Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Lady of Dragons ❯ Yami Bakura, Nightmare Reborn ( Chapter 25 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: jkBAKURA 
Well, all is not over, and as the chapter title reveals, and old favorite is back for a visit.
Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction | Genre(s): / Adventure / Action | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 07.09.2008 | Pages: 6 | Words: 7.4K | Visits: 272 | Status: Completed
Well, all is not over, and as the chapter title reveals, and old favorite is back for a visit.
Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction | Genre(s): / Adventure / Action | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 07.09.2008 | Pages: 6 | Words: 7.4K | Visits: 272 | Status: Completed
"This I believe in... I believe in death. I believe in disease. I believe in injustice and inhumanity, torture and anger and hate... I believe in murder. I believe in pain. I believe in cruelty and infidelity. I believe in slime and stink and every crawling, putrid thing... every possible ugliness and corruption, you son of a bitch! I believe... in you!"
- Detective Kinderman (George C. Scott), The Exorcist III, screenplay by William Peter Blatty
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: YAMI BAKURA, NIGHTMARE REBORN
Isis descended the blimp's ramp to greet her fans, now that she had taken the Battle City crown, and let the people of Domino admire her. She kept her public face, but internally twisted between rage and annoyance when she found the applause to be half-hearted.
She was the favorite to win after all, it was what the audience had expected, so there was no need to get worked up about it. Suddenly, Isis found herself wondering if this was what she deserved, and felt a little remorse to be here. Then she decided that if she got the crowd going, maybe it would cause her to forget.
"Thank you, Domino! It gives me great pleasure to be here as your latest Battle City Duelist Champion!" The crowd gave another half-hearted round of clapping, leaving Isis on the verge of tears. Didn't they know how much this meant to her?
Her ears perked up though, as finally a single sharp clap, followed by another, and another, came from her right.
There, framed in a doorway of shadow conjured in mid-air, level with the top of the ramp, Seskera stood mocking her with every sharp snap of his hands.
Marik and Bakura came through the doorway, followed by Kaiba, and immediately let their jaws fall with disbelief as the shadows leaking through the portal began to spread.
Seskera stepped down, mastering a perfect back flip, landing on his feet near the end of the gangplank, where he deliberately threatened the party with every arrogant step.
"Bravo, bravo, Isis," the shadowy man began. "You have done well for yourself, haven't you? I don't mean to steal your thunder, but it isn't every day someone comes back from the dead."
"How did you get back here, Seskera? I thought where I sent you didn't have any return trips," Kaiba said as he sneered, stepping out onto the gangplank between the man and his daughter.
Seskera shook his head. "Dear Seto Kaiba," he started, his face turning to an enraged glare a second later. "You locked me in a cell for breaking no laws. Normally, disqualification does not require lock and key, and even that wasn't enough. You banished me to the shadows and left me to die..." His anger left, leaving a snide aura of superiority. "Well, the joke is on you, Kaiba. Even I could not have predicted how much less energy it takes... how much easier it is to open the shadows from the inside!"
"Uh, guys...?" Marik stuttered, drawing his Millennium Rod in the process.
Yami and Yugi could see it, too: the portal Seskera had crossed through wasn't closing.
All around the blimp, the air roiled and warped, turning into a rich purple orb. Cries of unearthly torment began to echo through the endless night, and the shadows deepened at the feet of those looking on. The darkness was being released into the world, just as Seskera had planned all along.
The dark sorcerer held up his black crystal in his hand, leaving the ignored audience to his back. "And I never would have known, without a little help... from you!"
He pointed straight at Ryou Bakura's heart, causing the white-haired man's pupils to shrink, as he folded over and rolled uncontrollably down the gangplank.
"Bakura, no!" Marik called back, running after his friend. He tried to turn Bakura over, but sprung back as a sharp laceration stung at his hand. Looking horrified, he clearly saw the Millennium Ring, spines red with his blood, an unholy aura pulsing, and a wicked chilling laugh echoing throughout the station. "Bakura?" Marik asked, concerned.
"If that is what you wish to call me, then so be it!" A powerful shockwave blew Marik back into the air, letting him fall from the steps and onto the concrete below.
"You!" Yugi accused, hate boiling in him to a point that he had never felt before.
The one who was once Bakura rose to his feet, Ring gleaming menacingly as blood continued to drip from its points. "Hello again, Pharaoh. It's been such a long time, hasn't it?"
Yami immediately took his transparent form in front of everyone else. "I don't know how Seskera let you escape the Shadow Realm, or why, but I assure you that this time neither of you will ever escape again."
Yami's threat was immediately followed by Seskera's first true laugh since he had known them.
"Why do all of the mad ones have to do that?" Kaiba grumbled.
Composing himself, Seskera continued to address the small group crowded into the doorway and gangplank. "Why would I want to leave my new dominion? In any case, look around you. There's no point in trying to send me back to the shadows. They're already here."
Unfortunately, he spoke the truth. Darkness and chaos warped the world around them, Domino already shuddering as the shadows rolled on from this starting point. The small portal Seskera had entered through was pouring the inky black essence of the Shadow Realm into the mortal plane.
Kaiba's eyes widened in a refusal to believe that with everything that had happened, Seskera's plan to merge the Earth and the Shadow Realm had succeeded, and what was worse, he had given Seskera the chance.
The spirit in control of Bakura enjoyed the reactions with relish before adding his own kick to the proverbial shin. "I sense that all seven... well, six of the Millennium Items are also near, as well as the three Egyptian God Cards. But I fear that even with all their power, you are too late to stop the darkness now."
The rest of the audience ran fleeing for their lives, some being caught and dragged into the shadows. Marik thought desperately before running over to his sister. "Ishizu, I need you to take down your top."
What followed was about five seconds of complete and utter silence. The sixth hurt everyone's ears.
"MARIK!" Kaiba thundered in disgust. "Just because you think the world is coming to an end doesn't mean you can get that kind of last request, especially not from my wife!"
"Especially not from your sister!" Joey agreed.
They all stopped when they actually saw Ishizu begin to undo the back of her dress. "It's okay," she reassured Kaiba, as she held tight to the front, and finally, Kaiba could see it. God in heaven, why didn't he think of it before?
Permanently marked into Ishizu's skin were the ritual designs of the female members of the Tombkeeper clan, based on a different tablet with different markings.
The center was a buzz-saw shape with a grinning jack-o-lantern type of face. The shape was surrounded by a septagon, a shape with seven sides, each vertex a larger circle, and in each circle, a different Millennium Item in crude form. Under the design was another depiction of an ancient battle, and the whole thing was dotted with hieroglyphics that at the moment didn't matter.
Yugi understood, and looked to Yami for support. "Do you think it will work with only three?"
"Four," Kaiba admitted, almost embarrassed as he unveiled his newest acquisition. They were the Millennium Scales; now Kaiba possessed an ancient weapon of his own.
No one took a moment to be surprised as Marik, Yugi, and both Kaibas each took a corner, racing to get ahead of the shadow. Once in position, each focused on the other three. The effect surprised them all.
Puzzle, Scale, Rod, and Necklace each produced a powerful beam of light and ancient power completing a square around the spreading darkness. Derik and Isis looked on in amazement as the pulsing mass approached the makeshift barrier, strained, and stopped in its tracks.
The effort however, made by all four, kept them bracing themselves, and keeping their guard up at all times. The slightest distraction and the wall would fail.
It's too much, Yami! We can't hold it back ourselves! Yugi groaned as the storm of power kept threatening to break free.
Maybe not, but I have an idea... but I'll need you to keep going for me to get through, the spirit responded.
Okay, I can take your part for a moment, but the others can't talk at all. I hope you know what you're doing.
Putting his entire self forward, Yugi braced himself for Yami's temporary departure.
0000000
Derik frantically pounded on the door of the blimp, knowing that Peter and Joey were probably bashing the guards to let him through. It was no use, however; Kaiba's security had strict procedures.
Isis wasn't sure what was going on, but she did know who the cause of it was, and she intended to fix it. Derik froze as she almost nonchalantly walked up to Seskera.
"Nice entrance - much better than that Clive guy that worked for you. I don't know what kind of publicity stunt you're making with the special effects here, but I would appreciate it if you just called it a day, alright?" she asked with a tone of authority that would no doubt carry through her life.
Seskera was too wrapped up in watching the quartet struggle to notice.
"Hello?" Isis repeated, impatient, before she finally lost it. "That question was for you!" She punctuated the last word with a sharp crack to his right shin.
It didn't hurt the taller man, but it didn't go without notice. Seskera casually swept his arm in an arc, using the powers given to him through his burn; he knocked Isis backwards, her back slamming hard into the gangplank rail. She wasn't getting up for a while.
Derik watched in fear as an unfamiliar voice called out his name.
"Derik, we don't have much time; this box isn't going to hold for long."
Derik searched, and found a strange transparent figure talking to him with the greatest sense of urgency.
"It was you," Derik realized, incredibly serious even in the strange situation. "The Puzzle that night, when I touched it, you were the one who was talking to me."
"I'd tell you everything, Derik, but there isn't time," Yami continued. "Please realize that I have no choice, and would give anything not to have to place this burden on you..."
"Yami!" Yugi cried, the shadows pulsing, almost forcing his corner to give way. The ghost spoke quickly.
"You were in the Shadow Realm, Derik; you know what it's like. Your father and his friends are keeping it back, but they won't hold out forever. They need you, Derik. You're the only one left who can beat Seskera in a Shadow Game, and put a stop to this once and for all."
Derik's mind immediately jumped to a flat out "No". He'd just wait here, and watch everything turn out okay. If his dad and the Kaibas were this powerful, surely they could finish the job without him.
Yami pleaded with a look, and Derik forced himself to look around. No one else was coming, and if he didn?t do something now, he, and everyone else he knew was going to die. Well, death would not have him without a fight.
"All right," Derik said weakly, bearing more physical symptoms of fear than he had ever displayed. "I'll do it. Just try and give me more time, okay?"
Yami didn't answer, but ran fast to the aid of his lone partner, who was dangerously close to breaking. The four of them kept braced as the cloud finally solidified into a violet churning sphere, cutting off the children entirely.
0000000
Derik had thought only a day beforehand that he had gone through the scariest moment in his life. Now he was a walking mess.
Anxiety took a firm hold, and tears began running down his face in waves that just couldn't be stopped. Looking back at Seskera, the raw nerve he had felt all tournament finally ran out.
"I don't want to do this," he sobbed, breaking down even further, Seskera observing coolly. "I don't want to die here."
"Oh, I'm afraid that death will be a mercy compared to the gauntlet I have prepared for you," Bakura chuckled. "After all, the simple demise of your tormenting father and his Pharaoh partner would be too swift for me to enjoy. But just imagine how broken they will become when I lay your bleeding corpse at their feet."
Adrenaline pumping and too afraid for tears, Derik got to his feet, his skin pale with fright.
"And oh so long since I've used one of these," the possessed Bakura continued, taking a discarded Duel Disk off the ground, supposedly belonging to a member of the crowd which had fled. "I trust my host has not forgotten his old hobbies..." He grinned, taking the deck of the true Ryou Bakura from his pocket. The "good" one hadn't found a friendly person to play since he had arrived.
"What?" the spirit retched. "Fairies!?" He dropped the deck, and looked at his own hands in disbelief. "Ryou Bakura, you've gone soft to the point of revulsion, but matters so trivial are easy to rectify."
Taking all of his knowledge, Bakura sought the beasts from their black domains. First he took the monsters's raw forms, drawing them from the shadows around him. These he sealed in tablets, which then condensed into Duel Monsters cards. He held up one hand, and the cards flew down into it, shuffling themselves in hi shand before he put them into the Duel Disk, strapping it on.
"Now," the Ring's spirit said as he beckoned to Derik, taking great care to tread over the deck of his lighter half. "I assure you that the present situation will only continue to decay. That is, unless you duel me. Win and you may regain your freedom."
Seskera's ear perked up at this. "No," he countered. "We duel them both. Their containment trick won't work for long, and when it finally breaks, the first vision I want them to have within my empire is the result of what happens when I'm crossed."
The thing behind Bakura's face considered this with relish. "The spawn of the great Seto Kaiba wandering in the darkness for the rest of her days... I see no downside in that," he concluded, raising his disk like a challenging blade.
Isis crawled up off the floor, and with a look of unforgiving hatred and anger raised her own in response. "You're dealing with the champion. I'm not going down easy!"
Seskera's face twisted as Derik half-heartedly activated his own disk. "I'd hoped for nothing less," the man said.
All four Duel Disks flared up, and the duel began. (S-8000, B-8000, D-8000, I-8000)
"First turn honors are mine," the sorcerer grinned, inspecting his first hand and finding mostly useless magic cards. "And I think I can already turn it to my advantage, and in turn reacquaint you with a familiar face."
The taunt was directed at Derik.
"Now relive the awesome might of Gren Maju De Eiza in Attack Mode!" Seskera declared.
As the card slapped down, the titan of chaos emerged once again from its black portal. As before, the head emerged first, allowing the other features to come into focus as their eyes adjusted. A twisted chimera, it came with a hide to match the color of the blood it spilled. It was everything Derik remembered and more: the empty eyes, the metallic swish of the tail, and the infinite patience for battle.
Derik remembered well: anything that could make a Toon react like his Magician Girl had done was an evil beyond human comprehension save for the very darkest of nightmares. (0/0)
Derik froze in place, before Isis pointed out a simple fact. "Hold it, mister. That monster's power relies on the number of cards you have removed from play, of which you currently have none."
"Perceptive," Seskera gloated, "although I needn't worry long. I cast the magic card Dimensionhole, casting Gren Maju from play until my next turn."
"But that would leave you defenseless..." Derik began.
"No," Isis interjected, "he's smarter then I give him credit for. In a duel with partners, no one can attack until everyone has made a move. Even with no monsters, we can't do anything." Isis pondered for a moment. "...which makes me wonder why he bothered to protect it. I mean, Gren Maju doesn't gain points if it's removed from play itself."
Seskera merely continued his turn, taking another card from his hand. "I was waiting to play this," he grinned, turning Card of Sanctity between his fingers. "Now I simply remove these three useless cards, and not only do I gain a better hand, I fuel my chaos fiend in the process."
Seskera deposited his Tremendous Fire, Malevolent Nuzzler, and Soul Absorbtion cards into his robes, before catching two glittering lights from the sky. He studied his new draws with interest, before shrugging casually and continuing his turn. "I then set one card facedown, and end my turn."
Derik was up next, and grimaced for a moment at the sight of a particular card. Well, I have two monsters I could use this with. One is more powerful, but the other has a more useful effect. It's a tough choice, but I'm going to have to sacrifice strength for strategy this time around.
"I summon Gemini Elf in Attack mode," Derik declared, as one of his two copies of the card took center stage.
"I know I can't attack either of you," the boy continued, "but that works out well for me, because now I can use Tribute Doll without worrying about the nasty side effect."
Derik hated to repeat the move he made against Seskera last time, and it didn't make him feel any better as the musty coffin seized his monster with a clang and a cloud of dust. Within moments, an armored fist punched through the lid, and Buster Blader stood at Derik's front lines. (2600/2300)
"Derik, you idiot!" Isis complained. "You use that so early when you can't even attack? You could have brought it out later with my Dragons - now you won't get a chance."
Derik shut her out, because he was confident he made the right move. He'd need all the attack power he could get when that Gren Maju De Eiza returned.
The evil spirit of the Ring drew his card delicately, toying with his opponents at every turn. "Now for my first trick," he said with a cackle. "I begin with a monster in Attack Mode, a troublesome fiend by the name of Slate Warrior."
It didn't look much like a fiend to Isis. It more resembled an alien, with a big yellow clunky suit, and a head seemingly made of blue gel. (1900/400)
"But since I am not permitted to attack you just yet," the spirit pointed out, "I'll keep my secrets hidden for now. Two cards facedown and my turn ends."
Isis was up next, and was quite annoyed that Derik had beaten her as far as an impressive first move. Nonetheless, she set out to do some damage.
"I summon Neo the Magical Swordsman, in attack mode," she decreed, letting the handsome champion of sword and magic come to her aid. (1700/1000)
Seskera sat back in mocking laughter. "Really, Isis, no Gradius monsters this time?"
The girl grit her teeth, but admit to herself that she had hit a snag. There was no mistaking that this guy was one of the voices that she had argued with in her virtual duel, and if that was the case, they likely knew more about her then she wanted. Most of the duelists she had faced, she used her combos to beat once and left, but this guy knew her every trick, and likely so did his partner.
"Well, in that case, I activate the field card..."
"Luminous Spark," Seskera finished. "Though this is the first time we've dueled, I feel as if I've played your deck for years, and the same goes for you." He turned to look at Derik. "And though my deck may not have changed, you have no idea what my partner is carrying. The element of surprise belongs to us."
Isis finished laying her field, and as the arena changed, Derik felt a pang of worry. Isis didn't know that Seskera played just as many Light monsters as he did Dark ones.
Neo's stats rose with the terrain, and Isis set one hidden card before she passed the turn to Seskera.
As he drew, Seskera's beast from the void reappeared, boasting a rather weak attack power of 1200.
"Well, I suppose my move will consist of me summoning my Homunculus the Alchemetic Being in attack mode," the sorcerer began. (1800/1600)
Derik remembered this chimeric creature from his last encounter with Seskera, and was no happier for seeing it. Even worse, as he had predicted, the luminous playing field gave the creature a boost to its already formidable power. Homonculus began to glow, eyeing Isis's magical Swordsman as he did so.
"Homunculus will now obey my command by tuning in with one of the six elements represented in Duel Monsters, the element of water," Seskera finished.
Derik eyed his opponent's field, watching as the creature changed to a translucent dark blue. Bubbles floated inside of it, giving the appearance of a large lava lamp. Derik knew there was a reason for this; Seskera wouldn't throw away a stat bonus without some kind of combo waiting in the wings.
He was right.
"Now, I activate my facedown card; one that you might remember, Derik; it's called Fuu-Rin-Ka-Zan."
"Hey, wait!" Derik protested. "You need four different monster attributes on the field, and you haven't summoned Doriado yet."
"Give it a rest, Derik," Isis corrected. "I told you using that Buster Blader was a bad idea. That counts as the Earth monster, and between the two of them, they have the other three."
The trap lifted, forming four dancing pillars of the elements, circling Seskera until he made his choice.
"Isis, this is bad. That trap card is going to wipe out both of our monsters," Derik said, shivering.
One side of Seskera's mouth widened into a grin. "Useful, but not at all strategic. Your Buster Blader could come in handy yet. In fact, I"m going to choose the blessing of Wind, destroying every magic and trap card you have, even if it is only two."
Isis's home field advantage crumbled as the pillar of wind intensified into a raging tornado, consuming the whole field before dissipating. She wasn't about to let two opponents get free shots, however. "I activate Waboku, shielding my Magical Swordsman from you for one whole turn."
Seskera was obviously annoyed, but passed his turn to Derik, who nervously drew up to four and surveyed his field.
Just his luck, two of his cards were Emblem of Dragon Destroyer, and Skilled White Magician, and he already had Buster Blader in play. Nobleman of Crossout was dead weight too. The boy placed his final card onto a vacant magic zone, and pondered his next move.
Well, I could summon my magician, Derik thought, but Isis is right. If he goes down, he might get more powerful later, and I have two magic cards already. That just leaves the question of what to attack. I have no idea what that Slate Warrior can do, but I know that Gren Maju can become more powerful very quickly... but his Homunculus has more combos, and a higher attack power.
Weighing all things, Derik finally came to a conclusion. I have to take Homunculus out now. He doesn't have many cards right now to remove, and even if he draws Screams from the Beyond, his graveyard is too small for us to take much damage.
Derik swallowed hard, and started shaking as the thought finally crossed his mind that the Screams could be used again. It was an experience he'd rather not relive in memory or in reality. "I send Buster Blader to attack Homunculus the Alchemetic Being," the boy finally ordered.
The dragonslayer gave an astonishing leap for a being of his size and weight, and prepared to bring his blade down on the watery being.
"Seems I'm one step ahead," Bakura interrupted. "I activate my trap card, Staunch Defender, which forces the warrior to attack and destroy my Slate Warrior."
The two monsters blurred into indistinct shadows, before switching places. Derik's attack was too late to be called off, and the sword split the fiend's head down the middle. Derik's earlier assumption was correct, as blue gel burst from the creature, splattering Buster Blader on the chest.
Bakura didn't seem to mind as he lost 700 Life Points; in fact, he almost seemed glad.
(S-8000, B-7300, D-8000, I-8000)
"As your Buster Blader has foolishly discovered," the spirit of the Ring noted, "the necroplasm that powers my monster brings a curse of weakness to those that destroy it."
The substance on the warrior's armor began to smoke, and the Blader's breathing became labored, as his attack score dropped to 2100.
"But that is not the only purpose of this move," Bakura continued. "By destroying Slate Warrior, you have also allowed me to use this powerful card." His other set rose, featuring a picture of a woman about to be snared by fiendish hands. "Revenge Sacrifice allows me to use your monster that just attacked, and sacrifice it to summon one of my own!"
The card sent forth a number of tentacle-like cords, which bound the great warrior in their embrace. At first, the amount of struggle in the Blader seemed enough to break free, but in the end, he was slowly dragged to his fate.
Just as it seemed its darkest, events took another dangerous turn. What had to be the most foul Duel Monster Derik had ever seen now sat before him on a yellow throne of rock. It was hard to tell where the creature kept its face, as a foreboding screech seemed to come not from the monster's dark blue hide, but from within the very air. (2000/1400)
All in all, the only word Isis could think of was grotesque.
The abomination within Bakura cooed with pride over his new creature. "As both of you children can see, the attack power of my Helpoemer is greater then anything you have at your disposal. And if you think that my summoning it was impressive, wait until you end your turn and I can truly show you its powers."
"Isis, can you fuse your three Blue Eyes at the moment?" Derik whispered to her in a panic.
Isis returned the question with a glare. "It's four cards out of forty, genius, and I don't have all of that clutter you call fusion support. Now be quiet! I have other ways of dealing with this disgrace."
"Come now, even Helpoemer has feelings," Seskera provided.
"I was talking about you," Isis threw back. "Am I the only one here with a measurable amount of common sense?"
- Detective Kinderman (George C. Scott), The Exorcist III, screenplay by William Peter Blatty
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: YAMI BAKURA, NIGHTMARE REBORN
Isis descended the blimp's ramp to greet her fans, now that she had taken the Battle City crown, and let the people of Domino admire her. She kept her public face, but internally twisted between rage and annoyance when she found the applause to be half-hearted.
She was the favorite to win after all, it was what the audience had expected, so there was no need to get worked up about it. Suddenly, Isis found herself wondering if this was what she deserved, and felt a little remorse to be here. Then she decided that if she got the crowd going, maybe it would cause her to forget.
"Thank you, Domino! It gives me great pleasure to be here as your latest Battle City Duelist Champion!" The crowd gave another half-hearted round of clapping, leaving Isis on the verge of tears. Didn't they know how much this meant to her?
Her ears perked up though, as finally a single sharp clap, followed by another, and another, came from her right.
There, framed in a doorway of shadow conjured in mid-air, level with the top of the ramp, Seskera stood mocking her with every sharp snap of his hands.
Marik and Bakura came through the doorway, followed by Kaiba, and immediately let their jaws fall with disbelief as the shadows leaking through the portal began to spread.
Seskera stepped down, mastering a perfect back flip, landing on his feet near the end of the gangplank, where he deliberately threatened the party with every arrogant step.
"Bravo, bravo, Isis," the shadowy man began. "You have done well for yourself, haven't you? I don't mean to steal your thunder, but it isn't every day someone comes back from the dead."
"How did you get back here, Seskera? I thought where I sent you didn't have any return trips," Kaiba said as he sneered, stepping out onto the gangplank between the man and his daughter.
Seskera shook his head. "Dear Seto Kaiba," he started, his face turning to an enraged glare a second later. "You locked me in a cell for breaking no laws. Normally, disqualification does not require lock and key, and even that wasn't enough. You banished me to the shadows and left me to die..." His anger left, leaving a snide aura of superiority. "Well, the joke is on you, Kaiba. Even I could not have predicted how much less energy it takes... how much easier it is to open the shadows from the inside!"
"Uh, guys...?" Marik stuttered, drawing his Millennium Rod in the process.
Yami and Yugi could see it, too: the portal Seskera had crossed through wasn't closing.
All around the blimp, the air roiled and warped, turning into a rich purple orb. Cries of unearthly torment began to echo through the endless night, and the shadows deepened at the feet of those looking on. The darkness was being released into the world, just as Seskera had planned all along.
The dark sorcerer held up his black crystal in his hand, leaving the ignored audience to his back. "And I never would have known, without a little help... from you!"
He pointed straight at Ryou Bakura's heart, causing the white-haired man's pupils to shrink, as he folded over and rolled uncontrollably down the gangplank.
"Bakura, no!" Marik called back, running after his friend. He tried to turn Bakura over, but sprung back as a sharp laceration stung at his hand. Looking horrified, he clearly saw the Millennium Ring, spines red with his blood, an unholy aura pulsing, and a wicked chilling laugh echoing throughout the station. "Bakura?" Marik asked, concerned.
"If that is what you wish to call me, then so be it!" A powerful shockwave blew Marik back into the air, letting him fall from the steps and onto the concrete below.
"You!" Yugi accused, hate boiling in him to a point that he had never felt before.
The one who was once Bakura rose to his feet, Ring gleaming menacingly as blood continued to drip from its points. "Hello again, Pharaoh. It's been such a long time, hasn't it?"
Yami immediately took his transparent form in front of everyone else. "I don't know how Seskera let you escape the Shadow Realm, or why, but I assure you that this time neither of you will ever escape again."
Yami's threat was immediately followed by Seskera's first true laugh since he had known them.
"Why do all of the mad ones have to do that?" Kaiba grumbled.
Composing himself, Seskera continued to address the small group crowded into the doorway and gangplank. "Why would I want to leave my new dominion? In any case, look around you. There's no point in trying to send me back to the shadows. They're already here."
Unfortunately, he spoke the truth. Darkness and chaos warped the world around them, Domino already shuddering as the shadows rolled on from this starting point. The small portal Seskera had entered through was pouring the inky black essence of the Shadow Realm into the mortal plane.
Kaiba's eyes widened in a refusal to believe that with everything that had happened, Seskera's plan to merge the Earth and the Shadow Realm had succeeded, and what was worse, he had given Seskera the chance.
The spirit in control of Bakura enjoyed the reactions with relish before adding his own kick to the proverbial shin. "I sense that all seven... well, six of the Millennium Items are also near, as well as the three Egyptian God Cards. But I fear that even with all their power, you are too late to stop the darkness now."
The rest of the audience ran fleeing for their lives, some being caught and dragged into the shadows. Marik thought desperately before running over to his sister. "Ishizu, I need you to take down your top."
What followed was about five seconds of complete and utter silence. The sixth hurt everyone's ears.
"MARIK!" Kaiba thundered in disgust. "Just because you think the world is coming to an end doesn't mean you can get that kind of last request, especially not from my wife!"
"Especially not from your sister!" Joey agreed.
They all stopped when they actually saw Ishizu begin to undo the back of her dress. "It's okay," she reassured Kaiba, as she held tight to the front, and finally, Kaiba could see it. God in heaven, why didn't he think of it before?
Permanently marked into Ishizu's skin were the ritual designs of the female members of the Tombkeeper clan, based on a different tablet with different markings.
The center was a buzz-saw shape with a grinning jack-o-lantern type of face. The shape was surrounded by a septagon, a shape with seven sides, each vertex a larger circle, and in each circle, a different Millennium Item in crude form. Under the design was another depiction of an ancient battle, and the whole thing was dotted with hieroglyphics that at the moment didn't matter.
Yugi understood, and looked to Yami for support. "Do you think it will work with only three?"
"Four," Kaiba admitted, almost embarrassed as he unveiled his newest acquisition. They were the Millennium Scales; now Kaiba possessed an ancient weapon of his own.
No one took a moment to be surprised as Marik, Yugi, and both Kaibas each took a corner, racing to get ahead of the shadow. Once in position, each focused on the other three. The effect surprised them all.
Puzzle, Scale, Rod, and Necklace each produced a powerful beam of light and ancient power completing a square around the spreading darkness. Derik and Isis looked on in amazement as the pulsing mass approached the makeshift barrier, strained, and stopped in its tracks.
The effort however, made by all four, kept them bracing themselves, and keeping their guard up at all times. The slightest distraction and the wall would fail.
It's too much, Yami! We can't hold it back ourselves! Yugi groaned as the storm of power kept threatening to break free.
Maybe not, but I have an idea... but I'll need you to keep going for me to get through, the spirit responded.
Okay, I can take your part for a moment, but the others can't talk at all. I hope you know what you're doing.
Putting his entire self forward, Yugi braced himself for Yami's temporary departure.
0000000
Derik frantically pounded on the door of the blimp, knowing that Peter and Joey were probably bashing the guards to let him through. It was no use, however; Kaiba's security had strict procedures.
Isis wasn't sure what was going on, but she did know who the cause of it was, and she intended to fix it. Derik froze as she almost nonchalantly walked up to Seskera.
"Nice entrance - much better than that Clive guy that worked for you. I don't know what kind of publicity stunt you're making with the special effects here, but I would appreciate it if you just called it a day, alright?" she asked with a tone of authority that would no doubt carry through her life.
Seskera was too wrapped up in watching the quartet struggle to notice.
"Hello?" Isis repeated, impatient, before she finally lost it. "That question was for you!" She punctuated the last word with a sharp crack to his right shin.
It didn't hurt the taller man, but it didn't go without notice. Seskera casually swept his arm in an arc, using the powers given to him through his burn; he knocked Isis backwards, her back slamming hard into the gangplank rail. She wasn't getting up for a while.
Derik watched in fear as an unfamiliar voice called out his name.
"Derik, we don't have much time; this box isn't going to hold for long."
Derik searched, and found a strange transparent figure talking to him with the greatest sense of urgency.
"It was you," Derik realized, incredibly serious even in the strange situation. "The Puzzle that night, when I touched it, you were the one who was talking to me."
"I'd tell you everything, Derik, but there isn't time," Yami continued. "Please realize that I have no choice, and would give anything not to have to place this burden on you..."
"Yami!" Yugi cried, the shadows pulsing, almost forcing his corner to give way. The ghost spoke quickly.
"You were in the Shadow Realm, Derik; you know what it's like. Your father and his friends are keeping it back, but they won't hold out forever. They need you, Derik. You're the only one left who can beat Seskera in a Shadow Game, and put a stop to this once and for all."
Derik's mind immediately jumped to a flat out "No". He'd just wait here, and watch everything turn out okay. If his dad and the Kaibas were this powerful, surely they could finish the job without him.
Yami pleaded with a look, and Derik forced himself to look around. No one else was coming, and if he didn?t do something now, he, and everyone else he knew was going to die. Well, death would not have him without a fight.
"All right," Derik said weakly, bearing more physical symptoms of fear than he had ever displayed. "I'll do it. Just try and give me more time, okay?"
Yami didn't answer, but ran fast to the aid of his lone partner, who was dangerously close to breaking. The four of them kept braced as the cloud finally solidified into a violet churning sphere, cutting off the children entirely.
0000000
Derik had thought only a day beforehand that he had gone through the scariest moment in his life. Now he was a walking mess.
Anxiety took a firm hold, and tears began running down his face in waves that just couldn't be stopped. Looking back at Seskera, the raw nerve he had felt all tournament finally ran out.
"I don't want to do this," he sobbed, breaking down even further, Seskera observing coolly. "I don't want to die here."
"Oh, I'm afraid that death will be a mercy compared to the gauntlet I have prepared for you," Bakura chuckled. "After all, the simple demise of your tormenting father and his Pharaoh partner would be too swift for me to enjoy. But just imagine how broken they will become when I lay your bleeding corpse at their feet."
Adrenaline pumping and too afraid for tears, Derik got to his feet, his skin pale with fright.
"And oh so long since I've used one of these," the possessed Bakura continued, taking a discarded Duel Disk off the ground, supposedly belonging to a member of the crowd which had fled. "I trust my host has not forgotten his old hobbies..." He grinned, taking the deck of the true Ryou Bakura from his pocket. The "good" one hadn't found a friendly person to play since he had arrived.
"What?" the spirit retched. "Fairies!?" He dropped the deck, and looked at his own hands in disbelief. "Ryou Bakura, you've gone soft to the point of revulsion, but matters so trivial are easy to rectify."
Taking all of his knowledge, Bakura sought the beasts from their black domains. First he took the monsters's raw forms, drawing them from the shadows around him. These he sealed in tablets, which then condensed into Duel Monsters cards. He held up one hand, and the cards flew down into it, shuffling themselves in hi shand before he put them into the Duel Disk, strapping it on.
"Now," the Ring's spirit said as he beckoned to Derik, taking great care to tread over the deck of his lighter half. "I assure you that the present situation will only continue to decay. That is, unless you duel me. Win and you may regain your freedom."
Seskera's ear perked up at this. "No," he countered. "We duel them both. Their containment trick won't work for long, and when it finally breaks, the first vision I want them to have within my empire is the result of what happens when I'm crossed."
The thing behind Bakura's face considered this with relish. "The spawn of the great Seto Kaiba wandering in the darkness for the rest of her days... I see no downside in that," he concluded, raising his disk like a challenging blade.
Isis crawled up off the floor, and with a look of unforgiving hatred and anger raised her own in response. "You're dealing with the champion. I'm not going down easy!"
Seskera's face twisted as Derik half-heartedly activated his own disk. "I'd hoped for nothing less," the man said.
All four Duel Disks flared up, and the duel began. (S-8000, B-8000, D-8000, I-8000)
"First turn honors are mine," the sorcerer grinned, inspecting his first hand and finding mostly useless magic cards. "And I think I can already turn it to my advantage, and in turn reacquaint you with a familiar face."
The taunt was directed at Derik.
"Now relive the awesome might of Gren Maju De Eiza in Attack Mode!" Seskera declared.
As the card slapped down, the titan of chaos emerged once again from its black portal. As before, the head emerged first, allowing the other features to come into focus as their eyes adjusted. A twisted chimera, it came with a hide to match the color of the blood it spilled. It was everything Derik remembered and more: the empty eyes, the metallic swish of the tail, and the infinite patience for battle.
Derik remembered well: anything that could make a Toon react like his Magician Girl had done was an evil beyond human comprehension save for the very darkest of nightmares. (0/0)
Derik froze in place, before Isis pointed out a simple fact. "Hold it, mister. That monster's power relies on the number of cards you have removed from play, of which you currently have none."
"Perceptive," Seskera gloated, "although I needn't worry long. I cast the magic card Dimensionhole, casting Gren Maju from play until my next turn."
"But that would leave you defenseless..." Derik began.
"No," Isis interjected, "he's smarter then I give him credit for. In a duel with partners, no one can attack until everyone has made a move. Even with no monsters, we can't do anything." Isis pondered for a moment. "...which makes me wonder why he bothered to protect it. I mean, Gren Maju doesn't gain points if it's removed from play itself."
Seskera merely continued his turn, taking another card from his hand. "I was waiting to play this," he grinned, turning Card of Sanctity between his fingers. "Now I simply remove these three useless cards, and not only do I gain a better hand, I fuel my chaos fiend in the process."
Seskera deposited his Tremendous Fire, Malevolent Nuzzler, and Soul Absorbtion cards into his robes, before catching two glittering lights from the sky. He studied his new draws with interest, before shrugging casually and continuing his turn. "I then set one card facedown, and end my turn."
Derik was up next, and grimaced for a moment at the sight of a particular card. Well, I have two monsters I could use this with. One is more powerful, but the other has a more useful effect. It's a tough choice, but I'm going to have to sacrifice strength for strategy this time around.
"I summon Gemini Elf in Attack mode," Derik declared, as one of his two copies of the card took center stage.
"I know I can't attack either of you," the boy continued, "but that works out well for me, because now I can use Tribute Doll without worrying about the nasty side effect."
Derik hated to repeat the move he made against Seskera last time, and it didn't make him feel any better as the musty coffin seized his monster with a clang and a cloud of dust. Within moments, an armored fist punched through the lid, and Buster Blader stood at Derik's front lines. (2600/2300)
"Derik, you idiot!" Isis complained. "You use that so early when you can't even attack? You could have brought it out later with my Dragons - now you won't get a chance."
Derik shut her out, because he was confident he made the right move. He'd need all the attack power he could get when that Gren Maju De Eiza returned.
The evil spirit of the Ring drew his card delicately, toying with his opponents at every turn. "Now for my first trick," he said with a cackle. "I begin with a monster in Attack Mode, a troublesome fiend by the name of Slate Warrior."
It didn't look much like a fiend to Isis. It more resembled an alien, with a big yellow clunky suit, and a head seemingly made of blue gel. (1900/400)
"But since I am not permitted to attack you just yet," the spirit pointed out, "I'll keep my secrets hidden for now. Two cards facedown and my turn ends."
Isis was up next, and was quite annoyed that Derik had beaten her as far as an impressive first move. Nonetheless, she set out to do some damage.
"I summon Neo the Magical Swordsman, in attack mode," she decreed, letting the handsome champion of sword and magic come to her aid. (1700/1000)
Seskera sat back in mocking laughter. "Really, Isis, no Gradius monsters this time?"
The girl grit her teeth, but admit to herself that she had hit a snag. There was no mistaking that this guy was one of the voices that she had argued with in her virtual duel, and if that was the case, they likely knew more about her then she wanted. Most of the duelists she had faced, she used her combos to beat once and left, but this guy knew her every trick, and likely so did his partner.
"Well, in that case, I activate the field card..."
"Luminous Spark," Seskera finished. "Though this is the first time we've dueled, I feel as if I've played your deck for years, and the same goes for you." He turned to look at Derik. "And though my deck may not have changed, you have no idea what my partner is carrying. The element of surprise belongs to us."
Isis finished laying her field, and as the arena changed, Derik felt a pang of worry. Isis didn't know that Seskera played just as many Light monsters as he did Dark ones.
Neo's stats rose with the terrain, and Isis set one hidden card before she passed the turn to Seskera.
As he drew, Seskera's beast from the void reappeared, boasting a rather weak attack power of 1200.
"Well, I suppose my move will consist of me summoning my Homunculus the Alchemetic Being in attack mode," the sorcerer began. (1800/1600)
Derik remembered this chimeric creature from his last encounter with Seskera, and was no happier for seeing it. Even worse, as he had predicted, the luminous playing field gave the creature a boost to its already formidable power. Homonculus began to glow, eyeing Isis's magical Swordsman as he did so.
"Homunculus will now obey my command by tuning in with one of the six elements represented in Duel Monsters, the element of water," Seskera finished.
Derik eyed his opponent's field, watching as the creature changed to a translucent dark blue. Bubbles floated inside of it, giving the appearance of a large lava lamp. Derik knew there was a reason for this; Seskera wouldn't throw away a stat bonus without some kind of combo waiting in the wings.
He was right.
"Now, I activate my facedown card; one that you might remember, Derik; it's called Fuu-Rin-Ka-Zan."
"Hey, wait!" Derik protested. "You need four different monster attributes on the field, and you haven't summoned Doriado yet."
"Give it a rest, Derik," Isis corrected. "I told you using that Buster Blader was a bad idea. That counts as the Earth monster, and between the two of them, they have the other three."
The trap lifted, forming four dancing pillars of the elements, circling Seskera until he made his choice.
"Isis, this is bad. That trap card is going to wipe out both of our monsters," Derik said, shivering.
One side of Seskera's mouth widened into a grin. "Useful, but not at all strategic. Your Buster Blader could come in handy yet. In fact, I"m going to choose the blessing of Wind, destroying every magic and trap card you have, even if it is only two."
Isis's home field advantage crumbled as the pillar of wind intensified into a raging tornado, consuming the whole field before dissipating. She wasn't about to let two opponents get free shots, however. "I activate Waboku, shielding my Magical Swordsman from you for one whole turn."
Seskera was obviously annoyed, but passed his turn to Derik, who nervously drew up to four and surveyed his field.
Just his luck, two of his cards were Emblem of Dragon Destroyer, and Skilled White Magician, and he already had Buster Blader in play. Nobleman of Crossout was dead weight too. The boy placed his final card onto a vacant magic zone, and pondered his next move.
Well, I could summon my magician, Derik thought, but Isis is right. If he goes down, he might get more powerful later, and I have two magic cards already. That just leaves the question of what to attack. I have no idea what that Slate Warrior can do, but I know that Gren Maju can become more powerful very quickly... but his Homunculus has more combos, and a higher attack power.
Weighing all things, Derik finally came to a conclusion. I have to take Homunculus out now. He doesn't have many cards right now to remove, and even if he draws Screams from the Beyond, his graveyard is too small for us to take much damage.
Derik swallowed hard, and started shaking as the thought finally crossed his mind that the Screams could be used again. It was an experience he'd rather not relive in memory or in reality. "I send Buster Blader to attack Homunculus the Alchemetic Being," the boy finally ordered.
The dragonslayer gave an astonishing leap for a being of his size and weight, and prepared to bring his blade down on the watery being.
"Seems I'm one step ahead," Bakura interrupted. "I activate my trap card, Staunch Defender, which forces the warrior to attack and destroy my Slate Warrior."
The two monsters blurred into indistinct shadows, before switching places. Derik's attack was too late to be called off, and the sword split the fiend's head down the middle. Derik's earlier assumption was correct, as blue gel burst from the creature, splattering Buster Blader on the chest.
Bakura didn't seem to mind as he lost 700 Life Points; in fact, he almost seemed glad.
(S-8000, B-7300, D-8000, I-8000)
"As your Buster Blader has foolishly discovered," the spirit of the Ring noted, "the necroplasm that powers my monster brings a curse of weakness to those that destroy it."
The substance on the warrior's armor began to smoke, and the Blader's breathing became labored, as his attack score dropped to 2100.
"But that is not the only purpose of this move," Bakura continued. "By destroying Slate Warrior, you have also allowed me to use this powerful card." His other set rose, featuring a picture of a woman about to be snared by fiendish hands. "Revenge Sacrifice allows me to use your monster that just attacked, and sacrifice it to summon one of my own!"
The card sent forth a number of tentacle-like cords, which bound the great warrior in their embrace. At first, the amount of struggle in the Blader seemed enough to break free, but in the end, he was slowly dragged to his fate.
Just as it seemed its darkest, events took another dangerous turn. What had to be the most foul Duel Monster Derik had ever seen now sat before him on a yellow throne of rock. It was hard to tell where the creature kept its face, as a foreboding screech seemed to come not from the monster's dark blue hide, but from within the very air. (2000/1400)
All in all, the only word Isis could think of was grotesque.
The abomination within Bakura cooed with pride over his new creature. "As both of you children can see, the attack power of my Helpoemer is greater then anything you have at your disposal. And if you think that my summoning it was impressive, wait until you end your turn and I can truly show you its powers."
"Isis, can you fuse your three Blue Eyes at the moment?" Derik whispered to her in a panic.
Isis returned the question with a glare. "It's four cards out of forty, genius, and I don't have all of that clutter you call fusion support. Now be quiet! I have other ways of dealing with this disgrace."
"Come now, even Helpoemer has feelings," Seskera provided.
"I was talking about you," Isis threw back. "Am I the only one here with a measurable amount of common sense?"
"It was just a suggestion," Derik mumbled, more then a little hurt, letting the argument distract him from the true stakes of the situation. Derik really wanted someone else to take over and lift the weight off of his shoulders. He was still the only one who really knew what stakes they were playing for.
"My move then," the spirit declared, standing behind the twisted wretch of a creature he was using as a shield. "I set one creature in defense mode, and that will be all."
Isis drew next, and Derik half-expected her to pull those three dragons out of nowhere.
Isis apparently noticed. "Give it up already! Even if I did have them, I'm not going to waste it on these clods."
"Isis, what do you think this is?" Derik pleaded near tears. "We're in real trouble here, and so are your parents. I need your help, and I don't want to lose you because you're showing off and trying to be the hero. Your dad lost so many times because he played around too long, and it came around to bite him from behind. If you really want to be your own duelist then stop making his mistakes."
The taunt worked, as Isis's demeanor immediately shifted a step up in her game, as she looked at the playing field before her. Ugh, Dad's been doing a number on these things. The totem pole with the mouths over there even smells rotten, and that crab-thing is starting to give me the chills. As much as I hate wonder-boy over there mentioning it first, blasting those things with my Ultimate Dragon would be quite enjoyable. I guess I'll just have to get to those pieces faster.
Isis smirked, as the card she drew had just the thing to make that work.
"I activate Graceful Charity, drawing two, and discarding three." Isis ruffled through her deck quickly, finding quite the useful situation. Finding Gradius Option and White Magical Hat were her two most expendable cards, she slid them smoothly to her graveyard.
"Any luck yet?" prayed Derik on the sidelines.
Isis's temper quickly reached a spike. "If I get there, you'll be the first to know. If you paid this much attention to your own field as you do to mine, we'd have blasted your albino friend halfway to Mt. Fuji by now!"
Derik sheepishly started re-studying his hand, but kept Isis in the corner of his eye, as he worked to lessen the deep pounding of his heart.
Isis grabbed another monster from her hand, and twisted the card in her fingers, showing a very familiar six-star fairy. "I'm summoning Soul of Purity and Light, and with my Graceful Charity I have some fresh meat to offer up for it," she declared.
Her graveyard's freshest souls splintered into glittering threads, which tangled and spun into the form of the angel with a gentle face. (2000/1800)
Seskera remained surprisingly calm, but the ring's incarnation grit his teeth, and narrowed his eyes at the creature. Their monsters might have done the same had either of them eyes.
"There's the cake, and here's the icing," Isis quipped. "Not only is this monster incredibly easy to summon, but her potent effect weakens every monster you have by three hundred points, so I can assure you Gren Maju de Eiza isn't going to be getting any stronger this time, because my Neo the Magic Swordsman is about to take it down!"
The spellcaster blurred, his sword becoming an arc of light against the shadows, and his entire being radiated with an ominous glow. With barely a sound, he struck, sending Seskera's avatar of fear mercilessly back to the Hell that spawned it. A few seconds passed before the helmet-clad head of the creature fell to the earth with a dull thud.
(S-7000, B-7300, D-8000, I-8000)
For one terrible moment the helmet rolled away, letting the true face of the monster lock with the eyes of its conjurer. Seskera panicked, letting out a terrified scream, and backing away using his arms as a shield. In its last seconds, Seskera could swear that the face twisted into a smile before it shattered. Its final message chilled Seskera to the bone.
I may be down here, it mocked, but you'll be here eventually. Maybe you'll even be next, but make no mistake, you'll be down with me soon enough.
"Get a hold of yourself," the ring spirit scolded, "and act like a true king of the Shadows."
"He couldn't be king of a sand castle," Isis retorted. "Not that you're any better."
"You mock me?" the one with Bakura's face returned. "That is a very foolish thing to do."
"I may be a fool," Isis shot back, "but my Soul of Purity and Light outranks your Helpoemer now by 300 points. Soul, attack with Lyrical Embrace."
"And my Helpoemer counterattacks with Chthonian Chatter!"
Each of Helpoemer's numerous mouths starter to regurgitate energy a demonic shade of pink. It didn't help much, though, as the gifted aura of the Soul took its hold on the creature. The angel seemed slightly relieved that she didn't actually have to make contact with the fiend. Her aura alone reduced it to ashes before she even came near.
(S-7000, B-7000, D-8000, I-8000)
The duelist of the Ring relished in the moment, as a black hole in the arena began to implode, filling the black void with a heart-freezing wail.
"Isis, don't you even know your cards?" Derik panicked. "That monster's deadly when it's dead!"
"Indeed," the Ring spirit provided. "The blackest form of your dear uncle may have been a thorn in my side, but he had some excellent taste in cards. Now my monster will continue to sing its hellish song from the cemetery, every turn dragging one of your cards down with it."
"My move then," the spirit declared, standing behind the twisted wretch of a creature he was using as a shield. "I set one creature in defense mode, and that will be all."
Isis drew next, and Derik half-expected her to pull those three dragons out of nowhere.
Isis apparently noticed. "Give it up already! Even if I did have them, I'm not going to waste it on these clods."
"Isis, what do you think this is?" Derik pleaded near tears. "We're in real trouble here, and so are your parents. I need your help, and I don't want to lose you because you're showing off and trying to be the hero. Your dad lost so many times because he played around too long, and it came around to bite him from behind. If you really want to be your own duelist then stop making his mistakes."
The taunt worked, as Isis's demeanor immediately shifted a step up in her game, as she looked at the playing field before her. Ugh, Dad's been doing a number on these things. The totem pole with the mouths over there even smells rotten, and that crab-thing is starting to give me the chills. As much as I hate wonder-boy over there mentioning it first, blasting those things with my Ultimate Dragon would be quite enjoyable. I guess I'll just have to get to those pieces faster.
Isis smirked, as the card she drew had just the thing to make that work.
"I activate Graceful Charity, drawing two, and discarding three." Isis ruffled through her deck quickly, finding quite the useful situation. Finding Gradius Option and White Magical Hat were her two most expendable cards, she slid them smoothly to her graveyard.
"Any luck yet?" prayed Derik on the sidelines.
Isis's temper quickly reached a spike. "If I get there, you'll be the first to know. If you paid this much attention to your own field as you do to mine, we'd have blasted your albino friend halfway to Mt. Fuji by now!"
Derik sheepishly started re-studying his hand, but kept Isis in the corner of his eye, as he worked to lessen the deep pounding of his heart.
Isis grabbed another monster from her hand, and twisted the card in her fingers, showing a very familiar six-star fairy. "I'm summoning Soul of Purity and Light, and with my Graceful Charity I have some fresh meat to offer up for it," she declared.
Her graveyard's freshest souls splintered into glittering threads, which tangled and spun into the form of the angel with a gentle face. (2000/1800)
Seskera remained surprisingly calm, but the ring's incarnation grit his teeth, and narrowed his eyes at the creature. Their monsters might have done the same had either of them eyes.
"There's the cake, and here's the icing," Isis quipped. "Not only is this monster incredibly easy to summon, but her potent effect weakens every monster you have by three hundred points, so I can assure you Gren Maju de Eiza isn't going to be getting any stronger this time, because my Neo the Magic Swordsman is about to take it down!"
The spellcaster blurred, his sword becoming an arc of light against the shadows, and his entire being radiated with an ominous glow. With barely a sound, he struck, sending Seskera's avatar of fear mercilessly back to the Hell that spawned it. A few seconds passed before the helmet-clad head of the creature fell to the earth with a dull thud.
(S-7000, B-7300, D-8000, I-8000)
For one terrible moment the helmet rolled away, letting the true face of the monster lock with the eyes of its conjurer. Seskera panicked, letting out a terrified scream, and backing away using his arms as a shield. In its last seconds, Seskera could swear that the face twisted into a smile before it shattered. Its final message chilled Seskera to the bone.
I may be down here, it mocked, but you'll be here eventually. Maybe you'll even be next, but make no mistake, you'll be down with me soon enough.
"Get a hold of yourself," the ring spirit scolded, "and act like a true king of the Shadows."
"He couldn't be king of a sand castle," Isis retorted. "Not that you're any better."
"You mock me?" the one with Bakura's face returned. "That is a very foolish thing to do."
"I may be a fool," Isis shot back, "but my Soul of Purity and Light outranks your Helpoemer now by 300 points. Soul, attack with Lyrical Embrace."
"And my Helpoemer counterattacks with Chthonian Chatter!"
Each of Helpoemer's numerous mouths starter to regurgitate energy a demonic shade of pink. It didn't help much, though, as the gifted aura of the Soul took its hold on the creature. The angel seemed slightly relieved that she didn't actually have to make contact with the fiend. Her aura alone reduced it to ashes before she even came near.
(S-7000, B-7000, D-8000, I-8000)
The duelist of the Ring relished in the moment, as a black hole in the arena began to implode, filling the black void with a heart-freezing wail.
"Isis, don't you even know your cards?" Derik panicked. "That monster's deadly when it's dead!"
"Indeed," the Ring spirit provided. "The blackest form of your dear uncle may have been a thorn in my side, but he had some excellent taste in cards. Now my monster will continue to sing its hellish song from the cemetery, every turn dragging one of your cards down with it."
"I knew that!" Isis shouted, but the duelist paid her no heed.
"Pitiful dolts," the spirit continued. "With every attack you make I grow stronger. My monsters have even greater power in death than in life, so you're pretty much damned no matter what you do to try and stop me."
Seskera was now growing quite visually uncomfortable with his partner, as images of vengeful souls once more filled his mind.
"Oh, really?" Isis said as she grinned, taking another green-bordered card from her hand. "No matter what I do, huh? Well, I guess that would make this useless, so I might as well play it just to get rid of it."
Sending contractions of nausea down almost everyone's stomachs, the demonic chord's pitch raised another octave, turning into a tortuous whine of utmost pain. From the black void in the floor, the forms of the fiend-user's monsters were forcefully torn into the open, where they promptly dissipated in seconds.
"Soul Release?!" Derik wondered, awestruck. "Since when did you use that?"
"Since you packed a Buster Blader and my strongest combo used four dragons, that's when," Isis returned. "Anyway, with that I end my turn."
The turn passed to Seskera, who seemed even more on edge then usual, and was keeping a more then reasonable distance away from his partner. If he hadn't been scared out of his mind, he might have noticed that he and Derik had something in common. The conjurer nervously activated his Pot of Greed before seemingly regaining his composure.
Seskera's nervousness was lost, however, when he learned what he finally now held. "The fates are sweet to me once more, children, as I prepare to reacquaint you with an old friend, through the rite of Doriado's Blessing."
Derik was just about to hit the button on his duel disk, but a look in Isis's direction convinced him otherwise. Eghh, I know what that thing can do, and I hate to let it slip by, but I know for a fact we can beat it outright, and I need to save this for something more powerful. I just hope we can deal with that thing quickly, because if Seskera gets out any of those combos, we're sunk.
The watery form of Homunculus split into four elemental versions of itself before blurring into the multicolored stars of the summoning circle Derik was so familiar with. The pillar of spectral colors rose from the earth, fading as Elemental Mistress Doriado made her debut, chanting her soft spell, and pulsing with the aura of nature itself.
Seskera couldn't have looked more pleased as he set his final card facedown, and beckoned Derik to make his move.
Derik drew, his face twisting with frustration. Of all of the times he would be happy to draw his Cosmo Queen, this wasn't one of them. "What a crock," he couldn't help but mutter, as he braced himself for what he knew would be unpleasant.
"I summon Skilled White Magician in Attack Mode," he stated, his fingers shakily setting the card into the disk. The ivory mage pointed his scepter menacingly in the small spellcaster's direction. For a brief moment, Derik wondered if it was really going to be that easy before he was proven dead wrong.
"You never learn do you?" Seskera mocked. "Those who do not learn from history... as it were." The sorcerer's finger hovered over his disk in triumph. "Prepare for a refresher course, courtesy of another Fuu-Rin-Ka-Zan, this time taking the form of my favorite blessing, the unparalleled destructive power of fire!"
The dancing pillars didn't even have time to form, as the wave of searing heat flooded the stage, leaving Derik fighting back the current nightmare, and the one from his memories at once. Isis was the one who took the brunt of it, as the arms guarding her face quickly started showing signs of second-degree burns. Their monsters never even stood a chance.
"What was that?" Isis choked through the clearing smoke. "Did the safety systems break a gauge or something?"
"How cute, she still thinks this is all a hologram," Seskera relished.
The one who bore the Ring chuckled in response. "You poor fool, have you truly no idea you've been dueling in the shadows all along? Did you really think this was all just a clever fairy tale brought out by a few sparks and gears?"
Isis had trouble wrapping her mind around it, but the pain in her arms was making it hard to create any false illusions. "You mean..."
"Real monsters, real magic, real pain, and real consequences," Seskera confirmed, feeding on her fear. "Sorry to tell you so late."
The impenetrable shell of confidence Isis had displayed throughout her career shattered, as she sank to her knees in shock. Derik saw this, and would not stand for it for a second.
"Don't you dare give up now," Derik coaxed, never feeling more like a hypocrite. "You're the confident one. You have no idea how hard this will be for me if you lose it! I can't do this alone!"
Isis wasn't so sure.
"Besides," Derik pleaded, playing his last card, "if they do damage, so can we. We are the Battle City finalists, after all. Who can possibly beat us, right?" Even as he said it, Derik had the distinct feeling that the answer was the two people in front of them.
Fortunately, the play on Isis's ego worked, as she and Derik shared a determined, if not cooperative, meeting of the eyes. Isis picked herself up, and as usual motivated herself with the thought of crushing her opponents underfoot.
It was enough to make her mouth water. "Okay, I'm in!"
Derik lost track of the surroundings for a moment in the sheer fun of the situation. "Rich girl, let's cause some pain."
0000000
"Come on, you two," Joey said with a nervous quiver in his voice, watching the shadows bend and warp around them. "I don't think we've got all night for this..."
For a brief moment, something truly horrible broke free from the Millennium Item bearers's containment, storming its way into the sky... but then their power caught it, banishing it back into the Shadow Realm. All four of the assembled wielders seemed exhausted.
All Joey could do was watch and hope... and he didn't have much of the latter left in him. Already buildings were beginning to warp and twist with the spreading darkness.
People would have fled if they had known, but nobody knew. Domino slept on, unaware that a living nightmare was out to swallow the world.
"Pitiful dolts," the spirit continued. "With every attack you make I grow stronger. My monsters have even greater power in death than in life, so you're pretty much damned no matter what you do to try and stop me."
Seskera was now growing quite visually uncomfortable with his partner, as images of vengeful souls once more filled his mind.
"Oh, really?" Isis said as she grinned, taking another green-bordered card from her hand. "No matter what I do, huh? Well, I guess that would make this useless, so I might as well play it just to get rid of it."
Sending contractions of nausea down almost everyone's stomachs, the demonic chord's pitch raised another octave, turning into a tortuous whine of utmost pain. From the black void in the floor, the forms of the fiend-user's monsters were forcefully torn into the open, where they promptly dissipated in seconds.
"Soul Release?!" Derik wondered, awestruck. "Since when did you use that?"
"Since you packed a Buster Blader and my strongest combo used four dragons, that's when," Isis returned. "Anyway, with that I end my turn."
The turn passed to Seskera, who seemed even more on edge then usual, and was keeping a more then reasonable distance away from his partner. If he hadn't been scared out of his mind, he might have noticed that he and Derik had something in common. The conjurer nervously activated his Pot of Greed before seemingly regaining his composure.
Seskera's nervousness was lost, however, when he learned what he finally now held. "The fates are sweet to me once more, children, as I prepare to reacquaint you with an old friend, through the rite of Doriado's Blessing."
Derik was just about to hit the button on his duel disk, but a look in Isis's direction convinced him otherwise. Eghh, I know what that thing can do, and I hate to let it slip by, but I know for a fact we can beat it outright, and I need to save this for something more powerful. I just hope we can deal with that thing quickly, because if Seskera gets out any of those combos, we're sunk.
The watery form of Homunculus split into four elemental versions of itself before blurring into the multicolored stars of the summoning circle Derik was so familiar with. The pillar of spectral colors rose from the earth, fading as Elemental Mistress Doriado made her debut, chanting her soft spell, and pulsing with the aura of nature itself.
Seskera couldn't have looked more pleased as he set his final card facedown, and beckoned Derik to make his move.
Derik drew, his face twisting with frustration. Of all of the times he would be happy to draw his Cosmo Queen, this wasn't one of them. "What a crock," he couldn't help but mutter, as he braced himself for what he knew would be unpleasant.
"I summon Skilled White Magician in Attack Mode," he stated, his fingers shakily setting the card into the disk. The ivory mage pointed his scepter menacingly in the small spellcaster's direction. For a brief moment, Derik wondered if it was really going to be that easy before he was proven dead wrong.
"You never learn do you?" Seskera mocked. "Those who do not learn from history... as it were." The sorcerer's finger hovered over his disk in triumph. "Prepare for a refresher course, courtesy of another Fuu-Rin-Ka-Zan, this time taking the form of my favorite blessing, the unparalleled destructive power of fire!"
The dancing pillars didn't even have time to form, as the wave of searing heat flooded the stage, leaving Derik fighting back the current nightmare, and the one from his memories at once. Isis was the one who took the brunt of it, as the arms guarding her face quickly started showing signs of second-degree burns. Their monsters never even stood a chance.
"What was that?" Isis choked through the clearing smoke. "Did the safety systems break a gauge or something?"
"How cute, she still thinks this is all a hologram," Seskera relished.
The one who bore the Ring chuckled in response. "You poor fool, have you truly no idea you've been dueling in the shadows all along? Did you really think this was all just a clever fairy tale brought out by a few sparks and gears?"
Isis had trouble wrapping her mind around it, but the pain in her arms was making it hard to create any false illusions. "You mean..."
"Real monsters, real magic, real pain, and real consequences," Seskera confirmed, feeding on her fear. "Sorry to tell you so late."
The impenetrable shell of confidence Isis had displayed throughout her career shattered, as she sank to her knees in shock. Derik saw this, and would not stand for it for a second.
"Don't you dare give up now," Derik coaxed, never feeling more like a hypocrite. "You're the confident one. You have no idea how hard this will be for me if you lose it! I can't do this alone!"
Isis wasn't so sure.
"Besides," Derik pleaded, playing his last card, "if they do damage, so can we. We are the Battle City finalists, after all. Who can possibly beat us, right?" Even as he said it, Derik had the distinct feeling that the answer was the two people in front of them.
Fortunately, the play on Isis's ego worked, as she and Derik shared a determined, if not cooperative, meeting of the eyes. Isis picked herself up, and as usual motivated herself with the thought of crushing her opponents underfoot.
It was enough to make her mouth water. "Okay, I'm in!"
Derik lost track of the surroundings for a moment in the sheer fun of the situation. "Rich girl, let's cause some pain."
0000000
"Come on, you two," Joey said with a nervous quiver in his voice, watching the shadows bend and warp around them. "I don't think we've got all night for this..."
For a brief moment, something truly horrible broke free from the Millennium Item bearers's containment, storming its way into the sky... but then their power caught it, banishing it back into the Shadow Realm. All four of the assembled wielders seemed exhausted.
All Joey could do was watch and hope... and he didn't have much of the latter left in him. Already buildings were beginning to warp and twist with the spreading darkness.
People would have fled if they had known, but nobody knew. Domino slept on, unaware that a living nightmare was out to swallow the world.