Disclaimer – Yu Yu Hakusho, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and Ronin Warriors (a.k.a. Yoroiden: Samurai Troopers) and all related characters, events, and concepts belong to their respective owners. I get no monetary benefit from this. My benefit is the enjoyment of dealing with beloved characters. If you recognize him/her/it, I don't own him/her/it. If you don't recognize, I might still not be the owner but it'd be best to ask. I'd appreciate it, anyway. ((grin))
"The Spellfire Saga – 1: Shards"
by DragonDancer5150
Chapter 36 – Turnaround
"Crap! Where'd you come from?" Jonouchi drew his card even as he backpedaled from the samurai-armored teen throwing himself sword first at the Duelist, face twisted into a visage of hate and fury such that even he had never seen before.
"Thirteenth Grave, defend!" Otogi gasped, gripping Jonouchi by the shoulders, ready to help pull him out of harm's way.
"Reveal trap card: Kunai with Chain!" A trifoliate blade on a length of chain erupted from one of Jonouchi's facedown cards, snaking around the samurai teen into an inescapable embrace. Still, its power drain was not nearly enough for The Thirteenth Grave to be able to withstand the armored fighter. The resultant destruction of the skeletal Monster left both boys without defenders and, lacking a Duel Monster to wield it, Kunai with Chain dissipated after the initial strike.
By then, the spider-armored fighter had reached them, raking the samurai teen with his six-kama-pack. Enraged, the samurai teen lifted his free hand, but the spider warrior ducked the energy blast and rolled into teen's legs, taking his feet out from under him, forcing Jonouchi and Otogi to dance back out of the way even as the snake-armored fighter closed in to help.
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Ryo had been clashing swords with Anubisu for several minutes now. He wondered – was he just out of serious practice, or were Anubisu's strikes stronger than Ryo had ever known them to be. His arms were tiring from the jarring blows. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Rajura and Naaza close to take on the shard-armored Sohma who had finally made another appearance. He started to protest, then realized there was no one else around to fight him, to keep him from attacking the two non-combatants. Where the hell is everyone else?
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Kuwabara did not see what was taking place at the other end of the field. His attention was in the direction of the goal nearest him. Something had just felled Mutou – or, rather, the Pharaoh – the same something that had taken down his dear, sweet Yukina, and he would be damned if that went unanswered! "Spirit Sword!" he cried as he bolted for the end zone, the golden energy blade manifesting over his fist.
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"Nnghh . . . "
Nasutei knelt by the spirit's side, trying to coax him out of his fetal curl. "Yugi! Please say something. Are you all right?"
"Oww . . . " Not much else would come out of him just yet. The spirit forced himself to straighten and sit up in spite of the pounding ice-cold tingle that still filled him. Gods have mercy, what was that? Despite the fact that he felt like the victim of a lightning strike, the pain actually was not a "bad" one. Chh, "hurts so good"? he wondered with a caustic shake of the head, even as he felt strangely revitalized in spite of having been pounded with triple the Shadow power that he and the Puzzle combined could retain. So . . . that being meant to help me? But if so, to what end? The unspoken voice was the same one he had heard promise to keep him from falling back at the skyscraper, the one that did not seem aware of his ability at those times to hear her snarled promises of retaliation. "I protect what I have claimed!" Her pronouncement when Urameshi first attacked came back to him with a jolt of renewed alarm. What does she mean "claimed"? And does she know of Aibou and I as separate souls? He must be the one she meant as the Puzzle Mas- . . . AIBOU! It was only then he realized that he did not immediately sense his partner's presence in his mind. Gods, don't tell me she took him somehow!
Just then, a low, pain-riddled moan vibrated up the mindlink, followed by a rueful attempt at humor. -All right, Other Me, who rerouted a Bullet train down our hallway?-
The spirit breathed a sigh of deep relief. Yugi had just been knocked out. Not surprising, seeing as how he himself had barely held on to consciousness.
It was then that Kuwabara dropped to his knees by his side, a pure-energy sword of golden light "gripped" in one hand. "Hey, Mutou, you okay?"
"Eh . . . y-yes, thank you." The spirit had to rely on both Nasutei and Kuwabara to help him to his feet, Nasutei slipping him his dropped hand cards. "Again, thank you." A strange heat itched at his chest, and he pulled his shirt out and down a bit to look, stopping cold at the sight.
-S-she . . . marked us, Nakama . . . -
-And I will find her and make her UNmark us, Aibou!- the spirit snarled, refusing to be claimed by any entity against his will, even if she had replenished his flagging energy stores and then some. For now, he would have to try to ignore the handprint branded on his chest like a bad sunburn, returning his attention to the battle at hand.
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"Our turn's not over yet!"
"Got that right!" Jonouchi asserted with a nod, slapping a card down in Attack Mode as Otogi drew. "I summon Gearfried the Iron Knight! Plus I play Graceful Dice from my hand an' reveal my facedown, Skull Dice! Take that! What? Ah, man . . . " The Skull die rolled a one, the Graceful a two. The shard-armor's strength and power did not change, while Gearfried's "only" doubled. "Well, whatever. Gearfried, attack!" The armor-controlled teen raised a hand to the metal-clad knight, washing him with an energy blast. The surge interrupted the sword attack, but the knight survived.
The teen nearly disarmed the snake-armored fighter, a well-placed kick square to the breastplate knocking the warrior back, giving himself a moment to backpedal and start to spin, sword held out. The spider warrior was just climbing back to his feet himself.
Otogi placed the card he had just drawn, growling, "Don't know what you're up to, pal, but . . . no, you don't! I set one Monster face down. Hey, purple dude with the antler horns, do us all a favor and attack my card! Just a scratch, though, 'kay?"
Jonouchi looked at Otogi with almost as much disbelief as the one-eyed spider warrior, then realized what he was doing. Must be a Flip Effect Monster, an' a low-level one at that, he mused as he watched the fighter decide to trust him and cast a morningstar from his forearm guard to graze the card's edge. Their opponent twirled just then, washing them all with a brief hurricane of wind and knocking everyone off their feet. Jonouchi rolled to his knees and looked up to see if Otogi's Monster had been caught in the attack. Damn! That woulda definitely helped, too! Jonouchi grimaced even as Otogi swore vehemently, clutching his chest as though in pain as Brain Jacker appeared only to be demolished by the whirlwind.
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Ryo was thrown to the ground by the ferocity of Anubisu's assault, one katana in the grass several inches from his reach, the arm momentarily numb from repeated blows, the other trapped under him from a bad position in his fall. He looked up with a gasp as Anubisu gripped his Sword of Darkness two-handed overhead, prepared to drive it through Ryo's heart, and the Warrior of Fire knew he could not count on one of those pretty shields to spring out of nowhere as had benefited Rajura against Seiji. Nor would he manage to roll completely out from under the attack in time. He tried to throw his nerveless arm up to parry, but in mid-attack, the sword fell from Anubisu's grip as he reared back, both hands clapped over the front of his helm. Ryo thought he saw a flash of rich amethyst light over Anubisu's forehead before it was hidden.
Piety!
The assertion of Virtue rang through Ryo's mind from Anubisu's as he watched the other's sudden struggle. I get it! Even under control, the Virtues won't let the Armors be forced to fatally strike another Armor-bearer like this!
As though to prove Ryo's suspicions, Anubisu's Armor dissipated in stages, no-dachi vanishing with it, and deep red light coalesced into a crystal orb at his feet as he stumbled and dropped to a knee. Dazed, Anubisu's eyes found Ryo's. "W-wildfire? Nnnn . . . h-help . . . " He collapsed to his side.
Ryo had pushed to his knees by then, working his hand open and closed to start to regain feeling as he brought his other sword up to defend, just in case. As his teammate collapsed, he shifted forward, moving to his comrade's side. "Anubisu! Anubisu!"
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Card Destruction, Multiply, and Dark Magician Girl . . . who requires a sacrifice to summon, and I don't have any Monsters on the field. The spirit scowled as he reached for his Deck. I know I have a Change of Heart, and Brain Control would definitely help, if the spell effects are truly working on people . . . but I've yet to manage to draw either one. Heart of the Cards, guide me! He drew. Kuriboh . . . Not quite what I was hoping for . . . but you've never let me down yet. He set the little Monster in Defense Mode and slipped Multiply into a spell slot face down, then nodded to Mai. If not me, then let one of us Duelists manage to help break this insane cycle!
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Mai nodded in return and drew. It was nothing she could use at the moment, but that did not matter. She had set the perfect trap card last turn, which she could now put into effect. She glanced over at the card Anzu drew. Even better! "Play it. We could all use it." Flipping the switch on the corresponding spell/trap slot, she declared, "Activate trap card: Remove Brainwashing!"
Anzu nodded, her expression grim, and followed suit. "Activate magic card: Rain of Mercy!"
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