For disclaimer, see the beginning of this story. Bastard.
Last chapter I had Dion and Ieyasu use a multitude of original cards, not all of which were created by me. I forgot to say so last time. Also, Dion Rinfar was not created by me, but by Vaurnut. Before continuing with the story, I would like to state my policy on others using my own creations: don't, unless I specifically grant you permission. If you do this, you commit plagiarism.
Which is bad.
Not just because it's against the law, but also because I will kill you if I find out you did it. Slowly. Painfully. Grotesquely. Graphically. Etc. Anyways, from now on I'm going to be posting the original cards used in each chapter at the end, so you can know exactly what to ask for and who to ask. Original characters are easier to notice, they're the ones you can't recognize. Here's the list for last chapter:
Cards by Me: King of Negation, Blitz the Lightning Prince, Quest of the King, Ascend to the Crown, Blaze the Infernal Prince, Emperor's Rage, Zolgora, Burning Greed, Wildfire, Gravity Release, Hiel the Frost Prince, Rise From the Ashes, Healing Warmth, Foolish Aggravation, Empire's Stability, Continuous Flame, Repelling Flame, Mighty Empire, Mighty Dark Empire-Orichalcos, Feudal System, Divine Right, Spark Flash, Hand of Fate, Fire Tempest
Cards by Seeker of the Soul: Substitute, Repayment of Losses, Expanding Shadows
With that said, let's move on to the next chapter. This chapter is dedicated to Seeker of the Soul, who turned nineteen today. …Well, technically today. It's still May 18 on the west coast, right? In any case, he turned nineteen less than twenty-four hours ago, so it still counts. Happy b-day, man.
Beneath the Surface
by G.O.T. Nick
Chapter Three: The Deadly Desert Sands
Bakura, the oldest thief in the world by several millennia, scowled with hatred as he looked at Nick, a person whose age was only a fraction of a percentage of his own. And yet Bakura, with the ancient powers of the Millennium Ring, was being bent to his will.
The man in question saw things in a slightly different air. He knew Bakura was only allowing this to happen because it would serve his long-term interests. In truth, Nick thought that he was probably not as strong magically as Bakura. He simply knew a few simple but very useful spells taught to him by Isis Ishtar, which would not be extremely useful in direct combat with the thief. He was slightly worried that the ambitious spirit would eventually attempt to use the global threat to his advantage, but that would have to be dealt with when the time came.
In the meantime, Bakura was obeying him, and so Nick had to finish preparing a device so the thief could accomplish the task set before him. He focused his gaze on the two objects in front of him: one a small golden object resembling a pair of wings, the other a golden, glowing trinket in the form of a long-beaked, long-necked bird. Nick believed it was an ibis, as he had seen them before. The two objects were surrounded by glowing auras-the wings in purple, the ibis in yellow. A strand of energy that shifted constantly in color connected the two. "When I'm finished with this," he said to Bakura, "you won't have to concentrate on your destination when you activate the teleportation wings. They'll simply be guided by the icon."
"And how do you plan on me getting back?" Bakura asked promptly.
"You know where we are, right?" Nick said, his concentration beginning to break away from the conversation as he focused more on the spell. The wings' aura was beginning to shift in color. "Just focus on this location when you activate the other device." He reached into his pocket and drew out another set of wings, which he tossed casually towards Bakura. "Now be quiet, will you? I'm almost done with this…there we go." The wings were now glowing with a golden aura, identical to that of the ibis. "Now you just have to activate it, and it will take you to wherever the icon directs it."
"Fine," Bakura grunted, "just give me the damn thing so I can get this over with." Nick nodded and handed him both objects. Bakura peered at the wings a bit, then said, "How do I get this thing to wo-" before vanishing in a flash of light.
"That's how," Nick stated. Then he turned to Yami, who to this point had been silent. "Alright, Pharaoh, are you ready to begin?" Yami stood up from his seat and nodded. Nick stood up as well, "Hopefully, the magical abilities of the Millennium Puzzle will speed up this process. We're short on time as it is…"
It is commonly believed that the shortest path between two points is a straight line. This is mostly true. However, the fastest path between two points is not a straight line, but rather the path of least resistance. Unfortunately, the path of least resistance for pieces of matter as large as human beings is limited. After all, there are only so many spaces through which a being two meters tall, thirty centimeters wide, and ten centimeters thick can fit into. Of course, the human body is constructed of various, tiny objects called cells, which can fit into much, much smaller spaces. And these cells can be split into atoms, which can fit into even tinier areas.
This is the basis of the concept of teleportation. The fastest speed an object can travel is about three hundred million meters per second, or the speed of light. However, if the human body were to be accelerated to this speed, it would be torn apart from the stress. In order to get around this, a teleporter's body is broken down into atoms, and these atoms are sped up at the speed of light, taking the path of least resistance, to the desired destination, where the body is then reassembled. Naturally, for a person experiencing this for the first time, the event can be rather traumatizing. Not to mention nauseating.
After taking a few minutes to barf up his breakfast, Bakura wiped away the bile about his lips, and looked around at his surroundings. His eye twitched, "What the…?" Granted, for everywhere in the northern hemisphere, it was winter. However, this place that he had arrived in felt and looked especially wintry. There was snow everywhere-falling from the sky, in drifts along both sides of the sidewalk that Bakura stood on, all across the street, on the tops of cars, and everywhere else. Though the snow was still building up, it was doing so at a sluggish pace now. Obviously it had been much more dense earlier. The sun was setting in the distance, which made since because Bakura had traveled about a third of the way around the world to reach his destination. To his right Bakura saw a frozen lake, upon which ten children were enjoying a game of ice hockey. He turned to look to his left, and on the other side of the street saw a man with a red uniform an broad-rimmed hat, mounted upon a brown horse, marching along the road. Just then, two men in heavy coats passed by Bakura on either side, speaking in a dialect of English he had never heard before. He was able to make out most of what they were saying, though.
"Did ya see the game last night, eh?"
"Oh yeah, the Oilers're lookin' good, eh."
"Yeah, but they won't get the Stanley Cup, eh. Gotta make it through them Red Wings."
"Red Wings?" Bakura muttered to himself, in Japanese. Then, "Oilers?" A pause. "Wait…kids playing hockey, red-suited guy on a horse…Stanley Cup…" His eye twitched an he yelled to the sky, "I'M IN STEREOTYPICAL CANADA!"
Meanwhile, another man trudged along the sidewalk of stereotypical Canada. He wore a black robe that covered his entire form, and shivered uncontrollably as he did so. The garment was meant for extremely warm weather, not the opposite… But as the pain in his arm increased, he knew that soon his discomfort would be over… Being careful not to slip, he trudged on.
"Hey, you okay?" this sentence towards Bakura came, surprisingly enough, in Japanese. Bakura turned towards the questioner and studied his appearance. He wore a thick green jacket with the zipper undone, so that the Canucks jersey he was wearing underneath it was visible. He also wore jeans, and a Duel Disk was strapped to his wrist, deck in place. He had short brown hair above a set of gray eyes. He quirked his head at the staring Bakura, and as a result of the motion the thief was able to catch sight of a small bump on his right ear. About his neck, a silver pendant of a dragon clutching a pearl was strung. The brown-haired guy looked to be in his mid-teens. "What's that thing you're holding?" he asked, nodding down towards Bakura's left hand.
Bakura looked down at the hand in question, which was clutching the ibis icon. The golden bird was glowing blindingly. Bakura looked back up at the boy, and held the icon up to him. The ibis glowed even more brightly, and when the boy reached out and touched, pulsed momentarily before growing dim. "Who are you?" Bakura asked after a moment.
He blinked a minute for his eyes to recover before answering, "Roland Thomson, you?"
"Call me Bakura," the thief replied. "Where do you live?"
Roland narrowed his eyes at Bakura, "What's it to you."
"There is a matter of great importance that involves you," Bakura replied, standing up, "I would suggest you getting ready to depart. I'll explain on the way."
"Now that we have covered the basics," said Nick to Yami, "I want you to try to teleport in front of this bucket." He placed the metal container on the floor in front of him, about twenty feet away from Yami.
"Why in front of the bucket?" Yami inquired, raising an eyebrow.
"You'll see in a minute," Nick answered patiently. Then he stepped back a good ten feet. It would not be pleasant to be so close to the bucket if Yami had a particularly weak stomach…
"So, let me see if I understand everything," Roland said to Bakura as they entered the Canadian teen's home. "The world's gonna be taken over by a horde of demons in about twelve hours, unless I come with you and duel some random guy who's destined to unlock the gate? And the reason you know I'm the right guy is because I've got this?" He motioned to the ibis icon, which he had tied about his neck, dangling next to his dragon pendant.
"Well, you're not the only one," Bakura stated, "but yes." Roland turned to look at Bakura, and frowned. Bakura got the feeling that his story didn't sound very believable.
Suddenly Roland's lips spread out in a grin. "Sure, I'll come with you!" he exclaimed suddenly. "Just let me changed and leave a note for my parents. Good thing they aren't home, or they might try to stop me. We're going to Egypt, right? So I shouldn't dress so warm…" He walked off, leaving Bakura staring in his wake. The millennia-old rogue simply couldn't understand how in the world this kid had suddenly taken this announcement as truth, let alone so casually. Oh well, that just made things a little bit easier…
Bakura suddenly sensed a presence behind him, and spun around, holding his Millennium Ring at the ready. The knob on the front door turned, and was pushed forward. A large figure in a black desert robe peered through the doorway, and Bakura let fly with a burst of energy that struck the wooden door. The door immediately fell apart with a creak and a spray of splinters, knocking the figure backwards. Bakura stepped through the doorway into the cold night, standing menacingly with his Ring clutched in his right hand.
The black-robed figure stumbled to his feet, and chuckled gruffly, "Hoho, a challenge for me, eh? Well, I suppose it's a good opportunity for me to test out these powers Todaku gave me…" He reached into his robes, and removed a small urn from it. He removed its cap, and held it forward. Bakura quirked an eyebrow, but after a moment, a burst of sand shot from the container towards him. Instinctively Bakura raised the Millennium Ring, willing a burst of energy to come forth and intercept the sand. The powder fell to the ground, and Bakura grinned in triumph. "Ah, a stubborn one. Excellent, I shall test my power against yours!" the figure shouted, and raised his hand. The scorched sand rose up, and surged towards Bakura again. Bakura grimaced, and snatched a card from his deck before holding it up.
"I summon you," Bakura shouted, the card and his Ring glowing the same shade of dark purple, "Dark Necrofear!" The blue-skinned female demon appeared before him, taking up a threatening stance and hissing, the light of nearby street lamps glistening on her red armor. He struck out with a clawed hand, striking the oncoming sand and dispersing it. But before Bakura could enjoy this triumph, the sand shot around the Necrofear's hand and forced itself into her nostrils and mouth, cutting off her oxygen.
"You cannot defeat me!" the black-cloaked man bellowed with a laugh. He cast out an arm, and the remaining sand that was currently not choking Bakura's Dark Necrofear flew toward the thief himself. Bakura's eyes widened, but otherwise he had no time to react, the speed of the sand and his shock from the speed of the cloaked man's assault. The sand sped towards his face, and had almost reached his nostrils and gaping mouth when a flash of steel swept across his vision, intercepting the sand and knocking it away.
Bakura blinked, and glanced to his right, where Roland was standing, a gold-hilted broadsword with a three-foot long blade clutched in his right hand. Roland cast his gray eyes on the cloaked form, and maneuvered his sword around to grip it with his left hand as well, then took a stance, the tip of his blade pointed towards the figure. He was no longer wearing his heavy jacket and jersey, but rather a long white t-shirt with a green over shirt over it. His blue jeans had been replaced by a white pair, and a sheath for his sword was buckled to his waist. He spoke carefully, restraining his anger, to the figure, "Get away from my house, bastard, or I'll leave you in as many pieces as the bits of sand you just used."
Bakura quirked an eyebrow, and muttered to Roland while jerking his head towards the sword, "Do you really know how to use that thing?"
"Sure," Roland murmured back, "pointy end goes through the other guy." Bakura's eyes widened before Roland clarified, "Actually, I've been practicing fencing since I was a kid. I moved up to this baby a couple years ago." Bakura breathed a small sigh of relief.
The figured laughed, and made a "come" gesture with his right hand, the sand flying back towards him and depositing itself in its urn. After the sand had been ripped from its throat, the choking Dark Necrofear vanished in a puff of black smoke. "So," the figure spoke, "you are the one I seek." Then shadows billowed out from his form, encompassing all three of them in darkness. "Come face me in a duel, boy!" He pulled a tan Duel Disk from his robes, and put it on.
Roland grinned, and turned to look at Bakura, "Looks like I get a taste of action already." He sheathed his sword, and held out the arm that bore his Duel Disk, which whirred and clicked as it activated (Roland LP: 4000). He slid five cards off the top of his deck, and declared, "I'm Roland Thomson, and I'm gonna kick your ass! Now show your face and face me like a man!"
The figure chuckled, and reached up to his face before removing his facial garb. This revealed a dark-skinned, pudgy face. He had a black mustache and goatee, not to mention an extremely visible nose. "I'll be the one winning here, punk."
Roland blinked at the sight of his opponent's face, and bit back a laugh, "Please don't tell me your name's 'Snotty'…"
A vein on the man's forehead bulged, and he shot an intense glare at Roland, "You dare to mock me, the mighty Tehuti?"
Roland stared for a few seconds, then snickered, "Tehuti? 'Teh' …'hooty'?" That was the last bit he could take, he burst into laughter. "Oh man, I'm facing a guy whose name is 'the tit'…"
Tehuti snarled, and shouted at Roland angrily, "Be quiet, you insolent bastard! I'll make your death more painful for those comments!" His Duel Disk activated, and he snapped six cards from it (Tehuti LP: 4000). After a quick once-over his hand, Tehuti removed three cards from it and set them into his Duel Disk, "I set two cards and a monster facedown, then end my turn." The three cards appeared in holographic form in front of him.
Roland finally quelled his laughter, and drew a sixth card, "Okay, my turn, Titty."
Bakura sighed in exasperation behind him, and slapped his forehead with a palm. "This is one of the people who's supposed to save the world?" he muttered to himself, "We're doomed…"
Roland grinned to himself, and slapped a card onto his Duel Disk, "I summon Marauding Captain (1200/400)!" he declared. As he did so, his monster, an armored man with short blonde hair and a pair of swords held in his hands, appeared in front of him. "His effect summons another monster from my hand of level 4 or less when he's Normal Summoned," Roland explained, and continued by slipping another Monster onto his Duel Disk, "So I summon a second Marauding Captain (1200/400)!" Just as he stated, another blonde-haired soldier with two large swords appeared next to the original. "Each Marauding Captain prevents you from attacking any Warriors on my field besides themselves. Since there are now two Marauding Captains on my field, and both are Warriors, you can't attack either!"
Tehuti frowned at the development, but wasn't too concerned. 'He thinks that such a combo is difficult for me to get rid of? How pathetic…'
"Next," continued Roland, slipping two cards into his Duel Disk, one facedown, the other up, "I set a card facedown and play The A. Forces, which powers up all Warriors on my field by 200 Attack Points for each Warrior and Spellcaster on my field (Marauding Captain x2: 1600/400). So now, Marauding Captain attacks your facedown monster!" One of the two blonde Warriors charged towards Tehuti's field, both swords raised, and brought them down on his set monster…which moved out of the way. "Huh?" Roland exclaimed in surprise.
"My set card, A Feint Plan," stated Tehuti, "prevents facedown Monsters from being attacked this turn. Therefore, your attack failed. So, are you done?" Roland frowned at seeing his attempt fail, and nodded. Tehuti slid a card from the top of his deck. Then he selected another card, and played it, "I activate Emerge From Beneath the Sands, which can only be activated if I have at least one facedown Monster on the field and no face-up Monsters. I may immediately Special Summon one Monster from my hand, and my choice is this!" He enthusiastically slammed another card from his hand onto his Duel Disk, and immediately a strange animal appeared. It had a hawk's head, with black feathers coming down to frame the neck, and it also had the black wings of a bird of prey, but the wings and head were attached to the body of a flesh-colored lion. "This is Hieracosphinx (2400/1200)!" declared Tehuti, "While he is on the field, you cannot attack my facedown Monsters. At the moment, however, that doesn't matter as much as its pure attack strength."
Roland grinned, and gestured at his two Marauding Captains, "Have you forgotten already? My Monsters' effects prevent you from attacking."
Tehuti's large face broke out into a wide grin, "True, but that's easily taken care of. I activate my facedown Permanent Trap, Impound, and then Flip Summon my facedown Sentry Golem (1000/1800)!" Tehuti's Monster was a large wooden door, with a stone archway. From the archway jutted two stone legs and two stone arms, one bearing a spear. "When Flip Summoned, Sentry Golem returns one card on your field to your hand, so I return a Marauding Captain to your hand and break your combo!" Roland gasped as the Golem suddenly trudged forwards and struck one of his Captains in the chest, knocking him backwards into his hand.
'Crud…' thought Roland, 'he broke it so easily…and not only that, but because there's one less Warrior on my field, my remaining Captain loses power (1400/400)…'
"When a card is added to your hand by an effect other than drawing," Tehuti continued, "Impound lets me draw a number of cards equal to the number added to your hand." He slipped a card off the top of his deck, and looked at it before he smirked, and reached for his Sentry Golem. On the field, it vanished in a vortex of sand, replaced by a facedown card. "Once per turn, I can flip my Sentry Golem facedown. Of course, this means I can re-use its effect next turn." Roland's eyes widened at that comment. He had to get rid of that thing quickly, before it did too much damage. "Next, I play Buried Beneath the Sands, which prevents you from activating facedown cards on your field for a number of turns equal to the number of facedown Monsters on my field upon activation. Since I've only got my facedown Sentry Golem, you can't use your set card this turn. However, that's all the time I need to permanently rid myself of your Marauding Captain combo. Hieracosphinx, attack!" The mystical beast flapped its large wings, and took flight before dive-bombing the weakened Marauding Captain. Although the young Warrior fought bravely, it was only a matter of moments before one of the sphinx's claws ripped through his armor and flesh. Blood slit through the air, and the Captain fell dead to the ground before fading away (Roland LP: 3000). "I set one card facedown and end my turn," Tehuti concluded.
Roland gratefully began his turn, 'Sheesh, he's way better than I thought he would be…I have to get serious or he'll take me apart…Unfortunately, I don't have all that much to work with…' "I summon Marauding Captain (1200/400) (1400/400) from my hand again, and then use his effect to summon Familiar Knight (1200/1400) (1600/1400) (Marauding Captain: 1600/400)." The blonde-haired captain flashed back into existence, followed by a silver-armored knight bearing a shield and a broadsword. "That's it for my turn."
Tehuti huffed in disappointment as he drew, "I really expected more of a challenge than this. I Flip Summon Sentry Golem again, and also activate my facedown Compulsory Ejection Device, so both of your Monsters return to your hand, and I draw two cards with Impound's effect." Roland grimaced, and could only watch as the Sentry Golem reappeared, and knocked back Marauding Captain with its spear again while at the same time, a spherical machine appeared beneath Familiar Knight, then launched him into the sky. Roland picked up both Monsters off his Duel Disk, and then Tehuti snatched two cards off his Duel Disk and pointed at Roland. "Hieracosphinx and Sentry Golem attack directly, and that will end the duel!" The beast took flight again, soaring this time towards Roland himself, and beneath it the Sentry Golem also trudged forward, spear held forward to strike. But before either Monster could reach the teen, a large circular pane of bluish-white glass sprang into existence in front of Roland, blocking both attacks and then surging forward, blowing both Golem and sphinx into a million pieces.
"Man, you're pretty dumb," Roland said with a relieved grin, "my Mirror Force was there on your last turn, I just didn't activate it because your Buried Beneath the Sands prevented me from doing it."
Tehuti scowled, 'He predicted that I would return his Monsters so I could get the chance to win…but to distract my attention from his set card, he didn't set any new cards and only summoned Monsters…' He glanced over his hand, and wasted no time in placing two cards from it into his Duel Disk, "One card facedown and a Monster in defense, and then I end my turn."
Roland grinned and drew, giving him five cards total, at least two of which were Monsters. Tehuti on the other hand had two cards left in his hand. "Okay, first let's say hello to some old friends again," with that, he summoned Marauding Captain, followed by Familiar Knight, both of which went up to 1600 attack points. "Marauding Captain, attack his facedown Monster!"
"I don't think so!" Tehuti declared, his facedown card flipping up, revealing another Permanent Trap, "Ordeal of a Traveler activates!" A large stone sphinx shot up from the ground behind him, and its eyes glowed red, glaring down at the Captain. "You guess if a random card in my hand is a Monster, Spell, or Trap each time you attack. Guess right, and the attack continues. Guess wrong, and your Monster is returned to your hand."
"How cheap…" muttered Roland, but he pointed at Tehuti's left card anyway and said, "I think that's a Monster."
Tehuti frowned, and flipped the card around, revealing it to be a Criosphinx. Then the Marauding Captain continued his charge, bringing his blades down on the set Monster. However, Roland was disappointed when it was revealed to be a large, blue bird that easily grasped the Captain's swords in its talons, holding them back. "My Stealth Bird (1000/1800) has enough defense to block your Captain's attack. So, are you finished with your pathetic attempts to touch me?" (Roland LP: 2800).
Roland glared at the large man, but said nothing, instead choosing to silently slip another card from his hand into his Duel Disk and then crossing both arms across his chest, indicating the end of his turn. Tehuti drew, giving him two cards besides Criosphinx, and then declared, "I flip Stealth Bird, then play Buried Greed, which lets me draw cards equal to the number of facedown Monsters on my field, plus one. So I get two more cards." His Stealth Bird vanished, replaced by its card image instead, and then he slipped two more cards into his hand. After looking them over, he frowned, obviously still having nothing useful, and nodded to Roland for the teen to take his turn.
"I draw!" Roland shouted, determined to take advantage of Tehuti's inaction. He grinned at the card, and then slapped another onto his Duel Disk. Between the Marauding Captain and Familiar Knight, a third Warrior appeared, giving both a boost in strength (1800/400) (1800/1400). This one wore a combination of leather and green platemail armor, and held a broadsword. Beneath its green helmet, long blonde hair hung, framing a pair of piercing brown eyes. From both sides of the Warriors head extended long, pointed ears. "Meet my favorite Monster, Celtic Guardian (1400/1200) (2000/1200)!"
"The Elf Swordsman, eh?" commented Tehuti, then he chuckled, and added, "It's one of the game's oldest cards and one of its most well-known, but it's utterly useless. 1400 base attack with no effect? Pathetic."
Roland narrowed his eyes dangerously, and said back, "Say what you want, but he's got enough strength to destroy your facedown Stealth Bird, which means I'm about to kick your fat ass!"
Tehuti sneered back at Roland's insult, and replied, "Have you forgotten? Ordeal of a Traveler activates each time you attack, so against your Monsters I'll at the very least avoid some damage and cut down the number of Monsters on your field. You only know what one card in my hand is, and I have three others in addition to it."
"Well, I only need to know what one card in your hand is," Roland replied with a smirk, "for this card to work! I activate Spy Guesswork! If I can name one card in your hand, you automatically discard your hand and I draw cards equal to half the number you discarded! So I declare that one of the cards in your hand is Criosphinx!"
Tehuti gasped as an image of a man wearing a black overcoat and hat appeared, and snatched away all four cards in his hand. Then Roland drew two cards, and continued his turn. "Since your Ordeal of a Traveler can't activate if there are no cards in your hand, you're defenseless! Celtic Guardian, attack his facedown Stealth Bird!" The elf nodded in response, and charged forward with its sword raised before bringing the steel weapon down on the set monster, which flashed before revealing the large bird. The sword continued its downward path, neatly cleaving through the bird and leaving Tehuti's field clear of Monsters. "Now I attack directly! Go, Marauding Captain and Familiar Knight!" Roland's two remaining Monsters were already running before he finished his sentence, swords held ready to deliver a two-pronged assault to Tehuti. The large man quickly dug out the urn in his robes and uncapped it, forcing the sand within to emerge from it and block each of the blades mere inches from his body. However, while he was physically safe, his Life Points still took a large hit (Tehuti LP: 400). Grinning, Roland set one more card into his Duel Disk before ending his turn.
Bakura took a few moments to go back over what he had so far seen of the duel, and was not pleased with his conclusion. 'So far the kid's made some good moves with some generally sub-par cards. He's even got the glutton virtually top-decking now. But…Tehuti's strategy so far has been quite impressive. I don't think Roland will be able to keep up much longer…'
Tehuti angrily drew a card, determined to make his opponent pay for the immense amount of damage he had just dealt. He immediately played his drawn card, and suddenly Roland's Marauding Captain vanished (Celtic Guardian: 1800/1200, Familiar Knight: 1600/1400). Before the boy could protest, Tehuti explained, "My Spell card, Bounce, immediately returns one card on the field to its owner's hand. So I used its effect on Marauding Captain. Of course, Impound now lets me draw one card," he did so, and grinned as he saw what it was. "I play Sphinx Revival, which summons one Monster with "Sphinx" in its title from my graveyard! So, return to me, Hieracosphinx (2400/1200)!" The bird-lion hybrid burst up from the ground in a surge of sand, and screeched a challenge to the sky. "Hieracosphinx, attack Celtic Guardian!" The beast swept forward, reaching towards the weaker elf with its large claws poised to strike.
"I activate my Trap!" called Roland, and as the set card flipped up, his Familiar Knight leapt in front of the Celtic Guardian, standing strong between he and the swooping sphinx. "Selfless Sacrifice negates your attack, then redirects it to one Monster on my field. If that Monster is destroyed, I take no Battle damage, but instead gain 300 Life Points for each of the destroyed Monster's levels!" The Hieracosphinx's claws dug into the Knight, ripping him limb from limb and spilling blood everywhere (Roland LP: 4000). "On top of that, Familiar Knight's effect now activates, letting each of us summon a level 4 or lower Monster from our hands. Since you don't have any cards in your hand, that'll only work for me!" He slapped a card onto his Duel Disk, and immediately a blue-skinned woman with pointed ears, long light brown hair, and wearing a green dress appeared next to the Celtic Guardian. She grasped her hands together in front of her chest, as if in prayer, and her eyes were calmly shut. "Mystical Elf (800/2000) appears in defense mode, and because she's a Spellcaster, Celtic Guardian remains at 1800 attack points."
Tehuti scowled. This was getting ridiculous! His opponent kept on summoning more and more of these weak Monsters, and he was getting frustrated. The man angrily passed the turn to Roland.
Roland smirked when he saw his draw, and wasted no time in playing out his turn. "I summon a Monster in defense mode, and set one more card facedown. That'll do it."
Bakura huffed when he realized Roland's error. 'The kid's good, but he's still making rookie mistakes. His leaving Celtic Guardian in attack mode is obviously an indication that his facedown card is a powerful Trap. With all the cards in Tehuti's deck that can return cards to players' hands, he'll waste no time in clearing that threat away.'
Tehuti had already drawn his card, and was in the process of playing it when Bakura's thoughts ended. "Gaze of the Sphinx activates when a sphinx is on my field! I may now return up to two cards on the field to their player's hand, so I target The A. Forces and your facedown card!" The Hieracosphinx's eyes glowed red for a moment, and a burst of energy shot from them into Roland's cards, sending them flying back into his hand. Celtic Guardian's strength fell back to its original level (1400/1200), and Tehuti drew two cards from Impound's effect, but frowned when he saw nothing worth playing. "Hieracosphinx, destroy the Celtic Guardian!"
Roland bit his lip as he watched helplessly. It was almost too much to watch his favorite Monster be torn apart by the bird-lion. But he was severely shocked when a bit of blood flying from his Monster's body hit his cheek…and stuck there. "What…?" The Celtic Guardian then faded away, along with the blood, and the sphinx jumped backwards as Tehuti ended his turn. But Roland was suddenly petrified 'The images are…real?' Then he remembered when Tehuti had controlled his sand to block the attacks of Roland's Monsters, and understood why. 'If I get hit…I could get seriously injured, maybe even die!' He licked his lips, nervous but determined not to let such a thing happen, and drew. He breathed a sigh of relief, 'Okay…I can do this!' "I play Lightning Vortex! By discarding Marauding Captain from my hand, I can destroy all face-up Monsters on your field!" Tehuti's eyes widened as five bolts of lightning descended from the sky, striking his field in various places. One struck his Hieracosphinx, causing it to cry out before it was blown apart. Roland grinned, and shifted the position of Mystical Elf on his Duel Disk, "I switch Mystical Elf to attack mode, and have her attack you directly for the win!" The elf opened her eyes, and began murmuring something under her breath. Her hands glowed yellow as she did so.
Suddenly, the eyes of the sphinx lying behind Tehuti glowed red, and a path of red light formed between them and the eyes of Roland's Elf. "The effect of Ordeal of a Traveler now activates," Tehuti stated, somewhat nervously, before shuffling the two cards in his hand and holding one up at random, "so make your choice!"
Roland licked his lips. 'Okay, I can do this…' "I choose Spell!"
Tehuti grinned suddenly, and flipped the card around to reveal it to be a Guardian Sphinx. "Wrong! So now your Monster returns to your hand!" The connection between the eyes of the sphinx and those of the elf pulsed for a moment, and then the latter faded away.
Roland grimaced, and picked up his Mystical Elf. "Alright, but I still haven't made my Normal Summon this turn," he placed a Monster facedown, followed by one other card behind it, "so I summon this one in defense mode and also set a card facedown before ending my turn."
Tehuti drew twice, once according to the effect of Impound, and once for beginning his turn. "Heh. Your demise begins now! I play Silent Doom, reviving the Criosphinx (1200/2400) from my graveyard in defense mode!" The new sphinx's body was very similar to that of the Hieracosphinx, however its wings had green feathers and its fur was a darker shade of brown. Besides that, it did not simply have a head placed upon its shoulders, but rather an entirely new torso. The upper torso was blue, muscular, and humanoid, with clawed arms and, at the top, a hairless head with ram's horns curling from the forehead.
"Nice Monster," Roland commented, "but it can't attack, so who cares?"
"You will, in just a moment," Tehuti replied with a smirk, "I play another Bounce, returning your facedown card to your hand!" Roland frowned, and picked the card up wordlessly. Tehuti drew a card, and then pointed at Roland, or more specifically, the cards in his hand. "Criosphinx's effect now activates! Because a card was returned to your hand from the field, one card in your hand will be randomly discarded!"
Roland gasped, as the Criosphinx's eyes shot a red burst of energy that struck one of the cards in his hand, then pulled it from his grip and shoved it into the graveyard slot of his Duel Disk. 'Damn…there goes The A. Forces…'
"Hieracosphinx, attack the first facedown Monster!" Once again, the beast took flight, and Roland's card flipped up to reveal a pale-skinned woman robed in black, with purple hair and a strange green eye sprouting from her forehead. The woman was summarily slaughtered, and a card ejected from Roland's Duel Disk.
"My Monster was Witch of the Black Forest (1200/1500)," the Canadian boy explained, "since she was destroyed, I added a Monster from my deck to my hand with 1500 or less defense."
Tehuti simply smirked, and drew another card, "Well, since another card was added to your hand, Impound lets me draw once again! And I set my drawn card facedown before ending my turn."
Roland drew slowly, realizing that the tables had suddenly turned on him over the last few rounds. "Okay, I better make this turn count…I set two cards facedown, followed by a Monster in defense mode."
Tehuti suddenly smirked, and motioned to his facedown card, which flipped up, "I activate another permanent Trap, Riddle of the Sphinx! When it's activated and during each of our Standby Phases, I flip a coin and you must call its result. If you guess wrong, I may choose and return one card on your field to your hand." A large, stone coin appeared, with a head on one side and nothing on the other, and flipped itself into the air.
Roland mentally cursed, and declared, "Heads!" Unfortunately, when the disc clattered loudly to the ground, there was no symbol visible on the top side. Tehuti laughed in triumph as Roland's newest set Monster returned to his hand, and he was forced to end his turn.
Tehuti drew twice, and laughed out loud once again at the cards he saw, "I'll end you here and now! But first, let's try your luck. Riddle of the Sphinx activates!"
The disc flipped into the air again, and once again Roland shouted, "Heads!" This time, he was relieved to see a face looking upwards when the disc hit the floor, meaning his field was safe from Riddle's effect.
Tehuti frowned, but just a little. Obviously, his plan hadn't depended on his Trap's effect, "I summon Royal Keeper (1600/1700) and then play Sand Storm, which flips all Monsters on the field facedown!" First to appear was the Royal Keeper, a brown zombie wearing an Egyptian headdress and bearing a rectangular sword and spear in its rotting arms. Then sand suddenly materialized in the air, and blew about rapidly. Roland was temporarily blinded, as the whirling sand was so thick that he could hardly make out anything through it. When it had cleared, both duelists' Monster zones were completely covered in five feet of sand, and no Monsters were visible. "I continue by playing Emerge From Beneath the Sands, summoning Guardian Sphinx (1200/2400) from my hand!" Tehuti's newest sphinx was almost identical to the image of his Ordeal of a Traveler, which was strange considering it was supposed to be an actual Monster. "And now for Sand Storm's second effect, which lets all Monsters affected by it be Flip Summoned afterwards!" Immediately, Tehuti's three remaining Monsters burst out of the sand again, giving him three sphinxes total plus a Zombie for further attack power. "To top that off, Royal Keeper gains 300 Attack and Defense when Flip Summoned (1900/2000)! So let's end this duel, Hieracosphinx!"
Roland bit his lip, and pressed a button on his Duel Disk. Immediately one of his set cards flipped up, revealing Waboku. "My Trap prevents you from dealing Battle Damage this turn!" Afterwards, his facedown Mystical Elf (800/2000) revealed itself, since technically Tehuti had attacked it and the attack had not been negated.
Tehuti frowned, and motioned to his Monsters. Immediately the Royal Keeper and Guardian Sphinx sunk into the sand, indicating they were facedown again, "I use my Monsters' effects to flip them facedown, meaning I can use their effects next turn. Also, in case you think about attacking them to disrupt this ability, Hieracosphinx prevents you from attacking my facedown Monsters while it's on the field. So, I end my turn."
Roland took a deep breath and drew. As the stone coin flipped into the air, he simply said, "Heads," once again. And just as before, the coin came up heads. He smirked, and played the card he had drawn, "Now, Pot of Greed lets me draw two cards!" He quickly flicked them off of his deck, and was pleased with the result. It seemed he was finally building up momentum again. "I play Mystical Space Typhoon, destroying Riddle of the Sphinx!" Tehuti snarled as the stone disc was surrounded by a cyclone, which ripped it apart. "Next I'll just set a Monster in defense and another card facedown."
Tehuti suddenly chose that moment to chuckle. Roland raised an eyebrow, confused as to what the man found so confusing. "Idiot, just because you've gotten rid of Riddle of the Sphinx doesn't mean I don't have other methods of clearing your field!" He snapped a card off the top of his deck, and pointed at the area of sand where his Guardian Sphinx was buried. "Emerge!" he shouted, and the immense statue rose from the ground, kicking up a large wave of sand that suddenly catapulted both of Roland's Monsters into the air. "When Guardian Sphinx is Flip Summoned, all of your Monsters are sent back to your hand!"
Roland smirked back at Tehuti, and suddenly his facedown card flipped up. "Yeah, I know," he shot back, "that's why I set Soldiers of the Wood. See, when you summon a Monster, I can activate this Trap to immediately summon a level 4 or lower Earth-attribute Monster from my hand." He slapped one of the two Monsters that had returned to his hand back onto his Duel Disk, "So now, say hello to Retrained Celtic Guardian (1400/1200)!" As he played the Monster, an elf identical to Celtic Guardian except for a faint red aura surrounding him appeared, crouching with his sword held upward to defend himself.
"That's easily taken care of," stated Tehuti, motioning towards his remaining Monster, "Royal Keeper (1900/2000), emerge and destroy that weakling!" The zombie reared up out of the ground and made a lumbering charge towards the elf. It jabbed with its spear, straight towards the weaker Monster's abdomen, and…The Retrained Celtic Guardian deflected the piercing weapon with his sword. "What?"
Roland smirked, "Retrained Celtic Guardian can't be destroyed by a Monster with 1900 or more Attack Points. Looks like your Royal Keeper's just a bit too strong, huh?"
Tehuti scowled, then took a few moments to think the situation over. Finally, he reached down to flip his Royal Keeper and Hieracosphinx facedown, "I flip my Monsters into defense mode, then play Poison of the Old Man to gain 1200 Life Points (Tehuti LP: 1600). End turn."
"Okay, let's go!" shouted Roland, flipping up his drawn card, "I play Life-Slashing Treasure, which lets me draw until I hold five cards right now, but in five turns I'll have to discard my hand!" He drew his new hand with gusto, but a look of concern crossed his face. 'Okay, for this to work I have to hope he gets the timing just right…But for now, I'll do what I can to hurt him. Too bad he played Poison, or I could kill him right here. Oh well…' "I play Heavy Storm!" An immense twister roared onto the field, blowing away the sand covering it and also decimating Tehuti's Impound and Ordeal of a Traveler. As soon as it vanished, Roland continued, "I then switch Retrained Celtic Guardian to attack mode and then play Pump Up, doubling his attack for the turn (2800/1200)! Retrained Celtic Guardian, destroy Hieracosphinx!" As the words left Roland's mouth, his elf charged, roaring an immense battle cry that stung against Tehuti's eardrums. Then he took a might leap and brought his sword down on the Hieracosphinx's neck, cleaving it off and releasing a torrent of blood across the field (Tehuti LP: 1200). Roland smiled at his small victory, and set two cards facedown, "That ends my turn (Retrained Celtic Guardian: 1400/1200)."
Tehuti's mouth twitched angrily, and he yanked a card from his deck before shouting, "I have had enough! Just die already! Emerge, Guardian Sphinx!" The Sphinx appeared once more, releasing a shockwave that surged towards Roland's Warrior…and then fizzled and vanished.
"Skill Drain removes all Monster effects while on the field at a cost of 1000 of my Life Points (Roland LP: 2000)," Roland explained, motioning to his now face-up Trap.
Tehuti quivered for a moment…and then smiled. "That means your Retrained Celtic Guardian is now vulnerable, heh…"
"Does it?" Roland questioned innocently, "Oh, then I better get rid of Skill Drain. I activate Dust Tornado, destroying my own Trap."
Tehuti quivered again, and burst in a fit of rage, "JUST DIE, YOU LITTLE FUCKING PUNK! EMERGE AND ATTACK, ROYAL KEEPER (1900/2000)!" The Zombie burst into existence once again, and then lumbered towards the Retrained Celtic Guardian and shoved its spear forward. The blade caught the elf in his shoulder, and while he managed to survive and evade any further attacks, Roland still lost Life Points (Roland LP: 1500). Then Tehuti flipped his Guardian Sphinx and Royal Keeper facedown, set another card facedown, and ended his turn. That left him with three defending Monsters and a facedown card to Roland's lone Retrained Celtic Guardian.
Roland drew, and smirked at what he saw. "I play Compensation of Debt, which lets me remove a Monster in my graveyard from play to draw three cards!" He did so, slipping his Familiar Knight into a pocket in his over shirt and slipping three new ones from his deck into his hand, giving him four total. "Alright, time to brighten up the situation. I play Swords of Revealing Light, which not only prevents you from attacking for the next three turns, but also flips up all your facedown Monsters!" Twenty blades of pure light descended from the sky, surrounding Tehuti's field and forcing his two set Monsters to flip up. And because neither were Flip Summoned, neither effect activated (Royal Keeper: 1600/1700).
"And now," continued Roland, slipping a second card into his Duel Disk, "time to go on the offensive! I equip Retrained Celtic Guardian with Elven Blade, which increases his attack by 500 (1900/1200)! Now, Retrained Celtic Guardian, get rid of that Royal Keeper for good! Blade of Elvenkind!" His elf charged, letting out another battle cry, though this one was quieter than the last, and raised his sword, which was now glowing a brilliant white.
"I won't let that happen!" shouted Tehuti, pressing a button on his Duel Disk, "Activate facedown card!" Nothing happened.
Roland simply smirked, as the Royal Keeper was ripped apart, "The Monster equipped with Elven Blade cannot have its attack chained to. Sorry to disappoint you." He made a motion to Tehuti for him to continue.
Tehuti was fit to burst now. 'How…how has he been avoiding me so narrowly and yet so easily?' He drew, and growled before simply motioning to his Guardian Sphinx, which flipped facedown.
"My turn!" Roland declared as he drew. A glance at his card was all he needed before he declared, "In case you haven't noticed yet, I really like swords. I equip Retrained Celtic Guardian with Sword of Dragon's Soul, powering him up by 700 more Attack points (2600/1200)!" The elf released his grip on the glowing white blade with his left hand and held it out, and immediately a gold-hilted sword with a green, pronged blade appeared in the free hand. Before Roland even needed to give the order, the Retrained Celtic Guardian was running, and as Tehuti's facedown Monster was revealed to be the Guardian Sphinx, he swung both blades in an "x" pattern, cutting the stone structure's head off and causing the rest of it to crumble into pieces. "Your turn."
Tehuti drew…and sighed with relief, "Heh, your attempts were pretty good…but now my Monsters will have enough strength to defeat you!"
Bakura's eyes widened as he sensed the power suddenly emanating from Tehuti, 'It can't be…there's no way he could have it…'
Tehuti selected a card from his hand other than the one he had drawn, and played it, "Giant Trunade returns all Spells and Traps on the field to their owners' hands!"
Roland frowned as he picked up all three of his Spells, and his Retrained Celtic Guardian returned to normal (1400/1200). But even as three cards were blasted from his hand by Criosphinx, he thought to himself, 'It's okay though…I defeated two of his sphinxes, he's only got one more in play…'
Tehuti smirked, and opened up the Field zone of his Duel Disk before inserting a card into it. "I play the Seal of Orichalcos!" Instantly the green ring burst from him, encircling both duelists in its ghastly light. Roland watched in awe as the six-pointed star formed beneath him, as well as on Tehuti's forehead. "This ancient force grants my Monsters dark power, making them Dark attribute Monsters and granting them 500 additional Attack points (Criosphinx: 1700/2400)!" The same symbol that was on Tehuti's forehead appeared on the sphinx's and its already red eyes blazed with an inner power. "Now, Criosphinx, attack his Retrained Celtic Guardian!" This time Roland couldn't watch. He closed his eyes, and only just resisted covering his ears to block out the sound of ripping flesh. Blood hit his shirt and would have stained it had it remained, but instead it faded with his fallen elf's corpse (Roland LP: 1200).
When Tehuti made no other declarations, Roland opened his eyes and drew. "I play The Warrior Returning Alive," he announced, "so I pick up a Warrior from my graveyard. Then I re-summon Retrained Celtic Guardian (1400/1200)." The elf appeared once again, gripping his blade with all the more determination to emerge from this battle victorious. "I then equip him with Sword of Dragon's Soul once more." The Guardian's broadsword vanished, replaced by the green blade, which increased his strength (2100/1200). "Unfortunately, Criosphinx discarded both of the other Spells I played. So all I can do is end my turn."
Tehuti frowned, disappointed that Roland had not attacked. Then again, the boy knew that Tehuti's facedown card was a Trap that could negate his attack. The large man drew, and stated, "I play Shallow Grave, letting both of us summon a Monster from our graveyards in facedown defense mode." Roland nodded, and a horizontal card appeared beside each of their Monsters, facedown. "I then switch my Criosphinx to defense mode, and end my turn."
Roland drew, and frowned. 'Nothing useful…I just have to hope this will hold him off long enough…' He held up his drawn card, stating, "I play Heat Wave, which will negate all Monster effects until my next Standby Phase."
Tehuti frowned at this declaration. 'That means my facedown Guardian Sphinx can't clear his field next turn…but at the same time, he's leaving his Retrained Celtic Guardian vulnerable…'
"I then sacrifice my facedown Monster," Roland continued, as the card vanished, "to summon Masked Swordsman (2500/1400)." The new Warrior wore blue clothing over his whole body, and bore a silver-bladed sword. He also had a chest plate, gauntlets, boots, and a helmet, all purple. The helmet covered his whole head, save a small visor through which his eyes were not visible. "Lastly, I switch Retrained Guardian to defense mode, and end my turn." The elf crouched down next to the larger, more powerful Swordsman. Even though it had a decently high attack strength, Roland was apparently not too confident that his elf would be able to stand against Tehuti's Monsters next turn.
Tehuti was very pleased with his next card, and played it immediately, "Tomb Raid lets me draw two cards for every sphinx in my graveyard!" he shouted, slipping another two cards into his hand. He chuckled to himself, then played one of them, "Sphinx Revival now summons that single sphinx in my graveyard! Emerge and attack his Retrained Celtic Guardian, Hieracosphinx (2400/1200) (2900/1200)!" Roland closed his eyes again, unable to watch. It was painful for him to constantly send out the Warrior to die…but he had little choice. Blood splattered all over him, then faded away. He felt the elf's pain…he heard its cries…he wanted to stop them… "Take your turn so I can end this, you little annoyance!"
Roland opened his eyes, and glared at Tehuti with all of his hatred. "You think you will win?" he asked, his voice sharp as the swords his cards bore.
Tehuti chuckled. "It's not a matter of thinking, it's a matter of knowing. Don't you remember?" he inquired, "This will be your fifth turn after playing Life-Slashing Treasure! You'll discard your hand, then lose!"
Roland wordlessly drew a card, and a small guillotine appeared in mid-air over his hand. The blade dropped, slicing apart his drawn card, then faded away. Roland reached for his deck, and drew another card.
Tehuti blinked, then reacted angrily, "Hey, you bastard! You already drew for this turn!"
"Yes," Roland conceded, "but because this card was discarded from my hand…" He reached into his graveyard, gripped the top card on it, and held it up. Repayment of Losses. "I got to draw again."
Tehuti snarled, then grumbled, "Lucky bastard…"
"I switch Masked Swordsman to defense mode," Roland stated, as his Swordsman crouched down and held up its blade to ward off attacks. "Then I set a single card facedown, end turn." And that was it. His Masked Swordsman and a single card behind it against Tehuti's three sphinxes.
"I draw," Tehuti said simply, "and then Flip Summon Guardian Sphinx (1200/2400), which returns your Swordsman to your hand." The stone structure emerged once again, sending out a burst of energy that sent Masked Swordsman back into Roland's hand. "Criosphinx then discards a card from your hand at random, and since that's the only card in your hand…" The blue sphinx launched a burst of energy from its eyes, shoving the Masked Swordsman card into Roland's graveyard. And that was that. Tehuti smirked as Hieracosphinx took flight. "You put up a good struggle," Tehuti commended, "but in the end, the better duelist won." Suddenly a large pile of junk fell from the sky, cutting off Hieracosphinx's path and forcing the bird-lion to back away. "What in the world…?"
"Hey," Roland called, from behind the pile of junk, "don't say the better duelist won just yet." The junk faded away, revealing Roland and his now face-up Trap, "I haven't kicked your fat ass just yet, after all. In case you're wondering, my set card was Makeshift Barrier, which prevents all Battle Damage this turn at a cost of ten cards from the top of my deck." He reached down to his Duel Disk, and began thumbing through cards until he reached the appropriate number, then shoved all ten of them into his graveyard. "Afterwards, I draw one card for every Monster on your field in attack mode." Two more cards came off his deck, these ones going to his hand.
Tehuti frowned at this turn of events. Now Roland was not longer top-decking. "Very well then, I set a card facedown and end my turn." As Roland drew, something occurred to him, "Wait…you've used over forty cards from your deck, haven't you?"
Roland looked up from his three-card hand, and said, "What of it?"
Tehuti smirked, "That means you're getting close to decking out."
"Not quite," Roland countered, "I have exactly twelve cards left in my deck. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll take my turn. I begin by setting a Monster in defense mode."
Tehuti smirked again, and motioned to his facedown card, "Activate Compulsory Ejection Device!" The familiar spherical cannon popped into existence beneath Roland's set Monster, and hurtled it back into his hand. Then Criosphinx blasted a card from his hand into his graveyard.
Roland frowned. "Well, at least you got the Monster with Criosphinx…I set two cards facedown, and end my turn there."
Tehuti grumbled to himself in discontent for a few moments as he drew…then laughed out loud for fifteen whole seconds. "Boy…you have annoyed me to the extent that I no longer feel regret in using this against you…" One by one, he picked up all three Monsters, and discarded them into his graveyard…
'What is he doing?' was the thought that went through Bakura's and Roland's heads at the same time.
All three sphinxes vanished from Tehuti's field, bursting into large amounts of sand that fell to the ground, then swirled together into a large column of sand, which began to mold into a large, stone figure. When it was complete, all present recognized it. It was the Great Sphinx of Egypt, though this one's nose was not broken, but complete, as it had been millennia before. Then the immense building began to crack…and shattered into a million pieces, revealing a flesh-and-blood version of the sphinx with a terrifying set of teeth and piercing, intelligent eyes. "Behold," said Tehuti as the Seal of Orichalcos formed on his new sphinx's head, granting it dark power, "The Great Sphinx (4000/4000) (4500/4000)!" The Great Sphinx roared, the pure force of the sound knocking Roland onto his back. "This all-powerful creature can only be summoned by sacrificing Criosphinx, Hieracosphinx, and Guardian Sphinx from my field, but its power is well worth the cost! Now, Great Sphinx, attack him directly and finish him off!" The Great Sphinx took a single, tremendous step forward, and lowered its jaws to consume Roland whole. At the same time, one of his set cards burst into the air and vanished. "When The Great Sphinx attacks, one card on your field is returned to your hand, and that card cannot be chained!" The lunging Great Sphinx kicked up sand everywhere, filling the entire ring formed by the Seal of Orichalcos with it and blinding all present.
Bakura waited with bated breath, 'Please don't tell me he lost…' he thought desperately, 'I don't want the world to end yet, I still have to take it over!'
A voice spoke out from within the Seal, "Tell your kitty-cat it has some really bad breath." Then the sand blew away, revealing Tehuti, The Great Sphinx, and an unharmed Roland, smirking behind a spinning ring that was warding off the immense beast. "My Ring of Protection protects me from damage, so how about calling off puss-puss?"
Tehuti looked infuriated. "Act cocky if you want, you'll just be eaten on my next turn," he declared. Then he pointed at Roland's hand. "The Great Sphinx retains the effects of Criosphinx and Hieracosphinx, so discard that card from your hand."
Roland nodded, grinning, and placed the card into his graveyard. "Anything else?"
"Actually, yes," replied Tehuti, "I set a Monster facedown, and end my turn."
Roland snapped a card off of his deck, glanced at it, and placed it in his graveyard, "Card of Sanctity lets us both draw until holding six cards." He flicked another six cards off of his deck and fanned them out before scanning over them.
Tehuti also now had six cards in his hand, but was disappointed to see that none of them would be especially helpful. 'I'm also running low on cards in my deck…' he thought, 'but it doesn't matter. I have The Great Sphinx on the field, my victory is assured!'
"I set a Monster in defense and another card facedown," Roland declared, the two cards springing into existence. Then he grinned, and slipped a third card into his Duel Disk, "And now to piss you off. I equip The Great Sphinx with Ekibyo Drakmord, which will prevent it from attacking until it's destroyed on your second End Phase after I play it!" The Great Sphinx suddenly shuddered in pain, and collapsed onto its stomach. The impact caused Tehuti to lose his balance, and fall over. "Yeah, I think that'll do it for me."
"You…you…" sputtered Tehuti, "insolent son of a bitch! I'll kill you!" He very nearly ripped his next card in half, but he didn't care. "I Flip Summon Sentry Golem (1000/1800) (1500/1800)!" Roland's eyes widened as the door with limbs appeared next to the quivering Sphinx. It trudged towards his set Monster, and with a single jab of its spear knocked it back into Roland's hand. Then one of his cards glowed red, and floated into his graveyard slot.
"Oh crap…" Roland muttered as he realized he was actually going to take a hit.
" 'Oh crap,' indeed!" shouted Tehuti, "Sentry Golem, skewer him!" The door lunged towards Roland, its spear piercing straight through his chest, causing him to cry out in agony (Roland LP: 300). "What now?" yelled Tehuti in rage, as the Sentry Golem removed its spear and walked back over to his field.
"T-…Trap…card…"Roland said, trying hard to breathe, "Gift…of the…Mystical Elf…I gained… 300 Life Points…for every Monster…before you…attacked…." His body glowed white momentarily, slightly healing the wound to his torso.
"Fine, fine!" yelled Tehuti, "I don't care anymore! I flip Sentry Golem facedown and set a card facedown before ending!" The Golem vanished, replaced by a facedown card, and was followed by another facedown appearing. "Now go so I can just kill you, damn it!"
"Yeah…" Roland reached for the top card of his deck, "c'mon…" He pulled it off the stack, and as he did so a burst of sand shot up around his Ekibyo Drakmord card, shattering it.
"I activated Dust Tornado," Tehuti declared, and a smirk slowly came across his face as The Great Sphinx recovered, and stood up with a bellow. "Now I'm free to attack you with my most powerful Monster next turn!"
He laughed, but Roland paid no attention, because he had seen his own draw. He tilted his head back and let out a laugh of his own, though it was quite as powerful. Tehuti stopped laughing to look at the teen with a confused expression. "You fat bastard…" Roland said with a grin, "there is no next turn. I set two cards facedown and play Temporal Distortion." The two facedown cards appeared, then suddenly they and Tehuti's remaining set card wavered a bit, a shattered. "This destroys all Spells and Traps on the field, and lets each player draw a card for each card they lost."
Tehuti nodded, and drew a single card. 'Well,' he thought, 'he destroyed my facedown Shockwave, which would have returned all his attack-mode Monsters to hid hand when he attacked…but that doesn't really matter, since there's no way he can possibly summon a Monster stronger than The Great Sphinx…is there?' Then he realized it. Roland had just drawn the last two cards of his deck.
Roland smirked, and calmly put aside the one card in his hand besides the two he had drawn. "This is your end, Tehuti," he said, completely seriously. He placed one of the two cards into his Duel Disk, and said, "The card you discarded with The Great Sphinx's effect…one of the cards I discarded with Makeshift Barrier…" Three orbs of silver light floated out of his graveyard, and hovered above his Monster zones. "Both…" he continued, "were Celtic Guardians (1400/1200)." The orbs vanished, each replaced with one of the elven swordsman. As one, they drew their blades, which glinted in the glow of the Seal of Orichalcos. "Which means I got to summon them with Renewal of Triplets."
Tehuti let out a breath he had been holding. The ominous build-up had made him nervous. "For moment there, I thought I was in trouble," he admitted, "but now I see there's nothing to worry about. Just a few weak, effect-less Monsters…even with Brave Attack, you can't get enough power to defeat The Great Sphinx."
Roland smirked. "Fat bastard…" he stated, "I'm sick of you ripping my Monsters. Now, I'm gonna kick your Yukon-sized ass." He played the other card he had drawn, and all three of his Celtic Guardians took up stances, blades held forward. "Go, Delta Attack Formation! Because there are three Normal Monsters of the same name on my field…" he drew his own sword from his waist, and raised it into the air, "all those Monsters can attack directly!"
"No…" Tehuti murmured, eyes wide with fear.
"Celtic Guardians…" Roland commanded, eyes blazing, and he raised the sword higher, then let it drop, pointing at Tehuti, "triple direct attack!" And that was the end of it. All three elves charged, their combined battle cries sending Tehuti scrabbling against the wall of the Seal of Orichalcos, but to no avail. The elves dodged around The Great Sphinx, and as one swung their blades, cutting the large Tehuti down in a magnificent display of skill and speed (Tehuti LP: 0).
The Seal began to close around Tehuti's still form, but Roland paid him no attention. Instead, he looked at his Celtic Guardians, who had sheathed their swords and turned to face him. Roland then put away his own blade, and said to them, calmly, "I am sorry for being unable to protect you in the battle…and thank you for still coming to fight for me anyways." The three elves nodded, and then the Seal closed completely around Tehuti's body, then vanished. As it did so, the three Celtic Guardians faded away, and Roland collapsed, exhausted, to his knees. At the same time, the dark veil surrounding them lifted, revealing the cool, silent night.
Bakura walked up behind Roland, and said, simply, "You didn't do too bad."
Roland shot Bakura a look, and said, "What's that supposed to mean?"
Bakura smirked, and took the teleportation device out of his pocket. "Nothing."
Roland shrugged, and stood up. "Well, a good start to an adventure, at least…" He turned to address Bakura, "Let's go."
Bakura nodded, and placed his hand on Roland's shoulder. "By the way…" he said, before trailing off.
"What?"
"If you puke…" Bakura said, activating the device, "don't do it on me." Then there was a flash of light, and they vanished.
Author's Notes: Roland Thomson was created by Yoshimo, an aspiring author who doesn't get a very big audience. Do the guy a favor and check out his stories. Also, don't get me wrong about Canada. Canada owns. And so does hockey.
Original cards this chapter:
Cards by Me: Emerge From Beneath the Sands, Impound, Bury Beneath the Sands, Buried Greed, Sphinx Revival, Selfless Sacrifice, Gaze of the Sphinx, Riddle of the Sphinx, Sand Storm, Soldiers of the Wood, Elven Blade, Heat Wave, Makeshift Barrier, The Great Sphinx
Cards by Seeker of the Soul: Spy Guesswork, Bounce, Compensation of Debt, Temporal Distortion, Renewal of Triplets
Cards by Yoshimo: Masked Swordsman
Two of the six have been found, but danger is still everywhere. Yugi and the pharaoh successfully teleport to America and encounter the third destined defender, but are immediately met by the strangest and strongest of Todaku's followers yet. Can this new enemy's inner strength be overcome?
Next Time: Of Mice and Monsters