From Victory to Oblivion: 365 Days to Live [IC Thread] [PG-16]

[Christian Exodia]

Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen... The seconds tick by as the temporary pain subsided in a dull ache. Exodia felt better, but in his feign of consciousness, he saw his nearby figures, once unconscious, now are standing tall. He knew taking the tire hit was necessary; it was a good diversion to summon this... beast of sorts.

 

No, it was Tes. Nothing else, it wasn't a monster, it wasn't an enemy, it was a member of the group. Whether a he or she, Exodia did not know. But it was a member of the group; Exodia shouldn't dehumanize or even make a monster of Tes.

 

The medi-gun a little ways from him, he sighed a breath of relief. At least it was still fine.

 

"Good... they are living and conscious. Twenty, Twenty-One..." Exodia's breaths were light and long to sustain lots of air to him. He felt best to do so; it kept him calm and able to focus in such a dangerous battlefield. It felt instinctual as well; sustain the self more efficiently for summoning.

 

Twenty-Four... Why was I chosen? Twenty-Six... It wasn't the greatest choice.

 

More seconds passed by. Meguri stood by him, seeming to be catching her breath. He was close to it nearing completion. He could end the focus of counting and speak to Meguri.

 

"I'm fine. I took a minor hit, a tire to the stomach, and I flew a minor ways. I took... an opportunity... to use this summoning crystal." The glow of it got stronger as the moments went on. 

 

"It shouldn't be much longer until this is complete, Meguri. Just another second, and-" The crystal began to glow uncontrollably, the flash very quickly getting bigger.

 

"I'll meet you again when the glow is over." He smiled as the glow engulfed him.

[Tesability Black]

~Heaven's Gateway~

"Michele. You can come out of the closet now. I've cleared everything up. It took me two hours, but I did it eventually..."

The mentioned woman looked up upon the door's sudden opening, a sheepish look falling upon Michele's face upon seeing Ron standing over her.

"Eh...hehehe...sorry about the bolt there," she said as she got up onto her feet, laptop carried in one arm as if she had done this multiple times as she moved passed Ron with her quarterstaff in hand.

"Sh!t... What did I miss?" At the new voice did she look down towards her screen, seeing Jun upon it once more.

She was about to open her mouth to rip him a new @sshole, but Ron beat her to that plan.

"I dunno.... What the hell did you miss? You missed a lot of things, you dumb@ss! You had me explain everything because you skipped out on me... And it's because I scolded you as well, the little prick. I'll have you explain what the hell's gone through your dirty little mind of yours, you little sh!t," Ron shouted at Jun, obviously displeased. "The apologies have got to wait, f*cktard. Look. The Lingering Will's at it again. Let's take a look."

Glad the impending swearstorm had come to a halt for the time, Michele glanced at both the monitors above and at her screen, catching sight of a familiar shimmer that brought a sad smile to her face.

Sorry, old friend, but I have to entrust you to another for now.

"Man, that means we have got to guide these f*ckers again, eh? Alright. I'm in."

Realizing that she lost track her surroundings for a moment, she refocused on the voices around her.

"That's more like it. Don't skip out on me again, you little sh!t. I'm warning you."

Sighing over the two going at one another, she returned her gaze to her screen as she returned to where she had been before the sudden attack to watch something she hadn't seen in over a decade...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~Gemini's POV~

Gemini was a few levels of p!ssed-the-f*ck-off. Michele was jacking his telepathy and using it on him against his will, his Dark Void attack failed to put the Will into a state of sleep for even a temporary amount of time earlier, and one of the people he was forcibly-charged to protect managed to get hurt by the Will.

Well, time to show these folks that he was stronger than his appearance lets on, then.

With a burst of speed did he dash forward after seeing Tetsuya strike at the Will, a wide toothy grin on his face to reveal all four of his fangs as he suddenly gripped it and brought it with him in his dash, finally jumping high into the air with the Will still in his grasp and throwing the being down hard enough into the ground to leave behind a decent-sized crater, but not before Gemini brought the being over his head in a clear show of brute strength.

"If you think you're going to get past me this time, you're smoking something stronger than even I'm used to," Gemini spoke after landing on his feet with a growl to his voice, despite maintaining the creepy grin...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~Tesability's POV~

She had been curled up into herself, sleeping for who knows how long. Tail twitching slightly within the jewel that contained her life force, she seemed perfectly content to just stay there.

In her dreams, her home was still whole, after all...

While still asleep, wisps of light emerged from the darkness she was within and began to surround the little dragon before gently surrounding her being, covering her in a glowing light...

~~~

The citrine flower that was Tesability's crystal flashed before levitating out of Exodia's grip, floating over towards a small area nearby before becoming surrounded with a yellow light. The light began to change its shape before floating towards the ground, eventually fading to reveal the little dragon...

...whom was still soundly snoring in her slumber.

[Christian Exodia]

Exodia, as the crystal shone and arose from his grasp, watched in awe. It was a light that he had not seen before. This light held a sort of quiet serenity to it, filling Exodia's entire being with determination and vigor. 

 

He slowly stood up. His eyes locked on the flashing light, waiting for the pivotal moment when all would unfold and another member would join-- rejoin, the group. He held his side, which ached heavily. That hit, whilst not truly damaging, stung heavily due to the sheer trauma a large, rubber tire can deal. Shaking his head, he saw the light levitating above the ground. He sighed, letting a gasp of stale air escape his lungs and allowing a new set of fresher air to come in. Still gasping a little from the hit, he kept watch over it.

 

Once the light began to lose its shine, Exodia moved towards it. The shine began to take a shape, a shape very familiar to Exodia. The features became more pronounced, the light darker and darker, and, at once... poof. The light was gone. In its place, as well as that of the jewel, is the NetMonster, Tesability Black, also known as Tes.

 

Tes, this loudly snoring dragon, could bring trouble to us if I don't get her awake soon. Still, he found her current presence adorable. Curled up, snoring... it was like his old cat, Captain, at home. Someone he missed dearly. A tear escaped Exodia's eye socket.

 

He shook Tes a little, and started to rub her belly. It was lightly out of habit; Captain had loved belly rubs, and would grasp onto Exodia's hand whenever Exodia did it to him. 

 

"Get up, Miss Tes. We have work to do." He sighed. Hopefully she wouldn't notice Michele being gone. The shock of losing someone is not something he wants to deal with.. especially after how much it affected him once he realized everyone was gone. 

 

I'm sorry, Tesability. I wish Michele was still here, for your sake. It would be highly beneficial for us all. For you in emotion, for us all in physical support. -sigh- It's all a crapshoot, sometimes. You gotta work with what you get.

 

Whilst she awoke, Exodia grabbed his nearby Medipack, and returned to the dragon awaiting her revival.

[Chaotic Angel]

EXTRA CUTSCENE #8

Heaven's Gateway - Michele's Room

"What's wrong, Michele?" Ron asked, looking over at the screen to see Tes awaken at the hands of Exodia. "I see. It's not easy having to entrust your old friend to someone else. Tes will do well, even if she has to fight alone." he continued, whilst glaring at Jun who is suddenly focused on guiding the camp mates. "Oh, I never seen him so fired up. What the funk's wrong with you today? On adrenaline?" he thought out loud.

"Hm. Never mind. I'm going home for now. I'll see you both tomorrow." Ron said as he heads to the portal leading to Central London and heads home for the night.

"Michele, you should look at shutting Jun down for the night too." he concludes before storming off for now. "Hey, wait! What did you say to me?" Jun bellows, just after Ron left for a shut eye. "Shut me down for the night? Don't you funking dare!" Jun shouts across the room. Fortunately the residents are asleep as well so they can't hear a thing.

"Well, funk you then." Jun mutters, before getting back to work. He doesn't seem pleased that he would have to be shut down, just to keep his mouth shut. "Michele Lusterino, don't you funking dare shut me down!" Jun shouts and repeats himself three more times before he himself crashed on Michele's screen, disabling it from doing anything.

Michele would be far from pleased to see that happen.

Torn Streets...

Meguri saw the sights of Tes' crystal glow before Exodia and took a step back. That was a sign of her awakening

"At least we got our camp mate back. Exodia, I'll see meet you in the Graveyard."

She waits for a while, then shoots off to the Graveyard but her mind tells her something is going on, and time isn't in her favour either. "sheet... What if... No, I can't..." she thought, then disappears without another word.

We just hope Exodia would be alright making his way to the Graveyard with Tesability to meet up with Gemini, who should be waiting for them by the time he arrives...

The Graveyard...

Ron's Lingering Will's HP: 999/1,400

Previous Destination: Torn Streets

Next Destination: Abandoned Junkyard

When Gemini slammed the Lingering Will, he made a crater big enough for even it to fall into. That being said, fatal damaged were made. Tetsuya overheard the attack happen and he looks back. "Holy sheet!" he shouts, as he walks behind the crater. He inspects it for a few minutes and facepalms in pity. It doesn't look like he's too excited to see this, or maybe it was something else?

"Are you kidding me..?"

Then Meguri and the others arrive to the Graveyard in good time. James follows on shortly after and saw the crater too.

"I never expected Gemini to make such a big hole..."

James quickly researched the hole Gemini made, then he looks around. "James, what's wrong?" Meguri asked, then takes a quick look at the hole also. "You tell me what's wrong..." he reiterated, but the siblings gave no further word but something was glimmering on one of the tombstones. "Meg, take a look at it. What is it?" James said, crestfallen.

"Looks like a journal entry. I'm going to try and communicate with this thing... Doc Boo, is it?"

"Go on ahead. I'll speak to the thing alone."

Meguri then heads to the glimmering tombstone alone but at the same time...

James, Tetsuya and Rin all realised the Lingering Will isn't coming out, but Meguri might be thinking about this whilst the three of them are going apeshit at the fact the Lingering Will had gone whereabouts.

"James, Tetsuya! Hop on! That bastard's heading for the Abandoned Junkyard!"

"You're not serious!"

"Yeah, she's serious. Meg's off to pick something up. Let the three of us go then!"

Rin transforms into a dragon whilst saying her phrase, then signals two of them to hop on her back.

Gemini, I heard news that Tes is coming back. You're better off waiting for Exodia and the dragon in question here!

"I'll meet you in the Abandoned Junkyard! Be careful out there!"

James says, before he, Tetsuya and Rin shoot off to the next destination.

Who would have known, that Gemini held so much power?

The Abandoned Junkyard

The three arrive at the Abandoned Junkyard, only to see topaz flames spark all over the place. Wait, Topaz?

Clear flames were bleeding all over the junkyard and the Lingering Will already had a short fuse. It now starts to throw scrap metal point blank at the three people in front of it purely out of temper and continues the battle.

James was knocked over, then Tetsuya and Rin shortly after. All three of them....

Decommissioned by scrap bits of metal thrown by the Lingering Will... All that is left now, is someone to resuscitate them. Fortunately they can still talk but Tetsuya seemed like he couldn't move. "What the hell is this? I can't move!" he said, with the Lingering Will slowly approaching him. The short fuse, already getting shorter by the minute. It doesn't seem like it would spare anyone at this point.

How would anyone react at this point? We'll find out later.

Ron's Lingering Will's HP: 820/1,400

Previous Destination: Graveyard

Next Destination: Desolate Marketplace

[Christian Exodia]

Exodia calmly strokes the fur of Tesability, thinking about the sadness of everything that had happened. The broken garden, shrouded in mist, possibly not ever to return. Michele, gone to the darkness, quite possibly. But still there, in some semi-corporeal form, or some other place. The thoughts confused him. The voices reckoned to him that she still existed, but... The mist was an unknown variable to Exodia... its mystery poised many questions.

 

Why did it take Michele? Where did it come from? Who... or what, for that matter, made it? It doesnt seem like something a human would create... but maybe it's an ability. I couldn't discount it coming from this world... But... Tesability... how will she react? Her former master possibly being dust in the wind... she will surely have questions on the matter. I can only sigh and soldier on. I am the normal one... the closest to Michele in her stature, and possibly the only one who could easily... and successfully, for that matter, take on the sense of Tesability. I guess I am the only one for the job at this moment.

 

As time passes, and the wind blows ever so slightly harder due to the disturbances of a battle not too far from the area, he just lies there. Slightly bonding with the unconscious figure, he shakes his head and gives a few tears. Not tears of sadness, but tears of frustration. Of borderline anger... 

 

no. It's not like me to do such a thing. I can't be angry at these people. They are not at fault. Michele is not at fault. Tesability is not at fault. These creatures that mimic humanity but are shrouded like a masquerade... questionably so. These demons... they create the trouble. She is my burden now. I must carry her, and likewise, carry the burdens of all of the others on my back. It is in my hands to keep them fighting to the end. It's like Oppenheimer said, "I am become death, destroyer of worlds." But, with me, it's "I am become life, savior of souls." Heh, there it comes again. Savior of Souls. 

 

Calm meditation rushes over Exodia's visage. He is understanding himself, but he is searching to bond himself, in some fashion, to Tesability. To Exodia, there must be a link between these creatures and the humans they are tied to. It was just a matter of consciousness.

 

------------Two hours later-----------------------------------

 

The rustling of Tesability signifies her return to consciousness. As she slowly rises, Exodia breaks from his light trance to assist her return into the light, into the world, into the arms of another. And once she is awake, he begins to walk.

 

"I apologize for asking this so quickly after you awake, but we need to go to war."

[Tesability Black]

~Heaven's Gateway - Michele's Room~

Michele couldn't help but stare at her screen for a few seconds after Jun had managed to crash himself, clicking her tongue in distaste. "I was gonna leave you be before that, but if you're gonna crash my computer every time you throw a fit, I'm not too inclined to have you open to begin with..."

After a quick reboot, she hit the button on the microphone attached to her headset to unmute it, preparing for a scene that would most-likely happen...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~The Graveyard~

Upon Meguri's approach towards the tombstone, a transparent figure began to flicker into view, showing what seemed to be a bluish 'sheet ghost' with a head mirror over its solid black eyes floating in the air that first appeared to have its back turned towards Meguri.

"You'd think these guys would learn not to break their faces on their foe's fists by...oh, didn't see you there recording." Acting almost as if Meguri was the one with whatever recording device was used instead of whomever it really was, the figure turned around quickly with a faint darkened blush where its cheeks were estimated to be. "Guess you would have to record what I say, considering I don't have limbs. While, yes, I do have volunteers that I possess from time to time to perform surgeries on the worst of the damage, I am the lone doctor of the NMRC."

However, at one moment, the top of one of his eyes seemed to have raised itself, as if doing his version of an eyebrow raise. "Wait, you don't know what the NMRC is? That is short for "NetMonster Resistance Corps", and we are the ones that are trying to keep Shade and his Bosses from trying to destroy the Internet as all know it. Some of them are nasty foes, such as the Ice Bird Boss, Bluscrene. You can guess what he does to a computer with a name like that..." A visible shudder emerged from the ghost as he closed his black eyes for a second before reopening them once he stopped shaking.

"I swear, sometimes I think I'm overworked when I see the various NetMons enter my hospital, but at least I can get them taken care of and get a break every once in a while. General Phantom Opera, however...yeesh, I would not trade anything imaginable to be in his shoes. He's having to lead the entire Corps almost by himself and sometimes I wonder if he even sleeps at times.

These Hunters and their gathered allies are something else, though. You'd think they would back down upon seeing the monsters that Shade managed to turn the Bosses into, but no. I've seen 'monsters like myself take down some of their number and that's impressive.

What isn't so impressive is some of the end results of those fights...I'm pretty sure that particular Mech's handspike isn't supposed to be coming out of their shoulder like that..."

"Doc Boo was an ass even in those days, but he was a good-natured one," Meguri would hear from behind her, seeing Gemini in a relaxed yet pensive pose with his hands in his jacket pockets if she had turned around. "You may want to go ahead and go. I've got to make sure Ms. Black doesn't kill Mr. Ryder by accident in confusion upon awakening. This will be the first time that 'ownership' of a Champion has been changed, after all..."

And with that, he bolted with the use of in-chain Agility before she could say anything...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~Torn Streets - Gemini's POV~

Maneuvering through the streets, Gemini made quick work finding again where Exodia and where the formerly-jeweled dragon now were, the black being wiggling with her paws in the air slightly as she snored. He couldn't stop the slight smirk that appeared on his face just enough to reveal one of his fangs as her belly was soon given a rub. "How cute," he muttered in slight amusement.

"I apologize for asking this so quickly after you awake, but we need to go to war."

Gemini's face immediately straightened up, a calculated frown returning.

"Arceus-damned fool," Gemini muttered to himself as he ran forward at a certain moment...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~Torn Streets - Tesability's POV~

"I apologize for asking this so quickly after you awake, but we need to go to war."

The words were faint, not clear enough for her to understand them as the leafy ears twitched upon hearing them. She also did not recognize the voice heard, which soon had the little dragon immediately open her black eyes to the desolate world around her.

Her glazed-over eyes recognized nothing, and Talen was not anywhere in sight range. That alone was enough to send her into a panic. She flipped onto her paws before getting ready into combat, her body tense and ready to snap. Her head turned towards Exodia and, mistaking him for an enemy, opens her mouth as a sphere of whitish energy pooled together in front of her...

...though the sphere fired off in a random direction as a blur of purple pile-drove her into the ground, the energy ball creating an explosion upon whatever it really hit.

"Wemmego!" (Let me go!)

"Not until you calm down!"

"Yu attawk mee!" (You attacked me!)

"You tried using Mega Breath on your new partner first!"

As if stunned by these words, Tesability stopped struggling for a little before looking up towards the being over her, Gemini. "Ai owny hash won pawtnew..." (I only have one partner...)

"Unfortunately, Ms. Avalon will not be rejoining us, not for a while at least." At this point, Gemini got up while muttering under his breath about 'jabroniy girls throwing hissy fits' before dusting his hands off from each other.

"...ish yu mai pawtnew?" (...are you my partner?)

Gemini just flat started laughing, his head leaning back towards the sky as he did.

"I'm not even human," he managed to get out near the end of his laughing fit. "Mr. Ryder here has been the one entrusted with you, at least for the time being."

[Chaotic Angel]

Torn Streets

 

"Tes, your partner would be Exodia over here... All that ruckus had woke me from my temporary slumber..." Ron spoke from Central London as if he channelled his microphone from his house to this desolate world, just as Talen channelled her microphone from Heaven's Gateway.

 

"Talen, I hope you can hear me fine from there too. Oh, Tricky Dragon, is it? In case you're wondering... Talen is still around, just that she's above everyone else in camp now, and in voice only. Gemini's right, however. You still have a long shot before you see her again. You can only see me through Meguri's Summoning ability, you'll pick things up again though." he continued as he yawned to express his drowsiness from today's trip. "I'll have to pull an all-nighter in here. Who knows what the hell they're gonna do next."

 

"However the hell I managed to broadcast two different places is beyond me but... I did it. With help of course, just after I made it home."

 

"Anyway, everyone... You should all head to the Abandoned Junkyard, right now. The binding of physical attacks make it impossible for three people to do this on their own."

 

His words channelled throughout camp, making sure everyone catches his every word, including Exodia.

 

"I've known almost everything about who you are, Tes... Talen told me most about you... But not all of it."

 

The Abandoned Junkyard

 

BGM Currently Playing: 

 

Ron's Lingering Will's HP: 820/1,400

Previous Destination: Graveyard

Next Destination: Desolate Marketplace

 

Having heard Ron, Meguri collected the journal from Doc Boo and joins her brother, Tetsuya and Rin in order to greet the Lingering Will. Because physical attacks are now blocked on either side, things only became a lot harder than they were previously. This meant the voices of camp had to talk as well to guide the camp mates. Jun Kotomi however, decommissioned himself for the time being, so Ron filled in from Central London. The technologies there were the same as the ones in Heaven's Gateway, anyway...

 

"James, Meg, Tetsuya and Rin..."

 

"I hope you're ready. this bastard won't let you get away from here alive." he warned the four of them.

 

"Oh, sheet... They can't move..."

 

"Meg, whenever possible, just summon me!" he shouted, preparing himself for battle.

 

However, Meguri was close to being unconscious, but since she only just joined the fray, the side effects are starting to kick in.

 

"I summon... The Weapons Manipulator!" Meguri said, syncing her words to Ron's last two words, as though she knew what she was doing.

 

"..."

 

"..."

 

"..."

 

The three other camp mates had lost the ability to talk but then Ron immediately came to the fray via a Summoner's Circle made by Meguri.

 

Using the best of his ability, he targets the Lingering Will and uses his Chaos magic on him. "Chaos Blizzaga!" he chanted, as snow and ice came charging at him at 3,000 miles per hour, froze him for a full minute before Ron clicked his fingers. After which, he broke the ice and disappears from the fray and back to where he originally was.

 

"Unfortunately that's all I can do, Meguri. The Lingering Will is unconscious for now, so everyone should be able to attack. However, you should all be careful." he said from Central London once again.

 

Rin captures the message and fully transforms herself into a dragon before continuing the battle. "Alright, James, Meg and Tetsuya... You guys sit and watch. I can handle this!" she said, recklessly.

 

"Oh, funk me..."

 

"Rin, don't go overboard!" he said in pity, again with his voice broadcast from his microphone.

 

"At least listen to Master..." James said, but he was cut off by Tetsuya.

 

"No, it's okay. We can't do sheet right now. All we gotta do is hope for the best... And for Gemini and gang to appear and help us!" Tetsuya said, before James makes another mistake.

 

"Alrighty then. I can't risk anything just yet..."

 

"Good man. Now, let's wait..."

 

Ron's Lingering Will's HP: 760/1,400

Previous Destination: Graveyard

Next Destination: Desolate Marketplace

[Christian Exodia]

Exodia's entire being shook as Tesability arose. Her stance gave a rise of fear and of anger, one of absolute terror as well as fury. This contradiction created a very terrifying NetMonster that seemed to want nothing but her partner back. Exodia's eyes lightly welled up with tears.

 

The beam. The beam of light that formed around her mouth made Exodia's entire being want to run away or jump out in fear, but he had to show trust. Trust in her ability, in her power, in her skill... and in her. If he jumped out of the way, it would not bode well because she would go on a rampage. Wanting Talen back, she would use every ounce of her being to fire at her new "partner"... if Exodia could even call himself such a way to her. It would be a disservice to Talen. However, seemingly being the most human of the group gave him the new job of holding her for as long as needed. He threw his hands above his torso and face, taking a defensive stance.

 

He heard the orb fire, and expected the shockwave of energy to course through him. Instead, he hears the orb crash into a structure far away and a dull thud, with two... two? beings flying across the ground. Letting his guard down, he sees Tes and Gemini fly a short distance before the purple creature looks down at Tes. 

 

Exodia approached the two. He wanted to hear Gemini speak, and Tes react. Whatever the situation, Exodia wanted to know Tes's plight. Her struggle about not having a partner.... or, well, one forced upon her. 

 

------------------------------------------------

 

Hearing Tes's words... Exodia's tears came down a little bit. He was not the most... controlled emotionally, but he knew what to do. He got down to Tesability's level, as Gemini spoke on his behalf, and hugged Tes. His arms around her neck and top of the back, he composes himself and begins to speak so only Tes can hear.

 

"Talen... Michelle... is gone. There is nothing we could do. It is all such a blur that... I don't understand it either. But you are here. You still have a chance to see her. You still need to fight. She is at the end of this. She will be here soon. For now, you are in my care. I will protect you and guide you towards victory. I will guide you towards survival. I will guide you towards fate. I will guide you... towards her. Do not look upon me as an usurper. I am only caring for you because she is not here. If she was, and I can, I would relinquish my control in a heartbeat. All I ask... is you trust me. I will get you there." Slightly choked with tears, Exodia consoles Tesability. He wants to assure that this NetMonster can get to where she feels safest. But for now, he has to guide her through danger, deceit, and destruction. He is her tether to this world, and to the chance to see her again.

 

He gets up and stretches his arms out. "Do you trust me?"

[Chaotic Angel]

The Abandoned Junkyard

 

BGM Currently Playing: 

 

"How long are the rest of them going to take?" Tetsuya wondered, completely in the dark about the whereabouts of Gemini, Exodia and Tesability. But there's no room for anyone to be worrying about anything. The battle has been going for too long...

 

Ron's Lingering Will's HP: 760/1,400

Previous Destination: Graveyard

Next Destination: Desolate Marketplace

 

The Lingering Will regains consciousness, starts going berserk and regains control of the flames around him. Now the dark flames in The Dark Forest, Sapphire flames in the Torn Streets and Ruby flames in the Graveyard have reignited, they were as strong as they can be. The Lingering Will multiplies itself, buries themselves and appears once in every affected location. They are all real beings except one does more damage then the rest. The upcoming flames, Iolite, Emerald and White flames started encroaching to the other flames, in order to make sure no one runs away alive.

 

When James and Meguri finally paid attention to what was going on, they both headed out to assist Tes and Gemini. "Rin, I'm entrusting you to this area! Tetsuya, stop the flames from encroaching in the Desolate Marketplace!" James instructs, as the four part ways once again to their respective locations. When Meguri arrives to the Graveyard, she stays put and allows James to carry on without her. "I got this, just remember to bring Tesability and the rest of them back alive." she said to James as he shoots off to the Torn Streets.

 

Torn Streets

 

When James arrives and rendezvous with Exodia, Gemini and Tesability, he could already see dark flames and Sapphire flames crawling, a few feet away from each other. He is then greeted by two of the Lingering Wills that have multiplied most recently. "Gemini, talk later. We got some butt to kick! Exodia, Get Tes to a safe place and do it now! We don't have much room!" he shouts as he runs across the battlefield.

 

"You know how this works. Sapphire flames stops ranged Physical attacks and dark flames drain our energy. You know what to do." he says, signalling Gemini to go right whilst he shoots left. "Just remember to come back here alive! Meguri has the power to summon whoever she wants for a period of time... Let me know when you need it!" James concludes, before he fights on his end, greeted by two extra Eastern Sinners. Gemini was less lucky though, as he was greeted by six Remorseless Keys. Behind Exodia however, he was greeted by fifteen Forbidden Blacksmiths and seventy Blasphemous Shadows... Thirty-five originals and thirty-five Data Nodes.

 

It was about to get worse...

 

Graveyard

 

Meguri was greeted by another Lingering Will who also wanted to pick a fight with her, but then she is greeted by an extra Alternate Schoolgirl of Disparity... A Super Hard replica.

 

"sheet's about to get real... I hope everyone's alright!" Meguri hadn't much room for errors nor preparation. She simply had to give it her best and hope for everyone's welfare.

 

The Abandoned Junkyard

 

In the Abandoned Junkyard though, things wasn't much better. Three Alternate Isolated Emperors all with dual-wielding Ethereal Blades, thirteen Summoners of Solace and another Lingering Will has crossed Rin's path.

 

"funk that! Where did they all come from?" Rin questioned, looking around her, confused. She knew she didn't have much time and room to make any wrong moves, as well as those in previous locations. She also knew that the battle has been prolonged, however... The Lingering Will she was greeted with was indeed the most-damaging. It cast Doom on the dragon before she managed to summon her wings. "Hu-Huh?" she looked above her head and saw the five-minute countdown. "Oh, sheet!" she said, trying to finish the fight as quick as she can.

 

The Desolate Marketplace

 

"Oh, c'mon!"

 

Tetsuya wasn't seeing anything better on his side either. He was literally fighting sparks of flames whilst Envious Magicians, Hierophants of Inferiority and Oblivious Cardinals came charging at him. Once he managed to dodge all of their attacks, two more Lingering Wills appeared out of nowhere and give Tetsuya pieces of its minds.

 

"I don't have time for this! Fight me fair and square instead of summoning sheet every-God-damn-where!" he shouted, before he gets crowded a second later by replicas being summoned in the middle of nowhere.

 

"Ugh. I don't like the sound of this. Someone hacked into the camp's system! I would certainly like to know who that might be but... It's impossible."

 

"I'm trying to get this fixed, as soon as I can!" the voice from above said, trying to fix the wreckage of this desolate world.

 

"Michele, I hate to force this onto you... But you need to help Rin in particular... What the funk's that countdown on her head? Whatever it is, it can't be good." he concluded

 

The whole camp was in panic...

 

But would they be able to survive the side effects of a prolonged battle? It looks like the Lingering Will will stay like this forever...

[Christian Exodia]

Exodia, awaiting the answer of Tesability, felt as if every moment that went by was an utter eternity. His entire being shook, as the responsibility to everyone, to Michele, to Tes, and everyone else... was a literal weight heaved upon his chest and upon his back. His tear-stained cheek shook. His knees were weak and his arms were heavy. He still stood there, regardless, when every fabric of his being told him to run.

 

He fought every instinct in his body. He felt the need to do all else but stay there and continue his journey. But... I refuse. I will not bow to anything else, and I will not leave your side. Tes, I am your link to this world in Michele's stead. My words before... feel like they were of fear. But I will not fight my fate. Trust me. I will guide you through the worst of any storm, and I promise in all of my will that I will get you back to your partner.

 

These words felt more a conviction than any one that he had given before. It felt like they even got to Tes themselves. His being stopped shaking. His open hands curled into fists. His body stood straight and tall. His tears dried up. He shook his head and got a defiant look on his face, looking towards Tes and his future with a new fire.

 

It is my duty! I will defend you to the ends of the Earth. Tesability Black, we need to go. The others are waiting. I really hope that we can make a good partnership for however much longer is required.

 

With this, Exodia sticks out his hand, palm outstretched, as if asking for a handshake.

 

-------Meanwhile, in an unknown location---------

 

"Dear World, what has brought you to its knees?" A lone figure, cloaked in robes and carrying a holy book, walks through a great expanse of darkness and desolation. A lone light in a dark land, his simple presence pierced this land as he continued walking forward. 

 

He bends to the ground, in prayer. His cloak's bottom is ragged and dirty from the prayer, and his knees scratched and bloody from the rocky ground. Yet, he continues in prayer. 

 

"The Child of the World, René Delacroix, asks for forgiveness and strength from you, my Lord. And to all those who still breathe and are not with you, I wish them a bright path into the future, whatever it may bring. Amen."

 

A short prayer is all he has time to muster before he must continue moving again... lest he fall prey to what resides in the darkness.

[Chaotic Angel]

"Excuse me Exodia, but I gotta interrupt this..." Ron's voice escaped through the speakers from his home.

 

"Tesability Black is hereby summoned to Heaven's Gateway. I just got the call. Tes, enter through the portal I shall now open to you." he continued as he opened two portals. One from the camp to his house and the other from his house to Heaven's Gateway.

 

"So much for interrupting my sleep. Tetsuya, how are you holding up?" he concluded as he looks through his screen.

 

BGM Currently Playing: 

 

Ron's Lingering Will's HP: 760/1,400

 

Tetsuya looks up and hears Ron's voice. He quickly stands up and says, "Not good, sir! We're swarmed with replicas and even your own Lingering Will! What the funk are you planning up there?"

 

"Fool. I'm not planning anything. The only one who is at least capable of planning anything right now is Jun Kotomi. Even I don't know what he's about to plan next..."

 

"Anyways, I hope the others are doing well. Talen, you should be reunited with Tesability pretty soon. I know she misses you when she's down there on her own."

 

"Oh, and Gemini... You better work as a team now. I won't be here as often as like but I will be watching from Heaven's Gateway..."

 

"I seriously need sleep now. My heart isn't going to be beating any longer if I stay up like this... Cyborgs need sleep too..."

 

Then Ron switches off his intercom as he was too tired to carry on. He needed sleep so he can carry on the next day. Whoever knows,  he will need the extra bit of strength to help the camp mates because of his age now.

 

The Abandoned Junkyard

 

The count down on Rin's head is currently at three minutes. The Lingering Will doesn't look like he'll be going easy on her either, especially is she's a dragon. "Come at me then! I won't accept anything short of a good fight!" Rin said with confidence, but then saw her countdown reduce from three minutes to just thirty seconds.

 

"Wait, how?"

 

She had no time to think about it. She fled the scene as if she was in a hurry to get that count down off her head. As soon as she reached Meguri in the Graveyard, the timer reached just seven seconds. Concerned, Meguri followed her to ensure she doesn't die. Time was running out and they both didn't have time left.

 

"Rin... How did you manage to get that counter on your head?" she thought.

 

When the pair of them reunite with James, Exodia and Gemini, Tesability should be on her way to Heaven's Gateway. However, the counter on Rin's head became zero, thus decommissioning her. Shocked, both Meguri and James took a step back and thought what might have happened.

 

"Hey sis... Did anyone try to cast Doom on Rin?"

 

"That's what I suspected... Oh well. My resurrection spell isn't gonna be enough to revive her... Let's bring her to Heaven's Gateway!"

 

"Ron, coming through!"

 

Meguri speeds off, picked Rin up and overtook Tesability to the portal that will be open for another five minutes and into another without waking Ron up whilst he was asleep. When she went through the second portal, she greeted Michele, otherwise known as Talen. "Talen, where shall I leave her?" Meguri asked, carrying Rin's unconscious body as she pops out from the portal, which however remained open. It was supposed to be for Tesability to get in, however. "Some son of a jabroni cast Doom on her and I don't think my spells will be enough to revive her. If Ron comes to your room tomorrow, tell him to take a look at her." she said, starting to become worried as she leaves Rin exactly where Michele tells her to, and then shoots off once again for camp.

 

Some say that when a character is decommissioned by the curse of Doom, One of the avatars have forty-eight hours to revive Rin or else she will die.

 

Back at the Torn Streets though, Meguri comes back out of the portal and watches as Tesability comes through, assuming she didn't do so already.

 

"How was she?" James asked, but he never received a reply from his sister.

 

It seems like Tetsuya was still stuck fighting his bunch of replicas and a double of Ron's Lingering Will...