Yu-Gi-Oh! 5 Deluxe Dragons
Disclaimer: This one doesn't own the Yugioh series.
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Chapter 13 – The Crow and the Devil
A week has concluded following Lua's impressive duel against his vice principal. But, life goes on. Some good things have come about it, and more. For now, there are other things to focus on. One of those things is over in Satellite.
With Crow, he is currently driving down Satellite with Yusei and Jack behind him. As they do, the trio gets a good look around them at the construction. Where there were a lot of dilapidated buildings and cracked highways, in their place are actual functional structures of the same sort. Some are still a month or five away from completion, but it's still a grand scene.
The smallest of the trio remarks. "Wow. They're turning this place around."
"Pretty nice how the resources left behind by the people are helping rebuild the city," says Jack as he pulls ahead.
"A lot can change in six months," Yusei says with a smile.
Sadly, Crow cannot bring himself to smile. 'Yeah, on the outside. There's still some discriminating on the inside.'
Eventually, they reach their destination, one of the older buildings that have survived. Parking in front of it, they see children come out. All three are the same kids Crow has been looking after. As they greet their former caretaker, Saiga and Martha come out of the building.
Removing his helmet, Yusei asks, "You're living here now, Saiga?"
"Eh. I've been here so long I've gotten used to it. So I figured I might as well settle in."
Crow approaches the kids, asking, "You kids been doing good?"
"Of course we have."
"Coz we've been studyin' hard!"
"You haven't been causing problems for Martha, have you?"
"Nah. These children are twice as behaved as you were as a child," Martha retorts, prompting a round of laughs.
After that bit of joy, the three go inside to join Saiga. On his laptop, he shows them satellite imagery. It zooms in on the outskirts of Neo Domino City before showing a giant hole in the earth.
"You guys know about the meteor that crashed outside of the city, I take it?"
"Yes. Security declared it off limits," Crow says, adding his bit of knowledge on this subject.
"A couple of rumors spread about the rock that fell. They say it wasn't a meteor, but a stone tablet, and the Public Security Maintenance Bureau covertly recovered it."
"A stone tablet…" mutters Yusei as he muses. He then admits the Ghost incidents started up around the same time this meteor fell.
"You think they're connected?"
"I couldn't tell you at this point, but something's lurking in the shadows."
Thinking further on it, Yusei believes that maybe this is all connected. Being able to cause damage and sealing Synchro Monsters isn't something normal. Even the latter is something that should normally be well-known.
As these thoughts come to rest in their minds, the trio enters the dining room where Martha and the kids are. With them is also a doctor, looking at someone with tire tracks over his face. Seeing their plight, Yusei asks, "What's wrong?"
"It's just another incident we've been having lately," says the doctor as he treats his patient.
"Some maniac ran me over after I lost to him in a duel!" he shouts as he gets some Neosporin dabbed on his forehead.
Martha then adds to the story. "For a week or so, someone has been going around causing problems for certain residents, mostly business owners and workers. No one knows what he looks like because he wears a shroud over himself, but he challenges those random people to a duel and humiliates them when he wins. And if they don't have cards, he just runs them over with his bike."
"So, a D-Wheeler…" mutters Crow as he crosses his arms.
"As if Satellite needs any more trouble," Jack grumbles in annoyance.
'A shroud… a D-Wheeler… violent…' If Yusei doesn't know better, and he does, he believes that is very similar to someone he's met before.
Crow then speaks up, asking, "So if this guy is a pain in the butt, shouldn't Security be called in on him?"
"That's the strangest thing; none of them have actually called in on this. At first, I thought the person was hiding their appearance, but it's as if they want to handle things themselves."
"Well, then, we'll let 'em. We've got our own issues to deal with."
The kids look to the duelists, especially Crow, and an idea hatches. The girl says, "He's right; we should handle this situation ourselves."
"Yeah. We can't get Crow and the others involved. Crow wouldn't be able to stop him anyway." As if planned, that ignites something inside of Crow.
"What's that?!"
"We said you couldn't handle it even if you wanted to, so you don't have to get involved." That does it.
"Oh yeah?! Then watch me!" Like that, Crow decides to get involved. The children snicker at how predictable he is, as he asks, "What's this guy look like?"
Yusei and Jack sigh at how he got easily roped in, but the former wants to get involved anyway. He has a good feeling he knows who this person is after all.
"They don't have an accurate description, just a man in a cloak. Some say they've heard his voice before, but nothing concrete."
With these details left by the doctor, Crow goes out on the Blackbird searching for this rampaging D-Wheeler. Yusei follows after. And Jack? He has a bigger priority right now.
Job hunting.
So together, Yusei and Crow venture deeper into Satellite, asking around to get some more intel about this cloaked schemer.
"Oh him? I don't think you gotta go find him."
"That asshole? Yeah, if it's you, then I'll be sure you can take him down!"
"I heard he likes to frequent the Amazement Park."
With that last hint, Crow and Yusei make their way to the area of Satellite formerly known as BAD. Specifically, it's the same park Aki had her duel with Misty. Due to the reconstruction, a lot of the area has been demolished, ruined even, for a recreational center.
"WA HA!" The duo comes to a stop at the opening where he stands, the man they were warned about. But seeing him, Yusei comes to a rather strange surprise. There stands a man held up by the collar, with the other responsible being the bike D-Wheeler Enjo Mukuro.
"You think you can cause problems the way you had when you're this weak!?" he growls before tossing him aside.
"Alright, alright! I'll stop!" shouts the guy as he gets shaken.
Crow gets off his bike and proceeds toward him. "Hey, hey, hey, let him go!"
"Huh!?" The cloaked man lifts his head and stares at the two new arrivals, flinching. His victim gets up and escapes in the meanwhile. "Geh! You two!"
"Huh? You know us?"
"Wait a minute…" Yusei approaches the man. "We hadn't seen you for a minute, so I thought you had left Neo Domino City, Mukuro Enjo."
The hooded man flinches. "N-No! I'm not that awesome guy! I'm Shura!"
"Yes, you are. I remember you were masquerading as him during the Fortune Cup." At that, the man removes his hood to reveal himself. Just as Yusei said, it is Enjo.
"Ah! You were that loser champion Jack whomped!" Crow says, causing Enjo to fall over.
"So what if I am?! Just Mukuro Enjo is fine enough!"
Yusei gets in between them. "Enjo, what are you doing? You're attacking regular people?"
"If you knew the truth you wouldn't call them that!"
That gets their attention, causing them to ask what he meant. "Nevermind. It's none of your business."
"No, but if Security decides to get involved, you're in trouble," Crow tells him, "and since we know who you are we can just give them your name."
Cursing, Enjo realizes he's been trapped. If he gets arrested, they might take the brunt of it if he gets revealed to everyone he's gone against. So, he'll have to make a gamble.
"Alright, then how's this?" He raises his arm, exposing his duel disk.
Seeing it, Crow immediately gets the message. "Hoh! Now you're speaking my language!"
He detaches his duel disk and prepares to duel. Yusei, being quiet, simply lets it happen. This may be the best way to uncover what Enjo is up to.
Both of them activate their duel disks before standing in front of one another. They stare into each other's eyes before screaming, "DUEL!"
Mukuro Enjo: 4000
Crow Hogan: 4000
"As the challengee, I'll start this. Draw!" Crow draws his first card before revealing it. "I'll summon Blackfeather – Mistral the Shield in defense mode!"
The silver owl returns to the field before taking a defending position. "I'll then set two cards and end my turn."
"That's how you start a duel? Let me show you how it's done!" Mukuro draws for his turn, adding the card to his hand before taking out another. "Skull Conductor's effect!"
A train conductor appears on the field wielding a wand. It then performs like an orchestra conductor for some reason calling forth spirits. "By sending this monster to the graveyard, I can special summon 2 Zombies from my hand whose total attack equal 2000."
From the spirits, two beings appear in front of him. Both of them are skulls lit aflame. "Come out! My two Burning Skull Heads!"
2x Burning Skull Head: 1000/800 (3)
"Oh, I know these. I get hit hard when you special summon them, don't you?"
"That's right! 2000 in total!" The skulls release flames upon Crow, who cries out briefly after getting hit.
Crow: 2000
"I then activate Overpowering Eye." His skull head becomes empowered, gaining black and grey eyes as it focuses on Crow. "With it, my monster can attack you directly!"
His monster flies in and smashes into Crow, who takes the hit painfully.
Crow: 1000
"Crow!"
Seeing how low his opponent's life points have dropped, Mukuro cackles proudly. "How's that?! You're up against a man who faced the King twice!"
"You lost twice."
"Don't split hairs, Yusei!" shouts Mukuro to the onlooker.
"Besides, don't count Crow out yet." The Signer leader turns to Crow as he recovers, getting himself back up to both feet.
His face shows both cheeks lifted wide to show the most enormous grin he possesses. "Not bad. You've managed to push Crow the Bullet into a corner."
"Luckily for you, I can't attack anymore. So I'll sacrifice my Burning Skull Heads for Skull Flame!" Both of the skulls explode into a burst of flames, before rising as the undead ruler of fire that doubles as Mukuro's main ace.
Skull Flame: 2600/2000 (8)
"I'll set one card facedown and end my turn."
Crow stares at Skull Flame as he thinks about how to handle this. If he leaves that out, Skull Flame will summon a Skull Head and finish him off. So, he'll just destroy it. "I activate Black Whirlwind!"
Upon activation, a storm blows through the area. With the wind as bad as it is, Crow continues saying, "I then summon Black Feather – Zephyros the Elite to the field!"
Up next is a humanoid Black Feather. With a pointed mask containing blue feathers and armored arms shaped like bones, this is Zephyros.
Zephyros: 1600/1000 (4)
"Due to Black Whirlwind, I can add one Black Feather monster from my deck to hand." He then digs into his deck and reveals a monster. "Come out, Harmattan the Dust!"
Coming out now is a stork-like Black Feather monster, a bird just like Mistral.
Harmattan: 800/800 (2)
"Next up, I'll tune Mistral with Harmattan and Zephyros!" His three monsters fly up into the skies to merge into a single bird of a behemoth. "Gust fiercely, storm! Gain the will of steel and the speed of light to sublime your form! Synchro Summon!"
A powerful silver wind blows through the area, overshadowing Black Whirlwind's. In the eye of it, two eyes glow with lone prominence. A sword slices through the storm, revealing the monster; it's a humanoid Black Feather in a costume wearing grey and black feathered clothing. In his right hand is the sharp blade that can quell wind. "Black Feather – The Lone Silverwind!"
Silverwind: 2800/2000 (8)
"Geh! That's a strong monster!" Mukuro looks worried, but deep inside he's ready. There's a reason he set a trap card the other turn after all.
"Then you'll get a load of this; Trap card open, Delta Crow – Anti-Reverse!" Crow's lone facedown flips up, and Mukuro's only protection is gone in seconds.
"E-Eh!?"
"Anti Reverse destroys any facedown Magic or Trap card you control, so long as I control a Black Feather monster. Oh, and get this part." From the ground, Zephyros rises to the field. As a result, the black storm subsides. "By returning Black Whirlwind to my hand, Zephyros can special summon itself to the field."
Enjo stares at both monsters on the field, noticing that without Skull Flame he'd straight up lose this turn. "This is nothing! I've come too far to lose now!"
"You've come too far, so you might as well go down."
"Not until they pay for what they've done to them!"
At that, Yusei gives pause. What they've done?
"Battle! Zephyros, attack Skull Flame!" His weaker monster flies in directly at the Ghost Rider monster.
"Are you nuts? Zephyros lacks the number of attack points to destroy my monster!" Enjo watches as the monster reaches his own.
"Not my problem, because I have Kalut!" He reveals one of the cards in his hand. "By discarding this monster card, Zephyros' attack power rises by 1400!"
"It what?!" Enjo then cries as the power boost makes Zephyros strong enough to pierce Skull Flame with its fingers. The resulting explosion hits Enjo hard.
Mukuro Enjo: 3600
"Silverwind, direct attack!" Silverwind gathers a storm around himself as he flies in at Enjo. "And, just like with Zephyros, I'll activate Kalut's effect!"
As his monster increases in power, the sword birdman raises his blade. "Perfect Storm Blade!"
"DAMN IT!" The blade comes down, slicing and dicing the duelist and sending him flying.
Mukuro Enjo: 0000
Cocky, Crow bellows, "How's that?! The Bullet never misses its target!"
Cursing his luck, Enjo pounds the ground in anger. "Damn it! I almost had it!"
"Alright buddy, talk! What are you up to attacking innocent people?"
"If you saw them, you wouldn't call them innocent."
Crow prepares to get info on what that's about, until Yusei steps in and holds him back. Stern eyes on Enjo, he says, "Your targets were all people mistreating Satellite natives, weren't they?"
Caught, Enjo simply nods in agreement. Crow then speaks up, asking, "Not that I'm against defending Satellite, but why? Are you from Satellite too?"
"No. I would never have been able to be the former World Champ if I was," Enjo replies solemnly. "… I got family who are, cousins. I wouldn't be able to bust them out so I thought I'd send some money on occasion hoping that would be enough. Until this whole Neo Daedalus Bridge stuff and things got better."
Enjo leans his head back with a sigh. "Or so I thought. Some people still treat Satellite folks like shit in little ways, and one of them was a business they ran."
"Yeah… I know," Crow says, admitting to Enjo's words.
"Enjo, you can't go doing stuff like this."
"So I'm just going to let it go?"
"Enjo!" Crow goes over and grabs Enjo's collar. The two stare at one another tensely. "You're doing this to help people, but you'll just be causing trouble for them. We could not tell anyone, and someone will still find out and take it out on those relatives of yours!"
Surprised, Enjo's face slowly pacifies. "And then, what next? You're gonna be fighting everyone and everything that hurt them? I had a friend that devolved like that, and I ain't letting someone else around me go into that trap either!"
Enjo grits his teeth but remains calm. He hasn't truly thought about anyone figuring him out; that's why he held onto Shura's cloak. "What are you gonna do… turn me in?"
Crow simply asks, "Are you gonna keep this up?"
"… no."
"Then let's do this the right way." Crow pulls Enjo off with Yusei. "You're gonna tell everyone what's been going on."
Seeing a look of content on Enjo's face, Crow is glad to know that their choice might work out. He didn't expect much coming into this, but now a part of him wants to be more involved. Not just here, but with the rest of Satellite.
…
A week has passed since Mukuro confessed to what he's seen, with Crow adding what he's noticed. As he is, more people have come forward confessing their issues with others, bringing to light these hate groups and those biased civilians. Of course, as Security handles that, more trouble continues.
But that's none of Jack Atlas' business as he receives a cup of coffee while reading the news at his usual spot, Cafe La Geen. His waitress Stephanie mumbles as he picks up his cup.
"Ah. Nothing like a delicious cup of Blue-Eyes Mountain Coffee." Jack takes a sip of this hot bean juice, before stopping to notice Stephanie still there.
"I gotta go!" she shouts suddenly, running back inside. Her cheeks flushed red, and she groans in defeat. "Oh, come on, Stephanie. You gotta tell him sometime. Just go up to him, and say-"
"Jack!"
Turning back outside, the waitress spots Carly coming over to Jack, sitting right next to him with her camera bag. And she takes offense to that. 'Hold up! Who's this four-eyed skank?!'
"What are you doing here?"
"Reporter work. This time, about the Duel Shrine."
He puts down his cup to ask, "What shrine?"
"Huh? Are you sleeping under a rock?" Carly opens her bag to pull out some papers.
"A lot of people come to leave a monetary offering or wish to this shrine." The pictures detail a pristine white shrine with cards placed there. As she shows him, Stephanie grits her teeth.
Jack then pauses from his coffee. With Carly here to show him some new pictures, he's come to realize something important. She hasn't come to him for anything at all. Despite that little moment they had together, she has yet to talk to him about what happened. What she said to him.
"Jack? Are you listening?" Her words bring him back, forcing him to return to reality.
"Sounds like nonsense."
"Sounds like you!" Both Carly and Jack lift their heads to spot Crow standing before them.
"Oh, Crow. Done with your deliveries?"
"Yeah, a while ago."
Carly tries to catch his attention, only to get a single syllable that shows he barely acknowledges her.
"So, what brings you here? Is it this luscious Blue-Eyes Mountain?"
"Blue-Eyes what?" Crow then looks down at the price of the item on the receipt left on the table. Its price sends him into a ludicrous lout. "3000 YEN?!"
"It's great, isn't it? To think rural places like these can have such high-quality stuff-"
"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?!" shouts Crow in anger. "We're already in the red, and you're spending our funds on goddamn coffee?!"
"A little pampering now and then doesn't hurt."
"Yes, it does! Each part we need has to be new, and those cost money. Yusei earns by doing repairs and I perform deliveries. But here you are mooching off of us because you can't hold down a job!"
"I'm not a moocher! I just don't have a job suitable for me."
As the screaming goes on, a young boy comes by to perform deliveries for the cafe. This brief intervention is enough for everyone to calm down and watch. As he leaves, Crow continues: "Talk about the complete polar opposite of you. Marco goes out and supports his family from sun-up to sundown and doesn't complain about what he needs to do. You should take after his example!"
Annoyed, Jack scuffs it off. "Don't you dare lump me in with that kid. We're worlds apart!"
"And it's that kind of attitude that keeps you from holding down a job! You're always going Jack Atlas this and Jack Atlas that like you're better than everyone! Times have changed; who the hell even remembers you!?"
Seeing Jack's expression change, Carly stands up for him. "Crow, that's going too far!"
"If you don't like it, then show some scratch! Without us, you'd never be able to enjoy this fancy coffee!"
"Oh yeah?!" Jack then gets up, anger reaching a boiling point. "Just watch! By the time I've returned, you'll be drowning in cash!"
Now determined, Jack gets up to leave. With Crow, Carly, Stephanie, and his still half-full cup of coffee behind him, he is ready to prove Crow wrong. Sadly, as the day goes on, it becomes apparent that Jack sucks at working. Whether it's making a mess of a meal, rejecting articles that lack his name, or burning laundry, he always comes up with a pedantic reason for losing his job.
His ego has brought him to a bridge. There he throws stones at the river's reflection of the golden moon. "Damn people. These commoners don't know my worth."
Tossing the last one, he sniffs the air in hunger. "Those damn crickets are checking in earlier this year."
Down below the bridge by the river, Carly cooks up a caught fish. That's what he's smelling. 'Now, now, Jack. You can't do anything on an empty stomach.'
As Jack laments, he notices something off to the side; the kid from before, Marco, is heading into the park garden. He goes after him out of curiosity, and Carly follows with equal emotion.
While tailing, she notices the direction of where he's heading. Hiding behind a tree, her fears get worse. 'There's no doubt; he's heading toward the Duel Shrine.' Now she's afraid of one thing; he's going to pilfer from the Duel Shrine.
Quickly she rushes to stop him, but shortly after entering the garden, she's pulled back. By Jack. "Jack."
A shush silences her. He then points over to the shrine, where Marco stands in front. The boy places a deck of cards into the offering. After that, he prays. "O Duel Shrine Deity, please. I lack any sort of money, but instead, use these to take care of Garome for me."
"Garome?" Carly whispers, just loud enough for Jack to hear her.
"Familiar?"
"Yeah, he's the worst; he's a loan shark who exploits poor people. After lending you money, he'll make you sign whatever bogus contract he can come up with before robbing you blind. And no matter how much he takes, he'll always want more. Most likely, that boy was tricked by him."
Carly's explanation gives Jack a general idea of the type of man Garome is. He would ponder more on it if he didn't see Marco's little brother come running up.
"Miguel?"
"Big brother, aren't those your cards? Don't you need them to duel?"
"It's fine, Miguel," Marco tells his little brother, almost as if accepting something horrid.
"But you always said you wanted to get a D-Wheel and become a professional duelist! You can't if-"
"Of course I did. Honestly, when Satellite finally connected, I had hopes that finally, we can follow our dreams…" He looks over at his cards. "But nothing's changed. Poor people aren't allowed to dream!"
That hits Jack personally. "Besides, these cards weren't even good enough for Garome to steal. We…"
Sighing, Marco throws on a fake smile and takes his little brother's hand. "Forget it. We'll just have to grow up and deal with it. Family is more important than dreams that'll never be anyway."
The two then walk home.
Once gone, Jack comes out of hiding. Carly snaps at Garome for what he's done. After some intrepid thinking, Jack asks her, "Does Garome duel?"
"Huh? Why does that-"
"Does he?" Surprised by the follow-up, she nods in agreement. He then goes over to the Duel Shrine. Much to her chagrin, he takes Marco's cards.
A little bit later, after squeezing the information on Garome's location from Carly, Jack storms into his office. There he finds the man sitting at his desk, a pudgy man with long earlobes. It's a more normal appearance for a middle-aged Japanese person.
"I take it you're Garome."
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the prestigious Jack Atlas," speaks Garome in a mocking tone. While it seems he knows who the blond Adonis is, the others in his room can't recall.
And Jack doesn't like that.
"What can I do for you? Applying for a loan?"
"You mean selling myself away to be a slave?! No, thank you!" Jack then notes a stack of papers being sorted through by one of Garome's men. "But I am interested in those contracts you have."
"My contracts?"
"You and I will duel. If you win, you're free to do with me as you please. If I win, you hand over all of the contracts you have on those poor people."
At that, Garome shakes his head in disappointment. "Oh, Jack Atlas. I had heard you hit rock bottom. But if you're this foolish, then it's no wonder you haven't climbed back to the top."
Anger ignites within Jack's expression. "Those contracts are how I make money, making them too valuable to simply relinquish. You can't expect me to do that when all you have to offer is your former title as King! WHICH IS ALREADY UTTERLY WORTHLESS!"
The rage has reached level 2. "Although, since you did take the time to visit, I can perhaps come up with an agreement of sorts. All it requires is you put up your Wheel of Fortune."
"My D-Wheel?"
"But that's barely worth enough, so throw in your Red Daemon's Dragon as well. I've always wanted that card."
…
Even later in that same evening, the former King stands in a small arena in front of Garome and his gang. Both Yusei and Crow happen upon him while Carly drags Marco to watch.
With the stakes present, the two have their duel.
… and after four turns…
"Smile Angel, direct attack! SUPER SMILE!" Jack delivers a powerful assault on Garome using a beautiful smiling angel.
"GAH! WHAT A BEAUTIFUL SMILE!" The attack knocks Garome over, along with his toupee.
Carly and Marco cheer for Jack's victory while the latter makes his way to Garome. Seeing him, they realize they'll have to accept their end of the bargain, so they do the logical thing.
"RUN FOR IT!"
Jack throws a card at one of the fleeing goons' neck, making him drop the bag of contracts. With them in hand, they all return to Yusei, Jack, and Crow's home where the former King tears up the contracts.
"No more unfair loans for you."
"Thank you, Jack…" Jack then hands Marco his deck of cards. "Those are… you did take them?"
"Someone had to answer your prayers."
"Still… even if I took them back-"
"Marco, the winds of society can be cold, but without dreams, you'll never have anything to brace against it. Your dream isn't impossible; Smile Angel was what defeated Garome after all."
Touched by his words, Marco accepts his deck back. "I'll be waiting for you when you can duel."
At that, Marco agrees to it. Crow smiles a little. Maybe now, Jack will grow some humbleness.
The Next Day…
"YOU'RE FIRED!" shouts Benson, er, the cafe owner as Jack storms out.
"Fine! I wouldn't want to stay at this lousy cafe anyway!" he shouts back in annoyance.
"Jack, wait!" Stephanie shouts, crying at her soiled plans.
Yusei and Crow watch the scene unfold, the latter annoyed. Crow drops his head, muttering, "I guess change really can't happen overnight."
These quieter days will continue for a time. But soon, things will start to pick up. Because as Jack is getting fired, a plane lands in Tops. From it, several people file out. One of them is a beautiful woman, getting looks from everyone around her.
Lightz: Sorry for the late update. I'd say something like there was money trouble, which there was, but in reality, I've been WAY too busy playing Tears of the Kingdom. And still am. Luckily, I'll be sure to update this story next week. There will be a Luca chapter next time, and that will lead to another event.