Bahamut - Envoy of the End Posted February 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 18, 2012 [quote name='Dragon Sage Ω' timestamp='1329509209' post='5822842'] Great chapter. Is the missing hyperlink on Dark City a mistake or was it mentioned in an earlier chapter? [/quote] I forgot... given that it was the only one in a duelless chapter. :3 Um... no offense because it's great that you always comment and usually quickly, but could you please be a little more expansive? Evenif it was just to the point of picking out a prefered scene or character from that chapter or something that was not so good, it would be much obliged. [spoiler=About the progress of the rest of Arc 1 (for those interested)] So progress report: I have finally somewhat done writing the first arc. So the next few weeks at least should pass smoothly I only say somewhat because I just completed Chapter 12 four weeks after I started it... And its s*** So to combat this; I'm going to try and start writing the start of the second arc on Monday. Hopefully by shelving it and moving on I will get me back up with a head of steam to go back and improve it. Hopefully [/spoiler] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not-so-Radiant Arin Posted February 18, 2012 Report Share Posted February 18, 2012 [quote name='Verz Bahamut' timestamp='1329540561' post='5823985'] [spoiler=About the progress of the rest of Arc 1 (for those interested)] So progress report: I have finally somewhat done writing the first arc. So the next few weeks at least should pass smoothly I only say somewhat because I just completed Chapter 12 four weeks after I started it... And its s*** So to combat this; I'm going to try and start writing the start of the second arc on Monday. Hopefully by shelving it and moving on I will get me back up with a head of steam to go back and improve it. Hopefully [/spoiler] [/quote] That sentence was bipolar as hell. =/ All kidding aside, of course, most of us are probably dying to see the next Chapter because, YET AGAIN, you've left us at a particularly high cliffhanger. It's really a good strategy to what you're doing: Do what you can, and then come back later to fill in the blanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut - Envoy of the End Posted February 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 18, 2012 [quote name='~~Xiahou Dun~~' timestamp='1329579477' post='5824608'] That sentence was bipolar as hell. =/ All kidding aside, of course, most of us are probably dying to see the next Chapter because, YET AGAIN, you've left us at a particularly high cliffhanger. It's really a good strategy to what you're doing: Do what you can, and then come back later to fill in the blanks. [/quote] Tell me about it. Thought I was over depression and all that stuff so when it came back in December I just assumed it was 'winter blues, nothing to worry about'. Then I've had all this s*** at work with this girl which has made me miserable, but I think that's done now. Has probably had an effect over the last few months. Chapter 12 has just been a pain. It serves a purpose, I'm just going to leave it at that for now and get on with the rest of the story. Once I've got up with some sleep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut - Envoy of the End Posted February 20, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 20, 2012 So thinking about some extra chapters to write to kick start me back into this ahead of writing arc 2. Not sure what to do for some of them. Had a few ideas, but a lot seem pointless filler that distracts too much from main. Anyway, any more thoughts on this before the next chapter goes up tomorrow? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Tico~ Posted February 21, 2012 Report Share Posted February 21, 2012 So let's see...What are my thoughts on the recent chapter? Well, I knew Sakura couldn't have gotten out of the system and avoided detection, so you confirmed my suspicions. Strange they didn't see Murtagh, but he probably can get around being caught on live video seeing as he can hack through the lockdown of the VDS. The government has no idea of what's really going on, which is not surprising, so I'll pass on further commenting on that. Ooh, this Scag person has a Number? Very interesting. He doesn't seem the type to get that level of importance, but how would I know what you have planned? And the chapter ends off with Daiki apparently knowing the identity of the Firefly. All very intriguing stuff. Now all I can do is wait for Chapter 7. Again, nice work with this one. P.S. I just want to throw a random guess out there: Scag has Goldrat. Right? RIGHT? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut - Envoy of the End Posted February 21, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2012 [quote name='Corona Ray' timestamp='1329835601' post='5831228'] So let's see...What are my thoughts on the recent chapter? Well, I knew Sakura couldn't have gotten out of the system and avoided detection, so you confirmed my suspicions. Strange they didn't see Murtagh, but he probably can get around being caught on live video seeing as he can hack through the lockdown of the VDS. The government has no idea of what's really going on, which is not surprising, so I'll pass on further commenting on that. Ooh, this Scag person has a Number? Very interesting. He doesn't seem the type to get that level of importance, but how would I know what you have planned? And the chapter ends off with Daiki apparently knowing the identity of the Firefly. All very intriguing stuff. Now all I can do is wait for Chapter 7. Again, nice work with this one. P.S. I just want to throw a random guess out there: Scag has Goldrat. Right? RIGHT? [/quote] Thanks for comment. Wilhelm and co didn't have live footage of duel, just a record of what happened in text (Sakura summon Gredi, etc). Must have explained that badly. But yeah Murtagh does seem to have a lot of weird stuff surrounding him. We'll see more of him later. Sakura appears again, with Yudai, pretty much at the top of the next chapter. The government are getting more involved as the story progresses than I thought. I guess it was natural they would have to, having seen over the course of my DVD's how much President David Palmer gets on screen in 24 proper (lot of filler sub-plots at times, but obvious he should be involved, he's the president!) I quite like writing about them at the minute. Scag won't be appearing again anytime soon, but just having a Number gives him a role, one that needed filling in this chapter and again later. His character came about pretty early in the planning, and he had his Number given to him pretty much immediately. And no, it ain't Goldrat. Hmm... indeed he does. We'll see more soon. Anyway: Reserves top post of page for Chapter 4:1 Wanted to reserve the top post of this page so that I can find this easily, to look at during my moments of struggle (which there's been a few recently), but thanks to Xiahou's advice and others support, and all the very flattering votes this has recieved in the awards, I am commited to this story. [spoiler=I love this pic] [center][img]http://www.harrison.k12.ky.us/virtual/high/wagoner/wp-content/uploads/frog-heron-lg1.jpg[/img][/center] [/spoiler] Oh look, it's the latest chapter. [spoiler=Chapter 4:1] [b]The following takes place between 12PM and 1PM[/b] A set of double doors burst open as two ambulance hands rushed through the wards pushing the mobile stretcher through the busy hospital corridors. Lying on the stretcher, wired to a machine monitoring his pulse and breathing into an oxygen mask, was Yudai. Chasing just alongside him was Sakura. Yudai hadn’t stirred since she had exited the VDS. First she had tried to resuscitate him herself with her basic first aid skills, still adamant he was okay and just needed waking up, but when it was clear he was not going to wake up she had called an ambulance. The operator AI on the other end of the phone had taken an age to place her distressed call due to her panicked cries, which made her even more frustrated and caused her to shout at the stupid machine, making it take even longer to process. It took an even longer time for the ambulance to arrive at Yudai’s house; a lot longer than it had taken to arrive at their school when he had once broken his arm playing football. “Don’t worry Yudai. I know you can hear me. The doctors are going to help you.” The trolley burst through another pair of double doors into a waiting area of a large wing of the hospital, before proceeding on into an examination room to their left. Sakura went to follow them in, but was stopped by the second hand who told her as kindly as he could manage in his own distressed state that she had to stay out here. Upset as she was, she understood and let him go, although she could not withhold a small cry as he disappeared through the examination room doors. Once Yudai was out of sight, Sakura grabbed her D-Gazer from her bag. D-Gazers were permitted in hospitals as extensive testing had proved they did not affect the equipment. She had already tried to contact Yudai’s parents while in the ambulance, but had been unsuccessful. This time she would try to contact her own family. As the mobile device continued to ring, she couldn’t help but pace around, unable to contain her nerves. [i]‘Come on Dad. Pick up.’[/i] Finally there was a click, and her father’s voice sounded in her ear. [i]‘I’m sorry I can’t take your call right now. Please leave a message and number and I will get back when I can.’[/i] The recorded message broke the final straw. Screaming in anger, Sakura flopped against the nearest wall and punched it, tears streaming down her face. None of this should be happening. A knocking sound distracted her from her thoughts and made her look up. What she saw choked her. She had not actually hit a wall, but a plastic window that looked into another room for patients. A displeased looking nurse was on the other side of the window, unhappy with her disturbance, but Sakura ignored her. Her attention was engaged entirely by the row of beds lining either side of the room. In each one lay a young boy or girl, some in their late teens or early twenties, some looked as young as eleven. Each one was in the exact same state of unconsciousness, with a look of terror or pain etched on their face. Sakura felt her mouth open slightly. [i]‘They’re... they’re all in the same condition as Yudai...’[/i] ...12:00:50... Daiki waited as the Firefly, Natsumi, continued to wordlessly glare at him. Waiting for her to make the next move. She looked exactly as he remembered the last time he had seen her, just over a year ago. The familiarity made him swell inside, though his visible expression did not change. “It’s been a long time Dai.” There was no expression in her voice as she spoke, just the statement of a simple fact. She made no move to leave her bike either. “So you got my message. I would have preferred to meet you earlier had it been possible, but I have had much to do this morning, to find out as much as I can before we met.” A small smile came across her. “Bet it must have been a shock.” “I was starting to think I’d never hear from you again. How have you...?” Realising his mistake too late, Daiki tried to bail from the question half way through. Natsumi’s brief smile disappeared and returned to her hard fierce expression in an instant. “How have I been? I’ve spent the last year of my life running and hiding, trying to avoid your work buddies and the large reward that monopolistic mafia Real Duel has put on my head. How the hell do you think I’ve been?!” “Sorry” Daiki muttered in embarrassment, which did nothing to appease her. “You always say that.” “I know...” Awkward silence prevailed for a moment. Natsumi used it to search the surrounding area, checking that Daiki had indeed come alone. He let her do this without complaint. He would never have bought anyone with him but she was only sensible to check; he wouldn’t put it past Shigeo having someone tail him and observe regardless of what he had said and jeopardise the whole thing. Glancing at the few dark figures on the edges of the square, she did not seem too satisfied. “Well since you got my message, you know I’m not here to have a catch up and ask silly questions like ‘how have you been?’. There’s more important things that you and your office need to know about, but I don’t want to discuss them publicly.” “You said you had information about a potential threat to national security. If it was so serious, wouldn’t it just be faster to let my team listen to you rather than make me relay it to them second hand?” His question made Natsumi scowl. “Not if it puts me in danger. Well, what am I saying, we’re all in danger. Every single person currently logged into this virtual space is in danger. So...” her smile returned. “...if you don’t feel you are up to it, I’d leave now.” Her offer was so strange that it took him aback. The way she said it and was looking at him now, she seemed to be daring him to try and run away. He had no intention of doing such a thing, but it made him curious. Without a word he bought up the menu on his D-Gazer, and tried to log out. The option did not respond at all. Natsumi looked like she expected this. “You can’t, can you? Don’t worry; you’re not the only one. It appears that the ability for all users to log out of the VDS has been disabled. Now you’re in here, you’re stuck, just as I am. And right now, this isn’t a safe place for us to be trapped in.” Dread was starting to take over him, as Natsumi dismounted from the bike. Even in this virtual world, Daiki’s every thought and feeling processed the sensation of the appropriate physical reaction. Right now what she was saying as they stood here in this haunted city was starting to make his neck hairs prickle, and his breathing intensify without his noticing. “What do you mean by that?” ...12:04:46... Keylan slumped back down at his desk; having half run down the stairs exiting the superintendant general’s office. He had gone in to report on his activities of the last half an hour and his suspicions, and had received an almighty ear bashing for his trouble. General Ryokan had nothing to do with Real Duel Ltd or the VDS, one of the few people in that situation, and did not really appreciate how much of an impact the game of Duel Monsters had on how many. So the idea that there could be a serious danger coming through it was completely absurd to him. Nevertheless Keylan had persevered, and the general had been forced to acknowledge that any sign of danger had to be at least investigated. Adamant that Keylan was chasing ‘virtual demons’, the general had ordered him to get back in contact with Daiki and get him to report on his status. The idea didn’t sit well with him, as contact with the Firefly should have been made by now and rushing in a call could compromise Daiki. However right now that was their only lead to any information, however unreliable, and not getting the matter resolved as quickly as possible and determining a real threat would be dangerous. Every minutes delay could potentially put more people in danger. That was what Keylan could feel in his gut, and that was what forced him, with a resigned sigh, to open up his computer and find Daiki’s user ID and D-Gazer number. Both were on police record. [i]‘I just hope I can still reach him if he’s entered the system’[/i] he thought. Real Duel Ltd accepted that it would be important for people to still be contactable while immersed in play, and that mobile functions of the D-Gazer would have to be capable of taking calls from people in the real world while the receiver was in the virtual world. The adjustment was thankfully smooth. The seconds dragged as the call was processed, Keylan sat patiently waiting for a response. Waiting... ...12:05:01... A muffled crackling reverberated in Daiki’s ear. The noise made him instinctively bring his hand to his ear and wince, which Natsumi was quick to pick up on. “It looks like someone is trying to keep tabs on you and me after all. This is precisely why I wanted to be cautious about this meeting with you Dai. For the last year of my life, I’ve had to look out for number one and number one only. Constantly covering my tracks. Always watching over my shoulder. Erasing all knowledge of my old existence and trying to forge a half-life for myself on the run. I knew that if I tried to make any contact with you, your boss would be quick to bring me down regardless of what I had to say, regardless of anything I told them. But he can’t hear us in here. Not now that all communication has been shut down, so that the outside world cannot discover what is going on in here.” “You say you’ve got a message, but you’re yet to really tell me anything” Daiki was starting to lose his temper. “So what is it that you’ve got to say then?” What is this danger you keep talking about?” Natsumi continued to stare hard at him as if he was being extremely dense. “Finally we get past your need to catch up and to the matter at hand. There is much I need to tell you. However, there might still be prying eyes and ears. That corrupt organisation might be monitoring our conversation right now...” Natsumi broke off to gaze around them again, before reaching back to the central hub of her bike. Daiki watched as she pulled out her own D-Disk from its place, attached it to her arm, and activated it. “If we want to truly keep our talk private, then this is probably our best chance. Besides, I think showing you will be more effective than just telling you. If you want some alone time with me, the time you so clearly miss, then you will duel me, and experience for yourself what is happening in this place first hand.” “I thought you’d never ask.” Daiki activated his own D-Disk without hesitation. His usual boyish thrill was stifled by her actions. Right now they didn’t make much sense, but he was on the verge of finding out the truth at long last. The people around them disappeared as the invisible barriers of private duel mode surrounded them, leaving them alone in the moonlit square together. ...12:06:12... “Come in.” At Hideo’s command, his assistant Izura and his defence minister Rokuro entered his office. The look on both of their faces immediately concerned him. Izura looked extremely nervous, something he had only seen her like during the final hours of vote counting before he was confirmed as the new prime minister. Usually she was the calming influence on him. As for Rokuro, he had never seen him look like he did right now, as if he had seen the most terrifying of ghosts. Across the table from him, Kenji looked at the pair, and something about their faces transferred to him. “What is it?” “Prime Minister, sorry to interrupt, but I have just received a call from the head office of the Tokyo metropolitan police department” Izura said in a rushed voice, bowing slightly. “They are suspicious of activities concerning Real Duel Ltd that they say could become a widespread threat if their fears are confirmed.” The prime minister blinked, struggling to take it all in. “Sorry, explain it to me again.” ...12:06:53... [i]‘ARV established. Duel commencing.’[/i] “Duel!” “Ladies first” Daiki said. It was a genuine offer, but he should have known better than to make it. “Save it. I’m nobodies helpless little girl, not even yours. Not anymore. However since the randomizer is in my favour, I will go first.” Natsumi snatched her sixth card with vigour. I summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Laval_Gunner"]Laval Gunner[/url]." A soldier carved from thick stone and garbed in reinforced steel plate rose, two cannons melded to its armguards (Lv4, ATK 1200). Daiki knew full well what it did. Natsumi had played a Laval deck in all the time he had known her. Based on a tribe of fierce and powerful warriors; the deck centred on sending monsters to the cemetery, and using them as fuel to activate several effects. “As you know, when Gunner is summoned, the top five cards of my deck are sent to the cemetery, and he gains two hundred attack points for each Laval among them.” She fed the cards into the relevant place one by one, glaring hard at him. “Two Laval have been sent to the cemetery by this effect, but more will soon join them (ATK 1600). Next I next activate the magic card [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Double_Summon"]Dual Summon[/url]. This permits me an extra normal summon this turn, which I’ll use to summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Tender_of_the_Laval_Volcano"]Tender of the Laval Volcano[/url]." Daiki grimaced at the appearance of the flame consumed maiden, knowing what was coming next (Lv1, ATK 100). Trust Natsumi to go all out from the off. She did not disappoint, as the maiden dissolved and released a series of stars and rings through which the Gunner flew through. “Now I have Tender out, I tune her with Gunner to summon a Synchro monster whose level is equal to their combined total of levels. Appear in a blaze of furious glory, [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Lavalval_Dragon"]Lavalval Dragon[/url]!" A small dragon of black magma appeared in a flash of fire, screeching furiously (Lv5, ATK 2000). The backs of two more cards joined it. “I’ll finish with these. Also when Tender of the Volcano is sent to the cemetery, another Laval from my deck joins it there. So this is what I know. Ever since I went into hiding a year ago, I’ve been scouring the VDS trying to find out anything I could about Real Duel Ltd’s past; trying to find out who had set me up and why they were so desperate to get rid of me. My main focus was keeping hidden and not doing anything risky that might see them find me, for that would undo much for many, but I still had some success. At the start my only goal was self-preservation, which remains to an extent, but recently I became aware there was danger in the air of this world, and that one day I would be needed to help overcome that danger.” “You’re not making any sense. How’d you know all this?” Daiki’s interruption made her smirk. “Of course I’m not Dai. We’ve not spoken in a year, and a lot has happened since then. Let’s just say for now I have my sources. There is a lot I cannot reveal to you yet, but such things are not important to our current meeting. It’s your turn by the way.” “I know that” Daiki did his best not to snap as he drew his card. Studying his hand, he was pleased to see he had options both in attack and defence. “I summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Trident_Warrior"]Trident Warrior[/url] in attack mode.” The veteran spear holder appeared before him, armed and ready (Lv4, ATK 1800). “Now when he is summoned, I can bring out a level three monster from my hand alongside. Although it might be level three normally, by bringing [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Shine_Knight"]Shine Knight[/url] out in defence, its level becomes four.” (Lv4, DEF 1900) “Now I overlay level four Trident Warrior and Shine Knight to Xyz summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Kachi_Kochi_Dragon"]Kachi Kochi Dragon[/url]!" The sight of the stronger, crystal covered dragon that erupted from the earth before Natsumi did not get the reaction he expected. Natsumi knew his dragon well, but she seemed surprised to see it. Almost underwhelmed (Rk4, ATK 2100). Still, Daiki pressed on and attacked. The dragons charging bite attack was met with little resistance, the smaller black dragon shrieking horribly as it found itself trapped in the others jaws for a moment before vanishing. Natsumi winced slightly (LP 3900). “Now Kachi’s effect. By detaching an overlay unit when he successfully destroys a monster, he can attack again.” The dragon lined up a second charge, directly at the exposed girl. She did not move as the creature hurtled closer through the earth, claws outstretched and cavernous jaws wide, much to Daiki’s annoyance. That was why he wasn’t surprised by the sudden wall of flames that erupted between them, cutting the dragon off. “Oh Daiki, you should know better. Couldn’t you guess my facedown was [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Firewall"]Firewall[/url]? Well I might have to banish one of my monsters from my cemetery, but you know it will be full of other Laval soon enough.” He scowled in reply. “I end my turn with two of my own face downs. So maybe now you can tell me about this danger you’re alluding to. Or maybe you could tell me why you left without even saying anything?” Natsumi scowled at him. “You think I owed you an explanation? I owed you nothing Dai. We were over. I had already moved out. And when the bigwigs at Real Duel Ltd got in the ear of your boss and a black mark put against my name, I had to disappear. I couldn’t wait around to tell you anything, especially with you being a cop.” “You think I would have turned you in...?” Daiki felt his insides go numb at what Natsumi was hinting at, but she reassured him with a shake of the head. “No, I knew you wouldn’t hand me in. Or at least not willingly. But you might not have had a choice in the end. I didn’t feel great about it, but like I said I had to make sure I got out before I was arrested for crimes that I am not guilty of. I was sure you’d see files about it eventually, about what I supposedly did, and might draw your own conclusions.” “Yeah, so you keep saying” Daiki grunted. “I requested to be excused from the case which was reluctantly accepted, so it was assigned to Garvan. He kept me in the loop because I couldn’t bear not knowing. So yeah, I’ve seen the files. The evidence was pretty damning against you. I don’t want to believe you did it, I couldn’t believe you would. But everything we found indicated that you did, and everything you do makes it harder for me to believe you.” “Humph. You have no faith in me. Of course the evidence is stacked against me; Real Duel employs more skilful hackers than what I’ve become, of course they used an insignificant person like me as a sacrifice.” Daiki searched her eyes in hope of a sign of truth as she drew, but all that was visible was her anger. “Fine, don’t believe me over your precious evidence. I thought you’d be on my side Dai. How stupid. But continuing to just believe in whatever’s right in front of your eyes in here will get you killed. Now back to business. First during my Standby Phase, I have to pay five hundred life points to keep Firewall in play. But knowing you, it will be needed (LP 3400). Then I summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Poki_Draco"]Poke Dra[/url] from my hand.” A small yellow dragon appeared before her, looking cute and weak (Lv3, ATK 200). “When this monster is summoned, I can add another one to my hand. Next I activate [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Ultimate_Offering"]Compensation of Blood[/url]. By paying five hundred more life points, I can summon the second Poke Dra.” The process repeated itself, although Natsumi made no attempt to summon the third dragon added to her hand (LP 2900). “Now I overlay the pair of level three Poke Dra to Xyz summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Lavalval_Ignis"]Lavalval Ignis[/url]." A towering suit of polished black metal rose up, encasing the body of a flaming warrior, its exposed head and fists set ablaze (Rk3, ATK 1800). “Now from my cemetery, I activate the effect of [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Laval_Lady_of_the_Burning_Lake"]Laval Lady of the Burning Lake[/url]. By banishing it and another Laval in my cemetery, I can destroy one of your face downs.” On his left, [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Defense_Draw"]Guard Block[/url] exploded. “I see. Now, Ignis attacks Kachi Kochi Dragon.” Seemingly suicidal, the flame warrior lunged at the stronger monster, absorbing one of the overlay units as it charged. “When Ignis attacks, it can detach an overlay unit to gain five hundred attack points for the damage step only.” (ATK 2300) Tables turned by the effect, the dragon fell with a pained roar. The earth in front of Daiki erupted as the dragon sank, small shards of rock striking him. He was sure it was just him, but such effects didn’t usually feel that painful as one of the stones nicked his cheek, especially for such a minor blow (LP 3800). Looking at Natsumi once the debris cleared, he suddenly realised her breathing was laboured, and her face slightly strained. “It appears we are well matched so far. Neither of us has landed a significant hit on the other, and yet we both carry greater scars than normal. Don’t you think so?” Daiki didn’t reply immediately. “Maybe. So if you want to get back to business, you want me to believe you; tell me what’s going on here. No more stalling, no more mysterious stuff, just tell me.” ...12:14:15... Dismissing the young sales assistant from her office, the manageress swivelled in her seat and turned to look out the window. Gardens were visible from her office overlooking the square of high end retail stores, in which flowers were plentiful and the occasional small animal could be seen. Looking at these tranquil gardens calmed her. Running this high end tailors for Tokyo’s top brass executives and stylish celebrities was sometimes stressful for Mai, but she enjoyed it. Mai Nakashima was still a very beautiful lady for her forties, taking great pride in her appearance and the look of the world around her. This work was perfect for her and always had been, much more of a fit than her previous role which she had left, along with her husband, a few years ago. Mai blinked as her D-Gazer alerted her to an incoming call. She didn’t usually get called at work by her daughter, unless she had some urgent need to do so. “Hello Sakura?” It took the girl on the other end of the line a few attempts to speak, every time breaking off into weak crying. The sound filled her with a sense of dread. “Sakura, what’s happened? Are you alright?” [i]“...Mom... I’m at the hospital... Yudai is in the treatment room... he collapsed...”[/i] “Alright Sakura, just breathe. Calm down and explain it to me.” Mai’s advice went against everything she was feeling herself. However she had long mastered how to mask her worries for the sake of protecting Sakura. “Have you called Yudai’s parents? What about your father?” [i]“Yudai’s parents are on their way. I can’t get hold of dad. I think he’s in a meeting.”[/i] “Nothing he can be doing right now is more important than looking after you Sakura. I’ll make my way to you now, and I’ll get hold of him while I’m on my way. Which hospital are you at?” Mai scribbled a few details on a scrap of paper taking the name of the hospital, the wing and ward Sakura was in. “Okay. I’ll be there as soon as I can sweetheart. Hold tight for me.” Sakura made a choked ‘ok’ before she hung up and half-strode, half-flew out of her office, calling her assistant manager to take over as she went. ... “Of course. As we’ve established, neither of us are now able to log out of the VDS system, or receive or make contact with the outside world. There are other changes too, which you will come to experience soon. These changes can only be implemented, of course, by those who have access to the main operation servers at the head office of Real Duel Ltd, where I used to work, or those above them. Why the company would make such changes, I don’t know yet. But Real Duel Ltd is a multi billion yen business, and has the same dirty past that accompanies many such organisations.” “So you say, not that’s there’s anything to back you up” Daiki replied. “We’ve had allegations against Real Duel before and they’ve always been clean. Anyone else would have already dismissed you for being a bitter and spiteful person bent on revenge for being fired.” “Of course they’ve always come back clean. Like you would ever be allowed access to their most secure files. But in my job, I was. The true reason I was blacklisted by the company is, I think, because I got to close to discovering their dirty past in those files. I wasn’t looking for trouble by any means, just curious about the companies rise, and when I was doing some research into the history of the company I ran into a title that caught my interest. Something called Project Eve...” Daiki shuddered. Something about that name disturbed him. It had no reason to at all, it just sounded creepy. The backdrop of the Dark City probably didn’t help. “Project Eve...?” “Unfortunately I have little more to go on than that, and have been unable to do much more digging while I’ve been laying low. I’ve tried several times to uncover more, but Real Duels secret are buried deep and guarded fiercely. But whatever this Project Eve was, the company bosses didn’t want me knowing about it and certainly not telling other people. Why else would they want my mouth shut? It must have been something extremely foul. All I know about it is that the project took place several years ago, and was approved by President Shinawatra Taiyo himself. Nothing more. But if there was one skeleton in the company closet, you could bet there were more. Under the guise of Firefly I kept trying to uncover these skeletons. Then in the early hours of this morning, something changed.” “You discovered something?” Daiki asked, hoping to finally get a straight answer. “So, you’re suggesting that RDL are a threat to national security in some way?” Natsumi simply smiled at him. “I suspect RDL is up to something big. But I did not discover something about them. What changed is something appeared to me, something I had never seen or heard of, something dangerous. It was then I knew the time was at hand. Since then I’ve been trying things out, trying to discover its true nature and what it might be, what it might signify. Once I gained some information, I contacted you, before continuing on my hunt for the truth. I place one card face down and end my turn.” “During the end phase, [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Reinforce_Truth"]Truth Reinforce[/url] activates. I special summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Key_Man_the_Key_Warrior"]Key Warrior Keyman[/url] straight from my deck.” The bronze plated warrior brandished its key sword at Natsumi, who continued to look at him in an unimpressed way, much to his frustration (Lv2, ATK 1000). “So what is it that appeared to you? What have you learned and dragged me into this place to tell me about?” Natsumi’s gaze hardened, her eyes narrowed. “You’ll see Daiki. This turn you will see what is happening in this world, and on my next turn, you will see why it is happening. Now come at me full force. Your anger is growing isn’t it, just like it always used to. Why don’t you unleash it on me now?” Daiki felt himself choke as she stared at him with a look of disgust, forcing him to think back. “What are you waiting for Dai? Lash out at me, like you did in those moments when the gaps in your memory, when the unknowns of who you are drove you to madness and despair. When they made you push away the one person trying to support you, trying to help you, who once loved you. I can see in your eyes you still suffer those moments; that you still have no answers, which you have no idea whether to search for or run from. If duelling really is your only release for the feelings welling up inside you, then release them now and attack me, and realise what is going on here and the threat I warned you of.” “I... I...” Daiki looked at his card. Indeed he had the resources to attack with it, and Natsumi was demanding him to do so. Everything she said was true, hauntingly so. Everything she done today had been for a purpose, which he had to discover. With as much will as a puppet on a string, Daiki did what he had to do. “I summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Feedback_Warrior"]Howling Warrior[/url]." The armoured warrior flew forward with a crackle of static, cape billowing behind it (LV3, ATK 800). “When Howling Warrior is summoned, it can change the level of another monster I control to three, that being Keyman. So now I overlay level three Howling Warrior and Keyman to Xyz summon. Come forth, [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Grenosaurus"]Grenosaurus[/url]." The mighty dinosaur rose from the vortex before him, roaring viciously (Rk3, ATK 2000). “I activate the [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Blustering_Winds"]Unprecedented Wind[/url] magic card. This increases the attack of my monster by one thousand until my next standby phase. Now Grenosaurus, attack Lavalval Ignis.” The dinosaur tipped back its head before letting rip a torrent of flame, enough to entirely submerge the metal clad warrior (ATK 3000). Somewhere behind it, Natsumi shouted “Ignis’ effect activates during either players turn, increasing its attack by five hundred.” Indeed the strength of the creature rose a little, before it vanished (LP 2200). Unsure of what was happening, Daiki continued. “When Grenosaurus destroys a monster, it can detach an overlay unit to inflict one thousand points of direct damage.” The scream that came from Natsumi chilled him. Never had he heard her make a noise like it, as the flames surrounded her. When they finally subsided, she was hunched over, holding her sides and shaking as if she might collapse at any moment. Her face was scorched by the effect (LP 1200). “Natsumi?” “Now you see first hand... the biggest change this world has undergone.” Natsumi’s voice held strong, although she needed moments to breathe between words. “At around ten o’clock this morning, someone altered the virtual world; lowering the nerve suppressors that keep duelists safe and increasing the shock of the attacks, meaning every attack is more painful than before. Along with disabling the ability to log out or call for help, someone at Real Duel Ltd is trapping every duelist using the system, and making them strike each other down. Not only that, but at the same time duelists appearing as angels, with black wings and stone faces, started to appear and attack other duelists. I have seen this happen to varying degrees of devastation; and some of the losers of these matches collapse and fall unconscious. If what I suspect is correct, whoever is responsible could use everyone trapped here to ransom, or worse.” “But... ten o’clock?” This startled Daiki. “That’s after you contacted me. You predicted this?” “I only had any idea that something might happen when I was woken up at five this morning. For you see, there is one other factor in determining the effects these duels have on those involved, and that might be the reason for all of this. The damage, the dark angels, Real Duel’s actions, everything.” Daiki opened his mouth to speak, but her draw overruled him. Her eyes flashed at the sight of her drawn card. “The time is now. I choose not to pay the cost for Firewall, thus it is destroyed.” The sound of the card exploding made Daiki flinch. “Now let me show you. There are currently four Laval monsters in my cemetery, so I can special summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Laval_Burner"]Laval Burner[/url] from my hand.” A giant golem of solid rock, with a fiery mane and huge crushing fists, appeared beside her (Lv5, ATK 2100). “Then I activate my face down [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Call_of_the_Haunted"]Cry of the Living Dead[/url] to resurrect Lavalval Dragon.” Daiki could feel his sweat sting him as the two creatures appeared side by side for a moment. They were both powerful enough, but then their bodies turned to sparks and rose in a spiral, crashing downwards together into the swirling vortex of flame that appeared. Natsumi was shaking harder than ever, as on her left shoulder appeared a pair of numeric symbols. From the portal a large sphere of magma began to rise. As it did, a large claw started to emerge from the dripping lava. “Daiki. Witness power and fury like you have never known before. I summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Number_61%3A_Volcasaurus"]Number 61: Volcasaurus[/url]!" The whole world shook, as the magma split open, and an enormous beast emerged. A dinosaur with a thick plate like body that produced many flaming spines at the joints, every building shook with every step it took forth from the portal. On its left chest plate, the number 61 was clearly visible. The dinosaur stopped and looked down at the small pathetic human and his smaller dinosaur before it, before unleashing a primeval scream that almost deafened him (Rk5, ATK 2500). “Natsumi, what is that thing?” “That is a Number monster, one of a hundred of its kind, and it is a card of great power. What I have learned so far is that there are many of them, in all kinds of forms, and that they share a common ability that they cannot be destroyed by battle, except by another Number. They started to appear in this world in the early hours of this morning, and have bought havoc ever since. They even seem to have a physical or mental affect on the people who wield them. These monsters appearance and the meddling with this world must be connected. It all comes back to Real Duel Ltd, and it affects millions using this virtual world.” “Now it is your turn to taste the power these cards possess, and the danger you are in. I activate Volcasaurus’ effect. By detaching an overlay unit, I can destroy a monster you control. Then you take damage to that monsters original attack. Go Volcasaurus. MAG-MAX!!” Natsumi’s monstrous beast blew away Grenosaurus with a stream of lava so forcefully it didn’t have time to move or make even a sound. But Daiki did. Roaring in agony as the force hit him, his entire body felt like it was burning; every part of him felt like it was going to crumble away at any second. His heart was pounding furiously, his breathing heavy but no oxygen seemed to be going in, his senses fading. Daiki sank to his hands and knees as the blaze dissipated, unable to do more than twitch and groan (LP 1800). “Volcasaurus cannot attack directly the turn that it uses its effect” Natsumi said calmly, staring down at his beaten form. “You think you’re in pain Dai? Or do you think it’s just a simulation? Well let me tell you that you are in very real pain. But it will be nothing compared to what our enemies will inflict on us if they have Numbers, and are coming after them like me and my sources suspect. If you want to survive, or fight back alongside me against them, then you must summon your own Number. If you don’t have one, or if you do and can’t summon it, then before this day has ended you will be in a state as good as dead.” [/spoiler] So, yeah... hopefully this one should get more comments... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brinolovania Posted February 21, 2012 Report Share Posted February 21, 2012 Natsumi is now the coolest woman in the story. This was definitely a good chapter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IceDorago Posted February 21, 2012 Report Share Posted February 21, 2012 I agree with Pacman's statements. Natsumi is even more awesome for using the best Number. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Tico~ Posted February 21, 2012 Report Share Posted February 21, 2012 [quote name='IceDorago' timestamp='1329867915' post='5832135'] Natsumi is even more awesome for using the best Number. [/quote] And here I thought Big Eye was the best Number... That aside, great chapter. For some reason, Natsumi and Daiki's relationship seems to be like Erin and Juruo in my mind. Or maybe that's just me being crazy. I have no idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IceDorago Posted February 21, 2012 Report Share Posted February 21, 2012 Best as in my favorite. Though, it is a really good card. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reinforce Posted February 22, 2012 Report Share Posted February 22, 2012 Shock Ruler is my favorite number. An epic chapter though, and I am enjoying this story so far, I just haven't had time to comment until now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut - Envoy of the End Posted February 22, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 22, 2012 Comments? COMMENTS!! [quote name='Pacmanexus' timestamp='1329861781' post='5831921'] Natsumi is now the coolest woman in the story. This was definitely a good chapter. [/quote] *Clarissa points a gun at your head and dares you to say that* Thanks. I was slightly worried about this one because of the nine duels I've written/scripted, this is the one I've been least convinced about as a duel. This is actually the second version which is different to what Saber (beta reader) got originally which was slower and had all sorts of muck ups. Was kinda more focused on the talking and their relationship and having the duel kinda secondary, and even that took a major overhaul (thanks for the help again Saber ) [quote name='IceDorago' timestamp='1329867915' post='5832135'] I agree with Pacman's statements. Natsumi is even more awesome for using the best Number. [/quote] I imagine as soon as Gunner appeared near everyone called Volca. But yeah, it is a juggernaut of a Number. Why you not available in TCG yet Volca? [quote name='Corona Ray' timestamp='1329868080' post='5832142'] And here I thought Big Eye was the best Number... That aside, great chapter. For some reason, Natsumi and Daiki's relationship seems to be like Erin and Juruo in my mind. Or maybe that's just me being crazy. I have no idea. [/quote] Big Eye is awesome, and was actually one of the first Numbers to have his place confirmed. It's just one (of five) Numbers that are pencilled in to debut in Arc 3. I mention that because I actually know more Numbers making their debuts in Arc 3 than 2 right now. In terms of writing duels for Arc 2, I've only currently got 5 Numbers to choose from, and you can probably imagine they are not the strongest... Konami please produce more Numbers soon. Thanks. More will be seen in next chapter (obviously) but personally not entirely sure on that. Wasn't the exact intention anyway. I dunno. [quote name='Simdoggy' timestamp='1329876731' post='5832634'] Shock Ruler is my favorite number. An epic chapter though, and I am enjoying this story so far, I just haven't had time to comment until now. [/quote] No worries. Thanks for reading and glad you're enjoying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IceDorago Posted February 22, 2012 Report Share Posted February 22, 2012 To be honest, I didn't. =/ I was just thinking that this would be a regular Laval Synchro deck, but when she started talking about how something had changed that morning, it clicked. By the way, I have one request: Whoever uses Hope, please don't make them spam him to hell. PLEASE. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut - Envoy of the End Posted February 24, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2012 [quote name='IceDorago' timestamp='1329917468' post='5833628'] To be honest, I didn't. =/ I was just thinking that this would be a regular Laval Synchro deck, but when she started talking about how something had changed that morning, it clicked. By the way, I have one request: Whoever uses Hope, please don't make them spam him to hell. PLEASE. [/quote] Lol, will do my best to avoid it. Anyway, hope everyone is looking forward to Chapter 8, which contains not one, but TWO duels. Double the action Double the suspense! And double the Numbers! (and double the comments...?) [spoiler=Chapter 4:2] “Well what are waiting for? If young people are collapsing across the country we have to do something.” Hideo had taken a while to grasp the concept of a virtual reality computer game, immensely popular among all citizens as the VDS was, was being used in a way to hurt people. But indeed it did seem like people were being hurt, more and more by the second, and he could not allow that. Which for some reason his staff were struggling to grasp. “We are waiting for the police to contact us again to pass on information from their operatives that any threat is genuine” Izura explained calmly. “I agree things look suspicious, but the man who called had got in contact with Real Duel themselves and got a vague message about them having several internal problems. It could be that they are lying and indeed there is something more malicious going on, which I can think of no motive for Real Duel to have. But it might be that that is all there is to it.” “But even still, this police chap was genuinely concerned, and they were supposed to receive contact from their agent ages ago. Besides if anything is hurting people, like we know the VDS currently is even if it is something beyond the companies control, it must be stopped and people warned from it. Even if we just advised them to stay away for a few hours. Tanaka-san, have you managed to get in touch with Real Duel yet?” From the reception room, Rokuro turned and shook his head. He had been trying to get the office of president Shinawatra for a few minutes, to no avail. “Blast it, what of the numbers admitted to hospital of people that have collapsed?” “The health minister is on her way” Rokuro added, hanging up the phone and returning to the others. He still looked quite pale, as did the stunned Kenji who had not moved from his seat since the news. “Sir, if I may, I don’t think we should act just yet. Not until more is known.” “And why do you think that Tanaka?” “Your image as prime minister is already poor; the people see you as someone who often frets over nothing and takes the cautious option a lot” Rokuro said. “What if, just if, this turns out to be nothing? Users do sometimes take to the simulation badly. The election is a few months away, and the sight of you jumping around like a scared rabbit pushing panic buttons over nothing more than a simple problem, and falsely accusing a highly respected and popular company of deliberately hurting the population, would not only be a certain end to your political career but also more serious repercussions will be felt. I appreciate it is an awful position to be in sir, but we all have your best interests at heart. Izura slowly nodded her agreement with all this. “I think I will call the police again to see what has happened to their contact.” Hideo scowled, but at that moment the reception phone began to ring. Izura rushed to it and answered. There was a pause, before she turned back to the group. “Sir, its Mai. She needs to talk to you.” ...12:30:48... Speeding her Porsche through the streets as quickly as she could legally do so in the midday traffic, Mai sighed as the secretary or whatever that woman’s actual title was fetched the prime minister. There was a sound of huffing and much puffing, before a familiar voice spoke to her through the D-Gazer. [i]“Mai, I’m kind of in the middle of...”[/i] “Something too important to answer your daughter’s phone calls?” Mai sniped bluntly as she stopped at a set of traffic lights. “The poor girl’s been desperately trying to get hold off you for nearly an hour.” [i]“I forgot to charge my phone last night...”[/i] the minister mumbled pathetically. Mai accelerated a little more sharply than advisable as the lights went green, completely ignoring the driver she’d just cut up swearing at her. “Well be that as it may, I’m telling you now that she’s been calling you. I’m telling you that she is at Toshima General Hospital with Yudai. Apparently she was with him when he collapsed and has been rushed to hospital. And I’m also telling you if you were any sort of father, you’d drop whatever it is you are in the middle of, get down to the hospital and be there for her.” Hideo paused to take it in, which made her sigh. “Look Hideo, I know what your job involves. I’ve been in that situation with you. It’s why I left it, and your inability to put us first is why I left you. Now please for once in your life put your daughter first.” Mai hung up before he could answer. ... Hideo sat in at the reception desk in stunned shock, and almost jumped at Izura patting him on the arm. Kenji and Rokuro were standing just behind her, listening to what had transpired. “Mai’s still as delicate as a sledgehammer I see” Rokuro said, earning himself a glare from Izura. “She’s right though, even if she was too harsh. Sir, you should go to the hospital and see Sakura, even if it just for a little while.” Hideo weakly tried to protest, but she overruled him. “There’s nothing we can do about this, not yet. The police are working on it, and the other ministers can look after things in your absence. If things get serious and any real threat is confirmed, they can handle it. Anyone would understand. I can even go with you; I need to go to Toshima hospital anyway and see my daughter. She’ll be waking up from her operation shortly.” Hideo looked to the other two ministers, who both gave him nods of blessing, even if they were unsmiling. “Okay Izura, I’ll quickly debrief Ryuunosuke as to what’s happening, and then we’ll go. Toshima hospital has a teleporter doesn’t it?” Izura nodded. “Alright, I’ll go. Let’s just hope this thing is just a false alarm.” He couldn’t convince himself with his words. As Kenji passed him his coat from the stand, Hideo just could not stop worrying, especially in the knowledge that Yudai had collapsed. Somehow he had a dreadful feeling as to what he had been doing when he collapsed. Somehow, he knew it wasn’t a false alarm. ...12:31:59... “All clear!” Dressed all in black gear, the commander of the Special Forces unit gave the signal from his hiding place overlooking the warehouse. The signal was silently acknowledged by his six team-mates, who began to make their way to the exits from their own places. Another warehouse checked for any sign of recent activity, another one fully clear. But there were many, many more old and abandoned storehouses along the stretch of river in the Gotanno area that had to be thoroughly combed as carefully as possible. If there had been any sign of activity here, any sign at all, they would find it. 12:32:15... Groaning from the effort, Daiki managed to haul himself back to his feet (LP 1800). He had been down for a couple of minutes; not a sensation he was used to in the virtual game. Then again he wasn’t used to an effect having that sort of impact on his mind. It was just his mind after all; it wasn’t that his actual body had been struck by the force of the raging fire breathing dinosaur looming over him (ATK 2500). Right? Standing beside her mighty destroyer, Natsumi was staring grimly at him, waiting for his response. She was equally battered from his previous attacks, but her now dominant position in this duel gave her fresh vigour (LP 1200). So the creature called Volcasaurus, the gigantic spike covered flame spitting monster eyeing him as if it wanted nothing more than to make of him a lightly grilled and tasty morsel, had such abundant power that is effected everyone and thing around it. According to Natsumi, it was one of many, and that its kind affected their users being. She very well might be lying, but why would she? What did she have to gain by doing so? Also, she had said it could only be destroyed by another Number. A glimmering in the corner of his eye sharpened his clouded vision. It was coming from just down to his left, from the small container on the hip of his belt. The container came as part of the D-Disk, for it was in this separate box that a players extra deck was kept. It was from this box that something was glowing. Mesmerized, Daiki flicked the lid open and pulled out a glowing card. The same one that appeared at the end of his duel with Garvan, he was sure of it. Impossible, how could it appear here to? “So you do have a Number.” Looking up at Natsumi, her expression had changed to one of grim amusement, of pride at her own confirmed assumption. There was an odd glint in her red eyes. “That is how Volcasaurus first appeared to me. We fitted so naturally, it wasn’t long before his true form was revealed. I wonder if the same will be true of you and that card.” “Guess we’ll just have to find out then” Daiki replied, returning the glowing card to its proper place and drawing. It wasn’t that helpful, he’d need some luck. “I set a monster in defence mode. Turn end.” Natsumi: LP 1200, Hand 1, Field of No 61: Volcasaurus and Compensation of Blood Daiki: LP 1800, Hand 1, Field of a set monster “It’s that the only defence you can muster now Dai? I’m disappointed.” Her eyes flashed as she drew. “You should have summoned that card when you had the chance. Although maybe it just doesn’t want to respond to you. Maybe it thinks you’re not worthy after all. But it might respond to me if I beat you.” His surprised reaction broadened her smile. “Oh, did I not mention this before? Forgive me for my forgetfulness. Early today, I observed and discovered that in contests between those wielding the Numbers power, the losers Number seems to pass to the victor. Whether this is due to a traitorous nature of the cards themselves to desert a former ally at the emergence of a stronger one, or some power of the actual winning duelist to forcefully attain them by some kind of an ante rule, I’m yet to determine. I will soon find out when I beat you.” “So is that the true reason you made me come here? You somehow knew I’d get one of these things and wanted to take it for yourself.” His outburst made her even more amused. “You think I can see the future somehow Dai? Well, perhaps you are right. Maybe I do want your Number, and the power and protection that it provides. That by having more of them might help me get closer to the truth of what’s happening. That maybe I just want them all for myself to do as I will. I know you can think of all the different possibilities; it’s your job to, and you have to work out what my real motive is. It could viably be any of them, and it eats at you that it could be that I am guilty of everything Real Duel accused me off. Maybe you think I have something to do with all of what is going to happen today? You clearly don’t trust me anymore, and you’d be right not to. You should never trust anyone. You’ll just get hurt. I summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Laval_Phlogis"]Laval Phlogis[/url] to the field.” A golem born from lava, wearing some basic steel armour and wielding two enormous meat cleavers dripping with liquid magma, appeared beside the dinosaur (Lv4, ATK 1700). “Now Volcasaurus, destroy his monster with an attack.” An image of the hidden monster appeared for a split second as its card flipped face up, only to be incinerated. Natsumi wasn’t done there. “Now, Phlogis attack directly.” Daiki roared as the cleaver slashed him across the chest, intense pain tearing through his chest and into his head as he flew backwards a few feet (LP 100). The pain subsided slowly, making it difficult to speak. “So this is who you’ve become? This is who that monster responds and fits so naturally to in your words. Someone so full of anger, they just want to lash out at the whole world that has been unjust to them.” Each word erased Natsumi’s smile, and it was replaced with a look of fury. She was shaking. “You have no idea about the changes in me... and you certainly have no right to judge me. I know who I am. You have no idea who you are. You have lashed out at the world too, not because it is unjust, but because you have no memory of any of it. I end my turn.” “Then at this time, I can activate the effect of the monster you just destroyed.” In front of Daiki a black portal opened in the ground, and from it rose a usually twin headed dragon. It had now however lost one (ATK 1000). “One time only, I can bring [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Twin-Headed_Behemoth"]Dol Dora[/url] back from the cemetery at the end of a turn it was destroyed.” “Then you just sealed your own fate” Natsumi shrugged. Even if you change it to defence next turn, it will still be vulnerable to Volcasaurus’ rage. The damage would defeat you, and who knows what will happen then.” “That’s not going to happen. Not that easily.” Daiki drew, knowing if it wasn’t perfect it might be his last. “I activate the [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Pot_of_Avarice"]Jar of Avarice[/url] magic card. By returning Grenosaurus, Kachi Kochi Dragon, Howling Warrior, Key Warrior Keyman and Shine Knight to my deck, I can draw two more cards.” He could feel the bead of sweat trickling down his temple as he looked at his refreshed hand. He had been provided the resources to summon something. As to whether that something would appear, and then be capable of taking down the fiery behemoth that would be opposing it, he could only hope. Hope. “I summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Speed_Bird"]Speed Bird[/url]." A small creature resembling an ancient pterodactyl swooped down beside him (Lv4, ATK 1200). “Then I activate the [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Harmonic_Waves"]Surging Resonance[/url] magic card. This changes Dol Dora’s level to four, equal to Speed Bird’s. Giving me the chance to Xyz summon. Overlay level four...” The two creature’s energy rose and fell into the starry vortex that opened in front of him as he snatched at his extra deck. Snatching at the glowing card. The glow stripping away, revealing the identity of the Number hidden behind it. The Number rising before him in its sealed form, hidden away by furled white wings. Wing unfurling and stretching, revealing the purest white body and gleaming golden armour. He felt his body begin to shake as some strange feeling coursed through it; his mind began to ache like it was being compressed by an unseen force, as the runes of the numbers appearing on the back of his hand. Natsumi watched it all in awe as the warrior reached into the sheath slung over its back and drew its sword, brandishing it at her monster, throwing down the challenge to fight (Rk4, ATK 2500). “Xyz Summon, [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Number_39%3A_Utopia"]Number 39: Aspiring Emperor - Hope[/url]!" ... 12:42:33... Having exited the teleporter and finally found themselves on the right ward, Hideo burst through the double doors to the reception area in a fashion that much belied his age and physique, Izura chasing just behind him. Across the waiting area Mai was already waiting, softly cuddling the teenage daughter who was pressed against her shoulder. Mai’s expression hardened as soon as her eyes clasped sight of him. “So it appears that you can occasionally be stirred into action Hideo” she huffed. “Mai please, not right now. For Sakura’s sake.” Hideo turned to his PR manager who was leaning against the front desk of the ward trying to catch her breath. His concern had caused him to ignore his own similar state, even realising it now he shrugged off his own breathlessness. “My daughter... is a few wards down...” she puffed. “If you’re alright here... I’ll leave you in private?” “That’s what I’d prefer. Forgive me, but I do hope you are greeted by a happier set of circumstances.” Blessing acknowledged, Izura gave Mai and Sakura a sympathetic nod of condolence, before turning and exiting for the next ward. As she left, Hideo took the seat next to the young girl and placed a large hand on her shoulder, which she slowly responded to by turning and burrowing herself into his frame. He was full of questions, but words seemed to fail him right now. This gave Mai a chance to use the vending machine a little way away, and bring back a coffee for each of them. As she did so, the doors to the ward flew open again, and another trolley pushed by two sweaty ambulance hands bearing the still body of another lad was driven into the emergency room. “There are plenty more like him and Yudai in the beds surrounding us” Mai calmly indicated, blowing at her drink. “As is becoming the situation in every other hospital across Japan according to the doctors. The causes are all the same; they collapsed whilst using the Virtual Duel System. Why haven’t you done anything yet?” “Because we don’t know what to do yet” Hideo replied weakly. “There is little we can do when we know nothing. We can’t establish any contact with anyone, everything is confusion. We don’t know what’s happening to these people, what is happening at Real Duel, anything? Nobody knows anything.” “Nobody... except me.” Hideo looked down to see Sakura; puffy eyed and red in the face, looking back at him. The sadness emanating from her was almost overwhelming. “I was in the VDS with Yudai when... when it happened. I can tell you what happened...” ... “Impressive” Natsumi said as the righteous warrior floated over Daiki’s head, daring any to challenge it. “It seems ironic that the Numbers that have chosen us to bestow their power on have exactly the same attack power. But that means your monster has no way to beat mine. Whereas mine has just the effect to get around that problem.” “I can still take down Phlogis though” Daiki grumbled. “Attack with Hope Sword Slash.” The mighty warrior charged and dispatched of the cleaver wielding golem with an effortless swipe of its sword. Natsumi had to duck to avoid splatters of molten blood, which did not entirely miss her. The effect of the attack and the splatters of flame burning her suit increased her own temper (LP 400). “Pointless, you can’t win with that. You have no hope of stopping Volcasaurus.” She might have got him there, but he wasn’t going to just give in. Not now this mighty warrior had appeared to protect him. He couldn’t just quit. “Fine. I place one card face down and end my turn.” “Then it’s time to wrap this up” Natsumi cried. Under the bravado, she did not feel as assured of victory as she hoped she sounded. [i]‘Daiki knows what my Volcasaurus can do, whereas I have no idea of what that thing does. Then there is his face down. A year is a long time, but I know Dai likes to keep faith in his cards. He must have some trick planned; a double bluff, but this card will seal his defeat.’[/i] “I activate the instant magic [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Berserk_Scales"]Berserk Scales[/url]. This increases the attack of Volcasaurus by one thousand. Your hope is about to get buried.” Strength increased (ATK 3500), the dinosaur prepared to unleash all its fury on the gold plated swordsman. Daiki hadn’t prepared for this, or anyway to defend, unless... “I activate Aspiring Emperor Hope’s effect. By detaching an overlay unit, your attack is negated.” Hiding behinds its steel wings just as the stream of flame hit it, the emperor held its ground over his head. The two fought for a moment, each unrelenting, until finally the fiery breath ran out and Hope emerged unharmed. Much to Volcasaurus and Natsumi’s displeasure. “Fine. I activate Volcasaurus’ effect. By detaching his last overlay unit, your monster is destroyed and you take damage equal to its attack.” Just what he’d wanted. “Counter trap activate, [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Xyz_Reflect"]Xyz Reflect[/url]. This negates any effect that targets an Xyz monster, then you take eight hundred points of damage.” Natsumi had just enough time to blink before the stream of fire bounced off of Hope’s wings once more, before the dissipating shockwave hit her and threw her to the floor near her bike. The damage was only a little, but it was just enough to end the match without a heavy impact (LP 0). She continued to lay their scowling and grimacing as the molten dinosaur and the aspiring emperor faded away with the disconnected ARV, facing off until the moment they were gone, up until Daiki approached her with his arm extended. The proposal made her stagger up into a hunched position under her own will. “Don’t you dare... I’m fine...” “That’s what concerns me, because right now I’m not.” Before she could get away, Dai grabbed her wrist and squeezed a pressure point. The action had the desired effect even in this simulated environment. “No more games. What are these Numbers, why are they appearing, and who is responsible for them?” “I don’t know” she growled through gritted teeth, giving way to a yelp as Daiki increased the pressure. “Then what was your message about? Why did you make me come here if you know nothing?” “I said I don’t know what’s going on. Not fully. I’ve only heard rumours and seen what I’ve seen. All you need to know is that millions of people using this world are being trapped and attacked, and it probably has something to do with these Number cards. That’s a damn sight more than you knew a couple of hours ago and if you can somehow get that through to the real world, it might get you prepared for the near certain battle ahead.” “You’re still hiding something” Daiki twisted her arm, ignoring her mangled curses. “You’ve told me nothing but lies and guesswork that plays to your agenda. Why should I believe...?” Daiki’s voice trailed off as Natsumi’s extra deck pocket opened of its own accord, and a card removed itself from it and floated over to his free hand. Cautiously taking it from the air, he was transfixed by the card before him that depicted the flaming juggernaut Number 61: Volcasaurus. A burst of pain in his stomach snapped him out of his enchantment, the knee driven in to it forcefully enough to wind him and loosen his grip just enough for Natsumi to wriggle her wrist free and dart onto her bike. The engine roared into life as she spun it round, facing side on to him and glaring furiously. “Believe what you want. I’ve told you all I can, and you’ve got a prize into the bargain. You have bigger things to worry about than me; I can assure you of that. I had contacted you because I thought of all people you might believe me and want to help me, but I guess you’re just too narrow minded after all. I just hope your Hope can protect you from the dangers you’re so blindly ignoring.” “You don’t help yourself” he wheezed in reply. Without a second thought he threw the card the short distance back at Natsumi, who caught it despite her surprise. As did his calmer, pained expression. “I miss you.” The two remained silent for a long moment. “What do you want, a hug?” Natsumi disappeared behind her helmet as she fitted it, returning to the guise of Firefly. “Move on Dai. I’ve had to, regardless of circumstances. You should too. I’ll be seeing you later.” With a final screech of tyres, Natsumi disappeared into the dark underworld of the city, leaving Daiki to massage his ribs and ponder. ...12:48:30... Garvan blinked as he adjusted to the new surroundings of the watery world enveloping him, an under-water kingdom known as the [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/A_Legendary_Ocean"]Legendary City Atlantis[/url]. Since his meeting with Scag, he had called in to headquarters to get a Special Forces Unit to investigate the warehouses in the Gotanno area. Yuri had picked up the phone so he had to carefully avoid going into detail as to how he’d got his information, but she assured him someone would get on it. Presumably they had discovered nothing so far, otherwise she would have called him back on his D-Gazer. After that call, he found the arcade Scag had mentioned in the next, and not quite as rough, neighbourhood. The owner remembered the kids arguing and a girl who looked extremely ill, and watched as one of the groups parents arrived to take her to a hospital. He didn’t have anything more to add about the events prior to that; he had only paid attention when he noticed the shouts. Another brief call to the office was made, but they were already aware of hospital cases. Unable to think of anything else to try, Garvan sat himself at a terminal, plugged in his D-Gazer, and had since spent most of the last half an hour warping from area to area, looking for a clue to this mystery. He did not know what he was looking for exactly, but this was definitely the place to find it. He was also trying to discover the identity of the mysterious card that appeared in the closing moments of his duel with Daiki. The first thing he had done after logging in was check his deck, as always, and he was immediately drawn to his extra deck, kept in a metal case on his belt, and the card that was glowing softly and silently therein, its secrets still hidden. With the system, you could scan any cards you got in real life with your terminal, and they would be added to your account. But he had not taken such an action. Taking the glowing card out of its place, he twirled it between his fingers and stared at its white form. [i]‘This card... I imagine it must be a Number like Scag described. I wonder what it does, or how I unlock the power he referred to. He picked his up after another duelist had used it and thus already revealed its identity, so he wouldn’t know how I’d trigger it... hmm...’[/i] “AAAAAAAHHH!!!” The scream jerked him out of his train of thought. At the moment he was standing in the basin of the aquatic kingdom, surrounded by stone houses on all sides whilst the grand palaces, towers and bridges rose up behind them. The scream had come to his left, in one of the buildings that made a basic home for the average denizen of this forgotten world. Without thinking Garvan charged the source of the noise, barrelling into the house. As he passed through the doorway he also passed through an invisible barrier that kept the illusory water out. In this large and empty hovel he was bone dry, as were the two duelists standing and lying in front of him. Only the standing duelist... thing... acknowledged his sudden entrance and turned its head to look at him. Garvan wasn’t the kind to scare easily, but the snarling stone half mask and dead eyes of the black angel made his insides twist. It was nothing like he had seen before in here, something he thought wasn’t possible. The angel like duelist was standing over a teenage girl who was lying face down. Her skin was unnaturally pale. Garvan stood there, unable to move or speak, until the angel looked at the glowing card he was still holding. “You hold a Numberrssssss...” the angel hissed. His mouth didn’t move as he spoke, but his voice was filled with sick rasping excitement, the noise unnerved Garvan more. Slowly the angel raised its left arm, which had a black D-Disk of similar shape to Garvan’s attached to it, and as a card slowly rose from the girl and floated up to his hand. “Well so do I. Let’s see who-ssssse is stronger.” The duellist’s arm lashed out, the motion sending a black lasso towards him. Before Garvan could react the thing was tied around his own D-Disk. Giving the poor unconscious girl one last glance before the ARV link of private duel mode erased her from existence, the officer took a breath and replaced the card in his extra deck. [i]‘Well I guess I found what I was looking for. Let’s just hope that doing so doesn’t condemn me to a watery grave.’[/i] [i]‘ARV established. Duel commencing.’[/i] “Duel!” “I’ve got the light to go first” Garvan declared, snatching his sixth card. “Normal summon, [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Chow_Len_the_Prophet"]Predicting Monk Cho-Len[/url] The shaven headed monk in black robes rose before him (Lv4, ATK 1800) “Then I equip Cho-Len with the magic of [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Bound_Wand"]Bound Wand[/url] A ruby adorned staff appeared in the monks hand (ATK 2200). “Bound Wand increases the attack of the monster equipped with it by one hundred multiplied by its level. With it I end my turn. Now answer me; what are you and what did you do to that girl?” “Then it’s my turn” the dark duelist rasped, the display behind him giving him the name ‘Kesef’. Garvan recognised the name from the Islamic faith, one of the names of fourteen angels who represented death and despair. Given this guys look, that was exactly what he intended on dishing out. “I am simply a servant, and I will crush all in the way of completing my one mission. I summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Big_Jaws"]Big Jaws[/url]!" A shark creature with massive teeth swam through the air before him; its jaws were enhanced with metal, as was the razor edged dorsal fin (Lv3, ATK 1800). “Well aren’t you at home down here then. But impressive as your shark is, it’s not enough to take down Cho-Len.” So, this duelist appeared to use a deck unofficially labelled as ‘Banisharks’. Not an especially strong deck unless in the right hands due to lack of real firepower, but still Garvan had to assume this guy would be more than skilled with them. “So your mission is to collect Numbers? But who for? Real Duel Ltd?” The duelist just laughed at him. “You have no idea human. There is no point in telling you anything more about my mission, when you are about to fall before me, just like your monk will fall prey to Big Jaws. I activate the [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Aqua_Jet"]Aqua Jet[/url] magic card, increasing my monsters attack by one thousand points. Now sink your teeth into that monk.” Garvan winced as the two monsters collided. The pain that ran through him as his monster was destroyed was a lot more intense than he last remembered, enough to leave him feeling weak and beaten (LP 3400). “Bound Wand’s second effect activates. When it and the monster equipped with it are destroyed, the wands power summons it back from the cemetery.” Indeed a dark portal opened for the monk to rise back up through. “Also now your attack is done, Big Jaws is banished by its own effect.” “True, but now that Big Jaws is banished, I can special summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Wingtortoise"]Wingtortoise[/url] in its place.” An oversized turtle with the claws, tail and wings of a dragon appeared in the space vacated by the shark (Lv3, DEF 1400). “I place one card face down and end my turn.” “Then it’s back to me. I’m bringing out [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Summoner_Monk"]Summon Priest[/url]." The old man in robes appeared, as always, sat in his calm defensive stance (Lv4, DEF 1600). “Now I activate Priest’s effect; discarding a magic card from my hand to summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Gagaga_Magician"]Gagaga Magician[/url] from my deck.” The chain bound sorcerer appeared beside the others as impassive as ever (Lv4, ATK 1500). “Next I activate the card [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Magical_Blast"]Magic Blast[/url]. This hits you for two hundred points of damage for each spellcaster type monster I control. Currently there are three so...” The dark angel howled as the magical energy of the three magicians combined and slammed into him, hitting him square in the chest. The blast burnt away much of his tunic and left scorch marks on the stone like skin (LP 3400). “You’ll pay for that.” “I’m a cop, I’ve heard that before” Garvan shrugged. “Moving on, I overlay level four. Cho-Len, Priest and Gagaga combine their powers to Xyz Summon. [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Tinplate_Archduke"]Tinplate Archduke[/url]." Thankfully the hovel was oversized, giving the giant metal swordsman plenty of room to sink through a portal in the roof, landing next to him with a crash (Rk4, ATK 2200). “Next I activate the effect of Archduke. By detaching an overlay unit, the battle position of Wingtortoise is changed into attack mode.” A strange rippling came from the duke’s sword, luring the creature out of defence (ATK 1500). “Go Archduke. Attack.” “Too bad. I activate the trap card [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Poseidon_Wave"]Poseidon_Waves[/url] to negate your attack.” A wall of water crashed over the duke, pushing it back. The wave continued until it hit Garvan, throwing him against the far wall. It took an effort for him to stagger upright, clutching his ribs (LP 2600). “Oh, and since I control an aqua type monster, you take eight hundred points of damage in addition.” “Thank you for reminding me. I end my turn with this.” The angel snatched out his next card. "The time is now. I summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Spiked_Sunfish"]Spiked Sunfish[/url] to the field.” A flatfish appeared briefly by the tortoise, just for long enough for Garvan to see the ARV display the monsters stats and realise what was coming (Lv3, ATK 1500), before the two sea creatures bodies turned to sparks of energy. As the spirals rose and fell, a mad excitement overcame the demonic duelist. “Rise up and show us your power. [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Number_17%3A_Leviathan_Dragon%E2%80%9D"]Number 17: Leviath Dragon”[/url] From the vortex rose a sphere of purple-blue colour, an egg as it might well have been, which after rising to the desired height began to split and allow the monster inside to emerge. A long snakelike body unravelled itself, ending with the flick of a tail. Then the thin finlike wings and sail of spikes passing down its long back unfurled, allowing the dragon to reveal its full size and ferocious splendour. On one of its horns appeared the number 17, matching the one that had appeared on the angels left arm. The dragon screeched at him, the ear-piercing sound almost blew him into the wall again (Rk3, ATK 2000). “The effect of Leviath Dragon activates. By detaching an overlay unit, its strength increases by five hundred.” The dark angel dispatched the selected card to the cemetery, giving the go ahead for the dragon to snap at and swallow one of the little comets orbiting it with its mighty jaws and unleash an even louder screech (ATK 2500). “Also, as the detached monster was Spiked Sunfish, your tin man loses five hundred of his own attack.” “He might be weaker now in terms of pure might” Garvan winced as the duke looked visibly crippled (ATK 1700). “But he can still take on your dragon with expert battle tactics. “Archduke’s effect activates during either players turn, switching your monster into defence.” (DRU 1) “We’ll see” the demon sounded like it was smirking as the dragon curled itself up with a low growl of frustration. Garvan hadn’t known, but it looked like his luck was in, for its defence was literally nothing (DEF 0). “I end my turn with another face down. You have done nothing more than postpone your inevitable demise duelist. You have no idea of the power of the card you possess. I will complete my mission, and rip your Number from your cold lifeless fingers.” 12:59:58... 12:59:59... 13:00:00... [/spoiler] Ps: Writing is otherwise going well, although still have no ideas on an extra chapter as of yet. Beginning to struggle for lack of Numbers now, however. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IceDorago Posted February 24, 2012 Report Share Posted February 24, 2012 Daiki has Volcasaurus, so he should be good unlike Yuma and actually use it. Sadly, his deck is Rank 4 spam focused. Btw you typoed Poseidon Waves and as a result the link is broken. This new duel looks pretty good. You're honestly really good at making these anime like (using cards and decks that aren't the best, etc.), without using non O/TCG cards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut - Envoy of the End Posted February 24, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2012 [quote name='IceDorago' timestamp='1330094978' post='5837569'] Daiki has Volcasaurus, so he should be good unlike Yuma and actually use it. Sadly, his deck is Rank 4 spam focused. Btw you typoed Poseidon Waves and as a result the link is broken. This new duel looks pretty good. You're honestly really good at making these anime like (using cards and decks that aren't the best, etc.), without using non O/TCG cards. [/quote] Erm... except Dai gave it back... [quote]“You don’t help yourself” he wheezed in reply. Without a second thought he threw the card the short distance back at Natsumi, who caught it despite her surprise. As did his calmer, pained expression.[/quote] If anything Dai's deck is Rank 3 spam focused, and Garvan's is Rank 4. Although things may change towards the end of the arc in that respect. Thanks for pointing that out. Will fix. Just trying to use newer cards for the most part. I know we're all still waiting for archtypes like Wind-Up, Photon, Inzektor and so on, they are coming but belong to important characters who don't duel til later sort of thing. I've had to use the odd anime card in some duels that come up, but its only very, very seldomly going to be done. Thanks for commenting, and thanks for the rep Sage Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IceDorago Posted February 24, 2012 Report Share Posted February 24, 2012 Wait, what? I must have missed the end of the sentence because I was too busy hoping for him to use it and not Hope. =/ Tbh Dai's seems like a mix of both spams since he has Level altering stuff. But Garvan's is definitely Rank 4. Honestly, I don't see a problem with the use of anime cards as long as they're not totally broken or are just a differently named irl card. coughoffsidetrapcough Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northern Sage Posted February 24, 2012 Report Share Posted February 24, 2012 I'll comment then. Sakura being the president's daughter was an honest to god nice surprise. (In a did-not-see-that-coming kind of way) The Xyz Reflect finish felt... a bit anti-climactic, I suppose. Otherwise a nice chapter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut - Envoy of the End Posted February 24, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2012 [quote name='IceDorago' timestamp='1330095892' post='5837593'] Wait, what? I must have missed the end of the sentence because I was too busy hoping for him to use it and not Hope. =/ Tbh Dai's seems like a mix of both spams since he has Level altering stuff. But Garvan's is definitely Rank 4. Honestly, I don't see a problem with the use of anime cards as long as they're not totally broken or are just a differently named irl card. coughoffsidetrapcough [/quote] Lol Now where is offside trap going to fit? [quote name='Dragon Sage Ω' timestamp='1330106284' post='5837743'] I'll comment then. Sakura being the president's daughter was an honest to god nice surprise. (In a did-not-see-that-coming kind of way) The Xyz Reflect finish felt... a bit anti-climactic, I suppose. Otherwise a nice chapter. [/quote] Thanks, means a lot, really You'd have had to have been on the ball to catch the matching surnames, but yeah, thought that would be a nice twist and humanise Hideo a bit more, as well as other possible implications... Hmm... I did worry about that. Thing I was worried about was when Daiki beats Garvan, he is automatically considered a better duelist, which I kind of wanted to avoid doing again with Natsumi but him still winning, only able to do it through a bit of luck and Natsumi being reckless to a degree but otherwise being fairly evenly matched. It's why I didn't finish the chapter on it. Out of the nine duels I've written/scripted, this one I was least happy with. But I'm happy with the next two (next week especially)... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IceDorago Posted February 24, 2012 Report Share Posted February 24, 2012 It won't fit anywhere because it's soccer Waboku. Because apparently when they have a one episode character every card has to be tailored to fit the deck theme. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut - Envoy of the End Posted February 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2012 I wonder who I can give a soccer deck to... Just trying to finish Chapter 14 before I go to work (that sounds like a long way ahead. Trust me I wanted to be further but 12 was such a b****). Oh the stuff we all have to look forward to. Mwahahahaha. Looking forward to this week's chapters, before the first arc finishes on Friday the 9th. (Oh yeah, thank you Mu for the rep. Nice to know people are sticking with this and enjoying it in silence ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brinolovania Posted February 26, 2012 Report Share Posted February 26, 2012 The story is good, but the duels seem kinda...not exciting enough. I mean the duels themselves are good, but the characters seemed to act boring in the last chapter. Basically, I think the duels need a few more exclamation points. Like if an anime character summons their trump monster, they don't just say "I summon Aspiring Emperor Hope." (well, most of them don't). They yell "I summon Aspiring Emperor Hope!" really loudly, usually with an accompanying summoning chant thing. Really a pointless thing for me to rant about, but eh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut - Envoy of the End Posted February 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2012 [quote name='Pacmanexus' timestamp='1330291964' post='5842658'] The story is good, but the duels seem kinda...not exciting enough. I mean the duels themselves are good, but the characters seemed to act boring in the last chapter. Basically, I think the duels need a few more exclamation points. Like if an anime character summons their trump monster, they don't just say "I summon Aspiring Emperor Hope." (well, most of them don't). They yell "I summon Aspiring Emperor Hope!" really loudly, usually with an accompanying summoning chant thing. Really a pointless thing for me to rant about, but eh. [/quote] No, it's a fair point actually. Punctuation is an attribute in these things. Thanks for the pointer. I'm really bad at coming up with chants. Maybe I should come up with catchphrases for the main guys. Is 'rev it up' taken? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brinolovania Posted February 28, 2012 Report Share Posted February 28, 2012 [quote name='Verz Bahamut' timestamp='1330321769' post='5843787'] No, it's a fair point actually. Punctuation is an attribute in these things. Thanks for the pointer. I'm really bad at coming up with chants. Maybe I should come up with catchphrases for the main guys. Is 'rev it up' taken? [/quote]Well, chants really aren't necessary. Just, like, dramatic comments. Also I refuse to agknowledge the 5Ds dub, so it not taken in my universe! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bahamut - Envoy of the End Posted February 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 29, 2012 Have done so now. Wierd to think that this time last year I'd maybe only watched 1 or 2 episodes of 5D's. Anyway, Chapter 9 is up and in the below spoiler. Crazy shiz right from the get go here, through to the conclusion of the duel, and a bit of a nasty ending... Oh, and two more Numbers debut. Sort of. [spoiler=Chapter 5:1] [b]The following takes place between 1PM and 2PM[/b] [i]“Move in.”[/i] The investigative Special Forces unit was now entering warehouse number six in its hunt for any possible location for terrorist activities. The warehouses along the riverbank were all very similar; with large storage spaces in the main hall and offices overlooking the warehouse from a balcony above. The place was mostly empty, save for some loading equipment and large machinery used throughout the facility. Sending his men out in pairs to investigate, the team leader spoke quietly to the woman who was in constant contact with the team via the D-Gazer network as he made for the stairs. “Still nothing yet. Are you sure this information is reliable?” [i]“We can’t be certain. But it’s all we have for now. Carry on Alpha Leader”[/i] Yuri replied. “Alright. Over and out.” The team pressed on. Out of the warehouses they’d entered so far, this was third that seemed mostly unoccupied today. This was not unusual; some of these warehouses were for general storage use for businesses and a lot of what went on here was automated, with a couple of owners overseeing the work of the machines and a few workers making sure things operated smoothly. But the machines were programmed to do most of the labour. As the leader reached the top of the steps to the overhanging balcony, a couple of voices whispered in his ear. “Sir, we’ve found something.” “Us too.” The team leader turned, flicking down his zoom enhanced goggles to overlook the warehouse. One of the pairs could just be seen against the far wall, breaking open a crate that was placed alone from the rest in the open. One of the men was removing a small laser firing machine gun. Another pair was closer to the middle of the main floor, looking at something on the ground near a crane. He couldn’t see the final pair, but that was better. The fact he could see two from his position was sloppy enough of them, even if he did have the zooming eyewear. Moving along the balcony to make sure the offices were actually empty and reason with anyone who might be there after all, the leader’s eyes caught a large forklift near the pair examining the guns. In the cockpit of the machine, the gear levers were starting to move. Closer to him, the crane was silently moving its load through the air over to the centre floor. The realisation chilled him. “Tr...!” A blend of loud confusing noise drowned out the word. All in one moment, a screech of tyres heralded the forklift that shot forward towards the two men at the crate, and the crane dropped its load. The first pair barely had time to turn before screaming and machine gun fire was reverberating around the warehouse as they were skewered. There was a crash as a ton of metalwork landed on another two men. Somewhere below the leader there was a sawing noise, followed by more screaming and gunfire. [i]“Alpha Leader, what’s happening?”[/i] “Ambush!!” the leader managed to shout to Yuri as he charged back towards the stairs, trying to escape. In his panic, he could not have hoped to notice the small motion sensor device placed at knee level on a rail of the balcony, one that he had now passed by twice. There was a bleeping noise, followed by an explosion, and the team leader fell forty feet through the air, dead before he hit the floor. Overlooking the half ruined stairs in a corner of the warehouse, a security camera captured the whole slaughter. ...13:00:52... Flicking up the image of the warehouse on his laptop, one of the technicians motioned to Evos and played the footage back for him. He nodded, and turned to Clarissa. “Our overnight accommodation has been discovered by the authorities. I suppose that ends our veil once and for all.” Clarissa nodded. “We will have to contact the outside world now. However I’m not yet ready to speak directly to them or show our hand. I don’t think we’ve made enough progress yet and could do with the drones getting a few more hours of uninterrupted hunting. Wilhelm, how are we doing?” Looking up from his own laptop with a heavy sigh, Wilhelm didn’t look too impressed with his results. “So far, twenty one Numbers have been obtained and are in our possession.” “Twenty one? That’s it?” “There are millions of players currently in the VDS... Our army only ever stands at twelve hundred at any one time. I’d say to have found twenty one needles out of a hundred in three hours is pretty impressive relatively speaking...” “Not for us. Not today. Can’t you do something to make the other Numbers easier to trace?” “I’ve got nothing to work with except names and numbers” Wilhelm wheezed, bringing up another screen displaying one of the Real Duel employees profile. Clarissa watched as he clicked on one of the cards in her deck history, [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Baby_Tiragon"]Baby Taragon[/url], and a page depicting full information on the selected card. Wilhelm went back and clicked on the name [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Number_56%3A_Goldrat"]Number 56: Goldrat[/url]. The same screen came up, but with nothing but blank spaces. “The system recognises the names, but other than that the cards don’t exist. I type Numbers into databases and I get no records. Not surprising really... since they were never meant for general usage of these people. I’d love to known... exactly how many of Real Duel’s people even knew of their existence given their history.” “I see. And our main objective?” “No progress on that front...” Clarissa made a frustrated noise, before she beckoned Evos to follow her upstairs to make a phone call. ...13:01:36... “What? The whole unit?” General Ryokan banged a ham like fist on his desk, making Keylan flinch. Yuri however remained unmoved. Over her headset she had heard all the screaming, all the gunfire, and the awful silence that followed. It upset her, of course it did, but she couldn’t sit around and mourn the deaths of men she barely knew doing their job. Not now there was important work to do. So she had presented herself and Keylan to the general and explained everything that had just occurred, as well as Garvan’s information, and that they were still unable to get in touch with Daiki. A knock at the door interrupted her, as another of their co-workers entered. “General, we’re getting a phone call from the RDL building. Do you want it directed here or to the main operations room?” “Operations room. Yuri, get everyone in there. Keylan, see if you can capture the voice and match it to anyone on our database. I’ll take the call. Thirty seconds of rapid scrambling later and Shigeo, Yuri, Keylan (with headset), and several other members of the office were in the highly equipped boardroom below the general’s office, various holographic screens lining the wall with various intelligence on them. A similar spherical hologram appeared from a projector rising from the middle of the table, but the only image was a distorted mess. [i]“So, you have now confirmation of our existence, and the threat that you are facing.”[/i] The voice was the same as the one that had spoken to Keylan earlier. [i]“As you will have assumed, we have seized control of Real Duel Ltd, its headquarters and all its resources, as well as now being in control of the Virtual Duel System. You should have also worked out we are manipulating the system, and are responsible for the incidents your people are suffering all across the country.”[/i] “This is Superintendent General Ryokan Shigeo speaking. You’ve got our attention. So first questions are who are you and what are you doing to those people?” There was a mild chuckle. [i]“All will be revealed as to our identity and intentions in a little while. As for those people, they are just a warning shot. A demonstration of what happens by tinkering with the VDS a little bit. We can easily turn up the stakes at any time, which we will do if our leader’s demands are not met, or if we catch anyone trying to get at us, and the consequences felt by the millions of young men and women currently trapped in the VDS will be much worse than a mere loss of consciousness.”[/i] “So what are your leader’s demands?” [i]“Our leader will make demands directly to the government within the next... two hours. You will no doubt pass this message onto them after it ends, which you are free to do. In the meantime, you and your government are to wait and to do nothing. Do not attempt to warn the general population from logging into and using the VDS. Do not submit to any press inquiry for information on what is happening; tell them everything is normal. Do not attempt to send forces to the Real Duel Ltd premises. We are monitoring all of these things and will know if any attempts to break these rules are made. Such breakages will incur dire consequences to everyone whose minds are at our mercy. You will hear from us again in two hours.”[/i] The line went dead, filling the room with awkward silence. Shigeo took a deep breath to compose himself, before jumping into full flow. “Alright people. We have a crisis on our hands. You heard the man; they could respond recklessly to anything that might threaten them, but we can’t let anyone else fall into their trap. Keylan; first you get in contact with the prime minister’s office and update them on the situation, then get back to work on trying to identify the speaker. Francis, get as much info as you can on shipping records and transport for the last week to see if you can find any suspicious movement. Yuri, get an observation team to scout out the Real Duel Building. “But sir, he said...” “I know what he said, so make sure they scout the building from far enough away not to be spotted. Let’s go people; we’ve got two hours to get as ready as we can. Let’s bring these extremists scum down.” ... “Yes, we will see demon. It’s my turn.” Garvan: LP 2600, Hand 2, Field of Tinplate Archduke Kesef: LP 3400, Hand 1, Field of No 17: Leviath Dragon and a face down Garvan glanced across the field at the dragon staring down at him; the unknown Number creature that was one of the causes of all that was happening today, and under the control of this demonic creature that never altered from its screaming expression. It may or may not have been the dragon’s influence, but throughout the duel, the damage he’d taken from attacks and effects had been brutal. This duel was delicately balanced, and Garvan knew his cards had to be favourable to avoid more beatings. Or worse. [i]‘Cry of the Living Dead. Not what I was hoping for. I could have done with something to take care of that face down. But let’s think about this; he’s already used Poseidon Wave on me once. I’d say the odds of him drawing another one of those or anything similar so quickly are slim at best.’[/i] Trying to decipher anything from the angel was pointless, so he’d have to take a calculated gamble. “I think you’re bluffing. There’s nothing you can do to stop my attack or save your precious Number. Archduke, charge!” The metal duke might have been crippled (ATK 1700), but he was still more than a match for the defensively poor dragon (DEF 0). Still the demonic angel just stood there, making no movement to activate his face down card even as the warrior charged. This gave Garvan a brief moment of success, as the duke was allowed to freely slash the dragon’s long body. The dragon screamed and snapped at him, but otherwise the blow seemed to have achieved nothing at first. The duke returned to his side of the field, and to Garvan’s bewilderment, the dragon still remained on the opponents. “So, this is the power of the Numbers monsters?” The opponent’s rasping cackle unnerved him slightly. “You thought your weak monster would be able to defeat a mighty Number? Fool. The Numbers are a divine creation of great power. They cannot be simply destroyed by the teeth and swords of the average monsters of this world. Now it is my turn.” Garvan was too stunned by the creeping realisation of what he was up against to protest as the dark creature drew its card. “I change Number 17 back into attack mode.” The monster’s battle cry snapped him out of it (ATK 2500). “I counter with Tinplate Archduke’s effect. By detaching his last overlay unit, he puts it straight back into defence!” The dreadful sound of the creatures cackling laugh instantly told him he had made a mistake. “You fell for it! You think you can do the same thing to me twice? You just played right into the trap [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Oh_F!sh"]Shock![/url] By returning the banished Big Jaws to my deck; your monsters effect is negated, and then it is destroyed.” His body went stiff as the image of the metal mouthed shark appeared under the duke, catching its leg in its teeth and dragging it down into the beyond. Its disappearance leaving a clear path for the dragon to strike him. He couldn’t run, couldn’t even speak as the dragons head tilted back, and the dark duelist raised its hand and pointed at him. “Leviath Dragon, Vice Stream!” A tidal wave of energy hit him, throwing him against the far wall for a second time with bone crushing force. It pinned him against it for a few seconds until the stream dissipated, leaving him to fall to the floor in an unconscious heap. ...13:06:02... “Mommy, I drew this for when you got here too. Do you like it?” Izura smiled as she took the drawing. She was sat at a bedside in a ward dedicated to heart and lung based medical practise, with her daughter sitting up in the bed and bouncing up and down on it in healthy exuberance. Riku was four now and had inherited much of her mother’s fairness, although she was still very pale and weak. The drawing was of the two of them holding hands outside a house (which also had a smiley face on it) on a sunny day. “Thank you sweetie, it’s lovely.” Riku cheered and clapped to herself, which heartened Izura. Seeing Riku recover from so many difficulties in her young life, maybe then all the people she had passed in the ward Hideo was in, those who had collapsed after being in the virtual game world, would recover to. She was so lost in this thought she almost didn’t notice her D-Gazer indicating Rokuro was calling her. “One second Riku. Hello?” Rokuro spoke quickly, telling her everything that he had been told by the police regarding what had just happened. Izura became a little paler with every word. “I see. I shall find Hideo and return immediately.” Riku tugged at her mother’s sleeve. “Mommy, what’s wrong?” “I’m sorry sweetie; Mommy has to go back to work now. Something really bad has come up. Don’t worry, it’s not going to hurt you” she hastened to add as the little girl blinked in shock. “The doctors said you could come home today, so I’ll arrange for your auntie and uncle to pick you up later. I’ll get back to you as soon as I can. You’ll be safe here in the meantime.” The little girl nodded to say she understood, allowing Izura to give her a quick hug and kiss. “Love you.” With that, Izura hurried out of the ward. ... Hideo was pacing. Sakura had given him her account of events; how Yudai had introduced her to the VDS system and succeeded after much coaxing to get her to join him, how they had encountered two terrifying duelists that looked like stone angels except for their completely black colour, the strain the duel had been, the strange monster called a Number they couldn’t beat which he didn’t understand the foggiest about, how Yudai was defeated and did not respond to her cries, she somehow managed to escape and log out, and found him in a similarly unconscious state back in his bedroom. The tale had left him horrified for her, and also for the millions of others still locked and fighting in the system. Izura burst into the ward and bowed before him and the seated Mai and Sakura. “I’m sorry to interrupt sir, but Tanaka-san just called me with an update from the police. They have received contact from the Real Duel Ltd building. We need to go back to Toshima Halls now.” “What did the message say?” Izura blinked. “I don’t think that’s up for public discussion sir” she said, looking at the two ladies. “I think my daughter deserves to know what happened to Yudai” the Prime Minister said forcefully, folding his arms and refusing to budge. Izura bit her lip, but conceded. “Of course, she does.” Hideo made sure there was no-one eavesdropping, before ushering them all into a closer huddle before Izura continued. “The police confirmed that Real Duel is under the control of an extremist group who are effectively using the users of the VDS as hostages. In their message, they forbade us and the police from making any public warning to the people or the press, and that they would call your office directly with their leader’s full demands within the next two hours.” “Clarissa...” The three adults stared at Sakura. “Um... the group’s leader is called Clarissa. One of the other duelists mentioned it.” “Thank you Sakura. That could help us a lot” Izura added. “I’m sorry sir, but we have to get back. We need to be there when the contact is made, and start working with Tokyo police and our other forces.” “Yes, I see. I’ll come with you in a moment.” The huddle broke up and Izura turned for the ward doors, allowing the minister to bid his goodbyes. “I hope Yudai wakes up soon. Stay strong for him.” Sakura nodded glumly, hugging her father as he turned to Mai. “I don’t want to go, but I have to. Look after her.” “Of course. I understand.” With that Hideo turned and followed Izura out of the ward and back towards the teleporter. ...13:10:15... Daiki was still in the Dark City area, having now positioned himself in a shadowy doorway at the edge of the square where hopefully he wouldn’t be spotted or bothered. He had tried to call the outside world again on the off chance a connection had been re-established, but had got nothing but the same static. Slumped on the doorstep of the crooked building, Daiki took the Hope card from his extra deck and stared at it. [i]‘Cannot be destroyed by battle, except by another Number’[/i] he read to himself, rubbing his head. The earlier crushing weight on his mind he had felt when the monster appeared had faded, but it still felt sore. It hadn’t been a painful feeling at all, quite the contrary, but it was just powerful it was almost overwhelming. If it hadn’t been for his desperation to survive Natsumi‘s attack and find out what was going on, it might have consumed him. Who knew what would have happened then? [i]‘These cards have an effect on this world, on the duelists who use them. Wish Natsumi had elaborated on how specifically.’[/i] Natsumi. Her image swam across his aching mind. [i]‘Natsumi, what are you doing? What was I supposed to achieve with this? Finding this card? It can’t have been. Or was it something you needed from me?’[/i] He tried to gather everything he had learned in the last hour, but it didn’t seem like much, or as much as he’d expected. [i]‘I’m sorry that things went sour between us Natsumi. I got too lost in my problems and my past, and didn’t look at our future together. I wish that you’re innocent like you say and are trying to do the right thing, but I don’t know what to think anymore. Those things you said just... I just hope you know what you’re doing.’[/i] ...13:12:24... Elsewhere in the VDS, Natsumi drove her bike on, not stopping for anything as she left the Dark City and passed, via a large bridge over a wide river, into a region called [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Skyscraper_2_-_Hero_City"]Hero City[/url]. Halfway across the bridge the darkness met sunlight at a definite line over which she sped, the sudden light glistening of her crimson runner. It was with deliberate irony that the VDS had put these two contrasting areas side by side, the homes of two contrasting sets of heroes that, although not the very definition of light and dark, were seen as rivals nonetheless. The light made Natsumi cringe. The weather in some locations was fixed, such as the Dark City, but in others night and day passed as they did the local time in Tokyo, and depending on the atmosphere of the stage the weather might change with varying regularity as well. She had never known anything but sunny days in Hero City, but the simulation of rain and snow came occasionally. The wonders of modern computing; oh how it had ruined her life. How she loved it, yet hated it. How it was in part responsible for her fall, yet now she was dependant on it to survive, and would play a part in her revenge. Unable to stand being out in the light any longer, Natsumi selected a darker location in which to warp to. Well they didn’t get any more darker than the ‘Dark Zone’. Natsumi selected the location, and the city disappeared for a few seconds. It was replaced by a dead landscape, overshadowed by a constant fog of thunder clouds. Able to stop, Natsumi took her Volcasaurus card from its place on her waist. As she held it, she thought back to Daiki and the aftermath of their meeting. [i]‘Damn you Dai. I don’t need your regret or your pity. I’ve done the duty I was asked of for now. You’re on the trail; you just better hope you can keep yourself from falling into the pits below. Now I can concentrate on my own goals. And if our paths cross again, and you get in my way, I won’t hold back a second time.’[/i] ...13:16:11... The tall human in smart clothes hadn’t moved for a couple of minutes now. The attack of the dragon looming over him must have had enough of an impact on his mind to make him collapse. Kesef felt no satisfaction in his victory. No pleasure, despite all the bravado, and certainly no remorse. Those things were recognisable to him, he could see the duelists he faced go through these emotions and realise what they were, but he had no feeling within himself. His voice seemed to come across differently depending on the situation, displaying rage or glee, but the changes meant nothing to him. They were beyond his control, they just happened as they happened without dwelling on it. He was a shell, a tool. All that existed was his one mission; his one purpose for his being. To hunt down the Numbers, and bring them to his mistress. Creating as much havoc in the process was a bi-product of the mission, one that the mistress has happy to allow. The crumpled figure lying before him was just another victim of misfortune. He had possessed a Number; he had to be defeated to take it from him. That was all there was to it. Nothing personal, no feeling, that was all. His mission here was almost accomplished. Kesef took a few steps to cover the distance towards the beaten duelist, stretching out his clawed hand. Garvan’s extra deck slot on his belt opened by itself, and the room filled with a blinding glow. Kesef stopped in his tracks, unable to see his way to proceed. The light faded, and the duelist lying face down on the stone floor of the Atlantian house began to groan, and push himself to his feet with a great effort. Kesef did not feel any kind of surprise, although his voice might have displayed it to Garvan. “How are you standing now?” “You expect me to know?” Garvan replied, rubbing his arm to bring some illusion of feeling back (LP 100). “You’re the one who knows so much about Numbers, you tell me.” “...Bah. Why tell you things you have no need to know? You’re not going to be a Number holder for much longer. You’re only still in this duel because Leviath Dragon can’t attack directly if it has no overlay units, so I couldn’t increase its attack to the maximum. You’re luck will run out soon. I place one card face down. Turn end.” Garvan: LP 100, Hand 3, Field empty Kesef: LP 3400, Hand 1, Field of No 17: Leviath Dragon and a face down Garvan gave his hand a look over. One monster, that was of no help whatsoever, and two other cards. Silently he added his fourth card, and tried to think of a way out. There had to be a way out, he couldn’t lose here to this pawn. If he did, it would endanger everything. There had to be a way past this monster and the duelist commanding it. “I place two cards face down. Turn end.” “Is that all?” the duelist sneered. “Then I will make this quick. I draw, and activate ‘Trap Stun’! This negates the effects of all other trap cards until the turns end phase. So your face downs will not be able to protect you. Neither will your Numbers power. Not this time! Leviath Dragon, Vice Stream!” Garvan smirked at Kesef. “Why would I need my face downs to protect me?” “Say what?!” The dark angel was drowned out by the burst of energy erupting from the jaws of the dragon overhead, firing down at the human who was placing a card onto his D-Disk. A small portal appeared in front of him, although the angel couldn’t see from his angle. But the attack had clearly hit something. A rippling barrier in the air, dispersing the attack sideways until it finally petered out, and revealed a small creature shaped like a pendulum floating in the air (Lv1, DEF 0). “When a direct attack is declared, I can summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Battle_Fader"]Battle Fader[/url] from my hand to negate the attack and end the battle phase.” So the persistent fool still wouldn’t go down. He had to submit in the end, he had no choice in the matter. “I summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Uminotaurus"]Uminotaurus[/url] to the field!” A creature wearing a hooded cloak that made it resemble an oversized sea slug appeared before him, bearing a small axe (Lv4, ATK 1700). “Uminotaurus gives all fish, aqua and sea serpent monsters the ability to inflict damage to monsters in defence mode. This may not apply to Leviath Dragon, but he himself can strike down Battle Fader to finish you on my next turn. Even if you somehow managed to commit to attack to get rid of Uminotaurus, Leviath Dragon can sweep in and finish it off. Either way the result is the same; your Number will be lost and you will fall! Turn end!” “Alright, time to do this then.” Garvan placed his hand to his deck. This plan went against his entire duelling philosophy. His way was to plan ahead with cunning tactics and strategy that were based on his already known resources. Playing by ear and plays based on blind faith in the card you needed being top of your deck and drawing it was Daiki’s way. But he had planned as much as he could, and it alone was not going to be enough to turn the match and save himself. He needed a little of Dai’s magic touch now. [i]‘Here goes I guess. Draw’[/i] The card he got was definitely helpful in at least surviving, but he couldn’t do that all day. He had to go on the attack, and that would require the hidden card to appear now. Looking down at it, he formed his strategy. To win. “I activate the trap [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Xyz_Reborn"]Xyz Reborn[/url]! This special summons Tinplate Archduke from the cemetery in attack mode.” The portly figure of the metal swordsman rose before him, a single comet orbiting his large round body (DRU 1). “Also, Xyz Reborn attaches itself to the revived Xyz monster as an overlay unit. Next I activate my other trap card [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Call_of_the_Haunted"]Cry of the Living Dead[/url]. My target is Gagaga Magician.” Kesef made a derisory noise. “You desire to go out of this world swinging? But it is pointless; none of your monsters can defeat Leviath Dragon.” “That might just be what costs you.” The dark angel was struck mute by this startling statement, by the glint in the guy’s eye. “I activate the effect of Gagaga Magician, decreasing his level to one. Then I summon [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Jester_Confit"]Jester Confit[/url] to the field.” A fat clown in baggy jester’s robes appeared beside the other monsters, balancing itself on a ball (Lv1, ATK 0). Hoping he had done enough, Garvan took the glowing card from his deck and held it high. Before his eyes the light covering it was ripped away, to reveal... [i]‘Perfect’.[/i] “I overlay level one; Battle Fader, Gagaga Magician, and Jester Confit!” The spark of energy from the three monsters spiralled upwards and fell one after the other, crashing into the starry portal before him. In their place rose a large blue gem at the top of an ornate gold cross shape, finished by a royal purple skirt fanning out on the underside, slowing rotating the object. Ripples of gold and purple light worked up the skirt and over the cross, the magic transforming it into the guise of a beautiful woman in a purple dress, adorned with a crown in her long maroon hair and a bewitching smile. The gem had become a sceptre in her hand. The number 83 appeared on the exposed skin just below her neck, as it did on Garvan’s shoulder. Power flowed through his body like he had never felt before. “Her infernal majesty rises, [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Number_83%3A_Galaxy_Queen"]Number 83: Galaxy Queen[/url]!" (Rk1, ATK 500) Trying to ignore his shaking hands, it took Garvan much effort to pick up his cards with his fingers and hold onto them. He couldn’t even concentrate on his ragged breathing. “I detach Xyz Reborn from Tinplate Archduke to use his effect, changing Leviath Dragon into defence position once more.” “So you plan to strike down Leviath your weak Number, Uminotaurus with Archduke” Kesef shook his head. “Then hope I can’t draw a monster with enough attack to overcome your exposed Galaxy Queen next turn. It’s a poor plan.” “That’s not my plan. I activate the effect of Galaxy Queen. By detaching an overlay unit, all monsters I control can inflict piercing damage to those in defence. Your dragon’s defence is zero. Now Archduke, attack it!” Once more the metal warrior slashed (ATK 2200), but this time it was met by a roar of pain. The dragon shook and snapped violently, but still did not go down. The dark duelist snarled with it as it felt the effect of the blow (LP 1200). “Now Galaxy Queen, follow it up with your own attack.” “This is futile!” Kesef started in panic. “Your attack will fall far short!” “That’s why I’m activating from my hand, Instant Magic [url="http://yugioh.wikia.com/wiki/Ego_Boost"]Giant Shadow of Egotism[/url]! This increases the attack of Galaxy Queen by one thousand during this battle phase. Begone demon. Take this!” With a high pitched laugh (ATK 1500), the queen released a bolt of power from her sceptre that struck the dragon straight in the wounded chest. With a final dying cry it finally sank into the beyond, thrashing and screaming all the way, its long body coming down on top of its duelist. The dark angel screamed in defeat before the dragon landed on top of him, before both of them vanished. Garvan stood there panting and shivering as the ARV began to dissipate around him, staring at the Galaxy Queen. She turned to him and smiled, before she slowly faded away. Tinplate Archduke also vanished as the virtual world returned to normal around him. The girl who had been lying unconscious across the room had also gone, but Garvan didn’t really notice. He couldn’t concentrate or think of anything, so battered and numb after what had transpired. He didn’t even notice the numbers on his body had vanished as well. A light caught his eye, drawing his dulled mind to the card lying on the floor where the two creatures had vanished. The card rose on its own accord and floated across the space towards him, to his automatically outstretched hand. The card depicted Number 17: Leviath Dragon. The symbols 17 appeared on the back of his hand for a brief moment, before they too vanished. Dumbstruck, Garvan staggered into a corner of the house, sat himself down, and tried to gather his thoughts. These Numbers cards, they were the cause of all this. But they were also the only way to fight back against those he would have to fight. There was much going on here, and he was part of it. ...13:25:03... “Sir, come quickly.” Gadsby looked up at the Somalian mercenary stood among the rows of the Real Duel employees now and waving at him frantically. All of them employees were sat completely still, their glazed over eyes staring past their computers and D-Gazers into the virtual world around them, all of them except for the one the soldier was stood by. A round man in a cheap suit was lying face down on his desk. This had happened a couple of times since the battle had begun; the employee had lost a duel and had collapsed, just like his many victims had in his victories. Why this soldier was reacting like this baffled him though. Gadsby nodded to another Somalian at the side of the room to fetch a replacement from their holding bay and made his way down. “What’s wrong with you? Why don’t you just put him with the rest of the defeated?” “But sir, he isn’t defeated...” The mercenary was staring at him with wide, darting eyes and struggling to speak. Gadsby assumed it was due to his lacking in the English language, but it was clear that was not the case. “Sir, he’s dead.” “What?” Gadsby pulled the suited man upright and searched for a pulse. There was none. He opened the man’s eyes. They were empty and unseeing. With his navy background, Gadsby had seen some things that would haunt him forever. This image would surely join the others. Searching the dead man, he quickly found his employee ID card, something all Real Duel personnel had, before hurtling back towards the top platform and towards the office Clarissa had set up in. She was there with Wilhelm and the others, who were all amazed at his shocked and sweaty appearance. A quick salute managed to excuse him of his sudden intrusion. “Pardon me ma’am, but we’ve just discovered something unexpected. One of the employees serving us has died whilst in the VDS.” Stunned silence overcame the room. “How?” Clarissa asked slowly. Gadsby gave Wilhelm the ID card, allowing him to do a name search. “Unimoto Bozu... thirty one... operations supervisor... no major conditions in his medical history. Last seen duelling in the Legendary City of Atlantis area duelling some guy called Garvan. Duel play by play... both summoned Numbers and he lost... but still... that doesn’t...” Wilhelm struggled to look up at Clarissa. She was staring at the screen with an odd look. “What of this Garvan?” Wilhelm bought up his profile. “Some high ranking officer in the Tokyo force. We know he... carries at least two Numbers now. I can send... some more drones after him if you want.” Clarissa nodded slowly, her eyes not moving from the screen. “Sister...?” “I’m fine Wilhelm.” With that she left the room, leaving Wilhelm, Gadsby and the observing Doctor Evos speechless.[/spoiler] So yeah, comments on anything and everything appreciated. Even if its your first or tenth comment, would just be nice to hear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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