Before this chapter starts, I'd like to give credit where credit is due. The character Drago Uccisore was created by fanfic author jcogginsa, as part of a Shadowchasers File that was never published. Special thanks to him.
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DUEL FOUR
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Cold Hands
Heated Determination
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A common saying in the United States is, "build a better mousetrap, and the world will beat a path to your door". In the information age, where one invention can cause the whole culture to change, it's truer than ever. And for Karl Hudson, he couldn't start fast enough. His first grade teacher called him "gifted" and a "prodigy". At that young age, he not only knew how to use a computer, but was using his father's soldering iron to experiment with microchips and try to improve them.
At age seven, he doubled the memory capacity of his father's laptop by himself. At age ten, he built a digital alarm clock. At age fifteen, he put in a patent for an invention that was likely going to pay for his college education: inspired by the game of space chess that R2D2 and Chewbacca played in Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope, he invented a chess board with holographic pieces that marched across the board. He later made a deal with The Noble Collection, who got through the copyright red tape and allowed him to make the device resemble the actual game in the movie, and they were now marketing it.
He never actually took an IQ test (he thought people who bragged about their IQs were losers) but he did take the entrance test for Mensa and passed easily. Of course, there was a secret to his ability other than simple smarts: He had never lost his Awareness, and had quickly learned the ways of the Shadowjack.
Shadowjacks seem like typical hackers, but they don't rely merely on technology and book smarts to get into places where they don't belong. They also use inborn magical ability, using it to bypass security systems, decode data, and cover their tracks. They aren't true sorcerers (although some eventually become techno-mages, actual wizards who can cast spells through cyberspace). Shadowjacks are able to do with ease things that other hackers have a very difficult time with, and among Shadowkind, some systems are protected with magical defenses that only Shadowjacks have any chance of getting past. Folks like Karl were able to get information that was inaccessible to almost anyone else.
Karl was frightened when he was eighteen, and Dugan, whom he recognized as a Shadowchaser, showed up on his door. He thought that he had finally been caught for illegal intrusion. To his utter surprise, Dugan offered him an invitation – he wanted Karl to join the organization. For Karl, the world had beat a path to his door, and he was letting it in.
With even more magic and technology available as a Shadowchaser, Karl was able to create a device that put his holographic chessboard to shame. Portable computers with holographic screens were not unknown, of course, but the gauntlet that Karl invented which fit over his right arm was years ahead of them. It used Shadowjack technology to access the Internet from any local service provider, was voice activated, and had an internal memory of one-thousand gigabytes squared.
It also had an AI with a sexy female voice, which he named "Sal". (Only diehard science fiction fans knew the reference – Sal was a computer AI seen in the sequel to both the novel and film version of 2001: A Space Odyssey, a counterpart of the villainous HAL 9000, but with a female voice.) Nichole once had asked him why he had given it such a voice, and he said that AIs are supposed to have that kind of voice. (Apparently, Nichole was never a big fan of science fiction.)
In fact, he was using this device right now, as he was talking on the phone with Dugan. He was in the parking lot of La Traviata Ristorante, one of the best places to get Italian food in uptown.
"Sorry, Dugan," he said, "but I can't find any reference to any elves with green skin. The only thing that comes close is the Emerald Queen, a female verdant lord who ruled the dark fey on the Isle of Wight about a hundred years ago. But she never took a consort nor had children... She was kind of like Queen Elizabeth I in that regard."
"Well... How goes your stakeout?" asked Dugan.
"Like most stakeouts," replied Karl. "Boring. I have info that one of Cattivo Fanciullo's lieutenants is going to meet with someone important at this place... Maybe an underworld summit or a proposal for an alliance."
"Karl, behind you!" shouted Sal's voice.
Karl spun around, and was face-to-face with two men... One who was hulking who stood about six-foot-four, and another who was significantly smaller.
"Or maybe it's just because the place makes the best fettuccini Alfredo in town," said the hulking man.
"Dugan... I'll get back to you..." said Karl.
He quickly drew his sword from the sheath on his back.
"Well, well..." he said. "Drago Uccisore... I didn't expect Fanciullo to send someone that important."
Although he looked like a blonde-haired muscleman dressed in beige clothing with numerous straps and pockets in it (which held a variety of weapons for when he did his job as Fanciullo's bodyguard) any Aware viewer could see that Drago was obviously a Shadow. He was something called a khimera, a humanoid offshoot of the mythical chimera. Khimera were able to integrate the body parts of common animals that they killed into their own bodies, becoming more powerful as a result. Drago himself had been quite successful in this regard, having acquired bear claws, wolf fangs, and gecko-like feet.
He turned to the smaller thug.
"Go wait in the car, Julius," he said. "I'll handle the Shadowchaser."
"But sir, he..." said the henchman.
"I said beat it!" snapped Drago.
A look of fear came across the thug's face, and he was gone in an instant.
Drago took a cigarette out of a pack in his shirt pocket and lit it.
"So hard to find good help these days, eh?" he said. "You can put that sword away, by the way... If I had wanted to kill you, you'd have been rock chill by now."
"So what do you want, Drago?" said Karl.
"I didn't want anything originally..." replied the mobster. "Just wanted to come here for the pasta... I heard it was good... But once I saw a Shadowchaser, I saw an opportunity..."
He took a Duel Disk off of his back, and strapped it to his left arm.
"You want to duel me?" asked Karl. "Why?"
"A simple wager..." replied Drago. "You beat me, I have information you might need. My boss knows about some heavy stuff that's coming to this town, and you folks are gonna want to know it too...
"If I win... You get me in to see your boss."
"Assuming I can even do that..." said Karl, "why do you want to see Jalal?"
"You ever have dreams, kid?" asked Drago. "Well, I got one... My dream is to live forever. But I have no idea how I'm ever gonna do that. The only way I can fathom it might be possible is to get Jalal Stormbringer to wager his immortality in a duel."
Karl glared at him.
"Assuming that he'd ever consider wagering his immortality..." he said. "Exactly what can you ante against it that would be of equal value? You must admit, immortality is worth several billion dollars."
"You let me worry about that," said Drago. "We have a deal?"
Karl sighed.
"I can't guarantee that Jalal will ever grant you an audience or accept your challenge," he said.
Drago shrugged.
"Never hurts to ask," he said.
He took one more drag on the cigarette, and then flicked it away.
"Fine..." said Karl, "but this 'heavy stuff' had best be worth my time."
He lifted up his left arm, and his own Duel Disk activated.
(Karl: 8,000) - - - - - - - - - - (Drago: 8,000)
"Karl," said Sal's voice. "I've found some information on Uccisore's dueling strategy. Apparently, he plays a deck full of rare Armor Monsters."
"Don't count on it," said Drago.
Karl looked at him.
"Oh yeah, I heard your little friend," said Drago, pointing to his left ear. "These ears came from a coyote, you know.
"Anyway, yeah, I have an Armor Deck... But that doesn't mean I'll always use it. I've got something very different this time.
"Anyway... You make the first move..."
Karl drew a card.
"I'll set a Monster..." he said, as a reversed Monster appeared in front of him. "And I'll leave it at that for now."
Drago shrugged, and made a draw.
"I summon Red-Eyes Black Chick to the field," he said.
He played the card, and a small, red egg appeared in front of him. It cracked a little, and two sinister eyes peered out of it. (800 ATK)
"Then, by sending it to the Graveyard..."
The small hatchling turned into an orb of dark energy.
"...I can bring out his daddy..."
Karl stepped back in shock as an icon of Duel Monsters started to take shape; the signature Monster of Tenjouin Fubuki and Jonouchi Katsuya before him... The Red-Eyes Black Dragon. (2,400 ATK)
"How on earth did you get a card that rare?" asked Karl.
"I've got rarer cards in my deck," replied Drago. "You'll see some of them later... For now...
"Attack. Inferno Fire Blast."
The Red-Eyes blasted a stream of fire at the hidden Monster. A crane-like bird with blue feathers and a crown-like crest appeared, and was burned to ashes.
"That was Blizzd, Defender of the Ice Barrier," said Karl. "And when it's destroyed by battle, I get to draw one card."
He made a draw.
Drago shrugged again, and fit a card into his Disk. A reversed card appeared behind his Dragon.
"That... ought to do it for now..." he said.
Karl made another draw.
He set a card again, and a new reversed Monster appeared.
"I'll end there," he said, somewhat nervously.
Drago drew a card.
"I remove my Dragon from play..." he said.
Red-Eyes vanished into thin air.
"...to summon something better..."
With a low growl, a Dragon that was twice as big as the regular Red-Eyes, with a metallic sheen to its hide and edged, serrated wings, looked over the field. It let out a loud roar. (2,800 ATK)
"That's the Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon!" shouted Karl.
"That's right," said Drago. "You're probably wondering where I got it... It's even rarer than the regular Red-Eyes.
"Well, last year, Mr. Fanciullo was experimenting with Dragons, and despite the rarity, he was actually able to obtain three copies of this card."
Three copies? thought Karl, getting frightened.
"But after dueling once with the completed deck," continued Drago, "he concluded that it just wasn't him.
"He was nice enough to give one of the three cards to me... And he gave the other two to two other crime bosses to clinch agreements that he made with them.
"But... Back to business..."
His Trap Card lifted up.
"I activate Escape From the Dark Dimension. This lets me Special Summon a Dark-Attribute Monster that's been removed from play. So, I'll bring back the regular Red-Eyes."
Karl gulped as a portal opened, and the original Red-Eyes flew out. (2,400 ATK)
"I'm only half-done," continued Drago. "Next, I'm using Darkness Metal Dragon's effect, which lets me Special Summon a Dragon from my hand or Graveyard every round. I think Rare Metal Dragon will do."
With another growl, a bulky, wingless Dragon that also seemed to be well-armored lumbered onto the field. (2,400 ATK)
"And finally... Since I haven't Normal Summoned yet... I'll bring out Axe Dragonute."
In another dark aura, a Dragon-man with dark scales and wings, holding a double-bladed battle-axe appeared. (2,000 ATK)
"He seems to be playing a Hopeless Dragon Deck," said Sal. "You'd best start thinking about how you're going to explain this to Jalal..."
"Don't give up yet, Sal," said Karl, nervously.
"Rare Metal Dragon," said Drago, "you first... Attack with dark hellfire."
The Dragon breathed a bolt of black flames from its jaws towards Karl's facedown Monster...
A man appeared on the card, dressed in a ceremonial robe made of fur, with long, blonde hair. He was sitting in the lotus position, and holding his hands in a praying position. (1,000 DEF)
The blast of energy was halted by an aura of blue light.
"What?" said Drago.
"That's Pilgrim of the Ice Barrier," said Karl. "And like Obnoxious Celtic Guardian before him, he can't be beaten by Monsters that have 1,900 Attack Points or more. Seems that all four of your Dragons are simply too powerful."
For the first time, Drago looked a little ticked off.
"I end my turn," he said with a sulk.
"I can see what you're trying to do, Drago," said Karl. "You're trying to upstage Jalal by building an even better Dragon Deck than his."
"Maybe..." said Drago.
"Well, consider this a test," said Karl.
"A test?" replied Drago.
"Yeah..." said Karl. "If your deck can't beat mine, it can't possibly beat Jalal's."
He drew a card. He looked at his hand, which consisted of seven cards.
Then he selected one.
"I summon Strategist of the Ice Barrier," he said.
In an aura of blue energy, and old man wearing a long robe and a collie hat appeared. He had a full, grey beard, and wore an amulet with a blue stone. His hands were concealed under the large sleeves of each other arm. (1,600 ATK)
"Why'd you summon that guy in Attack Mode?" asked Drago. "My Dragon is going to fry him like a cannoli."
"So I could use his effect," replied Karl. "By sending an Ice Barrier Monster from my hand to the Graveyard, I can draw one card."
He took Warlock of the Ice Barrier from his hand and discarded it. Then he made one draw.
"That's a pretty big risk you're taking," said Drago. "Did it pay off?"
"We'll see," said Karl. "It's your move..."
"Eh..." said Drago, drawing a card. "We'll see he says... Unbelievable..."
"I set one card," he said, as a card appeared facedown, "and then I attack with Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon!
"Attack! Wipe out that geezer!"
The huge Dragon let lose a wave of dark fire, and Karl braced himself as Strategist was incinerated.
"I'm not done," said Dragon, holding up the last card in his hand. "Because my regular Red-Eyes didn't attack this turn, I can play this Spell Card..."
"Infernal Fire Blast?" gasped Karl.
"Oh, Karl..." said Sal. "This is gonna hurt..."
It may have not technically been a direct attack that came next, but it might as well have been one. Karl tried his best to keep from screaming as the wave of flames from the Red-Eyes covered him.
(K: 4,400) - - - - - - - - - - (D: 8,000)
"That's all for me," said Drago.
Karl stopped for a minute to catch his breath. He shivered, nervously… He looked at the huge Dragon in front of him who had just burned him…
"You gonna make a move?" asked Drago. "Or do I have time to check my Blackberry?"
Karl took a deep breath again. He slowly drew a card.
"All right, Drago," he said, "I play the Spell Card, Moray of Greed."
As he played the card, the Pot of Greed appeared behind him. Then it tipped over, and a moray eel with a similar grinning face swum out.
"I take two Water-Attribute Monsters from my hand, and send them back to my deck…"
He took Shock Troops of the Ice Barrier and Spellbreaker of the Ice Barrier, and slipped them into his deck.
"Then I reshuffle…"
The Disk auto-shuffled the deck.
"Then I make three draws."
He drew three cards, and looked at them.
"Time to turn this around, Drago..."
"And how do you plan to do that?" said Drago, with a chuckle.
"With this!" exclaimed Karl. "The Spell Card, Magic Triangle of the Ice Barrier.
"To play this card, I first have to reveal three Ice Barrier Monsters with different names in my hand..."
He turned three of his cards forward: Samurai of the Ice Barrier, Caravan of the Ice Barrier, and Geomancer of the Ice Barrier.
"Having done that, I get to destroy one of your cards, AND Special Summon an Ice Barrier Monster from my hand.
"So, I'll destroy Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon..."
Drago gasped as his ace Monster shattered into pixels.
"...and then summon General Gantala of the Ice Barrier!"
In another aura of blue energy, a muscleman even more hulking than Drago appeared in front of Karl. He was bald, with dark skin, wearing green pantaloons, no shirt, and blue gauntlets that had an icy sheen to them. On his forehead was a tattoo of a snowflake. (2,700 ATK)
"He's not the only Monster I'm summoning," continued Karl. "I'll Normal Summon the Tuner Monster, Geomancer of the Ice Barrier."
The blue aura appeared again, and a young girl in a blue dress, long pigtails in her hair, and a hat like Strategist's, appeared between Gantala and Pilgrim. (800 ATK)
"Now, I'll Tune her and Pilgrim together..."
Geomancer and Pilgrim flew into the sky. They slowly faded away, turning into seven glowing stars. Karl chanted.
"Prince regent of the icy tundra, mighty enforcer of the higher powers while possessing power in your own right... Clustering stars combine to defend the Ice Barrier once more!"
(*3 + *4 = *7)
"Synchro Summon... Gungnir, Dragon of the Ice Barrier!"
The Monster that appeared was clearly a Dragon, and appeared to have been sculpted completely out of ice. It glowed with a pale, soft light. Then it let out a roar. (2,500 ATK)
Huh... thought Drago. Was kinda expecting Brionac...
Karl took two cards from his hand, Samurai of the Ice Barrier and Caravan of the Ice Barrier.
"Now, by discarding these two cards," he said, as he discarded them, "I can destroy two of your cards.
"Wipe out his Red-Eyes and Rare Metal Dragon with Freezing Lance!"
Gungnir breathed a concentrated beam of freezing energy, hitting Red-Eyes Black Dragon and then Rare Metal Dragon and freezing them solid. The two Dark Dragons shattered into frozen shards.
"Time to go on the offensive!" he said. "General... Attack Axe Dragonute with shattering strike!"
General Gantala leapt at the Dragon-man, and smashed it to pieces with a mighty karate chop.
"Gungnir, attack directly! Polar blast!"
Drago tried to shield himself as the Dragon turned its icy attack on him, but he was still knocked down on his behind.
(K: 4,400) - - - - - - - - - - (D: 4,800)
Drago growled.
"I'll set two facedown cards," said Karl.
He set his last two cards, and two reversed cards appeared in two flashes of light.
"Then I'll move to my End Phase and activate Gantala's effect," continued Karl. "I get to Special Summon an Ice Barrier Monster from my Graveyard."
Pilgrim of the Ice Barrier appeared, kneeling in Defense Mode. (1,000 DEF)
"And that also means my Trap activates," said Drago.
His facedown card flipped up.
"It's a little thing called Shock Draw. Because I took 3,000 points of damage that round, I get to draw three cards."
He made three draws.
"Now, it's my move..."
He made a fourth draw.
"I play the Spell Card, Ancient Rules," he said. "It lets me Special Summon a Normal Monster, no matter how powerful it is."
"Going to summon another Red-Eyes?" asked Karl.
"Naw," said Drago. "I've got something better... The mighty Tri-Horned Dragon!"
There was an explosion on Drago's side of the field, and a fierce-looking Dragon with black scales, long claws, and horns all over its body, including three on is head, emerged from it. It looked at Karl and drooled. (2,850 ATK)
"Next, I summon Exploder Dragon," continued Drago.
He played another card, and a smaller Dragon with grey scales carrying a bomb in its front claws appeared, hovering over the field. (1,000 ATK)
"When Exploder Dragon is destroyed by battle, so is the Monster that destroyed it, and I don't take any damage.
"So..."
Exploder Dragon took flight, flying over Gantala. It dropped its bomb, and an explosion incinerated both Monsters.
"Tri-Horned Dragon, destroy his Dragon!" commanded Drago.
The Dark Dragon roared, and slashed with its terrible claws. Gungnir let out a shriek, and shattered into shards of ice.
"I'll set a card, and it's your move," said Drago.
(K: 4,350) - - - - - - - - - - (D: 4,800)
Karl made a draw.
Dewdark... he thought, looking at it. He's a Level 2 Tuner, so I could Tune him with Pilgrim to summon Brionac.
Trouble is, I'd have no cards in my hand after that, so I wouldn't be able to use Brionac's effect...
He looked at his facedown cards.
But if he destroys Dewdark on his turn, I can use Call of the Haunted to summon him next turn, and then I'd be able to use Brionac's effect.
He set Dewdark's card, and then nodded.
Drago drew a card.
He quickly set it, and a reversed card appeared behind Tri-Horned Dragon.
Then he pointed, and the Dragon lunged at Karl's reversed card. A veiled assassin dressed in purple holding two daggers appeared on the card, and then was crushed.
"I end my turn," said Drago.
Karl drew a card. He looked at it.
"Trap Card, activate!" shouted Drago.
"Huh?" asked Karl.
"Cloak and Dagger," said Drago. "I get to name any Monster I can think of, and if that Monster shows its face, it's removed from play.
"Think I'll name... Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier."
Karl glared at him.
He was expecting me to use Brionac... he thought. Well, surprise, surprise... Everyone expects it...
You know, come to think of it, if I lived in the Ice Barrier, I'd be pretty mad at Brionac for hogging all the attention. The Ice Barrier is home to many diverse and interesting beings... He isn't the sole resident.
Well, fine... I'll win this duel without using Brionac at all...
"I activate Call of the Haunted!" he shouted. "I'm bringing back Dewdark of the Ice Barrier."
His facedown card lifted up, and the veiled assassin appeared, making a threatening gesture with his two daggers. (1,200 ATK)
"Then, I activate Limit Reverse," he said, as his other facedown card lifted up. "I'll use it to bring back Caravan of the Ice Barrier."
A merchant dressed as a Sherpa mounted on a creature that looked like a cross between a dragon and a snail appeared. Sacks, packages, and bags were secured to its back. (500 ATK)
"Then, I summon Geisha of the Ice Barrier," he said, playing the card he had just drawn.
In another aura of blue energy, a young woman appeared, dressed in, as her name suggested, the regalia of a geisha. Her kimono had a blue design, like the other Ice Barrier Monsters, and wasn't as long or as loose as the typical kimono; it was tied with a tight obi (the most elaborate part, as befit a geisha) and seemed designed for freedom of movement. (1,500 ATK)
"A geisha?" said Drago, in disbelief. "What's she gonna do, dance and serve tea?"
"She does that, sure," said Karl, "but she can do far more. And I have other Synchros I can summon... I Tune together Dewdark and Pilgrim..."
The two Ice Barrier Monsters leapt up, and flew into the sky. They slowly faded, and turned into six glowing stars.
"Noble beast of the frozen north! Command your territory of ice and snow with your mighty roar of pride!"
(*2 + *4 = *6)
"Synchro Summon... Dewloren, Tiger King of the Ice Barrier!"
With a roar, a large tiger with blue, frost-covered fur, and a black breastplate with gold design, bounded onto the field. He looked up at the setting sun, and let out another mighty roar. (2,000 ATK)
"Not a bad entrance," said Drago, "but he can't match my Dragon."
"Oh really?" said Karl. "You might say that Dewloren is the opposite of Brionac. See, while Brionac usually sends cards back to my opponent's hand, Dewloren's effect requires me to send face-up cards back to MY hand.
"So, I'm sending Caravan, Geisha, Call of the Haunted, and Limit Reverse back to my hand..."
The two Monsters and two Traps vanished, and four cards appeared in Karl's hand.
"...and for each one, Dewloren gains 500 Attack Points."
(4,000 ATK)
"Hold on..." said Drago.
"Attack Tri-Horned Dragon!" shouted Karl. "Roar of the North Wind!"
Dewloren made a mighty roar, sending a storm of sleet and snow at Tri-Horned Dragon. The Dragon staggered under the chilling cold before it shattered into frozen shards.
"Ergh..." grunted Drago.
Karl took Call of the Haunted and Limit Reverse, and re-set them in his Disk.
"I end my turn, which means my Tiger's score returns to 2,000," said Karl. "It's your move."
(K: 4,350) - - - - - - - - - - (D: 3,650)
Drago grumbled, and drew a card.
He set both of his cards in his Disk, and two reversed cards appeared, one in his Spell Zone, and one in his Monster Zone.
"End!" he said.
Karl made a draw.
Call of the Haunted lifted up again.
"This time I'm using it to bring back Samurai of the Ice Barrier," he said.
In a flourish of wind and snow, an intimidating figure appeared next to the Tiger King. He was wearing the traditional armor of the Samurai, but it had an icy, cold sheen to it. He carried a nasty-looking katana blade. (1,800 ATK)
"Next, I'm summoning Geisha again," continued Karl.
He played the card, and Geisha reappeared. She unfolded two colorful fans. (1,500 ATK)
"Then, I'm sending Samurai and Call of the Haunted back to my hand to power up Dewloren again."
Samurai and the Trap Card vanished, and the Tiger King glowed with energy. (3,000 ATK)
"Geisha, attack!" he commanded. "Razor fans of death!"
Geisha made a graceful pose… Then she hurled her two fans forward, throwing them like lethal spinning blades…
A sinister-looking grim reaper holding a scythe appeared on the card. (200 DEF)
"That's my Spirit Reaper," said Drago. "Looks like your Tiger can't touch me."
"Want a bet?" asked Karl, as he threw a card into his Disk. "I play Enemy Controller, to move your Reaper to Attack Mode."
Spirit Reaper stood up, and held its scythe in front menacingly. (300 ATK)
"Of course, that destroys it."
Spirit Reaper shattered into pixels.
"Dewloren, attack him directly!"
The Tiger King breathed a cone of icy frost at the gangster, and he grunted as it hit him.
"Hmm..." said Karl, as the mist started to clear.
(K: 4,350) - - - - - - - - - - (D: 4,650)
"HUH?" said Karl. "You gained Life Points?"
Then he noticed Drago's activated Trap Card.
"Nutrient Z, huh?" he said. "It let you gain 4,000 Life Points before you lost any..."
Well, this deck might work against Jalal's, he thought. Maybe.
He re-set Call of the Haunted, and it appeared with a flash of light.
"I end my turn," he said.
"Then I draw one card," said Drago, making a draw.
He fit it into his Disk.
"And I can play it too... The Beginning of the End. Because I have seven Dark Monsters in my Graveyard, I can remove five of them from play to draw three cards."
He took Spirit Reaper, Red-Eyes Black Chick, Rare Metal Dragon, Tri-Horned Dragon, and Axe Dragonute from his discard slot, and pocketed them. Then he made three draws.
"Think I'll use them," he said, as he looked them over. "I Special Summon Vice Dragon."
In an aura of dark energy, the same Dragon that Scully had used appeared on the field. (2,000 ATK) –) (1,000 ATK)
"Then, I'll sacrifice it..."
Vice Dragon turned into a shifting orb of dark energy.
"...to summon White-Horned Dragon!"
With another roar, another large Dragon appeared. It was gaunt, with red scales, had large wings, and a unicorn-like horn growing from its forehead. (2,200 ATK)
"By summoning this guy, I can remove up to five Spell Cards in your Graveyard from play," continued Drago. "However, you've only used three."
Moray of Greed, Magic Triangle of the Ice Barrier, and Enemy Controller appeared and then disappeared into nothing.
"And White-Horned Dragon absorbs their magical power, gaining 300 Attack Points for each one."
(3,100 ATK)
"Next, I give it an Equip Spell," he said, playing his last card. "It's called Fighting Spirit. It gives White-Horned 300 more Attack Points for each Monster you have."
(3,700 ATK)
"Skewer that Tiger!" he commanded. "Horn drive buster!"
White-Horned Dragon roared, and flew at Dewloren, using its horn like a lance. Dewloren roared in death throes and then shattered.
"Of course, now that he's out of the way, Fighting Spirits' effect is reduced," he continued.
(3,400 ATK)
"But, it has another effect... If you manage to bring back that Tiger and attack, White-Horned can survive if I get rid of the Equip.
"It's your move."
(K: 2,650) - - - - - - - - - - (D: 4,650)
Karl sighed, and made a draw.
"Any ideas, Sal?" he whispered.
"Well, Karl," replied the AI. "If he wants to meet your boss so much, why disappoint him?"
Karl paused.
He looked at the cards in his hand. Then at Geisha and at his two facedown cards.
"Yeah!" he said.
His Limit Reverse lifted up, and Geomancer of the Ice Barrier reappeared. (800 ATK)
Then he played a card, and Caravan of the Ice Barrier appeared again. (500 ATK)
"I Tune together Geomancer, Caravan, and Geisha..." he said.
The three Monsters flew into the sky, Geomancer, the Tuner, leading the way, with the other two following close behind. The three of them faded into light, and then into eight glowing stars.
"Heir to a legacy of a lord of Shadows! Prince and founder with a great destiny! Come to lead your troops into battle once again!"
(*3 + *1 + *4 = *8)
"Synchro Summon... Dragonprince Jalal!"
As the last words of the chant faded, a glowing radiant form descended from the sky. He was a knight, right down to the shining armor that seemed to be made from a scarlet hide of a scaled reptile, but still of the best design. His face, while handsome, had sharp features and hints of gold in the complexion, with pointed ears, and long, golden locks of hair. It was the avatar of Jalal Stormbringer, the half-dragon founder and leader of the Shadowchasers. This card, which he put a little bit of his soul into before giving it to each new Shadowchaser, was each Shadowchaser's most important belonging. (2,500 ATK)
"I suppose you're gonna use that guy's effect to use the Inferno Fire Blast in my Graveyard?" asked Drago. "Well, go ahead... I can take it, and losing 2,400 Life Points will still leave me standing."
Karl chuckled.
"What's so funny?" asked Drago.
"I said that this was Dragonprince Jalal," he said. "Not Jalal the Dragonborn. This is the Mach-2 version of Jalal's card. He did a total makeover of the card just last month.
"See, it all started when a rebellious member of the Shadowchasers decided to abuse the card. He made a special deck containing powerful Spells and Traps like Huge Revolution and Mega Ton Magical Cannon to take advantage of the card's effect.
"He thought Jalal would never find out. Big mistake. He knows everything that happens concerning one of those cards.
"That Shadowchaser was punished, and Jalal went into a meeting with his advisors. He decided for a change across the board, to make a different, less powerful version of his card. He had to cast a powerful spell and meditate for a week to change the ones that were already in use, but it will be worth it.
"Let me explain how this new version works. For each Monster I used for the Synchro Summon, Dragonprince Jalal gains one Fortune Counter. Thus, he has three.
"I can now activate one of three effects, depending on how many Counters I expend. And I'm going to expend all three to use the most powerful effect, to destroy one card on the field!"
Jalal swung his sword forward, and three orbs of light shot towards White-Horned Dragon. It roared, and then shattered into pixels.
"Uh-oh..." said Drago.
"I still have Jalal's regular attack!" said Karl. "Attack him directly! Runic blade slash!"
The avatar of the founder charged at the mob thug, and Drago hollered as the blade made a slash across his torso.
(K: 2,650) - - - - - - - - - - (D: 2,150)
"Okay, that hurt..." he sneered, holding his chest, "but I'm not done yet..."
Karl's Call of the Haunted flipped up. General Gantala appeared once again. (2,700 ATK)
"I forgot all about that guy!" exclaimed Drago.
"Attack him directly and finish this!" shouted Karl. "Shattering strike!"
Gantala leapt at Drago, hitting him with a mighty karate chop and sending him to the floor.
(K: 2,950) - - - - - - - - - - (D: 0)
Drago groaned as he got up.
"All right Drago," said Karl, as his two Monsters vanished. "What's this thing that we're gonna want to know?"
Drago rubbed his head, and stood up.
Then he reached into his pocket and took something out. He looked at it.
"Catch," he said, tossing it to Karl.
Karl caught it.
It was an amulet. The same strange amulet that Nichole had found on the Mean Emcee.
"So what in the world is this?" he asked.
Drago turned to leave.
"You're the genius," he said, over his shoulder. "You can figure it out..."
Karl watched as the thug walked away into the darkness. Then he looked at it again, the strange, two-stepped, upside-down pyramid made of a black substance...
Just looking at it made him nervous...
"You got me on this, Karl," said Sal. "There's nothing like it in my hard drive either..."
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Back at the penthouse, Ben was amusing himself by watching the two Guinea pigs in the cage next to the computer.
One of them had black and white fur, in a swirled pattern. The other had maple-colored fur. But what made the small rodents stand out was that they were about twice the size of regular Guinea pigs.
"I see you've met Elizabeth and Josephine," said Bartholomew, as he walked into the room.
"How'd they get so big?" asked Ben.
"Hmm..." said Bartholomew with a frown. "Dugan and the others found them in the lair of a vykker who was performing illegal biological experiments... Flesh grafts and hormonal injections. His one human subject died a very agonizing death.
"They took him down before it got too serious, but most of the poor animals he had been experimenting on had to be euthanized. Those two were lucky – aside from one growth spurt, they were healthy. Karl keeps them as pets now.
"Come on, I made up the guest room..."
Ben was shocked when he saw how nice the guest room was. He would have been happy sleeping on the couch, but here was a queen-sized bed in a spacious room with a private bath.
"If you need clean towels or clean linens, or anything like that, I'm just down the hall," said the brownie. "So... How long do you think you'll be staying with us?"
"Dunno..." said Ben. "As long as it takes to get my memory back, I suppose... I have to say it worries me...
"I might have a wife and kids out there somewhere, for all I know... And they might be worried sick about where I am..."
"Don't worry about it," said Bartholomew. "The Shadowchasers have connections everywhere... The FBI, Interpol, Scotland Yard, you name it... Sooner later, if someone is looking for you, we'll find out who you are."
In the other room, Dugan was speaking on a video phone with someone.
"No match?" he said. "This guy's fingerprints aren't on file?"
"No Dugan," said the man on the other end, who had a clear British accent. "And I also checked the missing persons' reports… No-one has filed any report of someone matching his description missing.
"And… Well… We checked both Dawson's Encyclopedia of Shadow and Topson's Guide to the Other Side… Neither has any record of a species matching his appearance ever showing up on Earth. Frankly, we're stumped."
Dugan rubbed his chin.
"What about Morgana's Kin?" he asked. "Don't they have some sort of super-library somewhere?"
"Dugan, Dugan!" laughed the man. "You're talking about the Origin Universe. Yes, it's supposedly the biggest store of information in the cosmos… But we can't ask Ms. Garret to go to the archives of the gods for every problem we have.
"This may be a special case, so I'll see if Jalal can at least talk to her. One of her colleges may know something about green elves. Until then, I'll try to dig deeper with what I have."
Dugan shrugged and hung up. He looked in the direction where Ben was talking to Bartholomew.
So he's not a new arrival... he thought. And with no fingerprint record, he likely wasn't born on Earth...
So where the heck did you come from, Ben?
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
GEISHA OF THE ICE BARRIER (Monster Card)
Card Specs
Type: Warrior/Effect
Attribute: Water
Level: 4
ATK: 1,500
DEF: 1,700
Card Description: Once per turn, when you control another "Ice Barrier" Monster, you can activate this card's effect by revealing any number of "Ice Barrier" Monsters in your hand. For each Monster revealed, you can place 1 of your opponent's face-up Spell or Trap Cards in set position. Cards set in this manner cannot be activated during the turn this effect is used.
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
DRAGONPRINCE JALAL (Monster Card)
Card Specs
Type: Warrior/Synchro/Effect
Attribute: Light
Level: 8
ATK: 2,500
DEF: 1,900
Card Description: Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner Monsters
When this card is Synchro Summoned, place 1 "Fortune Counter" on this card for each Monster used in the Synchro Summoning. Once per turn, during your turn, you may remove any number of "Fortune Counters" from this card to activate the appropriate effect.
1 Counter: Select 1 card on the field and place it in set position (if a Monster Card is chosen, switch it to Defense Position).
2 Counters: Draw 1 card from your deck.
3 Counters: Destroy 1 card on the field.
Note: Credit for this card's creation goes to fanfic author Darkblur. Kudos to him!
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Next:
Ben: I'm forced to duel again, but this time, my opponent is no lustful drunk... Rather he's a murderous sociopath who the Shadowchasers have been after for years. If I didn't know his powers were impeded, I would have fled... And I would have anyway if not for one thing... He seems to know who I am.
Can I beat this lunatic? I hope so, because looking at my first hand, something strange is going on... This duel is going to be quite different...
"Demon Clad in Armor; The Dread Emperor" is coming soon.
I will know the truth.