Chapter 28: The Root of All Evil

"Go, Sea Serpent Warrior of Darkness! Attack!"

A large humanoid sea creature lunged forth and struck down a similar-looking player. Onboard the decks of the Gladius Divinum, the crew members were enjoying their spare time dueling each other to the sounds of an organ playing mournfully into the night. Amidst an eternity of torment and servitude, even these lost souls found solace in escaping to a world of wizards and monsters they could control.

On the sidelines sat Creighton, watching them with some interest. Ever since he was shanghaied onto the ship, he had been worked tirelessly doing all sorts of menial labor. From tying ropes to furling sails to swabbing decks - no matter what it was, Creighton had done the job at least once while onboard. To see the dueling taking place was a comfort to him as well.

"Enjoying the rounds, eh?"

Creighton looked up to find a loaf of bread being offered and a kind face looking down at him. Creighton smiled as he recognized the face of Bonesman, the one crew member he got along with. He knew someone onboard the Gladius Divinum would help him out, at least according to Matt. All he needed to do was find the right person, and after several beatings and dismissals, he eventually recognized the disfigured face of Bonesman. The two of them in turn helped each other onboard the ship and made their mutually shared torture more bearable.

Accepting the bread, Creighton took a huge bite of it, only to spit it out again. "Bleck, I think there's still some moldy bits on this bread," he spat with disgust.

"It was either this or back to diving in the rotten meat barrel," Bonesman sighed, looking up towards the night sky. "It must be unfortunate to be the only living person on a crew of dead folks."

"You can say that again," Creighton lamented. Then he looked up as the attacked crew member summoned a powerful monster to counter the other crew member's sea warrior.

"It really is the only thing that keeps us going," Bonesman remarked, noting Creighton's attentiveness towards the dueling. "We've got to enjoy ourselves somehow amidst these conditions."

"Do you guys really play just for fun? It seems far more intense than a casual duel," Creighton asked whilst eating the bread.

"I suppose that's true," Bonesman replied. "Usually in these duels the players all bet something they have."

"And what kind of barter would be accepted on an immortal ship of undead crew?" Creighton pressed.

"The only thing we really have: years of service aboard the Gladius Divinum," Bonesman answered.

A momentary pause took hold as the thought sunk in, along with some more bread into Creighton's stomach. "So anyone on the ship can be challenged, right?" Creighton asked.

"That be true," Bonesman acknowledged, looking over at Creighton.

Creighton simply smiled back, finished his bread, and stood up. "Then I challenge Adolf Rommel to duel!" he called out loudly.

The duel before them and all the other crew members ceased and looked up at Creighton, all in a curious manner. Then the organ music stopped, and the heavy thuds began to come across the deck. One of the crew members began to chuckle loudly as Creighton watched the doors to the captain's quarters with eagerness. Then the doors opened wide to reveal the terrifying captain of the ship in all his glory. He looked down at Creighton and smiled sinisterly.

"I accept," he declared, his deep voice echoing across the bow. Immediately preparations were made. The crew members cleared off the deck of the ship and quickly as Creighton made some preparations for his own deck. Bonesman brought out a makeshift Duel Disk composed of various parts of the ship for Creighton to use.

"You sure you wanna go through with this? It's a big risk taking on Rommel," Bonesman whispered as he gave the Duel Disk to Creighton.

"Don't worry about it, it's all according to plan," Creighton whispered back.

"Is there no other way?" Bonesman asked.

"This is the best thing we've got," Creighton replied, and then he approached the center of the ship as Bonesman watched.

There stood Rommel, a good foot and a half taller than Creighton if not two. He held out his deck of cards for Creighton to shuffle as Creighton did the same in turn. After the traditional shuffling, the two handed each other's decks back to their owner and then turned and headed back several steps. Creighton turned to face Rommel at the same time the latter turned around with a cocky smile.

"Do ye think this wise, boy? Crossing blades with me?" Rommel asked.

Creighton smiled back and put his deck into the Duel Disk. "I guess we're about to find out," he replied.

Rommel smiled himself before breathing in deeply. He grunted in pain and struggled as he flexed his chest. At first nothing appeared to be happening, but then suddenly a great snakelike blob oozed out of where Rommel's heart would. This palish-green blob snaked its way around Rommel's body - much to Creighton's shock and horror - and eventually settled down on Rommel's left arm, forming itself into what resembled a Duel Disk. Rommel smiled wickedly as he placed his deck into the organic disk's deck slot, ready and waiting to begin the duel.

"Well that was unexpected," Creighton muttered to himself.

One of the other crew members walked to one side of the boat between the two duelists. "This duel between the human Creighton and the captain Rommel will soon begin!" the crewman called out. "Please state your wager!"

"And what wager will you be making?" Rommel called out.

Coming back to his senses, Creighton called back, "First of all, I want to bet against something of yours! I'm betting against your key!"

Rommel raised an eyebrow and coughed. "My key?" he asked.

"That's right, and don't try to skimp me out of it either," Creighton called out. "I'm talking about the one that goes to that chest where your heart is! I know its shape, and I know you've got it somewhere!"

A momentary pause as the crew members looked over at their captain with curiosity. Rommel grimaced at the knowledge Creighton had over his key, but regardless he reached into his left inner coat pocket with his free hand and pulled out the key to show he had it. Sure enough, it was the exact shape of the key Matt had shown Creighton all that time ago: a key ring with three blades, the center one of a tubular shape while the other two were each double-sided with their own unique set of teeth on each side. Then he slipped it back inside his coat pocket and looked up at Creighton.

"And what do you have to wager against my key?" Rommel demanded.

"I give to you my soul," Creighton replied. "An eternity of servitude aboard the Gladius Divinum."

Rommel smiled at this remark. "Intriguing," he purred. "Then perhaps we might see if-"

"Hold on!"

The two looked over to find Bonesman strapping on a Duel Disk and placing his own deck inside its deck slot. "I'm in, matching Creighton's wager," he announced.

"Stay out of this, Bonesman, you don't know what you're getting into!" Creighton commanded.

Bonesman looked up at him and replied, "I think I bloody well know what I'm getting into."

The coaching crew member looked over at Rommel, who in turn nodded his approval. "A three-way duel ought to be interesting for everyone involved, eh?" he called out loudly, much to the cheers and cries of the surrounding crowd of crew members. Then he turned his attention back to his two opponents and asked, "Shall we begin then?"

The trio then drew out their starting hands and began: "DUEL!"

Rommel: 4000
Creighton: 4000
Bonesman: 4000

"Now then," Rommel declared drawing his first card, "it's my turn. And I'll start with the Field Spell The Haunting Maryanne."

A heavy fog began to set in as the ship itself began to change form. The decaying black wood transformed into a blood-red wood, sleek and graceful. The sail unfurled into several sails at once, and the entirety of the ship began to change shape into a man-of-war.

"And now that my new ship has set sail, I'll summon my Shellfish Minion (3/1200/1100) to become part of her crew!" Rommel continued.

Up from the deck of the ship came forth a humanoid creature guarded on each of its sides by two large half-shells. Its antennae flicked about as it brought forth two large pincers for what would be its hands. The face of the creature grinned a horrifying smile that revealed a row of sharp teeth as it scuttled about on deck.

"I never knew I could get sick of seafood," Creighton remarked, greatly displeased by the sight of this horrid creature.

"Don't get lost too soon," Rommel chuckled. "You'll have to deal with the power it gains from my vessel! You see, all WATER and Warrior-Type monsters will gain 200 Atk and Def as long as we're on board the Haunting Maryanne. On top of that, my Shellfish Minion gives all WATER monsters an extra 500 Atk and Def, meaning my minion is far stronger than he first appears to be!"

The ship's red wood glowed vividly as it surrounded the shellfish creature in a great red aura, powering it up along with its own ability!

Shellfish Minion (3/1200/1100 - 3/1400/1300 - 3/1900/1800)

"Whoa!" Creighton was taken aback by the increased size of the creature, now far stronger than when it was originally summoned. Rommel only laughed at his reaction.

"I'll make sure you regret ever challenging the likes of me to a duel," Rommel smiled wickedly. "I'll Set three cards on the field before I end my turn."

"Guess that means it's my move," Creighton said drawing a new card. He looked over his hand and smiled. "Guess I've got nothing to worry about, cause I've got the cards I need right here! I summon Army Force Soldier (2/500/500) to the field in Attack mode!"

With that, a small military soldier appeared on Creighton's field, a toon-like form of a regular army soldier. It carried along with it a small combat rifle, ready to go at the first sign of trouble.

"And next I'll use my Mortar Shelling Spell card!" Creighton continued. "With it, I can bombard your Life Points based on the number of 'Army Force' monsters I control. So now, you can take 500 damage courtesy of me!"

With the effect of the card, a small mortar launcher appeared in front of the soldier. The soldier quickly loaded it up and fired it off, bombarding Rommel and inflicting damage!

Rommel: 3500
Creighton: 4000
Bonesman: 4000

"Now I'll Set two cards and finish my turn," Creighton concluded.

"My go, then," announced Bonesman, drawing his first card. He looked at Creighton's field and thought, He only has that one monster, and it's not very strong. Rommel would certainly attack it unless given a more viable option. And my deck needs some sacrifices.

"I summon the Skull Servant (1/300/200) in Attack mode!" Bonesman announced, bringing forth a cloaked skeleton.

Skull Servant? There's no reason to play that monster in Attack mode! Creighton thought. Unless Bonesman's trying to distract Rommel with a weaker monster. Maybe that's what Bonesman wants?

"And now I activate Painful Choice!" Bonesman continued. "This will allow me to pick out five cards from my Deck, then I can have an opponent pick one to add to my hand while the rest are sent to my Graveyard. Because this is a three-way duel, I'm allowed to choose which of my opponents will pick the card, so I will have Creighton decide which card to add to my hand!"

Bonesman then played down the five cards in his Duel Disk to reveal them to Creighton and Rommel, showing off two more Skull Servants, King of the Skull Servants, Wightmare, and The Lady in Wight.

So that's what it is, Creighton thought. He's playing a Skull Servants deck, and that's why he wanted me to pick out the card. That way he can have a King in his hand ready to go on his next turn.

"Alright Creighton, you get to pick," Bonesman asked. "Which card goes to my hand?"

"I'll choose the King of the Skull Servants!" Creighton declared.

Bonesman smiled, but then Rommel interjected, "I think now's a fair time to use my Trap cards."

"Curses!" Bonesman murmured. "If any of them is what I think it is-"

"I activate my three face-down cards! Undying Vengeance! Ships of the Underworld! Tainted Waters!" Rommel announced, revealing all three of his face-down cards.

An intense aura surrounded Rommel, the ship, the sea - just about everything in the surrounding area. Bonesman cursed to himself as Creighton couldn't do anything but watch. The sea blackened as a thick mist descended on the field, and soon enough the ship was surrounded by hundreds - maybe even thousands - of little boats, completely vacant and devoid of any life.

"Now allow me the honor of explaining these three cards to you, as all three are continuous effects," Rommel explained. "Firstly, Undying Vengeance will activate whenever a monster destroys another monster, reducing its Atk and Def by 500 each. Next, Ships of the Underworld can remove monsters that would be sent to the Graveyard from play at my discretion, giving me 500 Life Points each time. And finally, Tainted Waters will allow all WATER monsters to be treated as DARK monsters as well."

"So he can weaken our monsters, remove them from the game, and he gets two Attributes for the price of one," Creighton summarized.

"To an extent, that's the idea," Rommel sneered. "And now that four monsters are going to be sent to the Graveyard, I can have them board my Ships of the Underworld and be removed from play!"

Sure enough, four of the boats surrounding the ship each gained an occupant, two of them with Skull Servants, another with the gentlemanly skeleton Wightmare, and the last with the elegantly dressed Lady in Wight. As the boats sailed away into the fog, Rommel's Life Points increased.

Rommel: 5500
Creighton: 4000
Bonesman: 4000

Damn...as long as that Ships of the Underworld card is in play, my deck might as well be useless! Bonesman thought to himself. He looked through his hand and finished, "I'll play one card face-down to end my turn."

"I'm glad you understand the situation you're in now," Rommel sneered, drawing his next card. "Soon you'll both owe me your souls for eternity. And my Contaminated Kraken (3/1300/1200) will help make sure of that!"

Out of the ocean leapt a magnificent tentacled beast that landed on deck, oozing a dark liquid from its pores as it suckled the ship's deck. A small clicking sound could be heard from what appeared to be two beaks interacting over a single mouth, composed of razor sharp teeth.

"And now my Kraken will receive the full benefits of being onboard the Haunting Maryanne alongside my Shellfish Minion," Rommel explained. "In total, he'll gain 700 Atk/Def, 200 from the ship, and 500 from the minion."

Contaminated Kraken (3/1300/1200 - 3/2000/1900)

"Now then, Kraken," Rommel declared, "devour the Skull Servant!"

The tentacled abomination crawled across the deck, swiftly snatched the skeletal menace with one of its tentacles, and tore it apart with its mouth, eating the ghoul in what would have been a grotesque fashion on a living being. The crew of the ship cheered over the carnage as Bonesman's Life Points descended dramatically.

Rommel: 5500
Creighton: 4000
Bonesman: 2300

"Now my Haunting Maryanne and Ships of the Underworld will give me Life Points while your monster gets removed from play," Rommel explained, getting blessed by a light drizzle as his Life Points increased again.

Rommel: 6500
Creighton: 4000
Bonesman: 2300

"Of course, the downside twist to that is my Contaminated Kraken is affected by my Undying Vengeance card and loses 500 Atk/Def because of its effect," Rommel continued, "but I think that's a small price to pay to be rid of that pile of bones."

Contaminated Kraken (3/2000/1900 - 3/1500/1400)

"But don't think I'm done with my Kraken yet, for it is gifted with the ability to slay twice every turn!" Rommel continued. "Now go, kill that soldier!"

The fearsome beast continued on and took out the small warrior, much to the pleasure of the crowd and the displeasure of Creighton.

Rommel: 6500
Creighton: 3000
Bonesman: 2300

"Now the Haunting Maryanne, Ships of the Underworld, and Undying Vengeance will trigger and activate!"

Rommel: 7500
Creighton: 3000
Bonesman: 2300

Contaminated Kraken (3/1500/1400 - 3/1000/900)

"Those aren't the only effects activating!" Creighton announced. "My Army Force Soldier has a special ability that allows me to bring out another Army Force monster from my Deck, so I bring out Army Force Firethrower (2/600/400) in Defense mode!"

The soldier from before quickly replaced by another soldier, now armed instead of a rifle with a flamethrower.

"Protect yourself all you like, my Shellfish Minion will make short work of your monster!" Rommel declared, sending forth the beast to take out the new soldier, slaying it readily. In turn, Rommel's cards activated boosted his Life even further at the cost of his monster's strength.

Rommel: 8500
Creighton: 3000
Bonesman: 2300

Shellfish Minion (3/1900/1800 - 3/1400/1300)

"Looks like I'll get to activate another of my Army Force monsters' abilities!" Creighton countered. "Since you destroyed it in battle, my Firethrower hits you for 500 damage!"

Just then, a small fireball descended from the air and hit Rommel directly!

Rommel: 8000
Creighton: 3000
Bonesman: 2300

"Hmph. A mere scratch against my Life Points," Rommel scoffed. "Soon I'll have more Life Points than you will know what to do with!"

"We'll see about that," Creighton retorted, drawing his next card. "For now, I summon Army Force Berserker (4/2000/0) in Attack mode!"

By comparison to the last two soldiers Creighton had brought out, this one was much larger, much uglier, and much more muscular warrior. He wore a sedge hat on his head and wielded a giant axe in his hands.

"I'm gonna stomp out your Shellfish Minion! Go, Army Force Berserker!" Creighton called out, sending the mighty warrior into battle. Its mighty axe made short work of Rommel's monster, destroying it readily.

Rommel: 7400
Creighton: 3000
Bonesman: 2300

"I won't use Ships of the Underworld this time," Rommel announced, "but Undying Vengeance will still weaken your monster!"

Army Force Berserker (4/2000/0 - 4/1500/0)

"I'm done for now," Creighton said, ending his turn.

"My turn again," Bonesman began, drawing another card. "I'll activate Everliving Underworld Cannon and Call of the Mummy! With this combination of cards, I can use Call of the Mummy to Special Summon a Zombie when I don't control any monsters and then use the Cannon to inflict 800 damage to an opponent. And I choose Soul-Absorbing Bone Tower (3/400/1500) to be Special Summoned in Defense Mode!"

With that, a large tower of bones appeared behind Bonesman while a large zombified cannon appeared and fired a burst of ectoplasmic energy at Rommel.

Rommel: 6600
Creighton: 3000
Bonesman: 2300

"Next, I summon Shutendoji (4/1500/800) to the field in Attack Mode!" Bonesman continued, bringing forth a large blonde-haired red-skinned demon to his field. The demon carried with it a large bottle marked with the Japanese symbol for "sake," brandishing it with ease.

"Now my Shutendoji will return a monster removed from play back to the top of my Deck," Bonesman declared, letting the monster hop onto one of the boats and float off into the distance. The boat returned quickly with the gentlemanly skeleton Wightmare in Shutendoji's arms as he tossed the wight back onto Bonesman's deck.

"Now it's my turn to attack! Go, Shutendoji! Attack the Contaminated Kraken!" Bonesman declared.

The oni then leapt into the air and smashed its bottle down on top of the kraken, splattering its ooze all over the place but more importantly destroying the beast.

Rommel: 6100
Creighton: 3000
Bonesman: 2300

"I'll use the power of my Ships of the Underworld to grant me 500 Life Points," Rommel declared, restoring his own life while Bonesman's oni weakened.

Rommel: 6600
Creighton: 3000
Bonesman: 2300

Shutendoji (4/1500/800 - 4/1000/300)

"You boys won't beat me with simple tactics like that," Rommel taunted. "And eventually you'll have to battle each other if I'm out of the way! Ahahahaha!"

The rest of the crew joined in the captain's mocking laughter, but Bonesman was not done yet.

"I use my face-down Bone Storm Spell card to Tribute Shutendoji and destroy your Ships of the Underworld!" he loudly proclaimed, summoning a mighty wind that disintegrated Shutendoji into dust and hurled itself at the sinister captain's Trap card, destroying it. The laughter of the crew was silenced as the captain looked up at Bonesman.

"You'll regret that, mark my words," Rommel growled, drawing a new card. "I pay 500 Life Points to bring back my Shellfish Minion from the Graveyard!"

The slimy and sinister minion crawled up onto the deck from the depths of the sea and rejoined the captain's field, now fully restored to its primal form.

Rommel: 6100
Creighton: 3000
Bonesman: 2300

"That thing can revive itself?!" Creighton jumped back shocked at this revelation.

"Not only can it revive itself, it can wipe your monster out again!" Rommel declared. "Go, Shellfish Minion! Attack Army Force Berserker!"

The ghoulish creature violently tore apart the muscular soldier, ripping him apart along with Creighton's Life Points.

Rommel: 6100
Creighton: 2600
Bonesman: 2300

"And while I don't get the power of my Ships of the Underworld," Rommel continued, "I can still gain power from my Haunting Maryanne!"

Indeed, as he spoke those words, the ship dazzled his life with another drizzle, all the while crippling his revived minion due to another of Rommel's traps.

Rommel: 6600
Creighton: 2600
Bonesman: 2300

Shellfish Minion (3/1900/1800 - 3/1400/1300)

"That be the end of my turn," Rommel snorted, much to the cheers of his crew.

"Show em who's the captain, captain!"

"Kill them both! Make them pay!"

"Two more souls for the damned!"

The crew began catcalling all sorts of things as Creighton drew into his next card. He smiled though, saying, "It's a shame you've got such a fan base. They're going to be disappointed when I tear you apart! I summon Army Force Tanker (3/1000/1000) in Attack mode!"

Suddenly, Creighton's field had a small version of a military-grade tank on it, complete with its tracked wheels and giant cannon. Although it looked more like a toy version of its military counterpart, the threat was just as real.

"Now I activate my face-down Army Force - Mobilization Spell card!" Creighton announced. "This will let me reveal an Army Force monster with a Level less than an Army Force monster on my field and then Special Summon it! So now I bring out Army Force Trooper (2/500/500) to the field in Defense mode!"

A similar soldier as the first Army Force monster appeared, though it lacked the modern-edge combat readiness of the first and instead wield what appeared to be more of a carbine than a combat rifle.

"Now my Trooper can use its ability!" Creighton continued. "When it's in Defense mode, I can inflict 500 damage to my opponent directly!"

With that said, the trooper took aim and fired off at Rommel without a moment's hesitation!

Rommel: 6100
Creighton: 2600
Bonesman: 2300

"And with my Mortar Shelling card still in play," Creighton continued, "I can bombard you for 500 damage for every Army Force monster I control! And now that I've got two, that's bad news for you!"

The trooper then pulled out a shell and grabbed another off of the tank, hustling over to the launcher that was summoned to the field and firing off both rounds at Rommel, inflicting serious explosive damage to him!

Rommel: 5100
Creighton: 2600
Bonesman: 2300

"Looks like you're gonna lose some more Life Points by the time this is all over with!" Creighton called out. He looked over and nodded at Bonesman, who nodded back in return.

"Now it's my turn," Bonesman declared. "And I'll discard the Wightmare I've drawn to return a Skull Servant back to my Graveyard."

The gentleman wight appeared and called out to across the sea, allowing for another cloaked wight to fly back and join him in the graveyard.

"And now I summon my King of the Skull Servants (1/?/0) in Attack mode!" Bonesman announced, bringing forth a wight not unlike the cloaked one but yet somehow more regal and elegant in its entirety.

"Now my King of the Skull Servants will gain 1000 Atk for every 'Skull Servant' in my Graveyard," Bonesman explained. "And since my Wightmare also counts as a Skull Servant while in my Graveyard, that means I have 2 total, giving my King a mighty 2000 Atk!"

The King absorbed the power of his fallen wights and cackled as his strength increased!

King of the Skull Servants (1/?/0 - 1/2000/0)

"Now I attack the Shellfish Minion!" Bonesman declared, allowing for his King to lunge forth and destroy the aquatic abomination in a single strike. The attack recoiled on the King as both it and Rommel lost some of their points.

Rommel: 4500
Creighton: 2600
Bonesman: 2300

King of the Skull Servants (1/2000/0 - 1/1500/0)

"And with that, my turn is over," Bonesman said.

Rommel snorted as he drew his next card. "I summon back my Shellfish Minion by paying 500 Life Points," Rommel declared, doing as such to bring back his terrifying creature of the deep.

Rommel: 4000
Creighton: 2600
Bonesman: 2300

"And now I sacrifice my Shellfish Minion to summon forth the Sharkskin Terror (6/2400/1200)!" Rommel declared.

With that, his shellfish creature disappeared in favor of a much larger anthropomorphic shark-man, its razor teeth accompanying its large gaping mouth with a hungry look in his eye, made more evil with the red glow of the Haunting Maryanne.

Sharkskin Terror (6/2400/1200 - 6/2600/1400)

"Now go, eliminate the Army Force Tanker!" Rommel commanded.

The shark-man charged forth and struck down on the tank but found it unyielding to its smashing! The trooper also came behind the tank and shielded Creighton, a surprising maneuver to Rommel.

"What is this nonsense?" he asked as his monster retreated.

"I see you've run into a couple of Army Force Tanker's own effects," Creighton smiled. "First off, my tank can't be destroyed in battle, and while I have another Army Force monster on my field, I take no damage either. Which means your attack just got wasted!"

"Don't mock me, boy," Rommel growled. "I'll repay you in due time as well."

"I'm sure of it," Creighton smirked, drawing his next card. "But for now, I've gotta repay you! I summon the Army Force Special Forces (4/1500/1200) to the field!"

A rogue group of black-clothed soldiers suddenly appeared out of nowhere, armed and ready as though for a stealth mission. One was armed with a combat rifle, another with knives, and the third with a portable computer screen.

"Now I'll activate my face-down Trap, Army Force - Two-Pronged Attack!" Creighton continued. "With it, I can add the Atk of one of my Army Force monsters to the Atk of another, so I add Army Force Tanker's Atk to my Special Forces!"

The tank began to glow in a nice bright red as the specialty soldiers did as well, boosting their strength!

Army Force Special Forces (4/1500/1200 - 4/2500/1200)

"And now I'll utilize the special effect of my Special Forces!" Creighton announced. "With their ability, I can choose to not attack with any of my other monsters and have these guys move in and hit you directly!"

"What?!" Rommel recoiled in a moment of surprise.

"Go, Secret Stealth Ops Maneuver!"

The three black-clothed soldiers suddenly disappeared, sneaking around the field until finally they all reappeared surrounding Rommel and assaulting him with a combination of bullets, knives, and fists!

Rommel: 1500
Creighton: 2600
Bonesman: 2300

"And for the finishing touch, I'll use Trooper's effect to fire off another 500 damage to ya!" Creighton concluded, having his trooper take aim and fire again to hurt Rommel even more. As the soldier shouldered his weapon, the Special Forces disappeared from the field.

Rommel: 1000
Creighton: 2600
Bonesman: 2300

"Since I used Army Force - Two-Pronged Attack, I had to lose my Special Forces," Creighton explained, "but for the damage they caused, it was worth it!"

"Now I'll finish things off," Bonesman declared, drawing a card. "And I discard another Wightmare in order to use its second ability: bringing back The Lady in Wight (3/0/2200) directly to the field!"

The gentleman wight called out to the elegant lady wight, who reappeared onboard the ship and sat down on her throne-like chair, resting as the King gathered the power of the gentleman wight.

King of the Skull Servants (1/1500/0 - 1/2500/0)

"And because I Special Summoned a Zombie, my Bone Tower takes out two of your cards, and my Everliving Underworld Cannon will inflict 800 damage to you!" Bonesman said, triggering the tower's spirits to assault Rommel's deck. Rommel simply smiled as he discarded a clam-like creature and a spell card as the cannon's powers hit him with another ethereal blast.

Rommel: 200
Creighton: 2600
Bonesman: 2300

"And that's the end of my turn," Bonesman said.

Rommel stood up grinning. "Perhaps I've let you boys have your fun long enough," he sneered, drawing his next card. "Allow me to demonstrate it. Before my Standby Phase comes up, I play the Mystik Wok from my hand, sacrificing Sharkskin Terror for its Atk and giving me Life Points equal to said Atk!"

Just as he had said, Rommel's shark-man was destroyed, and his Life Points jumped up greatly.

Rommel: 2800
Creighton: 2600
Bonesman: 2300

"Oh no!" Bonesman gasped.

"Now I can pay a total of 1000 Life Points to bring back two of my monsters from the Graveyard," Rommel said, doing as such. "Come forth, Shellfish Minion and Clam Cretin (2/500/200)!"

Rommel: 1800
Creighton: 2600
Bonesman: 2300

As he had commanded, so did his monstrous shellfish come back as well as a midget humanoid clam fiend, whose appearance was similar to the shellfish though with a clam surrounding its humanoid interior.

"And because of my resurrections, I can summon Swashbuckling Zombie (5/2100/0) from my hand!" Rommel continued, bringing forth a piratical zombie that brandished a dull and rusty blade. All three of these creatures united together on Rommel's field, blessed by the shellfish creature's ability as well as the Haunting Maryanne's own.

Shellfish Minion (3/1200/1100 - 3/1400/1300 - 3/1900/1800)
Clam Cretin (2/500/200 - 2/700/400 - 2/1200/900)
Swashbuckling Zombie (5/2100/0 - 5/2300/200 - 5/2800/700)

"On top of all of that, when my Swashbuckling Zombie is summoned to the field in this particular manner," Rommel explained, "I can remove 1 monster on the field from the game. So say goodbye to The Lady in Wight!"

The zombie then grabbed an anchor and the lady wight, tied the anchor to her, and threw her overboard and into the sea, much to the shouts and cheers of the crew.

"Now to further my onslaught of monsters, I summon Dark Cannonballer (1/0/0) in Attack mode!" Rommel continued.

Next to all of these foul monstrosities came forth a fiend surrounded almost entirely by a cannonball. In fact, the whole fiend save for its horned head, arms, and legs was stowed away inside of the cannonball, not that this seemed to dampen the wickedly cheerful mood of the blue denizen.

"With my Dark Cannonballer, I can send it to the Graveyard in order to destroy any card on my opponent's field," Rommel explained. "Now I will use its ability to fire off against that Soul-Absorbing Bone Tower!"

The fiend tucked itself away in the cannonball and fired itself off as though from an invisible cannon, knocking over the tower of bones and causing it to collapse into a shattered pile of bone dust.

"Now it's time for my real assault," Rommel declared. "Go, Clam Cretin! Devour that trooper!"

The clam creature rammed into the trooper, brutally mauling it as the effects of Rommel's ship and his Trap card took hold of it again.

Rommel: 2300
Creighton: 2600
Bonesman: 2300

Clam Cretin (2/1200/900 - 2/700/400)

"And next, my Shellfish Minion will attack the tank!" Rommel declared, sending his minion to bash away at the tank, knocking off some equipment that ran into Creighton.

Rommel: 2300
Creighton: 1700
Bonesman: 2300

"And now for that King of the Skull Servants, it's time to face my Swashbuckling Zombie!" Rommel finished, announcing the zombie's attack as it hacked away at the wight.

Rommel: 2800
Creighton: 1700
Bonesman: 2100

Swashbuckling Zombie (5/2800/700 - 5/2300/200)

"When my King of the Skull Servants is destroyed in battle, I can bring it back by removing a Skull Servant in my Graveyard from play," Bonesman explained, "and since Wightmare counts as a Skull Servant, I'll remove it from play to bring back the King."

The gentleman wight then proceeded to bring back the regal cloaked wight, allowing for it to consume it and revive its body.

King of the Skull Servants (1/?/0 - 1/2000/0)

"No matter," Rommel said smugly. "I believe I've proven my point."

To think he managed to recover that quickly in one move, Creighton thought to himself as he drew his next card. Looking at it, he smiled and thought, Maybe this'll knock him down a peg or two.

"I summon Army Force Scout (2/500/0) in Attack mode!" Creighton announced, bringing another soldier out only armed with a pair of binoculars this time. "But he won't be sticking around for long cause I Tribute him to Special Summon Army Force Dive Bomber (6/1800/1200) to the field!"

The binocular-wielding soldier disappeared and was soon replaced by what appeared to be a WWII bomber plane, complete with dual propeller engines, a hefty wingspan, open-faced cockpit, and a set of landing gear, though the landing gear appeared to be more like bird's feet than wheels.

"With its ability, I can utilize my Dive Bomber's ability to destroy a card and inflict 500 damage to the owner," Creighton explained. "So now-"

"Wait a moment, Creighton."

Creighton and Rommel both looked over intriguingly and confused over Bonesman's interruption. Bonesman looked over at Creighton and reminded him, "Don't forget that I'm your enemy in this duel too. I just want to make sure you remember that."

"Bonesman..." Despite his confusion, it didn't take long for Creighton to note what Bonesman was saying. He nodded and continued, "I use Dive Bomber's effect to destroy the King of the Skull Servants!"

The bomber plane then flew by and dropped several bombs down on top of the regal wight, causing it to blow apart and disintegrate in the flames that burned Bonesman's Life Points!

Rommel: 2800
Creighton: 1700
Bonesman: 1600

"And before I end my turn, I use Mortal Shelling to once more inflict 1000 damage to Rommel," Creighton declared, finishing his card off by firing two more shells at Rommel.

Rommel: 1800
Creighton: 1700
Bonesman: 1600

"Unfortunately, with that I can't attack this turn," Creighton concluded. "So now it's Bonesman's move."

Bonesman nodded and drew his next card. "I'll Set this on the field and end my turn," he simply said.

Rommel drew his next card with a sly smirk. "Seems now that I'm the one in control of this duel," he meandered on. "Now all it is is a matter of who I want to claim first. It doesn't matter since both of you have promised me your lives if you lose..."

Rommel looked over at Bonesman. "For one, I have you who I could force to pledge your eternal servitude to me..."

Then he looked over at Creighton. "...but on the other hand, you would make a fine cabin boy for me personally."

He laughed as he then pointed over at Creighton and declared, "Why not, I deserve a new cabin boy! Go Swashbuckling Zombie!"

"Activate Trap card!"

At that moment everyone looked over at Bonesman, who had revealed his Trap! It triggered a ring of explosives to appear around the zombie's neck, strangling it before ticking away and exploding violently!

"Sorry captain...sorry Creighton," Bonesman apologized as all three of their Life Points went down to 0.

Rommel: 0
Creighton: 0
Bonesman: 0

The crew moaned in disappointment.

"What a cheap tactic!"

"He made them all lose!"

"I dunno, that was kinda neat."

"Hush up, Beauregard!"

The captain silenced them all as his organic duel disk slithered back into his chest. Creighton ran over to Bonesman and cursed, "You idiot! Why did you do that?!"

"It was the only way to let you live," Bonesman replied. Creighton shook his head as Rommel approached.

"As per the rules of a Gladius Divinum draw, the one with the lesser amount of Life Points prior to the draw result is declared the ultimate loser of the duel," Rommel spat directly at Bonesman. "Bonesman, you're a coward, and you will work onboard this ship for eternity."

Then he turned to Creighton and mocked, "Consider yourself free to go ashore...the better next time we make port!"

This got the crew's spirits lightened up in raucous laughter as they all settled in other places. Creighton tended to Bonesman, now another damned soul onboard the Gladius Divinum.

"I know you wanted the key," Bonesman murmured, his eyes drawn back up towards the night sky and the stars shining bright. "I ruined that for you so that you wouldn't lose."

Creighton mused silently for a moment. Then his eyes lit up as he realized, "But now I know where it is."

Bonesman looked at Creighton for a moment, then he too realized. "It's only in his coat pocket," he whispered.

Creighton smiled. "We may not be at a loss yet," he said. "Find me a place to hide, and I'll see you when the sun is down!"


AUTHOR'S NOTES

Sounds like somebody's got a plan! I wonder if any of these cards will help...

The Haunting Maryanne (Field Spell)
Effect: All WATER and Warrior Monsters you control gain 200 Atk/Def. When a monster is destroyed by battle with a WATER monster: gain 500 LP.

Shellfish Minion (Effect Monster)
Level 3, 1200 Atk, 1100 Def, Fish, WATER
Effect: All WATER monsters you control gain 500 Atk/Def. During your Standby Phase, if this card is in your GY: you can pay 500 LP; Special Summon this monster from your GY.

Army Force Soldier (Effect Monster)
Level 2, 500 Atk, 500 Def, Warrior, EARTH
Effect: This card can attack directly. If this card is destroyed: Special Summon 1 Level 2 or lower "Army Force" monster from your Deck.

Mortar Shelling (Continuous Spell)
Effect: Once per turn: you can inflict 500 damage to your opponent for every "Army Force" monster you control. You cannot attack in the turn this effect is activated. After the 3rd time this effect activates, send this card to the GY.

Skull Servant (Normal Monster)
Level 1, 300 Atk, 200 Def, Zombie, DARK

Painful Choice (Normal Spell)
Effect: Reveal 5 cards from your Deck to your opponent. Your opponent picks 1 to add to your hand, then send the rest to the GY.

King of the Skull Servants (Effect Monster)
Level 1, ? Atk, 0 Def, Zombie, DARK
Effect: The original ATK of this card becomes the number of "King of the Skull Servants" and "Skull Servant" cards in your GY x1000. When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the GY: you can banish 1 other "King of the Skull Servants" or "Skull Servant" card in your GY; Special Summon this card.

Wightmare (Effect Monster)
Level 1, 300 Atk, 200 Def, Zombie, DARK
Effect: This card's name is treated as "Skull Servant" while it is in the GY. You can discard this card to activate one of the following effects:
● Target 1 of your banished "Skull Servant" or "Wightmare"; return it to your GY.
● Target 1 of your banished "The Lady in Wight" or "King of the Skull Servants"; Special Summon it.

The Lady in Wight (Effect Monster)
Level 3, 0 Atk, 2200 Def, Zombie, DARK
Effect: Face-up Level 3 or lower Zombie monsters on the field, except "The Lady in Wight", cannot be destroyed by battle and are unaffected by Spell/Trap effects. This card's name becomes "Skull Servant" while it is in the GY.

Undying Vengeance (Continuous Trap)
Effect: If a monster is destroyed by battle and sent to the GY: lower the ATK/DEF of the monster that destroyed it by 500.

Ships of the Underworld (Continuous Trap)
Effect: If a monster(s) is sent to the GY: you can banish them. Each time a monster(s) is banished: gain 500 LP for each one.

Tainted Waters (Continuous Trap)
Effect: All WATER monsters you control are also treated as DARK monsters.

Contaminated Kraken (Effect Monster)
Level 3, 1300 Atk, 1200 Def, Aqua, WATER
Effect: Once per turn: you can target 1 monster your opponent controls; it loses 500 ATK/DEF. This card can attack twice each Battle Phase.

Army Force Firethrower (Effect Monster)
Level 2, 600 Atk, 400 Def, Warrior, FIRE
Effect: Once per turn, during your Main Phase: you can inflict 500 damage to your opponent. If this card is destroyed: inflict 500 damage to the opponent.

Army Force Berserker (Effect Monster)
Level 4, 2000 Atk, 0 Def, Warrior, EARTH
Effect: If this card is in face-up Defense Position, destroy this card. This card must attack if able.

Everliving Underworld Cannon (Continuous Spell)
Effect: Once per turn, when a Zombie monster is Special Summoned to your side of the field: inflict 800 damage to your opponent.

Call of the Mummy (Continuous Spell)
Effect: Once per turn: You can Special Summon 1 Zombie monster from your hand. You must control no monsters to activate and to resolve this effect.

Soul-Absorbing Bone Tower (Effect Monster)
Level 3, 400 Atk, 1500 Def, Zombie, DARK
Effect: If you control another Zombie monster, your opponent cannot target this card for attacks. Each time a Zombie monster(s) is Special Summoned: send 2 cards from the top of your opponent's Deck to the GY.

Shutendoji (Effect Monster)
Level 4, 1500 Atk, 800 Def, Zombie, DARK
Effect: Once per turn, you can activate 1 of these effects.
● Banish 2 Zombie-Type monsters from your GY; draw 1 card.
● Target 1 of your banished Zombie-Type monsters; return that target to the top of your Deck.

Bone Storm (Normal Spell)
Effect: Tribute 1 Zombie-Type monster you control, then target 1 Spell/Trap card your opponent controls; destroy that target.

Army Force Tanker (Effect Monster)
Level 3, 1000 Atk, 1000 Def, Machine, EARTH
Effect: Cannot be destroyed by battle. If you control another "Army Force" monster, you take no battle damage from battles involving this card.

Army Force - Mobilization (Normal Spell)
Effect: If you control an "Army Force" monster: Reveal 1 "Army Force" monster from your hand with a lower Level than an "Army Force" monster you control; Special Summon the revealed monster.

Army Force Trooper (Effect Monster)
Level 2, 500 Atk, 500 Def, Warrior, EARTH
Effect: This card can attack directly. Once per turn, if this card is in Defense Position: you can inflict 500 damage to your opponent.

Sharkskin Terror (Effect Monster)
Level 6, 2400 Atk, 1200 Def, Fish, WATER
Effect: During your Main Phase: you can Tribute 1 other WATER monster you control; gain 300 ATK.

Army Force Special Forces (Effect Monster)
Level 4, 1500 Atk, 1200 Def, Warrior, EARTH
Effect: If you control an "Army Force" monster:, you can Special Summon this card from your hand. Once per turn, you can activate 1 of the following effects:
● This turn, this card can attack directly. Other monsters you control cannot attack the turn this effect is activated.
● You can discard 1 card from your opponent's hand. This card cannot attack the turn this effect is activated.

Army Force - Two-Pronged Attack (Normal Trap)
Effect: Target 2 "Army Force" monsters you control; increase the ATK of the first target by the ATK of the second, also during the End Phase, destroy the first target.

Mystik Wok (Quick-Play Spell)
Effect: Tribute 1 monster. Select either its ATK or DEF and gain that many Life Points.

Clam Cretin (Effect Monster)
Level 2, 500 Atk, 200 Def, Aqua, WATER
Effect: You can send this card you control to the GY to target 1 Spell/Trap card your opponent controls; destroy that target. During your Standby Phase, if this card is in your GY: you can pay 500 Life Points; Special Summon this card to your side of the field.

Swashbuckling Zombie (Effect Monster)
Level 5, 2100 Atk, 0 Def, Zombie, WATER
Effect: When a monster is Special Summoned to the field: you can Special Summon this card from your hand or GY, and if you do, banish 1 opponent's monster.

Dark Cannonballer (Effect Monster)
Level 1, 0 Atk, 0 Def, Fiend, WATER
Effect: During your Main Phase, if a WATER monster was Normal Summoned this turn: you can Special Summon this card (from your hand). You can send this card to the GY to target 1 card on your opponent's field; destroy that target.

Army Force Scout (Effect Monster)
Level 2, 500 Atk, 0 Def, Warrior, EARTH
Effect: Once per turn, during your Main Phase:, you can look at 1 card in your opponent's hand.

Army Force Dive Bomber (Effect Monster)
Level 6, 1800 Atk, 1200 Def, Machine, WIND
Effect: You can Special Summon this card (from your hand) by Tributing 1 "Army Force" monster. Once per turn: you can target 1 card on the field; destroy that target, and if you do, inflict 500 damage to your opponent.

Ring of Destruction (Normal Trap)
Effect: Destroy 1 monster on the field and inflict damage to both players' Life Points equal to that monster's Atk.
NOTE: Similar to the previous use of Ring of Destruction, this is the pre-errata version!

What will happen next? Will Creighton manage to get to Matt in time? Will Matt and the others be able to reach the location of Rommel's greatest secret before Rommel comes for it? Find out in the next chapter!