Starting Notes:
Welcome back! We're starting the second half of the Synchro Arc now, so buckle in! It's time. :) In the end, I chose practicality over symbolism, so I won't be combining this chapter with the next one. It's just one duel, and it's well, shorter than my usual chapters as a result. I thought we needed a shorter chapter after Chapter 49. :D And we're at Chapter 50! *confetti* I'm really glad we've gotten this far, and I can't wait to see how much further we go. Thank you all for your support so far!
Trigger warnings for the chapter! Uh, firstly, a general Sergey warning. There is some blood and injury. Some of the descriptions are grotesque because Sergey. We get dialogue from a character clearly suffering from psychosis, though I did end up cutting out that character's POV (ok, it's obviously Sergey) to try and tone it down a little. Touches slightly on war-related trauma. A character with PTSD ends up being the viewpoint character and dealing with intrusive memories. In general, please just be prepared for the worst. This is not a feel-good chapter.
Chapter 50: The Worst Option
It was still early in the morning when Roget had his officers bring Miharu Kogami to the Security building. Of course, he could try to keep her there by force, but that would arouse suspicion from the Lancers far too easily
He was simply having her come here to negotiate with her.
Even so…
The calm, emotionless green eyes of Miharu Kogami looked at him across the table. Roget would admit that for a moment, he was reminded of Kaname. So this was one of the girls that the Professor wanted to be brought to Academia?
This girl, if things worked out, might become his strongest bargaining chip. A pawn that could become a queen.
"Why am I here?"
… well, she certainly got straight to the point, as Roget had expected.
"You tell me," Roget said, tilting his head. He was still wary of this girl—this girl who should have lost against Aki Izayoi, and yet was here anyway. "Why do you think you're here?"
A searching look, a soft sigh. "Because you're working for Academia, Jean Michel Roget," Miharu Kogami said, as though it was something that was set in stone, even though there should be no way that she should know—
"Whatever do you mean?" Roget asked, trying to maintain some control over the conversation.
"... Sherry LeBlanc is a genius," Miharu said. "Yuno told me as much." Her gaze was piercing, despite how mellow it was. "She is not, however, malicious enough to do what you made her do."
Roget leaned back. His mind raced—this was not how he had expected or wanted the conversation to go at all. Who would have thought that trying to get rid of the Lancers back in the Facility would backfire on him like this? Did Yuno Sugisaki even know Sherry LeBlanc well enough to make that assessment of her character? This was ridiculous! Who would even be able to look past the fact that the woman was a criminal and actually try to look at who she was as a person? Ridiculous!
However, every second that he tried to figure out how to connect the conversation back to his original plan, Miharu was clearly observing something new from him.
Roget frantically thought up a lie. "I am from the Fusion Dimension," he said, hedging slightly. "May I ask how you figured that out?" Had one of his officers betrayed him? Impossible, he had them on a very tight leash.
"It's really not that hard," Miharu said. "Security went after my comrades right away. In the Facility, run by Security, someone tried to get rid of them. Once they escaped, despite me disabling all the cameras and making sure that no one could see them, someone managed to get information and target them directly, meaning that they were specifically kept under watch. Someone is manipulating the Friendship Cup behind the scenes, to force us to eliminate each other over and over. I assume that it was not a coincidence that you've made the Xyz duelists eliminate each other twice." Her voice was quiet, but matter-of-fact. "No matter how much you want a scapegoat, by the system of the City that you have created—there is no chance that Sherry LeBlanc had the power to arrange all that. Thus, all along, the evidence pointed to you."
And there it was—plain, simple logic.
Roget was annoyed by it.
He hated when pawns could think for themselves.
"Well, it seems that I've been exposed quite handily by you! I suppose that the rest of the Lancers must already know by now, then." He attempted to fish for information from her reaction to the statement—however, there was no visible reaction at all. Who was this girl, anyway? Had she been trained to resist interrogation techniques or something?
"... if you're asking if I've told the rest, then the answer is no," Miharu replied.
What?
She was just offering that information freely?
Roget couldn't understand—and he probably never would. A mind as selfish and self-centred as his could never comprehend the very simple reason that Miharu had held back on properly sharing her suspicions with the rest of the Lancers. In fact, if he heard it, he might immediately accuse her of lying.
What was that reason?
Because Miharu could see that the Lancers were all still hurt. Hurt in their own ways, by all sorts of different things. Cracks in their armour where Roget had managed to strike at them over and over again, throughout the Friendship Cup. Kurosaki didn't need to be explained—he had been forced into an emotionally exhausting and painful duel against Dennis, been forced to face the sharp pain of betrayal and disbelief, and then, he'd had to watch his girlfriend eliminate his best friend, and do the same to her right afterwards. How could he not feel pain from that? Yuya had been forced to eliminate Yuzu, and despite still trying to put on a smile—and didn't Miharu have thoughts about that—it was clear that it was still weighing him down. And Gongenzaka wasn't around either, so he was missing that steady presence that would usually comfort him.
Meanwhile, Serena, who respected Yuzu so much, had clearly been affected by the duel—and more importantly, she was hanging around Kurosaki. Even if the indigo-haired girl hadn't said it, she had clearly felt the blow of Dennis's betrayal as much as Shun had. Reira, despite her uncertainty about morality and her own emotions, had clearly been affected by her own duel with Mion—to the point where the quiet child had actually asked Miharu to help her with her emotions. For someone who was so withdrawn to ask that much… then, on the opposite end, there was Yugo, who was usually so outgoing, but had now withdrawn into himself slightly, with that burning anger that didn't suit him at all.
And Miharu could tell that Yuno was somewhat tired too. Roget hadn't personally gone after him yet, which was good, because Miharu would already have exposed him if that was the case. But he was weary, from all that he was trying to do—he was trying to take care of everyone at once, offer a hand to everyone who needed it, in a selfless way that Miharu herself had mirrored. In a group of people that were all slightly fractured in their own way, they were trying to hold them together. And by taking that responsibility on himself, Yuno was hurting himself too.
How could she burden them with this knowledge so quickly after that, especially when it wasn't actually confirmed back then? She had wanted to wait until they were all slightly less tired, until telling them this wouldn't send them all off on self-destructive paths…
Roget, through all of his plans and machinations, had managed to wear them down slightly.
But Miharu would not give him the satisfaction of knowing that.
Let the logical schemer continue to not understand emotions.
So she stayed stone-faced, even as Roget internally freaked out.
"Regardless," Roget said, "despite originally being sent here to work for Academia, I have since ceased contact with them. I no longer work for Academia. I am only interested in keeping this city safe from them, and allowing it to be self-sufficient. As such—I thought that you Lancers were a threat, which is why I acted against you. However, upon further investigation, I no longer think that is the case. And seeing your performance made me wonder if you and I could come to an agreement. You are a logical girl, and you should know that your situation is of particular interest to Academia…"
Miharu touched the bracelet that she was wearing for a brief moment.
"Thus, I propose an alliance. What can the Lancers offer you, anyway, when you are one of their strongest? In comparison to the resources of this entire city, what is that motley crew of yours?" Roget clapped his hands together. "Join me. Academia will come to this city to capture you eventually." He obviously did not share that Yuri and Yuji had already showed up. That would make it sound like he needed her strength. In a negotiation like this, it was important to never let on that you were in a lower position.
(Not that Roget's mind would ever perceive himself as being in a lower position, regardless.)
"You can have access to both your Lancers as defenders and the power of Security. With so many people on your side, you would never be in danger. What do you think?"
Miharu looked at him. She raised her head to look at the ceiling for a moment.
"It's a good deal—"
"I'm not thinking about your question," Miharu said. Her voice was even quieter now. "A moment, please." She lapsed into silence again.
Roget waited impatiently.
Finally, Miharu looked at him again. "Even if you were telling the truth, which you are not," she said, "I… would never consider that. Using other people as sacrifices for my own safety? If I could be so selfish, my life would have been very different."
She stood up, pushing her chair back.
(She had thought through her words very carefully. After all, she never would have agreed to something like that.)
"Then help me keep this City safe!" Roget stood up too, his chair scraping against the ground. "Surely that will be something that appeals to you—keeping the innocent people in this city safe from Academia, right?"
Miharu's voice was barely a whisper now.
(After all, Miharu Kogami did not get angry. She did not raise her voice. She did not get upset. All of those were emotions that she did not give herself the capacity to feel, because there was always a more productive way than giving into those emotions.)
(No, Miharu Kogami never got upset. She only got quieter.)
"Safe?" Miharu tilted her head to look back at him. There was something… cold to her eyes. "Do you call what you do to these people something that keeps them safe?"
Roget blinked. How could he not be considered as keeping these people safe? This was his city. He had complete control over it, and through managing everything, he kept it perfect. What more could they ask for? It was efficient.
"You… control them, and you restrict them. One half lives every single day in suffering because of you. The other half never sees any consequences of their actions because you make them believe that they can get away with anything. And you consider this safety?" Miharu shook her head. "You use them like slaves. Even your own daughter. You ruin every single person in this city, and you think that what you're doing is keeping them safe? You're asking the wrong person for this. I only want to try to live a decent life. To protect people. You want me to ally with you and help you do this? You want me to use people's lives for my own sake?"
Her next words had a strange echo to them. As though someone was speaking at the same time, with the same conviction. Despite her graceful, quiet, demure posture, without any ugliness to her expression—
Her eyes burned a hole in Roget's skull, with their intensity—an intensity that she rarely ever had. "You disgust me. Just kill me instead, if you can."
"You—" Roget slammed a fist on the table with rage. He was scowling darkly. "You think that you can get away with saying that to me?"
Miharu didn't respond. That only infuriated Roget more—was she looking down on him?
He'd show her.
He'd show them that he was nothing to be trifled with.
(Most of his carefully planned objectives collapsed away in his mind. That was the problem with his self-centred mind—no matter how much he planned, no matter how much logic he tried to use, the moment that someone angered him, he would go against all reason to take revenge on the one that he thought had wronged him, even if it completely ruined the rest of his plans. An entirely irrational response. For all that Roget liked to pretend to be logical, calm and rational, he was the exact opposite.)
(Roget would call his revenge 'justice', for their 'insult' to him. Most others would call it megalomania.)
"You can't leave yet," Roget said, his tone tinged with malice. "After all, if you go back, the rest of the Lancers will find out what you know immediately."
"... not even going to hide it now?"
"Considering that you've dropped all civility, can't I do the same?" Roget raised his hand, as though he had never slammed it on the table in the first place. He smiled, trying to pretend that he was calm and composed, that his plans were all working, that nothing was wrong and this cold bitch hadn't just ruined everything. "Officers, escort her to a guest room. Make sure that she has access to a television. I want her to see what happens next and know that it's because of her. Know that this suffering is caused by you."
As Miharu was led away, Roget picked up his phone.
"Swap Participants 1 and 3," he snapped. The participants in the Friendship Cup were given numbers once the 'random' matches were decided—Participants 1 and 2 were the ones in the first match, 3 and 4 were the ones in the second match and so on.
"S-sir, are you sure? The first match's about to start, you won't be able to revise this decision—"
"Do it or I fire you." Roget slammed his phone down, disconnecting the call. "She thinks that she can look down on my generous offer? She wants to be sanctimonous about human life?" His grin widened until it spread across his face, like a madman. "Then we'll show her exactly how fragile that human life is." He dialed another number. "Yes. Get Sergey ready. And forget what I said last time—place the Fusion Monsters in his Extra Deck."
(If Roget was capable of thinking clearly, he would realise how much this would ruin all of his plans. How it would redirect attention back to him. However, he was no longer capable of doing so.)
(He just wanted to see the Lancers burn.)
"Thank you to everyone for waking up nice and early!" Melissa Claire said, smiling widely as she greeted the crowd below. "Today, we'll be having the third round of the Friendship Cup—the Round of 8! I hope that we're all going to be entertained today! Now, I've got a special announcement from the Security Bureau for everyone! Now, if we're ready…" She glanced towards the other person in the back of the helicopter, who held out a thumbs up to her. "We'll be handing our time over to the Director of Security, Jean Michel Roget!"
On the screen above the entire stadium, which usually displayed the participants' life points and the field state, Roget's face appeared. He was smiling in a rather genial manner.
"Greetings, everyone," he said, sounding rather level-headed. "This announcement is not one that I hoped I'd have to make, but unfortunately, there seems to be no choice. Due to the injuries inflicted on one of the participants yesterday—my own daughter, Kaname Mizuchi—she will be substituted out for another participant for the rest of the Friendship Cup."
Whispers broke out in the crowd.
"I understand that you may all be questioning the legitimacy of this. After all, my daughter has already defeated two difficult opponents, and you may think that this new participant is unfairly getting a bye to this round as a result. I assure you—this duelist is perfectly capable. Allow me to explain." Roget pressed his hands together. "Several years ago, there was a man who many referred to as the Duelist Crusher." There were sounds of recognition from the crowd. "He was a violent man who crushed many under his heel and never lost a duel. That is, until around six years ago, when he was forced into a battle royale with thirty officers and defeated. However, after he was imprisoned, he managed to get out by demonstrating his strength. He began to wreak havoc on the streets again, until he was arrested. He defeated many officers again—and the one who rearrested him was my daughter."
Roget drummed his fingers on the table, as though idly considering those words. "That man. You know him as Sergey Volkov. He is the approved substitute for the Friendship Cup."
Sounds of outrage filled the entire stadium. People were in an uproar.
In his room, Yuya remembered the strange man that he had dueled before being arrested. A chill ran down his spine—he hadn't been called. The first participant had already been called down, and it wasn't him.
One of his comrades was facing this creature.
"Do you believe that he is too violent? That he is too much of a criminal?" Roget's words silenced the crowd. "Do we or do we not already have a precedent for criminals in this Friendship Cup? You've cheered on duelists like Sherry LeBlanc and Kiryu Kyosuke. And suddenly you're acting as though criminals should not be allowed in this Cup?"
Yuno, slightly more perceptive, blinked. "So, did he allow them into the Cup to build up for allowing this guy in?" Having not met Sergey, he knew nothing about him.
"And violence? Did your heart not stir during that last match? It is by seeing people fight each other with all their might that we are entertained. The introduction of Sergey Volkov into this Friendship Cup? It is to create an antagonist. Someone who can spark something in this Friendship Cup."
"Through violence?" Shun spat out. "Are you kidding me?"
"These people…" Serena stared at the audience out of her window. "They're nodding along… what's wrong with them?"
"Otherwise," Roget said, "this will be too boring. And none of us want to be bored. To survive in this city is to fight. Don't you want this Cup to stir your spirits?" He left it there. "Thus—let us welcome Sergey Volkov to the field!"
As the man drove in, Yugo watched, frowning.
… Sergey Volkov was arrested two years or so ago, right?
Kaname would have been fifteen…
Roget made her fight someone like that?
Roget's face faded from the screen. Melissa Claire took over. "Thank you, Director! That was a very stirring speech! And now, for the opposing duelist—" She saw the name on the script she had been handed, and she paled for a moment.
(It seemed that even she had some scruples.)
"The one dueling him will be…" Her voice trailed off. "Reira Akaba of the Lancers."
Reiji watched the screen, stone-faced.
… so Roget's made his move. This is truly…
"Where do you think you're going, Reiji Akaba?" One of the Council members called to him. Reiji had stood up immediately when he had heard his sister's name. He had a neutral look on his face as he looked over.
"Outside."
"You cannot interfere in the duels of the Friendship Cup, Reiji Akaba."
"A funny sentiment from those who asked me who the best Lancer to start the tournament with was," Reiji replied calmly. "Have you forgotten your own words?"
"Even so— you cannot do this." The Council member pointed to Reiji's chair. "Sit down and watch. If your brother loses, he will be brought here. It will be done."
Reiji narrowed his eyes.
It was not yet time to strike out, however.
I'll find you, Reira.
But for now, do your best in this duel.
"Huh? They're making Reira—" Yuya punched the wall. "That's the worst!..."
He remembered how afraid he had been when he was dueling against this man. He remembered thorns and blood and pain. If Reira was hurt—if something happened—
He wasn't sure if he could handle it.
Please. Please, Reira, be careful…
But no matter how much everyone objected to the duel—it had already been decided.
Reira looked emotionless as they drove up next to Sergey—and then, as the start of the duel was announced, she drove forward. Sergey was certainly faster, however, and in the end, he won the first corner. It was all done in complete silence—neither of them talked to each other.
And thus, the duel started.
[DUEL!]
Sergey Volkov: 4000LP
Reira Akaba: 4000LP
[Turn 1: Sergey] [H:5]
"Normal Summoning Earthbound Prisoner Ground Keeper," Sergey said listlessly—there was no passion in his voice at all. A strange dark humanoid with glowing purple lines running across its body appeared, blue flames floating around it. A skeletal structure stretched out behind it, also glowing purple.
[Earthbound Prisoner Ground Keeper (1*/300/300/DARK/Fiend/Tuner/Effect)]
"Ground Keeper's effect. Special Summon Level 5 or lower "Earthbound" monster from deck or graveyard. Special Summoning Earthbound Prisoner Stone Sweeper." A strange black aquatic-looking creature appeared, fins spread out around it. Bright blue lines glowed along its body, even as bright blue orbs of light appeared, floating around it.
[Earthbound Prisoner Stone Sweeper (5*/1600/1600/DARK/Fiend/Effect)]
"Tuning Level 1 Earthbound Prisoner Ground Keeper to Level 5 Earthbound Prisoner Stone Sweeper." Sergey's voice continued to be monotone, launching into one of the most slowly spoken summoning chants known to mankind. "Spirit bound to the earth, shake all of creation with your mystic power. Synchro Summon. Come forth. Level 6. Earthbound Servant Geo Gremlin." A strange minotaur-like creature appeared—tall and humanoid, with light blue lines running across its shadow-like body. Twin short curling horns adorned its head, along with two yellow slits that resembled eyes on the top of its body. Shackles and chains hung loosely from its wrists. Sergey's voice had not become any more energetic throughout the summoning chant—he still looked bored.
[Earthbound Servant Geo Gremlin (6*/2000/1000/DARK/Fiend/Synchro/Effect)]
"Set one card. End turn."
[Turn 2: Reira] [H:6]
"Draw." Reira glanced at her hand. "I will activate the Continuous Spell, Persona Shutter Layer 3. And I will Normal Summon Phonograph Magician." The girl in black robes appeared in front of her.
[Phonograph Magician (4*/0/0/LIGHT/Spellcaster/Effect)]
"I will then tribute Phonograph Magician to use her effect. I can add two "C/C" monsters with different Attributes from my deck to my hand, but I cannot Special Summon monsters from the Extra Deck or hand this turn, except "C/C" monsters." Reira lifted the two cards. "I will add C/C One-Eyed Past Eye and C/C/C Shining Pillar the Embodiment of Balance to my hand. Then, I will set the Scale 2 C/C/C Shadow Mimicry the Embodiment of Balance and the Scale 9 C/C/C Shining Pillar the Embodiment of Balance in the Pendulum Scales. Pendulum Summon—come, C/C One-Eyed Past Eye."
Her main monster appeared in front of her.
[C/C One-Eyed Past Eye (3*/1400/1000/DARK/Fiend/Effect)]
"Spell Card, Montage Fusion. I will take a photo of your monster and fuse it with my monster. Empty weapon slumbering in the void, rise to my aid! Dwell in this eye and give me your power! Fusion Summon! Appear now! The sword of shadow which slashes while unseen! C/C/C Shadow Sword the Embodiment of Fused Arms!"
The dark Fusion Monster appeared, floating in the air in front of her.
[C/C/C Shadow Sword the Embodiment of Fused Arms (6*/2400/0/DARK/Fiend/Fusion/Effect)]
"I will activate the Pendulum Effect of C/C/C Shadow Mimicry the Embodiment of Balance. Since I control a "C/C/C" monster, I can add a "Shutter", "Montage" or "Past" Spell or Trap Card from my deck to my hand. I'll then activate the Pendulum Effect of C/C/C Shining Pillar the Embodiment of Balance, to negate the effect of a monster you control with the same Attribute as a "C/C/C" monster I control. I will choose Earthbound Servant Geo Gremlin."
"Earthbound Servant Geo Gremlin's effect," Sergey droned. "Target face-up monster opponent controls. Opponent chooses. Destroy it, or I gain life points equal to its attack points."
"Gain life points!" Reira replied decisively. A glow surrounded Sergey.
Sergey: 4000 + 2400 = 6400LP
The effect of Shining Pillar then resolved, negating Geo Gremlin's effect.
"C/C/C Shadow Sword the Embodiment of Fused Arms attacks Earthbound Servant Geo Gremlin. And when Shadow Sword attacks, it gains attack points equal to the total attack points of all DARK monsters on the field!"
[C/C/C Shadow Sword the Embodiment of Fused Arms: 2400 + 2000 = 4400ATK]
"Trap Card," Sergey said flatly. "Metaverse. Activate Field Spell from Deck. Field Spell, Earthbound Prison!" Around them, strange undead blue hands began to claw their way out from the ground. "When Earthbound Prison activated, negate Effect Monster's effect. Negate Shadow Sword." Shadow Sword's attack points fell back to normal.
[C/C/C Shadow Sword the Embodiment of Fused Arms: 4400 → 2400ATK]
The attack still hit, but it did less damage to Sergey than it otherwise would have.
Sergey: 6400 - 400 = 6000LP
"I will set two cards and end my turn," Reira said. "With the effect of Montage Fusion, the monster that I Fusion Summoned with its effect is destroyed during the End Phase." Shadow Sword dissipated like mist, fading from the field. "Persona Shutter Layer 3's effect. If a "C/C/C" monster I control is destroyed, I can Special Summon C/C One-Eyed Past Eye from my graveyard." The thin rock-like monster reappeared in Defense Position.
Up above, Yuya breathed a sigh of relief. It was odd. Sergey's deck was completely different, and yet… he didn't seem as terrifying as before?
[Turn 3: Sergey] [H:4]
"Draw."
Reira didn't like the look in Sergey's eyes. Some might think that he was just bored with the whole duel, but Reira didn't agree with that at all. It wasn't boredom—it was a sense of deep, hollow emptiness that longed to find something to fill it.
… it made her uncomfortable. And a little afraid.
"Spell Card, Earthbound Terraforming. Destroy Field Spell. Draw two cards." Earthbound Prison was subsequently destroyed. "Normal Summon Earthbound Prisoner Line Walker." A black golem-like figure appeared, glowing brown lines running straight across its body. Two shackles could be seen around its wrists, with some purple wisps around it.
[Earthbound Prisoner Line Walker (3*/800/1100/DARK/Fiend/Tuner/Effect)]
"Earthbound Prisoner Line Walker's effect. Add Earthbound Prison from graveyard to hand. Activate Earthbound Prison. Negate effect of C/C One-Eyed Past Eye." He revealed another card in his hand. "Special Summon Earthbound Prisoner Tomb Sweeper from hand." A reptilian creature appeared on the field, sticking out a black tongue. Glowing orange lines could be seen streaking over its body.
[Earthbound Prisoner Tomb Sweeper (5*/1500/1500/DARK/Fiend/Effect)]
"Tuning Level 3 Earthbound Prisoner Line Walker to Level 5 Earthbound Prisoner Tomb Sweeper." Sergey's two monsters seemed to blend together again. "Revive from the depths of the earth. Gigantic beast with wings of punishment. Synchro Summon. Come forth. Level 8. Earthbound Servant Geo Gryphon." A taloned, winged dark creature appeared. Each of its wings were as large as Reira themselves. It had a long brown and green tail that whipped through the air behind it recklessly. Two claws were raised in the air, both resembling a bird's talons and the claws of a beast.
[Earthbound Servant Geo Gryphon (8*/2500/1500/DARK/Fiend/Synchro/Effect)]
"Geo Gryphon's effect." Sergey's unfocused gaze didn't even turn to his monster. "Special Summon "Earthbound" monster from graveyard in Defense Position. Cannot Special Summon monsters from Extra Deck this turn, except Fusion and Synchro Monsters."
And that set off a sharp ripple effect.
"Fusion?" Shun Kurosaki shouted. "How many of them are there in this place?"
"Reira's fighting one of them now?" Yuno grimaced. "They're strong, but this has a chance to end very badly…"
"He's from Academia?" Yuya said faintly, making the wrong conclusion—though to be fair, the situation certainly suggested that.
"Return. Earthbound Servant Geo Gremlin." The dark, shackled figure reappeared on his field next to Geo Gryphon. "Battle Phase. Geo Gremlin's effect. Banish monsters from hand, field, graveyard to Fusion Summon. Banish Stone Sweeper and Tomb Sweeper from graveyard."
All of the Lancers, including Reira herself, tensed up.
"Prisoner that crawls across the earth. Become one with the prisoner fated to drown in grief eternally, and become a gigantic beast that delivers out punishment. Fusion Summon. Come forth. Level 8. Earthbound Servant Geo Kraken." An enormous black giant squid appeared, tentacles lashing out everywhere in a savage manner. Purple lines could be seen as patterns along the tentacles, extending up along the squid's pyramid-like head.
[Earthbound Servant Geo Kraken (8*/2800/1200/DARK/Fiend/Fusion/Effect)]
"Geo Kraken Special Summoned. Add Field Spell from deck to hand." Sergey pointed forward. "Earthbound Servant Geo Kraken attacks C/C One-Eyed Past Eye."
"Quickplay Spell, activate!" Reira flipped up one of her two set cards. "Past Overlay. I will target Earthbound Servant Geo Kraken, and its Level becomes 8 until the End Phase." In other words, there was no difference. "Then, I can treat Past Overlay and a "C/C One-Eyed Past Eye" I control as monsters with the same Level, Type, Attribute, attack and defense points, and overlay them to Xyz Summon an Xyz Monster. I will overlay the Level 8 C/C One-Eyed Past Eye and the Level 8 Past Overlay! Empty shadows that take on the solid form! Reside in this eye and give me power! Xyz Summon! Appear now! The ultimate protection that repels all judgement! Rank 8! C/C/C Shadow Chainmail the Embodiment of Overlaid Armors!" The dark set of armour surrounded by chains appeared.
[C/C/C Shadow Chainmail the Embodiment of Overlaid Armors (R8/3200/2700/DARK/Fiend/Xyz/Effect) (OU:2)]
Sergey smiled. It was an extremely cruel kind of smile—incomprehensible emotion that had emerged from within the emptiness. "Once per turn, when opponent Special Summons monster from Extra Deck, Geo Kraken's effect activates," he said. "Destroy as many monsters opponent controls that were Special Summoned, deal 800 damage for each."
A tentacle lashed down. Reira barely avoided it—and there was real damage done to the road by the impact. A chunk of stone flew past her as her monster exploded, and some small bits hit her as she simultaneously took damage.
Reira: 4000 - 800 = 3200LP
"Persona Shutter Layer 3's effect!" Reira called. "When a "C/C/C" monster I control is destroyed, I can Special Summon C/C One-Eyed Past Eye from the graveyard!" One-Eyed Past Eye reappeared in Defense Position.
"Protected." Sergey's teeth grinded against each other, a sound that was somehow audible to Reira. "Destroy. C/C One-Eyed Past Eye. Geo Kraken." Geo Kraken lashed forward at Reira's One-Eyed Past Eye again.
"Quickplay Spell, Past Tuning," Reira replied. Her other set card flipped up. Even though she was technically interrupting the attack, the kraken's large black tentacle still slammed against the ground next to her. The force of it nearly caused her to crash. "I will target your Earthbound Servant Geo Kraken. Since it's Level 7 or higher, it becomes Level 5."
[Earthbound Servant Geo Kraken: 8* → 5*]
"Then, I will Special Summon Past Tuning as a monster with the same Level, and use it and C/C One-Eyed Past Eye, which is treated as a Tuner monster, to Synchro Summon. Explosive dark force that tears down fortresses! Synchronize with this eye and give me your power! Synchro Summon! Forward! Wartime ranged artillery—C/C/C Shadow Catapult the Embodiment of Tuned Attacks!" An enormous… well, catapult appeared, made of black metal which seemed to suck the light out of anything near it. It had an eerie glow around it—nuts and bolts lined its frame.
[C/C/C Shadow Catapult the Embodiment of Tuned Attacks (8*/2400/0/DARK/Fiend/Synchro/Effect)]
The monster settled down in Defense Position.
"All these interruptions… annoying." Sergey pointed forward. Geo Kraken launched itself at her monster.
"C/C/C Shadow Catapult the Embodiment of Tuned Attacks cannot be destroyed by battle with a DARK monster!" Reira declared. Her monster was unmoved by the attack, and she herself took no damage. However, she did have to dodge another flailing tentacle.
"Another…" Sergey pointed forward. "Earthbound Servant Geo Gryphon attacks."
Huh? That was illogical. It wouldn't do anything—
Sharp winds stirred up, and Reira, with her small size, was nearly torn off the D-Wheel. The D-Wheel shook and swayed—nothing happened in the duel, but once again, Reira nearly crashed.
Reira frantically tried to stop herself from feeling fear—she dove into her learned apathy, the emptiness and coldness. (She would rather feel nothing than collapse in fear—even if she was genuinely terrified.)
"Main Phase 2," Sergey said. "Geo Gremlin's effect. Target C/C/C Shadow Catapult the Embodiment of Tuned Attacks. Destroy it, or I gain life points equal to its attack points."
"I'll destroy it!" It was going to be destroyed during the End Phase anyway, so she'd rather deny him the life points.
Be logical. Be logical.
If I'm afraid, I can't think clearly…
"When a "C/C/C" monster is destroyed, I can Special Summon C/C One-Eyed Past Eye from the graveyard with Persona Shutter Layer 3's effect." One-Eyed Past Eye reappeared on the field yet again.
"Set card, end turn."
[Turn 4: Reira] [H:2]
"Draw," Reira said. "Spell Card, Camera Capture. By shuffling two "C/C/C" monsters, like C/C/C Shadow Chainmail the Embodiment of Overlaid Armors and C/C/C Shadow Catapult the Embodiment of Tuned Attacks, into the deck, I can draw three cards." She refilled her entire hand. "Continuous Spell, Persona Shutter Layer 4. Then, Spell Card, Past Overlay. I will overlay C/C One-Eyed Past Eye with a picture of your Geo Gryphon." Shadow Chainmail reappeared on the field.
"Effect. Geo Kraken." Sergey's uncanny eyes stared directly at Reira. "Destroy. Destroy."
Technically, Shadow Halberd, the Fusion form, had an effect when Special Summoned that could protect it from destruction by battle or card effects that turn. However, it needed to resolve first, and so, Sergey's effect, which would resolve before it, would destroy it.
Therefore… Reira had intentionally 'wasted' her move.
Shadow Chainmail, the sacrificial lamb, was destroyed. There was a sharp stinging sensation on Reira's arm from where the creature's tendril had scraped her.
Reira: 3200 - 800 = 2400LP
"With the effect of Persona Shutter Layer 3, I will Special Summon C/C One-Eyed Past Eye from the graveyard." She had been prepared for this, after all. "I will use the effect of Persona Shutter Layer 4. Since a "C/C" monster was Special Summoned from the graveyard, I can add a "Past", "Shutter" or "Montage" Spell or Trap from my graveyard to my hand. I will add Montage Fusion back to my hand." She activated it immediately. "I will take a photograph of your Geo Gryphon and fuse it with C/C One-Eyed Past Eye. Supreme ruler of the realm of empty darkness. Dwell in this eye and give me your power! Fusion Summon! Level 8! C/C/C Shadow Halberd the Embodiment of Fused Arms!" The dark halberd appeared, thick shadows swirling around it and trailing around it towards the ground.
[C/C/C Shadow Halberd the Embodiment of Fused Arms (8*/3000/0/DARK/Fiend/Fusion/Effect)]
"Since Shadow Halberd was Special Summoned, I can use its effect. It cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects for the rest of the turn." Getting that out of the way, she now had a better chance. "With Persona Shutter Layer 4, "C/C/C" monsters I control gain 100 attack points times their Level, Rank or Link Rating."
[C/C/C Shadow Halberd the Embodiment of Fused Arms: 3000 + 100 x 8 = 3800ATK]
"I will then use the Pendulum Effect of C/C/C Shining Pillar the Embodiment of Balance. I will negate Geo Gremlin's effect." So that way, Sergey couldn't Fusion Summon on her turn. "I will use the Pendulum Effect of C/C/C Shadow Mimicry the Embodiment of Balance to add a "Montage", "Past" or "Shutter" Spell or Trap from my deck to my hand." Reira stretched out a hand. "C/C/C Shadow Halberd the Embodiment of Fused Arms can always attack twice, and can declare a third attack when you control a DARK monster! Shadow Halberd attacks Geo Gryphon!"
After all, that was the monster that could revive the others. It was important to get rid of it first, because anything else would be temporary.
"Trap Card, Earthbound Sacrifice." Sergey's grin split wide open, like a rotten pumpkin that had been cut open—rancid, too wide, the edges of the grin looking rough, as though they were peeling away. "Negate attack by banishing attacked monster until End Phase. Then—Special Summon Level 10 or lower "Earthbound" monster from deck, ignoring summoning conditions."
Sergey picked up a card from his deck. He lifted it in front of his face, that menacing grin still there. Reira felt a tremor in her hands—that bored emptiness from before had been replaced with something that could only be called mania.
"Goddess," he breathed out, his throat sounding hoarse—and that raw delight in his tone was jarring compared to his cruel grin. "Goddess, goddess, goddess…" His voice sounded euphoric. "Bless me!"
"What the…" Yuno caught himself before he swore. "What is he doing? He—does he think the cards in his deck are a god to follow, or something like that?"
Sergey raised the card to his lips, kissing it. It was grotesque to watch—and Reira, as a child, was even more disturbed by it than most others might be. "Come—Earthbound Immortal Aslla Piscu!"
And the clouds above went dark, before a being made entirely from shadows flew down—a bird whose wings were each as wide as the track itself. It twirled around, almost blacking out the sky from Reira's point of view. Orange lines ran across its body.
[Earthbound Immortal Aslla Piscu (10*/2500/2500/DARK/Winged Beast/Effect)]
And Reira looked at it—
A bird-like screech filled the air.
"Ah—"
The world seemed to fall still.
"Ah—"
Reira's head fell into her hands. The stammering sounds that were leaving her throat fell silent—she hadn't even been aware of them, just a pressure in her throat that was desperately trying to release itself in a scream.
It was dark. It was scary. There was something covering the clouds. Something big.
Explosions. Loud sounds.
Reira's D-Wheel skidded narrowly past a corner. She nearly crashed—the loud skidding noises felt like they were a drill piercing straight into her brain.
Reira would learn later in her life that those were called bombs. She would learn that when she became 'Reira'.
Then, they were just loud sounds.
Loud. Loud. So loud. She wanted to scream, but no matter how loud she screamed, she would never be loud enough to be heard over those explosions.
So instead of being loud, she just hid.
She had to be quiet.
Her lips hung open, unable to speak or scream in response.
Ah.
Ah—
Because the people that can be heard, the people who make themselves known, they are the ones that get killed first.
So she just had to stay silent. She just had to be quiet.
She had to become nothing but shadows, just emptiness, she had to become empty—
She had to become nothing, so that she wouldn't die!
I don't want to die!
Sergey was laughing. Every laugh sounded crooked, like bricks scattering across the ground, gravel cluttering down bit by bit.
The building was collapsing. She was in it.
The rubble was collapsing on her.
Make it stop—
Make it stop!
… was it raining?
"He's crying," Shun said. His fists were clenched so tightly that he felt like his fingers might fall off. "He's crying. This is…"
"This is too cruel," Serena muttered. "They're crying—and they're terrified."
Two perfectly normal reactions for a child, but when that child was Reira Akaba, who sealed off all those emotions, who clearly wanted to feel nothing but couldn't. She couldn't put up walls because of whatever was currently haunting her—
Something that reminded her so keenly of her past that she couldn't shut everything away.
Ahhhhhhh—
"Child." Sergey tilted his head, still with that grotesque smile. "Take your turn."
"Reira. You cannot have any kind of weakness."
"It's unbecoming of an Akaba to be scared. You're not allowed to be scared."
"Fight. You're unworthy otherwise."
Her mother's words echoed in her brain. Reira found all of a sudden that she couldn't breathe.
"Shadow Halberd's attack…" Reira stammered. She hated it. She hated herself. She was so weak. She was unworthy of her name. Her mother was right, she was nothing. "Attack—second—Geo Kraken."
The attack hit. Geo Kraken was destroyed.
Sergey: 6000 - 1000 = 5000LP
"Shadow Halberd. Third. Aslla Piscu."
The bird shrieked. It hurt Reira's head.
"Aslla Piscu cannot be targeted for attacks." Sergey's voice was faster, but he sounded remarkably more coherent than before.
"... attack. Geo Gremlin."
The other monster was destroyed, and Sergey took more damage.
Sergey: 5000 - 1800 = 3200LP
"Set card… end turn." Shadow Halberd was not destroyed by Montage Fusion due to its own effect.
"... child." Sergey looked directly at Reira. "You're trembling." He said it as a matter-of-fact statement.
Reira couldn't quite look away. Her eyes felt like they couldn't shut themselves—she was too afraid to look away.
"... boring." Sergey continued. "Skill. You have skill. But what is skill?" He raised a hand. Aslla Piscu howled. "Skill is boring. Ugly. This is an ugly duel—"
He laughed. It was more like a rabid beast's shriek.
"You're ugly, child. Play like yours will never be the beauty I'm looking for. But I will make it beautiful." His voice sounded like he was narrating a classical novel, all of a sudden. "This duel… I'm performing for my goddess, after all!" His voice sounded delirious. "I've waited so long. To prove myself, to prove myself, to prove myself—" His voice broke off into a mad rant. "And then, I get a weak child like you? How am I supposed to make her heart dance? You're in my way!" The deranged screech caused the entire crowd to flinch. "Die!"
[Turn 5: Sergey] [H:3]
Sergey drew a card. "Accept reality," he said. Geo Gryphon reappeared on his field. "Geo Gryphon's effect. Revive, Earthbound Servant Geo Gremlin." The previous monster reappeared on the field. "Still trembling, child?"
Just stop. Please stop. I'm so scared.
"Geo Gremlin's effect. Target Shadow Halberd. Destroy or I gain life points."
Reira couldn't answer verbally. She shook her head. Sergey's life points ticked up again. It was as though Reira had never done anything against him at all—as though she hadn't landed a single blow.
Sergey: 3200 + 3800 = 6000LP
"Battle Phase. Banish Geo Kraken from graveyard and Geo Gremlin from field to Fusion Summon."
Fusing a Synchro and Fusion Monster?
Sergey practically screamed out his next summoning chant. "Demon that rules over the earth! Demon that clings to the land! Become one and rise from the depths of the underground! Fusion Summon! Come forth! Level 10! Earthbound Servant Geo Grasha!"
The earth shook. Then, a demonic, dark creature emerged—sharp shapes with straight edges that formed wing-like structures. Red glowing lines that covered the demon's body. Holes in the wings that seemed to glow, something tattered to its appearance. A tail longer than its entire body wrapped around it.
[Earthbound Servant Geo Grasha (10*/3000/1800/DARK/Fiend/Fusion/Effect)]
"Geo Grasha, beloved," Sergey said, smiling thinly. "Attack that monster. And Geo Grasha's effect. Monster's attack and defense points changed to 0."
[C/C/C Shadow Halberd the Embodiment of Fused Arms: 3800 → 0ATK; 0 → 0DEF]
No no no no no please no—
Reira reached out for her set card—
Her hand trembled.
She couldn't flip it.
She couldn't—
Is my will so weak? Can't I even fight? I shouldn't feel, I shouldn't feel…
Help me, big brother…
Tears fell from Reira's eyes. Her wrist felt like it had snapped.
I really can't do it anymore. I'm sorry, I'm sorry I'm so useless—
If I'm so useless, no one will want me, right?
"Scatter in the air." Sergey said, sounding reverent. "Become my sacrifice, useless, guilty, lightless child."
The attack hit—
And Reira was flung through the air, off her D-Wheel—
The tail of the demon flicked across her body, dragging her through the air. Like a thorned whip, it drew blood from exposed skin. It hit hard enough to leave a bruise everywhere that it touched.
Reira just felt numb. She could feel nothing except those shameful tears on her face.
Reira's fragile body flew—or perhaps, was thrown? Off the track, like an arrow through the air with none of the grace.
Reira: 2400 - 3000 = 0LP
Winner: Sergey Volkov!
Shun leapt to his feet and screamed as he saw that fragile body fly off the track—a track that was so far off the ground that anything falling off it would be reduced to a pool of blood by the end.
"No!" Yuno leapt to his feet—
And no one could see what happened next.
Just that frail body falling out of sight.
And Sergey Volkov's sharp laughter as he raised his head to the sky. "Are you satisfied?" He asked, his voice cracking and shaking.
Reiji, who had long given up on politeness and had stormed towards the exit to the building, stopped as he came face to face with an entire legion of officers.
His blood felt like it was boiling, for all that his rational mind told him to stay and observe.
Even so…
"Please return into the building," one of the officers ordered.
Reiji raised his duel disk—a sharp refusal. He stared down the thirty officers there.
… I guess with this temperament of mine, I was never the best older brother.
Even so—
In his office, Roget laughed.
"Don't be broken yet, Lancers," he said. "We haven't even gotten to the main event!"
Duel 1 Summary: Reira Akaba vs Sergey Volkov
Duel Format: Normal Duel
Turn 1: Sergey Volkov
Sergey Normal Summons Earthbound Prisoner Ground Keeper (1*/300/300) from his hand. Using Ground Keeper's effect, he Special Summons Earthbound Prisoner Stone Sweeper (5*/1600/1600) from his Deck. He tunes the Level 1 Ground Keeper to the Level 5 Stone Sweeper, Synchro Summoning Earthbound Servant Geo Gremlin. (6*/2000/1000) in Attack Position. Sergey sets 1 card and ends his turn.
Turn 2: Reira Akaba
Reira draws. She activates the Continuous Spell, Persona Shutter Layer 3. She Normal Summons Phonograph Magician. (4*/0/0) By tributing Phonograph Magician, she adds C/C One-Eyed Past Eye (3*/1400/1000) and C/C/C Shining Pillar the Embodiment of Balance from her Deck to her hand. She sets the Scale 2 C/C/C Shadow Mimicry the Embodiment of Balance and the Scale 9 C/C/C Shining Pillar the Embodiment of Balance in the Pendulum Scales. She Pendulum Summons C/C One-Eyed Past Eye. She activates the Spell Card, Montage Fusion, fusing C/C One-Eyed Past Eye with a copy of Geo Gremlin. She Fusion Summons C/C/C Shadow Sword the Embodiment of Fused Arms (6*/2400/0) She uses Shadow Mimicry's effect to add Past Tuning to her hand. She uses Shining Pillar's effect to negate Geo Gremlin's effects. Sergey activates Geo Gremlin's effect, forcing Reira to choose between destroying Shadow Sword or granting Sergey life points equal to its attack points. She chooses to give Sergey life points. [SV: 4000 + 2400 = 6400LP] Shadow Sword attacks Geo Gremlin. Sergey activates the Trap Card, Metaverse, activating Earthbound Prison from the deck. With Earthbound Prison's effect, he negates the effects of Shadow Sword. [SV: 6400 - 4000 = 6000LP] Reira sets 2 cards and ends her turn. With Montage Fusion's effect, Shadow Sword is destroyed. With the effect of Persona Shutter Layer 3, Reira revives C/C One-Eyed Past Eye.
Turn 3: Sergey Volkov
Sergey draws. He activates the Spell Card, Earthbound Terraforming, destroying Earthbound Prison to draw two cards. He Normal Summons Earthbound Prisoner Line Walker. (3*/800/1100) He uses Line Walker's effect to add Earthbound Prison from the GY to his hand and activate it. With its effect, he negates C/C One-Eyed Past Eye's effects. He Special Summons Earthbound Prisoner Tomb Sweeper (5*/1500/1500) from his hand. He tunes the Level 3 Line Walker to the Level 5 Tomb Sweeper, Synchro Summoning Earthbound Servant Geo Gryphon. (8*/2500/1500) He uses Geo Gryphon's effect to revive Geo Gremlin. He starts his Battle Phase. He uses Geo Gremlin's effect, banishing Stone Sweeper and Tomb Sweeper from the GY to Fusion Summon Earthbound Servant Geo Kraken. (8*/2800/1200) Geo Kraken lets Sergey add a Field Spell from his Deck to his hand. Geo Kraken attacks One-Eyed Past Eye. Reira activates the Quickplay Spell, Past Overlay, Special Summoning it as a Level 8 monster that is a copy of Geo Kraken, and overlaying it with C/C One-Eyed Past Eye to Xyz Summon C/C/C Shadow Chainmail the Embodiment of Overlaid Armors (R8/3200/2700/OU:2) in Attack Position. Sergey uses Geo Kraken's effect to destroy all monsters Reira controls that were Special Summoned that turn and inflict 800 damage to her for each. [RA: 4000 - 800 = 3200LP] Reira uses Persona Shutter Layer 3's effect to revive C/C One-Eyed Past Eye. She activates Past Tuning, Special Summoning it as a Level 5 monster by targeting Geo Kraken, and tuning the Level 3 C/C One-Eyed Past Eye to the Level 5 Past Tuning. She Synchro Summons C/C/C Shadow Catapult the Embodiment of Tuned Attacks (8*/3000/0) in Defense Position. Geo Kraken attacks Shadow Catapult. Shadow Catapult cannot be destroyed by battle with a DARK monster. Geo Gryphon attacks. Geo Gremlin's effect activates during the Main Phase. Reira chooses to destroy Shadow Catapult. With the effect of Persona Shutter Layer 3, Reira revives C/C One-Eyed Past Eye. Sergey sets 1 card and ends his turn.
Turn 4: Reira Akaba
Reira draws. She activates the Spell Card, Camera Capture, shuffling Shadow Chainmail and Shadow Catapult into the Deck to draw 3 cards. He activates the Continuous Spell, Persona Shutter Layer 4. She activates the Spell, Past Overlay, Xyz Summoning C/C/C Shadow Chainmail the Embodiment of Overlaid Armors in Attack Position using C/C One-Eyed Past Eye. Geo Kraken's effect triggers. [RA: 3200 - 800 = 2400LP] Shutter Layer 3's effect triggers, reviving One-Eyed Past Eye. Persona Layer 4 lets her add Montage Fusion from her graveyard to her hand. She activates it, using One-Eyed Past Eye and targeting Geo Gryphon, Fusion Summoning C/C/C Shadow Halberd the Embodiment of Fused Arms. (8*/3000/0) Persona Shutter Layer 4 lets Shadow Halberd gain 100 ATK times its Level. (CCCSHTEOFA: 3000 + 100 x 8 = 3800ATK) Since Shadow Halberd was Special Summoned, it cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects this turn. Reira uses Shining Pillar's Pendulum Effect to negate Geo Gremlin's effect and uses Shadow Mimicry's Pendulum Effect to add one of the three archetypal Spells from her Deck to her hand. Shadow Halberd can attack thrice per turn. It attacks Geo Gryphon. Sergey activates teh Trap Card Earthbound Sacrifice, negating the attack by banishing Geo Gryphon until the End Phase. He Special Summons Earthbound Immortal Aslla Piscu (10*/2500/2500) from the Deck. Shadow Halberd attacks Geo Kraken. [SV: 6000 - 1000 = 5000LP] Shadow Halberd attacks Geo Gremlin. [SV: 5000 - 1800 = 3200LP] Reira sets a card and ends her turn. Geo Gryphon returns to the field.
Turn 5: Sergey Volkov
Sergey draws. Using Geo Gryphon's effect, he revives Geo Gremlin. He uses Geo Gremlin's effect, targeting Shadow Halberd. Reira lets him regain life points. [SV: 3200 + 3800 = 6000LP] During the Battle Phase, Sergey uses Geo Gremlin's effect, banishing Geo Gremlin from the field and Geo Kraken from the GY to Fusion Summon Eartjhbound Servant Geo Grasha. (10*/3000/1800) Geo Grasha attacks. It changes Shadow Halberd's ATK to 0. (CCCSHTEOFA: 3800 → 0ATK) [RA: 2400 - 3000 = 0LP] Sergey wins!
OC Cards:
Persona Shutter Layer 3
(Spell/Continuous)
If a "C/C/C" monster you control is destroyed: You can Special Summon 1 "C/C One-Eyed Past Eye" from your GY.
Phonograph Magician
(4*/0/0/LIGHT/Spellcaster/Effect)
You can Tribute this card: Add 2 "C/C" monsters with different Attributes from your Deck to your hand, but this turn, you cannot Special Summon monsters from the Extra Deck or hand, except "C/C" monsters.
C/C/C Shadow Mimicry the Embodiment of Balance
(6*/S2/1500/1000/DARK/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect)
Pendulum Effect: You cannot Pendulum Summon while you control a monster. Once per turn, if you control a "C/C/C" monster: You can add 1 "Montage", "Shutter" or "Past" Spell/Trap Card from your Deck to your hand.
If this card is Pendulum Summoned: All DARK monsters on the field lose 1000 ATK.
C/C/C Shining Pillar the Embodiment of Balance
(8*/S9/2500/2000/LIGHT/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect)
Pendulum Effect: You cannot Pendulum Summon while you control a monster. Once per turn, if you control a "C/C/C" monster: You can target 1 monster on the field with the same Attribute as a "C/C/C" monster(s) you control; negate its effects until your next Standby Phase.
If this card is Pendulum Summoned: You can negate the effects of all LIGHT monsters on the field, except this card, until the End Phase.
C/C/C Shadow Sword the Embodiment of Fused Arms
(6*/2400/0/DARK/Fiend/Fusion/Effect)
"C/C One-Eyed Past Eye" + 1 Level 5 or 6 DARK monster
When this card declares an attack: You can have this card gain ATK equal to the total ATK of all DARK monsters currently on the field (other than this card).
Earthbound Terraforming
(Spell)
Destroy 1 face-up Field Spell on the field; draw 2 cards. If a "Earthbound" monster you control would be destroyed by battle or card effect while this card is in your GY, you can banish this card from your GY instead. You can only activate 1 "Earthbound Terraforming" per turn.
Earthbound Prisoner Tomb Sweeper
(5*/1500/1500/DARK/Fiend/Effect)
If you control a DARK Tuner monster, you can Special Summon this card from your hand in Defense Position. You can discard this card; send 1 "Earthbound" card from your Deck to the GY. A DARK Fiend Synchro Monster that was Summoned using this card as Synchro Material cannot be destroyed by battle. A DARK Fiend Fusion Monster that was Summoned using this card as Fusion Material cannot be destroyed by card effects.
C/C/C Shadow Chainmail the Embodiment of Overlaid Armors
(R8/3200/2700/DARK/Fiend/Xyz/Effect)
2 Level 8 monsters
During either player's turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; this card gains ATK equal to the total DEF of all DARK monsters on the field other than itself. If this card destroys a DARK monster by battle: It can declare a second attack in a row.
C/C/C Shadow Catapult the Embodiment of Tuned Attacks
(8*/3000/0/DARK/Fiend/Synchro/Effect)
"C/C One-Eyed Past Eye" + 1 non-Tuner monster
When this card declares an attack: You can have this card gain ATK equal to the Level of all DARK monsters currently on the field x 300. This card cannot be destroyed by battle with a DARK monster.
Persona Shutter Layer 4
(Spell/Continuous)
All "C/C/C" monsters on the field gain ATK equal to their Level/Rank/Link Rating x 100. If a "C/C" monster is Special Summoned from the GY: You can add 1 "Montage", "Shutter" or "Past" Spell/Trap Card from your GY to your hand.
C/C/C Shadow Halberd the Embodiment of Fused Arms
(8*/3000/0/DARK/Fiend/Fusion/Effect)
"C/C One-Eyed Past Eye" + 1 Level 7 or higher DARK monster
This card can make a second attack during each Battle Phase, and if your opponent controls a DARK monster, it can also make a third. If this card is Special Summoned: You can activate this effect; this turn, this card cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects.
Camera Capture
(Spell)
Target 2 "C/C/C" monsters in your GY; shuffle them into the Deck or Extra Deck, and if you do, draw 3 cards.
Earthbound Sacrifice
(Trap)
If your opponent's monster attacks a DARK monster you control: You can banish that monster you control until the End Phase; negate that attack, and if you do, you can Special Summon 1 Level 10 or lower "Earthbound" monster from your Deck ignoring Summoning conditions.
Different Card Effects from TCG:
Reira's cards - Pretty much all anime-only cards.
End Notes:
No, Dark Signers do not exist. Dark Synchro does not exist. None of the Earthbound/Nazca Lines lore is canon to this universe. That's not why the Earthbound Gods are here. More down below, but I don't want people to assume that all of that stuff exists in this story when I've given like twenty disclaimers about it throughout the story.
Let this be a lesson to everyone! There are no limits to how cruel I can be to these characters. :D To everyone who said they were excited for Sergey's duel… I'm not sorry, and I'll probably do it again. :) I had a few reviewers on here and AO3 who went 'ah fuck Reira facing Sergey is the worst outcome', and I did light some incense for them before I posted this chapter. :) That's also where the name of the chapter came from. It's definitely a shorter chapter than usual, but that's because I wanted it to hit harder.
Fun fact, since I don't think this comes up in the story for a while, and it's more of a background detail—but Roget has the honour of being the one and only person who has ever gotten Miharu to actually feel disgusted with his existence. It's very hard to do, but he managed to leap over the line with one conversation! *claps*
And here, Roget displays how narcissism can ruin everything for him. He literally topples a successful plan just for the sake of petty revenge—because Miharu made him angry, he messes up all of his plans. This lack of foresight and insistence on petty small things over the big picture comes from an overreaction to perceived criticism or defeat in the form of an outburst of rage and defiance, as well as a need for instant gratification in the form of revenge. It comes from—you guessed it—narcissistic personality disorder again.
I also want to point out something painfully ironic—Mion, by trying to protect Reira from the Underground, accidentally allowed Reira to be in this situation, where she became Sergey's opponent. It's kind of ironically tragic, and it's something I've been thinking about for the last twenty chapters. I tried to reveal each of the Lancers watching from their room throughout Roget's speech, to slowly build up to the revelation that it's Reira. :)
Sergey's dialogue was something I had to constantly reread and check over and over. I wanted it to be perfect—to build up in its creepiness over time. It has its unique difficulties, because while I'm very used to writing characters who are in different states of mind from the usual (it's kind of my specialty) due to mental illness, neurodiversity, or unhealthy influences—usually, I write them with a clear understanding of their condition. However, there are so many things inherently different with Sergey that every time I'm done with his dialogue, I remember something else that I need to account for. I usually try to write with specific conditions in mind and to make sure I can comprehend how the character thinks, but Sergey is just… everything. In the end, I settled on schizophrenia, with most of Sergey's behaviour coming from a continuous and persistent episode of psychosis. Boring psychological stuff when you all just want to enjoy him being crazy for no reason, I know, but it's pretty important for my writing process. :D His voice in dialogue is a little deranged, a little childish, flighty, a lot of things at once, but it's distinct to him.
Alright, the Earthbound Gods. Here, they're just part of Sergey's deck. The Earthbound Gods aren't actual gods here, they're only gods in Sergey's delusions. When I realised that my version of Sergey is psychotically obsessed with specifically the idea of the divine—of the perfect, beautiful god that he can worship and sacrifice to—I realised that giving him the cards as 'false gods' that represent how he's blinded works out pretty well. As Yuno himself says—Sergey's delusions have captivated him like a false god.
I also really wanted to have this duel be even. And it was even at the start, but… well, I thought that it was far sadder to have Reira collapse under her own PTSD. She tried so hard to overcome it, but once it was triggered, her episode could only cause her to fall apart more and more—trying to control it only makes it worse. Such is trauma. You might think that the duel had an obvious result. And you're right! I understand if it lost tension because of that. But no matter who Sergey dueled, he would have won this round. I think we all know that. There was no way I could have made the result tense. So I decided to make the duel itself hurt. I hope that everyone was as disturbed by Sergey as I was by the time that I finished this chapter. Believe it or not, this is draft 4. I had to tone him down three times and I still feel like I need to attach trigger warnings. Reira's not weak at all though. It's not that she's weak—and her thoughts about herself are absolutely not true in the slightest. But a person who has lived through so much trauma first needs to be extended a hand—and with her adoptive mother never letting her recover from her trauma, only forcing her into more… and yeah, I think that Himika Akaba is a really shit parent. For a lot of reasons, but I won't go into it for now—just that she's an awful parent for someone like Reira especially.
Now, obviously, you all know that I love Reira's character. Thus, I'm not gonna bother to lie—she's alive. Is she 'well' though? We'll see more of the fallout over the next few chapters, because we're not done. We're very far from done. :)
Meanwhile, let's all face it here—Miharu had two very bad options to choose from. Either she rejected Roget outright, or she pretended that she agreed with him. However, I think you'll notice that Miharu inherently prefers not to lie to people. At most, she just doesn't say anything, or she purposely avoids the question. It comes from Miharu's own understanding of what is right, and thus, Roget goes against that so strongly that Miharu cannot bring herself to lie, for even a moment, that she agrees with him. In the end, her being honest and angering him was the only possible result. I actually couldn't bear to write the Reira duel right after that scene, because while the Miharu and Roget scene was so gratifying to write—someone actually challenging Roget to his face—the Reira scene made me want to cry multiple times when writing it.
Review responses!
To phantomdragons, glad that you enjoyed it! Yeah, I won't lie—like I always say, I try to make the duels flow according to how the characters think and how the decks realistically work. It's hard, admittedly, but it's at least more fun than mindlessly out more and more overpowered cards. I will admit, your review made me smile a bit evilly when I read you being excited about what Sergey would do next.
To the Guest asking about the Earthbound Gods, refer to above.
To cardfan135, thanks for the review! Good guess on it maybe being one of the Yu boys. :D
To LHOCIN, Kyorin is definitely going to take a bigger role once we reach a certain point in the story! I'm glad that you enjoyed all the duels—you pretty much nailed the exact reasoning behind most of my decisions for each pair. Good guess on how I was going to deal with Sergey! Hope this lived up to your expectations. :)
To the Guest asking who is the strongest out of the OCs in the fic right now, that's a great question!... albeit, one that I cannot answer right now. I think you'll get your answer later in the arc though.
To the Guest asking about Dark Side of Dimensions, I pretty much only know about the basic plot summary and the cards in it. I never watched it in full. It did give us Magician Girls, Neo Blue-Eyes and Cubics though, so that's a plus.
To the Guest asking what I feel about Sergey as a character… I think that Sergey works best when you don't try to explain him. I still think that Arc V should have given him a reason for the things he did, but as a villain, he's entertaining, if a bit one-note. While I do try and figure out why he might think certain things, I'm not exactly giving him any kind of rational reason in this story for that exact reason—it ruins his charm if he's anything but an obsessive, creepy and violent maniac.
To kikuruhime, what you feel about Kyorin is totally understandable! I do think that while I've established who she is and how she acts well enough, she hasn't quite done as much for the plot as the other characters. In the end, it's because while I was planning the story, I understood very well that what I really wanted to do for Kyorin's character arc had one very important prerequisite—that Chiaki, specifically, was present. I won't elaborate on that any more, but I do accept that feedback! And thank you for all your character analysis, it was delightful to read. On your point about Sora, I totally agree with you! It's admittedly something that frustrated me a lot—the lack of focus that Sora got after the Standard Arc. Sora and Dennis were the most well-written antagonistic characters in the entirety of Arc-V, and to see them both get shafted and left entirely off-screen annoyed me a lot. A lot of fics don't really give Sora a lot of focus either, and in fact, sometimes, he even gets bashed by the author. In a sense, it feels like he's either completely forgotten until the battle with Zarc, or the author gives him more attention earlier on and then kills him off, which feels like a waste. (Can you tell that I love the antagonists of Arc V, lmao.) Anyway, I do intend to give him more to do—his big character moment in this arc hasn't even happened yet! :)
To the Guest asking what dimension is happening next, you're going to have to wait and see. :) It might be the same as canon, it might not—who knows?
To Mr. Owl, yeah, that was a major issue with the Synchro Arc, I feel! None of the antagonists actually did anything for the plot in the end. Roget gets yeeted by Reiji after doing nothing of value despite talking a lot, Sergey beats Yuzu but then gets trashed by Jack immediately, who isn't even a main character. And like I said in a previous chapter, Barrett and Yuri, the only named invaders, both get their duels interrupted. I really wanted to build things up so that you're not going to be sure that the protagonists will always win against the antagonists. I searched up the joke you mentioned, and it's pretty funny! :D Thanks for the review!
To Unlucky-Fausto, I love whiplash in chapters! :D On the PSY-Frames thing, it's not a grudge! Like I said, I make two decks and play them out on a simulator with the mindset of the character that I'm writing. The very specific interactions are things that happened during the duel itself that I played out with random hands, and they were so interesting that I had to include them! :) I'm the kind of rules lawyer that loves studying specific rulings.
To the Guest asking what my favourite YGO fic is, I gave my recommendations a while ago, but it's really difficult to pick one! The thing that I always look for in fics more than anything else though, is passion, as cheesy as that is. I love reading fics that are clearly born from the writer's love for writing and the fandom they're writing in. In a sense, those are fics that only that person could have created. Their characters, the things that are important to that writer, and so on. If someone else took the basic premise of Six Dimensions—the two additional dimensions and counterparts—even if they had all the same worldbuilding as me, even if they had the same writing style as me, I would feel confident saying that they would never create the exact same story—not because they are not capable of it, but because they think that different things are important. A lot of the things in Six Dimensions are deeply personal to me, including the themes and so on. They're things that are so important to me that I wove them into the story. If things like the struggles and issues that the characters face sometimes feel too real, it's because of that. Six Dimensions is special to me—it is a work that is born of my own priorities and my own struggles, and those of the people who I value. With different experiences comes different stories. That's just a basic part of life.
Oh, that was a bit of a ramble, huh? *sweatdrops* It's definitely something that I feel so strongly though. Of course, it's also fine for stories to not take things so seriously! I have fun reading some cool scenes in fics as well. There are a lot of great fics in this fandom which I enjoy reading. But for me, the only way that I can truly connect to stories, or have the motivation to write, is when the story itself has something that it wants to say—something that it means, deep down. And the only two YGO fics that come to mind for that, when I think of a fic that can be considered my 'favourite' are SPRGMR27's VRAINS - Compendium, even though it's discontinued, and Laiyuu's Family from another universe.
QOTC: What are some other YGO fics you all would like to recommend? I have a feeling that I don't read enough of them, haha.
The thing is, I don't read a lot of actual other YGO fics. Most of the fics that I read are from other fandoms that I enjoy. So I'd appreciate some recommendations! I also don't know a lot of fics where the characters actually play the game, so that would also be appreciated, haha.
Alright, see you guys next time! Roget's not done yet. :D
