Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Demon Duelist Legacy-World Tour Arc

Chapter 28: Endgame (Part 2)

Rikuo was tired of playing guessing games. "Just spit it out already..."

The helmet of Hellblade fell away...

Sestros smirked and pointed at his warrior. "You can't hurt my creature, for it has a soul....the soul of your hikari!"

Wearing the armor of Hellblade, Daniel calmly watched Rikuo. The boy's eyes glowed crimson, and his hair floated around his head on some unseen wind. "Master Sestros, what do you wish of me?"

Sestros threw back his head and laughed insanely. "What will you do now Rikuo!? You wouldn't dare hurt your light, would you!?"

Hellblade sheathed his swords and stood impassively, his crimson eyes meeting Rikuo's. "I am the best warrior in existence...no single monster can defeat me. My special powers mean that in a one on one battle, I will always win. Can you defeat me?" The question wasn't smug or angry, like expected. It was almost pleading...

Rikuo fell to his knees, the single card that he was holding falling to the ground as it slipped out of his numb fingers. ("I can't...Daniel...I can't hurt you again.") The wolf demon grasped his skull, the fire he had felt but moments before fading away.

Sestros knew he had won...but it just didn't feel right. He needed to see the wolf demon in pain. "Rikuo...let me tell you a little secret that you might find interesting. I bet you think you're all alone in this battle, but actually...the moment this darkness game began, the entire world has been watching." He tapped the side of his skull. "They're all screaming for you to get up and fight. Well, those of them that believe this isn't a trick. The rest don't matter quite as much, eh?" The Torture King chuckled. "Here, let me open the channel, so to speak."

And then Rikuo's mind was flooded with voices, the cacophony of mental sound shattering his thoughts. Giving out one pained yelp, he collapsed to the ground.

Sestros snickered and watched the twitching body of his weapon. "What will you do, Rikuo? Can you save the world, and in the process kill your other half permanently. If you destroy Hellblade, then my life points will most likely go to zero from the strike. Or has the world's voices destroyed your mind too much? Perhaps I should lighten your load a little bit?" His laughter rang out across the darkness.

Hellblade watched Rikuo's pain, and a single tear slid down his cheek, only to be burned away as his armor flared to life with black fire.

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("Is this some kind of Hollywood gimmick?")

("Mommy, I'm scared!")

("This is the end! We're all doomed!")

("I shouldn't have had that last beer, I'm imagining things...")

("Lord, please save us...")

("Damnnit all! That guy's our savior!?")

("Who'd have thought the end of the world would have been over a card game?")

("Please......get up......fight......")

("SHUT UP! GET OUT OF MY HEAD!") Rikuo screamed again and again, trying with all of his remaining might to force the voices to be silent. He may as well have been fighting the ocean itself, because this was the thoughts of the entire human race flowing through his head.

("I could duel better than that guy can!")

("Rikuo...keep fighting! Come on, I know you can do better than that!")

("I'm scared, Yugi...")

("Isn't that the guy that dueled Yugi Moto to a draw?")

("Aw, come on! This is ridiculous!")

("No more...no more...please stop...") The wolf demon curled into a ball, his entire body shuddering as the voices continued to increase in pitch and quantity.

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Sestros tapped his chin with a nail. "Now, I end my turn. So let's see your next draw...or can you even hear me over the voices of the world?"

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("Why's he curled up on the ground like that?")

("He's having a heart attack right now!?")

("#&&#$!!!")

"SHUT UP!!!!!!!!!" Rikuo screamed. His mind was nearly gone again, and this time there wasn't a lifeline for him to grab. He was alone in the world, and there was no way for him to recover if he went insane. ("But...THEY JUST WON'T STOP TALKING!!!")

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Sestros grinned at the vacant look in Rikuo's eyes. The wolf demon had stopped moving completely at this point. ("It's over, and I win.") "Rikuo, you've improved a lot since our last battle, but in the end I am still the better duelist. Whatever hopes you have won't be enough." The darkness flowed around his arms and legs. "In this place, darkness reigns supreme!!"

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("I'm....so...r....") Rikuo's mind continued to slip away. There was almost nothing left of it now, and very soon he'd crack.

"Wishing on a dream that seems far-off,"

"Hoping it will come today,"

The voices started to go silent, the strange music echoing amongst the collective thoughts of the human race. It was such a peaceful sound, that even the darkest soul had to be silent in its presence. ("Rikky...")

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Sestros heard it too, and his head snapped around as he heard the song begin. "Who is that!?" ("I can swear I heard that voice once before!")

"Into the starlit night,"

Rikuo's body had stopped trembling. His shoulders were heaving with the movement of his lungs, which were taking in a huge lungful of air.

"Foolish Dreamers turn their gaze,"

He slowly came to his feet. "Sestros...Unforgivable..."

"Waiting on a shooting star,"

The Torture King roared into the darkness, "Silence! Stop singing!" ("Damn, he's snapping out of it.")

"But...What if that star is not to come?"

"You've hurt so many...and most of all..." Rikuo's hand came up to his deck, and his eyes slowly rose to meet the Torture King's. "...you've harmed my friends!"

Sestros threw back his head, laughing sharply. "You have no friends! You were a heartless killer in your past life and you still are one now!"

"Will their dreams fade to nothing?"

"That was the old me, the one that you perverted with your evil." Kneeling, Rikuo picked up the card he had dropped.

"When the horizon darkens most,"

Sestros snickered, "What makes you different than you were before? You're still the same stuck-up, inconsiderate bastard that you were previously. I don't see any difference."

Drawing, Rikuo closed his eyes. "The difference? This difference is that I gained something I never had before..."

"We all need to believe there is hope,"

"...faith." Rikuo slid the card he had picked up into his duel disk. "I play the ritual magic card Hope of Faith!" His field was surrounded by a halo of light. "This card requires that I sacrifice one monster on my field, so farewell Jinzo!" The green armored humanoid faded away. "And now, I summon the two warriors of Light and Darkness!" A pair of humanoid forms lowered onto his field.

The first form was an armored warrior in black, it humanoid face fair but scowling. Opening its golden-amber eyes, the warrior snapped up his sword. "I am Yami Knight!" (6000/0)

The second form was another armored warrior, but this one in white. Its humanoid face was exactly like the others, except that it had a pair of brown eyes instead of golden ones and it was smiling. "I am Hikari Knight!" (0/6000)

They lifted their swords and touched them together. "And we will destroy the darkness that you have brought to this world!"

Sestros snorted. "How cute, the little weapon brought out a pair of toys for Hellblade to play with."

Hellblade drew his scimitars. "I shall crush you both, insolent fools."

Rikuo slid the final card in his hand into his duel disk. "I end my turn by setting this card face-down on my field. Now, come and try my new warriors on for size, Sestros."

Yami and Hikari Knight lifted their swords, ready to battle.

Sestros shook his head. "How sad, the little dog thinks that he can defeat my ultimate monster. Hellblade has the spirit of Daniel within him, so if you kill him, then you permanently lose Daniel. Therefore...Die!" He drew. "Hellblade, crush the Yami Knight!"

"As you command, my lord!" Hellblade lifted his swords and charged.

Rikuo flipped up his face-down card. "Activate Chain Destruction! This will destroy all copies of one target on the field!"

Sestros stared in confusion at the face-up card. "First of all, Hellblade is immune to magic and trap effects. Secondly, I don't have any other copies of Hellblade Ritual in my deck. Thirdly, how will that help you!?"

Rikuo smirked. "Did I ever say that I was aiming for your Hellblade!? I'm aiming...for you!" A golden chain exploded out of the card and shot right past Hellblade, slamming into the Torture King's chest.

Sestros roared in pain as the chain continued to feed into his body, its multiple lengths disappearing. And then he heard it...the screams as the Chain Destruction destroyed all his million other selves. "How?"

Rikuo motioned to his Chain Destruction card. "Get it now? Now if you lose, you won't have another you to go to. This will be an all or nothing battle for you, Sestros!"

The Torture King tried to stop the chain from digging into him, but it continued to use him as a starting point while it destroyed all of his other selves. "How are you doing this!?"

Rikuo chuckled. "In this duel, each of the effects of our cards is very real. I just readjusted the effect my Chain Destruction."

"But..." Sestros fell to one knee as he felt another thousand of his other selves get destroyed. "How did you know about them!?"

The wolf demon snickered. "I might have been your slave, but I was also your general. I knew all about your little ritual, but I had forgotten about it the first time. This time, the loser truly ceases to exist!" The Chain Destruction finished cutting down the last Sestros soul, and with one metal rattle it exploded. "What do you think of that, my dear 'friend'?"

Sestros stood up and smiled. "That's fine with me! Now I won't have to share the rest of the power with the other copies of myself. And if you haven't forgotten, my Hellblade is about to cut down your Yami Knight! Darkness Blade Strike!" Hellblade roared out a battle cry and slammed his scimitar down....

Only to have his attack stopped by the Hikari Knight, whose sword had disappeared and was replaced by a golden shield. "You shall not harm my brother!"

"What trickery is this!?" Sestros was getting tired of Rikuo always pulling out these situations. "How can they defend each other? And why isn't your Hikari Knight dead instead!?"

Rikuo motioned to his two knights. "When Yami Knight is on the field, Hikari Knight cannot be destroyed in battle, and since I summoned him in defense mode, that means I'll survive your attack."

"That doesn't explain how he blocked my attack," Hellblade said, though like before, he didn't seem angry.

"Ah yes, that would be because of Yami Knight's special ability. When he is attacked, I may redirect that attack to my Hikari Knight if it is on the field." Rikuo smiled. His two knights were smiling too. "Anything else, Sestros?"

The Torture King growled and slid a card into his duel disk. "I set this card face-down and end my turn." The card appeared next to his first face-down one. "I suggest you figure out a way to defeat Hellblade soon. You only have two draws left." Smiling, Sestros motioned to his Ultimate Warrior. "Get ready Hellblade, he may attempt to attack."

Hellblade re-drew his swords and nodded. "Yes sir."

Rikuo hated hearing his other half obeying Sestros. "Draw!" He gave the card a glance, and then slid it into his duel disk. "I set one card face-down on my field. End turn!"

"What's the matter Rikuo? Was your draw not good enough? Maybe mine will be better, eh?" Smirking, Sestros drew. "I set this trap card face-down on my field, and then...." He feigned embarrassment. "Whoops...did I say what type of card it was? How stupid of me...oh well, I may as well activate my face-down card to make up for it! Reveal Anger Strike!" The card flipped up and a red haze sprayed out of it, enveloping Rikuo's field. "Now your Yami Knight must attack my Hellblade, and since you're the one attacking, his special ability is useless!"

Yami Knight drew his sword slowly, his golden eyes glowing bright red. "Hellblade...I will kill you!"

Hikari Knight leapt in the way, grabbing onto his counter-part's shoulders. "Don't let him control you, brother!"

Sestros chuckled as Yami Knight showed past his counterpart and charged across the field. "He doesn't have a choice in the matter!"

Hellblade slid into a fighting position. "Come then, and meet your end." His voice sounded sad.

Rikuo grimaced as his Yami Knight was charging to his death.... ("And mine!")

To be continued...

Next Chapter: Endgame (Part 3)