#28 - Spirits
Title: Crystal Release
Author: Cheeky_eyes
Rating: G
Genre: General
Pairings: None
Theme: 28) Spirits
Summary: He looked at the display. “So these are the Gem Beasts?” he asked. Pegasus nodded. He’d heard that only the chosen one had the power to release them.
Notes: Here's hoping this version is better. ^^ Thanks crysalice_bell for the advice.
“Congratulations Andersen-boy. A rather impressive duel,” Pegasus beamed at him. It had been a long couple of days, but Johan now stood as the European Junior champion. He hadn’t expected to see the I2 President at the after party, but from what he’d heard about him he wasn’t that shocked.
“Thank-you,” Johan replied amiably. Pegasus smiled, for once deciding to get straight to the point. The cards that had been in his suitcase may have had something to do with that.
“Have you heard about the Gem Beasts, Johan?” he asked keenly. Confusion filtered across Johan’s face briefly before he nodded. After all who hadn’t? They had been in the press recently as major companies and countless people with major influences wanted to get their hands on them. Most people knew they were valuable anyway.
“I think they might like to meet you,” Pegasus continued. It was an odd statement sure, but Johan didn’t really notice. He’d been able to see Duel Sprits his whole life so the idea of actually meeting cards wasn’t foreign to him. And if the creator of Duel Monsters could see them too it would make a lot of sense, and explain a few eccentrics too.
“So would you like to come with me then, I think there are some cards I would like you to have,” Pegasus finished gesturing towards the door. A display was being set up in there and its contents were currently barred from public access. Without a word Johan followed him through it and into a room that housed the permanent display. Pegasus drifted towards another doorway and turned to face him.
“Just this way Andersen-boy,” he said happily as they entered the room. The back wall had a case against it and just in front of that was a table with seven cards on it, each one encased in a crystalline substance a different colour of the rainbow. They stopped at the table. Johan looked at them with interest, still not quite sure where this was going or what Pegasus wanted to give him.
“These are the Gem Beasts?” he said aloud. He could feel their Spirits nearby, but they weren’t around to actually see. “Rumour has it they will only respond to the chosen one though.” Pegasus interrupted him before he could finish.
“Andersen-boy, you are that chosen one,” he said with confidence, nodding at Johan’s gasp. He certainly hadn’t been expecting to hear that. He faced the cards again, paying close attention to them this time
“Go on, touch them and you will see!” Pegasus had no doubt Johan’s touch would release them, the bond between them was already there, he could sense it. No other duellist had connected with them so far and they were already impatient, wanting to meet him since the finals had begun.
Johan looked at them as he stretched his hand out. Their presence was getting stronger, and even with his experience with Duel Spirits he’d never felt anything like this. Not even the Spirits in his own deck felt this strong, but his deck had belonged to his father so they weren’t really his. It had been after his death that he had decided to use the bug deck as a way of honouring him, and as fond as the Spirits were of him, they weren’t really his and they did work well together despite this.
His hand brushed against the deep blue one and instantly they reacted. Hastily he withdrew his hand as an intense blue light was emitted from the card as the crystal melted away. Like dominoes the other cards reacted as one by one their own crystals melted away. The first card released was the sapphire one, with a picture of a winged horse on it, like Pegasus, if he remembered his mythology correctly. Next to it a cat was revealed from the purple one and a small creature he couldn’t identify from the red one. A mammoth and tiger appeared on the orange and yellow ones, followed by a turtle (or tortoise, he could at a glance tell) from the green card. Last was an eagle from the other blue one. As they revealed themselves Pegasus continued speaking.
“Ah, the power of the Gem Beasts has been released. They are the symbol of hearts trusting each other, and you are their true master.”
Each Beast appeared in front of him, forming a rough semi-circle, and Johan’s eyes widened in amazement. Already he could feel a deep connection with them he hadn’t felt with his other deck, and their love and warmth flooded him. He took a step back before twisting around to look at them all. Out of the air the small creature from the red card jumped onto his shoulder and ran across to the other side. He smiled and after a moments pause reached up to pat her. As usual he couldn’t feel the Spirit but the link between them allowed some ghost of a touch to register. He didn’t notice as Pegasus surreptitiously left the room. The horse took a step towards him before looking at the rest of the Spirits.
“I think we can be agreed that this is the boy we’ve been waiting for,” he said with confidence. The others murmured their agreement as the Spirit on his shoulder nuzzled in happily. The horse faced Johan again.
“I am Sapphire Pegasus,” he introduced grandly before indicating to the creature on his shoulder. “And that is Ruby Carbuncle.”
“Ru-bi-bi,” she happily trilled into his ear. He reached up to pat her again with a smile as the cat stepped forward.
“I am Amethyst Cat,” she introduced herself as, and the rest were quick to follow.
“Topaz Tiger,” bowed the tiger next to him.
“Cobalt Eagle,” the eagle proudly introduced himself as.
“Amber Mammoth,” was the amiable reply from the biggest Gem Beast.
“Emerald Turtle,” finished a slow ancient sounding voice. Johan’s eyes followed each one, his shock fading by this stage.
“Johan Andersen,” he added last, and for a while none of them said anything as they studied each other in a comfortable silence
“Ru-bi-bi,” Ruby trilled on his shoulder breaking the silence, evidently very fond of that position. Johan reached up to pat her once again as Pegasus re-entered the room with a key in his hand. Already he couldn’t imagine not having them around as their presence felt right. These Spirits he could call his own.
“The Gem Beasts are my gift to you. Seeing as you are their master I can not do anything else,” Pegasus said half lazily, drawing their attention away from each other. He gestured to the cabinet behind the case.
“The rest of the deck is in there. Build it wisely,” he finished, unlocking the cabinet before leaving the room again. He was sure Johan wouldn’t need any help the Gem Beasts couldn’t give.
Johan glanced at the Gem Beasts still congregated around him then back at the cabinet. He couldn’t believe Pegasus was just giving him the cards, but he was grateful he was. Already he felt like he couldn’t part with them for any reason what so ever.
“Well, let’s have a look at them then,” he said before moving towards the cards.
xxx
They seemed happy to see the card in his hand.
“Haven’t you seen these yet?” Johan asked as they examined the Ancient City-Rainbow Ruins. Emerald Turtle looked up at him.
“No, after we were created we were sealed almost straight away. We were waiting for you,” he said before returning to the card. “I remember this well,” he added after a moment.
“Remember?” Johan asked as he added it to the ‘definite’ pile.
“Mmm,” Emerald Turtle mummed. “You have heard of our story right?” Johan blinked. All he heard of the Gem Beasts was that they were rare cards that could only be controlled by a chosen duellist.
“Oh, you’re from Rome aren’t you,” he said, recalling snippets of the legend.
“Sort of,” Topaz Tiger interjected. Johan frowned in concentration. He had heard the legend of how the Roman Empire had gathered seven gems from around the world in a display of their power. And how upon transportation the ship had sank and they had never been seen again. Until now of course.
“But I thought your ship sank before you reached Rome,” Johan said confused. Cobalt Eagle laughed.
“It did,” Sapphire Pegasus explained. “But back then there were such structures everywhere, not unlike how these arenas are now.”
“And we saw a lot before we were gathered,” Emerald Turtle added. “Our Spirits had roamed the earth for quite a while, and there were a few years after we’d been found before we were required in Rome as they had to make our tablets.”
“However after the main tablet was made it was obvious you weren’t around so when the storm sprung we didn’t stop the ship sinking so we could rest at the bottom of the sea,” Sapphire Pegasus continued.
“I quite liked it,” Emerald Turtle said happily. Amethyst Cat hissed quietly, and muttered how it hadn’t been her choice and that returning to the earth would have been far better in her opinion. Evidently she hadn’t enjoyed the experience as much.
“It was peaceful,” Sapphire Pegasus added to keep the peace before continuing. “We mainly returned to the Spirit World and waited for our Gems to be recovered.”
“And our Spirits were transferred into those cards once we were,” Cobalt Eagle finished pointing to his monster card. Johan nodded.
“Though the President did promise to help us find you before we were sealed,” Amber Mammoth added from behind him.
“That was one of the reasons we were sealed,” Emerald Turtle pointed out. “So no one else could have us.”
“Ah,” Johan murmured as he picked up the next card, Crystal Blessing, as Amber Mammoth sheepishly replied ‘oh yeah.’
“Do you remember much of then?” he asked after a pause looking up at Amber Mammoth, who shook his head.
“We remember very little, but it is slowly coming back. We think our memories are tied to something else,” he explained.
“Do you know what?” Johan asked as he picked up the next card, Crystal Raigeki, which he instantly rejected.
“Not yet,” Sapphire Pegasus confirmed.
xxx
It didn’t take him long to finish his new deck, and just as Pegasus thought the Gem Beasts had their own opinions as to what should or shouldn’t be included. Not that Johan didn’t have his own skills; he was the Junior Champion for a reason.
He looked through his completed deck for a third time. He could feel that something wasn’t right, like it was missing something. The feeling had been there during the Gem Beast’s introductions but he was only now realising it. He glanced over at the Gem Beasts again.
“What is it Johan?” Amethyst Cat asked as he frowned slightly.
“Something is missing, but I can’t tell what,” he answered. The Gem Beasts exchanged looked. Ruby trilled sadly on his shoulder. Between them was a silent exchange, as they instantly recalled something together.
“It’s true,” Topaz Tiger said sadly. “We are not yet complete.” Cobalt Eagle nodded.
“Yes, one of our number is missing. Rainbow Dragon,” he added. Johan looked slightly confused.
“How so?” he asked. Had Pegasus simply not made him yet, because if that were so it made no sense.
“He hasn’t been found yet. We are waiting for him too,” Amethyst Cat said, as Sapphire Pegasus stepped closer to him.
“All of our tablets and gems have been found, except for Rainbow Dragon’s. He wasn’t with us when the ship sank,” he explained. Johan nodded.
“But as soon as it is found, I promise to make its card,” Pegasus’ voice interrupted from the doorway, confirming that he could indeed see Spirits himself. This assurance mollified the Gem Beasts. The President advanced towards them as he glanced at the cards in the cabinet and mentally checking what was missing. Johan caught on to what he was doing.
“Would you like to see?” he asked, offering his new deck forward. Pegasus smiled as he looked through it, noting the quirks of the deck.
“I see you haven’t included any of the cards that destroy your opponent’s cards,” he mused “Like Crystal Abundance or Crystal Raigeki.” Johan sheepishly rubbed the back of his head.
“Yeah, I don’t really like using those kind of cards,” he said. Pegasus looked at him with a smile.
“It’s a good deck, you have an interesting style,” he complimented with a smile. Johan thanked him.
“Ru-bi-bi,” Ruby trilled on his shoulder. From his pocket a moth appeared as one of his old deck’s Spirits decided to make an appearance. TheWhite Papillon flew up next to Ruby.
“Do you know what you’ll do with your old deck?” Pegasus asked curiously, noting the new Spirits appearance. Johan paused, he hadn’t thought about that.
“I’ll keep it for now, but I’ll see if my sister wants it when she’s older,” he answered. He looked down at it. “It was my Fathers,” he added after a moment. Pegasus nodded, but didn’t say anything else.
“Well,” he said, changing tracks. “If you are done Andersen-boy, there are people waiting to see you back in the main room.” He handed Johan his deck back. He looked back at the ruined display.
“I suppose that’ll have to be taken down now,” he mused with a shrug before facing Johan again. “I wish you well with that deck. As the Gem Beats master I do not doubt you’ll go far.”
They walked back in silence; the White Papillon disappeared without a second glance. Soon they were back with the others, and it seemed his absence hadn’t gone unnoticed, but no one said anything. Before moving away Pegasus gestured to another adult in the room.
“That is Professor Ichinose; he’s the Principal of North Academy. He wishes to speak with you,” he said. Johan looked over as the Professor smiled at him.
“I wish you good luck there,” Pegasus said before moving away. By the time Johan realised what he meant, he was gone. Ruby, still on his shoulder trilled again as the Professor walked over.
“North Academy?” Amethyst Cat asked. Johan nodded. He glanced at the Gem Beasts around him. They were currently the only Spirits in the room.
“I promise you guys, I’ll help find Rainbow Dragon. We will be complete. Like a family,” he said determinedly. His Spirits smiled.
“Family?” Amethyst Cat asked. Johan paused, that phrasing had just slipped out. He did mean it though, the Gem Beasts already had a strong bond with each other and he wanted to be a part of it. She smiled at him.
“We’d like that.”