This story was done in collaboration between me, Jriddle41 (Sodormatchmaker on DeviantART), and DaveMan1000 (both here and on DeviantART), and we own the OCs that are used in the story. AaronCottrell97 (known as stevecottrell on DeviantART) provided the Duel Layouts and additional ideas. Everything else belongs to their respective owners:
Thomas and Friends (c) Hit Entertainment and Mattel
The Railway Series (c) Rev Wilbert Awdry
Yu-Gi-Oh! (c) Konami
Gundam SEED characters, Orb, Blue Cosmos, M1 Astray, Strike Rouge, Murasame, Akatsuki (c) Sunrise
Character of Lisa Drake (c) DaveMan1000
Character of David Xadashi (c) DaveMan1000
Jak and Daxter characters, Spargus, Tough Puppy, Sand Shark, Dune Hopper, Gila Stomper, Slam Dozer, Heat Seeker, Dust Demon, Desert Screamer (c) Naughty Dog
Crash Bandicoot characters, Wumpa (c) Activision
Ratchet & Clank characters, Veldin, Sargasso, Shatterbomb (c) Insomniac
Sly Cooper characters (c) Sucker Punch
WARNING: Once again, this story is rated T for violence, some blood, suggestive themes, and some language. Reader discretion is advised.
WARNING 2: If you haven't read "Yu-Gi-Oh! The Sodor Chronicles Season 2", "Yu-Gi-Oh! The Sodor Chronicles Season 4", "Yu-Gi-Oh! The Sodor Chronicles (Pyramid of Light", "David Xadashi", "Lisa Drake", or "Team 4D's", you might want to do so before reading this story
On a stage inside the Orb Duel School, five face-down cards were lined up on a large blackboard. On cue, David Xadashi and Lisa Drake both showed up and began speaking to the audience.
"Yo, welcome back, everybody!" greeted Lisa, "It's time for another good old segment of 'This week's noteworthy cards'!"
The audience grew excited.
"You should all be quite accustomed with how this segment works by now," added David, before he and Lisa held their arms out at the blackboard with the five cards (still showing their backing) lined up, "Presenting our choice of cards!"
The five face-down cards on the blackboard all automatically turned over and revealed themselves to be:
-'Reactor Surplus' (Trap Card)
-'Lyrilusc - Amethyst Bunting' (Effect Monster Card)
-'Dark Flattop' (Synchro Monster Card)
-'Lyrilusc - Egg Hatching' (Trap Card)
-'Darksea Rescue' (Effect Monster Card)
"Not again!" gasped Lisa, staring at the middle card ('Dark Flattop'), "Another one of that creep, Vincent's cards?"
"Not only does it have solid defenses to most basic attacks," groaned David, "it also has a very irritating effect," He started reading one of the effects the monster had, "Once per turn: You can target 1 'Reactor' monster or 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' in your GY; Special Summon that target, ignoring its Summoning conditions."
"What?! That and having 3000 DEF? What an absolute pain of a monster!" complained Lisa, before she and David turned to face the audience, "Sadly, that's how it is; those are the rulings for 'Dark Flattop', and there's no changing them unless you're Discord or Zack."
"But if anyone can find a way to beat that monster, it's Ashima-san," proclaimed David, before he and Lisa started waving goodbye, "We'll see you all next week! By then, we'll have big news to share!"
The audience cheered and clapped in response.
Title: In Harmony's Way
Opening up about a minute ago at the Hartford river canal…
"Battle!" announced Ashima, entering her Battle Phase before speaking in a more calm, tranquil fury-like tone, "Vincent, are you prepared to lose the duel and pay for all of the evil things you've done to me and my friends?" She didn't bother waiting for an answer and issued a command to her ace monster, who took to the skies until she was above Vincent and 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE', "Take flight, 'Assembled Nightingale'!"
"No! No, no, no, no! Damn you!" wailed Vincent.
"Attack the opponent directly!" ordered Ashima.
'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale' obeyed, starting to fire off blasts of wind from her hands. Not one blast, not two blasts, not three blasts, but 'four' such blasts. With seemingly no way to defend himself, Vincent could only watch and scream as he and 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' got hit and a massive explosion was left behind. When everything calmed down, there was a thick blanket of smoke covering Vincent's field—although Ashima and everyone else believed that he had been defeated.
"She did it!" Lisa and James R. both cheered in unison.
"Ashima won the duel!" put in Carlie.
Matt smiled and nodded. Inside the geoglyph, a very tired out Ashima stood slightly bent over for a few seconds before straightening up and sighing to herself, relieved she won against a Dark Signer of all duelists and avenged Gabriella. But there was little time to celebrate, because she and everyone else in the area then started to hear ominous laughter coming from the blanket of smoke. A pair of glowing, menacing eyes were also starting to show.
"What?!" gasped Janice.
"Are those-?" added Sean.
As the smoke partially cleared away, the eyes belonged to none other than 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE', who should have faded away after the duel ended—but it was still around. The real answer, however, came when the smoke completely cleared away and revealed a sinisterly smiling Vincent.
"Is that seriously all you've got, you 'Indian slave girl'?" he asked mockingly (LP: 1800).
Cue shocked reactions from Ashima and the rest of her friends.
"But how?" stammered Ashima.
"Those direct attacks should have reduced Vincent's LP all the way to 0!" objected James R..
Vincent responded by laughing maniacally, just as his 'Extreme Air Raider' Trap Card reappeared on the field, face-up, before fading away into oblivion.
"You're right; I should have lost, but I didn't, because screw the rules!" proclaimed Vincent, "You see, I saved myself by activating 'Extreme Air Raider's' second effect!"
"Second effect?" repeated Ashima.
"When my opponent declares an attack while I control a face-up 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE': I can banish this card from my GY; I must end the Battle Phase," explained Vincent, before spreading his arms out, "So there! That's how I survived!"
Nearby with the remaining members of Team 6D's…
"Damn it!" swore Michael, "Ashima walked right into that one."
"Right," nodded Matt, "Ashima also knows she'll be attacked on Vincent's turn, so she needs to be ready for it."
"Vincent won't get the chance to attack," The voice of Ashima pointed out, causing Matt to look over with a raised eyebrow. She looked very certain of what she's claiming, "Before my turn is over, 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' will be destroyed."
"You say you're gonna take my monster down?" pondered Vincent, now thinking Ashima had lost her mind, "Oh ho, that's a good one! Don't forget you already tried defeating me this turn with a failed series of weak direct attacks!"
"From my hand, I'll activate the Quick-Play Spell, 'Lyrilusc - Assault Wings'!" cut in Ashima, very coldly.
"Eh?"
The mentioned Spell Card flipped face-up and revealed itself.
"At the end of my Battle Phase, if a 'Lyrilusc' Xyz Monster I control battled," continued Ashima, just as her 'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale' got energized with fresh power, "and my opponent did not take battle damage this Phase: I can target 1 card my opponent controls; I must destroy that target."
"Say what, now?!" cried Vincent.
"'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' will finally fall," confirmed Ashima, before issuing a command to her ace monster, "Do it, 'Assembled Nightingale'!" While issuing the command to attack (again), 'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale' flew into the sky until she was just above 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE', "Destroy the weapons of needless war!"
'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale' obeyed, starting to fire off blasts of wind from her hands. Not one blast, not two blasts, not three blasts, but 'four' such blasts. The blasts connected with 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' and left it severely damaged but still remaining strong.
"Huh? It's still standing?" blinked Sean.
All of a sudden, 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' started sparking before finally falling down and exploding massively upon touching the ground, leaving Vincent without his ace monster to protect and/or help him win the game. Outside the fire wall, Sean and Janice cheered over Ashima's successful counterattack, while, inside the fire wall, Lisa had some stinging choice words for Vincent.
"Heh! What's wrong, Vincent?" taunted Lisa, as Vincent gritted his teeth, "How did losing your best monster, again, feel?"
Vincent just silently seethed in baffled fury.
"And now, the last move!" announced Ashima, armed with the last card from her hand, "I Set one…" She slotted the card into her Duel Disk, "…card face-down!" A face-down card materialized on the field, "I end my turn!" With her turn done, she retreated into her thoughts over who used to be her partner for the fight, "Right now, I hold the advantage… Still, I don't know what Gabriella's current condition is like. Please make it, Gabriella!"
(elsewhere…)
Inside one of Hartford's hospitals, David and some doctors were rushing the severely injured and unconscious Gabriella into surgery in hopes of saving the 6-year old's life. Soon, the doctors got the gurney into the operation room. David was about to follow when one of the doctors stopped him.
"I'm sorry, but you can't come in while we're performing surgery," The doctor apologized, which caused David to look down, "Don't worry, we'll do everything we can to help your sister."
The doctor then turned and entered the operation room as something on the wall lit up three seconds later, signaling no one was allowed inside. David remained in his spot even as the three Astray girls, Futaba, and Ren all walked over to see him. It was crystal clear they were all heartbroken that a simple duel led to this tragic outcome as a result of Vincent's intervention.
"Gabriella… Please make it…" thought David, as his eyes leaked more and more tears, "I don't want… don't want…"
The poor aqua blue-haired boy then fell onto his knees and sobbed once more, causing Asagi, Mayura, and Juri, thanks to their older sister-like instincts, each to lower themselves to his level in order to hug and comfort him.
"It should have been me dueling against Vincent…" whimpered David, "I should have done more to intervene! Then maybe Gabriella would… Gabriella would…"
"Oh, Dave…" soothed Mayura sadly.
(elsewhere…)
Back at the river canal, Vincent continued to seethe over Ashima getting rid of his 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE'.
"It's my turn!" boomed Vincent, drawing a card, "Draw!"
Turn Seven: Vincent Stevens (LP: 1800)
Deck: 51
Current Hand (1): "Darksea Rescue"
Upon seeing his drawn 'Darksea Rescue' Effect Monster Card, however, his tune quickly changed, going from anger to excited glee in seconds.
"Alright, I'll admit you did well in getting rid of 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE', but it will only be gone temporarily!" acknowledged Vincent, as Ashima and the Signers all listened, "'Temporarily?', you say? 'What does that mean?', you might add?" He smiled like a shark, "Well, what if I were to tell you that it will return shortly?"
"Return?" fretted Carlie.
"You can't bring it back though," said Matt, as an enlarged image of the 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' Effect Monster Card appeared beside him (in his left) for a few seconds, "'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' is what we all call a Nomi monster—meaning it can only be Special Summoned through certain methods, and can't be Summoned by other ways."
"Idiot! I 'know' what a Nomi monster is!" snapped Vincent, before grinning once more, "I Special Summon 'Doom Submarine'(!) from my GY!"
Emerging from the ground and onto the field, was a demonic-looking submarine-like monster (Level: 7/ATK: 0/DEF: 300).
"A Level 7 monster without Tributes?!" whined Lisa, "Enough of your friggin' cheating!"
"If this card is in my GY and I control no monsters: I can Special Summon this card," explained Vincent, going over his monster's first effect, "Of course, this is an effect that can only be used once per Duel, but once is all I need."
"'Doom Submarine'," murmured Ashima, "And it's a Tuner monster."
"And then, I'll Normal Summon 'Darksea Rescue'!" Vincent went on, placing his drawn card onto his Duel Disk.
Appearing on the field was a rubber life raft with a number of zombies riding it (Level: 1/ATK: 0/DEF: 0).
"It's time for me to retake control of the duel!" laughed Vincent, "All of you should watch carefully!" As he gave the command, 'Doom Submarine' turned itself into seven balls of darkness, "Level 7 'Doom Submarine' dark tunes Level 1 'Darksea Rescue'!"
The orbs of darkness were then absorbed into 'Darksea Rescue', causing the monster to explode into a total of eight balls of darkness, which then began spinning together in a circle above as Vincent echoed a sinister Summon Chant throughout.
"Wailing audible from the depths of the pitch darkness, be wrapped in the armor of death itself and show yourself!" chanted Vincent, as the symbols 1 + 7 = 8 were shown briefly just before a massive beam of darkness exploded from within the eight dark stars, "Dark Synchro!" Before long, the massive pillar of darkness left a gaping hole in the storm-like clouds in the sky as something started to lower, "Appear now, 'Dark Flattop'!"
That something was revealed to be a gigantic ocean aircraft carrier-like monster, and it soon lowered enough to be hovering just barely above the ground level (Level: 8/ATK: 0/DEF: 3000).
"'Dark Flattop'!?" worried Matt.
"It's huge!" gawked Carlie.
"Heh! Just because it's big doesn't mean it's better," dismissed James R..
"It has 3000 DEF," reminded Michael, "If she's forced to attack, Ashima would have no way of ever scratching it."
And from there, the duel resumed itself…
"'Darksea Rescue's' monster effect! If this card is used for…" rambled Vincent, drawing a card, "…a Synchro Summon: The owner draws 1 card, also, if the Synchro Monster is Summoned in Defense Position, draw 1 additional card," He drew a second card, "'Dark Flattop' was Summoned in Defense Position, meaning that's another free draw for yours truly!"
Both drawn cards were 'Reactor Alarm'(!) (Trap Card) and 'Reactor Surplus'(!) (Trap Card), which greatly pleased Vincent—however, he had another of his favorite cards to retrieve, first.
"Now, I'll activate 'Doom Submarine's' second effect!" As he spoke, Vincent took a card from his Deck and looked at it, "If this card is sent to the GY as material for the Synchro Summon of a DARK Machine monster: I can add 1 Field Spell from my Deck to my hand."
The added card was the 'Heavy Metal Raiders' Spell Card.
"It can't be!" gasped Ashima, "You took back the copy of 'Heavy Metal Raiders' I shuffled back into your Deck!"
"This is not good!" winced Carlie, "The bad situation Ashima was in last time will resume once that card is played!"
Vincent was looking more and more deranged by the minute over the fact that victory would soon be in his fingertips.
"It's time for me to bring 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' back from the scrap pile!" The spiky black-haired young man cackled, before holding both arms out, "I activate the first effect of 'Dark Flattop'!" From there, a dark, crackling portal started appearing on the runway of 'Dark Flattop', "Once per turn: I can target 1 'Reactor' monster or 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' in my GY; I must Special Summon that target, ignoring its Summoning conditions!"
"What?!" wailed James R., "It can do that?!"
"That means one thing…" panicked Sean.
"Yeah, it means 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' is about to return," finished Matt gravely.
"And if Ashima can't beat 'Dark Flattop', Vincent can just keep bringing his ace monster back should it ever be defeated," added Michael.
At last, those terrifying words left Vincent's mouth…
"Resurrect, 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE'!" commanded Vincent.
Emerging from the dark portal and back onto the field, was 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' (Level: 8/ATK: 3000/DEF: 2500).
"Don't you dare screw with us!" shivered Lisa, "You managed to bring 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' back?!" She entered her thoughts briefly, "Dammit, and Ashima nearly broke her back to beat it, too!"
"Oh, this is really, really bad!" James R. fretted, as Ashima angrily sweated and watched her opponent with gritted teeth, "Ashima's monsters are sitting ducks for an attack or effect!"
"Not necessarily," corrected Matt, "Ashima has the ability to protect her monsters and LP from an attack."
"You're right!" remembered Carlie, "She can use 'Assembled Nightingale's' fourth effect!"
Sure enough, Ashima did exactly what Matt and Carlie were thinking; protect her monsters and LP from an incoming attack.
"I activate 'Assembled Nightingale's' fourth effect!" began Ashima, just as one of the materials floating around 'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale' faded away and causing her ace monster to form a red barrier to form around the whole field, "Once per turn (Quick Effect): I can detach 1 material from this card; until the end of this turn, 'Lyrilusc' monsters I control cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects, also I take no battle damage."
The loss of a material did, however, lower 'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale's' ATK by a little bit (ATK: 800 → 600).
"Oh man, I thought Ashima was going to be done for," sighed Lisa, relieved.
"Who cares if you've delayed your defeat just by a single turn?" raged Vincent, "You still can't stop the kinds of card effects my monsters possess!" From there, 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' took off into the sky, "I activate the first effect of 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE'!" He then smiled and calmly (yeah right) went over his monster's signature effect while sending a card ('Reactor Surplus') from his hand to the GY, "Once per turn: I can send 1 card from my hand to the GY, then target 1 card my opponent controls; I must destroy that target," As he announced the effect name, his ace monster flew towards Ashima's field and stopped above a face-up card, "Death Drop!"
Several missiles dropped, striking the area around the face-up 'Lyrilusc - Bird Sanctuary' Spell Card and destroying it a few seconds later.
"My 'Lyrilusc - Bird Sanctuary'-!" freaked out Ashima.
"Then, once again, I'll activate the Field Spell, 'Heavy Metal Raiders'!" thundered Vincent, readying a card ('Heavy Metal Raiders') in his right hand before inserting it into the Duel Disk.
"Not again!" complained Lisa.
"He's got it back on his field!" added Janice.
"Ashima!" flailed Sean.
"Battle!" announced Vincent, entering his Battle Phase, "FYI, I don't care if my attacks can't do anything to you nor your monsters! Right now, all I 'care' about is causing destruction!"
"You what?" interrupted Ashima.
This brought a sense of surprise to the rest of the group; despite knowing his attack would not destroy any of Ashima's monsters nor inflict any battle damage, Vincent would throw in more attacks anyway?
"That guy… Has he lost his mind that much?" growled Lisa.
And the attack was ordered…
"'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE', unleash all weapons and destroy everything in your path!" shouted Vincent insanely, as 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE's' eyes briefly glowed red as it unleashed more and more missiles, "Death Air Raid!"
The missiles were fired, striking not only various sections within the wall of fire, but also outside it. The spectators, both in and out of the geoglyph, had to dive out of the way of incoming missiles as they collided with not only the ground, but several nearby buildings, too, causing various explosions in the canal area. Unsurprisingly, this resulted in a mass panic in the area, with people yelling, running around, and fleeing in terror.
"Stop it!" called Matt, "You're putting innocent lives in danger!"
Even so, Vincent did not care in the slightest. Once 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' finished firing off missiles, it stopped and reloaded its ammo. Also as expected, Ashima and her field survived the attack thanks to 'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale'. Meanwhile, a somewhat satisfied-looking Vincent was shown huffing and puffing from his brief spasm of insanity, but only for a few seconds before he took a card from his hand.
"I Set one card and end my turn," finished Vincent, slotting the card into his Duel Disk, "And since it's the End Phase, the effect of 'Assembled Nightingale' wears off!"
Ashima nodded in agreement, just as the barrier created by 'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale' broke apart.
(elsewhere…)
Back in the hideout of the Dark Signers, the Biological CPU trio were still watching the duel on the crystal globe when they heard the nearby doors open. Entering the chamber were Rutger and Azrael.
"What are you boys watching?" quizzed Azrael.
"Take a look for yourself, Headmaster Azrael," offered Orga.
Rutger and Azrael both watched, before looking surprised at what was going on.
"'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE', unleash all weapons and destroy everything in your path!" The image of Vincent shouted insanely, as 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE's' eyes briefly glowed red as it unleashed more and more missiles, "Death Air Raid!"
The missiles were fired, striking not only various sections within the wall of fire, but also outside it. The spectators, both in and out of the geoglyph, had to dive out of the way of incoming missiles as they collided with not only the ground, but several nearby buildings, too, causing various explosions in the canal area. Needless to say, Rutger was not at all happy about that.
"That damned Vincent… He disobeyed my orders to standby and wait!" fumed Rutger.
"Mmm… My, oh my, what an annoyance he is," said Azrael, smiling thinly before shaking his head in disapproval, "You know, I think it's high time we conspire to make the boy see sense, once and for all."
"Yes, we must," agreed Rutger.
(elsewhere…)
Back at the river canal in Hartford, Vincent started laughing up a storm over how everything was back in his control.
"Do you see? Do you all see it!?" bragged Vincent, "This is how it's supposed to be! Thanks to my genius planning, I, yet again, have complete control of the whole duel!"
Ashima listened wearily before looking down at her Duel Disk (particularly her Deck). Seeing as she had no more cards in her hand, her next draw could very much be her final draw.
"If Vincent has a counter for direct attacks, then the only way I can fight back is by using 'that' card," thought Ashima, "But just thinking about it scares me so much… Still, I can't let that fear of mine overwhelm me," She looked up, "Here I go, Vincent!" The black-haired young Indian woman drew a card, "Draw!"
Turn Eight: Ashima Nilgiri (LP: 2400)
Deck: 47
Current Hand (1): "Lyrilusc - Amethyst Bunting"
Her drawn card, to her surprise, was a Monster Card called 'Lyrilusc - Amethyst Bunting', and it was one of the cards Zack gave her. Unfortunately, she had little time to think about it when Vincent burst out into more boasting.
"And now, it's time to completely seal you in my grasp!" rambled Vincent, before sweeping his left arm (with the Duel Disk) about, "I activate a Trap Card, 'Reactor Alarm'!" His Set card rose up and revealed itself, "If my opponent controls more monsters than I do: I must declare 2 card names, and if I do, the activated effects and effects on the field of cards with the declared original names are negated this turn."
"Aw crap!" wailed Lisa.
"He's going to negate the effects of 'Assembled Nightingale' and 'Promenade Thrush'!" reported Michael urgently.
"The cards I declare are 'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale' and 'Lyrilusc - Promenade Thrush'!" announced Vincent, "And since I guessed right," Both 'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale' (ATK: 600 → 0) and the two copies of 'Lyrilusc - Promenade Thrush' (ATK: 500 → 0)(ATK: 1200 → 0) felt their strength being sapped from them, "all three of your monsters have their effects negated!"
"You-!" uttered Ashima.
"I activate the second effect of 'Reactor Alarm'!" declared Vincent, "If I control 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' when this effect resolves: I must…" A card ejected from his GY, which was taken and shown to be the 'Reactor Surplus' Trap Card, "…target 1 Trap in my GY; I must Set it, and if I control 'Dark Flattop', it can be activated this turn," He had a slimy smile on his face as he looked at the card before looking up at his opponent, "I Set the card on my field…"
A face-down card materialized on the field.
"With my predicament hopeless, I just have to get that one monster out," thought Ashima, "There's no other way for me to win without it," She then hesitated upon thinking of her final strategy, "But my monsters still bear all the negative emotions from when I was possessed."
"Well, you 'Indian slave girl'?" insulted Vincent, "Get on with your turn—if you dare."
"Tch! I activate the second effect of 'Celestine Wagtail'!" began Ashima, just as the spirit of 'Lyrilusc - Celestine Wagtail' appeared on the field before turning into an orb of light and floating over to be with 'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale', "If this card is in my GY: I can target 1 'Lyrilusc' Xyz Monster I control; attach this card to it as material! I attach this card to 'Assembled Nightingale'!"
"Hmph! Simply pointless," scoffed Vincent, "You can attach all the materials you want to your monster, but she can't gain any ATK, perform multiple attacks, or perform any direct attacks since her effects are negated!"
"It's not pointless," retorted Ashima, before going into her thoughts, "I have everything ready for the ultimate counterattack, but I definitely need the full support of my monsters to begin it," She shut her eyes tight and prayed, "Please, my monsters, in order for me to avenge Gabriella, I need your help and forgiveness for what I put you all through once before."
(elsewhere…)
When Ashima opened her eyes, she was in the darkness of her mind. Looking around, she was surrounded by every single copy of the 'Lyrilusc' monsters she owned. None of them appeared to be angry with her anymore—if anything, they only smiled and nodded as though they understood that this needed to be done, and they forgave her for her mistreatment of them back when the Dark Signers possessed her. Realizing she was finally forgiven, Ashima finally smiled and broke free of her PTSD.
(elsewhere…)
Upon opening her eyes again, Ashima looked up at her opponent and smiled with full confidence once more. Vincent appeared startled when he saw Ashima smile like that.
"And why are you smiling?" stammered Vincent.
"Because I just have five words to tell you," said Ashima, taking the only card ('Lyrilusc - Amethyst Bunting') left in her hand and placing it onto a Monster Zone on her Duel Disk, "Appear now, 'Lyrilusc - Amethyst Bunting'!"
Appearing onto the field was a tanned-skinned young woman wearing a mixed-color flight suit with two white wings for arms (Level: 1/ATK: 100/DEF: 200).
"Huh? I never saw you use that card before," blinked Vincent.
"If I control a 'Lyrilusc' Xyz Monster, I can Special Summon this card (from my hand)," explained Ashima, going over her new monster's first effect.
Nearby with the remaining members of Team 6D's, Matt's eyes widened, knowing that Ashima was about to unleash her Deck's newest power, and he silently encouraged her to show everyone that ultimate power. Back in the geoglyph, Vincent snorted, not even remotely impressed what Ashima was aiming to do.
"You think a new pipsqueak of yours scares me?" huffed Vincent, "I think not! And besides, you've activated the second effect of 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE'!"
"But you won't get the chance to use it, because I'm activating my monster's second effect in response!" rebutted Ashima.
"Time out! 'Amethyst Bunting' has a second effect?"
"That's right," The black-haired young Indian woman replied, as 'Lyrilusc - Amethyst Bunting' faded away in a blue streak, focus went towards 'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale' and the second 'Lyrilusc - Promenade Thrush', and she explained the effect, "During the Main Phase (Quick Effect): I can Tribute this card from my hand or field; I must Fusion Summon 1 WIND Winged Beast Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck, using 'Lyrilusc' monsters from my hand or field as material."
"WHAT?!" screamed Vincent.
"FUSION SUMMON?!" Michael and everyone else (except Matt) added in surprise.
"The monsters I'll fuse together are 'Assembled Nightingale' and the second 'Promenade Thrush'," Ashima went on, just as she raised her right hand slightly and snapped her fingers, "Here we go, my two monsters!"
From there, 'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale' and the second 'Lyrilusc - Promenade Thrush' both started merging together and Ashima stood with a large image of the artwork of the 'Polymerization' Spell Card looming in the background as she echoed a Summon Chant throughout.
"Twitter of the songbird that resounds in the dark night. Become one with the untamed songstress of the skies and cry more intensely!" chanted Ashima, just as she brought both hands together, "Fusion Summon! Fly down! Noble isolated night bird! 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale'!"
Appearing within the sky and flying around, as the Fusion Summon sequence ended, was a very familiar female, adult-like humanoid bird monster similar to 'Lyrilusc - Assembled Nightingale', but with a different choice of outfit in terms of color and sharp claws for the wing-like arms (Level: 1/ATK: 1000/DEF: 0). Outside the wall of fire, both Sean and Janice had very few words to say about the new monster.
"'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale'?" croaked Sean.
"A Fusion Monster," finished Janice.
(elsewhere…)
Inside the hideout of the Dark Signers, Azrael and Rutger were shocked by what they were seeing.
"That's impossible," uttered Azrael, "When she broke free of our control, she should have lost that one card…!"
"How could she have-?" came from Rutger.
Orga, Clotho, and Shani each were also surprised, but were more focused on the duel—which they hoped Vincent would fail to win, because they didn't want him around any longer.
(elsewhere…)
Back at the river canal, the remaining members of Team 6D's inside the geoglyph were amazed that Ashima pulled off a Fusion Summon. Outside the wall of fire, Sean and Janice were, likewise, surprised yet amazed by it. On the other hand, inside the geoglyph, Vincent gritted his teeth in anger. After Ashima broke free of the Dark Signers control, that Fusion Monster Card should have dissolved, but here she was again; he was facing the exact same monster that helped energize the darkness in Ashima's heart (along with 'Fusion Parasite').
"So what?!" roared Vincent defiantly, "Your monster stands no chance against 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE'!" From there, as he explained the second effect of his ace monster, 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' angrily took to the skies, but 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' fearlessly followed suit until they were facing off somewhere above the city, "Once during each of my opponent's turns, when my opponent Normal or Special Summons a monster: I must target that monster; I must destroy it, and if I do, inflict 800 damage to my opponent!"
'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' aimed its guns, waiting for the command to attack—and the attack command came…
"Sharp Shooting!" The voice of Vincent yelled in rage.
The guns were firing bullets, striking 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' repeatedly as Vincent gazed upward and smiled while his mind continued deteriorating. However, he stopped smiling when he saw that the attack was not even hurting the enemy monster.
"But why?!" panicked Vincent, just as 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' intensely cried out and made the repeated attacks by 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' stop, "Why is 'Independent Nightingale' not being destroyed?!" He brought both hands to the sides of his head and further freaked out, "What the friggin' hell is going on?! Sharp Shooting should have eliminated your monster without trouble!"
"That's easy to explain," smirked Ashima, as 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' returned to the ground level, "It's thanks to the third effect of my monster… It is unaffected by other cards' effects," Vincent's mouth hung open while hearing all of that info, "All without the need of that revolting 'Fusion Parasite' you once gave me."
"But that can't be!" exclaimed Vincent, "'Independent Nightingale' doesn't have that kind of protection effect!"
"Is that what you believe?" teased Matt, "Well, I'm afraid she does now, and you can thank Zack for that."
"Zack?" repeated Vincent, getting more confused and angry.
"You know him; he's the temporary CEO of Industrial Illusions and also a skilled card creator," reminded Matt, as clips of him and Ashima meeting with Zack played in the background, "You see, he's been working the last couple of days making a few notable upgrades to 'Independent Nightingale', granting her a number of effect changes and inclusions."
"That's bull!" screeched Vincent, swinging his right arm about in protest, "There's no way he should've been able to know about it after the card disintegrated from Ashima's defeat!"
"You're wrong about that," rebuked Matt, "I was there when Ashima got the card."
"You were?"
The dirty blonde-haired young man nodded firmly, and a flashback began.
FLASHBACK
Set during the meeting between them and Flashback Zack, Flashback Ashima stared at the two cards given to her in horror and disgust. The first card was the 'Lyrilusc - Amethyst Bunting' Effect Monster Card, and the main surprise was the 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' Fusion Monster Card.
"Now before either of you freak out at me for this," The voice of Flashback Zack warned, before Flashback Matt looked over. He was currently waving both hands, "at least listen to what I have to say. You just need to trust me on this; Ashima, it's very important that you use these cards if you were to end up in a situation where you have no choice but to duel a Dark Signer."
Flashback Ashima said nothing, but Flashback Matt sure had a few things to say—with heavy restraint, that is.
"Zack, you'd better have a damn good explanation for this surprise," threatened Flashback Matt, "Because if this is some kind of joke, your sense of humor is twisted."
"Take it easy, Matt; I'll explain everything," advised Flashback Zack, "When you and Ashima returned to Orb, I decided to examine your Duel Runner by analyzing the data logs of your last duel," While speaking on, several faded stills of himself in the docking bay looking over the data of Fudo Go with interest were superimposed over him, "As you can clearly see, one card that caught my eye was 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale', which Ashima never had in her Deck until that night."
The faded clips then ceased happening.
"Uh-huh?" frowned Flashback Matt.
"With some hard work, I was able to extract the data from Fudo Go regarding the card and recreate it from scratch—but I also made a number of highly helpful changes to its effects," finished Flashback Zack.
Flashback Ashima looked up, "But why are you giving it to me?" she pressed, still looking very unhappy, "I want nothing to do with that card!"
"If the Dark Signers were able to create a fully functioning replica of Mike, then they have more deadly resources than we could have imagined," recalled Flashback Zack, looking very serious, "We all have to consider the possibility that they will try to attack you again in order to provoke Matt, and with your still very strong PTSD preventing you from dueling properly, if at all, so you would likely not only be a very easy and tempting target, you'd have no way of protecting yourself if it came down to it," Flashback Ashima and Flashback Matt both listened carefully, "If you were to be forced to battle them, they would already know your whole 'Lyrilusc' Deck well, and since the cards they gave you are supposedly gone, they would be caught completely off-guard if one of those 'destroyed' cards were to be used against them as a form of revenge, especially if it was given a complete overhaul in terms of effects," He then narrowed his eyes, before placing his hands on the former visitor's shoulders, "Of course, the biggest obstacle is whether or not you're comfortable enough to accept this plan."
Flashback Ashima had been listening, but then looked away with fear and sorrow, unsure if she could even go along with it because the 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' Fusion Monster Card scared her and brought back too many bad memories of the Dark Signers possessing and making her kill and destroy without remorse—but she wanted to trust Flashback Zack's judgment. What was she going to do?
END FLASHBACK
The flashback ended.
"Ggh… I don't believe it," fumed Vincent, as faded stills of him handing Ashima (possessed) the 'Fusion Parasite' Effect Monster Card—plus the 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' Fusion Monster Card (as it turned out) were superimposed over him, "I originally gave you 'Independent Nightingale' in order to destroy your friends, but now you have a new copy and are using it against 'me'!"
With the tide of the battle now turning, Ashima focused on feeling the pulse of 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' and looked up at her new monster, who was also looking down at her. The presence of 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' here was so much warmer and soothing than the original copy that Vincent gave her, which consisted of nothing but cold darkness and complete bloodlust. 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' also responded in kind to her new master.
"Yes, I can feel what you're telling me," whispered Ashima, closing her eyes, "I know you and I will work well together," She opened her eyes, resumed looking up, and nodded, "Let's win the duel together."
'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' nodded back, and turned to face 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE', 'Dark Flattop', and Vincent Stevens. Not only that, Ashima started addressing her opponent very sincerely.
"Listen, Vincent, despite every horrible thing you've done to me and my friends, I have to thank you for helping heal my inner pain," she admitted truthfully.
"Thank me?" said Vincent, with an eye-twitching, "Helping heal your inner pain?"
"Yes… If it wasn't for you forcing Gabriella and I into this terrifying duel, I likely would never have gotten my duelist's pride back and would likely remain in a hurt state for a very, very long time," revealed Ashima, "Maybe even forever," Her kind tone took a very dark shift as she was ready to complete her revenge, "You can take solace in the fact that the monster you originally gave me will be the one that sends you to your permanent grave!"
"Pah! I'll never lose to the likes of an 'Indian slave girl' like you!" refused Vincent stubbornly.
"Then let's continue with the duel," suggested Ashima, "The first effect of 'Independent Nightingale' activates!" As she explained the effect, 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' closed her eyes and began glowing a bright yellow light as her base Level grew higher and higher (Level: 1 → 7), "If this card is Fusion Summoned using an Xyz Monster on the field as Fusion Material whose original name includes 'Lyrilusc': I can increase this card's Level by the number of materials that monster(s) had."
"'Assembled Nightingale' had four materials and 'Promenade Thrush' had two materials," recalled Sean.
"That means…" put in Janice, "…'Independent Nightingale' becomes a Level 7 monster!"
"And my monster's second effect!" The voice of Ashima added, causing both teenagers to look back into the geoglyph. While speaking on, she held both hands up near the face and used her index fingers to make a 'x' (multiplication) sign, "It gains ATK equal to its Level x 500!"
"That's right!" realized Michael, "Now that 'Independent Nightingale's' a Level 7 monster, her ATK rises by 3500!" 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' got supercharged with power (ATK: 1000 → 4500), "It will become a massive 4500!"
"However!" cut in Ashima.
"However…what?" worried Vincent.
"I'm going to end you with 'Independent Nightingale's' fourth effect," Ashima went on, "Once per turn: I can inflict damage to my opponent equal to this card's Level x 500."
"No way!" gawked Lisa, "Ashima can deal a whopping 3500 damage with that effect alone!"
"She doesn't even need to attack to wipe out 1800 LP!" added James R..
"She'll end the duel right here!" finished Carlie.
From there, 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' raised her wing-like arms.
"Are you ready, Vincent?" hissed Ashima, just as 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' swung her arms/wings and fired several crystal shards, "Open fire!"
Just before the crystal shards could connect…
"I won't ever lose to you!" howled Vincent, just as his Set card flipped face-up and revealed itself, "I activate a Continuous Trap, 'Reactor Surplus'!" A barrier surrounded his field as the shards connected with it, "If I would take damage from a card effect while I control 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE': I must activate this effect; that damage becomes 0!"
"What?!" gasped Ashima.
From there, the barrier shattered apart, with Vincent laughing over how his victim failed to finish him off.
"You think that's bad? Wait until you get a load of my Trap Card's second effect!" boasted Vincent, "When this card leaves the field: I must inflict damage to my opponent equal to the amount of damage I would have taken at the activation of this card!"
"He can do that!" acknowledged Carlie, "On his turn, he'll use the effect of 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' to destroy his own Trap Card, triggering the second effect!"
"If Ashima doesn't hurry and finish things this turn, she'll be done for sure!" panicked James R..
Matt silently didn't like the sound of that; the thought of almost losing Ashima before was bad enough, and it happening again didn't help. Vincent, meanwhile, exploded into more maniacal, monotonous laughter, absolutely certain he would be the winner of the duel. Ashima, realizing how bad the situation was for her, could only glance grimly towards her Set card.
"I guess there isn't any other option," she thought to herself, before looking up and speaking aloud, "My turn's not over! I activate a Trap!"
Vincent stopped laughing. On cue, the Set card flipped face-up and revealed itself to be…
"'Lyrilusc - Egg Hatching'!" The voice of Ashima began, just as the Overlay Network appeared in the center of the field one more time, "I must target 1 'Lyrilusc' Xyz Monster I control; I must Special Summon 1 'Lyrilusc' Xyz Monster from my GY with a different name from the targeted monster," Before long, focus went towards 'Lyrilusc - Promenade Thrush' before being absorbed inside, "then attach the targeted monster to that Summoned monster as material. (This is treated as an Xyz Summon. Transfer its materials to the Summoned monster.)"
Something then started to emerge from the Overlay Network, which was an adult-like, female humanoid bird-like warrior with dark blue/black arm-like wings, helmet, and battle-like dress—all while a Summon Chant from Ashima followed.
"Majestic song of night! Sing out and shatter the glass of confinement!" chanted Ashima, "Xyz Summon! Rank 1! 'Lyrilusc - Recital Starling'!"
Now back on the field, 'Lyrilusc - Recital Starling' posed for a possible battle (Rank: 1/ATK: 0/DEF: 0).
"So, you've brought back 'Recital Starling'," slurred Vincent, "What good will it be?"
"I sure hope Ashima has an effective battle plan in the works," pleaded James R..
Let's find out, shall we?
"I activate 'Recital Starling's' first effect!" Ashima blurted out, while beginning to talk about 'Lyrilusc - Recital Starling', "If this card is Xyz Summoned: I can target 1 face-up monster on the field; it gains 300 ATK/DEF for each material attached to this card."
"Ah ah ah! Just a second there, you 'slave girl'!" cut in Vincent, "You can't target 'Independent Nightingale' for that effect. Remember her own third effect? She's unaffected by other card effects."
"I'm perfectly aware of that," retorted Ashima, "Rather, I'm going to target 'Recital Starling' herself!"
'Lyrilusc - Recital Starling' was energized by her own materials orbiting around her (ATK: 0 → 600/DEF: 0 → 600).
"You fool! Even attacking with 'Independent Nightingale' won't be even close enough to defeat me!" argued Vincent, as Ashima glared, "You know that, don't you?"
"Battle!" interrupted Ashima sharply, entering her Battle Phase.
"What?! Weren't you listening to me?" Vincent recoiled in surprise.
"I was listening, but I'm still not going to lose to you!" said Ashima hotly, "I use 'Independent Nightingale' to attack 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE'!"
'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' rose high into the sky, spread her wings out, and fired off a series of electricity at 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE', who got struck and electrocuted—including Vincent, who screamed in pain as he LP took a major drop to near empty (LP: 1800 → 300).
"Doh… If 'Independent Nightingale' had gotten the power buff from 'Recital Starling', Ashima would've won right there," groaned Lisa.
As the attack from 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' ended, Vincent fell onto his hands and knees, huffing and puffing from the intensity of Ashima's attack. Nevertheless, he giggled madly to himself soon after.
"Heh… That really hurt, you know," muttered Vincent, before looking up with a completely deranged look on his face, "But I loved it, because that means the first effect of 'Heavy Metal Raiders' activates!" Focus went to the face-up 'Heavy Metal Raiders' Spell Card, while 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' received a power boost from the damage sustained (ATK: 3000 → 4500), "The first time each DARK Machine monster I control would be destroyed by battle each turn, it is not destroyed, and if I took battle damage from the battle, it gains that much ATK after damage calculation, and keeps that ATK gain while this card is on the field!"
"'Independent Nightingale' and 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' now share the same ATK!" cried James R..
"Only Vincent isn't going to attack when his turn comes up," reminded Michael.
"You can't win!" barked Vincent, "All you can do is end your turn and let me end the duel 'my' way!" His mouth then formed yet another slimy smile as he continued, "Or, even better, you could always surrender like a good victim, return with me to the hideout, and once again serve us Dark Signers like a good 'Indian slave girl' you are."
The spiky black-haired young man licked his lips pervertedly over saying that, particularly due to him briefly envisioning Ashima in a revealing red Indian slave girl's outfit and serving him like (what else?) a slave.
"I'm not going to surrender… I'm not going to end my Battle Phase, and I'm certainly not going to become a servant to the likes of you!" refused Ashima heatedly, as her attention went to 'Lyrilusc - Recital Starling', "In case you've forgotten, I still control 'Lyrilusc - Recital Starling'."
"What use could a really weak, trash-like monster with only 600 ATK do for you?" dismissed Vincent.
"She will end the duel, that's what," answered Ashima darkly, before resuming her Battle Phase, "It's time to finish this match, 'Recital Starling'!" As she kept speaking, 'Lyrilusc - Recital Starling' flew into the sky for battle, "Get ready to attack! Your target is 'Dark Flattop'!"
"What the-?! Did she say 'Dark Flattop'?!" cringed Sean.
"That monster has 3000 DEF!" protested Janice.
"She wouldn't scratch it!" put in James R., "And as penalty for a failed attack, she would take 2400 recoil damage!"
"It's suicide!" finished Carlie.
Finally, 'Lyrilusc - Recital Starling' swung her wings and fired off crystal shards towards 'Dark Flattop'.
"Hmhmhm… I guess it's your funeral," chortled Vincent, "Now take your 2400 damage, 'slave girl'!"
'Dark Flattop' was hit by the shards, but seemed unaffected by them. Just then, something happened; the portal that brought 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' back seemed to be reacting to the attack or something.
"What the hell?" peeped Vincent, "What's…going on with 'Dark Flattop'?"
"If I'm going down, I'm taking you with me, Vincent," stated Ashima, "I activate 'Recital Starling's' third effect!" As she explained the effect, 'Lyrilusc - Recital Starling' fired more and more crystal shards at 'Dark Flattop', hitting it and causing the portal to react, "All battle damage I take from battles involving this Xyz Summoned card is also inflicted to my opponent!"
As soon as he heard those words, an outraged Vincent could do nothing but take a brief step back and scream in sheer shock, helplessly watching as his victory slipped away from his fingertips at the very last second. The crackling portal, as 'Dark Flattop' continued to be hit by the crystal shards, began to violently react as if it was overloading.
"My 'Dark Flattop'!" wailed Vincent.
"Our duel ends here in a DRAW," concluded Ashima calmly.
At last, the haywire energy from 'Dark Flattop' became too much and caused a massive explosion that claimed both it and 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE' and also threw the remaining Signers out of the fire wall, plus the nearby Sean and Janice, a good distance away. Laying flat on his front, Matt got to his hands and knees, looked up, and gazed back at the chaos going on within the geoglyph.
"Ashima!" hollered Matt.
Within the geoglyph, the explosions were still going on as both Ashima (LP: 2400 → 0) and Vincent (LP: 300 → 0) tried withstanding them even as their respective LP gauges depleted completely before they were also thrown back when it became too much for them to handle.
DUEL RESULTS: This duel is a DRAW
Back in the evil hideout, Orga, Clotho, and Shani had watched Ashima's final attack which ended the duel.
"Heh! I knew Vincent wouldn't win," insisted Orga.
Shani spat on the ground, "He's just pathetic."
"Still, I didn't think Ashima would force a DRAW," admitted Clotho.
"Oh dear, that guy…" joked Azrael, looking and sounding pleasant on the outside but was absolutely furious on the inside, "He really botched things up for us, hasn't he?"
Rutger said nothing, but still decided to rescue Vincent before the Signers were able to get their hands on him and force everything he knew about the Dark Signers out.
(elsewhere…)
Back in the river canal, the fire wall began dying down with the duel finally done. An exhausted Vincent had fallen onto a hand and knee, unable to believe he didn't win the duel as he planned to do—seeing as his so-called 'perfect' victory with his 'Reactor Surplus' Trap Card, 'Flying Fortress SKY FIRE', and 'Dark Flattop' didn't happen, and he really hated that it never happen.
"Why you lousy-!" snarled Vincent, but stopped short of cursing Ashima out when his birthmark started glowing, "Wha-?"
Before long, the spiky black-haired young man dissolved into blue particles, but not from death. Rather, he was being teleported away by Rutger to safety. Ashima, with dull, empty eyes and being equally battered and exhausted from the duel, saw what happened to Vincent and smiled to herself; she tied against a Dark Signer, broke free of her PTSD, and avenged Gabriella for David. It all was enough to make her feel proud of herself. In her POV, Ashima's vision was blurry, and she wobbled about before her eyes closed and there was a loud *THUMP* sound, having finally collapsed.
(elsewhere…)
A while later, in Ashima's POV still, her eyes started flickering open, and the first thing she saw was being surrounded by her friends, Ren, Futaba, and Discord.
"She's awake!" announced Asagi.
"Oh, what a relief," Janice sighed with relief.
Ashima was currently resting in a hospital bed. She wasn't injured too badly, but the duel still took a lot out of her.
"E-Everyone…" said Ashima groggily, "What happened?"
"Hi, Ashima-neechan!" The voice of Gabriella greeted, causing Ashima to look over. She was shown to be seated in the secondary bed of the hospital room, with a white bandage wrapped around her head. "We're both sharing the same room! Isn't that great?"
"G-Gabriella!" cried Ashima, shooting up before feeling some mild pain in her side, "Urrgh!" Still, she managed to look over slightly and smile painfully, "Thank goodness you made it through the surgery."
"While you were out like a light, Matt and the others told us what happened in the duel," reported Asagi.
"They sure did!" exclaimed Mayura excitedly, grabbing onto the railings of the bed and leaning in near Ashima's face, "They told us how you managed to tie against Vincent, a Dark Signer!"
"Not only that," added Juri, as she pulled her tomboyish best friend away, "you did it by using the one Fusion Monster that had been plaguing you with self-doubt ever since you and Matt returned after your tragic kidnapping by the Dark Signers," She held up the 'Lyrilusc - Independent Nightingale' Fusion Monster Card, "Like, this, for example."
Ashima was then handed the card, and she took it back. Finally, it was time for Ren and Futaba to speak up.
"Ashima-san, (ありがとう,) arigatō, (thank you,)" praised Ren in Japanese
"You did everything you could to try and save our daughter from that 'horrible man'," proclaimed Futaba, bowing politely.
"She did," The voice of David agreed, causing Futaba to turn around. The aqua blue-haired boy was very relieved that Ashima managed to tie against Vincent, "Ashima-san, I'm so glad you're okay, and that Gabriella's going to make a full recovery," He then felt horrible with himself, "But neither of you two would be in this condition had I not allowed Gabriella to partake in Duel Monsters at such a young age…"
"(お兄ちゃん…) O nīchan… (Big Brother…)" worried Gabriella, who didn't like it when David was sad or blamed himself for a tragedy, "It's not 'your' fault, it's 'mine'."
David looked over, while Ashima also listened to what the young girl wanted to tell her grieving older brother.
"I knew I was too young to start dueling," continued Gabriella, "But I was also too excited and impatient to wait until I was at least 10-years old," She looked down in shame, "If anyone's to blame, it's 'me'. I don't like it when you blame yourself for everything…"
"Hey, now hold on a minute there," requested Lisa, stepping in, "Let me say that 'none' of you are at fault here. If we should be blaming anyone for this tragedy, it's Vincent Stevens."
"Lisa-chan…" whispered David, before frowning deeply over the duel that took place, "You're right. By becoming a Dark Signer and risking the lives of everyone within the canal area with his reckless behavior, Vincent has proclaimed his true colors," He clenched his right hand into a fist, with a very determined look in his eyes, "No matter what it takes, from here on out, I promise to 'personally' stop him the next time we meet."
In response to the vow, Lisa walked over, smiled, and punched her boyfriend's upmost right arm as though she was saying "Where did 'that' come from?", making him humorously wince before smiling back at her as she wrapped him in a hug from behind.
"It's the same with me," thought Ashima, after briefly watching David and Lisa's brief interaction, "I can't ever forgive Vincent, nor the rest of the Dark Signers, for hunting down and hurting our loved ones."
While that was going on, Discord walked to a nearby chair, sat down, reached into his coat pocket, and pulled out his own Deck. The bottom most card shown was none other than the famous 'Toon Kingdom' Spell Card, meaning the Deck was Discord's near unbeatable 'Toon' Deck.
"Similar to how Ashima and Gabriella were targeted, there's a chance I might have to face the Dark Signers, too," Discord told himself, mentally, "Will this Deck's power be enough to overcome the strategies and monsters used by the Dark Signers?" He closed his eyes and thought back to his last duel, "It doesn't help I'm slightly out of practice, having not taken part in any major duels since I last faced Spencer-boy a few years ago during the Anubis fiasco."
"Discord?" The voice of James R. interrupted, causing Discord to open his eyes and look over. He, Carlie, Sean, Janice, and Matt were all staring, "Is something on your mind?"
"Yes," confessed Discord, "I have to be prepared for when the Dark Signers next come for me."
"Us, too," put in Asagi, speaking up for herself and her two best friends, "The Dark Signers are also going to come for Mayura, Juri, and I at some point."
"We know it won't be a fun experience," frowned Mayura.
"But we will be ready to fight," promised Juri.
"You three…" murmured Matt, before going into his thoughts, "The danger my friends have been put in due to the Dark Signers… I can't let anything else happen to them, no matter what," He watched as everyone else started sharing a conversation, "I only hope I don't come to regret my decision to let them fight."
Ashima looked over at Matt, at first a bit startled over what he might have been thinking of, but then she just closed her eyes and smiled sweetly at him. Matt looked over and smiled back, being at least relieved that both Ashima and Gabriella were going to be okay.
(elsewhere…)
"IT'S NOT FAIR!" Vincent, clutching the sides of his head, shrieked.
Inside the hideout of the Dark Signers, Vincent Stevens had been brought back from the brink of being captured by the Signers, having tied with Ashima in a very violent and destructive duel. So far, he was having a temper tantrum over the tie. To say he wasn't pleased would be stating the obvious. Watching the ensuing tantrum were the three Bio-CPU boys, Azrael, and Rutger.
"I was so close to winning! SO CLOSE!" rumbled Vincent, "But did I win? Nooooo!" Orga, Clotho, and Shani each watched and listened with amusement, "That 'slave girl' had the gall to screw me over like how robo-boy did in our school duel!" He sank to his knees and slammed his fists onto the floor, "To make matters worse, I had to get bailed out by the big boss man of all people—right in-front of the girl and the Signers! It's so damn humiliating!"
"Well, you shouldn't have snuck out to go and duel in the first place!" berated Azrael, finally losing his patience, "Thanks to your bumbling, Ashima Nilgiri has regained her will to fight after your initial plan to break her was successful!" He (Azrael) then walked over, grabbed the incompetent Dark Signer by the robe collar, and lifted him (Vincent) up until they were seeing eye-to-eye, "You're lucky Rutger is giving you another chance, because if it were up to me…" Just as he (Azrael) came close to finishing his rant, Vincent simply scowled in annoyance while listening, "…I would make sure you never survived your defeat OR tie!"
There was tense silence from both sides, while Azrael kept glaring with gritted teeth, but then felt a hand touching his shoulder and looked in the direction of where it came from. It came from Rutger, and he had an evil grin on his face.
"Take it easy, friend," soothed Rutger, "All is not lost for us."
"Huh?" grunted Azrael, as he and Vincent looked over.
Rutger chuckled, seeing as there was something he knew that everyone else didn't.
(elsewhere…)
Outside New York-Presbyterian Lower Manhattan Hospital in (duh) New York City, as night fell, all was quiet and peaceful in the area.
"As we speak," The voice of Rutger narrated, "our newest Dark Signer is making her move at long last."
Suddenly, the front doors to the hospital opened up, and, stepping outside, was none other than the supposedly dead Misty Tredwell, now a Dark Signer. Her eyes were dull and empty, and the birthmark (Lizard) on her exposed right forearm was glowing purple. As Rutger had so kindly stated, Misty seemed to finally be on the move. Who would be her first target on her journey to seek revenge on Carlie for being supposedly involved in Toby's death? Stay tuned to find that out.
And there we go; Gabriella has thankfully survived the brutal beating she got by the hands of Vincent, and Ashima has fully made it past her PTSD and ended the battle in a DRAW. Vincent still lives, but his ego has taken another nasty hit again. Misty, meanwhile, is about to make her first move as a Dark Signer. Who's going to be her unlucky target? I'm not telling you guys who it will be. You'll have to read the next chapter when it comes out to find that out. As ever, stay safe during these troubling times.