A crossover of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic with Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's. After an encounter with strange individuals, Twilight finds herself in another world...
A My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic x Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's Crossover.
Twilight finds herself in another world after a direct conflict with some strange individuals, who are after the Elements of Harmony. In this other world, she meets up with a particularly special person and his friends, known as the Signers.
Given the circumstances, an alliance must be made to protect both worlds from the impending threat.
Note: Tags may be edited accordingly as the story progresses. Also, credit to Sapphire Jewel and a couple other friends (don't even know if they have accounts on this site) for aiding in some parts of the story.
Comments and critique are encouraged. Gore tag is due to some violence and blood present in some chapters.
Birds chirped as the sun rose on the horizon. Small critters ran through the open fields near the town. A low yawn came from a tree, fashioned into a house—or more accurately, a library. The alicorn glanced through the window as she rose from her bed.
“Good morning, Twilight!” greeted a young voice.
Twilight turned her head to the baby dragon. “Good morning, Spike,” she replied, removing the covers and climbing off of the mattress.
“I went ahead and made breakfast for you.” Spike smiled before dashing downstairs.
Twilight chuckled, activating her horn and effortlessly remaking her bed. “Oh, Spike. What would I ever do without you, my number one assistant?” she said to herself. She took one more glance out the window. “Today’s going to be a good day.”
“So, where are we headed?” Spike asked, following Twilight as they walked through Ponyville.
“I’m just looking for a nice open space so I could try some spells I’ve been looking at,” she replied.
“Haven’t you gone through them all already?”
“Heh. I wish. I never got to some of them.”
“Yet you have all these books with you…” Spike tapped on one side of the saddlebag carrying two or three textbooks.
Twilight chuckled nervously. “Well… I haven’t decided which I’m going to do first… and I doubt I have time to get through them all, anyway.”
“Howdy, Twilight! Hey, Spike!” said a voice.
The two turned their heads. Their friend was behind a stand that was practically made of apples.
“Hey, Applejack!” Twilight greeted.
“Where 'ya off to this mornin’?” Applejack asked.
“Oh, I’m just going to go try out some new spells I’ve been wanting to look at for a while.”
Applejack glanced at Twilight’s saddlebag. “All those… books…?”
Twilight was silent for a moment. “Well, I’m probably not going to get to all of them, at least not today. Anyway, we should get going. Good luck with the stand!”
“Thank ya kindly! Be sure to drop by if y’all are feelin’ peckish!”
“Will do!”
“That hill looks like a pretty good spot,” Twilight said.
“What’s with the gray clouds?” Spike asked. “Was there a storm scheduled today?”
“Not that I know of. I could’ve sworn the weather team said clear skies today. I wouldn’t have scheduled practice today if they hadn’t.”
A rainbow streak suddenly pierced through the gray blanket above them, causing them to vanish. The colors faded as a pegasus quickly landed in front of Twilight and Spike.
“Hey, Twilight, what’s up?” asked the pegasus.
“Rainbow Dash, what’s with all the clouds?” Twilight asked.
“That’s what I’d like to know,” Rainbow replied. “These clouds just keep coming out of nowhere. I’ve been working my flank off all morning getting rid of them!”
“That's strange. Do you need some help?”
“Nah, I can handle it. It’s not hard getting rid of them, it’s just annoying. So what are you guys up to?”
“Twilight wanted to practice some new spells and thought this hill would be perfect,” Spike answered.
Rainbow Dash glanced at Twilight’s bag. “Why are you carrying so many books…?”
Twilight placed her hoof on her face, while Spike suppressed a chuckle. “I’m not getting to all of them! I just haven’t decided what spells I’m going to actually do!” she almost shouted.
Twilight inhaled deeply, holding her hoof near her mouth. She released the air, extending her foreleg out. Her foalsitter’s trick worked to keep her calm, as usual.
“Aw, horseapples, I should get back to it,” Rainbow said. “I see some more showing up in the sky.”
“You sure you don’t want help figuring out what’s causing this?” Twilight asked.
“I can handle it. See ya!” Rainbow burst into the sky.
“Not sure I like the idea of being under a bunch of storm clouds,” Spike commented.
“Yeah, let’s go somewhere else,” Twilight agreed.
“Maybe we should try near Fluttershy’s cottage?” Spike suggested.
“That… probably isn’t a good idea,” Twilight responded.
“Do you think she would really mind?”
“Probably not, but I wouldn’t want to disturb her critters. I’m not exactly familiar with these spells and they might have… unexpected side effects.”
“What about near Carousel Boutique? Or even better, EVEN BETTER, Sugarcube Corner? SUGARCUBE CORNER!”
“Then I’ll disturb other ponies, Pinkie—PINKIE PIE?!” Twilight jumped and turned around. “When did you get here?”
“Hiya, Twilight!” said Pinkie, grinning her usual grin.
“You shouldn’t sneak up on ponies like that,” Twilight said, catching her breath and trying to slow her pounding heart.
Spike chuckled again until he met her glare.
“I just thought you were picking random places. But still, you should totally come to Sugarcube Corner! You’ll get some yummy delicious sweets if you wanna take a break from practicing your spells!”
“That sounds great and all, but I really want an open and quiet area to—wait… how’d you know I was going to practice spells?”
“Weeeellllll…”
“Never mind!” she said quickly. “Forget I asked.”
“Okie dokie lokie!” she said as she closed her eyes and bounced.
“Anyway, we should get going. Come on, Spike.”
“Uh… why can’t I go to Sugarcube Corner?” Spike asked.
“Spike, remember what happened last time? Too much sugar is detrimental to your health,” Twilight replied.
“Detri-what?” he stared at her blankly.
“Detrimental.” He still didn’t understand. Twilight glanced at Pinkie, who mirrored Spike’s response. She wasn’t sure if Pinkie didn’t know what the word ‘detrimental’ meant, if she just felt like doing what Spike was doing, or if she was just being Pinkie Pie… or all three. What she did know, however, was that one does not simply understand Pinkie Pie, so she decided to avoid a few head injuries and not question her.
“It’s bad for you,” Twilight finally grunted.
“Aww, please?” Spike begged.
“No.”
“Please?” He inched towards Twilight.
“No.”
“Pleeeeaaaase?” Pinkie and Spike asked in unison, Pinkie leaning her head against Spike's.
Twilight’s ears drooped as she let out a heavy sigh. “Fine, we’ll go to Sugarcube Corner…” their faces lit up before reverting when she said, “…after I finish practicing.” Their faces drooped once more.
“All right...” Spike responded, with a defeated tone.
“Don’t worry, Spike! I’ll throw an extra-super-duper-special-humongous-congratulations-on-helping-Twilight-with-her-new-weirdo-spells party just for you!” Pinkie said, bending down in front of Spike so that her head was level was his.
“Aw, all right. Thanks, Pinkie Pie!”
“You’re welcome, Spike! See you both later!” her voice trailed off as she bounced away, singing a little song and leaving Twilight and Spike behind.
Spike turned towards Twilight only to find that she was wearing the blank look.
Twilight sighed. “All right… now that that’s settled, let’s get back to it,” she said.
“I’m sure there’s another open area that doesn’t have those strange storm clouds hovering over it,” Twilight said, having worn out that sentence at least three or four times since meeting up with Pinkie Pie. The duo had found their way back to the cobblestone streets of Ponyville.
“It’d be nice to know where those clouds are coming from,” Spike remarked.
“Yes, it would,” said Twilight, nodding.
“Maybe the weather team forgot to clean them up and they just drifted over town?”
“It’s a possibility.”
“Good afternoon, Twilight!” greeted an elegant voice.
Spike sighed. “There’s only one mare in Equestria with so sweet a voice.” He and Twilight turned their heads to see a light gray unicorn and a light grayish gold pegasus.
“Oh, nothing much,” answered Rarity. “Fluttershy and I were headed to the spa for our usual get-together. Would you care to join us?”
“Thanks, but I’m just trying to find a place so I can try some new spells, but I haven’t found an ideal spot.”
Rarity and Fluttershy stared at Twilight’s saddlebags.
“But do you really need all those books…?” asked the pegasus.
Twilight’s eye twitched at Fluttershy’s question. Spike held back a chuckle once again. “Can’t catch a break,” she sighed.
“What was that?” Rarity said.
“Nothing, nothing! Nothing at all…” Twilight let out a small nervous laugh.
“Although, darling, couldn’t you have practiced inside your library?”
“I kinda wanted to find someplace open that didn’t feel cramped. I’m not even sure what these spells are capable of,” Twilight answered.
“I see. Well, in any case, you’re free to join us if you have some time,” Rarity offered.
“Sure.”
“I’ll see you later, dear. And you, too, Spikey-wikey.” Rarity continued walking.
“Bye, Twilight. Bye, Spike,” Fluttershy followed her.
“See you girls later,” Twilight said with a wave. “Let’s go, Spike. …Spike?” She turned to see the young dragon staring into the distance.
“Isn’t she the greatest?” Spike sighed, as if in a trance.
“Come on, Romeo.” Twilight levitated Spike onto her back. She looked back once more to see a certain pink pony handing out what appeared to be invitations to her friends.
Twilight groaned as she rested her head on the table.
“Aw, cheer up, Twilight. At least we get to enjoy being at another of Pinkie’s signature parties at Sugarcube Corner!” Spike said.
“I didn’t even find a place to practice those spells, though. Those clouds were everywhere,” she complained.
“Aw, don’t worry, sugarcube, it ain’t that bad. There’s always tomorrow,” Applejack cheered.
“I guess.”
“Come on, let’s just enjoy the party for now!”
“All right…”
“Now where’s that Rainbow Dash? She’s never late for this sorta thing.”
“Last I saw, she was taking care of the storm clouds that keep appearing above Ponyville. But that was this morning.”
“Yeah, clouds can be real party poopers sometimes,” Pinkie agreed.
Thunder boomed and lightning flashed as the lights dimmed, and a scream shot through the room.
A soft whimper came from underneath a table a few seconds later. The others peered under the tablecloth.
“It’s alright, Fluttershy. It’s just a bit of lightnin’,” Applejack said softly to her trembling friend.
“It’ll be okay, darling,” Rarity replied. “Now come on out. This storm probably won’t last long.”
“Okay…” Fluttershy slowly emerged from underneath the table.
The thunder and lightning came once again. Fluttershy returned to her storm shelter of a table.
“This is weird,” Twilight said, approaching the window. “I hope Rainbow’s—” her eyes widened as they fell on a thick cluster of clouds hovering over the mountain and the city of Canterlot “—okay.”
The others stared out the windows as Twilight stepped outside.
“What is all this…?” she said to herself. She jumped as an object slammed into the ground in front of her, blasting dust into the air. “What the—Rainbow?! What happened?!”
“He happened!” Rainbow Dash pointed her hoof towards the sky, panting heavily. Confused, Twilight looked in the direction Rainbow extended her foreleg. A chuckle was heard. “He’s the reason why these clouds keep showing up!”
“You must be Princess Twilight Sparkle,” said a male voice. A figure descended in front of the two ponies. He appeared to stand upright and wore a hooded coat over his body. “Good… maybe I can get what I want from you instead. Where are the Elements of Harmony?”
“Who are you? And why do you want them?” Twilight responded. “Wait a second… aren’t you a human? What are you doing in Equestria?!”
“I’ll ask the questions,” he snapped. “Where are the Elements?”
“Like we’re going to tell you where they are!” Rainbow Dash charged at the figure.
“Foolish equine,” the figure said, raising his arm as the pegasus approached. With one swing, he had struck Rainbow on the side of her head and knocked her to the side.
“Rainbow!” Twilight shouted, taking a step towards her friend.
“I’ll ask one last time. Show me where the Elements are, or your friends will pay the price.”
Shrieks were heard from inside Sugarcube Corner.
“Girls!” Twilight yelled.
Large canines stepped out of the building, one by one, holding each of Twilight’s friends, including Spike. The creatures stood tall and bulky, wearing dark gray armor.
“P-Please… put us down…” whimpered Fluttershy.
“Let us go, you jerks!” Spike demanded.
“Well, princess?” said the hooded figure.
Twilight glared at him as her horn began to glow. The light at the tip began to burn brightly as it lit up the vicinity.
“So that’s how it’s going to be…” the figure muttered, as he saw that they had vanished as the light faded.
The seven rushed into Twilight’s home.
“Just what in tarnation is goin’ on here?” Applejack panted.
“I don’t know, but something tells me things are going to get a lot worse if we don’t stop those guys,” Twilight replied, approaching the glass case containing the Elements of Harmony.
“Spike, take a letter,” Twilight said, after placing the appropriate necklaces on each of her friends and the crown on herself.
“Yes, ma’am,” Spike quickly grabbed a quill and a piece of parchment.
“Dear Princess Celestia…” she began, only to be interrupted by the sound of the wall crashing open.
Dust filled the room. As the cloud vanished, all seven found themselves held down by an armored canine.
“You waste your time,” said the male figure. “Your precious rulers have been defeated.”
“You’re lying!” Twilight shouted. “There’s no way the likes of you could beat them!”
“Believe what you will. You’re too late.” The figure glanced around the room. “Hiding them in your own home? Such a terrible spot.”
“Just you wait,” Applejack said. “When ah break free—”
“You won’t. Rogues! Remove the Elements!”
The ponies struggled as their necklaces were taken. Twilight’s horn lit up once more as she vanished from her captor’s grip, along with her crown, and reappeared in another spot in the library.
“Let my friends go!” she demanded, her horn glowing once more.
“That won’t happen,” said a deeper male voice. Another hooded figure entered the room, lightning sparking from his hands. The newcomer extended his arm towards Twilight and shot several bolts at her, knocking her through the hole in the wall.
“Twilight!” shouted her friends.
“The Elements and their bearers belong to us now!” The figures stepped through the hole. The second extended his arm towards Twilight again. “Give up.”
Twilight rose to her hooves, her horn and the emblem on her crown glowing. “Release… my friends…!”
The second human glared at her. “Have it your way.” A large burst of lightning shot out towards Twilight. This time, she fired a burst of energy from her horn in retaliation. The blasts collided directly in between. “A strong one, aren’t you? But it’s useless.”
“I won’t… let you win…” Twilight replied, struggling to maintain her strength.
Neither she nor the human let up, and the collision of their attacks triggered an explosion of light that engulfed the vicinity.
“In thirty seconds, it’ll be ready for the final phase,” said a female. They paused as others like them stared into a giant reactor, brimming with light of several colors.
“Okay, Dr. Fudo. Enter the password and the program will be complete,” said another male.
Another man stood before a control panel, and began entering in a code using the keys on the console. His finger then hovered over the red square button.
"With this..." he thought. “New Domino City’s future will be secure.”
Yusei Fudo had finally achieved his goal. With the push of a button, he would prevent the disaster foretold by Z-ONE and his colleagues, who formed a group called Yliaster—a group that initially sought to destroy New Domino City and the Ener-D reactor that stood before him. Upon his defeat, Z-ONE entrusted Yusei to protect the city’s future—or, more accurately, the world’s future—to prevent a repeat catastrophe that took place several years before… a catastrophe that led to the world the members of Yliaster were born in.
Months of hard work were finally going to pay off. The nightmares of the previous disaster that shaped and heavily impacted Yusei’s life… were finally going to come to an end. He and his friends were going to live in a prosperous future… one where the future disaster predicted by Yliaster would never occur.
“Z-ONE, the future you were born in, that you and your friends had traveled back in time to change… your wish is about to finally come true,” Yusei thought as he pressed the large button. The scientists in the large, round room remained at their consoles, examining the screens.
“All readings are normal,” stated the male scientist. “The program was a success.”
Applause soon filled the room as Yusei sighed with relief.
“It’s done,” he thought. His eyes scanned the room, many smiling faces and pleasant expressions directed towards him.
The room suddenly began to flash red. A siren blared throughout the lab.
“What the?!” Yusei exclaimed.
“Dr. Fudo! The readings show the Ener-D reactor is about to reach critical mass!” a female scientist shouted.
“That can’t be!” Yusei rapidly mashed the keys on the console. “I’ve got to shut it down!” The control panel sparked with electricity, knocking Yusei back. He stared at the console as it caught fire, then at the reactor which began to glow brightly. The cylindrical glass that surrounded it began to crack. “No… not again...” He became wide-eyed as another Zero Reverse—as the disaster almost twenty years before was dubbed—was about to occur. Yusei stared at the reactor in disbelief. Where had he gone wrong? He had made sure. He had run several tests. The program couldn’t have failed! And yet, it had… right before his eyes. He had failed.
“Yusei!” cried two young voices.
Yusei turned his head at the sound of his name being called. He quickly got up and ran into the hallway. He scanned both sides until he saw something on his left in the darkness.
“Yusei!” a young male voice cried.
“Help us!” cried a young female.
He saw two young green-haired kids—a boy and a girl that were fraternal twins—being pulled into a black void on the wall.
“Leo! Luna!” Yusei exclaimed as he sprinted towards them, extended his arms towards them.
“Yusei!” Leo yelled, reaching out to him.
The two kids soon disappeared into the darkness on the wall as it faded.
“No!” Yusei shouted. He turned as a bright light began to engulf the building.
Yusei sprang up, sweating and panting hard. He quickly scanned the vicinity. He was in his bed of his apartment belonging to the landlady, Zora.
He peered at the window, only to see that the sky was pitch-black. Glancing at the clock, he saw it was only 3:15 a.m.
“It was just a dream…” he concluded. “The same one as last night…”
He began to recall a number of things. The program for the reactor wasn’t complete. It would probably take another month or two to finish it. Not to mention, Leo and Luna… after having that dream the previous night, the fraternal twins were nowhere to be found.
It was if they simply… vanished.
What worried Yusei even more was the lack of responsiveness of the mark of the Crimson Dragon on his right arm. It was normally able to detect when the other Signers—his friends, including Leo, Luna, and himself—were in some sort of danger.
Still weary from the previous day’s fruitless search, he slowly laid back down on the mattress, his missing friends still on his mind.
“Hey, Yusei!” called a voice.
Yusei turned his head away from the computer in the garage where his Duel Runner was stored. At the doorway, he saw a man in an officer outfit.
“Crow,” he responded.
“You look beat, man,” Crow commented. “Didn’t you get enough sleep last night?”
“No,” Yusei shook his head.
“That dream again, huh?”
“Unfortunately.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll find them. They won’t be missing for long. You know that as well as I do.” Crow held his right arm up.
“If only our marks were actually able to help.”
“You do realize Jack and Akiza are still searching, right? Not to mention Sector Security as well. You have friends looking for them. So don’t worry.”
“Right.”
“We now interrupt your current programming to bring you this important news update,” said a voice from the television screen nearby. The two turned their heads to watch. “Last night, a mysterious light shone in New Domino City’s central park. Upon investigation, officials recovered an unknown creature and have made no word as to what it is. They have also denied information to the media and the general public as to the origin of this creature, how it created the mass of light, or what it even looks like outside those who found it, but it is clear that no one has seen such a thing before. While it may be a new life form altogether, there is the possibility that it may be some prank. Until this is confirmed, we will continue to investigate. And now for the weather—”
“I’m not sure how that got out,” Crow said, hitting the power button on the remote control. “But it’s definitely weird.”
“What do you mean?” Yusei asked.
“I was one of the officers there to recover the thing. It… well… maybe you should see for yourself.”
“What for?”
“You’d kinda have to be there or you might not believe it.”
“Wait? Here?” Yusei asked.
“Quite the coincidence,” Crow replied. “It’s just like any science fiction. A mysterious creature shows up and the first thing that happens is people put it in a lab. Go figure, right? And this one just happened to be the closest to the site where it appeared.”
“Just what is it, anyway?”
Crow rushed down the streets of New Domino City on his Sector Security Duel Runner.
“This better be good,” Crow thought. “I was just about to have a nice dinner at a fancy restaurant… even paid for by Trudge… as a reward for making it up the ranks of being an officer… then this had to happen…”
“You’re not still upset about dinner, right?” Trudge asked, driving a car next to Crow.
“No, I am totally not upset about not being able to eat some really great food from a really fancy restaurant,” Crow replied, with a sarcastic tone.
“I asked them to box the food!”
“That’s great and all, but cooked food is usually at its best when it’s eaten soon after being cooked.”
“Then just warm it up!”
“It’s not the same.” Crow sighed.
“That’s enough, you two,” said a female voice, coming from the passenger seat of the car that Trudge was driving.
“What’s up, Crow?” Trudge asked. Both of them stopped in front of the park.
“My mark… it’s reacting to something?”
“That’s odd…”
Crow jumped off his Runner and darted into the park.
“Hey, wait up!” Trudge called after him.
“Let’s go, Officer Trudge!” Mina said, running behind Crow.
“Oy… I just can’t keep up… I’m getting too old for this,” Trudge mumbled, turning off the vehicle’s engine.
Crow walked up to see a pedestrian and her young child standing in front of a crater.
“What seems to be the trouble, ma’am?” Crow asked her.
“That…” the woman pointed towards the center of the depression.
Crow turned his head and gasped. It wasn’t the creature lying in the crater itself that surprised him, but the object on its head… glowing.
“The light appeared out of nowhere. Then POOF! This thing was laying there! I tried waking it up! But then I called mom and she came over here. And that’s when she called you.” the child exclaimed. “It looks like a…”
“Wait, your mark reacted to it?” Yusei asked Crow.
“Yeah. And you know not too many things can make our marks glow the way mine did,” Crow replied.
“Right…”
“Let’s go inside and you can check it out for yourself.”
The two got off their Duel Runners and headed into the lab. Yusei lagged a bit behind Crow. “This timing…” he thought. “Is it a coincidence…?”
“Let me guess.”
“Hm?”
“You think this might have something to do with Leo and Luna missing, right?”
“…I don’t know…”
“Neither do I, honestly. And I doubt there is a connection, but it’s something worth taking a look at since… you know… causing our marks to react and all.”
“Right…”
“Dr. Fudo! I didn’t expect you here!” said a guard, standing in front of a laboratory door.
“It’s all right,” Crow said. “I’m giving him permission to enter.”
“But… it’s highly classified… no one outside us or Sector Security can know about it…”
“‘Us’?”
“The scientists in the room performing tests on it. Director Lazar’s orders. You know that as well, Officer. With all due respect, I cannot permit him to enter.”
“Look, sir, we both are, in some way, working under Lazar. I’ve even been promoted to higher ranks. And I want you to let him in.”
“I’m sorry, sir…”
Crow sighed.
“It’s all right, Crow,” Yusei said. “It can’t be helped.”
“Fine,” Crow replied, walking with Yusei towards the exit. “Maybe I should get that clownhead Lazar to let you in. Surely he would…”
“Yeah.”
The two remained silent as they went down the hallway, until they were halted by the sound of an explosion. They turned their heads to the see the guard speaking to a male scientist.
“What was that explosion?” asked the guard.
“Someone’s… taken… it…” the male scientist panted, then collapsed. The guard rushed into the doorway.
“Hey! Are you alright?” Crow asked, rushing to them. “What happened?”
“Someone’s taken the lab specimen!” the guard answered, as Yusei appeared at the doorway. Yusei quickly scanned the room. A large glass tube had been smashed into and a gaping hole existed where the wall used to be.
“Did anyone see who did it?” Crow questioned.
“It was…” groaned another scientist, “…some big, bulky guy… on a huge Duel Runner…”
“Big, bulky guy… huge Duel Runner… that could only be…” Crow turned his head back towards the doorway. “Let’s go, Yusei! …Yusei?” He walked back into the hall only to find no one in either direction. “Where’d you go?”
Pedestrians were startled as a large vehicle rushed past them. A cackling was heard from its bulky rider.
“That was too easy!” the man said, turning onto a Duel Lane. “I don’t normally resort to stealing such girly looking things like this… but with that sum… it’s definitely worth it! All I have to do now is retu—”
“Dobocle!” a voice exclaimed.
“Who’s that?” the man replied, turning his head behind him. “What?! Yusei Fudo?!”
Yusei rode his Duel Runner close behind Dobocle’s, his eyes drawn to the creature that was tied to the back. The creature was clearly four-legged but its coat was almost purple. “A horse… no… it’s got wings and a horn…” he observed. He then felt a pulse in his arm. Glancing at it, he saw the mark on his arm glowing then looked up at the object now fastened to Dobocle’s waist. The emblem, glowing brightly, was shaped like a star and was identical to the symbol on the creature’s rear end. “That crown… Is that what my mark is reacting to…?”
“Hey! Stay away from my loot! I need to return this to get my pay!” Dobocle exclaimed.
They suddenly heard a soft moan from the equine. Yusei glanced at its face. He saw the expression of a troubled being.
“Aren’t you listening? I said stay away!” Dobocle shouted.
“No. I won’t let you get away!” Yusei replied.
“Is that so?” The bulky man punched a button on his Runner, releasing tacks onto the track.
“What?!”
“Let’s see you get past that!” Dobocle cackled again. “What?!” He watched as Yusei swiftly avoided the hazards laid out on the Duel Lane.
“Like I said… you won’t get away.”
“Then there’s only one thing to do.” Dobocle pressed another button on his Duel Runner. “I activate the Field Spell Speed World 2!” The image of a card appeared on his and Yusei’s screen, as the latter’s integrated Duel Disk appeared from the sides of his Runner.
“DUEL MODE ENGAGED,” said a computer voice.
“If you lose, your Runner will slow down and prevent you from pursuing me any further,” Dobocle continued, chuckling.
Yusei glared at him. “Fine, then. I accept,” he declared.
“I’ll teach you to mess with me. When it comes to Turbo Duels… there’s no one who understands them better than me!”
The two continued down the Duel Lane as one word came from their mouths. “DUEL!”
“Yusei! Yusei!” Crow shouted, standing to the side of his Duel Runner while attempting to reach his friend. He banged his fist on the screen of his Duel Runner. “It’s no use. I can’t get through!”
“Something must be jamming the signal,” Trudge said, standing behind Crow.
“I’ve already called specialists to fix it, but it’s going to take some time,” Mina stated.
“That’s not something we have,” Crow said, putting on his helmet and boarding his Runner. “There’s only one place they could be on if Yusei managed to catch up with him.”
“Crow! Wait!” Mina called after him, as he drove off.
“That kid. He won’t be able to find him that easily, not with the signal jammed,” Trudge commented.
“Then let’s go. Officer Kaz and others are already on their way here.”
“Right.” Trudge quickly entered the car and got in the driver’s seat. The two buckled up as he drove after Crow.
Yusei pressed the buttons on his touch-screen monitor. “It’s no good… something is disrupting the signal… I can’t get in touch with Crow…” he thought.
“What’s wrong, Yusei Fudo?” Dobocle taunted. “I thought you wanted to Duel.”
“I’ll have to buy some time…” Yusei glared at his opponent. “Let’s go.”
Dobocle grinned. “I thought as much,” he mumbled. Both drew five cards from their Decks, which lay stored on top of their arms.
DUEL! Yusei (LP 4000) VS Dobocle (LP 4000)
“I’ll go first!” Dobocle declared, drawing a sixth card. “I Summon Gyaku-Gire Panda in Attack Position!”
Gyaku-Gire Panda LV: 3 ATK: 800
A large panda bear appeared next to Dobocle and faced Yusei, glaring at him with an anger-induced expression.
“I Set two cards face-down and end my turn!” he concluded.
The images of two large cards appeared at the side of his Duel Runner before vanishing just as quickly.
“It’s my turn!” Yusei stated.
Dobocle LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
Yusei LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
“I Summon Speed Warrior!”
Speed Warrior LV: 2 ATK: 900
A human-sized metallic warrior appeared at Yusei’s side, its legs moving as if skating down the Duel Lane alongside him.
“Only 900 ATK?” Dobocle replied. “Please, that won’t be enough. Due to Gyaku-Gire Panda’s effect, it gains 500 ATK for every monster you control!”
Gyaku-Gire Panda LV: 3 ATK: 800 + 500 = 1300
“That weakling won’t win this battle!” Dobocle chuckled.
“We’ll see about that,” Yusei countered.
“What?”
“During the Battle Phase of the turn it’s Normal Summoned, Speed Warrior’s ATK is doubled!”
Speed Warrior LV: 2 ATK: 900 * 2 = 1800
Dobocle scoffed.
“Battle! Speed Warrior, attack Gyaku-Gire Panda!” Yusei commanded, his warrior charging forward while twirling itself on its hands. “Sonic Edge!”
“Not so fast!” Dobocle exclaimed. “I activate the Trap Card Rising Energy!”
“What?!”
“By discarding one card from my hand, this card increases the ATK of my monster by 1500 until the End Phase!”
“But that means…”
“Oh, yes. Your monster is about to bite the dust!”
Gyaku-Gire Panda LV: 3 ATK: 1300 + 1500 = 2800
The large beast held its arms up to block Speed Warrior’s kick.
“Good-bye!” Dobocle shouted. His monster clawed at Yusei’s warrior and vanquished it.
2800 – 1800 = 1000
Yusei LP: 4000 – 1000 = 3000 SPC: 1
Gyaku-Gire Panda LV: 3 ATK: 2800 – 500 = 2300
“Anything else?” Dobocle chuckled.
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn,” Yusei concluded.
Gyaku-Gire Panda LV: 3 ATK: 2300 – 1500 = 800
He then looked at the equine tied to his opponent’s Runner. “Hang in there… I’ll save you…”
“Looks like they’re not having any luck with the signal,” Trudge said, his car following close behind Crow’s Runner.
“What do you mean? That Dobocle was assisted?” Mina questioned.
“Exactly. That lab is closer to the inside, almost near the Ener-D Reactor Yusei had been working on. To hit that point exactly and to go only for the horse and nothing else… not to mention the signal jam…” Crow continued. “He couldn’t have done it alone. Not Dobocle. He had to have had help.”
Trudge and Mina remained silent, in shock.
“Then it’s just a matter of finding his accomplice,” Mina finally spoke.
“That’ll have to be put on hold until we get the signal cleared. We won’t be able to coordinate efficiently without it,” Trudge added.
“Agreed.”
“But Crow… why are we going this way?”
“If Yusei caught up with Dobocle… there’s only one place they could be,” Crow answered. “Be careful, Yusei…”
“It’s my turn!” Dobocle declared.
Dobocle LP: 4000 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
Yusei LP: 3000 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
“I Summon Maji-Gire Panda!”
Maji-Gire Panda LV: 4 ATK: 1000
“Go, Gyaku-Gire Panda! Direct attack!” he commanded. Dobocle’s first monster charged forward at Yusei and swiped its paw at him.
Yusei LP: 3000 – 800 = 2200 SPC: 2
“Maji-Gire Panda, it’s your turn!” The second beast lunged forward.
“I activate the Trap Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!” Yusei declared, a large metal scarecrow appearing out of his revealed card. "This card negates your monster's attack!"
“I don’t think so! I activate the Counter Trap Seven Tools of the Bandit!” Dobocle stated.
“What?!”
“By paying 1000 Life Points, I negate the activation of your Trap Card and destroy it!”
Dobocle LP: 4000 – 1000 = 3000 SPC: 2
Yusei flinched as his scarecrow was shattered into pieces, followed by another swipe from Dobocle’s Maji-Gire Panda.
Yusei LP: 2200 – 1000 = 1200 SPC: 2
“How’d you like that? At this rate, you’ll never stop me or get your precious horse back!” Dobocle cackled. “I Set one card face-down and end my turn!”
“Why do you want the horse?” Yusei asked.
“I don’t care about it.”
“What?”
“I’m just earning my pay, Yusei Fudo.”
“Your… ‘pay’… Who hired you?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know? Like I’d tell you!”
Yusei glared at Dobocle, then glanced once more at the equine. “One way or another… I will stop you,” he stated. “It’s my turn!”
Dobocle LP: 3000 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
Yusei LP: 1200 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
“I Summon Junk Synchron!”
Junk Synchron LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“When this monster is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 2 or below monster from my Graveyard in Defense Position! Revive, Speed Warrior!”
Speed Warrior LV: 2 DEF: 400
“Summon all the monsters you like! My Gyaku-Gire Panda’s ATK far surpasses them!” Dobocle stated.
Gyaku-Gire Panda LV: 3 ATK: 800 + 1000 = 1800
“Is that so?” Yusei replied.
“What?”
“I tune Level 3 Junk Synchron with Level 2 Speed Warrior!” Yusei continued. His Junk Synchron rose into the air and transformed into three green transparent rings. As they lined up, his Speed Warrior rose into the holes.
3 + 2 = 5
Yusei’s Speed Warrior transformed into two small white orbs as it and the three rings were enveloped in a thick beam of light.
“Gathering stars will call upon a new force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Show yourself, Junk Warrior!”
A blue metallic warrior emerged from the light.
Junk Warrior LV: 5 ATK: 2300
“A Synchro Summon…” Dobocle scoffed.
“With one less monster on my field, Gyaku-Gire Panda loses some power!” Yusei stated.
Gyaku-Gire Panda LV: 3 ATK: 1800 – 500 = 1300
“Gyaku-Gire Panda’s ATK depends on the number of monsters on the opponent’s field. However, Maji-Gire Panda’s ATK will increase by 500 for every Beast-Type monster that’s destroyed. Even if it’s at 1000 ATK right now… I can’t risk it getting too powerful. In that case…” Yusei thought. “Battle! Junk Warrior, attack Maji-Gire Panda!” he commanded. The rocket boosters on his monster’s back propelled it forward as it extended its large right fist. “Scrap Fist!”
“I activate Impenetrable Attack!” Dobocle declared. “During this Battle Phase, one monster I control can’t be destroyed in battle!”
A barrier appeared and intercepted Junk Warrior’s attack.
“But you still take the Battle Damage!” Yusei countered.
2300 – 1000 = 1300
Dobocle LP: 3000 – 1300 = 1700 SPC: 3
“Why you…” Dobocle groaned, as his Runner shook from the impact.
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn,” Yusei concluded.
“I can’t lose like this. All that cash is just waiting for me to grab it… It’s my turn!”
Dobocle LP: 1700 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
Yusei LP: 1200 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
Dobocle chuckled as he looked at his drawn card.
“What’s he laughing about?” Yusei wondered.
“I didn’t think it would come to this, Yusei… but you left me no choice! I Summon the Tuner Monster Disharmony Spark!”
Disharmony Spark LV: 1 ATK: 0
“Disharmony Spark?” Yusei repeated. “I’ve never heard of such a card…” He felt another pulse in his arm as his Signer mark glowed. “I have a bad feeling about this…”
“I tune Level 1 Disharmony Spark with Level 3 Gyaku-Gire Panda and Level 4 Maji-Gire Panda!” Dobocle continued. His new creature rose and transformed into a single black ring, otherwise identical to the rings Yusei’s Junk Synchron had transformed into. The two large pandas rose into the ring and transformed into seven small black orbs, only to be enveloped by a dark pillar.
1 + 3 + 4 = 8
“A raging beast emerges! Tremble in fear as it arrives! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Disharmony – Fury King Panda!”
A larger beast emerged from the blackness carrying the features of the two previous pandas and descended to Dobocle’s side.
Disharmony – Fury King Panda LV: 8 ATK: 2700
“What is this monster…?” Yusei wondered. He felt a burning sensation in his arm as he also saw the star on the crown glow brighter. “Whatever it is… my mark and that crown are both reacting to it…”
“Yusei… end of the line,” Dobocle said.
“What?”
“When I attack… you’ll take 400 damage from the battle… and your Life Points will be a mere 800. And, as you already know, we are already beyond the Speed World 2 safety line. You can bet that I definitely have a Speed Spell in my hand. So if I remove the four Speed Counters that I have, you’ll take 800 points of damage! Which means you lose!” Dobocle gloated.
“Then what are you waiting for?”
“Eager to lose? Fine by me! Fury King Panda, attack Junk Warrior!” Dobocle’s large beast charged forward at Yusei’s warrior, vanquishing it in a single swipe. “Like I sa—huh?! What the?!”
Yusei LP: 1200 SPC: 4
“No damage…?” Dobocle mumbled.
“I activated my Trap Card, Defense Draw! It reduces the Battle Damage to 0 and lets me draw one card from my Deck!” Yusei stated.
“Clever… but I’ve still won!” Dobocle moved to grab the remaining card in his hand.
“What?”
“From my hand, I activate the Speed Spell – Speed Storm! Since I have at least three Speed Counters, you take 1000 points of damage!”
A large gust of wind shook Yusei’s Runner.
Yusei LP: 1200 – 1000 = 200 SPC: 4
“I end my turn! During my next turn, I’ll have six Speed Counters… and if I remove three of them during my Standby Phase… I can add Speed Storm from my Graveyard to my hand! And since I’ll have three left over, I’ll be able to activate it again!” Dobocle cackled, pulling further away from Yusei’s Duel Runner.
“In that case… I’ll settle this Duel this turn!” Yusei declared. “My turn!”
Dobocle LP: 1700 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
Yusei LP: 200 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
“This should help,” Yusei thought, glancing at his drawn card. “I activate the Speed Spell – Angel Baton! Since I have at least two Speed Counters, I can draw two cards from my Deck then discard one!” He then placed his hand on his Deck, preparing to draw additional cards.
“And with that comes your death sentence!” Dobocle stated.
“What?!”
“At this moment, I activate Fury King Panda’s effect! Once per turn, during the opponent’s turn… when you activate a card effect, I can increase its ATK by 500 until the End Phase!”
Disharmony – Fury King Panda LV: 8 ATK: 2700 + 500 = 3200
“In addition, should my Panda’s ATK decrease, you’ll take damage equal to that amount!”
“That means… I might not even make it to next turn… and even if I do… he’ll still be able to return Speed Storm to his hand… What should I do…?” Yusei thought.
A sudden moan was heard.
“Wh… where am… I…?” a young female voice asked.
The two duelists became wide-eyed as they saw where the voice came from.
“It talks?!” Dobocle exclaimed.
“Why do I feel… so… restrained…?” the equine began to squirm. The struggle caused Dobocle’s Runner to wobble slightly.
“Hey, knock it off!” Dobocle shouted.
Yusei watched as the horse screamed for freedom, only to be silenced by a blow to the head from the crown Dobocle now held.
“If I’d known this thing can talk, I’d make the guy pay double. You know what… I’ll have him triple it or I keep it for myself,” the bulky duelist scoffed. “Now, where were we… Huh?”
Dobocle noticed Yusei’s eyes brimming with determination.
“I don’t know what’s going on…” Yusei said, “but I do know this: This is as far as you go, Dobocle.”
“Eh? Tough talk, champ. My monster has 3200 ATK. I doubt you could beat it in one turn… and unfortunately for you, one turn is all you have! You’ll either lose because of Fury King Panda’s effect… or, if you somehow manage to defeat my beast, Speed Storm on my next turn! You’ve got nothing left.”
Yusei glared at his opponent once more. “Due to Angel Baton’s effect, I draw two cards and discard one. Here I go!” He slowly revealed the cards to himself. His eyes grew wide as the image of a path of cards, connected by sparks of electricity, appeared in his mind. Yusei then discarded a card from his hand.
“What’s he up to?” Dobocle wondered.
“If I control no monsters, I can Special Summon Junk Forward from my hand!” Yusei declared.
Junk Forward LV: 3 DEF: 1500
“Next, I Summon Debris Dragon!”
Debris Dragon LV: 4 ATK: 1000
“When Debris Dragon is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a monster with 500 ATK or less from my Graveyard! Come, Sonic Chick!”
Sonic Chick LV: 1 ATK: 300
“You couldn’t be…” Dobocle mumbled.
“I tune Level 4 Debris Dragon with Level 1 Sonic Chick and Level 3 Junk Forward!” Just as before, the small dragon transformed into four green rings that surrounded Yusei’s other two monsters. The two monsters became four small white orbs and were, along with the rings, engulfed in another pillar of light.
4 + 1 + 3 = 8
“Clustering wishes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Take flight, Stardust Dragon!”
A large white dragon emerged from the light and descended above Yusei.
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2500
“Stardust Dragon… your ace monster…” Dobocle commented. “However, its power pales in comparison to Fury King Panda. You can’t win!”
“Is that so?” Yusei countered.
“What?”
“I activate the Speed Spell – Overboost!”
“You get four Speed Counters and lose all but one at the End Phase. So what?”
Yusei LP: 200 SPC: 5 + 4 = 9
“That’s not enough!” Dobocle shouted.
“Wrong,” Yusei replied. “My victory is assured… with this! I activate the Speed Spell – Final Attack!”
“No… not that card!”
“Since I have at least eight Speed Counters, I can double the ATK of a monster I control!”
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2500 * 2 = 5000
“5000 ATK?!” Dobocle exclaimed.
“Go, Stardust Dragon! Attack Disharmony – Fury King Panda!” Yusei commanded, a large blast shooting out of his dragon’s mouth at Dobocle’s panda. “Shooting Sonic!”
An explosion occurred, obliterating the bulky duelist’s monster.
5000 – 3200 = 1800
Dobocle LP: 1700 – 1800 = 0 SPC: 5
Dobocle and Yusei both became shocked as the former’s screen flashed red. “What the?!” Dobocle exclaimed.
Another explosion.
Yusei watched the blast fling the horse into the air. Almost instinctively, he rotated his Runner so that the left side faced forward while maintaining his direction. Rotating the armpiece of his Runner up, he extended his arm to catch the falling equine. The impact caused Yusei’s Runner to fall on its side while still going at a high velocity. Quickly regaining control of his Runner, he turned around and headed in the direction he came with the small horse across his lap. Lowering the armpiece, he saw a sparkle in the distance. He turned his head to see the crown fall into the sea below.
Another soft moan came from the horse as it struggled to lift its head and open its eyes.
“It’s okay. I won’t hurt you,” Yusei spoke.
“Wh… what happened…? Where am I…?” it asked, in a soft female voice.
“You were captured earlier… but you’re safe now. I’m just taking you to a place where you can rest and regain your strength.”
“Who… are you…?”
“My name… is Yusei Fudo.”
“Yusei… Fudo…” the equine repeated. It then noticed the light emanating from the Signer mark on Yusei’s right arm. “This light… so… warm…”
He then felt the creature relax in his lap as he continued back down the Duel Lane.
Twilight let out a moan as she struggled to open her eyes. She quickly felt for her environment. Certainly, she was in a bed. Not in the bed in her home, but a bed nonetheless.
A sudden pain struck her in the back of her head. Her hoof went behind her head to feel where the source of the pain was.
“Bandages,” she thought. “Last thing I remember is…”
“Let my friends go!” she demanded, her horn glowing once more.
“That won’t happen,” said a deeper male voice. Another hooded figure entered the room, lightning sparking from his hands. The newcomer extended his arm towards Twilight and shot several bolts at her, knocking her through the hole in the wall.
“Twilight!” shouted her friends.
“The Elements and their bearers belong to us now!” The figures stepped through the hole. The second extended his arm towards Twilight again. “Give up.”
Twilight rose to her hooves, her horn and the emblem on her crown glowing. “Release… my friends…!”
The second human glared at her. “Have it your way.” A large burst of lightning shot out towards Twilight. This time, she fired a burst of energy from her horn in retaliation. The blasts collided directly in between. “A strong one, aren’t you? But it’s useless.”
“I won’t… let you win…” Twilight replied, struggling to maintain her strength.
Neither she nor the human let up, and the collision of their attacks triggered an explosion of light that engulfed the vicinity.
“My friends!” she quickly shouted, her eyes jerking open. “Huh…? Where am I…? Spike? Spike! Rainbow Dash? Applejack? Pinkie Pie…?” She scanned the well-lit room, a worried expression on her face. The walls had simple white wallpaper. The floor was made from wooden planks. There was one window and one passage leading downstairs where she began to hear… hoofsteps? No. Sounded too soft to be hoofsteps. Footsteps, perhaps, similar to Spike’s whenever he scurried around the library.
“Hello?” she asked. “Anypony… there…?”
She watched as a tall, thin… creature with red… not mane… hair walked in.
“Oh, you’re awake,” the figure said, with a female voice. It looked almost as confused as she was. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised… he did tell me you could talk, after all…”
“Who and what in Equestria are you?! Wait! Aren’t you a human? What are you doing here?” Twilight exclaimed. Another pain struck her in the head. “Ow!”
“Please calm down!” the figure replied, approaching Twilight and placing her hand on her shoulder. The alicorn immediately jerked away as the figure pulled her arm back. “My name is Akiza Izinski. A friend of mine brought you here not too long ago while you were still unconscious.”
“Where am I?” Twilight rubbed the back of her head.
“My friend’s apartment.”
“Who?”
“His name is Yusei Fudo.”
“‘Yusei… Fudo…’” Twilight repeated. The name rung familiar.
“It’s okay. I won’t hurt you,” said a male voice.
“Wh… what happened…? Where am I…?” Twilight asked. The pain in her head made her too dizzy to try to open her eyes.
“You were captured earlier… but you’re safe now. I’m just taking you to a place where you can rest and regain your strength.”
“Who… are you…?”
“My name… is Yusei Fudo.”
“Yusei… Fudo…” Twilight repeated. Struggling to see, Twilight soon noticed something bright in front of her. It was bright red, almost inviting. Almost… magical. “This light… so… warm…”
Her strength began to slip away from her. She didn’t know who this “Yusei Fudo” was… but from her studies of magic, no light that was this bright and strong could be something she needed to fear… at least for the moment.
Twilight’s eyes closed as her mind drifted away.
Twilight remained silent, trying to gather her thoughts.
“Is something wrong?” Akiza asked.
Silence.
“Where did you… come from, anyway? You don’t appear to be a Duel Monster. At least not one I’ve seen before,” Akiza continued.
“‘Duel Monster’…?” Twilight stared at the red-haired woman, confused.
“Either way, you don’t seem to be from this world.”
Twilight froze for a bit. “You don’t seem to be from this world.” Her heart sank as Akiza’s words echoed in her mind. “This is… another world…?” Twilight mumbled. She closed her eyes and held her hooves to her head, attempting to process all the information that was suddenly thrown at her all at once.
“I’m in… the human world…? But… that’s impossible… I didn’t go through…” She then came to another realization. Something on her head was missing. “My Element! Where is it?!” Twilight screamed.
“‘Element’…?” Akiza asked.
“My crown! What happened to it? I was wearing it earlier!”
“Please, calm down! I think my friend, Yusei, said something about looking for a crown before he left.”
“You mean…”
“Yes. The man that brought you here. It still surprises me how he managed to bring you here all on his own, considering your size.”
Twilight once again used the trick her former foalsitter taught her, in an attempt to calm her nerves.
“It’s just… so much to take in…” Twilight finally spoke, breaking the momentary silence.
“What do you mean?” Akiza questioned, pulling up a chair.
“First, these humans—they look like them, anyway—show up and attack us… then I somehow get thrown into this completely different world… and now suddenly my big crown thingy is gone and my friends are nowhere to be found!” Twilight groaned. Her hooves then covered her face as she began to sob. “This is just bad… really, really bad…”
Twilight nearly jumped when she felt Akiza’s hand on her shoulder.
“Listen, I may not know much about your situation now, but I promise… we’ll figure this out.”
“Okay, but… how do I know I can trust you? How do I know you’re not with those humans wearing hoods that attacked me and my friends?”
“I’m not sure I know what you’re talking about.”
“Likely story…”
“Well, I’ve never even heard of you before, for one thing. Are humans rare where you come from?”
“I suppose… and… I guess you’ve never met a pony before.”
“‘Pony’ wouldn’t be the word I use. We have horses in this world, but none that can talk. They don’t have wings or horns, either. And they certainly don’t have a coat the same color as yours.”
“I see.”
“Anyway, you should probably rest some more. It’ll take time for that bump on your head to heal.” Akiza stood up.
“But… I need my crown. It’s important!”
“Don’t worry. Like I said, Yusei went out to search for it a while ago. If anything, you can trust him.”
Twilight hung her head and remained silent for a short moment.
“You wouldn’t happen to have a name, would you?” Akiza asked.
Twilight’s head rose. “My name… is…” Twilight paused, hesitant to place any sort of trust in these “humans”, or whatever they call themselves. She looked back at Akiza once more. The female human did certainly appear sincere enough, and did most likely tend to her injury. She figured Akiza probably deserved, at least, that much. “My name is Twilight Sparkle.”
“Well, then, Twilight… get some rest. I’ll see if I can’t get something for you to eat.” Akiza turned towards the doorway.
“Oh… okay…”
“Something the matter?”
“I just… have a few questions is all…”
“That makes two of us, but let’s wait until Yusei and the others get back.”
“Others?”
“Friends, I should say. Don’t worry. We don’t want to hurt you.”
“Sure… if you say so.”
“You don’t really trust us, do you? I can’t say I blame you. I’ll be right back.”
Twilight hung her head once more as the human left the room. Pondering her next move, she glanced out the nearby window. If she wanted to escape, this was her chance. But at the same time… she was in a completely new world. There was no place to go and little choice but to trust these humans, Yusei, Akiza, and whoever else was going to see her soon.
Her eyes traveled around the room again and caught sight of a bookshelf. Slowly pulling off the covers, she gently placed her hooves on the wooden floor.
Approaching the shelf, Twilight found herself appalled by the arrangement of the books, which appeared to be randomly placed as if they were set on the shelf mindlessly and carelessly.
“Do these humans even know the meaning of the word ‘organized’?” she mumbled with disgust.
Her horn began to glow as she attempted to levitate the books off the shelf.
“Ow!” The books dropped onto the floor. Twilight rubbed the back of her head. Concentrating on any sort of spell almost immediately drew her mind to the pain from whatever hit her.
She heard footsteps scurrying up the stairs.
Recovering from the sudden surge of pain, she turned her head towards the passageway, where Akiza and another human stood.
“What happened?!” Akiza asked.
“Sorry. I just saw this bookshelf and how everything was unorganized on it. I tried… to use my magic to rearrange it but then… I sort of… dropped them…” Twilight confessed.
“You didn’t hurt yourself, did you?”
“No, I’m all right… except for that bump on my head…”
“What do you mean ‘use your magic’?” the male human—a conclusion Twilight quickly came to considering the sound of his voice—behind Akiza questioned.
“Who are you?” Twilight returned.
“He’s Yusei Fudo, the one who saved you,” Akiza answered.
“You’re Yusei? What was that bright light I saw before I passed out?”
The two humans glanced at each other.
“Good grief, maybe we should take turns asking questions,” Akiza suggested.
“Agreed,” Yusei concurred.
“Oh… right… yeah, that would probably be best…” Twilight replied. “But wait, didn’t you say others are coming?”
“Yeah, but they’re a bit farther away so it’ll take a while for them to show up,” Akiza answered.
“All right…” Twilight sighed.
Twilight sat in the bed and faced Yusei and Akiza, with him leaning against the wall and her sitting in the chair again. The bookshelf was already cleaned and organized, though not to the her liking.
“I guess… I’ll start…” she offered. “But shouldn't we wait for your friends?”
“They’ll be held back for a while, so you might as well start now and we can fill them in later,” Akiza replied.
“All right, then… my name is Twilight Sparkle, and I am the fourth alicorn to be crowned princess in Equestria, the world I come from. My friends and I represent the spirits of the six Elements of Harmony.”
“Elements of Harmony?” Yusei repeated.
“Is that what you meant before when you said you were missing your Element?” Akiza asked.
“Yeah, but we can only use their power when we have the actual Elements with us. My friends have necklaces and I have a crown,” Twilight answered.
“You mean…” Yusei started.
He then felt a pulse in his arm. Glancing at it, he saw the mark on his arm glowing then looked up at the object now fastened to Dobocle’s waist. The emblem, glowing brightly, was shaped like a star and was identical to the symbol on the creature’s rear end.
“What’s wrong, Yusei?” Akiza asked.
“That crown… it fell into the ocean after Dobocle’s Duel Runner exploded,” Yusei answered.
Quickly regaining control of his Runner, he turned around and headed in the direction he came with the small horse across his lap. Lowering the armpiece, he saw a sparkle in the distance. He turned his head to see the crown fall into the sea below.
“It… WHAT?!” Twilight exclaimed.
“It’s why I went back out. Crow is still looking for it as we speak,” Yusei quickly replied.
“But how are you supposed to get it from the bottom of the ocean?!”
“With scuba gear, of course,” Akiza answered.
“Oh... right...”
“Tell us more about these Elements."
“Oh… uh… well, there are six. Loyalty, kindness, generosity, laughter, honesty, and the last one—which is mine—is magic… The Elements are responsible for maintaining harmony in Equestria, so everypony can live happily… what?”
“It’s nothing,” Yusei replied.
“It just seems weird to use the term ‘pony’. No offense,” Akiza stated.
“How so?” Twilight responded, curious.
“‘Pony’ is somewhat of a… little-girl term for what we call ‘horses’ here.”
“I guess it’s more of a preferred term for us.”
“Do they all have wings and a horn like you, Twilight?”
“No. I’m one of four alicorns, all of which are princesses. The other three are Princess Celestia, my mentor… Princess Luna, her sister—both of which rule Equestria together… and Princess Cadance, my old foalsitter when I was little and when I was still a unicorn.”
“What do you mean?”
“Everypony else… sorry, is that weird for you?”
“We don’t mind. It’ll just take some getting used to.”
“All right. Everypony else is either a unicorn, pegasus, or earth pony. Unicorns are gifted with the ability to use magic with their horns, pegasi can manipulate the weather, and earth ponies are more in tune with the natural world than the other two.”
“But you said you used to be a unicorn?” Yusei interjected.
“Yeah. My mentor, Princess Celestia, sent me a book written by one of the most powerful unicorns in history. I was to complete a spell that he couldn’t and, when I did, I was transformed into an alicorn.”
“I’d like to ask more but… we would probably end up way off-track,” Akiza said.
“Right. So, clearly, the Elements are important to you and your world,” Yusei added.
“Yeah. Anyway, it’s my turn to ask questions,” Twilight replied.
“Ask away,” Akiza encouraged.
“Where do I start…?” Twilight paused for a moment. “I guess I’d want to know… what kind of world I’m in? And what is this ‘Duel Monster’ that Akiza—that’s your name, right?—mentioned earlier. And… what was that bright light I saw when you rescued me? You know, before I passed out and before I woke up here.”
“To start…” Akiza began. “Our world is just called ‘Earth’, and you’re in New Domino City. Duel Monsters is more of a card game that everyone plays… most of the time.”
“Most of the time?” Twilight wondered.
“In the past, there have been several individuals who have tried to use Duel Monsters to do evil, such as taking over the world or trying to destroy it.”
“With… a card game…?”
“Duel Monsters have actually played a large role in our world’s history,” Akiza continued. “It’s even believed that its origins date back to about 5,000 years ago. Some say it was even about 10,000. It seems to be like any card game at first glance, but many of the cards are special; some even have connections to people. More so, there is even a separate world where Duel Monster Spirits live.”
“That’s a bit farfetched.”
“It is true, though,” Yusei responded.
“Besides, the idea of talking horses—ponies, rather—that can use magic and manipulate weather is a bit farfetched to humans here,” Akiza added.
“Fair enough,” Twilight replied. “What about that light, though?”
“You’re probably referring to this,” Yusei said, raising his right arm. He rolled up his sleeve and removed his glove.
“What… is that…? A cutie mark…?”
“Cutie mark?”
“Oh… I guess not, then. A cutie mark is something a pony earns when he or she realizes their special talent. The symbol then magically appears on the pony’s flank. Mine, for example, represents my talent of magic.”
“I see. Well… my mark here is the mark of the Crimson Dragon.”
“Crimson… Dragon…?”
“The Crimson Dragon is a mythical creature said to have existed about 10,000 years ago and fought the Earthbound Immortals, a group of dark deities, both then and 5,000 years ago. Its servants are six dragons, which hold special connections to the Signers,” Akiza explained.
“What’s a Signer?”
“A Signer is someone who is endowed with the Crimson Dragon’s power and there are a total of six Signers, including Akiza and myself,” Yusei stated. Akiza rolled up her sleeve and revealed her mark as well. “The light you saw was probably my mark when it was glowing, reacting to your crown.”
“It what?”
“Our marks can sense when others possessing some sort of magic are nearby as well as major threats. I guess you could say that’s how I managed to follow your kidnapper and rescue you,” Yusei answered, putting his glove back on after he and Akiza rolled up their own sleeves.
“I see. Well… thank you, Yusei. How’d I get this bump on my head, anyway?”
“Well…”
A sudden moan was heard.
“Wh… where am… I…?” a young female voice asked.
The two duelists became wide-eyed as they saw where the voice came from.
“It talks?!” Dobocle exclaimed.
“Why do I feel… so… restrained…?” the equine began to squirm. The struggle caused Dobocle’s Runner to wobble slightly.
“Hey, knock it off!” Dobocle shouted.
Yusei watched as the horse screamed for freedom, only to be silenced by a blow to the head from the crown Dobocle now held.
Twilight’s mouth dropped open, disgusted at the thought of her own Element of Harmony being used like a miniature club. She rubbed the back of her head again. “Ugh… just thinking about it makes my head hurt…” she moaned. “So… what about the dragons? You mentioned dragons earlier when you were talking about the… Crimson Dragon, I think.”
“Their power is contained within Duel Monsters cards,” Akiza answered. “Each of them is owned by the Signer they belong to.”
“I see… May I… see one of these… cards?”
“Is it alright with you, Yusei?” Akiza asked.
“Sure,” Yusei agreed, revealing a card to Twilight.
“‘Stardust Dragon’…” she read aloud.
“So I guess that means you can read English,” Akiza commented.
“I’m surprised we speak the same language, let alone write,” Twilight added, as Yusei put the card away.
“At any rate, we’ll do what we can to help you get back home to your friends,” Yusei said.
Twilight’s head jerked up.
“What’s wrong?” Akiza asked.
“My… friends…” Twilight responded.
“What about them?”
“Just before I found myself in this world… we were attacked by humans…”
“Oh, right. I remember you saying this before…”
“What, Akiza?” Yusei questioned.
“Twilight said a group of humans had attacked her and her friends, then she suddenly found herself here in our world,” Akiza answered.
Twilight covered her face with her hooves. She dreaded the thought of what might have befallen her friends.
“Then… all the more reason,” Yusei said, turning towards the stairway. Twilight slowly removed her hooves from her face. “I know what it’s like to miss your friends.”
Twilight glanced over at Akiza, who appeared melancholy. “Did something… happen?” she asked.
“Just yesterday… we discovered two of our friends, Leo and Luna—fraternal twins and also Signers—were missing,” Akiza replied.
“That’s terrible!”
“What’s worse is that our Signer marks haven’t reacted to anything besides you and your crown, since they can also be used for finding other Signers. I don’t want to think about what might happen to them… especially considering how young they are.”
“I’m… sorry to hear about that.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“I hope you find them soon.”
“So do I…”
“Maybe I can help,” Twilight offered.
“That’s not a good idea,” Yusei said.
“But why?”
“You’re from a different world. When you first came here, the first thing that happened to you was that you were placed in a high-tech security lab. The only ones that know you’re here are Akiza and I. Eventually, Crow and Jack will, too.”
“Who are they?”
“The other two Signers. Crow was the one that found you.”
“If they find you, they might send you back to the lab to let the scientists do whatever tests they want to perform,” Akiza added.
Twilight hung her head. It was sad. Logical, but sad. She knew all too well what being a scientist was like.
“But after what you’ve been through…” Yusei continued, “you don’t deserve that. That’s why we can’t risk you going out in public.”
“Right…” Twilight responded.
“First things first, though. We’ll have to recover that crown.”
The alicorn looked up once more. “You don’t have to do that.”
“It’s what friends are for,” Yusei replied, walking downstairs.
Twilight froze.
“That’s Yusei for you,” Akiza commented.
“What do you mean?” Twilight asked, turning her head towards her.
“I guess… he just sees a friend in you… and felt that you needed one yourself so you don’t feel alone while you’re here in our world. I’d be honored if you’re willing to consider me a friend as well.”
“They’re so… nice… and sincere…” Twilight thought, as she turned her head back towards the stairway. “I’d… like that.”
She glanced once more at Akiza, catching her smile.
“Looks like… the magic of friendship doesn’t just exist in Equestria or that other human world… it exists in this place, too,” she thought, smiling as well. “Maybe being in this new world won’t be so bad after all.”
The officer with a dark gray uniform stepped into the pitch-black room. Closing the door, he erased any trace of an outside light source. He turned towards the center of the room where a control panel resided with several monitors, including a large master monitor. He sat down in the chair before it and began typing with the keys on the console.
The image of a hooded man appeared on the large screen. “So, have you captured her?” the figure asked.
“She should be being brought here as we speak. It is only a matter of time,” the officer replied.
“Time may soon not be a luxury we have. If they catch onto us…”
“They don’t suspect anything yet.”
“‘Yet’,” the figure on the screen repeated sternly.
“You don’t have to worry.”
“I should hope so. One of them is working with you, Lieutenant.”
“And he shall be kept in check until—” The officer found himself interrupted by the sound of the door opening behind him.
In the doorway stood another, but in a light blue outfit. “Lieutenant, I apologize for the interruption, but I regret to inform you that the lab subject was unable to be recovered and is believed to have been taken by Yusei Fudo.”
“So that brute failed us…” the lieutenant responded.
“Yusei Fudo?” the man on the screen repeated, raising his voice with disgust.
“We still know where our target is. And they don’t suspect that we know where they are. Rest assured, we can retrieve her.”
“For your sake, you better. Over and out.” The screen shut off.
The lieutenant turned towards the doorway. “Officer.”
“Sir!” The man at the doorway responded, standing tall.
“Have Officer Hogan meet me at the entrance.”
“Right away!”
“Ouch, that stings!” Twilight exclaimed.
“Sorry, Twilight,” Akiza replied, removing the cloth from the back of the alicorn’s head. “But at least I can say that, from the looks of things, this injury isn’t too serious. We’ll have to keep it bandaged, just in case.”
“Sure,” Twilight winced with a hiss, as Akiza reapplied the bandage around her head.
“There. Wear that for a couple of days and it should heal completely.”
“Thank you very much, Akiza.”
“Don’t mention it. Anyway, I’ve never really worked with a pony before, so I hope this is enough.”
“Worked? What do you mean by that?”
“Sorry, I guess that was my education speaking there. I’m currently studying to become a doctor. But…”
“Your studies revolve around humans, I’m guessing.”
“Yeah.”
“Well, if it is just a bump on the head, then this can’t be too different from what you would do normally for humans.”
“I guess not. …Hey, is something wrong?”
Twilight hung her head and looked down towards the bed sheets that covered her lower body. “I just… will your friends be able to find my crown? Will I ever be able to get back home…?”
“Of course,” Akiza replied.
“How can you be so sure?”
“If Yusei has taught us anything… it’s to never give up.”
“Sounds a bit cliché. What has he actually done?”
“Along the coastline, there’s a bridge that connects the city to the Satellite Sector, an island just offshore. If it wasn’t for Yusei, that bridge wouldn’t exist and the city and Satellite may not have finally come to coexist peacefully.”
“Really? What happened?”
“It’s a long story. But to keep it short, Yusei strived to bring the two places together and is determined to create a better future for everyone.”
“Wow…” Twilight suddenly felt her stomach growling.
Akiza chuckled. “I guess you must be hungry.”
“Yeah…” Twilight let out a nervous laugh.
“I’ll make you a salad.”
“Thanks.”
“This search is getting nowhere,” Crow commented.
“We have to find it, though,” Yusei replied. Both stood on a boat beneath the Duel Lane, waiting for the officers that dove into the water to surface.
“It’s gotta be pretty important if you’re still insisting on finding it.”
“It is.”
“So what’s the big deal?”
“When we retrieve the crown and get back home, I’ll let you know. I’m not sure it’d be a good idea to talk about it here.”
“All right.” A sudden ring interrupted them. Crow pulled out his cell phone. “Hello?”
Yusei glanced at his friend, waiting for the conversation to end.
“All right… Got it…” he said, hanging up. Crow stood with a conflicted expression on his face.
“What’s wrong, Crow?” Yusei asked.
Crow remained silent.
“Crow?”
“It’s nothing, I… just have to send one of the officers to go get something.”
“Get what exactly?”
“It’s… confidential.”
Yusei returned the silence. “…I understand. Let’s get back to the search.”
“Right.” Crow said, dialing on his phone.
“Wow, this is delicious,” Twilight complimented. “Thanks again, Akiza.”
“You just focus on getting better for now, Twilight.”
Twilight nodded then glanced out the window. “This place is a lot less... lush and green…” she thought. “It looks so… bare…”
The sound of a door opening came through the stairway.
“That might be Yusei. I’ll be right back,” Akiza said.
“Okay,” Twilight replied, as she watched the red-haired human step down the stairs.
Akiza entered the garage where her Duel Runner was stored. “Oh… hello, officer. How can I help you?” she asked.
“You must be Akiza Izinski,” replied the officer. The angle of the helmet and the glass attached to it made it impossible to see his eyes.
“Yes, that’s me.”
“This is the home of Yusei Fudo, correct?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“Is he here right now?”
“No, he’s out at the moment. I’m just watching over things here.”
“Mind if I take a look around?”
Akiza froze for a moment. “May I ask what you’re looking for?”
The officer remained silent as he walked through the garage.
“Don’t you need a warrant?” she asked.
The man stopped and turned towards Akiza. “You know why I’m here.”
Akiza suddenly felt a cryptic sensation in her right arm.
“Where is it?” the officer asked.
“I… I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she answered.
“Don’t lie to me.”
“Something isn’t right about him…” she thought. “Who are you? You’re not a real officer, are you?”
The man stood still. Even if she couldn’t see his face, Akiza knew he was staring at her. He raised his left arm and activated his Duel Disk. “I’ll be taking the both of you,” he said. “Don’t try to resist us.”
“‘Us’? What’s he talking about?” Akiza wondered, glaring at him while she reached for her Duel Disk. “You’ll do no such thing,” she responded, placing her Duel Disk on her arm and activating it.
“How foolish,” the man replied, as they both drew five cards from their Decks.
DUEL! Akiza (LP 4000) VS Enemy (LP 4000)
“I’ll go first!” Akiza declared, drawing a sixth card. “I Summon Revival Rose in Attack Position!”
Revival Rose LV: 4 ATK: 1300
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn.”
“Then it’s my move,” the man stated. “I activate the Field Spell Brain Research Lab!”
The room began to shake as it began to take on the appearance of a laboratory. As the rumbling ended, Akiza glanced towards the stairway. She noticed Twilight peeking downstairs.
“She’s here, isn’t she?” the man asked.
Akiza remained silent.
“No matter… like I said… I’ll take you both. Let’s continue… I Summon Doctor Cranium,” he continued.
Doctor Cranium LV: 1 ATK: 100
“As I thought… a Psychic Deck…” Akiza thought.
“Now I use the effect of Brain Research Lab. Once per turn, I can Normal Summon an additional Psychic-Type monster. I Tribute Doctor Cranium to Tribute Summon Overdrive Teleporter!” the man declared.
Overdrive Teleporter LV: 6 ATK: 2100
“Because I used my Field Spell’s effect to perform an additional Summon, it gains a Psychic Counter.”
Brain Research Lab Psychic Counters: 0 + 1 = 1
“Next, I activate Overdrive Teleporter’s effect! By paying 2000 Life Points, I can Special Summon two Level 3 Psychic-Type monsters from my Deck! Additionally, if I would pay Life Points to activate one of my Psychic-Type monster’s effects, I can add another Psychic Counter to my Field Spell instead!”
Brain Research Lab Psychic Counters: 1 + 1 = 2
“Come forth! Psychic Commander and Serene Psychic Witch!”
Psychic Commander LV: 3 ATK: 1400
Serene Psychic Witch LV: 3 ATK: 1400
“Three monsters in one turn?!” Akiza thought to herself.
“Battle! Psychic Commander, attack Revival Rose!” the man commanded. His creature aimed its cannons at Akiza’s rose-like monster. “And now, by paying up to 500 Life Points in multiples of 100, I can decrease your monster’s ATK by the same amount!”
Akiza scoffed.
Enemy LP: 4000 – 500 = 3500
Revival Rose LV: 4 ATK: 1300 – 500 = 800
Psychic Commander’s cannon blasts struck the rose.
“At this moment, I activate the effect of Hedge Guard from my hand!” Akiza stated. “By sending it to the Graveyard, I can prevent my monster from being destroyed by battle once! However, its ATK is halved after damage calculation.”
1400 – 800 = 600
Akiza LP: 4000 – 600 = 3400
Revival Rose LV: 4 ATK: 800 / 2 = 400
“No matter. Serene Psychic Witch, attack!” the man continued. His female creature extended its arm towards the rose. A shockwave emanated from the monster and vanquished Revival Rose.
1400 – 400 = 1000
Akiza LP: 3400 – 1000 = 2400
“Overdrive Teleport, direct attack!” The third psychic extended its arms towards Akiza, lightning bolts shooting out of its hands at her.
Akiza screamed as she was struck from the blast.
Akiza LP: 2400 – 2100 = 300
She fell to her knees. “The damage… it’s real… but how? This power I feel… only Psychic Duelists have it… could he be…?” Akiza wondered.
“Akiza!” Twilight thought, worried.
The man chuckled. “Such a shame. I was hoping to finish you this turn. Oh, well. I activate the Continuous Spell Field Barrier. This prevents my Field Spell from being destroyed and any others from activating. I end my turn,” he concluded.
“My turn!” Akiza declared, rising to her feet. “I Summon the Tuner Monster Twilight Rose Knight!”
Twilight Rose Knight LV: 3 ATK: 1000
“When this monster is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or below Plant-Type monster from my hand! Come, Hedge Guard!”
Hedge Guard LV: 3 ATK: 0
“I tune Level 3 Twilight Rose Knight with Level 3 Hedge Guard!” Akiza continued.
“What the… what’s going on…?” Twilight wondered, watching the warrior transform into three green rings lining themselves up with Hedge Guard in the middle.
3 + 3 = 6
“Splendid hunter and dweller of the sacred forest, with your whip of punishment in hand, come forth now! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Splendid Rose!”
Splendid Rose LV: 6 ATK: 2200
“Splendid Rose’s effect activates! By banishing a Plant-Type monster, I can halve the ATK of one of your monster’s until the End Phase! I banish Hedge Guard!” Akiza’s new monster grabbed one of its thorned whips and flung it at Overdrive Teleporter. The vine was wrapped tightly around it.
Overdrive Teleporter LV: 6 ATK: 2100 / 2 = 1050
“Battle! Splendid Rose, attack Psychic Commander!” she commanded. Her monster leapt into the air.
“Psychic Commander’s effect! By paying 500 Life Points, your monster’s ATK drops by 500 until the End Phase!” Cannon shots struck Akiza’s Splendid Rose.
Enemy LP: 3500 – 500 = 3000
Splendid Rose LV: 6 ATK: 2200 – 500 = 1700
The Synchro Monster delivered a heavy kick, obliterating Psychic Commander.
1700 – 1400 = 300
Enemy LP: 3000 – 300 = 2700
“Splendid Rose’s other effect activates! By banishing a Plant-Type monster, I can halve its ATK until the End Phase and attack again. I banish another Hedge Guard!” Akiza stated.
Splendid Rose LV: 6 ATK: 1700 / 2 = 850
“Go! Attack Overdrive Teleporter!” Her monster leapt into the air once more.
“Are you a fool?” the man asked. “Even at half strength, Overdrive Teleporter’s ATK surpasses your Splendid Rose’s now.”
Overdrive Teleporter LV: 6 ATK: 1050
“Who says I’m done?” Akiza replied.
“What?”
“From my hand, I activate the Quick-Play Spell Forbidden Lance! This decreases your monster’s ATK by 800 until the End Phase!”
“No!”
Overdrive Teleporter LV: 6 ATK: 1050 – 800 = 250
Akiza’s monster delivered another kick, vanquishing the man’s monster.
850 – 250 = 600
Enemy LP: 2700 – 600 = 2100
“During the End Phase, the effects of Psychic Commander and itself disappear. I end my turn,” she concluded.
“I’m not sure what’s going on…” Twilight thought. “But it looks like Akiza’s gained the upper hand. I don’t like that other human’s laugh, though…”
“Clever… very clever…” the man chuckled. “It’s my turn! Serene Psychic Witch, attack Splendid Rose!”
“What?!” Akiza exclaimed.
The man’s remaining psychic raised its hand, attempting to strike Akiza’s monster only to be countered and destroyed.
2200 – 1400 = 800
Enemy LP: 2100 – 800 = 1300
“When Serene Psychic Witch is destroyed, I can banish a Psychic-Type monster from my Deck with 2000 ATK or less. I banish Disharmony Core!”
“What? ‘Disharmony Core’? I’ve never heard of that card before…” Akiza mumbled.
“Now I’ll Normal Summon two monsters, thanks to Brain Research Lab! Appear now, Lifeforce Harmonizer and Psychic Snail!” the man continued.
Lifeforce Harmonizer LV: 2 ATK: 800
Psychic Snail LV: 4 ATK: 1900
Brain Research Lab Psychic Counters: 2 + 1 = 3
He then grabbed the last card in his hand. “I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn!” the man concluded.
The opening of a door was heard. Akiza and the man turned to see Yusei standing by himself.
“What’s going on here?” he asked.
“Yusei!” Akiza called.
“Why are you Dueling a Sector Security officer, Akiza?”
“Yusei… this man… I don’t think he’s working under Sector Security.”
“What do you mean?”
“So this is where he lives after all…” the man mumbled.
“You won’t win,” Akiza stated, turning towards her opponent. “It’s my turn!”
“At this moment, the monster banished by Serene Psychic Witch is now Special Summoned to the field! Come, Tuner Monster… Disharmony Core!”
Disharmony Core LV: 1 DEF: 0
“Did he say ‘Disharmony’? Akiza, be careful!” Yusei warned.
“Got it!” Akiza replied. “It might be a Tuner Monster but it’s still my turn! I won’t let you Synchro Summon! Splendid Rose, attack Lifeforce Harmonizer!” Her monster jumped into the air.
Splendid Rose LV: 6 ATK: 2200
Lifeforce Harmonizer LV: 2 ATK: 800
“With Splendid Rose at 2200 ATK and your Lifeforce Harmonizer at 800 ATK, you’ll take 1400 damage. However, you only have 1300 Life Points remaining. It ends here!”
Enemy LP: 1300
“Is that so?” the man rebutted.
“What?” Akiza responded.
“I activate the Trap Urgent Tuning! During the Battle Phase, I can send Synchro Materials on my field to the Graveyard to perform a Synchro Summon!”
“No way!”
“Here it comes!” Yusei said.
“I tune Level 1 Disharmony Core with Level 2 Lifeforce Harmonizer and Level 4 Psychic Snail!” the man stated. The Disharmony Core became a single black ring that surrounded the other two monsters.
1 + 2 + 4 = 7
“The balance shifts. Watch as true might emerges from the endless chaos! A psychic like no other! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Disharmony – Mind Buster!”
Disharmony – Mind Buster LV: 7 ATK: 2400
A large humanoid creature with a demonic appearance descended behind the man.
“It’s just like before…” Yusei thought.
“I tune Level 1 Disharmony Spark with Level 3 Gyaku-Gire Panda and Level 4 Maji-Gire Panda!” Dobocle continued. His new creature rose and transformed into a single black ring, otherwise identical to the rings Yusei’s Junk Synchron had transformed into. The two large pandas rose into the ring and transformed into seven small black orbs, only to be enveloped by a dark pillar.
1 + 3 + 4 = 8
“A raging beast emerges! Tremble in fear as it arrives! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Disharmony – Fury King Panda!”
A larger beast emerged from the blackness carrying the features of the two previous pandas and descended to Dobocle’s side.
Disharmony – Fury King Panda LV: 8 ATK: 2700
“What is this monster…?” Yusei wondered.
“I don’t know where they came from, but the fact that they’re appearing now can’t mean anything good,” Yusei thought.
“When Mind Buster is Synchro Summoned, I can destroy a Synchro Monster on my opponent’s field!” the man declared.
“What?!” Akiza exclaimed, as an explosion obliterated her monster.
“Now what will you do?” the man taunted.
“I Set a monster in face-down Defense Position and end my turn,” she concluded.
“It’s my turn! Mind Buster, attack!” Lightning bolts fired from the demonic creature’s hands at Akiza’s monster, revealing itself.
Lord Poison LV: 4 DEF: 1000
Akiza’s monster was vanquished. “When Lord Poison is destroyed by battle, I can Special Summon a Plant-Type monster from my Graveyard! Revive, Splendid Rose!” she declared.
Splendid Rose LV: 6 ATK: 2200
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn,” the man scoffed.
“My turn!” Akiza stated. “I activate Splendid Rose’s effect! By banishing Lord Poison, I can halve your monster’s ATK until the End Phase!”
“Splendid Rose, attack Disharmony – Mind Buster!” she commanded.
The man scoffed once more.
“I now activate the Continuous Trap Overdoom Line! While this card is face-up, a Plant-Type monster that was Special Summoned from the Graveyard gains 1000 ATK!”
Splendid Rose LV: 6 ATK: 2200 + 1000 = 3200
“It ends here,” she said.
“Not quite,” the man countered.
“What?”
“I activate the Counter Trap Disharmonic Boost! If I control a “Disharmony” monster and you activate a card that changes a monster’s ATK or DEF, the Battle Phase immediately ends and the ATK and DEF of all face-up monsters returns to normal until the End Phase!”
“In addition, if your monster’s original ATK is lower than mine, your monster is destroyed during the End Phase and you take damage equal to the difference!” the man exclaimed.
Akiza scoffed. “I activate the Spell Magic Planter! By sending a Continuous Trap to the Graveyard, I can draw two cards. Then I place two cards face-down and end my turn!”
A lightning bolt appeared from Mind Buster’s hands and vanquished Splendid Rose.
2400 – 2200 = 200
Akiza LP: 300 – 200 = 100
“Akiza…” Twilight thought, worried.
“Only 100 Life Points left…” Yusei observed.
“When a Level 5 or higher Plant-Type monster is destroyed, I can Special Summon Revival Rose from my Graveyard!” Akiza continued.
Revival Rose LV: 4 DEF: 1300
"I end my turn," she concluded.
“It’s my turn!” the man declared. “Go, Mind Buster! Attack Revival Rose!”
“Not so fast! I activate the Continuous Trap Call of the Haunted! This lets me Special Summon a monster from my Graveyard! Revive, Twilight Rose Knight!” Akiza stated.
Twilight Rose Knight LV: 3 ATK: 1000
“Next, I activate Urgent Tuning!”
“You couldn’t be…” the man said.
“You used this card yourself… so you should know what it does. I tune Level 3 Twilight Rose Knight with Level 4 Revival Rose!”
The man scoffed.
3 + 4 = 7
“Chilling flames engulf the entire world. Pitch-dark flower, set into bloom! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Black Rose Dragon!”
Black Rose Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2400
“Whoa…” Twilight mumbled, staring at the newly Summoned dragon. She then glanced at the light glowing on Akiza’s and Yusei’s right arms. “That light…”
Struggling to see, Twilight soon noticed something bright in front of her. It was bright red, almost inviting. Almost… magical. “This light… so… warm…”
Her strength began to slip away from her. She didn’t know who this “Yusei Fudo” was… but from her studies of magic, no light that was this bright and strong could be something she needed to fear… at least for the moment.
“It’s the same…” Twilight mumbled. “I guess… this just confirms what they said… in a more solidified manner, anyway.”
“When Black Rose Dragon is Synchro Summoned, I can destroy every card on the field! Go! Black Rose Gale!” Akiza commanded. A large gust blew through the room.
“You won’t destroy my monster!” the man exclaimed. “At this moment, I activate another effect of Mind Buster! By paying 1000 Life Points, I can banish it until the next Standby Phase! However, I won’t be paying anything thanks to my Field Spell Brain Research Lab!” His demonic creature vanished from sight. Akiza’s dragon faded as well.
Brain Research Lab Psychic Counters: 3 + 1 = 4
The man grabbed the remaining card in his hand. “In addition, even though Field Barrier is destroyed, my Field Spell is still safe. I Set one card face-down and end my turn!”
“It’s my turn!” Akiza declared.
“Return to me, Disharmony – Mind Buster!” the man shouted.
Disharmony – Mind Buster LV: 7 ATK: 2400
“Too bad, Miss Izinski,” the man grinned.
“Indeed. Too bad for you,” she replied.
“What?”
“I Summon the Tuner Monster Witch of the Black Rose!”
Witch of the Black Rose LV: 4 ATK: 1700
“When this monster is Normal Summoned while I control no other cards, I draw one card from my Deck. However, if that card isn’t a monster, it gets sent to the Graveyard and my Witch is destroyed.” Akiza paused as she placed her hand on her Deck.
“You can do it, Akiza,” Yusei thought.
Twilight remained silent, yet anxious.
“Here goes!” she declared, drawing her card. Yusei, Twilight, and the man noticed her grin. “The card I drew was a monster card… more specifically… Rose Fairy! When this card is added to my hand by a card effect, I can Special Summon it!”
Rose Fairy LV: 3 ATK: 600
“Another Synchro Summon?” the man groaned.
“Yes, but this time not from the Extra Deck,” Akiza smiled, grabbing the last card in her hand.
“What do you mean by that?”
“From my hand, I activate the Spell Card Shining Rebirth! This allows me to send Synchro Material monsters from my field to the Graveyard… to Synchro Summon a Synchro Monster from my Graveyard!”
“Impossible!”
“I tune Level 4 Witch of the Black Rose with Level 3 Rose Fairy!”
4 + 3 = 7
“Chilling flames engulf the entire world. Pitch-dark flower, set into bloom! Synchro Summon! Revive, Black Rose Dragon!”
Black Rose Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2400
“Just like before... when Black Rose Dragon is Synchro Summoned, I can destroy all cards on the field! One more time! Black Rose Gale!” Another gust blew in the room. “It’s over, Officer. When Brain Research Lab leaves the field, you take 1000 points of damage for every Psychic Counter it has! Since it now has four, you’ll take 4000 points of damage!”
“I won’t let it end here!” the man exclaimed. “I activate the Trap Card Dissonant Convergence! This card switches my Mind Buster to Defense Position!”
Disharmony – Mind Buster LV: 7 DEF: 0
“In addition, this turn, all effect damage becomes 0 and my monster can’t be destroyed this turn while it remains in Defense Position!” The demonic being knelt down and braced itself.
The laboratory-like scenery vanished as the room’s appearance returned to normal.
“You won’t win that easily,” the man groaned.
“Oh, no? I disagree,” Akiza countered.
“What? Wait… your dragon! It’s still here!”
“That’s right. Shining Rebirth prevents the Synchro Monster it Summons from being destroyed on the same turn.”
“It doesn’t matter, though. I still have another turn,” the man replied.
“I wonder about that,” Yusei stated.
“What?”
“This Duel… was decided as soon as Akiza drew Rose Fairy.”
“No…”
“I now activate Black Rose Dragon’s other effect,” Akiza continued. “By banishing the Plant-Type Rose Fairy from my Graveyard… I can switch your Defense Position monster into Attack Position and reduce its ATK to 0 until the End Phase! Rose Restriction!” Vines extended from the dragon and constricted Mind Buster.
“It’s over! Black Rose Dragon, destroy Disharmony – Mind Buster!” Akiza commanded. “Black Rose Flare!” Fire covered in rose petals shot out of the dragon’s mouth, scorching the demonic being and reducing it to ashes.
2400 – 0 = 2400
Enemy LP: 1300 – 2400 = 0
The man collapsed onto the floor.
Akiza breathed a sigh of relief as Yusei approached her side.
“Good job, Akiza,” he congratulated.
“Thanks, Yusei,” she replied. The two then looked towards the man wearing the Sector Security uniform… only to see that he was no longer in sight.
“What?!”
“Where’d he go?”
“He just disappeared,” Twilight answered, entering the room.
“Twilight?” Yusei responded.
“I… saw the whole thing. Quite impressive, if I do say so myself. So I guess that’s… the Duel Monsters card game you were talking about before? Anyway… as for that human… after you won—so it looked like—I just saw him vanish into thin air. I thought humans couldn’t use magic!”
“They don’t. Not normal people, anyway,” Yusei answered. “I don’t think he just simply… ‘disappeared’, either.”
“What do you mean, Yusei?” Akiza asked.
“Akiza, did this guy say anything suspicious to you when he came in?”
“Yeah… he said he wanted to ‘take both of us’. As in Twilight and myself.”
“And you said he wasn’t working under Sector Security?”
“Right… I don’t think he was. Wait… Are you saying that…?”
“Yeah.” Yusei paused. “I think… someone else is looking for Twilight.”
Akiza and Twilight stared at Yusei, wide-eyed.
The man groaned as he lay on the floor.
“You are such a failure,” the lieutenant said, cracking his knuckles. “To think you would challenge them on your own. You sealed your own fate.”
“But… sir… I…”
“I thought I made it clear I wanted Officer Hogan to deal with them. But I guess normal humans can’t be trusted to follow direct, simple instructions.” The lieutenant raised his hand slightly, as it became covered in a dark aura.
“No… sir… please… give me another chance…”
“Oh, don’t worry. If you think I won’t make use of the rest of Sector Security… rest assured… I’ll still milk them for all they’re worth. Not that I’m counting on it. But who knows? They still have a chance to make me think highly of them. You, on the other hand… brought this upon yourself. I won’t tolerate such a humiliating failure.”
The lieutenant stepped towards the broken man.
“No… no…” the man begged. “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”
“What do you mean someone’s looking for me?!” Twilight exclaimed, her wings jutted out.
“According to Akiza, that Sector Security Officer seemed to be quite positive you were here,” Yusei replied.
“But how? He didn’t see me!”
Yusei and Akiza glanced at each other.
“So what happens now? Is it normal for people to just vanish like he did?!” Twilight continued.
“Not at all,” Akiza answered.
“Then how…”
“I don’t know,” Yusei said. “But that aside… if we assume that officer is somehow able to report back to his superiors—as unlikely as it is—then Sector Security knows where to look. They’ll probably want to take you back to the laboratory, where you’re considered the property of those scientists that most likely want to perform tests on you.”
Twilight shrunk, folding her wings slightly. Her breathing and panting became faster.
“Oh no, oh no… what do we do? Do we just leave and find someplace to hide?” Twilight asked, frantically.
“It’s not that simple,” Akiza answered. “If we assume you actually weren’t seen by the officer, it would still take some time for them actually come here and get you.”
“What do you mean?”
“If they didn’t see you, then they’d have to search the premises for you… and if we refuse their request, the only way they could enter the apartment is if they have a search warrant,” Yusei added.
“So how long do we have?” Twilight questioned.
“They’ll probably consider the fact that the last time you were actually seen was when Dobocle kidnapped you and I pursued him… then how you and I left Dobocle behind to be arrested. If they wanted to, they could push for a warrant by the end of the day.”
“Can’t we just leave?”
“If we do that, that’ll give them more reason to suspect Yusei,” Akiza replied. “As it stands, Yusei has a strong reputation as a hero. Accusing someone like that has the great potential to ruin someone’s career if it turns out to be false. That’ll probably set back the D.A. with regards to signing the warrant.”
“With this in mind, we’ll most likely, at least, have until the day after tomorrow to figure out a solution. On top of that, we still have to find your crown, Twilight,” Yusei said.
With a worried expression on her face, Twilight lowered her head. It was, indeed, quite a bit to take in. Suddenly trapped in a new world… her friends may in danger back in Equestria or, for all anyone knew, this world… her Element of Magic missing—in the ocean, no less… and now… she felt like she was being hunted… and her new human friends… they were putting themselves on the line to protect her.
Twilight nearly jumped when she felt Akiza’s hand on her shoulder.
“Don’t worry,” Akiza reassured her. “We’ll get through this.”
“How can you two be so calm at a time like this? Aren’t you scared that something bad might happen?” Twilight asked.
“Why wouldn’t we be?”
“Huh?”
“In times like these, it’s important to remain calm and stay strong,” Yusei stated. “And most importantly, believe in your own power. If you do, you’ll surely find a solution.”
Twilight stared at Yusei. There it was again. That confidence Yusei seemed to have… almost completely unshaken. It surprised her that anyone could have so much in them.
The three turned towards the door as it was opened from the outside.
“Yuse—” a tall, blonde man in a white outfit started.
Silence quickly filled the room.
Twilight began to sweat as this human stared directly at her.
“What in the world is that thing? Is that what’s causing all the commotion I keep hearing about?!” the man exclaimed.
“Jack!” Yusei replied. “Hold on a second.”
“All afternoon, I keep hearing rumors about some alien creature in the city. Then I get a call from Crow to keep an eye on you… telling him that it would be absurd that you might be hiding said alien… only to come here to find out you have some purple horse with wings?!” Jack continued.
“That’s ‘pony’ to you!” Twilight replied.
“So you can talk. Whatever. Like I care what the difference is. Yusei. Akiza. You want to tell me what’s going on and then why this creature is here?”
“Right, but first… we should close… the door?” Yusei said. The three turned to see a magenta aura around the doorknob and Twilight’s horn as it was closed.
Twilight turned around, only to see the humans staring right at her.
“What? I said I could use magic,” Twilight reminded them.
“What nonsense…” Jack said.
“Twilight, this is Jack Atlas,” Yusei stated. “Jack, this is Twilight Sparkle.”
“What kind of name is that?” Jack asked.
“Hey! I heard that! I happen to like my name!” Twilight shouted.
“So what? What’s this horse even doing here?”
“PONY! And it’s not like I chose to be here! For all I know, you’re in league with those humans that attacked me and my friends back in Equestria!”
“You’re accusing me? Jack Atlas? Of attacking you? That’s crazy. I’ve never seen the likes of you before. I’ve never even heard of this… ‘Equestria’.”
“Likely story!”
“Enough, both of you!” Akiza interrupted. “Good grief…”
Jack folded his arms, as he and Twilight glared at each other.
“What nonsense…” Jack scoffed.
“But Jack, she did come here from another world,” Akiza said. “And right now… Yusei and Crow have been trying to find her crown that’s been lost in the ocean.”
“Her crown? What? Is she some sort of princess or something?”
“I am, as a matter of fact,” Twilight replied, irritated.
“Well, excuse me, princess.”
Twilight groaned.
“Yusei, you’re not seriously putting this… pony… above our friends, are you?” Jack asked.
“But, Jack. She needs our help,” Yusei answered.
“And so do Leo and Luna! Or have you forgotten?”
Yusei stepped back, startled.
“You were the first one to tell the rest of us, remember? And I’ve been searching the city all day for them!”
“I know that,” Yusei answered.
“Then why?”
“Because Twilight is a friend, too.”
“You can’t be serious…”
“Of course I am. And she does need our help.”
“Besides, it isn’t just any old crown! It happens to contain the power of one of the six Elements of Harmony!” Twilight intervened.
“Elements… of Harmony…?” Jack repeated, turning towards the door and opening it.
“Yeah, it’s only one of the most powerful forces and strongest defenses against threats in Equestria!”
“Well, Your Highness, if you’ve been thrown into this world with that precious crown of yours so easily… not to mention being unable to keep track of it… I’d say you, your world, and that trinket are pretty weak.”
“Hey!”
“Enough!” Akiza interrupted, again.
Jack scoffed as he opened the door. “I’m going around the city once more… to find our friends. Yusei. Akiza. I suggest you get your priorities straight. As far as I’m concerned, our Signer friends… come before some pony from another world you just met.”
The door slammed shut.
“Hard to believe someone like that is your friend,” Twilight commented. “He’s supposed to be a Signer?”
“Don’t let his behavior get to you,” Akiza replied. “Jack certainly means well.”
“Really?” Twilight looked at Akiza, curiously.
“Yeah. While he can be a bit brash and rude sometimes… and even really competitive… he does care about his friends and will do everything he can when push comes to shove.”
Her words echoed for a bit in Twilight’s head as she glanced back at the door to the outside. “Well… what do you know…? Sounds a lot like…” she thought, as the image of a cyan pegasus appeared in her mind. She then frowned at the memory of her argument with Jack just minutes earlier. “And they both could use an attitude adjustment…”
Crow stared into the orange sky as the sun began to disappear into the horizon. He stood quietly in front of Sector Security headquarters.
“This search is getting nowhere,” Crow commented.
“We have to find it, though,” Yusei replied. Both stood on a boat beneath the Duel Lane, waiting for the officers that dove into the water to surface.
“It’s gotta be pretty important if you’re still insisting on finding it.”
“It is.”
“So what’s the big deal?”
“When we retrieve the crown and get back home, I’ll let you know. I’m not sure it’d be a good idea to talk about it here.”
“All right.” A sudden ring interrupted them. Crow pulled out his cell phone. “Hello?”
“Officer Hogan,” the voice on the other end spoke.
“What is it, Lieutenant?” Crow asked.
“I have an assignment for you. I want you to search Yusei Fudo’s apartment.”
“What for?”
“He wants you to retrieve something for him. We suspect he’s harboring the alien. Also, do not speak of this to Yusei Fudo or anyone else regarding this matter. Is that understood? This matter is not to be discussed with anyone else but you and me.”
“All right… Got it…” he said, hanging up. Crow stood with a conflicted expression on his face.
“What’s wrong, Crow?” Yusei asked.
Crow remained silent.
“Crow?”
“It’s nothing, I… just have to send one of the officers to go get something.”
“Get what exactly?”
“It’s… confidential.”
Yusei returned the silence. “…I understand. Let’s get back to the search.”
“Right.” Crow said, dialing on his phone.
“I would’ve done it myself… there’s no way Yusei could be guilty of harboring the alien…” Crow thought. “I probably should’ve checked myself instead of sending another officer to do the job… It’s crazy to think that Yusei could break the law. This shouldn’t even be an issue for me… yet… what is this uneasy feeling I’m getting?”
“Officer Hogan,” a man in a dark gray uniform stepped in front of him.
“Yes, Lieutenant,” Crow quickly saluted.
“I thought I made it clear that I wanted you to retrieve it.”
“The alien?”
“What else could I be talking about?”
“How do you know if Yusei even has it?”
“The alien was last seen with Dobocle, whom we arrested… with Yusei following him. Since we have Dobocle and not the alien… it stands to reason that Yusei has it now.”
Crow remained silent as the lieutenant paced around him.
“Look. I know he’s your friend. I know how big of a hero he is… but he isn’t above the law.”
“I know.”
“This is a serious crime. And if you’re not up for it, I can always replace you with someone else. I’m pretty sure I could find someone more competent if I tried, especially after your last failure.”
“What do you mean?”
“I know that you sent another officer to Yusei’s apartment.” The lieutenant stopped in front of Crow and leaned his head closer.
“What’s your point?” Crow stepped back.
“That officer… he’s missing.”
“What?! Wait… you couldn’t possibly…”
“Yes, an officer’s life is on the line, and we have no choice but to suspect your friend, Yusei Fudo, of kidnapping him.”
“But Yusei wouldn’t…”
“You think I care about his fame as the hero of New Domino City? It means nothing if he’s committed a crime. Two, at that.”
Crow stood silent.
“Since you’re his friend... and it’s your home… you can be the one to question him about it. I expect results by tomorrow evening,” the lieutenant stated, walking away from the building. “What was that dream of yours? To give those kids in the Satellite Sector someone to look up to? To strive to be the best for them? I’m pretty sure that’ll go down the toilet if you lose your job here.”
Crow clenched his fists as he hung his head.
“Have a good night, Officer Hogan,” the lieutenant said.
Crow stood in silence. “No…” he thought. “I won’t believe it. Yusei wouldn’t do any of that… I'm going to need some time to myself to think about what I'm going to do next.”
He walked inside his headquarters to get ready for the end of his shift.
“All right. See you tomorrow, then,” Yusei said, hanging up his cell phone.
“What happened?” Twilight asked, as they both stood in the garage alone. Akiza had already left for home.
“Crow said he’ll be spending the night at Martha’s place.”
“Who’s Martha?”
“Martha is the woman who took care of Jack, Crow, and I when we were young. She’s in charge of the orphanage we stayed at over in the Satellite Sector.”
“You were orphaned? What happened?”
“Well. To make it short, my dad was a scientist working on an Ener-D reactor, until a man named Roman Goodwin sabotaged it and caused an incident we call 'Zero Reverse'. The result was that Satellite broke off from the mainland.”
“Oh, my… and your dad… he…”
“Yeah…”
“I’m… sorry to hear that.”
“It’s fine. You didn’t know.”
“I hope you don’t mind my asking… but… what’s this… Ener-D… reactor? It sounds like the word ‘energy’…” Twilight observed.
“That’s because that’s what it is, in a way. It’s short for “duel energy”, and it’s the life force of New Domino City,” Yusei explained.
“Duel… energy… you mean ‘Duel’ as in…”
“That’s right. The Duel Monsters card game. The reactor is just meant to channel the energy so that it powers the city.”
“I see… that’s interesting… we have nothing like this back in Equestria… then again… we don’t have a lot of stuff this world has. Even the other human world wasn’t nearly as advanced as this.”
“‘Other human world’?”
“Long story short, there’s a special mirror residing in my castle that acts as a gateway to an alternate world. On the other side is a world of humans.”
“I see. Are you sure you didn’t travel through that?”
“That isn't possible. I wasn't in my castle. That, and I somehow take on a human form in that alternate world… yet…”
“You’re still a pony here,” Yusei finished. “So that could only mean this is a completely separate world from the human world you’ve been to before.”
“Yeah… it’s strange…”
“Anyway, it’s getting late, and it’s probably not a good idea for you to be down here in the garage for long,” Yusei cautioned.
“Right… where are you sleeping, though? I only saw one bed up there.”
“There are a few beds around here that Crow and I usually use. That bed upstairs that you’ve been on is Jack’s.” Yusei pointed in the direction of a mattress near the desks.
“Oh… didn’t notice that. But wait… won’t he get angry?” Twilight recalled Jack’s attitude from before.
“Don’t worry about that. I’ll convince him to use Crow’s since he’s spending the night elsewhere.”
“You also said this was an apartment, right?”
“Yeah. I’m renting it from the landlady, Zora. But she and her son are out of town for a few days, so they won’t get involved at least until they return.”
“What about Akiza?”
“Akiza is living with her parents until she graduates from Duel Academy.”
“…Let me guess…”
“Yep,” Yusei replied, knowing what Twilight was going to ask.
“I figured as much. Well… see you in the morning, I guess.” Twilight trotted up the stairs.
“Yeah. Good night.”
Jack traveled along the edge of the sea on his white, wheel-shaped Duel Runner.
“I can’t believe Yusei is putting some horse above his own friends… and calling that thing his friend… It’s absurd,” he thought. “They can have that girly pony and do whatever they want… I’ll be the one to find those two if it’s the last thing I do.”
He slowed to a stop then stepped out of his Runner to face the sea.
“Although, I have to admit… this timing can’t be just a coincidence,” he figured. “First, the twins disappear… then this pony appears out of nowhere… claiming to be from another world…”
Jack closed his eyes and crossed his arms.
“What could it mean…?” he mumbled.
“It means the two events are related,” a female voice stated. “I’m sure anyone with a brain could figure that out.”
“Who’s there?” Jack turned his head side-to-side.
Footsteps echoed in an alleyway between two small nearby buildings.
“Show yourself!” he demanded.
A hooded female figure emerged from the opening, turning towards Jack.
“Who are you?”
“My name is Celena…”
“And what do you want?”
“My, my, is that how you speak to all women? I came here to help you.”
“What do you mean?”
“I came to tell you that the disappearance of your two young friends and appearance of a certain pony—Twilight Sparkle, I believe—happening very close to each other… is indeed no coincidence.”
“I figured as much. But how would you, of all people, know?” Jack asked. “You look awfully suspicious.”
“You ask a lot of questions, don’t you?” Celena replied.
“Tell me!”
She chuckled as she turned back into the alleyway.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Jack began to follow the woman until he heard the sound of a Duel Runner. She then burst out of the alley on her vehicle.
“If you follow me… I can take you to them,” she said.
“And why should I trust you?” Jack asked.
“Do you have a choice?” she quickly drove off.
Jack scoffed as he boarded his Duel Runner and started it up. He took off after her and pursued her onto a Duel Lane.
“The Duel Lane… why here?” he asked.
“Because… let’s just say it’s the fastest way to reunite you with your friends,” Celena chuckled.
“So I have to defeat you to find out where they are? You had something to do with their disappearance, didn’t you?”
“Maybe I did.” She then pressed a button on her touch-screen monitor. The Speed World 2 Field Spell appeared on both of their Runners' screens.
“DUEL MODE ENGAGED,” said a computer voice.
“You’ll regret challenging me, the great Jack Atlas!” he boasted, as both drew five cards from their Decks.
DUEL! Jack (LP 4000) VS Celena (LP 4000)
“You can have the first move, Jack,” Celena stated.
“Fine, then. I draw!” he declared. “I Summon Power Breaker!”
Power Breaker LV: 4 ATK: 1900
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn!”
“Then it’s my move!” Celena responded.
Jack LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
Celena LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
“I Summon Disharmony Rush!” A griffon-shaped creature appeared with blades attached to its cheeks.
Disharmony Rush LV: 4 ATK: 1400
“Disharmony Rush’s effect activates! Once per turn, I can banish a card from my hand to increase its ATK by 700 until the End Phase!”
Disharmony Rush LV: 4 ATK: 1400 + 700 = 2100
“Battle! Disharmony Rush, attack Power Breaker!” she commanded. Her winged beast charging at Jack’s humanoid monster.
“Not so fast! I activate the Trap Prideful Roar! Since my monster’s ATK is lower than yours, I pay Life Points equal to the difference, then I increase my monster’s ATK by the amount paid plus 300 until the End Phase!”
2100 – 1900 = 200
Jack LP: 4000 – 200 = 3800 SPC: 1
200 + 300 = 500
Power Breaker LV: 4 ATK: 1900 + 500 = 2400
“Go, Power Breaker! Counterattack!” His humanoid monster smashing its fist into the griffon-like creature, vanquishing it.
2400 – 2100 = 300
Celena LP: 4000 – 300 = 3700 SPC: 1
“How do you like that?!” Jack boasted.
“Not bad,” Celena replied. “I place two cards face-down and end my turn!”
Power Breaker LV: 4 ATK: 2400 – 500 = 1900
“My turn!” he declared.
Jack LP: 3800 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
Celena LP: 3700 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
“I Summon the Tuner Monster Top Runner!” Jack declared.
Top Runner LV: 4 ATK: 1100
“A Tuner, eh? So you’re going for a Synchro Summon? I don’t think so,” Celena stated.
“What?!” Jack exclaimed.
“I activate the Continuous Trap Discord! While this card is face-up, neither of us can Synchro Summon. However, I have to send this card to my Graveyard on my third End Phase from now.”
“That won’t stop me! Power Breaker, direct attack!” Jack commanded.
“Now I activate the Continuous Trap Card… Dissonant Spirit! When the opponent’s monster attacks, I can banish a “Disharmony” monster from my Graveyard to negate that attack! I banish Disharmony Rush!” Celena declared. An image of her griffon appeared to block the humanoid monster’s strike.
“Fine, but I still have Top Runner! Go!” His second monster moved to strike Celena.
Celena LP: 3700 – 1100 = 2600 SPC: 2
“I’ll Set two card face-down and end my turn,” he concluded.
“You’re as good as they say… former King,” Celena stated. “But I’m afraid that won’t last long.”
“Like you’re in a position to talk, lady. In case you haven’t noticed, I have the advantage here.”
“Oh, really? You’re sadly mistaken.” She chuckled.
“What?”
“Watch… I shall show you a sample of my power… my turn!” she declared.
Jack LP: 3800 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
Celena LP: 2600 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
“I Summon Chaos Caller!” A serpent-like being appeared next to Celena.
Chaos Caller LV: 2 ATK: 900
“I activate Chaos Caller’s effect. Once per turn, by discarding any number of cards from my hand, I can Special Summon the same number of “Disharmony” monsters that are currently banished with their effects negated. So I’ll discard two cards…”
“That’s far enough!” Jack interrupted. “I activate the Continuous Trap Fiendish Chain! While this card is face-up, one Effect Monster’s effect is negated!” Chains shot from the image of the card towards the serpent.
“How very perceptive… you want to prevent me from Summoning more monsters… but it’s not enough… I activate the Trap Card Chaos Spike! This card destroys up to two face-up Continuous Trap Cards and inflicts 300 points of damage to you for each one!”
“What?!” The images of the Discord and Fiendish Chain cards shattered.
2 * 300 = 600
Jack LP: 3800 – 600 = 3200 SPC: 3
“Now where were we… ah, yes… Chaos Caller’s effect… come! Disharmony Rush! Disharmony Cell!” Celena continued.
Disharmony Rush LV: 4 DEF: 1500
Disharmony Cell LV: 1 DEF: 100
“Here I go… I tune Level 1 Disharmony Cell… with Level 2 Chaos Caller and Level 4 Disharmony Rush!”
1 + 2 + 4 = 7
“Harmony fades as chaos begins! Cut through the balance of nature! Synchro Summon! Disharmony – Double Blader!”
Disharmony – Double Blader LV: 7 ATK: 2300
“Behold, Jack Atlas! This is only a preview of the power you and your friends will soon face… and you will all soon fall to us!”
The garage was dark, save for the light that shone from the computer screen Yusei sat in front of. The only sounds that could be heard were from his typing… and from the thundering weather that began outside. The sky was black and filled with dark clouds.
Yusei stared intensely at the monitor, as he was keying away while watching the different programs and figures shift on the screen.
He then heard the sound of footsteps—hoofsteps, rather—coming from the nearby stairs. He turned his head to see Twilight approaching.
“What are you doing still up, Yusei?” Twilight yawned. “Are you waiting for… I think his name was… Jack?”
“Pretty much,” Yusei answered. “What about you?”
“Haven’t exactly been able to get to sleep yet, though I’m still pretty tired.”
“After all that’s happened today, I can’t blame you.” Yusei turned back towards the computer and began typing again.
“What exactly are you doing right now?” Twilight asked, approaching him.
“I’m working on a program for the new Ener-D reactor.”
“What kind of… program?”
“One that’ll prevent the potential for another Zero Reverse to happen in the future.”
“Zero Reverse? You mean like the event that happened where…”
“Yeah, that.”
“But why, though?”
“The Ener-D reactor is a generator that creates energy by constantly spinning in one direction. The problem is that… Synchro Summoning can cause it to spin faster.”
“Wait… what? Synchro Summoning… you mean like in the card game…?”
“Exactly. If the generator spins too fast, it’ll shift into reverse and explode.”
Twilight’s mouth hung open. “But… how exactly do you know all this? And if Synchro Summoning could cause such a thing to happen… wouldn’t it make sense to… forbid it or something?”
“Synchro Summoning is the proof of evolution and the Ener-D helps with that. Right now, it works properly because it is filled with mostly positive feelings. The problem comes when we begin to abuse the reactor for it and fill it with greed and other negative emotions.”
“But again, how do you know all this?”
“Yliaster.”
“Yliaster? What’s that?”
“They’re a group of people who came here from the future to destroy the reactor to prevent Zero Reverse from happening again.”
“Wait, wait, wait… what? They… traveled back in time? But how?”
“They developed the means to so they could save the world they came from. They even tried to use the Dark Signers—people who could command the Earthbound Immortals—to do it. When that didn’t work, they used the WRGP, a tournament we had, to complete the Circuit. With it, they would make the Arc Cradle appear and have it crash into the city.”
“What’s a Circuit? And what’s an… ‘Arc Cradle’…?”
“I think the Circuit was a way to gather enough energy for the Arc Cradle to appear in this time. The Arc Cradle itself was essentially Yliaster’s headquarters.”
“Are you even sure what they were saying was true? Last time I tried to prevent a future disaster, I ended up realizing I was worrying over nothing.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well… one day I got a message from my future self… and she—er… my future self, that is—was in pretty bad shape… but she never finished what she was saying because the time travel spell that was cast wore off and she ended up back in her present. I thought it meant there was a disaster and it turned out nothing was wrong. Then I tried to go back in time and tell my past self that and… well… the shoe was on the other hoof…” Twilight blushed, sheepishly.
“I see. Well, I’m positive that what they were saying was true. There was too much evidence and their conviction and determination to reach their goal was too strong to ignore. So… I’m determined to find a way to prevent that future from ever happening… and they eventually became convinced that I could save the future.”
“But wouldn’t that create a time paradox? I mean… if you make it so their future never happened, then there wouldn’t be anyone to travel back in time to threaten you. And if they don’t appear in your time, then their future would happen, and then… I don’t know. There were a couple of occasions where somepony tried to mess with time before and, thankfully, there haven’t been any noticeable consequences yet.”
“I get what you’re saying, Twilight. But as far as I’m concerned… right now… our future isn’t written yet.”
Twilight’s eye twitched while she struggled to piece together whatever logic Yusei was using in her head. About the only thing that could possibly make sense would be that the timeline split off into two somewhere down the line. Whatever the case, it was too much to think about at that time of the night.
“I won’t let their sacrifices be in vain…” Yusei said.
“Whose?” Twilight asked, deciding to sit down. “Yliaster?”
“Yeah.”
Twilight glanced at Yusei. Something in what he had just said made the words feel heavy to her.
She jumped as the room suddenly lit up from the flash of a lightning bolt. Thunder boomed.
“The weather out there tonight is getting worse…” Yusei commented.
“I wish Rainbow Dash was here… she might’ve gotten rid of all those clouds…” she thought. “At least they’d be easier than the storm clouds that were over Ponyville before all this crazy stuff happened…”
She hung her head as her mind shifted back to her friends.
“I hope my friends are all right… and I hope Jack makes it back before something happens… I kind of… want to apologize for before…” Twilight said.
“Don’t worry. Jack is tough. He’ll be back before too long. And I’m sure he won’t hold it against you,” Yusei replied.
“I hope so.”
Celena chuckled as she rode down the Duel Lane, with Jack not too far behind.
“I hope you’re ready, Jack Atlas,” she grinned.
“I don’t know what that monster is… but I’ll be sure to crush it along with you!” Jack boasted.
“Bold words. But let’s see if you can actually pull that off… that is… crushing me… before my monster crushes you.”
“Then bring it on!”
“It’s your funeral. But first things first… since I’ve Synchro Summoned a “Disharmony” monster, Dissonant Spirit increases my Life Points by 1000!”
Jack scoffed.
Celena LP: 2600 + 1000 = 3600 SPC: 3
“In addition, because Disharmony Cell was used as Synchro Material, I can draw one card,” Celena continued. “Battle! Disharmony – Double Blader! Attack Top Runner!”
Disharmony – Double Blader LV: 7 ATK: 2300
Top Runner LV: 4 ATK: 1100
Her beast, blades attached to the sides of its arms, lunged at Jack’s monster and slashed it.
2300 – 1100 = 1200
Jack LP: 3200 – 1200 = 2000 SPC: 3
“When Double Blader destroys an opponent’s monster in battle, its ATK increases by 300!” Celena stated.
“Not even close. At this moment, I activate the monster effect of Dissonant Battler from my Graveyard!” Celena declared. “When a “Disharmony” monster destroys an opponent’s monster in battle, I can banish it from the Graveyard, then that monster can attack once more this turn!”
“Oh, great,” Jack scoffed again.
“Go, Double Blader! This time, wipe out that Power Breaker!”
Power Breaker LV: 4 ATK: 1900
Her monster lunged forward once more.
2600 – 1900 = 700
Jack LP: 2000 – 700 = 1300 SPC: 3
“Another monster destroyed by Double Blader… means it gains 300 more ATK!”
“But now Power Breaker’s effect activates! When it’s destroyed, I can destroy a face-up Spell or Trap Card you control! I’ll take out that Dissonant Spirit!” Jack declared.
“Not so fast! I activate the monster effect of Harmony Disruptor from my Graveyard! If you activate a monster effect while I control a “Disharmony” monster, I can banish it so that the activation of your effect is negated!” Celena countered.
“Why you…”
“I’ll Set one card face-down. Then during my End Phase, since Double Blader has attacked this turn, it must switch to Defense Position.”
Disharmony – Double Blader LV: 7 DEF: 2200
“I end my turn,” she concluded.
“I see now… despite how powerful that creature may become… its weakness is its defensive strength… meaning now’s my chance!” Jack concluded. “It’s my turn!”
Jack LP: 1300 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
Celena LP: 3600 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
“But first… I’ll have to get rid of that troublesome Continuous Trap… or it’ll simply stop all of my attacks…” Jack glanced at his drawn card. “I send Dissonant Spirit from your field to the Graveyard to Special Summon Trap Eater!” A large head-shaped monster appeared underneath the image of Celena’s card and swallowed it.
“What?” Celena responded.
Trap Eater LV: 4 ATK: 1900
“Trap Eater is a monster that can be Special Summoned by sending a face-up Continuous Trap Card on the opponent’s field to the Graveyard!” Jack stated.
“The King's determination is conceived with a flame that burns red and becomes a crimson blade! Appear from beyond the burning hot waves! Synchro Summon! The burning fierce god, Crimson Blader!”
Crimson Blader LV: 8 ATK: 2800
“Go, Crimson Blader! Attack Double Blader!” Jack commanded, his warrior charging forward.
“When Crimson Blader destroys a monster in battle, the opponent can’t Summon a Level 5 or higher monster during their next turn… it would be bad if I let you get away with that…” Celena sneered. “I activate the Trap Card Impenetrable Attack! This turn, Double Blader can’t be destroyed in battle!” A barrier appeared between the two monsters, parrying the swords of Jack’s warrior.
“Why you… I end my turn!” Jack concluded.
“My move!”
Jack LP: 1300 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
Celena LP: 3600 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
“I switch Double Blader into Attack Position!”
Disharmony – Double Blader LV: 7 ATK: 2900
“Go! Destroy Crimson Blader!” she commanded, her monster slashing at Jack’s warrior.
2900 – 2800 = 100
Jack LP: 1300 – 100 = 1200 SPC: 5
“You know what happens next… another 300 ATK for my monster!”
Celena grabbed the remaining card in her hand. “I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn.”
Disharmony – Double Blader LV: 7 DEF: 2200
“What’s wrong, Jack? This too tough of a fight for you?” Celena taunted.
“Oh, be quiet,” Jack replied. “You’re nothing compared to me. Once I defeat you, I’ll save my friends! You won’t have them anymore!”
“That so? Then come at me!”
“With pleasure! My turn!”
Jack LP: 1200 SPC: 5 + 1 = 6
Celena LP: 3600 SPC: 5 + 1 = 6
He glanced at the card he drew and the only other card in his hand. “All right… this should be enough to put her in her place…” he thought. “Since you control a monster and I don’t, I can Special Summon Vice Dragon from my hand. However, its original ATK and DEF are halved.”
Vice Dragon LV: 5 ATK: 2000 / 2 = 1000
“Then I Summon the Tuner Monster Dark Resonator!”
Dark Resonator LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“A Tuner Monster… going for that, are we?” Celena commented.
“I tune Level 3 Dark Resonator with Level 5 Vice Dragon!” Jack continued, the Signer mark on his right arm glowing.
3 + 5 = 8
“The ruler's heartbeats will now file through here! Take witness to its creation-shaking power! Synchro Summon! My very soul, Red Dragon Archfiend!”
Red Dragon Archfiend LV: 8 ATK: 3000
A large, dark red dragon descended next to Jack.
Yusei grasped his right arm, tightly. The glow from his Signer mark peered through the spaces between his fingers.
“What’s wrong, Yusei?” Twilight asked.
“I can feel it…” he answered.
“Feel what?”
“Jack… he’s fighting.”
“So… it’s finally here… Jack Atlas’s ace monster… Red Dragon Archfiend…” Celena mumbled.
“Red Dragon Archfiend, attack Disharmony – Double Blader!” he commanded. The right fist of his dragon became engulfed in flames as it was thrust at Celena’s monster. “Absolute Power Force!”
Double Blader was vanquished as it was smashed by the dragon’s fist.
“At this moment, I activate a Trap Card! Lineage of Destruction!” Jack declared. “During the turn I destroy one of your Defense Position monsters, one Level 8 monster I control can attack twice!”
“A second attack…?”
“Take this! Red Dragon Archfiend, attack Celena directly!” The dragon launched its fist at Jack’s opponent. “Absolute Power Force!”
The impact caused Celena to spin out of control. Jack’s Runner then overtook hers before she straightened out.
Celena LP: 3600 – 3000 = 600 SPC: 6
“There’s only one man alive who can stand up to my power! You are nothing. I end my turn!” Jack concluded, looking back at Celena. “How’d you like tha—What?!”
He saw only a grim smile on Celena’s face.
“What’s with that grin of hers…?” he wondered.
“Very good, Jack Atlas… it was expected that you’d get, at least, this far against me…” she said. “But my power… it’s on another level… that you cannot hope to surpass!”
“Don’t kid yourself, lady.”
“So you think I’m joking…?” she chuckled. “You couldn’t be more wrong…”
“Oh, please. My Life Points are twice that of yours. Not to mention that you’ve got nothing against the power of my soul… my Red Dragon Archfiend!”
“You think so?”
“So you’re saying you can take me on? Then why don’t you prove it!”
“As you wish… it’s my turn!” Celena declared, drawing a card.
Jack LP: 1200 SPC: 6 + 1 = 7
Celena LP: 600 SPC: 6 + 1 = 7
“I activate the effect of Speed World 2! By removing seven Speed Counters, I can draw one card from my Deck!”
Celena LP: 600 SPC: 7 – 7 = 0
“Perfect…” she grinned, glancing at her drawn card. “Everything is in place…”
Jack remained silent, attempting to anticipate her next move.
“I activate the Continuous Trap Harmonic Reverse!” she continued. “This Special Summons a “Disharmony” Synchro Monster from my Graveyard with its effect negated! Revive, Double Blader!”
Disharmony – Double Blader LV: 7 ATK: 2300
“That monster didn’t stand a chance against my dragon before, and it certainly doesn’t now!” Jack stated.
“I’m not done!” Celena replied. “I now Summon the Tuner Monster Disharmony Spark!”
Disharmony Spark LV: 1 ATK: 0
“Tuner Monster…?” Jack mumbled.
“I now tune Level 1 Disharmony Spark with Level 7 Disharmony – Double Blader!” she declared.
Jack felt a sudden surge of pain where his glowing Signer mark was as he watched Disharmony Spark transform into a black ring that surrounded the seven dark stars Double Blader split into. He then noticed his surroundings becoming severely darker. “What is this?!” he exclaimed.
“Watch, Jack Atlas…” Celena replied, as a dark pillar engulfed the seven stars and the black ring.
1 + 7 = 8
“From the depths of chaos, a powerful deity emerges with the strength to smite all who dare oppose her! Synchro Summon! Descend, O ruler of the night! Disharmony – Death Armor Moon!”
Jack stared into the thick, black shroud behind him. He could see nothing, except for the bright glowing eyes that pierced through the darkness.
Disharmony – Death Armor Moon LV: 8 ATK: 2500
“What is that monster…?!” he exclaimed.
“Your end,” Celena replied.
“You must be joking! I may not be able to see your monster, but it still only has 2500 ATK. That means nothing to my Red Dragon Archfiend’s 3000!”
Red Dragon Archfiend LV: 8 ATK: 3000
“What dragon?” Celena sneered.
“What?” Jack looked up at his dragon, only to watch it vanish before his eyes. “Impossible!” He looked back at Celena and the glowing eyes.
“When Death Armor Moon is Synchro Summoned, it banishes all face-up opponent’s Synchro Monsters… then its ATK increases by the total Level of those monsters times 100,” she explained.
“It can’t be…” Jack replied.
“With no monsters… no Set Spell or Trap Cards… and no cards in your hand… you have nothing left to defend yourself, Jack Atlas…”
“I don’t believe this…”
“Disharmony – Death Armor Moon… direct attack!” she commanded. “Ultimate Nightmare!”
Jack screamed as the shadows pierced into his body as he began to lose control of his Duel Runner. The vehicle fell onto its side as he was violently thrown off, ending up on his back.
Jack LP: 1200 – 3300 = 0 SPC: 7
He struggled to rise as he heard a Duel Runner halting to a stop followed by footsteps approaching.
“Bravo, Jack,” Celena complimented, slowly clapping her hands. “You put up quite the fight.”
“Why you…” Jack replied. “I won’t forget this… I will save my friends if it’s the last thing I do!”
“You fool…”
Jack struggled to move his arms and legs. He turned his head to see a ropy-like shadow constrict him to the ground… shadows that emerged from a larger darkness that surrounded Jack.
“Wha… what is this?!” he exclaimed.
“Like I said… this was the fastest way to reunite with your friends,” she chuckled.
“What?”
“No worries, you’ll be seeing them soon. In the meantime…” she turned towards the glowing eyes that had dealt the final blow of the Duel. “I have another task to complete…”
Jack noticed the black clouds vanishing and looked towards the glowing eyes.
He struggled to get a glimpse of the creature he had just faced as the darkness began to blanket him completely.
“That shape…” he thought. “It can’t be… It looks just like a—"
“Oh, goodness! She’s waking up!” she heard a faint yet soft voice speak.
“Wait… that voice…” Twilight thought. “It can’t be!” She jerked up as she looked at her surroundings. Twilight was in a bed… on a separate level from the wooden floor. The walls were packed with books.
She was home.
“Twilight! I’m so glad you’re okay!” a voice exclaimed, as she felt someone hugging her. She turned her head to see Spike.
“Spike?” she said.
“Come on, everypony’s waiting for you!” Spike quickly darted out of the room.
“But how?” she wondered, leaping out of bed and heading to the main room of her library.
“SURPRISE!” a pink pony popped up in front of Twilight, startling her.
“Pinkie Pie…?” she responded.
“Well, who else do you know that’d throw a super-duper humongous wait-until-Twilight-wakes-up-so-we-can-celebrate-our-‘we-beat-those-weird-monkey-looking-things’ surprise party?”
“But… I don’t understand!” Twilight replied.
“Don’t understand what, darling?” Rarity asked.
“How did I get here?”
“Well, duh. After you beat that one dude, we used the Elements of Harmony to take out the rest of them!” Rainbow Dash boasted, doing a front-flip before landing next to Twilight.
“But ah think it took so much strength out of ya, that you just plum collapsed. Ah guess you were pretty tuckered out, not that anypony could blame ya,” Applejack added.
“You wouldn’t wake up so we brought you to your room so you could rest,” Fluttershy said.
Twilight frantically gazed around the room. Everything seemed to be in place. The hole in the wall was being repaired… the Elements were back in the glass case… and all of her friends were right in front of her, unharmed.
“But… I thought… I was in Yusei’s apartment… in New Domino City last night…” Twilight recalled, her voice growing softer.
“‘Yusei’?” Applejack repeated.
“New what City?” Rarity said.
Twilight’s mouth hung open but found herself unable to speak.
“Twilight, are you sure you’re all right?” Rarity asked.
“Ah’ve never heard of any ‘Yusei’. Is he some boyfriend of yours that we don’t know about yet?” Applejack added.
“What?! NO!” Twilight exclaimed. “Why would you think that?”
“Applejack, how dare you suggest such a thing!” Rarity rebutted. “After all, Twilight clearly has a thing for that one guard at the Crystal Empire. What was his name again…? Flash Sentry, I believe?”
“Rarity!” Twilight yelled. “I do not have a crush on Flash Sentry or on Yusei! Besides, Yusei’s not even a pony.”
“Not a pony? Oh, I get it. You must be talking about some secret unfinished novel you were working on,” Rainbow Dash stated.
“Ooh! Ooh!” Pinkie Pie interrupted, bouncing in place. “And this ‘Yusei’ is a character in that story where you battle a bunch of weird guys and get sent to his world and then you, him, and his friends try to figure a way out back here to Equestria to save the rest of us because we were captured, right? That sounds like it would make a great story! I can’t wait to read it!”
There was a momentary silence as the other ponies in the room—and Spike—simply stared at Pinkie dumbfounded.
“Yeah…” Rainbow broke the silence. “I’m pretty sure that, as awesome as that sounds… it won’t be as awesome as my story, once it’s finished!”
“You mean that story about the pegasus who grows up to fulfill her dream of becoming a Wonderbolt?” Rarity asked.
“Duh. What could be more awesome than that? Still thinking of a name for the main character, though. I was thinking maybe… Rainbow… Dash?”
“Oh, however did you come up with that clever name?” Rarity replied, sarcastically.
“Just came to me,” Rainbow grinned.
“Wait a second, you haven’t made that much progress, have you…?”
“What are you talking about? I got loads done!”
“Yes, a very intricately woven plotline with a great name that you came up with just now… how exactly did you manage to get so much progress without the main character’s name?”
“Uh…” Rainbow stammered, sweating as Rarity raised an eyebrow at her. “Let’s head over to Sugarcube Corner!”
“That’s a great idea!” Pinkie concurred. “Time for that super-duper humongous wait-until-Twilight-wakes-up-so-we-can-celebrate-our-‘we-beat-those-weird-monkey-looking-things’ party!”
“Meet you guys there!” Rainbow sped out of the library.
Twilight stared as her friends left her home, a blank expression on her face.
“Twilight, aren’t you coming?” Spike asked, motioning for her to follow.
“Uh… yeah…” she answered, trotting towards the door to the outside. “I don’t understand… was it all a dream? Did we really beat those humans…? Or…”
“Is something bothering you?” the young dragon asked, walking beside her.
“No, it’s nothing.”
Spike raised an eyebrow at her. “If you say so. Come on! Let’s go party!”
Twilight glanced around. Something felt… off.
“Well, this feels familiar,” Twilight said.
“Come on, Twilight. You should really just kick back and enjoy the celebration!” Spike encouraged.
“I’m not even sure we should be celebrating.”
“What’s not to celebrate?” Rainbow asked. “I mean… we kicked those weird dudes’ hind quarters, didn’t we? Besides, it’s still one of Pinkie Pie’s parties, for pony’s sake!”
Twilight gazed over at Applejack standing in front of a barrel of water and apples, likely wanting to go bobbing for them. The country pony stuck her head in the barrel, much to Rarity’s disgust as she backed away.
She then watched a startled Fluttershy flinch as Rainbow Dash zoomed in front of her, taking another cupcake from the table they were near.
“Oh, it’s okay, Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy replied, standing tall once more to approach the table.
Twilight looked forward once more only to jump upon seeing Pinkie’s face just inches from hers.
“Pinkie! Don’t scare me like that!” she said, catching her breath as the Pinkie giggled.
“Hey! I know! We should play my favorite game, Pin the Tail on the Pony! Twilight, you should go first!” Pinkie suggested, already forcing Twilight to the center of the room against her will while the others cheered her on.
Twilight lost her sight as a blindfold was quickly placed over her eyes by Spike and suddenly spun around.
“And now we spin you around and around and then you can pin the tail on the pony!” Pinkie continued.
Twilight quickly collapsed out of dizziness. “Pinkie? Was it really necessary to spin me that hard?” she asked. She then felt a piece of fabric placed in her mouth and somepony helping her back up.
She slowly stepped forward and placed the material on the wall. Using her hoof to pull the blindfold up, she sheepishly glanced at the poster with the fabric on it. The tail was placed in the center of the pony’s body on the poster. “I was never that great at this game…” she thought.
Twilight turned her head towards her friends as a blindfold was placed on Applejack. “I’m gonna go get some fresh air,” Twilight said, stepping outside.
She took a deep breath before staring at the gray sky.
“That’s odd…” she thought, staring at the clouds. Twilight gazed around and saw that the colorful town had adopted an overtone similar to the sky.
She galloped back into Sugarcube corner to her friends.
“Girls!” she called as she entered the party room. Nopony was present. “Rarity? Fluttershy? Applejack? …Pinkie Pie? …Rainbow Dash…? …Spike…?”
She worriedly scanned the proximity before darting back outside.
“Where is everypony…?” she asked herself. Ponyville had become empty and nearly motionless. A light breeze blew through the town.
Twilight gasped upon seeing the flowers and grass wilt.
“What’s going on here…?”
Her eye caught the movement of a shadow in the distance. Curious, she pursued the figure.
“Hey, you! Stop!” she yelled, sprinting through the blackness that began to seep out of the environment. The figure continued to move away. “I said stop!”
Twilight's horn glowed as she teleported in front of the figure, who came to a halt.
The tall being wore a hood over its head.
“My, my,” it said, in a female voice. “Princess Twilight Sparkle… it figures I would find you here. I should have expected it. To think that using her power would allow me to come to this place…”
“A human…?” Twilight mumbled.
“But perhaps this venture might bear some fruit after all. A good night, indeed.”
“Who are you? Tell me right now!”
“I could tell you, but what’s the point? In mere moments, it won’t matter. I originally sought to use this power to retrieve… an item… but since I’m here… I may as well retrieve you, too.”
“‘Retrieve’? You’re one of the humans that captured my friends, aren’t you? What did you do with them?”
“If you mean the friends you saw here… I didn’t lay a finger on them. Then again… I hardly touched them back in your home.”
“Wha…?”
“You’re the star student of Princess Celestia… and you’re telling me you haven’t noticed yet?” the woman tilted her head to the side.
“What are you talking about?”
“Catch me if you can…” the figure grinned as she sprinted away.
“Hey!” Twilight yelled, galloping after her. Her horn began to glow as she began to concentrate and fired magical blasts at the human.
The figure jumped in a zig-zag fashion to avoid the bursts of energy.
Twilight activated her horn once more to teleport in front of the human again, only to watch the figure leap over her.
“Try again, Your Highness,” the woman taunted.
Twilight groaned and started after her. She then gazed ahead in the direction the figure was headed. “The library…? But… why…?” she wondered. Her eyes grew wide upon realization. “The Elements! Oh, no you don’t…”
Her horn began to glow again but ceased when Twilight ran into what felt like a wall. She glanced up to see the blackness obstructing her path.
The figure had already stepped in and out of the library, holding a bright object in the palm of her hand.
“That was quicker than I thought,” the woman grinned.
“My Element!” Twilight gasped, charging forward through the blackness. “Give it back!”
“It’s been fun, Princess… but I think I’m done here.” The figure raised her other palm, covered in a dark aura. Waving it in front of her, another black wall appeared. This time, however, it violently swung itself into Twilight, knocking her away.
Twilight stood up and shook off the blow.
“My, my. Still want to fight?” the woman said, waving her aura-covered hand again.
Twilight was knocked aside once more. As she struggled to get up, she found herself bound to the dirt by ropy-like shadows. The ground beneath her turned black.
“Let me go!” Twilight demanded, recovering from the attacks.
“You’re certainly something, Princess,” the woman said. “The others weren’t able to put up nearly as much of a fight as you have… although… I suppose that’s to be expected of the one who wields the strongest of all the Elements of Harmony.”
“What are you doing…?” Twilight felt herself growing weaker and more restrained as she saw the shadows begin to blanket her.
“Taking you home. At first, I thought we had to collect the real you… but with this power that I have obtained… taking you here will also bring the real you to us… thanks to the magical ties between you, your Element, and…” The figure glanced behind her.
“The real me…? What do you mean by that? And what power are you talking about? I’ve never felt anything like this… I think…” Now that she thought about it, the essence of this darkness that was being used to capture her had a faint sense of familiarity to it, although she couldn’t put her hoof on why. She then noticed another presence approaching from the direction the woman was staring.
“You haven’t noticed? This is a dream.” The human looked back at Twilight.
“A dream?”
“You thought it was real? No matter. In mere moments, you’ll belong to us.”
“‘Us’?”
Twilight turned her head and saw a thick dark fog draw near with bright white eyes that pierced through it.
“Who or… what… is that…?” she mumbled.
“The last thing you will ever see before you become ours, Princess Twilight,” the woman grinned.
“No… I can’t… let…”
“Try as you might, your magic is no match against ours.”
Twilight groaned as she struggled to break free of the shadows. Her horn began to glow.
“I don’t think so,” the woman said.
Twilight felt a sharp pain in her horn. A shadow had shot from the dark fog where the eyes seemed to float and pierced through her horn, causing the glow to fade.
“Stop resisting, you fool. You’re only delaying the inevitable,” the figure continued. “But if you insist on continuing your pointless struggle…” She waved her aura-covered hand again. A thick blackness had smacked Twilight in the face.
Twilight felt her consciousness beginning to fade. “I… won’t… give…” she mumbled.
The woman’s last words were barely audible to Twilight. “Good night, Princess Twilight Sparkle.”
Twilight sprang upright in the bed, sweating and breathing heavily. She quickly glanced around the room to see where she was. She was back in Yusei’s apartment in New Domino City.
“What… was that…?” she wondered. “Was it… just a dream…? No… it was no ordinary dream…” She wrapped her forelegs around herself and shuddered.
Twilight noticed the light hitting her bed. She gazed outside to notice the sun rising over the horizon. Her mind went back to the dream she had had. She couldn’t help but focus on how real it felt to her, especially during the last few moments.
Twilight groaned as she struggled to break free of the shadows. Her horn began to glow.
“I don’t think so,” the woman said.
Twilight felt a sharp pain in her horn. A shadow had shot from the dark fog where the eyes seemed to float and pierced through her horn, causing the glow to fade.
Twilight rubbed her horn. She could feel the numbness present as if something had actually struck her there. In fact, most of her body felt like it was actually restrained. Although she knew that her senses would remind her of the difference between dreams and reality, this time felt very different… as though she were wide awake.
“I don’t know of any magic that can do that…” she thought.
Twilight was knocked aside once more. As she struggled to get up, she found herself bound to the dirt by ropy-like shadows. The ground beneath her turned black.
“It felt like… I was being captured…” Twilight continued. She struggled to recall the end of her nightmare with no success. She collapsed backwards onto the mattress, staring at the ceiling. “What happened…?”
The door opened as the woman entered the dark room.
“So, how did it go?” the man in the dark gray uniform asked.
The woman scoffed. “Almost had it. But she somehow slipped away at the last second. I was so close.”
“Good night, Princess Twilight Sparkle,” the woman said, watching the alicorn become covered in shadows. She suddenly found herself blinded by light. “What’s this?!”
Her eyes traveled to the crown in her hand, then watched as the shadows covering an unconscious Twilight faded away.
“Impossible!” she exclaimed, as the light grew more intense.
The woman stood alone next to her Runner on the Duel Lane.
“How did she…?” she groaned. She then glanced at the solid object she now felt in her hand. “Huh… well… it wasn’t a total loss.”
“Troublesome jewelry…” the woman groaned.
“Then we’ll just have to resort to our other plan. By the way, did you manage to retrieve it?” the man replied.
The female giggled, holding up a bright, golden crown. “Well, of course. This venture hasn’t been entirely fruitless. Using her power to enter the princess’s dream… and taking advantage of her connection with the Element…”
“It’s better than nothing.”
The woman tossed the crown towards the man for him to catch in the palm of his hand. “So… the Element of Magic… ours at last…” he said.
“We might have the crown… but we still require the princess so that we may proceed. And speaking of… do we know where she is?”
“We do. With a Signer, no less.”
“Dealing with him won’t be so much trouble, if he’s anything like the one I just fought.”
“No. This one is much, much stronger than the others we’ve taken.”
“I doubt he’ll be a match for our new power. Why don’t we go see him now?” The woman held up a card in her hand.
“Patience. We can’t afford to arouse any suspicion from the people here. It’d be better for us to come at him with a larger force than just the few of us. Once they run out of hiding places, they’ll be within our grasp. It should be noted that this Signer is not one to be underestimated.”
“All right, then. We’ll stick to the plan, then. But here…” The woman pulled out another card and flung it at the male.
He quickly caught the card between his fingers and glanced at its front. “So… it’s begun, hasn’t it? How far along are they?”
“This one was the first. I was told to give it straight to you. Surely, they can’t fight against this.”
“Can’t? Or won’t?”
“Both,” the female sneered, turning towards the doorway. “But again… this is more of a backup plan in case the current one fails.”
“That reminds me… will you have those papers ready by late afternoon?”
“Late afternoon?”
“Remember, we don’t want to arouse suspicion. Anyone else in your position would most likely wait another day before signing off on the warrant due to the amount of evidence—or lack thereof, rather—presented to them… not to mention who we’ll end up dealing with. Like I said, he isn’t one to be underestimated.”
“Very well. Late afternoon, it is.”
“Thank you, Judge Celena,” the man smiled.
“Of course… Lieutenant Callos,” Celena returned, walking out the door.
“Crow, can’t you stay longer?” asked a young boy.
“We really missed you!” added a young girl.
“Sorry, but I have to go to work. You know. Gotta keep New Domino City safe!” Crow said.
“Awwwww,” the group of children replied in unison.
There was a momentary silence before Crow sighed. “Fine. I’ll come back and spend the night again.”
“YAAAAAY!” The children rushed back into the large orphanage, as a man and an elderly woman walked out to meet with Crow.
“Those kids are really something,” said the man.
“Yeah, they definitely are, Blister,” Crow replied.
“It’s not surprising, really. They really look up to you,” Blister continued.
“It’s a shame you haven’t been able to visit more often with your new job at Sector Security,” said the woman.
“I wish I was able to come more often, too, Martha. But it’s been really demanding since day one. Even though I’m doing this for them, I feel bad for not visiting as frequently as I’d like.”
“I wouldn’t worry too much about that. I don’t think they’d ever hold it against you,” Martha stated. “You mean too much to them.”
“Yeah, that’s true.” Crow glanced away for a brief moment.
“Something is bothering you, isn’t it?”
“Huh? Oh, it’s nothing.”
“Come on. I’ve practically raised you and your friends, Yusei and Jack. You can’t hide anything from me. I know it’s not nothing.”
Crow remained silent as the lieutenant paced around him.
“Look. I know he’s your friend. I know how big of a hero he is… but he isn’t above the law.”
“I know.”
“This is a serious crime. And if you’re not up for it, I can always replace you with someone else. I’m pretty sure I could find someone more competent if I tried, especially after your last failure.”
“What do you mean?”
“I know that you sent another officer to Yusei’s apartment.” The lieutenant stopped in front of Crow and leaned his head closer.
“What’s your point?” Crow stepped back.
“That officer… he’s missing.”
“What?! Wait… you couldn’t possibly…”
“Yes, an officer’s life is on the line, and we have no choice but to suspect your friend, Yusei Fudo, of kidnapping him.”
“But Yusei wouldn’t…”
“You think I care about his fame as the hero of New Domino City? It means nothing if he’s committed a crime. Two, at that.”
Crow stood silent.
“Since you’re his friend... and it’s your home… you can be the one to question him about it. I expect results by tomorrow evening,” the lieutenant stated, walking away from the building. “What was that dream of yours? To give those kids in the Satellite Sector someone to look up to? To strive to be the best for them? I’m pretty sure that’ll go down the toilet if you lose your job here.”
Crow clenched his fists as he hung his head.
“Have a good night, Officer Hogan,” the lieutenant said.
“To be honest… I’m not sure what to think,” Crow finally spoke. “One of my friends could be in trouble with the law… but there’s nothing solid yet.”
“Good grief, is that all?” Martha asked.
“What?”
“You act as if the world is ending.”
“Martha, this is serious!”
“Of course. I’m fully aware of that. But again, I’ve raised you and your friends since you were kids, and you’ve all grown to be strong people. You’ve all gotten yourself into trouble more times than I can count—with the law, even—but everything you’ve down was always for a good cause and you’ve managed to overcome everything thrown your way so far. I’m positive that you will all get through this as well.”
Crow stood as Martha’s words sunk into his mind.
“Yeah, you’re right,” he smiled. A sudden ringtone interrupted their conversation. “Officer Hogan speaking.”
“Good, you’re up,” said a male voice.
“Lieutenant?” Crow replied softly, turning slightly away from Blister’s and Martha’s eyes.
“I’ve sent the papers to the judge to have her sign them. You’ll have the warrant to search Yusei’s apartment in the late afternoon.”
“Already? But we don’t have enough—”
“In the meantime, I don’t want you communicating with him or anyone else regarding this matter. This information is strictly confidential. After all, your future is on the line here.”
“But…”
“I don’t want to hear it, Officer. I told you that I’m expecting results from you by the end of the day today, and I strongly recommend obeying my orders or you will face severe consequences. I don’t care what you do as long as you’re in my office by 5:00 p.m.”
“You can’t be ser—” A click sounded the end of the call. Crow lowered his arm holding the cell phone and scoffed. He stared at the device, squeezing it tightly while taking in the new information.
“What happened?” Blister asked.
“I… gotta go…” Crow answered, walking towards his Runner.
Blister looked at him, curiously.
“Crow, wait,” Martha said. Crow stopped and turned his head. “Remember this: You have a good heart, Crow. Same with Yusei, Jack, and the rest of you. I know you’ll do what is right and overcome whatever it is that’s troubling you.”
Crow couldn’t help but smile upon seeing Martha’s content expression. “Thank you, Martha. I’ll see you tonight,” he said, walking off.
“Let’s head back in, Blister,” she briefly placed her hand on his shoulder to get his attention.
“Right…” Blister responded, following her back inside.
Akiza let out a yawn as she strolled into the living room of her parents’ home.
“Good morning, Akiza,” a male voice greeted.
“Oh. Good morning, dad,” she replied, turning her head to see an elderly man and woman facing her. “Wow, you’re already dressed up. Busy day today?”
“It would seem so.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well. I’m sure you’ve heard the news. Someone claimed to have sighted an alien in New Domino City a couple of nights ago. I was informed that this alien was supposedly taken to a lab but was then stolen and hasn’t been seen since.”
“Alien…?” Akiza thought. “He means…”
“The people are in a bit of a panic with these rumors going around, and, as Senator, I’m going to have a long day ahead of me dealing with this.”
“That’s too bad…” she replied. “Should I make something for you to have later or are you in a hurry?”
“I appreciate it, Akiza, but I don’t think I can wait much longer than I have. I need to go now,” the old senator stated.
“All right, then. I’ll see you later.”
“Oh. And one more thing.”
“What is it, dad?”
“I regret to inform you that these rumors… I’ve heard your friend Yusei Fudo is involved.”
Akiza became wide-eyed.
“I’m afraid I’m going to have to tell you that you must not see him for the time being.”
“But why?!”
“If these rumors have any merit to them, I don’t want you involved. I would absolutely hate for my own daughter to get mixed up in what might be severe trouble.”
“But…”
“This is not up for debate. Listen, I understand that you and he are very close friends… but I don’t want to take unnecessary risks. So please… at least for the time being. If it turns out that he has nothing to do with this, then you can go and be with him whenever you please.”
Akiza paused for a moment and hung her head. “…All right.”
“Good-bye, Akiza.” The senator headed out the front door towards a black limousine.
Akiza silently closed the door. She then slowly walked towards the couch in the living room and gently sat on one of its cushions.
“Dear, is something wrong?” her mother asked, standing behind her.
“No… it’s nothing…” Akiza answered.
“All right… let me know if you need anything,” her mother said as she walked out of the room, her concerned expression unseen by her daughter’s eyes.
“I know I should help Yusei and Twilight… but…” What she felt she needed to do was clear: help her friends. She knew there was trouble involved. She also knew that her parents couldn’t stop her once her mind had been set on something, especially when it came to Yusei. However, the last thing she wanted to do was give them a reason to worry about her. It may have been months, but it felt to all three of them like only mere days had passed when Akiza and her parents were finally together as a true family again.
“Still… I can’t just sit around and do nothing,” Akiza thought, standing up. “Mom, I’m going to head out.”
“Where to?” her mother’s head appeared from behind the corner to the hallway. “Didn’t your father…”
“I’m not going to Yusei’s place. I’m headed somewhere else.”
Her mother frowned.
“I’ll be back soon,” Akiza walked out the door.
“Be careful!” her mother replied. “Good grief…”
Yusei pulled his Runner into the garage. He let out a heavy sigh as the large door closed.
“Hey, Yusei,” Twilight greeted from the stairs.
“Oh, you’re up,” he replied.
“Did Jack ever come back?”
Yusei shook his head.
“You don’t think…”
“I don’t know. But I’m not going to jump to conclusions yet.” Yusei noticed Twilight’s heart sink from the expression on her face. “What’s wrong?”
“I… kind of feel bad for arguing with him last night and want to apologize for it.”
“You shouldn’t worry. He’ll come around.”
“You… think so?”
“Definitely.”
“So where’d you go?”
“To look for Jack.”
“Oh…”
“Yeah…” Yusei hung his head. A ringtone was heard. Yusei pulled his phone out of his pocket. “What is it?”
“Yusei,” the voice on the other line said.
“Blister?”
“I need you to meet up with me right now.”
“At Martha’s place?”
“No. Somewhere else. You’ll need to bring it, too. You don’t have much time.”
Crow stood near the water, the bridge between New Domino City and Satellite not too far from his location. He stared into the open body of water that separated the two landmasses.
“I’m not sure why this is so difficult… but now I just feel… uneasy,” he thought. “Things have been off ever since I found that horse-looking alien and now my superior is treating Yusei like a criminal. I know he isn’t… something just seems rotten. There’s got to be more to this than what we’re all seeing right now.”
“I thought I’d find you here, Crow,” a female voice greeted.
Crow turned his head. “Akiza.”
“So… it looks like I’m not the only one who thinks something’s been off for the past couple of days,” Crow said.
“Yeah. And my dad said Yusei might be in trouble with the law, so I thought maybe you knew something about it,” Akiza replied.
“Then can’t you just go to Yusei yourself?”
“No. My dad asked me to avoid him so I don’t get involved in whatever’s happening. But I’ve…” Akiza paused for a moment.
Crow glanced at her curiously. “Well… I’m going to have to be searching the place later with a few officers. My superior thinks… a couple of things could be found there that would incriminate him.”
“A couple?” Akiza looked at Crow confused. “Could he also mean… the officer that I Dueled?”
The man collapsed onto the floor.
Akiza breathed a sigh of relief as Yusei approached her side.
“Good job, Akiza,” he congratulated.
“Thanks, Yusei,” she replied. The two then looked towards the man wearing the Sector Security uniform… only to see that he was no longer in sight.
“What?!”
“Where’d he go?”
“He just disappeared,” Twilight answered, entering the room.
“Twilight?” Yusei responded.
“I… saw the whole thing. Quite impressive, if I do say so myself. So I guess that’s… the Duel Monsters card game you were talking about before? Anyway… as for that human… after you won—so it looked like—I just saw him vanish into thin air. I thought humans couldn’t use magic!”
“They don’t. Not normal people, anyway,” Yusei answered. “I don’t think he just simply… ‘disappeared’, either.”
“That man vanished without leaving a trace…” Akiza thought. “Does Sector Security think Yusei might’ve—”
“Akiza,” Crow interrupted.
“Huh?”
“Do you know something about what happened?”
“Uh… I…”
“I can see it on your face.”
Akiza remained silent.
“I should get going,” Crow said, putting his helmet on and boarding his Duel Runner.
“Wait, Crow. You don’t seriously think Yusei is guilty of crimes, do you?” Akiza asked.
“I don’t know what to think of that right now, Akiza,” Crow replied. “But I do know this… once I find out the truth… I’ll have no choice.” He started his Duel Runner and drove towards the highway.
“Crow!” Akiza called after him, despite her voice not reaching him. She glanced towards the water with a worried expression. “Yusei…”
The sun shone brightly, far from the horizon but eased towards it.
“Oh, man,” a woman with large circular glasses and long, black hair groaned. Her head lay sideways on a table in the plaza of a coffee shop just across from Poppo Time. A signed labeled “Café la Geen” stood near the building’s entrance. “Where is he? Jack’s usually here by now… I haven’t seen him all day…”
“Oh, quit complaining,” said a brown-haired maid. “He’s not even for you, Carly.”
“Shut up, Stephanie. He’s not yours, either.”
“No, but he will be.”
“Says who?” Carly stood up out of her chair, her face up close to the maid’s as the two glared at each other. Their eyes shot sparks at each other that clashed directly in between until they saw two cars and several Duel Runners pull up in front of Poppo Time, all vehicles labeled “SECURITY”.
“Sector Security… what are they doing here…?” Carly mumbled, darting away.
“Hey! You haven’t paid for your drink yet!” Stephanie yelled after her.
“Put it on Jack’s tab!” Carly replied.
The maid glared once more.
“This looks awfully suspicious. In fact… this could be my big break! It looks like this could turn out to be a major scoop! Good thing number one reporter Carly Carmine is on the case before anyone else! Wait a second… is that…?” Carly thought as she approached the cluster of Sector Security vehicles. She stopped as she glanced at one of the officers. The reporter squinted her eyes as she peered through the glass of the helmet. “Crow?!” she gasped.
Crow walked the officers to the door of Yusei’s apartment.
“What’s going on…?” Carly mumbled again.
“Yusei!” Crow called as he knocked on the door. “You there?”
Silence.
“Yusei!”
“Crow, maybe you should…” another officer spoke up.
“Trudge…” Crow responded.
“Look. I know he’s your friend and all, but we don’t have much choice. We need to investigate this. For both the you-know-what and the missing officer.”
“‘You-know-what’…? Missing officer…?” Carly curiously peered from around the corner.
“You have a key to the apartment, don’t you?” Trudge asked.
“Yeah… but…” Crow replied.
“You probably shouldn’t be doing this just because of bias, but… we have to follow orders. Besides, the warrant’s right here.” Trudge held up a laminated sheet of paper with a signature on it.
“Fine…” Crow pulled out an apartment key from his pocket and opened the door. “Yusei!” he called.
No response.
He and Trudge stepped into the garage.
“Yusei, where are you?” This time it was Trudge who called his name. “Yusei?”
“You’re wasting your breath, Trudge,” Crow said. The other officers spread throughout the room.
“Huh?”
“Yusei’s clearly not here. His Duel Runner is missing.”
“Sir! You need to come look at this!” one of the officers stated.
“What is it?” Trudge asked.
“Look.”
The two stared at the curved mark on the ground.
“That looks… like an imprint from… a horseshoe? I don’t get it. Crow, what do you think? Crow?” Trudge asked.
Crow stared wide-eyed at the mark. “No…” he thought. “It can’t be…”
“So you have evidence that Yusei has been harboring the alien, correct?” Callos asked over the phone.
“…Yes,” Crow answered reluctantly.
“And evidence that the missing officer had, indeed, been in the apartment?”
“…Yes.”
“Then you know what you have to do.”
“You can’t possibly—”
“Do you wish to be seen as a failure?”
Crow remained silent.
“My orders are absolute. If you’re not willing to take action, I’ll have no problem firing you and finding someone else who will.”
A click sounded the end of the conversation.
Crow pulled the phone away from his ear as the officers located several other imprints throughout the apartment.
“It can’t be…” he thought. “Now I have to choose between my friend and my job?”
He scoffed.
“That answer’s simple. I just wish it didn’t actually come to this.”
He knew it all along. He knew the “alien” was with Yusei the entire time, ever since the search for the crown in the sea. Crow hoped whatever was going on would be resolved before his job would end up being on the line before having to go after Yusei. His boss was being oddly overzealous about it, though. Sure, harboring an unknown alien is punishable, but Callos’s attitude was simply… a bit over the top.
It was suspicious, to say the least.
In any event, his next choice was clear. Crow turned towards the door.
“Crow, where are you going?” Trudge asked. “Shouldn’t you be helping us finish things here?”
“No,” Crow replied. “I’ve got something else to take care of.”
“It’s not about Yusei, is it? Look, I know he’s a good friend and all but we can’t abandon our duties as Sector Security. Crow!”
Crow was silent as he left the building.
“Do I really have to stay inside this box? It’s kinda cramped in here,” Twilight complained.
“Sorry, Twilight. But it’s the best I could do on such short notice. We’ll be there soon,” Yusei responded, his Duel Runner pulling a wheeled cart with its closed but with small openings for air.
“What’s the big rush anyway?”
A ringtone was heard. Yusei pulled his phone out of his pocket. “What is it?”
“Yusei,” the voice on the other line said.
“Blister?”
“I need you to meet up with me right now.”
“At Martha’s place?”
“No. Somewhere else. You’ll need to bring it, too. You don’t have much time.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ll explain later. Right now, you need to leave. Sector Security is on its way and they know you have the alien.”
“What?!”
“That’s why I said you don’t have much time.”
“But if not Martha’s place, then where?”
“Your old hideout.”
“I’m sure Blister can clear this up for us when we meet up with him,” Yusei stated.
“Who’s Blister?” Twilight asked, her voice slightly muffled by the cart she was in.
“A friend who helped me a while back. According to him, Sector Security’s onto us.”
“How would he even know?”
“That’s what we’re going to find out. My best guess, right now, is that he hacked into their database. Though, I’m not sure why he would do something like that in the first place. He must have a good reason.”
Twilight groaned. “Well, the sooner we get there, the better. I’m not sure how much longer I can take being cooped up in this cart.”
“You won’t have to wait much longer.”
“What do you mean?” Twilight could feel the speed of the cart decreasing until it came to a halt. She then saw the ceiling of the cart open.
“It’s okay to come out,” Yusei stated.
Twilight stood up out of the cart and stretched her legs. “Where are we?” she asked, gazing around.
She saw that he had stopped on railroad tracks inside an underground tunnel. She then turned her head to see Yusei walking towards a desk and shelves full of metal parts.
“This was my old home,” Yusei answered. “It’s where some old friends and I used to stay, here in the Satellite. That is… before it was united with New Domino City.”
Twilight hopped onto the tracks. “It doesn’t look like anyone’s been here for a while.”
“That’s because they’ve all moved into the city.” Yusei walked around, inspecting the area.
“Does anyone else know about this place? Besides your friends, I mean.”
“Not very many.”
Twilight glanced around the area as she approached Yusei. She wasn’t sure how one could live under such conditions. Although, she couldn’t help but wonder how Rarity would’ve reacted. Her unicorn friend would probably have gone insane from all the dust.
“So this is the alien I’ve heard rumors about,” a male voice said. Yusei and Twilight turned their heads in the direction of the speaker.
“Blister,” Yusei responded.
“Long time no see, Yusei,” Blister replied. “I figured you had kept the alien at your place, but I never imagined it would be a talking purple horse with a horn and wings.”
“That’s ‘pony’ to you,” Twilight said.
“Wouldn’t be the word I’d use. Either way, you don’t exactly look dangerous. Except for maybe that horn.”
Twilight could only stare at Blister with an expression that portrayed a lack of amusement.
“Sheesh, lighten up,” Blister said.
“So, Blister. What exactly is going on? How’d you know Sector Security was coming after me? And why the rush?” Yusei asked.
“I’m sure you figured that part out already. I hacked into their system.”
“But why?”
“Crow spent the night at Martha’s place. Just before he left, his boss must’ve called him. He seemed awfully pressured by whatever he was told. I thought that something was up, so I did a little digging. I found out that the warrant to search your apartment was signed earlier today based off some very unconvincing evidence.”
“Unconvincing?” Twilight replied.
“Most other judges wouldn’t have signed the warrant so soon, considering it hasn’t been that long since this…”
“Twilight. Twilight Sparkle,” she corrected.
“Some name. Anyway, it hasn’t been long since… Twilight… had appeared. The warrant being signed this quickly just makes it seem fishy to me. That’s why I called you over here. Because they were coming to get you. And seeing as how you did have Twilight with you the whole time, they would’ve arrested you on the spot. They also seem to think you’ve abducted a Sector Security officer.”
“What?” Yusei responded. “Wait, they can’t mean…”
The man collapsed onto the floor.
Akiza breathed a sigh of relief as Yusei approached her side.
“Good job, Akiza,” he congratulated.
“Thanks, Yusei,” she replied. The two then looked towards the man wearing the Sector Security uniform… only to see that he was no longer in sight.
“What?!”
“Where’d he go?”
“He just disappeared,” Twilight answered, entering the room.
“Twilight?” Yusei responded.
“I… saw the whole thing. Quite impressive, if I do say so myself. So I guess that’s… the Duel Monsters card game you were talking about before? Anyway… as for that human… after you won—so it looked like—I just saw him vanish into thin air. I thought humans couldn’t use magic!”
“They don’t. Not normal people, anyway,” Yusei answered. “I don’t think he just simply… ‘disappeared’, either.”
“You mean that human that was Akiza’s opponent in Duel Monsters?” Twilight asked. “He literally just vanished without a trace. I’m not sure how anyone could do that without magic.”
“…Magic?” Blister replied, in disbelief.
“Yeah, magic. In Equestria, unicorns and alicorns, like myself, can cast spells with our horns.”
“Sure. Next you’ll be telling me that you’re some kind of princess from a world where there are pegasi that can change the weather and other… ponies… with other outrageous abilities. Although, I can’t really rule out that possibility considering you’re a talking horse.”
Twilight glared at Blister once more.
“But if you hacked into their system, can’t they trace it back to you?” Yusei questioned.
“I already went and covered my tracks after I found out what they were hiding,” Blister answered, holding a flash drive in his hand. “It’ll take them some time before they find out it was me. Remember, I’ve done this before. But here, in case you want to take a look at the data yourself. I think you might some other bits of information that might be important.”
“Right.” Yusei held out his hand beneath Blister’s as the latter dropped the flash drive into his palm.
“In the meantime, you two will have to lay low and crash here for the time being. I'll go ahead and get some supplies to last us the next few days while we figure out how to deal with this mess that you both are in.” Blister put on his helmet and boarded his Duel Runner. “See you in a bit.” He darted towards the tunnel’s exit.
“I don’t like him,” Twilight commented, once Blister was out of earshot.
“You can’t really blame him,” Yusei answered turning on a computer. “It’d be hard for anyone in this world to believe without actual evidence.”
“But you and Akiza believed me.”
“There was no reason not to. You also don’t seem like the kind of individual that would lie.”
“Yeah, I guess so. So what are we supposed to do?”
“Lay low for now.”
“Seriously?”
“We don’t exactly have any other option at the moment. Dealing with Sector Security isn’t that simple. They are a legal force,” Yusei asserted, typing away furiously on the keyboard.
Twilight let out a heavy sigh. “Fair enough. I don’t think I’ve ever been in trouble with the law before…”
“It isn’t something I usually do, myself. Not unless I have to.”
“What do you mean? Have you fought against them before?”
“Yeah, but the circumstances were a bit different that time.”
“How exactly?”
“A long time ago, I was once part of a group called the Enforcers. It was me, Jack, Crow, and our friend and leader, Kalin. An incident caused us to disband.”
“What kind of incident?”
“The Satellite was split up among a bunch of Duel gangs. We did everything in our power to overthrow them. Then Kalin became power-hungry and targeted Sector Security next.”
“He… WHAT?!” Twilight exclaimed.
“At the time, Kalin saw Sector Security as another gang that didn’t belong in the Satellite. Crow and Jack left, while I stayed behind. But I couldn’t go on, so I went off on my own as well. That didn’t stop him, though.”
“What happened then?”
“In their last battle, I tried to stop Kalin myself. When he got arrested, he saw me talking to a Sector Security officer. He thought I betrayed when I was actually trying to take the fall for him.”
“Oh…”
“After he became a Dark Signer, he tried to use the power of his Earthbound Immortal to get revenge on me.”
“A Dark Signer? You had to fight against him?”
“Yeah. Dark Signers are people who typically hold powerful grudges and would do anything to get their revenge.”
“Revenge…” Twilight repeated. The word struck a chord. It was something that rang all too familiar to her. “I knew somepony like that, too…”
“Stop picking on my friends, Trixie!” Twilight demanded.
“You and I have some unfinished business,” the blue unicorn replied. She trotted towards the Twilight, wearing a black shroud. Around her neck was a red amulet. “My magic’s gotten better since I was here last. And I’m going to prove it! Me and you. A magic duel. Winner stays, loser leaves Ponyville forever!”
“Forget it! I’d never make a deal like that!”
“Your choice,” Trixie scoffed. Her horn activated, surrounded by a bright red aura that matched her glowing eyes.
Twilight turned towards Spike as she helplessly watched him scream while being squeezed into a ball. Everypony looked on as he was used as a basketball.
“Trixie, put him down! Why are you doing this?” she asked.
“Why? Because you humiliated me!” Trixie answered. “After you showed me up with that Ursa Minor, I became a laughingstock! Everywhere I went, I was laughed and ostracized. I even had to take a job on a rock farm just to earn a living! A rock farm!”
“Hey!” Pinkie interjected. “You’re lucky a rock farm would take the likes of you!” In an instant, the pink earth pony felt her muzzle pulled off by a magic arrow and dumped into a trash bin.
“Now I want revenge! And I’ll just keep casting spells ‘til you agree,” Trixie continued.
A red lightning bolt shot from her horn towards her library, the entire tree being lifted up and turned upside down. Twilight watched as her books were being shaken out of her home before turning back towards the blue unicorn.
“Well? What do you say?” Trixie challenged.
Twilight looked once more at her friends.
Two young colts, Snips and Snails, were struggling with their horns melded together.
Applejack was comforting Rarity, who was still recovering from her panic attack from a terrible fashion change.
Pinkie Pie was sobbing from not being able to eat and talk.
Rainbow Dash was flying unbalanced with a larger wing on one side.
Spike was still being bounced around. “Whoooaah! Help… me!” he pleaded.
“Alright, Trixie. Let’s duel!” Twilight accepted.
“Excellent,” Trixie replied as she quickly reversed the damage, save for Pinkie Pie’s muzzle. “If I lose, I won’t set hoof in Ponyville again. But if you lose, you’re the one banished from this one-horse town!”
“I lost the first time, but only because she—Trixie, that is—was using an item called the Alicorn Amulet. It was an item that greatly enhances one’s magic, only it corrupts them as well. Even worse was the fact that only its wearer can remove it,” Twilight stated. “I still wish I had recognized it right away…”
“You said you lost the ‘first time’. What do you mean by that?” Yusei asked.
“When I found out how she won our duel, Zecora—a zebra friend who lives in the Everfree Forest—helped me create an amulet using her doorstop. Then I went back to challenge Trixie to a second duel.”
“A fake amulet? How did you combat Trixie, then, if your magic wasn’t strong enough?”
“Let’s just say I used a different kind of magic. The magic of friendship. With some help from my friends, I was able to convince Trixie that my amulet was more powerful. She took the bait and replaced the Alicorn Amulet around her with mine.”
“Right. I get it now. You must have a strong bond with your friends,” Yusei smiled.
“Definitely. After that, Trixie took some time to think about her actions and what I said then apologized. She’s still somewhat boastful, but definitely not mean-spirited anymore.”
“I see. Just like your first re-encounter with Trixie, my first time meeting up with Kalin after that ended the same way. The power of his Earthbound Immortal shook me to my core, but I eventually gained the strength to face him again. He came around when I told him the truth about what happened that last night before he was arrested.”
“That’s good to hear.”
“But even after Kalin’s arrest, Sector Security was still a problem. Sometime later, Jack decided to steal the Duel Runner I was working on along with my Stardust Dragon.”
“Really? But why?”
“He was bribed. He wanted to become King. Lazar, who was the Vice Director at the time, approached him and offered him a clear shot at it without letting anyone know that he was from the Satellite.”
“Was it considered a bad thing?”
“During that time, it was. The people of New Domino City, then, looked down on us. After Jack left, I worked on a new Duel Runner to pay him back. It eventually came to the point where I was only missing one part. One of my friends, Rally, managed to find the part only because Sector Security left it lying around.”
“So they set a trap?”
“They did. And I ended up facing Officer Trudge.”
“You mean you Dueled him?”
“Exactly. I won and, as per our agreement, he let me get away. Not that he was happy about it. When I actually attempted to escape into New Domino City, he tried to stop me.”
“He sounds… stubborn.”
“Just like our Duel before that, I won and got away. I faced off against Jack only to have our Duel cut short by the Crimson Dragon. At that point, I was arrested by Sector Security and taken to the Facility after they confiscated my Runner and Deck.”
“Facility?”
“It was essentially a prison. Some things happened and I was let out. I was told by a friend I met there to meet Blister, and he helped me retrieve my Duel Runner and Deck.”
“You mean the guy who was just here?” Twilight asked with an annoyed tone.
“Yeah. He helped locate the building where my Runner was stored and I managed to reach it, but not before Trudge tried to stop me again.”
“Seriously…?”
“He was definitely persistent. It was sometime after that when I met Leo and Luna.”
“What about Akiza?”
“I met her a bit later, though she was known as the Black Rose at the time.”
“…Black Rose…?”
“I tune Level 3 Twilight Rose Knight with Level 4 Revival Rose!”
The man scoffed.
3 + 4 = 7
“Chilling flames engulf the entire world. Pitch-dark flower, set into bloom! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Black Rose Dragon!”
Black Rose Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2400
“I can see where she got the name,” Twilight commented. “Anyway, does Trudge still…”
“No, we’re not enemies anymore.”
“Seems like you really know how to make friends, Yusei.”
Yusei smiled. “But even so…”
“Hm? What?”
“That doesn’t change our current circumstances. Even if Trudge and certainly Crow refuse to work against us, that won’t stop Sector Security and those in power. I doubt they’re going to overlook this at all.”
Twilight sighed. “I guess not. And I suppose we’ll have to stay here for the time being?”
“For now, until we figure out what to do next.”
“What can we do?”
“I don’t know yet. This isn’t like fighting an evil force. We’re dealing with a legal power. This won’t be an easy battle. In fact, there’s a high probability that we will end up losing.”
“Wh… what…?” Twilight grew wide-eyed.
“I might’ve broken the law before, but not one like this. I’m pretty sure what might happen to me, if I get caught, would make the Facility look like a juvenile hall. You, on the other hand, will probably be tested on by scientists. Even if you use magic to escape, they’ll eventually find a way to capture you. You might even die.”
Twilight shrank in her place as her heart sank.
“However… I’m not going to give up hope,” Yusei stated, ceasing his typing. “We need to stay strong until the very end.”
Twilight was silent for a moment. “How can you be so confident?”
“Because if we give up, we’ve already lost. And neither of us can afford that. After all, we both have friends to save. If we can’t get through this, we won’t be able to help them.”
Twilight sat as Yusei’s words sank into her mind. “I suppose you’re right… I suddenly feel a bit overwhelmed by what we’re dealing with. I mean… even if we manage to deal with Sector Security, there’s still the problem of those humans that invaded Equestria and finding and rescuing our friends. What are we supposed to do?”
“Take it one step at a time.”
“'Take it one step at a time'?”
“Exactly. For now, we just need to keep a low profile until we can figure out what’s going in Sector Security.”
“What do you mean?”
“From the data Blister’s recovered, there appear to be some under-the-table actions taken by a couple of the higher-ups.”
“What exactly?”
“Not sure just yet. But from the looks of things, there might be signs of corruption. It’s going to be a while before I can figure out what it all means.”
“All right,” Twilight yawned.
“There’s a few beds behind the curtains if you want to take a nap,” Yusei said, turning back towards the computer screen.
“Yeah… I suppose I’ll do that.” Twilight walked through the curtains. “Hey, Yusei?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks for helping me.”
“Of course. Like I said before, you’re my friend now, too.”
Twilight smiled as she glanced around the area once again. “I guess… it’s not too bad once you get used to it… It does have a bit of a home-like feel,” she thought to herself, turning towards Yusei with a concerned look. “I feel like I’m just being dragged around, not able to do anything. I wish I could do something to help.”
The door to the Sector Security headquarters swung open.
“Lieutenant, we need to talk,” Crow said, standing in the doorway.
“There is nothing to talk about,” Callos immediately replied. He stood in front of a woman in a judge’s uniform. “Your orders were clear.”
“Officer Trudge is currently gathering evidence for you. Why do you need me? Don’t you think that I should not be involved in this case because I’m his friend? You can’t expect me to betray him.”
“It is because you are Yusei’s friend that I want you on this case. You know him. Or does your reputation in the eyes of those orphans in the Satellite not mean anything to you?”
“They do matter. But… if this how things are going to be, I’ll find another way to make them proud of me. Even they are compassionate and smart enough to understand that I’d never turn my back on my friends!”
Callos glared intently at Crow. After a momentary silence, he and the judge quickly glanced at one another.
“Very well. I’ll consider withdrawing you from this case.”
“What…?”
“Is there a problem? That is what you want, isn’t it?”
Crow stared at Callos. It was too easy. “…Yeah. It is.”
“I’ll make my decision tomorrow after your regularly scheduled medical exam. In the meantime, you are not to contact the suspect directly.” The lieutenant and judge turned away and walked towards the interior.
Crow stood confused as the two disappeared from sight. “I don’t like this,” he thought. “Why not just make the decision now and get it over with? Does he really think he can pit me against Yusei?”
The two entered the dark room.
“So much for that,” the judge spoke.
“Not exactly, Celena,” Callos replied.
“Without that one in check, we’ll have three Signers to contend with. I thought his dreams of making those children proud would keep him in line.”
“As did I, but I suppose he was pushed over the edge. Relieving him from Sector Security completely simply wouldn’t get rid of him. Rather, it would make him return to Yusei’s side.”
“Any ideas?” Celena asked.
Callos chuckled. “Oh, I do. It’s time we prepared that formula.”
Akiza sat alone in the classroom as she stared silently through the window beside her.
The sun shone overhead in the sky. The students had already emptied out of the room to go home.
Akiza’s father sighed. “I thought I asked you to not get involved, Akiza,” he said.
“I can’t do that. My friends might be in trouble,” she replied.
“I understand that, but I just don’t want to see you get hurt. Yusei is facing some potentially harsh consequences if he gets arrested. I don’t want to see you taken into custody as well.”
“So you’d rather just have me watch as my friend gets taken away?”
The senator found himself unable to answer the question, but not because he didn’t know the answer.
“Dad…” Akiza mumbled.
“I’m sorry…” he said as he turned away.
Akiza took a deep breath. “I really don’t want to disappoint you, Dad. But…”
Akiza sat on the couch in the living room.
Several minutes passed before she noticed her mother sitting next to her.
“You understand how we feel, right?” she asked her daughter.
“Of course, I do,” Akiza answered. “But…” She stared right at her mother.
The elder woman glanced deep into her daughter’s eyes. There was nothing there but determination, yet a melancholic feel.
Her mother decided to break the silence. “If that’s how you feel… then you’ll have to convince your father.”
“Thank you, Mom. But… how?” Akiza found herself in her mother’s embrace.
“I think you know the answer, sweetie,” she replied as she released her daughter. “I suppose everything that’s happened has taken quite a toll on you if you didn’t see it right away.”
“What do you mean?”
“I remember you telling me something your friend, Yusei Fudo, taught you during one of our family dinners together…”
Akiza grabbed her schoolbag and stood up, turning towards the classroom door. “Today, Dad. Today.”
Twilight yawned as she passed through the curtains.
She looked around confused. The area was vacant.
“Yusei?” she called out. Trotting forward, she noticed the machines around her were turned off and that the Duel Runners were missing.
“He’s probably out with Blister,” she concluded. “But…”
“I might’ve broken the law before, but not one like this. I’m pretty sure what might happen to me, if I get caught, would make the Facility look like a juvenile hall. You, on the other hand, will probably be tested on by scientists. Even if you use magic to escape, they’ll eventually find a way to capture you. You might even die.”
“Is it really safe for him to be out there?” Twilight wondered. “I hope he’s—”
Her thoughts were interrupted at the sight of two Duel Runners, dragging carts along, halting before her.
“Yusei!” Twilight said, with a relief.
“Oh, you’re up,” Yusei replied, removing his helmet.
“You’re quite the sleeper there, horsey,” Blister remarked.
“It’s ‘pony’,” she corrected.
“Same difference to me.”
Twilight groaned.
“It’s all right, Twilight,” Yusei said.
Twilight glared at Blister once more before turning to Yusei. “Was I really out that long?” she asked.
“Yeah, you slept in a good deal,” Blister answered.
“I wasn’t asking you.”
“Twilight, Blister, enough,” Yusei interjected.
“What were you guys doing, anyway?”
“We went to get a few more supplies.”
“Isn’t it dangerous to be driving around up there, Yusei? You know…”
“The Satellite isn’t as easily monitored as New Domino City itself, given its current state,” Blister replied. “Didn’t Yusei tell you that this used to be his home?”
“Yeah…?”
“He knows this place like the back of his hand and knows which directions to go to avoid getting spotted easily, even with these carts we’ve lugged around.”
“Still a bit risky, isn’t it?”
“It is, but we don’t have much of a choice.” The two humans moved to turn on the computers.
“Well… did you find out anything new last night?” Twilight inquired.
“Decoding this information is pretty tough. All we’ve been able to figure out is that the search warrant for Yusei’s apartment was rushed. Basically, whoever wants you managed to pull some strings and slipped the warrant through,” Blister continued.
“So what does that mean?”
“Someone has an agenda. And I doubt it’s just for scientific research,” Yusei answered.
“What kind of agenda?”
“We’ve still only been able to scratch the surface. We should be able to pull some more information out of this,” Blister stated. “Anyway, I’m gonna head back to Martha’s.”
“But why?” Yusei asked.
“So I can least maintain an alibi on the surface. I doubt they’d catch me even if they found me out, but at least it’ll be harder for them to locate you.”
Blister placed his helmet back on and boarded his Runner.
“See you guys later,” he said, before driving off.
Twilight turned towards Yusei, who was typing on the computer.
“Let me guess,” she started. “You’re going to try to find out more?”
“Yep.”
“Is it really that difficult?”
“Classified information that is meant to be kept confidential will usually be encrypted, in the event that any of the data got leaked or stolen.”
“You mean like what Blister did?”
“Exactly.”
“You think you can handle it?”
“I should be able to. There was a bit of code that caught my eye a while ago. It may give us a hint at what we’re up against.”
“Hey… Yusei?”
“Yes?”
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?” Yusei turned towards Twilight.
“I feel like I’m a burden, not being able to help you deal with the situation. And you’re going out of your way to help me, even though your other friends are missing.”
“Like I said, you’re my friend, too, Twilight. Besides, taking into consideration all the recent events, I have a strong hunch it’s all connected somehow.”
“I suppose you’re right. I’m starting to get the same feeling myself. If only we could find out what that connection is…”
“I’m positive the data that Blister obtained, at least, has some clue.”
“And that would help us see the bigger picture.”
“Right. That’s the idea.”
“Mom, I’m home!” Akiza called as she passed through the doorway.
“Welcome home, dear,” her mother greeted. “Your father is waiting for you out back.”
“He is?”
“Of course. You didn’t think he’d forget, did you? I suggest you go see him now since he’ll be leaving for work again in an hour or so.”
“Right.” Akiza followed her mother to the spacious lawn that was behind their mansion.
“It’s been a while since we’ve been able to do this, Akiza,” her father said, his Duel Disk firmly placed on his left arm.
“Yes… it has, Dad.” Akiza placed her Duel Disk on her arm with her cards in the Deck slot. “I remember the last time we Dueled… it was so long ago… it was just after—”
“Is something wrong, Akiza?” her father asked.
“No. Not at all,” Akiza answered. Both she and the senator activated their Duel Disks. “Dad… I’ll make you see…”
“Akiza. Hideo. Good luck,” Akiza’s mother cheered.
“Thank you, Setsuko,” the senator replied. “Are you ready, Akiza? Let’s start.”
“Right,” Akiza said.
DUEL! Akiza (LP 4000) VS Hideo (LP 4000)
“I’ll go first,” Hideo declared, drawing a card. “I’ll Set a monster and end my turn.”
Akiza paused.
“Is something wrong?” he asked.
“No… no. Not at all,” his daughter answered. “That’s an odd move. He’s never played this way before…” she thought. “It’s my turn! I Summon Botanical Lion!” A large feline with a mane in the shape and color of rose petals emerged in front of Akiza.
Botanical Lion LV: 4 ATK: 1600
“Botanical Lion’s effect increases its ATK by 300 for every Plant-Type monster I control!”
1 * 300 = 300
Botanical Lion LV: 4 ATK: 1600 + 300 = 1900
“Botanical Lion? I’ve never seen that card in your Deck before, Akiza,” Hideo commented. “You must’ve changed your Deck not too long ago.”
“I definitely have,” Akiza smiled. “I can’t stop trying to improve myself, or my friends will leave me behind.”
“I see.”
“Battle! Botanical Lion, attack the Set monster!” she commanded. Her beast lunged forward at the hidden monster, forcing it to reveal itself.
Ryko, Lightsworn Hunter LV: 2 DEF: 100
“What the?!” Akiza exclaimed.
The small, white-furred canine was slashed by Akiza’s lion.
“At this moment, I activate the Flip Effect of Ryko, Lightsworn Hunter! It can destroy one card on the field!” the senator stated.
An explosion occurred where Akiza’s beast stood. The smoke cleared and the lion was nowhere to be seen.
“Next, I send three cards from the top of my Deck to the Graveyard,” Hideo continued.
“Lightsworn…” Akiza mumbled. “So you’ve changed your Deck as well.”
“That’s right. I’ve been improving myself as well. We never finished our first Duel after you received your Deck that day. After you came back to us, I knew the day would come when we would finally truly enjoy a Duel together. But after seeing you with Yusei… and competing in the WRGP… I knew the Deck that I had wasn’t going to be strong enough to defeat yours. After all, Plants are your specialty. So on what little free time I had from work, I decided to put my effort into a Deck with a lot more potency.”
“It’s not a bad choice. I think it fits,” Akiza complimented. “And it makes sense. The closer two Duelists are in strength, the more fun the battle between them can be.”
“Exactly. Lightsworns. They are the embodiment of light and justice.”
“A powerful force, to be sure. But… this Duel isn’t over yet.”
“Let’s continue, then.”
“Right. From my hand, I activate the Field Spell Black Garden!” Akiza declared. Several thorny vines emerged from the ground and encircled the field around the two Duelists. “While this card is face-up, when either of us Normal Summons or Special Summons a monster… that monster’s ATK is halved and a Rose Token is Special Summoned in Attack Position on the opponent’s side of the field. I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn.”
“Then it’s my turn,” Hideo declared. “I activate the Spell Card Terraforming.”
“What?!”
“This card lets me add a Field Spell from my Deck to my hand! And I choose Realm of Light.”
“This is bad…”
“I now activate the Field Spell Realm of Light!” The plant-filled surroundings began to vanish while the image of a large ancient city appeared behind the senator. “With the appearance of a new Field Spell, Black Garden is destroyed. I now Summon Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress!”
A white-robed mage appeared beside Akiza’s father.
Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress LV: 4 ATK: 1700
“Lyla! Attack Akiza directly!” he commanded. The white mage pointed its staff towards his daughter. A beam of light shot from the edge and struck her.
Akiza LP: 4000 – 1700 = 2300
“Next, I activate Lyla’s monster effect. I can switch it to Defense Position and destroy one Spell or Trap Card you control. However, after activating this effect, Lyla cannot change Battle Positions until the end of my next turn.”
Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress LV: 4 DEF: 200
Another beam of light shot from the staff towards Akiza’s Set card.
“Wall of Thorns, huh?” Hideo observed. “If I attack a Plant-Type monster, that card would destroy all my Attack Position monsters. Had I left Black Garden on the field, a Rose Token would’ve been Summoned to your field after I Summon a monster of my own. Since the only monster you would control is a Plant-Type monster, the conditions would have been set to activate your Trap.”
“So you saw through it, didn’t you?”
“Of course. In my prime, I was a very avid Duelist myself. I’ve competed in a number of small tournaments honing my skills before I finally settled down and got into politics. Now, during the End Phase, I have to send three cards from the top of my Deck to the Graveyard, due to Lyla’s effect. Next, when one or more cards are sent from my Deck to the Graveyard, Realm of Light gains one Shine Counter.”
Realm of Light Shine Counters: 0 + 1 = 1
“For each Shine Counter on Realm of Light, all of my “Lightsworn” monsters gain 100 ATK.”
“Next, I activate the effect of Wulf, Lightsworn Beast from my Graveyard. When it’s sent from the Deck to the Graveyard, it gets Special Summoned to my field!”
“Lonefire Blossom’s effect activates! Once per turn, I can Tribute a Plant-Type monster to Summon another Plant-Type monster from my Deck! I Tribute Lonefire Blossom to Special Summon Tytannial, Princess of Camellias!” A humanoid figure emerged from the rose that appeared before Akiza. Several vines, covered in thorns, extended from beneath the creature.
Tytannial, Princess of Camellias LV: 8 ATK: 2800
“Battle! Tytannial, attack Wulf!” Two of the vines lashed at her father’s beast, vanquishing it.
2800 – 2200 = 600
Hideo LP: 4000 – 600 = 3400
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn,” Akiza concluded.
“My turn,” Hideo stated. “I activate the Spell Solar Recharge. I discard one “Lightsworn” monster from my hand and draw two cards. Then I send two cards from the top of my Deck to the Graveyard. With that, Realm of Light gains another Shine Counter.”
Realm of Light Shine Counters: 1 + 1 = 2
“With two Shine Counters, all of my “Lightsworn” monsters gain 200 ATK.”
“Lyla still can’t change Battle Positions this turn,” Akiza stated.
“True,” her father replied. “That’s why I’m going to Tribute Lyla so I can Tribute Summon Celestia, Lightsworn Angel.” The mage vanished as it was replaced with an armored, angelic human figure with pure white wings holding a long, thin rod.
“Then I can target up to two cards you control and destroy them. I’ll choose Tytannial and your Set card!” Hideo continued.
The angel held up its rod and aimed it at Akiza’s cards.
“At this moment, I activate Tytannial’s monster effect!” she countered. “When a card on the field is targeted for an effect, I can Tribute a Plant-Type monster I control to negate it!” Vines extended from underneath Akiza’s monster, constricting the Lightsworn and vanquishing it. The plant-like humanoid disappeared shortly after.
“I end my turn,” Hideo finished. Glancing at his daughter, he noticed she was breathing heavily. “It’s about that. Isn’t it?”
“My turn!” Akiza declared. “I Summon the Tuner Monster Twilight Rose Knight!”
Twilight Rose Knight LV: 3 ATK: 1000
“When Twilight Rose Knight is Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or below Plant-Type monster from my hand! Come forth, Lord Poison!”
Lord Poison LV: 4 ATK: 1500
“Their total LV… is 7…” Hideo observed.
“I tune Level 3 Twilight Rose Knight with Level 4 Lord Poison!” Akiza continued.
3 + 4 = 7
“Chilling flames engulf the entire world. Pitch-dark flower, set into bloom! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Black Rose Dragon!”
Black Rose Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2400
“It’s here. Akiza’s ace monster,” the old senator thought.
“Go, Black Rose Dragon! Direct attack!” Akiza commanded. “Black Rose Flare!” The large dragon shot flames from its mouth, striking her father.
Hideo LP: 3400 – 2400 = 1000
“I can feel it…” Hideo noticed. “It’s been so long since I experienced this feeling… I forgot what it was like.”
Akiza was breathing heavily. “Just a little more,” she thought.
“Your mind’s made up, isn’t it?” her father asked.
“Huh?”
“I’ve noticed it more and more as we Dueled. It’s hard to miss, Akiza.”
“What do you mean?”
“For you, this isn’t just about the two of us Dueling for the first time in years. It’s about Yusei, isn’t it?”
Akiza remained silent.
“I thought as much.”
“I told you before… I can’t abandon my friends.” Akiza said. “Through this Duel…”
“If that’s how you feel… then you’ll have to convince your father.”
“Thank you, Mom. But… how?” Akiza found herself in her mother’s embrace.
“I think you know the answer, sweetie,” she replied as she released her daughter. “I suppose everything that’s happened has taken quite a toll on you if you didn’t see it right away.”
“What do you mean?”
“I remember you telling me something your friend, Yusei Fudo, taught you during one of our family dinners together… you told us that Dueling is another way for a Duelist to express themselves. Rather than talk to him, daughter to father… perhaps you can talk to him… Duelist to Duelist.”
“Wait… does this mean…?”
“I worry about your safety just like your father does. But I can see you truly want to help your friends. And, as your mother, I will support you every step of the way. I know your father will see how strong your feelings are if you Duel him.”
“This is… a bit unlike you, Mom. I don’t remember a time when your wishes conflicted with Dad’s.”
“You haven’t been around us long enough to see them. But being the politician that he is, he can make a very compelling argument. Occasionally, he slips up… but for the most part, he’s been right. Despite our disagreements, I still love him.”
“I see…”
“You’ve grown into a strong woman, Akiza. And I’m proud of that. But I guess… watching you has encouraged me to do the same. I’d like to believe that the same thing happened to your father over the past several months.”
“You think so?”
“I do. So when it’s time to Duel… show him how you truly feel. I know you can.”
“I’ll show you my resolve,” Akiza thought, determined.
“I’ll tell you what… if I win, you will do as I’ve asked of you. If you win… I won’t stop you,” Hideo offered.
“Don’t say it like that!” Akiza shouted as she hung her head. Her parents were surprised by her outburst. Tears began to roll down her cheeks. “I don’t… I don’t want you to disapprove of my choices… my decisions… I don’t want to disappoint you.”
Hideo paused for a moment before speaking again. “Do you accept my conditions?”
Akiza remained silent.
“Akiza…” Setsuko mumbled.
“Well, Akiza?” Hideo said.
“All right… I accept,” Akiza finally answered.
Yusei let out a low groan.
“What is it, Yusei?” Twilight asked.
“I might’ve found something… but I have no way of figuring out what it is.”
“What do you mean?” Twilight walked up beside Yusei’s chair.
“Here…” Yusei pulled up a diagram with some oddly-shaped characters. “Most of this code, I’ve been able to decipher… but not these. This looks like a whole different language on its own, except there are no historic records of these characters being used before.”
Twilight glanced at the figures and symbols on the screen. Her head tilted, trying to figure out the reason behind their familiarity to her. “I feel like… I’ve seen this before…”
“Twilight?” Yusei said.
“OH MY GOSH!” Twilight exclaimed.
“What is it?”
“I think I’ve seen this language before!”
“You have?”
“It’s from an ancient obscure Equestrian culture. The only times I’ve seen it in my library were from ancient spell books. Princess Celestia once lectured me on it, but she didn’t go over it too much when she was actively teaching me.”
“So you think you can translate what it says?”
“I’m not sure. I might be able to. Like I said, she didn’t go over it too much with me. It’d be a lot easier if I had access to the books in my library…”
“I see…”
“Is there anything in that data that tells us what it says without having to go through the trouble of translating it?”
“Unfortunately, no. All the data I’ve managed to decipher amounts to this. We already know that someone’s pulling the strings behind Sector Security because of the rushed warrant. If they’re planning something more than whatever it is that’s in this language, they obviously haven’t hidden it in their system. In fact, they might’ve been in the process of translating their plan with the search warrant itself into this language.”
“So Blister might’ve stolen the data before they could do that?”
“Right, and whatever we have right here may only just be a small piece of the puzzle.”
“I… guess it’s better than nothing. I’ll see if I can translate it.”
“All right. I’ll print out a copy so it’s easier for you to work with.”
“It’s my turn!” Hideo declared. “I Special Summon Judgment Dragon!” A large dragon descended from the skies behind Akiza’s father.
Judgment Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 3000
“Summoning a monster with 3000 ATK straight from the hand...?” Akiza said.
“Judgment Dragon is a monster that can be Special Summoned if I have four or more “Lightsworn” monsters with different names in my Graveyard,” her father replied. “Normally… I’d want to activate Judgment Dragon’s effect to destroy all cards on the field, except itself…”
“However, that effect requires you to pay 1000 Life Points.”
Hideo LP: 1000
“That’s right,” Hideo continued. “I don’t have enough Life Points to activate the effect without losing the Duel. So in that case… I Normal Summon Lumina, Lightsworn Summoner!”
“Once per turn, by discarding a card from my hand, Lumina’s effect allows me to Special Summon a Level 4 or below “Lightsworn” monster from my Graveyard! Revive, Lyla!”
“I now activate Lyla’s effect. I’ll switch it to Defense Position!”
Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress LV: 4 DEF: 200
“Then I’ll destroy your Set card!” The mage pointed its staff at Akiza’s card.
“Not so fast!” Akiza countered. “At this moment, I’ll activate the targeted card! The Quick-Play Spell Forbidden Lance! Until the End Phase of this turn, one monster on the field will become unaffected by other Spells and Traps, but it will also lose 800 ATK. I choose Judgment Dragon!”
Judgment Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 3000 – 800 = 2200
“With only 2200 ATK, it’s not strong enough to defeat Black Rose Dragon.”
Black Rose Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2400
“In that case, I’ll equip Judgment Dragon with the Equip Spell Raregold Armor,” Hideo continued. Bright, golden armor appeared on his dragon. “While I control the monster equipped with Raregold Armor, you can’t attack any other monster I control. I’ll Set one card face-down. Then, during the End Phase, Forbidden Lance’s effect disappears, so Judgment Dragon’s ATK returns to normal.”
Judgment Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2200 + 800 = 3000
“Next, Lyla’s effect sends three cards from the top of my Deck to the Graveyard. Then, Lumina’s effect sends three more cards to the Graveyard. Lastly, Judgment Dragon’s effect sends four cards from the top of my Deck to the Graveyard.”
“Ten cards sent to the Graveyard…” Akiza observed.
“Since I sent cards from my Deck to the Graveyard three times, Realm of Light gains three Shine Counters,” Hideo added.
Realm of Light Shine Counters: 3 + 3 = 6
“With that, my “Lightsworn” monsters gain an additional 300 ATK.”
“Now that that’s done… I end my turn,” Hideo concluded.
Akiza glanced at her father’s field of cards. “He’s thought this through… Black Rose Dragon’s effect… by banishing a Plant-Type monster from my Graveyard, I can switch a monster from Defense to Attack Position and reduce its ATK to 0 until the End Phase. Normally, that would give me a clear shot at his Life Points… but because of the Equip Spell Raregold Armor… I can only attack Judgment Dragon. That card was meant to defend against Black Rose Dragon’s effect. And then there’s that Set card… in this situation… it must be there for the possibility that I get rid of Raregold Armor…”
She stared at the only card in her hand.
“With only this card in my hand… and only Black Rose Dragon on my field… it’s not enough…” she thought. “But…”
She recalled a certain phrase that Yusei once told her.
“As long as I believe in my Deck… it will answer me!” Yusei’s words echoed in her mind.
“It’s the same here!” Akiza thought. “I won’t give up… until the very end! It’s my turn!” she declared, smiling at her newly drawn card.
The senator became wide-eyed at her daughter’s expression.
“I activate the Quick-Play Spell Book of Moon! This card changes a monster on the field to face-down Defense Position! And I choose Judgment Dragon!”
“What?!” Hideo exclaimed. He watched as his dragon vanished into a horizontal face-down card.
“Since Equip Spells cannot be equipped to face-down monsters, Raregold Armor is destroyed!” Akiza continued. The image of the Equip Spell in front of her father shattered. “And now… I activate Black Rose Dragon’s monster effect! Once per turn, I can banish a Plant-Type monster from my Graveyard and switch one monster on your field from Defense to Attack Position and reduce its ATK to 0 until the End Phase! Rose Restriction!”
Hideo’s Judgment Dragon emerged from the card once more, smothered in thorny vines.
Judgment Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 3000 – 3000 = 0
“0 ATK…” he mumbled.
“If this attack hits…” Setsuko said.
“Black Rose Dragon! Attack Judgment Dragon!” Akiza commanded. “Black Rose Flare!” Her dragon opened its mouth, preparing to shoot flames at its target.
“Do you think you’ve won, Akiza?” the senator asked.
“What?”
“I activate the Trap Card Mirror Force! When the opponent’s monster attacks, this card destroys all of the opponent’s monsters in Attack Position!” A transparent barrier formed between the two dragons. “It’s over.”
“Yes, it is. But not the way you think it is.”
“Huh?”
Akiza grabbed the last card in her hand. “At this moment, I activate the Quick-Play Spell Forbidden Dress from my hand! Until the End Phase, one monster on the field loses 600 ATK but it cannot be targeted or destroyed by card effects!”
“What?!”
Black Rose Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2400 – 600 = 1800
Flames shot out from the dragon’s mouth, striking the barrier.
“I see… so this is your resolve…” he thought, watching the barrier shatter. The flames scorched Judgment Dragon, vanquishing it.
1800 – 0 = 1800
Hideo LP: 1000 – 1800 = 0
The remaining monsters faded.
“Dad…” Akiza began.
“Hideo…” Setsuko mumbled.
“It can’t be helped. You win. You’re free to do as you choose,” the senator stated, closing his eyes.
“But Dad—” Akiza was interrupted by her father holding his palm forward, motioning for her to stop.
Hideo opened his eyes and smiled. “I’m actually glad we had this Duel, Akiza. But I want you to know this…”
“Yes…?”
“Don’t say it like that!” Akiza shouted as she hung her head. Her parents were surprised by her outburst. Tears began to roll down her cheeks. “I don’t… I don’t want you to disapprove of my choices… my decisions… I don’t want to disappoint you.”
“You’ve grown a lot over the past several months, and I think you’re responsible enough to make your own well-weighted decisions. For that reason… I will always be proud of you. Even now,” Hideo said.
“You’re… okay with me helping Yusei?” Akiza asked, as her father walked up to her and placed his hands on her shoulders.
“While it may worry me that you’re putting yourself in danger… but you’ve made up your mind and I can’t stop you. Go. Go to your friends.”
With those words, Akiza quietly sobbed as she and her father hugged each other tightly.
“Thank you…” she said. After a moment of embracing each other, Akiza began to walk towards the front door. “I promise… I’ll be careful.”
“Are you okay with this?” Setsuko asked, as soon as Akiza was out of sight.
“I’m uneasy about this, Setsuko. She’s not only putting herself in danger… but putting us at risk, too. I don’t want to take this risk, but I’m in no position to stop her without making her hate me again. I’d sooner throw away my job than let that happen again.”
“Hideo…”
“Let’s just hope… that she knows what she’s doing.”
Twilight groaned loudly as she stared at the symbols printed on the sheet Yusei provided her with.
Placing her right elbow on the table and her head on her hoof, she glared at the mystery characters.
“Why’d they have to pick such an obscure language? This would be so much easier if I was in my library at home,” she moaned as her head fell on the table. “How do these humans even know about this language anyway…? They only attacked us about three days ago… If they came up with a plan like this… it must’ve taken them much longer than that to prepare for it…”
Twilight sat back up and tilted her head backwards so that she could glance at the blue sky through the elongated crack in the surface above Yusei’s former home.
“But that can’t be possible… there haven’t been any sightings of humans or, for that matter, any creatures unfamiliar to those living in Equestria for a long time…” she thought. Quickly shaking her head, her eyes traveled back to the ancient symbols in front of her. “No time to wonder about that… I’ve got to figure this out. Hopefully, I can translate some of this before Yusei comes ba—”
Her thoughts were interrupted as she heard small footsteps accompanying young voices echoing through the tunnel. She turned her head in the direction of the sound to see faint lights in the distance. In a panic, Twilight darted behind the curtain.
“Ginga, do you honestly think it’s a good idea for us to come all the way out here?” asked a young female voice.
“Relax, Hikari,” replied a male voice, which Twilight presumed belonged to the one named Ginga. “You don’t honestly think Yusei’s a criminal, do you?”
“How do they know…?” Twilight wondered.
“But Martha said…” began a much younger female voice.
“Come on, Kokoro. You don’t need to worry. We’ve been here before with Crow,” replied a different male voice. “Besides, Martha will understand.”
“Taiga’s right!” added Ginga. “And who knows? Crow and Yusei might be waiting for us! What do you think, Daichi?”
“I don’t know,” answered a third male voice. “I’m kinda siding with the girls on this one. What if it’s all true?”
“You can’t honestly believe Yusei would be hiding an alien, do you? What do you think it could possibly look like? Besides, if he is, I think it’d be pretty cool.”
“I don’t think ‘cool’ would be the word I’d use…” Twilight thought. “Anyway, it sounds like there are five of them… and they seem to know Yusei.”
“Wouldn’t that be bad for us, then?” Daichi asked. “I don’t think Crow or Martha would want us involved in any crime.”
“Maybe not,” Ginga responded. “But we can’t just stand by if they’re in trouble. You wouldn’t be coming along if you didn’t want to help, either, you know.”
There was no response from the others, aside from a brief silence.
“Besides, we’re already here!” Ginga continued.
“Aw, man,” Daichi moaned. “Doesn’t look like either of them are here.”
“Guess that means we can leave now, right?” Hikari asked.
“Hold on. What’s this? There’s something on the table,” Taiga stated.
“Oh, no… why did I forget to take the sheet with me…?” Twilight placed her hooves on her face. She then heard a set of very light footsteps approaching her. “Uh oh… one of them’s coming! What do I do, what do I do?!”
“I’ve never seen this language before, what about you guys?” Ginga questioned.
The response from the other children was a collective no.
“Maybe Martha knows—”
“Put that down!” Twilight exclaimed, before quickly covering her mouth with her hooves. “Uuuuh, leave that sheet alone! You know not what it says!”
“Who is that…?” Hikari asked.
“She sounds… a bit scary…” Kokoro stated.
“Show yourself! We’re not afraid of you!” Ginga shouted.
“I am… uh… the Po… er, I mean… Human of Shadows! Leave this place at once!” Twilight yelled.
“Human of Shadows…?”
“I’ve never heard of that before…” Taiga said.
“Why don’t you come out of hiding?” Daichi asked.
“I… want to go back to Martha’s now… I think we’re making her angry…” Kokoro suggested.
“I agree… Ginga?” Hikari concurred.
“Don’t make me use my mysterious powers on you!” Twilight responded.
“Try us!” Ginga replied.
“Very well! You leave me no choice!” Twilight activated her horn. “I really didn’t want to do this… Sorry, Yusei…” A burst of lightning shot towards the ceiling.
“Whoa…”
“Ginga, let’s go!” Hikari urged him.
“Right… let’s get out of here!”
Twilight heard several footsteps quickly becoming fainter. She peeked through the curtains and scanned the area, only to find no one but herself present. Sighing in relief, she trotted towards the table to resume her task before the young children arrived.
As she sat down, she glared at the table with frustration. “Seriously?”
The five children panted as they stood outside the tunnel.
“That was… scary…” commented the little red-haired girl.
“It’s okay, Kokoro. We’re out of there now…” replied Hikari, the older girl with blue hair.
“What was that? I never knew Yusei had something like that…” replied Daichi. His black hair had a bowl-cut shape.
“You think that was the alien?” Taiga asked. Taiga had tan-colored hair and wore a purple bandanna on his head to go with his gray vest.
The boy with spiky, dark maroon hair and wearing an orange jacket walked towards the center of the group of five. “We’ll find out,” he said.
“What makes you so sure, Ginga?”
“Because I have this!” Ginga held up a bundle of rolled-up sheets in his hand.
“You mean you took that from the alien?!” Daichi exclaimed.
“Of course! You all want to see what it looks like, right? It seemed very protective of these papers, whatever they are. So there’s no doubt it’ll come out for it!”
“Why would you even think of stealing those?” Hikari scolded.
Ginga could only muster up a chuckle in response.
“I guess it can’t be helped now…”
“But… what do we do if it finds us?” Kokoro asked.
“Don’t worry about that,” Ginga assured them. “I’ll make sure nothing happens. Besides, maybe Crow and the others will help once they find out we’re in trouble as well.”
The other four children looked at each other with expressions of anticipation and worry.
“I’m serious! Come on, let’s head back to Martha’s place.” The five walked off towards the orphanage.
“This should be the last one,” Blister stated, placing one last box in the cart attached to Yusei’s Duel Runner.
“All right,” Yusei replied, starting up his vehicle.
“Careful out there.”
“Got it.” Yusei drove off into the distance.
“I wonder how far those two have gotten with that data…” Blister thought.
“Aha. So this is why some things have been missing,” an older female voice stated.
Started, Blister turned to see Martha, her hands at her hips. “Martha!”
She sighed. “Why am I not surprised? So tell me… are the rumors true?”
“I… don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I remember hearing from one of the children that they heard rumors of Yusei harboring an illegal alien. I honestly can’t imagine what reason he’d have to break the law like that.”
“…Your guess is as good as mine,” Blister replied. “Though I definitely agree with how absurd it is to protect a talking horse.”
“You’re as bad as the children,” Martha sighed again. “Speaking of which… where are they?”
“They’re not home?”
“Clearly, you haven’t been, either, since they’re very hard for either of us to miss. For you to not know, you must’ve been out yourself. I can only guess what you’ve been up to.”
Blister remained silent.
“To answer your question, no,” she continued. “I haven’t seen them. They never told me where they were going, but I can probably guess the place.”
“Where?”
“Yusei’s old home. Find them and bring them home.”
“Wait, you want me to do it?”
“Quite frankly, I’m upset with you as it is. You’re clearly hiding something from me and the children left behind my back. Meanwhile, Yusei is off who-knows-where… with an illegal alien, for all I know. I could do without all this worry.”
“…Fine. I’ll look for them.”
“Thank you.”
Yusei drove along the worn-down roads where there was no one in sight.
“It’s strange…” he thought. “All the data I found was in that language… one that doesn’t exist in this world. But… to think that so much of it was translated… something like that must’ve taken weeks to plan… but Twilight only arrived three nights ago…”
He continued down the path in silence. “Maybe, just maybe…”
His thoughts were interrupted as he felt something on his left arm yank him off his Runner onto the ground. “What the?!” He glanced at his arm to see a cuff attached to a wire.
“It’s been a long time, Yusei Fudo,” a deep voice spoke. Following the wire, he looked up to see a large bulky man wearing a white chef outfit, the other end of the wire attached to his left wrist underneath a Duel Disk.
“Wait… you!”
“So you remember me, after all. I haven’t seen you since the Facility, Satellite scum.”
“Armstrong.” Yusei stood up. “What do you want?”
“Word on the street is, you’re hiding an alien. So I’m taking you in.”
“I thought you were fired.”
“Bah! Who cares? When I turn you in, I’ll have my badge back. And I’ll be more than happy to escort you to the Facility once again.”
“What are you even doing here?”
Armstrong groaned. “After I was fired by that no-good Goodwin, I was left roaming the streets looking for a job. The best I could manage was some dumb burger joint. I’ve never been so humiliated. And it was all because of you! Even worse… I got forced to transfer to a joint here in this waste of land you used to call home!”
Yusei scoffed.
“But then… opportunity happened. I’ve heard some rumors that you’re hiding an alien around here… I don’t know what that’s all about… but one thing was certain… it was the perfect time to get some payback. And what better way to do that… than to defeat you in a Duel?”
“A Duel? Now?”
“Why not? You love it so much. In fact… you’ll have no choice but to come along with me if you lose. You do know what this wire is, right?”
Yusei glanced at the cord once more. He remembered it all too well, although he couldn’t help but notice how thick it was compared to what he recalled.
“I’m not completely ignorant. Even when I was still staff at the Facility, I was more than aware of the events transpiring here in the Satellite. You and your little group called the Enforcers. We know you used these wires to force other gangs into Duels… the losers had their Duel Disks short-circuited by these wires.”
Yusei glared at the bulky man once more.
“Fine, then. Let’s Duel.”
“Like you have any other option,” Armstrong sneered.
“Ugh, where could they have gone?” Twilight moaned, strolling through an immense scrapyard. “I don’t want to be out here too long… the sooner I get that sheet back, the better.”
Scanning the area, her eyes caught something in the distance ahead. Ducking behind a pile of scrap, she peered into the large open area ahead. In the center was a sheet of paper rolled up, held to the ground by some miniature rocks being used as paperweights.
“Is that it?” she wondered. Activating her horn, an aura surrounded the rocks and the sheet as they levitated into the air.
Twilight’s horn deactivated as she noticed something… something moving behind the scrap on the opposite side of the open area. The rocks and sheet fell almost in place.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she mumbled. Her ears perked up as she heard the sound of footsteps quickly approaching. “Oh, no…”
Twilight activated her horn once more, and a flash of light lit up the vicinity for a brief second.
As the light dimmed, she was nowhere to be seen.
“Aww, we were so close!” Ginga said, as he and the other four children gathered where the light came from. “Did anyone get a good look at what it was?”
The others shook their heads.
“Well. Now we know one thing. Whatever it is, it definitely wants that paper.” Ginga moved to pick up the sheet.
“Remind me what we’re doing once we do find it,” Daichi said.
“I don’t know… maybe we can convince it not to hurt us or something.”
“You have no idea, do you?” Hikari asked.
Kokoro turned her head and glanced behind her while the others continued to talk.
“Anyway, I’m gonna take Kokoro home,” Hikari continued.
At the mention of the little one’s name, the four children looked around.
“Kokoro?” Hikari called. “Where’d she go?”
“We better look for her, before Martha gets upset,” Taiga suggested.
“Good idea,” Ginga agreed.
“I’ll go check back home,” Daichi offered, running off.
“All right. She couldn’t have gotten too far. So let’s split up and meet back at Martha’s in twenty minutes.”
Nodding in agreement, the three remaining children headed in different directions.
“Great… those kids are trying to draw me out for some reason,” Twilight mumbled. “I can’t let them get involved in this. Who knows what kind of trouble they’ll end up in?”
She sighed.
“It’s like dealing with those girls back in Equestria all over again…”
“‘Equestria’?” a small female voice repeated.
Twilight became wide-eyed as she turned around to see a small girl. The alicorn quickly lifted herself off the ground and began to take off.
“Wait!” the girl called after her. “You want the paper back, don’t you?!”
Twilight stopped and turned around, as the young girl caught up to her.
“Uh… yes… do you have it with you?”
The girl shook her head. “I’m sorry, no. But… I can ask Ginga to give it to me.”
“Wait, really?”
“Yes. My name is Kokoro. And… I’m sorry that we’re causing you so much trouble. They just… really want to see what you look like for some reason.”
“So I noticed. Still, I’m not sure if it’s a good idea to be talking with any of you. I don’t want any of you to get in trouble because of me. Besides, don’t you think that it’s odd talking to some creature from another world?”
“To be honest… I was a bit scared at first… but when I saw you here, I really wanted to get a closer look. I’ve never seen anything as beautiful as you.”
Twilight blushed and chuckled in embarrassment. “Thank you for the compliment, I guess.”
“I can’t imagine something like you being evil! Besides, I know you really just wanted that paper back, though I don’t know why.”
“Well… can you help me get that paper back? It’s kind of important.”
Kokoro nodded.
“Kokoro!” a voice called, from the distance.
“That’s Hikari!” Kokoro said.
“I’m gonna stay out of sight. Don’t tell anyone you saw me, okay?” Twilight quickly hid behind a scrap pile.
“There you are! We’ve been looking for you! What are you doing all by yourself?” Hikari asked.
“Uh…” Kokoro turned her head to the side in the direction Twilight went. “It’s… nothing.”
“Come on, let’s go back to Martha’s. Ginga and the others are going to meet us there. We’ve been worried about you.”
“Okay…”
Peeking from behind the scrap, Twilight watched the two girls walk away.
“Well…” she thought. “Guess I better follow them.”
“Oh, I will. And I’ll have my badge back. I’ll be sure to see that you have the best possible time spending the rest of your life in the Facility,” Armstrong grinned. “I’ve waited too long for this. Let’s get started!”
“Fine, then!” The two drew five cards from their Decks.
DUEL! Yusei (LP 4000) VS Armstrong (LP 4000)
“I’ll go first!” Armstrong declared, drawing a card. “I Summon Iron Chain Snake!” A reptile with a large chain around it emerged in front of him.
Iron Chain Snake LV: 3 ATK: 800
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn!”
“Then it’s my turn!” Yusei declared. “I Summon Max Warrior!”
Max Warrior LV: 4 ATK: 1800
“Battle! Max Warrior, attack Iron Chain Snake!” His warrior lunged forward. “At this moment, Max Warrior’s effect increases its ATK by 400 during the Damage Step!”
Max Warrior LV: 4 ATK: 1800 + 400 = 2200
Yusei’s monster struck Armstrong’s reptile with its rod.
2200 – 800 = 1400
Armstrong LP: 4000 – 1400 = 2600
Yusei’s eye caught a spark in the center of the cord. “What… was that…?” he mumbled.
“Hey! Satellite scum!” Armstrong called.
Yusei scoffed. “When Max Warrior destroys a monster in battle, its original ATK and DEF become halved and its Level becomes 2 until my next Standby Phase.”
“Not so fast!” Armstrong interrupted. “I activate the Quick-Play Spell Psychic Cyclone!”
“What?”
“This card lets me target a Spell or Trap Card you control and call which type of card it is, then destroys it. And if I call it right, I draw one card! So I say it’s a Trap!” A cyclone struck Yusei’s only face-down card, revealing it before destroying it. “Scrap-Iron Scarecrow... a Trap, like I thought. Due to Psychic Cyclone, I draw one card.” The bulky man chuckled.
“I end my turn,” Yusei concluded.
Twilight peered from behind a tree at the building the two young girls were approaching.
“Hope the boys are here waiting for us,” Hikari said.
“And just where have you all been?” asked Martha, as she opened the door. Daichi stood at her side. “I’ve been worried sick about you! You all took off without my permission! You could’ve at least told me where you were going if you were in that much of a hurry!”
“Sorry, Martha,” Hikari apologized.
“I’m sorry…” Kokoro followed suit.
“I’ve already sent Blister to gather the other two boys. Hopefully, it won’t take too long. Still, I’d like to know what you were all up to,” Martha continued.
“Oh, well, you know… just playing around,” Hikari chuckled nervously.
“Playing around where? I can’t think of too many places near here in the Satellite where you could simply frolic about.”
The three kids remained silent.
“Martha, I’ve gathered the other two,” Blister stated, approaching with Ginga and Taiga by his side.
Twilight saw Ginga’s arm tight against his chest. “He must be hiding something underneath there,” she thought.
The woman sighed. “All of you. Inside. Now,” Martha commanded.
“Yes, Martha,” the children replied, in unison.
The five young kids slowly walked inside the orphanage as Martha turned to Blister.
“Great. How am I supposed to get that sheet now?” Twilight wondered.
“I suppose you’re going to head off now?” the woman asked.
“Actually, no. You want me to deal with those chores, don’t you?” he responded. “Besides, you seem a bit upset lately.”
“Why wouldn’t I be? With the news report confirming the rumors, saying that Yusei is a wanted criminal, and Crow still working for Sector Security… I know they’ll find a way to get through this and that Yusei must have a good reason for whatever it is he’s doing… but I don’t need you or the kids needlessly getting yourselves into trouble for their sakes. You’ve been in and out of here quite a bit recently, and the kids are starting to do the same. What am I to do if something happens to them? I know, for a fact, Crow would be devastated.”
“So everyone knows about it? That’s not good…” Twilight thought.
“Well, I shouldn’t have to do anything more away from here for a while after tonight,” Blister stated.
“And what exactly have you been doing?” Martha asked. “You never did tell me.”
Blister remained quiet.
“Helping Yusei, I imagine,” Martha sighed.
“...Nothing gets by her,” Twilight observed.
“Fine. Do what you need to,” the woman continued. “Just try to make sure the kids don't get involved, if you really must.” The two turned and walked inside the orphanage.
Twilight stared at the large building and sighed. “Now what do I do?”
“What? You want the paper?” Ginga asked, as he stood in front of a drawer in the bedroom.
Kokoro nodded slowly in response.
“But why? It’s not like you can read what’s on it.”
The little girl was silent.
“Maybe she just wants to keep looking for that alien or whatever it was we saw in Yusei’s home,” Taiga said.
“Well, if that’s the case, then we’ll all head back out again later to find it,” Ginga suggested, placing the rolled up sheet of paper in a drawer.
The other children nodded slowly.
“I don’t think any of us want to miss it. I sure don’t!” Ginga said. “Come on. Let’s go take care of the chores Martha asked us to do before she gets mad at us.”
The children walked out of the bedroom. Kokoro stopped at turned towards the drawer, glancing at it briefly before following the others again.
“It’s my turn!” Armstrong declared, drawing a card. “I activate the Continuous Spell Paralyzing Chain! As long as this card is face-up, whenever a card is sent from your Deck to the Graveyard, you take 300 damage! Next, I Summon Iron Chain Repairman!”
Iron Chain Repairman LV: 4 ATK: 1600
“Iron Chain Repairman’s effect activates! Once per turn, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or below “Iron Chain” monster from my Graveyard. However, this turn, Repairman can’t attack. Revive, Iron Chain Snake!”
Armstrong’s muscular monster held up the giant mallet in its hand and swung it at the ground. A familiar snake-like creature emerged from the hole that was created.
Iron Chain Snake LV: 3 ATK: 800
“At this moment, I now activate the Quick-Play Spell Inferno Reckless Summon!”
“Here it comes,” Yusei thought.
“When a monster with 1500 or less ATK is Summoned to my field, I can Summon all monsters with the same name from my hand, Deck, or Graveyard in Attack Position! Then you get to do the same with any monster you control. Come, my Iron Chain Snakes!”
Two more snakes, identical to the one Armstrong currently controlled, appeared.
Iron Chain Snake LV: 3 ATK: 800
Iron Chain Snake LV: 3 ATK: 800
“From the looks of things, you don’t have any other Max Warriors,” Armstrong sneered.
Yusei scoffed.
“Doesn’t matter. I now activate the effect of one of my Iron Chain Snakes!”
One of the three snakes immediately wrapped itself around Yusei’s warrior.
“Once per turn, Iron Chain Snake can equip itself to an opponent’s monster, then that monster loses 800 ATK,” the bulky man continued.
Max Warrior LV: 2 ATK: 900 – 800 = 100
“And now… the second Iron Chain Snake will attack!” Another of Armstrong’s snakes dug its fangs into the warrior’s shoulder, vanquishing it.
Yusei watched a strong surge of electricity come from the center of the wire attached to his arm and felt an immense pain from the shock.
800 – 100 = 700
Yusei LP: 4000 – 700 = 3300
“At this moment, another of Iron Chain Snake’s effect activates! When the monster it’s equipped to is destroyed in battle, you send cards from the top of your Deck to your Graveyard equal to its Level! Max Warrior’s Level is 2, therefore you lose two cards!”
Yusei scoffed once more as he picked up two cards from his Deck and sent them to his Graveyard.
“And now for the effect of Paralyzing Chain! Since cards were sent from your Deck to your Graveyard, you take 300 damage!”
Yusei screamed as he was shocked once more.
Yusei LP: 3300 – 300 = 3000
“I’m not done yet! My third Iron Chain Snake will attack you directly!” Armstrong’s third snake bit Yusei, which was then followed by another shock from the wire.
Yusei LP: 3000 – 800 = 2200
Yusei collapsed onto his knees, catching his breath.
“I place one card face-down and end my turn! So how do you like that?”
“I see how it is…” Yusei thought. “It’s just like… when we Dueled in the Facility…”
“Brings back memories, doesn’t it? Only this time… you don’t have some stupid inmate friend of yours to bail you out!”
“Even so, you won’t win.”
“We’ll see.”
“It’s my turn!” Yusei drew a card. “I activate the Spell Card One for One! By sending a Monster Card from my hand to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon a Level 1 monster from my hand or Deck! Come, Tuningware!”
Tuningware LV: 1 DEF: 300
“Next, I Summon the Tuner Monster Junk Synchron!”
Junk Synchron LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“When Junk Synchron is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 2 or below monster from my Graveyard with its effect negated.”
Quillbolt Hedgehog LV: 2 DEF: 800
“Tuner Monster…” Armstrong scoffed.
“Tuningware’s effect allows it to be treated as Level 2 for a Synchro Summon! I tune Level 3 Junk Synchron with Level 2 Tuningware!” Yusei continued.
3 + 2 = 5
“Gathering stars will call upon a new force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Show yourself, Junk Warrior!”
Junk Warrior LV: 5 ATK: 2300
“Tuningware’s and Junk Warrior’s effects activate! When Junk Warrior is Synchro Summoned, its ATK increases by the total ATK of all face-up Level 2 or below monsters I control!”
Junk Warrior LV: 5 ATK: 2300 + 800 = 3100
“Then, Tuningware’s effect lets me draw one card.”
“3100 ATK…” his opponent mumbled.
“Next, I activate the Continuous Spell Domino Effect. When one of your monsters is destroyed in battle, I can send another monster on my field to the Graveyard to destroy another monster you control. Go, Junk Warrior! Attack Iron Chain Snake!” Yusei commanded. His warrior leapt up into the air as the rockets on its back propelled it forward. “Scrap Fist!”
“Not so fast! I activate the Counter Trap Negate Attack!”
“What?!”
“This negates your attack and ends the Battle Phase!”
A barrier emerged between the two sides of the field, halting Junk Warrior’s attack.
“I end my turn,” Yusei concluded.
“And now the real fun begins!” Armstrong cackled.
Twilight stood in front of the orphanage, constantly turning away from the building then turning to face it once again.
“Why didn’t I just wait until Yusei came back?” she mumbled to herself. “I’m sure he would make another copy… though, on the other hoof… he’ll probably be upset that I lost the first one to a bunch of young children… oh, what have I gotten myself into?”
Upon hearing a door open, she immediately darted behind the closest bush.
“Hey, Kokoro!” Ginga called out.
Peeking out, she watched the red-haired girl fleeing from the other four children.
“Wait!”
“What’s that in her hand…? Is that what I think it is?” Twilight noticed, hovering above the ground as she approached.
“Wait, Kokoro! Stop!” Ginga called again, as he pursued her.
“Kokoro!” the other children shouted.
The young girl slowed to a stop as she began to catch her breath, the other four catching up to her.
“What’s the deal, Kokoro?” Ginga asked, breathing heavily.
“This doesn’t belong to us…” Kokoro replied as she turned around.
“We know that!”
“Are you taking it to the monster?” Daichi questioned.
“She’s not a monster!” Kokoro exclaimed.
“And how would you know that?” Ginga wondered aloud.
Kokoro refrained from speaking, stepping backwards.
“They won’t let up… I should do something…” Twilight thought. “I don’t want this to get out of hand… but I can’t expose myself more than I already have…”
“Give it here, Kokoro,” Ginga demanded.
“No!” Kokoro refused. “It’s not ours!”
Ginga scoffed. “Come on!”
As the boy stepped forward, a large flash of light blinded the children.
“What is this?!” Ginga exclaimed.
“I can’t see!” Daiga shouted.
As the light dimmed, the four children noticed that Kokoro was no longer in front of them.
“What the…” Ginga mumbled.
“Where’d she go?!” Hikari asked.
“Let’s go look for her!”
“Are you all right, little one?” Twilight asked.
“Yes… I’m sorry. I tried to leave the house without them seeing but…” Kokoro began.
“Don’t worry about it.”
The girl extended her arms and held the rolled-up sheet toward the alicorn.
Twilight’s horn began to glow, levitating the sheet towards herself.
“Wow…”
“Thank you for helping me get it back. Good-bye… Kokoro…” Twilight said, slowly turning around.
“Will we… see each other again?”
“To be honest… I don’t know. I’d really love to… but I don’t know.”
Twilight turned her head towards the girl once more. Kokoro hung her head in sadness.
The child suddenly felt the Twilight's hoof raise her head.
“I’ll tell you what… once this is all over, I’ll do what I can to come and see you,” Twilight promised.
“And the rest of my friends, too?” Kokoro’s face lit up.
“Sure. I probably won’t even have to hide from all of you when that happens.” Twilight suddenly felt the girl’s embrace.
“Thank you!”
Twilight’s ears perked up as she heard young voices in the distance, undoubtedly calling for the young girl she was with.
“I have to go,” she told the child.
“Okay…” Kokoro released Twilight from her embrace and stepped back, as the latter then hovered off the ground and flew off. “See you soon!”
“Kokoro!” the four children called, panting as they caught up to her.
Ginga looked up and noticed Kokoro’s smile.
“What are you smiling about?” he asked. “Wait… did you…? You gave the sheet back, didn’t you?”
Kokoro nodded.
“But we were going to use that to lure the creature out! Come on, guys! Let’s head to Yusei’s!”
The little girl’s smile quickly changed to a frown. “No! It doesn’t belong to us! We shouldn’t have taken it!”
Ginga felt a hand on his shoulder as he began to walk. He turned around to see Hikari holding him back. “I think we’ve done enough.”
“What? Really? Come on! Daichi? Taiga?” The other two boys were no longer eager to move. “Why…?”
“I don’t think it’s worth it,” Daichi stated.
“Martha’s upset at us enough already,” Taiga added.
“Besides, Kokoro’s right. We shouldn’t have gone out without Martha knowing and we shouldn’t have stolen from whatever that thing was,” Hikari said.
“But…!” Ginga paused and sighed. “Yeah, you’re right.”
Hikari removed her hand from his shoulder, smiling. “Good. Let’s go home.”
“Yeah, before Martha yells at us again,” Ginga returned the smile. “Kokoro!”
Startled, Kokoro turned towards the group.
“Are you all right, Kokoro?” Hikari asked.
“I’m fine. I was just… thinking,” the little girl answered.
“About what?” Daichi questioned.
“The future.”
“The future?” Taiga repeated, all four children confused at her words.
Kokoro turned her heads towards the direction Twilight flew once more. “I hope to see you again.”
The five children then began to walk towards the orphanage.
“Finally glad that’s over with,” Twilight breathed a sigh of relief, watching the children leave from behind the nearby bushes. She felt compelled to make sure that the conflict between Kokoro and her friends was resolved properly, even though she knew she should’ve been still on the way back to Yusei’s old home to pick up where she left off on translating. “It’s good to see that they were able to settle things peacefully. It seems like some of them, especially Ginga—I think that was his name—had something to learn from all this.”
Flying towards Yusei’s home, she found herself to be lost in thought, thinking about the five children. “Yeah… they’re quite a bit like those girls back in Equestria. Now that I think of it, this seems a bit like how things would play out if it was those three instead. Just a bit. Anyway, I just hope those five don’t get into more trouble. Now to—”
As the surroundings changed from trees to buildings, something off to the side had caught Twilight’s eye. Slowing to a stop and gently planting her hooves on the ground, she turned her head to the right and saw two people confronting each other. “Is that… a Duel…?” she wondered, ducking behind the corner of the nearby building.
She slowly trotted towards the two individuals, recognizing the one to her right. “Yusei?!”
“I hope you’re ready, Yusei Fudo!” the bulky man to Twilight’s left said. “It’s my turn! I activate the monster effect of Iron Chain Repairman! Revive, Iron Chain Snake!”
Iron Chain Snake LV: 3 ATK: 800
“Then I Summon the Tuner Monster Iron Chain Coil!” A small machine emerged next to the snake.
Iron Chain Coil LV: 3 ATK: 1100
“I tune Level 3 Iron Chain Coil with Level 3 Iron Chain Snake!”
3 + 3 = 6
“Mighty dragon! Unleash the chains of revenge and shackle the enemy! Synchro Summon! Roar, Iron Chain Dragon!”
A large dragon with a chain wrapped around it descended next to Yusei’s opponent.
“Now I activate the effects of both of my remaining Iron Chain Snakes! Let him have it!” Armstrong commanded. The two snakes before him lunged at Yusei’s Junk Warrior, biting into it.
Junk Warrior LV: 5 ATK: 3100 – 800 – 800 = 1500
“1500 ATK…” Yusei observed.
“That’s right. Much weaker than before… as weak as you are,” Armstrong sneered.
Yusei scoffed.
“Battle! Iron Chain Dragon! Attack Junk Warrior!” Flames burst from the creature’s mouth. “Chain Blast!”
Yusei’s warrior was vanquished as he felt another electric surge from the wire.
“What’s happening?!” Twilight found herself speechless.
2500 – 1500 = 1000
Yusei LP: 2200 – 1000 = 1200
“Oh, the pain you must feel… and now you’re about to feel even more! Iron Chain Dragon’s effect activates! When it inflicts Battle Damage, the top three cards of your Deck are sent to the Graveyard!” Armstrong stated.
Yusei scoffed once more as he placed three more cards in his Graveyard.
“At this moment, the effect of Paralyzing Chain activates, inflicting another 300 points of damage to you!”
Another shock shot down the wire at Yusei.
Yusei LP: 1200 – 300 = 900
“And then the effect of both of my Snakes activate! Junk Warrior’s Level is 5, so you lose a total of ten cards!”
Yusei sent an additional ten cards to his Graveyard.
“Now, since cards were sent from your Deck to your Graveyard an additional two times, you take 600 more points of damage!”
Another shock. Yusei screamed in pain.
2 * 300 = 600
Yusei LP: 900 – 600 = 300
Twilight watched as Yusei fell to his knees.
“I end my turn. So how’s it feel? It’s only the same treatment you gave to me,” Armstrong said.
“Is that all…?” Yusei rose to his feet. “It’s just revenge, isn’t it? Even rigging the wire so that I feel a stronger shock than you when taking damage.”
“Rigging the wire…?” Twilight glanced at the cord connecting the left wrists of the two Duelists.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re a criminal to be put away once and for all.”
Twilight’s eyes traveled along the wire until she noticed a small crack near the end attached to Yusei that was not present on Armstrong’s end. “Is that how…? I wonder…”
“You can play dumb all you want, Armstrong,” Yusei said. “Either way, you won’t win.”
“Really now? I don’t think you can do much with only fifteen cards left in your Deck. Even if I can’t make you lose by deckout, I still have the advantage. My Iron Chain Dragon has 2500 ATK and I obviously have the lead in Life Points.”
Armstrong LP: 2600
“On top of that… if I manage to send even just one card from the top of your Deck to the Graveyard… Paralyzing Chain will inflict 300 points of damage… meaning you lose.”
Yusei LP: 300
“Give it up!”
“Never.”
Armstrong scoffed. “Your funeral.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“Put your money where your mouth is.”
“Fine. It’s my turn!” Yusei smiled upon glancing at his drawn card. “I Tribute Quillbolt Hedgehog to Tribute Summon Salvage Warrior!”
Salvage Warrior LV: 5 ATK: 1900
“When Salvage Warrior is Tribute Summoned, I can Special Summon a Tuner Monster from my Graveyard! Come, Turbo Synchron!”
Turbo Synchron LV: 1 ATK: 100
“I now tune Level 1 Turbo Synchron with Level 5 Salvage Warrior!”
1 + 5 = 6
“Gathering bonds weave a greater force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Show yourself, Turbo Warrior!”
Turbo Warrior LV: 6 ATK: 2500
Yusei grabbed the remaining two cards in his hand. “Next, I equip Turbo Warrior with the Equip Spells Fighting Spirit and Junk Barrage!” An aura began to emanate from Yusei’s Synchro Monster. “Fighting Spirit increases the equipped monster’s ATK by 300 for every monster you control.”
2 * 300 = 600
Turbo Warrior LV: 6 ATK: 2500 + 600 = 3100
“3100 ATK…” Armstrong groaned.
“Battle! Turbo Warrior, attack Iron Chain Dragon!” Yusei commanded, his monster charging forward. “At this moment, Turbo Warrior’s monster effect activates! When it battles a Level 6 or higher Synchro Monster, that monster’s ATK is halved!”
“What?!”
“High Rate Power!”
A red aura surrounded Armstrong’s dragon.
Iron Chain Dragon LV: 6 ATK: 2500 / 2 = 1250
“Go!” Yusei continued. “Accel Slash!” His Turbo Warrior thrust its palm into the opposing dragon, destroying it.
A powerful shock struck Armstrong. “What’s going on here?!” he screamed.
3100 – 1250 = 1850
Armstrong LP: 2600 – 1850 = 750
“And now the effect of Junk Barrage activates! When the equipped monster destroys an opponent’s monster in battle, you take damage equal to half the destroyed monster’s original ATK!”
2500 / 2 = 1250
Armstrong LP: 750 – 1250 = 0
The bulky man shrieked once more before collapsing backwards. As Armstrong hit the ground unconscious, the remaining monsters faded as the cuff on Yusei’s end of the wire opened, releasing his arm.
Rubbing his wrist, Yusei turned his head to his left, noticing a shadow on the ground disappear behind the building. He let out a slight chuckle as he returned to his Runner.
Yusei pulled up in front of Twilight, as she continued trying to translate the characters on the sheet.
“Make any progress?” he asked.
“Not much. It’s really weird,” she answered.
“What do you mean?”
“Normally these characters are used in incantations for spells… but this doesn’t look anything like that. The characters are arranged completely differently. It looks more like… a list.”
“A list?”
“Yeah…”
“That would make sense. If they are hiding something, I doubt it would be in the form of any spell incantation.”
“Right…”
“From the looks of things… it looks like a list of… ingredients, maybe? For some kind of… formula?”
“Looks like you seem to remember what these characters mean.”
“It’s… starting to come back to me, yeah. It just took a while to get going. Sorry.”
“It’s fine. We’re making progress now. By the way, Twilight…”
“Yeah?”
“What were you doing earlier?”
“What do you mean?”
“You were on the surface, weren’t you?”
“Wh-what? How…?”
“I noticed it during my Duel earlier against Armstrong, earlier. When you use magic, your horn glows with an aura, and it surrounds any object you use it on.”
“You mean…”
“Yep. I saw that aura on the wire before toward the end of the Duel.”
Twilight blushed, chuckling. “Yeah, that was me…”
"You should be more careful, though. What you were doing could've easily backfired and injured me."
"Oh... didn't really think about that... Sorry."
“It's fine. I'm okay now. So… why were you on the surface?”
“It’s… a long story. I kinda had to deal with a thief problem.”
“A thief? You mean someone came down here?”
“Only children. They live with someone named Martha… I think it’s the same person who took care of you when you were young?”
“I see… so I’m guessing the children took something from here?”
“Yeah… the sheet. They caught me off-guard so I had to hide… and they took off with it.”
“Did they happen to see you?”
“Only Kokoro. I kinda promised to meet her again after this is all over.”
Yusei chuckled. “I see.”
“You’re not mad?”
“Not at all. Even if you did get spotted, it might not matter a few days from now.”
“I guess not. By the way, who was that you were Dueling earlier?”
“That man’s name was Armstrong. He’s a former chief.”
“‘Former chief’?”
“Yeah. He used to work at the Facility.”
“I remember you mentioning that… that was that prison you went to, right?”
“Right. And he was running things until he threatened to take away the inmates’ ability to leave their cells for a year.”
“A whole year?!”
“A punishment. But I challenged him to a Duel for their freedom from the lockdown.”
“But didn’t you say your Deck was confiscated then?”
“It was. However, the inmates each had their own card hidden away, and they all gave them to me to build a Deck to take Armstrong on with.”
“I’m guessing you won.”
“Barely. After that, Director Goodwin had arrived and fired him right then and there.”
“No wonder he’s upset at you. Because of you, he lost his job. At least he can’t hurt as many people anymore.” Twilight’s eyes traveled back to the sheet. “This is odd.”
“What is it, Twilight?”
“This is definitely a list of ingredients… but… these substances… I’ve never seen them used together before. At least... not like this.”
Crow sighed as he opened the door in front of him. “Medical exams…” he thought. “Let’s get this over with. Hopefully, the lieutenant will let me off this case…”
He looked up as he stepped through the doorway. “What the?” he said.
“Ah, Officer Hogan,” Callos turned his head towards Crow. “Right on time.”
“Lieutenant Callos… what are you doing here?” Crow questioned.
“Merely checking with the doctor regarding you and the other members of Sector Security, and making sure that there as many able-bodied individuals as possible,” Callos answered. “Nothing more.”
“Right…” Crow stared at the lieutenant, suspiciously.
“And don’t worry. You’ll have your answer by the end of the day. You can count on that.” The lieutenant walked out of the room.
“Well, then. Shall we get started?” the doctor asked.
“Sure,” Crow responded.
“So you don’t know what this compound is?” Yusei asked.
“No. I don’t. I’ve seen a few of these substances before,” Twilight replied. “Except…”
“Except what?”
“I don’t know of any sort of concoction that requires the use of all of these items together. And this one… I feel like this one is the most important one. I’ve never seen it before, so it might be the reason I’m seeing all these other normally unrelated substances here.”
“Do you know what it says?”
“Not yet. I’ve started to remember what these characters say, so it shouldn’t take long to figure it out.”
“All right, then. I’m counting on you. We need to figure out as much as possible.”
“Got it. Leave it to me!”
Crow moaned as his eyes began to open.
“What the…?” Sitting up, he scanned the area and saw nothing but pitch-black darkness. “Where am I?”
Attempting to stand, he found himself stumbling as he rose up.
“What’s this dizziness I’m feeling…?” he mumbled to himself. “And this place… it can’t be real.”
“You’re right about that, Crow Hogan,” a deep, male voice responded. “It isn’t real.”
“What?” Crow glanced around once more.
“But at the same time… it is.”
“Where are you? Show yourself!”
“Very well.”
Hearing footsteps coming from behind him, Crow turned around to see a man in a black robe.
“Couldn’t have picked a better wardrobe, could you?”
“This is the dress of me and all of my colleagues. And I’m here… for you,” the man said.
“Here for me?”
“You could be a valuable asset to us. We could use a strong Duelist like you, the Signer who once fought alongside Yusei Fudo.”
“So you know about that, huh? Then again… this is all just a dream, so I’m not really surprised you know that and my name.”
“You still think this is a dream?”
“You’re saying it’s not?”
“As I said… this place… it is both real and not real… meaning… anything that happens here could potentially have consequences in the real world.”
“Whatever… but what makes you think I’ll join you? I’d never turn against my friends!”
The man raised his left arm, revealing a Duel Disk.
“A Duel, huh?” Crow said, noticing a Duel Disk on his own left arm as well.
“You’ll be coming with me… even if I have to force you,” the man stated.
“And if I say no? I could just simply refuse to Duel, and you’d have no chance of recruiting me.”
The man snapped his fingers. Three figures appeared behind him, one tall and two children.
“What is that?” Crow asked.
“You should recognize these three… after all… they are your closest friends,” the man said.
Crow paused for a moment, staring at the figures. “Wait a second. Leo? Luna? And… Jack?! Does that mean… Jack is…?”
The man chuckled as the figures vanished.
“Wait!” Crow shouted.
“It seems you have something to gain from defeating me after all,” the man sneered.
“Use my friends as hostages, will you? Fine, then… you better hope that you are just a figment of my dream… because if you aren’t… I’m sending you to a world of hurt!”
“Very good. Let’s not waste any time, then.” The two drew five cards from their respective Decks.
DUEL! Crow (LP 4000) VS Enemy (LP 4000)
“I’ll go first!” Crow declared. “I Summon Blackwing – Shura the Blue Flame!”
Blackwing – Shura the Blue Flame LV: 4 ATK: 1800
“I end my turn.”
“My turn,” the man stated. “I Summon Dark Wing Galee.” A dark-feathered eagle appeared next to the man.
Dark Wing Galee LV: 4 ATK: 1600
“Dark Wing, you say?” Crow said. “Is that some kind of Blackwing knockoff?”
“More like… distant cousins,” the man replied.
“As if. Your wannabe Blackwings don’t stand a chance against the real thing.”
“Say what you will, Crow, but they will be responsible for bringing you to us.”
“Only if you beat me.”
The man chuckled. “Dark Wing Galee’s monster effect activates! When it’s Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower DARK Winged Beast-Type monster from my hand or Deck! Come, Dark Wing Low!”
Dark Wing Low LV: 2 ATK: 1100
“I now activate the Continuous Spell Dark Flock. Once per turn, when a DARK Winged Beast-Type monster I control attacks, it gains ATK equal to the ATK of all other DARK Winged Beast-Type monsters I control until the End Phase.”
“What?”
“Dark Wing Galee, attack Blackwing – Shura the Blue Flame!” the man commanded.
Dark Wing Galee LV: 4 ATK: 1600 + 1100 = 2700
“Hold it right there! From my hand, I activate the effect of Blackwing – Kalut the Moon Shadow! When a “Blackwing” on my field battles, I can send this card from my hand to the Graveyard to increase its ATK by 1400 until the End Phase!”
Blackwing – Shura the Blue Flame LV: 4 ATK: 1800 + 1400 = 3200
Crow’s creature was struck by the man’s eagle, only to counterattack with its own talons and vanquish it.
3200 – 2700 = 500
Enemy LP: 4000 – 500 = 3500
“And now Shura’s effect activates! When it destroys a monster in battle, I can Special Summon a “Blackwing” from my Deck that has 1500 ATK or less with its effect negated! Appear now, Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind!”
Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“How do you like that?” Crow said.
“Not bad,” the man replied. “I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn.”
Blackwing – Shura the Blue Flame LV: 4 ATK: 3200 – 1400 = 1800
“Then it’s my turn! Since I control a “Blackwing” monster, I can Special Summon Blackwing – Bora the Spear!” Crow declared.
Blackwing – Bora the Spear LV: 4 ATK: 1700
“I activate the Counter Trap Feather Pulse!” the man interrupted. “This negates the Summon of your monster and destroys it.”
“What?!” Crow watched as his new winged creature was destroyed.
“Then, I increase the ATK of a DARK Winged Beast-Type monster I control by the ATK of the destroyed monster until the End Phase.”
Dark Wing Low LV: 2 ATK: 1100 + 1700 = 2800
“In that case, I tune Level 3 Gale the Whirlwind with Level 4 Shura the Blue Flame!”
3 + 4 = 7
“Darkened gales, become the wings which will soar to heavens! Synchro Summon! Blackwing Armor Master!”
Blackwing Armor Master LV: 7 ATK: 2500
“Battle! Armor Master, attack Dark Wing Low!” Crow commanded, his beast thrusting its fist into the owl. “Armor Master’s effect prevents it from being destroyed in battle, and all Battle Damage I take involving it becomes 0.”
The man scoffed.
“And then… at the end of the Damage Step when he attacks… I can put a Wedge Counter on the monster it battled!”
“Nothing. You aren’t too bad, Crow. It’s a good thing we’ve decided to take you in,” the man replied.
“‘Decided’? Last time I checked, I haven’t agreed to anything.”
“You don’t have to agree. You will be ours.”
“What was that?”
“It’s my turn! I activate the Quick-Play Spell Hand Destruction! Both of us must send two cards from our hands to the Graveyard and draw two more.” The man grinned upon glancing at his drawn cards.
“This can’t be good…”
“I banish Dark Wing Norbi and Dark Wing Galee from my Graveyard to Special Summon Dark Wing Clofan from my hand!” A large falcon-like being emerged next to the man.
Dark Wing Clofan LV: 6 ATK: 2100
“Clofan’s effect activates. Once per turn, I can Tribute a DARK Winged Beast-Type monster to Special Summon a DARK Tuner Monster from my Deck and increase Clofan’s own Level equal to that of the Tributed Monster. Come, Disharmony Feathers!”
Disharmony Feathers LV: 1 ATK: 300
“‘Disharmony’…?” Crow mumbled.
“Low’s Level is 2, therefore… Clofan becomes Level 8!” the man continued.
Dark Wing Clofan LV: 6 + 2 = 8 ATK: 2100
“I now tune Level 1 Disharmony Feathers with Level 8 Dark Wing Clofan!”
1 + 8 = 9
“Let the limitless chaos pour into your soul as you soar through the dark skies! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Disharmony – Dark Wing Serpent!”
Disharmony – Dark Wing Serpent LV: 9 ATK: 3300
A large winged serpent-like being hovered behind the man Crow faced.
“A Level 9 Synchro Monster…?” Crow mumbled.
“I now activate the effect of Dark Wing Norbi. During the turn it’s banished, I can negate the effects of on your monsters! Armor Master!” the man declared.
“What?” Crow's Synchro Monster felt a powerful shock.
“Here I come… Dark Wing Serpent, attack Armor Master! At this moment, Dark Wing Serpent’s effect… when it battles, that ATK of the monster it's battling decreases by 1000 until the end of the Damage Step!”
“I activate the Trap Mirror Force! This destroys all of your Attack Position monsters!” Crow stated. A barrier appeared between the two monsters, as the serpent let out a great roar, summoning a powerful storm-like gust.
“At this moment, I activate the effect of Dark Wing Oved in my Graveyard! By banishing it and my Dark Wing Clofan, my Dark Wing Serpent will be unaffected by all Spell and Trap effects until your next End Phase!”
“What?!” The gust shattered the barrier.
“However, during your next turn, its effects will be negated. Next, if the effect of a Trap Card you control resolves while I control a “Disharmony” monster, I can activate the Trap Card Disharmonic Balance! This lets me draw one card and, if it’s a Level 4 or below monster, it can be Special Summoned!” the man continued, drawing a card. “Come! Dark Wing Nacre!”
Dark Wing Nacre LV: 3 ATK: 800
The powerful gust from the serpent’s attack vanquished Crow’s Armor Master.
3300 – 1500 = 1800
Crow LP: 4000 – 1800 = 2200
“Nacre! Attack Crow directly!” the man commanded as the gust subsided. The smaller bird tackled Crow, knocking him down.
Crow LP: 2200 – 800 = 1400
The man then grabbed the remaining two cards in his hand. “I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn.”
Crow slowly rose to his feet, stumbling once more. “What is this… dizziness I feel?”
“So it has begun,” the man sneered.
“What?”
“You will become one of us soon enough.”
“In your dreams. It’s my turn!” Crow declared, drawing a card. “I activate the Spell Card Against the Wind! I return a “Blackwing” from my Graveyard to my hand, then I take damage equal to its ATK! I return Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind!”
As Crow retrieved his card from his Graveyard, he found himself nearly falling over.
Crow LP: 1400 – 1300 = 100
Breathing heavily, he grabbed another card in his hand along with the Gale the Whirlwind card. “Since you control a monster and I don’t, I can Normal Summon Blackwing – Sirocco the Dawn without Tribute!”
Blackwing – Sirocco the Dawn LV: 5 ATK: 2000
“Then, since I control a “Blackwing” monster… I can Special Summon Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind from my hand.”
Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“Gale the Whirlwind’s monster effect activates! Once per turn, I can halve the ATK and DEF of one of your monsters!” Crow’s small feathered creature flapped its wings hard once, creating another gust that struck the man’s serpent.
“Next, from my Graveyard, I activate the effect of Blackwing – Vayu the Emblem of Honor! By banishing it and a non-Tuner “Blackwing” monster from my Graveyard, I can Special Summon a “Blackwing” Synchro Monster whose Level is equal to the total Level of the banished monsters! Appear now, Blackwing – Silverwind the Ascendant!”
Blackwing – Silverwind the Ascendant LV: 8 ATK: 2800
“Then I tune Level 3 Gale the Whirlwind with Level 5 Sirocco the Dawn!”
3 + 5 = 8
“Darkened squalls, become the wings that soar from resolved hope! Synchro Summon! Soar, Black-Winged Dragon!”
Black-Winged Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2800
“As expected of you, Crow Hogan. Summoning two Synchro Monsters with 2800 ATK and weakening my own in one turn… not bad at all,” the man said. “I activate the Continuous Trap Singular Battle! At the start of your Battle Phase, if I control at least the same number of monsters as you, each of my monsters can only be attacked once!”
“Fine by me! Silverwind the Ascendant, attack Dark Wing Nacre!” Crow commanded. His humanoid monster raised its sword and struck the small bird, destroying it.
2800 – 800 = 2000
Enemy LP: 3500 – 2000 = 1500
“Go! Black-Winged Dragon! Attack Disharmony – Dark Wing Serpent!” His dragon fired a blast from its mouth. “Noble Stream!”
“I activate the Continuous Trap Chaos Barrier! Once per turn, I can banish a “Disharmony” monster from my Graveyard so that a face-up “Disharmony” monster I control won’t be destroyed! I banish Disharmony Feathers!” A barrier appeared to intercept the dragon’s attack.
“However, you still take the Battle Damage!”
2800 – 1650 = 1150
Enemy LP: 1500 – 1150 = 350
“With that, I end my turn!” Crow concluded. “Just a little more…”
“It’s been fun, Crow Hogan… but I’m afraid this ends now,” the man said.
“What?”
“It’s my turn, and I activate the Spell D.D. Down. Since I have five or more banished DARK Winged Beast-Type monsters, I draw two cards from my Deck. However, I cannot Summon a monster this turn.”
“That won’t do you any good. Since your big, bad snake in the sky isn’t strong enough to take on either of my two monsters, even with its effect of weakening the monster it battles.”
Dark Wing Serpent LV: 9 ATK: 1650
“Summoning a new monster will not be necessary. I activate the Spell Card Chaos Overtake. Since I control a Level 8 or higher “Disharmony” Synchro Monster, I can destroy one monster on your field, then you take damage equal to its ATK. Good-bye, Black-Winged Dragon.” A lightning bolt shot out from the image of the man’s Spell Card at Crow’s dragon.
“No, you don’t! I activate the Trap Card Guard Mines!” Several spherical mines appeared in front of Black-Winged Dragon.
The man smiled.
“When you activate a card effect that would destroy one of my monsters, this card negates that effect and you take 500 points of damage!”
The mines exploded, halting the lightning bolt.
“I win,” Crow grinned.
“You think so?”
“What?”
As the smoke cleared, Crow saw the image of another Spell Card on his opponent’s side of the field.
“From my hand, I activate the Quick-Play Spell Damage Control. Since I control a Level 9 or higher monster… when you activate a card effect that would inflict damage… you must destroy a monster you control of your choice… and the damage is inflicted to you instead.”
Crow froze in place, wide-eyed.
“That’s right. Your loss is inescapable now. No matter which of your own monsters you choose to destroy, victory will be mine.”
“No… this can’t be…”
“So which will it be?”
Crow screamed. “I destroy Silverwind!” The winged beast exploded next to him. Another lightning bolt shot out from the new Spell Card at Crow. “Black-Winged Dragon’s monster effect! When I would take effect damage, I place one Black Feather Counter on my dragon instead! Damage Drain!”
Crow’s dragon opened its mouth to absorb the bolt, its feathers turning red.
“However, for every Black Feather Counter on your monster… its ATK decreases by 700,” the man stated.
“Dark Wing Serpent… destroy Black-Winged Dragon!” the man commanded. His serpent-like being roared once more, creating another powerful gust. Crow shut his eyes and turned away. “Dark Wing Serpent’s effect… decreases the ATK of the monster it battles by 1000 until the end of the Damage Step.”
The gust knocked the dragon over, vanquishing it. Crow fell over backwards onto the ground. He opened his eyes slightly as the man stood over him.
1650 – 1100 = 550
Crow LP: 100 – 550 = 0
“I… won’t…” Crow started.
“You won’t give in?” the man finished. “I’m sorry, but you’re in no condition to be resisting anymore. You belong to us now.”
Crow’s eyes closed as he felt himself slip away.
“I think I’ve got it!” Twilight shouted, full of glee.
“What is it?”
“It’s—” She found herself interrupted by the sound of an approaching Duel Runner.
“Hey, Yusei,” Blister greeted.
“Blister,” Yusei said.
“Sorry I took so long. Getting out from under Martha’s nose wasn’t exactly easy.”
“Right. I know how that is.”
“So have you made any progress with that data I recovered?”
“Well… I’ve managed to translate most of what it said,” Twilight began.
“And?”
“It seems like there’s a list of ingredients for some kind of… chemical. Normally, these items wouldn’t be used together… but this one particular compound is probably what allows them to interact with each other.”
“And that would be…?”
“It says… ‘Collective… Mind… Fluid’?”
“Collective Mind Fluid?” Yusei repeated.
“That’s what it says. I have never heard of anything like that back in Equestria…”
“So, in other words, we still have absolutely no idea what Sector Security is up to, do we?” Blister asked.
“I guess not…” Twilight’s ears drooped. She then felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned her head to see Yusei’s smile.
“Don’t worry about it,” he said. “It’s not much, but at least we have a clue. It’s better than nothing.”
“I suppose you’re right,” Twilight smiled back.
All of their heads turned as they heard the sound of more approaching Duel Runners.
“What’s that?” she asked. “Blister, did you… bring others with you?”
“No, I didn’t,” Blister answered.
“That could only mean one thing,” Yusei said. “They’re here.”
“Who’s ‘they’?”
“Sector Security,” Yusei replied.
“WHAT?!” Twilight exclaimed.
“We better move,” Blister suggested.
“Right.” Blister and Yusei moved towards their respective Duel Runners and put on their helmets, each with a cart filled with supplies attached to them. “Hop on, Twilight.”
“That voice…” Yusei mumbled. He, Twilight, and Blister turned their heads to look behind them. Out of the group of officers, only one stepped forward to approach them. “Crow?!”
The single officer stopped in place. “Yusei Fudo… you’re under arrest.”
“Crow, what are you doing?” Yusei asked, surprised. He tried to see past the visor on Crow’s helmet and into his eyes, but the darkness covered the latter’s face.
“My job. That’s what I’m doing. You’re coming with me,” Crow answered.
Yusei scoffed.
“Yusei… isn’t he your friend…?” Twilight whispered.
“Yeah, but… something’s not right,” he answered.
“What do you mean?”
“I’ll say it one more time. You’re under arrest. Get off your Runner and come along quietly,” Crow demanded. “Don’t try anything funny. That means you, too, Blister.”
“What are you talking about? I’m not doing anything,” Blister responded, slowly getting off his Runner.
“Blister…?” Yusei glanced at him curiously.
“Get ready to move,” Blister whispered.
“What?”
“Enough stalling. Get off your Runner and step away from them!” Crow demanded once more.
“You’ve changed quite a bit, Crow,” Blister commented, holding a small device with several keys behind his back. “I’ve never seen you so serious about your job. Even going against your own best friend.”
Crow paused for a moment. “My job needs to be done. Nothing else matters.”
“Nothing else matters? Points for dedication… but I’m afraid… you won’t be arresting them today.”
Yusei watched as Blister pushed a key on the device. The place began to shake violently.
“What is this?” an officer asked.
“Blister, what’s happening?” Yusei questioned.
“Go!”
“But what about you?” Twilight asked.
“No time! Go!”
“Got it,” Yusei nodded and drove off in the opposite direction Sector Security had entered, the tunnel crumbling behind him.
The officers coughed as the dust cleared.
“Hey, they blocked their escape!” an officer shouted.
“Then go back through the entrance and track him from there,” Crow commanded. As he turned away, he felt a cuff grab his left arm. “What?” The cuff on his arm was attached to a wire that connected him to a similar cuff on Blister’s own left arm.
“You’re not going anywhere just yet,” Blister stated.
“This wire… So that’s how it is, huh? Everyone else, locate Yusei and take him to HQ.”
“But sir, what about you?” an officer asked.
“I’ve got some business here to finish.”
“Sir…!”
“Find him and arrest him. And bring in the alien. That’s final.”
“…Yes, sir.” The squad boarded their Runners and drove off.
“I can’t believe we just left him behind!” Twilight exclaimed, clinging to Yusei’s back as he darted down the tunnel. “And he let us!” Twilight looked back over the cart of supplies towards the rubble.
“To buy us some time,” Yusei said.
“What?”
“Hopefully, he’ll distract them long enough for us to get out of New Domino City.”
“Do you think we can? What about the rest of your friends that are still here?”
“One thing at a time. First, let’s focus on avoiding Sector Security and trust that Blister will, too.”
“Got it.”
“So what makes you think you can beat me?” Crow asked. As their Decks were shuffled by their Duel Disks, he and Blister stared at each other.
“I don’t,” Blister answered. “But I won’t stand by and simply let you betray your friend.”
“Buying time for Yusei?” Crow drew five cards from his Deck.
“More like… bringing you to your senses.” Blister drew five cards from his own Deck as well.
“There’s nothing wrong with me… and if you plan to stop me… I’d love to see you try.”
“With pleasure.”
DUEL! Blister (LP 4000) VS Crow (LP 4000)
“I’ll go first,” Crow declared, drawing a sixth card. “I activate the Continuous Spell Black Whirlwind. Then I Summon Blackwing – Bora the Spear!”
Blackwing – Bora the Spear LV: 4 ATK: 1700
“At this moment, the effect of Black Whirlwind activates. When a “Blackwing” monster is Normal Summoned, I can add another “Blackwing” monster from my Deck to my hand with equal or less ATK. I’ll add Blackwing – Breeze the Zephyr to my hand… triggering its effect! When it’s added to my hand by a card effect, I can Special Summon it.”
Blackwing – Breeze the Zephyr LV: 3 ATK: 1100
“And it’s a Tuner Monster…” Blister observed.
“I tune Level 3 Breeze the Zephyr with Level 4 Bora the Spear.”
3 + 4 = 7
“Darkened gales, become the wings which will soar to heavens! Synchro Summon! Blackwing Armor Master!”
Blackwing Armor Master LV: 7 ATK: 2500
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn.”
“A Synchro Summon on the first turn… that’s just like you, Crow. It’s my turn,” Blister stated, drawing a card. “I haven’t Dueled in so long… not since… that incident…” he thought, glancing at the drawn card.
“Staring at that card won’t win you the Duel.”
“I activate the Continuous Spell Machina Armored Unit. Then I Summon Machina Soldier.” A mechanical warrior appeared next to Blister.
Machina Soldier LV: 4 ATK: 1600
“Machina Soldier’s effect activates! When it’s Normal Summoned when I control no other monsters, I can Special Summon another “Machina” monster from my hand. Appear now, Machina Fortress!”
Machina Fortress LV: 7 ATK: 2500
“Battle! Machina Fortress, attack Armor Master!” The two monsters clashed.
“Hoping for a tie?” Crow said. “Armor Master can’t be destroyed by battle!”
Crow’s winged beast smashed its fist into Blister’s machine, destroying it.
“That’s fine by me,” Blister smiled.
“What?”
“I activate the effects of Machina Fortress and Machina Armored Unit! When a Machine-Type monster I control is destroyed by battle, I can Special Summon another Machine-Type monster from my Deck with the same Attribute and less ATK from my Deck! Come, Machina Defender!”
Machina Defender LV: 4 ATK: 1200
“Fortress’s effect! When it’s destroyed by battle, one of your cards is destroyed!” An explosion occurred where Crow’s monster was. “Machina Defender, direct attack!”
The machine lunged forward as the smoke cleared and struck Crow.
Crow LP: 4000 – 1200 = 2800
“Next, Machina Soldier!” Blister’s second machine slashed at Crow.
Crow LP: 2800 – 1600 = 1200
“I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn.”
“My turn,” Crow stated. “I activate the Trap Feather Reversal. During my Main Phase, since I have at least three DARK Winged Beast-Type monsters in my Graveyard, I can destroy a face-up Spell or Trap Card on both of our fields and gain 1000 Life Points. I’ll destroy Black Whirlwind and Armored Unit!”
Blister scoffed as the two Spells shattered.
Crow LP: 1200 + 1000 = 2200
“Next, I draw one card. Then, since I control no cards, I can Special Summon Blackwing – Gust the Backblast!”
Blackwing – Gust the Backblast LV: 2 DEF: 1400
“Since I control a “Blackwing” monster, I can Special Summon Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind from my hand!”
Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“I now activate the effect of Gale the Whirlwind! Once per turn, one of your monster’s ATK and DEF are halved!” Crow’s winged creature flapped its wings, causing a cyclone to strike one of Blister’s machines.
Machina Soldier LV: 4 ATK: 1600 / 2 = 800
“I now tune Level 3 Gale the Whirlwind with Level 2 Gust the Backblast!”
3 + 2 = 5
“Darkened gusts, let allies heed your call to battle! Synchro Summon! Blackwing - Gram the Shining Star!”
Blackwing – Gram the Shining Star LV: 5 ATK: 2200
“A new Blackwing?” Blister mumbled, as the newly Summoned monster with silver armor descended in front of Crow.
“I activate the effect of Gram the Shining Star. When it’s Synchro Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or below non-Tuner “Blackwing” monster from my hand with its effect negated. Come, Blackwing – Fane the Steel Chain!”
Blackwing – Fane the Steel Chain LV: 2 ATK: 500
“Then I Normal Summon the Tuner Monster Blackwing – Blizzard the Far North!”
Blackwing – Blizzard the Far North LV: 2 ATK: 1300
“Blizzard the Far North’s effect! I Special Summon a Level 4 or below “Blackwing” monster from my Graveyard! Revive, Bora the Spear!”
Blackwing – Bora the Spear LV: 4 DEF: 800
“I tune Level 2 Blizzard the Far North with Level 2 Fane the Steel Chain and Level 4 Bora the Spear!”
2 + 2 + 4 = 8
“Gust fiercely, storm! Gain the will of steel and the speed of light to sublime your form! Synchro Summon! Blackwing – Silverwind the Ascendant!”
Blackwing – Silverwind the Ascendant LV: 8 ATK: 2800
“Two Synchro Summons in one turn?!” Blister exclaimed.
“Gram the Shining Star, attack Machina Defender!” Crow commanded, his armored creature charging towards Blister’s.
“I won’t let you! I activate the Quick-Play Spell Book of Moon and the Trap Waboku! Waboku’s effect… this turn, my monsters cannot be destroyed by battle and I take no Battle Damage. Then Book of Moon flips a monster on the field face-down. Machina Defender!”
Crow’s monster’s target disappeared into a face-down card, only to reveal itself once more.
Machina Defender LV: 4 DEF: 1800
Blister’s machine endured the attack.
“Machina Defender’s Flip Effect activates!” Blister continued. “I can add Commander Covington from my Deck to my hand!”
“I end my turn,” Crow concluded. “Not bad.”
“My turn,” Blister declared, drawing a card then grabbing a different card from his hand. “Aero, my old friend… this is for you…”
Crow stared at his opponent patiently.
“I Summon Machina Sniper!”
Machina Sniper LV: 4 ATK: 1800
“With your help… I’ll bring Crow back to his senses,” Blister thought. “By discarding Machine-Type monsters from my hand whose total Level is 8 or higher, I can Special Summon Machina Fortress from my hand or Graveyard. I discard the Level 8 Machina Cannon. Now revive, Machina Fortress!”
Machina Fortress LV: 7 ATK: 2500
“Not that troublesome machine again,” Crow mumbled.
“Machina Fortress, attack Silverwind the Ascendant!” Blister commanded, his machine charging forward at its target only to get slashed and destroyed.
2800 – 2500 = 300
Blister LP: 4000 – 300 = 3700
“Machina Fortress’s effect activates! I destroy Silverwind!” Another explosion, vanquishing Silverwind.
“However, you still Gram to deal with,” Crow stated.
Blackwing – Gram the Shining Star LV: 5 ATK: 2200
Blister scoffed. “Machina Sniper’s effect prevents you from attacking other “Machina” monsters I control. I’ll Set two cards face-down and switch Machina Soldier to Defense Position.”
Machina Soldier LV: 4 DEF: 750
“I end my turn. Tell me something, Crow.”
“What do you want?” Crow asked.
“What are you gaining from this? From arresting your best friend?”
Crow remained silent.
“Answer me, Crow! I’m sure those orphans back at Martha’s wouldn’t appreciate this!”
Silence.
“Nothing…? I was sure that would cause a reaction from him…” Blister thought.
“My turn,” Crow stated.
“Crow!”
“I activate the Trap Card Blackback. During my turn, I can Special Summon a “Blackwing” monster from my Graveyard with 2000 or less ATK. However, this turn, I cannot Normal Summon. Return to the field, Gale the Whirlwind!”
Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“Gale’s effect activates! One of your monster’s ATK and DEF are halved!” Another gust blew through the tunnel.
Machina Sniper LV: 4 ATK: 1800 / 2 = 900
“I tune Level 3 Gale the Whirlwind with Level 5 Gram the Shining Star!”
3 + 5 = 8
“Darkened squalls, become the wings that soar from resolved hope! Synchro Summon! Soar, Black-Winged Dragon!”
Black-Winged Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2800
“It’s here…” Blister mumbled. “Crow’s ace monster… but a Synchro Summon now? It’d make more sense not to in order to destroy more of my monsters…”
“Black-Winged Dragon… attack Machina Sniper!” Crow commanded, his dragon launching a blast from its mouth. “Noble Stream!”
“I activate the Trap Dimensional Prison! When your monster attacks, this card banishes it!”
“Just as I thought.”
“What?”
“From my hand, I activate the Quick-Play Spell Feather Force! Since I only control a face-up DARK monster, I can banish two DARK Winged Beast-Type monsters from my Graveyard. This turn, my monster is unaffected by all other effects, then, since you have at least three face-up monsters, I can draw two cards and all of your Defense Position monsters are switched to Attack Position.”
“What an effect… I wasn’t expecting him to Summon Gale or use that card…”
Machina Defender LV: 4 ATK: 1200
Machina Soldier LV: 4 ATK: 800
The blast struck Blister’s monster.
2800 – 900 = 1900
Blister LP: 3700 – 1900 = 1800
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn,” Crow concluded.
“Crow… why won’t you answer?” Blister asked.
“I don’t need to.”
“What?”
“What my aim is… does not concern you.”
“Then I’ll beat some sense into you. It’s my turn!” Blister glanced at the drawn card. “This should do it…”
Crow looked on in anticipation.
“First, I activate the Continuous Trap Call of the Haunted! This lets me Special Summon a monster from my Graveyard in Attack Position! Come back, Machina Sniper!”
Machina Sniper LV: 4 ATK: 1600
“I Summon Commander Covington!”
Commander Covington LV: 4 ATK: 1000
“That monster…” Crow mumbled.
“That’s right. This turn… I’ll defeat you.”
“We’ll see.”
“I activate Commander Covington’s effect! I send Machina Soldier, Machina Defender, and… Machina Sniper to the Graveyard!” The memory of an old friend flashed before Blister’s eyes as the three machines rose into the air and separated into parts before combining into one. “Appear now, Machina Force!”
Machina Force LV: 10 ATK: 4600
The combined machine landed next to Blister.
“4600 ATK?!” Crow exclaimed.
“Battle! Machina Force! Attack Black-Winged Dragon!” The giant machine charged forward as Blister grabbed the last card in his hand. “At this moment, I activate the Quick-Play Spell Limiter Removal! This doubles the ATK of all of my face-up Machine-Type monsters!”
Commander Covington LV: 4 ATK: 1000 * 2 = 2000
Machina Force LV: 10 ATK: 4600 * 2 = 9200
“This will end it,” Blister confidently stated.
“Really now? I don’t think so,” Crow rebutted, grabbing the remaining card in his hand.
“What?”
“From my hand, I activate Dark Wing Minmugh’s monster effect!” As he sent the card to his Graveyard, a small hummingbird appeared in front of Machina Force and Black-Winged Dragon. The machine struck the small bird, causing an explosion. Blister glanced at the field as the smoke cleared, noticing that neither monster was destroyed.
Crow LP: 2200
“What happened?” Blister asked.
“By sending Dark Wing Minmugh to the Graveyard, a monster on my field cannot be destroyed by battle this turn, and I take no Battle Damage from battles involving it,” Crow grinned.
“No way…”
“So what will you do? At the end of your turn, Limiter Removal will destroy all of the Machine-Type monsters it affected.”
Blister scoffed. “Machina Force’s effect! I can send it to the Graveyard to bring back the monsters used to Summon it! Machina Soldier!”
Machina Soldier LV: 4 DEF: 1500
“Machina Defender!”
Machina Defender LV: 4 DEF: 1800
“And lastly… Machina Sniper!”
Machina Sniper LV: 4 DEF: 800
“And now Commander Covington’s effect! By sending these three monsters to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon another Machina Force from my Deck!”
Machina Force LV: 10 ATK: 4600
“During the End Phase, Commander Covington will be destroyed.” Blister’s monster shattered into pieces. “I end my turn.”
“Not bad… you removed the Machina Force affected by Limiter Removal from the field… and Summoned a new one that wasn’t… therefore, it wouldn’t be destroyed in the End Phase…” Crow commented. “However… that’s not enough. This Duel is mine.”
“You haven’t won yet.”
“It’s my turn. I activate the Trap Card Down Ripple! This card… by banishing three DARK Winged Beast-Type monsters from my Graveyard, one monster you control loses half its ATK and all of my monsters gain 1500 ATK!”
His dragon fired a blast at the machine, demolishing it and causing another explosion.
4300 – 2300 = 2000
Blister LP: 1800 – 2000 = 0
A surge of electricity shot down the wire towards Blister, sabotaging his Duel Disk, while the cuff on Crow’s arm opened.
Blister fell to his knees as his victorious opponent approached. “Looks like you win,” he grinned as Crow handcuffed him.
“Officer Hogan, report. What’s your status?” a voice called through Crow’s headset.
“Lieutenant Callos?” Crow answered.
“I lost your signal for some time. Something must’ve jammed it where you were.”
“Sector Security is still in pursuit of the culprit and the alien. It appears the source of the signal jam was emitted from a Duel Disk owned by Blister… however… at the end of our Duel, it was destroyed, stopping the signal jam as well. Evidently, he was an accomplice in the culprit’s escape.”
“I see. Report to HQ.”
“But what about…”
“You’ll be back on this soon enough. There’s something I need you to do before you resume pursuit. The others will track him in the meantime. I’ll send officers to your location to apprehend the accomplice. If he’s as elusive as you say he is, you will be the only one who can catch him.”
“Understood. Officer Hogan out.” Crow turned towards Blister. “Looks like you managed to buy time for Yusei after all, but it won’t be long before he goes down as well.”
“You of all people should know that he’s not so easily caught,” Blister said, with a smug expression.
“He won’t escape,” Crow said.
Yusei grunted, grasping his arm where his Signer mark was, as he continued down the tunnel.
“What’s wrong, Yusei?” Twilight asked.
“My mark… it’s the second time today. Something’s not right. I’ve never felt pain like this before.”
“Maybe… it has to do with Crow?”
“Huh?”
“Just a thought… but you and he are both Signers right?”
“Yeah.”
“You mentioned before that you can sense when others are in trouble… maybe you’re sensing something else from him? You did say something about him was off.”
“No doubt about that… which means… I’ll have to face him, sooner or later.”
“First, humans attacked Ponyville… then I get sent here… two, maybe three now, of your friends have gone missing… the police looking for us… plans about a ‘Collective Mind Fluid’… these pains that you feel… and your friend, Crow, acting strange and coming after us…?” Twilight placed her hooves on her forehead, struggling to think. “There’s got to be a connection somewhere…”
“You’re right about that.”
“Huh?” Twilight held onto Yusei again as he drove.
“All these events… it’s definitely not a coincidence. Right now, the only real clue we have is that fluid.”
“Right… if only I knew what it was, exactly…”
“I have a strong feeling we’re about to find out soon.”
The Duel Runner carrying Yusei and Twilight, dragging along the supply cart, darted out of the tunnel.
“So where do we go once we get out of the city?” Twilight asked.
“We’ll head to Satisfaction Town.”
“Satisfaction Town?”
“It’s a place that my friend, Kalin, is now watching over. From there, we can try to get in touch with Jack and Akiza.”
“Kalin… you told me about him before.”
“Right. After the incident with the Earthbound Immortals, I got a letter from a woman named Barbara telling me to go to a place called Crash Town.”
“Crash Town…?”
“It was a town that was built near a mine that was made for acquiring a material called Dyne. It’s used for building Duel Runners. At the time, two gangs controlled the town and every sunset, each group would have a member Duel somebody from the opposing gang. The loser would get sent to the mines, never to return.”
“What?”
“Kalin had somehow gotten himself involved in it by joining one of the two gangs. He fought Duel after Duel, thinking he was punishing himself. When I arrived, Barbara and I planned to free Kalin by having me representing the other gang and facing him in a Duel. However, it was only a trap so a man named Lawton could gain control of the town.”
“Then what happened?”
“We managed to escape and encountered two of the kids from the town—whose father was also sent to the mines—giving me my Duel Runner. With it, I faced Lawton while Kalin fled with the kids from his men. Eventually, with Kalin’s help… along with Jack and Crow, we overthrew Lawton and Barbara and they were arrested. Afterwards, the town was renamed ‘Satisfaction Town’.”
“Kalin… Jack… Crow… and yourself… so… that one group you made a long time ago…”
“Yeah. All four of us from the Enforcers had joined up again that day.”
“I see. Having all of your old friends together… it’s definitely a wonderful feeling.” Twilight sighed, her own friends on her mind.
“We’ll get you home. I promise.”
Twilight glanced at Yusei, smiling. “Thank you.”
The Runner shook hard as something bashed into its left. Twilight, recovering from the hit, looked to where the object came from. “What the?!”
“You’re not going anywhere, Yusei,” the officer on the Sector Security Duel Runner stated.
“Trudge?” Yusei said.
“Pull over,” Trudge replied.
“Yusei, what should we do?” Twilight asked Yusei.
Yusei scoffed, speeding up.
“Where do you think you’re going?!” Trudge exclaimed.
“We can’t afford to go too fast. We don’t want to lose the cart.”
“Right…” Twilight nodded. “But are we even able to hang onto it at this speed?”
“I already took the possibility of being pursued into account, so the latch should hold if we don’t put too much stress on it.”
“Don’t think you can get away, Yusei,” Trudge said, pressing on-screen buttons on his Runner.
“OVERRIDING SUSPECT DUEL RUNNER,” said a computer voice.
“What was that?” Twilight nearly jumped. She watched as the front of the Duel Runner transformed while the image of a card, called “Speed World 2”, appeared on the screen.
“DUEL MODE ENGAGED,” the computer voice stated.
“‘Duel Mode’…? Wait… isn’t that your Duel Disk attached to… you’re going to Duel like this?!”
“I guess I haven’t told you. This is an alternate way to Duel. Turbo Duel,” Yusei replied.
“Turbo… Duel…?”
“Besides, he’s not giving us a choice,” Yusei answered. Both Yusei’s and Trudge’s Decks were shuffled by their respective Runners’ auto-shuffling mechanism. “I’m not worried about that, though…”
“You’re worried about the cart, right? I’ll keep an eye on it.”
“Right… you can use magic.”
Twilight nodded. “If something happens, you can count on me!”
“Thanks.”
“It’s been a long time since we’ve Dueled like this before, Yusei,” Trudge commented.
“It has, Trudge.”
“But this time… things will be different.” Both drew five cards from their Decks.
DUEL! Yusei (LP 4000) VS Trudge (LP 4000)
“I’ll go first,” Yusei declared, drawing a sixth card. “I’ll Set a monster and end my turn.”
“My turn!” Trudge stated.
Yusei LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
Trudge LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
“I Summon Stygian Street Patrol!” A demonic creature on a police-like motorcycle appeared next to Trudge.
Stygian Street Patrol LV: 4 ATK: 1600
“Battle! Street Patrol, attack the Set monster!” Trudge commanded. His beast darted towards Yusei’s revealed monster, a warrior with a chest-high shield.
Shield Warrior LV: 3 DEF: 1600
The patrol monster rammed into the shield and got deflected away.
“A stalemate, huh?” Trudge said. “I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn.”
“That was… close…” Twilight commented.
“Things might get worse,” Yusei stated. “It’s my turn!”
Yusei LP: 4000 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
Trudge LP: 4000 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
“I activate the Speed Spell – Angel Baton!”
“Speed… Spell?” Twilight repeated, curiously. “I’ve never seen this before…”
“Since I have at least two Speed Counters, I can draw two cards and discard one. Then I Summon Junk Synchron!”
Junk Synchron LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“When Junk Synchron is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 2 or lower monster from my Graveyard! Come, Quillbolt Hedgehog!”
“Gathering stars will call upon a new force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Show yourself, Junk Warrior!”
Junk Warrior LV: 5 ATK: 2300
“Junk Warrior… it’s been a long time since I’ve seen you Summon it…” Trudge said, as Yusei’s monster descended next to him. “Too bad his visit is short-lived. I activate the Counter Trap… Discord Counter!”
“What?!” Yusei exclaimed.
“When you Synchro Summon a Synchro Monster… that monster is returned to your Extra Deck! Then the monsters used as Synchro Materials are Special Summoned to your field!”
Yusei and Twilight watched as the Junk Warrior vanished and was replaced by the two monsters Yusei had beforehand.
Junk Synchron LV: 3 ATK: 1300
Quillbolt Hedgehog LV: 2 ATK: 800
“On top of that…” Trudge continued.
“There’s more?!” Twilight shouted.
“Until the end of your next turn, you can’t Summon a monster!”
“I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn,” Yusei scoffed.
“That’s a little crazy for one card…” Twilight commented.
“We’ll be fine.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, though it won’t be easy.”
“It’s my turn!” Trudge declared, as the two Runners began travelling between several old buildings.
Yusei LP: 4000 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
Trudge LP: 4000 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
“I Summon the Tuner Monster Stygian Security!”
Stygian Security LV: 1 ATK: 100
“‘Tuner Monster’…? I’ve heard you and other humans use that phrase before…” Twilight commented. “Doesn’t that mean…?”
“Right. He’s going to Synchro Summon,” Yusei said.
“Here I come, Yusei!” Trudge continued. “I tune Level 1 Stygian Security with Level 4 Stygian Street Patrol!”
1 + 4 = 5
“When this beast is called for the job, there is no escape! Synchro Summon! Pursue the enemy, Stygian Sergeants!”
Stygian Sergeants LV: 5 ATK: 2200
A demonic winged creature with two heads, riding a motorcycle of its own, appeared next to Trudge.
“That is… some monster…” Twilight gazed at the creature in disgust. “Then again, I’ve seen worse…”
“Its appearance isn’t the worst part about it,” Yusei replied.
“It isn’t?”
“From my Graveyard, I activate the effect of Stygian Street Patrol! By banishing it, I can Special Summon a Fiend-Type monster with 2000 ATK or less from my hand! Here comes another Stygian Street Patrol!”
Stygian Street Patrol LV: 4 ATK: 1600
“Now, Street Patrol attacks Junk Synchron!” The smaller beast rammed into Yusei’s monster, vanquishing it.
1600 – 1300 = 300
Yusei LP: 4000 – 300 = 3700 SPC: 3
“Stygian Street Patrol’s effect… when it destroys a monster in battle, you take damage equal to the destroyed monster’s Level times 100!”
3 * 100 = 300
Yusei LP: 3700 – 300 = 3400 SPC: 3
“Next… Stygian Sergeants! It’s your turn! Wipe out that Shield Warrior!” Trudge’s Synchro Monster charged forward.
“Here it comes!” Twilight exclaimed.
“I activate the Trap Card Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!” Yusei declared. A metal scarecrow appeared between the two monsters. “This card negates your attack and then it can be Set once more instead of being sent to the Graveyard!”
“I saw this coming,” Trudge grinned.
“What?”
“I activate the Counter Trap Wiretap! This negates your Trap Card’s activation and returns it to your Deck!”
Yusei and Twilight watched as the scarecrow vanished while Trudge’s Synchro Monster continued to approach. The Stygian Sergeants smashed into the Shield Warrior, destroying it.
“At this moment, I activate the effect of Stygian Sergeants!” Trudge continued. “When it destroys a monster it battle, it can gain 800 ATK until the End Phase and attack once more!”
Stygian Sergeants LV: 5 ATK: 2200 + 800 = 3000
“Is this what you were talking about before?” Twilight asked.
“Yeah,” Yusei nodded.
“Stygian Sergeants, take out that Quillbolt Hedgehog!” Trudge commanded, his monster charging forward once more.
Quillbolt Hedgehog LV: 2 ATK: 800
“I activate the effect of Shield Warrior from my Graveyard! During this battle, Quillbolt Hedgehog won’t be destroyed!” Yusei stated, an image of his destroyed warrior appearing in front of his monster.
“However, you’ll still take the Battle Damage!” Trudge replied.
“That’s why I’m also activating the Trap Card Defense Draw! With this, the Battle Damage I take from this attack becomes 0, then I draw one card.” The Stygian Sergeants rammed into a barrier in front of the Shield Warrior image, causing the latch connecting Yusei’s Runner to the cart to shake.
“Not bad, Yusei. I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn.”
“It’s my turn!” Yusei drew a card.
Yusei LP: 3400 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
Trudge LP: 4000 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
“Don’t forget, Yusei! You can’t Summon a monster this turn due to Discord Counter!” Trudge reminded him.
“That’s right… and Summoning is pretty important, from what I can tell…” Twilight said.
Yusei chuckled.
“Yusei?”
“Due to Discord Counter’s effect, I can’t Summon a monster… however, I can still Set a monster! I’ll Set one monster, switch Quillbolt Hedgehog to Defense Position, and end my turn!” Yusei stated.
Quillbolt Hedgehog LV: 2 DEF: 800
“Clever, but that won’t do much against me. It’s my turn,” Trudge declared.
Yusei LP: 3400 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
Trudge LP: 4000 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
“Street Patrol, attack Quillbolt Hedgehog!” The small fiend crashed into Yusei’s monster. “And now its effect activates!”
2 * 100 = 200
Yusei LP: 3400 – 200 = 3200 SPC: 5
“Go! Stygian Sergeants!” Trudge commanded. Yusei’s Set monster was revealed his opponent’s Synchro Monster approached.
Sonic Chick LV: 1 DEF: 300
A small barrier appeared and deflected the attack. A small shockwave shook the latch.
“What?!” Trudge exclaimed.
“Sonic Chick’s effect. It can’t be destroyed by battle with a monster with 1900 ATK or higher!” Yusei explained.
“I should’ve expected that,” Trudge scoffed. “I end my turn.”
“That was close…” Twilight sighed in relief.
“It’s my turn!” Yusei declared.
Yusei LP: 3200 SPC: 5 + 1 = 6
Trudge LP: 4000 SPC: 5 + 1 = 6
“By sending a Monster Card from my hand to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon Quickdraw Synchron from my hand!”
Quickdraw Synchron LV: 5 DEF: 1400
“Then I Summon Speed Warrior!”
Speed Warrior LV: 2 ATK: 900
“I tune Level 5 Quickdraw Synchron with Level 1 Sonic Chick and Level 2 Speed Warrior!”
5 + 1 + 2 = 8
“Gathering fighting souls will awaken the raging wicked god! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Obliterate, Junk Destroyer!”
Junk Destroyer LV: 8 ATK: 2600
“Here it comes…” Trudge scoffed, as a four-armed metallic being descended next to Yusei.
“When Junk Destroyer is Synchro Summoned, I can destroy cards on the field up to the number of non-Tuner Synchro Materials used for its Synchro Summon!” Yusei continued. “Go! Tidal Energy!"
Water poured out of the new monster’s chest and gushed towards Trudge’s field. His monsters were vanquished as they were carried away by the waves before they faded away.
“And just like that… his monsters are gone,” Twilight commented.
“Junk Destroyer, direct attack!” Yusei commanded. “Destroy Knuckle!” The four fists of his monster lit up. As each fist was thrust at Trudge, an energy ball shot from each of the forelimbs and struck him.
Trudge LP: 4000 – 2600 = 1400 SPC: 6
“So does this mean you have the lead?” Twilight asked.
“For now,” Yusei answered. “I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn.”
“Yusei, do you really think you can get away?” Trudge questioned.
Yusei groaned in response.
“I don’t know what you think you’re doing, but even if you beat me and get away from me… the rest of Sector Security will be in hot pursuit. Why go out of your way for some alien horse?”
“It’s pony!” Twilight shouted.
“What an attitude that thing gives,” Trudge commented.
“Trudge,” Yusei spoke up.
“What?”
“I can’t… I can’t let her get taken away.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Twilight’s appearance here in New Domino City is no coincidence, and one of the only clues I have of finding my friends,” Yusei thought, glancing at his right arm where his Signer mark is, covered by his jacket sleeve. “And despite that… she has her own predicament… and if I let her get captured now… neither of us will see our friends again.”
“This silence... coming from Yusei… there’s not a lot of things it could mean…” Trudge thought. “My turn!”
Yusei LP: 3200 SPC: 6 + 1 = 7
Trudge LP: 1400 SPC: 6 + 1 = 7
“Speed World 2’s effect activates!”
“Here it comes,” Yusei said.
“By removing four Speed Counters, I can inflict 800 points of damage for every Speed Spell in my hand!” Trudge held up two Speed Spell cards. A lightning bolt shot from his Runner and struck Yusei’s.
Trudge LP: 1400 SPC: 7 – 4 = 3
2 * 800 = 1600
Yusei LP: 3200 – 1600 = 1600 SPC: 7
“Oh, no!” Twilight watched the latch come apart, frantically activating her horn. A magenta aura covered her horn and the broken latch on the cart.
“Are you okay, Twilight?” Yusei asked.
“I… got it… not… the easiest thing… to pull…”
“If only I had just one more Speed Counter…” Trudge continued. “No matter. I activate the Speed Spell – Half Seize! Since I have at least three Speed Counters, this halves your monster’s ATK and increases my Life Points by that amount!”
A red aura surrounded Yusei’s monster.
Junk Destroyer LV: 8 ATK: 2600 / 2 = 1300
Trudge LP: 1400 + 1300 = 2700 SPC: 3
“That’s… not good…” Twilight remarked.
“Next, I activate the Continuous Trap Call of the Haunted! This card Special Summons a monster from my Graveyard in Attack Position! Revive, Stygian Sergeants!” Trudge continued.
Stygian Sergeants LV: 5 ATK: 2200
“Then I banish the Stygian Street Patrol in my Graveyard to activate its monster effect! From my hand, I Special Summon another Street Patrol!”
Stygian Street Patrol LV: 4 ATK: 1600
“It’s almost like… the last turn never happened...” Twilight commented.
“Battle! Stygian Sergeants, attack Junk Destroyer!” The Synchro Monsters collided, creating an explosion. The smoke cleared and only Trudge’s remained.
2200 – 1300 = 900
Yusei LP: 1600 – 900 = 700 SPC: 7
“And now for Stygian Sergeants’s effect!”
Stygian Sergeants LV: 5 ATK: 2200 + 800 = 3000
“Finish him off!” Trudge’s Synchro Monster charged forward at Yusei.
“Watch out!” Twilight shrieked, her heart racing again.
“I activate the Trap Spirit Force!” Yusei declared. Another barrier deflected the attack. “This reduces the Battle Damage to 0 and lets me add a Warrior-Type Tuner Monster with 1500 or less DEF from my Graveyard to my hand!” He placed his Junk Synchron card in his hand after it emerged from his Duel Runner’s Graveyard slot.
“But what about this? Stygian Street Patrol, direct attack!” Trudge commanded.
“I activate the effect of Fake Gardna in my Graveyard! When you attack directly, I can Special Summon it from my Graveyard in Defense Position!” A clown-like creature emerged in front of Yusei.
Fake Gardna LV: 4 DEF: 2000
Twilight looked at Yusei’s monster in confusion. “How did that card end up in the Gr—oh!”
“By sending a Monster Card from my hand to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon Quickdraw Synchron from my hand!”
Quickdraw Synchron LV: 5 DEF: 1400
“Did Yusei predict that things might’ve turned out like this…?” she wondered.
“That won’t defend you for long. I now activate the Speed Spell – Blockade!” Trudge scoffed. “Since I have at least three Speed Counters, I can declare the name of a card. If it exists in your hand, you must return one copy of it to your Deck!”
“What?!” Yusei exclaimed.
“And I’m quite positive that you have “Junk Synchron” in your hand! So put it back in your Deck!”
Yusei groaned as he placed the declared card in his Deck, which was then shuffled by the Duel Runner’s shuffling mechanism.
“With that, I end my turn,” Trudge concluded. “You understand the situation, don’t you?”
“What does he mean?” Twilight asked.
“He means that, even if I defend against his monsters’ attacks… I’m still past the Speed World 2 safety line,” Yusei answered.
“Safety line?”
“Remember what he just did earlier? He used Speed World 2’s effect to inflict damage.”
“By removing four Speed Counters, I can inflict 800 points of damage for every Speed Spell in my hand!” Trudge held up two Speed Spell cards. A lightning bolt shot from his Runner and struck Yusei’s.
Trudge LP: 1400 SPC: 7 – 4 = 3
2 * 800 = 1600
Yusei LP: 3200 – 1600 = 1600 SPC: 7
“But I don’t see any cards in his hand right now!” Twilight said.
“Right now, he doesn’t,” Yusei stated. “But if he draws one, he’ll be able to use Speed World 2’s effect again to inflict 800 points of damage and win. All he needs is four Speed Counters, which he’ll certainly have when his next turn starts.”
“Then what do we do?”
“Win this turn.”
“But how are you supposed to do that?”
“I just have to believe in my Deck,” Yusei answered. The two Duel Runners began to approach large lanes above the sea.
“Believe…?”
“If I believe in my Deck… it will answer!” Yusei closed his eyes and placed his hand on his Deck.
“Are you crazy?!” Twilight exclaimed.
“It’s my turn!” Yusei opened his eyes and drew a card.
Yusei LP: 700 SPC: 7 + 1 = 8
Trudge LP: 2700 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
“I activate the Speed Spell – High Speed Crash! Since I have at least two Speed Counters, I can destroy one of my cards as well as another card on the field! I destroy Fake Gardna and Stygian Sergeants!” A lightning bolt shot out from the image of the card and destroyed Yusei’s targets.
Trudge scoffed. “That won’t help.”
“At this moment, I activate the Trap Card Crush Star! Since a Synchro Monster on the field was destroyed, I can Special Summon two monsters with 1000 ATK or less… one from my hand and one from my Graveyard!” Yusei grabbed the last card in his hand and the card that emerged from his Graveyard slot. “Come! Sonic Chick! Shield Wing!”
Sonic Chick LV: 1 DEF: 300
Shield Wing LV: 2 DEF: 900
“You’re just stalling!” Trudge shouted. “If I draw a Speed Spell, it’s all over!”
“You’re wrong. There’s still one more thing that I can do!” Yusei rebutted. “I activate the effect of Speed World 2!”
“But you don’t have any cards in your hand!” Twilight stated.
“That’s why I’m using a different effect! By removing seven Speed Counters, I can draw one card!” Yusei placed his hand on his Deck once more.
Yusei LP: 700 SPC: 8 – 7 = 1
“It all comes down to this draw…” Yusei thought, closing his eyes again.
“He’s crazy… betting everything on one card… can he even do it?” Twilight wondered.
“Here I go!” Yusei declared, drawing a card from his Deck.
“He’s… smiling…?” She could not help but notice his expression when he looked at the card in his hand.
“I Summon Junk Synchron!”
Junk Synchron LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“Impossible!” Trudge exclaimed.
“But how…? It was… returned… to the Deck…” Twilight wondered. “Even with the odds stacked against him… he still managed to draw it…”
“Like I said before… as long as I believe in my Deck… it will answer me!” Yusei stated. “Junk Synchron’s effect activates! Revive, Speed Warrior!”
Speed Warrior LV: 2 DEF: 400
“Next, I activate the effect of Quillbolt Hedgehog in my Graveyard! Since I control a Tuner Monster, it can be Special Summoned!”
“Gathering stars will call upon a new force! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Return to the field, Junk Warrior!”
Junk Warrior LV: 5 ATK: 2300
“Of all the monsters… it had to be this one… and now of all times…” Trudge groaned.
“Junk Warrior’s effect activates!” Yusei said, an aura surrounding all four of his monsters. “When it’s Synchro Summoned, it gains the ATK of every Level 2 or below monster I control! Power of Fellows!”
“Junk Warrior! Attack Stygian Street Patrol!” Yusei commanded. “Scrap Fist!” His warrior turned around and charged forward, slamming its fist into Trudge’s creature and obliterating it.
4300 – 1600 = 2700
Trudge LP: 2700 – 2700 = 0 SPC: 4
Trudge screamed as his Duel Runner was forced to a halt.
“Did you… just win…?” Twilight asked, looking back. “I can’t believe you managed to pull that off… to think that you made such a gamble… I’m still surprised you took that high of a risk!”
“Some opponents just can’t be beat without taking them.”
“What if it backfired, though? Isn’t this a card game? Meaning that luck is involved?” Twilight was recovering from her anxiety.
“You’re not wrong, Twilight… but…”
“But…?”
“If I hadn’t taken the risk, my loss may have been certain on the opponent’s turn. At the very least, I couldn’t let it come to that when the chance to turn things around still existed.”
“You’ve got a point, I guess… At least we can… get away? Why’d you stop?” The Duel Runner had come to a halt.
“We’re gonna have to go back for the supply cart.”
“But I have the…?” Twilight gasped, turning her head backwards before looking up at her horn. “When did I… I thought I was…”
“It must’ve been lost during that last attack.”
“I’m sorry, Yusei. I should’ve been concentrating on holding th—”
“It’s fine, Twilight,” Yusei replied, starting the Duel Runner again. “It shouldn’t be that…”
“What is it, Yusei?” Twilight looked down the Duel Lane they had traveled on only to hear the approaching sirens.
“This is bad. Sector Security is onto us. Hang on!”
Twilight shrieked as the Runner exploded forward.
“I guess we’re not going back for the cart now…” Twilight mumbled. “Wait… isn’t that…?”
“What is it, Twilight?” Yusei asked.
“Look… that’s Crow, isn’t it?”
“What?!” He turned his head to see the Duel Runner on his tail. “Crow?”
“Pull over, Yusei,” Crow demanded.
“If Crow’s here… then…” Twilight began.
“Blister couldn’t stop him,” Yusei finished.
“I’ll say it one more time, Yusei. Pull over and hand over the alien!” Crow demanded once more.
“I can’t let Sector Security take her, Crow! She might not be able to return home and we might not see our friends again!”
“I don’t care…”
“What?”
“I don’t care what your reasons are…” Crow glared at Yusei and Twilight.
Yusei managed to get a glimpse past the visor on Crow’s helmet for the first time. “What are… those eyes…?” All he could see was a blank expression in Crow’s eyes.
“Yusei… if you won’t stop now… I’ll bring you down by force!”
Yusei, with Twilight sharing the seat on his Duel Runner behind him, remained silent as he continued down the Duel Lane, with Crow in close pursuit.
“I won’t say it again,” Crow replied.
“Why? Aren’t you two supposed to be friends?” Twilight asked.
“It’s no use, Twilight,” Yusei spoke.
“What?”
“Something’s wrong with him.”
“Well, obviously!” Twilight remarked.
“That’s not what I—”
A rumble interrupted Yusei’s words. The two Runners immediately halted as large green tentacles covered in thorns burst through the Duel Lane between them, obscuring their view of one another.
“What is this?!” Twilight exclaimed.
“Yusei! Twilight!” a female voice called out to them. Yusei and Twilight glanced toward the upcoming fork in the Duel Lane to see Akiza in a red motorcycle suit and helmet that matched her Duel Runner’s coat, signaling them to follow her.
“Akiza!” Yusei responded.
“Let’s go!” Akiza shouted.
“Got it. Twilight, hang on!”
“Whooooaaaa!” Twilight yelled, as Yusei sped forward behind Akiza.
The tentacles vanished. Crow looked past the gap in the bridge that obstructed his path. Scoffing, he turned around and drove off.
“Looks like I caught up to you two just in time,” Akiza stated, driving alongside Yusei and Twilight.
“What was with those tentacles?! Did you do that?” Twilight quickly questioned. “How did you do that?”
“I’m a Psychic Duelist.”
“Psychic… Duelist?”
“Some Duelists have the power to use their cards outside a Duel, making any damage they cause real. They are called ‘Psychic Duelists’.”
“Real… damage? So does that mean…”
“No,” Yusei said. “Out of the world’s population of Duelists, only a fraction of them are actually Psychic Duelists. The difference between them and everyone else is very noticeable. Only Psychic Duelists can give their monsters and cards physical form and cause real damage. We may feel impacts from our Duels, but it would be much worse facing a Psychic Duelist, like Akiza, should they choose to use their powers. The only other cases where a Duel can cause physical damage would be if two powerful forces clashed.”
“Sounds pretty dangerous…” Twilight commented.
“Don’t worry. I’ve already learned to control my powers a long time ago,” Akiza reassured her.
“So what are we going to do about Crow?”
“Crow? That was him following you?” Akiza asked.
“Yeah,” Yusei answered.
“But why is he…?”
“I don’t know… but I do know he’s not himself.”
“Not himself?”
Yusei managed to get a glimpse past the visor on Crow’s helmet for the first time. “What are… those eyes…?” All he could see was a blank expression in Crow’s eyes.
“His eyes… something isn’t right about them,” Yusei continued.
“What do you mean?” Twilight questioned.
“I don’t know yet.”
“Yusei…” Akiza mumbled. “Huh?”
The three of them glanced behind them as they saw an approaching Duel Runner merge onto the lane they were on.
“You can’t escape,” Crow said.
“Crow?!” Akiza exclaimed.
Crow moved his hand to push a button on his Duel Runner.
“Wait! I’ll be your opponent!” Akiza stated.
“What?” Crow said.
“Akiza!” Yusei responded.
“But why?” Twilight added.
“Yusei, you said so yourself,” Akiza replied.
“Crow? That was him following you?” Akiza asked.
“Yeah,” Yusei answered.
“But why is he…?”
“I don’t know… but I do know he’s not himself.”
“If he’s not himself… then I’ll be the one to bring him to his senses,” Akiza stated.
“Got it,” Yusei nodded.
“Be careful, Akiza,” Twilight warned.
Akiza nodded back.
“Fine, then,” Crow said. “You need to be taken into custody as well, for being his accomplice and aiding in his escape.” He pressed a button on his Duel Runner’s monitor.
“OVERRIDING SUSPECT DUEL RUNNER,” a computer voice said, as the Speed World 2 card appeared Akiza’s and Crow’s screens. “DUEL MODE ENGAGED.”
Both then drew five cards from their Decks.
DUEL! Akiza (LP 4000) VS Crow (LP 4000)
As the battle began, Yusei, Akiza, and Crow all flinched at the strong pulse in their right arms.
“Yusei?” Twilight said.
“My mark…” Yusei mumbled.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine… this Duel… things are going to get rough.”
“It’s my turn!” Akiza declared, drawing a sixth card. “I Summon Dark Verger in Attack Position!” A small plant with two large leaves, an eye opening at the center of each one, appeared next to her.
Dark Verger LV: 2 ATK: 0
“I Set three cards face-down and end my turn.”
“A monster with no ATK…?” Crow mumbled.
“What’s she doing?” Yusei wondered as he and Twilight watched in anticipation.
“My turn,” Crow stated.
Akiza LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
Crow LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
“I Summon Blackwing – Sirocco the Dawn!” A feathered humanoid being descended next to Crow.
Blackwing – Sirocco the Dawn LV: 5 ATK: 2000
“Since you control a monster and I don’t, Sirocco the Dawn can be Normal Summoned without Tribute. And now, since I control a face-up “Blackwing” monster, I can Special Summon these two from my hand!” Crow grabbed two additional cards from his hand. “Blackwing – Bora the Spear!”
Blackwing – Bora the Spear LV: 4 ATK: 1700
“Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind!”
Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“Three monsters already?” Twilight commented.
“I’m not done. From my hand, I activate the Trap Card Delta Crow – Anti Reverse!”
“A Trap from the hand?!” Akiza exclaimed.
“That’s right. Since I control at least three face-up “Blackwing” monsters, it can be activated directly from my hand. This card destroys all of your Set Spell and Trap Cards!” Lightning bolts shot from the dark gray clouds above towards Akiza’s cards.
“I won’t let you! I activate the Trap Card Rose Illusion!” A barrier appeared and deflected the lightning. “The activation of your Spell or Trap Card is negated and a Plant-Type monster I control switches to Defense Position.”
Dark Verger LV: 2 DEF: 1000
“Then we both draw one card,” Akiza continued, she and Crow both drawing an additional card.
“In that case, I activate the effect of Gale the Whirlwind!” Crow stated. His winged beast flapped its large wings once to create a large gust that struck Akiza’s plant. “Once per turn, I can halve the ATK and DEF of one of your monsters.”
Dark Verger LV: 2 DEF: 1000 / 2 = 500
“Next, I activate the effect of Sirocco the Dawn. Once per turn, one “Blackwing” monster I control gains the ATK of every other “Blackwing” monster I control. However, any “Blackwing” other than the powered up monster cannot attack this turn. I give the ATK of Sirocco the Dawn and Gale the Whirlwind to Bora the Spear!”
Blackwing – Bora the Spear LV: 4 ATK: 1700 + 2000 + 1300 = 5000
“5000 ATK…” Yusei mumbled. “And on top of that… if Bora attacks a Defense Position monster, piercing damage is inflicted…”
“Piercing damage?” Twilight asked.
“It’s exactly what the phrase suggests. Normally, when an Attack Position monster battles a Defense Position monster with DEF lower than its ATK, no Battle Damage is inflicted. But…”
“You mean… even though her monster is in Defense Position… she’ll still take damage?”
“That’s right.”
“That’s not good…”
“Go! Bora the Spear!” Crow commanded. “Attack Dark Verger!” His beast raised its spear and charged forward.
“If this attack gets through, Akiza will take 4500 points of piercing damage!” Yusei stated.
“That won’t happen!” Akiza countered. “I activate the Trap Wall of Thorns! When a Plant-Type monster I control is attacked, all of the opponent’s Attack Position monsters are destroyed!” Several thorny vines appeared between Bora and Dark Verger. An explosion occurred as Bora collided with the vines. Smoke covered the field.
“All right… now Crow doesn’t have anything, right?” Twilight commented with moderate excitement.
“No…” Yusei replied.
“Huh?”
A chuckle was heard from Crow.
“What?!” Akiza gasped as Crow’s beast continued its attack, the smoke quickly fading away as the monster burst towards Dark Verger.
“No way!” Yusei shouted.
“Too bad,” Crow smirked. “I’ve activated the monster effect of Dark Wing Wroc from my hand.”
“‘Dark Wing’?”
“By sending it to the Graveyard, I can make all DARK monsters I currently control unaffected by card effects until the end of the turn. Now go! Bora the Spear! Obliterate Dark Verger!”
“I activate the Trap Card Ground Capture!” Akiza frantically stated, as her plant was smashed. “The Battle Damage I take is halved!”
Another explosion occurred. Smoke briefly overtook Akiza.
5000 – 500 = 4500
4500 / 2 = 2250
Akiza LP: 4000 – 2250 = 1750 SPC: 1
“No way…” Twilight could not help but gaze at the injured Akiza as the smoke cleared. “Akiza, are you all right?”
“I’m fine… It’s not over yet,” Akiza answered.
“Is… is this…”
“Yeah… this is what I was talking about earlier…” Yusei replied.
“Since I took more than 1000 damage, I can draw one card,” Akiza continued.
“This is crazy,” Twilight commented again. “To put your own well-being on the line like this… for a card game…”
“It’ll be fine. Yusei and I will protect you, Twilight.” She smiled at the alicorn.
“Akiza…”
“When you’re done chatting, I’ll continue,” Crow interrupted. “I now tune Level 3 Gale the Whirlwind with Level 5 Sirocco the Dawn!”
The three Signers felt another strong pulse in their arms, as their marks began to glow.
“Wait…” Akiza mumbled.
“He must be…” Yusei added.
“It’s over for you,” Crow said.
3 + 5 = 8
“Darkened squalls, become the wings that soar from resolved hope! Synchro Summon! Soar, Black-Winged Dragon!”
Crow grabbed the last two cards in his hand. “I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn,” he concluded.
Blackwing – Bora the Spear LV: 4 ATK: 5000 – 3300 = 1700
“Crow, is this what you meant?” Akiza asked.
“Wait, Crow. You don’t seriously think Yusei is guilty of crimes, do you?” Akiza asked.
“I don’t know what to think of that right now, Akiza,” Crow replied. “But I do know this… once I find out the truth… I’ll have no choice.” He started his Duel Runner and drove towards the highway.
“Crow!” Akiza called after him, despite her voice not reaching him.
“Is this what you’ve decided to do?” Akiza asked again.
Crow remained silent, as his dragon and spear-wielding winged beast floated in the air behind him.
“Answer me, Crow!”
“You won’t… you won’t stop me,” Crow replied.
Yusei and Twilight looked on in anticipation.
Akiza clenched her fist. “Fine… I’ll do everything I can… to wake you up!”
The three Duel Runners continued down the Duel Lane beneath the clouded sky.
“It’s my turn!” Akiza declared, drawing a card.
Akiza LP: 1750 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
Crow LP: 4000 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
“From my hand, I activate the Speed Spell – Angel Baton! Since I have at least two Speed Counters, I can draw two cards and discard one! Next, I activate the Speed Spell – Vision Wind! If I have two or more Speed Counters, I can Special Summon a Level 2 or below monster from my Graveyard! Come, Evil Thorn!”
A small plant with a thorn-covered bulb hung from its stem appeared next to Akiza.
Evil Thorn LV: 1 DEF: 300
“Evil Thorn’s monster effect activates! By Tributing this card, I can inflict 300 damage to the opponent!”
The bulb expanded until it burst, flinging its thorns towards Crow.
Crow LP: 4000 – 300 = 3700 SPC: 2
“Then I can Special Summon two more Evil Thorns from my Deck!”
Evil Thorn LV: 1 DEF: 300
Evil Thorn LV: 1 DEF: 300
“However, their effects are negated.”
“Cheap tricks will get you nowhere, Akiza,” Crow said.
“Even you know I wouldn’t stop here,” Akiza replied. “I Normal Summon the Tuner Monster Copy Plant!”
Copy Plant LV: 1 ATK: 0
“At this moment, I activate the effect of Dark Verger from my Graveyard! When a Plant-Type Tuner monster is Normal Summoned to my field, it can be Special Summoned in Attack Position!”
Dark Verger LV: 2 ATK: 0
“Tuner Monster…” Twilight mumbled. “That means…”
“Yeah,” Yusei said.
“Copy Plant’s effect activates! Once per turn, its Level can be changed to that of another Plant-Type monster! Since Dark Verger’s Level is 2, Copy Plant will also be Level 2,” Akiza continued.
Copy Plant LV: 1 + 1 = 2 ATK: 0
“I tune Level 2 Copy Plant with my two Level 1 Evil Thorns and Level 2 Dark Verger!”
2 + 1 + 1 + 2 = 6
“Splendid hunter and dweller of the sacred forest, with your whip of punishment in hand, come forth now! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Splendid Rose!”
Splendid Rose LV: 6 ATK: 2200
Crow scoffed.
“Splendid Rose’s effect activates! Once per turn, I can banish a Plant-Type monster from my Graveyard to halve the ATK of one of your monster’s until the End Phase! I banish Evil Thorn to halve Black-Winged Dragon’s ATK!” Akiza’s new humanoid monster thrust its whip at Crow’s Black-Winged Dragon.
Black-Winged Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2800 / 2 = 1400
“With this, Black-Winged Dragon’s ATK is now lower than Splendid Rose,” Yusei commented.
“Battle! Splendid Rose, attack Black-Winged Dragon!” Akiza commanded. Her humanoid leapt into the air and lunged at Crow’s dragon.
“You won’t defeat my dragon so easily,” Crow countered.
“What?”
“I activate the Trap Card Feather Shift! When the opponent’s monster attacks, I can change the attack target to another DARK Winged Beast I control.” His Bora the Spear intercepted the blow from Splendid Rose.
2200 – 1700 = 500
Crow LP: 3700 – 500 = 3200 SPC: 2
“That’s too bad.”
“No way… I Set one card face-down and end my turn,” Akiza concluded.
“And now my dragon’s ATK is returned to normal,” Crow continued.
Black-Winged Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 1400 * 2 = 2800
“It’s my turn!”
Akiza LP: 1750 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
Crow LP: 3200 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
“Black-Winged Dragon! Attack Splendid Rose! Noble Stream!” A dark red blast of energy burst out of the dragon’s mouth, vanquishing Akiza’s monster.
2800 – 2200 = 600
Akiza LP: 1750 – 600 = 1150 SPC: 3
The impact caused Akiza to spin out.
“Akiza!” Yusei exclaimed.
“Oh, no!” Twilight added.
Akiza regained control of her Runner and straightened out. “I’m fine…”
“I end my turn,” Crow concluded.
“Crow… what a Duelist he’s become since the WRGP… Am I strong enough to defeat him here?” Akiza thought. She then glanced at Yusei and Twilight. “Right… no matter what, I can’t give up. With everything that’s going on… I have to remind Crow who his friends are… because they need him!”
“My, my, Lieutenant Callos,” said a woman. “It seems everything is going according to plan.”
“Indeed, Judge Celena,” Callos replied. “The experiment is working perfectly. We even have the Signers at each others’ throats.”
“I wonder if they’ll ever catch on, though. The database was hacked by that Blister.”
“So what? It makes no difference now. Even if they figured out what we were doing, it’s already too late.”
“To think we’ve accomplished so much in Equestria in just a few days…” Celena smiled.
“Yes… the resistance there and here is diminishing very quickly… very soon, nothing will stand in our way,” Callos sneered.
“It’s my turn!” Akiza stated.
Akiza LP: 1150 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
Crow LP: 3200 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
“I activate the Continuous Trap Wicked Rebirth! By paying 800 Life Points, I can Special Summon a Synchro Monster from my Graveyard with its effects negated! Revive, Splendid Rose!”
Akiza LP: 1150 – 800 = 350 SPC: 4
Splendid Rose LV: 6 ATK: 2200
“Next, I Normal Summon Blue Rose Dragon!”
Blue Rose Dragon LV: 4 ATK: 1600
Akiza then grabbed one of the two remaining cards in her hand. “From my hand, I activate the Speed Spell – Summon Speeder! If I have at least four Speed Counters, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or below monster from my hand! I Special Summon the Tuner Monster Glow-Up Bulb!”
Glow-Up Bulb LV: 1 DEF: 100
“Go for it, Akiza!” Yusei cheered. The three Signers felt another strong pulse in their right arms.
“I tune Level 1 Glow-Up Bulb with Level 6 Splendid Rose!” she continued.
1 + 6 = 7
“Chilling flames engulf the entire world. Pitch-dark flower, set into bloom! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Black Rose Dragon!”
Black Rose Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2400
The large dragon with rose-covered wings descended next to Akiza.
“Black Rose Dragon’s monster effect activates! When it’s Synchro Summoned, I can destroy every card on the field!” Her dragon roared as a powerful gust blew through the Duel Lane. “Go, Black Rose Gale!”
The three dragons present were all knocked aside by the wind as it destroyed them.
“They’re all gone…” Twilight commented.
“No, not quite,” Yusei replied.
“What?”
“At this moment, I activate the effect of Blue Rose Dragon!” Akiza continued. “When it’s destroyed, I can Special Summon a Plant-Type monster or Black Rose Dragon from my Graveyard! Return to the field, Black Rose Dragon!” Her rose-covered dragon appeared once more.
Black Rose Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2400
“Go, Black Rose Dragon! Attack Crow directly!” she commanded, as flames covered in rose petals shot from her dragon’s mouth towards Crow. “Black Rose Flare!”
An explosion took place.
“Please… let that be enough…” Akiza hoped, watching Crow emerge from the smoke.
Crow LP: 3200 – 2400 = 800 SPC: 4
“Is that all?” he asked.
“He still wants to fight…?” Akiza wondered. “I… end my turn…”
Twilight watched in awe as the unrelenting Crow stared them down. It just wasn’t right. Why is he going so far to ensure her capture when he’s their friend? The way he suddenly turned on them, along with all the other information she and Yusei discovered together… none of the pieces seemed to fit. Then there was the ominous feeling inside her that began to grow, telling her that something else was going to happen.
“It’s my turn!” Crow declared.
Akiza LP: 350 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
Crow LP: 800 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
“I’m now past the safety line… if he has a Speed Spell…” Akiza thought.
“I Summon Dark Wing Galee!” Crow stated. A dark-feathered eagle appeared next to him.
Dark Wing Galee LV: 4 ATK: 1600
“Another ‘Dark Wing’ monster…” Yusei mumbled.
“When this monster is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower DARK Winged Beast from my Deck! I Special Summon the Tuner Monster Disharmony Feathers!”
Disharmony Feathers LV: 1 DEF: 100
“What?!” Twilight exclaimed.
“‘Disharmony’?!” Yusei added.
“And it’s a Tuner?!” Akiza reacted.
“Next, from my Graveyard, I activate the Trap Card Feather Rise!” Crow continued.
“From his Graveyard…?”
“By banishing it from my Graveyard, I can use its effect! I Tribute Dark Wing Galee… to revive my Black-Winged Dragon!”
Black-Winged Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2800 – 2800 = 0
“However, the monster Summoned by this effect has its ATK become 0… and half its original ATK is added to the opponent’s Life Points.”
2800 / 2 = 1400
Akiza LP: 350 + 1400 = 1750 SPC: 5
“Giving me Life Points…?” Akiza said.
“It’s not going to matter. I tune Level 1 Disharmony Feathers with Level 8 Black-Winged Dragon!” Crow stated.
“What?!” Akiza reacted.
“Even using Black-Winged Dragon?” Yusei added.
The small bird transformed into a black ring that surrounded Crow’s dragon, the latter became eight bright stars before they were engulfed by a black pillar as Crow began to chant.
1 + 8 = 9
“Let the limitless chaos pour into your soul as you soar through the dark skies! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Disharmony – Dark Wing Serpent!”
Disharmony – Dark Wing Serpent LV: 9 ATK: 3300
A large serpent-like creature floated in the sky.
“What is this monster?” Yusei asked. “And… why does Crow have it?”
“Dark Wing Serpent… attack Black Rose Dragon!” Crow commanded. A burst of darkness shot from the serpent’s mouth towards Akiza’s dragon. “At this moment, Dark Wing Serpent’s effect activates. When it battles a monster, the opponent’s monster’s ATK is decreased by 1000!”
“What’d you say?!” Akiza exclaimed.
Black Rose Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2400 – 1000 = 1400
The dark blast obliterated the Black Rose Dragon and smothered Akiza.
“Akiza!” Twilight shouted.
3300 – 1400 = 1900
Akiza LP: 1750 – 1900 = 0 SPC: 5
Yusei brought his Duel Runner to a halt. He turned towards Akiza as the darkness vanished. Her Runner was on its side and she lay on the ground, with Crow parked on the other side of her. The Dark Wing Serpent had already vanished.
Raising his own Runner’s armpiece, he hopped onto the Duel Lane and sprinted to her, only to be a stopped by another darkness that appeared beneath Akiza and her Runner.
“What is this?” he asked. “Akiza!”
“Yusei…” Akiza groaned as she rose to her knees. She then suddenly felt something pull her to the ground. “Help me…”
“No… not again!” Images of his friends, Leo and Luna… the nightmare… flashed in his mind. “Not again!”
Twilight lifted herself off Yusei’s Runner and into the air to approach Akiza. A large wall of darkness blocked them both.
“Crow! Do something!” Yusei demanded.
Crow remained silent.
“CROW!”
Akiza shrieked as she was pulled into the blackness. Her body and her Runner vanished as the darkness faded away.
Yusei fell to his knees, tears rolling down his cheeks. He banged his fist on the pavement “Akiza… not you, too…”
Twilight landed softly behind him. “That darkness… it was so… familiar…” She gasped after searching her memory.
Twilight was knocked aside once more. As she struggled to get up, she found herself bound to the dirt by ropy-like shadows. The ground beneath her turned black.
“Let me go!” Twilight demanded, recovering from the attacks.
“You’re certainly something, Princess,” the woman said. “The others weren’t able to put up nearly as much of a fight as you have… although… I suppose that’s to be expected of the one who wields the strongest of all the Elements of Harmony.”
“What are you doing…?” Twilight felt herself growing weaker and more restrained as she saw the shadows begin to blanket her.
“Taking you home. At first, I thought we had to collect the real you… but with this power that I have obtained… taking you here will also bring the real you to us… thanks to the magical ties between you, your Element, and…” The figure glanced behind her.
“The real me…? What do you mean by that? And what power are you talking about? I’ve never felt anything like this… I think…” Now that she thought about it, the essence of this darkness that was being used to capture her had a faint sense of familiarity to it, although she couldn’t put her hoof on why. She then noticed another presence approaching from the direction the woman was staring.
“It’s the same…” Twilight mumbled. “Does that mean that she… and that… thing… are around, too…?”
“Crow…” Yusei’s head hung. “Why didn’t you help her…?”
Crow was silent.
“Answer me! Why?!”
“She was in the way. It’s my job to bring you both down.”
“‘In the way’…?” Yusei looked up at Crow. “She’s our friend! Why would you—” Something about Crow had caught Yusei’s attention. He couldn’t help but notice Crow’s eyes. The blank expression alone was more than enough, but now there was something else to it.
“Yusei…?” Twilight called to him as he rose to his feet, clenching his fist. “I’m… so sorry about—”
“Twilight…” he replied, slowly boarding his Runner. “Get on.”
“Oh! Okay… is everything all right?” Twilight sat behind Yusei, sharing his seat on the Duel Runner as he started it up again after lowering the armpiece.
“Whatever is afflicting Crow… I’m going to put a stop to it here,” Yusei said.
“‘Afflicting’…?”
Crow pressed a button on his Duel Runner’s monitor.
“OVERRIDING SUSPECT DUEL RUNNER. DUEL MODE ENGAGED,” said a computer voice. The Speed World 2 Field Spell appeared on their screens as both drew five cards from their Decks.
DUEL! Yusei (LP 4000) VS Crow (LP 4000)
“I’ll go first!” Yusei declared, drawing a card. “I’ll Set a monster and end my turn!”
“What’s wrong with him?” Twilight wondered. “I’ve never seen him like this before…”
“My turn!” Crow stated.
Yusei LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
Crow LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
“I Summon the Tuner Monster Blackwing – Kochi the Daybreak!”
Blackwing – Kochi the Daybreak LV: 4 ATK: 700
“Since I control a “Blackwing” monster, I can Special Summon Blackwing – Bora the Spear!”
Blackwing – Bora the Spear LV: 4 ATK: 1700
“Battle! Bora the Spear! Attack the Set monster!” Crow commanded. Yusei’s monster was revealed.
Stardust Xiaolong LV: 1 DEF: 100
“Stardust Xiaolong’s effect! Once per turn, it can’t be destroyed in battle!” Yusei stated.
“Due to Bora’s effect, when it attacks a monster in Defense Position, piercing damage is inflicted!” Crow countered, his winged creature striking the small dragon with its spear.
1700 – 100 = 1600
Yusei LP: 4000 – 1600 = 2400 SPC: 1
“Next, Kochi the Daybreak attacks!” Crow’s small feathered beast rammed into the dragon, destroying it. “Now I tune Level 4 Kochi the Daybreak with Level 4 Bora the Spear!”
4 + 4 = 8
“Darkened squalls, become the wings that soar from resolved hope! Synchro Summon! Soar, Black-Winged Dragon!”
Black-Winged Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2800
Yusei and Crow both felt another strong pulse in their right arms.
“Again?!” Twilight exclaimed.
“Just a little more…” Crow mumbled. “I Set one card face-down and end my turn!”
“Crow…” Yusei said. “No matter what… I will break through! It’s my turn!”
Yusei LP: 2400 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
Crow LP: 4000 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
“I activate the Speed Spell – Angel Baton! So I draw two cards and discard one! Then I Summon the Tuner Monster Junk Synchron!”
Junk Synchron LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“When this monster is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 2 or below monster from my Graveyard in Defense Position with its effects negated! Come, Stardust Xiaolong!”
Stardust Xiaolong LV: 1 DEF: 100
“Then, since I control a “Junk” monster, I can Special Summon Junk Servant from my hand!”
Junk Servant LV: 4 ATK: 1500
“I tune Level 3 Junk Synchron with Level 1 Stardust Xiaolong and Level 4 Junk Servant!”
3 + 1 + 4 = 8
“Clustering wishes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Take flight, Stardust Dragon!”
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2500
A large white dragon appeared next to Yusei, facing Crow’s own dragon. Another strong pulse was felt in the duelists’ right arms. Twilight watched as their Signer marks began to glow.
“Crow!” Yusei stated. “I don’t know what’s gotten hold of you… but it ends here!”
“This Duel is starting to get interesting,” Celena remarked. “He must be really torn up from seeing his former ally tear down his friend like that.”
“Sadly, we cannot afford to simply enjoy the Duel, even if they both are high-class Turbo Duelists,” Callos replied.
“I don’t see why not. If everything goes according to plan, this will be the most entertaining Duel we’ll be able to witness for quite some time.”
“We may have to act sooner than we think.”
“How come?”
“Crow is the test subject. He was the first to be administered the fluid. Although we have an estimate as to how long the effects will last, we cannot assume that he’ll remain in this condition as long as expected.”
“So we might have to go and handle it ourselves. More fun for us,” Celena grinned.
Footsteps were heard from a nearby corridor.
“Ah, it’s you,” said Callos.
“I was sent to check on your progress,” said the man. “Have you managed to capture the princess?”
“We’ve made considerable progress these past few days and we’ve almost completed our objective.”
“You’re taking quite some time to get it done, Callos.”
“That would be because the princess came into contact with the Signers. They are quite troublesome. However, it seems they are engaging in their final Duel.” Callos pointed towards the screen. “That wretched bug was invaluable as it has allowed us to turn the Signers against one another.”
Celena stepped forward. “While it is true that we weren’t able to capture the princess that easily and quickly,” she said, “we still have the upper hand in this situation. If Yusei is defeated here, Princess Twilight is ours. If not, we still only have one less Signer to worry about. Being the last one, he’ll be an easy target.”
“How do you figure that?” asked the man.
“Simple,” answered Callos. “The Signers’ are strong when they’re together. Alone, they are nothing. The measures we’ve taken here weren’t just to take the city, but also to separate the Signers as much as possible.”
“Which makes it easier for us to pick them off,” Celena sneered.
“I do hope the effects of your experiment last long enough,” the man stated. “It would be a shame if they began to wear off before this Duel ended.”
“Don’t worry about that. We were just about to head out. Once we’re done, we’ll have all the Element of Harmony and their bearers. Not to mention the Signers, as well.”
“After that, we can begin to expand our operations in both worlds,” Callos added. “That reminds me… what of the two remaining princesses?”
“Princess Celestia is still at large, and combating our forces as we speak,” the man answered.
“Tough one, isn’t she? And the other?”
“We have yet to advance to her location, due to the weather in that area. On top of that, we still have to consider the magic defending the city. Furthermore, we will have to deal with the magic that’s wielded by her and her husband, who I’m told is the older brother of Princess Twilight and captain of Princess Celestia’s guard. With all this in mind, the city’s defenses are quite formidable. There’s no doubt that they’ve already caught wind of our activity there and have begun preparations for our arrival.”
“A defense with up to five layers… all the more reason that we succeed in capturing Princess Twilight here,” Callos stated.
“Our leader expects to hear from you soon.” The man turned towards the dark corridor and vanished.
“Looks like that’s our cue to get ready,” Celena said.
“Yes, indeed,” Callos nodded.
Yusei, with Twilight sitting behind him, hurried down the Duel Lane, with Crow in close pursuit.
“You may have Stardust Dragon, Yusei,” Crow said, “but it can’t beat my Black-Winged Dragon!”
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2500
Black-Winged Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2800
“I activate the effect of Stardust Xiaolong in my Graveyard!” Yusei declared. “When I Synchro Summon Stardust Dragon, I can Special Summon it in Attack Position!” The small dragon appeared at Yusei’s side.
Stardust Xiaolong LV: 1 ATK: 100
“Next, I activate the Speed Spell – Speed Energy! Since I have at least two Speed Counters, I can increase the ATK of a monster on my field by 200 for each one until the End Phase!”
2 * 200 = 400
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2500 + 400 = 2900
“Battle! Stardust Dragon, attack Black-Winged Dragon!” Yusei commanded. “Shooting Sonic!” His dragon fired a burst of energy from its mouth towards Black-Winged Dragon, vanquishing it.
2900 – 2800 = 100
Crow LP: 4000 – 100 = 3900 SPC: 2
“Go, Stardust Xiaolong! Direct attack!” The small dragon bit Crow’s arm.
Crow LP: 3900 – 100 = 3800 SPC: 2
Yusei LP: 2400 SPC: 2
“So… is that it?” asked Twilight, studying Yusei’s screen.
“Not yet,” he answered.
“But you got rid of his monster, didn’t you?”
“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean it’s over.” Yusei grabbed two of the three cards in his hand. “I Set two cards face-down and end my turn!”
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2900 – 400 = 2500
“Yusei? Is something wrong? I’ve never seen you like this,” Twilight commented.
“It’s because of Crow,” he replied.
“Well, you did say he wasn’t himself and his eyes weren’t right.”
“Yeah, but I saw something else just a moment ago.”
“You did?”
“Crow…” Yusei’s head hung. “Why didn’t you help her…?”
Crow was silent.
“Answer me! Why?!”
“She was in the way. It’s my job to bring you both down.”
“‘In the way’…?” Yusei looked up at Crow. “She’s our friend! Why would you—” Something about Crow had caught Yusei’s attention. He couldn’t help but notice Crow’s eyes. The blank expression alone was more than enough, but now there was something else to it.
“His eyes… underneath his helmet… they were green,” Yusei observed.
“Green eyes? You mean he doesn’t normally have green eyes?” asked Twilight.
“No. And I’m certain whatever’s causing that is making him behave this way.”
Twilight placed her hoof on her chin. “He’s not himself and his eyes are green? Why do I feel like I’ve seen something like that before?” she wondered.
“It’s my turn!” Crow declared, drawing a card.
Yusei LP: 2400 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
Crow LP: 3800 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
“I activate the Speed Spell – Angel Baton! If I have two or more Speed Counters, I draw two cards and discard one! Next, I banish the Dark Wing Uem I just discarded to activate its monster effect!”
“What?” Yusei responded.
“This turn, while I control a face-up Tuner Monster, you can’t activate your Set Spell or Trap Cards!” Crow grinned. “Now I Summon Dark Wing Galee!”
Dark Wing Galee LV: 4 ATK: 1600
“That monster…” Yusei thought. “Now I see. That’s why.”
“Galee’s effect activates!” Crow continued. “When it’s Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or below DARK Winged Beast from my Deck! I Special Summon the Tuner Monster Disharmony Feathers!”
Disharmony Feathers LV: 1 DEF: 100
“Now I activate the Trap Card Feather Rise!”
“That card again?!” Twilight exclaimed. “It’s just like—”
“I Tribute Dark Wing Galee! Now revive, Black-Winged Dragon!” Crow’s dragon reemerged onto his field.
Black-Winged Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2800 – 2800 = 0
“Due to the effect of Feather Rise, half of Black-Winged Dragon’s original ATK is added to your Life Points.”
2800 / 2 = 1400
Yusei LP: 2400 + 1400 = 3800 SPC: 3
“Here it comes,” Yusei mumbled, feeling a powerful pulse in his right arm.
“And now I tune Level 1 Disharmony Feathers with Level 8 Black-Winged Dragon!”
1 + 8 = 9
“Let the limitless chaos pour into your soul as you soar through the dark skies! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Disharmony – Dark Wing Serpent!”
Disharmony – Dark Wing Serpent LV: 9 ATK: 3300
“That thing’s back again,” Twilight said, with a grim tone. "The monster that beat Akiza..."
“Except you no longer have any Tuner Monsters on your field, Crow! I activate the Trap Card Shooting Star!” Yusei declared. “Since there’s a “Stardust” monster on the field, I can destroy any card on the field!”
Crow chuckled.
“Go, Stardust Dragon! Destroy Dark Wing Serpent!” Yusei’s dragon rammed into the flying reptile and destroyed it.
“All right! Now that snake is gone!” Twilight exclaimed.
“Not bad,” Crow smiled. “I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn.”
“My turn!” Yusei drew a card.
Yusei LP: 3800 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
Crow LP: 3800 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
“Stardust Dragon, attack Crow directly!” Yusei commanded. “Shooting Sonic!” Another blast from Stardust Dragon’s mouth struck Crow.
Crow LP: 3800 – 2500 = 1300 SPC: 4
“Just a little more,” Twilight remarked. “Uh, Yusei?”
Yusei briefly stared at Crow before speaking again. “It’s still too early to relax. There’s no way he’d let Dark Wing Serpent be defeated that easily.”
“During my Standby Phase after Dark Wing Serpent is destroyed, I can discard a card from my hand to Special Summon it. Revive, Dark Wing Serpent!” A vortex appeared in the sky above Crow, with a pair of glowing red eyes inside it.
“No way…”
“I won’t let that happen!” Yusei declared. “I activate the Trap Wave Rebound! When you activate an effect that would Special Summon a Synchro Monster, this card negates that effect. Then, you take damage equal to that Synchro Monster’s ATK!” A powerful gust blew through the area, causing the vortex to shrink.
“I expected as much,” Crow smiled.
“What?”
“I activate the Counter Trap Forced Wing! I banish three DARK Winged Beasts from my Graveyard—Galee, Feathers, and Kochi! Now your Wave Rebound is negated!”
“No way!” The image of Yusei’s Trap Card was shattered.
“Now return to the field… Dark Wing Serpent!” The enormous snake emerged from the vortex.
Disharmony – Dark Wing Serpent LV: 9 ATK: 3300
“Just one more… I activate the Trap Dark Wing Barrage!” Crow continued. “This lets a “Dark Wing” monster I control attack each of your monsters once! First, I’ll go after Stardust Xiaolong!” A burst of darkness shot out of the reptile’s mouth. “Your Xiaolong may not be destroyed in this battle, but due to Dark Wing Barrage, my Dark Wing Serpent inflicts Piercing Damage!”
“What the?!” exclaimed Yusei as his dragon was struck. The smoke from the resulting explosion briefly smothered Yusei and Twilight.
Yusei LP: 3800 / 2 = 1900 SPC: 5
“Twilight, are you all right?” asked Yusei.
“Yeah... I’m fine,” she answered.
“How did you…?” Crow spoke.
“I activated my Trap Card Iron Resolve,” Yusei answered. “By halving my Life Points, the battle damage I take this turn becomes 0, then the Battle Phase ends!”
Crow scoffed before suddenly placing the palm of his hand over his face.
“Crow?” Yusei called out. Gazing at his friend, Yusei came to a single conclusion. “Is it possible… that whatever’s afflicting Crow is starting to fade?”
“Affliction…” Twilight thought. “The more I think about it, the more I’m certain I’ve seen this before.”
“Dark Wing Barrage’s other effect,” Crow continued, “By banishing it from my Graveyard during the End Phase, you take damage equal to half of Dark Wing Serpent’s original ATK!”
“What?!” exclaimed Yusei. Another explosion occurred. He and Twilight pierced through the smoke.
3300 / 2 = 1650
Yusei LP: 1900 – 1650 = 250 SPC: 5
“I end my turn…ugh!” His palm covered his face once more.
“Crow!” Yusei shouted. “What’s wrong with him?”
Twilight gazed at Yusei’s friend. “Green eyes… strange behavior… I haven’t seen this since…” She gasped. “The wedding!”
“Twilight?”
“I remember now! It was at my brother’s wedding!”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know how it’s possible… but, regardless, I have to act now!” Twilight leaned out of Yusei’s Duel Runner.
“What are you doing?!”
“I can do this… it’s the least I can do for all your help, Yusei,” Twilight thought. She gulped as she glanced at the ground. “Just have to account for the speed…” Her horn glowed and a flash of light lit the area. Yusei turned his head to see Twilight holding onto Crow on his Duel Runner. Her horn glowed once more while a purple aura surrounded Crow as he screamed in pain.
“Twilight!” Yusei called out.
“Don’t worry… I’m using a spell… that will… counter the effects… of the mind control…” she grunted, struggling to complete her task.
“Mind control…?” Yusei thought. “But when did Crow—”
A shriek came from above. Yusei and Twilight looked up to see the giant serpent descending towards Crow’s Runner. Its arms reached out towards Twilight.
“Twilight, look out!” he yelled.
Twilight screamed. She leaned to the side, pulling the Duel Runner out of the way of the reptile’s arm. The pavement was ripped apart as the creature pulled its hand away from the bridge, preparing to grasp Twilight once more. Leaning in the opposite direction, she and the Duel Runner avoided contact with the serpent.
Yusei watched helplessly as the Dark Wing Serpent continued to reach for Twilight. “Twilight,” he mumbled. “There’s gotta be something I can do. Maybe, if I can just defeat that monster, she and Crow will be safe!” He glanced at his Deck.
“I have to,” he thought. “For Twilight’s sake… and the sake of my friends!”
Yusei then noticed the Signer mark on his arm growing brightly. Dodging the serpent’s arms, Twilight saw Crow’s Signer mark glowing as well.
“What’s this?!” Callos exclaimed, banging his fist on the computer screen.
“What is it?” asked Celena.
“It can’t be… something is breaking through from Equestria!”
“Impossible!” Celena walked up behind Callos and gazed at the monitor. “We need to go now!” The two darted out of the room.
Yusei looked up to see a light on the horizon.
“What’s that?” he asked. Four small lights approached from the sea and, along with a fifth light from Crow’s right arm, flew into Yusei.
“I can feel it. The Crimson Dragon’s power,” he thought. “Everyone’s power.”
Twilight looked ahead at Yusei to see a glowing red mark on his back. “What’s that light?” she said. She jerked her head up, barely catching the arm extending towards her in time to avoid it.
“Twilight!” Yusei yelled. He glanced at his Deck to see the card on top glowing and placed his hand on it. “I will save you! It’s my turn!” he declared, drawing the glowing card.
Yusei LP: 300 SPC: 5 + 1 = 6
Crow LP: 1300 SPC: 5 + 1 = 6
“It’s here!” he smiled, glancing at the drawn card as its glow vanished. “I Summon Majestic Dragon!” A small pink dragon appeared next to Yusei.
Majestic Dragon LV: 1 ATK: 0
“I tune Level 1 Majestic Dragon with Level 1 Stardust Xiaolong and Level 8 Stardust Dragon!” The pink dragon grew transparent as it expanded in size, with a single green ring inside it. Yusei’s remaining two dragons flew into its body and transformed into nine bright stars. A pillar of light engulfed the three dragons.
1 + 1 + 8 = 10
“Gathering starlights will enlighten a new miracle! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Arrive in light, Majestic Star Dragon!”
Majestic Star Dragon LV: 10 ATK: 3800
The serpent reached for Twilight once more. She shut her eyes, unable to continue evading the creature.
Opening her eyes, she looked above to see the serpent being pushed back by a new dragon.
“Is that Stardust?” Twilight mumbled. “No. It’s different. This light…” she thought, looking ahead at Yusei. On his back appeared to be the image of a dragon, with the same glow as the marks of the Crimson Dragon she saw on his arm. Nodding to herself, she turned her focus to Crow.
“I activate Majestic Star Dragon’s monster effect! Once per turn, I can negate the effect of an opponent’s monster! Then, only once this turn, I can activate the effect of the opponent’s monster as Majestic Star Dragon’s effect! Sublimation Drain!” Yusei continued. His dragon knocked the reptile away, with the latter surrounded by a dark aura. “Battle! Majestic Star Dragon! Attack Disharmony – Dark Wing Serpent! At this moment, I activate the effect Majestic Star Dragon gained from Dark Wing Serpent! When this monster battles, the opponent’s monster loses 1000 ATK!”
“Go, Majestic Star Dragon!” Yusei shouted. “Shooting Blaster Sonic!” His dragon pierced through the serpent’s body, the resulting explosion shaking the Duel Lane.
3800 – 2300 = 1500
Crow LP: 1300 – 1500 = 0 SPC: 6
Crow’s Runner came to a halt. Twilight breathed heavily as her horn ceased its glow. After his dragon vanished, Yusei, with his back no longer glowing as well, turned his Runner around and stopped in front of them.
“Twilight, are you all right?” he asked.
“Yes… I’m fine…” she panted. “I just… took away… the mind control… although I don’t understand how it happened…”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Well, you see—” She was interrupted by darkness bursting out of the pavement beneath Crow’s Duel Runner.
“Twilight!” He yelled, watching the Runner sink into the black abyss.
“Yusei!” She called out. Crow’s body had already vanished.
Hopping off his Runner, Yusei quickly sprinted towards the darkness, as it began to wrap around his friend and the alicorn. “NO!”
A blinding light engulfed the area. Yusei looked up as it faded. Before him stood a large white alicorn with mane that seemed to flow in the wind, even in its absence. Twilight was arched over the alicorn’s back.
“Who’s that?” he asked.
Twilight opened her eyes, immediately recognizing the newcomer.
“I’m sorry I took so long, Twilight,” she said.
“Princess Celestia?!” Twilight exclaimed, stumbling onto the concrete and embracing her former mentor.
“Princess, it’s okay,” Twilight reassured. “He and his friends have been helping me ever since I got here.”
“Is that so?” Celestia asked.
“My name is Yusei Fudo,” Yusei introduced himself.
“How do I know you can be trusted? Your kind has already invaded Equestria.”
“My kind?”
“I think she means those humans I mentioned before that attacked me and my friends.” Twilight turned towards Celestia. “Princess, don’t worry. He’s not like them. In fact, I even think he can help.”
Celestia gazed at Yusei with uncertainty. “Let’s go. We can’t afford to stay—” She quickly turned around.
“Princess?” Twilight said. Looking in the same direction, shadows rose from the ground to take the form of an alicorn covered in armor. The armor was dark gray and its eyes were glowing pure white. “Wait a second… that’s…”
Now that she thought about it, the essence of this darkness that was being used to capture her had a faint sense of familiarity to it, although she couldn’t put her hoof on why. She then noticed another presence approaching from the direction the woman was staring.
“That darkness… it’s just like from my dream,” Twilight stated.
“Your dream?” Yusei asked.
“Yeah. Uh, Princess?” Twilight noticed tears rolling Celestia’s cheeks as she approached the pitch-black alicorn.
“Luna?” Celestia muttered, provoking a gasp from Yusei and Twilight. “Sister, what have they done to you?”
“It can’t be. That’s Princess Luna?!” Twilight muttered. “That must be why she appeared in that dream before…”
“Sister,” Celestia called out, approaching the armored alicorn. “Answer me, please.”
In an instant, the alicorn sunk into the blackness in the concrete. The shadow quickly rushed beneath Yusei.
“Yusei!” Twilight shouted, stumbling into flight towards him as the darkness began to surround him. Wrapping her hooves around him, her horn glowed brightly. Light flashed in the area as the two were teleported back to Yusei’s Duel Runner.
“Are you okay, Twilight?” he asked.
“Yeah…” she panted. “Just… exhausted…”
Yusei and Twilight looked up to see the armored alicorn charging towards them, only to be stopped by Celestia.
“Stop this at once! This is not who you are, Luna!” Celestia said. Their horns glowed. Bursts of energy shot out from their horns towards each other. The explosion shook the Duel Lane.
Yusei glimpsed at the cracks in the ground. “Twilight, we gotta move!” he shouted, boarding his Duel Runner.
Twilight, taking notice as well, spread her wings but found she was too exhausted to lift herself into the air.
“What’s wrong?” asked Yusei.
“I must be too worn out after that battle with Crow…” she answered.
“Then you better hop on.” Yusei raised the armpiece on his Runner as Twilight galloped onto the seat behind him. Lowering the armpiece, he started up the Runner and began driving away from the cracked Duel Lane.
Celestia and the armored alicorn rose from the smoke as the Duel Lane below them crumbled. She turned her head to see Yusei and Twilight moving into the distance. She prepared to fly after them only to be stopped by the black alicorn as it intercepted her path. Its horn gave off a black aura as a sword materialized in front of it. Hesitant, Celestia summoned her own sword.
“If I must…” Celestia uttered. “I’ll do whatever it takes to bring you back!”
“I can’t believe this. Princess Luna is fighting us? She must be under that mind control,” Twilight stated.
“What do you mean by that? And how did you know Crow was being controlled?” asked Yusei.
“You mentioned green eyes and odd behavior. The first time I remember seeing that was at my brother’s wedding, when he was to marry Princess Cadance. They were being controlled by the changeling Queen Chrysalis.”
“Changeling?”
“They’re creatures that can change their form to match others and can feed off of others’ feelings of love. The queen somehow trapped Cadance in the mines beneath Canterlot and took her place. She was going to use Shining Armor—my brother—as a source of power to overthrow Celestia and conquer Equestria. All she had to do first was to get him to weaken the magic barrier surrounding the city that only he was able to conjure up.”
“I see.”
“Because she siphoned so much from him, she was able to weaken my brother’s will—and a few other ponies as well—just enough to be able to control them.”
“And they began acting strange.”
“Yeah. Their eyes turned green as well.”
“So this queen had been controlling Crow and possibly…?”
“Princess Luna, too, it looks like,” Twilight nodded.
“Close, but not quite,” said a voice behind them.
“Who was that?!” Twilight and Yusei turned their heads to see another Duel Runner behind them, merging onto the Duel Lane. The Runner itself was dark-coated, giving its rider an ominious appearance.
“Who are you?” asked Yusei.
“My name is Callos,” the man answered.
The hooded woman stepped towards the docks.
“Well, now. Looks like the main event has started,” she chuckled. Celena held her left arm up in front of her, revealing her Duel Disk with a card on it, and glanced in the direction of Princess Celestia and her opponent. “Death Armor Moon! It’s time we finish this!”
“Callos, you say?” Yusei said. “Does the mean—?”
“Yes, Yusei Fudo,” Callos answered. “I am the same Lieutenant Callos that is your former friend’s superior.”
“What exactly did you mean before?” asked Twilight.
“I suppose there’s no reason to hide anything anymore at this point. You two are the last of your friends, after all.”
“Last? So I guess means that Jack was, after all—”
“My colleague was the one to handle him.”
“And what about my friends, Leo and Luna?” Yusei asked.
“Oh, those two? They were the first to catch wind of us, and the first to go,” Callos grinned.
“You mean… you are the ones behind all this?!” Twilight exclaimed.
“What did you do to Crow?” demanded Yusei.
“He was a merely a test subject. Had a few more hours passed by, the effects of our experiment would have faded,” answered Callos.
“Experiment?”
“I’m sure you’ve noticed it yourself, Yusei.”
“You can’t mean—”
“Crow…” Yusei’s head hung. “Why didn’t you help her…?”
Crow was silent.
“Answer me! Why?!”
“She was in the way. It’s my job to bring you both down.”
“‘In the way’…?” Yusei looked up at Crow. “She’s our friend! Why would you—” Something about Crow had caught Yusei’s attention. He couldn’t help but notice Crow’s eyes. The blank expression alone was more than enough, but now there was something else to it.
“You’re the reason Crow was afflicted with mind control?” Yusei asked.
“It was a difficult process, especially since we were working with other-worldly substances. Given the results, however, it only needs some fine-tuning,” Callos smirked.
“Other-worldly…?”
“He must mean ingredients he could only have obtained from…” Twilight gasped in horror.
“What is it, Twilight?”
“It seems the princess has figured it out,” Callos stated.
“Yusei… that list of ingredients I translated…” Twilight muttered.
“It must’ve been the experiment!” Yusei finished.
“None of the substances I recognized on that list had a mind control effect, even when used together…”
“…which means, it’s the Collective Mind Fluid that was the key to the experiment. But then… if Crow was showing the same behavior as your brother…”
“…that fluid has the same effects as Queen Chrysalis’s mind control.”
“Not bad,” Callos commented. “I commend you for figuring out that much. That fluid is certainly changeling fluid, straight from the wretched queen herself.”
“So the changelings are involved in this?” Twilight asked.
“In a manner of speaking, but none of that matters now. All I need to do now is to eliminate you both.”
Yusei scoffed.
“All of your friends belong to us… all that remains are you two and the other princesses!” Callos pressed a button on his Runner. The Speed World 2 Field Spell appeared on both of their Runners’ monitors.
“OVERRIDING SUSPECT DUEL RUNNER. DUEL MODE ENGAGED,” said the computer voice.
“This will be it for you. Your resistance ends here,” Callos grinned.
“I don’t think so!” Yusei stated. He and Callos drew five cards from their Decks with the alicorns’ battle in the sky as their backdrop.
DUEL! Yusei (LP 4000) VS Callos (LP 4000)
“I’ll go first!” Callos declared, drawing a card. “I Summon Disharmony Valkyrie in Attack Position!”
Disharmony Valkyrie LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“Disharmony?” Yusei mumbled. “To think that there are Disharmony monsters that aren’t Tuner Monsters or Synchro Monsters… does this mean that some of our opponents may have Disharmony Decks?”
“He said he was Crow’s superior, right? Doesn’t that make him in charge of Sector Security?” Twilight asked.
“Yeah, why?”
“Remember that officer that Akiza Dueled?”
“So this is where he lives after all…” the man mumbled.
“You won’t win,” Akiza stated, turning towards her opponent. “It’s my turn!”
“At this moment, the monster banished by Serene Psychic Witch is now Special Summoned to the field! Come, Tuner Monster… Disharmony Core!”
Disharmony Core LV: 1 DEF: 0
“Did he say ‘Disharmony’? Akiza, be careful!” Yusei warned.
“I’m thinking he was sent by Callos,” Twilight concluded.
“You might be right. He may have also arranged for Dobocle to break into the laboratory to kidnap you when you were still unconscious,” Yusei added. “He must have anticipated that I’d flee Sector Security with you.”
“And what about the humans that invaded Equestria?”
“There’s probably a connection,” replied Yusei. “But if this man, Callos, can plan this far ahead… what of the other members of his group?”
“Disharmony Valkryie’s effect activates! Once per turn, I can send the top card of my Deck to the Graveyard, and since it’s a Monster Card, Disharmony Valkyrie gains 1000 ATK until the end of your turn but you draw a card.”
Disharmony Valkyrie LV: 3 ATK: 1300 + 1000 = 2300
“I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn,” Callos finished.
“It’s my turn!” Yusei declared, drawing a card.
Callos LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
Yusei LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
“Since I have control no monsters, I can Special Summon Junk Forward from my hand!”
“Gathering power will turn into a spear that pierces the earth! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Break it apart, Drill Warrior!”
Drill Warrior LV: 6 ATK: 2400
A warrior whose right forearm was a drill descended to Yusei’s side.
“Coming at me right off the bat with a Synchro Summon, eh? But this much is expected,” Callos remarked. “I activate the Trap Damage Break! Because you Summoned a Level 5 or higher Synchro Monster, this turn, Disharmony Valkyrie cannot be destroyed and I take no Battle Damage from battles involving it!”
“In that case, I activate Drill Warrior’s effect! By halving its ATK, I give it the effect of being able to attack you directly!” Yusei countered.
“And now I activate Drill Warrior’s other effect! I discard one card from my hand to banish it!” Yusei continued as his monster vanished.
“Wait, what?”
“I Set three cards face-down and end my turn.”
Disharmony Valkyrie LV: 3 ATK: 2300 – 1000 = 1300
“Clever,” commented Callos. “You knew I was going to protect my monster, so you prepared a countermeasure. You may have banished your only monster, but it’s obvious you’re not without your protection. Not bad, but now it’s my turn!”
Callos LP: 2800 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
Yusei LP: 4000 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
“Disharmony Valkyrie’s effect activates! I send the top card of my Deck to the Graveyard. Since it was a monster, you draw a card and it gains 1000 ATK until your End Phase!”
Disharmony Valkyrie LV: 3 ATK: 1300 + 1000 = 2300
“And I now I summon Dark Wing Galee!”
Dark Wing Galee LV: 4 ATK: 1600
“Dark Wing?!” Twilight exclaimed. “But that’s—”
“The same card Crow used,” Yusei finished. “No doubt about it; Callos was the one who gave him those cards.”
The small bird transformed into a black ring that surrounded Crow’s dragon, the latter became eight bright stars before they were engulfed by a black pillar as Crow began to chant.
1 + 8 = 9
“Let the limitless chaos pour into your soul as you soar through the dark skies! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Disharmony – Dark Wing Serpent!”
Disharmony – Dark Wing Serpent LV: 9 ATK: 3300
A large serpent-like creature floated in the sky.
“It’s likely,” Yusei answered.
“Be careful,” warned Twilight.
“When Dark Wing Galee is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or below DARK Winged Beast from my Deck,” Callos continued. “I Special Summon Disharmony Buzzard!”
Disharmony Buzzard LV: 1 DEF: 500
“Not Disharmony Feathers?” Yusei muttered.
“I tune Level 1 Disharmony Buzzard with Level 3 Disharmony Valkyrie and Level 4 Dark Wing Galee!” Callos declared.
1 + 3 + 4 = 8
“Dissonance seeps into your heart, your resentment breaking through and tearing down the walls of harmony! Synchro Summon! Be born, Disharmony – Scavenger of Cruelty!”
Disharmony – Scavenger of Cruelty LV: 8 ATK: 2500
The winged beast gave a mighty shriek as it emerged from the gray clouds above.
Twilight froze. “What is this…?” she wondered. Something felt terribly wrong about the new creature. Why she felt what she did was a complete mystery to her.
The two alicorns clashed swords. The armored alicorn abruptly backed away, firing a blast of darkness from its horn. Celestia quickly created a small bubble to deflect the oncoming blast. Just as it faded, another burst of darkness struck her from above.
Celestia fell towards the sea, but in her descent, her eyes caught something at the end of the land. Regaining her balance, she swiftly flew above the water’s surface towards the docks. Her focus shifted from her opponent to the hooded figure that stood facing her.
“My, my, it looks like she’s noticed,” Celena grinned.
Celestia slowed to a halt in front of Celena. “You…” she muttered, holding back her rage. “You’re one of the attackers. You must be responsible for my sister’s transformation, aren’t you?”
“And what if I am?”
“Release her.” Celestia’s horn began to glow.
“A bit rash, don’t you think, Princess?”
“I will not lose her again.”
“I wonder about that,” Celena smirked, pointing behind Celestia. The princess turned her head to see the armored alicorn approaching, its horn glowing and firing another blast of darkness.
Celestia darted into the sky, avoiding the explosion. The smoke cleared as Celena boarded her Duel Runner and drove onto one of the Duel Lane’s entrances.
“Where are you going?” Celestia flew after her, the black alicorn in close pursuit.
“I think you should be more concerned about your life. Go! Death Armor Moon!” Celena commanded.
Celestia ascended, narrowly avoiding another blast from Death Armor Moon. “What a repulsive name,” she mumbled, glancing once more at the alicorn before following Celena. Celestia looked up once more to see a large winged beast, surrounded in a dark aura, in the distance. “That beast… it can’t be! Twilight!”
She quickly turned to see Death Armor Moon slashing at her with its sword. Evading the blow, she thrust her own sword at the alicorn.
“Disharmony Buzzard’s effect… since it was used as Synchro Material for a “Disharmony” Synchro Monster, this turn, while I control a face-up Level 5 or higher “Disharmony” monster, you can’t activate any of your Set Spell or Trap Cards!” Callos stated.
“What?” Yusei replied.
“Disharmony – Scavenger of Cruelty! Attack them directly!” Callos commanded. The clouds above turned gray. Several lightning bolts shot out of the sky and were absorbed into the beast. The beast shrieked as electricity burst out of its body towards Yusei and Twilight.
“From my hand, I activate the effect of Swift Scarecrow!” Yusei declared. “By sending it to the Graveyard, your monster’s direct attack is negated and the Battle Phase is ended!” A small scarecrow emerged onto the field next to him.
“I can’t let you do that! I activate the Counter Trap Forced Wing!” Callos stated. “I banish Galee, Valkyrie, and Buzzard to negate the activation of your Swift Scarecrow’s effect!”
“What?!” Yusei watched as his scarecrow was shattered.
“Take this! Lightning Animosity!”
Yusei and Twilight screamed as they were struck by the electricity.
Yusei LP: 4000 – 2500 = 1500 SPC: 2
“Twilight… are you all right?!” Yusei asked, straightening out his Duel Runner.
“Yeah…” Twilight panted. She froze once again. “What was that I just heard…? Was it… a scream…?” She turned her head to look at the winged creature. “Did it… come from that monster…?”
“I Set two cards face-down and end my turn,” Callos concluded.
“It’s my turn!” Yusei declared.
Callos LP: 2800 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
Yusei LP: 1500 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
“I activate the effect of my banished Drill Warrior! During this Standby Phase, it’s Special Summoned!”
Drill Warrior LV: 6 ATK: 2400
“Next, I add a monster from my Graveyard to my hand. Then I activate the Speed Spell – Angel Baton! Since I have at least two Speed Counters, I draw two cards and discard one! Now, I Summon Nitro Synchron!”
“Clustering wishes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Take flight, Stardust Dragon!”
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2500
Yusei felt a strong pulse in his arm as his Signer mark began to glow. “Battle! Stardust Dragon, attack Scavenger of Cruelty!” His dragon turned to face the winged beast.
“Oh? So you’re attacking me now? But your monster has the same ATK as my Scavenger,” Callos stated.
“I have a bad feeling about this,” Twilight thought.
“I activate the Trap Card Meteor Wave!” Yusei continued. “This increases the ATK of a Synchro Monster I control by 300 until the End Phase!”
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2500 + 300 = 2800
“Go, Stardust Dragon! Shooting Sonic!”
“I wonder, though, how you’ll react once you see this,” Callos motioned towards his beast.
Yusei and Twilight watched as a small bulge appeared on the center of the Scavenger of Cruelty. The bulge slowly took the shape of a pony’s silhouette.
“Why does it… look like that…?” Twilight wondered.
An extra limb extended from the body, holding the silhouette, as the blackness surrounding it began to fade away.
“A pegasus? No… it can’t be…” Twilight’s eyes widened. “FLUTTERSHY?!”
“What?!” exclaimed Yusei. The yellow pegasus was held tightly in the monster’s new limb, eyes closed and moaning.
“That’s right,” Callos sneered. “Your friend is mine! And she is about to take this attack!”
Stardust Dragon fired its blast.
“NOOOOO!” screamed Twilight.
“This is bad! I activate the Continuous Trap Scrubbed Raid!” Yusei panicked. “By sending a card from my field to the Graveyard, I can force the Battle Phase to end!” He frantically grabbed his remaining face-down card and placed it in his Graveyard. A barrier appeared and intercepted his dragon’s attack. He and Twilight watched as the extra limb retracted and pulled the pegasus back into its body.
“No…” Twilight whimpered.
“Just as I expected,” Callos chuckled. “Even stopping your own attack just to save her friend. As long as I have her, you cannot win!”
“NO!” Twilight screamed, leaning out of the Duel Runner. A burst of magic shot from her horn towards the winged creature. “Let my friend go!”
Her magic faded. Twilight looked up to see that the beast had survived.
“I’m afraid that isn’t enough, Princess,” Callos stated. “I doubt you could save her in your exhausted state.”
“But how… how is this possible… why is she inside that monster?” she cried. “Yusei!”
“I don’t know,” Yusei replied. “I can’t attack that monster as long as Twilight’s friend is trapped inside of it. On top of that… how many other of her friends does he have? There’s no way I can fight back like this…”
“Now then, I activate the Trap Card Disharmonic Balance!” Callos declared. “Since you used a Trap Card while I have a “Disharmony” monster on the field, I draw one card, and if it’s a Level 4 or lower monster, it can be Special Summoned! And as luck would have it, it is, indeed, a monster! Come, Dark Wing Teerpaak!”
Dark Wing Teerpaak LV: 3 DEF: 1700
“Next, I activate the Trap Card Dark Wing Buster! By Tributing my Teerpaak, I can banish Scrubbed Raid, but you may draw an extra card.”
Yusei drew a card as the image of his Trap Card faded away. He then grabbed the newly drawn card and the remaining two cards in his hand. “I’ll Set three cards face-down and end my turn!”
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2800 – 300 = 2500
“You can’t be serious! You’re continuing like this?!” Twilight shouted. “My friend’s in that thing!”
Yusei replied, “I know that, but—”
“Just stop!” she cried. “I heard her screaming in there earlier… I have to save her… before she gets hurt any more than she already has.”
“But you haven’t fully recovered yet!”
“I don’t care… it’s better than leaving my friend in there to be hurt by a game of chance.” Just as she leaned out of the Duel Runner, an object was hurled into the concrete between the two Runners. Both slowed to a halt. “Celestia?!”
The white alicorn struggled to rise.
“Celestia, are you okay?!” Twilight asked.
“I’m fine, but right now, you need to—” Celestia’s breathing was cut off.
Yusei’s and Twilight’s eyes widened as they saw the shadows in the pavement pierce through Celestia’s body, even though there didn’t appear to be physical damage. As the darkness faded into the ground, Celestia collapsed onto the Duel Lane as the pitch-black alicorn landed next to her.
“And that’s one more princess for us,” Celena said, approaching the group. “Now for you two.”
“You! You’re the one from my dream!” Twilight exclaimed.
“Nice to see you again, Princess Twilight. It’s a shame I couldn’t capture you then, but no matter.”
“How are you—huh?” Callos, Celena, and Death Armor Moon appeared to be frozen in place.
“Twilight…” Celestia moaned, her horn’s glow fading.
“You must… return to… Equestria… and save… the other Elements of Harmony,” Celestia said.
“But I don’t know how to get back…” Celestia grunted as her horn glowed once more. A bright line shined just past Yusei and Twilight. “A portal… But how?”
“I followed the four lights here…”
“Four lights?”
Yusei spoke, “Maybe she means…”
Yusei looked up to see a light on the horizon.
“What’s that?” he asked. Four small lights approached from the sea and, along with a fifth light from Crow’s right arm, flew into Yusei.
“I can feel it. The Crimson Dragon’s power,” he thought. “Everyone’s power.”
“She followed the Crimson Dragon here,” Yusei stated. “That must mean…”
“Yusei…” Celestia struggled to speak. “Please… protect Twilight…”
“Princess?” Twilight said, tears rolling down her cheeks. “Princess!”
A darkness appeared in the pavement beneath Celestia.
“I hate to interrupt such a tender moment, but the time for talk is over,” Celena said. “Now for the rest of you. Go! Death Armor Moon!” The armored alicorn rose into the air and charged towards Yusei and Twilight.
With the last of her strength, Celestia conjured up an explosion of light, tearing up the Duel Lane as it expanded.
Noticing the Duel Lane crumble, Yusei started up his Duel Runner and drove into the portal, his dragon close behind.
“Yusei, stop!” Twilight shouted. She and Yusei gasped as she turned her head to look behind them. Pieces of the Duel Lane fell from the smoke toward the sea. Among the falling debris was a white alicorn. Twilight cried out her name as she and Yusei vanished into the light.
The Duel Runner carrying Yusei and Twilight pierced out of the bright portal onto the rugged terrain, with Stardust Dragon floating just above them. Dark gray clouds filled the sky as lightning shot in random directions. Thunder boomed.
“Where are we?” Yusei asked aloud.
“Celestia…” Twilight sobbed.
“Twilight!”
Twilight raised her head and scanned the area. “This is… the Everfree Forest…”
“Wait, if you know this place, then that means…”
“Yes… we’re in Equestria… but… I’ve never seen it so lifeless… even for here.”
“What?” Yusei suddenly felt a strong throbbing in his arm. He glanced at his glowing Signer mark. “I have a bad feeling about this. My mark is telling me a powerful force is causing all this destruction and decay.”
“That’s right, Yusei!” shouted a voice. Yusei and Twilight became wide-eyed as they looked behind them.
“Callos!”
“But… that’s impossible!” Twilight exclaimed. “The bridge was—”
“Destroyed by your princess, yes,” Callos finished. “But even you should realize this: We have taken the Elements of Harmony, your princesses, and even Yusei's friends, the Signers, on top of that! Compared to that, traveling between worlds is child’s play for us!”
Yusei scoffed.
“Yusei Fudo. Twilight Sparkle. You two are the last and strongest of all your friends. If I eliminate you here, nothing will stop both worlds from falling into our hands! It’s my turn!” Callos drew a card.
Callos LP: 2800 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
Yusei LP: 1500 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
“From my hand, I activate the Speed Spell – Dissonant Strike! Cards and effects cannot be activated in response to this card’s activation. Since I have at least four Speed Counters, this turn, you cannot activate effects that would alter the ATK of a monster on the field!”
“What?!” Yusei exclaimed.
“Next, I banish Chaos Enhancer from my Graveyard to activate its monster effect! Until the end of your turn, my monsters aren’t destroyed in battle with monsters that have the same number of ATK!” Callos grinned. “In addition, when my Scavenger of Cruelty destroys a monster in battle, you take damage equal to that monster’s original ATK!”
“Sealing away cards that alter ATK and protection from battle,” Yusei thought. “That could only mean…”
“Battle! Disharmony – Scavenger of Cruelty, attack Stardust Dragon!”
Disharmony – Scavenger of Cruelty LV: 8 ATK: 2500
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2500
A loud shriek was heard as lightning from the clouds became absorbed into the winged beast.
“That voice! It’s Fluttershy!” cried Twilight.
“Lightning Animosity!” Callos shouted, as a bolt of lightning darted towards Stardust Dragon.
“I activate the Trap Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!” Yusei declared. A metal scarecrow appeared to intercept the attack before retreating back into the card it appeared from. “This card negates an opponent’s monster’s attack. After it’s activated, it can be Set back onto the field.”
“I can’t begin to imagine the pain Fluttershy must be in now…” Twilight thought, worried.
“We’ll save her,” Yusei said.
“But how?!”
“I’m not sure just yet.”
“Yusei…”
“I’m not done yet! I activate the Trap Card Disharmonic Balance!” Callos continued.
“That card…” Yusei mumbled.
“You remember this card, right? Since you used a Trap Card while I control a face-up “Disharmony” monster, I can draw one card. Then, if it’s a monster, it can be Special Summoned!” Callos sneered, drawing a card. “The card I drew is most certainly a monster! Appear now, the Tuner Monster Disharmony Catalyst!”
Disharmony Catalyst LV: 2 DEF: 0
“A Tuner Monster now?” Yusei said.
“But… what’s going to happen to…?” Twilight stuttered.
“Unfortunately for you, my assault is far from finished!” Callos stated. “At this moment, I now activate the monster effect of Dark Wing Teerpaak from my Graveyard! During either player’s turn, by banishing it and my Dark Wing Oved, I can perform a Synchro Summon!”
“No way! Even during the Battle Phase?!” exclaimed Yusei.
“I tune Level 2 Disharmony Catalyst with Level 8 Disharmony – Scavenger of Cruelty!” Callos’s two monsters rose into the sky. His Disharmony Catalyst became two black rings surrounding the eight black stars the Scavenger transformed into, one of which holding Fluttershy captive. The rings and stars were engulfed in a pillar of darkness.
"Fluttershy!" Twilight screamed.
2 + 8 = 10
“Balance is disrupted, as kindness turns to hate! Behold the power that controls it all, and watch it destroys what remains of harmony! Synchro Summon! Descend, Ultimate Disharmony – Vulture of Antipathy!”
A much larger winged beast emerged from the pillar, its talons easily capable of ensnaring any human or pony.
Ultimate Disharmony – Vulture of Antipathy LV: 10 ATK: 3500
“Ultimate Disharmony?” Yusei mumbled. “And 3500 ATK? What is this monster?”
“I can’t… I don’t have enough energy to save her…” Twilight cried, struggling to maintain the glow on her horn.
“Even if I Summon a monster with enough strength, he’ll just have his creature make Fluttershy take the hit… What should I do?” wondered Yusei.
“Ultimate Disharmony – Vulture of Antipathy! Attack Stardust Dragon!” Callos commanded. More electricity was absorbed into the creature. Another shriek was heard.
“Fluttershy!” Twilight shouted. “You monster! Let her go!”
“I can’t do that, Your Highness! She and the rest of your friends belong to us!”
“But if you keep this up, she’ll… she’ll die!”
“So what?”
The coldness of Callos’s response hit Twilight like a bag of bricks. “Wha…?”
“Your friend is nothing more than temporary battery, only needed until her purpose is served. Same for the rest of your friends. None of them ought to die until then, but if that’s what needs to happen in order to wipe out what little resistance you two have left… then so be it.”
Twilight found herself unable to speak, tears rushing down her cheeks.
“To think we could force your resistance down with her alone... but soon you and the rest of your friends will join her.”
“How could you treat other living creatures like this?!” Yusei yelled.
“The same could be said to every human and pony as well! Now go! Enmity Blaze!” Callos commanded. A large burst of electricity and fire compressed into a single beam of energy shot towards Yusei’s dragon. “Just like Scavenger, when Vulture of Antipathy destroys a monster in battle, you take damage equal to the destroyed monster’s original ATK! Now perish!”
“From my Graveyard, I banish Shield Warrior to activate its effect! During this battle, Stardust Dragon can’t be destroyed by your attack!” An image of a warrior holding a large shield appeared to intercept the blast, despite some of it managing to strike Yusei and Twilight causing them to scream in pain.
Callos scoffed. “Your dragon may be safe, but you still take the Battle Damage!”
3500 – 2500 = 1000
Yusei LP: 1500 – 1000 = 500 SPC: 4
“Just a little more. I’ll place one card face-down and end my turn!” Callos concluded. “On my next turn, you’re finished.”
“Twilight, are you alright?” asked Yusei, recovering from the attack. “Twilight?”
“Fluttershy…” Twilight muttered. Her expression grew dull.
“This is bad… we can’t fight back like this! There must be a way to draw Fluttershy out!” Yusei thought. “Ultimate Disharmony… this power… is this the evolution of Disharmony Synchro Monsters?”
Twilight screamed, suddenly yanked off the Duel Runner.
“Twilight!” exclaimed Yusei.
Callos laughed as his monster held Twilight in its talons. “And then there was one!”
“Let her go!”
“You’re not in a position to be making demands, Yusei Fudo! Once I have you, we’ll be one step closer to our goal! But hey, look on the bright side. You’ll be reuniting with all of your friends!”
“Everyone…”
“There’s nothing to do but surrender.”
“Let… me… GO!” Twilight squirmed within the beast’s talons.
“It’s no use. You’re in no condition to fight, princess.”
Twilight screamed as her horn lit up. An explosion occurred.
“Twilight!” Yusei called out.
Callos emerged from the smoke. “Troublesome equine,” he scoffed, noticing small sparks on his Runner. “I’ll have to fix this as soon as I’m done here.”
Twilight moaned as she became limp in the grip of the vulture. “I can’t… do anything…” she muttered. “I just… don’t know what to do…”
“It seems your friend here has lost the will to go on. Now it’s time for you to give up as well, Yusei,” Callos sneered.
Yusei remained quiet for a moment. “No,” he replied. “I won’t give up… and I won’t allow you to have your way. It’s my turn!” he declared, drawing a card.
Callos LP: 2800 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
Yusei LP: 500 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
“I activate the Speed Spell – Angel Baton! Since I have at least two Speed Counters, I draw two and discard one!” Yusei glimpsed at the drawn cards. “Maybe… just maybe…” He then discarded one of the two drawn cards.
“Yusei… why…?” Twilight hung her head. “You’re just going to hurt her more…”
Yusei then grabbed the remaining card. “I Summon the Tuner Monster Mono Synchron!”
Mono Synchron LV: 1 ATK: 0
“Since I can control a face-up Tuner Monster, I can Special Summon Quillbolt Hedgehog from my Graveyard!”
Quillbolt Hedgehog LV: 2 DEF: 800
“When Mono Synchron is used as Synchro Material, I can make the other monster become Level 1! So Quillbolt Hedgehog goes from Level 2 to Level 1!”
Quillbolt Hedgehog LV: 2 – 1 = 1 DEF: 800
“I now tune Level 1 Mono Synchron with Level 1 Quillbolt Hedgehog!”
1 + 1 = 2
“Gathering wishes will call out a new speed's horizon! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! The power of hope, Synchro Tuner, Formula Synchron!”
Formula Synchron LV: 2 DEF: 1500
“When Formula Synchron is Synchro Summoned, I can draw one card from my Deck!” Yusei continued, glancing at his drawn card.
“A Synchro Tuner?” said Callos. “Please don’t tell me you plan on attacking. Or have you forgotten about Twilight’s friend? And speaking of… I doubt she would appreciate your actions now, continuing to put her friend in more danger.”
Yusei remained silent.
“But no matter… you will all belong to us very soon.”
“I will…”
“Hm?”
“I will protect Twilight and her friends!”
“What’s that?”
“Princess Celestia asked me to protect Twilight. And I will do exactly that! As long as at least one of us is able to fight, we will never give up! I won’t stop until all of my friends—Twilight’s friends as well—have been rescued!” Yusei’s Runner began to pick up speed.
“What?” Callos grunted. Twilight’s ears perked up as she raised her head.
“And this world—no… our worlds will never belong to you! We will do everything in our power to protect them! Clear Mind!” Yusei’s Duel Runner appeared to be piercing a barrier. The image of the full mark of the Crimson Dragon appeared before him.
“Yusei…” Twilight mumbled.
“I tune Level 2 Synchro Tuner Formula Synchron with Level 8 Synchro Monster Stardust Dragon!”
“Yusei, what are you doing?!”
Yusei continued to pick up speed. His Formula Synchron transformed into two green rings. The rings positioned themselves on the ground in front of Yusei like a tunnel that he and his Stardust Dragon passed through.
2 + 8 = 10
“Gathering crystal dreams will open the door to a new evolution! Become the path its light shines upon! Accel Synchro!”
“He disappeared?!” Twilight exclaimed, as she watched Yusei and his Duel Runner, along with his two monsters, vanish into a bright light. They suddenly felt a powerful force behind them. Twilight and Callos turned their heads to see Yusei reappear from another flash of light with a single dragon.
“Be born, Shooting Star Dragon!”
Shooting Star Dragon LV: 10 ATK: 3300
“I now activate the Speed Spell – Silver Contrails! Since I have at least five Speed Counters, one WIND monster I control gains 1000 ATK until the End Phase!” Yusei continued.
“Battle! Shooting Star Dragon! Attack Vulture of Antipathy!” Yusei’s dragon charged forward towards the vulture.
“You idiot! It seems you have forgotten after all!” Callos said. “Take the fall, O Element of Kindness!” Just as before, as if growing an extra limb, his beast expelled and held Fluttershy just in front of its body.
“Twilight, now!” shouted Yusei.
“What?!” Twilight replied.
“Save your friend now! You’re the only one who can!”
“But I… I’ve used up too much magic…”
“She needs you right now! This is your chance! Go!”
“This is ridiculous… but I don’t have a choice…” Twilight squirmed as her horn slowly began to glow.
“It’s useless,” Callos grinned. “You honestly ca—what?!” He watched as Twilight teleported onto the vulture’s extra limb.
“Here goes nothing…” Twilight said, struggling to pull Fluttershy out of the beast’s grip.
“Twi… light…” the pegasus mumbled.
“Hang in there, Fluttershy…”
“You honestly think you can free your friend?! I can’t let you do that!” said Callos. “I activate the Continuous Trap Harmonic Reverse! I Special Summon a “Disharmony” Synchro Monster from my Graveyard in Attack Position with its effect negated! Revive, Scavenger of Cruelty!”
Disharmony – Scavenger of Cruelty LV: 8 ATK: 2500
Twilight continued to pull Fluttershy away until she saw the pegasus’s eyes open and heard her faint voice. “Twilight… look… out…” She turned her head to see the smaller winged beast approaching with its talons.
“Kill them!” Callos commanded.
Twilight shrieked.
“Go, Shooting Star Dragon!” Yusei shouted. His dragon pierced through the Scavenger, creating an explosion. Callos and Twilight screamed.
4300 – 2500 = 1800
Callos LP: 2800 – 1800 = 1000 SPC: 5
“Why you…” Callos groaned, as the smoke cleared. More sparks flew out of his Runner. “Huh?” He noticed the end of his vulture’s extra limb was missing and that Twilight and Fluttershy were no longer present. He glanced further behind him to see Yusei’s Duel Runner—with Fluttershy behind Yusei sharing his seat and Twilight gripping the armpiece—moving in a different direction.
“Fluttershy, are you alright?” Twilight asked her. Fluttershy’s only response was a low moan. “She’s in bad shape. Yusei, we have to get out of here!”
“Got it,” Yusei replied.
“You’re not going anywhere!” Callos yelled furiously. “You won't escape from me!”
“He’s still after us?!” Twilight exclaimed.
“I activate the Trap Explosive Breakout!" Yusei declared. "If the only monster on my field battles a Level 8 or higher monster you control and your monster is destroyed, I can lower my monster’s ATK by 800 and have it attack once again! One more time! Shooting Star Dragon, attack Ultimate Disharmony – Vulture of Antipathy!”
“What?” Callos replied, turning his head to see Shooting Star Dragon behind him.
“Shooting Star Dragon! Stardust Mirage!” Yusei shouted, his dragon speeding up, creating afterimages of itself as it flew, and piercing through the giant vulture.
Another explosion, leaving Callos screaming.
4500 – 3500 = 1000
Callos LP: 1000 – 1000 = 0 SPC: 5
“That should slow him down,” Yusei said. “Are you okay, Twilight?”
Twilight’s head jerked up. “Y-yeah…” She looked over at her unconscious friend.
“Your friend will be fine.”
“I hope so…”
“I won’t be defeated like this!” Callos shouted.
“What?!” Yusei exclaimed. He and Twilight noticed sparks pouring out of Callos’s Runner. “His Runner…”
“I won’t let you escape…” Callos opened his palm towards the sky. A lightning bolt shot from the clouds into his hand.
“How is he doing that?”
“I’ll drag you all with me to the deepest pits of Tartarus!” Holding his arm forward, Callos released the lightning bolt towards Yusei’s Runner, just as his own Runner burst into flames.
Another explosion.
Yusei suddenly found himself and the ponies elsewhere and slowed to a stop. “What just happened?” he asked. He then noticed the glow on Twilight’s horn fading. “Twilight?”
“I got us out… just in time… Duel Runners… not the easiest thing to teleport… especially at that speed…” she panted, her hoof on her forehead.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah… I’m… fine…”
“Where did you take us?”
“We should be… near… Po…” Twilight’s voice trailed off. Losing her grip on the Runner’s armpiece, Twilight collapsed onto the dirt.
Yusei raised the armpiece Twilight was gripping and gently leaned Fluttershy on the armpiece on the other side. Yusei quickly got off of his Runner and knelt down next to Twilight, shaking her. “Twilight! Wake up!”
Twilight moaned as she slowly opened her eyes. The first thing she noticed was the familiarity of the room and where she was. Without a doubt, the house belonged to—
“Oh my goodness!” said a soft voice. Twilight felt another’s limbs around her. “Are you alright, Twilight?”
“Fluttershy…? You’re… awake!”
“I’ve been so worried about you!” The pegasus released her friend and stood beside her.
“What happened?”
“You’ve been asleep for hours! We were wondering when you’d finally wake up.”
“‘We’?”
“Why, yes. Me and—”
“Yusei?” Twilight cut her off. “Is he still here?”
“Uh… y-yes? I-is something wrong?”
Twilight sighed, staring at the bed. “He knew the risk. He knew how big it was, and yet he took it anyway. We were just lucky…” She glanced at Fluttershy.
“Twilight?”
“I need to speak with him.” Twilight removed the covers and stumbled onto the floor.
“Twilight!” Fluttershy quickly helped her friend up. “I don’t think you should be out of bed right now.”
“I suppose she’s right… I still feel a bit drained from using up so much magic recently…” the alicorn thought. “All right. Can you tell me what happened?”
“Um, sure,” replied Fluttershy, helping her friend back onto the bed.
“Wha… where am I?” Fluttershy asked out loud as she woke up. She was immediately greeted with the sight of her animal friends surrounding the bed, many of the smaller ones embracing her.
The pegasus yelped as she was scooped up by a bear that hugged her tightly.
“My goodness. How long was I asleep?” she asked, as the bear let Fluttershy down onto the floor. She then felt Angel tug at her mane, pointing towards a figure that stood facing her. “U-um… hello…?”
The figure smiled back. “It’s good to see you’re awake.” He stepped towards Fluttershy, only causing the latter to take a step backwards out of reflex. The male quickly stopped in his place.
The silence remained for a moment before the male spoke up again. “My name is Yusei Fudo. You’re one of Twilight’s friends, aren’t you?”
Silence.
“She’s downstairs on the couch. I think it’s best if you see to her now,” Yusei said.
“What does he mean by that?” Fluttershy wondered. “Last thing I remember is…”
She gasped as she darted downstairs towards her couch.
“Twilight!” she called. She turned her head to Yusei. “What happened to her? Is she okay?”
“I think she used up a lot of her power in the past couple of days. She probably collapsed out of severe exhaustion.”
“We need to get her upstairs into my bed, Mr. Yusei.”
“Right. And you can just call me 'Yusei'.”
“Where is he now?” asked Twilight.
“Downstairs,” Fluttershy answered. “Not sure what he’s doing, though. He keeps looking through the window towards Ponyville with these strange binoculars. Something about a scout…?” There was uncertainty in the pegasus’s voice.
“So have you been talking to him?”
“Not much at first, I’m afraid. I’m really shy around strangers…”
“Gee, I never would’ve guessed,” Twilight thought.
“B-but… he couldn’t be all bad. I don’t have a good memory of what happened, but I think I remember him helping us to my cottage.”
“Oh, did he?”
“Why, yes.”
“Did he say anything else?”
“N-no, he hasn’t. At least not yet.”
“I see…”
“I-is there something wrong, Twilight?”
“It’s a long story, Fluttershy. Do you think you can bring him here?”
“What for?”
“I’d like to have a word with him.”
“Oh. Okay.” Fluttershy turned to head downstairs.
“I really want to give him a piece of my mind… Hopefully, this doesn’t happen again,” Twilight thought. “I can’t bear to think of what would happen if I had lost any of my friends…”
She watched Yusei and Fluttershy climb the stairs and approach the bed.
Twilight and Yusei then stared at each other, both with melancholy in their eyes.
“So how did you manage to find this cottage?” Twilight asked.
“It was the closest building to where you teleported us,” he answered.
Yusei pushed his Duel Runner along as both Twilight and Fluttershy lay resting in the seat, their heads leaning on one of the armpieces.
He looked up and noticed a small two-story cottage with a stream running in front of it.
“That looks like a good place to stay…” he figured, pushing his Runner towards the new destination.
Yusei stopped as he saw the front door of the cottage open.
“Have they already come here…?” he wondered.
To his surprise, a bear and several smaller animals emerged from the doorway and rushed towards him.
“What’s with them…?” he mumbled.
The animals seemed to glance at the unconscious ponies on his Duel Runner before glaring at Yusei.
The bear raised its claws into the air.
“Not good,” he thought.
The bear roared before he was stopped by a hoof, turning all eyes towards it.
“Don’t…” the pegasus spoke.
The animals' eyes shift constantly back and forth between Yusei and Fluttershy.
“Don’t… hurt him… please…”
The bear hesitated before bringing his paw down. It approached the Duel Runner once more, this time to pick up the ponies that lay on it.
Yusei chuckled. “I’ll be sure to thank her later,” he thought, following the animals into the cottage.
“I see…” Twilight said.
Silence.
“This is about my Duel with Callos, isn’t it?” questioned Yusei.
“Yes, it is,” she sighed.
“Uh… Duel…?” Fluttershy asked. Quickly glimpsing at Yusei and Twilight, she turned toward the stairs. “Oh, uh… I’ll just… come back later.”
“What if I didn’t have enough magic, Yusei?” Twilight asked. “What if I couldn’t save her right then and there? She could’ve died.”
“I know,” Yusei replied.
“Then why?!” the alicorn cried. “Why would you take such a huge risk?! Did you even think about what would happen if I couldn’t save Fluttershy? If I didn’t have enough magic to do anything? You could’ve—”
“There wasn’t really an alternative.”
“What does that mean?”
“If I had ended my turn and done nothing, Callos might’ve won. He already had you and Fluttershy captured; all that was left was me.”
“But…”
“With only 500 Life Points left, I was past the Speed World 2 safety line. He would only have needed to draw a Speed Spell; with that, he would be able to remove four of his Speed Counters to use Speed World 2’s effect to inflict 800 damage to me. Even if he didn’t, he might have found a way around my Shooting Star Dragon’s effect and my Scrap-Iron Scarecrow. Any other case, I would just be stalling until either of the two scenarios I just mentioned occur. And when one loses a Turbo Duel, their Runner would automatically come to a halt. At that point, we would lose all hope of saving our friends.”
Twilight remained silent.
“I’m sorry, Twilight,” Yusei hung his head. “I’m sorry that I placed your friend’s life in danger, but I did it because there was a chance she could be saved… and because any other choice would’ve been worse.”
Silence.
“I don’t take such high risks unless it’s absolutely necessary. Maybe there was a better option, but there wasn’t any time to think of any.”
“Couldn’t you have just… I don’t know… done nothing? Not even end your turn?”
Yusei shook his head. “No. The Duel Runners would see that as either an implied ending of my turn… or forfeiting the Duel. If I had cancelled the Duel, Callos would still be holding Fluttershy captive… and maybe even you as well.”
“And my other friends? What if Callos had them?”
Yusei was silent.
“You had no way of knowing if he had them captured in some other cards! What if he still has them?! What if…” Her own tears stopped her. “Weren’t there sparks flying out of his Runner?”
Yusei flinched. He recalled the condition of Callos’s Runner all too well.
“If he still had them… my friends… they could be…”
He knew she was right. The possibility existed. There was nothing he could say.
“Yusei,” the alicorn sighed. “Just go.”
“Twilight?”
“Please go. I need some time to think.”
Yusei hesitated. “All right.”
His eyes met Fluttershy’s as he traversed the stairs. He could instantly tell that they were filled with sadness, fear, and—most of all—uncertainty. Without a doubt, she heard every word that was spoken. She didn’t fully understand every detail, but the main points of the conversation she understood well enough.
Yusei walked past Fluttershy toward the window at the front of her cottage. “It’s a miracle that we even managed to save her,” he thought. “If we had failed… it’d be an understatement to say that things would’ve been much worse. I wouldn’t dare let any of them go through that. No one should have to suffer the loss of family or friends because of someone else trying to achieve their goals.”
He glanced towards the town in the distance. His eyes catching something, he brought out his binoculars from the compartment in his Duel Runner and rushed to the window.
“This is bad,” he said, lowering the binoculars.
“What is it?” Fluttershy asked.
“I’ve been seeing dogs covered in armor all over town, and three of them… are heading our way.”
“Bah! I can’t believe that we’re doing this! The Diamond Dogs taking orders from an ape!” Rover grumbled, as he and the two dogs accompanying him were approaching the cottage.
“But the master promised us gems if we did some signing after this,” the bulky Fido replied.
“Shut up! He is not our master! We are our own masters!”
“But if we try to fight him, he’ll…” Spot paused, rubbing the back of his head.
“Yes, yes. I know! I did not forget. Let’s just check the house and go to the signing!”
Fido tapped his paw on Rover’s shoulder. “Uh… if he’s not our master, then why are you—”
“SHUT UP.” Rover grabbed the door handle to the cottage, trying to pull it open, only to find that the door would not budge. “Open!” he shouted.
The two dogs watched as their canine leader violently shook the door, ripping it from its hinges.
“Finally!” Rover exclaimed.
“I don’t see anything in there…” Fido stated.
“Of course not! You can’t see anything at all! It’s too dark!” Spot added.
“Quiet!” Rover stepped towards the blackness.
A bright light suddenly blinded the dogs. Immediately following was a loud noise they only recognized from the apes commanding them. Too slow to get out of the way, a passerby could swear that they heard the sound of pins in a bowling alley.
Recovering from the blow, they looked up to see that a red… contraption—with a… lone ape rider?—in front of them, undoubtedly having come from inside the cottage.
The dogs gaped at what they saw.
“Maybe he’s the one master wants!” Fido said.
“He’s not our master! Get him!” Rover commanded. The canines leapt towards the red contraption, only for their heads to crash into the ground as their target evaded them. They looked on as the rider slowly distanced himself from the dogs.
“Come and get me!” the rider challenged.
Rover growled. “After him!”
Fluttershy peeked out the upstairs window with a concerned expression.
“Let’s go, Fluttershy,” Twilight said, placing cloaks on herself and her friend.
“Uh… okay…” Fluttershy responded. “Is he… going to be okay…?”
“Yusei will be fine. Let’s move.”
“R-right…” As she turned away from the window, something in the distance caught her eye. “Uh… Twilight?”
“What is it?”
“Wasn’t Yusei riding a giant red… bike? And not wearing a cloak?” Fluttershy’s hoof pointed at the approaching figure on the path.
Twilight peered out the window. “That’s not him… we need to go out through the back.”
“Figures they can’t take simple orders,” a voice spoke from downstairs.
“Let’s go,” Twilight whispered.
The two ponies crept towards the back window as the voice continued on. “Did they not understand that they were looking for a Signer and two ponies?”
Fluttershy slowly pushed the window open.
“What did they think they were doing? Now the Signer is obviously leading them away. Dumb mutts.”
Twilight motioned for Fluttershy to go through the window.
“If those three were competent enough to understand what we were telling them to do, I wouldn’t be here to ensure that they didn’t miss something that obvious.”
The two ponies descended slowly to the ground, out of sight of the newcomer. Footsteps were heard traversing the staircase.
“Whatever. The sooner they’re found, the sooner I can get out of here.”
The two ponies crept away from the cottage, out of the intruder’s line of sight as he continued rambling on.
“That was close,” Twilight sighed, once out of earshot of the cloaked man.
“I wonder if Yusei is all right,” Fluttershy said aloud, as they traveled on.
“He’ll be fine.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because his Duel Runner is easily faster than those dogs.”
“Duel… Runner?” Fluttershy gave Twilight a confused look.
“The bike.”
“Oh… that’s an awfully strange looking bike. And a strange name for it, too.”
“That’s just what the humans of his world call bikes that they Duel on.”
“Duel? I heard you and Yusei talking about something like that before…”
Twilight glanced at Fluttershy.
“I-I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been eavesdropping. Never mind. Forget I asked.”
“No, it’s fine,” the alicorn sighed, as she started to mumble. “It’s just a dumb card game that they somehow use to hurt others…”
“I-I didn’t quite hear you.”
“It’s a card game, but somehow they’re using it to hurt others.”
“Twilight, are you… okay?”
“I’m fine. It’s just… the humans attacked us… they found a way to seal you into a card.”
“What?!” Fluttershy froze in place.
“Don’t you remember, Fluttershy?”
“N-not exactly. All I remember is being trapped in a really, really dark place. I felt like I couldn’t move. Should I have remembered being in a card? I’m sorry I don’t—”
Twilight placed her hoof on Fluttershy’s muzzle to quiet her. “My point is that you were trapped inside some giant monster! And Yusei could’ve hurt you even more!”
“I-I-I don’t understand…”
“He just… he just… went along with the rules of the stupid game and had his dragon attack the monster that you were inside.”
Fluttershy shuddered. “Dr-dr-dragon…?”
“I know he was doing it to draw you out of the monster so I could save you but… so many things could’ve gone wrong! It was a huge gamble, and he knew it. He knew how bad things could’ve turned out and gambled on it anyway! I’ve exhausted nearly all of the magic I could muster up these past couple of days. Right then… right there… I felt like I wasn’t going to be able to save you…” Tears began welling up in Twilight’s eyes.
“Twilight…”
“I was just lucky that I somehow managed to get you out… you could’ve died there… we both could have. We don’t even know for certain that that human had any of our other friends sealed into cards! What if he did? What if his Runner crashed and exploded because it started malfunctioning? What if—”
Twilight suddenly found herself in Fluttershy’s embrace. “There, there,” the pegasus spoke, attempting to calm her friend. “You know you shouldn’t let your worries get the best of you.”
“I know… I just… I don’t want to lose any of my friends… not like that… I just wish Yusei wasn’t so… so… risk-taking.”
“Well… at least you know I’m still here.”
“Yes… I guess I can be grateful for that.” The two ponies began walking again. “But still, how do we know for sure that that human didn’t have the rest of our friends?”
“Maybe you can try asking one of the ones in town really nicely?”
Twilight could only respond with a blank stare.
“N-never mind… I’m sorry…”
The alicorn sighed. “That just might be our only option.”
“…What?”
“Let’s just get to Sweet Apple Acres.”
“Hey, let me go!” a male voice called out.
Twilight and Fluttershy glance towards the center of the crowd. All they could see was a giant metal crate with wheels attached to the bottom. Attached to the front was a carriage that were chained to a group of armored dogs. Unable to see the back where the commotion was, the two ponies crept around until they saw a unicorn being shoved into the crate by two other armored canines. Behind them stood another cloaked human.
“Oh, my…” Fluttershy reacted.
“That armor those dogs are wearing…” Twilight noted. “It looks like… the same armor as the dogs that broke into the Golden Oak library the other night…”
“Quit your struggling, pony, and just cooperate. You’ll make things so much easier,” said the human.
“You won’t get away with this!” shouted the unicorn.
“Oh, please.”
The stallion shoved the canines aside and glared at the human.
“Idiot.” The human raised his Duel Disk, drew a card, and placed it in what Twilight recognized as the location for playing Spells and Traps. A large lightning bolt shot down from the sky and struck the unicorn.
The crowd watched in horror as the stallion screamed in agony until the lightning faded away.
“Th-that’s… horrible…” Fluttershy cried.
“How… how did he do that…? He wasn’t in a Duel…” Twilight wondered.
The human sneered. “Let this be yet another example to you all… of what happens when you try to resist us. Rogues! Toss him in the crate! He’ll be joining our other captives at the castle.” The dogs hurled the stallion into the crate and shut the door.
“The castle?” the alicorn softly repeated.
“Um, Twilight? You don’t think they mean…?” Fluttershy whispered.
“My castle? Probably. It also likely means that they’re using it as a base of operations.”
“What are we gonna do…?”
“I don’t know yet, but we’ll figure something out.”
“How could you?!” a young and unmistakably country-like voice yelled out.
“That voice…” Twilight noticed. “No. No way.”
“You fillies should know better than to misbehave like you have,” the man replied. “Or do you want to end up like that unicorn that just tried to play hero?”
“We’ll get you for this!” shouted another young voice.
“Wait until our sisters find out!” added a squeaky voice.
“Think I’m not above harming you? Try me.” The man raised his Duel Disk once more.
“You don’t scare us!” the country voice shot back.
The man grinned as he drew a card.
“No…” Twilight mumbled.
“This’ll teach you to talk back to me.”
“No!”
“Twilight?” Fluttershy said.
“I hope you’re ready.” The man placed the card in the Spell and Trap Zone of his Duel Disk.
“NO!”
“Twilight!” Fluttershy shouted.
Another lightning bolt struck down from the dark clouds above. The sparks suddenly bounced off a lavender shield, ricocheting in several different directions. The dogs and the crowd ducked in a panic to avoid the shock.
“Well, well, well,” the human chuckled, as the smoke vanished. “What do we have here?”
The crowd of ponies gasped as the cloak around the alicorn came off.
“How kind of you to join us, Princess Twilight.”
“Let everypony go and leave this town. Now,” Twilight demanded.
“You’re not the one in charge around here, Your Highness.” With a snap of his fingers, the two armored canines that threw the stallion into the crate lunged at Twilight.
The alicorn’s horn glowed brightly. A brief flash lit up the area. As the light faded, the dogs no longer saw their target in front of them. A sudden burst of magic struck one of the canines from above.
Everyone in the vicinity looked up to see Twilight, her horn covered in a lavender aura.
“A slippery one, aren’t we? But you can’t win,” the human stated.
“I won’t stop until all of my friends are rescued and you all leave forever,” Twilight replied.
“I’m afraid that isn’t up to you, Your Highness, or did you already forget the advantage we have over you?”
“What…?”
“We have your friends and your hometown in our clutches. You are but one pony; you couldn’t possibly stop us if we decided to… oh, I don’t know… go on a little rampage and destroy this town. You couldn’t possibly stop us all by yourself.”
“You wouldn’t dare.”
“Oh, I would. And I will. Unless…”
“Unless?”
“How about a trade, Princess Twilight? We will leave this town and release all of our captives here.”
Twilight planted her hooves on the ground. “What’s the catch?”
“Oh, something simple: You.”
“Me? Why would I ever agree to that?”
“Because if you don’t, your friends will be ours.” The dogs attached to the carriage rotated the crate until Twilight could see the captives inside.
“Girls!” she shouted. Behind the bars were, along with the unicorn, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and an unconscious Big Macintosh. “Let them all go!”
“Like I said… I will if you give yourself up.”
Twilight groaned. Another burst of magic shot towards the cage only to bounce right off the cage, which glowed upon contact. “But how…?” she wondered. Another flash of light. She found herself against the bars, unable to teleport inside, and quickly backed away. “Is that thing enchanted…? But wasn’t he just about to—”
“As you can clearly see, you’re at a huge disadvantage here. However, if you’re willing to cooperate…”
All eyes were on the princess.
“What should I do?” Twilight asked herself. “If they capture me, then… they might do the same thing to me as they did to Fluttershy! Then they’ll just use me to destroy Equestria! But if I don’t… then they might be taking my place! I can’t just let them get taken away!”
“Don’t do it, Twi!” Apple Bloom begged.
“You can’t just let yourself get captured!” Sweetie Belle shouted.
“If you get taken, they’ll just come after us again!” Scootaloo added.
“Quiet!” the human yelled. “Let the princess make the decision for herself.”
Twilight remained frozen in place, unable to reach a decision.
“Hmm, in that case…” the man snapped his fingers. The two dogs approached Twilight.
Voices called out to her, all of which were tuned out by her own uncertainty. All she could do was stare at the cage containing her best friends’ relatives.
Twilight suddenly found herself jerked away.
“Fluttershy?!” she exclaimed, noticing the pony dragging her by the hoof as she flew.
The man watched the two ponies fly into the distance. “Well, well, well… this just keeps getting more interesting,” he said.
“Hey! Stop!” Rover demanded. The three dogs were slowing down out of exhaustion.
Yusei glanced back at them to see that they had come to a halt. “This should’ve given them enough time,” he figured. Speeding up his Runner, the pursuing canines were quickly out of sight. “According to Twilight, Sweet Apple Acres shouldn’t be too far from here.”
Looking ahead, he saw a large red barn in the distance. At the entrance to the farm, one pony appeared to be hugging another.
“Is that…?” he mumbled. “Twilight? Fluttershy?” Yusei’s Runner came to a halt near them. Twilight was sobbing in Fluttershy’s embrace.
“Oh… hello, Yusei,” Fluttershy gave a weak greeting.
“What happened?”
“My friends… their family…” Twilight cried. “They’ve been taken by those humans… and I couldn’t save them…”
“What?”
“They almost got Twilight, too,” said Fluttershy. “I just… suddenly found myself pulling Twilight away before they could grab her.”
“They were using cards… to hurt other ponies…” Twilight added. “I don’t get it… how are they able to do that? Why haven't you been doing that?!”
“Using cards…?” Yusei wondered. “Maybe that means…”
“I’ve had enough of this…” the alicorn’s sobs ceased. “I’ve got to save them.”
“Um… are you sure you can?” Fluttershy asked.
“It’s better than doing nothing.”
“But… you already tried, didn’t you?”
“What do you mean?” asked Yusei.
“Twilight couldn’t open the cage with her magic. It was like something else was stopping it.”
“Then… we definitely need to come up with a plan.”
“Just what would your plan be? Duel them? Maybe risk another of my friends? Or maybe even yours?” Twilight snapped.
“Twilight!” Fluttershy responded.
“You can’t… just take gambles like that, Yusei!”
Yusei began to speak. “But I already said that—”
“That you wouldn’t take such big risks unless it was necessary? At what point do you consider it necessary? Did you even try to figure something else out?”
Silence.
“Twilight, please calm down,” Fluttershy begged.
“You’re right… I’m sorry… I just… can’t deal with this anymore,” Twilight whimpered. “It’s just too much. It’s heartbreaking enough that my friends get hurt whenever those humans use cards that have them inside, but… this card game you play in your world… the way your monsters can attack others without hesitation… nearly unable to stop them once you realize it’s a mistake… It’s just too dangerous when the stakes are this high, especially considering that the one being attacked might have one of my friends trapped inside.”
Yusei and Fluttershy could only stand there and listen as Twilight continued on.
“It’s even scarier when you’re willing to take that gamble when I might not be able to save them! There just has to be a way to save them without having to play that card game where they could get hurt and suffer like Fluttershy did… where they could die!”
“Yeah. If I can get into my castle and free everypony that’s been captured, I should be able to rally them and the rest of Ponyville to drive the humans and those dogs out,” Twilight replied. Twilight sat on Applejack’s bed, staring out the window while Fluttershy stood in the doorway, having come to check on her.
“Um… do you plan to free everypony… all by yourself?”
“I might have to. If I try to gather other ponies to breach the castle, I risk them getting captured prematurely. I don’t want that.”
“But what about—”
“Please don’t bring him up.”
“B-but… if he’s able to help us, then surely—”
“I don’t know right now!”
The pegasus whimpered.
“I’m sorry, Fluttershy. I just…” Twilight paused. “I’m just not sure about him right now. There’s just too much that happened recently and I really don’t feel like taking any risks right now—at least not more than I have to. I may just end up heading to the castle alone.”
Fluttershy could only muster up a concerned look while she glanced at her friend. Despite the gap in her own memory, it was obvious enough that Twilight had changed in the past few days.
Could she blame her? No, she couldn’t, not that Fluttershy typically had it in herself to really blame anypony—or anyone, in Yusei’s case—for most things.
“Well… you sure you don’t want me to come with you?” Fluttershy asked.
“I appreciate the offer, Fluttershy, but I really don’t want them to capture you again,” Twilight answered. “Last thing I’d want is for you to get trapped inside some giant monster again.”
Not that Fluttershy could really remember being trapped inside one in the first place.
“I’m not sure it’s a good idea to try and do everything by yourself, Twilight,” said Fluttershy.
“I don’t think I have any other options,” Twilight replied, laying her head on the bed.
“Are you sure I can’t convince you to—”
“No.”
“But…”
“No.”
Fluttershy sighed. “I’ll just… come back later.” The pegasus turned away from the doorway and began trotting down the wooden stairs.
Sure, while it’s probably true that things could’ve ended badly, but she was alive and well in the end. As long as Yusei promises not to be as reckless, it should be fine, right? And hopefully the rest of their friends are still okay?
“Is it even possible to check where that other… bike is?” Fluttershy wondered, glancing upstairs as if wanting to head back up. “Maybe I should… leave her alone for a bit. Yusei might know.”
Her eyes caught sight of a green elderly pony as she approached the front door.
“Poor Granny Smith…”
“Yer crazier than Applejack tryin’ to harvest the entire Sweet Apple Acres in one Applebuck season!” Granny Smith shouted, standing firm in the doorway.
“But Granny Smith, he—” Fluttershy began.
“His kind ain’t welcome here!” the elderly mare interrupted. Twilight did not object, while Yusei turned away like a child being scolded.
“He has nowhere else to go right now!”
“Oh, yes he does. With the rest of the varmints that done kidnapped Big Mac and the young’uns! Now git!” Granny Smith slammed the front door closed behind her.
Fluttershy turned towards Yusei and Twilight. “I’m sorry… she just wouldn’t listen to me.”
“Who can blame her?” Yusei said. “I’m sure the inhabitants of the town feel the same way as she does.”
“Twilight? Maybe you can—”
“No,” Twilight replied.
“…Twilight?”
“I don’t think I’ll be able to convince her to let him stay here.”
“We can’t just leave Yusei out here on his own.”
Twilight paused. “You’re not wrong. I’ll see what I can do.”
“Are you sure?” Yusei asked.
“It should be fine as long as it’s temporary, but I can’t make promises.”
“I understand.”
From all the yelling Fluttershy and Yusei had heard from outside, they knew it was anything but an easy task. The fact that Twilight managed to convince Granny Smith to let Yusei stay in the Apple family’s barn for the time being was a miracle in its own right. Fluttershy could only wonder how things got so terrible so quickly.
As she walked over to the barn, her thoughts were on Twilight and Yusei once more. He couldn’t be a terrible—what was the word Twilight used again? Human.
No, he didn’t seem like a bad human. Even with what Twilight said he did, he has been kind to Fluttershy since she regained consciousness. All she could figure was that whatever Twilight must’ve seen scared her a lot for her to end up the way she is currently.
Although, she did say that Fluttershy almost died; that’s more than reason enough to be afraid. Even so, there’s no way Yusei could be all bad. Didn’t he say something about not having a choice when he was talking to Twilight back at the cottage? If there really wasn’t another option, then it’s understandable.
Okay, maybe not that understandable.
Still, things worked out for the better, relatively speaking, and Yusei did say he’d stop taking such big risks in the future. Surely, they could give him the benefit of the doubt—at least Fluttershy would while Twilight may need some more time.
“Um… Yusei?” Fluttershy called out as she opened the barn door, scanning the interior.
“What is it?” Yusei asked, shifting some hay around.
“What are you doing?”
“Covering my Runner with hay for the time being.”
“Oh. Um, Twilight said something about a… human, I think… trapping me in a card? And how you and he were fighting?”
Yusei moved one last chunk of hay into place before turning towards the pegasus. “Yeah, that’s right.”
“You wouldn’t… happen to know where exactly that was, would you?”
“In the forest. I believe she said it was called the Everfree Forest.”
Fluttershy gulped. “Oh. Um… d-do you happen to know where in the Everfree Forest?”
Yusei shook his head. “Twilight used her magic to teleport us out. There’s no way I’d be able to retrace our steps back to where we Dueled.”
“Oh…” Fluttershy looked back towards the house. “Then I guess Twilight really would be the only one to know… but the Everfree Forest is so… big.”
“By the way, Fluttershy.”
“Y-yes?”
“There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask about. The weather and natural light haven’t changed one bit since we arrived here. Is there a reason why that is?”
“Why do you ask? Is the weather different in your world?”
“Different?”
“Well, yes. Here in Equestria, the pegasi are responsible for the weather. Doesn’t that happen in your world?”
“No. Humans aren’t capable of manipulating the weather. It’s more like it acts on its own.”
“That… sounds an awful lot like the Everfree Forest. The clouds and weather move on their own. Not only that, the animals fend for themselves and plants don’t need our help, either.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s usually up to us ponies to tend to the animals. The land is cared for by the earth ponies and, as I said earlier, the pegasi control the weather… but for some reason, my friend Rainbow Dash had some trouble getting rid of those clouds that are up above us now.”
“I see, but what about the daylight? It hasn’t been dark in several hours.”
“That’s because Princess Celestia controls the sun while Princess Luna controls the moon. I’m not sure why they haven’t done anything about it… or about these humans in Ponyville…”
“Celestia, you say?”
“Y-yes… is something wrong?”
Yusei searched his memory for a bit.
A blinding light engulfed the area. Yusei looked up as it faded. Before him stood a large white alicorn with mane that seemed to flow in the wind, even in its absence. Twilight was arched over the alicorn’s back.
“Who’s that?” he asked.
Twilight opened her eyes, immediately recognizing the newcomer.
“I’m sorry I took so long, Twilight,” she said.
“Princess Celestia?!” Twilight exclaimed, stumbling onto the concrete and embracing her former mentor.
“That’s Princess Celestia?” Yusei said.
“Is something wrong, Yusei?” Fluttershy asked.
“Princess Celestia and Princess Luna have the power to control the sun and the moon, right?” Yusei responded.
“Y-yes…”
“When we saw Princess Luna back in New Domino City, she seemed to be under their control.”
“She what?!” Fluttershy gasped.
“And Princess Celestia… she…”
With the last of her strength, Celestia conjured up an explosion of light, tearing up the Duel Lane as it expanded.
Noticing the Duel Lane crumble, Yusei started up his Duel Runner and drove into the portal, his dragon close behind.
“Yusei, stop!” Twilight shouted. She and Yusei gasped as she turned her head to look behind them. Pieces of the Duel Lane fell from the smoke toward the sea. Among the falling debris was a white alicorn. Twilight cried out her name as she and Yusei vanished into the light.
“She sacrificed herself… to make sure Twilight and I would make it here to Equestria,” Yusei stated.
“Th-that’s… that’s horrible!” Fluttershy’s voice shook. “Maybe this is another reason why Twilight feels the way she does towards Yusei.”
“To be able to move the sun and moon on a daily basis must take a considerable amount of power. Yet… that group was able to control one and defeat the other…” he thought. “Just who are they?”
The two found themselves startled by a sudden explosion. Before they could catch a glimpse of the cause, Fluttershy shrieked as she was grabbed by a large armored canine.
“Fluttershy!” Yusei shouted.
“So this is where you’ve been hiding, Yusei Fudo,” a male voice said. “It was annoying enough that those dogs were dumb enough to take your bait, and even more so that the cottage was empty. Whatever. We have you now.” A hooded man appeared at the barn’s entrance.
“Who are you?”
“My name isn’t important. Take her away.”
“Yusei! Help!” Fluttershy cried as her captor carried her away.
“Let her go!” Yusei demanded, sprinting towards the barn door.
“No, you don’t!” The hooded man raised his Duel Disk and inserted a card into its Spell and Trap Card Zone.
Yusei braced himself for the gust he felt, only for it to knock him over. “What was that?” he wondered.
“It’s over, Yusei. You and the pegasus are coming with us now, along with the princess.”
“Give it up, Yusei,” the man demanded, while using a card to trigger a gust.
Yusei barely rolled out of the way. “Who are you?”
“Make it easy for the both of us and quit resisting. I’ve already gotten enough flack for missing your friends at the cottage.”
Yusei glimpsed past the man. “Fluttershy…” He turned around towards the pile of hay behind him.
“Where do you think you’re going?” the man exclaimed, causing another gust with another card.
The sound of the resulting boom was heard throughout the farm.
A magenta blast threw one of the armored dogs outside through the broken wall in the kitchen.
“Don’t just stand there!” Rover shouted.
“Get the pony!” Spot commanded.
The other two armored canines stepped towards Twilight.
“Get back,” Twilight gritted her teeth, her horn glowing with a bright aura.
“Ya darn mutts, git out of mah house!” Granny Smith exclaimed.
“Stay back, Granny Smith.”
One of the two approaching dogs leapt at the alicorn. Another blast hurled it outside. The remaining canine rammed into Twilight, knocking her against the wall. The dog then raised its forearm, its nails ready to slice into whatever it struck.
A bright flash briefly lit the room and Twilight was nowhere to be seen. The dog then felt itself flung out of the building by an aura.
Rover, Spot, and Fido then glanced at Twilight, chuckling weakly.
“Nice pony… nice pony…” Fido said as they backed away.
Twilight stared at the remaining dogs until something in the distance caught her eye.
“Is that…? No way…” the alicorn thought. She shot an angry glare at the Diamond Dogs.
A burst of magic created an explosion. The three dogs found themselves sprawling over the lawn. Struggling to get up, the alicorn flew past them towards the armored dog in the distance.
“What are we going to do?” asked Spot.
“Master’s not going to like this at all,” Fido added.
“Shut up!” exclaimed Rover. “He is not our mast—” His words were interrupted by a thud. Rover fell to the ground limp.
Spot and Fido caught a glimpse of the attacker, just before being struck themselves.
“That’s what ya get fer trespassin’!” Granny Smith shouted, tossing her rolling pin aside.
The man stepped further into the barn as the dust began to clear.
“Come out of hiding already!” he groaned. He quickly found himself startled by the sound of a Duel Runner.
Yusei burst out of the hay at the hooded man and toward the entrance.
“Trying to escape?” the man grabbed another card and placed it in his Duel Disk. “I don’t think so!”
Another gust caught the Runner. Yusei screamed as he was thrown out of his vehicle and against the wall of the barn.
“You’re not getting away that easily,” the man sneered.
Yusei crawled to his Runner, his hand about to press a button only to stop short. His eyes caught sight of a lavender creature in the distance flying towards Ponyville.
“Just what would your plan be? Duel them? Maybe risk another of my friends? Or maybe even yours?” Twilight snapped.
“Twilight!” Fluttershy responded.
“You can’t… just take gambles like that, Yusei!”
Yusei began to speak. “But I already said that—”
“That you wouldn’t take such big risks unless it was necessary? At what point do you consider it necessary? Did you even try to figure something else out?”
“What’s wrong, Yusei?” the man grinned, approaching Yusei.
Yusei looked up at the man, before pressing the button on his Runner. His vehicle responded by allowing his Duel Disk to detach from it then attach onto his left arm.
“No… this won’t be like before,” Yusei thought, rising to his feet. “Twilight’s friends…”
“Huh?” the man responded.
“Where are they? And where are my friends?”
The hooded man shrugged. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
“Answer me!”
The man sighed. “How pointless.”
“What?”
“There’s no sense in answering you, seeing as how I’ve been ordered to drag you back with me. Not only that, you and the princess have caused me nothing but grief since you got here. But noooooo! Those idiots in Canterlot are having us doing nothing but grunt work here in this remote town.”
“Canterlot…?” Yusei mumbled.
“And even then, I’m still unfortunate enough to be bossed around by Latrose—who himself just goes and gives that Carnis special treatment! So they send me to go after you and those ponies! Then I get punished for coming back empty-handed! Bah! I’m sick of this nonsense! Doesn’t matter, though. Once I bring you back, I won’t have to put up with that anymore. I might even earn myself one of those special cards.”
“Special cards…?”
A brief silence filled the room.
The hooded man quickly covered his mouth with his palm. “Darn it! Me and my big mouth…”
“So you’re saying that Twilight’s friends are still in Canterlot?” Yusei asked.
“I’m not saying anymore,” the man groaned. “At least not until I’ve beaten you down and taken you by force.”
“That won’t happen!” Yusei raised his Duel Disk.
“You don’t honestly think you can fight me here, do you? After all, you’re nothing like us.”
“What do you mean?”
“You still don’t know? Whatever. I’m pretty sure you’re unable to—what?” The man found himself interrupted by the activation of Yusei’s Duel Disk. “But… how? Bah. Doesn’t matter. It’s all the same!”
Both drew five cards from their Decks.
DUEL! Yusei (LP 4000) VS Enemy (LP 4000)
“I’ll take the first turn!” the man declared, drawing a sixth card. “I end my turn.”
“What?” Yusei replied. “Ending his turn without Summoning a monster or Setting cards? What’s he up to?”
“What’s wrong, Yusei?”
“I don’t know what he’s planning, but I can’t afford to take too much time. I’ll finish this quickly and help Twilight save Fluttershy!” Yusei thought. “It’s my turn! I Summon Speed Warrior in Attack Position!”
Speed Warrior LV: 2 ATK: 900
“During the Battle Phase of the turn it’s Normal Summoned, Speed Warrior’s ATK is doubled!”
Speed Warrior LV: 2 ATK: 900 * 2 = 1800
“Go, Speed Warrior! Direct attack! Sonic Edge!” The metallic warrior darted forward on its hands, kicking the hooded man.
Enemy LP: 4000 – 1800 = 2200
“A little too eager, huh, Yusei?” said the man. “From my hand, I activate the monster effect of Rogue Blades!”
“What?!” Yusei exclaimed. “A monster effect from the hand?”
“By discarding this card and one other card from my hand, you take damage equal to the amount I took!” The image of a small canine lunged at Yusei, striking him with the blades on its arms.
Yusei LP: 4000 – 1800 = 2200
“This damage… it’s real…” Yusei noted.
“At this moment, I activate the effect of the Rogue Emissary,” the hooded man continued. “When it’s discarded to activate the effect of a “Rogue” card or by the effect of one, I can Special Summon it in Defense Position!” Another dog appeared before Yusei and his monster.
Rogue Emissary LV: 3 DEF: 1000
“Now that your Battle Phase has ended, Speed Warrior’s ATK returns to normal.”
Speed Warrior LV: 2 ATK: 1800 / 2 = 900
“So… what will you do next, Yusei Fudo?”
“This is no time to be careless,” Yusei thought. “I Set two cards face-down and end my turn.”
“P-please… if you could be so kind as to let me go…” Fluttershy whimpered. “Please?”
The armored dog refused to loosen its grip as it sprinted towards Ponyville.
“Somepony… please help…” she cried softly. Glancing in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres, she saw something approaching. “Twilight!”
“Let her go!” Twilight demanded.
Ignoring the princess, the armored dog continued onward.
Twilight’s horn began to glow, teleporting herself ahead of the canine and planted her hooves into the ground. The oncoming dog continued straight forward and raised its free arm while gnashing its teeth. Her horn continued to glow as the captor approached.
“Twilight…?” Fluttershy mumbled.
The dog continued to charge toward the alicorn, raising its free arm. Fluttershy shut her eyes while she hopelessly squirmed in the grip of her captor.
“That’s far enough!” Twilight shouted. A magenta shockwave burst out in all directions.
Fluttershy slowly opened her eyes. Scanning the area, she saw that the canine had stopped—frozen in place, rather. Looking at Twilight, she saw that the alicorn’s horn continued to glow.
Twilight grunted as her horn grew brighter. Fluttershy looked down and noticed that the canine’s grip was beginning to loosen. Twilight peeled the arm off of Fluttershy, allowing the latter to fly to her friend’s side.
“Oh, thank you so much for saving me, Twilight!” Fluttershy said, hugging the alicorn—in turn, causing her magic to fade.
“Are you okay, Fluttershy?” Twilight asked, after the pegasus released her.
“Why, y—” The conversation was cut short by the approaching dog.
Twilight glared at the canine. “I’ve had just about enough of you.”
The dog raised its paw only to get a sharp burst of magic in its face, hurling it several feet away.
“Come on, let’s go,” Twilight said, turning towards Ponyville.
“Um… where are we going?” Fluttershy asked.
“There’s only one place for us to go: my castle.”
“Without Yusei?”
Twilight stopped and paused for a moment. “Fluttershy?”
“Y-yes?”
“I’d rather not bring him into this right now.”
“Are you sure?”
Twilight remained silent as she continued walking again.
“Oh… okay…” Fluttershy lifted herself off the ground and flew behind Twilight.
“It’s my turn!” the hooded man declared. “I activate the Spell Card Diamond Pressure! This turn, I only have to Tribute one “Rogue” monster whenever I would Tribute two or more for a Tribute Summon or card effect!”
“Here it comes…” Yusei thought.
“I Tribute Rogue Emissary to Tribute Summon the Level 7 Rogue Captain!” The smaller dog was replaced by a familiar armored canine.
Rogue Captain LV: 7 ATK: 2700
“What?!” Yusei exclaimed. “But this is…”
The two found themselves startled by a sudden explosion. Before they could catch a glimpse of the cause, Fluttershy shrieked as she was grabbed by a large armored canine.
“Fluttershy!” Yusei shouted.
“It looks the same as the dog that grabbed Fluttershy… and the dogs around town as well…” Yusei noticed. “Of course… there’s no mistaking it now.”
“Yusei,” Akiza called, opening the door to Yusei's apartment about to leave for home.
“What is it, Akiza?” he replied.
“That officer that was here earlier… when I Dueled him, the damage he inflicted was real.”
“Yeah, I noticed that as well.”
“Besides us, the Dark Signers, Team Ragnarok, and Yliaster… there’s only one group of Duelists that are capable of inflicting real damage during Duels.”
“You mean…”
“Yeah.”
“That officer that Akiza Dueled… even Callos… maybe that woman as well… and now this man in front of me…” Yusei thought. “There’s one thing they all have in common!”
“Rogue Captain! Attack Speed Warrior!” the hooded man commanded. His armored beast pulled out a large mace and lunged at Yusei’s monster. “Rogue Mace!”
“I activate the Trap Card Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!” A large metal scarecrow intercepted the dog’s swing. “This card negates your monster’s attack!”
“A pointless move. Rogue Captain’s monster effect activates! Once per turn, when this monster attacks, I can negate the activation of a Spell or Trap Card and destroy it!”
“What?!”
“Eat this!” The man’s canine crushed the metal scarecrow and crushed Speed Warrior. The resulting explosion smothered Yusei.
“I activate the Trap Card Defense Draw! During this battle, the damage I take becomes 0, then I draw one card!”
The hooded man chuckled. “From my hand, I activate the effect of Rogue Punisher. When a “Rogue” monster destroys an opponent’s monster in battle, I can discard this card and another card in my hand to inflict damage equal to the destroyed monster’s Level times 200!”
“What?”
“Speed Warrior’s Level is 2. Therefore, you take 400 damage!” The image of another small canine slashed at Yusei.
2 * 200 = 400
Yusei LP: 2200 – 400 = 1800
“And it just so happens that the card I discarded was Rogue Emissary!”
“But that means…” Yusei mumbled.
“That’s right,” the man continued. “By its effect, it’s Special Summoned to my field in Defense Position.”
Rogue Emissary LV: 3 DEF: 1000
“But I’m not done yet!” The man grabbed the last card in his hand. “I activate the Quick-Play Spell Diamond Rush! Since I control two “Rogue” monsters, I can Tribute two of them to Special Summon another “Rogue” monster from my Deck! However…”
“Of course… this is what he was aiming for…” Yusei observed.
“I see you’ve realized it now. By the effect of Diamond Pressure, I only have to Tribute one monster! I Tribute Rogue Emissary! Appear now, my second Rogue Captain!” Another armored canine armed with a mace appeared at the hooded man’s side.
Rogue Captain LV: 7 ATK: 2700
“Go, Rogue Captain! Attack Yusei Fudo directly and finish him off! Rogue Mace!” The armored beast leapt towards Yusei.
“Swift Scarecrow’s effect activates!” Yusei declared. “When the opponent attacks me directly, I can send this card from my hand to the Graveyard to negate that attack and end the Battle Phase!” A smaller scarecrow emerged and intercepted the canine’s strike.
The man scoffed. “I end my turn. You can’t keep this up forever.”
“I won’t have to.”
“What?”
“It’s my turn!” Yusei glanced at his drawn card. “All right! It’s here!”
“What’s with that smile…?” the man groaned.
“By sending a Monster Card from my hand to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon the Tuner Monster Quickdraw Synchron from my hand!”
Quickdraw Synchron LV: 5 ATK: 700
“Now I activate the effect of Quillbolt Hedgehog from my Graveyard! If I control a Tuner Monster, it can be Special Summoned!”
Quillbolt Hedgehog LV: 2 ATK: 800
“Next, I Summon Sonic Chick!”
Sonic Chick LV: 1 ATK: 300
“I tune Level 5 Quickdraw Synchron with Level 1 Sonic Chick and Level 2 Quillbolt Hedgehog!”
5 + 1 + 2 = 8
“Gathering fighting souls will awaken the raging wicked god! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Obliterate, Junk Destroyer!”
Junk Destroyer LV: 8 ATK: 2600
“A Synchro Monster, huh?” the man said. “However, your monster only has 2600 ATK. It can’t beat my two Rogue Captains with 2700 ATK!”
“When Junk Destroyer is Synchro Summoned, I can destroy cards on the field up to the number of non-Tuner Monsters used as its Synchro Materials!” Yusei retorted.
“What?!”
“Go! Tidal Energy!” A bright light shone from the chest of Yusei’s Synchro Monster. The light shot towards the two canines and vanquished them.
“My… my Rogue Captains…!”
“With this, your field is completely empty!”
“No!”
“Junk Destroyer, direct attack! Destroy Knuckle!” The monster’s four fists lit up, each releasing a small blast of energy at the hooded man. The explosion knocked the man over.
Enemy LP: 2200 – 2600 = 0
The hooded man struggled to rise. “This… isn’t… over…!” He suddenly gasped as a strange blackness constricted his body. “No! Please don’t!”
“This is…” Yusei mumbled.
The man screamed as he was pulled into the darkness engulfing him.
“Wait!” The pitch-black pool vanished as instantly as it appeared, Yusei’s opponent no longer in sight. “What was that…?”
“Can’t y’all keep it down? I’ve had enough of you whippersnappers terrorizin’ mah farm!” Granny Smith shouted as she appeared at the barn’s entrance.
No longer focused on the man’s disappearance, Yusei turned towards the elderly pony. “Granny Smith, right?”
“What’s it to ya, young’un?”
“Where’s Twilight!”
“That filly just took off in a mighty hurry. I figure she’s ’bout to run those darn monkeys and them mutts outta this town. You oughta be leavin’, too. I’ve had enough of the ruckus you and yer kind have caused here!”
“So she’s not just saving Fluttershy…?” Yusei wondered. “She can’t fight them all on her own.”
He quickly set his Runner upright, put on his helmet, and boarded the vehicle.
“I’m sorry for the trouble, Granny Smith,” said Yusei, starting up his Duel Runner.
“Whatever, just git!” Granny Smith replied.
“There’s only one place she and the dog that took Fluttershy could be headed…” he thought, bursting out of the barn.
“Of course,” Twilight sighed. She and Fluttershy were crouched on a hill near the castle doors. Four armored dogs stood at its entrance.
“Um, Twilight?” Fluttershy spoke.
“What is it, Fluttershy?”
“Is it just me or do these dogs seem a bit… different?”
The alicorn examined the canines guarding the castle. “They definitely don’t seem to be the same as the dogs that those humans ordered around…”
“I feel like we’ve seen them before.”
“Well, duh. They’ve been all over Ponyville since the night they invaded.”
“No. I mean… before that…”
Twilight glimpsed at the patrol once more. “You might be right. But right now, we need to get inside. We’ll worry about them later.”
“O-okay… but how we will we—” Twilight placed her hoof on Fluttershy’s muzzle as her horn began to glow. A brief flash lit the area. In the next moment, Fluttershy could see the inside of the entrance hall. “Oh… right.”
“Let’s keep it down,” the alicorn whispered.
“Okay,” Fluttershy whispered back.
“First, we’ll need to find out where they’re keeping everypony captive.”
“Are you sure they’re here?”
“Positive.”
“Then where do we start? I don’t exactly remember a dungeon ever being in here.”
“You’re right about that. It just means we have to—” The echo of a nearby door came from their left. The two ponies quickly lifted themselves off the ground and took cover behind the opposite of the main staircase that faced the entrance. Footsteps were heard approaching the entrance hall.
“That was much more trouble than it was worth,” said a deep, male voice. “If the townsfolk keep revolting like this, there will hardly be any room to keep them locked up.”
The footsteps traversed the staircase upwards and to the right. The ponies poked their heads out to catch a glimpse of the man holding a large ring with several keys on it.
“At the very least, we found another potential candidate,” the man continued. His voice trailed off as another door opened and closed.
“Candidate? What does he mean by that?” Fluttershy asked. The two ponies stepped out from behind the staircase.
“I don’t know, but we can’t worry about that right now. Let’s go.”
“But where?”
“I think I have an idea where everypony is.” Twilight ran towards the hall the man had entered from, with Fluttershy flying shortly behind.
“Latrose, you called?” the man asked, stepping out onto the large balcony high up on the castle.
The other hooded man stood at the edge, looking over the railing towards Ponyville. “Carnis.”
“Yes, sir?”
“It seems our subordinate has failed us.”
“You mean he ran his mouth too much?”
“It’s pathetic. I’m now certain the Signer and those two ponies are on their way here, if they haven’t already arrived.”
“With all due respect, Latrose, I’ve already had an encounter with the princess in the town square. The magic that was provided to us was sufficient enough to prevent her from breaking today’s captives free.” Carnis twirled the key ring on his index finger. “Without these keys, she can’t hope to free anyone.”
“You might be right, Carnis. Still, they can’t be allowed to roam free.”
“Then I’ll add to the dungeon patrol. If the Signer arrives, I’ll deal with him personally.”
“In that case, I suggest you have the native dogs step up security.”
“Those Diamond Dogs and their sorry excuse for workhounds? I don’t think we should trust those bumbling mutts.”
Latrose turned towards his colleague. “Carnis, we’ve already lost our subordinate due to his own incompetence. We already gave him a chance to redeem himself and still he made things worse. As punishment for his failures, we had no choice but to eliminate him.”
“Eliminated? But that means…”
“Yes… unfortunately, it means that his power in this town has completely diminished. It hurts our control over these ponies, but it’s better to not have some idiot constantly blabbing everything he knows to flies on the wall… or even in front of his face.”
“I hardly agree that such action needed to be taken, Latrose.”
“We’re almost at war, Carnis. We can’t give the enemy any kind of advantage.”
“And yet you think I cannot defeat the Signer, which is why you asked me not to have my monsters guard the captives?”
“Call it insurance.”
Carnis scoffed. “I’m offended, Latrose.”
“As much faith as I have in your ability, Carnis, you know as well as I do that we do not accept that kind of failure from anyone. Not even you.” Latros glared at his colleague.
“Fine.” Carnis turned towards the castle and headed inside. A single armored dog approached him. “Here, take these keys. If you manage to subdue her, lock her and that pegasus up immediately.”
The dogs nodded with a low growl as Carnis continued into the castle.
Yusei turned his Duel Runner onto a hill as he approached the castle and pulled to a stop. He quickly removed his helmet and grabbed the binoculars from the seat compartment.
“They’re all heading inside… and they seem to be in a hurry…” he noted, observing the castle entrance. “Don’t tell me…”
Placing his binoculars back into the seat compartment and putting his helmet back on, Yusei boarded his Duel Runner once more and made for the open castle doors.
Twilight and Fluttershy went down the hallway checking the green checkered doors on opposite sides.
“Hello?” Twilight called out.
“Is anypony in here?” Fluttershy asked.
“Apple Bloom?”
“Sweetie Belle?”
“Scootaloo?”
“There are so many doors… how will we ever find them?”
“This is where he came from. They have to be around here,” Twilight answered. A muffled voice came from near the end of the hallway opposite of where they entered. “Did you hear that?”
Their ears perked up and twitched upon hearing the voice again and turned their heads in the direction of the source. “Do you think it’s them?” Fluttershy asked.
“Come on.” Twilight and Fluttershy opened the door at the end of the hallway to a pitch-black room. The alicorn’s horn began to glow, illuminating the room. “Hello?!”
“Twilight, is that you?!” a young female voice called.
Fluttershy responded, “That sounded like…”
“We’re over here!” another female voice spoke.
“Girls!”
Fluttershy and Twilight darted to the cage containing Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo.
“Are you all alright?” the pegasus asked with a concerned tone.
“Well… we’ve been… better,” Scootaloo answered.
“Where’s Big Mac?” questioned Twilight.
“My big brother’s over there,” Apple Bloom pointed across the hall.
The two ponies looked over to see Big Mac on his side.
“You okay, Big Mac?” Twilight asked.
“Nope,” he replied weakly.
“Who else do they have here?” The glow on the alicorn’s horn grew brighter. Twilight and Fluttershy gasped as they saw several cages lining the hallway with Ponyville citizens captive within them.
“This is horrible…” Fluttershy shuddered.
Walking past a few of the cages, they could not help but notice the condition of the townsponies. Many were exhausted or hungry; others were crying or angry.
“You must be Princess Twilight,” a male voice said.
Twilight turned towards the voice’s owner. A dark gray unicorn with a black mane and whose cutie mark resembles a metal heart with several bolts along its outline stepped out of the shadows. His coat and mane easily reflected the light from Twilight’s horn.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you here before,” Twilight stated. “But with that sheen… you must be from…”
“The Crystal Empire, yes,” the stallion finished. “The name is Steel Heart.”
“Wait… you’re the one I saw in the town square.”
“Yeah, that’s me. Tried to help out those fillies there. Didn’t go so well.”
“I’d hate to interrupt, Twilight, but…” Fluttershy interjected.
“What is it, Fluttershy?” Twilight asked. Fluttershy pointed to the last cage at the end of the hallway. The alicorn became wide-eyed as she rushed over. “Spike!”
Twilight pressed her hooves against the cage as the young dragon groaned, tears welling up in her eyes as she noticed a few of his injuries. “Five more minutes…”
“Spike! It’s me! Twilight!”
“I said five more minutes, Twili—TWILIGHT?!” Spike sprang up and rushed to the bars, tears running down his checks. “It’s really you! You’re really here!”
“I’m so glad you’re okay! You’re not hurt, are you?”
“Not that much. Where have you been, though? It feels like it’s been a few days!”
“Well… I’ve had… an interesting adventure…”
“Twilight, I don’t mean to be rude,” Sweetie Belle interrupted, “but could you please get us all out of here first and catch up later?”
Twilight blushed. “Sorry… stand back, Spike.”
Spike saluted as he moved to the back of the cage. The alicorn’s horn lit up, along with the lock on the dragon’s cage. A sudden force pushed Twilight away.
“What was that all about?” Spike asked.
“Twilight,” Fluttershy spoke, helping her friend up off the ground. “That looked an awful lot like what happened when…”
“When I tried to rescue Apple Bloom and the others before? Yeah,” Twilight finished. “These cages must be enchanted somehow.”
“You mean you can’t just rip the locks off the doors?” questioned Scootaloo.
“The enchantment is pretty strong. I could try to force the locks off, but I don’t think I’d be able to break all the locks. The only other way to open them would be with the right keys.”
“Uh, Twi?” Apple Bloom spoke. All turned their heads toward the room’s entrance to see several armored dogs.
The alicorn sighed. “This just keeps getting better and better.”
Yusei rode into the entrance and brought his Runner to a halt.
“So this is Twilight’s castle,” he thought. “I guess it’s to be expected since she’s a princess, after all.”
“So here you finally are, Yusei Fudo,” a man’s voice said.
“Who are you?” Yusei called back, removing his helmet.
The hooded man stepped out from the stairs that branched to the right from the staircase before Yusei.
“My name is Carnis,” the man stopped at the top of the staircase at the branching point.
“Carnis?” Yusei mumbled. “Didn’t that other man mention that name?”
“You might have heard of me before. I wouldn’t be surprised, considering how much that buffoon you defeated likes to talk.”
“So you’re the ones who’ve taken over this town?”
“You could say that.”
“Let them go. While you’re at it, release our friends as well!”
“‘Our’, you say? You must mean the other Signers and the Elements of Harmony. I’m afraid I can’t do that.”
“You have no business interfering with the lives of everyone who lives here!”
“Same goes for you! You have no business interfering with us!” Carnis raised his Duel Disk. “Especially not after what happened.”
“What are you talking about?” Yusei asked.
“Ignorant, huh? What a surprise. In any case, I can’t allow you to continue getting in our way.”
Yusei glanced at Carnis’s Duel Disk. “Where are they?”
“Huh? You mean the princess’s friends? That’s not your concern. After all, you won’t be reaching them anytime soon.”
“Wrong,” Yusei replied, detaching his Duel Disk from his Runner. “Twilight is my friend… and you won’t be allowed to have your way with them!”
“Who’s going to stop us? You?” Carnis sneered.
Yusei raised his Duel Disk. “I’ll do everything in my power to save them and my friends as well!”
“Interesting… your Duel Disk and your Duel Runner are fully functional… It must be one of the benefits of being a Signer. Fine, let’s have some fun!”
Both drew five cards from their Decks.
DUEL! Yusei (LP 4000) VS Carnis (LP 4000)
“It’s my turn!” Yusei declared, drawing a sixth card. “I Set a monster in Defense Position and end my turn.”
“My move, then,” Carnis stated. “I Summon Rogue Brute!” A large canine wearing dark armor and holding a club appeared before him.
Rogue Brute LV: 4 ATK: 1900
“Did he say ‘Rogue’?” Yusei thought. “It’s the same set of monsters that his ally used…”
“Rogue Brute’s monster effect!” Carnis continued. “Once per turn, I can discard one card from my hand. This turn, all of my “Rogue” monsters gain the ability to deal piercing damage! In addition, I activate the effect of the Rogue Emissary I just discarded!”
“What?”
“When this card is discarded to activate the effect of or by the effect of a “Rogue” card, it gets Special Summoned in Defense Position!”
Rogue Emissary LV: 3 DEF: 1000
“That monster…” Yusei mumbled.
“Battle! Rogue Brute, attack the Set monster!” Carnis commanded.
The large canine swung its club as the face-down monster revealed itself.
Shield Warrior LV: 3 DEF: 1600
Yusei’s warrior was smashed by the dog’s blunt weapon.
1900 – 1600 = 300
Yusei LP: 4000 – 300 = 3700
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn,” Carnis concluded.
“My turn!” Yusei declared. “I activate the Spell Card Tuning! This lets me add a “Synchron” Tuner Monster from my Deck to my hand! I’ll add Quickdraw Synchron to my hand, then I have to send a card from the top of my Deck to the Graveyard. Next, by sending a monster from my hand to the Graveyard, Quickdraw Synchron can be Special Summoned!”
Quickdraw Synchron LV: 5 DEF: 1400
“Now, I activate the effect of Quillbolt Hedgehog from my Graveyard! Since I control a Tuner Monster, I can Special Summon it!”
“Not so fast!” Carnis interrupted. “I activate a Trap! Resource Mine! This switches all of my “Rogue” monsters to Defense Position!”
Rogue Brute LV: 4 DEF: 1300
“Next I draw one card.”
Nitro Warrior’s fist slammed into Rogue Brute, vanquishing it.
“At this moment, I activate the effect of Nitro Warrior!” Yusei continued. “When it attacks and destroys a monster in battle, I can change one of your Defense Position monsters to Attack Position! Then Nitro Warrior can attack that monster as well!”
Rogue Emissary LV: 3 ATK: 500
“Go! Dynamite Knuckle!”
The smaller canine monster was vanquished at the hands of Yusei’s warrior.
2800 – 500 = 2300
Carnis LP: 4000 – 2300 = 1700
Carnis chuckled.
“He’s unfazed by that amount of damage?” Yusei wondered. “I Set two cards face-down and end my turn.”
An armored dog charged at Twilight and Fluttershy, swiping its paw at them. The pegasus flew into the air while the alicorn ducked out of the way and fired a burst of magic from beneath it. The impact from the blast hurled the canine into the ceiling before it fell limp to the ground.
Twilight stepped forward as the next dog charged towards her. Using her horn, she tosses the dog behind her, crashing into Spike’s cage.
“Sorry, Spi—whoa!” Twilight narrowly avoided another swipe at her head. Backing away, she fired another magical blast.
Rubbing his head, an object’s shine caught his eye. He glimpsed at the dog before him to see a ring with keys attached to its waist. “Well, well, well,” Spike grinned, snagging the key ring.
Just as he was about to test one of the keys, he felt his arm jerked forward by the dog attempting to reclaim the key ring.
“Hey!” Spike shouted.
“Spike?” Twilight said, turning towards the dragon engaging in tug-of-war. Before she could make her way over to him, two of the dogs obstructed her path while the remaining two stood at the entrance.
“It’s my turn!” Carnis declared. “I activate the Spell Hound Pack! This card lets me Special Summon a Level 4 or below “Rogue” monster from my Graveyard! Rogue Emissary!”
Rogue Emissary LV: 3 ATK: 500
“Next, I Summon the Tuner Monster Advance Party Rogue!”
Advance Party Rogue LV: 2 ATK: 400
“A Tuner Monster?” Yusei mumbled. “It’s coming…”
“I tune Level 2 Advance Party Rogue with Level 3 Rogue Emissary!” Carnis continued.
2 + 3 = 5
“From the depths of the gem-filled mines you have traveled, emerge from the darkness beneath the surface! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Underrogue Hound!”
A large canine with many spikes in its armor emerged in front of Carnis. It removed its large flat blade from its sheath and let out a mighty growl.
Underrogue Hound LV: 5 ATK: 2400
Yusei glared at his opponent’s monster.
“Yusei Fudo…” Carnis said. “This is as far as you and your friends go.”
Twilight darted upwards as two dogs from opposite sides charged towards her, colliding with one another.
A burst of magic struck one of the two remaining dogs and hurled him out of the room.
“Let go!” Spike shouted, struggling to maintain a grip on the key ring.
The dog growled as he slowly pulled the ring towards himself.
“Um, excuse me?” said a soft voice. “Would you please let go of the keys?”
The tug-of-war between Spike and the dog continued.
“Excuse me. If you could please just—”
No response.
“I said EXCUSE ME.”
All eyes turned to Fluttershy. The abrupt end of Twilight’s magic resulted in the fourth dog confronting her to fall on his head.
The pegasus glared at the canines as she descended onto Spike’s cage. “I already tried asking you politely, but it seems this is the only way for you to listen. It’s very rude of you to be hurting ponies and keeping them trapped like this. You should all be ashamed of yourselves!”
The dogs’ ears all drooped in unison.
“Please let go of the keys,” Fluttershy requested, with a piercing stare.
The armored dog holding the ring released his grip and stepped back towards his comrades.
“Now I want you all to go home and think about what you’ve done. I don’t want to see you doing this again,” she stated.
The dogs nodded, whimpering as they fled the room.
Twilight sighed. “Thank you, Fluttershy.”
“Oh, it was no problem,” Fluttershy replied. “I sorta wish it didn’t come to that, though.”
“In any case, let’s start freeing everyp—”
A small explosion was heard outside the room. Twilight and Fluttershy turned to see the five dogs in a pile.
“What was that?” Fluttershy asked. The ponies in the cages that were awake began mumbling.
“She’s here!” cried a stallion.
“Who’s here?” Twilight questioned.
“Her!” shouted a mare. “That pony… she always comes from the shadows to torture us…”
All eyes turned towards the room’s entrance once more. A pony wrapped in a black cloak entered. Her coat was a light gray with a dark pendant around her neck. Her horn poked out of the hood.
“Couldn’t even finish a simple job, those mutts,” the newcomer said. “If I had gotten here earlier, this wouldn’t have happened.”
“Who are you?” Twilight asked.
The unicorn stared at Twilight.
“Well?”
The unicorn’s horn glowed as electric sparks flew at Twilight. The alicorn instinctively raised a shield to repel the lightning. The bolts bounced off the shield and struck the walls behind the cages. The captives shrieked.
“I can’t fight her here…” Twilight thought. “Fluttershy, get Spike out of there and both of you start getting everypony out.”
“What about you?” Spike asked.
“I’ve got some business to take care of.” The horns of Twilight and the mare glowed as the former lunged forward.
Another bolt of lightning shot towards Twilight. The alicorn quickly teleported to evade the strike and reappeared behind the mare. Using her horn, Twilight tossed the mare out into the hall.
The unicorn quickly recovered and looked up to see Twilight sprinting towards her. Sneering, she charged forward.
Yusei LP: 3700
Nitro Warrior LV: 7 ATK: 2800
“Are you ready, Yusei Fudo?” Carnis asked.
Carnis LP: 1700
Underrogue Hound LV: 5 ATK: 2400
“When Underrogue Hound is Synchro Summoned, I can discard one card from my hand to destroy an opponent’s Level 5 or above monster!”
“What?!” Yusei exclaimed.
As Carnis placed a card in his Graveyard, his beast swung its blade at Nitro Warrior, destroying it.
“Nitro Warrior!”
“At this moment, I activate the effect of the Rogue Snatcher I just discarded!” Carnis continued. “When this monster is discarded to activate the effect of a “Rogue” card or by the effect of one, I can destroy a Spell or Trap Card on the field.” The image of a small canine slashed one of Yusei’s Set cards.
“The more he discards… the more benefits he gains from his effects,” Yusei thought. “I can’t afford to let this Duel drag on much longer.”
“I now activate the Spell Gem Hoarding. I banish three “Rogue” monsters from my Graveyard to draw two cards!” Carnis grinned upon glancing at his drawn cards.
Yusei scoffed.
“I activate a Continuous Spell! Rogue Miner Attack! Once per turn, I can discard a card from my hand to destroy a Spell or Trap Card you control!” Light from the card’s image shot towards Yusei’s remaining card.
“I activate my Trap! Descending Lost Star!” Yusei replied. “This card Special Summons a Synchro Monster from my Graveyard in Defense Position!”
Nitro Warrior reappeared onto the field in a defensive stance. The burst of light shattered Yusei’s Trap Card.
“The monster Summoned by the effect of Descending Lost Star has its effect negated. Also, its Level decreases by 1, its DEF becomes 0, and it cannot change Battle Position.”
Nitro Warrior LV: 7 – 1 = 6 DEF: 1800 – 1800 = 0
“I might have brought back my monster, but…” Yusei glared at his opponent.
Carnis chuckled. “At this moment, I activate the effect of Rogue Collector. As you probably have already guessed, this monster activates the same way as the others. With this effect, I draw one card. Now, go! Underrogue Hound! Obliterate Nitro Warrior!”
The image of a warrior with a large shield abruptly repelled the hound’s blade.
“What is that?”
“I’ve activated the effect of Shield Warrior in my Graveyard,” Yusei stated. “By banishing it, Nitro Warrior won’t be destroyed by this battle.”
“Clever,” Carnis scoffed. “I Set one card face-down and end my turn.”
“It’s my turn!” Yusei declared, drawing a card. “I Summon the Tuner Monster Nitro Synchron!”
“Clustering wishes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Take flight, Stardust Dragon!”
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2500
“Battle! Stardust Dragon, attack Underrogue Hound!” Yusei commanded. “Shooting Sonic!” A large cosmic blast burst from the dragon’s mouth, destroying the canine.
2500 – 2400 = 100
Carnis LP: 1700 – 100 = 1600
“I activate the Continuous Trap Call of the Haunted! I now Special Summon a monster from my Graveyard in Attack Position! Revive, Underrogue Hound!”
Underrogue Hound LV: 5 ATK: 2400
“So he had that ready, huh?” Yusei thought. He then glimpsed at the two remaining cards in his hand. “This will have to do.”
“You won’t defeat my monsters that easily,” Carnis remarked.
“We’ll see about that. I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn.”
“I’ll ask again: Who are you?” demanded Twilight.
“You mean you don’t know?” the unicorn replied.
“Should I?”
“I don’t mean personally, Princess. I’m just surprised that you, of all ponies, don’t know… It’s just as well, though.” A blast of electricity fired towards Twilight as she raised another magic shield.
The alicorn flew up and fired her own burst of magic. The hooded mare jumped out of the way. The image of a bright sword materialized near the unicorn’s head as she lunged at Twilight.
Twilight raised another shield, repelling the blade. The unicorn’s sword continued to collide with the barrier as she forced Twilight backwards. A heavy swing smashed the shield. Twilight flinched as the impact knocked her away.
“Good night,” the unicorn grinned, pointing the sword forward.
“Twilight!” shouted her friends.
The alicorn opened her eyes and teleported above the unicorn, avoiding the blade’s edge. A burst of magic struck from above, the shockwave hurling the mare away.
The unicorn groaned as she rose to her hooves, panting. “You win this time, Princess,” she stated, sprinting into a room.
“Hey! Come back!” Twilight shouted, as she pursued the unicorn into the dark room. Lighting the area with her horn, Twilight saw that the room was vacant. The mare she was chasing was nowhere to be found. “But how…?”
“What was that impact just now?” Yusei wondered. He glanced at his opponent, whose eyes were focused elsewhere. “Could it be?”
“Looks like I don’t have time to play with you anymore, Yusei,” Carnis stated, eyes on his opponent once more.
“What?”
“My turn!” Carnis continued, drawing a card. “I activate the other effect of Underrogue Hound! On the turn it was not Special Summoned, I can Tribute it to Special Summon any “Rogue” monster from my Deck!”
“Tributing his Underrogue Hound…?” Yusei mumbled.
“Appear now, Rogue Captain!” A familiar armored canine appeared before Yusei.
Rogue Captain LV: 7 ATK: 2700
“That monster…” Yusei thought.
“Rogue Captain, attack Stardust Dragon!” Carnis commanded. “Rogue Mace!” The armored dog raised its mace and swung it at Yusei’s dragon.
“I activate a Trap! Scrap-Iron Scarecrow! This card negates your monster’s attack!” A metal scarecrow repelled the dog’s mace. “After it’s activated, it can be Set face-down.”
“Just as I figured.”
“What?”
Carnis grabbed the remaining two cards in his hand. “From my hand, I activate the monster effect of Speedy Rogue! When a “Rogue” monster I control is targeted by an opponent’s effect, I can discard this card and another card from my hand to deal damage equal to the targeted monster’s ATK!”
The image of another dog slashed at Yusei, knocking him over.
Yusei LP: 3700 – 2700 = 1000
“I’m not finished yet,” Carnis continued. “I now activate the effect of the Backup Rogue I just discarded. I now Special Summon a Level 4 or lower “Rogue” monster from my Graveyard! Come, Advance Party Rogue!”
Advance Party Rogue LV: 2 ATK: 400
“A Tuner Monster…” Yusei thought, recoiling as he rose to his feet.
“I tune Level 2 Advance Party Rogue with Level 7 Rogue Captain!” Carnis declared.
2 + 7 = 9
“Your hunger is without bounds, your greed is without rival! Rise from the darkness! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Underrogue Demon!”
Underrogue Demon LV: 9 ATK: 3100
“A Level 9 Synchro Monster?” Yusei mumbled. “What kind of power does it have?”
“As long as the Synchro Summoned Underrogue Demon remains face-up, it gains the effects of one of its non-Tuner Synchro Materials. Naturally, that would mean it gains Rogue Captain’s effects,” Carnis stated.
Yusei scoffed.
“I now activate another effect of Underrogue Demon. Once per turn, I can banish a “Rogue” monster from my Graveyard to inflict 500 damage to you!”
“What?!”
The large canine raised its paw and slashed Yusei.
Yusei LP: 1000 – 500 = 500
“That ends my turn,” Carnis concluded. “Give up now. You can’t defeat my Underrogue Demon.”
“Is that so?” Yusei replied, smiling.
“What?”
“The preparations are all set. It’s my turn!” Yusei declared, drawing a card. “I banish Necro Defender from my Graveyard to activate its monster effect! This turn, Stardust Dragon can’t be destroyed by battle and any Battle Damage I take from battles involving it becomes 0!”
Carnis’s beast raised its arms to block the dragon’s blast. “What a pointless battle.”
“At this moment, I activate the Trap Card Synchro Ring! When a Synchro Monster I control doesn’t destroy the opponent’s monster in battle, I can double its ATK until the End Phase and have it attack once more!”
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2500 * 2 = 5000
“Unbelievable…” Carnis mumbled.
“Go! Stardust Dragon! Destroy Underrogue Demon!” Yusei commanded. “Shooting Sonic!” Another blast from the dragon’s mouth vanquished the canine, the impact causing Carnis to fall over.
5000 – 3100 = 1900
Carnis LP: 1600 – 1900 = 0
Yusei let out a small gasp as he saw a blackness emerge from the ground beneath his opponent, wrapping itself around him.
“Wait!” he shouted, running up the stairs towards Carnis.
The darkness faded away just as Yusei reached the top step. Carnis was no longer present.
Yusei clenched his fists as he turned his head toward the hallway downstairs from where he heard the shockwave.
The final cage was opened.
“You’re all free now,” Twilight said.
“Thank you very much, Princess,” the townsponies replied.
“Twi, what’re you gonna do?” questioned Apple Bloom.
“I’m pretty sure there’s another human or two in the castle, and I plan to drive them out.”
“All by yourself?” Sweetie Belle asked.
“Come on! You’ve gotta let us help you!” Scootaloo added.
“It’s too dangerous, and you three are still pretty young,” Twilight answered.
“Aww…” the three girls replied in unison.
“But…” Apple Bloom started, only to be interrupted by Big Mac’s hoof.
“Nope,” he said.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be keeping an eye on Twilight,” Fluttershy stated.
“Uh, no offense, Fluttershy, but you’re not exactly… fighter material,” Scootaloo commented.
“Then I guess I’ll assist you,” Steel Heart stated, walking up to Twilight.
“You sure?” asked the alicorn.
“Yes, I am.”
Twilight turned towards Big Mac, also approaching her. “You, too?”
“Eeyup,” Big Mac replied.
“Anypony else?”
The other ponies mumbled, but none stepped forward.
“All right, then… Spike.”
“Yes, Twilight?” Spike responded.
“I want you, Fluttershy, and the girls to help get everypony else out of here,” Twilight requested.
The three girls instantly reacted, contesting her decision.
“Wait, you don’t want me to come with you?” Spike asked.
“Like I said, it’s too dangerous,” answered the alicorn.
“But—”
“No. You’ve all already been through enough, and I’m not sure you’re all able to handle what we’re about to deal with.”
“Come on! We can handle it!” Spike raised his arms in protest.
“Spike, please!”
Spike opened his mouth, but stopped upon looking into the alicorn’s eyes. One long glance was enough for him to see the amount of worry she had. Finally, he spoke, “Okay.”
“Thank you, Spike…” Twilight embraced Spike.
“All right, you all heard her, let’s go!” Spike said. The three girls groaned as they and Spike began leading the townsponies out.
“Twilight?” Fluttershy called.
“Yes, Fluttershy?” Twilight replied.
“What will you do if Yusei comes?”
The alicorn sighed. “I don’t know.”
“Well, you know what I think? I think you should give him a chance.”
“Where’s this coming from?”
“Before that human and those dogs came to Sweet Apple Acres, Yusei told me about what happened.”
“Oh… did he?”
Fluttershy placed her hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “I understand why you’re upset, but you shouldn’t keep holding it against him. He doesn’t seem like someone who would hurt any of us on purpose.”
Twilight looked up to see Fluttershy’s smile. “Okay,” the alicorn finally spoke.
“Please be careful.”
“I will.”
The pegasus turned around and walked behind the crowd of townsponies.
“You two ready?” Twilight asked.
“Eeyup,” Big Mac answered.
Steel Heart nodded.
The three ponies walked back out into the hallway and continued until an object caught Twilight’s eye. It lay near the room the unicorn that she fought earlier escaped into.
“What’s this?” she wondered, levitating the object closer to her. “This is the pendant that unicorn wore… she must’ve dropped it before she escaped…”
Observing the pendant, she noticed a horizontal crescent moon at the top of the crest. The moon hovered just above the horizon behind a small castle, casting a large shadow on the foreground.
“Have I seen this before?” Twilight asked herself.
“I see you managed to save everyone,” said a familiar male voice.
The alicorn quickly turned around. “Yusei?” she responded. “But how did…?”
“This was the only place you could’ve gone,” Yusei replied.
“But why are you here?”
“The same reason you are: to save everyone. The ones that have taken over Ponyville are in league with whoever has both of our friends.”
Twilight groaned.
“Look, Twilight. I’m sorry about before. I never meant to harm anyone.”
“Yusei.”
“What is it?”
“I’ve had time to think about everything that’s happened so far, and I’ve decided… if Fluttershy can see past that and forgive you… so can I,” Twilight continued. “Besides, now isn’t the time for us to be fighting each other, especially since our goals are pretty much the same now.”
Yusei nodded.
“Just make sure you warn me before you decide to take a life-threatening risk again, especially if it’s someone else’s life that's being threatened.”
“I understand,” Yusei smiled. “Anyway, I think I have a pretty good guess as to who might be behind all this.”
“You’re kidding me, right?” he groaned, gripping a crystal in his hand as he glared at the female it projected. “Even Carnis failed?”
“Seems that way,” the woman replied. “You’re the only one left in Ponyville.”
“Why couldn’t that cult have sent their forces here? We’d have been able to deal with Yusei and the princess much more easily!”
“They’re still looking for the other targets, remember? In any case, the unicorn that was already there with you and your men for communication purposes already had an encounter with Princess Twilight.”
“And?”
“She was forced to retreat. She was no match for the magic the princess wielded. I recommend you do the same.”
“And lose my grip on the town?” Latrose shouted.
“It was already lost moments ago, Latrose. I wouldn’t challenge them if I were you,” the woman warned.
“Don’t tell me you forgot, Celena.”
“Hm?”
“We came here on a mission. To that end, I will put an end to their resistance.”
“Suit yourself,” Celena chuckled. “You know what’ll happen if you fail.”
“I won’t lose to the likes of them.”
“Famous last words.” The projection of Celena vanished.
Latrose scoffed as he stuffed the crystal into his pocket. He turned his head towards the large doors as they opened. The magenta aura on the handles faded. “I can’t believe you got this far.”
“I won’t let you control this town,” Twilight challenged as she and her friends stepped out onto the balcony.
“We’re here to put a stop to you,” Yusei added.
“It’s just the four of you?” Latrose raised his Duel Disk, as Big Macintosh and Steel Heart were bringing up the rear. “What a joke.”
“Be careful, everyone,” Yusei warned, raising his own Duel Disk.
“You don’t have to tell me twice,” Twilight replied.
“I’ve had enough of your antics, so I’ll put an end to this now!” Latrose placed a card in his Monster Zone. The four looked on in surprise as a familiar armored canine appeared in front of him.
“That’s… the same kind of dog as the one we saw in the town square!” Twilight exclaimed. “How is this possible?”
“That’s… Rogue Captain?” Yusei noticed.
“You’ve seen it before?”
“Yeah. A few times. Around town, at Sweet Apple Acres, and here at the castle before I caught up to you. Both of the Duelists I met Summoned this monster.”
“You must be talking about my subordinates,” Latrose stated. “It’s too bad they lost to you, Yusei Fudo. This time, however, you won’t be so fortunate. I intend to crush you all here. Once that’s done, there will be no one left in our way.”
“Wait a second… you said you encountered this creature in a Duel. Now that you mention it, that human I ran into in town also had a Duel Disk. But then… how did he Summon it…?” Twilight asked.
“I can only think of one reason,” Yusei stepped towards Latrose.
“Yusei?”
“Tell us why you’re here, member of the Arcadia Movement!”
Silence filled the air.
“Arcadia… what?” Twilight spoke.
“You’ve figured out that much, huh?” Latrose responded.
“So it is them, after all,” Yusei mumbled.
“Yusei, was it?” Steel Heart said. “What’s this Arcadia Movement you’re talking about?”
“Sorry to interrupt your little chitchat, but you already know too much as it is. Go, Rogue Captain!” Latrose shouted.
The armored canine raised its mace and thrust it downward. The four quickly rolled away, avoiding the impact.
Latrose scoffed, placing two additional cards onto his Duel Disk. Two more Rogue Captains spawned beside the first. “Show them what happens when you defy the Arcadia Movement!”
Each of the canines leapt at a different pony.
Twilight raised a magic barrier with her horn, deflecting the oncoming mace.
Big Macintosh quickly stepped to the side, avoiding the mace before turning around and striking his attacker’s muzzle with his back hooves.
Steel Heart raised a metal rod, clashing with that of his opponent.
“Wait, when did you get that?” Twilight asked.
Steel Heart pushed the mace aside and, with a bright glow from his horn, the rod he carried became a hammer, bringing it down on the canine’s head.
“Metal transmutation?” the alicorn commented. “Not many unicorns are capable of casting that spell.”
“Special talent, Your Highness,” Steel Heart answered.
Their conversation was abruptly interrupted by the growls of the three canines as they charged forward once more.
“Get them!” Latrose shouted. Noticing the rapidly approaching footsteps, he stepped back to evade Yusei’s oncoming right fist.
Latrose staggered upon feeling Yusei’s other fist strike his gut. The latter spun clockwise to strike his opponent in the forehead with his boot. Latrose turned his back to Yusei as he stumbled.
“Not bad,” Latrose coughed. “I didn’t think you had it in you to break etiquette between duelists like this.”
“Call off your monsters and we can have that Duel,” Yusei remarked.
Latrose scoffed as he turned his glimpsed back towards Yusei. “No, I think I’d rather not.” After drawing a card and placing it in his Duel Disk, a small mace spawned at Latrose’s side. He quickly grabbed it with both hands and swung it towards Yusei, the latter jumping back to avoid being struck.
Latrose held the mace overhead and hopped forward as he brought the mace down. Yusei quickly rolled to the side, dodging the impact.
Big Macintosh ducked under the Rogue Captain’s lateral swing before spinning around kicking the canine in its gut with his back hooves. The creature fell backwards from the blow. The armored canine roared as it tried to recover, only to get struck by Big Mac’s hooves again. The Rogue Captain tumbled over once more and, to Big Mac’s shock, fell to pieces.
Steel Heart clashed his hammer with the mace of Rogue Captain he was facing, continuing to trade blows until he struck the canine in the head once more. The Rogue Captain flew and shattered as it hit the ground. “What the…?” he said, surprised.
Both stallions turned their eyes towards Twilight as she continued to focus on maintaining her shield as it absorbed the impact from the last Rogue Captain’s mace. Another swing pierced through the shield. Twilight jumped back as a burst of magic fired from her horn, knocking the armored canine over.
Yusei dodged a swing from Latrose’s mace before the latter attempted another overhead swing. Yusei intercepted the mace with his Duel Disk and threw his fist at Latrose’s stomach only to be caught by the latter’s palm. Latrose then kicked Yusei away towards the ponies.
“Give it up. You and your army of dogs are beaten!” Yusei stated.
“I wouldn’t say that,” Latrose chuckled.
“What?” Yusei then glanced at his opponent’s Duel Disk, noticing an oddity.
“I’m far from done!”
The doors to the room then opened loudly.
“Twilight!” Spike called.
“Spike? Fluttershy?” Twilight responded. “What are you two doing here? It’s too dangerous!”
“We were just looking for—”
“Oh, good,” Latrose interrupted. “The other remaining Element of Harmony has returned. Now I can crush you all at once!”
“Um, no thanks. We’d rather not be crushed… i-if you don’t mind, that is,” Fluttershy replied rapidly.
A small canine leapt from the shadows before Fluttershy and Spike, leaving them shrieking.
“Look out!” Yusei shouted, intercepting the canine’s claws.
“Yusei!” Twilight and Fluttershy shouted with worry.
Yusei collapsed onto the ground. The small creature jumped back next to the fallen Rogue Captain.
“Hey, you okay?” Spike asked, helping the human onto his knees.
“Didn’t think he would make it,” Latrose sneered. “I guess it’s only because he noticed the extra monster on my Duel Disk.”
“That’s enough! This is as far as you go!” Twilight glared at the hooded man.
“Hardly! I tune Level 4 Disharmony Shadowhound with Level 7 Rogue Captain!”
“What?!” Yusei exclaimed.
As the Rogue Captain stood up, it became surrounded by the four black rings the Disharmony Shadowhound transformed into. The large armored canine vanished, leaving behind seven black stars.
“Wait… isn’t this…?” Twilight spoke.
“You who rules over the darkest pits of the underworld, let your ferocity be known to the living!” Latrose continued. A pitch-black pillar engulfed the rings and stars. “Synchro Summon! Rise, Disharmony – Underrogue Cerberus!”
A large three-headed armored canine emerged from the pillar as it vanished. Latrose grinned maliciously as he stared at Twilight and her friends.
“Disharmony?” said Twilight.
“Underrogue… Cerberus?” Yusei mumbled.
“I’m afraid none of you will be escaping now,” Latrose stated, drawing another card. “I activate the Field Spell Diamond Prison!”
Large crystalline structures burst out of the floor surrounding the balcony and encasing it completely in a dome-like fashion.
“Your efforts to stop the Arcadia Movement end here,” said the hooded man.
Yusei scoffed.
“Whoa! Fluttershy, what’s wrong?” Spike asked.
Yusei turned to glimpse at the pegasus, whose face had gone pale, while Big Mac and Steel Heart approached.
“Th-those… those words… I remember them…” Fluttershy replied softly.
“What words?” Steel Heart questioned.
The pegasus laid down with her front hooves above her head. “These… humans… they said those words when…”
“Bring her to the center,” said a stallion.
“W-wait, what’s happening?!” Fluttershy cried. “What are you doing?”
“Congratulations, Element of Kindness. You get to be our guinea pig.”
“B-but… I-I’m a pegasus…” Several unicorn horns began to glow, holding Fluttershy in place. “Why are you doing this?!”
Two shadowy figures moved up beside her.
“Hey! Let her go!” Rainbow Dash shouted from behind.
“Y’all better stop right now if ya know what’s good for ya!” Applejack added.
“Cease this at once!” Rarity exclaimed.
“Can you please just stop what you’re doing? Pretty please?” Pinkie Pie asked.
The four ponies were also being held in place.
“Please… help me…” Fluttershy whimpered.
A hooded man stepped forward, raising his Duel Disk. “Is it time?” he asked.
“Yes,” the stallion replied. “Begin the ritual.”
“Then I shall tune my monsters together!”
One of the shadowy figures besides Fluttershy turned into several dark rings while the other simply became black stars.
The unicorns lifted Fluttershy into the air, holding her between the rings and stars.
“Watch, Elements of Harmony. This is the fate that shall befall you and your princesses!” the man stated.
“You remember what happened?” Yusei asked.
“Y-yes…” Fluttershy answered.
“Dissonance seeps into your heart, your resentment breaking through and tearing down the walls of harmony!” the man continued.
The ponies watched in horror as Fluttershy was engulfed by a pitch-black pillar.
“Did you say ‘Synchro Summon’?” Yusei asked. “And there was a ‘ritual’?”
“Y-yes…” Fluttershy shuddered. “I was so scared… I don’t remember what happened after that…”
“This is the end for you!” Latrose shouted. “Underrogue Cerberus!”
The three-headed canine opened their maws. A burst of blackness shot out towards Twilight and her friends. The alicorn instinctively raised a magic shield, deflecting the blast.
“I think that’s our cue to get out of here,” Steel Heart suggested.
“That’d be a great idea,” Spike commented, “but in case you haven’t noticed, we’re kinda trapped here.”
“Then the only thing to do is to force our way out.” The gray unicorn began tackling the diamond walls that now blocked the entrance. Big Macintosh followed suit by turning around and kicking the wall.
Twilight glimpsed behind her toward her friends. “Right…” she mumbled as she teleported above the armored dog. She yelled as magic burst from her horn at the canine, pushing it back towards Latrose.
“Not bad, princess,” Latrose sneered. His canine swiped his paw at Twilight, the latter barely dodging the blow. Another blast of magic knocked the beast onto its side. The alicorn charged straight at the canine, her horn glowing once more. “But it’s not enough! I activate the Continuous Trap Diamond Chain!”
Four chains shot out from different areas of the dome’s walls at Twilight, restricting her.
“What?!” Yusei exclaimed.
“Twilight!” the others shouted.
“What… is this…?” Twilight wondered, the aura on her horn vanishing. “These chains… they’re draining my energy…”
Yusei glared at Latrose. “This is the power of a Psychic Duelist,” he thought. “Now what should we do?”
“Once more, Cerberus!” Latrose snapped his fingers as his monster rose to its feet, its mouths brimming with darkness.
Twilight looked on in horror as the three heads staring at her opened their maws. “No…” she mumbled. “This can’t be happening…”
“End of the line.”
“Stop it!” Yusei shouted.
“Go! Cerber—!” The hooded man found himself cut off by his left arm being jerked away. “What?!”
All eyes turned to see Latrose’s Duel Disk being pulled off his arm slowly by a green aura. They were then startled by the sound of an engine running. A swift orange blur rammed into Latrose, knocking him away while the green aura yanked his Duel Disk off his arm.
The man looked up to see an orange pegasus on a blue wooden scooter. The Duel Disk then floated over to a wall where a white unicorn and a light yellow earth pony stood.
“Girls?!” Fluttershy called out.
Twilight noticed a sudden change in the chains that bound her, as her horn began glowing once more.
“You little…” Latrose groaned. “Give back my Duel Disk now!”
“Nah,” Sweetie Belle replied. As she placed the Duel Disk next to Apple Bloom’s hoof, Scootaloo returned to her two best friends and blew a raspberry at the hooded man. The earth pony raised her hoof above the machine.
“No! Don’t!” the man shouted.
Apple Bloom slammed her hoof into the ground, crushing the Duel Disk and grinding it to pieces. “Well, that takes care of that,” she grinned.
Latrose looked around the room in a panic as his monster, chains, and walls began to fade.
Twilight teleported out of the chains and charged at the canine once more. A blast of magic shot out from her horn, hurling the fading beast towards the wall.
An explosion occurred as the beast faded, along with the dome that had trapped those inside. The gray clouds blocking out the sky above could be seen once more.
Latrose rose to his feet as he saw the alicorn approach.
“Looks to me like you don’t have any power left,” Twilight said, glaring at the hooded man. “Surrender, now.”
Latrose backed away until he felt his feet being restricted. He looked down to see a darkness surrounding him and pulling him into the ground. “No! This can’t be!”
Twilight sprinted forward. “You’re not going anywhere!” Using her horn, she began to pull the man from the blackness that constricted him.
“Look out, Twi!” Apple Bloom exclaimed.
Twilight released the man as she was startled by the darkness creeping towards her. The darkness faded and neither Latrose—nor his smashed Duel Disk, for that matter—was anywhere to be seen. “He’s gone…” the alicorn mumbled. “I was so close to getting answers from him, too!” She groaned loudly.
The quietness of the scene abruptly vanished when the three girls suddenly found themselves in Fluttershy’s embrace. “Oh, girls! I was so worried about you!”
“So are they why you showed up here, Fluttershy?” Yusei asked.
“Yes, Spike and I were in the middle of leading everypony out until we realized they had gone missing. I had no idea that they were here!”
The girls chuckled nervously. “Sorry…” Apple Bloom replied.
“Why did you three come here?” Twilight asked, her back still towards the others. “I thought I said it was dangerous.”
“We just wanted to help,” Scootaloo answered.
“You should’ve left with the others. What if you got hurt?”
“But Twilight—!” Sweetie Belle spoke.
“It’s already bad enough that your sisters have been captured by them.”
“But you’re gonna save them, right, Twi?” Apple Bloom asked.
“I am,” the alicorn answered. “But I don’t want to get you involved. These humans are too dangerous.”
“That’s never stopped you before,” Scootaloo said. “And we can help you save—”
“NO,” Twilight interrupted. She turned her head, with a sorrowful expression on her face. “I absolutely cannot let you get involved. I don’t want you to get killed, like Fluttershy and I almost did.”
“But, you almost—”
“Don’t get me wrong. You three were brave to jump in like you have and you did save me—and I appreciate that—but the only reason things worked out the way they did was because you caught him by surprise. If he had seen you, he would’ve captured you. Who knows what else could’ve happened if he did? If something happened to you three, your sisters would be devastated and I’d never forgive myself.”
Silence.
“Please… don’t get involved any more than you already have,” Twilight hung her head as she walked back into the castle.
“Twilight, wait up!” Spike followed.
Big Macintosh and the girls exchanged glances—the latter’s ears drooping—before heading back inside as well.
“I guess it’s time for me to head off as well. See ya around,” Steel Heart said before following the others.
Yusei nodded. He staggered as he struggled to rise to his feet.
“Oh my gosh, are you okay, Yusei?” Fluttershy asked.
“Yeah, that attack hit me hard.” Yusei rubbed his back.
“Let me take a look.”
“Sure.” Yusei pulled up the back of his shirt as the pegasus walked behind him.
“Goodness! We should treat this as soon as possible! Let’s get you inside, then I’ll pick up some supplies from my cottage.”
Yusei nodded, as Fluttershy placed his arm around her. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”
Yusei sat while Fluttershy wrapped bandages around his upper body, making sure to cover the bruised region of his back.
“I’ve got to hand to hand it to you. You’re good at this,” he complimented.
“Thanks,” Fluttershy replied. “I take care of a bunch of critters at my cottage, so it’s not that much different.”
“Speaking of which, I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many animals in one place.”
“That’s because I take care of them.”
“All of them?”
“Why, yes. My special talent is communicating with animals, which it makes it easier to care of them.”
“Special talent? Twilight once told me that you ponies carry a mark on your body that symbolizes your talent, isn’t that right?”
“Yes, that’s right. Our cutie marks.”
“I see.” Yusei replied. “It’s hard to believe that this same pegasus was trapped in a Duel Monster not too long ago. But that makes me wonder…”
“I’m done, Yusei.”
“Oh, right. Thanks.” Yusei donned his shirt and jacket, then rose to his feet. “Fluttershy.”
“Yes?”
“Earlier, you mentioned a ritual?”
“Y-yes…?”
“Is there anything else you remember about that moment?”
“Well… um… I remember all of my friends, except Twilight, were there watching… but they couldn’t do anything…”
“How did you all get captured anyway?”
“Didn’t Twilight tell you?”
“She only said that you were all attacked by humans one day.”
“Oh… yes… that’s right. We were enjoying one of Pinkie Pie’s parties at Sugarcube Corner, then they showed up. We headed over to Golden Oak Library to use the Elements of Harmony, but then they surprised us. The next thing I knew, there was a huge explosion. Then Twilight was gone.”
“Elements of Harmony… I’ve heard that term used a number of times.”
“Well, they’re some of the most powerful magical objects in Equestria.”
“Right, Twilight did say as much when she explained it,” Yusei recalled. “She also said something about one of them being hers.”
“She means that the she and the rest of our closest friends each represent an Element of Harmony,” Fluttershy said. “Pinkie Pie’s is laughter, Rainbow Dash’s is loyalty, Rarity’s is generosity, Applejack’s is honesty, Twilight’s is magic, and mine is kindness.”
“So there are four more of you…” Yusei paused for a moment. “I’m sorry to ask again, but when you mentioned the ritual, you said your friends were there, too?”
“Y-yes…”
“And these friends… are they the same friends that each represent an Element of Harmony?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“So they’ve been gathering all of the Elements of Harmony… and doing these rituals… but why? And where do my friends and I play into all this?” Yusei wondered. “There are still a number of other pieces that don’t fit, either.”
“Is something the matter, Yusei?”
“I think we should go meet up with Twilight,” he replied. “Do you know where she is?”
“She’s probably in the castle library.”
“Can you show me the way?”
“Sure,” the pegasus smiled.
“Thanks. There are a couple of things I need to talk to her about,” Yusei replied.
“About what?”
“A couple of clues I picked up. It’s probably best you’re there to hear it, too.”
“Oh, okay.”
Twilight stood in the library, scanning through volume after volume in quick succession.
“Are you all right, Twilight?” Spike asked.
“Yes, I am. Why do you ask?” Twilight replied, continuing to sift through the books.
“You’ve been anxious since you beat that human and his giant dog.”
“Well, the sooner we find our friends, the better. The only clue I have is this pendant that unicorn dropper earlier.”
“Are you sure it’s not just an ordinary pendant?”
“Yes, I’m sure. This design is pretty unique; I just can’t remember if I’ve seen it before. Here, Spike. You can help look, too.”
“Wait, what?” A dozen or so books got dropped in a pile before the dragon.
“Come on. Like I said, the sooner, the better.”
“Okay, fine.” Spike picked one of the volumes in front of him and began scanning the pages.
Their search continued until they heard the sound of the library doors opening.
“Twilight?” a female voice called.
“We’re over here!” Spike responded.
Twilight turned to see Yusei and Fluttershy approach.
“What are you two doing?” the pegasus asked.
A magenta aura carried over a small pendant for the two to see. “Looking for this symbol in one of these books,” Twilight answered. “Actually, Yusei. I’d like to ask… you wouldn’t happen to have seen this before, have you?”
Yusei studied the pendant. “No, I haven’t.”
“Just thought I’d ask. By the way… what was that… movement thing you mentioned before?”
“What do you mean?”
“Earlier, when we fought that human, you said he was a member of some group.”
“Oh, that.” Spike and Fluttershy turned towards the human with curiosity. “The Arcadia Movement is a group of Psychic Duelists.”
“Psychic Duelists?” Spike repeated.
“Are they… Duelists with psychic powers?” Twilight questioned.
“More accurately, they are Duelists with the ability to Summon and materialize their monsters and effects without needing to be in a Duel,” Yusei answered. “Psychic Duelists were able to use this ability to cause bodily harm with their cards, both inside and outside of Duels.”
“Just like those humans we encountered here in Ponyville…” Twilight realized. “So that’s how you knew…”
“Most of the Duelists we’ve encountered since your arrival in New Domino City had the abilities of a Psychic Duelist, starting from that officer that appeared in my apartment.”
The alicorn became wide-eyed. “Doesn’t that mean…?”
“Right,” Yusei answered. “Callos and that woman controlling the one you called ‘Princess Luna’ are also probably Psychic Duelists as well. The only organization I know that has a large number of Psychic Duelists in it is the Arcadia Movement itself.”
“So what exactly is their goal?”
“From what I remember, it was formed by a man named Sayer, who wanted to create a haven for Psychic Duelists since they were seen as dangerous and hostile to everyone. No one wanted to associate with them and were looked down upon as evil.”
“So they’re just lashing out at the world?”
Yusei nodded. “Yeah.”
“But what about you? Don’t you have any powers? As a Signer, I mean.”
“A what now?” said Spike.
Yusei removed the glove on his right arm and pulled up his sleeve to reveal the mark on his arm.
“What is that?” Fluttershy asked.
“A Signer is someone, like me, who carries the mark of the Crimson Dragon,” he answered.
“D-d-d-dragon…?”
“What is it?”
“Oh, don’t mind her reaction. She just has a fear of dragons,” Twilight stated, just before she caught Yusei glancing at Spike. “Except for Spike.”
“Anyway, there are six of us,” Yusei continued, putting his sleeve and glove back on. “While we can tap into the Crimson Dragon’s power, we don’t have the same abilities as Psychic Duelists, except Akiza.”
“Akiza is a Psychic Duelist?” the alicorn questioned.
“Yeah. She was even once part of the Arcadia Movement, until she saw them for what they were. Since the incident with the Earthbound Immortals, the Arcadia Movement was thought to have disbanded.”
“Well, that obviously isn’t the case now,” Twilight remarked. “Somehow, they managed to appear here in Equestria. On top of that… they even have control of Princess Luna as well.”
“What?!” Spike exclaimed.
“Unfortunately, yes…”
“What about Princess Celestia?!” Spike asked. Yusei, Twilight, and Fluttershy all looked away. “What? Will someone tell me what’s going on?”
“I’ll tell you later, Spike,” Twilight replied. “In any case, they clearly had to have planned this for a long time.”
“But for how long?” Yusei wondered.
“I don’t know, but based on this pendant that was dropped by a unicorn I fought earlier… I’d say this Arcadia Movement has been getting some help from here in Equestria.”
“But who would do such a thing?” Fluttershy asked.
“That’s what I’ve been trying to find out,” the alicorn continued. “One of these books might have something about the symbol on this pendant.”
“I’ll help, too,” Yusei offered.
“Me, too! …I-if you don’t mind, that is,” Fluttershy turned towards Twilight.
“Well,” Twilight replied. “Sure, if it’s not too much trouble.”
“It’s no trouble at all,” the pegasus grinned.
“I’ll be glad to help,” Yusei nodded. “After this, we can head to Canterlot.”
“Canterlot?” Spike asked. “Why there?”
“I have reason to believe that that’s the place where the rest of your friends are.”
“What?!” Twilight exclaimed. “How did you find out?!”
“Back at Sweet Apple Acres, the Psychic Duelist I fought against leaked that information to me.”
“…Are you sure he wasn’t lying?”
“It’s possible he was, but I doubt it.”
Twilight paused momentarily, before taking a deep breath. “Time to go to Canterlot.”
“In that case… I’ll go, too,” Yusei replied.
Twilight nodded.
“So, uh… does that mean we’re not looking through these books anymore?” Spike asked.
“No, Spike,” the princess answered. “I want you and Fluttershy to stay here and keep looking to see if you can find something about this pendant.”
“Are you sure?” Fluttershy responded, concerned.
“I am. This way, we can cover more ground. Yusei and I can rescue our friends while you two try to learn what you can about the pendant.”
“Oh, okay,” the pegasus answered.
“Aww…” Spike added.
“It’s best if we travel together,” Yusei suggested. “I’ll let you know when I’m ready.”
As he left the library, Twilight took another deep breath. “I can’t believe it… an actual clue as to where my friends are!” she thought. “Hang on, everypony. I’m coming.”
“How long have we been here…?” the green-haired boy wondered, looking around the cavernous walls and the bars in front that held him in. He remained slouched against the wall, staring with great concern at the cell across from his, where a green-haired girl with an appearance not unlike his own was lying down with her eyes closed. “Luna…”
Leo’s thoughts were interrupted by his stomach growling. He looked up at his sister, her hands on her own stomach as well.
Footsteps were heard approaching from down the hallway to his right. Leo stared at the hooded man just outside his cell. In the palm of his left hand, the thin figure held a large tray. Placed upon it were two plates, each with a loaf of bread and a glass of lukewarm water.
Leo glared at the man as he slid a plate and a glass through the bars. “Bread and water again? Is that all you’re giving us? It’s not even a meal.”
“Deal with it,” replied the figure, sliding Luna’s share of bread and water into her cell. “If you do not appreciate my services, you can simply eat nothing.”
“Just you wait. When we get out, you’ll be sorry.”
“I’ve heard that one before.” The man held the empty tray under his arm and turned toward the path from which he entered. “Without your Decks, you’re nothing but talk, child.”
Leo groaned as the man walked away.
“We’ve had nothing but bread and water since we’ve got here, and it’s barely enough to keep us going,” he thought. Leo then glanced at his twin sister once more. “Hang on, sis. I’ll get you out of here soon. I promise.”
“Can ya knock it off, Rainbow?” asked the cowpony, glaring at the cell across from her. “You’ve been tryin’ to bust through those bars for the past few days. They ain’t budgin’.”
“It’s better than sitting around doing nothing!” Rainbow Dash rebutted. “The longer we stay here, the less chance we have of getting Fluttershy back!”
“Agreed, darling,” replied Rarity from a third cell. “But it will not do any of us much good if you keep getting bruises like that.”
The pegasus groaned as she rubbed the sore parts of her body.
“Shame my magic won’t be able to help, either,” the unicorn continued. “It seems these cells are enchanted with a spell I’m not familiar with.”
“Don’t worry! I’m sure Twilight will be here soon!” Pinkie replied, bouncing in her cell.
“You’ve been sayin’ that for the past few days, too,” Applejack said.
“Do you really have to be so negative, Applejack?” Rainbow asked.
“Ah’m just tellin’ it like it is. Besides, in case ya haven’t noticed, we’re in a cave that’s who-knows-where. Twilight’s gonna have trouble just findin’ us.”
Silence filled the room.
“Ah’m sorry. Yer right. Ah guess ah’ve just been lettin’ this all get to me. Ah’m sure she’ll reach us eventually.” The others nodded in agreement.
“I do so hope she arrives soon,” Rarity spoke. “I’m actually getting used to these dirty, dusty rocks. And I don’t like that one bit.”
Hoofsteps were heard approaching from the hallway. Five unicorns of various dark manes and coats appeared in the pathway.
“What do you want?” said Rainbow.
The stallion leading the group had a pitch-black mane and dark blue coat and appeared to be dragging himself forward. He glanced at the four trapped mares before pointing his hoof at Pinkie Pie. “Her,” he said.
Two of the unicorns approached the pink pony’s cell, dispelling the bars. The last two materialized hoofcuffs that restricted Pinkie’s movements.
“Hey!” Pinkie shouted. “I didn’t do it, I swear!”
“What do you think you’re doing?!” Rainbow shouted.
“Let ’er go or you’ll be sorry!” Applejack added.
“You’ll be joining her very soon,” the stallion replied, motioning for the others to follow him.
Rainbow continued ramming the bars before her. “Don’t you dare!”
“Perhaps you would all like to join us for the ritual?” the stallion asked, breathing heavily.
“Ritual? Ya can’t mean…” Applejack began.
“How dare you do something so unsightly to innocent ponies!” said Rarity. “Just who do you think you are?!”
The bars before the white unicorn faded. In an instant, she found herself hurled against the wall.
“Rarity!” the others screamed.
“You don’t speak to me that way,” said the stallion, his horn glowing. A small blast of magic struck Rarity’s horn.
“Wha… what did you do to me?!” Rarity asked.
“A simple disabling spell. You’ll be coming with us, too,” the stallion panted. Hoofcuffs materialized around Rarity’s hooves as she was dragged into the corridor.
“Let them go!” Rainbow demanded.
The stallion stared at the pegasus. “So I guess you two will also be joining us. The more, the merrier.”
In a matter of seconds, all four were being pulled along by the five unicorns—with Rainbow’s wings constricted by a large brace.
The group entered a room where four humans stood, two males and two females. The walls were decorated with electric consoles and machinery that were undoubtedly recently installed.
“I thought you were just bringing one of them, Stone Wall,” said a female human.
“It seems they still don’t know their place, Celena,” the stallion replied. “I thought another demonstration for them would remind them of their place and what will soon be their fate.”
“Fine by me. At least we get to try our new way of performing this ritual.”
Pinkie Pie was shoved into the center. “Ow!” she shouted. “Hey! Do you really have to be this mean?”
Celena stepped forward, raising her Duel Disk and placing three cards on it. “Time for the Ritual to commence! Come, Dissonant Battler, Disharmony Rush, and the Tuner Monster Disharmony Cell!”
A small goblin, a griffon, and a sphere surrounded Pinkie Pie while her friends struggled to break free of their hoofcuffs.
“If our modifications to our Duel Disks have been done right… we shouldn’t need to have you unicorns around to perform the ritual. Now to see if it works.”
“No!” shouted the three friends. Pinkie looked around frantically at the monsters approaching her, unable to move.
“I tune my monsters together!” Celena declared. Her Disharmony Cell transformed into a black ring, gently lifting Pinkie Pie. The other two monsters faded, replaced by seven black stars that lined up vertically above and below the pink pony. “When life's light grows dim, your delighted self fades into the chaos!”
A pillar of darkness engulfed Pinkie, along with the ring and stars. “Pinkie!” her friends cried.
“Synchro Summon!” Celena continued. The darkness faded and the summoned creature itself began to fade, its essence absorbed into a card the woman held.
Rainbow, Applejack, and Rarity stood horrified. Another of their friends has been torn away from them and sealed into a card.
“Looks like the modifications work fine,” Celena grinned, passing the card to one of the male humans.
“Then, shall we move onto the next ritual?” he asked.
“Maybe we should, Drystan. Shall we, Stone?”
Stone Wall nodded wearily. “The unicorn is next,” he stated. Two of the unicorns shoved Rarity forward.
“Ow!” Rarity reacted. “This is not how you treat a lady!”
A new group of silhouetted monsters appeared around her.
“Oh, dear…”
“Rarity!” shouted Rainbow and Applejack.
Rarity struggled to activate her horn as she was lifted by two dark rings, lining up vertically with six black stars.
“You’re wasting your energy,” Stone Wall stated. “Your magic has been disabled by my spell.”
“Fargone soul, consume the light of harmony that stands before you!” Celena continued, as Rarity’s horn began to glow brighter. “Synchro Summon!”
Rarity shrieked as she was engulfed by a dark pillar. A large burst of magic shot out in every direction.
As the summoned figure faded into another card, the room began to shake. The recently-built consoles in the room began to let out a shower of sparks before bursting into flame.
“But why?” Celena asked. “I thought you disabled her magic.” Stone Wall had already collapsed onto the floor, unconscious.
“He must’ve used too much of his magic!” said one of the unicorns.
“But that means—” Celena was already pinned against the wall by Rainbow Dash, the force of the blow causing her to drop the most recently created card.
Too slow to react, the unicorns were kicked to the side by Applejack.
As Drystan turned away, he was tackled by the pegasus. “Let’s go!” Rainbow shouted to Applejack, the former’s teeth clamped down onto the two cards which now contained their friends.
“After them!” Celena shouted. Three of the unicorns sprinted after the fleeing ponies while the fourth remained to tend to Stone Wall.
“What was what?!” Leo exclaimed, feeling the tremors. He let out a small gasp as the bars before him vanished. “They just… disappeared? Luna!”
He ran to his slumbering twin sister.
“Luna! Wake up!” As the rumbling continued, he placed his sister’s arm over his shoulders and lifted her up onto her feet, slowly walking her out.
“L…Leo…?” she moaned.
“Luna?”
“What’s… happening?”
“Not sure, but I’m gonna get you out!”
“Okay…” She placed her hand over her stomach. “I don’t feel so good…”
“Hang in there, sis,” he said, continuing onward.
Small chunks of debris fell from the ceiling as Applejack and Rainbow fled down the hallway, the latter quickly stopping to pick up an empty saddlebag to place the cards in.
“Where’s the darn exit?!” said Applejack.
“If we can’t find one, we’ll make one!” Rainbow Dash replied, speeding up towards the wall at the T-junction in front of her.
“Wait!”
Rainbow collapsed onto the floor after failing to break through the wall. “Ow…” She sat up, rubbing the sore parts of her body.
“Ya should’ve listened to me when I told ya to stop rammin’ the bars earlier.”
The pegasus groaned. “Let’s just g—GAH!”
“What th—OOF!”
A burst of magic had struck Rainbow Dash and Applejack.
“Did you two really think you could get away from us?” asked one of the female unicorns. Their horns activated, dragging Rainbow and Applejack towards them, until they were startled by a chunk of debris that landed just in front of them.
The two friends quickly rose to their feet and started down the hallway once more.
Rainbow felt a tug on her tail, stopping her in her place. She glimpsed behind her, seeing one of the unicorns with her horn active.
“Rainbow, let’s go!” Applejack shouted.
The pegasus squirmed, her body still sore. The cowpony glared at the unicorn, ready to charge at her, until another chunk of debris landed in front of her.
“Applejack!” Rainbow shouted, hurling the saddlebag towards her friend.
“Ah’m not leaving you behind!” Applejack replied. She started towards Rainbow, only to be stopped by a large billow of smoke followed by the walls caving in between them. “RAINBOW!”
“Just go!”
Applejack began to tear up, hesitant to abandon her friend. Unable to reach her, the cowpony picked up the saddlebag and fled.
Rainbow squirmed as the two unicorns pinned her down.
“That was a pain,” Celena said, approaching. Drystan and the other two humans followed shortly behind. “Too bad you couldn’t get away.”
“Kiss my flank,” the pegasus replied.
The woman scoffed. “Take her away. We’ll deal with her shortly. The rest of us will evacuate immediately.”
Upon Celena’s command, the unicorns lifted Rainbow and carried her away as she demanded to be let go.
As she turned away, her eye caught something partially concealed by a piece of rubble. “Drystan!” she called out upon retrieving the object.
Leo stepped onto the smooth, tiled floor.
“Guess we’re out of the caves,” he observed. He scanned the hallway and the rooms around him, watching smoke drift out of some. He became wide-eyed as he saw hooded four-legged creatures in a panic far in front of him. “Who are—forget that! We need to get out of here!”
“Wait…” a voice said.
“What is it, Luna?”
“I hear… the voices of my friends… the Duel Monster spirits…” Luna answered.
“Where are they?”
“Not sure… but they’re close…”
Leo continued forward until he felt his sister’s hand grip his shoulder.
“What is it?” he asked.
“That room… on the right…” she replied.
“Got it.” Leaning his sister against the wall, Leo peered into the room. “There they are!” In one nearly continuous motion, he quickly grabbed their Duel Disks containing their respective Decks and their Duel Board gear—skateboards and protective equipment which allowed the twins to Turbo Duel without requiring a Duel Runner.
Luna glanced tiredly at her Duel Disk as she held it in her arms, smiling. The image of a small yet round furry creature with two large eyes appeared before her.
“Kuri kuri!” it said.
“I’m okay, Kuribon,” she mumbled as the monster vanished. “I’m glad you’re all safe…”
After donning his helmet, knee pads, and arm pads and connecting his Duel Disk to his Duel Board via cord, Leo helped his twin sister onto her Duel Board and put on her safety gear. He then got on his own Duel Board before slowly traveling down the hallways, gripping Luna tightly.
They entered a large room that was vacant aside from the pieces of debris that littered the vicinity.
The twins came to a stop as they saw a man standing before the only unobstructed doorway.
“Wait… you’re—!” the brother spoke, recognizing the individual. “You’re the guy who kept giving us that awful food!”
“This is as far as you go,” the man said.
“Get out of our way!” Leo demanded.
“No, your path ends here.” The man raised his Duel Disk.
“If that’s how it is…” replied Leo. After detaching his Duel Board’s cord from his Duel Disk, he leaned his sister against a wall behind him and placed his helmet and Duel Board beside her. “Fine by me! I’ll take you down and get my sister and I out of here!” Leo raised his own Duel Disk as he glared at the man. The two Duelists drew five cards.
“My name is Drystan,” the man bowed. “Providing service to others is my one of my professions. Now, it is to serve as your guide… on your path to Tartarus.”
Leo and Drystan stood facing each other dust fell from the ceiling.
“This guy…” Leo thought. “He’s crazy trying to stop us like this while this place is falling apart.”
The man stared calmly at the young boy.
“Crazy or not, I can’t get Luna out of here while he’s blocking the way. I have to hurry!”
“Leo, be careful…” Luna warned.
“I’ll be fine! Don’t worry, sis!” Leo replied confidently.
“So, shall we begin?” Drystan asked.
“Bring it!”
DUEL! Leo (LP 4000) VS Drystan (LP 4000)
“My turn,” Drystan stated, drawing a sixth card. “I Summon Ape Fighter.”
“‘Ape’?!” Leo exclaimed, as the opponent’s beast appeared.
Ape Fighter LV: 4 ATK: 1900
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn,” Drystan concluded.
Leo paused. “Of all the Decks he could be using, it had to be this one.”
“What’s wrong?”
“This is no time to be discouraged!” Leo scoffed. “It’s my turn! I activate the Spell Morphtronics, Assemble! If the opponent controls a monster while I have none, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower non-Tuner “Morphtronic” monster from my Deck. I Summon Morphtronic Celfon!” Another humanoid machine, transforming from a large cell phone, emerged in front of Leo.
Morphtronic Celfon LV: 1 ATK: 100
“The monster Summoned by this effect cannot be used as Synchro Material and is destroyed during the End Phase. In addition, I can only Summon “Morphtronic” or “Power Tool” monsters this turn. However, I’ll be activating Celfon’s effect! Once per turn, if this monster is in Attack Position, a random number between one and six will be dialed by Celfon. Then I excavate that many cards from my Deck and, if there’s a “Morphtronic” monster, I can Special Summon one of them! Dial Up!”
The number buttons on Celfon’s chest began flashing randomly until only ‘4’ was lit.
“Yes! A four! Now I reveal four cards!” Leo continued. “Aw, yeah! I Summon Morphtronic Boarden!”
Morphtronic Boarden LV: 3 ATK: 500
“Next I Normal Summon Morphtronic Cameran!”
Morphtronic Cameran LV: 2 ATK: 800
“Summon all the monsters you like, but none of them can defeat my Ape Fighter,” said Drystan.
“I won’t need to!” Leo countered. “While Boarden is in Attack Position, all of my Morphtronics can attack directly!”
“What?”
“Go!”
First, Leo’s Celfon struck.
Drystan LP: 4000 – 100 = 3900
Next, the hooded man was struck by Boarden.
Drystan LP: 3900 – 500 = 3400
Third, Cameran landed a blow.
Drystan LP: 3400 – 800 = 2600
“How’d you like that?!” Leo boasted.
Drystan chuckled. “Not bad, but it means nothing. I activate the Trap Card Wild Cry. At the end of the Battle Phase, if I took Battle Damage, I can Summon a Level 4 or lower “Ape” monster from my Deck. Come, Ape Sentry!”
Ape Sentry LV: 2 ATK: 900
“Then, I can destroy a monster on the opponent’s field. Disappear, Cameran.”
Leo flinched as his machine exploded. The room shook from the impact, causing dust to fall from the ceiling. “I have to finish this soon,” he thought. “I’ll Set one card face-down. Then, during my End Phase, Celfon is destroyed by the effect of Morphtronics, Assemble! I end my turn.”
“Then it’s my turn,” Drystan declared. “I tune Level 2 Ape Sentry with Level 4 Ape Fighter.”
2 + 4 = 6
“Wild beast of the forest, let your enemies feel the tremors from your mighty hammer! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Ape Hammerer!”
A giant beast wielding a mallet landed behind Drystan.
Ape Hammerer LV: 6 ATK: 2200
“Then I Normal Summon Ape Knight!”
Ape Knight LV: 3 ATK: 1200
“Battle! Ape Hammerer, destroy that Boarden,” Drystan commanded, his beast’s mallet embedding Leo’s machine into the ground.
2200 – 500 = 1700
Leo LP: 4000 – 1700 = 2300
“At this moment, Ape Hammerer’s effect activates. When it destroys a monster by battle, all of my “Ape” monsters gain 300 ATK.”
Ape Hammerer LV: 6 ATK: 2200 + 300 = 2500
Ape Knight LV: 3 ATK: 1200 + 300 = 1500
“Ape Knight, direct attack!”
“I activate a Trap! Morphtronics, Scramble! When you attack me directly while I control no monsters, that attack is negated, then I Special Summon a “Morphtronic” from my hand! I Summon Morphtronic Magnen!” Leo stated. Ape Knight’s sword bounced off an invisible barrier as a new machine appeared in front of Leo.
Morphtronic Magnen LV: 3 DEF: 800
“I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn,” Drystan concluded.
“My move!” Leo glanced at his drawn card. “Yes! It’s here!”
“That’s right, boy,” the man thought. “Continue to hope while you can.”
Leo then grabbed a different card from his hand. “I activate the Spell Junk Box! This card lets me Special Summon a Level 4 or lower “Morphtronic” from my Graveyard! Come on back, Celfon!”
Morphtronic Celfon LV: 1 ATK: 100
“I activate Celfon’s effect! Dial Up!” The buttons on his monster’s chest began flashing until only a two was lit. Leo then revealed the top two cards of his Deck. “I Special Summon Morphtronic Staplen in Defense Position!” A stapler-shaped machine appeared before him.
Morphtronic Staplen LV: 4 DEF: 1000
“Next I Summon the Tuner Monster Morphtronic Remoten!”
Morphtronic Remoten LV: 3 ATK: 300
“I now tune Level 3 Remoten with Level 1 Celfon and Level 3 Magnen!”
3 + 1 + 3 = 7
“Docking strength with courage to protect the world's peace! Synchro Summon! Envoy of love and justice, Power Tool Dragon!”
Drystan watched as a great mechanical dragon descended behind Leo, staring at it intently.
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300
“I activate Power Tool Dragon’s monster effect!” Leo continued. “Once per turn, I choose three Equip Spells from my Deck, then you pick one of them at random to be added to my hand while the others get shuffled back. Power Search!”
The images of three cards appeared and revealed themselves to the hooded man before vanishing and reappearing face-down.
“Relying on luck is unbecoming,” Drystan commented.
“Just pick already!” replied the green-haired boy.
“The card on the far right.”
Leo’s Duel Disk’s shuffle feature triggered and, upon stopping, left a card sticking out on top of his Deck. He then grabbed it and the remaining card in his hand. “I activate the Equip Spells Double Tool C&D and Break! Draw! and I’ll equip them to Power Tool Dragon!” The mechanical dragon began to glow as its arms were replaced by a drill and buzz saw. “During my turn, Double Tool C&D raises the ATK of the equipped monster by 1000!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300 + 1000 = 3300
“3300 ATK…” Drystan mumbled.
“Battle!” Leo declared. “Power Tool Dragon, attack Ape Hammerer! Crafty Break!”
Power Tool Dragon pierced Ape Hammerer with its drill, creating an explosion. The smoke smothered Leo’s opponent.
3300 – 2500 = 800
Drystan LP: 2600 – 800 = 1800
“At this moment, Break! Draw!’s effect activates!” Leo continued, as his dragon retreated to its original spot behind him. “When the equipped monster destroy an opponent’s monster by battle, I draw one card! And with that, I’ll end my turn!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 3300 – 1000 = 2300
With a single motion of his arm, Drystan wafted the smoke away.
“How’s that? There’s more where that came from!” Leo boasted.
“Not bad, boy. It seems you’re not all talk after all,” Drystan stated.
“I don’t like this…” Luna thought, noticing the opponent’s grin.
“However, it’ll take much more than that to defeat me.”
The twins gasped as the smoke completely cleared, revealing Ape Hammerer.
Ape Hammerer LV: 6 ATK: 2200
“But how?!” exclaimed Leo. “There’s no way it could’ve survived, even if it had an effect to avoid destruction by battle! Double Tool negates the effects of the opponent’s monster that the equipped monster attacks!”
“A closer look would do you well, child,” Drystan stated.
“What?” Leo gasped upon seeing the Trap Card that floated in front of his opponent.
“I’ve activated the Trap Card Return of the Ape King. By Tributing a monster, I can Special Summon an “Ape” from my Graveyard. As you can see, I’ve already Tributed Ape Knight to revive my Ape Hammerer.”
“Great… but during your turn, you can’t attack any of my monsters except the monster equipped with Double Tool C&D! You won’t be powering up your monster so easily now!”
“Toys, at best. And they mean nothing to me.”
“Huh?”
“When Ape Knight is sent to the Graveyard, I can add an “Ape” monster from my Deck to my hand. I’ve already added the Tuner Monster Disharmony Ape from my Deck to my hand.”
“…‘Disharmony’?”
“All you’ve done up to now is play right into my hands, and now you and your sister shall die for it.”
Leo scoffed. “That’s not happening!”
Drystan chuckled. “It’s my turn. I Summon Disharmony Ape!”
Disharmony Ape LV: 2 ATK: 300
The small black simian creature stared at the twins, with a gaze that made both shudder.
“I tune Level 2 Disharmony Ape with Level 6 Ape Hammerer,” Drystan continued. The Signer marks on the twins’ right arms began to glow as the small ape became two black rings that encircled Ape Hammerer.
2 + 6 = 8
“When life's light grows dim, your delighted self fades into the chaos! Synchro Summon! Rise and despair, Disharmony – Gloomy Ape!”
Disharmony – Gloomy Ape LV: 8 ATK: 2600
A great, menacing ape landed between Drystan and the exit, letting out a large roar.
“Ow…” Leo reacted, covering his ears. He flinched as small chunks of debris landed at his feet. “That was close! Luna, are you okay? Luna?”
His sister stared at the beast with uneasiness as she grasped her right arm. “Something’s wrong here…”
“The monster using Disharmony Ape as Synchro Material gains 500 ATK,” Drystan continued.
“Disharmony – Gloomy Ape! Attack Power Tool Dragon! Hardened Fist!” the hooded man commanded.
Leo’s machine braced itself as the ape’s fist collided with its arms. “Power Tool Dragon’s effect! By sending an Equip Card to the Graveyard, it can avoid being destroyed! I send Break! Draw! to the Graveyard!”
“But you’ll still take the Battle Damage!”
The giant ape slammed Power Tool Dragon into the wall, more pieces of the ceiling falling onto the ground.
3100 – 2300 = 800
Leo LP: 2300 – 800 = 1500
“Big mistake!” Leo grinned. “At this moment, I activate the effect of Double Tool C&D! After battling the opponent’s monster during their turn, I destroy that monster!”
His dragon charged forward, aiming for the beast’s gut with the buzz saw. As the ape blocked the saw, Power Tool Dragon lunged with its drill, piercing the stomach. Sparks began to fly.
“It’s a… hit?”
Drystan chuckled.
“Did I just… hear something?” Leo wondered.
“Gloomy Ape’s effect. By discarding an “Ape” or “Disharmony” monster from my hand, it can avoid destruction. Since it’s not your turn, this effect won’t be negated by your Equip Spell,” the man stated. His beast swatted Power Tool Dragon away. “I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn.”
“That was so strange… I could’ve sworn I heard… screaming,” Leo thought.
“What’s wrong? It’s your turn.”
“You don’t have to tell me twice! I draw!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300 + 1000 = 3300
“I activate Power Tool’s effect! Power Search!” Just as before, three cards appeared, vanished, then reappeared face-down. Drystan pointed at the middle card. Leo’s Deck was then shuffled by his Duel Disk and left a card sticking out on top to be added to his hand. “I activate Pot of Avarice! I shuffle five monsters from my Graveyard into my Deck then draw two cards!”
Leo stared intently at the four cards in his hand.
“I should be able to do something with this,” he thought. “I activate the Spell Morphtronic Accelerator! I shuffle a “Morphtronic” monster from my hand into the Deck to destroy a card on the field! The card I’ll destroy is Dish—”
“Wait…” a female voice said.
“Luna…?” Leo turned towards his sister, interrupting him before he had physically pointed out his target.
“Don’t… don’t do it…” Luna rose to her feet, approaching her brother.
“But why?”
“There’s something wrong with that monster… I can feel it…”
Leo closed his free hand into a fist and clenched hard.
“Please…”
Shutting his eyes, Leo continued with his move. “The card I’ll destroy is that Set card!” He placed the appropriate monster card into his Deck, the image of which then appeared and crashed into one of Drystan’s two face-down cards. “After destroying its target, Morphtronic Accelerator lets me draw a card!” Leo said, after his Deck was shuffled by his Duel Disk.
Drystan remained silent, grinning.
“What’s so funny?”
“Such a mistake you’ve made, child. I activate the effect of the Trap Card you just destroyed, Chaos Tune,” Drystan stated.
“What?!”
“When it’s destroyed, I can add a “Disharmony” monster from my Deck to my hand. I’ll choose the Tuner Monster Disharmony Catalyst.”
“Disharmony… Catalyst?” Leo mumbled. “So you’re looking to Synchro Summon? I won’t let that happen! I’ll have Power Too—”
Silence filled the room.
“Yes? On with it,” Drystan said.
“Right… Luna asked me not to destroy it… if she says something’s wrong, I’ll have to believe her!” thought Leo, grabbing the remaining three cards in his hand. “I’ll have Power Tool Dragon switch to Defense Position.”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 DEF: 2500
“Next, I equip it with Central Shield! Any Battle Damage I take from battles not involving the equipped monster becomes zero! Then I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn.”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 3300 – 1000 = 2300
“Couldn’t do it?” Drystan said. “It doesn’t matter. The longer this Duel goes on, the less chance you’ll have of ever escaping.”
Leo scoffed.
“It’s my turn,” the man continued. “I Summon Disharmony Catalyst.” A disfigured creature appeared at his side.
The twins became wide-eyed as the giant ape vanished and became eight black stars surrounded by two dark rings. However, what caught their attention was not the dark colors of the rings and stars of the Synchro Summon procedure they’re used to seeing.
2 + 8 = 10
“Chaos begins, laughter becoming cries of agony! Let loose the shadows within your heart and shatter harmony! Synchro Summon! Descend, Ultimate Disharmony – Simian of Despair!”
The stars and rings became engulfed in a black pillar which faded away, leaving behind a larger beast than before. Its eyes were stained red and on its arms and legs were gauntlets that had spikes point in all directions.
Ultimate Disharmony – Simian of Despair LV: 10 ATK: 3400
“Luna… did you see that?!” Leo asked.
“Yes… I did…” she answered.
“Something was… inside that monster! If I had…”
“On your last turn, if my monster had been targeted by your Morphtronic Accelerator or your attack, the creature you saw within would have died,” Drystan finished. “By your hands, no less.”
The twins were frozen, speechless. They could not shake the sight of what appeared to be an unconscious pink horse with the image of colored balloons on both sides of its flank, with a wound on the side of its stomach.
“It should be quite clear now. Out of the three of you—that is, you twins and the horse inside my beast—someone shall die here tonight. The only question is: Who?”
“How could you…?” Luna asked.
“You creep! How could you hurt innocent Duel Monster spirits like this?” Leo shouted.
“You were the one that hurt that pathetic creature, or did you not notice the wound inflicted on its belly?” Drystan countered.
“What…?”
“That’s right. It was you who injured it, remember?”
“Big mistake!” Leo grinned. “At this moment, I activate the effect of Double Tool C&D! After battling the opponent’s monster during their turn, I destroy that monster!”
His dragon charged forward, aiming for the beast’s gut with the buzz saw. As the ape blocked the saw, Power Tool Dragon lunged with its drill, piercing the stomach. Sparks began to fly.
“It’s a… hit?”
Drystan chuckled.
“Did I just… hear something?” Leo wondered.
“So what will it be?” Drystan asked. “You cannot get past me without destroying my monster, in turn killing the one trapped inside. Sure, you’ll be free, but your conscience will forever be stained with the blood of an innocent being. On the other hand, if you hesitate, it’ll be you two who die here. Either way, only despair awaits you.”
“Why you…” Leo grumbled.
Luna looked on towards the center of the giant beast with great worry. “How are we supposed to get it out…?”
“Just why would you do this? How could you do something so heartless?!” the boy exclaimed.
“Compared to what we’ve experienced, I hardly think you’re in any position to call us ‘heartless’,” Drystan replied.
“What…?”
“For those like you, there’s only one thing that you should do: Die.”
Leo flinched.
“Battle! Ultimate Disharmony – Simian of Despair! Attack Power Tool Dragon!”
Leo gasped as the ape’s hand reached for his machine.
“The Hand of Despair!”
“I activate the Continuous Trap Morphtronic Bind!” Leo declared, glancing at his Morphtronic Staplen as an electric grid spawned between his and his opponent’s fields. “As long as I control a “Morphtronic” monster, Level 4 or higher monsters you control can’t attack or change Battle Position.”
“A wasted effort. I activate the Counter Trap Chaos Rend,” Drystan stated. “If I control a “Disharmony” monster, I can negate the activation of a Spell or Trap Card and destroy it.”
The grid and the card generating it shattered as the ape’s fist slammed into Power Tool Dragon.
“Power Tool Dragon’s effect! I send Double Tool C&D to the Graveyard to prevent it from being destroyed!” Leo stated. The machine’s drill and buzz saw vanished.
“A monster using Disharmony Catalyst as Synchro Material can inflict piercing damage!” Drystan continued.
“What?!” Power Tool Dragon was hurled into a wall and left heavily damaged.
3400 – 2500 = 900
Leo LP: 1500 – 900 = 600
The wall behind Power Tool Dragon cracked. The crack itself swiftly made its way to the ceiling above the twins, releasing a large chunk of debris.
“Luna!” Leo instinctively dove at his sister, who had been frozen in shock as she saw the ceiling crumble. The two coughed as the dust cleared, barely avoiding the rubble. “Are you okay?!”
“Yes…” she answered. “I’m fine. Thank you, Leo…”
“Simian of Despair’s monster effect activates,” Drystan continued. “By banishing an “Ape” or “Disharmony” monster from my Graveyard, it can attack twice this turn!”
“Two attacks?! But that means—” the brother noticed.
“It ends here. Attack Power Tool Dragon! The Hand of Despair!” The ape launched its fist at Power Tool Dragon once more.
Leo quickly rose to his feet. “I activate the Trap Card Block Lock! This card changes your attack target to a “Morphtronic” monster I control! I’ll use it to have you attack my Morphtronic Staplen!”
Morphtronic Staplen LV: 4 DEF: 1000
The stapler-shaped machine jumped in front of Power Tool, receiving the blow.
“The Defense Position Staplen can’t be destroyed in battle, then switches to Attack Position after damage calculation! In addition, due to Central Shield’s effect, I take no Battle Damage from battles not involving Power Tool Dragon!” The ape’s fist hurled Staplen into the wall next to the mechanical dragon, the latter collapsing in a humanoid form.
Morphtronic Staplen LV: 4 ATK: 1400
The room shook violently from the impact. Several pieces of debris fell from the ceiling, scattered throughout the room.
Drystan chuckled. “It appears you won’t be escaping after all. Farewell,” he said, turning around and sprinting to the exit as his ape vanished.
“Wait!” Leo shouted, only for his path to be cut off by huge chunks of rubble. The twins became surrounded by a wall of debris that prevented their escape.
“Leo… what are we gonna do…?” Luna gripped her brother tightly.
“I… I don’t know,” he replied, returning the embrace.
The two looked up and screamed as they saw another piece of the ceiling fall.
Yusei knelt down next to his runner, inspecting it as Twilight approached from the stairs with Spike and Fluttershy beside her.
“How much longer?” she asked.
“Give me about fifteen minutes, and I should be ready,” he answered.
Twilight then glanced at the toolbox by his feet. “What happened?”
“Making sure my Duel Runner hasn’t taken any serious damage from that attack at Sweet Apple Acres. I didn’t get the chance to inspect it then because our enemy had brought you all here.”
“Well, okay. I need to check something out at the Golden Oak Library, anyway. Seeing if the book I’m looking for is there.”
“Understood.”
“Fifteen minutes, right?”
“Yeah. What about you two?”
“I’m heading back home to check on my animal friends, to make sure they’re all still well,” Fluttershy answered.
“With Twilight, to help with her research,” Spike stated.
Yusei nodded, turning towards his Runner as the dragon leapt onto the alicorn’s back as she and the pegasus flew out of the castle.
The group split up, with Fluttershy turning towards her cottage, while Twilight and Spike headed towards their old home.
“Twilight, are you feeling alright?” Spike asked.
“Yeah, why do you ask?” Twilight replied.
“You seem a bit… stressed out. I mean, I know our friends are in danger in all and need to be rescued…”
No response.
“Twilight?”
She sighed. “It’s just… so much to take in. This mystery group of humans, part of this movement thingy… those Diamond Dogs working together with them… and who knows what els—” Twilight came to a stop in mid-air before descending to the ground.
“What is it?”
She planted her hoof in her face. “The mirror. I forgot to check the mirror! What if they found it?!”
“But didn’t you leave the mirror off?”
“I did! But what if they found a way to turn it on while I was away?! What do I do if they get captured, too?!”
“Hey, don’t worry!” Spike hopped off of Twilight.
“Spike?”
“I can go check on the mirror, see if anything’s been messed with!” The dragon sprinted off before Twilight could react.
She sighed once more. “Thanks, Spike.” As she spread her wings once more, she noticed a group of three ponies with bright coats—from the Crystal Empire, no doubt—together. One, whose cutie mark was a metal heart, stood across from the other two—both female, one of which had an expression that was filled with anger. One female was a pegasus who had a soft orange coat with a deep purple mane, whose cutie mark was a lantern. The other was an earth pony with a pink coat and blue mane with a compact for a cutie mark. “Steel Heart?”
“What don’t you get?” said the pegasus, continuing to glare.
“But, Lucid… I didn’t…” Steel Heart replied.
“Go. Away. We are not friends anymore. Let’s go, Rouge.” Lucid turned away and stormed off. Rouge gave a sorrowful glance towards Steel Heart before following her friend.
Steel Heart hung his head before another voice called to him.
“What happened here?” inquired Twilight.
“Nothing. It’s not important,” he answered, turning away.
“What was that about?”
“Please don’t ask. I just want to be alone right now.”
As she looked around the town, Twilight saw several other ponies engaged in disputes, though not nearly as heated. Some of the homes had been clearly ransacked by the invaders, and it would take a while for them to rebuild.
“I guess this whole mess has gotten to all of them,” she thought. “I can’t believe all this happened.”
“I need this so I can fix the hole in my roof! I can’t let my equipment sustain any possible damage with those clouds up there!” said a brown stallion, with an hourglass cutie mark.
“I need this to fix the hole in our wall! Who knows who might walk in?!” replied a mare with a bright coat and a cutie mark consisting of three pieces of candy. Next to the arguing ponies was a pile of wooden planks on a cart.
“Everypony, please! Calm down!” Twilight asked.
“Your Highness! Kindly tell this young mare that I need these supplies to be able to protect all my equipment!” the stallion said.
“Excuse you?!” the mare exclaimed. “My best friend and I would like to not have strangers trotting into our house!”
“You seem to be using that phrase a lot when you talk about her.”
“Just like you seem to enjoy your own friend dropping in with large gifts.”
“Those ‘gifts’, as you called them, aren’t mine! They’re packages for other ponies!”
“And yesterday?” the mare deadpanned.
“That one was actually mine. Besides, what are you so afraid of? Do you have some enemies you don’t want breaking in?”
The mare’s eye twitched.
“Both of you! Stop!” Twilight shouted. “You’re not getting anywhere like this.”
“The princess is right! Y’all need to stop bickerin’ like foals!” a young voice shouted.
“That voice…” Twilight turned her head. “Apple Bloom?”
“She should definitely get the supplies to rebuild that wall,” Sweetie Belle stated.
“And you can get a tarp to cover the hole in your ceiling until you get supplies to fix your roof!” Scootaloo suggested.
The mare and stallion glared at each other.
“Fine,” the stallion reluctantly spoke.
“Thank you,” the mare replied, pulling the cart away. The stallion turned the other direction and left.
Twilight sighed.
“You okay, Twi?” Apple Bloom asked.
“That seemed like something you would’ve figured out pretty quickly,” said Sweetie Belle.
“Yes, I’m fine,” Twilight answered. “But what are you girls doing here? I thought Big Mac was walking you all home.”
The girls simply gave an unintelligible response, followed by the alicorn planting her face in her hoof.
Nearby, angry voices from several townsponies arguing with one another grew louder.
“I can’t believe things have gotten so bad in just a few days,” Twilight thought. “What should I do? I need to help my friends… but I can’t leave Ponyville like this.”
She glimpsed at her friends’ sisters before her, waiting for the princess’s response.
“Hold on just a little longer…” Twilight sighed, facing the arguing ponies. “First things first. Apple Bloom? Sweetie Belle? Scootaloo?”
“Yes?” the girls replied in unison.
“Think you could help me out?”
“Yeah!” answered Sweetie Belle.
“Of course!” Scootaloo added.
“Gladly!” said Apple Bloom.
“Done,” Yusei stated, wiping his forehead. He placed his toolbox beside him, briefly testing his Runner by revving the engine. “Doesn’t look like any major damage happened.”
“So are we all ready to go?” Spike asked, coming down the stairs.
“Yeah. By the way, what’d you come back for?”
“Twilight wanted me to check on the mirror, to see if any of those creeps messed with it.”
“Mirror?”
“Long story short, there’s a special mirror residing in my castle that acts as a gateway to an alternate world. On the other side is a world of humans,” Twilight described.
“I see. Are you sure you didn’t travel through that?” asked Yusei.
“That isn’t possible. I wasn’t in my castle. That, and I somehow take on a human form in that alternate world… yet…”
“You’re still a pony here,” Yusei finished. “So that could only mean this is a completely separate world from the human world you’ve been to before.”
“Yeah… it’s strange…”
“Doesn’t look like they did anything to it,” Spike said. “Also, that unicorn I just saw go into the library… wasn’t he…?”
“The same unicorn that fought alongside us? Yeah,” Yusei replied.
“Did he seem… different to you?”
“What do you mean?”
“I dunno. He looked like he was sulking or something so I asked him what’s up… and he just walked right past me. Weird.”
Yusei briefly glimpsed up the stairs before placing his toolbox back in the compartment beneath the seat of his Duel Runner.
“So… what is this thing? What did they call it in that other world…? A car…?” questioned Spike.
“It’s a Duel Runner,” Yusei responded, donning his helmet and boarding the Runner.
“A Duel wha—?”
The conversation was cut short by the abrupt sound of another Duel Runner, landing on the ground and nearly running over Spike.
“Hey, watch it!” Spike rose to his feet, only to be startled by Yusei darting out the door on his own Runner. “Hey, wait for me!”
“Glad we’ve worked this out,” Twilight said, as two ponies walked away with expressions of reluctance yet acceptance at the alicorn’s decision. She sighed as she saw a few more groups approaching her.
“Hey, Twi?” asked Apple Bloom.
“Yes?”
“Which of these two do ya think needs this food more?”
“That’s… not a lot,” Twilight said, as she glanced at the nearly empty cart.
“I have a two kids to feed!” shouted a stallion.
“I have a foal!” replied the mare.
Twilight groaned as she partitioned what little there was of the food with her magic. “Here,” she said.
“My baby needs more than that!”
“I’m sure that baby of yours doesn’t need more than that. You know, being a baby and all,” retorted the stallion.
“Look,” Twilight stated. “I’m sorry, but I’m afraid this will have to do for now until more food is grown or brought into Ponyville.”
“Fine,” the two ponies replied, in unison, carrying away what was given to them.
The alicorn sighed once more.
“You okay, Twi?” asked Apple Bloom.
“Yes, I’m fine.”
“Listen… ah think you should go.”
“What?”
“Ya know. Go rescue our sisters and friends.”
“But…”
“Look out!” A mare screamed in the distance.
Twilight and Apple Bloom sprinted toward the voice, until they were startled by two passing Duel Runners.
“That’s…” Twilight noticed the red Duel Runner.
“Twilight!” Spike panted as he barely caught up to the alicorn.
“Spike, what happened?”
“Just let me… just…” Spike bent down, hands on his knees as Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo approached.
“Some guy on that… bike thing drove out of the castle and…”
“Out of the castle?!” exclaimed Twilight. “What was he doing there?”
“I don’t know… but he didn’t come from the mirror. I checked, and nothing seems to have been messed with. It’s still off.”
“Then why did he…?”
“Um,” Fluttershy spoke up, descending onto the ground next to them. “I think I saw a pony on one of the bikes.”
“What?”
“Not Yusei’s… but… the other one.”
“Who?”
“I think it was a crystal pony? I think it’s…”
“Steel Heart?”
“Yes, him!”
“But why… never mind. All of you, stay here. I’m going after him.”
“By yourself? Twilight?”
Everypony and Spike saw the alicorn already flying after the Duel Runners.
“Come on, Fluttershy! We gotta go after her!” Spike said.
“But Twilight said…” Fluttershy replied. “Spike?”
“Hey, you! Stop!” Yusei demanded.
The hooded rider in the Duel Runner before him briefly glimpsed back before making a sharp turn. His Runner then flew over a thin stream, followed by several other turns through the forest.
“That should do it,” he said. He then glanced behind himself once before. “What?!”
“You’re not getting away!” shouted Yusei.
The man then placed a card in his Duel Disk, slicing down trees before him.
Yusei gasped as an upcoming tree collapsed towards him and instinctively rotated his Runner and leaned it backwards, barely passing underneath.
“What are you doing with that unicorn?” asked Yusei, straightening out.
“It doesn’t matter to you,” the man replied, pressing a button on his Duel Runner. “I can’t have you pursuing me like this.”
“DUEL MODE ENGAGED,” said a computer voice, along with the image of Speed World 2 appearing on their monitors.
“Now he wants to Duel?” Yusei thought to himself.
“My name is Rudith,” replied the man, “and I will defeat you here.”
Twilight flew above the trees, following the sounds of the Runners until they were within sight.
“Wait… tell me they’re not…” she thought. She then looked up to see them veering slightly away from the mountain before them. “Are they… headed for Canterlot?”
A low boom then sounded in the distance, coming from the same mountain.
“What’s that?” she asked herself. Another boom. This time, as she drew closer, her eyes caught a dust cloud on the mountainside.
Twilight looked at the Runners and back at the mountain once more. After a momentary pause, she took a deep breath.
“All right, Yusei,” she thought. “Don’t let me down.”
Applejack sprinted down the path along the mountainside with the saddlebag containing the card imprisoning her friend in tow, fleeing from her unicorn pursuers.
She yelped as several magical blasts struck near her feet.
“Cut it out, will ya?!” Applejack exclaimed.
“Don’t let her escape!” said a unicorn mare.
Another blast struck the wall to Applejack’s left, the rubble obstructing the path completely.
“You honestly didn’t think you could get away, did you?” said the mare.
Applejack frantically glimpsed down the cliff. “Here goes nothin’!” she said as she slid down.
“After her!”
The two Duel Runners continued along the path through the forest, their riders drawing five cards as they approached the mountain.
DUEL! Yusei (LP 4000) VS Rudith (LP 4000)
“It’s my turn!” Yusei declared, drawing a sixth card. “If I control no monsters, I can Special Summon Junk Forward from my hand!”
Junk Forward LV: 3 DEF: 1500
“Next, I’ll Normal Summon the Tuner Monster Junk Synchron!”
“When wishes of steel gather round the messenger of the gale, that wish will become an invincible shield! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Come out, Junk Gardna!”
Junk Gardna LV: 6 DEF: 2600
A large metallic warrior with two shields attached to its arms appeared at Yusei’s side.
“I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn,” he concluded.
“Then it’s my turn,” Rudith stated, drawing a card.
Yusei LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
Rudith LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
“I Summon Runeagle!” A small bird, decorated with bright stones and glyphs descended above Rudith.
Runeagle LV: 4 ATK: 1000
“When a “Rune” monster is Summoned, I can Special Summon the Tuner Monster Runetiger from my hand!”
Runetiger LV: 4 ATK: 700
A tiger with an appearance much like the eagle’s began sprinting beside Rudith’s Duel Runner.
“A Tuner Monster?” Yusei said. “He’s also going for a Synchro Summon on his first turn…”
“I tune Level 4 Runetiger with Level 4 Runeagle!”
4 + 4 = 8
“Mystical guardian! Infused with your magical stones, let none surpass your mighty axe! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Runetaurus!”
Runetaurus LV: 8 ATK: 2900
A large minotaur carrying a glowing axe appeared at Rudith’s side, glyphs all over its upper body.
“Battle! Runetaurus, attack Junk Gardna!” he commanded.
“I activate Junk Gardna’s effect!” Yusei declared. “Once per turn, I can change the Battle Position of a monster on the field!”
The giant minotaur knelt down.
Runetaurus LV: 8 DEF: 2600
“In that case, I activate Runetaurus’s effect,” Rudith continued. “Once per turn, I can Special Summon a “Rune” monster from my Graveyard, but it can’t attack this turn. Revive, Runeagle!”
Runeagle LV: 4 DEF: 1000
“I Set three cards face-down and end my turn.”
“Um, Spike? Are you sure we should be going this way?” asked Fluttershy.
“Well, yeah!” Spike replied.
“But Twilight said to—”
“I can’t just let her go on her own!”
“I-I mean, I’m sure she can handle herself, right? Let’s go back to Ponyville where it’s safe!” Fluttershy whimpered as she glanced at the trees surrounding them.
“You’re not scared, are you?”
“O-Of course I’m scared! Aren’t you?”
“Why did I even bother asking?” Spike wondered. “Look, Fluttershy. If you wanna go back to Ponyville, go ahead. I won’t stop you.”
“I-I’m not sure I should let you go by yourself.”
“Relax, I can handle myself!” Spike continued forward once more.
“Oh…” Fluttershy moaned, staying behind the dragon. “Eek!” She shrieked upon hearing some nearby bushes rustle.
“What’s wrong?”
“I-I don’t know. I heard something coming from the bushes.”
Spike stared in the direction Fluttershy pointed. “I don’t see anything.”
“B-but… Spike?” Fluttershy continued to follow the dragon.
“It’s my turn!” Yusei stated.
Yusei LP: 4000 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
Rudith LP: 4000 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
“All right!” he thought, glancing at his drawn card. “By sending a monster from my hand to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon Quickdraw Synchron!”
Quickdraw Synchron LV: 5 DEF: 1400
“Now, because I control a Tuner Monster, I can Special Summon Quillbolt Hedgehog from my Graveyard!”
“Gathering anger becomes an entranced warrior born from a brutal god. Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Howl, Junk Berserker!”
Junk Berserker LV: 7 ATK: 2700
A large, red centaur appeared next to Yusei.
“Junk Berserker’s monster effect! By banishing a “Junk” monster from my Graveyard, I can lower your monster’s ATK equal to the banished monster’s ATK!” An image of Junk Forward appeared and quickly vanished into a vortex.
Runetaurus LV: 8 ATK: 2900 – 900 = 2000
“Lowering my monster’s ATK?” Rudith grumbled.
“Next, I activate Junk Gardna’s effect! I’ll have Runetaurus switch into Attack Position!” Yusei continued.
“So that’s what you were aiming for,” thought Rudith.
“I activate the Trap Mystic Rune!” A large gem floated before Runetaurus and embedded itself to the minotaur’s chest.
“What’s that?”
“When a “Rune” monster is targeted for an attack, I can change that target to another monster I control! Naturally, I choose Runeagle!” Rudith’s winged creature moved to intercept the attack from Yusei’s Synchro Monster. Junk Berserker sliced through the eagle.
“What?!” exclaimed Yusei.
“When Runeagle is destroyed, I can Special Summon a “Rune” monster from my hand. Come! Runeant!”
Runeant LV: 1 DEF: 300
“Mystic Rune also becomes an Equip Card for the monster you originally attacked and gives it 1000 ATK. While I have Mystic Rune, you cannot target the equipped monster for attacks or effects if I control at least one other monster.”
Runetaurus LV: 8 ATK: 2000 + 1000 = 3000
“I end my turn,” Yusei scoffed.
“My move,” Rudith continued.
Yusei LP: 4000 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
Rudith LP: 4000 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
“I Summon Runegoblin!”
Runegoblin LV: 2 ATK: 800
“I tune Level 1 Runeant with Level 2 Runegoblin!”
1 + 2 = 3
“Impregnable shield which deflects all enemies! Rise and become a great wall! Synchro Summon! Come, Runeaegis!”
A large tortoise descended onto Rudith’s field in front of his minotaur.
Runeaegis LV: 3 DEF: 1000
“When Runeant is used as Synchro Material for a “Rune” Synchro Monster, I draw one card. In addition, Runeaegis has the effect to negate an attack towards a “Rune” monster I control.”
“So that monster will intercept two of my attacks each turn,” Yusei thought. “And even then… I still have to deal with his Runetaurus’s 3000 ATK…”
“Runetaurus’s effect,” Rudith continued. “I’ll Special Summon Runeant once more.”
Runeant LV: 1 DEF: 300
“Next, I activate the Continuous Trap Limit Reverse. This card Special Summons a monster from my Graveyard with 1000 ATK or less.”
“Is he going for…?” Yusei wondered.
“Revive! Runegoblin!” Rudith declared.
Runegoblin LV: 2 ATK: 800
“Once again, I tune Level 1 Runeant with Level 2 Runegoblin!”
1 + 2 = 3
“Impregnable shield which deflects all enemies! Rise and become a great wall! Synchro Summon! Come, Runeaegis!”
Another tortoise appeared beside Rudith.
Runeaegis LV: 3 DEF: 1000
“But that means…” Yusei noticed.
“That’s right,” Rudith stated. “With this defense, you’ll find it difficult to reach my Runetaurus.”
Yusei scoffed.
“With Runeant’s effect, I draw one more card.” Rudith glimpsed back towards his opponent. “Battle! Runetaurus, attack Junk Berserker!” His minotaur hacked through Yusei’s Synchro Monster.
“I activate the Trap Card Spirit Force! I reduce the Battle Damage to 0, then I add a Warrior-Type Tuner Monster with 1500 ATK or less from my Graveyard to my hand!” Yusei promptly added the Junk Synchron card that popped out of his Graveyard slot into his hand.
“But I still have Runetaurus’s other effect. When Runetaurus destroys a monster in battle, you take damage equal to its original ATK!”
Yusei braced himself as the minotaur raised its axe.
“That’s not all. I activate the Continuous Trap Rune Sheen. Once per turn, when a “Rune” monster destroys one of your monsters in battle, I can destroy another of your monsters!”
“What?!”
A blast shot out from Rudith’s newly activated Trap Card, obliterating Junk Gardna as Yusei was slashed by Runetaurus.
Yusei LP: 4000 – 2700 = 1300 SPC: 3
The impact caused Yusei to briefly spin out. He glared forward at his opponent after he straightened out.
“But I still have Junk Gardna’s other effect! If it’s sent to the Graveyard, I can switch the Battle Position of one of your monsters!” Yusei declared. “With Mystic Rune, I won’t be able to target his Runetaurus. In that case…”
“Rune Sheen’s other effect,” Rudith interrupted. “During the turn this card is activated, all of my “Rune” monsters are unaffected by your monster effects.”
Yusei scoffed.
“That ends my turn,” Rudith concluded.
“Rune monsters…” thought Yusei. “No doubt he’s got a powerful defense… but if I don’t break through soon, I’ll have no chance of winning.”
The hooded unicorns continued down the path.
“Didn’t she come this way?” said a stallion.
“Keep looking! She has to be nearby!” replied a mare, motioning for the group to continue trotting.
Applejack let out a deep exhale, leaning against the wall of a cave just beneath the passing unicorns.
“That lot just don’t give up,” she commented, wiping her forehead. She poked her head out, her eyes catching the last of the unicorns turn one of the corners on the path. She then slowly crept down the path going the opposite direction.
“There she is!” a voice yelled.
“Aw, nuts,” Applejack began sprinting. “Shoulda waited a bit longer.”
A burst of magic hurled the cowpony into the air, screaming. She opened her eyes to see herself and her hat suspended in mid-air.
“What the hay?”
She saw another burst of magic aimed at her. Closing her eyes, she braced herself only to feel nothing. When she opened her eyes again, she saw a familiar alicorn creating a magic shield. “TWILIGHT?!” she shouted, both with excitement and relief.
“Get them!” a unicorn shouted. Another blast of magic collided with Twilight’s shield, creating an explosion. When the smoke cleared, the sky was empty. “Find them!”
The two mares stood in the open field, breathing sighs of relief.
“Are you okay, AJ?” Twilight asked.
“Now that yer here, Ah’m better than oka—” Applejack replied. “Twilight?”
Twilight held Applejack tightly. “I’m so glad you’re okay…”
Applejack returned the embrace. “Likewise, but ah’m afraid that…”
“What?”
The cowpony reached into her saddlebag and revealed a card to her. Twilight lifted the card with her magic and examined it.
“What is this?” she asked.
“Where’s the other one?!” Applejack exclaimed. “Ah was sure I had two of them cards in mah saddlebag!”
“Applejack, slow down! What cards!”
“Right… ya weren’t here when it happened. After ya disappeared, these bozos captured us and trapped Fluttershy in a card… then just earlier… Rarity and Pinkie Pie…”
“What about Rainbow Dash?”
“She…” Applejack sniffled, holding her hat to her chest. “We got separated tryin’ to escape their base…”
Twilight’s eyes began to tear up. “No…”
“Dash had both Rarity’s and Pinkie’s card in this here saddlebag, but… ah must’ve dropped one of them somehow.” Applejack glanced back towards Canterlot, putting her hat back on.
“We have to go back for them,” Twilight said.
“How’re we supposed t’ find a couple of cards, though? Ah reckon it’ll be worse than tryin’ to find a couple of needles in a haystack!”
“We have to find them.”
Applejack noticed a strong sense of resolve in Twilight’s eyes. “Alright, but what about Fluttershy?”
“No need to worry about her. At least not her being a card, anyway.”
“What d’ya mean?”
“That time when I disappeared, I’d been to another human world and I met someone named Yusei. He helped me rescue Fluttershy from one of them.”
“These humans and this Yusei fella… did they happen to come from the same world?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Are ya sure you can trust him?”
Twilight paused. “To be honest, I’m not entirely sure. I mean… he did a lot to help me from the very start, even before I first woke up in that world. I don’t particularly like his way of doing things, but he’s never meant any wrong.”
Applejack raised an eyebrow. “So… where is Fluttershy?”
“Back in Ponyville with Spike.”
“Wait. Does that mean…?”
“Yeah. We cleared out the Diamond Dogs and whatever humans were there.”
Applejack sighed. “Well, that’s a relief. I guess that means mah family and friends there are safe. If anythin’ ever happened to them… so what do we do now, Twi?”
Twilight placed the card back in the saddlebag. “I think we should go regroup with Yusei.”
“But ah thought you said ya didn’t like the way he did things?”
“I don’t,” Twilight sighed. “But still… right now, he’s chasing one of the humans that captured an innocent pony.”
“Then what’re we waitin’ for?” Applejack said, running ahead with Twilight shortly behind.
Yusei stared at the monsters before him. “This person, Rudith… he’s definitely a skilled Duelist. His field is almost untouchable,” he thought, placing his hand on his Deck. “My turn!”
Yusei LP: 1300 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
Rudith LP: 4000 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
“If I’m to save that unicorn, my attacks have to reach that Runetaurus!” Yusei noted. “I activate the Speed Spell – Angel Baton! Since I have at least two Speed Counters, I draw two cards and discard one!” He placed his hand on his Deck once more.
Rudith remained silent, patiently awaiting his opponent’s next move.
“I’ll bet everything on this draw!” Yusei continued, drawing two cards. Upon glancing at the drawn cards, the image of a path of cards appeared in Yusei’s mind, connected by electricity. “That’s how I’ll do it!”
“On with it,” said Rudith.
“Since you control a monster and I control none, I can Special Summon the Tuner Monster Unknown Synchron from my hand!” declared Yusei, after discarding a card.
Unknown Synchron LV: 1 DEF: 0
“Next, I Summon Junk Synchron!”
Junk Synchron LV: 3 ATK: 1300
“When this card is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 2 or lower monster from my Graveyard! Come, Tuningware!”
Tuningware LV: 1 DEF: 300
Yusei then grabbed the last card in his hand. “Now, since I control a “Junk” monster, I can Special Summon Junk Servant from my hand!”
Junk Servant LV: 4 ATK: 1500
“I tune Level 3 Junk Synchron with Level 1 Tuningware and Level 4 Junk Servant!” continued Yusei.
3 + 1 + 4 = 8
“Clustering wishes will become a new shining star! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! Take flight, Stardust Dragon!”
Stardust Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2500
“Stardust Dragon…” Rudith mumbled.
“Tuningware’s effect activates!” Yusei declared. “When it’s used as Synchro Material, I draw one card! Next, I activate the Continuous Trap Graceful Revival! This card Special Summons a Level 2 or lower monster from my Graveyard! Return, Tuningware!”
Tuningware LV: 1 ATK: 100
“I tune Level 1 Unknown Synchron with Level 1 Tuningware!”
1 + 1 = 2
“Gathering wishes will call out a new speed's horizon! Become the path its light shines upon! Synchro Summon! The power of hope, Synchro Tuner, Formula Synchron!”
Formula Synchron LV: 2 DEF: 1500
“When Formula Synchron is Synchro Summoned, I draw one card. Then, due to Tuningware’s effect, I draw one more!”
“And just like that, he’s replaced the three cards that were in his hand earlier,” Rudith commented.
He veered to the side as Yusei’s Duel Runner began to pick up speed. “No matter what, I will do what I can to protect both worlds and save my friends and Twilight’s! I won’t let you have your way! Clear Mind!” Yusei’s Runner appeared to be piercing a barrier as the full mark of the Crimson Dragon appeared before him. “I tune Level 2 Synchro Tuner Formula Synchron with Level 8 Synchro Monster Stardust Dragon!”
2 + 8 = 10
“Gathering crystal dreams will open the door to a new evolution! Become the path its light shines upon! Accel Synchro!”
Yusei and his two monsters vanished into a bright light. Rudith quickly scanned the area, before noticing Yusei and a single dragon emerge from another light behind him.
“Be born, Shooting Star Dragon!”
Shooting Star Dragon LV: 10 ATK: 3300
“So it’s here. Your ace monster,” Rudith stated. “But that alone can’t break through my shields.”
“Is that so?” Yusei replied.
“What?”
“I activate Shooting Star Dragon’s monster effect! Once per turn, I can excavate the top five cards of my Deck, then Shooting Star Dragon can attack once for each Tuner Monster revealed!”
Rudith scoffed.
Yusei pulled the top card off of his Deck. “The first card! Tuner Monster! Bri Synchron!”
Silence.
“The second card! Tuner Monster! Effect Veiler!”
Rudith groaned.
“The third card! Tuner Monster! Drill Synchron!”
Rudith’s eye twitched.
“The fourth card! Tuner Monster! Nitro Synchron!”
“Don’t tell me…” Rudith grumbled.
“And now for the fifth card! Tuner Monster! Debris Dragon!”
“That’s absurd…”
“I’ve revealed five Tuners! Therefore, I’ve got five attacks! Go, Shooting Star Dragon!” Yusei commanded. “Stardust Mirage!” His dragon rose into the sky splitting itself into five identical copies.
“Uh, Twi? What’s that?” asked Applejack, pointing her hoof into the sky.
“That’s…” Twilight responded, noticing five dragons in formation. “That dragon… Yusei!” The alicorn sprinted past the cowpony.
“Wait… ‘Yusei’? I thought you said he was a human?!”
“No, I meant that’s the direction where Yusei is! Let’s go!”
“Alright, then.”
The first of the five dragons charged towards one of the two tortoises.
“Runeaegis’s effect! I’ll negate this attack!” Rudith declared.
The first dragon faded as the second one moved forward.
“I’ll use my other Runeaegis’s effect! This attack will be negated as well!”
The second dragon vanished.
“However, there’s still the third battle!” said Yusei. “I attack Runeaegis!”
The third dragon slammed into one of the tortoises, causing an explosion. Neither remained when the smoke cleared.
“The fourth battle! I’ll attack the remaining Runeaegis!”
The fourth Shooting Star Dragon crashed into the last tortoise, with the same result as the previous attack.
“My Runeaegises…” Rudith groaned.
“With this, your ace monster has lost all its shields!” Yusei stated. “The fifth battle! Shooting Star Dragon, destroy Runetaurus!” His dragon pierced through the minotaur, vanquishing it along with the Mystic Rune card.
3300 – 3000 = 300
Rudith LP: 4000 – 300 = 3700 SPC: 4
“So this is Yusei Fudo’s power,” commented Rudith.
Yusei pulled his Runner closer to his opponent. “Give up! Your ace monster is gone! Stop and let that unicorn go!”
Rudith groaned. A sudden glow appeared from beneath his shirt, projecting a woman before him. “What is it, Celena?”
“‘Celena’? Who is that?” Yusei wondered. “Wait! That woman!”
Yusei’s and Twilight’s eyes widened as they saw the shadows in the pavement pierce through Celestia’s body, even though there didn’t appear to be physical damage. As the darkness faded into the ground, Celestia collapsed onto the Duel Lane as the pitch-black alicorn landed next to her.
“And that’s one more princess for us,” Celena said, approaching the group. “Now for you two.”
“I hate to interrupt such a tender moment, but the time for talk is over,” Celena said. “Now for the rest of you. Go! Death Armor Moon!” The armored alicorn rose into the air and charged towards Yusei and Twilight.
“She’s the one who was controlling Princess Celestia’s sister!” Yusei realized.
“Rudith, there’s been a sudden change of plans due to unforeseen circumstances. You now have a new objective,” said the woman on-screen.
“And that would be…?” asked Rudith.
“You have the stone and the card we gave you, right?” asked a unicorn stallion appearing in the projection, breathing heavily.
“A unicorn? What is he doing working with the Arcadia Movement?” wondered Yusei.
“Yes, I have them,” answered Rudith.
“Normally, one of our elite members would be in charge of the task we are about to give you, but given the circumstances, we can’t afford to lose any of our targets,” Celena continued. “You are one of the few who might be able to measure up.”
“You are now authorized to begin the ritual,” the stallion added. “And don’t die in the process.”
“‘Ritual’?!” Yusei noted.
“Roger,” Rudith replied, as the projection faded.
Yusei looked at his opponent with curiosity.
“Yusei Fudo,” Rudith said, glancing at the other rider with a smile. “Looks like I have a new mission. The ritual shall soon begin.”
The two Runners continued down the forest path, gradually nearing the base of the mountain ahead.
“‘The ritual will soon begin’? What does he mean by that?” Yusei wondered. “Wait…”
“Did you say ‘Synchro Summon’?” Yusei asked. “And there was a ‘ritual’?”
“Y-yes…” Fluttershy shuddered. “I was so scared… I don’t remember what happened after that…”
“But that would mean… this unicorn who I believe introduced himself as Steel Heart… does Rudith plan to use him for the ritual? That can’t be right.”
“Elements of Harmony… I’ve heard that term used a number of times,” said Yusei.
“Well, they’re some of the most powerful magical objects in Equestria,” Fluttershy explained.
“Right, Twilight did say as much when she explained it,” Yusei recalled. “She also said something about one of them being hers.”
“She means that the she and the rest of our closest friends each represent an Element of Harmony,” Fluttershy said. “Pinkie Pie’s is laughter, Rainbow Dash’s is loyalty, Rarity’s is generosity, Applejack’s is honesty, Twilight’s is magic, and mine is kindness.”
“So there are four more of you…” Yusei paused for a moment. “I’m sorry to ask again, but when you mentioned the ritual, you said your friends were there, too?”
“Y-yes…”
“And these friends… are they the same friends that each represent an Element of Harmony?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Steel Heart wasn’t one of the names Fluttershy mentioned,” Yusei thought. “So then… what’s going on here?”
His opponent glanced back at him.
“I don’t know what he’s planning, but I’ll stop him here!” Yusei grabbed two of the remaining three cards in his hand. “I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn!”
“Are ya sure headin’ towards that big dragon’s a good idea?” Applejack asked. “How do you know it’s with the guy yer lookin’ for?”
“Because I’ve seen him summon it with my own eyes. It can’t be anyone else,” Twilight answered, as they galloped into a clearing. She looked up and saw Shooting Star Dragon in the distance approaching, its flight path curving.
“If he’s headed for us, why is that dragon turnin’ like that?”
“Probably because it isn’t a straight path to Canterlot unless you’re taking the train, which they obviously didn’t do.”
“Why can’t he just fly on the back o’ that thing?”
“Most likely he’s riding his Runner.”
“Runner?”
“It’s… going to take too long to explain. Let’s keep—”
An explosion occurred in front of them.
“What in tarnation?!” exclaimed Applejack.
“That’s as far as you go,” said a male unicorn, emerging from the smoke. The stallion and four other unicorn mares appeared around them, wearing an identical black hood.
“You?!”
“You know him?” asked Twilight.
“He’s one of the stallions who we saw in that dungeon me and the others were trapped in. He’s also the one who dragged us all to watch… Pinkie Pie and Rarity…”
The princess turned toward the stallion. “Who are you?”
“Stone Wall,” he introduced himself, removing his hood to reveal his pitch-black mane and dark blue coat. “I’m taking you both with me.”
“Applejack,” Twilight whispered.
“Twi?” the cowpony responded.
“Go. I’ll distract them and keep them off of you.”
“Are ya crazy?! Ya can’t take all of ‘em!” Applejack barely kept her reaction from above a whisper.
“I’ll catch up with you. I promise.”
Stone Wall raised his eyebrow as the alicorn glared at him, the latter’s horn beginning to glow. “Cute, but you shall not pass me.”
A burst of magical energy fired from her horn. Stone Wall followed suit. The collision of magic created yet another explosion.
“It’s my turn!” Rudith drew a card.
Yusei LP: 1300 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
Rudith LP: 3700 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
Shooting Star Dragon LV: 10 ATK: 3300
“Since you control a monster and I don’t, I can Special Summon Runefish from my hand!”
A large fish decorated with stones and glyphs appeared next to Rudith.
Runefish LV: 5 DEF: 2000
“At this moment, I activate the Continuous Trap Summon Tax!” Yusei interrupted. “When a player Normal Summons or Special Summons a monster, they take damage equal to half its ATK! However, on my second Standby Phase from now, this card is destroyed.”
A bolt of lightning shot out of the Trap Card image and struck Rudith.
1000 / 2 = 500
Rudith LP: 3700 – 500 = 3200 SPC: 5
“This should make him consider his moves more carefully,” Yusei thought.
“I Normal Summon the Tuner Monster Runesprite!” Rudith continued.
“What?”
Runesprite LV: 2 ATK: 400
400 / 2 = 200
Rudith LP: 3200 – 200 = 3000 SPC: 5
“Tuner Monster? Is he performing the ritual now?!” Yusei wondered.
“Become the last line of defense as the enemy draws near! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Runeguardian!”
A large golem descended between the two Runners, entering in a defensive stance.
Runeguardian LV: 7 DEF: 3000
Another bolt of lightning struck Rudith.
1600 / 2 = 800
Rudith LP: 3000 – 800 = 2200 SPC: 5
Rudith grabbed the remaining card in his hand. “Runeguardian’s effect: once per turn, it cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects. I Set one card face-down! I end my turn!”
“He went right into a Synchro Summon without using a pony. My mark doesn’t seem to be reacting to that monster, either. I guess that means there’s no one inside it,” Yusei concluded. “Does that mean there are conditions he has to meet to perform the ritual? If that’s the case, I still have time!”
Twilight quickly flew, evading the blasts shooting out of Stone Wall’s horn. She then turned towards him and launched her own burst of magic. The alicorn halted while the smoke from the explosion began to clear, only to be surprised by another magic blast.
“It will take more than that to defeat me, Your Highness,” he taunted.
Twilight groaned as she fired another blast, only for him to quickly step out of the way.
Applejack sprinted for the woods, ducking and jumping over the other mares’ magic attacks before looking ahead to see one of them before her. She quickly turned but found herself forcefully stopped. Looking behind her, she saw the unicorn she just passed pulling her closer by her tail.
“You’re not going anywhere,” the mare said, having yanked Applejack in front of her.
“You ain’t gonna stop me!” the cowpony retorted before kicking the mare in the head. The unicorn fell to the dirt unconscious, while Applejack began running once more.
The cowpony stopped once again as all the remaining three unicorns surrounded her.
“Give up now,” demanded one of the unicorns.
“Forget it!” Applejack replied. She scanned the area and noticed several small boulders almost clumped together. She then began sprinting again.
The unicorn before her fired a blast of magic, which Applejack swiftly leapt over. The cowpony ceased her sprint amid the pile of rocks and began kicking them towards the hooded unicorns.
The flying boulders quickly caught two of the mares off-guard, knocking them out cold, while the remaining unicorn began to catch them.
“Uh-oh,” said Applejack, running past Twilight and Stone Wall as the stones came flying back.
“Not bad, princess,” commented Stone Wall.
“Why are you after us? And why are you working with those humans?” questioned Twilight.
“Having to explain that is a waste of my breath. None of you will live to see the end of it, anyway.”
Twilight launched another burst of magic. Stone Wall quickly raised a magic shield to deflect the blast. He then sneered as he used his magic to materialize a stone mallet.
“What the?” the alicorn gasped. “I’ve never seen anypony use their magic to summon a weapon for combat except…”
Celestia and the armored alicorn rose from the smoke as the Duel Lane below them crumbled. She turned her head to see Yusei and Twilight moving into the distance. She prepared to fly after them only to be stopped by the black alicorn as it intercepted her path. Its horn gave off a black aura as a sword materialized in front of it. Hesitant, Celestia summoned her own sword.
“How is it that you know that spell?” asked Twilight, ducking underneath Stone Wall’s swing.
“And to think you were her prized pupil…” replied Stone Wall.
“What does that have to do with—”
“You ask far too many questions, including those you should know the answer to!” The unicorn performed a downward swing and slammed his mallet into the ground where Twilight stood. He then lifted the mallet and saw no trace of the alicorn before was struck from the side with a blast of magic. He glimpsed upwards to see Twilight glaring at him. “Right… teleportation.”
Twilight launched another burst of magic, which Stone Wall deflected with his mallet. She ceased her fire to see only the mallet where the stallion once stood. “Where did he—WOAH!” she felt herself being yanked onto the ground by her tail.
She struggled to rise to her hooves until she suddenly felt herself forced onto the ground by magic. Twilight then noticed the mallet float next to her. “And you had just used that trick on me. Not exactly used to combat, are you?”
Twilight’s horn began to glow but was shut down by Stone Wall’s magic. “…A disabling spell?” She grunted as she tried to force magic out of her horn, only for a few sparks to fly out.
Applejack quickly approached the remaining hooded mare, who had failed to notice that she had just run out of stones to fling, and struck her with her back hooves. Just like her allies before, the unicorn fell to the ground unconscious.
“Whew,” Applejack wiped her forehead, before noticing the pinned alicorn.
“It’s become quite troublesome to take you alive, so I’ll simply end it for you here. Less baggage for me,” Stone Wall stated, raising his mallet above the alicorn’s head.
Twilight’s eyes widened, tearing up, as she stared at the weapon about to come down on her. “This can’t be…” she panicked.
“Pardon me,” a voice said.
Stone Wall turned to face the voice behind him, having felt a tap on his shoulder. “What—”
He was quickly silenced by a blow from Applejack’s back hooves. His mallet dropped just beside Twilight, who rose up after being freed from the stallion’s magic.
“That sure was a close one,” the cowpony said. She was then quickly hugged by the alicorn.
“Thank you so much…” Twilight whimpered.
“Anytime, Twi.”
“You’ll pay for that,” Stone Wall grumbled. The two friends, ending their embrace, glared at him as he stood up. His covered his mouth with his right hoof. Blood trickled down from his mouth.
Twilight and Applejack began to turn.
“I won’t let you leave, especially since I have them,” he said, picking up his mallet with his magic and pointing it towards the trees. The two friends turned their heads.
“Fluttershy? Spike? Girls?!” exclaimed Twilight. Four additional hooded stallions had brought her friends to the clearing.
“What are y’all doin’ here?!” added Applejack.
“Twilight!” yelled Spike.
“Sis!” Apple Bloom shouted.
Twilight and Applejack began running to their friends until they found themselves forcefully stopped and brought to the ground. They looked behind them to see Stone Wall, eyes filled with rage as he raised his mallet.
“For that little stunt, you will be the first to go,” said Stone Wall. He swung his mallet into Applejack’s stomach, sending her flying.
She began writhing in pain as she hit the ground, her hat floating down in front of her.
“Applejack!” Twilight and her friends shrieked. The alicorn struggled to get her horn to glow but, just as before, only a few sparks flew out. “STOP!” Twilight cried out as she saw Stone Wall approaching her friend. “STOOOOOOP!”
He raised the mallet once more. Applejack, her eyes barely open, glimpsed at the unicorn before her. “I’m sorry, Twi… Apple Bloom…”
Silence.
Twilight and her friends looked up to see Stone Wall encased in crystal.
“Sir!” the hooded stallions called out before they were also encased.
“Looks like I’m just in time,” said a female voice.
“That voice!” Twilight said, rising up to see a unicorn with a pale coat but with aquamarine streaks in her purple mane.
“Starlight!” the alicorns and her friends sans Applejack exclaimed, excitedly dashing to her.
“Let’s get out of here,” Starlight suggested, her horn lighting up.
The crystal prisons shattered.
Stone Wall breathed heavily with frustration, as Twilight and her friends were nowhere to be found. The other eight unicorns regained their composure as they approached him. “Find them!”
“But sir! Your injury!” said a mare.
“Forget that! You will find them and bring them to me!”
“With all due respect, sir, I think it would be wise to regroup and have your condition treated,” suggested a stallion.
He quickly found himself sprawling on the ground.
“Anyone else?” Stone Wall glared, his mallet suspended in the air ready to be swung. He groaned loudly as he turned towards the mountain. “We’ll retreat for now.”
The other unicorns began following. One of them lit up their horn to carry the downed stallion.
“Leave him,” Stone Wall commanded.
“Sir?”
“I should give you a taste of my mallet for speaking up as well.”
The mare gulped, releasing the stallion from her grip. “Doesn’t mean you should hit others,” she mumbled.
“Care to repeat that?” Stone Wall turned towards her.
“I didn’t say anything!”
“Good. For your sake, I don’t want to see you come back, either.”
The mare almost spoke, only to see the mallet still suspended above Stone Wall’s head. She looked on as her leader and the other six followers headed for the mountain.
“Hey, I’m just glad I was in the right place at the right time,” Starlight replied. “I just wish… I came sooner.”
Twilight and Starlight glanced at Applejack, still reeling in pain. Fluttershy, Spike, and their young friends, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo, all stood around her.
Fluttershy sat on her hind legs, her hooves covering her mouth. Spike, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo surrounded Apple Bloom who was clutching her older sister’s hat, trying to console her as she sobbed.
“We need to get her to the hospital,” Starlight stated.
“Then you should take her to Ponyville,” Twilight replied.
“You’re not coming?”
“I need to go to Canterlot and rescue my other friends.”
“You’re not seriously leaving us.”
“See that dragon?” Twilight pointed to the white dragon above the trees in the distance.
“D-d-dragon?!” Fluttershy instantly began cowering.
“A human I’ve been working with up until now summoned that creature. He’ll be able to help you, as soon as he rescues a stallion that another has captured,” assured the alicorn.
“I don’t think you should be going to Canterlot alone,” warned Starlight. “Have you seen what that stallion did to your friend? What if something happens to you?”
“Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”
“What if they disable your horn again? You might not have me to remove that spell.”
“I’ll be fine!” Twilight suddenly felt something tug at her foreleg. “Spike?”
“I’m begging you… don’t go. If something happened to you… I don’t know what I’d do!” Spike pleaded. “At least… not without us.”
Twilight glanced from pony to pony, then back to Spike. “All right.”
Spike then embraced the alicorn. She returned the pressure.
Starlight smiled, carefully lifting Applejack onto her back. “Towards the dragon, right?” she asked.
Twilight nodded, putting on the saddlebag Applejack had been carrying.
“It’s my turn!” Yusei declared.
Yusei LP: 1300 SPC: 5 + 1 = 6
Rudith LP: 2200 SPC: 5 + 1 = 6
“Defensive Measures? This won’t do much in this situation…” he thought, glancing at his drawn card. He then grabbed the other card in his hand. “I Summon Speed Warrior!”
Speed Warrior LV: 2 ATK: 900
The image of Yusei’s Summon Tax reappeared, striking him with a bolt of lightning.
900 / 2 = 450
Yusei: LP: 1300 – 450 = 850 SPC: 6
“Shooting Star Dragon’s effect activates!” Yusei continued. “Once per turn, I can excavate the top five cards of my Deck! Then this turn, Shooting Star Dragon can attack up to the number of Tuners revealed!”
Rudith glimpsed back at Yusei, patiently.
“I’ve revealed two Tuners: Turbo Synchron and Hyper Synchron!” Yusei returned the five cards to his Deck, which was then shuffled by the auto-shuffle feature. “With this, Shooting Star Dragon can attack two times! Go! Stardust Mirage!”
His Shooting Star Dragon rose higher into the sky and split into two, one of which charged at Rudith’s golem.
Runeguardian LV: 7 DEF: 3000
“Runeguardian’s effect!” Rudith stated. “Once per turn, it’s not destroyed!”
“That’s why I’m activating the Trap Card Meteor Wave!” Yusei countered. “This turn, one Synchro Monster gains 300 ATK!”
“In addition, if it battles a monster in Defense Position, it inflicts piercing damage!”
“What?!” exclaimed Rudith.
One of the two duplicate dragons crashed into the golem before vanishing.
3600 – 3000 = 600
Rudith LP: 2200 – 600 = 1600 SPC: 6
“The second battle!” Yusei stated. His dragon pierced through the golem’s body, destroying it.
3600 – 3000 = 600
Rudith LP: 1600 – 600 = 1000 SPC: 6
“Speed Warrior, direct attack!” The small, metallic warrior dashed towards Yusei’s opponent. “During the Battle Phase of the turn Speed Warrior is Normal Summoned, its ATK is doubled!”
Speed Warrior LV: 2 ATK: 900 * 2 = 1800
“Sonic Edge!” Speed Warrior began a handstand and twirled as it approached Rudith.
“I activate a Trap! Rune Resurrection!” Rudith declared. “This Special Summons a “Rune” monster that was destroyed this turn! Revive, Runeguardian!”
Runeguardian LV: 7 DEF: 3000
Yusei’s Speed Warrior ceased its attack and retreated to his side.
Another bolt of lightning struck Rudith.
1600 / 2 = 800
Rudith LP: 1000 – 800 = 200 SPC: 6
“That was close,” commented Rudith.
Speed Warrior LV: 2 ATK: 1800 / 2 = 900
“However, you’re still past the safety line!” Yusei replied, revealing the only card in his hand. “I activate the effect of Speed World 2! By removing 4 Speed Counters, for every Speed Spell in my hand, you take 800 damage!”
Yusei LP: 850 SPC: 6 – 4 = 2
“It’s over!” A bolt of lightning shot out from Yusei’s headlights towards Rudith.
“From my Graveyard, I banish Runesprite to activate its effect!” Rudith stated. An image of his fairy-like creature emerged and absorbed the lightning bolt. “Once, I can take no damage from a card effect!”
Yusei scoffed. “I activate the Speed Spell – Defensive Measures! Since I have at least 2 Speed Counters, I can switch Speed Warrior to Defense Position!”
Speed Warrior LV: 2 DEF: 400
“And then, until the end of your turn, it cannot be destroyed by battle! That ends my turn,” Yusei concluded.
“I activate the effect of Speed World 2! By removing 7 Speed Counters, I can draw one card!”
Rudith LP: 200 SPC: 7 – 7 = 0
Rudith smiled, glancing at his two drawn cards.
“Even with two cards in his hand, he can’t afford to act recklessly,” Yusei thought. “If he Summons a monster with at least 400 ATK, he’ll lose due to the effect of Summon Tax.”
“I Summon the Tuner Monster Disharmony Wyvern!” Rudith continued.
Disharmony Wyvern LV: 1 ATK: 600
“What?!” Yusei exclaimed. “He didn’t even hesitate!”
The image of his Trap Card fired another lightning bolt at Rudith.
“I don’t know what you’re up to, but it ends here! Due to Summon Tax, you’ll take half of your Disharmony Wyvern’s ATK as damage!” said Yusei.
“We’ll see about that,” Rudith sneered.
“What?”
“From my hand, I activate the monster effect of Disharmony Flame! By sending it the Graveyard, this turn, all effect damage dealt to me is halved!” The image of a ball of flame appeared and absorbed the lightning bolt.
600 / 2 = 300 / 2 = 150
Rudith LP: 200 – 150 = 50 SPC: 0
“Even with that, you still can’t afford to Summon a monster with 200 ATK or higher this turn!” explained Yusei. “Give it up!”
Rudith chuckled. “It’s time.”
Yusei looked on in curiosity.
Rudith reached beneath his shirt and pulled out his necklace, which had a small round purple stone attached to it. Etched into it was a crescent shape. His hand then went into his pocket and pulled out a star-shaped stone. Lightning struck from the gray clouds above.
“Is that…?” Yusei noticed.
Yusei rode his Duel Runner close behind Dobocle’s, his eyes drawn to the creature that was tied to the back. The creature was clearly four-legged but its coat was almost purple. “A horse… no… it’s got wings and a horn…” he observed. He then felt a pulse in his arm. Glancing at it, he saw the mark on his arm glowing then looked up at the object now fastened to Dobocle’s waist. The emblem, glowing brightly, was shaped like a star and was identical to the symbol on the creature’s rear end. “That crown… Is that what my mark is reacting to…?”
“Why… why is that here?” wondered Yusei.
Rudith held the star-shaped stone above his head. “I tune Level 1 Disharmony Wyvern with Level 7 Runeguardian!”
“What?!”
A bright glow emitted from the stone on Rudith’s necklace as the magenta stone became surrounded by a black aura. His Disharmony Wyvern transformed into a black ring that positioned itself horizontally above him. His Runeguardian transformed into seven black orbs.
“Is he trying to perform the ritual?” thought Yusei, his Signer mark beginning to glow. “But he doesn’t have—”
His thoughts were interrupted as a black aura surrounded the unconscious Steel Heart, lifting him.
“But how?!”
“Wh-what’s that?” Fluttershy gasped.
The others looked up into the sky to see seven black stars aligned vertically through a black ring. They then noticed a pony being lifted into the ring.
“What in Equestria?!” exclaimed Starlight.
“Twilight!” Spike shouted.
They all turned to the alicorn, who found herself choking. The small dragon quickly clasped her hoof.
“This can’t be good,” said Scootaloo.
“What’s happening to her?” Sweetie Belle asked frantically.
“Twi?” Apple Bloom spoke.
“Twilight! Say something!” Spike begged.
1 + 7 = 8
“Let your heart sink into the chaos, dispelling all of harmony!” Rudith chanted.
“STOP!” shouted Yusei, clutching his right forearm which was throbbing in pain.
Lightning struck once more. A pitch-black pillar engulfed the ring and orbs, along with Steel Heart.
“Synchro Summon! Be born, Disharmony – Wyvern of Disunion!” Rudith continued. Bright red eyes peered through the pillar of darkness. A large, black dragon-like creature burst out of the pillar. An intense glow in the shape of a crescent, identical to the one on Rudith’s necklace, was burned onto the creature’s chest. The monster let out a mighty roar.
Disharmony – Wyvern of Disunion LV: 8 ATK: 3000
"That crescent..." Yusei observed.
The star-shaped jewel in Rudith’s hand turned gray, having the texture of a simple stone despite maintaining its shape. The glow from Rudith’s necklace ceased.
Twilight’s friends could only watch as she fainted.
“Twilight!” they called out to her.
She remained motionless on the ground.
“This doesn’t make sense,” Yusei glimpsed at the newly summoned dragon. “He's not a pony who represents an Element of Harmony like Twilight or Fluttershy mentioned. Can he do this with just anyone? Or is there more to it?” He then noticed his Trap Card appearing before him and beginning to glow.
“Yusei Fudo,” Rudith spoke. “Due to the effect of your Continuous Trap Summon Tax, this Duel will end in my loss… but that doesn’t matter. The ritual is complete and my mission is finished!”
“This can’t be…” A bolt of lightning shot out from Yusei’s Trap Card towards his opponent. “NO!”
3000 / 2 = 1500 / 2 = 750
Rudith LP: 50 – 750 = 0 SPC: 0
Steam flew out of Rudith’s Duel Runner before it crashed into a tree and exploded.
Yusei gasped in horror as he caught up to the wreckage. As the monsters vanished, he pulled his Duel Runner to a stop. The smoke cleared, with a darkness appearing beneath Rudith and his Runner.
“Wait!” he exclaimed, leaping off his Runner and sprinting towards Rudith. The blackness forced Yusei away as it smothered his defeated opponent before vanishing completely. “No…”
He fell to his hands and knees, feeling the sharp sting of failure. He glimpsed up as something caught his eye. He picked up the star-shaped rock before him, clutching it hard in the palm of his hand.
“I-I didn’t…” the unicorn stammered. The two stood at the top of a grassy slope as the dark clouds poured rain onto them.
“You…”
“What happened?” the earth pony asked, panting as she caught up to them.
The pegasus shook, tearing up, yet clenching her teeth as she glared at the unicorn. “Is this what you wanted?!”
“N-no, but… Luc—” The unicorn collapsed onto the ground, a bright, red bruise on his cheek.
The pegasus struggled against the earth pony’s grip. “Stop it!” pleaded the latter.
“He deserves it!” shouted the pegasus. “I saw them together! Here!”
“What’s she talking about?” asked the earth pony.
The unicorn raised his head and glanced toward the hill’s abrupt end, its edges still continuing to crumble as the rain poured.
“No… you can’t mean…”
“He did it…” the pegasus grumbled. “It’s his fault… he’s the reason why…” She began to sob.
The unicorn struggled to his feet as he said, “But I’m telling you I—”
“SHUT UP!” the pegasus broke out of the earth pony’s grip and slugged the unicorn. “I was wrong about you! They were all right! I should’ve listened to them.” The ground began to crack as he absorbed more blows from the raging pegasus’s hooves.
As the ground crumbled, the unicorn fell into the abyss, staring at his attacker’s burning eyes.
“You did it,” her voice echoed. “You deserve this. It’s all your fault!”
“No… I…”
“You did it. You deserve this. It’s all your fault!”
“NO!” he shouted, as the blackness completely surrounded him.
“You did it. You deserve this. It’s all your fault!”
“NOOO!”
Steel Heart sprang up from the ground, breathing heavily.
“Where am I?” he wondered, glancing around. All he could see was the cold gravel beneath him branching in several directions into pitch black. “A cave?”
“So you’re awake,” said a male voice.
“Who’s there?” Steel Heart asked, eyes in the direction of the voice. Hoofsteps were heard approaching him.
“And here I was wondering how long I’d have to be stuck here watching you.” A pegasus wrapped in a black cloak descended from the darkness above. His mane was almost as black as the cloak he wore and his coat was a light brown. “You plan on getting up today?”
Steel Heart rose to his hooves. “Where are we?”
“Tartarus.”
The crystal unicorn froze. “Tartarus…? Am I…”
“Dead? Ha!” the pegasus laughed. “No, you’re anything but dead. I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t order anypony to watch over a dead body… then again, knowing my luck, they would probably tell me to. What a shock that would be.”
“Last thing I remember is… walking around Princess Twilight’s castle…” Steel Heart thought. “After…”
“What don’t you get?” said the pegasus, continuing to glare.
“But, Lucid… I didn’t…” Steel Heart replied.
“Go. Away. We are not friends anymore. Let’s go, Rouge.” Lucid turned away and stormed off. Rouge gave a sorrowful glance towards Steel Heart before following her friend.
“Are you even listening to me?” asked the cloaked pegasus.
“Huh? Sorry.” Steel Heart scanned what little he could see in the vicinity once more.
“Uuuuuugh, why am I the one who has to put up with this? Now I have to explain again. As I just said, you’ve apparently been chosen by the higher-ups. No idea what it’s all about, though. It’s not like they ever tell me anything. I’m just the unlucky pony who has to babysit some crystal pony who can’t pay any—” the pegasus stopped to notice that Steel Heart was missing. “WHY. ME.”
Yusei remained silent as he leaned against the wall beside the entrance to the hospital room with his arms crossed, his mind constantly replaying the events of his latest Duel. Fluttershy, Starlight, Spike, and the three younger mares waited outside the room as well, restless.
He couldn’t help but wonder how it all happened. As far as he and Twilight knew, it was the Elements of Harmony that the Arcadia Movement was after, yet his opponent Rudith sealed Steel Heart within that Disharmony Synchro Monster.
What were they missing?
“Excuse me,” said a white-coated female earth pony wearing a hospital cap. “We need to get through here.”
Apple Bloom and her young friends cleared the pathway as the nurse and another unicorn mare, whose mane was blue and her coat also white, were pushing a stretcher with a unicorn stallion with a black mane and purple coat laying on top.
“Do I know you two?” asked Starlight, glancing at both unicorns.
“Uhhhh, no…?” the unicorn stammered, beginning to sweat.
“Alright, then.”
The nurse and the mare continued to push the stretcher down the hallway.
“Huh… I could swear I saw them before,” Starlight mumbled.
A stallion with a brown mane and tail and amber coat emerged from the doorway.
“You’re free to visit them now. Both of your friends are in stable condition,” he stated. Spike and Apple Bloom rushed inside, followed quickly by Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. “I’ll send Nurse Redheart in a bit to check up on them.”
“Thank you, doctor,” Starlight replied.
The doctor nodded before trotting down the hallway past Yusei.
“Yusei, are you coming with us inside?” asked Fluttershy.
“Yeah,” he answered.
Yusei, Fluttershy, and Starlight slowly walked through the doorway to see Apple Bloom on top of her older sister, crying as they both hugged each other.
“What’d the doctor say?” asked Scootaloo.
“He said Ah’ll be fine. Ah was lucky it was nuthin’ that couldn’t heal over time,” replied the cowpony.
“What a relief…” Sweetie Belle commented.
Applejack then smiled at Fluttershy and Starlight, both of which responded in kind. They and Yusei then walked past her bed towards Twilight and Spike, who were in each other’s embrace.
“How are you feeling?” Starlight asked.
“I’m feeling alright,” answered Twilight. “I’m not sure what happened, though. I just… suddenly passed out.”
“We were so worried!” Fluttershy stated.
“Sorry about that. …Yusei?”
“He met up with us after you collapsed,” said Starlight. “It was right after we saw this big dark ring in the sky a little ways from where we were.”
“A… dark ring?” the alicorn repeated.
“Yeah. It was strange. It looked like it was carrying a pony before being covered in darkness or something. …What?” Starlight noticed not only Twilight, but Applejack also staring at her. “…Did I… say something?”
“He completed the ritual,” Yusei said.
“What did you say?” Twilight responded.
“That man, Rudith… he used Steel Heart to perform the ritual.”
“I-I-I… I don’t understand…”
“Not only that, he used some stone around his neck along with…” Yusei pulled the star-shaped rock out of his pocket and held it in the palm of his hand.
Twilight’s expression turned pale as she levitated the rock to her hooves. “My… my Element… how…”
Yusei hung his head. “I don’t know how he figured out how to use it for the ritual, but it’s clear now that the Arcadia Movement is able to use your Elements for this.”
“And you… you didn’t stop him…? You were chasing after him, weren’t you?” she asked softly.
“…Yeah.”
The alicorn began to raise her voice. “So what happened? Didn’t you believe hard enough in your cards? Your Deck didn’t come through for you?” Twilight said sarcastically.
Yusei remained silent, taken aback by her remark.
“Twilight, please calm down,” Fluttershy spoke.
“No! He was supposed to stop him. He was supposed to stop that ritual. He was supposed to save Steel Heart from that human.” Twilight turned her head back toward Yusei. “Why in Celestia’s name could you not do that?!” Tears ran down the alicorn’s cheeks.
A brief silence filled the room.
“Yusei? I think you should leave.”
“…I understand.” He began walking toward the exit. “You’re right. Despite all my efforts to stop him, I failed. I’m sorry.” Nopony spoke as he left the room.
All eyes turned once more to the alicorn trying to regain her composure. Twilight lifted the covers off her body and prepared to get off the bed.
“Twilight, what are you doing?” Spike asked.
“I need to go and rescue the rest of our friends,” the alicorn replied.
“But you haven’t fully recovered yet!”
“I can’t just stay here when everypony else is out there suffering!”
“Sugarcube,” Applejack spoke up. “Listen, Ah know how ya feel, but if ya can’t take care of yerself, Ah don’t think you can expect to save anypony else.”
“But—!” Twilight then noticed the bandages around the earth pony’s stomach. Reluctantly, she laid back down in the hospital bed.
“So… um… what about Yusei?” Fluttershy inquired.
“What about him?”
“Did you really want him to leave?”
The alicorn paused. “Right now, I think it’s best if we try to rescue them ourselves. I don’t want to take any more risks.”
“Is it just me, or are we missing somepony?” Scootaloo interrupted.
Everyone glanced around.
“Hey, where’s Starlight?” asked Spike.
Yusei glanced back at the hospital once more as he left the building. He stopped on the way to his Runner, hearing approaching hoofsteps. He turned his head towards a small group of townsponies, expressions filled with rage. The unicorns in the mob held rocks with their horns.
“He’s one of those ‘human’ creatures that attacked us!” shouted a stallion.
“Get him!” yelled a mare.
“But I’m not—” Yusei was cut off by a rock flying past his head. “Not good.”
He sprinted towards his Runner as he was being pelted. He lifted the armrest so that he could board his Runner, only to be yanked away. He turned to notice several unicorn horns glowing while he was being lifted off the ground.
Several ponies, including the pegasi and earth ponies, began gathering stones to hurl at the human. A small number of others began sprinting forward.
Yusei closed his eyes and braced himself. When he felt himself drop to the ground, he opened his eyes to see a barrier between him and the angry townsponies.
“That’s enough!” shouted a mare, appearing next to Yusei.
“You’re… Starlight?” The human rose to his feet.
“How could you defend this thing?!” asked the caramel-coated stallion stepping forward. “He and his kind came into Ponyville and terrorized us! They’ve done nothing but hurt us all since they got here!”
The unicorn glanced back at Yusei, who only responded with hanging his head.
“I don’t think this human is like the others,” Starlight stated.
“What makes you so sure?!” exclaimed a mare with a cutie mark depicting a carrot. “There’s no way he can be trusted!”
“Get him!” yelled another mare, “He's probably going to try something if we don't stop him now!”
“Yeah!” the mob shouted.
Starlight gulped as the mob approached, banging on her magic barrier. A bright flash lit the area, forcing everyone to turn their eyes away. As the light faded, the townsponies noticed that Starlight, the human, and his machine were no longer before them.
“Find them!” shouted the stallion. The mob scattered in an instant.
“We should be fine here,” Starlight panted. “I teleported us to the edge of Ponyville near the forest.”
“Are you alright?” Yusei asked.
“Yeah, but I should be the one asking you that.”
“Yeah… I’m fine.”
“So… Yusei, right? I don’t think you’re really all that bad, so do you mind explaining what’s going on between you and Twilight and why you left?”
“Because of this,” Yusei answered, holding up a card.
“A… card?”
“In my world, it’s common to find people who play this card game: Duel Monsters. However, there are those who use it to fulfill some grand objective, even going so far as to trap others inside them.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah. They’ve even used Synchro Summon as a means of doing so.”
“Synchro Summon…?”
“It’s a way we call forth certain Duel Monsters to fight alongside us, but…”
Starlight looked at Yusei in curiosity.
“It’s not something to be used to hurt others. Not for some ritual to trap others within monsters.”
“Twilight didn’t seem to think too highly of it.”
“She isn’t wrong to think so.”
“What do you mean?”
“The first time I Dueled against an opponent wielding a card that had someone trapped inside, it was against a man named Callos. He had the card which had Twilight’s friend, Fluttershy, sealed inside.”
“What?!”
“I was lucky to find a way to save her, with Twilight’s help. Then in my last Duel, I was chasing down a man named Rudith. He had captured a pony named Steel Heart. I was trying to save him, but… I failed. He performed his ritual and sealed him inside his Disharmony Synchro Monster.”
“You mentioned ‘ritual’ a couple of times. Tell me, did it happen to look like…?”
“Wh-what’s that?” Fluttershy gasped.
The others looked looped up into the sky to see seven black stars aligned vertically through a black ring. They then noticed a pony being lifted into the ring.
“What in Equestria?!” exclaimed Starlight.
“So… you saw it?” asked Yusei.
“If that’s what it looked like, then yes,” Starlight answered. She couldn’t help but feel disturbed at the memory of what she saw, now knowing what it meant.
“Yeah, that’s exactly what it was. I did everything in my power to prevent him from Summoning that monster. If he couldn’t Summon that monster without losing, then he wouldn’t perform the ritual. That’s what I thought, anyway.”
“What happened?”
“He went through with the Summon, even at the cost of losing. Even…”
Rudith LP: 50 – 750 = 0 SPC: 0
Steam flew out of Rudith’s Duel Runner before it crashed into a tree and exploded.
Yusei gasped in horror as he caught up to the wreckage. As the monsters vanished, he pulled his Duel Runner to a stop. The smoke cleared, with a darkness appearing beneath Rudith and his Runner.
“Wait!” he exclaimed, leaping off his Runner and sprinting towards Rudith. The blackness forced Yusei away as it smothered his defeated opponent before vanishing completely. “No…”
“I doubt she wants anything to do with me right now, so I’m heading out alone,” Yusei stated, grabbing his helmet from the compartment beneath the seat of the Runner.
“Well, you did everything you could. You saved Fluttershy, didn’t you?” Starlight said. “I don’t think you’re a bad human just because of one mistake. I’m sure Twilight will forgive you once this is all over. She forgave me, after all.”
He turned toward the unicorn. “What happened?”
“Long story short, I pretty much brainwashed an entire town and when she and her friends fixed that, I… retaliated by trying to go back in time to prevent her friendships from ever happening.” Starlight winced upon finishing her brief summary.
“I see.” Yusei donned his helmet and boarded his Duel Runner.
“Where are you going?”
“To follow the only lead I have on where my friends are: Canterlot.”
Steel Heart continued to tread through the darkness.
“HEY!” a voice called out from behind him.
The crystal pony looked back.
“What’s the big idea?!” exclaimed the cloaked pegasus. “You shouldn’t walk away when other ponies are talking to you! I have the mind to—”
“That’s enough, Fortune Minor,” stated a mare’s voice. “Or perhaps you’d like to clean Tartarus again… on top of your other duties.”
The pegasus immediately shut his mouth.
“Go, you have other things to deal with, don’t you?”
Fortune Minor flew away without protest.
“Steel Heart, isn’t it?” asked the cloaked unicorn, appearing from the darkness.
“How do you know me?” Steel Heart replied.
“I know of you… and I know why you’re here.”
He could only glance at her in curiosity.
“You’re here because we’ve chosen you. You have a lot of potential.”
“For what exactly?”
“Power. Power that you can use for revenge on those who deserted you.”
“But… I… I don’t…”
“You’re thinking… you don’t want to hurt them, do you? Your former friends? They don’t think of you as a friend anymore, remember?”
Steel Heart didn’t respond.
“If you continue to follow them, you will only face rejection like you already have countless times, like all the times before. Follow us and you can pay every single one of them back.”
“Didn’t you already say you chose me for something? Seems like I was dragged into this against my will if you’re asking me here instead of back in Equestria.”
“We believe this would be in your best interest. However, if you really want to return now and chase after them again only to fail, be our guest. Right here is your alternative: Embrace the fact that they’ve left you for good and accept our offer of power… power that will allow you revenge.”
Steel Heart began to hesitate. “Why do all this for me?”
“Like you, we seek justice against those who wronged us. Now, what will you do? The choice is yours.”
Leo sat at the side of the bed, a worried expression on his face as he glanced at his twin sister lying quietly under the blanket.
“You two seem really close,” said a female voice.
“Of course we are, Sassy Saddles. She’s family, and I’m supposed to protect her,” Leo replied.
“I’m sure she’ll be feeling well soon enough.” Sassy kept a short distance away from the twins.
Luna opened her eyes and looked at Leo. “I’ll be fine,” she said.
“I hope so. Thanks again for letting us stay here for a while,” Leo turned back towards Sassy.
“…Sure,” replied the unicorn.
“Hm? What’s up?”
“I still can’t be certain I can trust you, especially once she’s feeling better.”
“Why would you say that? We have no reason to hurt you!”
“I don’t believe the other members of your kind had any reason to hurt me or the citizens of Canterlot here. Nevertheless, they have.”
“My kind?” Leo repeated. “There are more humans here than just the other few I saw?”
“Yes, of course. They devastated this city!”
“But—” Before he could stand up, Leo was interrupted by a tug on his sleeve. He turned to see Luna shake her head. “Luna…”
Silence filled the room.
“I can’t believe those guys would do this to the world of Duel Monsters spirits,” stated Leo.
“Excuse me…? Duel… what?” Sassy said.
Leo stared at the unicorn in confusion. “How do you not know what a Duel Monster is? You are a Duel Monster, right?”
Sassy returned the expression.
“Leo…” Luna spoke up.
“What, sis?” replied Leo.
“I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore.”
“Then… where are we?!” Leo panicked.
“I’m not sure what this ‘Duel Monster’ is, but I am a pony and I can assure you that you are in the city of Canterlot in the land of Equestria,” Sassy stated. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I must tend to the boutique.”
After Sassy left the room and closed the door, Leo turned back towards his sister. “I could swear we were in the Spirit World… right?”
“Yeah…” Luna answered.
“Then how did we end up here in this ‘Equestria’?”
“Don’t know,” Luna sat up.
A knock on the door was heard.
“Come in,” Leo answered.
The door opened. Sassy entered levitating two bowls with her horn, floating one to each of the twins.
“Salad?”
“In case you two were hungry,” Sassy replied.
“Oh, thanks,” Leo said, as he and his sister gripped their bowls.
“What’s wrong?” The unicorn saw Leo hesitate.
“I don’t know, I guess I just expected to be having meat.” The boy looked up at Sassy. “Did I say something?”
“M… meat…?”
“Yeah? What about it?”
“Leo, you do realize Sassy is a pony, right?” Luna spoke up, still lying down on the bed.
“Yeah, and?” Leo replied.
“Ponies are vegetarians.”
Leo slowly turned back towards Sassy. “Well… this is awkward.”
“Y-yes… quite…” Sassy said as she stepped away.
“Leo… maybe you should think a little more before you speak,” Luna commented.
“Sis, I thought you weren’t feeling well,” Leo mumbled.
“Oh, please… I’ll always be well enough to tell you off when you say something dumb like that, Leo…”
Leo could only groan in response.
Luna slowly sat up.
“Sis?”
“I’m fine. You should go talk to her, so she feels more comfortable around us.”
“Why me?”
“You are the one that creeped her out. Besides, she helped us, remember?”
“Fiiiiine,” Leo sighed as he walked into the hallway. He headed into the entrance room and stood at the top of the stairs, once again noting the clothes that decorated the vicinity. “Man, if Luna were a pony, I feel like she’d be in here all day trying new clothes. These all look so girly and princess-y.”
Leo walked down the stairs, scanning the room. As he reached the ground floor, he heard a nervous hum through a door left ajar near the front desk.
“Sassy?” he called.
The humming persisted.
“Sassy!” Leo called again, opening the door.
“Oh, uh… h-how can I help you?” Sassy responded, holding up various tools and pieces of fabric with her horn.
“What are you doing?”
“Just tidying up for when customers arrive!”
Leo glanced back into the entrance room. “But there’s no one here?”
“Y-you never know when one might show up! Now if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do!”
“Look, is this about what I said earlier?” Leo asked.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Sassy chuckled nervously.
The boy paused for a moment before speaking again. “Look, Sassy… I’m sorry about what I said. I didn’t mean to freak you out like that.”
“Don’t worry about that! I just hope your sister gets better so you both can leave soon,” Sassy replied, only to start mumbling under her breath. “And I wouldn’t have to see you two again.”
“I’m serious!”
“So am I!”
Leo moaned as he saw through the false smile, clenching his fist. “Sassy.”
“Yes?” the unicorn replied, looking away again as she continued tidying the room.
“You helped us. Gave us food and shelter while my sister recovered. I can’t thank you enough for that. There’s no way either of us would ever hurt you or any other innocent creature like that, especially not her. And we definitely wouldn’t hurt someone who went out of their way to help us like you did.”
Sassy turned back towards Leo, seeing him bow. “Uh…”
“I guess I can’t convince her.” Leo stood up and faced the door. “If you really want, we’ll leave as soon as my sister is better.”
With one last glance, he could only see a nervous Sassy before closing the door.
“Leo?” Luna called from atop the stairs.
“Sis? You feeling better?”
“Yeah,” she nodded. “How’d it go?”
“You were right, as always,” Leo groaned, mentally kicking himself while walking upstairs. “I shouldn’t have opened my big mouth.”
“You apologized and everything?”
“Yeah,” he sighed.
“Well, maybe she’ll come around.”
“Hopefully.” Leo held up his right arm, staring at his mark of the Crimson Dragon. “It was definitely nice of her to let us stay here after what we went through. Both of us were almost goners.” He then held up two cards, the one on top named “Power Tool Dragon”.
The ground shook as a part of the mountainside broke open. As his Signer mark burned brightly, Leo held his sister close as they moved slowly through the rugged terrain on their Duel Boards.
“Luna… we made it out…” Leo said, wearily. Falling to his knees, he looked back to see his Power Tool Dragon shaking off the last of the rubble on its body only to collapse immediately after. As it vanished, he noticed the glow on his arm fade away. “Thanks, Power Tool…”
He looked up and down the path that went alongside the mountain.
“A city…? Hold on, sis.”
The twins slowly rode through the town.
“It’s almost like a ghost town here…” he noticed as they passed through the city. He then glanced at his sister. “Are you okay, Luna?”
“I’ll be fine…” she mumbled.
Leo quickly scanned the area. “A bench! Right in front of a fountain, too!”
“Thanks, Leo,” Luna said as she splashed water on her face.
Leo smiled.
Luna stood up, only to stumble immediately.
“Luna!” Leo swiftly caught her. “You haven’t fully recovered yet…”
“Kuri kuri!” a voice said. The image of the small, furry monster reappeared before her eyes.
“Don’t worry, Kuribon,” she replied.
“Kuri?” the monster turned away, as if something caught its eye.
Luna looked in the direction her monster was facing. Her gasp prompted Leo to follow suit.
Before them stood two hooded figures.
“Well, well, look what we have here, Carter,” said the female.
“Who’d have guessed we’d find these two Signers so quickly?” Carter replied. “This is stupid. I was hoping they’d be dead so I could go back and tell them they were worried over nothing.”
“Can it. Let’s just get this over with.”
“Don’t boss me around, Adelinde.”
“Luna, can you stand?” Leo whispered to his sister.
“I can try…” Luna answered. They stepped onto their Duel Boards as the figures approached.
“Hey! Stop right there!” Carter yelled.
“As if we’d listen to you!” Leo shouted back. “Hang on, Luna.”
His sister nodded as they both rode away.
“I don’t see them,” Leo said, looking back. “I think we’re sa—” A sudden burst of sound interrupted him.
He looked back once more to see two black Duel Runners behind them.
“Seriously?” Leo thought. He tightened his grip on his sister as they made sharp turns through the city. He felt his sister return the pressure. “These guys won’t give up…”
After a few more turns, Leo stopped in front of a building. “Let’s get inside,” he said. Luna nodded. They both got off the Boards and picked them up as they went up the doorsteps.
Closing the door behind them, the twins sat and leaned against the door, hearing the two pursuing Duel Runners pass by outside. After the sound passed, they could hear nothing.
Leo crept to the window. As he moved along, he noticed what appeared to be mannequins, dressed in clothes. “What the…?” Pressing on, he moved around them and peeked through the curtains. No one was in sight outside. “I think we’re safe.”
“WHO’S THERE?!” shouted a female voice.
Leo screamed as he turned around.
“What are you doing here?” said the horse.
Leo continued to stare at the two cards he held in his hand. Luna saw the regret in Leo’s eyes.
“Leo?” she said.
He took a deep breath before speaking again. “Not to worry! I’ll try talking to Sassy again!” he replied.
Luna nodded.
“Maybe there’s something I can do to prove that we aren’t here to hurt her.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I dunno yet, sis.”
“There’s something else on your mind, isn’t there?” asked Luna.
Taken aback, Leo stared at his sister for a moment. “Oh… yeah.” He looked at his two cards again. “It’s just—”
A knock on the building’s front door was heard. “Hey! Open up!” a male shouted.
“That voice—!” Leo noticed. “How did they find us?”
Sassy stepped out into the main room, hesitant.
“Sassy!” Leo called out to her.
The unicorn looked up at the twins, her expression full of panic. The banging on the door persisted.
“Don’t open that door!”
“Wh-why is that?”
“The guy outside has been chasing us earlier before we came here.”
“So you thought you could use this boutique as a hideout? Is that all? Or are you just saying that so you two could get to me first before them?!”
“You still think we’re here to hurt you?!” Leo exclaimed.
“As a matter of fact, I do! It’s bad enough that I’ve heard the princesses and the Royal Guard were eliminated by your kind, but that you potentially see us ponies as a potential entrée!”
“We don’t!” Leo then looked up to see the door’s hinges coming apart.
Sassy stepped away from the door. As she turned to flee further into the building, she heard Luna scream. “Leo!”
The unicorn looked up to see Leo run down the stairs, jump onto his Duel Board, and smash through the boutique’s window.
“So you’ve finally decided to stop hiding, huh?” said Carter.
Leo stood, scratches on his body and clothes.
“Not exactly the brightest move.”
“You want me? Come and get me! Unless you think your Runner is too slow!” Leo taunted, sticking his tongue out.
Carter groaned, Leo turned around and rode away. The man hopped onto his Runner, turned the engine on and began his pursuit. “You’re naïve for thinking that skateboard can escape me.” He pressed a button on his Runner’s touch screen.
“DUEL MODE ENGAGED,” said a computer voice, as a card appeared on-screen.
“I activate the Field Spell Speed World 2!” Carter stated, as his Deck was shuffled.
Leo noticed his Duel Disk activating. “I need to buy time for Luna and Sassy to get away…” he thought, drawing five cards after his Deck was shuffled.
DUEL! Leo (LP 4000) VS Carter (LP 4000)
“I’ll go first!” Leo stated, drawing a card. “I Summon Morphtronic Celfon!” A large, yellow cellular phone appeared next to him before morphing into a humanoid shape.
Morphtronic Celfon LV: 1 ATK: 100
“I activate Celfon’s effect! Once per turn, if it’s in Attack Position, it can randomly dial a number between 1 and 6, then I excavate that many cards. Then, if there’s a “Morphtronic” monster, I can Special Summon it! Dial Up!”
The keypad on his monster’s chest flashed erraticly until only the 2 key was lit. Leo then picked up the two cards on top of his Deck.
“I Special Summon Morphtronic Datatron!” he continued. A giant flash drive appeared and morphed into a humanoid form, just as his first monster had.
Morphtronic Datatron LV: 3 ATK: 1200
“Now for Datatron’s effect! Once per turn, if it’s in Attack Position, I can Tribute one of my monsters to deal 600 damage to you! I Tribute Celfon!”
The Celfon transformed into a small light that entered the turret on Datatron’s head. The latter then fired a blast at Carter.
Carter LP: 4000 – 600 = 3400 SPC: 0
“Cheap trick,” Carter scoffed.
“I’ll Set a card face-down and end my turn!” Leo concluded.
Luna stood on her Duel Board against the corner of the building, scanning the area.
“Why are you doing all this?” Sassy said, approaching from behind her. “Are you waiting for the right time to get to me all to yourself? I can’t imagine any other reason you’d help me.”
Luna paused for a moment. “My brother might not be the sharpest tool in the shed… and he can say the stupidest things sometimes without thinking, but his heart is in the right place,” Luna turned back towards Sassy and smiled. “If it meant saving your life, he would gladly smash through windows to protect you.”
Sassy remained silent.
“Well, not that it’d be a good idea, considering all the glass…”
Sassy couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Anyway, you’re our friend. We’d much sooner turn vegan before ever dreaming of killing you or another pony just to have food, even if my brother would give an attitude anyway.”
“I’m sorry I thought that way of you. I suppose you two are different from the rest.”
“If you ever got to meet the rest of our friends, I’m sure you’ll see they’re the same way,” Luna said.
“Kuri kuri!” a voice said.
Luna, now more alert, began scanning the area once more.
“What is it?” Sassy asked.
A black Duel Runner came to a stop nearby. Its rider jumped off and stood at the junction, as if waiting for someone.
“That’s the woman from before…” Luna whispered.
“What?” Sassy replied.
“She was the other person that was chasing my brother and I. Wait, who is that?”
A hooded pony approached the woman.
Luna and Sassy were speechless at the apparent conversation the two were having.
“I-I don’t understand… what pony in their right mind would dare approach them and speak with them so casually after what they did?” asked Sassy. “Just why in Equestria—”
“Uh, Sassy?” Luna interrupted.
“What?”
“I think they see us.”
Sassy noticed the pony pointing a hoof at them. “Oh.”
“It’s my turn!” Carter declared.
Leo LP: 4000 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
Carter LP: 3400 SPC: 0 + 1 = 1
“I Summon Genex Neutron!”
Genex Neutron LV: 4 ATK: 1800
“Battle! Genex Neutron, attack Morphtronic Datatron!” His monster charged forward.
“I activate a Trap! Morphtransition! It changes the Battle Position of my Morphtronic and negates your attack!” Leo stated.
Genex Neutron stopped as Leo’s machine morphed back into a flash drive.
Morphtronic Datatron LV: 3 DEF: 600
“I’ll Set a card face-down,” Carter continued. “Now during my End Phase, since Genex Neutron was Normal Summoned this turn, I can add a Machine-Type Tuner monster from my Deck to my hand. I’ll add Genex Spare, then I end my turn.”
“A Tuner monster, huh? He obviously means to Synchro Summon next turn,” Leo thought. “It’s my turn!”
Leo LP: 4000 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
Carter LP: 3400 SPC: 1 + 1 = 2
“Datatron’s monster effect! Once per turn, if it’s in Defense Position, I can inflict 300 damage to the opponent!”
“What?!” exclaimed Carter, as Leo’s monster shot at him.
Carter LP: 3400 – 300 = 3100 SPC: 2
“Now I switch Datatron to Attack Position!” Leo continued.
Morphtronic Datatron LV: 3 ATK: 1200
“Then I Summon Morphtronic Radion!” A large radio emerged beside Leo and morphed into a humanoid form.
Morphtronic Radion LV: 4 ATK: 1000
“Radion’s effect! While it’s in Attack Position, all of my “Morphtronic” monsters gain 800 ATK!”
Morphtronic Datatron LV: 3 ATK: 1200 + 800 = 2000
Morphtronic Radion LV: 4 ATK: 1000 + 800 = 1800
“Battle! Morphtronic Datatron, attack Genex Neutron!” Leo commanded. His monster’s turret shot at Genex Neutron, destroying it.
2000 – 1800 = 200
Carter LP: 3100 – 200 = 2900 SPC: 2
“Go, Radion! Direct attack!” Leo’s humanoid radio dashed towards Carter.
“I activate the Trap Card Genex Scrap Wall!” Carter shouted. “First, I pay 500 Life Points!”
Carter LP: 2900 – 500 = 2400 SPC: 2
“Then I Special Summon a “Genex” monster from my hand! Come, Genex Spare!”
Genex Spare LV: 3 DEF: 1200
“This turn, the monster Summoned by Genex Scrap Wall cannot be destroyed by battle!”
Leo’s Radion ceased its assault and retreated to his side. “I activate Datatron’s other effect! Since it’s in Attack Position, I’ll Tribute it to inflict 600 damage!” His Datatron fired at Carter.
Carter LP: 2400 – 600 = 1800 SPC: 2
“I’ve had just about enough of this nonsense,” Carter groaned, as Datatron vanished.
“I end my turn,” Leo stated.
Luna rode her Duel Board alongside Sassy down the alley.
“I don’t see why they’re after me now!” Sassy exclaimed.
“They’re probably not. They were after Leo and I, after all,” Luna responded.
The two stopped as they saw the pony pursuer appear at the end of the alley. The pony removed its hood. Before them stood a female unicorn with dark gray fur and an even darker mane with streaks of green.
“You didn’t honestly think you could escape me, did you?” the unicorn asked.
“How did you even find us?” asked Luna.
“Call it my special talent: I’m one of the best trackers in Equestria. Slight Trace is the name.”
“Special… talent?”
“But why would use your talent for these creatures that have attacked Canterlot?!” exclaimed Sassy. The two looked behind them to see the woman from before block their way into the alleyway.
“For a better Equestria,” answered Slight Trace.
“What?! That’s absurd! How dare you suggest that taking out the princesses leads to a better Equestria!”
“Sassy… maybe you should go,” Luna said. “They’re not after you.”
“On the contrary, little human,” Slight Trace interjected. “For one, thanks to my own efforts, we found out she was harboring you and your twin brother. Second, she works for one of the Elements.”
“Elements?”
“Third, she just now dared to challenge our ideals. As far as we’re concerned, she is dead to us. You and your brother as well.”
Slight Trace’s horn glowed and the woman’s Duel Disk activated as they approached from both sides. Magical energy shot out of Slight Trace’s horn towards Luna and Sassy. As the human girl braced herself, her right arm began to glow, creating a red barrier that surrounded them.
“What the?!” shouted Slight Trace, as an explosion occurred. She and Adelinde coughed violently until the smoke cleared, noticing that Luna and Sassy were nowhere to be seen.
“You’re the tracker, Slight Trace,” replied Adelinde. “Find them.”
“Don’t order me around. Besides, you wouldn’t need an expert tracker to see that.” The unicorn spotted a nearby door left ajar. “Too easy.”
“Thanks for helping us out there,” Luna said. She, Sassy, rth pony stepped outside the building.
“No problem,” replied the earth pony. Her mane was blue and her coat was turquoise. “I saw and heard enough. You don’t seem to be like the rest of those creatures that attacked Canterlot.”
Sassy hung back, studying the earth pony.
“Is something wrong, Sassy?” asked Luna.
“Wait a minute! I know who you are!” Sassy shouted with glee.
“You… do?”
“Oh my, it seems I’ve run into another fan here,” replied the earth pony.
“Excuse me?”
“Allow me,” Sassy turned towards Luna. “This is Blue Melody, a new but well-known singer in Equestria.”
“I’m still nowhere near as popular as Sapphire Shores or Coloratura,” Blue Melody smiled. “But it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“My name is Sassy Saddles. I work at Canterlot Boutique,” replied Sassy.
“And my name is Luna,” Luna added.
“Luna? As in the princess?” Blue Melody asked.
“Who?”
“She is one of the two rulers of Equestria… and an alicorn at that,” Sassy explained.
“Oh,” Luna responded. “I’m going to get that a lot, aren’t I? I’m starting to think I should’ve been given a different name.”
The trio stopped in front of a door. Above was a sign that seemed to depict an elephant holding a spoon.
“Here we are,” Blue Melody said. “It’s not the hotel we’ve originally booked, but given the circumstances, we’ve had to make do.”
“‘We’?” asked Luna.
Blue Melody knocked on the door with her hoof.
“Who is it?” inquired a male voice.
“Sweetheart, it’s me!”
The door was opened by a chartreuse-colored earth pony with black and white stripes in his mane. “Blue Melody!” the male pony said, embracing her. He then looked at the individuals behind her. “You!”
“Uh… hi…” Luna nervously waved at the stallion glaring at her.
“Why in Equestria are YOU here?!”
Luna was taken aback by his words. “But I…”
Blue Melody stepped in front of him. “Now, now, she’s not one of them. I promise.”
“Why should I believe that?”
“I wouldn’t have brought her here if I thought she was going to hurt us.”
“…Fine, but that creature is to stay away from the rest of us,” the stallion headed back inside. “You’re really pushing it this time.”
“No need to be like that!” Blue Melody turned back towards Luna. “I’m sorry about him. He’s a little…”
“I know,” Luna replied with a melancholic expression.
As they stepped inside the building, they noticed tables and booths decorating the wooden floor. Fillies sat at the tables eating carefully prepared food.
“This is the Tasty Treat,” Blue Melody stated. “I came here with my boyfriend—Sour Note, whom you just met—because it was recommended by all the locals… despite what a particular food critic says. We thought we’d try the food, anyway.”
“Blue Melody, did you find more lost fillies?” asked a female voice. A unicorn emerged from the back kitchen. “Who do we have—ahh!”
“Saffron, darling, what’s wrong?” asked a large male unicorn. He froze upon seeing Luna. All eyes in the room focused on the human.
“Apparently, my girlfriend thought it was a good idea to bring that creature here,” said Sour Note. “Says she’s not of them, Coriander.”
“I refuse to believe this. That thing needs to leave! It is not welcome here!” Coriander replied.
“Maybe I should go,” Luna said.
“Let me handle this,” Blue Melody grinned.
Luna nodded and glimpsed out the window. “Leo, I hope you’re okay.”
“It’s my move!” Carter stated.
Leo LP: 4000 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
Carter LP: 1800 SPC: 2 + 1 = 3
“I Summon Genex Undine!”
Genex Undine LV: 3 ATK: 1200
“When Genex Undine is Normal Summoned, I can send a WATER monster from my Deck to the Graveyard to add a Genex Controller to my hand! Then I activate the effect of Genex Spare! Since I control another “Genex” monster, I can have its name be treated as Genex Controller this turn!”
“Here it comes…” Leo thought.
“I tune Level 3 Genex Spare, being treated as Genex Controller, with Level 3 Genex Undine!”
3 + 3 = 6
“With the components of the wind, the water, and the darkness! Emerge as the master of these elements! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Genex Ally Triarm!”
Genex Ally Triarm LV: 6 ATK: 2400
“And now, once per turn, by discarding a card from my hand, I can use one of Genex Ally Triarm’s effects, depending on the Attribute of the Synchro Materials I used for its Summon!” Carter continued, discarding a card. “The one I’ll use is this: I can destroy a LIGHT monster on your field! And it just so happens that your Morphtronic Radion’s Attribute is LIGHT!”
Carter’s Synchro Monster pointed the turret on the end of its left arm at Leo’s machine, firing a burst of dark energy and destroying it.
“With your monster out of the way, I’ll have Genex Ally Triarm attack you directly!” Carter stated. Another burst of energy fired at Leo.
After being struck, Leo struggled to regain his balance.
Leo LP: 4000 – 2400 = 1600 SPC: 3
“Seems like you’re not in much of a condition to continue,” observed Carter.
“If you think I’m giving up, you’ve got another thing coming!” Leo retorted.
Carter scoffed. “I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn.”
“Then it’s my turn!” Leo drew a card.
Leo LP: 1600 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
Carter LP: 1800 SPC: 3 + 1 = 4
Leo glanced at the card he drew. “Alright!” he thought excitedly. “I activate the Speed Spell – Vision Wind! Since I have at least 2 Speed Counters, I can Special Summon a Level 2 or lower monster from my Graveyard, but it gets destroyed during the End Phase! Return now, Morphtronic Celfon!”
Morphtronic Celfon LV: 1 ATK: 100
“I activate Celfon’s effect! Dial Up!”
The keypad on his machine’s chest flickered once more until stopping on 3.
“Here goes…” Leo picked up three cards from the top of his Deck. “Aw, yeah!”
“What is he up to?” Carter wondered.
“I Special Summon the Tuner monster Morphtronic Remoten in Attack Position!”
Morphtronic Remoten LV: 3 ATK: 300
“Remoten’s effect! Since it’s in Attack Position, by banishing a “Morphtronic” from my Graveyard, I can add another “Morphtronic” with the same Level from my Deck to my hand! I banish Morphtronic Datatron from my Graveyard, then I’ll add Morphtronic Boarden to my hand and Normal Summon it!”
Morphtronic Boarden LV: 3 ATK: 500
“I now tune Level 3 Morphtronic Remoten with my Level 1 Morphtronic Celfon and Level 3 Morphtronic Boarden!”
3 + 1 + 3 = 7
“Docking strength with courage to protect the world's peace! Synchro Summon! Envoy of love and justice, Power Tool Dragon!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300
The mechanical dragon appeared and hovered above Leo’s head.
“Let’s go, Power Tool!” Leo shouted. His monster let out a mechanical roar.
Blue Melody approached Luna once more. “Good news and bad news,” she said.
“Oh?” Luna responded.
“Good news is that you can stay here.”
“And the bad news?”
“Bad news is that you can’t go beyond these first two tables.”
“That’s fine. I understand.” Luna turned to see Sassy speaking casually with Saffron and Coriander, then glimpsed at all the fillies in the room.
“These fillies have yet to be found by their parents. Coriander and Saffron have agreed to let them stay until I can find their parents and bring them here.”
“They got separated. And because of the attacks, there are very few ponies willing to step outside, even more so because many of the ones that have were assaulted and either barely made it back home alive or… not at all…”
“That’s horrible…”
“So those creatures… that seem to be the same species as you… are you and they from the same world?” questioned Blue Melody.
“Most likely. I’m not even entirely sure how my brother and I got here, let alone them,” answered Luna.
“I see.”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Yes?”
“That unicorn Sassy and I met… Slight Trace. She said something about having a special talent and something called ‘Elements’. Do you know what that means?” inquired Luna.
“I guess being from another world means you don’t know about ponykind here.”
Luna shook her head.
“All ponies have a special talent from the day they are born. Once they discover what that is, a cutie mark appears on their flank that symbolizes that talent.” Blue Melody turned so that her cutie mark, in the form of a set of paired eighth-notes, was visible to Luna. “Mine is singing.”
“I see. So what about these ‘Elements’ I heard about?”
“That has more to do with one of the many legends of Equestria, one regarding a group of objects called the Elements of Harmony. From what I’ve heard, they’ve been the reason some major threats in recent years have been defeated, though I haven’t seen them for myself.”
“Uh-huh…”
The ground shook violently, causing Luna and Blue Melody to jump. Fillies screamed as they ran from the kitchen.
“What is it?” asked Saffron.
“Th-th-there’s something scary outside the window…” Luna looked around to see the outside of the windows blocked. “Scales…?”
The building continued to shake until the roof was ripped off.
“Our restaurant!” Coriander and Saffron cried.
The scaled creature instantly vanished.
“Found you,” said a female voice.
“No way…” Luna mumbled, turning towards her. “You!”
“My, my, what do we have here?” Adelinde grinned.
“How did you find us so quickly?” It immediately hit her.
“All ponies have a special talent from the day they are born. Once they discover what that is, a cutie mark appears on their flank that symbolizes that talent.” Blue Melody turned so that her cutie mark, in the form of a set of paired eighth-notes, was visible to Luna. “Mine is singing.”
“Call it my special talent: I’m one of the best trackers in Equestria. Slight Trace is the name.”
“Of course…” Luna said. “That’s how they found us with Sassy in the first place…!”
“How dare you do this to destroy the restaurant my daughter and I value so much!” Coriander screamed.
“I’m not even going to bother with you,” Adelinde replied, placing a card on her activated Duel Disk. A reptile-like monster quickly appeared and wrapped itself around Coriander, squeezing him.
“Father!” Saffron shrieked.
“Such delicious prey…” the woman said, under her breath.
“Let him go!” demanded Luna, activating her Duel Disk.
“Fine.” Her monster vanished.
Coriander fell to the ground. His daughter rushed to his side.
“Father, are you alright?” Saffron asked, tears in her eyes.
“Yes, I’m fine… but… our restaurant…” The two held each other tightly.
Blue Melody and Sassy began tending to the frightened fillies, as Luna stared intently at Adelinde.
“This will be fun,” Adelinde grinned, licking her lips.
Leo and Carter continued riding through the streets of Canterlot.
“So you Summoned your mechanical dragon,” Carter said.
Leo LP: 1600 SPC: 4
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300
“It doesn’t have enough ATK to take on my monster!” Carter continued.
Carter LP: 1800 SPC: 4
Genex Ally Triarm LV: 6 ATK: 2400
“Is that what you think?” Leo responded, grabbing one of the four cards in his hand. “I activate the Speed Spell – Utility!”
“Hm?”
“Since I have at least 3 Speed Counters, I can target a Level 3 or lower Machine-Type monster in my Graveyard and equip it to a monster on my field! I’ll equip my Power Tool Dragon with the Morphtronic Boarden in my Graveyard!” His Boarden reappeared onto the field behind Power Tool, with a light aura surrounding both of them. “As long as Power Tool is equipped with the monster by this effect, its ATK goes up by the original ATK of the monster I equipped to it!”
Morphtronic Boarden LV: 3 ATK: 500
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300 + 500 = 2800
Carter scoffed.
“With that, Power Tool’s ATK is higher than yours! Go, Power Tool Dragon! Attack Genex Ally Triarm!” Leo commanded. His machine charged forward. “Crafty Break!”
“I don’t think so!” Carter replied.
“What?”
“I activate the Trap Card Genex Booster! This card can be activated when my “Genex” monster battles an opponent’s monster. First, I send a Machine-Type Tuner monster from my Deck to the Graveyard! I choose Disharmony Cold Mind!”
“D… Disharmony…?” Leo mumbled, wide-eyed. His previous Duel flashed in his mind. “No way…”
“This turn, my monster gains 700 ATK!”
Genex Ally Triarm LV: 6 ATK: 2400 + 700 = 3100
“It’s the end for your dragon and you’re next, kid!” Carter’s Genex Ally Triarm knocked Power Tool away before aiming at it with the turret on its arm.
Leo shook his head to dispel the memories plaguing him. “Power Tool Dragon’s effect!” A blast from the turret struck his monster, causing an explosion. As the smoke cleared, Boarden appeared to intercept the blast before vanishing.
3100 – 2800 = 300
Leo LP: 1600 – 300 = 1300 SPC: 4
“By sending an Equip Card equipped to Power Tool Dragon to the Graveyard, I can prevent it from being destroyed!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2800 – 500 = 2300
Carter chuckled.
“I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn,” Leo concluded.
Genex Ally Triarm LV: 7 ATK: 3100 – 700 = 2400
“And unfortunately for you, that’s the last turn you’ll ever have,” Carter smiled. “Enough of your cheap tricks. I’ll end this here.”
Leo glared at his opponent as he continued down the street.
Luna stood before the torn down restaurant, glaring at Adelinde. She then glimpsed back at the ponies behind her, the fillies cowering and the older ponies looking on with an expression of fear.
“You don’t honestly think you can protect them, do you?” asked the woman. “They don’t even trust you.”
Luna turned her head back toward Adelinde. “I won’t let you hurt anyone anymore!”
“Oh, please. You won’t stop me. I’ll eliminate you, then they’ll all be next!”
Luna heard the whimpering of the young fillies behind her. “No, I will protect them.”
Adelinde chuckled as they both drew five cards from their Decks.
DUEL! Luna (LP 4000) VS Adelinde (LP 4000)
“I’ll take the first turn,” said Adelinde, drawing a card. “I’ll Set a monster and end my turn.”
“That’s it?” Luna thought, glancing at the five cards in her opening hand. “She’s really confident in that Set monster of hers…”
“Cold feet?” Adelinde grinned.
“My turn!” Luna declared, drawing a card. “I Summon Armored White Bear!”
Armored White Bear LV: 4 ATK: 1800
“It might be dangerous to attack her mystery monster… but it might be even more dangerous to let it stay on the field!” Luna weighed her options. “Battle! Armored White Bear, attack that Set monster!”
Her beast charged forward as the unknown monster revealed itself.
Reptilianne Naga LV: 1 DEF: 0
The bear clawed at the reptile, only to be repelled back. The color of the bear’s armor and fur then began to turn into a dull brown.
Armored White Bear LV: 4 ATK: 1800 – 1800 = 0
“What’s going on?” Luna gasped.
“Reptilianne Naga’s effect,” explained Adelinde. “It cannot be destroyed by battle, and any monster foolish enough to battle with it loses all its ATK at the end of the Battle Phase! Honestly, did you think it would be that easy?”
Luna groaned.
“You all shall soon meet the same fate. Just like the rest of them.”
“The… ‘rest’…?” Chills were sent down Luna’s spine.
“Will that be all for your turn?”
“I… end my turn,” Luna said.
“Then it’s my turn!” Adelinde continued. “I Summon Reptilianne Scylla!”
Reptilianne Scylla LV: 4 ATK: 1800
“Scylla! Attack Armored White Bear!” Her beast charged forward, smashing the stone bear into rubble.
1800 – 0 = 1800
Luna LP: 4000 – 1800 = 2200
“Armored White Bear’s effect! When it’s destroyed by battle or card effect, I can Special Summon a LIGHT Beast-Type monster from my Deck! I’ll Special Summon Sunlight Unicorn!”
Sunlight Unicorn LV: 4 ATK: 1800
“U-unicorn…?” one of the fillies said.
“What is that pony doing?!” asked another.
“It’s gonna get turned to stone!!!” added another filly.
“Interesting choice. Definitely good for me to demonstrate what’ll happen to their kind!” Adelinde sneered. “I’ll be using an effect as well. When Reptilianne Scylla destroys a monster with 0 ATK in battle, I can Special Summon it to my field in Defense Position with its effect negated.”
Armored White Bear LV: 4 DEF: 1400
“I activate the Spell Gorgon Shatter, I send a monster I control to the Graveyard and destroy a monster on the field with 0 ATK. I’ll send Armored White Bear back into the Graveyard and destroy my Naga.”
The bear faded away as an explosion swallowed her Naga.
“I wouldn’t be so foolish as to let you Summon more monsters with your Bear’s effect again.”
Luna groaned once more.
“Next, my card’s effect lets me draw two cards. Now I Set a card face-down and end my turn. You’re up,” Adelinde grinned.
“My move,” declared Carter.
Leo LP: 1300 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
Carter LP: 1800 SPC: 4 + 1 = 5
“I activate Genex Ally Triarm’s effect!”
“Again? But my Power Tool Dragon’s Attribute is EARTH!” Leo said. “You can’t destroy it with your monster’s effect!”
“That’s why I’m using a different effect.”
“What?”
“Since I used a WATER monster as Synchro Material for its Summon, by discarding a card, I can destroy a Spell or Trap Card on the field. One of those two face-downs you have will do!” A blue bullet shot out of Triarm’s turret.
“I activate the Trap Card Morphtronic Surge Protector!” Leo declared. “When you activate a card or effect that would destroy cards on my field, since I control a “Power Tool” or “Morphtronic” monster, this card prevents that destruction!” Electricity spawned around his cards and repelled the blast.
“Another cheap trick.”
“Since you can only activate an effect of Genex Ally Triarm once per turn, you won’t be using it to destroy anything else!”
“So what?”
“Huh?”
“I activate the Trap Card Chaos Seed! This Special Summons a “Disharmony” Tuner monster from my Graveyard! Come, Disharmony Cold Mind!”
Disharmony Cold Mind LV: 3 DEF: 700
“That’s the… monster he sent earlier…” mumbled Leo.
“I now tune Level 3 Disharmony Cold Mind with Level 6 Genex Ally Triarm!” Carter continued.
3 + 6 = 9
“With your one true component, let your winds of absolute zero bring chaos to this world! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Disharmony – Genex Blizzard!”
Disharmony – Genex Blizzard LV: 9 ATK: 3000
A large humanoid machine hovered above Carter. Its chest appeared to be that of a large generator with freezing air flowing out of it.
“Not again… So cold…” Leo said, shuddering from the cold. “Did he… did he trap a pony inside that thing… just like Drystan did…?”
“Since Cold Mind was used as Synchro Material, I can reduce that ATK of one of your monsters by 500!”
Leo gasped, watching the frost cover his Power Tool Dragon.
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300 – 500 = 1800
“Next, I activate Genex Blizzard’s monster effect! Once per turn, I can discard a card. This turn, you cannot activate any cards or effects on the field! On top of that, any face-up cards you do have on the field will have their effects negated.”
“What?!”
“And then for every card on your field, you’ll take 300 damage!” An icy wind blew from Carter’s machine, filling the vicinity as he and Leo continued to ride through the streets.
300 * 2 = 600
“I won’t let you!” Leo interrupted. “Since I have a face-up “Power Tool” or “Morphtronic” monster, I can banish Morphtronic Surge Protector from my Graveyard to activate its second effect! For the rest of this turn, I won’t take any effect damage!” A barrier appeared to shield Leo from the cold.
“In that case, I’ll have Disharmony – Genex Blizzard attack Power Tool Dragon!” commanded Carter. Another strong wind blew from his machine, encasing Leo’s monster in ice before it shattered into pieces.
Leo screamed as the shockwave from the attack knocked him onto the ground.
3000 – 1800 = 1200
Leo LP: 1300 – 1200 = 100 SPC: 5
Leo rose to his knees. “How do I fight this…? How am I supposed to fight back when… when there could be a pony inside that monster?” Leo looked up at Carter’s monster as it and he came to a stop. The image of the pink pony, wound on her stomach, appeared in his mind once more. “If I attack it… they might die…”
“Just moments ago, he looked very determined,” observed Carter. “But now… he just seems afraid.”
“What do I do?” wondered Leo, frozen only by his overwhelming hesitation.
“My turn!” stated Luna. She felt another chill from the cool breeze that suddenly passed by. “I activate the Spell Card Spirit Consonance! I shuffle any number of LIGHT monsters in my hand to my Deck, then I draw one more than the number I returned. I’ll return two monsters, then draw three! Next, I Summon Regulus!”
A white lion appeared before Luna.
Regulus LV: 4 ATK: 1700
“Then I activate the Field Spell Card Field of Spirits!” The ground beneath the humans and ponies lit up. The terrain became covered with flowers and grass.
“Nice little flower field you got here,” Adelinde commented. “It’d be a shame if something happened to it.”
“I activate the effect of Field of Spirits!” Luna continued. “Once per turn, if I control a LIGHT monster, I can use one of its two effects. I can discard a card to add an Equip Spell from my Deck to my hand or place an Equip Spell in my Deck on top! This time, I’ll use the second effect and place Horn of the Unicorn on top of my Deck!”
“What good will that do you?”
“Sunlight Unicorn’s monster effect! Once per turn, I can excavate the top card of my Deck, and if it’s an Equip Spell, I can add it to my hand! Since I just used my Field Spell’s effect, the top card of my Deck is definitely an Equip Spell: Horn of the Unicorn!”
“Cute.”
“Now I equip Horn of the Unicorn to Sunlight Unicorn! With its effect, my monster gains 700 ATK and DEF!” The horn on Luna’s white unicorn changed into a solid gold color.
Sunlight Unicorn LV: 4 ATK: 1800 + 700 = 2500
“Battle! Sunlight Unicorn! Attack Reptilliane Scylla!” commanded Luna. The ponies watched in awe as sparks flew from the unicorn’s horn, destroying Adelinde’s monster.
2500 – 1800 = 700
Adelinde LP: 4000 – 700 = 3300
“Regulus, direct attack!” Luna’s lion charged forward and slashed at Adelinde, knocking her over.
Adelinde LP: 3300 – 1700 = 1600
The woman began to laugh.
“What’s so funny…?” asked Luna.
“I’m sorry,” Adelinde replied, standing up. “I just love when my prey is this feisty!” She licked her lips once more.
“That’s… totally not creepy at all.” Luna then grabbed one of the four cards in her hand. “I’ll Set a card face-down and end my turn.”
“My turn, then.” The woman’s grin grew more sinister. “Now I activate the Field Spell Reptilianne Swamp!”
Luna gasped, watching as the grass and flowers wilted away. Murky water covered the ground.
“Ew, how dreadful!” yelled Sassy. Moans of disgust came from the other ponies.
The ground shook as trees rapidly grew around them. Shrieks were heard from the fillies. Luna looked back to see that five of them were lifted by the new vegetation.
Blue Melody ran to the trees that held the fillies and began kicking the trunks. “Help me, sweetie!” she pleaded to Sour Note.
“Fine,” he said, running to her side.
“Miss Masala, we should also do what we can,” suggested Sassy. Her horn lit up as she began pulling apart the branches.
“Yes, I shall help as best I can,” Saffron nodded.
“I will, too,” Coriander said, before falling onto his side again.
“No, father, you should rest.”
They glanced into each other’s eyes. “Fine,” he sighed.
Saffron quickly hugged him before joining Sassy. The four ponies struggled without success. The fillies continued to cry for help as they were tightly gripped by the branches.
Luna glared back at Adelinde. “How could you?!” she scolded.
“Don’t give me that attitude,” replied the woman. “What you’re experiencing now is nothing compared to what we felt.”
“‘We’…?”
“We were shunned by society, so why should we care about those who have only treated us like monsters?”
“But these ponies did nothing to you! If you’ve got something against other humans, then you shouldn’t be going after anyone in this world!”
Adelinde paused for a moment.
“Let them go!” demanded Luna.
“It seems you misunderstood what I said.”
“What?”
“It doesn’t matter. Why should we expect any of you to understand? You never will. Rather than explain, it’d be simpler to kill you all. Though, if it’s of any consolation, you’re more fun than the others my colleagues and I have cut down here.”
Luna gasped.
“Wait. Did she…?” asked Blue Melody.
The woman glanced at the foals behind Luna and those that were held up by trees spawned by her Reptilianne Swamp. “I can almost see the resemblance in some of those younglings; their expressions of fear are almost identical,” Adelinde commented.
“Y-you don’t mean…” Luna spoke, hands over her mouth.
Adelinde chuckled, licking her lips once more as another cold breeze passed through the vicinity. “For you prey, now that you’re in my swamp… welcome to—and I suppose I should use an appropriate phrase considering where we are—Tartarus on Equestria.”
Leo shuddered. Icicles formed, hanging from the buildings nearby.
“What’s wrong, kid?” Carter said. “Is the freezing temperature too much for you?”
“Can it,” Leo replied, struggling to rise to his feet. He glimpsed back at his opponent’s monster.
Disharmony – Genex Blizzard LV: 9 ATK: 3000
“Even if I can turn this Duel around…” he thought. “I can’t do it if he’s got a living creature inside that thing…”
“Why in the world is he hesitating like this? It’s disgusting,” Carter observed. “I wonder what it could be.”
Leo stepped onto his Duel Board and began riding down the street.
“It’s about time,” remarked Carter, resuming his pursuit.
“My turn,” Leo said, drawing a card.
Leo LP: 100 SPC: 5 + 1 = 6
Carter LP: 1800 SPC: 5 + 1 = 6
“A monster and two Speed Spells…” Leo glanced at his hand, then at the Set card in his Duel Disk’s Spell and Trap Zone. “I could use Speed World 2’s effect to inflict some major damage, but… it won’t be enough. I don’t have the Spell Counters to finish him that way. If I use these two Speed Spells and my Set card, I could counterattack, but then… that means putting the life of a living being at risk, and that’s assuming there is someone in that machine!”
“You’re taking an awfully long time to make a move,” said Carter.
“Be quiet!” shouted Leo, looking back again at Genex Blizzard. “I can’t believe you’re the kind of people that would trap innocent creatures inside their monsters!”
Carter grinned.
“Maybe there’s something else I can do to defend myself…” Leo continued, grabbing a card from his hand. “I activate the Speed Spell – Synchro Relief! Since I have at least four Speed Counters, I can return a Synchro Monster from my Graveyard to my Extra Deck, then I can draw one card!” Leo froze upon seeing his drawn card.
“Well? What are you waiting for?”
“Speed Energy now?! If all I had to worry about was winning, this would be perfect, but…” Leo thought.
“You don’t want to hurt the pony inside my machine, right?”
Leo gasped. “So… there is someone in there after all…?”
“Absolutely,” Carter sneered. “Go ahead. Fight back. You’ll just have their death on your conscience.”
Leo stood on his Board in silence as they traveled along the streets of Canterlot.
“He’s mine,” Carter chuckled.
“Try all you want, you’ll never free those fillies,” Adelinde stated, watching the adult ponies try to rescue the captured fillies.
Adelinde LP: 1600
“Let them go!” demanded Luna.
Luna LP: 2200
“As if,” the woman responded. “This cold air… Carter must’ve Summoned his Genex Blizzard. This Signer’s brother will soon be ours.” She grinned.
Luna glared at her opponent, readying herself.
“Now then…” Adelinde continued. “I activate the Spell Card Reptilianne Spawn! I banish Reptilianne Naga from my Graveyard to Special Summon two Reptilianne Tokens!”
Reptilianne Token LV: 1 DEF: 0
Reptilianne Token LV: 1 DEF: 0
“Then I’ll Tribute one of them so that I can Tribute Summon Reptilianne Medusa!”
Reptilianne Medusa LV: 6 ATK: 2200
The new creature hissed, causing the fillies still on the ground to back away into the wall of branches created by the swamp.
“You think that’s terrifying?” Adelinde grinned. “I activate Medusa’s effect! By sending one card from my hand to the Graveyard, one opponent’s face-up monster loses all of its ATK and cannot change its Battle Position!”
“What?!” exclaimed Luna. She and the ponies watched in horror as the Sunlight Unicorn was encased in stone. “Sunlight Unicorn!”
Sunlight Unicorn LV: 4 ATK: 2500 – 2500 = 0
“Now for you ponies to get a taste of what’ll happen to you very soon! Battle! Reptilianne Medusa, attack Sunlight Unicorn!” Adelinde commanded. “It’s over!”
“I won’t let you hurt any of my friends! I activate the Trap Card Twinkle Wall!” Luna countered. “This card negates your attack. In exchange, I take damage equal to half of your monster’s ATK!” A barrier appeared and repelled the Reptilianne Medusa, creating a shockwave that nearly caused Luna to lose her balance.
2200 / 2 = 1100
Luna LP: 2200 – 1100 = 1100
“That’s right, keep struggling!” Adelinde continued her turn. “I’ll just go ahead and activate Medusa’s effect once more! I’ll send another card in my hand to the Graveyard. Now it’s time for Regulus to share Sunlight Unicorn’s fate!”
“Lu… Luna…” Regulus mumbled, squirming as he turned to stone.
Regulus LV: 4 ATK: 1700 – 1700 = 0
“Regulus!” Luna shouted. “No!”
“With that, I end my turn,” the woman chuckled.
“It’s still your turn, kid,” Carter said.
“Is there anything I can do right now?” Leo wondered. “If only there was a way for me to break into that monster…”
As his Duel Board made a turn down a curve, Leo screamed as he lost control while going over an ice patch. He found himself against the wall of a building, rubbing the back of his head.
“Is there even a point in trying…?” he began to think, shuddering from the cold once more. “I could defend myself but… with only 100 Life Points, Carter just needs almost any monster… I can’t sacrifice another’s life…”
Carter pulled up his Duel Runner in front of Leo. “Guess that’s it,” he said. “Time to take him away. He’s as good as lost.”
Leo was startled as a pitch-black darkness appeared beneath him, grabbing him. “No…”
“That’s the end of that.”
“Luna… I’m sorry… I couldn’t protect you…”
The Signer mark on Leo’s right arm began to glow.
“What?!” exclaimed Carter.
As the light faded, Leo found himself no longer covered in darkness. “The Crimson Dragon,” he mumbled. “Wait a sec!”
The ground shook as a part of the mountainside broke open. As his Signer mark burned brightly, Leo held his sister close as they moved slowly through the rugged terrain on their Duel Boards.
“Luna… we made it out…” Leo said, wearily. Falling to his knees, he looked back to see his Power Tool Dragon shaking off the last of the rubble on its body only to collapse immediately after. As it vanished, he noticed the glow on his arm fade away. “Thanks, Power Tool…”
He looked up and down the path that went alongside the mountain.
“A city…? Hold on, sis.”
“Maybe… just maybe…” Leo thought as he stood up and stepped back onto his Duel Board.
“And here I thought you gave up,” commented Carter.
“Not on your life!” replied Leo. The two continued down the street. “I activate the Speed Spell – Fallen Synchron! If I have five or more Speed Counters, I can banish Synchro Materials from my Graveyard to perform a Synchro Summon!”
Carter scoffed.
“From my Graveyard, I tune Level 3 Morphtronic Remoten with Level 4 Morphtronic Radion!”
3 + 4 = 7
“Docking strength with courage to protect the world's peace! Synchro Summon! Revive! Envoy of love and justice, Power Tool Dragon!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300
“The monster Summoned by the effect of Fallen Synchron is banished during the End Phase.”
“Hoping for a rematch?” asked Carter. “Your Power Tool Dragon will only lose again!”
“Not this time!” Leo replied.
“What?”
“I activate the Speed Spell – Speed Energy! Since I have two or more Speed Counters, for each one that I have, one of my monsters gains 200 ATK until the End Phase!”
6 * 200 = 1200
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300 + 1200 = 3500
Disharmony – Genex Blizzard LV: 9 ATK: 3000
“Now its ATK has higher than your Genex Blizzard’s!”
“Have you forgotten? I still have an innocent pony inside it. Surely, you wouldn’t attack knowing that.”
“Battle! Power Tool Dragon, attack Disharmony – Genex Blizzard!” Leo’s monster charged at Carter’s machine.
“Even if you destroy my monster, I’ll still have Life Points remaining!”
“No, you won’t! At this moment, I activate the Continuous Trap Morphtronics, Unite! Once per turn, I can activate one of its effects! I target a “Power Tool” or “Morphtronic” monster on my field, then I can either equip it with a “Morphtronic” monster from my hand or, by sending a monster from my hand to the Graveyard, a “Morphtronic” monster from my Deck! I’ll send the Morphtronic Magnen in my hand to the Graveyard so that I can equip Morphtronic Staplen from my Deck to Power Tool Dragon!” A large stapler appeared behind Power Tool, as an aura surrounded both.
“What’s going on here?”
“While a monster is equipped with a card by this effect, it gains the original ATK of the monster I equipped to it!”
Morphtronic Staplen LV: 4 ATK: 1400
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 3500 + 1400 = 4900
“That means…!” mumbled Carter.
“Go!” shouted Leo. “Crafty Break!”
Carter scoffed. “There’s still the pony inside my monster! I suppose you’ve consigned their life to Tartarus?!”
Leo closed his eyes, clenched his fist, and held it tight to his chest. “Please…” he thought as his Signer mark began to glow.
Carter gasped as he watched Power Tool Dragon’s eyes light up. Sparks flew while the mechanical dragon carved into the chest of Genex Blizzard, pulling it open.
“If there’s someone inside… save them!” Leo thought, looking up at the two monsters.
“How is this possible?!” exclaimed Carter.
“I can’t… see anyone…?”
Carter’s machine exploded. Smoke smothered both of them.
The two Duelists and ponies were startled as the ground shook.
“Smoke?” Luna noticed.
Adelinde looked at the puff of smoke with uncertainty as it began to fade.
Leo coughed as the smoke cleared. His Power Tool Dragon retreated to his side before vanishing. The Signer mark on his arm ceased to glow. “What about—”
Carter lay sprawled on the ground next to his broken Duel Runner, darkness beginning to cover both.
4900 – 3000 = 1900
Carter LP: 1800 – 1900 = 0 SPC: 6
“Hey! Where’s the pony that was inside?!” Leo shouted to Carter. As he pulled up, the blackness pushed him away before engulfing his opponent. The darkness vanished; Carter was no longer in sight.
Leo stood still as he found himself at a complete loss for words.
“I don’t like this…” Adelinde frowned. “I should finish this quickly.”
Adelinde LP: 1600
Luna LP: 1100
“Her expression changed. What could it mean? Leo, I hope you’re okay,” Luna thought. “It’s my turn! I activate Sunlight Unicorn’s effect! Once per turn, I can—!”
“Not gonna happen.”
“Huh?”
“As long as my Field Spell Reptilianne Swamp is face-up, the effects of all non-“Reptilianne” monsters with 0 ATK are negated!”
“No way…”
“With my monsters stripping yours of their ATK… and my Field Spell taking away their effects… you can’t do anything!”
Luna scoffed. “In that case, I activate the Spell Spirit’s Call! This lets me Special Summon two Level 3 or lower LIGHT monsters from my Deck that each have 500 ATK or less! I Summon Kuribon and Dreamsprite!”
Kuribon LV: 1 DEF: 200
Dreamsprite LV: 2 DEF: 200
“However, this turn, the monsters Summoned by this effect cannot be used as Synchro Material. I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn!”
“That’s cute. Your Dreamsprite has the effect of redirecting my attacks and your Kuribon can also negate attacks in exchange for giving me Life Points. Prolonging your defeat, I see… except it won’t do you any good! It’s my turn!” Adelinde declared, drawing a card. “First, I activate the effect of Reptilianne Swamp! Once per turn, during my Standby Phase, if you have at least three face-up monsters with 0 ATK, I can draw a card. Next, I send a card from my hand to the Graveyard to activate the effect of Reptilianne Medusa!” Luna’s fairy quickly turned to stone.
Dreamsprite LV: 2 ATK: 300 – 300 = 0
“Dreamsprite’s ATK is now 0 and can’t change Battle Position. On top of that, its effects are negated due to Reptilianne Swamp!”
“Is she… she gonna turn us to stone?!” a female filly whimpered. The young ponies still on the ground continued to cower in fear.
“Now, now…” Blue Melody said, trying to comfort them.
“They’re so adorable when they’re so full of fear,” Adelinde said. “Battle!”
“Not so fast!” Luna interrupted. “I activate the Trap Card Arms Exchange! This lets me take an Equip Spell on the field and equip it to a different target! I’ll take Horn of the Unicorn that’s equipped to Sunlight Unicorn and, instead, equip it to Dreamsprite!”
“What?”
The stone unicorn’s horn returned to its original shape. A gold horn appeared on Dreamsprite’s head as its body returned to normal.
“The monster equipped with Horn of the Unicorn gains 700 ATK and DEF! Since Dreamsprite’s ATK is no longer 0, its effects aren’t negated by your Reptilianne Swamp!”
“Not bad. Reptilianne Medusa, attack Dreamsprite!” the woman continued.
“I activate the second effect of Arms Exchange! By banishing it from my Graveyard, I can return an Equip Spell on my field into the Deck, then choose a different Equip Spell from my Deck and equip it to my monster! I’ll return Horn of the Unicorn to the Deck!” The gold horn disappeared from Dreamsprite’s head.
“Then I’ll equip it with Mist Body! A monster equipped with it cannot be destroyed in battle!”
Adelinde’s serpent bounced off the stone Dreamsprite and retreated to her side. “Fine, I activate the Trap Card Reptilianne Reborn! This Special Summons a “Reptilianne” monster from my Graveyard in Defense Position!”
Reptilianne Scylla LV: 4 DEF: 1200
“Then I Summon Reptilianne Cobra!”
Reptilianne Cobra LV: 2 ATK: 0
“Cobra’s effect! When it’s Normal Summoned, I can make the ATK of one of your monsters become 0!”
“Kuribon!” Luna gasped as her Kuribon fell to the ground encased in stone.
Kuribon LV: 1 ATK: 300 – 300 = 0
“Now I tune Level 2 Reptilianne Cobra with Level 4 Reptilianne Scylla!”
2 + 4 = 6
“With your many heads, smash all your enemies that have been turned to stone! Synchro Summon! Come, Reptilianne Hydra!”
Reptilianne Hydra LV: 6 ATK: 2100
The ponies shrieked as the new reptile emerged.
“Reptilianne Hydra’s effect activates! When it’s Synchro Summoned, all of the opponent’s monsters with 0 ATK are destroyed, then I draw one card for each one I destroy this way!” Adelinde’s creature charged towards Luna’s stone monsters.
“I activate the Trap Spiritual Resolve! This card protects my monsters from being destroyed!” A barrier appeared to repel the hydra.
Adelinde groaned.
“Then, since I control two or more monsters, I draw one card.”
“I hate prey that doesn’t know when to quit. I’ll Set a card face-down and end my turn.”
“Then it’s my turn! I Summon Fairy Archer!”
Fairy Archer LV: 3 ATK: 1400
“I activate Fairy Archer’s effect! Once per turn, in exchange for not attacking this turn, you take 400 damage for each LIGHT monster I control!” Her fairy drew back her bow and took aim at Adelinde.
400 * 5 = 2000
“I activate my Counter Trap! Gorgon Stare! This negates the activation of your effect and makes your monster’s ATK become 0!”
“Not my Fairy Archer, too!” Luna responded.
Fairy Archer LV: 3 ATK: 1400 – 1400 = 0
“Now all five of your monsters have been petrified. You’ll soon join them,” Adelinde grinned.
Luna grabbed the last card in her hand. “From my hand, I activate the Equip Spell Fairy’s Blessing, and I’ll equip it to Kuribon!” A light aura surrounded her Kuribon. “I can’t take Battle Damage except from battles involving the monster equipped with Fairy’s Blessing. In addition, once per turn, I can gain 300 LP for each LIGHT monster I control!”
“I tune Level 2 Disharmony Fang with Level 6 Reptilianne Hydra!” The Disharmony Fang became two black rings while the hydra became six black stars. The stars lined up vertically within the rings and were immediately engulfed by a black pillar.
2 + 6 = 8
“Ruler of reptiles, come forth and let fear and despair petrify your enemies! Synchro Summon! Rise, Disharmony – Reptilianne Basilisk!”
A large creature slithered from the darkness. Its body surrounded the two female Duelists and the ponies. The head of the creature rose from behind Adelinde.
Disharmony – Reptilianne Basilisk LV: 8 ATK: 2400
“A Disharmony Synchro monster…” Luna mumbled. “Does this mean… there’s a pony inside like before…?”
“Lu… na…” a voice said.
“Huh?” Luna was startled. “That voice… Regulus?”
“This creature again…?” shrieked Saffron.
“What do you mean?” asked Luna.
“This beast… first appeared in Canterlot when your kind attacked us!” answered Coriander. “It wasn’t until we saw this creature that my daughter saw lost fillies in the street.”
“Poor things,” chuckled Adelinde. “I suppose they are the children of the souls that had the misfortune of running into Carter and myself. Truly a shame that they’ll never be seen again.”
“How could you be so horrible?!” exclaimed Luna.
“Oh, the irony.”
“What?”
“It was we who were treated horribly! Even now, you and your pathetic Signer friends are too stupid to realize that.”
“But you’re going around attacking innocent creatures!”
“We were innocent, too, you know. Besides, how is it any different from our home world? Animals are no more than either pets or food to us humans. Why would it be any different here?”
Luna slowly looked back at the ponies behind her. Their gazes filled with horror and disgust focused on the two Duelists. “No… but what about the ponies working with you? Are they just ‘pets’ or ‘prey’ to you, too?”
“Honestly, I didn’t give it that much thought and, quite frankly, I don’t care. Though, I suppose I can give them special treatment,” Adelinde answered. “Regardless, that doesn’t change anything for these ponies you’re trying to protect. Not that they would want your protection anymore.”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t want to be food!” cried a filly.
“I want my mommy!” shouted another.
“Easy there, nothing’s going to happen to you…” Blue Melody went from filly to filly to calm them.
Sour Note only shook his head as he watched his girlfriend comfort the fillies.
Sassy and Saffron began pulling on the branches holding up the young ponies above more frantically. “I’m starting to regret what I was doing earlier…” said the former.
Coriander gave nothing short of an angry look at Luna and Adelinde.
“When Disharmony Fang is used as Synchro Material, I can destroy a face-up Spell or Trap Card on the opponent’s field!” Adelinde continued. “Let’s get rid of that Fairy’s Blessing!”
The light aura surrounding Kuribon faded.
“Battle! Reptilianne Medusa, attack Sunlight Unicorn!” the woman commanded. Her smaller reptile smashed the stone unicorn into rubble.
2200 – 0 = 2200
Luna LP: 2600 – 2200 = 400
“She… killed a pony!” shouted a young colt.
The fillies began crowding up in one spot.
“Reptilianne Basilisk’s effect!” Adelinde continued. “When a “Reptilianne” monster destroys one of your monsters by battle, I can destroy another monster! Good-bye, Regulus!” The reptile’s giant tail slammed into the stone lion.
“Regulus!” Luna screamed.
“Lu… na…” a voice said.
“…Regulus?”
“Don’t… worry… I don’t… sense… life… inside… that…”
“Inside what?”
The voice no longer responded.
“Since the monster I destroyed with this effect had 0 ATK, I can destroy one more!” Adelinde continued. “Dreamsprite is next!” The serpent’s tail crushed the small fairy. “Now to finish you. Go, Basilisk! Attack Fairy Archer!” The Reptilianne Basilisk opened its maw as its head approached Luna’s monster.
“From my Graveyard, I activate the second effect of Spiritual Resolve!” Luna declared. “By banishing it, I can negate your attack!” Another barrier appeared and blocked the serpent.
“Seriously?” Adelinde groaned, grabbing the last card in her hand. “I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn. This will soon be over.”
“My turn!” Luna declared, drawing a card. “What was Regulus trying to say…?”
“Don’t… worry… I don’t… sense… life… inside… that…”
“He didn’t sense life inside that…?” Luna thought, looking up at the basilisk. “…That… that monster? Does he mean there isn’t a pony inside?”
“Out of options?”
“Not quite! I Summon the Tuner Monster Little Armorsmith!”
Little Armorsmith LV: 3 ATK: 700
“I hope Regulus is right!” Luna figured. “I tune Level 3 Little Armorsmith with Level 1 Kuribon and Level 3 Fairy Archer!”
3 + 1 + 3 = 7
“The holy light of protection, shine now and become eternal life! Synchro Summon! A regal birth, Ancient Fairy Dragon!”
The ponies found themselves awestruck as a beautiful dragon emerged from the light above Luna and descended to her side.
Ancient Fairy Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2100
“So you’ve finally called your ace,” Adelinde commented. “But it’s too late! I Tribute my remaining Reptilianne Token and my Reptilianne Medusa to activate the Continuous Trap Card Endless Stare!”
“What is that?” Luna gasped as she saw her dragon become encased in stone like her previous monsters.
Ancient Fairy Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2100 – 2100 = 0
“Endless Stare makes the ATK of any monster you Summon become 0 while it’s face-up on the field!” Adelinde explained. “Your best monster has failed you.”
“Is that so?”
“What?”
“When Little Armorsmith is used as Synchro Material for a LIGHT Synchro Monster, I can add an Equip Spell from my Deck to my hand! I’ll add the Equip Spell Ancient Veil to my hand and equip it to my Ancient Fairy Dragon!”
“What good will that—your dragon…! It’s regaining its color?!”
A bright aura surrounded Luna’s dragon. “A LIGHT monster equipped with Ancient Veil is unaffected by the opponent’s Spell and Trap effects and also gain 400 ATK!”
“I will protect everyone here! You won’t hurt these ponies anymore! I activate the effect of Ancient Fairy Dragon!” Luna continued. “Once per turn, I can destroy a Field Spell! Plane Back!”
Ancient Fairy Dragon rose and let out a roar that shook the ground. The swamp and trees shattered and vanished. The foals that were gripped by the branches screamed as they fell.
“Ancient Fairy, please!” Luna said.
The foals screamed until they noticed they were being carried. They looked up to see the dragon gently placing them on the ground.
“You… saved us…?” asked a young mare.
“Are you alright, little ones?” Ancient Fairy asked.
The ponies were taken aback by the dragon’s beautiful and soothing voice. At a loss for words, they simply nodded. The dragon then returned to Luna’s side.
“Thank you, Ancient Fairy,” Luna said gratefully.
“Of course,” the dragon replied. “I cannot stand for those who would harm others for their own evil purposes.”
“That monster that this woman uses… Regulus said something about sensing no life inside it?”
“That’s right. In Leo’s previous Duel, I sensed something from his opponent’s monster. However, I didn’t know what it was until that moment…”
“When we saw that pony during that Synchro Summon?”
“That’s right. However, I do not sense anything like that from this creature before us.”
“Alright,” Luna smiled.
“How dare you,” Adelinde groaned. “This Duel is not over yet!”
“Now that your Reptilianne Swamp is destroyed, I gain 1000 Life Points!”
Luna LP: 400 + 1000 = 1400
“Next, I can add a Field Spell from my Deck to my hand! I’ll add the Field Spell Spirit Sanctuary to my hand and activate it!”
The ponies were startled as a gorgeous white platform appeared beneath them, with pillars surrounding them that had a remarkable sheen. Grass and flowers grew around the platform.
“While Spirit Sanctuary is face-up, all of my LIGHT monsters gain 500 ATK,” Luna continued.
Ancient Fairy Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2500 + 500 = 3000
“On top of that, once per turn, I can return any number of monsters in my Graveyard to the bottom of my Deck. This turn, all of your monsters lose 400 ATK for each one!” Six monsters popped out of the Graveyard slot on Luna’s Duel Disk.
Adelinde watched in shock as her reptile slowly turned to stone. “My basilisk! How dare you!”
Luna glared at her opponent. “Fall victim to your own curse. Ancient Fairy Dragon, attack Disharmony – Reptilianne Basilisk!” The dragon rose into the air once more. “Eternal Sunshine!”
Adelinde and the ponies shielded their eyes as the Ancient Fairy Dragon’s wings emitted a blinding light. The giant serpent was slowly reduced to dust.
3000 – 0 = 3000
Adelinde LP: 1600 – 3000 = 0
As the light faded, Adelinde lay on the ground. A pool of darkness appeared beneath her, engulfing her.
“What is that?” Luna ran towards the woman, only to be pushed back. The darkness vanished and Adelinde was absent. “What just… happened?”
The young girl then looked back at the ponies, who glanced back at her with uneasiness and uncertainty. The dragon and the white platform and pillars had already disappeared.
“Is… everyone all right?” Luna asked, stepping towards them.
“Don’t you take a step closer!” shouted Coriander. “We’ve had enough of you here! Leave!”
“We don’t need your kind making things worse for us. For all we know, you could be plotting to kill us yourself,” added Sour Note.
“But I…” Luna said. “I’m not…”
“That’s enough,” Blue Melody interrupted. “I don’t know about you two, but I can see clear as day when someone is trying to protect us!”
“Sweetheart,” Sour Note responded. “We don’t know her. We can’t trust her. We should’ve just left Canterlot before all this started. Just the two of us.”
“You know I can’t do that. I can’t abandon other ponies. Helping others lets me earn their support. That’s what got me to where I am today. I would appreciate having yours, too, sweetie. I don’t want to lose you.”
“Like the others?”
“Sour Note!”
“Fine, fine.” Sour Note glared back at Luna. He pointed his hoof at his own eyes before pointing it at the human.
Luna stood in silence until she was approached by Sassy.
“Do you truly mean it when you say you won’t hurt us ponies?” the unicorn asked.
“Of course I do! I promise I’ll do what I can to protect you all!” Luna answered. “My brother, too!”
“Very well.”
“I suppose I’ll try as well,” Saffron added. “Right now, we’ve got to do something for these poor fillies.” She looked back at her father, who reluctantly nodded in agreement.
“I have a suggestion,” Blue Melody interjected.
“And what would that be?”
“I was originally scheduled to appear at an event here in Canterlot, but… obviously the event itself probably isn’t happening.”
“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” asked Sour Note.
“Yes, sweetie, I am. I wish to perform so that I can raise the spirits of everypony in Canterlot.”
“You’re wasting your time. I still say we should go home.”
“Oh, stop it. I don’t know why you’ve been this way the past several weeks.”
“Fine. Have it your way.” Sour Note turned and walked away.
“I don’t know what his problem is…”
“Well, I’d like to pitch in however I can," said Luna. "My brother, too, once he meets up with us! You’re a singer, right? I’d love to see you perform!”
“Thank you.”
Slight Trace sat behind the corner of the building in its shadow, just out of sight of the ruins of the Tasty Treat.
“Those humans were worthless. Both of them were,” she commented. “On the other hoof… one of them did somewhat lead me to where I wanted to be. I found our second target.”
“So is this all you need me to do?” asked Luna, standing on her Duel Board while wearing a single saddlebag full of paper. “Pass out these flyers?”
“Yep!” Blue Melody nodded. “For now, anyway. Sassy will be heading to the boutique she works at and bringing back some of the outfits there. Sour Note and I were planning on going there after having lunch at The Tasty Treat but… you know…”
“Oh…”
“I should probably stay here to keep an eye on the fillies. My boyfriend will be getting the stage all set up and ready to go for my performance. I’ll also be checking up on him every now and then to see how things are coming along,” Blue Melody sighed.
“May I ask something?”
“Yes?”
“Not to pry, but is something happening between you two?”
Blue Melody paused for a moment. “Not to worry. Whatever it is, we’ll get through it.”
“All right, then,” Luna replied. “I’ll be back later.”
As the human girl took off on her board, Blue Melody sighed once more. “I just don’t want to lose him…” the earth pony mumbled to herself.
“I can’t believe that just happened,” Leo thought, aimlessly riding his Duel Board through the streets.
His mind was still on the end of his Duel with Carter.
“Go ahead. Fight back. You’ll just have their death on your conscience,” Carter’s words echoed in Leo’s mind. “There’s still the pony inside my monster! I suppose you’ve consigned their life to Tartarus?!”
Leo remembered trying to retrieve the pony inside Carter’s mechanical monster, only to watch it explode before him.
“Did I… kill someone?” he wondered. Perhaps Carter lied. At the same time, Leo couldn’t deny the possibility of Carter telling the truth.
“Leo!” called a young female voice. Leo perked his head up to see his twin sister on her Duel Board, carrying a bag.
“Luna?” the brother replied, as they both stopped in front of each other. “What are you doing?”
“Passing out these flyers for the concert!”
“Concert? What concert?”
“And that’s everything that happened after we got separated,” stated Luna.
“I see…” the brother replied.
“Leo? Is something wrong?”
He paused before speaking again. “Well… in my Duel with Carter, he Summoned his Disharmony monster.”
“Did it have someone inside it?”
“I don’t know. I sent my Power Tool to try and check inside but… before I knew it, his monster exploded and the Duel ended.”
“Well, maybe there wasn’t a pony inside it?”
“Maybe…” Leo mumbled.
“Aren’t you supposed to be passing out flyers?” asked a male voice. The twins looked ahead to see Sour Note approaching them. “Great, now there are two of you…” the earth pony groaned.
“Oh, we’ll be right on it. My brother just got here and I’m having him help!” Luna replied.
“Whatever. The sooner this is done, the sooner I don’t have to see you and the rest of your species.”
“Hey!” yelled a female voice. “Sweetie! Don’t talk to them like that!”
Sour Note was silent as his girlfriend trotted up to them.
“They did save us, you know. And they’re still helping despite what the other humans have done!”
“For all we know, it could be a trick.”
Blue Melody paused for a moment. “Maybe it is, but when I look at Luna, the girl who saved us… I don’t see somepony who would betray us.”
“Some…pony?” Leo thought.
“That’s because they’re not ponies,” Sour Note retorted.
Blue Melody facehoofed. “You know what I mean,” she said.
“And you know I don’t think this concert is a good idea.”
“Sweetie, I want to do this. You trust me, right?” she asked her boyfriend.
“Fine.” Sour Note shook his head and turned away. “It’s always what she wants,” he mumbled as he trotted off.
“I just don’t understand him sometimes.” Blue Melody turned to the twins. “I’m so terribly sorry about him. You must be Luna’s brother. I’m Blue Melody.”
“Uh, yeah, my name is Leo,” the male twin spoke.
“Nice to meet you!”
“So what’s with that guy, anyway?”
“My boyfriend? I honestly don’t know. I’m just trying to do what’s good for everypony, even if it’s just a little bit.”
“Has he always been this way?” Luna inquired.
“We’ve disagreed on a lot of things before, but it’s never been this bad. He may not be the most agreeable stallion, but he’s been the only one that’s ever appreciated me for… me. Not just for my celebrity status.”
The twins glanced at each other.
“I just hope nothing bad happens between us,” Blue Melody continued. “So, you’re helping out with the concert, right?”
“Yeah, about that, what is this concert all about, anyway?” asked Leo.
Luna answered, “Blue Melody wants to try and bring up the morale of everyone here in Canterlot with her singing.”
“In fact, I was just on my way to the boutique where Sassy will be helping me pick out an outfit to wear for it!” Blue Melody said.
“Oh? That sounds pretty cool,” Leo replied. “Sure, I’ll help!”
“Thank you both very much!”
“Hmm, it’s too crowded,” said the man. “I’m afraid we can’t do much to get to the target, Slight Trace.”
“Not to worry, Drystan,” the unicorn replied. “You worry about the two Signers. By the way, you have the Element, yes?”
Drystan nodded.
“Good. I was told to let you know that, as soon as I bring our target here to you, you have the go-ahead as that is our top priority here. Hey. Hey!”
The man’s mind had been elsewhere.
“Hey, we have a job to do. I thought someone with your profession wouldn’t have an issue with following orders,” Slight Trace said.
“Not at all. I live to serve my master.”
“I thought so. Be ready for me when I bring the target to you.”
“Understood.”
“Twilight! You need to rest! Doctor’s orders, remember?” Spike pleaded, standing beside the alicorn’s hospital bed.
“I’m sorry, Spike, but I can’t right now,” Twilight replied. “Not when our friends are in danger.”
“But you haven’t fully recovered yet! I don’t think you’re in any shape to be fighting any of those guys right now.”
“What’s going on?” asked Starlight, entering the room. Quickly scanning the room, she noticed that Fluttershy and the Crusaders were not present in the room. “Wait, you’re not thinking of heading out right now, are you, Twilight?”
Twilight sighed. “Look, everyone. I appreciate your concern, but I need to go to Canterlot. Maybe I can find some clues there about where the rest of our friends are. I don’t think I can afford to lay around anymore.”
“What about the pendant? Maybe you can focus on that instead?” suggested Spike.
“What’s this about a pendant?” Starlight asked.
The alicorn answered, “When Fluttershy and I went to save everypony here in Ponyville, I met this unicorn. She and I fought and, when she left, she dropped a pendant.”
“Where is it?”
“It’s at the castle library,” Spike replied.
“Then why don’t we look into that? Won’t we have a better idea of who or what we’re dealing with?”
“That might be a better idea than goin’ in blind,” Applejack said.
The alicorn stopped to consider their words. “You’re right,” she conceded, as her friends breathed a sigh of relief. “I was going to check the Golden Oak library, but didn’t get a chance to because of everything that happened so far. Maybe I’ll head there.”
“Actually, I was thinking that maybe I should look there and you can double-check your castle library?” asked Spike.
“Hmm… alright, sure,” Twilight agreed.
“That’s the last flyer. Let’s go see if Blue Melody wants us to do anything else,” Luna said. “Leo?”
“Huh? Yeah, sis?” Leo replied.
“Still thinking about what happened?” she asked, with a concerned expression.
“…Yeah.”
“Well, like I said, maybe no one got hurt.”
“I hope so.” The twins started toward the concert stage on their Duel Boards. “Maybe we should stay backstage during the concert,” Leo suggested.
“How come? …Oh, right.” She agreed that, although Blue Melody was more than accepting of them as well as some other ponies, the vast majority wouldn’t be too happy seeing them. Hopefully, they can soon change the ponies’ views on them and their friends, at the very least.
They approached the stage to see Sour Note directing some unicorns that were arranging some last-minute decorations.
“Alright! That should do it!” he called out to them. The unicorns smiled and nodded before quickly running off. “Wha…?” Sour Note’s confusion quickly vanished as he turned to see the twins.
“Uh… hi…” Leo nervously chuckled.
“Oh, it’s you.”
“Do you really need to act like a jerk all the time?” asked Luna.
“I do not act like a jerk all the time!”
“Could’ve fooled me,” Leo retorted.
“If it was my choice, I’d have told you to get lost a long time ago. We don’t need you in our lives.”
“Hey!”
Sour Note sighed. “This concert is a bad idea. So was letting you both stick around. So was coming here. She never listens to me.”
“Why wouldn’t she? Aren’t you supposed to be her boyfriend?” Luna questioned.
“You’d think that, wouldn’t you? But every time she gets an idea in her head, she’s dead set on seeing it through. Me? I end up feeling like nothing I say matters. She asks for my advice and sometimes I agree, but other times… not at all, no matter how much I protest.”
“Maybe your attitude has something to do with it,” said Leo.
“…What did you say?” Sour Note immediately glared at the twin brother.
“Almost makes me wonder why she puts up with you. And I only just met you both!”
“Nopony asked for your opinion!”
“So what? I still think she deserves better than that!”
Leo braced himself as Sour Note raised his hoof. The three were still until Sour Note planted his hoof back on the ground. “She barely listens to me. Clearly, anything I say or do isn’t of much value to her. Maybe she is better off without me.” He hung his head as he walked away.
“Wait! That’s not what I…” Leo stopped, the earth pony undoubtedly ignoring him. “That’s not what I meant…” The twins exchanged worried glances once more.
Leo and Luna stood behind the curtains onstage at the crowd of ponies still trickling in.
“I’m surprised that this many came,” the brother commented.
“Right?” Luna said. “I didn’t think half this many would come considering what happened.”
“I guess it helped that all we did was knock and leave the flyers at their doorsteps.”
“Yeah. It probably would’ve spooked them if they saw humans advertising Blue Melody’s concert.”
“Too bad we can’t enjoy the concert from the crowd’s perspective without freaking them out.”
“This is probably better for you two, anyway,” Blue Melody said, approaching the twins from behind. “You’ll be able to hear me sing much more clearly.”
“You look beautiful!” Luna complimented.
“Yeah!” Leo agreed.
“Thank you!” Blue Melody replied. “By the way, have you seen my boyfriend anywhere?”
The twins shook their heads.
“Oh, dear. I hope he doesn’t miss my performance.”
“You ready?” ask the twin sister.
“You bet I—oh shoot! I think I left the headband that goes with this dress in the dressing room! Be right back!”
The two Signers watched as Sassy approached the microphone on stage.
“Welcome, citizens of Canterlot!” the unicorn greeted. “Thank you very much for coming!”
“I hope Blue Melody doesn’t take too long,” Luna said.
“And now, without further ado, the pony you’ve all been waiting for… Blue Melody!” Sassy continued. A spotlight shone just before where the twins stood.
Silence.
“Where is she?” asked Leo.
“Uh… just a moment!” Sassy said, frantically running behind the curtains. “Have you two seen Blue Melody? We can’t start the show without her!”
“Leo, let’s check the dressing room!” Luna said.
Leo nodded as he and his sister sprinted into the hallway. As they approached the room, they were startled as Blue Melody burst through the door, bawling.
“Blue Melody!” Luna called after her.
Leo quickly jumped onto his Duel Board and rode after her. Luna nearly followed suit until interrupted by a “Kuri kuri!”
“Kuribon?” she said.
“Kuri!” The image of Kuribon appeared before her, motioning towards the room.
She stepped inside, her eyes scanning the room until she noticed the scroll on the dresser, its bottom-left corner moistened by a small puddle of water. “What’s that?”
Luna picked up the scroll. “It says… ‘To my dearest Blue Melody, I hope that the concert went well’…” she began to read to herself. Her eyes grew wider as she continued to the end of the letter. “No… he didn’t.”
“Blue Melody! Blue Melody!” Leo called out as he rode into the alleyways. “Where is she? …Huh?” He looked ahead to notice a figure move behind a building on his right, heading down another path.
As he approached the next intersection of alleys, he looked to his right to see the figure making another turn.
“Hey!” he shouted, giving chase.
“Sassy!” Luna called to the unicorn.
“What happened? Where is Blue Melody?” Sassy asked her.
“I don’t know. Leo and I saw her run out of her dressing room, and I’m guessing it’s because of this.” The young girl held out the scroll she had found.
Sassy levitated the scroll and opened it, quickly scanning the page. “Oh, dear… Wait… Come to think of it, I haven’t seen Sour Note around.”
“I think she must’ve went after him.”
“Right. Now we must—”
“Hey!” shouted a stallion in the crowd. “Where’s Blue Melody? I came here for a performance! Not to waste my time standing around!”
“Yeah!” added a mare.
“Oh… what should I do...?” Sassy wondered out loud. She then approached the microphone on the stage. “Ladies and gentlecolts! We are experiencing some rather unusual circumstances! Please remain seated! The concert will begin soon!”
The unicorn glanced back at Luna, motioning for her to leave. Luna nodded as she removed her Duel Board from the bag on her back and placed it on the ground.
The sky rumbled as she rode away from the stage.
“Hey! Come back here!” Leo shouted, following the figure into an open area. His eyes scanned the vicinity until noticing a much taller figure.
“It’s been a while, young Signer,” the male said.
“Wait… you’re—!”
“That’s right. I am Drystan. And here, I shall finish what I started.” The man lifted his arm and activated his Duel Disk.
“I don’t have time for this!” Leo turned away on his Board.
Drystan scoffed, placing a card on his Duel Disk. A tremor shook the area. Leo stopped, nearly falling off his Duel Board.
The windows in the nearby buildings shattered. Shrieks were heard as ponies fled while the walls facing the two Duelists crumbled. They were quickly surrounded by a steep pile of rubble.
“What was that?” Luna asked herself, recovering from the tremor.
“Kuri kuri!” the creature appeared before her once more.
“What is it, Kuribon?”
“Kuri!” Her monster motioned toward the dust clouds in the distance.
“But how could…?” Leo wondered, turning back towards Drystan. “You must be a—”
“I’m afraid that piece of junk you’ve been standing on won’t get out of here that easily,” Drystan said.
Leo groaned, stepping off of his Duel Board and unplugging the cord connecting it to his Duel Disk.
“It seems we have some more spectators this time around,” Drystan commented.
Leo glanced around to notice ponies—mostly unicorns—poking their heads just above the rubble, eyes toward the Duel about to ensue. “I guess I don’t have a choice,” he said, activating his Duel Disk.
The two Duelists drew five cards from their respective Decks.
DUEL! Leo (LP 4000) VS Drystan (LP 4000)
“I’ll go first!” declared Leo, drawing a sixth card. “I Summon Morphtronic Scopen!”
Morphtronic Scopen LV: 3 ATK: 800
“Once per turn, if Scopen is in Attack Position, its effect lets me Special Summon a Level 4 “Morphtronic” monster from my hand!”
“Docking strength with courage to protect the world's peace! Synchro Summon! Envoy of love and justice, Power Tool Dragon!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300
A mechanical dragon appeared behind Leo.
“Your ace monster already?” commented Drystan. “You must be in a hurry.”
“I activate Power Tool Dragon’s effect!” Leo continued. “Once per turn, I can choose three Equip Spells from my Deck, and you have to choose one of them at random to be added to my hand! Power Search!”
Images of three cards appeared to Drystan before vanishing and reappearing face-down.
“I’ll choose the middle card,” the man stated.
Leo’s Deck was shuffled by his Duel Disk. Upon finishing, it left a single card on top of his Deck partially kicked out for him to pick up. “I’ll now use the Equip Spell added to my hand! Double Tool C&D!” said Leo. “During my turn, the equipped monster gains 1000 ATK!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300 + 1000 = 3300
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn!” Leo glared at the man. “I won’t mess up this time! The pony that’s inside his Disharmony monster… with Power Tool’s help, I will save them!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 3300 – 1000 = 2300
“It’s my turn!” Drystan declared. “I Summon Ape Scout!”
Ape Scout LV: 3 ATK: 1100
“When this monster is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon an “Ape” monster from my hand. Come, Ape Sentry!”
Ape Sentry LV: 2 ATK: 900
“I now tune Level 2 Ape Sentry with Level 3 Ape Scout!”
2 + 3 = 5
“Wild beast, pierce through your enemies without mercy! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Ape Lancer!”
Ape Lancer LV: 5 ATK: 1900
“Not Disharmony…” Leo thought. “So does that mean there’s no one inside it?”
“I activate Ape Lancer’s effect!” Drystan continued. “When it’s Synchro Summoned, for every “Ape” monster I control, I can destroy up to that many of your face-up Spell and Trap Cards!” His ape hurled its lance at Leo’s machine, destroying its equipment.
“My Double Tool!”
“Without that, your Power Tool Dragon can no longer use its protection effect. Next, I activate the Continuous Spell Brutality of the Ape King! Now, battle! Ape Lancer, attack Power Tool Dragon!” The ape charged towards Power Tool Dragon.
“Even though my monster is stronger?” His machine flew towards the ape.
“At this moment, the effect of Brutality of the Ape King activates!” Drystan said. “When an “Ape” monster I control battles an opponent’s monster with higher ATK, until the end of that battle, my monster gains 200 ATK while the opponent’s loses 500 ATK!”
“What?!” exclaimed Leo.
Ape Lancer LV: 5 ATK: 1900 + 200 = 2100
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300 – 500 = 1800
“I activate the Continuous Trap Morphtronics, Unite!” Leo declared. “Once per turn, I can target a “Morphtronic” or “Power Tool” monster on my field and either equip it with a “Morphtronic” from my hand to it or discard a monster for to equip it with one from my Deck! I equip my Power Tool Dragon with the Morphtronic Staplen in my hand!”
A large stapler appeared next to Leo’s Power Tool Dragon.
“Monsters with “Morphtronics” equipped to them by this effect gain those monsters’ original ATK!”
Morphtronic Staplen LV: 4 ATK: 1400
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 1800 + 1400 = 3200
“Now my Power Tool is stronger than your Ape Lancer!”
Drystan chuckled. Sparks flew as the two monsters clashed. “While Ape Lancer is attacking, it cannot be destroyed by battle!” he stated.
“But you’ll still take dama—”
“Brutality of the Ape King’s effect! Once during each of my turns, if I would take battle or effect damage while I control an “Ape” monster, you take that damage instead!”
The clash between their monsters created an explosion that shook the vicinity.
3200 – 2100 = 1100
Leo LP: 4000 – 1100 = 2900
“And now I activate another of Ape Lancer’s effects!” Drystan continued, as the smoke cleared.
“What now?” responded Leo.
“At the end of the battle that it attacks an opponent’s monster, I can destroy that monster!” The ape hurled it lance at Leo’s Power Tool once again.
“Power Tool Dragon’s effect! I send one of its Equip Cards to the Graveyard to prevent it from being destroyed!”
Another explosion. Leo gasped, watching the nearby structures continuing to crumble. Ponies screamed, narrowly avoiding the falling debris.
“Trapping ponies inside monsters… destroying their homes and almost killing them… Why are you doing this?!” asked Leo. His Power Tool Dragon returned to its spot behind him.
“To fulfill the wishes of my masters,” Drystan replied
“Your masters? Who?”
“You have more important things to worry about, young Signer.”
“I’ll Set one card face-down. I end my turn,” Drystan stated.
Blue Melody dragged herself down the street, panicked ponies quickly passing her.
“Sweetie… why…?” she mumbled. Tears continued to trickle. She slowly trotted down an alleyway and stopped halfway to the other end. “I thought you were different…” she sobbed as she slumped on the ground.
The earth pony felt a hoof on her shoulder.
“Sour Note?!” she jumped up, only to see a unicorn mare wearing a hood.
“Sorry, I’m not the stallion you’re looking for,” the unicorn replied.
Blue Melody immediately brushed the unicorn’s hoof off in disgust and began trotting away. “Go away… If you want my autograph, now is a terrible time…”
“Oh, not at all. I’m here to help.”
“I don’t need it.”
“Not even to get… your boyfriend back?”
The earth pony stopped.
“I’m certain I could help you find him.”
Blue Melody rushed to the unicorn, her hooves on the mare’s shoulders. “Tell me where he is!”
“Easy there.”
The earth pony slowly placed her hooves back on the ground. Upon glancing at the hooded pony once more, she felt something nagging at her. “Haven’t I seen this pony before…?”
“Just follow me,” said the unicorn. Blue Melody nodded. The two started back towards the street.
“Do I…”
“Hm?”
“Do I know you? I feel like I recognize you from somewhere.”
“Just a fan of yours. Don’t you have a lots of fans that go to a lot of your performances?”
“Sure, but… haven’t we met someplace else…?”
“No. I’m afraid you’re just imagining things.”
“It’s my turn!” Leo declared. “I activate Power Tool Dragon’s effect! Power Search!”
“Don’t think so,” Drystan interrupted. “At this moment, I activate the Continuous Trap Seal of the Ape King!”
Leo watched in shock as a dark aura surrounded his Power Tool Dragon. “What is this?”
“While this card is face-up on the field, the monster I target with it has its effects negated. In addition, it’s unable to be targeted by any of your card effects!”
“Then even the effect of Morphtronics, Unite! can’t be used…” Leo thought. “I switch Power Tool Dragon to Defense Position.”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 DEF: 2500
“Then I’ll Set a monster and end my turn.”
“It seems that without your ace monster, you’re nothing,” Drystan commented. “It’s my turn! I Summon Ape Fighter!”
Ape Fighter LV: 4 ATK: 1900
“Battle! Ape Fighter, attack the Set monster!” Leo’s face-down monster revealed itself as the ape lunged towards it.
Morphtronic Clocken LV: 2 DEF: 1100
The ape smashed Leo’s smaller machine into pieces.
“Ape Fighter’s effect! When it destroys one of your monsters in battle, it gains 300 ATK!”
Ape Fighter LV: 4 ATK: 1900 + 300 = 2200
“And now…”
Leo stepped back, wide-eyed.
“Ape Lancer, attack Power Tool Dragon!” commanded Drystan. “Brutality of the Ape King’s effect! Since your monster has more ATK, it loses 500 ATK while my Ape Lancer gains 200 ATK!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300 – 500 = 1800
Ape Lancer LV: 5 ATK: 1900 + 200 = 2100
Leo quickly turned around to watch his Power Tool Dragon being pierced by the larger ape’s lance.
“Power Tool!” Leo shouted.
“With Brutality of the Ape King’s effect, you take the damage instead of me!” Drystan continued.
2500 – 2100 = 400
Leo LP: 2900 – 400 = 2500
“Ape Lancer's effect activates! I’ll now destroy your Power Tool Dragon!”
The Ape Lancer drove its lance further into Power Tool’s body, causing it to explode. The image of Drystan’s Seal of the Ape King card shattered immediately afterwards.
“POWER TOOL!” exclaimed Leo, falling to his knees.
“With this, I end my turn,” Drystan stated. “It seems that without your Power Tool Dragon, you are hopeless. I suppose that’s how it is when you rely so much on your ace monster.”
Leo remained motionless as he stared at the space where his mechanical dragon used to be. “I… I was going to…”
“To think you brought it out so early just for it to be destroyed like this. From here on out, all that’s left for you is despair.”
“What’s wrong?” Drystan asked. “Can’t continue without your ace monster?”
Leo remained on his knees, staring at the rubble where his Power Tool Dragon used to be. “Can I even… save that pony without Power Tool?” he wondered.
His mind grew more frantic. The ace monster he had planned to use to save the captured pony was destroyed while his opponent had yet to summon the monster the pony was trapped inside of.
Leo then looked at his Signer mark. “I thought I could—”
“If you’re not going to continue the Duel, then surrender,” Drystan interrupted.
Leo groaned.
“Leo!” a female voice called out to him.
“Luna…?” Leo looked around until he saw his sister’s head poking above the rubble behind him. The ponies on both sides of her quickly distanced themselves.
“Oh good,” Drystan said. “This saves me some trouble.”
“You can’t give up yet!” Luna shouted.
“But…” Leo responded. “My Power Tool is gone. What can I do?”
“You’ll find a way! I know you can! You want to be a Turbo Duelist like Yusei, right?”
Leo was silent, as though something clicked in his mind. “That’s right…”
“You remember what he always says?” asked Luna.
“To always believe in my Deck until the very end… and it will answer!” Leo stood straight up to face his opponent.
“So you intend to continue without your ace,” stated Drystan.
Drystan LP: 4000
Leo LP: 2500
“You won’t last long. Only despair awaits.”
“Despair, huh? I stopped having that a long time ago! It’s my turn!” Leo declared. He looked at the three cards now in his hand. “Still… what can I do with this?”
Leo glanced up at the field.
Ape Lancer LV: 5 ATK: 1900
Ape Fighter LV: 4 ATK: 1900
“I don’t have my Power Tool Dragon… and he has two monsters. One of which is that Ape Lancer. That, in combination with his Continuous Spell Brutality of the Ape King, can just keep destroying my monsters on his turn! Which means I have to destroy it here and now!” Leo grabbed one of the cards in his hand. “I Summon Morphtronic Celfon!”
Morphtronic Celfon LV: 1 ATK: 100
“I activate Celfon’s effect! Once per turn, it can dial a random number between 1 and 6! Then I excavate that many cards on the top of my Deck, and if there’s a Level 4 or lower “Morphtronic” monster among them, I can Special Summon it!”
Drystan stared silently.
“Go! Dial Up!” Leo continued. The number pad on his machine’s chest flickered until stopping on 4. He then looked at the top four cards of his Deck. His eyes widened upon seeing one of the cards. “That’s right! There is still something I can do!”
Drystan continued to remain silent, watching Leo make his move.
“I Special Summon the Tuner Monster Morphtronic Remoten!”
Morphtronic Remoten LV: 3 ATK: 300
“A Tuner Monster in this situation?” Drystan mumbled.
“Next I activate the Spell Card Junk Box! This lets me Special Summon a Level 4 or below “Morphtronic” from my Graveyard, but it’s destroyed during the End Phase! I Special Summon Morphtronic Clocken!”
Morphtronic Clocken LV: 2 DEF: 1100
“I tune Level 3 Remoten with Level 1 Celfon and Level 2 Clocken!”
3 + 1 + 2 = 6
“Resilient machine! Revitalize others with your boundless strength! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Morphtronic Computen!”
A large tower appeared and transformed into a more humanoid-shape.
Morphtronic Computen LV: 6 ATK: 2000
“Go, Leo!” Luna cheered.
“A new Synchro Monster, huh?” Drystan commented. “But even with that, because of Brutality of the Ape King’s effect, it won’t be able to defeat either of my two monsters.”
“If I were to attack right now, sure,” Leo agreed.
“Hm?”
“Once per turn, I can use one of Morphtronic Computen’s effects! If it’s in Attack Position, I can target a “Morphtronic” or Equip Spell Card in my Graveyard and add it to my hand! And I choose my Double Tool C&D!”
Drystan groaned.
“And now I’ll equip my Morphtronic Computen with my Double Tool C&D, so it gains 1000 ATK during my turn!”
A drill and buzz saw appeared on the machine’s arms.
“Brutality of the Ape King’s effect!” Drystan declared. “When an “Ape” monster battles one of your monsters with higher ATK, for this battle, your monster loses 500 ATK while mine gains 200 ATK!”
Morphtronic Computen LV: 6 ATK: 3000 – 500 = 2500
Ape Lancer LV: 4 ATK: 1900 + 200 = 2100
Leo’s machine pierced the ape with its drill, destroying it.
“It’s my turn,” Drystan said, drawing a card. He chuckled upon seeing the card he drew.
“What’s he laughing about?” Leo wondered.
“I have a bad feeling about this…” Luna thought.
“I Summon the Tuner Monster Disharmony Ape!” continued Drystan.
Disharmony Ape LV: 2 ATK: 300
“Here it comes,” Leo thought.
“Next I activate the Spell Level Equalizer!” Drystan’s newly summoned ape began to glow. “This card lets one of my monster’s Level become the same as another on my field. I’ll have my Disharmony Ape become the same Level as Ape Fighter!”
Ape Fighter LV: 4 ATK: 1900
Disharmony Ape LV: 2 + 2 = 4 ATK: 300
“I tune my Level 4 Disharmony Ape with Level 4 Ape Fighter!”
The Disharmony Ape transformed into four black rings and the Ape Fighter into four black stars. The Signers’ arms pulsed as the rings lined up surrounding the stars.
4 + 4 = 8
“When life's light grows dim, your delighted self fades into the chaos! Synchro Summon! Rise and despair, Disharmony – Gloomy Ape!”
A dark pillar engulfed the rings and stars. The pillar then vanished, leaving behind a large ape behind Drystan.
Disharmony – Gloomy Ape LV: 8 ATK: 2600
“A monster that uses Disharmony Ape as Synchro Material gains 500 ATK,” Drystan stated.
“Battle! Gloomy Ape, attack Morphtronic Computen!” The ape launched its fist at Leo’s machine. “Hardened Fist!” The explosion knocked Leo over.
3100 – 2000 = 1100
Leo LP: 2500 – 1100 = 1400
“Leo!” Luna shouted.
“I’m fine, Luna…” Leo replied as he rose to his feet again.
“Still going?” Drystan said. “Fine. I end my turn.”
“My turn!” Leo declared, drawing a card. “Alright! I Summon Morphtronic Copien!”
Morphtronic Copien LV: 2 ATK: 500
“Once per turn, I can use one of Copien’s effects! If it’s in Attack Position, I can draw one card. Then if that card is a “Morphtronic” or an Equip Spell Card, I can reveal it and draw another!” Leo picked up the top card of his Deck. “The card I drew was the Equip Spell Morphtronic Repair Unit, so I draw one more card! Next I activate the Spell Pot of Avarice! I shuffle five monsters from my Graveyard into my Deck to draw two more!” Leo glanced at the four cards now in his hand, smiling.
“Now what?” Drystan mumbled.
“I activate the Equip Spell Morphtronic Repair Unit! I send a "Morphtronic" monster from my hand to the Graveyard, then I Special Summon a “Morphtronic” from my Graveyard and equip Repair Unit to that monster, but it can’t change its Battle Position! Return to the field, Morphtronic Computen!”
Morphtronic Computen LV: 6 DEF: 2200
“Computen again? But in Defense Position?” Drystan wondered aloud.
“Computen’s monster effect!” Leo continued. “If it’s in Defense Position, I can Tribute it to Special Summon a “Morphtronic” or “Power Tool” monster in my Graveyard!”
“Then that means…”
“Revive, Power Tool Dragon!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300
Leo closed his eyes.
The ground shook as a part of the mountainside broke open. As his Signer mark burned brightly, Leo held his sister close as they moved slowly through the rugged terrain on their Duel Boards.
“Luna… we made it out…” Leo said, wearily. Falling to his knees, he looked back to see his Power Tool Dragon shaking off the last of the rubble on its body only to collapse immediately after. As it vanished, he noticed the glow on his arm fade away. “Thanks, Power Tool…”
“It has to work!” Leo thought, opening his eyes. “Power Tool Dragon’s effect! Power Search!”
Three cards briefly appeared in front of Drystan before vanishing and reappearing face-down. Drystan grumbled as he chose the card on his right. After Leo’s Deck was shuffled by his Duel Disk, a single card on top of his Deck was slightly pushed out. Leo then added that card to his hand.
“I now equip my Power Tool Dragon with the Equip Spell Copy Arms! Once per turn, I can banish an Equip Spell from my Graveyard, and Copy Arms gains that card’s effects until the End Phase!” Leo said. “Of course, I choose to banish my Double Tool C&D!”
A drill and buzz saw appeared on Power Tool Dragon’s arms.
“The monster equipped with Double Tool C&D gains 1000 ATK during my turn!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 2300 + 1000 = 3300
“Next, I’ll activate the effect of my Continuous Trap Morphtronics, Unite! I discard a monster from my hand to equip Morphtronic Staplen from my Deck to my Power Tool Dragon!” The large stapler reappeared next to Leo. “With that, Power Tool gains ATK equal to Staplen’s!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 3300 + 1400 = 4700
Leo clenched his fists. “Please!”
“Wait, is Leo actually attacking?! Even with that pony inside?” Luna thought, shocked.
“Power Tool Dragon, attack Gloomy Ape! Crafty Break!” Leo’s machine charged towards the beast. “Even with your Brutality of the Ape King’s effect, my Power Tool is still strong enough!”
“Did you forget about my prisoner?” Drystan asked. “The pony that remains trapped inside my beast?”
The spectators aside from Luna began mumbling worriedly.
“There’s a pony inside that creature?” asked a stallion.
“That beast ate a pony?!” shrieked a mare.
“I didn’t forget,” Leo said.
“Oh?” Drystan responded.
“Leo…” Luna mumbled.
Leo held his right fist to his chest. “Whoever’s trapped inside… I will save them!” The Signer marks on his and Luna’s arms began to glow.
Power Tool Dragon pierced the surface of the beast’s chest with its drill.
“For all that talk, you don’t seem to have any regards for pony lif—what?!” Drystan exclaimed. Leo’s machine was slowly prying the ape’s chest open with its arms. “But how?!”
“Yes! Go, Power Tool Dragon!” Leo commanded.
“I’ll stop you right there! Gloomy Ape's monster effect! I discard the Ape Scavenger from my hand to prevent it from being destroyed!” Drystan’s calm expression vanished as his scarred beast shoved Power Tool Dragon away. The glow on the Signers’ arms faded.
“Man! I was so close!”
4200 – 3300 = 900
Drystan LP: 3600 – 900 = 2700
“I don’t know how, but he shouldn’t be able to command his monster like that! Only Psychic Duelists should be capable of doing that, and there’s only one among the Signers!” Drystan thought. “Ape Scavenger’s effect activates! Since it was sent to the Graveyard while I have an “Ape” monster on my field, I draw two cards! At the end of the battle, the effect of Brutality of the Ape King disappears.”
“I equip my Power Tool Dragon with the Equip Spell Central Shield!” Leo stated. “With this card, I don’t take any Battle Damage involving monsters I control except for the monster it’s equipped to! I end my turn!”
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 4700 – 1000 = 3700
“It’s my turn!” Drystan declared. “With no cards in your hand, you can’t use the effect of Morphtronics, Unite! Furthermore, Copy Arms is no longer copying the effect of Double Tool C&D. You won’t be destroying my monsters this turn.”
Leo scoffed.
“I Summon the Tuner Monster Disharmony Catalyst!”
Disharmony Catalyst LV: 2 ATK: 0
“That monster…” Leo said. “Wait… it looks different now…”
“With things as they are, I can no longer take risks. I don’t know how this child can control his monsters like he did, but the fact remains that having a prisoner no longer holds him back!” Drystan realized. “I tune Level 2 Disharmony Catalyst with Level 8 Disharmony – Gloomy Ape!”
The Disharmony Catalyst transformed into two black rings. The giant ape became eight black stars, revealing the pony inside.
The spectators gasped.
“That’s… Pinkie Pie!” Sassy Saddles exclaimed.
“You know who that is?” Luna replied. “And… when did you get here?”
“I only just arrived… and yes, I know that mare. She’s a friend of my boss, Rarity, both of which and their friends live in Ponyville! But… what happened to her…?”
Luna looked up at the wound on the pony’s body. “That’s…” she began. She was interrupted as she and Leo felt a sharp pain in their right arms, their marks beginning to glow again.
2 + 8 = 10
“Chaos begins, laughter becoming cries of agony! Let loose the shadows within your heart and shatter harmony! Synchro Summon! Descend, Ultimate Disharmony – Simian of Despair!”
A pillar of darkness engulfed the stars and rings, as well as the pink pony they saw. A much larger ape emerged from the pillar as it disappeared.
Ultimate Disharmony – Simian of Despair LV: 10 ATK: 3400
“They can trap ponies inside those things…?” Sassy asked. “But does that mean you, too…?”
“No! We don’t!” Luna replied, grasping her right arm. “We would never!”
“Simian of Despair! Attack Power Tool Dragon!” Drystan commanded. “Simian of Despair is always treated as an “Ape” monster.”
“Which means…!” Leo said.
“At this moment, the effect of Brutality of the Ape King activates!”
“Simian of Despair’s effect!” Drystan continued. “I banish the Ape Scout in my Graveyard to allow it to attack a second time in a row! One more time, attack Power Tool Dragon! Once again, the effect of Brutality of the Ape King activates!”
“Just a little more,” Drystan said. “I activate the Spell Minus Recast! I banish two “Ape” monsters from my Graveyard to add an “Ape” Spell or Trap Card from my Graveyard to my hand. I’ll bring back my Seal of the Ape King! Then I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn!”
“It’s my turn!” Leo declared, placing his hand on his Deck. “No cards in his hand… that Seal of the Ape King is definitely Set on his field. That card can negate one of my monster’s effects! It’ll also stop me from targeting it with my own effects, which means it’ll lose all its Equip Cards and keep me from using new ones on it!”
“What’s wrong, Signer?”
“No matter what, I can’t stop!” Leo thought. “I draw! I activate Power Tool Dragon’s effect! Power S—”
“I activate the Continuous Trap Seal of the Ape King! It’ll negate your Power Tool Dragon’s effects and prevent you from targeting it with card effects as well! That means it loses Morphtronic Staplen as well.”
Leo scoffed as his Morphtronic Staplen shattered.
Power Tool Dragon LV: 7 ATK: 3700 – 1400 = 2300
“That’s too bad,” Drystan said.
“Is it now?” Leo replied.
“What?”
“First, I switch Copien into Defense Position!”
Morphtronic Copien LV: 2 DEF: 100
“Then I activate its effect! If it’s in Defense Position, I can add any Equip Spell from my Deck to my hand! I’ll add Megamorph!”
“Equip Spells do your Power Tool Dragon no good as long as I have Seal of the Ape King!” Drystan stated.
“I know that! I Summon the Tuner Monster Morphtronic Lantron!”
Morphtronic Lantron LV: 1 ATK: 200
“A Tuner now?” Drystan mumbled.
“I tune Level 1 Morphtronic Lantron with Level 7 Power Tool Dragon!” His machine rose, its armor shattering and revealing the dragon beneath.
1 + 7 = 8
“The courage and power to protect the future of the planet is a revolution! Synchro Summon! Evolve, Life Stream Dragon!”
Life Stream Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2900
“Life Stream Dragon’s effect activates! When it’s Synchro Summoned, I can make my Life Points become 4000!”
“What?!” Drystan exclaimed.
Leo LP: 600 + 3400 = 4000
“Even if your Life Points have returned to the start, your dragon can’t challenge my Simian of Despair!”
“It can with this! The Equip Spell Megamorph!” Leo continued. “If my Life Points are lower, the equipped monster’s original ATK is doubled! However, if my Life Points are higher, the equipped monster’s original ATK is halved instead! And I’ll equip Megamorph to your Simian of Despair!”
Drystan watched in shock as his monster fell to its knees.
“Battle! Life Stream Dragon, attack Ultimate Disharmony – Simian of Despair!” Leo commanded as his Signer mark glowed. “This time, I will save the pony inside!”
The dragon pierced the beast’s body with the blade on its arm and began prying open its chest.
“No! I activate the Trap Sakuretsu Armor! When your attack monster attacks, this card destroys it!” Drystan declared. Armor appeared on the giant ape before exploding. “So much for—huh?!”
“Life Stream Dragon’s effect! By banishing an Equip Spell from my Graveyard, it isn’t destroyed!” Leo stated.
“This can’t be…”
“Go, Life Stream Dragon!” The dragon pulled away from the beast, the pink pony in its arms. “Yes!” Leo’s Life Stream Dragon retreated to where Luna was and gently laid the pony beside her and Sassy.
“Oh dear… is she… alright?” Sassy asked.
“I hope so,” Luna answered.
Leo silently cheered to himself as his dragon returned to his side. “Thank you, Life Stream,” he said.
“This Duel is not over yet!” Drystan shouted.
“It will be! Life Stream Dragon, destroy Simian of Despair!” Leo commanded. His dragon rose once more. “Life’s Beauty Howl!” Energy burst from the dragon’s mouth, vanquishing Drystan’s beast.
2400 – 1900 = 500
Drystan LP: 2700 – 500 = 2200
Life Stream Dragon LV: 8 ATK: 2400 + 500 = 2900
“If you think my Simian of Despair is gone, you’re mistaken,” Drystan said, as the smoke from the explosion cleared.
“What?”
“I activate my Trap Card! Chaos of the Dead!”
“What is that card?” Luna wondered aloud.
“I pay half of my Life Points so that I can Synchro Summon a “Disharmony” Synchro Monster from my Graveyard!”
Drystan LP: 2200 / 2 = 1100
“Synchro Summon from the Graveyard? But you don’t have any monsters on the field!” Leo said.
“True, but Chaos of the Dead’s effect allows me to banish Synchro Materials from my Graveyard instead!” explained Drystan. “I banish—”
“Wait, Drystan!” a loud female voice echoed in the area.
“Who is that?” Leo asked. Everyone in the area was quickly scanning the area to see who the voice belonged to. The owner of the voice was nowhere in sight.
“That voice… I think I heard it before,” Luna commented.
“I brought you two things,” the voice said.
“Two?” A light flickered in the sky as it fell. Drystan caught the small object. “But this is…” he mumbled. Everyone then turned to see a pony climbing over the rubble and slowly trotting towards Drystan.
“B…Blue Melody?!” exclaimed Leo.
The shock and confusion from the ponies echoed throughout Canterlot.
“Blue Melody!” Leo called out to her.
The earth pony lifted her head and stared at Leo, her vacant expression startling him and his sister.
“Drystan! It’s time!” the voice said again. “You know what to do.”
Drystan glanced at the object in his hand once more. “I see. With Chaos of the Dead’s effect, I tune Level 2 Disharmony Ape with Level 2 Ape Scavenger and Level 4 Ape Fighter!” Astral images of his three monsters appeared as he pulled out his necklace with a crescent shape embedded in it from beneath his robe. Lightning struck as the Disharmony Ape transformed into two black rings that surrounded the other two monsters, which became six black stars. Drystan then held up the object in his hand.
“What is that?” Leo asked.
Luna squinted her eyes. “That shape… is a balloon? A… blue balloon?” she noted.
Luna and Sassy then heard choking coming from Pinkie Pie.
“Oh dear, what’s happening to her?” Sassy said.
Luna clasped the pink pony’s hooves before noticing the cutie mark. “Her cutie mark is… three balloons?”
Drystan’s necklace glowed brightly as a black aura began lifting Blue Melody.
“What’s going on?!” Leo exclaimed, as he and Luna felt another sharp pain in their right arms.
Blue Melody was levitated to the center of the rings and stars before being engulfed by a black pillar.
2 + 2 + 4 = 8
“When life's light grows dim, your delighted self fades into the chaos! Synchro Summon! Revive, Disharmony – Gloomy Ape!”
Disharmony – Gloomy Ape LV: 8 ATK: 2600
The balloon-shaped gem in Drystan’s hand turned dull as his necklace's glow faded. Luna and Sassy watched as Pinkie Pie stopped twitching and making choking sounds.
“Is she gonna be okay?” Luna asked.
“I think she’s unconscious,” Sassy said.
A bright crescent appeared on the body of Drystan’s beast.
“That wasn’t there before,” Leo noticed.
“He’s gonna take us all!” shrieked a mare. The Signers and Sassy looked around in shock and watched many of the ponies scrambling in a panic.
“Not quite what I wanted to happen, but an important mission has been accomplished here,” Drystan said.
Leo scoffed.
“Let’s continue the Duel.”
Leo was then startled by large pieces of rubble landing near him. “What the?!” he exclaimed.
“Get out of here!” shouted a stallion unicorn. The unicorns began hurdling stones of various sizes at the two Duelists.
Leo screamed as a large chunk was thrown at him. He closed his eyes and braced himself but opened them when he felt nothing. “Life Stream?” His dragon had shielded him from the impact.
“It appears we’ll have to settle this another time, Signer,” Drystan said before being carried off by his monster.
Leo groaned as he picked up his Duel Board. “We should get out of here, too!” His dragon lifted and carried him to where Luna and Sassy stood next to an unconscious Pinkie. “Let’s go!”
The mob of ponies approached them. Luna jumped into the dragon’s arms.
“What about…?” Luna motioned towards Pinkie.
Sassy levitated Pinkie onto her back before trotting towards the twins.
“Where do you think you’re going?!” shouted a mare.
“You’re not taking any ponies with you, you creatures!” added a stallion.
Sassy backed away from the advancing mob threatening to hurl more rocks and rubble at them before suddenly getting lifted off the ground. She found herself and Pinkie in the arms of Leo’s dragon.
Leo’s dragon quickly turned away from the mob and flew away from the city.
“Sorry about that,” Leo apologized.
“It’s… it’s fine,” Sassy replied with a melancholic expression. “I recognize the faces of many of those ponies. Many of them were regulars to Canterlot Boutique. The way they are now, I’m sure they would have broken in.”
“Where do we go now?” asked Luna.
“Perhaps… we should go to Ponyville, it’s that town over there.” Sassy pointed her hoof towards a cluster of buildings in the distance.
“You said that ponies you knew come from there?”
“That’s correct,” Sassy nodded. “And Pinkie Pie here might need medical attention as well.”
“Then let’s go,” Leo agreed, as his dragon began its quick descent. The twins and Sassy then noticed Life Stream Dragon beginning to vanish as it approached the trees below.
“I think we have a problem,” Luna said.
Leo glanced at the mark on his arm, the glow beginning to flicker. “That’s not good.”
