Shadowchasers: Twice-Told Tales

by 7th Librarian

With an organization as large and old as the Shadowchasers, there's definately some amazing stories to be had in that rich history. As Jalal and the oddball man known as Adrian meet time and time again over the length of that history, they'll trade stories about the eight individuals who comprise the Backwater Shadowchasers. Currently playing: BACKWATER TRAILER

2. The Half-Breed's Tale

Shadowchasers: Twice-Told Tales
By 7th Librarian

A/N: This chapter is the complete opposite of the previous one, mostly to counteract the mood that one presents. It also features a character from another author's works. Specifically, MichaelDJ54's works. It is a roleplay/writing story he and I, along with several other authors, share that is named 'Guardians of Deus'. As such, if you have questions about said character or the story, direct them to him.

There are several unique cards in this chapter, however and those are my own original creations, so if you want to know more about them, get in touch with me. They'll be listed at the end of the chapter.

TTTTTT

About two weeks after the original Shadowchasers fic has ended.

"Okay, so run this by me again." Jalal stood, in full battle regalia, flanked by a dozen heavily armed Shadowchasers and an Incantifer. The surrounding area had been a rather hilly glen, but now was essentially razed flat, charred and smoking. As the half-dragon watched, one of the trees that had been spared being eradicated and was a charred stalk of its former self, creaked and toppled over pathetically.

In front of the group was Adrian, his green trenchcoat ripped and torn and smudged with things Jalal did not wish to think about it. His hair was an absolute mess and the tip of his tail swished into view, the tip smoldering. "I got in a fight with a book's guardian in a dimension who's name I cannot pronounce, it swallowed me after I called it a poor excuse for a iguana and then it apparently qualified as a Shadowkind and got yanked to this world, because when I cut my way out of it, I was here and someone tried to arrest me."

A hand in the crowd of Shadowchasers went up. "That was me."

"You're forgiven." The kitty-eared man swished his tail in front of himself, licked his fingers and gently pinched out the tiny flame.

Jalal pointed with his sword, gesturing behind Adrian. It was a massive creature, two stories tall even flopped on its side as it was and a utterly massive snarl of what appeared to many, many necks nearly dwarfed the actual body. "Just how many times did you cut off its heads?"

"I kind of lost count after a dozen. It kept swallowing me." He glanced down at his trenchcoat. "Aww, I'm never going to get this out of the fabric..."

Resisting the urge to drive his palm into his face, Jalal sighed. "I don't know why I'm even surprised anymore. You getting eaten by a monster and then getting pulled into another dimension while fighting your way out of said monster is probably an average Tuesday for you."

"Don't be ridiculous." Adrian patted his hair back down into some semblance of order. "That's Wednesday."

Somewhere behind himself, Jalal heard the distinctive sound of several people face-faulting in unison.

"...what, doesn't everyone do that on a Wednesday?"

TTTTTTTT

Several hours later, the two men were sitting in Jalal's office.

Well, Jalal was sitting, paging over the tome that Adrian had somehow managed to keep hold of while battling the hydra. Despite what it had been through, the tome was miraculously unharmed and dry.

Adrian, declaring his clothes a complete and total loss after they had somehow come alive after being taken off and had to be incinerated, had become a rather fluffy white cat. Currently lazing on the windowsill in a patch of sun, he stretched himself out. "Nothing like a warm patch of sun on your tummy to make a bad day a good one..."

"Simple minds, simple pleasures." Jalal murmured to himself as he traced a line of runes with his finger, carefully separating each one from the last. Whoever had written the book had rather cramped handwriting.

"I heard that, but I'm too content trade wits with you, Jalal."

"Good. Yours is rather blunted. But maybe you can swap it on Ebay for a new one."

"Har-har." Rolling over, the cat settled on his paws and curled his tail around him. "Sorry about the mess, though. That species hydra wasn't even on the Shadow homeworld and certainly wasn't intelligent by any means of the world. And I didn't realize it's blood would explode on contact with lightning..."

"At least you retrieved the book. And killed the hydra. It could have caused a lot more damage if it had just come into world without any warning." Jalal pulled a bookmark out of the desk and slid it into place, closing the book carefully. "But whatever force it is that's pulling Shadows from their world into this one, I wasn't aware it could reach beyond that."

"Sure it can." The cat peered out with one eye at the other immortal. "But I don't know what force it is. And neither of any of the deity-level or above I talk to about it know what it is, either. Granted, my circle of friends at that level is rather small. Most of them get kind of cranky if a guy who isn't one of their worshipers starts showing up and asking for things...ask for a cup of sugar and they want you to convert."

"So what have you learned about this force, then?"

"Well, calling it a 'force' is a bit of a misnomer. That would imply it's working for something, right? But given that it pulls Shadows indiscriminately, regardless of alignment or belief, it's not any of the major players. And the lesser deities really don't benefit from it ether." An ear twitched, flicking a fly away. "But none of them can identify it or tell what it is, can they? Morganna's Kin hasn't got an answer, either. Their travels haven't given up any answers and the Origin Universe is empty on the subject."

He yawned, revealing some cute little fangs. "The biggest going theory is that it's some sort of 'balancing act' done by creation in response to something else going on in the Multiverse. What or who it's trying balance is beyond even the gods' ken, if that's true. But so far, it makes the most sense to those who know a bit more than the rest of creation about. Otherwise, you're really only left with the options of either the Multiverse is so screwed up that that force is a giant glitch or God is moving things around because it's part of his plan. Or he's bored. I doubt anyone can know his mind, though."

"Interesting..." Jalal sat back in his chair, drumming his fingers on the desk thoughtfully. "Still, traveling between dimensions isn't exactly a walk in the park. And to be able to transplant the countless number of Shadows it takes so precisely is a bit amazing when one thinks about it."

"There is that." Adrian agreed, flicking his tail tip. "I can do it because of my home's location between time and space and such. Morganna's Kin manipulates quantum foam. And you Shadowchasers can set up portals and the like. Yet this force just seems to teleport them from one place to another and wipes their minds in the process. Not even a blind teleportation, either. There is that story of those two elves who got nabbed at the same time on the Shadow homeworld, right next to each other and then wound up in two different places on Earth."

"Mhmm..." Jalal nodded and then winced slightly. "But dimensional travel is dangerous, too. Morganna's Kin has told me one or two stories about those who thought they were good with the travel, only to wind up in the pits of danger...or lost between dimensions...or dead."

The cat stretched out, sprawling on his side happily in the sun. "It's not for everyone. But you'd be surprised at how many in the 12 Dimensions think that they can pull it off."

"Mmm...we don't know much about the 12 Dimensions. It's not exactly our purview." Jalal chuckled. "Hard enough to be sheriffs on the Earth as it is."

"I can imagine." The cat rolled over, so that he was staring at Jalal upside-down. "The long and short of it is that what you call the 12 Dimensions form a perfect circle and are all linked, strangely enough, by Duel Monsters."

"A card game forms a perfect circle?"

"In a sense. After all, didn't Jaden Yuki and his cohorts travel to another world where Duel Monsters were the primary species?" Adrian settled to all fours and studied his friend, his violet eyes ageless and deep. "I haven't really studied it, but it seems that that card game links them all, with the Shadow Realm acting dark center of the ring. And if the dimensions are gemstones, the Spirit World is the ring they are set into."

Jalal nodded slowly. "That makes a lot of sense, but if each dimension is connected to the others by the Spirit World, shouldn't it show effects from all 12 Dimensions through it?"

"That's because it's not the same Spirit World for each dimension. Treating it as a ring, each Spirit World would only connect two different dimensions." His whiskers twitched. "Do keep in mind, that this is a 'perspective' on how something works. It is utterly an incomplete analogy given the vast nature of the Multiverse. If your perspective changes, say by via becoming a god, then so does this image."

"I know, my friend." A smile touched Jalal's face. "We have had talks like this before." A curious expression crossed his face. "But your theory does put an interesting angle on a story one of my men told me a while back."

"Oh?" Settled into a half asleep pose, Adrian fixed a languid gaze on his friend. "Do tell. We're not exactly going anywhere..."

"True enough." The head of the Shadowchasers grabbed his cup of coffee and took a drink before starting. "The kid is pretty unusual. He's got a family tree that has every human-compatible Shadowkind in it somewhere and they're all bit crazy. Even has a Duel Spirit with him. And seems to get into the worst kinds of situations, too. Including dealing with a Giant Rex."

"A Duel Monster?"

"The spirit of one and it was very real, for some reason or other. The incident I'm talking about happens just a few days ago, after his twenty-first birthday..."

TTTTTTT

The Half-Breed's Tale

TTTTTTT

"Far beyond our boundary, a danger has emerged! Far out in the black, it's getting ready to attack! Cold and tearless retinas are staring at the world! Raiders from an ancient land-" The heavy metal rock and lyrics of Iron Savior were summarily cut short as a fist darted out from underneath the lump of blankets on the bed and smashed down on the clock. The poor device slipped out from underneath the fist, clattering and bouncing across the floor in a fashion that was as nearly as loud as the song.

Silence remained booted out of the room, however, as a loud and long groan emerged from the pile of blankets. It shuffled and rocked, a few of the blankets slipping and sliding off as a mess of brown hair pushed its way free of the mass, followed shortly by a bleary face. "Oh dear god, it's like a drill in one temple..and a drill in the other temple...and they're meeting in the middle..."

With another groan, he sat up, holding his head in his hands in a vain attempt to keep his head from exploding. It wasn't helped by the fact the morning sun was doing its damnedest to prove itself annoying, beaming full force through the cracks in the window blind. "Neo...? Neo, a little help, man...like getting rid of the sun?"

The person he was addressing was in fact not a person at all. It was a phantasmal, translucent tall blonde-haired man. He was wearing archaic armor that seemed to be more for looks than function, as it came replete with a cape and filigree in gold over the chest and shoulder pieces. He stood, swaying on his feet slightly. (To...to...honor and glory, friends...raise the flagon once more...for..for..honor and glory...Squire Tsubasa, another round for our friends!)

Tsubasa watched as the man hiccuped and took a staggering step forwards before toppling over like a marionette with its strings cut. "You're a lot of help..."

Lurching himself out of bed, the young man stumbled for the window. Shedding blankets like they were feathers and he was molting, he scrabbled for the handle on the blind. Only to give a shriek of terror as his flailing hand snared the blind itself, parting the panels and flooding the room with light directly into his face. "Oh god! Natural light! MY EYES! MY EYES! IT BURRRRNNNSS!"

He stumbled backwards, tripping over the rising Neo and toppling into a heap of blankets that completely covered his form. "Oh dear god, someone left the sun on so high that it burned my eyes! I"m blind!"

Neo jumped to his feet, a hiccup causing him to sway as he produced his sword form thin air. (Who...who darest sully my...my honor by tripping over me!?) He caught sight of the rising pile of blankets and bedclothes, accompanied by a anguished moan from Tsubasa inside them. (A hag!? Vile woman, you shall pay for my honor with your blood!)

He held up a hand, fingertip glowing as he traced a rune of some kind in the air. (Perpar..prepa...prepare for...for) A hiccup caused him to skew a line on the rune out of place, though he did not seem to notice. (For...for..just...just...just lice!)

Then the fumbling Tsubasa crashed him, the rune shimmered violently and a massive explosion rocked the room.

TTTTTT

Tsukihime hummed to herself as she settled into a chair at the kitchen table, a mug of tea in one hand and the morning paper in the other. "Nothing like a quiet, simple morning..." As an explosion rocked the building, her serene expression did not fade as she took a drink of her tea and continued to read.

Moments later, a blanket-swamped Tsubasa lurched and staggered into the room, the bed coverings smoldering a bit and random arcs of magic twitching along his form. "Coffeeeeeeee...nnnnn...cofffeeeeeeeeeee...ggtah..."

The succubus peered at him over the top of her paper. "I'm sorry, but we don't serve zombies in here. You'll have to take your business elsewhere, sir."

He groaned in pain and vainly attempted to cover ears with a single hand as the other pulled him along the counter towards the coffee pot. "Don't talk...feels like gravel inside my skull..."

"It is your own fault, Tsubasa." She ignored the groans of pain from him. "Twenty-first birthday or not, you chose to party all night."

The coffee pot vanished into the human-shaped blob of blankets. The sounds of gulping were heard and then the now-empty pot was spat back out, clattering onto the counter. A few more moments passed and Tsubasa's head, hair standing straight up, emerged. He rubbed at his eyes blearily. "I only turn twenty-one once...and my cousin got some strippers for the party..."

"Ah, of course. The tantalizing flesh of women who probably couldn't even spell your name, let alone pronounce it is more than enough reason to lose a night's sleep over." Tsukihime shook her head bemusedly as she drank some tea. "Men really haven't progressed during the Stone Age...though back then, grunting the name 'Ugh!' turned ever head in the room..."

"Funnnnnyyy..." Tsubasa drawled. Apparently, the coffee had restored enough of his cognitive functions to the point where he had a personality. "Weren't you the stripper in a cake for someone just last week?"

"An old friend for his 150th birthday." She clarified and flipped the page on the paper deftly. "And 'stripping' implies that all of my clothes eventually came off. Which they did not. Unlike those women you saw last night, I do not reveal all of my secrets. " She smiled happily at a memory. "Well, not at least until Fayte and I got back to her room..."

"Ugh, no, no no!" The youth waved at the air like he could shove the words away from his ears. "I don't want to ruin my memories of the glorious last night with thoughts of two old women who could be my great-great-great grandmother's doing things like that!"

Then his eyes widened and he clutched at his head. "Oh god, I said it and now I'm thinking about it! NOOOOOOOO!"

"Tsubassssaaa..." He froze and turned to look at Tsukihime, who was regarding him with a closed-eyed smile that seemed pleasant enough...if not for the burning black aura that seemed to surround her. "What was that about me being 'old'?"

"I...I mean..it was...I..." He gulped nervously. "Well, you...you are kind of getting on years, r-right?"

Her smile broadened and the aura doubled in size. "It's rather inconsiderate to judge a woman by her years like that, isn't it?"

"Y-yeah...you're like...like a big sister!" Tsubasa laughed nervously, trying to reinforce his statement. "A big sister that I never had!"

"Well, that's kind of you to say so." She offered her cup of tea to him in a toast cheerfully, the dark foreboding gone like it had never been there. Then her face became irritated. "You smell. And look horrible. Go get dressed and go for walk to get rid of that hangover."

"The sun tried to blind me...and you want me to outside in that thing!? It'll burn my skin down to the bone! It has it in for me!"

She stared at him. "I"m not even going to try and figure out how that statement made sense in your head. Just go." He didn't move. "Do you think if I whistled high enough, your head would explode?"

The blankets were fluttering to the floor the moment she got the word 'whistled' out.

TTTTTTT

"Okay, how did you get drunk!?" Tsubasa, now dressed in a t-shirt and jeans stalked down the sidewalk, hands stowed into his pockets. His duel disk was strapped to his wrist, his reasoning being that if he was forced to go outside, then maybe he'd at least get some entertainment out of it.

(I...do not know...) Neo hovered along a few inches behind his partner, rubbing at his face. (I think that dwarf had challenged me to a drinking contest...)

"You're a a Duel Spirit! No one else can see you!" The Shadowchaser whirled and jabbed a finger at the being's chest. "And how knightly is it for you to accept a drinking contest with a dwarf!?"

Neo puffed out his chest, looking stern. (A knight's honor is on the line whenever he is challenged! And when it is challenged, you must do your utmost to give a good showing, squire!) Then he deflated, holding the side of his head in a hand with a moan. (Even if the result is a bunch of tiny little mind-dwarfs armed with pickaxes and rock music trying to tunnel their way out of your brain so they may drink gemstones...)

"...and people say I don't make sense." Tsubasa threw up a hand and turned a loud yell sounded. "What now?"

His answer came in the form of a elven youth, several years younger than him, came running around the corner. "All I wanted was a pet! Why did this have to happen!?"

"Hey, slow down!" Tsubasa caught the kid by the arm and pulled him around so they were face-to-face. "Where's the fire? What are you talking about, wanting a pet?"

The boy squirmed. "My parents won't let me get a cat, so I thought I'd just summon up a monster from a card to be my pet!"

"Well, that's just silly. You can't-" Tsubasa's jaw dropped as a massive T-Rex stomped its way around the corner, the crest on its back identifying it as it a Giant Rex Duel Monster.

He glanced down at the kid, pointing wildly at the dinosaur. "You wanted that thing for a pet!?"

"Well, yeah!" The kid said, suddenly indignant at having his choice questioned. "Who doesn't want a dinosaur for a pet! They're awesome!"

"You have a point...always wanted to ride a triceratops..." Tsubasa blinked as the Giant Red roared again and swiveled its head, catching sight of them. "Oh right, yeah...running for our lives now!" With that, he caught the kid by the collar and ran as fast as he could in the opposite direction.

Another roar and the sound of concrete being crunched told them that the Giant Rex wasn't going to let them go. "Neo! Neo! Hey!"

The Duel Spirit was farther up the street, holding his stomach as he leaned against a trash can. (Curse those foul dwarven ales for being so good...)

"What!? NO!?" Tsubasa vaulted over a mailbox. "You can't get drunk and you can't get sick! Especially not now! I'm going to get eaten!"

(What...?) The Duel Spirit lifted his head, startled as he saw the Giant Rex stomping in his direction. (That thing is a Duel Spirit...made real?)

"Yeah, this kid-" Said kid was summarily shoved into an alleyway as Tsubasa then leapt in the opposite direction, the dinosaur snapping and chomping after the Shadowchaser. "Tried to summon it to be his pet and it made it real..somehow..I don't know, you're the magic guy!"

(And a knight does not run!) Neo stood tall, producing his sword. (I will return this creature from whence it came!)

"Wonderful idea!" Tsubasa yelled over his shoulder as the Giant Rex snapped at his heels. "Now would be a really good time to make it happen!" He shrieked as he ran over a car and the dinosaur simply crushed. "Oh god, I don't want to have to pay for that!"

His partner vanished from where he was, reappearing alongside the Shadowchaser. (Your rampage is ended creature!) His sword began to glow sharply and he slashed it through the air. It left a trail of light that split and widened, becoming a swirling portal.

"Alright!" Tsubasa pumped a fist into the air...then froze in mid-action as the portal began to spin violently, seemingly lurching towards them. "Uhhh...why is that portal coming towards us?"

Neo was too busy to answer, bent over his knees and holding his stomach.

"Seriously, man, you cannot hold your alcohol" Tsubasa yanked Neo around and shook him. "And you're a Duel Spirit! HOW ARE YOU DRUNK!"

There was no answer as he glanced up just in time to see the portal swallow them.

TTTTTT

"So...my Duel Spirit got drunk because, you know, why not? And because he was drunk, he couldn't really control the portal he opened and it randomly teleported us to the Spirit World?"

"That about sums it up."

"Greaaatttt..." Tsubasa buried his face in a hand and groaned. "We don't even know where 'here' is, do we?"

"As near as I can tell, we can't." The speaker was a man about Tsubasa's age, dressed in slacks, a black shirt and silvery white trenchcoat. Brushing a bit of his brown hair out of his eyes, he nudged his glasses farther up the bridge of nose. "I'm going to take a wild guess, though, and say it's some kind of prison."

"What tipped you off? The lack of doors and windows or the fact it's a giant dome made of cold, gray stone?"

Indeed, the pair were standing in the large building. Designs and patterns were exquisitely carved into the walls and ceiling and since they could, there was some kind of decent light source somewhere, but other than that, there was nothing else.

Tsubasa took in their surroundings once again, hoping that he had missed something the first time and let out a deep sigh as he realized he had not. "I hate my life."

The other man clapped him on the back sympathetically. "Cheer up. At least now I have company and you don't seem to be a bad sort of fellow."

"Thanks." Tsubasa straightened and held out his hand. "Tsubasa Springweather."

"You can call me Craig." The man shook his hand. "At least you know how you got here. My friends and I were dueling this nutcase and somehow, whatever he...or we...or somebody did...ripped a hole in dimensions and I wound up here."

"Well, if portals can be opened to here, they should be able to be opened out of here, right?" Tsubasa turned around. "Neo, how about it? Can you help us out?"

(I cannot, squire.) The knight shook his head. (I do not feel my usual powers here and even if I could...) He lurched a bit and looked a little green. (I am still...out of sorts...)

(Figures.) The voice was female and amused. (The mighty Neo the Magical Swordsman, laid low by a hangover.)

The Shadowchaser turned to see a figure suddenly phase into existence behind Craig. She was a tall woman with violet hair that nearly brushed the floor. She was dressed in outfit that reminded Tsubasa of the ones goddesses wore in Ah! My Goddess. It was split down to the navel and was apparently only held on due to the fullness of her chest. It also left a long jagged scar visible down from her left shoulder down to the right hip. All in all, she was almost unnaturally beautiful and the Shadowchaser couldn't suppress a whistle. "Damn..why weren't you at my party last night?"

To his surprise, she smiled at him and waggled a finger at him chidingly. (Because you're a few hundred years too early to have any chance at all with me, dear boy.) She ruffled Craig's hair playfully. (And I've already got this lovely man. Does such a good job at being a Chosen of a goddess.)

"What?" Tsubasa arched an eyebrow. "A goddess?"

"Kind of." Craig ducked away from the woman's ministrations, blushing and shooting her an exasperated look as she giggled. "Apira here is a goddess, but isn't exactly at full power. See, my friends and I were Chosen by various deities on our home world as their champions and avatars to counteract this great darkness that was coming. Part of our task is to track down several sealed gods that were stolen from their resting place. Apira was their guardian goddess, but..."

He scowled darkly at the memory. "One of the Chosen decided to be a prick and was the one who stole the sealed deities. In the process, he hooked up with whatever this great darkness was and attacked Apira before I met her. He stole most of her power and gave her that scar...he was the one we were all fighting when he decided to be a sore loser and rip holes in dimensions." His fist clenched. "Now we're back to square one and I have to find my friends before he does..."

"Oh..man, that's harsh." Tsubasa paused for a moment and then slapped his fist into his palm. "But I wouldn't worry! I mean, they all have gods and goddesses protecting them to, right? And if they chose you guys, you have to pretty darn tough and since this guy you're fighting was a sore loser, that means you were winning! So you'll find each other again and kick his ass, I'm sure!" He gave Craig a thumbs-up and grinned broadly as he saw the other man smile back. "That's the spirit!"

(Bah. A goddess of harlots and tricksters will do us no good here.) Neo, obviously more recovered from his hangover than he had been a few moments ago, joined the group with a scowl on his face.

Craig glanced between the two Spirits. "You two know each other?"

(Yes.) Apira pursed her lips, a hand on her hip. (Neo's card mentions how he travels between dimensions, right? Well, before I met you, but after I was attacked, I went looking for someone to help me regain my lost power. But this guy...) She gestured at Neo with her staff, the five rings on the top jangling with the motion. (wanted to meet same person and we wound up competing for the right.)

(A challenge I won fairly. Or would have, had you not tossed aside your clothing!) Neo groused at her.

(The challenge was to reach the goal by any means we had necessary and I did!) She folded her arms under her chest. (Not my fault you got trampled by the horde of hormonally-driven men. You should have gotten out of the way!)

(You proclaim yourself a goddess, yet use tactics like that...disgraceful!)

(This coming from a knight who landed his partner here because he was drunk.)

(I may have erred in my control the spell, but I defended my honor as a good knight should! Yet you still claim divinity, with your personality. If you area goddess, it is of slatterns and bar wenches!) Neo snapped, jabbing a finger at her.

(Hey!) Apira gripped her staff tightly. (I am a goddess of summons! And I spent a lot of centuries earning that title and I deserve to be addressed as such!)

Neo snorted in disbelief. (Since you seem to summon nothing but men driven by their baser instincts, I suppose if you summon enough of them and enough of them say you are a goddess, then on some level it must be true. But truth from the mouth of fools is still foolish.)

(That's it! Now I remember why I was so happy I beat you! That holier-than-thou crap is a real good way to piss off a goddess, blondie!) Apira tackled the knight, the two becoming a roiling, cartoonish cloud of dust.

(Ha! I would only fear your ability to smite where your talents not centered on the bedroom!)

The two duelists gained sweatdrops as they watched their respective partners brawl, Craig pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation. "Somehow, I should have expected this. Weird crap like this always seems to come my way."

"I hear you..." Tsubasa didn't blink as a flash of magic briefly illuminated the cloud. "Wow, for a knight, he fights dirty."

"For a goddess, she fights just as dirty."

They stared at the cloud for a moment more, then Craig reached into a coat and produced something. "Pocket checkers?"

"I'd love to."

TTTTTTT

Some time later...

The two duelists looked up from their game as they saw the dust cloud disperse, their respective partners disheveled and looking rather worn out.

(I did not know I had bones there...) Neo groaned, his body twitching spasmodically. (Or that they could hurt so much...)

Apira smiled triumphantly, but then winced herself and gingerly touched the top of her head. (You better not have damaged the roots of my hair. Do you know how hard it is get a decent shampoo?)

Craig stretched and stood up, pocketing the portable checkers set. "It's about time you two stopped fighting.

"Could have gone a little longer..." Tsubasa groused. "I was just about to win."

"Your one remaining piece must have had one heck of plan."

"It definitely was and it would have made your kings weep in terror at its coming!"

"Yeah, all six of them would have trembling in their non-existent boots." The brown-haired man rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. "So do we have a way out of here yet or are we going to have start remodeling?"

"Well, it wouldn't be a bad idea..." The Shadowchaser rubbed his chin thoughtfully, peering at some of the detailing on the stonework. "A little paint would really add some color and spruce the place up...have to avoid using too much, though. Then we'll wind up with a gaudy place and it'll be in a pain in the butt to remove."

He didn't notice Craig burying his face in a palm behind him.

Apira straightened her clothing and smoothed her hair back as she spoke. (I believe that between Neo and I, we could open the portals that brought us here, provided enough energy.)

"Which you two exhausted in your little brawl." Craig pointed out and then smirked. "How unbecoming of a goddess. No wonder you lost your deity-hood. But I suppose that means we can get it back by having you becoming the goddess of bar brawling." He chuckled at the thought. " 'Oh Apira, grant me another beer bottle so that I may smash my enemy's head in...and get a good drink!'"

Tsubasa and Neo snickered as the goddess clonked him over the head with her staff and the Shadowchaser turned to his partner. "Is what she's saying true? Can we get home like that?"

(Yes. Despite the lady and mine's...exchange...) Neo adjusted himself. (We can open the portals, but not through our own power. This place is a kind of prison or so we've guessed. So anything we try to do will be negated by our surroundings.)

(Which is why we need to draw energy from an outside source-something that is not directly related to us.) Apira gestured to the two humans with her staff. (So if the two of you duel, the conflict will generate energy to get us home.)

"Really...?" Craig looked thoughtful. "I guess that makes sense-you've regained some of your power by defeating other spirits and such in duels."

"Yeah, and in my home, they say that the Momentum we use can be affected by powerful duels and Jaden Yuki's autobiography mentioned something about opening a portal to another world by dueling somehow..." Tsubasa shrugged. "I kinda skimmed the thing, to be honest. Guy's a awesome duelist, not so hot a writer."

He blinked as Craig started to chuckle. "What's so funny?"

"Hearing Jaden being talked about as a real person and not as a bad anime character..." The other duelist just continued to chuckle as he walked to the far side of the chamber, waving the comment he had just made away. "Never mind. Doesn't mean anything to you."

Spinning on his heel, it was easy to see the big grin on his face. "Anyway, they said we have to duel...so let's do it!"

"No argument there!" Tsubasa grinned in return and jumped back so that there was enough space between the duelists. Grabbing his duel disk from where it lay, he slid it onto his wrist and slammed the deck home. Then he blinked as a thought crossed his mind. "Hey...where's yours?"

"Just a second..." Craig held out his left arm and light flashed around it. When it faded, there was a duel disk strapped to his wrist. It was silver in coloration, with the monster spots violet emblazoned with a violet six-pointed star, while the life point counter and deck holder were a soft blue color. His deck was already in place. "There are some perks to being a chosen of a goddess."

"So I see." Tsubasa smiled as Apira appeared alongside her chosen. He lifted an eyebrow with a smirk. "I imagine there are some perks better than others. A goddess' affections and all that?" A laugh escaped him as Craig blushes and turned his head shyly. The goddess herself merely wriggled her eyebrows and gave Craig a hug that pressed his face into her chest before vanishing in a small stream of light into his deck.

(Hmmph...such unbecoming behavior...) Neo crossed his arms and scowled. (A deity of lust and perversion...hardly anything worth worshiping.)

"Oh, stuff it. Aren't knights suppose to be chivalrous in defeat, too?"

(It was not a fair fight.)

"Yeah, huh, whatever you say." Tsubasa held up his duel disk and pointed at his deck. "You want a chance to beat her, partner, get in the deck and we'll see how the duel goes."

(Very well.) Neo inclined his head and vanished into the deck in a beam of light.

"Now that's taken care of..." The Shadowchaser flipped a switch and his duel disk slid into active mode, lighting up. "Let's see if you can stand up to a Shadowchaser!" (TLP: 8000)

"Fine with me!" Craig's disk activated, a magical glow suffusing the device briefly. "As the Chosen of Apira, I accept your challenge and will meet you with full force!" (CLP: 8000)

"Bring it on! I'll go first!" Tsubasa snapped off a sixth card and added to his hand, before grabbing a different one and slapping it down. "I'll start by summoning my Marauding Captain and his effect activates will let me bring out my Blackwing- Shura the Blue Flame!" A lean warrior strode out onto his field, wielding a longsword in one hand and a short sword in the other. He crossed both weapons and bellowed a battle cry, the spot alongside him lighting up. A blue flame erupted there and then quickly faded away, leaving a lanky bird-man ins place. (1200/700) (1800/1200)

"Then I'll set two cards face-down and call it a turn." The Shadowchaser watched as the two cards appeared behind his two monsters.

"Draw!" Craig yanked the card free, slipping it amongst his hand of five. (A Marauding Captain and a Blackwing...? Blackwings already spam special summon and none are warriors, so including that Captain makes no sense...what is he up to?)

He glanced down at his hand and smirked slightly. "I'm not sure what your deck is, but that won't stop me from coming straight at you! I activate the spell card Frontline Base!" The card shimmered into existence in front of him and immediately started glowing. "And it's effect lets me summon a Union Monster from my hand. So here comes my Y-Dragon Head!" A metallic red dragon appeared in front of him, sleek and angular. (1500/1600)

"And to continue my attack force, I'll summon out my A- Alpha Unite" The new monster was a humanoid android, bulky and heavy looking. Gears and servomotors whirred as it struck a pose, light gleaming off its white surface. (1600/1500)

"Huh, really?" Tsubasa grinned lightly. "Don't tell me they actually went and made one of those monsters for every single letter of the alphabet."

"Naw, just about nine more or so. I've only got two playsets in this deck, though." Craig pointed at his new monster. "And this one is a fun choice. Because now I select one union monster in my deck..." A card was slid out of his deck and grabbed it, though he kept it separate from his hand. "And send it to the graveyard, meaning my Alpha Unite takes on the name of that monster!"

The chosen card was slid into the graveyard and Alpha Unite began to glow, whirring and shifting as it transformed. When it was done, it resembled nothing more with a sleek sports card. With machine guns mounted on the spoiler. "Since it's taken on the name of my C-Arbine Racer, I can now banish my two machines to fuse them together! Let's go!"

Energy crackled around the two machines as they broke apart into their individual pieces. The pieces were pulled together in a swirling maelstrom, linking and snapping together in seemingly impossible ways. Then with a blinding flash of light, it was over. "Say hello to my CY-Dragon Racer!" (2100/1600)

"Oooo..." Tsubasa stared at the new monster. It held the basic frame of the C-Arbine Racer, but now had the Y-Dragon Head's wings on its sides, the tail for a new spoiler and the head as the new front end, giving it an appearance of a vehicle that travel on both land and air equally well. "Dude, that's awesome!"

"I know, right? And now for his special ability!" The other duelist slid a card from his hand into his grave. "Discard a card..." The eyes on the head of the dragon lit up like headlights, focusing on Marauding Captain, who dropped his blades and stared into them dumbly. "And now his attack drop to zero!" (1200-0)

"Aw, man, seriously? Deer-in-the-headlights?" Tsubasa grimaced and then blinked as Craig drew two more cards. "That must come from your discarded card's effect. Right?"

"Yep. It's Alphabet Soupercharger and when discarded for the effect of an Gestalt Fusion, I draw twice." Craig pointed at Marauding Captain. "But that will come into play later! My Dragon Racer attacks your monster! Laser Rain!"

The car's motor revved and then it peeled out, launching itself into the air. Looping around the playing field, the machine guns swiveled out from under the wings before unleashing a endless barrage of rapid-fire laser blasts. "Trap cards open!"

Tsubasa grinned as his Shura took flight, interposing itself between the oncoming blasts and Marauding Captain. "My first one is Shift and that redirects your attack towards Shura! And the other one is Skill Successor, which gives my Blackwing four hundred more points! So now he counterattacks with Blue Flame Claws!" Shura folded his wings around himself, the laser blasts harmlessly splashing against them as the fusion monster closed in. Once it got close enough, he flares his wings and streaks of blue fire flashed as the two monsters collided. Seconds later, an explosion rippled through the machine and it blew apart. (CLP: 7900)

"Damn..." Craig shielded himself as the debris from his monster rained down on his field. "I wasn't expecting a trap combo like that, but broke about even with that move..." He sighed as he saw a small pillar of blue flames erupt alongside Shura. "And that is what, now?"

"When Shura trashes an monster by battling, I can summon a Blackwing with less than fifteen hundred attack from my deck, though it's effect is negated." The pillar of flames resolved into a squat bird-man with red plumage and an overcoat kneeling, his wings folded around him. "Vayu the Emblem of Honor is my choice!" (800/0)

"I recognize that one...he's a Tuner, but can't be used for a Synchro Summon while on the field. Your Shura gets around that." Craig grinned as he dusted the last of the ashes off of himself. "That's a pretty good combo. Now you get at least two Synchro Summons next turn and if I get off a surprise summon, Skill Successor gives you an edge with attack points. You're not as dumb as you look, Shadowchaser."

"That must mean I'm a genius, because I look pretty darn sharp!" Tsubasa struck a pose and ran a hand through his hair, spiking it up even more. "Or are you as blind as bat even with those glasses, four-eyes?"

"Pssht. If I'm blind, it's because your outfit is so horrible in taste." Craig said bemusedly and then plugged a card into his disk. "To continue with my move, I'm activating Last Testament. Since a monster on my field was destroyed, I select one that's a lower level, but shares its type and attribute , in my deck and Special Summon it. X-Head Cannon will do, in defense mode." A flash of light heralded the arrival of the yellow-blue machine, its shoulder cannons warming up. (1800/1500) "Then I'll set this card face-down and call it a turn."

"Draw!" Tsubasa snapped the card free and immediately slid it and another card into his disk. "I activate the continuous magic card Black Whirlwind and equip my Marauding Captain with Synchro Boost! This raises his attack by five hundred and jumps his level up by one, too!" The Captain glowed slightly as the equip activated. "But that attack boost is a moot point, since I'm opening up the Overlay Network!"

"Overlay Network? Oh crap, I've heard about these..." Craig stared as a spiral of energy opened up on Tsubasa's field, Shura the Blue Flame and Marauding Captain become spheres of light that were pulled into it. "Two monsters of the same level can become batteries for an new type of monster, right?"

"That about sums it up! I overlay my two monsters in order to bring out Evigishiki Merrowgeist!" What emerged from the portal was a merwoman, her scales colored red and green. Blue fins flapped almost like wings as she twirled the nasty-looking spear she held. Two orbs that Craig surmised where the two monsters that Tsubasa had overlain orbited her. (2100/1600)

"But the fun doesn't stop there! Since I control a Blackwing monster, I can Normal Summon Elphin the Raven without a tribute!" True to his name, Elphin was a tall, lanky birdman with dark feathered wings and headdress. (2200/1200)

"And since a Blackwing was Normal Summoned, my spell card activates its effect." The continuous magic card began to glow. "I can add a Blackwing who has less than the summoned monster's attack points to my hand, so I choose my Zephyros the Elite!" Adding the card to his hand, Tsubasa pointed as his two Blackwings. "Time to give my monsters a tune-up!

Elphin broke apart into seven glowing stars that began to circle Vayu, forming glowing rings that hid the small Tuner from view. "The winds of battle blow and you are the vanguard! Reveal the keystone to the enemy's defeat! Synchro Summon! Blackwing Armor Master!" Black wings swirled around the new monster, which faded away to reveal a tall armored winged humanoid, it's hawk-like face having a single eye. (2500/1500)

"That was a great speech!" Craig grinned, waving an arm excitedly. "And your monsters look awesome! About sometime someone got as passionate about this stuff I as do!"

"Preaching to the choir, specs!" The Shadowchaser pumped his fist in the air. "Now my Merrowgeist will attack your X-Head Cannon with Cursed Spear!" The monster twirled her weapon, dark water being pulled into its wake as she darted forwards. Metal groaned as the weapon pierced right through the machine monster's head, causing it to spark and shudder before shattering into pixels. "And now, since she defeated your monster, I can detach an Overlay Unit to send that monster to the bottom of your deck instead of your graveyard!"

"Crud..." Craig watched as one of the lights around Merrowgeist faded, sliding the destroyed monster back into the appropriate spot. Then he blinked as a black blur appeared in front of him, resolving into Blackwing Armor Master. "Crap!"

"Armor Fist!" Tsubasa watched as the Synchro monster delivered a powerful slash to the other duelist, shoving him back a foot. "Alright, I'll end my turn! Let's see what you got!" (CLP: 5400)

"And my draw!" Craig drew and slapped the card down. "I summon B-Mammoth Wave-Rider!" His new monster was indeed a massive mechanical mammoth, trumpeting as it stomped out onto the playing field. (1900/1200) "And then I'll reveal my face-down Rollout! This trap selects a Union Monster in my graveyard and equips it an appropriate monster in play! But I'll simply de-union my C-Arbine Racer from my mammoth as soon as I can!"

The mammoth glowed and it briefly gained armor before the armor flew off and re-assembled into a gleaming red version of the white racecar from earlier. "Here we go again- fusion!" The two monsters broke apart into their respective pieces, swirling and whirling together. What resulted was a humanoid version of the mammoth, the rear legs of the car forming boots, the spoiler becoming a backpack with the turrets on top, the front wheels and chassis become body armor and the windshield becoming an outrageously large visor for the fusion's head. "Meet BC-Wave-Racer Mammoth!" (2400/1800)

His disk beeped and whirred, spitting a card out of his graveyard. "At this time, a secondary effect of Alphabet Soupercharger activates. When I fusion summon one of the Gestalt Fusion monsters, I can add it to my hand from my graveyard." He held up the magic card and grinned. "So of course, I'll discard to activate my Wave-Racer Mammoth's effect!"

"Oh this can't be good..." Tsubsasa watched as the card was discarded and the fusion monster's turrets began to spin, the monster using its boots to peel out and race backwards. His Blackwing Armor Master was forced to shield itself with its wings laser fire was poured into it. "What is it doing!?"

"My fusion is negating the effect of your monster!" The Armor Master staggered, his body and wings perforated with holes from the attack. Craig drew two more cards per his spell card's effect and then pointed across the field. "Now Wave-Racer Mammoth attacks your Merrogeist! Revved-up Slugger!"

With the screech of tires on stone and the smell of burning rubber, the fusion reversed its course and sped across the field towards the enemy. Winding up a fist, it delivered a powerful haymaker to the Xyz monster's chin, throwing her up into the air where she shattered into digital dust. (TLP: 7700)

"And my turn's not stopping there!" Craig flipped around one of the cards he had just drawn. "I activate Dimensional Slip! Now by banishing a Gestalt Fusion monster, I can special summon any two Gestalt Monsters I have in my banished pile!" His fusion rippled like a mirage before suddenly winking out of sight. Then a portal opened up on his field and spat out his A-Alpha Unite and Y-Dragon Head. "And now I'll use the effect of Frontline Base to bring out my Z-Metal Tank!" His new monster was a flat, dual-traded tank with the Eye of Horus on the front. (1500/1600)

"And one more time! Fusion!" The three monsters shattered apart into their pieces, which flew together in a maelstrom. The Y-Dragon Head's neck retracted and folded down onto its belly while the wings and detached themselves. A second later, the treads detached themselves from Z-Metal tank and the body/head of the Y-Dragon Head slid over the smaller machine's torso. Alpha Unite's arms attached to this, gaining in size as the metal wings fitted themselves over the limbs. The treads split horizontally, unfolding at the base to form rudimentary feet. The Alpha Unite legs folded up and plugged into these lower legs before welding to the torso. Finally, Alpha Unite's head attached to the neck and glowed, doubling in size and gaining a 'W' shaped crest on its forehead. Grabbing the drill-spear the Y-Dragon Head tail had become, the combination machine struck a pose. "AYZ- Alpha Metal Dragoon!" (2800/2700)

"...I could have sworn I heard 'Go Go Power Rangers' playing there for a second..." Tsubasa whistled at the impressive fusion. "So what's this one do?"

"Well..." Craig watched as his Alphabet Soupercharger slid out his graveyard. "Unlike the others, this one has a bit of a restriction its effects. First, it has to be the only monster I control and, I cannot summon anything else after I use this effect. But on the flip side...I discard cards from my hand to discard cards from yours, but only up to three. Since you only have two..." Alphabet Soupercharger and another card from his hand were slid into his graveyard.

The Shadowchaser grimaced as two little targeting sights appeared on his hand cards, which were summarily gained two neat little holes in them and he tossed them into the graveyard in annoyance. "Dammit, that's a powerful monster."

"Yeah, well, these kinds of fusions consume a lot of resources, so it evens out." Craig drew two more cards, giving him a total of four. "I'll set one card face-down and activate the continuous magic card Machina Armored Unit." The continuous magic card appeared alongside his Frontline Base. "End of turn!"

Tsubasa drew carefully. (This guy...it's the fifth turn already, but he recovered from running into my combo on the first turn and despite everything he's committed to the field, he's got three cards in his hand. He manages his resources so carefully...taking everything into account) He couldn't help but grin and his fist clenched in excitement. (He's strong!)

The phantasmal image of Neo appeared over the youth's shoulder. (This opponent is a Chosen of a goddess, squire. Given that she is no average goddess...)

"...then he's no average duelist." Tsubasa finished for him, fist clenching in excitement. "But that's just fine!"

(Really?) The magical knight looked surprised. (It's quite possible that he is stronger than you, Tsubasa...yet this makes you excited?)

"Of course!" Tsubasa gave the spirit a look that suggested that Neo was crazy. "What's the fun in fighting someone who's average? Or weaker than I am? "

"Hey, is something the matter over there?" Craig's voice pulled the two out of their conversation and Neo faded back out of sight. The Chosen lifted an eyebrow and folded his arms over his chest. "Or do the Shadowchasers get cold feet so easily?"

"Not even close! We make a living of tackling the nastiest things our world has to offer, so a hunk of tin like your fusion over there doesn't make me bat an eye!" Tsubasa grinned and thrust out a hand. "I activate the effect of my monster!"

"What..? You can't- your Armor Master's effect is still negated!"

"But the monster you made me discard last turn is just fine! By returning a card I control to my hand-" The Black Whirlwind card vanished. "I can take four hundred points of damage and special summon this guy from my graveyard once per duel!" With a flutter of black feathers, a bird-man appeared, his mas resembling a hummingbird's head. "Zephyeros the Elite!" (1600/1000) (TLP: 7300)

The Black Whirlwind card reappeared in play. "And now I'll Normal Summon my Kalut the Moon Shadow!" A small, squat bird-thing appeared in front of him. (1400/1000) "And since my Whirlwind is in play, I can add the slightly weaker but all the more useful Gale the Whirlwind to my and since I have a Blackwing in play, special summon him!" This time, the monster was had azure feathers with a aquamarine plumage. (1300/400)

"Damn...now you're going to use his effect to halve my fusion's attack points..." Craig watched his words prove prophetic, his massive Dragoon being pelted and dented by a flurry of feathers from the three Blackwings. (2800/2700-1400/1350)

"I could tune my monsters together, but I've got something better in mind! I open the Overlay Network!" Kalut and Gale were pulled into the vortex, which in turn allowed a great blue/green winged-serpent to fly free of it. "This is Levair the Sea Dragon!" (1800/1600)

"And I can detach an Overlay Unit on him to summon any monster I want from either of our banished piles so long as its level four or lower!" As one of the circling lights around the Xyz monster faded, a portal swirled into existence and out came Craig's A-Alpha Unite. "And now the Overlay Network opens again!"

Craig watched as Zephyros and his machine were pulled into the vortex. "You don't do anything half-heated, do you? Every move always leads to something bigger." What lumbered out of the vortex as a human-shaped golem that was easily twice as wide and half again as tall as the two duelists. "Your strategy is all weird, but it's strong..."

"Funny you should say that. This is Gem-Knight Pearl and while he doesn't have any effect, he comes with a mountain's worth of attack points in exchange." (2600/1900) Tsubasa pointed a fist at Craig's machine. "Blackwing Armor Master may not have an effect either, at this point, but he can still junk that thing! Armor Fist!"

The Synchro Monster pulled itself together, rushing forwards and slashing the giant Dragoon down the center. Both halves began to separate before it shattered and pelted its owner with pixels. Craig shielded himself from the barrage with an arm, using the other to point at his Machina Armored Unit card. "Since you destroyed a monster on my field and sent it to the graveyard, I can summon a machine with less attack and the same attribute!" With a whir and a small flash of light, his X-Head Cannon reappeared. (CLP: 4300)

"That's fine, because my Levair is going to wreck that one, too! Tidal Spiral!" The Sea Dragon roared before swooping into the air and unleashing a jet of water. It swirled around the machine monster, tightening around it like a vise...and then Tsubasa's eyes widened as he saw the machine vanish right before the attack could crush it. He still heard something shatter and pixels came out of the water. "What...just happened?"

"I activated my Cross Shift card." Craig pointed to the now face-up quick-play card on his field. "With it, I can return a level four or lower monster to my hand and Special Summon another one in its place. So I saved my X-Head Cannon by swapping it out with my Ojama Blue in defense mode. And of course, when that goes to the graveyard through battle, I get two 'Ojama' cards from my deck." His disk whirred and spat out two cards, which he held up. "Ojamagic and Ojama Delta Hurricane should do it."

"XYZ...and now Ojama?" Tsubasa cocked his head. "You the Manjoume Jun of your world or something?"

"Manjoume...Jun?" Craig looked confused for a moment and then brightened. "Oh, you mean Chazz Princeton. Naw, that's hardly the case." He shrugged. "I just like the strategy. Not often many decks run two strategies together."

Tsubasa laughed. "Oh, I hear you...and by the way...Gem Knight Pearl attacks you directly!" The golem thundered forwards, slamming a powerful fist into the other duelist and sending Craig reeling back a few steps.

"Ow..." The Chosen moved back to his spot, wincing. "That thing packs a wallop..." (CLP: 1700)

"It's made of a precious stone, what did you expect? A tap on the head or something?" Tsubasa chuckled and

raised his fist in front of him. "You're looking a little worn out there, specs. What's the matter, can't you handle my awesome dueling prowess?"

"Hardly." Craig smirked, a sudden intensity around his person. "This fight is just getting started. It's my turn, draw!" Snapping the card free, he flipped it around. "I activate Monster Reincarnation! By discarding a card from my hand, I can add one monster from my graveyard to my hand! I discard Ojamagic to add C-Arbine Racer to my hand!"

He discard his chosen card and picked up the one his graveyard slid out. "And since Ojamagic went to my graveyard, I can add the three Ojama Brothers to my hand!" He held up the three monsters as his deck slid them out and then grabbed another card from his hand. "Go Polymerization! This fuses my three brothers into Ojama King!" Wearing nothing but a towel cape and a speedo and a dainty crown atop his head, the massive white Ojama bonded onto the field. 'The King has arrived!' (O/3000)

"And that means..." Tsubasa grimaced as Ojama King pulled out a giant rubber stamp and stamped it down on the two remaining monsters spots on his field, leaving them with a giant 'DENIED!' stamp on them. "Well, that Free Willy cousin is just a big wall of blubber!"

"Oh come on." Craig waggled a finger at the other duelist. "You just asked if I was Chazz Princeton and didn't think I wouldn't have a way to make my King more useful?" He plugged a card into his disk. "Shield Attack swaps the attack and defense points of the equipped monster! And now he's going to go royal all over your Armor Master! Ojama Belly Flop!" (0/3000-3000/0)

The fusion grinned and flexed his monsters, sprinting across the field and leaping into the air so high that it defied physics. 'The King is about to land! Make way!' Armor Master only had time to glance up as the shadow fell across him and then he was squashed beneath King's massive bulk. (TLP: 700)

"Then, I'll just set one card face-down and end my turn." Craig nodded as the card appeared behind his King.

"Draw!" Tsubasa pulled the card off of his deck and after glancing at it, set it in the one open monster spot he had remaining. "I'll set this and switch my other two monsters to defense mode." Levair curled up on itself while the Gem-Knight knelt and crossed its arms over its chest. "Your move."

Craig drew, but didn't bother to glance at the card. "Ojama King! Why don't you go and squash that set monster for me! I could use a fresh hand!"

The Shadowchaser watched as his set monster was summarily crushed beneath the fat monster. "How'd you know that was Morphing Jar?" He drew five new cards, per the effect of the monster.

Craig discarded what hand cards he had and then drew five as well. "Educated guess. You wouldn't have bothered to set it unless it could have benefited you. You aren't the type to try and bluff and your two monsters were stronger than anything I could bring out on short notice, since my fusions can't be Special Summoned." Glancing at his new hand, he slid another card into his disk. "This'll go face-down and I'll call it good."

'Bout time." Tsubasa drew. "Alright, since we seem to be going for secondary strategies this turn, I'll have you meet mine! I activate the field magic card Geartown!" Around the duelists, the cavern warped and twisted to become a massive city comprised of mechanical buildings and heavy, giant gears spinning and grinding against one another. "But it's not staying around for long, because I'm using Double Cyclone! Now I can trash a magic or trap card on both of our fields!"

Craig's Shield Attack shuddered and exploded violently as Geartown came tumbling down, the buildings collapsing in on themselves and and the gears toppling over. Tsubasa grinned as the refuse began to pile behind him, rumbling and shifting like it was alive. "And when Geartown is sent to the graveyard, I can summon an Ancient Gear monster from my deck or hand! So meet my Ancient Gear Gadjiltron Dragon!" A metallic roar sounded as the pile transformed into a dragon's shape, stomping forwards as nuts and bolts fell from it with every motion. (3000/2000)

"This game is mine! Since your King is attack mode, all he is now is a walking lump zero attack points! And-" Then he stared as a trio of blue-robed priests appeared on Craig's field. "And that is?"

"Waboku. So now you can't hurt me or my monsters this turn." The other duelists smiled a bit. "Most people would run Threatening Roar over this card, but to be honest, I think there's not much difference between it and this card, so I prefer the classic stuff."

"Tch...classic or not, it's a pain in the neck." The Shadowchaser groused and set a card. "I end my turn."

"And it's my move." Craig drew and nodded to himself. "I reveal one of my set cards- Dimensional Regression! All monsters in our banished piles are returned to our decks." He slid the small stack of cards atop his deck and let the auto-shuffler do its job. "And then, I'll activate Different Dimension Hanger! Now I banish three machine Union monsters from my deck and when I summon a monster mentioned in their texts, they're summoned!" He held up three cards and slid them into the proper slot.

With the sound of metal wings, a mechanical beetle appeared on his field, it's rear legs replaced by wheels. "Beetron-1 Beetletop is my monster of choice this turn and now my Hanger produces his favorite partners, Beetron-2 Bettleturbo and Beetron-3 Spider Base!" Alongside his new machine came a machine resembling a stag beetle and thing that might have been a vague resemblance to a spider, given that it was merely two round sections atop each other with four legs a piece.

Then all three monsters broke apart into pieces and began to connect. "And by returning all three to my deck, I can summon out their combined form of Assault Cannon Beetle!" The final combination looked roughly like a cannon, though the odd shape and size of its pieces made it look rather fragile. (2400/2800)

The Chosen held up a magic card. "Ojamandala brings the Ojama brothers from my graveyard to the field for the cost of one thousand life points!" There were three flashes of light and the yellow, green and black creatures were back on the field. (0/1000) 'Hello, we're the Ojama Brothers!' (CLP: 700)

"Yes you are, but you're not staying around for long-I can tribute monsters to my Assault Cannon Beetle to deal my opponent eight hundred points of damage! Cannon Barrage!" The three Ojamas yelped as they became spheres of light that were loaded into the cannon. The machine braced itself and then fire three powerful shots in rapid succession.

Tsubasa braced himself as the three shots impacted hard, shoving him back several feet and leaving him smoking. "When those little dudes hit like this, I don't get why anyone still makes fun of them..." (TLP: 4400)

"Here's some more food for thought- keep track of your monster's battle positions! Assault Cannon Beetle attacks your Gem-Knight Pearl!" The Cannon fired another round, the blast simply shattering the Xyz monster like it was glass. "And then I'll reveal my other trap card! Alt. Mode Transformation!"

Assault Cannon Beetle became to shudder and then transform, its pieces ratcheting and clanking into a new formation that left with the nasty-looking stag beetle pincers on the front. "This card lets me tribute Assault Cannon Beetle and bring out Combat Scissors Beetle instead!" (3600/1800)

"So now he goes to town on your Ancient Gear monster! Scissors Rending!" The new monster surged forwards, the massive pincers closing around the scrap machine and shearing it into two neat pieces that promptly exploded. "And when he destroys a monster, you take one thousand damage!"

The Shadowchaser duelist cried out as the pincers slashed across his chest diagonally, leaving him winded. "God dammit, that hurt!" (TLP: 2600)

"Giant scissors will do that to you." Craig glanced at his hand and then pointed at his Ojama King. "And taking my own advice, he'll go to defense mode!" The giant Ojama flopped on his butt, shaking the entire room for a moment. 'The King is going to sit this one out!' "One card face-down ends my turn!"

"My move!" Tsubasa drew and then flipped around another card. "Black Wing Strafe lets me ditch a Blackwing from my hand and then I can send any defense mode monster on your field to the graveyard! So your King is dethroned!"

Black feathers filled the air around him and then shot towards the fusion monster like they were arrows, pelting and sticking all over him. The Ojama flailed about, his stubby arms failing to anything effective. 'The King can't go out like this!' Then he was gone, leaving only a pile of feathers to collapse to the ground.

"Now I banish Vayu and Armor Master in my graveyard to Special Summon Blackwing- Silverwing the Ascendant!" Feathers swirled in front of him, scattering to reveal a tall bird-man in armor that was crafted to resemble feathers, a nodachiin his hands. "Of course, thanks to Vayu, he has no special ability, but that's just fine with me!" (2800/2000)

He held up the card he had just discarded. "By banishing Boreas the Sharp, I can make one of my Blackwings immune to battle destruction during this turn and I receive no battle damage. But now when my Silverwing battles your monster, it's destroyed! Go! Splitting Strike!" The Synchro Monster nodded and flashed across the field, suddenly appearing behind Craig's massive fusion. For a moment, nothing happened...and then the fusion creaked, crumbling into a pile neatly sliced-apart pieces. "Then I'll set two cards face-down and call it a turn!"

Craig drew, grinning widely. "This duel is awesome! I haven't fun like this in a long time!" He snapped his fingers and his set card flipped up. "Now my Back-Up Soldier trap lets me add the three Ojama Brothers to my hand since they're all normal monsters with less than fifteen hundred attack and I have more than five monsters in my graveyard." His graveyard whirred and spat out the desired cards.

Adding them to his hand, he flipped around a spell card. "Magical Mallet will shuffle the other five cards in my hand into my deck and then I can draw the same amount!" He did so swiftly, his grin not fading as he saw what his card had given him. "Perfect! I'll summon X-Head Cannon once more!" The yellow and blue machine reappeared for the third time in this duel.

Different Dimension Hanger began to glow and then a portal opened, letting Z-Metal Tank trundle its way out on to the playing field. "Now the effect of Frontline Base brings out my Y-Dragon Head!" The red dragon released a roar as it appeared alongside the other two. "Fusion!"

Tsubasa gulped as the three machines combined, becoming the massive, heavily armed hovercraft that Seto Kaiba and Manjoume Jun had made so famous. "I don't suppose that thing has a 'low power' setting?"

"'Fraid not." Craig grabbed his Alphabet Soupercharger as it slid from his graveyard and then promptly slid it back into it. "First up, I'll blast your Silverwing! Hyper Destruction!" The hovercraft opened fire, hammering the synchro with a heavy barrage of lasers that reduced it to pixels in a second.

Drawing two more cards, he slid another swiftly into his graveyard. "Hyper Destruction!" Levair cried out as the onslaught pierced through its hide and shattered it. "Direct Attack! Laser Barrage!" The machine's weapons wined, unleashing a volley of lasers towards the Shadowchaser. But the moment before they hit, there was a series of loud 'Kurrriiii!' and the explosions roiled in front of the duelist, covering his field in his smoke. "Oh come on! Kuriboh's not even a Blackwing or machine!"

"No, but he's level one, so he fits in with my One for One card and I like him, so nyyeh!" Tsubasa stuck out his tongue as the smoke cleared to reveal him unharmed.

Craig stuck his tongue out right back. "Alright, you hodgepodge fashion disaster, you live for this round. But it's not going to last!" He slid a card into his disk, watching it appear face-down before him. "And if you think you're going to be clever and hit me some kind of effect damage for the win, my Emergency Provisions will send my set card, Different Dimension Hanger and Frontline Base to the graveyard to give me three thousand life points!"

All three of the cards shattered and a soft green light surrounded him. (CLP: 3700) "That's much, much better." He nodded and set a card, the brown-backed hologram flashing into existence behind his cannon. "Your move."

"I draw!" Tsubasa did so and slid the card into his disk. "Akashic Record lets me draw two cards, but if I've used them in this duel, they are banished. So let's hope for something good, right?" He drew and flipped the cards around with a grin. "And that hope is fulfilled! Haven't seen these cards this duel yet!"

He tapped a button on his disk. "The trap card Xyz Reborn lets me revive an Xyz monster in my graveyard and give it this card as a Material!" Levair screeched as it returned to the playing field. "And then I'll ditch this new material to nab my Vayu from my banished pile!" A portal opened and spat out the squawking Tuner. "Then I'll use one of those cards I just from Akashic Record-Burial From A Different Dimension! This means I can move Armor Master back into my graveyard and your X-Head Cannon and Y-Dragon Head in to yours!"

"Mmph..." Craig frowned a bit, complying with the effect and pushing the two monsters into the graveyard slot. "Why wouldn't you just but both Vayu and Armor Master back to get another Synchro?"

"Because I want to do this instead! The trap Descending Lost Star revives my Armor Master in defense mode, but its loses a level and its defense becomes zero!" The Synchro appeared in a flash of light and kneeling, wings folded around him. "And now for the next card I got from my Record- Star Light, Star Bright!"

"Star Light, Star Brig-oh, you're joking!" Craig snickered slightly.

"What works, works! And my spell card works nicely! Since they share the same stat at zero, I can make one become the level of the other! So now Armor Master is level one and I open the Overlay Network!" The two monsters were pulled into the Network and out came...a slender white-skinned teenage girl, dressed in a violet shift and with long blue hair. She took in the sights around her and then giggled, producing a large stack of books and hiding behind them. (200/2100)

The Chosen duelist stared at the new monster, his jaw dropping slightly. "What...is that?"

"It's Shyneet Magician." Tsubasa replied proudly. "Now, I"ll set one card face-down and summon my Red Gadget in attack mode." A small red toy robot clanked out the field, a large gear on its back. (1300/1500 "And since I summoned him, I can added Yellow Gadget to my hand from my deck." Grabbing the card as it was slid from his deck, he twirled it with a smile. "Your move."

"Draw." Craig plucked the card free. "You just set up a shooting gallery! I-"

"Reveal Breakthrough Skill!" Tsubasa smirked smugly as the trap flipped up. "This lets me pick a monster on your field and during this turn, its effects are negated!"

To his surprise, even as the XYZ-Dragon Cannon was grayed out of any color it had to indicate the lack of it's effect, Craig didn't seem perturbed by the move. "You've got something up your sleeve, don't you?"

"Why, however could you guess?" Craig rolled his eyes playfully and gestured to his set card. "Reveal my second Alt Mode Transformation!" He grinned widely. "I love this part!"

"Now what are you-" Tsubasa got his answer as the gray coloring of the monster seemed to shatter, returning it to normal and then a rather familiar power rock chord began to play. "No way..."

'Megazord Sequence has been initiated.'The visor of X-Head Cannon flashed and the whole machine began to rumble. The treads extended outwards, transforming into legs and feet that began to pull the entire thing into an upright position while the top half straightened out in unison. Whirring, the cannons retracted into X-Head Cannon's shoulders. Y-Dragon Head's head and neck folded back up against the behemoth's chest as a chestplate. The whole machine seemed to bulk up, armor folding out of places that logically shouldn't have been able to hold anything at all.

Finally, the Y-Dragon Head's wings reappeared, transforming into a shield that it hefted in its left arm. A whistling sound was heard and the tail landed point-first in the ground in front of it, having transforming into a powerful looking sword. Grabbing the new weapon its free hand, energy cracked between it and its' owner. Lighting came down from nowhere, striking the fusion and arcing over its lines and pieces. 'Megazord Activated!' (3600/2800)

Tsubasa stared at the monstrosity...and then pumped a fist in the air, jumping a bit. "That thing is freaking awesome! Power Rangers all the way! Where can I get one!?"

Craig laughed brightly, his eyes burning with the same enthusiasm that Tsubasa was exhibiting. "I think I've got a spare lurking around in my binder. But that's neither here nor there." He pointed at Levair. "XYZ- Assault Cannon Knight! Power Sword!"

Lightning flashed as the machine charged its blade, slashing it down across the Xyz monster. It was hurtled back from the blow, throwing well past Tsubasa and into the far wall where it exploded in a shower of sparks and pixels. Tsubasa reeled, shielding his face with an arm from the backlash. (TLP: 1000) "What an attack...!"

"Yeah, well, this guy's not my second strongest monster for nothing." Craig pulled a card from his hand and slid it into his disk. "And now I'm playing my rarest magic card- Card of Sanctity!" Golden coins began to rain from the sky, vanishing just before they struck the duelists. "Now we both draw until we hold six cards!"

Tsubasa drew five new cards while Craig drew four. The Chosen studied what he had drawn. (With these cards, I can access the full power of my monster...)

(Yes.) Apira's phantasmal image appeared behind him (But that move helped him more than it did you, Craig. You have restored his hand.)

"That doesn't bother me at all." Craig glanced at his goddess out of the corner of his eye. "This guy's pace has been unbreakable since the duel started. Every turn he's had, he's summoned powerful monsters and taken all of mine head on. It's almost all I can do keep up with him." He returned his gaze to the duel, an excited smile spreading across his face. "Why would I want to keep it so easy?"

The goddess smiled herself, shaking her head slightly. (You'll never change. Always trying to see where the limit is.)

"When you're having this much fun, there is no limit!" Tsubasa called out over to the two, grinning sharply. "Now are you two going to stop flirting and let specs over there continue his turn or what!?" He looked like a kid in a candy store. "I want to tear down that monster of yours!"

Apira smiled bemusedly at Tsubasa. (Two of a kind..) Then she vanished from view as Craig shuffled his hand around, snapping the cards out into a fan shape dramatically. "You have fun trying all you want, Tsubasa, because my monster isn't going to fall so easily! End of turn!"

"Draw!" Tsubasa flipped around another card in his hand. "Monster Reincarnation! So I'll discard my Hillen the Tengu-wind to add Ancient Gear Gadjiltron Dragon back to my hand!"

Grabbing the card as it was slid out of his graveyard, he tucked it amongst the others before separating three from the others. "And since you so kindly gave me the last of my Gadgets, it'd be shame not to use him! So I'll play Polymerization!"

Two more small robots of green and yellow joined the red one and then all three leapt together, vanishing in a flash of light. Was descended was a large, human-sized blue robot with gears on its back and chest. It whirred and clanked as it crossed its arms in front of it defensively. "Great Gadget Blue!" (2000/2000)

"This triggers the effect of my Assault Cannon Knight!" The monster's cannons sprang out of its shoulders, leveling themselves at Tsubasa and his field. "I can immediately negate and destroy a summoned monster by discarding a card from my hand." He tossed a card into his graveyard. "Then I can nail you for two hundred damage times the destroyed monster's level! Summon Punishment!"

A roar filled the stone room as the fusion fired, the blast vaporizing Gadget Blue instantly. Tsubasa was forced to throw up his arms to keep the stone chips and bits from pelting his face. "It's got a powerful effect like that, too?" (TLP: 200)

"It does..and wait!" Craig blinked as he saw the score that flashed near Tsubasa as the other duelist made his way back to his spot. "Why didn't that finish you off!?"

"Heh...my fusion was only level four, so I only took eight hundred damage." The youth grinned, despite the dirt and grim on his face. "Looks like your victory has slipped by you yet again...and that means it's still up for grabs!"

Dusting himself off, Tsubasa grabbed one of the three remaining cards in his hand. "Monster Reborn returns Great Gadget Blue to me!" With a flash of light, the monster reappeared. "And one its effects states that if I want to sacrifice it for an Ancient Gear Monster, I can count it as two sacrifices! So I'll tribute it for my dragon!"

Craig watched as refuse and destroyed machine parts flew out of nowhere, forming into the junk pile of a dragon he had faced down earlier. "That thing was out-dated before it's parts were new! What's it going to do against my-" He paused he saw three gears, one each of yellow, red and green, all fly in out of nowhere and disappear into the dragon's body. There was series of ratcheting noises and the machine roared, fire getting out of its mouth as it stood taller, weapons popping out of locations all over its body. "Oh, what the hell!? That thing has more guns on it than a NRA convention!"

"Gadget Blue's name is also treated as all three of the other Gadgets. And my Gadjiltron Dragon just so happens to gain effects depending on which Gadget is offered as a tribute. Green gives him trample, Red inflicts four hundred extra damage when he inflicts some on you and when he trashes a monster, Yellow nails you for six hundred!" Tsubasa thrust finger across the way. "So now you're going to take your punishment like a man!"

"But your monster is-" Craig's eyes widened as the dragon's body began to glow, flames being generated somewhere in its body. "Skill Successor!"

"That's right- I can banish this guy to give my dragon eight hundred more attack points, meaning he out classes your monster by two hundred point! Ancient Gear Gadjiltron Dragon attacks your Assault Cannon Knight! Gear Grind Fireball!" Fire poured from the dragon's deck as it belted out a massive flaming gear. It punched a massive hole in the chest of Craig's fusion, the duelist instinctively throwing up his arms to shield himself from his toppling monster. Luckily, it burst into pixels moments before it hit.

Unluckily, he lowered his arms just in time for the Gadjiltron Dragon to open fire with everything it had. The sheer density of the gunfire sent him sliding back well over a yard before it let up. (CLP: 2500) "So that's what that feels like..."

"You're tougher than you look, Chosen." Tsubasa slid a card into his disk with a smirk. "Last guy I hit with that got knocked off his feet."

"Heh." Craig rapped his skull with a knuckle. "Always knew I had a thick skull."

"You're out of big monsters and our decks are getting pretty low..." Tsubasa held up his disk so that Craig could see the deck slot. "Think you got anymore fight in you?"

"If you ask that question, I'd say you're more on the robes than I am! Draw!" Craig snapped the card around and grimaced at the sight of a Beetron monster. (He's got a point, though...I've gone through nearly every big monster in my deck and my Gestalt fusions can't be Special Summoned except by fusion!)

"Looks like you got a bad card." Tsubasa snapped his fingers with a grin. "Darn."

"I'm not done yet! I activate A Feather of a Phoenix! By discarding my second Ojamagic, I can add Ojama Delta Hurricane to the top of my deck! But that's fine, because I'll also get the three Ojama brothers to my hand!" Pulling the three normal monsters out of his dwindling deck, the Chosen flipped around another magic card in his hand. "Ojama Ride lets me ditch three guys to summon Union monsters from my deck, up to three!"

A pair of light erupted from his deck and then settled onto his field, resolving into the form of his Beetron-3 Spider Base and Beetron-2 Beetleturbo, both in defense mode. "Then I'll activate my second Ojamandala, giving up a thousand life points to bring the brothers into play!" (CLP: 1500)

A scrawny yellow creature appeared first, with eyestalks nearly reaching the field. 'Ojama Yellow!'

Next was a muscular one, green in color and having a tongue that nearly dwarfed it's whole body. 'Ojama Green!'

The last of them was black and his gut wobbled as he bounced into place next to them. 'Ojama Black!'

"Yes, yes, and together, you're the Ojama Brothers." Craig had obviously been through this routine many times before. Brushing off the glares the three monsters gave him, he held up yet another magic card. "Ojama Delta Thunder will end this duel! Now you take five hundred damage for each card you control!"

The three Ojama monsters leapt into the air, their bodies crackling with energy. 'Ojama..." They clasped hands and began to spin, generating a whirling tornado that sparkled with lightning. 'Delta Thunder!'

"I reveal Rainbow Life! By discarding a card from my hand, all damage I take during this turn is converted to life points!" Tossing one of his two remaining hand cards into the graveyard, Tsubasa smiled as the swirling tornado was rebuffed by a shimmering rainbow barrier that kept it's lightning strikes from reaching him. (TLP: 2700)

Craig grimaced, but pulled a card free from the thin stack that was his deck. "The second effect of my Delta Thunder lets me send my Delta Hurricane to my graveyard to use it's effect!" The whirling tornado lost its crackling lightning, but sped up incredibly fast.

Tsubasa had to brace himself as he felt himself sliding a few inches towards it. His Ancient Gear Gadjiltron Dragon was already a lost cause, the massive titan being sucked into the tornado with incredibly ease. With a shriek, his Shyneet Magician was pulled into the funnel as well, followed by his long forgotten Black Whirlwind card and then the Rainbow Life Trap. "How do they even do that!?"

"I honestly don't know..." Craig watched the tornado vanish and the three Ojamas returned to his field, stumbling around dizzily. "I'll set this card face-down and end my turn."

"Draw!" Yanking the card free, he glanced at it swiftly before plugging it into his disk. "Cards for Black Feathers let me a banish a Blackwing from my hand to draw twice, but I lose my Special Summons for the turn!" He held up a second Shura the Blue Flame before slipping it into the proper slot and plucking two more cards free from his deck.

Craig narrowed his eyes as he saw Neo's image appear again, but this time in front of Tsubasa instead of behind. "You drew your Duel Spirit..."

"I did! So let's go to battle, partner!" Tsubasa slapped down the card, the phantom form of the monster solidifying into a real image. (1700/1000)

The dimensional knight drew his blade and saluted Craig with it. (You are a worthy opponent, Chosen. I only regret not being able to fight in this battle sooner. But now that I have arrive, your downfall begins!)

"You got that right, Neo! So cut down one of those Ojamas with Dimension Sword!" The knight nodded and charged, slashing his blade sharply through the air. It left a odd-looking gap in the air in its wake..and then a second opening right in front of Ojama Black. He stared at it and then gasped, shattering instantly into dust. Neo's blade had ignored physical distance and traveled through another dimension.

"I reveal Ojamable! Since you destroyed a face-up Ojama, I can shuffle it back into my deck and then draw two cards." Craig swiftly did so. "But now I have to discard one...and oddly enough..." He held up the Ojama Black and then tossed it into the graveyard.

"If your deck is low enough that is happening, then this duel is on it's last legs." Tsubasa slid the other card he had drawn into his disk, the brown-backed card appearing behind Neo. "I end my turn!"

Craig drew and then slapped down a card. "I summon my Beetron-1 Beetletop in attack mode and then I'll union Beetron-2 Beetleturbo to it, raising it's stats by four hundred!" The beetle machine appeared, it's partner breaking apart and latching onto it in a form of crud armor. (1700/1300-2100/1700) "Beetle Slicer!"

The rear wheels of the monster peeled out, launching it forwards while the stag beetle horns opened and closed menacingly. Neo grunted as his blade locked with the machine, grinding against it. But it was in vain as the attack sliced him apart and shattered him into pixels. "That ends my turn." (TLP: 2300)

"With a duel like this, I'm not going to slow down even if it is the end game! I draw!" Tsubasa pulled the card free and then his graveyard started glowing. "I'll banish my Vayu and Blackwing- Hillen the Tengu-wind to summon for Blackwing- Armed Wing!" His new Synchro was a bird-man like the other Blackwings, but he was dressed in a heavy trenchcoat and more surprisingly, wielded a pump-action shotgun. (2300/1000)

"Attack with Blackfeather Buckshot!" The Blackwing cocked the weapon and swooped in, firing at near point-blank range. The Spider Base was decimated, the blast shredding it apart and reducing it to so much shrapnel. "I end my turn!"

Craig drew again and stared at the card for a long moment before playing it. "I activate Pot of Avarice! Now by shuffling five monsters from my graveyard into my deck, I can draw two cards!" His graveyard swiftly slid five cards out and he held them up, revealing all of them had the purple border of a fusion monster. "But since they all go to the Extra Deck, I just draw twice!"

Tsubasa bit his lip as the other man drew the first card. (He didn't pick any of his monsters to shuffle back...even with his deck that low, he's risking everything to get that card...) He saw something like a spark pass between Craig and the second card as he pulled it free, the hair on the back of the Shadowchaser's neck standing up sharply. (He drew it!)

"Alright, Tsubasa...you said this was the end game, right?" Craig held up the second card he had drawn. "I'm fine with that! I sacrifice my three monsters to summon out my God Card!"

The three monsters vanished into a pool of light on the field of him. Within it moments had spread out, becoming an outrageously and beautifully complex seal of golden and blue light. It flared sharply once and then Apira rose out of it, her whole form radiating grace and knowledge. "Apira the Grand Summoner!" (3600/4000)

Tsubasa took a cautious step back to appraise the goddess. While she was still no bigger than either himself or Craig, it was one thing to see her in a spirit form and another to see her in the flesh. He could practically feel the power flowing off of her. "Not the flashiest of entrances for a God card, you know."

"Geeze, I'm sorry I don't have a giant metal bird that I can light on fire. Would that be more to your liking?" Craig didn't bother to wait for answer to his question. "I activate one of Apira's abilities! I can summon any monster in our graveyards, ignoring the summoning conditions! Summons of the Goddess!"

Apira spun her staff in front of her, the weapon leaving a circle in the air. Stepping away form it, she snapped out her hand and the circle become a massive summoning seal. It roared with power and then the titanic form of Assault Cannon Knight lumbered out of it, its colors duller than normal and three motes of light were orbiting it. "My monster may be minus his effects, but that's okay because he still keeps everyone of his attack points! Which are going straight for your Blackwing! Power Sword!"

Lightning flashed as the fusion's weapon sheared through the smaller monster, the force of the blow actually hurling Tsubasa back a half dozen feet and leaving a small gouge in the stone. (TLP: 1200)

"This duel is over! Apira will attack your life points directly! Summon Majesty!" The goddess nodded again and swept her staff out before her , a half-dozen small summoning circles appearing in the air around her. They began to glow and then unleashed a staccato of energy blasts that hammered into Tsubasa's field and swallowed it up with light.

Then a defiant yell filled the air and Craig's and Apira's eyes widened as the energy from the attack was scattered. Tsubasa was standing tall, clad in red and white armor that vaguely resembled a dragon. It was smoking a bit, but whatever it was made out of had been enough to resist the goddess' strike. "We're not finished yet!"

"What the hell!?" Craig stared as Tsubasa jumped back to his proper spot. "How on God's green earth did you become a Duel Monster?"

"It's because your attack let me activate my trap card! Aura Armor!" The Shadowchaser grinned and swept out a hand. "It summons itself as a monster card when I'm attacked with two thousand or less life points! The Battle Phase is ended and my new monster's stats are equal to half of my what my life points were." (600/600) (TLP: 600)

"That...was...pretty damn cool!" Despite his loss of another chance a victory, Craig looked anything but put out. "You're one strange guy, Tsubasa, but damned if you aren't one of the most fun duelists I've ever played against!" He slid a card into his disk. "End of turn!"

"I could say the same about you. I haven't had a duel this exciting since...well, ever!" The Shadowchaser drew for his turn. "I activate Awakening From Beyond! I get a card back from my graveyard, but you draw twice!"

Craig complied with the effect. "I've only got two cards left...you think you can hang on long enough to deck me out?"

"No well! That's a crappy way to end a duel like this! I'm going to drive for the win with everything my partner and I can bring to the table!" Tsubasa held up his Neo The Magical Swordsman card and the last remaining card in his hand, which was Polymerization "Alright partner, time to unlock some of your real power!"

"Real power..." Craig watched as a whirlwind of energy suddenly swallowed the other duelist. "You're fusing with your partner!"

"In a manner of circumstances." The voice that emitted from the whirlwind sounded like Tsubasa's, but it was deeper and more mature. A sword slashed the energy apart, revealing a man with Tsubasa's features standing there. He wore heavy plate armor that was dark gold with blue trim and highlights, a crest emblazoned on the breastplate. Light gleamed over the massive broadsword he held in both hands, it's blade nearly as long as he was tall. The wings of the Aura Armor were still there and they flared as the knight rested his weapon over his shoulder. "By fusing Neos with a Warrior-type monster like the Aura Armor monster, I can summon Neo the Shattering Knight!" (2500/1500)

"Damn, that's impressive." Craig whistled in appreciation for a second. "But you're still outclassed in attack power by both of my monsters."

"There is a reason that this form represents the pinnacle of Neo's master over arms and martial discipline. As well as why he has earned the title of 'Shattering Knight.' The fusion being's sword began to shine sharply in the light. "During the turn I summon him, he can add his defense score to his attack score and when he attacks, his strike cannot be negated or blocked at all!" An aura erupted around him and he crouched down slightly, letting his blade level to his side. (2500-4000)

With a might battle cry, the knight charged across the field so forcefully the ground he had been standing on shattered. Power flared around him as he tore across the distance separating and Apira. "This is our combined power, Chosen! Shattering Blow!"

"Apira and I won't lose that easily!" Craig's set card flipped up. "Master Magician's Incantation lets me activate a Spell Card from my hand for field as if it were a quick-play card!" He slammed a card into his disk. "Shield Attack swaps her attack and defense points! Summon Majesty!" (3600-4000)

Apira slashes her staff through the air, the summoning circles opening up all over in front of her and unleashing a seemingly endless volley of blasts that merged into a single combined attack. At the same moment it reached the charging Neo and Tsubasa, the fusion swung his weapon into it. The two attacks left forth an ear-splitting roar as they collided and light spilled forth in all directions, so bright that it was blinding...

TTTTTTT

"So then what happened?" Adrian, despite the fact he was currently swatting and jumping at the motes of light the sunlight revealed to him, had been paying attention to the entire story.

"According to Tsubasa, he and Neo just woke up back on the street completely after that final clash. Apparently the duel generated enough energy to get them all out of there." Jalal watched as Adrian pawed at the motes of light. "And nearly no time had passed between when he left and when he returned. It is a bit of an unbelievable tale..."

"And why is that?" Adrian gave up on the motes of light, taking a short leap up onto his fiend's desk gracefully.

"He just so happens to randomly blasted into a prison like place where he meets a duelist from another dimension who is a servant of a goddess?" Jalal steeped his fingers together. "Even given the penchant for odd things to happen to Shadowchasers over the years, stories like that still stick out."

"You have a point." The cat yawned and then stretched behind an ear vigorously. "But I happen to have meet that Craig person Tsubasa dueled once and his goddess, too. A strange pair, indeed..."

"Really?" Jalal lifted an eyebrow briefly. "Is there anything that goes on in the Multiverse that you don't at least have an inkling of?"

"Boy bands. Boy bands and horrible written teen romance stories. I'm still not certain if those are plots from the forces of darkness or not." Shaking himself out, the cat stretched himself. "This still leaves me with one question, though."

"And that would be?"

"What happened to that Giant Rex spirit?" Then there was a loud roar and the window to the office bucked inwards, a fang-filled mouth nuzzling in. A few seconds later, it retreated and there was the sound of something big stomping away.

"Ohhhh..." Judy LaBaron poked her head in through the mess, looking chagrined and sheepish. "Sorry, Jalal! He got out of the pen again!" The sounds of grinding stone where suddenly heard and she 'eeped!', vanishing towards the noises. "Hey! Hey! You put that golem down, Mr. Snuffles! Right now!"

Another roar and this almost sounded petulant.

"Don't you give me that! You know what you what you did was wrong! Bad, Mr. Snuffles, bad!"

A sheepish roar.

"I'm not falling for those puppy-dog eyes again!"

Jalal grabbed his coffee mug and calmly took a drink, casting his gaze upwards. Adrian was somehow clinging ceiling, stiff-legged and his fur sticking straight up on end. "Once you figure out that you claws are too short to do that and gravity is still in effect, could you help us send Mr. Snuffles home?"

The leader of the Shadowchasers settled back into his chair, taking another drink. "Judy wants a pet, but I just don't think she's ready for one..."

"Weee!" A glance outside of his ruined window allowed him to see the Giant Rex stomping past in the other direction, Judy riding on his neck.

"Honestly, who names a pet 'Mr. Snuffles?' So immature..."

TTTTTTT

A/N: Heh...this chapter is over twice the length of the previous one. I guess I let the duel get away from me, but I was having too much fun writing it to notice. Hehe...well, I won't make all the future ones quite so long.

Anyway, I have a habit for dueling stories I picked from reading 'Rurouni Kenshin' oh-so-many years ago and that is I like include a 'Secret Life of Characters' section, mostly discussing their pasts, themes, decks if they use one and my personal inspiration for them. I forgot one in the previous chapter, so you'll get a double dose here.

However, unless the Shadowchaser in question for the chapter dueled, I'll skip over them for this since I don't want to spoil their strategies. So in lieu of that, another original character will get the spotlight.

Secret Life of Characters #1

Mister Monster, the Creator of Nightmares

"The boundaries of science. What a foolish notion. There are no boundaries to research or knowledge. Only those who lack the will and drive to see beyond the concepts of 'morality' and 'decency' that we ascribe to out of fear of what lies beyond our human sight. So why not move beyond 'human'?"

History: His name has long been lost to any kind of history. At once time, he was a man like so many others of his time, an alchemist and demonologist who sought to find out secrets and knowledge not accessible to mortals.

It is a path to be carefully trod. the shadows in the dark side of knowledge gone on forever and one can plunge too far, too deep...give up too much. Many have lost their souls, their lives and their sanity in this quest for knowledge.

But one cannot give up what they do not have.

'Morality'. 'Ethics'. 'Humanity'

To Mister Monster, these things are but concepts. Understood, but ignored. He has spent crossed lines and done things that even the most hardened of researchers, demonologists and the like would hesitate to even consider. And through his hundreds of years of research, he has become second to none in his creation of new life. Spliced together monstrosities, creatures born demons and nightmares beyond this plane, golems of flesh and steel, all warped and tweaked to satisfy his curiosity, to see what the limits are. Anything new encountered is to sampled, analyzed, added to and taken from to, tested and adjusted. And the results are utterly terrifying.

But the only thing that is worse than these nightmares given existence is the being that was once a man who made them.

Deck: It would be difficult to find Mister Monster in a situation that would require a duel. He is pragmatic to the extreme and would rather simply kill anyone who interrupts or impedes his research. But someone who could force him into a Shadow Game or a similar form of battle will find that he is a capable duelist. And given his pragmatic nature, he would use a deck that those of us who read fanfiction would consider 'meta'. Obviously, there is no 'meta' in the world of Yu-gi-oh!, but the cards that can be are and Mister Monster would use any strategy that would be the most effective. Dino-Rabbit, Dark World, Six Samurai and the like would all be likely strategies. (A deck, such as Diamond Dude Turbo or Tele-DAD would be out of his reach, given that the D-Hero cards that make the cornerstone of their moves exist as one set only. So keep this in mind.)

Origins: If I had to identify Mister Monster with any particular thematic, it would be 'Purest pursuit of knowledge.' He exists as a character who simply wants to see his curiosity satiated and that happens to be in the worst way for the rest of us. He is intellectual to the point where things like emotions and ordinary conventions simply are discarded willingly because they hinder his pursuit of knowledge. He's a type of character I've never really worked a lot with before and so I hope I can do more with him. Or if not me, another Shadowchaser author.

Secret Life of Characters #2

Tsubasa Springweather

"A duel? I'll take anyone on, anytime, anyplace! It'll be a blast!"

History: Tsubasa's family line is unique. Backwater, Nebraska, is a town populated purely by Shadows and Aware and has been since it's foundation. As such, there are plenty of half-breed citizens. But the Springweathers stand out above the rest because their bloodline seems to have every human-compatible Shadowkind somewhere within the twisted and gnarled forest that makes up their family tree. Tsubasa is the latest of this line.

Interestingly, his heritage means he is still human and the Shadow blood in his veins means his physical attributes are above the human norm, but give him no other special ability beyond Awareness save for a unique knack for guessing the bloodlines in any Shadow's history just by looking at them.

Some would say it's also made him a crazy person.

The whole reason he joined up for the Shadowchasers (beyond it being a family tradition) was to find the toughest and cleverest duelists he could. However, his passion seems to have a knack for landing him in the most inexplicable situations to get to these duels. Whether it be stumbling upon a dark elf drug ring because he got lost trying to return a shirt or discovering the Stork in the middle of job because he wanted to go stargazing atop that particular roof, he's never been at a lack for interesting opponents and stories to tell because of it.

Perhaps the greatest manifestation of this odd luck would be the fact that he can see Duel Spirits. His partner is Neo the Magical Swordsman and he arrived the day of Tsubasa's initiation to the Shadowchasers. Tsubasa promptly spat out his drink at the sight of the monster appearing in front of him and announcing him to be his squire. (He still owes Shichiro a new shirt.)

Neo, as it is so far, seems content to merely observe Tsubasa's life and beyond helping the youth in a few fights and his duels, has taken no active decisions to help Tsubasa reach whatever the Duel Spirit considers knighthood. There is the implication that Neo's presence serves some purpose, but as to what, Tsubasa could could care less so long as it leads him to an interesting duel.

He still wants a proper rematch with Craig, given the inconclusiveness of their first match. With his luck and Neo around, it may just happen some day...

Deck: Tsubasa never has been one to settle and focus on one strategy for two long. Always wanting to try something new or original, he is forever perusing the latest card releases and booster packs for something new to mix with something old. With the money Jalal provides for his teams, acquiring all but the rarest of cards he wants is an easy task and he's not above going out for a trading binge or wager duel if the sellers are open to it.

The deck he's using at the moment is his latest brainchild, but the next time he appears, he maybe using a Counter Fairy deck focusing on discard traps so he can bring out Dark World monsters, with Sky Scourges sitting in the background.

Oddly, he posses two upgraded forms of Neo. Both appeared in his Extra Deck the same day Neo himself arrived and while he doesn't always use them, he fits them into any deck that uses fusions and Neo always has a slot in his deck.

Origins: Tsubasa is the 'always having fun, for fun's sake' kind of person I think you don't see too often in Shadowchaser fics and is a lighter contrast to some of the darker members of the team. His playstyle is actually the kind of mentality that I used in my early days- if a card was cool or interesting, I'd tech into my deck and see how it worked. The first time I made it to the finals in my local tournament back during the Chaos Emperor Dragon days was with a Muka Muka/Ojama deck and ever since, I'd have a soft spot for that kind of duelist. And it's a lot of fun to break conventions.

Created Cards:

Craig-

Note: In Craig's world of origin, when the release of the other monsters besides V-Z, they realized that any support released for the cards would have massive walls of text and that any monster with those letters and a hyphen next to them in their names could possibly benefit from those cards. (See the Yu-gi-oh! Wikia for what the mess looks like with the 'Hyper Coat' card.) As such, all of the Fusions had 'Effect' on their card replaced with 'Gestalt' and it was ruled that all of the component pieces were 'Gestalt' monsters as well. This resolved the issue rather well, but I do not know if a similar ruling or the cards exist in the Shadowchaser's world, so if you want to use these cards, talk to Cyber Commander about it before you talk to me.

On that note, 'Gestalt' is not considered a actual monster-type, so you cannot use something like 'DNA Surgery' to make monsters 'Gestalt' monsters.

A- Alpha Unit
LIGHT
4 stars
Machine/Effect
1600/1500
Effect: Once per turn, you may send one Gestalt monster from your Deck to your Graveyard. Until the End Phase, this card's name is treated as the selected monster's name.

B- Wave-Rider Mammoth
LIGHT
4 stars
Machine/Union
1900/1200
Effect: Once per turn, during your Main Phase, if you control this card on the field, you can equip it to your 'A-Alpha Unite' as an Equip Card. OR unequip the Union equipment and Special Summon this card in face-up Attack Position. While equipped to a monster by this card's effect, increase the ATK and DEF of the equipped monster by 400 points. (1 monster can only be equipped with 1 Union Monster at a time. If the equipped monster is destroyed as a result of battle, destroy this card instead.)

C-Arbine Racer
LIGHT
4 stars
Machine/Union
1500/1600
Effect: Once per turn, during your Main Phase, if you control this card on the field, you can equip it to your 'A-Alpha Unite' or 'B-Waver-Racer Mammoth' as an Equip Card. OR unequip the Union equipment and Special Summon this card in face-up Attack Position. While equipped to a monster by this card's effect, increase the ATK and DEF of the equipped monster by 400 points. (1 monster can only be equipped with 1 Union Monster at a time. If the equipped monster is destroyed as a result of battle, destroy this card instead.)

CY-Dragon Racer
LIGHT
6 stars
Machine/Fusion/Gestalt
2100/1600
Effect: C-Arbine Racer + Y-Dragon Head
This card any only be Special Summoned from your Extra Deck by banishing the above cards you control. (You do not use 'Polymerization'.) You can discard one card from your Hand and target one face-up monster on your opponent's side of the field. Reduced the selected monster's ATK to 0 until the End Phase.

BC-Wave-Racer Mammoth
LIGHT
6 stars
Machine/Fusion/Gestalt
2400/1800
Effect: B-Waver-Rider Mammoth + C-Arbine Racer
This card any only be Special Summoned from your Extra Deck by banishing the above cards you control. (You do not use 'Polymerization'.) You can discard one card from your Hand and target one face-up monster on your opponent's side of the field. Negate that monster's effect(s) as long as it is face-up on the field.

AYZ-Alpha Metal Dragoon
LIGHT

8 stars
Machine/Fusion/Gestalt
2800/2700
Effect: A-Alpha Unite + Y-Dragon Head + Z-Metal Tank
This card any only be Special Summoned from your Extra Deck by banishing the above cards you control. (You do not use 'Polymerization'.) You may only activate the following effect if this card is the only monster you control: Discard up to 3 cards from your Hand. (Any effects of cards discarded by this effect are not activated.) Your opponent must randomly discard cards from their Hand equal to the number you discarded. You may not Summon during the turn you activate this effect.

XYZ- Assault Cannon Knight
LIGHT
8 stars
Machine/Fusion/Gestalt
3600/2800
Effect: May only be Special Summoned with the effect of 'Alt. Mode Transformation'. Once per turn, when your opponent Summons a monster, you may discard one card from your Hand to negate the Summon and destroy that monster. Then inflict damage to your opponent's life points equal to 200x the destroyed monster's level.

Apira the Grand Summoner
DIVINE
12 stars
Spellcaster/Effect
3600/4000
Effect: Why are you trying to read my card's secrets? You aren't my Chosen! Get your grubby mitts off me and go drool over a Dark Magician Girl or something! You're a hundred years too early to handle me!

Last Testament
Normal Spell Card
Effect: You may only activate this card during your Main Phase 2. If a monster you own was destroyed and sent to the Graveyard this turn, you may select one monster in your Deck that has the same Type and Attribute, but who's level is less than the destroyed monster's level and Special Summon it.

Alphabet Soupercharger
Normal Spell Card
Effect: If this card is discarded for the effect of a Gestalt monster, you may draw two cards. When you Special Summon a Gestalt monster from the Extra Deck and this card is in your Graveyard, you may add it to your hand.

NOTE: This card is restricted to 2 per Deck in Craig's home universe.

Dimensional Shift
Normal Spell Card
Effect: Banish one Gestalt Fusion monster you control. Special Summon up to two non-Fusion Gestalt monsters from your Banished pile.

Alt. Mode Transformation
Trap Card
Effect: Select and activate one of the following effects:
1. Tribute one 'Assault Cannon Beetle' and Special Summon one 'Combat Scissors Beetle' from your Extra Deck, ignoring the Summoning Conditions.

2. Tribute one 'XYZ- Dragon Cannon and Special Summon one 'XYZ- Assault Cannon Knight' from your Extra Deck.

Tsubasa-

Great Gadget Blue
4 stars
EARTH
Machine/Fusion/Effect
2000/2000
Effect: Green Gadget + Red Gadget + Yellow Gadget
This card's name is also treated as 'Green Gadget', 'Red Gadget' and 'Yellow Gadget' while it face-up on the field. You may tribute this face-up card to Special Summon 1 of each: 'Green Gadget', 'Red Gadget' and 'Yellow Gadget' from your Graveyard. The effects of the monsters summoned by this effect are negated.

Aura Armor
Continuous Trap Card
Effect: You may only activate this card when your opponent declares a direct attack and your life points are 2000 or less. End the Battle Phase and summon this card as an Effect Monster. (It is also treated as a Trap Card) (EARTH/4 stars/Warrior/?/?) When this card is Summoned, halve your Life Points. This card's ATK and DEF are equal to your Life Points. If this card is sent to the graveyard while it is an Effect Monster, you may, once per duel, Special Summon this card from the Graveyard if it is targeted by a card effect that can Special Summon it.

NOTE: Aura Armor was first used by Joey Wheeler in 'Fighting for a Friend PT4.'. The effect on the wikia has you summoning a 'Player Token' instead, but because after Joey used this card to as part of the tribute to summon Lord of the Red and Valon used Extinction Fist on Lord of the Red, this card was summoned back to the field along with Red-Eyes Black Dragon. Since tokens are simply removed from the field when they leave it, I have changed it into a trap monster in order to satisfy how it works in the anime.

Neo The Shattering Knight
EARTH
7 stars
Warrior/Fusion/Effect
2500/1500
Effect: Neo the Magical Swordsman + 1 Warrior-type monster
During the turn this card is Fusion Summoned, you may increase this card's ATK by its DEF until the End Phase. If this card attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing Battle Damage to your opponent. If this card is targeted by a Spell or Trap effect during the Battle Phase, negate that effect.

NOTE: This card is one-of-a-kind and belongs to Tsubasa Springweather.

TTTTTTT

See you all next time! Later Dayz!