Urm…can't think of anything interesting to say, so I'll just get right to the story. I'm sure you all appreciate my lack of blabbering…
Part Ten
Seto sat against the trunk of the pine tree. His head hung over to one side, and his eyes were closed. The night breeze carried the soft sound of his breathing.
Delaney kissed his cheek. "Don't ever think that," she said.
"It's true," Seto replied.
She looked him square in the eyes. "You are NOT anything like that. I know what kind of sweet, gentle, kind human being you can be. Don't let what anyone else thinks change who you are.
"But I already have..."
A little gust blew by his sleeping form, gently arousing him from his slumber. His half-opened eyes looked around. He did not like the idea of being torn away from such a sweet dream. Besides, he was exhausted. He did not want to be disturbed until the morning light broke.
It's still night...? His eyes flew open. The Dragon Lair!
His gazed traveled up to the dark sky. The clouds were gone, and the moon was full at its height. He stood up and looked around frantically for whatever might be an entrance. When he couldn't see anything, he put his back against the tree again, and slid down to the ground. His depression made the scraping of his back by the rough bark seem especially pleasant. He sighed heavily.
So much for that idea... How do I get in there? Another wind flew by, pulling some leaves from their harbor on the tree branch. As his eyes followed them, he spied a tiny light coming from behind a rock.
That's it! He walked over to the rock and inspected it for a moment. Then he picked it up and pushed it out of the way. A larger light poured out from a hole in the ground. He put his fingers through the opening and pulled with all his might. The ground shifted, and he pulled what would have been an enormous chunk of earth- had it not truly been a stone door.
There was a staircase that led down into what seemed to be the heart of the earth itself. On each side, torches that had caused the light to shine up were mounted on each wall at regular intervals.
Seto's heart jumped into his throat. Adrenaline surged through his muscles, bracing him for anything he might encounter. He took in a deep breath and started his journey down the winding stairs.
He heard eerie sounds coming from a ways off. Sinister growls and the constant drip, drip, dripping of water. For the first time since he was a little child, he felt his throat tighten with fear and anticipation. Down he went, an endless spiral into the unknown. He tried to calm himself by reminding himself that he already knew what to expect. After all he had programmed the whole thing, right?
After what seemed like a millennium, Seto reached the bottom. He could not even tell how far he was underground. The darkness encircled him, and he could scarcely see a thing, save one. An archway stood tall and menacing in front of him. The dripping noises continued, to the point that the rhythmic dripping started to fray his nerves. This was truly the lair of the beast. Whatever lied within this level was going to be on a mission to destroy him, just because he was trespassing on such a sacred den. Regardless, he gathered up the last ounces of strength and courage he had, and entered the first chamber.
To his somewhat surprise, the sight of a flurry of tiny green Petit Dragons greeted his eyes.
"You have got to be kidding me," he mumbled. What kind of a challenge is this? He pulled a card from his deck.
"Ryu-Kishin!" he called. The pale gargoyle appeared in front of him. One thousand points may be low, but it's plenty to destroy these pests. I'll save my stronger monsters for later. "Attack!" he ordered.
The monster stood and stretched a little, then flew straight up. He dived back down, swiping at a dozen of the little dragons and destroying them.
Seto grinned. This should be a piece of... Huh? He saw something on the ground that he had not noticed before. Several dozen Firegrass plants were anchored to the floor near rocks and such. After his Ryu-Kishin monster finished its attack, the remaining Petit Dragons began growling. On flitted over next to a Firegrass plant, and both were enveloped in white light. Seto watched the transformation before his eyes. The magic card for this chamber was Polymerization!! The two creatures had fused themselves into a Darkfire Dragon. The new monster gave a great roar and released a scorching stream of fire at Seto's monster, which roared in its own right and vanished. The LP count of the deckholder on his wrist beeped softly as it lowered his life points to 1500.
All right then. Maybe this will be a little harder than I first imagined.
At least twenty more of the little dragon creatures followed suit, touching the Firegrass and morphing into Darkfire Dragons.
Correction. This will be a LOT harder than I thought.
He drew a card and growled. The Battle Ox is stronger than these, but it's weak against fire. I'll have to play it in...
"Defense mode," he said aloud.
The one of the flaming creatures snarled and released another jet of flames. Seto shielded his face from the heat. Then his Battle Ox appeared and disappeared just as quickly.
He drew another card. "La Ginn, the Mystical Genie!" he cried triumphantly. "And, the Magic Lamp!" He held up the cards.
"Attack!" The genie obeyed, sending out a multi-colored blast at a few of the dragons, which promptly vanished in a chorus of roars.
There were only three Darkfire Dragons left. All of them suddenly turned on Seto's monster, sending out rivers of blazing flames.
"La Ginn, retreat into the lamp!" Seto ordered. The genie was pulled inside, and the dragon's attacks hit the lamp. Seto grinned as he watched the lamp reflect the creatures' attacks back at them, destroying the remaining monsters.
His La Ginn and Mystic Lamp vanished in a shimmer of light.
Another one of those accursed rules, he thought. Every card that was used in a certain chamber was not allowed to be used in another chamber. So he was going to have to come up with a brand new strategy for each area.
But how do I get there? Looking around he saw that the chamber he stood in was solid all the way around. The only way in or out was through the door he had entered to get there in the first place.
There must be something else I have to do... His thoughts were interrupted by a tiny tinkling sound near his ears.
"Huh?" A tiny little fairy flitted around his head. He followed it with his eyes as best he could as it circled around him repeatedly, and then finally came to a rest on top of his head.
Seto frowned. "Get off me," he said angrily, brushing it away. The fairy flitted away from his head, a look of indignance on its petite face. Then it turned and flew off, through a small crack in the wall that he hadn't seen before.
This must be the way to the next chamber, he thought. He walked over to the wall and looked through the little hole. It was indeed the next chamber, but from what he could see, it was empty.
"Where are the dragons?" he wondered aloud.
The answer came in the form of a squeaking sound, much like that of a baby's toy.
You have got to be kidding me... Baby Dragons? Wait a minute...
He knew that he was going to have much more than just simple baby dragons to worry about. Nevertheless, he couldn't let that stop him. He worked his fingers into the little hole and pulled, moving and opening another stone door.
One level down, four to go.