I've dealt with a lot of cretins in my time, but I consider myself lucky that I've never actually been the victim of one of the most terrible crimes that a man can commit against a woman.
All modernized countries treat this crime as a serious felony, and many argue that doing it to a woman is even worse than murdering her. Victims rarely recover from it soon, if they do at all.
As much as I didn't like Jackson, I didn't think that he was capable of it…
But what he wants to do now is even worse… He intends what is clearly a crime against humanity…
Clearly, of all the wagers I've been forced to make since coming here, this one is the worst…
00000
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DUEL THIRTY-EIGHT
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A Deal With Dark Ruler
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Half an hour after the duel with Crump, the three duelists were walking down a hallway… The same hallway that they had been walking down a half-hour ago.
It was a stone hallway lit by torches… And that was about it. No doors, no alcoves, basically nothing else. No features at all.
Finally, Francesca threw down her knapsack in frustration.
"God, does this even have an end to it?" she shouted.
"Maybe it doesn't…" said Andy, scratching his chin. "Remember what Pennington said about this place?
"He said something like, how it was like an 'insane architect' designed it, and how the Queen has complete control over the structure… She may well be able to make this hallway go on endlessly if she wants to…"
"So is she just going to let us wander forever?" asked Stan.
He looked at the ceiling.
"You can't defeat us unless you confront us, you know?" he shouted. "How about a door here?"
Then, to his surprise, a large card appeared in front of them. Then, a Monster appeared. It was a stone door with a face and arms, holding a spear. (1,800 DEF)
"I guess she heard me…" he said, more than a little surprised.
"Uh…" said Francesca. "That's a Golem Sentry…"
Andy activated his Duel Disk, and drew the top card.
"Yeah," he said, "but it's still a door, and maybe defeating it will let us into another part of the Palace…"
He played a card, and Alexandrite Dragon appeared in front of him. (2,000 ATK)
"Break down that door!" he shouted, as the Dragon breathed its breath weapon, blowing the Rock to pieces.
They all grinned as a portal opened where the Golem Sentry had been. Quickly, they rushed through it.
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The six Shadow Spawn walked into their mother's throne room. (Not flew, walked. They didn't want to upset her further with any horseplay.)
"Children!" she said with a smile. "Have a seat…"
They slowly took a seat on the nearby benches, somewhat dreading why she had called them here. Finding her in an apparent good mood didn't do much to calm them. When she was happy, it usually meant that someone else was going to be unhappy.
"Are we in trouble again?" asked Melissa, with a slight tremble in her voice.
"No, Melissa, that's what we're here to prevent," said the Queen.
Her crystal ball started to glow.
"Given the fact that each of you had a perfect record up until a week ago… Which has now been ruined… I think we should have a small lesson on how to avoid a repeat of that failure."
"You're going to give us some pointers on how to duel better?" asked Tyson.
"No…" said the Shadow Queen. "I'm going to give you some pointers on what not to do.
"You see, as Stan himself said, many great duelists, such as Katsuya Jonouchi, Seto Kaiba, and even Yugi Mouto, faced duels that they would have lost if their opponents hadn't made misplays that cost them dearly.
"They were playing for terrible stakes… Just think… If their opponents in those duels had been a little smarter, their careers might have been prematurely ended, and the world might have been a very different place today as a result…"
She looked at them with a smirk as they looked at her with fright.
"It's a scary thought, isn't it?" she said. "What might have happened if they weren't around when the forbidden power of the Orichalcos had been unleashed…
"So… As a wise man once said, those who do not know history's mistakes are doomed to repeat them. So let's study some of them, shall we?"
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The portal opened, and the three teenagers emerged into an odd room.
It was a large room that was strewn with rocks and boulders on a dirt floor. A raised platform that was clear of the debris was in the center, a thirty-foot to a side square dais, and paths were provided to access it.
"Looks kind of like the Pewter City Gym…" said Francesca, looking around.
"Uh…" said Andy. "Oh, that's another Pokémon reference, right."
Francesca nodded, and they looked around.
"No exit…" said Stan.
Then, an exit did apparently open. A concealed door opened on the other side of the room, and somebody who both Stan and Francesca recognized stepped out.
"Jackson?" she shouted.
Jackson smirked. She snapped his fingers, and the door slammed shut.
"Hello again," he said, as he walked up to the platform.
"I can't believe it…" muttered Francesca. "You gained one of the Crystal Stars?"
"Actually, I didn't…" said Jackson. "But a deal I made with the Witty Phantom gave me a special pass…"
"Special pass?" asked Francesca.
"I just have to duel you again," said Jackson, "and once I win, I'll take your place as a finalist…
"Plus I get an extra prize… You."
"Say WHAT?" shouted Andy.
"Let him talk…" said Francesca. "This is getting kind of funny…"
"Oh, I'm not joking, Fran…" said Jackson. "Once I defeat you, he'll reprogram your mind and make you my servant…"
"Okay, maybe it's not so funny at all…" said Francesca, her expression turning into a scowl.
"That's pretty low…" said Stan.
"Jackson, this is unbelievable," said Francesca. "Haven't you watched enough movies to know what happens to people who make deals with demons?"
"I have a hard time believing that a third-rate Duel Spirit like the Witty Phantom can even do that…" said Stan. "Maybe Dark Ruler Ha Des could, but…"
"Well I don't believe it…" added Andy. "Jackson, the deal you made… The Phantom only gave you the paperwork! You're really dealing with the S…"
"Put a lid on it!" said Jackson. "This is between me and her!"
"Oh, you bet it is…" said Francesca.
She looked at Jackson.
"Suppose I say no?" she said.
"Then you're going to have to figure out how to open that door I came through yourself," replied Jackson. "It's the only way out… And I have nowhere to go…"
Ms. Mowz and Flurrie appeared beside Francesca, glaring daggers at Jackson.
"I'm getting the same feeling from this guy that I get from moldy limburger," said Ms. Mowz.
"If that's your way of saying he stinks, I agree," added Flurrie.
"Don't worry you two…" said Francesca.
She took her deck, and shuffled it.
"I thought he was a creep the first time, just like any other creep… But this goes way too far. For the first time in my life, I can truly say that I hate a guy…
"Well, fine, I beat him once, I can do it a second time… I might even enjoy this…"
The two Companions vanished as she walked up to the platform.
"Then step right up!" laughed Jackson, as he took a card from his deck. "And here's my Deckmaster…
"The mighty Millennium Golem!"
A huge, hulking statue appeared, with one eye on its cubical face, the eye of Wdjat. (2,000 ATK)
"Mighty?" asked Francesca. "Yeah, right… You actually had that old thing in your deck?"
"I do now," said Jackson.
Francesca looked at the intimidating but very outdated Monster strangely, and then took a card from her deck.
"I choose Sunlight Unicorn," she said.
There was an aura of light, and the enchanted steed appeared behind her. (1,800 ATK)
"Francesca!" said a soft, feminine voice.
"Huh?" said Francesca, turning to the Monster. "You talk?"
"I'm telepathic," she replied, "and I pledge to do all it takes to help bring down this lout."
Francesca felt a little more confident at this, so she activated her Duel Disk.
(Francesca: 8,000) - - - - - - - - - - (Jackson: 8,000)
"My Deckmaster has 200 less Attack Points that yours does," said Francesca, "so I'm going first…"
She drew a card, and then set a Monster on her Disk, causing it to appear concealed.
"I'll end there…" she said.
"My move already?" asked Jackson.
He drew a card.
"I play the Field Spell, Catapult Zone."
He fit the card into his Field Zone, and the backdrop changed quickly. The room transformed into the frontline of a battlefield with soldiers standing by catapults.
"Next, I summon Beta the Magnet Warrior," he said.
He played the card, and a rather famous Monster appeared, a cute-looking yellow robot with horns on its head resembling a magnet, and magnets for hands. (1,700 ATK)
Francesca looked at it strangely.
This is new… she thought.
"Attack her Monster with Electromagnetic Bolt Blast!" shouted Jackson.
Beta fired bolts of energy from its hands. Key Mouse appeared on the card, and shattered.
"You activated Key Mouse's effect," said Francesca. "I get to take a Level 3 Beast from my deck…"
A card slipped out of her deck. She took it, and looked at Monoceros.
"I throw down a face-down, for later," said Jackson, as a set card appeared behind Beta, "and then it's your move…"
Francesca made a draw, and then held up her Card From a Different Dimension.
"I'm banishing this card," she said, as it vanished, "in order to Special Summon Monoceros!"
The ground trembled, and the unicorn-rhinoceros hybrid appeared. (1,000 ATK)
"Next, I summon Elephun!" she shouted, as the cute little pachyderm appeared. (500 ATK)
"Now, she said, as Elephun flew over the battlefield, with Monoceros following, "I can Tune my Monsters together and summon someone who I'm sure you'll remember…"
(*2 + *3 = *5)
Thunder Unicorn leapt onto the field with a loud whinny. She looked at Jackson with a look of pure rage. (2,200 ATK)
"Yep, and I didn't miss her a bit…" sighed Jackson.
"Stuff it!" shouted Francesca. "Due to Monoceros' effect, I can now Special Summon Elephun back to the field…"
The small elephant appeared again, this time in Defense Mode. (300 DEF)
"And by using Thunder Unicorn's effect, as I'm sure you remember, I can reduce Beta the Magnet Warrior's Attack Score by 500 for each Monster I have…"
Beta shook, and sparks flew from its shoulders. (700 ATK)
"Way to go, baby!" shouted Andy.
"I'm not done!" shouted Francesca, as she played a card. "I'll set a card, and then Equip Thunder Unicorn with Mage Power!"
She played the two cards, and Thunder Unicorn glowed with eldritch energy. (3,200 ATK)
"And now she's going to smash your Magnet Warrior!"
Thunder Unicorn charged, stabbing Beta in the chest with its sharp horn…
"I use the effect of my Field Spell!" shouted Jackson. "Once per turn, I can toss a Rock-Type Monster from my deck in order to prevent one of the field from being destroyed by battle."
He discarded a card, and Beta withstood the attack.
"But you still take damage!" said Fran.
"Ergh…" grunted Jackson.
(F: 8,000) - - - - - - - - - - (J: 5,500)
"It's your move…" said Fran, as Beta's Attack Score returned to 1,700.
"This guy is a pushover…" laughed Stan.
"A pushover?" growled Jackson.
He frowned as he drew a card.
What she doesn't know is, he thought, the Phantom also gave me quite a few tips on improving my deck. I gotta admit, the fringe benefits to this deal are rather good…
"I throw another card face-down," he said, as a second set card appeared in his Spell Zone.
"Then I attack Elephun with Beta!"
Beta blasted its rays again, and the Tuner was blown to pieces.
"And that will be all…"
Francesca drew a card. And she was surprised when she saw it.
It's one of the cards I got from Cleo! she thought.
"Play it, Francesca!" urged Sunlight Unicorn. "That's the whole reason you got it…"
Francesca nodded.
"First thing's first…" she said. "Because I banished Card from a Different Dimension last turn, "It returns to my hand this turn, and we both draw twice."
"My pleasure!" said Jackson, as they both made two draws.
"Now, I summon Flame Tiger!" shouted Fran, as she threw a card on her Disk.
There was a roar, and ferocious saber-tooth tiger shrouded in fire appeared in front of her. (1,800 ATK)
"A new one?" asked Jackson.
"You bet…" said Francesca. "Thunder Unicorn, attack Beta again!"
"I activate… Rainbow Life!" shouted Jackson.
One of his Trap Cards lifted up as the unicorn charged, and he discarded Overlay Regenerate from his hand. An aura of multicolored energy surrounded him as Thunder Unicorn's horn slammed into Beta.
"Now, I not only don't lose any Life Points, but for this turn, I gain whatever Life Points I would have lost. And due to the effect of Catapult Zone, I can protect Beta again."
He took another card from his deck and discarded it.
"But you can only use that Field Spell's effect once per turn," said Francesca. "Flame Tiger, destroy it with Flaming Rage!"
The tiger burned fiercer, and pounced, blasting the Magnet Warrior to little pieces.
Jackson grinned, and his other Trap Card lifted up.
"I activate Birthright!" he shouted.
There was an aura of energy, and Beta appeared again. (1,700 ATK)
Then something unexpected happened. The Eye of Wdjat on Millennium Golem glowed, and a blast of burning fire shot from it striking Francesca.
"WHAT?" she shouted.
"That's my Deckmaster's effect!" said Jackson. "It deals out 300 points of damage each time I Special Summon a Rock-Type Monster. Cool, huh?
"And believe me, babe, you haven't seen anything yet…"
(F: 7,700) - - - - - - - - - - (J: 7,100)
Francesca looked at him.
"I end my turn…"
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In the Shadow Queen's throne room, the crystal ball showed a duel being held in a strange arena: a courtroom. One duelist, who was standing in the witness stand, was Katsuya Jonouchi. His opponent, sitting in the judge's bench, seemed to be Judge Man.
"I remember this…" said Kurtis. "That's Chikuzen Ooka, right? One of the Big Five? We all know what his mistake was… Thinking he could cheat under Noah Kaiba's very nose and get away with it."
"He had to cheat," replied the Shadow Queen. "He couldn't have defeated a five-year old if he had played fairly. I'll show you…"
A part of the duel appeared where Jonouchi summoned his Swordsman of Landstar to confront Ooka's Kamionwizard. He tried to use Graceful Dice to increase its Attack Score, but Johnson cheated, making it land on the one.
"This is where Ooka screws up…" said the Queen.
They watched as Ooka used his Deckmaster effect, paying 1,000 Life Points to destroy Swordsman of Landstar and inflict 500 points of damage to Jonouchi.
"That was screwing up?" asked Tyson.
"Yes," said the Queen. "Ooka apparently forgot that his Leading Question Continuous Spell would have granted Kamionwizard 800 more Attack Points when it attacked a Monster. If he had attacked Swordsman of Landstar instead, he would have dealt 1,600 points of damage, and well, do the math…"
"He would have won…" said Leopold.
"Precisely," said the Queen. "You might defend him by saying that he had no idea that one of Jonouchi's set cards was Scapegoat… However, another part of that move that made it stupid was the fact that using his Deckmaster effect at that point brought his Life Points down to 800, meaning that he didn't have enough to use it again. He was reckless and overconfident, and it led to his defeat after Noah discovered his cheating.
"If you want another example of Ooka's stupidity…"
The crystal ball went dark, and then showed another duel, this one shown on mountain path. Both Jonouchi and Yugi were facing a duelist who appeared to be their ally, Hiroto Honda.
"In this duel, the two of them were facing the entire Big Five at once. However, only of them could control Honda's stolen body at a time.
"When Ooka was doing so, he clearly wanted revenge against Jonouchi for his previous humiliation…
"But again, he made a stupid mistake…"
They watched the scene, as Ooka used his Deckmaster effect again, leaving both Yugi and Jonouchi defenseless. Then, he summoned Hysteric Fairy, and attacked Jonouchi directly.
Then he used Catapult Turtle's effect, and sacrificed Hysteric Fairy to inflict 900 points of damage on Jonouchi.
"THAT was stupid?" asked Maria. "He reduced Jonouchi to only 300 Life Points!"
"But he failed to notice that had he moved Catapult Turtle to Attack Mode and attacked directly with that too," replied the Shadow Queen, "Jonouchi would have been reduced to zero Life Points, and half of their problem would have been solved.
"Given how the rest of the duel turned out, it's doubtful that Yugi could have beaten them by himself."
"She has a point…" said Vladimir.
"The biggest irony about Ooka…" said the Queen, "is that he mocked Jonouchi mercilessly, calling him a 'third-rate duelist'… When in fact, he himself may well have been the most incompetent opponent that Jonouchi ever faced…"
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"My move now…" said Jackson.
He drew a card.
"Nice…" he said, as he played it. "I play the Dark Factory of Mass Production Spell Card… It lets me recover two Normal Monsters from my Graveyard…"
He took two cards from his discard slot.
"Give you one guess what they are!" he laughed, as he turned them forward.
"Alpha and Gamma?" gasped Francesca. "So you're actually going to…"
"Oh, I am…" said Jackson. "I send them to back to the Graveyard, along with Beta…"
He discarded the cards, and Beta vanished into grains of light.
"…to Special Summon a mighty beast that's three Monsters in one! I bring out Valkyrion the Magna Warrior!"
An eruption of electrical energy cascaded out of Jackson's side of the field, and a tall, hulking creature rose in front of him. Very few duelists had used this rare card since the King of Games had done so in Battle City, seeing as using it was difficult. The creature was looked as if the three lesser Magnet Warriors had been taken apart, and all their pieces combined to make one huge humanoid, the result of which was now in front of Francesca. (3,500 ATK)
Millennium Golem blasted its fiery bolt from its eye, and Francesca groaned again.
"But I won't be using him right away…" said Jackson. "Actually, I'm going to use his effect, and sacrifice him to summon the three lesser Magnet Warriors from my Graveyard."
Valkyrion vanished, and three smaller robots appeared. Beta came first. (1,700 ATK) Then came Alpha, a thin, grey robot with a sword, a shield, and a helmet shaped like a magnet. (1,400 ATK) Then came Gamma, a squat, pink robot with an S on its chest, large hands and feet, and tinfoil-like wings. (1,500 ATK)
"That counts as three Special Summons, by the way…"
"ARGH!" shouted Francesca, as Millennium Golem fired its blast again. She held her chest.
"Let me guess…" she said, through her teeth. "You're going to use those three guys to summon a second Valkyrion, and then use Monster Reborn to summon the first. Am I warm?"
"You're ice cold," replied Jackson.
Then, a vortex appeared, and consumed the three Magnet Warriors.
"With these three Level 4 Monsters," he exclaimed, "I build the Overlay Network!"
The ground started to rumble, and then split. A giant creature that looked like a dragon made of stone with two small dragons for claws rose out of the ground. (1,800 ATK)
"Wha?" said Stan. "Unless I miss my guess… Isn't that… Stone Dragon?"
"This is Grandstone Dragon," said Jackson. "See, princess, using this card to beat you will be beating you at your own game, so to speak.
"You remember our last duel, right? Garnecia Elefantis is an outdated and worthless Monster, but you had an updated version that was quite lethal.
"Now I also have an updated version of a rather useless Monster, and it's pretty lethal too! This is poetic justice!
"First of all, an Xyz Summon is a Special Summon…"
"Not again…" moaned Francesca.
Millennium Golem zapped her again, and she cried out in pain.
"Now, time to show you what Grandstone Dragon can do," continued Jackson. "By getting rid of one Overlay Unit, I can Special Summon a Rock-Type Monster from my Graveyard."
He discarded Beta, and Valkyrion appeared again. (3,500 ATK)
"Millennium Golem, one more time…" he said.
Francesca groaned as the thing hit her with its beam yet again.
(F: 5,900) - - - - - - - - - - (J: 7,100)
"The Witty Phantom wasn't kidding!" shouted Andy. "A Monster that would be pretty worthless in actual gameplay can make a deadly Deckmaster. Jackson hasn't even attacked yet, and already he's dealt out 1,800 points of damage!"
"This is just going to get worse, babe," said Jackson, as he fit a Spell Card into his Disk. "By using the Solidarity Continuous Spell, all my Rock Monsters on the field gain 800 Attack Points, so long as only Rocks are in my Graveyard."
(Valkyrion: 4,300 ATK, Grandstone Dragon: 2,600 ATK)
"Time to attack!" he shouted. "Valkyrion, smash that horse with Magnet Saber!"
The merged Monster swung its weapon, sending a blast of electromagnetic energy at Thunder Unicorn, blasting her to pieces.
"Your Tiger is next!" he shouted. "Shard Shower!"
Grandstone Dragon roared, and razor-sharp stones shot from its jaws. Flame Tiger vanished in a cloud of soot and smoke.
"Okay, I think that's enough for one turn…" he said with an evil smirk. "I should probably note that Grandstone Dragon can use one other effect; so long as it has at least one Overlay Unit, it can negate a card effect that can destroy a Rock-Type Monster, so long as I send one from my deck to the Graveyard.
(F: 4,000) - - - - - - - - - - (J: 7,100)
"Hold on…" said Andy. "With that Monster and the Field Spell…"
"His Rocks are almost invincible…" said Stan. "This doesn't look good…"
Francesca slowly drew a card. It was her Field Spell, Forest Sanctuary.
Well, at least I can get rid of his Field Spell… she thought, and that's half the problem solved… But I don't know what to do after that…
"If I may make a suggestion," said Sunlight Unicorn's telepathic voice. "I think the first problem that needs to be addressed is that Solidarity card. So long as it's in play, his Monsters have a tremendous advantage."
Francesca looked at her.
But how can I get rid of it? she responded. I don't have Mystical Space Typhoon or Heavy Storm here….
"Perhaps you don't need them…" replied Sunlight Unicorn. "Remember, that card's effect is only valid so long as Jackson's Graveyard only contains one Type of Monster. If even one Monster is there that isn't a Rock, it does nothing."
Francesca looked at the cards in her hand… Then she looked at Jackson…
Yeah… she replied. It just might work…
"Okay, Jackson…" she said. "I'm setting a Monster, and then playing Forest Sanctuary!"
The set Monster appeared, and the Catapult Zone vanished. The unspoiled, thick forest rose around them.
"It won't help you…" said Jackson.
"Maybe this will…" said Francesca, as she played a Spell Card. "I use Dragged Down into the Grave!"
Jackson gulped.
"Let's see if there was any particular reason why you made no Normal Summons last turn…" said Fran, with a smirk. "Come on, let's see 'em…"
Jackson scowled, and turned his two cards forward. They were Release from Stone and Sangan.
"Bingo!" exclaimed Francesca. "I figured you had a few searchers in that deck. I choose to have you discard Sangan!"
Jackson growled as he discarded the card, and the Attack Scores of both his Monsters fell to their base values.
"Yeah?" he said. "Well, I get to do the same to your hand…"
Francesca turned her hand forward. The cards were Nimble Momonga, Hypnocorn, and Card from a Different Dimension.
"I choose Nimble Momonga!" he shouted.
Francesca discarded it.
"Now we both draw once…" she said.
They each made one draw.
"That's all for my turn…" said Francesca.
Jackson laughed as he drew a card.
"It still doesn't matter…" he said. "Valkyrion still has 3,500 Attack Points…
"And by using Grandstone Dragon's effect again, I can Special Summon Beta from my Graveyard!"
Beta appeared once again. Fran screamed as Millennium Golem shot its eyebeam once more.
"Now, he's going to attack your Monster!" he shouted.
Beta blasted the bolts of energy from its claws. Ironically, the Monster was her Sangan. It quickly shattered.
"I use Sangan's effect…" said Francesca, as a card appeared in her hand.
"Big deal!" chuckled Jackson. "In a minute, you're gonna be mine.
"Grandstone Dragon, attack her directly!"
The Shard Shower shot at Francesca, and she struggled against the onslaught as the razor-sharp stones cut into her skin.
"FRAN!" screamed Andy.
"Now for the coup de graceful!" laughed Jackson. "Valkyrion… Finish her off!"
Stan and Andy watched in horror as the huge Rock hit Francesca with its sword, knocking her down…
"No…" cried Andy, covering his eyes. "No… Please…"
"You can look now…" said Francesca's voice.
She still hadn't gotten up… But… It seemed like the duel wasn't over yet…
(F: 2,100) - - - - - - - - - - (J: 7,100)
"HOW?" shouted Jackson.
"First of all, moron," said Francesca, as she stood up, "the correct term is coup de grâce. And the term is properly used to describe a mercy killing delivered to a mortally wounded and suffering soldier, not the final blow to your enemy.
"Second, you were so excited that you didn't even notice my face-down card. I activated it when Beta attacked Sangan.
"It was Hyper Refresh. My Life Points were at 3,700 then. And because the combined total of the Attack Scores of your three Monsters is 7,000, which is well-above that, my Life Points doubled to 7,400 right before Grandstone Dragon attacked me."
Jackson frowned.
"To end my turn…" he said, with a growl, "I'll play Golden Sarcophagus…"
A large, golden chest with the eye of Wdjat on the front of it rose out of the ground.
"That's not good…" said Stan. "In two rounds, he'll have access to any card in his deck that he wants…"
A card appeared above the Sarcophagus, it opened, and the card lowered into it. Then the lid closed, and the chest vanished.
"My turn is over."
"Now's your chance Francesca," said Sunlight Unicorn. "Strike now that he's vulnerable!"
"You got it!" she replied.
"All right Jackson…" she said. "I think I'm not going to draw this turn…
"You see, because Flame Tiger is in my Graveyard, and I have no other Monsters, I can summon it to the field during my Draw Phase instead of making a normal draw…"
The fiery tiger appeared again, burning even hotter. (1,800 ATK)
"The downside of this is, the next time it leaves, it leaves for good… Next, I summon Lock Cat!"
She played the card, and the small cat with the lock on its collar appeared. (1,200 ATK)
"And via its effect, Key Mouse from my Graveyard!"
The small rodent appeared too. (100 DEF)
She took a card from her hand, and was about to play it.
"Wait…" said Sunlight Unicorn. "Don't play Monster Reborn just yet…"
Huh?" replied Francesca.
"True, you could summon Thunder Unicorn, and use its effect to reduce Valkyria's Attack Score by 2,000 points.
"But… Jackson would just summon it again with Grandstone Dragon. There is another option that will let you save Monster Reborn's actual effect for later."
She whispered into Francesca's ear, and Francesca smirked.
"Okay, Jackson," she said. "I'll Tune my three Monsters together…"
The three Beasts flew into the sky above Forest Sanctuary, Key Mouse leading the way, and flying through the rings of energy that appeared…
(*1 + *3 + *4 = *8)
Lightning struck, and Lightning Tricorn appeared out of the blue. (2,800 ATK)
"Who cares?" said Jackson. "Valkyrion will eat that thing."
"No it won't," said Fran, "because you aren't the only one who has a Deckmaster…
"For the cost of one Spell Card from my hand…"
She discarded Card from a Different Dimension.
"…I can recover an Equip Spell from my Graveyard!"
She took Mage Power from her discard slot, and then played it. Lightning Tricorn's eyes shone with powerful light. Then she took the Monster Reborn card from her hand, and set in into her Disk. The light shone even brighter. (4,300 ATK)
"With three Spell and/or Trap Cards on my side of the field, she's more than strong enough to destroy Valkyrion. But… Since you can use Grandstone Dragon's effect to Special Summon it again…
"Lightning Tricorn… You know what to do…"
Lightning flashed from Tricorn's three horns, and Jackson screamed in pain as his huge Xyz was blown into pebbles. The impact threw him backwards, to the edge of the platform.
(F: 2,100) - - - - - - - - - - (J: 4,600)
"You'll pay for that…" growled Jackson.
He drew a card.
"I move both my Monsters into Defense Mode…" he said.
Beta knelt and crossed its arms. (1,600 DEF) Then Valkyrion crouched and covered itself with its wings. (3,850 DEF)
"Then, I use the Mist Body Equip Spell, and Equip it to Valkyrion," he said, as a white glow surrounded the Magna Warrior. "He'll be an effective shield for now…"
He smirked, and then threw two cards into his Disk. Two set cards appeared behind his two Monsters.
"Make your move…"
Fran drew a card, and she sighed when she saw who it was.
Sorry Ms. Mowz, she thought, I can't risk summoning you right now… You'd just be smashed by that thing…
I don't know what Jackson is up to, but I don't think it's gonna be pleasant…
"Attack his Beta!" she shouted.
Lighting Tricorn's horns flashed, and Beta the Magnet Warrior exploded again.
"Thank you…" said Jackson. "In case you're done, it's time to wrap this up…"
"Mmm!" said Francesca.
Jackson made a draw, and then smirked again. Then the Golden Sarcophagus rose out of the ground again. The card he had sealed inside it floated out, and it appeared in his hand.
"First thing's first," he said. "I sacrifice Valkyrion…"
The Magna Warrior vanished.
"To once again summon Alpha, Beta, and Gamma!"
Again, the three lesser Magnet Warriors appeared. (1,400 ATK, 1,700 ATK, 1,500 ATK)
"You know what that means…" he said.
Again, Millennium Golem blasted its eye ray, and Francesca screamed.
"This is seriously getting old…" she groaned.
"Well, here's something new," said Jackson. "Because I have three Level 4 Monsters again, and all three of them are Rocks, I can Xyz Summon an even stronger Monster than Grandstone Dragon!"
The Overlay Network opened again, consuming the three Magnet Warriors. There was a rumbling, and a titanic form started to rise over the field…
At first, it looked like a huge obsidian statue of a muscular man wearing golden armor and a Spartan-style helmet. However, upon closer inspection, its joints seemed to be mechanical in nature; it was more an elaborate clockwork automation than a golem. (3,000 ATK)
As if this huge Xyz wasn't intimidating enough, there was something about the sight of it that made Stan, Andy, and Francesca tremble… A feeling of dread that they could swear they had all felt before…
"I give you… Tak the Terrible!" laughed Jackson. "Fortunately for you, this is a Machine, not a Rock, so my Deckmaster's effect doesn't activate.
"The Phantom told me that some guy named Smithy thought this guy up…"
"SMITHY?" shouted Andy. "Don't tell me that guy is still around?"
All of a sudden, the dark fear that this creature seemed to cause in them made sense…
"Don't know, don't exactly care…" said Jackson. "All I know is, his card is a good one…"
This is really bad… thought Andy. I was barely able to beat that guy… But it seems that, one way or another, the Queen still found a way to work with him…
"Now, I use my Trap Cards…" said Jackson.
One of his set cards lifted up.
"The first one is called Crevice into the Different Dimension," he said. "I get to name one Attribute, and then banish up to two Monsters of the named Attribute from either Graveyard.
"So… I named Earth, and the Monsters I choose to banish are… Valkyrion the Magna Warrior, and just to spite you, Elephun…"
Francesca sighed, and took the Tuner from her discard slot.
"Now I activate… Release from Stone!" he exclaimed, as his second Trap Card lifted up.
A glowing portal opened in mid-air.
"This Trap Card lets me Special Summon a banished Rock Monster," he continued, as Valkyrion emerged from the portal. (3,500 ATK)
"Millennium Golem, you know what to do…"
The Deckmaster blasted its ray again, and Francesca shrieked.
"Now, I use the card that I got with my Sarcophagus' effect… Shrink!"
He played the card, and Lightning Tricorn was reduced to half her size. (2,900 ATK)
"That makes it just weak enough for Tak to handle…" said Jackson. "Attack her Tricorn with Earthshattering Smash!"
The attack was very well-named. The huge Machine threw a punch that caused the whole room to shake, smashing Tricorn to bits.
"I use her effect!" shouted Francesca. "I summon Thunder Unicorn in Defense Mode!"
Thunder Unicorn appeared, sitting on her hindquarters. (1,800 DEF)
"Tak has a pretty useful effect too," replied Jackson, as he held up Alpha's card. "By detaching one Overlay Unit when he smashes a Monster, that Monster becomes mine!"
Lightning Tricorn appeared on his side of the field, also defending. (2,000 DEF)
"Fortunately for you, I had to summon it in Defense Mode. And to make up for this powerful effect and high Attack Score, it doesn't do any Battle Damage.
"But I still have Valkyrion…"
Valkyrion made a swipe with its sword, and Thunder Unicorn shattered.
(F: 900) - - - - - - - - - - (J: 4,600)
Jackson smiled.
"My turn is over princess," he said. "It doesn't have to be hard, you know… I can be gentle if you want…
"And I would be inclined to be if you'd just stop fighting…"
Francesca looked at him in disgust. She didn't believe that for a minute, but she was really in a bind here…
What do I do? she thought. I could use Monster Reborn to bring Thunder Unicorn back and use it to defeat Tak, but then all three Magnet Warriors would be in his Graveyard again, and he wouldn't even have to attack to win. He could summon them and wipe out the rest of my Life Points using his Deckmaster.
And even if I could somehow avoid it, she'd be no match for Valkyrion…
She looked at Sunlight Unicorn.
Well? she asked.
"You summed it up quite well…" said the Beast. "It does seem rather hopeless…
"Still, Francesca… Are you willing to give up? To actually submit to this monster and willingly be his slave?"
Francesca looked at Sunlight Unicorn strangely.
"I don't think you will," continued the Duel Monster. "You'd be surrendering your innocence and honor and revoking everything you believe in.
"And I don't for a minute think that you, of all people, would ever do such a thing."
"Well, princess?" asked Jackson. "I'm waiting…"
Francesca looked at him, and replied by suggesting an impossible act of masturbation.
Jackson could only stare at her in disbelief as she drew a card.
"Here's my move, Jackson!" she said, as she played it. "The Spell Card, Signal Check!"
As she played it, a small, spindly being made of luminous white energy with no features on its face except two spots that suggested eyes emerged from the card.
"Wha…" gasped Jackson. "That's… A Neo Spacian?"
"Rumor has it that Pegasus designed this Spell Card after he witnessed Yukai Judai duel for the first time," said Francesca with a smirk. "Apparently, Glow Moss was used in the duel. This card isn't exactly common… But I can thank a friend we have for it…
"Now then, it works as follows… You pick up cards from your deck until you reach a Monster. Don't show me any…"
Jackson took one card from his deck, then a second, then a third.
"Fine!" he said. "Now what?"
"Now I have to guess what Attribute that Monster is," continued Fran.
As she said this, Glow Moss held up its hands, and six small orbs, each one representing one of the colors of one of the six Attributes, hovered over them.
"If I guess wrong," she said, "you get to keep those three cards. But if I'm right, then you shuffle them back into your deck, and I get to draw three times."
"Wait a minute…" said Jackson.
"I guess… Earth!" shouted Francesca.
All of the orbs in Glow Moss' hands except the brown one vanished, and the one of Jackson's three cards glowed. A large card appeared in mid-air: Alpha the Magnet Warrior.
"Yes!" shouted Andy. "She was right!"
"Congratulations…" growled Jackson, as he shuffled his deck.
Francesca made three draws.
"Well, Jackson…" she said. "I wish I could say this has been fun…"
Her set Monster Reborn lifted up.
"…but it hasn't…"
Thunder Unicorn appeared in a flash of energy. (2,200 ATK)
"Now, I summon Ms. Mowz the Tease Thief!" she shouted.
With a chitter, the Squeek appeared next to the unicorn. (1,200 ATK)
"Big deal…" said Jackson.
"I'll show you a big deal…" said Fran. "I use Thunder Unicorn's effect to reduce Tak the Terrible's Attack Score by 1,000 points!"
The huge automation shuddered. (2,000 ATK)
"Then attack it!" laughed Jackson. "I dare you! I double dare you!"
"Oh, don't worry, I will," said Francesca. "But first…"
She played a Spell Card.
"I activate Earth Tremor!" she shouted. "By sacrificing a Beast-Type Monster, I can deal out 500 points of damage times the Level of the most powerful Monster on your side of the field."
Ms. Mowz vanished into grains of light.
"And what do you know, Jackson? Don't you have two Level 8 Monsters over there?"
Then Jackson screamed as the ground erupted around him, shaking him violently and knocking him down on his behind.
(F: 900) - - - - - - - - - - (J: 600)
For the first time, Jackson was genuinely angry.
"You little bitch!" he shouted. "When I get my hands on you, I'm gonna…"
"Jackson…" said Francesca. "Shut… UP!"
She held up another card. De-Synchro.
"I'm using my Deckmaster effect again, discarding this Spell Card to get Mage Power back again…"
She discarded the card, and Jackson's expression of anger quickly turned to one of fear. Francesca took the Mage Power card, and played it, causing Thunder Unicorn's eyes to glow with anger. (3,200 ATK)
"Wait…" said Jackson. "Stop…"
"Attack Tak the Terrible!" shouted Francesca. "Thunder Spear!"
Thunder Unicorn charged at the much larger Monster… It leapt towards the giant's chest…
Then it leapt through the huge Machine's chest, with a blast of electricity and broken metal. Jackson screamed as Tak the Terrible started to fall apart. First its right arm fell off, then its left…
Then Jackson screamed again as he realized that what remained of it was about to fall right on top of him.
Francesca braced herself, as the huge Machine collapsed with a crash and a huge cloud of dust.
(F: 900) - - - - - - - - - - (J: 0)
The holograms slowly vanished, all except for Sunlight Unicorn. She gave Francesca a pleasant smile, and then faded away.
There was no sign of Jackson anywhere.
"Where do you think he went?" asked Andy.
The door that Jackson had come through opened.
"I couldn't care less…" said Francesca. "He was a despicable human being and if I ever do see him again, I'm going to shove his deck down his throat."
Andy walked up to her, and gave her a gentle hug.
"Careful, Andy, I'm a little tender…" she sighed.
"People, I'm worried…" said Stan.
"I take it you mean 'more worried than we usually are'?" asked Andy.
"Yes…" said Stan. "The Witty Phantom refused to give us a manual on what Monsters had what Deckmaster effects, saying that we had to learn them by trial and error…
"But I don't believe for a minute that Jackson found out that a Monster as outdated as Millennium Golem had a Deckmaster effect that lethal by experimentation alone.
"Clearly the Shadow Queen is giving her minions information we don't have on what the best Deckmasters are, or at least pointing them in the right direction…"
Francesca sighed.
"Pennington was right…" she said. "Who knows just how far she can bend the rules without really breaking them?"
They looked towards the doorway, and then walked through it.
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Meanwhile, the Shadow Queen and her offspring were still going over recordings.
Then, Grodus walked into the room.
"Uh, I hope I'm not interrupting anything…" he said.
"Actually, you are," replied the Queen. "But what is it?"
"You might want to know that the Witty Phantom's first flunky just flunked out," replied Grodus.
The Shadow Queen sighed.
"Disappointing, but not unexpected," she said. "Tell him to tell the second one to be ready."
Grodus bowed, and exited the room.
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SIGNAL CHECK (Spell Card)
Normal Spell
Image: Neo-Spacian Glow Moss holding up its hands, while four orbs, red, blue, green, and brown, float between them.
Card Description: Your opponent picks up cards from his deck until he picks up a Monster Card. Guess what Attribute you believe the picked up Monster is. If your guess is incorrect, your opponent adds the picked up cards to his hand. If your guess is correct, your opponent shuffles all the picked up cards back into his deck and you draw 3 cards.
Note: "Signal Check" first appeared in "Shadowchasers: Torment".
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GRANDSTONE DRAGON (Monster Card)
Rock/Earth/Xyz/Effect/Rank4/1,800ATK/2000DEF
3 Level 4 Monsters
Effect: Once per turn, you may detach 1 Xyz Material from this card to Special Summon a Rock-Type Monster from your Graveyard. If a Rock-Type Monster would be destroyed by a card effect and this card has at least 1 Xyz Material, you may send 1 Rock-Type Monster from your deck to the Graveyard to negate the destruction.
Note: This card was designed by Metal Overlord 2.0. Credit goes to him.
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TAK THE TERRIBLE (Monster Card)
Machine/Dark/Xyz/Effect/Rank4/3,000ATK/1,000DEF
3 Level 4 Rock-Type Monsters
Effect: Battle damage this card does to your opponent is reduced to zero. When this card destroys an opposing Monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard, you may detach 1 Xyz Material from this card to Special Summon the destroyed Monster from your opponent's Graveyard to your side of the field in face-up Defense Position.
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"Sunlight Unicorn": Beast/Light/Level4/1,800/1,000: "Rising Sun": Once per turn, you may discard 1 Spell Card from your hand to add 1 Equip Spell from your Graveyard to your hand.
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"Millennium Golem": Rock/Earth/Level6/2,000/2,200: "Millennium Curse": When you Special Summon a Rock-Type Monster, your opponent takes 300 points of damage.
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The battle is well underway, and clearly, if what has happened so far is any indication, the challenges our heroes faced on the outside of the Palace of Shadow were nothing compared to what remains to confront them inside it. How far does this gauntlet go? They can only learn as they take it one trial at a time…
Next:
Andy: I've been shy around women all my life. Francesca is the closest thing I've ever had to a serious relationship. As a duelist, I've fought opponents who used attractive female Monsters and were never intimidated by them in the least, but real women… They've always made me nervous.
Still, I've always been smart enough to recognize the warning signs that show you when a woman is to be avoided at all costs. Warning signs like tattoos, immodest clothing, punk jewelry, and liberal use of foul language.
Poison had all those signs, and a bad attitude on top of it.
And now, it seems that like Jackson, she has given her soul to the evil in this place simply for a chance at revenge…
"Nightmare's Steelcage" is coming soon.