, no one thought too much about how. They simply assumed that the most obvious explanation was true.)
"Chevaleresse's effect. Once per turn—I can revive a Warrior monster from my graveyard!" A lot of her best options had already been banished, so Sherry selected Centaur Mina. The pink-haired centaur reappeared on the field.
Kaname revealed a card in her hand. "The player activates the effect of Snopios, Shade of the Ghoti. By banishing two Fish monsters from the graveyard—Ghoti of the Deep Beyond and Paces, Light of the Ghoti—from the graveyard, the player can Special Summon it from their hand." The large and dark octopus appeared in front of her.
[Snopios, Shade of the Ghoti (6*/2100/0/WATER/Fish/Effect)]
"With Snopios's effect, when Special Summoned, the player can target a card on the field, and that card is banished when it leaves the field. The player chooses Snopios itself."
"Fine by me," Sherry said. "Centaur Mina attacks your monster!"
"The player activates the Trap Card, Poseidon Wave. The attack is negated."
"Centaur Mina's effect!" Sherry declared with a smirk. "Once per turn, when my opponent activates a Trap, I can negate it! It's over, Ghost!"
At the same time, the girl turned over—
And for the first time, Sherry saw something seething within that single, amber eye. She imagined that the other eye looked the same under the black eyepatch.
Who are you to decide it's over for me? Who told you I only had one way of defending myself?
Sherry's eyes widened.
Snopios was destroyed and banished with its own effect.
A single set card was all that stood between Sherry and victory.
And this was her final chance.
"Fleur de Chevaleresse attacks you directly!"
That other set card flipped up immediately. "The player activates the Trap Card, Ghoti Cosmos. Effects are activated based on the number of banished Fish monsters. The player has eight. Thus, all three effects are activated. First, since the player has one or more banished Fish monsters, all Fish monsters cannot be destroyed by battle this turn."
Then why didn't she activate it before Snopios was destroyed?... hold on. Didn't she just banish three more?
Does that mean that she was forcing me into giving her the exact amount she needed?
"Second, since the player has four or more banished Fish monsters, the effects of Fish monsters the player controls cannot be negated, whether in terms of the actual effect or its activation. Third. Since the player has eight or more banished Fish monsters, they can Special Summon a Fish Synchro Monster from their Extra Deck, and it is treated as a Synchro Summon."
Exactly eight.
So everything this turn was within this girl's control?
"Most powerful creature of the deepest, most distant depths of the ocean. Bear your heart on your sleeve, your merciless weapons as your limbs, every part of you crashing into opponents that you can swat aside. Synchro Summon. Level 8. Guoglim, Spear of the Ghoti." The spiky, translucent sea creature appeared, its body a mix of ghost white and bright red. Every part of it was teeth and spikes that made a creature only seen in horror movies.
[Guoglim, Spear of the Ghoti (8*/2700/0/WATER/Fish/Synchro/Effect)]
And Sherry gritted her teeth.
She didn't want to lose.
But in the end, there could only be one winner in this duel.
And despite trying so hard, she had failed to stand up to those damned ocean waves.
"I end my turn," Sherry said, somewhat bitter.
[Turn 8: Kaname] [H:2]
"Draw," the duel disk said emotionlessly. "During the Standby Phase, Paces, Light of the Ghoti Special Summons itself back to the field." Yet again, the small octopus appeared, floating innocuously on the field. "Since a WATER monster's effect was activated, the player can Special Summon Minairuka from their hand." A tiny, cute blue dolphin that clashed severely with Kaname's aesthetic appeared.
[Minairuka (4*/1500/500/WATER/Fish/Effect)]
"The player activates the Spell Card, Moray of Avarice. By banishing Paces from the field, the player draws two cards." She glanced at her hand. "The player activates the Spell Card, Mystical Space Typhoon. The player destroys the set Scrap Iron Scarecrow." Sherry's final defence was destroyed, leaving her with just Fleur de Chevaleresse. "The player Normal Summons Zep, Ruby of the Ghoti." The colourful, spiked red and yellow fish appeared on the field next to the small blue dolphin.
[Zep, Ruby of the Ghoti (2*/0/1000/WATER/Fish/Effect)]
"The player tunes the Level 2 Zep, Ruby of the Ghoti to the Level 4 Minairuka. From the water, emerge with your true strength and make the world bow down before your regality. Synchro Summon. Level 6. Coral Dragon." The beautiful tropical-coloured dragon appeared, even more ill-fitting for the girl behind it. Its claws slashed through the air.
[Coral Dragon (6*/2400/500/WATER/Dragon/Synchro/Tuner/Effect)]
"The player activates the effect of Coral Dragon. By discarding a card, they can target and destroy a monster that the opponent controls. Centaur Mina."
The pink-haired woman was destroyed.
"Guoglim, Spear of the Ghoti attacks Fleur de Chevaleresse."
And—
Sherry: 2200 - 300 = 1900LP
"Coral Dragon attacks you directly."
For a moment, Sherry hated this opponent of hers.
Someone who never put in any effort. Someone who never committed to anything. Someone so unfeeling, no passion to dueling at all.
How could someone like that ever be considered as 'living'?
Sherry: 1900 - 2400 = 0LP
Winner: Kaname Mizuchi!
Roget tilted his head. "She's done," he said, sounding rather satisfied with himself. "The bait has been laid down."
After all, no one could see into Sherry LeBlanc's mind right now. All they saw was what Roget had orchestrated.
An elaborate performance where Sherry, unwilling to let herself lose, revealed that she could Fusion Summon all along, and that she had a Fusion Monster that could help her recover from losing her whole field. That she had purposely chosen not to use Fusion earlier to hide her allegiances, and only pulled it out at the end out of sheer desperation. That Sherry LeBlanc was an agent of Academia.
And if all of that was a lie, who would know? Who would be able to defend her?
Not even she would be able to argue, after all—not when she would be sent to the Underground directly after this. She would no longer have a voice.
And to make sure that to sell the lie, to make sure it stuck—
There was one final thing to do.
Roget pressed a button on his desk, watching the screen.
The mouse had crawled into the mousetrap—
Now, it had to snap shut.
The duel was over.
Now, Sherry just had to come to a stop.
She just had to—
Why wasn't her D-Wheel slowing down? Sherry pushed against it again, but the D-Wheel didn't seem to respond to anything that she was doing at all—instead, it accelerated.
It shot directly towards the opponent in front of her, who turned slightly, before clearly trying to dodge. However, her D-Wheel didn't seem to be moving correctly either.
Sherry barely had a moment to understand what was going on, before their D-Wheels collided into each other and she was sent flying. So was her opponent—for a moment, everything around her was shaking and turning, she was spinning through the air slightly, and she could see the clouds—
Crack.
And she hit the ground, smelling smoke, her head slightly dizzy.
At the same time, she wasn't injured. Her D-Wheel had toppled, but she was fine—the cracking sound hadn't come from her. She had fallen, but miraculously, other than some bloody scrapes on her knees and arms, she was fine.
At least the helmet had helped.
Then, she glanced over to her opponent.
Ah.
The helmet and riding suit had certainly helped—riding suits weren't just for aesthetics, after all. But even so—there was blood everywhere. Her opponent's helmet was cracked.
Sherry rewound the last few seconds in her mind. Everything had gone by too fast.
Her D-Wheel had been hijacked, she realised after a quick moment. That was the answer. And clearly, so had her opponent's. Her D-Wheel, which had been under Security control, had been hijacked at the last moment to attack this girl.
And the purpose of that…
To make it look like I was a sore loser and attacked my opponent, a member of Security.
She could hear the hush of the crowd. How they had fallen silent. The slow buzzing of gossip beginning to surface as they all beheld the scene.
And even if she said anything, no one would ever believe her.
To the Tops, she would have directly attacked Security, their protectors. To the Commons, she would have looked like a sore loser, exactly how most of them perceived the Tops. And to anyone with a sense of honour, she would be someone that they despised, for foul play.
A perfect trap.
But—
"You didn't know," Sherry said, remembering how her opponent had tried to dodge. "You didn't know that he was sacrificing you to do this to me."
There was no response, of course. Sherry saw Security officers charging over. They had crashed about a quarter of the circuit from the entrance, so it would take a while.
"How can you work for someone like that, Kaname Mizuchi?" Sherry said, her fists clenched tightly. "Someone that would be willing to injure you like this just to ruin my reputation? Someone who wouldn't even tell you that this was going to happen? Do you have no self-respect at all?"
The officers finally arrived. Even as they started to pull Sherry away and they tried to lift up the girl, Sherry didn't shut up.
"You have so much strength, and you clearly have your own will, so why work for Roget? Why not work for yourself?"
Sherry gritted her teeth. Of course, she knew that there would be no response, but…
Something was very wrong.
The first thing that Yuno heard when he left his room was Yugo's shouting.
"What do you mean we can't leave?" The blue and yellow-haired boy demanded. "I need to go—"
"Friendship Cup participants cannot leave. It would cause a security issue. Please go back."
"What do you mean—"
Yuno strode forward, grabbing Yugo's arm. Yugo turned around. He looked furious, but Yuno didn't let go. He knew that anger wasn't directed at him.
"Calm down," he said.
"How do I calm down when I saw that?" Yugo exclaimed. "I need to see her and make sure she's alright, but they're not letting me!"
"I know," Yuno said. "I know, it'd hurt to not see that she's alright with your own eyes. But trust that she'll be taken care of, Yugo—if you get in trouble, she probably won't be happy with you."
Yugo grimaced and shook his head, but he did seem to have calmed down slightly. "I can't stop thinking—"
Yuno nodded. He couldn't imagine—if he saw Miyu in a situation like that…
He turned to the officer there. "Sorry about that. I know we're not supposed to come out until you say that we can," he said, flashing a smile. "But he's not doing so well. Can I get him some water? We'll go back immediately afterwards."
The officer ended up not being a heartless monster, and so, Yuno led Yugo to the kitchen, grabbing a cup and filling it with hot water, passing it over. "Sit down."
"... thanks," Yugo said after a moment. "I guess I was being impulsive…"
"I understand," Yuno said. "I really do."
"No, I don't think you do." Yugo's hands were pressed tightly against the sides of the cup, and his eyes were focused on nothing in particular. "I'm going… to kill that woman."
Yuno felt something stir in his heart—something odd and dark that was laughing. He leaned down, glancing at Yugo's face—
There was something dark swirling in Yugo's eyes.
Yuno's throat felt dry. He felt something rising up in his throat—something dark and vile, feeling like it was eating him up from the inside, trying to join in—
The door slammed open. Serena walked in, making herself at home. Both Yugo and Yuno glanced over at her, breaking eye contact. Yuno felt dizzy—like he had just escaped something terrible.
"I'm here to get a snack," Serena said loudly. Then, clearly trying to hide her concern, she said, "you good?"
"Me?" Yugo blinked. "... well, I… should be fine, I guess! Soon. Once I get out of here and see her—I mean, she won, right? So, unless she's hurt badly, she'll come back here. I'll see her tomorrow. It'll… it'll be fine."
Yuno was still bracing himself against the table. When he lifted his head again, Yugo looked perfectly normal.
What was that?
Had he imagined that?
"Need water, Sugisaki?" Serena asked. She was holding onto a cup of coffee for herself. She didn't seem to have noticed anything amiss.
Yuno nodded after a moment, smiling. "Coffee sounds great," he said, hoping that they wouldn't notice his unease. "Two cups? I'll bring one back to Miharu." And he let the matter slip from his mind.
Roget folded his arms, leaning back in his chair, no signs of remorse on his face. He smiled.
"Question everything that you know, Reiji Akaba," he murmured. "This is only the first move, but it won't be long until I put you in check."
He did not laugh, but his smile never faded.
It was far too satisfying to see a plan succeed so perfectly.
OC Cards:
Fleur de Vidame
(7*/2000/2200/WIND/Warrior/Synchro/Effect)
"Fleur Synchron" + 1+ non-Tuner monsters
If this card is Synchro Summoned: You can add 1 "Heritage of the Chalice", "Fleur de Fleuret", "Synchro Dilemma" or "Pennant of Revolution" from your Deck to your hand. If this card battles a Synchro Monster: Double this card's ATK during damage calculation. If this card is sent to the GY as material for the Synchro Summon of a WIND monster: You can banish 1 monster from the GY; Special Summon 1 "Flower of Death - Necro Fleur" from your Deck, and if you do, destroy 1 monster you control.
Trivia: A 'vidame' is a French feudal title for a person who is chosen to perform actions on behalf of the church which would be considered improper, such as violence. Given power by the church. Thus, compared to the knight, they are most certainly more low-ranking and less respected—thus, the lower Level. I was going to use Lightning Warrior, since it was just a Synchro climbing ladder, but I thought I might as well give her a few more Synchro Monsters. This isn't the last time you're going to see Sherry anyway.
… I don't know what part of my fever-addled brain said "no need for giving her so many Yusei Warriors, make her new flower warriors instead", but I'm firing that part, active immediately. ^_^'
Fleur de Vavasour
(5*/2000/2000/WIND/Warrior/Synchro/Effect)
1 Machine Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monsters
If this card is Synchro Summoned: You can add 1 Level 4 or lower monster from your GY to your hand. You can only activate this effect of "Fleur de Vavasour" once per turn. Your opponent cannot Special Summon monsters with higher ATK than this card from the Extra Deck.
Trivia: A vavasour is a French lord underneath a baron. They are a vassal that manages the vassals.
Fleur de Chevaleresse
(8*/2400/1800/WIND/Warrior/Synchro/Effect)
"Fleur Synchron" + 1+ non-Tuner monsters
This card cannot be targeted by card effects. You can target 1 Level 6 or lower Warrior monster in your GY; Special Summon that monster to your field. Once per turn, on your turn, if your opponent Special Summons a monster: You can negate that Summon, and if you do, destroy that card. You can only activate each effect of "Fleur de Chevaleresse" once per turn.
Trivia: Chevaleresse refers to the wife of a knight. The roses are a reference to Aki.
End Notes:
Well, I did say that Sherry inherited Yusei's Synchrons, but I still think some people suffered from PTSD the moment that Sherry Synchro Summoned Junk Speeder. Also, writing Sherry's duels without Centaur Mina has been agonising, can I just say. Part of the reason why I focused on the Synchrons earlier in the duel was to just give myself something more distinct from the previous duels.
(I rewrote this duel like seven times and I'm still not entirely satisfied. But I suppose there's very little I can do when plot requires Baronne to be banished immediately and Sherry's deck has a total of two actual in-theme boss monsters.)
So. The reason why this duel was last was because of the very specific conditions needed for the ending to happen. Firstly, there needed to be no one that could vouch for the fact that Sherry didn't already have that card in her deck—so Aki, Kiryu, etc had to be sent down before her. Secondly, I wanted the participants to be able to freely leave their rooms for the last part.
So yes. Disclaimer, I love Sherry—even if what I've just done to her in this chapter is pretty cruel. Roget has just framed her for being a sore loser and attacking her opponent after the duel, in front of the entire city. Furthermore, her opponent is one of the top-ranking officers of the law enforcement agency that protects the Tops. While she was initially admired by everyone in the City despite being a criminal, due to being a Tops Pro Duelist before her arrest, and supporting the Commons with her words, through this single move, Roget has ruined her reputation, since she supposedly attacked someone after losing, which breaks the code of the tournament. Essentially, since no one knows the truth, no one will respect her ever again, whether they are a Tops or Commons. And what makes it worse for her is that Roget also got Kaname to sneak her the Fusion cards, betting on the fact that if she was desperate enough to win, she would use them. (She snuck them in at the start of the scene where she and Sherry talk.) While the Lancers would probably have defended Sherry and figured out that something was wrong otherwise, the fact that she figured out how to Fusion Summon through her own genius and observation ended up making things worse for her, because at this point, the Lancers already know that there's a spy in Synchro. And well, their thought process is naturally that it's impossible for someone to literally learn Fusion Summoning out of nowhere, and that she must have known it before. Roget has turned Sherry into a scapegoat for his actions, and right now, most of the Lancers haven't figured that out. And another reason why she could learn it is because Fusion is one of the only two summoning methods where the way to do it is written on the card itself. So it's conceivable that she could just follow instructions, if everything is already in the right place.
And if how everyone is viewing Sherry after that duel makes you feel angry because it's unfair—then I'm glad! It's exactly how I felt when I was writing it too.
Of course, Kaname's not quite off the hook either. It's stated pretty definitively at the end of the duel, but while Kaname understood that her mission was to trick Sherry into using Fusion Summoning before defeating her, she didn't know that Roget was going to injure her for the sake of his plan. I won't elaborate any more on that, but safe to say, the only person who knew everything that was going on was Roget, because he's a bastard. I really wanted to have Roget actually do things during the Synchro Arc instead of just saying ominous things and watching, which is why I implemented the Underground subplot and this. And we're still not done! Roget's got way more plans in store, and, well, they're all already in motion. And they're going to be far more infuriating than you think! (And will actually directly affect the Lancers, haha. We're almost out of the slower part of the Synchro Arc now—things are about to get fun.) But yeah, Roget is actually far more of a bastard than he was in canon here. And far more of a conceivable threat. I actually write him as someone with NPD (narcissistic personality disorder), with a lot of emphasis on specifically how he exploits others. You'll see that in the second half of this arc, which we're almost about to enter. (Yes, second half. We're only halfway through the Synchro Arc right now. It's been 25 chapters. 380000 words. *pinches nose* Help.)
On an unrelated note, I know I've already said this before, but most of the decks in this fic that were given to OCs are archetypes that I saw and immediately loved the concept of immediately. Ghoti is no different—I lost my mind the first time I heard about white alien fish that worked with the White archetype, haha. It's painful to write duels for, but so fun.
Review responses! Thank you for all the lovely reviews! There were a lot of interesting ideas brought up, so this is going to be absurdly long, haha.
To phantomdragons, yeah, what Kaito said was completely intended to be ironic, haha. I'm glad about what you said about Shun vs Dennis—it was a duel that had me stuck, because it was so iconic that while I knew I wanted to rewrite it, I also knew that if it was bad, everyone would blast me for it. Also, I do think you make a good point about the 'in context' part in what you said about changing decks! In a world like YGO where the Heart of the Cards is a tangible power, it always feels a little odd to have the characters just changing decks with no rhyme or reason.
To the Guest who talked about skipping duels with OC archetypes, I really feel that! Even if the duel is well-written, sometimes, because the writing just gives the Level/ATK/DEF format, and doesn't describe the monsters as much, it just feels oddly dry. It's part of the reason why I didn't make an OC deck for the counterparts in this fic.
To cardfan135, I'm glad to hear that! Not to spoil things, but Mion/Reiji isn't getting resolved until both of them go through their character arcs, so that's going to take quite a while, haha. Not to mention that Sawatari's arc is probably going to start and resolve before those two. Shino/Ryo is most certainly an intentional clusterfuck? I wouldn't really consider it a pairing now though, considering that they've barely had any scenes together, haha. Yeah, at one point in planning, Miharu and Aki were the last match of the round. I think that the order didn't really matter in the end except for this one though. And also, I think that if I had to wait a whole round to write Miharu vs Aki, I would have spontaneously combusted and exploded. :)
To LHOCIN, haha, yeah, Roget does not want to deal with the Xyz duelists. I'm really excited to write more of Kurosaki soon! I also wanted the two of them to be more chill, like you said—while Nue was stressed out against Yuto, since she knows that whether she wins or loses, the other two will take care of each other, she's not as worried. Got to have some wholesomeness before anything happens. :) Hope you enjoyed.
To Mr Owl, I think that's understandable—I also have decks that I personally don't like as much. And yeah, Yuto's reaction when he realises what happened while he wasn't there is going to be great. Mm, I like working with actual archetypes because there's a general strategy to work with from scratch, which also means that OC cards can be balanced against existing cards. As someone who has been playing Windwitch Speedroids ever since Speedroids were first released, hard agree. I do love that idea of taking a card and making an archetype based off it though! I originally considered giving Chiaki an OC LIGHT Dragon Ritual archetype with Saffira in it, but in the end, I decided against it because of the problem with OC archetypes that you mentioned. As for your question about CXyz monsters, I don't intend on adding CXyz monsters in the way that the ZEXAL anime did, mostly because the Barian lore doesn't exist. :) We might have moments where cards evolve, but I don't intend on using the name 'Chaos Xyz' right now. Thank you for your review and the well-wishes.
To the Guest asking about cards that symbolise the Yu-boy fusions, it's an interesting idea! I do have some ideas for cards like that, but I won't elaborate on that.
To the Guest hoping for Yuji to get more than one duel, I can't confirm anything, once again. I would also like to remind everyone that OPs in this story are strictly symbolic. Events… may or may not happen how they happen in the OP. I know exactly what duels will take place, but I'm not revealing them yet.
To kikuruhime, thanks! If last duel was slower-paced, uh, this chapter's duel may have broken my brain to keep consistent.
To the Guest comparing characters to Blue Lock characters, I don't intend to read it for a long while. You have some pretty interesting theories! I feel like I can say this, but yes, while there is a final tournament, it is not the final thing in the story. :)
To Makosultima12, (I wrote this before your second review!) I must say that I really enjoyed your review! I also knew how long my response might be, because I wanted to make sure that I wasn't coming off as aggressive, which is why I left you for last! :) That might be surprising to you, but give me a moment to elaborate, haha. Yuno vs Chojiro is definitely a duel that I'm thinking about revising when the arc's done, because while it's not bad, it's not good either. I've always acknowledged that Chapter 34 is one of the weaker chapters of this fic, duel-wise, because it came at a time when I simply did not want to write it, and despite my own efforts, that bled into the duels themselves. Thus, I do see your point when it comes to that duel, at the very least. I also understand your opinion about all the protagonists being reincarnated or none. I will say this much—I always feel like the downfall of some stories is giving the other protagonists too much to do, at the expense of the plot. I don't intend to follow a pattern in terms of what legacy characters, because while that would fit very nicely, it would also be restricting myself by forcing myself to work with certain characters and the worldbuilding implications that they bring. I feel like you're viewing my actions in bad faith here, when it's in fact the opposite. No, I do not hate characters like Yusei and Kaiba. If I could, I would most certainly put them in the story and give them major roles, because they're literally my favourite protagonist and rival of all time. It is simply that I know what I can and cannot manage as a writer. And I will always prioritise keeping things within my own control, so that I can write a story that I enjoy writing. Decisions that to you, might have seemed malicious or disingenuous, were always made with my own best interests in mind. I don't know how I could ever hate a fictional character that much anyway. If I have to sacrifice things to ensure my own comfort with writing, that still gives the story more effort than otherwise possible. And we'll agree to disagree on the Kaiba point. While you might feel that it doesn't make sense that he reincarnated in the Fusion Dimension, there's actually another, very important reason that I had to do that. However, I can't say it without spoiling things, which means that I can't actually justify it. Thus, your point is pretty fair, hehe. I can't always use spoilers as my excuse, so I'll simply wait until I can prove it in the story itself. All I can ask for is time and patience.
With regards to your last point, I do acknowledge your point of view! I will say this quite frankly—your reading that the non-counterpart OC characters are very defined by the people that they're connected with? That's intentional, both for plot reasons and for writing reasons. Plot reasons can't be mentioned here, but like I said, I don't want to downplay your valid opinions by simply citing spoilers as a reason to deflect them. That's not really fair to you. What I can say is that there is a reason why so many of them are strongly defined by their bonds, despite the fact that they also have rather distinct personalities (if I can say that.) Writing-wise, I wanted to really hammer in their bonds at the start of the story, because where else would I put them? Ultimately, one of the main themes of this story is the idea of 'understanding'. It's why I emphasise connections so much—while all characters will still get their individual moments, no person is an island. Every person is always influenced and affected by everyone around them in various ways. If you look at how I've used that specific word throughout the whole fic, you might understand part of why I enjoy writing about bonds rather than individual character moments. The war is impactful because it's being fought between many different groups, all of whom have their own connections to each other. This is the set-up—we're still working on the payoff.
That's all your points, I think. I still do think that I've done a decent job with characterisation, at the very least—but I'm never going to shut down someone's opinion just because I don't agree with them, especially if they're being reasonable. I don't want to be the kind of writer who just blocks people who try to give valid viewpoints or feedback. So I hope that the reply gives you more insight into my brain! And I hope that when I finally get to the point where I can prove you wrong, it'll be satisfying for you too. Thank you for your review. :) No need to apologise for it being long. If anything, this response was absurdly long.
(And while everything above was written before I saw your second review, since I do most of these review responses a while in advance, I'd like to reiterate that it's fine. While you did admittedly come off as rather harsh, rest assured that I've read far worse, haha. As long as you're not literally directly hurling insults at me, I won't get mad. :D)
With this, we move on from Round 2. After the next chapter, we also end the 'set-up' phase of the Synchro Arc. After that… hoo boy, we're going into the second half! But for now, Round 3 predictions!
QOTC: Now that we're done with Round 2, what are your theories about what will happen with Round 3? Not just matchups, but any plot developments, etc in the next part of the arc. For a reminder, the remaining participants are Yuya, Yuno, Yugo, Miharu, Serena, Shun, Reira and… Kaname? :) Not that many options left, so you're all bound to get one correct, haha.
That's it for now then. I'll be posting this once I read it over again and my fever has subsided, so see you guys then! As always, feel free to drop a review!