Yusei and Jaden were sitting together, having a talk about Alex's past. "So where did this alternate personality come from?" Yusei asked. "When Alex was 5, his powers manifested, and much like Akiza, he couldn't control his power. When he dueled, his cards came to life. One day, he got into an intense duel with an older student, and almost 2 dozen kids were sent to the hospital, including his best friend. From that day on, everyone looked at him like he was a monster. His mother and I did everything we could to help him and make him see he wasn't a monster, but the insults and rejection continued." Jaden explained.
"That's a horrible thing for a child to have to go through," Yusei said. "It gets worse. His inner torment over his powers and being mocked by people who were his friends caused him to develop a split personality. The Alex you know was the dominant personality, but when he dueled or was pushed too far, his other personality took over." Jaden explained. "Over time, this personality began to call himself Alastor. He was violent, sadistic, and enjoyed hurting others. Eventually, with Yubel's help, I was able to lock Alastor away along with most of Alex's power, and was able to train Alex to use his power properly." Jaden told him.
"And now Alastor is free again," Yusei said. "I'm afraid so. That man he dueled must've been hired to unleash Alastor and test his power," Jaden said. "This has Goodwin written all over it," Yusei said. "Yusei, you have to make him come to his senses, I believe you can help bring Alex back," Jaden said. "I will. He helped me when I had lost myself, now it's my turn to help him," Yusei said. "Thank you Yusei," Jaden said. Meanwhile, Akiza had just won her duel against Commander Koda. The duels were halted temporarily for a mid-day break. The next matchup had been announced in the meantime. The next duel would be Alastor vs Akiza. "This has disaster written all over it," Yusei said. "You've got that right," Jaden said.
Alastor and Akiza were walking through the hallway when they bumped into each other. "I saw your duel with Commander Koda, well played. You may actually be a challenge. I certainly can't wait to duel someone with powers like mine," Alastor said. "Wait, are you a psychic duelist?" Akiza asked. "No, but I can bring duel spirits to life when I duel," he said. "Wait, what happened to your eyes? They were brown before." Akiza asked. "You saw the eyes of my other self, Alex. I am Alastor. I was born from the torment Alex endured as a young child. Before I took control, he actually said he wanted to help you. The truth is, you and he have quite a lot in common," Alastor said.
"What do you mean?" Akiza asked. "When Alex's powers first developed, he couldn't control them either. He injured many people, including his best friend. Everyone viewed him as a monster. His emotional pain was so great it spawned me, and I began dueling in his place, and I enjoyed hurting people. That was until the boy's father locked me away inside of Alex's subconscious, but thanks to Alex's last opponent, I'm free once again, and I'm eager to make up for lost time, so I apologize in advance for our upcoming duel. It's nothing personal, it's just that I've been locked up for 7 years, and I can't wait to have some fun." Alastor explained.
"Ah, miss Izinski and mister Yuki, Director Goodwin would like a word with you both," a voice said. It was Lazar, Goodwin's lackey. "Akiza must rest," another man said. Alastor and Akiza turned to the side to see Sayer standing there. "And you are?" Lazar asked. "Don't play dumb Lazar, your reputation precedes you. We both know you don't like surprises, so let's not waste time pretending you haven't done your homework like I have," Sayer said. "Stay away from Akiza, and tell the director she's not interested in what he has to say," Sayer added before escorting Akiza away.
"I have more important things to do with my time than fraternize with Goodwin, but you can tell him I said thank you for orchestrating my release," Alastor said as he started to walk away. "Well, aren't you a clever one. I would think you would show the man who saw to your release a little more respect than this," Lazar said. Alastor stopped and turned back to Lazar. "I could care less about what Goodwin wants. He may have helped me escape, but don't think for a moment I'm going to become his little lapdog and do whatever he said. I only duel for myself, got it? Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to rest and prepare for my next duel." Alastor said before walking away.
"Well, the director will not be happy about this," Lazar said as he walked back to Goodwin to give him the bad news. He arrived and gave him an update. "As we feared, his other self is unwilling to cooperate." Goodwin said. "So what shall we do?" Lazar asked. "For now, we wait and see what happens," Goodwin responded. Meanwhile, Akiza was talking with Sayer in one of the Arcadia Movement trucks outside the stadium. "So what did the boy say to you?" Sayer asked. "He said that he was Alex's alternate personality. He called himself Alastor, and said he came about from Alex's tortured past. He said that Alex had the same problems with his powers as I did. He said that everyone viewed him as a monster." Akiza answered.
"Hmmm, interesting, we had seen reports of accidents involving him as a child, but no information of another personality." Sayer said. "He said his father locked Alastor away along with most of Alex's power so he could teach the boy how to use his power," Akiza said. "Goodwin must've had his last opponent bring Alastor out, but I have no idea why. Maybe if he loses the duel with you, he'll revert to his original self. If that happens, we may be able to help the boy control his full power," Sayer said.
(Timeskip to the duel)
"And now for the duel, we have the Black Rose vs the Prince of Darkness! Akiza vs Alex!" the MC announced. "I will win," Akiza said. "We'll see about that," Alastor responded.
Both: "Let's duel!"
Alastor: 4000 LP
Akiza: 4000 LP
"I'll go first," Akiza said. "I summon Wall of Ivy in defense mode."
EARTH/Plant/Level 2
ATK 300/DEF 1200
"I place 1 card face-down and end my turn." she said. "My turn, I draw," Alastor said. "I summon Evil HERO Dark General in attack mode." Alastor said.
DARK/Fiend/Level 4
ATK 1600/ DEF 1300
"And now his special ability activates. When he's summoned, I can add an Evil HERO monster from my deck to my hand. I choose my Evil HERO Flare Mage." he said as he added the aforementioned monster to his hand. "Now General, attack Wall of Ivy," Alastor ordered. "Wall of Ivy's effect activates. When you attack it, an Ivy Token is summoned to your field." Akiza said as a token appeared on Alastor's field.
"I place 2 cards face-down and end my turn." he said. "I draw. And I play the Cursed Ivy trap card in order to resurrect my Wall of Ivy in defense mode." Akiza said. "Hiding behind that pathetic monster won't save you." Alastor mocked. She's playing exactly as I thought she would. My face-downs will turn every move she's made so far against her. He thought to himself. "I end my turn," Akiza said. "It's been a mellow duel so far, but could we be witnessing the calm before the storm?" the MC said.
"I draw. Dark General, attack her Wall of Ivy again." Alastor said. "But now Wall of Ivy's effect activates again, summoning another Ivy Token to your field." Akiza stated. "And now that Cursed Ivy has been destroyed, two more Ivy Tokens sprout on your field." she said. "How predictable," Alastor said. "What?" Akiza said. "I reveal my face-down cards, Damage Translation and High Rate Draw. Due to the effect of Damage Translation, all effect damage I would take this turn is halved. Next, using High Rate Draw's effect, I destroy all 4 Ivy Tokens on my field to draw 2 cards." Alastor declared.
Alastor: 3400 LP
"What?!" Akiza remarked. "Unbelievable! Alex has not only drawn 2 cards using Akiza's tokens, but has reduced the damage he took from the tokens as well! He's made Akiza's entire strategy backfire!" the MC shouted. "Next I play Foolish Burial. This will send a monster from my deck to my graveyard, and I choose my Evil HERO Malicious Edge. I place 2 cards face-down. And due to Damage Translation's other effect, at the end of this turn, I gain one Ghost Token for every time I took effect damage this turn. I took effect damage 4 times this turn, so I get 4 ghost tokens," Alastor explained.
Ghost token x 4 (Fiend/DARK/Level 1/ATK 0/DEF 0)
"It's your move Akiza," Alastor said. "I draw. And I play Seed of Deception. This will allow me to special summon a level 2 or lower plant type monster from my hand, so I play Dark Verger in attack mode." Akiza said. "And now I sacrifice this monster to play my Rose Tentacles." she continued, summoning an octopus-like rose. "And now attack his Dark General with Rose Whip!" she shouted.
Alastor: 2800 LP
"I activate Dark General's effect, along with the effect of Evil HERO Stone Guardian in my hand. Now I can summon Guardian from my hand, in addition to reclaiming Malicious Edge from my graveyard," Alastor said. "I end my turn," Akiza said. "My move, I draw. And due to Guardian's effect, I can add Dark Fusion from my deck to my hand," Alastor said. "I've realized something Akiza, you and I have something in common," he said. "And what would that be?" she asked.
"We both enjoy making our opponents suffer. Tell the truth, after everything that's happened to you, it feels good to watch your opponent's writhe in pain doesn't it? You enjoy it just like I do, don't you? Don't bother trying to lie, I can see it in your eyes," Alastor said. "I guess you and I really are alike. It's true, I do enjoy it," she answered. The crowd went silent in shock. Alastor used his powers, sending a small tornado through the arena.
"They call us monsters simply because we were born different. What gives them the right to judge us? Who are the real monsters? The ones who were born special, or the ignorant masses who call innocent children monsters because of things they can't control?" Alastor asked. "And while I love that I've found someone who understands me, I'm afraid I can't let you win this duel Akiza," he said. "I play the spell Dark Fusion to combine my Stone Guardian and my Flare Mage in order to summon Evil HERO Infernal Sniper in defense mode." he said. "And now Flare Mage's effect activates, so you take damage equal to 100 times the level of the monster I just summoned, and since Sniper is level 6, you take 600 points of damage." he explained.
Akiza: 3400 LP
"And now I activate Sniper's effect. Every turn, she can inflict 1000 points of damage to you if she's in defense mode. Shadow Bullet!" he shouted.
Akiza: 2400 LP
"Now I sacrifice one of my Ghost tokens to play my Evil HERO Malicious Edge in attack mode. Now, attack Rose Tentacles with Needle Burst!" Malicious Edge swung his fists at Rose Tentacles, launching claws from his knuckles, shredding Akiza's monster.
Akiza: 2000 LP
"Incredible, Alex has eliminated half of Akiza's life points in a single turn!" the MC declared. "It's your move Akiza." Alastor said. "Thank you, I draw. And I play Witch of the Black Rose. And due to her effect, I can draw 1 card, but if it's not a monster card, both her and the card I drew are destroyed." Akiza said. "Banking on a monster card?" Alastor asked. "I draw. And it's the monster card Rose Fairy, and due to its effect, since I got it outside my draw phase, I'm allowed to play it." Akiza said. "Hmm, lucky draw." Alastor said.
"And now I tune my level 4 Witch of the Black Rose to level 3 Rose Fairy, in order to synchro summon Black Rose Dragon!" Akiza shouted, summoning her ace monster. "And now I activate Black Rose Dragon's effect, by banishing Wall of Ivy from my graveyard, your Sniper is changed to attack mode, and her attack points become 0." she said. Vines shot out from Black Rose Dragon, forcing Sniper into attack mode and taking all her strength away. "Now Black Rose Dragon attack!" "If this attack connects, Alex will lose all but 400 of his life points!" the MC said. "I activate the effect of Evil Hero Reaper in my hand, by sending this card to my graveyard, Sniper gets an additional 1800 attack points," Alastor declared.
Alastor: 2200 LP
"And now I equip the spell card Thorn of Malice onto my Black Rose Dragon. This will give my monster 600 more attack points, also if Black Rose Dragon attacks a monster in defense mode, the difference between its attack points and your monster's defense points are dealt to you as damage. I end my turn" Akiza said. "I draw. And I play the spell card Token Thanksgiving. By destroying my three remaining ghost tokens, I gain 800 life points for each, for a total of 2400 points." Alastor said.
Alastor: 4600 LP
"And now I play the field spell Supreme King's Castle." he said. "Now, Malicious Edge, attack Black Rose Dragon with Needle Burst!" Alastor shouted. "Has Alex lost it? His monster has less attack than Black Rose Dragon!" the MC said. "I activate the effect of Supreme King's Castle. By sending an Evil HERO from my deck or extra deck to the graveyard, Edge gains attack equal to that monster's level times 200 for this battle. I send the level 5 Evil HERO Sinister Necrom from my deck to the graveyard to give my monster an extra 1000 points," Alastor stated.
Malicious Edge: 2600-3600
Akiza: 1400 LP
"I end my turn," Alastor said. "My turn, I draw. And I play my face-down card, Call of the Haunted. So now I can bring back my Black Rose Dragon," Akiza said. "And now that it's been summoned, I can use its special ability. When Black Rose Dragon is Special Summoned, it can destroy every card on the field." Akiza explained. "Just great," Alastor said. "Black Rose Gale!" Akiza shouted before a tornado ripped through the arena, destroying all the cards on the field. "And now I play the spell Monster Reborn to summon my dragon back. Now attack!" she shouted. Black Rose Dragon unleashed a stream of black fire on Alastor.
Alastor: 2200 LP
"I end my turn," Akiza said. "I draw," Alastor said. He looked at the card he drew. This is just the card I need. "I activate the effect of Evil HERO Sinister Necrom in my graveyard. By removing him from the game, I can summon an Evil HERO from my hand or deck. I summon Evil HERO Galactic Ruler," Alastor declared. "And now I play the equip spell Vicious Claw. This will give my monster an extra 300 attack points."
Galactic Ruler: 2500-2800
"Now, attack Black Rose Dragon with Supernova Strike!" Alastor shouted. Galactic Ruler created a miniature star in his hand before it exploded into a supernova, the energy surrounding his hand before he charged at Black Rose Dragon, delivering a powerful punch to its neck, destroying it.
Akiza: 1000 LP
"And now I activate the effect of Evil HERO Reaper in my graveyard. By removing Reaper from the game, you take damage equal to half your destroyed monster's original attack points," Alastor explained. A ghost of Black Rose Dragon appeared and breathed a stream of fire at Akiza, but didn't hurt her.
Akiza: 0 LP
Winner: Alastor
"I lost," Akiza said. "Find solace in the fact you've done the best against me so far," Alastor said. He turned around and began to walk off, before he stopped and turned to Akiza. "And you shouldn't care about what they say about you. They're just ignorant fools. We're better than them, and not just because of our abilities. They don't understand us, and like all inferior beings do, they fear and despise us. I may enjoy making my enemies suffer, but at least I don't do it out of blind hatred spawned from ignorance," Alastor said before leaving the arena. She actually put up a good fight. I may have found myself a valuable ally in her. Watch out Yusei, you're next. Alastor thought to himself as he headed to the waiting room.
"And Alex has won. He'll be facing Yusei in the next duel to determine who will face Jack Atlas in the title match!" the MC announces. Yeah, and this may be the most difficult and dangerous duel of my life. Yusei thought to himself.
Hey everyone. So Akiza lost, and Yusei and Alastor square off in the next round. I had originally planned on having the duel end differently, but to be honest, I wasn't satisfied with the story going the way I had originally planned, so I decided to keep Alastor out a bit longer and let him duel Yusei. Hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I'll see you all in the next one.