Thank you very much for the characters. As well as writing this, I'm working on the decks for your characters (you know who you are).
(Chapter 4: Doll Curse Duel! Jyonouchi VS Denierure!)
Denierure still had trouble deciding who to duel. She didn't know if the other two with them were duelists, but she doubted it. She knew three of them were. She didn't want to duel Yuugi, as she knew of his reputation as Duel King.
She remembered that Saratu was her Mistress' target, but she didn't know how good she was at duelling. All her Mistress had said was that there was a chance that Saratu now had a better deck than her old one. She didn't mention how good she actually was at duelling.
Denierure only noticed the other guy was a duelist because of the Duel Disk on his arm. She had no idea who he was. He didn't seem to be much trouble, but she knew to never underestimate an opponent. Past experiences had taught her that the hard way.
Denierure knew she had to make her decision quickly. Her mistress wouldn't be happy if she took too long. 'I just have to win' she thought to herself as she moved out of the alley, and started heading towards the group.
(Nearby...)
Denierure's mistress was watching from the rooftop of a building. She noticed Denierure heading towards the group. She was talking on a cell phone. "Looks like she's decided. She's heading towards them now" she said.
"I hope you know what you're doing Ayra. If this plan of yours backfires then we could lose her" Ademu replied on the other end.
"Don't you worry about that. My magic will be aiding her" Ayra told him.
(With the group...)
Saratu had been successful in calming Kuri down a little. Saratu knew she had a good enough reason to be upset, but at least she wasn't crying anymore.
"Wow, you're the Duel King?" Kuri asked. Yuugi nodded.
Saratu smiled at her "She's been following the game as much as she can. She is really willing to learn how to duel, but I think she's a little young to understand everything in the game yet. She knows when I think she's ready, I'm going to teach her," she explained.
"Well, with some of the players around, you'll need to teach her well" Yuugi said.
"I know Saratu-neechan can teach me" Kuri replied.
Jyonouchi was giving Shizuka advice on how to duel better. She was listening well. He noticed a girl he'd never seen before walking over to them, in his direction to be precise. He noticed the Duel Disk on her arm. Though he did wonder why she was dressed the way she was.
Once she was close enough, she looked at him. "Um, could I have a duel with you?" she questioned nervously
Jyonouchi looked at Shizuka for a moment "Do you mind?" he asked. Shizuka shook her head.
"It's been so long since I've seen you duel Oniichan" Shizuka replied.
Jyonouchi smiled as he got up and took out his deck, then slid it into his Duel Disk. It switched into Duel Mode. The girl's Duel Disk did the same. He noticed she looked a little nervous. "I'll let you start first" he told her as he drew his first 5 cards. She did the same.
"Duel!" both Jyonouchi and Denierure called out.
(Jyonouchi's LP: 4000) (Denierure's LP: 4000)
"Draw" Denierure said as she drew to begin her turn. She looked over her hand. She picked a card out and set it on her Duel Disk. "I'll summon Mermaid Knight in Attack mode" she said as a purple haired mermaid wielding a sword and shield appeared. (Water/Aqua. ATK: 1500/ DEF: 700. Effect: While 'Sea' is on the field, this monster may attack twice in a turn) "I'll then set a card face down. Turn End" she finished. (4 Cards in Hand)
"My turn, draw!" Jyonouchi called as he drew. "I'll summon Dark Leopard Warrior - Panther Warrior in attack mode!" he said as the familliar monster appeared on his side of the field. (Earth/Animal Warrior. ATK: 2000/DEF: 1600. Effect: This card cannot attack without sacrificing a monster.) "I'll set two cards face down. Turn End" he told her. (3 Cards in Hand)
"My turn, draw" Denierure began as she drew a card from her deck. "I'll summon Princess Ningyo in attack mode" she called out as she set the card on her Duel Disk. A blonde haired, red finned mermaid appeared on her field. (Water/Fish. ATK: 1500/DEF: 800. Effect: As long as this card remains face up on your side of the field, increase your Life Points by 800 at each of your Standby Phases.) "I'll then play the Magic Card Waterworld. This field increases the attack power of all Water Monsters by 500, and decreases their defense by 400" she explained as holographic water appeared around them. (Current Stats: ATK: 2000/ DEF: 400) (Note: Princess Ningyo is the original name for Cure Mermaid. I was only just able to find this out)
"Lastly, I'll equip my Princess Ningyo with the Equip Magic Card, Mistbody. While equipped with this card, she can't be destroyed in battle. So, I'll have her attack your Panther Warrior!" she ordered as the mermaid swam in the newly formed water towards the Panther Warrior, then leapt out as she reached him.
Jyonouchi smirked as he pushed a button on his Duel Disk. "Trap Card, Chained Boomerang!" he called as a metal boomerang with a chain appeared in the hands of his Panther Warrior. (ATK: 2500). The Panther Warrior threw its new weapon at the Princess. It cut through the mermaid, but it just seemed to go through an illusion. It flew by Denierure, and just cut her cheek as the Panther Warrior retrieved its weapon. (Denierure's LP: 3500). "Panther Warrior might need a sacrifice to attack, but that doesn't apply to when he's being attacked" he explained.
Denierure gasped as something surged through her. She knew her body was beginning to stiffen. 'This must be what Mistress was telling me about, how she intended to aid me' she thought. "Turn End" she called over to him. (3 Cards In Hand)
(Above the duel...)
Ayra laughed as she continued to watch the duel. She had a hand held out in front of her; she had a pendant dangling from it, over the duel. It was glowing slightly. She was still holding the phone in her other hand.
'Denierure must have noticed that the Yami no Game has started by now' Ademu said.
"She's used to this game Ademu. No matter how good her opponent is, the Yami no Game should throw him off," Ayra spoke into the phone, never taking her eyes off of the duel.
'Are you relying on that for Denierure to win?' Ademu asked. Ayra didn't give an answer.
(Back in the duel...)
"My turn, Draw!" Jyonouchi said as he drew a new card. He added it to his hand. "I'll summon Goblin Attack Force in attack mode!" he told her as he set the card onto his duel disk. The goblins appeared on his field. (Earth/Warrior. ATK: 2300/DEF: 0. Effect: After this card attacks, switch it to defense mode at the end of the Battle Phase.) "My Goblin Attack Force will attack your Mermaid Knight!" he called out as his goblins leapt towards the Mermaid Knight, and hit it with their clubs, destroying it. (Denierure's LP: 3200). After their attack, the goblins returned to Jyonouchi's side of the field.
"Next, I'll sacrifice my Goblins to let my Dark Leopard Warrior - Panther Warrior attack your Princess Ningyo!" Jyonouchi added as the goblins were sacrificed, and the Panther Warrior threw the Chained Boomerang at the Princess Ningyo. His attack had no effect on it, but it hit Denierure again. (Denierure's LP: 2700). "Lastly I'll activate the Magic Card, Dangerous Machine Type-6. This card doesn't activate until the Standby Phase of my next turn. Turn End!" he finished. (Continuous Magic. Effect: Roll a dice once during each of your Standby Phases. Activate the following effects according to the result. 1: Discard 1 card from your hand. 2: Your opponent must discard 1 card from his/her hand. 3: Draw 1 card from your Deck. 4: Your opponent must draw 1 card from his/her Deck. 5: Destroy 1 of your opponent's monsters on the field. 6: Destroy this card.) (2 Cards In Hand)
After each attack, Denierure felt her body stiffening more. 'He doesn't know this is a Yami no Game, because I haven't been able to damage his Life Points. I had no idea he'd be such a strong duelist. I should have guessed he'd be strong, since he is with Yuugi' she thought.
"Something up? It's your turn" Jyonouchi asked.
Denierure silently drew her next card, and felt some of the stiffness wear off as her Princess Ningyo's effect increased her Life Points. (Denierure's LP: 3500). She added the card to her hand, before looking at what she just drew. 'Just the card I needed' she thought to herself. "I'll remove my Mermaid Knight from my graveyard in order to special summon my Aqua Spirit" she called out as the Mermaid Knight appeared for a moment, before disappearing and a short blue haired, green skinned woman wearing what looked like a blue dress appeared on Denierure's field (Water/Aqua. ATK: 1600/ DEF: 1200) this card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card can only be Special Summoned by removing from play 1 WATER monster in your Graveyard. During each of your opponent's Standby Phases, you can change the battle position of 1 of your opponent's face-up Monster Cards. Once changed, the monster must remain in this position for the rest of the turn). "I'll then activate my Field Magic Card, Legendary City Atlantis," she added as she discarded the Umiiruka field, and replaced it with the new field. Water formed around them, then the ruins of an ancient city also formed. (Field Magic. Effect: This card's name is treated as if it was Sea. The levels of Water Attribute monsters in a player's hand and on the field are reduced by 1. Increase the attack and defense strengths of all Water Attribute Monsters on the Field by 200) "Since the level of all Water Monsters was just reduced by my field, I'll sacrifice my Aqua Spirit!" she said as she discarded the card from her duel disk, and the Aqua Spirit formed into energy. She took a card from her hand and held it up for Jyonouchi to see "and summon Levia-Dragon - Daedalus!" she finished as she put the card into play, and the large two headed snake-like dragon formed on Denierure's field. (Water/Sea Dragon. ATK: 2600/DEF: 1500. Effect: Send Sea on your field to Graveyard, destroy all cards on the field except this card) (Current Stats: ATK: 2800/DEF: 1700)
Jyonouchi looked up in awe at the large monster. Because of Denierure's field, this thing was easier to summon, and made stronger.
"Levia-Dragon - Daedalus! Attack the Panther Warrior!" Denierure called out. The dragon complied, and rushed through the water. Once it was close enough, it extended it's neck and ate the Panther Warrior. It then returned to its place behind Denierure. (Jyonouchi's LP: 3700)
The life point meter only decreased a little, but Jyonouchi began to feel the same stiffness that Denierure had. He tried to shrug it off, but the feeling wouldn't leave him. 'What is this?' he wondered.
"Next, Princess Ningyo! Player Direct Attack!" Denierure added. As the mermaid headed towards Jyonouchi, he pushed a button on his Duel Disk.
"Trap Card, Magic-Arm Shield, Activate!" Jyonouchi called out. The card flipped up, and the magical arms grabbed Denierure's Levia-Dragon, and pulled it over to Jyonouchi's side of the field, in the way of the Princess Ningyo's attack. He watched as the mermaid attacked the Levia-Dragon with its fin, then the Levia-Dragon attempted to eat the mermaid. Princess Ningyo turned into mist, and reformed a moment later. (Denierure's LP: 2900). The trap disappeared and the Levia-Dragon returned to Denierure's side of the field.
"Turn End" Denierure finished. (1 Card in Hand)
"My turn, Draw!" Jyonouchi said as he drew a new card. "Dangerous Machine Type-6's Effect activates! The machine picks a number at random, and it'll activate an effect depending on the number it picked" he explained. The machine started up, and a moment later, it had chosen its number, 5. Jyonouchi grinned. "A 5! That means I get to destroy one of your monsters! I'll choose your Levia-Dragon - Daedalus!" he said, as the Levia-Dragon - Daedalus exploded.
Yuugi, Saratu and Kuri had been watching from the sidelines. Saratu looked a little confused. She turned to Yuugi. "Does his deck rely on luck?" she asked.
"Jyonouchi-kun does use a lot of gambling based cards, but he is still a good duelist. Some of his cards do sometimes backfire on him, but he can come back from his mistakes very quickly. He's not a duelist to underestimate" Yuugi answered.
"I see..." Saratu replied. She turned to look at Denierure.
"Something the matter?" Yuugi questioned.
"It's nothing" Saratu assured him. 'If I'm right, she's working for those bastards. If that's true, Ayra must be manipulating her. I'll never forget that Yami no Game. This must be what happens to those who lose' she thought to herself. She noticed something strange about the blue haired girl. Her legs looked to be a little stiff. She looked around, and then looked up. She noticed a small light from the roof of the building above them. She gasped. 'Ayra! She's using her magic over the duel. It's a Yami no Game!' she realized. She looked in worry at Jyonouchi.
Kuri squeezed her older sister's hand, making her look down at her. "Are you okay Neechan?" she asked.
"I said it's nothing Kuri. Don't you worry about it" Saratu said, forcing a smile.
Jyonouchi had summoned his Iron Knight - Gearfreed, he took another card from his hand and slid it into his duel disk. "Restraint Removal, Activate!" he called out. His knight's armor cracked open, revealing the much stronger warrior under it, Swordmaster - Naked Gearfreed. (Light/Warrior. ATK: 2600/DEF: 2200. Effect: This card cannot be Normal Summoned. This card can only be special summoned by the effect of Restraint Removal. Whenever this card is equipped with equipment card, destroy a monster on opponent's field.)
Denierure gasped a little as she saw the new warrior. She knew of its ability, and she wondered if Jyonouchi was going to use it.
"Gearfreed! Attack the Princess Ningyo!" Jyonouchi ordered as his warrior drew its sword, and slashed the mermaid. The wound instantly healed. (Denierure's LP: 2300) "Turn End" he finished. (1 Card in Hand)
"My turn, draw" Denierure began as she drew. Her life points increased thanks to her Princess Ningyo's effect (Denierure's LP: 3100) "I'll set a card face down, and switch my Princess Ningyo into defense mode. Turn End" she simply said as she set a card into her duel disk, and switched the position of her mermaid. Her Princess Ningyo crossed its arms out in front of itself. (1 Card in Hand)
"My turn, Draw!" Jyonouchi called out as he drew a new card. "Dangerous Machine Type-6 activates!" he said as his machine started up again. It picked a 3. "3! That means I get to draw a card," he added as he drew an extra card. "I'll equip my Swordmaster with Divine Sword - Phoenix Blade! It raises the attack of any warrior it's equipped to by 300!" he explained as a sword with a handle styled like a phoenix appeared in the Swordmaster's hands. "And my Swordmaster's effect allows me to destroy your Princess Ningyo!" he added as his Swordmaster slashed the mermaid with it's new sword, destroying it instantly. "Swordmaster - Naked Gearfreed! Player Direct Attack!" he ordered as his warrior dashed forward, and slashed Denierure. (Denierure's LP: 200).
Denierure gasped and winced a little as Ayra's magic did its work on her. She knew she now couldn't run from this duel, because her legs were too stiff to even move. Her torso also stiffened the same way, and her arms were also beginning to stiffen too.
Saratu noticed this. 'Jyonouchi is duelling well, and she's getting worse as her life points decrease. Hasn't Jyonouchi noticed?' she wondered to herself.
Denierure pushed a button on her duel disk. "Damage Condenser, Activate!" she called out. "This card requires me to discard a card from my hand to activate it when I take battle damage, then special summon a monster from my deck that has equal to or less ATK than the amount of battle damage" she explained as she discarded a card, and reached into her deck, picked out a card, then reshuffled. She then put the card on her duel disk "Levia-Dragon - Daedalus!" she announced as the dragon appeared on the field.
"Turn End" Jyonouchi finished. (Jyonouchi: 2 Cards in Hand) (Denierure: 0 Cards in Hand)
"My turn, Draw!" Denierure began, drawing a card. She smiled a little as she looked at the card she drew. "The force of the ocean is a force to be reckoned with. Do you think you can handle its full force?" she asked.
Jyonouchi looked confused at the question. "What do you mean?" he questioned.
"For years I've been fascinated by the ocean. How something that at times can be very beautiful, can cause so much destruction" Denierure began. "You might've thought that my Levia-Dragon was my strongest monster. For a time, that was true. The strongest monster I have is one that can wield the true force of the ocean. I sacrifice my Levia-Dragon - Daedalus!" she called out; the Levia-Dragon disappeared as Denierure replaced it with another card. "To summon my dragon's evolved form, Sea Dragon King - Neo-Daedalus!" she said as the larger two-headed dragon formed behind Denierure. (Water/Sea Dragon. ATK: 2900/DEF: 1600. Effect: This card can't be Normal Summoned. This card can only be Special Summoned by sacrificing a
Levia-Dragon - Daedalus on your field. Send a Sea card on your field to your Graveyard, send all cards other than this card on both players' field and in their hands to their respective Graveyards) "Neo-Daedalus! Tidal Rage!" she called out as the dragon began to roar loudly. Currents in the water around them began to form. Soon, the water formed into a tidal wave and smashed into Jyonouchi, his Swordmaster, his face down card and his Dangerous Machine, and then Denierure. Jyonouchi discarded both of the cards in his hand and on his field, as Denierure discarded her field. "Player Direct Attack!" she added as the dragon breathed in, then fired two blasts of water at Jyonouchi. (Jyonouchi's LP: 800)
Jyonouchi gasped as his body stiffened more. "Something isn't right, and you haven't said a word. Do you know something about this?" he demanded.
"I thought you would have pieced it together yourself. This is a Yami no Game" Denierure simply answered.
"I thought you realized it earlier Jyonouchi-kun. That's why I never said anything" Yuugi spoke up. "But this is affecting you too" he added to Denierure.
Denierure lowered her head. "I'm used to it," she said. "Turn End" she added. Jyonouchi was only just able to hear her.
"My Turn! Draw!" Jyonouchi called out, not taking his eyes off of Denierure. He couldn't forget the last time he played in a Yami no Game, back at Battle City in his Duel with Malik. But he noticed she didn't seem to be enjoying herself. The only two people he knew of who forced their opponents into Yami no Games were both crazy. And he also knew the both of them loved seeing their opponents in fear because of the game. He noticed that this girl wasn't like that. Shaking his head, he looked at the card he drew. "I activate the Magic Card, Treasure of Destiny!" he called over to her.
"That card allows Jyonouchi to roll a dice and he gets to draw cards from his deck, depending on the result, but then has to remove from play the same number of cards from his deck" Yuugi explained.
A dice was rolled in the card's hologram, giving a 5. He drew 5 cards, and then removed the next top 5 cards from the game. Seeing what he drew, he grinned like an idiot. "I summon Troop Commander in attack mode!" he said as an armoured man carrying two swords appeared on Jyonouchi's field. (Earth/Warrior. ATK: 1200/ DEF: 400. Effect: When this card is face-up on the field, your opponent cannot choose other Warrior type monsters on your field as target of battle. When this card is successfully summoned,
Special summon a monster with Level 4 or less to the field.) "I activate my Commander's effect and summon Black Dragon's Poult!" he said as he put the card on his duel disk. (Dark/Dragon. ATK: 800/ DEF: 500. Effect: You may put this card into the Graveyard to Special Summon a Red Eyes Black Dragon form your hand.) "I'll activate his effect, and send him to the graveyard, to summon my Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" he added as he switched the Black Dragon's Poult card with his Red-Eyes, then put the Poult card in his graveyard. (Dark/Dragon. ATK: 2400/ DEF: 2000)
"That may be a level 7 dragon, but he's 500 attack points short of being able to even tie with Neo-Daedalus" Denierure informed him. A smirk formed on Jyonouchi's face.
"I know that, but your Levia-Dragon isn't the only monster that can evolve in that way. I sacrifice my Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" Jyonouchi replied, then removed his Red-Eyes from his field and slid it into his graveyard, then replaced it with another card. "To special summon this monster, Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon!" he added as his dragon began to change. Red lines began to appear around the dragon's body, the dragon's wings and arms seemed to fuse together, and red gems formed on his legs, his wings, his chest and his head. (Dark/Dragon. ATK: 2400/ DEF: 2000. Effect: This card cannot be Normal Summoned. This card can only be Special Summoned by sacrificing a Red Eyes Black Dragon on your field. For each Dragon type monster in your Graveyard, increase this card's attack strength by 300.) (Current Stats: ATK: 3000/ DEF: 2000)
Denierure's shoulders fell, and she lowered her head. "Finish me..." she said quietly, only just loud enough for Jyonouchi to hear her.
Jyonouchi just looked at her. He saw a tear drop to the floor. "What's the matter?" he asked.
Denierure's head snapped up "I said finish me!" she yelled at him.
"I know that there's a reason that you're doing all of this. You have a good reason to duel" Jyonouchi told her.
Denierure lowered her head again, nodding slightly. "I was duelling you to become free of this curse that I'm under. I was a good duelist before I was cursed. All that changed after I dueled Ayra, my mistress" she began. Everyone looked at her in concern as she continued. "This curse that she has me under allows her to use her magic to turn me into a doll at any time she pleases. Over the last few months she's trained me to be completely loyal to her. The only times I really get to be human now is to duel for my freedom. I haven't won a duel since I lost to her. It's that same magic of hers that is partly fueling this Yami no Game. I don't want to fight like this anymore, but Ayra keeps forcing me to. I don't want anyone to ever go through what I have in these last few months" she explained.
"And if I lose this, the curse that you're under will transfer to me?" Jyonouchi asked. Denierure nodded. "If you're completely loyal to her now, you'll never be able to win a duel. You're a good duelist, but your loyalty to her is holding you back" he told her.
Denierure looked up at him. 'He's right, during my duels, I worry too much about what Ayra will do to me if I lose again' she realized. She smiled a little. "Thank you for helping me see that. But that doesn't change anything. One of us still has to win this duel, and you're two attacks away from defeating me" she said.
Jyonouchi hadn't forgotten about the stiffness that he still felt. He didn't want to finish her off, since she would have to continue living under her mistress. But, he also didn't want to take her place either.
Denierure could see from where she stood that he couldn't decide. With a slight smile on her face, she called out to him "Don't worry about me. Your words have reminded me of the feelings I felt when I dueled before I was cursed. The next time I duel, I'll get myself out of this. I'll duel you again someday"
"You're sure?" Jyonouchi asked.
Denierure nodded. "I'm sure it won't be too long before Ayra wants me to duel again" she answered.
"I never caught your name" Jyonouchi said.
"Shinoko Denierure" Denierure replied, then remembered what Yuugi had called him earlier. "Wait, I thought your duelling style seemed familiar to me. You're Jyonouchi Katsuya, one of the finalists at Duelist Kingdom, and you were in the final 8 duelists of Battle City. You came... fourth if I remember rightly" she added.
Jyonouchi nodded. "That's right. I see that you know whom to follow in Duel Monsters" he told her with a smile on his face, making Yuugi sweatdrop.
"Well Jyonouchi, I hope that you keep well until our next duel" Denierure told him, as she closed her eyes.
Jyonouchi nodded to her, then turned to his dragon "Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon! Attack the Sea Dragon King - Neo-Daedalus! Darkness Giga Flame!" he ordered. His dragon began to glow a purple colour as it charged up its attack. It then let out a powerful breath of fire that incinerated the Sea Dragon King. (Denierure's LP: 100). "Troop Commander! Direct Attack!" he added as his warrior dashed forward and slashed Denierure with both of its swords. She winced as the direct attack hit her, decreasing her life points to 0.
Denierure smiled at him as Ayra's magic finished stiffening her body. Saratu saw the glow she saw earlier not too far from them. Denierure was covered in a similar glow, and she soon began to shrink. Once she stopped shrinking, her doll form floated away from them, in the direction of the glow. She floated into Ayra's waiting hand.
"Shit, it looks like she lost again. I can't keep a hold of her for much longer. Her next duel might be her last" Ayra spoke.
"If you've used up your magic on her, have her duel once more and if she loses again, extract her Ka before the curse breaks. You know we gave you more than enough time with her" Ademu replied as he hung up.
'That's true. I was able to find out what her Ka was, a currently unidentified mermaid, that looked to be a strong Ka. A Ka like that would be a good addition to our leader's collection. I just wonder what he's after all these Ka for?' Ayra thought to herself.
Jyonouchi's duel disk powered down, and everyone noticed Ayra a few metres away from them. "Who are you!" he called out.
"I believe Denierure mentioned me" Ayra answered.
"Ayra" Saratu glared at the older woman.
"So you're the one that did this to Denierure" Jyonouchi said.
Ayra nodded with an evil smirk. "I've enjoyed training her the way I have" she replied.
"You'll never keep her, I'm sure she'll break away from you" Jyonouchi told her.
"After being defeated by you, she has once chance left at freedom. After that, I'll be extracting her Ka" Ayra laughed.
"You have no right!" Saratu yelled. Kuri backed away from her sister as she saw an orange glow around her body. The glow intensified, and formed into Saratu's Ka, the Phoenix God of Nephthys.
"Your Ka does not scare me Saratu, you should know that by now" Ayra told her with a laugh.
(End of Chapter)
