Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Legacy of Tarot

Chapter 7: The Ruling One

"You sure talk big for someone whose life points are a lot lower than mine are, Mayor Muto." Nick boasted, holding his hand of cards tightly and feeling only the deepest anxiety deep within him that the Mayor was telling the truth. Even though many have put down the Harpie Lady line, Nick has always seemed to make it work and pull it through the toughest of situations. Hopefully, if the Mayor isn't calling a bluff, he'll be able to do the same here.

"Ah, but that," replied the Mayor, "is the privilege of leadership, my dear boy: I get to talk as big and as brash as I like! And, for your information, I speak the truth. Behold! First, I'll play Giant Soldier of Stone in defense mode!" The lumbering beast of a creature, whose body was composed entirely of rocks and boulders, composed itself upon the dueling field, arms crossed over its body to signify a defense position.

"What, and that's it? Ooh, so it has more defense than my Harpie Lady Sister has attack; what good will that do?"

"Quite a bit, my friend. Watch as I play this magic card, Conscription!" The mayor announced and, sensing a confused look from Nick's direction, explained the card. "This Continuous Magic card allows me to summon as many monsters onto the field as I like during my turn, at the cost of 500 life points per extra monster. And, thanks to its magical effects, I will now be able to sacrifice Giant Soldier of Stone in order to play the card that will bring about your doom… The Ruling One!"

The mention of this card didn't strike Nick as much as it did a certain Bertram Philps, whose eyes immediately widened as he scampered towards the dueling field to get a closer look. Could the mayor really be in possession of one of the Tarot Cards? His fears were confirmed all too soon as the green-robed, kingly figure of The Ruling One arrived on the field. Wielding the mythical Scepter of Punishment, the sovereign creature gazed upon Nick's cards with arrogance in its eyes.
On Nick's viewing screen, located on his podium, it should be noted that his opponent's side of the field was visible, and as The Ruling One was played, something about the card's design immediately struck Nick as familiar—it was the same as the Sorcerer of Serpents that was played in another of his battles, against Xel'Zerpi! The Ruling One was a Tarot card! And not only that, it both was easily powerful enough to destroy both Nick's monsters, and had an effect that would redirect those attack points in order to damage his life points!

"Now, Ruling One, destroy his Harpie Lady Sisters with your Crude Judgement!" came his order, swift and clear. The card moved in for the attack, swinging its scepter violently in its right hand at each of the harpies that made up the Harpie Lady Sisters. Just before it was able to make contact, however, a group of priests dressed in blue apparated on the field, deflecting the blows. "What?!"

"Meet Waboku; this card reduces all damage done by your monster to zero during the turn that it's played. It should prove enough to hold you off until I can defeat your Ruling One—and I will, you can be sure of it." Nick swanked confidently. The mayor merely laughed.

"We shall see. Make your move."

Nick slipped his hand over the card deck and drew a card, bringing his hand size to 2. The mayor had, at present, no cards left in his hand; however, his monster would easily give him time enough to restore it to full.

"I'll place this card face down, turn my monsters to defense mode, and end my turn." His thick voice announced with every drop of poise he could muster. It only served to fuel the mayor's confidence in turn.

"What, is that all you've got?" The mayor bragged, "I thought you were a world-class duelist, Nick. It appears I was mistaken."

"We'll see; make your move!"

"Very well. I choose not to play any cards this turn. Ruling One, attack Nick's Harpie Lady Sisters yet again!"

"Not so fast," began Nick, flipping a card face up. It was unfamiliar to Mayor Muto, and Nick could tell. "This is a rare and powerful trap card called the Bonds of Sisterhood; it allows me to special summon all Harpie Lady Sister cards from my deck in Face-up attack position when a Harpie Lady or Harpie Lady Sisters is attacked during your turn. All the Harpie Lady Sisters on the field then attack the threat as one. And that's not all: during my next turn, all the Harpie Lady Sisters attack as one monster."

A look of dread immediately came over the mayor's face as two more Harpie Lady Sisters appeared on the field. He knew that this meant his doom; with no trap cards to prevent this, he was completely at the mercy of Bonds of Sisterhood. And furthermore, The Ruling One's effect could not be activated because it was not his opponent's battle phase! The three Harpie Lady Sisters, 9 bird-women in total, surrounded and clawed at the immensely powerful Ruling One; and yet, comparatively, it was as an ant to the might of 9 hungry robins, each willing and ready to destroy and discard it. For a combined total of 5850 damage, the all-might Tarot Card had been reduced to pieces and was immediately obliterated. The only card in his hand, a mere Hayabusa Knight, was not going to help him here. He was finished and he knew it.

"If that's the end of your turn…" Nick began; the mayor nodded solemnly. "Very well. Then I'll have my combined Harpie Lady Sisters finish your life points!"

The mayor nearly collapsed at the sight of his 5700 life points being reduced to 0 for the first time in his entire career. He had never been defeated, not even once; and now this little upstart was casting him aside like so much old food. One of the mayor's attendants walked up to him and began speaking.

"I'm sorry sir, but the rules of this gala—which you created yourself—state that the loser must hand his rarest card to the winner. That means your Ruling One now belongs to Nick."

Now, the mayor may have been in shock and dismay at his sudden defeat, but he certainly wasn't a bad sport. Putting the remnants of a grin on his battered old face, he lowered the podiums, moved towards Nick, and handed him The Ruling One, along with a firm handshake.

"You're the first person to ever defeat me, lad, and my Ruling One," he began, something of a tear in his eye. "I hope you'll treat it well."

Nick thought for a moment, smiled, and nodded, "I will!"

Clapping erupting from the backdrop, both duelists retreated to the VIP lounge for some much needed rest.

*  *  *  *

"You're kidding us, right Bertram?" Alyssa fumed as Nick held his new card in his hand. She was in utter disbelief at what the old goofball was telling her.

"No, Alyssa—the Ruling One is a Tarot Card. Don't you recognize the make-up of the card itself, its design?" Bertram reasoned, taking the card into his hands and showing it to her. "And also, remember that I once told you that the Tarot cards' masters always take on the characteristics of their cards; do you not find it ironic that Mayor Muto is, in fact, a 'ruling one?'"

"Alright, so let's play along with the idea that it is a Tarot Card, just for a minute," she bristled in disbelief, "What the hell do we do with it now?"

"Nothing, yet. It isn't going to help us find Xel'Zerpi without examining it with the proper equipment, but it will ensure that whoever he's working for isn't going to get them all, not so long as Nick keeps it safe in his deck."

"I will," the champion laughed, taking the card back and adding it to the top of his deck, "you can be sure of that."

"Now all that needs doing is getting a hold of Mayor Muto and asking him what he knows of Xel'Zerpi's whereabouts." Mark threw in, leaning back on the VIP lounge sofa.

"He should be back any minute now," Bertram began. Within seconds, the doorknob began to turn and the familiar visage of Mayor Muto entered.

"Hello, friends! I hope you didn't get too bored waiting for me." He began with a chuckle. Alyssa merely snorted, mumbling something that he either didn't hear or chose to ignore.

"Please, dear friend, sit down," Bertram began, motioning towards a nearby chair positioned close to them. "We have a great many things to ask you…"

*  *  *  *

"Yes, I knew the Ruling One was a Tarot card. My wife, who always has been interested in the legendary topic, pointed that out to me. I didn't believe her at first, but after a time, it all made sense."

"Do you know much about them, then?" Mark asked curiously.

"Not as much as my wife, assuredly; Jessica," he began, turning his head towards his wife who was sitting off to one side, chatting with a few dignitaries. It was a large lounge, after all, and they were far enough away to be discluded from the conversation. "Would you mind telling them what they wish to know?"

"Of course, my love." His wife began to move towards them and took a seat on the mayor's lap, one arm strung around behind his neck as she crossed her legs. "What do you wish to know about these cards?"

"Well… do you know where they came from, by any chance?" Alyssa asked, showing a hell of a lot more compassion towards the mayor's wife than her husband.

"All I know is legend, but… from what I have read about these cards, they were created by a group of people—mediums, fortunetellers, the whole lot of them—who wanted an aide in foretelling the future—and in making a few extra dollars. These were the beginnings of the Tarot cards."

"But these mediums weren't magical or anything like that, were they?" asked Nick, once again taking the Ruling One in his hand.

"No," she replied, shaking her lovely head back and forth. "That is where their hidden accomplice comes into play. Known only to the legends as the Masked Conjurer, he helped the fortune tellers by infusing his magic into them. The tarot cards, you see, were not magical in and of themselves, and had no actual ability to tell the future—the Masked Conjurer said he was able to change all that. And, perhaps foolishly, the mediums agreed to his offer, although it was as though selling their souls."

"How so?"

"Well, as it turns out, the Masked Conjurer was simply the alter-ego of a world-renowned duelist. When he infused his magic into the cards, he did not do as the mediums bid him, but rather he turned them into Duel Monsters cards. Extremely powerful duel monsters cards. And worst of all, the mediums came immediately under the cards' spells, so they had no idea what had been pulled over their eyes. And they were the Tarot Warriors from then on, completely under the Masked Conjurer's enchantment. Some, like a snake man named Xel'Zerpi, are still rumoured to live today, completely attached to their cards in mind, body, and soul. Others, like my husband's grandfather, passed the cards down to family to keep their powers alive. Still others lost them in duels. Unfortunately, because of this, there is no way of knowing who now possesses a Tarot Card, because many of the old Tarot Warriors no longer exist and were immediately destroyed when their cards left their possession. But I suppose you can't really believe all the legends… magic, snakemen… it all sounds rather foolish, don't you think?"

"Not as foolish as you might think," Bertram began with a chuckle. "Xel'Zerpi is the man we're looking for. He has abducted one of Nick's friends and taken her away, claiming that the Tarot Cards are looking for new masters."

"Xel'Zerpi…? Yes, I remember now! He was on the news, wasn't he? He caused the explosion at that Duel Monsters tournament. Yes, I remember that well."

"Do you have any idea where he might be, then?"

"Well, I can't be sure, but… according to the old legends, the Tarot Warriors often met in a place called Tarotenam. It doesn't exist any more, of course, but if I were to make a guess, I would say that its ruins might still remain just east of a city called York. I believe you can catch a flight to York from the airport here in Tare."

Without wasting a moment of time, the four members of the group stood up and thanked Mrs. Muto graciously for all her help. But one thing was on their minds: they had to get to this York and find the ruins of Tarotenam as quickly as possible. With the grand prize in hand and after thanking the mayor for his help, the group headed towards the Tare Airport.

The next chapter of their adventure was to begin.