7. Yu-Gi-Oh ARC-V A New Story of Pendulum (Synchro Arc)

Chapter 5 Dark Synchro

The room was silent, cloaked in a stale heaviness. Only a single candlestick burned at the center of the table, its flame swaying in the draft that crept through the cracks of the old building. Six figures sat in a half-circle, their faces hidden beneath cloaks and shadows.

The one seated in the middle leaned forward, his voice low and deliberate. "So...the Lancers have arrived in this dimension."

Another shifted, his orange cloak catching the candle's glow. "And it must be fate to have all five gathered in the same place. Destiny moves faster than we thought."

At once, the seven of them raised their left arms into the pale light. One by one, the marks burned faintly on their skin—Vulture, Hummingbird, Giant, Flower, Monkey, and Lizard. Each symbol pulsed as if alive, the faint sound of cracking embers echoing when the flame wavered.

The man bearing the Vulture mark broke the silence. "Still...we have not found the true bearers of the Whale and the Spider. Their power remains hidden, and the Hands never came to us."

"Then what should we do?" asked the one whose body carried the mark of the Giant, his tone more impatient than afraid.

The leader's eyes gleamed in the dark. "We start by drawing out the Spider. Once the webs are woven, the prey reveals itself."

As if on cue, a faint rustle spread through the floorboards. Dozens of small, black shapes spilled from the corners of the room—spiders crawling outward into the shadows, spreading their threads into the night.

Four of the cloaked figures rose and departed in silence, their footsteps echoing like fading heartbeats. The candle sputtered. Only two remained.

The one with the Hummingbird symbol hesitated. His voice was soft, almost breaking. "What if we face them directly? If the Lancers are who we fear they are...are we truly capable of resisting?"

The man marked with the Vulture turned his gaze toward the flame. For a long moment, he said nothing, until finally he let out a weary sigh. "I don't know," he admitted. "But hesitation is a luxury we cannot afford. We must fight—for our families...and for those already taken by Academia."

The candlelight flickered once more, then dimmed, leaving only the sound of skittering spiders in the dark.

That night, Yuya stirred awake with a sudden sting in his arm. He sat up, clutching at the skin just below his elbow. The pain pulsed like fire under his veins, and then—glowing faintly against the darkness of the room—a crimson mark burned into view. It wasn't the familiar swirl of Pendulum energy he had known all his life, but a jagged emblem in the shape of a dragon's head.

Yuya's eyes widened. "The Signer Dragon's mark? Why is it glowing now?"

Zarc's voice echoed deep within his mind, calm yet uneasy. "Strange... I can feel it too. Something is about to happen."

Yuya slipped from the bed quietly, pulling on his jacket and setting his goggles over his eyes. He didn't notice the shadows shifting in the corner until a soft voice broke through.

"Can't sleep?" Jean stood there, rubbing her eyes, while Crow Hogan stifled a yawn behind her. Crow leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed. "We didn't see you in bed, so we came to check," Crow said, his tone casual but his eyes sharp.

Yuya raised his glowing arm. "I don't know why...but my mark suddenly started shining."

Both Jean and Crow leaned in. The dragon's head glowed brighter in the dim light, almost alive.

Crow blinked. "What is that supposed to be?"

Yuya's heart tightened. This wasn't the same Crow who once bore the tail of the Crimson Dragon. This Crow knew nothing of the ancient bonds. He hesitated, unsure how to explain—