Yusei and his friends have suffered a personal loss and Sherry now has another "life" to protect. Divine's plan to conquer Neo Domino City, acquire Aki and Ruka, and eliminate Yusei moves forward. What is he up to? What can be done to stop him? A certain A.I. plans to get to the bottom of it.
Yugioh: The Hope of Six
Chapter 49: Arcadia Arc – Part 4
Divine sat in his private quarters, waiting patiently in front of his computer. He had just sent a quick message to each of his remaining Elite Psychics, informing them of an emergency meeting they needed to attend. So now he waited for them to make contact. However, he did not do so alone.
Sitting next to him was the young Salazar Arcadia, who had awakened just a couple of hours ago. After he had been given a proper meal and shower, and given some dry clothes, the boy looked nearly presentable. He now wore a pale white robe over a dark shirt and pants. His only abnormality was his burning red skin. He appeared to be nervous. "Mister Divine… why am I here?" He asked timidly.
Divine smiled down at the boy. "I want you to get acquainted with my top agents who will carry out the Arcadia Movement's noble mission. Trust me, they will show you the upmost respect you deserve. I mean, you are the reason we exist at all." The boy looked down and frowned, staring at his scarred hands.
"I didn't mean that. I meant why am I still living? The last thing I remember before waking up here was being… burned alive. How could I have possibly survived something like that?"
Divine inwardly sighed. "All I know is you were found in some kind of container that was keeping you alive. Any information pertaining to that was lost. It was a true miracle you remained among the living after enduring such an unjust attempt on your life." The man had to tell him something… even if it was a total lie. 'Salazar can never know how he came back to life by Lightning's hand. I am fully aware of his mental state, thanks to the records we have on his past. I'll have to watch him closely to make sure he doesn't "burn up".'
Salazar nodded. "I see." He then gave a small smile. "I still can't believe you and these other "Psychic Duelists" exist because of me. It's just hard to imagine that I'm the reason this is all possible." Divine gave a friendly chuckle.
"Well, my young friend, your legacy is one that lives to this day… literally. You were the first of our kind. You were the template for all us Psychic Duelists, including myself. The entire Arcadia Movement would not be here if it were not for your own abilities." Salazar nodded again but said no more. Just then, his monitor beeped and a message that said "Incoming Calls" flashed on the screen. He saw that 8 were calling in. "Ah, that would be them." Divine told the boy before he accepted the incoming calls.
One by one, portions of the monitor were filled by cloaked faces. 4 were on top and 4 were on the bottom. 7 of them appeared to be wearing different types of masks. "Master Divine." They all said in unison once they all appeared. Divine smiled at them.
"Greetings, my Elites. Thank you for answering my summons at such short notice. I have some… distressing news I must address to you all. But first…" Divine waves a hand to the boy. "Allow me to introduce someone extremely important. Everyone, this is none other than the great Salazar Arcadia himself." The Elites gasped as they noticed Salazar for the first time. They have all heard the name, but none of them had ever seen the boy due to lack of photographs from the history logs.
"The Salazar Arcadia?!" A female Elite wearing a child mask exclaimed in shock.
"But it can't be!" Shouted another Elite, who wore a mask resembling a dragon.
"He's alive?! How?! I thought he…!" A bug masked Elite began before Divine raised a hand to quiet them.
"I know what all of you are thinking, but trust me. This young man is very much the real deal. Me and my team of scientists had been working tirelessly to revive him once he was discovered to be alive, dormant for many years." He looked over at the boy, who seemed very surprised by their reactions. "He has been brought up to speed on current events and very soon… he will help us establish our claim for this world." Salazar wondered what his role in this will be. Divine only assured him that he would know when the time was right. Divine's gleeful expression vanished instantly. "However, one of our own won't be here for that glorious outcome."
"What do you mean, Master Divine?" Another female Elite asked, concern evident in her voice. She wore a mask that was mostly white with a smaller amount of black.
"I'm sure you have all heard by now about the stadium explosion last night?" The Elites all nodded, confirming they had known. Divine gave a deep sigh and rubbed his eyes before giving the bad news. "It saddens me to reveal that… Jordan was one of the casualties of that incident." All 8 remaining Elites gasped again, this time in a much more horrified tone.
"Jordan?! Dead!? No!" They all pretty much said. Divine allowed them to express their disbelief at his demise before he silenced them again.
"I do not wish to believe it either, but it is true. I was informed by his partner a few hours before I contacted you all. Apparently, it wasn't Yusei Fudo and Aki Izayoi he went after, but rather just a couple of imposters. Jordan tried to eliminate them with the explosives he had set up, but he only managed to take a friend of theirs with him. The imposters escaped." The Elites all fell quiet, allowing the news to sink in.
"Damn those underhanded Signers! This outrage will not be overlooked! They will die for this!" A very angry male Elite who wore a monstrous red mask boldly declared.
"I would very much like to punish them myself! The power of my light's judgement shall be their end!" The only unmasked Elite, a blonde man with bright blue eyes, self righteously declared.
Salazar felt a little anger himself. He heard of the Signers and their role in destroying the organization that was named after him and what it stood for. 'They had no right to attack us, to try to eliminate us. I hope they all get what they deserve… especially their heartless leader, Yusei Fudo.'
Divine nodded in agreement. "Yes. I share your anger my friends. I will have Jordan's partner arrange a little "payback" to avenge him pretty soon. Still, let me remind you that we do not aim to kill all the Signers." His troops all nodded.
"The Black Rose Witch and the little girl." Said an Elite who wore a skull mask. He said it in a hauntingly low voice.
"Yes. I trust that you will handle the part to bring in Ruka?" Divine asked the white masked Elite, who nodded.
"Yes, Master. I will not fail you. With my power, she will have no choice but to come to us." She said in a sweet, serene voice. Divine smiled.
"Good. I have the same feeling when I finally convince Aki to rejoin the Arcadia Movement. Are the rest of you still in place for your roles in the plan?" The others nodded again. Divine's smile widened. "Excellent. Stay sharp and alert. Do your parts with determination and show no mercy. Tonight, after night falls… all of Neo Domino City will know our pain and fury."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
"Thank you all for coming. We have much to discuss." Mikage said. Standing before her and Ushio were all 6 Signers along with Yugo, Rin, Kiryu, and Sherry. Windy was there as well, hidden within Yugo's Duel Disk. The two detectives were the only ones unaware of the Wind Ignis' presence. "I'm glad none of your D-Wheels or D-Boards lost power on the way like Kiryu's and Sherry's did."
"Our connection to the Crimson Dragon kept them working during Z-One's attempt to destroy the city. We had no worries about that now. If Jordan's mystery partner tried to crash us, they wouldn't have been successful." Crow said.
"Kiryu and Sherry rode with me and Aki so it wouldn't happen to them again." Yusei said as he glanced at the couple.
"What about you two?" Ushio asked Yugo and Rin. "You're not Signers, but you rode your D-Wheels just fine. Weren't you guys worried about crashing?"
"We were, but Yusei asked us to ride next to him and Aki on the way here." Yugo said.
"That way, if our own D-Wheels start to lose power, we would immediately jump off and onto their D-Wheels before we crashed." Rin finished.
"Thankfully, that didn't happen." Aki said.
"That's good." Mikage said before turning to Sherry. She still felt very sorry for her. She saw that the blonde still did not look okay after the events of last night. "Sherry… Are you sure you want to be here? You're not feeling well, aren't you?"
"I'm fine." Sherry responded in an unexpectedly cold tone, making Mikage flinch. She wisely decided to drop the matter and move on.
"V-Very well." She said before having Ushio addressed the whole group.
"As you guys are aware, Divine escaped from prison last month and has not shown up anywhere on our radar. Last night, a Psychic Duelist named Jordan was sent by Divine to strike at Yusei and Aki. That did not go as planned since it was actually Kiryu and Sherry that he encountered. This led to a Duel between Jordan and Mizoguchi. Of course, we know what happened afterward." Mikage saw Sherry turned away and shut her eyes. After a moment, Ushio turned to his partner. "Mikage managed to dig up some intel on others like Jordan. We felt it would be prudent to fill you guys in." Mikage picked up from there.
"I was going through all the info we recovered from the Arcadia Movement's destruction a while back to find any possible leads. A file on Jordan was discovered in the organization's archives." Mikage then showed said file on a video screen on a wall behind her and Ushio.
"That's Jordan alright." Aki confirmed. Sherry's fist tightened when she saw the ugly mug of Mizoguchi's killer.
"I've got a question." Yugo pipped in. "Why would Jordan blow up the stadium in the first place? It seemed like major overkill just to get rid of Kiryu and Sherry if you ask me."
"You're right. That's a really good question, Yugo. We still haven't figured that out yet." Mikage answered.
"But to destroy the whole place within a matter of minutes?" Rin asked incredulously.
"Whatever was used had to have been put in place long before then for it to work. It could've been part of a much bigger operation." Ushio surmised.
"I'm afraid you might be right." Mikage added before continuing. "When I discovered Jordan's information, I found files that had something in common with him." Several more profiles were added to Jordan's. Each of them wore dark cloaks, but only 2 of their faces could clearly be seen… including Aki's. The others wore different masks. Mikage then looked straight at the former Arcadia Movement Duelist. "Aki… do you know these individuals?" Aki nodded.
"I do. They, along with myself, were Divine's top Duelists in the Arcadia Movement. Each of us Elite Psychics were given not only those cloaks to set us apart from the other members, but also our own code names. Those code names reflect our personalities and Dueling styles. As you know, I was known as "Black Rose Witch"." She said, her face saddened by her memories she spent operating with that persona.
""Jordan" doesn't sound like an intimidating code name to me." Yugo said. Aki shook her head.
"He was a sports fanatic, and was a big fan of a certain basketball player. He got his code name from that person."
"What was his real name?" Ushio asked.
"Actually, that was a coincidence. His real and code names were the same. He and another Elite, Michael, share that trait." Aki then pointed to the top middle profile, which showed a handsome man with long blonde hair and wearing a white tunic under his cloak. "As for Michael himself, he is considered to be the best of all the Elites. His massive superiority complex is a result of his high dueling skills and his own Psychic power to blind others with his "Holy Light"."
"Holy Light?" Jack asked.
"That's what he calls it. The others' code names are far more… distinctive." Aki said.
"Who are the others, and why are they wearing masks?" Crow asked, noticing each of the unidentified Elites wore a mask of different designs.
"The masks are symbolic to their own unique powers. It isn't mandatory to wear one, though. It's a preference." Aki said.
"Like the mask you wore the first time we met." Yusei said, remembering his first encounter with Aki. It had not been a pleasant time for either one. His girlfriend nodded.
Aki then explained each masked Elite as she pointed at their profiles.
"The one with the green bug mask is called Stinger. His Psychic ability is mental command over nearby insects. He is also known to have a sick sense of humor. He once pulled a nasty prank on an innocent child with a swarm of hornets just because he didn't like how happy he looked."
"What a bastard!" Yugo said strongly. They all agreed. Aki moved on.
"Blizzard is the one with the blue ice mask. Her heart is as icy as her power over cold."
"Chilling." Rin said with a slight shiver.
"The man with the yellow dragon mask is Unidrac. His specialty is causing wind storms. The intensity depends on the mood he's in. If angry enough, he could conjure a cyclone that would level any structure no matter how fortified it may be."
"That guy sounds like he could be a problem if he gets pissed off." Crow said.
"It is true; he has a real short temper." Aki said before continuing. "The Elite wearing the mask of swirling white and light black is called Yang. She's particularly dangerous because of her ability to see into and manipulate a person's heart. She can make you extremely compliant without much effort. It will take someone of great will power to resist her influence."
'I hope Rua and I don't bump into that Elite.' Ruka thought, dreading that possibility.
"Dorothy is the one with the mask of a little girl. She's the least mature of them all, but no less of a threat. She can predict what your next move will be before you can even think it."
"She can see the future?" Ushio asked. Aki nodded again.
"Yes, but only a little. It is enough for her, though. This ability gives her an enormous advantage in her Duels. After her is Skeleton Knight, who wears the black skull mask. He is obsessed with anything involving death and the underworld. His Psychic ability is to read a person's mind to see their thoughts. In Duels, it would allow him to see what cards you hold and come up with an effective counter strategy."
"Sounds like a real pain." Sherry said with disdain.
"It is. Be prepared if you cross paths with him." Aki warned as she brought up the final Elite. "The last one is Warlord, who wears the mask of a red demon. He is the most aggressive and battle hungry out of all of them. His power is to create shockwaves that can shatter a person's bones like glass. He does this when he feels particularly murderous."
"Nice guy to chat with." Kiryu said sarcastically.
Yusei wearily eyed each of Aki's former associates. 'Each of them is an enemy to the people of this city. The possibility of us confronting them is very high, especially after they just lost one of their own. We need to be cautious.'
"Have you ever seen these people without their masks on?" Mikage asked. Aki shook her head.
"No, I haven't. Every time I meet up with one or more of them, they always wore their masks. I only assume they take them off when they are alone."
"Any idea where Divine and his bunch are hiding?" Yugo asked. Both detectives shook their heads.
"Not yet." Ushio answered.
"The Arcadia Movement's former HQ is still in ruins. No one has been seen around there lately. It is unlikely Divine and his people would return to a place that was already compromised." Mikage explained.
"Then where could they be?" Rin wondered.
Just then, an officer came bursting into the briefing room. He looked alarmed. "Detectives! I'm sorry for the interruption, but there's something on the news you need to see now!"
"What is it?" Ushio demanded. The officer gritted his teeth.
"It's talking about… multiple accidents throughout the city! It's terrible!" Everyone gasped.
"Accidents?!" Rua said with great worry.
"Is anyone hurt?" Yusei asked.
"More than a few people from what I heard…" The officer replied.
"Thanks for letting us know. We'll switch on the news in here." Mikage said calmly to the officer before he left. After he was gone, Mikage used a remote to switch the monitor to show the current news channel. A young woman with long blonde hair with two large bangs in the front was shown talking into her mic.
"This is Angela of the Daily Duel, reporting live from downtown Neo Domino City. Less than 30 minutes ago, multiple car accidents had occurred throughout the entire metropolis. Here are a few examples." The group stared in shock as many vehicles had smashed into other cars or lamp posts. One had actually caught fire after impacting with a huge tractor trailer, which had toppled over and flatted two other cars that napped to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. "No deaths were confirmed, but many have been injured. I've learned from some of the victims that their transportations had suddenly went dead, without warning. There was no power for the cars or other bikes to function with. Rescue teams had been dispatched, but they had to do so on foot due to their ambulances not working either. From what I gathered, only the vehicles had lost power. The rest of the city was unaffected. We currently have no explanation for this. The last time something like this happened was when the terrorist, Z-One, tried to annihilate Neo Domino City. Could another force be behind this? If so, who? And why? I will bring you more details as they become available. For now, keep off the streets and stay safe. I am Angela of the Daily Duel. Thanks for watching and listening." The screen then switched to an update on the weather right before Mikage had shut it off.
Yusei and the group stood aghast of the situation. "Not again." Sherry muttered angrily.
"So many people have been hurt. Why?" Ruka asked in a distressed voice.
"It has to be Jordan's partner. He's the one causing this, just like he did with me and Sherry." Kiryu said, cursing the one responsible.
"He must be getting revenge for Jordan's death." Ushio guessed.
"But who is this sick bastard?! Is it one of the remaining Elites?!" Jack asked vehemently.
"I don't think so, Jack. In all the times I spent with them, not one of the other Elites had mentioned anything about Jordan having a "partner" that could do something like this." Aki replied.
"Maybe Jordan met this whack job while he was hiding after the Arcadia Movement fell." Crow guessed.
"It would take someone with incredible hacking skills to pull off this kind of disaster and not get caught." Yusei said.
"So how do we find him?" Rua asked, more worried than ever about the current situation.
"I will."
Everyone in the room froze.
"Who just said that?!" A stunned Mikage demanded while looking around. She knew that whoever the voice belonged to, it wasn't anyone they could see.
"Is someone hiding in here? How could we have not noticed?" Ushio asked, frantically scanning the room. The duo noticed that Yugo held up his Duel Disk, surprise and worry on his face as he stared at it. Yusei and his group looked the same way. 'Wait… why are they looking at that Duel Disk?'
"Yugo, place me on the desk, right next to the computer." The voice instructed.
"Are you… sure about this?" Asked the boy.
"I am sure." The voice replied.
After a second of hesitation, Yugo began walking toward the desk.
"Hey! Hold up!" A very confused and concerned Ushio demanded.
"What is going on?!" Mikage said, not liking any unexpected visitors in their work place.
"It's alright. You will know in a bit." Yusei told them calmly. Although clueless, the detectives chose to wait. They watched Yugo approach the desk and set his Disk down alongside the computer. When Yugo backed away, the green form of Windy arose. Mikage and Ushio gasped in total shock.
"What the hell is that?!" Ushio asked while freaking out.
"I've never seen anything like it!" Mikage exclaimed. The Wind Ignis then introduced himself.
"Hello detectives. My name is Windy. I am an advanced A.I. and a friend to Yusei and his companions."
"An artificial intelligence?" Mikage asked in wonder.
"Indeed. More importantly, I intend to help resolve this unpleasant matter." Windy said.
"What do you mean?" Mikage asked. Windy narrowed his purple eyes.
"I will personally track down Jordan's partner and put a stop to the chaos he just created." He declared.
"Track him down? How?" Ushio asked. Windy looked placed a hand on the computer beside him.
"I will upload myself into your city's internal network and search for the hacking codes used to cause havoc with the vehicles' power. Once I locate the source of the hack, I will shut him down."
"Can you really do that? What if this guy has strong computer defenses?" Rin asked.
"I doubt anyone in this world could have tech that something like me can't break into." Windy said confidently. "Let me do this, please… for Mizoguchi." 'And… for him too.' The Wind Ignis thought, recalling the car accident that took his partner's life… the accident Windy himself has caused.
"Can he really do that?" Ushio asked his partner, who shrugged.
"Maybe. He sure sounds like he can."
"I believe in Windy." Yusei told them.
"We all do. Right guys?" Yugo asked everyone around him. After glancing at one another, they all nodded. Yugo smirked. "Guess it's unanimous."
"Be careful Windy. Stay safe." Rin said to the A.I.. Windy gave them all a thumbs up.
"No worries guys. I'll be back soon." With that assurance, Windy turned into green data bits as he uploaded himself into the network.
"Good luck Windy." Sherry said softly, praying he would keep his word and stop this madness.
Mikage and Ushio then turned to Yusei and the others. "Okay. Someone please explain how this "A.I." thing came about? I'm confused as hell." Ushio said while scratching his head.
"As am I." Mikage added.
"I'll explain." Yusei volunteered before he dived into the story of the Ignis and how Windy came to be here.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
"This place has a different feel than LINK VRAINS does." Windy said to himself as he traveled through Neo Domino's network. Everywhere he looked he didn't see any digitized cities, forests, rivers, or even a blue sky. Instead, all there was were hundreds, if not thousands, of giant silver and grey towers of various sizes and shapes with lines of blue lights zigzagging in different directions. The towers stretched as far as the eye could see. "Everything here is so… empty. Lifeless. I sure do miss Cyberse World." He hoped he would see his true home again soon and reunite with Ray and the other Ignis.
The Wind Ignis searched the network for any signs of outside interference. After flying around for a bit near the top of the towers, he spotted something. A trail of red light was poring into one of the tallest towers from above. Windy went closer to investigate. He saw that the spot where the red light was entering had a blackened outline around it, like some kind of infection. He may be new to this more primitive network, but Windy felt this was something that shouldn't be here.
Windy placed a hand on one of the blue lights on that tower and immediately saw images of cars and other vehicles, including D-Wheels, currently shut down. He then, cautiously, touched the red light. Windy recoiled; he felt like his hand just got burned, although it didn't appear damaged. "That sure felt unpleasant." He said out loud. "No doubt about it. This has to be connected to the hacking that Jordan's partner is causing." Positive he was on the right track, Windy flew upward, following the red light back it's source.
While following the trail, Windy saw that the red light had split off in several directions and infected other towers. He guessed those towers operated other functions in the real world. He dreaded what else was going haywire. He had to find the source and stop it before anyone else got hurt… or worse.
Windy closed his eyes for a moment, remembering his original partner. 'Soyokaze Arashi… It was my fault you didn't get to live your life. I am more sorry than I can ever say. I promise you… I will not let anymore innocent humans suffer the same fate as you.' This motivated Windy to pursue his goal with more determination than ever. He flew up higher and higher until he finally found the source of the hacking codes.
It was a red sphere the size of a blimp. The trail Windy had followed originated from right beneath the sphere. He couldn't see inside it, but he did see a moving figure within. Windy didn't dare touch it directly, knowing he might feel that painful sensation again. Instead, he conjured up a Data Storm, focused it into a spear, and prepared to launch it at the sphere…
Inside the red sphere was what appeared to be a work station of some sort. There were over a dozen monitors showing various locations throughout Neo Domino City. Every single one displayed car accidents, some more serious than others. Beneath the central monitor was a control console and someone sitting in a chair operating that console. It was a boy who looked to be 10 years old, had hazel eyes and long black hair. He wore a white t-shirt showing a black racing car, red shorts and a red cap with a golden trophy on it. He was grinning and snickering.
"Oh yeah! Check that out! Cars and D-Wheels crashing left, right, and center! Master Divine will definitely get a kick out of this! Take that Signers! That's what you get for screwing with my partner and the Arcadia Movement! Hahaha!" The boy enjoyed every second of the chaos he created. This was one of those times he could cut loose and just be himself.
Whenever he talked to Divine or any of the Elites, he modified his voice to sound more "grown up" as he would put it and spoke in a logical manner like some old computer voice. Just like before when he informed the Arcadia Movement leader of Jordan's death. To be honest, it felt boring for him to talk that way. Still, he didn't want to give others the impression that they were talking to a child. Only Jordan knew of his true self. He could always act like himself around the sports nut. But when news of his death became known, the boy felt more than a little upset and wanted to deliver some major payback. He felt he got that now.
"This is for you, Jordan. Very soon, everyone will know not to mess with the Arcadia…" His sentence was interrupted by an explosion that violently shook his work station. The boy nearly fell out of his chair. "What was that?!"
The impact caused a huge breach outside. With the opening he needed, Windy glided inside with ease.
The moment the Wind Ignis broke in, the boy jumped out of his chair and turned around. He looked incredibly shocked. "Hey! What's going on here?! I've completely hidden myself! No one was supposed to find me! What the heck are you?!"
Windy was just as surprised by the boy's appearance. "I was about to ask you the very same question. You are the hacker that has been causing all the crashes that have taken place just now, aren't you?" The boy sneered but did not answer. Windy took this as a confirmation. He narrowed his eyes on the boy, as well as all the monitors behind him. "You are an A.I. What is your name? Who created you?" The boy's widened into saucers.
"H-Hold on! You got it all wrong! I'm a human boy! I never said anything about being an A.I.!" He shouted, denying the claim. Windy wasn't fooled.
"The hacking codes I discovered led me here, and the trail goes no further. If someone was conducting the hacks from another computer terminal in the real world, I would certainly have found another path that would lead me to the source. Instead, I found you at the end of the road. I know this because I too am an A.I.."
"YOU'RE an A.I.?!" The boy exclaimed in shock. He had never seen an artificial intelligence like the one before him. Windy nodded.
"Yes. I am Windy and Dr. Kiyoshi Kogami was my creator. I was created to help humanity. You, on the other hand, seem to be made to do the opposite." Windy tightened had his fists. "It was also you that caused Kiryu Kyosuke and Sherry LeBlanc to crash last night. You and Jordan had been working together the whole time. You… were his partner." These were all statements, not questions. The boy did not confirm any of it, but he didn't deny them either. "Let me ask again: What is your name and the name of your creator?"
The boy shook with anger. 'I can't believe I've been found out when it shouldn't have been possible! I'm not letting that guy get away with this! I was nearly finished getting ready my operation for Master Divine! I can't let anyone or anything stop me!' The boy knew he had to eliminate this one obstacle before anything else happened. "I am Racer and that's all you're getting from me! I've got plans and no one's gonna get in my way, not even you! Coming after me was a huge mistake! You're going to regret it!" He then materialized a red and black Duel Disk on his right arm and stood ready.
"I see. You want to settle this with a Duel?" Windy asked.
"Heck yeah! Can you duel?" The younger A.I. asked.
"I can." The Wind Ignis brought out his own Duel Disk and stood ready as well. "If I win, you will surrender and cease your senseless acts of violence." Racer grinned maliciously.
"I'm not gonna lose! I've been programmed with a really good Deck! You can't beat it! You can't beat me!" Racer declared, confident he can take down the intruder. "And when I win, you'll be deleted on the spot!"
"I disagree with your premature claim. I am not as weak as you believe." Windy warned before their battle started.
"DUEL!"
(Windy: 4000) (Racer: 4000)
"I'm going through the starting line first! My turn! Draw!" Racer declared, making the first move. "I play Graceful Charity, which let's me draw 3 cards before discarding 2! After that, I Summon Formula Athlete Sonic Meister!" (WIND; Level 4; ATK: 0; DEF: 1000) A grey race car with patches of dark red and blue, a tail fin the back, and two large engines on each side appeared.
"No Attack Points?" Windy noticed. He figured it must have some Effect to take care of that. He was right.
"My Monster may have no power, but it's not staying that way!" Racer informed him. "Like all of my "Formula Athlete" Monsters, it gains Attack Points equal to it's Level times 300! Since it is Level 4, Sonic Meister's Attack Power becomes 1200!"
(4 x 300 = 1200)
(Formula Athlete Sonic Meister's ATK: 1200)
'That Effect could be a problem if the Level of it or any other Monster of his gets too high.' Windy thought cautiously.
"With that done, I Set a card facedown and end my turn. You're up, Wind Bag!" Racer insulted, hoping to get an angry retort. Windy didn't take the bait.
"Using insults in such a childish manner shows you were not programmed with maturity, along with your malicious nature." He replied coolly. Racer scowled.
"Shut up! Get your turn over with so I can kick your butt!" He yelled.
"Very well. My turn! Draw!" Even though this was a serious battle he was in, Windy felt this was the perfect time to try out his new WIND Cyberse Deck. 'My previous Stormrider Deck was more aggressive, which suited my corrupted self. Now I have something made more compatible to my true nature. I just need to play my cards just right if I am to win this.' Windy then proceeded with his first turn. "I will begin by Summoning Air Defender!" (WIND; Level 3; ATK: 1300; DEF: 1500) A young armored boy with a green tunic underneath appeared. It was holding a bow and a quiver of arrows. Racer snorted.
"Pathetic! Archers are nothing compared to what I have! Quick-Play Magic, Formula Athlete Shakedown! This allows me to change the battle position of a "Formula Athlete" Monster I control and destroy 1 card on the Field! I'm switching my Sonic Meister into Defense Mode and getting rid of your weak arrow guy!" Windy watched as his Monster was blown to pieces. This didn't bother him, though.
"By destroying it, you have triggered Air Defender's Monster Effect! Since it was destroyed by a card effect, I can Special Summon 2 more copies of Air Defender from my Deck in Defense Mode!" Two Monsters identical to his first materialized before Windy on one knew each.
"Like that'll matter!" Racer remarked rudely. "My Sonic Meister has another Effect! Each time a "Formula Athlete" Magic or Trap card or Effect is activated, I can have my cool car gain another Level and more Attack Points!"
(Level: 4 + 1 = 5)
(Formula Athlete Sonic Meister's ATK: 1200 + 300 = 1500)
'Another issue I need to remember.' Windy thought to himself. "I Set 2 cards facedown and end my turn."
"You couldn't do much on your first turn, could you? Well I'm about to speed things up big time! My turn! Draw!" Racer grinned widely. He was going to enjoy this. "Every race car driver has a helper on the sidelines, and here's mine! I Summon my Tuner Monster, Formula Athlete Car Navigator!" (WIND; Level 1; ATK: 0; DEF: 0) Standing next to Racer's first Monster was a little digital girl with light blue and green hair wearing a pink dress. She also held a big blue umbrella over her head. "When Car Navigator is Normal or Special Summoned, I can add a "Formula Athlete" Field Magic card from my Deck to my hand! I'm taking Formula Athlete City Grand Prix! Now I play a Continuous Magic card called Formula Athlete Winners! You'll know what this does before long!"
'What could that do?' Windy wondered. He had an ominous feeling the word "Winners" was in the card's name for a reason…
"This card can't be destroyed by my opponent's card effects while I control at least 1 "Formula Athlete" Monster! Also, as you know already, Sonic Meister gets a boost because I played a "Formula Athlete" Magic card!" Racer reminded his opponent.
(Level: 5 + 1 = 6)
(Formula Athlete Sonic Meister's ATK: 1500 + 300 = 1800)
'He must be planning to do it now.' Windy predicted… and he predicted correctly.
"Time for me to bring out the big wheels! I am Tuning my now Level 6 Formula Athlete Sonic Meister with my Level 1 Formula Athlete Car Navigator! Machine of unsurpassable speed! Race forward and leave all your rivals in the dust! Synchro Summon! Drive! Formula Athlete Lightning Master!" (LIGHT; Level 7; ATK: 0; DEF: 2000) What appeared to be upgraded form of Sonic Meister appeared in the place of both Monsters. It was white and green with 5 additional engines just beneath it's rear tail fin.
Windy flinched and stiffened from hearing the new Monster's name. 'Lightning…' He hated the sound of his old leaders name. To think it would come from a Monster he was now facing. Racer seemed to be have noticed Windy's reaction.
"What's up with you? Not fan of my Ace Monster? Scared of him?" He taunted. Windy didn't respond. He instead instinctively thought back to the day he and his fellow Ignis woke up and met Ray…
Flashback:
"You don't have to worry about being hunted anymore. Everyone thinks you all died with Lightning and Bohman. You guys will be safe here with me." Ray assured them.
"That is a relief to know that." Aqua said.
"But what about Playmaker, Soulburner, and Blue Maiden? Shouldn't they know?" Flame asked. He wanted more than anything to let his partner know he and the other Ignis were alright. Ray shook her head.
"Playmaker will be told soon. I have no doubt he will keep our secret. However, we can't tell the others. I'm sorry Flame. Revolver and the Knights of Hanoi are currently monitoring LINK VRAINS. Any activity conducted by you guys would surly be picked up by them. You need to remain here, where you will be safe… and not make contact with anyone." Flame sighed, looking dejected.
"That is a wise decision." Earth said.
"What about Ai? Will he be okay?" Windy asked. He and the others were also told about Ai's current situation. They were not happy to learn what Lightning had put him through in their absence. Ray sighed.
"There is nothing we can do. Ai insisted on being by himself in his territory. He wants to get through it in his own way." Flame growled.
"Damn him. Personally, I think Lightning got off too easy. Still, I'm glad he is gone for good. He caused so much pain and suffering for everyone, especially us." Flame said, still pissed about his former leader's actions.
"Agreed. I'm also pleased to be my old self again. Still..." Windy said before turning to Flame. "Flame, I'm sorry for how I hurt you and Soulburner. My actions were… inexcusable." He lowered his head in shame. Flame shook his head.
"You were not yourself at the time. You did do some bad things, but I blame Lightning for all that."
"You were reprogrammed against your will. I do not judge you for that." Earth said.
"What is important is that you are who you're supposed to be." Aqua added. Windy shook his head.
"I… I killed my human partner." He said miserably. "He didn't deserve that fate. I feel so… disgusted, violated, and ashamed. I don't know if I can ever forgive myself for that…"
"I'm sure your partner would forgive you." Ray said gently, petting the Wind Ignis's head. "Just as your friends forgive you, Windy… and so do I." Windy was so overcome with emotion that he broke down and cried. The other Ignis and Ray comforted him as he wept. He really was grateful for their support and promised himself he would do better in the future.
Flashback End
'Ray and the others forgave me and gave me support. I don't want to disappoint them. I won't!' Windy promised himself he would do all he could to make up for all the wrongs he did in the past. His next step was taking down Racer. "No, it does not."
"You won't say that after this! Lightning Master also gains Attack Points based on it's Level! Being Level 7, it has an Attack Power of 2100!"
(7 x 300 = 2100)
(Formula Athlete Lightning Master's ATK: 2100)
"I do not fear anything you throw at me." He bravely declared. Racer smirked.
"How about this? My Synchro Monster has a dark counterpart, and I'm bringing it out now! Since I have a Level 7 "Formula Athlete" Monster on my Field and there are no other copies of that counterpart in my Monster Zones, I can Special Summon it from my hand! Destroy all your rivals! Formula Athlete Darkness Master!" (DARK; Level 7; ATK: 0; DEF: 2000) A heavy duty black and purple race car emerged next to it's longer self. It resembled Lightning Master in that it also had 7 engines, but the front fender looked like it was made to tear apart anything it ran into. "I think you know what happens next regarding it's Attack Points!" Racer said just before Darkness Master gained 2100 Attack Points due to it being Level 7 as well.
"Light and Dark…" Windy muttered to himself, seeing how different they were.
"Next I play Tannhauser Gate! When I control 2 face-up Monsters, this Magic card changes the Levels of both Monsters into the combined total of their Levels! Both of my Monsters are Level 7, and 7 plus 7 equals…"
"14." Windy finished. "That means…"
"Right! With both my Monsters' Levels doubled, their Attack Power also doubles!" Racer said with a laugh as his race car Monsters' power sky rocket.
(Level: 7 + 7 = 14)
(14 x 300 = 4200)
(Formula Athlete Lightning Master's ATK: 4200)
(Formula Athlete Darkness Master's ATK: 4200)
"Just as I feared." Windy admitted softly.
"It's about to get even worse for you! I activate the Effect of Darkness Master! Once per turn, I can target and destroy a card on the Field by reducing it's Level by 3! I'm blasting away one of your facedown cards! Dark Burst!" A dark purple energy beam struck and disintegrated Windy's unknown card.
(Level: 14 - 3 = 11)
(Formula Athlete Darkness Master's ATK: 4200 - 900 = 3300)
"That's a pesky Effect." Windy said with slight annoyance.
"Next, I play my Field card, Formula Athlete City Grand Prix!" With his card active, the surroundings changed to become an oval race track with holographic see through buildings around them. Also, invisible spectators could be heard cheering for Racer. "Listen to them! They just love me, don't they?" Racer said arrogantly before moving on. "But here's the important thing! My City Grand Prix increases the Levels of all "Formula Athlete" Monsters on the Field by 2 during the Main Phase and Battle Phase! It also protects my "Formula Athlete" Monsters from being targeted by your card effects!"
'Tch. His advantages just keep growing.' Windy noted with an inner sigh. 'He's trying so hard to not give me an inch. Still, I better not let him get to me. No matter how tight his strategy is, I will find a hole and take advantage of it. I just need to hang on and wait for the right moment to strike back.'
"Along with my Field card's effect, Lightning Master and Darkness Master each can get another Level via their own Effects! That's 3 total!" Racer said while laughing.
(Level: 14 + 3 = 17)
(Formula Athlete Lightning Master's ATK: 4200 + 900 = 5100)
(Level: 11 + 3 = 14)
(Formula Athlete Darkness Master's ATK: 3300 + 900 = 4200)
"They just keep getting stronger and stronger…" Windy said.
"And they will continue to grow stronger so that you can't ever beat them! Now for some real action! Battle! Formula Athlete Lightning Master, attack one of those Air Defenders! Blazing Thrust!" The white car fired up it's engines and burned rubber as it rode toward Windy's Monster. "If you think you're safe cause your little archer is in Defense Mode, think again! When Lightning Master destroys a Defense Mode Monster by battle, the difference is dealt to you as damage!"
"Not as much as you would expect! I banish the Air Support Trap card you just destroyed with your other Monster's Effect! It doubles the Defense Points of two "Air" Monsters I control!"
(Air Defender's DEF: 1500 x 2 = 3000)
"That's still not enough to stop me!" Racer declared before his Ace Monster sideswiped Windy, knocking him off his feet.
(5100 - 3000 = 2100)
(Windy: 4000 - 2100 = 1900)
"Uh… that did sting a bit." The Wind Ignis muttered as he got up again.
Racer laughed at Windy's struggling. "Trust me, it's just the beginning! Now I can activate the Effect of Formula Athlete Winners! Once per turn, when a "Formula Athlete" Monster I control whose Level is at least 5 higher than it's original Level battles my opponent's Monster and inflicts battle damage, I can banish a card from my hand, Field, or Graveyard! My Lightning Master is at Level 17, which is more than enough to do the job! With this, I banish Formula Athlete Circuit Grand Prix from my Graveyard!"
'That had to have been one of the cards he discarded at the start of the Duel.' Windy surmised. He also noticed a golden trophy had appeared on the upper left hand corner of Racer's Winners card. He pondered on what that meant before his thoughts were interrupted.
"And don't forget about my Monsters' own Effects! Since I used the Effect of a "Formula Athlete" Magic card, they both get another Level!"
(Level: 17 + 1 = 18)
(Formula Athlete Lightning Master's ATK: 5100 + 300 = 5400)
(Level: 14 + 1 = 15)
(Formula Athlete Darkness Master's ATK: 4200 + 300 = 4500)
"That's enough for now. I Set my last card facedown and end my turn. With that done, my Field card's Level increase Effect wears off and my top cars go down a couple of Levels." Racer said, making Lightning Master's Level and Attack Points drop to 16 and 4800 respectively, with Darkness Master's Level and Attack Points drop to 13 and 3900.
"My turn! Draw!" Windy knew he had to strengthen his defenses to last long enough to make his comeback move.
"My Field card's Effect activates once more!" Racer confirmed, his Monsters grown back to their previous Levels of 18 and 15 and Attack Powers of 5400 and 4500.
"Moving on." Windy said, not being bothered by his disadvantages. "I Summon Air Noble! (WIND; Level 3; ATK 1000; DEF: 500) A man in a light green shroud appeared next to his fellow Monster. "I activate the Effect of Air Noble! Because it was Normal Summoned, I can draw cards equal to the number of "Air" cards on my Field and in my Graveyard! I count 3, so I draw 3 cards!" Windy was pleased with the results of his draw. "Since I control an "Air" Monster, I can Special Summon Air Priestess in Defense Mode!" (WIND; Level 6; ATK: 1400; DEF: 3000) A young woman wearing an ornate green tunic and headband knelt between the other two Monsters. "Special Summoning Air Priestess also switches an Attack Mode "Air" Monster I control into Defense Mode, such as Air Noble! I believe that will suffice. I end my turn." 'I almost have everything I need. I just need to not lose before my next turn.' City Grand Prix also ended it's Effect on Racer's Monsters.
Racer scoffed. "Still playing defense, are you? You can't expect to win like that!"
"I know what I'm doing." Windy replied calmly.
"So am I! My turn! Draw!" After entering his Main Phase, Racer's Monsters got their boost once more from his Field card. "Here I come again! Battle! Formula Athlete Lightning Master, attack Air Priestess!" The lighter vehicle rolled forward toward it's new target and plowed into it head on… only to be bounced back. "What the…?"
"Air Priestess can't be destroyed by battle since I control at least one other "Air" Monster! Moreover, since it is being attacked while I have other "Air" Monsters, the damage I take is only 200 points per Monster! With the 2 I have in play, the amount of damage I take is 400!"
(Windy: 1900 - 400 = 1500)
Windy was surprised to see Racer grinning like mad again. "It doesn't matter to me if you took less damage then you should have! You still suffered damage from my Monster's attack, which means Formula Athlete Winners' Effect activates again! This time, I'm banishing Formula Athlete Off-Road Grand Prix from my hand!" A second trophy appeared on Racer's Magic card, right next to the first one. 'Only one more to go…' Racer thought excitedly. "With my card's Effect activation, I think I'll let my Monsters gain another Level each!"
(Level: 18 + 1 = 19)
(Formula Athlete Lightning Master's ATK: 5400 + 300 = 5700)
(Level: 15 + 1 = 16)
(Formula Athlete Darkness Master's ATK: 4500 + 300 = 4800)
'Both his Monsters are nearly at Level 20. Truly unprecedented.' Windy thought.
"That's all for this round, so I'll end my turn now. I hope you got all your affairs in order, Wind Pipe, cause I'm going to win on my next turn! Then I'll scatter your digital remains across the net!" Racer laughed like the mad child he appeared to be. As his turned ended, his Monsters' Levels fell down to 17 and 14, while their Attack Points dropped to 5100 and 4200.
'Racer doesn't act like he wants to try to deplete my Life Points. He seems more focused on simply damaging me.' Windy looked over at Racer's Winners Magic card again. 'He banished 2 Field Magic cards with that Effect. Two trophies are displayed on top of that card like tokens, one for each banished card. Why only the Field cards? There appears to be room for one more. He also said he would win on his next turn…' The Wind Ignis' eyes widened greatly as he now stared at Racer's Field card currently in play. 'Wait! That must be it! If my assumption is correct, then I cannot allow Formula Athlete Winners to activate it's Effect a third time!'
"What's the hold up? Get your next turn done already!" Racer demanded impatiently.
"Very well. My turn! Draw!" Windy inwardly smiled. 'This should do the trick.' "I Set 1 card facedown and end my turn." Windy believed he would last another turn at least.
"Heh. That was quicker than I thought, but so what? It means the time has come for me to turn you into a green pile of roadkill! My turn! Draw!" Once more, his Monsters got stronger by City Grand Prix's Effect. "You ready to lose this race, Dirt Wind? I'm crossing the finishing line now! Bat…!"
"I don't think so! Continuous Trap open, Gravity Bind! All Level 4 and higher Monsters on the Field cannot attack! Since my Trap doesn't target, City Grand Prix can't protect your Monsters from it!" Windy countered. Racer snorted.
"Not good enough! I activate the Effect of Formula Athlete Lightning Master! Once per turn, when my opponent activates a Magic or Trap card or Effect, I can negate and destroy that card by taking it's Level down by 2! Dawn Burst!" A white blast from both it's side engines and Windy's Trap was gone.
(Level: 19 - 2 = 17)
(Formula Athlete Lightning Master's ATK: 5700 - 600 = 5100)
"Did you really think you could stop me so easily?" Racer taunted.
"No, which is why I have this just in case! Continuous Trap, Skill Drain! By paying 1000 Life Points, I can have the Effects of all Monsters on the Field negated! Your Monsters have lost all their power!" Windy declared as both of Racer's Monsters' Attack Points fell down to 0 and their Levels back at 7.
(Windy: 1500 - 1000 = 500)
"What?! My Monsters! No fair! I was about to win!" Racer whined.
"Now you can't "cross the finish line" without activating your Magic card's Effect!" Windy informed the angry enemy A.I.. Racer snarled.
"You actually figured out my plan for defeating you?" He asked incredulously.
"I have." Windy confirmed. "Your card has the name "Winners" because it has the Effect of giving you an automatic win in this Duel. To do that, you need to banish 3 specific "Formula Athlete" cards… your different Field cards. When you banished your previous ones, 2 trophies appeared on it. I then realized that you need to banish one more differently named Field card: The one you currently have in play. The only way for me to stop your plan is to prevent you from damaging me again in a battle with our Monsters." Racer gritted his teeth.
"Guess you're not as dumb as I thought, but I'm not out of options! I play Formula Athlete Pit Stop! By reducing the Level of a "Formula Athlete" Monster I control by 2, like my Darkness Master, I can draw cards from my Deck equal to the number of copies of Pit Stop in my Graveyard plus 1! I already have another Pit Stop in my Graveyard, thanks to my Graceful Charity! Which means I get to draw 2 cards!" Racer said, lowering his dark car to Level 5. 'I need something to git rid of that stupid Trap card! Hopefully this will help.' "Now I play a card that should be more helpful: Ultra Athlete Locker Room!"
'Ultra Athlete? That's the type of Deck Jordan used against Mizoguchi!' Windy realized. Then he recalled Kiryu mention that Jordan used that Locker Room card… along with a "Formula Athlete" Monster. 'Kiryu said Jordan made some kind of agreement with his partner and it had something to do with his cards. Perhaps it was this. I wonder how close those two actually were…'
"Ultra Athlete Locker Room can also be used for my Monsters as well as Jordan's! It allows me to take either a "Ultra Athlete" and/or "Formula Athlete" I control or in my Graveyard, then I get 500 Life Points! I'm taking back Formula Athlete Sonic Meister!"
(Racer: 4000 + 500 = 4500)
'What is he planning now?' Windy questioned curiously.
"After that, Locker Room allows me to reveal any "Ultra Athlete" and/or "Formula Athlete" Monsters in my hand, shuffle them into my Deck, then I can draw the same number of cards I shuffled! The only cards in my hand are Formula Athlete Sonic Meister and Ultra Athlete Mascot! Therefore, they go back in the Deck and I draw 2 cards again!" Racer then smiled evilly after seeing his cards 'Yes! Just what I need!' "Your only means of stopping me is about to go bye bye! First, I switch Darkness Master to Defense Mode, then I activate a second Formula Athlete Shakedown! You know what comes next! I switch Darkness Master back into Attack Mode and destroy your Skill Drain! Now my Monsters are all powerful again! Hahaha!" Windy didn't react as the opposing Monsters got all their power and Effects back. "Now you're done for! Batt…!"
"Who said my first 2 Traps were my "only" means?" Windy interrupted calmly.
"First 2?" Racer asked rather nervously.
"I have one more! Continuous Trap, Grave of the Super Ancient Organism! As long as this card is in play, Level 6 or higher Special Summoned Monsters on the Field cannot attack, nor can their controllers activate their Effects!" Racer yelled and stomped his feet on the floor.
"AHHHHHH! Are you freaking kidding me?! Another Trap like that?! I hate you, Wind Dork! I hate you!" Racer knew as much as he wanted to, he couldn't do anything else to win for now. Windy's new Trap prevented him from using Darkness Master's Effect and Lightning Master's Effect was already used this turn.
Windy frowned from the boy's temper tantrum. It reminded him of how he was when Lightning reprogrammed him. He hated what he became then. Racer seemed to be the image of "that" Windy. The only difference was that there was no reprogramming involved where Racer was concerned…
After this huge setback, Racer could only do one more thing. "Grrr. This is still not over! I Set 1 card facedown and end my turn."
"It will be over very soon. My turn! Draw!" Windy felt it. The time to strike back… was now. "Racer, I'm stopping your malicious way right here! Open, the circuit that guides the wind!" Above the Wind Ignis, a blue square with several arrows showed itself. "Arrowheads confirmed! The Summoning conditions are at least 2 WIND Monsters! I Set the three "Air" Monsters in the Link Markers! Circuit combine!" Three of the arrows then glowed bright red.
"What's that chump doing now?!" Racer shouted, sounding alarmed.
"Link Summon! Sacred Deity of the Winds! Awaken from your peaceful slumber and purify all around you! Link 4! AIR MASTER BOREAS!" (WIND; Link-4; ATK: 2700; Top-Center Marker, Top-Right Marker, Middle-Right Marker, Bottom-Left Marker) Clad in bright green armor with leaf like wings, was a green haired man with pale grey eyes.
"LINK SUMMON?! THERE'S NO FORM OF SUMMONING LIKE THIS! WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!" Racer demanded heatedly.
"Link Summoning is a common technique where I come from. But the important part is this: Link Monsters don't have Levels or Defense Points. Without the former, my Ace is unaffected by my Trap card."
"So what? You can't attack with it anyway! With my Monsters' Attack Points up again, your so called "Ace" can't put a dent in me! You still can't beat me!" Racer retorted.
"I disagree." Windy said. "When Air Master Boreas is Link Summoned using 3 Monsters, I can banish all my opponent's face-up Magic cards on the Field! Pure Gust!"
"NO!" Racer yelled in dismay before his two cards vanished from a burst of wind. "My Formula Athlete Winners! It's gone!"
"Along with your chances of automatic victory and the advantages your Field card provided you." Windy said. "I couldn't destroy that card while you still had your Monsters, but banishing it was another option available. There is more! For each Magic card that was banished, Air Master Boreas gains 1000 Attack Points until the end of the turn!"
(2 x 1000 = 2000)
(Air Master Boreas' ATK: 2700 + 2000 = 4700)
Racer snarled. "It's still not strong enough to get through to me!"
"Wrong again." Windy told him. "Once while on the Field, Air Master Boreas can destroy all non-WIND Monsters that it's Link Markers point to!"
"Link Markers? You mean those red arrow things? Racer questioned.
"Yes, those. Two of my Ace's Markers are pointing at your center and inner-left Monster Zones… where your Monsters currently are!" Racer gasped and turned pale.
"WHAT?! ARE YOU KIDDING?!" The evil A.I. could do nothing but watch as his race car Monsters were literally blown away into nothing, all from a mere wave of it's hand. "NOT MY MONSTERS TOO! YOU WRETCHED SCUMBAG!" Racer screamed, his eyes glowed red for an instant from his growing rage.
"I am putting an end to this now, Racer! You will cause no more pain and suffering to the people of Neo Domino City! Battle! Air Master Boreas, Direct Attack! Northern Gale!" The Link-4 Monster held put it's hands and gathered the air around him for the finishing blow…
"No you won't! Continuous Trap open, Formula Athlete Dead Heat! Once per turn, when my opponent attacks me directly, I can Special Summon a "Formula Athlete" Monster from my Deck! I'm bringing back my Sonic Meister!" Racer's first Monster returned to defend it's master. "And since Sonic Meister's Level is lower than 6, your Trap's got nothing on it!" Like before, it's Attack Power became 1200 due to it being Level 4.
"Fine then; I'll focus on your Monster instead!" Windy said before redirecting his attack.
"I'm not done! Trap card open, Formula Athlete Turbo Power! When this is activated, I can Equip it to a "Formula Athlete" Monster I control! It gives Sonic Meister 700 Attack Points per Level!"
(4 x 700 = 2800)
(Formula Athlete Sonic Meister's ATK: 2800)
"Your Monster will still be destroyed and you will take heavy damage!" Windy pointed out. Racer smirked, to the surprise of the Wind Ignis.
"Why don't we let fate decide that! My Dead Heat Trap has another Effect! Once per battle, if a "Formula Athlete" Monster I control battles an opposing Monster, before damage calculation, we both roll a six-sided die! If my result is lower than yours, my Monster will be destroyed! But if it's higher, then my Monster gains an additional 4 Levels until the end of the turn! Care to do the math, Windy?"
"Finally using my proper name, I see. As for the math… if your Monster goes up another 4 Levels, making it Level 8, then your Turbo Power card will raise it's Attack Points to 5600. If that were to occur, not only would Boreas be the one that gets destroyed, but I would also take 900 points of damage… resulting in my defeat. In other words…" Windy narrowed his eyes. "Whoever rolls the higher number ends up winning the Duel."
"Precisely! Do you feel lucky? I know I do! I've pretty much been dominating the whole time! All you did was play defense!" Racer said cockily.
"Yes I have, for the most part. But I did manage to stay in the game and clear your Field of Magic cards and Monsters, haven't I?" Windy said to his opponent's irritation.
"That was just a fluke! The odds of me winning are still way better than yours! I definitely believe I'm going to win this roll, and the Duel! Shall we?" A red die materialized before him as he said it. He grabbed it and prepared to roll it.
Windy took the blue die and also readied himself. He closed his eyes and sighed. 'It all comes down to this. One roll of the dice. Talk about nerve racking, as humans would say. I wouldn't mind having a little luck right now…' Right then, Windy felt a sudden warmth he had never felt before. He opened his eyes and saw another pair of hands over his own, as well as the die. He looked over to his right and saw someone he didn't expect. A teenage boy with curly brown hair and light blue eyes smiled at him. Windy knew instantly who it was. 'Soyokaze…' The boy smiled and nodded without a word. Windy wasn't sure if he really was seeing his old partner or was somehow hallucinating. But it did not matter. That moment, he knew he would pull this off. Windy nodded back to him before facing the enemy A.I. "Let's settle this, Racer!" Racer snickered.
"Formula Dice Roll!" They both shouted as they threw their dice at the same time.
They watched their respective dice roll over on the Field. Racer's was the first to land. "Alright! 5! Only one other number can beat that, but your chances of getting that are extremely… HUH?! WAIT! HOLD ON! THAT CAN'T BE RIGHT!" Racer protested childishly. His eyes had to have been glitchy. They had to be! The number that Windy's die had landed on… was 6.
"It would seem the odds were more in my favor than you assumed." Windy said. "Since you rolled a number lower than me, your Sonic Meister is destroyed!" The very Monster he just mentioned blew itself apart. "Now my Air Master Boreas is free to attack you directly! Finish this!" His Ace did just that, with a powerful torrent of wind he launched from his outstretched hands.
"NO! WAIT! YOU CAN'T! YOU CA…GAHHHH!" Racer was completely from the assault that blew him off his feet. He rolled around on the floor face down, defeated.
(Racer: 0)
Windy was glad he was able to pull it off. He glanced over to his smiling partner, who said something that Windy couldn't hear. Before Windy could ask him to repeat himself, the vision of the boy faded from his sight. The Wind Ignis nodded. 'I don't know if that was really you, but still… thank you, Soyokaze Arashi.'
After a moment, Racer sat up on his knees, angry tears running down his face. "No! No, no, no NO! I wasn't supposed to lose! I wasn't!" He yelled as he kept banging his fists on the floor. His temper tantrum made Windy pity Racer… a little.
"There is a human saying: "No matter how good you are at something, there is always someone who is better at it than you." Our Duel was an example of that." Windy said. Racer gritted his teeth and stared at the Ignis with hatred.
"But I'm not human! It doesn't count! I shouldn't have been beaten by anyone at anything!" The boy whined. Windy shook his head.
"Crying and screaming about it won't change anything. You have lost. Now, surrender and things will go a lot better for you." Racer then gave off an ominous dark red aura.
"NEVER!" He screamed before he slammed his hands down. His aura began to spread toward and around Windy.
"What are you doing?!" The Wind Ignis demanded in alarm. Racer grinned with maliciousness.
"I told you before: I'm going to delete you! You can't stop this! Goodbye and good riddance!" The aura began to envelop Windy before he could make any move. Racer laughed at the Ignis' helplessness. "Yes! Disappear and never come back!" But his triumph was short lived. Just as he was covered by Racer's destructive coding, a burst of golden light erupted from Windy. His own aura was completely pushed back. "WHAT?! WHAT IS THAT?!"
Windy was now covered in a bright gold aura. He stared down at the evil A.I. with conviction. "I was given a powerful program from a very special friend. It protects me from any type of computer viruses that corrupt and delete. What you tried to do was something of the sort. Also…"
Right then, Racer's aura began to envelop him like it just tried to do to Windy. It seemed to be acting on it's own. "HEY! WHAT GIVES?!" The boy tried, and failed, to regain control. He couldn't stop it from covering him. "YOU JERK! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" Windy gave the younger A.I. a pitiful look.
"My protection program has another function. Not only does it shield me from outside influences, it also turns the assaulting computer codes against the one who sent it. In others words, the deletion codes you just tried to eliminate me with… are now doing the same to you." Racer went wide eyed with unpalatable fear and started crying again.
"I'M… BEING DELETED… BY MY OWN PROGRAMMING?! NO! NO! THIS CAN'T HAPPEN TO ME! THIS SHOULDN'T HAPPEN TO ME. NOOOOO!" Unfortunately for him, Racer was definitely being erased, from his feet and rising quickly. It already reach halfway about his chest. He gave Windy the most outraged expression he could muster. "YOU FREAK! YOU MONSTER! YOU ASS! I'LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU! YOU ARE NOTHING BUT A…!" Racer couldn't finish his final insult before the rest of him was deleted.
Windy sighed, knowing the enemy A.I. was no more. "I hated that had to happen to him… but it was his own fault. He ended up being erased by his own hand, very much like Jordan did." After a moment of silence, Windy approached the console and placed his hand on the keyboard. "First things first, let's see if I can restore power to all the vehicles Racer had affected." As he did so, the color of the sphere had changed. Instead of red, it now became a light green.
Within a matter of seconds, all the cars, D-Wheels, and other modes of transportation had their power restored. This pleased the Ignis.
"Glad that's straightened out. Now let us see if I can access the stored programs in here. Maybe Racer didn't erase any data before he was deleted. With luck, I just might be able to discover his origins. Perhaps even what Divine is planning." He found and scoured through Racer's hidden files. It took him a bit, but he finally found what he was looking for… and he did not like what he was looking at. "That Divine is an evil man indeed. I must inform Yusei and the others about this immediately. The sooner they act, the better."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Meanwhile, on another world, a boy lay unmoving on a hospital bed. The heart monitor next to him beeped on a steady rhythm. The boy had not moved or even opened his eyes for months... not since the accident that nearly killed him.
Yet, for a brief moment, the boy gave a weak smile… the same smile he gave just before he said:
"You did good... Windy."
To be continued.