Responses to Reviews
Thank you to E.T. 2000, HunterHQ, Ambiguous, Noobmaster, Anonymous, Guest, ZeroMK7, Unnamed, Unknown, Guest, ZarcEternal, Donjusticia, Kingdom Hearts Guy, Guest, Guest, and Guest for reviewing Chapter 47 of Obscured Truth.
Hello, everyone! I'll be honest; I wasn't expecting people to review Chapter 47 due to it being a 'breather chapter'. That being said, I do appreciate you all taking the time to review it, as your feedback helps make the story better.
But enough talk. Let's get to answering some reviews:
E.T. 2000: Well, Roxy slapped Yuhiro a total of eight times in response to him failing to rescue Miyu. At the time, she was grieving about her niece going to the hospital for a second time, and didn't know how else to handle her emotions. Brion's backstory will actually be revealed this chapter, so I hope you enjoy learning more about him and his motives. As for your last comment, I can agree that it was rushed. However, I have ways to take mistakes and 'redeem' them in the story. All I ask is that you pay close attention moving forward.
HunterHQ: Yuhiro couldn't have explained what happened to Roxy at the hospital because he had just got back from LINK VRAINS, and Roxy was in an emotional state. Was he making excuses? The way I see it, he wasn't. I put the nightmare sequence just to show how terrifying Azrael can become if Yuhiro isn't able to stop him. Believe it or not, I had something else planned for that sequence, but decided to move it aside for now. As for the little tidbit of Herald teasing Yuhiro for taking Rachel on a Ferris Wheel ride, I put that in just for the sake of comedy. Remember: Yuhiro sent the letter to Greg warning him about Athaliah and the others, thus making it likely that Greg would have passed the info onto Rachel. It seems I got you confused on Link Trigger, so allow me to clarify: Yuhiro is still discovering his powers, as well as unraveling the mysteries of his Link ability. You could say that each of the Lost Incident children have unique gifts, but rest assured: They are still human beings. Your duel suggestions are actually great ideas, as it gets Azrael involved more. I'll consider them for the Mirror LINK VRAINS arc. As for whether the nurse in Miyu's room will play a role later on or not, you'll just have to read on and see...
Ambiguous: Its too early for Slipstream to use Pendulum, but he will learn it before the Mirror LINK VRAINS arc, that's for sure. Like I said above, Brion's backstory will be revealed this chapter. Will Akairo try to befriend the Ignis holders? You'll have to read on and see. And I'll confirm now: Akairo was not homeschooled. Yes, Gekiryushi did slice off people's heads, but that was because she was undercover. Lastly, there will be no Integration Summons in this story.
Noobmaster: Thanks to Yuhiro's help, Herald was able to make a quick recovery, although he did need nourishment the following morning. And no, Ai will not devour humans. The way Yuhiro and the others will tell Flame's sentient Balelynx from the others will be whether or not she talks, as well as displays other abilities (think of Goose the Cat from Captain Marvel). Apologies for not clarifying earlier: The bounty hunter fight is from episode fifty one to fifty four. Regarding your question on the scuffle Monty had with the leaders in Osaka, you could say negotiations got out of hand, causing a small firefight (similar to bar fights in movies).
Anonymous: Of course Roxy and Yuhiro will be bitter towards Akira for his role regarding what happened. No, Yuhiro hasn't told Watchman the good news about Flame and Wraith yet. Herald and Wraith don't necessarily have an attribute, but that answer will be revealed later on in the story.
Guest: Happy you enjoyed the dub lines, in which some were meme worthy. Windy is indeed a motormouth, that's for sure. The wild Pokémon is a reference to the Pokémon games, where you can catch a new one to add to your team. Yeah, the team of Aoi, Emma, Gekiryushi, and Rachel later on is similar to that of the Gotham City Sirens or Birds of Prey. If Jin were cloned, Kusanagi would not be happy, that's for sure.
ZeroMK7: Glad you enjoyed the chapter. Hope you enjoy Drachen's duel debut!
Unnamed: You'll have to read on to find out. I can't answer your first question either, as it falls to spoiler category. The Crisis is worse than the Ignis Warfare, that I can confirm. No, I don't think Herald will become unstable. I'll confirm for the last time: Aoi will give her Trickstar deck to Miyu, and this will lead to her 'making the deck' her own, similar to how Sho made the Cyber Style deck his own. Also, a Ferris Wheel is an amusement park ride. Rasterliger is actually the evolution to Progleo, and once he evolves, it will be permanent. When will he evolve? That question will be answered later in the story.
Unknown: I wouldn't say the Gekido and Matsuo families are rivals. They're well known just as much as the Matsuo family is. And why would Drachen or Blood Shepherd use Akira as bait just to bring in Yuhiro and the others (Blood Shepherd maybe, but not Drachen)? They couldn't go after Speckles because they can't determine his whereabouts. Yuhiro did, however, warn Akira about Speckles and the others, which he passed the information onto the bounty hunters.
Guest: I'll be honest, I'm not sure for the other Ignis. As Malf already has a base, he doesn't need anymore schematics. Think of it like Majin Buu from Dragon Ball Z if you're confused. And be careful what you wish for. You might just get it in the story...
ZarcEternal: Glad you liked the breather chapter. I see you're confused on Azrael's honor code, so allow me to clarify it in a way you'll understand. If Azrael's the one using underhanded tactics, its fine with him. However, he doesn't like it when other people like Lightning are the ones who are doing it.
Donjusticia: You do know that Miyu was in a coma for the whole of Season 2, right? I do hope you enjoy the duels in this chapter.
Kingdom Hearts Guy: Welcome back. I was wondering where you were. Happy you enjoyed the interactions between Yuhiro and Roxy. Hope you enjoy this chapter as well. Lastly, if you're interested in my upcoming Arc V story and have questions, you can PM me anytime.
Guest: Of course Specter will have upgraded his Sunavalon deck in the future. You just have to be patient and see...
Guest: Yes, Raguel has the recording of the Overseer's murder and Ace taking his position.
Guest: Yuhiro was able to correctly deduce that Takeru was a Lost Incident victim not just due to identifying his duel disk, but because Herald told him that the Fire Ignis sent a message. As for Azrael's duel disk, you'll just have to wait and see.
With reviews answered, its time for the chapter. Enjoy!
Chapter 48: Speed of Sound
The sky appears, full of clouds. Playmaker races through the clouds on his duel board, followed by Raguel, Soulburner, and Slipstream. Two swords then slice the clouds completely to reveal NEW LINK VRAINS. One of the swords, a katana with symbols inscribed on the blade, crosses downwards to the left. Crossing downwards to the right was a typical western sword, with a golden rain-guard and a blue grip. The sword also had symbols inscribed on the blade as well. The two swords made a shining X, causing the Yu-Gi-Oh VRAINS! logo to appear, and underneath it, the words "OBSCURED TRUTH" ominously appear.
Yuhiro and Yusaku are walking down the street to school. Naoki runs past them, a large smile on his face. Aoi walks past them on the other side, smiling lightly and blushing at Yusaku. Then Takeru walks up behind them and wraps one arm around Yusaku. He then wraps the other arm around Yuhiro, surprising him for a few moments before being pulled to the side by Rachel, who's clearly happy to see him. Yuhiro smiles back at her.
Tsubaki and Hideki are shown boarding an airplane as they head to their destination. After sitting down next to each other in their respective seats, Tsubaki looks out in the window, which shows a reflection of Rosetta, while Hideki picks up the airplane guide and reads it. In the sky above them is Ace, a malicious sneer on his face.
Go Onizuka is shown wearing a hoodie as he leaves the waterfront for the last time. Outside of his home, he encounters Kenmochi and Yoroizaka, who are waiting for him. Smirking, the three of them raise their left arms into the air and enter NEW LINK VRAINS, with Go in his new avatar riding beside his new allies. Stregone crosses his arms as he looks down at them, a look of shock and disappointment on his face.
Kusanagi is then shown with Roxy at a nearby picnic table, both enjoying food and laughter while talking about technology. Flame and Ai are shown arguing in Café Nagi, while Herald ends up getting annoyed with their bickering. As a result, he snaps his fingers, causing Progleo to jump onto the desk and startle Ai and Flame.
At SOL Technologies, Akira Zaizen and Hayami are shown in Queen's office, with Queen handing them a signed order regarding Playmaker and Raguel. A look of hesitation appears on Akira's face, but he hides it just in time.
Azrael and Wraith are then shown with Ace and Athaliah standing behind them, shrouded in shadow along with their ace monsters Zerrziel, Ruler of the Evil Eyed and El Shaddoll Construct. Standing behind Azrael and Wraith though, is a black, bipedal dragon with red sclera, white irises, and black pupils obscured in shadow. The dragon roars before disappearing with Zerrziel and El Shaddoll Construct. Jumping above Azrael and Wraith is Malf, sporting a demonic expression on his face. He then extends his right arm forward towards the screen, darkening it completely.
When the screen becomes clear, Playmaker and Raguel are shown riding their duel boards next to each other, with Cyberse Witch and Cyberse Magician in front of Playmaker, and Cyreath Hercules and Cyreath Medusa in front of Raguel. The two are chased by Blood Shepherd, who directs two copies of Battledrone Sergeant to fire at them. Although the two of them are hit by the explosions the missiles caused, they escape unharmed. Suddenly, Drachen orders Red-Eyes Black Dragon to fire at them. In response, Playmaker and Raguel are shown swerving left and right to avoid the consecutive fire blasts. Joining the young man in the hunt is Electrolyzer, who orders a male, humanoid monster wearing several components of futuristic armor pieces to attack Playmaker, but Raguel turns his duel board around and activates a card, causing Hercules to glow a bright light before transforming into a colossal, statue-like man with long, shaggy black hair and elbow protrusions. His eyes glowing red, Hercules charged forward with his axe sword and clashed with the male humanoid.
The screen then shifts to Slipstream watching the duel between Playmaker and an obscured Bohman, while Raguel duels Electrolyzer. Noticing Haru, who's also watching the duel between Playmaker and an obscured Bohman, Slipstream takes a card and summons Clear Wing Synchro Dragon, who roars at the boy. Haru, in response, takes a card and summons Hydradrive Nagini, who hissed at Clear Wing in the process.
Blue Angel and Rosetta are shown in NEW LINK VRAINS at a picnic table, laughing and enjoying each other's company. The two of them then turn their heads towards the duels going on in the sky, a look of concern on each of their faces.
Watchman's group is then shown, with Percival standing slightly apart from them as he makes a fist with his left hand. Simorgh, Bird of Sovereignty and Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon appear before a massive, red-skinned demonic looking monster with golden elements, several eyeballs embedded on its body and four tentacles with bladed claws rises from behind them.
The Knights of Hanoi are shown summoning their monsters. Motor Worm Spread Queen, Helixx Necro Darwin, and Dark Mummy Surgical Forceps first appear before fading into the background. Next is Dark Magician, Berserker of the Tenyi, and Lucifer, Condemner of the Burning Abyss, with Sunavalon Dryanome behind them. Borreload Savage Dragon then rises from behind the four monsters and roars loudly.
Akira is shown at Green Park with Emma, Gekiryushi, and Aoi, giving them details on finding the Ignis. Emma proceeds to make a flirtatious gesture at Akira, making Gekiryushi facepalm and comment on how flirting can be useful at a time like this. The two women then begin to argue, with Akira and Aoi trying to break up the argument.
Yuhiro and Progleo are shown with Miyu at the Den City Hospital, trying to help her walk. Miyu, who's using the parallel bars, ends up slipping, only for Yuhiro to immediately catch her from behind and help her stand up. Roxy then runs out of nowhere and starts pummeling Yuhiro, causing Miyu to almost fall backwards again to their shock. Catching her this time though is Medusa, who appears behind her and smiles, much to everyone's relief. Miyu smiles back, grateful for Medusa's help. The screen then flips around before showing Yuhiro on his knees, clasping an unconscious Miyu's hand in sadness and rage.
Cyreaths Hercules, Medusa, Hades, Poseidon and Zeus are then shown in the air, with Turboblaze Dragon racing past them. The five of them prepare to attack alongside Turboblaze Dragon, who unleashes his Desolation Flare attack as well.
Raguel and Herald are then shown on top of a tower, facing off against Azrael and Wraith in a duel. Behind Raguel and Herald is Turboblaze Dragon, while behind Azrael and Wraith is the black, bipedal dragon from earlier in the opening. Both dragons roar at each other. Raguel reeves up his sword, while Azrael unsheathes his katana before the two of them and their dragons charge at each other.
Yuhiro, Roxy, Miyu, Kusanagi, Takeru, and Yusaku are all shown sitting outdoors at a picnic table near the Den City Hospital, all of them eating hot dogs, and Takeru, Kusanagi, and Roxy are laughing. Three duel disks are shown on the table, with Flame lecturing Ai while Herald plays a game on Yuhiro's tablet.
Yuhiro, Roxy, and Miyu are sitting down on a bench outside the Den City Hospital, with Medusa standing nearby them and Progleo on Roxy's lap. Miyu proceeds to rest her head on Yuhiro's shoulder, causing him to blush as she smiles. Yuhiro smiles back at her, while Roxy and Medusa both smile at them, happy they're able to find happiness with each other. The scene then switches to NEW LINK VRAINS, with Raguel, Playmaker, and Soulburner standing on a building and looking out into the radiant sky.
In LINK VRAINS...
After logging into LINK VRAINS, Raguel, Playmaker, and Soulburner traveled down LINK VRAINS' central pillar towards the restricted area. In a few minutes, they began to see a secret grid laid out ahead of them.
"Be careful." Ai warned the trio. "Security camera to your left."
"Got it." Playmaker acknowledged, as the three of them quickly grabbed pieces of debris floating around them and used them to block the camera's view as they traveled past through it. "Can you transmit to Kusanagi, Ai?"
"Yup. I'm sending everything I see." Ai confirmed.
"I'm doing the same for Roxy." Herald told Raguel. "But like she said earlier, we'll lose contact once we go through the gate."
"I'll keep that in mind." Raguel responded, narrowing his eyes. This time, I won't fail to save you, Miyu, he promised to himself.
As the trio reached the border of the Restricted area, Playmaker narrowed his eyes and said, "Initiate Stealth Program." Their duel boards glowed blue on cue as blue spheres wrapped around them. Once they made contact with the restricted area, a great degree of force pushed back at them as they could feel it pressing against their bodies immensely! Yet the trio persevered through the drag of the red field, and eventually passed through it successfully. After doing so, Raguel and the others deactivated their Stealth Programs.
"We've made it inside." Playmaker said, having made it through the first challenge alongside Soulburner and Raguel. "So far, I don't see any traps waiting to be sprung."
"There will be, though." Raguel told Playmaker. "For now, lets just stay focused."
"Its because the both of you are looking in the wrong direction." Soulburner pointed out, pulling up alongside them and pointing backwards. Curious, Playmaker and Raguel looked back as three people in green and blue uniforms riding duel boards appeared behind them.
It didn't take long for Raguel to put two and two together. "Figures she'd use us as bait to draw away SOL Technologies' goons and spring any traps in the way." He scowled as memories of being betrayed by Ghost Girl once, as well as her using Playmaker and himself as decoys against SOL Technologies' security to infiltrate the databank returned to him. Plus, there was a chance Akira may have sent Ghost Girl after them. In the back of his head, he hoped that wouldn't be the case.
As the three hunters came closer, Raguel narrowed his eyes upon recognizing the group's leader as none other than Go Onizuka himself.
"Found you, Playmaker!" Go Onizuka shouted.
"I told you it was a trap!" Ai cried, annoyed that no one heeded his warnings from before.
"Soulburner, Raguel! We have to move now!" Playmaker told them, as the trio increased their speed. In response, the three hunters did the same, the hunt having already begun.
Wanting a closer look, Ai popped out of Playmaker's duel disk. "Is that... Go Onizuka?" he said, looking back at the hunters. "Nah, it can't be. The Go I know doesn't have free-flowing locks."
Raguel frowned in disappointment, his worries having been confirmed. "So what Quinton said back then was true," he muttered to himself. "What happened to you, Go Onizuka? How could you abandon those who depended on you and saw as a hero just to become SOL Technologies' hired goon?" And why is there something familiar with Go's allies, he wondered. I feel like I may have saw them before. Raguel was grateful that Quinton was looking after the Den City Orphanage in Go's place, as the kids there would need his help.
"Playmaker!" Go shouted with a smile, as he came within range. "I knew I'd track you down, you pork-chopping tatter. You're not getting away from me!"
"Yup. That's Go Onizuka, alright." Ai said, looking away from Go, disgusted at the fact one of their biggest allies has now turned on them so easily.
"Hey, Go! I have a few questions for you!" Raguel shouted, getting Go's attention. "Why would you abandon those who looked up to you? Does your ego and pride mean more than helping those in need and becoming a good role model to them?"
Behind his visor, Go narrowed his eyes at Raguel. "I wouldn't expect you to understand," he simply replied. Go then glanced to his teammates. "Hey, Kenmochi! Yoroizaka! You guys split up and flank Playmaker! Don't let him escape!"
"Roger!" both Kenmochi and Yoroizaka said, as they quickly spread out in a pincer like formation on the trio's sides and attempted to box them in like wolves cornering a herd of sheep.
Kenmochi? Yoroizaka? Raguel wondered. Quinton told me those two got sent to a detention facility some years ago. When Go showed up, he lead a sixteen week boot-camp program for the inmates to attend instead of receiving sentences. As a result, Kenmochi and Yoroizaka were among the graduates who completed the program, and proceeded to do good works in Den City alongside Go. One time, they... His eyes widened upon coming to a realization. Go, how could you drag two people who you inspired to be better into your own mess...
"I'm just here for one thing." Go told Playmaker. "And that thing is a duel."
"He sure sounds serious." Ai said, looking up at Playmaker. "Are you down for a duel?" To Ai, it would be against their code as duelists to turn down Go's challenge.
And while Playmaker would agree with Ai in this situation, right now, they had bigger fish to fry. "No actually," he finally decided. "We have other priorities."
"Later, skater!" Ai waved goodbye at Go, which only served to tick him off.
"Get back here!" Go growled, ramming Playmaker's duel board and shaking him and Ai up, but the hacker managed to stay onboard luckily.
"Hey! Don't bash our bumper!" Ai angrily protested, as Go stabilized himself.
"Then stop running away!" Go replied. He turned briefly to Kenmochi and Yoroizaka. "Kenmochi! Yoroizaka! Follow after them!" The two of them complied and rushed ahead of Go, intent on preventing them from getting any further.
"They're still on our tail." Soulburner noted, seeing that they wouldn't let up and were sticking to them like gum on a shoe.
"But they're not fast enough to catch us." Flame said, crossing his arms.
"They are persistent, though... I'll give them that..." Raguel added, annoyed that it was wasted for the wrong reasons. You just had to hire bounty hunters, didn't you, Zaizen, he thought, still bitter by what Akira's actions had cost him.
Suddenly, something caught the trio's attention as a weird sound emanated. They looked ahead and saw a spacial distortion in front of them, several balls of energy shooting out of the distortion and headed right towards the trio!
"Oh, byte! I spoke too soon!" Flame panicked.
"They have us sandwiched!" Soulburner said, turning to Playmaker.
"Not if we fly through it." Playmaker replied, much to Ai's chagrin.
"Stop being a chicken and man up!" Herald told Ai. "Instead, think of it like a video game."
"And how does that help?" Ai questioned, as Playmaker, Soulburner, and Raguel sped ahead and narrowly avoided each energy ball.
As for Kenmochi and Yoroizaka, they weren't so lucky.
BOOM!
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"
Both hunters screamed as they fell of their duel boards, hitting pieces of debris and forcing a logout for each of them.
"Epic Fail, suckers!" Herald shouted, much to Go's anger. At that moment, the balls of energy dissipated, much to everyone's relief.
"Yahoo! We made it through with no sweat!" Ai cheered, mocking Kenmochi and Yoroizaka as well.
"No sweat for you because you did none of the work." Flame pointed out to Ai's annoyance, raining on his parade.
"Guess some things never change..." Raguel commented, adding more salt to Ai's wound.
"Don't go and celebrate anything just yet." Soulburner said, glancing back at Go. "Without those energy spheres to slow us down, we may be in the clear, but so is he." Go was angrier than before, gritting his teeth as he charged towards them like a mad bull.
"Sheesh. What's burning his afterburners?" Ai questioned, who scratched the back of his head. Raguel, who was also looking at Go, hardened his gaze. He made a mental note to tell Quinton of all this when he returned to the real world.
Seeing there may be no way to get Go off their trail without a duel, Soulburner turned to Playmaker and Raguel. "Playmaker. Raguel. You go on ahead. I'll take on Go," he said.
"Yeah?"
"You sure about this?"
"Yeah." Soulburner answered with a smile. "That's what friends do, right? They help one another." His smile turned into a frown. "Listen, no one wants to see the heroes who fought for LINK VRAINS fight against one another. That's messed up. Besides, I love the challenge."
Playmaker then nodded at Soulburner. "Fine, then. Just be careful."
"Don't take him lightly." Raguel warned Soulburner, having experienced Go's tenacity and skill a long time ago.
"Don't worry! He has me!" Flame assured them, wishing their allies the best.
"And how is that a positive?" Ai asked.
"Because I'm not you." Flame answered, his eyes half-lidded.
"How dare you." Ai scowled, starting to reconsider Flame as an actual friend.
"OHHHHHH! Flame's roasted you there!" Herald added, causing Ai to turn his scowl on him immediately. Even after ten years, nothing had changed between the Ignis, especially with Ai.
With that, Soulburner turned his duel board around and charged Go Onizuka, drawing his attention as the other two headed on.
Raguel watched as Go and Soulburner got further away before turning to Playmaker. "Go won't be the only bounty hunter we'll encounter here," he told him. "Blood Shepherd will definitely be here, and I know for a fact we'll be running into two other bounty hunters."
"Two other bounty hunters?!" Ai repeated, panicking. Unfortunately, due to the recent events that occurred, Raguel didn't get the chance to tell Playmaker about Drachen and Electrolyzer. Blood Shepherd, on the other hand...
"Do you have any advice on Blood Shepherd?" Playmaker asked Raguel.
"To tell you the truth, no. I never dueled him." Raguel admitted. "But I believe the secret weapons you obtained may help you defeat him."
"Alright." Playmaker nodded as he and Raguel headed further down the pillar. They passed through a blue barrier and reached the lower half, where they were buffeted by winds from a Data Storm.
"Man, the winds are rough." Ai commented, guarding his eyes.
"It means we're getting closer." Herald deduced.
"The lower area is up ahead." Playmaker said, looking at a new, bright blue sphere beneath them.
"We'll be able to reach the gate through there." Raguel told Playmaker, who nodded in agreement. The both of them then narrowed their eyes briefly as they navigated downward to the bright blue sphere.
"Do you feel that?" Herald asked Raguel.
"I suddenly have a case of the heebie-jeebies!" Ai said, hugging himself.
"Yes. I sense something too." Playmaker agreed, narrowing his eyes.
"Oh no." Ai turned to Playmaker. "When your Link Sense starts acting up, its never any good."
"I have a bad feeling about this..." Raguel muttered, as he looked around. His eyes widened in surprise. "Move, Playmaker!"
The two of them swerved as a yellow laser blast went through the air. They realigned as Blood Shepherd rode on his duel board, his right arm glowing with energy.
"I found you, Raguel and Playmaker." Blood Shepherd announced, as he fired more energy blasts from his right hand at the duo, causing them to swerve and dodge each one. "This time, neither of you will be escaping from me."
"GAH! That was close!" Ai panicked. "Is he trying to get us blasted?"
"The obvious answer would be yes, Ai." Raguel and Herald replied at the same time. Playmaker, on the other hand, rolled his eyes upon seeing Ai panic once again.
Ai growled. "If that's the case, I guess its up to me to save the day again by whipping up a Data Storm to blow him off his board!" A tornado of Data Material solidified in front of Blood Shepherd as Ai laughed. "You won't weather this storm!"
Blood Shepherd responded by firing three blasts towards the tornado, tearing it apart in the process.
"He weathered it! I can't believe it! I really can't!" Ai fell down to his hands and knees in defeat, still shocked at what happened.
"For Blood Shepherd to break through the Data Storm like that is something I definitely did not see coming." Herald admitted, impressed by what just occurred.
"It's one of the reasons why Blood Shepherd's a pro as a bounty hunter." Raguel told Herald. "He'll tear through anything to capture his target."
"Yuhiro? Can you hear me?"
Raguel nodded as Roxy's voice came over the ear his earpiece. "We're in the middle of something, Roxy. Blood Shepherd just appeared."
"Ah Hell no... Listen, the two of you are in an unstable location. If you don't get back in the center soon, you'll drown in data."
"He'll destroy us before then!" Ai screamed. Evidently, Kusanagi had told Playmaker the same thing.
"Calm down! Blood Shepherd's trying to intimidate you, Ai!" Raguel shouted. "He can't capture you or Herald unless he win's a duel!"
The duo continued to avoid Blood Shepherd's blasts as they headed back towards the center of the pillar. Raguel narrowed his eyes as he saw two silhouettes up ahead. "Just great," he muttered.
Drachen and Electrolyzer were waiting for the two of them. Raguel scowled to himself, remembering they were the ones who got involved in his attempt to chase down the azure-overcoated man and rescue Miyu. This time, he could get payback for that failed attempt. "Listen to me, Playmaker." Raguel turned to Playmaker, getting his attention. "I'll handle the bounty hunters up ahead. We'll meet up at the gate!"
"WHAT?!" Ai exclaimed in surprise, while Playmaker widened his eyes. "That's practically two on one. You'll get squashed by them!"
"Are you sure about this, Raguel?" Playmaker asked.
"I am." Raguel confirmed. "This is personal."
Knowing that this is what Raguel wanted, Playmaker nodded. "Very well. Good luck, Raguel." He turned to head to the right, Blood Shepherd still on his trail.
"You as well..." Raguel muttered, a glare on his face as he sped downwards. Just as expected, Drachen and Electrolyzer followed after him.
"Ah, Raguel!" Drachen shouted, as the three of them entered a trench on the right of the sphere. "We meet again! This time, there will be no interruptions to our upcoming duel."
"No, Drachen." Electrolyzer said. "I'll be the one to duel him first. After all, you lost a say in the matter after your dishonorable act the last time we encountered him." Drachen grit his teeth in anger upon hearing this, but before he can make a retort, he was interrupted by Raguel.
"I honestly don't give a damn as to who duels me first." Raguel told them, turning his glare at Drachen and Electrolyzer. "Even if you team up against me, I'll crush you both for getting in my way."
"Raguel, you should really-." Herald began.
"Quiet, Ignis!" Drachen interrupted. "If Raguel wants to duel us both, we'll grant his wish. Even he won't be able to-!"
"WAHOO!" a voice cried out of nowhere, causing all three to wince and look back behind them. Slipstream suddenly then appeared, who rode on the back of Clear Wing Synchro Dragon as he headed towards the group. Clear Wing roared at Drachen and Electrolyzer, causing the both of them to move to the side as the dragon approached Raguel. Slipstream then leapt off his ace monster and landed on his duel board before riding alongside Raguel, his ace monster turning into particles before returning to his deck.
"Hey there, Raguel." Slipstream said, greeting him. "Its totally crash to see you again."
Raguel raised an eyebrow at him. He's the same guy I rescued from before, he realized. But what is he doing here?
"Anyway, you're probably wondering why I'm here, and who I am." Slipstream continued. "First, my name's Slipstream. Second, I'm here to lend you a helping hand. After all, two against one is unfair, don't you agree?"
Raguel stared at Slipstream. While he recognized him as the same guy he rescued months ago at the Gamma Branch, there was something else. But what was it?
"Raguel!" Raguel blinked and looked ahead at Herald's words. The trench split into two paths up ahead, which both went downward.
"...Okay," Raguel quickly decided, turning to Slipstream. "You take on whoever you want."
Slipstream nodded and smirked, turning back to the hunters. "I'll take on muscles, while you take on loudmouth over here."
Electrolyzer narrowed his eyes. "Looks like you'll get your wish after all," he told Drachen. "Deal with Raguel. I'll teach the kid some manners."
"Gotcha."
Raguel turned and went down the right path, which headed towards a hole, with Drachen following him. Slipstream and Electrolyzer, however, took the left path.
"You'll want to turn around once you reach the bottom, Yuhiro." Roxy advised Raguel over the earpiece. "There's another hole that leads to the center."
"Thanks for the info, Roxy." Raguel replied. "Another duelist showed up named Slipstream. He lured Electrolyzer away."
"Slipstream? Never heard of him. I'll see what I can find."
At the left path...
Slipstream led Electrolyzer down the trench, giving him a good chance to observe his opponent. His duel board was primarily colored pigment green, with large pine green and white accents, as well as white and yellow markings and streaks on the upper surface. There were also two metal circles on the duel board, one at the front and one at the back. As for Slipstream's duel disk, it was a blue hexagonal model, which had a grey wristband with a light-green stripe on it. The blade that emitted from it was a double, angular, and symmetrical green blade.
"Why are you helping Raguel?" Electrolyzer inquired. "You don't have an Ignis, so you shouldn't be involved in this matter."
"That may be the case, but I owe Raguel." Slipstream told Electrolyzer. "As for our duel, how do you want to decide who goes first?"
Electrolyzer responded by pulling out a coin. "With this," he said. "Heads or Tails?"
"Ah, a classic gambling match!" Slipstream grinned. "I always get lucky when situations call for a coin toss or a dice roll. Today, I think I will call Heads!"
Electrolyzer flipped the coin, caught it, then braced it against the back of his left hand. "Sorry, kid." He showed the coin to Slipstream, causing him to slump over in shock for a brief moment or two. The result was tails. "Looks like I win. And since I did, I'll go first for our duel."
"Then let's not waste any more time."
"Speed Duel!" Slipstream and Electrolyzer said at the same time.
Slipstream: 4000 LP
Electrolyzer: 4000 LP
"I'll make the first move." Electrolyzer announced, looking over his hand. "I activate the Field Spell card, PSY-Frame Circuit from my hand." Electrical waves of energy blasted out of the card and surrounded the duel field before dissipating momentarily. "From there, I Set one card face-down and end my turn."
Slipstream raised an eyebrow behind his mask. A Field Spell card and a Set card? No monsters? That was rather... unusual of a duelist to do. But it did present an opportunity for Slipstream to charge out blazing. "My turn! I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck and grinned. "First, I activate the Spell card, Speedraw from my hand. This card lets me discard one 'Speedroid' monster from my hand, and by doing so, I can draw two cards from my deck." After discarding a card from his hand and sending it to his Graveyard, he drew the top two cards of his deck. "Next, as I control no monsters, I can Special Summon Speedroid Terrortop from my hand." A chain of red tops with blades attached to them appeared on Slipstream's field.
Speedroid Terrortop ATK: 1200 DEF: 600 LV: 3
"Not so fast!" Electrolyzer interrupted. "I activate the effect of PSY-Framegear Alpha from my hand. If I control no monsters and you Normal or Special Summon a monster, I can Special Summon this card and one copy of 'PSY-Frame Driver' from my hand, deck, or Graveyard."
"You're summoning monsters on my turn?!" Slipstream exclaimed in surprise, as Electrolyzer took a card from his deck.
"Correct," he confirmed. "Now, come! PSY-Framegear Alpha from my hand and PSY-Frame Driver from my deck!" Two monsters then immediately appeared on Electrolyzer's field.
The first monster was a silver and black exoskeleton with arms that had a helmet with green eyes, as well as spikes on the sides, arms, and knuckles. Its chest portion was connected to the harness through wires, with a reactor core in the middle. At the back was a series of multi-layered belts, which was shaped like a spine.
The second monster was a male, humanoid monster wearing a black and white suit that had electricity emitting from his wrists and head.
PSY-Framegear Alpha ATK: 500 DEF: 0 LV: 1
PSY-Frame Driver ATK: 2500 DEF: 0 LV: 6
"Alpha's second effect also lets me add one 'PSY-Frame' card from my deck to my hand, except 'PSY-Framegear Alpha." Electrolyzer added, as he took a card from his deck and added it to his hand. "I then activate the effect of PSY-Frame Circuit! When a 'PSY-Frame' monster is Special Summoned to my side of the field, I'm allowed to perform a Synchro Summon using only 'PSY-Frame' monsters I control."
Slipstream gasped. "You're also Synchro Summoning on my turn?" This was unexpected for sure.
"If you don't believe me, just watch! I tune the Level 1 PSY-Framegear Alpha with the Level 6 PSY-Frame Driver!" A bolt of green lightning struck Electrolyzer, as the world greyed out and his two monsters disappeared into particles. Two rings, which were colored green, appeared before turning blue and merging. Seven blue rings stacked in a tower appeared, a screen displaying "6 + 1" in front of them. The screen then changed to "7" as light surged through the rings.
"The electric warrior shall don on his armor, and make the oppressors fall before his anarchic voltage!" Electrolyzer chanted. "Synchro Summon! Arrive on the scene, Level 7! PSY-Framelord Zeta!" A male, humanoid monster resembling Driver appeared on Electrolyzer's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. There were a few differences, however. Zeta had Alpha attached to his head, chest, and arms, while another PSY-Framegear monster was attached to his thighs and waist.
PSY-Framelord Zeta ATK: 2500 DEF: 1800 LV: 7
Slipstream grit his teeth. For his opponent to use Hand Traps in his deck was a pain in the ass, that's for sure. But still, there were definitely things he could do in response to the situation he was in right now. "I Special Summon Speedroid CarTurbo from my hand." A red and white card with a small engine with a blue battery on top appeared on Slipstream's field. Underneath the card were small engine parts, as well as a thin, blue box.
Speedroid CarTurbo ATK: 800 DEF: 1200 LV: 3
"I can Special Summon this card when I control a Wind monster." Slipstream told Electrolyzer. "Its time to rev it up! I tune the Level 3 Speedroid CarTurbo with the Level 3 Speedroid Terrortop!" A bolt of green lightning struck Slipstream as the world greyed out and his two monsters disappeared into particles. Two rings, one red and one white appeared before turning blue and merging. Six blue rings stacked in a tower appeared, a screen displaying "3 + 3" in front of them. The screen changed to "6" as light surged through the rings.
"Magical sword with the form of a cross! Use your power to rend all enemies!" Slipstream chanted. "Synchro Summon! Appear, Level 6! Hi-Speedroid Kendama!" A dark blue machine resembling a cross with a large sword attached to its center appeared on Slipstream's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.
Hi-Speedroid Kendama ATK: 2200 DEF: 1600 LV: 6
"I was waiting for you to do that!" Electrolyzer suddenly said, getting Slipstream's attention. "I activate Zeta's effect. Once per turn, during either player's turn, I can target one Special Summoned monster you control that's in attack position and banish it along with Zeta until my next Standby Phase."
"Oh, that's not a good sign at all..." Slipstream muttered, shocked that he was going to lose Kendama for the rest of his turn.
"I banish Kendama! Electric Overcharge!" Electrolyzer shouted, as Zeta raced across the duel field with blinding speed and slashed Kendama several times, laughing as both monsters turned into yellow particles. "It's a good thing I watched your duel with that kid last night in the network. Since your forte is Synchro Summoning like me, it only made sense to get rid of your Synchro monster once you brought it out and your other monsters were in your Graveyard. But don't worry. You'll get your monster back on my turn, when I destroy it for good."
Slipstream thought this over for a moment before speaking. "In that case, I summon Speedroid Double Yoyo!" Two green discs with blades attached by a single, grey center then appeared on his field.
Speedroid Double Yoyo ATK: 1400 DEF: 1400 LV: 4
"Double Yoyo's effect! When its Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon one Level 3 or lower 'Speedroid' monster from my Graveyard. I Special Summon Speedroid Red-Eyed Dice!" A yellow dice with a single red eye and six red electrodes orbiting around it also appeared on Slipstream's field.
Speedroid Red-Eyed Dice ATK: 100 DEF: 100 LV: 1
"Its time to rev it up for a second time! I tune the Level 1 Speedroid Red-Eyed Dice with the Level 4 Speedroid Double Yoyo!" Slipstream declared, as a bolt of green lightning struck him and the world greyed out before his two monsters disappeared into particles. Two rings, one yellow and one dark green, appeared before turning blue and merging. Five blue rings stacked in a tower appeared, a screen displaying "1 + 4" in front of them. The screen changed to "5" as light surged through the rings.
"Lively soul of swordplay, sharpen your edge for the battle against the competition!" Slipstream chanted. "Synchro Summon! Appear, Level 5! Hi-Speedroid Chanbara!" A humanoid monster sitting on a massive blade appeared on Slipstream's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.
Hi-Speedroid Chanbara ATK: 2000 DEF: 1000 LV: 5
"I Set one card face-down." Slipstream thrusted his right hand forward. "Battle! Hi-Speedroid Chanbara attacks you directly!" Chanbara charged forward, only for Electrolyzer to gesture to his field.
"Trap card, activate! Counter Gate!" he declared. "When you attack me directly, that attack is negated!" A stone gate then appeared in front of Electrolyzer, blocking Chanbara's attack and forcing it to return to Slipstream's side of the field. "Then I get to draw a card, and if the card I draw is a Monster card, I get to Normal Summon it." Electrolyzer drew the top card of his deck. "I drew the Level 3 Hushed Psychic Cleric, which means I can Normal Summon it to my field." A dark-skinned man in white and purple robes armed with a staff then appeared on his field.
Hushed Psychic Cleric ATK: 0 DEF: 2100 LV: 3
"Hushed Psychic Cleric's effect! When he's Normal or Flip Summoned, I can automatically change him to defense position." As Hushed Psychic Cleric crossed his arms, a blue glow surrounded his body, indicating the change in battle position.
Darn it, Slipstream thought. Since damage calculation didn't occur, Chanbara doesn't gain its 100 attack boost. And even if it did, it wouldn't be enough to destroy this guy's Hushed Psychic Cleric. Looks like I'll have to rein it in for now. "I end my turn."
"My turn! I draw!" Electrolyzer said, drawing the top card of his deck. "Since its now my Standby Phase, the effect of Zeta ends, which means both of our monster's return to our fields." Electrolyzer stated, as Zeta reappeared on his field in the Main Monster Zone and Kendama reappeared on Slipstream's field in the Main Monster Zone.
PSY-Framelord Zeta ATK: 2500 DEF: 1800 LV: 7
Hi-Speedroid Kendama ATK: 2200 DEF: 1600 LV: 6
"I activate my Skill: PSY-Frame Suit Up!" The yellow lines on Electrolyzer's coat cackled with electricity briefly before dissipating. "I can Special Summon one 'PSY-Frame' Tuner monster from my hand, deck, Graveyard, or banished zone to my field, ignoring its summoning conditions." A card popped out from his deck, which he immediately grabbed. "From my deck, I Special Summon PSY-Framegear Gamma to my field." Soon, a mechanical mask with sharp protrusions on its sides, along with a layered belt extending out of it appeared on Electrolyzer's field.
PSY-Framegear Gamma ATK: 1000 DEF: 0 LV: 2
"Also, if there's a Psychic Synchro monster on my field, it gains attack and defense points equal to the Special Summoned monster's attack and defense points." Electrolyzer continued. "Therefore, Zeta gains 1000 attack points!" A green aura surrounded Zeta as he powered up.
PSY-Framelord Zeta ATK: 2500 + 1000 = 3500
"Appear! The circuit of high voltage!" Electrolyzer fired a bolt of electricity from his hand ahead of him, which caused a Link Portal to appear. "The summoning conditions are two monsters, except tokens. I'll set PSY-Framegear Gamma and Hushed Psychic Cleric into the Link Markers!" Gamma went into the bottom-left arrowhead, while Hushed Psychic Cleric went into the bottom-right arrowhead, turning both of them red.
"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! PSY-Framelord Lambda!" A female, humanoid monster clad in a blue and white suit with gold and black armor that had spikes on it appeared on Electrolyzer's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. Electricity emitted from her wrists and armor.
PSY-Framelord Lambda ATK: 1700 LINK-2 ↙️↘️
"While Lambda is on my field, I'm allowed to activate the effects of 'PSY-Frame' monsters from my hand even if I control a monster." Electrolyzer explained, making Slipstream narrow his eyes behind his mask.
"In that case, I activate my Trap card, Breakthrough Skill." Slipstream responded. "This card lets me-."
"I activate the effect of PSY-Framegear Epsilon from my hand!" Electrolyzer interjected. "Since you activated a Trap card, I can Special Summon this card and one copy of 'PSY-Frame Driver' from my hand, deck, or Graveyard. By doing so, I can negate and destroy your Trap card. Normally, I wouldn't be able to do this because I control a monster, but thanks to Lambda's effect, I can."
"And he stopped me again..." Slipstream muttered to himself, as Breakthrough Skill turned into yellow particles.
"Now, come! PSY-Framegear Epsilon from my hand and PSY-Frame Driver from my Graveyard!" Two monsters then immediately appeared on Electrolyzer's field.
The first monster was a golden, mechanical monster with a mask, as well as sharp protrusions on its sides. Extending out from its small body were two, long golden-curved rods. The first one was longer than the other, and had one spike on each side. The second was split in half, with each half having two spikes and ending in a silver bolt.
The second was Driver, who returned from Electrolyzer's Graveyard.
PSY-Framegear Epsilon ATK: 1500 DEF: 0 LV: 2
PSY-Frame Driver ATK: 2500 DEF: 0 LV: 6
"PSY-Frame Circuit's effect also activates!" Electrolyzer continued. "When a 'PSY-Frame' monster is Special Summoned to my side of the field, I'm allowed to perform a Synchro Summon using only 'PSY-Frame' monsters I control." Slipstream gasped upon hearing this. "And now I tune the Level 2 PSY-Framegear Epsilon with the Level 6 PSY-Frame Driver." A bolt of green lightning struck Electrolyzer, as the world greyed out and his two monsters disappeared into particles. Two rings, which were colored green, appeared before turning blue and merging. Eight blue rings stacked in a tower appeared, a screen displaying "2 + 6" in front of them. The screen then changed to "8" as light surged through the rings.
"The electric warrior shall unleash the full might of his armor, and strike down all who dare seize power over others!" Electrolyzer chanted. "Synchro Summon! Appear, Level 8! PSY-Framelord Omega!" A male, humanoid monster similar to that of Zeta appeared on Electrolyzer's field in the Main Monster Zone Lambda was pointing to. While Omega wore similar armor parts Zeta wore, he also wore a pair of metallic gloves on his hands, which were attached to a tall, golden mechanical monster with a mask on it. In addition, he was riding on Epsilon while gripping on Gamma like a handlebar, turning them into a vehicle similar to that of a scooter.
PSY-Framelord Omega ATK: 2800 DEF: 2200 LV: 8
Great. This guy now has two Synchro monsters and a Link monster on his field, Slipstream thought. It's a good thing I still have my Skill to use, that's for sure.
"If you think I'm done, you're wrong! I activate Omega's effect! Once per turn, during either player's turn, I can banish this card to banish one random card from your hand!"
"But I only have one card in my hand!" Slipstream panicked. Without the only card in his hand, his chances of winning the duel next turn have been reduced!
"That's the point." Electrolyzer replied. "Go, Electric Dissipation!" Omega pointed a finger at Slipstream's remaining card in his hand, before a burst of electricity was fired and hit the card, causing both Omega and the card to vanish into particles. "Then I activate the Equip Spell card, D.D.R – Different Dimension Reincarnation. By discarding one card from my hand, I can target one of my banished monsters and Special Summon it to my field in attack position before equipping it with this card. Return, Omega!" After discarding a card from his hand, Omega reappeared on his field in the Main Monster Zone.
PSY-Framelord Omega ATK: 2800 DEF: 2200 LV: 8
"Battle! PSY-Framelord Omega attacks Hi-Speedroid Chanbara! Electro Current Slam!" Omega sped forward at Chanbara, enveloping himself in electricity as he did so.
Luckily, Slipstream was prepared. "I activate my Skill! Speedy Drift! During either player's turn, when a Wind Synchro monster battles, that attack is negated!"
"What?!" Electrolyzer exclaimed, as Chanbara moved to the side and narrowly avoided Omega's attack. As a result, he returned to Electrolyzer's side, displeased with what happened.
"In addition, I get to roll a dice, and my Wind Synchro monster gains attack points equal to the result times 100." Slipstream added, as a green dice appeared in front of Slipstream. "Go, Dice Roll!" The dice then flung itself into the air and landed on the field. When it finished rolling, the dice landed on a six. "Alright! Since the dice landed on a six, that means Chanbara gains 600 attack points." Chanbara
Hi-Speedroid Chanbara ATK: 2000 + 600 = 2600
Electrolyzer narrowed his eyes. While this was a minor setback, he could still deal some damage to his opponent this turn. "The battle still continues. PSY-Framelord Zeta attacks Hi-Speedroid Kendama! Electro Pressure Hit!" Zeta charged forward at Kendama, enveloping himself in electricity as he did so. After identifying his target's pressure points, Zeta proceeded to damage each one in lightning speed, destroying Kendama and causing Slipstream to cry out in pain as his life points dropped.
Slipstream: 4000 – 1300 = 2700 LP
"With that, I end my turn, which means the second effect of Lambda activates. Since a Psychic monster was banished, I can add one 'PSY-Frame' card from my deck to my hand." A card popped out of Electrolyzer's deck, which he took and added to his hand. "I'll tell this to you now, kid: Surrender. Against someone like me, you don't have a chance."
"Surrender?" Slipstream repeated. "That's... kind of lame if you ask me." Electrolyzer raised an eyebrow at him as he continued. "A duel isn't over until both duelists made every move they can. Besides, I made a promise to myself. One that I must complete, and to do that, I must win this duel!"
"A promise, huh?" Electrolyzer muttered to himself. In a way, I can understand what you mean, kid. For that, I can only offer you my respect, he thought. Ever since I was born, I swore I'd train so that one day, I can lead Central Japan just like my father before me. But because of what I experienced all those years ago, I'm not sure if the promise I have now aligns with the goal I made for myself when I was a young prince, who knew nothing of the world...
Flashback: Six years ago, at an underground laboratory...
"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!" Brion screamed, as the electric shocks ran from his brain and down to his body. Right now, he was in a grey, well-lit room, wearing a white hairnet with wires that were connected to a brain-reading machine. In front of him was a Mensa exam on a desk, with writing utensils provided. Scooting up his chair, Brion proceeded to continue the exam, knowing full well what would happen if he stopped.
On the other side of the room was Athaliah, with Doctor Heinz taking notes beside her.
"What are the results, Doctor Heinz?" Athaliah asked him.
"Thanks to the brain training he's received over the years, the results are on the right track Athaliah." Doctor Heinz replied. "Delta Levels at 4, Theta Levels at 6.3, Alpha Levels at 9.1, and Beta Levels at 22. Regardless, we still have a long way to go."
Athaliah frowned. As the Royal Physician of the Miyahara Family, Doctor Heinz did have a point. The human mind could only go so far before it broke. However, Athaliah was determined to get the results she needed. That way, Project: Apotheosis can reach completion, which, combined with the results Dr. Kogami got from the Lost Incident, would ensure that Project: VIII is finally completed. "That's fine. End the test. I wish to speak with Brion."
"Yes, ma'am." Doctor Heinz went into the room and turned off the brain-reading machine. He then removed the white hairnet from Brion's head before beckoning for Athaliah to come inside. When she did, Brion looked at her with fury and heartbreak.
"How could you do this?!" Brion demanded. "We all treated you like family, and yet you betrayed us by kidnapping me. Why would you do such a thing?!" Upon hearing that question, Athaliah slapped him so hard that he was sent flying off the ground.
"I wouldn't expect you to understand, Your Highness." Athaliah coldly responded in a sarcastic tone. "All you need to know is that you are something greater, and as such, I demand that you adhere to the procedures!"
"Like Hell I will..." Brion defiantly spat in Athaliah's face, who kicked him in the face in response.
"Such a spoiled child, unaware of the world..." Athaliah muttered. She and Doctor Heinz then lifted Brion up before walking him over to Room E2, where they strapped him onto an operating table. "Perform the procedure, Doctor Heinz."
"A-Are you sure about this?" Doctor Heinz questioned.
"Yes." Athaliah decided. "Brion may be a candidate to become the Construct, and we cannot waste an opportunity like this. Or should I remind you of what happened to the doctor who refused to follow my orders?"
Doctor Heinz's face paled as he recalled what happened to the previous head doctor, who was shot in the face up-close. He didn't want that fate to befall to him, so he said, "Very well. I'll get started right away."
"See? That wasn't so hard." Athaliah proceeded to walk out of Room E2, but stopped at the door before turning to Doctor Heinz. "Have the results on my desk by tomorrow morning." She then left the room, leaving Brion and Doctor Heinz alone.
As Doctor Heinz walked over to a desk with a medical tray on it containing medical supplies and grabbed a syringe, Brion was shaking in fear. What's the doctor going to do to me, he thought, scared of what was about to happen. And what did Athaliah mean by a Construct? Is this why she kidnapped me and the other people? To find this Construct?
"I really am sorry, Brion." Doctor Heinz apologized to him, as he put propofol in the syringe before approaching Brion.
"Please, don't do this." Brion begged, but Doctor Heinz inserted the needle into his right hand so it made contact with his blood veins, causing him to scream. He wasn't a huge fan of needles.
"Forgive me, God, for what I'm about to do..." Doctor Heinz tearfully begged under his breath, beginning the procedure. He cut Brion's forearms open, making him scream even more. Eventually, the propofol took effect, and Brion fell asleep.
Three months later, at Central Japan...
Screams. Screams and gunfire rang through the air as the world swayed around Brion. His vision became blurry as he slowly woke up. Where was he? His sight cleared, and he found himself in the Miyahara Castle's garden, rubble around him. Why was Brion here? Oh, yes. The Miyahara family was hosting a charity event, and the next thing everyone knew, there were a series of explosions, killing and seriously wounding several people.
Brion groaned as he got up, aware that his head hurt. After reaching up and touching his forehead, he realized his forehead was covered in blood. Yeah. That must be the case. His vision now clear, Brion began to slowly walk out from where he was.
"Tessa! Granger!" he called out, hoping to find his siblings. When he reached the central area, he saw several bodies, some having lost body parts. Luckily, Tessa and Granger weren't among the dead, which gave Brion some hope they were alive. "Tessa! Granger! Where are you?" He ran out of the garden and into the castle, determined to find them. However, he instead witnessed three terrorists shoot down two of the castle guards, having just went through a firefight against them.
"There he is!" one of the terrorists shouted. "Kill him!" Brion, knowing he was in trouble, ran away from the terrorists, who followed after him and started shooting.
Quickly running for the dining room, he slid to a fallen, large glass table and took shelter behind it to protect him from the gunfire. Seizing the opportunity, Brion grabbed the table and slammed it on the three terrorists, knocking them out. All except for one, who tried to reach for his pistol, only for Brion to grab and aim it at his head.
"How many of you are there?!" Brion demanded, pressing the head of the pistol on the terrorist's head. "And why are you here?"
"To overthrow you greedy liars," the terrorist answered. "No matter how many of us that fall, many more will be inspired to join us. Hail-!"
Brion knocked the terrorist out with the butt of his pistol before he could finish his sentence. The terrorist didn't mention Tessa or Granger's names, nor did he mention the names of his parents. That meant they were still alive. Knowing what needed to be done, Brion left the unconscious terrorist and proceeded to search the castle.
As he did this, he called out Tessa and Granger's names, as well as for his father and mother, hoping they were alive. Brion ended up encountering a few terrorists along the way, but he shot only to wound them. For a life lesson his father taught him was that winning but not destroying an enemy was what made a true victory. After all, every human life was precious, and always had a chance to choose a better path. Although Brion questioned it due to his experiences during Project: Apotheosis, he still strove to not abandon his father's teaching.
Eventually, he made it to the courtyard and hid behind a nearby wall, where he found a tall, broad-shouldered man with brown eyes, graying brown hair, and a brown mustache extending to his chin with three terrorists. The man was looking down at two teenage victims, one boy and one girl, which Brion recognized as his older brother Granger and his little sister Tessa. Two of the terrorists pointed their rifles at each of them, while the third had a woman, whom Brion recognized as his mother in a chokehold. As for his father, he was dead on the ground, much to his shock.
"Your husband is now dead," the man told the woman as she struggled to free herself. "If you do not relinquish the crown of Central Japan to me, you'll join the rest of the royal family in death."
"Never, Balius," the woman answered. "The fact you betrayed the royal family makes you a traitor, just like Athaliah."
"I believe you, sister." Balius told her, giving the order to the terrorists. The first two shot Tessa and Granger in the head, while the third one snapped the woman's neck, killing them.
With a shout of grief and rage, Brion emerged from where he was hiding and fired several shots at Balius, intent on killing him. However, as if on instinct, Balius looked away from Brion at the last minute, resulting in the bullets going through the right side of his neck and knocking him down to the ground.
Brion immediately turned his gun at the terrorists caught off guard and fired at them as well, wounding each one. He attempted to aim and shoot at Balius again, who was still on the ground, but more terrorists arrived at the courtyard, having heard the commotion. As a result, Brion was forced to run for his life, crying in the process. Once he disappeared in the darkness of the night, the men went over to where Balius was and helped him stand up.
"Are you okay, sir?" one of them asked, to which he responded by grabbing his collar.
"Find him!" Balius ordered. "And kill the Prince on sight!"
"Yes sir!" The terrorist signaled at a group of men nearby and motioned for them to follow him into the woods where Brion fled, their orders having been received.
"As for the rest of you," Balius spoke to the other terrorists, "ensure the perimeter's secure. The people must know who's really in charge now." Nodding, the rest of the terrorists left the courtyard, intent on following their orders. Once they were gone, Balius touched the right side of his neck and looked at the blood on his fingertips. This would be perfect evidence that the Miyahara family were a greedy family, who didn't care about the well-being of Central Japan's people. By showing this evidence to the people, their allegiance would likely be swayed to him. And if any resisted, they would die.
Five years later, in LINK VRAINS, at an unknown location...
Electrolyzer fell to one knee, having lost an initiation duel against his potential employer.
"I must say, Electrolyzer. Of all the applicants I dueled, you were the only one who forced me to summon one of my ace monsters," a voice said, approaching Electrolyzer. Its owner was a purple-skinned young man in his teens, who was fairly tall and well-muscled in build, even though he was a teenager. He had red eyes, pointed ears, and white hair that was secured as a high ponytail on the top, while the hair around the sides of his head were buzzed short. As for his attire, he wore long-sleeved shoes, mustard yellow pants and a leathered, black shirt with an "X" between columns on both of its sleeves, as well as a black buckle belt on top of his shirt around the waist area. He also had black fingerless gloves with yellow wristbands.
"What are you saying?" Electrolyzer asked, as the young man offered him a hand.
"I'm saying you passed. Congratulations! You're hired!" The young man smiled genuinely at Electrolyzer, who looked from his face to the proffered hand. He smiled and took it.
"Thank you." Electrolyzer said. "You have no idea how much this will help me."
"Yes, yes, of course," the young man replied. "Now follow me!" Electrolyzer followed the young man as they exited the duel area and walked down a hallway towards a door. "Behold, my laboratory!" He opened the door and motioned for Electrolyzer to enter inside. When he did, Electrolyzer opened his mouth in awe as he looked around the place. It was a dark-lit room, with several light-green monitors that showed many things. At the center of the room was a chair, with a large desk in front of it that had a digital keyboard.
"That's... a lot of monitors..." Electrolyzer commented.
"Yes, it's a lot," the young man agreed, "but it helps me keep an eye on everything I need to get done." After the young man sat in his chair, he then opened one of the desk's drawers and pulled out a file. "Let's see. According to this file, your name's Brion Miyahara, the last prince of the Miyahara family. You became the bounty hunter known as Electrolyzer five years ago, which is still ongoing. The reason you signed up for this gig was... could you repeat it to me again?"
"In order to get the money required so I can get my home back." Electrolyzer answered. "What's more, I need to make my Uncle Balius pay for betraying my family and Central Japan itself!"
"Ah, so its revenge you're after. A simple but effective motivator, that's for sure..." the young man replied. "I also did some digging, and found out you were among the kidnapped for a... Project: Apotheosis, am I not correct? With the head of the project named Athaliah Kuraishi?"
Electrolyzer's face paled upon hearing those words. He wasn't aware that his fists were clenched, anger now surfacing. "How-How do you know about that?"
"Its my job to know as much as I can about those who would work for me," the young man answered. "And from what I read, you must have went through a traumatizing experience. But rest assured, as you picked the right individual to work for. After all, your five years of experience as a bounty hunter following the night you lost everything will greatly benefit the both of us."
"Is that so?" Electrolyzer questioned. "If I'm going to work for you, I need you to be honest. If you're not, then I will know."
"Duly noted." The young man smiled, still facing away from Electrolyzer. "Now that you're hired, I can tell you about what I do for my job. I'm working for someone who wants to change the world for the better, and this someone started a rather special project with two individuals many, many years ago. Unfortunately, the project got shut down due to, er, creative differences between the founders. Luckily, it was started up again by Dr. Kogami. That is, until it was shut down by a whistleblower, but not even that could stop the project's momentum, as the results of his research bore fruit."
"Interesting..." Electrolyzer muttered. "And will my tasks contribute to the work you do?"
"Of course, of course!" the young man answered, putting the file back in the drawer. "And be at ease. You'll be able to save Central Japan, avenge your family, and if you're lucky, you can track down and kill Athaliah for the trauma she put you through."
Electrolyzer thought this information over. For the past five years, he became a bounty hunter not just to provide for himself, but so he can get the money needed to take back Central Japan from Balius one day. Electrolyzer still had his misgivings with Athaliah for what she did to him, which was another reason why he became a bounty hunter. To one day hunt her down and either bring her to justice, or kill her if needed. But what this man was offering him... it was a chance to not only ensure tragedies he went through would never happen to anyone again, but avenge himself on the people who deeply hurt him. The Royal Family's Physician: Athaliah Kuraishi. And his Uncle Balius. "Very well. I accept," he finally said, having made his decision. "Although I need to know the name of my employer."
The young man turned his chair so he could look at Electrolyzer. "You can call me Jericho. I look forward to working with you, Electrolyzer."
Flashback End: Present day...
"I may not know what promise you made," Electrolyzer said, refocusing his attention on the duel, "but you won't be able to keep it. You know why? Because I too made a promise. One where I'll do whatever it takes to complete it, no matter what it will cost me." He sighed to himself. "If you insist on continuing this duel, I won't stop you, but know it'll end in my victory."
"We'll see about that!" Slipstream said. "My turn! I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck. "I activate the Spell card, Synchro Creed! This card will-!"
"Not so fast!" Electrolyzer interrupted. "I activate the effect of Omega on my field! Once per turn, during either player's turn, I can banish this card to banish one random card from your-!"
"I activate the effect of Breakthrough Skill in my Graveyard!" Slipstream shouted back, causing Electrolyzer to widen his eyes in surprise. "By banishing this card from my Graveyard, I can target a face-up effect monster you control and negate its effects until the end of the turn. I target your PSY-Framelord Omega!" Electrolyzer grit his teeth in annoyance, as Omega greyed out, indicating that his effects were negated. "And with no more interruptions, I can activate the Spell card, Synchro Creed. As there's three or more Synchro monsters on the field, I can draw two cards from my deck." Okay deck, Slipstream thought. Don't fail me now. He drew the top two cards of his deck, and grinned upon looking at them. "I activate the Field Spell card, Speedroid Grand Prix!" The card showed Speedroid Pachingo-Kart, Hi-Speedroid Kendama, and a male racer on a green and white dragon-styled duel runner racing on a racetrack, as the people cheered in the seats. "While Grand Prix is on my field, all 'Hi-Speedroid' and Wind Dragon Synchro monsters on my field gain 300 attack and defense points." As if to prove Slipstream's point, Chanbara was surrounded in a green aura, which powered it up.
Hi-Speedroid Chanbara ATK: 2600 + 300 = 2900 DEF: 1000 + 300 = 1300
"Then I activate the Spell card, Speed Recovery. This card lets me Special Summon one 'Speedroid' monster in my Graveyard, in exchange for not Normal Summoning or Setting any other monsters for the rest of this turn. Return, Kendama!" Kendama reappeared on Slipstream's field, only in the Main Monster Zone.
Hi-Speedroid Kendama ATK: 2200 DEF: 1600 LV: 6
Hi-Speedroid Kendama ATK: 2200 + 300 = 2500 DEF: 1600 + 300 = 1900
After looking up the effects of Kendama and Chanbara on the screen of his duel disk, Electrolyzer scowled. He would make sure that this kid would not defeat him this turn. "I activate Zeta's effect! Once per turn, during either player's turn, I can target one Special Summoned monster you control that's in attack position and banish it along with Zeta until my next Standby Phase. I banish Chanbara! Electro Overcharge!" Zeta raced across the duel field with blinding speed and slashed Kendama multiple times, laughing as both monsters vanished into yellow particles.
Speedroid Grand Prix's second effect only activates during my Battle Phase, Slipstream thought to himself. Guess I'll have to make do with what I have right now. "I activate Kendama's effect! Once per turn, I can banish a 'Speedroid' monster from my Graveyard to inflict 500 points of damage to you! I banish Terrortop!" Kendama blasted Electrolyzer with a bolt of blue energy, making him slightly wobble before regaining balance on his duel board.
Electrolyzer: 4000 – 500 = 3500 LP
"From there, I activate the effect of CarTurbo in my Graveyard!" Slipstream added. "By banishing this card and one 'Speedroid' monster in my Graveyard, all Wind monsters I control gain 800 attack points until the end of the turn. I banish CarTurbo and Double Yoyo!" Soon, Kendama was surrounded in a red aura, which indicated that its strength increased.
Hi-Speedroid Kendama ATK: 2500 + 800 = 3300
"Battle! Hi-Speedroid Kendama attacks PSY-Framelord Lambda!" Kendama charged at Lambda, intent on destroying her.
"Sorry, but I'm not letting you win this duel!" Electrolyzer said. "I activate the effect of PSY-Framegear Beta in my hand. Since you declared an attack-!"
"I activate the second effect of Speedroid Grand Prix!" Slipstream interrupted. "Once per turn, when a Wind Synchro monster battles and you activate a card effect, that effect is negated and sent to the Graveyard!"
"...Tch!" Electrolyzer grit his teeth as the card in his hand turned into yellow particles. Kendama then generated energy before piercing Lambda, turning her into particles as Electrolyzer grit his teeth, now getting annoyed.
Electrolyzer: 3500 – 1600 = 1900 LP
"With that, I end my turn, which means CarTurbo's effect ends and Omega regains his effects." While Kendama's strength returned to normal, the grey aura surrounding Omega dissipated, restoring his strength.
Hi-Speedroid Kendama ATK: 3300 – 800 = 2500
Slipstream wiped his forehead using his right arm. "That was intense, if you ask me. Regardless, I'm certain that victory will be mine."
"I wouldn't get cocky." Electrolyzer warned him. "My turn! I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck. "As its now my Standby Phase, the effects of Zeta and Omega end, which means you get your monster and your card back." Within moments, Zeta reappeared on Electrolyzer's field in the Main Monster Zone, while Chanbara returned to Slipstream's field in the Main Monster Zone. The card that Slipstream had in his hand also returned to him.
PSY-Framelord Zeta ATK: 2500 + 1000 = 3500
Hi-Speedroid Chanbara ATK: 2000 DEF: 1000 LV: 5
Hi-Speedroid Chanbara ATK: 2000 + 300 = 2300 DEF: 1000 + 300 = 1300
"I activate the Spell card, Pot of Avarice! This card lets me target five monsters in my Graveyard, shuffle them into my deck, and then draw two cards. I target PSY-Framegear Alpha, Gamma, Epsilon, and Beta, along with PSY-Frame Driver, and shuffle them into my deck." Five cards came out of his Graveyard, which he took and shuffled into his deck before drawing two cards.
Kendama has more attack points than Chanbara due to this kid's Field Spell, and the card he lost earlier on in the duel was also returned to his hand, he thought to himself. If I'm to push for victory, I need to do it now! "I activate Zeta's effect! Once per turn, during either player's turn, I can target one Special Summoned monster you control that's in attack position and banish it along with Zeta until my next Standby Phase. I banish Kendama! Electro Overcharge!" Zeta raced across the duel field with blinding speed and slashed Kendama multiple times, laughing as both monsters vanished into yellow particles.
"I'm really starting to get annoyed with that effect..." Slipstream said, commenting on what just happened.
"Don't worry. It'll all be over soon." Electrolyzer assured him. "I summon Psychic Commander from my hand!" A man in a green uniform riding a floating tank appeared on Electrolyzer's field.
Psychic Commander ATK: 1400 DEF: 800 LV: 3
"Next, I activate the effect of Psychic Tracker from my hand! Since I control a Level 3 monster other than this card, I can Special Summon Psychic Tracker from my hand!" A small white and green machine with yoyos attached to it appeared on Electrolyzer's field as well.
Psychic Tracker ATK: 1600 DEF: 600 LV: 3
"I now tune the Level 3 Psychic Commander with the Level 3 Psychic Tracker!" Electrolyzer declared, as a bolt of green lightning struck him, the world greying out and his two monsters disappearing into particles in the process. Two rings, one colored green and the other colored white, appeared before turning blue and merging. Six blue rings stacked in a tower appeared, a screen displaying "3 + 3" in front of them. The screen then changed to "6" as light surged through the rings.
"Ferocious beast dwelling in darkness, come forth and bring fear to my enemies!" Electrolyzer chanted. "Synchro Summon! Appear, Level 6! Psychic Nightmare!" A winged, dark-blue fiend with a mane of green hair and horns appeared on Electrolyzer's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.
Psychic Nightmare ATK: 2400 DEF: 1800 LV: 6
"And because I used Psychic Tracker to Synchro Summon Psychic Nightmare, its effect increases Psychic Nightmare's attack points by 600!" Slipstream gasped as Psychic Nightmare roared, its strength having went up.
Psychic Nightmare ATK: 2400 + 600 = 3000
"I activate Psychic Nightmare's effect!" Electrolyzer added. "Once per turn, I can pick one card in your hand and call what type of card it is. If my guess is correct, then Psychic Nightmare gains 1000 attack points until the End Phase!" Electrolyzer thought it over before deciding. "The remaining card in your hand is a Monster card!" Slipstream showed the card in his hand, revealing Speedroid Menko. "It's a Monster card, which means Psychic Nightmare gains 1000 attack points!" Psychic Nightmare roared once again as its strength increased.
Psychic Nightmare ATK: 3000 + 1000 = 4000
"To ensure my chances of victory are certain, I activate Omega's effect as well! Once per turn, during either player's turn, I can banish this card to banish one random card from your hand!"
"Great. Not again..." Slipstream complained. With Menko lost to him once again, the upcoming attack was going to hurt a lot more than he anticipated.
"Go, Electric Dissipation!" Omega pointed a finger at Slipstream's remaining card in his hand, before a burst of electricity was fired and hit the card, causing both Omega and the card to vanish into particles. "Its time to battle! Psychic Nightmare attacks Hi-Speedroid Chanbara!" Psychic Nightmare fired a blast of blue lightning at Chanbara, destroying it and making Slipstream wince as his life points dropped.
Slipstream: 2700 – 1300 = 1400 LP
"I end my turn here, which means Psychic Nightmare's effect ends." As Electrolyzer increased his speed so he could ride parallel to Slipstream, Psychic Nightmare's attack points returned to normal.
Psychic Nightmare ATK: 4000 – 1000 = 3000
"Let me tell you something, kid." Electrolyzer said, getting Slipstream's attention. "From one duelist to another, know that I have nothing against you. However, for me to fulfil my promise, I need to defeat Raguel, Playmaker, and whoever else has an Ignis."
"Is that so?" Slipstream questioned. "In a way, we're similar because we've made promises to ourselves that we must complete. However, what's different is not just the promises we made, but what we'll do to complete them. Ultimately, whoever can come out on top in this duel will be able to continue their mission."
"On that, we can agree." Electrolyzer replied. "So make your final move."
"My turn! I draw!" Slipstream said, drawing the top card of his deck. He then smiled, having drew the card that would lead to his victory. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Mystical Space Typhoon. This card lets me destroy one Spell or Trap card on the field. I destroy Speedroid Grand Prix!" A typhoon emerged from the card and destroyed Speedroid Grand Prix. "And doing so activates Speedroid Grand Prix's final effect. When its sent to the Graveyard by a card effect, I can Special Summon one Wind Synchro monster from my Extra Deck and treat it as a Synchro Summon!"
"WHAT?!" Electrolyzer exclaimed, having been caught off guard by what he just heard.
"If you don't believe me, then witness it for yourself!" Slipstream replied. "Now, appear! Level 8! Hi-Speedroid Kitedrake!" A mechanical, serpentine dragon whose body was comprised of white disks connected by blue sections, and a blue and white head appeared on Slipstream's field in the Extra Monster Zone. On the dragon, there were also green panels on its back and tail, which formed wings.
Hi-Speedroid Kitedrake ATK: 3000 DEF: 2800 LV: 8
Electrolyze blinked in surprise as he looked at Kitedrake. "I didn't expect you to Synchro Summon a Level 8 Synchro monster without using a tuner and a non-tuner monster," he admitted. "But nevertheless, if you attack Psychic Nightmare, you'll lose your monster along with mine."
"Attack points aren't everything, you know." Slipstream told him. "Allow me to show you why! I activate Kitedrake's effect! When its Synchro Summoned, I can activate one of two effects. I think I'll choose the first effect, which lets me destroy all other cards on the field!"
"All... other... cards?!" Electrolyzer gasped out of shock. He had no cards in his hand to respond with, nor did he have any cards on his field to help him.
"That's right." Slipstream confirmed. "Laser Discharge!" Several small orange spots appeared on the blue sections of Kitedrake's body before orange lasers were fired out, which hit Psychic Nightmare and PSY-Frame Circuit, destroying them both. "Battle! Hi-Speedroid Kitedrake attacks you directly! Sonic Tornado!" Kitedrake's panels glowed with light as it roared and charged towards Electrolyzer, spinning in the process. Upon impact, he fell off his duel board, screaming as his life points dropped to zero.
Electrolyzer: 1900 – 3000 = 0
Tessa, Granger, forgive me... Electrolyzer thought, as he was forcibly logged out.
Slipstream turned his head as he continued down the path. "Alright. With muscles defeated, I can now head on over to Raguel and-."
GROWL...
"Aw, come on! Not now!" Slipstream complained, realizing where that sound came from. "Well, I could use a lunch break. After all, there's this burger place I wanted to try out since coming to Den City!" Good luck, Raguel, he thought, before logging out.
At the right path...
Raguel fell down the hole and spun around at the bottom, with Drachen behind him.
"The floors are like corridors, Yuhiro." Roxy told him over the earpiece. "As you go through the holes, it will bring you closer to the center. Once you get there, it'll be a straight path to the finish line."
"And until we get there, we'll have to duel against this guy." Raguel finished, narrowing his eyes at Drachen.
"I've been looking forward to dueling against you for quite a while, Raguel." Drachen said, pulling up alongside him. "As a strong duelist myself, I want to see how my abilities match against yours."
"You interfered with my attempt to rescue someone close to me." Raguel firmly stated, glaring at his opponent. "For that, I'll make you regret trying to get in my way!"
"Seriously? You're still on that?" Drachen rolled his eyes. He then sped his duel board ahead of Raguel and looked back at him. "While I may not understand what you mean, I'll have you know that I was hired to capture your Ignis. Therefore, the sooner we start, the better!"
"For once, we agree!"
"Speed Duel!" both duelists said at the same time.
Raguel: 4000 LP
Drachen: 4000 LP
"I'll go first." Drachen announced, looking at the cards in his hand. "I summon The Black Stone of Legend from my hand!" A black stone with red cracks on it then appeared on Drachen's field.
The Black Stone of Legend ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1
"Next, I activate The Black Stone of Legend's effect! By tributing it, I can Special Summon one Level 7 or lower 'Red-Eyes' monster straight from my deck! I tribute The Black Stone of Legend to Special Summon Red-Eyes Black Dragon from my deck!" The Black Stone of Legend broke apart and turned into particles, leaving the field. A large, black dragon with red-colored eyes then appeared on Drachen's field, roaring in the process.
Red-Eyes Black Dragon ATK: 2400 DEF: 2000 LV: 7
"Red-Eyes Black Dragon?" Herald repeated. "That's another of the legendary monsters, alongside Dark Magician!"
And the monster who prevented me from rescuing Miyu from the azure-overcoated man, Raguel thought, gritting his teeth. "Herald, do you know how he got the Red-Eyes deck?"
"Not sure." Herald admitted. "Hopefully, he didn't steal it like a certain Knight of Hanoi did for his deck."
"What about the strategy of the Red-Eyes deck?"
"Well, the strategy of the Red-Eyes deck is to inflict massive effect damage and maintain consistency." Herald recalled before turning to Raguel. "Therefore, we need to stop Drachen quickly before he gets the upper hand." Raguel nodded in agreement, understanding the situation.
"If you're done talking about my deck's origins, I think I'll continue my turn!" Drachen interrupted, getting them to focus on him once again. "I activate the Spell card, Inferno Fire Blast! This card lets me target one 'Red-Eyes Black Dragon' in my Monster Zone and inflict damage equal to its original attack points! However, it can't attack the turn this card is activated."
Raguel narrowed his eyes. Since the person who went first wasn't allowed to attack, Drachen played a card that allowed him to deal effect damage, thus enabling him to get around that rule.
"Now go, Red-Eyes! Inferno Fire Blast!" Red-Eyes Black Dragon gathered black and red energy in his maw before firing it as a blast of energy at Raguel, causing him to wince as his life points dropped.
Raguel: 4000 – 2400 = 1600 LP
"And just like that, we lost half of our life points already!" Herald cried out in shock.
"I Set one card face-down and end my turn." Drachen concluded. "Show me what you've got, Raguel!"
"My turn! I draw!" Raguel said, drawing the top card of his deck. "I activate the Spell card, Cyreath Treasure. By discarding a 'Cyreath' monster from my hand, I can draw two cards from my deck." Raguel took a card in his hand and sent it to the Graveyard before drawing two cards from his deck. "Since you control a monster and I don't, I can Special Summon Cyreath Satyr from my hand." A creature with the upper body of a man and the horns and legs of a goat appeared on Raguel's field. The creature had bronze pieces of armor on its head, arms, and legs, as well as long claws on its hands.
Cyreath Satyr ATK: 2300 DEF: 1400 LV: 5
"Then I activate the effect of Cyreath Wandering Soul in my Graveyard. By banishing it from my Graveyard, I can Special Summon one 'Cyreath Wanderer' token to my field." A small ball of mist in the form of a ghost appeared on Raguel's field as well.
Cyreath Wanderer Token ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1
"From there, I summon Cyreath Barbarian!" Raguel added, as a man with spiked cuffs, close-cropped blond hair and a mustache appeared on his field.
Cyreath Barbarian ATK: 1500 DEF: 1000 LV: 4
"Appear! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" A Link Portal soon appeared above Raguel. "The summoning conditions are one 'Cyreath' monster. I'll set the Cyreath Wanderer token into the Link Markers!" The Wanderer token went into the bottom-left arrowhead, turning it red.
"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Cyreath Ceryneian Hind!" A female deer with light-brown skin appeared on Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. Unlike other deer though, she had male-like antlers made of gold and hooves made of bronze. She also had a dappled hide as well.
Cyreath Ceryneian Hind ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ↙️
"When Ceryneian Hind is Link Summoned, I can draw one card from my deck." Raguel explained, drawing the top card of his deck. "Appear, for a second time! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" A second Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are two 'Cyreath' monsters. I'll set Cyreath Ceryneian Hind, which is a Link 1 monster, and Cyreath Barbarian into the Link Markers!" Ceryneian Hind went into the left arrowhead, while Barbarian went into the bottom-left arrowhead, turning both of them red.
"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Cyreath Stheno!" A young woman with mid-length light-purple hair tied in two straight pigtails, as well as light-purple eyes, appeared on Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. She wore a short, white dress with a flowery design in the upper chest area, along with clear ribbons around her arms. On the top of her head was a white and black headband decorated with an elaborate design.
Cyreath Stheno ATK: 1400 LINK-2 ⬅️↙️
"Great thinking, Raguel!" Herald praised him. "This time around, we can use her effect, which will help us end this duel quickly!"
Raguel nodded and gestured to his field. "Barbarian's effect! Since it was used to Link Summon, the Link Summoned monster gains 500 attack points!" Stheno was surrounded in a red aura as she powered up.
Cyreath Stheno ATK: 1400 + 500 = 1900
"Next, I activate Stheno's effect! Once per turn, I can target one 'Cyreath' monster she points to and one monster on your field. By doing so, the attack points of your monster is halved, while my monster gains those lost attack points until the End Phase!" Drachen's eyes widened in shock as Stheno fired energy from her hands, draining Red-Eyes Black Dragon of half his strength. She then directed the energy to Satyr, whose strength went up.
Red-Eyes Black Dragon ATK: 2400 / 2 = 1200
Cyreath Satyr ATK: 2300 + 1200 = 3500
"Yes!" Herald cheered. "Thanks to Stheno's effect, we managed to weaken his monster and boost Satyr's attack points in the process. The next two attacks will deal a total of 4200 points of damage, which is just enough to end the duel!"
"I Set two cards face-down." Raguel said. "Battle! Cyreath Satyr attacks Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" Satyr proceeded to charge forward, ready to eliminate Red-Eyes Black Dragon.
"Trap card, activate!" Drachen interjected. "Dragon's Endurance! When a Dragon monster I control is targeted for an attack, I can halve its attack points to not only prevent it from being destroyed, but to also reduce the battle damage I take to zero as well!"
"There's a card that can do that?!" Herald exclaimed, while Raguel frowned upon hearing this information. Soon, Red-Eyes Black Dragon was surrounded in a red aura, which decreased his strength. However, said aura protected the dragon from Satyr's attack, forcing the creature to return to Raguel's field.
Red-Eyes Black Dragon ATK: 1200 / 2 = 600
"You may have dodged one attack, but lets see you dodge this!" Raguel thrusted out his right hand. "Cyreath Stheno attacks Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" Stheno charged forward and pulled out two daggers before slashing Red-Eyes Black Dragon, this time destroying him and causing Drachen to wince, his life points dropping in the process.
Drachen: 4000 – 1300 = 2700 LP
"With that, I end my turn." Raguel concluded. "Stheno's effect ends, and the attack points of Satyr return to normal." The glow around Satyr then dissipated, decreasing his attack points back to 2300.
Cyreath Satyr ATK: 3500 – 1200 = 2300
"On the bright side, he no longer has monsters on his field." Herald told Raguel. "You also dealt some damage to him as well, thus making one more step towards victory."
"But the duel's still going." Raguel reminded Herald. "Which means anything can happen going forward."
"My turn! I draw!" Drachen said, drawing the top card of his deck and grinning upon looking at it. "You got my blood boiling just now, Raguel. For that, I will respond in kind. First, I activate the effect of The Black Stone of Legend in my Graveyard. By targeting one Level 7 or lower 'Red-Eyes' monster in my Graveyard and shuffling it into my deck, I can add this card to my hand. I target Red-Eyes Black Dragon and shuffle it right back into my deck!" After Drachen took a card in his Graveyard and shuffled it into his deck, another card popped out, which he took and added to his hand. "Then I activate the Spell card, Red-Eyes Fusion. This card lets me Fusion Summon one Fusion monster that lists a 'Red-Eyes' monster as a Fusion Material from my Extra Deck, by using monsters from my hand, deck, or field as Fusion Materials."
"What?!" Raguel exclaimed, surprised at what he was hearing. Herald too was surprised, as his eyes widened. Whatever monster Drachen was about to bring out would be tricky to overcome.
"This isn't good..." Herald muttered in worry.
"There's more!" Drachen continued. "The name of the Fusion monster summoned by Red-Eyes Fusion becomes 'Red-Eyes Black Dragon'. Also, I'm not allowed to Normal or Special Summon monsters the turn I activate this card. But that won't matter." Two cards popped out of his deck. "From my deck, I use Red-Eyes Black Dragon and Meteor Dragon Red-Eyes Impact as Fusion Materials!" A silhouette of Red-Eyes Black Dragon then appeared, along with a silhouette of a small, red-eyed dragon that had meteor-hardened skin all over his body. Red lines were also carved throughout his body, and he had a medium-sized wingspan. Both monsters then disintegrated into red and blue particles respectively before swirling into a vortex. Two tornadoes of energy shot upwards and merged to form a white and yellow whirlwind.
"Mighty dragon of endless potential! Envelop yourself in volcanic ash and turn the world into a barren wasteland!" Drachen chanted. "Fusion Summon! Descend, Level 8! Meteor Black Comet Dragon!" A volcanic dragon cloaked in blazing fire appeared on Drachen's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. Not only was his body made up of volcanic rock, he also had a dragon's head attached to his chest.
Meteor Black Comet Dragon ATK: 3500 DEF: 2000 LV: 8
"A Level 8 monster with 3500 attack points?" Herald said, surprised at seeing such a monster. Usually, the strongest monsters that him and Raguel encountered would be at 3000 attack points max. But this was something entirely new...
"The same level as Kazuma's Dark Magician the Dragon Knight..." Raguel muttered, narrowing his eyes. This wasn't good at all.
"Meteor Black Comet Dragon doesn't just look intimidating, it is intimidating!" Drachen told them. "Allow me to demonstrate firsthand! When Meteor Black Comet Dragon is Fusion Summoned, I can send one 'Red-Eyes' monster from my hand or deck to the Graveyard and inflict damage equal to half of the original attack points of that monster!" A card popped out of Drachen's deck, which he took and sent to his Graveyard. "The card I sent just now was the Level 6 Red-Eyes Archfiend of Lightning, which has 2500 attack points."
"That means we take 1250 points of effect damage." Raguel finished.
"You catch on quick." Drachen said, gesturing to his field. "Go, Meteor Black Comet Dragon! Meteor Storm!" The dragon's head attached to Meteor Black Comet Dragon's chest began gathering energy in his maw before preparing to fire it at his master's opponent.
"Raguel, do something or we'll be in serious trouble!" Herald cried out.
"Calm down, Herald. I got it under control." Raguel assured him. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Cyreath Repulse! If I control a 'Cyreath' Link monster, all effect damage I would take this turn is reduced to zero!" Stheno jumped in front of Raguel and blocked the magmatic blast of fire using her hands, dissipating it in the process.
"We survived! Thank goodness!" Herald cheered, relieved they were still in the duel.
"You may have survived effect damage, but lets see how you handle battle damage!" Drachen responded. "I Set one card face-down." He then gestured to his field. "Battle! Meteor Black Comet Dragon, which has been rechristened as Red-Eyes Black Dragon thanks to Red-Eyes Fusion, will now attack Cyreath Stheno! Volcanic Wildfire!" The blazing surrounding Meteor Black Comet Dragon began to heat up as he was enveloped in a fiery aura. Both the dragon's maw and the dragon's head on his chest began to generate energy in their mouths, preparing to unleash it all against Stheno.
"I don't think so!" Raguel replied, gesturing to his field. "Trap card, activate! Cyreath Petrification! When this card is activated, not only can I negate the attack, I can reduce your monsters attack points to zero and negate its effects until the end of my next turn!" Drachen grit his teeth as Cyreath Petrification fired a beam at Meteor Black Comet Dragon, temporarily turning him to stone.
Meteor Black Comet Dragon ATK: 3500 – 3500 = 0
"I end my turn." Drachen concluded, disappointed with how his turn went.
"Nicely done, Raguel!" Herald praised him. "Thanks to Cyreath Repulse and Cyreath Petrification, we avoided both effect and battle damage. In addition, we managed to reduce Meteor Black Comet Dragon's attack points to zero and negate his effects!"
"Which means his monster's practically useless at this point." Raguel added. If all went well, he would be able to defeat Drachen this turn and get payback. "My turn! I draw!" He drew the top card of his deck.
"Trap card, activate!" Drachen said. "Red-Eyes Spirit! This card lets me target one 'Red-Eyes' monster in my Graveyard and Special Summon it! Return, Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" Within moments, Red-Eyes Black Dragon reappeared on his field.
Red-Eyes Black Dragon ATK: 2400 DEF: 2000 LV: 7
"He's building up his defenses..." Herald deduced, narrowing his eyes as he looked over Drachen's field.
"Which means we have to do the same as well." Raguel finished, gesturing upwards. "Appear, the circuit showing the highest mountain!" A Link Portal appeared in the sky above him. "The summoning conditions are two 'Cyreath' monsters with different names. I'll set Cyreath Stheno, which is a Link 2 monster, and Cyreath Satyr into the Link Markers!" Stheno went into the bottom-left arrowhead, while Satyr went into the bottom-right arrowhead, turning both of them red in the process.
"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Cyreath Paris!" A young boy wearing ornate white and black robes appeared on Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. He had neck-long, moss-colored hair, as well as sheep horns on each side of his head. He also had long, elf-like shoes on his feet. Lastly, Paris had orange eyes, which twinkled for a brief moment before dimming down.
Cyreath Paris ATK: 1000 LINK-2 ↙️↘️
"When Paris is Link Summoned using a 'Cyreath' Link monster as Link material, I can add one 'Cyreath' Ritual Spell card and one 'Cyreath' Ritual monster from my deck to my hand." Raguel explained, as he took two cards from his deck and added them to his hand. "I then activate the Ritual Spell card, Cyreath Ceremony!" The orange lines on his white tunics glowed a bright blue. "This card lets me tribute 'Cyreath' monsters on my field or hand whose total levels equal or exceed the Level of the 'Cyreath' Ritual monster I'm summoning from my hand. However, if I control a 'Cyreath' Link monster, I can also use 'Cyreath' monsters in my deck by sending them from my deck to my Graveyard!"
Drachen narrowed his eyes. "Ritual Summoning from the deck," he muttered. Prior to logging into LINK VRAINS, he made sure to rewatch all of Raguel's duels in order to prepare for their duel. Even though Drachen did this, it still surprised him that Raguel was able to Ritual Summon, even more so from the deck rather than tributing monsters from the field or hand.
"I send the Level 4 Cyreath Rushing Skeleton and the Level 3 Cyreath Archer from my deck to the Graveyard!" Raguel said, taking two cards and sending them to his Graveyard. Soon, a white and orange magical circle with seven flames appeared on Raguel's field, along with Rushing Skeleton and Archer. Both monsters disintegrated into light and entered into the center of the circle, which emitted a pillar of bright light.
"The contract has been made!" Raguel chanted. "With the blessing of Zeus, the twins shall accept this offering and go into battle! Ritual Summon! Appear, Cyreath Castor & Pollux!" A set of siblings, which were a brother and a sister, emerged from the portal and appeared on Raguel's field in the Main Monster Zone Paris pointed to. Both siblings wore white and black clothing along with sandals, as well as a wreath on their heads. However, there were a few differences. The brother named Castor had a long, two-pieced white cape, and his weapon was a discus. The sister named Pollux had a golden emblem on her upper chest, and also carried a sword in her right hand.
Cyreath Castor & Pollux ATK: 2200 DEF: 2200 LV: 7
"Paris's second effect activates! Once per turn, when a 'Cyreath' monster is Normal or Special Summoned to a Main Monster Zone he points to, that monster gains 500 attack and defense points, and is unaffected by your card effects until the End Phase!" Paris turned around and shined light from his hands onto Castor & Pollux, enveloping them in a golden aura and increasing their strength.
Cyreath Castor & Pollux ATK: 2200 + 500 = 2700 DEF: 2200 + 500 = 2700
"I Set one card face-down." Raguel gestured to his field after doing so. "Battle! Cyreath Castor & Pollux attacks Meteor Black Comet Dragon! Hymn of the Twin Gods!" Castor & Pollux charged at Meteor Black Comet Dragon, intent on slaying him.
I can't believe I have to use it now, Drachen thought, not liking the situation, but better than losing, that's for sure. "I activate my Skill: Red-Eyes Dominance! During either player's turn, I can target one Dark or Fire Dragon monster I control and increase its attack points equal to the attack points of one other Dark or Fire Dragon monster on my field! I target Meteor Black Comet Dragon, and have it gain Red-Eyes Black Dragon's 2400 attack points!" Meteor Black Comet Dragon was surrounded in a fiery aura as both him and Red-Eyes Black Dragon roared in unison.
Meteor Black Comet Dragon ATK: 0 + 2400 = 2400
"You'll still take battle damage!" Raguel reminded Drachen, as Castor & Pollux sliced Meteor Black Comet Dragon with the discus and sword respectively before finishing him off with a combined attack that caused a massive explosion, slightly pushing Drachen back in the process.
Drachen: 2700 – 300 = 2400 LP
"From there, I activate Castor & Pollux's effect! Once per turn, when they destroy a monster in battle, I can activate one of two effects. I choose the first effect, which lets me banish one card you control until the End Phase." Drachen gasped upon realizing which card Raguel intended to banish. "I banish Red-Eyes Black Dragon! Oblivion Correction!" The discus Castor had began to open up into a massive portal, which sucked Red-Eyes Black Dragon in for the time being, infuriating Drachen.
"You may have got rid of Red-Eyes Black Dragon, but I'll still survive this turn," he told Raguel.
"I'm aware, which is why I'll deal as much damage as I can!" Raguel coldly replied. He gestured to his field. "The battle still continues. Cyreath Paris attacks you directly!" Paris gathered solar energy in his hands and fired it at Drachen, making him wince.
Drachen: 2400 – 1000 = 1400 LP
"I end my turn, which means the effects of Paris and Castor & Pollux end. You get your Red-Eyes Black Dragon back, and Castor & Pollux's attack points return to normal." A red aura enveloped Castor & Pollux, which brought their strength back to their original amount.
Cyreath Castor & Pollux ATK: 2700 – 500 = 2200 DEF: 2700 – 500 = 2200
Meanwhile, Red-Eyes Black Dragon returned to Drachen's field and roared at Raguel.
Red-Eyes Black Dragon ATK: 2400 DEF: 2000 LV: 7
"Had it not been for Drachen's Skill, we would have won the duel." Herald complained, as both duelists descended another tunnel. He ended up shaking around and getting vertigo from the sensation.
"Its something I didn't expect." Raguel admitted. "Since the Red-Eyes archetype focuses on dealing massive effect damage, I thought Drachen's Skill would allow him to deal more of it during either player's turn."
"You're almost there." Roxy said over the com and interrupting their conversation. "Just one more level and..."
Raguel frowned. "Roxy? Everything alright?"
"Uh, yeah. There's a ruckus at the front. I'll send the schematics to Herald and be back in a jiffy."
"A ruckus?" Herald questioned. "What do you mean by that?"
"I'll find out and let you both know." Roxy promised. "Sending schematics... now." Herald's eyes glowed, then he nodded in confirmation. "Alright. I'll try to get back as soon as possible. In the meanwhile, be careful."
"Don't worry, Roxy. We will." Raguel assured her, as the tunnel ended, and they entered a corridor identical to the last one.
"My turn! I draw!" Drachen said, drawing the top card of his deck. "I have to say, Raguel. After seeing your tenacity firsthand, they were right about you. That's why I have to finish you off this turn! Once again, I summon The Black Stone of Legend from my hand!" The Black Stone of Legend soon appeared on Drachen's field once again.
The Black Stone of Legend ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1
"Next, I activate The Black Stone of Legend's effect! By tributing it, I can Special Summon one Level 7 or lower 'Red-Eyes' monster straight from my deck! I tribute The Black Stone of Legend to Special Summon Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon from my deck!" The Black Stone of Legend broke apart and turned into particles, leaving the field. A large, black dragon with red-colored eyes and four flaming wings then appeared on his field.
Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon ATK: 2400 DEF: 2000 LV: 7
"Two Level 7 monsters..." Raguel muttered, looking at both Red-Eyes Black Dragon and Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon. "It can only mean one thing..."
"An Xyz Summon is coming." Herald finished, narrowing his eyes in agreement with Raguel's theory.
Drachen smirked. "Looks like you guys figured it out. Might as well do it since you both know what's coming. I overlay the Level 7 Red-Eyes Black Dragon and the Level 7 Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon!" He raised his duel disk and shot out a bolt of volcanic energy behind him, creating the Xyz cross. "With these two monsters, I build the Overlay Network!" Both dragons turned into black streams of energy as they entered the volcanic bolts, which created a galaxy before exploding with energy.
"Dragon covered in flaming metal, burn my enemies to ash and pave the way to victory!" Drachen chanted. "Xyz Summon! Come forth, Rank 7! Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon!" A large, metallic black dragon with red-colored eyes and four flaming wings then appeared on his field in the right Extra Monster Zone. Orbiting behind Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon were two lights, which represented his Overlay Units.
Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon ATK: 2800 DEF: 2400 RNK: 7 OU: 2
"I activate Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon's effect! By detaching one Overlay Unit, I can target one 'Red-Eyes' Normal monster in my Graveyard and Special Summon it to my field. Return, Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" After one of the lights behind Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon went into his mouth, Red-Eyes Black Dragon then reappeared on Drachen's field.
Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon OU: 2 – 1 = 1
Red-Eyes Black Dragon ATK: 2400 DEF: 2000 LV: 7
"Oh, great. He brought back Red-Eyes Black Dragon again..." Herald complained, knowing that only trouble would come once both monsters attacked.
Raguel, on the other hand, narrowed his eyes. Even though Red-Eyes Black Dragon left Drachen's field again and again, he still had ways to bring it back to either his deck or his field. He could have chosen a different monster such as Red-Eyes Archfiend of Lightning or Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon by activating the effect of Red-Eyes Spirit or Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon. Yet Drachen chose to bring back Red-Eyes Black Dragon each time. Why was that? Might as well ask now to find out the answer. "Drachen," he said, getting the duelist's attention. "Why do you keep bringing back Red-Eyes Black Dragon to your field? You have other options to use, right? Is it because you can win the duel no matter what monster you bring back? Or is there a different reason?"
Drachen thought it over for a moment or two before speaking. "I do it because Red-Eyes Black Dragon is my partner through thick and thin, which means a lot to me." That, and it was an old friend who showed me how to unlock my deck's true potential, he thought. If it weren't for him, I wouldn't be the duelist I was today...
Flashback: Ten years ago, at the Gekido residence...
It was late at night, as a man and a woman, along with a boy, parked their car on the street as crickets chirped in the night. The man who got out of the car had dark and light blue hair, with his attire consisting of a navy blue jacket over a white shirt and a black tie. The woman who got out had red and orange hair, with her attire consisting of a dark-brown jacket over a white shirt. Lastly, the boy who got out had fair skin, with light-blue eyes and white hair that spiked backwards at the sides, with purple-blue highlights. He wore a grey hoodie over a dark pink shirt and a dark pair of pants with purple and black shoes.
"The Gekido family will help us lay low for a while," the man explained to the woman, as the trio approached the front steps. "Besides, Ryoken came over to play many times."
"I know, Aso," the woman replied. "It's just... with Dr. Kogami imprisoned by SOL Technologies, I can't believe we have to hide. Not just for our safety, but for Ryoken's as well."
"When the time comes, we'll emerge out of hiding, Kyoko." Aso told her. "But for now, we have to lay low." Once they reached the front door, Aso knocked on it a few times. Within a few moments, a dark, red-eyed woman who was no more than ten years old answered it. She had short-red hair, with a blue ribbon tied to the back, and was wearing a purple shirt with jeans.
"Aso, Kyoko, you're here!" the woman said, hugging the both of them before kneeling down to Ryoken's level. "How are you, Ryoken?"
"Alright, but..." Ryoken couldn't finish the sentence.
"He's been through a lot lately, Hayai." Aso told the woman. "May we come in?"
"Yes, of course." Hayai replied, motioning for them to enter inside the house, which they did. Soon, a little, jade-eyed girl with short-red hair tied into a ponytail arrived from the living room nearby. Her clothing consisted of a yellow shirt, along with a white skirt. Upon recognizing who just arrived, the girl ran towards Kyoko before hugging her first.
"Aunt Kyoko, Uncle Aso!" the girl cried with joy as she went to hug Aso as well. She also hugged Ryoken, who just shrugged his shoulders and accepted it.
"How are you, Hidoi?" Kyoko asked her.
"Great!" Hidoi replied. "I got a visit from the tooth fairy last night!"
"That's wonderful to hear!" Aso said, getting Hidoi's attention. "Could you get your parents? We need to let them know that-."
"There's no need, Aso," a man's voice said, as he and his wife arrived at the doorstep from the kitchen. The man wore a pair of glasses, which showed his jade-colored eyes. He also had short red hair spiked backwards as well. He wore a plain hoodie over a violet shirt, along with dark-green pants.
As for the man's wife, she had black hair and dark-red eyes. Her attire mainly consisted of a green bust dress with long tails and short white shirt sleeves attached to a collar.
"We know of what happened," the woman said to Aso and Kyoko before approaching them. "You're welcome here for as long as you like."
"Thank you very much, Sayori. You as well, Taida." Kyoko responded to the woman and man respectively. "With everything that's happened, a place to lay low for a while would benefit us, especially for Ryoken. At least until things quiet down and Dr. Kogami is released."
Taida nodded in acknowledgement before approaching Ryoken and kneeling down to his level. "I know you've been through a lot these past few days, but would you like to play with Akairo? He's just finishing his homework as we speak."
Upon hearing Akairo's name, Ryoken's face lit up. "Y-Yes. I'd like that very much." Smiling in response, Taida turned his head upstairs and spoke.
"Akairo! Ryoken's here!"
"Coming, dad!" Akairo said, as he ran out of his room and downstairs to the main floor of the house. When he saw Ryoken, his face lit up in joy. "Ryoken! So good to see you again! Want to play downstairs?" Ryoken nodded and followed Akairo downstairs, happy he could forget the sad events that happened over the past few days.
"Kids these days, huh?" Sayori commented before turning to Hayai and Hidoi. "Hayai, why don't you play with your sister a bit? Your father and I need to discuss some things with Aso and Kyoko."
"Sure, mom." Hidoi replied, taking her sister's hand and leading her to the living room. Taida and Sayori, on the other hand, led Aso and Kyoko to the kitchen.
While that was going on, Akairo and Ryoken were sitting on the ground, playing Duel Monsters against one another.
"Are you going to make your move, Ryoken?" Akairo asked him, concerned for his friend.
"I-Uh..." Ryoken found he couldn't make a move, as he started crying.
"Oh. Okay, let's sit down on the couch, then." After getting up, Akairo helped Ryoken on his feet before the two of them sat down beside one another on the nearby couch. "I heard about what your dad. I-."
"It was my fault! My fault dad's in prison!" Ryoken blurted out, his body shaking.
"Your fault?" Akairo repeated. "What do you mean?" Ryoken then explained about his dad's research, known to him as the Hanoi Project. How he kidnapped eight children for the tests that would happen soon after, as well as the suffering each child went through. At first, Ryoken was able to tolerate it because he trusted in his father's research. Eventually, he was overwhelmed by the pain of the children, and reported the project to the authorities, thus stopping it. In doing so, Ryoken's father was imprisoned.
"And that's it..." Ryoken finished. "That's what happened. That's how my dad's in prison. All because I couldn't tolerate the children's pain!"
Akairo didn't know what to say after hearing a tale that he heard just now. But if he did know anything, its that his friend needed help. So he said, "You remember what I told you about the dragon, right?"
Ryoken turned to Akairo, paying attention to him.
"The dragon represents supernatural power, wisdom, strength, and hidden knowledge. No matter what happens, the dragon always perseveres. That's why I've always idolized dragons, and why you do as well, right?" Ryoken nodded in confirmation upon listening to Akairo's explanation. "So no matter what happens, your father will survive and come back to you. After all, he cares about you a lot. I'm not sure if that helps, but-."
"It does." Ryoken said, wiping his tears with his forearm. "Thank you, Akairo. For what you said." He stood up on his feet. "Come on. Let's go back to the match. I'll kick your butt like last time, hot-head!"
Akairo stood up as well. "Come on, Ryoken! I told you not to call me that!"
Ten years later, at the Hanoi Stronghold...
Drachen gasped as he materialized into a dark room that was lit up with neon-green lights. "This place must be the Knights of Hanoi's headquarters," he muttered.
"Indeed it is." Specter confirmed, as the air in front of Drachen warped and Specter stepped out of it. "Welcome to our Stronghold."
Drachen looked around for a moment before responding. "Hang on. Where's the others? Aren't they supposed to be here?"
"They're on other assignments at the moment." Revolver answered, stepping out of a portal and walked to where Specter was. "You'll get the chance to see them later on. For now, I need to inform you about your mission." Two screens then appeared in front of the three duelists. One screen showed Raguel, while the other showed Playmaker. "The two duelists you see on the screens are known as Raguel and Playmaker. They forced us into hiding following the Tower of Hanoi by defeating us one by one."
"Heh. Big deal." Drachen scoffed, his arms crossed.
"Oh, but it is a big deal." Specter informed Drachen, getting his attention. "Each of them have an Ignis, which is a threat to humanity." With a simple hand gesture, Specter zoomed in on the screens so that Ai and Herald were shown.
"So that's what an Ignis is..." Drachen muttered, narrowing his eyes at what he saw on the screens.
"And like I told you before, they need to be eliminated." Revolver reminded Drachen. "However, Playmaker and Raguel will oppose us because of it."
Drachen nodded in acknowledgement, aware of what he signed up for. "You want me to track them down or something, Revolver?"
"That won't be necessary." Specter answered, closing the screens up before opening up a new one. "Rather, there's something else we need you to do." The screen showed an announcement from SOL Technologies that was currently in development. And the header of the announcement was-.
"A $500,000 reward for Raguel and Playmaker..." Drachen read. "They're assigning bounties on them, even though they saved LINK VRAINS?"
"Lord Kazuma obtained this information from a client on the Black Market." Revolver explained. "Since the bounties will be announced soon, it is very likely that the heads of SOL Technologies will order Akira Zaizen, the Security Chief, to form a bounty hunter team."
"You will join this bounty hunter team and be our eyes and ears, reporting back everything SOL Technologies says and does to us." Specter continued. "More specifically, a double-agent."
"I see." Drachen thought this information over. By accepting this assignment, it gave him some great benefits. For instance, he could learn more about the inner workings of SOL Technologies, as well as what they're up to. Drachen would also get the chance to duel Raguel or Playmaker and evaluate how his dueling skills measures up to theirs.
"What do you say, Drachen?" Revolver said, going over and placing a hand on Drachen's shoulder. "Will you accept this assignment, knowing the risks? Will you help us protect humanity from the Ignis and what lies beyond the network?"
Drachen smirked, having already made his decision. "Of course, old friend. I'll help you out."
Flashback End: Present Day...
"I Set one card face-down." Drachen said, continuing the duel. "Battle! Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon attacks Cyreath Paris! Inferno Metal Flare!" Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon gathered hot, metallic energy in his maw before preparing to fire it at Paris. Raguel, gritting his teeth, gestured to his field.
"Continuous-Trap card, activate!" he declared. "Cyreath Imprisonment!" The card showed Typhon being imprisoned by Cyreath Zeus, Lord of the Storm, Cyreath Poseidon, Lord of the Sea, and Cyreath Hades, Lord of the Underworld. "Upon activation, I can target one monster you control and prevent it from attacking while this card is on my field. However, I can no longer target that monster with card effects. I target Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon!" Within moments, chains of lightning, water, and fire emerged out of Cyreath Imprisonment and wrapped themselves around Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon, stopping his attack in the process.
To Raguel's surprise, however, Drachen grinned. "Do you think something like that will stop me? I activate Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon's effect! Each time you activate a card or effect while he has an Overlay Unit, you take 500 points of damage!"
"We take 500 points of damage just for activating a card or effect?!" Herald exclaimed out of shock. Raguel, on the other hand, gasped, knowing that this would make winning the duel very tricky to do.
"Pretty much." Drachen answered. "Let him have it, Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon!" Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon then fired a hot, metallic burst of fire at Raguel, causing him to wince as his life points dropped.
Raguel: 1600 – 500 = 1100 LP
"The battle still continues! Red-Eyes Black Dragon attacks Cyreath Paris! Inferno Fire Blast!" Red-Eyes Black Dragon gathered black and red energy in his maw before firing it as a blast of energy at Paris, causing him to cry out in pain as he turned into particles. When the smoke cleared, Raguel was shown panting from the attack. On his field was a new monster summoned in defense position. One that had a clay-like body adorned with metallic, dented armor attached to it. Covering its one-eyed face was a bronze helmet, with space so it can see.
Cyreath Clay Giant ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 7
"How did you bring out that monster to your field?" Drachen questioned, surprised that Raguel managed to survive the attack.
"When a 'Cyreath' monster on my field is destroyed by battle, I can Special Summon Cyreath Clay Giant from my hand. Then any battle damage I would have taken is reduced to zero, and Clay Giant gains attack and defense points equal to the destroyed monster's original attack points." Raguel answered.
"Since Paris originally has 1000 attack points, Clay Giant therefore gains 1000 attack points." Herald explained, as Clay Giant roared and powered up.
Cyreath Clay Giant ATK: 0 + 1000 = 1000 DEF: 0 + 1000 = 1000
"You may have survived the turn, but Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon's effect still activates because you activated a card or effect!" Drachen responded. "Here's 500 more points of damage for you!" Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon then fired a second, hot metallic burst of fire at Raguel, causing him to wince again as his life points dropped.
Raguel: 1100 – 500 = 600 LP
"With that, I end my turn." Drachen smirked to himself. Everything's set, he thought. If he activates two more effects, I'll win the duel thanks to Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon. And in the event he somehow finds a way around it, well, that's where my face-down card will come in.
"My turn! I draw!" Raguel said, drawing the top card of his deck.
"Raguel!" Herald said, getting his attention. "We have to be very careful here, as one misstep and we're finished!"
"Right!" Raguel agreed. "I activate my Skill! Godly Grandeur!" The silver armor on Raguel's body then began to shine, causing Drachen to shield his eyes. "By returning one 'Cyreath' Link monster in my Graveyard back to my Extra Deck, I can draw the top card of my deck and reveal it to you before activating one of three effects. I return Paris back to my Extra Deck!" He placed a hand on the top card of his deck. "And then I draw!" Raguel then drew the top card of his deck before looking at it briefly. "The card I drew is Cyreath Whelp, a Monster card. Since I drew a Monster card using Godly Grandeur, one monster on your field loses attack points equal to the revealed monster's attack points. And the monster I choose is Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon!" A silhouette of a ravenous dog composed of volcanic stone and fire then appeared before charging forward and hitting Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon, making him scream in pain.
Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon ATK: 2800 – 1000 = 1800
"Appear, the circuit showing the highest mountain!" A Link Portal soon appeared above Raguel. "The summoning conditions are one 'Cyreath' monsters. I'll set Cyreath Clay Giant into the Link Markers!" Clay Giant went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.
"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Cyreath Scorpius!" A huge scorpion, with large pincers and a long tail, appeared on Raguel's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.
Cyreath Scorpius ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ⬇️
"I activate the effect of Cyreath Doppelganger from my hand." Raguel continued. "Since I control a 'Cyreath' monster, I can Special Summon this card from my hand." A pale, shadowy man materialized itself on Raguel's field.
Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 4
"That wasn't smart of you, Raguel." Drachen told him. "Since you activated a card or effect, the effect of Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon activates, which inflicts 500 points of damage!" Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon then fired a hot, metallic burst of fire at Raguel, causing him to wince as his life points dropped for a third time.
Raguel: 600 – 500 = 100 LP
Raguel, however, shook it off and gestured to his field. "Appear, for a second time! The circuit showing the highest mountain!" A second Link Portal appeared above Raguel. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Cyreath' monsters, including a 'Cyreath' Link monster. I'll set Cyreath Doppelganger, Cyreath Castor & Pollux, and Cyreath Scorpius, which is a Link 1 monster, into the Link Markers!" Doppelganger went into the top arrowhead, Castor & Pollux went into the bottom arrowhead, and Scorpius went into the bottom-right arrowhead.
"Circuit combine! Link Summon! Bewitch those that dare gaze upon you! Link 3! Cyreath Medusa!" A woman with very long, light-purple hair appeared on Raguel's field in the Main Monster Zone Jason pointed to, resulting in both monsters being co-linked with one another. She wore a short, black dress with violet lines that covered her waist. She also had black sleeves with four violet chokers across her arms, along with high-stockings and boots. Her eyes were covered by a violet eye cover, with two silver straps on it. In her left and right hand, she carried a long chain with a dagger at the end of it.
Cyreath Medusa ATK: 2300 LINK-3 ⬆️⬇️↘️
"Judging from the situation you're in, I trust you need my assistance?" Medusa said, turning behind her in acknowledgement to Raguel.
"We're in a sticky situation here." Raguel stated. "Your effect, however, will be very useful in getting out of it, though."
"In that case, I will wait for your signal, Raguel." Medusa replied.
"I activate the effect of Doppelganger in my Graveyard!" Raguel said, going back to the duel. "By banishing a 'Cyreath' monster from my Graveyard, I get to Special Summon this card to my field in attack position. I banish Satyr from my Graveyard to activate its effect and summon it back to my field!" Doppelganger, for a second time, materialized itself onto Raguel's field.
Cyreath Doppelganger ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 4
"You just cost yourself the duel, Raguel!" Drachen exclaimed, certain that victory was his. "Because you activated a card or effect, you take 500 points of damage. I win!" Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon prepared to fire a hot, metallic blast at Raguel, when...
"I activate Medusa's effect!" Raguel interrupted. "Once per turn, during either player's turn, when you activate a card effect, I can negate and destroy it! Go, Mystic Eyes!" Medusa temporarily took off her violet eye cover and blasted a beam of light at Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon, stopping him from firing his attack. However, the beam failed to turn him to stone. "What the-?"
"How come your monster's not destroyed?" Herald demanded. "Medusa's effect-."
"Negates the card effect and destroys it." Drachen finished. "However, there's something I forgot to mention. Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon can't be destroyed by card effects while he has an Overlay Unit."
Raguel frowned upon hearing this. "So the only way to get rid of your dragon is..."
"By battle." Drachen finished for him. "And the most you can do is 500 points of damage. Which means on my next turn, the duel is mine!"
"Well, that makes sense for now." Herald said, turning to Raguel. "We may have negated Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon's effects, but it can't be destroyed by card effects. If he wants a battle..." He turned back to the field. "...then let's give him one!"
Raguel nodded in agreement. "I summon Cyreath Whelp from my hand!" A ravenous dog whose body was composed of volcanic stone and fire appeared on Raguel's field.
Cyreath Whelp ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000 LV: 4
"Two Level 4 monsters..." Drachen muttered, looking at Raguel's field. "Wait! Don't tell me you're-!"
"Appear, the network of divinity!" Raguel declared, as he raised his duel disk and shot out a bolt of white and orange energy out of it, which formed the Xyz cross. "Materials confirmed! The summoning conditions are two Level 4 'Cyreath' monsters. I overlay the Level 4 Cyreath Doppelganger and the Level 4 Cyreath Whelp!" Both Doppelganger and Whelp turned into streams of black and orange energy before entering the portal, where a pillar of light soon erupted from its center.
"Xyz Summon! Watchdog of the Underworld, heed my call and tear my foes to bits! Rank 4! Cyreath Blazing Orthros!" A dark-red, two-headed hound with flames engulfing his body appeared on Raguel's field in the Main Monster Zone Medusa pointed to. He had a large metal brace with a broken chain attached to his left paw, with similar-looking spiked collars around his necks. In addition, Orthros had a large bone structure protruding from his back, with funnel-like spouts that shot out flames, which ran along his spine.
Cyreath Blazing Orthros ATK: 2500 DEF: 2000 RNK: 4 OU: 2
"First Ritual, now Xyz..." Drachen said, gritting his teeth. Its alright, he reassured himself. If he attacks, I'll just have to resort to using my face-down card!
"Whelp's effect activates!" Raguel said, getting Drachen's attention.
"When Whelp is used as Xyz Material for the Xyz Summon of a 'Cyreath' Xyz monster, one Spell or Trap card on your field is instantly destroyed!" Herald explained, causing Drachen to gasp in surprise.
"I destroy your face-down card!" Raguel declared, as a fiery version of Whelp appeared and bit into Drachen's face-down card, tearing it apart and revealing the face-down card as Red-Eyes Burn before both turned to particles. "And with that out of the way, its time to battle! Cyreath Medusa attacks Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon! Bloody Lash!" Medusa leapt forward at Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon and evaded his attack before slashing him several times with the daggers attached to the end of the chains. As a result, he roared in pain before turning into yellow particles.
Drachen: 1400 – 500 = 900 LP
"Since Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon is no longer on the field, Cyreath Imprisonment destroys itself." Imprisonment then turned into yellow particles as Raguel pointed to Red-Eyes Black Dragon. "The battle still continues! Cyreath Blazing Orthros attacks Red-Eyes Black Dragon! Searing Flame Charge!" The fire engulfing Blazing Orthros turned him into a blazing inferno as he charged at Red-Eyes Black Dragon head-on, hitting him and causing a massive explosion that pushed Drachen back in the process.
Drachen: 900 – 100 = 800 LP
"I didn't expect you to make a comeback like that, Raguel." Drachen said. "But like it or not, your turn's over now, and that means I'll be able to end this duel myself!"
"You're right." Raguel coldly agreed, narrowing his eyes at his opponent in fury. "The duel will be over, but for you, not for me! I activate Blazing Orthros' effect! Once per turn, when Blazing Orthros destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard, I can detach one Overlay Unit to Special Summon the destroyed monster back to your field. By doing this, your monster loses 1000 attack points, and Blazing Orthros can attack it a second time!"
"It can attack again?!" Drachen exclaimed.
"That's correct!" Herald confirmed.
"Go, Flame Resuscitation!" Raguel said, as one of the Overlay Units behind Blazing Orthros went into one of his two mouths. The two-headed hound then fired two fiery beams of energy into a portal that appeared on Drachen's field. The beams grabbed Red-Eyes Black Dragon, which was weakened by the beams of energy, and pulled him back to Drachen's field.
Cyreath Blazing Orthros OU: 2 – 1 = 1
Red-Eyes Black Dragon ATK: 2400 – 1000 = 1400
"Let's end this!" Raguel gestured to his field. "Cyreath Blazing Orthros attacks Red-Eyes Black Dragon for a second time! Searing Flame Charge!" The fire engulfing Blazing Orthros turned him into a blazing inferno as he charged at Red-Eyes Black Dragon head-on for a second time, causing a massive explosion and making Drachen fall of his duel board.
Drachen: 800 – 1100 = 0
Man, Drachen thought, smiling to himself, you and Specter were right about Raguel after all, Revolver. If we're to defeat him, Playmaker, and the other duelists who have Ignis's, we'll need to get stronger too. He was then forcibly logged out afterwards.
That was for... Raguel almost finished his thought with Miyu's name. He shook his head. No. That was for me, he finally decided, as he and Herald continued down the corridor. They then turned a corner and ended up finding Soulburner.
"Soulburner!" Raguel called out to him, getting his attention. "You defeated Go?"
"Yup, although it stung a bit." Soulburner confirmed with a frown, as Raguel increased sped up on his duel board to become parallel with him. "No matter how much I tried to remind Go of his former self and how he inspired others, he still persisted with his new path as a bounty hunter." He turned his head to look forward ahead of the corridor. "Go was a hero who inspired me most of all, and the fact I had to duel him while he was in that state... really sucks."
"Well, to point something out, Raguel and Playmaker were the two heroes of LINK VRAINS that people talked about the most." Herald chipped in. "The fact that Go was no longer getting attention probably led him to becoming a bounty hunter in the foolish hopes of reclaiming his spotlight again."
"Herald!" Raguel reprimanded him, a frown on his face. "Watch yourself!" He motioned to Soulburner, and upon doing so, Herald realized his mistake.
"Oh. Sorry, Soulburner." Herald apologized.
"Its fine, Herald." Soulburner replied. "All we can do right now is hope Go realizes he made the wrong choice before it's too late."
"If Go's willing to repent for his earlier actions, I could see him becoming an ally towards our mission." Flame added. "What he'll do next will ultimately decide that."
Raguel nodded in agreement, a frown on his face. He made a mental note to try and fix things with Go once this was all over.
Eventually, both duelists reached the end of the corridor before taking a right turn, where they ran into Playmaker.
"Heads-Up, Playmaker!" Soulburner called out with a smirk, as he reoriented himself on Playmaker's left side, while Raguel moved to Playmaker's right side.
"Soulburner... Raguel..." Playmaker said back, turning to each of his allies.
"So, you actually managed to get past Go Onizuka, huh?" Ai noted at Flame and Soulburner.
"Managed is one way to put it." Flame boasted. "Dominate is another."
Raguel rolled his eyes at that comment. Were AI's always this obnoxious?
"You're one to talk." Ai huffed in response, as Herald squinted his eyes at Ai, seeing that he wasn't as humble as he let himself on. Soon though, Ai turned to look back at him and Raguel with interest. "What about you, Herald? Raguel? You took care of the other two bounty hunters yourself? If so, then color me impressed."
"While I appreciate the compliment, we only took out Drachen." Herald informed Ai.
"Long story short, another duelist named Slipstream appeared and took on Electrolyzer." Raguel added, surprising everyone except Herald. "I encountered him once before in the Black Market's Gamma Branch, and saved him from a group of thugs. My best guess is that Slipstream arrived to repay that debt."
"Were you able to get any other information out of him?" Playmaker asked Raguel, who shook his head in response. Great. Another unknown.
"Regardless of his motives, he did help us." Soulburner pointed out. "The portal should be just up ahead. Then we'll see what lies beyond the borders of LINK VRAINS." With the distractions finally out off the way, the trio continued on with a sharply focused objective as they pressed onwards.
The corridor eventually ended, and the three duelists ended up in a vast central space with several hexagons of data floating around.
"I didn't know what to expect, but the area is a lot more blue than I thought it would be." Ai admitted. No one answered him as they kept flying.
"I'm detecting an anomaly nearby." Flame informed the group. "Right... there." The humans and Ignis turned and saw a green space shining on the horizon. Getting closer, they saw it resembled a whirlpool with a bright spot in the center.
"Oh, you mean the only non-blue thing in this place?" Ai sarcastically questioned. "Good job."
"That's obviously our lead!" Herald stated. "Right, Raguel?"
"It has to be." Raguel answered, as the trio sped towards the green space.
"What about you, Playmaker?" Ai said. "Do you think that's our lead?"
"Let's find out!" Playmaker decided, as he led the way through the gate, with Raguel and Soulburner following after him.
Not long after they were through, two more duel boards approached the gate. One of the riders was Ghost Girl. The other was a teenager in a white, blue, and pink one-piece outfit, blue fingerless gloves, dark blue stockings, and blue boots. Her dark blue hair was short and parted to the side.
"They went in there," the girl deduced. "And we're going in there too."
"But what's beyond that portal could be dangerous, Blue Girl." Ghost Girl pointed out to her ally. "If SengokuQueen were here with us, I'd feel a bit more secure if you ask me."
"SengokuQueen's not with us right now, remember?" Blue Girl reminded Ghost Girl. SengokuQueen would have joined them on the assignment, but Akira called for her assistance at the last minute. Unfortunately, Blue Girl didn't know why Akira did this, but she trusted that he had a good reason to do so. "Right now, its up to us to complete this mission. Or do you want to turn back?"
"I didn't say that." Ghost Girl replied. Both women then accelerated and passed through the gate as it then closed up behind them, intent on completing their mission.
A light shines and the letters spelling out VRAINS light up the screen before a network is formed and several cards are drawn in towards a pillar of light. Playmaker, Raguel, and Soulburner are shown with their respective Ignis and stats, along with real-life forms that across the backgrounds that match their Ignis' colors. The screen then shows each of them being shocked while wearing VR sets as kids, along with a kid with light-green hair that flowed backwards and curled at the back. The kid also had dark-green hair spikes on the sides of his head, with light-green spikes at the back of his head as well.
The screen gets swallowed with darkness at it reveals a young Yukage huddled up and crying, his shadow shrinking behind him before taking the form of Wraith and comforting him. Yukage looks up with a menacing and soul piercing glare before the darkness consumes him and he's replaced with an older version of himself. Azrael and Wraith are then shown in NEW LINK VRAINS, as they look out into the digital sky. The scene then shifts to Bohman standing tall above NEW LINK VRAINS and holding the earth in his hands with Haru by his side. Malf grins in the shadows behind them, his red eyes shining bright in the process.
A drop of light falls down, and as it explodes, it reveals Playmaker, Raguel, and Soulburner, standing on buildings watching over the network, along with Slipstream as well. Blood Shepherd is shown commanding a trio of Battledrone Sergeants before the screen shifts to Drachen, who is shown commanding Red-Eyes Black Dragon. The screen then shifts a third time to Electrolyzer, where above him was PSY-Frame Driver, with PSY-Framegears Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, and Zeta. The screen then shows Go Onizuka, Kenmochi, and Yoroizaka with Dinowrestler King T Wrextle, Gouki the Blade Ogre, and Gouki the Solid Ogre behind them ready for battle.
Blue Angel, Ghost Girl, Numera and SengokuQueen are then featured together riding their duel boards across the night sky with shooting stars flying across them. Trickstar Holly Angel was with Blue Angel, while Numera was with Geomathmech Final Sigma. Ghost Girl was with Altergeist Dragvirion, while SengokuQueen was with a male shinobi wearing grey robes and armor pads with neon-yellow lines running over them. The man had a red scarf around his neck, along with a face-mask and face visor on his head. He also had spiked-brown hair and a ponytail as well. In his right hand, he carried a Sai, while the brass knuckle on his left hand emitted four translucent blades.
The screen then changes to Raguel, Playmaker, and Soulburner riding on their duel boards with Cyreath Medusa and Cyreath Hercules in his new form, Cyberse Magician, Cyberse Witch, and Salamangreat Heatleo behind them. Following the trio is Slipstream and Clear Wing Synchro Dragon. The four of them join together with a fist bump and smile in the real world as the wind blows, with Kusanagi, Roxy, and Greg watching them from Kusanagi's truck. Rachel then runs toward the quartet, and more specifically, Yuhiro, a look of joy clearly on her face. Unbeknownst to everyone, they're watched from the shadows by a cloaked person who glares at them, biding his time.
Card Gallery
Slipstream:
Speedroid Grand Prix (Field Spell card)
Effect: 'Hi-Speedroid' and WIND Dragon Synchro Monsters gain 300 ATK/DEF. During your Battle Phase, when a WIND Synchro monster you control battles a monster your opponent controls and your opponent activates a card effect: You can negate that effect, and if you do, send it to the GY. You can only use this effect of 'Speedroid Grand Prix' once per turn. If this card is sent to the GY: You can Special Summon 1 WIND Synchro Monster from your Extra Deck (this is treated as a Synchro Summon).
Raguel:
Cyreath Imprisonment (Continuous-Trap card)
Effect: Target 1 monster your opponent controls upon activation. While this card is on the field, the targeted monster cannot attack, but it cannot be targeted by your card effects. When the targeted monster leaves the field: Destroy this card.
Cyreath Whelp (LV: 4/Cyberse/Fire/ATK: 1000/DEF: 1000)
Effect: If this card is used as Xyz Material for the Xyz Summon of a 'Cyreath' Xyz Monster: You can destroy 1 Spell or Trap card your opponent controls. During either player's turn, when this card is in your GY and your opponent activates a card effect: You can banish this card from your GY; negate the activation, and if you do, inflict 500 damage to your opponent. You can only use each effect of 'Cyreath Whelp' once per turn.
Cyreath Blazing Orthros (RNK: 4/Cyberse/Fire/ATK: 2500/DEF: 2000)
Effect: 2 Level 4 'Cyreath' monsters. Once per turn, when this attacking card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the GY: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; Special Summon the destroyed monster to your opponent's side of the field in face-up Attack Position, but it loses 1000 ATK. This card can make a second attack on that monster during this Battle Phase.
QOTC
Now that you've seen Drachen and Electrolyzer in action, what is something you want to see from either of them in the future?
Chapter Preview
Next time on Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS: Obscured Truth. Chapter 49: The Playmaker Conspiracy. After encountering the Wind Ignis and learning more about the situation, Raguel, Playmaker, and Soulburner intercept Blue Girl and Ghost Girl. While Soulburner duels against Blue Girl, Raguel and Playmaker go after the Wind Ignis's lead on their common enemy. Meanwhile, to help Haru understand the power of bonds, Azrael advises him to duel against Raguel, while an enraged Bohman confronts Playmaker, vengeance on his mind...
Author's Notes
Alright, now this was truly an epic chapter to write! Not just because of Brion and Akairo's backstories, but because of the duels, the events that occurred prior to and after the duels, and Raguel's first Xyz Monster. So going down the list...
The first big thing we have is the reveal of both Brion and Akairo's backstories. For Brion's backstory, it goes like this: He was one of three children born to the Miyahara family, who ruled Central Japan at the time. However, at the age of 17, Brion was kidnapped by the Royal Family's Physician: Athaliah Kuraishi, for Project: Apotheosis. For those who thought she had a connection to Dr. Kogami, she didn't. I originally planned for this, but ultimately dropped it, as many people would most likely suspect it. Where was I? Oh, yes. Three months after Brion was rescued from Project: Apotheosis, terrorists that Balius, his uncle, funded in secret attacked Central Japan, and he killed Brion's older brother Granger and younger sister Tessa, along with their parents before seizing the crown. Although Brion attempted to get his revenge, he was forced to escape into the wilderness. Over the next five years, he becomes a bounty hunter named Electrolyzer to not only provide for himself, but so he can get Central Japan back and avenge himself on Athaliah and Balius. One day, however, he is hired by someone named Jericho, who is impressed with his dueling skills, even though he lost. Who do you think Jericho is? What does he know regarding everything going on? Wait and see.
Then we have Akairo's backstory. As revealed in Chapter 44, he's an old friend of Ryoken's, so the purpose of writing his backstory was to show their friendship was, which occurred when they were kids. The flashback occurs following the lost incident, where we see Aso and Kyoko taking Ryoken to live with the Gekido family and lie low for a bit. While Akairo doesn't know the right words to cheer Ryoken up after hearing what happened from him, he was able to do so by telling him about the dragon and what it symbolized. From there, I flash forwarded to a scene that happened just shortly after the events of Chapter 44. Drachen logs into the Hanoi Stronghold for the first time and Revolver and Specter discuss the mission that he'll do, as well as provide him with some background information. Simple as that.
From there, we have the two duels, which were the main meat alongside the backstories. Credit to HunterHQ for helping me out with answering some of my questions regarding the duels, as there was a delay or two in writing them. For the Slipstream vs Electrolyzer duel, I opted for Slipstream to not use Clear Wing Synchro Dragon to win the duel. Don't get me wrong: Clear Wing Synchro Dragon is Slipstream's beloved ace monster, and he'll use her the first chance he has. So why did he not use Clear Wing Synchro Dragon for this duel? Its to show that he's flexible and able to adapt to the situation. That, and I wanted to write a duel where Slipstream's Hi-Speedroid Synchro monsters can have the spotlight.
We also have the duel between Raguel and Drachen, where Raguel had to battle against a deck that dealt massive effect damage at once, unlike Blue Angel/Blue Girl's Trickstar deck, which dealt little points of effect damage like bee stings. This duel was also the debut of Raguel's Xyz Monster, Cyreath Blazing Orthros, and his other monster, Cyreath Whelp. I'm curious to see how many of you expected Raguel to Fusion Summon during this duel. After all, if Playmaker Fusion Summoned during his duel against Blood Shepherd, why shouldn't Raguel? As for Cyreath Blazing Orthros, his appearance is based off of Twinbellows from Kid Icarus: Uprising, while Cyreath Whelp was based off of the Hades Cerberus Whelp from God of War: III. Which summoning method do you think Raguel will learn next? You'll have to read on and find out.
Thank you everyone for reading Chapter 48 of Obscured Truth. As always, please let me know your thoughts about the chapters below in your reviews. Also, constructive criticism is appreciated, as your tips and advice helps make the story better. In addition, don't forget to favorite and follow the story. That way, you will get a notification once the next chapter is released.
What did you enjoy the most about this chapter? Brion and Akairo's backstories? The duels? Jericho's name being dropped, and the mystery of his identity? Or was it something else?
Before I go, I just want to give you a heads-up for the next chapter. While I hope it will take the average two weeks to complete, I suspect it will take a bit longer due to the content I want to cover. I'm hoping to get it done within two weeks, but if not, then expect Chapter 49 by late-July.
That's all for now. See you next time!
