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blaster-aichi · 7 years

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Override: Legion Mate plan

Days after the Link Joker invasion and all seems to be well in Hitsue. Kai goes about an ordinary day; attending school with Miwa and getting dragged along to the Cardfight Club after-school without any apparent lasting damage from his time under Reverse’s influence.. After getting out from school, the two of them trek home, and travel through the park where they used to play as kids with Ibuki. Miwa reflects on the day they last played, the day Kai first used his Royal Paladin deck, and asks Kai what he did with the cards afterwards, given his change to Kagero shortly after. Kai stays quiet, not answering immediately but trying to recall what exactly he did with the Blaster Blade which had been both the heart of his deck and the reason why it was dismantled. He shrugs it off, and finds himself led by Miwa to Card Capital, where they find Misaki at the counter and Kamui in the midst of a fight. The scene resonates as something vaguely familiar, but he brushes it off given his quest to become stronger than Ren a year earlier, which might have brought him across the shop, but his extensive training across various locations makes it difficult to tell.

He and Miwa continue on their way, Kai returning home and setting down for the night. He dwells on the sensation he's been followed since Card Capital and heads out for a walk, intending to see if he can find out the culprit. When he reaches the roadside by the park where he remembered running on the last day he saw Miwa and Ibuki, a light shimmers despite night settling on the city. Perplexed, he's uncertain what move to make but the light gravitates towards him, and whispers his name, though without a voice, he can feel it calling out to him.

Raising his hand, his fingertips come into contact with the light and his vision becomes engulfed in brightness. With no such words, he can feel the need to fall onto the old practice of envisioning himself on Cray, as was the case during his fights before High School and begins to channel his energies into doing so. By the time his vision clears, he indeed finds himself on the planet Cray, and before him standing the same Blaster Blade that he played with as a child. He asks Blaster Blade about why he was urged to touch down onto Cray, also puzzled by being summoned by a unit he’s not seen for some time; confirming the knight's assumption that Kai has also been affected by the phenomenon which has taken place, he tells Kai to think back to the day they parted. By Blaster Blade's instruction, Kai tries vehemently to understand what it is he's missing. Blaster Blade leads Kai to understand the voice which called him from the light wasn't his own, but of someone who needs him. Kai notices a darkly-clad figure in the distance; Aichi, with his back to him, but he doesn’t recognize him to begin with. Only when Aichi turns his head, peering over his shoulder back at Kai does he recognize him.

Suddenly, it dawns on him that Aichi had been absent from the past few days and tries to reach out to the figure, who just forces the dream to an end. With the crack in his falsified life, he quickly tears open the illusion, bringing Aichi back into his memory. As a result, the forced memory is swept aside, it dawns on Kai that Aichi has been missing for days and it comes back to him that something is terribly wrong.

With Blaster Blade's card in hand, he heads to Card Capital, to find it closed, but Misaki appears from her window by the strange appearance of the boy well after closing time. Kai asks for her time, she finds it puzzling but comments that he's come by the shop so rarely that she can't understand what he'd want with her. He calls for her to open up and he'll explain. She begrudgingly heads downstairs without disturbing Shin and meets with Kai through the glass doors, asking what exactly is going on. Kai states that the two of them are friends, which Misaki finds difficult to believe as she doesn't recall befriending him and tries to dissuade his story. Unsure how to convince her, Kai pulls out his phone, punching in a number and raising the phone to call. Misaki's phone begins to vibrate, to her surprise, and answers it - on the other end, she hears his voice, asking that if they weren't friends, how did he know about her number?

Misaki pulls a face, but decides to hear him out. Letting Kai into the store, the two of them converse about the absence of Aichi and the effect it's had on their lives; Misaki claims she doesn't play Vanguard that often, though has come to terms with the passing of her parents through means of her own. Kai states that both on a memorial and physical plane, there has been no trace left of his existence, something which troubles him as to what precisely they’re dealing with coupled with its intentions and means. It appears as though he’s chasing nothing, but he has a means by which to change that, and requests a Cardfight. Tired from the long day and curious where this is all leading (or to prove him mad); Misaki humours him and begins the fight. Kai plays with his Kagero deck, rebuilt after the Link Joker affair, which Misaki has a vague recollection of; she claims to have dealt with Reverse fighters and met with the others at the Tatsunagi tower in their individual attempts to stop the epidemic, but her series of events don't match his. Kai reminds Misaki that he was Reversed, and alone on the rooftop of the tower when the Gate opened, with the agent of Void, Misaki comes to the conclusion that Kai had been the one to stop Takuto, but Kai refutes that, asking how he could have when he'd been Reversed himself. Misaki, puzzled, presses on - she's the first one to Legion, having been able to reconstruct her deck with the newest stock in the shop and takes on Kai's arsenal. Through the fight, Kai comes to learn that without Aichi, Q4 is non-existent, Kamui is simply a kid who occasionally plays at the shop and many other elements parallel that of Asia-hen’s world, leading him to understand how Aichi must have felt at the time before they’d found one another. In the back of his mind, he begins to ponder if another power has carried him to an alternative world where Aichi simply never existed to begin with and a pang of loneliness strikes him, if there should be such a world.

With a space cleared on his front line, he throws out his own surprise - Blaster Blade. Misaki can't fathom how or why Kai would have a lone Royal Paladin in a Kagero deck, but Kai pushes that it's the card that ties Aichi to them, and inwardly reflects on the usage of Blaster Blade Spirit and Blaster Dark Spirit when facing Vanguard, with the same intention of getting Aichi back. Adamant to undo the spell which has erased all trace of Aichi’s existence, Kai’s campaign starts with the same unique tactic. The line-up jogs something in Misaki’s memory – the combination of Blaster Blade and Dragonic Overlord has always reflected Aichi and Kai, which leads to her recalling their first fight and triggering it all falling into place.Using the imagination theme, Kai and Misaki meet on Cray and, within Blaster Blade, Misaki begins to see the flickering face of Aichi. With the memories flooding back to her, she calls time on the fight, and intends to minimize the risk of causing Shin to come down to find them. She asks what Kai intends to do, he answers that he hopes to gather a force that can help find Aichi, and restoring her memory is the evidence he needs that he can do it. He asks Misaki to meet with Ishida Naoki and Komoi Shingo at Miyaji the next day, and he'll deal with their friends at Hitsue. Looking at her phone, Misaki re-enters Aichi's number and tries to ring it, unsuccessfully. She lets Kai out of the shop and the pair agrees to exchange regular updates. Kai heads home, texting Miwa to come over, while Misaki heads back upstairs, meeting Shin along the way. He comments about her unusual behaviour, sneaking in a friend, or something more, and asks like a proud mother. Misaki smiles and shakes him off, claiming it's something like that, but tells him not to get involved or embarrass her with his zealous nature.

Across the city, Miwa arrives at Kai's apartment complex and, as he enters the flat, comments on how odd it is for Kai to invite anyone over. As per usual for Miwa, he takes the situation light-heartedly and teases what Kai could possibly want, but he’s met only with the challenge of a cardfight. An occurrence which leaves the blond puzzled and asking why exactly it was vital to fight at night rather than wait until tomorrow. There’s no answer as such, but Kai pushes that it’s important; there’s something he needs to test and Miwa’s the only one he can entrust with the task. Kai encourages Miwa to recall who Aichi is, pushing various instances in time, alluding to the parallel world that the three of them had been taken to, and the events on Cray. Miwa intervenes the despairing thoughts he senses Kai mulling over in spite of failing to recall the absent party and highlights the fact that Kai speaks so passionately about the matter that he has no reason to doubt him, or that Aichi exists. If anything, it makes him happy to know there’s something which Kai can take such a vehement stance over and makes clear he understands why Kai wanted to fight so immediately; aware how it's the way Kai always clears his head, and wants to see if it would have the same effect on it; to remove anything unnecessary and find the memories of Aichi which have been buried within him. Kai uses the same Legion mechanic that Misaki had against him, and with Blaster Blade on the field. Kai pushes Miwa into a corner both within the fight and regarding their missing friend. Miwa does begin to recall seeing the similar sight on Cray in the fight against Vanguard. And whatever spell was cast is broken. They spend much of the night discussing what happened, why they forgot and where Aichi could possibly be. Kai frowns, because he remembers that they had become aware of Aichi's absence before whatever took their memories, but were never able to find him. He adds that Misaki is aiming to recruit Naoki and Shingo, so they should do the same with Kamui, and see who else they can rekindle those memories within; a plan which Miwa naturally agrees on.

Misaki confronts Naoki and manages to drag him into a fight – largely out of fear that she might do worse to him should he refuse, but during the game, she’s able to pick apart the isolation into which he pushed himself, which Aichi and Vanguard brought him out of. Naoki understands that something lately has been different after thinking about it, and he couldn’t understand, but now he registers that he’s lost something important; thus returning life to its boring state. Her efforts pay off and Naoki recalls everything, immediately beating himself up over forgetting Aichi and everything he brought into Naoki’s life, Misaki consoles him as best she can, and asks for him to get Shingo on-side, while she follows Kai’s plan, and visits Fukuhara. Meanwhile at Hitsue, Kai and Miwa lure Kamui to the gym, where Kai Reversed him and the inter-school competition took place, hoping that he can produce the same results on the remaining Q4 member. At Miyaji, Naoki is approached by Pennyworth while investigating the former-Cardfight Club room and Misaki confronts Suiko. By the time Final Turn is called, Kamui’s memories are also being undone – urged by their union under Q4 and Kamui’s familial feelings towards the Sendous. Kai texts both Misaki and Naoki for a rendezvous at Card Capital afterschool. At Fukuhara, Suiko claims Kourin took off on her own and no-one’s heard from her since, though it reinforces that she seems to be alright. Misaki leaves, with Ren watching as she departs from the area. Between Suiko remembering Kourin while Emi doesn’t recall Aichi, Misaki’s fears that he might have been kidnapped grow.

Grappling with his fears of losing Aichi, Naoki finds himself faltering in the fight with Pennyworth and difficulty in moving forward; he worries that Aichi might leave them behind if something’s happened to him, even that he might be vulnerable to whatever is in store for him, reflecting on how not long ago, he was fighting off Reverse, fearing for his friend’s safety. Pennyworth overwhelms Naoki and brings him to the brink of defeat when Shingo appears in the clubroom, having been drawn by an unusual sensation to visit the Physics room and then hearing the commotion inside. While he doesn’t recall anything to do with the Cardfight Club, he urges Naoki to fight and push back against Pennyworth; a sensation he puts to his closet passion for Vanguard, bemused that Naoki is a player, though leaves questioning him about it until later. Outside the room, Maki happens upon the fight, remaining outside and hidden, but listening with intrigue as, she too, has her affiliation with the game that remains hidden from her peers. Naoki hollers his resolve to stop whatever Pennyworth and his colleagues have planned for Aichi and swears to get him back, reiterating what he introduced to his life through Vanguard – something which touches both of those listening in on the game. Though his efforts fall short of finishing off his opponent and the fight has no conclusion, as Pennyworth escapes, though it leaves the two with an ominous feeling.

Naoki reinstates the Cardfight Club and asks Shingo to guard it, claiming it’ll make sense afterwards. Although he can’t understand the meaning behind it all, Shingo begrudgingly agrees. Naoki leaves, catching sight of Maki nearby and asks if she heard everything that happened inside, the Council Secretary confesses that she had, and fears that someone like Naoki would expose her for having an attachment to something perceived as so childish by her peers, but he instead assures her that he wants to help her out ‘this time’, and pleads for her to have to be seen the Physics room isn’t taken by another club until he can come back with his club’s leader. Like Shingo, Maki is perplexed by what exactly Naoki’s talking about, but goes along with the idea, capable of telling that his behaviour is no simple act. Naoki heads off, leaving Shingo and Maki to their duty.

QUATRE KNIGHTS

The team gather at Card Capital, anxious about the situation and put their heads together to consider others who might have recollection of Aichi. While immediately, Emi comes to Kamui’s mind, the others recommend against involving her, wishing to keep her out of danger. Naoki offers to visit the Middle School branch of Miyaji to talk with Rekka, if she might corroborate Suiko’s story – with Kamui quickly piping that he wants to tag along. Kai and Miwa volunteer to visit Ren while Misaki tries to make contact with Leon. The respective parties go about their way – at Miyaji, Naoki and Kamui find the Middle School’s club engrossed in their activity, and when asked about Kourin, Rekka simply chirps that she’s likely stormed off in a mood over the price they paid for Link Joker’s defeat. Kamui asks if Rekka’s really alright with losing her past, to which she confirms because she’s gained Emi and Mai as friends. Emi then recognizes Kamui and Naoki as familiar faces, which raises Kamui’s hopes for a moment, but she replies that she can’t recall having a brother. Hopeful to find a blip in the story, Naoki questions Rekka on who stopped Takuto, which she claims was Kai alone – Naoki asks further how Kai got himself unReversed if it had just been the two of them on the roof, and Rekka gives the answer that he simply turned on Takuto once everyone else was beaten to make up for his earlier loss. To Naoki’s dismay, he recalls that Kai had used such a motive as one of many reasons to fight Takuto. At Fukuhara, Kai and Miwa confront Ren, and although they press him to remember the Nationals against Q4, Ren claims to be oblivious to everything. There’s no apparent shifting him and they have to concede that he’s as in the dark as they have been. Just before they take their leave, Kai asks Ren to let him know if anything strange happens.

On the way back, they encounter a man who claims to know Aichi – naming himself as Raul Sera. Though the fact that a stranger claims to know Aichi keeps the pair’s guards up; and it’s clear as to why when he reveals he was the one responsible for the attack by Pennyworth. Sera unleashes his power – Millennium Blizzard Prison, trapping the pair inside the frozen scape. With no alternative, Kai steps up to fight Sera – who drops malicious hints that Aichi is in danger and being held against his will, though gives no clear answers when the duo press him. Growing increasingly frustrated with the lack of answers that they can make heads or tails of, Kai launches full-force with his Kagero-Seeker deck, asserting that Blaster Blade reaching out to him means that Aichi’s in danger and they need to get him back; the deck and Clan are something that he and Aichi share and he intends to reach Aichi regardless of the obstacles set in his way. But the conversation plays its role in serving as distraction, costing Kai the game and his best shot of getting to Aichi as soon as possible. What he realizes though is he feels the scene to be something similar, as though he’s experienced it before, but can’t clearly recall it. Sera delivers Judgement on Kai, watched in horror by Miwa when his best friend is tortured and collapses. Sera turns towards another figure – dressed in a similar uniform, with a stoic expression. His vision blurred and consciousness fading, Kai weakly reaches out to the smaller enemy, hoarsely whispering Aichi’s name before passing out. Miwa hovers over Kai, adamant neither of their foes will get anywhere near him, though they appear to have no intention of doing so. With a smirk from the pair, they depart, leaving Miwa dismayed that he couldn’t do anything for his friends, as much as alarmed at their power, if they could best Kai with little effort.

Miwa hauls Kai back to Card Capital, shocking Misaki by the turn of events when they return, and together, they move him into the upstairs of the shop, placing him in the guest room where Aichi had been after his failed attempt to help Ren escape Psyqualia’s influence. Miwa discloses about Raul Sera and his commentary, which leaves Misaki as disturbed as he and Kai were. On high-alert, they have the others rendezvous at the shop where Miwa can fill them in. None can report that any of their respective targets have any understanding of what’s happening and they come to a consensus that they’ll have to be more careful, with it known they’re on the move by an apparent enemy. When Kai comes to and the strategizing continues, he confesses that he believes what’s happening is punishment for what he did under Reverse’s influence – an outcome they so nearly faced where Aichi passed away and he had been so far off that the consequences hadn’t resonated with him. With the spanner in the works that Judgement throws, he’s hesitant for anyone to get caught in the line of fire for helping him atone for his personal mistakes. Miwa shrugs off the proposal of dealing with things alone, seeing as that was what led Kai to Link Joker’s clutches in the first place, and none of the others have any intention of stepping down, so Kai would be stuck with them regardless.

The group retire for the day, going their separate ways. Remembering that they live in the same neighbourhood, Kamui travels with Kai and Miwa, lamenting his fears and doubts about what might happen or letting Aichi down when he went above and beyond to reclaim the three of them from Reverse. The older pair assure him they’re prepared to go to the very same extremes, as they owe it to him, and help to build his confidence about their chances. By the time they separate, Kamui’s spirits are reinvigorated and in much better shape along the last stretch home. However he happens upon a young girl once safely alone, she claims to have been trying to find the money to buy some doughnuts.

Kamui offers to help her out, thinking a treat might be in order after such a rough day, and they share a box. The girl stealthily leads the conversation towards what he’d been doing before, so Kamui says that they were looking to make arrangements to meet up with a friend, sugar-coating the search for Aichi. She giggles and stands from the bench, twirling around before stopping and claiming with a sweet tone that Kamui won’t be able to meet that friend. Suddenly on edge about the implication of her words, Kamui faces her to get answers, she introduces herself as Rati Curti and confirms that she knows Aichi and she won’t let Kamui split them up, intending to cut him down inside her Imaginary Fairy Prison. Much like the last effort, attempts at acquiring answers are met with vague comments and jests from the girl, whose demeanour sends chills racing down Kamui’s spine – furthering his worries if the personalities around Aichi are all so warped. Despite his best efforts, Kamui struggles to stand his ground and Rati decimates his Nove Grapplers, dealing her own brand of Judgement. Once the vines untangle their pocket dimension, Rati picks up the box of doughnuts, sweetly thanking Kamui for them and scurries off, leaving her battered adversary kneeling behind her.

Misaki reflects on Kourin’s attitude throughout the Link Joker campaign and wonders what she could be up to, if she’s also vanished but without any apparent erasure of her being. Her memories circulate around Kourin’s venom towards the others during their fight and how, even afterwards, she seemed torn between who to stand behind. The more she considers it, the more troubled she feels. That’s when she gets the call from Kamui that there’s another of Sera’s people lurking around, and tells her to be vigilant, in case she were to slip into Card Capital some time.

Naoki skips school the next day to venture to Fukuhara (which prompt Shingo and Maki to get into contact with Misaki over), pulling Suiko aside. He questions why she isn’t more concerned about Kourin, after promising Rekka they would become more like a family. To which Suiko does admit she’s quite concerned, but she’s running out of ideas as to how she can locate her sister, who has cut all contact. She admits that after Takuto, they were worried that their family was beginning to unravel and fears that Kourin has initiated just that, leading to Suiko’s reluctance to worry Rekka by pulling out all the stops to find their sister. Naoki finds himself astonished that Suiko’s softened so much, how far she’s opening up as a person after trying to play the mysterious harbinger of news in the past, after what he heard of her prior, and assures her she’s doing the right thing – he was simply ignorant of the pressure she must have been under, with the Tatsunagi family being torn apart as they are. He assures her that he intends to bring Kourin back, both for her sisters and the Cardfight Club to repair.

In the far-off lair under a starry sky, Sera apologizes that he had been caught by the enemy and sparked their retaliation. The quartet, with Pennyworth also present, discuss the leak in memories which collected Aichi’s closest friends, dismayed that Blaster Blade had, not only escaped, but thrown a wrench into the works so effectively. Between them, the gathering comes to the conclusion that it was perhaps bound to happen, but after dealing with the problem once before, they’re in prime position to stop the enemy in their tracks again – once and for all. Sera looks in the direction of the towering throne under the looming Earth where Aichi’s body is, and muses with a smirk that he’s certain it’ll all work out.

On her way to catch Naoki, Misaki happens upon the Anjou siblings. Tokoha hurries towards her, thanking her for handling the Reverse plague. Misaki hesitates and asks vaguely about when they first met, hoping Tokoha might stumble onto an inconsistency, but the girl claims it had all been Misaki who assured her. Mamoru also thanks her for helping them, and relays his being a follower of the Q4 members’ fabricated campaigns, of sorts, throwing in that Tokoha has been eager to drop by Card Capital some time. It’s news which Misaki welcomes, and they part apparently cheerfully, though once away, she grapples with the impact of losing someone important, when she’d sworn not to face that very same fate again. At Miyaji, Maki wonders if everything’ll be alright, with how strangely things around Naoki are, Akari assures her that Misaki’ll handle it and invites her and Shingo to share lunch, to keep themselves busy and for some company. Maki hesitates, unsure why the others are reaching out to her after she Reversed them; which isn’t a big deal according to Akari, because she was in such a lonesome place. Shingo bolsters the points by reminding her that they fought because they wanted to help her, then pauses because he feels as though there was something else to it, but can’t put his finger on it.

Misaki finally locates Naoki, relaying that Shingo and Maki were asking about him, leading to a synopsis of their witnessing his fightwith Pennyworth and what they’re doing to help him preserve the Cardfight Club’s room. Its while theyre putting their heads together that a third enemy makes himself known before them – one with an apparent vengeance against his fellow man. Naoki and the man, Neve, do battle, with Misaki standing by. Miwa and Kai look over their decks at the latter’s home, wondering what more they can do to strengthen themselves against the enemy, who appear to have mastered the Legion mechanic; Miwa receives a call from Misaki, but it serves only for them to listen in. Naoki gets no further in acquiring answers; which serves only to aggravate him even more. At some point during the fight, Neve twists the knife by alluding to seeing Aichi in a similar position, goading Naoki by pushing him into a corner and waiting for him to look the very same as he did. Whatever the meaning behind his words, it crosses the line for Kai who takes off, with Miwa scrambling after him. Equally fired-up, Naoki throws everything he can think of against Neve’s Metalborgs in hopes of making some headway on the team’s behalf, all apparently in vain as Neve seems to have as little problem dispatching him as his colleagues prior. Misaki asks about Kourin; if their enemy has anything to do with her apparent disappearance, but gets no answer to suggest she’s involved. Neve makes clear his frustrations that the group are opposing what would be best for the sake of the world; another cryptic message which leaves Naoki and Misaki scratching their heads, as he refuses to elaborate. Just as Kai and Miwa arrive, Neve takes his leave, leaving them with his malicious feelings towards other humans and the irony that his duty with the Quatre Knights counters them.

Worse for wear, the four retreat to Card Capital and mull over what little they have to work with. By the title of the faction, there’s one more knight who’s yet to make themselves known. Kai ponders if it could be the same whom he saw with Sera; something Miwa can confirm, although he never heard anything of a name or any detail which might them locate or contend with him. Which leaves Neve’s ominous words to decipher. Kai latches onto the insinuation that whatever’s happening is for the sake of keeping the world safe, then considers all the power which will have built up in Aichi’s body over the past months, likening Takuto’s warnings to his belief that he himself had been a dangerous force. To counter the measures taken to contain any threat Aichi could bring, Misaki wonders if drastic action was taken, uncertain what said action could have been, but that doesn’t explain how the Quatre Knights could be aware of the situation or know of him in the first place.

While skulking about the streets, Kamui passes the Sendou house and takes a moment before daring to knock at the door. Shizuka and Emi answer, inviting him in once the youngsters exchange pleasantries. The atmosphere is tranquil, although with the understanding that they’re a family member short, it feels somewhat empty to Kamui; at some point, he excuses himself to use the bathroom, and travels to the upper level of the house, pausing outside what should be Aichi’s room. In a safe moment, he takes a glance inside, finding what resembles a guest room more than what it had previously been; it’s a bitter pill to swallow. Emi ascends to the upstairs when it transpires Kamui’s taking his time and wondering if he’s alright. He asks her how and why she first got into Vanguard; Emi ponders her answer and comments that she remembers seeing Kamui fighting at Card Capital, but why exactly she was there is something she struggles to recall. Kamui takes his leave shortly afterwards with the words “Keep playing long enough for me to bring Onii-san home”. It’s a request which has Emi bemused, as being questioned about someone called Aichi is still clear in her mind.

During the night, Kai ventures to Fukuhara and asks Ren for a fight, for the sake of sparring. Tetsu observes the fight, surprised somewhat that the two are simply practicing like old times. Though Ren comes to understand rather quickly that the fight isn’t just about practice, as he identifies Kai’s halfhearted playing, which allows an easily, albeit unsatisfying victory, for him. They share a heart-to-heart afterwards, where Kai gives a general summary of what’s on his mind, without any specifics, after how Ren could shed no light on the situation, though he’s quick to fill in the blanks between the two approaches. He reinforces really not remembering anything, claiming that Aichi’s accomplishments in dealing with Psyqualia and Link Joker were Kai’s, as far as he can recall. That said, he muses that if there’s someone who’s gotten Kai to open up and more like his older self, then he’s happy to know of it, and wishes him the best. The matter of Blaster Blade stands out to Ren, who knows of Kai’s original affiliation with the Royal Paladins, however finds it strange that he incorporated the card into a deck with Kagero, highlighting the mismatch; even if it is poetic of Kai’s character to introduce his original cherished card. Unable to remove Blaster Blade, with the significance the card holds now more than ever, Kai questions what he should do, Ren muses about playing Royal Paladin – he’s never seen Kai wield the Clan he learned how to play with and he can imagine it would suit his quest for redemption after what went down with Link Joker. Kai appears slightly taken aback and takes the suggestion to heart. Miwa, on his way home from a local store, has his attention caught by the movement of something and believes he sees Aichi. The figure takes off when he calls out his friend’s name and gives chase. A short one which leads to a dead-end and ‘Aichi’ discovered as the Quatre Knight who was with Sera. Miwa frowns at having been fooled, but note the partial similarities between Aichi and the young man in front of him. The silver ring on the other’s finger glows briefly, as if to indicate it’s more than a simple accessory. Miwa demands answers from the knight, about where Aichi is and why they feel the need to attack anyone who pursues him. The knight smugly comments that Miwa should know how business is done on this battlefield and engulfs them within his Holy Prominence Prison, reminding Miwa of the consequences of losing; so if he wants an interrogation, he’d have all the time in the world if somehow he wins.

On his way out, Kai crosses Asaka’s path, and asks her to keep an eye out for Emi. Though they’ve grown somewhat closer since the National Tournament, Asaka confesses they’re still not particularly familiar with one another, but jokingly warns him that if he keeps slacking, she’ll surpass him easily as Ren’s regular rival. The quip doesn’t seem to inspire any light-hearted response, so she points Kai in Leon’s direction, as someone who was also heavily involved in opposing Link Joker, if there’s really something unusual going on. He wishes her luck with the upcoming National Tournament, which she thanks him and carries on her way.

In the silence following, Kai has Q4’s triumphs and still future potential front and centre in his mind. Miwa’s fight against the Quatre Knight rages fiercely; between his slight resemblance to Aichi and usage of Gold Paladins, Miwa wonders if it’s all deliberate tactics to throw him off. However the knight appears to be driven more by irritation at Miwa’s closeness to Kai, in the heat of the moment, questioning venomously how he could remain beside the root of the Reverse epidemic after all the suffering he caused. In spite of all that, Miwa makes it clear he has no intention of deserting Kai, and Aichi wouldn’t have either – leading to the discovery of why the knight feels so viciously towards Kai. The Reverse which spread across the world tore many lives apart; and he had seen it attack the most innocent of fighters first-hand at the orphanage in which he grew up and worked. To protect theose children, and ensure nothing so terrible happens again, he’s vehement in declining any audience with Aichi and his friends. Not about to allow much of a defence in Kai’s favour, the knight is quick to Ride Alfred and finish off Miwa, who is left with the worrisome implications of Alfred being wielded by someone other than Aichi. While on his way back from Fukuhara, Kai happens upon a dishevelled Miwa, whose knees buckle right as the brunet reaches him and passes on what happened.

Following Asaka’s suggestion, the group seek Leon out. Misaki researches what she can about the known Quatre Knights through any resource that Card Capital can offer her; allowing her to find Sera and Neve’s histories, although Rati is proving much harder and, without a name, the fourth cannot be traced. Naoki request Leon train him after a conversation which leads to their dealings with the Reversed Ren. Although unable to recall anything other than the world’s perceived reality, Leon agrees and the two begin to spar. With the team busy, and wanting to be able to offer help of their own, Shingo and Maki track down Pennyworth and begin to keep tabs on him. Kai spends his time occupied by building his Royal Paladin deck at Card Capital, present when Tokoha and Mamoru stop by to chat with Misaki. Even though they’re all occupied in their own way of contributing to the effort of finding Aichi, each member of the team struggle with the feeling that they’re wasting time which could be put toward actively searching for him, Suiko gets back to them that she’d managed to establish contact with Takuto, whom has reverted to his Ezel form and searching for answers across Cray. He reports that, thus far, he’s seen no affect on Aichi’s erasure on other worlds, allowing some degree of relief that the problem is contained to one universe.

The day of the National Tournament comes and Kamui finds himself dejected while watching the event when, by all accounts, Q4 should have been a part of it. Kourin remains missing from Ultra Rare’s appearance, which sparks unrest in some pockets of the audience (Morikawa kicking up such a fuss that he gets his moment in the spotlight). While the players in the city have their sights set on the tournament, Kai keeps himself occupied. Wandering into the park, he reflects on the events that have transpired over the past days, weeks and months, bringing with It trepidation about just how much those around him have to face, and how dangerous it’s going to get, as the stakes seem to escalate.

While looking over his deck, a young boy happens upon him, curious that another player isn’t invested in the tournament broadcast by the fact that he, too, is out in the park. The boy answers that his schedule doesn’t allow him a full weekend off to spectate, and becomes intrigued by the Royal Paladin deck, asking briefly about it. When Kai confesses that it’s a work in progress, the boy offers a fight to see how it’s coming along in Kai’s image of it, presenting his own Royal Paladin deck, with units also recently released. The two sit down and exchange blows, learning a little about one another and their reasons for using the deck (even if Kai’s are a little deceptive) - the boy, Shion Kiba, reveals that he uses the game as a means of enjoyment in the midst of a hectic schedule and upbringing as a prominent heir to the vast Kiba empire; aware that perhaps one day in the future, he won’t have any spare time to enjoy Vanguard. Kai considers it a daunting future, but begins to reflect upon his similar lack of enjoyment – much like in the lead-up to Reverse’s epidemic, he plays it as a means to stay close to people, to push himself, and it has contorted Vanguard into anything but a game to him. Still, even after coming to terms with his shortcomings, it isn’t what it should be, and has become a means of warfare. At the same time, as he watches Shion, he’s reminded of the younger Aichi, who came from such different walks, with a different image of the future, but found sanctuary with the Royal Paladins. Kai wonders if, given his life began to fall apart after parting ways with Blaster Blade, that the battle to reclaim his friend and reunion with the Clan, might allow him the chance to return to the right road and find the way forward which suits him best. As the fight progresses, he finds himself simply having fun; the dire priorities beyond the game fall to the back of his mind, even if just briefly, and he’s reminded of the fun he felt was restored after first returning to Hitsue and playing with the people who would come to grow as his friends. By the time the fight reaches its conclusion, Kai is satisfied with the deck, and with a refreshed look on both the world around him as well as his future. He thanks Shion, and assures him that he’ll go far as a Vanguard fighter; they part with equal invigoration towards what lies ahead.

Maki and Shingo’s surveilence of Pennyworth finally pays off and they gather the Mates in the Miyaji Physics rooms, Akari also tags along. They report that they’ve recently seen Pennyworth visiting a totem of sorts, hidden in the shadow of the Tatsunagi tower, underground, and he vanished, leading them to the conclusion it’s connected to wherever the Quatre Knights are hiding. The team formulate a strategy and take off into the city. Shingo and Maki observe the totem, awaiting the appearance of Pennyworth – sure enough, he does manifest as dusk approaches, mumbling about running errands. Through messages and calls; Shingo, Maki and then Akari; Miwa and Kamui are able to track Pennyworth’s route, relaying it to one another and their fellow comrades. [shout out to Courtney for helping figure out the portal totem thing and sparing another, probably lengthy block]

In the midst of his errands, Pennyworth catches sight of Misaki, to whom he gloats about the Quatre Knights’ success and how the Mates will get nowhere, she shows no apparent reaction, allowing an eerie silence before challenging him to a fight. He smugly declines, which provokes her to grow forceful, scaring him into a frantic retreat. While fleeing her, he runs into Kai, and then Kamui, furthering the sense of entrapment. Ultimately, it’s Naoki who corners the attendant and forces him into a fight, determined to get revenge for the torment Pennyworth thrust onto him last time and their unsettled score. The combination of preparation and time to fortify their decks proves crucial as Pennyworth is easily overwhelmed and trounced, granting the Mates a much-needed confidence boost. Claiming Pennyworth to be a prisoner of their own, Naoki and Misaki threaten him with nothing more than intimidating appearances and tossing the idea around of holding him as hostage to lure the Quatre Knights to come out of hiding. In his panic, Pennyworth pleads for mercy, met with the condition that he has to take his captors to the Quatre Knights’ lair. Seeing little alternative, that’s what he does – the group return to the totem, which Misaki notes has not only a Vanguard emblem on its top face, but space for six cards, into which Pennyworth inserts one of his own, and then twists the plate onto which the emblem is carved. A light begins to glow under the group, spreading out into the same pattern as a Vanguard circle. Akari, Shingo and Maki opt to stay behind to keep an eye on things and cover for the Mates should they be gone too long; with well wishes, they see off their friends. Once they’ve been sent off, the three see little harm in reporting back to Suiko, Ren and Leon, as they look to the broadcast of the Nationals to see AL4 in the final against Team Caesar, with a sense of satisfaction.

The Mates arrive in a strange marble corridor. Pennyworth tries to duck out, but Naoki and Misaki’s intimidation tactics keep him fulfilling his role as an escort. He begrudgingly leads them down the hallway. Sera appears along the way, infuriated that his attendant has been used against him and demands a fight. The one who steps up in opposition is Miwa, who had to watch Sera belittle and torture Kai. Like Pennyworth, Sera witnesses how a short amount of time and preparation propels the Mates onto the same level as the Quatre Knights and struggles to hold his own. Using a deck that combines his own and Kai’s cards, Miwa quips that he has to keep the reputation of the Kagero users in good light, and charges through whatever his enemy puts up in the way. His forces decimated faster than he can keep up with Miwa’s newfound aggression, Sera is defeated before too long, and Judgement cast upon himself. With his strength drained from the punishment, Sera scowls at the infiltrators not to get cocky – as any loss will see them sent right back to square one, and then collapses. With the ominous warning fresh in mind, they march forward. Along the way, they find themselves confronted with yet another familiar barrier, however to their astonishment; they find it not to be any of the Quatre Knights, but Kourin. Misaki asks what she’s doing in such a place.

Through the corridors, a frantic Aichi runs, desperate to get distance between himself and the scene behind.In his usual attire and watching over his shoulder every now and again, he finds himself lost in a supposed labyrinth. His limited stamina running low, he pauses to catch his breath, never lessening the fear which drums his heart furiously. Shortly after resuming his escape, he crosses Kourin, whom he’s srurprised to see and pauses in front of her. He asks if she was brought against her will and offers to escape with her, feeling somewhat at ease that there is someone to help should he be caught. Much more casually, he walks to and past her, expressing his hope that they can find a way of helping with things back home. Before he can get very far in expressing said wishes, he’s grabbed from behind in a rear naked choke and is horrified to realize Kourin’s the one administering it, without any show of emotion. All his efforts to break out of the hold fail and within a matter of seconds, his consciousness dwindles. When she’s satisfied he’s passed out, Kourin lets go and Aichi’s body crumpled onto the floor; from behind, Neve, Sera and Gaillard catch up, thanking Kourin for salvaging the situation.

When her silence persists, the Mates have to face the likelihood that Kourin is sided with the Quatre Knights, which pushes the question as to why. Despite the multitude of questions put to her, she seems reluctant to say much, forcing Misaki to step up and challenge Kourin. Aware of the blonde’s grips towards their lifestyle in contrast to her own, Misaki relays Suiko’s wishes for the Tatsunagis to simply continue as a family, to look forward, and laments that Kourin clearly didn’t hear her during their last fight when she was telling her to move forward instead of anchoring herself to an uncertain past. In stark contrast to aforementioned fight, Kourin shows little to no emotion, much like she’s detached herself from the human feeling which gave her so much passion previously. Misaki notices the unnerving air around her, how distant she is, almost as if she’s not human. Kourin argues that it’s best that Aichi stay where he is and she intends to make sure it stays that way, further aggravating the others. Naoki vents his frustrations that Kourin could have taken off with such a twisted motive, abandoning her friends and family – Kourin dictates that she doesn’t remember choosing anyone as either, they were forced upon her. She has one objective: to reclaim and preserve what went missing. While doing so, she recalls watching from the Tatsunagi Tower as Gaillard and Neve met with Aichi.

As far as the Mates are concerned, it’s another cryptic comment. Strangely, as much as she’d determined to get Kourin on a better path, Misaki can’t seem to break through, and with the threat of what Sera claimed hanging over them, the Mates start to feel concern creeping in. Kourin berates Misaki about the importance of a past – criticizing her for lecturing when she spent so long bound by her own – and claims that a future isn’t possible without a past as a foundation to build upon and ultimately comes out of the fight the victor. When the subject of the threat comes up, Kourin explains that a barrier around the fortress is the spell which removes all trace of Aichi beyond its reach; so triumphing over the Mates should reverse their puncturing the power and revert them to the same reality as everyone else. The infiltrators approach Kourin, intending to keep her from withdrawing, however steel poles seal the way and Neve appears in front of them. Neve states that he admires the Mates’ feelings for Aichi, but that it’s best that they stand down, lest more people suffer. The Mates agree to split up to lessen their time in the fortress and take off in separate directions – Naoki stays to deal with Neve, Kai searches for Gaillard, Misaki and Miwa hunt Kourin and Kamui seeks Rati – all with the intention of bypassing their respective obstacles. All, but Misaki/Miwa, are able to find their respective targets and initiate fights of their own.

Naoki and Neve butt heads over their respective gripes with people, but their separating beliefs as to how far humans can grow and change. Neve informs Naoki of the strife his country has suffered – with civil war plunging their livelihoods into ruin, their families in danger and is onlyone of many conflicts which will continue to fester as long as humanity continues on its destructive path. Naoki questions why precisely Neve is doing something which apparently will protect them; he grumbles it was a duty handed to him, nothing more. Elsewhere, Rati and Kamui argue over the value of having friends; Rati’s past was that of travelling, without ever settling and no-one whom she could safely become friends with. It was only on Cray that she could feel some stability, but even that was plunged into darkness and anarchy. She grew distant and taunted the idea of having friends, seeing them unnecessary and temporary – rather than be harmed, she would rather harm, and became twisted in the process of cutting herself off from ordinary feeling, relishing in causing others the same pain which she herself grew up experiencing over and over. Kamui feels uneasy to have heard the tale and Rati’s peculiar personality unravel. Between them, the youngsters come ta consensus that Rati doesn’t possess Psyqualia to carry her to Cray, as she has a reason to keep fighting and no intent on giving up. But that drives Kamui to help her untangle herself from the thorny vines which have become her shell. Within the blue flame prison, Kai and Gaillard come to blows over Reverse; Gaillard tells the same story that he did to Miwa, reopening Kai’s wounds over bringing about the initial Reverse wave. Gaillard vehemently swears to stand by his duty of preventing another catastrophe, and vows to take down Kai to do just that. Between the three of them; Neve, Rati and Gaillard tell the story of how it was Takuto who approached them, requesting their power as guardians if he should come under attack as a result of his role as Cray envoy on Earth. While Rati was quick to catch on, Neve and Gaillard required a little more explanation, and it was because of their individual strengths that Takuto could deem them suitable solders for the job. When Link Joker invaded, they were too late to reach Takuto before he was consumed and the world was overrun by the warped power. They all witnessed suffering and strife as a result, understanding why Takuto had chosen them. And when they could finally converge in Japan, the Gate was broken. To be safe, they sought out Takuto but found nothing of him.

Though how that links to Aichi, they don’t reveal, nor do they show any intention of cooperating with the Mates, despite their united goal of keeping Earth safe. The knights stand by that their method is the only way. At which time, Misaki and Miwa arrive at the throne room and are astonished to find Earth looming over the throen situated in the centre of the chamber – learning only then that they’re on the moon.

VOIDAICHI’S CRUSADE

Kamui and Rati’s fight comes to a head, and telling is own story of being alone, Kamui tries to make Rati see that they can be helped out of a dark place by having others around them. His focus turns to Q4, and the friends he’s made beyond them; as a result, he feels more accomplished, stronger and wholesome than he ever could on his own, by his own strength. Even then, Rati refuses to believe his words, until it turns it on her. By banding with the Quatre Knights, Kamui states that Rati has given into the human tendency to grow close and attached to the people around her, relying on them as a team; weren’t they all required to seal and guard Aichi? She’s not doing it for Cray or herself alone, but for many people, even if she hasn’t come to acknowledge or accept that. Left unbalanced by the news, a hole opens up in Rati’s game, which allows Kamui to charge through and seize victory. Rati crumples to her knees, and then endures the same gruelling punishment that she forced onto Kamui. Resigned to her fate of always being alone, her head hangs and waits for whatever should come after her loss, only to see Kamui’s hand enter her field of vision. Despite everything, he reaches out to her, offering to help her up, as if nothing happened. It’s a behaviour that Rati struggles to understand. She shakily takes his hand, Kamui pulls her into a hug and promises not to leave her alone; if she wants a friend, he’ll gladly become one.Thrown aback by the kindness she feels from him, Rati allows herself to sink into the embrace and feel warm for the first time in a long while.

In the throne room, Misaki and Miwa find themselves unable to get closer to Aichi as the result of a barrier which has been erected. One layer of the forcefield suddenly cracks and shatters – suggesting that one of the other Quatre Knights has fallen. They come to understand that each of the four knights has a responsibility in the form of these layers – so between Sera and the second’s loss, they’re halfway to unsealing Aichi. Behind them, Sera looms in the shadows.

Gaillard muses teasingly why Kai and Miwa might have seen him as so much like Aichi – a subject which hasonly lingered in the back of Kai’s mind. Gaillard presents the silver ring he sports, claiming that he carries Aichi’s will. It’s not an explanation that Kai can wrap his head around. So Gaillard reflects back on his and Neve’s arrival in Hitsue City, meeting with Aichi for the first time; he appeared friendly and helpful, but by the information he’d gathered, Gaillard began to speak ominously about the boy. By the eerie ambiance which soaked the air, Aichi could tell he was in trouble and attempted to flee when Gaillard activated his Holy Prominence Prison, locking Aichi inside the battlefield. Uneasy with the situation, Aichi found himself forced into a fight – pitting Gold Paladin decks against one another. Without understanding why he was being targeted, Aichi tried to plead for an explanation and cooperation. Like the present, Gaillard gave a summary as to why he had been recruited and was hunting Aichi. But the final statement puts Aichi into a frozen state – horrified by what he’s heard, his already unsteady game falls apart and Gaillard finishes him off. At that point, Gaillard reveals to him what the prison is all about and Aichi is subjected to Judgement. Once it’s over, his body buckles, Gaillard looms over and smirks at having fulfilled their objective. Maybe out of spite or for fun, he hangs his right hand beside Aichi’s head, sealing a portion of his willpower – the thing which gave him strength and lured people to him – inside. Neve expressed distaste with the action, and that it might jeopardize their plan, but Gaillard swayed the concerns – if none remembered Aichi, than any sensation surrounding his willpower would be rendered void. The two recovered Aichi’s body and made their way onto the next phase. With it confirmed that Aichi was abducted against his will, Kai’s fury intensifies and he goes on the offensive unlike anything before, even as Gaillard’s own over Reverse lingers. The Royal Paladins, spearheaded by Blaster Blade, cut through Gaillard’s forces and the knight contends with his king, striking him down to secure Kai’s victory. Gaillard endures his own Judgement and crumples onto the ground, Kai wastes little time, recovering Alfred from Gaillard’s deck and then racing on ahead to catch up with the others.

In the throne room, Misaki and Miwa are elated to see not only another level of the barrier break, but the forcefield which encompasses the entire fortress beginning to falter. Exchanging their excitement to have Aichi back as soon as the last fight is finished, they’re unaware of Sera’s presence until he uses his Millennium Blizzard powers to freeze their legs, rendering the two immobile. With it seemingly safe, he emerges from the shadows, gleeful that his plan is coming together smoothly; although it takes them a moment, Misaki and Miwa come to realize Sera is betraying the Quatre Knights. He confirms their suspicions, stating that by allowing Pennyworth to become captured, he brought the Mates right into the knights’ territory where their defeats would be allow the seals around Aichi to weaken and ultimately crumble. Neither is sure why Sera is eager for Aichi to be released; he divulges his family’s history and the fates of those both weak and strong – claiming himself to become the strongest ever once Aichi is free. Kourin interrupts the scene and challenges Sera to a fight, furious at his betrayal. Kai arrives partway through the fight, catching sight of Aichi in the midst of the fight raging nearby; Miwa and Misaki warn him that Sera’s also looking to have Aichi released – which instills concern as to why his objective would align with theirs. Sera beats Kourin, dealing Judgement onto her just before the seals begin to cave in. As the forcefield dissipates, Emi freezes up in class – an act which puzzles Mai. Giving no explanation, she bolts out of the classroom, which leaves her class and teacher scratching their heads, but as she runs through the corridor, she has only one thing on her mind – having just remembered Aichi.

Sera’s arms rise, hailing the awakening of the transient king, but as soon as the barrier falls, Kai races over to check on his friend. With Kai beside him, Aichi’s body begins to stir, and rise from the throne. Unease is strong in the air as Aichi stands in front of the throne, sights fixed on Earth. Kai utters Aichi’s name, hoping to get a typical response from him. But Aichi stares at him with a blank look, his eyes devoid of life, speaking one word – “move” – in a monotone. Two digits extending from his right hand unleashing a blast identical to the one which almost killed him atop the Tatsunagi building and throws Kai back. Gaillard’s words which he told Aichi during their fight resonate – that Aichi harbours Link Joker’s Seed within him Kai crashes onto the floor and knocked unconscious. Miwa and Misaki yell to their friend, and plead for Aichi to stop. For them, it’s a surreal sight to see Aichi looking down at Kai with no sign of human emotion.

Sera hails the waking of his king and approaches Aichi, swearing his allegiance by offering up the Earth to Void, then leads the vessel past their resistors and on their way to the totem. Kourin laments that Takuto’s fail-safe of only the knights being able to use the totem has been rendered useless; where Aichi would have remained contained on the moon, he’s no longer bound by any restriction.

Miwa gripes about the irony that it was a Quatre Knight who proved most dangerous in the end, but Kourin herself protests that it it hadn’t been him, then the Mates would have unleashed the very same threat. Misaki and Miwa place the blame on the knights for not informing them fully, but Kourin snaps back with the question of it they would have stopped if they’d known the full extent of Aichi’s plight, to which they can’t bring themselves to respond. Instead, they have a whole new crisis to face – a second Reversal. As one of few who evaded Reverse, Misaki fears unleashing a new wave across the city, with flashbacks to what Kai, Kamui, Akari, Miwa and various others were like back then, and it sends a chill down her spine. Kourin assures them she’ll have Gaillard help them out and takes a brief leave, to return with him moments later. Using his flame, Gaillard liberates Miwa and Misaki, who immediately hurry to Kai. It takes a moment for him to stir, and the remnants of both sides present find themselves begrudgingly working together.

On Earth, VoidAichi Reverses Sera, who gives himself over to the power, and commands him to spread it (comparing the act to that of vermin spreading a disease). The Mates and Knights return to Hitsue and split up; Kai gets a call from Ren about recalling remembering everything, Kamui also hears from Emi, who tearfully claims she understands what he was trying to tell her and can’t forgive herself for forgetting Aichi. Misaki and Kamui rendezvous with Emi, Akari, Shingo and Maki while Kai meets with Ren and Leon, each giving the grave news that Void is on the loose on Earth. When Leon questions what Kai will do when they find it, he doesn’t give an answer, Leon reminds Kai that Takuto was going to have himself sealed as a means of protecting Earth, but if the Seed can transfer between hosts, then there’s no easy way of solving the problem other than to follow suit. Gaillard catches up with VoidAichi and Sera, challenging the former to a fight by way of activating his prison. Sera gleefully mocks Gaillard’s intentions, with their immunity from the Seed’s transfer by use of their gifts from Takuto; Gaillard retorts that he’ll subdue Aichi and have him put back to sleep so the planet can be at ease. It’s far easier said than done, as VoidAichi reveals his Link Joker deck, which taints the units whom he began fighting with and warped them into the malevolent force’s units.

Gaillard reflects on the events after his last fight with Aichi and his attempted escape – the Quatre Knights explained in full the circumstances by how Aichi came to possess Link Joker’s core, and Takuto’s plan. By pushing him into a corner, they broke down his will to resist by emphasizing on the peril that the entire world could be in should Aichi return. Donning the attire of Void’s vessel, Aichi reluctantly made his way inside the throne room, but when questioned about the knights looking out for everyone else, only then did they reveal Aichi’s existence would be wiped as a precautionary measure. A revelation which throws Aichi into turmoil, and unable to escape, he reached up for the Earth, wishing to be able to reach his friends, and as he did, a glimmer fled the sanctuary – Blaster Blade escaped from the sealing process to warn the others while Aichi’s body collapsed into the throne and fell into the deep sleep. Not about to let down the children whom he cared for in France, Gaillard charges in. It’s a battle in vain, as VoidAichi shows no evident struggle, regardless of what Gaillard uses, aware that he’s lost Alfred. When the battle is sealed, Gaillard suffers his own Judgement. With his prey weakened, VoidAichi raises his hand.

A brief hesitation and his arms withdraw, holding his body as if it were about to split apart – for a matter of seconds, the real Aichi is able to break through and tell Gaillard to run – it’s a sigh that stuns Gaillard, who couldn’t begin to imagine why Aichi would care about him, after all he’s done. Aichi’s unable to hold back Void long enough before it resumes control and Reverses Gaillard, whose final thoughts are of the children he swore to protect. Rati arrives just after the process is complete, Sera takes leave at the same time. Gaillard and Rati simultaneously unleash their prisons to hold one another to their mercy, creating an amalgamation of the two. As the fight progresses, Rati asks Gaillard how he feels towards other people; she’s been mulling over Kamui’s words and figures she wants to believe, even if just a little longer – she doesn’t want to be alone anymore. She notes how Aichi reached out to Gaillard right before his Reversal and how it affected her former-comrade. But ultimately, she asks what happened to his fight against Reverse; he wouldn’t be so easy to put down as the power has done to him, and tries to get him to wake up. None of her arguments seem to have any effect on Gaillard as he continued to crush her defiance until she succumbs to defeat. Both Judgement and Reverse rain down onto her, but she smiles wistfully, glad that she won’t be alone, at the very least.

Suiko, Rekka, Asaka and Tetsu rendezvous with Ren, Leon and Kai, just as a broadcast breaks out on the news about a phenomenon striking various people in the city remescient of that just weeks ago. After the mayhem the previous epidemic caused, the newsreader advices people to stay away from anyone behaving strangely, and police forces are preparing should riots break out. Ren grumbles about Reverse’s revival and the incredible with which it’s spreading; within a matter of hours, it’s reared its head enough for even those unconnected to the game to recognize the patterns of the first wave. Neve locates Sera, scowling that the sinful ways of humanity are the same as ever. Sera claims that if there was going to be a wrinkle in his plan, it would be Neve. Even though he stands the sole remaining Quatre Knight, there’s little he can do, as the matter of Reverse is already far out of anyone’s control other than Aichi’s. The two engage in a fight – for Sera, it’s the completion of his scheme, and for Neve, his duty as a knight, to keep the wickedness of humans like Sera from succeeding.

Escorted by Gaillard and Rati, VoidAichi returns to the district where the totem is hidden, preparing to return to his sanctuary and watch humanity tear itself apart as though an overlord. Kourin blocks the way, livid that everything had been undone and defiant against it continuing. While Gaillard offers to put her down, VoidAichi decides to take up the challenge himself and transforms the space around the four of them to resemble that of dead space. Sera and Neve viciously exchange blows; the former mocks Neve’s attempt at sympathy, but Neve brushes off the taunts, adamant that all he’s doing is his job – he’s not about to see the ill-intent of humans condensed into one form wreak havoc; intending to oppose VoidAichi directly once their fight has concluded. Sera brags about his position in the scheme he’s unleashed – intending to be the puppetmaster which dangles VoidAichi from strings, he considers himself the strongest force to be reckoned with, achieving the ultimate of his family’s ideals. To drive it home, he pulls off the victory needed to Reverse the last of the Quatre Knights. Meanwhile, Kourin tries and fails to overthrow VoidAichi and suffers the same, recalling the moments as Suiko Reversed her previously.

The resistance find Aichi and fend off any Reverse along the way. Ren and Leon lead their respective squads of Asaka, Tetsu, Maki, Suiko and Rekka + Sharlene, Jillian, Shingo, Emi and Akari while the Mates head off as a unit. VoidAichi’s six core soldiers gather at the totem, from where VoidAichi broadcasts a brief message – re-introducing himself as the force which spoke to cardfighters previously through Tatsunagi Takuto and reaffirming his intention of returning everything to nothingness. Kamui becomes alarmed because of the site from which VoidAichi is speaking – the totem, with all the Quatre Knights under his command. The team realize that if VoidAichi returns to the moon, they’ll have no means of reaching him or stopping the spread of Reverse, sparking panic among them. The three parties split up to cover much more area in the scramble to reach the totem before they lose the enemy’s commander.

Anarchy rules the streets, Misaki calls Mamoru to ensure he and Tokoha are alright, after recalling their first meeting. She can hear Tokoha frightfully asking about everyone while speaking with her brother; the fact that it had been Aichi who assured Tokoha previously comes up, souring both Misaki and Mamoru’s tones as they share in the discouragement that he has been seized as Link Joker’s new lead. The Quatre Knights use the portal system to return VoidAichi to the moon and stay behind themselves to further besiege the city. After they’ve taken off, a figure walks towards the totem, resting their hand onto the Vanguard insignia atop and sighing how they made it too late.

Misaki reunites with Mamoru and Tokoha, whose concerns are on everyone else. Misaki assures them they’re fine and promises this time they’ll save Aichi. Tokoha feels some comfort to hear the reinstated promise. Elsewhere in the city; Leon, Maki and Emi come face-to-face with Neve, Gaillard and Rati respectively, with fights breaking out between each pair. Maki contends with Gaillard’s hatred of Kai and argues that if he has beef with anyone, it’s her, as the puppet who truly introduced Reverse to Earth, and she won’t stand by without taking responsibility anymore. Rati meanwhile teases Emi about Aichi and becomes far more unhinged than her fight with Kamu. Emi voices her thanks that Kamui would fight so hard for her brother and try to help Rati, affirming that she’s always been the sibling who took care of Aichi as opposed to the opposite, so she has a duty in getting him back. Unfortunately, all three fights swing in Void’s favour and the three are Reversed.

Sera and Pennyworth find Ren and Asaka, triggering a tag-fight between the four. Naoki arrives at the totem, finding no trace of Aichi and calling around to pass on the message, although figures Maki is behaving oddly on the other end of the line and is horrified while fearing the worst. Sera and Ren exchange blows with their power-hungry agendas the front and centre of discussion, while simultaneously, Pennyworth mocks Asaka for blindly following a man whom sees her only as a sidekick. Reflecting upon their fight when she was the Reverse, Asaka bites back against any claims the servant makes, while Ren makes clear his pity towards a man like Sera who is naturally driven by greed and a lust for power. Admitting that he himself is far from perfect and has been warped into such, he’s growing to become a better person, though quips he wouldn’t dare give in completely and become a mature adult (jesting that’d just be boring). Rekka runs into Kamui, they exchange what little updates they know of the others, and the priority to find and unreversed a Quatre Kngiht, but Rekka gets a call before they part ways from Emi. Eager to see her again, Kamui opts to tag along and they find the younger Sendou – something immediately comes off as odd. It’s not long before her behaviour gives away to the pair that she’s become Reversed, and each offer themselves up as opponents, arguing between themselves briefly about why they should be the one to help her. What they understand are their feelings overlap greatly and decide instead to team up for Emi’s sake.

To counter Sera’s claims about being the strongest, Ren coolly points out that he hasn’t been using VoidAichi, but the opposite is very much true – despite how he’s interpreted the situation, it’s Sera who’s on the front lines doing the work to further any influence, and Void won’t acknowledge him as anything more than a foot-solder; yes, he unleashed VoidAichi and began the epidemic, however if all continuted to Void’s plan, he wouldn’t become the strongest, and ultimately only Void would win. There is no great power from within that has been unlocked, but only potential which lies within the people themselves, undermining Sera’s intention of becoming a force which outmuscles any other. Keen on proving Sera wrong, Ren leads the charge to overthrowing both the knight and his underling, undoing their Reverses without much difficulty. Sera becomes horrified at having been bested by Ren and makes a swift retreat. With the escape, Ren playfully laments that he got away before they could get him to take them through the portal.

Rekka and Kamui’s combined power puts an end to Emi’s Reverse; the three embrace, with apologies and tears. Kamui asks Rekka to look after Emi and prepares to take off, Emi pleads with him not to do anything dangerous – which Kamui shrugs off as fine, he has a promise to her that needs keeping and heads on. Maki locates Kai and urges him into a fight; with the both of them primary sources of the previous incident, each feels there’s unfinished business between them. Naoki finds them in the midst of the fight, requesting Kai step down and let him take over, but it’s a call which is declined, Kai stating it’s something he needs to do. They both see themselves as responsible for a catastrophe when they were both taken advantage of and wants to help Maki move on, even if he himself hasn’t; something more which he interprets as the price which needs paying for having spurned so much chaos. They exchange their likenesses prior to and during their time fighting for Link Joker, and Maki relies once more on Venus Trap Reverse, but Kai meets the relapse with resolve to never go backwards, in turn strengthening that to save Aichi, so no-one need suffer from Void’s agenda.

Naoki protests that Kai needs to go on ahead, because Aichi’s waiting for him. Kai looks to Naoki, puzzled as to why he’s seemingly giving up on reaching Aichi; Naoki shakily states that he’s still lagging behind in standing on the same stage, and blames himself for unsealing VoidAichi, as the last one to beat his opponent in the sanctuary, on top of the fact that he barely pulled through. Kai calmly refutes any guilt that Naoki feels he should bear, stating that because he lifted the seals, he’s made it possible for them to save Aichi; unsure what exactly Kai’s getting at, Naoki asks him if he knows how to, to which Kai nods, but says nothing of an explanation and resumes the fight with Maki. He asks of Naoki to remember the morals he stood by during their last war; how he wanted to search for the Vanguard Kai offered him years ago and the one which Aichi showed him; not to lose hope but keep fighting for that. Naoki stands by and watches the fight, refraining from jumping in while Maki and Kai exchange blows both verbal and through their units, until it ends in Kai’s victory. Naoki rushes to catch Maki once she’s purged of Reverse, she apologizes for causing trouble yet again, but both Naoki and Kai assure her she’s done anything but. They understand that she’s been making amend for what happened. Naoki tells Kai to go and find any of the Quatre Knights and he’ll catch up, which is met by Kai asking him to stick to that.

At the time that Kourin meets with Suiko, Leon also hones in on Misaki, Mamoru and Tokoha. Kourin demands a fight for Suiko, with motivations stemming from their previous fight and resentment not unlike Rekka’s previous gripes. Suiko gladly accepts, noting she had been hoping they would have an opportunity to talk and the sisters face off. Misaki stands in opposition of Leon, who muses how Misaki is perhaps the only one who has escaped Reverse’s clutches so far, and ready to fight in order to keep him away from the Anjou siblings, when a voice interrupts, leading all the parties present to turn in the direction of the source – seeing Tatsunagi Takuto. Misaki and Leon are astonished, after the extent to which Takuto’s body had been Link Joker-infested and how little time has passed since. Takuto assures them he’s alright, and he had help in recovering – as Cray and Earth’s bridge, he feelts it impossible to simply stand back and leave the work on the shoulders of cardfighters. Standing between the trio and Leon, he urges them onwards; to carve their way through the madness and find the end. Apprehensive about leaving Takuto behind to hold off Leon, Misaki hesitates to leave; to which he responds with a smile that he needs to speak with the Souryuu; he put a lot onto his shoulders last time and would like to make amends, assuring her that he’ll be alright.She and the Anjou siblings take off, allowing Takuto his moment to apologize to Leon for burdening him so much by using him as an anchor through which to remain attached to Earth and placing him firmly in the line of fire.

Suiko and Kourin clash fiercely, as Kourin lays the blame for much of her hardship; criticism which Suiko, once more, takes on the chin and accepts as fault her own. But makes clear she isn’t about to fall back and stop fighting just because she’s gone the wrong way about it previously. Instead, she reaffirms her intention to become a more understanding sister and think about their family, not to let herself get swept up in dealing with inter-planetary matters, as Takuto has stepped forward to fulfil that role which he entrusted to her while seeking out Psyqualia. For Kourin, however, Takuto himself is a figure of resentment – as he still embodies their lost memories, and while Suiko and Rekka might have accepted their pasts being gone, Kourin herself hasn’t. Suiko calmly points out Misaki has urged Kouin to live her life for herself and not for what she’s lost on numerous occasions, Kourin emotionally protests that it’s easy for Misaki because she knows where she comes from. But without changing her stern attitude, Suiko asks Kourin if it is really. With the blonde confused, Suiko goes to make clear that Misaki is someone with trauma in her past which she struggled for a great deal of time to come to terms with and will never truly get over, as is the case for many people – Kai Toshiki, Sendou Aichi, Suzugamori Ren, Souryuu Leon and countless others – but for Kourin, Takuto might have deemed it safer to remove her past, to spare her the same trauma; asking how Kourin would feel if she uncovered the secrets of their pasts and was left only disappointed or scarred,with nothing to return to.

It’s an argument that unbalances Kourin and opens up a window for Suiko, who dives in, tells Kourin to stop living in the past, and live in the present, for the future – before landing the critical blow that ends their feud. Kourin is set free and slumps, becoming propped up by Suiko who embraces her and apologizes for having her priorities wildly skewed in the past, promising to do her best to make it up to her. Rekka and Emi arrive onto the scene, the youngest of the sisters racing in and embracing the others as their reunion is finally achieved. Emi is touched at the scene, but finds herself looking skywards, her thoughts and worries turning to Aichi, hoping to be reunited with him soon.

Ezel and Aqua Force go at it with one another; Takuto swears to liberate Leon and do what he needs in order to restore order – noting how he always manages to place a hefty burden onto the shoulders of the people whom he intends to protect. He commends Leon for handling intense pressure so well, making references to the alternative world’s Souryuu Child in the process, although the meaning behind it is lost on the Reversed. Utilizing Grand Ezel’s Unlock ability, Takuto crushes the seals which tie to Leon’s stresses in relations to his clan, his past and contending with the world, allowing him to rid the Souryuu of Reverse and bring him back. With the two of them on the same side, Takuto thanks Leon for everything he’s done and apologizes yet more, making it clear that he can’t stop long, as he has to attain a means to travel through the portal he created and reach Aichi. Leon asks about the alternative world; Takuto gives a brief summary; how Void began to taint the fighters on Cray, how he and Aichi became targets of intense efforts by the nothingness and turn into weapons, both against each other and Earth. He laments that he seems to mess up a lot, and wonders if he’s fit to serve Cray in the role he does, but Leon attempts to lift his spirits by stating it was Ezel who was chosen to, nobody was forced to entrust him with the position. Feeling his confidence restored, Takuto thanks Leon once more and requests for him to take care, of himself and Earth, then takes his leave hastily, leaving Leon to wonder precisely what he intends to do and why he spoke so morbidly.

Kamui and Kai reunite and encounter Gaillard, who uses his ring storing a portion of Aichi’s willpower to lure the brunet to him. Kamui insists on fighting, stating that Kai needs to ready himself for whatever awaits on the moon. Although reluctant at the idea of standing back and leaving everything on Kamui’s shoulders, Kai tries to assure the younger that he can handle Gaillard, though Kamui states Kai had his win over Gaillard, and he wants a piece of revenge for what Gaillard put Aichi through. Kai relents, albeit still begrudgingly. Gaillard mocks Kamui’s spirit and intentions, stating that he won’t lose again, not with his enhanced power and once he’s finished, he’ll tear Kai down. The older of his adversaries bites back at how hypocritical Gaillard is, to have given into Reverse and forgotten the curse it brings, the suffering it caused. The Gold Paladin player scowls that Kai has no right to criticize, being a lead figurein the last incursion, even if Maki claimed to have been the original root. In an effort to wake up the real Gaillard, Kai tries to turn his attention to the orphanage he grew up in; what the kids he cared for endured and felt, asking if he intends to inflict that upon them a second time. If Aichi wills it, Gaillard claims, then he sees no problem with it – they can become a part of the empire they’re building, where they can be protected.

Kamui pipes up that Aichi would never wish for harm onto anyone else; what Gaillard is following is a twisted scheme concocted by something wearing Aichi’s body like a glove. Kai iterates additionally that Void has no intention of simply stopping at consuming the world, but intends to take all existence and return it to nil; something Gaillard can’t protect his children from. While reflecting on all those who would come to harm, and the innocence of young players which would be lost, Shion comes to mind, and Kai can only hope silently that he’s alright. Along the way, Misaki and the Anjou siblings come across Rati, prompting a fight between them; the Anjous see for the first-time the level of stakes; an experience throughout which Mamoru puts Tokoha’s safety and protecting her as his utmost priority. Misaki confesses to Rati that she, likewise, began as someone who couldn’t bond with others after the passing of her parents, but has come much further since uniting with her friends and letting people in, growing to leagues which she could have only imagined on her own. Both fights become much more intense as Kamui and Misaki push themselves to the limit in order to reach through to Gaillard and Rati, They manage to overcome the hurdles erected against them and undo the spell, granting them both a means of making it to the final stage. Rati agrees to help Misaki, who tells her to stick with Mamoru and Tokoha, apologizing to the siblings over the fact that she won’t be able to hang around. Mamoru thanks her for everything and assures her that he’ll handle things now, as they’ve leaned on her an incredible deal already. Kamui and Kai make clear their case for wanting to deal with Aichi to Gaillard, who’s hesitant to cooperate, making it clear that Link Joker needs to be sealed away again. Kai swears that it will, they’ll find a way. The Quatre Knight still seems as though he wants convincing, but agrees to give them the means of travelling there. The three make it to the totem, where Gaillard activates the portal, sending the two onward. At the same time, Misaki calls on Miwa and Naoki to meet up with her; letting them know she has the means of going on after the others – Naoki tells them he’ll catch up.

THE FINAL STAND

Kai and Kamui manifest on the moon, beginning their way down the familiar route. At the totem, Rati opens the way for Misaki, Naoki and Miwa, who leave the girl with Mamoru to take care of. Gaillard reveals he’s been waiting since sending the others on, and vows to stay with Rati; as colleagues and more, as friends, no matter what the outcome. The Mates reunite on the way to the throne room and march together as a single unit, where they find VoidAichi, watching the Earth. The six of them are finally alone, Naoki then realizes that they’ve gotten no way back, so they’re also trapped, so if VoidAichi refuses to fight, they’ll have no contingency plan. Kai confidently announces that Void will fight, facing the vessel with a stern look. In a rare break from his muteness and blankness, VoidAichi smiles, as if impressed by Kai’s deduction and the two ready themselves.

The fight begins and it transpires that VoidAichi and Kai were bound to fight due to the latter’s role in its last campaign, how Kai ultimately resisted and aided to bring down Link Joker. It’s a motive likened to revenge, although without malice, Miwa deems that Void is more seeking control and increasing the odds of succeeding this time. With one of the strongest fighters on the planet firmly under its control, by recruiting another, the morale and success of the resistance might easily dwindle away to nothing. The Mates try to break through to Aichi, nothing of which passes the possession which moves him against his will. Within his mindscape, Aichi’s mental image lays on the ground; surrounded by nothing but vast emptiness. Since being forced back down by Void, his existence has been stripped away bit by bit; he has no memories, no words to speak – which in turn silences his voice – no identity. In the blank air, the view of Earth from the throne room glows; as something which stands out, Aichi picks himself up and remains seated, leaning forward with one arm reaching up, despite the great distance. Around the extended limb, the essence of Link Joker glows. Without any thoughts, Aichi cannot determine it’s anything of threat, or even something different than himself and resumes reaching up, allowing the power to claw up his arm.

In the physical realm, the markings of Reverse appear on VoidAichi’s cheeks and he claims that Sendou Aichi is an existence no more. Horrified by the implications, the Mates reel from the news, but Kai is adamant to stand firm. Kai persists with the fight regardless, during which, an image of Aichi appears around him, encouraging him to keep pushing forward. With the fate of the looming world which hangs behind Void’s vessel in the balance, he does just that and matches whatever the Link Joker deck throws – batting away any insinuation that he deserves what’s happening with the protest that even if he does, Aichi doesn’t. And he intends to relieve him of that immense burden. At the same time, Gaillard, Rati and Neve arrive, watching from the edge of the throne room. Naoki is astonished and then asks if this was what Kai meant when he insisted he’d save Aichi. Kai confirms his fears – the Seed transfers to the successor who triumphs over its current host – so he intends to offer himself up as a sacrifice; he who brought about so much anguish, even long before Reverse, will seal himself and allow Aichi to live as he should have always been able.

Miwa struggles to hear the proclamation; something Misaki notices, and rests her hand onto his fist in hopes to comforting him through the fight. On Earth, Ren leads the resistance, quipping to Leon not to push himself too hard. The Souyruu claims he isn’t about to, though he has to contribute to undoing the mess that he was a part of, even if briefly. Ren smiles, noting how Leon’s more emotionally invested in Aichi and the others than he would have expected; Leon reminds Ren that it was down to them that he and the twins were rescued. It’s simply a matter of wishing to see Aichi saved from his own closed-in solitary world, and the current to last long enough that he can explore it fully.

On the moon, Kai reflects on the happenings they experienced on Cray and wonders if the same solutions as back then will apply now. Facing units such as Blaster Joker and Chaos Breaker, he answers with those of Blaster Blade Seeker and units which Aichi would have typically used, pooling his energies into joining with Blaster Blade Seeker, so that he, too, can wield the image of the sword itself. With the final turn well underway, Kai hesitates with the decisive strike a matter of seconds away, afraid that if anything were to go wrong, Aichi could become a casualty. The image of the boy lingers behind him, urging him with a soft voice. Kai braces himself, launching the final attack and seizing victory over his personal demons and Link Joker. VoidAichi begins to withdraw, with Aichi’s body reacting to the separation of the Seed. With the thoughts and hopes of those watching, and those waiting on Earth, Kai charges at VoidAichi and thrusts the sword forward; for the first time, VoidAichi shows something resembling human emotion – worry – and freezes at the image of Blaster Blade’s sword pierces through him. The onlookers also become still in disbelief, and eased by there appearing to be no physical wound opening up.

The Seed emerges from Aichi’s back, hovering inches from the tip of Blaster Blade and shatters, splitting in numerous shards which embed themselves in those on the moon, as well as a significant number falling to Earth. Kai pulls back the sword, which vanishes, and Aichi’s body crumples. The Mates rush over, eager to see how he is, and piece together what happened at the end of the fight – the truth comes to light; how the Seed was fractured and divided into pieces far too small or weak to do damage; without Void leading them, the clans of Cray hope to manage some form of peace treaty with them and grant them somewhere to call home, when taking into consideration they were forced from their own homes. Aichi stirs, seeing the faces of his closest friends above him, they take it easy, and it’s when Aichi tears up, and begins embracing them that they see he’s returned for real.

On the outer face of the sanctuary, Takuto lingers as in a spiritual form, musing how perhaps peace may settle. He voices his regrets at troubling the kids so much, and hopes that both planets can move forward, with Void’s offensive force mght separate. He questions though, if the image Kai had been seeing was the true Aichi reaching out from deep within. The form beside him denies it, stating that all along, Aichi has been encased within Void’s possession. The secondary figure appears identical to Aichi from the Circuit, although also transparent and with a multitude of colours to the ambiance around it. It claims that it’s a deduction made through sensing Aichi’s Psyqualia, as it has taken on the form to survey matters from beyond Cray’s core – one which Takuto states must have come out of fondness for him. Psyqualia states that it was more intrigue, but it has come to feel more content with humans, and claims it will drain Aichi of the majority of the power within him; not completely wiping out his Psyqualia, but at least ridding him of the build-up, so to ensure that he needn’t require saving, and sparing him the fate of overloading again in the future.

It asks what Ezel will do, Takuto responds that he’ll need to return to Cray in order to help with relations, however before that, would like to prepare Kourin to take over the Tatsunagi Corporation, as she seems to have distanced herself from Ultra Rare. A satisfying answer, as Psyqualia deems it, adding that they should prepare as the Messiah will soon awaken, and the need for Vanguard should no longer apply, meaning it, too, will have served its purpose. The two depart from the moon and begin their preparations for the future. Kai picks up Aichi and the Mates, with the remnants of the Quatre Knights, who bury the hatchet, with no threat remaining.

The sanctuary begins to disintegrate, which prompts concerns given the barrier around it protecting them from the moon’s true atmosphere will also vanish. The party head towards the portal, viewing the opening view of the Earth above the hallowed hallways. Each of the Mates begin to grasp one another’s hands, with Kamui reaching out to Rati’s, and the knights embracing the invitation to a truce. The portal transports the teames back to Earth and no trace of the sanctuary is left. Once back on Earth, everyone reunites at long last.

[insert Neon Messiah, with them tweaks to make it fit the changes since writing the original plan, here]

EPILOGUE

More than a year following events of the second incursion, everyone prepares for Kai, Miwa, Misaki, Akari, Ren and Suiko’s graduations. The second-years ponder the future as everyone begins to consider their lives beyond school and where they’ll each go. Kamui expresses concerns that they’ll all go off on adventures and grow apart by the time he’s out of school, but they assure him that won’t be the case. Shin and Naoki plan a special event for the friends at Card Capital once the graduation ceremony has concluded. In the wider scope of things, Suiko and Rekka continue Ultra Rare as a two-piece group while Kourin has gone through with succeeding the Tatsunagi corporation, as per Takuto’s wishes. Ezel continues to help with matters on Cray, however returns now and then to check up on everyone and report that things are also normal in the alternate world/s. As the day draws near, Aichi finds himself concerned at the idea of becoming separated from Kai again, as fate seems to toy with them whenever their paths diverge, coupled with the stresses of wanting to pen a worth farewell speech for the senior students. He, Kamui and Naoki learn about each graduates intentions with high school out of the way, and where they plan to go, helping to smooth unease about the immediate future. Misaki and Miwa plan to attend the same university, Ren wants to stay and look after Fukuhara, though has no actual plans to speak of, Suiko will tour with Rekka and Akari plans to attend another university not too far away so she can come back and check in on Misaki at any time.

When the big day comes, Kai arrives to school and finds a note in his shoe locker, opening it to read a request to meet in a particular location in the evening. The ceremony omes and goes without a hitch; with the extended circle of friends gathering at Card Capital, where they meet with Leon, Ren, their respective teams, Suiko and Rekka, Naoki manging to drag Maki along. They share a party as celebration over the past three years, where they’ve come to be in the present and ready for the future. Miwa teases Kai on the letter he got during the morning, wondering if he should tag along and play wingman, Kai shrugs off the attempt, shifting the blond’s sights to Misaki, who smiles, as if amused, but also tender in appearance.

There’s some sadness in unknowing when everyone can converge again when the time comes for them to go their separate ways. On his way home, Kai takes a detour to the location the letter requested him to meet at. He stops outside the park, taking a glance at the sakura trees in full bloom and contemplates the significance of the place. When the other party arrives, Kai states that he figured they had been the one to call him out, and sets his sights on Aichi. The younger confesses that he couldn’t even plot a speech to express what he wanted to say before Kai left, but he wanted to share one last occasion in the place where they met, if they have to part somewhere. He gets choked up in trying to congratulate Kai on his achievements and wish him well on the travels he’s to be experiencing over the next year. Kai closes the distance between them and assures Aichi that they’ll stay together, even if they aren’t by one another physically. It soothes the younger’s spilling emotions, and helps him to steady himself. He exchanges how important Kai is, and how much he treasures that day when they met in the very same spot where they now stand; how it was because of that which means he can be there in the present. Kai assures him the same is the truth with him, and he isn’t about to let all that wither simply because of leaving a year earlier, or heading out to see the world beyond, he swears that he won’t miss the very same occasion when Aichi and the other second-years graduate. Aichi asks for Kai to come back to the same spot in a year’s time, when he follows, which Kai agrees with. A year later, he keeps that promise.

#Override #forgive it getting messy and disorganized #it's been three days of power writing and Legion Mate is tough to work with #didn't want to just rehash Link Joker or drag it out because all these fights need writing #and that is not a strength of mine rip #and real world events sent everything into upheaval mode #at some point in the future this can get tidied up just wanted to have it written down and done even if it gets tweaked again some day #aaaaaand breathes out

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