Edit 02/01/2023: Added some additional content to one of the last paragraphs, as I was unhappy with how it flowed.


Chapter 29: So It Begins…

Fusion Dimension – Duel Academy Courtyard

"All students to gather for an assembly. I repeat, all students are to report for an assembly. Non-attendance can and will be punished. All students…" Duel Academy's loudspeaker system blared to life, calling for all the students to gather in the courtyard. A select few, the elite of the elite, the recently created Creation Force, knew what this was about, but the vast majority of the student body didn't, but gathered because it was their duty.

"I wonder what this is about?" Some students asked their friends,

"You think Xyz has turned sour?" Another student inquired, as rumour had it that the Xyz Resistance had surprisingly beat back many Enforcers recently,

"Is that the Professor? I thought he didn't speak to us unless something major was happening." Yet another noticed, but then the Professor, who was standing on a small stage with a lectern on it, cleared his throat into the microphone, calling everyone's attention.

"Good morning, Duel Academy. I'm sure you all are wondering why you have been called here this fine day, when you could instead be studying or practicing, but fear not, for that will be answered soon.

"As I'm sure the rumour mill has said, the Xyz Resistance has been putting up a better fight recently. This is true, but not entirely. This is because of a specialised paramilitary force from the Standard Dimension known as the Lancers. Consisting of about a dozen members, they have defeated several of our best, including the Tyler Sisters, but they are relatively insignificant. Now, on to the most important part of this assembly. As I'm sure you all know, when we defeat an opposing duelist, we seal them into cards, as well as civilians, as unfortunate as it may be. This is to harvest the life energy that we all carry in us, but the Xyz Dimension is beginning to run out of said energy, with only a thousand souls left uncarded. This is why we must therefore expand our scope. As a result of this, I have created a specialised branch of the Obelisk Force, all of whom can easily defeat even the strongest of AIs, based on some of the brightest duelists in history. I present to you, the Creation Force!" Leo announced, the students of said Force, about a hundred strong, stepped forward, and bowed deeply,

"Glory be to Duel Academy. Glory be to the Almighty Professor!" They all declared, the Professor mentioned smiling proudly,

"And now, our next goal. Since the Xyz Dimension is practically dry, we are expanding our invasion. Next, the Synchro Dimension shall fall. Yes, Infiltrator Roget turned out to be a traitor, and thus our invasion will not be as smooth as it may have been, but we are Duel Academy! We are unstoppable, and soon, Synchro shall fall!" Leo declared, a rousing cheer erupting from the gathered students, "The Creation Force will depart tomorrow, and shall be led by Professor Y." He said, gesturing to a man behind him wearing a black suit of armour, which was strong enough to protect against a hit while not compromising movement. He bore hair that was two different shades of brown, vaguely Kuriboh-shaped, although, you never said that to his face, and his eyes were a luminescent yellow, although his left eye was partially cyan,

"I now dismiss you all. Glory be to Duel Academy!"

"GLORY BE TO THE ALMIGHTY PROFESSOR!" The cry rang out from the student body, along with a cheer, and Leo left the stage.

Xyz Dimension – Lancers Forward Camp

As the group was sitting around, awaiting Declan's next instructions, Yuto, who was on watch, called out, "Engine, 4 o' clock, approaching rapidly. I believe it to be a Duel Runner."

"Their finally here!" Yugo exclaimed, jumping up,

"A reminder to be cautious. We do know that Duel Academy placed at least one infiltrator, so they may have acquired Duel Runners."

"I see Phoenix Whirlwind. It's safe!" Yuto declared,

"Wait, isn't that Jack Atlas' Duel Runner?" Yuya questioned,

"Obviously!" Yugo rolled his eyes, forgetting that the others hadn't grown up with Jack as a constant fixture in their lives,

"That is somewhat unexpected." Declan mused,

"Didn't you tell us that he was the intermediary ruler of Synchro?" Lulu asked, her, Yuri and Izumi having been brought up to date on the events that the Lancers had experienced,

"That is exactly what I mean," Declan answered, "I wouldn't have thought that Synchro would have assembled a functioning governance system this quickly." A short while later, the engine's noise cut out, and boots hitting the ruined ground were heard. "I can't believe that you had me drag that trailer behind the Whirlwind. You're lucky that I didn't just refuse!" The familiar tone of the Duel King of Synchro rang out,

"And for that we are most grateful." Moon Shadow's cautious and quiet voice said, several more sets of feet hitting the ground, and moving towards the camp. Yuya ran out, and saw that the group consisted of everyone who hadn't already come to Xyz, Zuzu also among them. "ZUZU!" He called, running towards his childhood friend,

"Yuya!" Zuzu gasped in surprise, "How are you?" She smiled at seeing her long-time friend, who she most certainly didn't have a crush on. Yuya didn't answer her, instead embracing her, and bringing her close, crying into her shoulder,

"I-It's b-been so l-long," Yuya cried, "I d-didn't think I'd s-see you again!"

"Oh, Yuya." Zuzu smiled, returning the hug.

"So, finally, you all are here. I will say that I am surprised that you are here Mr. Atlas. I didn't expect Synchro to be in a state where you could leave this soon." Declan interrupted the moment, as Jack Atlas swiped some dust off his riding suit,

"Well, to be frank, it isn't. Although, I've left Yusei and Crow in charge. They understand what both sides want, and I trust them to do right by me." Jack responded,

"Ah, yes. They did seem like responsible young men. I hope you all are doing well?"

"Yes, Master Declan. We managed to get here with no troubles from your father's forces, which the local resistance members we ran into tells us is partially your handiwork." Moon Shadow answered,

"Good. I would hope that nothing serious happened to you all. That would be most unwanted." Declan's tone was still as cold as ever, but one could see the warmth in his eyes at seeing some of his most trusted alive and well.

"Oh, Shay!" Yuya called to the Raidraptor Master, having picked himself up, "There's some people you'll want to see!"

"What do you mean?" Shay cautiously asked,

"You'll just have to wait, as otherwise it'll spoil the surprise!" Yuya teased, and he started to head to the camp, the Xyzian following him. As the two entered, followed close by the rest of the group, Shay's eyes went wide, as did his sister's and his best friend's.

"This… This can't be real…" He trailed, tears welling in the normally stoic man's eyes,

"Brother!/Shay!" Was the reply by the two in question, Shay wrapping his arms around the two in a bear hug, surprising the two of them,

"I never though I'd see you again." Shay cried between tears, mirroring what Yuya had said not minutes earlier,

"Well, it is very good to see you." Yuto smiled, and meanwhile, on the other side of the camp, Declan and Moon Shadow were engaging in a conversation,

"Energy in Synchro seems to be spiking," The young CEO said to his ninja companion, "Do you think this is just coincidence?"

"Unlikely, Sir," Moon Shadow replied, "You don't think your father is invading Synchro now that we are gone?"

"I wouldn't doubt it. You've now seen first hand what happened to Xyz when he invaded, and Heartland was relatively united. Imagine what will happen if the same occurs to New Domino."

"Yes, that is indeed a concern. Although we do not have a way to travel dimensions at this point, no?" The ninja concurred,

"Yes. We can only hope that Jack's trust wasn't misplaced." Declan grimly nodded.

Yuya had been spending the time catching people up on what they had missed in Xyz, but Zuzu wasn't particularly listening anymore, as she'd met Izumi and had the whole 'Oh yeah, you may be somehow related to the Professor's dead daughter' bombshell, plus the fact that her bracelet hadn't been glowing was strange. There were, apparently, all five of the boys that resembled each other in extremely close proximity to her, but none had suddenly disappeared, and she came to the conclusion that one of the other girl's bracelets might have something to do with it. She decided to put that thought to the back burner, and reconsider it later, after she got to spend some time with her newly reunited friends.

Synchro Dimension

Giant monsters had suddenly overtaken the once divine skyline of New Domino. One moment people were busy minding their own new lives, but chaos had suddenly taken hold. Sector Security had been dissolved after the whole Roget Incident as it was coming to be called, and the citizen's militia which was established in the intermediary, wasn't doing very well against these abnormal monsters who were destroying the city, both Tops and Commons alike. There were reports of strange men and women in ornate masks going around sealing people into cards, and laughing, strange duel disks on their wrists. The King's two assistants had reportedly gone to join the impromptu frontlines of the counterforce, but the citizenry was wondering where Jack Atlas had gone.

In the streets of the commons, a young woman with blond hair going halfway down her back saw the chaos being inflicted and smiled. "Well, I guess it's time." She said to herself, the red and black duel disk on her wrist retracting its strap and falling into her hand, elongating into a katana of the same colours. "SS-Protocol, ENGAGE, activate!" She called, ducking into a relatively dark alley, "Designation X-000 calling for synthesisation. Requesting model X-002, SS-Configuration, BATTLE!" As she said this, the sword in her hand unfurled some more, revealing an array of circuitry, and if you looked closely enough, a card entered it, which went orange, expanding across blade itself, a red star would now be visible in the daytime sky, if smoke wasn't choking out the sky, and despite being obviously made of Solid Vision, it was still a red star nonetheless. It fell into the atmosphere, and landed on the woman, turning into a red, orange and gold suit of armour, more blades flanking her. "Very well. Let's see how you do against me! MOBILISE!". Rocket boosters activated, and the woman shot towards the fight.

Next Chapter Preview: Jack Atlas is both frustrated and bored. How is this going to be resolved? Also, the Synchro Invasion continues. Just who is this mysterious person who is getting involved?

Hey all, and thank you all for reading! Now, depending on where you are, this will either be the last chapter of 2022, or the first of 2023, so I would like to wish you all a Happy New Year! I did intend to get this out yesterday, but a variety of factors, including spending time with family and playing both Pokemon Violet, which is a very fun game if you can look past the technical issues, and Genshin Impact (look, I needed the Raiden Shogun, ok.), Here's hoping this year is better than the last, but that shouldn't be too difficult, right? Anyways, let's get to the reviews!

Aqua – I'm very glad you enjoyed last chapter, and I'm happy that you agree with my picks for VAs. Although, do you mean Tao's JP VA for Izumi, as Tao is a character in SMTV? Anyways, thank you for also recommending Sonic Prime, as did naminexriku, so I guess I'll check it out when I have the time.

naminexriku – Thank you for reviewing yet again, and now that you describe the plot, it really does seem similar to ARC-V's main concept. As mentioned before, I'll likely check it out somewhat soon, so thanks for the recommendation!

Nice Peter – Thank you for reviewing and a happy holidays to you too!

Anyways, next week will be the definitive first chapter of the new year in all territories, and we will unravel some mysteries! Again, I wish you all a happy holidays and a Happy New Year! I'll see you all next time - NightWingBOI