Well, I'm both glad and surprised that the reception of last chapter was as positive as it was. I honestly didn't expect Arthur to be liked that much.
Anyways, let's see what Kotori is up to. How could she possibly function in a duel with Number 96 in her head? Well you are about to find out!
Also, from now on. I'm going to be changing the text layout of my Author Made Cards section so that it's easier to read. It seems a bit crowded down there.
One last thing, and this is a warning: There is some pretty dark stuff that happens in this chapter, so for those of you who are easily off put by potentially M rated material, well you've been warned. Nothing too serious, but there are just some suggestive themes that might be a little unsettling.
Call me Captain Obvious if you wish, but I don't own Zexal.
Enjoy!
Chapter 14: The Darkness in Her Heart
Kotori pressed forward through the busy streets of the city, her eyes heavy from lack of sleep and her mind in a constant battle against Number 96. She breathed a sigh of relief as she noticed that for once, the Dark Number wasn't whispering his words of deceit into he ears and driving her insane. She welcomed this moment of mental silence as she pressed on, for she knew that only one person could help her exorcise this demon out of her mind. She had to find Yuma, and fast. However, another voice had been whispering into her ear, a voice similar to her own. It was as if a part of her was telling her not to reject Number 96, but to embrace him, to become one with the darkness that was slowly consuming her soul. After being plagued with visions of what would happen if she did embrace it, Kotori realized that by thinking this for even a second, she had already tasted evil, and she hated herself for discovering that it tasted so good.
"Have to find Yuma... Have to get this Number out of me!"
"Awwww, Now why would you want to do that?" Number 96 asked as he materialized next to Kotori with a smug grin on his face.
"DAMN IT!" Kotori cursed out loud. "I was enjoying those five minutes of silence until you swooped in and ruined it! Isn't it obvious? How would you like it if someone was constantly in your head, whispering things that you don't want to hear and never leaving you alone? Huh?"
"If I knew that said someone would give me power and the ability to have everything I ever wanted, then I would like that very much."
Furious and frustrated at Number 96 constantly hounding her, Kotori snapped at him. "Listen to me! I have had enough of you! WHAT DO YOU WANT WITH ME?"
"What do I want?" Number 96 parroted back to her, as if the answer was obvious. "I want you, Kotori. I want you to assist me in collecting the Numbers, and in return, everything, and EVERYONE, you ever wanted, will be yours!"
Kotori blushed a bright shade of red at the reference to Yuma, but she remained as defiant as ever.
"Who knows, if luck is on your side, Yuma might end up giving you more than just a kiss. He might end up TAKING something from you too!"
That did it for her. "Alright, listen to me you sick bastard. I want you out of my head right now! JUST GO AWAY AND LEAVE ME ALONE!"
"Bastard? Meh. I've been called worse."
"Monster!"
"That's better! Oh, by the way! I would be careful with your outbursts, Kotori. You appear to be drawing a crowd."
Kotori turned around and found out that Number 96 was correct. Quite a few people had taken notice of her yelling and were staring at her as if she was crazy. Kotori's face reddened in embarrasment. She now realized that Number 96 shared the same invisibility trick as Astral, and since she was the only one who could see him, it looked like she was arguing with herself. One of the spectators approached her with a look of concern on his face.
"Um, excuse me miss, but are you alright?"
Kotori desperately tried to regain her composure and pretend like nothing was wrong. "Uh, yeah! Don't worry about it. I'm fine!"
"Are you sure?" asked the man. "I mean, you kind of scared me when I saw you yelling at someone that wasn't there."
"I said I'm fine!" repeated Kotori, growing more annoyed.
"Are you positive? I mean I could take you to a doctor. There's no shame in admitting that you need help."
The next thing the man knew, Kotori had grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pinned him against the wall. The man soon grew quite scared as she saw that Kotori looked alot different than she was a few seconds ago. Her eyes had narrowed into reptilian slits, and a dark smile spread across her face.
"DID YOU HEAR ME THE FIRST TIME? ARE YOU DEAF OR STUPID? I SAID I'M FINE, AND IF YOU QUESTION ME AGAIN, I WILL TEAR OUT YOUR SPINE AND FORCE YOU TO EAT IT! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME, YOU PATHETIC WASTE OF SPACE?"
"Y-Y-Yes..." squeaked the man, on the verge of soiling his pants.
"Good! Now get out of my sight!" Kotori dropped the man, and the poor bystander ran for his life. Kotori's evil eyes darted from left to right at the other onlookers.
"AND WHAT ARE YOU ALL STARING AT?" She yelled. The civilians jumped and ran away in fear, not even bothering to look back.
"Yeah, that's right! RUN! Run you little cowa..." Kotori paused, and her eyes returned to normal. Realizing what she just said, she grew more horrified than ever.
"Why did I say that? What's wrong with me? I never say things like that!" She turned back to Number 96, who was trying hard not to laugh.
"YOU! You made me say that! What are you doing to me? Stop it!"
"Me?" Number 96 asked, feigning innocence. "I did nothing. That was 100% you. The darkness within your heart is growing, Kotori. Fighting it off and keeping it at bay will only become more and more difficult. Why not embrace it and make this easier for both of us!"
Kotori desperately tried to ignore the Number, clutching her head in frustration. "Oh God, I wish Yuma was here."
"Kotori! Hey Kotori! Over here!"
Kotori's head perked up at the sound of Yuma's voice, and she turned towards its source. Across the street was a figure, but she couldn't make out who it was since he was cloaked in the shadows of the dark alley that he stood in.
"Hey Kotori! Over here!" The figure spoke again in Yuma's voice, and then he immediately turned and took off running into the alleyway.
"YUMA WAIT!" Kotori cried out.
"Kotori. That's not Yuma. Do not follow him. It's a trap." Number 96 warned.
"Oh no!" Kotori yelled back. "I see what you're doing. Now that I found Yuma, you're scared that Astral will trap you back in the key. Well too bad! I'm going after him!"
Kotori bolted across the street and chased after "Yuma", darting through alleyway after alleyway. She finally caught up to him, when she saw the figure enter what appeared to be an abandoned warehouse. Throwing caution to the wind, Kotori rushed in after him.
"Yuma! Come on Yuma! This isn't funny! Why did you run?"
SLAM! The door suddenly shut behind her. Kotori ran back to the door and tried to open it, but it wouldn't budge. She was locked in.
"What's going on? What is this?" Kotori shouted.
Number 96 rolled his eyes and shook his head. "I told you not to, silly girl."
"Heh Heh Heh." Chuckled a voice that was clearly not Yuma's. "Wow, you young ladies are always so easy to fool. Now that you're caught in my trap, my job will be alot easier." The figure moved out of the shadows, revealing himself to be a tall, pale man dressed in a black leather jacket and pants. He sported a red mohawk on his head, and his face was covered in body piercings.
"Who are you? Why did you bring me here?"
"My real name is not important," said the man. "But you can call me Carrion! Why am I called Carrion, you ask? Heh Heh Heh, because that's all that's left when I'm done with my victims!"
"V-V-Victims?" Kotori stuttered. A single bead of sweat trickled down her forehead, and she felt a twinge of fear in her heart, but she still stood her ground, trying not to let this supposed killer scare her. She gave Carrion an angry glare. "So you're some kind of messed up lady killing freak! Is that it?"
Kotori's accusation didn't bother Carrion at all. In fact, it only made him smile. "I prefer the term, Hitman, so show some respect! Perhaps you remember The Pack, or maybe their leaders, Scorch and Chills? You know, the guys that you threw in prison after ratting them out to the cops when your little friends beat them in a duel! Remember that?"
Kotori's anger turned to surprise at the mention the pack leader's names. "You work for Scorch and Chills?"
"Well, I used to. You could say that this is my last job before I strike out on my own. You and your friends ruined the pack by sending their leaders to prison. The gang is falling apart now, and Scorch and Chills aren't getting out any time soon, but Scorch did use his one phone call to call me, and he told me everything about you and your little friends. You see, I was the guy that they went to whenever they needed someone "taken care of". They'd pay me handsomely, and then I'd make sure that their little problem went away, but not before having a little bit of fun with my prey first."
Kotori's mouth was agape, shocked and frightened at what she just heard. "Oh My God! YOU SICK ANIMAL! What is wrong with you? You let me out of here this instant! If you think I'm just going to let you do that to me, then you're dead wrong! Come any closer and you'll be sorry! I'll fight you if I have to!"
Carrion laughed. "HA!. I'd like to see you try, but there is one thing we need to take care of first, and that's the Number that I know you have!"
"What? How do you know that I have a Number? How do you even know about the Numbers? Did Scorch tell you?"
"Yes he did! At first I thought he'd lost it when he told me about what happened during his tag duel with your friends, but then, after a bit of searching, I discovered the truth for myself. You may have locked up two of my old friends, Kotori, but now I've made some new friends, and these friends can smell the Number on you." He raised his hands high up in the air for Kotori to see, and sure enough, two Numbers appeared on both hands. A red 13 on the left hand, and a red 31 on the right.
Kotori gasped in shock, while Number 96 smiled at the sight of his targets. "NUMBERS!"
"Yes, and here is how it's going to work. We both know the rules of hunting a Number. I can't just kill you and take the Number off your corpse, so we are going to duel, and if you win, then I will give you the key to the door and let you go, but if I win, well..." Carrion licked his lips and smiled a predatory grin. "Then I will take your Number, and the last moments of your pathetic life will be spent getting to know me a lot better if you know what I mean, and then your friends will be next. I'll make them remember that no one crosses the pack and gets away with it!"
"Excellent. I was hoping he would challenge us." said Number 96, who cracked his slimy knuckles. "Come Kotori. Let's make short work of this fool."
Kotori sighed, not even bothering to answer the Number. In the end, she knew he was right. She had to duel him. If she refused, then Carrion would most likely kill her, or worse, and even though she wanted to throw the duel just so that Carrion could take Number 96 and rid her mind of him once and for all, she knew that was not an option. For all she knew, Carrion might even kill her anyway if she won, but there was no other way. She had to fight, for her life, for her friends, and for Yuma's safety.
"Alright Carrion, you got yourself a duel!"
Duel Gazer Set
Augmented Reality Vision Online
Kotori: 4000
Carrion: 4000
DUEL!
"I'll go first if you don't mind. Draw!" Carrion's sinister smile widened as he saw the card in his hand, knowing that he was now capable of summoning his Numbers on his first turn. "First, I'm activating Card Destruction! Now we have to discard our hands and then draw the same amount of cards that we have discarded!"
The two duelists proceeded to do so, and once Carrion drew his new hand, he let out an ominous chuckle as he put his plan into action. "Two of the cards I dumped in the grave were both Wight Princes, and when they are sent to the graveyard, I can send a Skull Servant and a Lady in Wight from my deck to the grave, but since I sent two, I can use this effect twice!" Carrion searched his deck for the four cards in question and proceeded to send them to the graveyard.
Wight Prince: Level 1/DARK/Zombie/0 ATK/0 DEF
Lady in Wight: Level 3/DARK/Zombie/0 ATK/2200 DEF
"Next I play Foolish Burial, which lets me send a third Wight Prince from my deck to the grave, and that means another Skull Servant and another Lady in Wight go to the grave with it!"
Kotori grew slightly nervous at her opponent's strategy. "Why would he go to so much trouble to dump all those monsters in his graveyard? What's he planning?"
"I activate Tri Wight! Now all three Skull Servants that I sent to the graveyard come back to the field!" The ground began to shake, and three black coffins with red pentagrams on the lids erupted out of the ground. They simultaneously opened, revealing three skeletons wearing purple robes, who crawled out of the coffins and stood up on their boney legs. They all let out shrieking cackles and raised their arms in a frightening manner.
Skull Servant: Level 1/DARK/Zombie/300 ATK/200 DEF
"Last but not least, I normal summon Wightmare in attack mode!" A fourth skeletal figure appeared next to the three Skull Servants. This one had short but feminine blond hair, and she was dressed in elegant, brown, noble robes. She carried a tea cup in her left hand, and she held it up to drink it despite not having any organs that allowed her to properly consume the tea.
Wightmare: Level 1/DARK/Zombie/300 ATK/200 ATK
"Now with these 4 Level 1 Monsters, I shall construct the overlay network twice!"
"XYZ SUMMON! NUMBER 13: CAIN'S DEVIL AND NUMBER 31: ABEL'S DEVIL!"
After the four skeletons descended into the overlay network, a flash of black energy exploded out of the portal, revealing two black egg shaped objects with gothic church crosses embedded on their fronts. A swarm of chains burst out from behind the crosses, rattling as they wrapped around the crosses. The structures began to rearrange themselves, and the fronts of the eggs pushed outward, revealing the faces of Kotori's newest opponents. By the time the ghoulish transformation was complete, the two Number monsters both resembled twin floating demon statues hunched over the church crosses, the chains wrapped loosely around their bodies, rattling in the wind.
The demon statue on the left had a black outer shell and an orange underbelly, while the one on the right had the reverse color scheme. Both had shiny, silver faces with intimidating demon horns, but the left one's horns curved upward, while its twin's horns curved downward. Additionally, both demon statues were equipped with large weapons that dangled at the end of the chains that were wrapped around their crosses. The left demon statue sported a circular saw, and the right was equipped with a black spiked mace ball. An eerie aura of dark shadows surrounded the two Number Monsters, and the numerical markings of 13 and 31 on each of their respective backs flashed a bright, bloody shade of red.
Number 13 Cain's Devil: Rank 1/DARK/Fiend/500 ATK/500 SEF
Number 31 Abel's Devil: Rank 1/DARK/Fiend/500 ATK/500 DEF
Kotori took a step back and held her hand up to her mouth in surprise as the glowing red eyes of the Numbers glared at her with malicious intent.
"What? Two Number Summons in one turn, and they only have 500 attack points? You went to all that trouble just for them?"
Carrion's smile grew even wider at the sight of Kotori's confusion. "I would be careful if I were you. They may look weak, but in reality they are quite the opposite. What powers do they have? You'll find out soon enough! Now take your turn, girl so that I can win your Number and end your worthless life!"
While Kotori pondered over what her opponent's words meant, Number 96 stared at the two Numbers and then grinned maliciously.
"Hmmm. Impressive, but not nearly strong enough to match my power! Don't worry Kotori. This duel will be easy. All you have to do is summon me and I will make short work of these pathetic weaklings that dare to call themselves Numbers."
Kotori turned her head back towards the Dark Number and glared angrily at him. "I will never summon you. You hear me?! NEVER!"
"My dear Kotori, why must you continue to handicap yourself? You are only holding yourself back from your true potential."
Kotori grew even angrier, and she pointed her finger at Number 96. "I know why you want me to summon you. Once I do, I won't be able to fight you anymore, and you can just strip me of my free will and make me your slave!"
"Why Kotori, you've got it all wrong. Your mind is too valuable to go to waste, and robbing you of your free will will only make you less efficient of a champion. No, I simply wish to push you in the right direction. Deny it all you want Kotori, but the darkness in your heart is growing larger every second. The only problem is that it's locked up tight. Think of me as the key that will unlock the darkness and transform you into the woman you always wanted to be."
"SHUT UP! I don't want to be your champion! I want nothing to do with you!"
"Oh really? You forget who you're speaking to. I am a Number Kotori, and a part of your mind. I know your desires. I know what you want. Perhaps I even know you better than you know yourself."
"Hey!" Carrion called out. "You going to talk to yourself all day, or are you going to duel?"
Kotori's head snapped back towards Carrion. A look of pure murderous intent was on her face, and he lips curled upward into a wicked grin.
"Oh I won't just duel you, you pathetic insect! I'll make you suffer so much that you will beg for death! The only question is how to punish you after I crush you in this duel. Should I castrate you, or tear you limb from limb? Decisions, Decsions, Deci..."
Kotori gasped in surprise and covered her mouth. Her face returned to normal. "No, not again. Why am I saying these things? What's happening to me?" Taking a few deep breaths, she shrugged off the shock and began her turn, although she could have sworn that she heard Number 96 chuckling.
Carrion laughed at her, finding it hilarious that Kotori would resort to threats. "HA! Castrate me? Damn, it takes some spine to threaten me like that. I'd like to see you try."
"Shut up, Carrion! I draw! I activate Card of the Storm. This lets me draw two cards from my deck as long as I banish a wind attribute monster afterwards."
"The monster I banished was Storm Warrior - Finch Ninja. When he is banished, he can hit you with 800 points of damage!" While Kotori drew her cards, Finch Ninja appeared behind her and leaped into the air. The ninja bird pulled out a shuriken from its robes and threw the star at Carrion, which stabbed him right in the chest.
Carrion: 4000 - 800 = 3200
Carrion shrugged off the damage, his predatory smile still on his face. "Ha! It's only a scratch! You'll have to do better than that!"
"If you think that's all the damage you'll be taking this turn, then you're wrong! I activate the spell card, Storm Warrior Army Formation." Now since I banished my Finch Ninja, Army Formation allows me to banish two more copies of that card, and you know what that means? You take 800 more points of damage from both of them!" Just like that, two more Finch Ninjas teleported onto the battlefield and threw their shurikens at Carrion, who grunted in pain from both hits.
Carrion: 3200 - 800 = 2400
Carrion: 2400 - 800 = 1600
Kotori thought that being reduced to less than half his life points in one turn would at least unnerve Carrion, but the thug's nasty grin remained, as if he dared her to try to damage him again. Kotori deduced that his sense of overconfidence must come from his Numbers, and she began to ponder how to get around them.
"Hmmm, There's no doubt he wants me to attack. He wouldn't leave them out there for no reason. I'd better play it safe and just build up my field with monsters that can hold their own. Then I can wait it out and see what he does."
"Or you could just summon me and this duel will be over in ten seconds." Number 96 chimed in.
"SHUT UP! Stop reading my mind! I'm not summoning you and that's final!"
"Suit yourself. It was only a suggestion. After all, no one can defeat me at my full power!"
Kotori smirked at the Dark Number. "If I recall correctly, I defeated you. Remember?"
That shut Number 96 up.
"Touché."
"Anyways, I summon Storm Warrior - Infantry Owl in attack mode!" A spiral of wind billowed across the field, and a large owl wearing a knight's' helmet flew down from the skies and onto the battlefield, carrying a spear in its powerful talons.
Storm Warrior - Infantry Owl: Level 4/WIND/Winged-Beast/1600 ATK/1400 DEF
"Now I won't be attacking this turn, so I set this card face down and I..." Kotori was about to end her turn, but Carrion interrupted her.
"CAIN'S DEVIL EFFECT ACTIVATE! By detaching an overlay unit from Cain, your monster is has no choice but to attack him!"
Kotori raised an eyebrow out of confusion. "What? What's the point of that? You're monster is weaker than mine, so you'll just take battle damage."
"Actually, no. You see, Cain has a really nasty set of effects. As long as Abel's Devil is on the field, Cain can't be destroyed by battle or by card effects. Also, you take all the battle damage whenever one of your monsters attacks him!"
"WHAT? NO!"
"YES! And Abel has the exact same effect! As long as they are both on the field, neither of them are going anywhere any time soon! Show her what pain truly means, Cain's Devil! DEADLY CURSE!" The beady eyes of Cain's Devil flashed bright red, and then Infantry Owl flew towards it in an attempt to attack it with its spear, only to be swatted like a fly by Cain's saw blade. Cain then turned its attention towards Kotori. The demon statue loosened some of the chains that were wrapped around its cross and then fired its saw blade like a cannon ball. The blade struck Kotori directly in the chest, sending her falling down to the ground.
Kotori: 4000 - 1100 = 2900
Number 96 shook his head in annoyance and turned his attention towards his fallen partner. If only she had summoned him, she wouldn't be in this situation.
"Get up Kotori! This is child's play compared to your duel against me! GET UP!"
Ignoring Number 96's words, Kotori slowly got back on her feet, breathing heavily and clutching her chest from the hit.
"I end my turn. Your move, Carrion."
"Alright then. My turn again. I draw, and now I'm summoning out Queen of the Skull Servants in attack mode! Another Zombie resembling the Skull Servants burrowed out of the ground. Instead of purple robes, this one wore a bright red dress covered in gold jewelry that would have shown off her womanly figure if she had a figure at all. She might have been a beautiful woman in life, but now, only decayed bones and a head of long black hair remained.
Queen of the Skull Servants: Level 1/DARK/Zombie/0 ATK/0 DEF
"Another monster with zero attack points?" said Kotori in a state of confusion.
"She won't stay that way for long! My queen gains 500 attack points for every Skull Servant in the graveyard, but that's not the best part! The best part is that the three Wight Princes and the three Ladies in Wight that I dumped earlier are treated as Skull Servants while they're in the graveyard. So my three princes, three ladies, and my one Skull Servant give my Queen 3500 attack points!"
Queen of the Skull Servants Atk: 500 x 7 Skull Servants = 3500 ATK
"Go my queen! Let her have it! Attack her Storm Warrior Infantry Owl!" The undead royalty figure charged forward towards the bird, but Kotori was ready for it.
"Not so fast! I activate a trap, Tornado of the Storm Warriors!" Just as the queen was ready to strike, she was blown off her feet by a powerful gust of wind. The wind grew stronger and stronger until it formed an enormous tornado, which sucked both monsters into its violent, billowing funnel. When the spinning storm subsided, both monsters had vanished into thin air.
"HUH? What happened?" Carrion yelled in surprise.
"Here's how my trap works." Kotori explained. "Since you attacked a Storm Warrior, both my monster and your monster are banished, and then all copies of your monster in your hand, deck, and graveyard are also banished. Next, my owl's effect activates. Since he was banished, I get to add one level 4 or lower wind attribute monster from my deck to my hand."
Carrion searched through his deck for the other two copies of his queen and banished them, but the failure of his attack didn't seem to bother him at all.
"That won't help you all that much. You forgot about my Numbers! They can still attack! Cain and Abel, attack her lifepoints directly!" The twin Numbers loosened their chains again, the long strings of metal rattling as they did, and both their weapons shot forward towards Kotori, who was completely helpless as she received two powerful blows of brutal pain, as if millions of spikes were penetrating her skin at once.
Kotori: 2900 - 500 = 2400
Kotori: 2400 - 500 = 1900
Carrion chuckled as he watched his victim suffer. "Had enough yet little girl? Why don't you just forfeit, so we can get to the real fun!"
"Not a chance, Carrion!" Kotori shouted. "I never forfeit, especially not to sick freaks like you!"
"That's the spirit, Kotori."
"SHUT UP, BLACK MIST!"
Carrion rolled his eyes. "Have it your way. I set one card face down and end my turn."
"Alright. I draw!" Kotori looked at her hand, and then stared at Cain and Abel nervously. "Well, I can't play offensively, since that will just result in me taking more damage. I guess I'll just defend myself until I can figure out a way to get around those twin terrors."
"I set these two cards face down and one monster face down, and then I..." Once again, Kotori was rudely interrupted by Carrion.
"HA! You honestly think you're safe from me? ABEL'S DEVIL EFFECT ACTIVATE! I forgot to mention one little detail about my Numbers. They can force your monster from defense to attack mode, so now that your monster is playing offense, it has no choice but to attack Abel! GO! DEADLY CURSE!" Kotori's face down monster flipped itself face up, revealing itself to be D.D Crow. Before Kotori could even call out for her monster to stop, the crow charged at Abel in an attempt to attack it, only to crash into Abel's spike ball and explode into a cloud of dust and feathers. Abel's spike ball then rocketed forward and punched Kotori in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her.
D.D Crow: Level 1/DARK/Winged-Beast/100 ATK/100 DEF
Kotori: 1900 - 400 = 1500
Kotori fell to her knees, gasping for breath. A defeated look was in her eyes as she stared back at Carrion's Numbers.
"So no matter what monster I summon, those Numbers will just force them to battle, even if I set them face down?"
"That's correct, Kotori!" Carrion confirmed. "These two bad boys of mine will turn any monster you play against you! Now do you see that you don't stand a chance? Are you ready to forfeit now?"
"Not a chance!" Kotori barked in defiance. "I end my turn.
"Then it's turn again. I draw!" Carrion looked at the card he just drew and smiled. "Ah, perfect! Just what I needed! I activate Burial from the Different Dimension! This lets me take three monsters that are banished and put them back in the graveyard, so I'll choose the three queens that you got rid of with your trap card. Now you may have gotten rid of my queen, but when you get rid of the queen, you have to deal with the King, so bow down to my strongest monster, King of the Skull Servants!" Another Skeleton appeared on the field. This one looked identical to the regular Skull Servants, but he was standing on a pile of rotting corpses, as if he had killed them in battle himself and was basking in the success of his deeds.
King of the Skull Servants: Level 1/DARK/Zombie/0 ATK/0 DEF
"Let me guess, he gets stronger based on the number of Skull Servants in your graveyard." Kotori deduced.
"Wow, you catch on fast! Actually, he gains 1000 attack points for every Skull Servant in the grave, and guess what? The queens count as well, bringing the Skull Servant count in my graveyard up to eleven!" King of the Skull Servants let out a maniacal cackle. His body began to glow, and he suddenly grew in size until he was as tall as a house. The zombie laughed even louder as he towered over Kotori.
King of the Skull Servants Atk: 1000 x 11 Skull Servants = 11,000 ATK
Kotori stared at the enormous Skeleton in shock, practically unable to form coherent words.
"E-E-E-Eleven Thousand attack?!" she stuttered. "That's stronger than just about every monster in the game!"
"Every monster except yours truly, of course!"
"SHUT UP! Stop talking to me! I need to figure out a way to stop that thing."
"The answer is floating right next to you!"
"I SAID SHUT UP!"
"Now there's just one thing left to take care of." said Carrion. "Those face downs you set are obviously trap cards, so I will activate the continuous trap card, Wight Royal Tyranny! As long as this card is on the field, King of the Skull Servants is unaffected by spells and traps when it's attacking or being attacked. Now Go My King! FINISH HER!" King of the Skull Servants began to laugh again as he brought down his enormous fist onto Kotori's tiny body, but it was suddenly stopped by a small bird holding up a shield to protect her.
"I activate the effect of Storm Warrior - Parrot Protector in my hand! By banishing it and one other wind monster from my hand, the damage becomes zero!"
Storm Warrior – Parrot Protector: Level 2/WIND/Winged-Beast/500 ATK/500 DEF
Carrion growled in frustration and annoyance. Kotori was really starting to get on his nerves now. "You just don't know when to quit do you, you little bitch! I'm going to enjoy slitting that pretty little throat of yours after I take your Number. Now lets see if you can handle another beating from my Numbers. Cain and Abel, attack her lifepoints directly again!" Kotori braced for the impact as Cain's saw blade and Abel's spike ball rocketed towards her once again. The blade dug into Kotori's left arm while the spike ball hit her in the face. The pain was undescribably agonizing, and Kotori was now finding it difficult to stand up.
Kotori: 1500 - 500 = 1000
Kotori: 1000 - 500 = 500
"I end my turn. Make your last move, Kotori. My knife is getting hungry!" Carrion sneered maniacally, unsheathing his switch blade for emphasis.
Kotori ignored him and began her turn, only to be dissappointed when the card she drew was the trap card, Dimensional Prison, which would banish Carrion's monsters if he attacked her, but that wasn't possible anymore thanks to Carrion's Tyranny card.
"Damn it. This card is useless now that Royal Tyranny is active. What do I do? How am I supposed to take that King out? My face down card will allow me to stop Cain and Abel, but I have to Xyz Summon in order to use it, and right now I don't have the means to Xyz Summon."
"Actually you do. Your other face down, Return from the Different Dimension will bring back your Finch Ninjas, allowing you to have three level two monsters out on the field. I will let you figure out for yourself what you need to do after that." Number 96 commented, smiling with anticipation.
Kotori took her Xyz Monsters out of her Extra Deck and shuffled through them. "What's he talking about? I don't have any Rank 2 Xyz Monsters in my... Oh God No..."
There, hidden amongst the other Xyz Monsters, was the card form of Number 96: Black Mist.
"Absolutely not!" Kotori snapped. "I told you I'm not summoning you, and that's final!"
"Oh, but what will happen if you can't find a way to win without summoning me? You can't summon any regular effect monsters with Cain and Abel still at large, and with Carrion's trap card in play, you can't protect your lifepoints should you decide not to summon any monsters at all. Face it Kotori. You only have 500 lifepoints and you are running out of options. Do you think I want my host to die? Do you want to die?"
Kotori's hands began to tremble. She turned her head away from the Number in a desperate attempt to deny that he was right. "I... I can't... I won't..."
"Hmmm," pondered the Number. "What would Yuma say when he finds out that his closest friend has been murdered in cold blood? Why he would be distraught beyond all belief, maybe even devastated to the point where he loses all will to continue on!"
The mention of Yuma's name made Kotori's blood run cold. "No... Yuma..."
"Remember Kotori, If you die, then you will never see Yuma again, and you will never get to tell him of your feelings for him. How does it feel that you're willing to break the heart of the man you love all because you're too stubborn to do what is necessary to win a simple duel?"
Just then, another vision appeared before Kotori, similar to the one she experienced the night before. It was pouring down rain, and a lone man entered a cemetary. He carried a single bouquet of flowers in his hands, and he sluggishly ambled towards a single tombstone in the center of the cemetary. After tossing the bouquet on the stone, Yuma Tsukumo broke down and cried harder than he had ever cried before. He also left his duel disk and deck at the grave. He was done with dueling, done with life. What was the point of dueling anymore if she was no longer there to fill his life with warmth? A single flash of lightning illuminated the graveyard, revealing the identity of the lost soul buried in the tomb.
Kotori Mizuki: Gone but Never Forgotten.
"NO!" Kotori cried as the vision ended. Her body was trembling from the trauma of witnessing the worst possible future. Kotori began to cry. She couldn't take it anymore. There was no way out of the torturous lose/lose situation. "No... Not like this... I can't let Yuma down... I can't die..."
"Then you know what must be done!" thundered Number 96. "What's it going to be, Kotori? Will you refuse my power and accept your death, or will you embrace my power and accept your destiny!"
Kotori's tears cascaded down her face as she stared at the evil Number Card. There was only one way out, and it required selling her soul to the devil.
"Yuma... I'm sorry..."
"I activate my trap card, Return from the Different Dimension! By paying half my lifepoints, I can special summon the three Finch Ninjas that I banished!" A dimensional rift opened up in the ground, and the three ninja birds returned to the field, armed and ready to strike.
Kotori: 500 - 250 = 250
Kotori closed her eyes, allowing more tears to stream down her face, a few of them dripping on the Number Monster she held in her hand.
"With these 3 Level 2 Monsters, I shall construct the overlay network!"
"XYZ SUMMON! NUMBER 96: BLACK MIST!"
The three birds disappeared into the overlay network, and a black ball of slime appeared on the field, bubbling like the contents of a lava lamp. Then, two clawed hands sprouted out of the ball, then two long legs, and finally, the ball itself morphed into a fiendish face with flaming red eyes and razor sharp jaws.
Number 96 Black Mist: Rank 2/DARK/Fiend/100 atk/1000 def
"HA! That's your Number? It only has 100 attack points! Am I really supposed to be scared by... What the?" Carrion stopped mid sentence as he saw thst something was happening to Kotori. The green haired teen was clutching her head in pain, grunting as if desperately trying to hold something back, but what truly caught Carrion by surprise was the enormous black aura surrounding her body, flickering like a roaring fire.
"No... No... What's... happening... AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" Kotori screamed at the top of her lungs as the darkness that she had tried to keep at bay was finally released. Her head slumped over and her arms drooped to the ground. For a few minutes, she didn't move an inch. Carrion didn't know why, but his heart was beginning to beat faster, and his palms were starting to sweat, but why? Why would he suddenly be scared her? What was going on? Suddenly, Kotori began to stir again.
"I feel... I feel..." She muttered. She raised her head back up, looking Carrion right in the eye, and the thug's heart stopped as he saw her eyes. Gone were the hazel eyes that radiated purity and kindness. These new eyes were that of a cold blooded witch. A wicked smile spread across her face, and the Number 96 glowed brightly on the left side of her neck.
"I FEEL AS IF I HAVE BEEN REBORN!" She yelled in amazement. She flexed her arms out and basked in the darkness that she now craved. This was true power, and she was enjoying every second of it. Now she would not only turn this duel around, but Carrion would die like the worthless piece of trash he was.
"NOW CARRION, prepare to die at the hands of The Strongest Number!"
"HA! Good luck with that!" Carrion taunted. "It only has 100 attack points, and even if it was strong, Cain and Abel would still protect me!"
"Oh yeah, silly me. I forgot about those Numbers. Oh whatever shall I do?" Kotori said sarcastically. "Oh wait, this trap card will help. I activate Overlay Paralysis!"
"NO! NOT THAT CARD!" Carrion shouted in a fit of rage. Of all the cards Kotori could have used, it had to be that one.
The corrupted girl's smile grew even wider. She could practically smell Carrion's fear. "Ah, I take it you know what this card does. Now that Black Mist is on the field, the effects of all other Xyz Monsters on the field are negated, and then Black Mist gains 500 attack points for every Xyz Monster on the field, including himself!" Carrion could only watch helplessly as his two Numbers slowly turned to stone. Their glowing red eyes dimmed and they fell down to the ground, completely petrified.
Number 96 ATK: 100 + 1500 = 1600
"Grrrrrr, it doesn't matter!" Carrion growled. "King of the Skull Servants is still hundreds of times stronger than that Number of yours."
Kotori shook her head in amusement. This idiot had no idea what he was dealing with now!
"You are correct, but that will soon change! I activate the effect of Number 96! By detaching an overlay unit, Black Mist cuts your Monster's attack in half, and then he gains attack points equal to the amount that your monster lost!"
Carrion's heart practically stopped. He had lost, and now he was going to pay for underestimating her. "NO! You can't!"
"Yes I can! GO! SHADOW GAIN!" Black Mist devoured one of its overlay units and unleashed a vortex of dark energy, bathing the undead king in parasitic shadows. King of the Skull Servants screamed and wailed as he shrank back to his normal size, his strength leeched out of him.
King of the Skull Servants Atk: 11,000 - 5500 = 5500 ATK
Number 96 Atk: 1600 + 5500 = 7100 ATK
"It's funny Carrion, that you thought you could defeat me, and then this whole game turned completely upside down for you! You thought you were dueling some weak little girl, but you actually challenged the champion of the most powerful creature in existence! Now you will face his wrath! NUMBER 96, ATTACK HIS KING OF THE SKULL SERVANTS WITH WHIPLASH WHIRLWIND!" Black Mist unleashed a swarm of its tentacles rocketing towards the skeleton. King of the Skull Servants turned around and ran for his life, desperate to get away from the fiendish monstrosity, but he wasn't fast enough. The tentacles collided into his body with tremendous amounts of force, causing him to fall apart into a lifeless pile of bones, which disintegrated instantly. The tentacles then turned their attention to Carrion, who lost all color in his face. The tentacles shot forward and slammed into Carrion with the force of a freight train, sending him flying across the room. Carrion crashed into the wall of the warehouse and fell limply onto the ground.
Carrion: 1600 - 1600 = 0 (LOSE)
Winner: Kotori
Kotori chuckled darkly as she witnessed her opponent fall. "To the victor go the spoils! Your Numbers are mine!" Kotori extended her hand, and a large, slimy looking hand made of dark energy shot forward and embedded itself into Carrion's chest. The hand retracted back into Kotori's body, and she now held the card forms of Numbers 13 and 31. Her first Number hunt was over, and it was a success. She then saw Carrion come to, and she called out to him.
"Now be a good boy, Carrie, and hand over that key, so I can get out of here!"
"Who said you were going anywhere at all!" In a split second, an enraged Carrion pulled out a nine millimeter pistol and fired at Kotori. The bullet soared towards its target, but Kotori didn't even flinch. She snapped her fingers, and a huge wall of black slime shot out of the ground in between her and the bullet, and it harmlessly bounced off the wall.
"DIE!" Carrion yelled, as he fired all the remaining shots left in the gun, but the same result occurred. Like a child on a trampoline, the bullets bounced off the slime wall, not even coming close to harming Kotori.
"Now that wasn't very nice, now was it?" Kotori scolded as she wagged her finger in a tsk tsk fashion, but then her face turned deadly serious, her eyes filled with cold, icy anger. "Normally, you'd be too pathetic for me to even waste my time on, but there is one thing that you said to me that sealed your fate. You had the audacity to threaten the man that I love more than life itself. You even think of hurting Yuma, and your life is forfeit. You did not just lose this duel, my friend, but now I will take so much more from you." Kotori snapped her fingers again, and the slime wall divided into a mass of tentacles, flailing in the air like angry snakes. The tentacles slithered towards Carrion and each of them wrapped around his limbs and neck. Carrion was terrified beyond belief. Even though he was completely bound, he could still feel his body shaking with fear. He knew that he was in hell now, and there was no way out.
"What the hell are you?"
"What? Little old me?" Kotori asked rhetorically in an innocent tone of voice. She mustered up the most malevolent smile possible and gave a bone chilling answer.
"I have been chosen by the Darkness to do his will, and it is with his will that I send you straight to hell!"
The terrified thug desperately tried to beg for his life. "No! PLEASE NO! I'll do anything you want!"
Kotori sneered at him. "Yes. You will do whatever I want, and what I want is for you to DIE!"
"NO! PLEASE! PLEASE DON'T KILL ME! I'LL DO ANYTHING!"
"GOODBYE CARRION!"
"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
CRACK!
The tentacles squeezed as hard as they could, and Kotori heard the euphoric sound of bones being crushed into dust. Carrion screamed as his arms and legs were reduced to a pulp, and just like that his screams were soon silenced as the tentacle binding his head squeezed as well and broke his neck. The tentacles then released their prey, and the former pack member tumbled to the ground in a heap, like a puppet who had its strings cut. Death had now claimed his soul. Kotori walked over to Carrion's corpse and fished through his pockets until eventually she found the key, but she didn't use it right away. She didn't even walk towards the door. She just continued to stare at Carrion's lifeless form, her cruel smile never leaving her face for even a second.
"So tell me Kotori. How do you feel?" Number 96 asked as he floated next to her.
Kotori didn't bother to acknowledge his prescence. She just continued to stare at the dead body.
"I'm sorry..."
"Sorry? Sorry for what?"
"I'm sorry for being so defiant and stubborn. Had I known that your power would feel this amazing, I would have given into you a long time ago. I was lying to myself, thinking that I was actually a benevolent person. It was all an illusion. My heart is just as black as yours, and you helped me see who I really am. Thank you so much."
"You are forgiven, Kotori." Number 96 replied to her. "Don't worry about it. If anything, I'm quite proud of you."
Kotori looked back at the Dark Number, her face turning to one of absolute happiness like a child receiving praise from a parent.
"Really? You mean it?"
"Of course, just remember your place, and your power will only continue to grow. You're mine now, Kotori."
The markings of the ninety sixth Number pulsed on Kotori's neck, and the corrupted girl reached up to it and began slowly stroking the mark with her hand like a kitten.
"I know." She whispered. "I know."
Author Made Cards:
Queen of the Skull Servants: Level 1/DARK/Zombie/? ATK/0 DEF
Effect: This card's name becomes "Skull Servant" while it is in the Graveyard. The original ATK of this card becomes equal to the number of "King of the Skull Servants" and "Skull Servant" in your Graveyard X 500. When this card is destroyed by battle or by card effect and sent to the Graveyard, you can activate one of the following effects.
1. Send one "Skull Servant" or "Lady in Wight" from your deck to the Graveyard.
2. Target up to three banished Skull Servant or Wight monsters; return them to the Graveyard.
3. Special Summon one "King of the Skull Servants" from your hand, deck or Graveyard.
Storm Warrior - Infantry Owl: Level 4/WIND/Winged-Beast/1600 ATK/1400 DEF
Effect: If this card would be destroyed, by battle or by card effect, banish it instead of sending it to the graveyard. When this card is banished, you can activate one of the following effects:
1. Add one Level 4 or lower WIND Monster from your deck to your hand.
2. Banish one WIND Monster from your deck.
Storm Warrior – Finch Ninja: Level 2/WIND/Winged-Beast/800 ATK/800 DEF
Effect: If this card would be destroyed, by battle or by card effect, banish it instead of sending it to the graveyard. When this card is banished, inflict 800 damage to your opponent.
Storm Warrior – Parrot Protector: Level 2/WIND/Winged-Beast/500 ATK/500 DEF
Effect: If you would take battle damage, you can banish this card and one WIND monster from your hand, and if you do, reduce the battle damage to 0.
Card of the Storm: Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards, then banish one WIND monster from your hand, or, if you don't have any in your hand, send all cards in your hand to the Graveyard.
Storm Warrior Army Formation: Quick Play Spell Card
Activate only when a Storm Warrior Monster is banished. Apply one of the following effects:
1. Special Summon that monster
2. Banish all copies of that monster from your hand, deck, or graveyard.
Tornado of the Storm Warriors: Normal Trap Card
Effect: When a Storm Warrior Monster battles an opponent's monster; at the start of the damage step, banish both monsters. Then your opponent banishes all copies of the attacking monster from their hand, deck, extra deck, or graveyard.
Overlay Paralysis: Normal Trap Card
Effect: Activate only when a player Xyz Summons an Xyz Monster. Negate the effects of all Xyz Monsters your opponent controls. Then you can target one Xyz Monster you control. It gains 500 atk for every Xyz Monster on the field until the end phase of your next turn.
Wight Royal Tyranny: Continuous Trap Card
Effect: When a "King of the Skull Servants" or a "Queen of the Skull Servants" attacks or is attacked, it is unaffected by the effects of your opponent's spell and trap cards until the end of the Damage Step.
Authors Notes:
Well... That was dark wasn't it?
Now you see why I had that warning at the beginning of the chapter. What I meant to do was to try to make Carrion as horrible of a human being as I possibly could so that no one would have a problem with the new Dark Kotori brutally murdering him. I hope I didn't go too far with that.
By the way, Is it wrong that I had so much fun writing this part of the story?
And is it wrong that I am going to enjoy making Dark Kotori do plenty of horrendous things under Black Mist's bidding for a very long time?
So what did you think of the chapter? Did you like it? Did you not like it? Whatever your opinion is, leave a review and let me know!
Until next time, this is Nox Descious, signing out