City of Fire

by Blax

In a dark century, a group of young men use powerful creatures called Cree to battle the evil forces of the N00b Armies. They are the last line of defense that protects the great City of Janime. Using their powers, they wage duels of darkess against the

38. Double Trouble

Chapter 38: Double Trouble

"I activate Megas Saber, increasing Gearfried's attack.

"And I counter with Duos Saber, giving Masaki an attack boost."

"So, we thought the same thing. I can't beat you, Morgen. You know me too well."

"Huh? What are you…?"

"I activate Final Attack!"

Gearfried and Masaki stepped back, about to face off in one final move.

Morgen jumped back. He had no idea what was about to happen. Gearfried and Masaki charged, slashing with their swords, stopping back-to-back. Both warriors coughed up blood as they hit the ground, dropping the Megas and Duos Sabers.

"My… Masaki. What did you do?"

"Final Attack negates all effects of monsters and spells and forces the two strongest monsters on the field to battle. Only effects that change the Attack of the battling monsters remain active, so you see, with equal attacks, Gearfried and Masaki destroyed each other." 'I'm sorry Gearfried.'

"I will protect you with my life, Lord Bann."

"Ma…Masaki…"

"Oh, and one last thing. After the battle, we both take damage equal to the other's Attack."

Red light shot down from the heavens and struck Bann and Morgen. Both screamed from the insane force of the energy and hit the ground. They dropped their swords and slowly made their way back to a slightly slouched and standing position.

"Just a little farther, I hope," Zakei told Tiamat as they raced through the trees.

"You said that twenty minutes ago!" Tiamat yelled behind him.

"Yeah? Well I was wrong then. So sue me!"

whoosh

"What the hell was that?" asked Tiamat.

"You two? Get out of here," yelled a dark figure overhead.

"Sagitar?"

Sagitar landed in front of the others. "You've got to move. There's a large creature heading this way. I can't beat it."

"Then what makes you think that we can't?"

"Suit yourself. If you die, don't mind if I harvest your souls. I'm quite hungry and this mountain is sucking out my strength."

Sagitar opened his cloak. The red cloth became two large wings. He lifted into the air and took off.

THUMP

"Maybe we should move."

"We can't. Our path lies forward. We'll just have to break our way through. Just because a Bloodwing couldn't destroy something, doesn't mean that we can't either. Besides, we have Dragons."

"You got a plan?"

"Nope."

"Good."

THUMP

"This thing's big. You sure you don't want to run?" Tiamat asked.

"Actually, on second thought," Zakei turned and the two started to run off, hoping they might be able figure out how to get past whatever was coming to after them.

Suddenly, a man jumped out of the trees overhead and blocked their path.

"You two aren't going anywhere."

"You hear that?"

"Huh?"

"The thumping stopped. That was your Cree, huh?"

"Yes, yes it was."

"Then all I have to do is beat you."

"It won't be so easy," said a voice behind them.

Tiamat and Zakei turned to see an identical man.

"What the hell?"

"You can call me Atrop," said the one behind them.

"And I am Aletut," said the other.

"And together," they both said, jumping into the air and landing behind Zakei and Tiamat, "are the twin Rotaruc Brothers. We challenge you to a duel!"

"Fine, I get one, you get the other, Tiamat?"

"No," the Rotarucs responded.

"What do you mean 'No'?" Zakei demanded.

"We challenge you two a double duel. The two of us take on the both of you."

"Well, I guess. That sound alright with you?"

"Yeah, I'm itching to take out a few pests," Tiamat answered.

"Fine, but we must warn you."

"As twins, our Cree has developed to work together."

"To…gether?"

"Yes, so we have trained to have perfect teamwork."

"I cannot say the same to you, though."

"Let's see if you have what it takes…"

"…to match our combined might!"

"Oh man, I've read about this, Zakei."

"Yeah?"

"When twins are born with the power to create Cree, they generally create the same type of monsters. This means that they can combine them to form even greater monsters. Think about it. A person can only do so much on his own, but together, their shared Cree is almost limitless!"

"Yeah? Well we can still take them on. I don't back down."

"You will wish…"

"…you hadn't said that."

"I will start. I activate the Seal of Orichalcos!" yelled Atrop.

"What? The Seal already?"

Atrop lifted his left hand into the air. On his index finger sat a green gem studded ring. Aletut then lifted his right hand to show an identical ring on his index finger. The gems glowed and above a turquoise ring appeared in the sky. The ring spun and landed on the ground, surrounding Tiamat and Zakei. A light on the ground traced the familiar hexagram shape, completing the Seal. On both of the brother's foreheads, the Seal appeared above their red glowing eyes.

"You are now caught in the Seal of Orichalcos. Beat us and you are freed."

"Lose to us and your souls are forever lost," Atrop warned. "I will end my turn by setting a shadow monster."

"Very well. Mind if I do the honors?" Zakei asked?

"Go ahead," Tiamat answered.

Zakei nodded. "Now, I summon Skilled Dark Magician and end my turn with two Spells cast."

"Now it's my turn," Aletut said. "I summon Kaiser Seahorse. Then I too cast a Spell. Your move."

"I cast a Spell and summon Baby Dragon."

"What is that pathetic dragon going to do?"

"Age, that's what."

Baby Dragon began to grow older. His wings enlarged and his skin darkened. He rose into the sky and blew a bit of flames.

"Meet my Hundred Dragon. He'll blow you away. That ends my turn."

'Why didn't he attack? He could have. Damn him,' Zakei wondered.

"Good, because now I reveal my Arsenal Summoner from the shadows. He allows me to add a monster with Guardian in its name to my mind, and I have the perfect one thought out. However, more on him later."

'What could that monster be?' Tiamat thought.

"Now, I activate Tribute Doll. This lets me sacrifice my Arsenal Summoner to Special Summon a high level monster, and I choose Kazejin!"

The spirit of the wind, a large green spherical monster, appeared in Arsenal Summoner's place.

"However, because I used Tribute Doll, I can't attack this turn. Oh well. Your move… Zakei was it?"

"Damn right. I activate Table of Contents. This allows me to use another Spell in my Creepool. I choose Cost Down. Then, I summon Dark Magician Girl. Also, thanks to your Tribute Doll, that makes a total of three Spells played during this game, so I can also sac my Skilled Dark Magician to Special Summon the original Dark Magician."

Zakei's Dark Magician duo took the field. Sadly, as strong as they were, they were no match for Kazejin. However, they were a match for…

"Dark Magician Girl, attack Kaiser Seahorse! Dark Burning Attack!"

"You forget my trap?" Aletut asked. "I may not be able to defend myself, but I can use A Rival Appears to Special Summon the monster I was going to summon using Kaiser Seahorse's effect. Go Sanga of the Thunder!"

A large, floating, golden torso appeared with two large arms.

'Great, another one of those strong monsters. Wait a second…' "Tiamat, they're using a quick summoning tactic. Don't worry, as strong as these monsters they are summoning are, we can beat them."

'No… no you're wrong Zakei. I don't know what it is, but I'm sensing something… darker.'

"Well, I cast two Spells. Your move, Aletut."

"I activate Stray Lambs. This allows me to Special Summon two Sheep Tokens. I can now activate my trap, Double Sum. Since Stray Lambs prevents me from making a Normal Summon this turn, my Double Sum negates that adverse effect. Now, I can easily sacrifice both my sheep, but that won't be much fun, so instead, I choose to activate Soul Exchange."

Dark Magician's soul was extracted and appeared on Aletut's side of the field.

"Since I don't much like your magician, I sacrifice its soul along with my Sheep Token to summon Suijin."

Two large, blue legs with a face on its waist was summoned next to the remaining Sheep Token. Without a soul, Dark Magician collapsed and vanished.

"That will end my turn."

"I'll start mine with Level Swap. Returning Hundred Dragon to my mind, I can Special Summon a monster with an equal level. I choose Armed Dragon." 'Those monsters are too strong. I can't use the Genocide Cutter or the Armed Punisher. I know I've seen them before.' "I cast a Spell and end my turn."

"Time to say goodbye to your Armed Dragon. Kazejin, attack!"

Kazejin blew a large gust of wind at Armed Dragon, but the dragon appeared underneath three top hats.

"What is the meaning of this?"

"What? We can't use teamwork too? I activated my trap, Magical Hats, to hide Tiamat's dragon. I also hid a few more things in there."

"Fine, I'll start by attacking the hat on the left!"

"Bad move."

Kazejin blew a gust of wind at the hat on the left, revealing a statue. The statue was destroyed and a strange creature appeared where the statue was and swam through the air until it reached Zakei.

"When you destroyed my Statue of the Wicked, you unleashed the Wicked Token."

"You may have thwarted my attack, but I think it's time to reveal that Guardian I added to my mind earlier. I won't summon it yet… but I want you to understand what you are dealing with," Atrop laughed. "I activate Ante. So? Choose your monster. I choose mine."

"Fine, I'll show you Magician of Black Chaos!" Zakei yelled back. The spirit of Magician of Black Chaos appeared behind him.

"I'm sorry, but you lose," Atrop laughed.

"What… what's so funny?"

Aletut began to laugh as well. Behind them, an enormous dark spirit appeared, stronger than anything the two Bashers had ever faced.

"Gate…"

"…Guardian."

"No…no way. Not him."

"Tiamat?"

"Gate Guardian has been called one of the single most powerful creatures ever created. Its power rivals that of a god."

"A… a god?"

"He is almost impossible to summon, but…"

"But what?"

"What your partner is trying to say is that we've assembled all the necessary parts," Atrop replied.

"We've been able to summon our Guardian for quite some time, but we've been toying with you," Aletut finished.

"Then I'll just have to stop you. I activate Monster Reincarnation, bringing back Dark Magician. Then I sacrifice the Wicked Token and Dark Magician Girl to summon Dark Magician."

Dark Magician lifted his staff and aimed at the three divine elementals.

"Now I give Dark Magician the Magic Tome, increasing his attack. Dark Magician, attack Suijin!"

Dark Magician nodded and yelled, "Dark Magic Attack!"

A large blast of black magic shot out of the staff's gem and flew at Suijin, who countered with a shield of water, deflecting Dark Magician's attack back at him. Zakei hit the ground, from the attack.

"I… use Magician's Tome."

The tome appeared in front of Zakei. He opened the book and light shined out, refilling some of his lost life. The book then disappeared.

"You can't destroy them now. They can protect themselves with their powers."

'Dark Magician is gone. Now, I've got nothing to defend myself…' "I…I end… I end my turn."

Tiamat turned to look at Zakei, staring in disbelief. 'No… no you… Zakei!'

"How unfortunate. I activate Exchange, taking my brother's Gate Guardian…"

"…in exchange for his Flame Lord."

"Then I activate Ante."

Gate Guardian's spirit appeared on the field again, inflicting more damage to Zakei and Tiamat.

"I'll get rid of Hundred Dragon."

"And now, I'll finish you! Suijin, Sanga, attack Zakei directly!"

Suijin and Sanga let out twin attacks of water and lighting.

"I activate Armed Defense!" Tiamat yelled.

Armed Dragon jumped in front of Zakei. Both attacks hit Armed Dragon and dispersed.

"My turn, and I activate Level Up! Armed Dragon, evolve!"

Armed Dragon grew. Blades sprouted out of many parts of his body in place of the spikes. He was truly a sight to behold.

"I'll cast a Spell. You're move, Atrop."

"Kazejin! Attack directly!"

Kazejin shot out a gust of wind that wrapped around Zakei, who hit the ground, practically unconscious.

"I… I won't… lose…"

"You look pretty pathetic down there. Why don't you just skip your turn so we can finish you."

Zakei stretched out his arms and lifted himself up. He slowly stood. A dark blue dragon began to reveal itself without command.

"Cri…Critias!" the Rotaruc brothers cried.

"I… cast two… Spells… and fuse… Critias… with Mage Power, forming… Mage's Dragon Ultima."

A dragon resembling Critias adorned with ritualistic garbs and jewels and covered in magical energy flew above the Seal. It let out a large blast of magical energy from its mouth, shattering Suijin.

"You… you destroyed the elemental of water!"

"Yeah! Zakei, you did it! You should have summoned Gate Guardian when you had the chance!"

"We still can…"

"I activate Monster Reborn, reviving Suijin. Then I combine Sanga of the Thunder, Kazejin, and Suijin to form Gate Guardian!"

The three monsters formed up. At the bottom, Suijin made the creature's legs. Kazejin made up the lower torso of the guardian. Finally, at the very top lay Sanga, whose large upper body and arms was a perfect fit for Gate Guardian.

"Gate Guardian, attack Dragon Ultima!"

"You… you're defenseless now. This is my chance to kill you."

"That's if you can miraculously pull what you need from that twisted soul of yours."

Morgen snarled at the remark. Then he summoned Trample Shogun, attacking Bann directly.

"AAAAHHHhhh!" Bann screamed as the Shogun's spear impaled him. He hit the ground, covered in blood now. "You… bastard… I set a monster…"

"I attack your set monster using Trample Shogun's effect. By slightly lowering his attack, I can deal damage to you!"

Trample Shogun slashed the shadow monster with his sword, revealing Queen's Knight, who was destroyed. Once again, Bann grabbed his sides in pain.

"Now, I activate Treasure from Heaven, refilling our minds with Cree and Spells. I cast three Spells and end my turn."

"I set a monster and cast a Spell."

"This is it Bann. I attack your set monster."

Trample Shogun struck the shadow monster. Bann revealed his Hallowed Life Barrier, protecting himself from the damage.

"You've revealed my Familiar Knight. I can now Special Summon Holy Knight from my mind. Then I summon Guardian Knight. I… end my turn."

Holy Knight lifted his sword, showering light on Bann, refilling some of his life.

"I attack your Holy Knight!"

Holy Knight was destroyed, and once again, Bann took the damage.

"I skip my turn…"

"Attack Guardian Knight!"

Trample Shogun struck Guardian Knight with his spear but didn't deal any damage.

"I summon Steed of the Fierce Knight. This stallion allows me to Special Summon Gaia the Lone Knight or add him to my mind. Then I activate Polymerization, fusing Gaia and his steed to form Gaia the Dark Knight. Attack Trample Shogun!"

Gaia and the Shogun charged each other on their horses, lance and spear in hand…

"I activate Negate Attack!" Zakei called.

Gate Guardian's triple strike was swallowed up.

"Damn you. I cast a Spell and end my turn."

"Awesome. It's time to show you what two dragons can do. I activate another Level Swap, trading in my Armed Dragon for my Red-Eyes Black Dragon. Then I activate Polymerization, fusing Warrior Dai Grepher and Spirit Ryu to form Ryu Senshi."

Warrior Dai Grepher appeared in purple, dragon skin armor and a double bladed sword.

"What will you have me do?"

'You'll see, Dai.' "I Special Summon Hermos!"

The Red Dragon appeared.

"I now fuse Hermos with Red-Eyes Black Dragon to form the Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword."

"I can't wield that."

'Don't worry. This sword is special.'

Dai grabbed the black saber in his left hand. As he picked it up, a great power began to grow within him.

"Finally, I summon Armed Dragon. Now let me fill you in on this sword's power. It strengthens whoever wields it. Then it further powers them up by the number of dragons on the field. Finally, I activate Block Attack, switching your Gate Guardian to defense position. Ryu Senshi attack!"

Dai jumped into the air with the Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword, about to strike Gate Guardian.

"Not so fast. I activate my first trap, Waboku!"

A barrier surrounded Gate Guardian, protecting him from Dai's attack. Dai was thrown back onto the field.

'Damn. That would have been the perfect shot.' "I activate Graveyard in the Fourth Dimension, cast a Spell, and end my turn."

"Ha ha!" Atrop laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"I was just wondering, would you like a taste of our power? Would you like to use the Seal of Orichalcos for yourselves?"

"What do you mean?"

"So glad you asked. I activate Field Transferal!"

The Seal of Orichalcos beneath them began to spin. The Seal above the eyes of the Rotarucs vanished and their eyes returned to normal. Gate Guardian's attack decreased as it too lost the power of the Seal.

"What's happening!"

"You'll see."

The Seal stopped spinning. The symbols in the ring now faced and opposite direction from when they began.

"What did you…AHHHHaahhhh!" Tiamat screamed. Zakei began to scream as well as dark auras overtook the too.

On their foreheads, the Seal appeared above red glowing eyes.

"So… this is the power of the Orichalcos…" Zakei said darkly.

"It actually feels… refreshing," Tiamat laughed.

"You two are going to wish you never gave this to us. You've just powered up our monsters, who were already strong enough to take down your Gate Guardian."

"Were they? Look at them again."

The dark aura of the Orichalcos covered the Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword and Mage's Dragon Ultima.

"What's happening to them?"

"Orichalcos magic and the Dragons don't mix."

The dragon sword split back into Hermos and Red-Eyes. Then Hermos vanished in a black flames. Dragon Ultima changed back into Critias, who disappeared the same way Hermos did.

"I activate Call of the Haunted!" Zakei yelled, "Special Summoning Dark Magician, who I equip with Mage Power." He saved his spell before it was destroyed.

"Now, I attack Ryu Senshi."

Gate Guardian let out a blast of wind, water, and electricity, destroying Ryu Senshi.

"That's one more down…"

"You forget? My Dark Magician is now much stronger than your Gate Guardian. You were a fool to give me this power," Zakei yelled. "Dark Magician, attack that monster!"

Dark Magician jumped into the air, unleashing a blast of Dark Magic that would have incinerated Gate Guardian.

"I activate Penultimate Shield. This saves our Gate Guardian and destroys your Magician's Mage Power."

A rainbow-like shield blocked Dark Magician's attack. Dark Magician then landed next to Bann.

"Damn you. I cast a spell. Now make your fucking move."

"I will, and I order Gate Guardian to attack Dark Magician!"

Gate Guardian shot another attack at the magician, this time destroying him.

"You couldn't help me on this one, Tiamat? Too busy trying to save yourself?"

"Maybe if you didn't play such pathetic monsters and strategies, we wouldn't be staring down Gate Guardian right now!"

"Just as I thought, brother. They are too overwhelmed by the Seal's power that their greed and lust is causing them to bicker."

"Yes, you are a genius, giving them the Seal. They won't be able to defeat us now. I cast a Spell and end my turn."

"My move. I level up my Armed Dragon. Then I activate Shien's Spy, sending Red-Eyes to your side of the field where he loses his attack bonus. Finally, I attack my Red-Eyes Black Dragon with Armed Dragon!"

Armed Dragon hit the black dragon with a spiked fist, sending it flying and inflicting some damage to Atrop's life. He then cast a Spell and ended his turn, leveling up Armed Dragon again.

Atrop began his turn, yelling, "Gate Guardian, attack Zakei directly!"

Zakei looked over at Tiamat who glared back.

"You're on your own, Zakei," Tiamat said.

"Screw you, I didn't need your help anyway. I activate Magic Cylinder!"

A cylinder absorbed Gate Guardian's attack while another shot it back at Atrop with equal force.

"I'll save my brother by activating Hallowed Life Barrier!"

A shield surrounded Atrop, saving him from harm.

"Thank you brother. I will be sure to return the favor after I cast these two spells. Turn end."

"Your dark knight is no match for my Shogun!"

"You're wrong, Morgen. My dark knight is more than a match for you. He gains attack for every Warrior on the field, making him strong enough to take down your Shogun!"

Gaia impaled the Shogun with his lance, shattering him into thousands of pieces.

"Thank you, Bann."

"What?"

"By destroying my Shogun and inflicting this insignificant amount of damage to me, you have triggered my traps. The first is Call of the Haunted, brining back Masaki the Legendary Swordsman. The second is Double-Edge Strike."

Masaki appeared wielding his two swords.

"Like it will help. Masaki loses his attack advantage at the end of the turn."

"You've forgotten about my third and final trap, Staunch Defender, which forces Gaia to attack again."

"No…"

Gaia charged at Masaki, who dodged the knight and slew him. Masaki then jumped onto Gaia's horse and rode back to Morgen. Bann hit the ground from the damage. The Seal began to close in one him.

"You lose Bann…"

"I activate Polymerization! This lets me fuse my Red Dark Magician and my Goddess with the Third Eye to form Dark Paladin. Hey Tiamat, you're actually useful. Thanks to your Armed Dragon, my Paladin is strong enough to take on Gate Guardian. Dark Paladin, attack Gate Guardian!"

Dark Paladin jumped into the air, lifting his bladed staff, unleashing a blade of dark energy to cut the Guardian in half.

"Not so fast," Atrop said.

"We will stop your dark energy with…" Aletut started.

"Wall of Revealing Light!" they both yelled.

A large wall of light blocked Paladin's attack. Of course, the two had to give up almost half their life in order to do it, but now almost nothing would get through to them.

"No… no way…" Zakei said in disbelief. "I… I can't… I cast a Spell. Make your damn move."

The Seal began to close around Bann. He lay unconscious on the ground as Morgen laughed at his triumph.

"Bann… BANN! WAKE UP YOU IDIOT!" Migome yelled, pounding on the barrier of the Seal.

"Shut up, Migome. He lost and as a penalty, the Seal gets to take his soul. Don't worry, if you want to join him, I can defeat you next."

"You… you won't lay a finger on her."

"What? Impossible. You lost!"

"Not yet I haven't."

Gearfried, Kia, Gaia, Dark Blade, and Gold Knight appeared, surrounding Bann. As the Seal crept in, it was forced back by the ring of monsters, once again surrounding the field.

"This… this is impossible!"

"No, it isn't. You will never truly defeat me."

A roar could be heard over the wind. The rain began to stop.

"I cast a Spell. Your move."

"You moron. Masaki! Attack him!"

"You're the moron. I activate Counterblow!"

Masaki's blade was thrown out of his hand and thrust into Morgen.

"Always have a backup plan… heh heh…"

"Damn… you… I won't lose to the likes of you."

"Right…" 'Hello there.' "It's time to show you something. First, I activate Knight's Rebirth, Special Summoning Gaia the Dark Knight. Then I activate Fusion Recovery, returning Polymerization to my mind so I can fuse Gaia the Dark Knight with Curse of Dragon to form Gaia the Dragon Champion!"

"So? How will he help you? Once he is destroyed, you lose the duel anyway."

"Then he won't be destroyed. Next I activate Monster Reincarnation, returning a monster in my Graveyard to my mind at the cost of anything in my mind. So, would you like to see what I brought back?"

"Whatever it is, it won't help you."

"I see, then I might as well summon him. Arise Timaeus!"

"What! You can't summon him, not with my Rivalry of Warlords trap in play!"

"Timaeus is a dragon. So is Gaia the Dragon Champion!"

"No!"

"Yes, so Timaeus, fuse with Gaia to form Dragon Knight Gaia of the Gale!"

Curse of Dragon vanished. In its place, Timaeus soared high into the clouds with Gaia on his back.

"Dragon Knight Gaia, attack Masaki!"

Next time on City of Fire: Darkness Within