It's a little early for a new chapter, but this one is as short as the last, and I wanted to say a few words.

First, some words in response to a review.

I actually expected to get some opposing viewpoints from last chapter. Metal Overlord and possibly others seem to have no problems with coin-op arcades. Let's just say that my experiences with them were not as joyous as his were.

Maybe I do owe an apology for anyone who liked them. Not all coin-op arcades are breeding grounds for rip-offs, like the ones I knew of that showed up on my local news. In my own defense, Nichole was not quite in a 'holier than thou' attitude when she approached Freddy. She went there to make a deal, and I do believe she succeeded.

But at the same time, I have been criticized for having my protagonists be untouchable and without guile. Nichole is a member of a group that can be controversial at times – St. Cuthbert's House in this case – and I try to portray her as a member of this very militant religious group in addition to the Shadowchasers. Yes, she is not the friendliest of my protagonists, yes, she is willing to hound even legitimate businesses that the group deems harmful to the city's youth, and that's how St. Cuthbert's faithful usually are. You might say that they've had enough of folks who waste time trying to improve the lives of the impoverished via the proper channels and getting miserable results. They've seen pathetic failures like Midnight Basketball and No Child Left Behind, and think that whoever thought them up is living a fantasy. They do it using methods that get results. Even if it is not approved by some facets of society, they have powerful friends – like Josh Shaffer, who may well have originally come from the inner city himself – who admire them for having the gumption to actually do something other than complain.

Again, I apologize for the possibly one-sided view, but I was trying, as I said, to establish one aspect of St. Cuthbert. He's tough, no question about it, and to him, both Law and justice goes far beyond the written rules thought up by mortals.

And Freddy will be heard from again, in a more positive light. I guarantee it.

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DUEL NINE

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Sinister Secrets

The Fallen Angel

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At this time, Ben and Bartholomew were in the middle of their eighth game of chess. Ben had proven much better at the Game of Kings than the brownie had assumed. As of right now, he was undefeated.

Ben sighed as he moved his rook forward three squares.

"Checkmate," he said.

"So it is…" muttered Bartholomew.

"Right now I'm torn between perverse fascination and outright boredom," said Ben, leaning his head on his hand.

"You've obviously played before," said Bartholomew, as he gathered the pieces.

"Like I said before, who knows?" asked Ben. "I could be a former grandmaster for all we know…"

He stood up. He looked at his Duel Disk on the coffee table.

"Not knowing who I am is downright creepy… And this thing that someone seems to have given me makes it even creepier…"

"Uhm…" said Bartholomew, nervously. "You know… I probably shouldn't be doing this, but…"

He reached into his pocket, and took out some things, making Ben raise an eyebrow, as they didn't look like they could fit in a pocket: an eggplant, a rolling pin, a large book, and a baseball glove. ("Hey, I've been looking for that…" he said, as he set it down.)

Then he finally took out a purse. He opened the purse, and took out a business card.

He handed it to Ben. Ben looked at it.

Willy's Widgets

Hand-Crafted Toys

"It's a place run by a friend of mine," said Bartholomew.

"A toy store?" asked Ben, doubtfully.

"He makes toys now," replied Bartholomew. "He used to be a world-class mechanic who knew a great deal about magical engineering… Combining magic with machinery."

Ben looked at the Duel Disk. He picked it up.

"He might know something about that thing…" added the brownie.

Ben looked at the business card again.

"Tell Dugan I went for a walk," he said.

He quickly headed for the door.

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Meanwhile, Karl had not had as much luck as Dugan and Nichole. He had gone to Chinatown hoping to meet up with the biggest information seller there. Everyone in Little China knew that Mr. Xing sold information when he wasn't selling horticulture supplies at his modest store.

Unfortunately, he got to the store to find it for sale, and Mr. Xing nowhere to be seen. He asked around, and discovered that Xing's father, who still lived in China, had been diagnosed with some form of cancer, and Xing had closed shop and flown to his native country to be with him.

It seemed the trip would be a dead end, as far as gaining information went. Still, it was nearly evening and Karl realized he was in the best place in town for Chinese food. And he knew a nice little café that made the best wonton noodle soup in Chinatown.

Unfortunately, as he walked in to place his order, Sal started to beep.

"Uh, Karl?" said Sal. "Someone outside seems to be interested in you…"

Karl glanced over his shoulder and saw a Cheshire Cat grin outside the window.

Karl rushed out of the restaurant as the mysterious smile vanished. He saw a robed figure running, and he quickly pursued it down the street.

He saw that it was heading towards the Nine Dragon Wall, one of the local landmarks.

He didn't have to pursue her – yes, her – any further. The girl, who was dressed in purple robes and a hood, was standing with her back to the wall, smiling like a cat that had eaten a canary. Karl flinched a little… He had heard stories of how the old Rare Hunters had once worn similar robes…

But what really caught Karl's attention was the amulet around her neck… The same amulet that Drago had given him…

"What's the deal?" he asked. "What does that symbol mean?"

"You want to know about this?" she said with a giggle, pointing to it. "Well, I'm not sure… I bought it at Macy's."

"I'm not amused," said Karl. "I want answers…"

"Hey, I just came out looking for a good time," said the girl.

She pulled her left sleeve back. A Duel Disk was on it.

That gave Karl quite a shock. For a split second, he could swear that it wasn't a human arm, but a gnarled, sinewy one, with a wicked claw for a hand. Then he looked at it with a full glance, and it seemed to be a regular arm again.

"I figured you might give me one…" said the strange girl. "That is, if the big, bad Shadowchaser isn't afraid of little Shelly…"

"Where did you escape from?" asked Karl, with an odd look.

"Not telling," said Shelly.

Karl sighed.

It probably wouldn't be hard for me to lose this weirdo, he thought. But… That amulet… It means something, likely something dangerous, and I want to know what it means.

His Duel Disk activated.

"It's a duel you want, huh?" he said. "Fine… But no strings attached…"

For now… he thought. Maybe if I get her talking, I can learn something.

"I wouldn't think of it!" laughed Shelly, as her own Duel Disk activated. "Come on, get your game on!"

"I'd prefer it if you didn't say that…" said Karl.

(Karl: 8,000) - - - - - - - - - - (Shelly: 8,000)

"All right, draw!" said Karl, making his first draw.

He looked at the card he had just drawn.

This guy is useful, he thought, but he's Level 6…

He picked another card and set it on his Disk. A reversed Monster appeared.

"That will be all for now," he said.

"Then it's my move!" laughed Shelly, as she quickly drew a card off her deck. "And I summon…"

A dark shadow rose in front of her.

"…Nurse Reficule the Fallen One!"

Karl couldn't help but be nervous at the sight of the female Monster in front of him – a woman covered from head to toe in bandages, with leathery wings on her back, and long hair that looked like sharp blades. He had heard of Nurse Reficule the Fallen One before – other duelists had described her to him – but apparently, a second-hand description was not enough to prepare one for the intimidating presence this creature exuded. (1,400 ATK)

"Okay, that's… Disturbing…" he said.

The fallen angel looked at him with a smile that made his blood run cold…

"Reficule, attack!" shouted Shelly. "Infectious wrath!"

Reficule threw her hands forward, and her bladed hair shot forward towards the facedown Monster…

Then, a large, segmented cross between a worm and a caterpillar, with translucent, icy skin appeared on the card. The blades bounced off. (1,800 ATK)

"Not quite!" said Karl, nervously. "My Numbing Grub in the Ice Barrier is a little too much for her!"

Shelly made a pout. She took two cards from her hand, and set them in her Disk. Two facedown cards appeared.

"It's your move…" she said, with a grin.

(K: 8,000) - - - - - - - - - - (S: 7,600)

Karl looked at Reficule, then he made a draw.

He looked at the card he had drawn the last turn.

What am I worried about? he thought. This guy will handle her.

"I sacrifice my Grub…" he said, as the Numbing Grub turned into an orb of energy, "to summon General Raiho of the Ice Barrier!"

The orb burst, and standing in its place was a tall, handsome, raven-haired man, dressed in a blue toga with loose sleeves and a square-shaped hat. (2,100 ATK)

"And he's stronger than your Fallen One," he said.

"Not for long," said Shelly, as one of her Trap Cards lifted up. "I activate Brutal Potion. And it Equips to Reficule."

Reficule glowed, and two shackles appeared on her wrists. Then a wooden cangue appeared around her neck.

"Good lord…" said Karl.

"Reficule is a masochist, Shadowchaser," said Shelly. "This actually helps her. Whenever you take effect damage, it grants her 1,000 Attack Points until the End Phase.

"And that's going to happen right now… I activate Gift Card."

Her other facedown card lifted up.

"Usually, this card increases your Life Points by 3,000. But due to Reficule's own effect…"

"I lose them instead!" gasped Karl.

Reficule's eyes glowed with black fire, and Karl screamed as an aura of the same black fire enveloped him.

Reficule's Attack Score shot up to 2,400.

"I'm beginning to see why she… fell," said Karl. "I guess I won't be attacking this turn… I'll set one card facedown, and that will be all."

A set card appeared in his Spell Zone.

A three-thousand-point hit to my Life Points, he thought, and no negative cost to her to do it… If she is crazy, she certainly isn't stupid…

(K: 5,000) - - - - - - - - - - (S: 7,600)

"My move!" laughed Shelly.

She made a draw.

"And the glorious pain is about to get even better!"

"You're crazy," said Karl.

"We're all a little crazy, aren't we?" asked Shelly. "I play this…"

A Spell Card appeared in front of her.

"Hand Destruction?" asked Karl.

"Now we must both ditch two cards and draw two replacements," said Shelly.

Karl shrugged, and discarded Dance Princess of the Ice Barrier and Sacred Spirit of the Ice Barrier. He made two draws. Shelly made two discards, and also made two draws.

"And the cards I just discarded were Monsters called Burning Algae!" laughed Shelly. "Normally, when sent to the Graveyard, they restore your Life Points by 1,000 points…"

Lovely, more Fire Monsters… thought Karl. Well, I've got one trick to deal with them…

"The idea is for Reficule to turn that into burn damage, right?" replied Karl. "Well, it's not gonna be that easy."

"Huh?" asked Shelly.

"General Raiho has a powerful effect of his own," said Karl, pointing to his Monster. "Before you can activate a Monster effect with him around, you have to discard a card from your hand.

"It doesn't affect Reficule, because she has a Continuous Effect. But each of your two Burning Algae requires a discard before their effects activate.

"It's your choice, Shelly…"

Shelly frowned. She looked at the three cards in her hand.

"Clever…" she said. "In that case, I choose to keep what I've got. You dodged those two bullets…

"But not THIS one! I play Upstart Goblin!"

Oh no… thought Karl, as the Spell Card appeared. Raiho can't do anything about Spells… And Reficule will turn that Life Point gain into damage too…

Reficule's eyes burned again, and Karl screamed again. Shelly drew one card.

"Don't forget the effect of Brutal Potion," said Shelly, as Reficule's Attack Score rose to 2,400.

"Now slay his general!"

What happened next was downright creepy. Reficule's hair shot forward and constricted around General Raiho, and then pulled him towards her. The Fallen One grinned…

Karl cringed as a hair-blade cut downward and Raiho shattered.

"So much for him," said Shelly, as she set a card in her Disk. "I'll set this, and then you go…"

A new facedown card appeared.

(K: 3,700) - - - - - - - - - - (S: 7,600)

"My move…" said Karl.

He made a draw.

"Trap Card activate…" said Shelly.

Don't tell me it's another Gift Card? thought Karl.

"The Paths of Destiny!" laughed Shelly. "Now each of us tosses a coin. Heads means you gain 2,000 Life Points. Tails means you lose 2,000 Life Points."

A gold coin fell into Karl's hand.

"Let me guess..." he said, sarcastically. "Nurse Ratched there is going to make sure I lose Life Points no matter what the toss is. Well, you might lose the toss too."

"I'm feeling really lucky tonight..." chuckled Shelly. "Well? Toss the coin!"

"All right, I might as well humor you…" said Karl.

He tossed the coin, then caught it, and then slapped it on his wrist.

Ironically, it was heads.

He grunted again, as Reficule cast her dark curse again.

"Your turn…" he growled.

Shelly laughed, and tossed the coin. She let it fall to the floor.

However, it was tails.

She gasped, and then screamed in pain as a red aura burned her.

"Serves you right," said Karl, as he played a card. "I summon Spellbreaker of the Ice Barrier."

He played the card, and a lovely lady wearing a red blouse, blue slacks, and platinum blonde hair, holding a golden scepter, materialized in front of him. (1,200 ATK)

"Now, I use her effect," continued Karl. "I send one other Ice Barrier Monster in my hand to the Graveyard…"

He took Geisha of the Ice Barrier, and discarded it.

"…and as long as she remains on the field, neither player can use Spell Cards until the End Phase of my next turn.

"And my current turn is over now."

(K: 1,700) - - - - - - - - - - (S: 5,600)

Shelly looked a little pissed. She made a draw.

Her hand consisted of Bad Reaction to Simochi, Pot of Avarice, and A Feather of the Phoenix.

If I used A Feather of the Phoenix this turn, she thought, I could get back Gift Card next turn, and win this duel… But to do that, I have to get rid of his Spellbreaker…

Shouldn't be too hard…

"Reficule…" she commanded. "Wipe out Spellbreaker of the Ice Barrier!"

The evil nurse shot her hair at the Spellcaster, who glared at her…

"I activate… Realize Defense!" shouted Karl, as his Trap Card shot up. "Because Spellbreaker can defend better than she can attack, this Trap Card moves her to Defense Mode right now!"

Spellbreaker knelt and crossed her arms. (2,000 DEF) Reficule shrieked and fell on her behind.

Shelly was clearly angry.

"I end my turn…" she snarled.

(K: 1,700) - - - - - - - - - - (S: 5,000)

"I draw!" shouted Karl, making a draw.

He looked at the card.

"And I summon the Tuner Monster, Reese the Ice Mistress!"

There was a blast of cold air, and a woman in a blue dress, brown skirt, and blue headdress appeared next to Spellbreaker. Although the words "Ice Barrier" weren't in her name, the snowflake crest present on most of the group was on the headdress, marking her as an honorary member. (800 ATK)

Then, the two female Monsters leapt into the sky. Reese turned into two glowing stars, and Spellbreaker followed, turning into four. Karl raised his hands to the sky, as an arctic wind started to blow.

"Mighty spirit of the North Wind, descend to bring your savage storm to the frozen tundra!"

(*2 + *4 = *6)

"Synchro Summon… Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier!"

With a roar, the first and likely the most famous Synchro Monster of the Ice Barrier loomed over the field. It was a large, serpentine creature with a dragon's head (it was actually a Sea Serpent, not a Dragon) with a small pair of arms, large wings, and a hide the color and texture of ice. It radiated an aura of pure cold. (2,300 ATK)

"Not him…" stammered Shelly, whose voice suddenly took a serious – and frightened – tone.

"I see Brionac's reputation precedes him," said Karl, as he discarded one of the cards in his hand. "I'm sure you know then, that for each discard, Brionac can blow one card clear off the field."

Brionac roared, and a raging blizzard accompanied the bellow. Reficule tried to struggle against the fierce wind, but she was swept up, and then vanished, her card reappearing in Shelly's hand.

"And even if you summon Reficule again," continued Karl, "she won't have the benefit of Brutal Potion. That card was destroyed.

"All right, Brionac! Attack directly! Death blizzard!"

Brionac exhaled a mighty blast of snow, ice, and sleet at the young duelist, who screamed before she was knocked over.

Karl took one of the two cards left in his hand, and set it in his Disk. A facedown card appeared.

"That will do it for now…" he said.

(K: 1,700) - - - - - - - - - - (S: 2,700)

"Ready to end this foolishness?" he asked. "Ready to come clean about what that amulet means?"

"NEVER!" screamed Shelly. "Not if you keelhaul me during a shark alert! Not if you hogtie me over an anthill and…"

"Can we possibly be less graphic?" asked Karl, making a face.

Shelly didn't answer. She just drew a card.

Then she grinned.

This will do… she thought.

"I summon Reficule again!" she exclaimed, as the sinister nurse reappeared. (1,400 ATK)

"And now that your Spellbreaker is gone, I play A Feather of the Phoenix!"

The Spell Card, materialized in front of her. She discarded one of her other cards.

"By ditching one card, I get to take any card I want from my Graveyard, and place it on top of my deck…"

Gift Card slipped out of her discard slot, and she quickly transferred it to the top of her deck. She grinned wickedly at Karl.

"You remember how Reficule turned this Trap into a deadly weapon that inflicted 3,000 points of damage without me having to pay a dime, right?" she asked. "Oh, I know what you're thinking… You're going to ice Reficule – so to speak – before I get a chance to draw it. Well I'm drawing it right now…

"I play my second Upstart Goblin!"

She threw the Spell Card she had drawn this turn into her Disk…

"I don't think so!" shouted Karl.

His facedown card shot up.

"I activate Joint Future!"

He quickly discarded the last card in his hand.

"This Counter Trap negates your Spell Card…"

Upstart Goblin shattered into pixels.

"…and there's an added bonus. When Joint Future negates a card, that card does NOT go to the Graveyard. It goes to your deck, and the deck is then reshuffled. That means both Upstart Goblin and Gift Card will be out of reach for the time being."

Shelly fit the Spell Card into her deck, and hit the Disk's auto-shuffler.

"Yeah, well, it's not over," she said. "It's your move."

"She's right, you know," said Sal. "You have no cards in your hand right now. If you discard whatever you draw to use Brionac's effect, she'll still have Life Points left, and she may have one chance to turn it around. If you attack Reficule with Brionac, she may even get more than one chance."

"Then I'd best draw the right card…" said Karl.

He made a draw. He looked at it.

"Just what the doctor ordered," he said with a grin.

"I summon Samurai of the Ice Barrier!"

In a cloud of mist and ice crystals, the frigid Samurai materialized, holding his blade aloft. (1,800 ATK)

"All right!" he ordered. "Send Reficule to the ER!"

Samurai of the Ice Barrier slashed at the fallen angel with his icy katana, and the bandaged nurse screamed. She dissolved into globs of darkness.

"Now to finish this! Brionac… Attack directly!"

Brionac roared, and Shelly hollered as she was hit by its death blizzard again.

(K: 1,700) - - - - - - - - - - (S: 0)

Karl looked at Shelly, who was lying prone on the ground.

"Now maybe I can get some answers…" he said. "I just have to…"

And then he was startled as a dark fog started to rise around him.

"What the?" he exclaimed. "Sal, what's happening?"

"It seems to be a Wall of Fog," replied Sal. "And Shelly is getting up. I'm assuming she's using it to cover her escape.

"She must have been more powerful than we thought, if she can cast spells…"

Actually, Shelly could do nothing of the sort. She had not cast the Wall of Fog. It had been cast by some people who were looking for her. And her bid to flee was not to escape from Karl, but from them.

She didn't succeed. After she had run a block, two men tackled her and wrestled her to the ground.

As they tightened the grip they had on her, Graves walked into the light, and sighed.

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A short time later, Graves and the same two men led Shelly, now wearing a straitjacket, into a room where Tiberius was waiting. Just by the look on his face, you could tell he was annoyed.

"Shelly, what is this?" he asked. "The third time this month?"

"Aw, I just wanted to have some fun!" laughed Shelly. "I was gonna come back!"

Tiberius sighed.

"Shelly, listen..." he said. "The fact that you're acting so erratically is proof that the new arm we gave you is messing with your mind. The Orb Chamber is supposed to fix that. You can't expect it to do its job if you keep picking the locks and sneaking out.

"Furthermore, you're risking giving us away every time you go out! Do you want the Shadowchasers knocking on our door?

"Graves is going to take you back there... Listen good... If this happens one more time... I'll have no choice but to recommend that you be expelled from this organization."

Shelly gave a look of horror. Tiberius walked up to her.

"You know what happens to dropouts, right?" he asked.

Shelly gulped.

"They… They're offered as sacrifices for the rituals..." she stammered.

Tiberius held her by the chin.

"You're young, beautiful, and chaste, Shelly..." he said, softly. "You'd be perfect for that purpose... So show a little common sense, and stay there this time."

Tiberius slumped in his chair as Graves led her out of the room. He opened a drawer next to the chair and searched until he found a bottle of Tylenol.

She picked a bad night to give me a headache, he thought. The Triad will be calling in less than an hour if they're punctual, and they usually are.

I wonder how Lorelei is doing with Hape? I haven't heard from them in a while…

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REALIZE DEFENSE (Trap Card)

Normal Trap

Image: Skull Guardian inside a glowing sphere of energy.

Card Description: Select one Attack Position Monster you control who has a base ATK lower than its base DEF. Switch it to face-up Defense Position.

Note: "Realize Defense" was first used by Yusei in the "Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's" episode "Clash of the Dragons (Part 2)". Creative credit goes to the writers of that episode.

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JOINT FUTURE (Trap Card)

Counter Trap

Image: The image on this card was not clear.

Card Description: Discard 1 card from your hand. Negate the activation of an opponent's Spell or Trap Card, and send it back to the owner's deck.

Note: "Joint Future" was first used by Yusei in the "Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's" episode "Signs of Doom (Part 3)". Creative credit goes to the writers of that episode. Also note that this card was a Normal Trap in the anime, but I have made it a Counter Trap because its effect fits the description of one.

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Next:

Ben: The more clues I find, the more mysteries I find I have to solve. It seems the toymaker that Bartholomew directed me to was once a master craftsman who at one point had more than one thing in common with Geppetto.

A duel starts, and once again, my deck is different; only this time, the Monsters in it are a group that few take seriously. Are the gods laughing at me? Perhaps… Or maybe they are testing me by giving me this deck that few have been able to master, and even fewer have been able to tolerate.

"Semblance of Life; The Clockwork Dolls" is coming soon.

I will know the truth.