Author's Notes: Yes, this is truly the second half of this story. On with the biggest duels of the whole thing, starting with this one!

Chapter Nineteen: Kuriboh Armada

The group entered the building, gazing carefully around. At several different points in the vast ground floor entrance they could see guards sleeping. It seemed that Ryu's technique had worked perfectly. "Nice work Ryu."

The teen grinned broadly at the compliment, but after that moment they turned serious again. Dalin, acting as leader, spoke up. "We're going to have to find whatever it is that was being protected. We'll split into groups to continue the search."

He paused for a moment, looking at each member of the group in turn. Finally he came to a decision. "Ryu and Autumn, you two will investigate the second floor. Kai and Kirani will take the third floor. Isis and Rishid the fourth floor. Once we have finished searching a level we will move up, meaning that once Ryu and Autumn have finished searching the second floor they will move to the fifth floor and so on."

"What about you?" Dalin didn't meet Isis' eyes as she asked this question, instead he gazed around at the room, searching for something. Kai got the feeling he just didn't want to answer, despite the fact that they all knew the answer.

"As the most powerful member of the group I will conduct the search of the first floor on my own. Everyone, be careful." A chorus of agreement could be heard, and they all split up in order to start searching. Without saying goodbye they all turned and left, going for the elevators. All except Dalin.

Once they were all gone Dalin felt more relaxed. He was always more relaxed when he was on his own. He had never understood why, but perhaps it was because he was alone and that was how he was meant to be. "My destiny is to be alone, both with myself and with others. Alone without a memory of my past. Without truth of who I am."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Isis and Shadi moved slowly, careful not to alert any potential enemy awaiting them. They couldn't be certain that the power of the Gauntlet had worked perfectly, and they still didn't know what they were looking for. "Rishid. We'll check each room individually."

There was no point looking for the room that appeared to be guarded by the most men. Each door along the entire floor had two slumped men or women in front of it. Obviously their enemy was being very careful with whatever they were guarding. "I understand. We must be cautious."

Room by room they advanced along the floor, checking every part of each room. Even the bathrooms didn't remain unchecked. Yet despite the number of rooms they looked through they couldn't seem to find anything. It was like every guard was a decoy. "This hotel has thirty floors. It could take all day to search the entire building."

Isis opened her mouth to respond, but stopped when she noticed something odd. She looked over Rishid's shoulder to see if what she thought was true. "Oh, that's all. The wall light went out."

Brushing it aside as a mere electrical malfunction the two of them continued onwards. However she soon noticed another oddity. A second light along the hallway had just gone out. "No..."

A third dimmed and went dead, followed by a fourth, then a fifth. In quick succession all the lights in the hallway went dead, and then all the lights on the floor blanked out as well. "Not here, not now!"

"Oh yes. Here and now. After all those years living underground you should be used to the darkness, you should have learned to embrace it. If you haven't, I hope you can learn to accept it, because you will soon be wallowing in eternal darkness unless you embrace the light of order!" Even in the darkness the spot a few feet in front of them appeared dark, like it was sucking in all residual light.

"We embrace nothing but our own desire to remain free from your tyrannical order. So if you have something you'd like to say to us, get it over with. I'd rather not be taunted before my death." The sudden light that sprang up surprised her. She didn't understand why he would give them light to see by...at least she didn't at first.

The light was not a normal light. It was a greenish color, giving the black cloaked figure in front of them an even eerier appearance. The glow of the Seal of Orichalcos was what was giving them light. "The power of Orichalcos, once intended to bring Order, was used by humanity to create chaos. But now it finds its true purpose again."

He activated his pitch black duel pod and sneered at them from underneath his cowl. "Show me the strength that you possess, despite how meager it might be. When you fall to the power of the Knight of Darkness your souls will go to Eikyuu and be converted to the Path of Order! In death your souls will find the truth!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Kai and Kirani were busy searching, just like the others. However, each of them had something else on their mind while searching. This made it more difficult to be effective, but it wasn't like it was hard to miss something major.

Kai's thoughts fell on the current situation, wondering what they would find and what it's importance would be. He was also thinking about his parents, the Heart cards, and how they could manage to defeat Eikyuu.

Kirani was busy thinking about Drake, and the words of the piece of his soul that was within her. Thinking of that brought her thoughts to Taichi and the undeniably destructive Heart of Power. The destructive strength of that card had created a monster with over three thousand times infinite attack power, and there was no way any of them could defeat something that strong. It would take another monster of even greater strength to win...but that was impossible.

Both of them also wondered about the mysterious Third Knight, whom none of them knew anything about. His deck strategy, his true agenda, all of it was a mystery to them. Even his name was hidden, leaving them casting about in the dark.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Go face down card! Dead Dragon Zoma, to create a Dead Dragon Zoma(1800/500) in defense mode!" A ghostly dragon appeared in front of Rishid, its special abilities providing a wall between him and his opponent. To his left Isis was standing with only one monster to defend her life points, while he had two cards face down.

Their opponent on the other hand had too many monsters for them to deal with, but Rishid's remaining traps could deal with it....hopefully. D'harim sneered and gestured to one of his monsters, a sickening looking dead knight, wielding a giant scythe that was covered in dried blood. "Fool! Death Knight Reaper(2300/1600) has the power negate the effect of any monster it destroys. So my Reaper will obliterate your dragon!"

With a swing of it's blade the reaper slashed the dragon in two, preventing Rishid from using the devastating defensive ability of his trap monster. It would have dealt a significant amount of damage to D'harim if it had gone off. "I can activate one of my other traps in chain with my monster's destruction!"

He pressed a button on his duel disk to activate it, and the card flipped up. "Onslaught From The Grave! I can remove one trap monster from my graveyard that you have destroyed in order to deal it's combined stats in damage to you! Not only that but it will prevent you from attacking for the duration of the turn!"

The spectral form of Dead Dragon Zoma arose and launched itself across the field, totally bypassing D'harim's small army of monsters. The dark robed duelist smirked beneath his hood and took a card from his hand, slamming it into his Duel Pod. "I activate the quick-play magic card, Curse of Pain! This will redirect that damage to you, so suffer!"

The dragon reversed directions and wrapped itself around Rishid, squeezing him tight, causing him to gasp and choke as his breath left him. Finally the dragon faded, leaving him bruised and slightly bloodied. "I'm not finished yet...I swear it. I will protect Isis and defeat you!" (RLP: 1700)

"Of course you will. But allow me to make you suffer a bit more first. Black Wind of Death, slice apart his final face down card!" A deadly wind arose, whipping about the field. It shattered the set card, and continued onwards, slicing across Rishid's flesh. Isis called out to him, but he didn't respond. He merely stood there, standing against the onslaught. But it hurt terribly. (RLP: 1200)

"Now Black Wind of Death is shuffled into my deck. Ah, but you remember the effect of my Death Knight Strategist(1100/600). Whenever a card moves from one position to another, be it graveyard to field, deck to field, field to deck, or graveyard to deck, it deals 500 life points in damage to you. So continue your suffering for my amusement!" The strategist hurled a tiny dagger from his hand, and snickered as it plunged into Rishid's stomach, dropping him to the ground, doubled over his wound. (RLP: 700)

Isis rushed over to her fallen companion and placed her hand on his neck. What she felt horrified her, for there was no pulse. "Rishid...I'm so sorry..." She turned a furious gaze upon D'harim, her blood beginning to boil within her veins from the raw emotion sweeping through her.

"Let me guess, you're going to make me pay? Doubtful. I have Death Knight Strategist attack him directly since he can no longer suffer." Isis could do nothing as another knife slammed into his back, dealing the final bit of damage necessary to finish him off. Rishid was gone, and now she was all alone in a duel against someone far her superior. A duelist of such deadly power that she didn't know anyone who could match him. (RLP: 0)

D'harim surveyed the field and then nodded once, obviously satisfied with himself. "I think that's all for now. I'm going to enjoy making you suffer, knowing that you were useless, unable to save him and left to deal with the horror of my power all on your own. I'm sure your screams will be delicious."

"D'harim, I don't know if I can defeat you....but I will try!" She drew her next card, and knew that it might very well be her last, even if D'harim decided to toy with her. So she had to make it count.

'Dalin, I know you're there. I know that if anyone can defeat D'harim it is you. So please, avenge my death and that of Rishid! Make D'harim pay for all those he has cast into death!'

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Completely unaware of the battle that was going on just two floors above them Ryu and Autumn were in the process of searching yet another room. So far they had discovered a long string of nothing. "I'm starting to get tired of this. I mean, where could this thing possibly be?"

Autumn shrugged, having no answer to supply her often impatient boyfriend. He was a good guy overall, but he had some faults that could get annoying. Particularly a tendency to act recklessly and say exactly the wrong thing at the wrong time. "It might just be a special power of his Gauntlet."

"What?" Autumn smiled and waved off his question. Her comment had been mumbled, so luckily he hadn't heard it. Of course it wouldn't have mattered if he had heard it, as he wouldn't have taken it too seriously. That was one of the good things about him, he was able to laugh at himself.

Ryu, deciding that there was nothing left in the bathroom to search, stepped out into the main part of the hotel room. He stopped in place after hearing a strange sound...like something cracking. 'What the heck is that sound?'

A cursory look around the room turned up nothing, but on closer inspection he saw exactly what it was. The glass windows were spider webbing, and bending inwards. The walls around the windows were also starting to crack. 'Oh god no...'

"Autumn, down!" He grabbed her the arm and pulled her down to the ground, throwing his body over hers. It took only a few more seconds of pressure before the window exploded inwards, sending a spray of glass across the room. Ryu felt a slight sting as a few of them grazed him, but it was mostly superficial damage.

The worst was just to come. If he was right, the next thing to happen would be far more dangerous than a bit of flying glass. Seconds later he learned that he was right, because the plaster and stone of the walls shattered, and huge chunks flew through the air, smashing into the far wall. That was broken down by the fragments of the wall, leaving the hallway visible, along with the area right outside the second story room.

Ryu picked himself up enough to look towards where the wall had once been. What he saw was exactly what he had expected, and exactly what he didn't want to see. Standing, in the middle of the air no less, wearing a crimson body suit and a brown cloak flaring out behind him like a cape, was Taichi. "Shit..."

"That's right, you are shit. Nothing but worthless human beings, sickening little pieces of dung ready to be cast aside so that true order can flourish." He spread his arms out to the sides, like a preacher at his pew. His cold blue eyes speared into Ryu, sending a shiver through his body. For the first time in a long time...he was afraid.

"We aren't shit, we're living, breathing people! And you can't just toss us aside for the purpose of creating some pointless so-called order!" Jumping to his feet the former gang member brandished his gauntleted fist, ready to fight. It was a fight that he knew he couldn't win, because his opponent could snuff out his life before he crossed the distance between them.

"Can't we? Who's going to stop us? You? You are the Fallen, a group of those who are incapable of recieving the light of Eikyuu. Why? I don't know or care, but I will take your souls and give you to Eikyuu nonetheless." Even as Taichi spoke, Ryu reached down and helped Autumn to her feet. He checked and soon found she was unhurt, luckily enough.

This time it was Autumn instead of Ryu who countered Taichi's claims. "That's right! We're going to stop you! You can claim you'll take our souls all you want, but that won't make it happen. We'll fight you with every breath in our bodies!"

"The breath in your bodies? How very fitting, considering I can steal all the breath from your bodies with just a thought. I am the Knight of Air after all. So with such a faulty declaration that will make crushing you so much easier." He snickered at his own cleverness, and flared his power, creating hurricane force winds within a small area around him.

"You think that you can crush us easily? Well why don't you try? All I've heard so far is trash talking, so why don't you come and prove it? If you do I'll show you a taste of real power, the power of my Millennium Gauntlet!" He raised the named item, and at the same time he drew on its power, causing a golden eye to appear on his forehead.

"That's right Taichi! Take on his power and you'll take on mine as well, the power of the Millennium Staff!" Autumn held the staff above her head, drawing on both its power and the strength of the two spirits within. If they were going to do this she'd need all the help they could get. Four on one was better than two on one.

"Your items are mere baubles compared to the power that I have been granted by Great Lord Eikyuu, and that of the Heart of Power. Even your Hearts of Man are nothing compared to mine." He smirked and waved his hand as if brushing away something, and a deadly blast of wind sent Ryu and Autumn flying backwards off their feet and into the wall of the hall.

Ryu groaned and picked himself up, helping Autumn to her feet as well. Gritting his teeth he turned back to face Taichi, furious at the younger teen's actions. "Nobody tosses me aside like I'm nothing, not you and not your god! So let's stop with the talking and get to the proving! Show me what you can do on the dueling field, you versus me!"

Taichi said nothing, he merely continued to float in mid-air, staring at Ryu with a blank look on his face. The teen growled deep in his chest and gave his Gauntlet a pushing, causing it to change. It melted like liquid metal and then expanded outwards until it had the shape of a duel disk, with his deck in the little slot at the top.

"Quit staring and let's get to the point! Or are you afraid to face me like a man?" He took out his deck and swiftly shuffled it, readying himself to duel. Finally he slammed it back into what he liked to call his Duel Gauntlet, and then he was absolutely ready. This was it, the most important duel of his life, and he was going to win it! (RLP: 4000)

After a few more seconds Taichi responded. He responded by throwing back his head and laughing hysterically. Ryu thought it was somewhat of a kindness that the laugh was not the same as Taichi's when he was controlled by the dark spirit. "You versus me? What a laughable idea! You're nothing but a gnat to me, even with your Heart card!"

Ryu growled again, furious at having been once again brushed aside as if he was nothing. Maybe he wasn't the best duelist in the world, but that didn't mean he was worthless. After all, the Heart of Courage had chosen him to be its wielder. "If you think it's laughable than how about you duel me anyways if you're so certain you can easily defeat me!"

The blue eyed teen tilted his head to the side as if considering something. Then he smiled and returned his head to a normal angle. "I've got a better idea. I think I'll kill two birds with one stone. The stone is me, and you two are the two birds. So what do you say, two on one?"

Autumn nodded and resolutely stepped forwards. She pressed the activation button allowing her duel disk to extend into active position. She'd support Ryu, and together they should be able to defeat Taichi once and for all. "I'm ready for this. But Taichi, the question is...are you?" (ALP: 4000)

"Don't make me laugh. I could crush you two weaklings in my sleep. Soon a Kuriboh Armada will unveil itself and smother you in the power of true unity, something humanity long since lost sight of! Prepare to meet the strength of my Kuriboh Deck!" His Duel Pod moved into position, meaning he was ready to get going as well. (TLP: 4000)

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"I won't fall so easily D'harim! I swear it, so I activate my set card, Reversed Worlds! Since your strategy practically revolves around your graveyard I'll steal your strength from you at a cost of a meager one thousand life points!" She breathed heavily after completing her declaration, wheezing because of her bruised and broken bones. (ILP: 3000)

So far D'harim hadn't even bothered to inflict any real damage to her. Instead he had toyed with her, making her hurt, making her suffer. He enjoyed it so much he wasn't concerned with her life points. "What a desperate strategy. The last act of a desperate woman. Fitting."

He took his cemetery and swapped it with his deck while Isis did the same, not bothered at all by the sudden turn of events. "I'm not finished either! I'll combo these two cards, Dark Hole and Heavy Storm to clear the field completely!"

D'harim merely stood there as all of his monsters were pulled into the black hole, while his magic and trap cards were blown away. Meanwhile her empty field went unharmed. Not that it mattered, as obviously she had made a serious mistake. "You're pathetic. There are plenty of cards that were in my deck that would be better in the grave, and when it becomes my turn I can unleash them. Thank you for assisting me with your Reversed Worlds card."

She grimaced, but knew it had to be done. That would allow her to finally go on the offensive and deal damage to his life points for the first time in the duel. It was a necessary loss, especially considering one of the other two cards she was holding. "I summon Yatagarasu(200/100), one of the deadliest monsters in the game! With no cards in your hand and none on the field I'm going to lock you done, so watch me! Attack!"

The large black bird flapped its wings and shot across the field, pecking him on the shoulder. He rolled his eyes and slapped it away, sending it reeling. The damage was minimal, but the effect of Yatagarasu meant that when it dealt damage to the opponent that player didn't have a draw phase in the next turn. "Interesting attempt. Of course all I have to do is discard a card from the top of my deck to revive a Death Knight. So useless all in all." (DLP: 3800)

"Not useless, I assure you. Because I can now activate Soul Seal! This permanent magic card will last for the next five turns, and locks out one ability for you while it's in play. That ability is the power of the Death Knights to be revived from the grave. Which means I've completely locked you down." Confident in her triumph she finished her turn, causing her spirit monster to return to her hand. All she had to do was draw some powerful monsters and she could end this.

D'harim glanced at his deck and then at his cemetery. He sighed and placed his hand in front of his cemetery slot, and without a word he popped a card out of it. "I'm afraid your supposed lock down is useless, all thanks to Reversed Worlds. You see, one of the cards you sent to the cemetery was Nightmare of Death, which can only be played while in the cemetery."

A dark mist seeped out from the ground, covering their legs from the knees and below. Isis had no idea what the card's effect was, but she was certain that it wasn't a good thing. "You see, Nightmare of Death allows me to deal one hundred points of damage to you for every Death Knight in the cemetery. Considering that only two Death Knights remain in my deck, that spells quite a bit of damage for you. Once again thanks to your own trap."

Isis tried to reply, but was silenced as the mist surged into her, flowing in through her ears, mouth, nose, even through her eyes. She tried to scream, but the mist was suffocating her as it drained her life and showed her visions of the horror that awaited her in death. It was a true nightmare. (ILP: 900)

"Ah, I knew your screams would be delicious. But tell me, are you still alive?" The mist seeped out of Isis' body and she slumped to the ground, her eyes gazing blankly forwards. He approached her and shrugged, seeing that she was in fact incapable of making a move.

"Don't worry, Nightmare of Death is a one time card. Oh but wait...I have other cards that can be activated from the cemetery. Such as Hands of the Damned, which forces you to discard your hand and take three hundred points of damage for each discarded. Of course it also deals an additional three hundred for each monster." He reached down and shoved Yatagarasu into her cemetery slot, causing the damage effect to activate. But since she was so far gone it didn't matter to her at all. (ILP: 300)

Since his turn was over he drew her next card, revealing a Swords of Revealing Light. He shrugged and slipped it into her disk, causing the card to activate. Green blades slammed down on his side of the field, meaning he was unable to attack for the next three turns. "Interesting stall. Let's find out if I can still win, shall we?"

Freed from the effect of the spirit bird he drew a card and smiled underneath his hood. "It appears that I can win and I have. Because I just drew the one card that can never go to the graveyard, no matter what the circumstance. Black Wind of Death!"

The black blades of wind tore apart her swords, tearing up her dress and her flesh as well. He didn't care about the pain anymore, because she was already gone. But he had to know, he always had to know. He had to win. "That's your end, and that's another soul for Eikyuu." (ILP: 0)

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Now, as the most powerful of the three of us, I think I'll go first." Taichi started off by drawing his opening hand of cards, and then drew another one. Meanwhile Ryu and Autumn drew their own hands, not bothering to look at them yet. At least not until Taichi had made his move.

"What an interesting hand. I can already tell you're going to die easily. But I'll start with an easy play as well, by setting a monster and one card. See if you can even keep up." His two cards appeared right in front of him. It was a simple, and very basic opening move, but nobody but Kirani had seen much of his Kuriboh Deck. No telling what to expect.

Ryu and Autumn glanced at each other, and after a slight pause Ryu nodded towards her, giving her the go ahead to take the first of their turns. He had chosen her so he could follow her lead. After all, she was a more experienced duelist. "First I draw."

She surveyed her hand, trying to figure out what she could do. She smiled to herself at the sight of a few of the cards she held, knowing what she could soon unleash. 'I'm already partially on my way to creating one of my strongest infinite loops. When I do Taichi won't stand a chance.'

'First I'm going to have to make sure I'm defended so that I can really make my play. Hopefully if Taichi finds a way past my cards I can count on Ryu to defend me. He knows that our best chance of winning is one of my infinite loops.' Satisfied that she had the answer to their problem, she began to make her move.

"I'm going to start by summoning Fire Princess(1300/1500) in defense mode." Her first monster was a woman in fairly simple red clothing. It was the special ability of Fire Princess that was going to really make her dangerous, because once Autumn had the other necessary cards assembled she could create a combo so deadly that Taichi wouldn't know what hit him.

"Now I set one magic or trap card face down just like you did. That ends my turn." With her turn over it was up to Ryu to keep up the pace they were at. She had to hope and trust that he wouldn't do anything reckless that would jeopardize them. Doing so might ruin their chance of victory.

Ryu breathed deeply once, then a second time, and then drew his card. He fanned his cards out in front of him so that he could get a good look at what he had to deal with. 'Hmm, this is a pretty balanced hand. Also gives me the chance to use one of my newest cards if I get another card I'd need.'

He stopped looking at his hand and looked at the field as it was set up in front of them. Taichi's cards were a mystery, but Ryu was certain the set monster would have a weak defense. After all, it was probably some sort of Kuriboh. 'But it isn't the monster I need to worry about, but that face down card of his. If I walk into a trap this early in the duel it might screw us over.'

His eyes fell on Fire Princess, and he finally remembered something that had been nagging at him since the moment that Autumn had summoned the monster. 'Now I remember what that card can do. I also know that she's already trying for one of her loops, so I'll just sit tight and keep her safe while she assembles the required cards. No need for recklessness now, because that could get us killed.'

"I've decided what I'm going to do! First I'll set two of my cards face down on the field for later." His two cards appeared in front of him, not revealing whether they were magic or trap cards. He was the only one who knew, and he had plans for them for later. If all worked out they would prove quite useful.

Taichi rolled his eyes, annoyed at how long his opponents were taking. "If you don't finish your move soon I'm going to get old before this duel is over. I know you two are afraid of me, but stop being cowards and duel for real!"

"Fine! I'll summon a monster before ending my turn. The monster I bring out is Warrior Dai Grephar(1700/1000)!" Ryu's monster was a non-effect creature, and a warrior. It wore blueish armor and wielded a broadsword in both hands. It wasn't his strongest basic monster, but it would do for the moment.

The knight glanced at his newest card and smirked in that gross manner he had. After hearing of his actions with Kirani they knew that he was a truly sick person, so anything that made him smirk was a bad thing. "Prepare yourself for death weaklings."

A side panel of his Duel Pod slid open, a panel that Ryu and Autumn had a bad feeling about. If they were right, the next card to be played was one that changed the nature of any duel it was used in. "I activate the Seal of Orichalcos, enveloping the field in its ancient power!"

The six pointed green star formed beneath their feet, part of it extending into the air, hovering over nothing. Taichi stopped floating and let his feet touch down on the bottom of the solid seal, meaning he wouldn't have to expend anymore energy to remain flying. It was just like what he had done while facing Kirani.

"I'll also change the nature of the duel with a normal magic card. Supply Lines. Now that I've played this card each of us must draw one card during our end phase. I hope that pleases both of you." The two other duelists thought about the potential, and knew it could either help them or finish them.

Autumn was the one most pleased by this card's activation. It really would change the nature of the duel, and in her opinion it would change the duel in their favor. 'With that card's effect now active I'll be able to gather the necessary cards for my loops much easier. I've got to hand it to Taichi, he's practically handing the duel to us on a silver platter.'

"I end my turn at that. Of course now I draw according to the effect of Supply Lines." He picked up a new card, partially replenishing his hand from the number he had played this turn. Because he had played so few cards during the duel he now had a hand of four cards, which would quickly become five at the start of his next turn.

As soon as the female duelist drew her card she knew that everything they needed was almost there, and it had been without the help of his new card. It had to be one of the best hands she had drawn in any duel, and with it she could win this duel like it was nothing. 'Somebody up there likes us.'

"I play Reinforcements of the Army, allowing me to search my deck for a warrior that I happen to need." Taking her deck out of the slot she unfolded it, giving her a good view of her deck. It hadn't changed too much from the new cards they had gained, because much of it was dedicated to her loop combos which couldn't be altered in any way.

She soon found the card she need, so she was able to reshuffle her deck and return it to its original position. With this card she was just one step away from gaining victory for them and putting Taichi out of commission. "I summon Gearfried the Iron Knight(1800/1600), a key mechanism in my deck's power!"

The iron warrior stood proudly just a few feet away from Ryu's warrior. The blade on the end of his right arm was deadly, but that wasn't her reason for using him. Oh no, she had far more important things in mind for Gearfried. 'With the help of Gearfried and one more card in my deck I can crush Taichi completely.'

"Now I activate the permanent magic card Morale Boost. This magic card allows me to gain one thousand life points whenever an equip card is added to a monster, but I lose the same amount when that equip goes to the grave." Her card appeared face up, as yet another part in one of her strongest loops. Just one item remained.

"I'll end my turn there and draw a card. Thanks for playing Supply Lines Taichi." She grinned at the sight of her new card, knowing that they'd be able to show Taichi what they could do soon enough. Once again it was up to Ryu to continue their streak of good luck so that they could end this duel without any pain involved.

The older teen picked up another card to add to his hand, and was surprised to see what it was. With this card he could really do Taichi in. 'This is it! Taichi's hidden card may be a trap, but it's about to become completely useless! This duel is in the bag already!'

"Get ready to meet my newest monster! I like to think this creature is a lot like me, because it has the heart of a dragon and the will of a warrior! Go Polymerization, fuse Warrior Dai Grephar together with Spirit Ryu from my hand!" The two monsters jumped into the opening vortex, combining together to great a far more powerful monster.

"I unveil one of my deadliest creatures, the monster version of me and my new favorite card! Ryu Senshi(2000/1600)!" The monster was simply Warrior Dai Grephar, only now he was covered in armor the same color and texture as Spirit Ryu's scales. That dragonic armor was what made his monster so deadly.

"Ryu Senshi's abilities outclass most other monsters, making up by far for his only average attack power. His dragonic armor makes him totally immune to magic cards, and allows me to pay one thousand life points to negate the activation of a trap and destroy it! So he'll be able to attack with impunity!" Ryu Senshi and Ryu both smirked, and the warrior readied his blade for the attack.

"Attack your set monster might rid the field of it, but I've got a better plan. I'm going to deal you some serious damage right now, by activating my Meteor Rain trap card! For this turn my monster can deal damage through defense, so I'll show you his power. Ryu Senshi, Dragon Blade Slash!" The warrior bellowed out his battle cry and rushed across the field, slamming his blade down against the set monster.

The monster revealed itself as a Kuriboh with a shiny steel exterior. It squealed and bopped its head against Ryu Senshi's blade, knocking it away. The monster remained unharmed and squealed with delight. "This is Kuri Defender(300/200). He can't be destroyed in battle, so while you deal damage he remains." (TLP: 2200)

Taichi smiled and patted his steel Kuriboh on the head. It rubbed against his hand like a cat. The pure cuteness factor caused Autumn's eyes to light up and she clapped her hands together as she stared at the little thing. Ryu wasn't that immersed though. "Oh great....adorable fuzz balls and Autumn. This will get annoying really quickly."

He cleared his throat, bring attention back to him and away from the Kuri Defender. Once he had their attention he drew a card, showing that he was following Supply Lines' effect by drawing during his end phase. His turn was over, and the advantage was theirs.

Taichi drew his next card, and smirked yet again. A smirk that was starting to irritate Ryu really quickly. "I set one card face down and then summon Kuri General(500/400). Of course he gains dark power, increasing his attack by 500. Then his effect activates, boosting allow Kuri Clan members including himself by 400 attack and defense points."

His new monster was a simple Kuriboh with a green military uniform with a lot of stripes and medals on it. For some strange reason it also had an oversized cigar in its mouth. "So he has fourteen hundred attack and Kuri Defender has twelve hundred attack. Not enough to get past you. So that means I end."

Autumn smirked right back at Taichi and immediately activated one of her cards right after drawing. "I activate Magical Well, letting me put a magic card from my deck into my hand. I can't set or activate it for this turn, so right now you're safe." She found the card quickly and added it to her hand.

"I'll set card, and then since Ryu Senshi is in play I'll attack Kuri General with Gearfried. Iron Fierce!" The knight stabbed his arm forwards, sending a wave of power across the field by sheer use of strength. Kuri General let out a shrill cry, and suddenly Kuri Defender hopped in the way, taking the blast and remaining unharmed.

"Kuri General commands his troops very well. He lets me move any targeting to a Kuri Clan member of my choosing. He's perfect in combination with Kuri Defender, as I can just block all your attacks by moving them to my steel Kuriboh." He was right indeed, as he did have everything all prepared for any attack they made. Not that it would matter once her next turn rolled around.

Ryu grabbed another cad, and smirked at what he saw. He was going to unleash even more power so that once they got past Kuri Defender, if they even needed to, it would be easy enough to completely obliterate Taichi. "I play Monster Reborn on Warrior Dai Grephar."

The monster returned to the field, waiting for his next command. He had the perfect use for it in mind, Taichi would love it. "I play Descent of White Dragon, offering Warrior Dai Grephar for Paladin of White Dragon(1900/1200)!"

The first warrior was soon replaced by a white armored knight riding a thin blue dragon with no eyes. Although it appeared weak, it had the power needed to really kick this duel up a notch. "Here, let me show you some real power. I offer Paladin of White Dragon to special summon Blue Eyes White Dragon(3000/2500) to the field!"

The paladin vanished and was replaced by the massive white dragon who roared, displaying all of his many many teeth. Taichi didn't seem bothered though. "Ah yes, your self made Blue Eyes. Pretty underhanded tactic to get a card, but oh well, you are a weakling so you have to do whatever you can to get ahead."

"Bastard...I'll show you soon enough! For now I can't attack, so that's the end of my turn." He slipped another card off his deck, giving him two cards to work with when he had his next turn. But if he knew Autumn, and he did, there wouldn't be another turn for him. Because it would all end in her next turn.

Taichi glanced at his card and smiled. "This card is going to turn this entire duel around really quickly. It's about to leave you speechless! Go, Mesmeric Kuriboh Plushy!" Ryu sweat dropped at the mere mention of the name, but it only got worse when the thing actually appeared on the field.

It was a small shiny Kuriboh toy, dancing around happily singing 'Kuri' over and over again. Ryu chanced a glance at his girlfriend and saw that her eyes had gone wide with delight at the sight of the adorable little thing. "It's so cute!"

"Yes, cute. You see, that has long been of the most notable attribute of the Kuriboh. So the Kuri Clan chose to exploit this, and the plushy before you is the result! Its sheer cuteness will mesmerize the Blue Eyes White Dragon and bring it to me!" Ry snorted in disbelief, but stopped abruptly when he saw that the once mighty Blue Eyes was staring at the plushy with the same adoring look in it's eyes that Autumn had.

"The power of cuteness compels you!" The plushy began to bounce backwards, and like a child chasing a ball it advanced, going after it. It took only a few seconds to catch up, and soon it was playfully batting the thing up into the air with its feet, stars in its eyes as it played with the plushy.

Ryu's sweat drops seemed to be multiplying exponentially by the second as the cuteness continued. There was only so much of it he could take! "This is by far the most disturbing thing I've seen. Ever."

The knight of air snickered at Ryu's disbelief. He had far more planned than simply creating a mindless display of positive cuteness. "Your Blue Eyes has fallen to the power of the cuteness, but it's completely useless to me. Therefore I'm going to sacrifice it as an offering to my magic card. Five Star Twilight!"

The Blue Eyes and the plushy both vanished, and suddenly five stars descended from the ceiling above them. They were different colors, and they began to form into Kuribohs, each of a different color as well, corresponding with the star color. "All I had to do was sacrifice a five star or higher monster so I could special summon the Kuriboh Brothers. Kuriboh(300/200, Kuribe(300/200), Kuribi(300/200), Kuriba(300/200), and Kuribu(300/200)!"

The five brothers turned from cute to angry in seconds as the dark power of the seal applied to them, boosting their strength by five hundred. They also each gained four hundred more points from Kuri General. "Now allow me to show you one of their powers. They can combine together to form Kuribablyon, who gains all of their power for himself!"

The five brothers united, and the result was grayish-black Kuriboh with a horn in the middle of its forehead. But the application of the seal's dark power changed it, giving it horrendous fangs and making it truly demonic. "Remember how I mentioned it had the combined power of all the siblings? Well I was talking attack and defense points, meaning with the two bonuses Kuribabylon(6900/3400) has more power than you can hope to match!"

Ryu and Autumn could only stare in horror at the incredibly powerful beast before them. If it succeeded in making a serious attack, they would be finished. "Kuribablyon, attack Gearfried and eliminate Autumn from the duel!"

The demonic monster jumped across the field, its horn pointing straight towards the iron knight. If it completed the attack Autumn's life points would drop to zero, and she couldn't allow that, not when they were so close to victory. "I chain with Voodoo Doll! This will move the attack to your side of the field!"

Kuribablyon changed direction in mid-jump and headed towards Taichi. The knight sneered and motioned towards his steel Kuriboh. It jumped in the way, and Kuribablyon bounced harmlessly off. "I block it with Kuri Defender, which means I am safe. You get one more turn, but when it's my turn I'll finish you both off for good."

As soon as his turn ended, Autumn's began. She drew her card but didn't even bother to look at it. She merely took one card from her hand and held it up. "This duel is already over, because I hold in my hand my ultimate weapon. Butterfly Dagger-Elma!"

"When Butterfly Dagger-Elma is destroyed and it automatically returns to my hand. Whenever Gearfried is equipped with a card that card is destroyed. Whenever I equip a card Morale Boost increases my life points of 1000 which I will promptly lose because of it's second effect and Gearfried's effect." She smirked broadly as she got to explaining the last part of her loop combo.

"Finally, the ability of Fire Princess will deal five hundred damage to you since I gain life points. It doesn't matter that I lost them immediately, you'll still take damage. Of course since Butterfly Dagger returned to my hand I can replay it on Gearfried to gain 1000 and deal five hundred more. I can continue to do this infinitely." The two of them exchanged a victory sign, knowing that it was over.

"This means that I can now deal infinite damage. So go, Infinite Life Burn Combo!" She slammed the card into her disk, equipping it to Gearfried and therefore destroying it. Fire Princess raised its hands and sent a jet of flame towards Taichi in order to inflict damage to him by it's effect.

"I'll play it five times for an even twenty-five hundred damage, easily enough to end you once and for all! It's all over Taichi, and we've won!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Author's Notes: Huzzah! Much duelness! Oh, and unlike the first infinite loop I had Autumn use, this one actually does work. Takes set up, but it is infinite life point drain.

Time Mage: Rishid was in body armor after the first time he was shot. You'll just have to wait to find out most of the answers.

VoidTemplar: Yes, a combination of both works. Oh, and no this is much more. That was the original thought for it, this is longer than that. We've only now reached the second half of the story.

Original Cards

D'harim: Death Knight Reaper, Black Wind of Death, Death Knight Strategist, Nightmare of Death, Hands of the Damned

Rishid: Onslaught From The Grave

Isis: Soul Seal

Taichi: Supply Lines(Vaurnut), Kuri Defender, Kuri General, Mesmeric Kuriboh Plushy

Autumn: Magical Well, Voodoo Doll

Anime Original Cards

Taichi: Five Star Twilight, Kuribi, Kuribe, Kuribu, Kuriba, Kuribablyon