Drat. Last chapter had a few errors, but they are fixed now. So you might want to reread that chapter. _
I think I have been writing this thing too much. I dreamt that I had a Celtic Guardian named Gaston hanging out with me. _ Lesson of the day: don't work on a fan fiction until one AM.
*Chapter 17: Silent and Deadly!*
Max sighed. "I guess that's over with…"
"Max…" Hope began. "I'm so sorry… your life has been horrible!"
"I've gotten over it," Max said. Hope could tell by the tone of his voice that he didn't mean it though.
"Let's get out of here. I don't want to get my head hacked off by an irritated chess piece," Rue stated, breaking the uncomfortable silence.
They all walked outside, and looked around. "So, now where do we go?" Neo asked.
"Let's go down to the hills," Will suggested. "Those officials might be still looking for us back there."
Rue nodded. "Good point. I brought another Time Capsule card, so we can use that."
"Why not just use the same one?" Hope inquired.
"When cards are used in Teknisk Wereld, they have a 'recharge' time," Will explained. "You have to wait for twenty-four hours before you can use it again. So it's a good thing Rue brought more than one copy."
"I see," Hope said.
Rue looked carefully at the card first before calling forth the Time Capsules.
*****
After a short ride in the coffins, they were soon at the foot of the mountain, facing the hills.
"Well, that was anti-climatic," Neo muttered. "Which direction do we go?"
Hope took out an arrow from the quiver she wore, and threw it, spinning in the air. It soon landed, pointing straight forward. "That way, I guess."
They began walking, but nothing happened for the next hour. "Can we rest soon?" Hope complained.
"We can't stop in the middle of an open area like this," Max retorted, as they climbed up a steep hill. "We would be way too noticeable. We are too noticeable right now anyway. I don't like it."
"On the bright side, we will be able to see anything else that comes our way too," Gaston noted.
"True, but I still don't like it."
They had reached the top of the hill by now, and were looking around. "Still nothing!" Rue griped. "I'm going to go insane soon!"
"It's not like we have anything better to do," Will pointed out as they began walking down the hill. "Let's just keep walking in this dir-"
Will was cut off by the ground suddenly collapsing. All they had time for was a yell of surprise before falling down the pit.
*****
What… happened? We were walking… and then… oh no! Hope got up quickly, wincing at the collection of bruises she had gotten from the fall. She was relived to see everyone else was there as well.
"Is everyone ok?" Rue asked.
"No broken bones…" Will responded. "Although I feel sore all over."
"It looks like we got lucky," Max said. "What I don't understand is why this pit was here."
Gaston looked up, and shook his head. "It's too far up, and the sides of this pit are too smooth to climb. We won't be able to leave this way."
"Is there another way we can go?" Neo pondered.
"Hold on a second…" Rue got out a card and activated it. "I've activated Dark Piercing Light. Let's look around before it goes out."
"There's a passage right over there," Will pointed out. "There's no other way to go; so I guess we should go down it."
There wasn't much to say about the passage. It was just a big, rocky tunnel. Hope was afraid it would cave in at any second, but she wasn't about to tell anyone that.
About ten minutes later, they were still walking down the passage.
"Geez, who made this thing? It must have taken ages," Rue grumbled.
"I'm more concerned about who dug out that pit," Hope replied. "The only reason I can think of that a pit would be here is because a General of Hell dug it."
"You are correct."
A man walked out from the shadows. He had the customary black cloak, but it was soon flung away. There wasn't much difference though. He wore a black long sleeved shirt, black pants, black socks, black boots, and black gloves. Everything he wore was black, basically. He even wore a black handkerchief over his nose and mouth, leaving his dark blue eyes uncovered. His black hair was kept in a ponytail, but it went down to his shoulders.
Although his companion could have passed off as a human, Hope immediately recognized it as a monster she had faced before. He wore a gray, sleeveless shirt, and gray pants, with gray boots. He wore a green ammunition holder over his shoulder, down to his waist. He wore a wristband on each of his powerful arms, and he carried two guns, the holsters at his hips. He wore a green and brown eye patch over his right eye, but his other brown eye was still able to survey them. His silver hair went down to his shoulders too.
"A Don Zaruug! I remember that Zenith used that!" Hope recalled.
"So you were the one who defeated Zenith? He was a pretty good player, but he often made foolish choices. Unlike me, of course; I make sure I get the job done the first time. My name is Asesino, and this is Don."
"So you were the one who set up that trap?" Rue inquired.
"Yes, it was I. I am a master at my job; nobody has escaped me yet."
"Escaped you? What?" Hope looked confused.
"I'm an assassin. It is a relatively easy job for me. You pick a target, and follow them, destroying their defenses ever so slowly, so they do not notice you. Eventually, all that is left is the target, without any kind of barrier between me and the kill."
"Another guy who likes killing? Don't any of the Generals think killing is just bad altogether?" Hope asked.
"We wouldn't be Generals of Hell if we did not kill," Asesino said calmly. "My next target has been picked. The girl will be the next to die by my hands."
"Hold on," Will interrupted. "I haven't dueled in a while. Duel me instead."
"All of you will be slain eventually anyway. As a last dying wish, I suppose I will oblige."
Will: 8000
Asesino: 8000
"I always make my move based on what my victim does."
"Alright then… I lay one monster in defense mode, and one card face down," Will stated.
"Already on the defensive, I see. Well, you won't last for long like that. Then again, if you went at me in an aggressive manner, you would be too enraged to defend your Life Points."
"Just make your move," Will said.
"Fine, I will. I summon Black Scorpion-Trap Remover Kurifu! (1200/1000)"
"A Black Scorpion?" Hope looked worried. "I've heard of those cards. They each have a special effect if they can inflict damage to the opponent's Life Point! I didn't know Don Zaruug was one though…"
"Don Zaruug is often considered the leader of the Black Scorpions. It looks like you will already be the witness of his Deck Master ability. I can pay 500 Life Points to lower one of my monster's attack down to 100. In return though, they have the power to attack directly! (100/1000) Their attack returns to normal at the end of my turn."
"That means that he will have no trouble getting off his Black Scorpion's effects!" Neo exclaimed.
"Exactly. Kurifu, slip around his defense and attack his Life Points!"
Will: 7900
Asesino: 7500
"Kurifu has the ability to destroy one Magic or Trap card that is on the field, so one of your defenses is already gone."
Will shook his head. "You got my Blessing Of God." Drat… this is going to be difficult.
"Then my attack is over for the time being."
Will took a quick glance at the card he drew. "I summon Turner Of The Dead: Kaiku! (1800/700) I attack your Kurifu! Then I lay one card face down."
Will: 7900
Asesino: 6900
"That's the problem with my Black Scorpions; in battle, they are often just weaklings. Not with this card though. First, I play Jar Of Greed. Then I summon Don Zaruug and equip him with Power Of Teamwork. But that's not the only defense I can take out. I also use The Black Scorpion Assemble!"
"What does that do?" Will asked.
"If I have a Don Zaruug on the field, I can special summon any number of cards from my hand that have 'Black Scorpion' in their name. So I call forth Black Scorpion-Spiteful Miine, (1000/1800) Black Scorpion-Running Chikku, (1000/1000) and Black Scorpion-Strong Googu! (1800/1500) Now just look at my Don Zaruug's attack! (4600/4700) Assassins can be strong without always hiding, as this shows you. Don Zaruug attacks Kaiku. Googu attacks your defense monster."
"That was my Black Forest Witch. (1100/1200)"
"Miine and Chikku attack your Life Points!"
Will: 3100
Asesino: 6900
"Due to the effects Don Zaruug, you are forced to discard one card from your hand. Miine lets me look through my deck to get one Black Scorpion. Chikku sends your face down card back to your hand," Asesino explained.
"I am forced to discard my Black Magician Of Chaos." Will ejected his trap card from his Duel Disk and added it to his hand.
"I lay one card down and end my turn."
"I play Thunderbolt! This Magic card destroys all of the monsters on your field!"
"A good assassin always has a back-up plan, in case one throw is misplaced. My Imperial Decree negates every Magic card you can play!"
"True… but it also negates yours! I summon Skilled Black Magician! Now, I lay two cards face down and attack your Don Zaruug!"
Will: 3100
Asesino: 6400
"How irritating. I will not pay for Imperial Decree. I will summon Black Scorpion-Trap Remover Kurifu. Now, I will play Emissary Of Harmony. You will not be able to attack with any monster that has 1500 or more attack. I will use Don's effect on Kurifu, and attack your Life Points! This will also destroy the Magic or Trap to my right."
"My Black Power Stone…"
Will: 3000
Asesino: 5900
"That will do for now."
Will looked at the next card he drew. Yes! This will be perfect later. I had better keep it in my hand though, or that Kurifu will get it… "I pass."
"I will pay for Emissary Of Peace. I lay one card face down, and I use Don's effect on Kurifu again!"
"This time you hit my Antagonizing Spell."
Will: 2900
Asesino: 5300
"My turn then. I set one monster in defense mode, and end my turn."
"Will…" Neo protested. "I know our Life Points are low, but we have to get rid of that Emissary Of Peace!"
Will showed Neo his hand. "There is no way I can."
"Having a problem getting through my defenses? While an assassin can be good at attacking, they are much better lying in defense, waiting for the right moment to end one's steady breathing forever!"
"Really?" Will asked. "I thought assassins hid in the shadows. But I can see you, and your monsters. You aren't invisible right now!"
"You will soon see me all too well, as I take out your Life Points! And I drew the perfect card to do it! Of course, I must first pay for my Emissary Of Peace. Next, I summon Don Zaruug! With all five of my Black Scorpions on the field, I am allowed to activate my Trap Card! Deadly! Black Scorpion Combination!"
"What does that do?" Will demanded.
"All of my Scorpion's must be out, but if I have them all, they are allowed to attack you directly! Googu can't attack because his attack is too high, but the others can!"
"No!" Neo protested. "That means Will loses!"
"I wish it did, but Battle Damage for each attack becomes 400. Now, Don Zaruug, Kurifu, Miine, and Chikku, attack him!"
Will tried to block the ferocious assault, but in the end was overcome and thrown into Neo.
Will: 1300
Asesino: 5200
"Would you mind getting off of me?" Neo complained.
"It's not like I chose to land on you," Will pointed out, but he got up anyway.
"You lose one card from your hand because of Don Zaruug. Since you have no trap cards, I will choose to have you discard the top two cards on your deck into your Cemetery. Chikku will return your face down monster to your hand. Miine will let me get one more card out of my deck. Next turn, you will lose!"
Will shuffled his hand around, and without looking, he randomly chose one of the cards. He looked at it, and sighed with relief. "You hit my Clarity Of Mind." He also removed the face down monster from the field and put it in his hand and discarded his next two cards. "I lose my Holy Elf and Cyclone."
"Hurry up and make your move. It will be over next turn anyway!" Asesino said arrogantly.
Will looked at the next card he had drawn, and nodded to himself. "Oh, it will be over alright… over for you! I play Raise Dead!"
"What good will that do you? Your strongest monster in the Cemetery is Kaiku!"
Will shook his head. "No it isn't. You should know that full-well… your Don Zaruug is the reason I can bring it back!"
Asesino watched the monster that came back with horror. "Black Magician Of Chaos?! What?!"
"Don't you remember? Your Don Zaruug made me discard it. And making me discard him was the worst mistake you have ever made. (2800/2600)"
"So what? You can't get past my Emissary Of Peace with him! Besides, my Chikku or Googu can just return him to your hand next turn!"
Will smirked. "I'm sorry, but they won't be around to do that! Not when I play Thunderbolt!"
"What? WHAT?! You can't! You can only have one Thunderbolt in your deck, and that one was negated by Imperial Decree!" Asesino yelled. Much to his horror though, a huge thunderbolt came down from the ceiling and electrocuted all of Asesino's monsters.
"My Black Magician Of Chaos' effect lets me get back one Magic card from my Cemetery!" Will explained. "Face it; you have lost!"
"I still have Emissary Of Peace up! You may have delayed me, but I can sink into the shadows, waiting for another opportune time to strike!" Asesino protested.
"Or can you? Not when I summon Saint Magician! (300/400)"
Asesino stared at the monster Will had summoned for a few seconds, and then burst out laughing. "AHAHAHAHAHAHA! Are you an idiot? That shrimp can't help you win!"
"Oh, she can. All I have to do is use Neo's effect! Saint Magician, attack his Emissary Of Harmony!"
"What?! Impossible!" But before Asesino's bewildered eyes, it was destroyed.
"I have the ability to pay 500 Life Points to destroy one Magic or Trap card by attacking it! So Saint Magician did the job nicely. Now, Black Magician Of Chaos and Skilled Black Magician attack you directly!"
Will: 800
Asesino: 500
Asesino gritted his teeth as he drew his card. If he drew a strong enough monster, he would win. He swore, but then shrugged. It would work.
"I summon Black Scorpion-Spiteful Miine! Attack Saint Magician!"
Will: 100
Asesino: 500
"It's too close…" Hope said nervously.
"I lay one card face down." Just try and attack me… my Holy Barrier-Mirror Force will be your doom!
Will's hand shook as he drew his card, and he sighed with relief as he saw what it was. "I summon Magic Warrior-Breaker! (1900/1000) I remove his Magic Counter to destroy your card! (1600/1000)"
"No! My last defense… my Mirror Force…"
"Black Magician Of Chaos, finish him off!"
Will: 100
Asesino: 0
Asesino shook his head. "For the first time, my victim has gotten away. No, he has become my murderer. The tables have turned on me… and now it is too late to reverse them."
Will gasped in shock as he saw the ground begin to fall away at Asesino's feet. Soon, a wide, gaping hole was formed. The echoes of the scream he and Don had let out were all that remained to tell them that they had ever been there.
To be continued…
