Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

ACT ONE

Act One OP Song:

Block out the night all the boring noise that calls me to the world outside
Better not to try, just let me stay alone and well-hidden--shun thе light
And look, right there the crosswalk’s waiting, “plеase, hurry up” and come to me
The curb restrains and binds my body cut my ties and set me free, I need--

Oh, not again, now the train’s gone and left
And the cities too far to walk to the end, while I
Can’t call to mind all the words if I try, I find
To pocket them will keep them all alive
Wheeze through the night as my lungs burn inside
As I fake through the day that never subsides if I
Can’t call to mind all the words or the lines, I’ll try
To ride the train wherever it will go tonight

(Will Stetson, "Lagtrain- English Cover")

A clock ticked in the corner of the office, the sun starting to set and casting the room in dull, orange hues. “How do you feel right now, Rio?” Her therapist asked.  

“I feel great,” Rio lied effortlessly. She’d been through this before a few times over the past week, ever since she began to recover fully in the aftermath of the World Duel Carnival. She was lucky, she supposed, in that she didn’t fully remember the night that landed her in the hospital- it would be a bit harder to lie in order to advance through physical and mental recovery faster if she had been able to recall the exact sensation of being immolated.

But it wasn’t entirely a lie, Rio mused as the hospital-mandated therapy appointment went on. Sure, she was partly blind in her left eye. She had scars racing across much of her body, including patches on her face that were still healing. She had sustained severe nerve damage on her left side. Her stamina was shot thanks to smoke inhalation in her lungs, meaning she had to heavily regulate physical activity, and she would likely spend the next decade in and out of the hospital working to regain full control of her body and working to repair the worst of the damage, physically and mentally. It could still be worse, she thought wryly. 

She could have lost her sense of humor. That would truly be the worst casualty of this waking nightmare.

The doctor looked up at her from over their glasses. “We’ve gone over this in prior sessions, Miss Kamishiro, but it is important to stress this, especially if you are determined to leave as soon as you’re cleared. You’re allowed to not be at 100%, and what’s going to be important on your road to recovery is that you’re aware of that. Be careful about your limits, as trying to exceed them could likely land you right back here- and then no one would win.”

Rio forced herself to nod along. She got it, really. No one would fault her for spending the rest of the school year at home while she recovered, Ryoga bringing her homework along (it’d be a great way to make sure he stopped skipping class) so she could start with a clean slate in April next year. Going in now on a logical level would invite the worst reactions to her injuries- Rio knew children were cruel, sometimes not on purpose and plenty of times maliciously cruel. 

But she was… tired - emotionally rather than physically. Tired of the same walls, the same sterile environments, tired of how Ryoga treated her like fragile porcelain and looked at her like she’d give up the ghost and die if she did anything more physically strenuous than walk to the window and back. She wanted out of this stupid building. She wanted her life back- and if she couldn’t get that, she wanted a life for her own, at least.

Rio forced herself to swallow. “I understand Doctor Tanaka. But I think this is ultimately the best choice to make. If my brother and I decide later on that this was a mistake, I can check back in. But for now, I do believe I’m ready to go.”

Her therapist took down several notes, before clicking their pen closed and closing the notebook. “In that situation, as you’ve been found physically fit and mentally sound, I’m issuing a release notice. We’ll be in touch soon regarding follow-up appointments and medication, and if you feel the need for it in the coming weeks or months, a weekly appointment with a therapist.”

Rio let out a breath she hadn’t been aware she was holding. “Thank you Doctor.”

“You’re welcome.” The therapist gathered their equipment and started packing a satchel bag. “I’ll also pass along a message to your brother to pick you up. You should be cleared for discharge by tomorrow morning.” 

Rio said her goodbyes and left, an orderly guiding her back to her room. It’d be good to be back in normal clothes, and back outside of the hospital. It’d be the first step on her road to really recovering. 

The old family manor was still abandoned, barring a cleaning/maintenance service that went in once a year to keep the place from falling apart. Ryoga and Rio would gain full ownership of it when they turned 18, but neither were eager to return to it, so Ryoga had talked one of their parents’ relatives from out of town to sign a lease for an apartment near the school so they could stay in Heartland.

When Ryoga opened the door and let her in the next day, Rio noted how little had changed, as if it was still the day she went off to duel Thomas Arclight. Ryoga’s obnoxious purple throw blanket was still draped over the back of the sofa, the TV had a news channel on in the background, and the balcony window was left partly open to let the breeze in. Things were different when she took a deeper look though- the throw blanket was far more crumpled and one of the coffee tables had been dragged over, almost as if Ryoga had been sleeping more and more on the couch. The colors were less vibrant, everything a bit blurrier on one side. Peeking into her room also showed a few changes- the bed, previously in the middle of the room, had become pressed up against the corner wall, with almost everything essential left on what would be the right side when lying on it.

“Doc mentioned your left arm was a bit weaker, so I moved some stuff around so you’d be able to rely on your right,” Ryoga muttered, looking away as he saw Rio inspecting her room. “Hope it’s OK I went in.”

“I mean as long as you didn’t choose to sneak a peek my diary again,” she shot back instinctively, noting the slight surprise that crossed Ryoga’s face before he resumed his look of enforced teenage indifference. “But thanks. I could have helped, I know you had a chest injury after the Duel Carnival-”

“No. I had it under control,” he says bluntly. “Docs also said to make sure you keep pressure off it, so I’ll try to help keep an eye on it. And besides, that chest wound was fine.”

Rio hid a frown at that and at Ryoga’s dismissiveness over his own health- she could regulate her own usage of her arm, she’d already had to learn as part of her physio- but she let it slide. Ryoga had been worried, he probably had a lot of time to kill and was just trying to help. She could get him off her back later once it settled in that she was back and not about to crumble into dust.

“Well, thanks,” she eventually said, heading back to the kitchen unit. “I’m starving though. Wanna order out?” 

“Sure. Menus are–”

“Still beside the microwave? I know,” she shot over her shoulder.

Ryoga caught himself and chuckled. “Yeah. You pick tonight, your treat.”

“I’m hearing onions on my pizza then,” she said in a mocking singsong.  

“I will throw you off the roof,” Ryoga countered without any venom. “No jury would try me and I’d break the 99% conviction rate.”

“At least I’d make a beautiful corpse.” Rio scribbled down an order on a notepad page and passed it off to Ryoga. “Since you’re the only one with a working Gazer right now, you can make the call.” 

“Nah,” Ryoga said as he walked past her and reached into one of the overhead cabinets, “I got you covered.” He passed over a sloppily wrapped box to Rio- complete with icicle wrapping that he probably had to scrounge to find in the middle of July-, failing to hide a smirk. Rio pulled the wrapping open, eyes widening at a fresh new Duel Gazer that had a silver frame and purple lens. 

“This is… wow.”

“More than that,” Ryoga said, almost stumbling over some of his words, “It’s designed for people with sensory problems. It does a more direct interface with your optic nerves,, some technobabble stuff I didn’t fully get, but the clerk said it should help with any vision problems. Just in… you know, in case you wanna pick up Dueling again.”

Rio hummed in acknowledgement, running her thumbs over the Gazer. “I did and I do. It’ll help a lot. A tattoo might help as well-” Rio catches Ryoga’s expression jolting at that, “... once my scars heal up. I doubt any of my doctors would be happy to see me with a Gazer Tattoo next time we meet. But thanks.”

“I’d rather you not just for the heart attack that nearly gave me,” Ryoga muttered. As Rio began the installation and setup process on her Gazer, curled up on the couch, Ryoga made the call for the delivery, setting up some plates, drinks and cutlery instinctively. Right as Rio finished installing the mandatory updates, the doorbell rang. 

Rio let Ryoga handle it, slipping her new Duel Gazer over her left eye. It thrummed to life, searching for a Duel Disk to connect to instinctively and turning up blank. Rio scrolled through the settings, noticing a few extra modifications this model had over the one she’d had… Before. She turned off a few- her eye worked fine enough that she didn’t need a text to speech feature enabled- but did turn on a few color filters that cast her left vision in a slightly brighter hue and dimmed the display to put less pressure on her eye. She looked around experimentally, humming in appreciation, before saving the settings as Ryoga came back with two boxes of pizza.

Eating solid food outside of a hospital was a welcome relief, especially something as simple as an onion-slathered pizza (she knew Ryoga had checked her order twice before making it to ensure none of his was touched by that vegetable). As they made their way through their meals, Rio cleared her throat.

“So tell me about school. Did anything major happen? Make any friends- besides more gangsters?”

“The gang thing happened one time ,” he muttered bitterly. “Otherwise, one of the teachers in the  year below me tried to hack the power grid for a prank.”

“I’m guessing I can’t use that as an excuse to get out of CompSci if he teaches me.” 

“Uh, I stopped a museum heist-”

“Regular patron of the arts, Ryoga Kamishiro.” 

“Had my soul stolen by a guy with ice-cream hair-”

“I don’t know which of those statements to dissect more between the hair or the soul thing.”

“Eh, I walked it off a day later. I got a B in my last English class.”

“Neat.”

“Oh, and friend wise? Well, no one. But that brat Yuma hangs around enough that people think we’re friends.”

That was Ryoga for “I made a friend, but toxic masculinity means I refuse to admit it.” Rio hid her smile behind her hand. “Well tell me about him, I only know a bit from the Duel Carnival.”

“He’s a spontaneous idiot with nothing between his ears but that stupid swordfish haircut. He’s hyper, energetic, perpetually optimistic and he has the dueling talent of a rank novice.”

“And yet… he beat you.”

“And yet, he beat me,” Ryoga conceded. “Twice.”

“Wow.”

“Don’t get used to it, I’m still gonna kick your ass whenever we Duel.” 

“Ryoga, did our parents not teach you better than to pick on a disabled girl?”

“They also taught me never to give you an inch or you’ll take a mile, so don’t try and play the pity card.” 

“Ha. But Yuma sounds nice.”

“He…” Ryoga scoffed. “He could be worse, I guess.” 

A high compliment from Ryoga. Rio smirked again. “Meet anyone else these last few months?” 

“Well the guy who stole my soul… is still a dick, but we started chatting after the Duel Carnival. His name’s Kaito, he’s fine. I think he’s compensating for how short he is given he’s 18 and barely taller than me.”

Rio recalled the images of Kaito taken at the World Duel Carnival. “Wait. He’s 18?”

“I know, right? His legs do not like him. Easy way to tick him off if you wanna say you’ve made an adult have beef with you. He has a younger brother, too. That kid’s nice, if a bit weird.”

Rio saved the height information in her ever-evolving playbook of psychological warfare tactics, before gesturing for Ryoga to continue.

“Oh yeah, Yuma’s Dork Patrol of friends.” He rattled off a few names and glib remarks quickly, before pausing. “And there’s Kotori. She has the one solitary brain cell in that group. I think you’ll like her. She’s… substantially more tolerable than the rest of them.” 

“Oh? Well I’ll keep an eye out then.” Rio looked up from the slice she was about to eat. “Any chance I can meet them before school?” 

Ryoga shrugged. “I’m sure Yuma would run halfway across town if I indicated an interest in Dueling him, and where he goes Kotori follows so… yeah. Got anywhere you wanna go in particular?” 

“I was thinking the mall over on Seventh, the one with the big dome? The school wrote and said I could add some modifications to my uniform ahead of coming back so I wanna go to a tailor.” 

Ryoga nodded, reaching out for a notepad and scribbling out a few notes. “Yeah, I remember reading that when it got to you in the hospital. I could do a grocery run while I’m at it. Any ideas yet on what you’ll do to your uniform?”

“A few. Just gonna play it safe for now, but you’ll see it when we get back. Otherwise…” she paused, tapping a finger against her chin. “Let’s not commit too much. It’ll be a big scene change from a hospital to a mall so I don’t wanna over-exert myself.” 

Ryoga paused in his notes, awkwardly reaching out and placing a hand over Rio’s. “You recover at your own pace. Don’t force yourself to go past any of your limits, OK?” 

Rio smiled softly. “I know, bro. But I do wanna meet the ever-illusive Yuma Tsukumo.”

Ryoga rolled his eyes. “You two meeting’s gonna be the death of me, I can feel it.”  

“Please,” Rio scoffed. “I’ll only tell him the good embarrassing stories.”

Ryoga’s eyes narrowed and a growl slipped past his lips as Rio laughed to herself. 

As was always the case with Yuma, Kotori thought fondly, today had started somewhat normal before randomly U-turning to the unexpected. What had begun as just a day of catching up on chores with her mother was intercepted by Yuma near-barrelling into their front lawn, excitedly proclaiming that Shark was, willingly no less, offering to socialize with him. Kotori was pretty sure if Yuma had been hooked up to a generator right then he’d have fuelled Heartland for a year off sheer positive energy alone. 

What had intrigued Kotori though, beyond her already wanting to go to support Yuma during the inevitable duel he’d wrangle out of Shark, was that his sister would be present, fresh out of the hospital, and they were invited to get the chance to meet her ahead of Rio coming to school. Kotori got the underlying message of Shark’s message when she swiped Yuma’s Duel Gazer, reading into it to get the idea that Shark wanted people Rio knew ahead of going back to school so she’d know at least some friendly faces in the crowd. Shark had also included a photo of Rio so they’d know who to look for at the mall, and so, as he curtly put it in the message, “You can get any gawking you need done out of the way because I will throw you off an escalator if you so much as look funny at her.”

Kotori admired Shark’s protectiveness as she looked over the photo, having sent it to her own Gazer so Yuma could reclaim his and babble with Astral about a new strategy he’d been preparing for Shark’s deck while they walked to the mall. She could see the similarities between Shark and his sister- Rio had less overall harsh features, but the same point to their chin and the same casually arrogant expression that indicated an expectation of superiority- like a pair of emperors overseeing their territory. The photo of Rio had her wearing a loose turtleneck and gloves alongside a flowing dress and stockings. The scars on her face and neck were visible, running up the left side of her face up to her eye. Kotori frowned at the image, but got why the Kamishiros had sent it- to get the immediate reactions out of the way. Shark had mentioned once that Rio hated being looked down on, so Kotori figured that meant not bringing it up unless Rio did. 

(Despite it all, and to Kotori’s confusion, her heart-rate shot up when she saw Rio and the casual smile on her face. It must have been hot today, she decided as she felt her face flush)

Her deliberations (and an incidental research spree into treatment for burns out of curiosity), kept Kotori busy all the way to the mall, where a large glass dome loomed over a winding maze of escalators that connected each floor.

“Isn’t this the mall where you first saw Kaito?” Kotori muttered to herself. 

“Oh yeah!” Yuma noted cheerfully. “The way he came in was so cool, diving in with Orbital like nyoom, krash and then landing like a cool shonen rival!” 

“After which,” Astral murmured dryly for only Yuma and Kotori’s ears, “he proceeded to steal a man’s soul over a Number.”

“Eh, he feels sorry about it,” Yuma said airily. “And besides, the guy was a criminal!”  

“Yuma, I don’t believe that excuses the property damage, let alone the aforementioned stealing of a person’s soul!”

The two kept bickering until they got to the food court, where Shark was waiting, oddly tense. His eyes found them quickly (Kotori had shot a quick message as they entered the building, the latest in an odd string of texts the two shared in a group chat he’d mockingly called “Yuma’s brain cell managerial club.”) and nodded at the two teens and the floating ghost. 

“Yo,” he said casually. “We’re doing some errands around the place but just stopped for a bite. Hungry?” 

“You bet Shark! And always hungry for a duel too-” 

“Maybe later Yuma,” Shark interjected, a bit more curt than usual. “If Rio starts flagging I wanna get her back so she’s not too exhausted. I can’t get bogged down with a duel.”

“Oh…” Yuma sagged for a minute before shooting back up. “But if she’s still good after your errands, maybe we can? And in the meantime, can we help out with anything you’ve got left to do?”

Shark sighed. “Fine, you can help with a few things, but no promises about that duel. Let’s just grab a bite.”

The trio ordered before heading back to the table where Rio was sitting, typing away at a Duel Gazer. As they approached, Rio looked up and flashed a smile at them. 

“Hi, you must be Yuma and Kotori! Ryoga’s told me a lot about you. I’m Rio, the cooler sibling.” 

Shark rolled his eyes while Yuma started chattering away, introducing himself. Kotori felt her breath catch in her throat as Rio smiled, her heartbeat racing again and a flush building up the back of her neck before launching into the conversation. Rio was… captivating. The way her fingers brushed her hair back, her casual smirk as she bantered with Ryoga, that morphed into a genuine, friendly smile as she spoke to Yuma and Kotori. Witty, sharp, confident, and earnest in equal measure. Kotori was hooked on every word before she even realized that Rio had thrown out bait to be hooked with . Despite that, Kotori found she didn’t really mind. It felt good to be around Rio, to banter with her and learn Ryoga’s embarrassing secrets (alongside his hatred of onions, she’d remember that if she ever cooked for him in a group context). Rio had her chin propped on her right hand, eyes gleaming as she spoke animatedly.

The food court started to clear up, leaving an open area nearby. Yuma, having changed tactics, finally succeeded in badgering Shark into a duel while the rest of them sat down, Astral floating over as the two set up their Duel Disks. 

“Your friend’s stubborn,” Rio murmured casually. “It’s a good trait to have, especially with someone like my brother. He’s been obsessing over making sure I’m OK all day so he’s not had a chance to breathe for himself. He really needed this.” She flashes Kotori a smile that makes her heart skip a beat. “So thanks. And make sure I thank Yuma for this as well, especially if I get to see my brother eat dirt.” The two laughed at that. 

“Well, Yuma’s built his life around the idea that a good duel can help anyone. With the amount of people I’ve seen him win over through dueling, I don’t think he’s wrong.”

“So should I worry when he sees me walking around with a Duel Disk on my arm?” Rio said with a wry smirk.

“Oh, it’s a matter of when and not if,” Kotori said teasingly. “He’s predictable about it. He loves to insist you can learn about someone through how they play.”

Rio chuckled. “I’ll have to take him up on that- once I’m cleared to.” The second part came out as a more bitter mutter.

Kotori tilted her head. “I didn’t wanna ask about it unless you brought it up, but your injuries, do they…” she stumbled for the right words, “get in the way of dueling?” 

“You’re allowed to ask whatever you want, I’ll tell you if you ever ask something I’m not cool with answering,” Rio said. “It’s kinda hard to avoid. But… yeah, I can’t wear a Disk for a while or do a standing duel. Nerve damage compounded with muscle atrophy. It’ll be a few weeks before I’m cleared for it thanks to the physicality of AR duels.”

“I can imagine. It’s one of the reasons I don’t duel a lot myself.” 

That attracted Rio’s interest away from the duel they were watching, as Shark summoned out Black Ray Lancer. “Can you play at all? Or do you prefer observing?”

“I’ve learned the basics,” Kotori said, a bit defensively. “Hard not to when you’re around Yuma- especially when he was starting out, he was a very slow learner. But no, my deck isn't that great and I’m rusty with the more complex mechanics.”

Rio hummed in understanding. “That sucks. I’d be willing to teach you if you’re interested. Would be a good way to keep my skills sharp while I wait to get the all-clear to duel again.”

“I- I’d… I’d like that a lot, if that’s OK with you.” Kotori stammered over her words but flashed a tentative smile at Rio over it. “It’s very kind of you to offer.”

“Great!” Another beaming smile aimed at Kotori that sent her brain spiraling a thousand directions. Some deep part of her subconscious whispered: I want to make her smile like that again. She stamped on that part until it shut up for nowl. “I’ll give you my contact information so we can meet up whenever. I won’t be super busy after school besides homework so give me a shout whenever and we can meet up.” 

“Sounds good-”

They both looked over at a series of shouts, as Yuma was sent back, nearly flying right over a table. He caught himself on the edge and transitioned near-seamlessly into a handstand, grinning with wild audacity at Shark as he prepared a counter-attack (Kotori suddenly remembered hearing a gymnastics teacher lament Yuma’s agility being wasted on a Dueling field- “Forget the cards Yuma, my Aerobics team needs you!”). All the while, a feral grin stretched across Ryoga’s face in turn as he ensnared Yuma in a trap that chipped away at Yuma’s remaining Life Points. Neither were summoning their Numbers for this duel, but Yuma was making the most out of the monster he borrowed from Gauche- Excalibur, Kotori thought it was called?-, while Shark rotated between a seemingly endless array of Sharks that came out from his Extra Deck.  

“Well. Looks like they’re having fun,” Kotori remarked blithely, which made Rio laugh earnestly.

“Boys and their toys, right?” she managed to wheeze out. “I can’t tell if they want to kill each other or kiss each other. Granted, I’m probably no better when I get into the zone like that.”

‘I’d like to see that,’ Kotori thought to herself, jolting as the implications of that thought crept in a minute later. She stored that thought away for introspection at a later date. 

“Well, it’s hard to tell with Yuma sometimes- I think his first love was a Starter Deck as a kid- but he’s formed some genuinely deep bonds with people he duels,” is what she actually said. She’d seen first-hand what Yuma had done to seeming enemies through Duels, from Michael Arclight all the way to Shark. He had a talent, that much couldn’t be denied, of drawing people to him. He’d even managed to reach out to people Kotori would have otherwise considered morally reprehensible, like Kaito during the darkest days of his Number Hunting or Tron. Was it entirely wise? No, but Yuma made it almost look natural. 

Another wave of sound rushed towards Rio and Kotori, as Yuma managed to weaken Ryoga’s Full Armored Black Ray Lancer enough that he could get the win at the last second. As he celebrated with Astral and Shark started to pick himself up, their energy spread over to the girls, who smiled at the duel results.

“He’s good,” Rio observed. “I’ll have to see what he’s like as well once I can throw on a Duel Disk without terrifying a doctor.” 

“I feel you’d do that anyway,” Kotori noted coyly.

Rio laughed. “You’re right. I would. But if I keep Yuma waiting long enough he may break out a play-mat out of desperation.”

“Don’t give him any ideas,” Kotori muttered as Yuma and Shark walked up. “Great duel you two!” 

Shark shrugged, still a bit sore in defeat, but it was undeniable that the tension that had been around his shoulders earlier had passed. He looked almost relaxed, if Shark ever could fully relax. “Eh, it was OK. I’ll get him next time.” 

Yuma laughed, throwing an arm around Shark’s shoulders enthusiastically. “I’m sure you will Shark! I’m already raring for a rematch!” 

Shark rolled his eyes, but allowed Yuma to practically hang off him as he looked to Kotori and Rio. “All set to go? Think the only thing left was getting your new uniform.”

“Yep,” Rio nodded, starting to pile up their collected waste using her right hand. “Just that and then we’re done.”

“You still feeling good to keep going, or-”

“I’m good Ryoga,” Rio interrupted brusquely. “It’s only clothes anyway.”

“Mind if we tag along?” Yuma butted in. The siblings looked at each other, mutually shrugging.

“Fine,” Shark eventually said, “But you’re on bag duty until we get back to my bike. Deal?” 

“You got it Shark!” As Yuma began to scoop up some of Shark and Rio’s earlier purchases and Shark tried to keep him from “Ruining my bag system, Yuma, put that down!” Kotori quickly checked for anything more… fragile, in case Yuma’s two left feet struck again. She looked up as Rio cleared her throat.

“Kotori, would you mind… holding onto these for a bit?” Rio gestured at some of the bags she’d been sitting around, a look of reluctance crossing her face and forming into a scowl. “I’ll need my arm free for this next arm, my left’s starting to act up…” the admission looked like it was almost painful to voice as a scowl crossed Rio’s face. Kotori remembered how prideful Ryoga could be- outright ignoring everyone telling him to sit out the duel with Faker after he got a chest wound due to stubborn spite until he finally collapsed-, and realized that that compounded with her own extensive injuries meant… Rio was trusting her with this.

“Sure. Just let me know if I can take anything else for you while I’m here, but no pressure.” She smiled at that and Rio’s scowl faded, replaced with an earnest smile tinted with relief as Rio passed the bags over the table.

“Thanks, really." Rio sighed as she shook out her wrist. "I owe you for this. Ready to go?”

Kotori smiled back at Rio, her traitor heart beating faster at the success of making Rio smile at her like that again, as the quartet left the food court. “You bet.”

Could this be love at first sight?
Or should I walk by again?
You're photogenically dressed 

The conversation begins  

Oh God, now what did I say?  

Let me start over again  

Could this be love at first sight?

(The Brobenks, "Love At First Sight")

Act 1 ED Song:

Sitting in the back seat
We're driving so fast
Living in a daydream
It's too good to last
Rainy days and bad luck
Coming my way
I look for you when I am lost
So I don't go insane

Break me down
And I'll call you mine
And I know I've been around
And I'll call you mine, so I
Break me down
And I'll call you mine
And I know I've been around

(Girl in Red "I'll Call You Mine")

Chapter Text

As befitting what Rio would expect when given a primer on Kaito Tenjo by Ryoga, his lab was a barely-organized mess. Dark, difficult to navigate, and it felt at times like a boy trying to play at being an adult. Why Kaito thought a never-ending stream of data on the walls and a giant blue crystal made for appropriate lighting was beyond her, but it would explain why he looked like the spawn of Nosferatu with how pale he was.

Being based in the literal center of a giant theme park did little to help the latter assessment. Apparently, he had an actual lab elsewhere in Heartland that wasn’t in a thematically ironic place, but it… blew up somehow. Ryoga didn’t know more than that as he was in the hospital when it happened, and both Yuma and Kaito had dodged answering the question fiercely whenever he had gotten curious. 

Kaito was also, and Rio said this fully aware that he had nearly two inches on her, short. Given Ryoga had mentioned Kaito was 18, she expected him to have at least a few inches on Ryoga, only to be bemused when she realized that puberty had been merciless to Kaito. Perhaps that, she wondered as she laid eyes on the feared Number Hunter, was why he liked having rivalries with literal middle schoolers.

“Yo,” Ryoga called out unceremoniously as he and Rio entered the lab, Kaito situated in front of an array of monitors. He turned to give Ryoga a nod, pausing as he saw Rio for the first time.

“Ah. I wasn’t expecting you to bring your sister here.” He spoke with a soft lilt but was otherwise near completely deadpan, a blank stare meeting the twins.

“She invited herself,” Ryoga shrugged. “That a problem?” 

“No.” He turned to give her his full attention. “Tenjou Kaito. I’d heard about you. Your brother speaks highly of you and your skills.” He nodded his head at her. “I’m glad you’re out of the hospital and on the road to recovery. Welcome to the “Hating Thomas Arclight” club, your group chat membership will be given shortly.”

Rio smiled. “Thank you, I look forward to our club seminars.” She paused for a second. “Will say though? You’re shorter than I expected.”

Kaito blinked in surprise. Ryoga paused mid-step, cursing quietly as he kicked his foot off a computer terminal by accident. 

“You expected more?” Kaito eventually asked when he regained his voice.  

“I mean, from what Ryoga told me. I was just expecting something a little bit different. How you were this cool Number Hunter with a flying robot and a badass dragon.” She put her right hand on her hip, a cocky grin decorating her face. “Instead you almost like you'll be flipping houses in ten years. And like… you have, what, two inches on me when you discount that upside-down ice-cream cone you call a haircut? I still have puberty to look forward to kicking my ass, what’s your excuse?”

Kaito’s lips twitched. “I had a bad dad who wasn’t around enough to make sure I was eating my brussel sprouts.”

“Can confirm the bad dad,” Ryoga chimed in lazily. “He was a dick. Fun to beat up though.”  

“Yes, everyone should beat up their bad dads in a 3v1 Duel. Very cathartic,” Kaito added, deadpan. “But regardless, do try to learn from my mistakes.”

“Which ones?” Rio said. “Should we start alphabetically or chronologically?” 

Kaito snorted, hiding his mouth behind his hand, before he turned to Ryoga after resuming his stone-like face. “I like her,” he said drily. 

“Yeah,” Ryoga said with a put-upon sigh. “She’s annoying, but she’ll grow on you.”

“Like a good rash,” Rio chimed in cheerfully. 

Ryoga let out another sigh while Kaito’s lip twitched again. “Well, you said it,” Ryoga muttered, “not me.”

“Quite,” Kaito said, a hint of something warm entering his tone. “In the meantime, I’ve largely got no news on…” he pauses, looking over his shoulder at Rio. “How much have you told her?”

“About the literal aliens that nearly blew up the city a few weeks ago?” Rio answered for Ryoga. “Ryoga let it slip when I asked why he’d gotten into a fist-fight with a robot.”

Ryoga shrugged. “It was that or say a vending machine stiffed me on a bag of chips and the litterbots didn’t take kindly to me tipping it, and I decided to go for the one that didn’t give her ammunition against me.” 

“That’s…” Kaito paused. “About the level of logic I’d expect from you after the Acid Golem incident in our duel.”

Ryoga’s eye twitched and he looked like he was going to tackle Kaito before he could keep talking.

Rio’s eyebrow rose. “You dueled? And what you mean by 'Acid Golem incident?'” She asked, her voice rising at the prospect of learning new information about Ryoga. Better, even- humiliating information.

Ryoga sighed wearily. “You’re gonna tell her if I don’t, won’t you?” 

Kaito paused. “Will it cause you to torment him, as it regards the story of how I beat him when we first met?” He asked Rio.

Rio, eyes widening, nodded enthusiastically, a feral grin stretching across her face. “Tell me everything.”

“I’m gonna kill you for this,” Ryoga muttered at Kaito, who waved him off. Kaito typed in a few commands, starting a few simulations to resolve in the background, before turning to Rio, giving her his full attention.

“To explain as context, I had a Number in my Extra Deck at the time called Acid Golem of Destruction- it’s a generic Rank 3 with 3000 Attack, but it burns you for damage every turn as a consequence if it has no Overlay Units. I had two Level 3s on the field and your brother had a floodgate preventing low-attack monsters from attacking, so I used it.” 

“He’s leaving out that this guy’s antiquated enough to run a Fusion Monster,” Ryoga bitterly mutters.

“Yes, and I only run it out of morbid curiosity because my deck has one, for some reason. What does it say that it helped me beat you, I wonder?”

Ryoga grumbled and flipped Kaito off, while Kaito returned his focus to Rio.

“As it turns out, Ryoga was convinced that Acid Golem, or rather any Number I summon, would be my ace, so he used a card to take it. I used a spell to remove its Overlay Units, which meant Acid Golem started inflicting damage to him each turn.”

“Ouch,” Rio managed to choke out amidst a rapidly growing laughing fit.

“Oh come on!” Ryoga said defensively. “Any other Number Duelist, and that would be objectively the right move.”

“Yes. And I’m the Number Hunter, not the Number Borrower. Regardless, next turn I summoned my Ace, Galaxy-Eyes, and attacked, which caused Acid Golem to inflict damage and destroy itself as it had no Overlay Units. His Life Points hit zero, I won by Turn 4.”

As Kaito concluded his story, the room fell silent, besides him observing Rio’s reaction, Ryoga seething beside the duo, and Rio’s shrill laughter, which bounced off the walls. She had to prop herself up on Ryoga’s shoulder, pointing at him as she cackled.

“So you mean to tell me,” Rio managed to wheeze out, “You lost because of the monster you stole, and inflicted… how much damage on Kaito overall?” 

Kaito let a small smirk show as he was silent for a moment to let the suspense build. “None,” he finally revealed. “I took no damage during the entire duel.”

“HA!” Rio howled. “I am never letting you live this down! Imagine losing because of your own 4D chess strategy, sucker!" She clutched at her sides. “Oh man, I might pull at my scars if I keep laughing, this is starting to hurt.”

“Hey!” Ryoga bit back. “I lost my soul because of that! I was in the hospital!”

“And?" Rio countered, fully ready to counter Ryoga's usage of the hospital card. "You got it back… if you ever had one to begin with.”

“Bite me.”

“Like you’d even be my type!”

Kaito leaned back on his computer, crossing his arms as he relaxed while watching the bickering. “Are sibling arguments always this… vitriolic?” 

Ryoga and Rio paused, considering it. “I mean… yeah, kinda,” Ryoga eventually said, looking at Rio for confirmation. When she nodded while shrugging, he turned back to Kaito. “Why?”

Kaito shuddered. “Just… enjoying Haruto and his innocence while I can.”

Ryoga shrugged. “From what I’ve seen of him, I doubt you’ll get a sibling as…” he struggled for a word. “Cutthroat, that’s the word… as us.”

“How about opportunistic, instead?” Rio suggested.

“Hmm." Ryoga hummed. "Vicious, maybe?” 

“Pragmatic?” 

“Sociopathic?” 

“Ruthless?” 

“Bitter?”

“Oh,” Rio snapped her fingers. “How about conniving?” 

“Conniving’s good, yeah,” Ryoga agreed, before turning back to Kaito. “But yeah, don’t worry about Haruto. He’s a good kid… unlike us.”

Kaito’s expression softened for a minute, his left thumb subconsciously rubbing his palm. “He is,” he murmured. “I suppose all of us here know about doing what’s best for our siblings.”

The mood sobered up at that, until Kaito’s computers let out some notifications. His shoulders stiffened as he got back into a focused work state of mind.

“Back to it, then. Let’s see if we can decipher anything else about the Barians using the information I got during the fight with Faker. If you’re free, I could use help collecting this information across a few terminals?” 

“Sounds good,” Ryoga said. Rio nodded.

“Thank you. Orbital will help explain what we’re looking for.”

“So, think we can add this to our resume?” Rio muttered as she draped her coat over a nearby chair. 

“I doubt that ‘interdimensional scientist intern’ would look good on a CV,” Ryoga shot back. “Also it’s unpaid work.” 

“Darn,” Rio cursed. She leaned back, glancing over at Kaito at his central terminal. Something caught her eye; Kaito’s left hand was shaking. The tremors were sharp enough that she could see going all the way up to his elbow, while Kaito’s right arm was clenched in a veritable vice grip around the other limb. Kaito’s silly robot rolled up, but he waved it off before it could get a word in, maintaining his grip until his left arm started to slow down. Kaito’s head dipped, and Rio could just make out the sound of him letting out a pent-up breath before he resumed his work.

As he did, Rio let out a breath she hadn’t been aware she was holding. Ryoga didn’t know the full specifics of how Kaito’s Photon Change worked beyond Yuma admitting at one point it had pushed his body to its limits, but… she knew those tremors. She had those tremors. 

Rio hummed, a well of sympathy opening up in her heart for Kaito as he got back to work right away- as if his arm hadn’t seized up seconds prior. Ryoga had had them meet so Rio could see he’d actually socialized while she was in the hospital, but part of her wondered if she may have had a connection or two with Kaito Tenjo beyond what either of them expected. 

“Are you sure it’s OK for us to be back here?” Kotori asked, looking around inside Shark’s bedroom. He was out for a few hours and Rio was fresh back from an appointment at the hospital. Physically exhausted but too wired to get rest, she had invited Kotori over suddenly to take a look at her deck and give it a tune-up.

“What’s he gonna do, be offended that we went through his stuff?” Rio scoffed. “I’m not gonna read his diary or anything- but if you want to, it’s likely in the nightstand behind you.” She tossed Kotori a knowing wink before throwing a few things out of the way as she dived into Ryoga’s wardrobe. “I’ll put all this back, but I just need to find… oh man that sock needs an exorcist instead of a wash… come on, where are you… aha!”

She came back out, holding a cardboard box under her right arm and looking smug. 

“What’s this?” Kotori asked as she followed Rio back into the main room of the apartment.

“This,” Rio proclaimed as she placed it on the table and cracked it open, “Is our bulk! Every spare booster pack card, scrapped deck idea, card we scrounged and abandoned combo line is all collected here..”

“Wow,” Kotori let out an impressed breath. “You held on to everything?” 

“You never know what’ll come back and be useful one day! And unlike when a parent says that about some old clothes, it really can be real with cards. If we need more I should have a stash of my own hidden in my closet…” Rio rummaged through and found one particular card, waving it in Kotori’s face. “Oh, oh! This, you gotta see this one. I’m not gonna tell you to run it, but this was a legit meta card at some point!"

Kotori peeked at the card. She looked up at Rio and her grin. Then she looked back at the card, face and tone taciturn. “... Rio, that’s a mushroom.” She eventually said.

“No,” Rio started to wheeze in laughter, “I swear, it saw play! Don’t look at me like that, I’m not pulling your leg!”

Kotori chuckled as she helped pull out the rest of the cards in the box, which had been neatly sorted and categorized to get the most out of the box’s space. “Wow, you’ve made the most out of this box.” 

Rio scoffed. “You can thank Ryoga for that. He found a video tutorial about ‘neat organization of you and your living space’ the month before we started storing our collection that kicked off a neat freak phase for him. It meant that while we were starting to use that box for cards, he was super weird about cleaning.”

“That sounds… intense.”

“I mean, it was fine. I learned eventually that if I was tactically lazy, he’d do most of the chores by getting caught up telling me how my placement of the cushions wasn’t up to his Feng Shui standards, or that the way I loaded the dishwasher didn’t Spark Joy. He only stopped once he realized I’d tricked him into cleaning everything outside of my own bedroom one day.” Rio’s eyes twinkled as she told the story. “He was seething for weeks.” 

As they laughed together over Shark’s misfortune, Rio kept sorting through the box, making a collection of piles as she went. She explained her process to Kotori as she went, listing off cards that she was putting aside because they were either bad or didn’t fit either of their decks, while Rio made two piles of cards on both sides of the table- one for her and one for Kotori, while she was also entering card names into a list for her to track down later.

“My deck’s a bit outdated as it’s been a while and the World Duel Carnival brought in a few new strategies,” she noted, “So while I’m helping you I’m also preparing and modifying my own deck in the process. Everyone wins!”

“Well I assure you,” Kotori noted wryly, “I’d gladly sit around just to watch you build your deck, as long as you kept sharing embarrassing stories about your brother.” She left out the, true if perhaps too sappy, line that came to her tongue of, “But then, I could hear you talk about anything for hours and enjoy it.”

Rio sighed wistfully. “Oh Kotori, my darling apprentice in Ryoga Humiliation Hours.” She leaned forward and flashed a devious grin. “Just wait until you see what I’m saving for when I’m back at school and really want to humiliate him!” Her voice shifted lower as she put on a somewhat gutteral accent. “We’ll have such sights to show Yuma and the rest of your friends…”

Kotori leaned in conspiratorially, a grin of her own tugging at her lips. “I’ve not seen that film, but I know we’re both too young for it.”

“I was in a hospital bed for a few months with unsupervised access to the internet, what else would I do but watch the classics?”

“Can’t fault your logic there.” Kotori looked at one of the cards Rio was holding before she got distracted, pointing at it. “How’s that card? It’s a Rank… 5 if I can see from here, and you’re all about those, right?” 

Rio jolted away, looking down at the card in her hand. “Oh yeah! Ice Princess Zereort! Haven’t seen this in a while.” She flicked it around between her fingers, as if she was on a dueling stage about to summon it in front of an adoring crowd. “I was running it for a bit but swapped it out for some other cards- and now I’m waiting for most of those cards to be shipped here as I had a few rare ones that…” Rio trailed off awkwardly, her left arm shaking slightly for a second.. “Well they’re not playable anymore,” she eventually concluded, “so I need new cards. This’ll fit.”

Kotori winced. “Sorry for making you think of… it.”

Rio waved her hand casually. “Don’t worry about it! I told you already, if I don’t feel like talking about it, I won’t!” Her voice had a forced casual tone to it before she returned to inspecting Zereort. “I’ll throw you back in, for sure.” Rio looked over at Kotori. “You know, I used to run this as a kid in some of my older decks? Me and this card have a bit of history.”

Kotori saw the lifeline Rio was offering, a chance to shift the topic away, and grabbed it. “Why not tell me about it?” She made herself comfortable, propping her chin on her hands while Rio took a sip of water.

“Yeah, sure! So this came about about four or five years ago in an older set, and I really liked birds- but most of the good bird decks focused on Synchro, and at the time that wasn’t really a practical choice- I think we still have a few Synchro Monsters in the box here somewhere, but not many.” 

“Right, and even then, not many people use Synchro here,” Kotori remembered. She wasn’t that old when the news broke, but she did remember when Neo Domino City worked with Industrial Illusions to phase out Synchro Summoning on a near-institutional level in the aftermath of attacks on the city’s Ener-D reactors. Apparently a top scientist, Fudo or something, also had evidence that Synchro Summoning was having a metaphysical effect on the climate, so the decision was made to heavily regulate it outside of Riding Duel events- and as those had never made it out to Heartland before the news broke, it meant that Synchro Summoning went near-extinct in the city. XYZ Summoning was introduced as an alternative summoning method in the aftermath, and ever since then XYZ had become the norm. Synchros had only just recently been fully legalized again after scientific advancement, but the technique had fallen years behind innovation-wise, so it was still a fledgling scene outside of Neo Domino.

“Exactly,” Rio replied. “But, a kid’s desire to play cards that look cool over the need to be practical or win a tournament won out, so I just grabbed some birds and never really stopped running them. I have a few of Ryoga’s old Shark cards here as well just for Water synergy and so I have a bigger toolbox of XYZ Monsters, but my deck’s core has always been around these avian allies.” Her tone shifted, becoming increasingly fond as she thumbed through her deck.

“That’s nice,” Kotori said sincerely. “It’s always great when Duelists have those kinds of bonds with their cards. It might sound a bit silly, but it’s one of the things that makes me wish I played enough to have that kind of companionship.” 

“Eh, not that silly. You’re starting comparatively late to the rest of us, but we’ll find you a strategy to call your own and then you’ll have that kind of connection for yourself.” Rio flashed a smile at Kotori before setting down Zereort and picking through the box. “I was thinking about this last night, and I thought of a few archetypes that could appeal to you, if we wanna stick to the Fairy theme of your current deck…”

Rio picked up a few different cards and began speaking, throwing out a few ideas for decks with different play styles that Kotori may like. She’d clearly done her research on this, covering her tracks for if Kotori wanted to pivot to a control playstyle, something that focused on swarming the field, or just an old fashioned beatdown deck, and she’d clearly prepared that research- she spoke freely and consistently, reciting off cards and combos with next to no hesitation. For a portion of her little presentation, Rio was looking away from Kotori, looking down on the cards with fondness as she reflected on her own memories of playing with and against them before settling on her own deck. 

But as she did, Kotori’s focus began to slip and wane away from the cards and the lessons Rio was trying to share. It was interesting, for sure, getting to see the more technical side of deck composition after her time around Yuma and seeing how he approached his playstyle. If Yuma and his deck of onomatopoeic monsters were an improvised jam session where he made due with the instruments available, Rio was a pre-prepared concerto, assisted by a voice that Kotori was sure could read the phone book and sound stimulating. Kotori couldn’t help herself but just stare at Rio and… be smitten.

She could admit it, she realized. She was smitten with Rio, beyond just the enjoyment of getting to hang out with a girl who shared the same hobbies who hadn’t tried to attack or kidnap her on their first meeting (full offense, Anna and Cathy). Rio was sharp, witty, kind, so very funny, and beautiful throughout it all. Kotori had never looked at girls like that before, but watching Rio caused her heart to perk up, as if always ready to skip a beat from just being in Rio’s presence. She watched the lazy smile that drifted across Rio’s face as she talked, and felt her mind and heart say in perfect synch: “I want to make her smile like that at me every day.”

“... Kotori? Earth to Kotori?” 

Kotori jolted as she snapped back to consciousness (had she been drooling? Oh man she hoped not).”Oh, sorry?”

Rio chuckled. “I get it, it’s getting late and I did prattle on there a bit-”

“No!” Kotori waved her hands frantically. “I really liked listening to you talk, genuinely! You clearly know a ton about the game and it’s really engaging to listen to!”

Rio paused, her lips open for a second before a satisfied smirk crossed her face. 

“Well,” she eventually said with a coy wink, “Thank you! You’re fun to talk to.”

“I… thank you? I’m glad I was nice to talk to…”

“Not was. You are nice to talk to,” Rio insisted. “As a matter of fact, I’d enjoy hanging out with you more in future because I really enjoy your company..”

Rio would have to be blind in both eyes to ignore the flush racing up her neck and cheeks. Kotori frantically looked down at the card pile to avoid looking Rio in the eye (and seeing that heaven-sent smirk) for a minute. “So, uh, what were your overall findings on decks?” She managed to say, even avoiding an awkward voice crack that nearly broke through. 

Rio chuckled. “It is getting late, for real, so we should wrap it up soon.” Rio’s hands came into view, gently dividing Kotori’s pile into sub-sections. “I was going to conclude that you might like this deck- “The Agent.” It’s a control deck with a focus on banishing that has some options for offensive play, and a few tricks that can even get you past Numbers, if you wanna duel with Yuma some time. You can keep those ones, Ryoga and I both aren’t the type to play with these kinds of cards.” 

Kotori, composure (somewhat) regained, searched through the cards Rio highlighted. “Oh, I get you. These could work!” As she said it, something in Kotori clicked at the idea of working with these cards- as if her soul itself looked at these Agents and gave it the seal of approval. “Would you like anything for these?”

“I’m glad,” Rio said warmly. “And no, I don’t need anything in return. You can take whatever. But I have a favor to ask before you go.”

“And that is?” Kotori looked up, meeting Rio’s eyes right as a spark of competitiveness entered them.

“Well, let’s give them a test drive,” Rio declared, shuffling her deck while smirking. “You might like the look of them but let’s see if you really do connect with them the way I think you do. Besides,” she added, “It’s been ages since I got to duel anyone seriously besides Ryoga. I’m practically bouncing off the walls, so the idea of helping you build a deck and then testing it? I’m all in favor.” 

Kotori matched Rio’s smirk with a confident, if shaky, grin. “Alright then.”

Kotori quickly gathered the cards around her, shuffling them together. When she was done, she helped Rio clear the table before they sat facing each other.

“Ready?!” Rio said. Kotori nodded, feeling a burst of adrenaline as her hand settled over her deck, ready to draw.

“Duel!”

Group Chat: “Hating Thomas Arclight Hours.”

Members (2): Kaito, T. Ryoga, K.

Ryoga, K, added Rio, K, to “Hating Thomas Arclight Hours.” (15:37 PM)

Kaito, T. gave Rio, K, the role: Admin. (15:37 PM)

Kaito, T: “I feel you have the best claim of hating him here so you get admin privileges.” (15:37 PM)

Rio, K (Admin): “Oh my God you weren’t JOKING about the group chat!.” (15:38 PM)

Ryoga, K: Replying to Kaito, T: “I mean, does she have the best claim? He ruined my career!” (15:38 PM)

Kaito, T: “What career?” (15:39 PM)

Rio, K: “what career.” (15:39 PM)

Rio, K: “HA HA HA HA HA.” (15:40 PM)

Ryoga, K: “... you all suck.” (15:48 PM)

Am I allowed to look at her like that

Could it be wrong when she's just so nice to look at

And she smells like lemongrass and sleep

She tastes like apple juice and peach

Oh, you would find her in a polaroid picture

And she means everything to me

(Oh)

I'd never tell

No I'd never say a word

And oh it aches

But it feels oddly good to hurt

(“She,” Dodie)

Chapter Text

It was one thing, Rio mused, to know that she was heading back to school for the first time. The knowledge of returning to her old habits and routines like juggling homework with her social life, the old bus lanes and train fares all resuming place on her mental street-map and returning like muscle memory. It should logically have been a comfort, a big sign of her recovery that she was ready to resume her education, one more step towards putting her past behind her for good.

It was one thing to know it. It was another thing entirely, however, to live it. 

The school board had approved a customized version of the boy’s uniform to allow Rio to cover the majority of her scars. She was wearing a full jacket and trousers that left nothing below her neck exposed, leaving only the scars that ran up her left cheek on display. With her hair framing strategically covering most of the other angles, it meant Rio’s scars could only be really seen from an eye-to-eye point of view. Her and Ryoga had floated the idea in the weeks before she was cleared to leave, debating on if minimizing exposure to the scars might avoid less of the reactions Ryoga was worried about- gawping, pointing, staring. The staring would be the worst of it, either laced with judgment, mockery, pity, or worse; all three, Rio couldn’t honestly decide which of the three would drive her up the wall first.

As she learned later once she was discharged and had been walking around with some more of her scars on display, the answer had been pity. The pity upset her the most, made her feel like a broken jar or pot being tutted over by some hyper-obsessive nanny about being broken . That word especially lit a fire in her- she was not broken, she would not be broken just because some concerned citizens were aghast at the reminder that bad things could happen to children.

It made her teeth grind, she thought as she walked into Heartland Academy, the crowds bustling around her as she took in the school properly for the first time in a while. The prior meetings had been held virtually in either her apartment or while in the hospital, so this was her first time physically being back on the school grounds since her hospitalization. They’d been very accommodating, eager to help Rio however they could while she recovered. They had even offered to let her take the rest of the school year from home via virtual learning, but Rio had turned it down; she wanted to be out and about, not sealed away in a gilded cage. Her uniform had been another concession, trading out the sleeveless top and miniskirt for a modified version of the boy’s winter uniform. It was paradoxical, in a way- it let her cover up the worst of her injuries, let her blend into a crowd easier while out in town, but here in the middle of school, it stood out by not following the trends of the other uniforms. She powered through, keeping her head high and back straight as she made her way to her first classes, but she couldn’t help but notice the tracking of eyes that followed her, the whispers that made their way to her ears.   

It made her skin crawl, and she hated to her core that it did. She’d never in the past worried about people her age staring at her or talking about her, but everything was new now. Rio was walking into a viper’s nest where every move now could determine how she was looked at going forward- with scorn, admiration, condescension and more besides. She wanted none of it, she wanted to be met with mild surprise at most, like “Oh, you’re back.” Instead, she felt like a prey animal being examined for weakness by predators, waiting for a slip up that would determine how the cruller students would react.

Rio took a moment at the door of the school to prepare herself. She took in a breath, held it and let it out. Let them watch. Let them size her up, she wouldn’t bend or give them any material to hold against her, outside of anything she willingly gave. She would never, above all else, break. Not again. Never again .

Rio stepped through the door, head held high, and began her first day back at school.

Private Messages, Ryoga, K. and Rio, K.

Ryoga, K (12:01 PM): Hey, how are you doing?

Rio, K (12:03 PM): Getting by. Lunch just started. Classes have been OK so far.

Ryoga, K (12:04 PM): Yeah, I can see from here. Yuma and his friends like to hang out on the roof during sunny days for lunch. Was told to offer you an invite if you wanted somewhere a bit more private? 

Rio, L (12:06 PM): Sounds good. I’m on my way.

Yuma’s friend group was… eclectic, Rio thought to herself as she ate her lunch, a gentle buzz of conversation surrounding her. Yuma himself was loud and boisterous, but tried to avoid talking over the others as he lamented the tribulations of public education or shared stories about Duels. Tetsuo was clearly nursing a crush on her, which both fed her ego at the idea that people could think she was pretty, while making her cringe that it was a boy who found her pretty, meaning she’d have to gently let him down before he kept barking up the wrong tree. The class representative, Todoroki was nice, if a bit proud. Tokunosuke, no offense to him intended (That was a lie, a little offense was intended), was a bit of a weirdo, but Rio figured that Yuma wouldn’t let someone who would try to hurt him be his friend. She then remembered her brother and what he had gotten up to while she was in hospital, and rescinded that thought. There was also Cathy the catgirl, but Rio could… unpack that later. And while Ryoga was too proud to sit with them, instead hanging out on an elevated patch of roof underneath a water tower, he still chimed in a familiarity that told Rio everything she needed to know about how regular Ryoga’s visits were to Yuma’s friend group, regardless of how much he’d try and deny it or say they were annoying.

Kotori was a pleasant constant to it all, alternating between being a veritable ray of sunshine made sentient with how kind she could be, and yet also hiding some killer sardonic lines, usually at Yuma’s behest. The two talked together easily as the lunch period went on, Rio ingratiating herself well. She liked Yuma’s friends, overall. Not yet enough that she’d willingly hang out after school with most of them solo (barring the obvious two exceptions), but at that level of camaraderie where they were good company to have during the school day. She made a note internally to thank Ryoga for the idea, as this beat her original idea for lunch of just wandering around after quickly eating to get the lay of the land.

Rio’s introspection was interrupted by fidgeting to her right, Yuma starting to bounce around in his sitting position as if he needed to vent off energy. “So Rio…” he eventually got started on saying through a rice ball.

“Yuma,” Kotori and Ryoga said warningly at the same time. Yuma noticed and made a show of swallowing while rolling his eyes at their judgemental stares, Rio chuckling to herself at the idea of Ryoga getting roped into supervising Yuma’s table manners.

“Sorry,” he said before clearing his throat. “As I was saying,” he shot a glare over Rio’s shoulder to the two behind her, “You’re all healed up now, right? You’re all OK?” 

Rio pondered the question. The overall answer was yes, she was largely healed from the worst of her injuries. At this point there was only a matter of check-ins in case of lingering smoke damage to her lungs (tests right now looked good, but she had suffered a hit to her stamina so she’d been issued an inhaler as a just-in-case measure), checking her remaining burn scars (no real progress there beyond keeping up with ointments and pain medication, unless she pushed to get a skin graft that would require a few weeks of bedrest she was eager to avoid, so they had an appointment earmarked for Winter Break) and general physical therapy to regain muscle mass while trying to avoid tearing at her scar tissue.

Physically she was largely healed. Mentally? Well, if she still wanted to find Thomas Arclight and enact various forms of horrifying physical violence, that was between her and her therapist, and Rio wasn't a snitch.

“Yeah, I’m pretty good,” she eventually said in a flat tone, avoiding a glance from Ryoga that showed he knew how big an asterisk was beside that statement. “I could have spent a bit more time in hospital recovering if I wanted, but I was eager to get out once I woke up and that helped jump-start my recovery. Barring, like…” she waved her hand in the air, “one or two things, I’m largely cleared for physical activity too. No marathons in my future, but everything else is back on.”

Yuma nodded, leaning forward. “So that means you can finally Duel then, right? Like, proper AR Duels and everything?” A note of excitement so blatant Yuma wasn’t even trying to hide it entered his voice, his eyes lighting up like he was a sentient ray of sunshine. It was kind of adorable, Rio had to admit to herself, like Yuma was the younger brother she never had.

(As opposed to the older brother she did have by twelve minutes who ticked her off every week, screw you Ryoga for wanting to be first) 

The conversation had lulled for a brief moment so everyone heard Yuma’s question, provoking a wave of groans from Tokunosuke, Todoroki, Cathy and Tetsuo while Kotori looked smug, the group reaching suddenly for their wallets.

“Yuma,” Tetsuo said in a tired tone, “You didn’t even last three hours!” 

“I knew I should have low-balled him,” Tokunosuke muttered while counting out notes before slamming them into Kotori’s expectant hand.

“You’ve gotta be Kitten me Yuma, I had 1500 Yen on you making it to tomorrow!” Cathy bemoaned.

“In summation,” Todoroki bitterly noted, “We all lost the bet because we believed too much in your tact!”

Rio blinked in surprise, noting Ryoga’s groan (not of exasperation, more laced with irritated fondness) while Kotori suddenly took the rest of the team’s money. “Have I missed something?” she muttered to Yuma, who looked similarly confused and shrugged.

“Oh nothing,” Kotori said in a sing-song voice to the two of them. “We just had a bet going in the group chat about how long Yuma would last before asking you to a Duel.”

“And… you won, evidently?” Rio murmured?

“Yeah,” Kotori snorted, ignoring Yuma’s growing protests that he wasn’t that predictable. “I took the first time you two had a real sit-down conversation, but I’d have also won if he asked you during class time.”

“This is the last time we try to believe in you, Yuma,” the rest of the group said collectively. Yuma squawked like a plucked chicken as the final exchanges of money happened, Kotori now floating on a cloud of smugness that left Rio thinking she made looking smug look good.

Rio chuckled with Kotori for a minute before going back to the fuming Yuma. “Yes Yuma,” she said placatingly, “I’m good to Duel. And if you’d like, we can duel after school.” 

“Post-duel snacks are on me!” Kotori noted cheerfully, ignoring the stink-eye Cathy threw her way.

Yuma lit up like a one-man firework’s display. “Sick! Nice, thanks! I was wondering what Shark Sis’s deck would be like, and he wasn’t saying so now I can see for myself and what your strategies are like and if you have any cool XYZ Monsters-”

“What did you just call me?” Rio interrupted, her right eye twitching instinctively. 

“Uhhhh…” Yuma trailed off, his life flashing before his eyes. “Kotori help me out here!”

“Nah,” Kotori said idly, counting her new money, “You dug that grave yourself Yuma.” 

“Eep.” Yuma squeaked before looking at a point over Cathy’s head. “Astral, you’re not helping!”

Rio rolled her eyes. “He got it right the first time, he has no excuse to default to that as my nickname,” she muttered. 

“I meant it as a compliment!” Yuma responded, voice cracking in indignation and terror while he kept babbling. “Shark’s cool, you’re his sis, ergo Shark Sis! I meant nothing bad about it!”

Rio’s hands twitched as she imagined wrapping them around Yuma’s throat. “I’m also not him and maybe I don’t like only being referred to only as his sister,” she cautioned. “You’re getting that Duel now Yuma, whether you like it or not, so I can beat that lesson into you!”

Yuma cast his despondent, terrified gaze at his classmates. “Please help me,” he said forlornly. 

Everyone pointedly avoided eye contact, leaving Yuma to groan like a man facing the gallows. Rio’s Duel Pad chimed with a new message.

Private Messages, Ryoga, K. and Rio, K.

Ryoga, K (12:41 PM): And now you see why I call him annoying. You get it now, right?

Rio, K (12:42 PM): Yes. I do. Considerably.

School couldn’t wrap up fast enough. Even saddled with homework and classroom assignments as she was, Rio couldn’t help but feel happy that this shred of normalcy had been returned. 

It helped that right after she got out of school, she was making her way to an empty pavilion just outside of campus grounds, so that she could enact vengeance on Yuma for the slight of calling her “Shark Sis.” She shuddered at the thought of it sticking and becoming a nom de geur for her, dreading when someone would think it funny to change her name in a group chat to that. 

For now, she had to crush the name here and now, ideally by beating Yuma. She knew from Ryoga that Yuma had an honor system about not using his ace monsters- “Numbers,” Ryoga called them- in a duel if the opponent didn’t have a Number of their own, and he’d clammed up hard at the idea of letting Rio borrow one. She figured if Ryoga’s pea-brain could handle the corrupting influence of a Number then she had a fair shot, but didn’t press the point when he made it clear he wouldn’t give her Shark Drake. “They’re dangerous ,” he emphasized, and when Rio kept pressing, dropped a line that made her pause.

“Look, the Arclights were after them, OK? That’s how bad they can be. Trust me, the Numbers are nasty work. If you see any, steer clear and tell Yuma or Kaito.”

Wind deflated from her sails, Rio let the subject go. She’d have to modify her deck to have Number counters in the future, but for now Yuma had promised he’d keep them locked away for now.

Speaking of the devil, he was chatting with Kotori as Rio approached, waving enthusiastically as she approached. Yuma’s adoration of Dueling meant that even with the reason for the duel being tied to his attempted nickname, he kept a good face about it. Ryoga was a few paces away, putting on his best “Pretending I don’t want to be here,” expression.

“Hey! Ready to go Sharrr-Rio!” He at least caught himself this time. Rio could give points for progress at least. “Ready to go?” He tried again.

“You bet,” Rio replied smugly. “Time to finally see what’s up with the guy who beat my brother,” she paused for emphasis, “twice .”

Ryoga lazily flipped her off behind Yuma and Kotori while Yuma laughed. “Well he got a win or two against me as well!” He turned back to Ryoga. “What’s our tally again right now Shark?” 

“... 3-1 to you, not counting that duel in the construction yard.” Ryoga muttered reluctantly.

“There! Thanks!” Yuma turned over to Kotori. “It’s anyone’s game when the two of us Duel, so I’m sure if you’re half as good as he is, it’ll be a great Duel!”

Rio flipped her hair confidently. “I’m not half as good as he is, I’m better.” 

Ryoga started coughing furiously, the words ‘bullcrap’ and ‘99 wins’ coming through between some of them. Rio tactically chose to ignore that, being the better, more moral (and attractive) sibling, and letting it run off her like water off a duck’s wings. Her and Yuma stepped a few paces away from each other, fastening their Duel Disks. 

“Alright, let’s do this!” Yuma cheered. “Duel Disk, set!”

“Duel Gazer, let’s roll!” Rio countered as she slid it over her eye. 

The augmented reality settled in around them, Rio’s vision lighting up. An anticipatory grin settled on her face as she and Yuma drew their opening hands.

“Go Yuma!” Kotori cheered as she fastened on her Duel Gazer. “And go, Rio!” She looked over to her side. “Shark, cheer your sister on!” she whispered through gritted teeth. 

Ryoga sighed. “Go Rio,” he said, completely deadpan. “Woooo. Kick butt Yuma,” he followed up with similar enthusiasm.

“I’ll take the first move!” Rio said across the court. At Yuma’s nod she drew an extra card, placing it among her first five. A good opener, one she could work with, but she wanted to test the waters before diving in.

“Alright Yuma, I’m gonna start by Normal Summoning my Blizzard Falcon!” She threw the card down, Duel Disk lighting up as a blue bird with icicle-like talons emerged. It let out an eager cry and began to lazily circle around Rio’s field.

“Then I’ll place three cards face-down, and call it there.” Her three set cards thrummed onto the field, Blizzard Falcon perching on one of them and giving Yuma an unblinking stare. “You’re up!”

Yuma laughed. “That’s a cool bird, if I do say so myself!” Everyone was quiet. “A cool bird-”

“We got it the first time, Yuma, now shut up and draw!” Ryoga called from the sidelines.

“Jeez, tough crowd,” Yuma muttered as he drew. “Either way, I’ll start by activating Reinforcement of the Army! It lets me add a Level 4 or lower Warrior Monster from my deck to my hand, and I’m choosing… this!” He took a key card from his deck and showed it to Rio, her Duel Disk verifying that Zubababancho Gagagacoat was a viable target. “Next I’ll Normal Summon Goblindbergh!” A tiny orange plane with a goblin man as the pilot sprung forth, carrying a cargo container underneath. “When Goblindbergh is summoned, I can Special Summon another Level 4 monster from my hand.” Yuma smirked cheekily. “But there’s more! Since I Normal Summoned a Level 4 Monster, I can also Special Summon Kagetokage! The Chain Link resolves in reverse order, so I can now summon Kagetokage and Gagaga Magician!”

The shadow of a lizard with glowing red eyes crept out from Yuma’s Duel Disk, alongside one of his aces, a punk-like magician covered in chains. 

“Finally, since I have a ‘Gagaga’ on the field, I can Special Summon the Monster I showed you earlier, Zubababancho Gagagacoat!”

Rio hummed in approval, impressed as Yuma called out his fourth monster. Even Ryoga let out a low whistle. 

“Four Level 4 Monsters,” Rio muttered. “I wonder what you’ve got for me if Numbers are off the table?” 

“I’m glad you asked!” Yuma beamed. “I’ll now Overlay my Level 4 Goblindbergh and Zubababancho Gagagacoat! I need two Level 4 Warrior Monsters for this guy, and luckily both of them are Warriors! With these two Monsters, I build the Overlay Network!” 

In front of Yuma, yellow and black swirled together into a vortex. Goblindbergh and Zubababancho Gagagacoat transitioned into energy particles and flew together into it, their resulting impact creating a large eruption of light and sound. 

“The most noble of knights is clad in light! ” Yuma chanted. “I XYZ Summon! Heroic Champion- Excalibur!” 

A monolithic knight in red and silver armor formed as Yuma called out the card, towering over the field. Rio checked its stats quickly, noting its effect and sucking in a breath through her teeth. That… would hurt.

“Next,” Yuma continued, “I’ll Overlay Gagaga Magician and Kagetokage!” The vortex in front of him manifested again as Gagaga Magician and Kagetokage flew into it. “Here’s a deadeye bounty hunter who always gets his mark! I XYZ Summon! Show yourself, Gagaga Cowboy!”

Two XYZ Monsters in the opening turn? Rio was fairly impressed- even with Yuma holding back by not using his Numbers, it was clear he’d progressed a fair bit as a Duelist. Cowboy would also be a problem if she left it out on the field past her turn- Excalibur was an impressive monster, but only when it used its effect, while Gagaga Cowboy could either chip at her Life Points or help Yuma put on the offensive. For now, he’d summoned it in Attack Mode, so that’d be a problem in the immediate sense.

“I activate Excalibur’s effect!” Yuma declared. “By using two Overlay Units, its Attack Points are doubled until the end of your next turn!”

Excalibur’s Overlay Units were consumed by the knight, a red aura surrounding him as he raised his sword, lightning crackling along it. Rio’s Duel Gazer notified her that its points rose to 4000- which would suck, if she wasn’t ready.

“I activate a Trap Card!” Rio cried out. “Modulation Intersection! When you activate an effect that changes a monster’s Attack or Defense Points, I can let one monster on my field gain the same amount!”

Blizzard Falcon shot up into the sky, trailing a stream of ice crystals as it let out a powerful cry. “As Excalibur just gained 2000 Attack Points, Blizzard Falcon’s points now rise to 3500!” 

Yuma blinked in surprise. “That still won’t be enough to stop Excalibur!” He pointed out.

“She wasn’t aiming for that,” Ryoga muttered.

“It doesn’t have to,” Rio replied smugly. “Blizzard Falcon’s effect now activates! Because its Attack Points are different from its normal statline value, I can hit you for 1500 points of damage! Go, Blizzard Falcon! Buffering Gale!” 

Blizzard Falcon’s icicles hit the ground as Rio talked, landing around Yuma. It began flapping its wings to create a chilling gale with Yuma in the dead center, leaving him clutching his arms and shivering.

“Cold, cold, cold, cold, cold, cooooooold! ” He cried out, jumping around to build his body heat back up. Kotori hid a chuckle behind her mouth as Yuma ran around, while Ryoga just rolled his eyes at the theatrics. “Phew, I’m alive,” he said to the audience. “That might be a chilling effect-”

“Yuma if you make one more ice pun I swear to God -” Ryoga started before Kotori hooked her arms underneath his dragged him backwards, letting him rant and rave while Yuma nervously chuckled.

“You got this Yuma!” Kotori cheered as she held Ryoga back. 

“Nah Astral. That one was… unintentional, to be honest.” he muttered to himself. “Anyway, neat effect, my monster still has more points.” Yuma’s eyes darted down to Rio’s set cards. “And just in case…” he threw down a spell. “I now activate the Spell Card, Gagagabolt! While I control a Gagaga monster, like my Cowboy here, I can destroy a card on your field!” 

Rio’s eyes narrowed as Gagaga Cowboy lined up a shot on her remaining set card. She slid it out of her Duel Disk, showing it to Yuma before putting it in the Graveyard.

“You were gonna Mirror Force me?! Ah man that’s cold-” Yuma caught himself, making eye contact with an irate Ryoga who was already about to raise his fist and scream at him. “Lame.” He eventually emphasized. “I was gonna say it’s lame.”

“You better have been,“ Ryoga muttered darkly.

Yuma looked at the last remaining card in his hand before sighing. “Alright, just hope I hit the right Trap. Let’s battle! Excalibur, attack Blizzard Falcon! Shock Sword Slash!” 

Excalibur charged forward, its blade shining in the mid-afternoon light before slashing through the empowered falcon, which detonated. Rio grimaced, holding up her hand as a shockwave passed by her, buffeting her hair. 

“And now,” Yuma pointed towards Rio. “Gagaga Cowboy can attack directly! Go, Gagaga Sharp-Eye!”

Cowboy aimed and fired, a variety of blasts detonating around Rio. One hit against her chest and she gasped from the shock, skidding back a few feet while her Life Points went down to 2000.

“I’ll set one card face down, and end my turn,” Yuma concluded. “You’re up, Rio!”   

Rio checked her hand as Yuma ended his turn. The pieces were there, she realized, pulse spiking in anticipating. Yuma’s defenses were minimal after going all-in on offense, she could play through his set card and whatever interruption it offered, and if she got lucky, she might even be able to hit for lethal damage. The line began to assemble in her head and she couldn’t help but laugh maniacally, giddy at the prospect of not just doing well in her first real duel since she got back, but beating someone who even gave Ryoga trouble. Rio met Yuma’s determined gaze with a cocky grin. Her heart was beating so loud in her ears, she was sure even the others could hear it, her adrenaline spiking.

“I’m having fun, Yuma!” Rio called out. “I can see why Ryoga speaks highly of your dueling skills.” She sighed wistfully. “Man, I wish I’d been there for the World Duel Carnival. I missed a hell of a show for your tournament debut!”

Yuma flushed, rubbing the back of his head. “Thanks! Really! I’m glad you’re having fun, you’re a blast to duel against!” He settled back into a ready stance, flashing a confident grin. “Now, ready to go?!”

Rio grinned in turn. “You bet!”

She had missed this, Rio realized. The thrill of the game, going blow for blow and each card was a fencer’s weapon. She’d left a small salvo out as an opening, and Yuma had gone all in. Now it was time to counter in gusto. All she had to do was implement her strategy and she had this .   

“Alright then! It’s my turn then! I draw-” Rio paused, her heart rate spiking, cards slipping out of her hands, vision blurring all at once and leaving her reeling while it suddenly felt like her lungs were crumpling in her chest. She dimly heard Yuma saying something, wondering why she had stopped, when suddenly everything went red. Her skull felt like it was being split open with a drill, a constant, rhythmic, never-ending agony that ran from the top of her brain to the soles of her feet. Sight and sound escaped her, sensory overload reducing her vision to a small pinprick of red that felt like it was coming from behind her eyes. Her heartbeat became a loud, impossibly fast pumping in her ears like it was trying to hammer its way out through her ribs.

Her senses were overloaded and everything was just a kaleidoscopic maelstrom of sound and blurs and wails and pain, so much pain, but a few glimpses etched themselves into Rio’s memory; a world of dull red rock with spires of crystal, a young man in shining armor with a blurry face reaching out, the sensation of falling, and through it all she could just about make out a shrill note, being held beyond what one would think the human lungs could sustain.

Oh, she realized after a moment’s pause of listening to it. That was her. She was screaming. That impossible sound was her screeching as it felt like her mind fractured, only giving way for sounds that her brain took a second to comprehend as language. She felt fabric in her hands, forming into fists as she clung desperately to… a shirt?... Oh, she had fallen into someone’s arms and was now clutching onto their shirt. She dimly made out three overlapping voices that were panicking around her, two masculine and one feminine- or was it four voices, she felt she heard a fourth voice... 

“It’s coming…” she eventually processed herself as saying, her voice strained as it forced each word out in a manic tone. “The disaster is coming!”

“Disaster?” she could just make out what someone was saying. She felt her shoulders being shook, giving her enough vision back to make out Yuma’s desperate, panicking eyes while Ryoga knelt beside him, his breath coming out in short panicked gasps.

“Rio, what’s wrong?" His voice rose, cracking with fear. "Stay with us!”

"They’re coming!” She managed to shriek out before a howl of raw agony escaped her throat, as one of her hands gripped around Yuma’s pendant, rapidly losing her battle with her consciousness and potentially even her sanity. "They’re coming to take away… that which is most precious to you!”

Her eyes rolled up in the back of her head, and before Rio could even process what she herself said or what anyone around her was doing or saying, her world was in darkness, her fractured mind finally letting her slip into a dreamless void while it kept reeling from… whatever that was.

Soon, all Rio knew was a blissful nothingness, as unconsciousness took her.

Rina Sawayama, "10-20-40"

Chapter Text

As far as first days back at school went, Kotori figured Rio might have just set a record for how badly timed hers had been. Having some kind of mental break/seizure right afterwards during a normal Duel, a biker gang rampaging across the city and shutting half of Heartland down, and now an alien invasion on top of it all. 

Things had gotten hectic after Rio’s collapse. The power grid began fluctuating rapidly, and as Kaito and Orbital did their best to handle that, a statement was issued from the local government to reduce all non-essential travel for the evening due to a roaming street gang looking to fight anyone they caught. Even the civil services like ambulances weren’t safe, so Shark had quickly brought Rio, Kotori, Yuma and himself back to the Kamishiro apartment near Heartland Academy to wait out the storm. He looked to be on the verge of a panic attack the whole way back, alternating between pacing a hole into the floor of the apartment while frantically checking for any news on if it would be safe to get to a hospital or how to get around the gangsters.

Yuma had been eerily quiet the whole way, rubbing his thumb against his key the whole way back. Kotori had never gotten the whole story on the connection Yuma and Astral shared through the key beyond that Astral resided in it, but she understood enough that if Yuma thought Rio’s haunting last line had been directed at him- “They’re coming to take away… that which is most precious to you!” - he likely was worried about Astral and anyone else who got caught in the Barian’s crosshairs. It hadn’t been too much of a surprise then when he had made the choice to leave the Key in Kotori’s hands after the rest of the Numbers Club called in from the school, held hostage by the leader of the street gang and leaving Kotori and Shark in an awkward silence. Yuma cared about Astral to the point of almost being a flaw- after all the times Astral had been stolen from him before and during the World Duel Carnival, if he thought Astral was in danger, he’d leave the Key with someone he trusted, leaving Kotori as the new guardian temporarily while Yuma tried to fend off the newest threat from the Barians alone. 

Yuma may have been an idiot, but he was an idiot whose heart was in the right place. Kotori couldn’t blame him for his concern as he took off to help his friends, leaving her alone in the sitting room of the Kamishiro apartment.

Rio was currently in her bedroom, still unconscious from… whatever that had been during her duel with Yuma. It had been so sudden, and then ended as abruptly as it started, but the guttural screams that Rio emitted would likely haunt her nightmares for years to come. Her eyes had shimmered with a magenta glow that only added to how unsettling her words had been. Kotori drew her feet closer to her chest, curling up as she shivered. Her condition had stabilized at least, but it was hard to say what that would even mean when Rio woke up; or if she ever did again (Kotori mentally slapped herself for that, trying to shut down the panic rising through her gut at that for jumping to the worst case scenario).

“What happened there, Rio?” Kotori muttered to herself, pressing her head against her legs. “How do we stop it? This is so crazy…”

Kotori was pulled out of her thoughts by heavy footsteps, Shark passing by as he shrugged on his jacket. “I’m locking the door after me, don’t open it for anyone you don’t know,” he said brusquely as he slid his shoes on.

“Wait, what’s going on? Have you heard anything from Yuma?” Kotori rose to her feet instinctively.

Shark paused, looking at her over his shoulder before sighing. “No, I’ve heard nothing from Yuma, but Kaito just called. There’s a bunch of those gangsters congregating towards the Academy from the highway and docks, so we’re running interception. I’m closer to the docks so I’ll be setting up there while Kaito cuts them off on the highway.” He paused before moving closer to Kotori, placing his hands on her shoulders. “I need you to stay here and look after Rio. Monitor her condition, and if you see anything- anything - that indicates that the hospitals can send out an ambulance, you call it right away.”

“I- I’ll try, but are you gonna be OK?”

Shark shrugged robotically, like he was still trying to put on his usual tough guy act, but Kotori could see the way his eyes darted over to Rio’s bedroom door- like he was hoping any minute now she’d come waltzing out with a dry quip or to throw an onion at his head like a live grenade. “Not my first time dealing with a street gang. And after Faker’s little robot legion back at Heartland Tower, it’ll be nice to have some… softer targets to hit as stress relief.” 

Kotori managed to smile weakly at that. “Just take care of yourself. I don’t think Rio would wanna wake up to hear you were in a hospital bed.”

A snort escaped Shark’s lips. “Nah, but that’s a problem for me in the future.” His face turned serious. “Listen, Kotori. I’m trusting you to look after Rio, OK? I need you to promise me that you won’t let anything happen to her while I’m away.”

“Shark, I-”

“Please ,” he insisted. “Just… promise me that you’ll try to keep her out of trouble.” His eyes drifted down to the Key. “And if the worst comes to it and Yuma needs Astral, I trust you to do what’s right, but try to look after Rio.”

“I…” Kotori swallowed. “I promise. I won’t let anything happen to her.”

Shark let out a sigh at that, almost in relief. “Thanks. Hopefully you don’t need to leave, but there’s a spare key in Rio’s purse by the couch. Lock up as you go, and stay safe out there.”

“Got it. Good luck, Shark.”

Shark nodded at that, a crease of worry still painting his forehead as he took one last look at Rio’s room before pocketing his deck and leaving. Rio heard the locks scrape into place from the other side of the door before Shark’s footsteps began to fade into the distance as he made for his bike.

Sighing, Kotori went over to Rio’s purse and took out the house key, pocketing it. In the distance she could hear the constant thrumming of bike engines, sirens echoing deeper into the city.

Her pocket began to glow, Yuma’s key shimmering, as a voice called out weakly.

“Kotori… I need your help…”

“Astral?” Kotori took out the key as it began to thrum with energy, fading and glowing like a slow heartbeat, before her world went black.

Rio was… underwater, for lack of a better word. A black void filled her vision in every direction she could look, broken only by occasional rays of light filtered blue that showed a calm surface. She floated in the midst of it, no drive or need to break the surface and breathe, simply existing in this state of unconscious dissociation from the waking world. Rio found it almost soothing, existing in a space and time utterly void of struggle, no pain, strife or mother-hens pretending to be twin brothers.

Something drifted by in the corner of Rio’s eye. She turned to track it, seeing what looked like a white veil floating lazily into the void past her, long enough to double as a hood or a cape. Her left arm extended, she let her fingers dance through the fabric. The texture was exquisite, clearly made with reverence and out of high-grade materials, but the style was old, older than Rio had ever seen when at stores.

A warning started to sound in Rio’s head- that this hood had something Bad with a capital B tied to it, that it would be a terrible thing to inspect this hood and uncover its secrets and why it was in this nebulous void- before it suddenly gained weight. The hood began to shift under Rio’s fingers, as if someone had swam up from below her right into the hood and it was settling around their head.

The newly hooded figure turned, fabric slipping away from Rio’s fingers. She couldn’t get a good look at who was underneath it or any significant features due to the darkness, but felt pinned down by the one thing she did see- a pair of striking, blood-red eyes, peering out from a hood that shrouded everything else in darkness, that felt like they were ripping through her flesh to see her very soul. Their eyes met, and Rio felt like her life was flashing before her eyes, consciousness beginning to overwhelm her. She only made out three words before everything went white.

“Who are you?”

Rio woke up slowly, sensation starting at the tips of her fingers and toes before her body gradually switched on. She was in her room, the door left open a fraction. Her school bag and Duel Disk were thrown onto the nightstand. She slowly flexed each of her limbs, grimacing at her left arm as the usual jolts of pain raced up it when she pushed it a bit too far. Everything else seemed normal though, or at least within what her pain tolerance considered good enough to get up and move. 

Taking care to move cautiously, Rio peeled off her duvet and got up, legs protesting at the weight for a second before settling down. She was still in the majority of her uniform, barring her jacket which had been thrown over a nearby chair. In the hallway, she could hear a murmur, someone talking on their own. Rio’s eyes darted over to her mirror, taking in her current state. Given how she had felt at the time, like a construction crew were hammering their way into her frontal lobe, she looked… passable, for a human being. Some darker than normal circles under her eyes, her hair a bit flatter than usual, eyes still a bit bloodshot but not terribly so. She almost could have written it off as just a weird dream to laugh over with Ryoga, were it not for the memory of the horrible screams that had escaped her throat and still had it feeling a bit scratchy when she swallowed, or the haunting words that slipped out through her delirium. Whatever that had been- seizure, vision, psychotic break, or hallucination- it would never leave her memory. That much was certain. Stepping back, Rio fished out a thick blue jacket from her closet and slipped it on, tentatively stepping outside into the hallway.

The lights were dimmed inside the living room/kitchen, with the TV on but muted showing headlines that Rio didn’t take in. Kotori was standing in the middle of the room, Yuma’s key clutched between her hands and shimmering. The younger teen was staring into the distance, the light that the key was creating bouncing off her hazel eyes. Rio’s hand came up to grab Kotori’s shoulder.

“Kotori? Are you OK?” Rio gently shook Kotori as she asked the question, causing Kotori to stumble. The key’s light died down and Kotori took a reflexive step back, eyes widening as she took in Rio before her.

“Rio?! What… you’re up!” Kotori surged in for a hug. Rio was caught in surprise for a second before returning it gently, noting in the back of her mind that even now Kotori was thinking to put less pressure on her left side. She was a good soul.

“Up and at ‘em,” Rio tried to joke weakly, but she couldn’t help but notice how tense Kotori felt. “What happened? How long have I been out?” 

Kotori pulled herself free, guiding Rio to the sofa. She unconsciously fidgeted with the key still in her hand as she did. “Maybe four hours? It was all a blur. We brought you back here because soon after you lost consciousness, the city got shut down by a roving biker gang! Kaito said it had something to do with the Barians, and their leader challenged Yuma to a duel at school.” She paused, running a hand through her hair. “Then Shark said a bunch more of the gang members were going to the school to back up their leader, so he and Kaito are trying to hold them off.” Her eyes went down to the key she was still holding while she sighed. “Yuma left this here with me… he wants to protect Astral, but Astral can tell Yuma’s in trouble and wants to help him too, but I didn’t wanna leave you alone in case you woke up and…” She curled up, shivering, her breath coming out a bit harder like she was having trouble breathing. “It’s been a lot,” she muttered, voice shaky. “But I’m glad you’re awake and seem OK. I was… really worried there for a bit.”

Rio reached out a hand onto Kotori’s knee, squeezing gently. “Hey, breathe. It’s gonna be OK. I’m up and moving now, so we can give Yuma the key and he and Astral can take that gang leader to Loserville. We got this.”

Kotori sighed in relief, calming down a little. “You’re right, we-” she paused, looking up at Rio. “Sorry, we? Rio, I can’t let you leave. Shark made me promise to keep you here!”

Rio frowned. “But if you’re here, how are you gonna get Yuma that key? Listen, I can move again and I clearly have my brain back if I can talk to you and everything. It’s easier for us to travel as a group anyway.”

Kotori paused. “But I’d hate it if anything happened to you and it was my fault you were outside…” 

“And I would hate it if anything happened to you and I wasn’t there to protect you,” Rio countered firmly. She leaned forward and took Kotori’s hand, looking her dead in the eyes. “I’m not the type to sit around like a princess in a tower, Kotori, and I’m not the type to sit around at all while my friends are risking themselves to help others. Yuma’s out there and needs your help, and I’m gonna be out there too to help you if anyone tries to get in your way. I promise, you’ll get to Yuma safe and sound.” Rio got up, pulling Kotori with her. “Now, are you with me?” 

Kotori looked at her hand that Rio was holding, expression indecipherable, before looking up at Rio. “You’re sure you’re OK?”

Rio smiled cockily at her. “As I’ll ever be.”

Kotori relaxed a bit at that. “And will you handle it if Shark gets mad at me for letting you leave?” Kotori asked teasingly.

“I promise to handle any and all brotherly backlash you get for letting me, of sound mind and body, decide to head out during a biker gang invasion that’s actually a front for literal aliens, yes.” Rio replied sarcastically, doing an exaggerated wink with her good eye. 

Kotori relaxed a bit at that, her eyes softening. “Alright then, I trust you. Let’s go save Yuma.”

The Kamishiro apartment wasn’t too far from the school, only about half an hour on foot while strolling, a little bit less if you ran. Kotori had wanted to take things slow in case Rio’s episode was still impacting her stamina, but they still kept a brisk pace as they ran through the promenades. Heartland Academy began to loom in the distance, the overcast gray clouds covering it in an ominous aura that left Kotori with a sense of dread and foreboding; the kind she hadn’t felt since that time in the 5th Grade when she completely blanked on an English test and only realized that it was the day of the exam while she was halfway to school. Even Yuma remembered the test was that day and studied for it! 

The city was quiet in a way Kotori had never really noticed before. Beyond the trickle of the river, her heartbeat in her ears, her shoes bouncing off the pavement and the gentle rhythm of her and Rio breathing as they ran together, she struggled to hear anything nearby. In the distance she could just make out the rumble of engines, but it was a few blocks over so they kept pushing on alongside the river.

Pulling away from the footpath by the river, Rio and Kotori darted up a staircase and cut across an intersection, the school only a few blocks up the road from here. As they ran past a pair of stoplights, the rumbling Kotori heard earlier began to pick up and intensify.

Rio stopped, her lips pursing in disapproval as she looked behind her. “You hear that?” 

“Yeah…” Kotori stopped as well. “It looks like a few got past Kaito and Shark.” 

“Or found another way around. I’d say five or six, tops. Probably on their way to defend their noble leader’s honor if he winds up losing to a middle schooler,” Rio observed drily. She paused to stretch her arms above her head, sizing up an elevated refuge island in the center of the street. “OK, this is fine. Keep going, I’ll be right behind you.”

Kotori’s eyes widened. “Wait, no! I am not leaving you behind-”

“You’re not ‘leaving me behind,’” Rio interrupted, fixing Kotori with a harsh stare. “I’m staying back to keep those thugs from getting to you. I said I’d protect you and that’s what I’ll do.” 

Kotori stood unsure. “I just… I know you said you wanted to do it, and I get it! But… I worry.”

Rio stepped closer, into Kotori’s personal space. Her hands slowly came up and cupped Kotori’s cheeks, looking down until their eyes met.

“I promised I’d keep you out of harm’s way,” Kotori said quietly, eyes glistening as she unconsciously leaned into the touch. “How could I ever forgive myself if you were to lose here and get hurt? If someone got hurt over me, I’d…” 

Rio’s thumb traced Kotori’s cheek. “That’s easy. You won’t ever have to find out how to forgive yourself, because I’ll be right behind you. I show these losers the door and then I’m right behind you.”

The rumbling behind Rio began to grow louder as the thugs got closer. Rio slowly extracted herself from Kotori, almost reluctantly, before her gaze hardened. 

“Go, Kotori. I’ll be fine.”

“You better be,” Kotori whispered before turning around, dashing towards Heartland. “Stay safe!” She called over her shoulder, seeing one more glimpse of Rio preparing herself before turning backwards with confidence and a spring in her step. 

“Fly far, Little Bird. I’ve got you,” Rio murmured to herself.

Rio set herself up in an alcove beside the street that led to Heartland Academy, fiddling with her Duel Disk as the thrum of motorcycle engines got louder and louder. Her meeting with Kaito and their further chats had led to her learning about some of the technology and tricks he gained from his days as the Number Hunter, which he had offered to install in her Duel Disk as a ‘just in case’ measure. She was glad now of her persistence as she mimed tossing her wrist out, keeping her eyes peeling as an approaching dust cloud kicked up by the encroaching swarm of bikers.

Their headlights began to illuminate the intersection. As the noise of their engines and the underfoot thrumming hit a fever pitch, Rio threw out her wrist, a stream of cyan energy shooting out of her Duel Disk and wrapping around two stop lights before solidifying into a form of hard light. Six bikes shot past at a breakneck pace, unable to slow down enough to dodge the beam. As they went through, the bikes skidded to a stop, a chorus of shouts and complaints as their Duel Disks activated and formed a line of cyan energy that connected to Rio’s wrist. Rio smirked to herself as she exited the alcove, holding her Duel Disk high. 

“Evening boys!” She called out. “Looking for a fight? Cause I got one for you right here!”

Every jerk and move of Rio’s Duel Disk dragged along the gang members. Getting a Duel Anchor installed really had paid off, Rio mused. Heartland, unlike the lunatics over in Neo Domino, had strict regulations about dueling while operating a vehicle- in that you couldn’t. As such, any vehicles that wanted to operate within Heartland city boundaries had to be set to automatically slow down and stop if the driver’s Duel Disk activated to avoid a case of reckless driving; which for Rio meant setting up the Anchor and wrapping it around the stop light signs could turn their bikes off and keep the last of the gangsters trapped here at the intersection.

“What do you think you’re doing, brat?” one of the gangsters snarled as he was dragged along by the Anchor. “You’re messing with the wrong gang if you think you’re getting out of this unscathed!”

“Oh, you’re a tough-guy gang?” Rio asked mockingly. She got onto the elevated traffic island she saw earlier, as each of the six goons formed around her in a hexagonal pattern. “Man, your reputation is never gonna recover from tonight then. Your boss is about to get his butt kicked by a 13 year old, and my brother’s sending you guys packing all across the docks!” 

One of the thugs near the back scoffed. “Nice tall tale, kid, but Fuma’s not losing to some snot-nosed brat- and our gang’s not going down losing to some teenagers- especially a scarred-up punk!”

Rio stiffened, her demeanor changing. Eyes narrowing, she turned to the thug who just spoke and gave him her full attention. “You,” she said in a tone just above absolute zero as she fastened her Duel Gazer.

“Me?” 

“For that line? You’ll be the last one I take out.”

The thug laughed at that. “Sure, princess. We’ll see if you’re eating those words by the time we’re done with you.” 

Her Duel Disk snapped into place, the AR vision modules activating.

“I’ll let you fools take the first turn,” she declared. “Make it count, before I get bored of you.”

All seven duelists drew their opening hands, Gazers igniting.

“Duel!”

Rio’s Disk notified her that one of the gang members behind her was choosing to go first. “I’ll take the first turn! Draw! I begin with Marauding Captain!” An armored blonde warrior wielding two swords appeared. “When my Marauding Captain is summoned, I Special Summon another Warrior Monster from my hand! Appear, Command Knight!” Another blonde warrior appeared, wearing less armor than the Captain and sporting frills, but this one took a step behind the Captain. “When Command Knight is on the field, Warrior Monsters gain 400 Attack Points, and you can’t target him for an attack while I have another monster! Now I activate the Continuous Spell, Dark Snake Syndrome! During my Standby Phase, we both take 200 points of damage, and that damage is doubled during each subsequent Standby Phase!” A red vapor cloud began to drape the bottom of the duel arena, with some of Fuma’s men wrapping kerchiefs around their mouths. “I end my turn with that!”

The gang member to the first thug’s immediate right went next. “Draw! I summon Marauding Captain and use its effect to summon Command Knight!” The same two monsters appeared, Command Knight again stepping behind Marauding Captain. “I also activate the Continuous Spell, Wave Motion Cannon! For each of my Standby Phases this card stays on the field, I can send it to the Graveyard to inflict a thousand damage on you for each turn that it was on the field! Turn end!”

Rio’s eyes narrowed as she observed the first turns. The first five all followed the same procedure- summoning out Marauding Captain or searching him with a card like Reinforcement of the Army, summoning Command Knight to bolster the Captain and prevent Rio from attacking, then using a spell that would inflict burn damage on her as the duel carried on. What would make things frustrating was that each Command Knight was bolstering the other, creating an attack lock that meant Rio couldn’t wage an attack on any of their monsters- and even if she could, each 400 Attack Point boost from Command Knight was stacking up. By the third time this happened, she had deciphered the strategy, and just had to wait until it was her turn. All of the cards that would damage her Life Points were dependent on making it to the opposing player’s Standby Phase, and the accumulated damage would be enough that she only had one turn before the damage would pile up and take her out. 

Rio casually looked down at the cards in her hand- she was close, just one card off having the line that she was formulating in her head to let her win. 

Finally, the last turn went to the thug who had insulted her. He let out a foul grin as he followed the same template as the others, calling out Marauding Captain and Command Knight, alongside the fourth Wave Motion Cannon and one final card- The Dark Door, which made it so each player could only attack with one monster during the Battle Phase.

“Regretting letting us go first, you wannabe Ice Princess?” he called out mockingly as his Wave Motion Cannon materialized. “Surely you’ve seen by now how screwed you are- you won’t even be able to take one of us down before your turn is done, let alone all six of us! Face it- you’re done!” 

Rio sighed. “I’m regretting letting you go first just because it’s making me see how you low-grade rental goons all stack your decks,” she countered coldly. “What, does racing each other around on your silly bikes not give you time to come up with an original strategy? Give me a break.”

The thug's eyes narrowed. “Big talk from the loser who’s about to eat a ton of damage once we can attack! Each of those Command Knights boosting our Marauding Captains has stacked up, so they’re all at 3600 Attack Points! Take your damn turn already so we can put you in your place.”

“Gladly, if just so I can shut you up. Draw!” Rio drew, inspecting her new card. A smirk grew across her face. “Perfect,” she murmured to herself.

Doing a quick circle, Rio made eye contact with each of the gang members, looking down on them from her elevated position. “I’ll begin with the Spell Card, Double Summon! It gives me a second normal summon this turn.” Rio slipped two cards from her right hand into her left, placing them on her Duel Disk. “I’ll now summon both Blizzard Falcon and Aurora Wing!” 

Two large birds appeared from Rio’s Duel Disk. Blizzard Falcon let out a trail of icicles that cast a small amount of frost to begin to congeal on the ground, while Aurora Wing floated about Rio, catching the street lights with its wings to create a shimmering aura that reflected onto the battlefield.

“What are you gonna do with those two rejected zoo animals? Give my kid a bedtime story and a light show?! Neither of them can hit over our monsters, and you can only attack with one of them anyway!” One of the thugs called out behind Rio. She rolled her eyes.

“Actually I was thinking of using them to do this!” She snapped in retaliation, throwing out her right hand as the yellow and black vortex appeared in front of her. “I Overlay my Level 4 Blizzard Falcon and Aurora Wing! With these two monsters, I build the Overlay Network!” 

Rio’s monsters let out war cries as they dived into the vortex, turning into streams of icey blue energy that collided and let out a wave of freezing energy. The frost left by the Blizzard Falcon began to intensify, solidifying across the crosswalk and kicking up a veritable blizzard of snow that lowered the temperatures. 

“Apex predator of the coldest lands,” Rio chanted in a low contralto, voice echoing across the field. “Sharpen your talons, and prepare to feast on my frozen foes! I XYZ Summon! Descend from the skies, Rank 4, Ice Beast Zerofyne!”  

A graceful figure emerged from the Overlay Network portal, armored with a crown of deep blue ice that helped highlight its yellow eyes. A trail of icicle shards followed in its wake, guided by two claw-like gauntlets it wore on either arm. It almost appeared to dance across the sky as it settled behind Rio, the blizzard calming down a fraction.

“I activate Zerofyne’s effect!” Rio called out. “I use one Overlay Unit to negate all face up cards on your field until the start of my next turn! Perfect Freeze!”  

Zerofyne reached out, circling the shards that trailed after it and pointing upwards. The shards shot upwards and came down as a hailstorm that impacted each of the Marauding Captains and Command Knights, ice spreading from their feet to seal them in place and begin to lock them to the ground. The monsters let out cries of panic as the ice spread across their torsos and eventually their heads, leaving a collection of glorified ice sculptures where once Fuma’s gang had assembled a veritable army. Even the duelists themselves weren’t spared, a few of them hopping around in a panic to avoid getting stuck to the floor, only delaying the inevitable as the ice continued to spread across the field. The ice began to spread across Rio’s platform, but stopped in a neat circle around her, Zerofyne paying respect to the master of its domain. 

“There’s more,” Rio added as the ice spread across the field. “I activate a Quick Play Spell: Zerofyne Ice Age!” She played the spell from her hand, the card art showing a blizzard in the dead of night that had claimed a few wayward souls. In the background of the art, the silhouette of Ice Beast Zerofyne was visible, her shimmering yellow eyes the only visible sign of her. “When I use this card as a Zerofyne monster negates the effects of a card by its own effect, my monster gains the ability to attack your monsters, up to the number of cards negated by Zerofyne’s effect!” 

“Hang on, we each had three or four cards out…” one of the thugs mumbled as they shivered and took in the ice barrage. 

“And if it gains attacks for every negated card, that would mean…” Another continued.

“It can attack our monsters nearly twenty times! ” The ringleader who had insulted Rio earlier let out in a shocked cry.

“Oh good,” Rio observed sarcastically. “You can count up to twenty. Of course, now you’re gonna have to count down really quickly- as Command Knight’s effect was negated, that means your Warriors all lose their attack boosts and return to their original Attack Points.” The ice statues of the Marauding Captains twitched as their attack points reset to 1200. Rio paused, putting a finger on her chin in thought. “Oh, and did I mention? That when Zerofyne negates a card with her effect, she also gains three hundred Attack Points for each card?” She snapped her fingers. “How careless of me. There I was, giving you all false hope.” 

Zerofyne let out a mocking sound to the gang members as it kept rising, vapor from the frozen cards left on the field transferring up to her. A low roar built up in its throat that became full-bodied as its attack points rose.

“Three cards on average means 900 Attack Points per each of us, barring that Dark Door card.” One of the gang members muttered through chattering teeth. “That multiplied by the six of us is…” 

The ringleader managed to pale a bit more, eyes widening. “It’s gaining 5700 Attack Points!” 

A grin began to slip across Rio’s face; a feral, cruel one, like a predator looking at cornered prey. “I’d say I hate to burst your bubble and show you just how outclassed you were, that you never really had a chance against me, but… well. I’d be a liar then, boys.” Zerofyne’s Attack Points settled at nearly 7700 total. “And I was told lying’s bad for you, so let me just admit I’m going to enjoy all of this.”

“Wait,” the ringleader tried to choke out as the ice and frost settled across his boots, pinning him down. “Wait wait wait wait wait!” 

“Oh I will, don’t worry. After all,” Rio made direct eye contact with the ringleader. “I did say I’d leave you for last.” She threw her hand up to the sky. “Soar, Zerofyne! Attack all of their monsters now, with Icicle Storm!”  

Zerofyne charged up a ball of frozen energy, almost absorbing the ice on the field itself. It began to dwarf even Zerofyne before it unleashed it, firing a continuous ray of ice that slammed into the field of the gang member who went first. His monsters evaporated under the constant sub-zero pressure, and the duelist himself was sent flying with a cry as the barrage of ice pelted his skin. He slammed against the ground a few yards away, but Zerofyne had already moved onto its next victim. The beam swept across the battlefield and shredded through the collected duelists, none of their monsters able to withstand the absolute zero temperatures of Zerofyne’s attack, all of the duelists themselves being sent flying as they lost. Five of the gang members total were wiped out before Rio reached the end of the line, leaving just the ringleader. He struggled against the ice, large eyes wet with unshed tears as he saw Rio glaring impassively down on him, like an empress in a colosseum passing judgment on the losing gladiators.

“Your first mistake was to threaten my home.” Her voice was clipped, a barely suppressed rage leaking out. “Your second was underestimating me. And your third was making my friends worry for me!” Rio snapped her fingers, eyes wide with anger. “End him, Zerofyne!” 

He barely even had time to let out a shriek of panic and pain before Zerofyne’s beam hit him directly, shattering his monsters and sending him flying into the air. The excess energy nearly formed an entire glacier in front of Rio before Zerofyne let out a triumphant cry, the only sound in the intersection for a few seconds being the Life Point trackers of the gang members tumbling down to zero.

Rio sighed, undoing her Duel Gazer and tucking it away as the remaining adrenaline bled out of her system. The field of ice around her gave way to a normal intersection again, only this time marked by the bodies of the gangsters who were all left on the ground, groaning in pain or rolling around weakly. She started to walk away from the mob, ignoring a twinge of pain in her left side from the strain as she hopped back down onto the street.

“You…” a voice managed to say behind her. She turned to impassively look at the ringleader, still shivering. “You… that was only AR… but I’m sure I felt that… what are you?” 

Rio furrowed her brow, before scoffing. “Don’t be such a sore loser and quit play-acting that you're cold, you baby.” She walked away. “Don’t ever let me see you again.”  

She began to hike up an upward road, only about five minutes now from Heartland Academy and leaving the gang members in her wake. Hopefully it would also serve as a deterrent in case any other members of Fuma’s gang tried to sneak in. She had one thought bubbling around in her head though- “What are you?” It wasn’t the first time Rio had been asked that question tonight, and it rattled around in her mind as she remembered the haunting red gaze that had asked her the question. Working on helping Kotori had gotten her out of thinking about this, but the question kept looping around. What had happened to her? Would this be a thing now in the future with the Barians? This wasn’t normal no matter what, and the amount of unknown variables left Rio reeling. She brought her arms around herself, finding it hard to breathe all of a sudden. She had a sensation under her skin as she kept thinking about the question, even as she didn’t really want to, that made her feel like she didn’t fit in her own body.

Rio was taken out of her introspection by a sound behind her- bike engines, both clearing the intersection in seconds. She rolled her shoulders, taking out her Duel Disk again and getting ready to fight, when she spotted the bikes and relaxed, a relieved smile crossing her face.

Kaito and Ryoga’s bikes both pulled up in front of Rio, Ryoga pulling off his helmet in disbelief before getting off his bike and stepping towards her.

“Rio, what the hell are you doing out here?!” 

The smile melted off Rio’s face. She pouted. “Nice to see you too, brother,” she muttered. She waved at Kaito, who nodded before Ryoga closed the distance. 

“In advance, don’t be mad at Kotori,” Rio said in a forced casual tone. “You know I’d have broken out through your window if you kept me locked up.” 

Ryoga’s eye twitched slightly. “That’s not the point! You were unconscious! You were freaking out! For Pete’s sake sis, your eyes were glowing!” Ryoga threw his hands up. “I can’t be the only one freaked about this-”

“Ryoga,” Kaito said bluntly, walking by them and shoulder-checking Ryoga. “Chill out and move. We’re not done.” He paused to give Rio a look before nodding to himself. “She’s fine. If you’re that obsessed, Orbital and I can scan her tomorrow. If she was able to get here and handle those thugs down the street, I’m sure she’s OK.”

Rio mouthed a “thanks” to Kaito and he nodded again, before continuing down towards the Academy, Orbital rolling after him. Ryoga opened and closed his mouth a few times before sighing.

“We’ll talk about this later,” he muttered before jogging to catch up with Kaito. Rio rolled her eyes before following. The worries about her nightmare and hallucination (or vision, she’d settle on the right word later) were still there, but there was other stuff to do. Anything that could help take her mind off of it, even if that amounted to Ryoga mother-henning her, would do. 

I have to know Kotori got there safely, Rio thought as they took off. I need to know that she at least got there and is safe.

“Utopia Ray, attack! Rising Sun Chaos Slash!” 

Yuma’s monster cut through Fuma’s Chaos XYZ, sending the gang leader flying back with a roar of pain. He and Astral shared a relieved look while the other members of the Numbers Club cheered him on and celebrated his victory. Kotori let out a sigh of relief as she slipped off her Duel Gazer. She’d arrived just in the nick of time to pass Astral off to Yuma, and together they found the winning formula. As the rest of Yuma’s friends crowded him, Kotori took a minute to breathe that was interrupted by Fuma picking himself up, the Barian emblem in his forehead still glowing.

“You think…” he said through clenched teeth. “... That this will change anything? The army from  Barian World is coming, and you won’t be able to handle all of them! It’s over for you Tsukumo, my army will bring you to ruin-”

“Are you sure about that?” Three voices said in smug harmony. From the stands around the plaza of the Academy, Kaito, Shark and Rio emerged, all looking down on Fuma.

“I wouldn't get too cocky. Your little playdates have been canceled,” Kaito said with a slight smirk.

“Right now they’re all busy taking the express lane to dreamland, courtesy of us three,” Shark chimed in, flashing his teeth in a grin befitting his namesake.

“Some of them nearly got here, credit to a few of them, but they had to cancel at the last minute,” Rio said, flipping her hair behind her. “So it’s just you on your lonesome, buddy.” 

Fuma spluttered over his words as he processed the three teens in front of him wiping out his gang, before Orbital stepped in and gave him a firm shock. While Orbital tied him up for the police, the Numbers Club congregated around Yuma to continue celebrating his win.

“Yeah, those Barians got nothing on me!” Yuma cheered.

“Still as humble as ever,” Kotori said sarcastically, sharing a laugh with Yuma. She turned and perked up when Rio closed in, dashing over. “You’re OK!”

Rio shrugged, smirking slightly. “What, like you doubted me?” 

“Of course not,” Kotori said quickly. “I’m just very good at worrying. I knew you’d be fine.”

“Yeah,” Rio rolled her shoulders. “I suppose if I had lost my first full duel back to some biker punks, I’d have never lived it down. Ryoga’s already got enough to worry about without my Dueling skills being questioned.” 

“I’d rather you not be doubting yourself,” Kaito said as he came over with Shark and Yuma. “This won’t be the last we hear from Barian World.”

“My gut says this was just the beginning,” Shark said darkly in assent. “I’ll be ready for those brainwashed Barian thugs wherever they pop up.” 

Rio nodded. “Well I’m in too.”

“You’re what?” Shark spluttered at that. “Says who?” 

“Says me,” Rio responded firmly. “Whatever went on with me earlier today was because of those Barians. I’ve got as much a reason to wanna stop them so I can figure that out as anyone else here.”  

Shark glowered at that, but held his tongue while Yuma perked up. “I’ll take any help we can get!” Yuma cheered. “Especially from Shark Sis herself! You gotta tell me about how you stopped those biker guys! And we gotta finish our duel from earlier today!”

Rio glowered at Yuma silently, tapping her foot. “Yuma,” she said warningly, “Would you like to amend that sentence? In any way, perhaps?” 

Yuma paused for a second, his brain visibly working overtime to try and catch the offense, before Astral leaned in to whisper into his ear. “Ah! I’m sorry, Rio!”

“Better,” Rio muttered before ruffling Yuma’s hair, causing him to let out cries of disgust before shaking himself free, muttering about how it was just like Akari was here.  

“But yeah!” Yuma declared as he tried to smooth his hair out. “Let Barian World send whoever they want at us, with our combined power there’s nothing that can stop our team! ‘Cause I’ll bring it to ‘em with my Kattobingu spirit!”

It was a nice moment- Shark was even smiling a little- as the clouds opened up enough to let the sun set on Heartland Academy again.

Yuma’s right. Come what may, Kotori thought to herself, we can handle it together.

Times that I've seen you lose your way
You're not in control and you won't be told
All I can do to keep you safe is hold you close, Hold you close
Till you can breathe on your own, Till you can breathe on your own
Hold tight; you're slowly coming back to life
I'll be keeping your head up
I'll be keeping your head up, darling
Let go of all your haunted dreams tonight
I'll be keeping your head up
I'll be keeping your head up, darling

Birdy, "Keeping Your Head Up"

Chapter Text

Yuma was running late. Well, later than usual for him, and that was saying something. Usually he was only a few minutes behind Tetsuo whenever they raced to school, but as Kotori waited at the gates for the two to come rushing in, only Tetsuo arrived this time on his board. He mentioned that the last time he had seen Yuma had been right after Yuma took a nasty fall down a staircase, but Yuma had sounded OK so Tetsuo had kept racing.

Kotori had planned to wait for Yuma to be safe, but the final bell had been ringing so she dashed after Tetsuo, making it into class just in time. She figured if Yuma had taken a bad fall from the staircase, she’d hear soon from Yuma if he had been sent to the hospital, or at worst, Akari would message. Chances were he just got lost or wound up challenging someone to a Duel and lost track of time, so Kotori focused on the lecture, pen scribbling down notes until-

“Ta-da! Apologies for keeping you all waiting!” 

The class was ground to a halt as a student Kotori had never seen before presented himself dramatically, cutting off Kitano-Sensei’s lecture. She noted dimly in the back of her mind that his bright orange hair from a certain angle looked like he was wearing a carrot.

“I’ve brought with me the crown jewel of the school, Yuma Tsumuko!” The new student continued through everyone’s stunned silence, before reaching and pulling into view a dazed and confused Yuma who looked like death warmed over. Kotori was pretty sure he smelled like a sewer from what her nose was picking up, and was that… mashed potato, seaweed and a fish skeleton in his hair?  

The student beamed brightly as Yuma slipped out of his grasp and fell to the ground in front of him, seemingly barely alive at all, while a banana peel slowly peeled itself off of Yuma’s shirt. “I’m the new transfer student, Rei Shingetsu!” 

Kotori looked at Yuma, barely awake and left to splay out on the ground, and decided that she instinctively did not like Shingetsu. She let out a quiet huff of a sigh as she made a note to remind Yuma to change into the spare uniform he left at the Academy. 

And to burn that shirt. Maybe the shoes as well to be safe, the smell was already carrying.

“You know, when I won the World Duel Carnival,” Yuma groused as he bit into a takoyaki ball, hair still a bit wet from the shower he had practically thrown himself into during lunch break, “the last thing I expected was fans who parade me around! We got lost in three kitchens on the way to school! This Shingetsu guy found a way to go everywhere but the school! Being famous sucks!” 

“Yeah Yuma,” Tetsuo said drily, rolling his eyes, “you’ve really got it rough, having people respect you and like you based on your social standing and fame. The world just doesn’t get how rough life can be for you.” 

“Thanks for understanding, Tetsuo!” Yuma beamed at him.

“Yuma,” Astral muttered, “he was being sarcastic enough that even I could tell.” 

Yuma gasped in shock. “He was?! Tetsuo, not cool!”

Testuo glared at the Emperor’s Key. “Astral, ya filthy snitch!” 

Kotori rolled her eyes and shared a chuckle with Todoroki as they watched the two boys fly into a flurry of banter and insults. Shooting Todoroki a wink, Kotori leaned in as she saw a chance to throw oil on the fire.

“Ah, but Yuma, you should be nice to your fans. It doesn’t hurt to get along with them!” 

“Hey, listen here, you!” Yuma snarled before pausing. “Ah, it could be worse,” Yuma groused to himself, “I could treat them like Thomas Arclight-” he paused, shock flying across his face as he covered his mouth to try and stop talking. “Oh my God, I am so sorry,” he said in horror to Tetsuo and Todoroki, who both were giving him furious stink-eyes at the mention of their once-beloved, former-favorite celebrity duelist.

Being reminded of that day Kotori thinking that she really did have to sit down soon and ponder what dice rolls she had made in life that caused almost her entire friend circle to all have specific feuds with this one celebrity. The odds felt a bit skewed, was all she was wondering. If Cathy came up one day and said she was planning to kill Thomas Arclight, Kotori decided (after pondering if she liked Cathy enough to offer an alibi in the event of a police interrogation versus her bucket list desire to lie to a police officer at least once) she’d probably feel the urge to make up her own reason to hate him just because of peer pressure.

Yuma was saved from trying to babble his way into an apology- or more accurately, Tetsuo and Todoroki contemplating throwing him off the roof- by a crowd cheering down in the courtyard. He peered over the edge, seeing a crowd of schoolkids mobbing around a teenager. “What’s that?” He pointed.

The rest of the team joined Yuma in peering over the edge. “Oh yeah,” Tetsuo muttered to himself, “some pro Duelist is visiting today. Katagiri I think his name is?” 

“In summation, yes,” Todoroki added. “He’s also offering a chance to duel him personally.” 

“Huh, neat,” Kotori mumbled. 

“Oooooh,” Yuma leaned forward, “I bet he’d be really fun to take on! I gotta do it!” 

“The prospect of challenging a professional duelist appeals to me as well,” Astral murmured as he manifested from the key.

The boys began chattering about the pro Duelist, Katagiri, while Kotori got up and stretched, her arms popping. “You can have fun with that, Yuma. I’m meeting Rio now for a bit. Will you be OK on your own?” 

“Sure, Kotori!” Yuma waved. “Have fun and tell Shark Sis- Rio, I said Rio, make sure she knows I said Rio this time! - hi for me, will ya?” 

Kotori giggled. “I’ll see if I can include that ‘hi’ in as frantic a tone as you just managed. Wish me luck!”

Kotori made her way off the roof, taking the elevator to the ground floor and stepping out to the open plaza area between the major buildings in the Academy. She was meeting Rio near one of the sports arenas, which were bustling with activity today- it seemed like half of Heartland Academy’s teams were jockeying for space to use today all of a sudden. Kotori wondered what that was all about as she tried to find a long way around the crowds, keeping her eyes open for that familiar flash of teal hair. 

“I said no, you persistent pencilist pest!” Kotori, who had been focused on looking for Rio, snapped back to reality when she heard a familiar rugged voice, looking around until she saw Shark being harassed by a tall, lanky guy with a beret and a few pencils stuck in his hair. He was waving around a large sketchpad that had a design on it that he kept waving in Shark’s face. 

“But Kamishiro-kun!” The beanpole student rushed to get in front of Shark, who was growing steadily more annoyed. “I, the humble artist Art Stanley, intended the design only as a compliment! Surely you can see how my Night Shark design would fit as a rugged rival for the club’s new manga project! Come on, the release forms won’t sign themselves!” He grabbed onto Ryoga’s arm, making his eye start twitching.

“I ain’t helping your tactless manga, so shove off already, Stanley!” Shark swung his arm out to shake off Stanley’s grip, pushing him back and making Stanley fall flat on his behind. A quiet tinkling could be heard as one of Shark’s rings slipped off his finger, clattering to the ground. 

Shark looked down on the ring, picking it up and huffing a sigh. “Darn, I forgot to give this back. Look, just leave me alone, dude. I said no.” With that, Shark huffed again and slipped the ring onto his finger, grabbing his bag and leaving with a nod to Kotori. 

“What was that all about,” Kotori muttered, shaking her head. She looked down and saw a notebook had skidded over near her when Stanley was sent flying, so she bent down to pick it up and walked over to the art student. “Pardon,” she cleared her throat. “I think this is yours?” 

“Ah!” Stanley took it back. “Thank you kindly! I’d have been distraught if I lost this. My life’s work is enclosed within these pages!”

“Well,” Kotori said with a small laugh, “I’m glad I could help support the arts in my own little way!” 

“Patronage is always welcomed!” Stanley threw his hands out wide, nearly losing the papers he had just been scrambling to pick up. “We artists are trained to feed off any support, from the tiniest comment to the knowing approval of the silent majority!”  

Behind Stanley, Kotori saw a familiar flash of blue heading towards one of the sports halls. She took a step back, fastening her bag against her shoulders. “That’s really lovely to hear, but I should get going. If you’ll excuse me…?” 

Stanley turned to see where Kotori's gaze had flitted to, before he returned to offer her a beaming grin. “Of course! Have a nice day!” 

Kotori moved around Stanley and darted up the stairs into the sports complex, taking the steps two at a time to try and avoid losing Rio amidst the crowd again. A large line had formed at the turnstiles as most of the basketball team were clumped up and holding up the line, giving Kotori time to fish out her own school ID. Frankly, Kotori didn’t get why nearly every extracurricular club suddenly wanted Rio to become their manager. Sure, Rio was indeed a jack of all trades who’d spent much of the day absolutely annihilating most of the competition. Sure, she was doing it in spite of her injuries and seemingly only needing a few inhaler puffs to keep going, alongside pacing out each physical activity with one of the more sedate ones like mahjong (still, she was holding up super well, a testament to Rio’s dedication to her physical therapy). Sure, maybe Rio looked absolutely stunning while doing it, making each activity look effortless and like it wasn’t a big deal to take on the top competitors in each club. And sure, whenever Kotori had made it to one of the events and Rio spotted her, she’d flash this grateful smile that had Kotori’s face flushing like she was the one out on the track field, like Kotori’s presence was what was really making Rio’s day and didn’t that make Kotori feel special, and-

OK, enough of that. Kotori paused to mentally shake herself back into reality before her daydreaming made her walk right into a pillar. Kotori understood why she would want to hang out around Rio, but the rest of the teams were a mystery. Still, this would be the last event of the day, and everything had seemed OK with Yuma where she had left him, so Kotori figured she could sit down for this one. 

Kotori eventually made it to the auditorium, grabbing one of the front seats and getting comfortable. The exhibition would be starting soon and she was eager to see if Rio could maintain her frankly astonishing win-streak across the day’s events.

Rio was starting to become convinced that this entire day had to be an extended prank, a lovely dream, or a bit. She had a healthy ego (in her near-flawless opinion, naturally), but even she was calling foul on her ability to run circles around these teams. Even prior to her injuries, Rio knew she would have struggled to win in the soccer challenges or the quick boxing match, but she had glided through them, making perfect shots and landing decisive winning blows. The most she’d had to show for her exertion efforts had been some mild breathing troubles, but the inhaler she had been assigned was more than up to par.

Rio didn’t mind that she was winning, and she did take some sadistic glee in bringing the teams down to size, but she couldn’t help but wonder how she was doing so well. There had been moments where she almost felt like she was going to fall flat on her face and humiliate herself in front of the teams and any observers, but Rio seemed to find a new wellspring of energy that put enough of a spring in her step to get her to victory. It reminded her of a documentary she’d thrown on once when she couldn’t sleep one night, about the ‘hysterical strength’ phenomena where the human body could push past natural limitations in moments of severe stress or need- like parents lifting cars to save their children pinned underneath. Rio wasn’t sure if needing to win a soccer match to dodge having to become their manager qualified as such a moment of fight or flight stress, but if that was what was keeping her on her feet during each of the team battles she wouldn’t complain. Her lungs had complained after some of the more arduous parts of the day, but her inhaler kept her up and moving alongside timing some of the more passive or sedimentary club activities to buy her time to sit down and breathe. 

The basketball match was no different, but Rio could feel a slight strain in her sides near the end as she landed a two-pointer. She’d feel this in the morning for sure, but at least here and now, she was holding her own and winning, feeling pride in herself that she’d come so far already in her recovery. Let Ryoga pop a blood vessel over this later if he cared to, Rio in the heat of the moment felt good about herself and luxuriated in the victory as the final horns sounded, her brain releasing a rush of dopamine as reward.

(A rush that seemed to accelerate, Rio failed to notice, when the klaxons marked the end of the match and she instinctively made eye contact with Kotori, both flashing relieved smiles at each other while Kotori let out a big cheer)

Her introspection was brought to a halt when a variety of mutterings and bitter mumblings broke out around her from the crowds and players. 

“... Kamishiros and their pride, man, not worth dealing with even once.”

“Pity that those Kamishiros are such jerks, they’re wasted not being part of a sports team, but it’s not worth dealing with their ego trips.” 

“She’s definitely Shark’s sister alright…” 

“Jeez, does she have to be such a tryhard jock about all this?” 

“Guess Shark’s sister is too good for us common plebs.”

“You’d think with burns like hers she wouldn’t be turning away anyone still willing to give her the time of day…” 

“Bro, harsh! … but I’d still date Shark above her five times out of ten... if I swung that way, of course!” 

“... Kazuya, please, just accept that you’re bisexual already for the love of God.” 

Of course, the problem with winning was that most losers are inherently sore about it when they lose, and few categories are as full of sore losers as that of teenage boys in a sports team who just lost to a girl in a 5 on 1. 

Kotori’s eyes narrowed at the retreating players while Rio made her way over to the bleachers, sitting down with a relieved huff. 

“They’re so cruel,” Kotori said bitterly. “Where do they get off on talking about you like that?” 

Rio shrugged lazily. “I guess I’m too used to it to really notice,” she replied. “They’re just losers too caught up in their egos to see girls as anything but fancy decorations to wave around. Unless they either got lucky or I threw a match, they were always going to take offense to an outsider coming and showing them up, especially when they were anticipating being able to use me like an idol to wave around.”

“So…” Kotori paused, placing her chin on her palm. “What, you expected them to talk bitterly about you like that?” 

“I mean, I didn’t 100% think I’d win, if they beat me then they beat me and I’d manage their teams that did it.” Rio shrugged again. “But like… It’s me. Of course I’d win. And better that I don’t get approached by those losers now every few weeks, each group thinking that they’ll be the one to cut me down to size.” 

“I guess.” Kotori chewed on her lip. “But why go to all this length then? I think you could have just said no.” 

Rio got comfortable and huffed. “I dunno… pride? An urge to stick it to the sports teams and humble them?” She gave Kotori a wry side-eye. “I mean, I’m not sure if you’ve noticed Kotori, but my brother and I are a little competitive.”

“Just a little?” Kotori replied sardonically. “No, it completely slipped my notice.”

“Ha.” Rio shot back just as sardonically, the two smirking at each other for a moment in a comfortable silence. “Thanks for coming out here by the way,” Rio eventually said. “I appreciated it.” 

“It wasn’t any trouble. Yuma and the boys were just fawning over some pro Duelist, so I left them to it.” Kotori huffed playfully. “Knowing Yuma, which I do, he forgot to apply for a chance to duel the pro so he’s just watching that class and bemoaning his poor time-keeping skills or that new Shingetsu fan of his. I bet they’re having a nice, quiet time over there without me.” 

“Alright!” Yuma said enthusiastically. “I dealt Katagiri some damage off his Gianttrainer’s effect! Now we’re still in this and I can try to win on the next turn, as long as he doesn’t have anything else to play!” 

“Yeah Yuma, you got this!” Tetsuo and Shingetsu cheered from the sidelines.

“I activate Rank-Up-Magic Barian’s Force!” Katagiri declared immediately after the boys finished speaking, an animalistic grin spreading across his face as he became shrouded in a red aura.

Astral slowly drifted down beside Yuma as Coach King Gianttrainer underwent the process of Chaos XYZ Change, Shingetsu and Tetsuo recoiling in horror as CXyz Coach Lord Ultimatrainer joined the battle. “Yuma?” He asked quietly.

“Yeah Astral?” 

“You are very fond of tempting fate with declarative statements like that. I would like to ask you to please stop doing it.” 

Yuma sighed. “Yeah… I really should.” 

“We’re all dead!” Tetsuo wailed, shaking Shingetsu like a tree being hit by a strong gale. “We’re all gonna lose!” 

“I can’t feel my shoulders, please stop shaking me…” Shingetsu protested weakly. 

“Yeah, I’m sure they’re fine,” Rio shrugged. 

“I’ll check in later.” Kotori replied, similarly casual. “Are you busy for the rest of the day?” 

“Not especially? This was the last club that wanted me to audition as their manager, so I’m free to head home now whenever. Might try and drag Ryoga out of whatever corner he’s brooding in today so I can pester him into giving me a ride home if he’s not busy. Why’re you asking?”

“Just making sure I’m not holding you up or anything.” 

“Nah!” Rio waved a hand lazily, getting comfortable in the chair while kicking her legs out. “My schedule’s free now for the day so I’m all yours if you wanna hang out.” 

“Oh, nice.” Kotori beamed a little at that. “I’d brought my deck and Duel Disk with me today because I made some adjustments lately, and I wanted to run them by you.” Her tone shifted to something more playful. “I mean, if I showed this to Yuma and had made a glaring mistake, how would that look on my mentor’s deckbuilding prowess?” 

Rio snickered. “Well,” she played along, “we couldn’t have that now. That’d be humiliating for you and your mentor.” Rio got up, stretching her arms above her head. “My deck’s inside the locker room, let me get changed into something more comfortable and I’ll be right out.”

“Sounds good!” Kotori got up with Rio. “I’ll wait for you outside.” 

Rio nodded, the two making their way down towards the locker rooms. Kotori leaned against one of the walls, pulling out her D Pad and shooting off a quick message to Yuma to see how he was doing before idly scrolling through a news feed.

“Ah, Mizuki-chan. We appear to have met again.”

Kotori wheeled around, seeing the artist student who had been harassing Shark earlier in the day before her, standing in a patch of shadow. “Uh, can I help you?” She said awkwardly.

He tittered to himself. “You can, actually. See, I had a flash of inspiration seeing Ryoga Kamishiro’s sister today at the athletic events. My greatest characters can all be defined by their strongest weakness, and in Kamishiro-Kun’s case… that’s his sister.”

Kotori felt a chill crawling up her spine. She instinctively took a step back from Stanley. “And… and what does that have to do with me?” 

“Isn’t it obvious?” Stanley began to slowly reach for his backpack, a faint red shimmer coming from within. “Shark’s weakness is his sister, and her weakness… is you. So by using you I can create three characters for my drama, all for the price of one!” 

The door behind Kotori creaked open, Rio slipping out. “Hope I didn’t keep you waiting-”

Kotori turned and started to shove Rio back. “Rio you need to run, now!” 

The red shimmer behind Kotori turned into a full overwhelming red aura, one that even from behind Kotori became bright enough that it overpowered her vision, turning everything white.

Rio’s eyes fluttered open slowly, her senses slowly coming back to her. Touch came first, as her cheek and her hands felt cold stone underneath. A draft came by that made a lit sconce in the wall flicker slightly, casting the hallway she found herself in in an pale orange light that shook with the wind. She could see to her left that the hallway veered sharply to the right, while the pathway on her right had less lighting and was covered in darkness.

That made Rio sit up sharply. A sconce? Cold stone? She was in a gym, not a-

“Oh crap,” she muttered as she looked around. She was in a literal castle, one shrouded a slight yellowish tint to it- like faded paper left out in the sun, or like a comic book. “What the heck is going on?” 

The wall to her right rumbled, the stones shaking. Rio stepped back instinctively, eyes darting around before the wall peeled back, the central bricks moving in a grid-pattern to show a dim fog that prevented her from seeing too far out past the castle. The fog seemed to smooth out, like an artist smoothing out a creased paper, before splashes of black and white were thrown onto it. They spread out like ink blotches before solidifying and forming… the hallway leading to the changing rooms. Ryoga was there, kneeling as he picked up a satchel bag that had been thrown haphazardly onto the ground. Rio realized with a start- that was her bag. It had slipped off her shoulder as Kotori had shoved her back before Stanley’s light-show started.

“Rio!” Ryoga called out, looking around. “Where are you!” 

“Looking for someone, Ryoga Kamishiro?” A mocking voice said behind Ryoga, making him jolt.

Ryoga turned, baring his teeth as Art Stanley walked out into the hallway. “You again! When are you gonna learn to take no for an answer, you pencil-pusher?!” He paused, eyes narrowing. “Unless… you know what happened to her, don’t you?” 

“Maybe I do. Maybe I’ll tell you what I know… if you’d Duel me.” Art’s eyes began to shine with a dull red flare. Rio felt an odd pressure behind her eyes, making her rub at them for a minute. As she lifted the back of her hand from her face, the Art Stanley she could see seemed to flicker in place for a moment, an aura beginning to surround him that was the same shade of red as his eyes now were. 

Shark growled, taking a step forward. “And what’s stopping me from just dragging you behind those bleachers and beating you into submission until you tell me what you know about Rio?” 

Art snickered, his hands coming up in a placating gesture. “That maybe would work, and it would hurt, but do you really have time to waste when I’m already offering you the information you need?” His smile took a cruel tint. “Besides,” he leaned forward conspiratorially, “I don’t know if your sister’s friend will fare much better. I at least need Rio safe to get you to comply, but Mizuki-Kun…” he clicked his tongue. “She’s just insurance to keep your sister where I need her.”

Rio’s pulse came to an abrupt halt for a second as she heard that. “Oh no,” she muttered. “Kotori…” 

Ryoga’s eyes narrowed into pinpricks as he opened his deck box, slotting his cards into his Duel Disk. “If you laid a finger on any of them, I’ll beat you so red, black and blue, your pasty ass could pass for a newspaper!” 

Art laughed at that. “So crass, Kamishiro-kun! My Night Shark was definitely an accurate depiction of you and your hair-trigger temper! Still, a duel’s what I want, and now it’s your turn to fill your role in the grand script I have planned for you!” 

“Just shut up and show me where we’re dueling,” Shark snarled, taking a menacing step towards Art. As he did, black spots began to fill over the point of view that Rio had, eventually forming a solid black wall. When it faded away, Rio was left facing the stone brick wall, now fully reassembled as though it had never opened to begin with. 

Rio felt her breathing growing heavier while a kernel of rage began to build up in her core. “Bad enough this jackass wannabe mangaka tries to hold me hostage to get to my brother,” she muttered to herself as she picked a direction and set off, footsteps echoing in the empty hall, “but dragging Kotori into this to get to me? That’s just super scummy…” 

Rio was really growing to hate this Barian crap. If she ever got to meet the ringleader for their brainwashing posse, she was absolutely gonna try to throw them off a roof. 

“OK,” Rio muttered to herself, “Order of business. Step One, find Kotori. Step Two, find a way out of here. Step Three, burn important possessions of Art Stanley while he’s tied to a chair and forced to watch. Step Four-” 

Rio stopped as a rumbling started to build in the background. She turned around, eyes widening as an armored figure straight out of a Mid-2000s JRPG stepped out of the shadows, leveling a massive sword at her. 

“New Step One,” Rio said with an exasperated groan before launching into a dead sprint in the opposite direction. “Run!”

Kotori had regained consciousness on what appeared to be the roof of a tower. Taking a moment to try and gain a semblance of an idea as to where she was, she was left befuddled by the yellow-ish fog that covered everything. The texture and shading of the roof was also off, as if it was put through a photo filter. She thought she could hear something down below, what sounded like two male voices exchanging heated barbs, but the words always got caught on the air and she couldn’t make out anything definitive. Sighing, she made her way towards the rooftop door, slowly nudging it open to peek through and looking at an old medieval hallway, complete with an ornate red carpet and lit sconces. 

“Hello?” Kotori called out as she entered the hallway fully, the door closing behind her. “Is anyone here?”  

The hallway Kotori was in was on the bottom of a T-section. In the distance, she heard heavy, clanging metal slamming against the ground in a rhythmic pattern, and just underneath that was the sounds of someone panting. As Kotori made her way to the top of the hallway, she turned to the right in time to see Rio skidding around the corner.

“Rio! I-”

“Talk later! Run now!” Rio managed to shout, maintaining her speed as she made her way towards Kotori, followed by an imposing figure in dark armor. 

“No, wait, Rio, that-” Kotori’s protest was cut off as Rio sprinted by her, grabbing her hand and forcing them both towards the door and back onto the roof. Rio shoulder-checked it open, where they skidded to a hasty stop back onto the open roof, the fog boxing them in. “... that’s the roof I just came from,” Kotori finished weakly. 

Rio groaned. “Crap,” she said, exasperated. “We’re stuck.” 

The door slammed open behind them, revealing a tall, armored figure with a horned helmet. Its face-plate was adorned with an intricate and ornate face, like some of the centurion helmets Kotori could remember from a class on Roman History. A strong red cape came to settle around bright, shimmering armor that looked so resplendent, Kotori was sure she could brush her teeth in its reflection.

“Halt, ne'er do wells!” It announced, holding up a hand in the universal stop sign. “You have trespassed on royal property, and my king has demanded you be arrested and sealed in the dungeons! Do not force my hand!”

Kotori and Rio were stunned for a second. The two looked at each other, trying to communicate solely through stunned silence and slow blinks. 

“Did we…” Kotori eventually muttered. “Did we bump our heads? Is this all one shared lucid dream?” 

“Unfortunately,” Rio replied, deadpan, “I don’t think we’re that lucky.”

The fog beside Kotori and Rio shifted, congealing until it formed an almost solid surface. Blotches of color began to splatter against it like a tapestry until it formed a full window, showing Art and Shark facing off in one of the school’s plazas. The Duel was already underway, with Shark facing down an XYZ Monster that was about to attack one of his monsters. He had his hand up, ready to declare a trap, when Art chimed in. 

“Is that trap potentially worth risking your sister’s life?” 

Shark paused. “What the-”

“Take a look!” Art gestured dramatically to his left, letting Shark see a viewing screen. It started as a flat sketch of Rio and Kotori on the edge of the roof with the knight looming over them, before more color and detail began to fade in. “Your sister and her friend are both trapped in my manga! If I were to lose the duel, who knows what could happen to them after that world collapsed?” Art brought a hand under his chin. “Is your pride really worth two innocent lives?” 

Shark paused, a wide array of emotions flickering across his face, before he lowered his hand. His trap stayed deactivated as Art’s XYZ Monster attacked his own, sending him flying before the tapestry faded to black.

Rio snarled. “Damnit Ryoga, don’t stall! We’ll be OK!” 

“Your vagabond brother cannot hear you in this world, Ice Witch.” the knight across from them declared. “Your foul ministrations will not be allowed to leave this roof!” 

“Who are you calling an Ice Witch?!” Rio shot back indignantly.

“Leave this roof…” Kotori muttered to herself. “What’s the bet that Art want s us to stay here?” 

Rio paused, shooting Kotori a side-eye. “As in, this whole castle’s a facade?”

“Yeah!” Kotori said. “He had a Field Spell up that put the area around Shark in the same kind of shading as this place. We might just be in the AR dome’s reach.”

“Big AR dome in that case. But if you’re right,” Rio said, catching on. “If we get back out of here…”

“We can force our way out of the range of his manga world, and Shark can stop holding back!” Kotori finished excitedly. 

Rio met her confidence with a smirk. “Good idea. No wonder Yuma seems so dumb with you carrying all the brain cells.” The smirk faded from Rio’s face as she took in the knight. “Problem though, is that this armored annoyance is very real, and doing his resolute best to keep us here.” 

“Then we just gotta get through.” Kotori reached into her pockets, slipping out a Duel Gazer. “And I think I have just the tool for the job here!” 

“You would challenge me? Gawain, knight of the land?” The knight scoffed. “You will find only ruination and damnation awaiting you down that path, Sky Witch.” The knight sheathed his sword, his shield glowing and rematerializing as a Duel Disk. “But if you wish to humiliate yourself, I, Sir Gawain, shall accept your request for a humbling defeat while the rest of my fellow knights bring the Night Shark to his final resting place!” 

Kotori rolled her eyes at the knight, responding by pulling out her own Duel Disk. “Man, you are over dramatic,” she muttered. She paused as she felt a hand tap her shoulder, Rio behind her. “What’s up?” 

“Are you sure you wanna try and do this?” Rio murmured. “You don’t have to throw yourself into the fire for me, I’d be willing to take your deck and Duel for us.” 

“Don’t sweat it,” Kotori said. “You had my back with the bikers. Now it’s my turn to have yours. Do you trust me?” 

Rio paused, mouth opening slightly as if to say something before she closed it to smile confidently. “Of course I do, what kinda teacher would I be if I couldn’t put my trust in my valiant student?” Rio chuckled. “Pity we don’t have a few of Kaito’s cards to spare so you can’t be like a dragon slaying this Halloween rental store knight.” 

“Alas, Ice Witch, I’ll have to settle for what I’ve got on me.” Kotori shot back with a wink.

Rio huffed. “See, at least when you say it, I feel cool… Sky Witch.”

Kotori groaned. “Ugh, let’s keep that one in the drafts for this egomanic’s comic, huh?” She turned to give Gawain her full attention. “Alright then, let’s go!”

“Indeed,” Gawain declared, “let us bring about your swift defeat! Duel Disk, go!” 

Kotori’s Duel Disk snapped into place. “Duel Gazer, let’s roll!” She shot back, fastening her Duel Gazer over her eye. Both drew their first cards as an AR dome materialized.

“Duel!” They shouted out.

Gawain rolled his neck. “I shall take the first turn. I draw!” His masked gaze gave nothing away as he inspected his hand. “I shall begin by Normal Summoning Summoner Monk!” A blue-skinned monk clad in purple appeared on the field. “When it is summoned, my Monk automatically changes to Defense Position.” It immediately began kneeling, placing its hands together so that its wide sleeves merged together. “Now by discarding a Spell Card, I can use my Monk’s effect, allowing me to Special Summon a Level 4 or lower Monster from my deck!” Gawain showed a Spell as he discarded it, Kotori’s Duel Gazer marking it as Noble Arms - Gallatin. “I Special Summon Noble Knight Gwalchavad!” A knight in resplendent silver armor took to the field, his long hair swaying gently in a breeze. 

“Two Level 4 Monsters,” Rio muttered behind Kotori. “No shock where this will be going.”

“But he won’t stick around for long,” Gawain announced, “as I now Overlay my Level 4 Summoner Monk and Level 4 Gwalchavad!” The vortex of the Overlay Network appeared on the field, with Gwalchavad and Summoner Monk turning into streams of energy that flew into the portal.

“Carve your legacy into history, my Duke! March with Cadvan and King Margadud into an immortal story! I XYZ Summon! Rank 4, Sacred Noble Knight of King Custennin!” 

From the Overlay Network emerged an armored figure with kingly stature, his armor decorated in gold and a crown adorning his head, standing out amidst his short black hair. A red cape flared out behind him. 

“My King shall not be left unadorned when facing such vile Witches as yourselves! I now equip Custennin with two Noble Arms from my hand- Caliburn and Noble Arms of Destiny!” 

From behind Custennin, a squire came, weighed down heavily with swords. Kotori watched as Custennin tested a few of the swords before settling on two, sending the squire running. 

“With Caliburn, Custennin gains 500 Attack Points, and I can gain 500 Life Points during each of my Main Phases, which I shall now do!” Custennin held Caliburn aloft, the blade catching some of the late afternoon sun while Custennin’s Attack Points rose to . The sunbeams bounced over to Gawain as he held his own arms out, a slight aura surrounding him as his Life Points rose to 4500. 

“He can do that every turn?” Kotori muttered. “That’s gonna be a hassle.” 

“You don’t know the half of it,” Rio chimed in from behind Kotori. “Every time one of those Noble Arms is destroyed, they can come back once per turn by equipping themselves to a different Noble Knight. If he gets another Knight out and you can’t deal with them both in one turn…”

“He can keep recycling the swords. Great,” Kotori replied. “Wait, what about that second one, Noble Arms of Destiny?” 

“His monster can’t be destroyed by your effects or by battle once per turn,” Rio explained, her Duel Gazer lighting up. 

“Must you keep consorting with your ally to disclose that information, Ice Witch?!” Gawain cursed from the other side of the field.

Rio rolled her eyes. “It’s public knowledge, buddy! The card’s face-up on the field, she’s allowed to ask what it does. I just saved us both the trouble of hearing you talk more.”

“Such foul tongues…” Gawian shook his head. “I end my turn with that!”

“Alright. My turn! I draw!” Kotori drew quickly, looking at her hand. One card stood out in her hand, but she shelved it for now. “I summon The Agent of Creation- Venus!” An angelic figure descended from the sky, dressed in a tan and green tunic. Three spheres of energy hovered around her. “I can now use her effect, paying 500 Life Points to summon a Mystical Shine Ball from my deck! I’ll use this effect three times!” 

Kotori’s Duel Disk gave her a slight jolt as she paid the Life Point cost, making her hiss under her breath. Her Disk automatically retrieved each of the Shine Balls, shuffling her deck for her as she placed them on the field. Their shimmering light caught the sun and caused a prismatic effect to float around the field.

“You paid nearly half your Life Points for three weakling monsters like that? Perhaps I overestimated how much trouble you would be for me.” Gawain scoffed. 

Kotori felt one of her eyes twitch impulsively. “I’ll show you what these weaklings can do,” she replied angrily before throwing her hand into the air. “I Overlay two of my Mystical Shine Balls! With these two monsters, I build the Overlay Network!” 

The familiar yellow and black vortex swirled in front of Kotori, as two of the Shine balls dematerialised and flew into the void.

“Here’s a stonemason who can provide the foundations for a better tomorrow with his keen eyes and rocksteady hands! I XYZ Summon! Rank 2, Gachi Gachi Gantetsu!” 

Compared to the more angelic and seraphim-like monsters that filled the majority of Kotori’s deck, Gachi Gachi stood out, being a hulking Rock Monster that situated itself in Defense Mode. 

“While Gachi Gachi Gantetsu is on my field,” Kotori explained, “All my Monsters gain 200 Attack and Defense Points for each Overlay Unit it has.” She pulled a new card from her hand. “Next, I discard The Agent of Life- Neptune from my hand to use his effect! I can now Special Summon another ‘The Agent’ monster from my hand or Graveyard! I choose to summon from my hand, the Level 3 Tuner Monster, The Agent of Destruction - Venus!” 

Briefly, a white-clad angel with blue wings appeared behind Kotori, before curling its wings around itself and shining with a bright light. As it did, it shimmered and transformed into a new Monster that stood on Kotori’s field, similar to the original Venus she summoned but with a darker color scheme, trailing dark slime behind her and the same three colored orbs.

“A Tuner Monster?!” Gawain exclaimed. “You can’t be about to do what I think you’re doing!” 

Kotori smiled innocently. “What have you got to worry about? It’s only my little weakling monsters out there. And yeah, they individually aren’t that strong, but together…” A gust of wind began to form around Kotori, as her smile turned into a confident smirk. “Well together their power is beyond your fragile ego’s comprehension.” 

Rio chuckled. “Oh this’ll be good,” she said smugly. 

Kotori’s hand shot into the air. “I Tune my Level 3 Agent of Destruction- Venus, with my Level 2 Mystical Shine Ball!” Venus rose into the air, her wingbeat contributing to the growing wind that surrounded the Duel. Gawain had to throw up a hand to cover his eyes, while Rio’s hair began to fly around her from the strong winds. The orbs flew around Venus as she dissipated, becoming three rings of energy that the Shine Ball flew through.

“Carry out the will of the forgotten planet, and carry wayward souls to their dutiful resting place! I Synchro Summon! Level 5, The Executor of the Underworld - Pluto!”  

The rings formed by Venus that the Shine Ball had flown through broke apart, their contained energy calling forth an angelic male figure with gray skin. He had long purple hair that was the same shade as his wings. As he settled to the field, he called out an orb of dark purple energy, shimmering like a small galaxy in his hand. 

Rio let out a huff of air as the wind died down. “You actually did it,” she muttered under her breath. “Good job, Little Bird.”

Kotori turned to see Rio’s reaction, the two exchanging thumbs up before Kotori turned back to the duel. 

Gawain stared down the impassive angelic figure. “That Monster is impressive, but weak. He only has 2300 Attack Points, while my Knight stands at 2500 Defense Points!” 

“Correction.” Kotori (affectionately) channeled Todoroki as she held up a finger in a deliberately annoying nerd-like manner. “My Executor started at 2300, did you forget my Gantetsu’s effect? It gains 200 Attack Points for each Overlay Unit, so it now rises to 2700!” 

Gawain took a step back at that. “Curses,” he muttered. 

“But before I attack him, I’m gonna get his sword collection off the field. I activate Pluto’s effect! By banishing a Fairy-type monster from my Graveyard, I can flip one of your monsters into face down-defense position! I banish Neptune to flip Custennin!”

Neptune’s visage appeared briefly again, before Pluto reached out, conforming his specter into a sphere of blue energy that shot out and knocked Custennin over, his swords scattering to the ground.

“Now that your monster is face down, your Destiny Equip Spell can’t protect it, so I can destroy it now when I battle. Also, as I banished Neptune, his effect activates, letting me get the Field Spell ‘The Sanctuary in the Sky’ from my deck and add it to my hand, which I’ll now activate!” 

Kotori inserted her newly acquired Field Spell, the skies above lighting up and shimmering as she did. Through the clouds and fog implemented by Art’s manga world, she could make out a radiant citadel that stood over an entire city in the clouds above. 

“While The Sanctuary in the Sky is on my field,” she explained, “I don’t take any Battle Damage when you battle one of my Fairy monsters. Kotori’s hand shot out. “Now, battle! Pluto, attack the set Cutennin! Planetary Necropolis Entropy!” 

Pluto reached out to the set monster, the purple orbs in his hands gathering energy and shaping into a lance. With a mighty throw, he chucked it at the set monster, destroying it and scattering the card fragments across the field, Gawain holding up a gauntleted hand to protect his eyes as a gust of wind impacted on him. 

“And now that your field is wide open, I can attack directly with The Agent of Creation- Venus! Go-”

“Not so fast!” Gawain interrupted. “I activate Cutennin’s effect! When he’s destroyed by Battle or Card Effect, I can revive him and use him as material to XYZ Summon a new Noble Knight monster from my Extra Deck!” 

Kotori was startled at that, eyes widening as before her, the Overlay Network appeared. 

“I re-build the Overlay Network with the Sacred Noble Knight of King Custennin! Become immortalized in the tomes of Historia, cleave your tale across the lands, and assemble the mightiest of arms! I XYZ Summon! Rank 5, Sacred Noble Knight of King Artorigus!”

An even more resplendent knight appeared, this one with blue shimmering lines painted across his armor. Fur lined his armor, cutting an imposing figure.

“When Artorigus is XYZ Summoned, I can automatically equip up to three Noble Arms cards from my Graveyard to him! I equip him with Caliburn, Gallatin, and Noble Arms of Destiny!”

Each of the three enchanted weapons appeared, Artorigus picking up two with ease while Destiny turned into a shield slung across his back. “Caliburn grants Artorigus 500 Attack Points and lets me gain 500 Life Points during my turn,” Gawain explained. “While Gallatin gives it another 1000 Attack Points, at the cost of losing 200 during my Standby Phases. Finally, Noble Arms of Destiny prevents you from destroying Artorigus with battle or a card effect!”

Kotori let out a nervous gulp, before looking at her field, despondent. “I set one card face down, and end my turn,” Kotori said glumly.

“It is now my turn then. I draw!” Gawain drew, inspecting the card in his hand. “During my Standby Phase, Gallatin costs my Artorigus 200 Attack Points, bringing him down to 3600. During my Main Phase, I will activate Caliburn’s effect to gain another 500 Life Points! I now summon Noble Knight Artorigus!” A younger, more fresh-faced version of the king Gawain summoned in the previous turn took to the field, struggling to pull a sword out of a pile of stone who materialized with him. As he eventually did so, the younger Artorigus struck a pose on the rock pile. “I now activate the effect of my King Artorigus! By using one Overlay Unit, I can destroy one of your monsters! I target The Executor of the Underworld - Pluto!”

Artorigus slashed through his one Overlay Unit. It lit up, channeling itself into one of his swords to give it an obsidian tint. He pointed the beam at Pluto, charging up a maelstrom of energy.

Kotori’s hand shot out. “I activate my Continuous Trap, Fallen Sanctuary!” Her trap lifted up, showing a tilted version of the Sanctuary in the Sky, worn with damage and slowly falling. “It has two effects! The first lets me set a Spell or Trap from my deck that mentions The Sanctuary in the Sky!” Kotori quickly selected a card and placed it face down. “Next, I’ll use its other effect! By banishing a Fairy-type monster from my Graveyard, I can negate one of your monster’s effects, and I banish a Mystical Shine Ball!” 

Fallen Sanctuary let out a bolt of petrifying energy towards Artorigus, only for it to be intercepted mid-air. “I will not allow my Knight to come to harm, witch! I activate the effect of Morgan, the Enchantress of Avalon from my hand! By discarding her and destroying a Noble Arms, I can negate any of your activated effects! To pay this cost, Artorigus shall sacrifice Caliburn!”

An orange-haired woman in a green tunic briefly appeared behind Artorigus, a staff in her hand lighting up. Artorigus offered up one of his swords, letting it dematerialize so its energy could mix with her magical power to prevent Fallen Sanctuary’s bolt from reaching him. 

“Now that your trap has been negated, your Pluto shall fall!”

“I have one more ability! As I have Sanctuary in the Sky on the field, I can use Pluto’s effect as a quick effect on either player’s turn! I’ll banish The Agent of Destruction- Venus to set your Artorigus face-down!” 

“Be that as it may,” Gawain replied coolly, “You cannot prevent Pluto’s destruction!”

As Gawain finished speaking, Pluto and King Artorigus both shot off their blasts. Artorigus was knocked flat, his remaining armory sent flying, but his shot also landed dead off, turning Pluto into a cloud of stardust that dissipated in the open air. 

“I lost my Pluto, but at least I took out his sword collection,” Kotori said to herself.

“No you didn’t.” Rio replied. “Remember what I told you? He can bring them back if they’re destroyed as long as he has another Noble Knight on the field. And he just summoned another Artorigus right before this."

“... Right,” Kotori said after a moment, kicking herself mentally. “I forgot about that.”

“As your Ice Witch ally pointed out, I now activate the effects of Caliburn, Gallatin, and Noble Arms of Destiny! Each now equips onto Noble Knight Artorigus!”

The younger Artorigus held each of the weapons, letting out a war cry as his attack points rose to 3300. As that happened, Gawain flipped King Artorigus back into face-up Attack Position.

“I now activate the Equip Spell, Mage Power!” He declared. “The targeted monster gains 500 Attack Points for each spell and trap on my field, including itself! I equip this onto my Noble Knight Artorigus!”

“That’s four spells total,” Rio noted. “So its attack points will rise to…”

“5300?!” Kotori stood in shock for a minute, but tried to ground herself with the reminder that she’d be safe for this turn at least.

“I can’t lose this turn at least,” Kotori said to Rio. “Sanctuary in the Sky prevents me from taking battle damage involving Fairy monsters, and Gachi Gachi can survive the turn.”

Rio nodded, appraising the duel with a cool gaze. “But you’ll be on the backfoot, and the firepower of those Knights will keep you there. You’ll only have one turn to take the lead before you’re completely overrun.” 

“I get you. No pressure.” Kotori turned her attention back to the duel.

Gawain pointed at Kotori’s monsters. “Battle! King Artorigus, destroy The Agent of Creation Venus!” Kotori’s monster was quickly sliced to pieces, the explosion from the battle making her skid back. 

“I can’t destroy your Gantetsu, but I’ll press the assault and lay siege to your Life Points! Artorigus, strike at Gachi Gachi Gantetsu!”

Artorigus shot forward, bringing his weapons down on Gachi Gachi’s arms. The stone cracked and warped under their blows, but the expiration of one of its Overlay Units fortified them enough to withstand the attack.

Kotori’s hand shot up, pointing at her monster. “Gachi Gachi Gantetsu can use one Overlay Unit to survive the battle!”

“Yes, but you can only do that one more time.” Gawain scoffed. “You survived with no damage, but that trick won’t work again. You only have two cards left in your hand and only one more Overlay Unit under your monster. Next turn, this duel will be mine, and my King will bring both you and that bandit, the Night Shark, to your final justice!”

Rio huffed, unimpressed. “A duel’s not over until the life points hit zero, and Kotori has plenty to spare. She’ll turn this duel around and make you eat those words.”

Kotori shot a smile over her shoulder at Rio. “Thanks for the moral support.” 

Rio shrugged while smiling lazily. “I’ve seen you watch Yuma duel enough to know how best to hype up someone from the sidelines. Figured it was time you got to be on the receiving end of that attention for a change.”

“It’s… appreciated.” Kotori replied, turning back quickly as a blush began to climb up her cheeks.

Behind Kotori, Rio’s expression turned serious. “Hey, Kotori?”

“Yeah?”

“You do think you can win, right?”

“Well…” Kotori paused. “I have to, though, right? Of course I wanna win.”

Rio shook her head. “That’s not what I asked. I asked if you thought you could win. Do you believe in yourself and your deck enough to turn this around and win? We need to be on the move soon or else Ryoga may lose, so it all comes down to this draw.”

“I…” Kotori looked at the remaining cards in her hand, mentally going through the remaining cards in her deck. “I have options that can beat this guy’s board, but only one of them can also win this turn.” 

“And do you think you’ll draw that card?” Rio pressed gently. “Do you believe that your deck will answer your call for help?”

Kotori’s gaze turned to her deck. Ever since she had started building it with serious intent, she’d poured time and energy into refining it. It wasn’t complete, nor in its final form, but she felt good about what she had so far. She'd worked hard, taking care to practice often and get in training where possible. She got it now, the way Duelists talked about the connections they could form with their deck, now that she was seeing one form for her own deck.

“I do,” she whispered. “I do believe in my deck.”

Rio’s smirk widened into a full smile. “Then you’re ready. Now go kick this guy’s ass.”

The two shared a grin before Kotori turned fully back to the duel. “You got it. It’s my turn now!” 

Kotori’s hand moved back over to the top of her Duel Disk. Her thumb peeled away the top card, her breath halting for a moment as her eyes closed, tuning out almost everything except the sensation of the cards she was touching. 

“My deck… please, hear my pleas.” She sharply inhaled.

“Draw!”

Her arm snapped out as she exhaled, eyes opening and taking in the card she drew.

A smirk tugged at her lips. “It’s here,” she whispered. Above her, the Sanctuary in the Sky seemed to shine brightly for a moment, casting the field in patches of golden light from the beams that broke through the cloud and fog.

“I banish an Agent monster from my Graveyard to Special Summon this monster!” Kotori called out, extracting Venus from her Graveyard and putting it in her back pocket. “I open the gates to salvation, and bring forth the Titan of Light!” She chanted. “Descend from on high, Master Hyperion!” 

An armored figure in gold and black descended from the Sanctuary in the Sky. He was adorned with two wings made of radiant fire that wrapped around him, while his chest-piece had several planetary rings floating in front of it. A pair of glittering golden eyes lit up behind an impassive helmet, looking down on Gawain and his Noble Knights.

“A mighty monster…” Gawain admitted stoically. 

Rio was less stone-faced, letting out a cheer. “Ha! I told you, Kotori! I knew you had it in you!” 

Kotori’s confident smile grew at the praise.“Master Hyperion can banish a Fairy Monster from my Graveyard to destroy a card on your field. I’ll banish the Mystical Shine Ball I detached from Gachi Gachi last turn to take out King Artorigus! Go, Hyperion’s Wrath!”

Master Hyperion calmly held up one of its hands. As he did, the ghostly visage of Mystical Shine Ball flew up into Hyperion’s palm, becoming a quick blast of radiant energy that blew apart Gawain’s XYZ Monster.

“Next, I activate the Equip Spell, Mage Power! You might be familiar with it!!” Kotori called out, taking pleasure in the way Gawain jumped up like he’d touched a live wire.

“Wait, what?! You also have that card?” Gawain exclaimed.

“What’s the matter, don’t like your Equip Spell strategy being used against you? Tough, them's the breaks!” Rio heckled from the sidelines.

“Mage Power gives Hyperion 500 Attack Points for each Spell and Trap on my field! I have four, so it gains 2000 Attack Points, bringing it up to 4700!” Kotori’s hand darted out, pointing at her field. “Gachi Gachi Gantetsu also gives all monsters on my side of the field 200 Attack Points for each Overlay Unit it has, so it now has 4900 Attack Points!”

Gawain growled. “Impressive,” he conceded through gritted teeth. “But that still won’t be enough…”

Kotori didn’t waste any time. “I don’t care. I set Gachi Gachi Gantetsu to Attack Mode. Battle! Master Hyperion, attack Noble Knight Artorigus!”

Master Hyperion began to charge up a sphere of energy using the planetary grid in its chest, the light darkening around it in a small radius as it did so. Gawain spluttered behind his faceplate. “Have you lost your mind to the clouds?! My Artorigus has 5300 Attack Points, your Hyperion, even with its boosts, has only 4900! Your monster will fall to my blade.” He paused, looking at how Kotori still had one card in her hand. “Unless-”

“Unless I was ready for that! I activate the effect of Honest from my hand!” Kotori discarded the last card in her hand, as a new masculine angel hovered behind Hyperion. From its wings came streaks of radiant energy that made Hyperion’s armor glow, the gold tint to his eyes glowing brighter, and his flaming wings snap out and roar with a burst of flame. “When my Light Monster battles one of your monsters, I can discard Honest during the Damage Step, so my Hyperion gains an Attack Point boost equal to Artorigus!”

Hyperion’s power grew exponentially as Honest dissipated, his flaming wings stretching out to nearly blot out the sun as it vented out some of the spare power it was loaned.

Gawain spluttered as he saw the Attack Points of Master Hyperion rise to- “10,200?! Impossible!” 

“Oh it’s possible! Now take this! Master Hyperion, attack Artorigus with Seraphim Bombardment!” 

Hyperion’s wings stretched out to their maximum wingspan, covering much of the sky above the duel. A collection of feathers flaked off of the burning wings, each cutting open a small hole in reality. From these tiny slices left by the feathers, Hyperion directed his energy through them, each shooting out a small but deadly beam of energy. Gawain was left roaring in pain as his surviving Noble Knight was eviscerated by the streams of energy. A large explosion of radiant fire erupted, sending Gawain flying back several feet and landing painfully on his back. When the smoke cleared, nothing was left on Gawain’s side of the field besides the tipped over knight, his Life Points a measly 100.

“I…” he struggled to get back up. “Still have Life Points. This battle is not over while I still breathe!” 

“About that,” Kotori replied coolly. “Remember what else I did before the Battle Phase? I put Gachi Gachi Gantetsu into Attack Mode.”

That got the knight’s attention. He shot up like a bent branch, desperation bleeding into his movements and voice. “Wait, no, wait! Not like this!”

“Go!” Kotori commanded. “Attack directly with Foundation Wrecker!”  

Gachi Gachi rolled over to Gawain, holding up its still-injured rock arms. With no tact or ceremony, it slammed them down, sending Gawain flying far enough from the impact that he flew through the door, thudding to the ground into an awkward heap of metal and carpet a few feet inside.

“I…” Kotori paused as the realization of what just happened settled in. “I did it… I won…”

“You won!” Rio came running over, pulling Kotori into a hug so tight the two were spinning for a second. “You were amazing there Kotori! You didn’t even take any damage beyond paying for Venus! I couldn’t have done better myself!” 

Kotori, still reeling from her victory, initially didn’t say or do anything as she was swept up into the hug, but eventually she gained enough of her faculties back to return the hug and cheer with Rio, riding the dopamine high from the victory, alongside the sheer joy of human contact.

Rio’s spinning hug slowed down, the two still locked in their cheerful embrace. Kotori pulled back a little, seeing Rio staring at her with an inscrutable expression- almost like she was… appraising her? Seeing Kotori in a new light? It was hard to tell in such close proximity. Their eyes met, a heady mix of excitement and adrenaline flooding Kotori’s system, leaving her unable to do much but stare back.

Rio slowly placed a hand on Kotori’s shoulder, pushing her back a little. “We should get going,” she said, a hint of something resembling reluctance entering her voice as she pulled back herself. “Otherwise Ryoga will keep thinking we need to be saved.”

“R-right,” Kotori stepped back, finding it difficult to step out of reach again. “Shark should just be on the other side of the plaza, so once we’re out we can talk to him.”

“Exactly.” Rio rolled her shoulders. “Alright champion, lead the way.”

Kotori had turned out right, as Rio had suspected. Without that knight in dullard’s armor chasing her, it was easy enough to find the more roughshod portions of the manga world’s effects on the campus. Within a few minutes, the stonework, masonry and torches were giving way to concrete, windows and overhead lighting. 

“It really was just localized on those few hallways,” Rio muttered to herself. The duo made their way to the opposite side of the building, coming out on another balcony. Below, an AR field was in effect, showing Ryoga facing off against Stanley, who had traded in his older XYZ Monster for a Chaos XYZ. As they raced forward, Stanley’s monster attacked and destroyed Shark Drake, leaving Ryoga on the back foot.

Kotori reached the railings first. “Shark!” She called out. “We’re out of the manga world, you don’t need to hold back any more!”

That got the attention of the duelists below, Stanley freaking out as his bargaining chips escaped their prison, while a flash of relief crossed Ryoga’s face at the sight of Kotori and Rio.

Rio, forever an honorable person who would never take advantage of someone’s heightened emotional state to hurt them, especially if they were as important to her as her brother, looked down on the battlefield and found a wave of disappointment cresting within her.

Rio leaned forward on the balcony, propping herself up on her arms while she looked down on the duel and frowned. “Ryoga,” she called out, deceptively calm. “You don’t happen to be… losing this duel, do you?” 

Ryoga’s eyebrow twitched. “I- I wasn’t losing,” he stammered, “I was worried if I won too fast you’d be hurt! I had to hold back!”

Rio hummed, flashing Kotori a wink. “Nice excuse. Sounds like you were losing, doesn’t it, Kotori?” 

Kotori barely hid a laugh that was trying to rip its way out of her chest. “I don’t know,” she managed to say without wheezing, “it does sound pretty convenient, Shark.”

“Shut up, Kotori,” Ryoga snarled.

“In fact,” Rio said, louder and talking over Ryoga’s desperate attempts to defend his honor and dignity, tone turning malicious as she saw a chance to engage in the glorious war of sibling rivalry, “I’d say that sounds almost…” 

“Don’t you dare say it!” Ryoga called out desperately. 

Rio leaned forward some more, eyes glittering as she sneered. “Why, brother, that sounds remarkably cringe of you!” 

Ryoga’s eyes narrowed into impossibly thin pinpricks as he began to choke in outrage, a primal shriek building in his chest and escaping all at once. Forgetting all about the duel, he raised a shaking hand at Rio, “You… No, you! I’m not cringe!” His voice cracked. “You… YOU’RE CRINGE!” he screamed out in incoherent, fragile indignity, spittle flying from his mouth. Rio just smirked in return, letting her silence do more than any words could, while Kotori started laughing hard enough that she had to go and lie down for a second.

Art paused, seemingly unable to process what he was seeing even while under the control of Barian’s Force. “Uh, do you need a minute-”

“Shut up!” Ryoga screeched at him, his composure completely lost as he pointed his still-shaking hand towards Shark Drake,a familiar royal purple aura covering him. “Go, Chaos XYZ Evolution! Rise, Shark Drake Veiss! Use your ability to lower Legend Arthur’s Attack Points to zero, and end this duel with Depth Chaos Bite!”  

Shark’s own Chaos Number took to the field, furiously decimating Stanley’s CXYZ Monster and the rest of his life points. As the duel ended, Shark glared up at the balcony where Rio and Kotori were, still twitching furiously.

Rio watched impassively as Stanley went flying. “You mad, bro?” She asked innocently.

“Screw you,” Ryoga spat out in genuine hatred, “I’m posting your diary on 2Chan tonight!”

“You’re posting her what on where, Shark?” Yuma asked innocently as he walked up behind Shark, followed by Tetsuo and Shingetsu. Ryoga, caught up in his maelstrom of emotions, had failed to hear Yuma before now, marking probably the first time in recorded history that Yuma successfully snuck up on someone.

Ryoga jumped, turning on Yuma. “I- mother of- Yuma, don’t sneak up on people!”

“I… wasn’t trying to?” 

“Ugh.” Ryoga ran his hand through his hair and took some deep breaths. “Where’ve you even been all day?!”

“Barians,” Yuma replied casually, lacing his hands behind his head. “Brainwashed a pro Duelist, he was bullying some friends of mine and I had to stop him. Why, what happened here?” 

“Barians,” Kotori replied casually from the balcony. “They brainwashed a manga artist who tried to kidnap Rio and me, but Shark sent him packing.”

“Kotori dueled a knight,” Rio chipped in. “It was pretty cool.” 

“Oh neat! I bet Shark was in no trouble at all while he was in that Duel then, right?” Yuma looked up at the balcony. “Hey Shark, why are Kotori and Shark-Sis laughing so hard at that?”

“Shut the hell up, Yuma,” Shark groused as he stormed off. “I’m going home now, Rio!” He called over his shoulder. “You can take the train, since I’m apparently too cringe to share a bike with!”

Yuma looked up at the second floor, where Rio and Kotori had been a few seconds prior. “I don’t think they could hear you Shark, they’re still laughing really hard.” He listened for another second. “Man, whatever they’re joking about must be crazy good, their laughing just got even louder.”

Shark started breathing heavily through his nose. “This might be the worst day of my life since I got blacklisted,” he said to no one in particular. “I hate everything and everyone. My sister is dead to me. I’m going to leave the country now. Never speak to me again should we cross paths.”

“OK! See you tomorrow Shark!” Yuma cheered obliviously. 

The only response was a low groan of tired exasperation as Ryoga turned a corner.

“I like him!” Shingetsu said cheerfully. “I hope I can be best of friends with Shark when he’s in a better mood!”

The gang had gathered, finally ready to put an end to the day. Rio was starting to run low on energy so she welcomed the opportunity to head home. Ryoga would likely still be brooding in his room so she’d have the run of the place for a bit. Rio found herself daydreaming idly about what she’d do that night. Maybe see if she could find a place that put onions in sushi and “accidentally” leave a plate out for Ryoga as a “peace offering.”

Rio was so distracted by her new plans to prank Ryoga, she failed to notice the three students in traditional Japanese garb who approached behind everyone as they made their way to the gates.

“Kamishiro Rio? We’re here on behalf of the Flower Arrangement Club. Our leader wishes to speak with you. Could you come with us to our club room?”

… OK, one more club. What was the worst that could happen?

“Ah crap baskets, my leg’s dead!” Yuma howled.

Of course the leader of the Flower Arrangement Club had also been brainwashed by the Barians. That was just the way the day had gone. At this point Rio was expecting that the next time she ordered food delivery, she’d have to fight the delivery driver because the Barians had decided the best way to eliminate her and Ryoga would be to attack through their stomachs. Still, after the day she’d had, Rio had ironically become too high-strung to fall asleep so easily, so once Hanazoe had started going full-tilt on her hypnotic scheme, Rio had just put more pressure on a sensitive part of her left arm’s scarring to keep her awake with a dull ache.

The rest of the team had been put under the hypnotic spell of Hanazoe, leaving just her and Yuma, who was busy tending to a cramped leg. Rio kept her eyes locked on Hanazoe as she ‘woke up’ and took in the situation, but for a brief moment she thought she saw something floating over Yuma’s shoulder- an indescribable blob of silver and cyan that had only been visible briefly in her peripheral vision. Was that Astral, Yuma’s ally within the Key? She’d figure that out later. 

“You’ll leave Yuma alone,” Rio declared as she stood up. “You wanted me as your opponent? You got me.”

“Wait, you’re awake?” Yuma said from the ground.

“I played it safe and faked once I saw how this Barian botanist was talking,” Rio replied cheekily, stretching her left arm. “Now I’ll give her the challenge she wants, since she asked so nicely.” 

Yuma paused, concern and fear racing across his face. “Hey, are you sure you wanna do this? The Barians aren’t any old pushovers, especially if she gets her Barian’s Force card!”

“This isn’t my first time dancing with people possessed by the Barians, Yuma,” Rio reminded him. She pulled her Duel Disk out of her bag as Hanazoe opened up the sliding door to a small garden behind the clubroom, walking out as she fastened it on.

“I get that, just…” Yuma raced out behind them, sucking breath through his teeth as he tried to find the right words. “Look, not trying to talk down to you or anything, I don’t wanna make you feel like that, OK? I just have more experience taking them on so I wanna make sure you know that I’m willing to handle it. We’re friends and all!” 

Rio paused as she slipped out her Duel Gazer. She walked back over to Yuma, letting out an amused huff before smiling and placing a hand on Yuma’s shoulder. “I get that Yuma. And it’s because I trust you that I wanna do this.”

Yuma blinked, confused. “Huh?” 

“If I were to lose- which I won’t, plain and simple, I’m gonna win this,” Rio started with the utmost humility, “Then I know for a fact you’ll immediately swoop in and take out Hanazoe. It’s because I trust you to have my back for if I slip and fall. Even if, somehow, I lost this, I’m cool with doing this because I trust you. I saw what you did for Ryoga, and I appreciate that. So now I trust you to have my back like you would Ryoga’s. Do you understand?”

Yuma’s eyes glistened. “I do. Like yeah, I get you. That means a lot, Shark-Sis!”

“...” Rio closed her eyes, the hand on Yuma’s shoulder became claw-like for a second as she dug in with her nails. “Just this once,” she said with fake cheer, “we’re gonna pretend I didn’t hear that, right?”

“Yeah Rio! Go kick butt!” Yuma squealed. 

“Attaboy. Now where was I?” Rio turned back to Hanazoe. “Right. I was about to trim your garden down to size!”

“You’re certainly about as vulgar as that brother of yours,” Hanazoe intoned. “And about as lacking in character.”

Rio laughed sadistically as the AR link was established, feeling a comfortable chill settle in around her. “Oh you are just asking for an ass-kicking.”

“Duel!” The two duelists cried out. 

Kotori felt... pretty chill, to be honest. She was just floating, enjoying a moment of peace and quiet after the day she’d had. She should visit the Flower Arrangement Club more often, maybe just let her zone out and take a nap in the corner. Maybe they wouldn’t mind.

“Oh, when did I fall asleep?” she heard Tetsuo ask beside her, knocking her out of her own trance-like state. Her eyes opened slowly to see the majority of the gang still in the room, besides Yuma and Rio. Shingetsu was already up, looking through the windows onto the field below where Yuma and Rio were bickering, and…

“Guys, why is the leader of the Flower Arrangement Club unconscious outside?” Kotori asked idly as she poked her head out beside Shingetsu.

“Barian stuff,” Yuma and Rio replied simultaneously. “Don’t worry about it.”

Rio shrugged. “I had it covered.”

“Eh. You did so-so.” Behind Rio, Shark came walking up, now seemingly cool as a cucumber. 

“Shark?! What are you doing back here?” Yuma asked.

“I had a gut feeling something was up when Rio wasn’t answering my texts so I came back. Got in right as that Duel started.”

“Aww,” Rio said teasingly. “You do care, Ryoga!”

Shark scoffed. “Was just making sure you didn’t need to be bailed out. That’d be really cringe if you needed a last-minute save.”

“You’d know all about cringe, wouldn’t you?” Was Rio’s lightning-fast response. Shark’s hands twitched like he wanted to strangle Rio.

“I can't tell if they like each other or want to kill each other,” Shingetsu murmured behind Kotori.

“They do exchange some particularly vitriolic banter,” Todoroki said. 

“You certainly picked a heck of a teacher to show you how to duel, Kotori! Rio-san’s as fierce as they come.” Tetsuo clapped a hand on Kotori’s back. “You gotta tell us more about that duel you had!”

Kotori smiled to herself as she watched Rio trade barbs with Shark, taking back one of her rings and laughing haughtily. “Yeah,” she said softly. “Yeah, I did pick a good teacher, didn’t I?”

Yuma waved to the gang. “Yo, we’re heading out now!”

“Coming!” As Kotori and Tetsuo went back to get everyone’s bags, a warmth began to bloom in her chest, one that blossomed as everyone met outside and Kotori was surrounded by the conversations of everyone around her. As she settled in beside Yuma, the two sharing the stories of the duels they had today, Kotori decided that she liked this sensation; she was surrounded by friends (and Shingetsu), things had gone well today, and she had stepped up in a real way. Nothing was breaking this streak of happiness that shone inside Kotori’s heart, and she’d fight with everything in her soul to keep things like this. 

Trust is a tree that towers 50 feet above us

Grown over time through many seasons

Believing in something more than just the surface

I trust that this is worth it

But my toes are hanging off the ledge

Lord, help me, there's a thorn in my side

I feel the tension in the fear and truth

I carry life in between the divide

But all the wrestling has left me bruised

How sweet, the taste of certainty

The gift you gave is safe with me

(“Trust,” Half Alive)

Chapter Text

Private Messages: Tenjo, K. and Kamishiro, R

Kamishiro, R (8:14AM): Hey, are you free today?

Tenjo, K (8:19AM): It depends, what do you need?

Kamishiro, R (8:22AM): Stimulation. A conversational partner. Anything as an excuse to get out of this apartment for a bit. I’m on a sick day.

Tenjo, K (8:25AM): You’re on a sick day, and you want to get outside? Should you not be resting in bed? I’m free to text throughout the day, most of my experiments are on hold and it’s just city management business for the day.

Kamishiro, R (8:26AM): Not that kind of sick day. More the “I am in a lot of pain and need to get out of here before I chew my arm off” kind of sick day.

Tenjo, K (8:29AM): Ah.

Tenjo, K, is typing…

Tenjo, K (8:31AM): I can be free after 10. I make a point to sit in on Haruto’s morning lessons between 9 and 10. Afterwards I can clear my schedule.

Kamishiro, R (8:35AM): You’re a life-saver. I owe you.

Tenjo, K (8:38AM): It’s no trouble. I know most of your social circle won’t be free for the day and you caught me on an overall empty day so I’ll help. 

Kamishiro, R (8:55AM): Still. Thanks, I just need to get my mind off this. Oh! By the way, how do you take your coffee? 

“So. Do you want to talk about it?” Kaito asked without looking up from his monitor. Two still steaming cups of coffee filled the gap in the table between them, where Rio tiredly sat opposite. Her left arm was tucked into a loose sling, hanging off the table while Rio rested her head on her right arm, a frown etched on her face.

“I just…” Rio grimaced. “Woke up, and I just was in a lot of pain. I dunno, maybe I turned in my sleep and put too much pressure on my left side for too long, or maybe I was pushing myself hard lately in physical therapy, or…” she paused to let out a harsh groan. “I don’t know. But I just woke up and everything hurt. I could barely stand up for an hour.”

“My sympathies,” Kaito said flatly, “But why come out here then? Would it not be better to rest?”

“Maybe,” Rio conceded. “I was just really desperate to get out and about though. I don’t do well when cooped up in bed for long, too evocative of a hospital.” 

Kaito hummed in understanding. “I can relate. I’m not too fond of forced bedrest, much to Orbital’s chagrin. There’s just always too much to do to waste time staying in bed.”

Rio stiffened at the implication her mind ran to. “Hey, if I’m distracting you or anything, I can head off-”

Kaito waved his hand. “Of course not. For one thing, it would be rude to show you the door when you bought coffee. For another, I’d have said as much if you were getting in the way. None of this is… required, but it’s all part and parcel of the duties I’ve taken up since the World Duel Carnival.”

“What,” Rio said confused, “like… you run the city now?” 

Kaito looked up at that and blinked like an owl. “Don’t be preposterous,” he said, “I’m only 18. I can’t run the city.”

“I mean, the way you made it sound-”

“No, I just run the entertainment district and this tower where all of my research and science happens.” Kaito paused for a moment. “Granted, if I wanted to, how hard would it be for me to…” he muttered to himself before shaking his head. “No, that’s too much even for me, and I jump out windows with my former nanny-bot.”

“... like ‘only running an entertainment district’ is any more sane,” Rio said, deflating like a balloon and dragging her coffee cup towards her side of the table in a show of tiredness, eyes closing.

Kaito shrugged. “My father and I are splitting many of the duties that Heartland oversaw before he vanished.” 

Rio cracked open an eye. “Oh yeah, what happened to him, again?”

“He fell down a portal. Hopefully to hell, but if he did wind up making it to Astral World, I hope they gave him a warm welcome.”

“Jeez. Couldn’t happen to a nicer guy, it seems,” Rio mumbled, cradling her cup like it possessed the Holy Grail.

That got a snort from Kaito. “Trust me. No one would lose sleep about Heartland if half of his sins were exposed.”

“You’d know that more than anyone, right? You and your dad were practically Heartland’s right-hand men during the WDC from how Ryoga’s talked about it.” 

Kaito’s hand clenched into a fist abruptly, his face falling. “Not by choice,” he said morosely, “At least for me. I can’t and won’t speak for my father because he was much more of a willing accomplice, but I was only there for Haruto’s sake.”

Rio frowned. “I had heard. He wasn’t well?”

Kaito stopped working on his tablet, his gaze going somewhere far away. “He was born sickly,” he said softly, “with a heavily compromised immune system from a disease our mother picked up while pregnant. My father went to great lengths to try and cure him, which eventually led to knocking on the Devil’s door after using some of his closest friends as fodder for a sacrifice.”

“... You mean he made contact with the Barians?” Rio realized.

“They offered a deal after he sacrificed Yuma’s father and Byon Arclight- help destroy Astral World while collecting the Numbers, and Haruto gets to stay alive. If my father ever stopped at that goal…” Kaito trailed off. “You can imagine.”

Rio blew her breath through her teeth. “Damn. I don’t know what I would have done in his shoes, I’d do anything for Ryoga.”

“And he’d do the same for you. It’s why I can relate to your brother- we both took a step into Hell for our families. He willingly kept using Shark Drake throughout the WDC to try and take out Tron.”

“But your father was the one who made the deal,” Rio pointed out. “You can’t blame yourself for what you did under his control.”

“Maybe at first,” Kaito countered. “But as I grew into the role of a Number Hunter, I began to… enjoy it. I liked that it gave me a chance to hurt people, a chance to lash out at who I thought were universally terrible people while I couldn’t do anything to help my brother and felt helpless. I fell into a sort of… half-life pattern, more just existing to steal Numbers than to actually live for Haruto or myself.”

“When was the last time you lived for yourself then?”

“Before now, since the WDC? Longer I’m comfortable admitting…” Kaito huffed out a weary sigh. “I ran myself ragged, especially near the end. The measures I have to resist the influence of a Number are less intuitive than Yuma’s pendant or Ryoga’s seemingly insurmountable willpower. The projects that were made to enable my Photon Change are more comparable to a sledgehammer if Yuma’s resistance is a scalpel.”

“Yuma mentioned something about that once, about your transformation. You were part of an experiment?” 

“Yes, myself and others. It was part of an extended project that was ostensibly to look for the strongest Duelists of the generation.” Kaito snorted. “In truth it was little more than state-sanctioned torture. Heartland once pushed a drone beyond all safety regulations and it  nearly killed us- I had a scar on my cheek for months from where it clipped me. The other two test subjects- Gauche and Droite- were just there to test a few of the modules to Photon Change before I was given the… deluxe treatment. Then Heartland took them in as enforcers and I didn’t see them again due to my Number Hunting.”

“Were you close, you three?” Rio asked, the two names stirring something in her memory.

Kaito hesitated. “I wasn’t looking for friends at the time. My only priority was Hauto and with the state I was in after becoming a Hunter, anything else like companionship or allies seemed pointless.” A tiny huff, bereft of mirth, escaped him. “I had Orbital, Haruto, Galaxy-Eyes and myself. What more did I need? Later on, as the WDC approached, I was consciously keeping people away.”

“Why?” 

Kaito paused, delaying the question by typing something on his tablet. Orbital rolled by, a pile of cables trailing after him. “Before you say anything, just please keep in mind that I’m not in this mindset anymore. I’ve given myself more time to recover so my condition isn’t as precarious, and I’m letting more people in- after all, I’m talking to you, aren’t I? What I’m about to describe isn’t my mindset anymore.”

“I get that.” Rio replied. “But what happened?”

“By the time of the Carnival, the Photon Changes were ravaging my body severely.” His tone had become detached. “My resting heart-rate was over a hundred BPM, and all of the scans Orbital took said I didn’t have much energy left. By the time Yuma, Ryoga and I dueled my father after the Carnival, I was well past my limit and nearly passed out repeatedly from exhaustion. I was keeping people away… because I didn’t expect to leave the Carnival alive.”

“That’s…”  Rio sat, aghast. "How were you alive, by the end?"

“I’m better now- functioning.” Kaito held up a hand. “My resting heart-rate went safely below a hundred BPM last week, and I can still use the Photon Change in short bursts- it’s comparatively safe now that I’m not on the hunt and abusing it every night.” 

“Functioning,” Rio murmured. “Kinda like how I’m… functioning.” She gestured at her arm.

Kaito’s eyes flickered down, catching briefly on the scars wrapped around Rio’s wrist. “I suppose. We have that in common, don’t we?” He lifted an eyebrow humorlessly. “Functioning,” he repeated, deadpan.

“Ain’t that the truth,” Rio muttered. “I saw it the first time we met- you had a flash of pain in your arm.”

Kaito nodded listlessly, pushing aside his tablet and turning his full attention to Rio. “I said I was better now, not cured. I gave up a lot to use the Photon Change and I’ll be feeling the effects for a few years yet.” 

Rio nodded in a mixture of sympathy and understanding. “Well,” she eventually said, “you’ve got a friend in me at least to understand medical woes if you ever need to vent. I’ve been there.”

Kaito shrugged. “I made my peace with it a while ago, but thank you for the offer. After all, given I didn’t think I was surviving the WDC, that I’m alive and Haruto is recovering is enough of a happy ending for me.”

“Surely you want something more though for yourself,” Rio pressed. “Something beyond just ensuring Haruto’s safe and has a good future ahead of him.” 

“I’ll… let you know when I find something. The sciences appeal to me, so once I get some time to myself I’m going to apply for a Doctorate. For now, dealing with the Barians takes priority. After that I can try out this ‘living for myself’ thing, see what it’s like.” 

“I hope you do. I gotta commiserate about brother stuff with someone, and Yuma’s sister scares me too much to try small talk with her.”

Kaito nearly chuckled at that. Out of the corner of Rio’s eye, she saw Orbital deliberately knock one of his wheel casings off a shelf, to announce his presence without startling either Kaito or Rio. “Kaito-sama, the new cards have arrived.” 

“Ah.” Clearing his throat, Kaito cleared some space around him while Orbital placed several cases around him. At Rio’s confused eyebrow, Kaito explained. “One of the duties I got to inherit, we get advance copies of most of the new Duel Monsters sets as they arrive alongside some premier cards. This is the set coming out… next month, I want to say? It’s so we can give them out as contest prizes and be aware of any rapid changes to the metagame. We’re one of the first cities usually to roll out new cards so people like me in Den or Maiami can roll out emergency ban lists if something like, say, an easily abusive FTK or toxic floodgate is discovered that would reduce player interest and thus, impact revenue.”

Rio’s interest spiked at that. “Wow, didn’t realize you were holding out on us with this motherlode of cards. Mind if I have a look?” 

“Be my guest.” Kaito gestured to the cases. “I usually only take a few cards myself for my strategies and then barely touch them. Haruto’s the only other person who usually gets to see these. The rest usually go in storage for my collection.”

“Gotya.” Rio nodded as she got up and walked over to where Kaito was spreading out the card cases, sitting to his left. “What’s Haruto building right now?” 

Kaito hummed. “Constellar, at the moment. He likes the stars.”

“Oh, neat. I didn’t learn that many constellations when I was growing up beyond…” Rio hesitated. “Big Dipper, I think it was called? I must have liked it as a kid for me to still remember the name.” She remembered her mom once saying that she and Ryoga were born under lucky stars, but it felt sometimes like parents said that about any star their kids were born under.

Kaito hummed at that, and a comfortable silence fell between the two as they sorted through the new sets. Kaito, true to his word, only wound up taking a few spells and traps to bolster his main deck, alongside one new XYZ Monster- Starliege Paladynamo, which worked well with his Light deck. Rio grabbed a few cards that generically helped Water decks, planning to split the spoils between herself and Ryoga later, when her eyes caught on to an uncanny card.

“What’s this?” Rio gestured towards a particular XYZ Monster Kaito was setting aside.

“Ah, this.” Kaito spun the card in his hand: ‘Full Armored Dark Knight Lancer.’ “Your brother used an XYZ Monster called Black Ray Lancer during the Carnival. Industrial Illusions can’t print the Numbers- and I’ve been doing my best to stop them from doing it under the table in case they get any ideas- but they needed something from Ryoga’s deck at the WDC to support to help get eyes on the new set due to him being in the quarter finals. So they made a new wave of cards focused on the idea of ‘Armored XYZ Summoning,’ thanks to Black Ray Lancer having an evolution called Full Armored Black Ray Lancer. It’s mostly an engine for the Extra Deck, only a few spells and traps to help support it.” 

“Pity it’s a Rank 7,” Rio said, lamenting it semi-jokingly. “Ryoga would have loved to run this. It looks really cool.”

“Well he can make Rank 5s easy enough, and Lancer can be summoned on top of a Rank 5 or 6. I believe your brother has a few Rank 5s in his deck, so this new card- ‘XYZ Armor Fortress’- can help bridge the gap, and it can be made on top of the new Rank 3 to boot. I should have enough copies lying around to let you and Ryoga both take home the full engine.”

“Neat. I mean, I can run this then, a few of my monsters are Level 5. I even have a new Rank 5 I dug out recently!” Rio’s mind went back to that night where she dug out the bulk box with Kotori and they fished out Ice Princess Zereort. She was still a bit embarrassed at the history lecture she’d proceeded to go on, only noticing afterwards that Kotori had barely chimed in for the majority of it- the poor girl had been staring at her the whole time. She must have been bored out of her mind. Still, they salvaged it with a few good practice duels before Kotori had to head off. It had been a good night overall, one Rio looked back on fondly on the darker days.   

“Quick question by the way.” Rio said as she finished remembering. “Why’d it go from Black Ray to Dark Knight?” 

Kaito shrugged. “Apparently the market research said it ‘sounded cooler,’” he said, deadpan, before reaching for his coffee.

“Oh.” Rio picked through a few other cards. “Hey, did you know they made a new Galaxy-Eyes XYZ Monster?” She asked idly. 

Kaito spluttered as he nearly spat out his drink. “They what?” He looked over Rio’s shoulder at the monster she had found- ‘Galaxy-Eyes Full Armor Photon Dragon.’ “I’m going to kill them,” he said deadpan. “I specifically told them not to make Photon cards.”

“Protective of your deck identity much?” Rio asked teasingly. 

Kaito stiffened. “The Photon cards as made by my father and Heartland were done with sloppy research. They tapped into Barian World energy to help give the cards and their wielders insulation from Numbers- it’s one of the reasons Droite and Gauche had Photons. One of my projects was to refine it before letting it out on the market so it didn’t require enhanced training to use or have adverse effects on people without the training- I was even workshopping a different deck with them to find a covert way to make new Galaxy support, called Ciphers, while I did that.” Kaito took the new Galaxy-Eyes out of Rio’s hand, looking it over. “It’s serviceable,” he conceded, “but it lacks the energy to it of my other Photon cards.”

“Huh, didn’t realize there was a whole process to it.” Rio paused. “You said Droite and Gauche had Photons, right? They were the people you did the training with. What happened to them after the World Duel Carnival?”

“They stuck around to watch the Duel between Yuma and myself, then they left for Europe a few days later.” Kaito gently put his cup down, dabbing at his mouth. “Last time I was in touch with them, they were doing a Tag Duel Tournament in… Berlin, I think? But they were heading to Spartan City soon after- they grew up there so it’s also a homecoming trip. Gauche is aiming to set himself up in the European pro circuits, with Droite as his manager. They’re doing well, I have alerts set up to track their progress.”

“Sounds like a thing you’d do for a friend,” Rio observed teasingly. 

Kaito’s mouth twisted upwards in a smirk. “I suppose we’re friends, but… it’s complicated. Like I said, I tried to keep them at a distance during the experiments, and I wasn’t much kinder when I met them again during the Duel Carnival. It’s only since they went back to Europe that I’ve been trying to keep in contact more. We do monthly calls.”

Rio picked up on what Kaito glossed over, the previously mentioned element to Kaito’s behavior that he’d spent the Duel Carnival convinced that he was always one foot in the grave. “I’m sure they’re just happy to hear from you again,” she eventually said softly.

“Yes,” Kaito agreed. “And it led to some realizations mutually. Droite told me her perspective of the Carnival before she left Heartland, and later I think Gauche tried to give me a shovel talk before he realized I had no idea what he was doing and what went over my head when talking with Droite.”

“Wait, you mean she had a crush on you?” Rio questioned.

“She did. She even tried to take out Tron before the finals of the World Duel Carnival for my sake, but it went badly and she got injured. Tron later used that to provoke my rage so he could feed it to his Number.”

“Arclights and using female Duelists to hurt others,” Rio muttered darkly. “Name a more iconic duo.” She exhaled sharply, trying to vent the negative thoughts that were beginning to make her skin crawl and doing her best to ignore the trembling that began to shake throughout her left arm. Kaito consciously looked away, trying to pay no heed. “Why didn’t you notice?” Rio asked when she calmed down. “It sounds like she wasn’t subtle about it.”

“I don’t…” Kite ran a hand through his hair. “I don’t pick up on romance easily. It just doesn’t appeal to me, so I don’t catch things like that. I wasn’t even in the mood for a relationship during the Carnival, and now… I just don’t see myself in a relationship.”

“Just haven’t found the right person, or…?”

“Maybe. That, or I just think I’d be a horrible partner, but I think I just don’t process attraction the same way a lot of people do.” Kaito finished looking through one of the card cases and sealed it, pulling a new one towards him. “But, please, enough about my lack of a love life.”

“Alright, let’s spare your dignity.” Rio threw up a hand in surrender. “But yeah, you’re friends now with Droite and Gauche?” 

A slight smile graced Kaito’s lips. “I suppose we are, yes. I’m happy for them, and they’ve said they’re happy for me now that Haruto’s recovering and I’m trying to get a new outlook on life.”

“You should go visit once they settle down. Spartan City’s a lovely place to explore.” 

“Next time I get vacation days, I’ll be sure to spend one of them tracking down my passport,” Kaito replied drily. He kept going through the sets, pausing at one card. “Oh, Rio?”

“Sup?” 

“I think Kotori might like these cards, if you’re gathering ones to bring home with you.” Kaito grabbed a few of the cards and passed them over into Rio’s right hand.

“Oh?” Rio paused to take a closer look- it was a new ‘The Agent’ card, a Tuner with a Graveyard effect, alongside a new Synchro Monster. “Oh! Yeah, that fits her new deck fairly well. I didn’t realize that the archetype was getting new support. That effect is a bit situational though.”

Kaito nodded. “It seems Neo Domino’s prime export is finally coming back now that the Ener-D concerns have been fully resolved. There’s a few archetypes that are getting small Synchro support here. Even Galaxy got one, though…” he frowned and held up a Level 2 monster, ‘Galaxy Serpent.’ “It more just happens to have the name than be a real new Galaxy monster. And I don’t have a good pool of Synchro Monsters, so I won’t include it in mine.”

“Kaito, you once ran a Fusion Monster, are you sure you’re allowed to be picky about your deck getting support?” Rio asked teasingly.

Kaito tried- and failed- to hide a smirk. “In my defense, I was only going up against your brother, the fearsome Shark.”

A laugh bubbled up Rio’s chest. She let it escape her, filling the lab. “Oh, true! You needed the handicap so he’d last past Turn 2!” 

A small laugh escaped Kaito too. “Oh, Chris would weep if he saw me considering playing this considering how strict he could be about deck composition.”

“Chris?” 

“Christopher Arclight. He was a scientist at the Photon experiments and we grew close. We’re trying to stay in touch after the Duel Carnival.” Kaito realized too late what he said and looked over at Rio, her eyes widening at the surname.

“Arclight.” She eventually said. “You mean he’s-”

“Thomas’s brother, yes. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have brought him up so casually.”

“Not like you tried to bring up the worst of them, so…” Rio’s voice felt dry all of a sudden. An awkward silence fell in the lab, Kaito opening and closing his mouth several times as if to say something, before giving up.

How was it, Rio bitterly wondered. How was it that even when he wasn’t in the city, potentially not even in the country, the sheer mention of Thomas Arclight when she wasn’t ready for it still sapped the energy out of her? Sapping her of the will to engage and be vibrant, killing her mood and making her want to melt into the background. How dare he still have such a vice grip around her nervous system, that the reminder of his general existence made her lock up, made her breath stall in her lungs? She hated it- hated him. More than the instinctual panic and fear, she hated how it felt like her blood was spiked with acid afterwards. She felt like a coiled viper, ready to snap at anyone or anything that came too close while she purged her system.

Rio tried to take a deep breath. “How is your friend, Christopher?” She finally forced out to break the silence. 

Kaito looked over at her for a moment before speaking. “He’s been well, overall. He and his family are out of Heartland City, I don’t know where. They’re doing their own experiments and research into the Barians and occasionally he and I share notes. We had ended things earlier on acrimonious terms, so it can be awkward, but… ” Kaito trailed off before shrugging. “We’re speaking, at least. That was more than we had before the Duel Carnival.”

“Can I ask what happened?” Rio murmured.

“He taught me how to Duel. He was a ruthless taskmaster about it, but the results speak for themselves. One time we just kept going, match after match, for nearly three days in a row without rest. We grew close, as any two people would after an experience like that. But soon after, he learned about what happened to his father at the hands of mine, and left in disgrace. I didn’t see him again until during the World Duel Carnival, when he was part of Tron’s plans.” 

“And you’re glad to be talking to him again?” 

“I always missed him a little after his departure.” Kaito said wistfully. “He taught me a lot growing up and was one of the kinder scientists around Haruto. I felt his absence, so I’m happy to talk to him again, even if it’s far less frequent than with Gauche and Droite.” Kaito paused and fixed his full attention on Rio. “You want to ask, don’t you?” He eventually said.

Rio stared back, her gaze practically daring him to say it.

Kaito blinked, unfazed. “You want to ask if I heard anything about Thomas, don’t you?”

“Is it so obvious?” Rio replied, tone dripping in acid. Kaito opened his mouth, but the acid kept boiling in her system, flowing out of her mouth. “But let me guess, I shouldn’t ask. I should try to keep him out of my head, be a better person and try to move on.” Rio’s voice started rising, her composure snapping. “That I shouldn’t want to get my own revenge, or that it’s a fool’s errand, right? That revenge is a bad idea, and I should let go for my own damn sake, right? Is that what you were gonna say? Because I’ll save you the trouble, I hear enough of that from everyone else whenever the topic of that monster comes up!”

Kaito sat in silence as Rio finished, her chest heaving as she took a few breaths. “I’m sorry,” she muttered. “You didn’t deserve that.”  

“I don’t mind,” Kaito said quietly. “You’ve evidently needed to say that for a while.”

“Therapists don’t like hearing you admit you still have vengeful fantasies against the person who incinerated you and left you nearly blind in one eye, and I can be a good liar.” Rio said in a detached voice, sapped of energy. “I started compartmentalizing all of that while I was in the hospital so I could get out faster, and whenever I’d try to talk to Ryoga out of it, he’d shut it down too.” An agitated huff of air escaped through her teeth. “I don’t think he realizes that he got his revenge so he can let go, but I’m left with nothing but secondhand discussions about it.”

Trying to figure out what had happened to Thomas Arclight during and after the WDC had been like pulling teeth. Ryoga only gave a loose overview about the Duel, saying that he’d seen a different side to Thomas during it that was exposed thanks to Tron’s manipulations reaching their breaking point and that “I don’t know if I’d even say I tolerate him, let alone like him now, but… I get it. I kinda get him now, he was doing it out of a misguided sense of family. I’d be a hypocrite if I still tried to hate him.”   He’d shut down any attempt by Rio to find out more from him, saying it didn’t matter now and he was gone.

Rio eventually had to give up and ask Yuma about it to learn what had gone down during Thomas and Ryoga’s final match, and even he initially tried to dodge the question until she made him cave, letting her learn about Thomas’ breakdown when Tron revealed how little he cared for his own sons, that Thomas hadn’t known the card he used that fateful night, Flaming Hell Blessing, would spawn real fire. A search online had also shown her a statement Thomas had penned the day after the WDC concluded, confessing to planting his deck in Ryoga’s waiting room during the National Duel Circuit to make it look as though he had cheated. Ryoga was still in the middle of having his blacklist status from the pro circuits revoked, partly because Thomas had vanished soon after the WDC which stalled any attempt at follow-up questions by the disciplinary board, but from what Ryoga had shared the board was likely just going to revoke a few of Thomas’s wins and give him a temporary suspension. That it was temporary at all was yet another thing that made Rio’s hackles rise like a wolf whenever she let herself think about- Ryoga was suspected of cheating and got blacklisted, but because of Thomas’ fame, he was only getting a few months off the circuit and a slap on the wrist when he outright confessed to planting his deck.

Kaito hummed, snapping Rio out of her thoughts. “You don’t feel vindicated from Ryoga’s actions at the WDC?” 

“No. Maybe. A little?” Rio ran her right hand through her hair. “I wanted to do something myself, I wanted to see him, to ask why, to cast my own judgment. To get my own payback, whatever form that took. Ryoga basically did it for me, but it makes me feel… unsatisfied.”

“I can imagine how that would eat at you,” Kaito mused. “Ryoga and I both got to fulfill our revenge during the tournament; he got to fight Thomas, I resolved my issues with Christopher and I got to at least fight Tron for all he’d put Haruto and me through, though I wound up losing that fight. Yuma and I also got to confront Faker about his role in betraying Yuma’s father and Tron. We all walked away from the tournament having resolved issues of strife, meaning you’re the odd one out. I can see why it would affect you.”

“Everyone else buried their hatchets with the Arclights,” Rio said in a hollow tone. “And I’m just left holding mine because the only place I’d want to plant a hatchet would be in someone’s back.” At Kaito’s grimace at the image, Rio rolled her eyes. “What would you do in my shoes then? Find a way to let go of this anger boiling inside of me?” 

Kaito considered the question. “I suppose… how would you feel if you and Ryoga’s positions were reversed? If he was the one who had been injured by Thomas, and you were the one blacklisted and seeking revenge? Would you let Ryoga seek out his own vengeance, if he wanted it?” 

“Of course I would,” Rio replied with no hesitation. “I wouldn’t be happy if it was just me getting payback, I’d want both of us to have that chance to heal. By confronting Thomas, it would put a definitive end-point on that.”

“And do you ever see yourself forgiving Thomas?” Kaito pressed.

“No.” Rio replied instantly. She paused. “I mean, right now, no, but this is all still fresh. It’s gonna be fresh for years. Maybe down the line I’ll think otherwise, but for now… no. I could never see myself forgiving him. I might accept an apology, but I would never let myself forgive or forget what he did to me.”

“That’s understandable,” Kaito nodded. “I don’t exactly ask about him a lot when Christopher and I talk, but I’ve been able to gather that he’s changed since the tournament. Christopher said he was far quieter, much to Christopher’s joy.”

That managed to get a small bemused huff from Rio, before she got quiet again. “You didn’t answer my question, by the way. What would you do if you were in my position?” 

Kaito paused, giving the question some thought for a minute. “I don’t think what I would do in your position matters as much as what you want to do.” He eventually said. “I don’t believe I should be encouraging you to take one path or another- be that forgiveness, vengeance, or a crusade. What matters is that you make your choice, and live with those consequences yourself. Revenge is multifaceted, after all. What Tron pursued was a revenge that got anyone caught in the crossfire hurt while he used his sons as weapons, while your vendetta is aimed squarely at one person. I wouldn’t consider your revenge comparable to what Tron did, so I can’t condemn it on the same grounds- if I even wanted to. In short, I can’t tell you what I would do in your position, because I’m not you. I would suggest you do what’s healthiest, but then, my own medical history is proof that I struggle to practice what I preach.”

Rio paused. “So your advice is essentially that you have no advice,” she eventually replied.

“No,” Kaito corrected. “My advice is to ignore everyone’s advice if you want to and do what works best for yourself, not others. Forge your own path, and let that be what decides how you approach whether or not you still want to seek revenge on Thomas should your paths cross. Do what’s healthiest and best for you and you alone, not what others tell you what’s best. If that does mean you want vengeance, then so be it, but let that be the end result of your introspection, and not because your brother, a doctor or anyone else told you. I suppose in short… just do what you think is best, and don’t let anyone try to steer you off course.” 

Rio hummed, sitting back. “You’ve given me a lot to think about. Thanks, by the way, for leaving what I do up to me. I feel sometimes like everyone has this idea for how I should respond or deal with my lingering issues. Sometimes I feel like Ryoga just expects me to let everything go because he’s in a decent place, and… I don’t know, I don’t wanna disparage him but it can be stifling. So I’m glad that you’re just saying to do it in my own way.”

“Well what’s what friends are for, “ Kaito said casually. “And as I’m learning, I seem to have picked up quite a few recently.”

“Yeah,” Rio smiled at him, “you have. Good job, you now nearly have as many friends at eighteen as I did at the age of six.” Rio gave her left arm an experimental flex, a pleased grin spreading across her face as she did. “Nice, the pain’s finally going. This feels better, so I’m gonna take off now and catch up with the gang- school should be out soon. Thanks for everything!” Rio got up, slipping her arm out of the sling she’d put it in that morning.

“Of course,” Kaito nodded, helping Orbital seal up the card cases. “My door is always open if you wind up needing some time away from everything.” 

“I appreciate that,” Rio replied as she grabbed her coat, snagging a few sleeves from Kaito to put her new cards in. “Maybe next time, I’ll remember my deck and we can see if I fare better than my brother.”

Kaito snorted. “As long as you don’t try to steal my Numbers, I think you’ll fare better by default.” 

Rio’s laugh bounced across the lab as she stepped out, a spring in her step as she re-entered the pleasant autumn warmth of the day.

“So all day, you were dealing with this new guy fawning over you?” Rio let out an amused huff as she and Kotori took a walk by the river, heading back to the Kamishiro apartment to do some homework together. “See, that sounds like a living hell for me.”

“It wasn’t that bad,” Kotori said defensively. “It was almost cute the first time or two. He kept getting accidentally stonewalled by Yuma until he finally had enough that he challenged Yuma to a duel for my honor.” 

“And… how did that work out?” Rio asked, a twinkle in her eye.

Kotori groaned exasperatedly. “I’m pretty sure that Alito guy fell in love with Yuma over it! They completely glossed over me like I was a bag of fish!”

“Their loss, either way.” Rio shrugged. “You’re the prettiest bag of fish in the prefecture.” 

“Ah, you know just what to say to ease my broken heart and wounded ego,” Kotori replied, deadpan. The two laughed for a minute.

Rio, after calming down, scoffed. “You could do infinitely better than some would-be playboy who had a meet-cute when he ran into you. He probably falls in love like that every time he goes out to the grocery store.”

“Bit harsh,” Kotori chided gently. “You’ve never even met the guy and you’re being like that towards what he views as love?” Kotori nudged Rio’s right shoulder gently. “I didn’t mind the gestures, I might even like them if they came from someone they like! But, I’m at least grateful to have a knight in shining armor gauging prospective paramours and keeping the bad ones at bay.” She playfully put a finger to her chin. “Or given what we saw in Art Stanley’s manga world, would it be more appropriate to call you my ‘Ice Witch in shining armor?’”  

Rio flushed at that, shoving Kotori away slightly. “We both agreed to not bring that up again,” she muttered. “Besides, I don’t exactly think taking a swan-dive into a swimming pool is a good way to get someone’s attention over just talking to them, or treating them like some idol to fawn over.” Rio groused. 

“Not your style of love?” Kotori asked.

Rio shrugged. “Not something I’ve given much thought to, but… yeah, pretty much. I’d want an equal, or a rival even. Someone who can keep up with me or challenge me in the early days of any relationship. I wouldn’t want to get complacent, and any partners I do have would need to match me. I wouldn’t want to be put on a pedestal, and I think that’s what most of the boys at school would do- like Tetsuo for instance.” 

“Ah, poor Tetsuo.” Kotori said wistfully. “He’ll figure it out eventually that you’re not interested. But then, you wouldn’t be the type to want a partner to fawn over you then?” Kotori inquired as she stepped ahead. Rio caught something in her tone, a hint of… something negative, she couldn’t catch the exact emotion. 

“I didn’t say that,” Rio countered. “I just said I’d want someone who can match me. I’m not averse to being pampered and everything, but I wouldn’t want a relationship built on it. It’d need mutual respect, trust, and commitment before I got that far. But if I found the right person and settled down? Sure, I’d love to be fed grapes or given flowers or… I don’t know, whatever those kinds of couples do. Most people would like that- I just think it’s tacky as an opening gesture. I think that should be saved for when you really like someone.”

“Well, different strokes for different brushes and all.” Kotori said casually, interlocking her fingers behind her back before she turned to Rio. “Still, pity to know you don’t wanna be woken up to French Toast in bed if you ever stay over for a sleepover,” she added sardonically.

Rio cleared her throat, thankful her hair and collar covered a lot of her neck as it meant Kotori couldn’t easily see the weird flush of red that raced up the back of her neck. “I don’t mind a little pampering on occasion,” she muttered, looking away suddenly. 

“There you go!” Kotori said cheekily before turning around to continue walking. “I’m thinking on the way back we can grab some food to go before we get into our assignments? I might have skipped lunch because Yuma did something stupid and I chased him around for most of the hour.” She called over her shoulder.

“Sounds good,” Rio responded idly.  

Rio trailed behind, lost in thought as she started thinking. Kotori hadn’t been wrong- Rio had gotten heated quickly at the idea of this Alito character making passes at Kotori. She bit her lip, considering what that could mean. Rio had been honest to Kotori; she wasn’t fond of people who employed love-bombing as a tactic when trying to ask someone out, but the irritation she had felt as Kotori shared the day’s exploits had gone beyond just dating preferences. Something about it had gotten truly under her skin and scratched at her like a bad itch, beyond just the presence of the courting tactics. More that the tactics were used on… some one specifically?

It couldn’t mean… no, Rio shook her head in denial. No, it couldn't mean that, she insisted to herself unconvincingly. Her feelings about Kotori being flirted with by some new guy at school weren’t out of jealousy. They were just friends, and Kotori clearly had a soft spot for Yuma. Rio wouldn’t dare try to get between that. But try as she might, Rio couldn’t get it out of her head that a small part of why she was upset at Alito’s flirtation… was that it was aimed at Kotori above all else. That Kotori didn’t mind the gestures, indicating she’d like it if it came from someone closer to her, had Rio’s traitorous subconscious planting images of her receiving a bouquet at school during White Day that made Rio’s pulse quicken a fraction, before she shook her head like a wet dog to try and dispel the image.

She wasn’t even sure Kotori liked girls. Why set herself up for failure by getting a crush on someone who may not even reciprocate? Kotori could tease, but she teased everyone she liked, it was just part of her sharp wit. Rio had to stop these flights of fancy, now, before someone got hurt.

“You coming?” Kotori had paused near the exit off the storm drain that they were in, a light breeze making her hair sway. Her question jolted Rio out of her internal investigation, making her look up.

Rio shook her head, focusing herself back into the here and now. “Coming,” she called in response, jogging lightly to catch up. 

She’d have to process this later, ideally as far away from Kotori as she could manage. Today had had enough introspection on her real feelings, potential relationship drama could wait a week or two for her to get her head on straight. Or maybe the Barians would attack  and she could compartmentalize this entire sordid affair by getting into a Duel. One could dream, Rio huffed to herself as she caught up with Kotori. 

In a few weeks, I will get time

To realize it's right before my eyes

And I can take it if it's what I want to do

I am leaving and this is starting

To feel like it's right before my eyes

And I can taste it, it's my sweet beginning

And I can tell just what you want

You don't want to be alone

You don't want to be alone

And I can't say it's what you know

But you've known it the whole time

Yeah, you've known it the whole time

Two Door Cinema Club, “What You Know.”

Chapter Text

In retrospect, Kotori thought to herself, it was all Shingetsu’s fault and she was completely blameless for what was going down. 

After all, it was that carrot-haired avatar of misfortune who had thrown out the idea to begin with that the Numbers Club needed a cheerleader all of a sudden while Kotori had been skimming the news (something about an archeological expedition going missing off the coast of Greece), and it had been him who put words in her mouth that she was Yuma’s girlfriend (Kotori sometimes had to wonder if Yuma was even aware of what a girlfriend was given how dense he could be, but she took enough pity on him to decide he wasn’t that bad- that would be like being a teenager and still not knowing what a fiance was!), and it had been Shingetsu who indirectly insulted her Dueling skills by saying… that she had none.

OK, she had to admit that that misconception was a little on her. She’d been keeping it on the down low that she was learning how to play seriously, with only Rio and Shark aware at the moment that she’d been deck-building and actively practicing- while the team knew she had duelled during the Art Stanley debacle it was written off as a one-time incident. She didn’t want to show her hand until she was sure her deck was as ready as possible, so while around Tetsuo and the rest of the Numbers Club, she kept her Duel Disk snug in her backpack to be safe.

Still, logical as it was that obviously they wouldn’t know Kotori had been practicing, the remark got under her skin, her fledgling pride as a Duelist offended at the accusation that she couldn’t play. It wasn’t even like Kotori wanted to be a mascot or a cheerleader, it was just the bland assertion that she couldn’t duel and thus was inherently disqualified that set her teeth on edge. Then Cathy had dug her claws into a wound she didn’t even know existed and…

Well that was about when Yuma came in and ate a chucked shoe to the face. Even he seemed done with Shingetsu today, going off his muttered line about how it was all Rei’s fault for starting the conversation. Cathy was still being completely unreasonable, and Kotori could concede with the benefit of hindsight that she was also still high-strung, but ultimately not at fault for how the situation was deteriorating. That was still entirely on Shingetsu and Cathy. 

Well, OK. Entirely on Shingetsu and Cathy, but also a bit on Tetsuo for ‘volunteering’ Rio as a replacement mascot when she poked her head in at the ruckus everyone was making. Then Cathy was catty about it and now Rio was making a threat laced in black ice that had nearly everyone recoiling from the menacing aura that Rio emanated. 

“I feel like our club’s less in need of a cheerleader and more of a bomb shelter with how hostile everyone’s getting!” Todoroki muttered in exasperation before ducking under a notebook that got thrown into the air at random.

In short, everything had gone a bit pear-shaped, with the consequences still being felt well into the next day and over the weekend until-

“Welcome to the first ever Heartland City Sports Duel Tournament!” A frankly massive man in a uniform one size too small and a green mohawk declared to the small crowd gathered, consisting of the Numbers Club, Rio and Ryoga.

Yuma, Shingetsu and the obscenely large guy- seriously, his biceps were thicker than Tokunosuke’s waist- golf-clapped together. “This is gonna be fun!” Shingetsu cheered from the frankly horrifying position he’d taken near a fireworks launcher, which made Rio’s hackles raise in warning and instill in her a growing desire to find overhead cover. 

The excitement was far less palpable among the gathered crowd, who, in Rio’s best guesstimate, would have rather been anywhere but back on campus on a Sunday. She herself was only here because Yuma had said there would be cake, and Ryoga was only here because of a mixture of Yuma spending an hour the prior night begging for his attendance, and Rio needing a ride back home afterwards after Yuma bribed her with tickets to an upcoming aquarium exhibit. Rio herself would have rather spent the day doing… pretty much anything else, to be honest. She could be harassing Ryoga, or going for a walk, or visiting the penguin enclosure at the zoo, or harassing Ryoga, or buying onions, or texting Kotori, or harassing Ryoga… the opportunities were boundless on this nice Sunday. 

“Yuma,” Rio found herself asking as the rest of the Numbers club made their enthusiasm clear through a lack of zeal, “can I just ask where you found this guy? I’ve not seen him around before in school.”

“Oh! Yeah, this is Girag. He’s a second year student who just transferred in, and gave Shingetsu and I the idea after school on Friday!” Yuma did jazz hands towards Girag, who Rio narrowed her eyes at. 

“A second year?” Kotori murmured. “What does he eat for breakfast, raw protein powder?” 

“We’ve certainly had a lot of transfer students this semester,” Todoroki muttered behind Rio. 

“Don’t worry about it!” Girag boomed. “For today I’m just the adjudicator and rules judge for the events today! I couldn’t help but notice Yuma walking home like a sopping wet raccoon and took pity on the poor punk, and from that this grand idea was born!” 

“Could that grand idea have not involved being back on school grounds? On a Sunday?” Tokunosuke replied under his breath. 

“Either way! We’re gonna try and use these Sports Duels as a way to put all that bad blood from earlier behind us and have a nice, clean day of fun!” Yuma said, his enthusiasm doing its best to keep everyone interested. 

“The rules are simple!” Girag bellowed, trying to match Yuma’s natural cheer with sheer bombast. “Each of you has been assigned to a team and will do a Tag Duel while otherwise engaging in a sport along the way! Winner gets a point, at the end of the day, the top two teams compete to win!” 

“What’s the prize?” Ryoga said from where he was brooding on a staircase.

“The prize is a day spent in the company of your best friends, having fun and partaking in merriment and cheer!” Girag responded.

Ryoga let out a low groan, simmering in contempt. “Can I leave now, then?” He asked petulantly. 

“The pairings are…” Girag pulled out a hastily scrawled note on his back pocket. “Yuma and Shark! Todoroki and Tokunosuke! Tetsuo and Rio! And Kotori and Cathy!” 

“Wait, these teams suck!” Kotori exclaimed while Tetsuo lit up like a searchlight. “Yuma and Shark are the best Duelists, they’ll annihilate everyone else here!” 

“With how crap Kotori is as a Duelist,” Cathy yowled, “I should be given a handicap!” 

“Don’t worry Kotori,” Ryoga said wearily before Kotori could tackle Cathy and, presumably, try to strip away one of her nine lives, “with how apathetic I am about all this, I may just lie down and let the timer take me out.”

“Also also!” Yuma said placatingly, “Shark and I have agreed to run handicapped versions of our decks for balance reasons!”

“No, I didn’t agree to that!” Ryoga fumed. “You had Rio steal half my deck while I was asleep!” 

“Well,” Yuma spluttered defensively while Rio giggled, “You wouldn’t have said yes if I asked you to not bring some of your best cards!” 

“Oh, so larceny was Plan B?!” Ryoga’s eyes started twitching.

“No, Plan B was to bribe you with aquarium tickets, but Rio said she had a way to make you do it that was easier for my wallet!” Yuma said innocently. 

“... which was larceny,” Rio admitted with a cheeky grin.

“I’m happy with my team,” Tetsuo offered as a peace-keeping measure before Shark tried to bite Yuma’s hand off.

“You would be,” half the Club muttered. 

“And don’t forget,” Shingetsu offered with the verbal equivalent of chucking a live grenade into a room, “the winning team becomes our Club Cheerleader!” 

There was a moment of silence as everyone besides Ryoga considered the possibility of being branded the cheerleader. The boys all then pointedly avoided eye contact with each other, besides Todoroki, who tapped at his chin.

“In summation, I may be able to pull that off,” he muttered to himself. 

“Regardless, the games begin!” Girag grabbed a box from beside his feet. “The first match shall be… skydiving! Yuma and Shark vs Todoroki and Tokunosuke!” 

The two boys looked at each other. “Wait, what!?” they said mutually.

“Maybe if I just don’t draw, the ground will hit me hard enough that I wake up far, far away from here…” Ryoga said wistfully.

“I think we’re both banned from the hospital after the last three times, brother,” Rio said dryly as she walked up behind him to observe as Shingetsu paraded around with parachutes. 

“I give it ten minutes before everyone here has war paint on their faces and Shingetsu’s head on a stick.” Ryoga said dryly before getting up and heading over to Yuma. 

“This is gonna go great,” Rio muttered to herself. “We’re gonna end up doing pistols at dawn after this, I can feel it.”

“This went great!” Yuma cheered as everyone gathered following the conclusion of the qualifying rounds. “I think we all definitely had a lot of fun!” 

Kotori had no clue how Yuma, Rio and Ryoga were still standing, she was exhausted. “Whoever…” she panted from the ground, completely sapped of energy, “had the idea.. of mixing tennis and Dueling… you suck.”  

“Amen,” Cathy groaned beside Kotori, the two sharing an exhausted grin. “And wrestling, too… I didn’t know my arm could bend that way.” 

“Sorry,” Rio said apologetically. “I get a bit… heated… when I’m in a competition.”

“That’s a nice way of saying you’re a filthy jock,” Cathy hissed, albeit in a way that was almost playful. Rio seemed to read it as such, going off the stuck-out tongue she shot Cathy in return.

“Don’t worry Rio, we noticed,” Tokunosuke replied from where he was sitting with Todoroki and Tetsuo. “You were yelling at Tetsuo for like ten minutes after he cost you the volleyball match!” 

“By the way, no hard feelings, Rio!” Tetsuo said. “All’s fair in love and war!” 

“Exactly!” Yuma bounced between everyone, a newfound spring in his step. “With all the fun we had today, all the woes of the week have just left us behind!” 

“I mean… you’re not wrong,” Kotori muttered. Going into the events with Cathy at her side had put a few things in perspective. “You know, Cathy?” Kotori couldn’t help as a small manic laugh escaped her. “I don’t even care about being a cheerleader for the Club!”

“Really? Then why did you get so heated when Shingetsu snubbed you?” Cathy picked herself up to sit beside Kotori while Yuma chatted with Rio and the boys.

“Because…” Kotori let out a frustrated huff. “He said it was because I can’t duel. But I can! I’ve been practicing and training with Rio for weeks to get better, and then....” she groaned. “I failed. I lost every match today. I wanted to show off my stuff when I was sure my deck was ready, but this event just threw me off my game.”

“Oh, for real?” Cathy sat up at that with energy. “Oh, I didn’t know you’d been practicing.” She winced. “Crap, sorry. Man, I was an asshole then. And I probably didn’t help when I cost us the tennis match.”

“Eh,” Kotori shrugged. “I didn’t help there either. To be honest… I don’t actually know how to play tennis beyond getting the ball over the net. I was just hitting the ball and hoping that worked.”

“Phew, not just me then.” Cathy smiled at that and the two shared a genuine laugh for… oh wow, Kotori realized that that might have been the first time they had laughed together and not just as a group laughing at Yuma’s misfortunes. “I’m sorry for calling you a tree sparrow.”

“And I’m sorry for calling you a monster cat lady.” Kotori held out a hand. “Friends?”

Cathy grinned, shaking the outstretched hand. “Friends.” 

“Everyone gather around, I’m announcing the finalists!” Girag yelled. “Coming in first was Yuma and Shark’s team! The bad boy of the sea, and the emissary of hope!”

“I picked the nicknames!” Yuma said cheerfully. 

“And their competitor shall be… the dark horse matchup of Kotori and Cathy!”

Kotori, deciding to be respectful in defeat, turned instinctively to Rio with an extended hand. “Congratulations Rio. Have fun in the finals.” The lightbulb in her brain then flickered on. “Wait, what?!” She turned to Girag. “But we came last!” 

“Oh I didn’t mention?” Girag held up his hands in an apology. “I gave your team a bonus point for every round! Cathy did say you needed a handicap!”    

Everyone looked at Cathy, who squirmed under the attention. “Hey, I didn’t think he’d actually do it!” She said defensively, backing up.

“Be that as it may,” Shingetsu proclaimed, “all results are final. Disgruntled contestants of the Friendship Games may write in after the tournament to express their feedback!”

“Uh… yeah, what he said!” Girag pointed over his shoulder. “I need to explain some things to Kotori and Cathy about the final, so Yuma and Shark need to go prepare, and everyone else get ready for the finals!”

Yuma, beaming like a searchlight, looked around. “Alright, just need to find Shark and… hey where’d he go?”

Rio paled. “Oh no. I knew I should have pickpocketed his bike keys during the bowling duel while he was recovering from Todoroki dropping a ball on his foot.”

“His keys- wait, Rio, what do you mean his keys!?” Yuma panicked.

“I'll explain in a minute, go get ready and don’t worry!” Rio bolted for the nearby parking lot that was meant to be reserved for staff members, but everyone knew Shark parked there with reckless abandon. 

Kotori and Cathy looked at each other and shared a shrug before following Girag. He led them inside to an emptied out classroom, where a small table sat near the entrance desk, adorned with a few face down cards on top of a dusty white cloth.

“So, what did you need?” Kotori asked. “Do you want us to do something with our decks before the finals?” 

“Something like that, you can use a few of these cards to help bridge the gap, as a gesture of good will,” Girag said absentmindedly. He pulled one of the cards from the desk before turning around, holding it in front of Kotori and Cathy’s faces. “But, I also just wanted to make sure before we started… who were ya both dueling for again?” 

Kotori had a brief moment to catch the card’s art, a surge of panic welling up in her at the sight of that accursed crest with the red gem inlaid that shimmered, overtaking her senses and… leaving her blank and serene, her thoughts smoothing out and leaving only a pressing desire to look deeper at the light generated by Rank-Up-Magic Barian’s Force.

“Of course,” Kotori and Cathy said in synchronized unison, a dreamlike smile lazily drifting across Kotori’s face while her eyes glowed a light shade of maroon. “We’re dueling in the name of Barian World.”

Rio ran out into the parking lot in a dead sprint, looking around frantically before she spotted the tailpipes of a familiar bike as it was riding away from her.

“Ryoga you guppy bastard!” She screamed at her traitorous brother while he fled, like a coward. “You brainless jellyfish! I’m dumping all of your hair products down the sink and clogging your shower for this! I’m leaving your milk out in the sun and not telling you when it expires! You hear me?! How am I even getting home today?!”

Her D-Pad vibrated.

Private Messages: Ryoga, K and Rio, K.

You have received: 2000 Yen, from: Ryoga, K.

Ryoga, K (15:43 PM): That should cover your metro fare back.

Rio, K (15:43 PM): I’LL KILL YOU. ALSO DON’T TEXT AND DRIVE.

You have been blocked by: Ryoga, K.

Fuming, Rio switched tabs over to another chat while she began to walk back towards the plaza where Yuma was hosting the Friendship Games.

Group Chat: “Hating Thomas Arclight Hours.”

Members (3): Kaito, T. Ryoga, K, Rio, K.

Rio, K (15:44 PM): Kaito, call Ryoga for me.

Kaito, T (15:45 PM): ?? What?

Rio, K (15:45 PM) Call him for me and tell him he’s an ASSHOLE and I’m putting an onion on Shark Drake Veiss’s card!

Kaito, T (15:47 PM): … I’m going back to work. 

Rio, K (15:47 PM) WAIT. NO!

Letting out a mixture of a groan and a sigh, Rio made her way back to the plaza, where Girag had resurfaced alongside Kotori’s team. Yuma was bouncing around nervously, darting over when Rio came into view.

“So? Where’d Shark go?” He asked, fidgeting with a band on his wrist.

Rio let out a disappointed huff. “My brother has fled in your time of need, Yuma. He bailed.”

“He what?! Aw man…” Yuma deflated like a balloon. “I thought he was having fun…” He mumbled. “Now I feel bad for dragging him along.”

“Well, I was, so one out of two Kamishiros isn’t bad,” Rio replied. “But you’re now down a team-member, right?” 

“Yeah…” Yuma kicked some grass. “Shark and I were gonna have some fun but now he’s gone. I guess I can rope Girag in.” 

“Or,” Rio said, trailing out the syllable, “you could make use of the way cooler Kamishiro who’s right in front of you?” 

“Oh?” Yuma perked up. “Oh, that’d be cool! Sick, even, Rio!” Yuma preened at the idea, and Rio happily noted that Yuma had finally conditioned himself to not need to be told to avoid that dreaded nickname. “But you should ask Tetsuo first if he’s cool with it.”

“I’m sure he will be,” Rio said casually, shrugging. “I could ask Tetsuo to rob a bank for me and he’d be cool with it.” 

“Still! It’s good sportsmanship to ask before you change teams.” Yuma tilted his head. “Astral, I would know if it was bad sportsmanship to ‘defect to the winning side,’ jeez!”

While Yuma argued with Astral about the exact definition of the word ‘defecting,’ Rio skipped over to where Tetsuo and the boys were relaxing.

“Hey Tetsuo?” Rio called out. “I need a favor.”

“Oh, sure Rio-San!” Tetsuo scrambled up, brushing grass off his pants legs.

“My brother just bailed on the competition and left Yuma high and dry. He’s down a partner, so I thought I would offer. Are you cool with that?” 

“Oh, darn. Sorry your brother flaked.” Tetsuo paused. “Wait, wasn't he your ride home?”

“Yes,” Rio replied through gritted teeth and a forced smile. “He was.”

“Oh! Double darn. I mean, sorry he left you and Yuma high and dry. I’d be cool with you joining Yuma’s team! A win for you would be a win for both of us, and I’d be a lame friend if I complained!” 

“Exactly,” Rio huffed a sigh of relief. “Thanks for being chill with it, man.”

“No problem! Have fun! I’m rooting for ya!”

Rio waved as she jogged back over to Yuma. “We’re all set!” 

“Sick!” Yuma turned over in Girag’s direction and cupped his hands around his mouth. “Oi, Girag! We’re all good to go!”

Girag grinned enthusiastically and set up the last Field Spell for the day- a baseball diamond. 

“Hey, you got a home run when the baseball club challenged you, right?” Yuma muttered to Rio as Shingetsu began hyping up the finals.

“Nah,” Rio replied lazily. “I got three.” She rolled her shoulders, using the movement to flash a grin at Yuma that showed her teeth like a shark. 

“Wow.” Yuma paused. “Cathy’s right, you are a jock.” 

Rio’s laugh carried over the diamond.

“By the way…” Yuma started fidgeting again, his fingers bouncing off each other. “I have a favor to ask.”

“Oh? What’s up, Yuma?” 

“... I need us to throw the match.” Yuma blurted out in one big breath.

“Eh?!” Rio jumped in surprise, stopping when everyone turned to look at her. “You want to lose??” She whispered, leaning in.

“I don’t want to, but Girag had the idea!” Yuma looked down at his feet. “The whole point of today is to win everyone over in a big symbol of friendship and peace, and he figured if I lost the finals, that’d bring the opposing team together as well!” 

Rio hummed in uncertainty. “I get it, but… I don’t know, throwing a match for any reason sits wrong with me.” That was her way of saying she found the experience heretical to Dueling. She had just never liked the idea of calling a match early, always convinced that the next draw could herald a comeback or victory. The phase “a duel’s not over until the last card is played” was a common mantra for a reason, after all, and even during test matches with Kotori just to learn a combo Rio would insist they ran the whole match out, if just so that Kotori could get used to free-styling her combos and being made to adapt to Rio’s counter-strategies on the fly. 

“I know, I’m not super happy about it either, but it’s not like this is gonna go on anyone’s record.” Yuma paused. “Besides, I figured you’d be OK with it once Girag made Kotori’s team the competition.”

Rio paused, locked in place like she’d been petrified, ice flooding her veins and locking her in place. “What’s… that supposed to mean?” She asked, trying to sound casual.

There was no way, she thought internally, biting down the urge to start screaming internally. There was no way Yuma of all people caught her definitely-not-but-possible crush on Kotori. Not before even Rio had fully realized it. Surely not! Anyone but Yuma! She’d even take Ryoga catching it- and Rio was fairly sure Ryoga still hadn’t realized that Rio only liked girls! 

(She’d have to kill him, Rio realized with muted horror. There was no way she could risk Yuma blabbing, he’d have to die, preferably in a painless accident that would cash in on a lovely life insurance policy, to take her secret to the grave.)

“I mean,” Yuma carried on without noticing Rio’s hesitancy, “you two are such good friends! I figured the confidence boost it would give Kotori would be a net positive for both of us.”

“... Yes, “ Rio said robotically, ignoring how the sentence she prepared to say made her heart ache. “We’re just very good friends, and nothing more.” She lied as easily as she breathed. She sighed wearily. “I’ll do it, Yuma. I’ll make a show of it, but I’ll let Cathy and Kotori win.”

“OK! Sounds like we’re good to do this then. And, for real, thanks a bunch for going along with this.” Yuma relaxed notably, slicking his hair back and giving Rio a confident grin. “Now let’s go make some friendships!”

Rio found herself giggling despite her dependency at having to lose. “All right Yuma. Take me out to the ball game!” 

Shingetsu saw them coming closer and grabbed his microphone. “And now, presenting our two teams! In the left corner, it’s the Cat & Bird Team, featuring Cathy and Kotori!” Rio got a closer look at the opposing team, watching as they fixed on baseball caps with focused expressions. “And now coming in on the bottom of the ninth, it’s Team Hopeful Shark, with Yuma and… Rio!” 

Girag paused. “Eh? Where’s Shark?” 

Rio shrugged. “Sorry, he bailed. Said we weren’t cool enough.” 

“It’s fine Girag! I was just getting a replacement sorted and Rio’s agreed to be my pinch hitter. Good thing too, or I’d have dragged you into this!” Yuma said enthusiastically. 

Girag let out a sigh of relief at that. “Well, the crisis is averted then! Time for the finals!” 

The artificially generated crowd let out a roar of excitement, bolstered by Tetsuo and the boys cheering on both teams equally. 

“Let’s all have a clean game!” Shingetsu declared. “Ready, set, duel!”

“Duel Disk, go!” Cathy and Kotori called out together, their Duel Disks activating and locking into place.

“Duel Gazer, let’s roll!” Yuma and Rio replied in unison, fastening their Gazers. 

“Augmented Reality Link: Established.”

“Duel!” The four competitors called out together.

“I’ll take the first turn!” Yuma called out. “I draw!” 

As Yuma contemplated his hand, Shingetsu turned to the crowd. “For those at home wondering if there’s any special tricks to this Tag Duel, worry no further! Both teams have full access to their Extra Decks, and share a field and Graveyard! However, they can’t share knowledge of cards in their hand or deck!” 

“You mean…” Tokunosuke scratched his head in confusion. “The same rules we were already using? All day?” 

“It’s called showmanship!” Shingetsu’s eye twitched at the color commentary. “Try it sometime!” 

Yuma looked over his hand, murmuring to himself. “Well, if I’m throwing anyway… I summon Stinging Swordsman in Attack Mode!” Yuma called forth a miniscule little samurai, armed with a weapon more comparable to a sewing needle than a sword.

“Yuma,” Rio muttered harshly. “I know we’re throwing, but come on. At least try a little!” 

“Trust the process, Rio!” Yuma shot her a thumbs up. “I set one card face down and end my turn!” 

“My turn!” Cathy called out. “I draw! I summon out my Cat Girl!” From Cathy’s Duel Disk appeared a young feline female wearing a brown and black dress and large gauntlets made to look like cat paws. “When Cat Girl is summoned, I can also summon a copy of Stray Cat Girl from my hand into Defense Position!” A younger girl wearing a yellow raincoat appeared, holding a bright umbrella. 

Rio grimaced. “I hate cats…” she growled. 

“Battle! Cat Girl attacks Stinging Swordsman! Feline Fury!” 

Cathy’s monster lashed out, shredding through Yuma’s Swordsman and dealing him and Rio 900 damage. 

“Yuma, seriously!” Rio growled. “It doesn’t matter if you lose if everyone can tell we weren’t trying!”

“Alright, fine!” Yuma shot back. “I’ll do better on my next turn!” 

“I set three cards face-down, and end my turn!” Cathy declared.

Rio narrowed her eyes on her natural enemy- as it was long recorded in the annals of history, bird girls and cat girls were natural nemeses, like Fusion Duelists and XYZ Duelists, or Entertainment Duelists versus Riding Duelists. It was frankly inevitable that she would have to face Cathy in single combat like this, she realized.

“My turn! Draw!” Rio inspected her hand. “I summon my Blizzard Falcon in Attack Mode!” Rio’s frosty falcon manifested and began to hover in the air, glowering at Cat Girl. “Battle! Blizzard Falcon, attack Cat Girl! Frozen Talon!”

Blizzard Falcon gained altitude before entering a dive-bomb, its frozen claws glinting in the bright light of the day as it began to lock in towards Cat Girl. Right as it would have crashed into Cathy’s monster, it pulled up, preparing to scrape its claws through Cat Girl.

“I activate a Trap! Negate Attack!” Cathy flipped her set card, the trap glowing and creating a barrier that covered her and Kotori’s fields. Blizzard Falcon was sent recoiling back. “Your attack is negated and you must end the Battle Phase!” 

Rio glowered at the move. “I set two cards face down and end my turn,” she muttered. “You’re up Kotori!” She tried to bury the instinctual bitterness at having her attack negated so she could cheer on Kotori.

Kotori starred back, not deigning to respond to the comment. “My turn, draw!”

“Jeez, never known Kotori to stonewall someone like that,” Yuma murmured. “She must really wanna win.” 

“In Kotori’s Standby Phase,” Kathy announced, holding up a hand, "I activate the Quick-Play Spell, Cat Girl Relocation! I return a Cat Girl Monster on my field to the deck to draw one more card. I return Stray Cat Girl!” Cathy paused, lowering her hand calmly. “As Kotori is the turn leader in this situation, she shall draw.”

Kotori silently drew another card, sharing a quick nod with Cathy. “I now summon Nova Summoner!” A floating angel-like sphere appeared on Kotori’s field, spreading its wings. “Next, I play the spell card Enlightened Euphoria! Cat Girl is now treated as a Light Monster with the same type as Nova Summoner!”

“Why do that?” Rio wondered.

“Maybe she needs to summon a monster that doesn’t gel well with Cathy’s Earth Monsters? Hard to say,” Yuma muttered in response.   

“I Overlay my Level 4 Nova Summoner, and Cathy’s Level 4 Stray Cat! With these two monsters, I now build the Overlay Network!” 

The yellow and black vortex appeared before Kotori, with Nova Summoner and Stray Cat dissolving into particles of energy that flew in and collided, making the Network erupt.

“Bring the crowd to life and spread cheer for all the world to relish in! I XYZ Summon! Rank 4, Fairy Cheer Girl!” Kotori chanted. A blue-haired elf in a cheerleader outfit, complete with tassels and pom poms, appeared and struck a pose over Kotori and Cathy. 

“Huh,” Yuma muttered. “I didn’t know she had that monster. Either way, that was a sick summon Kotori!”

“She didn’t…” Rio replied, confused. 

“Eh? How would you know?” Yuma asked innocently.

Rio froze, eyes narrowing as she tried to come up with a reasonable way to not give away that she’d been tutoring Kotori. “I… just do, OK?” Rio eventually said, giving up on finding a reasonable excuse. “Trust me, she didn’t have that monster in her deck earlier.”

“If you say so…” Yuma mumbled. 

“Unless…” something stirred in Rio’s chest, her heart feeling like it skipped a beat. “No, they can’t have-!”

“I activate the effect of my Fairy Cheer Girl!” Kotori announced. “Once per turn, I can use an Overlay Unit to draw a card! Cheer Refreshment!” Fairy Cheer Girl shook her pom poms, letting the top card of Kotori’s deck glow as she drew it. 

Rio felt like she was about to break into hives all of a sudden, her body itching, and her fight or flight instinct telling her to get the hell out of here. Kotori looked at the card she drew, eyes narrowing in concentration, and as she prepared to activate it, a malignant magenta aura spread from it, covering both her and Cathy. “No, please,” Rio whispered to herself, feeling a bead of sweat trickle down her arm. “Not them…”

“I activate Rank-Up-Magic Barian’s Force!” Kotori declared, while the cursed crest that represented the Barian World appeared on her forehead. “Prepare for your descent into chaos! Using this card, I can use Fairy Cheer Girl as the base material to summon a Chaos XYZ Monster one Rank higher!” 

“Wait, what?!” Yuma barked in shock.

“NO!” Rio howled at the same time, the word escaping her lungs in a guttural scream. 

“Using Fairy Cheer Girl, we now rebuild the Overlay Network!” Kotori and Cathy chanted in unison. “Chaos XYZ Evolution!” Fairy Cheer Girl flew up into the Overlay Network that appeared overhead, dematerializing into a stream of light that was gradually beset upon by corruptive energies. By the time it arrived at the Network, it was stained completely crimson, creating an orb of dark purple energy that rapidly expanded and covered the whole field.

“Barian Power, born from Chaos, visit your judgment on this wretched world!” Cathy began.

“Cheer on the onslaught of Chaos, and help corrupt this light-infested world with the beauty of darkness itself!” Kotori continued, the Barian crest on her forehead positively leaking Chaos energy.

“Rise!” They chanted together in unsettlingly perfect unison . “Rank 5, Chaos XYZ Dark Fairy Cheer Girl!”    

The monster that emerged from the corrupted Overlay Network rematerialized, her hair now bleached white. Her outfit was adorned with dark spikes in the back like a tail, while the front glowed in the sinister red pattern prolific to Chaos Monsters. 

“What… the heck… when did the Barians get to Kotori and Cathy?!” Yuma exclaimed. 

Rio took an impulsive step back, eyes widening and becoming near pinpricks. “Kotori… no…” she managed to get out. “Why would they go for her and Cathy? It doesn’t make sense!” Her breathing was getting short, her throat began to tighten like it was under a vice grip, her heart felt like it was frozen solid and panic was running up and down her body like…

Like the way she had seized up before that vision/nightmare she had the night the Barians first arrived. Rio only had a moment to clutch at her forehead before her eyes began to shimmer faintly, a low groan escaping her before a series of flashes branded her mind with more obscure imagery and sensations. 

A shadowed hand holding up Barian’s Force… the sensation of having every conscious thought in her mind wiped and discarded in favor of overwhelming loyalty to Barian World… a land of dark red crystals and a yellow sky with vibrant lightning overhead… and two figures shrouded in darkness, one wearing a dress of white and blue, the other in green and red, embracing while overlooking it; an Empress and her consort, as the sky opened up with a black vortex that began to consume everything in glorious darkness-

Rio let out a low keen as she snapped back to reality, Yuma’s hand on her shoulder. “Rio! Talk to me, you OK?” 

“I’m…” she grimaced. “I’ve been better,” she admitted. “My brian feels like I’ve had a trainwreck inside of it.”

“Just focus, it’s gonna be OK, we’re nearly out of this.” Yuma tilted his head. “Yeah, I know, Astral!”

“... somehow have been corrupted by the power of Barian... Wait, Yuma, something appears to be wrong with Rio! You need to help her focus!” 

A new voice, layered, melodic and almost ethereal,  drifted into audible range for Rio. She turned her head, ignoring how doing so felt partially like driving a nail into the back of her skull, to let her see a faint shimmer gradually get stronger and stronger until it coalesced into a cyan spirit, floating behind Yuma. Two heterochromic eyes were staring at her in concern, widening when she made eye contact with them. 

“Are you… Astral?” Rio managed to ask weakly, latching onto this before she let herself get consumed by panic, fear and… rage, that she could interrogate later. 

“You can... see me?” Astral blinked in surprise. “This is fascinating. Perhaps direct exposure to a Chaos XYZ Monster and your visions have combined to allow you to perceive me… we can discuss this later. Regardless, it is a pleasure to finally speak with you, though I wish it had been under better circumstances.”

“Yeah,” Yuma said, trying to stay calm. “We gotta focus.” Rio noted the tremor that was making Yuma’s hand shake. “Rio? Change of plans. We gotta win this turn.” Rio started to nod before she was cut off. 

“But, Yuma, Rio…” Kotori’s voice drifted across the field towards them, making the duo plus Astral look up at Kotori. Her eyes had gone partially blank, turning into flat circles of hazel. An eerie smile graced her lips as she tilted her head in confusion, her voice sounding almost dream-like as if she was just talking in her sleep. “You’re… not surviving past this turn. Don’t be silly. You have no chance against the power of Barian, let alone my monster.”

“What?!” Yuma asked in shock. He looked over at Blizzard Falcon, still in Attack Mode. “We’ll take some damage, but-”

“I’m not taking that chance!” Rio snarled, her anger swelling and keeping back the incessant panic that still ate at her nerves. “I activate the Trap Card, Zerofyne Fake Out Formation! By returning a Water Winged Beast monster to my hand, I can summon another from my deck in Defense Position! Then during the End Phase, that original monster is brought back as long as it’s still in my hand! Take a hike, Blizzard Falcon, and say hello to my Aurora Wing!”  

Rio traded out her falcon for another bird, its wings shimmering gently in the darkened environment brought about by the Chaos XYZ Monster.

“Aurora Wing, once per turn, can revive itself from the Graveyard in Attack Position when it’s destroyed in battle,” Rio explained. “It should protect our Life Points.” 

“Phew. Good call,” Yuma said, relieved. “It being in defense means we should be safe!” 

Kotori let out a flat chuckle. “It won’t be that easy to avert your fate. I activate the Equip Spell Card, Fairy Meteor Crush! This card equips onto my monster and makes it so that you take piercing battle damage in any attacks involving it!” 

“Oh no!” Tetsuo proclaimed from the stands. Rio found herself grimacing in a mixture of annoyance and fear that kept eating at her, making her want to give into the panic and get out of there. 

“The funny thing is,” Kotori observed idly, “You’d have taken less damage from this if you kept your Blizzard Falcon out. Only a hundred, but… every point counts.” A smile that could be better described as a grimace flitted across Kotori’s face, like something was forcing her to smile but didn’t know how to make it look natural. “Now battle! Dark Fairy Cheer Girl, attack Aurora Wing! Fairy Turn Particle!”  

Dark Fairy Cheer Girl began to spin in the air, forming a cyclone around it that shot out dark bolts of energy. Two shot through Rio’s Aurora Wing, the beast crying out as the particles eroded it from within and destroyed it. 

“And remember, with Fairy Meteor Crush on the field, you take piercing damage- 900 points worth!” Cathy added. 

Yuma and Rio both gasped sharply as some of the stray beams hit near them, kicking up dust at the plate they were both beside that had them both coughing and rasping while their Life Points dropped to 2200. 

“I forgot that Chaos XYZ damage felt that real…” Yuma managed to ground out. “But at least your Aurora Wing will cover us for the turn.”

True to Rio’s earlier words, Aurora Wing’s effect activated as it was destroying, bringing it back in Attack Position.

“Dark Fairy Cheer Girl’s effect now activates!” Kotori continued. “By using a Chaos Overlay Unit, you now take another 500 points of damage for every card in my hand.” She made a show of counting her cards before moving like a baseball player taking a pitch. “I have four cards in my hand, so you now take another 2000 points of damage!”

“Yuma, brace yourself!” Astral cried out in panic. 

“Go, Dark Fairy Cheer Girl! Corruption Cheer Melody!” 

Dark Fairy Cheer Girl swiped its hand through a Chaos Overlay Unit, converting it into a baton. Spinning it overhead while it gathered energy, she brought it down like a hammer, calling forth a wave of Chaos energy that slammed into Yuma and Rio. The duo both howled in pain from the impact, Rio feeling like her chest had just been kicked in by a horse, before they were sent flying, rolling along the ground and skidding back. Aurora Wing followed, frantically hovering in front of Rio.

Yuma slowly picked himself up. “That hurt… you OK Rio?” 

“No, I’ll feel that in the morning,” Rio wheezed from the ground. “But I’m not out yet.” She forced herself up, nearly falling back down flat before Yuma managed to grab her left arm. “I activate the effect of Guard Penguin from my hand!” She declared, holding up the monster. “When I take Effect Damage, I can summon this monster, then regain Life Points equal to the damage I took!” 

From Rio’s hand, a navy-colored penguin emerged, wearing a set of armor that almost resembled a collection of mirrors. It let out a string of chirps, each one refreshing Yuma and Rio’s Life Points a little and gradually making it easier for them to stand after the barrage they withstood. 

“I end my turn,” Kotori said lazily. “Make this quick for us both, will you? There’s no sense delaying your inevitable fall into darkness, and then you can join us both in the dark radiance of Barian World.”

“Yuma,” Astral murmured. “I must emphasize, we cannot afford to risk losing. Any attack from that Chaos XYZ risks wiping us out next turn!”

“I getya,” Yuma agreed. “Rio, you in?”

Rio shook herself free of Yuma’s grip, eyes hardening in rage as she glared at the Chaos XYZ Monster. “I’m killing that thing,” she declared with fire in her voice. “During the End Phase, Zerofyne Fake Out Formation’s effect resolves! I get to return my Blizzard Falcon to the field!” She threw down her third monster onto her Duel Disk, the winter-themed birds forming a protective circle against the chaotic energies leaking from Dark Fairy Cheer Girl. 

“Yuma, you’re up,” Rio said. “I’ve given you everything I can. Just, please…” she hesitated. “Save them,” she whispered.

The emotions Rio had felt on seeing Kotori using the power of Barian’s Force- the instinctual panic, the fear and the rage- all came cresting for a moment as Rio looked at the other side of the field. Seeing Kotori, her Kotori, dancing like a puppet on a twisted marionetter’s strings (and oh, if that analogy didn’t twist the knife of her discomfort thanks to the instinctual comparison) stoked more than just panic. It was fury, righteous and all-consuming, the kind that kept her standing upright and her mind focusing on the duel and the best strategies to employ. It was the kind of fury that made Rio want to bring about Barian World’s downfall, for daring to lay a hand on one she held dear- 

Wait. Rio paused. Her Kotori? Where had that come from? Rio’s hand impulsively came up to her heart when it skipped a beat at that realization, wondering what it meant until… Oh. 

Oh.

“Ah,” she murmured to herself, so quiet even Yuma didn’t hear. “So that’s what you’ve done to me, my wicked, fickle little heart. This is the way you want to do things.”

Her heart almost thrummed under her touch at the affirmation. “You’re right though… I care for her. I care…” an amused huff escaped Rio’s lips. “so deeply for her, that I’m too afraid to say it to anyone but myself. I’m more a coward than a lovebird it seems.”  

Yuma, who had been (mercifully) deliberating with Astral, turned back around to Rio, stone-faced. “Rio? I get you. I’m not letting my friends suffer under the influence of Barian’s Force any longer than I have to!” Yuma moved to start his turn before looking back. “And Rio? Thanks, you kept us in this. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” 

Rio swallowed as Yuma finished. “No problem,” she muttered. “You would have been fine.”

“Maybe. But I know I’m fine here and now, ‘cause you had my back.” Yuma flashed a confident grin at Rio that she managed to return, before Yuma turned back to the duel. “My turn!” Yuma proclaimed. “I draw!” 

“At this moment, I activate a Trap!” Cathy announced with an anticipatory smirk. “The Black Goat Laughs! I declare a monster name, and for the rest of the turn, you cannot summon that named monster!” Cathy’s smile turned vicious, showing her fangs. “I declare Number 39: Utopia!” 

Yuma and Rio balked at that. “Oh no!” Yuma said venomously. “I needed Utopia to win this turn.”

“Yuma,” Rio murmured. “Remember, you have my set card and my Extra Deck. Use whatever you need.”

Yuma’s Duel Gazer lit up as he inspected Rio’s Extra Deck, pausing at one card in particular. “Hey wait, how did you get this?” 

Rio forced out a smirk that she knew didn’t quite reach her eyes, but forced levity was better than being bogged down with fear. “Fresh off the printing presses from Kaito. I meant to give it to Ryoga, but it seems…” she shrugged. “I forgot,” she said unconvincingly. “But we can make the best use of it.” 

“Yeah, you’ve set up everything perfectly to let us use this! Will it be enough to win, though?” Yuma pondered. 

“It will after this.” Rio reached out. “I reveal my set card, Shared Modulation Current! By reducing the Attack Points of two Winged Beast Monsters I control to zero, a third gains attack points equal to the value lost!” Rio’s last Set card rose, showing artwork of Blizzard Falcon and Aurora Wing both helping Guard Penguin fly above a large body of water with a glacier at their backs, the trio of birds skimming above the surface. “There’s a catch though,” Rio added. “I can’t attack with the monster that gains Attack Points for the rest of the turn.”

“Then why go to all that effort?” Cathy scoffed.

“Because I’m letting Blizzard Falcon gain those Attack Points!” Rio shot back confidently, the strategy in her head (that she hoped Yuma caught on to) providing a hot air current for her own wings to keep her from falling back into the frigid depths of panic that had nearly consumed her. “And when Blizzard Falcon’s attack points change, I can deal you 1500 points of damage! Go, Buffering Gale!”

Aurora Wing and Guard Penguin both settled down on the ground while their attack points reduced, all while Blizzard Falcon shot up into the air, absorbing their attack points and letting out a melodic cry. The ice crystals that followed it began to hum in resonance with the cry, before erupting and releasing cold streams of air that impacted against Kotori and Cathy, reducing their Life Points to 2500.

“And now,” Rio added as both of the girls shivered instinctively against the freezing gales, “Yuma’s gonna show why I don’t mind giving up all of their attacks this turn!”

“Right!” Yuma responded. “Using Rio’s Level 4 Blizzard Falcon, Aurora Wing and Guard Penguin…”

“We build the Overlay Network!” The two said in unison, the yellow and black vortex appearing in front of them as Rio’s monsters transmuted into energy streams that let out a cold eruption of energy.

“ Valiant dark knight of the frozen realms and sunken depths,” Rio began, the summoning chant manifesting itself instinctually from her heart in the way all of the best chants did.

“Become imbued with the light of Hope, and bring peace to the lands you wander!” Yuma continued, the two sharing a grin.

“We XYZ Summon! Appear, Rank 4!” They cried together. “Full Armored Utopic Ray Lancer!”

An armored figure in black and yellow materialized. Its structure was very evocative of Ryoga’s own Black Ray Lancer, complete with the red spear it wielded in its right hand, but the shining armor and shape of the helmet were all from Utopia itself, alongside one of Utopia’s swords resting in its left hand.

“This is the strength of my bond with both Ryoga and Rio!” Yuma proclaimed. “Full Armored Utopic Ray Lancer lowers the attack points of all monsters you control by 500! Go, Paralyzing Shock Wave!”

Dark Fairy Cheer Girl wilted as a bolt shot out from Utopic Ray Lancer’s spear, lowering its attack points to 2000. 

“Let’s battle!” Yuma shot out a hand towards Kotori and Cathy. “Full Armored Utopic Ray Lancer has another effect! At the start of the Battle Phase, I negate the effects of all monsters you control in Attack Position! Lancer’s Snap-Freeze!”

Kotori and Cathy grimaced as Dark Fairy Cheer Girl shuddered, a puddle of water forming under the monster that suddenly sprouted chains that pulsed in a black and yellow pattern, sealing their monster in place.

“Utopic Ray Lancer, destroy Dark Fairy Cheer Girl!” Yuma declared. “Attack, with Rising Depth Sun Slash!”

Utopic Ray Lancer darted forward, planting its spear into the ground to let it wield the sword borrowed from Utopia in two hands. With one diagonal upwards slash, it struck through the Chaos XYZ Monster, creating an explosion of chaotic energy that had Kotori and Cathy throwing up their arms to shield their faces while their Life Points fell to 2000.

Yuma nodded at Rio, and she stepped forward as their monster returned to their side of the field. “But there’s more! By using one Overlay Unit, Utopic Ray Lancer can attack again after it destroys a monster in battle!”

“But then that means-!” Cathy gasped.

“That you’re through!” Rio interrupted. “Sorry in advance, but this is for your own good, you two! Utopic Ray Lancer, attack again! Shimmering Chill Spear!”

Utopic Ray Lancer planted its sword into the ground, spinning its spear overhead and catching one of its Overlay Units in the motion. The moisture in the air around it began to harden as the temperature dropped sharply, icicles forming around the monster as it threw its spear into the air overhead. The spear detonated, producing a swarm of glistening icicles that saturated Kotori and Cathy’s field in a bombardment of detonating ice. The duo cried out as they were blown back, their Life Points hitting zero. The Barian crests on their foreheads both evaporated as the AR mode turned off, the skies clearing back to the pleasant shade of blue they had been before the match.

Yuma and Rio looked at each other before exhaling mutual sighs of relief. Rio felt a wave of fatigue hit her that made her want to crawl under a tree and pass out for a good week, but she kept herself standing for now. Her eyes moved over to Kotori and Cathy, their breathing having slowed briefly like they were asleep before their eyes slowly flickered open.

Rio let out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. They were OK, thank goodness. The panic finally started to subside from her system, leaving her feeling crashed out and eager to sit as the adrenaline bled out of her system. She nodded at Astral, who blinked before returning the gesture and following behind Yuma.

“Hey… what happened?” Cathy said, rubbing at her head. 

Yuma and Rio shared a look. “Barian stuff,” Yuma eventually said. “We’ll explain everything later, but are you two OK?” 

Cathy and Kotori jolted at that. “I’m OK, I guess,” Kotori mumbled. “I just can’t remember a thing that happened. What happened to the duel we were meant to have?”

“Yuma and I won,” Rio explained briefly. “If you don’t remember, we can do a rematch later when we’re all in a better mood?” 

“Oh, we lost.” Kotori paused. “Wait, you and Yuma? What happened to Shark?” 

“He bailed,” Yuma said casually.

“Wow,” Cathy let out a whistle. “That sucks.”

“Yeah,” Rio said. “I’ll get him for it later. In the meantime, Yuma and I won, so now we need to pick out a cheerleader.” Rio paused, a devious smile crossing her lips. Few things restored her energy as much as making people squirm for her bemusement. “But unfortunately I’m not able to be a cheerleader. I have two left feet, can’t dance to save my life. So that means Yuma is the only eligible candidate.”

“Wait. What?!” Yuma barked, jumping away from everyone. “But that’s not- no, I don’t- you can’t make me!” 

“The rule was that the winning team would elect a cheerleader, Yuma,” Shingetsu said while sliding over. “It would be bad form to retreat just because you would have to suffer.”

“Well them’s the breaks!” Yuma squawked indignantly. “I’m not dressing up, or leading any cheers!” 

“But Yuma,” Tetsuo laughingly said, “we spent so long working on possible costumes for all the winners!”

Rio mockingly put her finger to her chin, pondering. “Granted some of them require some special materials, I figured a Gagaga Girl costume would fit perfectly with your deck, but it would be pretty expensive to make on such short notice.” Rio sighed dramatically. “I guess we’ll never know what the cheerleader for the Numbers Club would look like.”

Yuma perked up. “Phew. I mean, pity it won’t work out but at least we’re all safe of any hassle organizing a costume-” 

“Fortunately,” Rio said loudly to overpower Yuma’s voice, “I’m a rich orphan with no impulse control and access to way more money than I know what to do with! I can have the materials ordered by the end of the week. Yuma, would you be a dear and send me your measurements?” 

Yuma, now resembling more of a prey animal than a human being, took his chances and suddenly sprinted for the exit to Heartland Academy, Astral trailing behind. “You’ll never take me alive!” he wailed.

“Yuma, come back! We still need that rematch!” Kotori and Cathy chased after Yuma, ignoring his pleas and cries for mercy. The rest of the Numbers Club, sans Rio, took off in pursuit. 

Rio, firmly exhausted and eager to put her feet up for the evening, settled down on a bench, deciding to rest before she made her way towards the nearest subway to begin the commute home. She still had to finalize her revenge plans against Ryoga for ditching, after all, and there was no sense doing that while tired. As she did, a smirk flitted across her lips as she also considered more of her newfound plan to torment Yuma for fun. Maybe this would finally put the “Shark-Sis” nickname to bed as a bit of final conditioning.

She wondered if Yuma’s sister would be willing to take her calls to help. 

Two young hearts will meet in the middle

And a light will flicker on

Where there once was none

Where does love come from?

The bodies in the firmament are spinning like a plate;

I was lost in the fission before you came

I could write this down, I could turn this car around

In the land of mistakes I should lay my crosses down

And I pray for your health, and I tell myself

“It’s the chambers and the valves that pump the sentiment around.”

But I swallow the words and I close my mouth

Dry The River, “The Chambers and the Valves”

Chapter Text

It was nice having someone be at your beck and call, Rio mused idly as she browsed some shoes, surrounded by the hustle and bustle of crowds milling throughout the mall. Better when it was very obvious to anyone and everyone that that person would have rather been doing anything else.

“Rio,” she heard a familiar voice grouse behind her. “We have been in this mall for four hours. Can we stop and do anything else?”

Rio hummed, not deigning to look behind her at her brother, weighed down with a few (dozen) purchases she had made. “I don’t know,” she murmured to herself as she picked up a bright blue hoodie that would go perfectly with her hair, “I had a few more places to visit on the other side of the mall…”

Ryoga let out a groan of exasperation, stopping only to glare at a nearby customer who gave him a side-eye for the noise he was making. “I said I was sorry for ditching you at the Friendship Games, OK? But this is just torture!”

“Sometimes Ryoga, you have to learn a lesson extensively to make sure it sticks.” Rio decided to turn around to face her irritated brother. “In this case, ditching your friends is a bad thing, and I’ve decided that you need to be punished for doing that. You really hurt Yuma’s feelings!”

Ryoga rolled his eyes. “This is just because people saw you screaming at my bike as it rode away and recorded it, isn’t it?” 

“Of course not,” Rio lied easily. “This is entirely motivated by unrelated factors like that hypothetical recording. Don’t be silly, Ryoga.”

“Sure.” Ryoga replied sarcastically. “What’s it even matter if I hurt Yuma’s feelings? He’s like a sponge, he just dumps all that crap a few minutes later like it never happened. He didn’t even say anything to me about it, he forgot all about it like ten minutes later!” 

Rio’s eyes narrowed. “Hmm,” she pondered drily. “I wonder what happened ‘ten minutes later’ that overtook his focus, brother?”

Ryoga’s jaw opened and closed for a second as he began stammering. “OK that- that’s a low blow, I mean- how could I have known?!” 

“I mean I had to be there to help do, what, again, during those ten minutes?” Rio playfully smacked the side of her head. “Oh, silly me! Our friends got brainwashed and we had to free them by Dueling them! Good thing you were around!”

An awkward silence filled the air between them, Rio huffing and tapping her foot against the ground while she watched Ryoga squirm on a hook.

“... So are we going to the Hot Topic next or what?” Ryoga snarled, conceding defeat.

Rio rolled her eyes. “Yes Ryoga, you can top up your nail polish… when I’m done at the boutique over there,” she replied mockingly. 

Ryoga bared his teeth again before rolling his eyes. “This is the last time I let Kotori take Yuma to the mountains for a hike. You’re a menace when left to your own devices these days.”

“And you love me for it,” Rio said in a mocking saccharine tone. Ryoga clicked his tongue and started moving as his way of responding, his shoulders trembling in annoyance as Rio chuckled behind him, loud enough that he picked it out over the ambient crowd noises.

“I don’t love anyone, I even only tolerate you.” Ryoga muttered gruffly, the very image of toxic masculinity.

“Oh?” Rio came up beside Ryoga and pondered that. “But all that time I see you spend with Yuma- some of it even voluntarily without you complaining much. And didn’t you two recently spend a guy’s night out ‘working on your decks,’ the last time I went to hang out with Kaito? I’m pretty sure I even heard you discussing deck synergies!” Rio leaned in to nudge a blushing Ryoga with her elbow. “Methinks the shark doth protest too much.” 

“Shut the hell up Rio-” Rio laughed as she darted out of Ryoga’s way, nimbly dodging the hands that were trying to either clasp over her mouth or strangle her depending on how much more she annoyed him. Naturally, she chose to keep pressing his buttons.

“Ryoga,” she managed to say between fits of manic laughter as she took off running through the crowds, “you’re gonna drop my bags! What a waste of your college funds if they get damaged!”

“I’ll hold onto the bags just so I can use these straps to tie you a damn noose, ya hag!” Ryoga roared back as he chased her. 

The forest around Rokujuro’s dojo really was lovely. The last few times Kotori had been up here, she didn’t have as much of a chance to take it in, but as part of the general “Get Yuma’s head out of the funk he’s been in” tour that she made up largely on the spot after Yuma’s grandma gave her a call, it was a good chance to sit down and take in everything that she’d normally walk by blindly on the way to the dojo.  

Her and Yuma were chilling by a creek, shoes pulled off and trouser legs rolled up to let their feet take in the pleasant chill after a day with Yamikawa. Astral was drifting around as well, lost in thought while floating just above the surface of the water as it rolled beneath him.

“Hey Kotori?” Yuma asked out of the blue, staring at the water.

“What’s up?” Kotori was on her back, watching the clouds drift by.

“When were you…” Yuma rolled his shoulders, briefly hesitating. “When were you gonna tell me you were learning how to Duel?”

Kotori froze, an instinctual and unpredictable bit of panic shooting through her system. Yuma looked over and jolted, a shared look of panic on his face.

“I’m not mad or anything!” He exclaimed. “I’m happy for you! I was just… curious, y’know? Tetsuo and I must have tried a lot of times to see if you’d like to learn, so I’m just wondering what changed.” 

Kotori exhaled, trying to calm down from the random burst of mania while she sat up to look at Yuma more easily. “Ah… I don’t know, to be honest. I was just talking with Rio one day and then she just brought out some old cards and then… well, one thing leads to another, you know?” 

Yuma nodded. “I get that. But why keep it on the down low? I’m sure the rest of us would have helped you get some practice in.”

Kotori watched the water, tracing a pattern on her right wrist slowly. “I just got in my head too much about it. I didn’t want to try and show off my deck until I was sure it was ready, but…” she let out a huff of air. “I’d have probably kept finding reasons to improve it and then just never mustered up the guts. I just wanted it to be a good, solid deck so it’d be impressive and cool when I showed up one day, you know? It’d be humiliating if I showed it off and still lost.” 

“I get that,” Yuma replied, relaxing as the topic shifted to his beloved hobby. “I spend ages planning out my decks, but then usually I just go with the flow and rock whatever cards I want! If they work they work, if not, I can find a use for them later!”

“What he means,” Astral murmured, drifting over and staring impassively at Yuma, “is that he’ll throw everything into an incomprehensible pile and have me do all the work organizing his deck into something resembling functionality. I recall one point where Yuma was convinced we could expand our arsenal into Rank 9 XYZ Monsters.” Astral paused for dramatic effect. “Results were very inconclusive,” he said, his tone conveying that that weekend was one best left forgotten where possible. 

“Hey, you said you wouldn’t bring that up! I said I was sorry for throwing the tupperware at you!” Yuma squawked indignantly and tried to wave Astral away, laughing nervously as he saw Kotori giggle.

His smile twitched. “Astral is prone to horrible fits of insanity where he insinuates such horrible and obvious lies like that I’m bad at building my decks,” Yuma managed to say through suppressed fits of laughter.

“Evidently. We both know you’d never make such mistakes on your own,” Kotori responded, surprisingly deadpan even as she felt laughter bubbling up in her chest.

The two looked at each other in the eyes for a second before the dams cracked and they both fell onto their backs, laughing vicariously. It echoed throughout the small clearing that they were sitting in, making even Astral crack a small smile at the two kids as they rolled around, clutching their sides. 

“Ah,” Yuma eventually wheezed out. “I needed this. Thanks a bunch Kotori.”

“No problem. I’m your friend, it’s what I’m here for,” she replied casually, getting onto her side so she could prop herself up on her elbow. “It’s nice to get away from things now and again, and you really did need a chance to clear your head.” She paused, sobering up. “Do you… wanna talk about it?” 

“Ah…” Yuma stared off into the distance. “Nothing too new. Just… afraid, I guess? Like with you with your deck, I just got caught up in my head about if something happened to Astral. I had a bad dream and my mood sank with it. You know how it is.”

“Yeah, I do,” Kotori replied. “Doesn’t mean you can’t come to your friends for help whenever you’re having an off day. And I’m sure Astral would also talk with you about it whenever you wanted.” Her gaze flitted over to Astral, who met her eyes cooly and nodded once. “We’re here for you is what I’m trying to say.”

“I get that.” Yuma got up on an elbow so he could look Kotori evenly in the eyes. “And I’m trying really hard not to like. Isolate myself, you know?” 

Kotori tilted her head, silently asking Yuma to continue.

Yuma sighed. “Just that… like, if I can’t protect Astral, then who can I protect when the Barians attack, you know? I just worry. Especially after what happened with you and Cathy, like, I was right there, and you two still got caught up in all this crap.”

Kotori blinked, before looking over at Astral. “Well, that’s kinda stupid, Yuma.”

“... Eh?” 

“If you’re worried about not being able to protect the rest of us, you’re a bit behind the curve in that concern given all the times you’ve done exactly that. All the way back to… oh, who was that guy who thought he was Kaito’s servant-”

“Uh, lemme think, I wanna say Fortuno? Jin? One of those.” Yuma offered, going through his own memory. 

“Yeah, that freak.” Kotori snapped her fingers in recollection. “Remember when you saved us from him? Or when you saved Haruto from Tron, twice? Or any of the other hundred times you’ve come in and saved the day?” Kotori reached over and placed a hand on Yuma’s arm. “I get it Yuma, it was scary to learn what happened to Cathy and me, but you saved us, and you helped Rio during it when she was panicking. Even if I do get caught up in a lot of the freaky stuff that surrounds you- and let’s be honest, there’s a lot of freaky stuff that surrounds you-”

“I have become a bit of a trouble magnet,” Yuma managed to say with some levity, though his voice was still shaky with concern.  

“A bit?” Kotori replied in a flat tone, eyes twinkling in bemusement.

“... OK I’m a very big magnet for trouble, OK?” The two broke down into another fit of giggles. “Look, I’m trying not to worry about it, really. Life’s way too short to overthink everything, not that Astral thinks I ever overthink anything!” Yuma projected his voice louder for that part.

“I’ll merely say in my defense that you said it that time, not me.” Astral chimed in from the rock he was floating over.

Yuma merely smiled at his companion, a tender affection creeping into it before he turned back to Kotori. “I cut you off, sorry.”

“You’re good,” she said affectionately. “I was just saying that even if I get caught up in a lot of the crazy stuff around you, I don’t regret it, ever. It’s been fun, even. And besides, I’d want to be involved even if you were doing it alone.”

“Really?” 

“Yeah, dummy.” Kotori shoved at Yuma’s shoulder. “I’m your best friend, I’d follow you no matter what. You’re a good person Yuma, and I’m glad to be in your corner to help you out.”

Yuma let out a huff. “Thanks. I mean it. Guess that means I can count out that you were following me because of my roguish charm, though?”

Kotori barked out a laugh. “OK, maybe at first-”

Yuma squawked. “For real?!”

“At first,” Kotori emphasized, “maybe I thought about it once or twice and maybe it influenced my rocky start with Cathy, but I think I prefer being your friend.” Kotori leaned in conspiratorially. “Besides, I’ve seen how you act around Ryoga. I’d have lost that battle before the first shot was fired.”

Yuma jolted as if Kotori’s presence was a live wire. “With Shark?! Kotori, you’re looking into things too much, ha ha…” he trailed off, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. “Just jumping at shadows over there, that’s what you’re doing…” Yuma might have been more convincing at his misdirection had he not turned beetroot red and frantically looked away from Kotori. 

Kotori patted his shoulder. “It’s OK, Yuma. He makes you happy. And you make him happy as well- he’s just really, really bad at showing it..”

“... I do?” Yuma muttered, looking up at Kotori. His eyes shimmered with a beautiful, fragile hope.

“I wouldn’t lie to you Yuma, just talk to him. You’re like the one person Shark really relaxes around. He likes you, I promise, you just take your shot.” Kotori paused. “Heck, I think he’s more open around you than he is his own sister…”

Yuma looked at the water passing by, a slight smile gracing his lips for a second. He rocked back and forth,a fantasy playing out before him before he sighed wistfully. He was adorable, Kotori thought to herself. She’d heard the phrase ‘puppy love’ before, but seeing Yuma realize he could potentially reach out to Shark and confess his feelings was, indeed, like seeing an excited puppy.

“You think we can stay here and just chill for another bit? Until it gets cold?” As he asked in a soft voice, Yuma stretched out on the grass like a cat, letting out a sound of satisfaction as he popped his back and got comfortable. Astral flitted over, giving the grass a cursory glance.

Kotori chuckled, placing her bag behind her head. “Yeah. I think we can do that.”

Astral narrowed his eyes towards the ground. “... Yuma, I don’t believe these grass stains are getting out of your trouser legs easily.” 

“That’s why we have vinegar in the pantry, Astral.” Yuma said lazily, already halfway into a nap. 

Fun as it had been to torment Ryoga, and Rio had to be curt- it was always fun to do so- she tragically ran out of stores in the mall to window shop in before she ran out of energy to drag out Ryoga’s punishment. Really, the last big trick in her arsenal had been to make him think she was buying a new set of curtains, letting him grow rapidly pale as he tried to mentally figure out how they’d fit in his bike’s storage compartment… before Rio had casually paid extra for a delivery service to bring it to them.

It would be hard to top that, at least for today, so it was finally time to head home.

“I’m never taking you shopping again,” Ryoga complained, fishing through his pockets for his keys. “We’re gonna be a road hazard with all the bags and tacky stuff you got today.”

“Ah, you had fun,” Rio countered in an airy tone, swinging her bags back and forth. “Don’t lie, I saw you having fun in the record store and when we topped up on nail polish.”

Ryoga’s low, tired groan was the only response Rio got, but it was enough for her- it was basically him admitting defeat. Rio hummed in victory as they made their way through an underground parking lot.

“Either way, let’s just pack the rest of this stuff and go. I wanna be on the road before the rush hour traffic starts,” Ryoga said. 

Rolling her eyes behind Ryoga’s back, Rio opened her mouth to respond when she thought she heard something; an echo of a noise deeper in the parking complex. She paused, turning around and checking the rest of the floor- the section they were in was fairly deserted, with no obvious source for it.

“You OK?” Ryoga called from his bike. 

Rio shook her head. “Yeah, I just… I just thought I heard something.”

“Probably just the wind howling, my weather app says it’s picking up out there. Now come on, let’s get moving.” Ryoga waved Rio over as he began to load the bike.

“Sure…” Rio trailed off as she heard that distant noise again. It was barely audible from here, but carrying far enough that she could just make it out. From here it sounded less like wind howling and more like… a roar.

Rio’s tongue felt heavy and swollen in her mouth, a now distressingly familiar flash of red behind her eyes following. A sense of guttural fear and panic shot through her system as she processed the sound- now eerily similar to a roar as she kept dwelling on it- which lead to a collection of images searing themselves into her mind; a flash of yellow, a face twisted in savage bloodlust, Ryoga pressed against a chain-link fence and staring at something she couldn’t see herself, but his expression was one of pure shock and terror…

“Rio? Rio! Crap, not now…” She could dimly process Ryoga rushing over and pulling her into a tight grasp, her bags tumbling loose and falling out of her now slack fingers.

“It’s coming,” she whispered as Ryoga rubbed her back, the sensation grounding her. “It’s coming from beyond time and space… a tyrant that will destroy everything we hold most precious…!”  

“A tyrant? You don’t mean more Barian crap, do you?”

The pressure behind Rio’s eyes faded as she regained her full senses. She pressed her face into the crook of Ryoga’s shoulder, trying to ground herself with the scent of his jacket and tapping aimlessly against his back. Her breathing became less shaky and more steady until she could push herself away from Ryoga.

“Thanks,” she muttered. “Sorry about that-”

“Don’t be.” Ryoga paused. “... Yuma and Kotori haven’t checked back in from their hike,” he murmured in realization, tensing up. “They’re alone right now, so if anyone was gonna target them-”

“Now would be a great time,” Rio said. “How fast can you get to that nature trail that dojo’s on?” 

Ryoga bared his teeth. “Depends on if you narc on me to the cops for all the traffic laws I’m about to break in the process.”

The two darted over to Ryoga’s bike, Rio pulling out her Gazer as she slid into the back seat. “I’ll call Kaito on the way, you just get us over there as fast as possible, got it?” 

“I look like a cabbie for you to nag around? We’ll get there before Kaito even has time to put on his stupid leggings,” Ryoga retorted. His bike fired up and the two skidded out of the parking lot, Ryoga immediately cutting across an intersection (and running a red light) to get onto the nearest bypass.

“Hang on Yuma,” Rio heard him mutter. “I’m coming."

Kotori hadn’t even seen whatever knocked her out. One moment she was speaking with Yuma as they made their way down the trail from the dojo, the next she was flat on her back, a harsh red light from above nearly blotting out the sun. A giant red sphere had formed above her, its peak running even with a nearby mountain- she was reminded of the Sphere Grid that Yuma had dueled Tron in during the World Duel Carnival. Inside, she could just about make out Yuma above, hovering in the middle of the grid and facing off against a young man with blonde hair and a gray tunic. An ugly black scorch mark was running across the front of her jacket.

“My name is Mizael!” She heard from above inside the sphere. “Remember the name, Yuma Tsukumo, for I am the last Duelist you shall ever face!” 

Kotori started to get up, only to let out an undignified sound of pain as her ribs protested the motion. She fell back onto the ground, hissing at the pain. Her backpack dug into her back from this angle, making it hard to determine if the blast itself or her impact had given her the injury. Her distraction meant she missed Yuma and Mizael exchanging a few words, with her focus only returning to the events above when Mizael let out a short laugh.

“So, do you accept my challenge?” He called out with a smirk.

“Not like you’re giving me a choice! And after what you did to my friend, you’re in for a world of hurt! Let’s go!” Yuma activated his Duel Disk, anger fueling him as he gathered his energy for the upcoming battle. 

As Yuma began his opening combo, Kotori slowly tried to get back up. Her ribs flared up in pain at the motion, but she was able to get over to a nearby tree and use it as a brace to heft herself up until she was on her own two feet. “Yuma!” She cried up towards the Sphere Grid. “Get this guy!” 

“You got it!” Yuma shot back as he summoned out Utopia and used one of the new cards Rokujuro left him to protect its Overlay Units. 

Mizael had merely laughed at the Number taking to the field. “As predictable as the tide, you go for your blessed Utopia. I’d say it’s shocking, but then I’d be a liar.” The lazy smile on Mizael’s face briefly turned feral, his body language hunching in like a predator about to pounce. “Now let me bring that Utopia down around your head! My turn!” 

In seconds, Mizael had two Level 8 Dragons out on the field and was using them to Overlay. Even with the Sphere Grid absorbing the stray energy from the Numbers, Kotori felt a shiver go down her spine as Mizael called out his ace.

“A behemoth with the ability to bend time to its will! Reflect the distant past and revive thyself from your galactic roots! Rise, so you may herald our ultimate victory for Barian World! Number 107! Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon!”

“A Number that goes beyond 100?!” Astral exclaimed in open shock. A black prism appeared behind Mizael and broke apart, segmenting into a mechanical dragon that let out a haunting roar as it appeared. Kotori shuddered, fighting the urge to just take her chances and try to hide from that abomination that had crept out of a nightmare- quite literally from how Yuma was shaking. Even with the pain that still shot through her ribs every time she took a deep breath, that Tachyon Dragon’s energy was so threatening that her fear was going to force her to run through the pain to get as much distance between her and it as possible.

Before Kotori’s fear-induced mania could take hold though, a revving came into earshot behind her. She turned to see Shark’s motorcycle clipping through the foliage, skidding to a stop before her. Shark got off first, a flash of concern at the sight of Yuma quickly being buried beneath a glower at the Sphere Field. “Damnit,” he cursed to himself, “we were too late.” 

“Kotori!” Rio pulled herself off the bike, darting over after making eye contact and pulling her close into a panicked hug. “Crap, your jacket- are you OK?” 

“I’ve-” Kotori bit back a wince at the sudden jarring movement. “... I’ve been better,” she admitted. “I think something may be broken…”

Rio pulled back like she was touching a live wire. “Like a rib? Crap…” 

“I’ll be OK,” Kotori tried to insist before Tachyon Dragon let out another roar, making the three teens wince from the shriek that echoed throughout the forest. Kotori looked up to see Mizael looking down on them. 

“Friends of yours?” He asked Yuma. “I’m a little impressed at their loyalty to dare to stand so close to Tachyon- at least you won’t be fading into the next life alone…” He paused as his dragon growled at Yuma. “Aren’t you eager?” He asked his monster, a hint of affection entering his tone. “Well if it’s a fight you want, then go feral! Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon, attack Utopia! Tachyon Spiral of Destruction!”   

Yuma tried to use Utopia’s effect to negate the attack, but that was when Mizael revealed Tachyon Dragon’s ability, negating all of Yuma’s face-up monsters and granting Tachyon a bonus attack thanks to Yuma trying to activate an effect during the Battle Phase. 

“It’s like that monster can go back in time and pick the best possible future for it…” Shark muttered to himself. 

“Not to mention that effect also resets attack and defense points,” Rio replied. She kept a hand on Kotori’s arm, guiding her over to Ryoga. “You can’t get around that effect by weakening it before battle.” 

Their analysis was cut off as Tachyon Dragon’s revitalized attack landed, sending Yuma and Astral flying. Yuma slammed against the Sphere Grid which cracked and sparked as he bounced off it, his howls of agony echoing far and wide, before he keeled over, drifting in the lower gravity of the Sphere Cube. He wasn’t getting back up- Kotori’s breath caught in her throat, Yuma wasn’t getting back up.

“Yuma!” Shark and Kotori cried together in shared panic.

Mizael scoffed. “One attack and that was all you could take before crumbling? I expected little from humanity’s champion, but… come on!” He threw one of his hands up in the air as part of his exclamation. “I barely even scratched him with Tachyon’s power, and you’re telling me he’s already out for the count!”

Shark growled, almost looking like he wanted to climb a tree and jump into the Sphere Grid so he could charge Mizael. Mizael’s taunting made Yuma’s eyes slowly crack open as he began to force himself into an upright position.

“There we go,” Mizael goaded him with a purr. “Come on! I don’t just break out Tachyon Dragon for any lowly human like yourself. Come on! Entertain me! I don’t want to beat you while you’re on your back, show your honor and be standing on your own two feet when I claim your Numbers and crush you!”

Yuma’s stamina failed him- Astral’s incorporality meant he had nothing to brace himself against, and he nearly fell back to his knees.

“Although…” Mizael sighed. “There’s no fun hunting a crippled prey. I’ll accept an honorable surrender, you tried your best and that’s all you could manage! There’s nothing weak in admitting defeat against a superior hunter, and I assure you, my Tachyon Dragon is the apex predator of any domain it resides in. Spare yourself the pain and I’ll make this quick.”

“I won’t lose to you,” Yuma whispered to himself, drooping. “I can’t, or else Astral will… I can’t afford to lose…” 

Ryoga stepped forward. “That’s enough, this is just torture! I’ll take Yuma’s place, let me up there!” 

“Hold, Ryoga!” A voice called from above. Kaito flew in on Orbital, crashing down to the ground in front of them. “I’ll take over in Yuma’s place,” he called out. “This one’s mine.” 

“Kaito!” Ryoga exclaimed. “Hey no, I said I had this-”

“Let him do it, brother,” Rio murmured. Kotori jumped as Rio’s grasp on her arm slacked, her eyes going dull and shimmering with a dark green aura. “They… have to… it’s the destiny of the two dragon tamers to face each other.”  

“Dragon tamers?” Ryoga muttered, before looking over at Kaito. “What, you keepin’ a nest in that tower or something?” 

“Don’t be stupid,” Kaito snapped, before turning to Rio. “What do you mean by ‘dragon tamer?’” 

“One born of light, the other of time,” Rio intoned. “These dragons have met before and clashed. Now you two will herald the oncoming storm of their next and final battle.”  

Kaito nodded as Rio sagged, shaking her head while her eyes returned to their normal shade of red. Kotori looked up and saw Mizael glancing down at them, his brow furrowing at the words he picked up. “I can feel it,” he murmured as he pulled out Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon. The card seemed to glow, while Tachyon Dragon turned its attention to Kaito, a growl rising from its throat. “My dragon wants to do battle. I see no reason to deny it a chance to bloody its fangs.”

Kaito and Mizael made eye contact, the wind picking up as Kaito dematerialized and appeared inside of the Sphere Grid. He turned to look at Yuma, expression softening a little. “Rest now, Yuma,” he muttered, nodding at Astral. “I have it from here.”

“Heh… my hero…” Yuma said weakly. 

“Kaito, I’m sorry we couldn’t do more…” Astral murmured. 

“You’ve nothing to apologize for. This is my fight anyway. I can’t let some random Barian sully the name of my Galaxy-Eyes by parading around like this.” 

Mizael threw his head back and laughed at that, the mocking laughter echoing across the valley. “Please, if anyone’s here to reclaim the legacy of the Galaxy-Eyes, I assure you it’s me. But if you’re finally ready and finished saying your last words to that weakling… I suppose we can get started with my new main course.”

“Don’t think so highly of yourself,” Kaito retorted drily as he drew his opening hand. “It’s deeply unattractive.” 

“Oh ho!” Mizael leaned in, smile widening to the point of becoming more of a grimace. “Why don’t you give me a reason to keep my ego in check then, or are you all bark and no bite? Elevate yourself to my level then, or prove that I consider myself above you all for a reason. Regardless, I’ll set one card face down and end my turn there. Your move, Kaito!”    

Kaito drew and immediately got out two Photon monsters, using them as fodder to summon out his Galaxy-Eyes. The two dragons, now on the field, roared at each other, creating waves of energy that crashed against each other and ran across the Sphere Field in blinding waves of yellow light. 

“What the heck is that?” Kotori recoiled from the energy.

“Their energy…” Rio muttered. Kotori looked over in case she was having another vision, but Rio’s eyes were still clear and inspecting the duel. “It’s resonating, somehow!”

The light got brighter and brighter outside of the Sphere Field, puncturing in a few small places. Beams of concentrated energy shot out, slicing through the ground and opening up small chasms. Shark threw himself in front of Rio and Kotori, but the beams stayed clear of them and his bike, carving up terrain around them and opening up chasms below, until the Sphere Field calmed down. 

“A dear friend of mine once told me that when two Galaxy-Eyes wielders collide, they can open a gate to immeasurable power,” Mizael said, almost to himself.

“So what?” Kaito replied. “Do you believe every fairy tale you hear second-hand?” 

Mizael scoffed lightly. “From that friend? I’d have believed anything she told me. But I won’t waste my breath on letting your ears hear the rest of their tale,” he responded lightly. “After all, why explain something to a person about to be destroyed?” 

“Fine,” Kaito growled. “I’ll just add that to the list of things I’ll extract from your broken body when I’m done crushing you underfoot! Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon, attack Tachyon Dragon now! During the Damage Step, I’ll use Photon Dragon’s effect and banish both of our monsters- and if I banish an XYZ Monster by this effect, Photon Dragon gains 500 Attack Points for each Overlay Unit the XYZ Monster had!”

“If this works, Tachyon won’t have any Overlay Units for the next turn!” Kotori realized. 

“And Mizael won’t be able to smash over Photon Dragon next turn,” Shark noted. “Kaito might just have turned this duel around.”

“Oh, you’d think that?!” Mizael cackled. “Like I’d let some second-rate dragon tamer defang my Tachyon that easily! My Quick-Play Spell, Instant Overlay, will simply attach itself to my Tachyon Dragon now that it has no Overlay Units.” 

Kaito grimaced as Mizael’s set card transformed into a new Overlay Unit for the freshly re-summoned Tachyon Dragon. 

“And thank you for activating a monster effect Kaito,” Mizael purred, “because now I can use that Overlay Unit to activate Tachyon Dragon’s effect! I negate Photon Dragon’s piddling effects, and reset its Attack and Defense Points! Tachyon Transmigration!”  

“I hope you didn’t think it would be that easy,” Mizael called over the storm of Tachyon Dragon’s ability re-setting the board, covering the field in a kaleidoscope of color. “I understand that by the standards of the dragon tamers of today, you might be above-average. But I’ve been doing this for a very long time, so your tricks won’t catch me out. You only stand out, Kaito Tenjo, because you were born in a world in which I didn’t exist. In truth? You’re just painfully ordinary.” 

Kaito let out a breath. “I set one card and end my turn.”  

Mizael drew for his turn, using a spell card, Tractor Reverse, to turn that spell card and Kaito’s set card into Overlay Units for Tachyon Dragon, leaving Kaito defenseless. Tachyon Dragon then attacked while Mizael activated a spell, Tachyon Drive.

“Numbers can only be destroyed in battle by another Number,” Kotori noted glumly, “so even though Tachyon and Photon have the same stats, only Kaito’s monster is getting destroyed.” 

“It gets worse,” Rio noted. “With that Tachyon Drive active, Mizael can use that as the required condition to activate Tachyon Dragon’s effect, letting him get a second attack in by re-setting time itself.” 

“Damnit!” Shark snarled. “This guy’s got Kaito in a never-ending time loop! Now he can attack again and land a hit on Kaito’s Life Points!” 

“But then that means-” Kotori exclaimed.

“Tachyon Dragon, attack directly!” Mizael roared. The violet stream of energy slammed into Kaito, completely covering him for a few seconds and overpowering even any attempts of his to scream.

“A pity, even the strongest dragon tamer of today barely lasted a turn,” Mizael said. “Is there really no one here who can give me a fight-”

“I’m not out yet!” Kaito declared from the smoke cloud, Galaxy-Eyes manifesting above him as he reappeared. 

“How are you still standing?!” Mizael exclaimed. 

“You should have checked my Graveyard,” Kaito intoned while his Life Points dropped to 500. “Photon Specter’s effect. I used it to circumvent Tachyon Drive by special summoning back a Photon Monster with lowered attack points and by negating its effects. That monster can’t be destroyed in battle, either. In this case,” he gestured upwards, “I chose to resurrect my Galaxy-Eyes. And that means we’re not finished yet, Mizael! Now, it’s my turn to strike at you!”

Mizael bared his teeth at Kaito. “Fine! I'll end my turn! Make the most of your last pathetic draw!” 

“And I’ll end you now with this turn! I draw!” Kaito immediately re-filled his board, using Monster Reborn and Photon Circler to get out two more monsters, and then Shift Up to make them all the same level as Galaxy-Eyes.

“Three Level 8 monsters…” Mizael paused, then smirked. “Oh, I see what’s coming. Show me your best!”

Kaito roared in response, his coat turning a shade of bloody red while he used all three of his monsters to XYZ Summon.

"Radiant galaxy, here and now become the striking light, and show yourself! Descend, my very soul! Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon!"

As Neo Galaxy-Eyes entered the field, Mizael started laughing, a low chuckle that blossomed into an unearthly cackle. “Oh ho, yes! Yes, that’s it! Now you’re beginning to truly intrigue me, Kaito Tenjo!” 

“Then you’ll find this enrapturing, I’m sure! Neo Galaxy-Eyes negates all other Monsters on the field when XYZ Summoned with Galaxy-Eyes! Photon Howling!”  

Neo Galaxy-Eyes’s roar made Tachyon wilt, the purple energy thrumming in its chassis slowing down.

“Of course,” Mizael whispered manically, “Now that Tachyon’s effects are negated, you can actually destroy it in battle… Come then, Kaito! Strike at me! Let us take our pounds of flesh from each other! Show me your credentials, Number Hunter! Give me everything you’ve got and I’ll meet you with gusto!”

“I’ll take more than a pound,” Kaito growled. “I use the second effect of my Neo Galaxy-Eyes! By using one Overlay Unit, it forces all other XYZ Monsters on the field to send their Overlay Units to the Graveyard! Neo Galaxy-Eyes then gains 500 Attack Points!” 

“Mizael has no set cards this time,” Shark noted. “He’s got nothing to defend himself.”

“Pity he used that second Overlay Unit,” Rio muttered. “If he hadn’t, Kaito’s dragon would have gained a second attack and he’d have won this turn.”

“Neo Galaxy-Eyes, open fire! Ultimate Photon Stream!” Kaito cried out. His dragon shot out three combined bursts of scarlet energy that tore through Tachyon, sending Mizael flying into the barrier of the Sphere Cube. “How’s that for a ‘Dragon Tamer of today,’ you lofty cretin? I'll end my turn with that!”

Mizael slowly picked himself up while his back still smoked from colliding with the Sphere Field, another laugh bubbling out of him while lightning crackled behind him. “I’d give that a passing grade, Kaito! This is what it should be like when two Galaxy-Eyes masters collide! You definitely have the ferocity befitting that dragon. What a perfect first meeting for two Duelists with strength such as ours!”

“Big talk for the guy who had to sneak attack two children and is now losing the second an actual adult arrived!” Kaito retorted.   

“Oh trust me Kaito, if I’d known what kind of animal you were, I’d have skipped those starters and just kicked in your front door for the main course! But now, you’ve shown me your strongest form… let me reciprocate! I draw!”

“You mean he has another dragon?!” Shark exclaimed.

“I activate my own Monster Reborn, to revive Tachyon Dragon! Now… let’s test these Sphere Cubes by giving them a real test-drive of power! Bariarphose!”  

Mizael became shrouded in a purple sphere that formed around him, while a golden light spread from his chest and covered him completely. His physiology changed in front of everyone, fingers becoming more like talons, his flesh turning a shade of yellow, and a bone-like mask began to protrude from his face.

“So this… this is the true form of a Barian…” Astral said darkly, hovering between Mizael and Yuma. 

Mizael chuckled. “And now I’ll show you the privileges that come with me taking my true form- I activate Rank-Up-Magic Barian’s Force! I rebuild the Overlay Network with Tachyon Dragon, to summon a Chaos Number one Rank higher!”

“They were having enough trouble with that dragon’s base form, it has a Chaos Number too!?” Rio said. 

“Face the multiverse, and breathe new life into my great beast! The dragonic star from beyond eternity! Chaos XYZ Change! Arise, Chaos Number 107: Neo Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon!” Behind Mizael, the Overlay Network opened up, letting Tachyon Dragon fly into it. It erupted into fire from the Chaos energy that bombarded it, becoming a gargantuan three-headed beast made of sweltering flames. 

“A Neo Galaxy-Eyes form for his Tachyon Dragon…” Kaito said, panic flitting across his face, before he looked up at Neo Tachyon. Its form was so large that it was pressing up against the top of the Sphere Field, prying the panels loose and causing a storm’s worth of lightning to discharge.

“The Sphere’s collapsing! Mizael exclaimed. “No, dammit no! I nearly had him!” Mizael returned to his human form and glared venomously at Kaito. “You escaped today, but you won’t be so lucky next time!” He cried out, locking eyes with Kaito. “Remember my name, for I am Mizael! The ultimate tamer of the Galaxy-Eyes, and your reckoning, Kaito Tenjo!”

Mizael was blown back by the gales that formed inside the Sphere Field, nearly knocking him through one of the panels before he dissipated into energy and teleported away. Holes began to form across the Sphere Field, with panels falling to the ground below Yuma and Kaito’s feet. Gravity resumed its hold on the duo, with Kaito letting out a curse in surprise as he began to fall. Orbital grabbed him, but Yuma wasn’t so lucky, falling through a tree branch and rolling towards one of the crevasses opened up earlier.

“Yuma!” Shark cried out, darting forward to grab his hand. The stonework under him began to crumble under his and Yuma’s combined weight. For a moment, it seemed to be holding, but spider-web cracks kept splintering and forming around Shark.    

“Ryoga, hold up your arm!” Kaito roared from above, tossing out a Duel Anchor. His stream of red mixed with Rio’s cyan as she did the same.

Shark tried to hold up his arm not clinging to Yuma, but the sudden motion made the rock under him give way. He had only a moment to look Rio in the eyes as panic overtook him before he tumbled after Yuma.

For a second, all Rio could do was watch as the two boys tumbled over the edge. A dull thud echoed from the bottom when they hit the ground.

Then, Rio wailed.

The next two days were a blur for Rio.

The crevasse carved into the ground during Mizael and Kaito’s duel hadn’t been that deep, thankfully- only about ten feet. Given the altitude they were already at when the duel had started, it could have been much deeper and Yuma and Ryoga could have had much more to fall, which would have meant far more serious injuries. As it was, the two got lucky- a few small sprains, cuts and bruises from the fall were the sum total of their shared injuries, requiring just a few day’s bedrest at the hospital. Kotori was also lucky- Mizael’s attack had been largely absorbed by her jacket and there were no broken ribs, just some bruising that meant a few days of low activity. She hadn’t even needed a bed, just been given a prescription and some firm recommendations to not do anything strenuous and she was cleared to go. 

Fishing them out had been easier than expected thanks to Kaito and Orbital. He’d already had Orbital call for an ambulance during the duel, meaning help was already on the way while he used a grapple in Orbital’s chassis to rappel down and bring the two boys up. By the time he’d extracted Yuma, the ambulance was just landing, with everyone being ferried inside (they even had enough room for Ryoga’s bike).

It could have been far worse- infinitely worse, even. The knowledge that everyone was going to make it out of this unscathed was pretty much the only reason Rio wasn’t losing her mind more than usual. She’d been near catatonic until Kaito pulled Ryoga out of the crevasse, moving only to pull him into an impossibly tight grip to assure herself that Ryoga was here, and breathing, and he’d be fine, wherein she didn’t let him go again until the ambulance crew needed to get Ryoga onto a stretcher. He’d woken up right before Rio was going to be made to leave at the end of visiting hours, which helped a lot, even if he seemed grouchy at the idea of mandatory bedrest with Yuma right beside him. Being able to see him awake and surly had helped calm Rio down, loosening the knots of worry that had been eating at her internally for much of the day. 

It had been two days since then. Yuma and Shark were both set to be checked out in a few hours, so Rio and Kotori were hanging around on Heartland Campus until they got the call, where they’d pick the boys up and treat them to a “congratulations on not having to eat hospital food anymore” meal. The forecast pointed towards a heavy downpour soon so they were waiting in an alcove near the exit, Rio swiping through some news feeds that had some small updates about an expedition that went missing near Greece a week prior. Kotori grabbed some drinks from a nearby vending machine, passing one to Rio as she sat down with a slight grimace.

Rio picked up on it, tilting her head with a frown while she closed her tablet. “Hey, are you OK?” 

“Just some twinges of pain. I’ll be fine, I’m going to get some compresses while we pick up Yuma and Shark.” Kotori rolled her eyes. “Besides, someone has to keep up with the schoolwork for Yuma before he uses this as an excuse to forget about next week’s physics test.”

“Perish the thought.” Rio smirked. 

“And how have you been doing?” Kotori asked.

Rio blinked, confused. “Fine? I mean, I was the only one of us who didn’t get hospitalized.” She paused. “At least, this time. Maybe next time a Barian attacks, I’ll be the one getting tossed around like a ragdoll.” 

“I can’t say that image is very appealing.” Kotori pondered Rio’s reply. “You mean you didn’t get any check-ups after the visions you had?” 

Rio shrugged. “Not much point. Kaito took some scans after the first time it happened, and there weren't any abnormalities or signs of a pre-existing condition. Whatever causes those, it’s not something that’s getting picked up in an MRI, and I don't have any of the usual side-effects that you'd get from hallucinations- which is really the closest thing comparable to the visions. Besides, compared to the one from that day, I’m not even falling over or anything at this point, so no point getting checked as of yet.”

“That really sucks that there’s nothing we can really do about it though.” Kotori remarked bitterly. "Are you just gonna have to... handle this until we stop the Barians? That's not fair."

“I’ve learned to deal with it and compartmentalize,” Rio said casually. “At least they’re a bit useful- Ryoga and I were able to get to you and Yuma before even Kaito thanks to them. But… I can’t deny that I’d like a few days away from all this to decompress.”

Kotori leaned back, tapping her can as she thought. “Isn’t there a national holiday coming up in the next week or two? You’d have an extra day then to relax if you wanted to get out of the city for a bit.” 

“True. Honestly, I don’t even think I want to get out of Heartland, more just take some time to myself.” Rio rolled her shoulders. “Fun as it is to use Ryoga as a pack mule, he gets a bit whiny, so probably better I do my next trek to a mall alone.” 

“You should do that then!” Kotori replied. “Take a day for yourself. Everyone deserves one now and again.”

Rio mulled it over, watching as the rain began to really pick up outside of the alcove. “You know what? Sure, sounds like a plan. I’m gonna make a whole event out of it.”

“Sweet. What will that event entail?” Kotori asked teasingly.

“I have…” Rio trailed off. “No idea whatsoever! I’m more of a doer than a planner, in case you didn’t notice.” 

“Cathy was right,” Kotori replied sarcastically. “You are a jock.” 

“Et tu, Kotori!” Rio held a hand up to her heart in mock offense while sporting a scandalized expression.

“But yeah,” Kotori chuckled as Rio started snickering. “Good luck with your self-care day. I’m sure you’ll think of some stuff to do.”

Rio tapped a finger against her leg while she thought for a second. “Actually… are you gonna be free during the holiday?” 

Kotori paused. “Uh… I’ll have to check with my mom to see if she’s doing anything, but I should be? Why?” 

“Well, I just decided I’d be free, and I’ll probably get bored after a bit of time alone, so I figured…” Rio paused, ducking her head away. “If you’d be down to join me for a bit of it?” Rio’s voice shot up in pitch near the end of the question.

Kotori’s brain shut down for a minute as the implications of Rio’s request began to dawn on her. Rio wanted to hang out with her during an off day- already good, she liked spending time with Rio, it made her happy and she liked that it made Rio happy too. There would be no Yuma or Shark around so they’d be alone and at no risk of interruption- doubly good, no risk of having to babysit either Yuma's hyperactive self or Shark being a buzzkill. She could lie to herself that it was almost like a date- especially good, but she knew Rio's friend circle was still a bit stilted so she refused on principle to read too much into it! Her and Rio were just friends, and she'd keep it that way if just to lessen the chances for unfortunate pain down the line.

“I, uh, well, I can… keep that day clear?” She managed to say with a forced casual tone. “Sounds like it’ll be a fun day!”

The two girls made eye contact and nodded before each looked away frantically, Rio sliding some of her curls over the side of her face. Unbeknownst to the other, they both let out a quiet “phew,” at that the proposition had worked. Kotori did a little fist bump and fought the urge to squeal. She resolved that she’d find a quiet corner later in the day and do it then.  

The quiet moment was shattered by Rio’s Gazer vibrating. “Oh, hold on,” Rio opened the device up. “Ryoga wants to call, mind if I take this?” 

“Go ahead!” Kotori gave a thumbs up.

“Thanks,” Rio smiled. “Hey Ryoga, are you and Yuma ready to be picked up- wait. What. You… Ryoga, you… you absolute idiot!”  

Kotori recoiled as Rio suddenly started barking down the receiver, a fervent fire in her eyes. “Uhh, what?” she muttered.

Rio paused, eye twitching furiously. “What do you mean you thought stealing Yuma’s Key was a good motivational idea to get him out of his funk?!” 

“He what!” Kotori shrieked indignantly.

“No, I don’t care that it worked, you blithering idiot! Now explain yourself before I put you back in the hospital!”

“You’d better! I’ll help!” Kotori exclaimed down the line. 

Kotori leaned forward, letting her just make out Shark letting out an exasperated sigh on the other end of the line. “You’re freaking out over nothing. We’ll talk later.”

“Don’t you dare hang up on me, Ryoga-!” the line went dead. Rio’s hand clenched furiously. “Kotori, be a dear for me,” Rio said, deceptively calm.

“Sure?”

“Remind me tomorrow to buy a sleeping bag. So I can put Ryoga in it when I finish murdering him!” 

“I’ll get you an alibi too, if you need it.” Kotori replied darkly.  

“You’re too good to me.” Rio crooned. “Remind me to buy you some nice things with Ryoga’s cash when we’re heading out later.”

“Not your cash?” 

Rio’s expression darkened. “He won’t be needing it soon.”

I wanna be your vacuum cleaner

Breathin' in your dust

I wanna be your Ford Cortina

I will never rust

If you like your coffee hot

Let me be your coffee pot

You call the shots, babe

I just wanna be yours

Secrets I have held in my heart

Are harder to hide than I thought

Maybe I just wanna be yours

I wanna be yours

I wanna be yours

Wanna be yours

The Arctic Monkeys, “Wanna Be Yours,”

Chapter Text

Rio hadn’t been sure what to expect about Kotori’s home when she came by to pick her up for their planned day trip. A home, presumably, but the house that greeted her when she hopped off the bus and reached her map app’s destination was eclectic in its own unique way. It almost felt like it would have fit more inside the fairgrounds that surrounded Heartland Tower, with its soft corners and bulbous top floors. Looking at the house, Rio couldn’t help but compare it to a snail sitting on top of a hat.

Shrugging aside the odd comparison, Rio walked up the stairs and rang the doorbell. She fidgeted with her gloves as she waited, the fingerless compression gloves helping with the brisk day and a dull ache that had sat in her wrist as she prepared for the day. Autumn was rolling in, a few trees beginning to turn a shade of brown and amber, with the temperature tiptoeing towards the low Celsius teens. Her gloves paired well with a bright blue hoodie she had got the day of Mizael’s attack and a navy set of jeans that both complimented her hair, done in a loose ponytail.

The door opened, Rio turning to see a young, attractive woman with dark green hair that swept into a bang on the right side. Rio dipped into a small bow.

“Mizuki-Sama? My name’s Rio Kamishiro, I’m a friend of your daughter, Kotori?” 

“Oh! She’d mentioned you would be by, but she wasn’t expecting you until 3.”

“I got lucky with traffic,” Rio replied, shrugging. “I can wait out here until Kotori’s ready to go?” 

“Nonsense! Come on in, it’s getting chilly out here.” Kotori’s mother opened the door fully, gesturing for Rio to follow her. Rio followed her into a bright circular hallway, a winding staircase on the opposite side. She took off her boots, leaving them by the door and turning around as Kotori’s mom stood at the staircase. “Kotori? Your friend’s here!” She called up.

“Oh? Oh! Oh, shoot-” A small clattering echoed down into the foyer and the small thump of a body hitting a carpeted floor. “Be a minute!” Kotori’s voice called down after a moment, slightly winded. 

Kotori’s mom chuckled at that. “She might take a while to clean that, so come into the kitchen and get comfortable. Can I get you something to drink?” 

“Just water please, Mizuki-Sama,” Rio replied while she walked into a cluttered kitchen. Her eyes were drawn to a wall of photographs as she followed. The majority were photos of Kotori with her mother and grandmother across her life- a beach trip here, a school graduation there, events with Yuma scattered throughout. 

Kotori’s mom laughed, waving her hand as she pulled out a glass. “Oh please, Mrs Mizuki is my mother’s name! Just call me Hikari.”

Rio nodded politely, taking in the room as the . “You have a lovely home,” she commented idly. “The architecture outside is… distinctive.” 

“You can say it looks weird, I’m used to it.” Hikari said warmly over her shoulder as she poured water into the glass. “I’ve heard everything from guests about what it resembles. I am curious though, what did you see?” 

“... A snail sitting on a wide-brimmed hat.” Rio admitted in an embarrassed mutter.

“Ha!” Hikari chortled as she slid over the glass- complete with a coaster, how nice- and sat down opposite Rio. “That one I haven’t heard in a while, not since… Mirai Tsumuko, maybe.”

The name attracted Rio’s attention. “You knew Yuma’s parents?” 

“Ever since pre-school when Yuma and Kotori became friends. We’d meet up now and again, especially once Kazuma realized where I worked at the time, so he could run proposals by me.” A crestfallen expression passed over her face for a second. “Terrible business, what happened to them both.”

Yuma didn’t talk a lot about his parents. Rio could sympathize, so she nodded in understanding. “Where did you work that Yuma’s father was interested in, if you don’t mind me asking?” 

“I work for the government with city planning, so I’d be involved a lot with building permits. I specialize in managing that each new work of construction follows environmental guidelines so Heartland can emit as few carbon emissions as possible, and to ensure we have a lot of green areas- there’s studies about it, kids grow up better with open areas to play in. I’ve had to fight off so many bribes to let people build near the riverbanks, for instance.” 

Rio leaned forward, interested. “Bribes?”

“You’d be surprised how many building planning applications get shut down because of either space reasons or for conflicting with environmental target goals. Go look at Den City as an example of when they’re able to strongarm people with my job- that city’s a ton of concrete with little specs of nature thrown in. The corporations over there just have so much power. The amount of work they’ll be doing to keep their Starlight Road clear is near-immeasurable.”

“Didn’t realize city admin could be cut-throat like that, wow.” 

Hikari swept her bangs out of her face. “It’s really not, that’s a once in a blue moon event whenever some corporate agents get too big for their britches. Granted with Kazuma, it was a bit more frequent, but even then most of his expeditions were out of the country. He’d do a few things closer to Japan, like this one summer he was following up on some Sengouku-period Samurai native to this prefecture, but they were mostly just jobs he’d do to be close to home after his kids were born.” A fond, wistful look crossed her face. “He’d always say even if it wasn’t El Dorado, all history deserved to be uncovered and available for the people of today.”

Rio paused, an old trivia fact digging its way out of her memory. “Hang on. Didn’t he help actually find El Dorado, though?” 

Hikari paused. “Oh. He did, didn’t he? That explains how they afforded that extension…”

Their musings were cut off by the thumping of feet on the staircase above, Kotori racing down while hastily zipping up a pink jacket with white sleeves. “I’m here! I didn’t fall out of my chair if you were wondering!” She skidded to a top, taking in the bemused reactions from Rio and Hikari. “Oh, hi Rio.”

“Hi Kotori,” Rio murmured warmly in greeting, her mouth twitching with a smirk. “Ready to go or do you wanna make sure your chair doesn't fall over again?” 

Kotori shot her a playful glare. “You’re hilarious.”

Rio winked in response, downing the rest of her glass. “It was a pleasure to meet you,” she said to Kotori’s mother, offering a formal bow. 

“Pleasure to meet you too, Rio.” Hikari smiled warmly. “You two have a good day, OK?” 

“We will!” Kotori said. “I think we were planning on grabbing a bite, so I’ll be covered for dinner tonight, mom.” 

“Good to know. Let me know if that changes.”

“Sure mom! Have a good day!” Kotori called over her shoulder. 

The two grabbed their shoes and made their way out, the brisk chill in the air making them shiver slightly before they heated up.

“Anything you wanted to do today?” Rio asked as they walked towards the mall. “I didn’t try to make any plans.”

Kotori hummed. “I wanted to visit the bookstore. And there’s a new crepe stand in the food court. Maybe take it from there?”

“Books and crepes sound lovely.” Rio smiled. “Let’s go.”

—

The mall was bustling with activity as Rio and Kotori made their way in, each of the floors packed with customers making their way around. The ground floor was particularly packed as they made their way through the crowds, a large collection of people jostling to get a view of whatever was in the middle. 

“I wonder what’s going on?” Kotori pondered as they got closer.

Rio had her Gazer out, scrolling through social media feeds. “Looks like a new card shop’s opening up here. They’re doing some demonstration duels as an advertisement.” 

“Oh, that’s cool,” Kotori observed, twisting the cap on a water bottle. “Is there a prize or something?”

“Apparently they have a few staff members and volunteers on each floor showing off the major decks from this year’s World Championship. Anyone who beats them is entered into a draw where the winner gets a full copy of the 1st place deck.” Rio let out a low whistle. “Which is way better than it sounds even if you don’t play, because that deck’s resale value is insane right now.” 

“Really? How much?” Rio silently passed Kotori her Gazer. Kotori slipped it on while taking a loose sip, only to sputter and choke. “You can’t be serious. Is the deck really going for that much?” She gasped out. 

“Prize cards and high rarity releases in sets do that, especially now that the deck is known.” Rio shrugged. “Kaito once told me about the process when he was running the numbers after the World Championship. There’ll be reprints in a few months- right before a new, better deck takes its place to encourage new purchases.”

“But you still have to beat the deck to even qualify for this raffle,” Kotori noted. “You’d have to be crazy good to get that far.”

“Eh.” Rio rolled her shoulders. “I could do it.” 

“I mean, you’re good Rio, like, really good, but they probably know that deck super well. Are you sure you could do it?” 

“Incredibly. But OK, I’ll tell you what.” Rio put her hands on her hips cockily. “If I beat it- and let’s be fair, that’s a when- you have to pay for whatever we get today. You can veto my purchases but the trip’s on you today. If I lose- which won’t happen!- then I pay for everything- every crepe, every book, everything your heart desires.”

“I’m not saying this to undermine your skills because I think you stand a chance even against a deck that good, but that is a really tempting bet.” Kotori leaned forward in turn, eyes twinkling mischievously. “Do you really think you’ll win?”

“Well…” Rio thought it over. “If they get the resource loops online in the first turn then it might give me a bit of trouble.”

“But would you lose?” Kotori pressed.

Rio scoffed playfully, pointing her thumb at herself and grinning. “Nah, I’d win.”

—

“I can’t believe I lost,” Rio bemoaned in absolute despair as she opened her purse to take out her card. “I got annihilated!” Her tone conveyed the same sort of dread as if she had been told a comet would wipe out the earth in twenty minutes, or if Ryoga had managed to destroy the last onions on the planet.

“You made it to the fifth turn, and most everyone else lost by turn 3. That’s really impressive!” Kotori said placatingly as they moved through the queue in the book store, carrying a few books in her hands.

“This is so humiliating,” Rio groused, ignoring Kotori. “Everyone saw me lose. I bet they’re laughing behind my back.”

“Hey isn’t that the girl who just took on the Dragon Ruler deck in the lobby?” Kotori heard someone mutter behind her. She turned her head slightly to see two Duelists looking at Rio from where they were checking out the manga aisle.

“Yeah she did pretty well.” The other Duelist noted, lifting their head up from the volume they had their nose in. “Even got the opponent down to their last thousand life points! It was super close. Pretty sure she did even better than a few tournament-ranking Duelists.” 

“My reputation is ruined,” Rio muttered morosely, still lost in her melodramatic thoughts. “Ryoga’s going to hear about this and never let me live it down. I should flee the country and fake my death before he notices.”

“And leave me alone to mourn your sudden, tragic death?” Kotori shifted her books around to bring a hand to her head as if she was having a fainting spell. “How would I ever get over this traumatic moment from such a formative part of my life?”

Rio’s mouth, despite her despair-laden rant, twitched upwards. “I suppose the only logical response is that you should flee the country with me. We’ll be vagabonds on the open road!”

“At least Yuma and Shark will have each other to mourn the best people they’ll ever know!” Kotori said theatrically. 

They had to stop the bit as they reached the top of the line, Rio managing to stifle her giggles as Kotori got her new purchases bagged.

“Food next then?” Rio asked as they left the bookstore, stepping out into the bustling hallways. The food court that made up much of the fourth floor of the mall was only a floor above.

“Sure, I’m about ready for a bite.” Kotori replied, before smirking towards Rio craftily and adding in a sing-song voice, “You know, I heard once that food always tastes better when someone else buys it for you~”

“Laugh it up Kotori, we’ll see if you’re still enjoying this next time I duel you into the dirt,” Rio replied with playful hostility, rolling her eyes.  

The duo made their way through the crowds, escalators taking them up a floor into an open area. Several food stands and stalls were dotted around against and beside more built delis, cafes and a hot dog joint, close to another bookshop and the side entrance to a large supermarket that was also on this floor alongside several other stores. Connecting much of the floor was a bridge that stood over the central area of the mall, where a collection of plastic chairs and tables were laid out for customers alongside a bench that had a view of the floors below. Kotori grabbed some space on a bench and waited with her new ill-gotten gains while Rio did a quick food run, coming back with two strawberry crepes. 

While Rio placed the tray on the bench to Kotori’s left, she noticed that Kotori’s focus was distracted, looking over at some of the stores to her left. She turned her gaze to see whatever had caught Kotori’s eye. A pair of young women were standing outside of a high-end boutique, carrying several bags from the more expensive stores in the area. The shorter of the two, sporting chin-length red hair with long bangs in the front and wearing a red and white dress, was in the middle of saying something to her companion, a taller blonde with piercing, sharp green eyes who was wearing a white coat over a magenta sweater. 

They seemed happy, casually by each other’s side like they were forged from the same clay. Rio’s gut twisted in yearning for something so seamlessly domestic as that. 

“Something catching your eye?” Rio asked quietly as the two women walked off. 

Kotori’s eyes darted over. “I was just… people watching.” She grimaced. “No way to say that without sounding weird, I just saw those two and… started daydreaming and thinking.”

“Wanna share with the class?” Rio asked teasingly, sliding Kotori’s plate over as an incentive.

Kotori stared down at her crepe as though she was asking it to unveil the secrets of the universe, biting into it as she gathered her thoughts. “I just thought that they looked nice together. That they seemed to be having fun just traipsing around. It made me think that that’s the kind of thing I’d want with a partner when I grew up.” The words came out haltingly, as Kotori swept her fringe so that she couldn’t make eye contact with Rio. “It’d be nice, I think.”

“Is that a future you’d want with someone like Yuma?” Rio asked.

“Not with Yuma, no- even if your brother was’t in the picture, we’re better as friends. I love Yuma, but… not that way, you know? I do like some boys, but it’s not always what appeals to me.” 

Rio nodded. “Yeah, I get that. I knew from when I was about nine or ten that I wasn’t that interested in boys.”

“It must have been nice, realizing that early in life. I’m still grappling with everything.” Kotori shook her head. “I’m mostly settled on it now but sometimes I see something like those two women and it’s like… affirmation, I guess, that I can like both guys and girls? A reminder that that’s something I can hope for when I’m older.”

“They did look nice together,” Rio noted as she leaned back on the bench. “Suppose that would match up with your ‘pamper someone with French Toast for breakfast in bed’ fantasy you brought up a while ago, huh?” She added in a wry tone.

A small smile tugged at Kotori’s lips. “You remembered?” She murmured. Rio could make out one of Kotori’s eyes staring at her through her fringe, her gaze unusually piercing.

Rio attempted a shrug. “I thought it was cool trivia so I guess it stuck in my head,” she said in an attempted casual tone. “You say a lot of interesting things that I tend to remember.” 

“Oh?” Kotori brushed her hair aside, letting Rio see her eyes twinkling mischievously. “What other interesting things have you learned about me?” 

Rio hesitantly met Kotori’s gaze, abandoning her attempted faux-casual air for honesty. “You’ve absolutely seen Hellraiser but pretend you haven’t. You took to Duel Monsters like a duck to water, so I know you’re really sharp-minded and a quick study. You let me babble on about a card I owned as a kid and were enjoying just hearing me talk. I know you’re loyal, protective and value everyone you care for deeply… and you give really nice hugs.” The words escaped Rio in a wild ramble, swelling and forming as she took the chance to just give praise and compliment Kotori for her virtues. She’d left so much unsaid, confessions of deeper attraction and admiration that wanted to burst out of her heart. She forced herself to keep looking though, resisting the urge to duck her gaze or look away. 

Kotori’s jaw opened slightly as Rio kept talking. Her cheeks flushed a shade of pink, eyes widening. “Uh… wow…” she murmured to herself. “Thanks. That really means a lot that you see that stuff in me. I’m flustered though, you say it like that and you make me sound like some big hero.”

“You are one, to me.” Rio replied, the words flitting out of her mouth as easily as a breath. 

Kotori blinked in surprise. “Huh?” 

“Like,” Rio paused to smooth her hair out, “I didn’t realize it at the time, but meeting you and Yuma early with Ryoga helped. I knew people who would be there at school, I’d get to make new friends and not be as alone. Ryoga helps, obviously, but sometimes getting him to talk to you earnestly is like pulling teeth. It can be so hard to get him to be fully honest or emotionally open. You and Yuma, you’re both much more earnest and upfront. You were welcoming, letting me into your group without even a second thought. It means a lot in retrospect.” Rio held up a hand and shook it loosely at the wrist. “Like, we likely would have still met and hit it off, but fresh out of the hospital, immediately having a social circle again…” she trailed off.

“It meant a lot to you,” Kotori finished. 

“Yeah.” Rio nodded in affirmation. “And it helped that you were- no, you are- really amazing.” 

Kotori blushed again. “Well, I just had to follow your lead with how amazing you are.” 

Rio felt a rush of blood racing up her neck as she found herself blushing as well. “Heh. Careful, I might think we both believe the other is amazing at this point,” she said with attempted levity.

Kotori stiffened at that. Her hands clenched and unclenched around her jeans. She took a deep breath. “Rio?” 

“What’s up?” Rio leaned forward in concern.

“I’m going to do something really risky and stupid. Are you OK with that?” 

Rio blinked, surprised. “Uh, sure?” She replied. “Risky and stupid sounds pretty fun.” 

“OK.” Kotori looked worried. “But if you’re ever uncomfortable or you want me to stop doing the risky thing, just… tell me, OK?” 

“Kotori,” Rio said with a nervous laugh. “What are you doing? We’re not gonna rob a store or something are we?” 

“No…” Kotori let out a nervous huff of air, her tone becoming slightly manic. “In all honesty, that would be less stressful than this.” 

“Just… take a breath and do whatever you’re gonna do, OK? I trust you.” 

Kotori took one big breath. “OK.” She picked up the tray and placed it on a table near where they were sitting. Sitting back down in the space where the tray had been, she leaned in, her hazel eyes locking into Rio’s own red eyes. 

Rio subconsciously leaned in closer, her left hand wrapping around Kotori’s wrist, her thumb tracing a pattern slowly. Rio swallowed, blinking rapidly as her sight became consumed with shimmering hazel. 

“Is this OK?” Kotori whispered, her breath tickling Rio’s cheek.

“I said I’d tell you if it wasn’t,” Rio replied, voice oddly husky and steady despite her heart rate spiking. “I’m OK.” 

Kotori let out a shaky breath. “Alright then. Nothing ventured, nothing gained…” She leaned forward again, and kissed Rio.

Rio closed her eyes, letting the sensation wash over her. Kotori smelled of apricots, the scent filling her nose. Her right hand rested itself on the side of Kotori’s chest, feeling her heartbeat pounding through her hoodie. Rio’s own heartbeat reverberated and filled her ears, tuning out the hubbub of the crowd and the sounds of the mall to zero in on this one moment in time, leaving just the sound of their breathing. Kotori’s lips still tasted of strawberry from the crepe, the taste slipping into Rio’s mouth.

This felt good. It felt incredible, even. Rio’s heart soared, her brain flooding her nervous system with a celebratory rush. She felt like she was flying free, the shackles of life temporarily broken open to let her heart soar.  She could fall in love if this was how people felt when they kissed. 

Kotori pulled back, taking a nervous, shaky breath. Rio’s eyes fluttered open slightly, her pupils blown out. “Oh,” she said simply, her mind temporarily coming up blank on anything else it could provide for words. 

“Oh,” Kotori repeated, her right hand coming up to gently trace her lips. A nervous giggle began to break out of her. “I think I’ve wanted to do that for a while.” 

Rio let out an amused huff of air. “Likewise. I guess good things do come to those who wait.” 

“A while? You mean, you’ve liked me too?” Kotori’s voice rose into a nervous, high pitch.

“For a while,” Rio replied, leaning back and basking. “I wanna say… the storm drain, the day I was hanging out with Kaito was when I started to consider it. But I realized for sure during the Friendship Games.” Rio tilted her head. “What about you? How long has ‘a while’ been for you?” 

Kotori came forward, hiding her face in the crook of Rio’s elbow. “Ah… You’ll think it’s corny,” she mumbled.

Rio laughed, patting Kotori’s back. “I like corn,” she said simply.

“Do you remember when we went through your spare card box and you found Zereort?” Kotori whispered. “You found it and got this whimsical look in your eye, and you talked about it like you just found this great secret treasure. I was captivated.”

“Oh, really? I thought you were bored and just being polite,” Rio replied, thinking back to that night.

“No.” Kotori shook her head. “I was hooked on every word. I was just listening to you and was enjoying just seeing you be so happy and open. I knew then that… I was smitten.” 

“Smitten?” Rio laughed warmly. “That’s a loaded word.” She smirked up at Kotori, who was now above her. “But if you want me to babble about more of my old cards, I think that can be arranged whenever you want.” 

“I’d like that, Rio.” Kotori whispered, one of her hands tracing a pattern on Rio’s cheek. She leaned into the touch, a warmth entering her eyes.

“I can think of something I’d like to do more right now though,” she said in a contralto tone that sent a shiver racing up Kotori’s spine. “It happens to involve you kissing me again, my little bird.” She winked. “I’m quite hooked after the first one.” 

Kotori chuckled. “I think that can be arranged… partner.” Her voice caught on the last word, a last-second addition to see how Rio would react.

Rio’s eyes lit up, an affirming sigh forming her response to the name. Partner, the word reverberated in her mind as Kotori kissed her again. Kotori is my partner, my girlfriend now.

She’s mine, as I am hers.

Rio couldn’t imagine anything that could spark a greater joy in her soul than that affirmation as it came to her in a moment of near radiant realization. Her heart belonged to Kotori Mizuki. It was a fate she embraced with gusto. She was… weirdly happy. She had no clue what the future held or the slightest clue what to do, but it was a future with Kotori, so it was now a future inherently worth pursuing and fighting for. So yeah, the phrase felt fitting. She was weirdly happy. 

—

Smoking cigarettes on the roof

You look so pretty and I love this view

We fell in love in October

That's why, I love fall

Looking at the stars

Admiring from afar

My girl, my girl, my girl  

You will be my girl

My girl, my girl, my girl  

You will be my world

My world, my world, my world  

You will be my girl

Girl in Red, “We Fell In Love In October”

Chapter Text

“You’re awfully chipper today,” Ryoga muttered as he and Rio made lunch for the day. “I could swear I heard you singing in the shower, except the glass out here didn’t break like it usually does when you use those banshee chords you call a singing voice.” 

“Why Ryoga,” Rio said drily as she nudged past him to grab an egg, “keep that up and I’d almost think you’re not happy to see me happy.” 

“Tch.” Ryoga scoffed. “I can’t ask what made you all happy all of a sudden?” 

Rio hummed. “I guess I just slept on the right side of the bed last night.” 

In truth, even though it had been a week and change since she and Kotori had shared their first kiss- and oh, did that send her heart soaring, that Rio now had a girlfriend- Rio was still firmly in the honeymoon phase. They were keeping quiet about the relationship upgrade for now, just enjoying having each other to themselves for a short while in between the latest rounds of Barian shenanigans and the homegrown idiocy of Yuma and Ryoga. Rio had visited Kotori’s home a few times since and was making a good impression with Kotori’s mother, particularly after a tactical reveal that Rio was top of her class academically. That basically gave carte blanche for them to have “study sessions” as they desired.

(In Rio’s defense, they would genuinely study for a while before inevitably the books would be tossed aside, a twinkle in Rio’s eyes as she laughed while Kotori pounced like a tiger and pushed her down onto the bed- she was feisty, and Rio adored that)

So yeah, Rio was happy. Not that Ryoga would learn that soon, if just to avoid having to deal with the conversations surrounding that- she knew Ryoga had been prepping a shotgun speech for the day someone finally warmed Rio’s heart enough to consider romance. 

“Well,” Ryoga groused as he sealed their bento boxes, “I guess… I’m happy that you’re happy. What with the Barians and everything, I’m glad you’re doing well. Least you deserve after everything that went down last year.” 

Rio paused. “That means a lot, thanks bro,” she muttered, coming in close and resting her head on his shoulder. “I didn’t realize you had a heart buried in that minefield you call a soul.”

Ryoga rolled his eyes fondly. “I guess I also woke up on the right side of the bed today,” he replied, tilting his head so it rested beside Rio’s, letting him just about see the right side of her face as they made eye contact. Rio hummed.

“Seems Yuma brings out the nicer parts of you,” she observed casually.

“He’s a brat, but…” a small smile flitted across Ryoga’s face for a moment as he thought of Yuma, “He’s an endearing brat, nonetheless. He grows on you.”

“Like a rash,” Rio replied drily as she slipped away from Ryoga and began loading her schoolbag. “Still, I am rooting for you to not screw this up.”

“Oi. What makes you think I’ll be the one to screw it up?” 

“Because it’s you, and you have the emotional range of a flat tire,” Rio replied in a flat tone.

“I do not!” Ryoga squawked, offended.

Rio looked her brother dead in the eye. “Name one time in the last week you’ve given Yuma or myself a compliment without being asked to.”

“I mean, we were busy with the Barian stuff, and he went and duelled that Girag guy, and…” Ryoga looked into the distance out their window. “Oh sweet Poseidon, I have the emotional range of a flat tire,” he said in muted, deadpan horror, before turning to Rio. “Your hair is nice today,” he said robotically.

“Progress! Well, acceptance is the first step, brother. Luckily all you have to do is… well I won’t say be nicer. I wanna set a realistic goal.”

“Oi.” Ryoga said, deadpan, while threateningly pointing a spatula at Rio.

“I said I wouldn’t say it, geez. Just, I dunno…” Rio considered it while she threw on her backpack. “Be a bit less egregiously snippy to people you like? You gotta like someone enough to not be rude with them.”

“What, do you want me to make a list? I can be plenty not-snippy. Besides, I’m pretty not-snippy to Kotori.”

“Everyone’s nice to Kotori.” Rio rolled her eyes. 

“Yeah, but I like her. She makes you happy.” Ryoga retorted bluntly.

“Yeah, she does,” Rio replied softly. 

“You two are good for each other, even I can see that. Helps that I trust her not to roughhouse with you so there’s no risk of you getting hurt again. ” Ryoga walked by Rio, picking up his bag and opening the door, oblivious to the way Rio stiffened. “Alright, I’m taking off. Want a ride?” 

“N-No, I’m walking. I’m gonna meet Yuma on the way.” Rio lied, adopting a fake chipper tone. “Talk to you later!” 

After Ryoga left, Rio let out a breath, giving him a minute and waiting to see his bike peel away before she left the apartment herself, walking on one of the pedestrian pathways towards school. She didn’t really know why she was hesitant to tell Ryoga- it wasn’t like she was expecting pushback from him about it beyond maybe a dry comment to Kotori that she could do infinitely better. For now, she was just enjoying having something to herself that Ryoga was unaware of- he could be a bit overbearing sometimes ever since Rio had gotten out of the hospital, alternating like a coin flipping in the air between thin-lipped concern and petulant apathy, content to leave Rio to her own devices as much as he’d insist on checking in on her.

It could be a lot, so she was glad to not have to worry about Ryoga’s reactions, at least for now. At least he’d stopped insisting Rio join him in using the bike, she liked having the walk to Heartland Academy to collect her thoughts ahead of the day. 

“Look out behind- ow!” Rio looked over across the street, seeing Tetsuo face-plant in front of a gaggle of ducks crossing the pavement. His board clattered to the ground behind him while Yuma jogged over, Astral floating casually behind.

Rio looked both ways before crossing the street, her hands tucked in her uniform pockets. “You OK, Tetsuo? That looked like a harsh landing.” She leaned down to take a look at his arm, concern apparent on her face.

Tetsuo, wincing as he picked himself up, looked awestruck at Rio as she looked down at him. “Uh, hey Rio! I’ve been a bit better…”

“I can tell,” she replied warmly, pulling off her backpack. “Your arm’s bleeding, by the way.”

“Is it?” He slowly looked at his arm, jumping at the gash that he got from his crash. Indeed, it was bleeding slowly, beginning to trickle down his arm. “Ah dang it, that’s gonna stain my uniform.”

Rio rummaged around in her backpack, letting out an “A-ha!” as she pulled out a dull red neckerchief. “Here, put this around your arm like that… there you go. Lemme find some wet wipes for the blood and you’ll be good to go.” 

“Aw sweet! Thanks Rio!” Tetsuo beamed up at her as she passed over some wipes, looking away as she put her bag back on. 

“No sweat, don’t mention it. Just be careful next time, OK?” Rio waved as she got back up and began walking towards school.

That was her good deed for the day, Rio thought to herself as she walked off, leaving Tetsuo behind staring at the improvised bandage like it was a gift from the heavens themselves, while Yuma stole his skateboard and began trying to do an ollie.

“... And then after he lost the duel, Orbital tried to kill Yuma with this death ray he had floating in space the whole time, but got stopped at the last minute by Obomi, meaning he and Yuma got fried for a bit.” Kotori finished explaining to Cathy and Todoroki. “And that was my weekend, what were you up to?” 

“Wait, so Yuma’s had a friend with a death laser this whole time hovering in orbit that they just never use? How did they even make that?” Todoroki leaned forward, his questions furrowing his brow. 

“I’ve…” Kotori sighed. “I’ve learned to stop asking questions about these things and just try to roll with it for my sanity’s sake.” 

Cathy nodded sagely at that while Todoroki scratched his head. “But then, why don’t they use the laser more? It just raises so many questions!”

Todoroki’s concern was interrupted by Yuma darting over as lunch began, tearing into two balls of onigiri while Tetsuo floated over on an idyllic cloud maintained, presumably, by Eros himself blessing this young love-struck fool with his first real crush, all while a choir sang in his mind and he fantasized of white picket fences where unicorns would frolic and nibble on the grass. 

Or in other words, Tetsuo was having another episode of being down bad for Rio after she patched up his arm from that morning’s crash. Kotori could relate, but at least she had the decency to not brag about it.

Kotori largely stayed out of the resulting conversation. It wasn’t like she was going to directly encourage his crush, that would be horrible and just lead to at least one broken heart, but to be fair, she had been telling Rio it would be best to let Tetsuo down gently before he did something stupid, so…

“Look, if you like Rio so much, why not just talk to her and say how you feel? That way you’ll know for sure if she likes you back! Attack her with all of your feelings, Tetsuo!” She found herself chiming in. 

OK, maybe she was encouraging him a little. Just a tiny bit. An innocent, nigh-incomprehensible percentage! Kotori loved Tetsuo, he was such a cheerful friend, but man, he really had to get over this crush, and if it required dragging Rio into this so she’d have to let Tetsuo down? Well, Kotori could make it up to her later.

“You’re right, I should!” Tetsuo proclaimed, filled with energy as if he touched a power line like that one time Yuma did in their second year of elementary school. 

“Sure!” Shingetsu cheered Tetsu on, “All you have to do is talk to Shark first and get his blessing!”

“But then I’d have to talk to Shark!” Tetsuo bemoaned, “and he scares me! I think he might actually drown me if I tried to ask Rio out!” 

“Bit chauvinistic to be getting permission to date from the patriarch of the family,” Cathy murmured, Kotori agreeing with a sarcastic roll of her eyes. 

“True, but if he keeps doom-spiralling about this, he’ll talk himself out of asking out Rio and then go all semester about his crush,” Kotori muttered back.

Cathy shuddered at that. “True, and let’s avoid that. Rally the crowd, club cheerleader.” 

“I still think that should be Yuma’s title,” Kotori giggled, before grabbing Tetsuo by the shoulders to get his attention. “Who cares about Shark?! Go talk to Rio! What matters is what she feels, and you’ll never know if you don’t talk to her! What’s he gonna do, throw a fit?” 

“Kill him?” Todoroki, Cathy and Shingetsu all suggested at the same time. 

“Aw man you’re right! Shark even has that old manor he can hide my body in!” Tetsuo fell to his knees in despair. “It’s all over…”

“Or,” Tokunosuke held up a finger, “you just earn the respect of both of them so they’ll talk to you!” 

“You genius!” Tetsuo cheered up. “But, how do I do that?” 

The group paused for a second.

“Well, it’s them,” Shingetsu said eventually. “Just… duel them?” 

“Oh yeah you’re right,” Tetsuo replied airily. “We do solve everything with dueling. So if I beat Shark, he won’t have any reason to reject me wanting to talk to Rio!” 

“And then when you talk to Rio…?” Cathy pondered.

“I’ll get there when I get there, one impossible task at a time. Alright!” Tetsuo adjusted his cap, looking at each of the team like he was committing their faces to memory. “Gonna go talk to Shark now, wish me luck! If I’m not back by the next period, Todoroki gets my locker and Yuma gets my skateboard. It’s been an honor knowing all of you.”

“All going well, that’ll end his little romantic comedy plotline,” Cathy said drily as Tetsuo marched off like he was about to hop the trenches, Todoroki and Tokunosuke following behind after a few minutes. 

“I won’t mind seeing the end of it,” Kotori agreed as she rested her head against the backpack on her desk. “Hopefully there’s no more crazy romance drama for the rest of the semester.”

“Did I just get comp-hetted by the school newspaper?” Rio said quietly to herself as she looked at her Duel Pad during a study period, seeing it light up with a tacky article that had a snapshot of her and Yuma chatting. The byline included that apparently a source “close to Rio” had confirmed that the two were seeing each other, linking to the next page where the main photo had Ryoga, clearly mid-threat at whoever was waving a camera in his face, ready to punch out the photographer. 

And yet it was still better than most of his elementary school photos had been, she pondered sadly. 

Rio sighed. She’d have to cancel her weekend plans now and come up with a good alibi. It was a good thing the Kamishiro Manor had a lot of private property to bury a body in. She took off after the bell rang, keeping an eye out for Yuma’s distinctive hair. As she did, the gossip began to circle around her.

“Rio and Yuma? Really? I thought he was a bit too silly for her.”

“Weird, I always kinda thought that Yuma didn’t go that way.”

“If I had a babe like Mizuki or Cathy in my class, you bet I’d go for them instead of Kamishiro. She kinda scares me…”

“I guess Tsukumo likes his meat char-grilled, who’d have thought it.”

“OK woah that’s a bit much dude, come on.” 

“I mean I guess Yuma’s cute, if you swing that way I mean. Which I don’t!”

“Kazuya, what have I told you about accepting that you’re bisexual already, for the love of God.”  

Rio glowered internally at the gossip, keeping up a stony face as she made her way through the crowds. She wouldn’t let it get to her, she wouldn’t let it get to her, she was doing a fantastic job of not letting it get to her as she imagined various fantasies involving a combine harvester!

“Yuma, I consider you my best friend.” A familiar voice said from up on a raised platform. Rio turned around and began to climb up the nearby stairs.

“Aw, thanks bro!”

“So I’m letting her go so she can be happy and fly the coop! But if you ever hurt Rio, I’ll make you feel so bad for it.” 

Rio found it in her to be touched at Tetsuo’s maturity. He’d make someone very happy in a few years, she was sure. 

“Wait, Rio?! Bro, what the heck? Why would I hurt Rio?!” Yuma squawked, doing his best impression of a squeaky chew toy. Rio poked her head above the staircase railing to see him with his back to her as Yuma spoke. 

“Because Yuma,” Tetsuo stepped over and put a hand on his shoulder, like he was passing off a great burden. “Shark told me that you’re the one he’s acknowledged as being good enough for Rio’s heart! So I gotta respect that and let you have a clean runway to take your chance and make her happy! It’s the least she deserves!”

Oh, Ryoga was dead.  

“But Tetsuo…” Yuma fidgeted. “I don’t like Rio that way! She scares me! She’s way too much like my sister, and she’s-” 

“Right behind you,” Rio said, deadpan, as she stood by the top of the stairs. 

Yuma and Tetsuo shrieked together, Yuma leaping up into Tetsuo’s arms and bristling like a soaking wet cat. “Rio! How much did you hear? I swear, I don’t know why people think we’re dating!” 

“No, don't worry Yuma, you’re too silly to do something like this knowingly.” Rio said. She still emitted an aura of fiery outrage, eyes narrowed in righteous anger. 

“I’ll take that as a… compliment?” Yuma said nervously, backing away slowly.

“No,” Rio continued in a flat tone that barely hid her true emotions,  “My rage is directed solely at Ryoga, and I will now find an outlet for my anger over this silly joke of his.”

“What are you gonna do?” Tetsuo asked, voice shaking slightly. 

“I’m just gonna talk to him,” Rio assured Tetsuo in a flat tone, lying.

“Why are you taking out your Duel Disk?” Yuma shrieked in a panicked state. 

“I’m just gonna talk to him.” Rio repeated in the same flat tone, shuffling her deck mechanically.

“I’m really scared!” Yuma started to cry as Rio’s very aura took on a malevolent twist.

“Hold me Yuma!” Tetsuo wailed, pulling Yuma into a crushing bear hug. 

“I’m just gonna kill him,” Rio said in a verbal slip. As Tetsuo and Yuma took wary steps back, Rio calmly took out her phone.

Private Messages, Ryoga, K. and Rio, K.

Rio, K (16:03 PM): Tennis court. Come. Now.

Ryoga, K (16:04 PM): ?

Rio, K (16:06 PM): Come. Now.

Ryoga, K (16:07 PM): Why?

Rio, K (16:07 PM): Come.

Ryoga, K (16:07 PM): No.

Rio, K (16:07 PM): Come.

Ryoga, K (16:08 PM): Ugh. Fine.

“Well, it’s official,” Rio said as she and Kotori waited in the tennis court with the rest of the Numbers Club (Yuma and Tetsuo still keeping a fearful distance).

“What’s up? You think we should start telling people about… us?” Kotori asked, nudging closer as she spotted someone coming in from the opposite entrance and down the blue entry ramp.

“Huh?” Rio paused. “Oh, maybe. No, I’m just gonna have to kill my brother,” Rio explained casually, like she was just observing the weather. “Gonna take a while to figure out what I’ll do with all the inheritance that opens up…”

Kotori nodded solemnly. “I completely understand and support you in this venture.”

“Thank you for your support.” Rio flashed Kotori a quick smile as Kotori took a step back, once it was clear that Ryoga was coming in.

“Rio, why are we out here?” Ryoga complained as he got within speaking distance, fiddling with his deck box. “I was doing things.”

“I’m challenging you to a duel,” Rio replied confidently.

“You too?” Ryoga muttered, “Whole lotta that going around today. Still, are you really down to get humiliated in front of everyone like this? Our duels don’t usually end well for you is all I’m saying.” 

“Well, all I’m saying,” Rio snapped back as she held up her Duel Disk in front of Ryoga, showing off the article from earlier that afternoon, “is that I’m tired of you calling the shots! So yeah, I’m gonna drag you around this court until you apologize for what you did!"

Ryoga blinked in confusion. “Uh, what’s that?”

“What you did is parade around, thinking you get any say over my love life, you dullard minnow!” Rio said angrily. “It’s you putting the idea in people’s heads that I’m dating Yuma!

“What?” Shark spluttered. “But I’m dating Yuma?”

“You are?” The Numbers Club sans Yuma and Kotori said in surprise. 

“Oh, heh heh… guess everyone knows now!” Yuma said nervously. “In my defense, I only gave it away to Kotori?” 

“I figured you’d blab to her,” Ryoga muttered.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kotori said defensively, hackles raised.

“That you’re Yuma’s best friend and more emotionally intelligent than any of the rest of your club, so of course he’d talk to you first.” Shark replied casually. 

“Oh.” Kotori paused, her anger fading like she’d been doused in water. “Uh, thanks Shark?”

“Don’t mention it,” Shark said in a dry tone before turning back to Rio. “See? I’m working on my compliments,” he added in a saccharine tone. “Either way, I didn’t say any of that crap about you Rio, so I’m leaving.”

As Ryoga turned to leave, a sadistic smile crossed Rio’s lips. “Oh, rolling away like the little onion you are?” 

Ryoga paused, visibly stiffening. “You promised we’d never resort to those tactics in public,” he snarled over his shoulder. 

“All’s not fair in sibling love and war. I get it might be a bit bitter going down…” Rio paused, leaning forward, everyone behind her following as they were hooked, “... like a pepper?” 

“Oh that’s it!” Ryoga turned around fully, bearing his fangs. “You’re asking for an ass-kicking when you talk like that!” 

“Then we’re settled, then?” Rio replied, standing her ground. “Time for Sibling Squabble Round 100!”

“Get ready to eat dirt in front of your friends Rio, I ain’t holding back!” Ryoga howled as he and Rio took ready stances.

“You guys have duelled a hundred times?” The Numbers Club replied to themselves as they scattered for cover.

“A battle between siblings as fierce as these?” Astral murmured behind Yuma, “We would do well to acquire some earplugs,” he added wryly. 

“Duel Disk, set!” Ryoga cried out as his Disk snapped into place, reason abandoning him as he slipped on a grin. 

“Duel Gazer, lock on!” Rio replied, eyes narrowing into pinpricks as she fixed on her gazer with a steady look.

“Duel!” The twins cried out together, an AR dome forming around them.

“Seriously though,” Yuma called out as the AR Link established and everyone else put on their Duel Gazers, “you’ve duelled a hundred times?” 

“Sometimes it’s just petty stuff like who takes out the trash,” Rio replied casually as she drew her opening hand. “This one’s for keeps though.”

“Right, how many times have you won this then? What’s the record?” Yuma pressed.

Rio pointedly looked down at her hand and didn’t answer the question.

“That’s her way of saying the record is 99-0, to me!” Ryoga chimed in. “She’s never beaten me during a Sibling Squabble Duel!” 

“I’ve beaten you before!” Rio retorted.

“Never when it counted though, huh?” Ryoga grinned. 

Rio bared her teeth. “Just take the first turn, we’ll see how that record’s looking when I knock you down a peg.”

“Spoken like the perpetual second-placer that you are. I draw!” Ryoga drew and inspected his hand. 

“I summon Buzzsaw Shark!”  The field broke open, releasing a torrent of water and bubbles as a silver shark with red highlights appeared on Ryoga’s field. “And when I summon Buzzsaw Shark, I can target it to summon another Fish Monster with the same level from my deck! I’ll choose my trusty Lantern Shark!”

“Shark is going all out,” Astral opined. “He’s one Monster away from elevating this duel’s pace considerably.”

“Huh? Whatcha mean Astral?” Yuma asked.

“Shark’s deck is designed to swarm the board with Water Monsters.” Astral explained. “If Shark can summon another Level 4 Monster right now, it would let Shark gain three Level 4 Monsters immediately.”

“Wait, then that could mean-” Yuma gasped. “He could be going for Shark Drake!” 

“Precisely.” Astral nodded. “Rio’s deck does not possess any Numbers, so she would have no way of removing it via battle- Rio would have to get rid of Shark Drake via a destruction effect.”

“Or by negating Shark Drake’s effect, then she could attack it,” Kotori pointed out.

“That too,” Astral conceded. “Either way, it would pose a challenge for Rio.” 

Rio had turned to see the trio talking before returning her focus to Ryoga. “So, they seem to have your strategy pegged. Gonna summon a Number on me, Ryoga? I’ve never gotten to fight one before.”

“And you still won’t get the chance,” Ryoga replied. “I won’t stoop to hiding behind a Number when you don’t have one- that’d be unseemly.”

“Oh unseemly, that’s a big word for you! I’m being blown off my feet at your chivalry.” Rio said, feigning enthusiasm. “Tell me, would it also be unseemly to tell people your sister’s dating a random boy?” She scoffed. “Holding back’s not gonna help you, because I’m going all out! I’ll make you wish you summoned Shark Drake!” 

“For the last time, I didn’t say crap about that!” Ryoga replied snippily before pointing at his monsters. “Buzzsaw  Shark and Lantern Shark share a passive ability! When I XYZ Summon a WATER Attribute XYZ Monster, I can treat them as Level 3 or 5 Monsters! I’ll treat them both as Level 3 and use them to build the Overlay Network!” 

Ryoga’s monsters turned into streams of dark blue energy that collided in mid-air before entering the vortex that appeared before him.

“I’ll tame the darkest waters to carry forward my mightiest monsters into battle!” Ryoga chanted. “I XYZ Summon! Rank 3, Submersible Carrier Aero Shark!” 

“He didn’t go for Shark Drake after all then.” Cathy said. “Still, an XYZ Summon on the first turn’s no small feat.” 

“Bring up the onions? I’ll make you cry first!” Ryoga said snippily to Rio. “I activate Aero Shark’s effect! I use one Overlay Unit to deal you 400 damage for each card in my hand!” Ryoga brought his left hand forward, showing his cards. “With four cards in my hand, you’re taking 1600 damage!” 

“Jeez, effect damage on the first turn and to the tune of nearly half of Rio’s Life Points.” Tetsuo sucked in his breath through his teeth. “Shark ain’t playing around.”

“And you thought you could duel him,” Cathy muttered.

“Don’t worry!” Tetsuo replied with fake cheer. “I’ve been corrected of that false assessment of my skill level…” 

“Go Aero Shark!” Ryoga called out. “Depth Charge Detonation!”  

Aero Shark dove into the ground, parting the artificial grass of the tennis court with a howl. Four pinpricks of light formed around Rio, giving her barely enough time to throw up her hands before they opened up to show four sea mines that detonated around her, Rio crying out as her Life Points took a hit.

The Numbers Club winced. “That sounded like it hurt,” Tokunosuke muttered. 

“Ready to give up?” Ryoga called out mockingly as the smoke cleared, only to pause as Rio stood defiant before him, now with a Monster on the field. “Huh?” 

“Sorry Ryoga, but I was ready for you to try to go for effect damage,” Rio replied cheekily. “I used Guard Penguin’s effect from my hand! He Special Summons himself, and I regain Life Points equal to the damage I took. So with that…” Rio made a show of inspecting her Duel Disk, holding her spare hand up to her mouth in faux-shock. “Wow! I haven’t actually taken any damage!” 

“Wow,” Tetsuo said dreamily. “Rio’s so cool.”

“I know, she’s so pretty…” Kotori said, equally dreamily. 

“Huh?” They both said to the other before Kotori looked away, blushing. 

Ryoga rolled his eyes. “Oh congrats, you negated one bit of damage, I should just give up now,” he said sarcastically. 

“It would spare you from me having to humiliate you in front of your boyfriend!” Rio called back.

Ryoga growled while Yuma chuckled nervously. “I activate the Field Spell, Aqua Gate!” He called out, placing the spell on his Disk. The area around them morphed, with the Kamishiros now standing on two opposing platforms built above an expansive ocean. In between was a gate that shimmered like rippling water. “With this Field Spell in play, I can negate as many attacks per turn as I have set cards. I now set two cards face down, and end my turn.” 

“Phew,” Yuma muttered. “Good thing Shark didn’t go for Shark Drake earlier, even if Rio could beat over it in battle he could stop two whole attacks every turn!” 

Rio chuckled. “It wouldn’t help him. My turn, I draw!” Rio drew, checking her new card before adding it to her hand. “I’ll start with my trusty Blizzard Falcon!” 

The blue-accented bird took to the field, perching on one of the pillars near Rio.

“And now I’ll Overlay my Level 4 Blizzard Falcon and Guard Penguin! With these two Monsters, I build the Overlay Network!” 

Rio’s avian allies formed into cyan streams that flew into the Overlay Network vortex that manifested before her. 

“Apex predator of the coldest lands,” Rio chanted in a low contralto, voice echoing across the field. “Sharpen your talons, and prepare to feast on my frozen foes! I XYZ Summon! Descend from the skies, Rank 4, Ice Beast Zerofyne!”  

A graceful figure emerged from the Overlay Network portal alongside a blizzard of snow that raced around Rio, armored with a crown of deep blue ice that helped highlight its yellow eyes. A trail of icicle shards followed in its wake, guided by two claw-like gauntlets it wore on either arm. It almost appeared to dance across the sky as it settled behind Rio, the blizzard calming down a fraction.

“How’s she gonna get past Aqua Gate though?” Tetsuo pondered. 

“This kindergarten floodgate?” Rio smirked. “I have an idea or six. Zerofyne’s effect is one of them! By using an Overlay Unit, it negates all other face-up cards on the field until the start of my next turn! Perfect Freeze!”  

Zerofyne shot out streams of frozen energy that span across the whole field, freezing Aero Shark in mid-air and bringing a halt to Aqua Gate. The ice spread across the Field Spell’s oceanic surface, covering everything as far as the eye could see in ice. 

Ryoga exhaled, his breath misting in the sudden temperature drop. “I need to stop you using that card when I’m in my summer uniform,” he complained, “this is insanely cold! By the way, how do you do that? Is your personality that frigid?” 

“Can’t stand the cold? Then go back inside!” Rio’s hand shot up into the air. “Zerofyne also gains 300 Attack Points for each card it negates! With your two cards, that becomes another 600 points! But I won’t stop there, as I also activate the Equip Spell, Wings of Silence! Zerofyne gains another 300 Attack Points, and it’s now unaffected by your Spells and Traps!” 

Zerofyne’s wings pulled in, snapping back out as they were transfigured into pitch-black avian wings, black feathers trailing behind it. 

“Now that your set cards can’t affect my monster, it’s time to attack! Zerofyne, attack Aero Shark, with Icicle Storm!” 

Zerofyne shot out a stream of freezing energy that slammed against Aero Shark, punching it through the frozen water below where it exploded into shards of energy. Shark winced as the shards flew by him, knocking his Life Points down by 1000.

“Sorry Ryoga,” Rio called mockingly, “I guess I’m dueling too well for you given how I dodged those set cards!” 

“I’m sorry too,” Ryoga said as he wiped dust off his shoulder, “... sorry you’re still dueling exactly as I expected you to, that is! I can now activate my Trap, Ghost Fleet Salvage!” 

Rio grimaced as Ryoga explained the effect. “Since my WATER Attribute XYZ Monster was destroyed, Ghost Fleet Salvage now lets me bring it back by negating its special abilities, alongside the monsters I used to XYZ Summon it. So Aero Shark’s back for more, alongside Lantern and Buzzsaw Shark!” 

Above Shark, a purple vortex appeared that summoned a collection of anchors that dug down into the hole left by Aero Shark’s destruction. They slowly reeled it back up, alongside Ryoga’s other two monsters flying out of the hole in the ice to appear by its side.

“There’s more!” Ryoga continued. “I activate my other Trap, Full-Armored XYZ! This lets me XYZ Summon during your turn! I again treat Buzzsaw Shark and Lantern Shark as Level 3 Monsters to build the Overlay Network!” 

Ryoga’s monsters flew back into the vortex that appeared before him. “Here’s the champion of darkness and devastation!” He chanted. “Tear through the pitch-black depths, I XYZ Summon! Rank 3, Black Ray Lancer!” 

Ryoga’s secondary ace took to the field, spinning its spear around it as it materialized. 

“There’s still more!” Ryoga declared. “Full-Armored XYZ can be banished to let me equip an XYZ Monster in my field or Graveyard to another I control! I equip Aero Shark to Black Ray Lancer, granting it an attack point boost equal to Aero Shark’s points!” 

Black Ray Lancer became surrounded with a stream of red and blue energy from Aero Shark as it began to dematerialize, sporting new armored arms and legs while its Attack Points rose to 4000. 

“Ah man, that’s a lot of points!” Yuma exclaimed. 

“So, what’s your grand plan now, Rio?” Shark asked mockingly, smirking to himself. 

Rio ground her teeth together, her eyes narrowed. “I set one card face-down and end my turn,” she eventually said. “During the End Phase, Zerofyne’s attack points reset, minus the 300 it gains from my Equip Spell,” she added robotically. 

“Let’s wrap this up then! My turn, I draw!” Ryoga pulled another card free from his deck and took a glance at it. “I’ll start with the Spell Card, Break Stream! For this turn, you can’t activate a Spell or Trap in response to an attack, and if you take damage, I can destroy a Spell or Trap on your field!” 

“Interesting,” Astral observed, “he thought ahead to ensure Rio couldn’t use Aqua Gate against Ryoga even if it hadn’t been negated.”

Ryoga pointed menacingly at Zerofyne. “Battle! Black Ray Lancer, attack Ice Beast Zerofyne! Black Bright Spear!”  

Black Ray Lancer gathered dark energy in its hands before forming a spear with it, hurling it at supersonic speeds into Zerofyne. It let out a cry of pain before the attack destroyed it, Rio flinching at the explosion that brought her Life Points down to 2300.

Ryoga surged forward, teeth gritted. “Break Stream’s effect activates! Say goodbye to your set card!” Fragments of Black Ray Lancer’s attack congealed over Rio’s card, puncturing through it and destroying it. Rio, grimacing, pulled it free of her Duel Disk and slid it into the Graveyard.

“I told you,” Ryoga said coldly as Black Ray Lancer returned to its resting place in front of him, “you never had a chance! You’ve never had a chance against me before, and today isn’t any different!” His eyes narrowed. “There’s a reason I was the one who got into the Pro Leagues, after all. You’ve always needed my help to build your decks.”

“That’s not true…” Rio muttered, her voice shaking in a mixture of rage and sudden resentment. “Why do you keep doing that?” 

“Eh?” Shark replied, tilting his head.

“Why do you keep looking at me like some fragile glass?!” Rio snapped, eyes widening in anger. “Don’t think I haven’t seen it, the way you look more at this than at me!” Rio furiously pulled her sleeve up on her left arm, showing the warped skin and scars from her burns and glowering when Ryoga instinctively flinched and looked away. Had Rio’s attention not been laser-focused on Ryoga, she’d have heard and seen the other members of the Numbers Club murmuring amongst themselves in sympathy. 

“I’m more than those injuries!” Rio cried. “Why can’t you see that- see me, underneath this like you used to? Nowadays it only ever feels like you’re… coddling me!” She raised an accusatory finger. “I’m not in the hospital anymore, so stop acting like I am, you overbearing asshole! And need I remind you, you only got into the Pro Leagues after I was hospitalized! I would have beaten you to it if I hadn’t been set on fire by… by that monster!” Rio’s voice caught in her throat. “I am not some trophy on your wall that you can look sadly at to get motivation, and I can make my own choices, damnit!”  

Ryoga flinched again. “Rio…” he started to say, before the words caught in his throat. Kotori almost reached out to Rio, but caught herself, eyes filled with sympathy. 

“But fine,” Rio finished bitterly. “If you wanna keep playing at being my oppressive older brother who still treats me like glass, then I’ll just have to beat you until you respect me again!” Her Graveyard lit up as she removed the card she just sent. “My Trap Card, Oval Ice Fire, has an effect when sent to the Graveyard by a card effect! I can revive an XYZ Monster from my Graveyard and give it a Level equal to its Rank plus one!” 

“An effect when destroyed?” Yuma muttered, his focus deliberately put back on the Duel to avoid dwelling on the issues Rio had just vented about. 

“Ice Beast Zerofyne rises again, but at the cost of its Attack and Defense Points being set to zero,” Rio continued. Behind her, Zerofyne rematerialized, cracks and fractures evident along its body, one of its eyes glowing less brightly than the other. 

Ryoga shook his head, trying to focus. “I…” he hesitated. “I set two cards face down and end my turn.”

The temperature around Rio seemed to drop as she roughly pulled her sleeve back down. “Then it’s my turn!” She placed her hand on the top of her deck. 

I have nearly all of the pieces to win this turn, she thought to herself. I just need one more card to pull it all together. Come on!

“I bet you’re overthinking my set cards again,” Ryoga called out. 

Rio paused. “What?” 

“I’m right, aren’t I?” Ryoga shrugged, closing his eyes as he did. “I bet you’re wondering, did I set a battle trap? Is it a negate? An attack booster? Maybe it’s all three? 

“Why are you still talking?” Rio growled.

“Because you’re not gonna get anywhere if you hesitate at things like that! You wonder why I keep ‘looking at you like porcelain’ or whatever you said? That’s why! Because I’m being cruel now to save you in future- the Barians won’t let you hesitate or stumble!” Ryoga threw his arm out. “So if I have to be an asshole now to not have to see you in the hospital later, then fine! I’ll be cruel to be kind, because I’ll be happy taking your ire while you’re alive, rather than having to stand over your body again!” Ryoga’s voice wavered slightly.

“I never asked for you to take pity on me!” Rio retorted. 

“Well tough luck, you idiot, you’re my family! I’ll always be worried about you! And if you read that as pity, then pull your head out of your ass! I’d rather you hate me than leave me full of regret, so if this is what it takes to either get you to lock in and stop hesitating, or realize you’re not cut out for this? Then fine! I’ll be that asshole! But if you’re gonna keep second-guessing your moves or stalling? Then don’t be a moron and get yourself hurt!” Ryoga’s eyes widened. “Just… know your damn limits, OK?! Because if something happened to you again, and I could have stopped it now… I wouldn’t know what to do with myself.” Ryoga deflated like a balloon. 

“Ryoga…” Rio said quietly. She took a breath. “You’re really, really crap at showing how you care.” 

“Maybe.” Ryoga conceded in a mutter before straightening up. “But if you want to prove me wrong, there’s only one way to do that- by beating me here and now! So draw, and see if you can step out of my shadow, Rio! But if you doubt yourself at all, that draw won’t save you!”

Rio’s hand came down again over her deck. She hated the way it still wavered, shaking slightly as she faced down Ryoga’s monster. 

“You’ve got this, Rio! Just believe in yourself!” Tetsuo suddenly cheered.

“Kick his butt!” Kotori cried out.

“Go, Rio! Bring Shark down to size!” Yuma clenched his fist and nodded enthusiastically. 

“Oi, whose side are you on, Yuma?” Ryoga snapped.

“Sorry Shark, you kinda do have this coming a little bit! Hugs and kisses!” 

Ryoga rolled his eyes, rubbing the back of his neck to hide the blush creeping up there.

“Rio!” Kotori called out. She looked over to see Kotori muscling past Tetsuo. “He’s wrong about you! You do know your own strength, and you are strong! Way stronger than Shark will ever be, because you don’t have to put down other people’s strength to feel powerful!” She put her hand over her heart. “Let out the strength I know is inside you, and it’ll let you do anything you want, including beating your brother!” 

“I…” Rio smiled. “Thanks Kotori. That means a lot.” The two shared a smile loaded with a thousand words before Rio turned her focus back to Ryoga.  

“It’s my turn!” Rio proclaimed confidently with an easy grin. “I draw!” 

Her arm snapped out with the new card. She turned it over, eyes widening slightly.

“Oh there you are,” she murmured. “You beautiful little card, you.” Rio met Ryoga’s eyes, smirking. “I’m ending this Duel here and now Ryoga! I activate my Field Spell, Land of Frozen Flames!” She slapped the card down onto her Duel Disk, transforming the field around them. The oceans and pillars faded away, replaced by a frozen wasteland with a crevasse in the middle. A starry night lit the field up, alongside glowing glacial fragments that hung in the air.

“While my Field Spell is in place, XYZ Summons of a WATER attribute monster can be done with one less material! Zerofyne is treated as having a level due to being revived by Frozen Fire Egg, so I’ll treat it as two Level 5 Monsters and use it to build the Overlay Network!” 

Zerofyne split off into two, the two clones spinning together in the sky before transmuting into cyan energy that flew into the Overlay Network.

“Frozen princess of the coldest lands!” Rio chanted. “Break through the shell of reality and instill the chills of fear in my frozen foes! I XYZ Summon! Rank 5, Ice Princess Zereort!”  

A blue figure emerged, wrapped in white armor and gold highlights. Two armored wings spouted from its back, while it held a hammer with a jagged amber rock at the tip.

Kotori’s eyes lit up, her hands coming up to her mouth as she nearly started to bounce. She recognized that card. She owed a lot to that card, so seeing Rio finally summon it properly had her light up like a fireworks display. From the confidence Rio was exuding right now, the feeling was definitely mutual. 

“Zereort’s effect activates!” Rio called out. “By using one Overlay Unit, I reduce your Black Ray Lancer’s attack points to zero! Go, Sub Zero Subtraction!” 

Zereort let out a raging blizzard that covered the entire area, freezing Black Ray Lancer in a perfectly clear block of ice. Ryoga, beside the newly formed block, shivered at the sudden temperature drop, while even the Numbers Club felt the cold settling in.

“With Shark’s monster now at 0 points, he’ll be at 500 Life Points if the attack lands!” Tetsuo realized.

“No,” Rio replied. “He’ll be at zero. Before Zereort’s effect resolves, I activate the Quick Play Spell, Modulation Absorption! By targeting a monster on the field, I can make it gain Attack Points any time a monster loses or gains Attack or Defense Points for the rest of the turn! By targeting Zereort, that means…”

“It’ll now gain Black Ray Lancer’s points, and put it at 6500!” Yuma realized. “Rio’s got this! She’ll wipe out Shark’s Life Points if the attack connects!”

Ryoga’s eyes widened in shock. He looked down at his set cards and began biting his lip, his brow furrowing.

“I think I clocked your set cards, Ryoga!” Rio called out mockingly. “Let me guess, they would have extended your combo next turn to buy you a chance to make a comeback, and you set them to fake me out? I just won’t let you reach your next turn in that case!” 

“Even if Shark uses Full-Armored XYZ so Black Ray Lancer can survive the attack,” Astral noted, “he’ll still take the damage.” 

“And that means if Rio’s right, his cards can’t stop this! Shark will lose!” Cathy cheered.

Rio took a step forward. “You wanted me to earn your respect so you’d stop fussing about me? Fine, I won’t try to make you look at me as an equal, Ryoga- I’ll make you kneel before me! Battle! Zereort, attack Black Ray Lancer, with Glacial Execution!” 

Zereort swooped down with its hammer, streams of cold energy left in its trail as it accelerated towards Black Ray Lancer. Ryoga looked down at his Duel Disk, fist clenching and unclenching as the attack drew near.

“Damnit! I activate a trap-” Ryoga was cut off by Zereort’s attack arriving, the hammer swooping down to connect with the ice block Black Ray Lancer was trapped in, making it explode into thousands of shards and kicking up a large mist cloud. The explosion from the impact was deafeningly loud, making everyone wince.

“Did… did she win?” Tetsuo asked as he looked back at the field.

“Shark didn’t stop the attack, so almost assuredly, right?” Todoroki asked.

Rio uncovered her face, panting, only to let out a shocked gasp when the mist cleared. Ryoga was standing there, eyes blandly staring her down. 

His Life Points were untouched.

“I played two Trap Cards,” he said, devoid of emotion. “Tidal Shift lets me change the attack target of a battle if you attack with a WATER Attribute Monster.” 

“But… there’s no other monsters in play!” Rio retorted, only to look up again at where Zereort was standing. “Wait-”

“My second Trap, Washed Up Salvage. I can revive a WATER Monster from either of our fields that was sent to the Graveyard this turn, but its Attack Points are set to zero.” He gestured up towards Zereort, where its hammer was buried into the chest of Ice Beast Zerofyne. “I chose your Zerofyne, which means in a roundabout way, you attacked yourself.”

“So when the chain link resolved backwards,” Astral murmured, “Shark revived Rio’s monster, then chose it as the true target for Zereort’s attack.” 

“Meaning Rio attacked her own monster…” Tetsuo muttered.

“Meaning Rio took the damage!” Yuma realized.

“Meaning…” Kotori’s hand flew to her mouth. “Rio lost!”

As Kotori finished speaking, Zerofyne let out a last wail of pain before breaking apart, forming a barrage of ice shards that began to rain down on Rio.

As one of them nearly landed right on her foot, Rio took the last card out of her hand and played it frantically. “I activate my Quick-Play Spell, Damage Clash! When I take more than a thousand points of damage, I can halve the damage and you take the same amount as me!” 

“That halves it to just over three thousand damage.” Tokunosuke noted. 

Ryoga’s eyes widened. “You’re gonna force a tie?” He called out, baffled.

“I can’t win, but I’m keeping you from winning too! So we’re both going down together!” Rio replied confidently. Above them, the ice cloud began to spin around dramatically, shedding shards of ice while overloading with energy.

“Tch.” Ryoga lowered his Duel Disk, spreading his arms out slightly as the cloud hit fever pitch. “You’re impossible,” he said, almost fondly.

“I learned from the best,” Rio shot back, closing her eyes in advance while smirking. 

The cloud detonated, shards flying everywhere. Rio and Ryoga both cried out in pain as they were flying from the force, skidding on their backs a few feet before coming to a halt. 

Their Life Points both hit 0 at the same time. The AR field shut down, replacing the frozen lands with the humble tennis court. 

“It’s a tie!” Yuma exclaimed before rushing over to Ryoga, who was beginning to pick himself up.

Rio let out a small sound of pain as her arm twinged from where she landed. She pulled herself up, tracing circles into the muscle and exhaling sharply through her teeth. “Crap,” she muttered.

“Rio!” Kotori ran over. “Are you OK? That landing looked sore.” 

“I’ve had worse,” Rio tried to say casually through the lingering pain, “but I’ve also had better.” She caught the worry in Kotori’s eyes and covertly slipped their hands together. “I’m better, now that you’re here,” she admitted quietly, the two sharing a relieved smile while Kotori blushed. 

“You were really cool up there,” Kotori whispered. “You did super well.” 

“Better than I usually do against Ryoga.” Rio rolled her shoulder, slipping her hand free. “Maybe next time, I’ll take him down.” 

“I’d love to see it,” Kotori said with an easy grin, turning as Ryoga and Yuma came over, Yuma already blabbing Ryoga’s ear off. 

“You… did well,” Ryoga said awkwardly. “Congratulations. You’ve definitely improved a lot as a Duelist.”

“Have I?” Rio asked, pouting. “I lost.”  

“Well, I lost too, and that’s the first time you’ve gotten me to 0 during our Squabble Duels, so…” Ryoga grimaced, rubbing the back of his head. “Look I’m just trying to say good job, OK? I know I’m absolutely crap at saying stuff like this, so… agh!” 

“I get it,” Rio said. “And thanks. You know it’s a thing to work on, so… that’s all I need. That we do better.” 

“We will, I promise,” Ryoga said. “And… I’m sorry if I don’t make you feel appreciated. I’m gonna try to be better about that, too. You’re right, by the way- I’ve been worried, and I’ve been terrible at saying that I’m worried about you, and I’ve been a douchebag about it. I don’t mean it to put you down or take pity on you, just…” he exhaled roughly. “You’re my little sister,” he said in a more quiet, fragile tone of voice, “I’m gonna worry.” 

Rio rolled her eyes fondly. “I get it. Like, I worry too whenever a Barian rolls up and any of us fight it, but if we spend all our time worrying we’ll get nothing done, as you put it earlier.” She held her arms out. “Now get over here, looking at you about to cry makes me want to cry and that’s just gonna be awkward with everyone standing there.” Ryoga came in and they shared a hug, Rio patting him on the back a few times. “I love you too Ryoga.”

Ryoga let out a soft sigh. “Yeah, yeah, that too. Love you, sis.” 

Rio pulled back. “But about all this… why did you tell Tetsuo he could court me?” 

“Oh my God,” Ryoga groaned, “I never said that! Is that what that stupid paper said? I told him he’d have to be a Duelist of Yuma’s skill level if he wanted to duel me- I said nothing about romance or any of that.” Ryoga looked over at Tetsuo. “Why’d you even think that, dude? I’m dating Yuma!” 

“I never did!” Tetsuo called back. “You think I'm going to talk to the paper about my friends and their love lives?” 

Rio spotted Todoroki and Tokunosuke trying to make a covert escape. She looked over at Kotori, who met her eyes and shot her a wink. 

“Rio?” Tetsuo asked shyly as he walked up to her. “I’d like to ask if you wanna duel sometime! If I wanna get to Yuma’s level, I should practice with some powerful Duelists.” He paused, touching his fingers together out of nervousness. Maybe… we can get some ice cream after?” He added hopefully. 

“I…” Rio paused, taking a second to look over at Kotori. She met Rio’s gaze, nodding while smiling warmly and mouthing ‘It’s OK.’

“Tetsuo… I’m sorry, I need to say this now,” Rio muttered. “I… am already seeing someone.” 

“Oh!” Tetsuo blinked, surprised. “Well, uh, congrats! I’m happy for you.” He took it surprisingly well, but Rio could still see his shoulders droop for a second. “Can I ask who the lucky guy is?” He asked after a moment’s hesitation.

“You could,” Kotori called from behind Rio, snaking an arm around her waist. “But it wouldn’t be a guy.” She leaned up to leave a peck-like kiss on Rio’s cheek, making Rio turn red while Tetsuo and Ryoga’s eyes both widened in surprise. Rio dimly noted some of the other members of the Numbers Club reacting to the sight, with even Todoroki and Tokunosuke turning around mid-escape to see it.”

“Oh! Kotori! I’m… really happy for you two, seriously.” Tetsuo said, nodding. “You two fit each other, for real.” He paused. “Yeah in retrospect you two are as tight as peas in a pod, I see it. Congrats you two!”  

“Thanks,” Rio said warmly. “I’m still down for that duel and/or ice-cream if you are?” 

“Absolutely,” Tetsuo beamed. “Always down to hang out with a friend!” He gave the girls a thumbs up and walked away, spirits lifted.  

“I was worried that’d go worse,” Kotori admitted quietly as they started walking. “I don’t know why, Tetsuo is chill like that.” 

“I’m just glad he won’t fawn over me anymore. I didn’t have the heart to let him down,” Rio murmured back. 

“I noticed,” Kotori commented idly. 

Rio paused. “Wait, you didn’t plan all of this, did you?” 

“Nah,” Kotori said with a sly smile. “Just the bit of you and him hashing things out.” 

“You are devious, and seriously cool right now” Rio said in awe, making Kotori giggle while she strolled over to Ryoga. 

“I had no idea you liked girls,” Ryoga observed as Rio walked over.

“Did you not see the Harpie Lady figurine I bought last year?” Rio replied in surprise. 

“I thought you were just having a goth phase and/or supporting other Winged Beast decks!” Ryoga said indignantly. 

“Or the Silent Magician body pillow?”  She pressed.

“I thought it was a very intense phase!” Ryoga snapped. He turned to Kotori. “So I had a shotgun speech planned for this day, but to be honest, any threat I could make about how if you break her heart I’d kill you, yadda yadda yadda, Rio could actually do, so… best of luck, you’re gonna need it.” 

“Hey,” Kotori said wryly, putting her hand on her hip. 

Yuma hummed. “I knew all along you two were dating.” 

“Yeah Yuma,” Kotori said, deadpan, “because I told you when I got back from my first date, like how you told me that you and Shark were dating.” 

“I still knew before Shark~” Yuma said in an annoying sing-song, instinctively ducking away from Kotori’s planned smack upside his head. 

“So, what’s your plan now?” Ryoga asked Rio as Yuma darted away while laughing, Kotori chasing after him.

“Well, I’m getting hungry for dinner, but before then… I need to plug a leak,” Rio said with an unsettling amount of serenity. She turned back to Todoroki and Tokunosuke, whistling. “Oi, you two! Why’re you trying to slip away?” 

“Uh…” Todoroki stammered while his life flashed before his eyes.

“We uh… have to go iron our plants?” Tokunosuke squeaked out. 

“Oh don’t worry,” Rio said with a smile that completely failed to reach her eyes. “There’s gonna be time for that when I’m done having words with you about your shoddy journalism!” 

The boys screamed and ran off, begging for mercy from any deities listening in. Kotori jogged over to Rio. “You gonna chase them?” 

“Nah, they’ll tucker themselves out. They’ve got the memo anyway.” Rio shot Kotori a lazy grin. “Besides, I’m free for the night, why waste time running after boys when I’ve got a little bird of my own to pamper?” 

“Oh, you flatterer,” Kotori laughed, wrapping her arm around Rio’s as they walked out of the tennis court after Ryoga and Yuma. 

Flirting with her is like butterflies screaming

Taking off into the night

Flirting with her is like cool nights beaming

Stars glued to my thighs

I'll lend you this, I'll lend you that

"How is it that you two always seem to match?"

I'll lend you this, I'll lend you that

Just promise that you'll never give it back

“Flirting With Her,” Sir Babygirl

Chapter Text

Durbe looked out at Barian World as he walked to the throne room and felt his soul wither at the sight. Today was going to be one of his bad days, he could feel it.

The palace that the Seven Emperors resided in was kept at a distance from the other settlements in this area. The people of Barian World largely lived in underground colonies due to the storms and acidic rain that could ravage the surface, besides a few more temperate locations where spires were built to withstand the conditions. The Emperors living above-ground was attributed to a blessing from Don Thousand himself- as the Emperors were both vanguards and guardians to the people of Barian World, their placement as the first line of defense was fitting, so a barrier was erected around their home.

Still. Durbe could wish that he was closer to company, if just to compensate for how quiet things had been as of late. With Alito, Girag, Vector and now even Mizael venturing to Earth as part of their hunt for the Numbers, he’d found himself alone with naught but his thoughts. He snuck out sometimes, dressing down into worn cloaks and passing through nearby settlements, trying to understand what the people he protected were thinking. He was a shield, after all, and a shield had to know its wielder to know what to protect them from.

Not that him being a shield had helped Alito and Girag… now they were both still in recovery after their duels with Yuma Tsukumo. Even Mizael had failed to defeat Yuma, owing to the interruption of Kaito Tenjo and the overwhelming power of Neo-Tachyon.

Durbe never liked being alone with his thoughts. Not since… their departure. It would always provoke fits of melancholy that left him both eager to be alone so he could wallow and fester in the misery, but also crave contact to break him out of his woes. The issue, unfortunately, was that none of the other Emperors were as accommodating about such issues of the mind as Durbe needed.

Alito’s idea of recovery and improving his mood would inevitably extend to just trying to ask Durbe for a spar, where Durbe would either be thrown around like a ragdoll or he would get angry during it and take the spar too seriously. Girag would suggest hobbies, as if horticulture would fill the hole in his soul (Barian World being uniquely difficult to grow anything in did not help this issue). Mizael would bluntly tell him to get over himself and put him down until he provoked a reaction and got Durbe heated up enough to temporarily melt away the frozen sorrows that chained his heart.

And Vector? Oh, Durbe knew better than to even imply anything in relation to weakness around Vector. Nothing good would come of enabling that particular wild card. He’d have better luck visiting Earth and finding an alley cat to vent at. At least the cat would scratch him upfront.

Durbe found himself in front of Alito and Girag’s worryingly still bodies. It had been over a week since they had been dragged here by Mizael, and they still showed no signs of waking up even as the worst of the physical damage was repaired. A shield was only as good as the arms who held it. Right now Durbe felt as if his wrists had been shattered, looking at the two brawlers curled up in stasis. He felt inept, stuck here while his brethren were risking everything, and all he could do was watch in the hopes they would wake up. He couldn’t do this again, watch more of his comrades die while he was powerless to prevent anything- 

Durbe’s attention was drawn to a pair of echoing footsteps and the swish of a cloak as Mizael walked past him.

“You’re aware of what this means,” Mizael said to break the silence, eyes glancing over Alito and Girag’s crystals. “Aren’t you Durbe?”

“I am,” Durbe replied, burying everything he could- grief, sentiment, solitude and that miserable loneliness that ate at him whenever he looked at the sea or saw a particular shade of blue- down into a ball and leaving it in his stomach. He had practice at this compartmentalization- enough for it to be instinct when not alone. His people still needed him to be unbreakable, he could finally shatter when no one was looking. “You want me to take to the field as well, then.”

Mizael scoffed. “With how long you’ve been in this tower, forgive me if I want to make sure my hunting partner’s eyes are still as sharp as they were.” 

Durbe hummed. “You need not worry. If you’ll have me, I’ll join the fray.”

“Good.” Mizael looked away, motioning with his head for Durbe to follow him out onto a balcony overlooking Barian World. Lightning crackled in the distance. “It would do you well to leave here once in a while. Don’t think we don’t notice you buckling, Durbe. You need an outlet or else you’ll break- and then you’ll make Alito look like the pinnacle of productivity.” 

Durbe’s hand stretched out, his grip becoming tight enough he thinks he can feel the balcony groaning, like it won't even shatter as much as just instantly turn into powdered dust. "Alito is injured and Girag went on a warpath that I couldn’t control, Vector is out doing anything but his job, and you expect me to be calm?"

"You forget yourself, Durbe," Mizael interjected, curt and blunt in equal measure. "You took that mantle of your own free will. You tied yourself to that cross of acting like a leader, you need not complain now when the nail digs deeper than your martyr complex is comfortable with."

He was right, of course. It did make Durbe wish to strike at him physically for an impulsive, acidic moment that left his system as quickly as it entered, but the rational part of Durbe's psyche knew Mizael spoke the truth.

"I was the only one willing to step up after Nasch and Merag vanished.” Durbe pressed, the fire in his stomach letting him say their names without stumbling. “Would you have offered to lead in their absence, or would you rather Vector, Thousand forbid, be offered leadership over us?" Durbe snapped.

Mizael’s eyes narrowed, shimmering slightly. "Control yourself. Do not think because I respect you that I won’t let you speak to me like that again without drawing blood. If you cannot do that, then never darken my door again for advice. A shield does not lash out at those who smash against it, it protects. Remember your duty, to both us and to Barian World, or you will shatter and be little more than shards." Mizael stepped closer into Durbe's personal space, his voice softening ever so slightly. "And we both know you're better than that, or this. We need you at your best." He hesitated for a moment. “I need you at your best.”

Durbe paused for a moment, collecting himself. “You… are right. I apologize, Mizael. Forgive me.”

Mizael scoffed. “You’re always forgiven, you know that,” he muttered, looking away suddenly as if admitting to the sentimentality was beneath him. “But earn that forgiveness as well through actions if you care to.” He added as an afterthought.

“I will. And you don’t have to worry. I will guide us to the best future possible.”

“Well, ya heard it from our self-proclaimed glorious leader! We need not worry, but especially now that I’m here! Come on, lend your sorrows to your old buddy, old pal, Vector!”  

Durbe and Mizael shared a look of mutual irritation as a mocking voice rang up from the top of the staircase inside of the throne room, a cloaked figure in purple- as familiar as he was vexing- manifesting in a gaudy sitting position. Durbe must have told him a hundred times to get off the chair, Nasch at least a hundred and one times, before they’d given up and let him sit up there to feel tall. 

“Vector,” Mizael called up the stairs in an even tone as they walked back inside. “I was beginning to wonder if you’d make your little vacation on Earth permanent- don’t think I didn’t see you snooping while I did your job for you and attacked Tsukumo.” 

“Aww, Miza!” Vector held a palm over his crystal. “Were you looking out for little old me? I’m touched.” 

“Hardly,” Mizael scoffed, “I was just looking for your location in the hopes I could kill you in the crossfire. I was beginning to enjoy hearing myself think again around here.” 

“Don’t worry! With Alito and Girag out for this round and Durbe being… well, his usual self… I’ll just have to be twice as loud to fill out the palace!” Vector stood up and warped down beside Girag and Alito’s crystals, tsking to himself as he looked them over. “Man, they got messed up! Guess they got sloppy relying on Earth’s sub-par hired help, and then that rust let that brat Yuma walk them like dogs!” 

Mizael’s eyes narrowed into pinpricks. With naught but a snarl, he reached out, claws extended to rip Vector’s throat open- before Durbe caught his wrist, pulling him to a stop inches away.

“Calm yourself, Mizael,” Durbe said in a low voice, feeling Mizael shaking in rage beneath his grip. “He’s not worth it.” 

Vector leaned in, eyes wide in manic glee as he rubbed his cheek against Mizael’s claws. “I wonder what I’d have to do to be worth it in your eyes, Durbe,” he purred, making direct eye contact. 

Durbe ignored him. Vector liked getting under people’s skin, it was just easier sometimes to tune him out, then imagine throttling him later as a form of self-care. “We can’t afford to be fighting amongst ourselves,” he insisted to Mizael. “Not now.” 

The tension in Mizael’s body slowly abated. He pulled himself free, glaring at Vector. “Next time, I won’t stop,” he vowed. 

“Please,” Vector replied in a jaunty tone, “Don’t! One of us needs to spice up this place. A bit of blood on the wall would do wonders for the decor, if also impact the resale value.” 

Mizael and Durbe shared another look before Durbe swallowed his irritation. “Vector, your arrival is… unexpected. Why are you here? We haven’t heard from you since your pawns on Earth failed.”

“Perhaps he’s finally learned about the meaning of accountability,” Mizael muttered.

“Accountability?” Vector threw his arms out with a giggle. “That would imply I’ve lost! No, I’ve been playing the long game with Earth’s new guardians, setting them all up so that I can cut them all down in one swoop.” Vector shrugged. “Take a loss here or there, so a big one can be all the better.” He leaned in again, eyes wide. “Come on, don’t you trust your good old buddy Vector?” 

“No.” Mizael and Durbe said immediately in a deadpan tone.

Vector had the audacity to pout at that. “You two are such party poopers… ah well! Guess I won’t tell you about the super secret final part of my plan to kill Astral!~”

Durbe sighed internally. “Wait. Tell us about your plan.”

“Really, I mean if you don’t trust me I better get back to my cover job as the best friend of Yuma-” Vector turned to leave. 

“Just talk,” Mizael interrupted brusquely, his voice practically a growl.

“Alright, alright! Tell me lads.” Vector’s body language shifted to that of a cat with all the cream in the world. “Ever wanted to go see Sargasso this time of year?” 

“I can’t believe I missed Umimi Habara having a Duel at our school- her last one before she goes on maternity leave, no less!” Rio lamented as she left Heartland Academy. “All because Ryoga had to start whining during my show, which threw me off my game!”

“... And because you threw a shoe at him,” Kotori wryly noted.

“Not just a shoe. Both, actually.” Rio admitted. “The whole show had to be stopped because we nearly had a Duel right there until I was dragged off-stage.” 

“A duel?” Kotori snorted. “It sounds more like you were about to attack him physically.”

“With Ryoga and I, the difference is borderline negligible,” Rio admitted. “But who was Yuma dueling with then for that event?” 

“Oh.” Kotori’s eyes narrowed while she rolled them in exasperation. “Anna. She’s this loose cannon lunatic- and I mean that quite literally- who we met during the WDC. She swiped my uniform because she’s Habara’s friend and wanted to face her again.”

“She sounds fun.” Rio said diplomatically. 

“The first time we met, she chased Yuma and I across the city. For four hours.” Kotori threw her hands into the air in exasperation. "We had to jump off a moving rollercoaster!"

Rio giggled. “OK that does sound a bit funny.” 

Kotori grumbled. “Remind me to tell you the full story later, I have to catch up with Yuma for his Barian patrols.” She paused. “Oh, and remind me to show you that costume I got for the event- I lost a bet with Yuma so he got to pick my theme, so if you ever wanted to see me dressed up as Gagaga Girl in a cafe setting, your day’s just been made!”

“O-oh!” Rio coughed abruptly, turning similarly red and narrowly avoiding walking into a pole at that mental image. “Well, uh, that sounds great. I know you put work into that costume. And, err, I can dig up some recordings of the show- like rehearsals and everything if you wanted to see me pull off that stupid gown.” Hell, she'd steal the damn thing if Kotori wanted.

“Sounds like a date! Talk later!” Kotori took off in a jog, turning quickly to wave at Rio before she rounded a corner.

Rio took a moment to sigh in bliss. The world was gonna have to work hard to ruin today, with how fast her heart was racing. 

Rio needed to stop tempting fate, she thought glumly as she raced after Ryoga. He’d spotted what he’d referred to as a “freaky flying death ball,” that barrelled through a building near school, with the two chasing it to come across Yuma shrieking into the sky as Kaito touched down from above.

“Yuma, collect yourself,” he was trying to say, only for Yuma to keep rushing around where Shingetsu had allegedly just vanished into thin air at the hands of a Barian named Vector. 

“Kaito, you gotta help me- no, actually, I’m telling you you’re gonna help me, OK?! You gotta help me find Vector!” Yuma rushed forward, grabbing Kaito’s collar in a mixture of plea and threat that rushed out of his mouth in a geyser of words.

Kaito stiffened at the contact, hands clenching and unclenching as he took a steadying breath. “Get your hands off me,” he said in a low, calm voice, “and stop screaming in my ear so I know what happened and can help you. Now calm down, it’s unsightly.”

Ryoga came over, tugging Yuma back by the bicep. “Breathe, Yuma, you gotta tell us what happened, preferably before Kaito slaps you.”

Yuma stepped back as he was pried off Kaito, legs shaking. “I- we were just attacked by a Barian, and it took Rei! You gotta help me!”

“We will,” Ryoga murmured calmly, pulling Yuma back a bit more. Yuma collapsed against him while he struggled to find his breath. “Just breathe, OK? Let’s get off the streets and talk this out.”

Kaito nodded, fixing his collar. “I have a safe location where we can talk. Come with me.”

“I still think you could have let them in,” Rio muttered as Yuma finished explaining his duel with Vector to Kaito and Ryoga. She still thought she could hear the Numbers Club protesting when Kaito bluntly warned them all to stay outside the tower he’d brought them to before sealing the door in an indignant Tetsuo’s face.

“Haruto and I live here, I’m not compromising his privacy or security by letting in more people than I need to,” Kaito said brusquely from where he was leaning by the window. “You’re only here because I know better than to say no to you if I plan on having a productive day.” 

“I am kind of annoying like that,” Rio said cheekily, prompting Kaito to roll his eyes, lips twitching upwards. 

“This Vector guy,” Ryoga said loud enough to catch their attention from where he was sitting by Yuma, “You’re saying he was the Barian who was also behind Tron and Faker’s plans at the World Duel Carnival?” He frowned while Yuma nodded. “I thought for sure he was toast after the whooping we gave him while he was possessing Kaito’s dirtbag father… no offense,” he added as a hasty afterthought.

“Did you see me complaining about getting to vent some catharsis about fighting him back then? It’s certainly kinder than many of the things I’ve said about him,” Kaito shrugged.

“If Vector was behind Faker and Tron’s plans, that also means I owe him some payback by proxy,” Rio added in a cold tone that seemed to lower the temperature by a few degrees. Ryoga met her eyes and nodded.

“Both of us,” he said threateningly, “have some scores to settle.”

“Yes, I’m sure you both will have some valiant revenge quests, going off Ryoga’s performance in the World Duel Carnival,” Kaito added drily, “but how do you plan on finding this Vector?”

“Who cares about a plan?” Ryoga snapped. “I’ll figure that out while I’m bashing Vector’s brains in!”

Kaito let out a quiet sigh of disappointment. “A simple plan for a simple fool. I see why your sister is smarter than you.”

“Why I oughta-!” Ryoga got up at that and started to storm over to Kaito before a rumbling vibration made everyone tense up, alongside a large crashing impact from above.

“K-Kaito-Sama!” Orbital’s face popped up on a nearby monitor. “A massive surge in gravitational energy just hit the roof! Something really big!”

“Could it be the Barians?” Yuma whispered to himself.

Kaito sighed. “It never rains, it pours,” he muttered to himself before pushing off the window. “Come on!”

The elevator was cramped, not helped by Yuma still fidgeting from excess energy. It meant he was the first one out of the elevator when it opened up, before he skidded to a halt as his key lit up like a lighthouse signal, a golden aura of energy that shot up like a lightning bolt. It erupted up in the lower atmosphere, forming spheres of energy that had the building rumbling under everyone’s feet, the light growing to a blinding level that had them squinting and covering their eyes. Rio blinked rapidly, hissing before she looked up and let out a gasp of awe.

In the distance, descending towards the tower was a ship held aloft by a blimp-like structure- except it was made of clockwork components and gears, all shimmering with a soft golden light. 

“That ship…” Kaito muttered in disbelief. “I’ve seen it before!”

“You can see it as you duck,” Ryoga roared as he grabbed Yuma and threw him back, “It’s coming this way!”

The ship slammed against the tower, kicking up a veritable mountain of dust that knocked everyone off their feet. As the smoke cleared, they looked up at the ship overhead.

“That’s definitely the ship I saw in the Emperor’s Key,” Kaito said to himself. 

“But how’s it out here in the real world?” Yuma said in disbelief. His key lit up again as Astral materialized, arms crossed. “Astral! Did you do that?” 

Kaito stared at the ship, before pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his eyes. “Yuma,” he said in a dangerously calm voice, “did Astral just crash a spaceship on my roof?”  

“It would appear he did,” Yuma said in dull, wide-eyed shock.

“... You’re paying for that,” Kaito muttered.

“Hey!” Yuma protested.

“I know where we need to go,” Astral proclaimed. “The Number that Yuma and I took from Vector contained what I needed to control the ship. It also had coordinates.”

“That’s convenient,” Kaito muttered. 

“Exceptionally so,” Astral agreed. “But it’s more of an idea than we would have had previously.” 

“Why, where do these coordinates go?” Rio asked.

“I believe they would take us directly to Barian World,” Astral said simply. “With how Vector placed the coordinates inside of the Number he left us, I imagine your friend Shingetsu will be there as well.”

“Sweet,” Ryoga grinned. “Now we know where to go, we can go wipe out that Barian blowhard off the hard and be home in time for supper.”

“Hold your horses,” Kaito interjected. “This is way too convenient. We went from having no plan to a perfect location?”

“This reeks of a trap,” Rio concurred.

“What, you two getting scared over there?” Ryoga’s grin widened.

Kaito and Rio stiffened. “What the heck are you implying-” Rio started.

“Hey it’s fine,” Ryoga threw up his hands in a mocking attempt to placate them. “Yuma and I can handle it and you two stay behind, play house, it’ll be fine!”

Kaito pinched the bridge of his nose again. “Gods above, I might actually throw you off the roof this time, you stubborn manchild.” He hissed.

“I’ll help,” Rio growled as she shot daggers with her eyes at Ryoga, who kept preening like a peacock.

“Will you three knock it off?!” Yuma snapped. “It doesn’t matter either way, I’m gonna save Shingetsu and I’ll do it alone!” 

“The hell you will!” the previously bickering trio said instantly, united in rejecting Yuma's martyr complex. 

"You are not pulling a Fudo and leaving us behind the first chance you get to sacrifice yourself!" Ryoga said bluntly.

“You can settle this later,” Astral interjected. “The ship needs to charge up before setting course for Barian World. The earliest we can leave is tomorrow morning at sunrise. There is enough room that I will take anyone who is here. In the meantime, Yuma, we need to prepare strategies.” Astral nodded at everyone. “I will see you all tomorrow, if you still wish to join us.”

Ryoga took the long way around on their return trip home. He did that sometimes when he needed to really think, clear his head and to let go of any lingering issues from the day before getting home, and because, much as Rio knew he’d never admit it, he liked to stop and look at Heartland at night all lit up from the vistas. 

He had pulled over and they were perched up there at an observation deck, the city sprawling out below them almost as far as the eye could see. 

“So, interstellar road trip to Barian World tomorrow, huh?” Rio said after a few minutes of pensive silence. She kicked her legs too and fro while she sat on the railing. “Guess it’s a good thing school’s out tomorrow.”

Ryoga let out a bemused huff in response. “Yeah, lucky me and my stellar attendance record.” He kept looking out at the view, his expression giving nothing away. “Alright, what time are we getting up tomorrow?”

“We?” Rio looked over from where she sat. “I was spending the last few minutes thinking of how I’d annoy you into not complaining about me tagging along.”

“Sorry to waste your brain on that- all one brain cell you got up there.” Ryoga responded drily as Rio pouted. “But let’s be blunt, you’d force your way onboard if I say no, so what’s the point making a whole thing of it?”

Rio giggled in response. “Good to know you admit I have more perseverance than you.”

Ryoga sighed, rolling his shoulders. “Look, I’d rather you not go if I’m being honest, but you made your point about that with the whole squabble duel. I can’t mother-hen your butt forever, so I have to be willing to let you go along with us.”

“Look at that, you can grow and acknowledge fault,” Rio said cheekily, giggling at Ryoga rolling his eyes in exasperation before he lifted up an index finger.

“I have one request though. It may not be this time with going after Vector, it may not be next time we get roped into Barian misadventures, but if I do think something’s too crazy, or you get injured, I want you to trust me and let me say no.”

“You’re asking for veto privileges?” Rio said incredulously. 

“I’m asking you to trust me,” Ryoga enunciated. “Like how you want me to trust you with this.”

Rio hopped off the railing, sighing. “I can’t argue with that,” she admitted. “Here, hold out your pinky.”

“My pinky?” Ryoga scoffed. “What, are we seven years old again?” 

“Just do it before I splice your hair-care products with onions.” Rio threatened.

Ryoga lazily flipped Rio off before offering a pinkie. “Just get it over with,” he admitted while looking away. 

“Maybe you’re the one whose seven,” Rio said glibly before clearing her throat. “I promise that I will respect your opinions and listen if you suggest I’m in over my head.” 

Ryoga rolled his eyes. “And I promise to trust you to know your limits while I… reluctantly… let you join this adventure.” He said, making eye contact as he did.

“Was that so hard?” Rio said mockingly as they pulled back from each other.

“Bite me.” Ryoga said without any real venom. “Now let’s go find a 24 hour convenience store, I just know Yuma or Kaito are gonna forget to bring food and then they’ll complain about being hungry.”

“How caring of you.” Rio murmured as she fastened her helmet and sat in the bike’s back seat.

Ryoga shot her a look over his shoulder. “You tell anyone I said that and the footage of you throwing a shoe at me at your concert goes viral!” 

“It was a stage production, you plebeian!” Rio barked over the roar of the engine as Ryoga shot off into the night.

Private messages: Kotori, M, and Rio, K.

Kotori, M: (10.01 PM) So, road trip tomorrow?

Rio, K: (10.03 PM) I couldn’t possibly say. ;) Yuma let slip I assume?

Kotori, M (10.03 PM): He did, but it was also hard to not notice the giant space-blimp in the sky that appeared over Kaito’s tower. 

Rio, K: (10.04 PM) Oh, careful, in Heartland that could well be some new crazy theme park advertisement.

Kotori, M: (10.04 PM) After the WDC I’d be comfortable staying out of a theme park for a while more.

Rio, K: (10.05 PM) Ha. But yeah, road trip tomorrow! Lemme guess, the rest of the Numbers Club want to tag along?

Kotori, M: (10.05 PM) It’s this or the Physics paper I’ve been putting off for two weeks, please be my angel and provide salvation.

Rio, K: (10.06 PM) Your savior has arrived, little bird. Don’t tell anyone how you got these, but these are the passcodes for Kaito’s tower. Head straight to the roof! We’re leaving at 6.

Kotori, M: (10.07 PM) My hero. Swoons. I’ll have to find a way to make it up to you. ;)

Rio, K: (10.08 PM) I accept bribe payments in freshly-baked goods and aquarium tickets for two with darlings like yourself. :) 

“Oh yo, you’re all up early!” Yuma said cheerfully as he climbed up to the roof where Ryoga, Rio and Kaito were waiting.

“Whose fault is that again,” Ryoga muttered, even as his attention did shift fully to Yuma as he walked over.

“Sorry Shark, I know you and Shark-Sis love your beauty sleep-” Yuma paused, hastily slapping his hand over his mouth as Rio started storming towards him. “Wait Rio! Before you kill me, I brought you a crepe!”

Everyone ignored that he clearly did not buy a crepe for Rio as he fished one out of his knapsack as tribute.

Rio paused, taking the offered tribute and sniffing at it. “Good enough,” she said with a foreboding air before flipping on a dime and smiling. “Good morning Yuma!”

“... Hi!... Didn’t expect Shark to be cool with you coming along…” Yuma said awkwardly.

“Like you think she listens to me,” Ryoga muttered, while Rio only laughed in response. 

“Yuma,” Astral said as he materialized, “The ship is ready. We can depart whenever you want.”

“All right!” Yuma pumped his fist. “But uh, how do we get aboard?” He squinted at the ship. “Is there gonna be a ramp, or…” he muttered to himself. 

“No Yuma,” Astral snapped his fingers, prompting a green circle to surround Yuma. “The Flash Transporter will get us up there.” 

Yuma cooed in response, still staring up at the ship as the circle suddenly filled with the Numbers Club members desperately running in last second.

“What the heck? How did you guys get up here!” Yuma squawked as his personal space was invaded.

“I’d like to know that too,” Kaito muttered darkly. 

Rio whistled innocently.

“Guys, I don’t wanna risk anyone else getting hurt…” Yuma trailed off.

“Shingetsu’s our friend too, Yuma.” Tetsuo said firmly. “We wanna save him as much as you!”

“You’d butt your head in if any of us tried to do this solo,” Kotori added. “So it only makes sense that we do the same before you rush into danger.”

Yuma let out an emotional ‘heh.’ “You guys rock,” he eventually said. 

“Yeah, yeah, we love you too, Yuma,” Tokunoske said, rubbing at his glasses. “Can we go yet?” 

“Final preparations are complete,” Astral said above them. “Commencing Flash Transport.”

“This should be fun,” Rio murmured to Ryoga, who responded with a grunt as the green energy around them began to intensify.

“I’ll be surprised if we make it two hours before Yuma crashes the ship.” He replied with a  sardonic wink.

“So… we crashed,” Rio managed to say as she picked herself up from the tarmac she landed on, doing her best not to freak out at the purple void that surrounded her. “Not sure if we made it two hours, though.”

“I hate to say I told you so, but, I totally told you so,” Ryoga moaned from where he was still lying face-down on the ground a bit ahead of her. “At least the little picnic was interrupted so I have nothing to throw up,” he added. 

“You guys OK over there?!” Tetsuo called from a nearby platform. 

“We’ll be fine, once Ryoga gets over his sea legs. Or, space legs, as the case may be,” Rio replied, watching as Ryoga finally picked himself up. She could make out Yuma in the distance, looking around alongside Astral. Her Duel Disk lit up with a communication from Kaito that opened up view screens around Rio as she slipped on her Duel Gazer.

“I’m opening a shared channel, we should be able to maintain contact. Kotori, you’re our eyes inside the ship, so stay on this channel.”

“Got it!” Kotori said firmly. 

“Guys, are those… aircraft carriers?” Cathy murmured in the background of Kotori’s feed.

“They sure look like them,” Ryoga said to himself. He kicked at the ground. “I don’t know if this is a road or a torn-out runway. Either way, Barian World Is way less clean than I thought. Their exterior decoration sucks.”

“I doubt we made it into the Barian World,” Kaito responded. Rio turned around, seeing him on a distant platform doing scans with Orbital. “These coordinates don’t match up with the ones Astral acquired from the Number left behind by Vector. We got knocked off course.”

“In summation, we walked into a trap?” Todoroki asked.

“Yep,” Kaito and Rio replied in the same deadpan tone before a flash of purple landed near Yuma.

“Yo, Yuma! Welcome to Sargasso!” Vector chuckled as his cloaked form stood on a separate floating platform opposite from Yuma.

“Vector! It was you who led us here!” Yuma cried out.

“Why, how dare! It’s not my fault you took the bait and followed the trap I set up in Master Key Beetle!”

“Like I care either way! Just tell me where Shingetsu is!” Yuma roared.

“Ugh, and all the work I did to set this up for you…” Vector had the audacity to pout. “So ungrateful. But fine, if you want your friend… have your little Sleeping Beauty back.” Rio could just make out a red-headed figure in a familiar white shirt appearing and slumping over. “Unfortunately, all the fun we had just tuckered little Rei out… he’s not gonna be waking up for a while. Or ever, for that matter!”

Rio and Ryoga looked at each other with narrowed eyes as Vector giggled to himself, while Kotori’s feed was filled with an array of shocked gasps as Yuma let out an agonized howl of sorrow and rage.

Ryoga let out a pained breath. “Ah, Yuma…” his hand reached out subconsciously as he watched Yuma fall to his knees with a pained sob.

“You must be Ryoga Kamishiro,” a calm voice called out from their left. Rio and Ryoga turned to face a new cloaked figure in gray and black. 

“And who the heck are you?” Ryoga snarled back, raising his fist.

“You may call me Durbe. I will be your opponent today.” Durbe raised his arm to show a Duel Disk manifesting on his arm. “Prepare yourself.” 

“Finally, I get to fight a real Barian, no patsies or mind controlled psychos like Art Stanely this time. I’ve been waiting for this!” Ryoga retorted. 

As Ryoga and Durbe spoke, Rio’s communication system picked up a new channel. “It’s been a while, Kaito!” 

Kaito let out a sigh. “Mizael. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised you showed up.”

“Sargasso will provide the perfect arena for us to do battle!” Mizael gestured towards the void surrounding them. “No collapsing Sphere Field to save you this time, this is an arena built to house all of my power and then some. Prepare yourself!” 

Durbe looked over at Rio and Tetsuo. “My quarrel is only with Ryoga. Step aside, I've no wish to harm either of you.” 

“Pity!” Rio retorted as she stepped up beside Ryoga. “The feeling’s not mutual!” 

Ryoga stiffened as Rio came up beside him. “What’re you doing?” He hissed. 

“Having your back, duh. Did you really think I’d just stand on the sidelines and let you fight a Barian alone?”

“Uh, yes?” Ryoga leaned in. “Rio, these guys are gonna have Numbers. This is way different from the brainwashed ones running random stuff.”

“I know,” Rio replied firmly. “I’ve been working on some ideas for this. Just… Do you trust me?” 

They looked at each other for a moment before Ryoga let out a sigh. “Of course I do, you maniac. Fine, we’ll take him together.”

“I would prefer not to fight you, but if you wish to stand by your brother, then so be it.” Durbe leveled his duel disk at them, eyes as hard as stone. 

“You’re about to get washed up!” Ryoga called out as his and Rio’s Duel Disks snapped on. Elsewhere, Yuma and Kaito also readied themselves against Vector and Mizael.

“Duel!” 

“I’ll take the first turn,” Ryoga called out as he drew. “I summon Double Fin Shark, and because I now control a Water Attribute Monster, I can Special Summon Silent Angler from my hand!”  Ryoga lifted his hand to the air as his monsters materialized. “Double Fin Shark can be treated as two XYZ Materials for the summon of a Water XYZ Monster! I overlay Double Fin Shark and Silent Angler!”

“Calling out your ace this early?” Durbe murmured to himself, “You must be in a hurry to help Tsukumo.”

“The ruler of the deepest seas,” Ryoga chanted, pointedly talking over Durbe, “let your sharp fangs exterminate everything! I XYZ Summon! Roar, Number 32- Shark Drake!”

Rio had seen the footage of Shark Drake from the World Duel Carnival, and briefly seen Ryoga call out Shark Drake’s evolved form when he fought Art Stanley. But being this close to a Number being called out was entirely different, like reality itself was being torn asunder to facilitate the summon of Ryoga’s ace. A similar distortion ran out from Yuma’s field as he quickly made Utopia, while Kaito settled for Starliege Lord Galaxion- one of his newer cards to help make Galaxy-Eyes as fast as possible.

“Ha, suckers!” Vector cheered out smugly. “I activate Sargasso, the Different Dimension Battlefield’s effect! All XYZ Summons come at a cost here, specifically a cost of 500 points of damage whenever you summon an XYZ Monster!”

“What?” Yuma barked out. “How did you activate a Field Spell before you even took a turn?!”

“Silly, stupid Yuma,” Vector retorted, “we’re in Sargasso, a land of nothing but unstable wormholes and dimensional distortions! Its power transcends things like the rules of the game, but those rules are gonna hit you and your precious friends now for upsetting the balance!”

Ryoga bit back a curse, growing pale as the sky brightened above himself, Yuma and Kaito. Before he could say anything, three bolts of wrathful lightning struck down, their cries echoing across the battlefield and sending them flying onto their backs.

“Ryoga!” Rio shrieked, watching in horror as Ryoga’s muscles twitched from the leftover electricity. 

“I’m… fine…” Ryoga snarled as he forced himself up. “Good thing we have separate Life Point totals for this at least.”

“There is more!” Mizael proclaimed as Orbital fussed around Kaito. “During the End Phase, a player with an XYZ Monster out on the field takes an extra 500 damage!” 

“That’s insane!” Tetsuo exclaimed. “That’s a thousand damage for every XYZ Summon!” 

“Heh, sounds almost fun in its own way,” Kaito said with a casual grin. 

“Bring it on! I’ll take you down before this Field Spell does!” Ryoga replied with a smile that showed all of his teeth.

Rio looked between Kaito and Ryoga, sighing to herself. “You’re both absolutely insane, and I don’t think I can blame the lightning strike for that.” 

“Well, might as well test that theory,” Ryoga rolled his shoulders. “I set two cards face down and end my turn.” He looked up and gulped. “Let’s just get this over with,” he muttered. Sargasso’s heavens opened up again, the lightning striking at Yuma and Ryoga and sending them flying back again as both ended their turns at the same time.

“Still enjoying yourself?” Rio tried to say sardonically, ignoring the way her fists trembled as Ryoga let out a groan of pain. 

“Peachy,” he replied as he got back up. 

“I’m not done yet!” Kaito proclaimed. “I use Galaxion’s Overlay Units to summon a Galaxy-Eyes Monster from my deck!” 

“Here it comes,” Mizael purred with satisfaction in his voice.

“Galaxy shining in the darkness, become the embodiment of light and rise as my servant! The incarnation of light- descend! Level 8, Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon!” 

Mizael made a show of clapping as Kaito threw a materialized trident into the air, his ace appearing behind him and letting out a proud roar.

“I now set one card, and end my turn.” Kaito barely had time to finish his sentence before Sargasso struck again, the bolt landing square in his chest and driving a strangled gasp from him as he was sent skidding back.

Durbe didn’t enjoy violence. It was a means to an end, often abrupt and messy, but effective. Unlike Alito, who got pleasure from the act of combat and trading blows, or Mizael, who savored the hunt if he found a worthy target, Durbe treated the art of combat as little more than a job or a chore- you didn’t have to like cleaning up after yourself to recognize it as essential work.

But even with that rational detachment, he couldn’t help the shudder of disgust that ran through his system as he heard Vector speak to Yuma Tsukumo. Vector was a sadist with no equal, one who would thank you for the compliment if you said it to his face. The way he needled and prodded at Tsukumo during his turn had Durbe looking away, taking in the way Rio Kamishiro kept her gaze on him for the majority of her brother’s turn, even as Ryoga took two hits from Sargasso. 

She’d be up next, now, after him. That was the rule for a 2v1 duel, alongside that Durbe would receive a boost in Life Points to compensate for the disadvantage- not that he was too afraid. He had heard of the Kamishiros and their prowess before, but Rio didn’t have a Number, so there was little he had to worry about.

“It is now my turn!” He called out. “I draw!” 

Durbe had already had a plan of attack for this turn even before Shark Drake had taken to the field, so his new draw was accounted for in seconds as he pivoted.

“I summon Star Seraph Scout!” An ethereal light materialized behind Durbe as an angelic figurehead appeared, glowing yellow lines illuminating it. “When Scout is summoned, I Special Summon another Star Seraph from my hand! Rise now, Star Seraph Sage!” 

“Two Level 4s,” Ryoga noted. “Let’s see what you’re made of!” He barked confidently. 

“Why stop at two? I discard a Spell Card to activate Sage’s effect! This lets me Special Summon another Star Seraph! I discard Sargasso’s Lighthouse to Special Summon Star Seraph Scale!” 

“That Lighthouse card…” Rio frowned. “Vector just played that to dodge Sargasso’s damage!”

“Correct.” Durbe nodded. “While Sargasso’s Lighthouse is in my Graveyard, I take no damage from either of Sargasso’s effects.”

“How cheap of you,” Rio scoffed. “About what I expect from a Barian, though.”  

“Call it what you will, I call it pragmatism to save my home! I Overlay my Level 4 Scout, Sage and Scale! With these three Monsters, I build the Overlay Network!””

“Three materials? That can only mean one thing…” Tetsuo said.

“Manipulator of light... Transcend immemorial time now, and, clad in light, descend to this land!” Durbe chanted. “ I XYZ Summon! Number One Hundred and Two, Star Seraph Sentry!” 

It had been a while, Durbe realized, since he had called on Star Seraph Sentry in a real fight like this. It seemed to feel the same, as it made sure to unleash a blinding array of light that had the Kamishiros and Tetsuo recoiling from the brightness of it. A glorious halo formed around Sentry as it took to the field, an arrow already notched from its ever-present bow.

“That’s his Over Hundred Number,” Rio murmured. She blinked rapidly. “Weird…”

“What’s wrong, Rio?” Tetsuo called out, concern etched on his face.

“I just… it feels weirdly familiar-”

Rio’s confusion was wiped off her face by a sudden explosion to her left as Mizael was sent flying, Sargasso taking its toll as he summoned Tachyon Dragon.

“Are you not running Sargasso’s Lighthouse?” Kaito observed while Mizael picked himself up.

“Oh no, I am… but I just consider it a coward’s card!” He roared over the battlefield, “Fighting in Sargasso should come with consequence, dodging its costs to make a fight uneven is how losers think!” 

Durbe scoffed under his breath. “You sound like Alito,” he muttered.

“It’s OK Miza!” Vector stopped tormenting Yuma for a second to give Mizael his full attention from across the field. “I also make stupid choices for my pride!” 

“You two wouldn’t get it. You’re only obsessed with winning at any costs, or getting your sick kicks.” Mizael managed the impressive feat of emulating the sound of spitting despite lacking a mouth. “Folly! There’s no meaning to a victory here against Kaito if I’m not paying the same blood, sweat and tears as him! If I’m to earn the mantle of the master of Galaxy-Eyes, it has to be an even fight!” 

Vector shrugged. “Whatever gets your rocks off!” He said in a jaunty tone.” Anyway Yuma, where were we again? Was I about to end my turn? Oh yeah, silly me,  Masquerade, attack Utopia!” 

Kaito let out a small smirk. “Your funeral, then.” Their dragons roared, making the platform they were on vibrate. 

“Time and space are colliding again- no!” Rio murmured, her eyes flickering between green and red before she gritted her teeth, smacking her palm against her head. When her eyes opened again they were their usual shade of red. 

Durbe was a little glad Barians didn’t have visible mouths, or the Kamishiros would have noticed him staring in open shock for a second at that. Visions. Like her. Like Mer-

An explosion shook Sargasso to his left, bringing Durbe back to focus. Vector was lying flat on the ground after Tsukumo had summoned one of Utopia’s Chaos Numbers, destroying Masquerade. A massive smoke cloud obscured Vector from Tsukumo and the others, but not Durbe, who watched stoically as Vector in his human disguise got up, winked at him, and let the clone he’d made for the fight disappear. By the time the smoke cleared, Vector was back on the ground, now hiding his duel disk. 

Durbe really hated pointless theatrics, especially Vector’s kind. His eyes narrowed in disgust as he saw Vector pretend to be his cover identity getting up before turning around and letting out a full-belly cackle that echoed across the three Dueling fields, making everyone pause to look.

“R-Rei? Are you OK?” Yuma’s voice wavered as his “friend” kept laughing. 

“Oh I’m more than OK…” Vector wheezed. “ I’m positively ECSTATIC! This whole thing’s just so funny I could pop a rib from how I’m laughing! Here, lemme show you just how OK I am, YUUUUUMA! BARIAPHOSE!”

Vector’s Barian crystal appeared over his chest, unleashing a gale-storm of energy that made Yuma throw his arms up to protect himself. As he did, Vector changed shape, a haze-like aura surrounding him as his human disguise melted away to reveal his Barian form, wings sprouting from his back.

“You… Vector! You pretended to be Rei?! Where is he!” Yuma roared.

“You…” Vector started to clutch at his sides again. “You can’t actually still be thinking that… surely you’re not that stupid! Oh wait, it's you, of course you are, big old Foolma! HA!” Vector laughed to himself for a moment, savoring how Yuma’s face twisted in agony. “Let me break it down for you, Yuma. I’m Rei and Rei is Vector!”

“But- but how?” Yuma stammered. “I was just dueling Vector, Rei was right there!” 

“Oh, that Vector? Ah, I just made a clone of myself! All of the stunning charm and charisma befitting someone of my brilliance, but none of the brain power!”Vector paused. “So it’s like you that way! Just a brainless fool only good for Dueling!” Vector chucked to himself again. “But while you were so distracted with that, I snuck into your friend group as Rei Shingetsu, learning everything about you that I needed so I could strike when the moment was best Ta-daaaaa! My master plan!”

“Disgusting,” Durbe muttered to himself . He caught Mizael’s eye, who let out an unamused huff of air himself as Vector kept prattling on. 

“Look, Yuma, past a certain point, I’m just gonna be real! I stopped trying, I just started feeding you random crap waiting for the shoe to drop but you kept it in the air impressively long! Like, you actually believed all that stuff I pulled out of my ass about being a secret Barian cop ? About being a Barian Observer? Come on! I expected you to pull the thread at some point , but you were so trusting I built an entire tapestry around you before Astral even found out I’d given you some friendly cards!” 

“What?!” Astral said in a booming voice before turning on Yuma. “You knowingly took cards from a Barian?!”  

“I- Astral, it’s not what it sounds like… “Yuma trailed off.

“Oh but it is! Go on Yuma, tell Astral and Shark about our nightly rendezvous sessions ! Tell them all about how you’d blow them off for some one-on-one time with your bestest buddy Shingetsu at the witching hour, and how you let me change your very deck, with five special cards to represent our… bond!” Vector mimed throwing up. “I can’t even finish that sentence without throwing up, and I don't even have a digestive tract in this form!”

“... Yuma?” Ryoga said quietly to himself in shock. “What’s he talking about?”

“No, no, no!” Yuma’s voice rose in panic. “Shark, Astral, please, I swear, it’s not like that!” 

“You knew all along that Shingetsu was a Barian…” Astral whispered to himself. “You knew, and you lied to us. You lied to me!” 

“For real Yuma,” Vector butted in, “I didn’t really have a plan if Astral caught me, so thanks bestie! You keeping a secret for your best friend, your favorite person,your one and only - because let’s be real, I was way more interesting than Shark when it mattered-”

“Shut your mouth!” Ryoga screamed across the chasm.

“Case in point… all of this is now blowing up in your face! I wonder, are your friends gonna trust you again with anything? I wonder if they’ll all think of this in the future any time you try and save someone- that you willingly let a Barian get as close to you as I did!” 

“SHUT UP!” Yuma screeched through tears, his voice cracking. “JUST SHUT UP! UTOPIA RAY V, DIRECT ATTACK!” 

“I love it when humans get angry,” Vector purred.” it means they walk right into your traps!” He paused for what he probably viewed as comedic effect. “Literally in this case, I activate Vain Sneer of Betrayal! It negates your attack, turns off Utopia Ray V’s special abilities, and oh dear, you have to send all of those cards I gave you to the Graveyard from your deck! And there’s mooooore, Yumaaaaaa! For every V card you have to send, you also have to send the top five cards of your deck to the Graveyard!” Vector paused again, reading over the card. “Oh cool, I also get 500 Life Points for each of those V cards! Amazing how much text they cram on these cards these days!”

“That’s twenty-five cards total!” Tetsuo said, watching through his fingers.

“Plus the five V cards,” Rio muttered in disgust. “Yuma just milled thirty cards!” 

“We have three cards left in our deck,” Astral reported in a dull voice as Yuma shook like a leaf in the wind while his cards were ripped out of his Duel Disk. Durbe almost felt sorry for the poor child, with how fragile he looked, until he noticed Astral again and hardened his resolve- that was the enemy.  

“That’s some low cheating!” Tetsuo cried out. “You stacked Yuma’s deck to make that trap work!”

“If you can find a judge in Sargasso willing to make that call, go ahead and call it cheating!” Vector retorted gleefully in between fits of laughter.

Vector took a break from his manic cackling to lean in. “By the way Yuma, while you process the futility of trying to win with a whole three cards left in your deck over there, lemme just say… Thanks so much for getting all your friends here and on that ship! Saves me a lot of work hunting them all down now, and it serves you right for thinking you were a hero- that you were doing the right thing? Well here’s what trying to do the right thing gets you; stranded in another dimension, where all your friends are about to die because it’s all your fault, Yuma!”

Durbe stiffened at a dry, humorless chuckle from Ryoga. “Your friend there… he’s a right bastard, isn’t he?” 

“I don’t have to approve of Vector’s methods to see they get results. Your chances of escape just plummeted.”

“Don’t rule Yuma out,” Ryoga replied. His eyes shimmered with unshed tears that he wiped away furiously. “He’s an idiot, and an overly trusting moron…but he’s my moron, damnit! And he’s gonna make Vector eat the curb!”

“Then for your sake, I hope he’s as good at performing miracles as he is at lying to you,” Durbe replied coldly.

Ryoga flinched at that, eyes narrowing in anger. “You son of a-”  

“I activate Star Seraph Sentry’s effect!” Durbe interrupted. “I use one Overlay Unit to cut your Monster’s Attack Points in half!” Sentry shot out an arrow into Shark Drake’s chest, the holy lightning radiating from the wound it left and leaving a gouge that slowed Shark Drake down, a violet ichor leaking from the wound in its chest. “Now, battle! Star Seraph Sentry, attack Shark Drake! Lightning Cluster!”  

Sentry collected its entire quiver of arrows, forming them into a lance of lightning that it drove through Shark Drake. Ryoga was sent flying as he roared from the battle, landing on his back while his Life Points dropped to 1900. 

“Ryoga!” Rio called out, turning to watch as her brother picked himself up again. Durbe dimly took note of Mizael taking out Kaito’s own XYZ Monster as they both resumed their attacks, Mizael clearly bored now of Vector’s games. 

Ryoga spat as he got up. “I play my Trap, Shark Revenge Splash! When a Shark monster is destroyed, I can revive it by lowering its Attack Points by 1000! You also take damage equal to my monster’s Attack Points after this, so you’re taking 1800 points!” 

From the cosmic seas that made up Sargasso’s void, Shark Drake rose again, still bearing some of the scars left by Star Seraph Sentry. As it flew back to Ryoga, it fired a bolt of violet energy that transmuted into a miniature version of itself, slamming into Durbe’s chest and knocking him off his feet while his Life Points took a hit. Because he was in a 2v1 Duel he had 8000 Life Points, but losing nearly a quarter of it was still beyond what he expected during his turn. 

Durbe rolled with the landing, catching himself smoothly. “Not bad,” he called out, “But you just summoned another XYZ Monster, so Sargasso’s effect activates!”

Ryoga Kamishiro, to his credit, didn’t cry out from the lightning this time. He hunched over for a second as it coursed over him before he picked himself up. 

Durbe inspected his hand. “I set two cards face down, and end my turn,” Durbe said. 

Rio stepped forward, her face set in a stiff line.

“For what little it might be worth, “ Durbe offered. “I applaud your bravery in facing me and standing beside your brother.”

“For what it’s worth,” Rio spat. “I couldn’t care less what you applaud. It’s my turn! I draw!”

It was all Kotori could do. Watch. Sometimes it felt like it was all she was good for.

Yuma was being tormented by a person they had called a friend, who knew where to plant a knife and twist it to elicit the reactions he wanted. Shark and Rio were facing off against a Barian who so far had juggled dueling them both at the same time with ease, and… she still couldn’t even tolerate looking at Mizael while he fought Kaito. The physical wounds had faded, but she’d still woken up some nights from nightmares involving Mizael appearing out of nowhere like he had that day and sending her flying with another blast into her solar plexus.

It wasn’t fair. She wanted to do more, and a part of her even rationalized that her deck could work around Sargasso’s conditions with relative ease since she wasn’t as reliant on XYZ Monsters- but Kotori knew better. Any of those Barians would eviscerate her in seconds in a real Duel, she just didn’t have the practice or skill yet to keep up, let alone experience. It tore at Kotori, this alternating pity-party of wishing she was out there beside Yuma, and the cold, rational part of her that knew, as much as she hated to admit it… that she’d just get in the way. There was so much she could provide, and she knew that, but it was one thing when her contributions mattered, her support and faith keeping everyone motivated, and an entirely different matter when there was nothing she could do, but watch.

Kotori was keeping an eye on all three of the duels, but her selfish heart kept Shark and Rio’s duel as her central focus. While Kaito made a rebound and summoned Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon, Rio stood defiant against Durbe and his Over Hundred Number, while Shark took a moment to recover from the damage Sargasso had inflicted. 

“I activate the Quick-Play Spell, Swallow’s Cowrie!” Rio called out as her first move. “I tribute a Winged-Beast Monster in my hand or on my field, to add another Winged-Beast of the same level from my deck to my hand! I tribute Sirenorca from my hand, to add Zereort Migrator!”

Shark paused. “Zereort? In the Main Deck?” He murmured over the communications channel. “You’ve changed your deck since our last duel.”

“I told you, I made preparations for Numbers,” Rio shot back, the twins exchanging a smirk. “And now I’ll activate Migrator’s effect from my hand! When a WATER XYZ monster is on the field, I can Special Summon it!” 

“But you don’t have an XYZ Monster on your field, let alone a WATER Attribute!” Durbe said.

“Don’t I?” Rio retorted. “In a 2v1 duel like this, my brother and I are sharing a field, meaning there is in fact an XYZ monster on the field- Shark Drake!” 

Durbe’s eyes widened in surprise. “You knowingly took Sargasso’s damage to set up her combo…” He murmured.

“Not really, I just wanted an excuse to do some damage,” Shark shot back with a lazy grin, “But it happens to help with kicking your butt, so I’ll claim credit for it anyway just to tick you off.” 

As they spoke, Rio’s new Monster took to the field- an armored figure in bright blue equipment and extended wings, sporting a large staff with an amber crystal embedded into it that served as a makeshift hammer.

“At this moment, Star Seraph Scales’ effect activates!” Durbe interjected. “While this card is an Overlay Unit for an XYZ Monster that needs three or more materials, I can draw a card the first time you Special Summon a monster from your hand each turn!”

“I also activate the effect of Crystal Shark from my hand!” Rio continued. “I halve the Attack Points of a Water Monster on the field to Special Summon it! I halve the stats of the Zereort Migrator I just summoned! Arise from the depths, Crystal Shark!”

The ground before Rio splintered apart as a new Shark burst out of it, It was adorned with white armor on some of its fins that had yellow highlights, alongside a tattered veil clinging to it.Its remaining fins had layers of thick ice on them, hardened to protect the beast within.

“Woah,” Todoroki said behind Kotori, “Rio just summoned two Level 5 monsters without even using her Normal Summon! That’s super impressive!” 

Shark let out a chuckle. “And you said you’d never get a good use out of my Sharks.”

“Careful Ryoga, with how dizzy on your feet you look, it’d be a tragic shame if you slipped off the side and fell down into the abyss beneath Sargasso,” Rio replied in a fake cheery tone. 

Durbe stood silently, eyes narrowing as Rio summoned her second monster. “You’re willingly going to face Sargasso’s punishment?” 

“Why not? It’s just pain at the end of the day,and  I’ve survived way worse.” Rio’s eyes narrowed. “And I’ll survive way worse than you after we’re done here.” Rio extended her hand into the air. “I now Overlay my Level 5 Zereort Migratory and Cyrstal Shark! With these two monsters, I build the Overlay Network!” 

The yellow vortex appeared in front of Rio, crackling lighting as her monsters turned into streams of cyan energy and flew in.

“Frozen princess of the coldest lands!” Rio chanted. “Break through the shell of reality and instill the chills of fear in my frozen foes! I XYZ Summon! Rank 5, Ice Princess Zereort!” 

Rio’s ace took to the field, hefting its amber-studded weapon as it squared off against Star Seraph Sentry.  The sky rumbled overhead, Rio looking up and gritting her teeth in preparation. 

“Let’s just get this over with,” she muttered. 

Kotori felt her heart climb into her throat. She didn’t know if she should watch this or look away, torn between wanting to be supportive and also just the instinctual urge of not wanting to see Rio be hurt. It wouldn’t be fair to look away when she had seen the others take damage from Sargasso, but… God, she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t bear to watch and closed the feed as Sargasso’s lightning streaked down towards Rio. 

Kotori didn’t see it, but she still heard it through Todoroki’s feed. A brief yelp and a pained gasp as the bolt struck and difficult breathing done through gritted teeth, a muttered curse from Shark, and a few shaky breaths from Rio’s feed. She nearly gave in and opened up the feed again, before Cathy came over and gently placed a hand over Kotori’s.

“Don’t,” she murmured. “We’ll… tell you when she’s back on her feet. You shouldn’t have to see that.” 

Kotori let out a breath she didn’t know she’d been holding. “Thank you…”

Cathy’s eyes softened, and she gave Kotori a pat on the head. “She’s gonna be OK, they all are.”

“I know,” Kotori said, looking down at her feet. “I just feel horrible that there’s nothing I can do.”

“All we can do right now is be brave and believe in them. Let’s get out of here first, then we can figure the rest out. You with me?” 

Kotori inhaled, counted to four, and exhaled. “Yeah, I will be.”

Cathy nodded and, with Tokunosuke giving a quick nod to confirm it, turned on the feed for Rio. “Now go watch your girlfriend kick that weird Barian catboy’s ass.” 

Rio took one more breath to steady herself before glaring at Durbe. “I activate Zereort’s effect!” She declared. “I use one Overlay Unit to reduce Star Seraph Sentry’s Attack Points to zero for the turn! Sub Zero Subtraction!”

Zereort let out a blistering gale that had Durbe recoiling, while ice climbed up Sentry’s arms and legs to pin it in place. “But your monster isn’t a Number,” he pointed out. “Even if they battle, mine is practically indestructible.” 

“Your Number is indestructible, but your Life Points aren’t.” Rio’s eyes narrowed. “Battle! Zereort, attack Star Seraph Sentry, with Glacial Execution!”  

Zereort swooped forward, bringing its hammer down on Sentry’s chest and pinning it to the ground, creating a massive eruption of frozen air that slicked over the ground around the impact. Durbe was sent skidding back on the ice that formed on the ground while his monster hit the dirt.

“There’s more!” Rio sarcastically bowed to her brother. “Ryoga, mind if I borrow your card for a moment?”

Shark let out a laugh. “Be my guest!” He stood beside Rio. “Shark Drake, attack now!” They said in perfect unison. “Deep Sea Destruction!” 

“Alright!” Tetsuo cheered. “Shark Drake is a Number, so Sentry’s getting sent to the doghouse after this!”

“Not if I play this!” Durbe interjected. “I activate my Trap Card, Unbreakable Halo!” Durbe’s set card flipped up, showing Star Seraph Sentry withstanding a massive blast of energy, aiming an arrow even as its armor cracked under the pressure. “My Star Seraph monsters can’t be destroyed this turn!” 

“But you’ll still take the damage!” Rio retorted as Shark Drake closed in. Sentry was still on the ground as Shark Drake pounced onto the monster, the two skidding across the duel field as Shark Drake brought it into a death roll. Durbe was clipped by one of Shark Drake’s errant strikes, being blown off his feet and landing in a heap, while overhead Shark Drake was shaken off by Star Seraph Sentry and sent back in front of Shark and Rio.

“Hot damn!” Tetsuo cried out. “Rio just did over 4000 damage, and with the 1800 Durbe took earlier, he’s down to his last 1900 points!” 

“There’s more though!” Shark cried out. “You’re not getting another turn, Durbe! I flip over my Trap Card, Full-Armored XYZ! This lets me XYZ Summon even when it’s not my turn! I rebuild the Overlay Network with Shark Drake! Go, Chaos XYZ Evolution!”

“An XYZ Summon outside of your turn?” Durbe exclaimed. 

“And one that’s gonna rock your world!” Shark’’s aura turned a violent shade of purple, whipping around him as Shark Drake transfigured. “Rise from the blood-stained abyss and wear your scars with pride! Chaos Number 32- Shark Drake Veiss!”  

Shark’s evolved ace took to the field, its stark white hide contrasting against the violets and grays of Sargasso. Shark gritted his teeth as Sargasso took another blast at him, knocking him below a thousand, but he stayed standing and bared his teeth at Durbe.

“Lucky me, Shark Drake Veiss doesn’t like when I have more than 1000 Life Points, so that’s just enough of a hit to my points to keep it around! Shark Drake Veiss isn’t losing any attack points like Shark Drake was, so it’s gonna hit you with its full power!” Shark proclaimed. He turned to Rio. “Ready?” 

“Always!” The twins raised their hands together in sync. Some of the purple aura that floated around Shark stretched over to Rio, making her eye blaze in a shade of bloody crimson. “Shark Drake Veiss, attack Star Seraph Sentry! Depth Chaos Bite!”  

“If that attack lands, Shark and Rio will win!” Cathy noted.

“I reveal my other face-down!” Durbe called out as Shark Drake Veiss opened fire, an avalanche of blasts rocking the battlefield towards Star Seraph Sentry. His Trap flipped up to show Star Seraph Sword, Scales and Scout forming a protective shield around a battered Sentry. “Seraph's Rejuvenation! I target Shark Drake Veiss to gain Life Points equal to its Attack Points!” Durbe threw his arms up in front of his face as the attack landed, sending him flying from the impact and rolling when he crashed into the ground. 

Durbe groaned as he picked himself up. “Impressive,” he admitted, “but not enough. My Number survived the battle.” 

“You are talking very confidently for a person who has just almost all of his Life Points,” Rio muttered. “But we’ll see how your attitude holds up! I set two cards and end my turn.” She made an expression of disgust as Sargasso crackled overhead. “And I know what that means,” she added darkly, pushing Shark back in time.

Sargasso’s wrath struck at Rio again. Kotori looked away right before it did, but Rio’s exclamation of pain still seared its way into her brain. She opened her eyes again to the sight of Rio forcing herself up, her left arm twitching, while Shark offered her a hand up that she took.

“You’ve got this,” Kotori whispered to herself. “You’ve nearly got him, just hold on a bit longer.” She was gonna pamper Rio for a week after this.

“Hey everyone?” Tokunosuke said in growing horror behind Kotori. “Why are we tilting?”  

“You two remind me of someone I once knew,” Durbe admitted to himself as Rio stood up again. “Old friends of mine, you fight with the same passion and ferocity that they could, where every attack was fuelled by their very souls. It’s enough to make me wish we could meet in a world without a conflict driving us apart.”

“This isn’t that world though!” Ryoga snapped at Durbe.

“You’re right,” Durbe replied softly. "It isn’t.So I now do what I must for the people I swore a vow to protect!” Durbe’s eyes gleamed a shade of red. “It’s my turn, I draw!”

Durbe looked down at his new card impassively before raising it above his head. “I now activate Rank-Up-Magic Barian’s Force! I use Star Seraph Sentry to rebuild the Overlay Network! Go, Chaos XYZ Evolution!”  

Star Seraph Sentry’s bow evaporated into light particles as a chaotic maelstrom appeared overhead. It flew up into the void, becoming surrounded by malevolent energy that had Rio and Ryoga covering their eyes.

“Fallen angel, carry the mantle of darkness to serve as the champion of my light!” Durbe roared. “Manifest as the wielder of unholy lightning, Chaos Number 102: Archfiend Seraph!”

The monster that appeared behind Durbe crackled with red lightning as it formed from the chaos portals, trading in a bow for a spear and its angelic armor for muted black and red energy coursing underneath. 

“So that’s his Chaos Number….” Ryoga muttered. Rio didn’t respond, just frowning at it.

“Barian’s Force has an additional effect!” Durbe called out. “When I use it to XYZ Summon, it lets me target XYZ Monsters you control and force them to detach all of their Overlay Units, while your monsters lose 300 Attack Points for each Overlay Unit lost this way!” He pointed at their monsters. “Zereort and Shark Drake Veiss each have one Overlay Unit, so now they’ll be detached!”

Without any Overlay Units, Zereort and Shark Drake Veiss would both be defanged, leaving them open for a final assault. Durbe looked at the card he had drawn off of Scales’ effect- Seventh White Shield, which gave his XYZ Monster two attacks each turn and the ability to activate its effects twice each turn- more than enough to finish off both of the twins using Archfiend Seraph’s effect. Barian’s Force emitted two shots of red energy that began to sap at the XYZ Monsters.

Rio pouted. “I’ve never liked that card. It’s so mean when you go second and remove all of the Overlay Units your opponent put work into making.”

Ryoga chuckled. “Sure would suck if the Barians and their stooges got too comfortable with it and wandered right into a trap because of their predictability, right sis?”

“Right.” Rio snapped her fingers, face illuminating like a lightbulb. “Oh, you mean a trap like the one I just set!”

Durbe’s eyes widened. “Wait, what-”

“I activate my Counter Trap, Overlay Traffic Crash!” Rio cried out, her set card flipping up. The art showed two Overlay Units colliding in a cartoon replica of a traffic intersection, one having just run a red light. “When you activate an effect that would remove Overlay Units from my field, I can negate that effect, and you take 300 damage for each Overlay Unit on my field! With two Overlay Units out between Zereort and Shark Drake Veiss, that means you take 600 damage!” 

The streams of energy connecting the monsters to Barian’s Force turned from red to black as they withered and decayed. Barian’s Force crackled with the decayed energy before erupting, creating shards that dug into Durbe’s arms and legs and brought him to his knees with a raspy breath, while his Life Points dropped down by another 600 points.

“One more thing, if you can hear me over there,” Rio added sweetly to Durbe. “When I use Overlay Traffic Crash, you can’t declare an attack with an XYZ Monster for the turn.” She flashed him a peace sign. “Sorry!” She added before her and Ryoga began to laugh among themselves. 

It was uncanny how familiar the Kamishiros were, Durbe couldn’t help but ponder as he picked himself up again, the twins' laughter echoing as it faded. Durbe wasn’t sure if he was delusional or not, but the emotions it stirred in his heart were unwelcome guests. He was at war, that didn’t give him time to mope for the fallen like a weak-willed recruit on his first tour. He had to be better, stronger than that, he…

He missed his friends, missed the way Nasch would lean in when speaking to him or when beside him so their shoulders would scrape for a scant moment, he missed the way Merag could make even the stuffy surface of Barian World pleasantly chilled with her presence, all while possessing such warmth that bled into her words and actions. Gods, he just missed them.

Durbe looked at his hand, not seeing a way to work around Rio’s trap for now, so he let out a sigh. “I set two cards face down and end-”

He was interrupted by a sudden loud groan of metal twisting. The winds were picking up . The portal that the airship had flown through was starting to twist and swirl in on itself, a single bright light at the very end that was anything but comforting, while the Astral World ship began to be dragged towards the void.

“What the heck!?” Tetsuo cried out. “The ship’s getting sucked into that void!” 

“Oh hey!” Vector noted cheerfully. “The forecast did warn that it’d be cloudy with a chance of black holes! Don’t worry about it, Yuma, it’s just what Sargasso does!” 

“No!” Yuma cried out. 

“Sorry Yuma, but Sargasso’s greedy! It needs sacrifices, and as we’re all a bit busy dueling, your friends will have to suffice!” Vector paused. “Do you wanna know where that black hole leads, by the way? Good question, because I sure don’t! Maybe they’ll just pop out again two inches to the left, maybe they’ll crash in the Bermuda Triangle! Or maybe the ship will just turn inside out, and wouldn’t that be a hoot!”

Durbe dimly noticed Kaito sending his flying machine after the ship, his eyes tracking as Rio Kamishiro’s previous determination and merriment evaporated in seconds as the realizations hit. Her eyes had widened, mouth open in terror. “No…” she whispered.

“You know,” Vector murmured, just audible over the roaring gales. “I could temporarily turn off Sargasso’s effect, maybe try and save them, if you’d like that. But I’d need a fair trade. Maybe… all of the Numbers you’ve collected, Yuma?” 

“All of my Numbers?” Yuma repeated. 

“I know, it’s an impossible offer! No way you’d stab your partner Astral in the back like that- oh wait, except for that time you already did by taking cards from a Barian!” Vector giggled. “Yeah that sells it, you should make it up to Astral and let your friends die as a show of loyalty to him! Make sure you hold hands while you get all that blood on them to really seal the deal!” 

“Vector!” Yuma roared in fury. “Your fight’s with me, leave them alone!” 

“Hmm…” Vector tapped his chin. “Nah, this is funner. So make your choice, Yuma! Betray Astral one final time, or kiss your friends goodbye as the cold void eats them alive! You brought them here, Yuma, they’re not innocent anymore! You turned your friends into combatants!”

“Calm yourself, Yuma,” Astral murmured as Yuma’s anger nearly began to radiate like an aura. 

“How the hell am I meant to be calm?!” Yuma snapped at him. “I don’t know what to pick… I can’t pick!” 

“You’re falling for Vector’s plans, Yuma! Focus!” Astral barked.

“Won’t you shut up!” Yuma barked. “I can’t make this call, I just wanted to save everyone…”

Vector guffawed. “Save everyone? What kind of fairytale do you think you’re living in? You can’t save anyone, Yuma, let alone yourself! You couldn’t even save me when I was Rei, do you think you can really save anyone or anything? Don’t make me laugh, wake up and smell the roses- you’re a failure, and everything that’s happening is all your fault!”  

Durbe watched as Vector’s words seemed to break Tsukumo’s shell. Yuma closed his eyes, shaking from the strain, when a voice rang out.

“Snap out of it, Yuma!” Kotori Mizuki’s face popped up on view screens around Yuma. “You don’t need to worry about us, focus on winning the Duel and saving Astral?” 

Yuma looked up. “Wh-what are you saying?” 

“I’m saying we’ve got this on our end!” Kotori said passionately. “You don’t need to save everyone, Yuma, because we can save ourselves! You can’t carry the world alone, but we can help you!”

A faint smile and look of awe was on Rio’s face as she watched Yuma talk to Kotori. “She’s amazing…” she muttered.

“Our bonds aren’t just built on one-way streets where you help us and get nothing in return!” Kotori continued. “We joined this to help you, because we all care for you! You put value in bonds, in the trust and security they offer, so let us do that for you! Let us prove you’re not wrong to believe in our bonds!”

A faint smile crossed Yuma’s lips. “Kotori….” he muttered.

“Now kick his ass, Yuma! Bring it to him!” Kotori cheered. Her feed popped up beside Rio. “And Rio?” 

“Y-yeah?” Rio replied, a touch of red in her cheeks.

“You’re fantastic, amazing, beautiful, doing so well and I want everyone to know I think that because you’re the coolest person I’ve ever met! Keep carrying your brother, and win!”

“Oi,” Ryoga said snippily, his frustration betrayed by the smirk tugging at his lips while Rio giggled, blushing furiously and stammering while the feed cut.

Something ugly twisted in Durbe’s heart at that while Kotori’s feed cut off as she began barking out orders to the rest of the team on the ship, while it began to turn around in the singularity. It confused him, and the confusion only stirred that ugly sensation. A flash of something crossed his mind- two tanned figures with blue hair, sitting by a coastline at sunset and laughing at something that made him feel warm inside- and the feeling formed words. “Why wasn’t that me?”

He needed to focus and unpack this later. His claws dug into one of his thighs to ground him, letting him regain focus in time to see Rio’s eyes flickering green. She stumbled for a second, looking at Durbe with a sudden swelling of… pity? Sympathy? It was hard to tell from here. 

Whatever it was, it was forgotten about in the seconds following that when Astral's ship peeled itself out of the range of the black hole and Yuma began apologizing for bringing everyone to Sargasso. “Guys, I’m sorry, I-”

“Quit it, Yuma,” Ryoga snapped, opening a channel. “We’re all here by choice. No one’s telling me what to do, at least. I came here to help you.” Ryoga hesitated. “ And you know exactly why I’d follow you here anyway.” He added softly.

Durbe was really starting to hate Yuma Tsukumo and that dopey smile that crossed his face.

“We all had vendettas against the Barians,” Kaito added. “You weren’t stopping me from coming.”

“If you have time to martyr yourself for this whole mess, you have time to make Vector regret his general existence,” Ryoga concluded.

Yuma nodded as the feeds shut off. “Astral… forgive me! I’m so sorry.” He bowed to Astral.

“Yuma… let’s win this duel!” Astral declared. “Let’s unleash the power of ZEXAL!”

“Don’t need to tell me twice, let’s go!” Yuma grinned. 

Vector let out a huff as Yuma and Astral shot into the sky to combine. “That’s really brave of you, Astral, trusting Yuma again. I don’t know if I could do that, you should see if Astral World has nominations for Sainthood with how forgiving you’re being to the partner who already lied to you and betrayed you…” Vector leaned in. “Wouldn’t it be easier to listen to that kernel of darkness we both know is hiding in your heart, Astral? The darkness that casts suspicion at the human who taught you betrayal?”

Whatever happened from there was between Yuma, Vector, and Astral, but Vector’s words drove a wedge that shattered the ZEXAL Morph. Yuma was flung to the ground, but Astral became enshrouded in darkness that sprouted from his heart, leaving him screaming primally as tendrils from there dug under his skin and infested him. 

“Oh ho ho, wow!” Vector recoiled in glee. “I really gave him a tune up! Let’s see what they get up to now!”

“ZEXAL…” Astral intoned, grabbing Yuma’s arm hard enough to bruise. “ZEXAL…” He pulled them up into the sky despite Yuma’s pleas. “ZEXAL!”

Yuma let out an agonized wail as Astral dragged them into a void, crackling with red lightning. The void erupted, creating an explosion of chaotic energy that clashed against the winds of Sargasso’s black holes- and won. The weather calmed down, cowed by the forces at work that seemed to eat the very light around it, as ZEXAL appeared in a new, malicious red and black armor scheme.

“I truly do love my job,” Vector laughed as ZEXAL descended and looked at him with a sadistic smirk. “Sometimes I even impress myself!”

“What have you done, Vector…” Mizael muttered in disgust. 

“You know what, Miza?” Vector replied gleefully. “Even I don’t know at this point! I didn’t expect Astral to be so twisted up over that betrayal that even ZEXAL itself got warped into this majestic beast!” 

Durbe had heard once about a phenomenon called the uncanny valley- how something could become more unsettling the more it tried to personate a different subject. Whatever had manifested from Yuma and Astral’s fusion certainly looked like ZEXAL, but it was like trying to look directly at the sun during an eclipse- nothing but darkness that still blinded those foolish to look. 

The voice that slipped out of this new form’s mouth also was unexpected- per Vector and the footage gained from the World Duel Carnival, ZEXAL still had Yuma Tsukumo’s cadence and speech pattern, but it was Astral’s voice that appeared.

“Even the cards I draw are stained with evil…” Zexal intoned. “Dark Draw!” 

“Dark Draw?” Vector chuckled. “He has one bad breakup and instantly it’s time for the black hair dye and ‘Dark Draws.’ What next, are you gonna send me an emo playlist?” 

“I was thinking I’d sent you back to Barian World in a box! I summon Dark ZEXAL Weapon- Chimera Clad!” The new monster was a dark, distorted bird of prey. “Chimera Clad’s effect- I can destroy a Spell or Trap on your field. I target Vain Sneer of Betrayal. As a result of Chimera Clad’s effect resolving, I can equip it to Utopia Ray V. While its effects are negated, it now cannot be destroyed in battle!” Chimera Clad flew around Utopia Ray V as it threw its swords aside, the new weapon forming into a long scythe. “Battle! Utopia Ray V, attack Masquerade!” 

Vector blinked in surprise. “Uh, newsflash, your monster’s still weaker!” Masquerade defected Utopia Ray V’s scythe and sliced across its chest, while ZEXAL only chuckled at the 100 points of damage.

“Newsflash,” ZEXAL repeated back, “I don’t care! Chimera Clad’s effect now activates! When a monster it’s equipped to wages battle and I take damage, Chimera Clad’s attack points double and it can attack again! This is not a once per turn effect! DARK CHARGE!” 

“Ah.” Vector took a step back as Chimera Clad doubled Utopia Ray V’s Attack Points. “Well, this looks unwinnable.” He said blandly. 

“Attack again, Utopia Ray V! Shatter Vector’s Masquerade!” 

Vector growled. “I activate my Trap, Hundred Over! Masquerade’s destruction is negated!”

“But you still take the damage!” ZEXAL cried out jubilantly. Utopia Ray V’s scythe cleaved into Masquerade, sending it and Vector flying back with cries of pain as Vector’s Life Points tumbled down to 1300. 

Vector picked himself up. “Hundred Over’s other effect activates! You’re allowed to attack again!” 

“Then you’ve written your own execution notice!” ZEXAL shrieked with a grin. “Lower the scythe again, Utopia Ray V!”

“This is wrong,” one of Yuma’s friends muttered- Durbe didn’t see who. Even Mizael and Kaito had stopped their fight to watch Vector and ZEXAL. 

“Hundred Over’s final effect!” Vector called out. “For the rest of the turn, if Masquerade is targeted for an attack, its Attack Points rise to become equal to the points of the Monster attacking it, plus one hundred!” 

Masquerade was surrounded with an orange-gold aura that empowered it, letting it deflect Ray V’s swing and swipe again. ZEXAL laughed as the damage struck.

“Chimera Clad’s effect! Utopia Ray V’s attack points double, and I attack again! DARK CHARGE!” 

“Why does Yuma keep attacking?” Tetsuo asked. “Hundred Over’s effect lasts for the rest of the turn, he’s just crashing pointlessly!” 

“I don’t think he can stop…” Kaito murmured. “Whatever happened to Astral has stripped him of all reasoning, he’s just going to keep going until he can’t attack any more.”

“But if Yuma drops below five hundred Life Points, Sargasso will wipe him out at the end of the turn!” Rio exclaimed. 

“Look at that guys, I think I finally broke my toy!” Vector cheered. “I don’t have to do anything now, I can just let Astral kill himself in his mania!” 

“Yuma, snap out of it!” Kotori and Ryoga howled at the same time. “End the attack!” 

ZEXAL laughed as the damage hit it again, bringing it to 800 Life Points. “Chimera Clad’s effect!” 

“Hundred Over’s effect!” Vector cackled as Masquerade and Utopia Ray V clashed again, ZEXAL holding out its arms in joy as the damage hit and brought it to 700. “Let’s go, come on, Yuma, I have an express ticket to hell with you and Astral’s names on it!”

“Wake up, Yuma!” Ryoga roared.

“Please don’t, stay in that nightmare!” Vector laughed. “It's OK Yuma, I’ll put you to sleep forever with just a few more attacks!”

“Chimera Clad’s effect!”

“That’s it, ride the express train to your own defeat! Hundred Over’s effect activates!”

ZEXAL was brought to 600 Life Points.

“One more attack and it’s all over either way,” Kaito said darkly. 

“Please, Yuma…” Ryoga looked like he was about to try and leap over the chasm, his face twisting in pain. “Wake up!”

“DARK CHARGE!” ZEXAL cheered, sealing its own fate. “Utopia Ray V-” ZEXAL paused before it could declare the attack, an expression of pain flitting across its face before it started howling in pain.

“Hey, no, stop that, I was about to win!” Vector heckled. “Have a crisis after one more attack, please? For your old pal Rei? No? Ah, you suck.” 

ZEXAL flew up and split apart, leaving a tattered and bruised Yuma and Astral to slam into the ground painfully. Yuma dragged himself up, watching Utopia Ray V’s attack points rise in horror before a wave of sound hit him through the communication channels.

“Yuma, stop the attack, now!”

“End your battle, Yuma!”

“Main Phase 2! For the love of God, declare Main Phase 2!”

“Yuma!”

Yuma’s eyes saw his Life Point total and he grew pale. “I end my turn!” he cried out before Utopia Ray V could strike again. 

Vector groaned and kicked at the dirt while Sargasso blasted Yuma again, bringing him to 100 Life Points. “You couldn’t have come back to your stupid senses after one more attack declaration? Whatever, not like you’re making a comeback with a whole one card in your deck and a measly hundred points! Maybe you’re hoping standing and fighting will win some of Astral’s approval back? Kind of a sad way to die! Are you sure you don’t wanna just give up?.”

“Never!” Yuma forced himself back up. “Everyone here means way too much to me for me to let them down, and I can’t let it end like this! So guess what Vector!” Yuma threw his arms out wide. “I’m gonna make you work to the bitter end to beat me! But I refuse to let you hurt anyone else. So come at me!” Yuma fixed Vector with a level glare. “Unless you’re too afraid to fight,” he added mockingly. 

Vector’s eye twitched. “You little punk! I’ll show you fear! I draw!” Vector looked at his hand and pulled out a spell. “I activate Rank-Up-Magic Barian’s Force! I use Masquerade to rebuild the Overlay Network! Go, Chaos XYZ Evolution!”  

With a manic cackle, Masquerade fragmented in chaos energy and flew into an overhead portal to the Overlay Network. 

“When the force of Barian born from Chaos obscures the light, the great darkness will dance the universal danse macabre! Appear now, Chaos Number 104: Umbral Horror Masquerade!” Vector chanted with glee. Masquerade now sported a road coat with flayed tassels that floated in the wind, armed with a scepter adorned with a jewel radiating chaos energy.  

Mizael cursed loudly over the communication line. “Vector you imbecile! You rank amateur, you glorified rodeo clown, how are you smart enough to remember to breathe?!”

Vector paused. “What now?” He shrieked. “What did I do now that’s not good enough for you, you scale-ridden perfectionist?” 

Kaito blinked in confusion as Mizael roared curses at Vector. “You had him this turn!” He howled. “Masquerade mills a card from your opponent’s deck and you have an Overlay Unit, if you used its effect, he decks out next turn, are you trying to give him a chance to win?!”

Vector rolled his eyes. “For someone obsessed with a fair fight, you sure are quick to tell me to deck him out rather than claim defeat through battle,” he replied sardonically. 

“I know better than to hold you to any moral or logical standards, Vector!”

“Oooh, you kiss your mother with that mouth?” 

“Pick a strategy and stick to it, you demented wraith!” Mizael howled. “If you’re doing deck destruction, then do deck destruction and don’t give up when you’re about to win! If Tsukumo pulls a victory out from this, I’ll never let you live it down!” Mizael shut off his communications. 

Durbe sighed as the two kept yelling at each other. From here, Durbe could see Mizael positively fuming while Kaito Tenjo pointedly looked away. Of course Vector let his sadism blind him, he probably hadn’t even remembered Masquerade’s effect when he saw Barian’s Force and decided to go for a hand destruction loop. He really only had himself to blame if Tsukumo did pull off a win. Vector wasn’t lying, Durbe noted with a hint of irony, when he’d said “I also make stupid choices for my pride!”

Had Yuma… goaded Vector into getting angry and going for Umbral Masquerade so that Vector wouldn’t remember to use Masquerade to deck Yuma out? Durbe found a growing respect for Yuma Tsukumo growing in his chest, mixed with the newfound seething distaste he had for the boy for reasons he was still trying to unpack.

“Now that the peanut gallery has finished backseating my plays,” Vector said pointedly while rolling his eyes, “Barian’s Force and Masquerade activate their effects! Barian’s Force drains the Overlay Units from your monster and gives them to Masquerade, while Masquerade, when XYZ Summoned, destroys a Spell or Trap on your field! I think I’ll take out Chimera Clad, since without that, your obscene Attack Point boost comes to an end. Bye bye!”  Utopia Ray V faltered as it was stripped of its extra weapon, leaving it at just 2300 Attack Points. “Now I’ll end you! Battle! Umbral Masquerade, attack Utopia Ray V!”

Umbral’s sceptre shot out a bolt of red necrotic energy that slammed into Utopia Ray V, which let out a wail as it disintegrated. 

“I play a Trap!” Yuma called out. “XYZ Revenge Shuffle! I take no damage from this battle, and Utopia Ray V returns to my Extra Deck! Then, by letting you attack again, I can revive another XYZ Monster from my Graveyard! Welcome back, Number 39: Utopia!”

Yuma’s ace flickered into view where Ray V had once stood.

“I don’t even need the extra attack!” Vector sneered. “Sargasso will do the rest-”

“Not if I activate Interceptomato’s effect from my Graveyard!” Yuma interrupted. “By banishing it, I negate all effect damage for the turn!”

Vector growled as Sargasso’s lightning was intercepted. “Right, yeah, the downside of Deck Destruction,” he muttered. “But whatever! Your Revenge Shuffle’s gonna mark your downfall because I’ll just crush Utopia like I did its edgier big brother!”

“I activate Magic Recycler’s effect!” Yuma interjected. “I banish it and send the top card of my deck to the Graveyard, then shuffle the Spell Card at the bottom of my Graveyard into my deck!”

Vector paused. “OK, I’ll bite, why do that?”

“Because now XYZ Agent’s effect activates!” From Yuma’s graveyard, a stereotypical take on a secret agent- trench coat, briefcase and all- appeared and snapped open his briefcase, revealing an Overlay Unit that it threw at Utopia. “I banish it so that Utopia can use its abilities once this turn without expending an Overlay Unit! With that, Utopia can negate your attack!”

Durbe hummed in approval. “Using his Graveyard as an effective second hand, impressive.” He turned to the Kamishiros. “That said, he’s clearly at the end of his rope. And yet you still think he can win this?”

“Heck yeah!” The Kamishiros said together. 

“Elaborate,” Durbe pressed.

“It’s easy, dumbass,” Ryoga snapped. “Yuma makes you want to trust in him that he can pull a miracle out of his hat, so that’s why I trust him and believe in him! You’d know that if you had anyone you trusted!”

“Trust…” Durbe murmured. He looked over at Vector.

“If you’re gonna be this annoying, I’ll make it hurt to waste my time! I use two Chaos Overlay Units to activate Umbral’s effect twice this turn! For each Overlay Unit I send, I rip a card out of your hand and halve your Life Points! Now don’t get back up this time you twerp! Dark Blunder!”

Yuma howled as he was hit by Umbral’s effect, the last two cards in his hand fading away as he went down to a measly 25 Life Points.

“Let’s recap,” Vector snarled. “No cards in hand, one in deck, and Sargasso takes you out next turn anyway either because you summon another XYZ Monster or end your turn. Oh, and you have literally twenty-five Life Points left! Do me a favor, stop annoying me, and stay down this time.”  

Yuma, glaring at him, got up and quietly flipped him off in response. 

“He learned that from you,” Rio muttered while Vector spluttered.

“Shut up,” Ryoga said through a chuckle. 

“You’re right, Vector,” Yuma admitted, swaying slightly. “I am backed against the wall. You drove a wedge between me and Astral, but even if that’s been sent to the Graveyard along with my entire deck, I’ll reforge those bonds, and build a Utopia worthy of them!” 

“You’ll build a Utopia… off of the card that represents your bonds with Rei.” Vector rolled his eyes. “Sounds great! I’m sure Astral will love that.”

“Maybe,” Yuma admitted as he put his hand on his Duel Disk, “but if that’s what it takes, then I put everything on this draw!”

Astral looked up at this as Yuma drew what everyone knew to be Limited Barian’s Force, his stamina fading as he fell beside Astral. “Yuma… logically, I should not be able to trust you after everything that has transpired today… but I cannot help that I still believe in you and the hope you carry in your heart. If we are going down today… then we do it together!”

“Astral…” Yuma’s eyes widened, mouth agape, before a warm smile filled his face and he offered his hand for Astral to clasp. “Well then, I guess it’s time for you and I…”

“To OVERLAY!” They cried together, red and blue auras forming around them as they leaned on each other defiantly before they shot up into the sky. 

“They’re offering each other their hearts, brimming with hope…” Rio murmured as a bright light surrounded them. “It’ll form a new bond, one that creates a miracle!” She whooped as Yuma and Astral’s auras collided. “Get him, Yuma!”

“When two hearts connected by a true bond unite, a legendary miracle will manifest! XYZ Change!”

The new formation of ZEXAL appeared, sporting new armor, a luminous eye where the Duel Gazer was, and a new palette. 

“Nice duds,” Vector called out, trying to sound confident while taking a step back preemptively, “But it doesn’t change anything about the duel! You’re still going to lose when you play Limited Barian’s Force!”

“Are you sure about that?” ZEXAL responded coolly, holding up the Spell. “Passionate feelings reunited will rebuild hope for the rest of the world!” They chanted. “Re-Contract Universe! Rewrite this card’s identity to free it of Vector’s Barian corruption!”

“Y-You, you can’t just-” Vector spluttered. “You can’t just CHANGE THE CARD! That’s CHEATING!”

“If you can find a judge in Sargasso willing to make that call, go ahead and call it cheating!” ZEXAL responded, making Vector splutter and stammer even more. 

“In summation, just so we’re clear, if this was a tournament, Yuma would be super disqualified for rewriting a card like that, right?” Todoroki said in awe.

“Yes.” Everyone immediately said without reservation.

“But because it’s against Vector, we’re all going to politely ignore that Yuma did kinda cheat,” Kotori said.

“Why?” Cathy wondered.

“Because,” Kotori said with a dangerous lilt to her voice. “Fuck him.”

“Oh you little ingrate, using my words against me, but it doesn’t matter! Go ahead and use whatever fancy card you pulled out of the aether, it won’t change a thing!” Vector snarled, literally stomping the ground as Yuma dodged whatever plan Vector had made.

“Let’s test that then.” ZEXAL responded. “I activate the Spell Card, Rank-Up-Magic Numeron Force! This lets me rebuild the Overlay Network with Utopia to summon a Chaos XYZ one Rank higher! Chaos XYZ Change!”

Utopia shimmered with red energy that shone bright, forming into new pieces of armor that crystalized around it, providing a new red and gold suit of armor that reinvigorated it. “Seize the victory shining in the future! Overlapping thoughts and connected hearts shall change the world! Chaos Number 39, Utopia Ray Victory!” 

“Utopia Ray Victory? Like hell!” Vector spat. “More like Utopia Ray Loss! You’re finished now with Sargasso’s effect-”

“No,” ZEXAL interrupted. “Sargasso won’t hurt anyone again. When Numeron Force is used to XYZ Summon a monster, it negates all effects on the field besides that monster. Sargasso’s effect is neutered.” Sargasso shot out a bolt of lightning that crashed into ZEXAL, but it dissipated without even making ZEXAL stumble. Yuma even brushed dust off his shoulder dismissively. 

“What the-” Vector shrieked, panic settling in on his face.

“Battle! Utopia Ray Victory, destroy Umbral! During Battle, Utopia Ray Victory uses an Overlay Unit to gain the Attack Points of the monster it battles! Victory Charge!”

“5800 points?! Wait, no no no no no!” Vector howled. “This can’t be!”

“Believe it!” ZEXAL cried out. “Attack, Utopia Ray Victory! Rising Sun Victory Slash!”

Utopia Ray Victory swept through Umbral, disassembling it into pieces. The eruption of energy sent Vector flying, blowing a hole through one of his wings as he skidded and rolled from the impact, screams carrying across Sargasso as everyone watched him . He nearly went clean off the side of the field into Sargasso below before he skidded to a halt, leaving a crumbled, broken pile on the ground while his Life Points hit zero.

Durbe exhaled in a resigned fashion while Yuma’s friends cheered and hollered at his victory. “I told you,” Ryoga said to him as he smiled openly, “I trust in him for a reason.”

Durbe began to respond, before the ground beneath them began to shake, fragment and rise into the voids above. “That’s bad,” he murmured, opening up a video feed. “Mizael, we’re leaving, now!”

“What?” Mizael turned to face him. “You can’t expect me to leave now, my match with Kaito-”

“Is not more important than your life, Mizael!” Durbe interjected. “The new powers of ZEXAL have ruptured Sargasso’s already-fragile stability, we need to make our exit now before it seals itself!”

“Durbe,” Mizael growled, the closest Mizael could get to a plea entering his voice, “I have him!” He insisted.

“Your pride is not worth losing you to Sargasso, it will swallow you whole!” Durbe insisted. “I need you to leave, Mizael.”

Mizael looked ready to throttle him, but he relented, Neo-Tachyon fading as his Duel Disk retracted. “We’re not done, Kaito!” he howled at the other dragon tamer while teleporting away. “You won’t escape me forever!”

“I’ll be ready,” Kaito vowed, snapping his own Duel Disk away as he made a break for the airship. “Next time we’ll settle this matter for good.”

Durbe and the Kamishiros both found themselves in an impasse, watching Yuma and Vector stare at each other while Vector tried to pick himself up. 

“Don’t you dare walk away from this thinking you’ve won,” Vector said in a raspy tone from the floor as more of his wing broke off. “Because I’ll remember what happened even when you don’t! That stain of sin I put in Astral’s heart will still be there, and it was born from your betrayal, Yuma! It’ll last forever, long after we’re all dust on the wind!”

“Vector…” Astral murmured. “You truly are a despicable worm, beyond redemption.” 

Yuma frowned at that as Vector managed to stand up enough to warp away, only murmuring “Shingetsu…” as Vector faded out of Sargasso. Together, Yuma and Astral turned and made a break for the airship.

Durbe and the Kamishiros stared each other down at that, Durbe’s Duel Disk fading away as he put Archfiend Seraph back in his Extra Deck. “This battle was indecisive,” he called out as a portal opened behind him, “But our war is far from over!”

“Sure,” Ryoga said drily as he and Rio walked away. “And we’ll make you eat dirt like Vector did there, any time, any day.”  

Rio turned as they got to one of the Flash Teleporters. As it spun around them to extract them, she locked eyes with Durbe. That look from earlier was there again, that sympathetic glance, but before Durbe could question it further, her red eyes were swept away in the green of the teleporter, leaving him alone for a brief moment. Sargasso collapsed around him, and Durbe took one more look at the battlefield before creating a teleportation portal of his own, stepping through it. 

‘Why do you look at me like that, Rio Kamishiro?’ Durbe thought to himself, the swelling chill of Sargasso replaced with the sweltering heat of Barian World. ‘And why can I not get that glance out of my mind?’

Why did his instincts push him towards remembering her eyes? His heart knew why.

It had been a quiet trip back to Earth, beyond Yuma being crushed underneath nearly everyone jumping onto him for a group hug that nearly finished what Vector started. Even if he had complained while everyone extracted themselves from the pile on the ground (Kaito and Ryoga stood by the sidelines, Kaito just patting Yuma’s shoulder in acknowledgement as he took the helm), the grin on his face was genuine. He otherwise was glued to Ryoga’s side for the trip home, the two talking among themselves as they left Sargasso behind them to collapse in on itself.

“So… we won, right?” Yuma eventually asked, swaying slightly from exhaustion.

“I… think so.” Kotori said, ready to crawl under a bed and sleep for a week.

They were all standing by the waterfront, looking out at where Yuma and Astral had managed to park the airship (as Kaito had begun glaring at the idea of them putting another hole in his roof). 

“We won today,” Astral said, “but this isn't the end of it. The Barians will return.”

“Then we’ll all have to be stronger,” Yuma replied, feeling a surge of energy. “I know I will be!”

“Don’t be a show-off,” Ryoga heckled him lightly. 

“I think I’d settle for being stronger after taking a nap, I’m exhausted,” Rio groaned. 

“You can rest…” Kaito agreed, “in the hospital after I check everyone’s medical status.”

“Eh?” Everyone balked. 

Kaito rolled his eyes and began pointing at people. “Lightning strike and emotional exhaustion-” as he pointed at Yuma. “Lightning strike,” Shark, “Lightning strike on top of pre-existing conditions from being set on fire,” at Rio, who bashed her eyelashes innocently, “Intense exposure to gravitational forces and nearly being eaten in a black hole,” a wide -sweeping gesture at Kotori and the rest of the Numbers Club, “and lightning strike on top of a heart condition,” he pointed at himself. 

“Ah come on Kaito, we’re not that bad off, we’re just tired!” Yuma protested, nearly falling over as a sudden wave of exhaustion hit him. 

“I am not risking your sister’s wrath, Yuma, and I will get Ryoga to drag you there if you resist.” Kaito’s lips twitched in a smile. “If only because that’ll also get him in there, the stubborn mule.” 

“Oi,” Ryoga protested weakly. “I’ve taken worse damage from electricity.”

“That you can say that should be deeply alarming,” Kaito responded flatly. “It’ll be an hour at most, then you’re free if there’s no complications.”

“I’m billing you if this goes over an hour,” Ryoga grumbled until Rio pinched his ear, making him sharply gasp as she dragged him towards Kaito’s tower, everyone reluctantly following.

“If you keep complaining,” Rio said lightly, “I’m going to let Yuma read your diary.”

That shut him up. 

Rio found herself floating in a dark void. It was black in the corners, but rays of soft light shone through and illuminated everything in soft hues. 

She felt something catch on her left hand, a fabric tracing her fingers. She turned around, seeing wisps of white- an old set of robes, made in a style long before Rio’s time. She felt them again on her right, turning and seeing them fade away.

Ahead, the white wisps collected, the fabric forming into the shade of a feminine body, cast in shadow with the face covered in a veil. Alarm bells went off in Rio’s mind, warning that the last time she’d been in this void, seeing these textures, had lead down a bad road, but her curiosity won out. Rio leaned forward, trying to get a glimpse underneath the veil, when the figure leaned forward in turn, like a reflection. Rio jolted, hands instinctively coming up around her face, which jostled the shade’s veil when it repeated the gesture.  

Through the gap in her locked wrists, Rio saw a piercing red eye staring at her from the bit of the veil knocked loose. Swallowing hard, Rio ran her hand through her hair, the reflective gesture sweeping the rest of the veil back from the shade and casting its face in the light.

Rio’s eyes widened at the face she saw- it was hers. Slightly older, more tanned, with hardened eyes that spoke of a harsh life. It looked at her, an even gaze that felt like it was peering into Rio’s very soul and pulling her deeper into the void, leaving only three whispered words in her own voice, albeit with a slight accent she couldn’t place:

“Who are you?” 

Rio jolted awake, a small gasp her only vocal reaction. She became aware of a pressure on her right side, looking slowly as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. 

Kotori lay there, her warm breath tickling Rio’s neck. The memory came back to her- by the time everyone was done with Kaito’s examinations and he concluded that they should be fine, albeit with a firm warning to go get medical attention if they had any adverse reactions after this- Yuma and Kotori had been far too exhausted to make the trek home alone, so Ryoga and Rio had offered to let them crash for the night. They had had an excessively low-energy night, Ryoga sleepily stumbling through ordering food on his Duel Gazer as they all limped home, eating in silence save for jostling against one another, and retired for the night as the moon rose high. It really was a sign of how tired everyone was that they were this casually intimate. Kotori had initially been too tired to even take off her shoes, simply collapsing face-first onto Rio’s bed and groaning softly when Rio nudged her. Ryoga hadn’t even tried to resist Yuma’s usual clingy nature, but everyone noticed the soft smile he sported as Yuma passively rested his head on Ryoga’s shoulder while they ate. Ryoga and Yuma were still out in the living room- she could hear the TV on softly underneath Yuma’s snores and the grumbles Ryoga made sometimes in his sleep.

Rio settled back into bed, wrapping a protective arm around Kotori as she tucked the smaller girl’s head underneath her chin. 

“Who am I?” She murmured to herself as sleep took her again. “I’m working on that. But I know one thing: I’m not alone anymore.”

And that was enough for her. 

END OF ACT ONE.

You showed up haunted with a fist full of dynamite

Curated provocateur

Ooh, the funny thing about a life that's so civilized

Is when the lines start to blur

Deliver me from all I need

Those bitter words that taste so sweet

Delusional, until we fold

Buried under the weight of the world

Battle Tapes, “Weight of the World”

Chapter Text

ACT 2

Act 2 Opening Song:

While following fate, our time ticks away

In spite of the days, I kept to your pace that were just so dazzling

At the end of tomorrow will we be you and me?

Eternally, blue will spread its wings

Eternally, blue is flying free

Soaring through the prayers and all the pretty lies

I'm reaching out a hand but never seem to find you

Something like love in a dance down the cheeks

A colorful pain in the following of grief

What is the feeling?

The words that tie a curse to cull you

They crawl up my throat in a hate-anew

Tell me, is it really ending?

You whisper in your loneliness

(Will Stetson, “Ao no Sumika- English Cover”)

“That,” Durbe said to himself as he leaned against the wall, “was uniquely terrible.” 

Sargasso had gone so wrong that Durbe struggled to even find the proper analogy to describe how sufficiently wrong things had become, even three days later. He wasn’t even sure where to begin- Vector blowing his cover and giving away his Barian status, their failure to actually defeat any of the humans despite sustained duels, Vector barely being alive by the time he landed in Sargasso and stormed off, refusing an offer for medical aid even as another chunk of his wing fell off and turned into ash on the floor (Durbe made a note to clean that up), and even the goal that had nearly happened- severing the bond of trust between Astral and Yuma Tsukumo- had gone so wrong that they gained an entirely new Zexal Morph out of it- to say nothing of the new Utopia form that made mincemeat of Umbral Masquerade.

And that wasn’t even getting into the new swirling confusion that settled in his gut whenever he thought of those damned red eyes that had seemed to look right into his blasted soul.

Mizael paced around his chambers. “Frankly, I’m disappointed in both of us for actually thinking Vector could have a good plan.” He fumed as he walked, still irritated at his rematch with Kaito being interrupted by something as trivial as a collapsing dimension. 

“Truly,” Durbe said in a tone of bone-dry sarcasm, “we both made a mistake in listening to him. Let’s just count our stars that neither of us were injured… in spite of your refusal to use the Lighthouse.”

Mizael whirled around to glare at him, an action that might have made Durbe hesitate had it not shown the ugly black scorch mark on Mizael’s chest that he gained from summoning Neo Tachyon Dragon. He could respect Mizael’s pride up to a certain point, and willingly letting oneself be struck by lightning was beyond that point. “I made it clear why I didn’t-”

“Let’s not rehash this,” Durbe interjected. “It’s going nowhere.”

Mizael scoffed. “Fine, I’ve said my piece anyway. But it’s only fair that our esteemed leader be open to criticism himself-”

Durbe stiffened. “What did I do?” 

“You let the Kamishiro twins walk you like a dog.” Mizael replied bluntly. “They nearly had you beat and one of them didn’t even have a Number- to say nothing of how humiliating it was second-hand to watch you walk into their trap when you used Barian’s Force.” He paused. “You clearly agree with me, though if you won’t say it to my face; you’re even more introspective than usual ever since you got back.”  

That was… not an incorrect assessment, Durbe thought bitterly. He had spent much of the past few days mulling on Sargasso, with a particular interest in his duel with the Kamishiros. At first he had convinced himself he had a rational reason for dwelling on that duel, given it was where his focus was placed for the mission, but after the second day, he conceded that his fixation was far less pragmatic than he hoped. Something about the Kamishiro twins had spoken to him, through their dueling, through their souls, and through the way they looked at him. They were crass, blunt and crude, but alluring and captivating nonetheless- like a pair of siren songs pulling him into the depths of his thoughts. Durbe hadn’t been lying when he had said he wished they could meet in better circumstances. 

They were complete strangers. They were fighting for the destruction of Durbe’s home, an action that would lead to the genocide of his people no less, and threw their lot in with Astral, the enemy. And yet Durbe’s evaluation of them was as defined as crystal; if the world were to come crashing down tomorrow and the barbarians were at the gate for the Kamishiros, Durbe would fight for them.

He didn’t know why that was the case. He didn’t know how he had come to that conclusion, and he didn’t even know where it had even come from. It was natural as the idea of breathing, and Durbe found that unsettling- it was like new pages had appeared in a book he had read cover to cover a dozen times, except in this case the book was his own rationale and memories. What had the Kamishiros done to him?

“You’re in your head again, aren’t you?” Mizael said loudly, Durbe jolting as he snapped out of his revieree. 

“My apologies,” he muttered.

“Like I said, you’re dwelling on this failure too-”

Mizael was interrupted by a rumbling that nearly knocked Durbe away from where he had been leaning on the wall. 

“What the-” Mizael stumbled, catching himself and turning to look out the nearest window. Violent red lightning danced across the sky, striking at the surface of Barian World with reckless impunity. One of the bolts slammed against a spire of crystals, fracturing the base and making it topple over, kicking up a plume of dust that nearly reached Durbe and Mizael before settling. 

In a flash, the two Barians warped out and into the throne room, watching as Barian World itself shook like the core was trying to shake them off. 

“What’s happening?” Mizael hissed. 

“It’s like the end of the world out there…” Durbe muttered as another spire topped near the coastline.

“Well it’s not the end of the world yet, fellas,” a mocking voice called out from behind them, “But you can definitely see it from here!” 

Durbe and Mizael turned around, where Vector was walking in from the other side of the room, freshly replenished and healed from his injuries. 

“Vector, how are you healed?” Durbe asked.

“Forget that, how are you alive?!” Mizael barked. 

“Excellent questions, let’s answer them never!” Vector replied glibly. “After recent disappointing setbacks last quarter, we need to reevaluate our business strategy, especially as Astral’s power is growing. He’ll soon be at his full potential.”

“Like I care about any of that when I’m looking at someone who insists on squandering his potential!” Mizael hissed, storming forward. “How dare you show your face here after how badly you handled Sargasso?” 

“Miza!” Vector put a hand to his heart dramatically. “Are we really saying Sargasso was my fault?”

“Yes!” Mizael barked. “Would you try and deny it? Your attempted betrayal failed so miserably that Tsukumo gained a new Chaos Number from your inadequacies!” 

“Inadequacies? Wow, that’s a fancy word, Mizael! I’m shocked you find time to hit the books with all the time you spend obsessing over Kaito Tenjo and his Galaxy-Eyes.” Vector leaned in provocatively. “By the way,” he added in a stage whisper to Durbe while Mizael started violently twitching, “I think Photon Dragon is cooler than Tachyon Dragon.” 

It was only thanks to Durbe instinctively pulling Mizael back that the resulting swipe he threw at Vector’s throat missed him by a hair, Vector giggling to himself as Mizael fumed so hard he practically generated steam. 

“You are so easy to provoke into taking a swing, that’s why you’re my favorite, Miza~” Vector purred in a sickeningly sweet tone. 

Mizael looked ready to tackle him right off the side of the tower, were it not for Durbe’s claws digging deeper into his shoulder. “So help me,” Mizael vowed, “the day Durbe doesn’t need you alive anymore will come soon and I can turn you into a feast for my Galaxy-Eyes.” 

“What a beautiful way to go,” Vector mockingly wiped a tear from his eye while crooning, “I might almost let you do it when we win anyway.” 

“I assure you, Vector, it would make me the first person to derive satisfaction from you.” Mizael vowed. 

Durbe’s grip loosened as he felt Mizael relax before he turned back to Vector. “What do you want?” 

“To receive your grateful adulation as I tell you all about the new plan I have to beat Astral!” Vector threw his arms out wide, a hologram materializing showing a map of the world. “A little birdy told me about seven legendary Numbers that Astral hasn’t found, scattered across the Earth! If we find these Mythyrian Numbers, we can harness their power and stop Astral from reaching the height of power he had against Don Thousand when they clashed millennia ago! Win-win, you might say!” 

“And how will we find those Numbers?” Mizael asked. “Did that ugly little birdy you found earlier mention that?” 

“Who’re you calling ugly?!” A hideous fly called out at Mizael, offended as it flitted in from behind Vector.

Durbe narrowed his eyes. “Either you’re making a mockery of us, Vector, or we truly have started to scrape the bottom of the barrel. I’m not sure which is worse.”

“Ah yeah, I also found this guy drowning in the ocean outside, felt like saving him because I’m such a nice guy.” Vector held out a finger for the fly to land on. “Durbe, Mizael, meet Mister Heartland, former mayor of Heartland City and currently my new partner in crime!”

“Vector…” Durbe paused. “That’s a housefly.”  

“A housefly with a massive case of Heart Burning!” Vector replied with a gleeful chuckle. “Heartland was one of the key scientists behind Kazuma Tsukumo and Byron Arclight’s experiments that led to them finding Barian World, and well, you know how that story ends!”

“Truly?” 

“Well…” Heartland managed to shrug. “I paid for it! And I got to see inside the labs Kazuma was working in, which had this map of areas he scouted out! Twenty-three different portals connecting Earth to other planets and dimensions! Here, I made a map!”

Durbe looked at the map of Earth, lit up with red dots across the globe. “If that vermin is telling the truth, then we can use that map and find the Numbers before Astral.” He said.

“Not just find the Numbers. Maybe we can even find information about where our beloved leaders went!” Vector chimed in.

Durbe and Mizael paused. Durbe felt like he’d just been submerged in ice with how he stiffened.

“It’s been a hot minute since we were the Seven Barian Emperors,” Vector mused to himself, looking up at the throne and continuing his spiel. “Ever since that horrible day nine years ago when Nasch and Merag just vanished. They didn’t even take their Numbers with them, we’ve been holding onto them since! But you know what that means, fellas? There’s a chance they’re still alive…” Vector leaned closer towards Durbe, his voice dripping like honey. “... In the human world.”

Vector was playing him. Durbe knew it. Durbe also knew that Vector knew. The only way to win Vector’s game would be not to play.

But Durbe didn’t really give a damn, this time.

“Very well,” he said curtly, a portal opening behind him. “We make hunting for these Numbers our top priority. Stress that to Girag and Alito when they awaken.” 

“Wait- Durbe!” Mizael wheeled around to face him, eyes wide with fury and shock. “Don’t you dare start agreeing with Vector over this when he’s dangling such an obvious carrot! Think for a minute-!”

“Divide the temples among yourselves and get moving,” Durbe interrupted curtly. “I’m not taking any discussion on this. We have to hope that Astral and his team don’t uncover this information themselves about the Numbers, we have a rare head start and we can’t afford to waste it.” 

As Durbe’s portal closed around him, the last thing he saw was Vector giggling at that, leaning in towards Mizael as he did, while Mizael just scoffed and looked away in disgust before warping away. 

“So run this by me again,” Kotori said, her and Shark leaning against the airship railings. “Yuma’s dad found a bunch of ancient tombs and potentially uncovered seven really powerful Number Monsters, and Astral wants us to go on an international road trip to find them so he can unlock more of his memories and stop the Barians from getting them?” 

“That… about sums it up.” Shark muttered, the two watching as Yuma and Rio bickered about which of them had felt “worse vibes” earlier that day before Astral summoned the airship.

“Do you ever think about how, like, this time last year, you were still just a bully who didn’t know how to shower and the most I had to worry about was homework?” Kotori asked rhetorically, making Shark throw his head back and laugh. 

“Only every day.” Shark paused. “Wait, I showered!” He protested.

“Shark, not to be rude, but you looked like you were sleeping in a back alley the first few times I met you.” Kotori said gently.

“Stupid puberty.” Shark grumbled. “It’ll happen to you too, so laugh it up now!”

“I intend to.” She paused. “Ha ha.” Kotori added in a deadpan tone.

“Bite me.” Shark spat.

“Hmm.” Kotori shook her head. “I’d prefer to bite your sister.”

Shark flipped her off, failing to hide the gleam in his eyes. Kotori smiled innocently in response.

“... I’m just saying, you didn’t have to crash into a bunch of gym equipment for your read, that’s one up for me, you just had some visions in class!” Yuma said.

“Which is a plus for me because the last time I had a full vision at school, I had a seizure!” Rio shrieked in protest.

“OK, first off, it's really rude to bring up the vision card like that, that was really traumatic to watch, but second, that only makes my point that I had it worse than you today!” 

Rio, hands visibly twitching as she fought the urge to commit violence on Yuma, paused to look over at Shark and give him a despairing look that conveyed so much in so little. Shark rolled his eyes in response.  

Kotori raised her hand. “Hey, I’m just also wondering, if Yuma’s dad really found those Numbers, why didn’t he just take the Numbers with him and like… put them in a vault or something?” Kotori shrugged. “Just seems like that would be easier than having Yuma run around the world to retrace his steps.” 

Astral floated over. “Perhaps, but there are scenarios that can justify Kazuma not doing that- primarily, he may not have had a resistance to the Numbers, so they could easily have corrupted him. Alternatively, he may have found the Number, but couldn’t extract it.”

“Also!” Yuma jogged over while Rio was mid-sentence, leaving her looking like she was about to smother him in his sleep. “My dad would never take something from a tomb like that! That’s like, rule number one of being an archeologist! You don’t steal artefacts like that!” 

“Alright, I get it, your dad wouldn’t have taken anything.”

“I’ve only suggested like five documentaries about this when I host the Numbers Club movie nights!” Yuma said, sighing dramatically. “Not a very Ranked-Up thing for your soul if you steal cultural artifacts like that.”

“If only Yuma applied this much care and attentive focus towards actual academic subjects, then he might not be failing most of his classes,” Astral murmured, “or his Dueling,” he added as a wry afterthought. 

“Hey, I’m doing great in geography and history!” Yuma replied defensively.

Shark pointed over Kotori’s shoulder as Yuma and Astral started bickering. “Hey, does anyone else see that?” 

Kotori turned. “Oh, it looks like a rock.” She observed idly.

There was a moment of silence as the rock got closer.

“Wait, crap, someone swerve!-” Yuma cried out before they hit the rapidly approaching Barian and capsized the ship.

That had been a nice hour or two before everything went wrong again. 

“Tell us the story of the valiant chevalier and his wonderful steed,” the Priestess murmurs to his right, barely audible over the crashing waves a few paces away.

The Prince groans to his left. “He told you that one a week ago.” 

“I know,” The Priestess replies, a smug lilt in her tone, “And I want to hear it again.” 

The Knight chuckles, feeling more than seeing the Prince rolling his eyes as they lie together under a tree. They’re sitting by the water on an isolated island, a castle standing proud several kilometres to the south. There’s a beautiful white horse sleeping by the water.

“I’m afraid she makes a compelling argument,” his voice feels deeper than usual as he opens his eyes and gets into a sitting position, taking in the clear blue skies overhead. “You’ll have to be very convincing or she’ll get that story again.” 

The Prince got up, rolling from where he was lying sideways to plant a toned arm on the Knight’s chest, pushing him back down while a pair of vibrant red eyes looked down upon him. “Is that any way to speak to your superiors, vassal?” He asked innocently while the Priestess giggled at the blush that creeped up the Knight’s cheeks.  

“Careful now,” she said, “I like this one. Please don’t break him.”

“No promises...”

“Forgive my imprudence, my liege,” the Knight murmurs, sharing a smirk with the Prince. “I shall have to pay for such a transgression.” 

“I can think of one way,” the Prince says, leaning down to steal the Knight’s lips in a smug kiss.  

Consciousness came back to Durbe with great reluctance, almost refusing to wake him up as if to dodge the consistent waves of pain still rocking across his body from ramming into a moving spaceship at high velocity. That he managed such an impressive feat given the vastness of space was… almost impressive, if Durbe could compliment the source of his agony. The only thing burned into his brain right now as his eyes slowly opened was a desperate cry of escape from the pounding of his mortal shell. He felt like that time Alito had goaded him into a spar and he took a direct hit from Comet Cestus that blasted him through nearly six walls and right into Vector’s bedchambers, where he had been exceptionally annoying about how “provocative and forward, yet destructively alluring” Durbe’s method of “courting” was. That joke had lasted nearly six horrible, long months until Vector got bored and told Durbe to give him new material.

Still, he was awake now, much to his chagrin. He had some vague idea that he’d been having a nice dream involving relaxing by an ocean, where he didn’t have to do anything he didn’t want to. That probably should have been what gave away that he was dreaming, Durbe couldn’t think of the last time he allowed himself to relax- far too easy to dwell too much on lost friends and spiral from there, and he’d always worry about Alito or Vector breaking something.

Durbe groaned softly as he picked himself up, checking over himself quickly and tapping at each of his limbs with his bare hands to check for injuries-

Wait. Bare hands? He paused and looked down properly, noticing a black waistcoat over a white shirt with rolled up sleeves and… scarred skin poking out from under the sleeves. Right. He was on Earth, it made sense he’d assume a human form without conscious control over Chaos energy. 

He frowned to himself as he quickly ran his hands over his chest and hips, checking for any lumps or bumps that would denote an injury or a broken bone, only pausing when he felt two heavier scars at his pectorals that felt… far more deliberate than the rest- almost like surgical incisions compared to the rest being from battle. He could unpack that later. For now, he could shed this skin immediately and just use his crystal to resume his Barian form and… Durbe looked at his wrist, eyes narrowing at the fractures in the crystal of his Baria Lapis. The now broken crystal. 

“Ah.” He said, noticing his tongue as he enunciated the syllable. He didn’t like this tongue. It fit wrong in his skull, which was still pounding out a war beat on his parietal lobe.

He paused to consider the situation. He was stranded in the middle of nowhere, somewhat injured, and without the ability to morph back into his Barian form until his crystal regenerated enough, which could take hours if he was unlucky. No access to his Barian form meant no access to Star Seraph Sentry, meaning he had no way to defend himself.

“Well…” Durbe paused to look around as if Alito or Girag were about to leap out of the shrubbery to laugh at his misfortune. “Shit.” He said to himself, deadpan. 

He did not, pointedly, at this point, think to himself that ‘At least things can’t get worse,’ or some other similarly tacky phrase that Alito would say, which would roll the dice of Fate and inevitably come up as snake-eyes. He was going to acknowledge that things were bad, and not provoke divine ire any further. As such, when Durbe turned around and saw the bear coming out of the treeline with its teeth aimed at his freshly fleshy jugular, he wearily decided that in a past life, he probably did something to deserve this, or that God just hated him. 

It was leaning towards the latter, especially as none other than Yuma Tsukumo himself came barreling out of the sky and planted himself between Durbe and the bear.

“You wanna go?! I’ll go!” Yuma barked at the bear. “You’re not the first bear I’ve fought, Gauche makes you look like a Sunday stroll!”

Yuma Tsukumo, Durbe realized, was absolutely insane. He still hated him. No one could ever know this day had happened. 

Evidently, the bear had the same thought as it stared down Tsukumo and Astral before deciding to wander off after a moment, padding into the woods from whence it came to find less loud prey. Durbe hoped it went nice and far away, where it could go bother Goldilocks, or eat Paddington Bear, for all he cared.

“Phew, that was close!” Yuma said to Astral. “I didn’t even realize bears were native to this part of Colombia, heck of a start to the trip at least!” 

“Two near-death experiences in less than an hour,” Astral noted in a bone-dry tone, “that is a new record for you, Yuma.”

Durbe would have put more thought into how casual Tsukumo was about having just been part of an intergalactic hit and run (especially when he was the one being hit), but his annoyingly fragile wrist that was part of his disgustingly soft and frustratingly broken body complained enough that he was brought to his knees from the pain. 

“Oh, nuts!” Tsukumo whirled around and knelt beside Durbe. “You OK there man? You look like you got hit by a bus! And then the bus came back for seconds!” 

“I…” Durbe hissed through a pained breath.

“Stay back, Yuma!” A commanding voice rang out behind Durbe. He turned his head to see Ryoga Kamishiro stumbling out from behind a tree, shaking off some of the many, many leaves that were stuck to his shirt. 

“Shark! Are you OK?”

“I fell through six layers of foliage, what do you think?!” Shark snapped. “Do you know anything about this guy?” 

“Uh, no?” Tsukumo rubbed the back of his head. “But like, he’s injured, I can’t just leave him be…”

“Yeah, that’s the problem,” Ryoga insisted. “We just hit a random energy source…” he stumbled over his words. “Thing,” he settled on, “up in the ship. And now we suddenly find a random injured guy in the jungle? That’s a bit of a stretch.” 

Durbe grimaced as he held his arm. “I’m… here on vacation” he lied, quickly trying to think of a good cover story that could hold up to scrutiny. “My name is… Nasch.” He took a moment to fantasize about just walking into the ocean and never coming back as the first name he could think of settled on his lips. He’d never been a good liar. “I was travelling and fell down a cliff near here until I passed out.”

“Yeah, sure buddy, I’m sure your camping equipment is just up the hill,” Kamishiro sneered before looking at Tsukumo. “Yuma, Sargasso was not that long ago you’ve already forgotten it.” He pressed. “You need to stop trusting every random stranger you meet!” 

“Were you complaining when I trusted you all those times before the WDC?” Yuma shot back calmly. Ryoga gaped like a fish before grimacing. 

“That was different,” he eventually said. “But come on, do you just enjoy being played for a sucker? You’re way too trusting for your own good.” 

Yuma fidgeted. “I know, but… listen, Shark, I-”

Yuma and Ryoga’s argument was interrupted by a ghastly screech reverberating from deeper in the jungle. 

“What was that?” Astral pondered. 

“It sounded like someone in trouble. You think it’s Kotori and Rio?” Ryoga replied.

“Oh, I’m sure the girls are fine.” Yuma observed idly as he plucked a twig off his shirt collar.

“Heeeeeeelp!” Kotori wailed. “I don’t like snakes!” 

Rio glared at the snakes that surrounded the raised platform she and Kotori were standing on. Some retreated at her icey visage, while the others just milled around, upset at being disturbed after the girls had stumbled into the tomb. “We’ll be fine up here,” she said towards Kotori in a comforting manner, sliding an arm around her. “You’ve got nothing to worry about.” 

“Snakes… Why did it have to be snakes,” Kotori mumbled as she buried her face against Rio’s shoulder, “I’d take like fifteen death traps over this!” 

Rio couldn’t help the smile that tugged at her lips as she looked down at Kotori quivering beside her. “I knew you were lying when you said you hadn’t seen that movie during Yuma’s movie night and happened to duck out right before the gore.” She said teasingly.

“Whoever said it was acceptable to watch that movie at a PG-13 rating must have slept through the ending, that freaked me out!” 

“Your mother really needs to learn how to put safety locks on the streaming channels.” Rio observed mildly.

“I’ll be sure to tell her when I’m not being served up as a four course meal in the jungle!” Kotori gestured blindly. “And now look at us! Surrounded by hostile venomous snakes that are out for blood! There’s no way out!” 

Rio would give Kotori another five minutes of clutching onto her jacket before gently telling her that most of the snakes had gone back to sleep. This was a bit bemusing.

“You guys really needed saving from this?” Yuma muttered as he nudged some snakes away from where they were lazily napping. Durbe watched from the back in detached horror, wondering how such a gaggle of… idiots… had delayed Barian World’s plans to the extent that they had. 

“You’re the one who reads about things like these and what snakes are poisonous or not for fun, I’ve seen your browser history!” Kotori protested. “Besides, snakes are the natural archenemy of birds like me!”

“I thought that was cats?” Rio murmured with a lazy smirk, looking unfazed as Kotori pressed against her when one of the snakes Yuma picked up twitched lazily in their general direction.

“Weird, Kotori once told me it was netting after a cooking class went wrong and she couldn’t get her head out of the mesh cap for like half an hour.” Yuma noted.

“Unfortunately, birds attract a lot of unfair ire!” Kotori replied, her voice muffled.

Ryoga stared up at the girls. “Rio,” he said calmly. “I know you’re not afraid of snakes. Why didn’t you chase them off?” 

“Hmm,” Rio pondered sarcastically while pulling Kotori closer. “Why did I pass up an opportunity to hold my girlfriend close in my arms and let her think I’m really cool and unfazed at being assaulted by snakes? That’s a really tough question, Ryoga!”

“I’m comfy up here anyway,” Kotori said, voice muffled from where her face had pressed into Rio’s jacket as Yuma ferried the rest of the snakes out.

“Kotori would think you’re cool for being on time for the bus!” Ryoga shot back with a scoff.  

“Punctuality is a valued trait,” Durbe murmured to himself. Kotori nodded, despite herself. 

“Who asked you?” Ryoga barked defensively before storming off to look at the far wall, Tsukumo chasing after him. Rio took Kotori’s hand and guided her down to follow, with Durbe following, still clutching at his wrist. 

Rio looked over her shoulder to make eye contact with Durbe, slowing down a little. “What’s with your wrist?” She asked over her shoulder. 

“I… took a fall,” he eventually said. “I got distracted.” He added. Best to add truth to the lie, maybe that would be easier than something tripe like “I’m on vacation.”

And he had been so haughty when he made fun of Alito and Girag’s infiltration plans. At least they worked.  

“Overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer,” Rio replied with a nod, wincing in sympathy. “Not for me though, I’m basically flawless,” she said sardonically, winking with her scarred eye. Kotori giggled and nudged Rio’s shoulder as they started to catch up with Yuma and Ryoga, who had started bickering at the door. 

“And how many times again yesterday did you manage to lose your grocery list because you insisted that you totally remembered it, and then you had to go back twice because you forgot essentials?” Kotori said slyly. 

“I’m not required to answer that,” Rio chuckled nervously, pausing as she took another look at Durbe’s wrist. “Not to pry, but what’s sore about it?” 

“I’m sorry?” Durbe blinked in surprise. 

“Like, is it nerve pain? Muscles? Your bones, is it a sprain? What’s actually hurting? I can try to help.” She offered out a hand. “It’s worth a shot, at least.” She suggested.

“I… very well.” Durbe slowly offered out his wrist, observing as Rio’s feather-light touch skimmed around his wrist and forearm. 

“No breaks at least,” she murmured to herself. “But from this, I can guess you don’t know how to relax at all.” She added wryly. 

Durbe looked at her like a startled owl. Rio giggled at the expression on his face.

“You’re all stiff, and tensed up like you expect the sky to come falling down.” Rio explained. “I’m not seeing any bruising or cuts.” She hummed. “It’s probably just a sprain, if you work on relaxing the muscles in your wrist, that’ll put less pressure on your nerves and reduce the pain. Here, lemme show you a stretch I learned.”

“Thank you. You’re quite adept at this,” Durbe observed as Rio casually showed him how to bend and relax his wrist, her thumb tracing the crack in his Baria Lapis.

“I learned some of this over the past year. When you’re in a lot of pain, it’s easy to learn a few tricks to try and reduce it,” Rio noted idly.

“How… often are you in pain?” Durbe asked, his voice softening as his eyes tracked the pattern of scars that started on her fingers and snaked out from under her collar to her neck and face.

Rio hesitated. Her left hand twitched. “Often enough,” she eventually said, forcing a smile for both Durbe and Kotori. “I’m better now, I promise,” she said assuringly as the look on their faces.

Durbe was a horrible liar. He was aware of that, and any time he started to forget he could be sure the other Barians would find a way to heckle him for it. Even Nasch had gotten in on it a few times, although at least his jokes were funny (he wasn’t biased). He was a bad liar, but he was also very good at catching lies, and it meant that in the second where Rio had hesitated, he caught the brief haunted look that filled her eyes. Being around Vector as often as Durbe was required him to know how to catch a liar out, and he knew Rio Kamishiro was lying.

Rio and Kotori walked faster to catch up to Yuma and Ryoga, leaving Durbe to trail behind as he nursed his wrist. He noticed Kotori’s fingers interlacing with Rio as they exchanged a few whispered words, a gentle smile gracing Rio’s face as she said something that made Kotori visibly relax.

It was enough to distract Durbe that he didn’t notice the telltale click of a pressure plate until the wall slammed shut behind him. He heard the wall slam around him, his eyes darting up to see another partition dropping right where Ryoga was standing. Without even thinking about it, Durbe leapt into action, tackling Ryoga and hitting the ground right before another wall would have dropped on Ryoga’s skull. As the ground finished shaking, Ryoga angrily shoved Durbe off, dusting himself off.

“Shark! You OK! Ya there?!” Yuma pounded at the wall. 

“I’m fine,” Ryoga shouted back, “but this place is a frickin’ death trap!”

As Ryoga picked himself up, another wall slid aside, opening up a passageway deeper into the temple.

“Hey Shark! A door just opened up on our side!” Yuma called out.

“Likewise for us! Let’s try and meet up deeper in!” Ryoga rolled his shoulders, forcing his way past Durbe to look down the staircase. “I guess I’m stuck with you,” he muttered, glaring at Durbe.

Durbe shrugged, walking behind Ryoga as they made their way down the corridor lit with blue flames. 

The silence was decidedly awkward, as Durbe could see Ryoga grappling with saying something. “Thank you for saving me,” he eventually said, “but I still think you’re sketchy and I don’t trust you.” 

“You’re welcome,” Durbe replied, deadpan. If this was how the average human reacted when someone saved their life, he suddenly understood Mizael’s species-wide disdain.

“Why’d ya do it, anyway?” Ryoga asked, looking over his shoulder at Durbe with a raised eyebrow. “Can’t have been easy to push me out of the way with a busted shoulder.” He observed.

“It’s actually my wrist that’s injured.” Durbe muttered compulsively, taking a small amount of schadenfreude at the sight of Ryoga’s eye twitching violently at the correction. It was eerily similar to the way Mizael did the same thing. “I did it because…” he trailed off.

Why had he? Ryoga was right around the physical strain at least, Durbe’s arm was growing numb again from the shock of the impact and his ankle was still protesting moving at the speed he’d had to achieve to reach Ryoga in time. He hadn’t even thought it through, tried to analyze the situation and see if Ryoga could dodge the wall himself. He just acted, with the same swiftness he would if it had been Alito or Mizael in that position. His soul had moved on its own, pushing his body to take that dive and save Ryoga. He’d had no conscious choice in the matter.

Damn these Kamishiros. Every time he met one of them, he was left with more questions and enigmas wrapping around him, choking him and depriving him of rational thought and solid reasoning for his actions and words. Why did they make everything so complicated by just existing?  

“I… I would suggest you think nothing of it,” Durbe eventually said bluntly, doing his best to leave his turmoil under his skin and projecting a stony facade. “I only did it because I owed your… partner… for saving me.” 

“Hmfh.” Ryoga scoffed as they kept walking. “I can live with that.”

So. Ghosts were real. Well, Kotori mused as Yuma began to duel the Number Guardian named Mach, she wasn’t as surprised as she figured she’d be about. Duel Spirits were a known phenomenon after all, especially after the research done by the Anderson-Izayoi Institute to test a possible connection between Duel Spirits and Psychic Duelists that had uncovered a lot of information about the subject. It seemed everyone nowadays knew a person who claimed to be able to see Duel Spirits, or had a friend of a friend at least. Yuma regularly got away with bickering with Astral in public because people just figured he had a rowdy Duel Spirit. Well, that part was kind of true at least.

So ghosts being real was… not too far off the mark of just what supernatural phenomena you had to accept that had been discovered and originated from a card game; albeit one that had ties to Ancient Egypt and various rituals and forms of shadow magic. In a way, and Kotori would never admit this, she was almost pleased. With all the nightmarish ideas about aliens and parallel dimensions and everything involving the Arclight Family (she still hated that sight of Tron without his mask), having a normal ghost tied to a Number felt weirdly novel.

God, Kotori realized in muted horror as Yuma summoned out Utopia and Mach revealed the terms of his duel while Shark and Nasch dived through another death trap, she desperately needed more normal friends if this wasn’t even going to crack the top 10 weirdest things that had happened to her this week. Blasted Yuma had infected her with his resident insanity. 

(She wasn’t that upset about it, she could admit)

Kotori was snapped out of her existential crisis by the now familiar distortion of reality that came from a Number being summoned, this time arriving from Mach’s field as he summoned his ace, Sky Pegasus- the Number they were here to hunt. He used its effect to force Yuma between paying Life Points to keep Utopia on the field or letting it be destroyed, only to reveal that Sky Pegasus also would damage Yuma whenever he had to pay Life Points. Between that and his spells and traps that punished Yuma for attacking, his game-plan was fearsome once set up.

Astral came up with an idea- that Mach’s challenge was tied to some legend told elsewhere in the tomb, so he encouraged Shark to report anything he found to find a clue about how to solve Mach’s puzzle.

“How should I know? I can’t read these carvings!” Shark protested as he found a wall with carvings and paintings depicting a knight. 

“I can read it.” Nasch whispered in a reverent tone as he stepped closer to the wall.

A hero who worked with a trio of legendary knights, who eventually left to return to a place he called home only to come back to find the knights having fallen into corruption and living out a dystopian fantasy. The hero tried to stop them and appealed to the better men they had been, only for them to lash out and cut him down, alongside the hero’s steed when it tried to stop the bloodshed.

It felt… odd, like a heavy weight pressing down on Durbe’s tongue as he took in the mural. He felt like he should know this tale, like he’d heard it before, but this was paradoxical- entirely new, and yet eerily familiar simultaneously. Like right now, there were two Durbes- one who had seen the story play out, and one who hadn’t- and both were sharing the same parallel space at the same time. Or maybe that was the concussion talking.

Durbe hadn’t quite understood the human expression “to make one’s skin crawl” before this, but the experience of reading the mural of the heroic knight set a string of goosebumps down his body that made him disgustingly familiar with the term. He needed to focus, and preferably find the fastest way out of this Thousand-damned temple.

Mach activated Sky Pegasus’s effect again, making Yuma choose whether to protect Utopia or pay more of his rapidly-dwindling Life Points. 

“Yuma, we’ll be fine!” Ryoga was roaring. “Let Utopia go, we’ll find another way!” 

“The choice is yours Yuma,” Astral murmured. “I will follow your lead, no matter what.”

Ryoga didn’t want Tsukumo to get hurt. Admirable, but it would get everyone killed- himself included, if he needed to justify to himself that he was about to help the enemy gain a Number with the move he was about to make.

“Don’t you dare let Utopia go! Sacrifice your Life Points or none of us will leave here!” Durbe cried out. 

“And who the hell asked you?!” Ryoga turned on Durbe, face set in a grimace. 

“Anyone who presumably wants to hear the rest of the legend, I’d hope!” Durbe spat back, his patience shot. 

“Huh?” 

“The hero stayed with his pegasus to the very end, even as they were pierced with arrow and blade alike! They took their last breaths together, forming a bond that transcended even the spilt blood from that day! Don’t you get it? It’s about standing by your comrades to the bitter end. If you are fighting for a hopeful future Yuma, it starts here! Protect your Utopia!”

“We both know what you are,” Ryoga growled, eyes narrowed into pinpricks, “and the last time Yuma trusted someone like you, it put everything at risk! You somehow knowing how the story ends just confirms it! You are a Bari-” 

The ground gave way beneath Ryoga. He fell with a sharp cry, and again Durbe dived before he could even consider it, grabbing Ryoga before he fell into the abyss. He dimly heard screams of panic from the other room, grimacing his teeth as his arm felt like it was going to rip out of its socket. 

He was so focused on not letting go that he didn’t even notice the faint red aura that formed between him and Ryoga.

“You’re right,” he growled as he tried to pull up. “Is that what you wanted to hear? I am, indeed…” 

Something reformed in Durbe’s heart, his wrist glowing brightly as finally, blessedly, his Baria Lapis reformed. The Chaos Energy from it surged like a wave over Durbe, his wounds closing shut in a heartbeat and the strength of ten men filling his body.

“... A Barian!” He roared, feeling the familiar doubling of his voice as if he was speaking through a filter, while his body morphed back into its true state.

“You!” Ryoga thrashed under Durbe’s grip. “Durbe! I knew it!” Even as he dangled over the abyss, Ryoga let out a sick cackle. “What did I tell you, everyone? I knew this freak was a Barian, he was waiting for Yuma to lose so he could steal Sky Pegasus for himself!” 

“Will you stop fidgeting? I’m trying to save your life!” Durbe barked. 

Ryoga just laughed again, echoing across the room. “Ha! Unlike Yuma, I remember Sargasso, you freak! All you Barians can do is spit out lies and falsehoods when it suits you! After everything Vector put us through, I’d rather die than even remotely trust a Barian!”

“You will die if you keep moving, the platform’s collapsing!” Durbe insisted. 

“I’ll take my chances!” Ryoga cried out. 

“Are you content to leave your sister bereaved over your pride, then?” Durbe snapped. 

Ryoga stilled, eyes widening for a second. The room grew quiet as Yuma deliberated over Sky Pegasus’s effect, but Durbe could pick out one thing especially out of the corner of his eye that could see the sphere:

The trembling form of Rio Kamishiro, hands over her mouth and fighting the need to hyperventilate as Ryoga dangled over oblivion, eyes narrowed into pinpricks of sheer fear. Kotori was beside her, trying to help, but obviously trying to resist the urge to panic as well while the crevasse around Ryoga and Durbe widened. 

It didn’t sit right with Durbe. These were children. They had been in near-death situations before, most recently Sargasso, but they were still children at the end of the day, still able to be faced with the primal fear of death coming out of the blue. Why the hell were children fighting this war and potentially dying for it? He felt disgust well up inside of him, unsure where to direct it. 

“Do you want this to be the last way you two see each other? Are you content with your final words? Do you truly have no regrets you can dwell on as you fall?” Durbe said, a hint of a plea entering his voice. 

Durbe was a soldier, a leader, a combattant, and more besides. That didn’t mean he was ready to look a 14 year old boy in the eye and let him die out of stubborn pride.  

He dimly noted Yuma choosing to keep Utopia, getting blown back off his feet from the mixture of Sky Pegasus’s cost and subsequent effect dealing him a thousand damage. Ryoga flinched under Durbe’s questions, finally staying still long enough for Durbe to pull him up. 

He slapped Durbe’s hand away as he stood up, glaring at the sphere. “Why the hell did you do that, Yuma?” Ryoga barked. 

Yuma looked down at his Duel Disk, thumb tracing a pattern across one of his cards. “I… I can’t do it. I can’t not trust people! I won’t let doubt influence me!”

“What are you saying?” 

“Vector wanted to break my ability to trust people. That’s why he twisted the knife as much as he did in Sargasso, why he took so much pleasure from betraying me! That’s why he wanted to try and put darkness in Astral’s heart when we formed Zexal!” Yuma put his fist over his heart. “He wanted to take away that part of my heart, and I’m not letting him! I’d put my trust in anyone who I think is genuine, even if they try to make me regret it later! That’s something Vector can never take from me, so if Durbe thinks saving Utopia is what matters, then I’ll do it!”

Ryoga grimaced. “You and your bleeding heart…”

“It just saved your life,” Durbe interjected curtly. “I’d be a bit more grateful.”

“If you butt in one more time with your unwanted opinions, so help me-”

“My turn! Utopia, attack Sky Pegasus!” Yuma called out, the attack opening up another door. Durbe took a small amount of pleasure from cutting Ryoga off by grabbing his wrist again and practically dragging him out of the collapsing room as they made their way through another door. Mach’s trap prevented Utopia’s attack from connecting, forcing Yuma to discard a card again, but he had to pay no Life Points.  

“He can’t pay the cost, so Mach’s Trap won’t work.” Astral noted. “Meaning now, Mach will have to pay the cost for his card. Durbe… was right.”

Durbe couldn’t help the shock that jolted through his system at the idea of Astral acknowledging he had been right. This truly was a bizarre day. 

Mach grimaced as his Life Points lowered. “But you wasted your attack,” he noted laconically, “meaning now you’ll need to end your turn-”

“Not yet!” Yuma interrupted, Astral nodding beside him. “The card I just sent to the Graveyard is the Counter-Trap, Hyper Quick! When it’s sent from the hand to the Graveyard, I get to draw a new card- and if I draw a Spell Card, I can activate it right away, ignoring its activation conditions!” 

There was one Spell Card Durbe could think of that would help them- but the chances of drawing it that easily were slim to none-

“And what do ya know, I drew a Spell!” Yuma cheered. “Rank-Up-Magic Numeron’s Force, to be exact!”

… Nevermind, Yuma Tsukumo evidently had the luck of a leprechaun. It would explain why he was so short, Durbe noted bitterly. 

Yuma’s new Chaos Number made short work of Sky Pegasus, Mach being blown back as his Life Points hit zero. He picked himself up, passively staring at Yuma and Astral.

“Mach… you were Sky Pegasus, weren’t you?” Astral asked.

“I was,” he admitted. “In a past life, I served that knight with no reservations. Our mutual sacrifices for each other shook the rebel knights and shattered their gluttonous desires to rule. When the dust settled, we were given an honorable burial, and they ended their campaign against the kingdom. Our sacrifice prevented years of bloodshed and war.” He gestured behind him to a shattered piece of the mural, depicting the knight and his pegasus ascending. “I bequeath unto you both this Number. I wish you well with its power, and encourage you to believe in the power of others as well.” A smile graced his lips for a second. “Your unity is your best strength, Yuma Tsukumo. I will pray that your enemies never break your bonds.”

Durbe looked down as Mach faded away, something approaching sorrow entering his heart. Something about that knight had seemed… familiar, in the same unsettling way as most of this blasted dungeon. 

“So why did you help us? For real this time.” Ryoga pressed.

“I honestly can’t say.” Durbe admitted. “Let’s chalk it up to the fact that I needed Yuma to win so that I could escape this tomb, or that I was moved by this legend. Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

“Hey, Durbe?” Yuma called out through the sphere. “Thank you, really. I wouldn’t have known what to do without your advice, and you saved Shark’s life. That… means a lot!”

“Think nothing of it. You would have figured it out yourself,” Durbe muttered, looking away. “You have an annoyingly determined heart.” He collected himself. “As thanks for saving me, I’ll walk away this time. But next time we meet, it will be as enemies.” 

Ryoga rolled his eyes as Yuma left the sphere’s point of view. Durbe dimly could make out Yuma and Kotori bickering over some coin they found lying around. “Yeah, sure. Get outta here then, before I change my mind.” 

“How benevolent.” Durbe said drily. He moved to form a portal to get out of this blasted tomb for good. 

“Hey.” A voice called out from the sphere. Durbe turned to see Rio staring him down through the sphere, her shoulders tensed up. “I know my brother is too stubborn to say it so… thank you.” She said evenly before turning away. 

“... Think nothing of it,” Durbe repeated before leaving. His Baria Lapis thrummed as it opened up a portal that he stepped through, leaving the temple behind. 

Barian World’s stifling warmth greeted Durbe as he reappeared, stepping out a distance from the palace which loomed on the horizon. He nursed his wrist absent-minedly, the muscle memory lingering from his disguise, only to stiffen as he touched his Baria Lapis. 

He had expected the crystal to still have some fractures- small indents or chips that would gradually repair themselves. With the damage he’d taken, it was expected. But instead it was smoother than it had been in years. Durbe wracked his brain, trying to figure out why; the temple wasn’t that steeped in Chaos Energy, just enough that he’d been able to transform. He hadn’t had an adverse reaction to Mach or the Number, so how…

Two images flashed into Durbe’s mind; the grip of Ryoga like a vice around his wrist as Ryoga dangled over the darkness, and Rio gently holding it while she poked at his wrist, and now that he thought about it hadn’t there been a trick in the light to Ryoga’s aura while that happened that almost looked like magenta-

No. No, it couldn’t be. No. Not them. Surely not. Not after so long, not them of all people, he couldn’t let himself hope. It couldn’t be them. Right?

And yet it could be, why not hope?

With the impossible solutions racing through his mind, Durbe sought to disprove them, being left with a single realization as the only logical answer as to the mystery of his regenerating crystal slammed into him enough that he had to brace himself against a wall.

Damnit.

“... he’s too trusting for his own good, I swear,” Ryoga muttered as he and Rio walked back into their apartment. Ryoga was still rubbing his shoulder from where Rio had punched him for making her worry about dangling over a death trap. “He got lucky today, but if Durbe had been wrong- worse, if he knew he was wrong- things could have gone so much worse.”

“I think he knows, but trying to ask Yuma to not trust someone is like asking a mountain to move.” Rio replied, mildly distracted. She sighed.

Ryoga looked over at Rio, lips pressed in a thin line. “What’s on your mind?” 

“That Barian, Durbe. I was just thinking about him.” 

Ryoga snorted as he went to the fridge, grabbing two drinks and holding one of them out. “Yeah, that’s the second time he’s popped up. I’ll be ready for him next time, though.” 

“Not… entirely what I meant when I said I was thinking about him.” Rio murmured as she accepted the soda. 

“Oh?” Ryoga leaned forward. “What do you mean?” 

Rio sighed. “There just was something about him that I think I clocked after Yuma finished dueling the spirit there. When we parted ways, he hesitated and I thought I noticed something.”

“Something like?” Ryoga pressed.

“I just thought he looked…” Rio paused for a moment, looking at her feet as she considered her words. “Really lonely,” she muttered. 

Hold your breath, my dear, or you could disappear

We’ve already left the atmosphere

Let go of all your fear and listen close, my dear

There’s so much room to breathe up here

If the walls could talk, tell me, darling, what would they say?

I’m speaking in tongues while I’m running through the hallway

Hold your breath, grab the keys, get the car

If you try to escape on foot, I promise you that we won’t get far

Lest we lose who we truly are
Keep the magic alive (Keep it alive)

Don’t leave your sense of adventure or wonder behind

From a satellite above the northern lights

We can see how far we’ve come

(Valiant Hearts “Adventurer”)

Act 2 ED Song:

They tell me every story

That I already know

They have the past come haunt me

I want to let it go

Every mistake I've made

Words I wish I had never said

If there's a god, I'd pray to him

And ask if he could take it all away

And I don't know why I'm here or what I'm supposed to do

Can someone tell me?

With age, I get more confused with no one to tell it to

Can someone help me?

Existential thoughts, experimental

I'm going mental, mind is intellectual

Existential thoughts, experimental

I'm going mental, mind is intellectual

(Groundbreaking, “Voices”)

Chapter Text

“I have to say Astral, I think your landings are getting much better with the ship!” Rio noted enthusiastically as she unbuckled her seatbelt, clapping her hands together with a smile. A ruined castle loomed overhead where Astral had landed. “I barely even felt it when we made landfall this time!”

Yuma groaned softly from the corner he’d rolled into, having spent the last ten minutes being knocked around the ship’s command room like spare change in a tumble drier. 

“You know,” Ryoga observed sardonically as he got up and picked Yuma up by his collar like a cat, “it’s a good thing you’ve got nothing going on in that skull of yours beyond summoning Utopia, or I’d be worried you got brain damage from that.”

“I was thinking next duel I’d summon Gagaga Samurai instead,” Yuma said wearily as Kotori tossed him an ice pack that he placed against his head, “spice things up a little, you know? Gotta keep the Barians on their toes…” Yuma paused. “Wait, do the Barians have toes?” 

“I mean…” Rio’s eyebrows scrunched up. “I’ve never exactly looked. Shingetsu had toes, so… yes?” 

“They do have different coloring on the… what do you call it, fleshy? Rocky? Bits around their ankles? Maybe that complicates things?” Kotori groaned in despair. “Thanks Yuma, now I’m gonna be thinking about Barian feet all day!” 

“I swear from some angles it’s like they’re hooves!” Yuma exclaimed.

“And now I’m definitely checking to see if you have a concussion.” Ryoga spun Yuma around. “How many fingers am I holding up?” 

“Uh, one?” 

“I must admit, even I’m curious how you could classify a Barian…” Astral mused. 

“We’re not gonna seriously gonna be talking about this the whole way to the ruin, are we?” Kotori muttered as she grabbed her bag. “Please keep me out of it.”

“... But then they have the talons to consider, like that opens extra questions on how you identify them.” Yuma noted as they hopped a small gap in the bridge. “I don’t think you can batch-call all of the Barians after one species like that.” 

“I still think just referring to them as cat-like is the easiest way to put it.” Kotori argued fervently, having been caught up in the debate. “Especially with Durbe, he really does look like a catboy.” 

“Oh good, not just me,” Rio mused. “And to be honest his human disguise didn’t help that assessment. Did you see the way his hair tufted up?”

“Oh no, Cathy had that take as well back in Sargasso-” 

“Oh thank you merciful Poseidon,” Ryoga loudly interrupted with a groan of relief, “An open door. We can go inside and shut up about this.” 

It perhaps would have been more of a relief to see a door into the Mythyrian Tomb, had it not clearly been blown off its hinges and had… a vibe to it.

“We didn’t make it first this time, did we?” Kotori muttered from the back. 

“Hopefully it means the unlucky Barian we find in there triggered all of the traps for us, so we can just waltz past them getting chased by a boulder, or eaten alive by ants, and just take the Number.” 

“You just had to say it?” Rio said teasingly.  

“Yeah,” Ryoga sighed, “yeah it’ll be on me when we hit all the traps.” 

“Maybe this one also has a bunch of snakes that’ll fall on you!” Yuma observed.

“We promised not to bring those up again…” Kotori bemoaned. 

Rio stood at the entry-way, feeling a shiver race up her spine. “Does anyone else really not want to go in there?” She asked. “I just have a really bad feeling about what’s inside this place.”

“We have no choice,” Astral replied. “Even if the Barians beat us here, we need to try and reclaim that Number. Any that they seize can be used for great evil.”

“I know,” Rio sighed, “I just think we should be careful.”

The group set off silently into the castle, following a staircase deeper underground. Beams of light broke through overhead from the wear and tear the castle had sustained, while Astral provided a natural silver glow to everything. The walls on either side of the staircase were adorned with murals that travelled down to the central room at the bottom.

“I can see why you got a bad feeling here, Rio,” Kotori whispered. “I feel afraid to make too much noise.”

“These murals,” Ryoga noted, “you think they have the story of this place on them?” 

“I think they do.” Rio traced one of a woman in a purple robe holding a baby in grey with the tips of her fingers, dust parting as she did. “There’s something to these, like the murals are inlaid with energy from that time.”

“Energy? What kind?” Yuma asked.

“Emotions. Sorrow, anger, grief… It’s life energy.” Rio shook her head, pulling her hand back like she’d been stung. “This isn’t a place of honor like the last tomb. There’s a message left in these paintings that I could access. I really don’t want to know what happened here that left an imprint that strong in the murals, though.” 

“Can you control that?” Ryoga asked. “How much of those visions do you get?”

“It’s like a stopper in a sink. I could open it up and see the legend, but… I don’t know if I could close it afterwards.” Rio shrank in on herself as she spoke. “With the past ones I’ve gotten, they were caused by the Barians showing up, or them doing something big.”

“Then don’t.” Ryoga’s voice softened as he stepped closer to Rio. “It’s not worth it, and we don’t know enough about your visions to risk it.”

“Without Durbe and his knowledge of Mach’s legend, the only way to decipher these fast enough to use their knowledge, or any advantages that they provide, is through you and your visions.” Astral stared at Rio impassively. “I have to insist that you do that.”

“Like hell she-” Ryoga snarled before catching himself at Rio narrowing her eyes. “It’s her choice,” he said instead. “You can’t make her.”

“I have to insist, Shark,” Astral countered. “It was only through knowledge of the legend that Yuma defeated Mach and gained Sky Pegasus. If we can gain even the slightest advantage over the Barians, or knowledge that would help us gain the Mythyrian Number, then it is inherently worth the risk.”

“Easy for you to say, but that’s not you facing the firing line,” Ryoga growled in exasperation. “Yuma, talk to him!”

“Astral,” Yuma whispered, “you can’t just ask her to-”

“No. I’ll do it.” Rio’s voice was flat as she extended her arm towards the nearest mural.

“Rio, hang on…” Ryoga said, a hint of something desperate entering his tone.

“I have these visions for a reason, right? This is it. You trust me, right?”

Ryoga opened his mouth to protest again before grimacing. “Yes, I do, of course I trust you. That doesn’t mean I have to like it. Just… please be careful.”

Rio gingerly laid her hand flat against the mural, feeling something resonate as she did. Her skull throbbed with a disgustingly familiar sensation as she felt something in the walls latch onto her mind and soul. 

She swallowed hard as the sensation overwrote her consciousness, leaving her with nothing but an encroaching green at the edges of her sight. Her ears buzzed like a mistuned radio shrieking inside of her skull, while the flashes within that green showing a hooded, princely figure in purple and alabaster sitting on a throne, watching a cloaked man wielding an axe and swinging, showing buildings razed, the prince raising a red-stained sword to his throat with a cackle, surrounded by fire and screams and bodies and blood, so much blood, congealing around her ankles and getting caught in her throat, she couldn’t breathe, why couldn’t she breathe, while lightning struck overhead and-

When consciousness returned to Rio, it was sudden and abrupt. She woke up as she fell into Ryoga’s arms, the green scattering away like butterflies when he pulled her into a hug. She heard Kotori let out a panicked sound as she approached Rio from behind, loosely wrapping her arms around Rio’s stomach to help ground her.

She tasted blood in her mouth, but she had no injuries that would have created that, a lingering phantom sensation from the vision. She wanted to throw up, could feel her stomach twisting and heaving, but there was nothing to expel.

“I’m OK…” she whispered hoarsely. “I’m back. I’m still me.”

Ryoga’s fingers clenched against her sleeves. “I hate those damn visions,” he said into her collar, “so much.” 

“I already really hate this place.” Kotori agreed. 

Rio’s eyes opened a crack as she felt another hand on her shoulder, Yuma looking down with a frown. “I’m really sorry, that sounded… rough.”

“I had not anticipated one of the Tombs having a story that violent.” Astral murmured. “I apologize for insisting you see that.”

“What did I even say? I don’t know how I told that legend.” Rio replied. 

“Evil prince went mad with power, slaughtered his people, and eventually sent himself to hell.” Ryoga listed off mechanically. “You didn’t miss much.”

He pulled away from Rio, both ignoring how his hands still shook, only for him to pause when he looked Rio in the eye. “Oh damn,” he said quietly, “your eyes..”

“What happened?” Rio looked at everyone present. “What happened to my eyes?” Her voice lifted an octave, a panic flitting into her chest.

“You’ve got these…” Yuma gestured to his face. “Green flecks in them. They’re kinda catching the light, like how your eyes normally go when you get like that. They look kinda cool!”

“Yuma…” Kotori hissed behind Rio as she stiffened at the description.

“Ah, sorry! My mouth moved before my brain.”

Ryoga, rolling his eyes, pulled out his Duel Disk and flicked on the camera and switched it to selfie mode. “Here,” he said, passing it over into Rio’s trembling hands. “It’s not as bad as he made it sound,” he murmured as Rio squeezed her eyes shut instinctively.

Rio’s eyes flickered open, looking down at the screen shaking in her hands. Her eyes were still there- still red, one slightly duller than the other thanks to the fire- but the green was still there. Little flecks that almost seemed to rotate around her iris slowly, gently flickering and brightening the way her eyes shifted green when she had a vision. She gave Ryoga back his Disk and let out a sigh, pulling herself up and silently storming off down into the temple, ignoring the concerned voices behind her. 

She was dimly aware that none of what happened was entirely OK, but Rio made a conscious choice to just. Stop. Thinking. Nothing here was worth remembering, and if she kept thinking, she would keep imagining that she heard voices in the corners, that she could see blood leaking out of the walls and smell copper everywhere she went, and that wouldn’t help anyone. 

Her therapist had once described this kind of phenomena as a dissociative episode, and had said it wasn’t good to willingly instigate them. Rio couldn’t find it in her to care to do anything but go with the motions even as they entered more death traps and Astral dueled for the Number against his... evil clone? She zoned out for that part. It was oddly easy to do, to just let the events around her roll by and imagine someone else was in her shoes and doing everything. 

Screw this entire place. It was already going to haunt her nightmares, she wasn’t giving it the satisfaction of messing with her waking mind. If it was easier to expunge it by going with the motions and turning her brain off, then so be it.

The mountain range was aesthetically pleasing. Compared to the sweltering heat of the jungle, it was a pleasantly cool climate. The mountains above cast sharp shadows over the surrounding area.

At least there hadn’t been any bear attacks yet.

“Why am I here, Mizael?” Durbe asked, mentally noting that he still hated his tongue and how it felt in his mouth. “This is meant to be your operation.” 

“You know Durbe,” Mizael replied, hands on his hips as he inspected the temple above, “most people are happy when their friends offer to take them out for a day.”

“I’m sure I’ll have a stimulating day watching you brave this temple for a Mythyrian Number.”

“As if that’s any better than waiting to hear about Alito and Girag drawing straws to see who gets what Tomb.” Mizael shot back.

Durbe hummed. “Fair,” he conceded. The two were sitting in a grove near the top of the mountain, the highest point they could get to before the interference around the temple prevented warping in. Mizael was currently pulling his hair into a ponytail and rummaging for a climbing axe he’d stolen from a hardware store in Heartland that he’d quickly teleported over to after they realized that climbing would be required for the rest of the journey. 

(Durbe would complain, but he had taken the opportunity to break into a nearby art store and borrow some new pencils and charcoal, so he decided to ignore it for today)

“Have you ever even climbed a mountain before?” Durbe pondered out loud as Mizael set up a harness.

“How hard can it be?” Mizael scoffed. “The humans do it all the time and they’re infinitely more fragile.”

“Yes, but they train for it. Can’t you at least wear a helmet?”

“I didn’t bring one-” Mizael cut himself off as he narrowed his eyes while Durbe, staring him down, produced one from his own knapsack. “You’re such a worrywort.”

“I’m not letting Vector outlive you because you got overconfident and cracked your skull chasing another dragon to fight.”

“I knew you cared,” Mizael replied sarcastically. 

“Vector would be… very annoying… in that situation. It’s for my own sake.”

Mizael stared down at the helmet. “Did you have to get it in white?” He eventually said, eyes narrowing. 

“What’s wrong with white?” Durbe frowned. Merag wore white. It was a nice color, it went with everything. “My cloak is white.” He said eventually, confused.

“Your cloak is gray. Kaito wears white.” Mizael insisted, his lips curling in disgust at the name.

“Oh for the love of-” 

“Oh fine, fine, give me the blasted thing.” Mizael pulled it out of Durbe’s hands roughly before cramming it on, managing to defiantly angle the helmet in such a way that his wing extension still poked out. Durbe personally thought that seemed unsafe, but he wasn’t the one who had to climb the mountain, so he’d take the victory.

“Good luck, I suppose. I hope the rocks are… adequate for your grip strength.” Durbe eventually said as Mizael finalized his preparations.

“I’ll contact you if I need anything while I’m up there.” Mizael nodded. “What do you plan on doing while I’m here?” 

Durbe reached into the knapsack he’d borrowed to withdraw a worn notebook. “I thought I might give this a try.”

“... You haven’t drawn for a while.” Mizael sniffed, his nose twitching. “Very well. Enjoy. Let me know if you see Tsukumo’s gaggle of ducklings.”

“Thank you.” Durbe turned and walked away, leaving the sounds of Mizael’s grunts of exertion and the axe slamming into the rock behind.

This portion of the forest was largely even, with spacious gaps between the trees. A small mountain river trundled by, lapping gently at the dirt and providing a steady stream of background noise. Durbe chuckled at that wordplay to himself- a steady stream. Ah, he was hilarious. A fallen tree branch provided a seat for him near the water, letting him curl his legs underneath as a brace for the sketchpad. Grabbing a pencil, Durbe started sketching, letting his mind wander as he did.

It was quite serene here. Compared to what he went through for the first tomb and what Vector reported at the desiccated castle he dug Djinn Buster out of, Mizael was having a comparatively idyllic time- especially with Mizael handling the majority of the work today. Durbe got so caught up in his work and the environment he was in that he was able to forget, however briefly, that he was at war. He tried to think of the last time he’d taken a real break for himself, even something as simple as relaxing while a mission was underway, and found himself struggling to find an answer. He just didn’t do well without having something to do, he hadn’t for going on a decade. Sitting down with nothing but his thoughts inevitably left him at the abyss that had formed in his soul after Nasch and Merag’s disappearance. He’d never let himself stop to process it- never had the time at first as the other Emperors scrambled to find them, then by the time everything calmed down and the mood shifted to reluctant acceptance that they were truly gone, it was too raw to go back to. Easier to just keep forcing himself forward and building wall after wall around himself.

But he could remember a time when he was able to just stop. When Girag or Alito would make a visit to Earth and acquire some literature or supplies (what was officially a ‘scouting mission’ but was really just something the Emperors could do as a way to get away from everyone for a bit and explore the human world), he would be able to hide away for a while. Durbe was the shield of the Barians, but shields need to be set down as well and given time to recuperate or they buckle. Easy to say, of course, but much harder to apply it.

His reverie is broken by a snapped twig, grass crunching underfoot as he becomes aware of someone behind him. Durbe whirls, meeting a hauntingly familiar pair of eyes as two mouths say the same word:

“You.”

Some time earlier

“I’m not climbing that.” Rio said, her tone brokering no argument to hide that she was self-aware about her grip strength.

“Same.” Kotori nodded in agreement. “You can’t make me.”

“Ah, it’d be fun!” Yuma chimed in. “Just us climbing up that sheer surface, no equipment, feeling the rocks underneath your grip and the wind tugging at your shirt…” he sighed wistfully. “It takes me back to when my dad would take me free-climbing!”

“Your father let you free-climb as a child?” Kaito muttered, his face twisting in disgust. “That has to be negligence.” 

“You’re one to talk, mister ‘my dad let me become a Number Hunter.’” Shark shot back. 

“Touche.” Kaito conceded reluctantly as he looked around. 

“Yuma, that mountain is… how high is that? I can’t even see the top with all the clouds!” Kotori asked.

“Approximately twelve thousand feet above sea level.” Orbital chimed in. “We are currently ten thousand feet above sea level.”

“That’s over half a kilometer on a practically sheer surface.” Kaito observed.

Kotori and Rio shared a look. “Yeah, good luck with that.” They said in unison, turning to get back on the ship. 

“I can’t believe I’m actually looking forward to doing homework.” Kotori muttered.

“I can’t believe I’m looking forward to helping you do homework,” Rio replied.

“Oh is that what you’re calling it now when you eventually get bored?” Kotori nudged Rio’s hip, the two laughing as they walked back on board.

“Where’s your spirit of adventure?” Yuma called after them before shrugging. “Ah it’s OK. We’ll be just fine, guys! Now let’s go, we’re burning daylight!”

“Orbital, please update my will.” Kaito muttered. 

“What, to make sure Haruto gets all of those Galaxy-Eyes plushies they were selling at Build-A-Melffy last month?” Ryoga snorted. He snapped on a pair of gloves and rolled his shoulders. 

“Orbital, if I die, buy the Kamishiro Manor and turn it into an all you can eat seafood buffet.” Kaito said, loud enough that everyone heard it.

“I’ll give you the Manor at a nice discount, Kaito!” Rio called from the ship’s bow.

“You sick bastard.” Ryoga shot back amicably as they started climbing. Orbital opened a communications channel which the girls tuned into as they got comfortable in the command room. A distant rumble of thunder had them looking up at the clouds the temple was hiding in, which were turning gray.

“Guys,” Ryoga said warily, “I didn’t just see the clouds we’re about to climb to start crackling with lightning and roar like a giant dragon, did I?”

“I did too!” Yuma replied cheerfully. “This’ll add a real spark to our adventure!”

There was awkward silence on the comms. The wind howled in the auditory void.

“A real spark, eh-”

“Yuma,” Kaito interrupted wearily, “If I manage to catch up to you before we reach the top of the mountain, I’m going to do what my father never could when he was roped into your dad’s adventures.”

“What’s that, Kaito?”

“Kill a Tsukumo.” 

“And… with that… I’m done.” Kotori saved a document on her tablet and let out a groan before planting her face on the table. Rio, sporting a mug of tea, left it by Kotori before patting her on the head. “I swear they make things harder if you’re studying from home or have to work remotely.”

Rio was glad that Kaito, at the tender age of 18, felt required to be an adult and think of things like supplies and provisions that the rest of the team would inevitably fail to consider. The day after Sargasso, he’d asked Yuma and Astral to manifest the airship so he could do a quick experiment on if objects left inside when it materialized were safe or not, and then afterwards upon being sure that there were no adverse effects (much to Orbital’s chagrin when Kaito ordered him to stay on the ship for this purpose) found a small room behind the command centre which he claimed as a hub. That room became stuffed with various chairs, a portable fridge, tables, a first-aid kit and more, which was where Rio and Kotori now found themselves.

Rio shrugged as she settled down, slipping her deck box off her belt and putting it on the table in front of her. “Self-studying is usually a lot harder since you don’t have someone to help you filter the material or bounce off of. Just imagine what it’ll be like in college.”

“Please no,” Kotori groaned, forcing herself back up. “I have a few years before I get there.”

“Yeah, for one thing you have to be brave and face high school!” 

“Is faking my tragic death before then a valid response tactic?” 

Rio made a show of tapping her chin and humming. “Mmmm… no, sorry. I’d be a horrible widow anyway. I’d prefer to be the girl who dies in the prologue and haunts the narrative.”

“Great, now I’m worrying about outliving everyone because all my friends fight aliens for ancient cards.” Kotori replied sarcastically. 

“Don’t worry, if you do decide to fake your death, leave a nice mystery so I can cash in on making a tacky true crime podcast about your sudden abrupt end.” 

That makes Kotori laugh, the tension leaving her shoulders for a second. She paused, looking down while fidgeting with her tablet as she became morose. “Rio, being serious, can we… talk?”

“Sure, what about?”

“Just about this morning, at the other Tomb.”

Rio tensed up. “Sure,” she said in a flat tone. “I can do that.”

“We don’t have to if you don’t want to-”

“I’m good. Just not sure what there is to say, really.” She shrugged mechanically, keeping her gaze focused on the wall. “I’m fine now,” she says after a moment.

“You weren’t this morning.” Kotori said instinctively, flinching when the words slipped out as Rio’s eyes snapped over to her. “I’m sorry, that came out wrong. Just that you looked really out of it in the temple and we flew straight to this temple after that.” 

“You’re fine, don’t worry.” Rio forced herself to look at Kotori, flashing a warm smile she hoped reached her eyes. “I just don’t know what to say about it yet. It’s still really fresh.” 

“Yeah, I get that. I am sorry for bringing it up so soon.” 

Rio let out a huff of air. “Probably better to talk about it now, I have to agree. And you are the one person I’m comfortable talking about it with.” 

“Really?” Kotori blinked in surprise. “No one else?” 

“My brother means well,” Rio sighed looking down at the table, “but things that unsettle him make him retreat into his shell. He’s always hated these visions, so he’d hate trying to talk to me about them. That, and he’d probably say I should stop going to the other tombs. Yuma’s kind, but I don’t think he’d know what to say, and after today I don’t think he’d do well if made to pick between comforting me and thinking Astral was wrong.”

It was so weirdly hard to maintain eye contact, Rio realized. It had been since the temple. 

“Haruto was going through some similar stuff back before the WDC,” Kotori offered. “Kaito might be able to lend a shoulder?” 

“Maybe. But for now, it’s just you that I trust.” Even then, there was so much Rio couldn’t say, wouldn’t say, even, to Kotori. She didn’t need to know that Rio had tasted iron in her mouth for hours afterwards, how their exit from the temple had had Rio gritting her teeth and digging her nails into her palms to avoid the crackling green aura at the edges of her vision, something that kept pestering her long after they were on the ship with Kaito- where had he come from?- who was saying out of the blue that they had to go to China now for the next Mythyrian Number and… she was so tired. Kotori didn’t need to know how even this far from the temple that the boys were climbing towards, Rio could feel it pulling at her consciousness, trying to entice her to dive back into the miasma of visions that felt like it was strip-mining her soul.

She’d have to sit on it for a while. But Rio wasn’t entirely sure that the version of her who saw the vision in that castle and the version of her who emerged were entirely the same. It was like having something asleep under her skin, but every time something caused it to stir, it was like she was kicked out of her own body and soul to facilitate… it. It was like being stared down by her own eyes in that dream again that she’d had after Sargasso.

“Who are you?” It had asked twice now, emphasizing the ‘you’ the first time and the 'are' the second. It was getting disconcertingly challenging to have a definitive answer to that.  

She had to bury that though. She wouldn’t make Kotori carry a burden Rio didn’t fully understand. It wasn’t fair to either of them. She’d be fine. She had to be. She couldn’t break again. She wouldn’t.

Rio made the effort to look up again, reaching out to take Kotori’s hand between her own. “So, thank you, and I’m sorry that you’re the only person I can really talk to about this.”

“It’s OK.” Kotori replied assuringly. “I’m here. I’m not going anywhere, and I’ll always be ready to talk about this.”

“You’re too good to me.” Rio swallowed a lump in her throat. 

“You set a good example.” They smile at that, Rio leaning over to kiss Kotori tenderly. They stayed in each other’s space, Rio feeling a pressure in her chest unwind ever so slightly- like she was in a desert and Kotori was a sign pointing towards an oasis, it helped stabilize her. She almost felt a pang of selfishness at how much being around Kotori helped ground her without even knowing, but Rio wasn’t in a mood for self pity so she buried it in adoration, cupping Kotori’s cheek with one hand as she deepened the kiss. Kotori preened slightly as Rio let out a warm sigh, foreheads touching softly while Rio lingered. 

“Much as I’d love to stay here, I’m gonna take a walk,” she muttered as she pulled back, albeit with great reluctance, “clear my head while the boys are busy. You gonna be OK with Orbital for a bit?”

“I’ll try not to turn him into a ball of scrap,” Kotori replied sardonically, fanning herself slightly due to how flushed Rio had left her, “but I’m probably just gonna take a nap for a while, I’m beat after today.”

“Attagirl.” Rio beamed as she dug into the mini-fridge Kaito had brought onto the ship, snagging an apple. “I won’t go too far, promise.”

“Sure. And Rio, thanks for talking. I hope it helps. Sorry if I came on strong.” 

Rio exhaled through her nose. “You didn’t, and besides, you’ve met my brother. This was far tamer than how he’d handle it.” If he ever did, she thought bitterly to herself, before blinking in quiet surprise at the venom that laced her thoughts.

Where had that come from? She really needed to get some air, so she started making her way out of the ship without having time to dwell. 

“OK. Talk soon?” 

“Sure.” 

Rio took off without thinking, skidding down the ramp and taking off in a random direction. The clearing Astral and Kaito had landed in gave way after a few minutes for a quiet forest, the sounds of nature surrounding her as she picked her way across tree roots large enough to break the surface. Ahead, the sound of water drew her attention- she was near a small creek that was forming from the mountain, having carved its way through this part so it could trundle down the mountain towards the ocean. Several overturned trees provided benches where one could sit, like the person with their back to her, hunched over a sketchbook. He paused to push a pair of glasses on the verge of slipping back up his nose before continuing. 

Rio stepped forward impulsively, missing the branch that snapped underfoot and echoed in this small pocket of the forest. Both her and the figure jumped at that, where a pair of grey eyes stared across at her in shock.

“You.” 

Durbe had shot up to his feet the second he heard the twig snap underfoot, ready to transform and face down the intruder when he noticed who it was.

Oh no. Durbe’s blood ran cold. It was her. How did this keep happening? She looked different this time, compared to when he saw her in Sargasso or Colombia; slightly more reserved, more drawn in on herself. He could see flecks of green in her red eyes, tracing patterns into her iris like stars rotating around a galaxy. 

In an instant, his bracer formed into his Duel Disk, ready to activate. Rio reached to her hip, only for her hand to pass through air, her face turning pale; she wasn’t carrying her deck. Her hand twisted into talons as it reached again, her breath becoming shaky. 

For a brief moment, Durbe considered attacking. He could practically feel a Vector on his shoulder telling him to do it, to launch Star Seraph Sentry at Rio and end her threat. A voice like Mizael listed off practical reasons with practiced efficiency; her visions were a key part of Astral’s plans to regain the Mythyrian Numbers, her death would shatter Tsukumo’s team and likely cause a ripple effect that shattered their foundations as Ryoga would lose himself to grief. He’d regret not doing this now, that Mizael-like voice insisted. 

She was a child though, and unlike at Sargasso, she had no means to defend herself. It wasn’t fair. His inner Vector scoffed at the realization that hit Durbe- he couldn’t do it.

Sighing to himself, Durbe let his Duel Disk dematerialize. “Peace,” he called out, “I won’t attack someone who’s unarmed.”

Rio stayed where she was, hands still shaking slightly around an apple she’d been holding. “You’ll forgive me if I don’t take you at your word,” she eventually said, “I have a pretty solid amount of times where Barians have lied to me.”

“An… understandable reaction,” Durbe conceded. “But I mean you no harm. Just turn around and walk away, there’s no need for either of us to get hurt today.”

“Sure, let me just go back to where my friends are!” The tension bled out of Rio’s shoulders slightly as a sarcastic defiance entered her tone. “Just invite you onto the ship while I’m at it.”

“You assume I would follow you.”

“I assume you’re not stupid enough to overlook a chance to sabotage the ship while Astral’s distracted. Any time spent here is time your Barians friends have to find more Mythyrian Tombs, after all.”

A fair point. It’s what Girag would have done, Durbe had to admit to himself.  He needed a new plan, if only to keep her here so that if Mizael hadn’t been detected yet that he wasn’t walking into an ambush.

“A ceasefire, then,” he offers as an olive branch. “You’re not comfortable turning your back on me, and I have no ill intent towards you. We can co-exist until Mizael or your friends finish their task, then go our separate ways with no one else the wiser.”

Rio paused, considering the offer and chewing on her lip. “I can play nice for a few minutes,” she eventually said. “Fine. Until one of us is told that their friends are coming down the temple, we can cooperate.”

“Given your brother, I’m frankly pleased to learn one of you is aware of good manners,” Durbe noted wryly. 

Despite everything, Rio’s lips twitched, minutely. “He was quite rude to you at the ruins.” 

“Understandably.” Durbe shrugged. “I hold no ill will, for what it’s worth.”

He couldn’t really afford to if he was right about his theory. His insane, cosmically stupid theory that he was a narrow-minded fool for even seriously considering. There was a perfectly logical reason for why simply being around the Kamishiro twins had repaired his Baria Lapis. He would earnestly love to know what that logical explanation was, though. Preferably sooner rather than later.

He was broken out of his thoughts by Rio stepping closer. “You were drawing,” she noted, “what was it?”

“Nothing of importance.” He didn’t particularly feel like sharing, so he hoped she wouldn’t press the topic or ask to look at the book.

“Then you’d have no problems with me looking at it?” 

Damnit. “Very well.” He picked up the notepad and held it out to her. She placed her apple down and sat on the upturned branch beside him, leaving enough space that neither was crowded, while close enough that Durbe could see her flick through some of the pages. He favored a faster, dirtier style of drawing, honed from years of having just enough downtime between reports or on missions to be able to draw, but never enough to apply much detail beyond the necessities, not seeing the point in touching up a design once the intent was achieved; it wasn’t like he was going to show it to anyone, that book was for Durbe alone.

He felt a twinge of apprehension as Rio flipped it open, realizing how long he’d had that book a moment later. 

“So this is Barian World, isn’t it?” Rio gestured to a double-page spread he’d done while perched on the roof of the tower that the Emperors lived in. He’d gazed out at the sea and the spires around him and spent an entire night up there working on it, making it one of the few completed pieces in the book. He’d gone to the effort of adding charcoal to some of the crystalized spires to add texture. “It’s very…” she struggled for a word, eventually settling on, “jagged.”

“Would you believe me if I said you get used to it?”

“No.”  She replied bluntly.

“Very accommodating of you.” Durbe noted, his tone as dry as a bone.

Rio snorted. Durbe’s hackles raised. “We have acid rain,” he said defensively, an odd surge of patriotism rising in his breast at the idea of a human trash-talking his home. “Of course everything would be jagged. Have you ever heard of erosion?” 

Rio battered her eyelashes innocently. “Is that a math thing?” She asked in a sickeningly high-pitched voice.

“I-” Durbe caught himself before he got on a soapbox and started lecturing. “You’re doing that on purpose,” he realized, narrowing his eyes. 

“I go to middle school, not yōchien, of course I know what erosion is.” Rio had the gall to roll her eyes while she resumed her normal speaking voice, the banter flowing easily as if they hadn’t been one misplaced deck box from trying to kill each other a few minutes prior. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re easy to rile up?” 

“Yes. Repeatedly. You’ve met Vector.”

“I wish I hadn’t.” She replied instantly. 

“You and everyone else, then. I imagine you have experience with your vexations, going off your brother’s perpetually short fuse.”

“I do, yes.” She replied smugly. She flipped through another few pages. “The spires looked nice, genuinely.” She said to break the silence. 

“I’ll take your word for it. I don’t often look at those after I finish.”

“You don’t let your Barian buddies take a look?” 

Durbe scoffs. “I don’t think Vector would appreciate good art if it bit him, and Alito would be more concerned with making sure my anatomy is good for drawing someone in the middle of a fist-fight. Girag cannot draw, much to his chagrin, so I would feel bad showing off my work. Mizael would probably like it if I drew a dragon, but I’m bad at scales.” 

Rio hummed, acknowledging Durbe as she neared the end of his sketchbook. An apprehension ate at Durbe’s stomach as she did, there were one or two sketches he hoped she would pass over. Suddenly he was welcome to hearing about how jagged and craggy Barian World was if it meant-

“Who are these two?” Rio asked, pausing at two of the more detailed drawings in this collection.

Ah. Durbe swallowed, feeling a lump form in his throat. “They are… old friends of mine.” He eventually answered. “Their names were- are- Nasch and Merag.” 

He drew that after they vanished, when he went nearly a week without rest searching all of Barian World for them. Girag had to physically drag him back home so he could rest, Vector trying to break the ice by joking that he “always wanted to tie Durbe up,” as Durbe feebly tried to get up before resting. Once that fit of mania had passed, he allowed himself one period to mourn where he drew them, spending hours pouring over every detail. He had the exact poses still etched into his memory alongside where they were; Nasch had been leaning against a wall as he chatted idly with Alito following a sparring match, while Merag draped herself over a railing as she watched Mizael and Tachyon Dragon practicing in a canyon. She had been the picture of apathy and boredom, but Durbe had caught how her eyes raced after Mizael like a hawk, keeping up with him as he darted between cover in a yellow blur.

“Were?” Rio’s eyes moved over to look at him, pulling Durbe out of his thoughts.

He cleared his throat. “We are called the Seven Barian Emperors, and you have met five of us now. These are the other two. Nasch is our leader, but he and his sister Merag vanished about nine years ago.” 

“What happened to them?” Rio leaned forward in curiosity. 

“We… I don't know. They just disappeared one day, and could not be found. Most of the other Emperors believe them to have fallen in battle, but wherever they went, they left their Over Hundred Numbers behind.”

“101 and 103, right?” Rio murmured. Durbe blinked in a mixture of surprise and confusion. “Well we’ve seen the others. You have 102, Vector has 104, Alito has 105, Girag has 106 and Mizael has 107. Process of elimination, easy enough.” 

“Yes.” Durbe fished a cloth out of his pocket and rubbed at his glasses absentmindedly. “I admittedly did not believe they had survived myself, but these tombs have me wondering if there may be a clue as to their location on this world, or at least a resolution.” 

How do you approach that topic, Durbe pondered as Rio traced a finger over the sketch of Merag. “Dreadfully sorry, I have growing reason to believe you and your brother are reincarnations of the most important people of my life. Would you mind betraying humanity and all you hold dear for me? Many thanks.”  

“You must have been fond of them,” Rio murmured, attention subsumed by the photo. “It shows in the work that went into this.”

Fond. That was certainly a word that applied among a thousand others. Durbe could fill a library with the words that applied to his thoughts on Nasch and Merag. 

“I trusted them with my life, and I swore to protect them with it as a shield for them.” He eventually forces out. “Of course I was ‘fond’ of them, as you put it.” 

Rio shook her head softly. “You know what I mean,” she murmured, something akin to pity or sympathy flitting across her face, “it’s written all over your face what you really feel about them.” 

Damnit. He was already a bad enough liar when he didn’t have to worry about how expressive human faces could be. He needed to stop talking about this, needed her to stop before she picked at the scab, please-

“You were in love with them, weren’t you?” She asks casually as if she’s not firing an emotional broadside into Durbe’s flank.

His mind went blank, his cursed tongue suddenly weighed down in his mouth, his body tensing up like a spring. “I…” 

And in that moment, Durbe felt whatever chords left of self-control that he’d been clinging to with a vice grip for nine years, wrapping them around him until they cut into him and melded into his soul, finally snap.

“Yes.” He felt something in his heart that he’d locked away for years wrench open. “Yes, I… cared for them. I never knew if either of them would return that affection, however, so I never said anything. But I was infatuated with them for years.”

“I’m sorry.” Rio says simply. Durbe knows she means it. “I can’t imagine what it’s like to never get a chance to say how you feel about someone before they’re gone.”

“It’s uniquely agonizing,” Durbe muttered bitterly, “I wouldn’t recommend it.”

“Have you ever told anyone how you felt?” 

“I think the Emperors always knew I held a candle, but even they had enough tact to not say anything to my face.”

About a year before they vanished, Merag had once affectionately called Durbe and Nasch “her boys,” pulling them into a rough embrace that had Nasch rolling his eyes while Durbe spluttered in protest. At their silence, she had elaborated- “You two are my rocks. I know I’m on the right path if you two are inevitably following me.”

Nasch had simply wryly noted that “you make it sound like we follow on your heels like trained dogs.”

Merag had managed to pout even though she lacked a mouth. “Don’t you?” 

“Someone has to make sure you don’t walk out a window with how air-headed you can be.”

Durbe hadn’t been sure how to feel about that at the time, torn between surprise at being pulled in so suddenly- and at how powerful Merag’s grip had been- and a swell of selfish adoration that for a moment he could let himself be this close to either of them. Later, he would settle on feeling like a coward; he had a chance to let his heart shine through and let it slip away. Even if everything stayed the same, he’d have gotten one golden year with either of them. Both, even, on the days he felt particularly greedy. But instead he extracted himself from Merag’s grip and made an excuse about needing to work on something with Vector, leaving them behind because he feared possibility too much to dive into the unknown.

Rio had gone back to looking at the notebook while Durbe was lost in thought. “You captured them well,” she murmured. “They’re beautiful. I can see why you fell for them. I’m almost jealous, even; I don’t exactly have people lining up to draw me like this.”

“Would you not be considered attractive by human norms?” Durbe asked, leaning in out of curiosity. From what little he understood of human aesthetics, Rio was visually pleasing to the eye. 

“I-” Rio paused for a moment, staring off into the distance before holding up a finger. “No. Not with these. Most people prefer their humans…” she gestured loosely at her scars while stumbling for a word, “unblemished,” she eventually said between clenched teeth, hissing the word out like a swear.

Durbe scoffed on instinct. “That’s a pity that the majority of humans are idiots, then.”

“Huh?” Rio blinked in surprise. 

“That you would be dismissed like that by people so shallow. You have a spark to you that’s far more interesting than most humans. If I was human, I’d perhaps find you one of the most captivating people I’ve ever met.”

“I’m spoken for.” Rio replied softly, touching her cheek almost in surprise as a blush bloomed at the compliment. “But thank you.” 

“If I may offer advice? Learn from my mistakes and let the people close to you know exactly how you feel. Holding onto it is like thinking you can develop an immunity to poison by drinking it yourself. It doesn’t work.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Rio’s gaze flicked down to a ring on her pinkie finger, twisting it. “Thank you.”

The silence that followed wasn’t quite companionable, but it was as close as could be in the context of a brief cessation of hostilities. The two looked up at the clouds hiding the temple as thunder rumbled, the wind carrying the muted roar of a dragon. Durbe felt the tug of Chaos Energy, but not of a Chaos Number- likely Tenjo’s Neo Galaxy-Eyes. Rio’s eyes shimmered green slightly for a second. 

“I’d say they’re close to being done up there,” Durbe murmured, “whichever of them got up there first and is fighting the Number’s guardian.”

“Yeah.” Rio passed over Durbe’s notebook carefully, her eyes tracking it as he slipped it into his knapsack. “I’d better go soon then if I want to be gone, then?” 

“Yes. Before you go though, I’d like to ask you a question.” 

Rio shrugged. “Fire away.”

Durbe swallowed. “As a hypothetical scenario, say you lose someone close to you. You find evidence that they may be alive and well, but have… relocated. They’ve started a new life. They’re happy. You could find them again, talk to them, restore their old life, but they’d have to abandon the old one, walk away from the people they had met since and fallen in love with.”

Rio blinked, brow furrowed in confusion, but gestured to Durbe to continue.

“Would it- would it be the right thing to do in that case, to potentially uproot that person’s life, when there’s no guarantee they would remember?” He stumbled over his words. “Would it be… selfish… of you to want that person back at any cost? To take them away from the life they created for themselves?”

Rio sat in silence, eyes narrowed in contemplation as she watched the creek roll by.

“I think,” she eventually said, “that the truth is what matters most. That the person you’re… hypothetically… looking for may reject that idea and stay with their new life. Even if it hurts to know that, it’s better to know and hurt than live a lie of a life.”

“I see.”

“Why do you ask?” Rio slid closer, entering Durbe’s personal space, her eyes pinning him down, the green almost seeming to glow. “Is there something you want to say to me, Durbe?”

Durbe found it hard to breathe all of a sudden, his fingers digging into the bark underneath. “I don’t think that would be wise for either of us,” he said, voice coming out lower and shakier than usual.

“Why not? If you have something to say, say it.”

Was she insane? “Are you aware of what you ask of me? If I was right and you pressed this argument-”

“I’d rather live a painful truth than die in a beautiful lie, and I’m sick of people thinking they know what’s best for me or what I can handle.” It’s as if all he can see is the red of her eyes as they narrow, catching the light like Barian World’s crystals mixed with that ethereal green. “You’ve acted strange around my brother and I since we met in Sargasso- you know something. So say what you mean, Durbe!” It was not a request in her tone, but an order. 

His throat catches on the word, a wellspring of self-loathing and hope colliding in his soul to create something alien in his chest as he opens his mouth, following the command almost immediately and saying in the faintest whisper, “Mera-”

An eruption jolts them both, jumping back from each other as the clouds part. Durbe’s pretty sure he sees a giant golden dragon momentarily, before the temple starts to crumble. He sees a smaller streak of yellow starting to race down the mountain ahead of the collapsing temple, and even from here he can feel Mizael’s fury like a thousand suns erupting at once.

“I have to go,” Rio says. “But we’re not done, are we?”

“No.” Durbe forces himself to stow away his emotions as he stares at Rio. “We’ll meet again, I promise. Farewell.”

Rio stood up fully, but paused. “Durbe?”

“Yes?”

She looked over at him, an expression of sorrow on her face as the mountain lit up with another ethereal glow from the temple as it erupted with energy. “You’re not as bad a person as you want to think you are. You’re allowed to want to be happy too. I just hope you realize that before it kills you.”

She took off, darting away before Durbe could respond. Durbe waited ten heartbeats after she slipped between the tree cover to let his mask slip, gasping sharply at the ice that surrounded his lungs. He barely felt able to breathe. What the hell was he doing? He was torn between wanting to call himself an idiot for letting Rio go so easily and yearning for a chance to talk more. Guilt and loathing dug into his heart, wondering what gave him the right to potentially voice his theories, risking ruining the lives of the Kamishiros and asking them to turn their backs on their allies and loved ones- even if those allies were his enemy, he didn’t think he had that cruelty in him. Selfishness tried to drown that doubt, that he was allowed to want his friends back, which was accompanied by what he could now distinctively identify as yearning, that he may finally get a chance to be honest about what he truly craved. He found himself sitting back down, trying to steady his breathing only for it to become heaving gasps of air like he’d been underwater this whole time.

“That pompous slag of a human! How dare he-” Mizael’s roar echoed as he slammed into the ground, kicking up a plume of dust and dirt that he ignored in his fury. He’d lost the helmet in the midst of his rampage, it seemed. His rage caught in his throat and he was reduced to wordless howls of rage and fury while he paced in a circle, fuming. It gave Durbe enough time to regain his breath and smooth out his expression while he stepped over to his companion.

“What happened?” Durbe said. “Did you get the Number?”

“No,” Mizael hissed in shame, “Kaito beat me to it and defeated the Guardian. I nearly got him to duel me there and then for it only for the damnable spirit to accuse me- me!- of having been a human in the past.”

“A human? Really?”

“I know! The mere suggestion makes my blood boil! I only wish that stupid spirit stayed around so I could show him how I really felt about his suggestion and melt him into stardust!”

Behind Mizael, a chunk of the temple started cartwheeling in freefall as it slammed against the mountain, growing disconcertingly larger as it made its way in their general direction. It probably wouldn’t land in the grove they were in, but Durbe didn’t feel like taking his chances.

“Might I suggest we pick this up later? Before a mountain falls on us?”

“What? Oh, fine, let’s go. The sooner I leave this blasted place the better.” Mizael spat to the side in disgust, the motion making his eye catch on where Durbe had been sitting. “Where did that come from?” He asked.

Durbe turned to see the fruit that Rio had been carrying, still where she left it. “I… got hungry,” he lied.

Mizael turned to look him in the eye. A scoff slipped out of his lips. “You're such a horrible liar. Whatever, if you want to lie, and poorly at that, then keep your secrets. You can explain this later. For now, let’s be on our way. Hopefully Alito and Girag have picked which temple they’re going to.” 

Durbe would be quite happy if they did- he was getting very sick of these ruins and what they represented. Still, he took one last look at where the temple had stood before he and Mizael warped back to Barian World.

The one in Colombia had a spirit who seemed to know him personally. The tomb Vector had raided had resonated with him, loathe as Vector would be to admit it. Now, Mizael found a tomb with a spirit who knew him by name, and said he was once human.  What did it all mean? What would Alito and Girag find, more evidence to prove the theory, or proof that his theory was based on mere happenstance? If there were tombs built for each of the Emperors, what would that mean for Nasch and Merag? So many questions, and so little time to find out.

Nasch, Merag… if you are out there, and if you are who I think you are… I will find you. 

I won’t lose you again. Not while I draw breath.

And I'll do anything to bring you back to where you belong.

Don’t think of what it’s cost me

It was all for a cause

And now it’s woken inside

I am a perfect copy

Of whatever I was

Something I don’t recognise

Jack into the mind, dominate the change

Tear it out to rearrange

I keep on having this dream inside the static

I fall outside of myself

I come apart at the seams inside the panic

I fall outside of myself

I’m not, I’m not myself

I’m not, Somebody else

(Miracle of Sound, “Replica”)

Chapter Text

“That felt weirdly easy.” Kotori mused as she hopped off the Airship after Astral and Yuma. “I thought sneaking into another country would be harder, or was that just me?”

“It helps when your means of transportation is an invisible flying machine that leaves no evidence,” Kaito replied drily, “but make sure you don’t lose your passports just in case. Orbital and I checked last night for any blind spots we could use in the maritime surveillance networks here to help, but once we’re off this dock we’ll blend in.”

“It leaves no evidence… if you don’t crash into the roof, that is,” Shark chimed in snarkily, sharing a grin with Rio as Kaito’s eye twitched.

“It’s not something we’ve had to worry about before given how remote the other temples have been,” he pressed on forcefully as the twins snickered, “but since Astral’s map pointed here, we have a new problem.”

“Yeah!” Yuma snapped his fingers. “Normally we gotta try and find a building in the middle of nowhere, now we’re looking for a building among a whole city’s worth! The ultimate game of finding a needle in a haystack, except everything is actually a needle!”

The silence was palpable.

“Well I thought I was being clever!” Yuma pouted. 

“I don’t suppose your expert plan of sneaking us in came up with much of an idea on how to find the Number?” Shark asked.

“Nothing yet.” Kaito shook his head. “But if we ask around for local legends, that might be a clue as to the Temple’s location.”

Rio nodded. “Sounds like a plan! Kotori and I will try our best to get some info at the major cultural hubs.”

“She means they’re going shopping and grabbing food, and that she might remember why we’re actually here after raiding some boutiques.” Shark translated, rolling his eyes.

“Oh so you don’t want me to find that leather jacket I saw in your wishlist while I’m here?” Rio retorted slyly. 

“... I didn’t say that…” Shark grumbled.

“Sweet.” Rio’s hand snaked around Kotori’s wrist and tugged at her as she started to leave. “I’m going Christmas gift shopping then.”

“It’s October!”

“You can never start early enough, and I’d rather be early than be a bad sibling! Like you’re being right now!”

“I have always wanted to try Italian pasta…” Kotori muttered.

As the twins bickered, Kotori turned her head to watch the boys while Kaito sighed. “We haven’t even left the docks and already this plan has gone wrong.”

“Ooh!” Yuma tugged at Shark’s wrist right before he started screaming at Rio in public... Again. “Can we visit some card shops? I always wanted to get some cards in Italian, I bet they’re super cool!”

“Yuma, you can’t even use those legally in Japan.” Kaito observed.

“Really? Even though Duel Gazers translate cards automatically?”

“Yes. The card stock is different here in Europe from Japan, it would raise issues in a tournament.” Kaito explained.

Yuma pouted. “Darn. Come on Shaaaaaaark, please? I want a memento of our time together on vacation!”

“Then buy a snow globe or a novelty shirt!” Shark snapped. “Can you go five minutes without thinking of Dueling?” 

“I could, but where would the fun be in that?” 

“He’s got you there.” Kaito noted wryly. 

Shark rolled his eyes, intertwining his and Yuma’s fingers. “Alright fine, one detour, one card shop, and that’s it!”

It was a few hours of domestic bliss before the gang reunited. They had achieved much in the way of their goals of sightseeing, exploring Spartan City, and engaging in acts of shallow consumerism. Yuma had nearly been suckered into buying an entire stall’s worth of novelty T-Shirts before Shark dragged him away. He did eventually find a few card shops and cajole Shark into a few packs, managing to pull a prismatic variant of Heroic Challenger Excalibur that he gave away to another child on the store while Kaito checked its resale value and shook his head at Yuma's altruism. Rio and Kotori had absolutely done their best to look for anything on a Number, but came to the mutual realization that the central plaza and its stores were probably not going to be where they would find an ancient ruin. Rio did get that nice jacket for Shark though, finding it in a size that fit both him and her equally. In regards to finding a Mythyrian Number, however, they were coming up a bit short. All their luck seemed to go towards Yuma seeing an advertisement for a tournament that was having its finals soon, where he recognized one of the finalists.

“Hey, Kotori, look! That’s Gauche, from the WDC!”

"Didn't he help kidnap Haruto that one time?"

"He did what." Kaito looked at the billboard, eyes narrowing. “What the hell is he wearing?” He muttered in horror and second-hand embarrassment.

“It’s, uh, spandex?” Yuma scratched his head. It left very little to the imagination.

“He looks like a really tacky HERO monster.” Ryoga murmured. 

“No, he just naturally looks like that,” Kotori chimed in, “he was wearing a full trenchcoat at the WDC with fur lining.”

Rio blinked in surprise. “Wasn’t it like 30 degrees this summer?” 

“Yeah.” Kotori shrugged. “He’s a little insane, but pretty harmless.”

“Yeah, Gauche is just a big teddy bear once you get to know him!” Yuma cheered. 

“Well, he is one of Kaito’s friends, so I think insanity just comes naturally.” Rio muttered.

“Oi,” Kaito countered weakly. “I won’t protest his insanity, though.” He tapped at his chin in thought. “Come to think of it, he and Droite spent a few years here as kids. It might be worth consulting them to see if they heard any legends in their time here.” He started typing a message into his D-Pad.

“Maybe they can even swing us some beds,” Shark noted, “it’d be better than sleeping on the airship floor again.” 

“It’s OK Kaito,” Rio said soothingly, like a school teacher talking to a student with a crayon up his nose, “we can go visit your friends, I know you’re too embarrassed to admit that’s what you want to do.”

Kaito flipped Rio off without looking up from his D-Pad. He paused afterwards to hum in introspection. “I see what you mean,” he said to Shark after a moment, “it is weirdly satisfying to do that.”

“Ha!” Shark barked in Rio’s face.

Kaito’s bank account took the hit of getting everyone inside Spartan City’s arena, letting them catch the end of Gauche the Starman’s qualifying match for the finals. Luckily, Gauche was taking autographs from the kids, so Yuma was able to charm his way backstage to get in contact, letting everyone into the man of the hour’s dressing room alongside Droite.

“So, have you gone pro too, Droite?” Kotori asked.

“Not yet, I’m content being this big lug’s manager for now.” Droite shrugged from behind the couch Gauche was draped over.

“I offered to join some Tag Duel Tournaments here once we settled in,” Gauche chimed in, “but we had some creative differences, so this worked for the better!”

Droite adopted a haunted look in her eyes as Gauche kept talking. Kotori and Rio caught her eye. “Costume?” Rio whispered.

Droite nodded. “Spandex,” she mouthed back. 

Kotori and Rio shared a look and nodded solemnly. “I get why,” Kotori muttered.

“It would leave very little to the imagination,” Rio replied. 

“Besides,” Droite said as she regained her faculties and life bled back into her eyes, “I work better from behind the scenes. Gauche is the one carrying the big dream of inspiring the future generations and all that.” She shrugged. “I’m just helping grease the wheels.”

Gauche chuckled. “It’s a bit tacky and corny, yeah, but hey, it gets me up in the morning. A little bit of corn never killed anyone.” 

“Hey, I like corn.” Kotori replied, shooting a wink at Rio who hid the urge to roll her eyes at the reminder of her bad pick-up line.

“It ain’t corny at all!” Yuma countered. “That’s a great dream!” 

“Yuma’s right,” Kaito said quietly, “you have a noble goal. I can relate, from my own experiences fighting for Haruto.” 

Everyone mercifully was polite enough to not think about the majority of Kaito’s fights being as a Number Hunter where he sadistically stole people’s souls to obtain magical trading cards. Most of them had since left the hospital. 

“Ah, look at that, siblings looking out for each other. If only I knew what that was like,” Rio whispered, “but my brother’s emotionally constipated and has to be blackmailed into complimenting me.” 

“Oi,” Shark snarled, “I’ll compliment Kotori a bunch just to spite you.”

“What’s this about complimenting me?” Kotori whispered.

“That your blouse really brings out your hair. You look very charming today.” Shark replied smoothly.

“Oh, thanks Shark, that really means a lot! You’re so considerate!” Kotori beamed like a satellite absorbing the sun’s rays at the remark, enough that she missed Rio’s fingers twitching into a talon-like shape.

“I hate you,” Rio hissed in a low, raspy voice.

“Lovely as it is that you dropped in Kaito, what brought you out here?” Droite noted as the temperature around Rio sharply declined, all while Shark got the sensation of someone walking over his grave.

“Yeah dude, if you called ahead we’d have set you up in a fancy pad, gotten ringside tickets for the tournament, you name it!” 

“Gauche, have I ever told you you’re my favorite person?” Yuma murmured, starstruck. 

“I get that a lot!” Gauche beamed like his alter-ego’s namesake. 

Kaito let out a bemused huff. “Would you believe me if I said we were sightseeing? We’re looking for ruins.” 

“In Spartan City?” Droite’s eyebrow rose slowly while she smirked, amused.

“... OK, fair, let me be more specific.” Kaito amended. 

“Can you be more specific over dinner? I’m starving!” Gauche shot up. “Lemme get changed and then we’ll grab a bite.”

“He really is just Yuma, but grown up.” Kotori mused. She paused. “And a bit more hairy.”

Gauche and Droite were able to dig up a lead during dinner- a flooded colosseum in a nearby lake which hadn’t been explored due to fears of it being haunted by the spirit of a vengeful gladiator who had sparred with his Prince (“And they were roommates!” Rio and Ryoga had cackled in laughter as the story was told). Kaito started making arrangements for some diving gear, but that would only come together in the morning, so Gauche got some guest rooms ready at the villa he and Droite were staying in. 

“Just once, I’d like one of these ruins to have a happy ending,” Kotori said later that night to Rio as they got settled in for the night, “just one? I’m not asking for the world here, just one that doesn’t end with horrible betrayal or murder or tragedy. Just one where the story ends with ‘and then they died in their sleep at the tender age of eighty.’” 

“I think you’re reaching for the stars there, Little Bird,” Rio scoffed, rolling her shoulders. “At least this one will let you scratch scuba-diving off your bucket list?”

“That’s more a Yuma thing. Also, uh, sorry.”

Rio blinked in confusion. “Sorry? For what?” 

“Here I am complaining about having to hear these legends, but if we get to the temple tomorrow and it influences you like the others did, you’ll actually have to see it, right? That’s way worse, I’m sorry for whining.” 

“You’re not whining,” Rio murmured softly, walking over and clasping Kotori’s hand between her own, “you’re allowed to be uncomfortable about all of this, even if you’re not the one with it rattling around in your skull.” She tapped the side of her head, trying to deflate the tension that was beginning to hang around Kotori. Judging by how Kotori frowned at that, probably at how up-close she could see the green fragments in Rio’s eyes, it didn’t work. Rio kicked herself.

“I just wish there was something I could do to help.” Kotori admitted. “Even if you don’t need help dealing with the visions, I still hate that all I can do is just watch while everyone else can do something.”

Rio pressed a kiss into Kotori’s forehead. “Would it help if I said you being here does help?” She murmured, resting her chin on Kotori’s head. “Because it does. You do help, just emotionally rather than physically.”

“I… am glad to hear that.” Kotori was still stiff with tension. “I just want to be able to do more, though. I can’t help with the Numbers, I know how that would end first-hand, but surely there’s something I can do that’s more proactive. There’s only so many times you can be on the sidelines before it gets to you, you know?”

“I do. You’ll get your chance, I’m sure.”

“Last time I got a chance,” Kotori noted dryly, “I got brainwashed during a sports event and you had to beat some sense back into me.”

“Well…” Rio paused. “You can only go up from there?” She tried to say in a positive tone.

Kotori snorted. “The view is great from the bottom of the barrel, I assure you.” A spark of humor entered her tone. Rio hummed in satisfaction at that. 

“There you go, glass half full. But I’ll just say in your defense- you were really cool in Sargasso.”

“You were the one who fought a Barian.”

“And you were the one who saved everyone’s lives when you got the airship out of a black hole.” Rio countered effortlessly. 

“Point.” Kotori admitted with a smile. Rio got up, smoothing out her dress. “I’m gonna grab some water before I hit the hay, want anything?”

Kotori shook her head. “I’m good, I’m still full from dinner, so I’m gonna hit the hay now. Just be careful when you come back in.” Rio nodded, making her way to the door. “And Rio?” 

“Sup?” 

“I still want to talk to you about what the temples are doing to you. I know tonight’s not a great time, but after this… please let me in. For my own sake, if nothing else.”

“I… sure. After this, we’ll make time, I promise.”

“That’s all I need. See you tomorrow.”

“Sure, sleep well. I…” Words caught in Rio’s heart and throat. “Wanted to thank you again for today.” She eventually said, closing the door after her.

Rio took a moment before walking a few steps down the hallway. She pressed herself against the wall, sighing as her eyes closed and she slouched down beside a cold radiator. This was the first bit of solitude she’d had all day and took a second to enjoy the silence. Being surrounded by an entirely new location, a different language and customs had been electrifying, but her batteries were running a bit dry after the long day. She’d nearly let it slip. The vaunted word that would escalate her situation or end it immediately. 

Opening her eyes again, Rio reached out onto the radiator to haul herself up, pausing as she noticed how cold it was- the radiator wasn’t just off, it was damaged. Rio ran cold naturally so she didn’t mind it as much, but the others would all have hissed from the shock of how cold it was.

Or she had nerve damage. Being set on fire did that as well. Shrugging off the thoughts about that, Rio rubbed her hands together as a plan came together in her head. Oh bless you, antiquated and broken Italian plumbing, for leaving a broken radiator out on their floor. Rio purred in satisfaction as she latched onto the pipes, feeling her body temperature mixing with the cold emanating from these copper pipes. She could almost imagine the crackling of ice beneath her grip which made her giggle to herself.

“Rio, what are you doing out here?” She looked up at Ryoga, who had ventured out into the hallway while Rio was thinking.

“I was cold,” Rio noted casually, her grip tightening on the freezing pipe. 

“You run cold, that’s nothing new,” Ryoga replied, “But why are you holding onto that radiator pipe then for dear life? The heat’s not on tonight.”

“It’s not.” Rio continued in a serene tone. “The pipe is freezing. My hands are really cold now.”

“... Congratulations on your new act of self-destruction?” Ryoga sighed. “Sometimes I hate how good you are at lying to your therapist, they’d have a field day unpacking that.”

“That almost sounded like a compliment.” She looked at Ryoga as a creepy grin stretched across her face. “Let me give you a big hug as thanks.”

“With those ice-boxes you call your hands? No thanks-” Ryoga paused, eyes widening as the implication set in. “Oh hellfire.” He cursed, backing away. “Don’t you dare come at me with those talons, Rio!”

“Are you in a headspace to receive my long creepy witch fingers?” Rio got up and did a stretch, popping her fingers as she did while speaking in a monotone.

Ryoga faced this challenge with all the bravery he normally possessed on the battlefield. Which was to say, he turned around and ran away, shrieking, prompting Rio to chase after him with a banshee-like cackle. 

“YUMA, KAITO, GAUCHE, ANYONE, HELP, RIO’S FINALLY LOST HER MARBLES.”

She was always faster than Ryoga in a dead sprint. He had no shot of survival as she tackled Ryoga into a door.

“Why are you both so loud, it’s 11 at night, my body clock thinks it’s 6am, can you let me sleep-” Kaito, his hair down and forming an impressive fringe that wouldn’t look out of place in an emo rave, stepped out of his room, pausing midway through his tired mumbling lecture as his brain visually processed what he was seeing before him: 

Ryoga, back slammed into the wall, desperately trying to fend off Rio’s hands from descending down his shirt, while she kept laughing and sporting a deranged grin.

Kaito blinked. Looked again. Visibly aged a decade. “Nope.” Was all he eventually said before he turned around and closed the door. The locking sound echoed in the quiet hallway before Ryoga started sputtering like an old engine. 

“Kaito, no, you owe me!” Ryoga roared, or at least tried to, as midway through Rio managed to break Ryoga’s grasp on her wrists and plunged them down his shirt, death-gripping his ribs. “Rio, please, not so rough- damNITTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!”

Rio noted afterwards that the F-Sharp that Ryoga’s voice hit at that point with his shriek of agony was oddly serene. 

“Wait, Astral! What do you mean the lake blew up?” Yuma slurred drowsily as he followed Astral out onto the balcony. He jolted awake as he took in the large plume of smoke above the now dried-out crater where the lake had been an hour ago. “Oh. The lake blew up.” he noted in a deadpan tone.

“Indeed. The lake blew up.” Kaito replied, holding a pair of binoculars. “And I just finished renting that scuba gear.” He muttered darkly. 

“Your dad owns a theme park, you’ll be fine,” Ryoga muttered, ignoring Kaito’s response that it was ‘closer to half the city, actually.’ He jolted as Rio grabbed his shoulder. “I swear if you found more broken piping-” he started, before stopping as he took in the worried look on Rio’s face.

“Worse,” she looked like she was swallowing bile, “I’m getting a really dark sense from the ruins. The Barians are already there.” 

“No time to waste then, we need to be on the road now.” 

“What’s this about the lake blowing up?” Droite asked as she exited onto the balcony in a nightgown. Kaito pointed towards the horizon. Droite let out a low whistle. “Oh wow, the lake blew up.” She remarked idly, as if observing the weather.

“This happens around us worryingly often.” Kaito admitted. 

“Tell me about it, remember when your lover’s quarrel with Mizael collapsed that mountain path?” Ryoga muttered.

Kaito turned on Ryoga. “What did you just say-” he began to bark in a voice like a looming thunderstorm. 

“What’s everyone yelling about?” Kotori murmured drowsily as she poked her head out. Kaito, not looking away from Ryoga, pointed again. “Oh, the lake blew up.” She observed casually. 

Yuma, in between rounds of rubbing his eyes to shake the sleep off and throwing on a jacket, paused. “Does anyone else ever wonder how stupidly crazy our lives are that a lake just exploded out of nowhere in the middle of the night, and we’re all taking it very casually?” 

Everyone looked at each other and just shrugged, letting out non-committal hums or grunts.

Droite grabbed her car keys. “Guessing you need a lift?”

Kaito looked at his bank balance, a forlorn expression on his face. “Not unless the scuba gear grows wheels.” 

“So, we finally meet again, Yuma. After you left me out in the cold, I’ve been raring for a chance to get even with you!” Alito called out. “Wipe that sad look off your face, haven’t you been raring for a chance to fight me again in a heated battle? To feel that warrior’s passion? I even got an arena for us this time to fit the occasion!” 

“Yuma, between this guy and Vector, what is it with the Barians talking to you like a jilted ex?” Ryoga asked casually from the stands where he, Rio, Kotori and Kaito watched Yuma and Droite square off against Alito and a brainwashed Gauche.

“You think I know?! I’m not doing anything to provoke it, promise!” Yuma called from the middle of the arena. 

Ryoga rolled his eyes, his body language trying to convey nonchalance except for his grip tightening on the guard-rail in front of him as the duel kicked off in earnest. He did an admirable job not jumping out of his skin as what seemed to be the ghosts of the past materialised to watch the duel “I say we go down there and make this a real battle royale,” he said in a low voice that carried in the arena’s environment, “then show Alito a good brawl.” 

“Hey now, that’s not super sporting!” Alito said in a heckling manner. “But, I figured you might try something like that, so I brought along an insurance policy!” Alito snapped his fingers and four figures stumbled out of the shadows of the colosseum, their eyes all a muted shade of maroon as the Barian World crest on their foreheads lit up. “I needed some directions to find this place, so I thought I’d bring them along to make sure I didn’t get lost! You’ll have to deal with them if you wanna hijack this duel!”

Kaito bit back a curse. “Fine, let’s clear them out quickly.” He and Ryoga vaulted the barrier, landing in the arena and activating their Duel Disks. Rio rolled her shoulders before doing the same, landing with a slight ‘oof.’ Alito’s minions weren’t moving at the moment, just standing guard to prevent anyone else from interfering. Kaito and Ryoga had lured two of them away for a Tag Duel that was about to get started, leaving two more swaying idly in place- like puppets left up on hooks waiting for someone to play with them.

Rio’s brain then went to a very unpleasant place due to thinking of a certain someone associated with puppets, making her swat at her arm to ground herself. She took a cautious step forward, feeling a familiar buzzing at the base of her skull that didn’t help how she already felt as she got closer to Alito and the new Mythyrian Number. Her tongue felt like it was swabbed in cotton, while the edges of her vision took on a green hue. 

“Rio?” She looked behind her, looking up at where Kotori was staring down from the stands, concerned. “You look dizzy, is everything OK?” 

“I-” Rio hissed as the green flared; behind her, Gauche had just summoned Lion Heart. She brought her hands to her head, eyes screwed shut as it felt like her brain was splintering. Her mouth opened to say something but all that slipped out was a sound approximating a wounded animal’s low groan. Her eyes flashed green before everything went tumbling away. Little of whatever she saw stuck this time, at least consciously- the sun in the sky on a clear day, the roar of the crowd shaking the arena around her, the thrill of combat, before the sudden turn to fear, chains clasped tight around her wrists, the crowd now calling for blood more viciously, the sun catching on the blade of the axe as it swung and-

She wasn’t there. It was gone. No sun, no crowd, just a calm night sky with the stars overhead, and Rio now being held aloft as she regained her senses. Kotori was holding onto her, panting, her knees sporting a few scratches.

“Did you vault that just to catch me?” Rio murmured as her voice came back to her. Kotori stiffened and looked up.

“You were swaying like a pendulum. I got worried…” She leaned into Rio’s chest. “Also I think I skinned my knee when I took that jump.” 

“My hero,” Rio whispered, enjoying how Kotori ducked her head to hide the blush that flooded her cheeks. 

Rio felt another pair of eyes on her. She turned her head to see Ryoga, one of his hands clenching and unclenching enough that it looked like he’d tear part of his jacket off. She gave him a shaky nod and he sighed, turning his focus back on the duel.

Rio let out a sigh as she could feel sensations starting up again- like her nervous system had needed to force a shutdown and now everything was booting back up again. “OK,” she said reluctantly, “I’m good to go now.” 

“You sure? I don’t think the guys will mind handing a 4 on 2.”

“No, Ryoga will complain if we make him work for his meal ticket,” Rio retorted slyly. “Besides, do you really wanna miss a chance to have a Tag Duel in a literal colosseum?” 

Kotori let out a put-upon sigh, even as her lips tugged up. “I suppose it is kinda cool when you say it like that…” she admitted.

“See?” The grin Rio sported felt right at home, Kotori rolling her eyes fondly as she left a kiss on Rio’s cheek before pulling out her deck. “How often are you gonna get to say you did this?” 

“Is this also because since Yuma’s tied up with Alito, Ryoga can’t say he did this with his boyfriend?” 

“I’m not that petty.” Rio said unconvincingly.

“Yes you are.” Kotori immediately retorted bluntly.

“Yes I am.” Rio admitted casually, flipping on a dime.

“If you’re done flirting, we could use the help!” Ryoga heckled.

“Ryoga speaks for himself, I’m doing fine,” Kaito replied sharply. 

Rolling their eyes, the girls stood together and faced down two of Alito’s guards.

“Duel!”

Go figure that Alito managed to make sure the people he brainwashed as meat shields had deck synergies. The duo that Kotori and Rio were facing were playing the same deck- Despia, a Fiend archetype that could use Fusion Summoning. Kaito and Ryoga were up against one player on a stun deck that was running a variety of floodgates and negation effects, to compliment their tag partner who was on a True Draco deck.

Kotori’s turn was up next, and things were going less than ideally, if she could be honest. The opponents had two powerful Fusion Monsters on the field- Masquerade the Blazing Dragon, a monster whose effect would make Kotori pay life points just to activate a card, and Despian Quaeritis, which lowered the attack points of most other monsters to 0 besides other Level 8 Fusion Monsters. Rio had powered through Masquerade’s payments to cleave through most of the rest of the board, taking out several powerful Darklord monsters and leaving both opponents with less than 2000 Life Points, but Masquerade’s effect had left her with less than 500 Life Points, meaning she wasn’t even allowed to activate a card until Masquerade was destroyed or had its special abilities negated.

Kotori had lost almost half of her Life Points herself from Masquerade’s effect- she had the Sanctuary in the Sky in-place, but most of her early plays had been spells and traps to support Rio’s combos which ate into her Life Points. She had 2100 left, which meant she only had three activations before she’d be in the same boat as Rio, unable to activate anything. 

“My turn!” Kotori called out. “I draw!” 

Three activations. She had three activations under Masquerade before she couldn’t activate another card. No pressure, right?  She took a peek at her draw. Wait- with that card, and in conjunction with the rest of her hand, maybe she could-

It’d be risky, and likely fall apart to most any form of disruption, but there weren't any Spells or Traps left on the field for Alito’s minions. if it worked…

“How’s it looking over there?” Rio asked, still sounding confident despite how low her Life Points had fallen. “Think you got something?”

“I think I do at least… it’s a bit risky though.”

Rio shrugged. “Might as well risk it for a biscuit, then.” 

“Do you trust me?” Kotori asked.

Rio turned to look at her, a lazy smirk flitting across her face. “Like you even need to ask?” 

Kotori felt her heart skip. “I’d best not let you down then,” she murmured coyly, before turning back to the field. “Alright, I’m going to start by summoning my Tuner Monster, The Agent of Mystery- Earth!” An angel with green/blue wings and white robes materialized above Kotori. “I’ll use its effect! When it’s summoned, I can add an Agent monster from my deck to my hand, but if I have The Sanctuary in the Sky on my field- which I do- I can instead add Master Hyperion!” 

Kotori winced as her Duel Disk let out a small jolt at the effect activation, Masquerade glowing maliciously as its effect kicked in. Two effect activations left.

“Now I’ll remove from play one of my Agent of Life- Neptunes that’s sitting in my Graveyard to Special Summon this monster!” Kotori continued, pulling a card out of her Graveyard and pocketing it. “And since it’s not an effect to summon it, I don’t have to pay my Life Points!”

“See, that’s how you know she’s in too deep into this game,” Kotori heard Ryoga note as he watched her turn, “She’s spouting off loopholes and technicalities like that.”

“Well Ryoga,” Kaito murmured sardonically, “if you’re quite finished backseat dueling for your sister’s girlfriend, might I suggest helping your actual tag partner?” 

“Oh, I thought you were doing fine!” Shark retorted in a snippy tone. “But since you asked so nicely, I’ll use XYZ Revive Splash’s effect from the Graveyard and revive XYZ Armor Fortress!” 

“I open the gates to salvation, and bring forth the Titan of Light!” Kotori chanted. “Descend from on high, Master Hyperion!”  

The night sky shone behind Kotori, coalescing into a golden sphere that pulsated and formed a miniature galaxy. From that galaxy formed a black tunic and shimmering gold armor, accompanied by flaming gauntlets and greaves. 

“Master Hyperion can banish a Fairy monster from my Graveyard to destroy a card on the field! I’ll remove a Mystical Shine Ball and target Masquerade!” Kotori’s Life Points dropped another six hundred. One activation left, after that she’d be stuck with whatever she had on the field.

Master Hyperion reached into the galaxy at its core, forming a spear of light that it prepared to throw at the dragon.

“I banish Branded Opening from the Graveyard to negate the destruction!” The opponent called out. A barrier formed around the dragon before the spear landed, dissipating seconds later.

“Master Hyperion’s effect can activate twice per turn if I control The Sanctuary in the Sky!” Kotori removed another Mystical Shine Ball from the Graveyard, her Gazer informing her of her Life Points lowering again. That was it, if this didn’t work, she was done. “I again target Masquerade!”

Master Hyperion again formed a spear of light that it threw into the sky, forming a star that turned its rays onto Masquerade. The dragon roared as the area around it was flash-fried… destroying the monster.

“Ha!” Rio let out a whoop. “I knew you could do it!”

“You set me up well!” Kotori replied with an eager grin. “Now that Masquerade’s off the field, I don’t have to pay Life Points to activate my effects anymore!” Not that she could have after that, but she didn’t need to dwell on that. “And now it’s time to seal the deal and take out that Despian Quaeritis!”

“The floor is still yours,” Rio murmured with a coy smile, gesturing with a flick of her wrist. Kotori let out an exhale, her leg bouncing with jitters as she felt the wind start to pick up.  

“Right! I now Tune my Level 8 Master Hyperion with Level 2 The Agent of Mystery- Earth!” She held her hand up into the sky as Earth turned into two green rings that formed around Kotori. Master Hyperion erupted into a collection of white stars that hovered overhead, kicking up a gust of wind inside of the rings spawned from Earth. Kotori’s hair kicked up from the cyclone as the stars combined, forming a new silhouette. 

Yuma paused, looking over from his duel. “Woah ho, I didn’t know Kotori had a Synchro Monster that big!”

“That’s great Yuma,” Droite growled as Lion Heart began to prepare another attack, “you can admire it after you dodge!”

“Huh? Oh woah, crap baskets!” Yuma yelped as he hastily played a trap.

“Divine providence shall guide my hand and illuminate the road to victory! Forge the galaxy of light! ” Kotori chanted, raising her voice to be heard over the wind. “I Synchro Summon! Descend, the divine guardian of light! Level 10, Masterflare Hyperion!”

The green and white light around Kotori erupted into a searingly bright light, white mixed with orange and pulsing like a flame. An armored titan adorned in white and red appeared overhead, two wings of divine flame snapping out behind it. Out of sight, Rio took an instinctual step back, her breath catching for a moment at the wildfire spouting from the monster’s back, before the flames calmed down and formed around the monster like a cap. She released the breath she hadn’t even realized she was holding. 

“I activate Masterflare’s effect!” Kotori declared. “I can send a monster from my hand, deck or Extra Deck that mentions ‘The Sanctuary in the Sky’ to the Graveyard, and it replicates that monster’s effects for the turn! I send Majesty Hyperion!” Kotori slid the card from her deck into the Graveyard, where it glowed. “But it won’t be there for long! I can banish an Agent from my hand, field or Graveyard to Special Summon it from the Graveyard! I use Earth as the requirement!”

Masterflare Hyperion let out a glow as Kotori spoke, its shadow on the ground beginning to pulse with a violet energy. From that violet, beams of amethyst light appeared, briefly assuming the shape of Kotori’s Tuner Monster before warping into another armored figure, this one in a black suit of armor with silver and red highlights, complete with glistening talons. A cloud-like mist formed out of its back, forming a mixture of violet wings and a cloud that hung over the field, mixing with the clouds drifting down from Kotori’s Field Spell.

“The rays of the dark sun shall turn day into night, and paralyze the wicked and the divine alike!” Kotori’s voice rang out across the arena clearly. “I Special Summon! Arrive from on high, Majesty Hyperion!”  

As Kotori’s monsters settled in behind her. Kaito hummed. “Impressive. She’s come a long way from the WDC.” 

“That’s my best friend for you!” Yuma cheered on. “She’s so freaking cool!” 

Droite rolled her eyes. “Am I the only person focusing on my duel and not anyone else’s?” 

“Yes, sorry about that.” Kaito cleared his throat before drawing for his turn. 

“It’s time to end this! Let’s battle!” Kotori gestured towards the opposing field.

“I activate the effect of Despian Quaeritis! During the Main Phase, all non Fusion monsters have their Attack Points set to zero!” The opponent on the left interrupted.

“I also activate Masquerade’s second effect! When my opponent controls an Extra Deck Monster while Masquerade is in the Graveyard, I can revive it by negating its special abilities!” The second one joined in. 

Kotori paused. Rio looked over. “Masterflare has an effect you can activate now, right? It lets you banish a card on their field. You could take out Quaeritis and then it’s just Masquerade left to worry about on the next turn.” She muttered to herself.

“I could, but the Masquerade activation means…” Kotori did some quick mental maths and lit up with an excited, manic giggle. “It means they just lost this turn, actually.”

Rio blinked in surprise. “Huh?” 

The opponent effects resolved, Kotori’s monsters stiffening as demonic energies circled them and sapped their strength while Masquerade reformed, roaring in defiance. 

“I’m still going to my Battle Phase, and I’m still attracting!” Kotori called out. “Majesty Hyperion, attack Masquerade the Blazing Dragon!” 

“Uh…” Shark muttered. “We all saw Quaeritis reduce Kotori’s monsters to zero attack points, right?”

“Yes,” Kaito replied curtly.

“And she’s still attacking, we’re not worried that she lost her marbles over there?” 

“No, Ryoga, because I have enough common sense to read Majesty Hyperion’s effects.” Kaito said, rolling his eyes so obnoxiously, everyone could hear it. 

“Huh? Lemme…” Ryoga started muttering to himself as his Duel Gazer fed him the card information. Eventually a bark of laughter ripped out of him. “Ha! Oh, you guys are cooked!” He called out mockingly at Alito’s minions.

“Not as ‘cooked’ as your generation’s literacy rate.” Kaito murmured. 

One of Alito’s guards that Kaito and Ryoga were dueling raised their hand. “Hey, if you’re finished-”

“Hmm? Oh yes,” Kaito gestured lazily towards the one left standing. “Galaxy-Eyes, attack Ignis Heat. During damage calculation, I’ll use Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon’s ability to banish both our monsters, during which time I activate Dimension Wanderer’s effect from my hand, dealing you three thousand points of damage as my Galaxy-Eyes was banished by its special ability. You have less than three thousand Life Points, so…” Kaito shrugged without looking away from Kotori and Rio’s duel. “That’s game,” he finished anticlimactically as the guard was blown away with a pained cry. 

As Kaito and Shark’s duel finished, Majesty Hyperion clashed with Masquerade. A stream of dark fire shot from the dragon’s mouth, which Masquerade powered through valiantly and deflected away from Kotori and Rio.

“Are you trying to lose?” One of Alito’s guards snarled, covering their eyes as Majesty collided with Masquerade.

“Hardly! When Majesty Hyperion is on the field, all of the battle damage that I’d take, you take it as well!”

“So you’re trying for a mutual kill?” 

“Nope!” Kotori scoffed. “With the Sanctuary in the Sky on the field, I don’t take battle damage at all from battles involving a Fairy Monster- it’s set to zero. But… Masquerade isn’t a Fairy-type, is it?”

“In fact,” Rio added with a sardonic drawl, “neither is Quaeritis. It’s a Fiend.”

The penny dropped, as Alito’s guards both began to sweat. “Wait, that means-”

“Yep! I’m not taking any damage! But you can’t say the same! With your Life Points both as low as they are, crashing my monsters will be enough to win this duel!” Kotori snapped her fingers. “Majesty, go! Attack Masquerade with Dark Illumination!”

The clouds around Majesty formed around it and Masquerade right as Masquerade shot a burst of flame from its mouth. When the clouds dissipated, the ball of flame was transported through the clouds and their mist-like texture, almost teleporting away from Kotori and Rio and back towards the guards. As Majesty released its clouds, it faded away, destroyed from the battle.

One of the guards was sent flying back from the attack, landing in a crumpled heap on the floor as the Barian World symbol on their head shattered. The other turned, hands shaking. “Nice trick, but that won’t work twice. Your Majesty Hyperion’s gone now!”

“True.” Kotori shrugged. “But I could have just attacked the other way around to ensure that. Not that I needed to though. Remember what I said, when I used Masterflare to send Majesty to the Graveyard, that it gained a copy of all of Majesty's effects. Like, say, the damage redirection?” 

“I- wait. Oh no!” The penny dropped, leaving the guard to swallow hard enough that their throat bobbled like an apple floating on water.  

“Yep. Masterflare, finish the job and attack Quaeritis! Flames of Sacrosanctity!”  

Masterflare Hyperion hovered above Kotori, its wings furling arounds its outstretched arms as it manifested a miniature sun that pulsed with energy, unleashing a ferocious beam of divine fire that slammed into Quaeritis with a resounding impact. The second guard was sent flying, rolling on the ground as their own Barian crest evaporated. As they did, Alito and Gauche were both knocked away from Yuma, the duels coming to an end as Yuma used Excalibur and Overlay Marker to wipe them both out in the same turn. Rio and Kotori shared a high-five, laughing.

Shark let out a quiet exhale as he deactivated his Duel Disk, watching the spirits of the arena fade. “Geez, this night got energetic. I’m beat-”

His comment was cut off by a howl of anguish from Alito as he picked himself up, looking oddly lost as he sat on his knees. “What the hell was that? These memories… Where did they come from? What did you do to me?!”

Behind Kotori, Rio let out a hum, her expression twisting in sympathy.

He teleported away right after, Gauche falling to his knees as the Barian crest on his forehead shattered. Yuma darted forward, catching him in time while his eyes regained a spark of life. 

“Hey, what happened?” He asked drowsily while looking around. “Wait, did the lake blow up?”

“Yep.” Droite said, deadpan.

“Huh.” He took it well. “I didn’t do anything stupid, did I?”

“Nothing beyond what I expect for you at this point,” Droite replied wryly as she helped pick Gauche up. “Now come on, let’s get you home and ready for the big match today.”

Gauche’s eyes widened while he pulled Lion Heart off his Duel Disk and tossed it to Yuma, who was twirling another of his father’s coins between his fingers. “Oh yeah, the final! You’ve all gotta come watch that!”

“Should we not be heading home soon?” Astral muttered.

“It would be highly impractical for us to send you off after you got little rest today,” Droite noted off of Gauche’s statement. “I’m sure we can host them for tonight and you can take off after getting a good night’s rest.”

“One extra day wouldn’t kill us!” Yuma said enthusiastically. “We can watch the finals and do all sorts of cool stuff after!”

Kotori raised her hand. “I’ve always wanted to go to a night market!”

Kaito hummed. “I do need to get some refunds sorted…”

Shark coughed something that resembled the word “cheapskate.”

Gauche had won, earning the championship title and the adoration of children in all of his spandex-addled glory. As Gauche’s sponsors wanted to organise a party at his villa, the team had been politely shown towards a hotel near one of the major plazas of the city, leaving a glowering Kaito (who had not managed to get a refund on the scuba gear) to again take out his credit card as everyone else played up how tired they were. Kaito had gone to hang out with Gauche and Droite, telling the team to be ready to leave the next morning and he’d meet them in the lobby to check out. 

The plaza that the hotel was beside was setting up a small market that night, so Kotori and Rio made quick plans to walk around it. Rio had stolen Shark and Yuma’s bathroom to get ready, leaving Kotori in the room for a moment before she went back to finish. Shark and Yuma were spending the evening in, with Yuma sharing that he’d found the room service menu and was feeding an order request into a translator, practically falling over himself to show off what he was ordering. A nature documentary with translated captions was playing softly on the TV. Shark had been raiding the minibar, shrugging when he noticed Kotori looking at him. “I’m not paying for it,” he said casually.

“I think Kaito may actually kill you when this is all done,” Kotori replied in a wry tone. 

Shark just rolled his eyes and smirked. “He tried that before back when he was a Number Hunter. It didn’t stick.”

“Which trip to the hospital did that cause again, though?” Kotori asked casually.

“Yeah yeah. Have fun on your little date.” Shark flipped her off, biting his cheek to hide the grin spreading across his face. It was times like this that Kotori was reminded that for all of Shark’s bluster and macho tactics, he was only a year older than her, and not much less of a kid at heart. Kotori returned the gesture flippantly before heading back to her room, fishing through some of the bags she’d acquired the previous day. Not for any of her new purchases; she still had to wash them, she had a thing about washing new clothes before putting them on- but for something that had been stuffed at the bottom of one while she’d been taking a water break (holy crap, Italy was hot, how had Kaito gone the whole day in that trenchcoat?) and- a ha! 

She was just finishing up when she heard her door click open alongside the beeping of a keycard. “Kotori?” A familiar voice called out. “You ready?”

“Yep! Two seconds!” Kotori replied. “Just getting my stuff!”

“No rush,” Rio replied casually as Kotori finished packing her purse and made for the bathroom door, “We’ve a bit of time before we- woah.” Kotori opened up the door and stepped out, surprising Rio, who had been leaning by the window overlooking the plaza where the market was bustling with people. 

“Yeah.” Kotori swallowed. “Woah.”

Rio had traded in her blue and white dress for a simple black dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up, alongside a deep purple waistcoat. She had a dark pair of gauntlet sleeves on her arms adorned with a floral pattern that ran under her shirt, leaving her hands free. Her hair was pulled up into a messy ponytail, leaving her neck exposed save for a heart necklace that Kotori was fairly certain Rio had “borrowed” from her. Gods help her, Kotori nearly bowled over from that. 

Rio began to shuffle her feet under Kotori’s stare before she took in Kotori’s own outfit, mouth opening slightly in amazement as her eyes swept up and down. “Is… that my jacket?” She eventually asked in a voice that Kotori could only mentally refer to as ‘like someone who just found religion.’

Kotori, feeling a surge of confidence at how awestruck Rio looked, did a little twirl. She was wearing a poofy pink dress with a large white bow wrapped around the hips. A leather jacket she’d ‘borrowed’ from Rio (who had ‘stolen’ it from Shark, per Rio’s testimony) complimented it well, the black and pink combining effortlessly. “If I said yes, would you want it back now?” She asked over her shoulder with a wink. She had to bite the inside of her cheek to avoid laughing at how Rio turned red at that. That was a good boost to the ego that would put a spring in her step for a few weeks.

Rio swallowed. “I-uh, well, uhhh I can get another one if you wanna keep that.” She finished lamely. “You might get cold, it’s chilly tonight.” She added.

“I might then,” Kotori replied coyly, “tempting as it would be to stay in now so I can admire your look in more detail.” 

“Aww,” Rio pouted, “and I was looking forward to that market.” 

“I was too,” Kotori stepped forward into Rio’s personal space, making her step slowly back until her back was pressed against the window, “but you brought the jewel of it here and wrapped it up in a pretty little waistcoat,” she whispered into Rio’s ear. 

Rio’s hands twitched as her throat bobbed with a particularly hard swallow. “Kotori,” Rio murmured in a low voice that sounded almost hoarse with desire, “I am fighting very hard to not ruin that jacket by ripping it off, we should probably go before I make a mistake I’d regret.” 

“You wouldn’t regret it that much.” Kotori winked. She was in a mood to pour oil on a fire tonight.

“I wouldn’t,” Rio admitted immediately, “but it’s the principle. If I kiss you now, I’m not going to want to stop for the rest of night.” She paused. “And you would need a higher collar for the return trip tomorrow.” She added as an afterthought. 

They shared a giggle over that. “OK, I did really wanna see that market though, so let’s go before you get all grabby with your evil witch fingers.” Kotori said lightly before backing away, leaving a quick kiss on Rio’s cheek as she did.

“I don’t run that cold, do I?” Rio muttered as they left.

Kotori was polite enough not to answer.

The piazza that their hotel looked out over was large, adorned with a beautiful fountain that lit up with green highlights. Market stalls were set up across the open area, with groups flowing across and around them. Some couples were even dancing to some jazz being played on a keyboard that had been wheeled out. Kotori could elsewhere see a performing group that was attracting a crowd. 

The stalls had provided quite a few novelty trinkets and gifts. Kotori and Rio had splashed on gaudy heart-shaped sunglasses that both had guffawed at before immediately buying. Kotori’s pair was a shade of yellow that complimented her eyes, while Rio went for a wine-red one. They were wearing them when Kotori took an impulsive selfie, her grinning into the camera while Rio had buried her face into Kotori’s hair, side-eyeing the camera with a mischievous smile poking up from where her mouth was visible. 

Rio eventually stopped at a jeweler’s stand, subconsciously twisting the ring on her left hand. Kotori stepped over. “What’re you looking at?” She asked.

“Nothing in particular,” Rio admitted, “just was thinking. It was a festival like this where I got the rings Ryoga and I have.”

“I remember, he always had both of them every time I saw him until the WDC. He was even wearing them in the hospital after Kaito attacked him to get to the Emperor’s key, he was inseparable from them.” 

“Huh,” Rio’s voice softened, “he never told me that.”

“You know how your brother can be with regards to emotional stuff,” Kotori replied. 

“I do.” Rio’s tone turned wistful. “First time I got these rings I got them when we were little kids, I think I blew most of my allowance on them.” Rio slipped the ring off her finger, passing it to Kotori so she could inspect it. She pointedly did not mention the black scorch mark on the underside of the ring- this wasn’t the kind of night for that kind of discussion. “He said it was stupid- ‘why would a guy ever wear a ring?’ was his question. I called him an idiot, threw them in his face and stormed off without them, but the next day he gave me one of them over breakfast like it was nothing.” She huffed. “He’s still an idiot, but it’s stuff like that that makes it worth tolerating.” 

“What did you get them for?” Kotori inquired.

“I don’t know, I was… seven? When I got them? I think we were both still a bit depressed from our parents, so to me they were like this… don’t laugh, please?”

“What was it you once said before you let me kiss you for the first time?” Kotori tapped her chin slyly. “Oh yeah, ‘I like corn.’”

“God, I’m never living that down, am I?” Rio muttered. “Ryoga can never know I said that with a straight face.”

“It’s this or Ice Witch.” Kotori whispered conspiratorially. 

Rio grimaced. “Fair enough, Little Bird.” She cleared her throat. “See, at least I give good pet names. But yeah, corny reasoning, excused by the fact that I was literally seven years old, was that it would be us together against the world. You know, we’d already gone through something as major as losing our parents, but we came out the other side so we’d always have each other’s backs. You know what I mean?”

“I do. I feel that.” Kotori got closer, tucking herself under Rio’s arm as she passed the ring back. “Thinking of getting some new ones?”

“Maybe,” Rio said after a pensive silence as she slipped her ring on. “Do you think he’d like that purple one on the third row?” 

“Oh, for sure.” Kotori gasped. “And look at the hazel one on the top! Oh, it looks so pretty.”

“Same shade as your eyes,” Rio observed, “if you feel like a gift.” 

“Buying a girl a ring? How scandalous.” Kotori grinned. “Careful Rio, people might talk.”

Rio let out a defeated exhale. “Crap. Yeah, that’s a lot of optics.” She flashed a defeated smile. “Nice image though.”

“It is. Anyway~” Kotori slipped out of Rio’s grasp, eyes lighting up mischievously as she walked over to the stand. “Excuse me?” She gestured to the jeweler. “Could I get that one in hazel on the top please? And the… Rio, do you prefer wine-red or calla lily pink?” 

“Wha- what the hell?” Rio jolted in surprise, gaping like a fish. “Uh… lily?” 

“Thanks!” Kotori turned around again. “Yes, the calla lily one, that purple one on the third row, and… yeah, that teal one on the bottom, please? Yes, a gift bag would be perfect. Thank you!” 

Rio was still in a state of visible shock as Kotori finished her purchase, holding out the two rings proudly. “I saw the teal one last second, it looks a lot like Astral so I thought Yuma would like it,” Kotori explained casually.

“I’m sure he will. Sorry, I thought you just said people might talk…” Rio murmured, her cheeks flushing red. 

“Let them. Besides, rings are only as crazy as the amount of focus you put on them.” Kotori shrugged. “OK, obviously, you don’t have to wear it if you want, but given the last few trips to the Mythyrian temples, I thought this one went really well and… I wanted you to have a memento. Something to remind you of this trip, tonight especially. Because… I’m enjoying this.” She hesitated. “I enjoy time with you in general,” she finished awkwardly. 

Rio’s eyes had softened and sparkled in the night light. “You are… too good for me, Little Bird,” she murmured. She looked for a second like she wanted to say something alongside that, but eventually pulled one of Kotori’s hands up to kiss it, making eye contact as she did that made Kotori flustered to her core. 

“With how you’ve been bamboozling me all night, it’s nice to see I can catch you off guard in the same way,” Rio purred, eyes lighting up with delight as Kotori turned red. 

Looking down briefly, Rio picked up the hazel ring. Up close, it was almost exactly the same shade as Kotori’s eyes, with the band a soft silver. The seller had left a few small chain cords in the bag that Rio was able to weave through the ring. Looking up again, she slipped the new band over her head, the hazel ring bouncing beside her necklace as it fell onto her chest. “At the risk of getting sentimental, you’re close to my heart now.” Rio murmured.

“You are… a bit of a sap,” Kotori whispered as she blushed furiously. She took the gift bag back, rummaging through for the pink one before adorning it similarly around her neck. “Luckily, you’re adorably sappy, so now we match!”

Rio’s dorky smile was so bright it could have lit up the plaza. She couldn’t help the jubilant laughter that ripped out of her as she pulled Kotori into a bear hug, burying her face into Kotori’s shoulder while her laughs shook them like leaves in the wind.

“I’m having,” she mumbled after calming down, “the best time right now, and it’s thanks to you.”

Kotori patted her back affectionately. “Of course. Always happy to make you happy.”

“A task you succeed with flying colors just by being you.” Kotori felt Rio’s teeth pull back in a satisfied grin as Kotori let out an embarrassed squawk at that. “Now come on, I think I saw a stall selling ribbons down the way, there may be something you’d like there for your hair.”

“Maybe in a minute,” Kotori murmured, cheeks tinted pink, “I’m enjoying this, can we stay like this a minute longer?”

“No problem.” Rio lifted her head to plant a warm kiss on Kotori’s cheek as they swayed together. “We have all the time in the world.”

The piazza thrummed with life, laughter and merriment reaching up into the sky. Vendors traded goods, music played overhead, and the fountains provided stark shadows as water soared into the sky, undercut with green. All of it went- somewhat literally- over the heads of Kotori and Rio, lost in their own world, even if just for a stolen moment of joy. 

Rio’s leg bounced as she watched Spartan City fade into the horizon, the airship taking off smoothly and gliding east. Given how the other temple hunts had gone, this trek stood out- and in a good way, to boot. Things had gone smoothly, no one was hurt, Astral had acquired another Number while Yuma found another of his dad’s coins, and she’d even managed a good night’s sleep, the latter of which she was happiest about. Things were good.

Apprehension still ate at her gut though. She’d come out here to get some privacy and enjoy the salty sea air one last time before they’d be flying over the mainland on their way back to Japan.

“Just to say, if you come at me with your freaky cold hands again, I’m legally in the clear to throw you off the side and claim your half of the inheritance,” Ryoga said lightly as he stepped out, a bounce in his step. Rio noticed he was wearing the ring she’d gotten him, on the finger where her ring had sat while she was in the hospital. “So what’s up? You wanted to talk.”

“Yeah, I…” Rio paused. She swallowed hard. “I had a thought.”

“Not a theory?” Ryoga slid up beside her, looking out at the horizon.

“Just a thought. But…” She hesitated again. “It’s about the tombs, and the Barians.”

“I saw you get hit by something in the colosseum.” Ryoga looked at her with concern. “Do you wanna talk about that, or skip the next tomb or two? I think I heard Yuma saying that weird ninja guy in the mountains might have found a lead-”

“I don’t know, maybe. We’ll see.” The thought was appealing to her, to let someone else handle the temples, if just once. “But every tomb we’ve gone to so far has had a connection with one of the Barians. You said Jinlong spoke to Mizael personally, Durbe knew Mach’s legend almost before he told it, and with how Alito was reacting after Yuma beat him…”

“Yeah, we figured.” Ryoga shrugged. “The Barians were probably human at some point. Some of those murals in the island castle looked weirdly like Shingetsu. Four out of five so far, so if that next lead has ties to Girag, that’s the theory confirmed.”

“Try, four out of seven.” Rio replied impulsively.

“Eh?” Ryoga turned to face her fully. “We’ve only met five Barians.”

Oh. Crap. She hadn’t told Ryoga about her conversation with Durbe. Probably should now, she decided reluctantly, but she had to salvage this first. “Well, look at their Numbers. Mizael had 107 but we’ve not seen 101 or 103, right?”

Ryoga paused, chewing on the sentence for a second. “Oh, yeah. Good catch, you’re right.” He let out an unimpressed huff. “Not great for us though, that means there’s two more of those Barians out there that we know nothing about. Hope neither of them decides to pull a Vector and go undercover, I’m getting sick of playing Barian Mafia.” Ryoga leaned forward on the railing. “By the way, what gave you the idea about the other two Barians?”

Rio’s grip on the railing tightened. “Promise you won’t get mad.”

“Rio-”

“Promise, please.”

Ryoga exhaled sharply through his nose. “OK, fine, I promise. What happened?”

“I may have found Durbe at Mizael’s tomb while you were climbing the mountain and spoke to him to keep him from finding the airship.” She let slip in one breath.

Ryoga’s grip on the railing became vice-like, his knuckles turning white from the strain. He opened his mouth, stopped, nearly smacked his head off the railing, then let go to pace around the deck for a minute.

Rio tilted her head. “Are you OK…?”

“I’m trying not to start yelling because someone made me promise I wouldn’t be mad,” Ryoga said in a low growl. “Give me a minute.”

He hunched over, burying his face into the crook of his elbow and letting out a brief muffled scream of pure, animalistic frustration, before slowly picking himself up, his face calm again. He cleared his throat. “You were saying?” He said in a more hoarse tone.

“That we spoke.” Rio gestured loosely at herself. “I’m obviously OK.”

“Big reason I’m not freaking out more.” Ryoga’s eyes narrowed. “You got lucky, though.”

“Maybe.” Rio elected not to mention forgetting her deck box to prevent another lecture. Her survival had been down to luck, loathe as she was to admit to it. “But it worked. He didn’t find the ship before the temple blew up.”

“Still super risky, but why bring it up now?”

“I felt you deserved to know. But also, because during it, he let slip something. There were two other Barians that went missing about nine years ago, who were twins.” She paused for a moment, looking at Ryoga’s face. “Their names were Nasch and Merag.”

“OK?” Ryoga blinked, having no reaction to either name for a moment. “Hang on, Durbe’s fake name at the tomb, wasn’t that-”

“Nasch, yes. He must have taken it as an homage.”

Ryoga shrugged. “With how concussed he was looking after ramming the airship, it could just be that he went for the first name he could think of that wasn’t his own.”

“Let’s not rule that out.” Rio conceded. “But with how he spoke of them they disappeared, he was just close to them in general. I was right, by the way.”

“Hmm?”

“When we got back from Colombia, I said he looked lonely. I was right. He… cared for both of them, Nasch and Merag.”

“Wow.” Ryoga let out a huff of air. “Well, that sucks.”

“Is it weird that I feel a bit bad for him?” Rio admitted.

“Not really.” Ryoga drummed his fingers on the railing. “I mean, I don’t, but you know, you’re less of an asshole than me.”

“Thanks?” Rio blinked in confusion. “I think?” 

“Don’t mention it.” He paused, letting out a scoff. “You’re still crazier than me, though. You’re a gods-damned lunatic.”

“I am not.” Rio said defensively, eyes twinkling in bemusement.

“You threw a shoe at me, and clocked me in the skull from across an auditorium, when you have a partially damaged eye.” Ryoga countered. “In the dark, no less,” he added. 

“Didn’t mom and dad ever teach you not to talk in the theatre?” Rio shot back. The two smiled at each other for a minute before Rio cleared her throat.

“I guess I feel a bit bad for Durbe,” Ryoga said to break the silence, “I know what it’s like to suddenly lose someone close to you and not know how to handle it.” 

Rio paused as the implications settled in. “If you ever wanna talk about the fire-” She started.

“I’m good. I’ve had time to get over it. And… well, you’re here now, so everything’s OK.”

“Yeah.” Rio murmured. “Anyway, we’ve got three tombs left, one of which will likely be about Girag if the theory is right, and that leaves the ones for those last two.”

“True,” Ryoga replied, rolling his shoulders, “well thanks for the heads up. Good deduction, and…” he exhaled sharply, “thank you for telling me about your little pow-wow with Durbe. I’m glad you’re OK.”

“As OK as I can be,” Rio shot back in a glib tone, grinning at Ryoga rolling his eyes in response. He slid closer, knocking their shoulders together. 

“Is it weird to say that this was a really good trip?” He asked. “After the last few temple hunts, I wasn’t expecting this one to go so cleanly. Or get a vacation out of it.”

“You are allowed to be happy, Ryoga.” Rio murmured slyly. 

“Shut up, you know what I mean. This was…” He looked out at the horizon as he looked for a word. “Good.” He eventually said bluntly. “This was good.”

“I know what you mean. I had fun, and this was…” Rio let out a big breath. “Good, like you said. Not to get sappy, but these have been some of the best days of my life since I got out of the hospital. I’m glad I got to share them with you.”

“You and your long, creepy witch fingers,” Ryoga muttered, the twins sharing a laugh. “But I’m glad you had a good time last night, given how long you were hogging my bathroom getting ready for your date.”

“Guilty as charged. What did you and Yuma wind up getting up to?”

He shrugged, failing to hide the warm smile that crept onto his face as he talked. “We stayed inside mostly, he ordered that small mountain’s worth of room service- don’t tell Kaito, he can find that out when the bill catches up to us- and we did a quick walk around the fountain in the plaza after he was done. We threw some coins in the fountain, and then he nearly slipped and fell in. It was good.”

“You’re sweet on him, aren’t you?” Rio mused. 

Ryoga opened his mouth to protest, but stopped himself.

“... Yeah.” He said to himself. “Yeah, I am. I mean, I had to be, to agree to go out with him to begin with, but I do… really give a damn about him.” 

“You wanna talk about it?" Her voice was soft.

Ryoga let out a sigh. “I dunno, I’m not like you, I can’t say why things feel the way they do easily.”

“I already have enough blackmail on you, you can be a bit silly about it.” Rio said snidely.

“Damnit, fine.” Ryoga smoothed his hair out as a gust tugged it up, making him growl at the wind. “Things just… make sense, around Yuma, you know? Like he’s kind of a fool but he so earnestly believes in the stuff he says and does that it’s easy to follow him. It’s like chasing the sun, and enjoying when you get to catch up and enjoy the rays for a bit before suddenly you’re off on another wild stupid adventure.” He considered his words. “Things are easy around Yuma, a different kind of easy from when I hang out with you. It’s nice.”

“I figured.” Rio noted. “Even the first time I met him, you didn’t mind him hanging off you after you had your duel.” 

“He’s clingy, what can I say?” Ryoga shrugged. “You’ve met him.” 

“True. Awkward question?”

“I’m in a good mood. Fire away.” 

“When did you realize you…” Rio hesitated over the word that came to her lips. “Cared for him. Deeply, I mean.” 

Ryoga let out an exhale. He turned around, leaning with his back against the railing as he looked up at the sky. “Phew. You’re asking the heavy questions today. Looking for advice in your own love life?” 

“If I am, will that make you answer it?” 

“It might,” Ryoga replied slyly, “I think… the World Duel Carnival. We had a duel then, and that was when I was still grappling with Tron’s manipulative crap and after I fought 4, Tron made me think your injuries were Yuma’s fault.” 

Rio grimaced at that. “I didn’t know that. Another thing for me to hate about the Arclights, I guess, that they used me to manipulate you.”

“Yeah, they do make it easy to hate them- except the pink one, he was OK. But anyway, there I am, having an emotional crashout in the middle of the entire city, and Yuma’s working to put some life back into me. He took Shark Drake Veiss from me and was trying to tank the curse Tron had put on it, while Tron was trying to goad me into playing a Trap that would take Yuma out. I was able to get my head straight again now that I didn’t have a Number rampaging up there, and I was able to make a sacrifice play to let Yuma win. All that makes an impression, you know?” 

“I can imagine.” Rio murmured.

“It was after that, actually.” Ryoga mused, looking wistful as he continued speaking. “The WDC duel was a catalyst, but I was there afterwards, thinking about it after getting patched up in the hospital and… it just clicked. Yuma saw good in me, and I wanted to prove him right. He kept insisting I was a good person at heart, and I guess it hit at the right time. I was still reeling from my disqualification and your injury, so I was taking it out on the world, and Yuma was one of the first people to take it and forgive me. From there I grew to… care for him deeply, as you put it.”

“Affection is nothing but a language of heavy words,” Rio shrugged, smiling softly at the expression on Ryoga’s face as he talked, “I was just making sure.” 

“We’re young idiots, we’re allowed to be stupid with words like ‘care’ and… other ones that start with L. Isn’t that the whole point of growing up?” 

“I suppose.”

“So what about you? When did you grow to care deeply for Kotori?” 

“Hey- hey! I was asking the questions!” 

“And you got me to talk from the heart, enjoy your victory and let me make you think about your words for a minute,” Ryoga shot back calmly. 

“Tch.” Rio spat. “You suck.”

Ryoga scoffed. “Love you too.” 

Rio let out a dramatic sigh. “OK, fine, turnabout is fair play.” 

“So. You and Kotori.” Ryoga said. He tried to make it sound bland like he was observing the weather, but Rio noticed how he leaned closer in interest. He was such a closeted gossip hen. “How’d that start?”

Rio chewed over the question. “She made me feel seen for me, and not… me, after the fire. She’s never looked twice at them, never made me feel awkward for them, or like they’re something to hide. When Kotori looks at me I don’t think she’s looking at the scars, she looks at me.”

“And you needed that.” Ryoga murmured to himself.

“I don’t want my legacy to be ‘that girl who got set on fire to make her brother lose his marbles.’ I want to be more than a satellite that orbits Ryoga Kamishiro, Barian Hunter and menace to green peppers- no offense. I want to be my own star. Have my own story. And Kotori… makes me feel like that.” She shrugged. 

“Huh.” Ryoga stared at her, appraising her like a detective coming to a conclusion. 

“What?” Rio fidgeted. 

“I knew you liked her, but…” He shook his head, smiling softly, “damn, you are in love.”  

Her hackles raised, then slowly retracted as the words settled in and she didn’t find anything in her to protest. “I, wait, you… I… yeah.” She looked over at the door to make sure they were alone, at her feet. “I do.” She whispered softly, “I really, really do love her.”

“You look like you need a hug, is that OK?”

Rio nodded, feeling a lump in her throat. Ryoga tugged her into his arms, wrapping them around her as she let out a choked sob, melting into the embrace. 

“When’d you realize?” His voice is soft, barely audible over the wind and the distant rumbling of waves as they fly over the ocean.

Rio exhaled shakily. “Last night, just everything in the plaza was so… perfect, and she was so perfect, and these silly rings got me all choked up, because they’re perfect and she’s perfect and…” She sniffed, trying not to cry. “It just clicked. That I want to spend my future by her side, as long as she’ll have me. She makes me better, makes me feel good about myself without even trying, and I like to think I’ve helped her.”

“You have.” Ryoga answered, blunt yet soft in equal measure. “Not just in terms of Dueling, she’s more outspoken and confident since she met you. You’ve helped each other a lot since you two met, for the better. Even I can see it..”

“Thanks.” She sniffled. “Sorry, that got heavy.”

“No problem, you dummy. I’m not the only one in this family who bottles things up. I know you’ve got something troubling you about the tombs, just… talk to me when you want to, OK? It’d make me feel better to know you’re processing it, at least. And that you know we’re all here for you.” 

“It helps. Thanks, Ryoga.” She patted Ryoga’s shoulder twice as they pulled back. She hadn’t cried, so that was good at least. They fell into a comfortable silence as Rio dabbed at her eyes. “That got heavy.” She mumbled.

“Eh, it seemed like you needed a push to realize how deeply you cared.” Ryoga shrugged. “You’re the one who likes to say I’m emotionally constipated anyway, so this is therapeutic for me by your logic.”

Rio huffed at that, shoving lightly at Ryoga’s shoulder. He looked over again, a smile dancing on his lips. “Feeling better?”

She rolled her eyes. “You’re the one who got me all messed like that, you douche.”

“Guilty as charged,” he replied, deadpan. “Are you gonna tell her?”

“Yeah,” Rio sighed. “When I’m ready. I’m not afraid or anything, but I wanna say it when it feels right to.”

“I get that.” Ryoga nodded. “I think Yuma knows I care a lot about him, just… easier to show it through actions rather than words.”

“I’m sure he’d appreciate hearing it though.” Rio suggested.

“Yeah. I will. Eventually.” Ryoga looked at his shows. “Hopefully.”

“I believe in you.”

“Well, that makes one of us.” Ryoga muttered, shivering as a particularly cold gust of wind ran over the ship. Rio stood, unfazed, as Ryoga’s teeth nearly chattered. “Anyway, I’m freezing out here and we’re about to pass over the Alps, can we head back inside?”

“Yeah. After you, brother.” Rio gestured with her head and the two went back inside the airship as it began to fly over solid land again, taking them back home and towards their next adventure.

(When Kaito came by later innocently asking about room service being charged to his account, Rio still sold Ryoga out in a heartbeat with a laugh)

When two hands meet at zenith

Nothing comes between us

Dancing like ballerinas

Under the moon light all night long

How these plain and simple scenes

Get painted so vividly by you

I just want to stay with you

Around the world I slowly dance

Whenever our eyes meet

You know you leave me in a trance

It means everything to me

Looking down below

The one I seek to find

No matter where you might go

Remember you'll be on my mind

“Color your Night,” Persona 3 Reload Soundtrack, cover by ElevenWAV

Chapter Text

“Alito and Girag have reported much the same phenomena as both of us,” Durbe observed. He and Mizael were perched in a construction site overlooking one of the main streets of Heartland City, the city waking up below them as commuters made their way to work and students raced to school. “Spirits that spoke to them, or new memories, that explicitly show them as humans before becoming Barians. Much like you with Jinlong and myself with the legend of Mach.”

“It would appear that way.” Mizael conceded reluctantly. “Not that I believe it,” he insisted stubbornly, hackles raising as they always did when the topic of Jinlong’s tomb came up, as if he was ready and willing at any time to fly back into the foul mood he’d had after leaving where he’d been content to throw a tantrum while a mountain came down around him. 

“I’m not going to put much stock in it either,” Durbe admitted, “But I won’t rule it out. Just in case something arises that does point to a conclusive truth.” 

Mizael scoffed, flipping his hair back. “I know what you really mean.” He said mockingly. “You’re going to call dibs on trying to find the Mythyrian Numbers tied to Nasch and Merag’s tombs, aren’t you?” 

“No I wasn’t.” Durbe lied defensively… and poorly, to his chagrin.

“Liar.” Mizael sneered. 

“I don’t ‘call dibs,’ as you so inelegantly put it.” Durbe spat. “I’m just willing to accept that if there is any clue on this rotten planet as to what happened to them, logically, it will be there. Either way, we need those Numbers no matter what.”

Mizael rolled his eyes. “Whatever helps you sleep at night. You may want to tell Vector that you’re calling dibs on your old boyfriend’s tomb though-”

“I am not-” Durbe interrupted with a harsh bark. 

“Because,” Mizael continued, raising his voice over Durbe’s protests, “I think he has something planned. I saw him talking with that odd wraith he picked up, the one who looks like Astral? And they were discussing the last tombs as well.” Mizael flashed Durbe a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Just thought you should know,” he added mockingly before disappearing into a portal. 

Durbe was going to murder Mizael. It was a tempting prospect to go chase after him, but Mizael’s comment on Vector being up to something made him hesitate in that plan. He didn’t know where Vector was right now- but he knew where they would be, and that was at the tomb. Whatever Vector was planning with that unsettling clone of Astral, he could figure it out there. It was a long flight to Europe, and he had no time to waste if he wanted to get there before anyone else.

“I didn’t expect you of all people to want to talk to me!” Rio remarked as she followed him into the alley. She didn’t look her best, having come fresh from a Junior League Qualifier match that had gone over time, but the way the crowd had lit up for her when she beat her opponent was a form of ambrosia she’d never forget. Even better had been a message from a fellow Duelist keeping in the National Circuit who had asked to meet up after her games had wrapped. 

“What can I say?” The teenager ahead of her shot over his shoulder, flashing her a showman’s grin, “With how amazing you performed there, I just had to get to meet what I’m sure is gonna be one of the new hottest talents in the city. After all, with that match you’ve all but qualified for the National Duel Circuit as long as you win your finals match next week!” 

Rio giggled at the comment. “You flatterer.” She replied coyly. “But please, keep praising me!” 

“Well,” He turned and faced her, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. “To tell you the truth, I’d rather be flattering your brother in all honesty, he’d seem like he’d be super fun to wind up like a clockwork doll, mind sharing if that shark’s swimming in a school of his own right now?” 

“Uh, ew,” Rio laughed. “How about you beat me in a duel and I’ll tell you how your chances are slim to none?” 

He cackled at that. “Challenge accepted! May the best Duelist win! Hope you’re ready for a one on one session with my fanservice!” 

Their Duel Disks lit up and they started playing. Rio felt good about this, managed to get an early lead before he managed to snatch it. They went back and forth, trading monsters and spells and traps before he suddenly drew for his turn, eyebrow raising at his new card.

“I think it’s time we heat this duel up and melt some of your ice! I activate the Spell Card, Flaming Hell Blessing!” 

And that was when everything went wrong. The temperature skyrocketed out of the blue, his Duel Disk letting out a series of violet sparks abruptly. A haze built up around them both, Rio feeling sweat build on her neck. Behind her opponent, the haze collected into a wall of searing flame that almost seemed to be real, turning the paint around them into a black mess and setting off smoke alarms. 

“Wait, no, I didn’t mean to- aagh!” Her opponent was sent reeling as he turned his head at the wrong time, a stray lick of flame dancing across his eye and sending him flying into a pile of dumpsters and cardboard that fell over him. Rio was left to stare at the growing wall of fire that roared and crackled. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears, fear locking her feet in place as it began to topple and fly out. It was all she could do to shriek in pure agony and terror, throwing up her arms to protect her head before the fire reached her and-

Rio woke up, her body tensed in fear and shock, her breath caught in her throat. Her brain had pumped out a ton of adrenaline that was going to now fade slowly and leave her exhausted when her body crashed out again. Forcing herself up, Rio ran her hands over her face, groaning into her palms before she limped over to the bathroom to get her medication. 

She was having the dream nearly every night now. The one that ended with her dying. She always had such delightful dreams these days, ever since she got back from Spartan City and made the bone-headed decision to see Girag’s statue. 

It varied in how the end finally came, but it all matched up inevitably, her senses in perfect, twisted synchronicity with how another had died- Durbe’s sobbing gasps of betrayal that became strangled wheezes as he struggled to breathe over Mach’s body, Vector’s mania as he lifted a sabre to his own throat, Mizael getting punctured with arrows as he tried to protect Jinlong, Alito’s fear as he looked up at the axe that glinted in the sunlight, betrayal weighing him down more than the chains, or Girag’s desperation as a building collapsed on him, unable to move despite his mighty strength. Sometimes, she got to imagine a unique form of death- falling off a craggy cliff as someone pursued her lazily, laughing to themselves as the ground gave out under her and she fell into the yawning abyss below with a scream that always caught in her throat as she woke up, and on rare occasions, she got her own personal hell, like today. 

It was hard to say which she would take, between the falling sensation and the hazy recollections of a grinning sadist staring her down as the flames shot from his Duel Disk and snaked up her arm and over her eye. Both were poisons she was getting disconcertingly familiar with. Rio would wake up all the same, her heart racing as if she was about to finally give up the ghost and die, and every time it happened, she would be unable to get back to sleep, forced to work on the scant hours she was able to rest before her nightmares chained her to the waking world. 

She hadn’t slept properly in nine days. Scattered bursts of exhaustion would give her a few hours each night, but it wasn’t enough.

Visiting where Girag’s statue had been was a bad idea. Rio had known it would be one, and yet she still went up one day while Ryoga was busy on a date with Yuma. Rio hadn’t even realized she had wandered over to the dojo in the mountains, but her feet had guided her there and the next thing she knew, she was waking up, having learned intimately what having a building fall on you felt like. The pyrophobia was already there, unfortunately. 

She hadn’t wanted to go to the statue, had said as much when Yuma let her know about it after seeing a news article, and everyone had understood. Apparently a tanuki had been there and Yuma fell down a flight of stairs, per Kotori, but she prefaced her explanation by saying she’d had cheese the day prior so “Maybe the whole thing was just a weird lucid fever dream.” And yet… there Rio had been, a day later. As if a switch had been flipped that reversed her inhibitions to make her see where the statue had stood for herself. One moment she was just taking a small walk in the lower portions of the mountain range on her lonesome, the next she was hunched over in the grounds of the dojo, her back aching with a dull phantom pain that wasn’t hers. She had wanted to check for herself what was going on, in case there was a clue or a hint as to the mysteries surrounding the Barians that Yuma and Astral missed but- wait.

She definitely hadn’t wanted to go up… right? Or had she just changed her mind at some point, but forgot? Like when you go into a room to look for something, but forget what you’re looking for? The others had understood when she didn’t want to visit the tomb, but then she’d gone up and… how had she gotten home? Had she even told anyone she’d gone to the dojo? Her head hurt, making Rio grimace at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. She was tired, her scars ached, and this stupid concealer wasn’t covering the bags under her eyes enough-

A knock at the door snapped Rio out of her thoughts. “Rio?” Ryoga called through the door. “I’m all set out here.”

“Be out in a minute!” Rio got back to work on covering up her insomnia, pausing again when she didn’t hear Ryoga stomping away. “Everything OK?” She asked.

“Just…” Ryoga hesitated. “I feel I should be asking you that, you know?” Rio heard him moving to lean against the wall by the door. “You’ve been different this past week,” he mumbled to himself, “You’re more quiet than usual. I’ve been busy with Yuma a lot but I’ve noticed it since we got back from Spartan City. I thought for a day or two it was just jet lag hitting you, but something’s different. Do you wanna talk about it before we hit the road?” 

Rio sagged like a puppet with cut strings, pressing against the door and placing her hand against it, mouth open as if to speak. She wanted to talk, desperately, and could feel the urge to throw open the door and admit she wasn’t doing well clawing at her. She knew Ryoga would make a fuss but they could delay going to the last Tomb to let Kaito get back from his trip to China, or even cancel and let Yuma and Astral handle this one. The urge bubbling with her just wants to slow down. She already has so many horrible dreams waiting for her, and two more might be what finally breaks her.

But then that urge got buried in ice, submerged and drowned. Rio had to go, she knew this. She had to do this, be at this tomb specifically, no matter how much she felt her body and mind protesting. She’d be there even if it was the day after meeting Thomas Arclight.

“I’m fine, Ryoga,” she hears herself say robotically, “let’s just get this last tomb done.”

There’s a moment of silence. She hears Ryoga fidgeting before sighing and pushing off the door. “OK. Let’s get this over with. Things’ll be easier after this last one. I’ll be outside.”

Just one more tomb. She could do this.

“Why do you fight the Barians then, Shark?” Yuma asked. Kotori hadn’t meant to pry, but she’d been setting her Duel Disk down on one of the tables in the command centre- there was turbulence ahead and she didn’t want to risk smashing her Disk into her ribs or legs. She’d seen how Yuma could get if he got knocked around the ship. She didn’t feel like nursing an annoying bruise if she could avoid it, so for now, her Disk was stored away safely along with her deck. 

Rio was on the other side of the room, watching their progress towards the next Mythyrian Temples on the map. Kotori could see that Rio’s eyes were drooping from exhaustion before she’d snap back into focus, her hands shaking from the effort. Rio normally put up a good front, and everyone knew she was a fantastic liar when she wanted to be- Kotori had heard Shark once bemoan that it had been the case ever since they were kids- but that wall had cracks in it now. Rio was saying she was fine, but Kotori could see how taut her shoulders had become since Spartan City, like she was constantly carrying a new weight on her back. She had meant to say something, but Rio had been oddly hard to get in touch with in the week after they got back from Spartan City- Kotori was partly to blame, having to catch up on some errands and schoolwork alongside the general nonsense that had been meeting Ponta at Girag’s statue, and then Cathy had invited her out for a daytrip to give her a chance to just be a normal girl for a day. Otherwise though, she had tried to stay in touch, but Rio had had periods where her Duel Disk would be marked as off-line for hours at a time. One time, Kotori was sure that Rio’s location was up near where Girag’s statue had been on display, but Rio had confusedly denied going near it- she’d even asked earlier that day to not go, with how Vector and Alito’s temples had affected her.

Rio wouldn’t lie, especially over something like that. Right? 

“Isn’t it obvious? They ruined my life. Rio’s too.” Shark shot back acidically, pulling Kotori free of her thoughts. She could almost picture him leaning against the wall as he said that, putting on his tough guy act like a knight would put on a breastplate.

“But, you forgave Tron and Faker…” Yuma noted.

“I didn’t forgive them, Yuma.” Shark snapped. “Faker locked himself in that tower and Kaito made handling domesticating him his responsibility. Tron pissed off to who knows where at this point, along with his crappy kids. Hard to hold a grudge when I don’t even know where the prepubescent psychopath is these days. Don’t ask me about whatever that means between me and 4, that’s…” He let out a sigh. “A really tangled barrel of vipers, let’s say,” he added under his breath.  

“I suppose you have experience with separating your emotions from your Duels,” Astral mused. 

“There’s nothing wrong with fighting for yourself or lacking a fancy higher cause is all I’m saying,” Shark replied, stepping away from the wall and moving towards the door. For a moment, his voice layered as Kotori both heard it from the camera and from Shark himself as he stepped back inside. “It’s worked for me so far,” he ended his sentence with. He saw Kotori looking at him and nodding before his expression shifted to one of concern as he saw Rio. “How’s she doing?” He asked softly. 

“Fine enough? She’s not moved from there, I might see if she wants to get some sleep if we steer clear of turbulence.” 

“I’d be glad to see it.” Shark stepped closer, leaning in. “Don’t tell her I know this, but I know she hasn’t slept the last two or three nights. I got up one night to grab a glass of water and could hear her talking to herself at four in the morning. I thought it was a one-time thing, but…” He grimaced. “I shouldn’t have let her come on this trip. This was a bad idea.”

“It’s gonna be fine, Shark.” Kotori tried to smile encouragingly. She hoped it reached her eyes. “We’ve got her back. No one’s gonna get to her through either of us.”

Shark snorted lightly. “As long as she doesn’t go talking to more Barians behind our backs again, I can believe that.”

“... Wait, what?” Kotori tilted her head.

Shark paled. “She hadn’t told you? Ah crap, she’s gonna kill me for blabbing. Well, you know now, so… When Rio went for that solo walk during Jinlong’s temple, she ran into that Barian from Colombia, Durbe.”

“She what-” Kotori hissed before Shark threw a hand over her mouth. “Mmph!”

“Easy, keep your voice down!” Shark lifted his hand before Kotori could protest. “I know, I freaked out too, but she said it went OK, and you know, she’s alive and everything so hard to say it didn’t go OK.”

“Why would she hide that, though?” Kotori had mused.

“I dunno.” Shark looked pensively out at the horizon, frowning at dark storm clouds forming ahead. “She only let me know because she knew information about these last two Barians- their names, because Durbe let slip that he was in some situationship with them or something.”

“Does she know their names? What are they?” 

“Uh, Nash and Marin, I think?” Shark tapped at his forehead for a moment before snapping his fingers. “Wait, no, sorry, Rio said their names Nasch and Merag.”

“So, we can expect to find information about them at these Ruins.” Kotori mused. Behind Shark, Yuma and Astral came in.

“Sounds like it. Let’s just hope we can grab their Numbers and bail quickly.” Shark looked out at the horizon again. “I do not like how close those clouds are getting-”

The ship buckled, shaking underfoot as everyone was sent stumbling. Kotori barely caught onto a desk behind her at an angle that vindicated taking her Duel Disk off, as she’d have been unable to hold on at that angle without it digging into her forearm.

“Woah, dammit!” Shark swore as he stumbled forward. “Rio, you’re sure we have to fly into this crazy storm?” 

“The coordinates say we’re nearly on top of it, so yes!” Rio snapped from she’d fallen over a monitor. She stiffened as she got up, hands slackening and her eyes turning hazy. She mouthed something quick, three syllables, before snapping back to reality. Kotori and Shark shared a look.

“Hey, what was that? You OK?!” Shark called out, reaching out hurriedly.

“It-it’s nothing… I promise…” Rio tried to say with an awkward smile. It might have been one of the worst lies Kotori had ever seen. Kotori stepped closer, about to interlace her fingers with Rio’s right hand, before a monitor caught her eyes.

“Why are the power levels dropping?” She asked in a rising pitch, interrupting Astral and Yuma’s discussion. “The ship- why is it slowing down?!” 

The constant background noise of the rotating gears that made up the airship slowly faded away, replaced by the howling winds and raging downpour of the rain outside. 

“It would appear we have been grounded,” Astral agreed. “I was hoping we could retreat until the storm cleared, but-”

“Who’s there!” Rio screamed into thin air, eyes wide like a prey animal, her body heaving with breaths like she’d just run a marathon, turning around frantically. “Who are you, what the hell do you want with me!”  

“Rio? Hey…” Shark moved away from Yuma and Astral, Kotori right beside him. “It’s OK, we’re right here. Who are you talking to-”

The power went out. For a brief moment, Kotori thought she could see two flat circles of blue where Rio’s panicked eyes had been. Yuma let out a shout of panic behind Kotori, while Rio let out a new strangled gasp.

“Do not panic,” Astral called out, “the backup power will be on-” he was interrupted by the lights flashing back on, “now.” He finished.

Where once there had been five- Yuma, Astral, Shark, Kotori and Rio- there now stood four. Rio had vanished into thin air. 

“What the hell-” Shark spat in shock, spinning around desperately. “Rio, where are you?” 

“Oh no...” Yuma pointed. “Look outside!” 

Rio had slipped out in the blackout, now walking through the rain towards the edge of the ship. Her expression was a disturbing mixture of haunted and vacant in equal measure, her eyes completely devoid of life, the microphone picking up what sounded like… a defeated whimper.

No.  

Before she even knew what she was doing, Kotori was sprinting out onto the deck, nearly getting blown off her feet from the gale-force winds that were shaking the ship and slipping from the rain that thundered down on them. Stumbling forward, Kotori kept chasing after Rio. She tried to shout but the words were ripped away in the winds. She had a gut feeling the boys were rushing out behind her, but she kept running, stumbling and at one point practically crawling towards where Rio calmly walked through the storm, placing her hands on the barrier. 

Kotori didn’t consider herself naturally athletic, but it was like her soul was running the show for a moment as she powered through to pull one of Rio’s hands away, nearly shouting in surprise as it felt like touching a glacier. She was freezing to the touch. 

“Rio! Hey, what’s going on? Wake up!” Even Kotori could barely hear what she herself was screaming over the winds careening around them. It seemed to have no effect, Rio passively staring over the ship’s edge to the raging ocean dozens of feet below. Without a word, she moved forward, letting herself slide off the side, Kotori still gripping firmly onto her hand. For a moment, Kotori felt a wave of panic slide over her at the sight of Rio falling before fear replaced it- she was falling with her. She couldn’t let go, not that she would, she wasn’t letting Rio face this alone. A brief screech escaped her before-

Her other hand, the one not holding onto Rio, screamed in agony as it was nearly wrenched out of its socket. Kotori let out a bark of pain as she looked up, seeing Shark and Yuma both grabbing her hand desperately, Astral behind them. 

“Pull! Yourself! Up!” Yuma cried out, punctuating his words to be heard over the storm. Shark looked like he was about to leap out of his very skin in panic, eyes narrowed into pinpricks of pure fear as he kept shouting Rio’s name.

She tried. She really did. But the rain was coming down so fiercely it was like gripping onto grease itself, and Rio’s dead weight made it possible to lift herself up. Kotori could only watch as her hand slipped further and further free before- 

She was falling, watching Yuma shriek in pure, animalistic fear as she fell out of reach, Shark almost immediately diving after her again-

She hit the water, the impact pulling all of the air out of her lungs, but managed to not let go. Everything went black, the last thing she remembered seeing being a halo of blue hair as Rio pulled them deeper into the dark abyss.

Where the hell was everyone? There wasn’t a single soul left on the ship. If it wasn’t for how it withstood the storm around it without a care in the world, Durbe would think everyone had just fallen out of the thing for the… third time, if he was counting right. At the moment though, it was deserted. There was signs of life around the command centre that he could find as he prowled through- the ground by the door leading out to the deck had water stains from where it had been open for a while, half-eaten food left lying around, and a Duel Disk left aside with a deck near one of the consoles- but all signs pointed to that the ship had been left completely unoccupied. Checking around the rest of the ship yielded similar results, with no one else onboard between the small rec room behind the command centre, a medical bay that reeked of antiseptic, and some sleeping bags tucked away under a gaudy hammock. 

Tempted as Durbe was to sabotage the vessel, the controls were firmly locked in place and most of the power was out, so his initial plan that he’d devised upon finding Astral’s airship left out in the middle of a raging storm had to be scrapped- which is what he had hoped to do to this ship. It also would have let him vent some lingering frustration at the fact that he was clearly dead last on this race to the Mythyrian Tomb, meaning the Numbers were slipping out of his grasp with each passing second.

Still. At least this time he hadn’t rammed into the thing at top speed. Or had to fight a bear. Small mercies, he supposed. Now he was only going to get miserably drenched and have to deal with Alito finding cat pictures to compare him with.

Bracing himself for a moment at the door leading back out to the deck, Durbe prepared to get ready to dive into the raging abyss below when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye- one of the viewing screens showed two streaks of gray and black energy flying up out of the ocean, nimbly landing on the railing. Durbe instinctively ducked behind cover, eyes widening minutely as he realized who they were- Vector and his new pet ghost, Black Mist. Vector, now in his human form, leaned back and stretched his shoulders with a dramatic pop, while Black Mist sneered down at him.

“Remind me,” Vector said loud enough to be picked out by the viewing screen’s, “why aren’t we taking this flying machine and creating a new wreckage at the bottom of the ocean for someone to find in fifty years?”

“Patience, my pet.” Black Mist purred. Durbe felt it reductive to note that, given the rogue Number seemed to purr everything like a supervillain’s cat, but it really was the best word he could come up with to describe it. “The climax to our plan is nearly complete, and I’d rather Astral make it to the show in one piece. Otherwise, all of my efforts were for nothing.” His lips curled in disgust. “Besides, I’d rather not play second fiddle to some old bones and ruins. I’ve done that already at your behest to get Djinn Buster, and I’m not fond of a repeat performance. When I face Astral again, it’ll be in a fitting stage, with yours truly in the lead role.”

“If you say so, it’s your plan.” Vector shrugged casually. “Still, gotta say I wasn’t expecting you to be as cold as you were back there. You really left that poor soul to die down there and you don’t give a solitary damn, do you?” 

“Why should I? That human was part of the organisation I’d been… borrowing… when we met. It was easy enough to find their most vile agent and prepare them for this. Am I supposed to feel sorry for sending a killer to their death? Hardly.” Black Mist scoffed. “That ‘free agent’ I left behind is just the perfect encapsulation of humanity and their collective sins- inherently violent, possessive, and undeserving of the world they were born to. I’d say between us, we left a fitting representation of that in their deck. Besides,” he added, “you’re the one who suggested the idea of killing the Kamishiros here.”

Wait. What.

“Guilty as charged!” Vector retorted cheerfully. “I just think now would be a really good time to wipe that smile off Yuma’s face, and what better way to do it than snatch defeat from their victorious hands? Let them have some silly Numbers, what’s gonna happen today will break their poor little hearts and make taking them back all the more sweet!” He giggled, kicking his feet. “It’s gonna be sooo much fun watching Yuma’s little after school club fall apart into despair and misery! I only wish I could stick around and watch the show, but I guess I’ll have to settle for the after-action report.” Vector had the audacity to pout at that. “Let’s see how blind Yuma’s willing to fly once his Sight gets cut, and to say nothing of his beloved pet fish once it realizes it’s back to being a school of one…”

“You’re making such a substantial sacrifice, I assure you,” Black Mist replied, deadpan, “but we need to move now. The final parts of my plan are nearly in motion, and I need to be ready for when Astral and his vessel leave this place.” With that, Vector hopped up and the two teleported away, leaving Durbe to stand in silence.

This was… necessary. It had to be. They were the enemy, they were helping Astral, who wanted to burn their world and its people and erase them from history. Vector’s plan was sickening, but had merit from a pragmatic point of view. By eliminating two of Astral’s forces here, it would tilt the balance and could have emotional ramifications that could win them the entire war. All for the price of two lives who had already thrown their lot in with the enemy. It was cold. Clinical. But it could work. So why did Durbe feel so repulsed at the idea, beyond his general aversion to anything Vector said on principle. They were children, yes, but they were with the enemy. It was them, or his entire world. This shouldn’t have been so hard…and yet he felt doubt enter his soul. All he had to do was walk away and let Vector’s plan play out… but he couldn’t find it in him to do that.

Durbe paused as he thought over one of Vector’s specific pronunciations. “Let’s see how blind Yuma’s willing to fly once his Sight gets cut…” He put emphasis on that word, like a title. Durbe only knew one other person who had been given that title- it was what Merag said Don Thousand referred to her as whenever she received visions directly from him. Why would Vector make reference to that now, when-

Oh. Durbe’s blood ran cold. Oh no. 

He knew.  

Vector had figured it out, he knew somehow about Nasch and Merag being the Kamishiros and was trying to prevent their return by killing them. Why, though? Why would Vector be opposed to their leaders coming back? Vector had hated Nasch, everyone knew it, but to the level of treason and betrayal? It would fit in his portfolio, but Vector’s double-sided antics usually were kept for when he infiltrated enemy positions and fortifications. He wasn’t stupid enough to cause grievous infighting within the Barians. So… why. Why would he do something so obviously short-sighted? Putting aside his own emotional bias, Durbe rationalized that it was objectively a benefit to have them return to the fold. It would deprive Astral of two of his strongest allies, while bolstering the ranks of the Barians and it would cause dissent among Astral’s forces- while, Durbe could admit petulantly, driving a shard of ice into Yuma’s own heart at the idea of his beloved betraying him. 

He could worry about this later, and try to decipher Vector’s motivation at a later date. Right now, there was a potential assassin waiting down there for Nasch or Merag, and Durbe had to do something. He was the Barian’s White Shield, and even if they didn’t know it yet, they were still under his protection. 

The storm had cleared, sunlight beginning to poke through holes in the clouds that had previously gone as far as the eye could see. Durbe’s mood had not lifted in kind as he watched Black Mist and Vector leave, taking a second to resolve himself before stepping back outside and vaulting the edge without any hesitation. It was pitch-black underwater, Durbe’s senses briefly escaping him as the pressure and the darkness settled around him, before his Duel Disk shimmered. Above him, Star Seraph Sentry materialized and let loose an arrow that flew up and hit the surface of the sea. It erupted, forming an entire sun’s worth of light that illuminated Durbe’s descent, showing him a teal barrier below.

He was so close. He could feel it. He couldn’t fail now. He had to stop history from repeating yet again. He could save them, this time.

“Hold on you two, please.” Durbe whispered desperately as the ocean took him deeper, accelerating his descent, “I’m coming.”

Kotori regained consciousness abruptly, shooting up with a sharp gasp and panting heavily for a moment. She was sure that right before she’d lost consciousness she could feel the ocean entering her lungs, her body panicking instinctually at that, but after a few moments, she realized that she was… fine. Dry, even, which was a pleasant surprise. She was in a dimly lit hallway with blue sconces illuminating a path forward towards a brightly lit outdoors area. Serene blue light drifted in, swirling slightly in an oceanic pattern.

“Where am I?” She mumbled, rubbing the back of her head. “Rio? Yuma? Shark?” She called out as she got up and turned-

Only to jump and leap back in shock as Kotori turned to find Rio right behind her, staring ahead with no sign of recognition in her eyes- her now blue eyes, which shimmered in the low light. 

“Oh, jeez, Rio, you scared me half to death!” Kotori said with a nervous chuckle. Her laugh tapered off as Rio kept staring ahead, unblinking. “Uh, Rio? Are you OK? Talk to me…” 

Kotori reached out to Rio’s right hand, clasping it between her own, only to jolt and gasp at the contact- it was like touching a live wire connected right to her soul. Behind Rio, the shadows collected together to form a silhouette. The lights dimmed in the presence of this figure, making it feel like it was speaking directly to Kotori from within a void. She couldn’t make out much about the figure, beyond that it radiated authority and raw power, its very essence forming around her and Rio to trap her in a trance and make her march. 

“Step aside, mortal. You are not required for this ritual.” It spoke with a deep, booming voice. Rio tried to take a step forward, still in a trance-like state.  

“This… What the heck?” Kotori reeled back in surprise. “Who are you?” 

“My name is not important, nor do you need to hear it. I again order you to step aside. This vessel is required for a challenge.”

“Vessel?” Kotori’s face twisted in anger, a wave of protectiveness surging within her. “Don’t you dare talk about her like that! She has a name! You can use it at least if you’re gonna steal her body!” 

“You do not understand. You are human, and not a vessel or a Numbers Bearer. You have no role in this fight. Do the smart thing and walk away, mortal. You are interfering in matters of the soul arranged from before you were even a spec in the eye of the universe.” 

If Kotori had been doing the “smart thing,” she’d have long since taken off. Instead, she doubled down, glaring at the glowing eyes of the figure behind Rio. “Like I care! You were the one talking to Rio on the ship, weren’t you? You were haunting her, hurting her and weakening her so you could swoop in. Well I’m not walking away! I don’t care what arrangements you had, she’s not going anywhere with you! So let go of her soul, and get the hell away from her!” Kotori was screaming by the end, roaring bloody defiance against what she was rapidly realizing was something that could kill her with ease. Not that she gave a damn. 

“You impudent mortal,” the entity hissed, “thinking you can make demands of a deity? I will show you how such disrespect and blasphemy is responded to!” It raised a hand at Kotori, energy swelling from it. Lightning crackled around not just its hand, but the entire domain that had formed around Kotori and Rio. Fear ate at Kotori’s heart, but she found the resolve to dig her heels in, glaring at the outstretched palm. She couldn’t let Rio down. She wouldn’t, not at any cost. 

As the energy hit its zenith, forming a nearly blinding sphere of purple energy that a small part of Kotori’s subconscious noted felt oddly familiar, the entity gasped in shock, the energy puttering out as it reached towards its chest. It almost looked like parts of it had frozen over, ice crackling and snapping around its chest and arm. “I see,” it let out a pained growl, speaking into thin air, “you planned ahead. You always did play favorites with your Sight. Very well.” It growled reluctantly, “On thy soul be the consequences for this defiance, 94.” The shadows began to dissipate, the entity freeing itself from Rio’s shadow and beginning to fade away. As it did, it glared down at Kotori. “Your transgressions shall not be forgotten,” it intoned, “when you call on the aid of the divine in the future, you will feel nothing but the empty void of rejection to cast you away with.”

Before Kotori could process what… really any of that meant, the shadows around her snapped away, leaving her in the lit hallway with the sconces roaring to life again. Rio still stood locked in place, her eyes still glowing that unearthly shade of blue in the middle of her dull red eyes. 

“Rio?” Kotori whispered. She moved to be in front of Rio again, looking up at the eyes that stared ahead with no signs of recognition, gently shaking her. “It’s OK, whatever that thing was, it’s gone now, you can come back to me, OK?” She felt something ugly and miserable swell in her chest. “Please,” she said desperately, wrapping her arms around Rio, “please come back to me. I need you back, Rio.” 

For a lonely, haunting moment, Kotori felt so deeply alone, trying not to start breaking down as she sniffled into Rio’s shirt, her partner’s body unyielding. She felt a sudden inhale, and two hands gently wrapping around her. “Hey, Little Bird,” came a hoarse murmur, “where are we?” 

Kotori peeled back to look up at Rio’s eyes. Tired, weary, but no shades of green or blue, just red and it was her. Kotori nearly started crying again at that, burying her face as she sniffled. “It’s really you…”

“Yeah… why wouldn’t it be? Hey, hey, it’s OK. I’m not going anyway. No need to cry over me.” Rio sounded exhausted, but her voice still radiated warmth as she pulled Kotori into a real hug. “Not to be dramatic,” Rio said quietly as she ran a hand through Kotori’s hair, “but I think you just saved my life.”

“Oh, no pressure, then.” Kotori replied, giggling slightly as the mania settled in while her adrenaline crashed. 

“What was that you were saying back in Spartan City, about wishing you could do more and get off the sidelines?” Rio mused. “Well, there you go. You’re my savior.” 

Kotori pressed in closer as Rio spoke, getting close enough that she could practically press her heart against Rio’s and feel them beating together. “How are you doing?” Kotori whispered.

Rio let out a tired sigh. “I’m… I’m not gonna lie, Kotori, I’ve not been well these past few days. I’ve been lying to you, to Ryoga, to everyone, that I’ve been able to manage, but I’m at the end of my rope. I’m really tired… and look where that got me. I stumbled right into this crap and nearly got you dragged into it. My skull feels like it got split open and my brain’s been put in the blender. Whatever that… thing… was, even if it’s not trying to steal my body anymore, I still have this urge building in my stomach. To keep going forward, towards that light.” Rio let out a shuddering breath. “And I desperately do not want to do that,” she whispered.

“Then we don’t go that way,” Kotori replied. She pulled away, taking Rio’s hand, and gestured down the other hallway. “We just go this way, and we either find Yuma and Shark, or we find a way back to the Airship. Either way, we avoid that platform. I won’t let it take you again.” 

“If you scream at it again like you were just now, I’ve no doubt of that.” Rio muttered with a smile. “You’re the best, Kotori. Now come on. Let’s get out of here.”

Durbe slammed through the barrier at… worryingly fast speeds. He was pretty sure he managed to break the sound barrier with how fast he powered through the currents of the ocean. A waterfall formed from the damage he left behind, drenching him and flooding the hallway he landed in as he got from the ground he’d shattered underfoot and stared at…

Oh Gods damnit, of course he’d land right in front of Yuma Tsukumo. He should consider switching to a Norse pantheon so Loki could gain this spiteful agent of bile and chaos as a new avatar to cause havoc with. Durbe really shouldn’t stick around, he had to try and find Vector’s planted assassin and get Nasch and Merag away from here, but…

Oh, what the hell. He’d wanted to do this anyway for a long time. 

“I hadn’t expected this to be our battleground,” he mused as his Duel Disk materialized, “but I won’t look a gift horse in the mouth. Are you ready to battle?” 

Yuma stepped forward, his hands up like he was talking to a stray animal. “Putting aside that now is a really bad time, dude… I don’t think we need to fight.” 

“Do you even know what being at war means? We’re enemies,” Durbe enunciated, “that inherently means we need to fight.” 

“Then why did you save Shark at Mach’s tomb?” Yuma countered. “If we’re enemies, then why did you keep saving his life?” 

“You mistake pragmatism for altruism. I had my reasons to keep Ryoga Kamishiro alive, and none of them are pertinent to this conversation.”

“You’ve realized by now, haven’t you? All the Temples, they’ve been your stories! All of the Barians, you were human, once! You don’t need to keep fighting for the Barians! Why do you need to keep fighting Astral?!” 

“I don’t know,” Durbe replied acidically, “why don’t you tell Yuma your full mission, Astral? What do you really plan to do when you collect all of the Numbers, instead of feeding this imbecile more tall tales about the supposed past lives of the Barians?”

Astral raised his head, looking down at Durbe. “My mission,” he said calmly, “is to destroy every trace of Barian World and its inhabitants from this reality.”

“Wait- wait, what?” Yuma turned to Astral, shock and horror crossing his face. “You can’t mean… but that’s…” Yuma turned pale. “Astral, that’s genocide,” he whispered, “you can’t be serious.” 

“He is,” Durbe replied coldly. Astral stayed silent, his lack of response being enough to make Yuma look violently ill. “If Astral has his way, he’ll burn my world into cinders and ash, wiping us out for no good reason.”

“You are my enemy, and the enemy of Astral World at large,” Astral replied, his tone as cold as the vacuum of space, “and the actions of the Barian Emperors against Earth are cause enough to warrant extermination.” 

Yuma looked like he was going to be sick. He hadn’t known, had he? He hadn’t realized what the costs of war would entail, or that his close friend would be willing to press the button and wipe out a species. 

Astral opened his mouth to continue speaking, but suddenly paused, looking up behind Durbe’s shoulder. “Yuma, look!” 

Durbe turned instinctively, eyes widening. Above the labyrinth, ripples formed in the sky like an Aurora Borealis, transitioning into Ryoga facing off against a tall, armored figure with sky-blue skin and a large beard. He was in the middle of holding up a hand to ward off smoke from a direct attack from one of Ryoga’s Shark monsters, glaring disdainfully as the smoke cleared. His form flickered briefly, like a distorted video, before settling as Ryoga ended his turn.

“Wait, that’s Shark!” Yuma cried out. “He must be fighting the Number Guardian! We gotta get over there!”

On that, Durbe could agree with him. He didn’t know yet which of the Kamishiros were at risk, but Ryoga would be doomed if Vector’s assassin struck while he was already in a duel. Rio would have to wait until he was sure Ryoga was safe, however much that pained him to admit. He had to just hope this was the right call.

Uncerimoniously, and without even a parting word aimed at Yuma or Astral, Durbe took off, red energy coalescing around him as he flew into the air. He didn’t even notice that his abrupt take-off had sent Yuma flying from the kickback, meaning Tsukumo got drenched from rolling around in the ankle-deep water of the labyrinth. Ahead, he saw a raised platform where he could just make out Ryoga and the Guardian, shooting towards it at terminal velocity.

Kotori had briefly slipped away from Rio to check what was waiting for them down the path Rio had been compelled to venture down. It led into a wide-reaching labyrinth that stretched out almost as far as she could see, with a large flat structure looming overhead further into the maze. A white gown had been left out on a plinth nearby, complete with a veil and sandals that made Kotori’s skin crawl. Instead, they made the choice to venture the opposite direction, Kotori maintaining an iron grip on Rio’s hand as they made their way deeper. The hallways were still well lit, but it felt like no matter how far down they went, it was still possible to see the entrance to the labyrinth. Kotori had caught Rio turning her head to watch it before sharply speeding up, her breath stuttering every time she did. 

“Hey,” Rio said quietly as they kept walking, “chances are Yuma and Ryoga are back in that labyrinth. It might be easier if we go back in and find them instead of going this way.” 

Kotori shook her head. “But you would be at risk of that guy trying to get inside your head again. I’m not letting that happen.”

“I know, but-”

“No!” Kotori protested. “I’m not letting you risk yourself like that again if I can do something about it!”

“I don’t mind risking myself if it keeps you safe, though!” Rio snapped. She paused, processing the words. “Wait, I mean, I do mind, but…”

“Rio…” 

They sighed in unison. “Let’s just keep going,” Rio suggested.

After what felt like hours but was likely just a few minutes, the hallway shifted, gradually widening out into a small antechamber that led into a large room. Kotori could hear dripping water overhead, a few droplets falling beside her and sizzling in the ethereal flame of the sconces. A door appeared at the edge of their vision, leading into a more open room. From what they could see, the left side of the chamber had a large, grand staircase that led up to a sealed stone structure partially built into the wall.. Directly facing that staircase and opposite from where Rio and Kotori were about to enter were two more exits to the room. The walls, from what they could see in the dim lighting, had frescos painted on them that wrapped around the entire room. They paused at the edge, staring into the room.

“What… is that?” Kotori asked, pointing at the structure at the top of the stairs.

“I think it’s a tomb, or a coffin.” Rio murmured in response. “It must have been someone important to this kingdom for such a lavish room.” She took a step forward into the room, turning to brush her fingers against one of the nearest frescos. “This feels… weirdly familiar.”

“With how many tombs we’ve been in this past month, that’s not surprising,” Kotori muttered. 

As Rio shifted her weight between her feet, her right foot touched against a different tile than the ones she had stood on previously. It clicked underfoot, giving Rio only a second to look up in alarm before a heavy iron gate slammed down between Kotori and Rio. It kicked up a plume of dust and smoke that had Rio coughing desperately, batting at the cloud.  

“Damnit!” Rio cursed. “You OK?” She called through the gate.

“I’m fine! I just…” Kotori grunted as she pushed at the gate. “I can’t move it, it’s stuck in place!”

Rio tugged at the bars, grimacing as they didn’t even budge an inch. “Stay here. I’ll see if there’s a release for the gate somewhere in here. Try checking on your side!”

“OK, just be careful! Watch out for any other traps!” Kotori nodded before looking around in the antechamber she was stuck in.

As Kotori did that, Rio found her attention drawn back to the artwork carved into the walls, cast in grand marble and gold. It depicted a story, chronicling two young twins being born to a king and queen of an oceanic land. Rio slowly moved around the room, her fingers tracing the patterns as she did. The twins were shown to be diligent and loyal to their Kingdom, one, a boy with violet hair, being prepared for a role of leadership to inherit, the other, a woman in white, being taken to the temples of the region’s pantheon so she could be taught about the deities and Gods worshipped here. 

Rio had gone clockwise, reaching a carving placed in a pillar that broke up the staircase which showed the twins as teenagers. She had the static in her brain, the kind that usually came before a vision that overwhelmed her in a sea of green and left her shivering on the floor, but it was like it was being delayed this time, or held back. Instead it was like a constant chorus of whispers in a soft voice, just outside of the edge of her hearing, the occasional word getting through amidst the wall of sound- “Brother,” “Knight,” “Priestess,” “Gorgon,” “DODGE”-

A glint of silver in Rio’s eye made her hand jerk away from the fresco right in time, as a knife slammed into the spot where her wrist had been, right over the heart of the prince in the mural she was inspecting. Kotori let out a shout of panic as Rio turned around, making eye contact with a figure in gray who had been perching in the shadowed corners of the roof in the tomb. Grinning at the realization they had been caught, they dived down with a giggle, landing on their feet and dusting themselves off.

Up close and in better lighting, Rio could see that the person she was facing was spindly and skinny, with black hair and a red streak slicked back to form a widow’s peak over their sickly yellow eyes that were covered with a pair of bright pink sunglasses. They wore a sleeveless black leather jacket with four white lines wrapped around the torso at the ribs, underneath which was a turtleneck that led to, of all things, bright electric-blue armbands that seemed to pulse slowly in the light. They had a similar pair of legwarmers which also pulsed in a lazy rhythm. 

“Lucky dodge!” They called out, mockingly bowing before flicking their wrist. A wire that was wrapped around their hand and the handle of the knife went taut, flying past Rio and into their waiting hand where they tucked it away. “But that’s the best your luck’s gonna get you for the rest of today, kid.”

“Who are you?” Rio spat.

“No one of importance, but you can call me Yumekumi. I’ve actually been looking all over this tomb for you and your brother, so thanks for sparing me having to look more! I was getting so tired of hallways and puzzles.”

“My brother?” Rio’s eyes widened. “What do you want with my family!”

“Well, in all honesty, I kinda need to kill you both!” She shrugged. “Boss’s orders, you know how it is.”

“Kill? Wait, your boss?” 

“Again, no one of importance!" Yumekumi paused, tapping her chin. "You’re very inquisitive for someone who’s about to be referred to in the past tense, anyone ever tell you that?” 

Kotori kept shaking at the bars desperately. “Rio, just go! Make a break for it!”

“You probably shouldn’t do that kid,” Yumekumi replied in a low voice, “or else I’ll be really upset, and well, your partner over there will have to deal with that.” 

Rio’s face paled with shock for a moment before a tidal wave of fury overwhelmed her senses as she threw on her Duel Disk. “You won’t lay a finger on her, or my brother for that matter!”

“Oh, perfect, I love it when they struggle! It just means you’ll die tired!” Yumekumi’s grin turned sadistic as she fired up her own Disk Disk, a Gazer Tattoo flaring up in the shape of a cobweb over her left eye. 

“Duel!”

“I’ll be taking the first turn! I draw!” Yumekumi declared confidently, drawing her first card. “I summon Malevolent Spinneret!” The field lit up as a bright blue spider with black markings appeared. “Spinneret’s effect! I get a second Normal Summon this turn for a DARK-Attribute Insect Monster! I’ll use that to summon out Malevolent Mesothelae!” Spinneret fired off a glob of webbing that formed into another spider, this one wearing an amber armor. “Mesothelae’s effect activates! I can now add a Spell or Trap from my deck to my hand that has the word ‘Malevolent’ in its title! I add the Field Spell, ‘Malevolent Web!’” Yumekumi’s Duel Disk spat out the searched card, which she added to her hand before reaching upwards, a vortex of black and yellow materializing in front of her. “I now Overlay my Level 4 Mesothelae and Spinneret! With these two Monsters, I build the Overlay Network!”

Yumekumi’s monsters split into particles of energy, forming together in the vortex and causing it to erupt antimatter particles. “The plunderer of the insect kingdom! May your venom sap your prey of its strength so you can feast on their souls! I XYZ Summon! Rank 4, Malevolent Cheiracanthium!” A large pale spider formed from the Overlay Network portal, armed with a beige abdomen that was cast in a sickly light with the Overlay Units rotating around it. “I set one card face down, and end my turn. You’re up, Rio!”

“My turn! I draw!” Rio added her new card to her hand, staring at the opposing XYZ Monster. It only had 2200 Attack Points, so wiping it out would be easy, but then… Why summon it now to begin with? Her Duel Gazer told her its effects were better suited for going second. She’d best be careful. 

“I summon Blizzard Thunderbird!” Rio cried out. From her field, a figure in deep blue armor emerged, sporting yellow wings that crackled with lightning. “I now activate the Spell Card, Blizzard Vision! I target a WATER Monster on my field to Special Summon this card as a Normal Monster with the same Type, Attribute, and Level! I target Blizzard Thunderbird, letting me treat Blizzard Vision as a Level 4 Winged-Beast!” 

“Ah, yes.” Yumekumi observed as Rio’s Spell Card was resolved. “The famed predators of spiders… birds.” 

“You are so weird,” Kotori muttered from behind the grate, “do they get weirdos to fight for Barian World from a catalogue or something?”  

“I thought it would be hard to top the gang leaders, married couples and student council presidents, but the Barians indeed found a way.” Rio replied under her breath, before reaching up and snapping her fingers, an Overlay Network vortex appearing before her. “I now Overlay my Level 4 Blizzard Vision and Blizzard Thunderbird! With these two Monsters, I build the Overlay Network!” Rio’s monsters dematerialized and flew into the portal, creating a cold gust that filled the room.

“Apex predator of the coldest lands,” Rio chanted in a low contralto, voice echoing across the room alongside the crackling of ice. “Sharpen your talons, and prepare to feast on my frozen foes! I XYZ Summon! Descend from the skies, Rank 4, Ice Beast Zerofyne!”  

Zerofyne emerged from the Overlay Network, its eyes glowing a vicious shade of yellow as it appeared in front of Rio. 

“I use one Overlay Unit to activate Zerofyne’s effect!” Rio called out. “All face-up cards on the field have their effects negated, and Zerofyne gains 300 points for each one! Perfect Freeze!”  

Zerofyne’s wings snapped out, releasing another burst of cold that shot over the field, freezing Cheiracanthium in place. 

“With one card on the field negated, Zerofyne’s Attack Points rise to 2300! I also activate the Equip Spell, Wings of Silence! Zerofyne gains another 300 Attack Points, and it’s now unaffected by your Spells or Traps!” As Rio played her card, Zerofyne’s wings shattered into ice particles, reforming as a pair of black-feathered wings that snapped out fiercely. “Now, battle! Zerofyne attacks Cheiracanthium, with Icicle Storm!”  

Zerofyne shook its new wings, shedding several feathers that froze in the aura of cold it emitted. With a wave of its hand, it created a stream of frozen energy that combined with the frozen feathers, forming a storm that shot out and overwhelmed Yumekumi’s XYZ Monster. It let out a chitter of pain before exploring, Yumekumi covering her face with her Duel Disk as several shards flew by, her Life Points dropping to 3600. One of the shards flew close by and nicked her arm, causing a small tear in the jacket material and causing Yumekumi to observe it passively for a moment as Zerofyne ended its blast. 

“Is that all you got?” Rio called out mockingly. 

“Ha! Maybe in your dreams. Thanks for walking right into my trap, though! I activate my set card, Malevolent Infestation!” Yumekumi’s set card flipped up. “Since Cheiracanthium was destroyed while it had Overlay Units, I’m allowed to revive those materials from the Graveyard by negating their Special Abilities! Welcome back, Mesothelae and Spinneret!” 

Rio grimaced as the two Insect Monsters returned from the Graveyard. “I set one card face down, and end my turn,” she announced. 

“Then it’s my turn! I draw!” Yumekumi drew and looked over her hand, the lazy smile on her face from earlier transitioning into a more bloodthirsty bearing of her teeth. “I think it’s time I brought out my real ace, isn't it?” 

“Can I vote no and you just let me OTK you on my next turn?” Rio replied, deadpan.  

“Hmm…” Yumekumi tapped her chin, considering it. “Tantalizing offer, but I think I’m gonna have to say no. Nothing personal, though!” 

“Well, worth a shot,” Rio muttered before glaring at Yumekumi. “Bring it on!” 

“Alright, you asked for it!” Yumekumi giggled before the Overlay Network materialized. “I again Overlay my Level 4 Mesothelae and Spinneret! With these two Monsters, I build the Overlay Network!” 

Above Yumekumi, the Overlay Network erupted into a storm of antimatter that had Rio and Kotori looking away. A web-bound figure materialized from it, pulsing rhythmically like a heartbeat before slowly peeling open to reveal an eight-legged blue spider with white highlights, a garish red 70 on its back that glowed and crackled. The number appeared over Yumekumi’s neck, carving itself in and glowing with a teal light, making her throw her head back and cackle manically during her chant.  

“The spinner of the web that consumes all light and purity across time! Emerge from your wicked cocoon to weave a tapestry of destruction! I XYZ Summon! Come forth, Number 70- Malevolent Sin!” 

“A Number? Here? With that person?!” Kotori exclaimed in terror. Rio grit her teeth, a full-body shiver racing through her. She’d fought Numbers before, faced down Star Seraph Sentry at Sargasso, and handled the Barian tricks before like Hana’s Chaos XYZ Monster, but this was something different- she was flying nearly entirely solo here, save for Kotori who was still trapped behind the gate. Rio had built a lot of her deck to try and kill Numbers… and now she was being thrown into the deep end to see if her theories had been right. 

Yumekumi calmed down, wiping away scarlet tears from her eyes as she kept grinning. “This is the part where you realize you had no hope and start begging for your life and I make this quick,” she said, “but if you want to pretend you’re brave, we can continue.”

Rio glared, her silence filling the air as her response.

“Suit yourself!” Yumekumi straightened her posture. “I activate the Field Spell, Malevolent Web!” From the shadows above Yumekumi and Malevolent Sin, thick stands of webbing appeared and embedded themselves into the walls and ceiling of the tomb. Fragments of rock splintered off from the impacts, falling down and kicking up a small dust cloud. “While this Field Spell is active, any effect of my Malevolent Monsters that would banish one of your cards for a turn, instead removes it from play for three turns! I really hope you don’t need anything on your field to last, because by the time any of your cards are coming back, this Duel will be long dead!”

“Like what?” Rio asked.

“Like your Zerofyne, dummy! Malevolent Sin can use an Overlay Unit to remove one of your Monsters from play until your next Standby Phase. But because Malevolent Web triples that duration…” 

“I’d only get it in three turns, I get it.” Rio shot back harshly. 

“You get the theory, but now let’s apply your knowledge practically! Malevolent Sin activates its effect! I use one Overlay Unit to remove Ice Beast Zerofyne from play! Dimension Webbing!”  

Malevolent Sin fired off a stream of webbing that glowed in black intervals. As the strands formed together around Zerofyne, it let out a panicked shriek before the webs tightened and vanished, taking Zerofyne with it and destroying Wings of Silence. Rio grit her teeth at the sounds her Monster made, hands shaking slightly from a mixture of fear and rage.

“Your Equip Spell only protects your Monster from Spells or Traps, but Monster Effects are still fair game! Phew on that, or else I’d have to work to take your Monster out!” 

“You know my deck well,” Rio muttered darkly as she moved Wings of Silence to her Graveyard. “You did your homework.”

“Yeah, I had a friend of the boss who gave me some tips on what you and your brother were like in a Duel! Not that I needed help guessing what a guy named Shark would be playing… But yeah, little old me got some bonus homework as part of this contract from a key source on the inside! You might know him?” Yumekumi leaned forward. “Does the name Shingetsu ring any bells?” 

Rio and Kotori paused. “Vector…” Rio growled. “He planned this?” 

“Ding ding ding, you win a prize! Yeah that little fruity carrot spent ages chatting with the boss! That bit was beyond my paygrade, but I know a contract when I see one, and lemme tell you,” Yumekumi giggled, “you must have really done something to piss them off, you wanna know why?” 

“Enlighten me.” 

“They told me to make this hurt. And they even gave me a few suggestions on how. It’s so fun to workshop ideas with the boss!” Yumekumi’s eyes glistened, glowing slightly. “So lemme show you what you’re in for! Malevolent Sin, attack directly! Hell Venom!”  

The Number leapt forward, fangs glistening in the light as they began to drip with a bright blue venom. Rio waved her hand. “I play my Trap, Mirror Force! It destroys all Monsters you control when you declare an attack, so your Malevolent Sin is getting washed down the drain!” 

A large barrier of glass materialised before Rio, just in time to stop Malevolent Sin from colliding into her. The barrier crackled and shimmered, glowing bright enough that Rio had to cover her eyes for a second. When the light faded, she blinked rapidly, only for her eyes to widen; Yumekumi’s monster was still there as the barrier fell apart around it, albeit bleeding blue ichor from a spear that had impaled its side. “What the…” Rio looked behind the Number to see an activated Spell Card. “No way! You had a Forbidden Lance?”

“I did indeed! By lowering Malevolent Sin’s Attack Points by 800, it gains immunity to all Spells and Traps for the turn!” Yumekumi pouted. “You didn’t think it would be that easy to destroy a Number, did you? Ah well, better luck next time brat! In the meantime, since Mavolent Sin survived your Trap, it can finish its attack! Now get her!”

Malevolent Sin darted forward before Rio could even process the command, her point of view being overtaken by a gaping maw with glistening fangs that-

Pain. Horrible, toe-curling, nightmare-inducing pain shot out from her left side and overwhelmed her as Yumekumi’s Number bit down into her left collarbone, the fangs sinking in and a horrible cold sensation spreading out from where they slid in, doing real damage. Not even Sargasso had hurt as bad, at least that had been quick once you got used to the shock. Rio let out a cry that ripped out of her throat briefly before her throat seized up, while she was dimly aware past her own pain that Kotori was crying out too. She managed to stay on her feet as Malevolent Sin leaped back to Yumekumi’s side of the field, her legs shaking as her Life Points dropped to 2400. “What the…” She gasped out, feeling at her collar and seeing two spots of red on her fingers. “How did you do that?” 

“Oh, you didn’t know?” Yumekumi put a hand on her hip, confusion crossing her face. “Darn, I really had you pegged as one of us. Guess you’re an oddity of your own, kid.”

“A… what?” 

“You really don’t know? Man, when the boss told me about you, I was sure you had a bit of ESP action going on! And look at the tear in my jacket! You’re really not a Psychic Duelist?” 

Suddenly, it all made too much sense to Rio, the pain slowly receding as she thought about this. Psychic Duelists were a known element, especially after the Fortune Cup over in Neo Domino about a decade or so back, but usually they were caught early enough in childhood since then that institutes could ensure they had safe training and were taught to not use their powers on other people. But there’d always been rumblings, if you went to the right corners of the Internet and were curious, about the original Psychic Duelist movements in Neo Domino being prepped for live combat before scattering to the winds after their leader mysteriously vanished. Yumekumi up close looked about… late 20s, early 30s, so she could have been part of that, then fell out of the system when the Arcadia Movement fell apart and drifted until she found new employment. 

Rio couldn’t have been psychic, though- she’d been in the hospital enough times that she’d have been caught in any number of scans, to say nothing of Kaito doing some special checks and scans after her first vision to make sure there wasn’t anything insidious tucked away in her brain. She didn’t make monsters real or summon fireballs, but her connection with her birds had always just made things colder. She was so normalized to how she ran cold that it stopped being a big issue, having grown up with it and accepted it her entire life. Ryoga occasionally made a stink about it, but even that was just familiar jabs about her making him need to turn on a radiator. 

But if she wasn’t a Psychic Duelist… What then, was she? She could deal with it later, when she wasn’t actively bleeding and she wasn’t in this stupid temple with these stupid wall paintings and staring down a stupid spider-woman. If she had some kind of power that wasn’t psychic abilities? Fine, whatever, as long as it gave her a shot to get even with that psycho. 

“Ah well. I can figure it out later, maybe they’ll tell me. Either way, since it battled, Malevolent Sin’s second effect activates! It gains three extra Ranks, and on top of that, it gains three hundred bonus Attack Points.” Her monster shimmered as its statline rose. “With that, I’m gonna set two cards face-down and call it there!” Yumekumi threw two face-down cards onto the field. “Unless you need a minute, you’re looking shaky over there.” 

Rio was still swaying heavily, panting. “Tell me how I look in a minute,” she eventually said under her breath, “when I kick your ass and knock you flat on the dirt!” Her voice rose until it became a defiant scream. “My turn! Draw!” Her arm still hurt as she drew for her turn with another chill, throbbing with a low, steady beat, but she could power through it. This was nothing, now. Compared to her past experiences with pain, she’d be fine. She had to be. This wasn’t just riding on her now, if she failed here, Ryoga would be in danger, and Kotori was right there-

Oh, crap, she’d been so focused on staying upright she blanked out everyone else for a minute. Rio looked over to see Kotori to her right, slamming against the gate desperately to no avail. Their eyes met. 

“Rio, please, get out of here! Take the other exit and go, I’ll be fine here!” Kotori pleaded. “I can find another way out, you don’t need to fight!” 

Rio managed to force a smile. “Like hell am I leaving you. I’d never be able to live with myself.”

“How do you think I’m gonna live with myself after this?” Kotori retorted. 

“You’ll be alive, and that’s all I care about right now.” Rio insisted. 

“Rio…”

“Is this a bad time to say there’s a good 99.100% chance you’re not gonna have to worry about that soon because you’ll be dead anyway?” Yumekumi pondered rudely. “Just thinking out loud over here, yeesh. Tough crowd…” She said as both Rio and Kotori glared at her.

Rio’s attention was drawn back over to her would-be assassin. “Unless you have a card to activate in my Standby Phase,” she said in a low snarl, “you can just shut up over there and let me take my turn.” 

“Eh, fair enough.” Yumekumi shrugged before suddenly snapping her fingers. “Oh wait, I do actually have a card!”

Oh, damnit.  

“Here’s my Continuous Trap, Acidic Webbing! Now every time an Overlay Unit is used for an effect while I control a Dark Insect XYZ Monster- which I do with my beloved Malevolent Sin, tee hee- you take three hundred points of damage!” 

Rio let out a weary breath as the webbing created by Malevolent Web began to shimmer in an ugly shade of green. A drop of liquid leaked from it, splashing down on the stone beneath and hissing as it eroded the material. 

“I summon Zereort Hatchling!” Rio began. A small egg appeared on her field that wobbled before cracking open, revealing a small palm-sized bird in teal that appeared to have fish fins for wings. “Hatchling’s effect! When it’s Summoned, I can call out another copy of it from my hand or deck!” Rio’s Duel Disk spat out the required card, letting her summon out another copy that chirped as it hopped out of its egg. “Hatchling’s second effect! I can treat it as a Level 4 or 5 Monster when I XYZ Summon a WATER Attribute XYZ Monster!” The Overlay Network appeared in front of Rio as her Hatchlings turned into streams of cyan particles. “Using my now Level 5 Zereort Hatchlings, I build the Overlay Network!”  

“Frozen princess of the coldest lands!” Rio chanted. “Break through the shell of reality and instill the chills of fear in my frozen foes! I XYZ Summon! Rank 5, Ice Princess Zereort!”  

The Overlay Network coalised into the familiar armored figure, hefting a hammer adorned with a large slab of jagged amber. 

“I now use one of Zereort’s Overlay Units to use its effect!” Rio continued. “It reduces the attack points of a Monster you control to zero! I choose Malevolent Sin! Go, Sub Zero Subtraction!” A wave of cold air hit against Yumekumi and her Number, the monster getting stuck in place as Zereort froze the air around it to form blocks of ice.

“N-nice party t-trick, but did you forget my Trap?” Yumekumi called out, trying to hide her chattering teeth while she shivered. “Acidic Webbing now deals you 300 points of damage!” 

Above Rio, one of the larger strands of web broke out of the ice formed by Zereort, shaking loose a globule of acid that splashed near Rio, making her hiss at some of the droplets while her Life Points went down to 2100.

“I really hope the damage you do here will be worth it kid, because if you forgot, Numbers can only be destroyed by other Numbers! My Malevolent Sin is gonna be peachy after this turn and you’ll be done for!” 

“Are you sure about that?” Rio murmured in a low voice.

Yumekumi blinked in confusion. “Huh?” 

“See, my brother once shared a fun fact from his own duels. A Number’s destruction immunity is an effect, so if you negate the effect… suddenly it’s not that hard to take out.”

Yumekumi laughed nervously. “Nice lecture, professor… but you’re bluffing.” 

“Am I? Let’s find out.” Rio’s eyes narrowed. “I activate my Continuous Spell, Finite Zero!” She placed another card out on the field, the Spell’s art showing several monster silhouettes frozen in blocks of ice around a throne where Zereort sat. “With this card, while I control a WATER XYZ Monster, any Monster with zero Attack Points has its effects negated! Additionally, if an effect makes one of your Monsters go down to zero Attack Points, it can’t go above zero unless this card is removed from the field!”

Beneath Malevolent Sin, the ice that Zereort formed turned pitch black, sealing it even more in place. 

“With your Number gone, I bet your whole deck will fall apart, so now it’s time to wipe it out! Battle! Zereort attacks Malevolent Sin, with Glacial Execution!”  

Zereort flew forward, letting out a roar as it brought its hammer down on Malevolent Sin. The ice blocks around it detonated, everyone forced to cover their eyes as fragments and shards flew everywhere. When the sound faded, Rio looked up, eyes widening at the sight- Malevolent Sin still stood in place, smashed into the ground and struggling to pick itself up, but still alive. Behind it, Yumekumi had been knocked to the ground and was slowly picking herself up as her Life Points thundered down to 1100. Several of the shards had sliced against her, most notably one on her cheek that left a harsh red line right under her right eye, which was now exposed as her glasses had been knocked away and shattered. Her legs and arms also had clumps of ice that were rapidly forming before Yumekumi smashed them off, hissing as she did.

“H-how…” Rio murmured in shock. 

“My Trap Card, Malevolent Danger Sense.” Yumekumi explained, her previous jovial nature gone briefly as she hissed in pain while getting up, glaring at Rio with open contempt. “If one of my Malevolent XYZ Monsters would be destroyed, I can detach all of its Overlay Units to survive. Nice try though, you nearly had me there. But it wasn’t enough.”

Rio’s breath became shaky as she considered her options. Zereort would still be on the field with more Attack Points, and as long as Yumekumi didn’t find a way to remove Zereort or Finite Zero, she’d have no easy way to get to Rio’s Life Points. All Rio would have to do after that is keep the pressure up and break through the rest of Yumekumi’s field, and she could win this in the next turn. 

She just had to survive this turn. She could do this. Just one more turn.  

“I end my turn,” she eventually said. “You’re up.” 

Yumekumi broke off the last of the ice, stomping her feet to get feeling back in them. “I am going to make you pay for that,” she vowed. “It’s my turn. I draw!” Yumekumi drew her next card, eyes widening for a moment as she saw it before a smile crept back onto her face. “And I know just how to do it,” she purred. 

“Rio, you’ve got this, just hang on!” Kotori called out. “She’s bluffing!” 

“Sorry you apple-haired brat, I’m really not in this case. Want me to prove it? Because here I go!” Yumekumi held up her newly drawn card, a magenta red aura surrounding her as she did. “I activate Rank-Up-Magic Barian’s Force!” She shrieked, cackling manically as she did. 

Above Yumekumi, a black hole appeared in the sky, absorbing light in the surrounding area. Kotori jumped back at the sight of the card, eyes widening in shock. “Not that card…” 

“You have a Chaos Number, too?” Rio exclaimed.

“My bosses spared no expense in your extermination from this mortal coil, and that includes the ultimate trump card! By targeting the Malevolent Sin on my field, I can use Barian’s Force to summon a Chaos Number one Rank higher! I rebuild the Overlay Network using Number 70!”

Malevolent Sin turned into a stream of red energy that flew up into the corrupted Overlay Network, causing it to explode with dark streams that made the very room they were in shake. It was almost like the other side of the portal, something sealed away had been cracked open and now it was bleeding into their reality. 

“Barian power, born of Chaos! Visit your judgement upon this wretched world!” Yumekumi chanted, her eyes gleaming sadistically. “Temptress of darkness! Forge the web from which all sin is born, and unleash the power of darkness on thine mortal souls! Chaos XYZ Evolution!”

The webbing from Yumekumi’s Field Spell shifted around Rio, lines of black corruption spreading through and making them pulsate. From above in the portal formed by Barian’s Force, a new spider emerged- the light blue hues of Malevolent Sin replaced by a deep glowing crimson that pulsed like a heartbeat, venom forming at its jaw that dripped down and melted the stone underneath.

“Arise, Rank 5, Chaos Number 70: Chaotix Original Sin!”

“It has 3000 Attack Points,” Kotori whispered to herself, “and Rio has no protection on her field!” 

“She’ll have even less now! Barian’s Force has one final effect!” Yumekumi cheered, the sickly aura around her intensifying. The ‘70’ that had been planted on her neck earlier now shone with a red light, almost burrowing its way into her skin. “When I use Barian’s Force, I can remove Overlay Units from your XYZ Monsters and attach them to my Chaos Number, while your Monster loses 300 Attack Points! Say goodbye to Zereort’s last Overlay Unit!” 

Rio bit back a curse as Zereort was struck by a bolt of red energy from the Rank-Up-Magic, drooping as its Overlay Unit was stolen and given to Original Sin. 

“And I’ll use that Chaos Overlay Unit now to activate Chaotix Original Sin’s special ability! All cards on your field are banished, and you take 500 damage for each! Original Sin also gains 500 Attack Points for each card removed by this effect! Go, Arachne’s Void!” 

Original Sin opened its jaw wide and let out a vile shriek that echoed off of the walls, making them shake. The webbing strands from above resonated with the shriek and began to pulse with the dark energy they inherited from Barian’s Force, releasing it to form a miniature black hole over Rio’s head. Zereort and her Spell Card both flew up into it, vanishing into the singularity, while a bolt of energy shot free of the black hole and slammed into Rio, making her skid back as her Life Points fell to 1100. 

“And with that, your field is gone! Now I can finish this-”

“Not so fast!” Rio gasped out as she stood up again. “I activate Guard Penguin’s effect from my hand! When I take Effect Damage, I can Special Summon it and regain Life Points equal to the damage I took!” Rio placed the last card in her hand on her Duel Disk, Guard Penguin’s shield blocking another errant beam from the singularity before it faded away while her Life Points returned to 2100. Now she was safe for the turn, and had a chance to make a comeback. Yumekumi only had 1100 Life Points left, she was so close-

Rio’s thoughts were interrupted by Yumekumi chucking, which morphed into a full-bodied laugh that saw the assassin nearly fall to her knees in jubilance. “I cannot believe this,” she wheezed. “Just when I thought I’d have to end you without you seeing the real pièce de résistance of my deck and plans for you, you snatch defeat from the jaws of victory and give me a chance!” Yumekumi took a second to exhale, her malice briefly retreating as she smiled blissfully, bowing deeply. “Thank you, Rio Kamishiro, for giving me the chance to inflict upon you the most exquisite of agonies.”

“You’re insane!” Kotori spat. “What the hell is your actual problem, you freak!” 

“I get that a lot. I don’t particularly care.” The hostility and sadism slipped back onto Yumekumi’s face as she pulled a card from her hand. “I play the spell card, Triple Tactics Thrust! When you activate a Monster’s effect during my turn, I can set any Spell or Trap from my deck, but it can’t be activated this turn.” 

Rio’s eyes narrowed. Why would she do that then? 

“However~” Yumekumi continued at Rio’s silence, “if you control a Monster, which you now do thanks to your little penguin friend, I get to add it to my hand instead. And then, I can activate it this turn! I wonder what card I’ll get? I have so many fun Spells and Traps here to play with…” A card slid out of Yumekumi’s deck as she finished. “But this one is a special card for you, Rio. Your friend Shingetsu told me all about this card and how important it’s been for your journey. You deserve nothing less than my best, for making me work this hard to beat you and even breaking out my Chaos Number! It’s only fitting I get the card that started all of this and led you down this path…”

Rio paused, the realization hitting her like a brick. “Wait, you can’t mean-”

“That’s right! I add Flaming Hell Blessing to my hand!” 

Rio could almost taste vomit in her mouth as she processed Kotori dimly yelling in the background, trying to get Rio to focus and pleading with Yumekumi not to play it. No. No no no no no no. Not that. Anything but that, let this be a nightmare, please don’t let this be real don’t let it be that card anything but that stupid card don’t make her think of it again or see it-

“And let’s not beat around the bush, Rio! It’s time for you to have a blast from the past- literally in this case! I activate the Spell Card, Flaming Hell Blessing!” 

No.

Above Rio and Yumekumi, a spark materialized, igniting and causing a chain reaction that spread across the entire ceiling. The flames in the sconces all flew up and joined the overhead inferno, making the temperature spike. The haze from the heat made everything turn blurry.

“Flaming Hell Blessing destroys all WATER Monsters on your field and in your hand, and you take 1000 damage!” Yumekumi exclaimed. Her eyes and the Number on her neck were almost like searchlights with how intense their glowing had become, two yellow pupils staring her down as Yumekumi gestured to the sky. “Now drown in the lakes of Hell, Rio Kamishiro!”  

Rio couldn’t move, couldn’t blink or run or even scream, only able to stare at the swirling flames that were beginning to resemble a typhoon. Fear had overtaken everything, leaving her unable to do anything but stare as the flames began to drop from overhead, circling around her. She thought she heard Kotori shrieking her name in panic, ignoring how the door bars had gotten so hot they were almost burning her hands as she kept trying to shake them loose. Even breathing proved nearly impossible, each breath catching in her chest and making her heave as though the oxygen was being starved out around her- which in a way, it was.

The flames fell around her, all she could hear and see was a swirling inferno that overrode all of her senses and hit her like a train, and for the second time in her life, Rio burned. She finally found her voice in the void that her fear and panic had left her in, leaving her able to scream in raw, primal terror that gripped at her heart as she covered her head with her arms. She processed Guard Penguin being destroyed on the field, the fire ripping through her cards to extinguish any other monsters she had. It didn’t burn like the version she’d faced last time- even with Yumekumi’s psychic powers and the malicious power of the Number boosting them, the worst the flames could seem to do was singe her clothes and dance along the edge of her vision, lapping at her scars like waves on the coastline. She wasn’t actually on fire, nothing was igniting like it had back then, but the proximity was almost worse than if she was. At least then the guessing game would be over, but the constant tug and pull was fraying her nerves, ripping more screams out of her than she thought she had to give, like it was stripping away her very soul in the process of burning her.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity stretched into a few seconds, it was over. The fires faded away, leaving Yumekumi and Original Sin facing Rio and her now empty board. Yumekumi giggled as she saw the state Rio was left in, swaying to and fro on her knees while she struggled to breathe, her eyes dull and stripped of life. Kotori had pulled her hands free from the scalding metal, holding them over her mouth as she quietly started sobbing. “Ouch, that sounded fun. I did pull my punches a bit and kept the fire from being super-lethal, but it still got the job done! I haven’t made someone scream like that since… well that’s not a story for your ears, kid.”

Rio was still dead inside, barely conscious and on the brick of collapse, but Yumekumi’s mocking words provoked a fire of her own to ignite in her soul; Revenge. A surge of fury and anger mixed together, keeping Rio’s legs strong as she forced herself up and fought the urge to keel over, a mantra almost branding itself into her psyche as she kept her eyes open:

‘I’m going to kill her.’

It was a familiar rage. The kind of lingering loathing that had begun to form after she’d been first put in a hospital, fuelling her recovery. It mixed well with the animosity she always kept there after the fire for 4, the kind that kept her up at night and let her power through moments of weakness. It was her own way of playing with fire, and she didn’t mind these burns as much. They helped her focus on what she needed to do.

Rio managed to stabilize, life filling her eyes again as she glared at Yumekumi. The assassin frowned. “I don’t like that look in your eyes. Like, come on, I just blew up your board, buddy, what are you gonna do to stage a comeback?” 

Rio stayed silent. 

“I mean, I’ll give you one thing,” Yumekumi conceded, “you are gonna get one turn to make a comeback. Flaming Hell Blessing’s effect includes a consequence for me- you can’t lose this turn. Your Life Points are incapable of hitting zero.”

It was a chance. Hope began to fill Rio at that prospect, she had a chance again after Yumekumi had broken her board, she still had 1100 Life Points so they were even-

“But that doesn’t mean I can’t bring you to the brink this turn!” Yumekumi interrupted, showing her teeth. “Even if I can’t win, I’ll wring a few more screams out of you yet this turn! Battle! Original Sin, attack Rio directly! Caine’s Venom!”

The Number charged forward, fangs glistening. Rio barely had time to react before it reached her and bit down, right where Malevolent Sin had attacked her previously on her left collar. The pain was one thing- fresh off of the flames, it was hard to find any more pain that worthy of note, it was just another wave of agony in a day full of them- but it was the immediate moment after that ripped another bloodcurdling scream out of Rio’s throat, where it felt like her own blood burned in its veins. It was that which drove Rio to her knees as her Life Points fell to a solitary 1, hand pressed against the wound as red trickled out between her fingers and fell onto the floor. Beneath her hand, her veins were turning black, the coloration slowly spreading down her arm, her scar tissue almost shimmering red as it passed through. 

“And that would be Original Sin’s venom!” Yumekumi cheered. “Nasty work, that. You have maybe… let’s give it an hour before it reaches your heart and… well, you can imagine the rest. I do have an antidote on me, but good luck taking me down and claiming it with the time you have left on the clock.” She sighed. “I think I’ll end my turn there. By the way buddy, Flaming Hell Blessing’s final effect activates! We both get to draw a card because of it, yippee. Aren’t I a generous person?” 

Rio slumped over, falling on her back and staring up at the ceiling as Yumekumi kept blabbing. So that was it. Rio had lost. She’d failed everyone, and she was going to die knowing that. She had hoped she would be more defiant in the face of death, facing it on her feet with a one-liner at least, but she was just… so tired. She was out of gas in the tank, she’d pushed herself too far and now the bill was coming in.

“Aw. She fell down.” Yumekumi said in a mocking lilt.

There was nothing she could do. Nothing in her deck could save her or turn the duel around. 

“Rio, please! Get up!” She heard from behind, a desperate cry.

Her Duel Disk chimed. It was Rio’s turn and she had to draw, but she had no energy to even lift her disk. She barely was able to look down at her wrist as her Gazer let out a warning sound- the slow-play timer.

“Looks like the clock’s against you!” Yumekumi heckled. “Either you get up and pointlessly try to win, or you let the clock run out and in just sixty seconds, it’ll automatically pass your turn! Then I can just finish the job.”

Rio’s head hit the ground again from exhaustion. From here she could look behind her and see Kotori, upside down from this angle, still hammering away at the door. “I’m so sorry…” she whispered. “I’m so sorry I dragged you into this. There was… so much I wanted to say.” 

“Rio, no! Y-you can tell me later, when you get up and win this!” 

Rio’s vision was growing blurry, a mixture of unshed tears and black at the corners as her exhaustion finally overwhelmed her. “I’m sorry, Kotori. I…” she swallowed, eyes growing glassy. “I… love you…” 

“No, no! RIO!” It was the last thing she heard before everything went black. 

Get up. We’re not dead yet. 

Rio’s eyes opened slowly, reluctantly. She could feel sand under her fingers from where they were digging into the ground around her. Above, it was a void of oceanic water, large towers of seaweed drifting lazily in the currents. What had she been doing again, before this? Dueling? Her memory was really hazy all of a sudden, but she didn’t think she had anything important waiting for her when she woke up. 

She could feel a pressure on her chest. Her eyes flicked down to see.. A child. A young girl, with bright, eager blue eyes and teal hair, cut in an eerily similar way, lying on top of her like a cat.

“Hi there!” She said cheerfully, before turning around while still on top of Rio (making Rio realize she was very awake when one of the kid’s knees dug into her ribs). “Mistress! She’s awake!” 

“Thank you, Iris.” A calm voice said from a few metres away. “Could we have the room, please?” 

“What room?” Rio muttered. They were underwater, in a large void. There weren't any structures around, no landmarks except for the beams of light that broke through the ocean above, which was… frozen over. It hadn’t been frozen the last time she’d been here.

Oh. That could only spell good tidings.

Iris got up and waited for Rio to do the same. “She’s just over there!” She gestured ahead. “It was really nice to meet you!” 

“You… you too.” Rio said. Iris beamed and darted away, fading into the shadows around. Rio hesitated as the girl vanished.

“It’s OK,” the voice called. “I don’t bite,” she added in a wry tone that was hauntingly familiar. 

Steeling herself with a heavy breath, Rio walked forward where Iris had pointed. The shadows of the depths wrapped around her like a cloak, pushing her forward deeper into the black. A light appeared just ahead, and when Rio blinked at its intensity, she found herself somewhere else completely.

Where seconds ago she had been on the depths of the ocean floor, she now stood at the roof of a grand island palace. The moon shone overhead on a cloudless night, illuminating neighbouring islands that had lit torches all around. It was a calm night, tranquil and serene, with a gentle breeze that made Rio’s hair sway.

Sitting at a table in a pavilion that overlooked the side of the lake where the sun would rise, was a young woman in a white dress with a veil tucked into her hair, wearing bare heels and a prominent bracelet on her right wrist that had an emblem interwoven with red jewels. She looked up from a deck of cards she was shuffling, gesturing to an open chair opposite her. She looked… disturbingly like Rio, save for a darker skin tone, tanned by the sun, and a more hardened gaze.

“Hello, Rio. I’ve been waiting a long time to meet you.” She smiled, a cat-like one that reached her eyes, which shimmered a magenta red in the light. “I think you can guess who I am?” 

We've covered ground for days and days

Running on fumes and wishes ablaze

We crossed our fingers and jumped in line

A front row seat to our own decline

I'm not gonna hide, Push the fear aside today

Closing the divide, My mind slips away inside

Trapped in a memory, 

Cut in two

Trying to break out

Again, again, again

We run in circles, déjà vu

Trying to call out

Again, again, again

Flashbacks and moments like films in my mind

Time starts to spin once again

And fades away

(Casey Edwards, “Exohuman”)

Custom cards: 

“Malevolent Spinneret”

DARK Insect Level 4

1400 ATK/800 DEF

“When this Monster is Normal or Special Summoned, apply this effect: You can Normal Summon one other DARK Insect Monster this turn. You can only use the effect of “Malevolent Spinneret” once per turn.”

“Malevolent Mesothelae”

DARK Insect Level 4

1200 ATK/1000 DEF

“When this Monster is Normal or Special Summoned, you can add one “Malevolent” Spell or Trap from your deck and add it to your hand. You can only use the effect of “Malevolent Mesothelae” once per turn.”

“Malevolent Web.”

Field Spell

Any monster banished by the effect of a “Malevolent” Monster for one turn are banished for three turns instead. If this card is sent to the GY: Add one Insect Monster from your deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of “Malevolent Web” once per Duel. The turn you activate this effect, you cannot summon Monsters from the Extra Deck, except DARK Insects.

“Malevolent Infestation”

Trap Card

When a “Malevolent” XYZ Monster you control is destroyed by battle or card effect, if all materials used for its XYZ Summon are in the Graveyard, Special Summon them but their effects are negated. 

“Acidic Webbing”

Continuous Trap

While you control a DARK Insect XYZ Monster: Your opponent takes 300 damage every time an XYZ Monster activates an effect that includes detaching an XYZ Material. 

“Malevolent Danger Sense”

Trap Card

When a “Malevolent” XYZ Monster you control would be destroyed by battle or an opponent’s card effect: Detach all XYZ Materials from that card instead, or send two DARK Insect Monsters from your hand to the GY.

“Malevolent Cheiracanthium”

DARK Insect Rank 4

2200 ATK/2300 DEF

2+ Level 4 Insect Monsters

If this card is XYZ Summoned: Banish one card from your opponent’s GY. On the Standby Phase of the turn after that card was banished: Add it to your hand or Special Summon it. You can detach one XYZ Material from this card: All monsters your opponent controls lose 300 ATK for each Level/Rank that they have. You can only use this effect of “Malevolent Cheiracantium” once per turn. 

“Number C70: Chaotix Original Sin”

DARK Insect Rank 5

3000 ATK/2600 DEF

3+ Level 5 DARK Insect Monsters

Once per turn, you can detach one XYZ Material from this card: Banish all face-up cards your opponent controls, then inflict 500 damage to your opponent for each banished card. This card gains 500 ATK for each card banished by this effect. If this card has “Number 70: Malevolent Sin” as an XYZ Material, it gains this effect: “Once per turn, attach one banished card to this card as an XYZ Material.”

“Flaming Hell Blessing”

Normal Spell

Destroy all WATER Monsters on the field and in each player’s hand, then inflict 1000 damage to your opponent. Both players draw a card during the End Phase after this resolves. Your opponent’s Life Points cannot be reduced to 0 the turn this card is activated.

“Zereort Hatchling”

WATER Winged-Beast

Level 3 900 ATK/400 DEF

This Monster is always treated as a Fish Monster. When this Monster is Normal or Special Summoned: Special Summon one “Zereort Hatchling” from your hand or deck. You cannot Special Summon Monsters from the Extra Deck, except WATER XYZ Monsters. You can only use this effect of “Zereort Hatchling” once per turn. 

“Finite Zero.”

Continuous Spell

While you control a WATER XYZ Monster: Monsters your opponent controls with 0 ATK cannot activate their effects. Monsters on your opponent’s field cannot gain Attack Points if they have 0 ATK.

Chapter Text

“Now that I’ve beaten your Gorgonic Guardian, tell me you bearded asshole, where the hell is my sister?!” 

Ryoga’s voice rang out across the labyrinth as Durbe flew closer, a slight hint of panic buried under bravado and bombastic rage. The figure he was dueling stared evenly at him as he recovered from a direct attack from one of Ryoga’s Shark Monsters, while Ryoga himself was already down most of his Life Points. 

“You!” Ryoga snarled as he saw Durbe fly closer, nearly lunging at Durbe were it not for the Duel. “I bet you’re the one who took her! Finishing the job you started at Jinlong’s tomb, huh?” 

“I had no part in anything to do with your sister,” Durbe replied, fighting to keep a calm tone, “I’m trying to save your lives.”

“The Barian speaks truth, for once,” the Number Guardian rumbled. “He had no involvement in your sister’s disappearance.”

Oh, thanks, Durbe thought bitterly before pausing. Wait, Rio was missing? He just thought the twins had been separated… Oh no, the assassin. They were still out there-

“Like I trust anything either of you sickos say!” Ryoga spat, pulling Durbe out of his thoughts before he could get lost in them. “You Barians have been nothing but vipers the whole time! I’d rather die than trust a Barian at this point.” 

Durbe bit back an instinctual retort that he was trying to prevent that exact situation, fuck you very much Nasch.  

Gods, he’d forgotten how stubborn Nasch could be. Especially if he was wrong about something, he never liked admitting when he was wrong.  

Durbe looked over at the spirit. “You said I had nothing to do with Rio Kamishiro’s disappearance,” he noted, “but she’s still not here. Where is she?” 

“That is information that Ryoga Kamishiro is actively fighting for,” the Guardian replied, “I have no reason to give it away. But I will confirm that she is not physically here and I have no power over her.” 

“Newsflash buddy, I know you’re a lying sack of crap!” Ryoga bellowed. “I saw her eyes turning blue before she fell off the ship, the same shade of blue as your eyes turned when you brain-blasted me! You had something to do with that!”

Would a Number Guardian be so possessive enough to take control of Rio? Durbe hadn’t heard of any of them being as directly hostile as that (beyond Mach’s weird obsession with death traps, he mentally corrected), but he knew Numbers had adverse effects on humans who tried wielding them without any form of protection. 

“Believe what you will,” the Guardian said, his voice booming over Ryoga and Durbe, “it’s time to continue your trial. I activate Gorgonic Ritual! By banishing the Gorgonic Guardian in my Graveyard, I can summon two Rock-type monsters from my Graveyard!! I will now revive Gorgonic Golem and Gargoyle!” He pulled another card from his hand. “I now activate another Spell Card, Gorgonic Pile! It increases the Levels of Gorgonic monsters on my field by the number of Gorgonics on my field! I raise Golem and Gargoyle’s Levels to 5!” 

“I can tell where this is going…” Ryoga muttered.

“As humans are fond of saying,” the spirit said darkly, “it’s time for a blast from the past.” Its gaze turned to glare at Durbe. “One you’ll find something in as well, I bet,” it continued. “I now Overlay my Level 5 Gorgonic Golem and Gorgonic Guardian! With these two Monsters, I construct the Overlay Network!” 

“The holy water drop that falls into chaos! Show thy power and purify all disorder! I XYZ Summon! Manifest, my purest form!  Number 73- Abyss Splash, the Roaring Waterfall Deity!”  

Abyss Splash materialized, planting its trident in the ground. A red gem in its forehead pulsed with bright energy, creating reverberating waves that travelled throughout the temple. Ryoga let out a strangled gasp as he fell to his knees, while Durbe felt like his body ignited from it, his mind screaming in agony as he collapsed and suddenly, flashes filled his mind and oh Gods, he remembered everything.

“We’re being sent where?” Durbe gaped at Mach, who kept loading a saddle bag. “For how long?”

“Greece, for the next two years minimum.” he replied, not looking up. “I told you, the King chose us for the task to go over and represent ourselves well to the United Lands, so we can be a good ally to our distant neighbours."

“But I- Mach, you speak Greek!” Durbe insisted, getting up and pacing. “I don’t know how to speak a word of that language!” Curse him for trying to impress the one girl in town who loved Germanic myth over Greek, it seemed. 

Mach sardonically held up a book. “Good thing I stole this from the palace library on the way then, and you now have a lovely trip through the Continent to catch up on your language studies with some light reading. It would do poorly for a squire to rely on his horse to interpret for him. I would recommend you start studying now.” Mach paused to flip his fringe back. “By the way, I’ll make you order all of our meals and lodgings once we get east enough to test your fluency.”

“I hate you,” Durbe grumbled as he took the offered book. “What even is the name of the stuck-up royal I’ll be babysitting?” 

“Their,” Mach emphasized, “names are Prince Nasch and Priestess Merag.”

“I bet you a month’s salary that I despise them within a week.” Durbe muttered.

Durbe was the picture of decorum, grace and chivalry as he and Mach arrived in the United Lands. He’d even made sure to spend the night prior in a tavern with a bath so that he could be somewhat clean as opposed to carrying three country’s worth of dust on his boots. Mach was getting comfortable in a stable as he looked around for… really anyone to talk to about where he was going or how to find his new wards, and eventually Durbe gave up and went back to the stable to admit defeat and ask Mach if he knew. 

When he arrived, prepared to deal with at least one sardonic chiding over how “you could have asked me yesterday in the tavern where to go, and not spent the past hour waving that royal seal around like a lost child,” he paused in shock at two other people in the stable, a boy and a girl both about his age and with striking blue hair (and Durbe was not briefly breathless at how they were both enrapturing and gorgeous, freshly hewn from the finest marble and given the breath of life like Galatea- not that he was looking!) and they were… petting his goddamn horse?

“Oi!” Durbe bellowed in his passable German, making the two jump, before changing to his (less than) passable Greek. “What are you doing with my horse?” 

The boy pulled his hand back, glaring at him with a trained level of stoicism at the interruption, while the girl giggled behind her hand. “Our apologies Sir Knight,” she said, struggling to say it while she kept choking on her giggles, “we just saw the new horse arrive and had to go take a closer look!” 

“It’s a lovely horse,” the boy said quietly. Mach preened under the attention. 

“He’s an ass that pretends to be a foal,” Durbe muttered, “but that doesn’t mean you can strut around like you own this castle and everything in it! Who do you think you are, the King-” 

“My Prince! My lady!” A harried and exhausted steward burst in, panting and heaving. “I’ve been looking all over for you! Come, we must hurry before the delegate from the West arrives who has your new… bodyguard…” The steward trailed off as he noticed Durbe, who started screaming internally. 

“... We got lost,” the boy said, as the girl’s giggles transformed into a full-bellied fit of laughter that nearly had her fall onto her knees and ruin her perfectly good dress, while Durbe felt himself die inside at the horrible realization that he’d just screamed at his new boss. “Welcome, Sir Knight,” he added with a sadistic smirk as he saw Durbe shrivel up in embarrassment. 

Mach let out a huff that managed to carry an immense air of frustration and bemusement in equal measure. Durbe wanted to throw himself off the nearest tower.  

“It’s not often I get to see Nasch eat the dirt like that,” a bemused voice cooed with a cheerful lilt as Durbe left the training arena. “That was worth the price of admission alone.” 

Durbe turned, seeing Merag perched in a corner on a bench, a scroll set beside her while she bit into an apple. “The price of admission?” He inquired, pushing his hair back so it wouldn’t fall over his face like it usually did when he suffered the acute and uniquely terrible combination of helmet hair and extended training.

“The price of being Nasch’s sister for the past sixteen years,” she replied glibly. “I find it very worth it now that I saw him…” her eyes glittered mischievously as paused for the sake of dramatics, “brought to his knees?” She finished innocently. 

Durbe felt his face heat up at the innuendo. He wasn’t some shy virgin who balked at bare ankles (if he was, he’d have long since passed away from shock with how much more casual Greeks were about their bodies and clothing), but he was fairly sure it was mildly against decorum for a priestess who spoke with literal Gods to make such quips. He cleared his throat. “He wanted me to not hold back in a training session. I needed to see his best.”

“And how did he do?” Merag asked. 

Durbe stiffened instinctually, subconsciously emulating how Mach got when he was delivering analysis. “I can tell your guards don’t throw fights to him out of pity, he has genuine skill with a blade, is nimble with his feet, and strikes like a predator. He’s an excellent challenge.” 

“The guards did try that once, when Nasch was seven.” Merag mused. “He spent a week fuming about it until he started winning so decisively they had to stop holding back.” 

“For which I’m grateful, it means I have less to clean up.”

“So there’s fault in my brother’s style?” 

“Everyone has faults with their fighting styles, no one is perfect.” Durbe noted gently, aware again that he was talking to the sister of the man he was criticizing, and he rather liked not being beheaded. “Your brother is a reckless fool who doesn’t watch his flank and breaks formation immediately. He needs to either reign that instinct in, or begin working more closely with someone who can keep up and watch his back. Your people need a living Prince, not a cautionary tale about leaping into danger.” 

Merag’s eyes glittered in amusement. Durbe frowned. “Am I missing a joke? I fail to see what I said was so charming-”

“I believe she’s laughing because you just volunteered yourself to be my second, Sir Durbe,” Nasch said abruptly, his breath hot against Durbe’s ear and sending the entirely wrong messages throughout Durbe’s stomach. 

Durbe leaped like a scalded cat, wheeling around to where Nasch was grinning. “You forgot to mention,” he added casually, “That because I don’t wear enough armor to house a battalion, I can be very quiet when I want to be.” Nasch pulled back as Durbe started to get hot enough under the collar that he couldn’t blame it on the climate. “We start duo training tomorrow at first light,” Nasch said bluntly. “If you’re going to say I need someone watching my back, then I shall appoint you as my Shield.” 

These twins were going to be the death of him, Durbe lamented as Merag giggled, a melodic sound that also sent mixed messages through him. As Nasch joined in with a sardonic chuckle, a stray, errant thought flitted through Durbe’s mind as the twins began bantering idly.

I want to make them smile like this again…

He’d been gone for two days. Two days, for God’s sake, he was just meant to check on a few outposts that hadn’t reported in on time and be back before any new risks of ambush. He’d be the fastest to check on it and see what was going on, how could he have known that the Mad Prince’s forces started attacking? What a fool he’d been, to leave them without a Shield for even that long. 

Mach was nearly run ragged from the death march they’d forced on each other to get back to the castle in time, Durbe’s heart plummeting to the depths below as he saw the fleets. He saw an army of massive gorgons materializing around one ship and prepared to look away with a grimace, only for a bright shimmer; they’d brought mirrors and used them to reflect the blast, those geniuses. Durbe flew closer as the gorgons crumbled under their own petrifying waves, feeling a nervous but excited light bubble in his chest as he saw that familiar pendant glimmering around Nasch’s neck. For a brief, wonderful moment, Durbe let himself believe that everything would be OK, that together they’d fight off the Mad Prince and his forces, send them packing. They would mourn the fallen, repair the damages, and then rest their weary bones, Durbe surrounded by the two people he’d sworn his mind, body and soul to as he entangled himself among them.

“Durbe!” Nasch cheered, his face lighting up with an energetic grin that Durbe could see even from here. 

Mach whinnied, dodging abruptly as a massive deity rose from the waves, and that was when Durbe knew everything was going to fall apart around them. Rays of energy shot out, carving through the defensive fleets and castle walls like a hot knife through butter. Nasch was sent flying, nearly getting blasted right off his ship and into the water, but he caught himself at the last minute. Gritting his teeth, Durbe and Mach flew close, getting up in the sea god’s face and distracting it, keeping it from having a clear shot on the rest of the kingdom. 

“You thought I’d miss this, my friend?” Durbe called out during a fly around that let him look down at Nasch for a moment. “Not even a god can hope to sever the ties that bind us!” 

Durbe felt a thrill as he heard the Mad Prince let out a shrill exclamation, enjoying the look of utter loathing that crossed the Prince’s face as Durbe distracted his new toy. “Shoot that glimmering idiot out of the sky!” He roared at his archers, who notched their arrows. It was child’s play for Mach to dodge around them, Durbe’s shield effortlessly deflecting any that got too close, but it pulled Durbe away from the sea god, meaning-

Close by, on the docks, Durbe saw a sole horse riding desperately towards the sea god. His blood ran cold as he saw a familiar white dress, determined red eyes facing it as it reached down and took her. 

Durbe tried to get closer, to slash open its fingers and reclaim Merag, but each time he did the archers fired off a new volley that kept him away. 

“Make the choice, you seaweed-addled prince!” Durbe heard the Mad Prince shout. “Save your sister, or your kingdom! There’s only two options and I’ll break your heart either way!” 

Nasch let out a primal cry of anger and panic as Merag was lifted higher, far too high- even if she broke free, the water would crush her as much as being in the sea god’s grasp. “I’ll rip your spine out for this and turn it into a cane fit only for a beggar!" Nasch bellowed. 

“No, Mad Prince. There’s a third option.” a voice calmly called out, over the maelstrom of the ocean and the chaos of the battle. Merag stood at the edge of the sea god’s hand, staring down at a swirling vortex below. “Blood called this god to our existence in a contract. Blood can also forge a new one.” She looked down at her wrist. “And the blood of the divine trumps all others in matters of payment.” She mused quietly. 

“Merag, wait! What are you-” Nasch’s ship was rocked by a new wave that had him reeling, his eyes not leaving Merag for a second. 

“Nasch… I’m purifying this god, Abyss. By cleansing it, it will be sworn to our bloodline now and forever.” She smiled, a fragile one that failed to hide the way her hands shook in terror, pupils dilated in fear. She looked up and saw Durbe, dodging volley after volley, he was closing the distance, he was so close, almost able to reach out and touch fingertips that he had cherished and kissed-

“Look after him, Durbe. I’m sorry. I…” She swallowed, holding back tears. “I regret I couldn’t say this sooner. I love you, my beautiful Knight… Take care of Nasch. I’m so sorry for what I have to do.”

She took one last heaving breath and stepped forward, falling forward and leaving sparkling tears as she fell. Durbe saw her hit the water, her body thudding underneath the water with an ugly crack. She didn’t get up. 

“NO!” Durbe screamed at the same time as Nasch let out a wordless roar of raw agony, a violet aura surrounding him as Abyss suddenly stopped the arrows fired by the Mad Prince. Durbe thought he saw something else, a flicker of cyan light out of the corner of his eye, but he didn’t care. He raced down towards the water, looking for a shred of white or blue, he couldn’t stop-

“KILL ALL OF THEM!” Nasch shrieked, his voice cracking as he gestured at the Prince’s fleet. Abyss turned and fired off an explosive bolt that filled the air with the sounds of warped wood and screams. A shockwave nearly knocked Durbe right off Mach’s side as he skimmed the water, his face hitting the surface and making his eyes sting with more than just the tears that raced down his face. For a moment he just let himself drift in the saddle, the sounds of battle fading away as all he could hear was the choked sobs of his Prince, and half of his heart shattering in his chest, fragmenting like a broken shield.  

Durbe drew breath as he came back to reality like it was his first breath all over again, his cheek pressed against the moist stone of the temple beneath him. He’d slipped into his human form while unconscious, a fact that became clear as he felt tears running down his face, his throat parched and raw- like he’d been screaming or sobbing in his sleep. His soul felt like it had been shredded to pieces and put back together clumsily, caught between the maelstrom of the new memories that were pressing on his mind, making everything spin around him, and the impact it had on his heart- a love he had, that he had lost, that he’d watched disintegrate right in front of him with nothing he could do about it. Durbe felt a wave of different emotions crest with him- lingering shock from seeing Merag fall, the sorrow that merged with the depression he always carried to create a new discordant sensation within, broiling, simmering rage as he remembered the Mad Prince, and a final sensation of… unfairness. 

It was unfair that he’d been put through all that, that Nasch and Merag had suffered as well. They were good people, fair rulers, whose subjects loved them. They didn’t deserve what had been inflicted on them. It wasn’t fair. Nasch- Ryoga was picking himself up from his knees, panting like he’d just run a marathon, tears openly streaming down his face. 

“I failed her…” he whispered. “She died, and I couldn’t do anything. It’s happening again, isn’t it? I keep failing her, and she keeps getting hurt, and all I can do is watch the universe take her away from me again and again and again-” he was babbling, Durbe realized, the memories of Nasch crashing into Ryoga Kamishiro and creating a tsunami on his psyche.  

“And you will fail her,” Abyss proclaimed. “Again, and again, and again. How many more times have you failed her since? How many more times before she leaves you, sick of your failures like everyone else is?”

“Stop it…” Ryoga sobbed. Durbe jumped in alarm as a shimmering, dark aura surrounded Ryoga in a circle, like the one that had formed beneath Merag when she had jumped. “I already know she’s worse for knowing me,” he continued, “you don’t think I wish every day that it had been me instead of her that was burned by the Arclights? That I was the one who suffered from your stupid visions? She didn’t deserve any of that, and it’s all my fault!” 

“Your heart’s eternal weakness is that you are unable to accept losing that which is most precious to you.” Abyss continued. “You can do nothing but fail your sister, no matter what names you take, and your sorrow is what will only push what you crave most away.”

“No…” It almost looked like the abyss was spawning ghostly hands, reaching up and caressing along Ryoga’s body, reaching to grab his soul and drag it to the depths. 

“How many more times must she suffer the crime of knowing you? If you believe that failure is your only option, then end it here, and let the void consume you.”

Ryoga’s eyes were dead and glassy, like a fish on display in a market. One of the hands caressed his jaw and he almost leaned into the touch, his complexion paling as he did until he looked like a cadaver. “It’s for the best…” he murmured. “If I’m not around… she can be safe… right?” 

Durbe watched in horror, dimly aware of Yuma and Astral finally catching up to them and trying to stop the trial. 

“Don’t!” Durbe screamed suddenly, his voice raw. “Ryoga, he’s WRONG!”

“Huh?” A bit of life snapped back into Ryoga at Durbe’s panicked shout, the wraith-like hands receding slightly. 

“Abyss wants you to think that your sister’s suffering is your fault, he wants you to sink into an abyss of bottomless despair!” The words tumbled out of Durbe, leaving him with barely a chance to breathe. “But he’s wrong! I know you, I’ve gotten to know you, and you are a good man, Ryoga Kamishiro! Your sister is not worse for knowing you, and the horrors you have experienced are not your fault!” His voice caught. “The world is a better place with you in it, and if you dare get yourself killed now, your sister will kill you herself!”  

“Yeah!” Yuma barked, glaring at Abyss. “I dunno what crap you were feeding Shark, but what happened to him or his sister wasn’t his fault, and how dare you say that! I saw Shark pull himself out of rock bottom, I saw him fight for what was right time and time again, and he’ll keep doing it because at his core, Shark’s a good guy!” 

“Shark is a better person than you will ever be,” Astral said coldly to Abyss. “You are nothing but a tormenter who has to pray on his moments of weakness to stand a chance.” A bolt of realization crossed Astral’s face. “In fact, you’re such a coward that you would have hidden behind Rio’s face were it not for Kotori’s intervention, wouldn’t you?” 

“Huh? Wait, that does make sense,” Yuma gasped, before he turned furious. “That’s low, you scumbag!” 

“For a so-called god,” Durbe noted derisively, shifting back to his Barian form, “you’re truly little better than a pathetic little imp, barely worthy of the first circle of Hell.” He scoffed contemptuously. “I’m going to enjoy watching Ryoga crush you.”  

“Yuma, Astral… even you, Durbe…” Ryoga looked at each of them. He still looked haunted, but a fire was entering his eyes again as he braced himself and turned back to Abyss, the portal around him getting blown away with his determination restored. “Thank you, all of you. I’ve got it from here.” 

A cyan shimmer appeared before Ryoga. His eyes widened as he took it into his hands, revealing a new card. “This is… Rio’s Number, she’s giving it to me?” he murmured in amazement before his expression softened. “Thanks sis… I’ll prove worthy of this.” 

“I’d say if nothing else shows how wrong Abyss is about your sister’s feelings for you,” Astral observed, “that is a near-literal personification of it.” 

“Yeah.” Ryoga let a small smile cross his face. “And it’s just what I need to win!” 

“You have 100 Life Points left, and a solitary monster on the field.” Abyss noted. “It would take a miracle to come back from your situation.”

“I thought you were a god of the sea? Didn’t you ever learn not to relax around a cornered shark?” Ryoga put his hand on his deck. “Lemme show you how screwed you are! It’s my turn! I DRAW!”  

“Hello, Rio. I’ve been waiting a long time to meet you.” The woman smiled, a cat-like one that reached her eyes, which shimmered a magenta red in the light. “I think you can guess who I am?” 

“I… have a few ideas.” Rio admitted. “But, first, where are we? I was just in the ocean, underwater, and now… I have no idea where we are.” 

“An ocean?” The woman frowned. “Ah. To me we’ve always been here. You appeared right over there, and Iris kept herself busy until you woke up. Please, sit, I can explain everything once you do, and you’ve had an awfully long day. Take a chance to rest your feet.”

Rio complied, letting out a quiet sigh in relief as her muscles relaxed. “I might as well start with the obvious question.”

“When referring to yourself, is there such a thing as obvious?” The woman blinked, a smirk dancing along her lips. “Sorry, this is just a very unique circumstance we’re both in. How often do you get to speak to your reincarnated soul, with its own sentience and life?” 

“You tell me…” Rio paused, the word heavy on her mouth, an admission that would change everything. “... Merag.” 

Merag tilted her head, eyes glinting mischievously. “And now the cat is out of the bag.” 

“So you’re… different from the other Barians, I assume. They don’t have issues like this.”

“No.” Merag shook her head. “We are in a unique situation. Of the Seven Barian Emperors, only two will be in this specific situation. Our brothers- Nasch and Ryoga- and us. The other Emperors have all kept their souls consistently, but due to… circumstances outside of our control, let’s say… Nasch and I were forced to reincarnate as you and your brother. We’re, quite literally, soulmates.”

Rio noticed Merag’s hesitation. It was the first time so far that she’d let something slip beyond a mask of cool detachment. “What happened? Durbe said you vanished nine years ago, but my brother and I are fourteen. We can’t have been reborn as you unless you want to imply I was born without a soul for five years.”

“Durbe…” Merag had a wistful look on her face for a moment. “Is he well?” She asked, a vague glimmer of hope in her voice. 

Rio scoffed lightly as she thought of the Barian. “He’s still hopelessly in love with you and your brother. He mourns you two, I don’t think he’s ever stopped.” She hesitated, speaking in a softer tone. “He has a sketchbook, and he drew you in it.”

“Ah.” Merag looked down, her expression forlorn. “I had hoped he would…” she caught herself. “Nevermind.” She said bitterly. 

For a moment, Rio felt a twinge of pity as it clicked that Durbe’s unrequited affections weren’t quite as one-sided as he’d believed, before she buried it under her curiosity. “Answer my question,” Rio said curtly. “Why are we different, what happened to you and Nasch?”

Merag, smiling sadly, lifted her hands up, palms facing the sky. “I’m afraid I don’t remember. It was traumatic enough that I can’t recall. I would be honest with you if I knew, I promise. I… don’t enjoy that you’ve been dragged into my war against your will.” Merag looked down again, her fringe hiding her eyes. “Besides, I’ve only recently regained sentience in your subconscious within the past year.”

“The fire,” Rio realized. 

“Yes, but it was still hazy. I was barely aware of the outside world, but that awakening was just enough that you were able to tap into my abilities- my stamina, endurance, and the visions. I only fully woke up here when you had your first vision, the day Girag arrived on Earth. After that, things came back to me.”  

“So what is all of this, then?” Rio gestured around her. “One really elaborate waking dream?”

“Nothing of the sort.” Merag shook her head. “This is, for lack of a better way to put it, our soul. You perceived yourself as underwater and in the ocean because you are undergoing a series of unfortunate events, and found yourself, adrift, at sea. I see us in a castle above the water, because this was my home as a child. It’s comforting.” She smirked slightly. “And it’s befitting an Empress, wouldn’t you say?”

“I’m glad I can blame you for how often I think highly of myself,” Rio replied under her breath.

Merag pulled a card out of the deck, placing it flat on the table. “When we first met- your first time in those depths, I found this waiting for me. The Reversed Hermit.” 

“I’m not much for Tarot…” Rio admitted, pausing. “Wait, how are you into Tarot? They didn’t have that in Ancient Greece.” 

“I lived for centuries after becoming a Barian.” Merag replied, her tone bone-dry. “I picked up hobbies and sometimes visited Earth in disguise to enable them. Hence, these.” She gestured to her deck, “I’ll remind you that cards are good for more than just Duel Monsters,” she quipped. 

“Right.” Rio cleared her throat. “You were saying?”  

“The Reversed Hermit commonly represents loneliness, paranoia and isolation.” Merag explained in a gentle, soothing voice. “When you survived your brush with death at the hands of the Arclights, you hid yourself away to prevent anyone from being able to hurt you like that again. You lied to people around you, to yourself even, and isolated until your shell was broken and you felt healed enough to accept an offered hand.” Merag smoothly shuffled the card back into the deck, her motions creating a hazy effect in the air around the pavilion. From it, images surfaced- Rio talking with Ryoga, meeting Yuma and Kotori in the mall, getting to meet the rest of the Numbers Club. “Now the card won’t appear for you, unless you isolate yourself again in similar circumstances.”

“Woah.” Rio murmured to herself as she watched her memories light up around her. 

“Don’t be alarmed, your memories are… packed with emotions. It’s easy to call them forth with the right push. After all, we share a soul.” 

“About that.” Rio asked. “Who was Iris, then?” 

“Ah.” Merag’s expression fell. “You didn’t get to that part of the Tomb’s story before you were interrupted?” 

Rio shook her head.”I thought you Barians don’t remember you were human.”

“We don’t. I had no recollection of my life as a human when I was a Barian. But, I’ve been living vicariously through you. I get the same visions as you, and more. While you were busy Dueling, I got the full story.” 

Merag sighed, forlorn. “I died, as you can gather. I sacrificed my soul to save my brother and my Kingdom from a foreign threat. A vile prince who left nothing but ruin and suffering in his wake. He used a blood ritual to claim one of our Gods, Abyss, who controlled the oceans, and destroyed our forces. I was a Priestess, I had a connection to the divine, so, I made the choice that my blood would be more appealing. And I made a new contract with a different oceanic God- Crystalzero. She broke Abyss’s contract and freed him from the Mad Prince, so both of those Gods took vows to protect my bloodline as payment for my life.”

“So you sacrificed yourself? That was brave of you.” Rio muttered, impressed. 

“Hardly, I was terrified, but it was either give my life, or sit back and watch my brother and kingdom die- and he’d have made the same choice in my shoes. I had to throw myself into the ocean and let it claim me so they could claim my blood. My apologies if you ever felt disconcerted about water, or submerging yourself underwater as a result.”

“No.” Rio shook her head. “It was just fire, for me.”

“Of course.” Merag paused. “Iris was… an act of mercy. Crystalzero found a child who had been left on death’s door by the Mad Prince’s rampage. He took out his loss against Nasch on anyone he could while retreating. A portion of my soul was transferred into Iris before her death, and she found Nasch and Durbe later when they searched the ruins of her village.”

“Durbe?” Rio blinked in surprise. “He was in your life, too, before you were a Barian?” 

“Amazingly, yes.” Merag smiled to herself. “He was a gift from a foreign kingdom to Nasch, a sign of trust in the prince who would one day inherit the United Lands. We grew close, the three of us. Inseparable, even, because Durbe took his duties of bodyguarding us very seriously.” She sighed wistfully. “My charming Knight… Perhaps that was what made Nasch and Durbe decide to adopt Iris. With time, my soul would have gradually returned through Iris, and I could have been with them again.”

“But?” Rio leaned forward, intrigued in the story.

Merag played with one of the bracelets on her wrist, which had a beautiful red ruby in the middle. “Nasch took my death poorly. Iris told me he spent many nights sleepless as a result of mourning me, and it fuelled his revenge. He led a crusade into the heartland of the Mad Prince’s kingdom, and however that battle ended, the army was shattered. Iris died in the crossfire. Durbe barely survived, going off the visions you had and the story of Mach’s tomb, he returned home…” Merag paused. “And you know how that ended.” She finished in a quiet voice. 

Rio frowned. “So Iris’s soul just stuck around?” 

“There had been enough time that her soul merged with the fragment of me that was placed. There was just enough of me that her soul was brought along for the ride, and now it’s here, resting in your subconscious.” Merag played with her bracelet. “She’s nice. She deserved better.”

“I think we all did,” Rio muttered darkly. “Runs in the family, it seems.”

“Yes,” Merag replied bluntly, “especially in your current situation.” She waved her hand again, a new set of memories bubbling to the surface- Rio in Sargasso, receiving visions in the Mythyrian Tombs, throwing herself off the airship, Yumekuri, and-

“RIO!” 

That. The memories flooded Rio’s mind, of her duel with Yumekuri and the damage she’d taken from the Psychic Duelist and her attacks. Rio shot to her feet. “Oh no,” she said in a horrified tone, “Kotori! I have to get back, before my time runs out and I lose-” 

“Do not worry,” Merag said soothingly, “we’re in your soul, right now we’re beyond concepts like the passage of time. Time won’t flow until you’re ready for it to do so.” Merag got up and placed a hand on Rio’s shoulder, “It will be fine,” she insisted, “but you need to breathe.” She sat Rio back down and mimed inhaling until Rio followed, then exhaling, the panic slowly bleeding out of Rio as she followed the instructions. “In your condition,” Merag noted softly, “rushing back into that fight will not help you.”

“It doesn’t matter if it helps me or not,” Rio whispered frantically, “it matters that the psychopath is still out there and she can go after-” her breath caught in her throat. “The people I love.” She eventually was able to force out. 

Merag hummed in sympathy, rubbing Rio’s shoulder. “I can understand that. I went through something similar, with my choices. But I’m not stopping you lightly. You could return to your waking body, but it would be a short trip.”

“What do you mean? I just freaked out by the fire and… and that card, but I can get up again.”

“It’s not that. It’s what the direct attacks did to you. Their bites had venom infused with raw Chaos Energy. The kind that the Barians are born into, and what’s used to amplify a Chaos Number. Add in that your opponent had some psionic ability to make monsters and their abilities even more real, and…” Merag hesitated. “It’s not good,” she eventually admitted. “You won’t have long when you wake up again, before the venom spreads too far."

Rio shrank in on herself, eyes turning hazy as she stared into the middle distance. “So that’s it?” She whispered, pulling her legs up to curl in on herself. “I just… can’t do anything? I’ll die if I wake up but if I don’t, Ryoga, Yuma and Kotori are in danger… I have to do something.”

“You’re willing to make an ultimate sacrifice to protect the people you love?” Merag asked. 

“I am.” Rio replied without a second of hesitation.

Merag let out a breath that almost felt amused. “So this is what it looked like from the outside.”

“I’m sorry?” 

“Nevermind. I do have… a plan.” Merag’s features steeled up. “But you’re not going to like it.” 

“Will it save them?” 

Merag hesitated. “Yes, but-”

“I don’t care,” Rio interrupted. “It’s worth it.”  

Merag sighed, going back to where she had first been sitting, shuffling her deck between her hands as she spoke. “Humans have poor control over Chaos Energy naturally,” she started saying. “And it’s the same for Astral World’s energy. The trade-off is that humans can handle both in moderation, whereas a Barian would fall apart in the Astral World’s atmosphere in most circumstances. Right now, the venom from Original Sin is pure Chaos Energy. It’s rampaging through your body, but has yet to crystalize and solidify as venom. If you had a way to channel that Chaos Energy, and find an outlet, you could theoretically expunge it and then release it harmlessly. You’d still be wounded, and likely collapse from the strain, but it’s feasible.”

“But you just said humans can’t use Chaos Energy that way.”

“I did.” Merag hesitated. “But a Barian can. And… you are speaking to one.”

Rio paused, eyes widening. “You can’t mean-”

“You are a part of my soul. Or, I’m part of yours...” Merag’s face scrunched up in confusion as she trailed off. “Gods, this is complicated, you get what I mean. With your consent, and some luck, I can… temporarily switch places with you. I can release the Chaos Energy from the venom safely.”

“How can I trust you?” Rio countered. “You’re asking me to put a lot of faith in you sight-unseen, and Barians don’t exactly have a history of being truthful to me.”

“I understand. Vector alone is certainly a good argument against trusting a Barian, but I assure you I’ve had your best interests at heart since before we met. I’ve loaned you my power previously, even if you didn’t realize it. If nothing else, remember that I am bound to your soul- if you die, I’ll die with you, so it’s in my best interests to keep you alive.”

Rio tilted her head. “Your power?” She repeated. 

“As I said, you tapped latently into my abilities to bolster your stamina and strength for your recovery. You’ve also been making good use of my visions,” Merag observed. 

“Not by choice!” Rio protested. “Those visions nearly killed me the first time I used them! I never asked for them!”

“They can be a lot,” Merag admitted, “but you proved your strength when you withstood them. I’ve been keeping a lot of them at bay. You truly have a strong mind and soul to have withstood as many as you have, though.”

Rio paused. “Wait, really?”

“Foresight is not all it’s cracked up to be. It took me years to build up a resistance and not fall into every vision or glimpse at the future that I saw. Since we share a soul, I caught a lot of the visions you would receive and filter them to what you needed to see, what was important.” Merag shrugged. “Unless you would have wanted to know in advance that Ryoga was going to be splashed in a puddle spray when a truck overtook him on a rainy day.”

“... That would be pretty funny, admittedly." Rio mumbled.

Merag let out an undignified snort. “My apologies, a bad example. But you understand what I mean.”

“Yeah. You’ve been filtering out what I didn’t need to see so I could be… a bit normal. Thank you for that.” Rio added with sincerity. 

“Think nothing of it. But I bring it up as a point to prove that I do have your- our, really- best interests at heart. I want you to be able to trust me.”

Rio felt something buzzing in her mind, a question that she felt an urge to ask about the visions, but before she could find a way to express it, it flitted away like a butterfly, her eyes caught by Merag’s shuffling. “What else do your cards say about me?” She found herself asking, tongue heavy.

“Oh?”

“You said you pulled a Hermit earlier. I was curious if they said anything else about my future.” Rio paused. “If we have time.”

“We normally would, but given the unique circumstances of what we’re about to do, perhaps it would be best if we answered that question at a future date, when your life isn’t at stake.” Merag placed her deck down, putting her hands on the table, palms facing upwards. “Now that you’ve been here, you can visit more freely, or I can… pick you up, from your dreams as it were.”

“With the way my dreams have been going lately, I’d welcome a chance away from them,” Rio muttered. “But before we do this, I need to know, what’s going to happen?”

Merag blinked as she considered the question. “For lack of a better way to put it, I will swap places with you. I will be the primary consciousness in your body, and I can use that to expunge the worst of the Chaos Energy from Yumekumi’s attacks, while you rest here.”

“And you’ll let me have my body back, right?”

“Of course,” Merag said soothingly. “I promise to return your body to you as soon as you are free from any danger.”

“Promise me that you’ll protect everyone, I need to hear you say it,” Rio insisted desperately. “Yuma, Ryoga, Kotori, everyone.”

Merag looked her directly in the eyes. “I swear on my soul, no harm will come to anyone else in the temple that you travelled with. They will all leave here safe and sound.”

Rio nodded, solemn. “And… What's the catch? There’s always a drawback with these things, so just be straight with me, what am I paying for this?”

Merag frowned. “What we’re about to do, this isn’t the kind of thing souls are built to achieve, especially swapping like this. Even if it’s only something that happens now and never again, it will carve a pathway into our minds that won’t go away. You’re opening a door that won’t be possible to close fully after this.”

“So you could take control again after this, is what I’m hearing.” Rio said in disgust. 

“Just as likely as you could take it back in that situation.” Merag insisted gently. “This time will be easier because we’re both willing. And I have no desire to cause harm to you, Rio.”

Rio looked down, her fringe covering her eyes as she chewed her lip. “This is the only way to win, isn’t it? And save everyone” 

“With the options and time that you have left…” Merag hesitated. “Yes. I wish I could offer you another way out that didn’t involve this… violation… but that is all I can offer at this time.”

“Thank you, I suppose.” Rio lifted her head up and offered a shaky smile. “OK, I’m ready. What should I do?” 

“Take my hands.” Merag gestured with her chin towards her outstretched arms. “You’ll need to internalize your past and accept me as a part of you. Once that’s done, I’ll take over from there, and you can rest.” A flash of sympathy crossed Merag’s face. “You look like you could use it.”

“You’re not wrong.” Rio admitted, anxiety welling up in her as the consequences of this choice began to settle in her stomach. She reached out, interlocking her fingers with Merag as she did. “So how do I accept you?” 

“Just follow my lead,” Merag murmured, her eyes glowing slowly. The distant oceans that surrounded the castle shuddered, rippling like a large rock had been thrown in, “You know what to say already,” she added, a small smile appearing on her face.

Rio shuddered as it felt like her soul was peeling away from her, letting her consciousness see both Merag in front of her, and Rio in front of Merag.

“I…”

“Am…”

“Merag.” They whispered together, before everything went white.

Rio’s Duel Disk let out another warning sound as the longest minute of Kotori’s life continued. Her panicked shrieks had devolved into glorified babbling, incoherent whispers and pleas for Rio to wake up that echoed in the room she was still locked in, the iron bars refusing to budge even by an inch. She was dimly aware that she was having a panic attack that had her clenching to the bars hard enough that her knuckles were pure white, her lungs choked up and reducing her pleas to barely audible whispers.

“Twenty seconds left!” Yumekumi cheered, prancing around under and between her Chaos Number’s outstretched legs. “I love it when my job goes well!”

God, what Kotori wouldn’t give for her to shut up. Another choked sob slipped out of her lips as she kept pleading for Rio to wake up, verbally, mentally and spiritually. It couldn’t end like this, not with what Rio had last said to her. “I love you,” the words reverberated in her skull, pounding through what barriers she had that could be construed as insanity and embedding themselves into her very psyche. Kotori had never expected to be confessed to like that, and for a moment she was sorely tempted to just start laughing like a madwoman, at how now, of all times, she’d be confessed to for the first time, that the person doing it would immediately start dying in front of her, at how disgustingly unfair this whole nightmare was. 

A sudden desperate gasp of air broke Kotori out of her thoughts. Rio’s hand twitched as she pushed herself up, looking away from Kotori as she inhaled desperately, like it was the first time she’d ever drawn breath. Rio breathed heavily, running her right hand up her face and pressing her mouth into her palm as she did, whatever her expression was it made Yumekumi pause and narrow her eyes in confusion. And then, Rio did something Kotori, now fairly certain she was going to be institutionalized for her own sake with how hard her soul was pinballing between relief, shock, and the ever-present fear that came when she had to watch someone Duel, never expected. 

She started laughing, an action that left Kotori in stunned silence as the laughter turned manic and broad, echoing across the entire room. 

The first thing Merag heard in her third life was a girl crying and sobbing, an oddly melancholic beginning to her rebirth. An urge to console the girl swelled within her briefly, before being buried by everything that followed. The second, third, fourth and so on were the sounds she processed of her body coming to life gradually. Her heartbeat, pulsing blood through her body. Her brain, firing up and sending neurons that shot tingles of electricity through her body, making her fingers and toes twitch and curl as they remembered how to function. Her lungs, forcing oxygen and letting her breathe again for the first time in years. 

It was no wonder she’d started laughing. It worked, she had managed to regain her body and mind and free herself from the prison she’d found herself in after that fateful fire. Giddiness shot through her like a hit of pure adrenaline, enough to make her want to throw her head back and just keep laughing as her body started up again, welcoming in the new boss-

Her Duel Disk let out an alarm sound, snapping her back to reality. Oh. Right. The duel. Frowning at the interruption that killed her mood like being doused in a bucket of ice water, Merag drew to resolve the effect of Flaming Hell Blessing. Yumekumi stared in disbelief as her turn finally ended, while Merag picked herself up, dusting herself off- it wouldn’t do to carry the dust of the past, that just wasn’t proper.

“How are you… not dead?” Yumekumi said bluntly. “You were poisoned. You fell over. I’m pretty sure you stopped breathing there for the last ten seconds.”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Merag replied, feeling her voice come out in a slightly manic lilt. She was allowed a bit of mania, it wasn’t often one got to cheat death again, and it seemed she really had this time. It was a temporary reprieve before she would return to her old spiritual haunting grounds, but… well, the door was open now. And she wasn’t going to let Rio close that particular avenue of freedom any time soon. 

She had been sincere when speaking with Rio, about her regrets about the younger girl being dragged into this fight. She felt sorry for her, even, at how cruel life had been to damage her body and spirit so decisively in this past year. Perhaps in a better life, they’d have been able to separate so Rio could live a life free of this strife, but this wasn’t that world. Merag had a duty to fulfil, a home to return to, and people that were relying on her- people she would see again, no matter what. If it took walking on a pile of bodies to do that, Merag would gladly make that pile.

“I would, in fact!” Yumekumi shot back, glaring petulantly. “I wouldn’t want my monster here to think he’s on a fraud watch that his venom didn’t work!” 

The reminder sent a small jolt of pain through Merag, concentrating on her left side. Ah. Yes. She’d forgotten about that too, in the depths of her reawakened euphoria. Going from being a glorified ghost to someone with a physical body and things to worry about like Chaos-addled poison would be a growing period, but she’d be fine. 

“I wouldn’t worry,” Merag purred condescendingly, “your overgrown housepet is normally a very dangerous predator, I assure you. Against people you’re used to fighting, like… weaklings, it would be a problem! But I’m not any ordinary person.”

“Then what the hell are you…” Yumekumi murmured. 

“Oh darling,” Merag whispered sadistically, “I’m the last thing you ever expected- someone stronger than you.” Her expression turned serious as she brought up her Duel Disk. “People like you, you think you’re a predator, sitting on top of a food chain. Well allow me to show you how small you really are. To me, you’re little more than a duo of parasites that I need to purify! It’s my turn!” As she finished her exclamation, Merag felt the Chaos Energy that always surrounded her like a warm bath bleed into her body and snap out, making her eyes glisten a supernatural shade of crimson. It settled around her bones and muscles, restoring her stamina and evaporating her fleeting exhaustion. It felt good, and she couldn’t help the satisfied sigh and grin that flitted across her face as she luxuriated in the sensation. The temperature around her plummeted, a thin layer of frost beginning to spread across the arena.

Merag drew, her turn formally starting. Without looking up from her new card, she raised her hand. “It’s now been three turns since Malevolent Sin banished Ice Beast Zerofyne,” she noted, “This means that under the effect of Malevolent Webbing, my monster finally returns during the Standby Phase. Rise anew, Ice Beast Zerofyne!” 

Rio’s monster- no, Merag’s now- materialized from pale, violent strands of webbing, shaking them off with disgust. It turned to look at Merag over its shoulder, almost appraising her, like it knew something was… different. Merag met its eyes, unblinking, until it yielded with a nod and looked back towards Original Sin. It had a new mistress, and it would learn to follow orders or get in line.

“R-Rio?” A timid voice called out. Merag turned to see the girl- mousey, green hair that hung over a pair of nervous hazel eyes, staring at her from behind an iron door. “Are… are you OK?” She sounded worried, afraid almost. She couldn’t have known something was different- Merag’s quick rifle through Rio’s memories indicated that Kotori may well have never even heard the name Merag before today- but her concern bled through. It felt odd to be on the receiving end of it, given it was aimed at her vessel, but the care still wormed its way into Merag’s heart, an alien gesture; but appreciated. 

Taking an extensive look at her, Merag had to give her vessel this. Rio Kamishiro had immaculate taste. This was a prized bird, worthy of the most beautiful of cages. 

Merag stepped closer, fixing Kotori with a radiant smile that she thought made her eyes stand out. “Don’t worry,” she cooed soothingly, a thrill running through her at the sound making Kotori shiver where she stood, “Everything’s going to be OK. No one’s ever going to hurt you again while I’m around. Don’t you trust me… Little Bird?” The nickname felt a bit heavy on her lips, like something was trying to slam her lips shut, insisting that that’s not a name you’re allowed to say, but Merag powered through, burying the thought, because no one ever told her what to do. 

Kotori shivered again. “I do…” she mumbled, looking away, chastened by her lack of faith. It was understandable- she had been dying about ninety seconds ago, Merag would forgive a lapse in judgement this time. “I’ll always trust you…”

“That’s a good girl. You just make sure to enjoy the show. I know I will…” Merag chuckled, before winking at Kotori and turning back to the duel. 

“If you’re quite finished flirting, I’d like to take my turn again, since I really doubt you’re making a comeback at this point,” Yumekuri said, deadpan. 

“Oh, I’m barely getting started. I activate Moray of Zereort!” Merag played the spell she just drew, the card art showing Blizzard Falcon and Migratory Zereort cracking open a frozen lake to pull free some fish that had comically frozen into blocks of ice. “By shuffling back both a WATER-Attribute Winged Beast and Fish Monster in my Graveyard to my deck, I get to draw two new cards!” 

“Uh…” Yumekumi blinked. “You don’t run any Fish monsters in your deck, buddy. You hit your head when you fell over? I should know, I’ve got the inside scoop on your deck!”

“Your information is… outdated,” Merag replied smoothly, “Zereort Hatchling is always treated as a Fish type Monster, alongside a Winged Beast. That means I can send the two copies in my Graveyard back into my deck to meet the activation requirements.” 

“I- what?! When did Monsters start doing that?” Yumekumi whined, practically stomping her foot as Merag shuffled her deck. “Ah, not like it matters, I really doubt you’re gonna pull something out of your ass in the eleventh hour to save you! And thanks to Acidic Webbing, you lose anyway the second you use an XYZ Monster’s effect!” 

Technically, Rio already had, Merag mused, wondering if she qualified as an old-fashioned Deus Ex Machina. An Empress should get to declare themselves on the level of a God sometimes. It was good for the pride. She grimaced at another reminder of the venom that was starting to sting annoyingly, but it was time to fulfil her end of the bargain. “We’ll see about that,” Merag murmured. 

Merag let out a large exhale, Chaos Energy congregating around her into a visible aura, including the energy that was inside of her body thanks to Original Sin. She couldn’t remove all of the venom yet with the duel ongoing, but it would be effectively defanged and now unable to do any lasting harm- her natural healing would handle the rest. She channeled the energy all with complete ease, the muscle memory returning in a heartbeat as she redirected the flow down her left arm, a shimmering aura that sparkled like a ruby collecting around it before it bled into the top cards of her deck. 

“The boundaries of order shall break down,” she chanted, “and usher in a new era of paradoxical chaos that guides my hand to victory! Chaos… DRAW!” 

This wasn’t her full power- that was still locked away, alongside a certain monster that Merag could feel stirring in the depths of her soul, but this was the next best thing. Scarlet lightning danced between Merag’s fingertips as she drew the top two cards, collecting around one card in particular as it materialized. The sight of it was like a shot of the greatest high, right into Merag’s heart.

“What… the hell was that?” Yumekumi stammered, reeling back. “Seriously, what the flying hell?” 

“Rio, what did you just do…?” Kotori murmured in horror. 

A flash of red caught Merag’s eye as they spoke. Her scars- the ones inherited from Rio, were pulsing from where the Chaos Energy had run through them, which had created glowing red lines that were beginning to spread across all of the scar tissue. Even for just the few short seconds that she observed it, Merag watched in fascination as it spread across her forearm, making it glow and pulse red, eliciting a giggle from her unexpectedly. Turning her focus back to the duel, Merag continued to ignore Kotori and Yumekumi’s comments, holding up one of the cards she drew. “Let me show you the origin of your reckoning,” she said, before raising it to the sky. “I activate Rank-Up-Magic Barian’s Force!” 

“WHAT?” Two voices rang out at the same time, as a vortex that crackled and spat dark lightning emerged over Merag’s head. The frost began to crackle as it spread across the entire room while a gale howled overhead, kicking up plumes of white dust and snow that froze over everything. Kotori had been holding onto the door bars for dear life, but had to withdraw her hands with a sharp cry as the bars began to freeze over, crackling ominously. 

“I rebuild the Overlay Network with Ice Beast Zerofyne, and use it to summon a Chaos XYZ Monster one Rank higher! Chaos XYZ Change!”  

“H-how… How did you get that card? When did you get that card?” Yumekumi cried out, panic written clearly on her face as she began to shiver.

Zerofyne hesitated, briefly, before the portal above spawned tendrils that wrapped around its arms and legs and dragged it in, the monster only having time for a panicked shriek before it was submerged in pure chaos, trashing about as a pulsing red cocoon of energy formed around it and sealed it in place, leaving it hanging in the air, while it almost felt like everyone was inside the eye of a hurricane. 

“Harbinger of ice and lurer of souls!” Merag roared above the howl of the blizzard. “Herald the void’s cold grip, and ring the Reaper’s bell! Go, Chaos XYZ Evolution!”

With one last surge of energy, the cocoon erupted, shattering with a piercing shriek from within and creating a shockwave that slammed against the walls and roof of the room they were in, large cracks that spider-webbed at certain points of impact. Zerofyne, twitching, fell to its knees as the sconces were buffeted by the gales, reducing visibility drastically for a moment. The wrought-iron door that had been frozen over shattered from the impact, the backdraft sending Kotori flying back with a cry before she hit the ground, rolling for a few metres before falling unconscious.Yumekumi herself was sent skidding back a few feet, throwing her hands in her face before looking up in terror. 

“Ascend from your frozen Hell, Rank 5, CXYZ Thelxiepeia, the Frozen Siren of Zerofyne!”  

The cocoon of chaos fluttered down like shards of glass, evaporating as they hit the ground and interfering with the blue light emitting from the sconces dotted around the room, casting the Duel in a vivid red light. Zerofyne rose on shaky legs, Yumekumi’s eyes widening as she took in the new Monster. On the surface, it still resembled Zerofyne at first glance, beyond the darker color scheme that usually resulted from a CXYZ Monster, but what stood out was the pulsing red pattern at the centre of its chest that wrapped around its lungs and throat, in time with a heartbeat. Its wings snapped out, pitch black feathers flying free, but each was adorned like a coffin lid. Its eyes still glowed yellow, but with a red iris now, alongside a mask that wrapped around the lower half of its face. It finished its violent birth, standing on even legs beside its master. The temperature remained sub-zero, leaving Yumekumi and her Number shivering as their breath became visible.

“When Thelxiepeia is summoned,” Merag said stoically, showing no signs of discomfort in the cold, “I can attach a Winged Beast from my hand or Graveyard to it as a Chaos Overlay Unit. I choose Blizzard Thunderbird. Additionally, since I used Barian’s Force, its final effect resolves- you’re forced to remove all of Original Sins’ Chaos Overlay Units and give them to my Monster, and yours now loses 300 Attack Points for each one.” Original Sin drooped forward as its Chaos Overlay Unit was removed, flying over to Thelxiepeia where it joined two other Overlay Units that shimmered gold and black.

Thelxiepeia, which had started at 2900 Attack Points, let out a mocking, jubilant cry as Original Sin was depleted of its power, going up to 3200 while Original Sin was depleted to 3700.  

Looking up at her monster before casting her gaze back to Merag, Yumekumi let out a relieved sigh. “Oh, phew, I thought you had something there to worry about! Fortunately, my monster’s still stronger after that, and if you try and detach an Overlay Unit like you did with your Zereort, you’re gonna lose right away-”

“I use one Chaos Overlay Unit to activate Thelxiepeia’s effect,” Merag interrupted bluntly, “It reduces the Attack Points of all Monsters you control to zero while negating their effects, then it gains 500 Attack Points for every card negated by this effect. Go, Chronos Mistral!”

Thelxiepeia snapped out its wings, singing some soothing lilts that merged with the wind as they carried across the field. Original Sin slowed in place as the winds made contact, freezing in time itself while its attack points plummeted down to zero. Above, the webbing which had been gently swaying froze in place.

“So- so you lose!” Yumekumi called out. “You just used an Overlay Unit, Acidic Webbing-”

“Will do nothing,” Merag interrupted again, irate, pointing up above her head- where a drop of acid had been about to fall on Merag only to be frozen in place as well. “Learn to be quiet when your betters are speaking. Thelxiepeia’s effect doesn’t just negate monster effects. It negates everything on your field, including your Spells and Traps. Acidic Webbing can’t resolve as it has been frozen in time itself.”  

“W-wait, no, that means-” Yumekumi stammered, eyes widening in primal fear as she tried to take a step back, only for her back to press against a sealed door while Thelxiepeia’s Attack Points rose to 4700 thanks to Yumekumi’s three negated cards, its red aura whipping around it like a rattlesnake. 

“It means you’re done. And now you’ll count up your sins in the next life.The only thing you deserve now is to taste my wrath! Thelxiepeia, play the final notes of this wench’s life! Attack Original Sin!” Merag gestured towards Yumekumi, features twisting with fury. “Demeter’s Dirge!”  

Thelxiepeia let out another harmonious note from behind its mask, drifting closer and closer as it did. Still trapped in its first effect, Original Sin- and Yumekumi for that matter, who was left swaying with glassy eyes at the song- could do nothing as it landed daintily in front of the Chaos Number. Ripping off its mask, Thelxiepeia exposed a feral maw full of glistening razor sharp teeth before plunging down, savagely ripping and tearing into Original Sin with fang and claw alike, each attack making Yumekumi twitch and cry out as she felt the impact on her body while her Life Points began to fall rapidly.

Before they hit zero though, Merag snapped her fingers, her aura intensifying to the point of being nearly blinding. “Thelxiepeia’s other effect!” Merag called out as Original Sin was destroyed, “when it has Ice Beast Zerofyne as an Overlay Unit, you take damage equal to your destroyed monster’s original Attack Points! You were already losing this duel, but now you’ll pay through damnation! Boreal Implosion!”  

Pulling back from the mutilated Number, Thelxiepeia leapt back, freezing energy amassing from its mouth and claws. Unleashing all three streams at once, the blast eradicated what was left of Original Sin before hitting Yumekumi at full force, shattering the wall behind her which led to a dark abyss, the bottom of which wasn’t visible from this angle. Yumekumi let out a final scream of agony and terror before being blasted off the side, falling into the darkness below until her cries couldn’t carry up far enough. Merag didn’t hear an impact, but her Duel Disk did react by informing her she’d won, before the rest of Thelxiepeia’s attack froze over the hole it had just created.

How considerate.  

“Excellent work,” Merag said earnestly to Thelxiepeia, bowing out of respect. “Truly a remarkable debut performance. You were stunning.” 

Thelxiepeia ruffled in appreciation, its blood-stained grin saying a thousand words before it faded away.

The field faded away around Merag as the Duel ended, the webbing above dematerializing but leaving large clumps of ice which had grafted onto the walls. She let out a heavy exhale as the exhilaration and mania that had possessed her when she woke up finally faded, leaving her able to really focus for the first time. Merag took her cards and returned them to her deck, barring one. She held up Barian’s Force, feeling the power bleeding from it. There was something else there- a pressure,like for a short moment the card was… observing her, a lidded eye opening briefly out of curiosity, before the pressure faded away, leaving behind a distinct sensation of familiarity and warmth. Merag rolled her shoulders and smiled serenely at her new acquisition before walking into the side room where Kotori was still unconscious. 

Observing her casually and still twirling Barian’s Force between her fingers, Merag knelt down, watching the girl. She had no… conscious affection to Kotori, saving her more as an indirect result of winning the duel anyway. There was a twinge though- an inherited fondness for the girl, from the soul she was a part of. Merag couldn’t help but gently brush back some of Kotori’s hair behind her ear as she watched, before a sensation of revulsion rose within her. That wasn’t her affection, it was Rio’s, and she wasn’t Rio. She didn’t want these feelings, they reminded her too much of what had been, and Merag was growing sick of living in the past.

She wasn’t sure if she wanted to strangle Kotori Mizuki to stamp out that fondness, or put her in a cage like the beautiful songbird she was, and that indecisiveness was… infuriating. She had promised no harm would fall onto the girl, and had to fulfil that vow for today. One didn’t lie when a soul was at stake; Merag’s teachings had insisted on that and old habits died hard. But… Merag looked down again at Barian’s Force, which shimmered in a way that was just begging for her to use it.

“I bet I could do it, right now.” she murmured to herself. “She’s just a human, after all…” She instinctively reached out to shake the girl awake, preparing the card so its art faced her, but…

But. She had promised. No harm would fall on them, and… it was too risky to try Barian’s Force here. If she broke the vow, it could lead to Rio being given back this body, and Merag had to finish purging the Chaos Energy from Original Sin. Being hasty here would just get them both killed and all she’d have to show for it would be one brainwashed human. Grimacing to herself and letting out a defeated sigh, Merag shelved the idea for now- she’d have nothing but time to workshop it, hopefully under better circumstances next time. These alien sensations that raced through her when she looked at Kotori were unnerving, and necessitated extensive purification. 

For now, she had to focus- the matter of the venom in her blood still needed to be resolved. Rolling up her left sleeve, Merag concentrated, pulling everything she could towards her left palm. She had a creative idea as to what do with this energy, but her vision was starting to blur at the edges- Rio had run this body ragged in the days prior, and even with her using her own Barian powers to fight off the exhaustion, Merag had arrived at a body that was already on the verge of collapse. But…

Letting her head roll back and facing up at the ceiling, Merag unfocused her eyes, ignoring the crackling of Chaos Energy as she kept accumulating it, letting that familiar green haze settle over her and-

She was barely conscious, unable to stand on her own two feet, both of which were now submerged as several cracks appeared in the sky above, waterfalls pouring down and flooding the temple. Behind Yuma and Ryoga was Durbe, looking at her with no attempt to hide his panic.

“You can trust Durbe,” Rio was saying, forcing every word out, “you need to trust him right now, or else I won’t leave here alive…” 

A-ha! Merag’s eyes rolled back into her sockets as she smirked to herself. Perfect. Merag made sure to funnel that towards Rio, knowing it would land while Rio was still resting in her soul and implant on her subconscious. That would give her a chance to carry out the next part of her frantically improvised plan, but it was rapidly coming together in a way that was undeniable. Nasch had always warned the other Emperors to never let Merag take an inch, or she’d claim a mile.

And it would benefit her to see Durbe. Purely for the mission of course, Merag noted to herself in bone-dry sarcasm, rolling her eyes. Looking down at her hand, Merag noticed her scars glowing more fervently than they had before as the Chaos Energy flowed through her limb. If she looked really closely, it almost looked like she was growing small rubies out of the scar tissue, but it was just a trick of the light, one that would fade away in a few moments. 

Some of the lingering Chaos Energy from Yumekumi’s venom clung desperately to Merag, trying fervently to resume its objective of eradicating her. Merag scowled at the petulance on display, dismissing the fragments with ease. She had been harnessing Chaos Energy at the literal source before Yumekumi had even been a fragment in the eye of the universe. It was the difference of someone banging at a drum kit compared to a conductor playing their orchestra like a well-oiled machine. With a last gasp of resistance, the Chaos Energy dissipated, forming in a small pulsing sphere that flowed around in need of a shape or function. Merag had an idea, but not enough time to implement it. 

Fortunately, she had a plan to work on that. Shrinking the Chaos Energy down and shoving it in her pocket, Merag grabbed Kotori and hefted her up, leaving the burial chamber behind and beginning a slow, arduous walk towards the central structure of the labyrinth, where she was sure the others were. Rio was starting to stir within her subconscious as Merag’s control began to wane, now that the venom had been purged out of her body. She’d have to release her grip soon, but she figured she could help Rio by at least getting them towards where the escape route would be.

She’d just have to put her trust in a certain loyal knight to make sure her plan came to fruition…

Consciousness returned to Kotori slowly, but the first sensation she became aware of was a pressure on her right, mixed with someone breathing heavily from exhaustion and the dragging of feet. In front of her, looming overhead was a passage that led out to an open area.

“Almost… there…” A familiar voice said, exhausted. “Come on Kotori, we’re nearly out of this.”

Kotori gasped sharply as she snapped awake, her feet (which had been dragging a bit across the floor) hastily landing underneath her to help keep herself upright. Rio, who had been shaking from the strain, let out a quiet sigh of relief as Kotori shifted the weight between them to carry her. She still had blood on her shirt, but the wounds appeared to have sealed over, leaving small puncture marks that were already healing.

“Thanks…” Rio murmured, eyes fluttering. 

“Rio! What happened, where are we?”

“Just on the way back to where we started this whole nightmare.” Rio gestured with her chin. “There’s a door just there. I’ve a gut feeling that the way out is behind it, so after I beat Yumekumi, I was able to drag us this far.”

“How did you win, though? You were…” Kotori scrunched her face in confusion as she tried to remember what happened. “You started glowing at one point, I’m sure-” Her mouth snapped shut as it came back to her, her eyes instinctively flicking down to Rio’s deck. She’d had that card, the one that had shown up in the Friendship Games and created a gap in her memory that still had her shaking if she tried to poke at it for too long.

Barian’s Force. Rio had acquired it somehow, and the questions of how and why flitted through Kotori’s head, bouncing around at light speed. That card was evil personified, so why would Rio have it? Was she being influenced by it? But no, she hadn’t had the little crest on her forehead when it activated like the other people under its control were. Could Rio have picked it up after her duel with Hanazoe? But why use it now? The timing didn’t make sense, but when else could Rio have-

Wait. What had Shark been saying right before they arrived at the tomb?

“When Rio went for that solo walk during Jinlong’s temple, she ran into that Barian from Colombia, Durbe.”

That… it made sense. It made too much sense, Kotori realized, a cold sensation falling over her like a bucket of ice water. Durbe, that bastard. He’d planted Barian’s Force in Rio’s deck, that’s why the visions had started impacting her more afterwards, why she wasn’t sleeping well, why she had it when they reached here! It all made sense!

“Kotori? You OK? You got quiet there…” Rio asked.

“Just thinking.” Kotori said quietly. She had to play her own cards right, and buried the topic of Barian’s Force for now- she’d need to talk with Shark about this, maybe Astral as well. “Do you remember how you won?” 

“It’s all a blur,” Rio admitted, “I think I just got lucky with my draws and found a way to weaken her Number without getting hit by her trap. Her Life Points were low enough that it just took one good hit to finish her off.”