Kalin let out a low, mirthless laugh as he eyed Hikaru and Crow.
But when he noticed neither of them had brought their D-Wheels, his interest faded just as quickly.
"Hah… how dull. You don't even have your D-Wheels?"
He swung himself onto his own crimson bike, smirking down at Crow.
"Crow, after all this time, seeing you again almost brings tears to my eyes. But you're not the one I'm looking for."
His grin twisted into fury.
"Yusei! Where is he!?"
The fury in his face was monstrous, like something that had clawed its way out of hell itself.
"I came back from the dead for one reason, to get my revenge! So where is he!?"
"Kalin…" Crow's voice trembled, worry and grief mingling.
"Hmph. Whatever. I'll find him myself."
Kalin waved dismissively, turning his bike toward the lightless streets above.
"This side's all yours, Shinji."
With a roar of the engine, his D-Wheel tore off toward the Upper City, vanishing into the neon skyline within seconds.
Crow clenched his fists, his chest tight with frustration and memories he didn't want to face.
Still, he forced himself to focus.
"Shinji, what's going on here?!"
He glared at him. "Those powers… they came from Kalin, didn't they? That guy's not right in the head anymore, and he's supposed to be dead!"
Shinji snapped back instantly.
"So what if they did!? As long as it helps us bring down the Upper City, what does it matter?"
His voice hardened, sharp as steel.
"Besides… you still don't know, do you? You don't know the true despair behind this world."
"The… truth of despair?" Crow echoed, completely thrown.
Hikaru straightened, his attention sharpening, this sounded like something worth hearing.
Shinji took a breath, his eyes gleaming with grim revelation.
"Synchro Summoning, our world's greatest pride, the way we soar with the wind and merge our monsters in harmony, the symbol of freedom itself…"
He clenched his teeth and raised his left hand, the Dark Mark flaring.
"It was never freedom!"
"From the very beginning, Synchro was nothing but an illusion!"
He began to speak, voice low and fevered, as if reciting an ancient truth buried in his blood. And as he did, Hikaru finally began to glimpse the true nature of this dimension.
Long ago, so far back that no one could remember, the gods of this world had worked together, preparing to create a perfect world. When their divine powers resonated, a new force was born, Synchro.
The gods rejoiced.
For through Synchro, they could do what even divine power alone could not: cross time and space, traverse dimensions, even rewrite life itself.
It was creation in its purest form.
But soon came the whispers.
Why should I share such power? If this strength can surpass all, why not keep it for myself?
He covets my Synchro Particles… is he plotting against me?
Why do I feel greed? I am supposed to be divine, above desire!
Thus, the divine unity shattered.
For the first time in eternity, the gods began to doubt themselves, to doubt each other, to doubt the very world they had built.
"And so…" Shinji's eyes gleamed with dark conviction.
"The War of the One God began."
"The Crimson Dragon… the Earthbound Gods… the Aesir… the Old Ones, all the gods clashed in the final war."
"The victor claimed all Synchro power, becoming the only true deity, the One God.
Those who fell were cast down, labeled demons, monsters, false gods, erased from history and cursed by humankind."
"But that victory was never eternal."
Shinji's voice dropped to a growl, his mark pulsing brighter.
"The One God may have seized Synchro's source, but the others were only sealed away, stripped of reason, not existence.
Every five thousand years, the war to claim the Root of Synchro begins anew."
He raised his hand before him, the Dark Mark burning across his arm.
"Now I understand… why this world is broken. Why, no matter how hard we fight, the people above will never recognize us."
"Because people like us… we were born from the losers' side of history!"
Shinji's voice rose, sharp with desperation.
"We're the descendants of those who fell in that ancient war, and so we'll always be like this! Always starving, always struggling to survive!"
Crow stared at him, his mind spinning. The words didn't fit the world he knew.
No, this wasn't right.
Wasn't City's history supposed to be about greed and class, not destiny?
The Upper City hoarded resources and built barriers, slowly isolating the Commons below. And after the Zero Reverse, that wall became absolute.
None of this was ever written in fate. None of this was supposed to be divine.
Even for someone as quick and sharp as Crow, the avalanche of hidden truths left him dizzy.
"So what you're saying," came a calm voice from the side,
"is that you plan to sacrifice the lives of your own people, your friends, even the children of the Commons, to the Earthbound Gods? Then join their power to strike down the Crimson Dragon and rewrite this dimension itself?"
The voice was steady, cutting through the chaos.
Crow turned and blinked, the fog in his mind beginning to clear.
He finally recognized the cloaked figure beside him.
That face, he remembered now.
"You're… Hikaru Amagi. From the Friendship Cup. The guy from Fusion Dimension… the one who dueled Yusei!"
And then it hit him.
Someone had mentioned that Yusei had rescued a stranger from another world not long ago, this must have been that man.
Crow's throat tightened as he turned back to Shinji.
"Shinji… tell me that isn't true.
You're not really going to sacrifice everyone down here, our friends, our families, for those monsters, are you?"
"It's a necessary sacrifice."
Shinji's eyes darkened, his voice dropping into a cold, unwavering tone.
"The Crimson Dragon is the current One God. A single Earthbound cannot stand against it. Only by uniting the power of every Earthbound God can we win. That's why we must offer up life, to awaken them all."
Crow's expression froze. For a moment, he couldn't even breathe. The man in front of him, the one who once led the Commons to fight for freedom, was now unrecognizable.
"You… what are you even saying? What about the people who'll die?!"
"It doesn't matter."
Shinji's eyes glowed faintly as the Dark Mark pulsed on his arm.
"Once I succeed, the Earthbound Gods will create a new world, a world of true equality.
No hierarchy, no division. Even those who die will return, reborn through their power…Just like Kalin Kessler!
And when that world comes, we'll erase the Upper City entirely.
The nobles, the guards, the rich, they'll all become food for the Earthbound Gods."
"That's insane!" Crow shouted.
"You're not even the same person anymore!
And Kalin...Kalin's nothing like he used to be! What about the people in the Upper City who did nothing wrong? What about the children!?"
Hikaru put a hand on Crow's shoulder, steady but firm.
"Crow… stop. There's no point arguing. Once a man like him decides on a path, he'll follow it until it destroys him."
Crow hesitated, his lips trembling, then fell silent.
Because Hikaru was right, he knew Shinji better than anyone.
Once he set his sights on a goal, nothing, no plea, no pain, not even death, could turn him aside.
"Let's Duel," said Hikaru Amagi, raising his Duel Disk.
"In this world, talking doesn't change anyone's heart, does it?"
His tone was calm but absolute.
"So let's do this the way your world understands best. If I win, you'll hand over your Earthbound. Simple enough, right?"
For a moment, Shinji Weber's eyes flickered toward Hikaru's left hand, toward the faintly glowing crimson mark etched across his skin.
Something about it made him uneasy. But that feeling was quickly buried beneath arrogance.
"A Duelist from another dimension, without even a D-Wheel,thinks he can challenge us in our world?" He let out a mocking laugh and spread his arms wide.
"Only a Riding Duel, one that carves its path into the earth, can draw the Geoglyph and be acknowledged by the Earthbound!"
He turned toward Crow, eyes flashing.
"Crow… and you. If you really want to stop me, then keep up with my speed!"
With that, he slammed down the throttle.
The roar of his D-Wheel echoed through the narrow streets,and in an instant, he was gone, leaving nothing but exhaust and tension behind.
From afar, red and blue lights flickered, police sirens. Crow clicked his tongue.
"Damn it, come on, we've gotta move!"
Hikaru nodded without a word, following Crow through the maze of alleyways and rooftops. They ran until the wail of the sirens faded into silence.
Only then did Crow finally slow down, resting a hand against a wall to catch his breath.
"You're Hikaru Amagi, right? The Fusion Dimension Duelist?Yusei told me he'd met you before."
Hikaru gave a small nod.
Crow grinned, giving Hikaru a friendly nudge with his elbow.
"Well, whatever brought you here, if Yusei saved you,and you helped me just now, then that makes you my friend."
He ruffled his wild orange hair, muttering under his breath.
"Man, those guys…one after another, losing their damn minds… it's exhausting."
He laughed bitterly, though his expression dimmed almost at once.
Even joking couldn't hide how much it hurt to see his old friends walking down such dark paths. Fighting them was the last thing he'd ever wanted.
After a moment, Crow suddenly snapped his fingers.
"Oh, right! You're from another dimension, so you don't have a D-Wheel, do you? And since you've got one of those weird marks, you're gonna need one."
A grin returned to his face as he jerked his thumb over his shoulder.
"Come on. I've got a spare back at my place."
...
Bonus@400
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