CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR: Enter the Shadows
Hmm… A bit short, but as I said, I've been busy.
Princess Yunariana: Thanks for the review. Glad you liked the duel.
"Do you chumps really believe you'll stand any chance against me?" sneered Darren.
"More than a chance," said Weevil Underwood, resident doofus, in a haughty voice. "Yeah," added Rex Raptor, his brainless cohort. "We'll tear you apart!"
"I don't think you stand much of a chance against four of the better Duelists at Battle City," added Espa Roba.
"I don't know why you called us here, Mr. Hirugashi," said Mako Tsunami plainly. He was the smartest of the group of idiots. "But it seems you were playing a prank on us. That's something I don't appreciate! So if you want to duel, bring it on!"
"With pleasure," said Darren in a voice as dark as the alley they were in. "Since it's a four on one duel, I'm somewhat at a disadvantage. To compensate, I'd request that we begin with four thousand life-points instead of the normal 8000."
His opponents didn't object, and instead activated their Duel Disks.
(Darren: 4000, Weevil: 4000, Rex: 4000, Mako: 4000, Espa: 4000)
Darren drew his sixth card and realized that the game was already over. "I set a card facedown and set one facedown. Then I activate Painful Choice This card allows me to pick any 5 cards from my deck and show them to you. Then you decide which one I get to move to my hand, while the rest go to the Graveyard. Here are my choices."
He displayed the five cards. They were Inazu the Lightning Prince (1400/0), three Skull Servants (300/200), and Doom Knight (1800/1000)."
"What a mismatched deck," grumbled Rex. Of course, all his opponents agreed that they would let him keep a Skull Servant. He did so, and gestured that his turn was over.
Weevil set one card. "Next I play Insect Barrier, preventing you from attacking me with any Insect-type monsters!" A large, electrical barrier appeared in front of Darren's field.
A normal opponent would have laughed at this move. But of course, Darren was anything but a normal opponent. "You plan to use DNA Surgery."
Rex played next, but Weevil yelled, "I activate my face-down trap card, DNA Surgery to convert all monsters on the field to insects!" Rex looked at him with disgust, and summoned Sabersaurus (1900/500) in attack mode!" A large Triceratops appeared. It was orange in color and covered with spikes. It would have looked intimidating, if the spikes hadn't been replaced by feelers, and it had grown insect like-legs.
Mako drew. "I play Umiiruka, to turn the field into an ocean and grant my water type monster five hundred extra attack points. Next I summon Sea-Serpent: Warrior of Darkness (1800 + 500 2300/1500) in attack mode." A large, aquatic warrior appeared armored with purple mail. He carried a large staff.
It was finally Espa's turn. He hadn't been blessed with a good hand, and was only able to set a facedown monster.
Darren shook his head and drew. Pathetic fools, one and all. "I activate the Seal of Orichalcos, destroy your pathetic Umiiruka!"
Weevil and Rex, who had had unpleasant experiences with this particular field card, paled. The green, five-pointed, pentacle surrounded by a circle appeared on the ground and the ocean was vaporized. "Next I play Soul Release, to remove from play all monsters in my graveyard." Ghostly images of the monsters he had sent to the graveyard flew by their master.
"Next comes the extremely powerful Dimension Fusion. I pay two thousand life-points to special summon all of them to the field." Darren's field was soon swarmed with the two ghostly zombies (300 + 500 800/200), the terrible knight (1800 + 500 2300/1000), and the offspring of Zaborg the Thunder Monarch (1400 + 500 1900/0).
"Then I summon the Skull Servant from my hand." A third ghostly monster appeared on Darren's field. "Before you amateurs complain like the dolts you are, the Seal doubles my monster zone. But screw that. I flip Archfiend Soldier (1900 + 500 2400/1500) in attack mode." A purple horned fiend appeared on his field. He wore a golden cape.
"Now for the fun to begin. I play the Card of Sanctity, to draw until I have six cards." Darren completely replenished his hand. "Time to end this. I flip my facedown card, Ultimate Offering. My paying an extra five hundred life-points per summon, I can make any number of extra summons this turn. Watch as I pay two and a half thousand, to sacrifice five of my monsters to summon five monarchs in my hand."
Every monster except the Doom Knight disappeared in columns of light, and suddenly the field was being ravaged by the elements. A white, semi-humanoid creature with a bulbous body appeared on the far left, signaling ice. This Mobius the Frost Monarch
Next to it was the electricity-manipulating Monarch, Zaborg. Beside Zaborg, a pillar of flame burst upwards from the ground, and when it faded it revealed a figure similar in size to Zaborg, wearing armor similar to that of a samurai's. This was Thestalos the Firestorm Monarch.
Raiza, the mighty Storm Monarch appeared next to Thestalos. A behemoth encased in stone armor to emerge from the Earth next to the King of Storms. This was Granmarg the Rock Monarch. (All: 2400 + 500 2900/1000)
The duelists opposite him gulped. "Now their effects activate. First Mobius can destroy your Insect Barrier and DNA Surgery!" Weevil gasped as the icy king blew away his two cards.
"Zaborg and Granmarg will nuke your Sea Serpent Warrior of Darkness, Tsunami, and your facedown card, Roba. Finally, thanks to Thestalos' effect, one of you people loses a card from your hand. I choose the middle card in your hand, Tsunami, since you are the most powerful of the four of you."
Mako grimaced and discarded Torrential Tribute: a card that would could have saved them.
The only card on their combined fields was Rex's Sabersaurus. "Time to end this. First of all, destroy his reptile, Doom Knight." The terrible warrior decapitated the dinosaur with a swing of its sword.
Rex gulped as his life-points dropped to 3500. It didn't really matter though. "Now each of my monarchs can attack you idiots directly one by one!"
Raiza and Zaborg both fired blasts of dusty wind and lightning at Rex. He was hit by the blasts head on, and lost consciousness even before he hit the wall of the Seal. His life-points shot down to zero.
Mako was bombarded by a shower of rocks, courtesy of Granmarg. His life-points plummeted to a meager 1100. Being a physically fit, deep-sea fisher, he was able to weather the attack.
Weevil and Espa, however, weren't so lucky. They were hit by blasts from Thestalos and Mobius respectively, the twin attacks of fire and ice knocking them off their feet.
Mako just happened to gasp. "Hi-Hirugashi! Its not over yet. We're still in the game. Its three on one, and you have only thirty-five hundred life-points! We will defeat your monarchs!"
Darren shrugged, a mocking expression on his face. "Perhaps you will…. Perhaps you won't. I think the second one is more likely, especially since I'm playing Surprise Attack from the Darkness, which allows every monster I've summoned this turn, regardless of their current position, an extra attack during my end phase. Sayonara."
Before the three duelists could answer, they were obliterated by a rush of pure power from eleven, powerful monsters. Their soulless bodies hit the ground next to Rex's as the Seal contracted around them.
Darren shook his head in amusement as he saw the terrified faces of the four, 'expert' duelists staring out at him from the Seal of Orichalcos card. They began to fade away, and Darren thought to himself, "I'm glad I did this. It really did allow me to let off some steam."
Suddenly, his cell phone rang. Raising an eyebrow, he pulled it out of the pocket of his black trench coat. He accepted the call, and put it to his ear. A sadistic, creepy voice rasped at the other end, "Hirugashi."
"Ah yes," said Darren in an uncommonly polite voice. "Master Marik." Darren considered Marik to be his true master, and was extremely contemptuous of the weakness of that fool Dartz.
"I have a little job for you."
"Oh?"
"I want you to go to Duel Academy. No, not to duel someone. Somewhere underneath the school, there are three certain cards sealed away. It would take someone of considerable power to take them out. They've been there for nearly two years, and ironically, the one who sealed them away was the one whom you dueled. Jaden Yuki. The boy didn't know what he had done, yet his sheer might made it almost impossible for a normal being to enter that place. You however, are anything but normal. Go there and get me those cards. By morning. I have plans for them."
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Kagemaru was old. And getting older by the second. As he lay on what would have been his deathbed, he mused that he would have never thought that he would find himself in such a position while he was at the peak of his strength, dueling Jaden Yuki. The boy had gone on about how she should have found it in himself to be able to overcome his weaknesses in old age. And he, like a fool, had agreed to try to do so. And had lost everything.
He was completely alone. He had tried shouting for help, nut nobody had come. And that was the true, harsh, reality of it all. No one came. Absolutely no one. The end was upon him.
He couldn't move, and he opened his eyes to get one last, bleary glance of the dark, musty room that he intended to be the last thing he looked at. A cold chuckle echoed throughout the room. Someone was there! But as soon as the euphoria filled him, it dissipated. There was no way he could be saved now. And it was probably a figment of his imagination, anyway.
Suddenly, he felt something strike him. It was cold, and very painful. He tried to scream, but his mouth was too dry. Suddenly, he began to writhe in pain. His blood was boiling, and his skin felt like it was being ripped off. His head throbbed. Was it possible for one's hair to hurt? It seemed so.
Suddenly, all the pain was gone. And so was all the weakness that would have killed him. He found that he had pulled himself upright with ease that he had not felt since…since... that time.
He saw an amused man standing in the corner of his room. He looked familiar. Kagemaru had seen him on the news six years previously. "You are Marik Ishtar," he cried, and was immediately taken back by his voice. It sounded different as well. "Perhaps a mirror," suggested Marik.
Kagemaru didn't own a mirror. Hell, he didn't own many things. Marik yawned and pulled out a long, golden rod from his purple robes. He waved it and a blast of yellow light issued forth from it. It took the shape of a mirror, and Kagemaru was shocked to see his appearance in it.
He looked to be about thirty-five years old, with long, black hair hanging below his shoulders, and he was extremely muscular. He wore no shirt, but he did wear a long, masculine-looking cloak that was colored a deep green, and wore long, black pants. His appearance was identical to the time when he was at the peak of his strength as the leader of the Shadow Riders.
"What-how?" spluttered Kagemaru. "I decided that I could use some help in a couple of my ventures. So I came to you. I had other choices. I needed a duelist of considerable skill, and I was considering Sartorius. Perhaps you've heard of him? No? Oh well. I figured that since you had a personal interest in it, and since I could help you in my own ways to reach your former level of strength, you would be the best person."
Kagemaru digested the fact and spat, "What makes you think I'll help you?"
Marik shook his head. "Well, perhaps the fact that with a flick of my Rod here could transform you back into the helpless old fool that you were would make you rethink your opinion."
Kagemaru stopped dead. "What do you want?"
"Ah, it's a long story. I'd tell you on the way, but I want to finish it right here and now. To be very frank, I'm part of a little, 'bad guys' club. There are three of us, and all of us have a vendetta against a certain someone. His name is Yugi Moto. Yes, I'm sure you've heard the name. He has grown annoyingly powerful, and even my elite duelists don't come close to him. Another irritating flee is Seto Kaiba."
"I can handle them myself, but frankly its not worth my time. I'm here with a proposition for you. You defeat the two of them for me, and I will give you what you most desire. I've already brought you back from the living dead. Then comes the one who sent you there. Jaden Yuki. Finish Moto and Kaiba for me, and I'll let you deal with Yuki in whichever way you please. It's nearing winter. Remember what they say: revenge is a dish best served cold."
Kagemaru considered. He got to stay young. That was definitely good. And he got to pay Jaden Yuki back. What more could he ask for? "I would accept…" he said slowly. "But as of now, I would be helpless against the legendary power of Yugi Moto's Egyptian Gods and Kaiba's invincible dragons. I would require three cards, just three cards, that I've used in the past. Without them, I'm quite helpless. But with them…"
"I've already taken care of that. One of my men retrieved them from their prison under Duel Academy. Here they are." With a dark smile, he held up three cards in his hand. Kagemaru's eyes bulged at the sight of them, and he almost lunged forward to grab them. Marik shook his head patronizingly. "Not now. You get them during the test."
"Test? What test?"
"I've heard stories about you. But I must see if they're true. Therefore, I wish for you to duel."
"Then let's begin," smirked the other villain.
"Oh, you're not dueling me. Nope, your opponent is someone else. He's currently unavailable. That's why I'd be much obliged if you'd join me so that you can meet this umm… delightful fellow, and begin your test. What do you say?"
"I say let's meet this umm… delightful fellow."
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"That was easily some of the most intense dueling I've ever seen," commented Yugi.
"Thank you," said Kaiba stiffly. While he had won, the duel had taken its toll on his body.
"That finishing move was cool," said Zane in genuine praise. "I never expected you to pull of a move like that."
"One hundred and sixty-six thousand points of damage," muttered Jaden. "That's a super combo." "You generally require a super combo to do one hundred and sixty-six thousand points of damage," said Kaiba blankly.
Surprisingly, the hotel lobby was quite empty. Even when they used the elevator to reach their rooms, they didn't see anyone. Kaiba opened his room door, and to his shock, and that of everyone else, Kevin Hunter was standing right there, with an extremely scary grin on his face.
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Kagemaru found himself on the fiftieth floor of the Empire State Building. "What are we doing here?" he questioned. "You'll see."
Marik led Kagemaru to a large, empty room from what had been an office. In the middle of the room was a small pillar, about four feet high. It was jet black in color, and the entire room was pitch dark. However, a single object was emanating light from the pillar.
The object looked like a bluish white pyramid. It had a iron loop at the top, and a large, golden eye was emblazoned across the front. This was the Pyramid of Light. "Stand back," ordered Marik.
Kagemaru grudgingly obeyed. A dark grin spread across' Marik's face, and he raised his Rod. With a hiss, and to Kagemaru's shock, he slashed his hand with it. Not too hard, so that only a few drops of blood fell upon the Pyramid. He raised the Rod and began to chant in an archaic tongue that even the darkest of wraiths avoided speaking in.
The Rod began to glow. Marik's chanting grew louder. Kagemaru could feel the darkness pulsating around him. "What's going on?" he snarled, and reached forward with a massive hand to spin the smaller man around.
He found he couldn't. A tendril of darkness wrapped around it, and held him in place. Another tendril shut his mouth. He struggled against the overwhelming strength of the forces holding him in place, but all his limbs were firmly held in place.
He watched in horror as a cold grin spread across Marik's face. A jet of blue light blasted out of the Pyramid of Light, and connected with a blast of golden light from Marik's Rod. The point at which they met began to grow, and continued to grow until it was about eight feet in diameter. Marik stopped chanting, and the light began to clear.
Kagemaru was freed, but he wasn't able to speak. The sight beheld by him was so terrible, it would have silenced even the bravest man.
Standing in front of Marik, was a man. At least, he looked like a man. He stood at least seven and a half feet tall, with muscles that made Kagemaru feel like a wannabe' wrestler. He had blonde, wild hair, till his shoulders, and a malicious glint in his eyes. He was dressed in a brown cloak and pants. Around his neck was the Pyramid of Light.
When he spoke, his voice sounded echoed the malice of every prisoner of the Nine Circles of Hell. "Marik. It took you long enough."
Marik shook his head in amusement. "You never were satisfied, you greedy old fellow. Anyway, we had better get down to business. I trust you understand the situation. The magic linked our minds temporarily when I revived you from your dominion in the Pyramid of Light."
The man's mouth curled into a feral grin. "The Pharaoh! Where is he? I wish to slaughter him with my own to hands!"
"In time! In time! I need him defeated first, so that I can strip him of his power, and then I can continue on. After that, I'll let you do as you please with him and his little friends. I never liked torture anyway. Too much of a bore. Anyhow, we've got work to do. I'd like you to meet an acquaintance of mine. Kagemaru, meet my friend, Anubis, the God of Death. Anubis, meet the venerable Kagemaru."
Anubis eyed the other man with disdain. "Who is this fool?"
Kagemaru snarled. It was against his nature to let himself be insulted. Even though the other man radiated power beyond his understanding, he stepped forward and spat, "you would do well not to insult me."
Anubis raised an eyebrow, and said, "You are a feisty one. No one has spoken to me like that in a very long time." With a roar, Kagemaru lashed out with his massive fist. It connected with Anubis' face, and he bent backwards. A grin spread across the mortal's face, which immediately turned to a look of shock when Anubis flexed his neck, and the mere movement of his head threw Kagemaru's fist back.
Before the man could react, Anubis stretched out his arm, and grabbed Kagemaru by the throat, raising him up. "Anubis," said Marik warningly. "Don't kill him. I need him."
"I don't think so, Marik," rasped Anubis. "I am, after all, the God of Death. Its been five thousand years since I've taken a life. Let me do what I must."
He began to tighten his grip, and began to constrict the other man's wind pipe. "I said stop!"
Anubis ignored him, and whispered, "Die, fool."
At that second, Marik gave an inhuman shriek, and a bolt of golden energy lanced out of his Rod and knocked Anubis of his feet. Kagemaru fell to the ground in a crumpled heap.
"I GAVE YOU LIFE, ANUBIS," thundered Marik. "AND I CAN TAKE IT AWAY JUST AS EASILY. YOU DIRECTLY DISOBEYED MY ORDERS. SEE THAT THIS IS NOT REPEATED."
He turned on Kagemaru and sneered, "I don't know what to say. Only a fool, even a brave fool, would try to engage the God of Death in direct combat. You shouldn't have bothered, anyhow. You'd be getting plenty of him in what I've planned."
"What do you mean?" asked Anubis quizzically, as he got to his feet. It seemed to Kagemaru that Marik was in charge. Even the powerful Anubis had been silenced by his outburst.
"Ah yes. I forgot to mention. You will be dueling Kagemaru to see if he is worth recruiting."
Kagemaru had expected Anubis to say that Kagemaru wasn't worth his time. He expected him to say that he didn't want to duel such a fool. He certainly didn't expect him to grin and say, "Of course. A duel is the next best thing to a good kill. When do we commence?"
"Five minutes. Go to the top floor of this building. I have to speak with your opponent. Oh and Anubis?" he added.
"Yes?"
"Try to leave him alive." "Spoilsport," growled Anubis. He smirked and vanished into thin air.
"Anyway, I have something for you," chuckled Marik. He held out three cards in his hand. Kagemaru looked at them hungrily and snatched them out of his opponent's hand. He grinned cruelly. He had been foolish enough to believe Yuki's crap. He wouldn't make the same mistake this time.
"One of my men recovered your deck. Here it is." Marik handed the man his deck. Kagemaru slipped the three cards into it, and shuffled it. Marik gave him a Duel Disk. He slipped it on. "I'm ready."
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It was nearly midnight in New York City. Both duelists eyed each other with distaste as they prepared themselves. "You have no idea what you're in for, worm," snarled Anubis. The two duelists were standing on opposite ends of the terrace. Marik stood at the other side.
His arm flashed with dark energy, and a demonic, black Duel Disk appeared on it. It had spikes protruding all around it, and the two card slots looked more like bat's wings than metal flaps. A deck was already in the deck slot. "Don't worry, Anubis," snickered Marik. "I won't deprive you of your precious pyramid from now on. I can stick with my own beasts."
Kagemaru grimaced at the icky sight of his opponent's Duel Disk, and slipped on his own. Anubis didn't bother activating his Duel Disk. Kagemaru fired of the holographic projectors. "Let's duel!"
(Anubis: 8000, Kagemaru: 8000)
"I'll play first, said the God of Death with a morbid chuckle. "I summon Underworld Knight (2000/0) in attack mode." A grotesque knight appeared. Perhaps seven feet in height, he looked more demon than human. Luckily, his face was hidden by a large, black helmet. He sat on a black horse, who was armored as well. His eyes shown red. In one hand he hefted up a lance. The other clutched a daemon-blade.
"I set one card facedown and end my turn." A chilling laugh cut through the air.
Kagemaru shivered. This guy was creeping him out. "I activate Polymerization, fusing Spirit Reaper (300/200) and Nightmare Horse (500/400) to summon Reaper on the Nightmare (800/600)!" The bony zombie dressed in a purple robe appeared next to a horse made of infernal blue energy wrapped in bandages. They were pulled into a vortex, and the resulting beast had the reaper riding the horse, with his scythe raised up.
"A pathetic excuse for a monster," rumbled Anubis.
"We'll see," countered Kagemaru.
"We will indeed. Make your move and bring me one step closer to victory."
"Reaper, attack his life-points directly and prove him wrong." Even as Anubis cried out in shock, the horse galloped towards the Underworld Knight, who brought its sword down on the attacker. It missed by an inch, and the point of his scythe fell towards Anubis' chest. The mighty God of Death caught it between a thumb and forefinger, but the reaper was able to force it down. He drew a drop of black blood: and eight hundred life-points.
"Reaper on the Nightmare can attack your life-points directly. It doesn't matter if you have monsters on the field. What's more, you must discard one card from your hand at random," sneered Kagemaru.
"You have achieved nothing. Nothing at all. I have powers beyond the comprehension of your pathetic mortal mind. I could destroy you would a thought. However, let's not get into that. For now, I will continue with using the damned souls of my deck to torture you. End your pathetic turn."
Kagemaru set a card facedown, and did so.
Anubis drew and drawled, "I summon Traitor Knight of Ruin (1800/1500)." Another knight appeared. This one didn't ride a horse, and was covered in white armor. However, although he gave of a bright light, it still looked evil. Perhaps it was the long saber it held in one hand, dripping with an unhealthy-looking, black fluid. Perhaps it was the shining, blank, cruel eyes beneath its cowl. Either way, it looked like a nasty piece of work.
"Traitor Knight, annihilate that pathetic zombie!" The knight hissed and flung its saber at the opposing rider. Suddenly, Kagemaru's facedown activated. An array of spirits merged flew out of it, and merged together to form an impenetrable, translucent wall. The saber plowed through the wall, but it looked slightly duller when it hit the reaper, who flung it away with ease. Also, Kagemaru's life-points were untouched.
"I activated Spirit Barrier, which reduces all damage to my life-points to 0, as long as I have a monster on the field. At the same time, Reaper on the Nightmare is indestructible in battle."
Anubis looked amused. "I see that you think you've got this little strategy all figured out. But let me tell you, this is just the tip of the iceberg. I am no man. I am no God either. I am ascended beyond those mediocre levels of power. I am Death. You'd better look lively. I'm going to tear you apart piece by painful piece."
Kagemaru had grown accustomed to being young again. His confidence had actually been bolstered by his opponent's bravado. "Talk is cheap. Go on ahead and take your best shot for all I care. With my current combo, you can't touch me."
Anubis knew that his opponent was right, but decided not to show it. "I end my turn."
Kagemaru drew and sneered, "I summon the Creator Incarnate (1600/1500) in attack mode." A golden armored warrior then appeared standing tall, a long, crimson blade in one hand. "Next I sacrifice it, using its effect to special summon The Creator (2300/3000) in defense mode." The golden armored warrior then disappeared and the powerful golden monster with a huge ring that had wings attached to its back appeared in it's place.
"With three thousand defense points, my Creator will be perfectly safe from your attacks until I get a chance to use its effect. For now I'll play Graceful Charity, drawing three cards and discarding two."
He smirked and discarded two cards. "I'll then have Reaper on the Nightmare attack you!"
Anubis grimaced as the zombie on horseback rode towards him. He didn't even feel the scythe cut through his arm. His fist clenched and the darkness around them pulsated.
(Anubis: 6400, Kagemaru: 8000)
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Meanwhile, Marik was enjoying the battle of cards and wills that were taking place between the two giants of power. He could, of course, take on both of them without breaking a sweat. But ever he needed allies. They would serve their purpose, and after that, Marik would dispense them. His ultimate purpose would be achieved.
"It's still early in the duel," mused Marik to himself. "But Anubis is too stupid to realize that his opponent is already setting up to deal out his killing blow."
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"Last of all, I'll set a card facedown. I end my turn," Kagemaru smirked.
Anubis drew. "I activate the magic card-.." "Hold it right there," sneered Kagemaru. "I activate Anti-Spell Fragrance, which forces the both of us to set all magic cards that we wish to activate. We cannot activate them until the next turn."
Anubis shrugged. "I don't care. This match is going to end, very, very soon. I activate my Underworld Knight's effect. If I have a light monster in play, I can pay five hundred life-points, forcing you to discard a card from your hand." Kagemaru would have normally been irritated by this, but instead grinned.
"I end my turn."
(Anubis: 5900, Kagemaru: 8000)
"For all your bravado, I've been dominating the duel from the start. You haven't touch me, while you've already lost over two thousand life-points."
Anubis didn't answer. Instead, he responded with a smirk.
Kagemaru shrugged and drew. He had only two cards in his hand. "I activate my Creator's ability, discarding Royal Decree from my hand, to special summon the monster you forced me to discard last turn. Meet my Giant Orc (2200/0)!"
A massive ogre appeared. It was repulsive in appearance, with a bulging belly. It wore a loin-cloth, and carried a large club. "Attack his Traitor Knight and put an end to its bother!" The orc hefted up its club and strode over to the weaker knight. "I don't think so," snickered Anubis.
"I activate my Traitor Knight's special ability. It really can prove to be a traitor. This time the victim is my unfortunate Underworld Knight. I can drain up to half the ATK of one monster on my field, and add it to Traitor Knight!" The attack points of the Traitor Knight of Ruin shot up to 2800, while the Underworld Knight dropped to a thousand.
The traitorous warrior brought its sword down in an arc, and a wave of light tore the attacking fiend apart.
Kagemaru shrugged. "Spirit Barrier still protects me. Anyway, my Reaper will now attack you!" Anubis gnashed his teeth in anger, and to Kagemaru's shock, the Pyramid of Light flared to life. A beam of energy flew out of it and hit the oncoming attacker. It was covered in a wave of destructive light. When it reappeared, its robes had been slashed to ribbons. The horse was covered with cuts and wounds, and its scythe was broken.
The Nightmare Horse feebly attempted to pummel Anubis head on. The God of Death grasped its head with one hand and threw it aside. However, his life-points dropped to an even lower 5100.
"Pathetic," he sneered.
A bead of sweat dripped down Kagemaru's forehead. He had been pummeling his opponent since the beginning, and Anubis didn't seem at all affected by it. It was as if the mighty duelist was toying with him… The way he smirked every time an attack hit him. They way he shrugged of every statement Kagemaru made. It unnerved him.
"Damn you," he snarled. "I will defeat you. I set my last card facedown and end my turn!"
Anubis drew his card. He was bored. "Before activating my facedown card, I pay five hundred life-points once again, forcing you to discard another card from your hand."
"That idiot!" thought Kagemaru as he sent Imperial Order to the graveyard. This kept getting better and better.
"Next I activate my facedown magic card, Revenge is Sweet. By destroying all monsters, on the field, both of us draw cards equal to the number of monsters destroyed. A much needed effect." A wave of darkness shattered all four monsters, and Kagemaru drew till he held four cards, and Anubis had a full hand of seven cards.
A dark grin spread across his face is face. "I am about to summon one of the most powerful creatures known to humans. It's strength is so great, I can only summon it by removing from play four monsters. They have to be light and dark. It's a Shadow Creature in the league of the legendary Exodia. Meet one of my ultimate beasts! Fallen Angel Zharrgast- Envoy of Hell (4000/0)!"
Kagemaru winced uneasily as four monster spirits appeared from Anubis' graveyard. Each one gave an unearthly howl, and disappeared. There was silence for a few seconds, and then the darkness around them began to pulsate. The cry of a tortured creature echoed throughout the air as spheres of darkness began to merge together to form a monstrous creature.
It was at least twelve feet tall. It was roughly humanoid in shape, although anyone could tell it was anything but human. Vampire-like wings sprouted from its back, and it wore blood red and black armor. Massive muscles rippled all over its body. It's blade had an ornate design, skeletal designs carved into hilt. The blade itself was broad and of a pure black, such that its very physical form appeared to be an illusion, and was roughly five feet in length.
Its face was the worst part of it all. It looked like it had been carved by someone who new everything about human features, yet had never uttered a kind word in his life. His features were normal, but something about it gave off a bad feeling. Everything about the fallen angel echoed hatred. Its eyes were blood red, and he glared at Kagemaru. It was as if he was made of hatred.
"A beast of pure hate, anger and other negative emotions," sneered Anubis, "Zharrgast was created during my many struggles against the Pharaohs of Egypt. All my sheer hatred and want for vengeance formed one being, and Zharrgast was the result. Only I can control his might. We'll see if you're up to the challenge."
Marik made an irritated sound from the sidelines. "You shouldn't have resorted to this beast. If you lose control, it will kill Kagemaru, and then I'll have to use a fair bit of energy to crush it."
"Don't worry, Marik," rasped Anubis. "I'm not going to lose control. But even if I did, it wouldn't kill this fool: it would annihilate him completely!" He burst into evil, cold, mirthless laughter.
"Now let me explain his effect. When I summon him, he has four thousand attack points. Next I can use his effect to pay one thousand life-points and summon a monster that has been removed from play, ignoring the summoning conditions. I choose one of my discarded cards, which had been Diabolos, King of the Abyss (2800/1000)!"
A massive, black dragon appeared. It had two large horns, and jagged teeth jutted out of its jaw. It was covered in metal armor. A line of drool dripped down its jaw.
"Its next effect states that a monster from play to increase Zharrgast's ATK by the number of monsters in my removed from play and graveyard pile that share an attribute with the sacrificed monster, multiplied by a thousand. Underworld Knight and my other discarded monster are both DARK. Therefore Zharrgast has six thousand attack points."
Kagemaru gazed in shock at his opponent. Six thousand attack points!
"Zharrgast, attack with Demarr Devil Blade!" The monster cried in anger, and hefted up its sword. It clasped it with both hands and rushed towards Kagemaru. He had no monsters on the field, so Spirit Barrier wouldn't protect him. "I activate my facedown Call of the Haunted, to resurrect Spirit Reaper (300/200)!"
Anubis let out a cry of rage that made the Elder Gods themselves tremble. The Fallen Angel brought down his sword and a wave of unholy black fire hit the Spirit Reaper. All its clothing was burnt off, and its skin was charred to the point where it was unrecognizable.
"I swear.. I WILL DEFEAT YOU!" screamed Anubis.
Kagemaru winced at the sheer rage of his opponent. But it didn't matter. Victory would now be his.
Anubis ended his turn, and Kagemaru drew. He began to laugh. It echoed Anubis' laughter: mirthless and cold. "Your Fallen Angel may be strong…. But compared to my beast its pathetic. This duel is now over. I send Spirit Barrier, Call of the Haunted, and Anti-Spell Fragrance to the graveyard, to summon my first Legendary Demon. Uria, Lord of Searing Flames (0/0)!!!!!"
Damn, I've enjoyed writing Anubis' character. They really screwed him up in the movie. Well, my Anubis is gonna be one thing that the original wasn't: badass. Expect to see a lot of great action from him.
Just to avoid confusion, the word 'Legendary Demon' is the Japanese term for 'Sacred Beast'.
Original Cards:
Darren: Inazu the Lightning Prince, Doom Knight
Anubis: Underworld Knight, Traitor Knight of Ruin, Revenge is Sweet, Fallen Angel Zharrgast-Envoy of Hell
Please review! I got only one review for the last chapter. By the way, its my birthday on the 21st! More importantly: HP7 is coming out. I've waited for than two damned years for this!
About the story, I've got to options. If I continue with chapters that are 9K+, I'd say there are about eighteen left. If I stick to 5K chapters, the story is about half-done. Let me no what you think.
This chapter is chapter 25. Quite a milestone. Not to mention a chapter average of 5000 words.
REVIEW!