Umano Underground Slums

Darren knew the fate that was promised to all the Seeds by Chronos, but he really trusted that guy's word less and less by the second. At some points, Chronos felt like as much of a threat to humans as the Reapers were. Granted, he did do whatever it took to defeat the Reapers, but if he was around after they were all gone, what would he have done next? Darren fought so that he wouldn't need to answer that.

Seeing the gumball, he blinked and wondered why she carried those things with her. To be sure, he let his eyes flash purple just long enough to check the gumball for anything strange. It seemed like there was no weird energy to it, at least so that was a positive. Maybe he was overreacting.

"We'll all get there," Darren said, emphasizing she would as well. If there was a way to make that happen, he would find it. The same that he would bring Yukino back after this was all done. He figured the records could be used to fix all of it when the time dragon guy got back to it.

"Meanwhile, you're a walking gumball machine," he said with a small laugh, not making fun of her at all. More that it was good to see her so cheery. This place could use some of that. "What are you doing next, anyway? Gonna train or just gonna pass out candy?"

"Hm? Uhh it's nothing Aoi." he said while graciously accepting the gumball in his hand. "I uhh.. feel like I'm interrupting something here, anyways." he said nervously after hearing Darren's question to Aoi about her returning to train.

Jellal couldn't tell her his true feelings, his depression from failing yet again and unable to help his best friend. He pondered if he should give up, considering how useless he is right now. At any rate, he didn't want Aoi to get caught up in his feelings, or anyone for that matter. It was as though he'd returned to the place he was before he had even met Yukino.

Aoi and Carlos were both quick to be alarmed as Okuri again fell to the ground which while touching was just further evidence this war was going to be hell for the spirit if he lost either of them or others that cared. But it helped that they did show the concern. Letting go of some of the emotional pain was reminding his body just how battered it was. It was oddly relieving however to just feel physical exhaustion for a time.

"Really feeling Karin and Hikari's feet yes." he said in reply to the girl's statement that he was really feeling it. Aoi was so caught up with others that Carlos couldn't help but feel she was somewhat ignoring them. "She's popular around here, what can you do?" he said in reply trying to play along with the joke. Trying to think of things as funny or happy was hard. Even knowing the brothers wouldn't want him to be a depressed mess didn't help it much. Some other strange out of place thoughts came to mind as the spirit's head drooped down briefly. Catching himself nearly falling asleep he shook his head trying to focus on what was going on around him.

"Hi Carlos!" Aoi acknowledged and waved to the resident meme warrior before addressing the others. She heard that little wise-cracking joke about her ignoring them, but she couldn't help being the most popular girl. It was like this back in China too! ... Though that might've been because she was the national champion. Whatever, she still puffed up her chest with pride, giving a cutely smug expression before exhaling exhaustively, remembering the pain of her spine. Curse whoever gifted her with these fleshy boulders. Where's Bashiro when you need him to drop some more wisdom about being an adult- oh. ... Right. Aoi's expression was comically pained instead of emotionally wounded, despite how she actually felt. That aside, she straightened herself out again to converse with her buddies. "I think I'm gonna pass out candy!" Aoi replied to Darren. The walking gumball machine decided that bringing up Blue Storm maybe wouldn't be the best idea, solely because these people probably remember Cyan Aoi attacking Gotem City with a giant Tear Dragon. ... Or maybe they didn't because the timeline was distorted? So, maybe it's a good idea. ... Then again, a lot of people she has met remember.

Man, time shenanigans are confusing.

"Jellal!" The prodigy yelled at him sternly and aggressively, but her light-hearted tone of voice was still present. "Speak your mind and set yourself free! Be free like the wind! You're not interrupting anything anyway, I invited you!" The bubbly cheer spoke to her alter-mentor, truly wishing to help him. He was clearly troubled, and she wouldn't let anyone else be upset if possible. Anything to keep everyone going. Don't lose hope. Hope is dope. To the future and beyond, things like that.

She even added out by kicking outwardly into the air in a comical manner for Okuri, because he was really feeling those kicks he took on the battlefield. Or, that's what she assumed, at least. Then after a moment, she tried to ask a funny question to the spirit: "Is that a start of some kind of foot fetish?"

Darren couldn't help but let out a laugh at her response. When she puffed out her chest, he couldn't help but look. He was still a man, but he only looked for a moment. No negative thoughts, just a gaze at what almost pushed him over had she not been careful. He wondered about something else as well. His mind went back to the tournament where she used Ripple units and she had been using them in fights against the Reapers. He had memories of the Seed Seiyer so of course he did know she once used the Blue Storm Armada. He wanted to ask if she still had them, but it probably wasn't a good time. Maybe if they were alone later... that was asking the impossible. She was too popular and positive to be left alone.

His eyes gazed down to his own deck for a moment. He felt like it needed something more in order to win the war. He had mentioned it in training and Daikaiser said he would look into it. Daikaiser said that... not Daiyusha... this would be interesting. He shook his head at the thought and turned back to Aoi. "Well candy does help at times like this," he responded, letting her know she was well off doing things her way. He wondered if he should try to cardfight someone here. Aoi would probably be the most likely choice. She was one of the strongest in the group he had yet to challenge at least once before, but she seemed like her mind was on other things. They all did.

"It's just...I-mmm. I don't know, I feel useless, at the moment. Disappointed, in myself, is the general understatement. I fought to help save my friend and protect everyone and I just wasn't able to come through like how they've come through for me." The feeling sucked for Jellal, the hatred of losing, especially after how Yukino overpowered him, quite easily.

"I honestly feel like giving up because I know right now I'm not strong to help anyone or anything, though I know I have to fight but I already feel like I'll fail again."

If there was anything that wasn't going to change around the Resistance base it was Aoi's energy. She brought the group together and kept up with multiple people speaking to her and replied in turn. She made some sort of kicking motion probably understanding what Okuri had meant by his earlier response. It was hard to not laugh a bit just watching the girl go at it. But even then Okuri still felt mostly empty. But then she asked a question that got Okuri's mind off of being depressed for a bit.

"A foot... what?" the spirit asked clearly perplexed as he tilted his head at an angle while looking at the girl. What was a fetish? He'd heard the word before or at least he could have sworn he had. Maybe it was a newer word he hadn't learned. Humans were always adding words to their language which made keeping up with them interesting if not a little frustrating. The creature's three tails perked up and swayed some as he tried to process the word. But ultimately his mind drew a blank and so Okuri turned his head to Carlos at his side.

"Carlos, what is she talking about? What's a fetish?" he asked of the man hoping that he had more insight into this.

"Crap! She heard me!" Was the first thing Carlos thought when the young Champion waved at him from the other group. "H-Hey..." He waved back, feeling bad about his comment being heard. "Now I feel like I was rude...". When Aoi returned to talk with her friends, the young novice strategist took the opportunity to tell Okuri about previous his plan of locating the Drones. It was just too good to forget it.

"Oh, about my plan. Look, it goes like this..." He tried to explain, but a cute and funny gesture from Aoi diverted the attention of the spirit. She... Kicked the air? "Chinese custom, I suppose? Whatever, it's cute and funny" He thought. But everything took a strange turn when she asked Okuri if he had a foot fetish or if he was strating to have one. "Huh... This escalated kinda quickly. Take him to dinner first". To make matters worse, his friend didn't know what a fetish was and asked him for an explanation.

"Well..." He nervously cleared his throat, unable to find the right words to tackle such topic. "Huh, you know. The thing where you... And the other thing... And you're supposed to like that... And maybe someone could watch and feel good about it...". He was clearly confusing everyone, including himself. "... Let's say a fetish it's an extremely strong, eh, devotion to something. And please no more questions".

"Bah!" Aoi hissed, proceeding to throw a gumball at the depressed Revenger general, aiming for his head. "No giving up! Nuh uh, not allowed! You fought to save your friend and failed. Everyone's been through that and still going through that here, I'm sure. What's hard about this war is they're hitting us at every corner and striking right at our feels! But! But! Against suuuuper strong enemies like the Reapers, we're not gonna be good by ourselves. That's why we have the power of teamwork - a combined effort! We put our heads together, and we'll eventually succeed!" The China girl gave encouraging cheese to her alter-mentor, punching her palm to emphasize the emotion she was trying to convey. Yes, get up. Don't give up. Jellal needed to realize that his personal failure is a stepping stone for everyone's triumph. She wore a radiating smirk of confidence, grinning cockily to create an air of foretold victory to try and suffocate her ally with if possible.

"If you fall down, everyone will pick up where you left off and pick you up. So don't worry about it, Master Jellal!"

Err, woops.

"Uh..." She paused, blushing with embarrassment. "I-I mean, just Jellal!" The woman waved her hand frantically and laughed nervously. Okay, don't answer any questions about that one, it's probably weird and he won't get it. Aoi needed a diversion! Darren said she's like a walking gumball machine, so she called out to other soldiers in the vicinity, proceeding to launch candy at them as she said she would.

Darren couldn't help but laugh a little at her enthusiasm, but it was definitely encouraging. He was happy to see her picking up Jellal and putting him into shape. When they fought before it was a tight battle, so hearing him say he was a failure and that he wanted to give up bothered him a little. Luckily she seemed to get those thoughts out of his head. "I guess I can't give up anytime soon either," he said as a joke. Of course he couldn't quit. He was one of the last who would ever have that luxury.

"I suppose you're right but... I don't know Aoi." He said while holding his forehead after a gumball had impacted off of it. While looking down at the bright candy on the floor, Jellal was so bonded by his negative thoughts he wasn't sure how to really respond to Aoi or to convince himself that she was right. Normally he would look at his vanguard deck but he couldn't bring himself to even stare at the cards, especially since those were the ones Yukino lent him for the time being.

"I think I just need some time is all. I understand what you're saying but it's more than just me losing: it means I couldn't help my friend after all the times she's helped me! And to have other people pick up where I left off, just means I was unable to finish what I started and that I couldn't clean up my own mess." He clenched his fist really tight and his usually bright blue eyes showed nothing but a blind fury surrounded by shame and disappointment.

Carlos' explanation of fetishes wasn't helping Okuri's understanding at all. Apparently there were two things you were supposed to like that someone else might enjoy watching. Then he revised it to be a strong devotion to a thing and asked the conversation end there. This was more perplexing than any of his initial thoughts. He was devoted to several things. Were those all fetishes? Why wasn't the term used more commonly then? And why would Aoi suggest getting kicked several times would be the start of his devotion to feet? All of this confusion and more played out across his face as he attempted to make sense of what Carlos had told him.

"That... I... That works I suppose. Thank you for the explanation?" he concluded in confusion deciding the whole affair to be too utterly complicated to bother pursuing for the moment. His attention was next drawn to quite the motivational speech from Aoi. To still have this much hope for the battles ahead was quite something but it didn't seem insincere by any means. She felt if they stuck together and fought together they could see it through and win. It was a nice thought though one that allowed Okuri to slip back into the emotional and mental stupor he'd been in just prior to this conversation starting. That didn't have long to last before Aoi began throwing candy at everyone. Getting hit in the face with a piece of sugar or two certainly redirected one's attention.

He might have contributed more to the conversation but fatigue was taking hold. He needed to rest and so surrounded by those in the resistance he'd come to know he put his head down. "I haven't lost everyone." he said quietly with the same weak but hopeful smile on his face. It wasn't long at all before sleep took him amidst the rest of the group talking. His slowed deepened breathing would serve as background noise to the group. For now he would rest not knowing when next they'd have to fight.

"This isn't your own mess, this is everyone's mess." Aoi began, turning back to her mentor after throwing out sugar. "Those guys... are way too strong for us to be able to handle by ourselves. Helping your friend alone might be impossible, I think. But you can help her if you fight her with others. It took a lot of you to fight the ex-commander, but you all slowed her down a lot! She would've done way more damage otherwise!" She cheered, trying to soothe Jellal while bringing him down to the cruel reality: fighting against the drones and the Reapers alone is suicide. Yet, if Nemesis wasn't preoccupied with the four people she fought and Aedan's sacrifice (that she wasn't aware of him fighting her), the twisted blade of transcendence would have surely steamrolled even more of them. "We'll get 'em, don't you worry. Whenever I was down you'd-- err. Uh... Someone close to me would always pat me on the back, telling me it's never hopeless unless you want it to be. If you want to help your friend, then you don't want it to be hopeless!"

Those words were imparted unto her by the Jellal of another timeline who took her under her wing, who stated another close friend who played Great Nature told him those words.

Maelstrom gazed at the alternative version of his vanguard... longingly. His voice would probably not reach him, and Blaster Dark's was probably more valued at the moment.

"... Even so..." Maelstrom quietly whispered.

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A few grunts were messing around with some tech, reading signals about Japan. Most notably: they were looking into the power spikes identified to be Nemesis and Solis. Where was the energy coming from? Before that could be probably answered, the largest monitor's image devolved to static. Eldritch hissing and whispering was heard, striking fear into their hearts. The Reapers got into their machinery too?! They tried calling for someone, but then they realized Commander Haruka was still out from HQ. Lovely.

The image of Nemesis appeared, and the super weapon let loose eldritch garble in the sound of a robotic roar. This roar echoed across the district.

Nemesis stood next to Solis on the screen, and multiple screens across Umano via holographic technology began to pop up. The android stood quietly next to the God of the Sun after roaring, the two strongest Reaper drones viewing the enemy with menacing auras and violent gazes.

"Greetings, warriors who defy the end", Solis spoke with hostility, along with the utmost respect for these brave foes. Aoi and other soldiers looked up, panic settling into several from the drones hacking into their machines. "We're approach the final bout, and you all have come very far. Too far, even. ... I want nothing more than to save you all, and I refuse to stand down to let you all march forward into the future of endless despairities and chaos. As such, we drones will end this. We will all meet in fair combat within a single day in time. The Amusement Park will be the start of our battlefield, and all of us will use absolutely everything possible at our disposal, stretching out to your entire city.

... I'll test your faith in an uncertain future myself, alongside those who accept the Gods of Death, and your own miracle."

Solis motioned to Nemesis after his challenge to a wide-scale war between humanity and humanity. Man versus man. The trump card of Star-vaders had no input, only standing as an emotionally distressing figure for the adversary. The God of the Sun and the Chosen Sword of Void were very clearly the most powerful threats just by the sight of them in the hologram, as the power they were emitting was so immense it was being transmitted. Despite this, Solis spoke as if giving the Resistance a chance to prove themselves. This flame wielding monster who believed existence's end is salvation-- could he be convinced of a future worth believing in? Regardless, the transmission ended.

The Resistance began scrambling to find out where the signal came from and to inform Commander Haruka.

Riko sighed and walked to the healing room and looked at the injured people. He didnt linger long befroe walking off and exsploring the rest of the place all the while thinking of what he wanted to do when he heard the message. He frowned and took out his phone. "To save us is to strong to say. THe batle won't be pointless." He said to himself as he sent a text to Xat telling her what was happing and were the showdown will take place before putting it away deciding that he will be part of this fight.

Darren was about to say something to Aoi about how she doesn't have to hold back her identity at this point, but hearing Solis' voice stopped everything. His eyes flashed purple as he looked up and listened to his words. Save them? Did he believe destruction was the only way they could be saved? He wouldn't allow that kind of thinking to continue. The Amusement Park. He had to be sure he was ready.

"I'm gonna go train!" Darren called out as he started to walk away. However, he wasn't going to the training area this time. He knew he would need to be ready after fighting Solis before. Worse yet, his power allowed him to sense that he had become stronger in a short time. He and Nemesis both. He needed to be ready. No one else knew what they were dealing with properly except him. At least he thought that, but the technology Raiden developed was actually accurate at depicting energy signatures.

"One way or another this is ending... I'm making sure I'm strong enough to show him the future won't end in despair!"

"I suppose you're right but... I just need some time to think right now." He looked down from Aoi's motivational expression and into his hands, finally turning back up to Aoi. "Thank you for your words Aoi, though, I dunno. I'm still..." Afraid? Scared? Ashamed? Disappointed? He couldn't decide which one of these words would best describe his current state. He turned away and took a step away from everyo- Huh?

Jellal's chain of thought was broken by the transmission from the enemies, including Yukino herself or rather Nemesis. He got chills and began to actually be afraid for the first time in a long time, especially regarding certain black dragons. Hearing that the next upcoming battle was taking place at the Amusement park was not very pleasant to the ears for anyone involved, especially Jellal. "Another chance or another failure?" He sighed at the end of the transmission and continued about his way towards.

"It's not worth me being there." he said calmly. "They have the power to save the world and her. I don't."

Aoi was clearly distraught, the sheer power the two emitted was immense... and kind of like those of the Seeds? It was unknown to her, but at the very least, Yukino Espoir was a Singularity Point. A being that "surpassed" time, or rather, is now "ignored" by it. Solis' aura was incredibly similar, but the two weren't entirely like the Seeds. ... Was Solis... in fact...?

The scrambling of the militia was distressing, and it upset Aoi too. The chaos was a lot to witness within an instant of the enemy declaring a duel to the end, and she was getting a bit shoved around by those rushing about. Even Darren ran off, but Jellal was going off, and she heard him clearly. He said "It's not worth me being there".

...

"Master Jellal!" Aoi shouted, making a decision. She won't let him sink into despair forever, no. She won't let anyone do that as long as she's here. As long as she can do something. Maelstrom was probably wanting to see his first Vanguard anyway. "Hey! Jellal! Let's get out of this craziness and have a game! Cardfight me!" The prodigy called out to with a challenge.

Blue Storm's leader... the dreadnought dragon before Haruka, Thavas, and Lambros...

... Right now, his spirit will--

Darren stopped at the sound of the word 'Cardfight'. He turned to her and held up his deck. His aura flared, revealing his Seed power to Aoi so she understood what he was. He looked at her and gave a small grin and said, "Why don't you fight with me first? Showing our abilities here will probably help the morale of these guys. Jellal included. Besides, it beats training on my own. Your choice though..." He seemed serious but at the same time not threatening as if he wanted to hurt anyone. He honestly didn't want to harm Solis, just stop him.

"Hm? Why exactly do you want to fight me Aoi?" He said after turning to her, seeing her resolved to help comrade. Even so, whatever the reason she wants to fight, can Jellal actually fight now?

"... Another time, Darren. Right now, Master Jellal needs sense beaten into him directly!" Aoi unfortunately had to turn Darren down for the time being, but gave him a thumbs up. The little student prodigy to Jellal Kisaragi of another time owed him basically her life. Because of him, she became who she is now, even after being reincarnated with no memories initially. A debt to be repaid, surely. "I want to fight you to show you proof you and the rest of us can overcome. That you can make it." Was the response to Jellal himself, wearing a smile of confidence, even though pressured by the bustling movements of the Resistance. There was an absolute certainty in her heart: the sight of the legendary Tear Dragon's spirit would ignite a fire in his soul that has barely burned for what seems to be a long time now.

The protege was the only one who can help her mentor.

That's what she thought.

Seifer left the beach, returned here... why exactly? Oh, that's right. The base here was sure to have something to cover his damaged right eye. Stopping just short however of being in the line of sight for the three gathered, he watched. It seemed that... Aoi was challenging Jellal? For whatever reason, Seifer stayed back leaning against a nearby wall to watch and see how it played out.

"I..." Jellal recalled the last fight he had with Aoi, his Revengers vs her Ripple Legion, which he found enjoyable. Hearing her words convinced him of taking her up on her offer.

"Very well, we can play."

Darren gave her a grin and took a few steps forward before he stopped. "If he accepts your challenge then it will be something worth seeing," he said as he stepped stopped, then turned to Jellal. "That said, its clear to see he's afraid of failing again. If he can't get over that in time, then he's better off passing his Revengers to someone willing to fight. No disrespect intended, but you'd just get hurt if you fought without the belief you can make a difference." All they had now was hope, and those who fought believing they could only lose would end up like those at Tokyo Tower. He didn't need anything else like that happening if it could be avoided.

Seeing him accept the challenged, his words ended there. He gave a small nod to Aoi and crossed his arms. This was a battle he wanted to see.

Jellal moved to a fight table and pulled out his Shadow Paladin deck, opposite of Aoi. His disciple from another timeline was determined to prove that he is wrong about his doubts, although Jellal wasn't exactly sure why or how she was going to go about doing so.

Both of them stood their vanguards, Revengers vs what appeared to be Blue Storms, the faction led by the Blue Storm Dragon Maelstrom. Jellal and Aoi traded grade 2 rushes at each other, although Jellal rode his grade 3 Raging Folm Dragon, he started assaulting Aoi's rear guards, crippling her field formation or an attempt to. On Aoi's turn, she announced that this was the power that carried her this far, the power of her dear Master Jellal and the next moment blew Jellal's mind.

"Blue Storm Dragon, Maelstrom!" His legendary dragon, his old partner, here fighting against him in the hands of Aoi. Jellal was mixed with emotions, that Maelstrom was still alive and was not erased from the ages of time and history. Still, the presence of his partner was not enough to snap Jellal back into his regular self, claiming he was unworthy of the power of the dragon since he could not find him all this time up til now. Maelstrom himself spoke a few words into his rediscovered partner and kept picking at Jellal's childish ideals of having to be worthy and his depression. Both players continued to trade blows with each other with Jellal banking on a failed limit break due to lack of a persona copy. He then rode Phantom Blaster Abyss and performed Legion, while at the same time catching up and listening to both Maelstrom and Aoi, slowly reigniting his spark. He unleashed a devastating combination attack of the Phantom Blaster Rising and recovered hand while also pushing Aoi to 5 damage. Aoi took her turn and shared her story of not having the potential to obtain Glory and instead found a new form for Maelstrom, and unleashed it against Jellal. Triggering Maelstroms new break ride and cross-riding it into Maelstrom Reverse, Aoi single-handedly annihilated Jellal's formation and dropped his guard significantly while also building hers back up through numerous draw skills via the limit breaks. Jellal's chance of victory was very slim and he was in a position where he could just give up but Maelstrom had asked: "Are you going to quit?". Jellal refused and was asked yet another question: "Have you noticed your spark return?" It was a question he couldn't answer at the moment, being in the middle of the fight but he kept it in his mind while he made 2 attacks on Maelstrom, both blocked. Maelstrom Reverse attacked again along with the rest of Blue Storm, forcing Jellal down to his last card. Before Aoi drove check, needing only 1 trigger to seal the deal, Maelstrom asked once more if he noticed his spark. "I'll let you know after she drive checks." She continued and got a trigger, making her final rear able to hit Jellal. He took his damage silently but he wasn't bummed about it. To Jellal, that was the most experiencing fight he's ever gotten, he cleared his doubts and relearned what it meant to have hope in his own power, for it was his own power (alternate timeline or not) that made Aoi into the person whom she is, and whom opened Maelstrom's eyes, along with many other feats. He was very grateful for both Maelstrom and Aoi and would've liked to chat more but he knew he needed to seek more power and to get motivated even more, as per instructed by the Blue Marine Dragon.

"Glad to see you're back to normal." Jellal noticed the dark clad knight standing beside him, his aura resonating from his deck once more.

"Where were you at?" Jellal asked Blaster Dark.

"I uhhh... Look, I'll be honest. I hate when you're mopey. I thought you were gonna disappear into another dark coma for a few years again, so I kinda bailed." he said with the utmost seriousness. Seriously? He was gonna ditch Jellal? But then again who could blame him.

"I know, and I'm sorry, for how I was." Blaster Dark looked at Jellal's eyes and shrugged. "I honestly felt that you would considering how I was acting. That I may not be worthy as your partner for failing."

"Yeah that's... understandable but like Maelstrom said, 'We' don't decide that, 'You' decide that with your own power." It's always been like that. Jellal chose which power he wanted and which ones he didn't, whichever one he chose to aid him throughout his journey. Wait...

"You...heard Maelstrom?"

"Um? Duh? I'm always a part of you, so I know your thoughts and etc. We're connected. I'm actually kinda glad he snapped some sense into you. But let me ask you, Jellal Kisaragi." Blaster Dark got really close to Jellal and pointed his sword to the ground with both hands on top of the hilt. "Are you sure you want to fight? Can you and will you fight? Regardless of the results: for the people who need protecting, the people who need saving, and the people who need to be defeated?" Jellal looked at the palms of his hands and recalled every emotion he's ever felt within the past few days: anxiety, fear, shame, disappointment, excitement, determination, joy, happiness, sadness, guilt, despair, hope. His mouth opened as Blaster Dark and anyone near him who may have been waiting for him to answer.

"I can still fight. I will fight, because there's no other choice! There never was before when this all started, so this is all I can do! He said loudly and full of pride. "Even if I constantly lose over and over, no matter who or what I face, I'll continue fighting. Even if my body breaks and turns to dust, fighting is what I must do. Even if it feels like I wanted to give up, I always knew I had to get back up and fight! But I was so afraid of failing again, that I didn't know what to do or how and why I should I believe in myself! But like what Aoi and Maelstrom told me, I have to believe in my power! I can't allow myself to get consumed like that ever again!

Nicely said. Jellal poured every ounce of his being to force those out of his mouth, no, from his heart and soul. Blaster Dark smirked just a tad bit. He took both hands off of his sword and reached out to Jellal. "Hand out your deck then." Jellal took out his Shadow Paladin deck and placed it in the palm of his hands to which Blaster Dark slammed his blade into it. Dark purple like energy swirled around it as the sounds of faint screams and dragon roars flowed from the streams of purple mist into the sides of the deck, only to be consumed entirely and ignite a black aura around the cards with the visible back.

"What did you...?"

"I brought a few... new friends." Blaster Dark said. "You're a fighter who never gives up who passes his very being down in order to fulfill your mission."

"I don't get it. What does 'passing down my being' mean or have to do with anthing?"

"That girl Aoi, as Maelstrom and her told you, is a product of your philosophies, your ideals, your beliefs, your justices, everything poured into her and made her into who she is today. Even if you're not physically there, you still exist in the legacy of others. That in itself is one of your powers, Jellal Kisaragi. There is only one unit I know who shares this power." Blaster Dark sat his sword back down and pointed at the top of the deck for Jellal to turn it over.

"Revenger, Raging Folm Dragon."

"Yeah I already had Raging Folm in my deck, so what?"

"Yeah you had him, in the deck, but the deck was not his own. What I granted you were allies that fight for the soul benefit of helping Raging Folm's power, your power." Jellal was still unclear what was said but Blaster Dark instructed him to take a look at his deck. He noticed some changes: Abyss was nearly gone and replaced by another Dragon, Dorint was also gone and was replaced by a mysterious new knight with a little axe in his hands. "Do you understand now what I mean by it? That deck is fully expanding the power that you and Raging Folm share. Phantom Blaster Abyss was a leftover remnants of your usage of Phantom Blaster Overlord and the King of Tradegies' power eclipsed your own and conflicted overall what your deck was meant to do, which is probably why you lost too. Too many focuses, no center ideal. Ideally, this is one of the powers that Yukino saw in you and wanted you to awaken on your own but... well... before you could do so..." Blaster Dark sat silently while Jellal looked in awe of his deck. "If you need me, you know where to find me. But you should test out your deck before going into battle. Also stick by Aoi if you want to talk to Maelstrom some more. The rest I leave up to you. We all do."

"And now... it's one and it's mine..." With a new deck and new purpose in his hands, Jellal was ready to fight back once more.

Aoi's true deck given to her by the Jellal of a fallen timeline was revealed to be back in her hands. A deck that disappeared with Cyan Aoi as she died a Seed of Distortion: Blue Storms. The young cadet: Marios appeared as the forerunner for the revival, his vow to the Tear Dragon set in place as he stood proud against the Revengers of Shadow Paladin. Genovious had left everything in the hands of the legendary beast's specter, and the gift Aoi's mentor left her with would be used to knock some sense into him. With all of her memories intact, she picked up right where she left off and fueled her plays with the experience of Aoi Undyne, combining the potential of two selves and attacking her teacher. Adopting his rush tactics as her own, they slammed into each other upon their grade two turns. The Revengers struck first while Aoi was still on the Quintet Wall that saved her life: Icefall Dragon. However, Spyros and Rascal Sweeper returned the favor, allowing their foe to stay ahead in the damage game while tearing at his resources. Aoi knew how he played, so it would be simple to counter him. At the same time, Jellal was better versed in Aqua Force than possibly anyone in the world, violently exploiting the clan's weaknesses. His ride to Raging Form batted at her marine soldiers alongside Dark Breath Angel.

And then, she was ready to show him the power that carried her thus far. The card that her master left to her.

"Ride my Vanguard! Behold! Wash away all vice in the flow of furious flood. Its legendary name is righteousness! Blue Storm Dragon, Maelstrom!"

The vice admiral of the past was summoned back to war, having vanished in time with the death of Cyan Aoi. The echo of his voice reached the hands of another Blue Storm player: Fubuki, and still he was not at his prime: his truest power. Now, he was still exhausted from the longing battles, his body covered in scars and wounds. Despite everything, a roar of triumphant return echoed throughout Cray and Earth as the holy spirit of justice in the form of a dreadnought resurrected. Jellal's original avatar: Maelstrom appeared on the battlefield, shaking the very ground and seas with his presence alone. The heavenly naval beast stood proudly with the armada of his archetype. More overly, with the vanguard who inherited him, and against his former master. A bit of a jeering smirk was formed by the dragon's mouth, knowing more than ever, Jellal needed an emotional booster. Unfortunately, the cynical dragon had rather rude ways of doing that while his current Vanguard couldn't hear his voice outside of Cray. A duel between water and shadow commenced, the man's two weapons. The latter being what he fought with in the past to revive the former, the former being his lost rewards.

"How childish", Maelstrom jeered quietly, finding Jellal's asinine need of feeling "worthy" ridiculous. Constantly did the dragon prod at his Vanguard's feelings in an attempt to have him realize his own potential and power. Phantom Blaster Dragon appeared, standing in a line with Blaster Dark. The Shadow user had been pushed back greatly by Aoi's amazing advantage generation and consecutive attacks. After so many verbal and physical attacks from Maelstrom, Jellal bit back by driving them into a corner with Abyss Rising and utilizing Judgebau and Swordbreakers to regain his momentum and resource game.

Then it was Aoi's turn.

Long ago, the Reapers erased the Jellal of her own timeline. As such, she inherited "Blue Storm" once "Blue Wave" was taken from her. Much to her dismay, however, the Deletors knew of the "ultimate power", and tore away her "potential" to obtain "Glory". So all that was left in her heart was an empty despair that no matter how much she tried, she'd never be good enough. ... That changed with her positive outlook as "Aoi". This Reverse - the Karma Dragon was viewed in a different manner than before. Unleashing the devastation of a Crossbreakride, Maelstrom's new power with the corrupted shell of a form united, tearing away at Jellal's rearguards and drawing. The evolution of his skills from his former self.

Maelstorm's Break Ride prevented Grade Zero units from being used as shields. "Glory" negated the use of Grade One and higher units.

So the "ultimate power" was...

...

It didn't matter much now.

Maelstrom kept asking him questions, so Jellal could understand his own growth. His depression was proof he wasn't as much of a veteran as he'd like to think, but at the same time, he was as much as a veteran as he should have been thinking. Upset over a loss? Grit your teeth, strike back. Wallowing forever in solitude is not aligned with the wind. He had witnessed the final round between Yukino and Jellal long ago with Royal Paladin versus Shadow Paladin - the fight to revive Aqua Force. Yukino reached out to Jellal's heart, appealing to it and becoming Exculpate to stop him from sacrificing clans for his own ambitions - his "sin" of casting away the happiness of others. ... Yet he still won, despite being moved. He defeated Majesty Lord Blaster and Exculpate the Blaster while throwing Phantom Blaster Overlord away, riding Phantom Blaster Dragon's original form over it.

What a fool if he thought he had no power or worth of his own.

The "Jellal" of another timeline was still "Jellal". His character was a constant. His beliefs, motivations, philosophies and all molded "Aoi Undyne" and "Cyan Aoi", two entities that could be labeled as true heroes and shining bridges of light. Surely, the worthless man he thought he was could not have raised such a disciple. Nay, that's ridiculous. Aoi defeated her master at the last instant with a Draw Trigger, inflicting the sixth damage to him.

Maelstorm couldn't return to him, at least, not at the moment. He had no physical form and without him, Aoi would be helpless. No, he wanted to remain with her as another product of his previous wielder's justices. But all of that was fine. So long as the words of the Tear Dragon and the Prodigy reached his heart, it was all fine.

"The wind and darkness are powers at your hand. Use them. Ask Blaster Dark for what I mean, beyond the black beast: Phantom Blaster."

Maelstrom ceased speaking with him, and Aoi smiled, noticing Jellal's spark returning with cheer and courage in his voice. Determination prevalent. Some people noted Blue Storms, the squad of the current commander, were in the hands of not only Fubuki, but Aoi as well. The Tear Dragon that laid asleep, gone from the pages of history, was here yet again. Those nameless grunts didn't seem to recall Cyan's attack on Gotem City, and instead, found a little hope in Aqua Force users. Aoi was just happy she helped Jellal and got a grip back on her lost comrades at the same time.

"Are you motivated now, Master?" Aoi asked her teacher, mirroring Maelstrom's order: "Get motivated, my Vanguard", he said.

For now, Revengers resonated with his very soul, and that was fine by Blue Storm.

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

Some grunts, touched by so many important figures of the Resistance, rushed off to the Amusement Park, stating they had a plan before the fighting started.