Disclaimer: See Chapter 24 for details
Chapter 25: Into the Shadows, Part 1
The tournament had begun, and the gang was walking along. Yugi had already won 3 duels, the most yet, while Joey had managed to win one. Elsewhere, Bakura was trying to find an opponent for himself, and he didn't need to go far before he found one.
Bakura found a man with a Duel Disk in an alley, who was dressed in an unusual outfit, but Bakura didn't care.
"You there!" he burst, pointing at the man.
"What, you punk?" he responded.
"How dare you call me that! I challenge you to a duel!" he said, stating his challenge, and the man's look of anger became one of mischief.
"Fine then! You may call me the Jack of Clubs!" he announced.
"O...k, but lets turn up the stakes!" Bakura responded as purple and black fog enclosed the alley and the Jack of Clubs was intrigued by this. "We are now fighting a duel in the Shadow Realm! And once you lose, your soul will be trapped here forever!" he laughed while both players readied their Duel Disks. Both life point counters shot to 4000.
"I'll take the first turn." Bakura rudely declared. "I'll summon Shadow Archer (1750/1900) in attack mode! Then I'll set one card face down to end my turn." He announced as his monster, completely made of shadows, readied a black and purple arrow.
Jack of Clubs drew. "I'll set two cards face down and summon Executioner Makyura (1600/1200) in defense mode." He announced while his demon monster with 6 sharp, massive white claws put itself in a defensive stance.
Bakura drew. (What a pathetic trap!) he thought. "Go Headless Knight (1450/1700) in attack mode! Headless Knight, attack his Executioner Makyura!" he commanded as his headless knight sliced and diced the demon monster.
"You've activated Makyura's effect! Now I can activate this trap card from my hand, Physical Double! Now I can create a mirage of your Shadow Archer (1750/1900) to summon in defense mode! You won't be getting to my life points this turn!" the Jack of Clubs smirked as Bakura listened attentively.
Bakura drew, and noticed the clone faded away. "Seems like you only had one turn to keep my monster around! Now go both of my monsters, and strike his life points directly!" he commanded.
Jack of Clubs sighed. "Reveal face down card, Double Recoil!" he sprung as his trap flipped up. Two metal wires wrapped around Bakura's two monsters and electrocuted him. Four white ghosts emerged from the monster's souls and two of them struck Jack of Clubs, the other two, struck Bakura.
"My magical trap will only let me receive half of the battle damage I would have received, but you get the other half!" he laughed as Bakura watched his life points lower. (J's LP: 2400) (B's LP: 2400)
Bakura gasped at the turn of events while his opponent drew. "I'll summon Big Shield Guardna (100/2600) in defense mode and set one more card face down. That will end my turn."
Bakura drew. "Now I'll sacrifice both of my creatures to summon a monster who will gain their power!" he stated.
"Triggering a trap I set for you, Terror Strike! This card will zap the power of both of your monsters and add it to my life points!" Jack of Clubs responded as both monsters sizzled in smoke, and their attack dropped to 0 as Jack of Clubs' life points rose. (J's LP: 5600)
Bakura growled, since there was a gaping hole in his move. "To summon Maju Garzett (0/0) in defense mode." He continued as his red evil demon appeared before him, using his hands to defend himself. "I'll end my move by setting a card face down."
The shadows were beginning to take their toll on the Jack of Clubs. He began to lose his vision, but quickly recovered. "Ah, are the shadows beginning to wear you down? Don't worry; soon you'll become a permanent fixture of them!" Bakura remarked, seeing his opponent stumble.
"I don't know what kind of duel you set up, but I'll defeat you all the same." He stated, drawing his card. "And if I keep drawing cards like this I will! I'll set one card face down, and summon Prank Master (1600/1300) in attack mode! Prank Master, attack his Maju Garzett!" he commanded as the monster magically created a spike pit under Maju Garzett, ready to swallow Bakura's defense up.
"Hold on! Reveal trap card, Price of Destruction! For a simple 700 life points (B's LP: 1700) all fiend type monsters from your hand and deck will go to MY graveyard!" he coolly explained while the Jack of Clubs filtered through his deck and found 2, both of them being Mask of Darkness. Bakura then chuckled.
"Seeing as how it's my move, I'll draw a card and then remove Headless Knight and your two monsters from my graveyard to summon this!" he declared, slapping a card onto the monster card zone. A black essence swooped across the field before materialized into a demon woman. "Dark Necrofear (2200/2800) has arisen. Dark Necrofear, attack his Prank Master!" commanded Bakura as the demon woman eyes opened wide and shot two red beams at him.
"Activating yet another trap card of mine! A personal favorite, it's known as Mirror Force, reflecting your attack right back at your Dark Necrofear, obliterating her!" he happily declared as the two red beams hit a glass barrier, bouncing back at Dark Necrofear. The demon melted away.
"By destroying Dark Necrofear, its effect is activated. Now it comes back as an equip card, and I can control your Big Shield Guardna!" He announced as Necrofear returned, possessing the warrior and dragging it to Bakura's side of the field.
Jack of Clubs was unfazed while he drew. "So you took control of my monster. I'm that impressed. So I'll end my turn by switching Prank Master to defense mode." (Just do exactly what I need you to...) he thought, watching Bakura.
Bakura automatically drew. "I'll summon The Portrait's Secret (1200/1500) in defense mode and end my move." He declared as a painting, followed by a demon sticking its head out of it appeared on Bakura's field.
Jack of Clubs drew. (Come on...attack. Maybe this will help him fall into my trap)! "I activate Soul Restoration, which will allow all cards removed from the game to go into your graveyard!" he explained pointing at Bakura. Automatically, the three cards used to summon Dark Necrofear were replaced in the graveyard. "I'll end my turn from here."
Bakura drew. (Why would he do that? The shadows must be taking their toll on him. And that's one mistake he will never afford to pay for!) he thought, studying his hand closely.
"Now I activate, Raise Dead! This allows me to revive one monster from my graveyard!" he declared as Headless Knight from his graveyard slot. Then, I activate the magic card Fusion! Now I'll fuse together my Headless Knight and Ghost Count to summon this!" he announced as his monster cards appeared on the field, then merged together via a bright, illuminating magic.
The result was a fiendish creature with a heavy sword, ready to slice anyone who dare cross his path. "Luckily for you," began Bakura "fused monsters are not able to attack during the turn they are summoned. So! I'll set this one card down to end my move." He announced while his creature groaned. "Meet my Ghost Duke (2000/1700)!"
Jack of Clubs nervously drew. "Now I activate my trap card known as Cloning Device! This card allows me to summon 2 more Prank Masters (1600/1300) in attack mode! Then I'll sacrifice two of them so I may summon Trap King (2600/1500) in attack mode! Trap King, attack his Ghost Duke now!" he commanded as his monster magically made a spike coffin appear to slaughter his target. However, when the spike chamber disappeared, the monster was still remaining.
"What happened? Your monster should be hanging from the spikes!" Jack of Clubs burst.
Bakura chuckled. "Your monsters can never destroy my Ghost Duke! On the contrary, I do lose the same amount of life points I would have lost if my monster were destroyed." (B's LP: 1100)
Bakura drew. "Also, I must pay 500 life points per turn to keep my Ghost Duke around! (B's LP: 600), but I think I'll do something more fun! Goodbye Ghost Duke!" he began as his monster faded back into the Shadow Realm.
"And now prepare to meet an even stronger monster! I summon Diabound Carnal! (1800/1200)" he announced as his gray monster with a head and the body of a snake appeared before Bakura. Bakura laughed as his monster was revealed from the shadow around the duelists.
"Ah, I can sense the fear in your eyes. And for good reason, for you should be even more fearful as I activate the magic card, Afterimage of the Ghost! Equipping this to my Diabound Carnal, now I'm able to summon a Doppler Diabound to the field!" he announced as the same image stepped out from the Shadow Realm.
"My new monster has the same attack points as my Diabound Carnal (1800)! But wait! I think you should personally witness my new card's effect, so it will be that much painful!" he declared. Meanwhile, the Doppler Diabound possessed Trap King, which became surrounded with an aura, similar to the walls of the Shadow Realm. Jack of Clubs was astonished to witness the points of his monster dropping drastically. (Trap King: 800/1500)
"What did your monster do?" Jack of Clubs stuttered.
"He weakened your monster and Diabound Carnal will destroy it!" Bakura instructed as his monster gathered a stream of yellow energy, launching it at Trap King, wiping him out. Jack of Clubs just stood there, jaw opened, at how Bakura had effortlessly managed to defeat one of his strongest monsters. (J's LP: 4600)
"Who are you? You're not any ordinary duelist! First, you summon this "Shadow Realm" place, and then you summon these all powerful demon creatures! Who are you!" he demanded to know.
Bakura chuckled using his oh-so-satisfying chuckle. "Well what's the harm in letting you know? My name is Bakura. I am a thief, whose crimes date back to over 5,000 years ago."
"A thief??" repeated the Jack of Clubs, interested in his history.
"Did I stutter?" Bakura impatiently asked. "However, you won't tell anyone will you?" "What do you think? You think I'm working alone? My comrades will be pleased to hear this, just as soon as this duel is over!" he proudly declared.
Once more, Bakura chuckled. "How quickly we seem to forget things! You think I just called up the Shadow Realm to give us a cooler dueling atmosphere? For you see, as soon as I win this duel, your mind and soul will be lost to wander the shadows for all eternity!"
Jack of Clubs winced, but quickly regained command. (The only way I'll lose my mind and soul is if I lose this duel! I'm the Jack of Clubs! I have yet to lose a duel, and I won't begin to lose one today. No matter how evil my opponent may be.) He drew.
"Too bad when you destroyed my Trap King, you activated his special ability! Now I can place 3 trap cards from my deck to my hand!" he declared while his deck spat out 3 cards, then shuffled itself automatically.
"So I'll set these 3 cards face down, and switch my two Prank Masters into defense mode to end my turn." He announced as his instructions became reality.
Bakura drew. "You're pathetic! Diabound Carnal, attack a Prank Master now!" commanded Bakura as his monster wound up another energy stream, annihilating one of the defending monsters.
"You might as well give up now. There's no escaping your fate. When I'm through with you, you will wander this realm forever! No point in just waiting for the inevitable, give up." Teased Bakura, but Jack of Clubs drew. "Suit yourself" responded Bakura.
"Now I can destroy you! I activate my trap card, Nightmare Wheel! This card encases your Diabound Carnal in my demonic wheel, which will drain 500 life points from you each turn! And you can only afford that for one turn "Bakura." Then, I'll sacrifice Prank Master to summon Fairy King Truesdale (2200/1700 500)." He declared while his monster digitized to be replaced with a king of plants carrying a staff to vanquish opposition.
"Also, my Fairy King gains 500 attack points from his own ability!" he laughed as his monster's points rose to 2700. "This is it! You lose Bakura! Fairy King Truesdale, wipe out Doppler Diabound and win me this duel!" he commanded as his king raised his staff in the air, and long, pointy, thick vines came flying out of it, wrapping tightly around Doppler Diabound.
"Activate trap!" sprung Bakura. "Enchanted Javelin will raise my life points by 2700!' (B's LP: 3300) However, the vines still trapped Bakura's monster and shattered it. (B's LP: 2400)
Bakura growled, knowing he was at a setback. "Remember, you lose 500 life points, courtesy of Nightmare Wheel." Spoke Jack of Clubs.
"Yeah I remember." Bakura mumbled. (B's LP: 1900) However, he then chuckled, upon seeing his draw. "I activate Remove Trap to destroy your Nightmare Wheel, and then I'll activate another Afterimage of the Ghost!" he laughed as his faithful Diabound Carnal broke free from the Nightmare Wheel, floating back to his proper place. Then, another Doppler Diabound emerged from the shadow behind Bakura.
"Well, I expect you to know what happens next! Doppler Diabound, attach to his Fairy King Truesdale, and drain him of his attack points!" instructed Bakura, while his monster flew into the fairy king, and the same dark purple and black aura surrounded him as his attack shot down to 900.
"Now that's he weak, Diabound Carnal, attack and destroy Fairy King Truesdale!" he commanded as his monster charged up his energy blast.
"Reverse trap card, Negate Attack!" Jack of Clubs burst as the energy stream was absorbed by a vortex. Bakura growled, set one card, and ended his turn.
Jack of Clubs immediately drew. "I summon Soul Tiger (0/2100) in attack mode!" he declared as a blue tiger emerged from the shadows.
"Is there a reason you did that? Your monster has no attack points. However, if you want to lose, go ahead and surrender. This tactic is even more pathetic." Bakura replied.
"I'll get the last laugh, thief boy, because I'm activating the magical Shield and Sword card swapping all monster's attack points with their defense points!" exclaimed Jack of Clubs while Bakura gasped.
(Soul Tiger: 2100/0, Diabound Carnal: 1200/1800, Doppler Diabound 0/1800)
"Soul Tiger, attack Diabound Carnal!" commanded Jack of Clubs as the monster leapt at Diabound Carnal, phasing through it with its razor-sharp claws. Diabound Carnal exploded on the spot. (B's LP: 1000). Jack of Clubs laughed. "Where's your prize monster now? Next turn, I'll finish you completely!" he smirked.
To his surprise, Bakura laughed himself. "I knew you had a plan waiting to destroy my Diabound Carnal, that's why you've barely been making a move. You needed the right card, which in this case was Shield and Sword, and you've played right into my trap. The Shadow Realm has completely surrounded you and there's no way out!" he smirked.
"Reveal my trap card, Revival Ouiju! This card can only be activated when one of my monsters is destroyed. Now I'm able to resummon a monster! So welcome back, my Diabound Carnal!" laughed Bakura. "Your assault did absolutely nothing! However, I will do much more! Reverse my second trap card, Mirror Wall Ouiju!" he smirked. Suddenly, Soul Tiger became encased in a glass structure and exploded inside it, while Diabound Carnal happened to be glowing a faint purple color.
"What did you do??" questioned Jack of Clubs.
"Relax. Your monster's perfectly safe...for now. All my trap simply did was increase its attack by half of Trap King's attack points." Bakura reassured as Diabound Carnal's attack raised to 3100. Jack of Clubs set two cards before ending his turn.
(Your monster may be stronger than a Blue Eyes White Dragon, but my trap cards will break it, just as soon as you command it to attack...) smirked Jack of Clubs.
Bakura just drew. (Let's see. He has one monster with 0 attack points on the field, and he has 5 face down cards. At least one of them must be a trap, and I have just the card to rid the field of them.) he thought. "I activate Anti-Magical Arrows!" sprung Bakura.
"Don't think so!" responded Jack of Clubs. "Reverse trap, Anti-Magic Machine!" he announced as a large square machine appeared on the field. One of the Jack of Clubs' face down cards disappeared and the machine fired a fireball, incinerating Bakura's magic card.
"What is this?" nervously asked Bakura.
"My trap card will automatically destroy any magic card you try to activate. However, it comes with a price. Except, the price has no price! For reveal, Discard Scale!" he announced as his magic card revealed itself. "Now every time cards are discarded from my hand, I can draw the same amount!" he snickered.
"Well then, have to take the risk. Diabound Carnal, attack Soul Tiger now!" Bakura commanded as the monster charged up its signature yellow energy stream.
"Activate trap, The Regulation of Tribe!" Jack of Clubs called as several chains wrapped around the half-snake, and half-man monster of Bakura's, preventing it from attacking. Bakura growled, knowing of this card's effect. "I'll end my move from here. After all, you have no cards stronger than my Diabound Carnal."
Jack of Clubs drew. "Actually, I have just the cards I need to defeat your Diabound Carnal! Just I need to wait one more turn. So, I'll set these three cards to finish my move and set Soul Tiger in defense mode." He instructed while all he declared during his move happened.
Bakura drew while the chains rusted and freed his monster. "Now I'll activate Black Energy Fountain!" he exclaimed as a magical fountain appeared on his side of the field. "You see while my fountain is in play, all of my fiend monsters gain 1000 attack points!" he explained while some purple water rinsed itself over Diabound Carnal, increasing its strength to 2800.
"Now my monster will be able to wipe out your pitiful, worthless defense!" Bakura teased. The Jack of Clubs gritted his teeth hard, he wanted to sock Bakura for all his insults, but he calmed down, as victory could be his in a matter of few moments. "Attack!" commanded Bakura.
"You've fallen into the ultimate trap! Reveal trap card, Mechanical Magic Mirror!" he exclaimed as his magic card flipped up. "Now I am able to activate Raise Dead (Monster Reborn) from your graveyard!" he exclaimed while his card morphed into the Raise Dead card, instantly reviving Trap King in defense mode (1500).
"I don't care! Continue your attack, Diabound Carnal!" Bakura said as the monster launched its yellow energy beam.
"Activate set card, Negate Attack!" Jack of Clubs burst as the energy stream was absorbed into a vortex. Bakura angrily set a card, before ending his turn.
"Are you ready?" joked Jack of Clubs. "Because now I sacrifice both of my monsters to summon Magical Absorber (2700/2350)!" he smirked as a cloud of smoke surrounded his monsters. When it dispersed, the two monsters were gone, only to be replaced by a strong magician carrying a silver staff whose face didn't show a hint of emotion, except superiority.
"My new monster will gain 1000 attack points from your equip card!" Jack of Clubs added while his monster's attack rose to 3700.
"Impossible!" remarked Bakura. "It only works on fiend monsters! Your magician is certainly not one!" he called.
"However, my magician's special ability lets it gain the same amount of attack points it would gain if the equip card worked on it. It's all legal!" Jack of Clubs remarked. "So take this! Magical Absorber, attack Diabound Carnal now!" he commanded as his monster's staff rose into the air, creating 3 magic symbols. The magic symbols merged together to form a green blast of energy, coming down on Diabound Carnal.
"You think I'm an amateur! Reveal, Ghost Shield!" Bakura responded as his trap flipped up. "And once I take Ghost Count from the graveyard...." He began, removing his card from the duel, "your attack has no impact!" he laughed as the attack hit a barrier, resulting in smoke, but no damage. Bakura laughed.
"Now I can activate a magic card which will cause you to lose the shadow game! Prepare to take the game up a level!" Bakura smirked as he drew. "Activate magic card, Dark Sanctuary!" he laughed as his laughter echoed into the shadows surrounding them.
CARDS PLAYED
Shadow Archer: /1750/1900/ Demon Type /Desc: Remove 2 demon type monsters from your graveyard to destroy one monster card on the field. This effect may only be used once per turn.
Executioner Makyura: /1600/1200/ Warrior Type /Desc: During the turn this card is activated, the controller of this card may activate 1 trap card from his or her hand.
Headless Knight: /1450/1700/ Fiend Type
Physical Double: TRAP/Desc: You can only activate this card during your opponent's turn. Select 1 monster on your opponent's side of the field and Special Summon 1 "Mirage Token" in face-up Attack or Defense Position on your side of the field. The "Mirage Token" has the same Level Type, Attribute, ATK, and DEF as the selected monster. Destroy the "Mirage Token" at the end of the turn.
Double Recoil: TRAP/Desc: Until the end of the turn, negate any attack. Subtract half of the battle damage you would have received for the entire turn to yourself, and the other half to your opponent.
Big Shield Guardna: /100/2600/ Warrior Type
Terror Strike: TRAP/Desc: Decrease the ATK of all your opponent's monsters to 0. Increase your life points by the same amount of points the monsters lost.
Maju Garzett: /0/0/ Demon Type/ Desc: The ATK of this card becomes equal to the combined original ATK of the 2 monsters you offered as a Tribute to Tribute Summon this card.
Prank Master: /1600/1300/ Spellcaster /Desc: You may discard one trap card from your hand or deck to place one trap card from your graveyard to your hand.
Price of Destruction: TRAP/ Pay 700 life points. Declare one card type. Your opponent then searches his or her deck. Any monsters of the declared type are sent to this card's controller's graveyard.
Dark Necrofear: /2200/2800/ Demon Type /Desc: This card can only be Special Summoned by removing 3 Fiend-Type monsters in your Graveyard from play. When this card is destroyed in battle or by your opponent's card effect, it is treated as an Equip Magic Card at the end of the turn. Equip 1 of your opponent's monsters with this card. As long as it is equipped with this card, you control the equipped monster.
Mirror Force: TRAP/Desc: When an opponent's monster attacks, negate the attack and destroy all opponent's monsters in Attack position.
The Portrait's Secret: /1200/1500/ Fiend Type
Soul Restoration: MAGIC/Desc: All cards removed from the game return to the graveyard, under the control of the player who removed them.
Raise Dead: MAGIC/Desc: Special summon one monster from either you or your opponent's graveyard in face up attack or defense position.
Fusion: MAGIC/Desc: Fuse 2 or more monsters into a new fusion monster.
Ghost Duke: /2000/1700/ Demon Type /Desc: This monster is never destroyed as a result of battle. Damage is still calculated as normal. Pay 500 life points to keep this monster during your standby phase. If you cannot, this card is destroyed.
Cloning Device: TRAP/Desc: This card may only be activated when you have one monster on the field. You may special summon up to 2 more of the same card from your deck to the field.
Trap King: /2600/1500/ Spellcaster Type /Desc: When this card is sent from the field to the graveyard, you may add 3 trap cards from your deck to your hand. Your deck is then shuffled. SEMI-LIMITED
Diabound Carnal: /1800/1200/ Demon Type
Afterimage of the Ghost: EQUIPMENT MAGIC/Desc: Equipping this card to a "Diabound Carnal" allows you to summon one "Doppler Token" to the field. The Doppler Token may subtract attack points equal to its own from one monster on the field per turn.
Nightmare Wheel: TRAP/Desc: Select 1 monster. As long as this card remains face-up on the field, the selected monster cannot attack or change its battle position except by effect of a Magic, Trap, Effect Monster Card. This card inflicts 500 points of Direct Damage to your opponent's Life Points during each of your Standby Phases. When the selected is destroyed or removed from the field, this card is also destroyed.
Fairy King Truesdale: /2200/1700/ Plant /Desc: As long as this card remains face up on the field, increase the ATK of all plant monsters on the field by 500.
Enchanted Javelin: TRAP/Desc: When your opponents monster attacks, increase your life points by the attacking monster's ATK points.
Remove Trap: MAGIC/Desc: Destroy one face-up trap card on the field.
Negate Attack: TRAP/Desc: When your opponent attacks with a monster, negate the attack and make your opponent's Battle Phase end.
Soul Tiger: /0/2100/ Beast Type
Shield and Sword: MAGIC/Desc: For 1 turn, each face-up monster's original ATK becomes their original DEF and vice-versa. Monsters summoned after this card's activation are excluded.
Revival Ouiju: TRAP/Desc: You may only activate this card when a monster is destroyed as a result of battle. Special summon one monster from your graveyard to the field in face up attack position.
Mirror Wall Ouiju: TRAP/Desc: add 1 half of a destroyed monster's ATK into another monster on the field.
Anti-Magical Arrows: MAGIC/Desc: None of your opponent's set magic and trap cards may be activated. Cards set after this card's activation are excluded.
Anti-Magic Machine: CONTINIOUS TRAP/Desc: Negate the activation of a magic card and destroy it by discarding 2 cards from your hand. This effect may only be used once per turn (whether during yours or your opponents.)
Discard Scale: CONTINIOUS MAGIC/Desc: Each time an effect forces you to discard from your hand, after discarding, you may draw the same amount of cards you just discarded.
The Regulation of Tribe: TRAP/Desc: Select 1 Type of Monster. Any monster of the selected type cannot attack. To keep this card in effect, you must offer 1 monster from the Field as a Tribute at each of your Standby Phases. If you cannot, this card is destroyed.
Black Energy Fountain: CONTINIOUS MAGIC/Desc: As long as this card remains face up on the field, increase the ATK of all demon type monsters by 1000 points.
Mechanical Magic Mirror: TRAP/Desc: You may activate this card when your opponent attacks. Activate one magic card from your opponent's graveyard.
Magical Absorber: /2700/2350/ Magician /Desc: If an equip card is face up on the field, increase this monster's ATK by the same amount of ATK points it would receive if the equip card were on this monster, even if it is not compatible.
Ghost Shield: PERMANENT TRAP/Desc: Remove 1 Demon type monster from your graveyard to negate the attack of one of your opponent's monsters.
Dark Sanctuary: FIELD MAGIC/Desc: This card's effect may only be activated when there is a Dark Necrofear in the graveyard. Once per turn, select one of your opponent's monsters, but do not let your opponent know which monster. If your opponent attacks with the selected monster, negate the attack, and subtract half of the selected monsters attack points from your opponent's life points, and increase your own life points by the same amount. Offer 1 monster on your side of the field as a tribute during your end phase. If you do not, this card is destroyed. This card's effect is negated if there is a face up "Dark Necrofear" on the field.