Chapter 328: First Duel Outside the Tower, an Eve You Can Actually Touch
Behind the opened steel gate lay an extraordinarily long passage, buried in darkness.
This long stretch of passage formed a barrier separating the inside of Eden from the outside, so that anyone standing within Eden, even looking straight through the open gate, still couldn't actually see the world beyond the Tower.
The darkness only sharpened every sense besides sight. Right now, for instance, Amano Rei could hear his own heartbeat with startling clarity.
"Don't be nervous, Amano." Walking beside him, Kaiba Chiaki seemed unusually calm. "Though I suppose the first time, it's hard not to let your imagination run wild."
At the very least, there really weren't any giants out there chasing people down to eat them.
"Amano~ Amano~"
In the darkness, Amano Rei suddenly heard it again, the voice of the girl who sometimes called out to him in his dreams.
"You've finally arrived here, Amano."
"One step closer to the truth now, Amano."
"For that, let this sky, the one that has deceived humanity for a thousand years, be truly unveiled to you, for the very first time."
Looked like it was just Eva talking nonsense inside his head again.
But why "for the very first time"?
Hadn't Kaiba Corporation already gone outside the Tower to explore several times before?
But as they pressed on, Amano Rei gradually began to feel a shift in the mood around him.
Kaiba Corporation's staff, who'd started out relaxed and at ease, clearly used to this routine, grew quieter and more tense the deeper they went into the dark.
Yukimura Sawa, the logistics chief, walked over to alert Kaiba Chiaki.
"President, this passage is longer than any we've walked before."
"I've noticed too." Kaiba Chiaki frowned and nodded.
On any of their previous trips, they should have already reached the Tower's outer exit by now.
But right now, the darkness ahead still showed no sign of bottoming out.
They pressed on through the dark for another half hour like that, and at the gradually brightening end of the tunnel, an enormous iron gate finally came into view, one that looked like it had weathered years of wind and rain, grime and rust creeping in through the seams of the door from the outside.
"What's this?" Just a moment ago she'd been telling Amano Rei not to be nervous, but right now Kaiba Chiaki's expression was more shaken than Amano Rei had ever seen it before.
Even Yukimura stammered from nerves. "Pr, President, was the exterior exit always like this before?"
Clearly it wasn't, or Yukimura Sawa wouldn't have even asked the question.
Kurosaki tried to guess. "Could this be a different exit from Eden Tower entirely?"
But everyone stayed silent.
The entrance had clearly been the same as every time before, and there'd only ever been a single path the whole way through, yet somehow it had led them to an entirely different exit. That alone was eerie enough on its own.
Eva's synthesized announcement voice broke the brief silence.
[Identity verification approved. Temporary exit authorization from the Tower is now being granted.]
Despite the unexpected turn of events, at least the sealed gate still opened smoothly.
As the enormous iron gate opened, the harsh, grinding shriek of rust scraping against rust was nothing like the clean, mechanical roar they'd heard from the gate back inside the Tower. The two sounded like they came from entirely different doors.
The dust and rust flaking off and scattering into the passage as the gate scraped open was proof enough that this particular door hadn't been opened in a very long time.
Not until light from outside came pouring in through the steadily widening gap in the doorway did the world outside Eden Tower truly come into view for Amano Rei.
Ruined buildings, just as he'd imagined. After all, Eden's own history recorded that the mainframe Eva had originally built Eden Tower on top of ruins just like these.
After thousands of years weathering the elements, the crumbled, eroded surfaces of the ruined buildings had almost all been blanketed in a thick layer of moss.
The first sight of the ruins wasn't exactly beautiful, but real, blinding sunlight streamed in through the visor of Amano Rei's protective suit, dazzling him so badly he could hardly keep his eyes open.
This was a real sky!
This was a real sun!
Amano Rei, his heart racing with excitement, very nearly wanted to shout up at the sky above him, but with twenty Kaiba Corporation employees standing right there beside him, he held back from anything quite that embarrassing.
But the rest of Kaiba Corporation's group reacted even more strongly than Amano Rei did.
"Why is it like this?" Kaiba Chiaki's eyes went wide, and she immediately snapped out orders. "Kurosaki, monitor the air's contamination levels! Yukimura, launch the drones and scan this against the terrain we've surveyed before!"
"Yes, President!" Both of her core staff quickly shook off their shock and moved decisively to carry out Chiaki's orders.
Even someone as easygoing as Amano Rei could tell something was seriously off by now.
"What's going on, Kaiba-senpai?"
"That moss and those plants growing all through the ruins, they weren't here the last time we came outside the Tower."
"They weren't?" Looking at the moss coating every surface of the ruined buildings, there was no way it had grown in over just a few short months.
Kaiba Chiaki went on explaining, "Because of the post-war radiation contamination, the planet's surface stopped being habitable for living things. There shouldn't have been any plant life here at all."
"The results are in, President." Kurosaki wiped a cold sweat off his forehead and read out the numbers with a shaky voice. "Air contamination index: Grade A, excellent. There's no contamination residue whatsoever."
"The map model's finished generating over here too." Yukimura recalled the survey drone. "The layout of these ruins in front of us doesn't match any of the ruins we've explored before. But it does match one location's layout exactly."
"Which one..." Kaiba Chiaki asked it almost absently, though the moment she'd laid eyes on the generated map, she'd already known the answer.
"The Middle District!"
The building layout of the ruined city in front of them matched Eden's Middle District with roughly 80 percent similarity.
Except calling it the Middle District wasn't quite right. If anything, this city in front of them was actually...
Amano Rei spoke up. "Domino City."
As it happened, the building layout of Eden's own Middle District had actually been designed in imitation of Domino City from the original anime.
Amano Rei had already confirmed as much once before, standing at the floor-to-ceiling window of Kaiba Seto's own office during a Duel Chronicle.
Kaiba Chiaki, having passed through Kaiba Corporation's Domino City headquarters alongside Amano Rei twice now, naturally recognized it too.
"If this really is Domino City..."
Kaiba Chiaki followed the direction marked on the generated map and looked toward the tallest building shown on it.
"Is that... Kaiba Corporation, from three thousand years ago?"
Even though the outskirts of the city were quite far from Kaiba Corporation's headquarters at its center, the building's absurd height made up the distance easily.
And the fact that it was even visible at all proved that, even after three thousand years of weathering, Kaiba Corporation's own tower hadn't eroded and collapsed into ruin the way every other building in Domino City had.
Kaiba Corporation's build quality really was something else.
Everything unfolding in front of them went well beyond anything Kaiba Corporation had ever learned on a previous exterior expedition.
But as President, Chiaki was still the first among the whole group to regain her composure.
And Chiaki's instincts were pointing the same direction as Amano Rei's own, though he hadn't said it out loud.
Kaiba Chiaki gave the order. "Let's head to Kaiba Corporation. The answers to all of this might be hiding somewhere inside the company's headquarters from three thousand years ago."
"Wait a second, Kaiba." Amano Rei cut in.
The reason he hadn't voiced his own instinct was that the whole point of this trip, for him, wasn't uncovering the truth behind the Tower's exterior.
"What about Yu? Shouldn't we confirm where she actually is first?"
"Don't worry, I've been trying to connect to her signal since we got here." Yukimura said. "Look, there, it's connected now!"
Yukimura pulled up the signal coming in from Kikawayu's tracker and overlaid it directly onto the map they'd just generated from the scan.
"Yu is actually near Kaiba Corporation too?"
Amano Rei stared at the red marker blinking beside the tallest building on the map, unable to help feeling suspicious.
If Eden Tower stood at the edge of the city, while Kaiba Corporation towered right at the dead center of Domino City, then Kikawayu, exiled from the Tower, would have had to instantly cover at least fifteen kilometers to end up there.
"Is that even a speed a human being could manage?"
"Amano, let me explain another rule about outside the Tower to you."
Kaiba Chiaki tapped the Eva Terminal on her wrist, and a standard-format Duel Disk unfolded right over her protective suit.
"Amano, do you know why, even after leaving the Tower, we still insisted on bringing duelists along with us?"
"Why?" That was something Amano Rei had already been wondering himself.
Precious exit slots being spent on top technical talent like Yukimura or Kurosaki, or on wilderness survival specialists, that much Amano Rei could understand.
But this team included quite a few professional duelists besides Amano Rei and Kaiba Chiaki.
Inside Eden Tower, because of Eva's own rules, dueling carried an absolute, elevated importance.
But once you left the Tower, was dueling even useful anymore?
"Dueling outside the Tower is the only place that actually restores dueling to the peak strength duelists once had, back in humanity's own history."
Kaiba Chiaki raised the Blue-Eyes White Dragon card high in her hand and flung it onto the deployed Duel Disk.
"Show them your true, proud form, the one that's stood the test of all history! Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
Even without an actual duel underway, Kaiba Chiaki, simply by slamming the card down on the Duel Disk, still successfully completed the Summon of the White Dragon.
"Roooooar!"
An impossibly real, imperious dragon's roar rang out, and the sheer gust of wind kicked up by the White Dragon's beating wings nearly knocked Amano Rei off his feet, caught completely unprepared.
The sheer realism of the Summon, the projection looking every bit like a living creature standing right in front of him, was, in Amano Rei's own words, comparable to the new Duel Disk special effects Kaiba Seto had rolled out around the Dark Side of Dimensions era.
Amano Rei had actually assumed the Duel Disks inside Eden couldn't reach this level.
"It's like it's really there." Amano Rei remarked.
"Mm, because it really is there."
Kaiba Chiaki patted Blue-Eyes White Dragon's tail, and it actually produced the sound of solid contact.
"Duel Monster projection technology, at its absolute peak, had already advanced to the point of Summoning Duel Monsters with genuine physical bodies."
"Summoning Duel Monsters with actual physical bodies!" Inside his protective helmet, Amano Rei's mouth fell open in shock.
Exactly which era of the Yu-Gi-Oh anime marked the peak of Duel Monster projection technology, Amano Rei couldn't say off the top of his head.
But part of the reason for the ruined future in Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's really had been the world coming under threat from Duel Monsters running wild and out of control.
At the very least, by that point Duel Monsters already had physical bodies real enough to actually level a city.
Kaiba Chiaki added, "It's just that inside Eden, Eva has this function locked down, to prevent unnecessary destruction."
That really did need to be locked down. Otherwise any random duelist could Summon a Duel Monster with destructive power on par with an entire army, and things would fall into complete chaos.
And if duelists outside the Tower could Summon genuinely real Duel Monsters as top-tier combat power at any moment, then it made perfect sense why Kaiba Corporation's exploration team would have professional duelists along as escorts.
Of course, hearing about it wasn't the same as seeing it. Amano Rei figured he'd try it out for himself and find out whether it really was a fully touchable, physical body.
"All right, I choose you, Eve!"
Amano Rei deployed his own Duel Disk and played Eve's card.
Along with a burst of cool, flowing water-light effects, the priestess with the star scepter materialized right in front of Amano Rei, a head full of question marks.
Amano Rei reached out and pressed a hand against Eve's chest.
"I can actually touch her! Holy crap, she's so flat!"
Since there was no way to physically touch a card spirit inside Eden, Amano Rei had genuinely been curious about this.
Now that his curiosity was satisfied, even through the thick gloves of his protective suit, Amano Rei could still feel just how firm it was.
Not a hint of softness anywhere, nothing but pure, unyielding hardness straight from bone. The Iron Board Priestess really lived up to her name!
Fuming, Eve smacked Amano Rei with her staff. "You creep!"
But with an ATK stat of zero, even with a genuine physical body now, Eve's retaliation didn't hurt in the slightest.
Now that it was confirmed Duel Monsters could become fully physical outside the Tower, the sudden, high-speed way Kikawayu had ended up near Kaiba Corporation started to make a lot more sense.
"So you're saying Yu Summoned a monster of her own and rode it there?"
"That's really the only explanation." Yukimura reasoned. "There's no way a human on foot could have covered that distance so fast otherwise."
"But, why though?" Amano Rei couldn't make sense of it.
Hadn't she been told, before she left, to just stay put and wait?
His best friend really did know how to keep him on his toes.
"We'll find out when we get there." Kaiba Chiaki, already mounted on Blue-Eyes White Dragon, gave the order. "Everyone, Summon whatever monster you've got that's suited for fast travel. Pick freely. We move out in five minutes!"
"Eve, you can fly, can't you? Carry me and let's fly there." Amano Rei said.
"No way!" Eve crossed her arms, clearly still fuming from before.
It was obvious Kaiba Corporation's people had come well prepared. At the very least, everyone's deck seemed to carry at least one classic Duel Monster suited for riding, things like Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress, or Baby Dragon.
Riding a Duel Monster to get around reminded Amano Rei of the old first-generation Yu-Gi-Oh RPG games, off on their own grand Duel Monster adventures.
Just as Kaiba Corporation's group was Summoning their monsters one after another, a beam of light shot toward them from a blind spot among the ruins.
"Watch out, Amano!"
Quick on the draw, Eve swung her star scepter and threw up a water-blue barrier, blocking the mysterious beam.
Sure, with 0 ATK, she couldn't deal any real damage. But 2100 DEF was still plenty reliable out here in reality.
But the instant Eve blocked that attack, Amano Rei's own Duel Disk reacted.
[Duel Monster clash detected. Forced Duel Mode activated. Please recall your Duel Monster card and shuffle your Deck.]
"Forced Duel Mode?"
From the blind spot in the ruins, a girl's voice rang out.
"I knew it! All of you, dressed the same in those strange suits, suddenly Summoning monsters, you're here to attack this city, aren't you!"
"There are actually people outside the Tower?" Everyone from Kaiba Corporation looked stunned.
This was, without question, a far more shocking discovery than plant life surviving outside the Tower.
A girl stepped out from the ruins, her face hidden behind a helmet, her striking white bodysuit showing off a tall, stunning figure.
Eve remarked, "Her legs are about as long as Finesse's, but up top she's leaving her in the dust by miles."
Even though he couldn't make out her face, Amano Rei felt like the girl's voice was strangely familiar.
Setting aside the sheer shock of other people existing outside the Tower at all.
Amano Rei had already been dragged into Forced Duel Mode the instant that clash happened.
Which meant that, even though Duel Monsters outside the Tower carried real, physical destructive power, duelists couldn't just command them to trade blows freely, the way trainers did in the Pokemon anime.
Instead, the instant two monsters actually clashed, it would automatically force the fight into a proper card duel.
No way around it. Amano Rei recalled Eve's card and shuffled his Deck, bracing to duel.
"I won't let you destroy this city!" The girl recalled the monster card she'd just attacked with too.
"Does this city even need us to destroy it?" Amano Rei couldn't help himself. "Isn't it already ruins?"
"I'm not believing a single word out of a terrorist's mouth!"
"Duel!" Times two.
Amano Rei took the first move, drawing his card.
"I Normal Summon Priestess Who Receives the Star Chalice in Defense Position, then set two cards face down. Turn end!"
Amano Rei Summoned Eve, just recalled into his Deck a moment ago, right back out in Defense Position for the duel.
"My turn, draw!" The mysterious girl began her turn, drawing a card.
That voice really was familiar. Especially hearing her say "my turn, draw" while dueling, it left Amano Rei absolutely certain he'd heard it somewhere before.
"Wait, what's your name?" Amano Rei asked.
"You think I'd give my identity to a terrorist about to attack this city? I'm going to stop every last one of you right here!"
The mysterious girl's slender fingers flicked a card into her Duel Disk.
"I activate the Ritual Spell Card Machine Angel Ritual from my hand! Sending the Level 8 Blue-Ice White Night Dragon to the Graveyard as the Ritual Tribute!"
Opening with a Level 8 Ritual Summon right out of the gate, eight stars set into the card's face amid the solemn, sacred flames of the ritual.
"Ritual Summon! Cut down every last sin and villain with your blade!"
"Level 8! Cyber Angel Dakini!"
[Cyber Angel Dakini] [Level 8 LIGHT]
[Fairy/Ritual/Effect]
[ATK: 2700] [DEF: 2400]
["Machine Angel Ritual" has descended.]
A Ritual Monster modeled after a guardian deity from Indian mythology, four-armed, wielding twin blades and a spear, descended onto the mysterious girl's field.
The girl swept a hand forward and declared, "When Cyber Angel Dakini is successfully Ritual Summoned, its effect activates!"
[Activate only when this card is successfully Ritual Summoned. Your opponent must send 1 monster they control to the Graveyard.]
A graveyard-send effect that targeted the player, not the monster itself.
Forcing the opponent to send away their own monster with their own hands. Don't underestimate this card just because it's a mere Level 8 Ritual Monster. It carried the power to send even a wicked god straight to the Graveyard.
But after seeing this monster, combined with that familiar voice, Amano Rei finally remembered.
"Alexis!" Amano Rei blurted out.
"!!" The girl, who a second ago had been swinging her arm forward with fierce resolve, suddenly froze.
"You're Alexis Rhodes, aren't you!"
"Why, how do you know my name?"
"It's me, Amano Rei! Don't you remember?"
Hearing the name "Amano Rei," the girl's whole body shook even more visibly than it had at hearing her own name a moment before.
Amano Rei went ahead and pulled off his protective helmet outright.
"That's far too dangerous, Amano Rei." Yukimura quickly warned him. "Even if the radiation's fine, there's no guarantee the air isn't carrying some ancient virus. You can't just take off your suit like that."
After all, this was the fastest way to prove who he was, and it wasn't as if he hadn't lived in Domino City three thousand years ago himself. What ancient virus was there even to worry about?
"A, Amano, it's really... it's really you..."
Getting a look at Amano Rei's actual face under the helmet, Alexis Rhodes felt her legs give out entirely, and she sank straight down onto the ground.
Probably sensing that the duelist herself had lost the will to fight, the physical projection of Cyber Angel Dakini, only just Ritual Summoned moments ago, faded away along with it.
Alexis Rhodes pulled off her own helmet too, revealing long brown hair and amber eyes, unchanged from three thousand years ago.
In the girl's finely drawn eyes, something far more complicated than simple shock showed through.
"Why... why on earth are you here, Amano?"
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