EYES OF GOLD, DARKNESS LOOMING
[Caius' Perspective]
"The eyes of the dragon are open, the eyes are not the windows, they are the doors, beware what may enter there, and beware what may escape..."
I wake with a start, the faintest traces of a dream slipping away. Then I realize, this isn't my place... I fell asleep with Akiza, she's sleeping peacefully... That's good. Well, guess she'll be hungry when she wakes up.
When Akiza eventually wakes, she walks through to where I am, cooking breakfast for her. Upon seeing me she turns bright red.
"Caius... Why are you here..?"
"You pinned me to your bed yesterday"
"Did we...?"
"No. Now sit down and have breakfast"
"Alright... I need to go to Arcadia today... I need you to come with me"
"Why..?"
"I'm going to quit..."
Akiza and I eat in silence for a moment as I go over what she said.
"Do you think he would let you leave?"
"Who?" She tilts her head and stares at me.
"Sayer... The cult leader"
"Maybe we should get Aeon too..." She suggests, before continuing to eat her breakfast. I nod and quickly send a text.
[Aeon's Perspective]
I check my phone as a text comes through, finally Caius got back to me. Not heard from him since yesterday.
'Goin' to rough up some arcadia goons, in particular Sayer, you want in?'
Hell yeah. I quickly send a reply and grab my deck.
[Caius' Perspective]
Arcadia headquarters... Not been back here since I busted out... Aeon is walking over to us.
"Didn't expect to see you Akiza, you and Caius a thing or..?"
"No! Nonono! He's just helping me!" Her face is red... Aeon rolls his eyes and looks to me.
"So we're gonna rough up some psychics if they cause trouble?" He says.
Akiza nods, looking a little pissed off, and walks into the building.
Aeon and I follow, getting some odd looks from some of the people here, and looks of fear from others. Akiza leads us straight to a large open room, and knocks on the door.
"Come in Akiza..." Sayer's voice calls from inside. As we walk in, he's stood in the middle, staring at us. "Caius, Aeon, Akiza. I should have suspected the three of you would be the ones to betray us"
"Betray you? You're brainwashing people!" Aeon yells.
I nod and point straight at Sayer. "Yeah, look at the Lion, the Witch, and the Audacity of this bitch!"
Aeon glances at me. "So that's where that came from"
"What?"
"Nothing"
"Uh... Boys..." Akiza says, tugging on my sleeve. Two duellists are walking in, and I see immediately this isn't going to go well. One of the duellists is Rose, from the Fortune Cup. The other looks similar like it could be her sister. Both seem in a daze...
Sayer chuckles and looks at both Aeon and Me. "Well, surely you know I can't let you two leave. You're gonna have to duel your way out. And when you lose to Rose and Daisy here... You're going straight back into brainwashing. All three of you"
Aeon and I almost simultaneously activate our duel disks.
"No way in hell that's happening Sayer..." I say. Aeon nods and pats my shoulder.
"We're tearing this entire movement apart"
DUEL START: CAIUS & AEON VS ROSE & DAISY
"My turn first... Draw..." Rose states in a monotonous tone. "I activate polymerization... I fuse two Ojamas in my hand... Come forth Ojama Knight... Lock out two of their monster zones..."
Ojama Knight: Lv 5, LIGHT, DEF 2500
"I set two cards face down and end my turn..."
TURN CHANGE: AEON
"I'll head us up Caius, Draw!" He glances over his hand and smirks. "Let's kick off with the field spell, Rising HERO Skyline!"
"I chain on a trap... Jar of Greed, I get to draw a card..."
"I chain on another spell! Chain Summoning! Since it's chain link 3 or higher, I get three normal summons this turn!"
"It doesn't matter... You cannot attack with this turn..."
"Then I'll normal summon three monsters! First, Fallen HERO Dusk! Then I tribute Dusk to summon Fallen HERO Witching Hour!"
Fallen HERO Dusk: Lv 4, DARK, ATK 1700
Fallen HERO Witching Hour: Lv 6, DARK, ATK 2200
"Then I summon my Fallen HERO Daybreak Tuner!"
Fallen HERO Daybreak: Lv 2, DARK, ATK 1200
"I tune my two monsters together! Let's go!"
"From the depths of nothing! Wrap your skeletal form in darkness and become my servant! I call upon the true horror of the void!
SYNCHRO SUMMON LEVEL 8!
Come! Void Ogre Dragon!"
I can't help but smirk as his mark starts glowing.
Void Ogre Dragon: Lv 8, DARK, ATK 3000
"Then I set a card and end my turn!"
TURN CHANGE: DAISY
"Draw... I summon Mokey Mokey..."
Mokey Mokey: Lv 1, LIGHT, ATK 300
"Then I set two cards... Turn end..."
TURN CHANGE: CAIUS
"Draw..." Two zones to work with... better fix that. "I activate Raigeki! This wipes out your monsters!"
The two seem surprised.
"I then set my pendulum scale! I use Scale 0 Ignis of the Diabolic Dragons, and Scale 7 Legacy of the Diabolic Dragons!"
P-Scale, Caius: 0,7
"Now, swing far pendulum! Shatter the bonds of past and future! Bring me victory! I pendulum summon Aether of the Diabolic Dragons! And its ability brings forth Sa'an from my deck!"
Aether of the Diabolic Dragons: Lv 5, DARK, ATK 2000
Sa'an of the Diabolic Maidens: Lv 3, DARK, ATK 1000
"Let's go! I tune my two monsters together!"
"Rise up from the great depths of nothing! Overcome the enemy and vanquish light!
Synchro Summon Level 8!
Corrupt them! Beelze of the Diabolic Dragons!"
Beelze of the Diabolic Dragons: Lv 8, DARK, ATK 3000
My own mark starts glowing, and Sayer smirks slightly, like... it's part of his plan...
"Aeon, be careful. Something feels wrong."
"Way ahead of you buddy"
"I end my turn"
TURN CHANGE: ROSE
"Draw... I..." Rose seems to falter slightly. "I activate my trap monster, Tiki Soul"
Tiki Soul: Lv 4, LIGHT, DEF 1800
"I set two cards... turn end..."
TURN CHANGE: AEON
"Draw, I set a card, Void Ogre, Trash that Tiki!"
"Chain trap... Tiki Curse..."
Tiki Curse: Lv 4, DARK, DEF 1000
"Oh I know this trick, if you attack soul, curse will destroy Void Ogre! So when the attack replays, I trash your Curse with Void Ogre!"
"Tiki Soul sets Curse back face down..." Rose says monotonously.
"Then Beelze will attack your Soul!"
"Trap... Draining Shield... Attack negated, Life Points gained" Daisy chimes in.
ROSE & DAISY LP: +3000 = 11000
"Tsk.. Turn end"
TURN CHANGE: DAISY
"Draw... Tiki Curse activates. Chain, Call of the Haunted... Summon back Mokey Mokey..."
Tiki Curse: Lv 4, DARK, ATK 1800
Mokey Mokey: Lv 1, LIGHT, ATK 300
"Then..." The two both seem to stop, flinching slightly.
Sayer stomps his foot down and yells at them. "Do it already! Summon it!"
"Activate Field Spell... Mound of the Bound Creator... Tribute... All... Three... Monsters..." Daisy says reluctantly.
Three tributes... Mound of the Bound Creator... No... Nonono... That's not possible is it..? This isn't GX...
"Summon... The... Winged... Dragon... Of... Ra..."
The Golden Dragon-Chicken thing emerges onto the field in the Mound of the Bound Creator's chains, roaring in rage... and pain.
"How the hell Sayer..." Aeon says slowly.
"We raided the collection of one Maxamillion Pegasus... Now Ra takes its Attack Power from their life points!"
ROSE & DAISY LP: -10900 = 100
The Winged Dragon of Ra: Lv 10, DIVINE, ATK 10900 (?)
Aeon growls softly and activates a trap. "I play Waboku! You won't deal us any damage this turn, nor will you destroy my Void Ogre!"
"So be it... Set two cards... Turn end..."
TURN CHANGE: CAIUS
I feel something snap in my head, seeing the winged dragon in chains... My vision starts to fade... "Draw..."
[Akiza's Perspective]
Caius stopped moving; he drew his card and just stopped. My mark started glowing. I feel Caius drawing on something from it, and Aeon... Their marks suddenly blaze with gold light... Like his duel with me yesterday...
He and Aeon start to speak in unison.
"It is our turn to unleash a God! We construct the overlay network with our two Dark Dragons!"
"We shall call forth the true sight of the Crimson Dragon! Call upon the very void that corrupts the enemy to sever for ourselves! The Heretics and Non-Believers crumble before the darkness in our God!
XYZ SUMMON!
Unite the Void and Darkness! Dark Dragon Crimson XYZ!"
The air is whipping around the room... This is far too powerful for a normal psychic...
Dark Dragon Crimson XYZ: Rank 8, DARK, ATK 0
This monster... Something is wrong with it...
"We will crush you! And all who defy our god! We use our God's ability to halve the Attacking strength of all your monsters! Your God's loss is added to ours! And we're doing it twice!"
The Winged Dragon of Ra ATK: /2 = 5450
Dark Dragon Crimson XYZ ATK: +5450 = 5450
The Winged Dragon of Ra ATK: /2 = 2725
Dark Dragon Crimson XYZ ATK: +2725 = 8175
Rose activates her last trap... "Trap activate... Hope for Life... When you control a monster with attack points over 5000 higher than our life points... our life points become equal to your monster's current Attack"
ROSE & DAISY LP: - 8175
"It matters not! Dark Dragon Crimson XYZ attacks the Winged Dragon of Ra! Diabolic Void Wave!"
The crimson dragon's form bears down on the golden dragon's... And blows it apart, causing a crater in the ground beneath it, the whole building is shaking...
ROSE & DAISY LP: -5450 = 2725
"We end our turn"
TURN CHANGE: ROSE
"Draw... Set a monster, Turn end..."
There's nothing they can do against this monster...
TURN CHANGE: AEON
It's Aeon's turn but they're still talking in unison...
"Draw! We summon Vision HERO Vyon! Its ability sends dawn to the Grave, and her ability resurrects her! We choose not to draw from her effect!"
Vision HERO Vyon: Lv 4, DARK, ATK 1000
Fallen HERO Dawn: Lv 4, DARK, ATK 2200 (1700)
I check the field quickly. The field spell seems to be responsible for the boosted attack points of Aeon's Fallen Hero monster... What the hell is going on?
"Now we build the overlay network! We overlay the two level 4 Fallen HERO monsters!"
"Once more into the void, spread your wings, pick up your sword, block the light of the sun!
XYZ SUMMON!
Paladin Number 2: Fallen HERO Eclipse!"
Number P2: Fallen HERO Eclipse: Rank 4, LIGHT, ATK 3000 (2500)
"Eclipse! Attack! Moon Blade!"
The fallen angel monster swings its sword at the face-down monster... they intend to blast them with the full strength of their Dragon...
"Winged Kuriboh is destroyed, its ability prevents us taking damage from battle for the rest of this turn" Rose states, I'm a little relieved...
"Then we shall end our turn!"
TURN CHANGE: DAISY
"Draw... I play Pot of Greed, and I set the two drawn cards face down... one is a monster... turn end!"
TURN CHANGE: CAIUS
"Draw... We pendulum summon! Come forth, Aqua and Ignis from hand, and Sa'an from the extra deck!"
Sa'an of the Diabolic Maidens: Lv 3, DARK, ATK 1000
Aqua of the Diabolic Dragons: Lv 3, DARK, ATK 1800
Ignis of the Diabolic Dragons: Lv 3, DARK, ATK 1500
"Now we construct the overlay network with the three level three monsters, and when Sa'an is used for a summon that requires three or monsters, she can count as two, so we're overlaying 4 monsters!"
"Once more into the darkness, corrupt the hearts of men, bend them to your will!
XYZ SUMMON!
Paladin Number 1: Satan of the Diabolic Maidens!"
Number P1: Satan of the Diabolic Maidens: Rank 3, DARK, ATK 2000
Daisy seems to be scared, she activates her trap. "Spellbinding Circle will prevent your God attacking!"
The boys stare at their dragon, then nod and step forward slightly.
"Satan attacks your set monster! Magical Corruption!"
The monster flips, Bubonic Vermin...
"Bubonic Vermin summons another copy in face-down defence position from my deck!" Daisy calls.
"Then Eclipse will vanquish that one! Moon Blade!" They yell back.
"Then my third is set down! There is nothing you can do!"
The boys scoff and activate cards, Aeon's set card, and the last card in Caius' hand. The two cards are the same...
"You were foolish to challenge us Sayer, you and your Arcadia fools! Watch as we activate this! Rank-Up Magic: Diabolic Chain of the Fallen HERO! With these we evolve our Paladin Numbers into Chaos Paladin Numbers! And then our rank-up spells attach as overlay units!"
Finally the boys stop speaking in unison, but only to summon their monsters...
Aeon speaks first...
"The moon bathed in blood shall conquer all that defy our God!
CHAOS XYZ EVOLUTION!
Chaos Paladin Number 2: Rising HERO Crimson Eclipse!"
Then Caius...
"The underworld bathed in blood shall conquer all that defy our God!
CHAOS XYZ EVOLUTION!
Chaos Paladin Number 1: Crimson Satan of the Diabolic Dragons!"
If the context was better, I'd be in awe... A fallen angel with a golden sword alongside a winged demon.
Number CP2: Rising HERO Crimson Eclipse: Rank 5, DARK, ATK 2500
Number CP1: Crimson Satan of the Diabolic Dragons: Rank 4, DARK, ATK 2800
There are orbs of light around the monsters, presumably they are the overlay units? There are 4 around Number 2, and 5 around number 1.
"Now... Satan gains Attack equal to the combined scales of pendulum monsters in my extra deck times 200!" Caius calls out.
Number CP1: Crimson Satan of the Diabolic Dragons ATK: +200*5 (1000) = 3800
Aeon calls out, "I detach an overlay unit to use Eclipse's effect!"
Number CP2: Rising HERO Crimson Eclipse ATK: +1000 = 3500
"Eclipse attack! Destroy the last vermin!" They call in unison again. "Blood Moon Blade!"
The two girls are exposed. And Satan looks pissed.
"Crimson Satan, Attack! Blood Magic Corruption!"
It's like an explosion goes off between the two girls. A magic blast tears the room apart, the only thought I have is to get out.
ROSE & DAISY LP: -3800 = 0
CAIUS & AEON WIN
I make it to the door before the roof collapses, as I look back the boys have moved to stand over the girls, some kind of barrier around them blocking the rubble. I can't see Sayer anywhere...
[Caius' Perspective]
"So what happened?" I ask Akiza, rubbing my mark gently. All I know is that I blacked out partway through the duel... Apparently Aeon did too.
"I've already explained it... I don't know what that gold glow was, and I don't know what the hell happened to you two... It was terrifying..."
I sigh and nod. Not much else I can say.
Someone calls out to us.
"Aeon! Are you okay? I got your text!"
I look over and see a guy almost throw himself into Aeon's arms. Then the look in his eye changes for a second, and whilst it's changed, he straight up kisses Aeon. I look back over to Akiza and- WAIT WHAT WHEN DID AEON GET A BOYFRIEND!?
"The eyes of the dragon are open, the eyes are not the windows, they are the doors, beware what may enter there, and beware what may escape.
Empower the Eyes, Awaken the Star, Guide the Vessels, Find the Heart, Fix the key, Gather 8, Then Open the Final Gate"