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*Chapter 40: Friend or Foe?*
Brandi ran her hand over the area that Max and Olympion had been, and found nothing. Only then did she kneel down and weep.
Hope was crying as well. "I can't take any more of this… three of the people I treasure most, gone… and other needless deaths…"
A crash echoed through the area. Rue had slammed his axe's blade into the "ground" of the area.
"I've had it! The next General I see can forget dueling! I'll kill him with my bare hands if necessary!" He hit the "ground" again with all his might. "I'll kill the next bastard that comes our way! He won't know what pain is until meeting me!"
"Oh Rue…" Claire breathed. She ran over to him, and grabbed his hand. "You mustn't think like that! You will only feel angry at yourself later! I agree that we must stop the Generals, but please, let's do it in a manner that is less-aggressive!"
"YOU THINK I CAN BE CALM NOW?!" He pulled his hand away fiercely. "Claire, you didn't know them like I did! I know they are your friends as well, but they helped me… made me stronger. I can't get over this!"
Ruecian punched Rue over the head, causing him to collapse.
"Thanks," Claire said, examining her brother. It was too close that time… Ruecian is the only thing that keeps it from breaking out completely.
Brandi walked over to them, still shedding tears. Neo still seemed to have a lost look in his eyes. Nobody could tell what he was thinking.
Gaston automatically took the position as leader. "We can't stay in this area any longer. Let's move on. Brandi, stay strong… we will need you in the near future. Ruecian, can you carry Rue, since you were the one who knocked him out? Thanks. I'll pick a random direction to go. If Rue wants to take a different path when he wakes up, he can choose one. It's unfortunate that Olympion is now gone… he was good at finding where the Generals were."
After some walking, Rue eventually began to come around. Ruecian let him down as he woke up.
"Ow… what the heck happened?"
"You were knocked out," Claire said simply. "Gaston doesn't know which way to go, so he's taking us in a random direction."
"Very reassuring…" Rue muttered as he stood. "No Generals yet?"
"None."
*****
The man looked at the orb yet again. "Only two more to go…" He then trailed off, and seemed to be listening. "A splendid idea, my Lord. Are you sure though?" Another pause. "Very well then, my Lord. I will prepare for the final part of the Ritual."
*****
Hope didn't even feel herself grow weary, although she knew they must have been walking for a long time. She wished that they hadn't lost that watch in the fall, but shrugged it off. The pain of Brandi knocking her out had not faded, yet the area they were in seemed to almost numb it. Or maybe it was just the sorrow she felt that made her ignore it? She lost track of her thoughts when Gaston suddenly halted.
"I think… someone's up ahead," he murmured.
Indeed, two figures were walking up to them. They were wearing black cloaks that completely concealed themselves.
"Let's have them come to us," Perseus decided.
As they came closer, Neo suddenly gasped.
"I… recognize… him…"
"What?" Rue turned to him. "You know one of those Generals?"
Neo nodded. "I don't know how… but I do know who the one… on the right is…"
The figures halted at a short distance. The one on the right chuckled softly.
"So, that's why it is so hard to maintain control… the soul is still somewhat alive." The voice coming from the figure was a cold, emotionless hiss. "I see…"
"That voice…" Hope frowned. "It sounds… almost familiar, no matter how wicked it is…"
Rue grabbed his battle axe. "I don't care if it's the president! That General is going to get his head hacked off if he comes one step closer!"
"Are you sure you want to do that?" the one on the left said. His voice was slightly different, but barely.
"Why wouldn't I?!"
"Come now… you wouldn't want to destroy your old friends, would you?"
Claire glared at them. "What are you talking about?"
"…Very well…" The two figures threw off their cloaks.
It took all of Hope's willpower to not faint in shock.
The one on the left was Max, and the one on the right was Will. Yet something was wrong… both of them were cloaked with a black aura. The aura couldn't be called evil… it was so much worse than that. Satan himself could have generated that aura. On their foreheads was a red pentagram that reminded Hope horribly of blood. Their eyes were a solid red, except for the pupils, which were even blacker than usual, and had a reptilian appearance.
"…!" Hope couldn't say anything.
"It… it can't be…" Claire said softly.
"…No…" Brandi whispered. "This can't be real… it can't!"
"There is no way!" Rue gasped.
The silence was broken when a sound of steel being drawn echoed through the area. Neo had unsheathed his sword.
"You can't fool me! Will died! He died! You may be controlling his dead body, but I won't fall for it!"
Will smirked. "I expect no less… still… you cannot deny the pain that this will bring, to your body and soul." He drew something out of his pocket.
A card.
In one swift movement, Will tore it in half.
Neo's eyes clouded with pain as he fell. He said one last thing. Just one.
"Forgive me."
Then his body vanished.
"Neo!" Mana cried.
"You… HOW COULD YOU?!" Hope shouted.
"Neo is right…" Brandi said. "You aren't my brother! Who are you?!"
Their eyes had been unfocused until this point. Now however, their eyes quickly locked onto Brandi and Claire. They glittered with a hunter's intense stare.
"I am the ruler of death…" Max held out his hand. "You are of no use here."
"Nor are you," Will stated to Claire.
"Sorrow clouds your hearts, and I only need two more to be formed completely. Now die," they said in unison.
Fire sprang up from the ground. Rue and Hope immediately shielded their eyes from the intense glow. The roar of the fire drowned out any sounds, but Hope could have sworn that she heard the screams of the victims. When they brought their hands away from their faces, Claire, Perseus, Brandi, and Mana were gone.
"No!" Hope cried. "Not them too!"
Rue turned back to the duo in front of him.
"…I… will…. kill… you…" He stepped forward, his eyes becoming red. "BASTARD! DO YOU HEAR ME?! I'LL KILL YOU!"
"I could destroy you just as easily as I did them," Max stated.
"But I need two more souls to become truly alive. And to get them, I must win them fairly," Will continued.
"Therefore, a duel must be done," Max explained.
"And when I win, the end will begin," Will finished.
"We will be the winners!" Hope declared. "We have too much to lose for it to be otherwise!"
"After all that you have done, I will never let you live!" Rue shouted.
"Then the duel is accepted," Max replied. "Very well. This will be a two on two duel."
"Both players must be defeated to win," Will stated. "When one of you fall, you will die, and the soul will go to the ritual."
"If one of my players is defeated, then I will lose control over their body, and not be able to regain it."
"We will have separate fields. We all start with 8000 Life Points. Each player has five monster zones, and five slots for magic and trap cards. We will also have one slot each for field magic, but like usual, only one can occupy the field."
"Wide area effects, such as Thunderbolt, will work on only one person. You must choose which one you plan to use it on. Black Hole would destroy all monsters on all of the fields though," Max reminded them.
"All players must each get a turn before anyone may attack. We will alternate turns in this order: the axe carrier, this boy, the girl, and the other one under my control. Those are all of the rules… oh, one other thing," Will remembered.
Max and Will held out their hands. Suddenly, chains whipped out from the ground, tightening on the Soul Monsters.
"I have no access to Deck Masters, so it is only fair that you cannot use yours either," they said.
"Gaston! Are you alright?" Hope asked.
"No problem here…" Gaston assured. "I can't move at all though… I'm sorry, but you're on your own for this one."
"It doesn't matter…" Rue growled. "We'll kill this guy... easily!"
Hope: 8000
Rue: 8000
Max: 8000
Will: 8000
"So I start? Very well," Rue said. "I summon Skilled Black Magician! Then I lay two cards down, and end my turn."
Will smirked. "A very good hand… I lay one monster in defense mode, and a card face down."
Hope looked at her draw. "Looks good to me… I summon Dark Hero: Zombire! (2100/500) Then I lay a card."
"I lay one card in defense mode as well, and end my turn."
"It looks like I get the first attack," Rue announced. "Skilled Black Magician, attack Max's monster!"
Max flipped it over. "You attacked my Soul-Hunting Spirit. (300/200) This monster cannot be destroyed in battle."
"What the… but Max only uses Demons!" Rue protested.
"Those decks were not to my liking. I constructed ones that suit me better."
"What are they running then?" Hope wondered.
"You won't be able to tell until another few turns," Gaston pointed out. "Until then, you'll have to wing it." He looked at his wrist wryly. "I think my blood circulation is shot."
Just hang in there," Rue said. "I've made my move, now you make yours!"
"Gladly." Will looked at his next card. "Hm… I will flip summon my Newt. When this card is summoned in that manner, he gains 500 more attack and defense points. (2400/900) I also summon Giant Orc. (2200/0) Giant Orc attacks Zombire, and Newt attacks the Magician!"
Hope: 7900
Rue: 7500
Max: 8000
Will: 8000
Hope looked at her next card, and grinned. "I summon Getsufuuma! (1700/1200) Now he attacks Soul-Hunting Spirit!"
"You are wasting your time!" Max sneered. "Did you already forget that he cannot be destroyed by simple attacks?"
"Well, you must not have known what Getsufuuma's ability does! When he is in battle with a Demon or Undead Sub-Type, they are automatically destroyed!"
"What? Damn it…"
"And that's not all! I also equip him with Lightning Blade! (2400/1200) Not even your Newt can destroy him now!"
"Hm… a wall eh?" Max pondered. "Oh well; it makes no difference. I will play Call of the Corpses! This permanent magic lets me special summon one Undead from my hand when I have no monsters on the field. So now I can summon this monster without sacrificing. Behold, the Vampire Lord! (2000/1500) I will also summon Spirit Draining Bone Tower! (400/1500) Then I end."
"Hm… that's odd," Rue commented. "Why not attack me directly? Too afraid?"
"I have my reasons…" Max said.
"Whatever. I summon Gemini Elf! (1900/900) Attack the Bone Tower!"
"I hate to disappoint you, but as long as I have another Undead on the field, Bone Tower cannot be attacked."
"Dang it… in that case, I attack Giant Orc! Then I'm done."
"That Getsufuuma is getting to be annoying…" Will smirked at his draw. "So I think I'll just take it. I play Enemy Controller. By sacrificing my Newt, I can take control of one of your monsters. So now your Getsufuuma is mine! Now attack the girl directly!"
"My name is Hope! And I activate Metal Armor! Your attacking monster is destroyed!"
"What a pity… I lay one monster down."
Hope looked at her next card. "I summon Initiate Troops! (1000/1000) I will then use their effect! By sacrificing them, I can kill another monster! And I choose Vampire Lord! Then I lay two cards down."
"Foolish girl…" As Max drew, his Vampire Lord materialized on the field again.
"That's impossible!" Hope protested.
"Vampire Lord will always be reborn on my standby phase whenever it is destroyed by a magic, trap, or monster effect. Also, Vampire's resurrection triggered my Bone Tower's ability. Every time I special summon an Undead Sub-Type, one of you is forced to discard two cards from the top of your deck. I choose the girl in this case."
"You got my Blindly Loyal Goblin and Black Hole…"
"Now I summon another Bone Tower! (400/1500) After that, I lay one card down. I will switch my first Bone Tower to defense mode. Then I attack the girl directly with Vampire Lord."
"Not a smart idea," Rue interrupted. "I activate my Torture Wheel! Your Vampire Lord is caught!"
"Then go ahead."
"Thanks Rue!" Hope called.
"No problem. Now I draw, and you lose 500 Life Points to my Torture Wheel."
Hope: 7900
Rue: 7500
Max: 7500
Will: 8000
"Now, I have an idea… I lay one monster in defense mode, and then play Book of the Sun! This immediately switches my Tenacious Old Magician to attack mode! (450/600) His effect lets me destroy one monster on the field, so I destroy your Vampire Lord! Then I lay one card down, and end my turn."
"Idiot! Do you wish to die?" Max inquired.
"It's called strategy," Rue retorted.
"A strategy to die? I can understand then," Will snickered. "I will lay one more card down, and end."
"My turn now… I lay one monster in defense mode, and end."
"I draw, and my Vampire Lord is reborn."
"In response to that, I activate Bottomless Pit Trap!" Rue declared. "Your monster is removed from the game!"
"So that's why you were so confident… however, my Bone Tower's abilities are still activated. The girl will now lose four cards from the top of her deck."
"I lose my Dark Knight Gaia of the Gale, Rocket Warrior, Falcon Knight, and Change of Heart."
"Now I summon Vampire Lady. (1550/1550) She will attack the axe-wielder's Tenacious Old Magician. "
Hope: 7900
Rue: 6400
Max: 7500
Will: 8000
"When my Vampire Lady does damage to your Life Points, I call a type of card. You will be forced to remove one of those cards from your deck. So I call magic."
Rue looked through his deck quickly. "I'll ditch my other Book of the Sun."
"I switch my other Bone Tower to defense mode. Then I end."
"I will play Angel's Gift, discarding Black Magic Curtain and Black Magician. Then I play Raise Dead on Black Magician! (2500/2100) Attack Will's monster!"
"You have destroyed my Gil Gars. (1800/1200) May I take my turn?"
"Go ahead."
"Thank you for killing my monster. Now I can remove Newt, Giant Orc, and Gil Gars to special summon Dark Necrophia! (2200/2800) She will attack the girl's defense monster."
"I activate Curse of Darkness! Your monster is halted, and she also loses 700 attack points! (1500/2800)"
"Hey, join the club!" Gaston shouted cheerfully to the Necrophia, who was struggling to get out of the chains.
"Damn you… I'm done…" Will muttered.
"So you run a Demon deck? Then this monster should work very well! I sacrifice my face down Retrained Elven Swordsman (1400/1200) to summon Warrior of the Sun! (2100/1400) Now Warrior of the Sun attacks your Necrophia! His attack also increases by 500 when in battle with a Dark Main-Type, so you're in for a lot of pain! (2600/1400)"
Hope: 7900
Rue: 6400
Max: 7500
Will: 6900
"You did exactly what I wanted you to do! I activate my instant magic card, Bargain with a Demon! I can only activate this card when a monster with eight levels or more goes to the Cemetery from my field. When one does, I get to search my deck and special summon a Berserk Dead Dragon! (3500/0)"
"Hope, I hate to say this. But we're screwed," Rue pointed out.
"Not yet, we aren't!" Hope disagreed. "Anyway, I end my turn."
"My Necrophia's ability activates! Your monster, Warrior of the Sun, comes under my control!"
"Rats. Maybe you have a point Rue."
"Now it is my turn," Max hissed. "I lay one monster in defense mode. I also switch my Vampire Lady to defense mode, and end my turn."
"My turn… I summon Magician's Valkyria! (1600/1800) Now my Valkyria will attack your Vampire Lady! Then Black Magician will attack your defense monster!"
"You destroyed Pyramid Turtle. (1200/1400) This monster allows me to special summon an Undead from my deck with a defense of 2000 or less, so I will get my Royal Bodyguards! (1600/1700) This also triggers my Bone Towers, so the girl is forced to discard four more cards."
"I'm getting sick of this…" Hope muttered. "I lose my Goblin Strike Team, Calling Reinforcements, Executioner Makyura, and The Fused Weapon, Murasame Blade."
"I'll finish my turn at that," Rue declared.
"Very well… I will now summon Demon Soldier. (1900/1500) All of my monsters will attack the girl!"
Hope looked at her face down card, and groaned. "No… this won't help me now! And this attack will all but wipe me out!"
No… I can't let her die too! Rue suddenly had an idea. Wait… why didn't they attack me when I was open? Could it be that they were afraid of Getsufuuma…? This is a risk, but it just might work! "Magician's Valkyria! Black Magician! Guard her!"
The monsters immediately leapt onto Hope's field, just in time to save her from suffering the Berserk Dead Dragon and Warrior of the Sun's attacks.
"An interference?!" Will snarled. "Demon Soldier! Forget the girl and attack the axe-wielder!"
Hope: 7900
Rue: 3000
Max: 7500
Will: 6900
"Rue! Why?"
He smiled. "I can't let anyone else die…"
"My Berserk Dead Dragon loses 500 attack points every time I reach my end phase. (3000/0) Now take your turn."
Hope looked at her next card. "…I lay a monster… and end."
"Now it is my turn." His red eyes glared at Rue, chilling his heart. "You have interfered, and for that you will die. I call forth Goblin Zombie. (1100/1050) Then I play Book of Life-Forbidden Magic. This card allows me to special summon one Undead from my Cemetery, so I revive Vampire Lady! (1550/1550) This also allows me to remove one monster from your Cemetery, so remove Dark Knight Gaia of the Gale. Now, all of my monsters will attack the axe-wielder directly!"
Rue flipped over his face down card. "I activate Ceasefire Treaty! This flips over all monsters on the field. Then, for every effect monster, you will lose 500 Life Points! I'm going to have Max suffer from this!"
"You flipped my Twilight Zone Warrior Lady," Hope said.
"So there are seven effect monsters… that does 3500 damage!"
"Stupid boy… you cannot stop my attack!"
Hope: 7900
Rue: 0
Max: 4000
Will: 6900
"What?! Rue! You're… out of Life Points? That can't be true!"
Rue smiled sadly. "It's true. I'm done. Hope, you've gotta win for me… please, beat them…"
"No… not you too!" Hope cried.
Rue turned to Ruecian weakly. "Sorry pal… it looks like we're outta here. I hope you don't mind?"
Then, for the first time, Ruecian spoke. "Death only comes when it is the right time. I will always be by your side, even in the realms of the dead."
"Thanks… that means a lot to me…" then Rue collapsed. Ruecian's limp body was released from the chains that had held him.
"…" Gaston tried to prevent tears. "I guess he wasn't such a mute… after all…"
Hope collapsed on her knees, weeping openly. "Now they're all gone… it can't be…!" She looked at Rue's body again.
And was astonished when his hand moved.
Rue slowly rose, to everyone's shock.
"Rue…!" Hope gasped. "How… is it possible?"
Rue opened his eyes, and Hope was horrified to see them blood red.
"Rue? That fool is gone…" he smirked. "The only thing that was holding me back was that friend of his… the magician. He is of no more though, so now I have emerged…"
He turned to Max and Will, and laughed. "I see… attempting to have Satan be reborn? How amusing! Even the Dark Lord has attempted to help…"
"What?" Hope asked.
"You can't tell? Idiot! Satan himself is controlling these bodies!"
"WHAT?!"
"Is it that hard to believe?" Rue sneered. "He is the one who wants this to succeed the most… why wouldn't he assist himself?"
"I see…" Max muttered. "So you are living in the axe-wielder's body. Very clever, Demon. You are still bound to the rules of this game though."
"True… I am a Demon." Rue slid the cards from his Duel Disk, and inserted a different deck. "And I do know the penalties of backing down. I am not doing this to help you girl, but I will duel for my own life."
Hope nodded, and stood up. "One thing… you aren't Rue… so who are you?"
"My name is long forgotten…" he stated. "So I will borrow my host's. Call me Demon Rue."
Hope: 7900
Demon Rue: 8000
Max: 4000
Will: 6900
"I end my turn, so take yours, Demon."
"Very well…" Demon Rue smirked. "Ah, now these are the kinds of hands that I like. I lay two cards face down, and summon Kuribo in attack. (300/200) It is your turn."
Will snickered. "Kuribo? That doesn't seem your style."
Demon Rue glared at the cute and innocent fluff ball. "It isn't what I prefer, but it gets the job done."
"So you say… Berserk Dead Dragon! Attack and annihilate that fur ball!"
As the Dragon rushed at the defenseless Kuribo, it suddenly exploded, sending purple spores everywhere.
"I activate my trap, the Deck Destruction Virus of Death! By sacrificing my Kuribo, all of your monsters with 1500 or more that are on the field and in your hand are destroyed! Not only that, but for the next three turns, any monster that you get with that attack will also be discarded."
"Now all that I have left is a Goblin Zombie and two Bone Towers… and I must discard Giant Orc and Royal Bodyguards… damn you! I end my turn…"
Hope drew cautiously. "I switch my Twilight Zone Warrior Lady to attack mode. I also summon Troop Commander! (1200/400) Using his ability, I call forth Goblin Strike Team! (2300/0) Now I will have my Troop Commander destroy Goblin Zombie, and my other monsters attack Will directly!"
"When you do so, I activate Cyclone, destroying the Demon's face down card!"
"I will chain it. It is my Seal of Time! Now the one with the Undead will be forced to skip his draw phase."
"As well as that might be for you, you activated my Goblin Zombie's ability. I search my deck for a monster with a defense of 1200 or less and special summon it. So I get Gelnia! (1100/1200) And the girl is forced to discard four cards."
"I lose Buster Blader, Cyclone, Holy Barrier-Mirror Force, and Command Knight. Go ahead."
Hope: 7900
Demon Rue: 8000
Max: 3900
Will: 3100
"Very well. I cannot draw, but I can play Raise Dead. I will revive your Buster Blader."
"I activate Imperial Decree! Now all magic cards are negated!"
"…I switch my Gelnia to defense mode… and end…"
"Then it is my turn. I summon Executioner Makyura. (1600/1200) I lay one card down, and attack the boy that uses the Berserk Dead Dragons."
Hope: 7900
Demon Rue: 8000
Max: 3900
Will: 1500
"Fine then… I draw…"
"I activate Lost Property. Now you must discard the card you just drew."
"My Cry of the Living Dead… I pass…"
"I will not pay for Imperial Decree. Twilight Zone Warrior Lady, attack Will!"
Hope: 7900
Demon Rue: 8000
Max: 3900
Will: 0
Will's body collapsed to the floor. Darkness spread over his body, pulling it away.
"…I also switch Troop Commander to defense mode…"
Max snarled. "You may have taken one of my slaves, but I am not done yet! I draw… it's Vampire Lady. I'm forced to discard it… I end."
Demon Rue frowned at what he drew. "Useless! Those Bone Towers are infuriating! I will attack Gelnia, and lay a card down."
Hope smiled at her draw. "I play Warrior's Return! Using it, I add Initiate Troops to my hand! Now I summon and sacrifice them, killing your Bone Tower! Then I switch all of my monsters to attack mode. Goblin Strike Team, kill the Bone Tower! Now my Twilight Zone Warrior Lady will attack!"
"I play Cry of the Living Dead, calling forth my Vampire Lady. (1550/1550)"
"Drat… I end…"
Hope: 7900
Demon Rue: 8000
Max: 2000
Will: 0
"When you draw, I activate another Lost Property."
"No… my Thunderbolt…!"
"Are you finished? I assume you are, because now there is nothing you can do to halt me. I summon Mad Dog of Darkness. (1900/1400) Executioner Makyura attacks Vampire Lady, and my Mad Dog of Darkness attacks you."
Hope: 7900
Demon Rue: 8000
Max: 50
Will: 0
"Now it is my turn… I will attack directly with Troop Commander!"
Hope: 7900
Demon Rue: 8000
Max: 0
Will: 0
Max fell forward. "So you win… but only for now. Know this! When I am in my true form, you will not stand a chance!"
Then Max's body was dragged away by the darkness as well.
To be continued…
