Who I Thought You Were - Yusei Fudo/OC [REWRITING]

Nine -- The Truth Unveiled

"If I could, I'd call your name; No, but I'll accept your blame."

— "Let Go", BTS

Yusei

"S-Supernova? I don't understand," I stammer. Her normally shaggy bedhead is smooth and well-kept, with her bangs pinned back from her face, and her butterfly-shaped Facility mark dark red instead of yellow.

"I never expected you to," she spits. "You were too wrapped up in your morality bullshit that you covered for a killer. Of course you wouldn't believe that I'd accept this power." She holds up her arm, proudly displaying the Mark of the Lizard. "Never mind. Once I cream your little girlfriend, I'll have my fun with you. Avenging Knight! Prune those petals!"

"For your information, petals are not 'pruned'," Akiza snaps. "And either way, with my 'Rose Blizzard' trap, your attack is negated and your monster is switched to defense mode!"

"Ah. I should've realized you'd have something waiting for me. No matter. I'll end with a facedown." Nova plays a card facedown, and out of the corner of my eye, I notice a familiar face. I knew it.

"Stay here, you two. I'll be right back," I tell the twins. I then run for the building Sayer is watching the duel from. I can still hear what's going on—Akiza removes her Rose Fairy from play to activate her dragon's special ability, and Nova activates a trap, "Dragon Dance." I remember when Kalin gave her that card—when a Light attribute Synchro monster is targeted by a card effect, "Dragon Dance" allows you to negate that effect once per turn by destroying a Spell or Trap card on the field. Nova's always used it to defend her ace monster, Safir Metalmark*.

I run up the stairs outside the building, shoving my shoulder into the door to open it. "Yusei. How did you get out of my trap?" Sayer asks, turning on his Duel Disk.

"Why are you here, Sayer? What do you want with Akiza?" I demand.

"It's quite simple. I want revenge for what the Dark Signers did to me and the Arcadia Movement." He pushes his hair back from his face to reveal a textured red scar over his right eye. "And Akiza? She's going to make that revenge possible."

"She's not that person anymore," I remind him.

"She is who I say she is," Sayer counters. "And right now, she's a one-woman army who will obey my every order until my war with the Dark Signers is over."

"Leave her out of this, Sayer! She's through with the Arcadia Movement!"

"Oh, I beg to differ. She's through with nothing until I say so. And I'm never letting her go."

"We'll see about that!" I don't blame Sayer for wanting to watch the Dark Signers burn, but I can't let him hurt Nova. Not just because it's Nova, but because Nova shouldn't have to answer for crimes she didn't commit.

Sayer plays another Spell Card that launches a fireball at me, and I duck as it destroys a concrete table. "Don't you see that controlling people is wrong?" I ask.

"Some people need direction so they don't hurt others or themselves. Akiza's always needed someone to guide her, to help keep calm and focused," Sayer says. "So even though she's under my control, it is because of me that she will finally be free to unleash all of her true powers. And that is something which you could never give her."

"You're pathetic," I spit.

"No, but this...what did you call her? This Nova is. She's let her hate cloud her ability to think clearly. Why else would she—"

He doesn't get a chance to finish before I punch him in the nose. "You will not talk about Nova with anything less than utmost respect," I growl, grabbing his collar.