IX
The staircase seemed to stretch on forever. Every step—worn smooth from years of erosion and the foot traffic of thousands of people—had been deliberately crafted to be much taller than the average stair, to force its climbers to put more effort into stepping over each one. Legend had it that there were precisely eight hundred and seventeen such steps in the entire length: two of the luckiest numbers in Japan, combined to bring anyone who traveled them great prosperity—if they could make the climb. The path went straight up the mountain, never once going down.
This, too, was deliberate—those who climbed this staircase had no intention of going down until they were ready to do so. But, invariably, there were some who did. Some could go no further, having worn themselves out too much to take the rigors of their destination, and were sent home in disgrace. Others would stick it out for as long as their bodies would let them—and if they could take it, they would descend those steps not as failures, but as warriors.
The two girls standing at the foot of the staircase had heard many things about where it led—and it was perhaps because of this that they betrayed some small amount of nerves as their eyes roved up each step.
One of them—slender, blue-haired and -eyed, and tall for a girl of thirteen—was moving her free left hand in many directions. Most people would have thought this to be a product of her nervousness. The girl whose hand she was firmly clutching, however, was not most people.
"Of course I'm sure about this," she told her without tearing her strangely colored eyes away from their destination. Save for these and her vivid red locks, she was physically identical to her companion in every respect. "They were on our list even after we made our escape. They won't have any choice but to listen to us."
The hand moved again. " … Well, that's their problem," said the redhead. "Friendly faces won't cut it this time—we tried that with You Show, and look what happened to them because of us! We need force this time—we need a show of strength behind us. Otherwise, how are people going to take us seriously?"
Her twin's fingers traced out three distinct letters.
She sighed. "You know we can't. They've got enough problems on their plate after what happened to the city! If they find out we were the reason that the Ædonai attacked them in the first place, they'll have us arrested for sure! Maybe even worse!"
" … "
"Besides, we've gone too far to turn back now. We're already here—we may as well see this through."
" … "
"All right, all right. After. But not one second before. There's no telling how long this could take us."
And, joining hands, the two of them took the first step upwards towards their end destination.
Eight hundred and sixteen to go, went the thought that flickered between one brain and the other …
Château Pique-Diamant
When she looked back on it, Masumi wasn't sure why she'd been so shocked. She'd been drugged and blinded on the way to one of the most secure jails in Japan—if not the whole world—only to find out that this so-called "jail" was actually the plushest, fanciest mansion she was likely to ever tour for the rest of her life. Yaiba had scoffed, but Himika had stressed that this palace of a house was more of a prison than a pleasure center.
And yet the scene before her looked so relaxed—so devoid of stress—that she couldn't help but think Himika was making a big mistake.
The study they'd entered was more of a miniature library—Masumi only used the descriptor because she privately thought this house might indeed have its own actual library. The two walls that flanked the door, and the enormous window beyond, were devoted entirely to shelves upon shelves of books whose titles Masumi could not immediately make out. A single ladder straddled each row, allowing for easy access to whatever tome their browser wished, and a pair of overstuffed armchairs sat either side of a low-slung oak table perched upon an elaborately woven rug.
And there, behind the desk at the other end of the room, sat the most infamous man on Earth.
Akaba Leo looked nothing like Masumi had expected. Of course she had seen pictures of the man when he had commanded Academia: the piercing, sky-blue gaze that glinted like silver, peering out over the Dimensions he'd sought to unite; the tall, stocky stature of a man who could hold his own through brains and brawn alike. Neither was in evidence here—the silver-blue eyes had lost much of their polish, and there were definite bags under his eyes that suggested a loss of sleep over the past week or so. Masumi, however, could not tell if any of this was from the experience of Leo's prison, the memories of his failure … or if perhaps he'd just mellowed out from what he'd been before. The spade-collared purple coat and cape that had signified his former station were nowhere to be seen, nor was the apparatus he wore over his bald head; he'd swapped those out with a flannel shirt that matched his eyes perfectly, and a pair of simple shorts and shoes that made him look as though he'd just come from a few rounds of tennis or squash.
Masumi wouldn't have been shocked if the mansion that held him "captive" had facilities for this exact purpose, too.
The desk where Leo had been sitting was filled with papers, neatly stacked into sections either side of him. Some were taller than others—and the identical sheet on which he was presently scrawling told Masumi that he'd written them all. No doubt he was working on some memoir or other: some collection of thoughts about an insider's account of life at Academia—and after it—or some treatise on the inner workings of his pet Arc Project, and what it would have accomplished.
The Rise and Fall of Akaba Leo. The Fusion Duelist suppressed the urge to sneer.
It was just as well that she did; Nakajima and Reiji had motioned them inside, and then shut the door behind them, leaving the LID and Himika alone in the study with the man they'd come to see. The door had scarcely clicked shut when Leo put aside his pen and stood up from his seat.
"At last," he said with a pleasant smile, framed perfectly by the massive sunlit window behind him. There was no hello, no how-are-you: he'd known they were coming, Masumi thought. And the way his eyes had lingered for the tiniest perceptible moment on her was enough for her to think that Reiji had been right about what he'd said earlier.
"I'm sorry if I didn't come out to greet you personally," Leo apologized. "I've taken to writing of late, and—as you can imagine—it's less convenient without any sort of computer to help catch your errors or assist in your research."
He glanced downward, as if dogged by an old wound. So did Masumi, before she'd been aware of it; she saw then the gunmetal-gray circle that wrapped around Leo's left ankle. A bright green strip of light flashed on and off every other second: the electromagnetic pulse, she knew, that kept him from using any technology while he was here.
"But about three chapters in," Leo continued, patting the largest stack of papers on his desk, "I began to realize that I enjoyed the tedium of the old ways. Not having my old setup has forced me to adjust my view of the world—to find other ways of keeping my mind sharp than having someone or something else do all my work for me."
He crossed to Himika. "Like the faces of old friends … and of family," he smiled fondly, embracing his wife.
She did not return the gesture. "You know why we're here, Leo," she said coldly.
Masumi thought she saw something deflate in the man. But if anything in Himika's demeanor had wounded him, he was too practiced to show it.
He nodded slowly. "Yes … the attacks on the four dimensions. Heartland Tower, the City Duel Palace, You Show Duel School … and all of Maiami City." He sighed. "Thousands of people. Thousands of cards."
Leo did not meet their gaze. Whether he was being melodramatic or not, the numbers of nameless casualties still felt like a punch to Masumi's insides. She could tell that he had not wanted this any more than they did.
"You're not here because you want to know everything I know about the people behind these attacks," Leo told them. "You're here because everything I know about them—these Ædonai—is in danger of being lost forever."
Lost? Masumi frowned. It was plain to see the LID shared her feelings.
"People think they're a doomsday cult of some kind," Yaiba spoke up. "A bunch of people from Academia joined together—"
He got no further: Leo was chuckling as though he'd just been told a joke. But there was no humor in his laugh, no smile in his eyes.
"No, Tōdō Yaiba," he said gently. But the way he was looking at Himika suggested that it wasn't just him that he was correcting. "They are not a cult, and certainly not an advocate of doomsday. Cults are never visible—not until the time is right for them to appear. Until then, they work in the shadows—behind the scenes, always manipulating, never attacking. No one must ever know they exist. It ruins the plan if someone rats them out."
"And what sort of plan would that be?"
Leo eyed Hokuto with an inkling of realization. "You're the one she sealed," he said matter-of-factly. The Xyz ace stared back at him, unwilling to dignify this with any response.
"The plan depends on who you ask," said Leo. "No doubt my son has told you the origins of their name—how it means 'lords'. Not one lord. The plural. Everyone in the Ædonai, from the highest officer to the lowliest of Duelists, considers themselves one of these lords. Their reasons for joining it are their own. And it's for that reason that I will never label them as some run-of-the-mill doomsday cult. For all intents and purposes, they are a military junta. What power they possess was taken by force—through subterfuge, deceit, and even bloodshed."
"Junta." Fuyu mulled the word over in his lips. "I read about juntas in history class. They're groups that can take over entire nations by force. Sometimes they're political—but in most cases they're all military, aren't they?"
"Exactly." Leo nodded. "Whatever their origin, it implies they didn't just come out of nowhere. They've been in plain sight—unlike many sort of cults. I'm given to understand that these Ædonai hold a large amount of influence in the Kingdom of Misgarth, and other dominant world powers in the Fusion Dimension. Certainly enough of it that they were able to pull off that coup d'état of theirs at the same time as all the attacks they organized across all four Dimensions. They seized the capital, sealed almost all of its bureaucracy and its aristocracy, and finished it off by deposing the crown prince, Ojin. Not a single shot was fired."
"Who told you all this?" Himika demanded.
"Information comes my way," Leo said simply. "I may not have the leverage online or on paper anymore, but I still do have friends who write me letters of goodwill from time to time."
He returned to his desk, and began to pore over one of the smaller stacks of papers that perched upon it. "One of the teachers at the Fusion Branch of You Show," he explained, "was concerned about what he termed 'a great deal of unrest' in the Fusion Dimension. I disregarded it at the time because I figured the power transfer was the end of it—nature abhorring a vacuum, and all that. But"—and he stood up—"these attacks have made it clear to me that the Ædonai is much more coordinated than Academia—and much too centralized to be a mere cult. From there, my opinion of them became quite clear. They are a military junta," he said again, "and their actions constitute nothing more than a coup against every single Dimension. And I want to make it clear I do not support them in any way."
Why that didn't lessen the knot in Masumi's throat, the Fusion user wasn't sure. "Anyway, that's all I can tell you about the group as a whole—it's from after my time," Leo told them. "But most of the people who joined up with them were not. They make a point to recruit people who have something to fight for."
"You can start with Gwendolyn Grimm."
Leo's silvery eyes flicked straight towards Masumi. Only then did she realize those words had come from her lips.
"I was hoping to hear you say that." He was smiling. And though it seemed cordial enough, the broadness of that smile felt more than a little creepy to her. "I have to say that I almost envy you, Kōtsu Masumi—you and all of your friends, for being able to know such a talented student of mine almost as … intimately … as I have."
"A little too much," Yaiba grumbled under his breath.
Leo ignored him. "She was one of the first to join the Ædonai. I wouldn't be shocked if she was the first," he added, and Masumi's mouth fell open in shock. "Don't act so surprised; I knew someone like her wouldn't give up the fight so easily."
A glimmer of pride flickered over his face. "I made her that way, after all."
Rika frowned. "What do you mean?"
Leo turned to face her. "Ah … the new girl," he said. "Of course you wouldn't know. You'll have to bear with me; I was expecting someone older to ask that question. I don't quite know how to boil it down for kids your age."
He sat down in one of the armchairs. "Once in a blue moon," he began, folding his hands in his lap, "people with psychic powers are born. More rarely still, those people gain the knowledge to use their psychic powers in Duel Monsters. But the key factor is that psychics are only born. Psychic Duelists are made. Trained. They have the sword, but until they learn how to use it, it weighs them down at best—or actively hurts them at worst.
"Now, Wendy wasn't much older than you when I first met her, Emina Rika," he said. "It was around that time that she first discovered her powers of oneirokinesis—the same ones she used to infiltrate and manipulate your friends' dreams all those months ago. The years in between the genesis of her abilities and the time she learned to harness them were … not pleasant. That is all I wish to say on this beautiful summer's day in front of polite company. In any case, these powers were how she first learned—albeit inadvertently—of both my Arc Project and Revival Zero: my intentions to fuse the Dimensions into a united utopia, and my attempt to recover my biological daughter Ray.
"And she was reluctant at first to join me—I will not deny that," Leo told them. "The Fusion Dimension was her home, and the notion of having it drastically altered past recognition probably disturbed her more at that time than the prospect of having to make a choice between one little girl and billions of people. But eventually, Wendy not only acquiesced, but she offered a way to make my plan even better."
Fuyu shuffled uneasily where he stood. "I don't like where this is going … "
"Her logic was this," Leo continued. "Instead of sealing people into cards, why not allow them to be something more useful than simple fuel for a dimension-fusing machine? She would share her dreams with the masses, and they would rally under our banner to make those dreams a reality by any means necessary. Even to fight for them. Sound familiar?"
It did: Masumi was biting her lip, but she dared not speak up yet.
"Thus it was," Leo went on, "that Gwendolyn Grimm became—and it pains me that I can find no better phrase—my guinea pig. With the technology I had at my disposal, I was able to enhance her—to mold her into a soldier of such psychic might and potential that the Fusion Dimension had to retool their entire Duelist classification system to account for warriors like herself. She skyrocketed through the ranks of Academia, and became the school's Head of Indoctrination at the tender age of sixteen. With her powers having been refined by my tutelage, she could enter the dreams of anyone she wished and Duel them in her sleep, and everyone she defeated would become one more Fusion Duelist in an army filled with them. An army that I don't doubt would have included all of you."
"They had help." Hokuto crossed his arms.
"So I have heard," Leo said, with another long glance at Masumi. "Your friends were lucky. A significant fraction of the Obelisk Force was created because of Wendy's powers—she looked into their deepest fantasies of power and dominion, and gave them the strength to achieve them through their service to Academia. She didn't lead them—nor did she want to. In her heart, it was enough to simply teach them her perception of the superiority of Fusion Summoning: that it was their one chance, their sole hope of salvation, and their key to reclaiming the Original Dimension I so assiduously wished to reforge."
"And so Markus Streiter took over their command in her place," said Yaiba.
Leo's head jerked upwards—the first violent movement he'd displayed in their conversation. Slowly, he got to his feet. "How … do you know about him?" he murmured.
"We have reason to believe that Markus was spotted in Maiami City recently," Himika answered him, her tone frightfully even. "Is he also one of the Ædonai?"
Leo ran a hand over the veins in his scalp. "It has to be assumed," he sighed. "Wendy and Markus were close in those days—almost as much as I was with her. I would even say Markus and I are in a unique position of being part of a very few people to whom she might willingly call herself inferior."
He seemed faintly agitated by this revelation—enough so that he ignored the six jaws of the LID dropping in unison. "You're joking," Hotene blurted out flatly. "You're seriously thinking this Markus guy's an even better Duelist than that … that evil … " She could not find the words.
"I don't just think he is," Leo corrected her. "I know it. He was the supreme commander of the Obelisk Force. And just as I was the man who trained Wendy to be a proper psychic, and Yūri—the Fusion Dimension's counterpart of Sakaki Yūya—trained her to be a proper Duelist, Markus was the man who trained her to be a proper soldier."
Masumi remembered Yūri only from the one picture she'd seen of him, months ago, and from what Yūya himself had said of the boy in the past. But the gaze in those eyes did not belong to a boy with the childlike innocence Yūya often showed to the world. The thought of him teaching someone more than twice his age how to Duel—and of how frightening that someone's abilities had been because of it—sent a frisson of icy fingers down her spine.
"All three of us have gone on record as believing that Wendy Grimm would carry our battle flag for a very long time, and a very great distance," said Leo. "Our investment paid off; her devotion to our cause was absolute, and she was fiercely protective of Academia and its personnel. None more so," he added, "than of the three of us."
The look on his face betrayed genuine pride. Whether he regretted the extent of his involvement or not in making the monster called Dr. Grimm, her existence must have been one of the masterstrokes of his time at Academia, Masumi thought. But she had also seen his brow furrow in concentration; something they had said earlier was still on his mind. She wondered if it was the same thought she herself had been entertaining for the past few minutes, and so she decided to take a risk by putting a voice to her concerns.
"Headmistress Himika said earlier today that she thought Markus might be issuing orders to Dr. Grimm," she spoke up. "But she also mentioned the possibility that Markus himself might be getting orders of his own from someone else. If he was the leader of the Ædonai, then he wouldn't be at the forefront of one of their terrorist attacks right from the beginning, would he?"
Leo's face darkened. Suddenly he felt almost as threatening as he had on the very day Masumi had first heard he was the leader of Academia. It seemed her hunch had been right.
"There are two different answers to your question," he said, returning to his desk and rummaging inside a drawer for something. "Neither of them is much simpler than the other for me to accept at face value. But everything I have seen and heard of recent events tells me that there may be no other alternative.
"To answer the latter half of your question first, Masumi," he continued, finally pulling out a blank sheet of paper and sketching on its surface with a pen, "Markus Streiter is the kind of person who would feel most comfortable leading his troops into battle from the front lines than behind a desk. In all the time I have known him, his love for Dueling and his love for battle are mutually inclusive. He literally cannot have one without the other. I've seen him turn down promotions to a higher office simply because accepting them would mean leaving the battlefield, in his mind, and therefore that the strategies and technologies he helped to create would run the risk of failing without him around to oversee them. If he didn't love being in the thick of a fight so much, I think the Kingdom of Misgarth would have made a general out of him. And that is one of only two reasons why I not only believe Markus is not the leader of the Ædonai—but that I also believe I know the man who is. Or at least, I did … a very long time ago."
Silence. Hokuto ventured to ask the question they were all thinking. " … What's the second one?"
Leo did not speak for at least another minute. He was too busy with his drawing. But eventually, the strokes of his pen became fewer and further between, and presently he answered the Xyz ace's question.
"There are maybe two people in all four Dimensions," he said heavily, "that I can imagine having not only the clout to control both Gwendolyn Grimm and Markus Streiter—but also the resources to field them, with an army to boot. One, obviously, was me." He thumbed unnecessarily towards himself. "The other can only be … well, I've never actually heard his proper name before. It may be that he never had one, or that he just went and forgot it. He was very old, you know. Old enough, in fact, that either answer is just as likely."
Himika sniffed impatiently. "Just tell us, Leo."
Leo took a breath. "Everyone I knew in the Fusion Dimension venerated him as a master of subterfuge—a perfection of shadow. Or, as I later took to calling him behind his back, a shadow of perfection," he added, smiling slightly at his play on words. "In both cases, the nicknames stuck—and before long, every single person who knew him started calling him Kagemaru."
He revealed the sheet of paper to them at last. Masumi caught a glimpse of an old man with long, wispy hair and a beard to match. But the narrowed eyes in the face they framed could have belonged to a man of any age: a man who'd had dreams, long ago, and wanted them all realized before he died, no matter what had to be sacrificed.
The LID traded glances. " … Should we know who that is?" Yaiba said slowly.
"You would be all the wiser for it," Leo told him. "Kagemaru was the man who founded Academia."
Everyone present save for Himika erupted in shock and surprise. Masumi felt as though she'd been electrocuted.
Leo ignored them all. "When I took control of the school all those years ago, and reorganized it to suit my needs," he said, "my plan didn't go off without a hitch; I first had to deal with some … dissident elements. Not everyone was on board with schools being converted into armies, it turned out—and my predecessor, Kagemaru, possessed the loudest voice of them. Because he was not only the founder of our school, but the chairman of the executive committee who governed it, that meant his mere existence carried a great deal of influence and power—both of which were considerable enough to have earned him his moniker … and each of which could have lost me my daughter before I'd even attempted to bring her back," he said sadly. "Eventually, I was left with only one option."
"And what was that?" Rika asked.
Leo folded the sketch, and returned it to its drawer. "It pained me to do it," he said, his tone more somber than ever, "but I knew Kagemaru had to go before he caused a schism within the school's board of directors, and ruined my own plans right out of the gate. So I started laying the seeds of dissent. Once enough people on the executive committee had been swayed, I confronted him at our next meeting. I denounced him as a traitor to the cause. I offered him one chance to step down in high standing. He refused … and so I Dueled him in full view of the student body. I won. He got the message and retired. Those in the board who supported him were given one chance to recant—and only one—or they would be sealed into a card." He smiled grimly. "None of them did."
A long sigh blew from his mouth. "No one ever heard from Kagemaru again after that. Rumors of his resistance still lingered even after I dealt with the people who would otherwise have given it form and purpose, but they never materialized. In any case, he was old and in failing health even before his departure. Until you brought it up, I'd believed him dead. What better way for a shadow to disappear, than in total silence?" he added with a laugh.
No one laughed back. Masumi was still reeling from the ruthless way in which Leo had seized control of a school and turned it into the military powerhouse it had been in those days.
"You don't sound too certain that this Kagemaru person did disappear," Hokuto mused out loud.
"It would make me feel much better if I was," Leo admitted. "But I've been out of the loop too long to give you the sort of honest answer I wish I could give myself. All I can say that Kagemaru is the most likely person I know to be in charge of the Ædonai. If it somehow isn't him—if it turns out to be someone else—then the only thing I can say with certainty was that this someone was never with me at Academia—as a teacher, or as a student. My connections in the Fusion Dimension would have told me otherwise."
"I … actually don't think it's Kagemaru," Fuyu murmured. "If he was against the idea of turning the kids of his school into a standing army, like you said, it wouldn't make sense for him to join up with one himself, would it?"
"You forget that both Academia and the Ædonai operated with the financial backing of the Kingdom of Misgarth," Leo told him. "The only difference between the two right now is that Academia was a middleman between the Kingdom and its Dueling soldiers. And right now, the Ædonai are Misgarth—they don't wear the kid gloves of schoolchildren. They are trained to fight and to win at any cost—and even Kagemaru could see the appeal of that, I would wager."
Masumi processed this. It felt like Leo knew more than he was letting on about all this. "What if Kagemaru is with the Ædonai," she muttered, "but even he's getting his orders from someone else—like he's been forced to join up with them himself? What then?"
"Then I can't help you," said Leo, shrugging as simply as if he'd been asked to add two and two. "If that's the case, then it could be just about anyone in charge of that lot. The Ædonai don't exactly have steep requirements to join their ranks, from what I've been told. First of all, a preference for Fusion Summoning—the more advanced or exotic, the more likely they are to use it as a weapon. Second: a loyalty to their home Dimension that rivals the most fanatical of patriots. Third, and above all … they wish to create a second Academia, more powerful than the old one ever was, and therefore one with a better chance of letting them fulfill whatever goals they intend for the world."
"And how many of these goals involve them abducting Yūya and Yuzu?" Hokuto wanted to know.
Leo exhaled. "I wish I knew," he said. "If I didn't know better, they might be trying to resurrect Z-ARC. But"— he held up a hand to stave off the shocked murmurs from the LID—"fortunately for us, I do know better."
"Are you sure?" Masumi definitely wasn't. "Because I was there when Markus kidnapped them. He played it off as getting them to safety from the Ædonai's attack—but I think he did something to them both. He came to You Show under the pretense of interviewing them both for a position at LDS Broadway. The next I saw them was during the Duel—and both Yūya and Yuzu were acting strangely. Every time they brought out a Fusion Monster—"
"—they looked like they were on top of the world?" Leo finished, raising an eyebrow. "Yes, that does sound like Markus. More to the point, it sounds like one of those experimental teaching methods he proposed to me when he started work at Academia. It made use of radiation given off by Fusion Summoning energy to stimulate the pleasure centers of the human brain every time they brought out a Fusion Monster. It worked well enough during trial runs, but I eventually rejected it on account of it being too cost-inefficient—and later tests found that repeated exposure to it would produce a dependency-like effect on the subject's brain. Not a pretty sight," he muttered. "I should have expected that he was too fond of his pet project to simply have it dismantled."
"Dependency?" Masumi bit her lip, feeling a puzzle piece click inside her brain. "As in, this thing got boys and girls addicted to Fusion Summoning? Like it was some kind of drug?! That's—that's disgusting!"
"I never said I hired Markus Streiter for being a compassionate soul," Leo said. "He told me he was a man who expected results, and a man who delivered them too. In that respect, he did not disappoint."
Masumi sighed, taking a deep breath to ward off the nausea of what she'd just heard. "Okay. So he must have brought some of that Fusion-drug-whatever technology with him. It must've been inside that briefcase he was always carrying around," she muttered. "If I'd known, I could've kicked it away from him, or stomped on it—"
Yaiba laid a soothing hand on her elbow. "What I want to know," he said far too evenly, "is what good this does Markus? Drugging kids and turning them into Dueling maniacs doesn't sound like anything an old geezer like him would do—that sounds more up Grimm's alley than anything else." He pulled a face as he said the name.
"Maybe he's trying to reclaim some of Academia's old strength," Hokuto piped up. "He's already gotten to Dennis. Sora was scared stiff he might be next. Is there anyone else he might be after? Someone else who might have been part of Academia at one time?"
"I can think of plenty of people," Leo nodded. "Almost every single one of them went to the Fusion Dimension's branch of You Show Duel School—and as you've already heard, that's been burned to the ground. Most of its student body and staff have already been captured—the Tyler sisters, Edo Phoenix, Tyranno Kenzan; to name a few … If any of them somehow managed to escape, I've yet to hear about it," he said sadly. "But I still hold out hope.
"As for Yūya and Yuzu … " He chewed his tongue for a while. "I don't know—I just don't know. If Markus was after literally anybody else, I'd understand his intentions right off the bat. But those two are intertwined too tightly with their counterparts for his technology to have the desired effect on them. And even if it did … I just don't see the point of it all. Markus has never been the type to behave irrationally—he always did everything for a reason, big or small. This isn't like him in the slightest—none of what he's doing is making any sense!"
"Maybe he's not the one trying to resurrect Z-ARC," said Rika. "Maybe he has no choice but to do what he's told."
"That's not the point!" Leo was becoming unsettlingly agitated. "Because the threat of Z-ARC has been contained, the purpose of the original Academia no longer exists. Everyone who was part of the school should know this—it's just a zombie, now, something that the Ædonai just won't let die. But just letting it die isn't that simple—because when it comes down to it, people like Grimm and Streiter and all those soldiers they created and commanded only know one thing. And you don't erase that sort of knowledge like you would a giant, dimension-destroying dragon!"
Hotene crossed her arms. "What's your point?"
"These people are in the Ædonai because they have nowhere else to go," was all that Leo said. "The Kingdom of Misgarth has a very firm grip over any Duelist within its borders whose Dueling abilities come from any source considered … unnatural, which means Dr. Grimm's psychic powers are already enough to blanket-ban her from every official Duel Monsters tournament under the sun—both as a Duelist and a spectator. And Academia wasn't Markus' first tour of duty," he added. "He's served his military with distinction for longer than any one of you kids has been alive. The will to serve a greater interest is too far ingrained into their mentality for people like the Ædonai to easily reintegrate into normal civilian life—and they have tasted too much power from their stations for them to just go back to the way things were. I wish I could call that a testament to my work," he finished with a harsh laugh.
Masumi set her jaw. "Even so, you know we can't let them win," she said resolutely. "No matter what they want, we'll stop them from repeating history. I told Dr. Grimm myself that I'd never let her touch us again."
Leo forced a smile. "I wouldn't expect otherwise from you," he said, and the Fusion user heard the approving tone in his words. It was the most genuine he'd sounded throughout this whole meeting.
"What's in it for you, though?" Yaiba asked. "Why are you just telling us this at all? We're not even trying to be persuasive, and yet you're spilling like you've got so many guns to your head!"
Leo was silent. Yaiba's face fell. Masumi instantly realized the look of a person who had said the wrong thing.
" … Because," said the former headmaster, "it is only a matter of time before they come for me."
Masumi gulped. "Oh, yes," Leo said, gazing round the room and registering the surprise on everyone's faces—even Himika, the Fusion Duelist noted with a shiver, was openmouthed in shock. "The only reason I can think of for the Ædonai to attempt to steal as many pieces of the ARC-V reactor as possible and to kidnap Yūya and Yuzu—yet still do so with full knowledge that the critical components of the Arc Project and Revival Zero are beyond their reach—is that they intended to send a message. They have not forgotten me—or anything I did for them—and they intend to leave a lasting reminder of that message on anyone who got between them and me."
Himika swooped in. "So why would they come after you?"
"Because of everything I know," said Leo. "They may try to recruit me because I know things they don't, or could only dream of. They may also try to silence me for the same reason—or perhaps because they intend to disrupt my forthcoming trial. Possibly they may see me as a coward for going through any trial at all. Regardless of the truth, I believe that when that time comes … I am almost certain the Ædonai will send Gwendolyn Grimm after me."
Masumi ignored the stabbing needles inside her heart at the thought of her hated enemy sharing the same Earth as her—breathing the same air she did. "Because you two know each other so well? Isn't that what you said?"
"It was, and we do," Leo affirmed. "And I'm afraid this is more significant than you might realize. You of all people should know what she is capable of doing, Masumi. I could hear you talking outside my door: you don't believe that I am adequately protected if a Duelist as dangerous as her should come to call on this Château."
He reached inside the pocket of his shorts. "And you might just be right—if I didn't have this." He produced a thin band of silver metal, about eight inches around, and held it up for the LID to see.
"My own invention—one of the last before I was arrested for my war crimes," he explained. "It produces sensations in my brain that might be likened to caffeine on steroids. The sensations come in short pulses, which I can adjust to the frequency I wish. If I wear this while I'm sleeping, I can manage one burst every couple of minutes without sacrificing any rest. This disrupts my REM sleep, you see"—he traced the bags under his eyes with a finger—"and makes it harder for Grimm to use her dream-powers on me to the extent that she wants."
Masumi blinked. This sort of science was not her forte at all—but it sounded as though Leo had accounted for any missing gaps she'd thought his security perimeter might have glossed over or didn't have the means to counter on its own. She was impressed with the ingenuity behind this device—and yet something felt like it wasn't adding up for her. Why would Leo feel the need to make something like this at all if—?
Then it hit her. It felt like she'd just watched someone pull the pin on a live grenade.
"—makes it harder for Grimm to use her dream-powers on me to the extent that she wants—"
Masumi swayed where she stood. "Leo … did you build that device before … or after she knew you were here?"
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Himika whirl in her direction. The LID turned towards her, worry written on all of their faces. She waited for the grenade to go off. Then …
" … When I augmented her body and brought her powers under control," Leo said, as slowly and delicately as if he was doing his best to keep the explosion from happening, "I believed her loyalty to Academia, and her gratefulness to me, was enough to prevent her from going … overboard. But she's cast her lot with a different sort now—one that's more flexible in allowing its membership to fulfill their individual desires just as much as the one they share. Consolidating power is only the first step—hoarding the pieces of the ARC-V reactor is both practical and symbolic, and the Ædonai pride themselves on holding a monopoly over every method of Fusion Summoning known to man. The more power they hoard on both fronts, the closer their plans come to fruition—ergo, the more power Wendy has at her fingertips … and the more she believes her powers can do."
Himika's words had a bite to them that chilled to the bone. "How long have you known about this?" she demanded.
"I guessed for much longer than I actually knew," replied Leo. "I'm not so vain as to think my handiwork is entirely flawless—but I had hoped that Wendy would be happy with her powers being at the level they were." He chuckled mirthlessly. "Silly me for thinking all human beings could actually learn to be content with their lot in life. Perhaps if she hadn't met you, Masumi, she might still be."
Masumi crossed her arms. "It's not my fault I ended up being more than her twisted mind could handle."
A sigh. "No … but, in a way, it is your fault that we're having this conversation. Or, at least, Wendy thinks so." Leo pocketed his anti-sleep whatever-it-was, and now engaged the Fusion Duelist with a wholly serious look. "You did more of a number on her than you realize."
"Good."
Leo ignored her. "After you blew her cover, Wendy was recalled to the Fusion Dimension," he told her. "She had been gravely injured, you see—enough that it required some rather … unconventional surgery. She was lucid enough to blame it all on you before she went under the knife."
Yaiba swallowed. "What … did Masumi do?"
"Before I answer that, I want to know how much of your dream with her you still remember, Masumi." Leo stood up. "Specifically, I want to know how it ended. I don't care about the Duel itself—I'm more than aware enough of Wendy's skillset to know that she didn't make it easy for you to beat her."
Masumi thought. Perhaps it was because the Duel itself had been less of a dream and more of a memory that even now, its details were still crisp and clear in her head. Her brain fast-forwarded to the final turn, where Hokuto had revealed a card that disrupted Dr. Grimm's Field Spell, which had helped her control Hotene, Shen, and Fuyu and therefore allowed them to fight her psychic powers and Summon their strongest monsters to weaken her further still … she thought of Summoning her Master Dia, stronger than she'd ever made it in her Dueling career … she thought of the final blow, and how it had left Wendy a broken mess when she'd seen her, walked up to her in order to make sure Dr. Grimm would never touch her again … her Duel Disk had drawn backwards …
She gasped. " … I stabbed her," she finally remembered. "In the eye—with my Duel Disk. There was this … word tattooed on her. She'd been putting it in all my dreams about her, like it was some kind of magic spell. I thought if I stabbed the word, the spell's power would be broken, and I'd be able to wake up from the dream."
Leo hummed to himself, nodding solemnly as he listened to her story. "And so you did," he told her. "But this confirms a theory I suspected ever since Wendy came back to Academia with the injuries she had. Her left eyeball was … " He stopped abruptly, chewing his tongue.
Masumi, however, had put two and two together, and her voice was a bare whisper. "Are you saying that me breaking out of that dream caused Dr. Grimm to lose an eye?!"
"She's a Psychic Duelist," Leo reminded her, ignoring the stricken looks the rest of the LID were trading with each other. "Her powers allow her to control dreams. Because she was still using those powers when you did break free, attacking her in such a vulnerable place caused a backlash of sorts—they were turned against her for a split second, and … "
He chewed his tongue again. "The surgery went well enough. But we knew before the procedure that there would likely be some … side effects. And I cannot say with certainty if Wendy has come to consider them a hindrance or a help to her. All she told me before the doctors began their work," he said, "was that you had scarred her, Masumi—both in body and in mind."
Leo pointed to Yaiba. "And that he tried to stop you."
Masumi didn't even hear Yaiba's confused "Huh?" She felt a cold sweat trickling down her back as Leo's words sank in; it seemed this, then, was the reason why Leo had wished to speak to her specifically. It was one thing for people she fought to be injured when Dueling her; at least then, she could rationalize that those injuries had been caused by their own lack of preparedness. But with Dr. Grimm … everything she had done to her had happened after their Duel—when she had no more reason to fight her.
And yet I … Masumi willed herself to come back to reality. Now was not the time to be wondering about what could have been if she'd acted differently—only what could happen if the LID didn't act at all.
"So … you think that's why Dr. Grimm joined the Ædonai?" Hotene looked shaken. "You think she wants revenge on us?"
"I don't think it's that simple," said Leo. "You're right, to be sure—Wendy did seem to harbor an unhealthy fixation on all of you while she was recuperating, and Masumi most of all. But I also think she's convinced herself that if she wants to seek vengeance on you, then she needs to either get more powerful to do so—or, barring that, to find a way to better control her powers."
Yaiba's mouth fell open. "More power—?!"
"Either Markus or Kagemaru could have the technology at their disposal to bolster her abilities," Leo plowed on, "and I think they would be mad to not have enticed her with it at least once already. Manipulating dreams is only a stepping-stone to full-blown telepathy. And if Wendy should achieve that—if she hasn't already—then with her experience in dreams, she may very well have harnessed the singularly unique ability to break down the boundaries that separate the dream world from the real world."
Masumi's mind was leagues away; her voice did not seem her own. "You're talking about warping reality?"
Leo shook his head at once. "Only how we perceive that reality," he corrected her. "There is a difference—but depending on the mind that perceives it at all, it may be enough. Our ability to separate fantasy from reality is what allows us as a species to distinguish between men and gods. But fantasies can be just as complex and elaborate—and sometimes even as mundane—as any bit of reality. Furthermore, the line that divides them is not so easily perceived by the youngest and most malleable of human beings—those who are not usually so attentive to the details and minutiae of the world they know to be real, but in which they still love to play pretend.
"By distorting those boundaries," he finished, "I would surmise that Gwendolyn Grimm joined the Ædonai not only for another shot at you—but because she also wishes to be viewed as a 'deity' of sorts, by those humans who cannot distinguish between well-crafted fantasy and dull-as-dishwater reality. I'm sure you would agree," he added, "that her prowess in Duel Monsters lends some credence to her claim—and I do not doubt she intends to use that prowess to make you her first, ah … believers, so to speak."
"Bull," Hokuto spat. "You're seriously saying a card game makes her a god?"
Leo laughed—a full-blown laugh without any trace of irony to it. "You know," he said, "in another time and place, when pharaohs and magicians bound spirits to stone tablets, and the common folk worshiped such things as gods, a claim like that wouldn't be far from the truth."
But just as quickly, he sobered up. "You would do well to know your history of this so-called card game, Hokuto, and to know your place in the world that makes it what it is today. Science may have forged new Duel Monsters over the years, but its origins in ancient Egypt are still as valid now as they were three thousand years ago."
It seemed nobody had any idea how to respond to this. Silence reigned over the study for seconds that stretched into minutes. Clouds drifted over the sun, casting rays of dusty sunlight on the many books either side of them.
Finally, Fuyu's raspy voice broke the tableaux. "We'll have to fight her again … won't we?"
Leo nodded. "I can't help you," he said sorrowfully. "Not directly, at least; I can't risk her finding out that I aided you in any way. The less I actively intervene with the Ædonai's plans, the more certain they'll be that I'm a better investment if I'm kept alive—and the more useful I'll be to you until they contact me directly."
Masumi wasn't sure if staying put in this house—as impressive as it was—amounted to being useful in any way. "But what do we do, then?" she wanted to know.
Leo sat down at his desk. "You need to focus your efforts on Markus Streiter," he answered at once. "He's the key to the Ædonai gaining so much strength in such a short time. If he's dealt with first, you can interrupt that strength and take out a major player in their whole scheme. Find out why he was in Maiami City—find out where he plans to go next. And for the love of God, the sake of the four Dimensions … and for Yūya and Yuzu … stop him."
His eyes stared pleadingly into Masumi's soul. "Because you won't be able to stop Wendy any other way."
The Fusion Duelist knew then that their audience with Leo was over. He'd taken out a fresh sheaf of paper, and begun scrawling on the first sheet he could reach as he'd been doing when they'd entered the study.
Himika stepped forward. "Let's go." But Masumi was already heading for the door—she could no longer bear to look at the man who'd been tailor-made for her to hate … and yet could not help but pity.
The hallway outside felt as cooling as the breath of God. Masumi shuddered when the door banged shut behind the LID; such had been the gravity of their conversation with Leo that she had trouble standing. Visions of mutilated faces, of dreams and nightmares locked away in vain … and the two old men, Markus and the so-called Kagemaru, who wished to make those dreams a reality … everything was crashing together in her brain. It was too much to take in.
Reiji and Himika had already made a beeline for one another. "Nakajima, tell Marco and Tio to bring up the cars and await our arrival," the headmistress said. "Then have them contact the Ministry of Defense immediately. Leo must be taken to safety. As early as tonight, if at all possible."
Nakajima bowed, and exited the hallway back into the main household.
"One of the maids came to me earlier," Reiji said the moment the aide had disappeared. "Angel-IQ has been in contact with our technicians at LeoCorp, and tried calling a few minutes ago. She claims it's urgent."
Himika swore. "And of course the only line to the outside world is on the other side of the house … " she grumbled. "Right—all of you with me, then. It appears we'll be taking our leave of this place sooner than I would've liked."
"Could you give us a little time first?" Yaiba protested. "That was a lot to take in. We … might need a bathroom."
He was standing rather close to Masumi as he said this. Not that she cared, since they were dating—but then she felt the bamboo shinai he always carried on his back, surreptitiously edging her on the shin. At once she had a suspicion as to who the 'we' might be—and if 'we' really did need a bathroom.
"I'd … better go with him," she hurriedly invented. "Just in case he decides to wander off."
Mother and son traded glances. Masumi wasn't sure which one looked more skeptical.
"Five minutes," Reiji said, after what had felt like five of them already. "Not one second longer."
Neither Fusion nor Synchro ace stayed to argue the point. With a single nod, Yaiba was off, with Masumi close behind. They roved along the hallway, passing door after door before finally turning a corner, out of their sight.
The moment they did, Yaiba practically shoved open the first door he came across: a guest bedroom that looked small only by the standards of this house. Masumi thought her parents had probably honeymooned in a less luxuriant bridal suite.
She had no time to take in the décor of the place; the moment the door had clicked shut, Yaiba was upon her, kissing her as fiercely as Masumi had first kissed him, atop the summit of LDS on the first night of their relationship. So surprised was the Fusion user that her knees buckled—despite her being several inches taller—and the two of them toppled onto the soft, wide bed behind them.
Yaiba didn't seem to care; he was on cloud nine, and Masumi's bones were vibrating from how rapidly her heart was thundering in her chest. It was oblivion, it was bliss, and how she wished those five minutes—four, or even three; how much time had passed?—would stretch so much longer—
By the time Yaiba surfaced for air, he was breathing deeply. He was very red in the face, and looked as though he'd only just realized what he'd done.
"I'm sorry," he said huskily. "I needed to think up a story … I don't think they bought it, but I still … I had to … "
He swallowed. Masumi smiled. "It's fine. I think I needed that, too. Just … " She giggled—such a wonderfully girlish sound to make for a person who'd been through hell in both body and mind. "A little warning, next time?"
Much to her relief, Yaiba laughed too. He flopped down on the bed beside her, still holding her hand, and the two of them—each more hopelessly in love with the other—savored the long moment of solitude they'd been hoping for.
"I'd been hoping this day wouldn't happen," murmured the Synchro Duelist, staring up at the pure white ceiling. Sunlight streamed from a nearby open window, and a thousand dust motes drifted before their eyes—the only witnesses to their wishes, both spoken and fulfilled. "That one day, we'd be LID once more—that eventually, we'd have to worry just one more time about the fate of the world depending on the cards we drew. I couldn't … "
Masumi heard him swallow a second time. "I just wanted one last taste of peace … before we had to start fighting this stupid war again … "
The candidness of his confession hit her then, as she idly played with a loose lock of Yaiba's spiky hair. On this day one year ago, their futures had been free of all stress that didn't involve practicing for tournaments, studying for exams—or even learning how to work the family business. Now here they were, the saviors of an entire city, their destinies forever intertwined in a spiral that led towards a destination Masumi wanted nothing more than to see with her own eyes—and yet, one whose journey she wasn't ready to end.
They had so much more to fight for now—and so much more to lose if even one of them lost.
"Yaiba?" She looked round at him. "Do you think I—"
But he'd shushed her with a finger to her lips. "If you're trying to ask me, of all people, if what you think you did was smart … " he said—but he didn't finish his sentence. He sighed. "Look—Dr. Grimm was a monster, Masumi. She had to be stopped before those three kids were too far gone for us to save them."
"But just say—"
"We didn't know what it would do to her," Yaiba reasoned. "We had no way of knowing that wouldn't be the end of it—that it was only the beginning." He nuzzled into Masumi's neck. "As beginnings go, though—you have to admit it wasn't bad. You got to save some kids who didn't know your name—then they got to save you. Now look at us. We've saved so many people now—all because you were strong enough to fight her … and fight back.
"Was it smart? Honestly? No. Nine times out of ten, stabbing someone in the eye is beyond stupid," he said with a laugh, while Masumi huffed. "But this was number ten, Masumi. Maybe in hindsight, it still wasn't smart even then—but it was still right. If it was me, I'd think a handful of new friends and a girlfriend of my own was worth knowing a pissed-off, one-eyed Psychic Duelist was hunting me down. It'd mean I wouldn't have to face her alone anymore."
Maybe the bedspread was just that soft, but Masumi felt as though she was floating. Yaiba had a strange way of putting her at ease; he didn't mince words when trying to reassure her. It wasn't always gentle—he was too brash, too in-your-face to whisper sweet nothings into her ears. But diamonds weren't known for being any more soft or gentle than swords were—they were quite the opposite. Hold them both up to the light, though—turn them until they shone and sparkled—and it made for a truly mesmerizing display that never failed to captivate her senses.
Masumi felt her hand grip his a little tighter. "You know," she whispered in Yaiba's ear, "that didn't have to be the last taste."
"Huh?"
And then she'd rolled on top of him, grinning playfully, and pecked him once—then a second, third and fourth time, just for good measure. Soft laughter bloomed between their lips, and each time, the kisses became longer, deeper, more intimate—
Masumi had just reached number eight, and was intent on making it last a full eight seconds, when she saw the door swing open at the edge of her vision. With all the gymnastic grace Hotene had drilled into her in the months they'd spent practicing at Trampo-Land, she'd whirled into a sitting position beside Yaiba, perching innocently on the edge of the bed before whoever was on the other side could guess what either of them had been up to.
Not that it would have mattered much; that 'whoever' turned out to be Reiji and the LID. A suddenly embarrassed Masumi began to doubt that he'd bought Yaiba's bathroom break story; Reiji's face was as inscrutable as the day she'd first met him. This was more than could be said for the kids behind him, however: Hotene and Rika were trading giddy grins, and both Hokuto and Fuyu were blushing at realizing that they'd just interrupted a rather private moment.
In front of them all, however, was Himika. She looked grim.
"We have to leave," she told them tersely. "Right now."
Quicker than Masumi could find the words to describe, they were out of the Château and onto the front drive.
After Tsukikage and Hikage had returned their Duel Disks to their rightful owners, Himika had remained inside to stay with Reira, mentioning offhandedly that she would be taking her daughter home later. Everyone had silently agreed that whatever they had witnessed between Masumi and Yaiba was to stay between them, as all such private matters should be.
Nakajima was at the Range Rover, waiting dutifully for Reiji—who was currently talking faster than Masumi had ever heard him speak. "LeoCorp has been studying the events of the past twenty-four hours," he was saying, "and they claim to have made a breakthrough. They're sending Angel-IQ with the data they obtained—she should be along any second now."
And sure enough, the familiar hologram of the supercomputer's blonde-haired avatar had shimmered into existence just then, in between the two Maybach limousines that had been parked in the front drive. The glare of the sun against her hard-light skin lent an almost ephemeral, supernatural quality about her.
Reiji cut her off before she could greet him formally. "Let's hear it, Q. We may not have much time."
At once, the holo-girl's thin fingers began to weave deftly through the air. Thin lines spilled out along her fingertips at right angles, forming a grid that, within seconds, became a top-down view of what looked like city streets.
"This is a map of Maiami City." Angel-IQ, as human as she could behave, was still artificial enough to point out the obvious. But with a wave of her hand, she was instantly in her element; blotches of violet appeared on the map—first sporadic, then progressively more widespread, and finally almost nonexistent. "These three overlays correspond to ten minutes before, during, and after the Ædonai's assault on the city."
Yaiba pointed at the stains warily. "What's that purple stuff? Is that Fusion energy from the monsters they used?"
"Not precisely, Yaiba-san," Angel-IQ corrected. "It is Fusion radiation—given off by the energy from multiple high-level Fusion Monsters, each characteristic to their native Dimension."
Radiation. Something about the word stirred in Masumi's memory. "Wait a minute," she murmured. "There was Fusion radiation before and after the attack! That's got to be Markus, right? We can use this to track him!"
"There is more," said Angel-IQ. "Only one overlay corresponds to any periods of time where Markus Streiter was assumed to be Dueling. The first took place shortly before Sakaki Yūya Dueled against Hīragi Yuzu. The second, obviously, belongs to the Ædonai forces that attacked the city—and the third involves the Duel that incapacitated Sakaki Yūshō, in which he battled Markus himself."
Fuyu frowned. "Wait a minute. One of them happened before Yūya's Duel took place?"
"Correct. Reiji and the LeoCorp staff have shared their findings with each other, and their current theory is that Markus has developed mind-control technology that uses Fusion energy extracted from the Summoning of high-level monsters. It would explain the circumstances of when and why Yūya and Yuzu were compromised."
"They used Fusion Monsters," nodded Masumi. "That checks out with what we heard from Leo, too. Markus is going after former members of Academia—or anyone who uses Fusion Summoning just as extensively as they are. Anyone he can convert to a soldier of the Ædonai," she said, biting off a curse.
"Can you find Markus now, Q?" Yaiba asked.
"Scanning." The hologram's blue eyes flashed even bluer for a moment. "Markus' radiation exhibits a specific variance that LeoCorp has theorized will allow us to track him," she said as this was happening. "However, given the current constraints, I would need a third sample to match the unknown signature used during Yūshō's Duel and prior to Yūya's against Yuzu—and unfortunately, I cannot locate it at this time. Either he is currently not using it, or he is not within city limits. It is equally likely he is not in this Dimension at the present time."
Masumi sighed, deflated. They'd been so close. At least they could use this to track him the moment he showed up in Maiami City once more—this, if nothing else, was the first good news they'd had all day. It meant they had their foot in the door.
Reiji, however, was stroking his chin, deep in thought. "Something isn't adding up here," he muttered. "Markus isn't stupid. He has to assume we're on his tail by now. If his mind-control device gives off Fusion radiation, then he'll stick out like a sore thumb the moment he uses it. Unless … "
He walked off, turning round in a full circle, still talking to himself. "Unless he's trying to blend in again," he said, "to conceal his Fusion radiation with that of other Fusion Duelists inside the Pendulum Dimension, and dampen any footprints he's leaving behind. And if that's true … it means there's only one place he could be going."
"LDS!" Masumi said quickly. "We've got the biggest number of Fusion Duelists outside of the Ædonai itself."
But Reiji immediately shook his head. "The Ministry of Justice has already put out a warrant for Markus' arrest—the Maiami City police will ID him the moment he shows his face. He won't be going to LDS anytime soon.
"Besides," he muttered, looking at Masumi—and then, for some reason, past her, "what worries me more at present is the second-biggest concentration of Fusion Duelists in the Pendulum Dimension."
The Fusion Duelist turned to see what he was looking at—and her gaze traveled to Yaiba. The Synchro Duelist had gone bone-white; he looked as though he'd just missed a step going downstairs.
"Oh, no," he murmured. His eyes were glassy, unfocused. Masumi saw him seize his chest unconsciously, as though Kachidoki Isao had just punched him again, as he had time and again during their last Duel—
The penny dropped, clanging like a gong toppling onto concrete. She looked at her boyfriend, and saw in his face the shock that had rooted her own body to the ground. As their shared suspicions of Streiter's next destination turned into mutual certainty, Masumi believed then that she was feeling every blow Yaiba had suffered that day—and was likely to suffer in real life very soon.
A/N: WELP
Okay—I need to stop saying the next chapters are shorter. Every time I do, I somehow manage to make them drag on longer than before. The next two chapters will have a little more action than the last two did, though—moreover, it'll have the kind of action that I actually prefer to write. This one got a bit too talky-talky for my liking.
I won't say anything about the next Duel other than that it uses a Deck I'm not sure anyone's put to paper yet. But I'm looking forward to what everyone thinks about my take on it.
Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy! – K