Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc V: The Six Dimensions

by BlaiseCandell

Before the invasion of the Xyz Dimension, scans done by the Fusion Dimension reveal two more dimensions. The Ritual Dimension, and the Link Dimension. Within those two dimensions, Chiaki, Yuji, Miharu and Yuno have their lives turned upside down, and are tossed into a vicious war. Also, why are there five people with the same faces as them? (M for discussions of trauma.)

81. Window To The Soul

Starting Notes:

Welcome back! As a note—there are timestamps in the headings for flavour, but honestly, you should be able to get the rough timeline from context clues. Timestamps refer specifically to the first scene, so if there's any time transitions after that… yeah! :) The invasion of Synchro is from 21st to 22nd January, as a fun fact. This chapter is just meant to… shall we say, set up guns to fire. :) Without further ado, let's begin the final chapter of the Synchro Arc! A majority of this chapter is in the Fusion Dimension, though we do get a few other… sneak peeks.

---

Chapter 81: Window To The Soul

Interlude 1

The Fusion Dimension

30th January X778

Standing anxiously in a corner of the Fusion Dimension's branch of You Show Duel School, Asuka Tenjoin typed in a phone number. After a while, the other end of the line picked up.

"Hey, Asuka." A calm and collected voice came from the other side of the phone. It was strange—it was running through a voice changer, distorted slightly.

"Senpai…" Asuka hesitated. "I was beginning to think that you weren't going to pick up. You're four hours late."

"Well, it's been an exhausting day." A quiet sigh. In all the time that Asuka had known this strange person, they had never sounded particularly happy. It was something that always made her wary. "Do you have your pen and paper?"

"Yes."

The person on the other end of the line began to flatly list out a bunch of times and locations—each of Academia's planned patrol routes for the rest of the week. Asuka wrote them all down on pen and paper. According to their teacher, this contact was extremely paranoid—they used burner phones to communicate, and only called at randomly decided times each week to minimise the chance of Academia detecting their call.

Furthermore, they were so paranoid that they wouldn't even send these in a message, because there was a higher chance that Academia might intercept a digital message, as opposed to a call. And they had never revealed their identity—just that they had a vested interest in seeing the Rebellion continue to thrive. Even so, they had to be a higher-up in Academia. How else would they be getting this information?

Once they were done, there was the sound of a click on the other side of the call. "Next week's call is at five p.m.," they said. "See you—"

"Wait."

The other person didn't hang up.

"Senpai, are you okay?" Asuka said. "You're not usually late… and you sound more tired than usual."

"I'm fine." A pause. "The Synchro Dimension repelled the threat of Academia a few days ago, with the help of the Lancers."

"Really? That's great!"

"The three girls that Academia captured escaped."

"Wait, do you mean—Chiaki is out?" Asuka's eyes widened. It sounded too good to be true.

"And the two others with her, yes. The Professor is… furious." Another sigh. "Anyone who has gone close to the building is under fire for it, and even those uninvolved are being suspected."

"So, senpai, you…"

"... it's rough." A soft, unhappy sound left the lips of the person on the other side of the call. "If I knew who it was, I'd pat them on the back."

No wonder they were stressed…

"Give Yusho-sensei…" A sigh. "Give Yusho-sensei my regards."

They hung up before Asuka could say anything else. Asuka looked at the phone, before she stood up.

Time to go and report this to the rest.

When she walked out, there was a certain solemn air that hadn't been there before. Asuka looked around her, confused—had something happened?

"Asuka!"

Asuka turned her head. "Kaiyō," she said. "What's wrong?"

Kaiyō Kawasaki was another member of You Show, one who had joined a little while before Asuka herself. Her short hair was bunned up tightly today, indicating her preference for femininity today. She had blue hair—and really, Asuka didn't know why she tended to meet so many people with blue hair nowadays. It wasn't anything like Johan's dark turquoise or Sho and Kyorin's lighter shades of blue—rather, her hair was dark cobalt, something closer to Ryo—

It was… a struggle, to think about Ryo and Fubuki. She was sure that it was just as bad for Sho, because the two of them had practically grown up together—next door neighbours, along with Johan and Edo. But there was something unique about older brothers that hurt slightly more. Ryo was practically another brother to her.

Asuka shook her head for a moment.

She didn't want to think about it right now.

Kaiyō clearly hadn't noticed her internal conflict, because she had spoken up immediately. "The Traupik Island rebellion was entirely wiped out," she said. "The Professor's second-in-command apparently did it."

Oh. Traupik Island…

That was where Professor Chronos's rebellion had been, right? There were several different groups that had splintered off Academia, but stealth and secrecy was their greatest strength against Academia, which was why they had kept themselves separate from each other—larger groups were easier to find, and at the very least, if one was found, the rest could keep fighting. They were fighting to survive right now, not necessarily to overthrow yet—providing a safe haven to protect students who had learned from their mistakes. Much of Academia's old staff had left Academia after the Professor's plans had been revealed, distancing themselves from the idea of interdimensional war.

Wiped out…

"No one survived?"

"If there is anyone left, they're trapped." Kaiyō bared her teeth for a moment. "That bitch. We only know because Professor Chronos sent us a message. It's been four hours and no one sent a follow-up." She didn't explain any more than that, because Asuka was aware of the protocol in place too—a message to signal an attack, and then another if backup was needed, or another from anyone that had escaped.

If there was no message, then…

What a monster.

"Poor Professor Chronos…" Asuka sighed. "He never meant for anything bad to happen. He was so devastated over the invasion once it started."

"The Obelisk Force's decks still came from him," Kaiyō said, seemingly just for the sake of argument. "But you're right. What about our informant? What did they say?"

"The Synchro Dimension managed to…" She related what the informant said to her.

"Geez. Makes me wonder about those Lancers. They sent the White Azalea, the Hell Kaiser, the Empress of Dragons and fucking Yuri, and still couldn't do it? Considering that the Obelisk Force alone devastated most of Xyz, either these guys are absurdly strong or there's something else going on."

"They're probably strong," Asuka said. The informant had already told her that Kyorin was a part of the Lancers, which… what? Kyorin, her duel-averse friend (if the other still thought of her as a friend) had defeated Manjoume? "If we manage to hold on until they get here, we might… finally have a chance." She turned her head to look around. "Where are Johan and Sho?"

"They're not back from the supply run yet." Kaiyō shrugged. "You were looking for Yusho-sensei, right? He's in the kitchen."

"Thanks." Kaiyō went off to work on other things, and Asuka walked towards the kitchen.

Inside, a man with dark hair was helping out with the cooking. When he saw Asuka, he smiled.

"Did you get the call, Asuka?"

"Yes." Asuka cleared her throat. "There's a lot to go over, Yusho-sensei."

Yusho Sakaki nodded. He looked less sickly today, Asuka thought, so that was probably a good thing. He leaned on his cane, walking towards her slowly. There was a sharp determination to his eyes, for all that his smile was genuine.

Asuka remembered when they had learned the roster of the Lancers, how Yusho's eyes had lit up at his son's name, his fondness at Reiji Akaba's name.

"I want to go back to my son, but I was already irresponsible once," he had said. "I can't leave all of you behind for my own selfishness now."

She was glad, at least, that he hadn't gone. At the same time, it had made him feel more human to her. After all, everyone there had been irresponsible too—and they were still trying to make up for what they'd done.

"Tell me," he said. "How did everything go?"

---

Johan raced through the streets, drawing attention from everyone. It didn't matter though—the Juvenile Officers were already after him, and at this point, speed was more important.

He spotted a vegetable stall and spontaneously thought of an idea. He tossed a few notes on the table, before he grabbed two cabbages and flung them behind him, directly towards the pursuers. One of them smacked a Juvenile Officer in the face, knocking him back.

Johan absolutely did not want to be taken back to Academia as a card today.

He and Sho had split up with half the supplies each—standard procedure, as painfully pragmatic as it was. They would make their way back, focusing on their own safety. After all, they were easier to spot in a group.

He rounded the corner, before coming to a stop, sighing. "Really?"

"Johan Andersen." One of the Juvenile Officers said, having intercepted him on his escape route. Johan couldn't head back to the base now, not without compromising it. "You have been judged a traitor to Academia. How do you plead?"

"Guilty."

"I see, so you won't admit your guilt—" Then, the Juvenile Officers seemed to realise what Johan had said. "Huh?"

"I plead guilty." Johan raised his arm. "Because I am a traitor to Academia, and I won't deny it. But I'd rather betray Academia than go against what I believe is right again!"

"Then accept your fate and be carded!"

"That won't do," Johan said cheerfully. "I'm waiting to see someone again. Until then, I absolutely can't fall."

He accepted the duel.

He had to finish this quickly, or the rest would find them too, and there really would be no way to escape.

[DUEL!]

Johan Andersen: 4000LP

Juvenile Officer: 4000LP

[Turn 1: Johan] [H:5]

"Spell Card, Rainbow Bridge," Johan declared. "I'll add a "Crystal" Spell or Trap from my deck to my hand." He revealed the card that he had just added to his hand. "I'll activate the Spell Card, Crystal Bond. I can add a "Crystal Beast" monster from my deck to my hand, and set a "Crystal Beast" monster from my deck in the Spell and Trap Zone." He picked up a card from his deck. "I'll set Crystal Beast Emerald Tortoise in the Spell and Trap Zone!" A bright green gem appeared.

"I know your deck," the Juvenile Officer said. "Even if you want to bring out your Rainbow Dragon, it'll take you a while—and all your normal monsters are far too weak!"

"My monsters were never weak," Johan said. "Though I might still surprise you. I'll Normal Summon Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus!" The bright white steed with pale yellow feathers for its wings appeared in front of him.

[Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus (4*/1800/1200/WIND/Beast/Effect)]

"When I summon Sapphire Pegasus, I can place a "Crystal Beast" monster from my deck in the Spell and Trap Zone. I'll place Crystal Beast Amethyst Cat there!" A purple crystal emerged right next to the green one. "And now, for my new trick! I'll activate the Ritual Spell, Crystal Processing Mirror!"

"Ritual?" The man exclaimed.

Johan grinned. "My Ritual Spell lets me use monsters in my hand and on my field as tribute—along with "Crystal Beast" monsters in my Spell and Trap Zone. I will tribute the Level 3 Crystal Beast Emerald Tortoise and the Level 3 Crystal Beast Amethyst Cat in my Spell and Trap Zone." The two crystals cracked in front of him, casting their shards through the air. "Emerald, be polished to a sheen, and emerge as the steady wall that blocks my opponents' path! Ritual Summon! Level 6! Crystal Beast Emerald Galapagos!"

In front of him, a new form of Emerald Tortoise appeared. It was far larger, but it still had the same bright green jagged spikes forming its shell—several of them, all rather sharp, casting green lines across the ground. The parts of its skin that had previously been flesh had been completely replaced with green crystal in a darker shade too—its entire body seemed to have been converted into crystal, and yet, it still carried the same vibrancy as before.

[Crystal Beast Emerald Galapagos (6*/1100/2500/WATER/Aqua/Ritual/Effect)]

"This… wasn't in the notes we had about you!"

"We make use of the resources we have," Johan said. It might have been easier for them, compared to people in the other groups that were rebelling against Academia, because they were in Domino City. The Kaiba Corporation's technology had outlasted its fall, and a few models of card-making machines still circulated the underbelly of the city. The outlaws of You Show Duel School's Fusion branch had managed to get one for themselves, though it had taken them a lot of effort. "But anyway, I like being unpredictable. When Crystal Beast Emerald Galapagos is Ritual Summoned, I can send a "Crystal" card from my deck to the graveyard."

He smiled.

"I'll end my turn."

[Turn 2: Juvenile Officer] [H:6]

"… draw! Ritual or not, your monster's still going down! I will Normal Summon Armor Canine - Cannonboxer!" A brown dog with a red spiked collar appeared, a cannon on its back. It let out an aggressive growl.

[Armor Canine - Cannonboxer (3*/1400/1000/EARTH/Machine/Effect)]

"With Cannonboxer's effect, I can Special Summon a "Armor Canine" monster with a lower Level from my hand! Come—Armor Canine - Bullcopter!" A strange yellow mechanical dog with a pug-like face appeared on the field next to Cannon Boxer.

[Armor Canine - Bullcopter (2*/600/400/WIND/Machine/Effect)]

"When Bullcopter is Special Summoned, I can add Polymerization from my deck to my hand. I will add Fusion Substitute, which is always treated as Polymerization, from my deck to my hand! And I'll activate it, fusing Armor Canine - Cannonboxer and Armor Canine - Bullcopter! Mighty mongrel that shreds with its claws! Fusion Summon! Full Armor Canine - Bullfortress!"

A large, mechanical bulldog appeared, barking loudly, yellow lines running across its blue metal.

[Full Armor Canine - Bullfortress (6*/2000/1000/EARTH/Machine/Fusion/Effect)]

"I'll activate the Spell Card, Fusion Recovery. I will add Cannonboxer and Fusion Substitute from my graveyard to my hand. And I'll discard all four cards in my hand except Cannon Boxer!" He gestured forward. "Bullfortress gains 1000 attack points for each "Fusion" or "Polymerization" card that I discard!"

[Full Armor Canine - Bullfortress: 2000 + 1000 x 4 = 6000ATK]

"Your Ritual Monster's effects don't matter! Bullfortress will attack Sapphire Pegasus and finish you off!"

Johan grinned. "My Ritual Monster's effect does matter in this case! Once per turn, when a "Crystal Beast" or "Ultimate Crystal" monster is targeted for an effect, I can negate that attack! Emerald Barrier!" A large green shield appeared in front of him. "And then, I can tribute a monster I control and permanently change the attacking monster's attack points to 0! I'll tribute Sapphire Pegasus!"

The bright white pegasus dissolved into blue sparks of light. Bullfortress let out a helpless cry as green particles surrounded it, weakening it.

[Full Armor Canine - Bullfortress: 6000 → 0ATK]

"What?"

"That effect is permanent," Johan said with a wink. "My turn?"

[Turn 3: Johan] [H:3]

"Draw. I'll Normal Summon Crystal Beast Cobalt Eagle." The dark bird with brown feathers appeared next to the large tortoise.

[Crystal Beast Cobalt Eagle (4*/1400/800/WIND/Beast/Effect)]

"Cobalt Eagle attacks Bullfortress!" Johan revealed a card in his hand. "And when an attack is declared involving a "Crystal Beast" monster, I can Special Summon Crystal Beast Rainbow Dragon from my hand!"

The thin, white dragon with bright, feathery wings appeared in Attack Position. His opponent blanched.

[Crystal Beast Rainbow Dragon (8*/3000/0/LIGHT/Dragon/Effect)]

Cobalt Eagle's attack landed on the weakened Bullfortress, destroying it with swirling winds.

Juvenile Officer: 4000 - 1400 = 2600LP

"And unless you discarded a card with a graveyard effect, you're done. Attack directly, Crystal Beast Rainbow Dragon!" The white dragon lunged forward, striking down his opponent—

And Johan started running.

Juvenile Officer: 2600 - 3000 = 0LP

Winner: Johan Andersen!

After all, he couldn't trust someone like this to keep their word.

He heard shouting, but he was already off—heading into the sewers. He ducked through shadows and down corridors, just to throw the pursuers off.

… alright.

Time to go back.

---

Sho Marufuji remembered walking into Academia and being called the Kaiser's brother by everyone. Ryo had already graduated by then, but maybe that was slightly worse—there was the expectation for him to rise up to that admired, shining figure's level.

And Sho just wanted to duel.

Obviously, he wanted to win too, but there was something more laidback to it—he didn't want to be the best. He just wanted to do well.

Not quite enough for Academia.

Then Asuka had come back crying; Johan had been off all day. When Sho had finally chased both of them down to ask what had happened, he had come away from it shaken.

"I'm going," Asuka had said, cold determination in her eyes.

"I'm going," Johan had said casually, with all the gravity of a person commenting on the weather.

Sho had looked at them and thought about his brother, constantly away on missions but still casting a shadow over him. He had thought about what it would feel like to have to fight either of them in the future. He had shrugged. "I'm going too, I guess," he said, and their smiles had reassured him.

And he had kept wondering if it was the right decision.

He would probably keep wondering about it, but there was no going back.

That being said, he would absolutely like to get back to the base, thank you.

Most of the Juvenile Officers had chased after Johan—not surprising, Johan always drew more attention. Still, one had been left behind to take him in.

[DUEL!]

Sho Marufuji: 4000LP

Juvenile Officer: 4000LP

[Turn 1: Juvenile Officer] [H:5]

"You're the Kaiser's brother, right?" The Juvenile Officer taunted. Yeah, there it was. "Bet he must be disappointed that he has such a traitorous little brother."

Sho didn't even flinch. It wasn't true, after all.

"I'll activate the Spell Card, Polymerization! I'll fuse two copies of Armor Canine - Bullcopter in my hand! Mighty mongrel that shreds with its claws! Fusion Summon! Full Armor Canine - Bullfortress!" The familiar Fusion Monster appeared on the field.

[Full Armor Canine - Bullfortress (6*/2000/1000/EARTH/Machine/Fusion/Effect)]

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

Sho reached for the top card of his deck.

When he was a child, he aspired to become as strong as Ryo. But now, Ryo was doing something—aiding in something that Sho thought was wrong.

Sho… probably couldn't talk him out of it.

So, as usual, he just had to do what he could. He was tired of being worried all the time for no reason.

[Turn 2: Sho] [H:6]

"Draw!" Sho glanced at his hand. "I'll discard Dragonroid from my hand! With its effect, I can add a non-WIND "roid" monster from my deck to my hand. Then, the Spell Card, Fusion Deployment. I'll reveal a Fusion Monster in my Extra Deck and Special Summon a Fusion Material specifically listed on that monster from my deck, but I can't Special Summon monsters from the Extra Deck this turn, except Fusion Monsters!"

"You still use Fusion?"

"I wish I could be as brave as Asuka and Johan," Sho admitted. "But this is all I've known." He revealed one of the cards with a purple border from his Extra Deck. "I'll reveal Super Vehicroid Jumbo Drill—come, Drillroid!" A strange yellow machine, resembling a hedgehog, appeared, a large drill on its head, with two smaller ones forming its arms.

[Drillroid (4*/1600/1600/EARTH/Machine/Effect)]

"Spell Card, Vehicroid Connection Zone! I will fuse Drillroid on the field with Steamroid and Submarineroid in my hand. Come forth, drill that pierces through all walls! Fusion Summon! Level 8! Super Vehicroid Jumbo Drill!" A large pink machine that resembled a mole appeared, an enormous silver drill forming its snout—the drill was as large as Sho himself. It let out a slow, rumbling sound.

[Super Vehicroid Jumbo Drill (8*/3000/2000/EARTH/Machine/Fusion/Effect)]

"I'll then Normal Summon Expressroid," Sho continued. The white and blue machine that resembled an express train appeared right next to Jumbo Drill.

[Expressroid (4*/400/1600/EARTH/Machine/Effect)]

"When Expressroid is Normal Summoned, I can add two "roid" monsters from my graveyard to my hand." He picked up the two cards. "I'll activate the Spell Card, Graceful Charity. I will draw three cards and discard two."

He couldn't help but grin at the cards he drew.

"Spell Cards, Mystical Space Typhoon and Limiter Removal! I'll destroy your set card and double the attack points of all Machine monsters I control!"

[Super Vehicroid Jumbo Drill: 3000 x 2 = 6000ATK]

[Expressroid: 400 x 2 = 800ATK]

"6000 attack points?"

Sho gestured forward. "Super Vehicroid Jumbo Drill attacks Full Armor Canine - Bullfortress!"

The monster dashed forward, slamming its drill straight towards the opponent's monster—obliterating it, and ending the duel in one hit.

Juvenile Officer: 4000 - 4000 = 0LP

Winner: Sho Marufuji!

"You—"

"If Academia didn't want us to be so strong, it shouldn't have taught us!" Sho shouted—a protest. For all that he was small in stature, he actually gave the man pause for a moment.

And naturally, Sho took the chance to run.

---

"Nice. Up high!"

Sho returned the high five, and Johan grinned. Asuka rolled her eyes. "Be serious," she said, and she shared what she had learned recently.

"Seriously? They won?" Johan grinned. "… nice! Means that they'll be coming here soon, hopefully… and Chiaki and Yuji are out, huh? Guess we didn't get to spring them out after all. Maybe they'll be less mad at us."

"Have you met Chiaki?" Asuka snarked. "She's going to hit you, hit me and set everything on fire."

"… maybe her new comrades will calm her down?"

"Not even Yuji and Kyorin were ever able to hold her back. We're doomed." Still, both of them were smiling. Sho seemed somewhat confused. Maybe Johan would have to explain more about the others to him.

"… we really have to hold on," Johan said. He leaned back. "If the Professor sends more people after them… we need to hold on until we can strike back. No matter what."

To wait. To apologise. Not just to Yuji and Chiaki, but to Kyorin, who had been the one to suffer the aftermath of losing all four of her friends at the same time.

… waiting.

They'd already been fighting for months. They could certainly fight a while longer.

---

Interlude 2

The Link Dimension

20th January X778

"You piece of shit. You gave it to them?" Ryoken Kogami slammed a man against the wall. Despite the difference in their age—Ryoken was, after all, just nineteen, while the man was fully grown—the man was unable to struggle out of Ryoken's grip. "How dare you? Who gave you the right to give data about the Knights of Hanoi to them without clearing it with my father and I first? And who gave you the right to take Miharu's data?"

"Do avoid violence, Revolver. It's inefficient."

Ryoken turned to look at the woman who had just walked into the room. He scoffed, letting go of the man, who was still sputtering on the ground. "So it was you, Queen?"

"It was an offer of exchange." Queen, or as she was more well-known, SOL's CEO Katsumi Maizono, rolled her eyes. "They are allies, Revolver. Your paranoia does you no credit."

"I know that you're not deluded enough to believe that these people will leave us alone if we side with them," Ryoken said. "Or have you forgotten that they have still refused to give us the same dimensional travel technology that they use so flagrantly? There is something that they are hiding from us, Queen. I don't believe that you can't see that."

"Allow us to handle negotiations. Your duty is only to keep on doing what you are already doing—your job."

"My job, which includes hunting down my sister, who has been nothing but loyal to SOL."

"Academia has reassured us of her safety, if she is handed over to them." Queen raised her head—as though she was looking down on him. "You do not need to think. Do your job."

---

Naturally, after Ryoken had seen the footage retrieved from the warehouse months ago, he'd subsequently had it deleted from all their files. He had no clue how Yuno or Miharu had access to dimensional travel technology all of a sudden, especially when even SOL had not yet figured out that technology. He would have to ask Miharu when she came back.

(And he knew his sister very well. She would come back when she judged herself ready. Even now, she was likely gathering information and whatever resources she needed. And when she came back with the proof of Academia's maliciousness, that would be all Ryoken needed to regain control of the situation.)

Even so…

He had thought back then that Miharu and Yuno would be the only ones he would have to worry about.

And then she had ended up involving herself too.

Really, she was a Charisma Duelist, and one that seemed distanced from most things in a large context. What made her involve herself in trouble like this, even choosing to go against the Knights of Hanoi in broad daylight?

You'd bail her out of it anyway, a voice in his head murmured. Ryoken did what he always did and ignored it.

He did allow himself to think about her for a brief moment.

"Are you doing well?" He murmured to himself. "Miharu and Yuno won't let anything happen to each other, but what about you?"

"Are you thinking about that girl?"

Ryoken turned around. "Father," he greeted. "… I was."

Kiyoshi Kogami nodded. "You know that I approve of her, naturally—just as I approve of Yuno Sugisaki."

"No, it's not like that between us." Ryoken shook his head. "Not anymore, at least."

His father shot him a weary, knowing look. "Very well," he said. "But if there's something that you want to tell me, I'm always open to hearing about your troubles." He walked back to his room. Ryoken didn't stop him—his father had been far more tired recently, what with fending off the Grandmaster Council and having to negotiate with Academia's people. He deserved to rest.

And besides, this specific problem was one that he had no way to fix.

He walked to the coffee machine, getting himself a cup. Then, he settled down on the couch.

He was going to have a late night.

As he breathed in the scent of the coffee, he thought about back then.

---

Two years ago:

The first time that Ryoken saw the girl in the hospital, she was standing in front of a vending machine, turning over a coin in her hand. Her green hair was curly, going down to barely under her shoulders, sweeping around her collarbone. She was hooked up to an IV, singing a folk song under her breath, but she was still fleet-footed—her footsteps were inaudible.

She looked at the drinks in the vending machine. Ryoken looked at her, and he wasn't quite sure why. There were others in the corridor—nurses, and so on—but for some reason, his attention was drawn to her. He watched as the coin slipped from her unsteady hand, and the girl frowned, leaning on the machine and tilting her head downwards. The IV cable went taut as she tried to kneel down to look under the machine, stopping her.

"I'll get it for you." The words slipped from his lips before he knew what he was saying—he was on one knee, peeking under the vending machine. He held back a sneeze at the dust beneath it. Once he found the coin, he handed it back to the girl.

The girl looked at him curiously. There was an easygoing smile on her face.

"Do you want a drink too?" She asked. Her voice was sweet—as charming as her singing.

"I'll get it myself."

"Now, that won't do." The girl slid the coin into the slot on the vending machine. "Would you like to see a magic trick?"

Ryoken blinked. "I don't believe in magic," he said. He wasn't sure why he was engaging with her—he had just meant to help her and then get his own drink.

"Well, expand your horizons a little." A drink rolled down, and the girl held it out to him. Ryoken noted with surprise that it was exactly what he would have bought, if he had been the one pressing the buttons. Instant coffee, cheaper than most other canned drinks there. "Good to meet you in real life, Revolver."

That sent a sharp shock through Ryoken's system. How did she…

"Hopefully the third time that we meet," the girl continued cheerfully, "it won't be because I got involved with the wrong people again." She laughed, and with that laugh came familiarity.

… oh.

Now Ryoken remembered.

A Charisma Duelist who some had been attempting to doxx—he and Kyoko had found her being chased down by hackers, with those infuriating programs that stopped a person from logging out. She had been laughing and dancing and flirting, but none of those had been genuine in the slightest. She had smiled as the hackers were taken down—no fear or remorse, just pure amusement.

"You could have done it yourself," Ryoken, under the face of Revolver, had said. Soothsayer had laughed again, that sweetness that bewildered the mind. He did not like her laugh, he told himself. That laugh that lied and charmed all in a single sound. But he did like it. He liked it far more than he should.

"But I don't have a way to punish them," she'd said, still smiling. "They'd just come after me again."

How harsh, Ryoken had thought at the time. Cruel logic that hid behind a smile—the serpent beneath the flower.

"Thank you for your service, Revolver," the girl had said. She had winked, and Revolver had felt a strange thud in his heart at that moment. "Hope we'll meet again, when we're not so busy!"

And now, they were here.

"… you shouldn't call me that name in real life," he said.

"Well, it's not like I have anything else to call you." The girl slipped a coin into the machine, grabbing another drink. "I'm Hitoda Makishima. Soothsayer. What about you?"

"… Ryoken Kogami." He did not say his avatar name, because she already knew, and he was still wary about anyone overhearing them.

"Oh, Canes Venatici?"

Ryoken blinked. "Yes…" He was somewhat surprised at how easily she'd picked that up—he'd been named in reference to the constellation of the hunting dogs. "What are you doing here? Didn't you have a show yesterday with Blue Angel? Did something happen?"

Hitoda grinned. She took a step closer, getting into his personal space. "Why do you know that I had a show yesterday? Are you a fan, Kogami-san?"

Ryoken raised an eyebrow, not losing his cool. "I'm a SOL employee. Naturally, I know about Charisma Duelist events."

"So you're not a fan?"

"Not after the trouble you've caused me."

"So were you a fan before?"

… this girl was so difficult to deal with.

"… but anyway, I have a chronic condition," Hitoda said with a wink. "So I have to come back here regularly for it. Thanks for your concern."

Ryoken shrugged.

Hitoda popped open the soft drink. "What are you here for?"

"… asthmatic," Ryoken said. "It's not a big deal though." He then realised that she'd derailed the conversation again. However, it would be rude to ask her what exactly her condition was, so he didn't follow up on it.

Hitoda lowered the can, having taken a sip. "I'm walking around," she said cheerfully. "I'm stuck here for a few days for check-ups. And I'm bored to death. Wanna duel? We can just play with cards on the table, simple enough."

"Are you allowed to walk around?"

"I'm not impulsive enough to hurt my own health if it was that serious." She pressed a hand to his arm. "So? Do you have anything to do?"

"… you're very physical."

A wink. "Do you dislike it?"

The terrible thing about this, Ryoken thought, was that he didn't. This was the most teenager-like he'd felt in years. "I won't hold back," he said.

"I don't expect you to."

---

The duel ended up rather long—and surprising.

"So, you have a Link 4 monster? I've never seen it in your shows."

Hitoda was packing up the cards, and she put Apollousa back in her Extra Deck. "Says the one with this many Link 4 monsters?" She said. "I've never lost so badly in my life."

"If you used that monster more, you would do better against opponents."

"Playing by just negating all my opponents' cards isn't fun for people to watch," Hitoda said. "I have an image to maintain, you know." There was something more calculating to her voice now. Ryoken glanced up at her, studying her face. "People watch because they like the fact that I'm the 'underdog', the one that fights with lower attack points against all kinds of Link Monsters with higher attack points. If I suddenly brought out a monster with high original attack points and ended up being overbearing, they'd be confused."

"You really focus on your image that much?"

She flashed a smile at him. "I have to pretend that I'm sweeter than I am, Ryoken." She had swapped to using his first name during their duels, and Ryoken had not felt the need to correct her.

"You haven't exactly done that today."

"Well…" Hitoda drummed her fingers on the table, shooting him a knowing smirk. "You already know, don't you?"

Thank you for your service, Revolver, this girl had said, smiling after luring those chasing her towards the Knights of Hanoi. As though she'd expected them to be there.

"I don't have any delusions about you," he said, and she laughed again—seeming genuinely delighted.

"So," she said cheerfully, "can I have your number?"

"… are you really flirting with me that much?"

"I have no sense of shame," Hitoda said with a smirk. "You're good on the eyes, and skilled. And believe me, I'm very shallow."

Ryoken doubted it—there was more to her than he likely knew. He did end up giving her his number, in the end. She really was too persuasive.

---

In the present:

Ryoken sipped his coffee. In his head, he could hear her laugh. He could hear the venomous words that she'd spoken, the last time that they'd met. It had… not been a good moment for either of them, and it was a difficult memory to deal with.

"Do you really think that what you're doing is right, Revolver?"

"Is it for the greater good? Or is it just for your prideful righteousness? And for that, are you willing to sacrifice people like me? People who never hurt anyone? Do you think that's right?"

"I didn't bet my entire childhood for just information."

"Some secrets," he mused, "are better kept hidden."

Decisively, he stood up.

He would not apologise to that girl, that things had ended up that way. But now was not the time to muse over the past and the things that could not be changed.

It was time to figure out what to do with Academia.

… especially if Miharu's project had ended up in Academia's hands. What rotten luck.

---

The next day, he headed back to SOL.

Sitting in the middle of an office, a young man with light red-brown hair was reading through one of SOL's personnel files, grey eyes glancing across the lines. Ryoken would admit to a certain distaste for this man—the previous negotiator, the one that they called the Kaiser, had at least been more honourable in attitude.

This man, on the other hand, was someone with a mindset of business—quite transactional.

"You're here, Ryoken Kogami." A glint appeared in the man's eyes as he looked at Ryoken—he adjusted his thin-framed glasses. "I received some interesting data yesterday. One of the Professor's leading scientists has expressed that they would be interested in using one of the programs we found."

Damn the traitor who leaked our secrets to Academia. Damn those who would use good intentions for ill.

"Is that so, Amon Garam?" Ryoken finally said. "Why don't we discuss, then? After all, you cannot expect us to let you use data that you have taken from us without any advantage for us."

The redhead nodded. Both of them were clearly testing each other—

At this rate, the question was not whether their alliance with Academia would fray.

The question was when.

As of now…

Den City stood firmly on the precipice.

---

Interlude 3

The Fusion Dimension

22nd January X778

The students of Academia returned to their home with the taste of failure lingering in the air.

It was not the first failure that Academia had experienced—but it was the first failure that had been unquestionable. People had been able to dismiss the failure in Standard—after all, barely any of the elites had been there, and there hadn't been that much manpower deployed there. But not this one—not with the sheer number of forces had been deployed.

In one phrase—a complete failure, in most people's eyes.

"... I do not blame you for withdrawing," the Professor said. "We may make another attempt later, but your invasion has reached the acceptable quota, regardless."

The quota, naturally, referred to the number of people carded in the invasion. Apparently, it was within acceptable parameters, especially since there had been several of their own people carded by those that had been defending the Synchro Dimension.

"I still apologise for my failure," Ryo said. He and the Professor were currently the only two people in the room.

"For now, we're at a point where we can afford to hold back on invasions," the Professor replied. His gaze was stern, but it was not unforgiving. "You have done quite a lot in the service of Academia's goals. You and Tenjoin both led the initial charge against the Ritual Dimension, after all, and you also helped with negotiations with the Link Dimension. I will not condemn, discard or punish you for this."

"... thank you, Professor. How far is the progress of the Arc Area Project?"

"... we have almost enough carded people for the reactor to work." Leo Akaba stood up. "Still, it is important that we do not allow the other dimensions to regroup—if they come here, they could still potentially stop us. I hope that I can continue to count on you in the future."

Ryo nodded, raising his fist to his chest. "... you do not need to be worried about my loyalty, Professor. I will help you to see this project through."

"Naturally. I am currently preparing some other plans. I will let you in on them when the time is right—for now, you are dismissed."

Ryo nodded. He bowed, before turning to walk out of the chamber. Some of the tension left his shoulders as he did so.

The last time that he'd heard, Fubuki had been dispatched to the Ritual Dimension at the same time as the invasion of the Synchro Dimension. It was a shame that he hadn't gotten to see his friend off, but hopefully, Fubuki would be able to pull himself together soon. (Asuka, Johan and Sho's betrayal had wounded both of them terribly.)

After all, Fubuki Tenjoin was his best friend—had been his best friend since they were children.

"They're calling you Hell Kaiser now, you know. Pretty scary title."

"Are you scared then? You pull off all kinds of combos so easily too—it's not like they're weaker than you. Should they give you a title too then?"

"Hah!" Fubuki slapped his shoulder. "But I'm charming—not as intimidating as you."

"... people find me intimidating?"

"Of course they do!" Fubuki smirked at Ryo's confusion. "Don't worry. No matter how intimidating we become, I'll still be your friend."

… perhaps, if they achieved that utopia, Asuka and Fubuki could probably reconcile. And then, maybe he and Sho too…

But he certainly hoped that Fubuki's smile would come back eventually, no matter what.

Right now, if it was true that they no longer needed to invade other worlds, if they had truly carded enough people…

Then it was far more important to make sure that no one would interfere with Academia until they took the final step.

Ryo understood that much. It was a relief, in a way—it meant that it was no longer necessary to chase down those who weren't actively involved in the war. The only ones that they had to deal with were their enemies now.

He walked past several groups of students, all of whom were whispering or withdrawn.

… he couldn't help but feel guilty for his failure. The nurse, Emi Ayukawa, had properly examined him and confirmed that his injuries were severe enough that choosing not to retreat from combat would have caused long-term effects—but the idea that he might have simply been too weak to follow through with it still ate away at him.

He couldn't afford to make too many mistakes like that.

He blinked as he looked at what was in front of him—the garden, or 'Yuri's garden', as it had basically become at this point. The Professor had once mentioned offhandedly that it was useless to hire a gardener when they had Yuri, and besides, that "keeping him entertained with something other than dueling may help to curb any destructive impulses that arise". Ryo had thought that the Professor was judging Yuri too much based on the negative expectations others had of his family, but he hadn't directly commented on it. The garden was one of the few things that did seem to make Yuri happy, after all.

He'd walked to this place unconsciously.

The last time that they'd been here, he and Shino had argued.

"I'd like for you to never talk to me again, unless necessary."

For someone like Shino to act out in anger…

It was painfully uncharacteristic of her. It spoke to the amount of hurt that she was feeling from his decision, back then. Ryo had intentionally not given her orders or directly told her to do anything, during the invasion. Even so, he'd been waiting for her to make the first move—for her anger to quell, before he did anything.

He peered through the trellises for a brief moment—

He caught the sight of Shino mid-laugh, tucking a lily into a frowning Yuri's hair as the violet-haired boy was repotting one of his plants. She was smiling without a care in the world. Ryo's gaze was drawn to her even as she moved backwards, leaning down from her wheelchair to pick up one of the white moonflowers that had scattered from the vines that curled across the wooden planks above. She lifted it up, taking in its scent.

This picture of tranquillity…

Ryo's thoughts flickered back to that day.

---

Two years ago:

When Ryo had first heard about the incident, he was with Fubuki. The two of them had immediately run towards the infirmary—Ryo had abandoned all grace in his haste, and Fubuki had been unnaturally serious the whole time.

Apparently, Shino had been given a private room—and as the two of them approached, nurses were leaving the room in a drove. One of them stopped Ryo as he was about to stride forward, towards the door.

"The Professor is talking to her right now," she said. "He asked us to leave, so it would be a private conversation."

"We'll wait outside until they're done," Fubuki said. The nurses nodded, walking off—and Fubuki immediately took a step forward, leaning on the door.

"Fubuki," Ryo said tersely—half-chiding.

"What? Don't you want to know what happened too?"

He did. He did very much want to know. Still, at that moment, there were footsteps that came closer, and Fubuki leapt away from the door. Moments later, it opened. The Professor stepped out, a dark look on his face—the most displeased that Ryo had ever seen him. He schooled his features, however, the moment that he saw the two of them there.

"Were you waiting long?" He said. "My apologies. I needed to know what had occurred first—it was not a pretty sight, and I needed to know if Yuri would end up being a danger to other students in the future."

"What did Shino say?"

Another shadow could be seen on his face as he turned his head. "You're concerned friends, aren't you? I suppose that you should ask her yourself." He turned and walked off—Ryo and Fubuki exchanged confused looks. Was the Professor… angry with Shino? Why?

Ryo and Fubuki walked in.

Shino was glancing at the window, seeming distracted. Her right hand was on top of her blanket, clenched into a tight fist.

Fubuki approached—Ryo stood back, slightly uncertain about what to say or do in this situation.

The rumour had told them much of the situation, after all. Yuri and Shino had been dueling, there had supposedly been an incident with Yuri's monster, and Shino had been rushed to the infirmary for emergency treatment.

"How are you feeling?" Fubuki fussed. "They said that you were bleeding really heavily the whole time!"

"Thanks for the concern, but no need to worry too much! I might need a wheelchair from now on, but that's it." Shino was smiling at the sight of them. Ryo stared at the blanket for a brief moment, still hanging back.

"Wheelchair?" Fubuki echoed.

"... hmm." Shino's gaze dipped lower for a moment, and she sighed. "I don't want to show it to you guys for now."

"Show what?"

"... mm." Shino leaned on the side of the bed. "Appreciate your worry, guys… I'll talk to you about it later, alright? I still need to think about what this… means."

Still, Ryo had gotten the implication. Her leg (or maybe even legs) had likely been wrecked so badly that she wouldn't be able to walk anymore. That was what she was hiding from them right now—the true appearance of how badly she'd been hurt.

No one can smile like that after going through something so terrifying. What are you made of?

"Okay," Fubuki said. He took a seat next to Shino. Ryo knew that Fubuki wasn't quite as oblivious as he seemed—he had probably picked up on the same things that Ryo had picked up on. Still, he immediately launched into an anecdote of his day, probably just to try and take her mind off things.

It was a pretty gentle thing for Fubuki to do—something that Ryo himself couldn't do.

After a while, he excused himself, leaving the room.

He didn't want to be reminded of his own inability to help.

---

Fubuki caught up with him later, when he was reading a book near the lighthouse.

"You should have stayed longer," the brunet said, leaning on the wall of the lighthouse. "She needs support right now, you know."

"I'm not good at that. Sweet talk and cheerfulness is your specialty and hers."

"Still, she likes you, doesn't she? Might have made her happier to have you here."

"It's a joke that she makes," Ryo deflected. "She's hardly serious about it. You know the kind of person that she is—she plays tricks on everyone whenever she gets the opportunity."

"So you think it's a trick and a joke?" Fubuki raised an eyebrow. He took a few steps forward, until he was sitting on the rocky cliff, next to Ryo. "... you know, I liked her."

"I know," Ryo said. All the presents, the concern, the way that Fubuki's smile always brightened even more when he saw her… he knew that much. And Shino was absolutely Fubuki's type—if anyone was qualified to comment on that, it would be him, considering that he'd seen most of Fubuki's failed romantic conquests.

"... tch. You really do know me too well." Fubuki's expression was cheerful though. "I actually confessed to her midway through last year."

"You did what?" Ryo snapped his head over.

"Haha, relax, nothing's been happening behind your back!" Fubuki shook his head. "She rejected me. Nicest way that she could do it too—told me that I was one of the people that she treasured, but that to her, I was just a good friend. Acknowledged my feelings and told me she was sorry she couldn't return them, but that there was someone else that she already liked."

Someone… else?

"I hope it's you," Fubuki said. "If it's you, then I won't get jealous. At least I know you'll take care of her."

"... I hope it's not me," Ryo said. The thought was ridiculous, anyway—with the amount of distance that he put between himself and others with his formality, with his occasional coldness and lack of support towards others, how could someone genuinely like him for who he was? "Because I don't have feelings for her."

"You don't? I could've sworn…"

"... she's someone that I get along with," Ryo said. "But she's… too frivolous. A lot of the time, she doesn't truly consider the weight of what she does. We're training for another war, right, Fubuki? If I end up having a partner, somehow…"

He turned back to look at the moon.

"... I need them to have values of their own, to be capable of being serious to defend their ideals. Do you think that she's capable of that? She's a girl that spends all of her time skipping around and teasing others, doing anything on a whim. That's… not the kind of person that would fit with what I need."

---

In the present:

It was from that moment, worriedly running to the infirmary, that Ryo'd had the sneaking suspicion that Shino Gitsune perhaps held greater influence over his decisions than he cared to admit. He'd quickly ignored that realisation, but they were at the very least not senior and junior anymore, at that point—rather, they were just friends, with no difference in status, strange as that felt. And that had led him to today.

He watched as Shino blew the moonflower into Yuri's hair, and then laughed as Yuri complained.

It was a very peaceful action, one that made her seem gentle and tender. But someone who only saw Shino like this would be deceiving themselves—only able to see the parts of her that they weren't afraid of. Behind the gentleness, there was steel; behind the sweetness, there was a cunning that could rot even the strongest walls from within.

Ryo watched, and he sighed, somewhat resigned.

Back then… he had most certainly misjudged Shino. He had assumed that she took everything too lightly, and that her cheerfulness was a sign of irresponsibility.

Now, he knew far better.

Now, he knew that Shino's smile was not irresponsibility, but rather the opposite—her sense of responsibility. Her smile was her way of caring for others. He knew that she was not flippant about what she believed in, but rather that she believed in it so much that she would do anything to accomplish it, even if it meant hiding her true intentions from others behind a facade that seemed superficial. He must have known that on some level back then—that Shino's smile was her way of keeping them away from the shock and horror of what had happened to her, her way of shouldering that emotional burden herself, not making anyone else worry.

He looked back at them.

As usual, even back then, Fubuki had known him better than he knew himself. Yes, he cared for the facade, but the girl behind that facade—the one who could be called the 'complete' Shino—what he felt…

Shino spotted him at that moment, making eye contact with him.

Ryo felt his feelings settle, in the way that emotions did once they were clearly and logically accepted. He took this feeling, secret even to himself until now, and calmly accepted it into his worldview.

In fact, the shock of understanding gave way to something different. Something that Shino herself might laugh at, if he ever told her.

Arrogance.

The Hell Kaiser and the Empress of Dragons. Emperor and empress, conqueror and supremacy, overpowering strength and silver tongue, hailed as the two strongest students that Academia had ever had. Who in any of the six dimensions would dare to say that they were not a match made in heaven?

If there was any person in the world who he might be able to sink so devastatingly into, it would only be this girl.

If this girl ever asked something unreasonable of me, I might actually listen to her.

Shino tilted her head, still looking at him, though she obviously didn't know what he was thinking.

Ryo walked into the garden.

Yuri looked between the two of them, seeming rather wary. After all, he'd seen them come to blows the last time that they had talked. "Please don't damage my garden," he said cuttingly—though, despite his smirk, there was a certain protectiveness there. Interesting.

"I won't," Ryo said. He turned to Shino. "... I have to talk to you personally. It has to do with the invasion."

(And he put his emotions aside for now—because he'd also had his own agenda, which might have been the reason why he'd unconsciously walked here in the first place.)

"... sure," Shino said. "I had something I needed to say to you too. I'll catch up with you later, Yuri?"

"I'm going to go and talk to Dennis," Yuri said. He and Shino shared a brief glance—a hidden message that Ryo wasn't privy to. Shino nodded, and Yuri stood up, walking off—though he did cast one more glance back at them.

Once he was out of earshot, Ryo considered how best to approach the matter.

"You said that you didn't want to talk to me again, unless necessary," he said. "Does that still apply?"

"... a moment of anger," Shino said. "That was what I wanted to talk about too... I'm sorry for hurting you. It was wrong of me… even if I was upset with your actions, I know that you had good intentions. I just wasn't happy with how you went about them."

That was all Ryo had really wanted to hear. At the same time… "Do you want an apology from me then?"

"Not if you don't mean it," Shino said. "I'm not apologising to make you apologise too. I'm apologising because what I did was wrong. I… treated you poorly. And I don't want to…" She raised a hand, shoving back her hair. "I was supposed to be alone. I didn't want to distract you anymore, or distract myself from my goal."

"... then I'll apologise for making decisions on your behalf. But not for my intentions."

Shino nodded.

"But this is something necessary for us to talk about," Ryo said, getting back to business. "I'll get to the core of it immediately. You and I both know what it means that Yuri had Ridicule World."

He'd already heard about it from Kisara, who had mentioned offhandedly that she would leave the choice in his hands. That one card…

That one card's history was very complicated.

Shino tilted her head. "Are you asking me what we should do about it?"

"I'm trying to learn from my mistakes," Ryo said bluntly. "If Yuri has joined up with that man's rebellion in the Outer Islands, then as a member of Academia, I have a duty to report it to the Professor. So, I want to know what your decision would be, if I did so."

"... you won't like the answer," Shino said. She leaned back, stretching slightly, before she spoke up. "If that happens, the Professor will probably ask me, since I was the opponent in that duel. So I'll tearfully confess to him that the copy Yuri had belonged to me—that I'm the traitor, who just wanted to protect him against others. I'll say that Yuri didn't know anything and just trusted me blindly."

"Are you insane?" Ryo raised his voice, though not to the point of a shout. Disbelief filled his expression. "Do you know what that's a confession to? You'd be saying that you're working with one of Academia's greatest enemies—"

"Mm, yeah!" Shino didn't meet his gaze. "But it's the better option. Trust me, Ryo. Yuri has no affiliation with that person at all. I already asked him—he got it through something different. So, as long as we don't make it a problem… there is no problem."

"I only have your word on that," Ryo said.

"I know." Shino shot him a calm look. "I'm not lying to you this time."

Ryo looked at her.

… he really hoped so.

"The other thing," Ryo continued. He looked around briefly—and then he spoke quietly. "Yuri may not be a traitor, but you most certainly are. Explain what happened with Chiaki Katsuya, Ruri Kurosaki and Rin. Explain the Dogmatika cards."

Shino looked at him, leaning on the side of her wheelchair. "I don't suppose that you'd believe that they took advantage of poor, helpless me and stole my cards?"

"... don't loop me in with the kind of person that would look down on you and underestimate you because of your disability. You've punched me in the face—if that was you holding back, you're far stronger than you appear."

"Well, it was worth a shot." Shino made direct eye contact with him. "... hypothetically, if I helped them out, it's not because I was rebelling against Academia. Hypothetically, if I did so… it was the best decision for now." A small, inscrutable smile. "Hypothetically, if or when Academia must get them back in the future, I'll help—but for now, trust me. In this war, my allegiance isn't with the Lancers in the slightest."

… you've made me foolish.

"I'll stay silent about that for now," Ryo finally said. "But from now on… I'll have to supervise your actions myself—and truly figure out your motivations. Don't expect me to trust you so easily."

"... well, that's fair." A small smirk emerged on Shino's face—as though she was privy to a joke that Ryo didn't know. "Let's see then. Even if you spent millennia observing me, you'd never, in your wildest dreams, be able to guess why I'm doing this."

---

"So, what was the decision that you made?" Kisara asked, when Ryo turned up to her lab more than a week later, when he had finished settling all the paperwork and reports from the invasion. She was currently still looking through all of Roget's data.

"You were there too," he said, "when Yuri and Shino dueled. You know about as much as I do. Why are you letting me make the choice on whether to tell the Professor or not? Are you trying to test my loyalty?"

"... my allegiance is hardly to the Professor. It's to Academia." Kisara turned her head, meeting his gaze. "If I wanted to tell the Professor, I would have done so myself. As it stands, I'd prefer not to."

"... back in the Synchro Dimension, you said that you understood how Shino felt."

"I was engaged once," Kisara said. Ryo's eyes widened—it was the first time that he had heard anything personal about the usually closed-off woman. "It was a man that I'd known since we were both children—the two of us met, fell in love, and it felt meant to be. As though we'd met in a past life. That's why I can't help but empathise with that girl. It must be hard for her to feel the way that she does for you, when her heart is also reaching out to care for so many others."

"With… Shino?"

"I know a thing or two about men that are far too noble and self-centred, believing that they know what's best for the world," Kisara mused. "They act for the world, and so, sometimes, they forget to look at the people next to them. They're too much. My fiance was so noble that he never stopped fighting for what he thought was right. He fought so much that he died, and he left his poor younger brother to carry the burden of his family name, and he left me to put together the parts of my life that shattered without him in it."

She looked him in the eyes again.

"That's why I'd like to say one thing to you, Ryo Marufuji. You are noble. You are the strongest. You are a good leader. You inspire the people around you. To be honest, sometimes, I see a younger version of my fiance in you. But the one thing that Seto would never compromise was his loved ones. He would have fought tooth and nail to protect them while still striving for his ideals. He was a man with many faults, but even so… he was still a very good man."

Those cold blue eyes softened for a brief moment.

"It's all good to be noble and focused on the bigger picture. But don't let it be too late to tell the people you love that you love them. War can take away people from you in the most sudden ways. Someday, you might turn your head and find that someone who has been supporting you the entire time is no longer there to help you up when you fall. Take it from someone who has already lost it all. If that happens to you someday… will being Academia's most valued soldier really be worth it all?"

"I do," Kisara confirmed—which left Ryo with a single, sudden realisation.

"You wanted to see if, for the sake of my loyalty to Academia, I would sell her out," he said.

Kisara didn't react with any shock at all. She tapped a key on her keyboard, before she turned to him. "I was curious," she said. "Like I told you, to me, you're an uncomfortable reminder to me—and as such, she is as well." Her bright blue eyes scanned him thoughtfully. "I talked to her before this. I told her that I would tell you about what I had witnessed in that duel." She shook her head. "She said that she had faith in you. I asked if she was sure that you would believe in her good intentions. If she was so sure that you'd put her before your loyalty."

Good intentions, as in the part about hiding Yuri's possession of Ridicule World from the Professor. Not about the three girls that she'd assisted in escaping—it was likely that Kisara had not put together Shino's part in that yet.

"What did she say?" Ryo asked.

"... that's between me and her," Kisara said. She shook her head. "We are not here for you to discuss that matter, for now—that topic has concluded." She tapped the screen.

Ryo looked at it.

Those schematics…

"These are the chips that Roget designed to take control of the minds of people," Kisara said. "From what I can see, they are short-term, wear out easily due to the sheer processing power involved, and have a high likelihood of causing permanent damage past two or three days of use."

Ryo narrowed his eyes.

"The cameras in my lab are currently turned off," Kisara continued. "I omitted this file before I sent the entire drive to the Professor. You and I will be the only witnesses to this." She decisively shifted her mouse, clicking on several buttons—deleting the files completely, wiping them completely from any systems that they were in. "Do you understand?"

"I agree, but I do not understand," Ryo said. "You believe in efficiency, do you not? And progress?"

"... I believe in the right of people to choose their own fate, by their own will," Kisara said. "If the utopia is truly coming soon, and we no longer need to card people in such high numbers… there is no need for this. We only need to keep our enemies divided, and that comes naturally with the methods that have been employed thus far. I do not need, or want information like this. When I thought that it pacified people, I thought that it might be worth deconstructing it to see if I could make something else out of it. However, knowing that it causes physical harm… in this form, this is useless to me. So, Ryo Marufuji." She raised her head. "A spy who was sent there briefly to figure out what was going on reported back with something interesting. Roget is dead. As such… from what we saw, the only one with access to the schematics was Roget himself. He was so paranoid that he even used robots to construct them, instead of people. So, if his lips are shut, and yours and mine remain shut as well…"

She turned back to the screen.

"This never existed, and you never saw me do anything like this. Do you understand?"

"... I understand," Ryo said, because if he'd known more about it, he'd have done the same.

"Good." Kisara shook his head. "The Doktor's still working on those Parasites of his—he's convinced that he can get them to work properly, after the first prototypes were revealed. We never found out who did that either. Regardless, he's still at the stage where the Parasites break down after a while, and need to be manually implanted through brain surgery. I've been urging the Professor to not allow him to do experimentation, but that will only slow him down so much."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"... we want to fight enemies who fight of their own free will, at the very least," Kisara said. "I will not say that I am kind, because I am not. I want the utopia that we've been promised, no matter what. If we were at the start of the war and struggling, I might be more willing to consider these extreme measures. But taking away the will of others…"

Ryo noticed that she was clenching one of her fists.

"It's against what I believe in," Kisara said simply. "So, why am I telling you this? Isn't it obvious? I want you as an ally, Hell Kaiser Ryo Marufuji. You've proven that you do care about the will and reasoning of the individual, even as you continue to be loyal to your own purpose." She turned her head. "... let's scheme. Those Parasites of the Doktor cannot be allowed to exist. Once they're properly invented once, someone else will be able to do it again—that's how science works. The power to control the minds of others is so overwhelming that no one can be trusted with it."

Ryo folded his arms. "... what's your plan?" He asked.

Traitor, his mind called him.

… do what you think is right, a voice that sounded rather like Shino said, soft and sweet.

He would not turn against Academia, but…

For now, he also wanted to follow his moral compass.

That felt… far more right.

---

Interlude 4

The Ritual Dimension

24th January X778

"... you're telling me that after so long, we still haven't completely eliminated the resistance here?" Fubuki said.

The commander that had been left in charge there shook her head. She was a woman with curly, mid-length brown hair—her eyes were a mix of gold and green, closer to a bright chartreuse. She was wearing a white button-up shirt and a brown cardigan, along with a red skirt. She was wearing two golden bracelets with rose gold and rubies forming roses across the bracelets. Most of the Professors that had originally been in Academia had defected in protest to the Dimensional War, unable to accept the idea of more war. (The general consensus in Academia was that they were cowardly and too weak—unable to commit themselves to a better future.) As such, this woman, Yukari Benibara, was one of the new Professors that had been hired in their place—relatively youthful, compared to the previous Professors.

"It's not for lack of effort," she said. "The leader of their Resistance continues to be very competent—and every time we manage to take out a base, they reveal a new one. There've been so many bases and bunkers at this point that… well, there's no use arguing about that. It is what it is. I'm glad to have you here, Tenjoin-kun. It's good to have more firepower."

"Well, the Professor sent me here to help out!" Fubuki did his best to ignore his current hang-ups, turning to look at the reports. "... huh. Our casualties are pretty high though. Is Ritual really that competent?"

"Most of them aren't," Yukari explained. "But they have a few select members that are stronger than the rest—and those members usually keep us busy, while evacuating the civilians. Furthermore, the number of duelists are increasing."

Right. At the start, when they had invaded the Ritual Dimension under the advice of one of their spies, an estimated ninety percent of the Ritual Dimension were non-duelists.

"How is it possible for them to get access to cards though?"

"... in this world, their main supplier of cards is the CEO of Industrial Illusions, one of the most wealthy corporations here." Yukari sighed. "... as invaders, we cannot afford to commit that many numbers here too. Do you still remember the brief on the geography of this dimension?"

"Uh, yeah. Domino City lies on the central continent, and there are several other settlements in groups of islands across the world, along with a larger continent to the south, right?"

"Correct. It's almost like an inverse of ours. Regardless, most of our forces are centralised here, in their version of Domino City." Yukari turned to him. "They have several bases on every other island—as such, we would spread ourselves too thin to try to attack all of them. I've told the Professor this much—and as such, our focus is simply on holding Domino City, along with ensuring that the Resistance here never grows strong enough to try and launch a counterattack."

"Got it." Fubuki could do that much—it would keep his mind off things. "So, for these strong duelists…"

"... young people these days," Yukari said with a sigh. "Always chasing after battle. Fine. I'll show you a recording or two. Come to think of it, one of the aces of their Resistance might catch your attention." She pulled up a video file. "He uses the same archetype as you, though he does have a few other cards mixed into his deck. I'm honestly surprised that a deck that appears so janky works so well."

Same archetype… so his Red-Eyes monsters existed in this world too?

The video clip clearly came from a camera in the street—they must have retrieved the footage right after. Standing there was a man with messy blond hair and dark brown eyes, wearing a dark blue jacket that had several cuts and tears in it.

"He looks like a gangster," Fubuki commented amusedly.

"Not everyone cares as much about appearances as you."

The duel started, and Fubuki paid attention. It seemed that the man was facing off against a trio of Obelisk Force members.

A thought occurred to him. "What's his name, by the way?"

"Katsuya Jounouchi."

"As in… is he related to Chiaki Katsuya?" The girl who had caused Asuka to have so many doubts and eventually defect from Academia?

"Correct. He's the older brother of that priority target. Twenty-six years of age, a pro duelist and a rather popular one too—relatively speaking, since dueling wasn't that popular yet here, prior to our invasion." Yukari shook her head. "He's one of the strongest duelists there—along with the CEO of Industrial Illusions himself, and his wife."

Huh. A CEO who knew how to duel? Cool. But anyway, he was still watching the duel.

He was a little curious about this other person who used Red-Eyes too.

[INTRUSION PENALTY: 2000LP]

Katsuya Jounouchi: 4000 - 2000 = 2000LP

Obelisk Force Red: 4000LP

Obelisk Force Green: 4000LP

Obelisk Force Yellow: 4000LP

[Turn 4: Jounouchi] [H:5]

The three Obelisk Force members already had a Triple Bite Hound Dog on each of their fields. However, Jounouchi looked completely unfazed.

"Spell Card, Instant Fusion!" He declared. "I'll pay 1000 life points to Special Summon a Fusion Monster from my deck—uh, Extra Deck! And that monster is treated as having been Fusion Summoned!"

Right, the Ritual Dimension had Fusion Monsters for some reason…

Jounouchi: 2000 - 1000 = 1000LP

"So let's get going, pal!" He grabbed a card from his Extra Deck. "Come—Time Wizard of Tomorrow!" A large red clock appeared on his field, blue and purple light swirling within its face. A purple cloak was behind it. Golden gears acted like frills around the top of its head and its limbs. It was wearing white gloves, and in its left hand was a green staff.

[Time Wizard of Tomorrow (5*/2000/1900/LIGHT/Spellcaster/Fusion/Effect)]

"I didn't expect them to still be willing to use Fusion Monsters," Fubuki said thoughtfully. "Not a Red-Eyes monster though."

"Just watch," Yukari said. She looked amused—was there something particularly funny about this monster?

"Once per turn, while I control Time Wizard of Tomorrow and it was Fusion Summoned this turn, I can toss a coin and destroy as many monsters on the field as possible! I'll call heads!" The hologram of a coin shot up through the air, landing. "And I called it right!" All of the monsters on the field, including Time Wizard itself, were destroyed, even as the three students reacted with shock. "And since I called it right, guess what? There's some damage going your way! My opponent takes damage equal to the total original attack points of each of the monsters destroyed by this effect! I'll choose you!" He gestured to the first member of the Obelisk Force. "Time Magic Blast!"

A large, swirling blast of blue and purple shot forth, knocking the first student back.

Obelisk Force Red: 4000 - 2000 - 1800 x 3 = 0LP

"Then, I'll activate the Ritual Spell, Advanced Ritual Art! By sending Normal Monsters from my deck to the graveyard, I can Ritual Summon a Ritual Monster from my hand! I'll send the Level 7 Red-Eyes Black Dragon—"

There it was.

"—and the Level 1 Mokey Mokey from my deck to the graveyard to Ritual Summon! Let's go! Warrior cloaked in the shell of the black dragon, crush our opponents with fire and lightning! Ritual Summon! Level 8! Lord of the Red!" A tall man dressed up completely in dark armour appeared—the armour resembled the wings and scales of Red-Eyes. He let out a loud shout, lightning striking around him.

[Lord of the Red (8*/2400/2100/FIRE/Dragon/Ritual/Effect)]

"I'll then activate the Spell Card, Preparation of Rites! I will add Paladin of Dark Dragon from my deck to my hand, along with Advanced Ritual Art from my graveyard to my hand! I'll also activate the Spell Card, Graceful Charity! I'll draw three cards and discard two!"

On the screen, Jounouchi swiftly refreshed his hand.

"I'll activate the Ritual Spell, Advanced Ritual Art! I'll send more Normal Monsters from my deck to the graveyard to Ritual Summon! I'll send the Level 5 Flame Champion from my deck to the graveyard to Ritual Summon again! Spin the gears of time and come back to the field! Ritual Summon! Level 5! Red-Eyes Time Wizard!" The same clock-like spellcaster from earlier appeared, except it now had a long black cloak with red trim, along with two dark wings behind it—devil-like. Its goofy-looking eyes were now red as well.

[Red-Eyes Time Wizard (5*/2000/1900/FIRE/Spellcaster/Ritual/Effect)]

"When Red-Eyes Time Wizard is Ritual Summoned, I can send a Normal Monster from my deck to the graveyard to add a "Red-Eyes" monster from my deck to my hand!" Jounouchi grinned as he picked up the card—he seemed remarkably optimistic, for all that he was currently stuck in a war. "I will Normal Summon Gearfried the Red-Eyes Iron Knight!" Another knight in dark armour appeared on the field, surrounded by bright flames.

[Gearfried the Red-Eyes Iron Knight (4*/1800/1600/DARK/Warrior/Effect)]

"I'll equip Gearfried with the Equip Spell, Black Pendant! And then, by sending a card that is equipped to Gearfried to the graveyard, I can Special Summon a Level 7 or lower "Red-Eyes" monster from my graveyard! Return! Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"

The familiar black dragon appeared in front of Jounouchi. Fubuki whistled.

So it was true. This person used the same dragon as him… though perhaps not in the same way.

[Red-Eyes Black Dragon (7*/2400/2000/DARK/Dragon)]

"When Black Pendant is sent to the graveyard, I can inflict 500 damage to you!" A black streak shot out at his second opponent.

Obelisk Force Green: 4000 - 500 = 3500LP

"And it's time to finish all of y'all off! Lord of the Red and Gearfried the Red-Eyes Iron Knight attack you directly, and Red-Eyes Time Wizard and Red-Eyes Black Dragon will attack you!" He gestured to both opponents, and all four of his monsters moved forward, summoning forth flame or striking with blades—cutting down both other opponents and creating an explosion of smoke.

Obelisk Force Green: 3500 - 2400 - 1800 = 0LP

Obelisk Force Yellow: 4000 - 2000 - 2400 = 0LP

Winner: Katsuya Jounouchi!

When the smoke was gone, the blond man had disappeared.

"So that's one of the main problems, huh?" Fubuki stared at the screen for a while longer, before Yukari closed the video.

This man, Katsuya Jounouchi. It was likely that to this day, he still had no clue what had happened to his sister. He might even think that she had been carded.

… Fubuki didn't want to feel compassion for a likely enemy, but he'd always had a weakness for other older siblings.

"I'll go out and walk for a bit," Fubuki said. "Just to familiarise myself with the environment."

Yukari shot him a look. "Take care then," she said neutrally. "Report back to me or the Vice-Commander when you get back—you're an important asset to Academia, after all. We'll get in trouble if you're out for too long."

"Got it, got, it, Benibara-sensei. Have you ever known me to get into trouble?"

---

Fubuki didn't end up walking for long when he spotted something interesting.

Standing in the street, between piles of rubble, was a woman with long blonde hair, wearing a blue dress. She looked like she might be in her late thirties. She was holding onto a suitcase—clearly, she had been picking something up from the destroyed buildings. However, she had been interrupted by a trio of Obelisk Force grunts.

Fubuki considered stepping in, but…

Was this woman actually strong and able to duel? Was she one of the people that had been mentioned earlier by Yukari?

In that case, he might prefer observing. Clearly, the members of the resistance here did not have access to carding technology yet.

He was curious.

The Ritual Dimension had been implied to be rather weak by their spies. So in that case, who were the ones who were genuinely strong enough to hold Academia back?

[DUEL!]

?: 4000LP

Obelisk Force Red: 4000LP

Obelisk Force Green: 4000LP

Obelisk Force Yellow: 4000LP

[Turn 1: ?] [H:5]

"I'll start," the woman said calmly. "I'll activate the Continuous Spells, Ascending Soul and Ritual Cage." On her field, the two Spells appeared. "I will activate a third Spell Card—my Focused Aquamirror. I can add a "Gishki" monster from my deck to my hand."

She gracefully and confidently picked up a card from her deck.

"Another Spell Card, Graceful Charity. I will draw three cards and discard two. I'll then Normal Summon my Gishki Grimness." A dark humanoid fish appeared, its 'nose' thin and pointed, holding onto a dark trident with golden tips and a blue orb in the middle of it.

[Gishki Grimness (2*/600/700/WATER/Fish/Effect)]

"When Gishki Grimness is Normal or Special Summoned, I can Special Summon a "Gishki" monster from the deck," the woman continued. "But I can't declare attacks this turn, except with Ritual Monsters."

Not that it really mattered, Fubuki thought. She couldn't attack on the first turn.

"Come—Gishki Abyss." A warrior with a head of a blue, shark-like monster appeared, sharp white teeth exposed. Chains hung around it. Red veins and lines could be seen twisted around the fish's body.

[Gishki Abyss (2*/800/500/WATER/Fish/Effect)]

"When Gishki Abyss is summoned, I can add a "Gishki" monster with 1000 or less defense points from my deck to my hand." The woman picked up yet another card. "I will then discard Gishki Shadow from my hand to add a "Gishki" Ritual Spell from my deck to my hand."

Cycling, huh? But a Ritual Spell… judging from all of her comboing, she was likely pretty good.

"But you only have two Level 2 monsters on the field! Unless you have a monster to tribute in your hand as well, you can't summon a powerful monster!"

"You're wrong," the woman said—just as composed as before. "I only need one. Ritual Spell, Gishki Aquamirror. I can Ritual Summon a "Gishki" Ritual Monster from my deck using materials from my hand and field. I will tribute Gishki Grimness—and with my Gishki Grimness's effect, it'll serve as the full tribute."

Huh? The full tribute… so she didn't even need to match the exact Level of the monster that she was summoning?

"My husband's expecting me home soon, so I can't afford to give you too much leeway," she said. "Evil mind that lies within the heart of the sea. Emerge now, in your violent form, and shake the earth with the power of your overwhelming waves! Peer through the mirror of lunacy and be lost in the seafoam! Ritual Summon! Level 10! Evigishki Neremanas!"

In front of her, an enormous monster appeared—around the height of a single storey, if judging it in comparison to the nearby buildings. An enormous dark blue fish that was wearing gold and black-themed armour appeared. Lighter patches, round in shape, could be seen around its body—the same colour as its lighter underbelly. Purple gems, attached to its armour, could be seen on both sides of its head. Its fins were translucent, going from sky blue near the body to the darkness of space in the middle—and then, warm red at the ends. Golden spokes ran through its fins, segmenting them. They floated like ribbons in the air. Bubbles danced around it. Its gold teeth and the silver horn on the top of its head glinted—appearing rather deadly. Sitting on top of it, a pretty mage dressed in dark blue robes appeared, long light blue hair drifting down to her hips. She held up a bright staff, a frozen mirror on the top of it, reflecting light—splitting it through the crystals.

[Evigishki Neremanas (10*/3000/1800/WATER/Spellcaster/Ritual/Effect)]

"When Evigishki Neremanas is Ritual Summoned, I can Special Summon a WATER monster from my graveyard," the woman said. "I'll Special Summon Gishki Shadow from the graveyard." A short, blue and scaly creature appeared on the field, hunched over. It was wearing dark robes with golden frills at the neck and wrists. It held up a golden staff in its hands, a white crystal shining from within it.

[Gishki Shadow (4*/1200/1000/WATER/Sea Serpent/Effect)]

"I'll also activate the effect of Ascending Soul," the woman said. "When a Ritual Monster is Ritual Summoned, once per turn, I can target a monster in my graveyard that was tributed for that Ritual Summon and add it to my hand. I will add Gishki Grimness back to my hand, naturally." She picked up her monster again. "I will then activate the Spell Card, Preparation of Rites. I will add a Level 7 or lower Ritual Monster from my deck to my hand, and add a Ritual Spell from my graveyard to my hand." She picked up both cards. "Ritual Spell, Gishki Aquamirror. I will tribute Gishki Shadow—and with Gishki Shadow's effect, it also serves as the full tribute."

"A second Ritual Summon?" One of the Obelisk Force members gasped.

"Hey, Gishki…" Another one blinked. "Is she… one of the two leaders of the Resistance here? That person?"

"Water and mirrors are simply illusions, and illusions are the tricks and trade of myself and my husband," the blonde woman said. "Surely the fact that I was alone should have clued you in quickly to the fact that I should not be trifled with—we are not so merciless as to make those that cannot defend themselves go out alone."

"You're Cyndia Crawford," the third one said, looking horrified—and that much was telling. Fubuki hadn't seen someone looking at an enemy like that since he'd heard about Kaito Tenjo and Tsubaki Nagare.

Cyndia smiled, and she gestured forward. Gishki Shadow dissolved into water and shadows that swirled around in front of her, dissolving into a mirror. "Ghost kraken that dwells in the depths of the ocean's trenches. Soulless body possessed by malice, lead the spirits of the sea to battle! Peer through the mirror of lunacy and be lost in the seafoam! Ritual Summon! Level 6! Evigishki Gustkraken!"

A large, dark kraken wearing golden armour over its slippery black flesh appeared. The underside of its body and tentacles was bright red. Two long tendrils floated next to it, ending in sharp spear-like points. Sitting on top of it was a red-haired woman with a cold, malicious smile. She was wearing black and gold armour, along with a dark headdress on the top of her head.

[Evigishki Gustkraken (6*/2400/1000/WATER/Aqua/Ritual/Effect)]

"When Evigishki Gustkraken is Ritual Summoned, I can check two cards in your hand and shuffle one into the deck." She gestured to the first member of the Obelisk Force. Two of the cards in his hand were projected above his head. "Return your Antique Gear Fusion to the deck."

The card shuffled into her opponent's deck.

"I'll end my turn. With the effect of Focused Aquamirror in my graveyard, since I control a WATER Ritual Monster, I will banish it from the graveyard and set an "Aquamirror" Spell or Trap from my deck or graveyard to my field. I'll set a card from my deck." A single set card appeared on her field.

[Turn 2: Obelisk Force Red] [H:4]

To be honest, even Fubuki was tired of seeing the usual Obelisk Force combo. Essentially, the first member of the Obelisk Force brought out Hound Dog, but…

"I will activate the effect of Antique Gear Hound Dog! I will inflict 600 damage to you! Hound Flare!"

"I will activate the effect of Evigishki Nereimanas," Cyndia said. "I will return Evigishki Gustkraken to my hand to negate the activation of that effect and shuffle that card into the deck." Her second Ritual Monster left the field, returning to her hand. The mechanical dog vanished from the field.

The student paled.

"I assume that means that you've used up your Normal Summon and any ability you have to Fusion Summon," Cyndia said calmly. "So?"

[Turn 3: Obelisk Force Green] [H:5]

"D-draw!"

The second member of the Obelisk Force ended up doing slightly better, managing to bring out Triple Bite Hound Dog in a series of Fusion Summons, along with initially dealing 600 damage to Cyndia with Hound Dog's effect.

[Antique Gear Triple Bite Hound Dog (7*/1800/1000/EARTH/Machine/Fusion/Effect)]

Cyndia: 4000 - 600 = 3400LP

"I'll activate the Quickplay Spell, Limiter Removal! I'll double the attack points of all Machine monsters I control, but they are destroyed during the End Phase."

[Antique Gear Triple Bite Hound Dog: 1800 x 2 = 3600ATK]

Cyndia flipped over her set card in response. "I will activate the Trap Card, Aquamirror Cycle. I'll target a WATER monster I control, return it to the deck, and add two WATER monsters from my graveyard to my hand. I'll add Gishki Vision and Gishki Shadow from my graveyard to my hand."

One of those wasn't a monster that had shown up yet—she must have just discarded it for Graceful Charity. So she must have been prepared to do this from the start…

"Triple Bite Hound Dog attacks your Nereimanas!"

"Evigishki Nereimanas cannot be destroyed by battle with a monster Special Summoned from the Extra Deck," Cyndia said.

"What?"

"And my Ritual Cage protects me from any battle damage, as long as the battle involves a Ritual Monster I control," Cyndia said. "So you won't defeat me through battle."

The attack passed, completely harmless to her.

Antique Gear Triple Bite Hound Dog could attack three times, but what was the point if it would deal no damage, and it wouldn't destroy the monster that it was attacking?

The three-headed dog exploded immediately afterwards, due to Limiter Removal's effect.

[Turn 4: Obelisk Force Yellow] [H:5]

The final member of the Obelisk Force actually managed to bring out Antique Gear Ultimate Hound Dog—inflicting 600 damage with Hound Dog initially, and then halving Cyndia's life points with Ultimate Hound Dog's effect.

[Antique Gear Ultimate Hound Dog (9*/2800/2000/EARTH/Machine/Fusion/Effect)]

Cyndia: 3400 - 600 = 2800LP

Cyndia: 2800 / 2 = 1400LP

Still, they apparently hadn't drawn any Spell or Trap removal, because Cyndia's two effects continued to keep them at bay.

"I'll end my turn!"

"... then it's my turn," Cyndia said.

[Turn 5: Cyndia] [H:5]

"Draw," Cyndia said. "I'll Normal Summon Gishki Grimness again." The monster from before reappeared. "With its effect, I will Special Summon Gishki Marker from my deck." A tall, masculine warrior with a red octopus for its head appeared next to Grimness.

[Gishki Marker (4*/1600/1200/WATER/Aqua/Effect)]

"Gishki Marker's effect. I can add a Ritual Monster or Ritual Spell from my graveyard to my hand." She retrieved her Gishki Aquamirror again—the only applicable target she had, as far as Fubuki remembered. "Ritual Spell, Gishki Aquamirror. I will tribute Gishki Grimness as the full tribute. Come back to the field—my Evigishki Gustkraken." The Ritual Monster from earlier reappeared on the field. "With Ascending Soul's effect, I will add Grimness back to my hand. With Gustkraken's effect, I will remove another card from your hand." She gestured to the second player, who was the only one left with a card in his hand.

The card dissolved in a cloud of seafoam.

"I will activate the Spell Card, Moray of Greed," Cyndia continued. "I'll shuffle two other WATER monsters from my hand into the deck to draw three cards." She looked at the new cards. "I will activate the effect of Gishki Vision. I will send it from my hand to the graveyard to add a "Gishki" Ritual Monster from my deck to my hand. And now, I will activate another copy of Gishki Aquamirror. I will tribute Gishki Shadow in my hand to perform another Ritual Summon."

She placed down another card from her hand.

"Four armed deity of destruction that comes back from the edge between life and death. Wrongness imbues your very bones. Now, with your body invaded by the violence of the ocean waves, thrash and regress! Peer through the mirror of lunacy and be lost in the seafoam! Ritual Summon! Level 10! Evigishki Zielgigas!"

An enormous, dark deity-like monster appeared—he had four large, muscular arms, with a crab's orange pincers and legs floating behind them. He was wearing gold and silver armour that seemed to have rusted slightly from the ocean tide. A dead god, returning to the surface of the ocean. A mirror could be seen, embedded in the middle of its chestplate.

[Evigishki Zielgigas (10*/3200/0/WATER/Aqua/Ritual/Effect)]

"Zielgigas's effect," Cyndia said. "Once per turn, I can pay 1000 life points to draw a card." She swiftly picked up the top card of her deck as her life points fell to a critical level.

Cyndia: 1400 - 1000 = 400LP

"Since it was a "Gishki" monster, I can shuffle a card on the field into the deck. I'll shuffle your Antique Gear Ultimate Hound Dog into the deck." The strongest monster vanished from the field. "Evigishki Nereimanas and Gishki Marker will attack you directly."

Water swarmed over her first opponent.

Obelisk Force Red: 4000 - 3000 - 1600 = 0LP

"Zielgigas will attack you directly," she continued, gesturing to…

The yellow-themed Obelisk Force member?

Obelisk Force Yellow: 4000 - 3200 = 800LP

"You're not attacking me first?" The green-themed member said incredulously.

"I was going to, but I saw someone approaching." Cyndia turned her head. "Hello, dear."

"I'm here, honey!" A voice announced rather dramatically. Fubuki turned his head. Standing there was a tall man with long, light purple hair and amber eyes. He was wearing a bright red suit, which seemed rather garish and clashing. However, the look that the two of them shared was openly affectionate.

"You're…"

"Pegasus J. Crawford, at your service!" The man took a bow with a flourish.

"You… you're the leader of the Resistance here! The one arming everyone with their cards!"

"Indeed I am! Though do give my lovely wife some credit—it's a joint effort." Pegasus raised his duel disk. "I was thinking that dear Cyndia was out for too long, and that she might have been held up by something! And while she surely could have managed you all by herself… I'd much prefer to get home earlier with her. So, shall we introduce some more fun to this?"

[INTRUSION PENALTY: 2000LP]

Pegasus Crawford: 4000 - 2000 = 2000LP

[Turn 6: Pegasus] [H:5]

"I shall activate the Spell Card, Toon Bookmark!" Pegasus revealed the card with a flourish. "With its effect, I can add my lovely Toon World, or a card that mentions it, from my deck to my hand! I will add and activate the Field Spell, Toon Kingdom!" He grinned as around them, strange distortions formed in the air. "When this card is activated—alas! I must banish three cards from the top of my deck facedown! Whatever shall I do?" He flicked all three cards into the slot for banished cards. "But you see, my Toon Kingdom is always treated as Toon World while it is in the Field Zone—which opens up new opportunities!"

"Every day is an opportunity for more fun, after all," Cyndia said indulgently.

"Indeed! You always know me best, my dear." Pegasus winked at her. "I'll activate the Equip Spell, Comic Hand! I can take control of an opponent's monster, and it is treated as a Toon monster! May I, darling?"

"Of course." Cyndia gestured forward. Her Zielgigas floated over to Pegasus's field, and suddenly, its appearance became far more comical—much of the detail vanished, replaced with large, bubbly eyes. It held up its four arms, still ready for battle.

"And now that I control Toon World and a Toon monster, I can activate the Spell Card, Mimicat! I can target a card in my opponent's graveyard, and depending on whether it is a monster, a Spell or a Trap, I can either Special Summon it or set it to my field. I will take your Antique Gear Ultimate Hound Dog, of course!"

"You—"

"After all, we know all your moves at this point!" Pegasus winked again—if this was a television show, a star might have flown from his eyes. "How predictable—I've seen right through you. Ultimate Hound Dog can declare three attacks per turn. Of course, I could have just brought out one of my lovely Toons and used Mimicat immediately, but your dogs…" He shook his head as Ultimate Hound Dog appeared on his field. "So industrial and boring! I needed to counteract it with something more pleasing to the eye—and my dear wife's monsters, as an extension of her, are far more lovely than yours."

He gestured forward.

"Evigishki Zielgigas will attack you directly, the one with the yellow gem! Really, masks are so out of fashion. And your dog will finish off the one with the green gem too."

Both monsters pounced forward—Ultimate Hound Dog attacked twice.

Obelisk Force Yellow: 800 - 3200 = 0LP

Obelisk Force Green: 4000 - 2800 - 2800 = 0LP

Winner: Cyndia Crawford and Pegasus Crawford!

Defeating them with nothing but Spells, not even summoning a monster of his own…

Pegasus didn't pay any attention to the teleporting students. Instead, he opened up a parasol, holding it out towards Cyndia with another wink. "Shall I escort you back, darling?"

"I was hardly frightened, but I appreciate your gallantry, dear." Cyndia turned over—

Looking directly at Fubuki.

"But there's been someone watching the whole time." She walked over—Pegasus followed behind her. "From that uniform, you're one of them too, aren't you? I'm surprised that you didn't dramatically intrude on the duel at the last minute."

Fubuki cleared his throat.

"Still, I didn't notice you there!" Pegasus said dramatically. "You have some skills in stealth, but of course, my dear Cyndia notices everything. What's your name?"

… what was this surreal conversation that he was having right now?

Still…

He'd learned their names. Fair was fair.

"Fubuki Tenjoin," he said.

He didn't expect the couple to exchange a look. "... Tenjoin, you said?" Pegasus finally said. "Interesting, interesting…"

"I suppose that explains it," Cyndia agreed. "They must have been the first spies sent to our city then."

… they'd gotten that just from his last name?

"Well, Fubuki Tenjoin," Pegasus said, turning back to him—

And holding up finger guns?

"You're always welcome to defect, you know."

What?

He would never—not like Asuka—

"Children can play at war all that they like," Pegasus continued, and all of a sudden, despite his smile and his cheerful tone, he seemed sinister. When had that darker edge come to his words? "But when you become an adult, you should know better, don't you think?" He held the parasol over Cyndia's head. "Come, dear. We mustn't aggravate Fubuki-boy here, after all."

There was something mocking to the statement—but right now, when Fubuki still hadn't seen Pegasus's full skills, he wasn't foolish enough to take them on when there were two of them there. So he watched them go—

Fists clenched.

Who was that man to mock him?

He'd—

… he needed to cool his head.

He'd head back first and see what the plans were, before he did anything rash.

---

Interlude 5

The Fusion Dimension

23rd January X778

"Why don't you make friends with Dennis?"

"Mackfield?" Yuri said. "I don't know him that well. Is there a point?"

"There's always a point," Shino said enigmatically. She shot him a smile. "Dennis Mackfield is very important for my future plans. It'd be nice to have an 'in' with him, but I'm in a position where I can't befriend him. So, how about you do it for me?"

Really, the things that he did for Shino. Ridiculous. Yuri leaned on the cane as he walked forward, aware of all the glances from people around him. He'd been told to use the cane to avoid permanent leg damage, but if this kept going on, someone else was going to get permanent head damage instead. He had no clue how Shino handled this on a daily basis, but at this point, if he ever saw someone else get stared at for physical disability again, he would—

Do something very violent. Probably. It would be the one good deed he would do in his life, attacking ableist assholes.

"Mackfield," Yuri called out with a false grin. The redhead turned to look at him, immediately seeming on edge—he'd been moping the entire time, since he'd gotten back from the Synchro Dimension. "Trying out some new toys in my dueling. Tell me about them."

"New toys?" Dennis tensed up.

Yuri held up his three Pendulum Monsters—the best idea that he'd had about how to approach Dennis had been this, after all. "Got Pendulums," he said, with no explanation on how it'd actually happened. (Fuck if he knew it himself, anyway.) "I used them once or twice, but I figured I'd get a quick rundown on them before I decide whether to keep them in the deck or not.)

He was… probably going to keep them no matter what. He wasn't sure why.

"Well," Dennis said, still seeming wary, "I can help you with that, sure…"

"Want to give me pointers?" Yuri suggested. "In a duel, obviously."

"... is this a trick to get me carded or something?"

"Nah. As funny as it would be…" Getting someone to basically sign up for carding themselves would be hilarious.

"You're smiling very maniacally right now," Dennis said. "If you're trying to convince me that you're telling the truth, uh…"

"Fine, fine. I promise that we can just talk." Why Dennis of all people? This guy was just so weird all the time. Paranoid too, though maybe that just came with being a spy. Yuri far preferred fighting head-on. "Tell me about Pendulums then."

Dennis rattled off all the mechanics of Pendulum Monsters, even as Yuri listened boredly.

Really? If they were fused from the hand, they went to the graveyard? Weird.

"So what was it like messing around with the Lancers?" Yuri said. "Had fun with all those goody two-shoes?"

Dennis looked annoyed. Uh oh. That wasn't a good sign. Yuri kind of wanted to push more, but…

"Dennis Mackfield is very important for my future plans."

"Do you…" Ugh. He wasn't used to saying this kind of stuff. "Want to talk about it? I mean, I'm not going to report you or anything, if you say something about why you're upset."

"... you're acting weird," Dennis said with a nervous laugh.

"I'm just curious." Yuri searched for another excuse. "Fujita's not around now, so I need someone else to annoy. Consider yourself lucky or unlucky or whatever… but you're not gonna be able to shake me off anyway." He plastered an angelic smile on his face. "And I mean, I don't break my toys until I'm done with them. So, just keep entertaining me and we don't have a problem!"

Dennis looked at him. He seemed to be wrestling with a decision, and then he sighed. "You know what?" He said. "That works for me. Can't be worse than anything else so far. So, what entertains you?"

… no way. That had actually worked?

"If you don't want to duel, the least you can do is show me how you entertain people," Yuri said, his grin rather shark-like. "Or are you too scared to show it off here, in the heart of Academia?"

"We can do that," Dennis said. He almost seemed… relieved? "Let's go find somewhere less crowded though?"

"That works for me!" Yuri grinned—and it was almost sincere this time. Great! He hadn't fucked up the literal first mission given to him.

---

… wow.

"What, did you not enjoy it?" Trapeze Magician was fading away as Dennis landed on the ground next to Yuri again. Yuri had a completely perplexed look on his face.

"I did," Yuri said, "but I don't understand it. That's Entertainment Dueling?"

"Yeah. Dueling to make people happy."

Like that guy's dueling then. Yuya Sakaki.

"Are you…" Dennis looked like he was putting together a really complicated puzzle. "Interested in Entertainment Dueling or something? Interested in learning?"

Ah. There it was—a good excuse.

"Yes," Yuri said with a grin. "Care to give me some tips?"

(If a part of him was also agreeing because of Yuya Sakaki, then that was his business alone and no one else's.)

… he really had to stop thinking about those boys with the same face as him.

But that was it, really. He was operating on blind faith right now—

Hopefully, it'd work out.

And hopefully, Shino and Ryo weren't getting in a fight again. He really didn't know what was going on there.

---

Interlude 6

The…?

Fate writes in poetry, annals that lie in volumes in your archives. Your books are past and present and future at once, so much information that your eyes can't read them all.

You've lost much of your vision. You've lost much of anything.

But the books are what you've always known.

You think of the past constantly. It's like swimming through a marsh. You're being dragged down again.

You are stuck between heaven and hell. You do not belong in any world. You once thought that you could, but that hope has died with your own destruction.

You fish the lost soul out of the void and gently guide it to where it needs to go, for its final rest.

The little fox asks. You find it hard to deny her, after what she has done for you.

Though it tires you, you pull out one of the books to look at it. This book has glowed once or twice—the signs of fate shifting and changing.

You open it.

That man's fate was to fail in destruction, to destroy himself with his hubris, to drag others down with him. Instead, he is the only one that has fallen into the stars.

… so fate changes in small ways. But the inevitable never changes.

You have lost all hope for that.

All you can hope for is to protect, for as long as possible.

Sometimes, you dream of them. That person who sang songs for you, who showed you that there could be more. They are long gone, and there is barely a remnant of them left in the world.

Most times now, you sleep.

(You are afraid. There are those that search for you. The desperate one who now knows, and the coldness that you fear.)

(Do not be found.)

---

Interlude 7

The Fusion Dimension

22nd January X778

Everything was blurry. She could barely even move her head—but she could see it right in front of her, the roaring dragon, shadows all around it. She could see the glow of the violet flash in the distance, something unrecognisable.

'He tried to kill me,' she thought shakily—though she wasn't sure if it was from blood loss or from fear. She wasn't used to feeling afraid like this. That strike had been aimed directly for her head—she had barely managed to dodge it, and she hadn't escaped unscathed.

Still, the door was closed. His eyes were still glowing. She needed to get help—she needed to get—

In the middle of the night, Shino woke up, her breath slightly heavy. Her body felt so heavy that she couldn't move for a full two minutes—lying there, her mind awake, but her body caught in that familiar paralysis. The world had the familiar not-quite-real feeling to it—she saw shadows moving, the wind blowing through the room sounded like taunting words. When she could finally move, she rolled over in bed, pressing a hand against her chest, bracing herself against an invisible force. The hallucinations had mostly faded. Something strange—something like adrenaline was running through her right now. The urge to run.

There was nothing there. She knew that. That had happened more than a year ago.

There was nothing to be afraid of.

If only her heart could believe it, and stop beating so hard.

… maybe dueling Yuri again had brought the memories back.

She held out a hand under the moonlight, though that was the only part of her that was illuminated. She still hid away in the shadows in the corner by the window, the head of the bed. She saw her fingers jolting and shivering, not quite in her control yet. The winter chill was making things worse—making it harder for her to truly feel 'awake'.

She hadn't even remembered falling asleep. The tablet on the ground could attest to that. She must have passed out while trying to read the information that they'd gotten from the invasion, and it'd slipped from her hands.

… she really hoped that it hadn't broken. At least she hadn't fallen from the bed this time—it had been hell to get back up last time, considering everything, and she had spent twenty minutes just getting the top half of her body back on the bed. In a duel, at least, her monsters could help her.

Here, in the middle of the night, she was the most vulnerable. She was also the most alone.

… that was not a good thought to have.

She needed to clear her head.

She kept a flask of water by the bed precisely for this purpose—she kept a lot of things by the bed. One learned to properly prepare and stash stuff around when they had mobility issues like this. She poured herself a cup of water—spilling a little, with her shaky hands. She drank from the cup, before putting it back down.

… scratch the water. She needed some clear air.

---

"It's three in the morning. Surely you should be asleep by now—you are still a teenager, after all."

"The ocean is calming," Shino said. She was slightly more tense now that she had noticed the approaching figure, but she was still smiling. "I don't get to choose when I sleep, unfortunately."

Kisara Tsutsuji raised an eyebrow. "Oh? I'd heard that your medication was enough to keep you alert on missions."

"It's better, but it's not perfect." Shino turned to look at the white-haired woman. "You're out late too, Tsutsuji-sensei."

"I was working on an idea that I'd had." Kisara turned to look at her. "Let me be honest with you, Shino Gitsune. The fact that you have not reported Yuri's possession of Ridicule World is perplexing to me."

Shino deflected the responsibility with ease. "I've been asleep for half the day. What a shame."

"Is it a shame?" Kisara said. "Or are you his co-conspirator?"

"… you can believe what you believe, Tsutsuji-sensei. I can't stop you." Shino turned back to the ocean, breathing in slowly—still smiling. "But there is no conspiracy against Academia between me and him."

"… you truly are a mystifying person." Kisara shook her head—she carried that same unflappable calmness, cool as a lake. "I did not expect to tell you this now, but I suppose I may as well. I will be telling Ryo Marufuji about this, and about the fact that you did not expose it or seem surprised by it."

Ryo, huh? Now that was a whole can of worms.

"You don't seem worried about that."

"I'm confident that I can talk him down from that," Shino said. "If you want a better success rate of getting me in trouble, you should do it yourself."

"Ryo Marufuji is a lot of things, but he holds his honour above most of those things. Do you really think that you can convince him to put trust in you over Academia? That he'll believe in your good intentions?"

"And if I do?"

"Then that's foolish." Kisara's response was colder than before. "Painfully so. How can you scheme so much, plan in such detail, and then allow the last part of the plan to lie on the trust you hold in a man?"

"... but I didn't," Shino said. "Ridicule World was never a part of my plan. Nor was it my plan that you would be there to see it. If anything, the last part of my plan right now rests on your shoulders, Tsutsuji-sensei. You're the one that holds that power over me—not Ryo. Don't act like that responsibility belongs to him."

"Even so, such blind faith will likely only drag you down. Whether it's in him, or in others." Kisara raised her head. "... I will still tell him, but the price for my personal silence to anyone else is as follows. Tell me why you believe so strongly in others—why you allow the plans that you craft so meticulously to be influenced by a single whim, a single illogical emotion from someone else."

… well, that was an easy price to pay. The difficult part was being genuine about it.

Shino closed her arms, and she thought back to that dream for a brief moment—to every dream that she had experienced. When she spoke, she kept her voice light, despite everything.

"Tsutsuji-sensei, what value does a life governed only by logic and law have?" She said. "If a person can only exist within the narrow lines that define 'the best course of action', they lie in margins so shrouded that it is impossible for them to be considered an existence in the first place." She leaned back, glancing at the moon. "I am by nature someone who makes plans which involve the people around me—but the one thing that I should never do is make decisions on their behalf." She smiled fondly, after a moment. "No matter how much I've seen, the most beautiful thing continues to be human agency. A person burns the brightest when they choose to take fate into their own hands… don't you agree?"

"... consider me intrigued enough. I suppose that was your intention—to interest me enough that I wouldn't turn you in?"

"And what if I'm just naturally interesting?" Shino said, hiding a laugh.

"Then all the more better to keep you around." Kisara shook her head. "That's enough."

"I'm glad about that," Shino said, still amused.

"... do you actually love that person?"

Shino purposely misunderstood the question. "Well, there's a lot of people that I love in this world! Sora, for example, and—"

"Never mind," Kisara said, rolling her eyes. "You're not committed enough." She disappeared back in the shadows of Academia's buildings. Shino watched her go, before turning back to the ocean.

… she hadn't spoken a single lie then. She was getting better at this.

The night wind was unforgiving. Perhaps she should have worn a jacket when she'd come out.

"What is knowledge if it's only understood by the self, when there's no one to recognise it?" She mused, thinking of one of those old poems that her father had shown her back then. "Let us be down to earth and live for simple pleasures. When I can return, I'll live a life with nothing important to do—music, wine and water is enough for a fulfilling life."

There were far too many things that she held close to her chest.

She looked around, making sure that there was no one else around—and then, she spoke up.

"Did it change? Now that I have no more influence over the outcome, you're allowed to tell me, right?"

No. He still dies in the end. The voice was quiet and wispy in her head—like an echo through the mountains, displaced slightly.

"... I thought so." Shino shook her head. "... no one can say that I didn't give it a try." She hadn't known for certain that he was fated to die, but she had tried to save him in the only way that might work—threatening him to stay put rather than running off. By mirroring what he was so afraid of, he might have saved himself…

That was her thought.

… are you alright, little fox? The term would sound condescending from anyone else, but with them, it was just how things were. He's still one of your only remaining family in this world.

"What can I do now? I know there's limits to what you can do. I don't want to make things hard for you too." Shino shook her head. "... it's been years. Yes, it aches… no matter how terrible of a man he's become, he was still my uncle, with an inferiority complex larger than the sun. But I think that if I needed to change things… it's already far too late."

The voice did not answer—it was gone, like a breeze passing by.

---

The next day, she met up with Yuri in the garden. His legs had gotten a proper check from the orthopedic surgeon that they'd called in from the mainland—according to them, some of the muscles in Yuri's legs had torn. As such, Yuri was currently using a cane to walk around. It could be worse though—as long as he didn't run or exert himself unnecessarily, there shouldn't be permanent damage.

"You said that you'd tell me what you needed from me today," Yuri said. That was fair—Shino had told him to sleep and leave everything to her the previous day, and he'd trusted her enough to do so. He clipped one of the flowers. "So. What is it?"

"I'll be honest, you torpedoed all my initial arrangements by staying," Shino said. Yuri smirked.

"I did think so. I'm not apologising."

"No, I wouldn't expect you to." Shino tilted her head. "Why don't you make friends with Dennis?"

"Mackfield?" Yuri said. "I don't know him that well. Is there a point?"

"There's always a point," Shino said enigmatically. She shot him a smile. "Dennis Mackfield is very important for my future plans. It'd be nice to have an 'in' with him, but I'm in a position where I can't befriend him. So, how about you do it for me?"

"Hanging out with Mackfield," Yuri said with a scoff. "The things I do for you." He didn't say no though—which meant that he'd agreed. Shino smiled fondly, reaching down and picking up one of the fallen lilies.

"Yes, yes, I always trouble you," Shino said indulgently. "Come over for a moment." She tucked the lily in his hair. Yuri rolled his eyes again.

"I'm getting rid of it once I leave," he said.

"Fair enough!" Shino laughed. "Thanks. I know it's not easy to do stuff like this without knowing why."

Yuri shrugged. "I had a dream," he said offhandedly.

Shino frowned. "Nightmare?" It was an easy assumption—why would Yuri bring it up, otherwise?

"I was alone, destroying everything, and the world was cheering me on for it," Yuri said. "It was a weird feeling."

… alone, huh?

"It was just a dream," Shino said.

"It could have been real," Yuri said. "... I still feel the most alive when I'm carding people, Shino. When I'm in a duel with my opponent, one to the death… that's what makes me the most happy."

"I know," Shino said. To make the atmosphere lighter, she smiled. "I call it a work in progress."

"It'll take a lot of work to make me a good person. And good people get hurt. I'm not interested."

"And that's not work I'm interested in," Shino said. Yuri glanced at her over his shoulder. "I'd much rather see you alive and happy, rather than be a good person." She reached out for one of the fallen moonflowers, lifting it in the air, before she blew it into his hair. Yuri scowled. "I have another request for you, by the way. Make sure you don't get in a situation where you have to duel one of those boys with the same face as you, okay?"

"Do you think I'll lose?" Yuri said, sounding annoyed.

"Oh, you'll win. I have every bit of faith in you." Shino sighed. "It's one of those things I can't tell you about yet. Promise that I'll tell you eventually though."

"... you really have too many secrets," Yuri said. "Whatever." He stopped, glancing over through the leaves. "... Ryo-san is outside."

Shino turned her head to look. She made eye contact with him. She couldn't fully read his expression, but she tilted her head, wondering what he was doing there. As he walked into the garden, she couldn't help it. She smiled.

"Please don't damage my garden," Yuri said, which honestly—fair.

"I won't." Ryo turned to look at her. "... I have to talk to you personally. It has to do with the invasion."

"... sure," Shino said. "I had something I needed to say to you too. I'll catch up with you later, Yuri?"

"I'm going to go and talk to Dennis," Yuri said, shooting her a look. Shino nodded—she hoped that Yuri wouldn't terrify Dennis, though maybe he'd actually be able to make a friend by himself. Maybe. In the end, he walked off, though he did shoot one more look back at them—worried about her. She waved him off.

Once he was out of earshot, Shino turned back to Ryo.

"You said that you didn't want to talk to me again, unless necessary," he said. "Does that still apply?"

"... a moment of anger," Shino said. "That was what I wanted to talk about too... I'm sorry for hurting you. It was wrong of me… even if I was upset with your actions, I know that you had good intentions. I just wasn't happy with how you went about them." She meant it, too—while she would much rather avoid hurting people completely in the pursuit of her goals, she was realistic enough to know that some things were inescapable. However, Ryo Marufuji was one of the few people who she had always tried to keep out of things like this.

(If she had known more about those Psychic Duelists, she never would have let Ryo go to the Security building by himself. She'd have to keep that girl in mind for next time—she might end up being difficult to deal with.)

(Also, they were apparently cousins, in a strange sort-of way. Shino wasn't sure what to think about that.)

"Do you want an apology from me then?"

… who did he think she was?

He'd hurt her, yes, but he'd hardly been the only one in the wrong in that situation.

"Not if you don't mean it. I'm not apologising to make you apologise too. I'm apologising because what I did was wrong. I… treated you poorly. And I don't want to… I was supposed to be alone. I didn't want to distract you anymore, or distract myself from my goal."

Ryo looked at her, and there was a slight shift in his expression—something relaxing, tension fading. "... then I'll apologise for making decisions on your behalf. But not for my intentions."

… hah. His expression was a bit stiff, but his tone was genuine.

… sometimes, Shino really wished that she liked him less. It would make things easier for her.

"But this is something necessary for us to talk about. I'll get to the core of it immediately. You and I both know what it means that Yuri had Ridicule World."

So Kisara had told him, after all.

"A person burns the brightest when they choose to take fate into their own hands… don't you agree?"

"Are you asking me what we should do about it?" Shino said. Didn't Ryo already know that she would be on Yuri's side, anyway? So why exactly was he asking her about it, as though she would back Academia over Yuri?

"I'm trying to learn from my mistakes," Ryo said. "If Yuri has joined up with that man's rebellion in the Outer Islands, then as a member of Academia, I have a duty to report it to the Professor. So, I want to know what your decision would be, if I did so."

"... you won't like the answer," Shino said. "If that happens, the Professor will probably ask me, since I was the opponent in that duel. So I'll tearfully confess to him that the copy Yuri had belonged to me—that I'm the traitor, who just wanted to protect him against others. I'll say that Yuri didn't know anything and just trusted me blindly."

It would be a lie, yes, but a lie that the Professor might believe. The Professor had always held some suspicion towards her, since the incident with Yuri—always aware that she had to be hiding something about that incident, back then.

(As if she would expose those secrets to a man whose delusions were the root of his motivations.)

"Are you insane? Do you know what that's a confession to? You'd be saying that you're working with one of Academia's greatest enemies—"

Was he worried about her?

… that just wouldn't do. She turned her head for a moment—she didn't want him to see her inner conflict. "Mm, yeah! But it's the better option. Trust me, Ryo."

She felt a little cruel for saying that. How many times would she ask him to trust her intentions, ask him to go against his honour for something that he did not understand?

"Yuri has no affiliation with that person at all. I already asked him—he got it through something different. So, as long as we don't make it a problem… there is no problem."

"I only have your word on that," Ryo said.

"I know." Shino looked at him now—she hoped that her sincerity would show through. "I'm not lying to you this time."

In the end, Ryo sighed. He didn't argue about that anymore.

He really was too good to her. They all were too good to her…

Sometimes, Shino felt the unnatural urge to explain herself, despite knowing that she couldn't.

"The other thing," Ryo said. "Yuri may not be a traitor, but you most certainly are. Explain what happened with Chiaki Katsuya, Ruri Kurosaki and Rin. Explain the Dogmatika cards."

… ah. He'd found out about that?

"… I don't suppose that you'd believe that they took advantage of poor, helpless me and stole my cards?"

"... don't loop me in with the kind of person that would look down on you and underestimate you because of your disability. You've punched me in the face—if that was you holding back, you're far stronger than you appear."

… it was worth a shot.

To be honest, Shino had taken her disability in stride. At the same time, it had completely changed how people viewed her—in two completely different ways, both of which she disliked. On one hand, they were disgusted by her and thought that she was incapable. On the other hand, they felt bad for her and thought that she was pitiable. Yuri was the only member of the third group—after all, he had clearly never stopped feeling guilty for hurting her. But the other two groups…

Shino made use of the way that they looked at her to make them underestimate her, because both groups were looking down on her regardless.

But this person in front of her…

He had only ever seen her as strong. Even after the incident, he had never looked down on her—merely continued to acknowledge her capability.

Maybe that was why she had continued to like him so much. It was silly.

She kept her tone casual—she didn't want to let him know how much she'd been affected by his words. (And she wasn't going to blush—that was too obvious.) "Well, it was worth a shot. Hypothetically, if I helped them out, it's not because I was rebelling against Academia. Hypothetically, if I did so… it was the best decision for now." She saw him carefully analysing her words, and she couldn't help but smile. This person had made her far too foolish. "Hypothetically, if or when Academia must get them back in the future, I'll help—but for now, trust me. In this war, my allegiance isn't with the Lancers in the slightest."

"I'll stay silent about that for now," Ryo finally said. "But from now on… I'll have to supervise your actions myself—and truly figure out your motivations. Don't expect me to trust you so easily."

"... well, that's fair."

She couldn't afford to be seen through, but at this point, there was no choice that he'd figure her out. Still, she'd get to spend more time with him, right? She smiled to herself.

"Let's see then. Even if you spent millennia observing me, you'd never, in your wildest dreams, be able to guess why I'm doing this."

Ryo raised an eyebrow. "Interesting," he finally said. "Is there somewhere that you need to go?"

"I want to watch Yuri's duel," she said. "Want to go with me?"

"Duel? Isn't he hanging out with Dennis?"

"Maybe. But that boy only knows how to make friends by being mean to others." Shino laughed to herself. "And besides, I'm curious."

"... I'll go with you then." Ryo placed his hands on the back of her wheelchair.

It was strange, Shino thought. She usually disliked letting most people handle her wheelchair—it made her feel like there was something constraining her. To date, she only let four people do it—Sora, Yuri, Ryo and Fubuki. And yet, out of all four…

The one that always made her the most relaxed was this person.

… she really had to start working on being more ruthless soon. Things wouldn't work out otherwise.

---

Of course, the investigations into the escape of the three girls were continuing as well. Shino was questioned, as someone who had talked to the girls before, but was ultimately dismissed as a possibility—after all, she'd never had access to the keys, and besides, she had already been in the Synchro Dimension for a while before the girls had escaped.

(Pickpocketing was one of the skills she'd learned in that first war, and simply asking them to escape a little later was certainly in her capabilities. Shino was sure that the Professor knew that, and that she was being watched. Still, there was no obvious reason to assume that it was her for now.)

So she waited a week before going to her co-conspirator, making sure that she had a good pretext for doing so—

Namely, a medical checkup.

"I owe you, Ayukawa-san," Shino said meaningfully. Emi Ayukawa looked at her, before nodding, understanding the hidden meaning.

Who could carefully manoeuvre people better than the medical professional in charge? Emi Ayukawa was from the generation of teachers that had been hired under the previous Chancellor, Chronos de Medici—as such, despite the fact that she had chosen to stay for the sake of all the children at Academia, she carried the same misgivings as many of the previous teachers. She hadn't made it obvious though—Shino had just figured it out and realised how good it would be to have the medical professional of the school on her side.

And well, Ayukawa-san was really sweet too. Shino genuinely meant that—she was one of the nicest people in this school.

"You have your call today, right?" Emi asked. Shino nodded. "I'll put up the notice saying that we need privacy." She stepped out, leaving Shino alone in the operation room. This was how they usually did things—pretending to be doing a check on Shino's leg and other conditions, they had a free space for Shino to get away with certain things.

Shino pulled out the burner phone, pressing several numbers. She made sure that the voice changer was on, and then she spoke in as emotionless of a voice as possible. "Hey, Asuka."

"Senpai…" Asuka sounded relieved. Shino nearly sighed—there was a reason that she had kept a proper distance, and really, what was Asuka doing, getting attached to a person that was nothing but a voice over the phone? "I was beginning to think that you weren't going to pick up. You're four hours late."

"Well, it's been an exhausting day." She added a sigh after that, to make herself sound more tired than she actually was. "Do you have your pen and paper?"

"Yes."

Shino pulled out a piece of paper from her sleeve, casually reading out the times and locations that she'd found in Academia's database. Once they were done, she was ready to cut things off. "Next week's call is at five p.m.. See you—"

"Wait!" Asuka probably hadn't meant to exclaim it so loudly—she might not even have realised it. Shino pulled the phone away from her ear with a grimace. Before she could hang up, Asuka continued talking. "Senpai, are you okay? You're not usually late… and you sound more tired than usual."

Hmm. What reason should she give? She had just been late today (frankly, she hadn't been feeling it, especially with the nightmare that she'd had again that morning.)

Could she use this as a way to build on her other plans?

… right. There was the very strained relationship between Asuka Tenjoin and Chiaki Katsuya. She could work with that.

"I'm fine… the Synchro Dimension repelled the threat of Academia a few days ago, with the help of the Lancers."

"Really? That's great!"

"The three girls that Academia captured escaped." She said it like someone who had no clue about who those girls were, or about Asuka's friendship with Chiaki. As expected, Asuka fell for it, hook, line and sinker.

"Wait, do you mean—Chiaki is out?"

"And the two others with her, yes. The Professor is… furious. Anyone who has gone close to the building is under fire for it, and even those uninvolved are being suspected."

"So, senpai, you…"

"... it's rough. If I knew who it was, I'd pat them on the back."

Emi had returned at this point. She turned to look at Shino with an unimpressed look. Shino winked at her, keeping the completely emotionless tone when she spoke through the phone again.

"Give Yusho-sensei… give Yusho-sensei my regards."

She hung up there—and she smiled again.

"Thanks, Ayukawa-san."

"You put yourself in so much danger for the sake of everyone," Emi said softly. "Please be careful, Shino." The nurse had dropped any honorifics for her in private a long time ago. "You're still a child."

I was never a child, Shino thought. I skipped all of that. I'm more a child now than I was back then.

"Thank you for your concern," Shino said. "But I'm not afraid for myself… I'm afraid for the people that I might have to hurt, for my ambitions. And I'm afraid that I'll have to hurt them while smiling and pretending that it doesn't bother me."

The door opened at that exact moment. Both Emi and Shino tensed up—and then, Shino smiled.

"Come to check in on me, Ryo-kun?"

Ryo clearly hadn't heard anything except the last few lines—which weren't indicative in the slightest of her plans, but were indicative of her attitude.

Shino smiled at him.

"Let's go," he finally said. "If you're done with whatever you were doing, Ayukawa-san."

"Y-yes."

Shino smiled as though they hadn't been doing wrong, rolling on the wheelchair over to Ryo. He rolled her out of the room.

The infirmary was still empty. When he spoke up, she heard him clearly.

"I cannot imagine what would make you choose to hurt someone."

"It's callous of me to say it, but…" Shino winked—keeping a little levity in her voice. "Sometimes, you have to break a few eggs to make an omelette. The eggshells will remind them that they need to get much, much better before they stand a chance in hell at making an omelette."

"… I have a feeling that your metaphor is breaking down." Ryo's expression didn't change. Shino laughed. "Do you intend on breaking just a few, then?"

"Probably a lot." She shrugged. She could be a bit more open, though she was still holding most of her cards to her chest. "I don't know yet. I don't want to sacrifice people—that makes me no better than them."

"Them?"

"There is a person I must defeat, and people that I must protect," Shino said. "For that, I will do as much as I can." She sounded far more serious than usual. "... feelings come under that, I suppose. But I still don't want to throw away people's lives with my own hands and call it a worthy sacrifice."

"Who is that person you must defeat, then?"

"... well," Shino said, glancing away. "Sorry!~ That crosses the line between playfulness and treason, don't you think?"

Besides, that person, as they exist now, is nothing but a monster haunted with the memories of a dead world.

Ryo looked at her. "We've been assigned a mission," he finally said. "We're heading out in a few days."

"Sure. Xyz Dimension? Ritual Dimension?"

"You haven't actually been to either," Ryo said. "But neither. We're going after one of the rebellions in the Outer Islands. It's just you and me—the Professor believes that we're enough."

"... I guess it can't be helped," Shino said. "Well, it'll be a vacation with you. What could go wrong?"

And as she smiled at him—

The weight of her decisions struggled to crush her again.

It's for everyone's sake, she told herself. This is what I want—to stop the worst case scenario from happening. It's what's best.

… seventeen years of life, and I still haven't learned how to stop feeling guilty.

"Shino."

Shino snapped back to attention, turning her head to look back at him. He had stopped right before they had left the infirmary. "Mm, yeah, Ryo-kun?"

"Do you…" Ryo began to say, before he stopped himself. "… never mind. That question's not appropriate now." He mused over something else. Shino watched his thoughtful face with some fondness. "Will you actually put in your full effort when we go? Will you have my back? Otherwise…"

"You're worrying that I'll intentionally lose," Shino said. She chuckled. "… no. They're not my side—I do still need Academia to stay standing. And…"

She smiled at him.

"It'd take the end of the world for me to betray you, Ryo. We're not there yet. If anyone comes after us when we're on our mission, I'll destroy them with no mercy. It's very important to me to protect you too, no matter what." She winked. "I'm in love with you, after all!"

It was one of her usual teasing jokes, after all—her own feelings on her sleeve, but played off so that he wouldn't take her seriously. She couldn't afford for him to take her seriously, and anyway, he didn't have the same feelings for her.

"Me too," Ryo said after a moment.

Shino tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

"… I mean that I don't intend on betraying you either, when we go there." Ryo didn't meet her gaze, but Shino didn't get the feeling that he was lying either. "So if we're both being serious this time, the only possible result is success."

"Guess so! It's my first time properly being deployed to fight alongside you though—the invasion doesn't count." She shot him a cheerful smile. "Let's see if we work together as well as we get along!"

She turned her head back, falling back into her thoughts from before.

(Behind her, Ryo stared at the back of her head, before he looked away too.)

---

Interlude 8

The Fusion Dimension

30th January X778

Traupik Island was one of the Outer Islands—and it was closer to Academia than the rest, geographically speaking. Right now, in one of its settlements, the entire town had been thrown into disorder.

And there was one person at the heart of it—a woman that was now indifferently striding towards the communications room that the rebellion had set up here. She could hear the two leaders of the rebellion talking from within the room as she approached.

"Have you sent out the distress signal, Chronos?"

"I have."

"Then, if we can just stall longer, there's a chance—"

"How unfortunate," the woman interrupted as she stepped in. "There is no chance at all."

"You!" Professor Tania Amadolas turned to look at her, seeming shocked. "But… everyone outside…"

"Most of them tried to flee, but I've arranged for all boats to cease operation until I say that things are done," the woman said indifferently. "I made sure that I hunted down each and every single one of them before I came here—after all, students can run, but teachers must lead by example. I knew that you would stay here."

She drew a hand through her gold hair.

"Of course, I cannot be one hundred percent sure. But it is likely that you two are the only members of the Traupik Island Rebellion left. Thus, by finishing you off, my mission is complete."

"... then Tania and I shall avenge our students," ex-Chancellor Chronos de Medici said. "You won't get away with something so horrific!"

"... if you hadn't poisoned all your students with the thought of rebellion, this would hardly have been necessary." The woman shook her head. "We all reap what we sow. Be careful that the exercise of your righteousness does not become a stumbling block to the weak."

[DUEL!]

?: 4000LP

Chronos de Medici: 4000LP

Tania Amadolas: 4000LP

[Turn 1: Tania] [H:5]

"I'll start," Tania said. The gold-haired woman nodded. "I'll activate the Quickplay Spell, Amazoness Call! I'll add a "Amazoness" card from my deck to my hand." She revealed the monster. "Since I control no monsters, I can Special Summon Amazoness War Chief from my hand!" A muscular woman with spiky coppery orange hair appeared, wearing a coat made from animal pelt and fur. She held up a shining spear.

[Amazoness War Chief (5*/1900/0/EARTH/Warrior/Effect)]

"Since Amazoness War Chief was Normal or Special Summoned, I can set an "Amazoness" Spell or Trap, or Polymerization, from my deck to my field, but I cannot attack this turn, except with "Amazoness" monsters!" A completely useless restriction, seeing as she could not attack on the first turn anyway.

The gold-haired woman raised a card from her hand.

"Tearlaments Havnis's effect. When my opponent activates a monster effect, I can Special Summon her from my hand." A girl with dusty grey hair appeared, blades dancing around her, held up by streams of dark water.

[Tearlaments Havnis (3*/1600/1000/DARK/Aqua/Effect)]

"Your hand traps…" Tania grimaced.

"It's hardly a lot—Havnis is my only real hand trap." The woman gestured forward. "Havnis's effect. I will send the top three cards of my deck to the graveyard." She picked up the top three cards, dumping them in the graveyard. "Your effect may resolve first."

Tania frowned. A single set card appeared in front of her.

"Tearlaments Kashtira's effect. Since it was sent to the graveyard by a card effect, I can send the top two cards of my deck to the graveyard." She raised another card in the air. "Tearlaments Merrli's effect. Since she was sent to the graveyard, I can perform a Fusion Summon of a Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck by shuffling monsters from my graveyard into the deck, including Merrli herself."

"A Fusion Summon on my turn?" Tania gasped. "And recycling monsters in the graveyard too…"

"I will shuffle Tearlaments Merrli from my graveyard and Tearlaments Havnis from my field into the deck." A dark pool of water appeared in front of the woman, seeming… ominous. "Rise out of the pool of tears, tragic heroine. Plunge our foes into the waters of hopelessness, deeper than light can fall. Fusion Summon—Tearlaments Kitkallos." In front of her, a bubble left the water. Within it, a woman with dark blue hair slumbered, her curls slowly parting and floating within it. She was wearing white and blue fabrics that formed veils and fin-like structures around her, a graceful dress that made her look like a princess.

The bubble broke. Water splashed into the pool, nearly soundless. The woman's eyes opened. There was something strangely youthful to her eyes—something that made her seem far younger than she actually was.

[Tearlaments Kitkallos (5*/2300/1200/DARK/Aqua/Fusion/Effect)]

"I will activate the effect of the third card sent to the graveyard by Tearlaments Havnis's effect now. I sent Tearlaments Sulliek to the graveyard—allowing me to add a "Tearlaments" monster from my deck to my hand."

Green eyes stared at Tania.

"It's fascinating what the dead can do," the blonde said. "I will now activate the effects of the two cards sent to the graveyard by Tearlaments Kashtira's effect, and chain Tearlaments Kitkallos's effect as Chain Link 3. Kitkallos's effect resolves first. Since she was Special Summoned—I will add a "Tearlaments" card from my deck to my hand. Then, Tearlaments Heartbeat and Tearlaments Scream. I will add a "Tearlaments" Trap from my graveyard and my deck to my hand respectively."

She looked back at them, over a hand of eight cards and a Fusion Monster.

"You may continue with your turn," she said.

"… so this is the monstrous strength of the Professor's second-in-command," Tania murmured. "It's almost too much to bear."

The woman sighed. "I prefer to call it mutual cooperation. I'm hardly his subordinate." Her tone left no room for argument. "Are you giving in then? It would save me some effort, at least."

"Absolutely not." Tania revealed a card in her hand. "Spell Card, Amazoness Secret Arts. I'll perform a Fusion Summon of an "Amazoness" monster using cards in my hand and on my field! I'll fuse Amazoness Princess and Amazoness Queen in my hand. Roar with the ferocity of the jungle and intimidate any that dare approach with your fearsome roar! Fusion Summon! Level 9! King of the jungle—Amazoness Pet Liger King!"

An enormous, pale feline with dark stripes across its body appeared on the field, dark shadows streaming around it. Golden fur formed a thick mane around its head, and it let out a loud roar, shaking the entire space around them.

[Amazoness Pet Liger King (9*/2900/2800/EARTH/Beast/Fusion/Effect)]

"Pet Liger King's effect! I will target and destroy War Chief. And with its effect, I will Special Summon Amazoness Princess from my graveyard." A dark-skinned, white-haired girl appeared, smiling enthusiastically.

[Amazoness Princess (3*/1200/900/EARTH/Warrior/Effect)]

"When Amazoness Princess is Normal or Special Summoned, I can add a "Amazoness" Spell or Trap from my deck to my hand! I'll add and activate the Field Spell, Amazoness Village!" Tania immediately reached for another card in her hand. "By returning a "Amazoness" card I control to the hand, I can Special Summon Amazoness Spiritualist from my hand! I'll return my Field Spell to my hand!" She picked up the card, and in front of her, a girl with dark hair appeared, wearing a red hood and cloak, along with other green garments. She was holding onto a rather ornate golden staff.

[Amazoness Spiritualist (2*/800/1800/EARTH/Warrior/Effect)]

"Spiritualist's effect! I'll add the Spell Card, Polymerization, from my deck to my hand! And I'll activate it, to fuse Amazoness Princess and Amazoness Spiritualist! Amazoness Princess is treated as Amazoness Queen while she's face-up on the field, so she fits the summoning requirements of this monster! Queen of the jungle. Receive the power of the spiritual leader, and build an empire that rules over everything! Fusion Summon! Appear, Level 8! Amazoness Empress!"

A white-haired woman who was holding onto an enormous blade appeared, swinging it through the air. Her red cloak flowed behind her as she stood next to the other Fusion Monster. On the top of her head was a headdress made out of animals' bones—skulls, horns, fangs—

A hunter, and a conqueror.

[Amazoness Empress (8*/2800/2400/EARTH/Warrior/Fusion/Effect)]

"I'll activate my Amazoness Village again. And all "Amazoness" monsters gain 200 attack points."

[Amazoness Empress: 2800 + 200 = 3000ATK]

[Amazoness Pet Liger King: 2900 + 200 = 3100ATK]

"I'll end my turn." With two Fusion Monsters, a Field Spell for card advantage and a set card, she should be able to keep her opponent at bay.

[Turn 2: Chronos] [H:5]

"I will activate the Field Spell, Geartown!" He declared. "And I'll activate the Spell Card, Antique Gear Catapult. I'll destroy my Geartown to Special Summon a "Antique Gear" monster from my deck, ignoring summoning conditions." The Field Spell exploded. "Come—Antique Gear Golem!" A large, coppery red mechanical golem appeared in front of him.

[Antique Gear Golem (8*/3000/3000/EARTH/Machine/Effect)]

"I'll activate the effect of Geartown. Since it was destroyed and sent to the graveyard, I can Special Summon a "Antique Gear" monster from my hand, deck or graveyard. Come—Antique Gear Gadjiltron Dragon!" An enormous, green dragon appeared, seeming almost avian in the structure of its head.

[Antique Gear Gadjiltron Dragon (8*/3000/2000/EARTH/Machine/Effect)]

"You and your Antique Gears, Chronos de Medici," the gold-haired woman said. "It's fitting that the user of automatons has supplied an entire generation of genocidal children with what they need."

"I did not know what would happen when I agreed for my deck to be replicated. I was told that it was to be training material—" Chronos shook his head.

"Your intentions do not matter—just the end result." The gold-haired woman shook her head.

"If that is the kind of attitude you have, then you certainly belong in the Academia that we all wanted to leave," Tania replied.

The woman turned to look at her. "... and yet, Professor Amadolas, you left your own adoptive daughters in Academia when you fled in rebellion. The Tyler Sisters have never forgiven you for that either."

Tania grimaced. Gloria and Grace, the two girls that she'd taken in herself and taught about dueling… at the time, she had thought that they would be safer in Academia instead of on the run with her. However, the fearsome reputation that they'd acquired—the Tyler Sisters, who hunted enemies like prey—had taught her that it was wrong. Her two girls had been led astray, and she hadn't been there to get them back on the right track, to remind them about honour and what was right—

"Tania," Chronos said solemnly. "We both know our own mistakes. But we cannot allow ourselves to be held down by them. We must keep moving forward—and survive, to make up for them."

"... indeed." She had foolishly allowed her opponent's taunts to affect her mind. "My apologies, Chronos."

"There is no need for apologies between us. We share the same goal—to protect our students. Even if we have failed… we must still carry on. There are more that require our assistance." Chronos placed down another card. "Spell Card, Antique Gear Fusion. And if I use an "Antique Gear Golem" or "Antique Gear Golem - Ultimate Pound" I control as material for this Fusion Summon, I can also use monsters from my deck as Fusion Material. I shall fuse Antique Gear Gear Golem on the field with two more copies of Antique Gear Golem in my deck. Appear now, automaton of destructive agony! Fusion Summon! Antique Gear Megaton Golem!"

A large, silver machine golem appeared, its multiple legs dragging across the ground, insect-like, segmented limbs. Spikes covered its body. Six mechanical fists rose through the air, heavily crashing down on the ground.

[Antique Gear Megaton Golem (9*/3300/3300/EARTH/Machine/Fusion/Effect)]

"Continuous Trap," Tania declared, nodding to Chronos. "Amazoness Hall. When it's activated, I can add a "Amazoness" card from my graveyard to my hand. Then, when a monster is Special Summoned to my opponent's field while I control a "Amazoness" monster, I can gain life points equal to the summoned monster's attack points. I will choose Megaton Golem!"

Tania: 4000 + 3300 = 7300LP

"Antique Gear Megaton Golem can attack once for each "Antique Gear Golem" or "Antique Gear Golem - Ultimate Pound" used as material for its Fusion Summon," Chronos declared. "Thus, it can attack three times!"

"Attacking the enemy who hasn't actually taken a turn yet?" The gold-haired woman said. "It looks like despite your righteousness, you will still resort to dishonourable means."

"Chronos," Tania called out. "You're still treated as my opponent right now, in this dueling format. Pet Liger King's effect still applies to you as well."

"... I see," Chronos said. "Then, I will activate the Continuous Spell, Antique Gear Production Line. During the Battle Phase, all "Antique Gear" monsters I control are unaffected by my opponent's monster effects, as long as that monster does not have a higher Level. Thus, Pet Liger King's effects no longer affect them."

"... interesting. In that case, if you're so set to attack me, I should make an effort to stop you." The gold-haired woman delicately raised a card from her hand. "During the Main Phase, I can Special Summon Tearlaments Kashtira from my hand." A strange, red-skinned figure with snowy white hair appeared, wearing thin, delicate fabrics that drifted around it—while the garish red clashed greatly with the rest of her appearance, she was clearly a mermaid like the rest of the woman's monsters.

[Tearlaments Kashtira (7*/2300/1200/WATER/Psychic/Effect)]

"Then, I must banish a "Tearlaments" or "Kashtira" card from my graveyard. I will banish Tearlaments Scream. And when Tearlaments Kashtira is Normal or Special Summoned, I can send the top three cards of either player's deck into the graveyard. Naturally, I'll choose my own." She picked up the top three cards of her deck, slotting them into the graveyard.

This was the frightening part of this woman—the ability to make moves before she'd already taken a turn. Most people would have lost to Chronos without even getting the chance to make a move, if they were in this situation.

"I sent Tearlaments Scheiren to the graveyard," the gold-haired woman continued. "With her effect, I can immediately perform a Fusion Summon by placing cards from my graveyard, hand or field on the bottom of my deck in any order, including Scheiren herself. I will place Scheiren, along with Tearlaments Reinoheart and Tearlaments Merrli on the bottom of my deck."

A second Fusion Summon before it was even her turn?

"King of sorrow that numbs an entire realm," the woman chanted. "Let the world crumble under the weight of its glass-like tears. Fusion Summon—Tearlaments Kaleido-Heart!"

A tall man appeared on the field, his hair pale blue. He was wearing glimmering, regal-looking clothing, dark blue and purple fabric surrounding him in robes. Small patterns, like kaleidoscopic mosaics, could be seen glittering around his clothing. They appeared like church windows. Purple, kraken-like tentacles drifted from under his robes, swirling around him, frightening—a single crash of one of his tentacles shook the entire room. His pale hands had dark blue nails that were angled strangely—almost like claws. In one hand, he held onto several whip-like structures, which ended in sharp, dark blue points, as though ready to pierce through anything.

[Tearlaments Kaleido-Heart (9*/3000/3000/DARK/Fiend/Fusion/Effect)]

"Once per turn, if Tearlaments Kaleido-Heart is Special Summoned, I can activate its effect. I will target a card you control and shuffle it into the deck. Suffocating Surge of Sorrow!"

Chronos and Tania both reacted with shock.

"I will naturally target Antique Gear Megaton Golem," the woman said. "Your card protects them during the Battle Phase. What a pity." Kaleido-Heart raised a hand—water surged down, surrounding Megaton Golem. The mechanical golem staggered—its body slowly collapsing to the ground, as the water flowed between the joints of its body, seeping into its circuits—and then, it broke down into dust, as Kaleido-Heart smirked coldly.

"Chronos!" Tania called out in concern.

"It is alright." Chronos looked at the final card in his hand. "Battle Phase. Antique Gear Gadjiltron Dragon attacks Tearlaments Kitkallos!"

The Fusion Monster was destroyed by a bright beam of light, though their opponent didn't seem fazed.

?: 4000 - 700 = 3300LP

"When an "Antique Gear" monster I control destroys a monster by battle, Production Line allows me to add a "Antique Gear" monster from my deck to my hand." Chronos picked up a card. "I will activate Antique Gear Box's effect. When it's added from my deck or graveyard to my hand, except by drawing it, I can add a EARTH Machine monster with 500 attack or defense points from my deck to my hand, except Box itself. I will then set a monster and a card facedown and end my turn. I must pay 500 life points to keep Production Line."

Chronos: 4000 - 500 = 3500LP

He raised his head.

"... it's over to you, Eve Misogi."

The golden-haired woman looked at them, her green eyes seeming to dismiss them immediately—there had always been an effortless confidence to this woman, as though she was two steps ahead of anyone and everyone. Fully composed and focused on her goals.

Tania had never understood her. This woman had been the first new member of staff that Leo Akaba had brought to Academia, and she had been just as enigmatic then as she was today.

"As expected of two Professors from Academia, even if you are defectors," the golden-haired woman said. "It is truly a shame that you turned against us."

"You're a fully grown woman. Surely you don't believe in dreams of a utopia," Tania said.

Eve shrugged. "You're correct. If it was just a dream… perhaps even I would baulk at sacrificing so many to reach a possibility. But I understand the possibility, and Leo Akaba has the capability to get it done. That's all that matters to me. As long as we fuse the worlds together… the solution to all the problems in the world lies there."

"... you're delusional," Chronos said. "There is no proof at all that Leo Akaba is capable of doing so. And is it worth destroying the fragile peace that already exists in this world for the sake of something so patently unrealistic?"

"... yes," Eve said. "This world is not on its correct path. Its course must be corrected. If happiness exists only in a world that is complete… then we must rely on any means possible to make our way there."

[Turn 3: Eve] [H:8]

"Draw," Eve said. "I will activate the Field Spell, Primeval Planet Perlereino." A swirling, crystalline blue glow surrounded them. "With Perlereino's effect, I will add a "Tearlaments" monster or "Visas Starfrost" from my deck to my hand. I will then Normal Summon Tearlaments Merrli." A girl with fluffy light blue hair appeared, holding onto a gothic-looking dark staff. Bubbles floated around her. She was wearing dark blue silks around her hands and feet, which rippled like fish fins and tails. Her eyes were yellow-gold. Bronze buckles and chains surrounded her.

[Tearlaments Merrli (2*/800/2000/DARK/Aqua/Effect)]

"Merrli's effect. I will send the top three cards of my deck to the graveyard." She picked up the top three cards, looking at them. She seemed to see something, but she did not use any effects, just dropping the cards into the graveyard. "I will then activate the Spell Card, Tearlaments Grief. I can Special Summon a "Tearlaments" monster or "Visas Starfrost" from my graveyard, and then, I must send a monster I control with either the same Type or Attribute from my field to the graveyard. I will Special Summon Tearlaments Kitkallos from my graveyard."

The blue-haired mermaid from earlier reappeared, looking just as quiet and sorrowful as before.

"Then, I will send Tearlaments Merrli to the graveyard." Eve gestured forward. "When Tearlaments Kitkallos is Special Summoned, I can add a "Tearlaments" card from my deck to my hand. Then, I will activate her other effect. Once per turn, I can target a monster I control. I can Special Summon a "Tearlaments" monster from my graveyard, and if I do, I must send the targeted monster to the graveyard. I will Special Summon Tearlaments Reinoheart from my graveyard, and send Tearlaments Kaleido-Heart to the graveyard."

The strange, kraken-like monster vanished in a haze of dark bubbles, before a monster that was strangely identical to him reappeared on the field—minus the tentacles, with less of the iridescent mosaic-like patterns, but still with the same face, the same smirk.

[Tearlaments Reinoheart (4*/1500/2100/DARK/Aqua/Effect)]

"Tearlaments Kaleido-Heart and Tearlaments Reinoheart's effects activate," Eve said. "Reinoheart allows me to send a "Tearlaments" monster from my deck to the graveyard. And when Kaleido-Heart is sent to the graveyard by a card effect, I can Special Summon it from the graveyard, and then, I can send a "Tearlaments" card from my deck to the graveyard."

Kaleido-Heart reappeared on the field, looking just as haughty as before.

"When Tearlaments Kaleido-Heart is Special Summoned, I can target a card you control and shuffle it into the deck. I will target Amazoness Pet Liger King and shuffle it into your deck, to break your usual lock. Suffocating Surge of Sorrow!"

"I'll use Amazoness Hall's effect. I will gain life points equal to your Kaleido-Heart's attack points!"

"... Perlereino grants all my "Tearlaments" monsters and Fusion Monsters 500 attack points. So you'll be regaining more life points than you thought."

[Tearlaments Kitkallos: 2300 + 500 = 2800ATK]

[Tearlaments Reinoheart: 1500 + 500 = 2000ATK]

[Tearlaments Kaleido-Heart: 3000 + 500 = 3500ATK]

[Tearlaments Kashtira: 2300 + 500 = 2800ATK]

"But not yet," Eve continued. "I will chain the effects of the monster sent to the graveyard by Tearlaments Reinoheart's effect and the Trap sent to the graveyard by Kaleido-Heart's effect. I sent the Trap Card, Tearlaments Sulliek, to the graveyard. I'll add a "Tearlaments" monster from my deck to my hand. Then, Tearlaments Scheiren's effect. I will shuffle Scheiren itself from the graveyard and Kitkallos from my field into the deck to Fusion Summon."

She was using her Fusion Monster as material too?

"Princess of the realm of sorrow, let your eyes be opened to frightening reality. Banish illusion, dance in the iridescent waters, and overthrow any authority that dares to assert itself over you. Fear and sorrow is the root of freedom. Fusion Summon—Tearlaments Rulkallos."

The monster that appeared seemed to be an evolved version of Kitkallos—the padlock that had been hanging from Kitkallos's clothing had broken off and vanished. While Kitkallos had seemed quiet and shy, Rulkallos seemed more confident now—there was something solemn to her gaze as she raised her sword in the air.

[Tearlaments Rulkallos (8*/3000/2500/WATER/Aqua/Fusion/Effect)]

[Tearlaments Rulkallos: 3000 + 500 = 3500ATK]

Naturally, afterwards, Tania's effect resolved.

Tania: 7300 + 3500 = 10800LP

Pet Liger King, however, vanished from the field. And while Tania's Field Spell helped with giving her a new monster when one was destroyed, being shuffled into the deck didn't activate it.

"Since I shuffled a "Tearlaments" monster into the deck, I can activate the effect of Primeval Planet Perlereino. I will target and destroy a card on the field. I will target and destroy Antique Gear Gadjiltron Dragon!" Chronos's monster vanished from the field.

"I will set three cards facedown," Eve continued. "I will then—" She stopped a moment later. "... no. There's hardly any need for that against the two of you. Battle Phase. Tearlaments Kashtira attacks your set monster, Chronos-san."

The set monster flipped up—revealing Antique Gear Box.

[Antique Gear Box (4*/500/2000/EARTH/Machine/Effect)]

The monster was destroyed.

"And Tearlaments Kaleido-Heart will attack you directly."

"Trap Card, Antique Gear Reborn! Once per turn, if I control no monsters, I can Special Summon a "Antique Gear" monster from the graveyard, as long as that monster was sent there this turn. Then, I can increase its attack points by 200!" Gadjiltron Dragon reappeared on the field, letting out a loud roar.

[Antique Gear Gadjiltron Dragon: 3000 + 200 = 3200ATK]

"I will change the target of the attack to Amazoness Empress," Eve said without any preamble. Kaleido-Heart laughed, and as it raised its hand, one of its kraken-like tentacles slashed straight against Amazoness Empress, knocking her back and destroying her in a single shot.

Tania: 10800 - 200 = 10600LP

"I'll activate the effect of Amazoness Empress!" Tania declared. "I can Special Summon a "Amazoness Queen" from the hand, deck or graveyard! I'll Special Summon Amazoness Princess from the graveyard, since it's treated as Amazoness Queen while in the graveyard!" The youthful Amazoness reappeared on the field. "Furthermore, once per turn, when a "Amazoness" monster is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to the graveyard, Amazoness Village lets me Special Summon a "Amazoness" monster from my deck with an equal or lower Level to that monster! Come! Amazoness Swords Woman!" A muscular woman with long, messy brown hair appeared, holding up a sword.

[Amazoness Swords Woman (4*/1500/1600/EARTH/Warrior/Effect)]

"Amazoness Princess lets me add another "Amazoness" Spell or Trap from my deck to my hand," Tania continued.

"Swordswoman, huh?" Eve seemed indifferent. "Reinoheart attacks your Amazoness Princess." The young girl was destroyed by the attack too. "And Tearlaments Rulkallos attacks your Gadjiltron Dragon again." The dragon was destroyed by the aquatic princess.

Chronos: 3500 - 300 = 3200LP

"I'll end my turn."

Just like that?

Still, those three set cards…

And the fact that Eve had stopped earlier. She still had five cards in her hand—it was likely that there was something that she could still do, but she had actively chosen to stop. Why? She might also already have defeated Chronos if she had chosen to focus fire on him…

Tania shook her head.

Regardless, she now had a Battle Phase. It was still surprising to her that Eve had nearly cracked her field, but…

She wasn't going to let the other woman get away with it.

[Turn 4: Tania] [H:3]

"Draw," Tania said. She lifted up the card that she'd added back to her hand with Amazoness Hall's effect. "Since I control only "Amazoness" monsters, I can Special Summon Amazoness War Chief from my hand!" The red-haired woman appeared on the field. "I will activate the effect of War Chief and set the Spell Card, Polymerization, from my deck to the field. I'll banish Amazoness Secret Arts from my graveyard with its effect! Now, I can also send a monster from my Extra Deck to the graveyard as material when I next Fusion Summon a monster this turn! And I will activate my set Polymerization."

She had to go for her strongest monster right away. That was the only way she could deal with this woman.

And yet…

"Tearlaments Rulkallos's effect," Eve responded. "I will negate the activation of a card or effect that would Special Summon a monster, and destroy it—Primeval Ocean Wail!" Rulkallos tossed her head back, and with her loud cry, ocean waves lashed forward, destroying Tania's card. "Then, I must send a "Tearlaments" card from my hand or field to the graveyard. I will send a card from my hand to the graveyard." However, she didn't activate any effects, which was… odd, considering her deck.

Never mind. Tania would keep going.

"I will return Amazoness Village from my field to the hand to Special Summon Amazoness Spiritualist from my graveyard!" The same sage from earlier reappeared. "With Spiritualist's effect, I will add my third copy of Polymerization from my deck to my hand!" She revealed the card. "... except that the card I actually added to my hand is my Fusion Substitute, because it's always treated as "Polymerization"! I'll activate it!"

"... go ahead," Eve said.

"I'll fuse Amazoness Princess on the field with Amazoness Pet Liger in my Extra Deck! Empress that stands at the peak of all battle! Now, crush our foes with the fiery might of your supremacy! Fusion Summon! The one, the only Amazoness Augusta!"

An evolved version of the white-haired woman from before appeared on the field. The headdress she was wearing was now far larger, and there were bones around her shoulders as well, the long horns looking sharp enough to pierce flesh. She was wearing colourful, tribal clothing—it was primarily gold, but there were some other colours there as well. Red, blue, green, white and so on. A tiger's pelt was wrapped around her waist. Red fur and ribbons was attached to the bones on her headdress and shoulders, along with the clothing involved. She was wearing a dark red cloak, and in her hands was a wicked sword, almost as tall as her.

[Amazoness Augusta (10*/3200/2800/EARTH/Warrior/Fusion/Effect)]

"When Amazoness Augusta is Fusion Summoned, I can Special Summon a "Amazoness" monster from my deck."

"Your Empress did not protect herself. I doubt that this monster does that either." Eve gestured forward. "Counter Trap, Tearlaments Cryme. I'll negate the activation of your monster's effect, and shuffle your monster into the deck. Then, I must send a monster from my hand to the graveyard."

She discarded a card with little to no emotion. Augusta was dragged up by a wave, vanishing from the field. Tania grimaced.

"I sent Tearlaments Merrli to the graveyard. With her effect, I will shuffle Tearlaments Merrli herself and Tearlaments Havnis from the graveyard into the deck to Fusion Summon. Return to my field—Kitkallos!" Eve filled her fifth Main Monster Zone. "Kitkallos's effect. I will add another "Tearlaments" card from my deck to my hand. And then, since I shuffled a "Tearlaments" card into my deck, I can target and destroy a card on the field with the effect of my Field Spell. I'll target and destroy Amazoness Swords Woman!"

And Tania hadn't activated her Field Spell again yet, so she couldn't gain any advantage from it either…

"I'll activate Amazoness Hall's effect!" She declared. "I'll gain life points equal to your Kitkallos's attack points!"

Tania: 10600 + 2800 = 13400LP

Tania glanced through the cards remaining in her hand and on her field. She still controlled War Chief and Spiritualist, and she had three cards in hand, including her Field Spell.

"I'll activate the Field Spell, Amazoness Village. I'll then activate the effect of Fusion Substitute. I will banish it from the graveyard and return Amazoness Pet Liger to the Extra Deck to draw a card!" She swiped up the top card of her deck. "I will activate another copy of Amazoness Secret Arts! I'll fuse Amazoness War Chief and Amazoness Spiritualist! Return to the field—Amazoness Pet Liger King!" The beast from earlier reappeared on the field. "I will Normal Summon Amazoness Tiger!"

A large red tiger appeared on the field in front of her.

[Amazoness Tiger (4*/1100/1500/EARTH/Beast/Effect)]

"Pet Liger King's effect," Tania said. She didn't have to worry about Pet Liger King sabotaging Chronos, since he still had his Continuous Spell on the field. "I will target and destroy Amazoness Tiger to Special Summon Amazoness Princess from my graveyard. And with Princess's effect, I will add an "Amazoness" Spell or Trap from my deck to my hand!"

She picked up the card.

"I will equip the Equip Spell, Amazoness Heirloom, to Amazoness Princess! Now, the first time that she would be destroyed by battle each turn, she's not destroyed!" Tania gestured forward. "Battle Phase!"

[Amazoness Pet Liger King: 2900 + 200 = 3100ATK]

[Amazoness Princess: 1200 + 200 = 1400ATK]

"Amazoness Princess attacks Tearlaments Rulkallos!"

Eve raised an eyebrow. "... interesting."

"Amazoness Princess's effect! I'll send a card from my hand to the graveyard to Special Summon an "Amazoness" monster from my deck in Defense Position! Come! Amazoness Scouts!" A pair of girls, one with red hair and the other with blue hair, appeared in Defense Position.

[Amazoness Scouts (2*/500/1100/EARTH/Warrior/Effect)]

Princess collided with Rulkallos, and while she wasn't destroyed by battle, Tania still took damage.

Tania: 13400 - 2100 = 11300LP

"After damage calculation, Amazoness Heirloom destroys your monster!"

"... Tearlaments Rulkallos's effect," Eve said. "Since she was sent to the graveyard by a card effect after being Fusion Summoned, she returns to the field." Rulkallos reappeared, floating in the middle of seafoam.

"Pet Liger King attacks Tearlaments Reinoheart!"

The blue-haired man was destroyed, and Tania breathed out a sigh of relief—she'd managed to at least push back and deal some damage.

Eve: 3300 - 1100 = 2200LP

"Over to you, Chronos," she said.

[Turn 5: Chronos] [H:2]

"Draw," Chronos said. "I will Normal Summon Antique Gear Wyvern!" A rusty, coppery green wyvern appeared on his field.

[Antique Gear Wyvern (4*/1700/1200/EARTH/Machine/Effect)]

"I will activate the effect of Antique Gear Wyvern! I will add a "Antique Gear" card from my deck to my hand, but I cannot set cards this turn!"

"... you two are truly fools," Eve said. She revealed a card in her hand. "I will Special Summon Tearlaments Havnis from my hand, since you activated a monster effect, and send the top two cards of my deck to the graveyard."

Havnis's effect resolved, as did Wyvern's.

"Tearlaments Merrli's effect. I will perform another Fusion Summon. I will shuffle Tearlaments Kitkallos, Tearlaments Merrli, Tearlaments Rulkallos and Tearlaments Havnis into the deck."

Four monsters, two of which were Fusion Monsters?

"This," Eve said, "is a monster that none of your students forced out of me. Not even you are really strong enough to face it. But I do not wish for this duel to drag on any longer."

Bubbles emerged—and shadows shot up—

As the new monster appeared, Tania felt dread in her stomach. She'd fought in wars, and yet…

Yet, this somehow felt like it was beyond her.

Who was this woman?

There was no way. Tania had more than ten thousand life points. There was no way that she could be defeated easily in a single turn. They could still survive. Right?

---

The entire room felt heavy by the time that the duel was done.

Eve stepped forward, and with two taps, two cards fell to the ground.

She picked them up.

A perfect mission. Time to head back then.

Those two people, trying to avenge their students…

They were probably far more righteous than her, but… they were still thinking far too small, when they fought only to protect a small amount of people. How long could they have lasted without making a move to actually attack?

This result was inevitable. Besides…

"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms," she murmured—remembering what she'd read in her childhood. "I know that what I do… is what's best for the world. They cannot survive like this. Isn't that right, Adam?"

She did not feel guilty at all.

She did, however, press her hands together briefly.

"I dedicate this victory to you," she said, to that figure that her life had always been devoted to. "I do what's best—what I understand from your guidance."

She walked out, picking up her radio.

"Please report to the Professor that the entire resistance on Traupik Island has been exterminated," Eve said calmly. "The leaders, ex-Chancellor Chronos de Medici and Professor Tania Amadolas, have been carded. Their cards will be transported back by me personally. Casualty count is zero. Number of people carded is ninety-seven."

"Ninety-seven?" The girl on the other end of the line sounded shocked. "And it's… just you?"

"Yes." Eve sounded unperturbed. "It has taken a long time to track them down and eliminate them. I had to make sure that as few of them escaped as possible." She ran her fingers through her golden yellow hair. "I will be hanging up now and making my way back to Academia. Tell the Professor that anything else will be reported to him once I have physically returned to the school."

"Y-yes…"

"Alright then. Eve Misogi, signing off."

With that, the golden-haired woman hung up the radio, stepping towards the shore. There was a thoughtful look in her green eyes as she watched the ocean.

… for the past I must reclaim, there is only one option.

I never fail.

… though, I suppose others do. Imagine letting those girls all escape—it's rather incompetent of Leo. What can one do?

No matter.

I am not interested in that particular part of his plan.

I always have a different plan—something else.

---

Interlude 9

The…?

The Lancers, they call themselves.

Five of the six are there already. At least one of them is still on the other side.

You'll have to figure it out.

Luckily, you have plenty of time.

They're all fighting, after all.

Humans are best at killing each other, after all.

[Six DImensions - Synchro Arc: Complete.]

[Loading Disc 3: Xyz Arc…]

[Loading Intermission.]

---

OC Cards:

Crystal Polishing Mirror

(Spell/Ritual)

This card can be used to Ritual Summon any "Crystal Beast" Ritual Monster. Tribute monsters from your hand or field, and/or send "Crystal Beast" monsters in your Spell/Trap Zone to the GY, then Ritual Summon 1 "Crystal Beast" Ritual Monster from your hand whose Level equals or exceeds the total original Levels of those monsters. You can send 1 "Crystal" card from your hand to the GY; add this card from your GY to your hand. You can only activate each effect of "Crystal Polishing Mirror" once per turn.

Crystal Beast Emerald Galapagos

(6*/1100/2500/WATER/Aqua/Ritual/Effect)

You can send this card from your hand or Monster Zone to the GY; add 1 "Crystal" Spell/Trap from your Deck to your hand. If this card is Ritual Summoned: You can send 1 "Crystal" card from your Deck to the GY. You can only activate the above effects of "Crystal Beast Emerald Galapagos" once per turn. Once per turn, if a "Crystal Beast" or "Ultimate Crystal" monster you control is targeted for an attack: You can negate that attack, then you can Tribute 1 monster you control, and if you do, the attacking monster's ATK becomes 0. If this face-up card is destroyed in a Monster Zone, you can place it face-up in your Spell & Trap Zone as a Continuous Spell, instead of sending it to the GY.

Trivia: Named after the Galapagos tortoise, aka those giant tortoises associated with evolution/etc. Its stats are exactly 500 above its original incarnation in both. I mainly gave him Ritual Monsters to match Asuka's shift to Ritual Monsters as well.

Red-Eyes Time Wizard

(5*/2000/1900/FIRE/Spellcaster/Ritual/Effect)]

You can Ritual Summon this card with "Red-Eyes Ritual". If this card is Ritual Summoned: You can send 1 Normal Monster from your Deck to the GY; add 1 "Red-Eyes" card from your Deck to your hand. Once per turn, if this card battles: You can send 1 card from your hand to the GY; until the end of this turn, all monsters with 2500 or more ATK on the field lose 1000 ATK, and all monsters with 2400 or less ATK gain 1000 ATK.

Trivia: … so yeah. Red-Eyes. Time Wizard. Kind of self-explanatory. I spent a while debating having it be DARK or FIRE, but I think that Jounouchi's canon association is more with FIRE than DARK, considering certain other monsters. The ATK changing effect is a reference to original Time Wizard supposedly aging certain monsters into oblivion/death while powering others up—here, it powers up the weaker monsters and weakens the stronger monsters, a reference to Jounouchi's underdog status.

Antique Gear Production Line

(Spell/Continuous)

During the Battle Phase, all "Antique Gear" monsters you control are unaffected by the effects of your opponent's monsters with a equal or lower Level. During each of your End Phases, you must pay 500 LP (this is not optional), or this card is destroyed. Once per turn, if an "Antique Gear" monster you control destroys a monster by battle: You can add 1 "Antique Gear" monster from your Deck to your hand. You can only activate this effect of "Antique Gear Production Line" once per turn.

---

Different Card Effects from TCG:

Armor Canine - Cannonboxer - Anime-only card. Given 1000 DEF since its DEF value in the anime is unknown.

Armor Canine - Bullcopter - Anime-only card. Given 400 DEF randomly since its DEF value in the anime is unknown.

Full Armor Canine - Bullfortress - Anime-only card. DEF not in anime, given 1000 DEF. Attribute not given, selected as EARTH.

Antique Gear Hound Dog - Uses its later anime effect.

Antique Gear Triple Bite Hound Dog - Anime-only card.

Antique Gear Double Bite Hound Dog - Anime-only card.

Antique Gear Ultimate Hound Dog - Anime-only card.

Gishki Zielgigas / Gishki Psychelone - Their names use the TCG spelling, but they're changed to "Evigishki" instead of "Gishki" to match the theme.

Antique Gear Reborn - Anime effect.

---

End Notes:

So, in case it's somehow not obvious… I love experimenting with structure. It's probably my second favourite thing behind manipulating perspective. This chapter is a bit of both—it ends right where it started, but you suddenly get a lot more context. It's a narrative that eats itself as it goes along.

Do let me know if you figured out that Shino was the one talking to Asuka before it was revealed!

I think that Johan's deck is the first time that I've made so many OC cards to adjust how a deck is played. Oh well, I think it came out well. Why did I do this? Because Johan has like two boss monsters and it's really hard to build momentum around that. Rainbow Dragon is still a major part of his deck though—it's too iconic.

I will have to figure out what deck to give the Juvenile Officers, because I cannot write a deck with three cards for this entire fic.

Also as it turns out, I have a lot of suppressed feelings about the Marufuji brothers' relationship both in GX and in this story. Sho's not going to be a major character, but since he's here, I figured I might as well give him a healthy dose of self-respect juice. He's much closer to Season 4 Sho here than his Season 1 variation. Also for clarification, in this story, there is a three-year age gap between Ryo/Fubuki and Sho/Asuka, as opposed to two years. :)

Kiyoshi Kogami is absolutely done with both his children's romantic lives. Note that as of this chapter, we're going to be acknowledging the passage of time, so we're in January of the year where the Yu-boys/Nature Girls turn 17. So from now on, I'll probably be adding one year when referencing past events. (E.g. Miharu being adopted by the Kogamis happened when she was six, so it's been referred to as "ten years" up until now, but from now on it'll be eleven years.)

As I always stress, there's a good reason why I haven't talked much about the Ritual Dimension—and there is a good reason why it doesn't show up here. I know what I'm doing—and keeping Ritual mostly a black box is very important to me, and better for the story I want to tell, no matter what anyone else thinks :) You do get a few details here though. This is your only Jounouchi appearance until the Ritual Arc. Same for Pegasus and Cyndia. I added it in for fun. You've been warned, so don't ask me for more during the Xyz Arc :D I'll be honest and say that I'm writing the dialogue based on Jounouchi's English sub dialogue, but I'm hearing it in the TAS accent despite everything. I'm not American though, and I have no clue how to write a Brooklyn accent in dialogue, so instead we get mildly rude gangster-ish speech mannerism Jounouchi. Tbh, I'm still finishing off the retrains, etc to give to him, since I do have to give him more than the two Ritual Monsters that are associated with him (Paladin of Dark Dragon/Lord of the Red). As for Pegasus and Cyndia, I always intended to have the Ritual Dimension's resistance be led by them—it just makes sense that without Kaiba in this universe, the Ritual Dimension would be dominated by Industrial Illusions instead. We love responsible adults in a YGO story, I'm sure nothing bad will happen to them.

Photon Hypernova releasing the three new "Gishki" cards was very exciting for me because I already knew that Cyndia was using Gishkis here. Also, since there is basically no characterisation for her in canon, I decided to go for a pretty fun dynamic with her and Pegasus—Pegasus is the shrewd schemer cloudcuckoolander, she's very amused and charmed by antics like that and often goes along with it as an enabler. Six Dimensions—the fic where I insist on taking every single fridged/abandoned female character and giving them some level of plot relevance.

I just wrote "Yuri gets pissed off at casual ableism towards him and becomes a staunch advocate against judgemental fucks" in the outline, and it took me way too long to remember what the actual plot point was. But yeah, the idea of Yuri accidentally becoming a slightly better person through sheer fury was so funny to me that I had to include it.

Shino's episode after waking up isn't necessarily supernatural—it's sleep paralysis and hypnopompic hallucinations, which come with narcolepsy. It's not directly stated because to her, it's nothing new. As for the fact that Ryo and Shino's conversation is repeated twice… well, it's because of the importance of perspective! :D Hope you enjoyed it. Shino's interlude intentionally acts as an answer to every other Fusion interlude that comes before it.

There are so many duels in this chapter… for reasons even I'm not aware of. Somehow it didn't occur to me that even OTKs would still need to be properly planned out and written. There was definitely a Yuri vs Dennis duel here way earlier in the planning, but in the end, I cut it because… hmm. Felt weird. I couldn't justify Dennis trusting Yuri enough to actually duel him right now.

I love how everyone can tell how done I am with the Obelisk Force at this point. Unless they're showing off a new monster or anything of note, I'm just skipping over their turns because I'm 90% sure that you all already know what happens there.

Eve's deck in the manga is cool, but using it here would require me to make far too many OC cards. Plus, I'm not sure how to make new cards for her, since her entire deck is just expies. So I went for the nuclear option of just throwing the most broken deck (at the time I made the story) at her instead. Plus, Tears have some interesting significance too :) I will confirm that Eve's backstory in this fic does not fully align with her manga story, though :) Her motivations, etc are not the same, for obvious reasons :) Tears are also one of my favourite decks aesthetic-wise—I fell in love with how they looked the first time that I saw them. Important thing to note though—don't expect me to go full meta, or complain if I don't write full meta strats. I know this fandom likes fics where a character stomps on every anime character with IRL TCG decks, but that's not what I'm interested in. I'm always interested in storytelling first.

Tania and Chronos vs Eve is definitely a sneak peek into the power curve of way later in the fic though. We're not there yet though.

Eve also paraphrases/directly quotes a few verses, which I managed to sneak in there :)

Anyway, that's the final "major" antagonist! Tbh, the trinity of Eve, Kisara and Shino in this fic is one of my favourite dynamics on Academia's side, and we'll get to see it in play eventually. Quite plainly, YGO needs more female villains, and I'll make my own female badass antagonists with their own goals if Arc-V won't give me any, thank you.

That's the end of the Synchro Arc! Can't believe I actually got here, tbh. Next chapter is the Q&A. I'll start working on it in two days, so you have until then to finish submitting. If you send them in late, they might show up. They might now. I'll see how I'm feeling :)

I'm feeling so happy about finishing this arc, actually. The QOTC for this chapter was also pretty easy to come up with :)

QOTC: Name some of your favourite moments in the arc! :) It's been a long year, huh? Can be duels, character interactions, lines, or even whole chapters! :) Just let me know what you liked the most.

Review responses!

To TheRealD3lph0xL0v3r, Pandor was made by Miharu. It's pretty much explained fully in the chapter itself. But no, to be clear, Pandor is not an Ignis. She and Roboppi are just normal AI that Miharu made.

To Unlucky-Fausto, yeah, whiplash is always a big problem :) I think we all knew that Yuno and Miharu were going to get together at some point, but I certainly wasn't going to wait for the final chapter to have them confess. Even I'd get tired of that :D I kind of have to give Makoto more screentime now, since he's the only love interest not accompanying them to the Xyz Arc :) Glad you enjoyed the fluff! And oh, PokeSpe! Oh, I used to be really into the Pokemon manga. Might get back to reading it again eventually.

To T.V. 2000, it's fine, I haven't started writing the Q&A chapter yet. For what Roboppi/Pandor end up doing in the plot, I guess you'll have to wait and see! Glad that you enjoyed the chapters.

To Erathios, to be fair, they've pretty much been pseudo-dating for a while, haha. But yeah, the 'robot kids' thing started as a joke and then I quickly realised that the two of them are two of the only characters who would be comfortable enough in their current relationship to make parent jokes about each other.

To naminexriku2468, thanks for the questions! :)

To kikuruhime, that is one of the funniest responses I've gotten, lmao. It's fine, my friend said the same thing about the two of them, and at least you're not creepy about it :)

To phantomdragons, mm, Mion and Reiji are a bit more slow-burn than most of the pairings in this fic. Honestly, the two of them have had a lot of interactions, but I think it's telling that they're the pairing, excluding Yuno/Miharu, that's had the most actual screentime, but that Reiji is only now able to actually say his feelings. And what do you mean, I would never hurt Miharu and Yuno, nope. Never. I've been very kind to them throughout this fic. :)

To cardfan135, glad you enjoyed! The song was written before I even wrote Chapter 1. I do think it's rather cute.

To MochiYoshi (who I assume is the unnamed guest), the two of them play a far greater role in the Link Arc, but bringing them early for some small, cute moments is great. They were always going to have to be brought into existence before that arc anyway.

Oh, and uh, this is last minute, but if you see this, toss in a top 10 favourite characters in the fic for me! :) Can be OCs, can be canon characters, just comment on their depiction in the fic.

All things considered, I want to take a moment to thank everyone for reading for so long. Six Dimensions is long, and I know how hard it is to get invested in longfics. Whether you've just been lurking, whether you've been reviewing all the time, whether you're one of the people who silently followed or favourited this fic (I see you! :)) I genuinely appreciate it. When I started the fic, quite frankly, I assumed that Arc-V was a dead and old fandom and that this fic would get like 100 reviews in total, max. And I was totally fine with that. But whether it's getting to talk to everyone, whether it's getting to see people be genuinely invested in all of these different characters and arcs that I set up... this fic has been one of the most consistent and best parts of my stressful year. Updates may slow down, or they might not! I'll definitely need some time to finish up my chapter by chapter outline, but I'm very ready for the next arc too. :) See you during the Q&A!