Here we are, the exciting conclusion of the Battle City Finals, and the last chapter of the story, with an epilogue waiting in the wings. This chapter is dedicated to all the fans, because without you guys, I couldn't have made it (you'll see what I mean after the chapters end).
Chapter Twenty-Five: Eternity Tempest
Kai Kaethan looked over the scene before him with soberness. He was floating in the air like a haunting spirit overlooking a scene from five years before. It was his most feared memory, because it was one that he had not been able to understand because of the lack of details, but also because of what he feared had happened. What he feared he had done.
He stared down at a grassy field near a decent sized village. It was only about half an hour after the twelve young teenagers had so savagely abused him. He had blacked out and when he awoke, he was in the hospital. All of them had found all lying in the grass, bruised and unconscious.
"Was I the one who placed each of those boys in the emergency room?" he asked himself. "Was I the one who did what was needed to fulfill my desire to have strength enough to end the torment? The one who..." he didn't complete the thought, still afraid after all of these years to admit the possible truth.
He began to remember what he had learned later that day as he was questioned by the police. According to them, the leader of the boys, the one who had gone out of his way for seven years to try and make Kai miserable, had died shortly after arriving at the hospital. Kai's entire frame had been shaken to the core upon learning that, because, in his heart, he knew that he had been the one to hurt the boys, although he couldn't remember. However, he was released because it was determined that he was innocent, since he lacked the capacity to have possibly done what had been done to those boys. Furthermore, he had been unconscious himself when the paramedics arrived, and so it was determined that there was some sort of deranged sociopath on the loose who had attacked the group of boys and Kai.
"Did I kill him?" Kai finally asked aloud.
"No." a voice answered, seeming to have come from Kai's right-hand side. Kai turned his head, but found no one. "You are innocent! You were a victim of circumstance and half-truths." Kai glanced around furiously, trying to locate the voice, but seeing no one.
"Who are you?" he asked, turning to look behind himself. Nothing. Turning back, he startled and jumped backwards.
Looking him in the eye was himself!
Well, at least, it looked like him, only with white hair. Every other feature they shared in common. The same hard stare and fortress of a face. The same clothes. The same two different colored eyes.
"I am you." the white haired figure answered simply. "At least, a portion of you. I am a collection of memories from previous Guardians, preserved through your family. My entire purpose for being was so that once your powers emerged, I would combine with you and those memories would help you to learn how to control and utilize your powers."
"A part of me?' Kai asked. "And what am I?"
"You are the whole vessel. I've been in hiding for some time, until you were ready to be joined with me. I've slowly been giving you power when you needed it most."
"In hiding?" Kai nearly shouted. "Look at this!" he waved his hand around, indicating the screaming boy and the bodies all around him. "You could have killed them! You did kill Shiro. You couldn't have done that if you had been hiding."
"Like I said Kai, I am a merely memories and power. I was strong -strong enough to give you the power to take action that day. I didn't do it Kai, you did. You made the choices that day. I don't have the power to control your body. You are confusing me with the ancient spirits of the past like Bakura who could do that. I'm not one of them."
Kai froze as these words sunk in. It had been him after all. He had killed.
"However, Kai, you did not kill Shiro that day." the reflection continued. Kai jerked his gaze back to the doppelganger and his eyes widened with surprise and curiosity.
"How do you..."
"When I began to charge your body with power, I was brought to the surface of your conscience. When that happened, I caught a glimpse of Shiro's own memories. To someone like me, it's very easy to see the memories of someone who hasn't sealed them. In that moment, I learned why it was that Shiro hated you so much." Again, Kai stared with surprise, bordering on disbelief. Nodding, his signaled to his other self to continue.
"Shiro learned when he was just a boy that he had been born with a disease that would ensure that he'd never live past his teenage years. Weighed down with that fear, Shiro went day to day full of terror that if he went to bed that night, he may never wake up again." Kai's jaw dropped as this was unveiled to him. He had never heard about any of this. Then again, he had forced himself to forgot the memory only a few weeks after it happened. "Then Shiro met you. He could sense immediately your own personal despair and loneliness, feeling connected to you by that, but then you did something he could never forgive. You were stronger than he was. You could face each day and in the end, your fear and anger dissolved. Shiro couldn't stand that fact, and so he tried desperately to push you bellow him, therefore making you weaker and letting him forget his own fears. And when you wouldn't give in, it only enraged him more." Kai cast his eyes to the ground, having trouble accepting that someone as inhumane as Shiro had actually been more human that perhaps even Kai himself.
The story did not end there, however. "Then, the night before the day they attacked you, Shiro received grave news: the doctors did not expect him to live through the week. In denial, he ran from home, spent the night in a tree, wandered the city the next day, and then found his way to the park. Only one thought entered his mind during that whole time, and it was the fact that you would outlive him. Unable to cope with that fact, Shiro banded his friends and hunted you down and attacked you. Shiro refused to die knowing that you had beaten him." Kai swallowed hard, trying to adapt this story to the same, nearly demonic young man who had done everything to try and destroy Kai, both emotionally and physically.
To Kai's surprise, the copy continued past the events at the park. "After you rendered him unconscious, Shiro was rushed to the hospital and died there, his time finally up. For nearly thirty-six hours they went without looking up his record and learning about his heart condition, so when the police found out about his death, they assumed instantly that it was a result of the attack."
"How do you know that?" Kai asked. "You said you got those memories from Shiro, but once he was dead you couldn't have learned anything else from him."
"True," the silver haired man admitted. "But you forget that I have access to your memories as well, Kai. After you were released from the hospital, you heard news about the young man who had died of a heart failure with Shiro's name, but in your desire to purge yourself of the memory, the two became disconnected and you never realized your innocence."
"So I didn't kill him?" Kai asked, looking for confirmation. The reflection nodded. Instantly Kai felt as if a large weight had been lifted from his shoulders and a dark veil had been taken from his eyes. "So, why are you here?" he finally asked.
"You came here Kai, looking for me, didn't you." the other Kai continued. "You knew which memory you'd face, and you knew you'd see me. That's why you took the blow that you did." Again Kai nodded. "Then the time has come. Time for me to fade away from existence and become one with you!" They grasped hands, and a bright light erupted from their clasped palms.
XXXXXXXXXXX
"What's this?" Bakura shouted as Kai's body began to straighten up and glow with a bright light. His hair began to whip about with the energy he was exerting, and began to change to a fine dark silver. He stood stronger, with more force of will now than he had displayed earlier. He no longer seemed to be afflicted in the slightest bit by the stress of the earlier duels. He was completely changed. Even his clothes had changed, or rather, new clothes formed to replace his cut and burned ones. Now he was dressed in off-white pants, a blue shirt and a silver trench coat with sleeves that ended at the mid forearm rather than the wrist and had wide openings. The strange part was that each of them seemed to be styled differently than what was contempory, appearing almost ancient, similar to what some of Kai's magicians wore.
"I'm back, Bakura, and I think that it's time I put an end to you and your god of wickedness!" Kai challenged, his voice itself no different, simply the power behind it had increased dramatically.
"Who are you?" the villainous man demanded. "You're nothing like the Kai I defeated."
"But I am Kai." the boy responded. "Just the reborn Kai. I've been completed. I've found the missing piece of the puzzle. But, if it'd make you feel better, I could make a new name for my new self. Call me Enzeru. Enzeru Eitai. I am the Guardian of Time."
"I see. That's excellent." Bakura shouted with glee, rather than cowering in fear than some may have expected. Enzeru certainly wasn't. "Now I'll take your full Guardian powers. You said you're still Kai, so you still lost. You came too late.'
"I think not." Enzeru shot back. "In order for me to lose, it would be required that my Life Points be at zero and that all four Hari be destroyed."
"And so you lost!" Bakura fumed, his nearly non-existent patience for this boy having been spent about twenty turns ago.
"No I didn't. In order to lose at this Darkness Game, all four of my Hari must be destroyed and my Life Point be at zero to lose. However, I don't fit the full curriculum as it stands." Enzeru corrected, holding up his Duel Disk, showing his Life Point score to Bakura. In response the tomb robber's eyes nearly exploded from their sockets.
Enzer-34000/Bakura-0
"WHAT?" he shouted, not even thinking about trying to hide his shock. How was it possible? How could Kai go from just barely over four thousand Life Points to way over thirty thousand while being attacked by a monster with ten thousand attack points?
In response, Enzeru nodded to his side, indicating a trap card that had flipped up. It was the trap he had set nearly ten turns ago. Bakura had not considered it a threat, since it hadn't been played in response to any earlier attacks. And now, it had somehow saved Kai's life, and made him somehow stronger.
"My trap card, Time is My Enemy, activates when I have zero Life Points. My Life Points then become equal to the total attack power of each monster in my graveyard. However, each turn I must remove one monster from my graveyard and deduct its level multiply by three hundred from my Life Points. Fortunately, most of the monsters in my graveyard are level four, with level three monster, four level two monsters, and a number of high level cards as well." Enzeru explained. Bakura ground his teeth together upon hearing this, but soon managed to calm himself.
"So even if I didn't attack you, you'd barely last more than twenty turns, correct?" Enzeru nodded. "Of course, with Zork, you won't last beyond three." he chuckled. "I end my turn and Diabound returns to my field. However, I may not perform any further summons now that Zork is on the field." Bakura ended, slipping a card face down, allowing Enzeru to take his turn.
"I use Hell-Heaven to revive my Time Mage (2400/2500)." he began as he drew his two cards. "I play Eternity Ring to destroy Diabound before he becomes to much of a problem!" Again the glowing circlet of magic appeared and swished through the air, slicing through Diabound easily. Enzeru then took the magic card from his Duel Disk and shuffled it into his deck while his Life Points ticked down slightly.
Enzeru-33500/Bakura-0
"Next I'll set one monster face down and set two cards behind it. That ends my turn." Enzeru concluded, leaving him with four cards in hand while three cards appeared between him and Bakura's monstrous creature. Fortunately, Zork was all that Bakura had, and he couldn't summon any more monsters now. Then again, Zork had all that would be needed to beat Enzeru if he wasn't careful.
A light clicking noise was heard as Enzeru's graveyard ejected a card, which he took and slipped into his back pocket, as was the effect of his trap card. He had noticed it was a level four monster, so the damage would be average.
Enzeru-32300/Bakura-0
"You may have found a way of isolating Zork so that he is now the only monster I can have on the field, but he's still enough to destroy you." the white-haired man boasted, even as Guardian of Time (2400/2500) appeared on Enzeru's field as well. "First I play the magic card Defending Seal of the Dead Spirits to force the monster you just set into attack mode." Enzeru watched unwavering as his Tempus Sorceress (1600/1700) flipped face up.
"Next I activate one of Zork's abilities, removing three demon monster from my graveyard and equipping them to your monsters. Now I'll curse Time Mage and Guardian of Time! At the end of this turn they will both be destroyed and you will lose Life Points equal to their level totals, plus those of the two demons equipped to them, multiplied by two hundred. Meanwhile your Sorceress will have her attack points decreased by the level of the monster I equip to her multiplied by three hundred. To Time Mage and Guardian of Time I will equip my last two Death Caliber Knights, and my Ouiju Diviner to your Sorceress, lowering her attack points by twelve hundred." (Tempus Sorceress-400/1700) Enzeru still did not blink, but instead actually pressed a button on his Duel Disk.
"I play my quick-play card known as Veil of Time." From the magic card emerged a thin piece of some sort of material, seeming to be made of the same unnatural force that so many of Kai's monsters had attacked with all duel long. "Because you've activated an effect that will destroy magicians on my field, all magicians on my field may attack directly before the destruction effect resolves."
"Why bother?" Bakura laughed at the time master's attempts. "You still need to deal four thousand damage to me to destroy the final Kioku, and none of those magicians stands a chance of dealing it."
"Think so?" Enzeru called back, pressing another button. "Go Magicians Creed!" Another green bordered card switched up, its picture one of a hexagram and a spellcaster suspended in front of it, his arms wide and his garments billowing with unseen power. "Like Magicians Cross, this card allows magicians to attack as one. However, whereas Magicians Cross limits-or sometimes grants-the magicians to three thousand attack, this one allows me to pay one thousand Life Points to make their attack total become equal to their levels multiplied by five hundred!" Bakura did a quick calculation, and then realized the outcome. "Time Mage and Guardian of Time are both level five, so that's four thousand attack points, perfect for the final blow!"
Enzeru-31300/Bakura-0
The two magicians stood side by side and smirked slight before lifting their staffs. The tips of both staves touched instead of crossing, and together they fired their attack, a stream of magic with a thing blue ribbon spiraling it. The attack completely missed Zork, headed straight for Bakura.
"Did you think I'd lose so easily, when Zork is at my side? NEVER!" he shouted, activating his set card and a black ball of wind surrounded him. "Dark Wall of Air blocks your attacks aimed at me for this turn." The flow of magic struck Bakura's shield head-on, but never broke through. "Care to try anything else?" Enzeru shook his head. "Then I'll continue my turn. Zork, attack his Sorceress now!"
Zork did not move. His red eyes merely flashed ruby and then the third arm, shaped like a snake that reached out of his waste, swished about in the air for a second, eyeing Enzeru's weakened monster. Finally, after eyeing her for a moment more, the sinister hand lifted back and spat a stream of acid that completely enveloped the young woman, who screamed in unbearable agony. Enzeru watched, nonplused now by these sickening death scenes, as her skin melted and her clothes dissolved. Soon even her bones disappeared, leaving a steaming pile on the floor.
Enzeru-21700/Bakura-0
"Finally, I play Grasp the Dark, discarding your entire hand, but in exchange you draw the bottom card of your deck." Bakura ended, leaving him with five cards in his hand, while Enzeru begrudgingly discarded his four cards and then refilled his hand with just one.
"And now, since my turn is over, your last two monsters will die as well, and you will lose Life Points." Enzeru's last two monsters both began to shake violently, dropping their staffs to the ground and clutching their chests and doubling over in pain. After a few seconds more of this, they both instantly decayed to the point that they were just skeletons in old robes.
Enzeru-18100/Bakura-0
Staring at his deck, Enzeru took a second to contemplate his situation. 'I have to think! These cards are made from my soul. As such, they are made up of my own strength, beliefs, ideals, my thoughts and memories-everything. I have to trust that I wont betray myself. I have got to stop just playing the cards, and make them mine!' Drawing his two cards, Enzeru smiled as he started to formulate a strategy.
"Hell-Heaven revives Time Mage, and then I set one monster in defense mode and play Elixer of Soul. Since I have a magician on the field, this card allows me to return two monsters to my hand from my graveyard. Then I end my turn." Enzeru finished, adding the cards to his hand, leaving him with three. He then grabbed another card from his graveyard, his Aeon Magician, a level seven monster. Grimacing, he slipped it into the pocket with the other removed cards.
Enzeru-16000/Bakura-0
"You're not doing to well, are you, Guardian." Bakura mocked, even as Guardian of Time returned to the field. "How does it feel to be so hard pressed?"
"Stop wasting time." Enzeru snapped back. "Unless you're in that big of a hurry for Zork to fall."
"I think your bluffing." Bakura said swiftly and lightheartedly. "Actually, I know you're bluffing, because there's nothing you can do to defeat Zork. However, I am growing most annoyed with this. Unlike some players, I don't care much for the actual game play. I simply play to get what I want, not because I enjoy it." Bakura looked at his new card, and then off into space for a second, as if pondering something. "Well, I do enjoy watching the enemy struggle under my power or to see how they react to the sheer reality of the Darkness Game. But, I do digress. I remove Wraith-Proprietor of Souls from play and equip him to Time Mage. Normally I'd use him to weaken your mage, but if I attacked you'd just sacrifice that magic counter to hide him. But then I'll also remove Headless Knight (1450/1700) and weaken your Guardian (1200). Now, I'll chip away at you slowly. Zork, attack his face down monster!"
Zork decided this time to actually move about, his focus entirely on Kai's set monster. Lifting his tank-sized foot, Zork stomped down, crushing Enzeru's monster. It was never seen by either player.
"You destroyed Immortal Magister yet again." Enzeru smiled, drawing again and summoning another monster face down.
"How annoying." Bakura fumed, snatching a card from his hand. "To show you how annoyed I am, I play Ire of the Abyss, which allows a dark monster on my field to attack until you are out of monsters!" Eyes flashing, Zork looked down on Enzeru's set monster and fired two red beams that completely consumed the card, shattering it. Again Enzeru drew and summoned another monster, which Zork destroyed by spitting blue flames from his mouth, burning the monster. For the third time in the duel, Enzeru took three monsters from his graveyard and shuffled them into his deck. Next Zork's third arm fired a beam of red light that shot Guardian of Time through the chest, burning a whole that had instantly cauterized while the monster fell back, dead. Finally, Zork raised his arm and swung at Time Mage, intent on rending the monster, but the mage faded away, safe from the attack.
Enzeru-7200/Bakura-0
Enzeru's illusionist reappeared after the claw had passed by, since Bakura's turn was over. However, the magician had been back only a few seconds when suddenly a ghostly image left him, dragging a second image with it. Enzeru recognized the first spirit to be that of Wraith and the second as his Time Mage, leaving the empty body to fall to the ground and crumble while Enzeru took the damage.
Enzeru-5000/Bakura-0
Drawing two cards, Enzeru looked over his options. He couldn't afford to take any more hits from Zork. Fortunately, he saw right away a chance to overcome it all.
""Return to me, Envoy of the Archives (1800/1900)!" Enzeru called as the magician reappeared, confusing Bakura. Afterall, Enzeru had much stronger monsters he could have revived. However, Enzeru had other plans, as he grabbed another card from his hand. "Guardian of the Archives (1000/2200) in defense mode!" he called as the red robed magician appeared. "And now that both Envoy of the Archives and Guardian of the Archives are together on the field, they summon my Master of the Archives (1900/1200) in attack mode!" he called, slapping the second card he had taken back from his graveyard last turn.
"Useless." Bakura spat. "True, you now get to search for a magic card from your deck as well as claim a random one for your Master and Envoy, but your monsters are weak. They'll make easy prey for Zork, and drain your Life Points even further. You should have tried someone stronger."
"Actually, this is exactly what I needed!" Enzeru said, very calm. "When Master of the Archives is summoned by the other two, he raises my Life Points by one hundred for every card in my graveyard." he explained as Bakura's jaw dropped straight to the center of the earth. Enzeru or Kai or whoever he was had a lot of cards in his graveyard.
Enzeru-10500/Bakura-0
"You've only bought one more turn." Bakura assured Enzeru. "Prepare yourself."
"No need." Enzeru reassured, having taken two magic card from his deck and placing them in his hand before selecting a different one to play. "I play Archives of Magic!" he called, activating his continuous magic card. Behind his monster appeared a large building made of marble, three-sided pyramid in shape with a number of spires mounted in the ground all around it. "This card is, in some ways, two fold. First of all, all magicians on my field will instantly receive three hundred attack points, plus two hundred more for every magic counter they hold." The Master of the Archives and his two assistants, appearing to feel right at home, smiled as a ball of light sailed out of the pyramid and into each of their staffs, causing their attack points to rise (Master-2400/1200)(Envoy-2300/1900)(Guardian-1500/2200). However, Enzeru wasn't finished.
"This card is also made to act in perfect correspondence with my Archive magicians, and activates a different effect depending on which ones I have in play at different times. Since I have all three together at once, they will first each receive magic counters equal to their level, so that's four each." Instantly a hailstorm of lights shot from the building, being absorbed into the three magicians staffs. (Master-3200)(Envoy-3100)(Guardian-2300)
"Now I will activate Magical Renaissance to shuffle all magic cards and spellcasters from my graveyard back into my deck!" Enzeru called as a fistful of cards ejected from his graveyard, which he then shuffled with his deck, and leaving him with a graveyard of about five cards. "Next I play Swords of Revealing Light to stop you and Zork for three turns." From the sky descended three glowing swords made of pure light, sticking into the ground directly in front of Zork, who reared back and hissed at the objects of purity. At the same time, three more bolts of light emerged from the pyramid and added to the three magicians. (Master-3400)(Envoy-3300)(Guardian(2300) "That ends my turn. And since I have no monsters in my graveyard to remove, I automatically take fifteen hundred points of damage from Time is My Enemy."
Enzeru-9000/Bakura-0
Drawing a card, Bakura growled low in the back of his throat in disappointment. "I remove Nightwraith (1500/1200), Eros (1600/1400) and Nightstalker (1800/1100) and equip them to your monsters, and I'll have my demons weaken each of your monsters, since your Guardian would otherwise protect them from the destruction effect." Enzeru nodded as each of his monsters was assaulted by a shadow that reached out of Bakura's graveyard. He had expected this would happen, and so felt it better to not lose his cool. He's get his chance. (Master-2200)(Envoy-2100)(Guardian-1100)
Drawing his two cards, Enzeru sighed. "Hand Rebirth activates once again!" he called, and both players deposited five cards into the graveyard and drew five new ones. At the same time, three more lights emerged from the Archives, empowering each of Enzeru's monsters. (Master-2400)(Envoy-2300)(Guardian-1300) "I'll set two cards face down and end my turn." he quickly finished, again taking damage for his trap card.
Enzeru-7500/Bakura-0
"You're chipping yourself away, you realize that, don't you." Bakura jeered. Enzeru continued to pay him no heed. Shrugging with slight disappointment, Bakura made his move. "I'll first have Mefist the Infernal General (1800/1300), Gelnia (1300/1200) and Hell Soldier (1200/1000) to equip them to your monsters, which will force you to discard four cards from your deck for each of your monsters, one card for each of their levels." Enzeru nodded and did so, depositing the top sixteen cards to his graveyard. Although it was a harsh blow, he knew the duel would come to an end soon anyway.
"Now I play Steal the Sleepings Breath on your Guardian of the Archives!" Bakura laughed as Enzeru's monster was suddenly trapped within a stone tablet, its image carved into the front. Three tokens of light then emerged from the Archives and attached to the magicians, one of them even being absorbed into the lithograph. "This card seals up your monster and his protection effect, meaning I can once again use card effects to destroy your cards." Enzeru stepped back in surprise, having been caught off guard by this card. "Also, your monster can only be released upon death, and when that happens you will lose an extra five hundred Life Points."
Looking at his hand of five cards, Bakura quickly chose one. "Decay forces one card linked to the turn count to instantly fade away, meaning your Swords of Revealing Light will perish rather prematurely." he laughed as all three of the swords exploded, leaving a clear path for Zork, and Enzeru noticed that even the mammoth of darkness was chuckling at the futility of the situation. "Zork, attack Master of the Archives now!"
Raising his palm above Enzeru's field, Zork released a funnel of black magic that quickly descended upon the monster. The intense force produced by the spinning of the magic caused Enzeru's two attack mode monsters to raise their arms to try and hold the wind back, but to no avail. Even Enzeru began to have trouble breathing, the excitement in the air pressing on his chest, keeping his lungs from expanding while the air itself was simply to hard to catch in his mouth.
"I-" Enzeru was cut off by a sharp blast of wind as the funnel touched down on the ground around Enzeru's monster. However, after a second, the funnel was pushed back, a growing sphere of light forcing it off of the magician. Soon the cyclone had been pushed back far enough that Enzeru could breath normally. "Because I have all three Archive magicians on the field, I can activate the effect of one of them, and in this case I chose my Master, who allows me to sacrifice all magic counters on my field to negate your attack and raise my Life Points by five hundred per counter!" The twister instantly died as streams of light moved from the other magician and from the stone carving, increasing the strength of the shield. "Also, I activate my face down card, Philosophy of Magic, which doubles the number of magic counters on my field in exchange for one thousand Life Points. I had nine magic counters on each of my magicians, thanks in part to the two magic cards you just played, so that now goes up to eighteen each."
Enzeru-33500/Bakura-0
"I grow weary of you people trying to be heros." Bakura growled, ending his turn, setting one card face down as he did so. "Why can't you just let me do as I please?"
"Because I don't want innocent people to suffer.' Enzeru explained. "When innocent people are hurt as a result of someone else's greed, it causes more greed, leading to hatred and chaos, and I don't want to live in a world full of suffering."
"Then die!"
"You first." Enzeru countered, drawing his cards. "Hell-Heaven will revive one of the cards I discarded last turn, Disintao-Elder Mage (2300 +300/1700) in attack mode, and he gains attack points from my Archives of Magic!" Again the older magician appeared, his staff at the ready. Enzeru then chose one of the six cards in his hand. "I activate Order of the Archives, granting each of my magicians magic counters equal to their level, plus one for playing the magic card, after I discard two cards." Dropping two cards into his graveyard, Enzeru watched as the pyramidal structure issued four magic counters to each of Kai's Archive magicians (each of which was still possessed and weakened by one of Bakura's demons) but five continued to circle Disintao, as if confused. "Sadly, Disintao is unable to hold magic counters, so I shall instead place those counters on my Master of the Archives." (Master-3400)(Envoy-1900)(Guardian-1300)
"Next I will play Magic of the Soul to sacrifice my three Archive magicians and add their attack points to Disintao. In exchange, I will receive five hundred damage for each of the sacrificed monsters. However, because I am sacrificing these monsters they are freed from your possession, and so they the regain the twelve hundred attack points each that you took from them. Also, I will take five hundred damage from your Steal the Sleepings Breath."
Enzeru-31500/Bakura-0
The three named magicians each faded into nothing, their robes falling formlessly to the ground, instantly becoming soaked with blood. Three lights then charged into Disintao's staff, which began to vibrate violently with the power. (Disintao-13100)
"Disintao, attack! Destroy his dark god and bring me closer to victory!" Enzeru shouted. Barely able to control the massive force, the mage gladly aimed at Zork and fired.
"Go face down card!" Bakura shouted. Enzeru violently reprimanded himself for having overlooked that card, but waited to see what it would be. "Defilement of the Impure allows Zork to turn your magical attack into negative energy, which he can manipulate, draining your magician of his powers until he reaches zero."
Instantly the snake appendage of Zork snapped its head up, opening its seemingly limitless jaws and slithering into position between Zork and Enzeru's monster. The bright light struck the serpent head-on, but the demon didn't even flinch, simply swallowing the attack, turning the energy black as it consumed. Disintao, realizing the error, tried to stop the attack, but no matter what he did, he couldn't pull his staff away from that attack stance, nor could he prevent the energy from flowing. Soon his body became much older and feeble until he reached the point that there was no life in him, and the energy finally stopped and his body fell to the ground. (Disintao-0)
"Now Zork, counter attack!" Bakura ordered. The God of Darkness raised a fist into the air, a dark cloud of energy forming around it. Then, swinging down, he struck the earth, creating a crevice in the earth which expanded until it swallowed up Enzeru's last monster. The shockwave continued, however, and flung Enzeru into the air several feet and then bringing him back down on his stomach.
Kai-21500/Bakura-0
"Now it's my turn, and you have to remove a monster from your graveyard from play." Bakura laughed as Enzeru struggled to reach his Duel Disk and take the card it had ejected, which was a level four monster, and sliding it into his back pocket.
Enzeru-20300/Bakura-0
Drawing, Bakura looked over his hand and made a decision. "It's just about time to finish you off, and this time, you wont come back." Taking the middle card, he inserted it into his Duel Disk. "Storm of Desolation forces me to discard my entire hand, but in exchange your entire field will be destroyed." Slipping his cards into his graveyard, Bakura watched, rather amused as black winds and lightnings ravaged Enzeru's field completely while the young man continued to lay on his stomach, struggling to get back up. His face down card as well as his Treasure of the Guardian Goddess and Archives of Magic. "Storm of Desolation also forces you to discard your entire hand, plus cards from your deck equal to the number of empty card zones you had on the field when I played the card." Enzeru moaned as seven cards and the two in his hand were lifted into the air by some unseen force and then dropped into his cemetery.
"I also discarded a card that now activates. It's called Rage Against the Light, and it doubles Zorks attack power for this turn." Bakura suddenly broke into mad hysterics as his monster's muscles began to bulge and ripple as more power was fed into him by the magic card. (Zork-20000) "Zork, attack!" Opening his mouth, Zork issued a massive wall of black flames, as did the snake head, both strikes hitting Enzeru and throwing him back even further.
Enzeru-300/Bakura-0
"And now my turn is over." Bakura continued to laugh in hysterics as Enzeru pushed against the earth, his fingers curling together in his effort. Looking up, he stared into the eyes of the dark god and shuddered. Then he looked to Bakura, who should have lost time and time again, and yet because of the rules of this game, he couldn't. Enzeru had given it his all. He didn't have anything left to fight back with.
"Kai, please, fight on! You can't give up! You can't lose! If you do, we'll lose each other!" Enzeru's two different colored eyes snapped open, the pupil tightening with focus. "Let's go home, together." Etsu's voice continued. Turning his head slightly, he saw it, right next to Bakura, was the blue crystal that he knew was Etsu, the person protected by the most Life Points, because she was the one he cared most about.
Propping himself up on his left elbow, Enzeru placed his middle and index finger from his right hand on top of his deck. Instantly he felt warmth and power surge through him. This would be the deciding card, and the deciding play. In a flash of blue light, Enzeru drew while at the same time rising to one knee, looking straight ahead while the single card in his possession was at the right.
"This is the end for you, Bakura!" Enzeru shouted, looking into his drawn card with fervor. "I use Hell-Heaven to revived Time Mage (2400/2500) in attack mode!" Stalwart and ready for battle, Enzeru's magician appeared, staff at the ready and magic pulsing from his very core.
"Hell-Heaven?" Bakura asked, utterly confused. "How? I destroyed it."
"There's a card in my graveyard, Bakura." Enzeru explained, turning around a card that was in his right hand. "Archives of Magic. When it's in my graveyard, I can return one magic card to my field that was destroyed/discarded before activation or that is continuous." Enzer explained. Bakura merely looked and gawked, unable to think of any kind of response. Enzeru continued, not caring what Bakura thought he wanted to say.
"I play Oracle of Resurrection! I must discard my entire hand, but since I hold no cards, that's not a problem. Next I will select from my deck five cards of my choice, and also I may now summon any level six or higher monster from my graveyard to the field, but must pay two hundred Life Points every turn that the selected monster in is play. But that wont be a problem, because there is no next turn to pay."
Ejecting his deck, Enzeru began to shift through, searching for the desired cards. Without and trouble or hesitation he found what he was looking for, and then snapped the few cards that remained into his Duel Disk.
"Now my magic card revives Guardian of Time (2400/2500), who was discarded from my hand last turn, in attack mode." The blue robed mage appeared, his staff also set at the ready. Once more the two quantum masters stood at Enzeru's side, ready to hear his commands and unleash the furry of time itself.
"These magicians are perhaps the ones most closely bonded to my soul, but now I must part with them so that I can create an even greater power." At this, the two sorcerers bowed their heads in reverence and understanding of what Enzeru meant. "I sacrifice Guardian of Time and Time Mage to summon a magician whose mastery of time has enabled him the ability to surpass eternity itself." The two magicians became swirls of light, intertwining with one another as Enzeru spoke. "And now I invoke his power so that I may eliminate you from eternity!"
The two swirls of light halted and became one, and a single flash of light blinded both players for a second, yet neither flinched. Enzeru looked on firmly, with unrivaled resolve. Bakura looked on with disdain, perhaps even a spark of potential fear. As the light faded, Enzeru stared with reverence, while Bakura gaped.
Levitating in the air above the two stood a tall figure, taller than most magicians in the game, was Enzeru's monster. He was adorned in robes of white, silver and light blue. They were not armored like that of the Dark Magician or Breaker, but rather simply hung, appearing both simple and exquisite. His hair was silver, sparkling with a light that he himself emanated. His eyes were a similar silver, only they were hard and focused. Finally, clasped in his right fist was a staff, simple in nature, except for the head, which was adorned with a crescent moon, the open section facing to the side. Within that crescent was a three-dimensional star with numerous points. In ths shaft of the stave, just inches bellow the crescent, was a glass cylinder with a small hourglass within it.
"Eternity Mage (2700/2700)!" Enzeru shouted as they both continued to stare at the magician, who continued to stare down at the field, his dominance supreme. Then he eyed Zork, the being of pure darkness, and it seemed as though his stare could pierce through Zork and his darkness and behold his very existence, from beginning to end.
"That may be impressive, Enzeru, but Zork far surpasses your Eternity Mage. He is nothing to me and my darkness!" Bakura laughed, his fear dissipating.
"You're wrong, Bakura." Enzeru called. "I told you that you would face both my wrath, but also the wrath of those I've defeated here at Battle City. You're facing more than one duelist, Bakura, and each of us has an inner light of hope. Your darkness can only consume and cover up light for a period of time. But Eternity Mage can see beyond that small point in time, and so can bring the lights together from every point of their existence! And with that light, your darkness will be dispelled and shattered! That is what measures the difference between you and I! You can only push me down with fear and pain, but I can annihilate you because I can face my past and look on to the future!"
"Really? Then show me, please. Not that you have a chance. Not even the Creator of Light-Horakti had the power to destroy me, so what makes you think this mortal creature can?" Bakura sneered, casting a smug glance at Enzeru's monster.
"Mortal?" Enzeru scoffed."He's an eternal being, far beyond the capacities of mortality." Bakura still did not seem to be all the impressed. "Let me show you." Enzeru said, playing one of the cards in his hand onto his field. "I play Effect Economics! This means I can play my cards without having to pay Life Points!" Bakura shrugged at this, already well aware of what the card did and obviously not finding such a card to be a threat. After all, Enzeru only had three cards in his hand, and no number of Life Points could topple Zork and his ten thousand attack points. But it would still be amusing to see what Enzeru would try.
"I play Spell Accounting! This card allows me to pay Life Points in increments of two hundred to add one magic counter to one monster on my field per increment. So now, I will pay infinite Life Points thanks to my Effect Economics card to grant Eternity Mage infinite magic counters!" As he spoke, a bright light ignited all around Enzeru's monster, and millions of smaller lights could be seen flowing to him, with no end to them in sight.
"It's still no stronger." Bakura observed, realizing that these magic counters did not raise the attack points of Enzeru's monster. If they had, there would have been hell to pay.
"Not in attack points, but his true powers are now at their maximum." Enzeru declared, his voice dripping with power and determination. "Eternity Mage has three effects that I may activate by sacrificing magic counters. And now it is time to use those abilities and to crush Zork were he stands." Enzeru grabbed one of the last cards in his hand and shoved it into his Duel Disk. "I activate the continuous magic card, Endless Era."
"What's the point? Your monster hasn't changed at all." Bakura shot back in annoyance at Enzeru's maneuver. All the boy was doing now was wasting his time.
"Eternity Mage, attack Zork-God of Darkness now!" Without so much as blinking, the magician raised his staff, the head of which was glowing with a new kind of power, unlike any Enzeru had ever witnessed before. It was as if he could behold Time in some sort of tangible form. With silence and nobility, the man released the extent of his wrath in the form of that energy, which lanced towards Zork with lightning speed, yet the dark god did nothing but raise his left forearm to protect him, absorbing the blast effectively. He then extended his right palm and fired a blast of pure black light which consumed the magician.
"Victory is mine!" Bakura laughed as he watched the dark energy continue to flow. "Yes Zork, let your rage flow! Show the mortals how unstoppable you are!"
"Think so?" Enzeru's voice reached above the dark flames, hitting Bakura with new found levels of shock. Instantly the black fire dissipated and Enzeru could be seen standing strong behind a translucent barrier. "Endless Era allows me to sacrifice three magic counters from my field to block an instance of damage I would take. Again, having infinite counters, I can afford this."
"And why did you bother? Sure, you've spared your Life Points, but you just lost your monster."
"Except I didn't." Enzeru explained, pointing to the air between him and Zork's hand. Bakura also turned his gaze, and choked in shock at seeing Eternity Made still floating there. Before he could ask, though, Enzeru was answering the inevitable question. "When Eternity Mage is in battle and would be destroyed, I may sacrifice two magic counters from him to keep him in play."
"I see. But it does you no good. Zork is still strong and your Endless Era is now useless, since the monster who held all your magic counters is now gone."
"But Zork isn't as strong now as he was a few seconds ago." Enzeru interjected. In confusion, Bakura looked at Zork, who was actually glaring at the arm that Eternity Mage had struck, and was nursing it, as if in pain. Once again, Enzeru was answering the question before it could be asked. "When Eternity Mage fails to kill a monster is battles, I can remove five magic counters to deduct his attack total from the monster he battled. So now Zork will lose twenty-seven hundred attack points (7300)."
"And yet Zork remains. Next turn I'll use his special ability to destroy your Mage, making your Endless Era useless!" the thief king mocked, his laughter echoing from the shadowy walls.
"No, because you wont be taking another turn." Enzeru once again declared, he voice now more bold than it had been before. "I said Eternity Mage has three effects. That's two. Now for the third one: I can sacrifice three magic counters to attack again!"
Bakura took a second to take this information in, and then took a step back in fear. "And because Eternity Mage holds infinite magic counters..." he trailed off, realizing what this meant.
"Exactly!" Enzeru confirmed the unspoken fact. "Eternity Mage, Infinite Assault!" Raising his staff, the master of time began to release volley after volley of magic, each one striking Zork and burning a new hole in his shadowed form, each time draining it more and more of it's attack power. (4600-1900-0)
"No!" Bakura screamed as his dark god was beaten upon. "No! I cannot allow this! I will not let three thousand years of revenge and planning go to waste!"
"There's nothing you can do, Bakura!" Enzeru called, grabbing a card from his hand. "Now, go to Hell! Eternity Mage, end it! Eternity Tempest!" With a final sweep of his staff, the sorcerer unleashed a hail of magic that struck the now lifeless body of Zork, dissolving the remains of his body.
Enzeru-300/Bakura-0
Instantly, Enzeru grabbed another card from his hand. "Go quick-play magic card, Eternity Tempest!" Again Eternity Mage fired his attack, but the stream of energy seemed to halt in the air between the two monsters. The magician then fired again, and the second attack hit the first, but instead of destroying each other, they absorbed one another. Again the mage fired, and the sphere grew again. "This card allows Eternity Mage to combine his multiple attacks into one. Since Eternity Mage can attack infinitely, I can create an attack loop to deal you infinite damage, which will enable me to destroy the final Kioku!" The stream of light continued to pour over Bakura's body as the final crystal began to crack and break down from the pressure of the spell. After a few seconds, although they seemed like forever, the crystal finally broke down into dust, fading from plain view as they fell to the earth.
"And now that I've beaten you, Bakura, I will do what should have been done eons ago! I banish you from all of existence!" Bakura screamed again as Enzer made this declaration, and the Darkness Realm began to follow the directions, complying with Enzeru's declared Punishment. Finally, someone had figured out the method to prevent Bakura from ever returning. Slowly he felt his very essence being wiped away from the charts of time. He was being erased! Erased from eternity!
Bakura screamed. Enzeru heard him scream. Then there was silence.
Storms form from pockets of weather, whether they be cold pockets of snow and ice, or heated ones of thunder and flames. But in the end, by natural law, they either die down or swallow each other. There is an eye of the storm, when it seems to be over, only to begin again, abruptly and violently. Storms always seem to punish the innocent, taking from them what they cannot replace and instill within a new strength. A person learns from experiences with the storms, and although they may lose their house or a whole city, they still progress a new, stronger person after the storm has passed, because they are forced to leave their weaknesses behind, in the storm.
The storm had passed. Looking back, Enzeru realized that many storms ended in that instant. The firestorm that was his guilt and anger was gone. The blizzard of isolation had melted. The thunderstorm of tears and sorrow had ceased. The windstorm of the Darkness Game faded. The hailstorm of Bakura was halted and beaten back by the tempest of Enzeru Eitai, the Angel of Time.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
There it is. This is the end of Battle City, my friends, and in the end, Kai Kaethan lost to the storm, and out walked Enzeru Eitai, stronger and wiser. But what about the strange dreams Kai had? Or the mysterious Nikolas Selket? And why is Tenken still so unnerved?
Next Time-Epilogue-Ascend to a Heaven on Earth
Original Cards-
Kai- Time is My Enemy, Master of the Archives, Envoy of the Archives, Guardian of the Archives, Archives of Magic, Tempus Sorceress, Veil of Time, Magicians Creed, Elixir of Soul, Magical Renaissance, Philosophy of Magic, Order of the Archives, Magic of the Soul, Time Mage, Guardian of Time, Oracle of Resurrection, Gates of Time, Endless Era, Eternity Mage, Eternity Tempest
Bakura- Zork-God of Darkness, Grasp the Dark, Defile the Impure, Rage Against the Light, Nightwraith, Nightstalker, Storm of Desolation
By Seeker of the Soul- Effect Economics, Spell Accounting
By G.O.T.Nick- Disintao-Elder Mage
It has been a long time coming, my friends. I've lost some of you along the way, and I gained others later on. You all came for different reasons, just like the duelists of Battle City, and you will all walk away different from one another, some thinking they've grown, while others may feel no different. In the end, my objective was not to touch hearts or minds, but just to put something out there that could be fun for me to write and fun for all of you to read. Something that was at least legible, while at the same time inventive and entertaining. That is why I pushed events in certain directions, and why I often didn't seem to catch certain details, but I do want to work on that so that the sequel will be more enjoyable on your guys parts.
You all have been critical to my success here. I never expected that I cold get close to two hundred reviews, and yet I have. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart. You guys kept up the faith, even when I got discouraged and would go for months without updating. Some of you had direct hands in helping this story come to fruitation, and others did it without even meaning to, let alone realizing. As such, I want to personally thank each of you who has stuck with me to this, the end.
First off is Aldea. I know she never actually really got into this story and never reviewed, but still, if it weren't for her brilliant story, I never could have thought of this story, and quite possibly wouldn't have thought of the hundreds of original cards that I have used. Rock on, Aldea, and may you update some day soon.
Second, Seeker of the Soul (thegymrat). After I got this story rolling, Seeker was my greatest source of inspiration and encouragement. He's been with me from the beginning, both helping on AIM, sending me original cards over email, and by just being such a good writer himself. Just by reading his work, I've managed to make this story flow so much better. It's such a crime that so few people go and read his stories. I mean, if you like my stuff, you can't help but worship his. So many of my characters were helped in their development based on the example that Seeker has set for me. Yeah, his stories are a bit long, but so is mine in the end. His are just better. By a lot. I tip my hat, bow my head, fall on my knees, and offer tribute to the great Seeker of the Soul. May he prosper for eternities to come.
G.O.T.Nick is third. Another loyal reviewer who has been with me since I started this tale, Nick was the one who created Nick Freeman/Nikolas Selket (That will all be explained in the sequel), as well as Disintao, a new favorite of mine. Nick's quirky style of writing gave me a smile whenever I needed it, and his characters have helped me to be a bit more out of the box with decks (Like making a competitive Dark Scorpion deck). I salute Nick and his works, both those that are complete and those that aren't so complete.
The Helldragon has been loyal for some time as well. Although often picking at my careless mistakes, which were normally made because I was outrageously tired or just because I'm human, and always pretty quirky and perhaps even narcissistic, he has still been loyal and supportive. Good luck in getting back into the writing circle, man. And don't worry, Matt will get his cameo.
Noble Paladin joined the ranks of my reviewers only a little more than a year ago, but he's been one of the most supportive people out there. He has never questioned my judgement and has shown me that romance can be useful in a story, so long as it is controlled and manipulated correctly. That, and the fact that he worships my characters makes him a valuable sacrifice-I mean puppet-I mean reader. Keep it up, man.
Of course, the reviewer who surprised me most was WolfGeneral. Last fall, out of nowhere I get this review and glance at the guys story, but didn't pay it too much mind. But then I noticed come of my friends getting into his stuff, so I gave it a try, and I gotta say I was really impressed. The guy somehow has the power to update like a factory, and still do college. I'm still trying to figure it out. In the end, WolfGeneral has been a fabulous reviewer and a great read as well, even though I've lost touch with some of his more current stuff. However, if ever spawned a writer with a large fallowing that keeps on growing, its him. Peace, man.
Another pleasant surprise came in the reviews I got from MatrixFighter. Although always short and specific, they were nonetheless supportive. Plus, he's the only one to get the correct scene from the Etsu duel.
The White Mage has been interesting to get reviews from. He's had some good things to say and has put up with my own awkward style, so go him.
John and Demon Fan, perhaps my two most recent fans, have been loyal just the same, even though some times really hard to understand or just plain weird, but I appreciate them in the end anyways.
I think that just about covers it. There were, of course, other random reviewers who didn't keep up with the story, but it happens, I suppose. Again, thank you all.