Chapter Nineteen: Flames of Judgment
"What?!" Blackheart exclaimed. "You sent Dianah to the Catacombs for her soul to be harvested!? I never made such an order!"
"I'm sorry sir, but you told me to do so not more than half an hour ago." Zander said with a hint of scorn in his voice.
Blackheart looked down at his hands. "What have I done..." he whispered. "She has been a loyal employee to me for so many years... Why would I do such a thing?!"
"I don't know sir, but it's too late now..."
"Let me be alone for awhile. I need to recollect my thoughts."
"Yes sir." Zander stepped out of his office and closed the door behind him.
Jeff took a seat in his chair. "This is not what we agreed to my lord..." He said to himself. "But as we drill deeper and deeper into the ground, and reach ever so closer to the Gate to the Underworld... The more control I lose over my own will."
[YOU NEVER HAD A WILL OF YOUR OWN.]
The voice of Mephisto echoed inside his mind.
"Mephisto, master, although you bestow your gifts of Chaos upon me, we have an agreement. I set you free and provide an offering of souls for you to feast on, and you give me what I want. You give me the world."
[SACRIFICES MUST BE MADE.]
"But why...Why must you take the only people I can trust? They are loyal to me...But now, I seemingly wake up not knowing where I've been, and the souls of my Eliminators have been harvested! I suggest you do not take over my mind again, for you are aware of how powerful I am! And at a single command, I can stop the drilling and leave you trapped forever."
[YOU MAY BE POWERFUL, CHOSEN ONE OF CHAOS, BUT YOU ARE IN NO POSITION TO THREATEN ME. IF I SEVER OUR CONNECTION, YOU LIFE ENDS. REMEMBER THAT YOUR HUMANITY HAS BEEN REPLACED BY THE BLOOD OF DEMONS. YOUR LIFEBLOOD HAS ALREADY BEEN DRAINED AWAY.]
"All that I request is that you allow me to make my own actions. You need not control my mind, I am perfectly capable of completing my end of the deal."
[AS YOU DESIRE. I WILL NOT INTERVENE WITH YOUR HUMAN INTERACTIONS.]
"I'm not human anymore... I've taken the lives of the few people I once loved..." Jeff stood up from his chair. His wings exploded from his back, and his eyes began to glow blood red. "I've become a monster..."
---
Ace casually re-entered the room through the huge iron door, twin swords still in hand. Attention was quickly drawn to him and his impressive performance.
"That was great! You'll definitely be getting into the next stage of the finals!" Laurna said ecstatically.
"I know... I sure am awesome, aren't I?" Ace let out a short laugh.
"That can be argued..." said Nick.
"Hmph," Ace turned to Nick. "Whatever." Ace took a seat next to Laurna and put his arm around her, then shot a smug look towards Nick.
"Hey man, let's try and get along here... We're not in any direct competition with each other... just yet." Tony said as he lounged comfortably in his chair.
"Yeah guys, no need to spite each other, remember why we're here." Laurna said as she tried to play peacekeeper.
Manny was still sleeping in his chair, he was incredibly exhausted... He hadn't been up for awhile. Jason kept brooding over what had happened, sitting in the corner with his head in his hands. As things had finally settled down, Blackheart reappeared.
"You did well Ace. Frankly, I'm quite amazed myself at how well you handled your trial. It's possible that you've secured your place in the next round. But for now, we must continue the trials... Here are the three remaining cards..." Blackheart held them out and shuffled them blindly. Blackheart looked around the room as he selected one of the cards. He turned it to his face and smiled.
"The card I've selected is... Mystical Elf. Laurna, my dear, I believe this is yours."
"Yes, that's correct..." She stepped forward, broomstick in hand, and reinserted the card into her deck.
"Now to choose your trial..." Jeff placed the three cards on the table. "You should wish that lady luck is by your side and you receive a trial that is not too much of a challenge... The last of the trials are crucial; your fate is decided here."
Laurna chose a card and peeked at it... Chill instantly flew down her spine. "I chose the Active Volcano Area... I think I know who created this one..."
"I assume you do... And it must bring back some fond memories..." Jeff let out a sinister laugh. "I'm sure Ryosuke will be happy to see you again... Hahaha..."
"I'll make him pay for what he did..." Laurna said sternly.
"I'm sure you will." Jeff smirked arrogantly and vanished into mist.
Ace got up from his seat and embraced Laurna in his arms.
"Don't worry, they won't bother you. I already told them everything." Laurna whispered.
"Okay. Good luck, though you won't need it." He whispered back and smiled.
"Well, I have to be going now, so see you all when I get back." Laurna turned around and stepped through the big metal door.
"Ryosuke, I'm coming to get you!" Laurna said to herself as the Loading Area went black.
[Entering new area.]
[Reinitializing program data.]
[Loading 27% complete.]
[Opening file "ACVOLC.dat."]
[Preparing trial conditions.]
[Loading 100% complete.]
[Please enter.]
As Laurna stepped through the door, she could immediately feel the heat. She was nearly blinded at the sight of the molten lava flowing throughout this area. She saw a huge volcano in the distance. Magma flowed freely from the heart of it. The whole area was seemingly a huge blaze. The ground was composed of hardened magma, which looked extremely unstable. Lava flowed around the rocky paths, threatening all that passed. Laurna was unsure of how she could navigate the area. She decided to fly around on her broomstick, since the rocky paths were way too heated for her to be able to walk upon.
[Welcome to the Active Volcano Area. You have 60 minutes to complete your task. You much find the one trying to force the eruption of the volcano and return it to a dormant state. If the volcano erupts and the whole area is destroyed as a result, the trial will end, and you fail.]
"Sounds like fun... No doubt that person is Ryosuke as his Deck Commander..." she said to herself. "Well, no time like the present...better get started."
Laurna floated down the rocky paths on her broomstick, being careful not to get burned by the boiling magma surround the path.
"Damn it's hot..." Laurna pulled at her robe loosely, trying to air it out a bit. She wiped the sweat from her brow and continued on.
"Getting too hot for you Laurna...?" A familiar voice came from behind her.
Laurna turned around as quickly as she could. "Ryosuke!"
"It's a pleasure to see you again Laurna... Too bad I'll be the one taking you out of the finals... I was really looking forward to seeing you duel against one of your friends... As you can see, I've chosen Charubin the Fire Knight as my Deck Commander."
Laurna looked at the armor he wore as it reflected the red glow of the molten lava. "I'm not impressed. And why show yourself so soon? Want to end this quickly so you can get back to your master's feet so you can beg him to scratch you behind the ears?"
"I don't remember you being this smug when I had you tied to a wooden cross, ready to be burned... However, no, I do not wish to end this quickly. I really value the time we get to spend together, Laurna. I'll just leave you with a little present before I go and make the volcano erupt. Summon Flaming Tree Man 18 and Prominence Dragon!"
-1675
Ryosuke: 6325
"My ability powers up all my Fire monsters by 500 points... and in this area, they already receive a boost of 500 points! Any monster I summon will automatically gain a power bonus of 1000! However, there is one downside... You gain 200 lifepoints each time I summon a monster... BUT there's one thing... I use the trap card, Bad Reaction to Simochi! It reverses any lifegain to damage."
-400
Laurna: 7600
Laurna began hacking and coughing violently, as if she had just breathed in some lethal substance.
"I'll be seeing you Laurna." Ryosuke's voice was slightly muffled as he spoke through his helmet. He placed his mace over his shoulder and ran off, leaving Laurna to deal with his monsters. The burning wooden golem started towards Laurna as the Prominence Dragon stood in the magma from the neck down.
"They each have a boost of 1000 points... Making the Tree Man 2850, and the Prominence Dragon 2500... I power up my earth monsters by 300 and female monsters by 500... "
Just then, it struck Laurna. "Hey, I power up myself! I'll just attack them!"
She raised her arm to the sky and a stone spear formed. She hurled it toward the Flaming Tree Man and the Prominence Dragon, piercing through both and destroying them.
"Ha! Take that!"
-2675
Laurna: 4925
The violent coughing afflicted Laurna again,as she began having trouble breathing.
"No... Bad Reaction to Simochi affects the lifegain I receive from destroying monsters here..." Laurna drew two cards from her deck. "Ugh, these won't help me get rid of this problem I have..."
Ryosuke stood on top of a hill, watching Laurna from afar.
-450
Ryosuke: 5875
"Ha, she's finally realized the trouble she's in.... Without the ability to recover her own lifepoints, she'll succumb to the fires of my existence...the rest of the monsters in this area will leave her right where I want her..."
Ryosuke laughed as he continued towards the volcano.
"Damn, I don't know what to do...If I destroy any monsters around here, I'll take damage instead of gaining lifepoints equal to half their attack power... Unless I can get rid of the effects of his trap card..." Laurna talked to herself as she tried to figure a way out of the predicament. "This must've been Ryosuke's strategy all along..."
---
Zander was sitting alone in his office, checking over the status of the drilling. He was put in charge of maintenance of mechanical equipment, since he knew the most about it. His mind drifted away from his work, and he folded his arms on his desk and lay his head down on them. Zander fell asleep as his computer screen gave off a dull glow.
Suddenly, images flooded Zander's mind...
Images of a great evil emerging from the depths... Images of friends being separated...torn from each other... Images of a dreadful future... The city falling to ruins... Everything that could possibly go wrong... apparently will. Strange symbols... Symbols lining a circular seal... People trapped... Jeff Blackheart standing at this seal... waiting... Waiting for something. Ace...Laurna... Laurna... in silver armor? Ace...and Vance... standing... fighting together. A house. Zander's house... People living there... Zander no longer living alone... What did it mean?
Suddenly an ominous voice entered his mind.
"Zander! My soul is to be offered to the Dark Lord of Chaos and Destruction... I shared this vision with you to show you a small glimpse of the future... This is the last time I can communicate to you... My soul grows weary... My body is still there... But it is not me. Blackheart is using me as a pawn... Please Zander, don't let him control you anymore!"
Zander sat up quickly. "Sera..." He put his head back down on the desk and started sobbing.
"Is there something wrong, Zander?" Jeff Blackheart was standing at the half-open door.
"Nothing... Just remembering my parents..."
"Don't say that your parents memory is nothing. I was with you and helped you cope with losing them. I know how hard you took it. It was indeed a horrific time..." Jeff put his hand on Zander's shoulder. "It makes me wonder what my life would have been like if I had known my parents. However, here I am, devoid of almost all emotion whatsoever. I envy you Zander... You have people to miss when they're gone. All I know is anger, hate, prejudice, and pain."
"Boss," Hunter appeared at the door. "we've reached the point below Mephisto City, and we can now access the Mephistophelean Ruins."
"Ah, finally. We'll send out a scout and as soon as we've mapped the immediate area, we'll begin exploring."
"Okay boss, I'll send out the scout right away."
---
Back at the volcano...
"The volcano will erupt soon... and my servant will emerge from it's depths and make Laurna feel the heat... The heat that comes from my hatred...The hatred I possess for Laurna and all her damned 'friends.' They must suffer... My pain...will soon be hers."
Ryosuke stood at the edge of the volcano, mace hanging over his shoulder, as he watched the bubbling lava within the volcano's heart.
Laurna was searching for Ryosuke. Knowing the situation she was in, she had to find him and finish the trial as soon as possible. She floated down the winding rocky paths, but encountered no monsters. She was very uneasy, since she felt that she could be ambushed at any moment.
"It's too quiet..." Laurna said to herself. She looked around, seeing nothing but the volcano off in the distance, and more rocky paths. "Maybe Ryosuke has a confrontation in mind as well..."
"Laurna... For once. I'd say you're right." Ryosuke's voice sounded like he was close, but Laurna couldn't spot him. "Maybe this will help you out."
An flaming arrow struck the ground in front of Laurna.
"Hmph. Whoever shot that must have really terrible marksmanship... Even I could do better."
Another flaming arrow struck the ground ahead of the first one.
"Follow them. Unless you want them to hit you." She still couldn't tell where Ryosuke's voice was coming from. "With thirty minutes left, I suggest you do. They will lead you to the volcano. If you want to go on by yourself, I'm sure you'll get lost among these confusing paths..."
Laurna decided to do as she was told. She followed the path marked by the arrows closely, being careful not to get ahead of the steady firing of the arrows. Finally, she reached the foot of the volcano. She could see the archer clearly, Guardian Ceal. The reptilian creature stood on a higher point of the volcano, and used its bow to create the path. As it caught Laurna's glance, the creature slid down the side of the volcano.
"You said you could do better." Guardian Ceal had a very raspy voice. "Show me." It held out its bow to her.
"I don't have time for this!" She got off her broomstick used drove it into the side of Guardian Ceal's face, breaking the stick in two, and destroying the giant lizard.
-1350
Laurna: 3575
"Ugh... Not again... It feels like my chest is being crushed..." She breathed problematically.
She began to navigate the volcano carefully as she tried to reach its peak. Laurna was sweating heavily, as she had never felt a heat like this before. She had already shed her witch hat, and torn the sleeves off her robe.
-200
Ryosuke: 5675
"Ah Laurna... I see you giving your greatest efforts just to see me... And how beautiful you look in the red glow of the magma..." Ryosuke was watching Laurna climb up the side of the volcano, and trying to look down her robe as well. "Bah, it's no use... I can't see crap through this visor." He raised the visor on his helmet and rubbed his eyes from squinting.
"Go! Harpie Lady SB! Attack him directly!"
-2300
Ryosuke: 3375
"Ack... You got up here much faster than I thought. And I see you've decided to finish me off when you had the chance... Cunning little bird, now aren't we? I'm sure Ace has a lot of fun with you... But forget him... You can ignite my fires anytime you'd like..." Ryosuke held out a card. "Now you do realize, if I summoned a monster... It could potentially spell the end for you... But.. I'll give you the chance... Give me all you've got! Right here, RIGHT NOW!"
"Don't test me! I'll do it!" She picked out a card. "I activate Elegant Egotist! I summon another Harpie Lady SB!"
A second Harpie Lady appeared next to her first one and spread her wings, showing her prowess.
"Hah..." Ryosuke laughed.
"What's so funny? About to lose?"
"No. You've done exactly as I wanted you to."
"What?!"
"LAVA GOLEM, ARISE!" Ryosuke called out to the center of the volcano.
Laurna gasped. "No...!"
Instantly, a huge behemoth burst from within the volcano, carrying a huge cage. Laurna watched as her Harpie Ladies were incinerated, and was paralyzed by fear as the monster scooped her up in its iron cage.
"AHHHHHH!!!!" Laurna screamed out in pain.
-1000
Laurna: 1675
"Now Laurna... I think it's time we had a little talk..."
"Let me out!!" Laurna screamed as she tried to escape, but the bars wouldn't give.
"Are you trying to threaten me? I can command Lava Golem to burn you at any moment... Either listen to me, or lose."
"Fine.... What do you want?"
"Tell me Laurna... Why do you fight Blackheart?"
"Why? Why should I tell you?!"
"Lava Golem... remind her why."
-1000
Laurna: 0675
This time, Laurna tried to hold in her screaming... But could not.
"UUAHHHHHHH!!!!! Fine..." Laurna gasped for breath. "I'll talk."
"I'm listening. Lava Golem, put the cage down."
Lava Golem stood within the volcano, and placed the cage in front of Ryosuke.
"I fight..." She stopped for a moment. "We fight... To do what's right."
"Explain to me... What is wrong, and what is right?"
"What is this? Some kind of test? A trap?"
"Answer the question!"
"Fine. Let me rephrase then... We fight for what we believe is right! Blackheart has hurt so many people already... We want to reduce that number to zero!"
"But you know that will never happen... He's too powerful for you."
"Blackheart is only one man, and he's caused pain to thousands. At least we're doing something."
"No, you aren't. You're fools. ALL OF YOU! You have no idea behind the true purpose of this tournament... No idea at all... A gullible bunch of fools! HAHA!!!"
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"Forget what I said... Back to my questions... Are you loyal to your friends...?"
"Of course I am. Otherwise I wouldn't be here..." Laurna was getting irritated.
"I wish I could say that too... But I have no friends. I'm the youngest Eliminator here... And I'm not allowed a normal life. Hell, Zane is two years older than me, and he's practically Blackheart's servant! While I, one who gave his life to him... He punishes me for ONE mistake! But I'm still loyal... But Blackheart is far from a friend, but he's the closest I have to one."
"What are you trying to say...?"
"Your friends will punish you one day. They'll punish you for a mistake you will make! And it'll come from the person you least expect it from!"
"You're crazy! My friends would never do that to me!"
"Only time will tell, will it not?"
"I've had enough of this talk, Ryosuke! Maybe you've forgotten this, but Lava Golem is also under my control! Attack Ryosuke with Golem Volcano attack!"
"Impatient little wench... I wasn't done... But now you've lost! I'll use Magic Cylinder!"
"Not quite! Activate trap card, HELLISH TRAP DOOR GUN!!!!"
"...crap..." Ryosuke said under his breath.
Lava Golem's flaming breath flowed into Ryosuke's Magic Cylinder and was directed back at Laurna, but then was reflected back to Ryosuke., engulfing him in fire.
"ARRGGHHH!!!!! It burns!!!"
"It's not the fire that's burning you Ryosuke... It's the burning pain you feel in your heart. The pain of being alone. Maybe one day you'll learn the true meaning of friendship." Laurna tried to make her voice sound compassionate, but struggled to do so. She couldn't sound sympathetic to the person who was just torturing her.
-4000
Ryosuke: 0000
The flames dissipated, and Lava Golem disappeared, along with the cage. Ryosuke's armor had burned off, leaving him in a red tunic and crimson red slacks.
Laurna took a closer look at him. "What's that on your face?"
Ryosuke was kneeling on one leg, trying to hide his face with one hand. "Don't look at me."
Behind his hand was half of a mask. "A mask? Why...?"
"I told you... Blackheart punished me. He burned off half of my face."
Laurna's eyes widened.
"Need I remind you... You're not done. The volcano will still erupt when the time runs out. And you've got a few minutes left on the clock..." He said coldly.
"What!?"
"The volcano requires a sacrifice. Then it will stop the eruption from happening."
"Sacrifice?" Laurna turned around and looked at the center of the volcano. She heard footsteps approaching.
Ryosuke was running towards it.
"No! Stop!" Laurna felt the pain that was so realistic... Everything in this world was so real. She didn't want him to know what it was like to be inside a volcano. "Not even you deserve this!"
"Yes, I do..." Ryosuke called out as he dived into the boiling magma within the volcano.
Laurna rushed to the edge and peered in. She could see nothing through the orange-red glow.
"His own Heaven must also be his own Hell... I'll let him be."
A door appeared in front of her.
[Please enter.]
"That was...unsettling... But I'm glad it's over...." Laurna stepped into the Loading Area.
She sighed deeply.
"Wait..." Laurna said to herself, remembering how she tore off bits and pieces of her robe, and losing her witch's hat and broomstick. "I don't want them to see me like this!"
The missing articles of clothing suddenly just appeared in place of her old tattered ones.
"Hmm... That was convenient." She said nonchalantly. The room went black, as usual.
[Trial IV Complete.]
[Result: Win ]
[Time Remaining: 4:35 ]
[LP: 0675]
[Current Status: 2nd Place]