Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Shadow Realm: Unity ❯ Dark Crisis ( Chapter 1 )

The Central Shadow Realm, or if you are like the citizens who live there and prefer the shortened version, CSR.  That tells you something right there.  A community takes a proper name, and shortens it to the point where the society knows these letters as an entire concept, but what was lost in these words?  Do the citizens still remember what those words stood for?  Or even what words their common letters mean?

Ask someone, and they will tell you they don't know, or even if they do, they don't care.  Deeper meaning is something not searched for in the dow Central Shadow Realm.  It is what it is, and you are what you are.  Change is a matter for the Counsel to decide, and even then, events happen around you.  One does not peruse their own causes.

 To the higher class this is arrogant, to the low ones it is a death wish.  All a monster needs to survive is provided for them.  But there are those few, who stop trying to survive, and start trying to live…

Shadow Realm: Unity

By jkBAKURA

Inspired by Master of Paradox's Central Shadow Realm featured in the fanfic Shadow Realm: Fifteen, with a few minor references to Dark Sage's fic Shadow Realm: P.I.  All monsters are the creations of the Yu-Gi-Oh! Manga and animated series.  All credit goes to them.  Credit to whatever else happens in this story, belongs to me.

Chapter One: Dark Crisis

   Very rarely, is there a story worth telling in the Central Shadow Realm that does not involve their Police Force.  And it was in their main Headquarters that a single being stood in the center of the dark and quiet interrogation room.  From above, one could only tell he was a warrior, and they could also see he was outnumbered. 

   Twelve, in fact, was the number of other creatures around the edges of the room, each an opponent, looking for their chance to overwhelm their opponent.

   The central warrior did not move.  In fact, he didn't even open his eyes, and he didn't have to.  They would come to him soon enough.

   His eyes shot open as an opponent behind him made the first rush.  Nimbly he raised his arm behind him, hearing a clang of metal, as he pointed his blade downwards behind him, saving his pelvis and spine from parting company.

   The others all moved in at once.

   Spinning his opponent's sword away from him, he used the momentum to smack the conflicting blade into the helmet of another challenger.  Turning swiftly, he braced his hands of the shoulders of a third warrior behind him.  Bracing himself, he kicked at the first two, barely slipping over the blade of the third.

   On instinct, he used the force to land on his feet, back to back with the third adversary.  Keeping his arms around the thick neck, the warrior threw his captive over in front of himself, feeling satisfaction as he heard the wind leave from the monster's lungs. 

   Grabbing his own blade, the central fighter made a jump.  And with that he all but disappeared, leaving nine combatants confused in the dimly lit room.  Everyone listened closely.  A confused yelp and a heavy slumping sound confirmed that their numbers were now seven.

        Taking advantage of the shift in glance, the two nearest to the back swiftly went down, now giving everyone a large amount of unconscious bodies to step over.

   Apparently one of the opponents had played around enough.
   “Shining Blade!”

   The dull blue light was just enough not to hurt anyone's eyes.  Looking up, the remaining five found their opponent hanging from his sword, which was planted at an angle into the ceiling.

   “Really, Runsei, I was just beginning to have fun.”

   “Well, I just have to add back the challenge then don't I?”

   The shining sword now held in Runsei's hand swept where the central man hung just a moment before.  The four other fighters held ready stances, blades up, just before he hit the ground.  The man rolled and came to his feet in a perfect ready stance without even a head rush.

   Three of the opponents gulped before moving as one.

   The Central man burst into action, weaving his blade, never pulling it close, he fought from a distance, weaving and swerving like a true fencer.

   The other swung their swords in powerful arcs that would have been finishers if they had connected, but their opponent kept moving, giving ground to avoid the blows his elegant style could not deflect.

   Leading them where he wanted, the figure got them slipping up, tripping over each other, and interfering with each others' blades.

   Ducking under a blow, a sweep kick knocked one on their rump.  His opponent jumped out of the way, just in time for one of his own teammates to send a blade at his grounded form.  Doing the only thing he could think of, the fallen teammate put out his feet, and caught the lunger in a two-footed kick, which led to a critical pause in which the opponent knocked the lunger into unconsciousness, before hitting the grounded one's head to the floor to do the same.

   The third man struck then, only to get the climber's blade through the hand guard of his own sword.  An impact of an elbow quickly took him out of the fight.

   Now it was down to two, and the next one to attack was by far the fastest.  Her sword was shorter, and even he had to keep up his delicate strokes to avoid her getting too close. 

   Slowly he backed away, nearing the wall, placing his short stabs to lure her where he wanted to go.  All too soon, his blade left scratches in the wall at his opponent's back as she narrowly dodged each stab.  Having no other choice, she made a leap over him, just as he wanted her to.
 
   He caught her midriff with the side of his sword, knocking her breath away as he used the force to slam her into the floor.

   Now it was just him, and the one he had called Runsei, the only one that would truly force him to use all of his strength. 

   Blades locked intensely.  Runsei used his own style against him, using the lack of kinetic force to block the blade away, getting close where he worked so hard to keep an opponent from getting, but at the same time keeping the blade spinning in front of his own body, preventing space for a stab. 

   Worse, the light from the blade obscured his vision of the rest of the fighter, leaving him more then once righting himself after a leg intent on tripping him. 

   Now, this was what he had been waiting for.

   Summoning up his true power, he finally let it all go.  This was why he was where he was.  Others were faster, others were stronger, but no one could match his skill with a blade. 

   Moving like a watercolor, his strokes became faster, forming a circle of dancing metal.  Runsei could do nothing but speed up his cycle of blocks, but he couldn't keep it up for long. 

   It seemed like fighting seven swords instead of one.  Looking behind at the rapidly approaching wall, he made a desperate attempt to wound his opponent's leg.

   He was met with a swift downward stroke, the opposing blade piercing his own, sticking it like a pin into the floor.

   Recovering, he felt a palm thrust into his abdomen, and felt a tickling that filled him with dread.

   “Chivalry Fist!”

   The attack echoed throughout the chamber.  Red and black beams of power shot from his fingertips like claws.  Runsei waited for the end to come, and was shocked when it did not.  He looked down to see the four holes burned through his body and stared at his opponent.

   “You didn't hit anything vital?”

   “I do riot control, and sometimes the lower class need something to scare them into line.  You should see the looks on their faces sometimes.”

   The Blade Knight known as Runsei took a look at the battered array of Armails, M-Warriors, and the single Warrior Lady of the Wasteland that had given him so much trouble.

        “You certainly have a way with the lower class …”

        “Meridio!”

        The victor turned to meet the source of the voice, a young woman wrapped in blue, with hair a shade unseen in the mortal plain.  She wore simple sandals, but what she wore that Meridio found most distressing was a scowl.

        She was a Protector of the Throne, no one of consequence in the class system, simply hired help.  With the high crime rates, there was a constant need for anything available to prevent and react to crimes.  Her species were naturals for the job based on their sense of duty, and their hints of clairvoyant ability.

        Meridio regarded her politely.

        “Protector PeeTee Two Thirty Seven Dash See Nine, is there something wrong?”

        “Well, Jack's Knight Seven Oh Six Dash Jay,” She responded coolly, “Only if taking time off from your duties to beat up on your subordinates and call it work would raise an issue with Dupin.”

         His mouth tightened with distaste. 

        “I spent a lot of time picking out my name, so I'd prefer if you used it.”

         “I found mine in seconds and the feeling is the same.”

        Runsei, the Blade Knight, rose to his feet.

        “Don't you worry about me, I can nab him on a good day still.  I take it you were sent for a briefing.”

        The Protector looked to him, politely avoiding the other unconscious fighters around the room.

        “Yes, and this one may need Dupin's personal attention… but for now, Sergeant,” she turned back to Meridio, “it looks like it falls to you.  You'll be filled in, but if this doesn't quiet Forseti himself might interfere.”

        Meridio had his duty, and he knew it. 

        “Very well, I will be with you shortly…Veronica.”

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        Meridio was exceptional, a prodigy among the Shadow Realm Police Force.  He had exited the Beginner's Hall in three days, closed his first case within a week, been promoted to Sergeant within a year, and was still relatively young at that.

        Everyone had him pinned as Dupin's replacement or even Forseti's, and those who had fought him expected him to live long enough to do it.  The one who called herself Veronica however, found him to cause unease as they walked down the otherwise empty hallway.

        Finally ending up at a briefing room, the two of them took separate seats, and waited for their instructions.  The Jack's Knight struggled to find a way to break the silence, but was spared, as a Cyber Commander came through the opposite door carrying a file.

        “Oh, boy,” he chuckled, “You are going to have your hands full with this one, let me tell you!”

        “Skip it, and give us the briefing so we can get to work,” Meridio barked, causing Veronica to jump.  Clearly nervous, the Cyber Commander continued.

       “Yes well, I suppose I should start with this.”

        Redirecting some of his power, the machine began a perfect recording of Dupin.

        “Getting straight to the point, seeing as you already know why you're here.  You both remember the double Uprise of felon Witty Phantom D15-A and the Magician of Faith Tessia?”

        “Surely you have a more accurate identification of her then just a name.” Meridio stated, with expectation.

        Veronica looked at Meridio's expression.  It was not shown in his face, but she couldn't shake the feeling that there was a bit of distaste in his last statement.

        “Whatever she is, it doesn't matter.  The point is, monsters thought it was simply a myth.  Now they have a documented case, and our control over some of the lower levels is starting to slide.  Other old stories are starting to be looked at again.  Meridio, that event has triggered something that could cause the largest revolt this Realm has ever seen.  Monsters are dying everyday now experimenting with new magic.  Cults are forming; we've seen everything from back lot Level Conversion Labs to public telling of the Fusion Gate legend.  Meridio, we are losing monsters to the dragons because they go out on foot looking for Fusion ingredients, and I can't keep my eyes on everyone anymore.”

        Couldn't do that before, Veronica thought, but wasn't going to say anything out loud.

        Taking the large object on his back, the Cyber Commander projected an image onto the blank, although stained wall.

        “One of the most outspoken, we think it's someone around a Level Four, someone who can get the lowers' attention, is starting to get some hopeful.  You know as well as I do that the Shadow Realm cannot support everyone like us, and they can't expect to.  A tip directed us to this meeting.  Now, any hostility and we make their cause greater, so we need them to see this as the better alternative.  You enter, you locate the leader, and you bring him here for a briefing.  If we can have him convinced, we save ourselves a bit of trouble.  Protector C9 is going with you.  The rest is in the file.  Good luck.”

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   As the two entered the hallway leading to the building's exit, Veronica could feel Meridio's tension.  More to put herself at ease then comfort him, she asked the first question that came to her mind.

   “So, what do you think?”

   The sergeant gave her a sly wink.

   “I think I can handle this myself.  A low-level riot is nothing I haven't seen before, and I'd hate to think of you getting into any trouble on my account.”

   “Is that so?”  She stated with utmost calm, “Or is it because that company of my level does not advance your reputation.  You think I didn't notice that we're missing half the GB squad because you knock them out every week for practice?  You practically tasted bile when that monster mentioned Tessia…”

   “M-RD-017,” he corrected, and quite smug that he knew information that wasn't in the file.

   The Protector shot him a pleading look. 

   “Why did you have to say that?”

   He gave a comforting look as they  neared the front door, giving a brief wave to the Manju of the Ten-Thousand hands at the desk.

   “It simply means that you are looking too hard.  Of course the low levels are essential to the structure of this city, but I don't see the reason why they think they need to keep asking for help that they should be able to make for themselves.”

   Noting the hurt look, he took her hand, making Veronica tense up in an instant.

   “I sense the exception in you, however, and someone with so much spirit at your level is certainly worth the time of day.  I do hope that even after this assignment we can get to know each other better.  If you would permit me, that is.”

   Veronica refused to meet his eyes.  Here was a monster whose name was very well known in the police force, and was spreading with each new case.  Her role was mostly to gain and relay information, Meridio was commanding the officers, so why would he be interested in her?  She was a nobody among several monsters who worked her job.  Heck, most of the time she was referred to by her seat number.

   Still the question needed a response.

   “I'll think about it.”

 

“Please do,” the knight said, smiling as he stopped, and Veronica gasped as he slid into the seat of his own Oni Tank.  “We can start when we meet up.  Center of the Warrior Living Quarters would be the best place to start right?”
 
        The stunned girl fumbled for the words, but came up with a response quickly enough that it didn't come out awkwardly.

   “I…uh, guess so.  I'll find a bus and meet you there.”

   The Jack's Knight grinned as he prepared to leave.

   “Don't worry; we'll have this under control in the time it takes for a Harpie Lady Sisters concert to be sold out.  I promise.”

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   Protect or PT 237-C9 was no stranger to the bus system, and as she boarded the familiar vehicle, she found herself feeling very stupid.  Come on, did I seriously believe he would let me ride in that thing?  Still, it would have been a first for her if he had.

   “.Ssimemesuxe',” came a strange chattering in her ear, as she felt her hip forcefully shoved against the side of her seat.

   Shocking herself back into reality, Veronica moved over and regarded her visitors.  How odd that a squad of Toon Goblins were up in this neck of the woods.

   Must be undercover, she thought to herself, Deenine did say mention something about fake Toon World passes going around.

   Unfortunately, everyone else in the bus was now in very close quarters, as goblins weren't the smallest races.  Worse was the fact that they always seemed to move in packs.  The warriors didn't complain however, as the majority of the construction in their area went up fast and sturdy thanks to these guys.  That is if they weren't sleeping on the job.

   Soon Veronica grew very uncomfortable, as the animated monster sharing her seat could now be considered taking it from her.  More then six inches between him and the edge going off into the isle now made her feel more then crushed, she was scared.

   Sensing the fear from the woman, the goblin leaned down to talk to her.

   “?Uoyotputiekamssikadluow  .Ffutstohyrrosm'iho”

   Obviously, the poor fool expected Veronica to be lost in his native language since so many monsters here didn't follow Toonjib.  He was met with an unpleasant surprise however.  The brute puckered up two very large lips, and slobberingly leaned down nearer to the girl.

   Veronica now knew why he had pushed her so hard to the edge, and quickly concentrated her power into her hands.

   The Toon Goblin opened his eyes… which quickly became the size of tangerines… when his lips did not hit the surface he was expecting.  The face he saw was vastly distorted, as he looked through Veronica's crystal ball between them.

   “D'I renoos rettahs ni tnorf fo siht sub!”  The next word she tried to pronounce wasn't finished as it caused her to bite her tongue, although some of the other warriors looked back with a sense of admiration.  The rest of the Toon Goblins were not among them.

   The nitwit with a quartz ball practically up his nose gave a dumb apologetic smile that was obviously too little too late.  Veronica closed her eyes, and felt herself becoming one with her weapon, feeling the flow of molecules and energy, until it was as much a part of her as her own fingers.

   “!ydalyeh”  The voice came from several other goblins. 

        Veronica looked around for help, but most everyone else had slipped to the back.  From what they had seen she could just as easily started the whole thing.

         No one was going to get involved in an  incident that could bring a catastrophe in Toon relations anyway.  And al this was beside the point that no one else on board could have taken them all down anyway.  For now it looked like Veronica was on her own. 

   Fortunately, that was the time that the bus pulled over for the next stop. 

   A single passenger boarded, a rather tired looking Guardian of the Labyrinth.  The new arrival took one look at the scenario, and promptly took out a jagged blade.  The other passengers looked tense, but rather then help, they decided to keep all of their internal fluids… well, internal.

   “Ok, I don't know what happened here, but surely some big important guys like you can find something better do then harass a defenseless…”

   “Crystal Orb!”

   The ball that was a part of the warrior bashed the lead goblin in the face, and with speed no one could follow, clocked all of the others in mere seconds.

   Grabbing the ball again and heaving, she hit one square in the rump, leaving the entire group to fall like dominos, whereupon the new arrival promptly booted all of them out the door just in time for the bus to take off again.

   The newcomer didn't notice.  He was too busy staring at Veronica as she got to her feet, and calmly sat back into a different vacant seat then the one she was in before, this time more towards the isle.

   “Slifer divine!”

   “Are you going to sit somewhere?  That floor is not the most sanitary place to keep your jaw you know.”

   A bit flustered, the new Warrior dragged his feet into the next seat ahead of her, then turned around because he was quite sure that no one else on the bus would be speaking to her.

   “So, what's your name?”

   Veronica quickly snapped her neck to meet his eyes.  “What?”

   He smiled.  “Come on, I can tell, that some one like you would not be…”

   The male felt an impact on the back of his head as Veronica called back her crystal.

   “Defenseless?” she finished for him.  Not that he could answer.  Veronica was beginning to lose count of the unconscious Warriors she had seen today.

   “Men,” She mused, heaving a heavy sigh.  “Why couldn't I have appeared as an Amazon?”
   
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        Noting the time, Veronica quickly grabbed a small bite at the Low-Table Diner.  It wasn't the best quality, but in the low-level warrior quarters, it had the lowest risk of food poisoning of the places that fit in her budget. 

        She quickly tipped the Master serving her, (the Expert carried the tray) and promptly finished her helping of curry, and tried not to notice as a Swordstalker got a laugh from his group of friends by placing his sword at the knee level of the low-level servers as they walked by.  One Eyearmor in particular was limping badly, and probably bleeding, but Veronica knew he dared not complain for fear of losing his job.
She didn't think anything of it.  Veronica was just glad for what she had.

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        Fortunately, the Low-Table Diner wasn't far from the Center of the Warrior Quarters.  Even so, the Protector of the Throne referred to as C9 found herself running to make it on time, something she hated doing as her outfit wasn't that good for it.

        Meridio was nowhere to be found, however, Veronica didn't have to look long for the familiar face of Meridio's sister Regina, naturally, a Queen's Knight.

        She was sitting in the middle of the Warrior Market Square, where most of the lower classes not working in restaurants scraped a living doing whatever they could.  Most were selling small crafts or low-quality magic and trap cubes. 

        The Stim-Pack market didn't have as much of a grasp here, as unlike the Spellcaster and Fiend areas, the counsel member here had no sympathy for low-level bootleggers cluttering up his domain. 

        Veronica looked amusingly at a Wardrobe Altering Service run by a Lady Panther.  She was especially well known for doing her work by hand, rather then using Fickle Tailor cubes.  Rumor had it that this was where Yoshida had his outfit adjusted.

   Not trying to look suspicious, the undercover maiden took a seat beside Regina on the edge of the center fountain of the square.  It was fairly unimpressive, as the statue at its center kept disappearing the next day.  It was kept a pool when the Rock monsters simply would not give up anymore material.

   “I would think that your brother would have you in a less obvious position, Regina.” The agent whispered from the corner of her mouth.
   “Don't talk, just take this.  He's waiting for you already.”

   “Straight to business always,” Veronica rolled her eyes.  “That fast promoting went to his head.  Makes me wonder how long it would have taken if EZ hadn't retired.”

   The Queen's Knight discreetly slipped her a Shift cube, and pointed with her eyes to an empty apartment window.  Regina nonchalantly stretched her arms in a yawn, giving Veronica time to sneak behind her and disappear.

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   As she appeared in the empty apartment, the Protector fought back the wave of nausea that she always experienced when she traveled by magic.  She didn't even have time to get her bearings when she was greeted by a face she could have lived without seeing today.

   “Well, seems that Dupin gave you a mighty fine partner this time Meridio.”

   The Jack's Knight in question didn't look up, but kept his gaze glued to the window.

   “Brother, C9 is on prevention, she's here to help head off any unexpected surprises.  Don't think I can't handle this one without a partner.”

   Eustace, the King's Knight (and what he was the king of clearly wasn't tact) was the third in Meridio's family.  Both he and Regina had gone by their numbers until their brother rose through the Police ranks.  Meridio always seemed charitable enough to let them help in his cases.  It was rumored that he hoped they would die in the line of duty, and thus could stop feeding off of Meridio's reputation, but if this was the case, he hadn't succeeded yet.

   “Still, when you get off duty, there's time for a beauty, Ha Ha!”

   Eustace jokingly slapped Veronica hard on the back, almost causing her to lose the meal she had so rushed for only moments before in the still pulsing wave of magical nausea.

   She silently looked for a language to curse at him in, and being a hired Clairvoyant in a city of several languages, she was fluent in quite a few of them.

   She was saved however, when Meridio re-cubed his Ancient Telescope, and began his habit of talking to himself when he got excited.
   “There we go, Brother, take a look at this.”

   Veronica knelt down, setting her chin at the bottom of the window, as the two card knights focused their vision on what was happening below.

   Several lower level warrior and beast-warrior monsters were walking from merchant to merchant in the square, which wasn't unusual, except for the fact that not a single one was buying anything, or indeed even looking.

   Protector C9 conjured another crystal, and began focusing it like a telescope.  She couldn't tell from this distance, but she would bet the Dark Scorpion's fortune that the majority of these wanderers were fusion compatible.

   “Confirmed members,” Meridio started, Eustace scrambling to get the information down in his report.  “We've got at least eight attendants, maybe more, all Warrior and Beast Warrior types.  Among the strongest are Battle Ox, Warrior Dai Grepher, and… Oh dragon droppings, we have at least one Amazon Paladin.” 

   Veronica saw her too, and this meeting must be important if she was sitting so comfortably next to the Dai Grepher and leaving his arm still attached.  Yeah right, she thought, like they could ever fuse.

   “M-19ZZB you are so demoted,” Meridio continued as he recognized an M-Warrior down below.  Not surprising since he used the M-Warriors for his training on a regular basis.

   As the numbers grew, it became much harder to act as if nothing was going on.  Veronica clung tightly to her police training, as she caught the shards of what had once been a Monster Egg burst from under the hooves of a Mystic Horseman with an attitude.  With a bitter taste in her mouth, she couldn't help but turn an hourglass in her head, and think grimly, nine more. 

   Regina below had taken a step into the shallow pool to avoid being trampled, and the brothers were deep in a fierce poll that they were conducting on who would win an argument over a space to stand.

   Taking a moment to refocus her vision to the center of her crystal rather then through it, Veronica caught a swish of green, and a faint ringing in her ears.

   Smiling to herself, she slipped to the back of the room, crouched in a ball, and stuck a finger in each ear.  Moments later, the brothers were on the floor themselves, although for them it was the shock of the irritating shriek down below.

   Meridio took a moment to get his bearings, as well as get back on his feet.

   “Ug,” he complained, “Who set off the Command Silencer?”

   “Well you know, you get more monsters' attention with respect and a loud noise then respect alone,” Eustace responded, while Veronica tried in vain to stifle her giggles.  Fortunately, their ears were ringing too loud to notice.

   “Who set it off?”

   “Looks like the small guy.  Man, how this guy got so many level fours listening to him is beyond me.”

   Veronica nervously looked back to the window, and had no time to suppress her gasp of shock at the monster who had a wide ring of empty space given to him.  Obviously this was their target, and she barely knew the guy.  So why did she feel so bad about taking him down?


Why indeed?  Man I love cliffhangers.  Well, instead of an intro chapter, we'll just jump right in.  Find out who the speaker is, and why he is so obsessed, as well as how the situation is handled in chapter 2, which I call Metal Raiders.

Till next time, JKB