Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.
Tournament of Tears
Chapter 13: Time's Signs (Part 1)
Davis charged down the street as fast as he could, his duel disk already in duel mode in case he had to plow through some Wraiths on his way to Rikuo and Ryu. ("Those two should be able to handle that nutcase. I just hope Griff managed to actually win, and that I'm just about to waste everyone's time…") He didn't believe his words, but knew that maybe it might just come true.
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They stood across from each other quietly now, a cold wind blowing through Ichigo's hair and through Eon's hood.
"Well, aren't you going to show me your face?" Ichigo lifted a single eyebrow curiously.
"No, you have earned the right yet." Eon drew his opening five cards. "First, prove your strength!"
"As you wish! Duel!" Ichigo held up his six card hand.
Eon crossed his arms across his chest, the position of his arms revealing his deck…and how large it was. Ichigo only had about fifty or so cards, Eon appeared to have at least 120 in his deck.
"Why do you have so many cards in your deck? That seems unnecessary." Ichigo honestly didn't care that much, but he felt it best to strike up a little talk with this guy. ("Something about him seems like he is worth talking to.")
Eon held up his five card hand. "It is because my deck contains my experiences and my knowledge…it contains all of it. Therefore, it simply shows my knowledge in matters."
Ichigo held up a card. "I'm already bored of your vaguely mysterious talk! So now I play the magic card Reinforcements of the Army! This card's special ability allows me to search my deck for a level four or lower warrior type monster and add it to my hand! And my target is DA Force-Ichigo the True Hero!" Holding up the called card, he threw it onto his disk. "Now come out, Ichigo!" There was an explosion of light as the half-demon appeared on the field, his body still covered in the powered-armor from before. (1600/1400)
"Huh? I'm dreaming again?" Ichigo looked around, and then looked at the wild-looking version of himself. "Hey, it's you again."
"Shut up and let me concentrate." The Duelist Ichigo slid a card into his disk. "I set one card face-down on the field. End turn."
Eon drew, holding up the drawn card to the rim of his hood. A deep sound of thought came from him, and then he nodded slightly. "Very well, that is how I will attack you." He placed the drawn card onto his disk. "I summon Mechanicalchaser (1850/800) to the field." A strange, spindly-armed machine appeared on the field. "Now, attack his Ichigo now!" It launched across the field and slashed at Ichigo's body.
Ichigo braced himself as the blow hit, but was surprised when the weapons bounced off of his armor instead of piercing into it. "Wow…I can't be destroyed as a result of battle?"
Ichigo- 3750
Eon- 4000
Duelist Ichigo smirked. "While Ichigo the True Hero is in attack mode, he cannot be destroyed as a result of battle."
Eon didn't seem worried at all. "I set five cards face-down on the field and end my turn."
Ichigo blinked in surprise at that and looked at the version of himself that was dueling. "So…is he any good?"
"He might be." Duelist Ichigo drew. "Now I play the magic card Plasma Blaster! This card can only activate while Ichigo the True Hero is in play! All monsters on your field that are stronger than hewill now be destroyed!" A giant cannon-like weapon appeared on Ichigo's arm. "Alright, let him have it!"
Ichigo nodded and lifted the weapon, releasing a huge purple blast of power from it. "You're finished!"
"Perhaps not." Eon pointed at his five cards. "I activate them all right now. First I activate the quickplay magic card Mystic Wok, which allows me to sacrifice one monster I have in play to gain either that monster's attack points or defense points in life. In response, I activate my three face-down quickplay magic cards which are all called Limiter Removal. Their power doubles the attack strength of all machines I have in play by double."
"And your final card?" Duelist Ichigo narrowed his eyes, as he immediately saw the combo.
"My last card is the quickplay magic card Magical Textbooks, which activates first. Since I have no cards in hand already, I can now look at the top card of my deck. If it is a magic card, then it is activated. Otherwise, it goes to the graveyard." He held the card up for both Ichigo and Duelist Ichigo to see. "And it is Last Will. During this turn, if a monster on my field is sent to the graveyard, then I may special summon a monster from my deck that has 1500 or less attack points to the field in attack mode."
Duelist Ichigo gulped quietly. ("Incredible…he actually got a useful card out of that enormous stack.")
"Now then…" Eon pointed at his Mechanicalchaser. "Power up!" (1850x2/3900x2/7800x2/15600/800) "And now for Mystic Wok!" The Mechanicalchaser faded away instantly as it was sacrificed to the magic card.
Ichigo- 3750
Eon- 19600
"I'm not done yet though! I activate the effect of my Last Will and special summon this monster!" Eon held up a card that had somehow came from his deck in the instant they weren't looking. "I special summon out Iron Retriever (500/1500) to the field!" A strange machine dog appeared on the field. "When this monster is special summoned and I have no cards in my hand or on my field, then I may draw three cards." Sliding three cards off of his deck, Eon waited patiently for Duelist Ichigo's next move.
Duelist Ichigo snarled at this guy's insolence. ("One really lucky hand and he thinks I'm nothing, huh?") "Ichigo, attack that metal mutt right now! Hero Burst!"
Ichigo nodded and lifted up his right arm, which had a ball of glowing energy floating in it. "Sure!" Throwing the ball across the field, he blew the Iron Retriever into dust.
Ichigo- 3750
Eon- 18500
Duelist Ichigo inserted another card into his disk. "I set one card face-down on the field and end my turn."
Eon drew. "Let me show you just how 'lucky' I am." He held up a single card. "First I activate the magic card Junk Dealer to return my Mechanicalchaser and Iron Retriever to the field at half attack points!" There was a flash of light as both machines appeared on the field in attack mode. (975/800) (250/1500) "And now I offer my Iron Retriever as a sacrifice to summon out my Jinzo!" The machine dog disappeared and was replaced by a green armored humanoid which stood solemnly on Eon's field. (2400/1500) "Jinzo attacks with Cyber Energy Shock!" The machine monster released a blast of green energy that slammed right into Ichigo's body, nearly throwing him off the field with its force.
Ichigo- 2950
Eon- 18500
Duelist Ichigo barely flinched from the energy backlash. "It barely hurt."
"It wasn't meant to hurt at all." Eon slid two cards into his disk. "I set two cards on the field and end my turn."
Duelist Ichigo drew rapidly. ("The fool left his Mechnicalchaser on the field to be slaughtered!") "Ichigo, attack his Mechanicalchaser now!"
Ichigo nodded and charged up another Hero Burst. "Right!"
"Wrong." One of Eon's face-down cards flipped up. "Reveal Enemy Controller. This quickplay magic card allows me to offer my Mechanicalchaser as a sacrifice to control your Ichigo for one turn."
Ichigo's eyes went blank and his right arm dropped to his side as he floated over to Eon's field.
Eon pointed at his other set card. "And my Mystic Wok will make him useful to me." Ichigo faded away instantly.
Ichigo- 2950
Eon- 20100
Duelist Ichigo held up a card. "I activate Warrior Returning Alive to bring back Ichigo to my hand! Then I'll summon him to the field once again!" There was a flash of light as Ichigo appeared in play once more, but this time he was shaking his head out. Being in and out of the graveyard was disorienting to his senses. "And finally I'll place card face-down on the field. End turn."
Eon drew. "Jinzo, attack Ichigo now! Cyber Energy Shock!" A blast of energy launched from the machine humanoid's hands, which hurtled towards Ichigo like a wave towards a beach.
Duelist Ichigo pointed at one of his set cards. "I'm far from done with this duel! Just because I can't use traps doesn't mean that I can't fight back! Reveal Damage Backlash! This card can only activate when a monster with defense points lower than its attack points attacks. That monster is destroyed!" Jinzo shuddered….
"My final Mystic Wok." Eon watched as Jinzo faded away.
Ichigo- 2950
Eon- 22500
Duelist Ichigo smirked and drew. "Now you have no cards in your hand and no cards on your field! Regardless of your life point totals, that means I can defeat you easily! I set two cards face-down and attack with Ichigo! Hero Burst!"
Ichigo sneered and disappeared, appearing right in front of Eon with a glowing ball of energy at the end of his fist. "Take this, you sacrificing jerk!" Then he slammed the attack right into Eon's stomach.
Ichigo- 2950
Eon- 20900
Duelist Ichigo shrugged his shoulders helplessly. "I guess I'll end my turn at that."
Eon drew. "I wonder just how strong you are, considering the amount of ego you are throwing around." Holding up the drawn card, he pointed at Duelist Ichigo with his other hand. "I activate the magic card The Power of the Draw! This card allows me to draw one card from my deck, and if that card can successfully destroy two or more of your cards, then I may draw two more cards." He drew once and held it up. "Go Twin Cyclone! This quickplay magic card destroys two magic or trap cards in play as long as I have only one card or less in my hand!" Two funnels of wind came from the card as Duelist Ichigo's newest two set cards were blown apart.
Duelist Ichigo gritted his teeth and bared his fangs. ("This guy is ridiculous, how does he do such amazing draws?")
Eon drew twice, in accordance with the effect of The Power of the Draw card. "I will now set one card face-down on the field. End turn."
Duelist Ichigo drew. "I'll take you down now!" He held up his first card. "Now I play the magic card Strength of Force! This card allows me to double the attack of my one monster in play, as long as I am unable to summon anything during this turn!"
(3200/1400) Ichigo flexed an arm and grinned. "Nice…"
"Whatever." Duelist Ichigo held up another card. "Now I'll play the continuous magic card Power Lock. This card prevents you from summoning monsters to the field that are stronger than my strongest monster, though it will destroyed at the end of turn because I cannot discard a card from my hand. Go Ichigo, Hero Burst!"
Ichigo charged up another ball and flew right at Eon. "And now I'll give you a taste of my double Hero Burst!"
Eon pointed at his set card. "Reveal A Hero Emerges." Holding up the single card in his hand, he placed it onto the field. "Come out now, my powerful Cyber Dragon (2100/1600) in defense mode!" A giant metal dragon appeared on the field, its body curled around itself. It took the Hero Burst right to the face and was blown into dust instantly.
Duelist Ichigo made the victory sign smugly. "Your machine monsters won't be able to cut it against me."
"Very true…" Eon drew. "I suppose I'll just have to change my tactics against you. For now, your 3200 attack power Ichigo the True Hero is the real threat, but I wonder what else awaits me within the recesses of your deck."
Duelist Ichigo rubbed an index finger under his nose. "We'll see, won't we?"
"Yes we will." Eon held up a magic card. "First though, I will activate my Pot of Greed." Drawing two cards from his deck, he placed one onto his disk. "And now I'll summon out my Magnet Warrior Alpha (1400/1700) in attack mode." A strange grey magnet monster appeared on the field, holding its shield and sword close. "Also, I'll activate my Tribute to the Unholy magic card. By sacrificing a monster that I have in play, I can draw two cards." He did so, barely flinching as Alpha shattered into dust.
Duelist Ichigo narrowed his eyes. ("Now he can't summon though, so no matter what he does I'll get a direct attack in during the next turn. All of those life points that he gained will soon be gone.")
Eon held up another magic card. "I activate Jar of Avarice!" Five cards were ejected from his graveyard. "By shuffling five monsters from my graveyard into my deck, I can draw two cards!" After inserting the cards into his deck and somehow managing to shuffle the massive stack, he drew twice. "Now I'll activate my Pure Ground magic card, which allows me to draw two cards if there are no monsters in my graveyard." Now he had four cards in his hand. "It all will soon end for you, as I send my Alpha, Beta and Gamma from my hand into the graveyard to special summon Valkyrion the Magna Warrior!" (3500/3850) A giant composite magnet monster appeared on the field. "Now, attack his Ichigo now!" It launched across the field and slammed its sword right against Ichigo's body.
Ichigo gasped out in pain, but refused to let himself be moved more than a few inches. ("I won't fall like this…")
Ichigo- 2650
Eon- 20900
Duelist Ichigo dropped to one knee and looked at the ground for a few moments. "I grow tired of this game! You're more annoying than dangerous, when I think about it!" Drawing, he frowned at what he had gotten. ("Halo is no good to me at the moment.") "End turn."
Eon drew. "Again Valkyrion, attack!" The magnet warrior slammed its massive sword into Ichigo's ribs again. "End turn."
Ichigo- 2350
Eon- 20900
Duelist Ichigo closed his eyes slowly, and then drew. "Now I'll make you pay! Go DA Teamwork! By discarding one DA Force monster from my hand, I can increase the attack of a DA force monster in play by the attack points of the discarded monster!" He held up the card with Halo's soul imprisoned within it. (2500/2100) "Now Ichigo gets a power burst!"
Ichigo felt his entire body brimming with energy now. (5700/1400) "I…I feel great!" He disappeared and then appeared right above Valkyrion, where he landed a crushing drop kick to the magnet warrior's head, instantly crushing it.
Ichigo- 2350
Eon- 18700
Duelist Ichigo pointed at Eon. "It's your turn now, annoyance."
"So I am an annoyance?" Eon started to laugh from within his hood. "It's interesting to listen you speak like this…very much so." He drew. "First I'll play my Power Reset magic card, which returns the attack of all monsters in play to their printed totals!" (1600/1400)
Ichigo pouted at all of his overflowing energy disappeared in one move. ("That sucks…") His ears drooped a little. ("I liked being super powerful…")
Duelist Ichigo shrugged it off. "I'm really not afraid of anything you can do, you know that right?"
"Not afraid?" Eon held up a card. "Then let me educate you on what you should be afraid of. I activate the magic card Annihilation of Universe. This card can only activate when both players have no cards in hand and I have no cards on my field. All cards in play will be destroyed!"
Ichigo's eyes widened, right before he was swallowed within a giant supernova of power that also dissolved Duelist Ichigo's two set cards.
Duelist Ichigo hid his face from the burning energy, cursing silently at the loss of his only monster. "You bastard…how dare you…"
"How dare you use souls to power your cards, regardless of your personal mission." Eon pointed at Duelist Ichigo. "End turn."
Duelist Ichigo snapped the top card off of his deck. "I'll just set this card face-down on the field and end my turn."
Eon drew. He went silent for a few moments…and then held the card up. "I grow tired of your stupid comments, Splinter. For that, you must leave already. I activate Soul Suppression!" Energy launched from the card and hit Duelist Ichigo right in the chest. "You're not who I want. You're not even close to who I want."
Duelist Ichigo struggled against the power for a few moments, and then his body dropped to the ground, technically soulless.
Eon walked over to Ichigo's body and nudged it a couple of times with his foot. "Awaken, Ichigo. You are the one I want, not the Splinter. It is nothing but heat, and I want an opponent with a cool head on their shoulders. I want your best…your true best. So wake up."
Ichigo twitched a couple of times, and then his eyes slowly opened. ("What…I'm awake?") He stood up, and tried to bring himself to his feet. ("Where am I? Wasn't I just consumed by that blast of energy?")
"Ichigo…" Eon turned and walked back over to his side of the field. "I wish to see your true power. No outside sources, no lucky circumstances. I want to see the real you. I want to see what you can really do." Eon turned to point at Ichigo. "Unleash your real power now…for from this point onward I will no longer hold back against you!" An aura of blackish-grey energy began to form around him. "Stand up! If you ever want to see your friends again…stand up."
Ichigo came to his feet slowly, his eyes locked onto the dark hood of Eon. "You won't hurt my friends. I'll battle you to my last breath before I let that happen!" He looked down at his deck. "This deck is the deck that my friends' souls are locked within, and therefore, while I dislike the method, this is the best way for their power to be with me!"
"No." Eon's aura started to extend across the pier. "This is not your real power. Until you have unleashed your real power, I cannot truly treat you like an enemy. However, your current strength level is enough to make me worry. Therefore, I'll show you my Duel Prescense." The aura stretched up around them like an orb…and then everything went dark. "At any time I can activate any field magic card from my deck and place it into play."
Light flooded the area, a crystalline blue light that immediately left Ichigo breathless in amazement. They both stood within a swirling mass of glittering crystal lights of all colors, which seemed to throb and move like living things to their mere prescense within the space. "What is this place?" Ichigo reached out to touch a single mote of light, and for a few moments he was in a different place…a different time…and then he was back where he had been originally.
Eon motioned to the flowing light around them. "This is the place where it all comes together. Even I do not truly understand it, and yet I am apparently the only one who can come here." His hand waved out and the entire dimension pulsed. "In this place, past, present, and future all become one! Welcome, Ichigo Pilkington, to the River of Time!"
To be continued...
What is this guy? Why's he so interested in me, and more importantly, what is this 'true power' that he keeps going on about? If I had some kind of true power, then I would have shown it by now, right?