Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!
Chapter 6: Jailbreak! Part 2: Labyrinth Soul
Celton and Cy stood back-to-back in the square area, watching in horror as the walls rippled around them, waves of power running wild. Celton had his staff up and ready, eyes searching, knowing that the Wall Shadow was famous for surprise attacks. The last thing he needed was for it to kill them.
"We should never have done this!" Celton growled to Cy. "If we don't get out of this alive, I'll kill you!"
"Okay… I doubt I can accommodate your request, dear Celton," Cy replied. "First, the Wall Shadow wants to kill me, then Svrion, and then our father… I am afraid you will have to wait…"
"Okay," Celton retorted sarcastically. "I can wait. And in the meanwhile, I'll busy myself by getting killed by our mother. How does that sound?" Celton glared at Cy and she calmly glanced back.
"Really, Celton. We're about to get eaten alive here by this beast that is going to appear out of nowhere and all you can think about is getting mad at-," Cy cut off her words as she screamed. The Wall Shadow suddenly jumped out the wall and tried to slam into them. Luckily, they tumbled to the floor out of the way.
"DARK MAGIC ATTACK!" A beam of purple light swept through the floor and hit Wall Shadow, sending him tumbling back against the floor. Celton grabbed Cy's hand and made a run for it.
"Why are we running?" Cy asked, letting herself be pulled by her older brother. He didn't reply. "Why don't you stay and fight?" Celton only narrowed his eyes as he made five right turns in a row, finally stopping to catch his breath in a wider passageway. Cy slumped to the floor and put her head down. Celton tried to concentrate the best he could, thinking of a strategy of attacks he could use against Wall Shadow.
"Hey!" Cy cried. "My cut is gone!" Celton turned toward her, and his concentration vanished.
"I told you it would," he responded, though he didn't know whether he should be happy or sad. He shook his head, muttering about losing his "mental calculations" when the Wall Shadow made another surprise appearance.
With a shriek, it lunged out and smashed into Celton, knocking him to the other wall, his staff flying the other direction. Cy screamed and fell back as the damaged wall spewed dust and particles of cement. Coughing, she got to her feet and looked around for a weapon.
The Wall Shadow climbed up on a very stunned Celton, licking the blood that trickled from the corner of his mouth. Slowly, like a vampire, it made its way down the side of his neck.
"DARK MAGIC ATTACK!" The Shadow snapped around to face Cy as she picked up the staff and pointed it in his direction. A small spark appeared at the very edge of the weapon, but other than that, it was useless.
"I said Dark Magic Attack!" she cried, once again thrusting out the staff. Nothing happened. Cy shook the staff violently.
"Dark Magic Attack! Dark Magic Attack! Dark Magic Attack!" Wall Shadow, amused by the powerless teenager, changed its target and lunged toward her.
"Dark Magic Attack! Dark Magic Attack! Uh-oh… to hell with this! HYA!" When the Wall Shadow was almost upon her, she kicked and plunged her staff into him. The Wall Shadow fell back, bleeding black from the gaping hole in its stomach. Cy rushed to Celton's side, helping him to get up.
"Are you okay?" she asked, letting him lean on her for support. He smiled weakly as he once again took the staff into his hand.
"Good job…" he said. "You killed it…" As he spoke those words, the Wall Shadow got back up on its feet. The hole in its body slowly filled up. At the same time, a portion of the surrounding wall vanished. Cy noticed the size of the gaping hole in the wall was the same as it had been on Shadow.
"Oh no!" Celton groaned. "I forgot. The Wall Shadow is linked to the Labyrinth. It is now the Soul of the Labyrinth. It can use the Labyrinth's mazes to rebuild its strength." The Wall Shadow once again jumped toward them. Yelling, the two ducked away into another passageway.
"Dark Magic Barrier!" A semi-wall appeared, separating them from the beast. "This will confuse it for a while, but not for long. I have to get back my energy before that." Celton slumped back against the wall, his staff clanging to the floor. Cy watched with pity. This was her fault. Now, Celton was injured and there was a Wall Shadow loose in the maze. And… what if it found Svrion? Or Hufanse and Aundren? Cy felt like crying.
"Celton?" she queried softly, kneeling down in front of her brother. "How come you can use the magic and I can't?" Celton chuckled as he sat up a little. He took the staff and fingered it.
"Cy… you believe that everything is so simple. If you really must know, there is no such attack called Dark Magic Attack. It is really something we are supposed to say to… I don't know… encourage ourselves? Really, the real spell we chant in our head at the same time. It takes a lot of concentration to say both, and that is what makes the attacks so powerful. I have learned over a thousand different chants for a thousand different things. I say Dark Magic Attack for over nine hundred of them. It just helps me connect with my staff." Cy slumped.
"Oh, man! I thought I learned one!"
"I know of only four to five spells that we say out loud, and that's because it requires too much energy for great concentration. Stuff like Dark Magic Barrier, Magical Hats, Mystic Box, and Mirror Force. Oh, and Ragnarök too." Cy sighed.
"No wonder it takes such a long time to be a Dark Magician," she said. "Learning all those spells… you must have worked really hard!"
"Have I finally earned your respect then, besides being the worst brother in the world to you?" Cy smiled.
"Oh Celton…" she trailed off as the wall next to her liquefied. The semi-wall vanished and in its place stood the Wall Shadow. Celton and Cy quickly got to their feet. The creature snarled, threatening them with its talons.
"Okay," Celton said. "Here's the plan. Wall Shadow is a part of the Labyrinth now, as its soul has become one with the walls. In order to ultimately defeat it, we have to turn one into two."
"As in… diffusing them?"
"Exactly! You've done your homework!"
"It wasn't on our homework. But, speaking of homework, I won't be able to finish it and I'm going to be in major trouble…"
"No, Cy, seriously. How are we going to do this?" The Wall Shadow grew impatient. With another long shriek, it lunged forward yet again. Prepared, Cy and Celton jumped out of the way. The Shadow screeched to a halt behind them, turned around, and lunged back. With a cry, Cy ducked down as the Shadow passed over her and kicked it. Wall Shadow went flying through the air and landed hard on the ground.
"Good job!" The Wall Shadow growled as it got up, black blood flying from its mouth. It seemed shocked by the blow, but nothing major that couldn't be healed quickly. The Wall Shadow again lunged for Celton.
"Dark Magic Attack!" A large purple burst stream of power hit Wall Shadow. He tumbled back and burst into pieces. Celton grinned while leaning forward, out of breath, tapping his staff on his foot.
"Not too shabby…" he remarked.
"Oh yeah!" Cy cried, trying to fall back against the wall. Trying to… Cy fell right through. The wall disappeared. In its place ran a series of yellow sparks. They came together and formed a ball of fire. The pieces of the Wall Shadow were drawn into the fiery sphere. As Cy and Celton watched in horror, the great beast regenerated. Out of the flaming ball it leaped, talons sharp and ready to kill. Cy took a step back as the green monster headed toward them once again.
"We'll never win as long as the creature keeps on regenerating. We're doomed. That attack, Auroraflash, took almost all my strength. I can't do it much more." Celton fell to his knees, exhausted. The Wall Shadow saw his chance and rushed forward. Cy grabbed the staff and thrust it out, knocking the wind out of the fiend. It fell back. Celton got back on his feet.
"Dark Magic…Attack!" Celton grabbed his staff and threw it forward. It exploded into purple sparks. The Wall Shadow was hit and it melted, screaming in pain. The staff fell to the floor. Cy looked concerned as her brother once again sat on the floor, grasping his head.
Mental diary, I can't believe it. We're being attacked by a Wall Shadow here. Celton is trying his best to attack, but his energy is almost gone. No wonder. Thinking one thing and saying another is hard, even for someone as gifted with multitasking as me. Maybe Clarrisa could do it. She can brush her hair, do her nails, and eat breakfast at the same time.
As before, the Labyrinth Wall disappeared and turned into a row of golden sparks, forming a giant flame ball. What can I do? This time, when it regenerates, we won't be able to defeat it. The wall will keep feeding its Soul to the beast… wait! I have an idea! That's it! Cy knew what to do. I hope I can concentrate… wait, I know I can! Celton, Svrion, my friends and family depend on it!
Celton sighed as the fiery ball glowed brighter, ready to resurrect Wall Shadow. He had no energy to do anything about it. However, he didn't need it. Cy had already cooked up a plan. She ran over to the staff and picked it up.
Destroy the soul of the Wall. Destroy the connection of the souls…Auroraflash!
"DARK MAGIC ATTACK!" Power of unimaginable strength surged through the staff. In a blinding moment, it flooded out through the maze. The fiery ball of light didn't stand a chance. It was destroyed and the remains of the Wall Shadow vanished. Cy grinned, though she felt the stings of tiredness pulling on her. Tapping the staff on the foot, she turned back to her brother.
"Not too shabby…" she said, winking. Celton grinned.
"Good job! You've learned your first spell. Though… you started off three levels more than you should, you can protect yourself in utmost danger. Don't use it too much, though. After about two of those attacks, you won't have much energy left. Besides, that was probably a lucky little situation anyway. Took me three tries at first to even make an attack one-sixth the power I am capable of now. Yours was just a little rush of adrenaline, I bet." Cy nodded. Okay, we gotten over that. What's next, dear Labyrinth? It had an answer ready.
Interrupting their happiness came a sudden shudder from the ground. Slowly, it got bigger and bigger till the shaking was unmistakable. Cy could still stand, but she was horrified as the tremor grew stronger. Celton scrunched his eyes and tried to remember what this could mean. Suddenly, he had a brain flash.
"CY! HURRY! TO MY SQUARE!"
"Why?" she cried, or more so, screamed as the earthquake shaking brought with it a great rumbling. But, she still ran for Celton's square. Unexpectedly, the wall next to her dropped into the ground. Cy stopped with a gasp, staring at the disappearing wall. Celton tried to stand, but the shaking was too strong. Cy turned back but lost her balance. She fell back a square. Then, the walls changed more rapidly. Cy cried out in horror as a wall appeared in front of her, shutting her off from her brother. A wall appeared behind her too. The walls to her side had dropped off.
"CY!" The rumbling and the shuddering stopped. Cy rushed to the wall and pounded against it.
"Celton!" she yelled. "CELTON!" She felt the wall for any way she could climb over.
"CY!" She heard Celton on the other side. Frustrated, she hit the wall repeatedly. This can't be happening. It can't! This isn't real!
"Calm down! It's okay!" Cy fell against the wall, out of ideas to get through. "Cy, listen to me! You must find the others! It's time for us to split, but it's okay! Whatever happens, run! Okay, that is your best weapon! Run! If you are in grave danger, use the spell. But, know that it won't work against Labyrinth Tanks! It's important, don't panic!" Cy felt like crying yet again. This was terrible.
"Oh, Celton! I need you! What will I do without you?"
"Don't be a crybaby. Your boyfriend will protect you!" For once, Cy didn't retort or complain. She smiled.
"Celton, I'm powerless… I don't know anything about the Labyrinth. What am I supposed to do? I won't even know the exit if I see it." She heard her brother sigh on the other side.
"This is going to sound really cheesy… but follow your heart. Don't be afraid. The Labyrinth preys on the weak. Okay, here put your hand on the wall." Cy obeyed, feeling around. The cement was smooth and neat. "Do you feel anything?" Cy shook her head, forgetting her brother couldn't see her.
"No… wait…something warm…"
"That's my hand. See, the wall is half a foot thick and you can still feel it. We'll always be connected, Cy." She smiled.
"You're cool, you know that?"
"Can you tell that to Renalyn?"
"Sure, any time." With those words, Cy backed up from the wall. She heard Celton muffle a good bye, but Cy didn't say anything else. Putting on a false mask of bravery, she headed to her right down the path.
Dear mental diary… whoa, this is creepy. I'm all alone in this Labyrinth and have no clue where I am going. We defeated the Wall Shadow, what's next? What's this Labyrinth Tank Celton's been talking about? Is it dangerous? Cy stopped wondering to ease her fear away. After all, the thoughts might end up giving her nightmares.
For several minutes, she walked randomly down any path she chose, trying not to imagine what might lurk around the corner every time she turned. For a while, everything seemed peaceful. It was then that she heard it.
The sound seemed almost distant at first. She would have ignored it if it hadn't drawn closer. Cy first wondered what it was. It sounded like the earthquake Magical Labyrinth she had witnessed earlier. However, the surface wasn't shaking. The walls didn't change. But the sound loomed closer. Cy raised an eyebrow.
Now what have we on our hands? Cy sighed. This was getting tiring, all right. And anybody who walked around a Labyrinth for several hours without accomplishing anything would know that. Cy brought out her staff in front of her. Cautiously, she stepped up to the corner and looked around. Then she screamed.
She really shouldn't have. Later she might reflect on this and figure out she would have been okay if she hadn't. After all, it was her scream that made the large, blue machine turn toward her.
It had red drills too. Cy didn't pay attention to that. She was running in the other direction as fast as she could.
…The Labyrinth's army…oh damn! Cy yelled as a beam of red light flew over her head, knocking her to the floor. She quickly got up and ran into another path… and another Tank.
As she hit it from behind, it turned to face her. Another scream and she ran away again, two Tanks at her heels. Each rained on her a thousand blasts from the drills that she avoided by ducking, and rolling, and acting like she was caught on fire. Hey, it worked. Yelling, shouting, and gasping for breath, finally Cy was hit.
Pain traveled up her spine like a car running a race. She screamed and fell to the floor, tumbling over thrice before hitting the wall. The Labyrinth Tanks stopped in front of her. The way they stood there suggested they were about to fry her with a million volts of Tank laser power. Not a good sign…
The Labyrinth swallows its prisoners alive! Oh shit, I'm going to be fried and then devoured. Somebody help! I'm going to be dinner here!