Starting Notes:

Welcome back! This is more of a transition chapter than anything, but also, a lot happens here in quite a short amount of time, haha. Also, I believe that as I update this story with this chapter, I'm probably adjusting the story rating up to T, though I'll explain more below. Enjoy!


Chapter 58: Cracked Birdcage

Several hours ago, in another world:

The door clicked open. Rin and Ruri, who were both awake, glanced over at the door. Chiaki was currently slumped over on the bed, taking a nap.

Shino came in, smiling cheerfully.

"Are you allowed to be here?" Ruri said, sounding genuinely worried for Shino. "Won't you get in trouble?"

"Hah, the Professor actually praised me." Shino rubbed the back of her neck. "… ew. Anyway, the property damage has gone down since I started talking to you guys, so they're happy to oblige me if I want to come up here. Anyway, I come with presents!"

"Is that why you have a blanket over your wheelchair today?" There was a blanket that was conspicuously covering Shino's legs, as well as the sides of the wheelchair.

"Yep." Shino closed the door behind herself. "Here. You'll need these." Beneath her wheelchair, she had duct taped on three duel disks, which she now slid across the floor to the girls. "I got your decks back from the Academia evidence locker. They're in the duel disks already. And I already gave Chiaki Katsuya a deck to work with." She hummed. "There's two guards outside who are usually here. They go by the names Apollo and Diana. While Academia is going to be understaffed due to the invasion of the Synchro Dimension, those two will still be here. So you'll have to defeat them."

She tapped the side of her wheelchair.

"But that's it, really. I have a friend in Academia. She's arranged for the area between the teleporter and the nurse's office to be left empty during the invasion, supposedly for 'faster transport' of students who come back injured." Shino smiled. "That means that if you escape here and approach from the west, you should be uninterrupted. Just beat up your guards and make sure that they don't get back to Academia before the three of you."

"Should I wake Chiaki up?" Rin asked.

"Nah," Shino said. "She still doesn't like me much. Just tell her what I said." She winked. "... I sincerely hope that you make it out this time. Though I do… uh, have a request for you."

"Huh?" Rin raised an eyebrow. "I knew there'd have to be a catch. No one does so much with no reason."

Shino nodded. "Yup!" She folded her arms. "... I need to put up a show. When we meet again, could you do something for me?"


So, one hour later, the three girls snuck out of the tower.

As expected, they bumped into two people on the way down.

"What are you doing out of there?" The man, who had to be 'Apollo', from the description that Shino had given, exclaimed.

"If you want us to go back in, win against us and we'll go willingly!" Rin retorted sharply.

And luckily, instead of being smart and retreating to inform others first, the two of them actually agreed to that.

"We'll handle this, Chiaki," Rin said. Ruri nodded in agreement. "Let's go, Ruri!"

The two of them dueled their opponents separately, while Chiaki kept an eye out for anyone else that might approach.

So, Rin looked at Apollo, and she raised her duel disk.

It had been far too long. She was probably rusty—

But nothing beat the feeling of raising her duel disk to fight for herself again.

[DUEL!]

Rin: 4000LP

Apollo: 4000LP

[Turn 1: Rin] [H:5]

"I'll start!" Rin declared. She glanced at her hand. No Ice Bell yet… that was fine. She would adapt and overcome. "I'll Normal Summon Wind Witch - Glass Bell!" The spellcaster with bright cyan hair appeared, tipping her blue hat as she spun around on her blue ice broom.

[Wind Witch - Glass Bell (4*/1500/1500/WIND/Spellcaster/Tuner/Effect)]

"When Glass Bell is Normal or Special Summoned, once per turn, I can add a "Wind Witch" monster from my deck to my hand!" Rin swiped up a card from her deck. "I will then activate the effect of Wind Witch - Freeze Bell! Since I only control "Wind Witch" monsters, I can Special Summon her from my hand! Come!" The girl with pale purple hair appeared, a red and blue pair of fabrics over each of her eyes.

[Wind Witch - Freeze Bell (3*/1200/1200/WIND/Spellcaster/Effect)]

"I'll tune the Level 4 Wind Witch - Glass Bell to the Level 3 Wind Witch - Freeze Bell! Midwinter wind. Make ice and snow my power and blow through! Synchro Summon! Appear! Level 7! Wind Witch - Winter Bell!" The beautiful sapphire bell-like woman appeared, and Rin couldn't help but smile widely. Her reflective wing-like structures slashed through the air, and she flew around Rin.

[Wind Witch - Winter Bell (7*/2400/2000/WIND/Spellcaster/Synchro/Effect)]

"Hey, Winter Bell," Rin said. She raised her head. "Let's wreak havoc together. I will activate the effect of Winter Bell! Once per turn, I can target a "Wind Witch" monster in my graveyard and inflict damage to you, equal to 200 times the Level of that monster! I'll target Wind Witch - Glass Bell! Hypothermic Subzero!" The wind and ice swirled forward, hitting her opponent, who shivered.

Apollo: 4000 - 200 x 4 = 3200LP

It looked like her Psychic Dueling was still as effective as ever. There were some small bits of ice on the ground, and part of the water nearby was frozen as well.

Winter winds.

"I'll set a card and end my turn."

[Turn 2: Apollo] [H:6]

"Draw!" Apollo declared. "I'll stop you here, on behalf of the Professor! I'll activate the Spell Card, Polymerization! I will fuse Luminous Soldier and Guardian Tryce in my hand! When the radiant sunlight hits the twin blades, the two warriors become one! Fusion Summon! Descend! Luminous Keeper!" A tall warrior in gold and black appeared, with a red glow all around her. He was holding onto a long staff with a large gold and black orb on the top of it.

[Luminous Keeper (7*/2400/2100/LIGHT/Warrior/Fusion/Effect)]

"Once per turn, Luminous Keeper can Special Summon a Keeper Shield Token." A strange wooden shield appeared to the left of the warrior.

[Keeper Shield Token (1*/0/0/LIGHT/Warrior/Effect)]

"Continuous Spell, The A. Forces! All Warrior monsters I control gain 200 attack points for each Warrior or Spellcaster monster I control." Both of his monsters glowed.

[Luminous Keeper: 2400 + 200 x 2 = 2800ATK]

[Keeper Shield Token: 0 + 200 x 2 = 400ATK]

"And the Field Spell, Luminous Spark! LIGHT monsters gain 500 attack points and lose 400 defense points!"

[Luminous Keeper: 2800 + 500 = 3300ATK; 2100 - 400 = 1700DEF]

[Keeper Shield Token: 400 + 500 = 900ATK; 0 - 400 = 0DEF]

"Luminous Keeper attacks Wind Witch - Winter Bell!"

"Doesn't matter to me," Rin replied. The rays of the sun shone down on her, but her ice did not melt. The warrior struck at Winter Bell, who stayed there, steady. "The monster Synchro Summoned using Wind Witch - Freeze Bell as material can't be destroyed by battle!"

"But you still take the damage!"

"Well, isn't that obvious?" Rin retorted.

Rin: 4000 - 900 = 3100LP

"I'll set a card and end my turn!"

[Turn 3: Rin] [H:4]

"Draw!"

The sun was shining brightly off that warrior's armour, but not even the fiercest sunlight could melt the ice of Rin's resolve right now.

"I will activate the Spell Card, Bell Chime of the Wind Witch!" She gestured forward. "I can't Special Summon monsters this turn, except WIND monsters. I will target Wind Witch - Winter Bell and Special Summon a "Wind Witch" monster from my deck with a different name! Come—Wind Witch - Hail Bell!" A girl with light grey hair appeared, wearing a green hat. She looked a little more quiet than the other Wind Witches, who were more mischievous.

[Wind Witch - Hail Bell (4*/1300/1000/WIND/Spellcaster/Tuner/Effect)]

"When Wind Witch - Hail Bell is Normal or Special Summoned, I can target a monster on the field and inflict damage to you, equal to that monster's Level times 100! I will choose your Luminous Keeper!" She pointed to the warrior, and Hail Bell shot off a barrage of small bits of ice that flew towards her opponent.

Apollo: 3200 - 100 x 7 = 2500LP

"Then, I can inflict 400 more damage to you, since I targeted a monster you control!" Another small barrage hit her opponent, who grimaced.

Good.

Freeze.

Apollo: 2500 - 400 = 2100LP

"A bunch of petty tricks," Apollo said, grimacing and gritting his teeth a moment later. "Once you're forced to battle—"

"Who's going to be forced to battle?" Rin asked. She raised a hand. "You're just as arrogant as the Tops, aren't you? If you want to just tell me your strategy, I'll take any advantage I have! So now I know that I shouldn't battle you at all! As you call them, 'petty tricks' are my specialty! I will activate the effect of Winter Bell! I will target Glass Bell again! Hypothermic Subzero!" A blizzard swept forward again, the entire world turning cold.

Apollo: 2100 - 200 x 4 = 1300LP

"You're freezing us alive, Rin," Chiaki remarked.

"I'm not sorry," Rin said brashly. "Battle Phase. With the effect of Wind Witch - Winter Bell, I can Special Summon a "Wind Witch" monster from my hand, with a lower Level than a "Wind Witch" monster I control. Come—Wind Witch - Ice Bell!" The Ice Bell that she had just drawn this turn appeared on the field, her wave-like blue hair sweeping through the air.

[Wind Witch - Ice Bell (3*/1000/1000/WIND/Spellcaster/Effect)]

"When Ice Bell is Normal or Special Summoned, I can inflict 500 damage to you!" More cold wind blew through.

Apollo: 1300 - 500 = 800LP

"I don't have a need to battle you," Rin continued. "I'm fine like this." She gestured forward. "And I'll prove that here. I'll beat you completely without battling at all! I'll end my turn!"

[Turn 4: Apollo] [H:1]

"Draw," Apollo said. "I'll activate my Luminous Keeper's effect! I'll Special Summon another Keeper Shield Token! And with The A. Forces's effect, all my monsters will gain another 200 attack points!" Another copy of the small shield appeared on the field.

[Luminous Keeper: 3300 + 200 = 3500ATK]

[Keeper Shield Token (x2): 900 + 200 = 1100ATK]

"Luminous Keeper will attack Wind Witch - Hail Bell!"

Prioritising damage? What an unwise decision.

Hail Bell was destroyed, and Rin's life points fell—

But she had been in far worse situations before.

Rin: 3100 - 2200 = 900LP

"I'll activate the Trap Card, Icy Breeze Refrain," she said. "I'll Special Summon Wind Witch - Hail Bell from the graveyard!"

Hail Bell reappeared, even as Apollo's eyes widened.

"Hail Bell's effect. I'll target Luminous Keeper." Rin held out a fist. "That's it for you! Freeze!"

And the cold, wintry wind blew through her hair. She felt a little more alive, then.

Apollo: 800 - 100 x 7 - 400 = 0LP

Winner: Rin!


"So you're Diana-san," Ruri said, somewhat more polite than the other two.

"And you're Ruri Kurosaki. Return to the tower at once."

"I'm sorry. I can't do that." Ruri raised her duel disk. "I… have a lot of people that I want to see again."

[DUEL!]

Ruri Kurosaki: 4000LP

Diana: 4000LP

[Turn 1: Ruri] [H:5]

"I'll activate the Spell Card, Lyrical Luscinia - Bird Call!" Ruri declared. "I will add a "Lyrical Luscinia" monster from my deck to my hand, and I'll Special Summon a "Lyrical Luscinia" monster from my hand with a different name!" She plucked a card from her deck. "Come—Lyrical Luscinia - Cobalt Sparrow!" The blonde avian girl appeared, brown feathers and wings surrounding her.

[Lyrical Luscinia - Cobalt Sparrow (1*/0/100/WIND/Winged Beast/Effect)]

"When Lyrical Luscinia - Cobalt Sparrow is Special Summoned, once per turn, I can add a Level 1 Winged Beast monster from my deck to my hand!"

She held out two cards.

"I will activate the effect of Lyrical Luscinia - Sapphire Swallow in my hand. Since I control a Winged Beast monster, once per turn, I can Special Summon Sapphire Swallow and another Level 1 Winged Beast monster from my hand. Come—Lyrical Luscinia - Celeste Wagtail!" The twin blue and grey avians appeared on the field, flying around Cobalt Sparrow before landing and joining her in front of Ruri.

[Lyrical Luscinia - Sapphire Swallow (1*/100/0/WIND/Winged Beast/Effect)]

[Lyrical Luscinia - Celeste Wagtail (1*/200/0/WIND/Winged Beast/Effect)]

"Since Lyrical Luscinia - Celeste Wagtail was Special Summoned, I can add a "Lyrical Luscinia" Spell or Trap from my deck to my hand." Ruri added another card to her hand. "Since there are two or more monsters with the same Level on the field, I'll Special Summon Slower Swallow from my hand!" A small blue and white bird surrounded by flowers appeared.

[Slower Swallow (1*/100/100/WIND/Winged Beast/Effect)]

"I'll overlay the Level 1 Slower Swallow, Lyrical Luscinia - Sapphire Swallow, Lyrical Luscinia - Celeste Wagtail and Lyrical Luscinia - Cobalt Sparrow! Birds with beautiful wings! Gatherer on the battlefield and take brilliant flight! Xyz Summon! Dance in the sky! Rank 1! Lyrical Luscinia - Assembly Nightingale!" The beautiful, brightly-coloured bird woman appeared, confident and bright.

[Lyrical Luscinia - Assembly Nightingale (R1/0/0/WIND/Winged Beast/Xyz/Effect) (OU:4)]

"Assembly Nightingale gains 200 attack points for each Overlay Unit she has!" The four orbiting orbs glowed brightly.

[Lyrical Luscinia - Assembly Nightingale: 0 + 200 x 4 = 800ATK]

"I'll set a card facedown and end my turn," Ruri said.

[Turn 2: Diana] [H:6]

"Draw!" Diana declared. "I will activate the Spell Card, Polymerization! I will fuse Guardian Baou and Penumbral Soldier Lady in my hand! When the shining moonlight hits the Flamberge, the two warriors become one! Fusion Summon! Descend! Penumbral Keeper!" A woman dressed entirely in light blue appeared, golden crescents covering her clothing. She held up a long golden staff which shone with a holy kind of light.

[Penumbral Keeper (7*/2100/2400/DARK/Warrior/Fusion/Effect)]

"With Penumbral Keeper's effect, once per turn, I can Special Summon a Keeper Shield Token to the field." A small wooden shield appeared to the left of the monster.

[Keeper Shield Token (1*/0/0/LIGHT/Warrior)]

"And Penumbral Keeper will attack Lyrical Luscinia - Assembly Nightingale!"

"I will activate the effect of Assembly Nightingale!" Ruri countered. "By detaching an Overlay Unit, "Lyrical Luscinia" monsters I control cannot be destroyed by battle this turn, and I take no battle damage! Feather Barrier!" A bright shield of feathers appeared in front of her monster, protecting her from the attack completely.

[Lyrical Luscinia - Assembly Nightingale: OU:4 - 1 = OU:3; 800 - 200 = 600ATK]

"... I see," Diana said with a furrowed brow. "My Keeper Shield Token will attack your monster."

Huh?

The strange shield leapt forward, but it was just destroyed by Assembly Nightingale, leaving Ruri rather perplexed.

Diana: 4000 - 600 = 3400LP

"When a Keeper Shield Token is destroyed, Penumbral Keeper's effect activates!" Diana held out a hand. "I'll decrease your monster's attack points by 800, and gain 800 life points!"

"So that's the reason," Ruri muttered. She shook her head. "Since Cobalt Sparrow was used as an Overlay Unit for the summon of Assembly Nightingale, she can't be targeted by card effects!"

"What?" Diana gasped.

"So it was wasted."

"Well, your monster's attack points still don't exceed mine!" Diana exclaimed. "I'll end my turn!"

[Turn 3: Ruri] [H:3]

"Draw," Ruri said. "I'll activate the effect of Celeste Wagtail. I'll attach her from the graveyard to Assembly Nightingale as an Overlay Unit." The orb that had vanished reappeared and carried on orbiting Assembly Nightingale.

[Lyrical Luscinia - Assembly Nightingale: OU:3 + 1 = OU:4; 600 + 200 = 800ATK]

"And you handed me the chance to defeat you," Ruri murmured. "I'll Special Summon another copy of Sapphire Swallow from my hand, along with Lyrical Luscinia - Turquoise Warbler." Along with Sapphire Swallow, a girl with yellow-green feathers and wings appeared with a friendly smile.

[Lyrical Luscinia - Turquoise Warbler (1*/100/100/WIND/Winged Beast/Effect)]

"I'll overlay the Level 1 Turquoise Warbler and the Level 1 Sapphire Swallow. Bird of stars that sings in the glowing sunset. Appear before us! Xyz Summon! Rank 1! Lyrical Luscinia - Recite Starling!" The dark winged woman covered in stars appeared, gold gleaming brightly around her dark clothes.

[Lyrical Luscinia - Recite Starling (R1/0/0/WIND/Winged Beast/Xyz/Effect) (OU:2)]

"Recite Starling's effect. I'll grant Assembly Nightingale 300 attack and defense points for each Overlay Unit attached to Recite Starling herself. Gift of the Stars!" A bright glow surrounded Assembly Nightingale, increasing her attack points even more.

[Lyrical Luscinia - Assembly Nightingale: 800 + 300 x 2 = 1400ATK; 0 + 300 x 2 = 600DEF]

"Assembly Nightingale can attack once for each of her Overlay Units, and attack directly," Ruri said. "I don't know what effects your monster has, but if it can't stop attacks…"

Diana's expression of utter shock made it very clear that her monster did not, in fact, have any way to counter Assembly Nightingale.

So three attacks, three gusts of wind and swirling feathers, and that was it.

Diana: 3400 - 1400 x 3 = 0LP

Winner: Ruri Kurosaki!

Rin's opponent had fallen unconscious from the cold air, but Ruri's opponent, on the other hand, was still conscious. As a result, to stop her from escaping back to Academia and calling down everyone else, Chiaki took on the responsibility of punching her in the face, while Ruri politely glanced away and Rin nodded approvingly.

As they headed towards the transporter, Ruri sighed.

"You guys probably think that I'm really delicate," she murmured.

"What, just because you don't want to see someone get punched?" Rin exclaimed, sounding offended at the very idea. "Look, you're the one who had to deal with a warzone. Neither she or I have the right to call you delicate—right, Chiaki?"

"Rin's right," Chiaki said with a nod. "It just means that you're kinder than both of us, and that's a good thing. You don't need to explain yourself for that."

"It just means that you don't want to punch people that often." Rin grinned, glancing at her. "Are there less assholes in the Xyz Dimension? I know that I had to punch a lot of people very often."

"Well," Ruri said, "my brother was always very… well, 'punch first and ask later'."

"No wonder you grew up so sweet," Chiaki said with a snort. "Alright, we're almost at the building." True to Shino's words, they hadn't bumped into any students on the way to the teleporter. "Let's speed up and get out as fast as we can. I need to find Yuji and make sure that he hasn't done anything stupid."

"Oh, same. Yugo's going to get in so much trouble without me around."

"... I want to see Yuto," Ruri said, with far more determination than usual.

"And kiss him silly?" Chiaki teased. Ruri, however, simply nodded once—emphatically, causing both Rin and Chiaki's eyes to widen. "... oh. You're a lot more assertive than you normally act, huh?"

"I see no reason to deny it. I really, really like Yuto." Ruri looked at them. "Don't you two feel the same?"

"Well, I'm not gonna kiss Yuji."

"It's not like that between me and Yugo!"

The two responses couldn't be any more different, despite the fact that they were both denials. Chiaki's one was calm—as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. On the other hand, Rin was clearly both indignant and flustered at the same time.

"Why not?" Ruri asked, clearly addressing Chiaki—it had become very apparent to her and Chiaki that Rin definitely liked Yugo, even if the other girl was clearly in denial about it. However, anytime that Chiaki had talked about Yuji, it had been protective, but not necessarily romantic. So pushing Rin on it wouldn't really do anything. But Chiaki…

"I just wouldn't." Chiaki shrugged. "It's not like that between us, and Yuji is barely even alright with a hug—and that's if you get his permission first." She glanced over at Rin. "... sorry. I know you haven't quite forgiven him yet."

"What are you talking about?" Rin snorted. "After hearing you talk so fondly about him for so long, I can't exactly hold onto my anger. Yugo's the one that'll have a bigger problem with him. I'll just punch your Yuji once and that'll be the extent of it."

Chiaki looked at her with surprise.

"I grew up in the Commons, after all. And a lot of people in the Commons do really… shitty things." Rin clenched a fist. "But there's people above them that have caused them to become the kind of people that would do those things. So yeah. I'm not blaming the people in the middle anymore. There's too many people to get mad at."

"... you're a bit too nice too, Rin," Chiaki muttered. She sounded somewhat impressed though.


In the present:

"So that's how it happened?"

"It feels stupidly simple. As though everything was already scripted out. I mean, we barely saw anyone." Chiaki shook her head. "... that girl said that she was going to get the help of a friend of hers, but her friend can't have that much influence, can she? She didn't even tell us that person's name…"

Yuji didn't really care about the details right now. He just clung to her tightly.

"So," Hitoda asked from nearby, interrupting the moment, "where are the other two right now?"

Chiaki glanced over at her.

"Oh, hi." Hitoda raised a hand. "I'm Hitoda Makishima. I'm part of a group that wants to burn Academia down. Want to join?"

Chiaki let out a soft huff, exhaling sharply through her nostrils. It was a sign, Yuji recognised immediately, that she had a good first impression of Hitoda. However, her response was still a little sharp. "I'll have to see whether I can stand you all first. I'm Chiaki Katsuya." She tugged at her still-too-long hair. "... Rin and Ruri are…"


For some reason, Academia had sent several squads of Obelisk Force to the Underground.

Fucking fantastic.

When Nue finally saw Shun Kurosaki show up in the Underground, his eyes glancing everywhere, she was a little too tired to wave to him. Even so, the moment that he saw her, he charged forward. He had clearly been busy fighting a lot of people, just to get all the way down here.

There was no sign of tiredness to his figure though. Just a sharp, uncanny focus.

"You should be up there," she chided, and then Shun wrapped his arms around her and any snarky words that she was about to say were swiftly cut off.

"Yuya and Yugo insisted on running off, but the two of them are strong enough to manage themselves." Shun looked at her with a sharp protectiveness to his gaze. "But my girlfriend is down here, the last that I checked. Where else would I go?"

"Well, I checked everywhere and Yuto's not down here—"

"He escaped," Shun said. "Tsukikage appeared out of nowhere, scared the shit out of me, and told me that he managed to get everybody else out. But I obviously still had to come back for you."

Idiot. Reckless, overly emotional idiot.

But he's my idiot. Mine to love and protect, one of mine.

She raised her head and pressed a soft kiss to his lips, despite how tired she was. He had to be tired too. Who knew how long they had all been fighting at this point? Even so, the softness of his mouth and lips, the conviction to his voice, the familiar feeling of running her fingers through his hair…

There was a poem she had read once. 'I crave your mouth, your voice, your hair… I hunger for your sweet laugh…' They had been apart for only a little more over a day, and yet, she had missed him so much. Every part of him.

Nue pulled away, looking at him—

And then, in the periphery of her vision, she saw—

"... ah," she murmured. "You might want to turn around, Shun."

Shun turned his head—

And Nue could see his expression change, when he finally laid his eyes on Ruri Kurosaki for the first time in a very long time.

"Big brother," Ruri said.

"Ruri," Shun croaked out. He looked back at Nue, as though reluctant to let go of her—

(And that meant a lot, coming from the person who had spent half a year of his life chasing after his sister at this point.)

"Well?" Nue said. "Go, you idiot." She slid out of his arms, and Shun looked at her once more—something lingering and tender—

And then he turned around, running straight towards Ruri. Slow at first, as though he couldn't believe what he was seeing. But then Ruri rushed forward, and there was nothing to doubt in the sincerity of their affection as Shun swept her in the air like they were still kids. And then there was blubbering, and then there was crying, and Nue watched it from the side, because those two had been waiting for this for far too long.

Even she felt a little emotional, seeing them hug each other.

(Three Obelisk Force members were nearby, who probably would have ruined the moment. They were quietly disposed of.)

(So Shun and Ruri could continue talking to each other, without having to worry about anything.)


Ruri relayed how she had escaped to them a while after that, even as both she and Shun had a frankly very sappy reunion, which would make anyone's teeth rot with how sweet it was. When she finally turned to Nue, Nue awkwardly waved at her.

"Sorry," Nue said. "Hard not to feel awkward when—"

"I am so glad," Ruri said, beaming at her. "I am so glad that you're dating my brother."

… what.

Ruri seemed to take her surprise for reticence. She smiled brightly; Nue felt a little like she was staring into the sun. "My big brother has been crushing on you for the longest time," she said. "I'm so glad—"

"Ruri!" Shun exclaimed, his cheeks going slightly red.

Ruri was completely unfazed. "—that you were there for him, when I was gone. Thank you for loving my brother."

… ah. Now Nue was getting a little sentimental. Not that she had even used that word yet.

"I was scared that he would do something reckless while trying to find me."

Crickets chirped. The entire world went silent. Alright, no, it didn't, but at the very least, that was how awkward and ironic Ruri's statement was, because she was completely correct about her brother.

Nue cleared her throat. "Well—"

"I was not reckless at all," Shun lied. "I just… found the Lancers, and decided to cooperate with them to find you. Yes."

Nue snorted. Decided. What a word.

"The Lancers… I heard a bit about that. They're a group from Standard run by the Professor's son, right?"

"We can talk about it while we find the others," Shun said. "It's not that safe right now—"

Nue rolled her eyes. "We're right here. Anyone who has the balls to kidnap your sister again will have to go through the two of us and your sister herself. I'd like to see them try." She gestured forward. "We're perfectly fine. Come on, Ruri. I'll tell you all about what's happened so far."

"Alright," Ruri said. She smiled again. "And… this does mean that neither of you can object to Yuto and I doing anything, right?"

Both Shun and Nue came to a complete stop.

"Right?" Ruri said, turning to them.

Shun and Nue stared at her, blinking. They were both clearly confused by the very idea of what she was saying.

"... right?"


"They just keep coming. How many soldiers do they have, that they can commit so many of them to a single invasion?" Kiryu sighed. "It's enough to get boring, after a while."

"You're the only one that can get bored by a war," Aki said.

"It's just mindless work." Kiryu pointed forward, flames swirling around him. "Infernity Doom Archfiend." This left his opponent with 400 life points, and he ended his turn, before there was the sound of someone intruding.

"I'll Special Summon Wind Witch - Ice Bell from my hand, and Wind Witch - Snow Bell from my deck!" The two monsters appeared, and Aki's eyes widened as a sharp chill filled the area. "Ice Bell's effect! I will inflict 500 damage to you!" The green-haired girl on the roof finished Kiryu's opponent off, looking imperial as cold winds surrounded her.

Kiryu raised an eyebrow. "That's…"

"Rin!" Aki called.

Rin turned to look at them, and she smiled. She shimmied down the nearby pole, before she turned to them.

"Hello, Aki-san—"

Aki crushed her in a hug. "Yugo told me that you were kidnapped," she said. "I've been so worried."

"Oh," Rin said. "I…" She breathed out, and in the cold space that she had created, her breath became mist. "I can't say that I'm glad to be back in this city. At least it's a familiar place though."

She patted Aki's back until the red-haired woman let go of her.

"Can you tell me about what's happened recently?" Rin asked. "Especially—Yugo. Have you seen Yugo?"

Aki chuckled. "Sure. Stick with us. We'll tell you about it. Did you know that your Yugo defeated Kiryu?"

Rin's eyes widened. "He's always looked up to you," she said to Kiryu brisky. "Even though you're a criminal. He probably thinks you're cooler for it." She seemed quite happy for Yugo though, despite her dismissive attitude. "Alright. I'll stick with you two until I find Yugo then. Do you know where he went?"

"Security tried to lock down the Friendship Cup building, but I think he escaped. He'll probably find his way back eventually."

"... I can wait," Rin said, though both Kiryu and Aki could see her impatience. "Where are you headed next?"

"The Friendship Cup stadium."

"Alright." Rin gestured forward. "Let's go."


"What?" Roget reviewed the reports, which apparently stated that the girl from the orphanage, Rin, and a girl who looked like her had showed up in the parts of the city that were currently under surveillance. A single look at the provided camera footage revealed that the other girl was, in fact, Ruri Kurosaki of the Xyz Dimension. In other words, five of the six girls that Academia was looking for were currently in his city, and that was only if the girl from the Ritual Dimension hadn't shown up too.

This was only going to turn his city into more of a mess—and Sergey was still offline.

To put it plainly—

Fuck.

"Sir!"

"What now?"

A camera feed was forwarded to his screen. Roget saw it and felt the uncontrollable urge to headbutt a wall. He barely held it in.

The door creaked open.

"... good timing," Roget said, barely holding in his annoyance. "Will you talk your brother out of ruining our lawn?" On the screen, Yugo was currently dueling several officers, with his monsters ripping up the grass.

'Bad. Idea.'

"Why?"

Kaname hesitated, clearly unable to sign what she wanted. Eventually, she just signed a number, and Roget switched to that camera. And there, the Hell Kaiser was currently striding directly towards their HQ, before he got caught up in another duel.

'Safer. Inside.'

"Don't make decisions based on the safety of your brother alone," Roget hissed. "So what if you want to get your brother into the building so that he doesn't encounter the Kaiser? This is something that affects the entire city!"

'Know.'

"You know? Then what do you suggest?"

Kaname took a while to communicate the plan, but it made Roget snort. "If that's the result you guarantee," he said, "fine. We'll do it your way. I wonder why your brother is coming here though."


Twenty minutes ago:

"Welcome back to the waking world," Hitoda drawled as Yugo clutched at his head, getting up. He felt like he had been hit with a building. (Because he had. Duh.) "Why did the idiots who decided to fight on a fragile roof wake up first?"

Idiots… fragile roof… collapsed building…

Rin Rin Rin Rin Rin Rin—

"No, I'm not Rin!" The girl who looked like Rin kicked him firmly in the stomach, and Yugo fell back for a moment.

"He's… injured, Chiaki," a voice said slowly.

"Is he?"

"Everyone's injured," Hitoda said with a snort.

"Ah." The girl stepped forward, holding out a hand towards him. Yugo took it, letting her lift him up. "Sorry. I'm Chiaki, Rin's friend. The two of us and one other person escaped just now."

Yugo nodded. Then, he spotted Yuji Fujita's face and—right, there was something that he had wanted to do.

Yuji looked back at him.

Chiaki looked between them, and she seemed to understand, after a moment. "I know that you really want to punch him right now," she said. "And I'm not saying that you can't. If I'm mad at that guy, then I can't say that you can't be mad at Yuji. But can it wait?"

Wait?

Wait, when…

That face, so much like Rin's, looked at him.

Yugo's protests fell silent before they ever left his mouth.

Rin would never, ever, tell him to forgive anyone. In fact, she had said that Yugo was too forgiving, back when they were kids. Too willing to let things slide when people wronged him.

… but the thing was, this person, Yuji Fujita, had wronged Rin.

Yugo desperately wanted to get in a fight right now. He glanced away for a moment, trying to keep himself slightly calm before he punched someone in the face—

And he saw Yuya and that smug bastard lying side by side, Yuto near them, Serena on the other side, and Yuno…

"You two don't have to do this!"

Yugo pressed a hand to his forehead.

"You weren't posing a threat to anyone," he muttered.

Yuji, not recognising that Yugo was just talking to himself, replied. "No."

"Even if I was mad at you… I should have focused on the people who were actually threats. It wasn't the right time."

(Maybe it was 'maturity', which had made Yugo capable of thinking about that.)

But he didn't feel guilty.

Those were his emotions. He wasn't cold enough to control them so well.

Even so…

I want to find Rin, but…

I also need to do something else.

"What happened here?"

All of them turned over, just in time to see Reiji, Reira and Mion show up.

"Ah, boss," Hitoda said with a snort. "Welcome to the water park's splash zone. Careful not to trip."

Reiji's head slowly tilted around, looking at the collapsed walls, various injured people, the open ceiling and the very messy ground that had been flooded with water. He clearly made a conscious decision not to ask. Instead, he turned to Mion. "Can you carry someone?"

"I should be fine." Mion shrugged. "How do we…"

"You can put me down, big brother."

Reiji turned his head, but Reira nodded determinedly. Reiji put them down. Yugo was slightly worried about Reira, but they seemed to be able to stand on their own two feet, so that was hopefully going to be fine? Reiji Akaba was probably smarter than Yugo, so if he thought it was fine, it was probably fine.

"So, we have…" Reiji looked around. "Four Lancers unconscious, one enemy unconscious. All five of them are currently injured. Makishima, how about you?"

"I feel terrible," Hitoda said bluntly, sighing. "Probably shouldn't duel. But if you want to carry them back, I'll accompany you—I have something helpful for that." She pressed a button on her duel disk, and a thin hoverboard emerged next to her. "It's Solid Vision, and I got it installed right before we left Den City. If we put someone on it, I can get it to carry them while we walk. I can carry Serena too—she's probably the lightest of the group."

"Alright."

"Yuji and I will go with you, because he needs to sit down and get his injuries treated," Chiaki said in a matter-of-fact tone. Despite the fact that Yuji Fujita had been the Lancers' enemy until about half an hour ago, Reiji nodded, as though this was something perfectly normal. "He can't carry shit in his state though, so leave him alone."

"Alright." Reiji glanced around. "With me, Mion, your hoverboard, yourself and Katsuya-san…" Yugo, slightly out of the loop, blinked in confusion. Reiji knew who this girl was? "We can take the Academia agent too."

Chiaki snorted humourlessly. "Kidnapping the kidnapper? Not a bad idea."

Yugo watched as the rest began to prepare. He was… stuck.

On one hand, he could volunteer to carry Yuno instead of Hitoda, who was clearly far more injured than she was letting on.

On the other hand… what would Yuno want him to do?

"If you see Rin," Yugo spoke up, "can you tell her that I'll be back to find her as fast as I can?"

"Are you not coming with us?" Mion asked, her eyes wide with concern. "You're pretty injured too…"

"I'm fine!" Yugo offered them his widest grin, hoping to reassure them. "And uh…"

And this next part was much harder.

"It'll probably be easier for Reira and… that jerk…" He jabbed a finger towards Yuji. "If they're not walking… they won't slow you all down as much…"

He grimaced.

"So it's on loan! You understand? I'm not giving it to you guys, and you'd better not scratch it, and you'd better give it back to me when it's all over…"

It was so hard, because it was the right thing to do, but he was still so upset and frustrated at that person.

"What's on loan?" Yuji asked.

"My D-Wheel," Yugo muttered. "Reira can drive."

"I think we skipped a few steps," Reiji said. "Where exactly are you going?"

"Well, you're all fighting. And that's fine, but that guy…" Yugo gestured to Yuno. "He was going to save her, right?"

"I… won't say that I understand about the part with the younger kids," Miharu said. "I didn't exactly have someone who I'd consider a younger sibling. But I understand that feeling about worrying to be a burden. They always tell us that it's alright to be honest about our fears…"

"But it's really not that easy," Yugo completed with a grin. Yes. It had been quite a while since someone just… got it. Got that feeling. "Hey. That Academia place that wanted to capture you—they took Rin, right? The people who use Fusion?"

"Yes," Miharu said.

Yugo held out a fist. "I'll fight Academia alongside you guys then," he promised enthusiastically. "And while your Yuno isn't here, I'll make sure to keep you safe in his absence!"

"... as if I need Yuno to keep me safe," Miharu murmured. The two of them exchanged a fist bump, and—she was so calm and quiet, the opposite of him, but Yugo genuinely liked her, and it wasn't just because she had the same face as Rin. She was just so… nice, despite how she might seem cold to people who hadn't gotten the chance to actually talk to her.

"If we all go back, no one's going to rescue her…" Yugo shook his head. "Sugisaki will get really upset, if that's the case. So I'll help him, because she can't do anything right now, because of Roget, right? And Rin'll be fine, she's super strong… so I'm sure she'll understand."

"But if you're giving us the D-Wheel…"

"I'll just walk," Yugo said with a grin. "Can't be that hard."

He wouldn't think too much about what had just happened. He just had to keep going.


In the present:

Yugo only had one thought when he finally made it to the Security building.

wow, my legs are tired.

Seriously.

It had been a long time since he'd had to walk a long distance without his D-Wheel. At that point, despite the aching in his skull and the tiredness in his limbs, he was almost happy to just stand there, and well… he was always happy to duel.

Even so… he just really wanted to get into the building.

(There was air conditioning in there. And well, he couldn't exactly be friends with Rin if he didn't like the cold, just a little. It would at least be better than standing out here by himself.)

So he kept on fighting, anyway.


"So this is that stadium. Hmm. It's crowded."

Kisara folded her arms.

"... that's fine," she muttered to herself. "The faster I get this done, the faster I can go to get that data from Marufuji. And from what we know…"

this is a city of people who are completely split from each other, and whose only form of collectiveness lies in their terrible cowardice.

Take down the one who rallies them together, and they are destined to fall apart.

There is no chance for a city like this to survive.


Duel 1 Summary: Rin vs Apollo

Duel Format: Normal Duel

Turn 1: Rin

Rin Normal Summons Wind Witch - Glass Bell (4*/1500/1500) from her hand. She uses Glass Bell's effect to add Wind Witch - Freeze Bell (3*/1200/1200) from the Deck to her hand, and she Special Summons Freeze Bell from her hand, since she only controls "Wind Witch" monsters. She tunes the Level 4 Glass Bell to the Level 3 Freeze Bell, Synchro Summoning the Level 7 Wind Witch - Winter Bell (7*/2400/2000) in Attack Position. She uses the effect of Winter Bell to target Glass Bell in her GY, inflicting 200 damage to the opponent times the monster's Level. [A: 4000 - 200 x 4 = 3200LP] She sets 1 card and ends her turn.

Turn 2: Apollo

Apollo draws. He activates the Spell Card, Polymerization, fusing Luminous Soldier and Guardian Tryce to Fusion Summon Luminous Keeper (7*/2400/2100) in Attack Position. He uses Luminous Keeper's effect to Special Summon a Keeper Shield Token (1*/0/0) to his field. He activates the Continuous Spell, The A. Forces, giving all Warrior monsters he controls 200 ATK for each Warrior or Spellcaster monster he controls. (LK: 2400 + 400 = 2800ATK) (KST: 0 + 200 x 2 = 400ATK) He activates the Field Spell, Luminous Spark. LIGHT monsters gain 500 ATK and 400 DEF. (LK: 2800 + 500 = 3300ATK; 2100 - 400 = 1700DEF) (KST: 400 + 500 = 900ATK) Luminous Keeper attacks Winter Bell. Since Winter Bell was Synchro Summoned using Freeze Bell, she can't be destroyed by battle. [R: 4000 - 900 = 3100LP] Apollo sets 1 card and ends his turn.

Turn 3: Rin

Rin draws. She activates the Spell Card, Bell Chime of the Wind Witch, Special Summoning Wind Witch - Hail Bell (4*/1300/1000) from her Deck. With Hail Bell's effect, she inflicts 100 damage to Apollo, times Luminous Keeper's Level, with an additional 400 since it's a monster that Apollo controls. [A: 3200 - 700 - 400 = 2100LP] With Winter Bell's effect, Rin targets Glass Bell in the GY again. [A: 2100 - 200 x 4 = 1300LP] She enters the Battle Phase. With Winter Bell's effect, she Special Summons Wind Witch - Ice Bell (3*/1000/1000) from her hand. With Ice Bell's effect, she inflicts 500 damage to Apollo. [A: 1300 - 500 = 800LP] Rin ends her turn.

Turn 4: Apollo

Apollo draws. He uses Luminous Keeper's effect to Special Summon another Keeper Shield Token. Luminous Keeper attacks Hail Bell. [R: 3100 - 2200 = 900LP] Rin activates the Trap Card, Icy Breeze Refrain, Special Summoning Hail Bell from the GY. She activates the effect of Hail Bell, targeting Luminous Keeper again. [A: 800 - 100 x 7 - 400 = 0LP] Rin wins!


Duel 2 Summary: Ruri Kurosaki vs Diana

Duel Format: Normal Duel

Turn 1: Ruri Kurosaki

Ruri activates the Spell Card, Lyrical Luscinia - Bird Call, adding a "Lyrical Luscinia" monster from her Deck to her hand and Special Summoning a "Lyrical Luscinia" monster with a different name from her hand. She adds Lyrical Luscinia - Sapphire Swallow (1*/100/0) to her hand, and Special Summons Lyrical Luscinia - Cobalt Sparrow (1*/0/100) from her hand. She uses Cobalt Sparrow's effect to add Lyrical Luscinia - Celeste Wagtail (1*/200/0) from her deck to her hand. Then, with Sapphire Swallow's effect, she Special Summons Sapphire Swallow and Celeste Wagtail from her hand. She uses Celeste Wagtail's effect to add a "Lyrical Luscinia" Spell/Trap from her Deck to her hand. She activates the effect of Slower Swallow (1*/100/100) in her hand, Special Summoning it to the field. She overlays the Level 1 Slower Swallow, Cobalt Sparrow, Sapphire Swallow and Celeste Wagtail, Xyz Summoning Lyrical Luscinia - Assembly Nightingale. (R1/0/0/OU:4) Assembly Nightingale gains 200 ATK for each Overlay Unit it has. (LLAN: 0 + 200 x 4 = 800ATK) Ruri sets 1 card and ends her turn.

Turn 2: Diana

Diana draws. She activates the Spell Card, Polymerization, fusing Penumbral Soldier Lady and Guardian Baou, Fusion Summoning Penumbral Keeper. (7*/2100/2400) She uses Penumbral Keeper's effect to Special Summon a Keeper Shield Token. (1*/0/0) She has Penumbral Keeper attack Assembly Nightingale. Ruri detaches 1 Overlay Unit from Assembly Nightingale to stop "Lyrical Luscinia" monsters from being destroyed by battle this turn, and she takes no battle damage from battles involving them. Diana has the Keeper Shield Token attack Assembly Nightingale. [D: 4000 - 600 = 3400LP]

Turn 3: Ruri Kurosaki

Ruri draws. She attaches Celeste Wagtail from the GY to Assembly Nightingale as material. She Special Summons Sapphire Swallow and Lyrical Luscinia - Turquoise Warbler (1*/100/100) from her hand with Sapphire Swallow's effect. She overlays Turquoise Warbler and Sapphire Swallow to Xyz Summon Lyrical Luscinia - Recite Starling. (R1/0/0/OU:2) Recite Starling grants Assembly Nightingale 300 ATK/DEF times Recite Starling's Overlay Units. Assembly Nightingale can attack once directly for each of its Overlay Units. Assembly Nightingale attacks directly thrive. [D: 3400 - 1400 x 3 = 0LP] Ruri wins!


OC Cards:

Wind Witch - Hail Bell

(4*/1300/1000/WIND/Spellcaster/Tuner/Effect)

If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can target 1 monster on the field; inflict damage to your opponent equal to the target's Level x 100, then, if you targeted an opponent's monster, inflict 400 damage to them. You can only activate this effect of "Wind Witch - Hail Bell" once per turn. A WIND Synchro Monster that used this card as Synchro Material gains the following effect.

● If this card destroys a monster by battle: Inflict 500 damage to your opponent.


Different Card Effects from TCG:

Luminous Keeper - Anime-only card.

Penumbral Keeper - Anime-only card.


End Notes:

So yes, Rin and Ruri beating up their 'guards' was always in the cards. I can't believe that Arc-V created two 'guardians' whose decks do nothing against the people they are supposed to be guarding from escape. Imagine using battle-based aces against Lyrical Luscinias and Wind Witches. Anyway, Diamond Bell and Bird Sanctuary, like I said early on, are a bit too overpowered to give them now.

But yeah, that's why the duels are shorter than usual. Rin and Ruri's decks destroy battle-involved decks.

The Bracelet Girls' current level in comparison to each other is Miharu-Ruri-Serena-Rin-Chiaki-Yuzu.

Disclaimer, but there is a lot of stuff that Chiaki/Rin/Ruri are still not aware of themselves in this chapter. Like Chiaki says—if it seemed too simple, there's a very good reason behind that. :) We'll get to find out the full details in the future.

The poem Nue mentions is Pablo Neruda's Love Sonnet XI. As a literature nerd, there are some book quotes/poem lines that I do kind of associate with characters in the fic, haha.

Proud sister Ruri complimenting Nue on keeping her brother sane and happy made me slightly emotional :3 And then Shun and Nue immediately turn the mood around, lmao.

But yes, this is essentially a transitioning chapter! :D As you can tell, shit is definitely about to hit the fan.

Right, so about the story's rating... there are a lot of plot elements that have been present since the start, but with the heavy focus on mental illness and trauma in this arc, I do feel like it warrants going up to T. Essentially, it's more that I understand that some of the topics that I cover can be quite heavy, so I figure that increasing the rating would at least make it more obvious that, well, that heaviness exists, in addition to the usual trigger warnings.

Review responses!

To the reviewer asking if Sergey will use the rest of the Earthbound Immortals, it really depends on whether or not I can fit them into the duel.

To Bryz0n, glad that you enjoyed Chiaki's return! I always enjoy torturing Roget and Sergey in my small ways. :D

To Combo Enthusiast, good summary! Yeah, that's basically it, haha—I picked a duel format that only nerfed Links and nothing else. And yeah, I totally get that! A lot of the way that I write certain characters comes from people who I do know, or my own personal experiences. If a character can be relatable to someone, then I'm really happy. :)

To Unlucky-Fausto, haha, it was a spur of the moment joke on my end. And yeah, I really want to write competent Ancient Gear, because I do actually know how to play the deck, but unfortunately, until the fodder gets better, I can't do that. And good on you for getting the parent implication! I wasn't sure how many people would notice that. Thanks for the detailed analysis, and for your review :D

To LHOCIN, I wanted to give the Hell Armageddon hybrids a little more time to shine, because they're pretty much some of the coolest of the D/D/D monsters, haha. You'll probably get a bit more of Chiaki, Yuji and Hitoda before the turn ends. And as for what Shino's doing, that's a good question… that'll take a while to answer, haha. Thank you for your review!

To phantomdragons, haha, at this point I don't think I can even deny it. All of the romance plotlines in this story really just crept up on me. And yeah, everyone has the right to beat up Roget and Sergey.

To naminexriku2468, Roget will definitely have a very fitting ending. :)

To Mr. Owl, I definitely intend to have Rin and Yugo sort out their shit with Yuji—Yuji's not getting off scot free, haha. I want Fubuki to play a bigger role later on, but having him be defeated by Rin and Ruri so early in the plot isn't good for setting up a credible threat. I enjoyed reading through your thoughts, and thank you for the well wishes!

To cardfan135, haha, I'm looking forward to Chiaki and Miharu meeting too! :)

To kikuruhime, mm, that's a dreadful theory. Would I really be so cruel? ;D Haha, yes, I would. Thank you for your review!

QOTC: Favourite archetypes of each summoning method! (Or well, I guess 'main summoning method'? Like how Despias technically have a Synchro Monster but they're still a Fusion archetype.) :D

I'm quite busy recently, so we'll see how next chapter goes—if I get a few hours in a row to work on it, I should be able to get the duel done soon, at least. :D See you next time!