Welcome to the sequel of Teknisk Wereld! Don't know what that is? Then you had best go to my profile and read it before attempting this one-it will get very, very confusing if you don't know what is going on!
Anyway, thanks for coming, and I hope that this one is just as good, if not better, than my first!
Enjoy!
*Prologue*
In the year 2100, technology had become much more advanced. Now people are spending much of their free hours going to a virtual world known as Teknisk Wereld (translates to Technical World in English). This place is only able to be accessed when turning thirteen. Why? It's a dangerous area-while safeguards usually prevent deaths, serious injuries are still possible.
Anyway, when turning thirteen, you are given three things: an Envoyant Machine, a Duel Disk, and a Soul Card. The Envoyant Machine is basically a helmet-like device that "transports" your mind to Teknisk Wereld. The Duel Disk generates holograms of the cards that are used in the real world and Teknisk Wereld. Oh, forgot to mention that, didn't I? People carry around decks in both worlds. They are from a game called Duel Monsters. Played for fun and for serious reasons, hardly anyone lacks a deck these days.
Then you have the Soul Card. From this card comes your Soul Monster. This monster, based off one in the Duel Monsters game, is to remain bonded with you for life. Also, this monster is to be your Deck Master in duels. Deck Masters give the game a unique twist; each one comes with a special ability that can turn the duel to your favor.
In Teknisk Wereld v.1, Hope Gales was finally able to go to Teknisk Wereld. There she met most of her best friends; Rue, Max, Will, Claire, and Brandi. She also met their Soul Monsters; Ruecian, Olympion, Neo, Perseus, Mana, and her own, Gaston. When the Generals of Hell began to kill innocents to fulfill the conditions of the Ritual of 1000 Souls, the six teens went out to stop them. Through many sacrifices, Hope was finally able to confront the one they revived; Satan himself. How she managed to survive is still unknown, but apparently there is more to her than meets the eye…
A month has passed since that dreadful day. So far, the friends have had fun just enjoying the thrills of the virtual world. Now that school is over, it should be even better, right?
What they didn't count on was yet another force coming…
*Chapter 1: The Peace Has Ended*
ONE NIGHT AFTER SATAN'S DEFEAT
A figure wearing a white cloak was looking up at the sky. It was a clear night-the stars calmed him greatly.
"So, the Generals of Hell have fallen… to a group of teenagers." He shook his head. "My wonders will never cease. Well, I am not complaining. We were going to eliminate them anyway-this saves us some work." He took out a card, and looked at it. "Now we will see… will those same ones come at us?"
A cell phone next to him began to ring. He sighed, and picked it up. "Yes? What is it?" He listened, and smirked. "That's perfect! On the return trip… you understand? Good. I am counting on you-he is one of the strongest. If he falls, then the others should not be a problem. Yes, very well. Now go." He pressed the end button. "This is better than I thought…"
ONE MONTH AFTER SATAN'S DEFEAT
Hope ran out of the school building, and down the sidewalk that led to her home.
"Finally, school is over… summer vacation rocks!" She then suddenly remembered she had forgotten her cornet in the band room… yet again. "Dang it!" She turned around and ran back in to retrieve it.
After coming out again, at a much slower pace, she began to walk home, dragging her instrument along.
"Well, it'll be nice to be able to visit Teknisk Wereld more often," she thought out loud. "Still, it would be much better if Max and Brandi would come on sometime."
For some reason, after leaving Max's house to go back to their normal lives, Max and Brandi had not come to Teknisk Wereld. Hope could not figure out why, and had often tried to call. All she ever got was the message machine though, so she quit attempting that.
"They must have their reasons…" She decided to get her mind off the subject by recalling what had happened when she had gotten back to school.
FLASHBACK
Hope walked down the hallway, carrying her books for math class, when she saw Julia, Samuel, and Toan.
"Hey Hope!" Julia greeted. "So did you get that black cloaked guy?"
"The fugitive? Yeah. Will beat him, and he stabbed himself," Hope slightly lied.
"He killed himself because he lost?!" Samuel exclaimed. "Geez!"
"I know!" Hope replied "He was desperate. So, how did the sheep stampede go?"
Toan rubbed his scarred arm. "I'm the only one who was injured, and it was from Cow. Otherwise, we all managed to teleport out, leaving the officials to be chased by my herd of sheep!"
"That's great… I mean that nobody else was injured… oh gosh, I'm going to be late!" Hope realized as she looked at the clock. "Gotta run!"
"Just one thing," Samuel interrupted. "Are you sure it wasn't Rue who killed the bad guy?"
"Sorry, no time to waste!" Hope ran down the hall, praying that they wouldn't follow.
END FLASHBACK
Hope shook her head at the memory. "That was embarrassing… oh well." She took out her house key and unlocked the door. "I have more important things to worry about!"
She took out her Duel Disk and attached it to her arm, and then strapped on the Envoyant Machine.
"After all this time, I still haven't gotten used to this…" she muttered as she pressed the green button on it.
Hope rose slowly, looking around the town she had landed in. A month ago, it had been destroyed by Draken, a General of Hell. However, when Teknisk Wereld's safeguards were restored, the officials repaired the town. All of those who had died in the fires had been mysteriously revived… nobody knew how. Well, nobody but the six teens who had faced Satan, and their Soul Monsters.
Hope made her way to the lake, knowing that was where she would find her friends.
"Hey Hope! Late as usual, I see," Rue noted. "Ok, I play Black Magic Curtain, special summoning Black Magician. Now attack!" He and Will were dueling yet again.
"Sorry for the delay," Hope apologized. She sat down between Claire and Gaston. Neo, Perseus, and Ruecian were there as well.
"I activate Magic Cylinders. You lose again," Will smirked.
"No fair!" Rue protested.
"Very fair," he contradicted. "So Hope, you're out of school as well?"
"That's right!" she grinned. "Three whole months of summer vacation! It should be fun."
"Of course," Rue agreed, sitting down as well. "You know, even after seeing that thing for a month, it still gives me the creeps."
Hope knew what he was talking about. She lightly touched the orb hanging around her neck. It flashed with light and darkness.
"I still haven't figured out what it does," she shrugged. "Can we talk about something else? Like, where on earth Max and Brandi are?"
"On earth? They should be in South Carolina," Neo joked.
"Haha," Gaston said sarcastically. "We still haven't gotten any word from them… I'm getting kinda worried."
"Indeed," Perseus commented.
"I guess they will come when they are ready," Hope sadly stated. "Anyway…" she looked at her deck. "I've heard of a new Warrior Sub-Type that I want to get. It's only common, so I bet Hector will have it… anyone want to come with me?"
"You go ahead," Rue shrugged. "I'm going to kill Will in a duel first."
"Alright, for the thirty-first time today, let's duel."
"I'd prefer to stay and watch, if you don't mind," Claire decided.
"I'll come with you," Gaston said, rising. "Shall we go?"
After some walking, Hope pushed open the door to the store. "Hi Hector."
"Same to you Hope!" he greeted. "So what are you looking for today?"
"A common Warrior Sub-Type called Chaos Rider, Gustav," she said. "Do you have him?"
"Oh, him? Yeah, I have a few copies. Do you have ten cents? That's how much it costs."
"Ten cents?" Hope raised an eyebrow at the price.
"Yeah, but since I'm such a nice guy, you can just have him for free."
"Thanks!" she smiled, taking the card and inserting it into her deck. "So, any news?"
"None so far, besides the fact that there are rumors of some new guy around here. Don't know much about him though."
"Well, there are always new people coming," Hope shrugged. "What's so different about this guy?"
"He's older than thirteen. That's the main point."
"A late start?" Hope inquired.
"Probably. He's only been seen once, to add to the mystery of things. Meh, I don't know. It's probably nothing."
"Ok… thanks again for the card!" Hope walked out, calling back, "See you later!"
"So you think that might help?" Gaston asked as they walked towards the lake.
"Yeah, most likely. He has a pretty good ability," she assured.
"What does he do?"
"Well, if you remove…" then Hope stopped.
"What's the matter?" Gaston asked.
She didn't appear to hear him.
Someone was running toward them. Hope recognized the girl instantly, even though she was wearing different clothes since last time; a faded khaki skirt and a sleeveless red shirt. Her hair was down, instead of a pony tail, as well.
"Brandi! It's you!" Hope said, shocked, as the girl approached them.
"Yeah, hi. Sorry that I haven't been on lately, but I'm really worried about something."
Hope looked at her curiously. "Alright, what is it?"
"A day after you defeated Satan, Max left, saying he would be back sometime later. Today, I got a call from Matt, saying that he had been to Myrtle Beach, to see his mother. Then he left, saying to call in a month to make sure he had made it home ok. Well, Max still isn't there. Have you seen him?"
"No, I haven't. Everyone has been really worried about you and Max. I'm glad you're ok, but Max…" Hope trailed off.
"Yeah… if you see him, please let me know right away!"
"I will. Good luck."
"Thanks…" Brandi then ran towards the town.
"I don't like this…" Gaston muttered.
"If the General's of Hell were still around, I wouldn't either. But they're gone now… so there really isn't anything that could harm Max," she pointed out.
"True. But still…"
"I know. I'm uneasy too."
By this time, they had reached the others. Hope quickly explained the situation to them.
"Sounds bad," Rue commented. "What should we do?"
"There really isn't much we can do, besides keep an eye out for Max," Will said. "I doubt he is Teknisk Wereld though… he wouldn't come here without reassuring Brandi first." He thought for a moment. "Well, I can search around South Carolina for him. I'll go right now. See you all later. Neo, you coming?"
"Why wouldn't I?"
"I'm going home as well," Rue decided. "I have a summer project, and I'm going to finish it. Let's meet back here in a week, ok?"
"Sounds good," Hope agreed. "Let's get going."
They all teleported out, the Soul Monsters following.
THREE DAYS LATER
It was nighttime, and Hope was bored. She had just finished her cornet practice, and didn't know what she would do next.
"You can come out now Gaston!" she called.
He opened the door and walked in, still rubbing his ears. "Even in the living room, I could still hear that accursed thing."
"Sorry, but I have to practice," Hope said sheepishly. "I'll only improve over time."
"I'm sure… so what are you going to do now?"
She began to explain her options. "I could play Disgaea, and try to finally get to the Cave of Ordeals…"
"Please don't," Gaston interrupted. "You've been playing that game for three days straight."
She sighed. "Oh all right. I could always read Eragon again…"
"You've read that five times."
"…OR we could go on a walk."
"I like that option."
She stood up. "Then it's settled."
It was a clear night, and Hope enjoyed walking around the nearby park. Basically an area with many trees and healthy grass, it was one of the few areas here that they classified as natural.
"It's been an hour," Gaston broke the silence. "Want to head home?"
"I guess," she shrugged. "Let's get going."
Hope was tired from the walk, and while they could go home the long way, she had other ideas.
"I know of a shortcut around here. I don't often use it, because it requires going through an alley that looks very creepy, day or night. Since you're here though, I think it would be an easier method of getting home."
"Whatever you want," he replied.
Hope found the alley quickly, and they began walking down it. After a few minutes of quiet, Gaston suddenly grabbed Hope's arm.
"What's the matter?"
"There's someone up ahead… let me go first."
She nodded, and he moved ahead slowly. As they approached, Hope could soon see the person.
"Who…?" Gaston wondered.
In an instant, Hope suddenly had an idea.
"No… oh Lord…" she ran forward to the figure. "It can't be…"
The teen had apparently collapsed, and made no movement when Hope kneeled down in front of him.
"Max!" she whispered. "What happened to you…?"
His cloak was the only way Hope had been able to recognize him, for now he was wearing a very dark blue shirt. But that wasn't what had caught Hope's attention.
All over his body were cuts, bruises, and burns, mainly on his legs. His chest looked pretty bad as well. What was the most horrifying was his left arm though. On it was his Duel Disk, but it was hardly recognizable. It was as if the thing had exploded; it was a twisted piece of metal, completely black. His cards were nowhere to be found. His wrist was in a very weird position; Hope immediately realized it was probably broken, or something similar. His arm was also burned much more severely than any other part of his body.
"No… he can't be dead…" Hope frantically grabbed his right wrist, and was relieved to find a pulse. "Oh thank God… it's a good thing I have my cell phone with me…" She brought it out, and dialed 911. "Hello? Yes, my friend is injured severely. No, I'm not sure how… it's an alley by the game store… yes, that's the one. Don't try to move him? I didn't plan on it… yes, I can wait here with him. Thanks." She pressed the end button. "They should be here shortly. Until then, we just wait."
"Will he be ok?" Gaston asked, worried.
"I don't know… hopefully." She then had a thought. "Wait a minute… all of his cards are gone! What if…" She reached into his cloak pockets, and sighed with relief. "Here's Olympion's Soul Card…" She looked at it in shock. "But he isn't in it… where is he then?"
"You had best hold on to that," Gaston advised.
"Yeah…"
After a few anxious minutes, Gaston stood. "I think they're here."
A few doctors were walking towards them.
"Gaston, come into your Soul Card for now. I'll tell you what happens later."
He nodded, and vanished.
"Good, we got the correct location," one of them said.
Another one was examining Max. "You did well to call immediately."
"Is he going to make it?" Hope inquired nervously.
"It looks more serious than it is, but I can't be sure," she replied. "You want to come with us?"
"Of course."
"Dan! Get her to the ambulance. We'll be right behind you."
"Sure. Come on, let's go."
Hope followed him into the ambulance. Soon after, the other doctors arrived, carrying a stretcher. They put it into the ambulance as well. The woman who had talked to Hope previously also stayed in the back.
"Ben, Jacob, get to the front. We need to get back quickly!"
"Yes ma'am," Ben said as they jumped in.
The ride there was a tense one. Hope couldn't get over her fear that Max might be…
"Don't worry so much," the woman said kindly. "I think he will be fine. Still, we have to check at once."
She nodded.
"By the way, I'm Alice. You?"
"Hope…"
"You said you're a friend of this boy?"
"That's right. His name is Max."
"Do you know where his family is?"
Hope shook her head. "Let me ask his sister… she'll know what to do…"
"Ok then."
I don't even know who his mother is, and his father and step father are dead… I hope Brandi can get here soon…
At last, they arrived. Hope was asked to stay in the waiting room as Max was checked over.
The first thing she did was take out her cell phone, and call Brandi.
"Brandi speaking."
"Hey, this is Hope. Listen, I have some good and bad news."
"Like…?"
"The good news; I found Max. The bad? He's badly hurt."
"What?!"
"The doctors are looking over him now. Don't panic; they said he would probably be ok. Still, I need you to come down to Illinois as fast as you possibly can. I'll give you more details here."
"Right. I'll be there as soon as I can. Thanks."
The line went dead.
"Well, now that's out of the way…" She then called the rest of her friends. Their reactions were basically the same; they wanted to come as quickly as possible to Illinois, and assured they would be their soon.
"And now that's done," she sighed, finally hanging up. She was glad that she had left Rue for last; he would not shut up for ten minutes straight, asking what the heck had happened. After calling her mom, and explaining where she was, she put the phone away.
"Now I wait…"
Hours seemed to pass, until the doctor finally called her over.
She looked at his nametag before addressing him.
"Dr. Watson, will he be ok?"
"He should be… I am waiting for him to wake up right now, to see how he copes. His left wrist was fractured, but should heal over time. Some of the metal from his Duel Disk was imbedded into the skin of his arm, but I managed to remove it. Depending on his reaction when he wakes, he might be able to go home tomorrow morning, as long as he does not move around too much."
"That's really good to know," Hope smiled in relief. "Can I see him?"
"I guess there is no problem in that… but I must ask you something. Do you know what caused these injuries?"
"I have no idea," she admitted. "It was pure luck that I found him."
"Very well… I do not know how this could have happened, personally. I'm not sure I want to know either."
They walked into the room where Max was. His left arm was bandaged, and he had a few other cuts bandaged as well, but otherwise he looked somewhat decent.
Hope walked over and kneeled down beside the bed. "He looks a lot better than before…"
"It was not as bad as it appeared, luckily."
"I'm extremely grateful…" She trailed off as she saw Max begin to stir.
He opened his eyes slowly, and then sat up very slowly.
"Max! Are you ok?" Hope asked.
He looked over at her, and immediately recoiled.
"What's the matter?" she asked, worried.
He looked around the area, his eyes full of panic. "What's going on? What is this place?"
"It's ok!" Hope assured. "Calm down Max."
He didn't respond.
"Max?"
He looked at the doctor questionably.
"I was afraid something like this would happen…" the doctor sighed.
"What? What's happening?" Hope inquired.
"I'm afraid your friend has amnesia."
He smiled grimly.
He had known that eventually his foe would slip up, and he finally had. Now they stood a chance. As soon as the opportunity arouse, he would make his move.
We have waited so long already… we can wait a little bit longer.
To be continued…