With everyone now on the blimp, it starts to take off and both me and Patches make our way through the Blimp.
While chuckling at each other we find the main hall with a ball-selecting machine and we both look at each other with malicious grins.
While the room is unattended, we both approach the device and make some modifications to the machine and Balls, mainly adding 8 more balls to the machine while making the Balls funnier.
With our work done, we nod to each other and depart towards the most sound to find a viewing area to look down at Domino City.
The main cast is here, and my arrival is at the same time Kaiba leaves the compartment from another entrance, probably looking for his brother.
My appearance with patches catches most of the people out but our Identical grins make most of them realise were related in some way.
I look at the group and reconnect names and faces since I have only met Yugi at this point, but by our approach, they all look at me and Patches weirdly.
Patches is the first one to speak, "What's with all the glum faces Kids, it's like you've saw a ghost." he turns to face me, "Maybe it's the sight of my pal's Ugly mug, I know not everyone can have such great look like me but it's not something to gawk at" as he says this, he rubs his bald dome.
I look at him with my eye twitching in annoyance.
Joey is the first to speak mainly since he's the most assertive of the bunch, "you should look at yourself in the mirror, but your pal is the biggest mystery, mainly at how he can easily trick Kaiba."
I look at the gambler king and just shrug. "I just did one of Patches's techniques against Seto, Just Strike while they were already distracted, he's so focused on the God cards that it was simple to use his greed against him." at the end of that Patches just nods at the acceptance at using his tactics to catch the big fish.
He mock wipes his eyes and says, "You make me so proud."
"Well, you learn something when having 5 impactful lessons really kicks you into gear to learn the trade." In my words the inside Joke causes both me and Patches to laugh, which disturbs the group.
After me and patches stop laughing a brown-haired girl with long hair approaches Patches and speaks to him.
"Erm, your name is patches right?" Patches looking mock offended says, "It's Trusty Patches my dear, throughout my career I've never betrayed a promise, so I like to keep the title."
The girl who I am realising is serenity holds Patches hand and says, "Thank you for saving my brother we didn't know what to do then you just brought him back, Thank you."
I look at patches since it seems he's already had a run-in with the cast before and even saved Joey in some way, I then remember the anchor duel and just shrug.
I rap my hand around Patches' back to rest on his shoulder and speak, "Oh trusty Patches the hero, isn't that an oxymoron."
Patches look at me with a sneer, "And what's that meant to imply chum"
"Oh, it's just we both know you're a moron and can be as stubborn as an ox when you want to be."
This causes Patches to Squint at me, "You have no proof"
I simply say three words with a smug smile on my face, "Greyrat, Onion knight."
He looks at me and Laughs, I laugh with him before using his free hand to sucker Punch me in the gut, at the impact I feel something get shaken loose and start to feel sick.
I take a step back and caress my stomach from the wheeziness.
Everyone looks confused at my actions but in the distance, I see a trashcan, so I run for it since I feel really sick.
I rush to it and start to vomit into the trashcan, but I don't feel any vomit but instead some sort of spiritual energy, it feels both Burning hot and Spicy as it exits my mouth.
After my Expulsion of Spiritual Energy remaining visible in the trashcan are four cards, four very unnatural cards which I never thought would appear even with the Elden Ring cards I can make.
[The Fire Keeper ★ Fire][Saint/Effect][ATK:0/DEF:0]
[The Ashen One ★★★★★★ Fire][Warrior/Effect][ATK:2400/DEF:2000]
[Choice of the First Flame][Trap]
[The Lord of Cinders ★★★★★★★★★★ Fire][God/Fusion/Effect][ATK:?/DEF:2500]
The sight of these cards makes me both happy and confused since these aren't Elden ring cards their Dark Souls cards all from the third instalment.
I reach into the trashcan and go to grab the cards but as I touch them, I feel my hand start to burn.
"Ouch!" my words cause a lot of people to focus on me more than they were already, I look at my fingers to see it's not really damaged, but I can feel a light fading Burning sensation on my fingertips, it fads quickly.
I look at the cards and watch as they move on their own and lay out in a triangle formation in the trashcan, fusion on top, trap in the middle then the pair of destined partners to form the bottom corner of the triangle.
Within the trash, a line of embers writes under the formation in cursive words which I can't read.
"yo patches, Can you read this." my words cause him to break from his revelry at my misfortune before coming over and looking into the trashcan.
"Well damn, I didn't know you could get those lot," I reply with a spooked look, "I didn't either, but anyway can you read this script."
Patches looks at it and reads it. "Yup it's lothric script, it reads 'Only those with a Will unbreakable and eyes who can look to the future unburdened may harness the flame's last embers'." once he reads it, he tries to grab one of the cards and gets a similar reaction.
"Ouch!"
I snicker at him and his misfortune, "Unbreakable patches my arse, remember your need for fixing in the ringed city so you're not applicable."
"Well bugger." at this point we notice that was now surrounded by the rest of the main cast.
Tristan looks at us with a curious look "What's got you so worked up, was his vomit that interesting that you needed to touch it."
I speak, "Well my situation is very special, and it appears Patches caused something that wasn't meant to happen."
'Miquella tell me, what the hell happened here.'
[When the marauder friend of yours punched you, it dislodged a Clot that was in the Maelstrom, it was like a cancer growth in the maelstrom, it was malignant alive off the spirit energy but wasn't doing anything, so I left it, you essentially just spat the clot out and it manifested as those cards.]
I just shrug. "Well, it turns out we have a sword-in-the-stone situation here. Some of you might be interested in it due to the fusion."
I step away and Patches follows me, Joey being the most curious sticks his head in and screams as he reads it, "Hey Yug, it's a Fudging God Card in here." without caution or remembering how me and patches both burned ourselves he reaches into the Trashcan and goes for the card.
"Ouch!" his hand returns out of the trashcan, and he puts it to his lips nursing his finger. "It burned me!"
I nudge patches, "Makes sense for a lord of Cinders." patches smirks at me and we just watch them interact with the cards.
The next person to try is Yugi who reaches into it, for some reason he doesn't make a sound but when his hand returns it's empty.
The next person is Bakura who is being possessed by the thief, He reaches in and gets a burnt hand.
Everyone is confused at this since the only duellists of the group have failed but Duke feeling cocky tries to get the card, but his hand burns, the next person is Tristan who shrugs before going for it, for the same result.
Watching everyone who was willing to try and fail, I came up with a thought and looked at a specific person, I then point at Serenity.
"You try it, I have a theory." this causes everyone to look at me and serenity, Serenity looks at me and then at the trashcan and I notice something in her eyes, she's drawn to them for some reason, then Joey reacts not pleased at my suggestion.
"Why Serenity, she's not even a duellist and she's not forced to if she doesn't want to."
I look at Joey, "Have a little faith, also it's not like the heat is permanent, if she touches and nothing happens, nothing happens, you should ease up a little friend."
Serenity steps up to the trashcan and reaches into it, she doesn't make a sound but when her hand is pulled out containing 4 cards within her grasp.
"Interesting, very interesting, you can keep them, but know they have a life of their own, so if you feel something from them don't just dismiss it as a flight of fancy."
I start to walk away towards the innards of the blimp, but patches remain with the group.
With a look of confusion Serenity turns towards patches and asks, "What are these cards, why is everyone looking at me like I'm strange and why do I feel a gentle warmth from these cards."
Patches sighs before reaching towards her and holding a lock of her hair so she can see, It's Smouldering like lit ashes at the tips. "Within your hands is a god card for a world that's been burned to just ashes via decay and renewal of a great flame, The whole point of this tournament is for the winner to get three of such god cards and you just got one for semi-free without effort."
She looks at patches with eyes that now have a tint of red and blue with them. "How do you know that?"
Patches just smirks, "I'm just well-travelled my dear, I know many things that would curl your toes if I told you about them but that's a tale for story time later." same as me he starts to swagger out of the room.
His departure signals for the group to make for their rooms to prepare for the finals.
--------------------------------------------
Within the Wheeler room, the pair of siblings are talking mainly about how amazing the room and view are, but after a while, Joey is preparing in the chair thinking as unusual as it is for the Finals and what they entail when he hears his sister speak.
"Joey, you know these cards that the pilot guy gave me. Are they good?" this causes Joey to look at his sister who presents the cards to him.
He looks at them and Nods, "Well yeah, this blindfolded chick can't be destroyed and acts as a draw machine, this Knight guy hits like a rolling boulder picking up momentum with the more he hits, then this fusion god card is just Sheer force in card form."
She hears her brother's words and looks at them, then with eyes full of determination, she hands them to her brother. "You can use them since I'm not a duellist yet."
Joey looks at his sister and sees her determination and goes to touch the cards but is hesitant since their his sister's cards and he was just burned recently for touching them.
But he musters his courage before taking the cards, he feels a warmth on his hands from their touch but it's now akin to his hands being heated by a close bonfire instead of in the flames as before.
At this point, Joey's friends start to invade the room and make a mess of it and order room service distracting Joey from the new cards.
After a while an intercom announcement is heard throughout the blimp to amass the contestants in the main room.
As they all exit the room Serenity feels something within the room and Standing in the middle is hazy figure of a Woman with Pale golden hair with a silver Crown which covers her eyes.
She hears as if Whispers on the wind the woman's voice "us embers will follow your will, but we will await the day you grasp the remnants of the first flame yourself with great anticipation."
Confused at her words Serenity watches as the woman fades away like turning to dust before disappearing, Serenity closes her eyes and goes to catch up with her brother and his friends.