"This is it! Dana is here!" Marcus said as he and the rest of Team Mystic stood at the front of a fancy-looking hospital. After meeting up with Snyder, Marcus finally got the hospital Dana is staying at, and it appears to be one of the best hospitals around with Dana getting the best treatment for her condition.
"So, this is where Dana is." Cindy said.
"Yeah. Snyder said his team moved her here to make sure she gets great treatment." Yukina said. "That was awfully nice of them. They must be great people."
"Dana! I'm finally here!" He called as he just ran in.
"Hey! It's still a hospital! You still got to be respectable to the other patients here!" Felix reminded. It was all just as Snyder said. Dana was at this hospital with her currently sitting in a wheelchair with a nurse near her. She just simply took in the fresh air and stared up at the beautiful sky. It's much better than staying cooped up in a hospital the whole time.
"Dana! Dana!"
"Huh? That voice... Could it really be?" Dana questioned as she looked to the side and saw Marcus rushing over.
"I finally found you!" Marcus called.
"It is you! Marcus!" Dana said as she was so happy to see Marcus once again.
"Dana!" Marcus shouted as he practically leaped at her and gave her the biggest hug he could with the nurse trying to hold Dana steady.
"Easy! I'm glad to see you too, but I'm not exactly standing on my own two feet. You could knock me over and then I'll be at this hospital for another reason." Dana said.
"Sorry. I'm just so glad to see you again." Marcus said as he released her. "I just recently met up with Snyder and he told me everything. Are you doing well in his hospital?"
"Yeah, I am." Dana said. "Snyder joining Team Void really hooked me up. I'm getting the best treatment imaginable here. I feel like I'm doing a lot better here than I did in that last hospital."
"I'm so glad to here that." Marcus said. "I was hoping that by the time I would see you again that I would be considered the best, but it looks like I haven't quite made it yet. Still, I made it to the finals of the Worldwide Supreme Tournament."
"I know. I've been watching. I almost can't believe that you and Snyder might be facing each other in the finals." Dana said. "Seeing you two go against each other will surely be an entertaining show." Dana and Marcus feel so happy to be with each other again, and Marcus' friends are happy for him.
"Look at those two." Yukina said. "I suppose it has been a long time since they last saw each other."
"Yeah. It's nice to see someone that might be able to control Marcus." Felix said. "Still, I can't help but wonder what's going on with Snyder. What's so important that he would want to miss on the reunion of friends that are so close." It did seem rather strange that he would miss out on something like this. Why would Snyder not be here?
...
Raika
Meanwhile, something else was going on with Raika. Raika has been wondering around the world for sometime without any real goal or purpose other than to fully master his power and make himself stronger. Though it's not the same as when it was before, he's still a dangerous man. At the moment, he just stood in an office and was getting rather impatient as he felt like people were just staring at him. "Hey! I don't like being kept waiting! What am I doing here?!"
"What's the matter, Raika? Don't you like your stay?" Someone said once they entered the room. Raika was faced with a strange man. He had dark brown hair and wore a teal coat that reached down to his ankles. He also wore a magenta buttoned top with black pants and boots. The thing about his appearance that he a black marking around his left eye that curved out to one side. He had a blue star painted on the right side of his face. What's more is that he had blue lips. "It wasn't easy to track you down."
"Well, I'm here." Raika said. "You came out of nowhere and brought me here, you clown." That was true. This guy was the same one that met up with Raika before, but what does he want with him?
"I do have a name. You can call me Vincent." He introduced as he bowed. "You have no idea how great it feels that I'm named after a great master of art, especially since art is a passion of mine second only to dueling. I would appreciate it if you talked to me with a little more respect since we're considered equals."
"Equals?" Raika questioned.
"That's right. Just like you...I was chosen to hold one of the Malicious Fiends." Vincent admitted.
"Is that so?" Raika said as that got him interested. "Well, just because you hold one doesn't mean we're equals. I would like to see what it would be like to have one Malicious Fiend go against another." He reached for his deck and was ready to have a duel.
"I'm afraid I can't duel you, Raika." Vincent said.
"Why's that?" Raika questioned.
"I'm afraid my deck isn't finished just yet." Vincent said. "Yes, I'm a member of Team Void, but the duels I've been in up until now have been test trials to construct the perfect deck for me. As much as I would like to make you my canvas, I'm afraid this is not the time or the place."
"If you're not going to duel me, this is nothing more than a waste of my time." Raika said as he was all set to leave.
"You can't leave just yet. Don't you want to say hello to someone you know?" Vincent questioned.
"Someone I know? Who would that be?" Raika questioned.
"That would be me." A hidden entrance opened up and Raika couldn't believe who he saw there. It was none other than Diego himself, the head of the Black Ace organization. The very same organization that Yukina and her friends want to bring down. "It's been a long time, Raika. It's nice to see you're doing well, especially after that humiliating defeat you've suffered at the hands of Yukina. That duel sounded like it got crazy, but I can't believe you actually lost to her."
"Diego? You're behind this place?" Raika said. "I thought you were finished yourself after your grand plans with me went up in smoke."
"Well, I certainly don't like that you stabbed me in the back after all I did for you. That wasn't very nice, but I'm not holding a grudge for that." Diego said as he walked over to his desk and had a seat. "I've noticed that after Duel Battlers, you went off the grid. What have you been up to since we last saw each other?"
"Cut the garbage." Raika said. "You and I both know what this is really about. You want to know if I still have this!" He said as he took out thee card. He showed that he still held Life Destroyer in his deck. That was certainly bringing delight to Diego.
"So you do still have it. I knew you wouldn't get rid of it." Diego said.
"It's a powerful card. What duelist would get rid of such a powerful card?" Raika said. "If you're really so curious as to what I've been up to, I've been learning to control this card rather than having it control me. Now, what is this really about? What was the clown talking about earlier with this Team Void?"
"Haven't you been following the Worldwide Supreme Tournament? I thought a duelist like you would be interested in it." Diego said. "Team Void is one of the top contenders of the tournament, and I happen to be the sponsor for the tournament. That means one of the best dueling teams in the world is answering to me. Vincent here is just one of them, and he's been given one of the Malicious Fiends because he is capable of handling the power it produces, just as you can handle Life Destroyer."
"You mean you found one of the other Malicious Fiends?!" Raika said as he almost couldn't believe it.
"Oh please. If I found the one you have, I can find the others." Diego said. "What do you think I've been doing all this time since Duel Battlers ended? I'm most displeased that our plans with Duel Battlers were ruined because of Yukina and her friends, but I realized something. Life Destroyer is just one card. If we wish to become unstoppable, we must have more than one."
"What do you mean by "we"? I don't need you anymore, Diego." Raika said.
"Now, Raika. Don't be like that." Diego said. "You simply wish to be the most powerful duelist there ever was. Isn't that right? I can still make that happen for you. All you would have to do is fall in line and don't go off doing your own thing again. There are big things to come to this world, Raika. I can't have you ruining all of that with your ego."
"Care to say that again?" Raika threatened.
"I don't think you're selling it all that good." Vincent claimed.
"Raika, what I'm trying to say is that I would like for us to work together again." Diego said. "You have one of the Malicious Fiends. Soon, we will have the others, as well as those who are capable of wielding their incredible power. Once all six of the Malicious Fiends are brought together, there's no telling what could happen."
"I have to admit that it does sound interesting, but what does any of this really have to do with me?" Raika questioned as he still didn't seem interested in Diego's ambitions.
"How much more clear do I have to be?" Diego said. "I'm offering you to work with me once again. With your power, the world will be at our mercy. Imagine all the power that can be unlocked. Of course, there are only a few in the world who can wield the incredible power that the Malicious Fiends have. The darkness within those cards can be quite dangerous. That's why I sought you out. You were just a regular duelist that gained quite the reputation that made you quite brutal and fierce. I knew you were the right person for the job, and you still are. You can't possibly ignore what lies before you."
"I can't? Why is that?" Raika questioned.
"It's because you're one of the few that can wield such power. Must I keep repeating and rephrasing myself?" Diego questioned. "Vincent here is one himself, as is another. Soon, we will have all the Malicious Fiends together. The dark power you all have should not go to waste. You simply can't ignore it. You have that card for a reason."
"I have this card because you brought me to it." Raika said.
"Okay, so true." Diego said. "The bottom line is that the whole world will be thrown in darkness and will be ours. Why, look at what happened when you last dueled Yukina. With that power, imagine what we can do."
"Ours?" Raika questioned as that might have been the deal breaker for him. "I think you don't seem to get it anymore. I thought it was made clear after the last time we saw each other."
"Pardon?" Diego said.
"Let me make a few things clear. This is all what you want, not what I want." Raika said. "What I desire is to be the most powerful duelist there is. One other thing, you seem to be under the assumption that this card controls me, but it's not! I've been working to make the power of this card mine! I've been working to have this card bend to my will rather than the other way around."
"Oh, Raika. You think you can make that power yours?" Diego said. "You might be able to have some control over it, but you think can have a Malicious Fiend bow to your will? It doesn't work like that. You embrace the power or it consumes you, but you can't truly control it. Do you understand? Keep in mind that I also made you what you are. You would have nothing without me."
"Are you saying I owe you?" Raika questioned. "I thought I made it clear that I don't need you anymore. You think this power isn't mine? Let me give you a demonstration!" He played a card and it ended up causing some sort of explosion. Vincent endured the explosion until the shockwave settled. When he could see, he saw that there was a hole in the wall with Diego moved in a different direction. As for Raika, he was gone.
"Well, that wasn't very nice. After all the trouble we went through to track him down..." Vincent complained.
"Arrogant fool." Diego said. "I did so much for the boy. I gave him the power he has now. It would seem that I boosted his own ego a little too much. Well, he can't escape so easily. He won't get very far."
"You're not too worried?" Vincent questioned.
"Not quite. Besides, I have other matters that need my attention." Diego said. "How are things going with Zash?"
"His body is still trying to endure his new power, but it's all coming together well. So is the new cards you've designed for his deck." Vincent said. "It won't be long now."
"Good. With how powerful his Malicious Fiend is, it would take a toll on the average person. However, Zash has given into the darkness of his heart and is embracing the power." Diego claimed as things were all going according to his plan. "While that is going on, I want you to deal with Raika now." He turned to the side and spoke with someone else that Raika missed. It was Snyder. "Also, you know that if anyone gets in their way, take them down." If Diego is the sponsor for Team Void, this means that Snyder is answering to him. This also means that the friendly duel Marcus was looking forward to isn't going to be so friendly. It also seems like that Snyder is more than willing to take down his own friend. What madness is Diego stirring up now?
