THE DESCENT OF LOST SOULS
Chapter Fourteen: The Duel of Shadows (Part One)
Day Six of the Quest - Six in the evening
Location: The caves of Thera
Purpose: Duel against the Essence
General Point-of-View
"So what would it be, crest-wielder?" the dark shadow hissed, as it circled around its prey.
"How in the bloody hell could I use these powers in the real world? I've never done it before," Emrys mused, as her eyes scanned her surroundings.
Sardonically laughing, the Essence said, "If you value your life, you will make it work for you...."
A tightlipped Emrys then replied, "I accept your challenge...."
"You have no choice but to do so," the specter taunted.
A loud clap then echoed throughout the cavern.
Each sinister specter then brushed against Emrys as it rose to the ceiling and joined its peers. Every ghost emitted a luminous and eerie glow that covered the ceiling - serving as the cavern's eerie light.
As the cave ceiling eerily glowed, the dark shadow said, "Each of us will have four thousand life points to begin our duel. The first one who loses all her life points loses the duel, and her soul. Also to show you how gracious I am, your turn will mark the beginning of our battle."
"I'm flattered," Emrys sneered. She then mused, as she stared at her empty left wrist, "How the hell am I going to start without a duel disk?"
"Will it," said the Essence. Immediately thereafter, a gigantic deck of holographic cards appeared beside her.
Trembling inside, Emrys closed her eyes and visualized the deck that she assembled at Domino City. Feeling a surge of energy leave her body, and a mystical humming emanating beside her, she opened her eyes and saw a deck of cards.
The Essence smirked. "It is not that hard. I believe that this is now your turn...."
As Emrys crossed her arms in front of her chest, she pictured drawing six cards from the holographic deck.
Once six gigantic cards appeared before her, she declared, "I activate Pot of Greed."
Pot of Greed
Normal Magic Card
Draw two cards from your deck.
Upon activating Pot of Greed, a ghoulish green pot appeared on the field.
Shortly after two cards appeared beside her five hand cards, she then said, "I place one card face down, and then activate Swords of Revealing Light!"
Swords of Revealing Light
Normal Magic Card
Counting from your opponent's turn, none of your opponent's monsters can attack for three turns of his / her own. When this card is activated, opponent's facedown monsters at that time are turned face up, but remain in Defense Position. Any effects the monsters may have are immediately activated.
As luminous swords fall from the void at the opposite side of the field and made the spectral opponent glower, Emrys then said, "I then summon Maha Vailo - arming her with Axe of Despair and Black Pendant!"
Maha Vailo
Light / Spellcaster / Effect
ATK 1550 / DEF 1400
In addition to the effects of Equipment Cards, the ATK of this monster is increased by 500 points for each card equipped to this monster.
Axe of Despair
Equipment Magic Card
A monster equipped with this card increases ATK by 1000 points. When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard, you can offer one monster from the field to place this on top of your deck.
Black Pendant
Equipment Magic Card
Increase equipped monster's ATK and DEF by 500 points. When this card is sent to the Graveyard, inflict 500 points of direct damage on your opponent's life points.
Due to Maha Vailo's effect, as well as the equipment cards attached to her, the spellcaster's new ATK was now 4050 and her new DEF was at 1900. Once the new calculations were made for the monster, her master ended her turn.
The Essence snickered. "Are you sure that you have the energy to last an entire duel? You could barely last your own turn, and I have not even attacked you yet."
"Shut up!" Emrys spat, as she wiped the cold sweat beading on her forehead.
Ignoring her opponent, the specter then said, "I place two cards face down, one monster face down, and then end my turn."
Emrys then imagined drawing a card and adding it to her hand. "I place one monster face down, and end my turn."
"Coward!" the chuckling Essence taunted her opponent, as she drew a card for her turn. "I place two cards face down, one monster face down, and then end my turn."
"Predictable," snapped Emrys while drawing a card. After studying her hand, she then said, "I end my turn."
Once her card was drawn from the deck, the Essence placed one monster card face down and ended her turn.
"What the bloody hell is she up to?" Emrys mused, as she studied the field and retraced the dark spirit's moves. "She's not attacking, and I couldn't make any headway since her monsters are all in defense mode."
The dark specter intently hissed, "It is your turn, crest-wielder...."
As cold sweat trickled down Emrys' face, she drew a card. After placing a facedown card in her Magic and Trap slot, she then pulled another card and declared, "I activate Raigeki!"
Raigeki
Normal Magic Card
Destroys all of your opponent's monsters on the field.
Before the mystical thunderbolt wiped out the Essence's monsters, the dark specter hollered, "I activate Magic Jammer!"
Magic Jammer
Counter Trap Card
Discard one card from your hand to the Graveyard to negate the activation of a Magic Card and destroy it.
With quivering muscles, Emrys said, "Activate Seven Tools of the Bandit!"
Seven Tools of the Bandit
Counter Trap Card
Pay 1000 of your Life Points to negate the activation of a Trap Card and destroy it.
As Emrys' life counter deducted 1000 life points, her dark opponent declared, "I activate my own Seven Tools of the Bandit!"
"Shit!" Emrys clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. Before her eyes, she saw how her Raigeki had been negated by Magic Jammer - leaving her where she started off, and with 3000 life points. Once Magic Jammer had done its work, the entire turn drained her so much that she fell on her knees.
"There is plenty of time to beg for mercy," the Essence quipped.
Still unable to stand, Emrys glowered at her shadowy opponent. "I'm not done with my turn yet. I flip-summon the Magician of Faith."
Once the dainty and colorfully-dressed mage appeared on the field, one of the magic cards in Emrys' graveyard returned to her hand.
Staring back at her spectral opponent, Emrys then said, "I tribute my Magician of Faith and summon the Luster Dragon." As soon as the mage disintegrated and was replaced by a ferocious emerald dragon, their master's eyes narrowed. "I then arm Maha Vailo with Fairy's Meteor Crush! Maha Vailo - attack her leftmost facedown card!"
Magician of Faith
One Star
ATK 300 / DEF 400
Light / Spellcaster / Effect
FLIP: Select one Magic Card from your Graveyard and return it to your hand.
Fairy's Meteor Crush
Equipment Magic Card
When your monster equipped with this card attacks with an ATK that is higher than the DEF of your opponent's Defense position monster, inflict the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent's Life Points.
Once Fairy's Meteor Crush was equipped on Maha Vailo, the spellcaster's ATK rose to 4550. Her DEF remained at 1900. With its new attack power, Maha Vailo attacked the Essence's facedown monster - the Mask of Darkness.
Before the spellcaster could carry out her attack, the specter declared, "I activate Waboku!"
Mask of Darkness
Dark / Fiend / Effect
ATK 900 / DEF 400
FLIP: Select one Trap Card from your Graveyard and return it to your hand.
Waboku
Normal Trap Card
Any damage inflicted by an opponent's monster is decreased to zero during the turn this card is activated.
The Essence then retrieved a trap card from her Graveyard. Due to Waboku's effects, her life points remained at 3000.
"I end my turn...." said an out-of-breath Emrys.
"You were close, crest-wielder." The shadow drew another card. After placing a facedown card on the field, she then pulled a card from her hand and said, "I activate Harpies' Feather Duster!"
Still kneeling on the ground, Emrys declared, "Not so fast! I activate Gryphon's Wing!"
Harpies' Feather Duster
Normal Magic Card
Eliminate all your opponent's Magic and Trap Cards on the field.
Gryphon's Wing
Normal Trap Card
Reverts the effect of Harpies' Feather Duster to your opponent.
Before Gryphon's Wing bounced back Harpies' Feather Duster against the Essence, the dark shadow spat, "I activate the Seal of Orichalchos and Seven Tools of the Bandit!"
Emrys' eyes widened. "What!"
Seal of Orichalchos
Continuous Magic Card
Once activated, no one may enter or leave the dueling arena. Only the same kind of Orichalchos power can negate this card. Any other power, magic card, trap card, or Millennium Item cannot negate or affect Orichalchos. At the end of the game inside the Seal of Orichalchos, the loser must sacrifice his or her soul. A player gains a dark power, while his or her monster becomes a dark monsters with an additional 500 ATK.
As long as this card is played on the field, a player can summon more than 5 monsters or 5 magic and / or trap cards on the field.
Before Emrys' very eyes, all her magic and trap cards on the field were sent to the mystic void due to the shadow's Harpies' Feather Duster and her second Seven Tools of the Bandit.
She yelped when Maha Vailo reverted to her original 1550 ATK and 1400 DEF. Her muscles quivered and her brain worked like clockwork, as she saw her line of defense melt before her.
The Essence seductively hissed, "You have nothing left, my dear. You hardly have any strength left to duel, or even breathe. Most of your cards are now useless, and you cower on the ground like a disgraced serf. How do you wish to settle this score between us?"
End Chapter Fourteen
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Normal Disclaimer
Yu-Gi-Oh is the copyrighted property of Kazuki Takahashi.
Alexandra Emrys, Yoshiko, The Scrolls of Passage, The Portal of Osiris, The Dead Incantations, other original characters and venues, and this fan fiction are the properties of the author. This fan fiction is also written for entertainment purposes only, thereby releasing the author from any liabilities.
Author's Notes
Changes have been made to The Descent of Lost Souls. Sentences were simplified to make things flow more smoothly. I also worked on Emrys' characterization. If you're interested in knowing these changes, I invite you to re-read the story at your convenience and constructively let me know if the changes that I've made are to your liking.
The next installment for the Lost Souls Story Arc - When Memories Would Never Be Enough - is now posted. Immediately after the last chapter of When Memories Would Never Be Enough is posted, the first chapter of what is tentatively called The Battle for Lost Souls will be posted.
Thanks again for reading and constructively reviewing.