Prelude to a Legend
Chapter I
Unnatural Nightfall
Ever since those days, I have not forgotten the role I played in the safety of this world, and possibly many others.
"This look like a nice place, doesn't it, mon chérie?" my girlfriend Lily asked me.
"Yeah, it does," I agreed. It's hard to believe that this was the night that started it all. It was just another lovely date with my ladylove, Lily Beaumont. We were walking in the moonlit park, enjoying the evening. At the park, we had a very pleasant walk, but we only got as far as halfway, as when we got to an open part of the park, we started dancing under the moonlight. We didn't care that we weren't wearing formal clothes, as long as we danced beautifully in each other's arms and looked into each other's blue eyes. I was happy then, at peace. Being with Lily always made me happy. Then we decided to head home for now.
"Did you like our evening?" she asked.
"Very much, really," I said. "And you?"
"Quite. It was lovely," she answered. "But I enjoyed dancing with you more." Hearing that made me smile. These were not our only interests: another of our passions is the game of Duel Monsters. That's why we were lucky enough to both move to Domino City, Japan, where Duel Monsters is not just a card game - it's a way of life. It's even the home of the King of Games himself: Yugi Moto. Though speaking of dueling, even though Lily and I love each other deeply, we couldn't be more different in the arena. Lily is a very demure and intelligent strategist, using many Effect Monsters and impressive Trap Cards. Not for me, though. I prefer to clobber my enemies to tiny bits with powerful Monsters. As a matter of fact, I even have some of the strongest Monsters in the game, including such favorites as Gate Guardian, Masked Beast Death Guardius, Perfectly Ultimate Great Moth, Guardian Grarl, and Valkyrion the Magna Warrior. However, as helpful as they are in my achieving of victory, the most important card in my deck is the Cure Mermaid, for she reminds me of my own girlfriend. That's why I never sacrifice her and always keep her out of the Graveyard. Lily is a bit annoyed by such extreme protection of a Duel Monster, but there is a card in her deck who reminds her of me as well: the Dark Magician. Of course, she's not as protective of him; she'll sacrifice him to make a combination involving him, such as the Magician of Black Chaos or the Dark Paladin.
But enough about our dueling strategies. On the topic of Domino City, it was peaceful when we arrived, but shortly thereafter…we caught wind of strange happenings. On the news, there were reports of bizarre animals that should have looked familiar, but didn't. Before showing those pictures, the news reporters warned us that "What you're about to see may disturb you"; they were right to say it. Not to mention that a team of researchers and biohazard specialists employed by the Ministry of the Environment brought back findings of unnatural happenings in the forest at the foothills of Mt. Fuji. If that wasn't enough, many farmers voiced outrage that their prized steers and bulls were reduced to mere skeletons. So far, no one had any explanation as to what these events were or what - or who - was causing them. But back to the present, once we got into Lily's house, the real fun began…as did the adventure that changed us all.
"Would you like to come in?" she asked invitingly.
"Gladly," I said, and helped her out of the car. Thankfully, her parents and siblings were out of town for a while, leaving her some time for herself, because as soon as we closed her bedroom door, our clothes started flying off. I deeply kissed her, and as much as she moaned into it, she reluctantly broke it off and put her fingers on my lips.
"Not just yet, my love. Allow me to slip into something more…comfortable," she said. My dick started to grow and stiffen at the thought of what she would wear. She opened her closet door, and brought out what she knew I couldn't resist: her favorite pair of black silk opera gloves, a pair of smoky black silk stockings, and along with those her favorite pair of boots: knee-high, black leather, square toes and stiletto heels. In addition, her long, wavy blonde hair gently shimmered in the moonlight. She started slowly sliding the gloves on to entice me even more, and as soon as the black silk enshrouded her arms, she decorated a few of her silky fingers with rings to look even more beautiful. For her left hand, she slipped a golden ruby ring on her index finger and a silver sapphire one on her ring finger, while on her right hand she slipped a white gold emerald ring on that ring finger, and finally a silver diamond one on her pinky. With that done, she smiled as she sat in her computer chair and seductively crossed her legs.
"Mmm, could you put these on for me, love?" Lily said while still holding the boots, affectionately winking at me. This I could definitely not resist. Wordlessly, I crawled to her, and slid the leather shaft of one boot up her leg until her foot was snugly inside. I zipped it up and did the same for her other leg. She moaned as the combination of silk and leather caressed her legs, and she rewarded my affectionate gesture with a soft kiss on my neck. Immediately I lowered her girdle and snaked my tongue into her moistening wet cave. She moaned and wrapped her legs around me as I caressed her inner folds with my tongue, but then slowly backed away from it and gently turned my head upward with her delicate fingers so we looked into each other's eyes.
"Want to put something else in there?" she said in a very breathy voice. I smiled naughtily as I knew what this meant. She walked over to the bed, and her stiletto heels turned her walk into an erotic dance. I followed in a way that almost suggested hypnosis. We kissed again, and then Lily pushed me onto the bed, smiling as she did. She crawled over me, moaning as she did, and caressed my chest, especially my nipples, with her gloved hands, and then my neck. Grinning, she gave me a deep French kiss. I couldn't begin to describe how good it felt, especially when she started rubbing her silk- and leather-covered legs along my own.
"You like that, don't you?" she said breathily, and started rubbing her big supple breasts along my lips. I started kissing them, and with that, along with all the rubbing she was doing, I got so horny I thought I'd go insane. Lily grinned again. As she started rubbing again, I inserted my incredibly hard and hot cock into her waiting wet cave. She gasped and released a whispering moan as it slid in, prompting her to French kiss me again. I started to thrust wildly, and grabbed her beautiful breasts to squeeze them. Lily was so flooded with carnal desire she grabbed my chest with her gloved hands. I responded in kind by thrusting harder and faster, and continued squeezing her breasts and started kissing her soft neck. She moaned excitedly as I pounded into her with my enormous cock. Seven more thrusts was all I needed, for as I hit the seventh, I could feel myself fire into her, while her wet cave overflowed with warm juices; they even trickled onto the mattress. She let out a final whispering moan as we almost collapsed from all the energy we spent. As her head lay against my left shoulder, she simply smiled and kissed my neck. I kissed her back on the lips.
"So, would you like to spend the night? With me?" she seductively asked while circling my nipple with her gloved finger.
"I'd love to, but I have to get home soon. No offense," I said.
"I understand. Perhaps we can do this again sometime?" she asked.
"I look forward to it," I said, and then I reluctantly slid my weakening cock out of her, still coated in her warm juices. I slowly put my clothes back on so she could appreciate my nude splendor.
"Good night, Lily," I said.
"Good night, my love," she said. Leaving the house, I decided to walk home since it was such a beautiful night, and because I was so happy. But as I neared my house, a suspicious smell caught my nose…burnt wood.
"Huh? Where could that have come from?" I asked. I ran to my house…and what I saw horrified me to the core. My house…was burned to the ground. All that was left was the charred foundation and splintered fractions of the walls. I slowly walked amongst the ruins, when what I saw next terrified me even more. They were…my parents' corpses, and that of my sister Diana! They too were burned by the fires that consumed our home! By the back porch was the body of my older brother Adrian, but his body was only slightly burned; other than that, no damage at all, despite the look of severe pain he had on his cold face. In my father's hand was one of the swords we had on display. Oddly enough, the body of my younger brother Samuel was nowhere to be found. I fell to my knees and cried.
"Mom… Dad… everyone… who did this to you?" I said, gripping the ground in extreme anger. I noticed a note nearby. It was written in some unknown language, but I remembered some of Lily's books on this subject, and remembering what I learned from them, I read it to be "You may have been lucky this time, Demetrios…but your soul shall be mine and this world will die in hellfire. Long live the Dark Emperor"
"Who left this?" I wondered, as there was no signature.
"Actually, it contains all the answers you need," said a soothing voice behind me. It was obviously female. I turned around, and saw the most astonishing woman I ever saw in my life - other than Lily, of course. She was definitely a woman, but at the same time she was definitely not of this world. She was dressed very much like the Valkyries of Nordic mythology, though emerging from her back were the wings of a peregrine falcon. Her armor was made of platinum, consisting of a breastplate and - oddly enough - a thin white skirt below the body armor. Despite the skirt, she still wore platinum greaves. Attached to her belt were two scabbards containing swords. Her long blonde hair cascaded down to the small of her back, and despite her militaristic appearance, she looked very friendly.
"…who…who are you?" I asked.
"Fear not; I am your guide, Shandara. As you can tell, I am an angel," she explained.
"Guide? What for?" I said, my tears starting to cease.
"As that note suggests, a great evil has come to this world, and this massacre is the first sign of it," she explained. At that, I stopped crying altogether and summoned my courage.
"Well, if I am the one to defeat this evil, then I will. But…what will I return to when I win?" I asked.
"You answered your own question, Demetrios. Is there anyone in this world you would give your life for?" Shandara asked. The answer came very quickly.
"Lily. I want to protect her," I said.
"That is good, for you two are the keys to victory," said Shandara.
"But…victory over what?" I asked again.
"Fear not, brave knight, for not all of your possessions were destroyed. Look over there," she said, pointing to where my room used to stand. I noticed something suspicious and went to investigate. They were…of all things…my Duel Monsters cards! And my Duel Disk! They weren't harmed even in the slightest!
"What? But how did these survive? And how will I need them to win?" I asked.
"They are but one key. Here is the other," she said, drawing from the second scabbard a magnificent sword. It was an enormous 5½ feet in length! It had a thin but strong blade that was adorned by ten pairs of serrated teeth in the middle. The hilt was shaped like the wings of a dragon. On top of the pommel was a small ruby, which was held in place by two onyx serpents, wrapping around the handle with their mouths open to hold the jewel where it was. Between the dragon's wings there was a red diamond on the hilt on each side.
"Use the Dragon Claw well, Demetrios, for it shall destroy evil in all its forms," said Shandara. Then she started to fly upward back to the celestial realm.
"Wait! Where are you going?"
"Don't tally about here, young knight. Another blow is about to be struck," she said, and disappeared. I stood there in awe.
"What other blow?" I asked, preparing my Duel Monsters paraphernalia and admiring my new weapon. Just then, I heard an equine grunt behind me. Once again, not all was lost. I looked behind me, and saw my black Mustang stallion, Moon Shadow.
"Moon Shadow!" I said, running up to him. I hugged him around the neck, and he laid his head across my shoulder.
"Are you all right? How did you survive?" I asked him. I knew he couldn't respond in English, but I could tell from the look in his eyes that he was glad to be alive. Then I remembered.
"There's no time for reminiscing. Shandara said another blow is going to be struck. We have to get going before its too late!" I said, hastily getting on his back. "Moon Shadow, run like the wind!" And he galloped at full speed. I had an uncanny feeling I knew where this next blow was going to be.
Meanwhile, Lily was sleeping deeply and euphorically, still wearing her gloves but reluctantly took off her boots before falling asleep. Unbeknownst to her, someone was outside her window, aiming a sniper rifle at her and ready to take her life with it.
"Once she falls, the Dark Lord shall claim this world as our own," he said in a sinister voice, ready to pull the trigger.
"Don't even think about it!" I said, and Moon Shadow jumped over the fence in time. As we landed, I caught the assassin off guard and cut his hand with my new sword. The murderer recoiled and the shot meant for Lily was fired into the air where it did no damage. Lily was awakened by the sudden noise and looked out the window, surprised to see me on my horse, especially this late at night.
"Demetrios, what are you doing here? What's going on?" she asked as she opened the window.
"He happened! And I'm quite sure he killed my family," I said angrily. She gasped at such dreadful news.
"You're joking, right?" she asked.
"I wish I was. But now he's going to pay," I said, dismounting and readying my weapon. The assassin recovered and…cast a spell that healed the wound I made! Not wanting to waste any more time, I charged toward him, ready to kill him.
"Not so fast!" said the man, and cast another spell: one that stopped me right in my tracks! Despite my great strength, I couldn't move past it!
"Now, now, there's no need for violence, mi muchacho. We shall settle this matter like men: with these," said the guy, producing his own Duel Monsters deck from his pocket, and a very eldritch Duel Disk. It was made of black metal, and the mechanism for the cards came out of it like a knife emerges from a switchblade. I activated my own and prepared for the worst.
"Let's duel!" we simultaneously said, and our Life Points activated at 8000.
"I'll go, and I'll start by summoning Guard Dog in Attack Mode," said the assassin, summoning the ferocious Rottweiler (1500/500). Oddly, he ended his turn. I looked at my hand, and saw that I had Cyber Shield, Polymerization, Crab Turtle (2550/2500), Takriminos (1500/1200), and Power of Kaishin. At least one of them was a Level 4 Monster.
"I summon Takriminos in Attack Mode, and now you can't hurt me," I said, giving him "the raspberry". "I also put two cards facedown and end my turn."
"Oh there'll be plenty of pain all right, especially when I play this…the Seal of Orichalcos!" he said, raising the aforementioned card into the air and shouting out its name. Lily and I had no idea what he was talking about.
"The Seal of what?" I asked.
"It's only one of the best cards in the game, and it shall be your doom!" he said, and inserted the card into the slot for Field Spell Cards. Suddenly, a bright green ring of energy appeared above us, and descended down to us while spinning. When it reached the ground the spinning stopped, and I could see that the outer ring contained arcane magic symbols. Suddenly, Aleister Crowley's famous unicursal hexagram appeared in the inner ring, and the entire layout glowed brightly. As it glowed, Lily was thrown out of it by unseen forces!
"Lily!" I said. I ran to her, but when I hit the perimeter of the ring, I was shocked and thrown back to my position!
"What is this thing?" I asked.
"You don't seem to understand. When the Seal of Orichalcos is in play, two duelists enter; only one leaves," the assassin explained. As he did, the same design as the Seal of Orichalcos appeared on his forehead, and his eyes turned red.
"Who or what are you?" I demanded.
"My name is Abaddon, and I was sent here to kill you and that little wench of yours. Oh, and by the way, when this card is in play, my monsters gain the power of darkness, as well as 500 extra Attack Points," he explained further. As if in response to his explanation, the Guard Dog got the Seal of Orichalcos on its forehead, as well its eyes turning red, and to top it all off its Attack Points became 2000!
"Guard Dog, kill Takriminos!" he ordered. The dog charged viciously and clamped its jaws down on my sea serpent's neck and broke it with a powerful bite! It dropped the broken corpse out of its mouth and my Life Points went down to 7500.
"Sheesh, talk about an unfair advantage," Lily said.
"Don't worry, Lily, I'm not out of the game yet," I said, and drew three more cards from my Deck. These were Cyber Harpie Lady (1800/1300), Melchid the Four-Face Beast (1500/1200) and Rose Specter of Dunn (2000/1800).
"I summon Cyber Harpie Lady in Attack Mode, and I'll equip her with Cyber Shield to give her 500 extra Attack Points of her own," I said. The beautiful bird woman appeared on the field and suddenly got a sexy metal breastplate, as well as an Attack Rating of 2300. She flew forward and eviscerated the Guard Dog. As the dog fell to the ground, Abaddon's Life Points went down to 7700.
"You call that an attack? Well it's nothing compared to what I've got in store now. I activate the Spell Card Polymerization, and from my hand I combine Spirit Ryu and Warrior Dai Grepher to create…Ryu Senshi!" Abaddon declared. The warrior and the dragon he just described melded together as soon as they appeared on the field, and combined into a knight wearing draconian armor (2000/1200), and not only did the Seal of Orichalcos appear on his forehead, but his eyes turned red and his Attack Points became 2500. Not wasting any time, the knight cut Cyber Harpie in half, making my Life Points 7300.
This is just great. I have some of the best cards in the game and this guy's turning his monsters into super-villains - and clobbering me with them! I thought. Hopefully this card will help… I thought some more, drawing another card from my deck. I got…Asura Priest (1700/1200). Hmm, maybe I could sacrifice him and Melchid to summon Masked Beast Death Guardius…but wait! Nuts! He would have to be in my hand first, and if I summoned Asura Priest to the field and he got destroyed, Spirit Monsters can't be Special Summoned, so Monster Reborn would be useless. Boy was this going to be hard.
"Guess I have no choice. I summon Melchid in Defense Mode and end my turn," I said.
"Hmm, a powerful duelist and a heroic knight cornered like a wild animal. I like it. That's why I summon Big Shield Gardna in Defense Mode, and I'll do to your Melchid what I did to your Cyber Harpie!" he said. A soldier bearing an enormous shield (100/2600) appeared on the field. His normally expressionless eyes turned red, as well as the Seal appearing on his forehead and his Attack Points becoming 600. Ryu Senshi expertly cut Melchid into four pieces, but at least he was in Defense Mode, but now I'd have to get Monster Reborn to bring him back and summon Death Guardius.
"Now I have a strong warrior and a strong defense. Want to give up now?" said Abaddon.
"Not just yet," I said, drawing another card. This one was…Dust Tornado. Maybe this would help.
"Say goodbye to your creepy ring. I activate Dust Tornado! Now destroy the Seal of Orichalcos!" I said. A fierce tornado appeared and pounded onto the field. But when the winds died down a few seconds later…the Seal was still there!
"You've got to be kidding me!" I said.
"I'm not. The Seal of Orichalcos can't be destroyed by a fancy shmancy Trap Card," the assassin explained. "And now for the best part: Ryu Senshi, attack his Life Points directly!" His Monster cut me up with his huge sword, making my Life Points 4800.
"Hang in there, Demetrios! Don't give up!" Lily said to me.
"Shut up, you stupid cheerleader! You're just lucky I can't leave the Seal either, or I'd kick your ass," he said. Upon hearing this, my anger peaked.
"Destroying my monsters with an unknown Magic Card is one thing, but no one ever threatens the woman I love!" I shouted, and drew a card. I looked, and it was…Monster Reborn. One down, one to go.
"I place one card facedown and end my turn," I said, annoyed that I couldn't summon any monsters.
"You're a glutton for punishment, aren't you? Ryu Senshi, attack again!" he ordered, and as I felt the cold metal cut through me, my Life Points went down to 2300!
"Ready to give up?" he asked.
"Not just yet…" I said, getting onto my knees, and drawing from my Deck…the one card I needed…Masked Beast Death Guardius (3300/2500)! Yes! Now my luck was starting to turn.
"It's my turn to deal out the punishment, 'cause now I summon Asura Priest, and activate Monster Reborn to bring back Melchid the Four-Face Beast, and now I'll sacrifice them both to summon the most powerful demon in the game…Masked Beast Death Guardius!" I said. The four-armed priest appeared on the field, and Melchid appeared next to him, then both creatures disappeared and were replaced by the towering monstrosity.
"Now, Death Guardius, rip his Ryu Senshi to pieces!" I ordered. The demon charged forward and picked up the knight in his talons and then proceeded to tear him apart easily. As the pieces of his body fell to the ground, Abaddon's Life Points went down to 6900. It wasn't much, but at least it was further away from 8000.
"Good job, baby!" Lily said.
"Don't mention it. I knew I could do it," I said.
"Your smugness won't last much longer, fool. I now summon Soul Tiger in Defense Mode, and now it'll take you longer to get to my Life Points," he said. A magnificent tiger made entirely of spiritual energy (0/2100) appeared on the field, and its eyes glowed crimson, as well as the Seal of Orichalcos appearing on its forehead and its Attack Points becoming 500.
"I'm not done yet," I said, drawing a card: Pyramid of Light. Hey, this would work wonders!
"I have a powerful Spell Card of my own: Pyramid of Light! Well, actually, it's a Trap, but it's still cool all the same," I said, activating the card. A huge pyramid of bright energy surrounded us, and thankfully Lily wasn't thrown out.
"And what's this fancy shmancy light show going to do to me?" he asked.
"You'll see soon enough," I said, and had Masked Beast Death Guardius destroy Big Shield Gardna. Just one more and he would be down for the count.
"Well now I summon Marauding Captain in Attack Mode, and thanks to his special ability, I can summon a Level 4 or lower Monster, and I choose Shadow Tamer! Arise!" he said. Another knight (1200/400) appeared on the field, and next to him a beautiful woman with a whip (800/700). Both got red eyes and the Seal of Orichalcos on their foreheads, and their Attack Points respectively became 1700 and 1300. "Oh, and another thing: as long as Marauding Captain is on the field, you can't attack my Warrior-type Monsters," he said.
"I'll find a way around it," I said, drawing two more cards. These were…Andro Sphinx and Sphinx Teleia? Wow! My luck was better than I thought.
"Let's see how good your fighters are against my magnificent beasts. I pay 1000 Life Points to summon both Andro Sphinx and Sphinx Teleia!" I said, creating the lion-headed giant (3000/2500) and his maiden-headed winged lioness sister (2500/3000). "The only bad news is that I can't attack with them this turn, but that's okay because I still have Masked Beast Death Guardius. Make a rug out of his Soul Tiger!" I said. The demon tore up Soul Tiger, but still inflicted no damage to Abaddon's Life Points.
"Well my squad of fighters is about to become an army, for I play The Warrior Returning Alive, which can put a Warrior-type Monster in the Graveyard back in my hand, and now I'll bring back Warrior Dai Grepher. But I'm not done yet. By discarding three cards from my hand thanks to the Spell Card Bronze Knight, I can summon three Bronze Knights," he said. Warrior Dai Grepher (1700/1600) returned to the field, and not only did he get the Seal of Orichalcos on his forehead and the red eyes, not to mention his Attack Points becoming 2200, but his normally expressionless face became one of anger. Next, three knights (500/0, and they got the Seal on the tops of their helmets and 500 more Attack Points, but their eyes didn't turn red as they were obscured by their helmets) appeared, but oddly, two appeared next to Warrior Dai Grepher and another appeared behind Marauding Captain. This wasn't making any sense.
"Hey, what's the big idea? How can you have six Monsters?" I asked.
"Another beauty part of the Seal of Orichalcos: with it, I can summon Monsters where I would normally put my Magic and Trap Cards, effectively allowing me to have up to 10 Monsters. And that's not all: you can't destroy my Monsters in the back without first destroying the Monsters up front," he explained.
"I'll find a way. Masked Beast Death Guardius, get rid of the Marauding Captain!" I ordered. The demon simply broke the captain in half, making Abaddon's Life Points 5300. "But I'm not done yet. Andro Sphinx, kill Warrior Dai Grepher and Sphinx Teleia, destroy Shadow Tamer!" I said. Both beasts obeyed, and the death of Warrior Dai Grepher made Abaddon's Life Points 3300. Now I was doing well.
"I was angry at you before, Demetrios, but now I'm really pissed off!" Abaddon said. I was shocked by this.
"How do you know my name?" I asked.
"My Master sees all, little mortal. He knows about what you and your little girlfriend can do. That's why I've come here to kill you," he said.
"Not if I can help it," I said, and drew another card. This one was Gift of the Mystical Elf.
"Here's another damper on your plans, Abaddon. I activate Gift of the Mystical Elf, which will give me 300 Life Points for each of my Monsters on the field, and since I have three, that adds up to 900," I said. The Mystical Elf appeared and uttered a mysterious chant, and my Life Points became 2200.
"Let's see how good those Monsters of yours are when I switch my Knights to Defense Mode," he said, and all three took defensive stances.
"They're still easy pickings. Death Guardius, Andro Sphinx, and Sphinx Teleia, destroy his Knights!" I ordered. All three of my Monsters destroyed the Bronze Knights.
"Good thing they were in Defense Mode…huh?" Abaddon said, noticing that his Life Points went down to 2800. "What have you done?"
"I didn't cheat, if that's what you think. When Andro Sphinx destroys an enemy, half of that enemy's Attack Points are deducted from your Life Points, so long as his target's in Defense Mode," I explained.
"Sweet!" Lily said.
"Not for long! First I activate the Spell Card, Remove Trap, with which I shall get rid of the Pyramid of Light!" he said. When he activated the Magic Card, the Pyramid of Light shattered into millions of pieces, and Andro Sphinx and Sphinx Teleia were both destroyed! Not only were they destroyed, but they were removed from play! "Next I play another Spell Card: Exile of the Wicked! This can destroy Fiend-type Monsters, which I believe your Masked Beast Death Guardius happens to be!" he said. With the activation of that card, Death Guardius instantly died, and I had no Monsters left. But I wasn't worried.
"So, you're cleverer than you look," I asked. "Too bad it won't last. Do you know what the secret weapon of the Pyramid of Light is?"
"Don't tell me…you have him!" said Abaddon.
"That's right; when both Andro Sphinx and Sphinx Teleia have been destroyed, I can pay 500 Life Points to summon…Theinen the Great Sphinx!" I said. As my Life Points went down to 1700, the most ferocious creature of the bunch, a lion-headed man from the waist up and winged lion from the waist downward (3500/3000) appeared on the field.
"And do you know what his other special ability is?" I asked.
"I don't want to know…" said Abaddon, starting to look scared.
"That's right: by paying 500 more Life Points, I can increase his Attack Points by 3000 - enough to wipe you out!" I said. My Life Points descended to 1200, while Theinen's Attack Points went up to 6500!
"Theinen, attack his Life Points directly and end this duel!" Theinen charged toward Abaddon and thrashed the assassin around in his jaws. As he fell back to the ground, his Life Points went down to 0.
"Demetrios 1, pathetic bad guy nothin'," I said. Just then, something happened that astonished even me: the Seal of Orichalcos shrank around Abaddon, and a column of green light shot into a vortex in the sky.
"You haven't seen the last of us!" he said. Just then, his very soul was ripped from his body and ascended into the column.
In a dark temple, out there somewhere in the darkness, a man in dark robes was praying to a statue. But this was no ordinary statue. It was a statue of Satan himself, carved in black marble as an evil imitation of the Statue of Zeus. In the fallen angel's right hand was his trident, and in his left was a medieval glass bottle. The robed man was speaking prayers in an unknown language to the dark idol. Just then, he stopped speaking, as a soul flew into the room and into the bottle the idol was holding. The man chuckled to himself.
"So it begins again…Demetrios," he said, removing his hood and still angry about the fact that now only his left eye was capable of seeing, for his right one had been rendered blind and permanently closed by the slash of a sword.
"What was with that guy?" Lily asked me.
"Let's forget about him; he's just a soulless shell now," I said, glad to be rid of Abaddon.
"Ah, but he is one soldier in many of your enemy's army," said a familiar voice. But it was in my mind.
"Shandara?" I asked quietly.
"So, you have stuck to your goal and saved the life of the woman you love. But saving her once will not be enough to save your world," she said.
"There are others like him?" I asked.
"Yes. He also has comrades who use the Seal of Orichalcos, but his superiors use something far worse: darkness itself," Shandara said.
"How do Lily and I play into this?" I asked.
"You, Demetrios, the brave knight, and Lily, the noble sorceress; you two have the power to save this world, but you will need allies to help you," she said.
"Such as?" I asked.
"Do you recall the names: Yugi Moto, Seto Kaiba, and Joey Wheeler?" she said.
"Yeah; they're the top duelists around here, aren't they?" I asked.
"They will help you in your quest. I leave the rest to you now. Good luck," she said, and disappeared once again.
"Lily, we need to find Yugi Moto, Joey Wheeler, and believe it or not, Seto Kaiba," I said as I mounted Moon Shadow.
"What? Where did that come from?" she asked.
"I know this is going to sound crazy, but when I found my house burned down, I met this spiritual guide who said that we're being hunted by this cult that wants us dead, and that guy I just dueled was one of them," I said, hoping to sound as reasonable as possible. Lily smiled and extended her hand so I could help her up.
"After that duel, I'll believe anything. But finding those three guys, that may not be so easy," she said.
"But if we have to find them, if they can really help us.
"All right then, let the search begin," Lily said, as we rode off into the night.