Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's Shadowchasers: Shrouded World
Chapter 3: Shien's Spy
Joelle continued to curse her stupidity in assuming the elf would stay put as she rode her D-Wheel back to the Rome Shadowchaser's home and base of operations.
The building itself was a two storey townhouse situated in the Parione district of central Rome. Its walls were pure whitewashed, and its roof consisted of bright orange slates. Many windows gave vantage points for the Shadowchasers within and its oak front door looked sturdy enough to keep out a gang of orcs if it came to it.
She skidded to a stop outside the townhouse and dismounted her D-Wheel, tearing off her helmet in a furious gesture and slamming it down onto the console as she began wheeling it into the garage to the side of the townhouse, pausing only to run forwards and open the massive grey painted door of the garage.
Within the garage were two other D-Wheels. One was Paolo's, a crimson red model with black scorpion emblems painted on the sides.
The other belonged to the third Rome Shadowchaser. This D-Wheel was plain white, with pale blue snowflakes painted onto it and icicle like spikes on the wheel hubs.
Joelle carefully leaned her D-Wheel against a stand in the garage before closing the door with a touch of a button and walking through the discreet oak door into the townhouse.
She entered a kitchen, the floor tiled with white and black, the walls tiled exactly the same. Gleaming black worktops were the norm, and all the appliances were black too. She briskly walked through the kitchen and into the main room of the townhouse, what was usually referred to as the 'operations room.'
The operations room had, at one time, been a regular dining room. It was now effectively a military standard briefing room. There were no windows, just electric lights and a few mirrors decorated the red painted walls. Three hooks were mounted by the door, two of them holding swords similar in design to Joelle's own.
The room was mainly occupied by a table, a long oak affair carrying two laptops, a bowl of fruit, jugs of water with glasses and, finally, a very important item indeed, a grey diamond. This diamond was important for a single reason, it was a magical relic of immense power, being examined by the Shadowchasers. It was essentially on loan from a museum, following the discovery of immense dark power stored within.
Of course, on loan had different meanings for the museum curator and Joelle. The curator planned on getting his gem back without any alterations, while Joelle and her team were more interested with containing or removing the dark power so some Shadow willing to hit the effort of stealing the thing couldn't accidentally call up a demon or something.
Sitting on a chair with his folded arms leaning on the table was Paolo. He sat back in the chair as she entered, gazing at her before throwing a glance to 'the kid' who was sitting in another chair to his right.
Joelle looked at 'the kid' with interest. He looked a few years younger than either of the two Shadowchasers, maybe around the third Shadowchaser's age. She noted the jagged scar on his cheek that had caused those two Shadows such a problem.
She also noticed how he looked at her, eyes demanding to know the truth of this newly unveiled piece of the world.
"Who are you?" she asked as he asked the same question.
"Edward Cole," he replied.
"Joelle Fernandez," she answered.
"That was... awkward," Paolo commented with a smile.
"Do you have time to explain this to me now?" Edward asked, keeping his eyes fixed on Joelle.
"Yes, I do. The question is, do you really want to know?"
"Don't give me that Matrix crap, Joelle. I want to know why I just dueled an elf and nearly got killed by a dwarf. I don't care what the answer is; even if it turns out I'm just in a massive dream."
"He's got some guts, hasn't he?" Paolo chuckled "well, explain away, Joelle."
"Fine," she growled, taking a seat opposite Edward and laying her sword on the table "you want to know the truth? Then I'll tell you."
"Tell me, did you ever think maybe the monsters of myth weren't myth at all? Well, that's true. Dwarves, elves, minotaurs, fairies, pixies, all such magical and mythical creatures, they really exist in this world. Those who know this call them Shadowkind, or simply Shadows."
"Then why doesn't anyone notice this?"
"Ah, the obvious question," Joelle said "it's not so simple. Before today, whenever you were near Alicia, the elf, did you ever notice she had pointed ears, or was too beautiful to be human? I'm guessing not. The fact is, most people could walk through a room full of Shadows and see normal, everyday people. If you look at the world today, the culture, you'll understand why. People have occupied minds, full up with fashion, celebrities, news, day-to-day concerns... and all of that junk is precisely why. It's like their brains just work in a way that can't deal with legendary beings and just substitutes in everyday stuff instead."
"But, some of us are different. Some of us are able to see Shadows for what they are. We divide people into three categories... Mundanes, who can't see Shadows and are unaware of their existence..., Sensitives who can't directly see Shadows, but can somehow sense them and can see a Shadow's true form if they look through the corner of their eye. Finally, there are Awares like you and I, who can't be fooled. We see Shadows as they are."
"How do you... I dunno, get Aware?"
"To be honest, it's not so much gaining it as getting it back. Most kids, you ever notice how kids come out with wild stories about monsters in the closet or under the bed?"
"Kids are Aware?"
"Yeah, most are Sensitive, but a couple are Aware. Basically, they see Shadows, but if they tell their parents what happens?"
"The parents can't see the Shadows and tell the kids they're imagining it?"
"Precisely," Joelle said "because the notion of imagination is drummed into kid's heads, they start to believe the lie and when they become Mundane, usually around puberty, they don't notice the change, because by then the concerns of real life start to take over. I find it rather sad, actually. But some of us either never stop seeing Shadows, or start seeing them again. No one knows how, or why... but I did hear about a guy in Neo Domino City called Shichiro. Any idea what Shichiro means?"
"Doesn't that mean Seventh Son?"
"Hey, don't look so worried," Paolo cut in "you're right. This Shichiro guy is a seventh son of a seventh son. He isn't a wizard, but he's certainly Aware."
"Don't interrupt," Joelle snapped "but anyway, Shadows fit into human society very well, actually. Why shouldn't they? They look human to most people and most Shadows have abilities that make them more skilled in tasks than humans. Some Shadows get quite powerful in society actually. It's not unknown for Shadows to be high-ups in human churches, or high-ranking politicians. But most don't actually try to reach the top of society, because they know they shouldn't be in real power over a nation they technically aren't a native to."
"But there are Shadows without that much conscience... those more than willing to use their abilities for crime... and for those Shadows, there is but one opposition... us. The Shadowchasers. We're the law on Shadows, protecting humans from Shadows and vice versa."
"Ah, here's the good bit," Paolo said with a smile.
"The Shadowchasers are a worldwide organization whose purpose is to keep Shadows in check. To do so, our leader forged a Treaty with the Shadows, a long treaty to define the rights of Shadows in this world. You see, Shadows don't belong here. They come from another world, but something keeps sending them to this world. No one knows how or why it happens, it just does. But Shadows living in this world have to be kept within restrictions, because humanity deserves a chance too. For that purpose, Shadowchasers exist."
"I said about the Treaty. It was originally drawn up by the leader of the Shadowchasers, a man named Jalal, and a chosen Shadowkind representative, a member of an immortal race named Incantifers. The Treaty is very long, but the essential points are easy to point out. Shadows gain the rights to practice their own religions and culture, provided no one is harmed by either. They also gain the right of immunity from any legal system except the Shadowchasers."
"But... how does that work then? Surely one group can't keep all of these mythical beings in check, even if they can see them and know they exist?"
"You'd be surprised by just exactly how many tricks Shadowchasers have up their sleeves... besides, very few Shadows would ever defy the Treaty. Most are happy with it and consider it a fair deal. We only exist to deal with those who aren't so welcoming of rules. Most of those are just weirdos from within Shadowkind groups who think differently, although several Shadowkind races are actually declared outlaws for crimes too terrible to ever forgive, or they simply never agreed to the terms of the treaty in the first place."
"But the Treaty had one gaping flaw in it when it was first written... any arrested Shadow had to be arrested after losing a fair contest. The obvious problem is right there, that dozens said they'd been caught unfairly... it caused massive legal headaches and it didn't stop. It was almost a get out of jail free card, or that was how they treated it."
"How'd it end then?"
"Pegasus invented Duel Monsters. That decided it for Jalal. Every so often, there are meetings where Jalal meets with Shadowkind to discuss alterations to the Treaty according to new developments that create new crimes and such. Anyway, that time, Jalal suggested enforcing Duel Monsters as the fair contest. It was an instant hit. Say you met someone you'd never met before and the two of you dueled. You wouldn't know each other's decks and therefore it would be completely fair. Every duel has some margin of luck... even a tournament level deck like Tele-DAD or Lightsworns can crippled by bad luck. It's impossible for the game to be unfair."
"So, you duel to sort out crimes? Even if the Shadow murdered someone?"
"That's the general idea," Joelle said "but some Shadows can't duel. They're just not smart enough to get to grips with it... under those circumstances; we put away the Duel Disks and turn to real weapons, like these swords. We're authorised to put aside the terms of the Treaty if the Shadow refuses to do so. Basically, there are two conditions that would allow us to use force to make an arrest, either our target breaks the Treaty, or isn't covered by it in the first place."
"So, that's why Alicia wanted to duel me," Edward said "she thought I was a Shadowchaser."
"Apparently. You see, all Shadowchasers have a mark on their cheek, which looks like that cut on your cheek. It's like a badge of office. It also has the added benefit of looking like those stupid criminal markers Rex Godwin's group came up with to track criminals. You see, marked people tend to be respected or feared. If we look like we have marks, we can intimidate people into giving us information should that become necessary."
"But it isn't just the mark that identifies a Shadowchaser... it's this too." She reached into her pocket and pulled out the Jalal the Dragonborn card "remember I mentioned Jalal? Whenever someone becomes a Shadowchaser, he gives them a copy of this card. It's more than just a Synchro Monster... it's a reminder of our way of life. There are words written on the back of this card only its owner can see."
"Can I hear them?"
"Sure." She looked at the back of the card.
"The card you hold is your bond to the path you walk, and the cause you have pledged to. Use it for no purpose except in the service of that cause. Ignorance is not bliss, but knowledge is not power." She looked at him "Shadowchasers are forbidden to use Jalal the Dragonborn except for their duties as a Shadowchaser. In addition, we're required to carry this card in our Extra Decks, regardless of whether we can summon it or not. Even if I ran an Anti-Special Summon Deck, or a Koa'ki Meiru Deck, or had no Tuners in my deck at all, I'd still be required to carry this card with me. It's a symbol of the path I chose to take in life, and I assure you that I earned it."
"Alright, I get that, pretty much," Edward said "but can I ask you, what about me?" She placed Jalal the Dragonborn face-down on the table and looked down at it, mouth framing the words she was reading, words invisible to Edward's eyes.
"You're Aware," she finally said "regardless of whether you want it or not, you can't go back. And what's more, Alicia escaped. She'll be telling every Shadow she knows to watch for you now. That makes you a target for every criminal Shadow in Rome. You won't be safe anymore. From here, you have to make a choice."
"Fine," he replied "just don't hold out a blue pill and a red pill and ask me to take one, okay? I'm not Neo."
"You certainly aren't," she chuckled, showing humour for the first time, before her face became serious again "your choices. First, you can go it alone from here. Return to your job, your life. Go out into that world and know it's changed around you, but accept the change and move on with your life. But I assure you, if you take that path; chances are that you'll be dead in a month. Shadows will be after you, and none of them will hesitate to kill you."
"Secondly, you can learn how to survive. You can take a path where Shadows respect and fear you. You can become one of many, a bringer of justice and a defender of the Mundane world."
"You can become a Shadowchaser like us."
"Just let me say something," Paolo butted in "it's not easy to become a Shadowchaser. The challenges are tough. But in the end, the hard work is the better path."
"You're asking me to make a life-changing decision all at once?" Edward said in stunned disbelief.
"No, I'm not," Joelle replied "go home. Think it over, Edward. Just remember, you aren't safe anymore. That nice, safe world you knew, it's changed. The Shadows are watching for you, and we can't protect you your whole life. Those who walk alone, walk a dangerous path."
"But those who choose to stand beside others stand in safety. We'll protect you if you take this chance and become one of us, a Shadowchaser."
He looked at her.
"Can I ask you something?" he said.
"Yes."
"Do you have the Matrix on DVD? I just want to watch a movie and think this over." Joelle sighed.
"I suppose that's okay," she said "Paolo, go set him up with what he needs. I've got a meeting with Jalal in here in five minutes, so take him to the Rec Room." Paolo smiled and led Edward out of the room, leaving Joelle alone. She turned over the Jalal the Dragonborn card and started to think of what she was going to say to her boss...
Elsewhere in town, on the River Tiber, an informant was getting a visit from the third Shadowchaser.
Her name was Jane Rianne. She was a slightly short for her age twenty year old woman, wearing a long crimson trench coat over a pair of worn blue jeans and a black tank top. Her eyes were storm cloud grey and her long hair was dyed ice blue. Her skin was pale from time spent inside perfecting her skills as a Shadowchaser. She had a dark blue Duel Disk with ice blue trim on her left arm.
She was standing by a warehouse and looking down at a new Shadow. This one was short, with black skin and a slightly demonic appearance. It only came up to her shoulders, but she was more than aware of how dangerous this particular Shadow could be.
It was an imp, a form of minor demon. Imps were known to possess rudimentary fire magic and they were also supernaturally strong, to the level of being able to disarm the average man with ease. This specimen wore black cargo pants and a grey sleeveless shirt. To any Mundanes passing, he looked like a lanky, lean teenage boy with matted black hair and olive green eyes.
To Jane, he was a black-skinned, bald demonic creature wearing the same clothes.
"So frankly, Damon, you won't tell me where to find this Alicia character?" she said.
"More than the money's worth."
"Well then, how about a Duel? If I win, you give me her location and accept my price. If you win, I'll give you the money anyway."
"You're gonna lose anyway, Jane!" Damon yelled "so let's throw down!" He activated the black coloured Duel Disk on his left arm as Jane activated her own.
- (Jane 8000LP) (Damon 8000LP) -
"I'll take the first turn!" Damon exclaimed "I summon Dark Lucius LV4 in attack mode!" A grey-skinned demon appeared, red eyes blazing with malice and body covered in plates of bone armour. His talons flexed as he clenched his hands into tight fists and roared (1000/300).
"Next I lay two cards face-down and end my turn." The face-downs appeared.
- (Jane 8000LP) (Damon 8000LP) -
Jane drew "what's he planning? His Dark Lucius needs to destroy a monster in battle to level up, and there's no point in using Level Up or Level Change, because then his LV6 Dark Lucius doesn't get its effect..."
"I summon Cold Enchanter in attack mode," she said. A beautiful teenage girl wearing a short pale blue dress and leggings stepped from a portal with a gust of freezing wind, ice blue hair tumbling down her back and a staff tipped with a snowflake in her hands (1600/1200).
"Cold Enchanter, attack his Dark Lucius!" Cold Enchanter launched a gust of freezing wind from her staff...
"I activate Shrink to halve your monster's points!" Damon called. One of his face-downs flipped up and Cold Enchanter shrank to half of her original size (800/1200). Dark Lucius LV4 roared and lunged for her, ripping through her with his talons. She screamed as she shattered and Jane winced as the talons struck her and went straight through her body without causing physical harm.
(Jane: 7800LP)
"I end my turn with a face-down," she groaned. It appeared.
- (Jane 7800LP) (Damon 8000LP) -
"I draw," Damon said "now I Tribute my Dark Lucius to activate his ability and evolve him to Dark Lucius LV6!" Dark Lucius LV4 shattered and a new monster appeared in his place. This demon seemed like a more powerful and darker form, now wearing emerald and ruby-studded armour, four curving spikes growing from his back and wielding a glowing purple longsword. His ears had become bat-like, but his eyes still possessed their burning gaze (1700/600).
"This ought to slow him down," Jane thought "Dark Lucius LV6 needs to negate a monster's effect by destroying it in battle before it can evolve... which I need to use. I can't let him get LV8 out."
"Now I activate a Trap Card called Pure Soul. This forces you to Special Summon a Level 4 or lower effect monster of my choice from your Deck in face-down defence position. The downside is, I need a Dark Lucius on the field to activate Pure Soul, but I don't think that matters." He walked across the field to Jane and removed her Deck from the Duel Disk, going through it and eventually picking a card, which he set on her field. The horizontal card appeared.
"Now, Dark Lucius, attack that face-down!" Damon ordered "that Skelengel was perfect!"
Dark Lucius LV6 lunged across the field and slashed through Jane's face-down monster, which became a pair of gloves holding a bow and arrow, a coil of rope, two wings, a pair of sandals and a crown, Skelengel (900/400).
"Normally your card would let you draw a card, but Dark Lucius negates its effect," Damon said with a smirk.
"I play my face-down, Blizzard Strike!" Jane called "this means that while your Lucius and Blizzard Strike are on the field, it cannot be Tributed or attack!"
"WHAT?! NO!"
A blizzard gale blew from the Blizzard Strike card, encasing Dark Lucius in solid ice.
"Damn it, I'll end my turn!" Damon growled.
- (Jane 7800LP) (Damon 8000LP) -
"I draw!" Jane yelled "I summon the Tuner Monster Ice Magician in attack mode!" A handsome teenage boy with ice blue hair and eyes, wearing a robe and cloak of the same colour appeared, clutching a staff exactly the same as Cold Enchanter's as he smiled (1200/1000).
"Next I activate the effect of Ice Magician and discard two cards from my Deck to bring out a Water Attribute monster from my Deck with a Level of two or less, like my Ice Guardian!" A hulking golem made of ice appeared next to Ice Magician, crouching down in defence mode (400/800).
"Now I activate the Spell Card Ice Mirror to bring out another Ice Guardian!" The Spell Card appeared and a second Ice Guardian appeared beside the first (400/800).
"Finally, I Tune my Level three Ice Magician with my two Level two Ice Guardians to Synchro Summon...!" Jane called.
Ice Magician rose into the air alongside his two Guardians, becoming a sphere of orange light that split into three rings. The rings surrounded the Ice Guardians and cut them down to orange frameworks...
Four stars emerged from the frameworks and spun within the rings before a explosion of pale blue light tore through the Synchro Summon, releasing a gale of freezing wind...
"Chilling spirits of the Far North, descend into this warm world to freeze the air itself! Become the hammer blow of pure freezing ice! Synchro Summon! Awaken, Ice Wyrm Mjollnir!" Jane chanted, raising her arms.
The beast emerging from the Synchro Summon was a true monster, a dragon made from ice. It had thick, strong limbs, immense wings that kicked up gales of arctic cold as they moved, a massive tail ending in a hammer head of ice and a head like a spear tip, narrowing to the solid point of the creature's snout. It unleashed a gale of chilling air as it roared, spreading out wings to their fullest extent (2400/1900).
"If you can tell me the significance of the word Mjollnir, I'll give you the money now," Jane chuckled.
"Err..."
"That's a no, then," Jane said "well, Mjollnir is the war hammer of the Norse god Thor. It was said then when Thor threw Mjollnir, it could never fail to hit its mark and return to his hand. He also used Mjollnir to break the ice of winter and usher in spring, but I don't think the card designers paid attention to that fact."
"However, an interesting legend of Mjollnir is when Thor lost it when it was stolen by a frost giant. The giant wanted the goddess Freya as a wife, but Freya obviously refused... Thor dressed up as Freya after his father bullied him into it, went to the wedding and got his hammer back, proceeding to smash the skull of every frost giant present."
"I don't care!" Damon shrieked.
"You will when you hear my dragon's effect," Jane said "as Thor would always hit his foes with the thrown Mjollnir; my dragon has an ability to embody that. When it's Synchro Summoned, I'm allowed to destroy monsters on your field whose total attack points are equal to or less than the number of Synchro Material Monsters I used to play Mjollnir times 800. Since I used three, I can destroy monsters with a total of 2400 points. Your Dark Lucius fits that bill easily. Mjollnir, Torment of Niflheim!" Ice Wyrm Mjollnir roared and launched a jet of frost from its mouth, completely encasing Dark Lucius LV6 before a claw strike from Mjollnir shattered the demon. The Blizzard Strike card shattered as well.
"ARRGGHH!" Damon snarled as the frost jet struck him, not causing any damage. Imps utterly hated anything cold. Even an ice cream would give them shivers.
"Y'know, that effect name is interesting too," she replied "you see, Niflheim is one of the nine Norse worlds. Niflheim is supposed to be a frozen waste where sinners are punished for their crimes. It really fits a dragon of ice, doesn't it? Mjollnir, attack him directly with Thor's Judgment!" Ice Wyrm Mjollnir launched another jet of ice from its mouth, catching Damon and chilling him to the bone.
(Damon: 5600LP)
"Now I end my turn."
- (Jane 7800LP) (Damon 5600LP) -
"I draw!" Damon snarled "I activate Foolish Burial, allowing me to send a monster from my Deck to my Graveyard, like a second Dark Lucius LV4!" He slotted the card from his Deck into his Graveyard.
"Next I remove from play all three of my Dark Lucius monsters in my Graveyard to Special Summon..." Shadows of the three monsters appeared, melding into a portal of darkness on the ground.
A blue skinned humanoid, with a bald head, wearing dark metal armour on its upper torso, right shoulder, left elbow and purple armour on its legs rose from the portal. The creature was cradling a shattered baby doll in its arms, a look of hatred in the Fiend's eyes (2200/2800).
"Dark Necrofear!" Damon roared. The Fiend snarled at Jane as it drew its baby doll close to its chest and knelt into defence mode. "Next I lay one card face-down and end my turn."
- (Jane 7800LP) (Damon 5600LP) -
"My move!" Jane called as she drew "I equip Mjollnir with Crown of Command, meaning that any monster that battles it loses 500 attack and defence!" A crown of icicles appeared on Mjollnir's head and it roared "Mjollnir, attack Dark Necrofear with Thor's Judgment!" The ice dragon unleashed another jet of frost as Dark Necrofear glowed with crimson energy (1700/2300). The frost jet struck the Fiend and it shrieked before it shattered, doll falling to the ground and shattering into a million pieces before vanishing.
"I'll end there with a face-down," Jane said. Suddenly, a shadow of Dark Necrofear appeared over Mjollnir and let out a chilling shriek. The dragon's eyes glowed with darkness and it glided over to Damon's field.
"When Dark Necrofear is destroyed, it's treated as an Equip Card that lets me take control of one of your monsters!" Damon laughed. Jane glared at him.
- (Jane 7800LP) (Damon 5600LP) -
Damon drew with a smirk. He could already feel those plain, fresh euro notes rolling through his fingers.
"I activate my Trap, Demonic Devastation!" he called "while it remains in play, any Battle Damage you take other than damage from Direct Attacks is doubled!" Jane grimaced.
"Next I play Soul Shadow, giving you two Hellish Soul Tokens at the cost of giving me two more cards." He drew and two black balls of flame with fierce crimson eyes appeared on Jane's field (500/500x2). "Mjollnir, give her a taste of the cold! Thor's Judgment!" Mjollnir roared and launched its familiar frozen jet at one of the Hellish Soul Tokens, shattering it even as Crown of Command reduced its ATK (0/0). Jane screamed as the ice engulfed her.
(Jane: 3000LP)
"And I might not know where this thing's name comes from," Damon continued "but I do know that when it destroys a monster in battle, if you control another monster, I can hit that monster with Mjollnir as well! Thor's Judgment!" A second jet of frost was released from the beast's gaping maw and hurled towards the Hellish Soul Token as its ATK decreased (0/0)...
"Go, Trap Card!" Jane called "Absolute Freeze! This card negates the attack and your Dragon cannot attack next turn. The catch is, I can only use it when the same monster attacks more than once!" A flurry of icicles fell from the sky and surrounded Mjollnir, freezing it solid.
"Damn you!" Damon spat "I end my turn!"
- (Jane 3000LP) (Damon 5600LP) -
"I draw," Jane said, doing so "now I sacrifice the Hellish Soul Token to Tribute Summon Mobius the Frost Monarch!" The Token dissolved into golden dust that reformed into a tall, intimidating man wearing polished ice blue armour, with a dark blue cloak billowing out behind him in the chilling wind created by his summon (2400/1000).
"Crap!" Damon shrieked "now you can...!"
"Destroy up to two Spell or Trap cards on the field," Jane finished smoothly "I destroy Demonic Devastation and your Dark Necrofear, seeing as you now treat it as an Equip card." Damon groaned as icicles burst from the ground and impaled the two cards. Ice Wyrm Mjollnir growled and shook its head, returning to Jane's side of the field with a snarl at Damon.
"Next I activate my Field Spell, Umiiruka. This grants all Water monsters 500 more attack, at the cost of 400 defence." The area around them became a calm ocean, with waves occasionally breaking nearby. Mobius (2900/600) and Mjollnir (2900/1500) glowed with pale blue light.
"Mobius, attack him with Frost Lance!" Jane called. Mobius raised his hand and formed a spear of ice from thin air before hurling the weapon at Damon, knocking the imp over onto his backside as the weapon went straight through him.
(Damon: 2700LP)
"Mjollnir, Thor's Judgment!" Ice Wyrm Mjollnir reared up and roared, unleashing a jet of pure cold from its jaws as it towered over the screaming Damon.
(Damon: 0LP)
- (Jane 3000LP) (Damon 0LP) -
Jane calmly waited for Damon to get up before grabbing a suitcase from on top of a nearby barrel and tossing it to him.
"100 euro," she said calmly "as we agreed. Now, where's that elf?"
"Alright!" Damon squealed "I'll talk! This Alicia chick... I heard some talk a few days back, from some guys working for Big Donny that he'd been gettin' close to some elf babe just like the one you described. From the sound of it, she was kinda desperate for hard cash, so she was goin' around and sellin' herself... y'know what I mean?"
"Yeah, I know. Who's Big Donny?"
"He's some big guy. He's got his own gang... not quite mafia, but gettin' there. They're a tough crew, orcs, lizardmen, coupla elves, dwarf or two, and maybe some minotaurs if my buds aren't lyin'. Donny has one tough gang, I'll give him that. Anyway, back to the elf. Yeah, these two guys, they were orcs, I think, were goin' on about this Alicia chick because apparently Donny was after her. Somethin' 'bout an Assault Mode monster, some Magician. His rarest card, took him six months of beatin' hell outta locals for the damn thing and then this elf goes and nicks it under his nose!"
"Where is Alicia?"
"Not anywhere in Donny's turf, that's for sure," Damon chuckled, slightly more at ease "but she's got some human guy, an Aware, she's been datin' for a bit. He's got an apartment near that nice townhouse you 'chasers have got, so why not go give him a knock? Just make sure the door hasn't been battered in..."
"Why?"
"Donny's crew are rough," the imp snarled "they love making people scream. One time, a bunch of his orcs set about a guy with switchblades just for lookin' at 'em funny. When the cops got to him, he was missing ears, a nose and half his fingers." Jane shuddered. "Donny'll do anythin' to get his Assault Mode card back. It's his rarest and his best, and what Donny likes, Donny keeps. Got that?"
"Yeah," Jane replied "with luck, Donny won't even meet me. Besides, if Alicia did take his card, when she's arrested I'll get it back to him..."
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Card Stats:
Monsters:
Ice Magician
WATER/ Spellcaster/Tuner /Level 3/ATK: 1200/DEF: 1000
Once per turn, you can discard up to three cards from the top of your Deck and Special Summon a WATER monster from your deck whose Level is equal to the number of cards you discarded. That monster cannot attack or activate its effects during the turn it is summoned by this effect.
*
Ice Guardian
WATER/ Aqua/Effect /Level 2/ATK: 400/DEF: 800
Once per turn, this card cannot be destroyed by battle.
*
Ice Wyrm Mjollnir
WATER/ Dragon/Synchro/Effect /Level 7/ATK: 2400/DEF: 1900
1 WATER Tuner + 1 or more WATER non-Tuner monsters
When this card is Synchro Summoned, destroy a monster on your opponent's side of the field with an ATK equal to or less than the number of Synchro Material Monsters used to summon this card x 800. Once per turn, when this card destroys a monster by battle, your opponent controls a monster, this card can attack again.
(The above three cards are my own invention and creative credit for them goes to me.)
03
Spells:
Ice Mirror
Normal Spell Card
Image: A black pedestal with a demonic scowl and fierce green eyes in the middle of a whirlpool, with icicles rising up around it.
Activate only by selecting 1 Level 3 or lower WATER monster you control. Special Summon 1 monster with the same name as that monster from your Deck. This turn, that monster cannot attack.
(Ice Mirror is used by Dick Pitt in Episode 27 of 5D's. Creative credit goes to the writers of 5D's.)
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Crown of Command
Equip Spell Card
Image: A bejeweled crown, with wings masterfully sculpted onto it.
A monster that battles with the equipped monster loses 500 ATK and DEF during the Damage Step only.
(Crown of Command was used by Asuka in the Yu-Gi-Oh! GX manga. Creative credit goes to the writers of the manga.)
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Soul Shadow
Normal Spell Card
Image: A creature reminiscent of a Hollow from Bleach being split in two by a katana. Shadows seem to be spreading around it.
Special Summon two Hellish Soul Tokens (DARK/ Fiend /Level 2/ATK: 500/DEF: 500) to your opponent's side of the field and draw two cards.
(Soul Shadow is my own invention and creative credit for it goes to me.)
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Traps:
Blizzard Strike
Normal Trap Card
Image: Gungnir, Dragon of the Ice Barrier breathing a frozen jet into Dark Armed Dragon.
Activate only when a monster you control is destroyed by battle. This card becomes an Equip Card and is equipped to the attacking monster. That monster cannot attack or be Tributed. When this card is destroyed, destroy the equipped monster. When the equipped monster is destroyed, destroy this card.
(Blizzard Strike is my own invention and creative credit for it goes to me.)
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Demonic Devastation
Continuous Trap Card
Image: Three monsters shrouded in auras of energy.
As long as this card remains face-up on the field, all Battle Damage taken by your opponent is doubled, excluding Direct Damage.
(Demonic Devastation was first used by Kyosuke Kiryu in Episode 55 of 5D's. Creative credit goes to the writers of 5D's.)
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Absolute Freeze
Normal Trap Card
Image: A flash-frozen Ruin, Queen of Oblivion encased in a block of ice.
Activate only when your opponent would attack more than once with one monster during the same Battle Phase. Negate the attack and that monster cannot attack until the End Phase of your opponent's next turn.
(Absolute Freeze is my own invention and creative credit for it goes to me.)
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So, following that information on Big Donny and Alicia, what will the Shadowchasers do now? What will Edward's decision be? Just what did Alicia steal from Donny that he wants back so much (well, you can guess if you read Chapter 1)? Well, next time Paolo steps into the spotlight as he goes to apprehend Alicia for her crimes, only to meet one of Donny's 'Enforcers'. Can Paolo overcome this Shadow's fierce strategy, or is he lizard food?
Find out in Chapter 4: Troop Dragon! (And no, no Dragon Shadows! It's just the closest thing I could find!)