What should be chance and a test of psychology instead colours itself in an unnerving air of fabrication. Rebecca’s attempts to out-play Lyra within the Lost Card Game falls deftly within the scope of Lyra’s narration. The notion of ‘game’ within the title is a laughable misrepresentation of the actual events ongoing. There is little fair play being had. The only losses Lyra suffers are those chosen by her to construct a ‘game’ that invokes a hollow reverberation of entertainment. Beyond the misleading setting of the game, Ether Powers are deceptively used behind the scenes to design the outcome sought. The particular game and rule-set were chosen by Lyra for reason rather than a physical bout. Outside of combat, Lyra’s abilities more than likely benefits from such structure. With Rebecca introduced to such a possibility, how will she exercise her observations into her deductions? The revelation that Lyra lost once conveys that the Lost Card isn’t unbeatable. If anyone can fight a route to victory in such a game, it is Rebecca (and Happy).
Not once during the seven rounds (including the repeated round with Rebecca reversing time) was Lyra concerned in the slightest about suffering a complete lose within the game. Why? What element within the game causes Lyra to derive such confidence? Sure, she is more experienced within the game but the “]nature of “chance” existing within the game would still leave even seasoned veterans of the game on edge at times. No one can have perfect game every single time. Unless, of course, they can. Perfect in the sense of everything going as planned. Which is exactly how it appears to be going for Lyra. Rather than worrying about Rebecca drawing a higher card than hers in a round Lyra wishes to win, it is almost as it Rebecca’s only options is the card “1” when Lyra’s is only “5”. If Rebecca were given the approval to turn over all the cards, would they still be 1 – 5 or would all the cards be 1? Or is what Lyra is doing is converting the card Rebecca’s chooses to a certain card right before the reveal? Meaning that cards 1-5 are still present but able to be changed around freely by Lyra based on her intentions.
Based on Lyra’s past dialogue, the ability she possess likely centers around being able to manipulate objects and changing/transmuting them. If Lyra could extend her powers over the turned over cards, why wouldn’t she manipulate the cards so that all of hers are 5 and all of her opponents are a lesser number or at least the ones chosen are the respective numbers she chooses. With such an ability, Lyra’s over-confidence and lack of worry within the current Lost Card Game would be substantiated. Lyra donning a bathing suit underneath her clothes beforehand conveys Lyra’s intentions and the scripted nature of her actions. Rebecca should arrive at such a conclusion as well shortly and understand the need to change tactics.
There may be ways in which Rebecca could discover blind-spots within Lyra’s Ether Gear, such as flipping as the cards to determine if they are all the same or truly the 1-5 options. After such as act which would disqualify Rebecca, she could return back in time. If the cards are 1-5, Lyra is likely changing the cards once Rebecca begins to reveal it. Could Rebecca psyche Lyra out or is the ability an automatic one by Lyra. Another option is waiting for Pino to arrive, who would be able to cast an EMP to disable any use of Ether Gear within the area Rebecca and Lyra are in. If Lyra can’t use her Ether Gear, would panic set in and open the doors for Lyra’s second loss? The simplicity of the Lost Card Game is what makes this such a dangerous and intriguing match.
The curious aspect about Lyra’s only loss within the Lost Card Game is how Nero went about claiming victory. Considering Nero also employs an Ether Gear based ability to path his actions forward, such an act may have countered Lyra’s attempts to manipulate the cards within their rounds during their game. I wouldn’t be surprised if Nero suffered no losses to Lyra within the rounds during their game. Rebecca may not have the dice Nero used but what she does have is a miraculous ability that can save worlds and time. Another interesting detail about Lyra’s previous battle with Nero is that she lost her left eye. I expected her eye to be a result of a previous lose with the Lost Card Game but I did not expect it to be against Nero. So why did Lyra or Nero choose to have Lyra lose her eye? Considering the victor likely decides, one can surmise that it was Nero who chose for Lyra to lose her left eye. Could her eyes be linked to her Ether Gear and how she uses her abilities? There is a process to Lyra’s powers and how they are used. Lyra’s Ether Gear isn’t unbeatable. Nero won against her before. A way to victory does exist. The battle Lyra had with Nero does raise the question as to why the two engaged in such a battle. Does Lyra not fully agree with Nero?
If Rebecca has leveled up like the rest of the Edens Zero crew, would she also have unlocked Overdrive? If so, would going Overdrive allow her to use her time leap more than once in the situation she finds herself in or will it allow her more precise control over how she applies her Cat Leaper ability to the current situation – such as reversing the state of the card she chose if Lyra is manipulating it when she goes to reveal it. Applying her power in such a way should cancel out Lyra’s manipulation of the card if that is what in fact is going on. Once Rebecca catches Lyra off-guard, panic will set in for Lyra and the psychological spiral downward will begin for Lyra.
Creed from the Interstellar Union Army is either an honest guy or a very cunning to-be-revealed villain. His ‘innocent appearance’ makes him a great candidate for a secretly twisted character. The circumstances surrounding Creed’s current isolated self from the rest of his unit is very suspicious (if there is a unit). How does a trained galactic solider get separated from their team while proceeding through the Nero 66 facility? I can see Homura getting separated as she was drawn into Milani’s mirror world and forced into battle. But what is Creed’s excuse? Did he also run into enemies? Is there even a Interstellar Union Army team on Nero 66? If there was, surely there would be more commotion within the Nero 66 facility and not having a Lost Card Game with thousands of spectators still ongoing. The last we seen was the IUA engaging with the Nero fleet in space. No word from either the IUA in space or Shura’s forces on Nero 66 about any team of IUA soldiers reaching the planet. For all we know, Creed could be betraying the IUA and acting according to his own agenda i.e. stealing the All-Link system. Creed’s reasoning for wanting to destroy the All-Link system because he is a government operative is such a hollow one. Is Creed secretly working for Ziggy? Whatever you do Homura, don’t trust Creed! Leading Creed to the All-Link system could be bad. Very much looking forward to the next chapter!
12Dimension 