Chapter 18: Before the Council
Dueling is Magic!
Many Futures
Chapter Eighteen
Before the Council
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Twilight gulped. Spike sighed. Jack made no sound.
“If you are not prepared,” Jack said, “that’s too bad.” He opened the doors to the council room and strode in, taking up a spot against a wall. Twilight and Spike followed him in.
“Shut the doors please,” said Yeager. Twilight’s horn lit up and the doors shut behind her.
Seven sets of eyes watched Twilight and Spike as they approached the long table. Some seemed to express sympathy. Others showed no emotion at all. Jack’s alone showed contempt.
“I presume you know why you are here?” said Yeager.
Twilight nodded. “Yes, we do,” she said. “I withheld information from you and my friends, and Spike recently discovered some things related to this.”
“Then you had best explain yourself,” Yeager replied.
Twilight nodded. “Before coming to your world, our rulers- my teacher and her sister, the princesses Celestia and Luna- challenged me to a duel. Though they’d seen Yusei duel before, I had no idea that they themselves could duel. I defeated them. And then they told me a secret: That my world, Equestria, used to be a part of the Duel Monsters Spirit World. They asked me to keep this information a secret.”
“Why would they do that?” asked Ushio.
“Because they feared the reactions my friends might have,” said Twilight. “And I don’t blame them for reacting the way they did. Our kind are descended from Duel Monsters spirits, which means we are the same. I, Rainbow Dash and Spike have all played the game Duel Monsters. We took our fellow spirits to war and watched them be destroyed for our own benefit.”
“But it’s not that bad,” said Spike. “While we were investigating the underground library at that mansion, I found a black book that took me to another world. A tall guy in a hooded robe showed me visions of things that had happened in the past. He told me what Celestia and Luna told Twilight, but he also told me why our worlds split. There was a catastrophe, a war that tore our world apart when it was still young. The spirits in our fragment of the world grew and evolved. We’re not Duel Monsters Spirits anymore, but we’re related to them the same as humans are.”
“Humans are related to the spirits?” asked Aki. Spike nodded.
“The tall guy said that Duel Monsters are born from the hearts of humans,” Spike continued. “When our world split away from the Spirit World, we had to change to survive. We’re not spirits anymore. We’re more than that. Duel Monsters Spirits are born from our hearts, just like they’re born from yours.
“My guide reassured me that none of us fight by leading soldiers. Duel Monsters are born from the spirit of the duelist. We’re fighting with our own souls.”
“Spike...” said Twilight.
“I fail to see the relevance of this,” said Jack. “What matters here is that Twilight Sparkle has been keeping secrets from us! How do we know we can trust you after this?”
“You trusted Rainbow Dash, didn't you?” said Spike.
“That was different!” Jack yelled. “And what’s more, she’s revealed to us every useful ability that she has, including cloud manipulation and the sonic rainboom. Twilight, on the other hand, has KEPT information from us! One little secret pertaining to your origins and now we have every reason to distrust her!”
“Come on, Jack!” said Ushio. “It’s not that bad!”
“It IS that bad!” Jack stood and continued yelling. “What about her magical abilities? How far do they extend, hmm? What exactly can you do with that power? What is your history in Equestria? You never even told us what Yusei was doing in your world! And how do we know you aren't another evil Duel Monster Spirit bent on destroying or conquering both worlds like the Earthbound Immortals?”
“Jack, stop this!” shouted Yeager.
“No, I will NOT stop!” Jack roared. “There is too much that we don’t know in this war! We cannot afford for anyone to be keeping secrets from us!”
A jet of green fire erupted from Spike’s mouth and shot toward Jack. He ducked under the table mere moments before it passed where he was. When the fire died away, Jack stood up and glared at the baby dragon. “What is wrong with you?!” he said.
“I could ask you the same thing!” said Spike. “Yelling out paranoid accusations at my best friend and acting like she’s the problem. She’s not, Jack! You've been getting angrier and more suspicious of everyone ever since you lost to that old buddy of yours! We don’t even know what happened in that duel, but you think it’s okay to be mad at Twilight for keeping one secret? She was asked by royalty not to say anything, and this is why! I don’t know who you think you are, but you don’t get to treat Twilight this way!”
“I’ll tell you who I am!” Jack roared. “I am the King of D-Wheelers! I am the greatest duelist on the planet, second only to Yusei Fudo! I hold the rank of General in this resistance movement and I-”
“Have said enough!” yelled Yeager. “Jack Atlas, sit down at once!”
“You dare interrupt me, you snivelling clown?!”
“I won’t cower before you any longer, Jack! I am the duly elected mayor of Neo Domino City, as well as the appointed Director of this council! A general you may be, but I outrank you in every aspect! Sit down and hold your tongue, or you will be dismissed from this council!”
“You know full well that you don’t have the power to dismiss me on your own!”
“You’re right, Jack,” said Mina. “It will come down to a vote which must be unanimous. And I will back Director Yeager on this.”
“Mina- you-!”
“If you want to think I’m betraying you, then go ahead,” said the woman. “I just wish you could see yourself. You were never such an angry and suspicious man. Cold, perhaps, but never this.”
“Mina is right, Jack,” said Aki. “I too will support your dismissal.”
“So will I,” said Ushio.
“And me,” said Luna.
“Me too,” said Leo.
Jack clenched his fist. He punched the table and sat down. “This isn't over, Yeager,” he growled.
“No, I don’t imagine it is,” Yeager replied.
Twilight sighed. “This is all my fault,” she said. “I’m so sorry about all of this.”
“I understand your reasons for not saying anything,” said Yeager, “but Jack has made a fair point, despite his emotional outburst. There is too much we don’t know in this war. We cannot afford for anyone to keep secrets from us.”
“I understand,” said Twilight.
“Don’t take this to mean we completely trust you,” said Ushio. “I don’t believe it’s appropriate for you to be put into the field again. For the time being, you will be relegated to our research division. You and Spike are to go through every single book we brought back from the Goodwin estate for anything that could prove useful to us in this war.”
“What would we be looking for?” asked Spike.
“I remember reading a news article about the discovery of an ancient stone tablet by Maximillion Pegasus,” Ushio said. “The media followed his quest to create the Crystal Beast series and eventually reported that he had discovered a giant stone carving of Rainbow Dragon. He created a color copy of the image and used that to make the card itself. So one thing you could look for is information that could tell us where we might find more stone tablets.”
“If we find them, could Mr. Pegasus make them into cards?” asked Twilight. Yeager shook his head.
“While his company, Industrial Illusions, lives on, Maximillion Pegasus died a few years ago,” said the short man. “With communication to the outside world cut off, I don’t know if we can get any help in making these cards.”
“Then I’d like to make a request,” said Twilight. “When my friends and I first arrived, Rainbow Dash had a duel against Jack and had spontaneously created a Duel Disk of her own. If someone could get her to come to the research area, I can find out how she made that Duel Disk and then help my other friends make their own.”
“I doubt they’d be willing to fight that way,” said Jack. “The entire reason you are here is because of the conversation I overheard. Most of your friends don’t trust you anymore, Twilight Sparkle. Rainbow Dash is especially angry at you because she is the only other Duelist among your group.”
“I know,” said Twilight. “And I’ve got to try and make things right with her.”
“Will your friends be willing to duel?” asked Luna.
“They will if I tell them what the robed guy told me,” said Spike. “The cards are extensions of our souls, not soldiers that we march off to destruction.”
“Very well,” said Yeager. “I will have a word with Miss Rainbow Dash and ask her to visit you in research.”
“Thank you, Director Yeager,” said Twilight.
“You are dismissed for now,” said Ushio. “Please return to your quarters and await your transfer orders.”
*****
“How’d it go?” asked Pinkie Pie.
“I can’t go out on missions anymore,” said Twilight. “I’m being transferred to the research division. Spike and I have to go through all the books we brought back from the underground library for anything that might be useful.”
“Well, it’s not that bad, right?” said Pinkie. “I mean, you love reading books!”
“That wasn't the worst of it,” said Twilight. “Jack was really angry at me. It just... it seems like he’s becoming unhinged. And I think he and Yeager are going to fight it out at some point...”
“Maybe I can cheer him up!” said Pinkie. “You know I can make anyone smile!”
“This is different, Pinkie,” said Spike. “Jack isn't just angry and upset. He’s becoming violent. I’d steer clear of him if I were you.”
Pinkie sighed. “I guess,” she said. “But I’d still like to try.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Pinkie,” said Twilight, “but maybe I’m just worried about Jack.”
*****
Yeager sighed and slouched into his chair as Twilight left and shut the door behind her.
“That was certainly interesting,” he said.
“You’re a fool, Yeager,” said Jack. “There were too many questions that went unasked and unanswered in this inspection. Spike mentioned that his world had split from the Duel Monsters Spirit World. Did anybody besides me think that this was a question that should have been asked?”
“Do you honestly think it is relevant?” Yeager replied.
“Anything can be relevant!” Jack said. “Don’t you remember that Zero Reverse was caused by Z-one? What if the separation of Equestria from the Spirit World has to do with the Black King?”
“Jack, there are some questions that can be asked and answered at a later time,” said Yeager.
“I agree,” said Ushio. “All we really need to know is how to defeat the Black King and retake KaibaCorp. Tower. If we do that, there’s a chance we can get everyone back and turn the lights back on in the city.”
“You are all fools,” Jack spat. “What if knowing where the Black King came from is the key to defeating him?”
“Then we will search for that answer if it becomes apparent that we need it,” Yeager said. “But for the time being, I see no reason why that would be relevant. Now, I suggest that we adjourn this meeting. I’m quite hungry and- where do you think you’re going, Jack?”
Jack had stood and begun walking to the doors. “You said we should adjourn, so I’m leaving,” he said. “I’m going out on patrol.”
“Jack, you should eat something,” said Leo.
“I’m not hungry.”
“Jack, you've been really on edge for over a week,” said Aki. “When you get back from patrol, I want you to come see me right away.”
“You’re not a shrink,” Jack hissed. “And even if you were, I wouldn't need your quackery! I’m on edge because of this war!”
“Then you need to talk to someone!” Aki pleaded. “Please, Jack, just-”
“I don’t need anything from any of you!” Jack yelled over his shoulder. He pulled open the door in front of him, walked through, and slammed it behind him.
/*********************\
Next time on Dueling is Magic! Many Futures
Rarity pays Twilight a visit, but it’s hardly a pleasant surprise. Still reeling from the fight she got into with her friends, Twilight can only listen sheepishly as Rarity lectures her about keeping secrets and about using others to win battles. Spike, however, steps up to confront her...
Chapter 19
Conviction
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Red Dragon Archfiend
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Level 8
Dragon/Synchro/Effect
1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters
After damage calculation, when this card attacks a Defense Position monster your opponent controls: Destroy all Defense Position monsters your opponent controls. During your End Phase: Destroy all other monsters you control that did not declare an attack this turn. This card must remain face-up on the field to activate and to resolve this effect.
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Boy, shit really hit the fan didn't it, the Mane six is divided, and Jacks going loco, what next?
On the upside, it makes for a good drama and an eye catching read, so good job bro.
For the record, I still say Jacks anger is caused by Crows new monster... just saying.
Oh my god I finally caught up with the story. Wow, this is a great series!
Once again, an incredible story is being told here. I know everypony seems divided, but I think that'll pass. They've been through worse, and once Spike tells them what he knows, they'll come around.
Jack, however, concerns me. Not only is he getting more paranoid and violent, but he is the freaking general of the resistance! If he loses it, he'd better be forced to step down, or it won't end well.
I bet the Black King is finding this infighting hilarious.
2940246 The Black King isn't as malicious as you might think. Yes, he's been trying to inflict the resistance with despair, but it has a calculated purpose.
2940484
I guess I'm just working by what I know. Other than Crow, we haven't exactly heard any positve feedback about the Black King, and I kinda assumed he'd been brainwashed. Guess we'll see.
2940484 Now that Talguy21 mentions it, we really DON'T know anything about the Black King, I mean I'm all for mystirious (spelling?) characters but right now... he's more of a blank canvas then a character. Will we EVER learn anything about this guy?
2947426 You will. I just wanna get through this character conflict first.