Chapter I
Broken Seal
Johan watched the city from above as the plane prepared to land. The tiny houses and the monochromatic sands of the desert surrounding it. His gaze is committed to the cause. Soon he will be visiting the place Pegasus mentioned, his heart pumped faster with the thought.
The enthusiasm of going there and finding out more he didn't know about the gem beasts, plus protecting their legacy from those criminals. Pegasus said the place is like a large tomb, and it wasn't uncommon that some tomb thieves came by to steal belongings of the dead, but from the description he got, there were no jewels or valuables inside according to the archeologist and team working there, it's odd but, he will have to see by himself.
He traveled on the back of a camel to reach the excavation site, the sandy, needle-sharp wind of the place reminded him of the dimension the Duel Academy had been transferred to, his gaze roaming around, distrustful whether a duel monster would appear at any point, it was sunset by the time they've arrived at the destination.
"Johan, are you still worried?"
Cobalt Eagle manifested into the air, its semi-transparent silhouette soothed his master, they weren't in the world where monsters were flesh and blood after all.
"A bit," he admitted, pulling up his scarf to cover his nose, avoiding to breathe the sand carried by the tempestuous air.
"He's like that, he's holding it all in like he's some cool guy," Topaz tiger snorted, walking slowly, alongside Johan's mount.
"Don't pressure him too hard, he will tell us what he's comfortable in telling," Amethyst cat slapped the tiger with its paw.
"Guys… I'm fine, really. Though, I do admit deserts still give me the chills, in a bad way."
"Oh, I can see it!" the eagle hovered higher in the skies. "It's pretty big!"
Ahead, a gigantic crater where sands constantly cascaded down, the cloud of smoke partially occulted the temple-alike structure at the bottom of it. The strangest part was, it looked nothing like a pyramid construct, the bricks were grey, alluding to a medieval construct.
The poles and stands set up for the excavations kept everything accessible, Johan observed right and left as the crew walked around the site, each doing their jobs, while he followed the guide donned in a typical Bedouin outfit.
"So, who is the head of the excavation team?"
The guide grunted an insult in an unknown language, then took him to the inner part of the temple. He analyzed the entrance gate, an arch of rocks with carvings of gems in it and a strange language.
A loud, strong female voice broke his immersion. "I want that side covered for today!"
The woman was young, her orange hair tied with a black ribbon, the strands forming a side coq with a loose loop around it, a map on one of her hands, her finger donned in brown leather gloves ordered people around, her scowl didn't give the most warm, welcoming impression.
She was girded in a white shirt with a short, sleeveless buttoned black jacket, her pants were pitch black, a brown leather holster housing a gun attached to her upper thigh and a whip coiled and garnishing her belt. She wasn't bulky, but not petite either, in fact the first word that came to his mind when looking at her was "normal".
What is that whip for, though?
Johan feared the answer, keeping his smile in place as the guide cleared the throat to call her attention.
"What?!"
She turned around, rolling the map, fiery lilac eyes that squinted at the sight of the young man. The guide mumbled insults in a different language under his breath, then left.
"Ah, right," she said unamused, folding her arms.
He stretched out his hand in a friendly greeting. "I am-"
"I know who you are, Andersen." she interrupted.
"You do…?"
"Sylvia Hoenmann."
She accepted his handshake nonetheless, her gaze measuring him up to down while at it, her brow arching like he was the disappointment of the century, he wasn't even wearing proper clothes for the excavation, just that darn uniform of the duel academy or whichever hole he hailed from.
"I was told to contact the chief of the excavation," he explained.
"I am the chief of excavation."
A tough one, huh? Isn't she unusually young for this? Aren't we the same age? Or does she just look young?
He stared blankly, a tad confused by the whole situation, she tilted her head, calling him to follow her.
His eyes ran over the whole room, a man spit on the ground while looking at them, given the glares that pierced his back like daggers and the unfriendly glances he understood why they needed to move, it was a jungle.
She, on the other hand, was unbothered, chin held high as they walked to a set-up small tent with a light where a small table and tons of maps and documents and tools were spread.
"Did chairman Pegasus fill you in?" she asked, not looking at him, but at the documents.
"He told me to expect details from you, the chief of excavation," he opened the palm of his hand, stretching it towards her.
"Flattery won't get you anywhere, Andersen," she glared at him, spelling the last part annoyedly, in an accusing manner. "I know what you are thinking!"
He flinched. "Excuse me?"
"Your eyes say everything!" huffing and slapping her hand on the table, she mimicked his voice in a nasty tone. "'What is this woman doing down here? Shouldn't there be an old professor or something?' This is what everyone's thinking."
"Not exactly my thoughts, I-" he raised a finger in his defense, but she spoke over his objection.
"Professor Hoenmann was supposed to be in charge, but he suffered an accident. I'm in charge for now, that's all."
"I understand…"
"No, you don't," she contested vehemently.
Do I feel enmity towards me…? But we've never met, so… Does she not like my face?
Before their altercation escalated, a man appeared, he was also in an archeologist's attire, he was much older, enough to be their father, his white hair was tucked in his hat with a light, his moustache was funny looking.
"For the gods, Sylvia! You're scaring the boy with your savagery!"
I'm saved.
"Pardon, young man, becoming the chief has gotten to her head."
"Like you're not waiting to stab my back, professor Melchior," she clapped back.
"You little-" he grunted, grumbling the insults inwards, adjusting his cap. "Just because your father asked personally to let you be the new chief, doesn't mean you can ignore years of experience like mine! I say, listen to me!"
Daughter of the professor? That explains why no one seems to look at her fondly.
"Your call was downright bad, professor!"
He angrily stomped closer. "What does a little girl like you- Ieek!"
A whip cracked, Johan and the man got startled and the latter shrieked, the tip of the whip hit close to the professor, enough that his legs trembled.
So that's what the whip was for?
"Was I clear, professor? Next time you question my authority here, this is gonna hit you and not the poor rocks!"
"Y-you savage!" he screamed in a high pitched voice, wiping the sweat on his forehead with a cloth and running away. "Fine, do whatever you want! You'll regret not listening to me!"
As the man disappeared from sight, she sighed heavily, addressing the issue:
"As you may have heard, some tomb raiders are taking advantage of the hectic times. The professor got hurt during the last invasion because that guy made the calls," she explained in a serious, calm tone. "So next time you even contemplate questioning me, Andersen, remember people get hurt when things are imploding by lack of organization and leadership."
Walking around the table, she left the temporary tent, looking at him as if inviting him along. He swallowed dryly, tugging his collar away from the neck, mumbling to himself.
"Oh boy, oh boy, this is gonna be fun."
Topaz Tiger materialized by his side. "Don't sweat it Johan, we got your back."
"She's probably just stressed. I can empathize how pressured she must feel to live up to the expectations, especially with all those bad glares thrown at her, our job is to assess the situation, right? Not to throw stones at anybody."
"You're too nice of a gentleman, Johan," Sapphire Pegasus galloped elegantly beside him.
"Am I? Hahaha," he scratched his head embarrassedly.
When he noticed himself getting too carried away in the conversation, it was too late, Sylvia stood there, watching him, her brows raised in doubt.
"Do you talk to yourself often, Andersen?"
He took this most deep breath. "Ahm…"
She ignored his speechlessness and continued, the way was lit by mounted standing lamps on the sides, darker than movies made it look like.
"You must be curious about what we found, it's intricately related to your gem beasts after all."
There it is again, she speaks as if she knows him, but not only they've never met, he wasn't that famous to be heard of by a random archeologist. Perhaps Pegasus told her about him?
"How did you find this site?" he hurried, catching up to her.
Now that they walked side by side, he could gauge her height, she was a lot smaller than him, the tip of her head lined with his nose's height, yet he thought of how threatening her figure looked with a whip dangling from her pants' belt. A faint tingling sound echoed, Sylvia had a golden pendant with an opal and some small flat coin-like adornments attached to it.
"That's the thing, this crater appeared around the time of the incident at the Duel academy, the one where a few students disappeared."
"How do you…?"
"Chairman Pegasus told us the details, but don't worry, aside from me and professor Hoenmann, nobody else is aware."
"Look at this, she can even be nice when she wants to," Amethyst cat had droopy eyes while following them.
Johan threw this glance of "please, not now" at the cat, but she "humph" turned her face away.
"What are you looking at?"
"The walls!" he blurted out loudly, his palms sweating.
"You have a point, Andersen," she put a hand to her chin. "It's odd, isn't it? Despite being in the middle of nowhere in Egypt, this whole structure looks and smells like a medieval age temple," she trailed off.
"Hm… It's almost as if…"
She completed the sentence, her sharp eyes narrowing. "Like it doesn't belong here, right?"
The issues with Yubel were settled, Judai is fine too now, and the portals for the other dimensions were closed, as far as I know, then how… And why would a stone exactly like my Rainbow Dragon appear here?
"What is your professional opinion, Sylvia?"
"It's too early to say anything, but something is certainly amiss, for instance, look there."
Her finger pointed straight ahead, to a huge metal gate that was opened and held by weights on each side.
"It's made out of sheer steel, the design isn't something you'd see around these parts. It's really puzzling."
She's excited about it like a kid. It's cute.
"You seem to enjoy doing your job," he smiled.
She cleared her throat. "Anyways, let me show you the tablet, maybe you can get something we didn't."
"I didn't expect everyone would trust me so much."
"Chairman Pegasus was clear: those are your gem beasts, there's no one else better than you for the job, his words."
The room they entered was large in all dimensions, the lamps focused on the middle, where a stone tablet with many cracks was, exactly as Pegasus himself described, and inverted Rainbow Dragon, he was mesmerized by it for a minute; and in front of it, an altar with a coffin, an European styled coffin with dented holes forming the shape of a cross. It had no chains or locks.
Johan approached inconspicuously, squatting down, his hand dusting off the wine-red lid of the tinted wood, nothing special in it.
"Pegasus told me you had trouble opening the coffin…"
"Not even ten men could take off the lid. It's not locked, but some mechanism must be broken or stuck," she shrugged off, crossing her arms.
"Be careful Johan," Amber Mammoth warned him. "We don't know what lies inside."
He looked at the side, the room was large enough to accommodate the beast in its full size. He flashed a smile, nodding. With a determined look, he grabbed the borders of the coffin, grunting as he pulled it up and pushed it away.
"We'll help you," the gem beasts declared in unison, all summoned around him.
A shocking development happened, from each gem a beam was shot, they all spread over the holes that were filled with an ethereal gem of a different color. The lid slid off with so much ease, Sylvia's lips parted, surprised for she could not see the magic lights flashing around him.
"I get it," he scoffed, casting a glance back at her. "You needed to have all the gem beast cards gathered here for this, no wonder you couldn't open."
"Well, I don't know which tricks you used, but whatever, let's check the insides."
She rushed over, unfolding her arms and squatting down like him, her eyes reflecting the glitter of the contents: gems of all shapes, colors and sizes. She gawked, bemused, pushing some gems aside with thin, clattering noises, plunging her hand to the bottom of the coffin, rummaging there.
"Are you sure it's safe?" Johan urged her to stop in a worried tone.
"Gems? It's treasury?" she stood up messing her hair and stomping the ground once in frustration. "Oh well, what was I expecting? It is fitting of the gem beasts lore that the offerings were made in gems."
"Did you call it 'offerings'?" he supported his arms on the edge of the coffin, looking at the imposing stone shaped like a big duel card.
"Yes, it's not uncommon to find offerings in tombs or temples dedicated to worshipping the duel monsters' stone tablets, out of the things they could have here, this is the tamest you'll find."
Johan had this bad gut feeling, churning his stomach, making his blood run cold as he stared down at the angered face of the dragon.
It's weird. If this tablet contained a spirit, I should've been able to see it or feel it by now, but why is it not reacting? Is it hiding from me… or… is it really empty?
Just as he thought that, a whistle soared, they both jolted back, to the entrance of the room, a man came running, one of the workers, blabbering in an unknown language, Sylvia's eyes widened as she responded, equally loud in the same language, then grabbed Johan by the shoulders.
"It's the raiders, they've come now that it's night time!"
"I get it, I'll help fend them off!"
"You go with him, I'll make sure everything on the site is protected!"
"Will you be fine alone?"
"Don't dawdle here!" she took out her small pistol from the holster, prodding her head towards the man. "Go with him!"
"See you when things are quieter, then! I have lots to ask about this excavation!"
He waved at her while rushing out, then looked at Amethyst's cat and prodded his head in a command towards Sylvia, as if telling her to stay.
"Johan, wait! You can't be serious! I don't want to be a babysitter!"
She bit her lips, looking around, a tense bead of sweat dropping by her face. Then, a strong, deafening explosion occurred, the whole structure of the place shook, her foot slid. Almost losing balance as she got a grip on herself.
"Don't die for a few pieces of rubble now, girl!" Amethyst cat shouted out, feeling silly since the woman could not listen to her.
Some small crumbles of sand slowly crackled while falling, then, some bigger chunks of debris started raining down, she gasped, desperate, amidst the sand cascading like water and debris, she saw some of the workers running into the room and getting shot by what seemed like a group of bandits dressed like the Bedouins. Clicking her tongue, she shot one of them.
The others threatened to enter, but stopped at the sight of the big piece of the ceiling that collapsed and was about to hit her. She dropped to the ground, rolling away multiple times until she stumbled on the uneven ground that was crumbling apart.
"Tsk, I wish I had a solid body here too," Amethyst cat gnarled.
With one knee supported on the ground, Sylvia tried to aim at the intruders, but they were long gone and all the visual pollution increased. She gave up on shooting, standing up, accessing the surroundings for an opening.
"This darn desert! I can't let this be buried, it'll be all for nothing!"
The sound of yet another piece of rock falling warned all her instincts, she jumped back, her heel hitting a big rock on the ground, she flailed before falling backwards, her ankle twisted to the side, a sharp pain made her grit her teeth until she couldn't, letting out a short scream.
She dropped her gun, scrunching up, her legs over another, her body supported sideways as she stretched her hand to touch the affected area.
"Damn it, a sprain at a time like this, this isn't my day," she hissed, her whole body quivering.
"H-Hang in there! This is bad, I have to call Johan!"
The cat ran out, but stopped, her ears catching the sound of footsteps, her silhouette bristling up.
The falling rocks subsided temporarily, but it was a matter of time until the rest of the structure got fractured. Sylvia flinched at the hurried steps drawing closer, searching the ground with a hand, getting a hold of her pistol and pointing it at the entrance with her shaky aim. Much to her surprise, a familiar face came in.
"Professor Melchior?" she sighed in relief. "Great! Can you help me-"
He snarled at her, his face twisted in rage until he saw the treasures shining, alluring him, a smirk played on his face, a small gust of wind formed and blew when he darted past her, dropping to his knees and giggling madly as he slithered his hands over the many gems.
"What the hell are you doing?! I need help!"
"Well, if you're so grown up and independent, help yourself!" he grabbed a couple gems, pocketing it.
"H-Hey! You can't do this!"
She mustered the strength to get up, swaying while holding her gun with both hands, threatening him, her forehead wrinkled. If there was a sort of villain she hated, those were the ones who desecrated and disrespected the relics she worked so hard to uncover and study.
"You can't tell me what to do!"
He grabbed her by the necklace, snapping it out of her neck, then he hurled her back with a slap to her chest bone. She watched in slow motion while falling when he ran out of the room, pocketing her opal, her gun dropped with multiple clacks as it swirled around on the ground and she fell into the coffin with gems. A shiver coursed through her body. She wasn't the most superstitious, but what a bad omen.
"That scum! I'll get help, you better wait here safely!" Amethyst cat dashed as fast as she could out, to bring somebody.
Still in huge pain, her foot pulsed and she sensed it swelling by the second, supporting her hands inside the coffin, her weight thrusted her fingers down, sinking into the sea of gems. Then, a click happened.
She removed her hand immediately in response, but it was far too slow, she had clicked a button, reality dreading in on her.
"A trap? But we checked-"
Before that sentence was finished, she heard the noise of chains being unleashed, up from the creaks of the ceiling she saw a trapdoor open and a huge double-handed sword fall from there, plunging straight through her whole chest and belly, her clothes slowly drenching in blood.
Her hand flopped down, to the edge of the coffin, dangling from there, trying to grasp something as the pain settled in, her jaw dropping open, but her voice was gone, she heard herself gargling on her own blood that filled her perforated lungs, a line delineating down her mouth, to her chin, her body sliding down the blade that was tainted with splotches of crimson red blood.
Is this how I die? This is unfair…
I didn't get to discover anything amazing… Or write a good article… Or even…
Her eyes teared up, those tears trickling down. She knew how much people hated her, because they thought her current position was due to being the daughter of the professor, because of her prickly attitude and aggressive manners, but that not a single soul would come to help, it was a huge blow to her ego, her eyes emptied from the light slowly, life faded from her being.
Her mind flashed images of professor Hoenmann, and her younger days as a kid, then of the excavation and how happy she was to be involved in this project, lastly, of Johan Andersen. She didn't even get to give him a piece of her mind for owning the gem beasts. Or how much she'd have loved if she was their owner and not him, because she was there when they studied them and found their origins, she was the one who rejoiced in their discovery, yet… Yet they chose him. A random boy from god knows where.
She cast a glance at the stone tablet, the face of the Rainbow Dark Dragon staring back at her. With a blurred vision from tears stemming out of frustration of a whole life wasted, her fingers twitching, her blood painted the gems red, spreading in it, the treasure soaking in it.
From behind the tablet, a menacing, ominous silhouette unfurled, towering tall above her. Dark Rainbow Dragon, its body making loops around the room, its head glaring down at her, glistening red eyes, full of malice and ire.
Did I finally lose it? I'm seeing things now…
He let out a deafening shrill, she squeezed her eyes closed, her eyelids almost closing together, she fought that with all her might, but her fingers grew cold, and her body, tired, the Dragon's saliva dropped in a vicious fashion as it exposed its teeth to her.
I never believed professor Hoenmann until now…
How ironic that in the end, I'll die consumed by those so-called spirits I refused to believe in…
What a fitting end… for a wretch like me.
In a blink of an eye, the dragon, dashed into her body, its ethereal form entering from her wound in her chest, her body winced up, bending, her eyes broadening and mouth opening as that spirit entered from every pore, ears and nose, like a razoring wind consuming her insides, her whole being convulsed. Then, her vision faded to black.
A while ago,
Johan hid behind a ruined wall near the entrance, the noise of gunshots and yells of battle along with blades clashing was not unfamiliar to him. A memory of the Dark world flashing, just that the memory wasn't his, but Yubel's.
He blocked his eye with a hand, swaying his head to shake off those thoughts, then took a rock from the ground and tossed it at the mount of the bandit running past, the guy fell from the horse, unconscious and his mount ran wild causing more chaos. He shoved his hand to the skied and sent Cobalt Eagle to scout for more enemies and check the status of survivors.
He took the chance, calling the crew members silently with a wave of his hand. And sneaking behind the mess to the ladder going up the crater.
That was when he heard an explosion from behind, whirling around, he watched some debris fall at the entrance of the temple, his heartbeats tapering. He's sure some people were still inside, and there's no sign of Sylvia either. His eyes zigzagged around in hopes he'd see more people out, but all he saw was destruction.
Then, Amethyst cat arrived, out of breath, he dreaded.
"J-Johan, it's terrible!"
"What happened? Where is Sylvia?"
"She's-"
Professor Melchior came running, Johan's eyes widened, stunned, the man ran clumsily, his heavy pockets shaking like coins.
"Grr! This idiot! He left her alone, she needs help! I think her ankle is sprained or something!"
He attempted to pass by Johan, but was grabbed by his collar, Johan yanked him back, glaring furiously. A gem and the opal necklace fell out of his pockets.
"What were you doing with Sylvia's belongings?"
"I- Huh-" his legs trembled as he stared at the opal in panic, cursing his fate for being so unlucky, then, he swatted Johan's hand away. "She's as good as dead, anyways! The building is collapsing!"
"This scumbag!" the cat snarled.
"You can deal with him later, Johan, if the lady needs help, you have to go!" Sapphire Pegasus urged.
"This won't end here!" Johan poked his chest with a finger so hard the man was pushed back. "We'll have a talk later!"
Darting off, he spent all his energy to be as fast as possible, using an arm to block the falling sand and small rocks from falling onto his head, his gaze winding to the sides, where corpses of dead excavators and bandits alike were found. This mayhem brought him a nasty memory of the war in the dark dimension, his stomach upset and his heart faltering, he covered his mouth to suppress the need to puke.
Johan looked bright on the outside, but better than anyone else, he knew it was impossible to just breeze through all the emotions, memories and everything that transpired in that dark world and he'd need to curb those negative feelings one way or another.
"Johan, are you alright?!" Topaz tiger slowed down, matching his speed.
"Let's just get out of here when we find her…"
Finally, he arrived at the two metal gateway, the doors ajar, some rubble was still raining, he hurried inside, yelling out of his lungs:
"Sylvia!"
His sight quickly focusing on the middle of the room, the tablet of the Rainbow Dark Dragon was no more, its pieces scattered around the ground. Thankfully, Sylvia was fine, she had just collapsed unconscious in that coffin filled with gems, probably the work of that dirtbag Melchior.
She blinked, startled at his call, sluggishly sitting down, looking at her own arms, her clothes were ripped in the middle, metal powder smearing them instead of that sword, when she supported herself in the coffin, she grabbed a handful of gem dust.
Since when did the gems become dust…?
Confusedly, she looked at Johan, who smiled in relief, squatting down and grabbing her by the shoulders to check on her. Her hair, face, skin and clothes were sparkled beautifully, sprinkled with literal gem dust of all colors, no apparent wound. But how did it happen? He swore those gems were whole and intact after he opened it, on top of that, the tablet was broken.
This eerie, bad sensation crept to his chest, he swallowed dryly. Those thoughts interrupted by her low, failed voice:
"Andersen…? Why are you here?"
My voice is back? I don't get it… I should've been dead… Then how…? Why am I still alive? Was I too bitter for that beast to swallow?
He opened his mouth to give a quick answer, but closed upon noticing her state, her shirt was ripped in a strange way, as though it had been cut open, the lower half of her chest laying atop her ribcage was visible, her bra cut off in the middle, hanging on the sides, her shirt severed down to her belly button, his brows furrowed, almost displeased by the sight.
Was this Melchior's doing? Did he try to take advantage of her? Surely he wouldn't be this stupid to attempt it in a collapsing building.
As he stared intently, she looked down, flinching awake from the daze, blushing, her arms winding up to cover herself, she slammed her hand onto his shoulder, he almost fell sitting at her strength.
"W-what are you looking at?!"
His brows curled upwards guiltily as he smiled, taking off his short jacket, he flapped it over her front, holding her by the arms and pulling her up.
"We don't have time for this now, we gotta go before the building smashes us."
It wasn't his intention to ogle her, he more so got lost in thought midway, but it might have come off wrong.
"Crash… On us?"
"Hurry, Johan! The path is clear!" Topaz tiger shouted rushing ahead to scout the corridor.
A sharp pain struck her head, she lowered it, putting a hand to her forehead, her surroundings became an indistinct mess, she wasn't sure if the noise of rubble falling was close or distant, her body swaying as Johan towed her along, out of that place at the background sound of rocks rolling down.
Johan cast a side glance at her, worriedly, Sylvia would've pushed him away ten times by now, but she was so zoned out she did not sketch even as much as a glare as a reaction.
When they left the place, it all came crashing down, part of the sand sunk the temple deep, much to the dismay of the crowd of excavators. Johan could not shake off that foreboding sensation of dread as the wounded were treated and losses assessed.
His first day went less than normal, his fists clenched, in the end he wasn't any close to discovering what the tablet and the temple were about and where did those come from. Back then, he didn't know just what went down in that room, neither of them did. He was unaware of the intricacies of that excavation site and its origins.