Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.
Tournament of Tears
Chapter 17: Time's Signs (Part 5)
"Why, he asks…" Eon started to laugh, and when he tilted his head back his short silver hair glittered in the dim light of the tower. "Why, he must know….why, he doesn't understand."
Ichigo narrowed his eyes. Something about this guy was beyond crazy or sane…this guy was off the deep end.
"Actually, I'm sure at this moment you think I'm nuts." Eon's head snapped down to reveal a face Ichigo knew all too well. "You're wrong." It was his face that sneered back at him.
Ichigo gasped and immediately went on his guard. ("What?")
"End turn!" Eon snickered and motioned for Ichigo to come.
("He's right, there's no time to try and figure this out!") Ichigo's armor spat out a single card from the wrist, which he caught and held up to his face. "I activate Pot of Greed!" The card vanished and two cards had replaced it. "Now I set two cards face-down on the field and end my turn." The two cards in his hand disappeared and giant versions of them appeared behind him, face-down on the floor.
Eon drew. "It's my turn…and I attack!" Roaring, he charged at Ichigo. A flaming red aura sprang to life around his right fist. "Now I crush you!"
"Is that so?" Ichigo's face-down card flipped face-up. "Negate Attack!" A swirling vortex appeared on the field and consumed the energy of the burning fist.
Eon landed back on his field and cracked his neck a couple of times. "I like it…you're impressing me more and more. But now…" He motioned behind him to the two cards on his field. "First is my Healing Sacrifice magic card, which lets me sacrifice my Warrior of Epoch to gain life points."
Ichigo- 4000
Eon- 7000
There was a blast of light and when it cleared Eon was standing on the field in his normal robes, his single hand card held tightly. "I set one card face-down on the field and end my turn."
Ichigo drew and flipped the card up so he could see it. ("In this duel, I'm the monster and therefore I have to be careful.") "Now I'll attack you directly once, and use the effect of my Lightning Armor to triple the battle damage you would take during this turn!" A glowing ball of light appeared in his palm. "Take this!"
"Reveal Vortex Stone!" As Eon's face-down card flipped up, one of the three containers exploded open to reveal a pitch black round stone. "This is one the sacred artifacts that I located within this place. Its power negates your attack and destroys your monster for 500 life points!" The Vortex Stone sucked Ichigo into it, and then spat his armor-less body out onto the ground.
Ichigo- 4000
Eon- 6500
Ichigo coughed a few times weakly, before somehow managing to stand up slowly. "End turn for now."
Eon drew. ("I no longer will hold back!") "I activate the power of my Crushing Vortex magic card! This card can only activate if Vortex Stone is in play! You take 500 points of damage and the top two cards of your deck are sent to the graveyard!" A blast of energy flew from the stone and slammed right into Ichigo's chest, leaving him on his knees.
Ichigo- 3500
Eon- 6500
Ichigo stood up and drew. "I'm not done yet!" He held up the drawn card and a blast of wind slammed into the Vortex Stone. "It's time to get rid of your Stone! Cyclone!"
Eon started to laugh, his aura flaring up. "Tower of Epoch can't be destroyed while Vortex Stone or the other two sealed artifacts are in play, and the artifacts in play cannot be destroyed until Tower of Epoch is removed!" The wind blast died. "So you wasted your card."
Ichigo gritted his teeth. "End turn."
Eon drew and placed the drawn card onto his disk. "I summon out my Tower's Templar!" (1000/2000) "In defense mode, of course!" A man in white robes appeared on the field. "This monster cannot be destroyed while Tower of Epoch resides on my field!"
("It's all connected to that tower!") Ichigo drew. "I activate the equipment magic card Overdrive Link!" A ball of light emerged from his graveyard and swelled in size until it surrounded him. "A single Power Armor monster will be special summoned from my graveyard to my field, and then during my end phase it will be destroyed! Of course, with the double power boost it gets I can understand that!" An explosion of light later, Ichigo stood on his monster field wearing a green suit of powered armor with giant steel wings jutting out of the back of it. "Power Armor-Aero Beat!" (1400/1000) "And as I said before, its power doubles!" (2800/1000)
"You think I care? Or have you forgotten the power of my Vortex Stone so quickly?" Eon sneered, feeling alive for the first time in a long while.
Ichigo smirked through the helmet of the armor and lifted his right arm to point at Eon. "I can sacrifice this monster's attack to deal half of its attack points in damage to your life points!" Wind exploded from his gauntlet and washed over Eon, leaving the Priest stumbling.
Ichigo- 3500
Eon- 5100
Eon recovered quickly, a dark smile on his face. "At the end of your turn that armor leaves though, and then I'll tear you apart."
"Really?" Ichigo smiled as his face-down card flipped up. "Armor Retreat activates now! This counter trap card returns one Power Armor on my field to my hand!" The armor around his body disappeared and there were now two cards in his hand. "End turn."
Eon clenched his teeth and drew. "You think I'm in trouble?" Looking at the drawn card, he smirked. "Wrong. I activate the quickplay magic card Jammed Brass. Now you must shuffle your hand back into your deck and draw cards equal to the number you shuffled in."
Ichigo did so, and he didn't seem pleased by what he had drawn.
Eon pointed at Ichigo. "I'll end my turn, since as long as Tower of Epoch is in play my Templar cannot attack."
Ichigo drew. ("It wouldn't be safe to simply stand here and let myself get pummeled, but without attacking I'm taking a…") He smiled slightly as an idea popped into his head. "I summon out my System Scouter (1400/200) monster to the field!" There was a flash of light and when it disappeared it revealed Ichigo, who was now wearing a strange helmet and backpack combination. "This card, during my standby phase, allows me to scan your Tower of Epoch and Vortex Stone for weaknesses. End turn."
Eon lifted an eyebrow and snickered. ("What a foolish maneuver.") "Draw. And then I set one card face-down on the field and end my turn." As the card shimmered into existence next to his Vortex Stone and Tower of Epoch, a slight smile crossed his lips. "Show me your real power, Ichigo Pilkington."
Ichigo looked down at his deck and then he drew. "During my standby phase, you end." A big red crosshair fell over the Vortex Stone. "Now I summon Power Vehicle-Aero Copter!" (?) A one-man helicopter appeared in the air above them both. "Let's do it!" Ichigo leapt into the air and landed inside the helicopter's cockpit. "If there is no monster in play with Power Armor in its title, then I must sacrifice a card in play!" The System Scouter on his head and back blew apart. "During this turn, half of that monster's sacrificed points are added to this card." (700/100) "Now I activate the effect of my Scouter! The crosshair it put on your Vortex Stone means that now I can destroy it by sacrificing a monster in play, regardless of your card's effects!" He leapt right back off of the helicopter as it slammed right into the stone and blew apart. Seconds later a miniature black hole formed above them both and the Tower Templar disappeared within the black expanse.
"When Vortex Stone is destroyed, all monsters in play are removed from the game." Eon snarled, baring his fangs for what felt like the first time in the longest while.
Ichigo smirked. "End turn, now that your invincible trap card isn't in play anymore."
Eon drew. "I'll set a second face-down card. End turn."
Ichigo drew slowly, letting the card slide against the top of the one underneath it. ("This guy looks like me…why?") "Who are you?"
"You want to know who I am." Eon chuckled. "What does it look like?"
"It looks like you are me, but that is impossible." Ichigo flicked one of his ears. "I'm the only me."
"True…I am Ichigo Pilkington no more. I once answered to that name, long ago." Eon sneered and motioned to the world around him. "I'm sure you saw it. The moment in time when our father found out that he had a lethal disease within him. The time that he spoke with Ryu and created that clone of himself…"
Ichigo growled from deep within his throat. "You're lying. That's not this dimension."
"Oh really? This isn't a dimensional thing, it's a time thing." Eon motioned out to the dimension around them. "I found this place when I was forty…and when I was dying of the same disease that killed our father."
"Was?" There were a million questions, but Ichigo's main question at the moment was how someone could get over a disease. Because if his father did have this disease, then maybe he could cure it. "How did get over the disease?"
"It's simple…" Eon smirked. "I died, of course."
Ichigo's blood ran cold. "You are…"
"I am a Priest of Midnight. Do you think that Midnight has any living worshippers? He wants to destroy the earth…they are few and far between." Eon sighed. "And to think I was you, the one who opposed Midnight in this dimension. But of course, the power of Midnight stretches over numerous dimensions, so even though the Ichigo here is capable of defeating Midnight, I was not." His face looked sad now. "I had a daughter too…with Eri."
Ichigo blushed incredibly red. "With Eri?"
"Yes." Eon's fist clenched tightly. "Then they both died of the same disease that killed me! A pair of innocents…dead because of me! Do you know what it is like to carry the image of your sick and dying child in your head for all eternity? There is no way to numb yourself to the pain it causes…none whatsoever!"
Ichigo felt sad for Eon, but at the time he felt angry at the fact that this was apparently himself in twenty-five years. "You're full of shit. If you had truly meant what you are saying, then you would have done something about it!"
Eon went silent for a few moments…and then his aura became so powerful that Ichigo was nearly pushed right through the wall. "WHAT DO YOU KNOW, YOU STUPID LITTLE CHILD?"
Ichigo somehow managed to draw against the force of the aura being used against him. "I summon Power Armor-Chill Factor (1000/1200) to the field!" He disappeared within a glowing crystal of ice, and when it shattered he was revealed to be wearing an ice-blue suit of powered armor that had weapons like hose-heads attached to the arms. "When this armor is summoned, one magic or trap card in will be destroyed!" Lifting his arm, he sprayed the center set card with ice and it shattered into nothing. "Now I'm going after your life points directly! And when I do so, one magic or trap card in play will be destroyed before the attack begins!" He released another spray of water that hit the other set card and instantly froze it. Just as it shattered, he slammed his knee into Eon's chest and returned to his field. "End turn."
Ichigo- 3500
Eon- 4100
Eon snapped the top card off of his deck. "I'm not beaten yet! Now I activate Coins from Heaven!" All around them the illusion of falling riches could be seen for a few seconds before the card's effect resolved. "Now both of us draw until we are holding six cards in our hand!" He drew six cards and Ichigo drew four.
Ichigo fanned out his hand and then looked at Eon's field. ("By the time this duel ends…we'll have both completely drawn each other to death.")
Eon slid four cards into his disk, one after another. "First up is the magic card Shield Reflection, which will place a special protection counter on my Tower of Epoch." The card was surrounded by a glowing shield of blue light. "When this card would be destroyed, its counter is destroyed instead."
Ichigo nodded. "Yeah, so?"
"I'm just building up, that's all." Eon pointed at his next card. "The power of my Earthly Delights magic card allows me to select one of five beneficial effects that I must share with you. I could gain 2000 life points…or draw three cards…or maybe I'd like to rearrange the order of the top five cards of my deck…perhaps I'll simply choose to look at my opponent's hand…" He sneered. "No, I'll send all monster cards in my graveyard back into my deck, as will you!"
Both of them did so quickly, knowing instinctively where their cards all were in their graveyards.
Eon snapped up a huge stack of cards from his deck. "My third magic card is the power of my Eternal Removal card. It will remove all monsters in my deck from the game. They cannot be accessed through any card effect." All of the held cards faded, and his last card appeared on the field. "My final magic card…my God of Time magic card. This card can only be activated if there are no monsters in my deck or graveyard. If so…my ritual monster called the Infinite Titan will be special summoned to the field!" There was a blast of power as an enormous amount of energy filled the chamber. "So now despair…as my all power Infinite Titan is special summoned!" (Infinite/Infinite) A giant mass of the River of Time's energy in the form of a humanoid shape appeared. "This monster is immune to the power of magic cards. Traps will still work…but you'll never get a chance to use them against me!"
Ichigo looked up at the glowing titan and he narrowed his eyes, the sensors on his power armor reading that this creature's strength levels were off any human scale. ("Nothing this armor has can even scratch that thing.")
Eon smirked. "Luckily for you, this card cannot attack during the turn it is summoned. I set two cards face-down on the field and I will end my turn there." Two cards flashed into existence behind the giant monster.
Ichigo closed his eyes, feeling the heavy weight of his armor for the first time. ("My power is weakened…already? Could he really have weakened me that much?") Then an image flashed in his mind.
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Ichigo dropped to his knees and stared into the faded eyes of his daughter. "Auria…I…I…"
"It's okay…daddy…" She placed a hand on his cheek. "It isn't your fault at all…" Then her hand dropped to the bed as she lost consciousness.
Ichigo closed his eyes and cried for the hundredth time this week…this horrible, horrible week.
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Ichigo's eyes snapped open and he drew. "It's my move, draw! I don't know the full truth about what happened to your family in your own dimension…but I promise you…" His face contorted in anger. "I won't let anyone I care about die!"
"Is that so?" Eon motioned for Ichigo to come and prove it.
Ichigo held up the drawn card. "First I activate the magic card Mechanical Index! From my deck I can add one level four or lower machine to my hand!" Holding up a single card, his lips pursed. "The power of the strongest Power Armor is here!" Lightning crashed down around them both. "I normal summon Power Armor-Lightning Crasher!" (1800/1500) The powerful electric powered armor formed on the field, though it was 'dead' without a user.
"What will that shell do to me?" Eon tilted his head to the side. "There's nothing you can do!"
"Is that so?" Ichigo held up another magic card. "Polymerization will fuse these two armors together!" He disappeared within a swirling ball of both lightning and ice. When it cleared, he stood in a bulky suit of armor that was both ice blue and yellow. "Power Armor-Tundra Blaster!" (2200/2500)
"A fusion?" Eon rolled his eyes. "Is that all you do?"
"It's what I do best!" Ichigo held up another card. "I activate the equipment magic card Beam Pistol! This card equips to one monster on my field and increases its attack by 700 if it is a machine type!" (2900/2500) A metal pistol appeared in his hand. "Also, I set two cards face-down on my field." Two cards shimmered into existence on both sides of him. "Special ability activate!"
Lightning crackled along his outstretched hand. "When the number of magic and trap cards in my zone is equal to or more than the number of magic and trap cards you have, I can destroy up to three of them!" The lightning blew apart the two set cards and shattered the shield protecting the Tower of Epoch. "End turn. And know this…I won't lose."
"You talk a lot of crap for someone facing down a powerful monster like what I have before me." Eon drew. "Go Infinite Titan, crush his monster like a bug!" The giant drove its fist towards Ichigo…
To be continued…
I see…a version of myself from another dimension. No! I can't let myself feel pity for this undead creature…I have to end this now!
Let's see if you can, Ichigo.