Chuck engaged in a rematch against the robbed duelist who defeated him before. Only this time, Chuck managed to survive his opponent's OTK strategy. It was then that the robbed duelist's identity was revealed to be Sarah's older brother, Martin.

The only card Martin had in play was the field spell, Starry Knight Sky. Moreover, he had 4700 lifepoints and no cards in his hand. On the other end, Chuck had 2000 lifepoints, Stardust Dragon (Lv. 8, WIND, Dragon/Synchro, Atk. 2500, Def. 2000) in play and had a single card in the hand.

It was now Martin's trun, and he drew. As he did, he grinned wickedly, "I activate Swords of Revealing Light!"

Blades of pure light rained from above, caging Chuck and Stardust Dragon inside. Now for three of his turns, Chuck couldn't declare an attack with his monsters.

Martin cackled darkly, "I'll watch you squirm like a cornered animal. I end my turn."

Chuck steeled his resolve, "I have to break this spell. My turn. I draw. I switch Stardust Dragon into defense and set one card face down. I end my turn," Stardust furled its wings to cover itself and knelt down, signifying its switch into defense position.

"My turn," Martin drew his card and grinned widely, "I set a card and end my turn."

Chuck thought about that grin. That was no bluff, he knew that much. That set card must be something powerful enough to turn the tide in Martin's favor.

"My turn, I draw," Chuck smiled at the card he just drew. This was just what he needed.

"I activate my trap!" Martin declared, catching Chuck's attention, "Starry Dragon's Cycle. This card targets your Stardust Dragon and sends it back to the Extra Deck. Then, I can special summon a monster from either of our graveyards with a lower level to my field. I'll be taking your Stardust Charge Warrior!"

Chuck balked. If this play went through, he would lose Stardust and Martin would have a 2000 attack point monster, just enough for him to win the duel. There was no other choice, Chuck had to use that card.

"Activate counter trap! Solemn Judgment!" A towering bearded figure emerged from the ground and held his hand up. Martin felt the earth shake as his trap card glowed gray and vanished, "Solemn Judgment negates the activation of your trap for the cost of half my lifepoints," Chuck lowered his lifepoints to a mere 1000, but his Stardust Dragon got to stay on the field as a result.

Martin seethed with anger, "Why do want to keep wasting my time?! Lie down and die already!"

"So long as I have cards in my deck, I'll never give in," Chuck's responded, "That's a tenant of the dueling honor I live by!"

Martin scoffed, "I'll show you what 'honor' is worth, you sack of shit! Make your move, already!"

Chuck looked at the card he drew, Cosmic Cyclone. It had the effect to banish one spell or trap on the field at the cost of 1000 lifepoints. He had hoped to use it on Martin's Swords of Revealing Light. However, because Chuck had only 1000 lifepoints left after using Solemn Judgment, Cosmic Cyclone was now a dead card.

With nothing else to do, Chuck said, "I end my turn."

"That's what I thought," Martin scoffed, "Just sit there and waste away like the animal you are," Chuck scowled in response. Martin didn't have an eventful turn either. After he drew his card, he simply ended his turn.

Momo watched from the sidelines with a heavy heart. How could this be real? This wasn't the Martin she knew. Her mind drifted to a few years ago, back when she still knew Martin as he once was.

"Mr. Martin," Momo called out.

"Just Martin is fine," he replied kindly.

"Okay, Mr. Martin. I was wondering, can you tell me what Sir Fredrick was like? I never got to meet him in person."

"Oh, you mean my dad?" Martin lowered his face slightly before brightening up, "He was the best! He was the kind of guy who always knew what to do and say. Not only that, he was a super strong duelist!"

"Lady Mana did say something like that. She said that his will and conviction were unmatched."

"That's right, there was a time when he was the top duelist in the world," Martin's face suddenly grew more serious, "I know he was the one who everyone expected to battle Lord Ira, that's what the prophecy suggested anyway. I know I'm not my dad, but I'll continue his legacy and be a great duelist like him, a duelist who can save the worlds from Ira."

That was what Momo remembered. That all seemed like a dream compared to the horrible reality she was faced with now. What exactly would Sir Fredrick think if he saw this?

"My turn," Chuck drew his card. Finally, something to gain more momentum, "I summon Cyberse Synchron," (Lv. 1, DARK, Cyberse/Tuner, Atk. 100, Def. 100) "Now I activate the spell, Monster Reborn to bring back Tunningware from the graveyard," Tunningware (Lv. 1, LIGHT, Machine, Atk. 100, Def. 300) reemerged and let out a robotic squeal of joy, "Now, level one Cyberse Synchron tunes level one Tuningware," both diminutive monsters performed a Synchro summon for two stars worth of power.

"Inner strength and courage. These are the tenants of victory. Now, share your strength with us. Synchro Summon. Ride! Formula Synchron!" The Synchro tuner monster (Lv. 2, LIGHT, Machine/Synchro/Tuner, Atk. 200, Def. 1500) blitzed to Chuck's side, "When Formula Synchron is Synchro summoned, I can draw one card from my deck. Furthermore, since Tunningware was used as material for a Synchro summon, I can draw an additional card," Chuck drew two cards from his deck. He took a look at both of them. At that moment, Chuck foresaw the end of the duel, "This is it! This is the card I've been waiting for," Martin felt a bead of sweat trickled past his face, despite his best efforts to appear not afraid, "First things first, Level two Formula Synchron tunes level eight Stardust Dragon," the very air itself reverberated when Stardust Dragon entered two two rings Formula Synchron left behind.

"Clustering crystal dreams, open the door to evolution! Become the path its light shines upon!" Martin needed to shield his eyes from the blinding pillar of light that shot down onto the field, "Synchro Summon! Be born, Shooting Star Dragon!" Shooting Star Dragon (Lv. 10, WIND, Dragon/Synchro, Atk. 3300, Def. 2500) blitzed through the pillar of light with its robust wings, its shimmering scales reflecting the twinkling lights of Starry Knight Sky as it flew.

"Wow…" Momo breathed in amazement.

At the moment of Shooting Star Dragon's summon, Chuck felt something strange happen. The world around him seemed to fade away into a world of pure, holy light. Within this world, Chuck saw three familiar figures and a large beast. They were Stary Knights Ciel, Famel, and Orbitael and Starry Night, Starry Dragon.

"What's this?"

Ciel spoke, "Your creature's light has purified our souls, if only for a short while."

"Purified?"

"Yes, when Master Martin received a portion of Lord Ira's soul, the foul fiend's influence transferred to us," Flamel added.

"Listen very closely, young one," Starry Dragon addressed Chuck with a deep yet kind voice, "Master Martin has two souls inhabiting his body, his own soul and the fragment of Lord Ira's soul. In this duel, the one who loses will perish. In Master Martin's case, that means the dominant soul will leave his body, the fragment of Lord Ira's soul. You must defeat Master Martin to free him from Lord Ira's influence. If you do that, you will free us as well."

Chuck gave Starry Dragon his best look of conviction, "Don't worry, I won't lose. I wasn't planning to."

"Good," Starry Dragon nodded his head, "Our time is running short. We must leave now," All of a sudden, Chuck was back in the duel, his Shooting Star Dragon right behind him.

"Hey, dumbass! Are you done staring into space?!" Martin yelled.

"Mr. Chuck, did you see something we didn't?" Momo said to herself.

Chuck shook his head to knock away his disorientation. This is when he went for his play, "I activate Harpie's Feather Duster! This spell destroys all spell and trap cards on your side of the field," a massive white wing appeared above Chuck. It moved back, threatening to swipe the ground.

"Activate Infinite Impermanence!" Martian's set card flipped up, "This card targets a monster you control and negates its effects," Infinite Impermanence drained the color from Shooting Star Dragon, making it release a whine of pain.

Martin was really hasty activating that card. Chuck considered what that meant. Was his opponent getting impatient? "Feather Duster's effect now resolves," the pristine white wing swept over the battleground. As a result, both the twinkling lights of Starry Knight Sky and the blades of Swords of Revealing Light vanished. Since Chuck didn't play Harpie's Feather Duster in the same column as Infinite Impermanence, it's secondary effect didn't negate Feather Duster. Prior experience taught Chuck to never play a card in the same column as a set card, "Now that your Swords are off field, I can wage a direct attack. Shooting Star Dragon, Stardust Mirage!" Shooting Star burst into the air and dive bombed towards Martin, leaving behind multicolored afterimages. The resulting impact blasted Martin clear off his back, leaving him with only 1400 lifepoints remaining, "I end my turn."

Martin forced himself onto his feet, "My turn…" he wildly drew his card. After looking at it, he immediately activated it, "I activate Pot of Desires. I banish the top ten cards of my deck and then draw two cards," Martin plucked ten cards from his deck and carelessly shoved them into his banish zone. This action made Chuck instinctively wince. That probably damaged Martin's cards.

Chuck interjected, "A duelist should treat their cards with care and respect."

"You're such a goody goody," Martin seethed in a low voice. Per Pot of Desires' effect, he drew two new cards. The hysterical laughter Martin burst into when he saw what they were sent a chill down Chuck's spine, "You're finished, kid!"

"What did you draw?!"

"I'll show you! I summon Starry Knight Astel!" A holy angel with a divine staff (Lv. 4, LIGHT, Fairy, Atk. 500, Def. 2000) descended onto Martin's field, "I activate Astel's effect. I tribute a LIGHT attribute monster to special summon a level seven LIGHT Dragon monster from my hand. I'll summon Starry Night, Starry Dragon!" Astel crossed his arms and flew up into the air, diminishing into pure light. That light took the form of Starry Night, Starry Dragon (Lv. 7, LIGHT, Dragon, Atk. 2500, Def. 2300).

"So you had another copy," Chuck said.

"Now I banish Astel from the graveyard to give Starry Dragon an extra 1000 attack points," a holy light enveloped Starry Dragon, raising its attack to 3500.

"Not good! Mr. Martin's dragon is stronger than Mr. Chuck's!" Momo panicked.

Martin screamed manically, "That's not the worst of it. When Starry Night, Starry Dragon attacks a monster, it gets banished. Then Starry Dragon gets to attack again," Starry Dragon roared as it prepared to strike, confident that it would win the duel. Martin's deranged eyes made contact with Chuck's, "Die, you cockroach! Starry Night, Starry Dragon. Twilight Storm!" Starry Dragon looked towards Shooting Star Dragon with malice as the former charged forth at the latter.

"Mr. Chuck!" Momo screamed as Melffy Puppy barked in distress.

"DIE!" Martin screamed.

Chuck held his hand up, "I activate Shooting Star Dragon's effect! When an opposing monster declares an attack, I can banish my monster until the end phase to negate that attack," Shooting Star Dragon vanished. The glittering dust it left behind surrounded Starry Dragon, forcing it back to a neutral position on Martin's field.

To say Martin was livid would be underselling it.

"Why…? Why are you so adamant about winning?!" Martin cried, "What do you think is going to happen afterwards?! Do you really think you can stand up to Lord Ira?!"

"Whether or not I can doesn't matter," Chuck replied with conviction, "I have a job to do, and I have a responsibility to see it through."

"What a load of shit!" Martin screamed, "I can see it in your eyes, the world's wronged you. Why do you want to protect it? It's just going to hurt you again. You don't owe the world anything! If you were smart, you'd let it die!"

Chuck looked at Martin with a determined expression, "You know, it's funny. A few hours ago, I might have bought into what you're saying. But I've since learned that some things are worth suffering for."

"Yeah, like what?!"

Chuck closed his eyes and gave his answer, "A headstrong girl who wants to uphold justice. A guy down on his luck who wants to be stronger. A pretty girl who wants to be a prima ballerina. A little girl who wants to save everyone. If I let you and Ira run around, I'd never get to deepen my friendships with them."

"Your friendships?" Martin cackled a depraved laugh, "That's a naive delusion! You have no room to talk your philosophical gibberish. You're still in a losing situation. Shooting Star Dragon's attack points are too low to beat Starry Night, Starry Dragon's."

"He's right," Momo muttered to herself, "Shooting Star Dragon has 3300 attack points. Unless Mr. Chuck can get past Starry Dragon's 3500 attack points, he can't win the duel."

"It's actually hysterical!" Martin cackled, "You keep making all these big philosophical arguments, only for you to end up dead when all's said and done," the howling of Martin's laughter drowned out any other sound. It was only after he had his fill that he spoke again, "Who knew there was a duelist as dumb as you?"

Chuck's response was, "Anything else you want to say before you lose?"

That made Martin stop laughing, "What?" he balked.

"Shooting Star Dragon returns to my field during the end phase!" Shooting Star Dragon's piercing roar reverberated after a burst of light brought the shining dragon back.

"Y-you're bluffing," Martin stammered in a frenzy, "You can't win…"

"Watch me. My turn!" Chuck drew his card, but he didn't need it. He already had what he needed for victory in his hand, "I tribute your monster to summon Gameciel, the Sea Turtle Kaiju!"

A massive vortex of water emerged underneath Starry Dragon. The holy dragon screeched in pain when the vortex engulfed it inside. A massive turtle monster with reptilian wings bursted out of the vortex, taking Starry Dragon's place: Gameciel, the Sea Turtle Kaiju (Lv. 8, WATER, Aqua, Atk. 2200, Def. 3000).

"What the Hell just happened?!" Martin yelled.

"I can tribute a monster you control to summon Gameciel to your side of the field," Chuck explained. The look on Martin's face expressed only true fear, "Now I active Shooting Star Dragon's effect. I excavate the top five cards of my deck, and Shooting Star Dragon then gains an attack for every tuner monster I draw," in a quick motion, Chuck pulled five cards out of his deck and looked through them:

Synchron Carrier, Jet Synchron, Called by the Grave, Stardust illumination, and Junk Synchron.

Chuck declared, "I drew two tuner monsters, so Shooting Star Dragon has two attacks!"

"N-no way…" Martin started sweating, now realizing he was finished.

"Mr. Chuck," Momo muttered, "You're amazing. Mr. Martin might not have realized it, but you've been in control of this duel since the start."

"Shooting Star Dragon attacks Gameciel!" Upon Chuck"s declaration, Shooting Star Dragon cried an ear-splitting roar and activated the thruster on its wings to propel towards the giant turtle. The shimmering dragon blasted straight through Gameciel, who roared in pain at the gaping cavity through its chest, "I'm ending this! Shooting Star Dragon attacks directly! Stardust Mirage!" Shooting Star circled back, creating afterimages in its wake.

Martin starred wide eyed, watching Shooting Star Dragon close in on him. The resulting explosion and dust cloud shielded Martin from view. His lifepoints dropped to zero.

"Good game," Chuck said.

"Mr. Martin!" Momo yelled, running into the dust cloud. She fought through the low vision and the dust irritating her throat to stand near Martin's downed body.

Momo knelt down and shook Martin's shoulder, "Mr. Martin, wake up!" Martin opened his eyes, no longer a sickly yellow, but a dull ocean blue, "Mr. Martin, you're okay!" Momo cried in relief. Her relief turned to shock when Martin rudely shoved her away.

"For God's sake, stop calling me 'Mr.' Martin!" he scolded, "I never liked that and I never will!" Melffy Puppy ran up to Martin and excitedly pawed at his leg. Martin immediately grew irritated and shoved Melffy puppy away. It's whines did nothing to make Martin feel guilt.

Momo was on the verge of tears when she asked, "Why, why did you do this? Why would you work for Lord Ira?"

"Didn't you hear me before? The world sucks. Why do I need to be some stupid 'chosen one' for some load of crap prophecy? It's not like anything's gonna get any better. Going along with Ira seemed like a good idea."

"But what about everyone else? What about Lady Mana and the others?"

"You don't get it, Momo. You live in this idyllic place. You don't get how bad it is in the human world. Nothing could possibly make up for—"

All of a sudden, Martin felt something tug harshly on his collar and pull hard. Before he had even a second to process, Chuck punched him in the face, sending him flat on his back. The robbed teen lifted himself up and rubbed his numb cheek. he looked up at Chuck, who panted and heaved before screaming at the top of his lungs:

"THINK ABOUT YOUR LITTLE SISTER!"

The air suddenly turned thin, the silence so clear the sound of a falling pin would be heard.

"Mr. Chuck…" Momo said breathlessly.

"Don't talk like you're the victim here!" Chuck yelled to Martin, "A little girl, your sister, was forced into a fight she had no hope of winning, all because your misery mattered more to you than her! Can you possibly imagine how scared and helpless she felt?"

"Scarred and helpless?" Martin defended, "Can you imagine how I felt? I—"

"SHUT UP!" Chuck interrupted , stunning Martin into silence, "I can't stand people like you. You don't think how your own actions affect your loved ones. If you were a real older brother, you would have thought about Sarah!"

"What do you know?" Martin yelled, "You don't know what it's like to have the world on your shoulders!"

"No, but Sarah does… and you selfishly forced it onto her!"

"Stop preaching to me! If you experienced what I have, you would have done the same!"

"I can't understand ever you went through, but I know what it feels like when someone you love betrays your trust—and that's exactly what you did!"

Martin clutched his head and shrieked, "Stop it! Just stop it!"

Chuck sighed, "Why am I even talking to you? I have more important things to do than chew you out," He looked Martin in the eye, "You're right about one thing. That prophecy really is a load of crap. As if someone like you could protect the world. You're no duelist, you're just a spineless coward. Your own sister is braver than you. She at least held up hope."

With that final shot, Chuck walked past Martin. Momo and Melffy Puppy looked at Martin one final time before leaving him to join up with Chuck. The three of them continued down the great hall to arrive at the royal court, or what was left of it. There was a large pile of rubble at the far end of the room. The only indication of something beyond the rubble was a gap of light at the top.

All of a sudden, Chuck gasped and toppled over. The reason he didn't collapse to the floor was because he managed to lean into a pillar that was still intact.

"You shouldn't push yourself like this," Momo warned, "You need to rest."

"I can't do that," Chuck gathered his strength and pushed himself off the pillar into a wobbly standing position.

"Why are you grinding yourself into the ground like this?"

"I'm a duelist…" he answered, "And a duelist… doesn't sink to the ground."

Momo didn't respond, mostly because she couldn't understand that reasoning. Whatever the case may be, it seemed as though Mr. Chuck had made up his mind.

"You look like you have something on your mind," Chuck asked Momo. Most people would have missed it, but the Ikari Family BS detector Chuck cultivated during his training made him aware of most nervous habits.

Momo nervously answered, "There's a reason why I wanted to get into the castle. When I was sneaking around, I saw everyone escape through the catacombs into the mountains. Except—I didn't see Lady Mana anywhere. I knew she still had to be here in the castle," tears started to well in Momo's eyes, "I can't bear the thought of something happening to her. I always sneak around to see if she'll come back safe," Melffy Puppy could sense Momo's distress so it cuddled up to her legs.

"If that's the case, then you have to find her."

"But what about you?"

"You've already done enough for me," Chuck assured.

Melffy Puppy started furiously sniffing on the ground, inching towards the mound of debris. It yanked its head up and yipped in excitement. To Chuck's amazement, Melffy Puppy dissipated into a wisp of light and flew through the gap.

"What just happened?" Chuck asked.

"That doggy is a card spirit," Momo answered, "It must have noticed its master was nearby and returned to her."

"So Sarah's behind that rubble? Then that's where I need to be. I guess this is where we part ways. Thanks, Momo, for everything."

"Mr. Chuck, promise me—promise me you'll survive!"

Chuck answered without hesitation, "I promise."

"Good, since you promised, you can't break it," with one last sniffle, Momo said, "Bye," and ran off somewhere else, now starting her own search.

Chuck climbed his way up the piles of rubble. The process was nothing short of painful. Coarse stone and bits of broken glass dug into his hands, but he persevered. When he reached the top, Chuck lost his balance and painfully slid down to the bottom into the castle courtyard. Chuck found himself starring into the gloomy, thundering sky above.

With immense strain, Chuck forced himself back up standing—hunched over, but still standing. He immediately wished he didn't stand up, because the sight he saw made his blood run cold. He saw a beaten and battered little girl chained up high to a broken and unrecognizable statue, a little girl with orange hair wearing a yellow dress.

"Sarah!"

Chuck felt his blood boil. When he found the one responsible, he'd string them up by

their neck and gouge—wait, where did that thought come from? And why did it feel like adrenaline was pumping into his body. Chuck's breath grew even more ragged as his face seemed to curl into a permanent scowl.

"So… you are the one who commands the dragon of creation."

Chuck nearly jumped out of his skin hearing that frightful and commanding voice. He turned to the source of the voice. Just the sight of the that wicked armor and blood red cape made Chuck immediately pieced together who he was facing.

"You're Ira."

To be continued…

Next time: The Cycle of Prophecy

There's something I should mention. Shooting Star Dragon in this duel only is based on how it is in the 5D's anime. In the real world, after Shooting Star Dragon banishes itself to negate an attack, it returns "during the next end phase." "Next end phase" means the end phase of the next turn. If we went with real world mechanics, Shooting Star should return during Chuck's end phase on the next turn, not Martin's. Shooting Star used to return on the turn it was banished, but it received an errata (a rewrite) in the Legendary Collection 5D's Mega Pack that included the "next" in it's card text.

When I was writing the outline for Chuck vs. Martin, I didn't realize Shooting Star Dragon returned during the next end phase. It was well after I finalized the outline for the duel that I learned Shooting Star shouldn't return during Martin's end phase. Correcting this mistake would have meant completely changing the end of the duel, so I decided to leave it as is. In the future, Shooting Star Dragon will have it's real world effect.