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DUEL SEVEN
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Where the Eagles Cry
The Exile
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In the Gold Coast, just down the street from the Angle Building, was an upscale apartment building.
At the top was the penthouse suite, but it was as different inside from the one where the Shadowchasers made their headquarters as Good was from Evil. The common room was set up like a sinister dojo, lit by candlelight, with suits of Japanese-style armor standing in the corners and matching weapons on the walls. On one wall was a frightening mural of a city being torn apart by a giant tornado.
Dugan was not going to let the décor frighten him... Nor was he going to be frightened by the thug coming at him with a baseball bat.
As the thug lunged, Dugan dodged aside, and his fist slammed into the thug's stomach, knocking him backwards.
Dugan looked at three other thugs.
"Anyone else want to see what eight years in the Marines can teach you?" he asked.
The thugs backed up, nervously...
Then Dugan heard clapping behind him.
"Ah, Major Dugan," said a voice with a clear Japanese accent. "As subtle as ever..."
Dugan turned around and saw the owner of the penthouse as he walked in, a man wearing a green kimono. Taka Kyodai, the Shadowkind crimelord of Chicago.
Taka looked normal enough to Mundanes, but Awares could see his taloned hands and feet, and the white feathers that he had in place of hair. He was actually a type of Kenku, one of several species of Yokai. (The word 'taka' meant 'hawk' or 'falcon'.) He had once been a general of the armies of the House of the Howling Gale, but had been cast out and exiled for some unspecified crime.
Some said that, to this day, Taka lived in fear that the Lord of the Howling Gale would send an assassin to finish the job. (Of course, if that were true, Taka had done a poor job of hiding out – he didn't seem to do anything to hide his identity from other Shadows.)
Dugan never liked dealing with crooks... He liked dealing with the Yokai even less. But he figured that since Taka was an old military man like him, it might be possible for them to find common ground.
Taka poured whiskey into a glass from a bottle.
"So, Dugan," he said. "What brings you to my humble abode? You want some of this? It's thirty-year-old Scotch..."
Dugan knew why Taka was being so friendly. He wasn't afraid of Dugan in the least. The bodyguards were more for show than anything else. Taka was more than capable of ripping a man in half if he wanted to. Fortunately, he was a bit more cultured than that.
"I'm not interested in gourmet whiskey, Taka," said Dugan. "I came because you're the biggest player in this city's underworld. You have been since we took down Vance."
"You flatter me," said Taka.
"And you're good at finding out things that people don't want found out," continued Dugan. "We have a guest who can't remember himself who is cursed somehow. A muscular elf with green skin. I found him on the South Side, and I'm betting that if someone can find out how he got there in the first place, you can."
"Hmm..." said Taka. "Interesting... Assuming I could find this out... Just what reason would I have to do so... Shadowchaser?"
"Because, if you did, I'd owe you, Taka..." replied Dugan, pointing at him. "And from a Shadowchaser, that's not bad."
Taka looked at Dugan. He slowly drained the glass of scotch.
"Wait here..." he said.
Dugan watched as Taka walked out of the room. Then he heard his henchmen behind him.
"Easy, Ernie, get up..." said one of them.
Dugan turned around, and saw that Ernie was apparently the guy he had punched. As two of them were helping him get up, another was getting a glass of water.
Must have hit him too hard, thought Dugan.
"You all right?" asked Dugan.
Ernie took a bottle of pills out of his pocket.
"Uh, I'll be fine..." he said. "I have an ulcer that won't clear up..."
"If I may ask," said Dugan, "isn't working as a bodyguard kind of dangerous for someone with a stomach condition?"
Ernie swallowed two of the pills.
"Oh, this isn't what I do full time," he said. "I'm just trying to make extra money..."
Dugan gave him a strange look.
Something suspicious here, he thought.
"We all need some extra cash these days, Dugan..." said Taka's voice from behind him.
Dugan turned, and saw Taka, who was now wearing a Duel Disk.
"Tell you what, Major..." he said. "It was a rather boring day up to now... I planned to spend it playing golf, but my opponent cancelled.
"I know you don't play golf, but if you would accept a challenge of a different sort..."
He took a deck of cards out of his kimono and quickly shuffled it.
"...I might be more amenable to your proposal..."
Dugan paused. The Yokai didn't recognize the Treaty, but they did use Duel Monsters on occasion, and were known for being very clever in terms of their deck strategies. The Bride of the Howling Gale had shown up in Los Angeles a few months ago, and had faced a Shadowchaser there in a Turbo Duel. Her deck combined Dark Simorgh with the regular Simorgh, a lethal combo in a format where Trap Cards are very essential.
Still... If it was the only way to get the proposal past the initial stage...
"Fine..." he said.
His Duel Disk activated.
"I accept!"
"Splendid!" said Taka. "Then prepare... The Windy City is about to live up to its name in one area..."
(Dugan: 8,000 - - - - - - - - - - Taka: 8,000)
"Duel!" they both shouted.
"I draw!" said Taka, whipping a sixth card off his deck.
"And I summon..."
A gust of wind blew through the room.
"Flying Kamakiri #1!"
A man-sized mantis with wings appeared in the center of the room. It clicked its mandibles. (1,400 ATK)
"That will do for now..."
Dugan made his first draw.
A pretty standard card for a Wind Deck... he thought, looking at his hand. Well, sorry pal, I'm not giving you a chance to use that thing's effect...
He played a Spell Card.
"I played Tribute to the Doomed!" he shouted. "I'll discard one card to destroy your Kamakiri!"
He discarded Scrap Goblin, and a swarm of linens erupted out of the ground, grabbing the Insect. It shattered into pixels.
"Next, I summon Scrap Chimera," he continued.
With a roar, the lion-headed, winged Beast made out of scrap metal and wood materialized on the field. (1,700 ATK)
"And by summoning it, I get to Special Summon a Tuner with the word 'Scrap' in its name from my Graveyard."
Scrap Goblin appeared next to Scrap Chimera. (0 ATK)
"Now, I Tune my two Monsters together..."
The two Scraps leapt towards the ceiling. Both of them faded into seven points of light.
"Deep within the junkyard, an ominous portal to the Underworld opens! Soul of a demon, body of debris and cast-iron, rise from the infernal pits below!"
(*3 + *4 = *7)
"Synchro Summon... Scrap Archfiend!"
With a roar, a large Fiend loomed over the field in front of Dugan. It bore an uncanny resemblance to the King of Games' signature Fiend, Summoned Skull, but like all Scraps, was made of sheet metal, pipes, and other junk. (2,700 ATK)
"Most impressive..." said Taka.
"Attack him directly!" shouted Dugan. "Blazing bolts!"
Scrap Archfiend's eyes glowed, and two blasts of energy shot out of them, knocking the Kenku backwards.
(D: 8,000 - - - - - - - - - - T: 5,300)
"End turn..." said Dugan.
Taka got up, panting for breath.
"I have to ask, Major..." he said. "Why are you so committed to helping one Shadowkind amnesiac?"
"Let's just say I promised to help him," said Dugan. "And I already loused up in an attempt to do so. I owe him."
"Did you try knocking him on the head?" asked Taka. "I've heard that can help..."
"That's a myth!" said Dugan, now annoyed.
"Well then..." said Taka.
He drew a card.
"If you want to enter one person's debt to get out of another's, who am I to argue?
"But let's see where this duel leads... I play the Field Spell, Dragon Canyon!"
He fit the card into the Field Slot in his Disk, and the results were dramatic. The penthouse faded away, and the walls of a desert canyon rose around them, under a cloudless sky. Above, Dugan could see dragons flying overhead.
"Dragon Canyon has two effects," said Taka, "and I can use one each turn by discarding a card from my hand.
"This turn, I'm going to use its second effect, which lets me send a Dragon-Type Monster from my deck to my Graveyard...
"So, I'll discard Dragunity Javelin from my hand, to send Dragunity Phalanx to the Graveyard as well."
Dragunity Monsters? thought Dugan.
Taka quickly made the two discards.
"Next," said Taka, "I summon Dragunity Legionnaire."
Another wind blew through the Canyon, and a Winged Beast appeared in front of Taka. It was more muscular than most Winged Beasts, wearing a toga with a fur collar, gauntlets, a helmet that covered the upper half of its face (including its beak, apparently), and boots. It had large, green wings. (1,200 ATK)
"When Legionnaire is Normal Summoned, I can take one Level 3 or lower Dragunity Dragon-Type Monster from my Graveyard, and Equip it to him like an Equip Spell. I choose Dragunity Javelin."
Legionnaire lifted its right arm, and a golden gauntlet, vaguely shaped like a small Dragon, appeared on it.
"Next, I use Legionnaire's other effect," continued Taka, "sending the Equipped Dragon to the Graveyard to wipe out one of your Monsters!"
Legionnaire pointed at Scrap Archfiend. The gauntlet shattered, and the Archfiend exploded into flames and hot metal.
Dugan looked dumbfounded as a hubcap rolled past him.
"So much for that," said Taka. "Dragunity Legionnaire, attack him directly!"
Legionnaire flew at Dugan, and socked him in the chin. Dugan grunted a little.
That hurt...
Never trust a Yokai, he thought. He's putting a little black magic into this duel... Probably to make it more interesting...
"It's your move, Major Dugan," said Taka.
(D: 6,800 - - - - - - - - - - T: 5,300)
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At this moment, Tiberius was leading Hape down a long hall.
"So where are we going?" asked Hape.
"If you're going to be part of this 'club' as you put it," said Tiberius, "I need someone to show you the ropes."
They walked into a lounge where a television was turned on.
"Lorelei?" said Tiberius.
A woman seated on the couch in the middle of the room stood up...
She was the type who would stand out in any crowd. Her perfect figure was accented by her tight black slacks and a low-cut shirt with a midriff that was the same color. Her waist-length hair was platinum blonde, and her eyes, easily her most distinguishing feature, were green, and resembled a cat's.
"New recruit, Uly?" she asked.
"Marcus Hape, meet my second-in-command, Lorelei DeLuc," said Tiberius. "She'll show you around."
Lorelei giggled a little as Tiberius left.
"He only thinks, I'm his second-in-command," she whispered to Hape. "Actually, the Triad sent me here to make sure he doesn't goof up."
"You're a tiefling, right?" asked Hape.
"A cambion, actually," replied Lorelei. "My mother was a succubus. Long story. But enough about me..."
She turned off the television.
"It was a rerun anyway... This way..."
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Dugan looked at Dragunity Legionnaire.
Shadow Duel or not, he thought, that thing should be easy to take down...
He drew a card.
I just have to remember... The rules of Duel Monsters still apply...
"I set a Monster," he said.
A hidden Monster appeared.
"That's all for now..."
Taka made a draw.
"I activate... Cards of Consonance," he said, as he played a Spell Card.
"I simply have to toss one Dragon-Type Tuner Monster from my hand that has 1,000 Attack Points or less..."
He discarded Dragunity Darkspear.
"...and I get to draw twice."
He made two draws. He looked at them, put them aside, and chose another card.
"Next, I summon Dragunity Dux."
There was another gust of Wind, and a new Winged Beast appeared next to Legionnaire. This one was slender, as most Winged Beasts were, had a hawk's head, and metallic wings. He carried a long rod with a mass of ribbons at the end. (1,500 ATK)
"Like his comrade Legionnaire," continued Taka, "when Dux is Normal Summoned, I get to Equip him with a low-Level Dragunity Dragon from my Graveyard. So... This time I'll choose Dragunity Phalanx."
Dux lifted its right arm and a bronze gauntlet with two blades, vaguely shaped like a Dragon appeared on it.
"Dux also gains 200 Attack Points for each card I possess with the word 'Dragunity' in its name."
(2,100 ATK)
"Huh?" said Dugan. "But you only have two!"
Taka shook his head.
"I said 'card', not 'Monster'," he replied. "Dragunity Phalanx counts.
"Dragunity Dux, take care of his Monster."
Dux thrust its odd weapon forward, and the streamers started spinning, causing a fierce wind to blow...
A very large rodent appeared on the card, and was blown into pixels.
"You killed my Giant Rat," said Dugan, "and it does for Earth what your Flying Kamakiri does for Wind. I think I'll summon a second Giant Rat."
Another large rodent, clutching a skull in its claw appeared in front of Dugan. (1,400 ATK)
"Very well..." said Taka. "I'll set a card, and move Legionnaire to Defense Mode."
A facedown card appeared, and Dragunity Legionnaire knelt and folded its wings over its chest. (800 DEF)
Dugan made a draw.
Now we're talking... he thought.
"I sacrifice my Rat..." he said.
The Beast tuned into a globe of light.
"...for Scrap Golem!"
A big, hulking, mechanical creature appeared where Giant Rat had been. Its torso was an old refrigerator, its head an old microwave oven, and its arms were rubber tubes with an old submarine propeller for a right arm. (2,300 ATK)
"Next, I'm using its effect... Once per turn, I can use it to Special Summon a low-Level Scrap from my Graveyard. So Scrap Goblin, return!"
The mechanical Beast-Warrior appeared again. (0 ATK)
"Then I can Tune my Monsters together again..."
Scrap Goblin turned into three stars. Then Scrap Golem turned into five. They all flew towards the ceiling.
"A spark of life ignites among trash and debris thrown on a pile of a dismal junkyard, a spark that grows into a white-hot flame! Rise from the refuse and show your might..."
(*3 + *5 = *8)
"Synchro Summon... Scrap Dragon!"
Scrap Dragon appeared on Dugan's side of the field, and let out a fierce roar. (2,800 ATK)
"Uh, boss..." said one of the bodyguards. "That's not good..."
"I've seen worse..." said Taka.
"Really?" said Dugan.
He set a card into his Disk, and a facedown card appeared.
"Well, by destroying the Spell Card I just set, my Dragon can destroy one of your cards.
"I could wipe out one of your Monsters... But... I think it would be better for me in the long run to get rid of this Field Spell.
"Scrap Dragon, tear Dragon Canyon down!"
The set card shattered, and Scrap Dragon let out an earsplitting roar. The canyon walls around them crumbled into dust, and then disintegrated, returning them to the penthouse.
"I'm not done with you..." said Dugan. "Attack Dragunity Dux! Toxic blaze!"
"I activate a Trap!" shouted Taka.
His facedown card lifted up.
"Staunch Defender! Now, instead of attacking Dux, your Dragon will be attacking Legionnaire..."
Scrap Dragon blasted its flaming breath, incinerating the defending Legionnaire.
"...so I don't take any damage at all."
"But Dux loses 200 Attack Points," said Dugan.
(1,900 ATK)
"It's your move..."
Taka drew a card.
"I activate Spellbook Inside the Pot," he said, playing a Spell Card.
As he played it, the Pot of Greed appeared in mid-air, and three glowing texts floated out of it.
"A useful card that lets us both make three draws."
Dugan shrugged. He drew three cards, and Taka did the same.
"You aren't the only one who can use Synchros, Major," continued Taka. "First, I summon Dragunity Militum."
The Monster that appeared was a Winged Beast, but many of its features also suggested an Insect, or maybe a Fairy of some sort. It was thin, had long, chestnut hair, and gossamer wings. It wore a toga, a helmet with a crest and a mouth guard, and carried a rapier and dagger. (1,700 ATK)
"Next, I activate Dragunity Phalanx's effect."
"Wait..." said Dugan. "That's the Dragon that's Equipped to Dux..."
"Precisely," said Taka. "And its effect now lets me un-Equip it and move it to my Monster Zone."
Dux's gauntlet turned to a globe of energy, and then the energy turned into a small, bronze Dragon with blade-like horns on its head. (500 ATK)
"Next, I Tune together Dragunity Dux and Dragunity Phalanx..."
The Dragon took to the air, and the Winged Beast followed. They turned into six glowing stars.
(*2 + *4 = *6)
"Synchro Summon... Dragunity Knight Gae Bulg!"
With a bellow, a Dragon – or more specifically, a Dragon with a rider – flew onto the field. The Dragon was a larger, serpentine version of Dragunity Phalanx, while the rider was unmistakably Dragunity Dux, holding a lance. (2,000 ATK)
"Does that... Always happen?" asked Dugan, pointing to the large Synchro.
"Yes..." said Taka. "Dragunity Synchros require a Dragon-Type as the Tuner and a Winged Beast as the non-Tuner. The Tuner becomes the steed, while the non-Tuner becomes the rider.
"But... Dragunity Knight Gae Bulg has the same effect no matter what specific Monsters are used to summon it.
"I'll demonstrate... Gae Bulg, attack Scrap Dragon."
"Huh?" said Dugan, as the Dragon and its rider flew towards Scrap Dragon.
Then Gae Bulg's Attack Score shot up to 3,200. It impaled Scrap Dragon with its lance, and the Scrap let out a holler before exploding.
Taka grinned, and held up a card – Dragunity Legionnaire.
"I simply have to remove a Winged Beast in my Graveyard from play," he said, placing it inside his kimono, "and my Monster gains its Attack Points. It can do that during both my Battle Phase and yours.
"Now, Dragunity Militum..."
Then he was surprised to see Scrap Golem blocking Militum's path. (2,300 ATK)
"Huh?" he said.
"When Scrap Dragon is destroyed," said Dugan, "I get to Special Summon another Scrap from my Graveyard."
"Well then..." said Taka.
He fit two cards into his Disk, and two set cards appeared.
"I end my turn, which means Gae Bulg's Attack Score returns to 2,000... Don't forget, Dragunity Dux is still in my Graveyard."
(D: 6,400 - - - - - - - - - - T: 5,300)
He's right... thought Dugan, making a draw. Fortunately, I've got what I need here to summon Scrap Twin Dragon...
"I play... Foolish Burial," he said, playing a Spell Card.
He took Scrap Beast from his deck, and quickly discarded it.
"Then, I can use Scrap Golem's effect to summon that Monster to the field..."
"Actually, you can't," replied Taka, as a facedown card lifted up. "Activate Skill Shock!"
Dragunity Militum vanished, and Scrap Golem shook as electricity coursed over it.
"All I have to do is sacrifice a Monster, and your Golem can't use its effect this round, and can't attack either."
And with another Winged Beast in his Graveyard, thought Dugan, Gae Bulg can use its effect twice more...
He looked at his five remaining cards.
This will work, he thought.
"I play Enemy Controller!" he exclaimed. "Gae Bulg is moving to Defense Mode."
The big Dragon folded its wings, and the rider put down the lance. (1,100 DEF)
"Then, I summon Scrap Hunter," continued Dugan.
The clunky Machine on tank treads appeared in front of him. (1,600 ATK)
"Your Dragunity Knight can use its effect to boost its Attack Score," said Dugan, "but not its Defense.
"Go! Attack! Predatory rush!"
Scrap Hunter sped at Gae Bulg, its drill bit spinning. The Dragon roared, and then it and its rider burst into pixels.
Taka growled a little.
"It's your move, Taka," said Dugan.
The Kenku made a draw.
"Oh, I'll move, all right," said Taka. "And you aren't going to like it.
"I remove Dux from play to Special Summon Garuda the Wind Spirit."
In another gust of wind, a far more familiar Winged Beast appeared in front of Taka, a hawk-headed one with brown wings, wearing a pair of red trousers and a sash. (1,600 ATK)
"Then, I sacrifice it..."
The Wind Spirit turned into a globe of light.
"...for Dragunity Angusticlavii!"
The Winged Beast that appeared this time was the biggest one so far. It stood seven feet tall, wore blue pants and a jacket with a fur collar, and a red helmet that covered the upper half of its face, including its beak. It had large blue wings, and carried a bow and a quiver of arrows. (2,100 ATK)
"Don't ask me to spell it," he said, as his last facedown card lifted up. "Next, I activate Limit Reverse to summon Dragunity Darkspear to the field."
Another small Dragon hopped out of the card, this one with black scales and a head that was shaped like a sword blade. (1,000 ATK)
"Then, I Tune them together to form an even stronger Dragunity Knight..."
Darkspear and Angusticlavii turned into eight glowing orbs this time, and they flew up to the ceiling...
(*3 + *5 = *8)
With an even greater roar than last time, a new rider on a Dragon mount appeared in front of Taka. Like before, the rider was clearly Angusticlavii, while the Dragon was a gargantuan version of Darkspear. (2,000 ATK)
"Meet Dragunity Knight Barcha," said Taka.
"Uh..." said Dugan.
"I know what you're thinking," said Taka. "It has pathetic scores for a Level 8 Monster. Well, what Barcha lacks in points, it gains in effect.
"You see, when Synchro Summoned, I get to Equip it with as many Dragon-Type Dragunity Monsters from my Graveyard as possible."
He took Dragunity Javelin, Dragunity Darkspear, and Dragunity Phalanx, from his discard slot, and placed them into his Disk. With each one, the rider's armor became more full and decorated.
"And for each Dragunity Equipped to Barcha," continued Taka, "it gains 300 Attack Points."
(2,900 ATK)
"I could have even Equipped Dragunity Knight Gae Bulg to it…" he continued. "But I needed to save one slot on my Spell Zone. To make it even stronger, I give it the Equip Spell Mage Power."
He threw a card into the last slot in his Spell Zone.
"It gives Barcha 500 more Attack Points for each Spell Card I have. That's 2,500 extra points, in case you can't do the math."
(5,400 ATK)
"Attack!" shouted Taka. "Destroy his Golem!"
The Dragon and its rider swooped at the junk-bot, spearing it with a lance, blowing it to shards and knocking Dugan down.
(D: 3,300 - - - - - - - - - - T: 5,300)
"I'm finished..." said Taka, with a grin.
Dugan got up, and dusted himself off.
He made a draw.
He quickly set it, and it appeared in his Spell Zone. Then he turned Scrap Hunter's card, and it shielded itself in Defense Mode. (400 DEF)
"End turn," he said.
Taka drew a card. Then he grinned.
"I summon Dragunity Tribus!" he laughed.
The Winged Beast that appeared looked like a humanoid parrot, with two sets of wings, wearing a noble's outfit in white with green trim. (500 ATK)
"It may have only 500 Attack Points…" continued Taka, "but that's 100 more than your Hunter's Defense Score, and once it's out of the way, one blow from Barcha will end this.
"But just in case this doesn't work, I'll use Tribus's effect anyway… Which lets me send a Level 3 or Lower Dragon to my Graveyard from my deck. Like Dragunity Brandistock."
He discarded the card.
I never imagined there were so many low-Level Dragons, thought Dugan. I had assumed that the list got rather small after Masked Dragon.
Then Tribus conjured up a bolt of green energy and threw it at Scrap Hunter, blowing it to metal shards.
"Thank you," said Dugan, with a smile. "By destroying my Scrap Monster, you've enabled me to activate this!"
His Trap Card lifted up.
"Scrap Crash! When a Scrap is destroyed, it destroys all face-up Spells and Traps on the field."
"But that means..." said Taka.
"That's right..." said Dugan. "Dragunity Knight Barcha loses the three Dragunities that are Equipped to it. Mage Power too."
The rider's armor shattered into pieces, the Equip Spell was blown to bits, and Barcha's Attack Score fell down to its base score of 2,000.
Taka made a face.
"Seems you were good regarding the 'just in cases', Taka…" said Dugan.
And then he grunted as Barcha's lance stabbed into him.
"I guess so…" cursed Taka, "I end my turn…"
(D: 2,200 - - - - - - - - - - T: 5,300)
Dugan held his chest and took a deep breath.
"Then it's my move..." he said, making a draw.
He fit a card into his Disk.
"I play Scrap Lube," he said.
Taka raised an eyebrow as the Spell Card appeared, and a large pool of oil started to spread over the floor.
"By playing this, I get to Special Summon a Scrap from my Graveyard. Any Scrap at all…"
Scrap Dragon rose out of the pool of oil, and loomed over the field. (2,800 ATK)
"Give me a break…" said Taka.
"There are some conditions, of course," continued Dugan. "My Dragon can't use its effect, and I have to skip my Battle Phase this turn.
"So I'll end my turn now…"
Taka looked hard at Scrap Dragon. He made a draw.
"Just what I needed!" he laughed. "Now I can get rid of your likely target and destroy your Dragon in one fell swoop.
"The Spell Card, Armory of Dragunity!"
He played the card.
"By sacrificing a Dragunity, I get to take any Equip Spell Card I want from my deck."
Tribus vanished into grains of light, and a new card appeared in Taka's hand.
"You also get to make one draw," continued Taka, "but fortunately, I'll get to use this first…"
Dugan shrugged, and drew a card.
"Now, I play Darkworld Shackles!" exclaimed Taka, playing the card. "And I'll Equip it to your Monster."
Scrap Dragon roared as a set of chains shot out of the floor and bound it. Its Attack Score plummeted to only 100 points.
Dragunity Knight Barcha charged at the shrunken Synchro, and it exploded with a jab of its lance.
(D: 300 - - - - - - - - - - T: 5,300)
"You took the bait just as I'd hoped, Taka," said Dugan, closing his eyes. "I use Scrap Dragon's effect to bring Scrap Goblin back from the Graveyard one more time..."
The Goblin appeared once again. (0 ATK)
"Now wait one minute!" shouted Taka. "You told me its effect was negated!"
"True, Scrap Lube's presence prevented Scrap Dragon from using its effects," said Dugan. "But since the effect I just enacted activates in the Graveyard, Scrap Lube was no longer a factor.
"Someone like you should know, Taka… When you can't outfight a guy, outsmart him. That's one of the first things they taught me in the Marines."
Taka frowned.
Then he actually smirked a little as Dugan made a draw.
"Now then," said Dugan, "with one Scrap on the field, I'm able to Special Summon Scrap Orthros."
A new Scrap appeared next to the Goblin. It looked similar to Scrap Beast, with one major difference: it had two heads. (1,700 ATK)
"Having done that, I now have to destroy a Scrap Monster..."
Scrap Goblin shattered into shards of metal.
"But that's okay, because now I get to use Goblin's effect, and recover a Scrap from my Graveyard."
Scrap Chimera slipped out of his discard slot, and he took it.
"Then, I'll summon Scrap Chimera..."
The Chimera appeared, and roared. (1,700 ATK)
"...and use its effect to Special Summon Scrap Beast from my Graveyard."
With another roar, Scrap Beast bounded onto the field. (1,600 ATK)
"Three Monsters in one turn?" said Taka, nervously.
"I'm not done," said Dugan, as he played a Spell Card. "By using my Double Summon Spell Card, I can summon a fourth. So I'll bring out another Scrap Beast."
A twin of the first Beast leapt onto the field. (1,600 ATK)
"Now, one more Spell Card," said Dugan. "Thanks for using Armory of Dragunity, by the way… If you hadn't, I wouldn't have gotten to this… I play... Scrap Sheen!
"To play this card, I have to destroy one Scrap Monster..."
One of the two Scrap Beasts shattered into pixels.
Then the other three Scraps turned all shiny and clean, like they had just been chrome-plated.
"The new paint-job gives them all 1,000 more Attack Points," said Dugan.
The remaining Scrap Beast rose to an Attack Score of 2,600, while Scrap Orthros and Scrap Chimera rose to 2,700 apiece.
"Time to end this!" shouted Dugan. "Scrap Beast, destroy Dragunity Knight Barcha with Junkyard frenzy!"
Scrap Beast pounced, landing on the much larger Monster and smashing it into a flurry of pixels.
"Now, Scrap Chimera and Scrap Orthros both attack directly!"
Scrap Orthros belched a streams of green fire, and Taka screamed in pain.
(D: 300 - - - - - - - - - - T: 0)
Dugan watched Taka sit up and rub his head as the Monsters vanished.
"Well?" asked Dugan.
"I'll... Go make some phone calls..." said Taka.
"Well..." said Dugan, as the crime boss stood up. "It's a start..."
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
"So..." said Hape.
He and Lorelei were walking down a long hallway.
"I assume your dad was some poor sap that your mom seduced? That's usually how it goes with succubi."
"Heh..." said Lorelei. "Not at all. My dad was a powerful Doomdreamer. The Dark God told him in a dream that he would be betrayed by his apprentice if he took one. So he decided to sire an apprentice rather than recruit one, thinking that an offspring could be trusted. He used a ritual to summon my mother, and made a deal with her, promising several favors and tithes to the Abyssal Lord she served in exchange for her bearing his child."
"So... Let me get this straight..." said Hape. "She was your real mother... But it was sort of the same deal as a surrogate mother?"
Lorelei grinned.
"She got much more than the typical surrogate mother..." she replied. "True, she had to serve as an incubator, but she got a luxurious suite with twenty-four hour room service and satellite TV, plus servants to wait on her hand and foot.
"Trouble was, my dad never treated me as well... He never intended me to be independent... He wanted to mold me into the perfect priestess of the Dark God, one whom he would grant an audience to and allow membership to the Doomdreamers. My childhood was rather harsh as a result...
"The Dark God did speak to me, earlier than he anticipated. I almost feel sorry for my father... He never saw it coming… Never realized that the one who would betray him was me..."
"You killed him?" asked Hape.
"Nah," replied Lorelei. "Turned him into a cat with a Baleful Polymorph potion. I altered the formula so he never lost sight of who he used to be. Kind of an ironic twist. I still keep him in my bedroom. He nags me from time to time, but over the years, he's actually become sort of proud of how I turned out."
Hape looked at her strangely.
"You any good with a sword?" asked Lorelei.
"I've used them before," replied Hape.
"Follow me," said Lorelei. "We'll see for sure..."
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
SKILL SHOCK (Trap Card)
Counter Trap
Image: Sasuke Samurai surrounded by an aura of lightning.
Card Description: Activate when an opposing Monster activates an effect. Tribute one Monster you control. Negate the activation of the effect. The opposing Monster cannot use any effects or attack this turn.
Note: "Skill Shock" was first used by Judai in the "Yu-Gi-Oh GX" episode 162. Creative credit goes to the writers of that episode.
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
SPELLBOOK INSIDE THE POT (Spell Card)
Normal Spell
Image: Three glowing textbooks floating out of the Pot of Greed.
Card Description: Both players draw three cards from their decks.
Note: "Spellbook Inside the Pot" was first used by Judai in the "Yu-Gi-Oh GX" manga Creative credit goes to the writers.
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ARMORY OF DRAGUNITY (Spell Card)
Normal Spell
Image: Dragunity Primus Plus holding a Sword of Deep-Seated
Card Description: Tribute 1 "Dragunity" Monster you control. Your opponent draws 1 card. Select 1 Equip Spell Card from your deck and add it to your hand.
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Nichole: Who is more corrupt? A drug dealer who sells addictive narcotics to kids, or a guy who runs a controversial but perfectly legitimate establishment where the services are also addictive, cost a great deal of money, and specifically target teenagers?
Answer the question any way you like. To a member of St. Cuthbert's House like myself, there's little difference between them on a moral standpoint. Still, I have to go to one of these establishments right now, because the owner, like Taka, is privy to information that few people know about. And in order to get that information, I have to accept a wager I'd rather not make.
"A Hard Bargain; Electric Avenue" is coming soon.