Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh, if I did I'd be Mr. Bigshot and very rich and only supervising the creation of Yugioh R. Instead I'd be turning this into a manga....or perhaps just rolling in the money I've made from a hugely succesful manga, anime, collectible card game, and now even a movie. Yes indeed, I'd be loaded. But....I'm not because I don't own Yugioh. Damn the facts!
Author's Note: Hehehe, originally, as a few people I commented to know, I had intended for one part of this chapter to be a Dungeon Dice Monsters battle. But because I couldn't find enough information on the booster sets for DDM, I was unable to do so. Just thought I should let you all know.
Quote of the Chapter: "I think I'll leave the deficit alone. Its big enough to take care of itself." -Ronald Reagen
Chapter Twenty-Nine: Atlantis and the Game Masters
The first true victory for the side of good had sort of been scored. Serenity was with the good guys, but there was nothing that said depriving Rex of his life was a good thing. Nobody was happy about it, but it was what need to happen at the moment. And so was the next duel.
The two duelists locked eyes, somehow knowing that it was to them that this duel now reached out. What the outcome was to be was unknown to them, but that didn't matter. What did matter was the here and the now, that this was what was. Here was what made the difference, now tilted the scales.
Mako Tsunami and Tea Gardner set themselves up, DD2s locking into position as the crowd filtered around them, ready to watch another duel. Everyone knew the league that Mako was in, but quite a number of others knew the league that Tea was in. And according to the now, the scales were very disproportionately balanced.
"No Deck Masters, I don't want to gain any added advantage in this duel. But be warned Tea, I don't intend to go easy on you." In one swift motion Mako thunked his deck into his duel disk, and it scanned the deck making its final preparations. Finally ready he drew his opening hand of five cards, and his life point counter made its way to its starting level. (MLP: 8000)
"We'll see who has the advantage Mako, because I'm going to be going first!" She too inserted her deck into the disk and watched her life points count up. Then she drew six cards, ready to start this duel and gain access to the temple to help out her friends. It didn't matter that Mako was a more experienced duelist. With her friends behind her, she couldn't lose! (TLP: 8000)
With that said she held her hand of cards up to her face, and silently started to worry. All she had were a bunch of mostly useless cards and a semi-decent monster. Well, she might as well bluff her way out. He'd never attack if he thought she had a host of defenses set-up. Yeah, that was the ticket!
What she wasn't aware of was that she was not a trained duelist, and therefore she hadn't learned how to control her facial features. She showed her feelings on the outside, easily displaying for all the trained duelists to see. She was nervous about her hand, and that meant Mako had the advantage.
"I'll set three magic or trap cards down on the field and one monster in defense mode. Lets see you get past that!" Everyone rolled their eyes, seeing past the bluff as her three face down cards appeared, followed shortly by a reversed monster card. Now that her turn was out of the way, it was time for Mako to take command of this duel, first turn with ease.
"Tea, you should know by now the story about my father. That being the case you should know that the waters of the ocean can quickly become incredibly violent. When the ocean does so nothing is safe from its wrath, and even the greatest defenses of mankind are no match. Now I bid you to watch the power of the ocean's wrath come forth to consume your defenses. This magic card represents all the deep hatred the ocean has and what it can do to any who are unprepared for it. It is...HEAVY STORM!"
Tea watched in horrified fascination as the wind started to pick up, quickly surging into gale force power. Her face down cards rattled, unsteady under the power of his magic card. At last the might of the storm became too much, and her cards were lifted into the air and blown back. They shattered into tiny pieces, leaving her only defense as her single set monster.
"I set one card face down and I summon the mighty Mermaid Knight(1500/800) in attack mode!" The monster burst onto the field in a spray of water, happily dancing about on its tail, whipping its blade about with deadly accuracy. However it wasn't the strength of that monster that was what made it deadly...it was the effect.
"I shall now play Legendary City Atlantis, which boosts my water monsters by two hundred attack and defense, and lowers all my water monsters in hand by one level. Best effect for right now...it is counted as being the Umi field card. And when Umi is active Mermaid Knight can attack twice in a battle phase. So go Mermaid Knight(1700/1000), show her the power of the ocean!" The mermaid darted out, slicing Tea's face-down monster into swiss cheese. Then it followed up with a direct strike that depleted her life points. (TLP: 6300)
Tea picked up a card, and slowly slid the monster down onto the field. But as soon as it was placed, her opponent activated his face down card. "Reveal trap, Torrential Tribute!" Due to the effect of Mako's trap both of them lost their two monsters in a deadly explosion of power. Unable to make any other move she just ended her turn.
Mako drew a card and laughed heartily, slipping the cards he wanted into action. "My first card is Ocean of Revival, which will renew one water monster for a single turn. My second card is my favorite card, the Legendary Fisherman(2050/1800). And with these two monsters I shall strike out!" The fisherman used its spear to knock her down, and the knight followed up with two direct attacks, nearly finishing her off. (TLP: 850)
As soon as Mako's turn ended his Mermaid Knight shattered into a million pieces, leaving her with more of a chance at getting to him. And as soon as she drew her card she knew she had a way to make things work. She could turn this duel around right now! "I play Silent Dead, reviving my own Lady Panther in defense mode. But I'll just sacrifice her for Dark Magician Girl(2000/1700)!"
The blue robed pretty blonde spellcaster came onto the field with a twirl, flashing a wink at Mako. The older duelist blinked twice, a small bit of red creeping into her cheeks. Yami just rolled his eyes, well acquainted with the antics of his favored magician's apprentice. "Now I play Jewel of the Wise, letting me special summon the Dark Magician(2500/2100) to the field!"
With her two powerful magicians on the field and no face-down cards on his field, he found himself in a painful predicament. While his fisherman's effect protected it from magic, traps, and monsters...it also had the nasty little piece where it couldn't be targeted by an attack while Umi was in play. And since it couldn't defend, that meant both attacks would be direct. "Dark Magician Girl, Dark Magician, Twin Black Magic Burning Attack!"
A blaze of energy erupted from the two magic user's wands crashing into Mako's chest and knocking him for a loop. He couldn't even manage to remain standing under that onslaught. When it had finally ended he found himself worse for the wear, both physically and life point wise. (MLP: 3500)
When it became time for him to take his turn, all he could do was set one card and pass the turn to Tea. She gladly took her turn, happy to be believing that she could now win this duel. She drew her card and quickly set it on the field, knowing that now she was protected. "I attack with both my monsters to end this duel!"
"Activate Tornado Wall, preventing the damage!" A wall of water vortexes erupted, blocking off the path of her magician's attacks. Therefore she was forced to end her turn. Mako just took his turn, casually drawing his card. Upon seeing it he sighed with deep regret, and placed the card onto the field. It was now time to end it, and oh how he regretted it.
"I shall sacrifice my Legendary Fisherman to summon Leviadragon(2800/1600) to the field in attack mode! And not only is he powerful, but by placing Umi, or in this case Atlantis, into the cemetery I can destroy all cards on the field except for himself!" The mighty sea dragon tossed its head back and let out a roar, the underwater city behind it exploding into dust. And with that rage a wash of water blew all of Tea's cards away, leaving her defenseless.
"Leviadragon...end it." The giant sea serpent opened its jaws as wide as they could go and unleashed a stream of powerful water that plowed over Tea, obliterating her life points. Nobody could watch as the black wind descended, and the cries of anguish ripped the air from the devastated Yami and all of Tea's other friends. They knew it was not Mako's fault...but why didn't that make him feel any better?
"You feel dreadful because you find yourself able to enter the temple and live simply because you defeated an inferior opponent. You also cost a young girl her life, which is never satisfying to a person with a heart such as yours." Mako's eyes whipped up, coming into contact with a pair of blue-green eyes. Those eyes were incredibly powerful, showing an inner strength greater then anything Mako could imagine. Those eyes were like the sea, deadly and powerful, able to save and destroy at the same time.
The spiky blonde-haired duelist stepped forward, his large muscles rippling under and outside of his sleeveless black shirt. Dalin Sumatin was an imposing figure of a man, and he had no intention of letting this crime go unpunished. He would judge Mako, that was what he would do. "We shall now duel, and when it is all over I will inform you if you are guilty or not. How does that sound?"
Mako stared hard at the other duelist for a moment before finally nodding, agreeing to the terms. They both shuffled their decks and drew their hands, Dalin selecting six indicating that he would be going first. "I shall place one card face down, and summon Venus, Angel of Creation(1600/0) in attack mode. I pay 1500 life points to summon the three Holy Shine Spheres(500/500 X3). That is all." (DLP: 6500)
The ocean duelist shrugged at this, unsure of what to do. These monsters were weak, so why would this large duelist do such a thing? Mako knew he was powerful, he had seen the defeat of Yugi Motou televised from Battle City, he knew that this duelist was perhaps the strongest that there was. But he had left these weak monsters almost unguarded, what kind of move was that?
"I set two cards face down, and play Legendary City Atlantis! This allows me to summon the Legendary Fisherman(2050/1800). I'll attack with him!" The two cards appeared, followed by the giant city and the fisherman on his shark. His fisherman launched its spear, only to find it connecting to a shield that sent streams of energy flowing back into Dalin.
"My Drain Shield negates your attack and increases my life points by your monster's attack. That is the end of your turn, and your last chance at victory." Mako opened his mouth to reply, but merely chose to ignore the comment. Nobody could possibly defeat him in two turns, it just couldn't happen. Therefore he had no trouble with that statement. It was a bluff meant to throw him off his game. (DLP: 8550)
Dalin drew his card, and swiftly activated the Harpy's Feather Duster, clearing away Mako's two face down cards and his field card. With that out of the way it was down to Mako's single weakened monster against all of Dalin's. If Dalin summoned something stronger, Mako was in trouble. "Now I shall sacrifice the three Holy Shine Spheres for this...the Winged Divine Dragon of Ra(1500/1500)!"
In an explosion of power the mighty golden dragon reared its head, and let out a roar that flattened Mako and all those around the duel. Yami himself was astounded that Dalin was willing to summon such a deadly creature against a normal duelist. But then again, Dalin had never been a normal duelist himself, and he played by his own rules. "I sacrifice Venus to Ra, increasing his attack points to 3100. Then I pay six thousand seven hundred and fifty life points to increase Ra's attack by that amount."
The god's stats skyrocketed up to a huge nine thousand eight hundred and fifty attack points and a mere fifteen hundred defense points. But everybody there could do the math. They knew what Ra's attack power minus the Legendary Fisherman's attack power equal. It equaled the end of this duel. "I judge you to be not guilty, you are a merely a duelist trying to survive and find the one he cares for. I judge the guilty one to be Ihachi who forced this situation upon us. But I will not back down in this moment, I will finish this duel to allow myself access to the temple! God's Breath Cannon!"
In a blaze of golden energy the god consumed the Legendary Fisherman and the duelist who stood behind it. When the light cleared, neither was anywhere to seen, and the duel was obviously Dalin's. Now all who had not seen him duel before were afraid, for this was a duelist of extraordinary power.
The attention had been drawn to these duels, and had therefore been drawn away from a tall black haired boy with a die hanging from his ear. This boy was Duke Devlin, and he had been busy having a conversation with his mentor, the esteemed Pegasus J. Crawford, creator of the greatest game ever to be known.
The two game creators and game masters had agreed on something mutual. They had agreed that they wanted any duel they had to be between the others. Pegasus had no inclinations to face Yugi or any of the others, in fact he didn't want to duel anybody at all. But Duke was persistent, so he had agreed. (DLP: 8000, PLP: 8000)
Duke started off, drawing his hand and starting up his plan. He knew what he could do. "I'll play Graceful Charity to draw three and discard two. Then I'll summon Swift Black Ninja(1700/1000) in attack mode. Of course I'll also play two cards face down." His three cards appeared, one a black clothed ninja, the other placed down on the field, ready to take down any attack Pegasus might mount.
Little did he know that Pegasus' had a Toon Control Deck, which was based around controlling the field and using his toons to defeat the opponent. Even without his toons it was devastating, and he was about to prove that. "I play Brain Control to take command of your ninja!" The glowing brain appeared, and reached out with its arms to grab the ninja.
"Not so fast! By removing two dark type monsters in the cemetery from the game, which I can since I discarded them, I can remove Swift Black Ninja from play for the duration of the turn, preventing your from taking him!" The dark ninja reached into his belt and pulled out a small silver sphere. He threw it against the ground and smoke exploded from it, covering him.
When the smoke cleared there was no ninja, and therefore nothing for Brain Control to work on. Its effect fizzled, and Pegasus was forced to continue his turn, one monster less because of it. However that didn't matter in the least. "I play Disruption of Balance! I can only activate this card if you have two or more magic or trap cards then I do. And since I've got none and you have two its perfect Devlin-boy. At a cost of one thousand life points I can send those cards straight to my hand off the field!" (PLP: 7000)
Duke gasped in shocked as his cards vanished. Frustrated he walked over to the older duelist, who gladly accepted the two cards with relish. "But not mustard." Duke couldn't quite place the reason for Pegasus making that comment, so he let it lie, just remembering that while his mentor might be eccentric, he was still a genius.
"Well now that I've got those two cards I think I'll set two cards of my own. And of course I can now summon the cudely creatures known as the Goblin Attack Force(2300/0). And now my goblins attack directly!" The deadly green imps charged in wielding their assortment of weapons, pummeling Duke without mercy. When the smoke cleared he was behind in life points. (DLP: 5700)
"I'll end my turn at that. Enjoy yourself Dukey, because that's what you wanted right? Am I right?" He smiled widely, and as soon as his turn passed the ninja stepped sideways out of the shadows. For this trick he earned a smattering of applause from the lace-wearing game creator.
"I'll take my ninja off the field so I can summon" He stopped in mid-word because Pegasus had held up a hand, shaking his figure like Duke had done something wrong. But that wasn't what it was, in fact it was the card that Pegasus had placed down on the field that was doing the trick.
"My magic card Prophecy lets me guess if the monster you're about to play has more or less attack points then two thousand. And since your sacrificing for it, I'm going to guess its higher! And if I'm right it gets placed in my hand!" Duke grimaced, walking over to Pegasus and handing the white haired man his Fiend Megacyber even before he had gotten to play it. Now all he had was one last trick up his sleeve to keep himself from being easily beaten.
"I'll set one card face down and pass my turn to you." Pegasus smiled in thanks and drew a card, happily grinning at whatever he had seen. It was obvious to Duke that Pegasus was saving the traps he had taken from him for later. That meant Duke had no way of knowing what Pegasus' remaining face down card was. And that couldn't be good.
"I play Mystical Space Typhoon to rid the field of that pesky face-down card of yours. And with that out of the way I can activate a special trap. Its called Effect Cancel! And when this nifty trap is activated no monster on the field can use its effect." A bolt of lightning shattered Duke's Negate Attack trap card, and then Pegasus' own trap flipped up.
At first Duke didn't understand. He couldn't figure out what his opponent was up to. But the moment the other duelist reached for his monster zone, Duke understood. Without its effect active, Pegasus could switch his goblins back into attack mode, and they wouldn't be forced into defense mode after this turn! "Here come the goblins, stomp him again!"
The creatures stormed over him for the second time, again beating down his defenses and his life points. At this rate of attack and skill Duke would be finished before Tea even dropped below six thousand life points! And he knew he was a better duelist then Tea. (DLP: 3400)
"Ooo, I'll just set one card and one monster down on the field. That's all for the moment." His two cards appeared, and then the turned shifted back to Duke. The dice boy gave himself his third card, and tried to hold off his jumping for joy until his card finished its work. Or started it even.
"I play Summon Dice, activated at a cost of one thousand life points. Whatever they land on me a different effect, and I'll just pray its something good! So here we go...DICE ROLL!" The die shot out, bouncing like crazy, and Duke's only wish was that it land on a very specific number. If it did he'd thank lady luck more then he had ever thanked anybody ever before. Or rather, he'd thank her whereas he'd never thanked anybody ever before. (DLP: 2400)
Finally the die came to a rest, and he jumped for joy like he had wanted to. "Yes! A six! This means I can special summon Orgoth the Relentless(2500/2000) to the field in attack mode!" His brutish axe-wielding favorite monster was summoned, its shiny armor....well shining in the sun actually. Pegasus smiled wickedly, quite prepared for such a moment...or so he seemed.
It didn't matter to Duke if Pegasus had every trap every created on the field, which he didn't, but the point was that he wasn't going to back down now. He was going to use his favorite monster to take command of the duel and win the day for himself. He was going to defeat his mentor at his own game. "Orgoth, crush those puny goblins!"
The massive monster raised his huge axe and rained fury down upon the goblins, who sat there and let themselves be obliterated. With those pesky creatures out of the way, Duke had finally managed to deal some damage to Pegasus, and he had a solidly powerful monster on the field. Maybe now he had a chance. "End turn!" (PLP: 6800)
Pegasus sighed, reaching out and drawing his next card. He already knew exactly what was going to happen, and he didn't need an ancient magical eye to tell him that, or any other mystical power. He just knew the field, knew his game, and knew his victory was at hand.
He had never let on to anyone just how much he knew about strategy. Why he had studied Sun Tsu's The Art of War to help him create Duel Monsters. He knew chess, he knew every bit of strategy he could have drilled into his brain. And one of the tactics he employed to great success was to allow the enemy a victory that weakened their alertness, threw them off guard and made them open for a deadly counter attack.
Something he had heard Yugi and his friends discussing suddenly clicked, and he understood exactly what had happened. He knew what the truth was, but the suspect he couldn't determine. Yet in the moment of his understanding he felt a pair of eyes burning into the back of his head, felt a powerful mind force its way into his and he knew that he was right.
"Devlin-boy, I have to finish this quickly so I can tell Yugi something very important. So I'll just flip my X.E.N.O. to seize control of Orgoth, and use it's attack to finish you off!" The brutish warrior turned itself upon its master and struck, the axe sending Duke flying backwards. Pegasus turned and started rushing towards Yugi the moment he saw the dark wind approach. (DLP: 0)
The crowd was gathered around a duel, and there, burning above the field was the mighty form of Ra. His creation, the thing he had struggled so hard to make, was now staring down a weaker opponent with its great power and ferocity. Pegasus' vision of power and truth had come true, his gods were truly complete and almighty.
Shaking off the feeling of pride he started struggling to push through the crowd, tried to force his way past so he could reach Yugi and give the boy the critical information he possessed. The secret that their enemy was trying to hide. Sun Tsu's Art of War had been employed, and the defenses of the only ones capable of saving the day were weakened. He had to fix that now!
A hand fell upon his shoulder, and fear gripped him. A dark sense of foreboding filled his body, and he saw the world around him dissolve away, turning into something different. It was a dark barrier that surrounded them, engineered by an ancient power, something far more deadly then the Shadow Magic that Pegasus had once wielded.
Slowly he turned around, and found himself face to face with his enemy. He would not have guessed, he would not have suspected, but now he knew. And as such things go, he also knew that he would never make it to Yugi. He would never get to reveal the secret. He could only hope that Yugi or one of his friends managed to figure it out in time. "I'd never have suspected you."
The harsh voice replied back, dark laughter dripping with malice, it was a voice that terrified him, merely because it was backed with a malevolence that he had never experienced before. It was beyond comprehension how evil this creature was. He didn't know what it was, he didn't understand how it could possibly exist. All he knew was that it did, and he was terrified.
"Never have suspected me? Why as I told little Sun Tsu all those years ago... that is exactly the point. As for what I am and how I can exist...well the truth is that I'm the thing that gods and goddesses feared, the thing that devoured all other things. I exist to devour the sun, I exist to consume all light and cover the world in darkness. And I love what I do."
Nobody ever heard Pegasus' screams. In fact when the duel between Dalin and Mako ended, everybody simply discovered Duke lying on the ground, soulless. Nobody ever knew who he had dueled or what had become of his opponent. Nobody knew the secret that Pegasus had tried to reveal.
For an ancient evil existed in this false Eden. An evil that lurked within the shadows waiting to devour all light, whether it be natural or artificial. The light of the body, or the light of the soul. All things this thing devours. Ihachi's peaceful paradise was being lurked by something infinitely dark and impossibly evil.
Author's Note: Yes indeed, this is the shortest chapter in ages. I know, but hey, its an update right? And its only a semi-important chapter. Only one part of it is of real importance, and you can guess which part that is right? The part where Dalin kicks ass of course! Or...whatever, you know what I mean.
Original Cards
Pegasus: Disruption of Balance, Effect Cancel
Cards from Vague Anime Arcs: Ocean of Revival(used by Big 2), Prophecy(if you don't remember Pegasus using this to steal Kaiba's Blue Eyes, you're crazy!), Summon Dice(Duke in Doom Arc), Orgoth the Relentless(Duke in Noa and Doom Arcs)
Author's Note: Hehehe, originally, as a few people I commented to know, I had intended for one part of this chapter to be a Dungeon Dice Monsters battle. But because I couldn't find enough information on the booster sets for DDM, I was unable to do so. Just thought I should let you all know.
Quote of the Chapter: "I think I'll leave the deficit alone. Its big enough to take care of itself." -Ronald Reagen
Chapter Twenty-Nine: Atlantis and the Game Masters
The first true victory for the side of good had sort of been scored. Serenity was with the good guys, but there was nothing that said depriving Rex of his life was a good thing. Nobody was happy about it, but it was what need to happen at the moment. And so was the next duel.
The two duelists locked eyes, somehow knowing that it was to them that this duel now reached out. What the outcome was to be was unknown to them, but that didn't matter. What did matter was the here and the now, that this was what was. Here was what made the difference, now tilted the scales.
Mako Tsunami and Tea Gardner set themselves up, DD2s locking into position as the crowd filtered around them, ready to watch another duel. Everyone knew the league that Mako was in, but quite a number of others knew the league that Tea was in. And according to the now, the scales were very disproportionately balanced.
"No Deck Masters, I don't want to gain any added advantage in this duel. But be warned Tea, I don't intend to go easy on you." In one swift motion Mako thunked his deck into his duel disk, and it scanned the deck making its final preparations. Finally ready he drew his opening hand of five cards, and his life point counter made its way to its starting level. (MLP: 8000)
"We'll see who has the advantage Mako, because I'm going to be going first!" She too inserted her deck into the disk and watched her life points count up. Then she drew six cards, ready to start this duel and gain access to the temple to help out her friends. It didn't matter that Mako was a more experienced duelist. With her friends behind her, she couldn't lose! (TLP: 8000)
With that said she held her hand of cards up to her face, and silently started to worry. All she had were a bunch of mostly useless cards and a semi-decent monster. Well, she might as well bluff her way out. He'd never attack if he thought she had a host of defenses set-up. Yeah, that was the ticket!
What she wasn't aware of was that she was not a trained duelist, and therefore she hadn't learned how to control her facial features. She showed her feelings on the outside, easily displaying for all the trained duelists to see. She was nervous about her hand, and that meant Mako had the advantage.
"I'll set three magic or trap cards down on the field and one monster in defense mode. Lets see you get past that!" Everyone rolled their eyes, seeing past the bluff as her three face down cards appeared, followed shortly by a reversed monster card. Now that her turn was out of the way, it was time for Mako to take command of this duel, first turn with ease.
"Tea, you should know by now the story about my father. That being the case you should know that the waters of the ocean can quickly become incredibly violent. When the ocean does so nothing is safe from its wrath, and even the greatest defenses of mankind are no match. Now I bid you to watch the power of the ocean's wrath come forth to consume your defenses. This magic card represents all the deep hatred the ocean has and what it can do to any who are unprepared for it. It is...HEAVY STORM!"
Tea watched in horrified fascination as the wind started to pick up, quickly surging into gale force power. Her face down cards rattled, unsteady under the power of his magic card. At last the might of the storm became too much, and her cards were lifted into the air and blown back. They shattered into tiny pieces, leaving her only defense as her single set monster.
"I set one card face down and I summon the mighty Mermaid Knight(1500/800) in attack mode!" The monster burst onto the field in a spray of water, happily dancing about on its tail, whipping its blade about with deadly accuracy. However it wasn't the strength of that monster that was what made it deadly...it was the effect.
"I shall now play Legendary City Atlantis, which boosts my water monsters by two hundred attack and defense, and lowers all my water monsters in hand by one level. Best effect for right now...it is counted as being the Umi field card. And when Umi is active Mermaid Knight can attack twice in a battle phase. So go Mermaid Knight(1700/1000), show her the power of the ocean!" The mermaid darted out, slicing Tea's face-down monster into swiss cheese. Then it followed up with a direct strike that depleted her life points. (TLP: 6300)
Tea picked up a card, and slowly slid the monster down onto the field. But as soon as it was placed, her opponent activated his face down card. "Reveal trap, Torrential Tribute!" Due to the effect of Mako's trap both of them lost their two monsters in a deadly explosion of power. Unable to make any other move she just ended her turn.
Mako drew a card and laughed heartily, slipping the cards he wanted into action. "My first card is Ocean of Revival, which will renew one water monster for a single turn. My second card is my favorite card, the Legendary Fisherman(2050/1800). And with these two monsters I shall strike out!" The fisherman used its spear to knock her down, and the knight followed up with two direct attacks, nearly finishing her off. (TLP: 850)
As soon as Mako's turn ended his Mermaid Knight shattered into a million pieces, leaving her with more of a chance at getting to him. And as soon as she drew her card she knew she had a way to make things work. She could turn this duel around right now! "I play Silent Dead, reviving my own Lady Panther in defense mode. But I'll just sacrifice her for Dark Magician Girl(2000/1700)!"
The blue robed pretty blonde spellcaster came onto the field with a twirl, flashing a wink at Mako. The older duelist blinked twice, a small bit of red creeping into her cheeks. Yami just rolled his eyes, well acquainted with the antics of his favored magician's apprentice. "Now I play Jewel of the Wise, letting me special summon the Dark Magician(2500/2100) to the field!"
With her two powerful magicians on the field and no face-down cards on his field, he found himself in a painful predicament. While his fisherman's effect protected it from magic, traps, and monsters...it also had the nasty little piece where it couldn't be targeted by an attack while Umi was in play. And since it couldn't defend, that meant both attacks would be direct. "Dark Magician Girl, Dark Magician, Twin Black Magic Burning Attack!"
A blaze of energy erupted from the two magic user's wands crashing into Mako's chest and knocking him for a loop. He couldn't even manage to remain standing under that onslaught. When it had finally ended he found himself worse for the wear, both physically and life point wise. (MLP: 3500)
When it became time for him to take his turn, all he could do was set one card and pass the turn to Tea. She gladly took her turn, happy to be believing that she could now win this duel. She drew her card and quickly set it on the field, knowing that now she was protected. "I attack with both my monsters to end this duel!"
"Activate Tornado Wall, preventing the damage!" A wall of water vortexes erupted, blocking off the path of her magician's attacks. Therefore she was forced to end her turn. Mako just took his turn, casually drawing his card. Upon seeing it he sighed with deep regret, and placed the card onto the field. It was now time to end it, and oh how he regretted it.
"I shall sacrifice my Legendary Fisherman to summon Leviadragon(2800/1600) to the field in attack mode! And not only is he powerful, but by placing Umi, or in this case Atlantis, into the cemetery I can destroy all cards on the field except for himself!" The mighty sea dragon tossed its head back and let out a roar, the underwater city behind it exploding into dust. And with that rage a wash of water blew all of Tea's cards away, leaving her defenseless.
"Leviadragon...end it." The giant sea serpent opened its jaws as wide as they could go and unleashed a stream of powerful water that plowed over Tea, obliterating her life points. Nobody could watch as the black wind descended, and the cries of anguish ripped the air from the devastated Yami and all of Tea's other friends. They knew it was not Mako's fault...but why didn't that make him feel any better?
"You feel dreadful because you find yourself able to enter the temple and live simply because you defeated an inferior opponent. You also cost a young girl her life, which is never satisfying to a person with a heart such as yours." Mako's eyes whipped up, coming into contact with a pair of blue-green eyes. Those eyes were incredibly powerful, showing an inner strength greater then anything Mako could imagine. Those eyes were like the sea, deadly and powerful, able to save and destroy at the same time.
The spiky blonde-haired duelist stepped forward, his large muscles rippling under and outside of his sleeveless black shirt. Dalin Sumatin was an imposing figure of a man, and he had no intention of letting this crime go unpunished. He would judge Mako, that was what he would do. "We shall now duel, and when it is all over I will inform you if you are guilty or not. How does that sound?"
Mako stared hard at the other duelist for a moment before finally nodding, agreeing to the terms. They both shuffled their decks and drew their hands, Dalin selecting six indicating that he would be going first. "I shall place one card face down, and summon Venus, Angel of Creation(1600/0) in attack mode. I pay 1500 life points to summon the three Holy Shine Spheres(500/500 X3). That is all." (DLP: 6500)
The ocean duelist shrugged at this, unsure of what to do. These monsters were weak, so why would this large duelist do such a thing? Mako knew he was powerful, he had seen the defeat of Yugi Motou televised from Battle City, he knew that this duelist was perhaps the strongest that there was. But he had left these weak monsters almost unguarded, what kind of move was that?
"I set two cards face down, and play Legendary City Atlantis! This allows me to summon the Legendary Fisherman(2050/1800). I'll attack with him!" The two cards appeared, followed by the giant city and the fisherman on his shark. His fisherman launched its spear, only to find it connecting to a shield that sent streams of energy flowing back into Dalin.
"My Drain Shield negates your attack and increases my life points by your monster's attack. That is the end of your turn, and your last chance at victory." Mako opened his mouth to reply, but merely chose to ignore the comment. Nobody could possibly defeat him in two turns, it just couldn't happen. Therefore he had no trouble with that statement. It was a bluff meant to throw him off his game. (DLP: 8550)
Dalin drew his card, and swiftly activated the Harpy's Feather Duster, clearing away Mako's two face down cards and his field card. With that out of the way it was down to Mako's single weakened monster against all of Dalin's. If Dalin summoned something stronger, Mako was in trouble. "Now I shall sacrifice the three Holy Shine Spheres for this...the Winged Divine Dragon of Ra(1500/1500)!"
In an explosion of power the mighty golden dragon reared its head, and let out a roar that flattened Mako and all those around the duel. Yami himself was astounded that Dalin was willing to summon such a deadly creature against a normal duelist. But then again, Dalin had never been a normal duelist himself, and he played by his own rules. "I sacrifice Venus to Ra, increasing his attack points to 3100. Then I pay six thousand seven hundred and fifty life points to increase Ra's attack by that amount."
The god's stats skyrocketed up to a huge nine thousand eight hundred and fifty attack points and a mere fifteen hundred defense points. But everybody there could do the math. They knew what Ra's attack power minus the Legendary Fisherman's attack power equal. It equaled the end of this duel. "I judge you to be not guilty, you are a merely a duelist trying to survive and find the one he cares for. I judge the guilty one to be Ihachi who forced this situation upon us. But I will not back down in this moment, I will finish this duel to allow myself access to the temple! God's Breath Cannon!"
In a blaze of golden energy the god consumed the Legendary Fisherman and the duelist who stood behind it. When the light cleared, neither was anywhere to seen, and the duel was obviously Dalin's. Now all who had not seen him duel before were afraid, for this was a duelist of extraordinary power.
The attention had been drawn to these duels, and had therefore been drawn away from a tall black haired boy with a die hanging from his ear. This boy was Duke Devlin, and he had been busy having a conversation with his mentor, the esteemed Pegasus J. Crawford, creator of the greatest game ever to be known.
The two game creators and game masters had agreed on something mutual. They had agreed that they wanted any duel they had to be between the others. Pegasus had no inclinations to face Yugi or any of the others, in fact he didn't want to duel anybody at all. But Duke was persistent, so he had agreed. (DLP: 8000, PLP: 8000)
Duke started off, drawing his hand and starting up his plan. He knew what he could do. "I'll play Graceful Charity to draw three and discard two. Then I'll summon Swift Black Ninja(1700/1000) in attack mode. Of course I'll also play two cards face down." His three cards appeared, one a black clothed ninja, the other placed down on the field, ready to take down any attack Pegasus might mount.
Little did he know that Pegasus' had a Toon Control Deck, which was based around controlling the field and using his toons to defeat the opponent. Even without his toons it was devastating, and he was about to prove that. "I play Brain Control to take command of your ninja!" The glowing brain appeared, and reached out with its arms to grab the ninja.
"Not so fast! By removing two dark type monsters in the cemetery from the game, which I can since I discarded them, I can remove Swift Black Ninja from play for the duration of the turn, preventing your from taking him!" The dark ninja reached into his belt and pulled out a small silver sphere. He threw it against the ground and smoke exploded from it, covering him.
When the smoke cleared there was no ninja, and therefore nothing for Brain Control to work on. Its effect fizzled, and Pegasus was forced to continue his turn, one monster less because of it. However that didn't matter in the least. "I play Disruption of Balance! I can only activate this card if you have two or more magic or trap cards then I do. And since I've got none and you have two its perfect Devlin-boy. At a cost of one thousand life points I can send those cards straight to my hand off the field!" (PLP: 7000)
Duke gasped in shocked as his cards vanished. Frustrated he walked over to the older duelist, who gladly accepted the two cards with relish. "But not mustard." Duke couldn't quite place the reason for Pegasus making that comment, so he let it lie, just remembering that while his mentor might be eccentric, he was still a genius.
"Well now that I've got those two cards I think I'll set two cards of my own. And of course I can now summon the cudely creatures known as the Goblin Attack Force(2300/0). And now my goblins attack directly!" The deadly green imps charged in wielding their assortment of weapons, pummeling Duke without mercy. When the smoke cleared he was behind in life points. (DLP: 5700)
"I'll end my turn at that. Enjoy yourself Dukey, because that's what you wanted right? Am I right?" He smiled widely, and as soon as his turn passed the ninja stepped sideways out of the shadows. For this trick he earned a smattering of applause from the lace-wearing game creator.
"I'll take my ninja off the field so I can summon" He stopped in mid-word because Pegasus had held up a hand, shaking his figure like Duke had done something wrong. But that wasn't what it was, in fact it was the card that Pegasus had placed down on the field that was doing the trick.
"My magic card Prophecy lets me guess if the monster you're about to play has more or less attack points then two thousand. And since your sacrificing for it, I'm going to guess its higher! And if I'm right it gets placed in my hand!" Duke grimaced, walking over to Pegasus and handing the white haired man his Fiend Megacyber even before he had gotten to play it. Now all he had was one last trick up his sleeve to keep himself from being easily beaten.
"I'll set one card face down and pass my turn to you." Pegasus smiled in thanks and drew a card, happily grinning at whatever he had seen. It was obvious to Duke that Pegasus was saving the traps he had taken from him for later. That meant Duke had no way of knowing what Pegasus' remaining face down card was. And that couldn't be good.
"I play Mystical Space Typhoon to rid the field of that pesky face-down card of yours. And with that out of the way I can activate a special trap. Its called Effect Cancel! And when this nifty trap is activated no monster on the field can use its effect." A bolt of lightning shattered Duke's Negate Attack trap card, and then Pegasus' own trap flipped up.
At first Duke didn't understand. He couldn't figure out what his opponent was up to. But the moment the other duelist reached for his monster zone, Duke understood. Without its effect active, Pegasus could switch his goblins back into attack mode, and they wouldn't be forced into defense mode after this turn! "Here come the goblins, stomp him again!"
The creatures stormed over him for the second time, again beating down his defenses and his life points. At this rate of attack and skill Duke would be finished before Tea even dropped below six thousand life points! And he knew he was a better duelist then Tea. (DLP: 3400)
"Ooo, I'll just set one card and one monster down on the field. That's all for the moment." His two cards appeared, and then the turned shifted back to Duke. The dice boy gave himself his third card, and tried to hold off his jumping for joy until his card finished its work. Or started it even.
"I play Summon Dice, activated at a cost of one thousand life points. Whatever they land on me a different effect, and I'll just pray its something good! So here we go...DICE ROLL!" The die shot out, bouncing like crazy, and Duke's only wish was that it land on a very specific number. If it did he'd thank lady luck more then he had ever thanked anybody ever before. Or rather, he'd thank her whereas he'd never thanked anybody ever before. (DLP: 2400)
Finally the die came to a rest, and he jumped for joy like he had wanted to. "Yes! A six! This means I can special summon Orgoth the Relentless(2500/2000) to the field in attack mode!" His brutish axe-wielding favorite monster was summoned, its shiny armor....well shining in the sun actually. Pegasus smiled wickedly, quite prepared for such a moment...or so he seemed.
It didn't matter to Duke if Pegasus had every trap every created on the field, which he didn't, but the point was that he wasn't going to back down now. He was going to use his favorite monster to take command of the duel and win the day for himself. He was going to defeat his mentor at his own game. "Orgoth, crush those puny goblins!"
The massive monster raised his huge axe and rained fury down upon the goblins, who sat there and let themselves be obliterated. With those pesky creatures out of the way, Duke had finally managed to deal some damage to Pegasus, and he had a solidly powerful monster on the field. Maybe now he had a chance. "End turn!" (PLP: 6800)
Pegasus sighed, reaching out and drawing his next card. He already knew exactly what was going to happen, and he didn't need an ancient magical eye to tell him that, or any other mystical power. He just knew the field, knew his game, and knew his victory was at hand.
He had never let on to anyone just how much he knew about strategy. Why he had studied Sun Tsu's The Art of War to help him create Duel Monsters. He knew chess, he knew every bit of strategy he could have drilled into his brain. And one of the tactics he employed to great success was to allow the enemy a victory that weakened their alertness, threw them off guard and made them open for a deadly counter attack.
Something he had heard Yugi and his friends discussing suddenly clicked, and he understood exactly what had happened. He knew what the truth was, but the suspect he couldn't determine. Yet in the moment of his understanding he felt a pair of eyes burning into the back of his head, felt a powerful mind force its way into his and he knew that he was right.
"Devlin-boy, I have to finish this quickly so I can tell Yugi something very important. So I'll just flip my X.E.N.O. to seize control of Orgoth, and use it's attack to finish you off!" The brutish warrior turned itself upon its master and struck, the axe sending Duke flying backwards. Pegasus turned and started rushing towards Yugi the moment he saw the dark wind approach. (DLP: 0)
The crowd was gathered around a duel, and there, burning above the field was the mighty form of Ra. His creation, the thing he had struggled so hard to make, was now staring down a weaker opponent with its great power and ferocity. Pegasus' vision of power and truth had come true, his gods were truly complete and almighty.
Shaking off the feeling of pride he started struggling to push through the crowd, tried to force his way past so he could reach Yugi and give the boy the critical information he possessed. The secret that their enemy was trying to hide. Sun Tsu's Art of War had been employed, and the defenses of the only ones capable of saving the day were weakened. He had to fix that now!
A hand fell upon his shoulder, and fear gripped him. A dark sense of foreboding filled his body, and he saw the world around him dissolve away, turning into something different. It was a dark barrier that surrounded them, engineered by an ancient power, something far more deadly then the Shadow Magic that Pegasus had once wielded.
Slowly he turned around, and found himself face to face with his enemy. He would not have guessed, he would not have suspected, but now he knew. And as such things go, he also knew that he would never make it to Yugi. He would never get to reveal the secret. He could only hope that Yugi or one of his friends managed to figure it out in time. "I'd never have suspected you."
The harsh voice replied back, dark laughter dripping with malice, it was a voice that terrified him, merely because it was backed with a malevolence that he had never experienced before. It was beyond comprehension how evil this creature was. He didn't know what it was, he didn't understand how it could possibly exist. All he knew was that it did, and he was terrified.
"Never have suspected me? Why as I told little Sun Tsu all those years ago... that is exactly the point. As for what I am and how I can exist...well the truth is that I'm the thing that gods and goddesses feared, the thing that devoured all other things. I exist to devour the sun, I exist to consume all light and cover the world in darkness. And I love what I do."
Nobody ever heard Pegasus' screams. In fact when the duel between Dalin and Mako ended, everybody simply discovered Duke lying on the ground, soulless. Nobody ever knew who he had dueled or what had become of his opponent. Nobody knew the secret that Pegasus had tried to reveal.
For an ancient evil existed in this false Eden. An evil that lurked within the shadows waiting to devour all light, whether it be natural or artificial. The light of the body, or the light of the soul. All things this thing devours. Ihachi's peaceful paradise was being lurked by something infinitely dark and impossibly evil.
Author's Note: Yes indeed, this is the shortest chapter in ages. I know, but hey, its an update right? And its only a semi-important chapter. Only one part of it is of real importance, and you can guess which part that is right? The part where Dalin kicks ass of course! Or...whatever, you know what I mean.
Original Cards
Pegasus: Disruption of Balance, Effect Cancel
Cards from Vague Anime Arcs: Ocean of Revival(used by Big 2), Prophecy(if you don't remember Pegasus using this to steal Kaiba's Blue Eyes, you're crazy!), Summon Dice(Duke in Doom Arc), Orgoth the Relentless(Duke in Noa and Doom Arcs)