Here's chapter ten of my Yu-Gi-Oh GX fanfic. The duel with Tao and Aigis (Gaia's alter-ego) has reached a critical point especially since Aigis begins playing with Tao's mind making him remember how he's met just about everyone so far. But now that Tao's finally snapped what's his mysterious new card and will it be his greatest ally or will it all be for naught and will have to leave the academy.
To make sure everyone is up to speed Tao is left with 950 life points and Chinese Spirit Zhu with his original spell card Balance Substitute.
Aigis is left with 800 life points with Chinese Spirit Da Shu (taken from Tao), DFF-1 Garland (equipped with EX Mode Activate), DFF-IV Golbez, and one face-down card.
DISCLAIMER: ALL THE CREDIT FOR YU-GI-OH GOES TO KAZUKI TAKAHASHI AND SHONEN JUMP. I OWN ONLY SOME OF THE OCs AND THE DECKS USED BY THEM.
Duel X: Trial of Chaos; Tao v. Chaos, Part 2
"Why defend her when you have no prior relationship to her at all?" Tao asked.
"We both know that that's a lie," Aigis said with Tao's eye twitching. "You and I both knew her before your parents, before my condition, and before she was blessed with her powers. Admit it; we've known her for years."
"Stop it!" Tao shouted placing the card on the duel disk. "It wasn't just you, Destiny, or Kazuya. I've known all of you; Locket, Amun, Jason, but more than all of you…Ninomiya," he thought to himself. "I summon Yin Yang Warrior (2700/2000) in attack mode!" Tao called out summoning a shadow clothed in a wide brimmed cone hat, a cloak with the Yin/Yang symbol on its back, a two gauntlets on its arms engulfed in lightning.
"How can you summon a monster like that without a sacrifice?" Amun asked from the sidelines.
"Yin Yang Warrior is a unique monster in that it has the most outrageous summoning condition," Tao explained. "First, I remove from play all Chinese Spirit monsters in my deck, hand, graveyard, and on both fields as well as not being able to summon any other monsters for the remainder of the duel," he said as the boar on his field disappeared along with the rat from Aigis' side of the field and several other cards from his deck, graveyard and none in his hand leaving him with only one card. "Then I also have to pay half of my life points," he said as his life points dropped from 950-475. "And finally, I'm force to play a spell card from my deck, Chaos Trial!"
The entire field went black and then separated into two sides with Tao on the black side and Aigis on the newly developed white side. The students and teachers looked at the new field with chills running up their spines.
"Chaos Trial is a spell card that borderlines forbidden," Tao said catching Aigis' attention. "As long as it's in play and Yin Yang Warrior is as well I take no damage from battles and neither do you. So Yin Yang Warrior, attack, Separator Form!"
The small warrior disappeared from view and then showed up behind Garland making a martial arts chop down his body splitting it in half. Garland almost disintegrated but took a resting pose in the Spell/Trap card zone. Aigis chuckled and then activated his face-down card.
"I activate Assist-HP!" Aigis called out as the light from his earlier duel shone on the field. "With this I can sacrifice Garland and inflict half of his attack points as damage directly to you! Take him down!"
The light shot out as Garland became pure energy. Tao put his out as Yin Yang Warrior did the same blocking the light and dispelling it.
"What!" Locket exclaimed from the sidelines. "How did you do that?"
"Simple, you don't think Yin Yang Warrior would come with no advantages. While out on the field I can take no damage from the effects of spell, traps, or monster effects," Tao explained as the spell card played by Aigis was destroyed in front of him. "I'll play one card face-down and end my turn. So is that all you got, or are you going to take your turn?"
"Like heck!" Aigis shouted angrily. "Draw! What happened to you? And why did you change your name again?"
Aigis' eyes fixed onto Tao who simply kept his eyes halfway opened staring back.
"It all started seven years ago," Tao thought to himself. "I was just nine years old when I first came to Japan with my parents in search of the Kappa. Back then I thought everything they did was stupid; I always believed that the only monsters in the world were the ones that existed in fairy tales and Duel Monsters. I was the transfer student at the elementary school when I walked in I was still a cheerful kid who just wanted to make friends. I was asked to give my name and I answered the question, but I can never remember what I said.
"My name is…" and that's all I remember. The first people I met were Gaia and Destiny, they treated me like a friend, but just new me as "Bud," or "Kid," but it didn't matter what they called me. We played together Duel Monsters together and were never apart. We promised each that we would never forget each other and that we would eventually make our own decks just for us. Until, one day during school the teacher made an announcement that I was to leave the school when my parents walked in. They pulled me out of the room and threw a gas grenade in the room and wiped their memories of the last week clean.
"Outside the school they asked me if that was all the people in the classroom and I lied. I said that that was everyone when I knew that wasn't entirely true. Gaia was in the class, but at the time was developing Aigis who had his own memory and knew all about me. I thought to myself that is there was anyone who would keep our promise it was him, and it looks like I was right."
"I summon DFF-V Exdeath (0/2800 in defense mode!" he called out summoning another warrior wearing a sky blue suit of armor with a horned helmet, spiked shoulders, a long blue cape, a helmet topped with a two-ended plume with a thin opening, and armor decorated with jewels, gold trim, and beads. "With this card I can search out any of my DFF monsters in my deck like DFF-II The Emperor (800/2000) in attack mode!" he called out summoning a more regal figure wearing gold and purple armor decorated with small spikes, purple and white stripes, demonic faces including one on his back obscured by his hair, gauntlets sporting extended claws, a purple crown with a snake head emerging from it, and a purple cape and long blond hair. "And by switching Exdeath I can destroy your monster instantly, no questions asked."
The Emperor placed his hand over Exdeath changing it to an offensive position. The Emperor then held out his hand and shot a beam of shadowed light towards the small warrior when Tao placed his hand over the field.
"I play Mantis Stance!" he said with a card showing a large praying mantis. "With this I can instantly negate the effects of a monster and then destroy it."
Yin Yang Warrior made a stance similar to the mantis on the card and hit the beam with his right hand sending it back towards the Emperor causing it to disintegrate. Yin Yang Warrior stayed in the position for several seconds and then returned to a ready position. Tao looked up at the audience and looked over at Jason.
"I remember meeting you too," he thought to himself. "By that time, I was twelve. We left to England and hired your family as guides to the waters of Loch Ness to find the sea serpent said to live there. With your mother and father were Kazuya and his family. Kazuya, you, and I became friends, but I was still border lining anti-social and wanting to be left alone after I was attacked by Mothman. Thankfully, you wouldn't allow that. By then I went by Tao ever since I realized my fascination with Chinese Mythology.
"The three of us eventually got lost on the Loch and were attacked by the monster, or so we thought. For us, all we wanted was to get out of there. You told us about your powerful gem that could turn you into a knight from medieval Europe. You held it in your hands and spoke in the ancient tongue they spoke in during the time period. The creature left and we all thought that you were the biggest hero ever. But our celebration was short lived when our parents scolded when Kazuya stayed with us to Mawman, but like Destiny and Gaia you're memories of me were erased.
"Leaving another friend of mine behind without every getting the chance to say goodbye was beginning to take its toll on me. After the attack by the Death Raptor I completely shut down emotionally and was wishing that you were there to snap me out of it."
Tao then averted his eyes to Amun and narrowed his eyes.
"You were the only person who understood how my parents acted," he thought. "It was two years before I met Jason and Kazuya and my parents were touring Egypt in search of the Salawa or Set Dog. You, being the archeologists son, knew all about the Nile River and agreed to take us along. Unlike before, I didn't like you because you sympathized with only my parents. When we reached the Nile River I fell into the banks of it. For the first time you noticed me and dove in to help me and told me what to do.
"To be honest, I never thought that you would be capable of punching a Nile crocodile in the nose without worrying about the consequences. Your father found us and then took us back, but my parents insisted on staying and seeing it through to the end. Your father tried to take me by force only for my parents to take me back. You, Amun, looked at the scene and followed your father who had given up and left me with my parents.
"As I watched you leave into the distance I thought two things; one, that maybe someone would listen to me, but two, maybe for the first time I could fight back to back with someone and consider him not only a friend, but a comrade."
Tao sighed looking back at his monster and then towards Locket who seemed more interested in Destiny than the duel trying to see what was going on behind the curtains.
"And you, Locket, well let's just say I've always had mixed feelings about you. After I was attacked by the Mothman I was hurried over to a medical facility against my parents' wishes. The injuries were so severe that I was transferred all the way to Boston Medical Hospital where you and I shared a room. To be honest I felt that your necklace was always staring me in the face waiting to strike, but it was nice to talk to somebody for once in awhile.
"You asked me why I was here and I told you, and you had to think that it was the coolest thing in the world that I believed monsters existed. We talked for hours in that hospital and then we both fell asleep due to fatigue. We played Duel Monsters when the nurses weren't around because they thought it promoted violence. By then I still had my original deck of nothing but scrap when you asked me if I wanted to make my own special cards. When I said yes you told me about the drawing contest to make your own deck, you showed me your card concepts and I honestly didn't like them, but apparently they were good enough.
"The day I was discharged was the day you were leaving as well. My parents picked me up at the lobby and whisked me off to the next adventure without the chance to say goodbye, but I see that they passed a drug that erased your memories of me."
Tao looked then at the closed curtains where he knew who was in there.
"Ninomiya…" he thought to himself.
Back on the battlefield Aigis smirked and looked at Tao.
"So is that what happened?" he asked.
"What!" Tao asked.
"Well, let's just say that I can tell what you're thinking," Aigis said. "I know that you know everyone here. Jason, Destiny, Amun, Locket, Gaia and myself, but what of Ninomiya? Where does he fit into your life?"
"None of your business," Tao said.
"Ah, but soon it will be," Aigis said pulling the top card of his deck. "I summon DFF-VII Sephiroth (1900/700) in attack mode!" Aigis called out as another warrior appeared, but with no armor, a long black with white and lavender sashes underneath, a long straight sword, a belt decorated with beads, and a similar bracelet also with beads. "Now I can either destroy a target monster or downsize it to zero attack points. Sephiroth, destroy him Super Nova!"
The warrior ran up and swung his sword at Yin Yang Warrior only for him to block it in mid-air. Yin Yang Warrior then kicked Sephiroth back to his side of the field leaving Aigis stunned.
"By removing a light or dark monster like Yin Spirit-Suzaku I can make Yin Yang Warrior immune to any effect for the remainder of the turn," Tao explained. "Anything else you'd like to do?"
"No, that'll be all," Aigis said grunting placing a card face-down.
"Then it's my draw!" Tao said looking at the card drawn. "Now I activate the second effect of Chaos Trial. By discarding all of one kind of card I can make you discard the all of the same kind from yours. Since I only have one kind of card in my hand you and I have to discard all spell cards in our hands."
Angrily Aigis discard his spell cards to the graveyard being two Ex Mode Activates. Tao smirked and looked back at the nurse's office and held his head as though in a migraine. Looking down his arm Tao began violently coughing falling to his knees.
"Yin Yang Warrior, attack Separator Form!" Tao said struggling to get up. "And I'll activate the effect of Zodiac Spectrum in the graveyard! When more than three zodiacs are removed from play I can remove from play all spells and traps in my graveyard to grant one of my monsters the power to inflict 500 points of damage ever time it destroys a monster by battle."
A large pentagram star appeared on Yin Yang Warrior's head as it disappeared and reappeared behind Exdeath slicing it in two sending it to spell/trap card zone by its own effect and then dropping Aigis' life points from 800-300 by Zodiac Spectrum. Panting out of exhaustion the two duelists both continued to glare at each other.
"End turn," Tao said.
"Finally," Aigis said. "I draw! Now I summon from my hand DFF-XI Gabranth (1200/1700) in attack mode!" he shouted summoning a large knight with gray and silver armor, holding a large curved sword, a large helmet with curved horns, and a black cape with an insignia on the back. "And with this monster I can bring to my hand from even my graveyard EX Mode Activate. Now I'll equip it to Sephiroth!" he said as the dark clothed warrior grew a black wing out of the right shoulder gaining attack points from 1900-2900. "Sephiroth, attack! Heartless Angel Glide!"
The one-winged warrior flew towards the Yin Yang Warrior and stabbed through the area where the heart would be destroying it. Upon destroying it Tao's life points dropped from 475-275.
"Hey, how come Tao's not losing any life points?" Locket asked.
"Chaos Trial's effect is only active while Yin Yang Warrior is on the field," a voice from behind said.
"Kazuya?" Amun asked. "How long have you been here?"
Kazuya came out from the crowd and joined Jason, Amun, and Locket, "Long enough to know that Tao is finally going to lose. You see Chaos Trial is a card that only Tao has the guts to play. And while using it, it's the only time that anyone has even a remote chance of beating Tao because while playing that card he's not careful, he makes mistakes."
"You mean Tao has lost to people?" Amun asked.
"But you said he's never lost," Jason said.
"You're right," Kazuya said. "Tao has never lost to a single person in his life. The only time he's ever gotten down to zero life points is when he chooses to do so."
"He can't be that stuck-up," Locket said.
"No, just watch and you'll see," Kazuya said pointing towards the field.
The Chaos Trial card began engulfing itself in electricity and began glowing black and white. Tao smiled and looked up at Aigis who was waiting for what he thought would be like an explosion.
"Congratulations, Aigis. You are the third person to be my opponent and see my life points deplete to zero," Tao said.
"What?" Aigis asked.
"It's simple," Tao said. "When Yin Yang Warrior is destroyed Chaos Trial goes with it and now comes the fun part. We get to find out my verdict in this duel. Should the card at the top of my deck be a monster card I'm safe and you take its attack points as damage, but if not then I take damage equal to the attack of the monster that destroyed Yin Yang Warrior. There're only four monsters, extra copies of each of the Yin and Yang spirit monsters, left. Should I not win, it means that I have lost this duel but not to you. That's what it means to say I don't lose to people, ever."
Drawing the top card of his deck Tao revealed it to be a trap card. The Chaos Trial exploded and reduced Tao's life points from 275-0. Tao smiled while looking up and then walked away from the scene.
"Hold on, Tao!" Aigis shouted while Tao turned around. "Does this mean you won't come after Destiny?"
"No," Tao said. "You did not defeat. My own card did and therefore it was my loss at my own hands and therefore the second part of the deal is null and void. But I will leave the academy."
"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Jason said as he jumped at him with Amun, Kazuya, and Locket following after him.
Tao simply smile and threw a small canister in the air after pulling a cord and then ran away as the entire room lit up in a flash of light. Falling to the ground Jason felt a few tears falling to the ground as he tried to look to see Tao at the end of the hall.
On the docks Tao began rowing at the boat with all his might after leaving his Slifer Red jacket at the dock neatly folded. Looking down his arms Tao saw the two scars as though they had gotten larger since before the duel began. Sighing Tao went back to the duel and what he thought about meeting everyone and then back to Ninomiya.
"Ninomiya," he thought. "I met you an hour after I was attacked by the Death Raptor. Kazuya had disappeared searching for my parents and the way I understand met up with his parents who forbade him from going back into the forest leaving me for dead. You introduced yourself as my godfather. You took me to China where you trained me in martial arts. I confided with you in everything I did. And I everything I had gone through. The saddest part about being with you was the night you gave me my Tao deck.
"It was my fourteenth birthday and you had made the cards for me and given them to me specifically. You then spoke to me in private about my scars saying that they weren't battle wounds but an infection that has already coursed through my body after only two years. He told me that in another three years, by the time I'm seventeen, I will die of this infection if the proper antidote is not made. It requires magic and that's what I need from the people I meet.
"My final question to him was whether there was an alternate treatment, and he said only this, the cure of being a monster is to be able to make peace with our own monster. I've pondered that question for two and a half years now gaining the magic that other people possess. But it won't be enough until I have the catalyst that Destiny's necklace holds. I have six months until I die, but they've always said whatever doesn't kill you only makes you that much stronger."
Tao disappeared into the fog of the morning while rowing his small boat through the darkened waters. Back on the dock Ninomiya smiled and waved out to the sea as though expecting Tao to wave back.
Chapter ten complete. Well, with more questions answered more question come up don't they? Tao will die in six months if he doesn't get the necklace from Destiny, but why does he have to sneak about doing it? What of Ninomiya's plan for Destiny? And what of the other students who have grown to see Tao as their friend? And who will be Destiny's next opponent in her preparation for battle?
Next time: Not realizing Tao has left the island Destiny, accompanied by Jason, search for him only to be challenged to a double duel by two of Duel Academy's finest. Next time: Double Trouble; Zodiac and Knights of the Round Table v. Spell Counter and Kuriboh.