Chapter Seven: A Rose By Any Other Name
Alternate Title: Duelist of the Roses
Dalin and Kai stopped their walking to sit down in the park. It was currently night, and the park looked quite wonderful illuminated as it was by the moonlight. Neither of the two duelists were quite certain what they would be up against once they found whatever it was they were looking for, but they felt that they were ready. Kai wondered which of them would have to duel, but felt fairly certain if a duel did come up like before, that it would be Dalin this time.
The muscular duelist pulled his deck out of the holder on his hip, and then started flipping through it. He opened his bag and pulled out a large case and opened it, revealing hundreds of cards, all of them face-up. Kai's eyes went wide as he saw some of the cards that Dalin had at his beck and call, and wondered how it was possible. Of course, it might be because of all the tournaments that Dalin had won he had gotten quite a number of rare cards from victory and also gotten a lot of money to purchase cards.
He set his cards out on a nearby table usually used for chess players, and started to place the cards out where he could see them. He was examining each of the cards in order, laying them out in an orderly fashion. Monsters formed the first set of rows, then magic, and then trap. Every once and a while he pulled a card out and replaced it with another card from his deck box. Occasionally he reached into his bag and searched through for other cards.
Kai watched the champion duelist switch a single card space out three or four times before finally settling on the card he wanted. Watching this sort of thing he realized exactly what made Dalin the current King of Duelists and what had given him the power to defeat Kai so easily. Dalin was always prepared, and always changing himself and his deck for each battle. "Your deck is a champion winning deck, don't you have faith in it?"
Dalin didn't look up from where he was editing his deck. However, he still managed to give his companion a response. "I've become the duelist I am today by never stopping to try and improve myself and my deck. I have faith in my own power and that of my deck as it has proven itself to me more than once. Yet I understand the power of variability. By not getting stuck on a single pattern of cards I gain the ability to become a stronger duelist, implementing different sorts of strategies. My primary theme and sub-theme remain the same, but I alter the methods and the cards."
Kai took a moment to think this through, and then decided there was something he wanted to do. Taking up a table across from Dalin he took out his deck and spread it out before him. Finally he reached into his bag and pulled out his smaller box of extras. Then he got to work editing his deck. After about ten or fifteen minutes of this, he came across one of the cards he had placed in his upper-level monster pile. "Buster Blader....the strength you possess allowed me to defeat Kevin, but I can't always rely on your strength or the strength of the Dark Paladin to win my duels. It didn't help me against Drake at all, and despite it's strength....the Dark Paladin just can't keep up."
Sighing he took the Buster Blader and placed it off to the side, and then searched through his cards to find the Polymerization card. Without his Buster Blader in his deck he didn't need it at all, so he'd be able to fill that space with a more useful card. Removing Buster Blader also lowered the number of upper-level monsters he had to three, an easier to handle number. He also took and set aside some of his non-spellcaster monsters, like Fiend Megacyber and Gilfar Demon. They were strong, but they just didn't fit his deck theme.
"If you want to replace the Buster Blader, I suggest not getting rid of Polymerization. After all, there might be a worthy fusion you can use." The bi-eyed duelist looked up at Dalin who had stepped away from his own table to approach Kai. In Dalin's hand was a card, extended out to Kai. Kai reached out and took the card, and brought it in front of his eyes so he could see it. The border was purple, which meant it was a fusion card.
"This card....I didn't even know it existed. You'd give it to me so easily, when it's obviously a rare card?" The older man shrugged his shoulders and returned to his table to continue editing his own deck. He was very casual about it, despite having just given away a very rare card.
"Does it look that card fits my deck? Besides, I have a feeling you and I will need every worthwhile card we have in order to fend off the growing threat. This order is a threat that must be crushed. They think they are enlightened, but in reality it's just delusions." The words about enlightenment brought Kai's mind back to something he had been reading in the book back on the plane. Reaching down into his bag he picked up the book and started flipping through it until he came across one of the parts he had marked.
"Dalin! I just figured something out when you used the word enlightenment. See, in this passage the book says that some of the upper level members of this religion or cult or whatever they are started calling themselves the 'Enlightened Ones'. That's the English translation of it at least. It was when you said enlightened in Japanese that made me make the connection. A similar word in English that means much the same thing as 'enlightened' is the word 'illuminated'." He stopped speaking to take a breath, and noticed the blank look on Dalin's face. Despite the man's intelligence, he apparently didn't know much English, so the connection wasn't made.
"For a long time there's been a group of people bent on creating one world nation, or a world order. Much the same sort of goal that this cult seems to have. They call themselves the enlightened ones, or the illuminated ones. In other words, when thinking of it in terms of Latin like this book is written in, the term could be this: Illuminati. For who knows how long a group of the more powerful men in the world has called itself that, seeking these goals. Supposedly they have their fingers in every political and business pot in the world." He could see it now, the look of realization that was appearing on Dalin's face. He too knew about the Illuminati, or at least the rumors.
"It gets worse than that. The Illuminati are said to be linked with a group called the Free Masons, which have a huge holding in the more upperclass people across the world. Nobody knows how many there are, but they've got lots of power. And then there's the Super Seven, a group of the most powerful men in the world also said to be connected with the Free Masons and Illuminati. One of those men is the American's president, George Bush. If all of these groups are truly connected, and they really are just parts of this one cult....then they practically control the world already, and they could be anywhere." His fists clenched with these words, as he started to remember some of the things that had been said about those groups. About what happened when secrets of theirs were about to be revealed.
"That means they are responsible. These people...they killed my parents because they were getting too close to learning something secret about them. And I'll make sure they suffer for that." Dalin and Kai shared a look of determination at these words, and finally turned back to finish up their deck editing. They had to be in top form, or they would be taken down.
"Well, look at this. A pair of duelists in the middle of a park?" The two duelists looked up at the sound of the voice speaking in English. And it was a strange lilted sort of English, sort of like a few things Kai had heard on TV. Unfortunately he didn't watch much television, so he probably wasn't as up on knowledge about that sort of things as another person would be.
The person who had spoken was a woman, and an attractive one at that. Kai didn't exactly prefer American women, in fact he generally felt that Americans were trouble, but even he could admit she was good looking. She had bouncy curls of reddish-gold hair, and she was wearing a dark red high-necked dress. It wasn't like some of the more evocative dresses that Kai had ever seen, but though it didn't look as if it was designed to be provocative, it was filled very well by her curvy form.
She looked to be about in her mid-twenties, and had a small confident smile etched on her face, making her look as if she was amused by something. She had high cheek bones, but it seemed to suit the way her hair was done up, bouncing down her back as it was. Her sparkling blue eyes also seemed to hold a hint of mirth. Slung across one shoulder was a dainty purse in a floral pattern. Dark red lipstick made her smile take on a hint of sexuality, and the slight tilted angle of her head gave away that she was interested in what they were doing.
She approached them with a walk that surprised Kai. He had seen women walk before, and he had seen some who flaunted themselves when they walked. What she did was....well it was different. It was like she wasn't trying to be provocative but was doing it anyways, like it was second nature to her. She didn't so much walk as she did flow. Finally her flowing walk brought her to the chess table, and she leaned over Dalin's shoulder to look at what he was doing. "Well now, that's certainly quite a number of rare cards sugar."
At the word 'sugar' Kai made the connection he had been missing. This woman, she was what he had heard the Americans call a 'Southern Bell'. Despite her provocative presence, Dalin seemed unaffected. He had stopped shifting around his cards and was now slightly twisted in his seat so he could look at her. "I've done well for myself in the world of dueling. Many of them came as prizes for victory."
"Is that so? Well I happen to be a duelist myself, if not so public of a one. See, I don't go to tournaments, I just have fun playing with friends occasionally. I did go to tournaments when I was about that poppin jay's age, but I stopped after a while. What's your name sugar?" Kai nearly protested at being called a poppin jay, but then he realized that he didn't know what it was. He was good enough at English to know most of what she was saying and understand it well enough, but neither of those words made any sense to him. They probably had something to do with his age....or maybe the way he was dressed.
"I've been told it's Dalin Imaki Sumatin. Unfortunately the source of that information is not very reliable, and is currently dead. That makes asking further questions difficult. In fact, that knowledge is the true reason for my dueling. I duel to discover my past." Kai was actually surprised to hear him so openly say such a thing. If he hadn't been told before hand he probably never would have gotten that information out of Dalin, and especially not so easily. Idly he wondered why Dalin was giving her such a measuring look.
"Splendid. It is truly wonderful to find people dueling for important things in life. Friends, family, loved ones, truth, and even adventures are wonderful reasons to duel. For myself its mostly fun, but on occasion I do duel for other reasons. I'm curious though, if you're done fixing up your deck I'd love it if we could duel. I saw you use angels and I've always wanted to duel an Angel Deck." She gave him a coy smile, slipping into what could be called 'puppy eyes' and poutty lips. Under normal circumstances any male would have had an automatic reaction to said tactics. Dalin was about as affected as a brick would have been.
Dalin rose to his feet and grabbed up his cards, shuffling them together. He collected his extras and placed them back into his card box and side boxes within his bag and then placed them into the bag. Finally he picked up the full deck and extended it to the woman. "I'm willing to duel. Though I'd like to know the name of my opponent." Kai gave Dalin a furious look, which was ignored, and wondered why Dalin had so easily accepted this woman's challenge when they had much more important things to be doing.
She smiled at the question and opened her purse, pulling out a deck of cards. She extended it to Dalin and the two exchanged their decks, shuffling them as swiftly as they could. The appraising eye that she gave Dalin's super speedy shuffling became a slight curtsy as if in respect. "I'd be honored to duel someone so courteous as yourself. Now sugar, I've got to keep up on manners and introduce myself don't I? I'm Rose Walker, from Georgia."
They handed their decks back and then started to go set themself down at the chess table so they could set up their decks and start dueling. However, before she sat down she snapped her fingers as if remembering something and then turned to Kai. "Sugar, I've never bothered to buy one of my own since they happen to be difficult to come by in America, so I was wondering if I could borrow your dueling disk? It'd be ever so wonderful if I could have chance to duel using one. I've seen a few duels that way and they are so wonderfully real that I just have to try it." Kai shrugged and took his duel disk off his arm and then handed it to her.
"The little button at the bottom adjusts the size, and that button right near the life point counter will activate it and launch the projectors. Now, I'll just step over here and let the two of you duel." She gave Kai another smile and then adjusted the disk on her arm. Then she snapped her deck in and pressed the button that Kai had indicated, unfolding the disk and launching the projectors. On the other side Dalin did the same, and the duel was on. (DLP: 4000, RLP: 4000)
"Ladies first, so I'll take the opportunity to start this little duel off. I'm going to start off by playing this little number, Devil's Snare! The effect of this card lets me shuffle one card from my deck into yours face-up. When you draw it you take one thousand points of damage. Of course you might never draw it, but it should still make things interesting won't it?" Dalin smiled slightly and approached her. He took out his deck and handed it to her.
After some searching through her deck she found the card she wanted about half-way into it. She took his deck and inserted it in face-up, and then proceeded to shuffle the deck for several seconds. Once she was satisfied with what she had done she returned the deck to Dalin and allowed him to return to his former spot on the playing field. "Now I set one monster in defense mode and one card face down behind it. End turn sugar." XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
At about this moment another duel was beginning, one between Joey Wheeler and the Doom Soldier called Varon. But that wasn't the only thing going on at the time. Ryu and Autumn were now exiting the limo that had been set up for them, and following the driver to the final location where they would receive further information.
Ryu grimaced as a gust of wind brought a familiar figure into view. The shorter man in the brown robe who had blasted him aside so easily was now right there. "You? What do you want? A duel?"
The brown robed man chuckled and extended his hand, which held a Duel Monsters card. Ryu snatched it away and read the name at the top. It said 'Final Destination', and it was a plain card, with an image of an island with some sort of weird palace on it or something. At the bottom instead of having an effect on it there was merely some numbers. "What the heck is this?"
But he was too
late, the man was already gone, vanished in the wind. The limo driver
finally spoke up, bringing Ryu and Autumn's attention back to him. "If
you'd follow me sir and madam, I can lead you to where you can find a
path to this location. From there on you must go onwards by yourself."
The two exchanged glances, and then started following him. Sooner or
later they'd find out what was going on.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Now it was Dalin's turn, and he drew his sixth card to start off with. He didn't know what card she had shuffled into his deck, nor did he know what sort of deck he was dealing with. She knew he used an Angel Deck, but that wasn't a huge help to her. Devil's Snare wasn't a card he had ever hear of, so her deck could be anything, even a Direct Damage Deck. "I begin by summoning Uranus, Angel of Good Will(1800/0)!"
The angel that he summoned had long dark brown wings that he kept extended over his head. He wore loose brown robes and had a small circlet around his forehead, allowing his long brown hair to flow down across his shoulders. A benevolent smile dominated his features. "Uranus, attack her set monster with your Benevolent Wavelength!" The angel raised one hand and extended it towards the set card. A blast of sound shot from it, shaking the set card.
After a few moments of this it shattered, briefly revealing something white, ovoid, and very small. Dalin didn't recognize it. "Thanks sugar. You just destroyed my Rose Seed(200/200) which when it goes to the graveyard I can special summon a Rose Seedling(400/400) to the field in defense mode. Love the angel by the way." Dalin gave her a considering look as the little seed's spot was taken by another little seed, only this one had a tiny little crack with something green sticking out of it. The stats were double, but it wasn't a major threat.
"Since Uranus destroyed a monster in battle I can take one card pertaining to angels from my deck and put it in my hand. The card I select is one I now play, the field card Sanctuary of the Sky!" He took the card from his deck and placed it onto his field zone. Kai and Rose watched as the heavenly palace arose as a place upon the clouds, with little angels flitting in and out of it. Rose giggled at the sight of the card, a happy look on her face. The kind of look that any duelist got in a tough spot when they were enjoying the duel.
Kai turned his gaze back at the duelist who had played it, and then his mind went back to his own duel where Dalin had carefully plotted out each turn. The angel duelist had been more than one step ahead of Kai the entire duel, allowing him an easy victory. It was that farsightedness that strengthened Dalin so much. It made him truly powerful. "Amazing, he can get a strong monster and his powerful field card in one turn. He's truly the King of Duelists."
"Now I set one card onto the field, and end my turn!" Dalin loaded his card into his duel disk, and it materialized before him. Now his turn was done, and he was left with four cards in his hand. It was impressive that he had made such a productive turn using only two cards. He had dealt no damage, but he had gotten out the key card to his deck with great ease. Only the very best could accomplish such a thing.
Rose made a little sound in the back of her throat, a little sound of amusement as soon as she looked at her next card. She moved her hand to her duel disk and picked up her monster, and pulled it off before sliding it into the cemetery. "By sacrificing my face-up Rose Seedling I can special summon a Rose Sprout(800/800) to the field in defense mode." Her little seedling vanished, and another seed took its place, only this one had a much larger extended plant tendril coming out of it. It didn't look like it was any danger, but Dalin would have to watch out for it anyways. He'd never seen monsters like these before.
"Each one gives way to the next, progressively becoming stronger. The final form must be truly a terror. I have to stop this process before she gets much headway into it, otherwise things could get difficult." A slight smile was creeping onto Dalin's face as he spoke these words to himself. Despite the truth of the situation he actually felt that he could enjoy this duel. Had Kai asked him his reasons for accepting it would probably have been because she was a duelist who wanted to duel him for the enjoyment, and not for what his title was. If she knew who he was, it didn't matter to her at all. And yet still, there was one other reason.
"Okay, now that we've gotten that under wraps I can do like I did last turn and set a monster and a magic or trap card. That gives me two monsters and two set cards. See if you can get past them would you? This duel is only gonna be fun if you can manage that." With a confident smile she ended her turn, giving control over to Dalin. Now she was left with two cards in her hand, and unknown cards on the field. Dalin smiled and drew his next card, giving him five.
The angel duelist looked at his next card and then added it to his hand. Then he selected a different card and pulled it free. Finally he placed it onto his DD2 next to Uranus, and watched as the monster appeared. "Hysteric Angel(1800/500) in attack mode." She took her spot next to Uranus, scoffing at his long unkempt hair. She pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose and purposefully looked away from him.
"I'll have my Uranus attack your Rose Sprout!" Once again the angel raised his hand to launch his attack, sending the wave of sound at the defensive sprout. However, Rose was grinning as the attack was approaching, and Dalin was certain that a trap was about to be sprung. He was in fact, right as usual.
"Activate trap card, Thorn Barrier! This will trap your two monsters and stop their effects, dealing fifty damage to you times their total levels!" A bed of thorns lept up, and tangled itself around Uranus and Hysteric Angel. They gasped in pain as the thorns dug in, but after a little while they stopped struggling, holding still so no thorns dug further into them. The power of her trap could have been negated by his Hysteric Angel's effect, but now it was locked away. (DLP: 3600)
"Very well then, since my monsters are sealed by the power of your Thorn Barrier I'll have to end my turn by setting one card down on the field." His next card appeared on the field right next to his previous set monster. He kept his face clear, but inside he was impressed more and more. Though the moves might seem basic to another, he knew true skill when he saw it. She was using Thorn Barrier as a replacement to dealing battle damage. Her strategy to trap his monsters and deal damage while she upgraded her creatures was a good one.
"Well then sugar, I'll do like I did last turn, only this time I'm sacrificing my Rose Sprout to summon a Rose Bud(1400/1400) in attack mode. Of course, that's not all I'll be doing, but I just want you to enjoy the looks of my new monsters for a few moments." Her newest monster was no longer at all a seed. Instead it was now a little red blossom, not yet opened up. The potential beauty it held was what told Dalin what he needed to know about his opponent. She was ready to bloom and unleash her true power at the right moment.
"Savor your time before I go on the offensive sugar. I'll set a card face down and pass the turn back to you." Kai quirked an eyebrow and looked between the two duelists and the cards they had played. He wasn't sure exactly what to call Rose's deck, but by her name and her choice of cards he could guess that it was a Rose Deck. He smiled at the little bit of inside knowledge that he had, knowledge that Dalin didn't have. He hadn't known about the actual deck, but he had heard rumors in some lesser dueling circles of a deadly duelist they called the Duelist of the Roses. This must be her.
"There resides in my deck a creature that I require to put down your plants. In order to do so I will have to get that monster, but the chances of my drawing it are far too slim to base everything on that. Therefore I will activate the magic card, Card in Hand, placing one monster from my deck into my hand at no cost." In one swift motion he pulled his deck free of the holder and then fanned it out like it was a single hand of cards. Only an expert player could do something like that, and he was definitely an expert. With the practiced manner of an expert he found the card he wanted and added it to his hand. Then he folded his cards back up and shuffled them before sliding them back into place.
"Well that move looks fun and all, but you can't forget the power of my Thorn Barrier. Now it's gonna drain you of four hundred more life points, putting you at an eight hundred point disadvantage." His two monsters cried out in pain as the thorns dug into their flesh, dragging out little trickles of blood. Dalin's face remained a blank mask as his monsters cried out in pain, and whether it was because he didn't care or because the damage was merely superficial Kai couldn't tell. There was never any way to read Dalin. (DLP: 3200)
"I summon Warrior of Zera(1600/1600) in attack mode. Then I'll use it as a sacrifice to special summon Archangel Zerato(2800/2300) to the field. With the power of this monster, so long as Sanctuary of the Sky is in play, I can cleanse the field of your weeds by discarding a light type from my hand. Now, Zerato, use your Angelic Wrath!" The might masked angel took its place on the field and raised its blade high above its hade. The sharpened sword started to glow with an intense inner light as Dalin moved to use its effect and destroy Rose's monsters.
"Not so fast sugar! I'll reveal my trap card, Paralyzing Thornet! This little poisonous thornet will seal the attack and the effect of your Zerato, keeping him from doing any of that so-called weeding." A tiny little dart shot straight out of her revealed trap card, and went at Zerato. The angel grimaced as the dart slammed into his throat, injecting its toxins into his blood stream. Despite his divine resistance, even Zerato was unable to beat back the deadly effects of the poison, and he slumped forwards.
Dalin smiled slightly, and she flashed him her own smile right back. Kai was really starting to be impressed by the level of play between these two. She wasn't playing fast or anything, her moves were actually very conservative. But the power of her deck and her patience were paying off. It was like she had planned every move ahead of time....just like Dalin. "Its like watching a chess game between champions. Each piece is placed strategically. But how is a no-name duelist so good?"
"You certainly are quite a duelist. Which makes me wonder exactly why we've come to this place, this time, this duel. Even if you aren't ready for answers, know that I'll still be waiting for them. End turn!" Kai gave Dalin a confused glance, but the older duelist didn't acknowledge it. Rose on the other hand had quickly stifled her surprise, and was now once again amused with the duel, ready to take action. She drew her card, and the duel was back on.
"You ready sugar pie? Mind if I call you that? Well, I sacrifice my Rose Bud to special summon Rose in Bloom(2200/2200) in its place. This beautiful flower has plenty of power to back it up, and it will show you just how to do it. So here she comes!" Now flowering on her field was a full-fledged rose in all its glory. Large spread petals of a crimson color and a green stem with wicked looking thorns. The thorns moved about a little, and Dalin spotted little eyes at the tips. The eyes closed up, and now it was just a giant rose.
"I flip my face down monster, Seed of the Death Plant(700/300)! Consider this the plant version of the Man-Eater Bug, and I'll use its effect to destroy your Archangel Zerato! Say goodbye to the strongest monster you've got!" Her monster was a little jet black seed, and it shot a tendril of energy right at the archangel. It pierced through the angelic warrior and shattered him into holographic fragments, taking away the best chance Dalin might have had at holding the advantage. Now he didn't even have a potentially deadly monster in play.
"Now I can implant my Seed into Rose in Bloom in order to kill it. And since I've just killed the right levels of monster with my Seed of the Death Plant I can special summon the full thing from my deck. I summon the Death Plant(2700/2700)!" The little black seed shot into the rose, and then the rose withered into dust. Finally rising up from the ashes of the fallen plant was a giant plant with tendrils with thorns on them. At the end of each of the tendrils there was a slobbering mouth with nasty point teeth. A powerful monster to say the least, but nothing against his angels.
"Regardless of the attack power of your newest creature it will do you no good. The power of my Sanctuary of the Sky will prevent my angels from taking battle damage. Your monster is just a useless space on your field." Kai grinned, practically cheering for the muscular duelist. He wasn't King of Games for nothing, and that kind of power was what kept him in that spot. There was no way that Rose was going to be able to get past that incredible barrier.
"You let me worry about that sugar. See, first I activate Demon Triple Mirror, and it'll make copies of my Death Plant equal to the number of monsters on your field. So now I've got a total of three of my little devils!" The image of the Death Plant flickered as it split itself, becoming not two, but three. One quick move that had given her three powerful monsters, each of which was useless against the angels. Kai knew that card, and knew that these new Death Plants couldn't even attack this turn.
"I play Rose Storm, which will destroy all set magic and trap cards on the field. It won't get rid of that pesky Sanctuary of the Sky, but it will get rid of any potential traps you might have waiting for me. There they all go!" A flurry of rose petals whipped around the field, picking up all the set cards that were there. The shrieking of the wind could have told anyone what was happening as the cards were picked up and thrown into the air, then shattered.
"Since my two Death Plants can't attack this turn anyways, I'll use one of their special attacks. By giving up their attack this turn I can destroy one monster on the field, so for the two I give up I can destroy both of your monsters!" The mouths on the plants expanded, and in a swift motion the deadly plants devoured Dalin's two angels, clearing his field of any sort of defense. Now all that was left was his Sanctuary of the Sky and the two cards in his hand.
"My remaining Death Plant will attack you directly!" A single mouthed tendril on the remaining Death Plant rose up and shot across the field, right at the awaiting duelist. The angel duelist didn't bother to defend himself and simply let the head strike him, clamping down on his shoulder. His teeth clenched, but he didn't make any other response. The massive power of the Death Plant took its toll though and depleted his life points, giving him hardly any left at all. (DLP: 500)
"I will begin my turn by activating the magic of Pot of Greed to draw two cards from my deck giving me a total of four cards. Now I continue my turn by summoning Pluto, Angel of Weakening(1500/0)!" Shortly after Dalin slipped the two cards off his deck he summoned his monster, another angel with interesting features. Pluto was a yellow skinned angel with glowing green eyes and short-cropped black hair. An odd combination. Pluto wasn't exactly a mighty creature either with only fifteen hundred attack points.
"I set two cards face down. Now I have Pluto attack the original Death Plant!" Rose bit back a protest as it wouldn't accomplish anything. Kai didn't understand the move either, but knew that Dalin would take no damage since his Sanctuary of the Sky was in play. Pluto spread out its arms and sent a wave of orange light washing over the vicious plant, soothing it slightly. Then, to his surprise, the Death Plant started to shrink until the counter displayed a far less deadly number.
"That's right, whenever Pluto is engaged in battle, the opposing monster loses points from its dominant stat equal to the current attack power of Pluto. Therefore your Death Plant is reduced to a weak twelve hundred attack! That's all." Despite the weakness of her plant, she was still confident. Kai knew why that was, and he didn't understand why Dalin had made the attack if he knew. By not attacking with one of the Death Plants, Rose would be able to destroy Pluto and clear a path. Dalin had to have a plan, there was no other explanation.
"Hmmm....you could be roping me into a trap, or you could be bluffing me. After all, you know I can destroy your monster. Well, we'll just have to test it all out won't we? Death Plant the second, activate your....huh?" Her move was cut off when Dalin made a motion on his duel disk, activating one of his set cards. The set card on the left flipped up, revealing an image that Kai recognized from his own duel with Dalin. But it didn't quite explain what the other duelist was up to.
"I reveal Rise to Heaven which will remove Pluto from the game until the end of my next turn. At the same time it will increase my life points by the total attack strength of my monster, setting me at half of my original life points!" A blue light surrounded the angel, and then in less time then it takes to sneeze, Pluto was nowhere to be seen. The only reminder that he had been on the field was the sound of Dalin's life point counter ticking upwards. (DLP: 2000)
"I see, you're trying to keep your life points around so that next turn you can perhaps trash more of my Death Plants. That means your set card is another card for increasing your life points. Well, increase all you like because it won't help. All my Death Plants will attack you directly!" The monstrous plants sent their fanged tentacles straight at the angel duelist who didn't even bother to look afraid. Whether they would impact or not was something they were about to find out.
"You've fallen into a trap of your own creation. By attacking me directly you've allowed me to activate Heaven's Judgement, which will remove all of your attack mode monsters from the game!" A blaze of light shot down from the sky, lighting up the entire park. The three duelists shielded their eyes as the light consumed Rose's three monsters, making them nothing more then a simple memory. When the light had faded and they could once again see, all that was left on the field was a dozen or more blue and purple spots....but those were just products of distorted vision.
"You're certainly a clever one aren't you? Fine then sugar, I play Thorny Grave Vine, letting me activate your Pot of Greed for my own use. Now, with these two new cards I can make a new move. I place one card face down and summon Mimic Thorn(0/0) which can become the strongest monster in my cemetery. Therefore it becomes Rose in Bloom!" A twisted looking thorn appeared on the field, only to shift and become the mighty rose that had appeared earlier. With it came a set card to the right side.
"Rose, this duel's victory will be mine. However, for the moment I can merely defend. I place one monster face down and end my turn, thereby restoring Pluto, Angel of Weakening!" His set card took shape, and then Pluto came back to the field in all its lack of glory. Then Dalin's turn was finished, and Kai was left to contemplate what was going on. As far as he could see, Dalin had attacked with Pluto and then removed it in order to convince Rose that he just intended to keep using Pluto and raising his life points so he could survive and destroy her plants. Rose had fallen for it and uncovered Dalin's real trap which allowed Dalin to keep his own angel and removed the deadly plants from the game. A brilliant move.
"No matter what you say, it's still useless. My plants will cut you to ribbons. I set one card face down. Now, Rose in Bloom, attack his set monster to reveal it to me!" The plant shot a group of thorny tendrils at the set monster, only to have them bounce off a set of metallic angel wings. Kai gasped as he saw the muscular angel appear, and saw its massive defensive power. It didn't make any sense that it was that powerful of a defense for no sacrifice. (RLP: 2700)
"You've attacked my Guardian Angel(0/2000) who when attacked while face down gains a bonus of five hundred points for every angel in my cemetery. That means when you attacked it, my angel had a defense strength of thirty-five hundred!" Kai grinned at the score shift and the impressive form of defense that Dalin had going on. He now recognized the name Guardian Angel, and remembered the rest of its effect. It had to be attacked first while more than one angel was on the field. It made a perfect defense in an angel deck.
"Well then, I guess I'll just set a monster in defense mode. Now it's your turn sugar. You can crush me if you like....that is, if you think you can manage it." Her saucy grin would have melted most men right out of their shoes. Dalin didn't even blink. Kai himself thought she was overdoing it a bit, but then again he couldn't say he had much experience with women to base that off of. Hence why he had once avoided Drake's questioning about his.....experience.
"Very well, I set one card face down, and then I'll have Pluto attack Rose in Bloom." Pluto unleashed his waves of orange light, thereby weakening Rose in Bloom to a meager seven hundred attack points. With that out of the way there was nothing left for Dalin to do but end his turn, transferring control of the field to Rose. Now the Duelist of the Roses was about to make her move.
Rose drew her next card, and then looked at her field for a moment. Finally she brought her gaze back up to Dalin, and she smiled very lightly before starting her move for real. "I don't know what made you become an angel duelist, but I do know what made me become who I am as a duelist. The Duelist of the Roses. See, when I was a child I had a rather stressful and not necessarily happy time. So I had to find something to make everything better."
Kai watched her as she spoke, and saw the hidden pain in her eyes. A pain he knew Dalin could see as well. It was as real as any pain Kai had ever experienced, as real as any he had ever heard of. He and Dalin both wondered what pain it was that this woman truly felt. "To keep sane I found refuge in my little garden. They all started as seedlings, and I found that with nourishment and care, neither of which I got, I could turn those little seeds into wondrous flowers. Once I got out on my own I found lots of ways to survive, and at one point I discovered Duel Monsters."
She took a deep breath and let it out, refocusing herself before she continued speaking. "My first duels in the underground circuits were pretty pathetic, but people started spreading rumors about a gorgeous duelist who fought with great ferocity. One day a man in a suit found me after a local circuit and handed me a letter of invitation. It was from Pegasus J. Crawford himself, the creator of the game. I accepted the invitation and was ferried by boat to his private island. Of course this was before he had named it Duelist Kingdom. He offered me a tidy sum if I would pose for a portrait. Nothing sexual, just a simple portrait. He said it was because he appreciated beauty in all forms, and wanted to capture an image of the woman who was said to be the most beautiful duelist in the world. I was flattered of course, and I accepted."
Kai could barely mask the surprise he felt at learning that this supposed no-name duelist had ties to the game's creator. Few duelists actually had any connection to him at all. The few he could think of were the finalists of Duelist Kingdom, Seto Kaiba, Keith Howard, and a few other duelists that Pegasus had beaten in matches.
"While there he showed me a few of the finer points of the game, and he showed me what were called the Super Expert Rules. He said that after a tournament he was just beginning to organize, he would introduce the rules. Of course, those rules are the ones Battle City was run by. Pegasus was impressed by me and how quickly I picked up rules, so he decided to do me a favor. He created me a deck of cards to fit my personality, and that's the deck I now play with. The one and only Rose Deck in the world." Dalin was impressed by this fact. Not only had she met and impressed Pegasus, but he had also created a unique deck just for her. He couldn't think of anyone else who had ever gotten such a privilege.
"One thing he gave me for my deck was a wonderful plant of most devastating proportions. It was released to the public, but only a relatively small number were actually created and distributed. I just so happen to have one thanks to him. The first ever to be given to a duelist. So here it is, the mighty Fiber Jar(500/500)!" Kai gasped as the effect of the plant was activated. Upon being flipped both duelists shuffled the cards from their cemeteries, fields, and hands back into their decks and drew five new cards. Of course, the card that had been placed in Dalin's deck wouldn't have returned to Rose's deck.
"Now that things have been done up so much, I'll summon Killer Thorn(1600/1000), whose effect lets me draw one card when he's normal summoned. Killer Thorn, direct attack!" The creature that was summoned was a plant much like a cactus with needles sticking out of its body all over the place. It turned towards Dalin and launched a barrage of those needles straight at him. With a casual swipe of his massive arm he knocked the needles out of the air. They bounced against the ground and then vanished. Finally she placed two cards down on the field and declared the end of her turn. (DLP: 400)
Despite how behind he was, Dalin didn't seem concerned at all. He merely drew his next card, and then activated it. "Pot of Greed to draw two cards. Hmmm, I think I'll play Shower of Light. For every light monster I discard, I gain six hundred life points. So I discard three light types." He shoved the three cards into his cemetery and a sprinkling of rain that looked like pure light came down on him, soothing him and restoring his life points. (DLP: 2200)
Kai grinned at seeing Dalin get back into the game, and he started to realize something. If Dalin had discarded three light types, and he seemed confident about something, perhaps Kai knew what his plan is. "It all depends on if he plays the next card that I think he will. If he does, then he's got this duel in the bag. He'll be easily able to turn the tide."
"I play Renewal of Triplets. This magic card will revive any three monsters in the cemetery that are of the same name. Therefore I shall revive three Holy Shine Spheres(500/500) in attack mode!" Three identical silver spheres floated into view, and though weak Kai knew what was about to happen. Dalin was going to take this duel by storm!
"Next I activate Polymerization to fuse my three spheres into the more powerful Holy Shine God(1800/1800), whose effect will instantly obliterate your face down cards." The three monsters merged into one, the glowing being of light that had been the cause of Kai's defeat and would now allow Dalin the same luxury against Rose.
"Finally I set up one card and have Holy Shine God destroy Killer Thorn." His face down card appeared, followed by his fusion monster launching its attack of pure light upon the plant creature, burning it away and also a small part of Rose's life points. That evened things up a bit, putting the difference in life points at only three hundred. (RLP: 2500)
Rose added yet another card to her hand, and then surveyed the set of four she had. A little smile appeared on her lips, and she started to make her move. "Looks like my strategy is almost ready. Till it's completed, I guess all I can do is set a monster and one card face down. Back to you sugar." Dalin quirked an eyebrow, wondering exactly what strategy she was referring to. She had only two cards on the field and two in her hand, so how much of a strategy could she have prepared?
He glanced at the single card in his hand, and then instantly slapped it onto the field. It rose up in front of him as a blue skinned angel with darker blue wings and a loose golden robe. "Meet Neptune, Angel of Emancipation(1700/0). His effect can't help me right now, but his attack power is more than enough to obliterate whatever monster you have placed on the field. Go Neptune, destroy her monster!" The angel raised one hand and aimed it like a gun, before firing a tight beam of blue energy out of it. The beam exploded on Rose's monster, vaporizing it.
"You took down my Bright Lady Lily(900/1500), who when flipped allows both of us to special summon a monster from our deck, regardless of normal costs for that creature. Of course it also immediately ends your battle phase since neither summoned monster can attack this turn. So sugar, meet my Death Plant(2700/2700) once again!" The nasty plant took it's place on the field, towering far above both of Dalin's monsters. He grimaced and flipped through his deck before finally settling on a card he wanted.
"Using the effect of Bright Lady Lily I will summon Archangel Zerato(2800/2300) back to the field. Now my monster dominates the field with it's awesome power of twenty-eight hundred attack! Until I can attack, I'll move my Holy Shine God into defense mode, and end my turn." The being of light shifted into defense mode, and then Dalin's turn was over. Rose then drew her next card, starting off her own turn.
"Well now, isn't this interesting. But oh well, I suppose for the moment I'll give up Death Plant's battle phase to destroy Neptune. Then I'll set a monster in defense mode, and end. Go ahead sugar, show me what you can do." Dalin nodded once, and then pulled his next card off the top of his deck. He stopped after doing so, seeing the card that was next. He stopped because he knew what the card was, because it was face up. It was the card that Rose had placed in his deck in the first turn using Devil's Snare.
"I see. Very well, I'll begin by playing Stealing Goblin, which will take five hundred of your life points and add them to my own. Go Stealing Goblin, do my dirty work!" A fat goblin appeared on the field with a cart, and charged towards Rose, slamming into her and stealing away some of her life points. Then he rushed back to Dalin, and offered those same life points to the angel duelist, who gladly accepted them. (RLP: 2000, DLP: 2700)
"Now I move Holy Shine God into attack mode, and have him destroy your set monster." The angel attacked the set creature, flipping it up and turning it into mush. Or rather, it turned out that it was practically mush all on it's own. It was a disgusting creature that seemed to be composed of rotted pieces of other plants.
"Sometimes plants don't turn up right, sometimes they die and rot away. So they have to be put aside, and they become this little creature. The Rotted Beast(1000/1000) who when flipped makes us both draw two cards. And since the next card on your deck is the card I placed there, you take one thousand points of damage!" Dalin grimaced slightly as both drew their cards, and he was forced to take a good deal of damage from the effect. (DLP: 1700)
"The damage was one thing, but that doesn't matter to me at all, as I can deal with it right now with this magic card. Poison of the Old Man! Using it's power I'll restore twelve hundred of my life points, meaning I restore more than your Devil's Snare did to me in damage." An elderly man shimmered into view and handed Dalin a purple vial, which Dalin downed quickly, using it's effect to boost his life points. (DLP: 2900)
"Now, Zerato will attack and destroy your Death Plant, further reducing your life points by one hundred. Angelic Slash!" The armored angel flapped his wings and flew towards the towering voracious plant, but was suddenly stopped as Rose's set card flipped up, and a little seed flew out and was split in half by the sword slash instead of the Death Plant.
"My trap card Rose Wheel allowed me to throw a monster with 'rose' in it's name into the path of your attack straight from my deck. So I defended with a Rose Seedling. Luckily for you it was in face-up defense mode, so it's flip effect didn't activate and grant me another monster. Oh well. Looks like your turn is over....unless of course you want to play that card of mine. Well?" Dalin glanced down at the card and then smiled slightly before shaking his head.
"I don't believe such a thing is necessary. And yes, my turn is over now that I have no other cards I'm going to play. Make your turn useful, or else in the next turn I'll cut you down and win this duel. We're reaching the home stretch of this duel, don't you agree?" She smirked slightly and drew her next card, giving her a total of five cards in hand, much more than Dalin's one card.
"I'd say you're right sugar, this is about the end. Because now is the moment when my entire strategy comes together, and it all hinges around that card in your hand. In order to get access to it, I'll play the magic card Held In One's Hand. If I know the name of a card in your hand, I can force you to play it. And since the card in your hand is the card I put there, I know what it is. So go ahead and play it." Dalin grimaced and took the card out of his left hand with his right, and then extended it outwards. It was facing down, so Kai couldn't see what it was.
"So be it Rose. I was hoping it wouldn't come down to this. I knew even from the beginning why you were here, but because of the way you had been playing I had thought you didn't want to. I had prayed I was wrong about you. But I wasn't, you are here to test me. But in the end it will be you who pays the price of this mistake, the mistake of making me use this power. I activate the Seal of Orichalcos!" Kai's eyes went wide as Dalin slapped the card down into his field card zone.
Dark energy flared up around the muscular duelist, and a grin circle appeared beneath his feet, before shooting out and encompassing him and Rose. Kai was struck by the expanding circle and hurled several feet away and onto his back. He gulped and looked up, seeing the fierce look on Dalin's face as he stared down Rose. A fierce look accompanied by the Seal of Orichalcos that appeared on his forehead and that of each of his monsters. "You shouldn't have given me this power, because now my monsters are strong enough to easily crush each and every one of yours! You're nothing compared to my new strength!"
"Is that so sugar? I don't think so. See, there are plenty of monsters who can gain dark power. But of all the angels that exist, only angels that aren't heavenly can gain dark power. Heavenly angels, that is light type ones, can't. If they do, they become fallen angels, or demons. And they are then cast from heaven, falling straight to Hell. And since your monsters are ALL heavenly angels, granting them dark power doesn't strength them....it kills them!" Dalin's fists squeezed tight together as his monster's cried out in pain, and were consumed by the darkness, vanishing from the field.
"So that was your plan was it? To turn all my angels into fallen ones and strip them of their seats in heaven? To destroy them all and prevent me from summoning any monsters to attack you with? How pathetic. Attack me all you wish, it won't do you any good. I'll still crush you." Rose just smiled before slapping down another monster onto her monster zone.
"We'll see about that. I summon Sunflower Lady(1300/1000) and then pay five hundred life points to allow me to special summon the other two from my deck to the field." Rose's next monster was a green skinned woman in a flowing yellow dress. She also wore a bonnet very similar to the yellow leaves of a sunflower. It was accompanied by two other identical women. (RLP: 1500)
"Death Plant, attack him directly!" The disgusting plant beast extended its mouths at Dalin, who just smirked widely and flipped up his face down card. A shield appeared in his hand, and he used it to block the strike. Suddenly energy surged around the shield, and flowed straight from it to Dalin. After several seconds of this he shoved the mouth backwards, sending it careening into the actual Death Plant, which was forced back a few feet by his strength.
"I told you that your attacks meant nothing to me. My Drain Shield trap card allows me to negate your attack and increase my life points by the amount of power your monster had. Therefore my life points will shoot straight past their starting amount and leave yours in the dust!" (DLP: 5600)
"You may have stopped that one attack, but you won't stop these next three. Sunflower Ladies, attack him directly and take down most of his life points!" The three women extended their arms and shot vines at the angel duelist. He grinned widely and gripped their vines, stopping them from striking his body. Then he tossed the vines aside, thereby stopping himself from taking any physical damage from the attack. But his life points still took a hit. Now only two hundred life points separated the two duelists. (DLP: 1700)
"Go ahead and draw, but it won't matter what you get. If it's a trap, it'll only save you once, if it's magic, it'll barely help, and if it's a monster....well then you're out of hope. This duel has become impossible to win for you sugar, so take that to heart. It's utterly impossible!" The look of fury on Rose's face seemed truly out of place, enough so that Kai was shocked by it. Dalin merely smirked in that same uncharacteristic manner for him.
"I'll let you know now, that when I'm involved, the word impossible has no meaning. I can defeat any opponent! And I've discovered the flaw in your plan that will allow me to win the duel, so now I draw!" He snapped the top card off his deck, and dark power flared up around him. He glanced once at the card before slapping it onto the field. A brown backed card appeared horizontally in front of him.
"The problem with your strategy is that the Seal of Orichalcos operates just like any other field card. It only affects face up monsters. Therefore a set monster won't gain dark power, so even a heavenly angel won't be destroyed by it while face down. Not only that, but your pathetic Death Plant can't destroy a face-down monster with it's effect either. So go ahead and attack my monster if you dare, but for now my turn is over." Kai was impressed by Dalin's deductions, so quickly figuring out a way around the problem. But still, he didn't see how one monster was going to save him when he only had seventeen hundred life points remaining.
Rose glanced at her newest card after drawing and let out a small sigh, obviously upset with what she had drawn. "Well that's no help at all. So I'll activate my placed Card Destruction to dump this hand and gain a new one." She snapped the cards together and shoved them into the cemetery slot before sliding three new cards off the top of her deck, giving her new options to work with.
"No monsters that I can play, and not much to help. I guess I'll be stuck playing this card, Last Gasp. I discard my entire hand and then I get to shuffle all the monsters in my cemetery back into my deck." She discarded her present hand, and then ejected her cemetery and searched through it for each of her monsters. Finally she took Killer Thorn, Bright Lady Lily, and Rotted Beast and tucked them safely away in her deck before shuffling it.
"Now when you mentioned my Death Plant's effect not working on face-down monsters, you were right. But you missed one thing, my Death Plant's second effect! Whenever it destroys a monster in battle you lose five hundred life points. So Death Plant will crush your defense monster!" The creature extended two of it's mouths and ripped apart Dalin's set monster, which was briefly revealed to be a flat little squirrel like creature that resembled a Sugar Glider.
"You destroyed my Nimble Momonga(1000/100), and therefore activated it's special ability. I gain one thousand life points, but lose five hundred from Death Plant's effect. Then I get to special summon two more from my deck in face-down defense mode. So here they come!" He ejected the two cards from his deck and slapped them onto the field, giving him further defenses to work with. Also, his life points altered according to the two monster's effects. (DLP: 2200)
"Alright sugar, I'll take down your two little squirrels with two of my Sunflower Ladies, unfortunately that will increase your life points by a further two thousand." The two ladies shot their vines out, crushing the defensive momongas. They hadn't been any challenge to the stronger plant monsters. (DLP: 4200)
"The last Sunflower Lady will attack you directly!" Dalin smirked as the vines zipped towards him. Only this time instead of defending himself from them, he allowed the vines to smash against his chest. He didn't even budge, he merely threw back his head and laughed. (DLP: 2900)
"Your little lady is nothing to me. And now that you're turn is over, I'll get things started with this next card. Remove Heart! Since my Archangel Zerato is pretty worthless as it is, as are the rest of my angels, I think I'll remove it from the game in order to draw cards equal to half it's total levels. That means I get to draw four cards." He slipped the named angel out of his cemetery and into his pocket, and then pulled free four new cards to give him the hand advantage.
"Not so fast big fella. Activate Power Balance, which will even things up between the two of us by forcing you to discard half your hand and letting me draw the same amount." Dalin shrugged and parted with two of his four cards. Then Rose drew two new cards of her own, evening her up with her opponent. Despite having lost half the cards he had gained, Dalin hardly seemed bothered by this. In fact, he seemed slightly amused.
"I don't really need four cards for this. So I'll just set a monster and one card face down. Back to your Rosey." His two cards took shape in front of him, giving him very little defense against Rose's army of plant monsters. Particularly her Death Plant, which would deal damage even though Dalin's monster was in defense mode. Kai couldn't think of any way Dalin could escape, and this was the King of Duelists he was talking about!
Rose glanced at her newest card, smiling brightly at the sight of it. Then she slapped it down, revealing a mask formed of intertwining vines. "My next monster is Flower Mask(500/500) which will attach to one of my weaker plants and create a copy of it. That means Flower Mask will attach to Sunflower Lady and clone me a fourth one." The mask did just as she had said, attaching to one of the green skinned women, and then parting to form itself into another version, all it's vines combining together to take that new shape with identical stats and all.
"I'll set up two cards, and then I attack your defense monster with Death Plant. Devour it!" Dalin smirked and flipped up his set card immediately, and a line of red light suddenly halted the Death Plant, going between it and Dalin. The angel duelist smirked as his trap fully came into view. It was his Energy Absorption trap, which negated battle, ended the battle phase, and increased his life points by half the attacking monster's strength.
"Your trap card won't do you any good sugar! Activate quick-play card, Petal Blast to deactivate your Energy Absorption!" One of her two new cards flipped up, and a barrage of rose petals shot out of it, spraying across Dalin. As they did so the line of red light faded, and Death Plant's mouths ripped Dalin's set monster apart, briefly revealing a man in brown robes with tiny wings.
"That was my Ascending Man(500/1200) who grants me five hundred life points when destroyed and allows me to specially set or summon another from my deck. So damage evened out, and I get another one to block the path of your attacks." Rose cried out in anger and pointed one finger straight at Dalin, an awful look in her eyes.
"You and your angels! You think you're pure enough to use angels, but I know the truth, that's why I've turned them against you like this! No man is worthy of using angels, and because of that I'm going to make sure no man ever gets to meet any! When I defeat you in this duel your soul will be trapped away, preventing your soul from ever reaching salvation! Now, Sunflower Ladies, destroy him!" That was the beginning of the assault.
Four sets of vines exploded out of the fingers of the four Sunflower Ladies, heading straight towards the muscular duelist. The first two ripped apart consecutive Ascending Men, however the next two had nothing in their path, and collided with Dalin head on. Once again he didn't flinch away from the attacks, and didn't seem hurt by them at all. (DLP: 1300)
"I don't know what happened to you in the past and why it has made you scorn men in such a manner that you'd strip random men of their souls, but right now that doesn't matter. I'm going to win this duel, and that is all there is to it. I refuse to be defeated to someone who can't take their life into their own hands! I see you standing there, relying on the words of others to make you do things. Whatever happened to you in the past only affects you because you allow it to, and I won't accept being defeated by someone who doesn't even control themself." With that said, he drew his next card and then played it.
From Kai's perspective it didn't seem that what Rose was doing was that...but perhaps Dalin knew something he didn't. Or maybe Dalin was just making a judgement that he had no right to make. "I don't like this at all. It doesn't seem like Rose deserves to lose her soul, she seems to have suffered a lot in life. But if Dalin loses, then the world loses one if it's big guns in this fight. We can't afford to lose him....but with the way he is right now, how would winning be any different than losing?"
"It's time to show you what Ascending Man can become with a little time and effort. The level up from it, the fruit of all his labors come to pass! I summon Ascended Man(1200/500) to the field in attack mode!" The monster that appeared on the field was completely identical to the Ascending Men, however this one had full wings that extended back about five feet. As the duelists watched the Seal of Orichalcos appeared on it's head, and it screamed as it shattered into thousands of pieces.
"Now watch as the power of Ascended Man comes into play. I get to draw one card, and then I get to special summon another Ascended Man to the field. And of course the second dies as well, giving me a second card, and the third then dies, giving me a third card. All it required was for me to rid myself of three monsters and now I have three cards that can actually help me." He fanned the three cards out in front of his face and surveyed his new options, deciding exactly what to do. He slipped two cards into his duel disk, and finished his turn.
"I'm going to set a card down now Dalin, and then I'm going to attack with Death Plant!" The deadly plant creature barely got going before it's attack was forcefully halted by a stream of light that exploded from the ground in it's path. She gasped as her Death Plant was forced to return to it's starting point, keeping her from continuing her battle phase.
"Remember Power Balance? Well you forced me to discard this magic card when you did so. Sanctity of the Buried! It can only be played from the cemetery, and it allows me to negate your attack and end the battle phase. All it requires is that I remove five cards from my cemetery." He casually selected five of his cards and then shoved them into his back pocket, leaving him with fewer cards in the cemetery.
"But that's not all! I activate Restoration Light, which is a permanent trap that will increase my life points by four hundred every time a light type monster leaves my cemetery in some manner. And since I just removed five light type monsters from my cemetery, I get to increase my life points by two thousand!" Five bubbles of light rose up from the ground and floated over to Dalin, in order to be absorbed into his body to grant him more strength. (DLP: 3300)
"Think that's going to help you big guy? I play Super Fertilizer. All I have to do is sacrifice a plant monster, in this case my Flower Mask in form of a Sunflower Lady, and then I get to grant one of my other plants a new battle phase. So now Death Plant will attack again by devouring Flower Mask!" One of the plant's mouths snapped out, ripping into the Sunflower Lady, transforming it back into it's regular shape before devouring it whole. Once again renewed it struck out, biting down on Dalin's shoulder as quickly as it could. The big man cried out in pain, and collapsed to his knees, blood dripping down his shoulder. (DLP: 600)
Since Rose had no more cards in her hand, it was now time for Dalin to take his turn, and since he had no cards in his hand and the only cards on his field were Restoration Light and a face down card, he was definitely in a bad position. Unless he got a good draw, he was utterly finished. Still confident, he drew his card.
"I'll play yet another card to pump up my life points. Angel Glow, which will grant me one thousand life points, setting me at sixteen hundred. And who knows what awaits you with my other cards, soon you're going to lose this duel, and then I'll be on my way to finish this threat once and for all!" His grin was wiped from his face as instead of raising, his life points suddenly plummeted. He was left with barely any life points to work with. (DLP: 100)
"What was that about raising your life points? I was too busy activating my Negative Drought trap card to hear you." Dalin grimaced as he heard the name of her card. He recognized Negative Drought, it was a one time trap that negated an instance of raising life points and instead reduced that player's life points by half the amount that would have been gained. He had just drained most of his own life points away, and now all he had was one set card on the field to keep him safe.
Seeing as how Dalin had no leg to stand on and no move left to make, it became Rose's turn, just in the same way Dalin had taken over before. She quickly played her monster onto her one remaining monster zone, revealing an attractive woman whose body was covered by palmetto leaves, and she was holding what looked like a blade formed out of palmetto leaves with a serrated edge. "I summon Palmetto Girl(1100/2000), whose effect lets you draw one card, and me draw three." The two duelists drew their new cards, giving them new options. Of course Rose was the one who truly benefited, what with her having drawn three cards to his one.
"You didn't use that set card of yours before, but back then you had that Sanctity of the Buried to protect you. So in order to rid myself of the threat of that face down card, I'll go weeding with my magic card. Mystical Space Typhoon!" A minitature hurricane was brewed up by her magic card, and it shattered Dalin's set card, briefly revealing a Light Barrier magic card which would have prevented her from completing attacks on him for a whole turn.
Kai couldn't believe what he was seeing. This Rose girl had just blown away the last chance for Dalin staying alive in this duel, and now she had five monsters staring down his completely empty field. And without Sanctity of the Buried in the cemetery, Dalin couldn't negate the attack in that manner. He was going to lose...and that meant his soul would be lost as well. "Dalin....no...."
"Ready
sugar? This is the end of your life, and more women will be safe
because of it. So say goodbye to your last life points and your very
soul, because you're about to feel the forces of seventy-seven hundred
attack points, way more than enough to defeat you! Now my plants,
exterminate Dalin Imaki Sumatin, strip him of his life and soul once
and for all! ATTACK HIM DIRECTLY!" The five sets of monsters launched
their attacks directly at Dalin, and there was nothing between them and
his life points. The duel was about to end.
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Author's Notes: Ha! Cliff hanger! How can Dalin get out of this mess, is he finished or what? You'll just have to keep reading to find out. And what of everyone else? What are they up to? More on that next chapter as well.
G.O.T. Nick: Lol. No need to be concerned.
VoidTemplar: I try to make things a surprise.
Time Mage: Hehehehe. Wait and see. As for Mirage Magic, as you see in this chapter Rise to Heaven is stronger, so need for it with him.
WolfGeneral: I seriously enjoyed writing the thing about Cat-Eared Dragon. Glad you liked.
Blue Eyes White Knight: Course he lost. Kai is a main character and Kevin wasn't. That's how these things work. Sorry.
Original Cards
Rose: Devil's Snare, Rose Seed, Rose Seedling, Rose Sprout, Thorn Barrier, Rode Bud, Paralyzing Thornet, Rose in Bloom, Seed of the Death Plant, Death Plant, Rose Storm, Thorny Grave Vine, Mimic Thorn, Petal Shield, Killer Thorn, Bright Lady Lily, Rotted Beast, Rose Wheel, Sunflower Lady, Last Gasp, Flower Mask, Petal Blast, Super Fertilizer, Negative Drought, Palmetto Girl (wow....she uses a lot of original cards doesn't she? It'd be easier just to name which cards weren't original cards.)
Dalin: Uranus-Angel of Good Will, Card in Hand, Pluto-Angel of Weakening, Rise to Heaven, Heaven's Judgement, Guardian Angel, Shower of Light, Renewal of Triplets, Holy Shine God, Neptune-Angel of Emancipation, Remove Heart, Ascending Man, Ascended Man, Restoration Light, Angel Glow
Anime Original Cards
Rose: Demon Triple Mirror, Held In One's Hand, Power Balance
Dalin: Seal of Orichalcos, Sanctity of the Buried
