/Fun fact: the anime versions of the Cyberdarks can equip level 4 dragons as well, not just level 3 and lower. This was shown with Infernal Dragon, which is level 4.\

Chapter 14: Intensity Set: Max

It was the next day. Yuya and Yuto have already woken up and proceeded to wake Osrelios up.

"Oz, wake up." Yuto said, shaking Oz' shoulder.

Oz slowly woke up, and saw the two of them awake.

"You two good?" He asked.

"Sore, but okay." Yuya said.

"Just who were they?" Yuto asked no one in particular.

"According to Serena, the Invasion Commander and his right hand."

"The Commander right there. And I let my anger get the best of me." Yuto said to himself.

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll get them next time." Oz said.

The three then walked out of the room.

They then found the rest gathered together.

"Yuto, Yuya. Glad to see the two of you alright." Shun said.

"Yeah, we're fine." Yuto replied.

Oz then cleared his throat loudly, getting everyone's attention.

"Now that we know the identity of the Invasion Commander, and we know that he, and his right hand actually leave their base, I say we go out and search for them. Serena, do you know what they look like?"

Serena then stepped forward. "Edo Phoenix has gray hair and wears a unique uniform. Sartorius is tall, has long hair, and has pale skin. Both are distinct compared to the usual Academia grunt."

"That's definitely going to stand out in a crowd." Gong commented.

"It doesn't matter what they look like, just let me at them and I'll beat them senseless." Silvio arrogantly stated.

"They managed to tie with Yuya and Yuto at the same time, what makes you think you have a chance?" Shun bluntly said.

Silvio then falls down onto his back, anime style.

Oz then started to leave.

"Where are you going?" Serena asked.

"I'm going to go find them." Oz answered.

"Not without me. You promised remember?"

Oz then sighed. "Yeah, yeah. Let's go then."

Serena then smirked. "If we find them, they won't know what hit them."

"Where'd all this confidence come from?" Oz asked.

"We have you on our side. You defeated Yuri, you defeated Jack, you can defeat them." Serena said with a smile.

Oz then blushed and looked away. "... Thanks for the vote of confidence."

The two of them gather their things and leave the lodge.

The two of them were walking around the city, looking out for any Academia members.

"What was it like growing up in Academia?" Oz asked.

"... We were all expected to follow the rules and never break them. The Professor has an iron grip on the entire dimension, and everyone listens to him. All families are expected to send their children to Academia when they are of age. Academia itself is like a fusion between a school and a military camp."

"Definitely glad I'm not from there." Oz commented.

Serena then laughed a little. "I sure hope your glad."

"So what was your childhood like?" Serena asked.

"Relatively normal actually. I grew up with 3 older siblings, and went to a normal school and all that. It was pretty much a perfectly normal life. Something that you'd want right?"

"Yeah, it would've been nice to have a life like that." Serena admitted.

"But look at it this way, you get to be known as a hero once we finally defeat the Professor."

"You really think we'll win?"

"Sure we will. We do have a plethora of strong Duelists on our side, other than Silvio of course."

The two then start to quietly laugh together, when an explosion went off.

The two immediately went on guard. Serena then ran towards the direction of the explosion.

Oz was about to follow her when all of a sudden he felt something go around his neck, wrists, and ankles.

Oz stopped and looked at what it was.

It appeared to be thick black bands with spikes protruding from them.

They looked like the same things that Kaiser Ryo had in GX.

"Your not going anywhere." A voice rung out.

Oz turned towards the voice and saw the Hell Kaiser himself: Ryo Marufuji.

"Who knew that the infamous thorn in the Professor's side would be here?" Ryo stated.

"What do you want?" Oz asked, on edge.

"I am Ryo Marufuji, also known as the Hell Kaiser. All I want to do is a little test. We will duel using these punishment bands. Each time either of us takes damage, the bands will deliver an electric shock." Ryo explained.

"...Fine then." Oz replied. 'I'll use a deck I haven't yet. My light won't reach him, so I'll use my darkness.'

"Duel!" The two shout.

Osrelios LP: 4000 hand: 5

Ryo LP: 4000 hand: 5

"I'll take the first turn." Oz declared.

Oz looked over his hand. 'I should've practiced this deck more.'

"I'll start by playing Zalamander Catalyzer. I reveal it and Ceruli, Guru of Dark World. Now I can summon one and discard the other. I discard Ceruli and summon Zalamander." Oz stated.

Zalamander Catalyzer: atk: 1600

"Next Ceruli's effect activates! When it's discarded by card effect, it summons itself to your field in defense position."

Ceruli, Guru of Dark World: Def: 300

"Summoning a monster to my field? What purpose does that give?" Ryo questioned.

"It gives this purpose! When Ceruli is special summoned, the opponent is forced to discard 1 card."

"The opponent? I'm the one who is controlling the card, the opponent to it is you." Ryo pointed out.

"I know. I discard Reign-Beaux, Overking of Dark World. Because I discarded this card by card effect, I can add 1 level 5 or higher Dark World monster to my hand. I choose Grapha, Dragon Lord of Dark World. Additionally, since I discarded my Overking by an opponent's card effect; I can special summon a level 4 or lower Dark World monster from my deck or GY to either field. I choose to summon Genta, Gateman of Dark World to my field."

Genta, Gateman of Dark World: atk: 1000

"I see... you're playing a deck that is focused on discarding your own cards to gain an advantage. You get even better effects if the opponent is the one to get you to discard, and you have ways of forcing them to make you discard as well." Ryo summarized.

"That's right. But just because you figured out my deck's gimmick doesn't mean you have an advantage. I return Genta to my hand in order to special summon my Overking from my GY." Oz declared.

"The true ruler of the demonic realm. Decimate our enemies while you judge all from your throne. Come forth! Level 8: Reign-Beaux, Overking of Dark World!" Oz chanted.

Overking appeared in the field, and brandished its weapon.

Reign-Beaux, Overking of Dark World: atk: 3000

"Next I discard Genta using its effect to add my field spell: The Gates of Dark World. Next I activate it. All fiend type monsters gain 300 atk and Def." Oz explained.

Overking: atk: 3300

Zalamander: atk: 1900

Ceruli: Def: 600

"Now I activate the other effect of my field spell! I discard a fiend from my hand, and banish one from my GY in order to draw one card. I discard Grapha and banish Genta!"

"Next Grapha's effect! If it was discarded, I can destroy one of your cards, I destroy Ceruli!" Oz shouts.

Dark tendrils appeared and stab into Ceruli.

"Next Genta's effect activates from Banishment. If I control a Dark World card, it can summon itself. Come back Genta! And this time, it gets a boost!"

Genta: atk: 1300

"You seem to be good at using your resources." Ryo observed. "You continuously bring your hand back to 3 each time it goes down."

"Well, it's going to increase again." Oz said. "I return Genta to my hand again to summon Grapha from my GY."

"Demonic dragon who seeks to corrupt. Gather your strength and strike fear in our enemies! Appear! Level 8: Grapha, Dragon Lord of Dark World!" Oz chanted.

Grapha appeared and gave out a vicious roar.

Grapha, Dragon Lord of Dark World: atk: 2700

"Grapha is a fiend type, thus it also gains the boost!" Oz shouts.

Grapha: atk: 3000

"Now I set 2 cards and end my turn." Oz declared.

Ryo stated silent for a moment. "My turn. Draw."

Ryo LP: 4000 hand: 6

"I play Harpie's Feather Duster. I destroy all of your spells and traps." Ryo declared.

A large gust of wind came out of nowhere and struck Oz' cards.

'No!' Oz thought.

"Because your field spell is no longer in play, your monsters lose their boost." Ryo reminded.

Grapha: atk: 2700

Overking: atk: 3000

Zalamander: atk: 1600

"Next I discard Cyberdark Cannon in order to add Cyberdark Horn. Now I summon Horn." Ryo declared.

Cyberdark Horn gave out a small roar.

Cyberdark Horn: atk: 800

"When Cyberdark Horn is summoned, I can equip a level 4 or lower dragon from my GY. I equip it with Cyberdark Cannon."

Cannon appeared from a portal, and Horn immediately attached itself to it.

"Horn gains Cannon's atk." Ryo explained.

Cyberdark Horn: atk: 2400

"Now Cyberdark Horn, attack Zalamander Catalyzer!"

Horn then shot out dark blasts from its horns.

"I now chain the quick-play spell: Limiter Removal. This doubles the atk of all Machines I control!"

Cyberdark Horn: atk: 4800

"Oh. Oh no." Oz said to himself.

The attack went through and caused a large explosion that hit Osrelios hard. Following the explosion, the bands sent out a large electric shock.

"Ahhhhh!!!" Oz shouts.

Osrelios LP: 800

Once the explosion and electricity subsided, Oz was standing there, motionless. His glasses had fallen off his face, and lay in pieces on the ground.

"Looks like he couldn't handle a single shock." Ryo said to himself.

Suddenly, waves of energy emit from Oz, blasting away nearby debris.

Ryo looked at Oz closely and saw that Oz had no light in his eyes. Just an emotionless stare.

Psychic energy began to fly from Oz, creating destruction where it hit.

A large amount of darkness rose up from Oz and took form of a dragon. It was Z-arc possessing him. Oz' eyes became a shining black.

Z-arc then gave a malicious smirk.

"Looks like his psychic powers have finally caused him to go berserk. The electricity must have been the cause." Ryo concluded. "I set 2 cards and end my turn. Now due to Limiter Removal, my Cyberdark Horn is destroyed."

Horn then immediately exploded.

"My turn!" Z-arc shouts with the same look on his face. 'Finally, I can run rampant on this world! I even have a new body. That boy was foolish to think he could contain me!' Z-arc thought to himself.

Osrelios/Z-arc LP: 800 hand: 3

"I activate Dark World Accession. I banish Grapha and discard Genta to Fusion Summon."

The monsters swirled together, but Z-arc did not give a summon chant.

"Rise! Grapha, Dragon Overlord of Dark World!"

The evolved demonic dragon appeared on the field.

Grapha, Dragon Overlord of Dark World: atk: 3200

Z-arc then started to laugh. "Feel the overwhelming might of darkness! Grapha! Attack him directly!"

Grapha fired a large burst of dark energy.

"Not so fast! Trap card: Power Wall. I send cards from the top of my deck to my GY to reduce the incoming damage by 100 for each card. I send 30 cards!" Ryo countered.

The incoming attack was then stopped by a barrier. The blast went out in different directions, destroying anything it touched. Finally a small bolt hit Ryo in the cheek.

Ryo LP: 3800

Ryo felt his cheek and could feel a small burn. 'So the duel has become real.'

"Reign-Beaux attack!" Z-arc shouts.

"Trap card: Negate attack. The battle phase ends!" Ryo once again countered.

"In that case I activate the field spell: Malefic Zone. This card allows me to summon Malefic monsters without having to send their original version to the GY. I now activate its other effect! Once per turn, I can add 1 Malefic monster from my deck to my hand. I add Malefic Dark Rebellion XYZ Dragon to my hand!" Z-arc explained.

"I now summon it! Formed in pitch-black darkness. Tear the foolish apart with your sinful fangs. Level: 8 Malefic Dark Rebellion XYZ Dragon!"

Malefic Dark Rebellion is a monster that is Dark Rebellion covered in Malefic armor. Its wings, head, and legs are all wearing the armor.

Malefic Dark Rebellion XYZ Dragon: Level: 8, Type: Dragon/Effect, Attribute: Dark, atk: 2500, Def: 2000

Effect: During this card's controller's turn, up to twice per turn: target 1 monster your opponent controls; half that monster's atk, and if you do, this card gains that lost atk.

With Yuto, he suddenly felt a lot of pain. He fell to the floor, grabbing his chest.

"Yuto! Are you alright?!" Allen asks.

After a moment, the pain subsides. "I'm alright now. But now I have a bad feeling. I think we should go out and find Oz and Serena."

"Right. Let's go." Allen agreed.

Back with the duel, Z-arc smirks viciously as Malefic Dark Rebellion roared out.

Malefic Dark Rebellion XYZ Dragon: atk: 2500

"I end my turn. Now, make your last move so I can end you." Z-arc says, voice dripping with overconfidence.

"Oh, this will be my last move alright. Draw!" Ryo declared.

Ryo LP: 3800 hand: 2

"First I'll play Cyberdark Impact! I return Cyberdarks: Horn, Edge, and Keel in order to Fusion Summon Cyberdark Dragon!" Ryo explained.

"Unleashing eternal darkness thirsting for battle. The blood stained road to hell is illuminated through the shadows. Witness true power! Fusion Summon! Obliterate, Cyberdark Dragon!" Ryo chanted.

Cyberdark Dragon roared out with power.

Cyberdark Dragon: atk:1000

"Hahaha! You really think that pathetic monster can defeat me?" Z-arc inquired.

Ryo then smirked. "Cyberdark Dragon can equip any dragon from either GY. I equip Infernal Dragon. This gives Cyberdark an additional 2000 atk!"

Cyberdark Dragon: atk: 3000

"One last thing, Cyberdark Dragon gains 100 atk for each card in my GY! Currently I have 34, meaning Cyberdark's atk rises by 3400!"

Cyberdark Dragon: atk: 6400

Z-arc then took a step back.

"Scared are we? Cyberdark Dragon! Attack Grapha, Dragon Overlord of Dark World! Full Darkness Burst!" Ryo commanded.

The attack hit straight on and caused an even bigger explosion than before.

Osrelios/Z-arc LP: 0

Oz' body was sent flying back, and Z-arc was forced from the body in the process.

The darkness of Z-arc flew out in the direction of Dark Rebellion.

When Oz' body landed, there was a decently sized hole in his chest.

At that moment, Serena came running into the scene. She had just got done defeating Academia students who were lying in ambush.

She stopped when she saw Oz.

"Oz!" She shouted as she ran up to him.

She got close and saw the hole. She put her hands to her mouth, horrified. She could see the lifeless look in his eyes.

Osrelios was dead.

Ryo walked up to her. "You will come with me, or more of your friends will end up like this."

Serena started crying. "O-okay."

Ryo put a hand on her shoulder and activated his dimensional travel system, teleporting the two of them to the Fusion Dimension.

A few minutes go by, Yuto and Allen come running into the scene.

The two saw Oz.

"No!" Yuto shouts.

Yuto ran right up to him and began to get teary-eyed.

"Yuto... I'm sorry for your loss." Allen said.

Before Yuto could cry more, Oz' body began to shine, the hole immediately closed.

"What the-" Yuto began before stopping himself. He quickly check Oz for a pulse. He found one. Oz is still alive.

"Allen, help me get him back, quickly!" Yuto shouts.

"On it." Allen replied. The two of them grab Oz and began to carry him back to the Duel Lodge.

/Moments Earlier.\

In the mindscape, Osrelios was on his knees defeated.

"I failed. In more ways than one, I failed." He said.

"Not only did I die, I got possessed by Z-arc and Dark Rebellion's darkness returned to it."

"Then why not try again?" A voice rang out.

Oz looked up and saw the 3 Sacred Beasts.

"You three chose me to be your wielder, but I failed you. There is no trying again, my physical body has a hole in it."

"We chose you for a reason, and we believe that reason still stands." Uria stated.

"What reason is that?" Oz asked.

"You always believed that the three of us could become symbols of hope rather than fear, to use our powers to protect rather than destroy, isn't that right?" Hamon said.

"That is correct. I always saw the potential for good in the three of you, especially if you had the right duelist."

"You are that duelist, young one. Another reason that we chose you is because you don't give up, so why give up now?" Raviel stated.

"... your right, I shouldn't be giving up now. Even if I can't help from the mortal realm, I can help from the spirit realm." Oz said while standing up.

"Actually why don't we make it so you can go back to the mortal realm?" Uria suggested.

"How would we do that?" Oz asked.

"Use Super Polymerization to fuse our spirits with yours." Raviel stated.

"What!? But that would permanently tie the three of you to me!" Oz exclaimed.

"We know. But it's the only way you can be revived. It would be too dangerous for you to fuse with Ra, and none of the others have the combined spirit energy to revive a powerful psychic duelist as yourself with a spirit merge." Hamon explained.

"They're right." The voice of Yubel stated.

Yubel then appeared. "None of us have enough energy to do this, except for them. Just know that unlike fusing with a regular Duel Spirit, merging with a deity, let alone 3, is truly permanent. You will become part Spirit Deity yourself, and will have access to some of their powers, just like how it was for Jaden and I."

"... Alright. There's no going back. I'm ready."

Oz then manifested Super Polymerization in the mindscape.

"I activate Super Polymerization!" Oz shouts.

Oz and the three Sacred Beasts all swirled into one. Everything then went white.

Before everything went completely white, Ra could be seen, looking to be smiling.

Oz wakes up with a sudden jolt.

He feels his face, and doesn't feel his glasses, he then noticed that despite his lack of glasses, he can see perfectly, in fact he can see even better than with his glasses.

Oz then found his Duel Disk right next to him, and saw his reflection.

His irises were now a different color. Three different colors to be exact. One third red, one third blue and one third yellow. Representing the colors of the 3 Sacred Beasts.

Oz then focused and his irises changed back to their original color.

Oz stood up and placed his Duel Disk on his arm.

Oz heard a door open, and saw Yuto in the doorway.

The two of them stated at each other for a moment. "This is ironic, just like when we first officially met right?" Oz said.

Yuto immediately ran right up to him and hugged him hard.

"Gah! Yuto! Your crushing me!" Oz squeaked out.

Oz' pleas were in vain as Yuto didn't seem to hear him.

Oz then patted Yuto on the back in an attempt to get him to let go, luckily Yuto actually let go. Oz took a moment to catch his breath.

"I thought you died." Yuto stated.

Oz then sighed. He couldn't lie to Yuto. "I did."

"But how are you-" Yuto began.

"Let's just say I was given a second chance." Oz explained. "I got a few new abilities to go along with it."

Oz' then had his eyes change to his Spirit Eyes as he calls them.

"Your eyes, they..."

"Changed color? Yeah. I had to fuse my spirit with the spirits of 3 powerful Duel Monsters. I'll get to the details later thought."

"Good idea. Besides, I have some bad news that I need to break to you." Yuto said.

Oz sighed. "I'm pretty sure that I can guess. Serena got captured didn't she?"

"That's what we assume. There was no trace of her anywhere."

Oz then clenched his fist and hit a table.

Oz' fist glowed blue right before it hit, and the table was destroyed.

Yuto just stared, wide eyed. "Another ability?"

Oz flexed his hand. "Looks like it. I'm still figuring it out."

Yuto then started to push Oz back towards the mattress. "Get some rest. You just woke up from being miraculously healed from a literally fatal wound."

Oz the sat down on the mattress, and set his Duel Disk down next to it.

"Yeah, your right. Besides, I need to get a grip on my emotions before I do something rash."

"I'll go tell the others your okay, and I'll tell them to not disturb you until tomorrow." Yuto said as he walked out of the room.

Oz then laid back down, and let himself slowly fall asleep.