Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL.
Chapter 11: Daughter of Atlas
"Ragnazero, attack her directly!" Rio commanded. "Dance of Frozen Death!"
Rio's ice maiden flew forward and twirled around to cut Cleo with her sword of ice. Iris averted her gaze to avoid seeing what she thought would be the deathblow while Dante looked on with an eager grin. Before Ragnazero could strike, however, a strange mostly black device suddenly materialized on Cleo's side of the battlefield. It had a black pendulum moving back and forth beneath it like the pendulum of an old clock. On the head of the device was a face similar to that of a bat or a gargoyle. The strange object let out a loud chime and hit Ragnazero with a blast of sound that pushed her back over to Rio's side of the battlefield.
"What the…! What did you just do, Sonja?" an outraged Dante demanded to know.
"When I'm attacked directly by an opponent's monster, I can summon Battle Fader from my hand to negate the attack and end the battle phase." Cleo explained. She then turned her attention back to her unwanted opponent. "You're going to have to do better than that, Rio."
"I end my turn." Rio coldly announced.
Cleo drew her next card. As she did, she suddenly heard an all to familiar laugh. Turing her head, she saw the Crimson Devil hovering next to her.
"Seems like you're in a bit of a bind." Cleo's demon twin noted. "I can help you get out of it, if you want. All you have to do is accept my offer."
"The last thing I need is your help, demon." Cleo quietly told her.
"You sure about that?" the Crimson Devil asked. "It's not looking very good for you. Right now your best card is in the Graveyard and your dear Rio has a nearly indestructible monster out on the field. You're going to need a miracle to win this one, and I'm the one who's offering it."
"Shut up!" Cleo told her. "I set one card on the field! Then I switch Battle Fader to Defense Mode and end my turn!"
Rio drew her next card. "I summon Blizzard Thunderbird in Attack Mode!" Her golden winged humanoid bird of ice appeared on the field. "Blizzard Thunderbird, destroy Battle Fader! Ice Lightning Strike!"
Blizzard Thunderbird let loose a cold wind and shot a bolt of blue lightning at Cleo's remaining monster. Battle Fader was struck in its bat-like face and shattered to bits in an instant.
"Ragnazero, attack my dear Sonja directly!" Rio ordered. "Dance of Frozen Death!"
Ragnazero flew full speed at Rio and twirled around as she slashed Cleo across the chest with the sword in her right hand. Cleo fell to one knee, as all the heat seemed to drain from her body. She felt like she had been out in a cold winter storm for hours. All the color seemed to drain from her body and her life points had fallen to a sparse 600.
"Cleo!" a very worried Iris called out.
"This is turning out to be a much more splendid duel than I thought it would." Dante laughed. "I would tell you to make it easier on yourself, Sonja and just surrender. You would die without suffering more than you already have. But then you've always been the kind who's too stupid to surrender even when they know they have no chance of winning. Plus it's more entertaining for me to see you suffer as much as possible."
"I… I'm not giving up, Fairbanks." Cleo told him as she finally got back to her feet. "Not until Rio is free from this spell you've put her under!"
"I see. Well then let me tell you what will happen to your precious Rio if by some miracle you happen to win." Dante told her. "Why don't you take a look at Rio's arm? Notice anything familiar?"
Cleo looked and saw a familiar silver device on Cleo's right upper arm. It was identical to the device that Cleo had been forced to put on before the start of the duel. To her horror, Cleo realized that Rio was dueling under the same conditions that she was.
"Figure it out?" Dante asked. "If you do by some miracle win this duel, Rio will be injected with the same toxin as you will. It would've been unfair after all to make you the only one to duel under such harsh stakes."
"Damn you!" Cleo cursed.
"It's your choice, Sonja." Dante told her. "Either surrender and give up your own life to save the life of your princess, or somehow win and watch her die before your very eyes."
"No way!" Iris exclaimed. "How is that even a choice? There has to be some other option!"
"There is none, dear Iris." Dante told her. "There are only two ways that this duel can end. And either way, I'm the only one who's going to win."
"I set one card on the field and end my turn." Rio announced. "It's your move, dear Sonja."
Cleo was at a loss as to what to do. She couldn't win, not if it meant killing Rio. Yet if she lost, there was every chance that Dante would continue to use her. It seemed like an impossible choice.
"Now will you accept my offer?" the Crimson Devil asked. "Clearly you don't have what it takes to see this duel through to the end."
"Shut up." Cleo told her.
"I can end this for you though." The demon offered. "All you have to do is give yourself over to me. With my power I can finish this duel. The girl will die of course, but I can at least help you get revenge by allowing you to crush the one responsible for leading the girl to her death. Then after that we can make this entire world ours. You'll be the one standing at the top as the ultimate duelist. I know that has to appeal to you."
"Just what are you exactly?" Cleo asked.
"My true name is Red Nova, and I am the one who can give you absolute power." The demon answered. "The kind of power that can make even the gods tremble in fear. All you have to do is give yourself over to me."
"And what about Rio?" Cleo asked.
"Forget that girl." The Crimson Devil told her. "She's lost to you now. After this duel, you can have any woman you want along with the rest of the world. Now will you just stop this hesitating already and let me help you? There's no way you can keep saying no."
"Go to hell." Cleo told her. "You say you offer me the world. Well nothing is worth the cost of Rio's life! And I'll be damned if I ever give myself over to someone like you!"
With that, Cleo's Signer mark began to glow with a blazing red light. Her violet eyes turned crimson and her body began to give off a brilliant red aura like a burning flame, startling Iris and Dante.
"What… what are you doing?" the demon asked with a look of fright.
"You say you offer me power, then fine." Cleo spoke as she drew her next card. "But I'm going to take that power from you and use it how I want to! I summon Barrier Resonator in Attack Mode!"
Appearing on Cleo's side of the battlefield was yet another Resonator demon. On the back of the demon was a device that looked like an electric generator, and on the banner on the front of his torso was the symbol of an orange lightning bolt.
"Now I activate my Trap, Archfiend's Roar!" Cleo announced. "By paying 500 life points I can summon an Archfiend monster from my Graveyard! Arise Red Dragon Archfiend!"
Cleo's life points dropped to 100 and a pillar of red flames burst up through the ground next to Barrier Resonator. The fames subsided after a moment to reveal Red Dragon Archfiend.
"Because I now have a level eight Synchro Monster on the field, I summon Creation Resonator from my hand!" Cleo announced.
Another Resonator demon appeared on the field. On the back of the small demon was a large blue fan attached to a cursed metal rod with two blue-feathered wings on the sides. Adorning the banner on the front of Creation Resonator's robes was a yellow symbol that resembled an inverted S.
"No… no, you can't do this!" the Crimson Devil told Cleo.
"I tune the level one Barrier Resonator and the level three Creation Resonator into my level eight Red Dragon Archfiend for a level twelve Synchro Summon!" Cleo announced.
Both of the little demons clinked their tuning forks against the metal rods they were holding and turned into four rings made of crimson flames. The rings encircled Red Dragon Archfiend and formed into a large ball of fire similar to that of a star. At the same time, several tendrils of red light shot from Cleo's Signer Mark and snared the Crimson Devil.
"No! Not again!" the demon cried as her body began to turn into red light. "Damn you and your accursed father! DAMN YOUUUU!"
With that, the demon was completely transformed into red energy and pulled into the Singer Mark. A split second later, a new card formed in Cleo's right hand.
"The Empress and the Devil shall here and now be as one! A Raging Spirit! Lift up the very cries of Creation itself!" Cleo chanted. "Synchro Summon! The power to smite the gods, Red Nova Dragon!"
With a roar, Red Dragon Archfiend burst from the ball of flames in a new form. He was larger and was mainly bright red and dark black. On his back were four very large blade-like wings. Blade-like spikes ran down the length of his back, and the end of its tail resembled a large axe. On the back of the dragon's head was a large horn that went straight back, while on the sides of his head were two smaller horns that curved forward. On the front of the dragon's chest was a small blue diamond.
Rio's Blizzard Thunderbird seemed to shake in fear upon seeing the new dragon. Even Ragnazero's hands had started to tremble a bit.
"This… this isn't possible!" a shocked Dante declared. "How can you already have the very kind of power that I've been seeking? The power that was left in these island ruins?"
"Red Nova Dragon gains 500 ATK points for every Tuner in my Graveyard." Cleo continued. "Right now there are four Tuners, which means his ATK rises from 3500 to 5500!"
"I activate my Trap, Blizzard Gale!" Rio announced. "By sacrificing Blizzard Thunderbird, your dragon will lose ATK equal to the ATK of Blizzard Thunderbird until the end of the turn!"
The humanoid bird of ice suddenly exploded and turned into a swirling mass of snow. The snow blew at Red Nova and covered the dragon in a layer of frost. Red Nova's ATK dropped to 3700.
"I activate Ragnazero's effect!" Rio announced. "Because the ATK of your dragon's been lowered, I can detach on overlay unit to destroy it and draw one card!"
The remaining ball of light orbiting around the snow maiden went into the sword in her left hand. Ragnazero swung the sword at Red Nova and covered the dragon in a thick layer of ice. Rather than shattering apart though, Red Nova burst out of his icy encasement with a roar, startling Rio and Dante. Even Ragnazero's eyes widened in shock upon seeing the dragon survive.
"Nice try, but Red Nova can't be destroyed by my opponent's card effects." Cleo revealed.
"Well, you may have a nearly indestructible dragon, but just what do you intend to do with it?" Dante asked Cleo. "In case you've forgotten, the moment you win your death princess will suffer death by poison."
"One way or another, I will find a way to get Rio and myself out of this duel alive!" Cleo declared. "And then I'm going to make sure you never hurt her again! Red Nova, attack Ragnazero! Burning Soul!"
Red Nova roared and his body became covered in red flames. The dragon flew at Ragnazero and collided into the snow maiden at top speed. Suddenly the card for Ragnazero in Rio's duel disk began to give off bolts of blue lightning that caused her duel disk to spark. At the same time, the card for Red Nova Dragon began giving off bolts of red lighting that did the same to Cleo's duel disk. Cleo's Signer Mark began to burn even brighter, and Dante's pendant began to shine and swing wildly.
"What is the meaning of this?" Dante demanded to know.
"I don't know how, but Ragnazero and Red Nova Dragon seem to be reacting to one another!" Iris observed.
Cleo and Rio's duel disks continued to spark. The counters of the devices on their arms flashed the word error and suddenly shorted out, causing them to fall to the ground. Meanwhile the bodies of Red Nova and Ragnazero on the battlefield began to give off bolts of red and blue lighting. Rio was suddenly struck by one of the blue bolts while Cleo was struck by one of the red. An instant later both monsters seemed to explode with a blinding flash of white light that washed out the entire area.
Author's Note: Apologies for the somewhat short chapter. I guess I should've done Rio and Cleo's duel in one chapter, but I thought it'd take me longer to wrap up the duel. Oh well, that's just how it goes sometimes when writing duels. Anyway, this will probably be the last update I'll be able to do for the next few days. I've got a pretty busy week ahead of me this week. In addition to this monster assignment I have to complete for my online class I've also come some plans to go a little day trip with my aunt. Plus the next chapter goes into a pretty long flashback, so it'll take me a little while to finish. I should be able to get it up by the end of the week though, so stay tuned.
Please review and let me know what you think.
