A Legacy of Souls: Terminate the Dream

by Medigo

The virtual world of dueling has survived many threats, but the worst has yet to come. New entities born from the minds of millions seek power to shape the destiny of living. Heroes will be turned against each other as it becomes impossible to trust anyone. And in the middle of it all, one duelist struggles to return to his friends to save them from the one who has stolen his life.

119. World 111: Don't Mind Me

World 111: Don't Mind Me

The assumption that each Obelisk carried their own item soon became an undeniable reality for those who entered the constructs. All seven teams had to deal with their unique powers in some way, to the point of becoming impossible to navigate. One Obelisk in the middle the Antarctic continuously transported the dueltaining team inside to other parts of the world with the power of the World Ark. The Obelisk left behind in the hot desert used the World Armor untold measures of pain and electric shocks to the trespassing admins. The World Chalice-empowered Obelisk in the middle of the ocean disabled all STHEREA functions, making it difficult for the champions to keep advancing. Then there was the jungle-bound Obelisk with the World Crown, who defended itself against Crescent's party with legions of brain controlled ADIs. Some obstacles could be bypassed with the mods provided by Vigionair, but not all..

Fortunately for Nakana's infiltration team, who visited an Obelisk placed on an island with an active volcano, the item she came up against turned out to be the less dangerous World Wand. Its defenses involved waves of disorienting and/or deafening sound bursts, which she and the others could shut out with an audio-blocking program. Though that did force them to proceed through the tower in silence. At least until they came across an open space located in the middle of the tower, a place that supposedly formed the observation room according to Lilah's data. "It seems to be in order here." Zanbatou commented on the quality of the ambient noise, as he picked up no blocked inputs on his dueldisk. "We must have reached the right place." It stood to reason that some parts of the Obelisk would have to remain accessible for any human who still worked for Scarlet and Continuum. The mad doctor would likely even be in one of these Obelisks.

"Where are they?" This place would not be it. The man who monitored the area here would show a different familiar face to Nakana. "Hikaru?" It was her family's agent, the one she hadn't seen since their supposed demise. "Of all the people to show up, it had to be you. Where are your mother and father, Nakana!? Where are your masters, Zanbatou? Have even you turned your back on them?" In actuality he served as a sentry for multiple Obelisks at once. But once he saw who invaded this particular area, he abandoned his duties in favor of accusing and attacking the one who ruined everything for the Shintaro family. "Hikaru. My family is in a safe place. We have freed them from Continuum's power. Whatever you think it is you serve, it is not them anymore. It never was." Nakana did not want to admit it, but she'd almost forgotten about this man's existence... Because she could not conceive of any reason for him to still be working for the third entity.

"That does not make a difference. I serve the Shintaro family that I know, not the one you and your lady Echo might have corrupted them into! You will tell me where they are!" He activated his dueldisk to threaten her. "She does not have to do anything you say." A threat that both Abigail and Zanbatou responded to with their own dueldisks. "In fact she and Zanbatou already defeated the people you worship. What chance do you think you have against her?" The ace duelist only saw a man spouting weak protests with nothing to back him up. "You caused that as well? There is no chance that she defeated them fairly! Not if you required the help of another!" He spouted some more. "You will duel me alone, if you want to prove yourself worthy! Not just for their sake, but for yours as well. I am not letting any of you through otherwise!" The doors behind him were all sealed shut.

Though they did not technically have to use doors anymore. "Lady Nakana. Leave him to us." Zanbatou and her both had the mod that let them access the subconscious realm. "I could. But I will not. This man has a quarrel with me it seems, and I wish to know why." Instead, she chose to accept his challenge.. activating her dueldisk and drawing her five cards. "Mister Hikaru. It is time for you to tell me who you really are. And this duel will force you to do so.."

...

Hydra's LP: 6600 Schwarzwald's LP: Schwarzwald's LP: 2900

Elsewhere, in the Obelisk situated inside the fall out victim ghost town, another duelist revealed his own true identity. He was Fredrick Muller, the duelist formerly known as Hydra and also Schwarzwald. "So.. what do I call you now? I mean half the people still call me Blanche and I dont mind but..." Dharma was happy that she could finally see the usually invisible or faceless duelist. "I would prefer it if you kept calling me Hydra. It is what I am used to now. The last person to call me Fredrick left me a long time ago." He stated gloomily. He was not used to anyone seeing his own face either. "Whoa.. that sounds a bit heavy. You dont have to talk about it.." Dharma could tell that he had a painful reason to have stayed hidden for so long. Then again she always felt that way about him.

"He never wants to talk about it. But I remember it too.. I remember the father who ditched us.. the heartbroken mother who was too weak to keep living. Ha! They left us both! What's the use of trusting in friends when you can't even trust your flesh and blood!" Schwarzwald howled. "Because friends can be family too!" Dharma yelled back. "You dont get to pick your own parents. Trust me, I know what that feels like. And the world is just weirdly cruel sometimes, but it can be great too! You can always find people who want to help you.. be nice to you! You can make them your new family!" She did not know how much of the Black Baron's personality stemmed from Static's bad influence, and how much came from Hydra's troubled life. But she could not keep herself quiet.

-TURN 04-

"Feh. Look at me, getting emotional over this. I am not even dueling you. Just stand there and stand quietly, Blanche. This is between him and me." The baron finally started his turn, and activated his new spell. "Dark Ruler No More!" As soon as he did, all opportunities to react were sealed away. "No card can chain to this, and it negates the effects of your face-up monsters for the rest of the turn!" He unleashed wave after wave of dark energy, targeting Hydra's Borreload legion. Borreload Savage Dragon(8/3000/2500) [Zone 2] could not negate the effect. Borreload Furious Dragon(8/3000/2500) [Extra Zone 2] could not destroy any cards this turn and Borreload Excharge Dragon(8/3000/2500) could now be targeted by effects again. "Too bad this spell also keeps me from inflicting damage this turn. But you forced us both into this corner." The baron shrugged and activated his restored trap cards. Red-Eyes Spirits could special summon Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon(8/2800/2400) [Zone 3] back from his graveyard...

...while Saryuja's Shackles targeted the Borrelsword Dragon in the graveyard to draw four cards. Schwarzwald's trap would have to return two cards in his hand to the bottom of the deck afterwards however. "Hmph, having to use her card again. I really am just a copy of you, Blanche. I only exist because Hydra could not stand himself."

Darkness Metal Dragon used its own powers of dragonic revival to bring back the Black Metal Dragon(1/0/0) [Zone 4]. "But this idea is my own! I link summon Predaplant Verte Anaconda!" The next link summon took two DARK dragons as materials: Black Metal Dragon and Darkness Metal Dragon. Sending the former to the graveyard also allowed him to add another Red-Eyes card (Red-Eyes Fang With Chain) from his deck to his hand. "Where did that weed come from?" Dharma groaned. It was the same green-leafed Anaconda(500/LINK 2) {Downleft/Downright} that the fake rivals used. "If he pays two thousand lifepoints, he can a fusion spell effect instead of the spell itself! Its a loophole!" Verte Anaconda drained the barons lifeforce and copied the effect of Red-Eyes Fusion by sending that spell and the fusion materials (Dark Magician, Red-Eyes Black Dragon) from the deck to the graveyard. "Yes, I cannot activate Red-Eyes Fusion during a turn in which I summon other monsters. But I can use the effect of Red-Eyes Fusion!

The unholy union between red and black became a reality once more: the Red-Eyes Dark Dragoon(8/3000/2500) [Zone 3]. "Oh I never get tired of this." Due to its two normal monster fusion materials, the Dragoon would be dealing out two destructions this turn. It targeted Borreload Savage Dragon first and impaled it with a lance of flames. "Not activating Supply Squad? An interesting approach, Harmon." If Hydra wanted to, he could have triggered his continuous spell to draw a new card off of the death of his other monster. But doing so would only trigger the Dragoon's own power to gain 1000 attackpoints and negate the offending effect. "Right now your monsters ability is all it has on my monsters.. Schwarzwald." If Hydra did not act at all, Dragoon would only be able to destroy with its effects. "Heh. How very reckless of you, Hydra." Red-Eyes Dragoon fired another fire lance at Borreload Excharge Dragon, deeming it the most dangerous since it could revive any other Borrel monster if it wanted to. "I could just negate my own cards, or I could just smash my dragon into yours." Both fusion dragons possessed 3000 attackpoints, they would both die if they battled. "You wouldn't go that far, Schwarzwald. Everything you do is about surviving and avoiding risks."

"Touche. Though the same cannot be said for my monsters, can it?" Schwarzwald's Predaplant posed a rather big threat to his lifepoints since it could not defend him. "Makes you wonder." He even summoned another half black/half golden light dragon called Planeter the Dwarf Star Dragon(4/1700/1200) [Zone 4]. During the end of the turn in which it was normal summoned, Schwarzwald could add one level 7 DARK or LIGHT monster from the deck to his hand. "Seems to me like you're stuck in a rut too, Scharz." Blanche suggested. "Am I?" He shrugged in response and activated the Black Stone of Legend from his graveyard. Once a turn he could return one level 7 Red-Eyes monster (Red Eyes Black Dragon) to his deck to add the black egg back to his hand. "I just feel like we have said everything we should." He then placed two trap cards down on the field and ended his turn, during which Planeter would move the same shuffled Red-Eyes Black Dragon from the deck back to his hand. "After all, that is what he told me."

-TURN 05-

"I know what I did wrong now, Schwarzwald. I acted like I would be better off without you. But now that I think about it, you are still a part of me. I should not have pretended otherwise. And I should not have abandoned you. It is no wonder that you feel like everyone is against each other, if we cannot even connect with ourselves! But first you have to let me reach you!"

"My turn! Borreload Furious Dragon will destroy your trap!" At the start of the next turn, Dark Ruler No More's effect ended and the fusion Borreload regained its powers. Since Hydra did not want to have anything to do with an annoying trap like Red Fang With Chain, he targeted and destroyed it and Borreload Furious Dragon at the same time. Both cards disappeared inside the pool of black destruction flames. "Now Supply Squad reactivates and I draw one card. And then, when a monster that is special summoned from the extra deck is destroyed, I can activate the Rokket Recharger to summon a dark monster with a different name from my graveyard!" A quick recharge of Borrelsword Dragon would make winning this duel rather easy. "Not this time." Of course the Baron's fusion monster could still just negate the effect of the Recharging Rokket itself. Red-Eyes Dark Dragoon monster discarded the Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon, negated the Rokket and added a 1000 attackpoints to itself(4000/2500).

"But you have three monsters on your field! Which means I can special summon three Rokket Dragons from my graveyard with Boot Sector Launch!" Magnarokket Dragon(4/2100/1500) [Zone 2], Shellrokket Dragon(2/1400/2300) [Zone 3] and Anesthrokket Dragon(1/300/2500) [Zone 4] jumped back to the field together. And the latter two dematerialized into a link circuit together: two level 4 or lower dragon link materials. "Triangle Dragon!" The triangle-holding link dragon(1200/LINK 2) {Down/Left} [Extra Zone 1] then took 500 of Hydra's lifepoints to bring back yet another dead dragon: Noctivision Dragon(7/0/2800) [Zone 3].

Hydra's LP: 6100

"Then, Topologic Trisbaena!" The link circuit moved on up by taking Noctivision Dragon and Twin Triangle Dragon into it. So Hydra created the trilateral cyberse beast Trisbaena(2500/LINK 3) {Downleft/Up/Downright} while also gaining Noctivision Dragon's effect again to draw one card from its dematerialization. "And then.. Topologic Zeroboros!" Trisbaena would ultimately just be another stepping stone. The link circuit absorbed it and the Magnarokket Dragon to create the ultimate infinitely-circled cyber-Ouroboros(3000/LINK 4) {UpLeft/Downleft/Uprught/Downright}. "Aha! You got his weakness!" Blanche finally figured out where Hydra wanted to go. Red Eyes Dragoon could not be destroyed or target, but it could be banished and destroyed in battle. Since Zeroboros gained 200 attackpoints for each banished card, and it would also banish all cards on the field if a monster got summoned to one of its links; it could do either of those options.

The black baron figured the same. "So a clean slate is it? I think I will pass, Hydra. I do not want to lose everything I have right now. I activate Ghost Mourner and the Moonlit Chill." He took option number three, discarding the white-robed ghost girl from his hand to chain to Zeroboros' summon. "Now your monster's effect is negated, and if it leaves the field this turn you will lose three thousand lifepoints. Of course you will lose the same if you wait til next turn and let the Dragoon destroy it." The black baron smirked. "You say you want to hold on to everything you have. But what do you have, Schwarzwald. You are all alone, you've betrayed everyone who could have been your ally. You were willing to betray even Scarlet, weren't you?"

"I do not need anyone, Hydra. Haven't you noticed? I do not want the world to go back to the way it was. We are immortal now. I do not need to eat, I do not need to sleep or work for money or anything. I can get whatever I want, and all I want is a simple life for myself. It is all of you who keep getting in my way just by existing. Everyone always has such grandiose plans. And I am tired of it all." The baron let out a drawn out sigh as if to mock both duelists. "Well, our plans may not be grandiose. But we still have our own. And I am sorry if they get in the way of your idyllic life, baron..." Dharma sneered back at him. "We do have plans, dont we?"

"Yes. Since Plan Zero failed, I will fall back to plan Five." Hydra answered her. "Plan Five? From Outer Space?" She replied with a hushed voice. "Not quite. Plan five... for link five." Hydra normal summoned the Rokket Tracer(4/1900/1300) [Zone 2] from his hand and targeted his own field spell. By destroying Boot Sector Launch, the pyrotechnic Rokket could special summon a new Silverrokket Dragon(4/1900/100) [Zone 4] from the deck. "I activate Borreload Furious Dragon's final power! I can banish it from the graveyard to special summon one link monster from my graveyard!" The final three marks for his five-pointed star would rise up from the grave: the darkness of Furious Dragon released the Trisbaena cyberse[Zone 3] in between the two Rokket Dragons. Then trisbaena took both Rokkets into itself and spread out across a five-way link circuit. They evolved into what looked like an amalgamation of all three link Borrels: a six-winged and three-headed red devil dragon(3500/LINK 5) {Left/Downleft/Up/Right/Downright} [Extra Zone 1] with the blades of Borrelsword, the clawed tail of Borreload and the armor plates of Borrelguard. "Link five? Geez.. seems like everyone has one of them except me."

"Yes, but you were the first one to have a three-headed dragon, Madam Blanche. It's only natural, that my dragons evolved the same way. This is Borrel End Dragon! The materials are three or more monsters! It cannot be destroyed and it cannot be targeted by monster effects! And it can attack three monsters in one turn!" Two of the heads charged a powerful bright light inside their throats and unleashed the energy of destruction upon Dwarf Star Dragon Planeter and Predaplant Verte Anaconda. "I wont let you end this, Hydra. I activate Destructive Draw! All monsters I control are destroyed, and I draw one card for every destroyed pair!" Planeter and Verte together blew up into pieces and left one card behind, robbing the Borrel Dragon of its targets. Red-Eyes Dragoon survived the destruction, but it was too strong to be attacked.

"Tsk. I do not want everything to end, Schwarzwald. There are so many possibilities. But if you are forcing it down to a choice between another version of me and my friends. Then I will always choose them." The dragon duelist placed two trap cards down on his field and passed the turn to the baron. The effect seal on Zeroboros passed away as well.

-TURN 06-

"Now, one more effect of Borrelend Dragon activates during the standby phase. It negates a monsters effect and special summons one Rokket Dragon from my graveyard! I negate the effect of Topologic Zeroboros." At this stage Hydra could not afford to set off Zeroboros' field-wipe, and he also wanted to work towards a counter-offensive that could finally kill Red-Eyes Dragoon. So his three-headed gun dragon spun the chambers inside its chest and regenerated one spent bullet in defense mode: Anesthrokket Dragon(1/0/2200) [Zone 3]. "So many fancy moves, so many cards created to protect your friends.. To honor your friends. But what if they do not protect you? What if they do not honor you? Do you think they will all accept your true face?" The baron scoffed and activated the effect of Red-Eyes Dragoon. It targeted both Anesthrokket Dragon and Topologic Zeroboros, burning them to death from the inside out and inflicting damage equal to their combined attackpoints. "Rgh. I know you're just trying to rile me. It wont work anymore." Hydra said as he visibly winced. A destroyed monster would still give Hydra a shot to draw another card through Supply Squad at least.

Hydra's LP: 3100

"Ha! You can't lie to me. You couldn't even do that with your face hidden." Schwarzwald normal summoned the Red-Eyes Retro Dragon: the tinier four-horned black dragon(4/1700/1600) [Zone 3] with red markings across its scales. "I do not want your help. I do not want it." And then he activated a peculiar spell card: the Claw of Hermos. "He's even got one of those?!" Dharma gasped. Hermos formed the third face of the atlantian dragon trio, opposing her Fang of Critias and Vitruvic's Eye of Timaeus. But his dragon spell would fuse with specific monster types instead of traps or magicians. He chose to fuse it into the Black Stone of Legend. "Claw of Hermos along with a dragon creates the Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword!" The extra deck released a large curved and serrated blade(7/2400/2000) [Extra Zone 2] attached to a hilt made of the black dragons scales. "I can equip this card to one monster, and give it a thousand attackpoints.. and five hundred attack and defense points for each dragon on the field or in the graveyard! Have you been keeping count?"

The graveyard counted 22 cards (Seven Rokket Dragons, Gateway Dragon, Soldier Dragons, Striker Dragon, Noctivision Dragon, Absorouter Dragon, Twin Triangle Dragon, three Borrel dragons, Dwarf Star Dragon, Black Metal Dragon, Black Stone of Legend, three Red-Eyes dragons) and the field counted 3. In total Red-Eyes Retro Dragon(15200/14100) gained 25 powerboosts plus the additional 1000 attackpoints, just from touching the Black Dragon Sword. "Looks like your dragons have let you down as well, Hydra." First Schwarzwald reactivated Black Stone of Legend from his graveyard to recycle it again by sending Red Eyes Black Dragon to the deck. This took 1000 points away from the Black Dragon Sword wielder(14200/13100), which would hardly matter in the long run. "But there can only be one dragon master in the end." At last, with a deadly calm tone, Schwarzwald ordered the final attack.

"I activate my trap card!" Hydra put up his futile defense, Call of the Haunted. "Did you really think I would let you get away now?" The black baron would simply discard the Black Stone from his hand to negate that trap. The end was finally in sight.

"No. But I did think you would not be able to move your Dragoon.." Just as suddenly, Hydra's opponent lost his view on a victorious outcome. "I activate my Broken Line trap and negate the effect of your monster, since it's in the same column!" Broken Line cancelled the effect of the monster in front of it, even if it could not also destroy that monster. "The column counter trap? Why did I not.." This time he fell for the oldest trick in their book. He should have remembered that Hydra always placed his trap cards deliberately, though it would not have helped him avoid a trap that Red-Eyes Dragoon could not chain to anyway. Either way, Call of the Haunted revived the Borrelsword Dragon(3000/LINK 4), who activated its quick effect to switch Red-Eyed Retro Dragon to defense mode. "But even its defense is too much for you. And so is the Dragoon!" Red-Eyes Dragoon attacked Borrelsword instead, lethally impaling the gun dragon on its lance. "I end my turn."

Hydra's LP: 2100

-TURN 07-

"One shot. Two targets." During the endphase, the Anesthrokket Dragon in the graveyard could special summon another Magnarokket Dragon(4/1800/1200) [Zone 5] from the deck. Only that kind of bullet could get rid of the indestructible Dragoon, as it sent its targets straight to the graveyard as opposed to destroying them first. Unfortunately that would still leave him with the superpowered Retro Dragon. "One turn." The draw phase granted Hydra another spell. The standby phase would see Borrelend Dragon reuse its effect to special summon one Rokket Dragon: Rokket Tracer(4/1600/1000) [Zone 3] from the graveyard by negating the effect of another card. "I send the Dragoon away!" That card could only be Magnarokket Dragon. Since it got targeted by a link monster, it selfdestructed and blasted through the dragoon like a rapid fired magnum bullet. "Good choice. But now.."

"And now I activate Bayonet Punisher, which activates one effect for each different Borrel monster on the field or in my graveyard!" Hydra revealed the card that arrived during his draw phase: a spell that could not be chained to as long as he controlled a monster with 3000 attackpoints or more. "When I have an XYZ-Borrel monster , I can banish one spell or trap card you control! When there is a synchro Borrel monster, I can banish one monster on the field! A fusion Borrel monster lets me banish three cards in your extra deck. And a link Borrel monster banishes three cards in your graveyard!" The latter two effects would not even add up to the outcome of this duel. Hydra could use just use the first two punishments. Borrelend wrapped its bladed wings in black fire and hurled the dimensional flame bombs down towards Red-Eyes Retro Dragon and the Spirit Barrier. "What kind of.. card was that?!" In the blink of an eye, Schwarzwald lost every advantage. The duel could only end one way now. "Just another spell, Schwarzwald. Now. This is where you owe up to our arrangement. Whatever comes after that, we will be able to talk it out later."

"Heh. You actually are going to hold back.. I don't know why I doubted you." Schwarzwald merely sighed. He did not understand why Hydra grew so much stronger than he did. He did not want to understand. But he could not get around it either. "Fine." With a snap of his fingers, he fulfilled the terms of the deal.

"Whoa!" The dimensions of the room and hallways shifted around again, suddenly revealing Charles and Jenna who stumbled in from one of the many corridors which merged back into one. "What the hell? Where did you come from? We've been going in circles for ages and then.." Jenna cried out. "Of course. But now I've reversed everything the World Shield twisted around. Even you should be able to find the shield now." Schwarzwald chuckled to himself. "I guess I am your ally now after all. I didn't think I would ever have to say that, ahaha.." He soon stopped. "Ha.." .. when his heart suddenly exploded, leaving a large hole in his chest. "!?" He turned around, and saw her..

Schwarzwald's LP: 0

"I warned you, Baron. This was your test.. and you failed it." Scarlet Fever spoke the last words he would ever hear..

(To Be Continued in World 112: Slave to a Thousand Machines)

New Cards used by Hydra/Fredrick Muller
Borrelend Dragon

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Bayonet Punisher

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Call of the Haunted

New Cards used by Baron Schwarzwald
Dwarf Star Dragon Planeter

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Predaplant Verte Anaconda
Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword

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Dark Ruler No More
Claw of Hermos

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Destructive Draw