Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's: Over the Nexus
Fan Fiction by: Spirit Reader
Yu-Gi-Oh! (Including GX, 5D's, Zexal, Arc V, and Vrains) original creator: Kazuki Takahashi
Chapter 109: Troubles Back Home – Part 2
"I see…So that's what happened."
Those were the words that Martha spoke after listening to Lilly's explanation about Kagura's harsh behavior. From the moment she first laid eyes on her, Martha could tell right away that there was a burning anger festering within the young woman. An anger so great that it could easily destroy everything within its path. However, as she is not one to pry into another's personal life without reason, Martha couldn't determine the cause of Kagura's anger…until now.
After witnessing the brief altercation between Kagura and Madas earlier, Martha decided to confront Lilly and Crow on the former's behavior. Although she didn't know anything about Kagura herself, it was clear that her step-children did and if she was going to get to the bottom of this, it was going to have to be through them. So, after allowing Kagura to leave, Martha asked for an explanation and Lilly, albeit somewhat reluctantly, gave her one.
The young woman explained everything she knew about Kagura. Like how she was Takashi's younger twin sister and how she had similar abilities to both her and Crow. But most importantly, Lilly told Martha about how Kagura anger stems from her belief that Team Satisfaction was responsible for the death of her cousin, Vivi. It was something that she didn't really want to talk about if she could, but Lilly knew that if anyone would truly understand the situation it would be Martha.
Once Lilly finished telling her story, Martha closed her eyes for a moment as she thought about everything that she just learned. After reopening them, she slowly made her way towards both Lilly and Crow, the both of whom were looking slightly towards the ground with solemn looks on their faces. She then placed one hand on each of their shoulders before giving them both a warm and compassionate smile.
"Thank you for telling me this," She said to the both of them. "I know that it must've been hard, but now I understand what's really happening here."
Upon seeing the understanding look that was on her face, both Lilly and Crow felt so much better, like a huge burden was just lifted from their shoulders. Although they have plenty of regrets about their time in Team Satisfaction, the incident involving Vivi was one that really hit close to home, especially now that Kagura is involved. Because of that, the two Signers silently thanked their step-mother, who simply responded with another warm smile.
After that was taken care of, Martha took a moment to walk over and stare out a nearby window. As she looked outside, the old woman could still notice the marks created from Kagura's Duel Runner when she drove off earlier. She then let out a small sigh before turning around and facing the others.
"I always knew that this day would come eventually…it was unavoidable. What happened that day was regrettable, but what's done is done. The past cannot be change no matter how much we would like it too. Right now…the best thing that we can do is find Kagura and explain to her what really happened on that day. After that…the rest is entirely up to her."
"…Right," Said both Lilly and Crow in unison.
Once that was settled, Lilly and Crow prepared themselves to head out in order to find Kagura, who was out searching for the missing Toshiro. Joining them was Madas, who was somewhat eager to pay Kagura back for hitting him before she left. However, before the two of them could do so, the 3 of them were stopped by Sona, who was standing in front of the door. The Psychic then shook her head in disagreement.
"None of you are going anywhere," She said to all of them. "It's too dangerous and I can't afford to have any of you do anything reckless right now."
The group was slightly shocked by Sona's refusal to them pass, especially Crow who seemed somewhat insulted in fact. Because of that, the Blackwing Duelist arrogantly decided to keep walking towards the door.
"Listen lady," He said in a somewhat defiant tone. "I don't know who you think you are, but no one tells me what I can or can't do. So why don't you do us all a favor and move the hell…"
Before Crow could even finish his sentence, Sona suddenly placed her right index finger in the middle of the Signer's forehead. This action instantly made it impossible for Crow to move a single muscle, much to the surprise of everyone else in the room. Then as Crow struggled to move his body, Sona's eyes started glowing a bright pink color as she started glaring at him.
"…I'm not going to repeat myself. No one leaves. Do I make myself clear?"
As Sona continued staring at Crow, Lilly could immediately sense an incredible power coming off of the Psychic Duelist. Although the power wasn't as intense as Akiza's, it seemed more controlled and versatile. It was almost like Sona could dispose of them all whenever she desired and that there wasn't a thing they could do about it. Because of this, the only thing the group could do was silently submit to her demand.
Shortly after that was taken care of, Sona removed her finger from Crow's head, allowing him to move once more. Her eyes then started to return to normal as she pulled out a cell phone from her pocket and started to dial it. Then, as the others looked on in confusion, Sona started talking to whoever picked up on the other line.
"What's your status?" She said. "…I see. And what about the 5th Dragunity Knight? Did you manage to locate her yet…? Right. Okay…I'm pretty sure you know where I'm at. Find them and bring them here. You have until sunrise."
After that, Sona hung up her phone and placed it back into her pocket. She then took a moment to wipe off her glasses while everyone else was trying to figure out what that all about. Eventually, Madas was the first to step up and say something."
"Um…Who were you talking too?" He asked.
"…An important ally," Sona answered. "One that we'll need if we have any intention of winning this fight."
"And who might that be?" Lilly followed.
Sona kept wiping her glasses for a few more moments as she contemplated whether or not she should answer Lilly's question or not. After coming to a conclusion, the young woman placed her glasses back over her face before looking at her.
"…My little sister."
The air was thick with tension as Kagura Toyoshima found herself surrounded by large group of shadowy figures. Each one was covered in a pitch-black aura, one that was so intense that the pressure that it gave off would knock out a normal individual. It was only through the protection of the Dragunity Knight symbol on her back that she was able to withstand it. This also applied to the young boy that was behind her, as her mark shielded him as well.
As she attempted to protect the boy, Kagura was silently wondering to herself how she got into this situation. She was trying to find Toshiro, who has been missing for a while, but instead found herself in this mess. The young woman found this situation to be completely stupid, but she realized that complaining about it would get her nowhere. All that mattered now was making sure that the boy next to her was safe and Kagura had no intention of letting any harm come to him.
To that end, Kagura once again picked up her sword and directed it at the army of hooded figures. When they saw it, some of them started to chuckle, amused that Kagura believed that such a weapon would harm them. However, unbeknownst to any of them, it was Kagura intention to strike them were her sword. Instead, as she swung it, the young woman instinctively transferred a portion of her Dragunity Knight Powers into the blade. She then struck it towards the ground, causing a large dirt cloud to suddenly appear.
The sudden appearance of the dirt cloud initially caught the group off guard, causing some of them to scramble a bit. However, the leader of the group silently kept his cool and simply extended out his right hand. This caused a burst of invisible energy to suddenly shoot out and blow the cloud away. When it disappeared, both Kagura and the boy were gone.
"How amusing…" The Leader said with a small, sadistic grin. "But it won't save them."
Focusing his energy, the Leader's right arm started glowing, revealing a large spider symbol. Through its power, he was able to quickly detect Kagura's location and immediately pointed in the direction that she was headed.
"She's over there. Keith…Go after her and make sure she's dead."
Upon hearing his named called, the hooded figure named Keith suddenly made his way to the front. Like the Leader, his arm was also glowing with the same Spider Mark. He then proceeded to bow before his superior before giving chase after Kagura. Once he was gone, the Leader got ready to lead the others back to their hideout. However, just as he was about to do so, something compelled to him to stop in his tracks.
The Leader turned his head towards a large pile of nearby garbage and quickly blasted it away with a portion of his power. This caused the garbage to scatter across the area, revealing that no one was present. Upon seeing that, one the other hooded figures walked up towards the Leader.
"Is there something wrong, sir?"
"…No," The Leader answered. "Let's go…"
Without saying another word, the Leader walked away from the area, the others following right behind him. They then suddenly disappeared, leaving absolutely nothing behind. Once they were gone, another hooded figure emerged from the shadows. As this individual looked on, he contemplated whether or not he should follow after the others. However, he quickly came to the conclusion that doing so would be suicide. To that end, he decided to head the other direction and raced off in the direction where Kagura was heading.
As for Kagura, the young woman was trying to race back towards her Duel Runner as quickly as she could, all the while carrying the young boy in her arms. Her first instinct was to head back over to Martha's place, believing that she could keep the boy safe with the help of the others. Unfortunately, upon sensing a dark presence quickly chasing after her, Kagura quickly realized that her plan wasn't a good idea. So, instead of running away, Kagura decided that the best thing she could do in this situation is fight.
With that mindset firmly in place, Kagura stopped and put the boy down. She then started searching the entire area, finally taking notice at a small building located not far from where she was. Kagura pointed in the direction of the building before turning her attention towards the boy.
"Listen to me very carefully," She told him. "Run towards the building I'm pointing as fast as you can and don't come out until I say so. Do you understand?"
Confused and terrified by what was going on, the young boy wasn't able to answer Kagura's question right away. Seeing this greatly annoyed her, causing the Twilight Duelist to slightly raise her voice at him.
"I said, do you understand me?!"
After being yelled at by Kagura, the young boy quickly shook his head at her. He then started racing towards the building with tears in his eyes. Although she found no enjoyment in scaring the boy like she did, Kagura simply told herself that it couldn't be helped. Instead, she simply focused herself and watched as Keith finally caught up with her. The two of them stared each other down, causing the air around them to thicken as a result of their respective powers.
"…I'm only going to tell you once," Kagura angrily told him. "Leave me and the boy alone. Do this and I'll let you go."
"Afraid not, Dragunity Knight!" Keith quickly responded. "I've been tasked to end your life and that's exactly what I'm here to do!"
Kagura watched as Keith extended out his arm, causing the spider mark that was on it to start glowing even more. This caused a large ring of purple flames to sudden surround the both of them, trapping them inside. It was at this moment that the young woman felt a terrible sensation cover her entire body. This feeling was very similar to what she felt during Takashi's Duel against the Shadow Drone. It was at this moment that she realized that there was no turning back.
With that in mind, Kagura pulled out her Duel Disk and immediately placed it on her arm. Keith went on to do the same and the two Duelists then went on to insert their respective decks into the Deck Zone.
Duel
Kagura: 4000 LP
Keith: 4000 LP
"I'll make the first move," Kagura declared as she placed her hand upon her deck. "I Draw!"
After swiftly drawing the top card from her deck and placing it into her hand, Kagura quickly responded by taking two cards from her hand and placing them onto her Monster Card Zone.
"Since I have no monsters on the field, I can Special Summon: Twilight Knight, to the field in Attack Mode! Then I Normal Summon: The 13th Grave, also in Attack Mode!"
Twilight Knight: ATK 100 DEF 500 LVL 3
The 13th Grave: ATK 1200 DEF 900 LVL 3
A bright flash of light shined across Kagura's side of the field for a few moments as both of her monsters materialized before her. When she stared at the two of them, the young woman noticed something different about them, almost like they weren't just holograms anymore. However, she knew that she didn't have time to ponder it and so she put those thoughts to the side for now. Instead, she continued on with her turn by taking another card from her hand and inserting it into her Spell/Trap Zone. This caused the card to materialized face-down on the field, right behind her monsters.
"I now set one card face-down and end my turn."
"Good…" Keith said in a cold tone. "Now it's my move. I draw!"
Without pause, Keith immediately drew a card from his deck and placed it into his hand. He then went on to take another card and insert it into his Duel Disk's own Spell/Trap Zone.
"I activate the Spell Card: Graceful Charity! With it, I can draw 3 more cards from my deck at the cost of discarding 2 from my hand!"
As soon as he finished explaining the effect of his Spell Card, Keith took 2 cards from his hand and placed them into the card Graveyard. He then proceeded to draw 3 more cards from his deck and placed them into his hand. After examining all of the cards, Keith then took another card and also inserted it into his Spell/Trap Zone.
"Next, I activate the Spell: Monster Reborn! And I'll use it to Special Summon the Queen's Knight that I just discarded to the Graveyard!"
Queen's Knight: ATK 1500 DEF 1600 LVL 4
Once he finished talking, both Keith and Kagura watched as a Queen's Knight materialized onto the former's side of the field. However, unlike a regular Queen's Knight that had red and yellow armor, this one had black and violet armor. Her facial appearance was also different as she now had black hair with gold eyes instead of blonde hair with blue eyes. When she saw that, Kagura wonder if this was due to the purple flames that was surrounding them, but she didn't have time to think about it further as Keith continued on with his turn.
"Now…I Normal Summon: King's Knight!" He declared.
King's Knight: ATK 1600 DEF 1400 LVL 4
Upon placing a card onto his Monster Card Zone, Keith watched as King's Knight appeared before him and started standing right next to Queen's Knight. Like with the latter, King's Knight was wearing dark armor and even had a darker facial appearance. The two knights then coldly greeted one another as a card suddenly popped out from Keith's deck. The Shadow Drone took hold of that card and firmly placed it onto his Monster Card Zone.
"Now, when King's Knight is successfully summoned while Queen's Knight is on the field, I can then Special Summon Jack's Knight from my deck!"
Jack's Knight: ATK 1900 DEF 1000 LVL 5
A third flash of light shined brightly across Keith's side of the field as Jack's Knight appeared and stood besides his fellow knights. When Kagura saw this, the young woman knew right away what was about to happened next. However, despite seemingly being at a disadvantage, Kagura quietly held her ground and watched as the Shadow Drone launched his first attack.
"Go Queen's Knight!" Keith called out too. "Attack Twilight Knight now!"
Without any hesitation, Queen's Knight complied with her master's command and proceeded to quickly make her way over to Twilight Knight. However, before the two warriors could even cross swords, Kagura responded by pressing a button on her Duel Disk, activating the face-down card that she set earlier.
"I activate the Trap Card: Black and White Shield!" She declared. "With this, since I have both a Light Attribute and a Dark Attribute Monster on the field, I can negate your attack and end your Battle Phase!"
After finishing her explanation, Kagura watched as both Twilight Knight and The 13th Grave started glowing with a white and black aura respectively. These two auras then combined to form a powerful shield that easily repelled Queen's Knight attack and forced her back to Keith's side of the field. Once that happened, Kagura went on to take the top two cards from her deck and place them into her Graveyard.
"However, by activating Black and White Shield, I'm forced to send the top two cards from my deck and send them to the Graveyard."
Following Kagura's counter play, Keith simply looked at her with a silent expression on his face. Knowing full that that she would be a powerful opponent, the Shadow Drone wasn't surprised that Kagura was able to stop his attack. In fact, a part of him even expected it. To that end, he proceeded to take three cards from his hand and insert them all into his Spell/Trap Zone. Once he did so, three face-down cards appeared onto his side of the field.
"I set 3 cards face-down and end my turn." He said in a cold tone of voice.
"Then it's my turn again." Kagura replied. "I draw!"
Without pause, Kagura swiftly drew the top card from her deck and placed it into her hand. Once she did that, the young woman took a moment to examine all 3 of Keith monsters and began to ponder what he planned on doing with them. Kagura came up with several possibilities and concluded that every one of them would be bad for her. To that end, she decided to land a decisive blow on her opponent before that could happen and that began by pulling a card from her hand and placing it onto her Monster Card Zone.
"I Summon the Tuner Monster: Frequency Magician!"
Frequency Magician: ATK 800 DEF 400 LVL 2
A bright flash of light shined across Kagura's side of the field as the Frequency Magician appeared and stood by her other two monsters. Now with 3 monsters out on her field, the Twilight Duelist didn't waste any time in making her next move.
"Now…I Tune my Level 3 Twilight Knight with my Level 3 13th Grave with my Level 2 Frequency Magician!" She declared.
All 3 of Kagura's monsters immediately responded to her declaration and proceeded to fly high into the air. As they did so, Frequency Magician transformed into 2 green rings, which covered both Twilight Knight and the 13th Grave, causing them to glow brightly. A giant pillar of light then began to surround them as Kagura pulled out a card from her Extra Deck and place it onto her Monster Card Zone.
"Light from the heavens, darkness from the shadows, merged together and become the power that upholds justice! Synchro Summon! Show the road to dawn, Twilight Dragon!"
Twilight Dragon: ATK 2700 DEF 2100 LVL 8
As the pillar of light began to fade from Kagura's field, her almighty Twilight Dragon appeared from it and immediately made its presence known by unleashing an ear deafening roar. At the same time, the appearance of her dragon also caused her Dragunity Knight Mark to shine brightly across her back. This in turn also caused Keith's Dark Signer mark to glow brightly as well as the two of them resonated with one another.
"Twilight Dragon!" Kagura called out too. "Attack his Queen's Knight with Twilight Surge!"
Upon hearing its master's orders, Twilight Dragon locked its eyes onto Queen's Knight and proceeded to fire a concentrated blast of light and dark energy from its mouth. As the attack made its way over to Queen's Knight however, Keith went on to press a button on his Duel Disk.
"I don't think so!" He stated. "I activate the Trap Card: Negate Attack! With it, I can negate your dragon's attack and end your Battle Phase!"
"That's what you think!" Kagura countered. "By removing a Dark Attribute Monster from my Graveyard from play, I activate Twilight Dragon's Special Ability! Now, once per turn, I can negate the activation of your Trap Card and destroy it!"
In what seemed like an instant, a large vortex appeared right in front of Queen's Knight, which Keith hoped would protect her from Kagura's attack. However, Twilight Dragon immediately responded to its appearance by destroying with a powerful beam of dark energy that it shot from its eyes. It then continued on with its attack, but Keith remained undaunted. Instead of panicking, the Shadow Drone simply responded by activating another one of his face-down cards.
"I was hoping to save this for later, but you left me no choice!" He stated. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell: Super Polymerization! With it, I can take all three of my knights and use them for a Fusion Summoning. In addition, neither one of us can activate cards in response to this card's activation!"
Once Keith finished his explanation, both he and Kagura watched as all three of the former's monsters crossed swords and began spinning around like a top. As they did so, several powerful sparks of electricity began to shoot from them, blocking Twilight Dragon's attack.
"Fusion Summon! Behold the awesome power of Arcana Knight Joker!"
Arcana Knight Joker: ATK 3800 DEF 2500 LVL 9
As Kagura looked on with a stoic expression on her face, the Twilight Duelist watched as Arcana Knight Joker appeared on Keith side of the field, replacing his 3 other knights as a result. Because of its appearance, a replay occurred and Kagura now had the right to launch another attack with her dragon. However, given that Arcana Knight Joker's Attack Points outclassed that of Twilight Dragon's, she knew a front assault would be pointless. To that end, she decided to take a different approach.
"From my hand, I activate the Quick-Play Spell: Book of the Moon!" She said as she inserted the card into her Spell/Trap Zone. "With it, I can switch your knight face-down in Defense Mode!"
Following Kagura's explanation, her Spell Card materialized onto her side of the field and immediately shot of a powerful blast of electricity. However, Keith simply shrugged it off and proceeded to take a card from his hand and place it into his Graveyard.
"I don't think so!" He said with a conceited smile. "By discarding a Spell Card from my hand from the Graveyard, I can activate my knight's Special Ability. Now, your Spell Card is immediately negated!"
Arcana Knight Joker immediately responded after Keith activated its ability by drawing its powerful saber. It then went on to fire a blast of blue energy from it, which began making its way over to the lightning that came from Kagura's Spell Card. Seeing this however, caused the young woman to smirk slightly, as this was precisely what she was hoping for.
"Thanks for that," She told her opponent. "By doing activating your knight's effect, you activated my Twilight Dragon's second Special Ability! Once per turn, I can remove from play a Light Attribute Monster from my Graveyard to negate your monster's effect and destroy it!"
In the same way, Twilight Dragon fired off a powerful blast of dark energy from its eyes, the powerful beast proceeded to fire a blast of light energy from them and directed at Arcana Knight Joker. Unlike last time, Keith had no way of countering this action and thus had no choice but to watch as the attack struck his knight and destroyed it instantly. Once it was gone and out of the way, Kagura went to point her finger directly at the Shadow Drone.
"Twilight Dragon…" She said in an intimidating tone of voice. "Attack his Life Points directly!"
After unleashing another ear deafening roar, Twilight Dragon immediately complied with its master's command and fired off another Twilight Surge at Keith. As the attack was making its way towards him however, the Shadow Drone responded by activating another one of his face-down cards.
"I activate the Quick-Play Spell: Shrink!" He shouted. "With it, I can cut the Attack Points of your dragon in half until the End Phase of the turn!"
Twilight Dragon: ATK 1350
Just as Keith finished explaining the effect of his Spell, a giant magnifying glass appeared in front of him. When Twilight Dragon's attack struck it, the magnifying glass was able to cut the power of the attack in half. However, due to the mysterious effects of the ring of fire that was surrounding both Duelists, Twilight Dragon's attack had real force behind it and thus knocked Keith back as his Life Points began to drop.
Keith: 2650 LP
After watching Keith fall onto the ground, Kagura took a moment to look at him before taking the time to examine the fire that was around them both. Seeing Twilight Dragon inflict real damage onto her opponent was the final indication she needed that this wasn't a normal Duel. Still, she kept her cool about it as she didn't really care if her attacks hurt her opponent. All that mattered was defeating him as soon as possible and, in Kagura's mind, if that meant that Keith had to get hurt, then so be it.
"I end my turn." She said coldly.
Twilight Dragon: ATK 2700
As soon as Kagura declared the end of her turn, Keith finally managed to pick himself up from off the ground. When he did so, Kagura noticed that his eyes were beginning to glow with a menacing purple color, just like the spider mark that was on his arm. Just seeing that caused a shiver to run down the young woman's spine. She then watched as that glow grew even more intense as the Shadow Drone placed his hand upon his deck.
"It's my turn!" He said sinisterly. "Draw!"
After drawing a card from his deck, Keith took a moment to glance at it before putting it to the side. He then went on to take another card from his hand and insert it into his Spell/Trap Zone.
"I activate the Spell Card: Soul Release! With it, I can banish up to five cards from your Graveyard!"
Following the explanation, a beautiful maiden with rainbow colored hair appeared onto the field and began making her way towards Kagura. As she did so, the Twilight Duelist instantly understood Keith's intention. He wanted to render Twilight Dragon unable to activate its abilities by banishing the cards from Kagura's Graveyard. Realizing that she couldn't let that happen, Kagura immediately put a stop to it.
"I activate Twilight Dragon's Special Ability!" She declared. "Previously, I was able to negate your Arcana Knight Joker's effect by removing a Light Attribute Monster from my Graveyard, but this effect can also apply to your Spell Cards as well!"
Just like previously, Twilight Dragon unleashed another blast of light energy from its eyes, which on to completely destroy Keith's maiden before she even got close to Kagura. However, despite this setback, Keith's expression remained unchanged. He then went on to take another card from his hand and also insert it into his Spell/Trap Zone.
"I activate another Spell Card: Release of Spirit!" He continued. "By discarding one card from my hand, I can banish my Arcana Knight Joker from my Graveyard in order to Special Summon Queen's, King's, and Jack's Knight back onto the field!"
As soon as he finished explaining that, Keith went to discard one card before watching three pillars of light appear in front of him. From those pillars stood his 3 royal knights, who all proudly prepared themselves for battle.
Upon seeing this, Kagura immediately understood what was going on here. Keith only played Soul Release earlier just so Kagura would destroy it. His true objective was to play Release of Spirit as it allowed him to bring his knights back without the fear of Twilight Dragon getting in his way of doing so. It was a smart move and although she had already anticipated it, Kagura silently berated herself for allowing it to happen.
Back on Keith's side of the field, the Shadow Drone went on to stare at Twilight Dragon for a moment before letting out a sinister smile. He then went on to remove both Queen's Knight and King's Knight's cards from his Duel Disk before replacing them with the card that he drew at the beginning of his turn.
"Now, I sacrifice both my Queen and King's Knight in order to summon a monster from the depths of the Netherworld…the Dark Tuner Monster: Dark Tuner Malice!"
Dark Tuner Malice: ATK 0 DEF 500 LVL 9
As soon as placed the card onto his Duel Disk, Kagura looked on in shock as two dark portals suddenly appeared beneath both of her opponent's monsters. From those portals, a set of giant hands shot out from each of them and grabbed ahold of both Queen and King's Knight. Then, after both knights were sucked into the portals, they merged to form an even bigger one. It was from this portal that an otherworldly being, straight from out the depths of hell, emerged and confronted Kagura.
Although there were few things in the world that truly frightened Kagura, Dark Tuner Malice was one of them. It had a devil-like appearance with pale grey skin, black limbs, and piercing red eyes. The monster also had bat wings and sharp fangs, causing it to resemble a vampire to some extent. However, the most horrifying thing about it was definitely the fiendish smile that it was brandishing. Just looking at that smile sent shivers down Kagura's spine, although the young woman tried her best to hide it.
Once Malice was fully materialized onto the field, Keith took a moment to look over at Kagura and saw that despite being scared, she was able to hold her ground. Upon seeing that, he knew right away that her courage couldn't be tolerated any further. To that end, he proceeded to pull out a card from his Extra Deck.
"Behold woman…" He said as an even darker aura began covering his body. "For I now Dark Tune my Level 5 Jack's Knight with my Level 9 Dark Tuner Malice!"
Right away, Dark Tuner Malice let out an ear deafening shriek as it soon transformed into 9 dark rings, which soon wrapped around Jack's Knight. After that, Jack's Knight then turned into 4 dark orbs, which soon expanded until darkness completely covered Keith's side of the field. This darkness was so intense, that it nearly blew Kagura off her feet. As she struggled to hold her ground, the Dragunity Knight listened as Keith started chanting to himself.
"When the shadows are devoured by even darker shadows, the curtain pulls back to reveal…a world without light! Dark Synchro Summon! Appear now, Wicked Phantom!"
Wicked Phantom: ATK 0 DEF 0 LVL -4
Once the darkness on Keith's field began to fade away somewhat, Kagura looked on as an entirely new monster appeared before her. This monster, now known as Wicked Phantom, was a creature whose body was completely covered in a dark cloak. Underneath that cloak was a set of glowing red eyes, which looked at Kagura with such intensity that it was like they were piercing into her very soul. This caused Kagura's fear to grow even worse, but she again tried her best to keep her composure.
"Now…" As Keith pointed directly at Twilight Dragon. "Go my Wicked Phantom and attack Twilight Dragon!"
Without saying a word, Wicked Phantom responded to its master's command and fired off a powerful blast of dark lightning. Upon striking Twilight Dragon, the beast was able to shake off the attack rather easily before firing off a powerful counterattack of its own. However, upon being struck by that attack, Kagura was surprised to see that Wicked Phantom was completely unharmed.
"What the hell…?!" She said in confusion. "My dragon had more Attack Points than your monster. How is it still standing…and why hasn't your Life Points decreased?!"
"Simple…" Keith replied with a cocky grin. "When Wicked Phantom attacks an opponent's monster, not only is it not destroyed, but I also take no Battle Damage. In addition, since Wicked Phantom attacked a monster but failed to destroy it through battle, its second Special Ability now activates."
Before Keith could explain any further, Kagura watched as a red aura began to surround her Twilight Dragon, causing it to scream in agony. While wondering what could be causing this, the young woman looked back at Wicked Phantom and saw that its red eyes were now glowing even brighter. Upon seeing that, it didn't take her very long to figure out who was responsible.
"What is your monster doing to my dragon?!" She angrily questioned.
"Why it's taking control of it." Keith answered. "That's what happens when Wicked Phantom activates its Special Ability."
Upon hearing Keith say that to her, Kagura's anger only grew as she watched her beloved partner being forcibly separated from her. She knew that if Keith gained control of Twilight Dragon's power, then this Duel would be even more challenging to win. In addition to that, Kagura wasn't about to let a bastard like him take control of her dragon without a fight. With that in mind, she proceeded to activate a Special Ability of her own.
"I don't think so, creep!" She shouted. "By removing a Spell Card in my Graveyard from play, I activate Twilight Dragon's Special Ability!"
"No, you don't!" Keith countered. "Because I used Dark Tuner Malice to successfully perform a Dark Synchro Summoning, the Special Abilities of all your monsters are negated until the end phase of the turn!"
Stunned by this sudden development, Kagura could only look on in disbelief as Wicked Phantom soon forced Twilight Dragon to leave her side of the field and join Keith. When this happened, Keith took a moment to look over at her and was delighted to see that Kagura's fear was now visibly present. Just seeing her so frightened gave him so much joy and he wanted her fear to grow even more. To that end, he wasted no time in launching his next attack.
"Go Twilight Dragon…attack your former master's Life Points directly!"
With a mighty roar, Twilight Dragon set its sights onto Kagura and went on to fire a blast of light and dark energy directly at her. With no means to defend herself, the young woman took the attack head on and found herself screaming in utter agony as the shockwave sent her flying backwards.
Kagura: 1300 LP
Once Twilight Dragon finished launching its attack, Keith looked on with a pleasant expression on his face as his opponent was laying motionless on the ground. He then went on to take one card from his hand and insert it into his Duel Disk. This caused a face-down to appear right behind his two monsters.
"Well, that was quite amusing." He said with a grin. "I now set one card face-down and end my turn. Now…let's see if you can amuse me some more."
While Keith was busy mocking her, Kagura was struggling to stay conscious after being struck by Twilight Dragon's attack. The pain that she was experiencing was nothing like she's ever felt before. Just trying to keep herself awake was absolute agony for her, so much so that a part of Kagura wanted to stop trying and let it end. However, just as she considered contemplating that decision, something began to surge within her.
As she was lying on the ground, the Twilight Duelist noticed that the kid that she rescued earlier was nearby, hiding behind some debris. Although she couldn't make out what he was saying, Kagura was able to tell that he's rooting her to get up. Just seeing him do that made her realize that she couldn't afford to let herself die here. With that resolve, Kagura's Dragunity Knight mark began to glow brightly, causing a white aura to surround her body.
Upon seeing this display, Keith was a bit surprised by what he was witnessing. His superiors told him and the rest of his allies that both the Signers and the Dragunity Knights possessed abilities that rivaled their own and Keith believed that Kagura's aura was one of them. Even so, he wasn't intimidated by her power and so he simply looked on as Kagura slowly picked herself up from off the ground.
"Its…It's my turn." She said as she placed her fingers on her deck. "I Draw!"
With one massive pull, Kagura drew the top card from her deck and went on to glance at it before placing it into her hand. She then examined the rest of her cards, trying to see which ones can help her get out of this situation. In the end, while she saw that she didn't have anything that could defeat Keith's monsters, she did have something that could help her survive. Because of that, she went on to take two cards from her hand and insert them into her Duel Disk.
"First off, I set two cards face-down on the field."
Just as she said those words, two face-down cards indeed appeared before her on the field. Once that happened, Kagura then went on to take another card from her hand and placed it face-down on her Duel Disk's Monster Card Zone.
"Next, I place a monster face-down in Defense Mode."
Again, another face-down card appeared onto Kagura's field, right in front of her other two cards. However, while her first two cards were set in a vertical position, this one was set in a horizontal position. Once all 3 of her cards were on the field, Kagura determined that there was nothing else she could do, except hope that her plan works.
"I end my turn."
Once those were spoken, Keith's grin quickly grew more intense. He had no idea what kind of cards Kagura played just now, but he believed that it didn't matter. He already had all the cards he needed to win this Shadow Duel and he had every intention of using them. To that end, he wasted no time in beginning his turn.
"It's my move," He declared. "Draw!"
With one swift pull, Keith drew the top card from his deck and immediately placed it into his hand. He then went on to press a button on his Duel Disk, activating the face-down card that he set on his last turn.
"This Duel is over…for I activate the Trap Card: Demon's Grasp! With it, I can switch one of your monsters in Defense Mode and place it in Attack Mode!"
When Keith explaining the effect of his trap, both he and Kagura watched as a demonic hand suddenly shot out from it and grabbed ahold of the latter's face-down monster. This caused the face to flip up, revealing Kagura's monster to be the Mystical Elf.
Mystical Elf: ATK 800 DEF 2000 LVL 4
"In addition to that, Demon's Grasp has another effect!" Keith followed up. "The monster that was just switched into Attack Mode has its Attack Points cut in half!"
Mystical Elf: ATK 400
The demon hand from Keith's Trap Card squeezed tightly as it held onto Kagura's elf, causing to scream in pain as its Attack Points decreased. Once that happened, Keith then turned his attention towards Twilight Dragon as he prepared to make his next move.
"Well, I guess this is the end." He said before turning his attention back towards Kagura. "At the very least…you can die at the hands of your own monster. Twilight Dragon, attack the Mystical Elf!"
Thanks to the power of the Wicked Phantom, Twilight Dragon had no choice but to fire another devastating attack towards Kagura. This time though, Kagura was ready for the assault and promptly activated one of her face-down cards as a result.
"I don't think so!" She countered. "I activate the Trap Card: Mirror Force! With it, since you just declared an attack, all monsters you control that are in Attack Mode are now destroyed!"
Just as Twilight Dragon's attack could land and destroy Mystical Elf, a powerful magic mirror suddenly appeared in between them and blocked the attack. Despite that though, Keith wasn't fazed as it was clear to him that Kagura had forgotten something crucial, something that would not only cost her this Duel, but her life as well.
"You fool!" He said as he began laughing hysterically. "Did you forget that your dragon can negate the activation of Trap Cards, as long as I simply banish one from my Graveyard?!"
Without a second thought, Keith removed his Demon's Grasp Trap Card from his Graveyard, which in turn activated Twilight Dragon's Special Ability. This allowed the beast to overpower Kagura's Mirror Force and continue on with its attack. Upon striking Mystical Elf, a giant explosion completely covered Kagura's side of the field.
Upon seeing that explosion, Keith started laughing even harder as he believed that the Duel was now over. Kagura's last line of defense was gone and her Life Points just hit zero. All that was left was her dead body, which was probably lying on the ground in a pool of body. He had successfully fulfilled his objective and he had every intention in reveling in his triumph. However, things weren't as they seemed.
"I wouldn't be laughing if I were you…"
Keith's expression suddenly shifted to one of surprised as he heard Kagura's voice coming from the smoke cloud that his attack created. He then looked on in disbelief as the smoke cleared and both Mystical Elf and a heavily damaged Kagura were still standing. In addition to that, Keith saw that Kagura still had some of her Life Points.
Kagura: 150 LP
"But…But…how are you…?" Keith stuttered as he tried to process what he was seeing.
"Simple, you fool." Kagura stated calmly. "I know full well that Twilight Dragon can negate the activation of Spell and Trap Cards…but only once per turn. Because of that, I was able to activate my second Trap Card: Half Unbreak. With it, not only was I able to prevent my Mystical Elf from being destroyed, but it also cut the damage I would've taken in half, allowing me to survive as well."
After she finished explaining what just happened, Kagura soon fell to her knees as the damage she took still took its toll on her. Despite that though, the young woman was pleased by this outcome as not only was she able to survive Keith's attack, but was also able to wipe that cocky grin off his face. She then decided to return the favor with a grin of her own, causing her opponent to be taken aback by it.
"What's wrong?" She asked in a condescending tone. "What happened to all that confidence that you were just displaying? I mean…don't you still have the advantage? I mean, it's not like I have anything in my hand that can let me turn things around on my next turn."
Upon hearing Kagura seemingly mock him, Keith's anger started boil over as a dark aura began to surround him. He wasn't about to let this woman, who he believed was less than the dirt he walked on, to make fun of him. Still, Keith was grateful to Kagura for one thing. Her words indicated that she had a card that could let her turn the tables and Keith wasn't about to let her play it.
"Don't get so cocky, bitch!" He said as he inserted a card into his Duel Disk. "I activate the Spell: Card Destruction! Now both of us must discard are entire hands to the Graveyard and draw an entirely new one!"
As soon as that was said, both Kagura and Keith proceeded to place their respective hands into the Graveyard before drawing a new set from their decks. After that, Keith saw that his new hand wasn't all that special. Still, he was at least pleased that he was able to get rid of Kagura's special card before it could be used against him. Thanks to that, he was able to take one of his new cards and insert it into his Duel Disk.
"I now set one card face-down and end my turn." He stated. "Now…let's see how you can make the most of your last turn."
Once Keith finished saying that to her, Kagura watched as another face-down card appeared on his side of the field. She then glanced up at him and saw that he was still bothered by the fact that she was able to prevent him from winning the Duel. Because of that, she was able to determine that the face-down card he just set is probably some kind of Trap Card meant to protect him. Even so, Kagura wasn't fazed by it as the pieces for her victory were already in place. All that remained was putting those pieces into play.
"Yes…why don't we." She said as she placed her hand on her deck. "I Draw!"
With a strong pull, Kagura swiftly drew the top card from her deck and, after taking a quick look at it, immediately inserted it into her Duel Disk.
"I activate the Spell Card: Change of Heart!" She declared. "With it, I can take control of one monster you control until the end of the turn! I think I'll take my Twilight Dragon back!"
"Oh no you won't!" Keith shouted at her. "By removing another Trap Card from play, I can negate the effect of your spell!"
Just as a white aura began to surround Twilight Dragon's body, the mighty beast let out a powerful roar that caused it to immediately fade away. However, Kagura was counting on that as that Spell Card she played was only meant to use up Twilight Dragon's effect. Now, with that out of the way, she could make her true move.
"From my Graveyard, I activate the Trap: Divine Star! By banishing it from play, I can Special Summon one Light Attribute Monster from my deck!"
As Kagura pulled her deck from her Duel Disk and began searching for the card she wanted, Keith was wondering how that Trap Card got into her Graveyard. Eventually, he soon realized that he was the one responsible. By playing Card Destruction last turn, he unintentionally allowed Kagura to put that card into her Graveyard. He assumed it was something that she needed to have in her hand, but it's clear that she was goading him into making her get rid of it. It was a trick, one that Keith fell for.
Eventually, Kagura found the card that she wanted and immediately pulled it from her deck. Then after shuffling her cards and placing them back into her Duel Disk, the Twilight Duelist went on to place the card she'd chosen onto her Monster Card Zone. This caused a bright flash of light to shine across her field.
"Behold…I Special Summon: Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
Blue-Eyes White Dragon: ATK 3000 DEF 2500 LVL 8
From the light that was shining across Kagura's field, the legendary Blue-Eyes White Dragon, which was famously used by the equally legendary Seto Kaiba, appeared and stood before her. The powerful light that was radiating off its body was so intense that it lit up even the darkest of corners. However, while an ordinary Duelist would simply use this mighty beast to attack right away, Kagura decided to do something different. Because of that, she went on to insert another card into her Duel Disk.
"Next, I activate another Spell Card; Destiny Overlay!" She stated. "With the power of this Spell, I can perform an Xyz Summoning using monsters on not only my field, but yours as well. So… I think I'll overlay my Level 8 Blue-Eyes White Dragon with the Level 8 Twilight Dragon that's on your field!"
Both dragons roared in response to Kagura's words and they soon transformed into powerful light energy. They then started flying across the field for a few moments until the Overlay Network appeared before Kagura. Once it did, the lights dove right into the portal, resulting in a massive explosion.
"When the powers of Light and Darkness merge together, a massive storm emerges that destroys all evil! Xyz Summon! Appear now, Twilight Storm Dragon!"
Twilight Storm Dragon: ATK 2800 DEF 2500 Rank 8
From the depths of the Overlay Network, Kagura's newest beast emerge in all its glory. Like Twilight Dragon, this monster had the same black and white color pattern to it. However, what made Twilight Storm Dragon different is that the pattern had a more violent look to it, almost as if it was raging out of control. Once the dragon was fully by Kagura's side, it let out a roar so intense that it literally shook the ground beneath both duelists. Kagura then went on to take one final card from her hand and insert it into her Duel Disk.
"Now…I activate the Quick-Play Spell: Black and White Wave!" She stated. "With it, since I used a Synchro Monster to successfully summon an Xyz Monster, I can banish one card on the field…and the one I choose is your Wicked Phantom!"
Following Kagura's explanation, Twilight Storm Dragon held out one of its palms and fired a blast of light and darkness at Wicked Phantom. As the blast was approaching the Dark Synchro Monster, Keith acted quickly and activated his face-down card.
"Hold it right there!" He said. "I activate the Trap: Phantom Illusion! Thanks to this Trap Card, my Wicked Phantom can't be targeted by card effects this turn!"
"That's what you think." Kagura countered. "Because by using one Overlay Unit, Twilight Storm Dragon can negate the effect of your Trap and deal you 600 points of damage!"
After devouring one of the two Overlay Units that was circling around its body, Twilight Storm Dragon fired off a beam of energy from its eyes, destroying Keith Trap Card. With it gone, Storm Dragon's second attack was able to continue, striking Wicked Phantom and banishing it from the playing field.
Keith: 2050 LP
With his best monster now gone and his field completely empty, Keith was all alone as both Kagura and her dragon were staring him down. It was a complete role reversal and, like how Kagura was earlier, Keith was completely consumed by his fear. Once she saw that, Kagura decided to put the fool out of his misery.
"Twilight Storm Dragon, attack him directly…Twilight Purge!"
Gathering all the power that it could muster, Twilight Storm Dragon fired off a blast of concentrated power from its mouth. Upon making contact with Keith, the force of the attack instantly knocked him and sent him flying across the field.
Keith: 0 LP
As soon as Keith's Life Points hit 0, the ring of purple flames that surrounding him and Kagura quickly began to fade away. Once they were completely gone, Kagura watched as her dragon let out one last roar before finally disappearing. She then turned her attention towards Keith, who has yet to regain consciousness. Needing answer after what she just experienced, the young woman began to make her way towards Keith in order to interrogate him.
Unfortunately, after taking just a few steps, Kagura found herself stumbling around before eventually falling towards the ground. When the boy she saved saw this, he instantly moved from his hiding spot and rushed towards the young woman. Upon reaching her, he saw that Kagura had already passed out, her body completely exhausted.
While wondering what to do, the young boy soon began hearing something approaching him. Upon turning around, he saw a small group of hooded figures appear before him and Kagura. One of the figures took a moment to look at the fallen Keith before turning his attention back towards the boy and Kagura.
"Hmph…" He scoffed. "How could that fool possibly lose to somebody like her? He never should've become one of us."
"…Agreed." Another hooded figure followed. "Still, at least now we'll get the credit for taking out one of the Dragunity Knights."
Once that was said, the hooded figures slowly began making their way towards Kagura. Although he knew that there was no way that he could stop them, the young boy knew that had to do something. Because of that, he looked around the area until he found Kagura's fallen sword. He then picked it up and held it in front of him, preparing to do anything he can to protect the woman who protected him.
Thankfully, before anything could happen, a massive wave of water suddenly appeared from out of nowhere and came between the two sides. When everyone turned in the direction of the water, they all saw a massive blue and white dragon appear before them. In addition to it, there was a young girl standing right in front of it. She had long blue hair, brown eyes, and fair skin. She was also wearing a sleeveless dress that had a blue and yellow pattern to it.
"Who are you?!" One of the figures questioned.
"…Who am I?" The girl replied. "I'm not exactly sure…but I think I'm like that girl down there."
Each of the hooded figures were confused by the little girl's statement, prompting her to give them a proper answer. To that end, she turned around so that everyone could get a good look at her back. They then watched as her back started to glow a bright blue color, revealing a Dragunity Knight mark. Once that mark on her back, each of the hooded figures were shocked as they exactly who this little girl was.
"It's another Dragunity Knight!" One of them shouted.
With the girl's identity now revealed, each of the figures pulled out a Duel Disk so that they can properly face her. However, before they could even use them, the girl had her dragon launch a massive stream of water at them. The force of the water was so great that it sent all of them flying off into the distance. As soon as they were gone, the dragon disappeared, and the girl let out a small sigh as the mark on her back faded away.
Once the threat was over, the girl looked down at Kagura and the boy and promptly made their way up to them. Upon reaching the two of them, the girl examined Kagura for a moment and saw that although she was in bad shape, her injuries weren't life threatening. As soon as she determined that, the girl immediately began treating her wounds. While this was going on, the boy was simply looking at her with a confused look on his face.
"Um…Who are you…?" He asked.
"…My name is Wendy." The girl said as she looked up and smiled at him. "And who are you?"
"Me? I'm…I'm Ryan."
"Well Ryan…" Wendy followed. "I could really use your help with her."
Nodding his head in agreement, Ryan immediately offered Wendy his assistance in treating Kagura's wounds. It took them a while, but eventually the older Dragunity was soon bandaged up. After that, Wendy pulled out a Duel Disk that she was carrying and activated it. She then placed a card onto its Monster Card Zone, creating a small fury creature. She and Ryan then placed Kagura on the creature before all of them left the area.
"Um…If you don't mind me asking." Ryan said as he walked alongside his new companion. "How were you able to create that thing?"
"It's because I'm a Psychic Duelist." Wendy answered. "That means that I'm able to…"
Before she could finish her explanation, Wendy stopped herself after sensing something heading towards them. When Ryan saw this, he was about to ask what was wrong, but was caught off when Wendy signaled to him to be quiet. The young girl then braced herself as she grabbed another card and prepared herself to place it on her Duel Disk.
Just as Wendy was about to do so, both she and Ryan looked on as another individual appeared before her. She was a young woman who looked to be a year of two older than Kagura. She had soft pink eyes, long black hair, was well endowed, and was wearing a set of square shaped glasses. Upon seeing her, Wendy was able to tell that this woman extremely powerful, probably even surpassing her abilities. However, she was also able to tell that she had no intention of harming any one of them.
"Who are you?" Wendy asked the mysterious woman. "What do you want from us?"
"My name is Tsubaki…" The woman answered truthfully. "And rest assured, Wendy Marvell that I am your ally."
Chapter Preview
With the help of Tsubaki, Wendy and Ryan bring Kagura back to Martha's place, during which the young Dragunity Knight reunites with some old friends. Once they're together, our heroes begin discussing the situation and how to go about it. During this discussion, Kagura awakens and learns something regarding her cousin's death.
Next Time, Chapter 110: The True Culprit
Announcement
Spirit Reader: Hello everyone and Happy New Year. I hope everyone is enjoying themselves and wish you all good health as we move into 2020. I'm here today to tell all of you that, after over a year, Over the Nexus is finally back from hiatus. I apologize for taking so long to update. I've just been so busy lately and I didn't want to give up a half-assed chapter, especially since I felt burnt out from the series. I want to thank all of you for being so patient with me and I promised that I'll attempt to get chapters out more frequently going forward.
Well, that's it for now. Until next time, this is Spirit Reader signing off!