Chapter Three: The Threat Unveiled
The time is night. All is dark as is usually the case when it's night time. Yugi Motou is busy trying to sleep, but something strange is happening in his dreams. At this moment he has met the Dark Magician Girl, a Duel Monster, who has taken him by the hand and led him to the world of the Duel Monsters.
He has seen many things and had quite a number also explained to him. Now he stands in front of three dragon shapes, each one frozen in ice, sealed by a single sword. According to the Dark Magician Girl, these were the Legendary Dragons whose powers could be used to turn back the tide of darkness.
Each one was intended for use only by one of the Legendary Warriors, and that Yugi was one of them. With this certainty in place, he took hold of the sword and started to pull. Yet despite his greatest efforts he was unable to pull it free. After some thought the form of the two Yugis split, and together they managed to free the sword and the dragon.
When they awoke there was a strange sound from outside. They rushed out and found a dark dragon-like shape in the sky, pulling things into it. Suddenly a light burst from his deck, and drawing a card he discovered the form of the greenish-blue dragon that he had freed. Without knowing what he was thinking he spoke its name, invoking its power. "Timeus...."
Light erupted from the card and from it formed the mighty shape of the greenish-blue dragon now known as Timeus. It let out a ferocious roar and flew into the sky, igniting its power against the dark power of the shape above. With a great effort Timeus managed to push the darkness back, and then it returned to Yugi's card. He stared at it happily and shook his head in wonder. "The power of the Legendary Dragon Timeus....amazing." XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
The next day Yugi and his friends received a tape from Pegasus, inviting them to America where they would discuss some of the things that were going on. So, within a day's time they all packed up, made last minute goodbyes, and then departed on an airplane headed for San Francisco, secretly followed by Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Kaiba sneered as he thought over Pegasus' invitation. Pegasus wanted him to come to Duelist Kingdom so that they could duel. Kaiba had discovered that it was Pegasus and Industrial Illusions that was buying up Kaiba Corporation's stock, all for the purpose of getting Kaiba to duel.
He turned to his lackey and shouted. "Isona, prepare the jet. We're going to Duelist Kingdom." Isona nodded and left the room to make preparations. Grabbing up his deck case with the DD2 inside, he pulled on his purple overcoat and called out to Mokuba. They had things to do, and they would be doing them soon.
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Earlier at Industrial Illusions Headquarters, Pegasus was standing by the window, his eyes closed as he felt the breeze from outside blow across his face. It was whipping the curtains about, but he didn't mind. He just wanted to relax a little before Yugi and his friends arrived. Then the serious discussions would start.
He opened his eyes to find a familiar figure standing by the windows, the curtains blowing around her. He smiled slightly, rather surprised to see her. He had been expecting someone, but not her, not her at all. "How unexpected. I suppose you're here for the reasons I think you are?" The woman nodded and raised the strange duel disk on her arm, extending it into full position. He shrugged and picked the duel disk on his table up and attached it to his arm.
"So be it. You know its sad. I've actually been designing new cards that you would like quite a bit, but if I go, then they'll never be created. Oh well. You can't have everything can you?" And so the duel began. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"My lord, the one you wished to speak to." Raphael made a sweeping motion with his arm and Drake stepped forwards, staring at the long bluish hair of the man standing in front of him. The man slowly turned, revealing his features which included eyes of two different colors, much like Kai's. He smiled slightly and walked down a few steps until he was only a few feet from Drake. In his hand he held two things that Drake couldn't see.
"Ah yes, Daisuke Ihachi. Your past has great significance, but that isn't why you are here. You are here because you can provide something I might want, and I can provide something you might want." He smiled slightly as he spoke and then brushed past Drake, heading to a corner where there was an alcove waiting. He stopped at the alcove, fiddling with something.
Drake turned towards the taller man, brushing a lock of hair out of his eyes. He glanced towards the door, where beyond it Serenity waited. Varon and Amelda were waiting out there, keeping her from coming in. He didn't know what to expect, but for some reason he had a vaguely bad feeling about this new guy who seemed to be the leader. "And what exactly do you have that I want?"
The man smiled and turned around, holding up a picture of a very familiar person. Drake's eyes widened in shock and then he closed them, getting himself in check. "With your cooperation I can assist you with this problem. Of course, it isn't merely your cooperation I require, but your success in a single task that I might set for you. Should you fail, well then things won't go exactly as you might hope." He casually tucked the picture back into the alcove and then approached Drake.
"Of course, the skills that you possess revolve around dueling, so though you have proven your skills to others I require proof of your skills. Therefore you will duel a person of my selection. You will duel the last and strongest of my soldiers, Raphael." He gestured to the large blonde haired man who had been Drake's escort. Raphael gave him a brief nod and then walked over to another alcove and pulled two objects from it.
Raphael placed his Doom Slider on his arm and inserted a deck, allowing it to unfold. It slid around and formed itself into a long curved platform much like that of a normal duel disk, only it tapered into a point. "This is your last challenge before becoming part of the Doom Organization." Drake wasn't necessarily a genius, but the name Doom Organization didn't have a positive ring to it. And these were the people who were buying up KC stock? (RLP: 4000)
Drake grimaced but activated his own Doom Slider, watching as it slid into place. He inserted his deck and watched as the counter worked its way up to full. "Sheesh, this is kind of stupid. I doubt this guy is any good, after all, if he was why would you need me? So Raphael, who will go first?" (DLP: 4000)
Raphael drew five cards from his deck, signifying that it would be Drake who started things off. The punk duelist accepted this and drew six cards, starting the duel off. He surveyed his cards and then selected the ones he wanted to use. "I play one card face down. Now I summon Ghost Sorcerer(1700/1700)!"
The creature that appeared was a slightly faded image of a man in blue robes, holding a silvery staff in one hand. The handsome features were obscured slightly by how faded it was. This monster was the ghost of a deadly sorcerer, and he had great powers. This monster would show Raphael what he was made of. "I end my turn!" Raphael nodded and added a card to his own hand.
"My first card is the permanent magic card called Magic Power of the Pure Graveyard. Its effect will be revealed later. Next I summon Back-up Guardian(500/2200) in defense mode, and equip it with Shooting Star Bow-Ceal!" A blue demon appeared, crouching in defense mode. Then shining from the sky came a bow with a single arrow on a pedestal. The demon picked it up and placed it in its hands. Nearby was the face-up magic card that Raphael had activated.
Drake recognized the type of card that Raphael had played. Shooting Star Bow-Ceal was a powerful equip card that reduced the equipped monster by one thousand attack points to allow it to attack directly. The only reason for equipping it to the weak monster that was Back-up Guardian was if Raphael intended to summon the bow's counterpart. "I see, a Guardian deck. I've never faced one before and I've heard good things about them. Show me what yours can do."
Raphael placed a single card face down on the field, and then finished his turn. Drake added a card to his hand, giving him a total of five. He looked over his cards and then placed one card down next to his other set card. Then he placed a monster next to his sorcerer. "I summon Ghost Magician(1700/1700) the counterpart to my Ghost Sorcerer! And with them together things will get worse for you!"
The monster was a faded magician in blackish robes, holding a golden staff in the opposite hand that the Ghost Sorcerer was using. It too had the faded image of a ghost, a magician that had long since passed from this world. Its effect might come in handy. "I end my turn at that!" Since he couldn't get past the Back-up Guardian yet he'd have to wait for the time being.
Raphael drew a new card, bringing his hand up to three cards. He selected two of them, keeping one in his right hand as he placed the other onto his field in a monster zone. "I summon Guardian Ceal(1700/1400) to the field since I have its bow already on the field." Drake nodded, his thoughts confirmed as the upright wolf-dragon in red armor appeared, stretching its wings and tail and clutching its small weapon in its large hand. The first true guardian had appeared.
"Now I equip it with Recycled Weapon, increasing its attack strength by three hundred. For my next move I send the weapon to the graveyard from being equipped on Ceal, thereby activating its effect to destroy one monster on the field. I destroy Ghost Sorcerer!" Guardian Ceal gripped the little dagger and then hurled it at the ghost, however instead of piercing the ghost it passed right through.
Drake held up a single card from his hand and smirked. "By discarding a card from my hand I can prevent Ghost Sorcerer from going to the cemetery. Nice try, but you failed anyways." He took the selected card and shoved it into his cemetery slot, dropping his hand down to a total of just two cards. Raphael merely shook his head and held his hand out to his own cemetery slot. A card ejected from it and he added it to his hand.
"If Recycled Weapon goes to the cemetery I can place it back in my hand. So now I equip it onto Ceal once again, and then send it to the cemetery, thereby returning it to my hand to destroy Ghost Sorcerer." Drake grimaced and discarded to protect it, and then was forced to do so again as Raphael repeated the process. The next time Ghost Sorcerer was destroyed since Drake had no cards left in his hand to discard.
"Fine, if Ghost Sorcerer has to go I'll just send Ghost Magician to the cemetery to either special summon a monster or to play a magic or trap card from it. Now I send him to the grave to set one card onto my field!" The Ghost Magician vanished and was replaced by a single face down card, next to Drake's two other set cards. They were all that stood between Drake and Guardian Ceal.
"I equip Guardian Ceal with Recycled Weapon once again, and now I have it attack you directly!" The monster rushed in, extending the dagger to do serious damage. However Drake was ready, and the card he has just set flipped up, revealing an image of the two now gone ghost magic users crossing their staffs together.
"I activate Spell of the Ghost Brothers, returning both of my ghost spellcasters to the field in attack mode and increasing their attack by five hundred each for the duration of the turn. Now Guardian Ceal collides with my Ghost Magician!" The magician blasted the wolf-dragon, starting to shatter it into tiny pieces. Not only that but Raphael would be taking damage from the destruction. (RLP: 3800)
"Activate quick-play magic card, Self Sacrifice! By paying one thousand life points I can keep one monster from being destroyed. So my Guardian Ceal remains in play. Now I place one card face down and end my turn." A single card appeared as Ceal reformed itself, keeping it in the game. Of course Drake didn't quite understand why Raphael would offer up one thousand of his life points just to keep Ceal in play, but then again this was a duelist he had never faced before. (RLP: 2800)
Drake drew another card and then pushed it into one of his m/t slots, taking up another space. "I play Ghost Medallion, which places my Ghost Magician out of play. Now he gains the ability to attack directly, but I can't defend with him either. So now he attacks your life points directly!" The magician unleashed a blaze of faded golden energy at Raphael, only to have it halted as Raphael's set card flipped up.
"Chain with Ravages of Time. This will send a directly attacking monster to the cemetery, and if successful it lets me destroy one magic or trap card on the field." Drake grimaced as his Ghost Magician shattered and he had to place it into the cemetery. Since it had succeeded Raphael selected his rightmost set card to destroy. Drake placed it in the cemetery, a bit frustrated that he had lost Mechanical Magic Mirror without getting to use its effect.
With nothing else to do for his turn, Drake ended, allowing Raphael to draw to start his turn. The large duelist displayed the Pot of Greed card and drew two cards into his hand. He looked them over and then nodded before playing the card. "I play Gravity Axe-Grarl, allowing me to special summon Guardian Grarl(2500/1000) thanks to its effect, equipping the axe on Grarl!" The monster that was summoned was a massive tan skinned reptilian humanoid wielding a shining double-sided axe that had dropped from the sky. He wore green pants and white straps.
"I send the weapon to the grave to destroy Ghost Sorcerer, and then I equip it again. Also, take note that you lost life points at the beginning of this turn. During each of my turns while Magic Power of the Pure Graveyard is in play so long as I have no monsters in the grave you take one hundred damage for each in your graveyard." The Ghost Sorcerer vanished into oblivion, and Drake took a glance at the counter on his Doom Slider. Indeed Raphael had spoken truly. (DLP: 3900)
"Now each of my monsters will attack directly!" Guardian Ceal and Guardian Grarl charged forwards, weapons at the ready as they moved to attack Drake. Ceal slashed at him with its dagger, forcing him backwards and cutting his life points by more then half. However with a monster of three thousand attack strength moving towards him Drake was about to lose unless he did something quickly. (DLP: 1900)
"I activate the Shrink magic card, cutting Grarl's attack strength in half for the duration of the turn!" His quick-play card went off and a half-sized Grarl struck him with its toy axe. The strike was nothing at that size, but the damage was still significant. He was going to be left with hardly any life points whatsoever. (DLP: 400)
The blue haired man looked on at the duel and shook his head in disappointment. "Perhaps I was wrong. Perhaps you aren't a duelist of strength. Your reputation must be falsely earned. Defeating my other two soldiers must have been luck." Drake shot the taller man a glare and snapped a card off of his deck. He didn't even bother to look at it as he spoke to the blue haired man.
"I earned my reputation by using my true strength, and it's a reputation that I deserve. No matter what you believe I do have that strength, and I'll use it. I won't lose this duel, even if it means giving up what you consider victory. Now take your move Raphael, take it and lose." With that said he placed the single card onto his duel disk, making it the only barrier between him and Raphael's two powerful monsters.
Raphael glanced at the field and then waited as Drake spoke up again. "Tell me Raphael, are you a duelist of honor?" Raphael nodded his head once, and then Drake continued speaking. "Then why do you serve someone as creepy as this guy over here? A true duelist of honor doesn't bow and scrape, no matter the circumstances." (DLP: 200)
"My reasons are my own, and only if you prove yourself worthy will you earn the answers to them. Now I shall show you my honor in the only way I know how. I will defeat you at full strength. I play Holy Goddess Sword, and then since I have no monsters in my grave I can special summon Guardian Airtos(2500/2000). She gains 300 attack from the sword, but her other effect can't activate in this case. Guardian Airtos, attack him directly to end this duel!" The mighty angel warrior jumped into the air and at Drake, swinging her blade straight down at the punk duelist. Drake awaited the killing blow with a confident look on his face. Then at the last moment he pressed a button on his Doom Slider.
"Reveal trap card, Certain Defeat! Using this card I will give up my victory but I will keep myself from defeat! Certain Defeat turns your attacks this turn into direct attacks on both players!" The attack landed and Drake was shoved backwards, a full force of a nearly three thousand point attack nearly knocking him off his feet. Raphael staggered backwards under an equal force that struck him without a visible source. Both duelists stared at each other with a smirk on their features as life points counted down. (DLP: 0, RLP: 0)
The tall blue haired man clapped as the two of them powered down their duel disks. Then he handed a blank card to Drake and smirked widely. "You have proved yourself Daisuke. Now there is but one more test. All you have to do is catch this stone, and then you'll gain the power of the Doom Organization, and you'll be ready to get what you desire." The man tossed the stone into the air and Drake reached out, his muscles straining against magical forces that tried to push him back. Despite their best efforts he snatch it out of the air, and was astounded as a green glow burst up around him.
"Congratulations Daisuke, you've gained the power. Now allow me to introduce myself. I am Dartz. Now I will tell you what your mission will be." Drake glanced out the door where Serenity awaited and then back to Dartz. He could either choose not to accept and then return home with Serenity, or he could accept and potentially get the thing that he wanted above all others. Grimacing he looked up at Dartz and made his decision.
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It was a nice bright day out in Domino City Park, and people were enjoying themselves, regardless of outside circumstances such as monsters that could approach at any time. The monsters had been quiet and hadn't shown up at all since a giant dragon had appeared in the sky the night before.
Amongst all these people were two who were walking nearly shoulder to shoulder, talking and occasionally laughing. They weren't completely shoulder to shoulder since the older of the two, the guy, was roughly half a foot taller then the girl. He wore his school uniform, not having bothered to change after he left school.
The girl wore a sun dress in a floral pattern that made her look quite pretty. Her brown hair was loose and flowing past her shoulders and her blue eyes sparkled in the sun as she laughed at something her companion said. Her name was Autumn Kurai, and her companion was Ryu Shigeru. They were talking idly and just enjoying the sun.
During the Battle City competition Autumn had given Ryu her number so that the older boy could call her if he wanted to. Ryu, having liked her for a while, decided to take her up on the offer and had called her to arrange a date just about a week after Battle City ended. She had accepted, and they had been dating ever since.
Ryu was aware that there had been another girl who had shown interest in him, but he had seen her as sort of a sister. Hinata Donovan was the younger sister of a boy who had been in a gang with him. The other boy had died, and for a while Hinata had blamed Ryu until she learned the truth of what happened. Feeling that he owed her a debt, Ryu had always sought to protect her whenever she was around. She of course had left slightly after Battle City to return home.
"And I saw that there were three holes and I couldn't help but looking." Autumn laughed as he continued the silly story he had been telling. This date was just a simple one. Neither had been able to think of any movies that were out that they wanted to see, and it was too early for dinner, so Ryu had taken her out for a coffee and a walk in the park. It was also fun just to watch some of the people who were dueling in the park.
Most of them were amateurs, and though he had primarily been one for quite some time, he had still been a Battle City Finalist, boosting his world rank. Of course the last time he had checked there were only a few thousand registered duelist who had a lower rank then he did, but that was still a few thousand. Unfortunately there were nearly eighteen thousand registered duelists in the entire world.
His rank fell just below that of thirteen thousand, meaning that there were nearly thirteen thousand duelists in the world who were ranked better then he was. Autumn on the other hand was a relatively high ranked duelist not only because she had achieved Best Four in Battle City, but because of her placing in other tournaments. Since she was ranked one hundred and forty-second on the scale, she had decided to assist Ryu in building his deck into a powerful force.
Practice duels with her and against Yugi and Joey at school had vastly improved his dueling skill. He still got creamed every time he faced any of those three, but it was certainly better than it had been before Battle City. In a single duel, not using the Super Advanced Rules, Drake had creamed him without losing a single life point. And that was without direct attacks.
Their conversation came to an abrupt halt when a man in jogging clothes and a bag over his shoulder stepped out in front of them. He was a very average looking man, about six feet in height with gray eyes and brown hair. "You and I are going to duel. It is a necessity of both you and I." Autumn quirked an eyebrow in surprise and Ryu started to protest. However the man completely ignored him, his eyes locked on Autumn's. Autumn could feel in her heart the reason that she was being challenged, though she couldn't put it to words. It was like something inside of her was trying to tell her. She had her deck in her pocket, but she didn't have a duel disk.
"I'll duel you, but I don't have a duel disk." The man shrugged and grabbed the pack that was hanging off of his shoulder. He opened it up and pulled out two duel disks, tossing both to the two others. Ryu and Autumn caught theirs and attached them, not quite sure what was going on. Ryu stepped back slightly as Autumn slid her deck into the slot and activated the duel disk. (ALP: 4000)
"I am called Tobaroshi, and I shall defeat you, for it is my purpose in life. Now let's duel!" He took another disk out of the bag, revealing a pure black disk of the same type. He slid it onto his arm and activated it, inserting his deck as he did so. As soon as he had drawn his five cards, he held up six fingers and then pointed to Autumn. (TLP: 4000)
Autumn drew her opening hand and then drew another card, starting things. She looked over her hand and decided that she would start the duel off slowly. "I play a monster in defense mode and set a single card face down. End turn!" The two cards appeared in front of her, one horizontal and the other vertical. Then it was time for Tobaroshi to start off.
As soon as Tobaroshi drew, Autumn chained with her trap card. "Activate Drop Off!" Tobaroshi shrugged and inserted the card into his cemetery slot. Then he selected two cards from his hand and loaded them into the duel disk, watching as they shimmered into view right in front of him. They were face down cards.
"Now I summon Swordsman of Landstar(500/1200) and end my turn." The little pale faced swordsman was summoned to the field, offering a bare minimum force against whatever Autumn might use. Most duelists wouldn't use a weak monster like that at all unless they had some sort of plan to trap the opponent or they ran dice cards like Joey Wheeler did.
Autumn started off with another card to her hand, and then she picked up the monster she had on her field and flipped it into attack mode. The field shimmered as endless stories of books appeared to surround them, revealing that her monster was Royal Library(0/2000). "Now I summon Gearfreed the Iron Knight(1800/1600). Did you know that Royal Library gains a magic counter for each card played, and by offering up three counters from it I can draw a card?"
She smirked as she took another card from her hand and displayed it to her opponent, revealing a fancy dagger that was an equip card. "Now I'm going to defeat you in a single turn using this magic card and the two monsters on the field. By equipping my dagger to the library I can gain a magic counter, but because it would be on Gearfreed it would be destroyed. When the dagger is destroeyd equipped I can put it back in my hand. In this way I'll draw every card I need to defeat you in this single turn. I equip Gearfreed with Butterfly Dagger-Elma!"
Tobaroshi smirked right back and motioned to one of his face down cards. It flipped up revealing a Swordsman of Landstar and a Kuriboh ganging up on a Buster Blader. "Activate trap card, Power of the Meek. This lets any monsters with one thousand or less attack points have a battle phase during your turn. So Swordsman of Landstar will attack your Royal Library!" The swordsman moved in and slashed it apart using its tiny sword. With that dead, Autumn's loop combo couldn't be completed. (ALP: 3500)
"Fine, then Gearfreed will attack and destroy Swordsman of Landstar!" The metal warrior raised its bladed arm and then charged straight at the little guy, its blade at the ready. Tobaroshi chained by activating his trap card, the Skull Dice card. The die bounced down and skipped about, determining what would happen. If the die landed on a three or less then her knight would win. If it landed on a four or higher then her knight would be destroyed.
Tobaroshi smirked again as the die stopped, showing six points proudly to the sun. "With a six your knight's attack power drops to a measly three hundred, making it easy money for my swordsman. Swordsman of Landstar, counterattack!" The little fellow cheered as the knight's power dropped rapidly, allowing the swordsman to cut straight through it, and destroy it completely. (ALP: 3300)
Autumn grimaced and loaded two cards into her duel disk, completing her turn. It was embarassing to not only have one of her loops defeated by an amateur, but also to have luck end up on the opponent's side and have both of her monsters eliminated in one turn. As soon as she was done, Tobaroshi drew a card and looked at it. "I told you that it was my purpose to defeat you. You didn't listen. I can't go against my purpose, or else nothing will matter. You cannot defeat me, for I must win, and you must lose! Before this duel is over you will learn your place, and your purpose."
He glanced at the card he had drawn and then slipped it into one of his magic zones, activating it's effect. As soon as the card's image appeared on the field Autumn knew she was in trouble. This wasn't going to end well at all, that was for sure. Tobaroshi's magic card could get rid of her advantages. "I play Sphere of Destruction, which lets me destroy all magic and trap cards on the field by discarding a single card from my hand!"
He deposited his card and then watched as black metal sphere emerged from the magic card and shot towards Autumn's set cards. It exploded, nearly knocking Autumn off of her feet and blasting her two set cards into oblivion. "Now Swordsman of Landstar attacks directly!" The little fellow attack her, forcing her backwards by a little bit and dealing a decent amount of damage. (ALP: 2800)
"The card I discarded was Repayment of Losses, so I get to draw a card now. And the card I've drawn will show you the kind of power that allows me to succeed in my purpose. Learn the meaning of true power as I play the Seal of Orichalcos!" Autumn narrowed her eyes at this, not recognizing the name of the card. She let out a cry of surprise as a green circle shot down from the sky and landed around them.
Beneath her she could see a green line moving until it had completed a six pointed star. Then a blaze of green power surged throughout the entire seal, washing over Autumn and Tobaroshi, and blasting Ryu onto his back outside of the seal. Autumn was shocked at what was going on. Tobaroshi just laughed at her. "The seal has granted me and my monsters dark power, increasing my strength and my swordsman's. Ryu was expelled because only the chosen duelists can be inside a sealed duel. And best of it all, the loser of a sealed duel loses their soul. That is the true meaning of this duel. You will understand the true meaning of life, because unless you gain your purpose and win this duel, you will be lost forever!"
Autumn groaned, realizing just how trapped she was. If Tobaroshi was telling the truth then to win this would be the same as taking his soul...but to just give up would be like offering up her own soul on a silver platter. She was a duelist, so she wasn't going to just surrender. "I start my turn by playing Cost Down to reduce all monsters in my hand by two levels!" She deposited the necessary card into her cemetery to pay for Cost Down's effect, and then she took her last remaining card.
"I summon Gilfar Demon(2200/2000) in attack mode! Now, Gilfar Demon, destroy Swordsman of Landstar!" The demon flapped its wings and then unleashed a blast of flame that consumed the swordsman completely. The damage was going to be very severe, so Autumn was about to pull ahead in this duel. By five hundred points no less. (TLP: 2800) "What happened? There should have been five hundred more damage!"
Tobaroshi smirked and took one of the cards from his hand. "Well it's simple. The seal grants my monsters dark power, increasing their attack by five hundred and making them dark types. Making it better since you destroy my Swordsman of Landstar I can now special summon Swordmaster of Landstar(1900/1400) from my deck! Normally this level five requires a sacrifice, but you helped me out!" Autumn had no more cards to play, so her turn was over.
"I set one magic or trap card, and now I destroy Gilfar Demon!" His newest monster, a much taller version of Swordsman of Landstar wielding a curved blade, zipped across the field and sliced her demon in half. It shattered into holographic dust, and Autumn took the damage. However she equipped her demon to the Swordsmaster to decrease its attack power. (ALP: 2600)
"Though my turn is now over, I want you to know that your efforts to decrease my landstar's attack strength are pitiful. When it destroys a monster in battle it gains six hundred attack points, meaning you just managed to even things out and let it settle at twenty-five hundred attack points." Autumn looked up at the monster and saw that her opponent was right, and the swordmaster had actually increased its attack power.
"I set a monster in defense mode and end my turn!" That was all she could do, so she just had to hope that Tobaroshi had no way past it. This was getting bad, and she didn't have any way out of it. What the heck was wrong with this guy that he would risk his own soul for some purpose of his and some supposed purpose of Autumn's? Autumn wouldn't do something so stupid as that....so it just didn't make any sense.
"I set one card face down, and then I attack your set monster!" Tobaroshi's monster cleaved through the set creature of Autumn's revealing a gravestone with a giant hand reaching down. Suddenly Gilfar Demon reappeared on the field, and Swordmaster of Landstar gained eleven hundred attack points, sending it shooting up to thirty-six hundred.
"You flipped the monster form of Call of the Haunted(300/300) which lets me special summon a monster from my cemetery." Tobaroshi shrugged and finished his turn, confident that his mighty landstar could easily defeat any creature Autumn might use. Gilfar Demon had been no threat in the first place, so it wouldn't be a threat now.
"I play Pot of Greed!" She slipped two cards from her deck, noting that Tobaroshi's hand moved towards one of his set cards when she played Pot of Greed. However he chose not to use it at that moment. "I set one magic or trap card and summon Gear Golem the Moving Fortress(800/2200) in defense mode!" A giant machine covered with spikes rolled onto the field using its treads and steadied itself for an attack.
Tobaroshi drew and then immediately slapped the card down. A little pasty faced creature similar to the Swordsman of Landstar was summoned, only it was dressed as a knight with a javelin. "I summon Knight of Landstar(900/1500) to the field. Then I have Swordmaster of Landstar destroy Gilfar Demon!" The blade wielder swung his weapon and cut down the demon, unleashing its spirit onto the field. Autumn smirked and took the card, ready to use it.
"Now I equip Gilfar Demon in spirit form to my own Gear Golem the Moving Fortress! And since its attack drops to three hundred I'll chain with Card of Lost Will, allowing me to draw five cards!" She smirked and pulled free five cards, replenishing her hand. Ryu cheered on the outside of the seal, happy that she was displaying her skill as a champion duelist. With more options she'd be able to turn this whole thing around, and maybe destroy the seal and save this wierdo.
"I chain with Compensation of Greed! Since you drew cards out of your draw phase, in this instance I can draw the same amount from my deck! With these five cards I've got as many options, so I set one trap card and play a permanent magic card called Landstar Dream. Then I end my turn!" One face down card appeared, followed by a face-up card depicting Swordsman of Landstar with a dream bubble of it riding a giant horse.
"I place two magic or trap cards face down, and play Grave Sacrifice, removing Royal Library and Swordsman of Landstar from play to summon Barrel Dragon(2600/2300)! Then I activate its special ability!" She tossed three coins into the air and watched as they all came down as heads, letting the Barrel Dragon load up and unleash a barrage of high powered bullets at Tobaroshi's stronger landstar monster.
"By discarding a card from my hand Landstar Dream allows me to protect my landstar from being destroy! And I also activate a permanent trap called Deteriorate! When I discard a card from my hand you take three hundred points of damage!" The bullets phased right through Swordsmaster of Landstar, leaving it intact. And worse yet, Autumn lost life points from it. (ALP: 2300)
"I attack Knight of Landstar with my Barrel Dragon!" The machine-dragon unloaded another barrage of bullets at the smaller monster. Again Tobaroshi discarded a card from his hand, leaving him with just one card left. Since he had discarded Autumn took damage, and that was all that could be done for the moment. (ALP: 2000)
"I play Mirage of Nightmare and end my turn." The permanent magic card appeared, and then it was Tobaroshi's turn. The duelist drew a card and watched as Autumn drew till she had four cards in her hand. Tobaroshi looked at his two cards and grinned, knowing what he could do. This would work quite well, so long as Autumn's traps didn't stop him.
"I set one card and have my landstar attack Barrel Dragon!" The warrior took off and swung at the machine, only to be stopped when both of Autumn's cards flipped up. Tobaroshi didn't recognize either of them, but by the confident look on Autumn's face, neither of them boded well for him.
"I activate Shield of Life which lets me discard my entire hand whenever I want to in order to negate an attack on me. My other card is also permanent, and its called Rejoining Army. Whenever I discard cards to pay for a cost they get returned to my hand immediately afterwards. So I discard my four cards and then get them back, negating your attack." A barrier sprang up and stopped the monster's attack, forcing him to end his turn with only one card left over.
As soon as Autumn's turn started she was forced to discard four random cards from her hand as a cost of Mirage of Nightmare, but they were returned to her hand just moments later, giving her a hand of five cards total. "I use Barrel Dragon's effect!" The three coins flipped up, and Tobaroshi grimaced as two of the three came up as heads. The dragon used its ability, but Tobaroshi discarded to save it and damage Autumn. (ALP: 1700)
Autumn declared an attack on Knight of Landstar, and watched as the bullets passed right through it. Tobaroshi laughed and displayed a card from his hand that he discarded to stop the attack. "The card I discarded to stop the effect was Repayment of Losses, so I had another card to discard. Looks like my landstars and my life points are safe for another turn, but your life points certainly aren't." (ALP: 1400)
"I play Renew Battle! By discarding my hand I can initiate battle once again, and of course I get my hand back as soon as the battle starts!" This time a bullet ripped right through Knight of Landstar, and since it was much weaker then Barrel Dragon it was easily destroyed. Not only that but the damage was quite heavy for Tobaroshi, making things much more even in the area of life points. (TLP: 1600)
"I chain with Last Will and Testament, letting me draw five cards from my deck!" Autumn nodded as her opponent drew a new hand, giving him more options for which to work with and discard with. With nothing else left to her, Autumn simply placed two of her cards down on the field and ended her turn.
Tobaroshi drew again, giving him a total of six cards. He grimaced and looked up at Autumn before slipping his card into play. "You don't get any of it do you? This duel...its all that I am. I learned early in life that it is my purpose in life to serve the greater good of man by ridding the world of thieves and decievers like you using the power of Orichalcos. They taught me that, and I'll prove that it's true. I'll force you to discover your own lack of a purpose, thereby destroying your life! To do so I play Genocide Bomb!" By the effect of the card he payed one thousand life points to destroy every card on the field. But he was able to discard a card from his hand to preserve his Swordmaster of Landstar and hurt Autumn again. (ALP: 1100)
"Swordmaster of Landstar(4200/1400) will attack you directly to finish you off!" With nothing in the way the blade wielder rushed across the field and slashed at Autumn, hitting her and slamming her against the barrier of the seal. She cried out in pain and slid down to her butt, staying there for several seconds. The other thing that was staying where it was happened to be Autumn's life points.
"But how is it possible? You don't have any cards on the field to protect you, I saw the attack hit, and you don't have a card in the graveyard that can stop an attack. So how?" Autumn grimaced as she forced herself onto her feet. Pressing a button she ejected her graveyard and displayed it to her opponent, revealing one of the cards that was on the top of it.
"Despite all your tough talk you're nothing but an amateur. You didn't realize that when you go to destroy cards, the player can still chain with those cards. So when you activated Genocide Bomb I chained it with Waboku. Since Waboku's effect pervades the field for the whole turn after activation my life points weren't damaged by your attack." Tobaroshi cursed wildly and then calmed himself, preparing to continue.
"I play one card face down, and then I'll play this card: Forceful Removal! For every card in my hand that I discard you have to discard one of your cards. So I'll dump my remaining two cards to force you to get rid of your entire hand! Now you've got no options and no field, so there's no way you can win! In this next turn you must either learn your purpose, or admit purposelessness. If you do that, I'll destroy you in the next turn." He finished his turn at that, and he was completely confident that he had it won. And that was the way it seemed to Ryu, because he couldn't see a way out of the mess.
Autumn shook her head in sadness, barely able to look at her opponent. "I didn't want it to come to this, I never wanted to hurt you at all. I don't understand exactly what you're talking about, but whatever it is it's not worth losing your soul over. I would rather have been your friend if you would have let me. I'll still be your friend if you allow it. Please, let's not fight like this." She walked up to Tobaroshi and extended her hand. He stared at it as if it were a wild serpent.
"You dare to offer such a thing to me you infidel?! You still don't understand do you? Very well then. You have just lost this duel. Now get out of my face and let me finish this duel once and for all!" He slapped Autumn's hand aside, stinging it. Autumn stared at him and shook her head sadly. Finally the young girl walked back to her side of the field, and drew her card. As she did so, all three of them could see the light that was coming forth from it.
Autumn held up the card, seeing only a blank card with a white background that she didn't recognize. Whatever it was, it was starting to gain an image. It was....it was the japanese symbol of friendship.....but she had never seen this card in her entire life. "I play....I play the Heart of Friendship!" The words came unbidden to her mouth, and she placed it into play, somehow knowing how it would work.
A bright white glow erupted from the card and formed a circle around the Seal of Orichalcos, and to Tobaroshi's surprise a blazing white symbol of friendship appeared on Autumn's forehead, much like the symbol of the Seal of Orichalcos blazed upon his. "But....what is this power? I've never seen anything like it!"
"I don't know exactly, but I feel that it's the right thing. It can be played in more than one manner...but now I see what it does in this case. This will allow us to swap monsters, however since I don't have a monster I gain control of your Swordmaster of Landstar. You can summon the first monster on my deck to the field in attack mode. It's a sign of friendship." A card shot out of Autumn's deck and landed on Tobaroshi's duel disk. In a blaze of light a Leaf Fairy appeared, with only a small amount of attack points. Since it was Autumn's creature originally, it couldn't gain dark power.
"I really am sorry Tobaroshi, I never wanted this to happen. But if this is what has to happen, then it is. I don't know what my purpose is, or whether I have a purpose. But I know yours wasn't just to win or lose this duel. Every person is more than just a purpose. Please, I don't want it to end this way. Offer me a way out. That's all I want." From the furious look on Tobaroshi's face, she knew she had said the wrong thing. The man's fists clenched in a sign of pure rage, his entire body trembling from his fury.
"You stupid bitch! All people are is purpose! Without purpose we are absolutely nothing! I have lost this duel, you have taken away my purpose. I have failed at it. Therefore there is only one thing left! With no purpose I have no meaning, so end my life in one attack! That is the only way out of this. Your purpose in this moment is my death, so finish me!" Autumn tore her eyes away from him, eyes stinging from the tears pooling up. This wasn't how things were supposed to be, she wasn't a killer. She just couldn't.
"I....I don't understand any of this. I don't want any of this. The Millennium Staff, the spirits within, or whatever this new power is. I don't want that responsibilty, I don't want to kill you. I just wanted to be a normal girl, is that too much to ask? " A whispered voice rose up in her head, chuckling darkly at her circumstances. It told her the fateful words that she never would have expected. 'If you won't do the necessary thing, then I supose I shall.'
A sudden change came over Autumn, and when it was done her hair was spiked out a bit, and there was a vicious and determined look in her eyes. Ryu couldn't believe what he was seeing. That look was the one she wore when Misuno was in control of her body....and Misuno was ruthless. The dark spirit controlling Autumn sneered at her opponent and thrust Autumn's right hand outwards, palm spread out. "You wish for death to claim you? Then so be it. Swordmaster of Landstar, send this worthless pile of crap straight to Hell!" The warrior cut Leaf Fairy down as if it was nothing, and with Leaf Fairy went the last of Tobaroshi's life points. The Seal of Orichalcos closed in around him, and all that was left was a living corpse, unable to express any feeling. (TLP: 0)
Autumn reverted to her normal self, and collapsed onto the ground, wrapping her arms around herself as she sobbed uncontrollably. Though she wasn't directly responsible for the man's passing, she felt as if she was. Suddenly a pair of arms went around her shoulders, embracing her and offering comfort. They were Ryu's. "It's going to be okay. Whatever is happening....it's going to turn out right. I don't understand this any better than you do, but I do know that together we can't fall."
"You have defeated the first sending. Your purpose has been revealed to you Autumn Kurai. You are the holder of the Heart of Friendship. In time you will come to understand that, to understand your purpose. When you do, you will be ready to understand true purpose as Tobaroshi did, as I do." Autumn and Ryu looked over their shoulders, and saw a man in a pair of khaki shorts and a white shirt standing several feet behind them. There was nothing out of the ordinary about him whatsoever, just like Tobaroshi. There was still something eerie about how normal the two seemed.
Ryu stood, stepping in front of Autumn in order to protect her. He clenched his bare fists and gritted his teeth, ready for a fight. "I don't know who the hell you people are, but if you think you can get away with threatening me or Autumn, you've got another thing coming. I'll knock your teeth out of your head before you can do a damned thing. And all this shit you assholes have spotted about purpose, I don't give a damn about any of that. It's just plain sick and twisted to manipulate people and think people can be tossed aside when they have no purpose."
The normal looking man glanced to the left, and then the right. A few gestures of his hands later, and some people around the park began approaching. Each of them was just as normal looking as Tobaroshi and this fellow were. There was a couple who had just been walking by, an older man who had been feeding pidgeons on a bench nearby, and a man in a business suit who had been passing by. Nothing whatsoever out of the ordinary. "You will go to Hangar 31 at the Domino Airport. There are tickets in the bag Tobaroshi has. Present those tickets and you will have a plane flight awaiting you. It can take you to your answers. If you wish revenge, or anything of that sort, simply follow my directions." He gestured again and the four people started approaching Autumn and Ryu. The older boy raised his fists, preparing for a fight. The four of them walked straight past them and stopped at Tobaroshi. They picked him up and started carrying him inbetween them.
"What are you doing with him?" This was the first time that Autumn had spoken since the duel had ended, and it shocked Ryu how fragile she sounded. He had never heard her like this. It was terrfiying to think that she could break like this, to know that she was vulnerable not just physically, but emotionally. And it was all because of these people that she had been hurt.
"He is a useless shell. He is to be disposed of. It is none of your concern." He started to turn around, but a sudden roar of power stopped his movement, and the movement of the other four. Ryu stared in awe as Autumn stood up, the Millennium Staff appearing in her hand, and the Eye of Ra burning on her forehead. She quietly leveled the staff to point at the man, and offered him a glare that was colder than ice.
"This is the Millennium Staff. It's power, it's purpose is two things. It can move souls between objects easily, and can even heal damage to souls. It's strongest power is that of Soul Obliteration. It would take every ounce of my power to use it, but if I do I can destroy your soul completely. No rebirth, no nothing afterwards. It's the absolute end. That's the ultimate power I possess, the power beyond inflicting death. You're going to leave him for Ryu and I to take to the hospital, or I swear I'll inflict that power upon you." The man stared at her for several seconds, and then he smiled. A calm smile of amusement. Ryu didn't understand how he could be calm in the face of such power and such a threat.
"I am not afraid of ultimate demise. I serve only the ultimate purpose. If I fall, I fall. And my companions will take my body with them to be disposed of, just as Tobaroshi's will be. By all means, inflict that ultimate death upon me if it is your desire." Autumn's eyes widened, and slowly the staff dropped to her side. The man smiled once again, and turned away to continue walking. The others followed him, but Ryu wasn't done with them. Starting off into a run he barreled in between them, swinging his elbow straight into the leader's face. Blood splattered across Ryu's shirt as his elbow bone broken the man's nose.
The others seemed confused by the sudden assault, and he used the confusion to drop them with a series of well aimed blows. The fight was over in a matter of seconds, leaving him as the only one standing. He smirked and cracked his knuckles, proud that he had done as Autumn had wanted without killing anyone. For all their talk these people hadn't been much of a threat. "What a bunch of wimps."
Ryu's eyes went out of focus momentarily as something blurred out in front of him, dropping down from a tree up above. The figure landed in a crouch, it's head staring up at Ryu. It was directly between him and the fallen wierdos. Whoever it was wore a brown robe that covered the entire body, with a head covering as well, including a piece that went over the bottom half of the face, obscuring the person's features from view. Cold eyes stared up at him, but Ryu found himself fixated by the symbol on left breast of the man's robe. The infinity symbol.
"These ones are off limits for you. If you want them, follow the directions given to you. Until we meet again infidel." The figure thrust one hand out, and a blast of wind ripped Ryu off his feet and sent him tumbling end over end past Autumn and to the ground in a heap, face down on the ground. He let out a groan, and then went limp, body unable to move. The brown robed stranger swept his robe around the ground of strangers, and a small tornado formed around them. When it finished there was nothing left of them, not the slightest trace.
Autumn rushed to her boyfriend's aid and helped him struggle into a sitting position. They both sat there for a moment, contemplating what would happen next. Finally Autumn broke the silence, speaking words Ryu never expected to hear from his mouth. "I want to make them pay. I'm going to take that ticket, I'm going to follow those directions, and I'm going to get to the bottom of this." The elder boy stared at her for several seconds, and finally came to a decision. With a single nod of his head, the decision was made. Together they could face any threat. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
A circle of black robed men stood around a strange symbol etched into the dirt beneath them and between them. They were chanting words in a language that man had not heard for thousands of years. Suddenly a burning white light appeared in the center, depicting an image of Autumn Kurai with the symbol of friendship burning upon her forehead.
"So the first Heart of Man has been unleashed. Our sending did quite well to unleash this one, so now we have a target to cross off of our list. Move on to the next one." The image in front of them faded, and they each turned to see a person kneeling before them, a duel disk attached to one arm and a hood drawn over the head.
"Inform the next sending of his target. Inform him that his target is in Tokyo, Japan. Now we will see if our spells told us correctly. Let us see if this next one is the right one." Inside the circle another image appeared, depicting three figures walking through the streets of Tokyo. One was a bronze skinned woman, the next was a tall golden blonde haired man, and following them was a shorter boy with dark hair. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Author's Notes: And that ends this chapter. Cool huh? Hope you all enjoyed it, so now read and review. Oh, if you guess where that line Ryu says during his date with Autumn comes from...you get a cookie.
WolfGeneral: Hehehe, yeah, Drake has got some serious power going on during this story.
Void Templar: Like I said to WolfGeneral, he does have power, and his skills have improved. Actually, there won't be much focus on the Doom Arc events really, it will just coincide with what's going on during the first part of this story.
Time Mage: It was said more than once during the first story that Drake has been involved in street brawling for quite a number of years, he's also stated how much he enjoys it. Read carefully and you'll see that Drake was on the ground when he caught the pipe so couldn't be thrown back, and used the chain to keep it from breaking his hand. Drake got a great opening hand against Amelda, but against Varon his hand was average. It was skill that let him combo his cards to use Varon's strategy against him. (Sorry about this being long, but I was catching up with three reviews.)
Original Cards
Drake: Ghost Sorcerer, Ghost Magician, Spell of the Ghost Brothers, Ghost Medallion
Raphael: Ravages of Time, Recycled Weapon
Autumn: Call of the Haunted(monster form), Shield of Life, Rejoining Army, Renew Battle, Heart of Friendship
Tobaroshi: Swordmaster of Landstar, Power of the Meek, Sphere of Destruction, Repayment of Losses, Compensation of Greed, Landstar Dream, Deterioration, Genocide Bomb, Last Will and Testament, Forceful Removal
Anime Original Cards
Drake: Mechanical Magic Mirror
Raphael: Self Sacrifice, Guardian Airtos, Holy Goddess Sword
Autumn: Grave Sacrifice
Tobaroshi: Seal of Orichalcos, Knight of Landstar
