We are back with another chapter of Circus GX! Now, last chapter, I left off with you guys questioning and wondering about the ending scene that had occurred. This chapter will explain everything from when Kohaku went into that cave to that very point. Which means, her duel will be in two parts, in which I will have up soon. I can't say how soon, but soon. So! That being said, let us begin~! Oh! And Merry Christmas~!
Normal dialogue
Life Points/Monster stats
*LOCATION CHANGE/ CHANGE IN P.O.V*
Attacks/Effects
'thoughts'
Language other than Japanese (this is English sub after all)
*OPENING*
Roar out through the high heavens,
(Opening starts with a red silhouette of a monster)
Wrapped in undulating emotion;
(Silhouette changed into a different monster in blue)
The truest of tones can be found here at this very spot…
(Silhouette changed once more into a yellow monster. Scene changed to Samejima's office, the man looking out the window at the sky above)
(Instrumental)
(Camera looks up at the dark sky. Title appears. After several seconds, flames extinguished it, changing the scene)
The trembling signal of pain in my heart,
(Kohaku was practicing some stunts when she sensed something and looked behind her)
Broke through many a night,
(Scene changed to Bella doing some ninja training when she also sensed something and looked at a distance)
As I searched for you – it's enough to drive me insane…
(Scene changed again to Alex running from something before he summoned Freakstar Dragon and rode on his back, flying out of the Abandoned Dorm as it exploded behind them)
Within the elegant, dreamlike sounds that float upon a double-edged warmth,
(Elie, Jacko, Tiffany, Seth, Shou and Hayato looked at a distance, watching their friends facing off against the Shadow Riders)
Entrusted tears roam throughout the sky
(Camera zoomed in to Arkham and a Rider in a black cloak. Kohaku and Kazato stares at them. The unknown rider walks away and Kohaku grabbed the cloak and pulled it off)
The more I seek this radiant melody,
(Scene changed as Judai summoned his Heroes and declared an attack)
All that's projected is more illusions.
(Asuka summoned her monsters and also declared an attack)
But the moment we know as "now" will always be what forms the miracle of tomorrow…
(Scene changed to Ryo and his Cybers, to Misawa and his 'Magnet Warriors', to Manjoume and his dragons, to various other characters and their monsters)
So I want to sing for your sake!
(Scene changed to where the Mythic Demon cards are sealed, the three monster spirits circling around the Spirit Gates)
Let everything be set free
(Darkness and Camula had their monsters battle Judai, Chronos, Ryo and Kazato's monsters)
If you have a dream for the future that you believe
(Another cloaked duelist was dueling against Bella and her ninjas)
Our resounding hearts are unstoppable!
(Misawa and Manjoume battled Tania and Don Zaloog. Alex and Asuka dueled against Abidos III and Titan)
Let's go (together), joining hands (no matter how far)!
(Arkham and the earlier cloaked duelist have a full field of monsters on their side, facing off against Kohaku. Kohaku and her 'Circus Freak' and 'Relic' monsters leapt from floating rock to rock over to them)
I won't ever let go of that smile!
(They all prepared their strongest attack and fired. Scene paused with a close-up image of Kohaku and the earlier cloaked duelist facing off)
Last time, Kohaku and her friends went to the beach, where the former was summoned by one of the Shadow Riders. Once there, they met one of the two Shadow Riders tasked in defeating them and taking their keys. Kohaku was exempted from the duel, as the other rider, the one who asked for her specifically, awaited her in the cave nearby. After lifting her friends' spirits in defeating the gatekeeper of a Shadow Rider, she walked to where her opponent was to be.
Once she got to the cave, Kohaku felt quite nervous. Even though the other Shadow Rider said that Arkham didn't call for her, how would she know if he was telling the truth? And even so, even if it wasn't Arkham, it was still a Shadow Rider member. Her father may make defeating these guys look easy, but she knew it was harder than that.
'Will I really be able to defeat them?' she wondered, looking down in doubt.
It was then, Time Space Magician appeared next to her. "Is something wrong?" he asked.
"I just... I don't know if I can do what my dad can. He made dueling look so much fun, no matter what, even though he was up against Shadow Riders. You saw how strong they were. I'm not so sure if I can do it, especially if my opponent is Arkham. I know I said I'm ready for him but... I still have some doubts. It's not like when we were in the Duel Monster Spirit world or with Seth's dad. It's just... too different," she said.
Time Space Magician placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Kohaku. This situation is like back in the Duel Monster Spirit World, and Seth's father. You had something to duel for, you got into a duel that seemed impossible to win, whether you use your true dueling style or not. And yet, you still dueled. Not only did you win, but you also caught the hearts of your opponent and many who watched. You even have proof of such accomplishments; the pendant given to you by the Gravekeeper's lord, and Seth's stay. You managed to overcome two impossibles. Can you really say this is any different?"
When he said that, Kohaku pulled out the pendant hidden under her shirt. As she stared at it, she processed over her Duel Monster spirit's words and found it to be true.
"You're right. I'm only overthinking things," she said. "Boy, I must have a long way to go to reach my father's level if I couldn't see this."
Relieved to see his duelist back to her original self, the 'Circus Freak' monster was about to take his leave, when he sensed something behind them and looked. "What are you girls doing here?"
This made Kohaku turn and saw, to her own shock, her 'Symphogear' monsters there. "Why are you guys here? I thought I left you back at the dorm."
"You did, but that doesn't mean we can't travel to where our Duelists are," Tsubasa said.
"Besides, we're getting weird vibes about the Shadow Rider you're going up against," Eve informed.
"'Weird vibes'? How weird?" Kohaku asked.
"We don't know. It feels... kind of familiar and yet, at the same time, it doesn't," Hibiki explained.
"We've been through this area a number of times, too. This is the first time we're sensing anything like it," Chris added.
This made Kohaku really curious, as she walked into the cave.
Meanwhile, in the Duel Monster Spirit World, in one certain castle, a certain Duel Monster spirit was roaming around the place.
"Good afternoon, milord!" a couple of Gravekeeper's guards greeted, bowing to Saniwa.
"Afternoon, gentlemen," he greeted back.
As the ruler of Gravekeeper's continued down the halls, he saw his daughter standing by a window and called out to her. "Daughter."
Priestess turned to him as she heard his call. "Father. This is quite the surprise. What are you doing here?"
"Even I need to be off my throne and walk around the castle every once in a while," he said. "And what of you? Surely there's nothing interesting out the window."
Priestess looked outside once more at the question. "... Do you think we'll see them again? The humans," she asked.
"Ah. So you're thinking of them." Saniwa joined his daughter in looking out the window as well. "Who is to say? Maybe they will return, maybe they won't. Even if they do return to our world, it is quite vast. They could end up anywhere. Then again, one of them does have my staff. At the very least, if she does find her way back to our world, she will most certainly end up here."
"Is that why you gave her your staff?"
"Not entirely. Visionary told me something interesting about her when we first met those humans. Something which led me to dueling her and gifting her my staff."
"Is that why you dueled her?"
"He told me she is the one who will put a stop to a calamity that is to come to all worlds, the one who shall bring about true peace to both sides. After that duel, he was right."
Hearing this surprised the princess. "A... calamity? But even if that is true, why give her your staff? If I recall, it-"
"-is because of what it does, I decided to gift her it. I only pray she use it wisely, for that power can only be used once per user."
A smile formed on Priestess's face when hearing her father say that. "Something tells me she will."
Back in the real world, Kohaku continued to walk deep into the cave. As she walked, she kept her eyes peeled and ears open. She was in an enemy's territory, after all; anything could happen.
Eventually, she reached what looked like a dead end. And pinned to the wall on the other side by swords and arrows was...
"Dad!" Kohaku rushed to her father, who had looked as though he had been through hell and back. "What happened to you...?"
"What else? He dueled me," came a voice behind her.
Kohaku turned and saw a cloaked figure, this one different from the one by the cave's entrance. Her hood was up, so she didn't know who the person under it was.
"You did this to my dad? Why? What did he do to you? Or is this part of your Shadow Duel condition like the others?" Kohaku asked.
"You're angry. Good. I want to duel against the real you," the figure simply said, as she activated her Duel Disk.
At her statement, Kohaku realized that she was giving her what she wanted, and that she was close to dueling out of anger. Something she shouldn't do. Taking in a breath to relax, she activated her own duel disk, as well as...
"Activating Action Field. Okay?"
"Okay," she replied to her disk.
"Activating Field Magic. Crossover." At those words, her duel disk turned the area around them into an Action Field, summoning out green platforms wherever they could, and conjuring the orb of cards above the duelists.
"I'm going to do what my dad undoubtedly tried to show you. What a real duel is like!" Kohaku said.
"'A real duel,' you say. To think all these years and you've been facing away from reality. Or have you truly forgotten what a real duel really is?" the cloaked Shadow Rider asked.
Kohaku raised a brow at that claim. "What are you talking about?"
"Enough talk. Now let's-"
"DUEL!"
Kohaku: 4000 LP
Shadow Rider: 4000 LP
"I just realized. You never said anything about the win condition here. Your previous allies had one," Kohaku said.
"If you think I am cruel or crazy enough to force you into doing anything, you're wrong. At the very least, I am still human enough to not do that," her opponent said.
"So... my soul is not going to be transferred in a card or a doll, and there's no crazy marriage you want me to take part in?"
"Your soul means nothing to me; it's not worth bargaining for." Hearing that placed Kohaku slightly at ease, as she started to think that this person can be reasonable. "Your life, on the other hand... You just made it easy to make you suffer." Until that. "I start. Draw." Without wasting another second, the Shadow Rider drew her sixth card. "From my hand, I activate the Continuous Magic, Fates Counterpart. With this card's effect, once per turn, if I summon a 'Hoshidan' or 'Nohrian' monster on the field, I can add the other of the same level and type to my hand."
(Fates Counterpart: Continuous Magic: Once per turn, if you summon a 'Hoshidan' or 'Nohrian' monster on the field, you may activate one of these effects depending on the monster summoned:
- 'Hoshidan': add 1 'Nohrian' monster of the same level and type as the summoned monster from your deck to your hand.
- 'Nohrian': add 1 'Hoshidan' monster of the same level and type as the summoned monster from your deck to your hand.)
"'Fates Counterpart'? 'Hoshidans'? 'Nohrians'? I've never heard of that card or the archetype," Kohaku stated.
"I don't expect you to. I Normal Summon Hoshidan Royal, Takumi." Appearing on the Shadow Rider's field was a boy in with greyish silver hair in a ponytail, with a bow in hand.
Hoshidan Royal, Takumi: Level 4/LIGHT/Warrior/1600 ATK/1700 DEF
(Hoshidan Royal, Takumi: Effect Monster: Once per turn, you can inflict 100 damage to your opponent times the total level of 'Hoshidan' monsters you control. This card cannot attack the turn you use this effect.)
"And since I summoned him, I activate Fates Counterpart's effect, to add a 'Nohrian' monster from my deck to my hand. Through this effect, I add the Level 4 Warrior-type, Nohrian Royal, Kamui to my hand. And now I activate Takumi's effect. Once per turn, I am able to inflict 100 damage to my opponent times the total level of 'Hoshidan' monsters I control. Fujin Arrow." At that order, the Shadow Rider's monster pulled his bow's string back, causing an arrow of light to appear.
As much as Kohaku wanted to search for an Action Card to stop the effect from happening or prevent the damage, her father was still pinned behind her. If she were to avoid it, she would risk her father getting hit. As the archer monster fired his attack at her, Kohaku raised her Duel Disk to block the arrow. However, the force behind it was quite powerful, she felt her arms tremble.
Kohaku: 3600 LP
Shadow Rider: 4000 LP
"I set one card face-down and end my turn," the Shadow Rider ended.
"Then it's my turn. Draw!" Kohaku drew her sixth card.
'I have to be very careful with what I do here,' she thought. 'If I stay in this one spot, there's a chance dad would get hurt in the crossfire. At the very least, I have to take him to some place safe or take this duel elsewhere.'
"I summon Circus Freak Juggler!" Appearing now on her field was one of her juggling clowns.
Circus Freak Juggler: Level 3/DARK/Spellcaster/1600 ATK/1000 DEF
"When Circus Freak Juggler gets summoned, a Circus Counter is put on him. And for each Circus Counter he has, his ATK is increased by 200." As she said that, a ball appeared in his hand, in which he juggled with.
Circus Freak Juggler: 1600 + 200 = 1800 ATK
"I set one card face-down and battle! Circus Freak Juggler will attack Hoshidan Royal, Takumi! Flare Pitch!" Juggler tossed his ball at the opposing monster upon command, hard enough to cause it to be set on fire in the process.
"Trap Card, Retainer's Protection. If a 'Hoshidan Royal' or 'Nohrian Royal' monster is targeted for an attack, by sending a 'Hoshidan Retainer' or 'Nohrian Retainer' monster with the targeted monster's name in its text from my deck, hand or field to the Graveyard, that monster is not destroyed," the Shadow Rider countered. "Protect your prince, Hoshidan Retainer, Hinata!" As she said this, a brunette samurai appeared in front of Takumi and took the hit for his master. An explosion occurred when the ball came in contact with him and covered the area in smoke.
Kohaku: 3600 LP
Shadow Rider: 3800 LP
(Retainer's Protection: Normal Trap: If a 'Hoshidan Royal' or 'Nohrian Royal' monster is targeted for an attack, send 1 'Hoshidan Retainer' or 'Nohrian Retainer' monster with the targeted monster's name in its text from your deck, hand or field to the Graveyard to negate the targeted monster's destruction.)
(Hoshidan Retainer, Hinata: Effect Monster: If 'Hoshidan Royal, Takumi' is on the field, you may Special Summon this card from your hand. If this card attacks an opponent's monster while you control another 'Hoshidan Retainer' monster, this card gains 500 ATK during the Damage Step.)
Once the smoke cleared, the Shadow Rider saw that her opponent and hostage were no longer there. She looked around and saw Kohaku carrying her father away from the scene, with Juggler helping out.
"You can't escape me," she said. "Looks like it's my turn now. Draw." She drew her next card and looked up. Upon seeing an Action card on a stalactite above her, she jumped and snatched the card off. "Let's start with this Action Magic. Freeze Freezer." Inserting the card in her disk, a chilling wind blew behind her over to Kohaku. Not only did it freeze the floor to ice, it also trapped the duelist and her monster.
"H-... Huh?!" Kohaku gasped, as she tried to get herself out of her situation. "Hang on, Freeze Freezer doesn't work like this! It only negates an opponent's monster attacks for the turn it is activated!"
"True, but this is a Shadow Duel. Surely, you didn't think the effects of an Action Card would work as they usually would in a normal Action Duel, did you?" the Shadow Rider said.
Kohaku widened her eyes at those words. "Wait... How do you know about Action Duel?!"
Instead of answering her, the Shadow Rider continued her turn. "If I control a 'Hoshidan Royal' or a 'Nohrian Royal' monster on my field, I Special Summon Nohrian Royal, Kamui from my hand!" Appearing on the Shadow Rider's field was a girl with long silver hair in a grey armor with a blue cape on her.
Nohrian Royal, Kamui: Level 4/LIGHT/Warrior/1700 ATK/1500 DEF
(Nohrian Royal, Kamui: Effect Monster: This card is also treated as a 'Hoshidan Royal' monster while face-up on the field. If you control a face-up 'Hoshidan Royal' or 'Nohrian Royal' monster, you may Special Summon this card from your hand.)
"And if Kamui is summoned onto the field, I Special Summon 'Hoshidan Royal, Hinoka'." Following her was a red-head female warrior in white and red clothes on a pegasus, with a lance in hand.
Hoshidan Royal, Hinoka: Level 6/LIGHT/Warrior/2200 ATK/1600 DEF
(Hoshidan Royal, Hinoka: Effect Monster: If 'Nohrian Royal, Kamui' is summoned onto the field, you may Special Summon this card from your hand. This card can attack your opponent directly; damage inflicted this way will be halved.)
"And at this time, I activate Fates Counterpart's effect. Upon Hinoka's summon, I will add the Level 6 Warrior-type, Nohrian Royal, Camilla from my deck to my hand. And with Kamui on the field, I can Special Summon her." Next to appear was a woman with long, wavy purple hair in revealing black armor, riding on a wyvern.
Nohrian Royal, Camilla: Level 6/DARK/Warrior/2400 ATK/2000 DEF
(Nohrian Royal, Camilla: Effect Monster: If 'Nohrian Royal, Kamui' is on your field, you may Special Summon this card from your hand. Once per turn, if this card destroys a Defense Position Monster by battle, it can attack again in a row.)
"Now let's battle. Let's start with Hinoka. Thanks to her own effect, she is able to attack the player directly. Royal Soaring Lance!" At that command, the red-head warrioress's pegasus flew towards Kohaku at high speed, her weapon out in front of her.
Not wanting her father to take the blow, Kohaku quickly placed Kazato down in front of her, and shielded him from the blow. As a result, not only did her duel disk get scratched up from the hit, she also received a horrible cut on her shoulder.
Kohaku: 2500 LP
Shadow Rider: 3800 LP
"Gah!" Kohaku clutched her shoulder in pain, feeling blood leak out.
"You should be happy," the Shadow Rider said. "If Hinoka attacks directly through her own effect, the damage inflicted that way is halved. Of course, if she were to attack with all her strength, it wouldn't be that enjoyable to see you suffer then. The duel would end too quickly; you and your family deserve to suffer slowly and painfully. Dear old daddy didn't last long enough during our duel. As his daughter, you will take the rest of his suffering in his place. Mommy dearest, on the other hand, will spend her years mentally dying, wondering what happened to her husband and lone child, why Principal Samejima must have them be the key bearers when it could've been any other duelist, and why, oh why, does fate have to break her so by slowly taking her family away from her?"
"Don't talk like you know my mom!" Kohaku shouted, enduring the pain.
"It seems you're mistaken. I do know her, just as much as I know you and that pathetic excuse of a father behind you." The Shadow Rider turned and walked to an Action Card on the ground. "Action Magic, Against the Wind. All my opponent's monsters go to Defense Mode and lose 1000 of their DEF points." A strong wind blew once more. Kohaku tried to stand against it, while her monster was forced to change its position and lose some endurance.
Circus Freak Juggler: 1000 - 1000 = 0 DEF
"Now, Camilla. Attack her monster. Royal Berserk Axe!" At her command, her wyvern rider of a monster charged at Kohaku's only monster with her weapon raised.
"Counter Trap, Grand Escape! When a 'Circus Freak' monster I control is targeted for an attack, that attack is negated and my opponent's Battle Phase is skipped!" By some miracle, Juggler managed to escape from his icy prison and avoided Camilla's attack. "And for each monster that didn't declare an attack this turn, I draw a card! In this case, two cards!" Kohaku drew two more cards.
"That may be, but you seem to have forgotten. I activate Takumi's effect. He will inflict 100 damage to you times the total level of 'Hoshidan' monsters I control. And while face-up on the field, Kamui is treated as a 'Hoshidan Royal' monster. Their levels are 4, and Hinoka's level is 6. In total, that is 1400 points of damage. Fujin Arrow!" Takumi once again fire an arrow at his duelist's opponent. This time, the arrow split in three as it made its way towards her.
"From my hand, I activate Circus Freak Flame Artist's effect! If an effect damage is going to be dealt to me, I Special Summon this card and negate that effect!" Kohaku's fire master of a 'Circus Freak' monster appeared before her and blew flames to counter against the archer's attack.
Circus Freak Flame Artist: Level 4/DARK/Spellcaster/1600 ATK/1400 DEF
"So you saved yourself. Good. Like I said, I want this duel and your suffering to last for a long while," the Shadow Rider said.
Gritting her teeth, the 'Circus Freak' duelist quickly removed her blazer and ripped a part of her white shirt off, wrapping the fabric around her injury in an attempt to at least stop the bleeding. "I don't know why you're so fixated on me, and I don't care. But you will not have your way!"
"That's where you're wrong. I set two cards face-down and end my turn. At this time, your precious monster's DEF returns to normal."
Circus Freak Juggler: 0 + 1000 = 1000 DEF
"My turn!" Kohaku drew her next card. "During my Standby Phase, Circus Freak Juggler gains another Circus Counter!" Another ball appeared in said monster's hand.
Circus Freak Juggler: 1800 + 200 = 2000 ATK
"And now, I activate the Instant Magic, Early Performance! Thanks to this card's effect, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower 'Circus Freak' monster from my deck or hand! Time to make an appearance, Circus Freak Trampoline!" Spotlight appeared and shone around the cave, until eventually it revealed Circus Freak Trampoline hidden behind a pillar.
Circus Freak Trampoline: Level 2/DARK/Spellcaster/400 ATK/900 DEF
"With Trampoline Special Summoned, I am able to return cards on the field equal to or less than the number of 'Circus Freak' cards I control! Trampolend!" The newly summoned monster jumped at the Shadow Rider's monsters to bounce them back into their duelist's hand.
"How predictable," the opposing duelist muttered. "I activate the Trap card, Dragon Vein: Deflect." As her face-down card was flipped face-up, a barrier appeared between Trampoline and his targets. "While this card is face-up on the field, monsters I control do not leave the field unless if they are destroyed."
(Dragon Vein: Deflect: Normal Trap: While this card is face-up on the field, monsters you control cannot leave the field unless if they are destroyed. If you do not control a 'Hoshidan Royal' or 'Nohrian Royal' monster, destroy this card.)
Kohaku gritted her teeth at this and proceeded on to plan B. "I activate the Magic card, Perform Assistance! With this card's effect, a card on the field gains a Circus Counter for each 'Circus Freak' monster I control! I give all these counters to Circus Freak Juggler!" Three more balls appeared in the monster's juggling cycle, granting him more power.
Circus Freak Juggler: 2000 + 200 x 3 = 2600 ATK
"And now I release Juggler and Trampoline to Advance Summon, the leader of 'Circus Freaks'! Come, Circus Freak Time Space Magician!" As Juggler tossed his balls in the air, he and Trampoline grabbed each other by the wrists and spun, slowly glowing, until Kohaku's key card appeared in their place.
Circus Freak Time Space Magician: Level 7/DARK/Spellcaster/2500 ATK/2000 DEF
"Next, Juggler's effect! When he leaves the field, my opponent takes 200 points of damage for each Circus Counter that was on him!" The moment Kohaku said that, the balls all exploded, causing a bunch of smoke to cover up the whole area and blind the Shadow Rider.
Kohaku: 2500 LP
Shadow Rider: 2800 LP
"Trying to run again," she more stated than questioned, as she calmly looked up at one of the platforms above. The Shadow Rider jumped and landed on it. Looking around, she found another Action Card a few platforms away from her. Jumping over to the card, she picked it up and activated it. "Action Magic, Shot Bomb. Let's see where you are, as you take 1000 points of damage."
A bomb appeared before her before it shot itself into the smoke. A small explosion occurred, followed by Kohaku's scream in pain.
"There you are." With her prey found, the Shadow Rider snapped her fingers and leapt back into the smoke, dashing on toward the explosion she caused.
Once the area was starting to clear, there lied Kohaku, pinned down to the ground by the Shadow Rider's monsters, and her back having a bad burn by the explosion.
Kohaku: 1500 LP
Shadow Rider: 2800 LP
"Still thinking of running away, I see. Then again, you've never stood up and actually fought for someone. All that time doing your own thing, and yet. Not once did you truly do anything for anyone," she said.
"What... are you talking about?!" Kohaku questioned. "Stop talking like you know me!"
"You still have yet to figure it out... No matter. It is still your turn." The Shadow Rider raised her hand, causing her monsters to give her opponent some breathing room to stand.
'At the very least... dad is safe...' the 'Circus Freak' duelist thought, as she looked at her hand and field. 'Relax, Kohaku... Relax. Your father had proven that out of all duels, the one that makes people smile is the one that prevails against the Duel of Darkness. He proved it many times. Heck, you yourself changed the minds of some of the most strict person you've ever met. Surely, you can get through to this Shadow Rider like Dad did to Camilla and Tanya.'
"With Time Space Magician advance summoned, the Circus Counters on Juggler transfers to him," Kohaku then said, as five orbs surrounded her key monster, who returned to her side along with Flame Artist. "Here we go! I activate the Magic card, Acrobalance! With this card, I will fuse Circus Freak Time Space Magician with Flame Artist on the field and Stuntman in my hand! Performer of time and space, accept the assistance of your allies and become the new light that vanquishes the evil darkness! FUSION SUMMON! Appear now, arcane magician with ancient powers! Circus Freak Rune Magician!" Now forming from the two monsters on her field plus Stuntman was Kohaku's multi-attacker Fusion Monster.
Circus Freak Rune Magician: Level 8/DARK/Spellcaster/3000 ATK/2200 DEF
"And with a total level of 8, excluding Time Space Magician, Rune Magician can attack a total of three times!" Kohaku looked up at a platform and leapt up to snatch an Action Card hanging on the edge. "Battle! Rune Magician will attack Camilla, Kamui and Hinoka! Repeated Ancient Light Blaster!" At that command, the Fusion Monster fired a trio of lights at his targets.
The Shadow Rider jumped up to another stalactite, where another Action Card was, snatched it and activated it. "Action Magic, Evasion! I negate the attack onto Kamui!" As the beams got closer, Kamui quickly avoided the one targeting her at the last second, while the other two struck their targets.
Kohaku: 1500 LP
Shadow Rider: 1400 LP
"The duel is not over yet! It's time for the Grand Finale! I activate the Instant Magic, Fusion Cancel! With this card, I can return a Fusion Monster to the Extra Deck! And if any of its Fusion Materials used for its summon are in my Graveyard, I can Special Summon them back! Split please, Rune Magician!" And split he did, as he glowed in bright light and morphed back into Time Space Magician, Flame Artist and Stuntman, the latter two in Defense Mode.
Circus Freak Stuntman: Level 4/DARK/Spellcaster/0 ATK/0 DEF
"And now it's time to see some magical illusions~! Action Magic, Illusion Fire! A monster I control can attack a number of times equal to the number of monsters I control, with the cost that the other monsters cannot attack! Time Space Magician, you're up!" As he spun his staff before him, Kohaku's key card started glowing and summoned a pair of flaming spirits that looked just like him. "Battle! I now attack Takumi with Time Space Magician! Time-Spacial Stream Buster!" Her monster unleashed his stream of energy beam at his target.
It was then, though, the Shadow Rider back flipped over to another Action card lying on the floor. "Action Magic, Attack Force. Takumi gains 600 ATK during the battle."
Hoshidan Retainer, Takumi: 1600 + 600 = 2200 ATK
Despite the power gain, it wasn't enough to stop Kohaku's monster's attack, as it struck and destroyed him.
Kohaku: 1500 LP
Shadow Rider: 1100 LP
"Next, attack Kamui! Repeated Time-Spacial Stream Buster!" Another energy beam was shot at the remaining opposing monster on the field.
The Shadow Rider looked and saw another Action Card on a platform quite far from her that she wasn't going to get to it in time. At least, that was what Kohaku thought when she noticed the card there as well, until the Shadow Rider surprised her by quickly vaulting up from the many other platforms around her and using the pillars and longer stalactites as support of some kind to launch her over to the card in time.
"Action Magic, Miracle! Kamui's destruction is negated and the Battle Damage is halved!" she said, as a barrier of light appeared and protected her monster.
Kohaku: 1500 LP
Shadow Rider: 700 LP
As this happened, Kohaku just looked on in shock. 'How... How did she get to that card in time? Was she a performer or something?' she wondered. In fact, it was one of the many things she was wondering about since this duel had began. How did the Shadow Rider know of Action Duel? How did she know how the Action Cards work or what their effects were? What sort of grudge did she seem to have against her of all people? Her, and her family.
Kohaku shook her head from these thoughts, as she got ready for her next attack. "Try again, Time Space Magician! Time-Spacial-"
"Wait, Kohaku!" came Kazato's voice.
Kohaku turned to the source and saw her father was barely holding himself up, using the cave wall as support. "Dad! What are you doing?! You have to hide, now!"
"I won't! Not when my daughter is dueling like this!" he retorted.
Kohaku was shocked that her father said this. Wasn't this the type of duel she was suppose to have? The one that brings smiles to people? Then again, it didn't look as though the Shadow Rider was enjoying the duel at all. But... "I can't risk not finishing this duel, dad! You know that! I'm sorry I can't do the kind of duel you do, but at the very least, I can stop this Shadow Rider now! Before anyone else gets hurt!"
"No, you don't understand, Kohaku!"
Getting back to the duel, the 'Circus Freak' duelist declared her attack. "Attack Kamui again, Time Space Magician! Repeated Time-Spacial Stream Buster!" At that command, her card unleashed his third and last attack at the Shadow Rider's monster, with the opposing duelist going for another Action Card.
"Kohaku, stop the duel! You don't understand!" Kazato shouted, as the light moved closer to its target. "That Shadow Rider... THAT'S YOUR SISTER!"
Kohaku perked up, eyes wide, at this. "Eh?!" she gasped.
Time Space Magician was just as surprised with this piece of information, as his attack struck Kamui, causing an explosion and smoke to emerge on the other side of the field.
"Hang on... What do you mean that Shadow Rider is my sister?" Kohaku asked. "Koharu is dead! You know that! And even if she wasn't, she would never joined a group like the Shadow Riders!"
"You're right. The old me wouldn't," said the Shadow Rider. The smoke died down, revealing Kamui with the light barrier around her once more. Approaching the monster was her duelist, whose hood was brought down during the explosion. The sight of her face made Kohaku be at lost for words... for her face is exactly like her's.
"Ko-... Koharu?"
