Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Lady of Dragons ❯ Dante, Hottest Man Alive ( Chapter 8 )

"I'm the trouble starter, punking instigator.
I'm the fear addicted, danger illustrated.
I'm a firestarter, twisted firestarter..."

- Prodigy, "Firestarter"

 

CHAPTER EIGHT: DANTE CALDERA

THE HOTTEST MAN ALIVE

Peter had been through a lot today. At present, he was crouching in the thin space between his bed and the wall of his bedroom, leaning his back against another wall. The boy had his legs tucked up into his chest, his arms wrapping around them as he clutched each of his elbows with the opposite hand.

Peter was just beginning to get over the shock of the duel he had been forced into earlier that day. He raised his head from its resting position against his folded arms, and ran his hands along the curved bruises that now were fading into scar tissue.

 

Peter could see the man who had stolen his sister every time he dared to close his eyes. He could still remember the look of horror on both of their faces as the cannon had burned a hole straight through him. Worst of all, he could hear and imagine the final scream that should have been his opponent's last word.

For now, the boy's position in such closed quarters actually calmed his troubled mind. He had something solid around him; those were directions in which more trouble could not come.

Peter barely moved as he heard his bedroom door creak, his parents wanting to comfort him. The sound broke his concentration, and once again made him aware of his surroundings. He had not even heard when his hungry sister had begun to cry. He looked at his parents, not really absorbing the fact that they were there.

Peter just watched as his mother took Isabelle from her crib and spoke in a whisper to Joey outside the door. "Listen, I need to feed her right now, but can you please try to set him at ease?" Mai asked, with guilt that she could do nothing at the moment.

"Sure, Mai," Joey said, "but I don't know what good it will do. The kid hasn't been out of his room since he told us about it. He hasn't even eaten, and you know that he's normally a bottomless pit."

 

Mai nodded and went to a more private location.

Peter was profoundly annoyed at being referred to in the third person as if he wasn't even in the room, but, deciding not to venture out of his present state, kept his mouth shut.

Joey looked at the numb look in his son's eyes, and felt every memory from watching Kaiba lose his duel with Pegasus, to Yugi's final victory against Marik. Although Mai didn't know it, Joey and Peter might have had more in common than what was noticed at first glance. Joey decided to give it a go and hope for the best. "You shouldn't be beating yourself up like this, Peter."

Peter didn't even give his father a glance. "I'm a murderer, dad. I killed that man."

"You saved your sister," Joey corrected. Sheesh. If I was Seto Kaiba this discussion would be a whole lot easier, Joey thought to himself.

 

Joey found himself understanding in an instant why Mokuba was always a central pawn in his early dueling career. He had wondered many times why family was involved. Answer: because it worked.

 

Joey suddenly felt a pang of inspiration. "Tell you what, would it be alright with you if I just asked to resign your tournament registration? I think this is enough dueling for a while."

Peter felt his mood go from loneliness and despair to absolute rage. "Oh, sure! Keep your baby safe and sound! Never mind what he wants to do. I went through an experience this morning that you and mom never have and never will. That man's life was in my hands, and I sent it down the sewers with the rest of the rats. I didn't even consider what the consequences would be."

 

Joey looked stunned at the sudden outburst, but allowed Peter the venting room he needed.

The boy continued, "That guy had a life. Friends that are going to miss him. Dueling dreams that will never come true because of me. A man was killed today, and someone is going to notice. Either way, I have a promise to Derik to duel him in the finals, and seven more locator cards need to be won to get me there." Peter took a breath as the tears finally reached the outside of his eyes. "You told me once that you dueled for mom to keep her safe. Now let me find those tattoo-faced freak and let me make sure that my sister stays out of harm's way."

Joey glared and got up from his position. "You're not dueling anyone with that kind of an attitude. You're staying here for at least tonight. We can discuss it tomorrow, if you feel like listening." Joey could almost taste the venom being channeled through his son's eyes. He guessed to himself (correctly) that Peter was fighting back a string of words that definitely wouldn't win him any points with his parents.

As soon as his dad had locked the door on him, Peter thought of a trick he had seen in a movie somewhere, and began tying his sheets together.

0000000

Mai greeted Joey as he exited the room, the baby's head hidden under the towel across her front. "Anything new?" she questioned.

Joey sighed.  "Nothing but an emotional outburst that's sure to give me a headache tomorrow, but there was one thing that I didn't understand."

"What was it?" Mai questioned.

Then, even as slow on the uptake as he was, Joey felt something click. "I need to call Marik," he said, backing away to the kitchen.  "We need to know what happened at that lunch date anyhow."

Mai didn't give it a second thought, but the conversation turned out to be more than Joey had bargained for. After half an hour, both Joey and Marik were still as confused as ever, both wondering the same question.

Deciding to get some answers, Joey didn't bother to knock; he asked his question before the door was even open. "Peter, did you run into someone named Odi…" He was cut short as he found an open window and a makeshift rope. Cursing to himself, he picked up his keys on the table.

"What did he say, hon?” Mai quickly asked, not bothering to catch the rag that had fallen to the floor.

"Nothing," Joey said in a grim tone, "he's gone."

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Peter at the time was just trying to make sense of what was going on. All of the better restaurants were now closed. He was just about to give up and go home, when a cold voice cut through the chilling air.

"Hey, kid, you lost or something?" The guy speaking was obviously eighteen or nineteen. Red hair was slicked back into a rubber band, not really long enough to be a ponytail, but the attempt was noticeable, as were the rough sideburns around his face.

Peter, however, was not in the mood to talk. "Go away and leave me alone, okay?" he said.

The teen took out a cane from behind his back, and flicked the top to reveal a hidden lighter. "Sure man, no problem." He pulled a cigarette from his pocket and set the tip ablaze with the lighter's flame.

"Put that out," Peter commanded, his tone meaning that he wouldn't ask twice.

The guy just puffed a long drag and blew the smoke into the young boy's eyes, then snickered, the cigarette clenched in his teeth. "Make me."

CRACK!

Peter didn't even feel the dull throbbing in his fist as he slugged the bully square on his left jaw, knocking him to the ground.  Blinking, the teen stood up, closing the lighter as he blurted, "What the hell was that for?"

"Don't smoke," Peter said in victory, "you could get hurt."

With his jaw still throbbing, the teen pulled himself to his feet, leaning against the cane for support. "Okay, tough guy," he said as he spat.  "I challenge you to a Battle City duel!"

Peter acknowledged the disk attached to his assailant's arm. He hadn't been expecting this, but he wasn't in the mood to do any dueling right now. "Sorry, not interested."

As he turned to walk away, he heard a cruel laugh wafting over his shoulder, and his assailant murmuring, "You know very well, boy, that refusing a challenge disqualifies you, so if you want to lose the easy way…"

Peter had turned around and snapped his disk into place already. It was not a good night to piss him off. "I don't do easy," he declared.

With the sun setting in the background, Peter's opponent set the stakes at four locator cards and gave Peter his name: "You have just challenged Dante Caldera, boy. I saw your duel with Mitsurugi, and trust me, this duel will not be as easy. Let's duel."

D-8000 P-8000

Dante drew his opening hand with his cane planted firmly in the soft earth, and set his duel disk on its stand. "First thing's first," he declared with an authoritive tone. "I summon Fireyarou in attack position, and set a single card facedown."

 

The hidden card was easy enough to render in holographic form, but the monster seemed to be floating in a meditative pose atop a swirling aura of flames. (1300/1000)

A fire deck, Peter noted, I might have to be careful with this one. Drawing his cards, Peter was pleasantly surprised to see his Warrior Dai Grepher in his opening hand. "Okay, I'll start with two cards facedown, and summon the Harpie's Brother in attack mode!"

 

With a flash, the winged warrior stood at Peter's side. (1800/600)

 

Although he would normally wait for the opportunity to strike, Peter was out for blood in this duel, and dove in with a head-on attack. "Harpie's Brother, destroy Fireyarou with Crimson Claw!"

Pointless, Dante thought to himself, it's all too easy. "I trigger the trap card Shadow Spell. These dark magical chains not only trap, but weaken your monster by 700 points."

 

Right on cue, the black chains latched on to any part of the attacking monster it could secure, stretching the birdman's limbs to odd and uncomfortable angles.

Peter looked at the Dragon's Bead that resided in his hand and mentally kicked himself. If he had waited one turn to attack, his monster wouldn't be in that situation.

Dante began his own turn and drew a fifth card into his hand. "I activate the magic card Final Flame to burn through 600 of your Life Points!" 

 

A streak of fire slammed into the ground from over Dante's left shoulder, running along the ground like a shark fin before jumping to slam into Peter's chest... almost.

"Sorry," the boy said, "I activate the Barrel Behind the Door to transfer my damage to you." Peter caught himself as he flipped over the card. It had surprised him that he still had the gall to use it. Nevertheless, the ancient cannon caught the fire, forcing it back at his opponent.

D-7400 P-8000

"Nice trick, kid," Dante snorted, "but it won't save you for long from my Rhaimundos of the Red Sword." A goat headed beast, armor clad, lashed out with a blade of pure scarlet energy. (1200/1300) "Rhaimundos, attack with your Sword of Crimson Flames!"

 

The attack was pretty self-explanatory. The helpless Harpie's Brother only hung his head in defeat as he was cut through the middle, chains and all.

"Now, Fireyarou," Dante punctuated, "attack my opponent's Life Points directly with Malevolent Fire." The monster stayed in one position as two streaks of flame began to circle around it.

Peter held his ground as the fire lashed at him, burning away a chunk of his score.

D-7400 P-6600

Dante held a smug attitude as he finished by setting another card, and left Peter to worry about it.

Peter took his hand into account. He had five cards, but most of them were monsters. He was all but helpless against another trap. Luckily, he still had traps of his own. "I set another card, and summon the Cave Dragon to act as an offensive wall against your monsters." (2000/100)

The elderly dragon lumbered onto the field, reminding Peter of just how much trouble he was in. His monster could not attack without another dragon on the field. He just had to hope that it would still be there when his next turn rolled around.

"No problem," Dante countered drawing a fourth card. "I use the magic of the Polymerization card to fuse my two monsters, Fireyarou and Rhaimundos of the Red Sword, into the monster known as the Vermillion Sparrow!"

The two creatures melted away into the fusion, leaving a monster that looked little like either of them in its wake. Fiery red hair was combed back upon the head of a humanoid monster wearing an array of colors. What the eye tended to focus on, though, was the red-hot ball of flame hovering over the monsters right hand. (1900/1500)

"And to sweeten the deal," Dante added, "I'll remove the Fireyarou from my graveyard to bring out the Spirit of Flames."

 

The discarded monster shone in a painfully hot glow for the briefest moment before bursting into an orange inferno. Then the blaze itself began to solidify, wrapping into bulging muscles and huge horns, forming an intimidating beast. (1700/1000)

"Your monster may be stronger than mine right now, kid, but I still have my Salamandra to give my Sparrow a 700-point attack boost." Dante could barely contain his glee as the magic of Salamandra wrapped its way around the Vermillion Sparrow's arm. The fire dragon's head was grinning from its perch within the monster's hand. "Now, Sparrow, Crimson Blaze attack!"

Peter interrupted his opponent before the attack was carried out. "Why do you insist on calling out the attack name every offensive? It's starting to get on my nerves."

Dante actually looked a little hurt at the question. "I don't know, I just like making them up."

The attack looked like it was about to go through, but Peter obviously had other plans. "I trigger both of my trap cards, Dragon's Tribe and the Dragon Capture Jar. It doesn't stop your attack on my monster, but the Jar switches it to defense mode and protects my life points from damage. And with my Dragon's Tribe switching all of your monsters to dragons, they go into defense mode, too, leaving them ripe for the slaughter next turn!"

Dante cringed as the skin on his two monsters turned pale green, and scales began to cover their flesh. Leathery wings erupted from their backs, just in time for the enchanted smoke erupting from the cursed pot to wash over and bend the two into submission.

Peter looked at the field with pride, even as his own monster was incinerated. His father had thought it was crazy to put a Dragon Capture Jar in his deck, but he found that the quick switch to defense mode could be helpful in the right situation.

As Peter's turn rolled around, he picked up a fourth card and put it into play. "I activate Graceful Charity and draw three cards." He punctuated the sentence by drawing in the rhythm of his tone. "The cards I discard are, Hyozonryu and Dragon's Bead." He paused a moment. "Then I summon the Warrior Dai Grepher (1700/1600) in attack mode, and strike down the Vermillion Sparrow... and just to get on your nerves, I think I'll add a Fairy Meteor Crush too!"

A burning asteroid came down from the sky, slamming into the Warrior's back. The swordsman didn't seem to mind, though. He just rode, being pushed by the space rock, until he slammed into the docile monster.

D-7200 P-6600

Peter decided to get the best of the situation before he lost control again. "I also use the Pot of Greed to draw two more cards…" Peter studied them for a moment. "And I'll set a card to end my turn." Peter was a little peeved at his monster drought, but reminded himself that as long as he had a monster on the field, he would be safe.

Dante seemed to be having no such bad luck, however, as he grinned in his triumph. "Do you know what card I just drew, Wheeler?" he announced as he held up his latest in a hand that held just two cards. "A monster that could very well end this duel in my favor, but first, I have a Pot of Greed to play."

"Who doesn't?" Peter shot back.

Dante ignored him; he was too busy gazing at the cards he now held. "You've had it now!" he shouted, tossing a card onto his disk.  "I activate the Incandescent Ordeal magic card. This ritual brings out one of my strongest creatures, but we'll get to that in a moment.  For the cost of the ritual, I'll discard this."

Peter's heart stopped at the card that his opponent was throwing away. It was a Tyrant Dragon, a card that Peter had always dreamed about owning, and one that he now intended to win.

"Now with the sacrifice," Dante continued, "I summon the Legendary Flame Lord - a monster with the power to burn your monsters into cinders!"

 

The ritual could only be described in one word… fire. The giant form of the Tyrant Dragon was swallowed by the bright inferno that consumed it. Peter couldn't tell if anything was even happening... and then the flames began to shift. The blaze was easily absorbed into the body of the great warrior.

The monster actually looked handsome. He was adorned in what appeared to be a scorched samurai outfit, and held an elegant staff at his side. (2400/2000)

As comforting as the monster looked, Peter knew that this was not a creature to mess with. How he longed for his Ring of Destruction at the moment, but ever since this morning, and learning that his opponent was using a burn deck, he had not put it back in.

Dante laughed, and then regained his composure, ordering, "Now, Flame Lord, attack!"

Peter had never been more relieved as he quickly triggered his trap card - something Joey had asked him to use to remind Peter of him. "I activate Magic Arm Shield, taking the Spirit of Flames that I switched to defense mode and putting him in the way of your attack."

It was a short save as a retractable arm grabbed the molten creature and swung him to Peter's side, quickly stopping the sizzling wave of air being sent his way. The monster was defending, so no points were lost, but it was a monster that Peter no longer had to deal with. 

 

Dante's turn ended there.

Peter was back to a hand of four, not that it could help him. But he did think that it was time to get back to the offensive. "I summon Spirit Ryu, in attack mode!" (1000/1000)

Peter was pretty confident, but that dropped as he noted a surprised look in Dante's eyes.

"Did you forget about your own trap card, Wheeler?" Dante said, after retrieving his jaw from the ground. 

 

The Dragon Capture Jar snarled before releasing a cloud of thick red smoke, causing the monster to switch to defense position.

Peter gritted his teeth, it wasn't what he had hoped for, but it would have to do. Quickly, he sent his swordsman to defense as well.

Dante started by refreshing his hand with a new card, and made sure to show on his face that he didn't like it. "You have fun and hide behind that monster's special ability all you want, but my Legendary Flame Lord can still take out your Warrior Dai Grepher."  He paused, and then smiled.  "I think I'll start with that."

The lord clenched his fist, creating heat so intense that his hand could not control it anymore. When his mighty fingers were unclenched, scalding hot air radiated in a wave towards the helpless monster, broiling it alive.

 

Peter watched in regret at letting a tournament-won card go to waste, but there was little that he could do.

Back to a hand of four, Peter finally came up with a strategy for the short run, but actually he was wondering if he had the guts to actually beat this guy. "My turn now," he declared with a flourish.

Dante was actually beginning to admire the kid's spunk. He would have fun beating the little runt, but he would have fun doing it instead of revenge for knocking him down. It seemed that the guy was pouring all of his concentration into this duel... as if trying to forget something else.

"I use the magic card Stamping Destruction to destroy a magic card..." Peter began.

Dante snapped back into focus. Why should he be getting soft now? He was in the middle of a duel here, and he needed to be a jerk to win. "Didn't you notice? I have no such cards left!"

Peter pointed with a quick glance of his eyes, and Dante understood. The Dragon Capture Jar shattered under the pressure of a giant, dinosaur-like foot.  The aftershocks, however, knocked Peter to the ground.

D-7200 P-6100

 Peter quickly got back up to his feet, eager to continue with his next move. "Now I summon my favorite monster by tributing my Spirit Ryu. I call forth the Luster Dragon!" (2400/1400)

 

Peter never got tired of seeing his monster. Its shining emerald body glistening against the now setting sun. The opposing Flame Lord was growing more intense in the fading light.

 

"Now I set a card facedown, and activate the…" Peter choked for the briefest of moments. "Wave-Motion Cannon."

Suddenly through the holograms, the card was there, as were his memories. Peter still felt the stink of the sewer on the card. It had only happened that morning, and for once, that's what it felt like. It felt like fourteen hours instead of fourteen years.

 

Peter fell to his knees as the scars on his cheeks began to ache. "C-Can I take that card back?" he asked with a sob.

Dante took a look at the child at his feet and almost let him, but then his duelist side kicked in. "Listen, kid," he demanded, "I don't know what just made you fold over like a freshly washed towel, but I'm here to duel.  If you can't handle it, then forfeit and go home."

Peter let the light of the setting sun shine through the tears streaming off of his face and onto the pavement, and began to listen. Not to Dante, but to the cooing of his sister, being held in the arms of his dad. The two were standing on an overlooking bridge watching the entire thing.

Peter took one last thought of the Tyrant Dragon just waiting for him as a prize, and made up his mind. "Okay... my turn is over, now make yours."

Dante just snickered as he drew his hand up to three. "Sorry to disappoint you, but this match is mine. I activate Molten Destruction to add 500 points of attack power to every Fire monster in play. And my Legendary Flame Lord gets more than a power boost to 2900; it gets the power to trigger its most fearsome ability. With three spell counters on it, my monster can wipe out every monster on the field except itself!" 

 

The Flame Lord began to form a swirling vortex of fire at the pinnacle of its staff. An inferno was gathering.

Peter just took the opportunity to get rid of them both. "If my favorite monster has to be destroyed, I think I'll do it myself, thank you!" he said. Activate Burst Breath, and I'll use my Luster Dragon as a sacrifice to destroy the Legendary Flame Lord!"

The emerald beast let out a mighty roar, and then staggered. The flames from the dying dragon's mouth swept across the field, wiping out all in its wake.

True to his strategy, Dante was now burning, with anger. This kid had a whole turn to wipe him out.

Peter only had a hand of one, but it was more than enough for now. He felt his stomach roil as the cannon charged, but quickly got over it. "I summon my Spear Dragon to attack you directly." The mighty beast screeched as Peter set the card in place. "Spear Dragon, direct attack with Cyclone Blast!"

Although the holograms couldn't make physical contact, Dante could almost feel a sensation similar to being struck by icicles as the dragon's turbulent breath hit its mark.

D-5300 P-6100

Despite the situation, Dante broke a smile when a third card was drawn. "I hope you don't mind losing, Wheeler, but I summon Fire Kraken to the field." (1600/1500 - 2100/1100) He let that sink in, and then added,  "Now, I could destroy your dragon with my new monster, but then I can't use this - Enemy Controller!"  The magic card arose, bearing a picture of a large game controller. "By using this card's second effect, I can sacrifice my monster to bring your dragon under my control."

The Spear Dragon didn't put up much of a fight, as it was actually sleeping after switching to defense mode after the last assault. 

 

Peter was confused by the move: his dragon would be his again at the end of the turn, and then Dante would be defenseless.

"The only problem with my greatest monster," Dante elaborated, "is the fact that I need to sacrifice a monster in order to bring it back from the graveyard."

Peter had a distinct feeling that this was going to be bad.

The fire duelist finished, "With your Dragon-type monster now in my possession, I can sacrifice it to activate Monster Reborn, and summon one of the most powerful dragons in the dueling world." The Spear Dragon was snapped within a brutal set of jaws, and then the ground cracked. A fearsome beast rose from the depths of the graveyard, waiting for the chance to spill some blood. "I call upon the colossal Tyrant Dragon!"

Peter knew the card full well, and it was an honor to be seeing it first hand. The sun had set, and there was a deafening roar as the beast sent up a spectacular stream of fire that lit up the night sky. (2900/2400 - 3400/2000)

Dante grinned as he gazed upon his monster. "Tyrant Dragon can attack twice on the same battle phase, and with no monsters for you to hide behind, this duel is mine. Tyrant Dragon," Dante commanded with his trademark move declaration, "Imperial Inferno!"

Within the mighty dragon's mouth, a magnificent fireball formed. Within the white-hot flames was a distinct marking of a crown. The dragon fired, and two streams of orange fire smashed head on into Peter's chest, knocking him to the ground.

D-5300 P-2700

Dante cracked a maniacal smile, ordering, "Now dragon, attack a second time!" But the dragon remained still.

Peter let out a sigh of relief as he got to his feet once more. "Tyrant Dragon can only attack a second time if I have a monster on the field, and you pointed out yourself that I have none. Say goodbye to your hopes at the finals, Dante, because I still have one turn to beat you."

"You've got nothing," Dante scoffed.

"I have my Wave-Motion Cannon," Peter corrected as the card charged again. "And, I have this." Peter took the card from his disk and turned it around for his opponent to see. "Time to show you how a real dragon duelist works! I activate my own Change of Heart!"

Dante sneered again. "Tyrant Dragon is immune to all targeting effects, remember?"

"Wrong again," Peter thundered, "it's only immune to targeting trap cards, so like it or not, I win." The divine power of the magic card took hold of the mighty beast, turning it on its holder. "First I use the power of the Wave-Motion Cannon to get rid of two thousand of your life points."

 

Seeing the cannon fired seemed to be the final step in getting the weight off of Peter's shoulders. It was just a card after all.

D-3300 P-2700

The last thing Peter said was, "Now I'll use your controlled Tyrant Dragon to wipe you out of the tournament. Imperial Inferno!"  And that settled that.

D-0 P-2700

By the time the brilliant flash of fire had subsided, Dante was rolling along on the ground, trying to extinguish the fire currently consuming his cards. Apparently, he had tried to run away, but tripped on his cane/lighter still stuck into the ground.

Looking back up at Peter, he met his eyes with a sheepish smile. "Okay, four cards as promised. You want to look through my deck?"

"No," Peter replied flatly. "I'm keeping the dragon. At least I know how to use it."

To Peter's surprise, Dante actually chuckled. "You're okay, Wheeler, you're okay." Dante walked over to his car and drove away, just before Peter felt his dad's hand on his shoulder.

"He's wrong, you know," Joey told his son. Peter stared at the ground for a moment, and then his father spoke again. "You're far more than okay." With that Joey hugged his son around the shoulder, and they headed home for the night.

0000000

Odion had not said a word as he caught the whole duel on tape for analysis and went to report back to Seskera. It would be a long week for the entire Order.

"Odion."

The scarred man froze, hearing the cold voice of his former master over his shoulder.  "Master Marik," he replied.

"Forget the `master' crap Odion, I spent all evening tracking you down…" Marik held up his Millennium Rod to punctuate it, "And I want some answers!"

Odion turned away, exposing his slightly gray ponytail, and walked straight by.

 

Marik huffed before being surprised with a response.

 

"I have only ever been devoted to protecting you," Odion said, "and that is what I continue to do."

Marik was growing impatient. "How are you doing anything except helping this band of thieves and cheaters? And furthermore, where did you find the markings for the scars on your face?"

Odion was taken aback at the sudden change in subject, but continued to walk away.

"They are a marking of protection, Odion!" Marik called to him. "What you have is a resistance to the shadows!" But Marik wasn't even sure that the man had heard him.

0000000

Odion greeted Seskera in the usual fashion and relayed what he could.

"Of all the recent targets, this Wheeler child is the most intriguing.  Dragons, easily rectified," the Ammitite leader thought aloud.  "And if my memory serves me correctly, the soul card of Marik Ishtar is the Winged Dragon of Ra.  Am I correct?"

Odion's face tensed as he responded with a bow.

"An Egyptian god as a soul card." Seskera turned the idea over in his head. "Perfect."

Coming next chapter: The Order makes its next move.  The first target is Derik, and he faces off against a man who has a very interesting connection to the past - not to mention very unusual strategies.  How will Derik handle a duelist with more tricks up his sleeve than Houdini?  Find out in Chapter Nine, "Sage, Forbidden Conjurer"!