Hello everybody! I'm finally back from my break to bring you the sequel you've all been waiting for: Yugioh: The Hope of Six! Sorry if I made you all wait too long. I wanted to make sure I got this off to a good start. This story will be different compared to "The Power of Four". I can only pray I do it right and don't screw it up. Instead of one major villain in this story, we have several! And they have their own schemes to give our heroes a bad time! There are a lot of relationships I have planned and teased back in my previous story, and I want to do them all right. And of course, I want the Duels to be awesome. With that out of the way, time to get started!
Yugioh: The Hope of Six
Chapter 1 – Preparations
Flashback:
"Where… am I?" That was the first thing Ray Akaba asked herself when she opened her eyes. The last thing she recalled was using the Nature cards her father made to stop Zarc from destroying her world. She then saw herself drifting through endless space, passing many stars along the way. There was a bright light after that, and then… nothing. Now, she found herself in a world completely unknown to her. Not only that, when she examined herself, she was surprised to see herself transparent like a ghost. "Have I become some sort of… disembodied spirit?" She also thought of Zarc, her world, and her father, Leo Akaba.
'Dad… I pray that you will be okay.' Ray also lamented that the monster that she vanquished was her former love. She still couldn't believe what he became and what he tried to do. It pained her terribly to see him destroying their home and slaughtering innocent people. Despite those feelings, she did what had to be done to stop him and save her world. At least, she hoped she succeeded.
Ray then decided to put thoughts of the past behind her and focused on the present. She took a look around her new environment. It appeared to be some kind of paradise divided into six sections, each of a different natural location. She was awed by every detail. What got her attention the most were the six little beings floating around, apparently bringing life to their home. She tried to ask them what they were and where she was, but none of them noticed her at all. Ray quickly realized that she cannot be seen or heard in her transparent form. While this disappointed her, she was still content to simply watch and learn.
She observed their interactions with great interest, taking notes of their different personalities, behaviors, and hobbies. She even laughed at the antics of the dark purple one, who seemed to act like a mischievous child. Through her observations, Ray learned they were highly advanced artificial intelligence called "Ignis" and their home was called "Cyberse World". They also created a new Type of Monster called "Cyberse Monsters". She learned they were in a digital realm called LINK VRAINS, created by the humans of the world Ray ended up in. It seemed that their home resided in a isolated section of LINK VRAINS so that no human could find them. Ray wondered how the Ignis came to be. She waited but the subject of their origins never seemed to come up. Perhaps it was an unpleasant thing to talk about, she thought.
The Ignis appeared to be living in peace… at first. Then to Ray's horror, a dragon like Monster summoned by a man in white attacked Cyberse World and it's inhabitants. She couldn't understand why someone would dare attack such innocent creatures that had done no harm. All but one of the Ignis were captured, but not unscathed. Ray wished she could've done something to help the Ignis, but she was just an invisible phantom to them.
Ray followed that one, the purple childlike one, to see what would happen to it. Eventually, he got caught by a different human. This one wore a darker suit and called himself "Playmaker". At first, she hated the guy for how he treated the Dark Ignis, who Playmaker named "Ai." He seemed so cold and indifferent to him. He didn't seem to be any better than the man that attacked the Ignis. However, the more she observed Playmaker and his encounters with others, the more she came to understand there was more to him than his seemingly heartless exterior.
She learned that humans could log in and out of LINK VRAINS, something she clearly can't do since she had no physical body to return to anymore. However, by simply willing to, she learned to see and hear events in the real world. It was through this that she learned more about Playmaker and his enemies, Revolver and the Knights of Hanoi. She discovered who they really were, their reasons for fighting, and most of all the origins of the Ignis themselves. Ray was terrified to discover that Revolver planned to eliminate all the Ignis by destroying all of LINK VRAINS itself. She feared that would mean she would be killed off too. Her only hope was Playmaker himself, who stood as Revolver's only obstacle to his extreme plan.
After a fierce final battle between Playmaker and Revolver, the former prevailed and saved all of LINK VRAINS (along with Ray herself) from being wiped out by Revolver's menacing tower. Ray was glad that Playmaker had finally let go of his hate and released Ai.
She followed him back to Cyberse World to reunite with his fellow Ignis, only to come to a terrible sight. The Cyberse World was no longer the beautiful, wondrous world she and Ai had left it. It was reduced to a barren waste land, smoke and debris everywhere. Ray was horrified by the destruction, but not nearly as much as Ai. He had hidden Cyberse World when he left, so he couldn't understand how anyone could've found it and laid waste to it.
Worse yet, none of the other Ignis were found. Ai figured they must've escaped Cyberse World before or during the assault. Ray felt a pang of guilt. If she had remained on Cyberse World instead of chased after Ai, she would've learned what had happened. Still, she hoped the rest of the Ignis were alright and were simply hiding.
"Poor Ignis… what could've happened to them?" Ray asked herself in worry. As she continued to watch and learn, she eventually learned the answers… some more shocking than others.
The Fire Ignis, now called Flame, found the human he originated from. That young man, known in LINK VRAINS as Soulburner, quickly became a new and loyal friend to Playmaker.
The Earth Ignis, calling himself Earth, was searching LINK VRAINS for the Water Ignis, who disappeared before the Cyberse World attack. Ray was shocked, angered, and heartbroken when Earth was taken by the people of a company called SOL Technologies and dissected him into data. She wished she could've saved him.
The Wind Ignis, calling himself Windy, was shown to be more hostile than Ray remembered. Also, she noticed that Windy's eyes were red now instead of purple. Later she learned that he intentionally got his human partner into a car accident, which killed him. Ray couldn't believe that and suspected his programming had been tampered with by an unknown party.
The Water Ignis, later named Aqua, was in a more serious predicament. As it turned out, her "disappearance" from Cyberse World was due to being imprisoned by someone she once trusted. Also, her human partner, a girl named Miyu, was infected with a powerful computer virus that kept her in a coma. Try as she might, Aqua couldn't counter the virus on her own. She later went to team up with a female Duelist named Blue Maiden in the hopes of helping Miyu. Along the way, they acquired a card from a fragment of Earth's data.
The Light Ignis, now called Lightning, turned out to be the one behind everything. The attack on Cyberse World, reprogramming Windy to be his minion, and infected Aqua's partner with that powerful virus. Lightning did all that and more. Ray immediately hated that Ignis for all the sins he committed.
Lightning revealed his true plan: To unite all the Ignis, including himself, into the perfect host. For that, he created a powerful A.I. named Bohman. And so, another great battle began. This time, Playmaker and Revolver joined forces, along with Soulburner, Blue Maiden, and others to stop Lightning and Bohman.
The battles did not go as well as Ray had hoped. The big, dark skinned A.I. ended up defeating all opposition and absorbed five of the six Ignis. Lightning actually allowed himself to be absorbed by Bohman, to the disgust of Ray. The only ones left to fight Bohman were Playmaker and Ai.
During their final Duel, Ai entered Bohman's body to try to free the other Ignis. Ray hoped the little guy would succeed. It crushed her, however, to learn Ai had failed. Bohman revealed the Ignis were one with him now, and that Ai would soon join them. Ai, on the other hand, managed to obtain the remaining powers from the other Ignis to help them win.
With that power, Playmaker and Ai finally succeeded in taking down Bohman. With his defeat, everyone that fell to him would be set free. However, the same could not be said of the Ignis, as Bohman himself pointed out.
"Ai, by siding with the humans, you closed the Ignis's future with your own hands. I hope you don't regret it." Bohman had said to the sad Ignis. Ray clenched her fists, anger and sadness filling her. In all her observations, she had come to love and admire the Ignis (aside from Lightning, of course). She couldn't bare to see them die, not when they still had so much to offer and to live for.
"It can't end like this for the Ignis… it just can't. They don't deserve what Lightning had put them through! They don't deserve ANY of the bad things that happened to them!" She yelled to herself, knowing full well no one could hear her. "I want to save them! I want to save the Ignis! There must be SOMETHING I can do!" She then rose her head high. "LET ME SAVE THEM! LET ME HELP THEM! PLEASE!" Ray then noticed her body began to glow, something that hadn't happened since she first came here. She also felt stronger than she ever had been. "What is this? Could it be that… I awakened a power I never knew I had?" She asked in wonder. Suddenly, she found herself being solid again, and that she now wore a golden body suit of some sort. Ray examined her new look, and she instinctively understood. She knew what to do. At that moment, Bohman gave his final words to his adversary.
"Farewell, my ultimate rival, Playmaker!" With that, Mirror LINK VRAINS, the twisted version of the true LINK VRAINS, began to fall apart. Ray watched as Playmaker and Ai disappeared, no doubt being sent back. As the whole environment was collapsing around him, Bohman looked to see the spirit of his lighter skinned smaller A.I. brother, Haru. He had previously been defeated by Blue Maiden. Ray was surprised to see him. "Haru… you came for me."
"Let's go brother." Haru said. Bohman nodded.
"Yeah. From now on, we'll be together forever." He said to him. Even though he failed his purpose, Bohman was content to be with his brother in the afterlife. Suddenly, Bohman gasped as he felt something pierce his body. He looked down to see, with great surprise, a glowing woman with both her arms in his chest. 'What?! Who is this?! What is she doing to me?!' Ray's face was filled with strong determination.
"You may be fine resting in peace with your brother, but I'll be damned if I let the Ignis die too!" Ray shouted. Bohman tried to force her off, but he was frozen. He could not move his body at all. He had no idea what was happening. Ray knew she didn't have much time, so she worked fast. She closed her eyes and saw what she was looking for: Bohman's core.
There, she found the Ignis, unconscious and nearly completely assimilated with Bohman. With her newly awakened power, Ray reached into the core, grabbed Aqua, Flame, Earth, and Windy and effortlessly pulled them free. She left Lightning. Being here was his own choice, unlike the other Ignis. He could die here along with his creation. "Ahhh!" Bohman yelled painfully from the process.
Ray now held the little digital beings in her arms. She smiled down at them, glad she succeeded where Ai had failed. "You'll be okay now." She whispered to them. Bohman, now on his knees, stared in shock.
"How… How is this possible? Who are you?!" Bohman yelled. Ray looked at him with contempt.
"You said the Ignis's future was closed off. Well… I'm the one that just proved you wrong!" She said before she concentrated on the one place she could take the Ignis: Cyberse World. To Bohman's further surprise, a portal opened beside Ray, who didn't hesitate to walk through it. When she last looked at Bohman, he trembled, holding his sides in pain. She figured he was suffering from having the Ignis forcibly removed. It did not matter. He would die within this place anyway. Bohman screaming in agony was the last thing Ray heard from him before all went quiet. Once she and the Ignis she carried were gone from sight, the portal closed.
Ray then found herself once again on the wasted Cyberse World. Nothing had changed since she saw it last. She took shelter inside one of the destroyed buildings that had not fully collapsed. After making sure it would not fall apart, Ray gently laid the unconscious Ignis on the floor. She then watched over them without leaving their side.
Some time later, as Ray pondered on what to do, she saw the Ignis waking up one by one. They were all stunned to see each other, alive and outside of Bohman. The digital beings wondered where they were and how they got here, and also why Lightning wasn't among them. They thought for sure their lives would end with Bohman. The Ignis were then surprised to see Ray, who smiled upon their reawakening. "Hello. My name is Ray Akaba. I've been waiting for you four to wake up for a while now. Don't be afraid. I'm not going to harm any of you. After all, I did save you guys from suffering the same fate as Bohman." The Ignis looked at one another, wondering if they should believe this strange woman.
"Is she telling the truth, Aqua?" Flame asked, sounding understandably cautious. The Water Ignis peered into Ray's eyes and was immediately relieved.
"Yes, Flame. I detect no lies from her. She really did manage to rescue us." She said. Flame, Earth, and Windy relaxed, knowing Aqua could always tell when someone was lying or not.
"How and why did you free us, Ray Akaba?" Earth asked.
"And where did you come from?" Flame added.
"Also, there was "another" trapped with us. What became of him?" Windy questioned, not willing to say the traitor's name. The Ignis sat there and listened to Ray's story about her own origins and her time here in LINK VRAINS. As they listened, Aqua still found no deception from the young woman. This made Ray's tale even more incredible. When she was at last done explaining everything, the Ignis were immensely amazed and grateful.
"You are truly a unique person, Ray Akaba. Thank you for saving us." Aqua said sincerely. Flame, Earth, and Windy also thanked her. Ray smiled.
"You are more than welcome." She said. Ray looked down at all of them, promising herself that no harm would come to the Ignis again. Not while she lived. 'I'll protect you all, I promise…'
Flashback End
"After that, we worked together to rebuild Cyberse World and I've been living here with them ever since." Ray said, finishing her story to everyone that was present that hadn't heard it before. That included Yugi Muto, Judai Yuki, Yusei Fudo, Yuma Tsukumo, Astral, Daitokuji, Soulburner, and Blue Maiden. Playmaker was told this on the day he met Ray… something he still wasn't quite ready to tell yet. The four Ignis she helped were also present as Ray told her tale.
Everyone was quiet for a long moment. It was Playmaker who broke the silence as he turned to his two close companions. "Soulburner, Blue Maiden… I'm sorry for keeping the Ignis's return a secret from you. I didn't want to, but Ray and I couldn't risk Revolver and the Knights of Hanoi also finding out." The duo shook their heads.
"No need to apologize. I totally get it." Soulburner told him.
"I would do anything to protect Aqua too. I probably would've done the same thing." Blue Maiden added. Playmaker smiled at them both.
"Lightning said he was expelled from a host made to unite the Ignis. No doubt he was referring to Bohman." Yugi said before looking at Ray. "When you freed the Ignis and left him, Bohman was experiencing terrible pain and screamed. I'll bet it was then that Lightning was released." Ray nodded, frowning.
"My thoughts exactly. I really thought Lightning would die along with Bohman. I'm so sorry. If I had known about his return, Zarc and E'Rah wouldn't be an issue now." She felt guilty again. Lightning was the reason Zarc was complete again and had everyone almost killed, and she was responsible for it, even if indirectly.
"Don't sweat it Ray. You couldn't have known." Judai said.
"I have made my share of mistakes. Don't blame yourself for ones you didn't know about." Daitokuji added.
"You and the Ignis here are the reason we are all alive now. Lightning couldn't have predicted that." Yusei added.
"Yeah, so now we just have to fight those three and kick their butts!" Yuma said encouragingly.
"Agreed." Astral said.
"They are right." Playmaker told her before turning to the protectors. "If you're going up against Lightning, we will be glad to help." He said, indicating himself and his friends.
"Definitely! We will be more than happy to lend a hand!" Soulburner said.
"If we all work together, those villains won't stand a chance!" Blue Maiden said.
"We will lend our support as well." Aqua said, with the other Ignis agreeing with her. Ray looked at them all and nodded. She smiled affectionately when Pharaoh rubbed her legs, making her pet him. His purring soothed her.
"Thank you, all of you. I can't be feeling sorry for myself when we still have threats to deal with. We must find Zarc, Lightning, and E'Rah and stop them from accomplishing whatever plans they have."
"Agreed. But there's something we'd like to know first." Yugi said.
"What is that?" Ray asked. The protectors turned to one another, then Playmaker.
"How did you and Playmaker meet? He wouldn't say when Yuya asked him." Yugi replied. When Ray looked at him, Playmaker didn't look like he wanted to talk on the subject. Ray sighed before giving her answer.
"I'm sorry, but if Playmaker doesn't want to discuss the day we met right now, then we should respect his wishes." They nodded, disappointed but they understood. It must've been an uncomfortable subject. Maybe one day the new hero would open up about it, but not today. After an awkward silence, Judai brought up something else important.
"By the way, there's a little something about Yuri I think everyone here should know." Judai said unexpectedly.
"What about Yuri?" Yuma asked.
"I don't know how but… Yuri's back in his own body and he's in my world." This news shocked the whole group, especially Ray.
"What?!" Ray yelled in total shock.
"How's that possible?!" Yusei exclaimed.
"I thought Yuri was inside Yuya?!" Yuma shouted in disbelief.
"You're sure about this Judai?" Yugi asked. Judai nodded.
"Definitely." He confirmed.
"If this is true, then he is no longer merged with Yuya. I wonder if he is aware of this." Astral wondered.
"There's something else. Masumi showed up along with him."
"Masumi's there too?! How?!" Yuma shouted.
"I honestly have no clue, Yuma. She was just as confused as everyone else in my world. As for Yuri, he was unconscious when I last saw him."
Ray had no idea what to make of this development. Still, it shouldn't really matter. From what she had observed, Yuri had changed after merging with Yuya. He shouldn't be a threat now to Serena or anyone on Judai's world. "In that case, I suggest you and your friends there try to help him and Masumi feel welcome until we can send them back to their world. Right now, we need to focus on stopping our current enemies…"
"Hey! You're not leaving me out of the action! Not a chance!" Everyone turned to see a small dark figure with purple marks on his body heading over toward them.
"Another Ignis!" Yuma said in surprise. The protectors then remembered one other Ignis being present on Cyberse World, but they never met him. They were told he had suffered a very bad experience and he had wanted to be alone. Two certain people gasped when they saw him.
"Is that…?" Soulburner started.
"Ai?!" Blue Maiden exclaimed in shock. Both were not prepared to see yet another Ignis they were convinced was gone. Ai floated there, acting awkward.
"Uh… hey Soulburner, Blue Maiden." Ai refused to look them in the eye, not quite sure of how they were feeling about his return. "I um… bet you didn't expect to see me again, huh?" He said hesitantly. Neither responded. He then turned to Playmaker. "Playmaker… I um…" He didn't quite know what to say to his partner. He felt so embarrassed and sad after their last encounter. It felt like a lifetime ago. The man only smiled.
"I know. I missed you too, Ai." He said kindly. Ai was too chocked up to reply. So instead, he turned to the protectors.
"Hey there. You must be the guys Ray needed to save her world, right?" He asked.
"We are." Yugi said. "Your name is Ai, I take it?" Ai nodded as introductions were made. He appeared to like them right away.
"You people definitely seem like a great group to hang out with. Sorry I wasn't around for your first visit." He apologized.
"No worries, Ai. We heard you had a lot to deal with so we let you have your space." Yuma told him.
'You have no idea.' Ai thought solemnly.
"Finally done with your solitary confinement, have you Ai?" Flame asked. Ai nodded.
"Ai… Blue Maiden and I heard what happened to you after your Duel with Playmaker. How are you alive?" Soulburner asked. This question confused Yugi and his group. Ai then reluctantly looked at the flaming Duelist.
"Ray saved my life, similar to how she saved Aqua and the others… even though I didn't deserve it." He hesitated before turning to his companion. "Blue Maiden, I…" He fiddled with his fingers nervously. "I don't ever expect you to forgive me. Not after what I did to you and your brother…" Blue Maiden's face hardened, but said nothing. The angry look in her eyes was enough of an answer for the Dark Ignis.
"Um, what did he mean by that?" Judai asked the girl. She looked away.
"I don't want to talk about it." She said in a harsh tone. Playmaker, Soulburner, and Ray said nothing, but felt pity toward her. They knew what Ai did, and knew how much pain it caused the poor girl. An awkward silence followed. The others knew it wouldn't be the best time to ask, so they decided to wait another time.
"Ai, you heard everything we said since we arrived here?" Yusei asked after a minute, trying to get things back on track. Ai nodded.
"Yeah, I did. Which means I know about Lightning being back, and that he's working with that Zarc and E'Rah. I've been in a major funk for months, after what I've been through. Well, I'm done with all that! Since I didn't pull my weight around for your war against Ray's father, let me help out now. And I think I know just how to do it." He said, now sounding enthusiastic.
"How?" Yugi asked. Ai's answer was very unexpected as he turned to Ray.
"Send me to the Astral World, duh! I can monitor everything that happens there and send you reports on what's going on!" Everyone was stunned by this proposal, especially Astral.
"You want to spy on the Astral World?!" Ai nodded again.
"Sure I do! I know bad stuff's been happening there lately, after seeing how you and Ray reacted when you saw how things were. Let me find out what the deal is!" Ray's answer also came as a surprise.
"I agree with Ai." She said, earning gasps from everyone.
"Really?" Yugi asked. Ray nodded.
"What I saw on the Astral World was definitely not a pretty site. I only caught a mere glimpse before Astral severed our connection." Astral looked regretful for that action. "We need more information. We have to know every detail of what is happening there, especially if the location of the Numeron Code has been compromised. As long as he can keep himself out of sight, I'm sure Ai can get the info we need. He can send his findings to me, then I'll pass it on to the rest of you. After that, we will act accordingly."
"Sounds risky, but it might work." Daitokuji said.
"What about finding Zarc, E'Rah, and Lightning?" Yuma asked.
"Leave that to me." Ray told him. "From what we've just learned, Zarc now resides in LINK VRAINS without being able to log out, with E'Rah and Lightning keeping him company. I just have to do a thorough search of the network until they are found. It might take some time though. If Lightning now has powers similar to mine, that might make it a bit harder for me to locate them. Also, I need to make sure Cyberse World remains safe incase Revolver really is hunting the Ignis again… which brings me to you guys." She said as she faced the other Ignis.
"Yeah?" Windy asked.
"As you know now, Playmaker and I both believe Revolver knows you are back. He might try to get rid of you again. To keep all of you out of Revolver and the Knights' crosshairs, I need to send each of you to a different world." The Ignis were all surprised by this, as was the rest of the group. "You four upload yourselves into the protectors' Duel Disks. That way, when they return to their worlds, you will go along with them. Revolver can't find any of you if you are all off world. Plus, with the connection we made after saving you, I can keep track of your activities on each of the protectors' worlds. Ai also has the same connection after I saved him." Ray said.
"We have to be separated!?" Earth said in surprise, looking over at Aqua. He did not like the idea of being away from her. She looked at him sympathetically.
"I think Ray is right, Earth. But we won't be totally cut off. Ray can help us communicate with one another even if we are not on the same world together. The same goes for Ai." Earth still appeared reluctant.
"I do not wish to leave your side, Aqua. I…" The Earth Ignis paused, looking for the right words. "I want to remain with you." He said strongly.
"Earth…" Aqua murmured. Judai and Ai both suddenly chuckled.
"Sounds like Earth's got a huge crush on you, Aqua." Judai teased.
"That, I think, we can definitely agree on!" Said the Dark Ignis. Earth and Aqua both blushed.
"I… I never said such a thing!" Earth said, clearly in denial. Aqua, on the other hand, seemed very flustered. She didn't say a word for minute or so.
"Earth… do you really… feel that way about me? You wish to stay with me because… you have such strong feelings for me?" Aqua asked in a soft and tender voice. Earth's face became as red as Flame's stripes. Finally, he got the nerve to answer.
"I… I have always felt that way… ever since we first met. I just… could not tell you before." Aqua then floated over to Earth and took his hands into hers.
"I am glad you did now. Thank you." She told him. If the Ignis had lips, they would no doubt be smiling now along with the others. Blue Maiden felt the happiest among them. She then glanced over at Playmaker, whose attention was still on the two Ignis... and frowned.
'I wish I was as bold as Earth was…' Blue Maiden had her own feelings, but she wasn't sure if they were strong enough to be true. She always admired Playmaker and viewed him as a close friend. But lately, during his absence, she wanted to spend more time with him. She wanted to be more to him than just a good friend. She just wasn't sure if she was ready for that…
"I am blessed and grateful to have someone like you, Earth. I would love to be with you more, but I still think we should follow Ray's suggestion. It is for our own protection." Earth sighed deeply. Finally, he nodded.
"I do not like to be away from you, Aqua. But if Ray feels this is necessary, then of course I'll do it. I'll do anything… as long as we can be together again." He told her.
"Agreed." She and Earth looked over at Ray, both nodding. Ray nodded back.
"Then we are in an agreement." Ray then turned to Astral. "Astral, if we work together again, I believe we can send Ai to the Astral World." Astral nodded.
"Very well. Let's do it." He and Ray each placed a hand on Ai. "Be careful, Ai. Do not let yourself get captured or possibly killed. Other than learning more of the specifics of the Astral World's conditions, your top priority is the Numeron Code. Remember, that card has powers no being, mortal or Ignis, can fathom. If you feel it may be in danger of falling into the wrong hands, obtain it and find a way to send it to us." Ai nodded.
"Got it! You can count on me!" He said determinedly.
"Okay. Good luck, Ai." Ray said.
"Don't get into any trouble over there, Ai." Playmaker advised.
"Oh, and while you're there, check up on a woman named Enna. She's a friend that may be in trouble." Yuma suggested.
"Enna, check!" Ai said. Ray and Astral then closed their eyes.
"Stay still. This may tickle a bit." Ray warned. She and Astral then glowed blue again, and that glow covered Ai within seconds. He then laughed a little.
"Heheh! It does tickle!" He commented. Ai then saw his body beginning to vanish, so he gave a wave to everyone. "Don't worry about me, everyone! I'll be alright!" A moment later, the Dark Ignis was gone.
'I truly hope he will be okay. The Astral World is not what it should be…' Astral prayed, still shaken by what he and Ray had briefly seen.
"So, Ai is really on the Astral World now?" Soulburner asked. Ray nodded.
"He's there. I can feel it." Ray said before turning to the remaining Ignis. "Now it's your turn, guys. Who do each of you want to go with?" The Ignis looked over at the chosen four. After a moment, they made their choices.
"I will go with Yugi." Aqua said.
"I'm heading out with Judai." Flame replied.
"I'm going with Yusei." Windy confirmed.
"And I will accompany Yuma." Earth said.
"Is this okay with you?" Ray told the protectors. They all nodded.
"Sure. I think all our friends will like them." Yugi said confidently. Flame and Aqua turned to Soulburner and Blue Maiden.
"Looks like we must part again, Soulburner." His partner nodded with a smile.
"Yeah, but this time I know it won't be forever." Flame nodded.
"Blue Maiden, I know we will meet again. Look after Miyu." Aqua said. Her partner's close friend smiled.
"Of course I will." Blue Maiden said.
"Also…" Aqua hesitated. "Don't think badly of Ai. He was in a very bad place at that time." She advised. Blue Maiden frowned and looked down, but said nothing. She wasn't sure if she could ever forgive Ai for his past actions.
"Okay." Ray said, getting everyone's attention again. "Yugi, Judai, Yusei, Yuma… raise your Duel Disks." She instructed. They did so, and then the four remaining Ignis turned into different colored streams of data as they uploaded themselves into each Disk. When the process was completed, the Duelists saw that each of their Duel Disks now had big eyeballs winking at them. "Now they will travel with you to your worlds, where I hope they will be safe. Take care of them, as well as my counterparts… and Zarc's. I will let you know when I find out anything from Ai, and when I learn where Lightning's new hideout is."
"Pharaoh and I will remain here with Ray. We don't want her to be alone." Daitokuji said. Judai nodded.
"Fine by me."
"What will you guys do?" Yuma asked as he turned to Playmaker, Soulburner, and Blue Maiden.
"We will also try to locate where Lightning, Zarc, and E'Rah are. But we need to be discreet. They still think we died when the Airship was destroyed." Playmaker answered.
"What about Revolver?" Yusei asked.
"Let us worry about him." Soulburner said.
"He will no doubt be angry, but there's nothing he can do about it." Blue Maiden assured.
"Alright then… see ya guys later." Judai said as he and the others bade farewell before returning to their worlds. Even though everyone seemed safe for now, Ray could not help but feel trouble brewing on the horizon… and that it would soon make things more difficult in the days to come.
/\/\/\/\/\/\
"Your plan was a success, Lightning! All our enemies were annihilated in the blink of an eye!" Zarc praised, pleased by the outcome. The Light Ignis did not respond. However, E'Rah felt Zarc's euphoria.
"It is true! Now no one shall stand in our way! Right beloved?" The Despair Goddess asked as she wrapped an arm around the Demon Duelist's arm. He grinned in malicious triumph.
"Indeed, my dark mate." He then frowned for a moment. "My only complaint is that I failed to retrieve two of my dragons." E'Rah cupped his face with her other hand.
"You will reclaim the other two that are still out there. Besides, I'm sure Lightning will come up with some suitable replacements. Won't you?" She asked. Lightning nodded.
"I believe I can do something about that." He said vaguely. This seemed to please Zarc.
"Good. We will discuss our future plans later. Right now…" He turned to E'Rah. "Let us celebrate our victory… in private." He said in a seductive whisper. E'Rah smirked.
"Lead the way." The evil couple then marched away to "celebrate". Lightning sighed, pleased that he was finally alone to do some thinking.
Something was bothering him. He knew right away what the issue was. "Playmaker… Revolver… Soulburner… Blue Maiden. How could they have possibly known about our planned attack? For that matter, how did they appear in the first place? There was no conceivable way for them to discover the assault and show up to assist our enemies. So how could they have…?"
Lightning then recalled something else. The four protectors and those with them knew what he was: An Ignis. How did they acquire that bit of knowledge? How did they learn about the Ignis to begin with? That should not have been possible, since none of them came from this world. Aqua, Flame, Earth, and Windy all perished with Bohman. Ai, the only Ignis to escape that fate, surely had to have gotten himself deleted by now if he found Lightning's simulation of Ai's future. He, Lightning, was the only Ignis left. He was sure of that. Yet, those enemy Duelists found out some way.
Then, Lightning remembered a vital piece of information from observing the Duel against Leo Akaba. Yugi Muto revealed that it was Leo's daughter, Ray Akaba, that summoned the four to protect Ray's fragments from her father. That brought up yet another question. "If Ray Akaba was the one who sent them to thwart Leo's schemes, then how was she able to do so while her spirit was supposed to be dormant inside her fragments like Zarc's were? Unless…" Lightning's eyes widened. "Unless her soul wasn't in her fragments at all!"
With that possibility in mind, Lightning considered other possibilities… ones that could actually answer all his questions. He then decided to run a new simulation based on all those possibilities, and see if the end result was accurate. It took a little while, but when the simulation was completed, he was not happy… at all. The results were exactly what he suspected, and it meant something else. Lightning clinched his fists and growled. If he was correct, and he could not see how he wasn't, then the destruction of the Airship was a mere smokescreen.
Yes, there were charred places shaped like human bodies, but there was not a single physical body found in the wreckage. Not a trace of blood, flesh, bones, or even torn clothes. Absolutely nothing. He could not believe that he, the greatest of the Ignis, had been duped like that!
'Damn them! They think they can get away with this?! How foolish! They will all SUFFER for this outrage!' Lightning had made up his mind. He would not tell Zarc and E'Rah about the possibility that all their enemies were still alive, most likely back on their own worlds. He would clean up this humiliating mess without their knowing. He wish he could go after them himself, but he needed to stay put and focus on his method for Zarc to obtain a new body to contain his completed power. E'Rah had no issues. She could leave LINK VRAINS anytime; she just won't do so without Zarc.
The question now was: How would he go about destroying them while he worked on his own master plan? Lightning knew that his grand scheme was already in motion, and he could not afford any slip ups now. So, the Light Ignis decided to do some deeper research into the history of Ray's chosen four. More accurately… their past enemies.
To be continued.