Disclaimer: I only own the characters that I made up for this story. Everything else is property of its respective owner and I take no credit for it. I do own a few of the cards and those will be marked with a (*).
Theme Song: Had Enough by Breaking Benjamin
Chapter 36: Wrath of the Shinigami
The heavy rain had not let up at all. Casey and Zeke drove through the flooded streets with no destination. They were tired, and could barely continue. The city was dark, empty, and sad. The echoing sadness of all those that had lost their lives because of this war was never-ending.
Through their silence, Casey and Zeke mourned them, along with their fallen comrades and their enemies. No one deserved such a fate. They knew this deep in their hearts. What they had learned from Akira, as well as what they learned from their opponents, was that everyone seemed to be a victim in this war.
It wasn't fair, and she knew this. That's why she had made up her mind to stop this. After seeing how far Matsu went to make sure that she could make it through this war, she wasn't about to let him down. She would fight to the very end, and she wouldn't give up. She wasn't about to let all their deaths be in vain.
"Are you okay, Casey?" Zeke asked her, feeling worried. "I mean, what you've gone through... Its not exactly easy."
Casey nodded. "Yeah. I'll be fine. Its just... Well, all you guys have done so much for me. I kind of feel like I don't deserve it." she replied sadly.
"Don't say that, Casey." Zeke scolded her. "We do this because we are your friends, and we are all in this together. We knew what we were getting into, and so did Matsu. He had faith in you. He believed that you had the strength to stop this whole thing, and I think he's right. You are strong, Casey. You can do this, and I'll be there by your side. There's no way I'll let you go through this alone."
Her Duel Runner slowed to a halt, followed by Zeke's. She looked at him and smiled, the water dripping down her cheeks making it hard to determine whether or not she was crying. "Thank you." she whispered to him.
"No problem." he replied. "What do you think it means? The card that we got from Matsu." he asked her, taking out the card.
She looked at it for a moment, pondering what it meant.
"Ultimate Offering. The cards that you get from defeated Titan members are a sign of what's to come. The Fates are the ones in charge of assigning them, a way to warn you guys. The card that you guys obtained from Matsu's defeat meant that a final price was to be paid." Tueur stated calmly.
Surprised, Casey and Zeke stared at him. They never noticed him until he spoke, which sent a chill down their spine. This guy was quiet, and scary. Everything about him seemed to cry out for blood, and even his words carried the scent of death.
He looked up at the sky, examining the rain. "Seems like the Heavens are still crying." he stated. Shifting his gaze back to Casey and Zeke, he continued to speak. "Though I can't say I'm sad about it, I have to tell you that your friend Matsu was wrong. As of this moment, I am the only remaining Titan in this war. Defeating me guarantees your victory." he informed her.
"What happened to the other one?" she asked.
"I did you the favor of eliminating her." he replied, feeling nothing towards his fallen teammate.
"You mean you killed her, right?" Zeke asked, prompting Tueur to nod in reply. "I see. You guys really have no sense of teamwork, do you?"
"Not at all. We aren't a team. We are a bunch of soldiers. In this war, its every man for himself. No one will care if one of us dies." he explained. "I'm your final opponent. That's all that matters. If you really want to win this war, you'll have to get through me. I have to warn you, though. It won't be an easy battle. After all, I promised your friend Matsu that I would make it slow and painful." he stated, finishing off with a smirk.
At this moment, Zeke and Casey understood the meaning of the card in their hands. Tueur had paid an ultimate price. He had sacrificed his own teammates in order to have a chance to fight them. "Like Hell you will!" Zeke shouted. "You'll be going through me first!"
With a mad look in his eyes, Tueur stared at Zeke. "I'm afraid you won't be able to do that. I'll let you watch her die, though. I don't mind letting you see that, no matter how hard you try, you can't protect anyone."
Zeke growled, and as he was about to reply, he found his vision starting to blur. His breathing was getting heavier, and he found himself feeling weak. His legs were about to give way, and he could barely stay up. His eyelids were becoming harder and harder to keep open, and he was quickly losing his mobility. He felt like he was suffocating, and moments later, he collapsed. His eyes barely open, he could see what was occurring, but had lost the ability to interfere.
"Zeke!" Casey cried out, kneeling down by his side. "Are you okay? Say something!" She put her hand on his chest, and could feel a faint heartbeat. He was still alive, but just barely.
"Your friend will be fine." Tueur assured her. "I just made sure that he won't do anything to mess up our duel. Now, if you please..." he trailed off, activating his duel disk.
Reluctantly, Casey stood up and activated her own duel disk. At the very least, she wouldn't leave Zeke's side. She pulled off the string that held her hair in a ponytail, allowing her hair to be free once more. It covered half of her face, the water causing it to stick to her skin. She brushed it aside, allowing Tueur to see the determined look in her eyes. She was ready to kill him, and she would not hold back.
Tueur smiled as he realized this. This was just what he wanted.
(4000-4000)
Casey drew her sixth card as she started her turn. Though she didn't know this, her plan to gain the field advantage could backfire as badly as it did for Jihl.
She looked at her hand, which consisted of Future Fusion, Silent Swordsman LV. 5, Masked Dragon, The Grave of Enkindling, Ghost Gardna, and Curse of Royal.
"I'll start by activating the continuous spell, Future Fusion. I can send Fusion-Material monsters from my deck to my graveyard to special summon that monster in two turns." She grabbed the three Drill Dragon in her deck and put them in the graveyard slot.
"Next, I'll set one monster and one card and end my turn."
(4000-4000)
"In case you were wondering," he started, taking a card out of his pocket. He lifted up the card and showed it to her. "Fissure. That's the card that my teammate left behind. This meant that the weakest one of you would be taken down." he informed her, hoping she managed to understand who he was talking about.
"Anyway, let's move on. I summon Infernity Necromancer!" A skeletal fiend appeared on the field, most of its body covered by a purple robe. A dark aura surrounded the fiend as it sat down and formed a protective shield around itself. (0/2000)
"Next I set two cards on the field and end my turn."
(4000-4000)
As Casey began her turn, she couldn't help but feel suspicious. What she learned from her last duel against him was that his deck worked around having no cards in his hand. Meaning that one of those cards was there to eliminate his entire hand.
"I activate the trap card, Infernity Inferno!" Tueur shouted out. "By discarding two cards from my hand, I can send two Infernity monsters from my deck to the graveyard."
Casey rolled her eyes. She was right. However, this wasn't good news. She could still remember that Infernity Necromancer could summon monsters from the graveyard, so this could mean a lot of trouble.
"I sacrifice my Masked Dragon to summon Silent Swordsman LV5!" Her set Masked Dragon shattered into pieces, which quickly reformed into Silent Swordsman LV5. It was a tall elven warrior with green skin, blonde hair, and a blue coat. His weapon of coice was a large Buster Sword. (2300/1000)
"I set one card, and I'll have Silent Swordsman destroy your Necromancer!" With a quick move, Silent Swordsman effectively cut the fiendish monster in half, severely weakening Tueur's defenses.
"I end my turn." she said with a smirk.
(4000-4000)
Tueur drew one card, and looked at it briefly before setting it on the field. "I simply set one card and end my turn."
(4000-4000)
As Casey began her next turn, she became extremely cautious. The fact that Tueur did so little in this turn, and didn't seem to be bothered by his monster's destruction, meant that she was somehow playing into his hands.
"The effect of Future Fusion activates, allowing me to summon Spike Dragon to the field!" A massive purple-skinned dragon appeared on the field, its wingspan larger than that of a standard plane, and its height rivaled that of some of the buildings around it. (3900/1000)-(4500/1000)
"Just in case you forgot, my Spike Dragon gains two-hundred attack points for each Drill Dragon in my graveyard. Since all three are there, its a six-hundred point boost."
There it was. Tueur was one attack away from losing this duel, and Casey was one attack away from ending this entire war. As much as she couldn't believe it, she had to stop herself from getting too excited. She had dueled Tueur before. He left his field clear of monsters on purpose. He wanted her to attack. Though she didn't know why, she knew she would probably have to. After all, this was her only chance to deal a devastating blow. Of course, she would have to be careful.
"Silent Swordsman, attack him directly!" she commanded. The warrior moved swiftly, aiming for Tueur's chest with a downward slice.
Tueur groaned as the attack hit, just barely able to hold in the pain.
Gritting his teeth, he managed to smirk and utter the following words: "I activate the trap card, Chain of Purgatory."
The trap, it seemed, could only be activated when his opponent attacked him directly. "You should have attacked with your Spike Dragon, because you just fell right into my trap!" Tueur exclaimed. "I can select a card on your field and destroy it. In return, I can special summon an Infernity monster from my hand."
Lightning struck Silent Swordsman, destroying the poor warrior. Then, with a malicious aura, a large, grotesque fiend appeared on Tueur's field. It was Infernity Destroyer, a monster that Casey had some experience fighting. (2300/1000)
"You've already lost enough Life Points, Tueur. This next attack will finish you off! Spike Dragon, destroy his Infernity Destroyer!" Spike Dragon opened its giant maw, charging up a massive breath of fire. With all its strength, it released the molten breath.
"Its over, Tueur! You're done!" Casey stated.
"I activate the trap card, Infernity Force! When you attack one of my Infernity monsters while I hold no cards in my hand, I can not only destroy the attacking monster, but I can also special summon an Infernity monster from my graveyard!"
Spike Dragon's fiery breath hit an invisible barrier. The attack was then reflected back, causing the dragon to roar as the attack hit. It pained the poor creature severely, but all that Tueur saw was the dragon's attack points decreasing to 4300.
"Sorry, Tueur. Once per turn, by removing from play one of the Drill Dragon in my graveyard, I can negate my monster's destruction." she informed him, sighing as she managed to survive that counterattack.
Tueur growled. She managed to stop him, but it wouldn't be for long.
"I activate the spell card, Reinforcements of the Army. This allows me to add a level four or lower Warrior-Type monster from my deck to my hand." A card was ejected from her deck, and she added it to her hand.
"Since I can still normal summon, I summon Marauding Captain to the field." The warrior appeared on the field with glory, prepared to die on the battlefield. (1200/400)
"And when he's summoned, you can special summon another level four or lower monster from your hand." Tueur stated, knowing what she would do.
Casey nodded, and summoned Ghost Gardna, an android made up of various components ranging from organic to metal. (0/1900)
"I end my turn."
(4000-1700)
Tueur drew a card, smiling when he looked at it.
"If I draw Infernity Archfiend when I have no cards in my hand, I can reveal it to you and then special summon it to the field." The monstrous fiend appeared on the field, looking like a mixture of various creatures. (1800/1200)
"When this monster is special summoned, I can add one Infernity monster from my deck to my hand." A card slid out of his deck, and he added it to his hand.
"Infernity Destroyer, attack Marauding Captain!" Infernity Destroyer threw a powerful punch at Marauding Captain. This not only destroyed the warrior, but the resulting explosion knocked Casey on her back, inflicting various wounds upon her.
"What... What happened?" she asked groggily.
"When Infernity Destroyer destroys a monster while I hold no cards in my hand, you take sixteen-hundred points of damage." Tueur explained.
Still lying on the ground, Casey activated one of her trap cards. "I activate The Grave of Enkindling. This allows us both to special summon a monster from our graveyard, but the monster must remain in defense position." she informed him.
Silent Swordsman LV5 appeared on her field, while Infernity Necromancer appeared on Tueur's field.
"Your move."
(2400-1700)
Though she struggled to do so, Casey managed to get back on her feet. She had several lacerations across her body, and she had injured her left shoulder, but she was still able to continue.
She felt weak, but she would not give up. She had the advantage. All she had to do was attack one more time, and she would win. She would finally put an end to all this.
"I activate the equip spell, United We Stand! By equipping it onto my Spike Dragon, its attack points increase by eight-hundred points for each monster on my field." Spike Dragon roared proudly as its attack points increased to 6700, and its defense points increased to 3400.
"Spike Dragon destroy his Infernity Destroyer and end this duel!" This time, there was no stopping her. She knew she had won. Tueur was defenseless. Spike Dragon released its powerful molten breath, eradicating the fiend.
Casey jumped up, celebrating her victory. She saw her opponent's monster be destroyed, and she knew he had no spells or traps to stop her. She was victorious. "Zeke! Wake up! We did it! We won!" she cried out, wanting her friend to celebrate the end of such a terrible war.
Unfortunately, Casey's celebration was premature. She heard a dark and disturbing laugh erupt from the other side of the field, and as the flames moved, she saw Tueur's maniacal and twisted expression as he stood his ground.
"What happened?" she asked, unable to understand why Tueur not only had zero Life Points, but also had a new monster on the field. It looked like a fiendish doll made out of clay. It had an odd design, and multiple eyes. (0/0)
"Did you think you could really defeat me!" Tueur shouted out, his voice sounding like a madman's. "I told you that you wouldn't be winning this! I shall never be defeated! Meet Infernity Zero! When my Life Points are reduced to zero, I can special summon him. As long as he's on the field, I won't lose. Not only that, but it cannot be destroyed by battle or by card effects! The only way you can possibly win is by somehow managing to inflict fifteen-hundred points of damage at once! Face it, you've lost!"
"How desperate are you!" Casey shouted out in anger. "Are you really so obsessed with causing pain and misery to others that you are willing to go to any length to win?"
Tueur's maniacal laugh rang endlessly inside her head. "Of course! I will not allow you Olympians to get your way! This world needs to be destroyed, and I'll make sure of it!"
"Why? Why do you hate this place so much?" she asked him.
"Why? Because of people like you! You preach about how your friends will always be there with you. You believe that they'll always be there to protect you, but those are all lies! Look around you! The only one of your friends that has made it this far is lying on the ground beside you, unable to do anything to help! No one can ever help you, and you deserve to die for being stupid enough to believe that!" he explained.
Casey ended her turn, not sure how to react. Tueur was insane, but there was some truth to what he said. Still, could she believe him? After all, in his desperation to win, he had not only eliminated many of his teammates, but he had also used a card that would allow him to continue to duel despite the fact the his Life Points had reached zero.
(2400-0)
Tueur started his turn, the twisted expression from earlier still on his face.
"I summon Infernity Beetle." The small black beetle appeared on the field, flying around in a habitual fashion. (1200/0)
"I have no cards in my hand, so I can activate Infernity Beetle's effect. It allows me to destroy Infernity Beetle and then special summon two more from my deck." Infernity Beetle shattered into pieces, which then multiplied and took the form of two Infernity Beetle.
"First, I'll start by tuning one of them with Infernity Necromancer and Infernity Archfiend." The beetle turned into two green rings that floated around Infernity Necromancer, who dissolved into three glowing stars, and Infernity Archfiend, who dissolved into four glowing stars.
"The weight of the world has been lifted off! Finally free of his restraints, the mighty Titan shall obtain vengeance! Destroy the world that has held you back! Synchro Summon! Titanic Deity-Atlas*!"
Like most Titanic Deities, this one was human. He was a young man, yet he seemed to be fragile. There was anger in his eyes, and he wore a purple robe to hide his skinny body. He wielded a katana, which was tied to his back, and there were a pair of wings coming out of his back. One of them was completely white, while the other was completely black. (3600/2200)
"When Atlas is summoned, I'm able to draw one card for each monster on your field." Tueur smiled evilly as he drew three cards and set them all on the field.
"Next, I'll have Atlas destroy your Silent Swordsman!"
"I use Ghost Gardna's effect. I make him the target, and when he's destroyed, your monster will lose a thousand attack points until the end of the turn!" Atlas attacked the android, but the resulting explosion weakened him. However, Ghost Gardna's destruction caused Spike Dragon's attack points to decrease to 5900, due to the effect of United We Stand.
"Heh. Nice move. I end my turn."
(2400-0)
Casey drew her next card, Pot of Greed.
"I activate Pot of Greed! This allows me to draw two cards!" She drew once again, and then set both cards on the field.
"Spike Dragon, attack Atlas and finish this!" she commanded, hoping that this would finally end. To her horror, it wouldn't. Not yet.
"I activate the counter trap, Negate Attack!" Tueur shouted, effectively stopping Casey's attack and ending her battle phase.
"I end my turn."
(2400-0)
The look on Tueur's face as he began his turn didn't make things any better. The twisted smile resting on his lips meant that he intended to finish this, and he wanted to do that now.
"I summon Infernity Necromancer!" Another Infernity Necromancer appeared on the field, this one quickly switching into defense mode. (0/2000)
"I activate his effect, allowing me to special summon an Infernity monster from my graveyard. I summon Infernity Destroyer!" The tall, hulking fiend appeared on the field once more, not happy to see its executioner. (2300/1000)
"First, I tune Infernity Beetle with Infernity Destroyer." Infernity Beetle turned into two green rings that floated around Infernity Destroyer, who dissolved into six glowing stars.
"When all hope is lost, take everything with you! Plunge the very world that rejected you into the depths of Hell! Synchro Summon! Appear, Infernity Doom Dragon!"
The monster, a large dragon with four eyes, a crown made of bones around its head, and three arms appeared on the field. It was as hideous and bloodthirsty as the last time that Casey saw it. (3000/2400)
"I activate my trap card, Infernity Break! By removing from play an Infernity monster in my graveyard, I can destroy your Spike Dragon!"
"I don't think so!" Casey replied. "I use my Spike Dragon's effect, removing a Drill Dragon in my graveyard from play to negate its destruction!" With another Drill Dragon gone, Spike Dragon's attack points dropped to 5700.
"I use the effect of my Infernity Doom Dragon! Since I have no cards in my hand, I can destroy one monster on your field, and you take damage equal to half of that monster's attack points!"
"I use my Spike Dragon's effect once again!" Casey sighed as her monster remained on the field. Casey had walked right into Tueur's trap, and she knew it. Most likely, one of Tueur's set cards was to prevent his monster from being destroyed, which would allow him to reuse Doom Dragon's effect on his next turn.
"Atlas, destroy her Silent Swordsman!" Atlas drew his katana, and with a movement faster than that of Silent Swordsman, he cut the warrior in half.
"I end my turn. Hope you have fun in the afterlife, Casey!" he exclaimed.
(2400-0)
Casey quickly drew a card, and decided to move quickly.
"I activate the trap card, Burst Breath! By destroying one Dragon-Type monster on my field, I can destroy all face-up monsters on the field whose defense is equal to or lower than my dragon's attack points!"
"What!" Tueur exclaimed. "I activate the counter trap, Infernity Barrier. When I have an Infernity monster in attack position and no cards in my hand, and you activate a spell, trap, or monster effect, I can use this card to negate that card's activation and destroy it!" On the inside, Tueur smiled. Though he didn't plan for this specific event to occur, he did believe he might have to use Infernity Barrier at some point.
"Sorry, but that won't be happening!" Casey replied. "I activate the counter trap, Curse of Royal! When you try to destroy a spell or trap, I can activate this card. Not only to does it negate its activation, but it also destroys it! Say goodbye to your monsters!"
Another fiery explosion occured, all the monsters, except for Infernity Zero, were gone. Casey smiled as she succeeded in clearing her opponent's field, but that smile quickly went away as she saw another new monster on her opponent's field. The dark and twisted expression on Tueur's face was back, and he did not seem even the slightest bit happy.
It took Casey a moment, but as she examined her opponent's field, she managed to understand what had happened. At the very last minute, Tueur had used a trap card to summon Atlas' assault mode.
Though Atlas did not turn into a large and frightening monster like many of the other Titanic Deities, he did go through a change. He was no longer skinny. He was young and muscular, at his peak. He now had two pairs of wings, keeping the same color scheme. The wings on one side were white, while the others were black. Though he still wore a purple robe, it seemed to shine brightly. As for his katana, the handle and the guard was covered by a dark aura, while the blade radiated a white light. (4200/1900)
"I told you! You cannot win! It won't even matter if you summon a monster! On my turn, I'll be able to use Atlas' effect to remove from play all cards on your field! You've lost, Casey. You and your friends have officially wasted their lives. They tried to protect you, and now they are gone. Soon, so will you. I was right! People can't protect others if they can't even protect themselves!"
"Shut up!" Casey shouted out, interrupting his insane rant. "My friends gave up their lives to help me stop you. To stop this war! I won't let their sacrifice be in vain! You don't know what its like to see your friends work hard to help you as much as they can, just to have them die and leave you all alone! You are such a hateful person. I'm not surprised you don't know what I've gone through. No one would ever give their life for you!"
It was over. Casey was going to end things now, and make sure this war came to an end. "I activate the continuous trap, Call of the Haunted! I'm going to use it to bring back Spike Dragon!" Spike Dragon appeared on the field, as determined to bring this all to an end as Casey was. (3900/1000)
"Its over for good, Tueur. I activate the quickplay spell, Shrink! This halves your monster's attack points!" A terrified expression now covered Tueur's face as he realized what was about to occur.
With Atlas' attack points now at 2100, Casey commanded Spike Dragon to attack. The two monsters clashed, but in the end, Spike Dragon destroyed the Titanic Deity. Having inflicted 1800 points of damage to Tueur's Life Points, Infernity Zero obtained the three Doom Counters needed to destroy itself. It exploded violently, and the duel came to an end.
Casey sighed in relief, happy to see that it was all over. It was finally over.
Tueur gripped his chest, struggling to stay upright. He was weak, and could barely move, let alone speak. Casey looked at him curiously as he stretched out his hand, trying to reach for something.
Tueur was reaching out, trying to grab hold of a little girl that stood before him. In his final moments, Tueur was hallucinating a young girl, about five years of age. She had shoulder length black hair, and wore a cute pink dress. She stood there before him, smiling at him.
"Lily... I'm so sorry. I... failed you... again. Forgive me..."
End of Chapter 36.
A/N: No preview for the next chapter. I will tell you this, though. This story isn't over yet.
-CARD ALBUM-
Titanic Deity-Atlas - Monster Card
Type: Fairy/Synchro
Attribute: Dark
Level: 9
ATK: 3600
DEF: 2200
Effect: When this card is summoned, you can draw one card for each monster on your opponent's side of the field.
Titanic Deity-Atlas/Assault Mode - Monster Card
Type: Fairy
Attribute: Dark
Level: 10
ATK: 4200
DEF: 1900
Effect: Once per turn, during your main phase, you can pay 1000 Life Points to remove from play every card on your opponent's field.