? - The Knight
The air inside the castle was so musty. So thick. He could barely breathe. He was weakened from fighting so many horrible creatures on his way up the fortress to find the next creature standing in his way of the next piece to save himself from the hell he was stuck in.
He drank the last of his elixir. His body was rejuvenated, but he still felt fatigued with worry and despair, weighing him down with a deadly burden. His armor clinked and clanked with each movement he made outside the door to the boss of the castle. Someone who was hellbent on keeping him stuck here. To keep him from saving the prince. There would be no help from Dante here. He had gone off to another castle to search for artifacts. What they were, he didn't say.
The knight gathered his courage and burst through the door. When he did, a heavy, shadowy, wind, struck him. Mixing with the wind was the sound of a fiendish chanting. When the wind died down, the knight lowered his arms and found himself in a rotunda lit with thousands of candles. There were figures garbed in dark torn, robes, kneeling around an alter. They were chanting something awful and held out their arms, which looked like nothing more than bone wrapped in leather.
From the alter appeared a portal; a gateway for their master. He chuckled awfully as he arose from the portal. A vile ruler from a dark plane adorned in light, black armor outlined with lavender and a ragged red cape flowed behind him.
Angmarl the Fiendish Monarch had arrived. And he was ready to do battle. Long had he heard of the knight who had stormed his castle and killed many of his fellow guardians. His power was stronger, this he knew with all his heart. He would not fall the way the others did. His treasure was not going to be taken. His burning red eyes pierced the darkness. He towered over the knight, standing eleven feet tall.
The knight felt his legs getting wobbly just looking at Angmarl's height. Did he have the strength to take on such a creature. No! He could not start doubting himself now.
He couldn't.
He closed his eyes and thought of days when the sun used to shine down on him and bring him warmth. The colors of the flowers blooming in the fields all around him. The sweet smell of the apple orchards that surrounded the dirt road to his palace. The sound of water rushing down the river where he bathed with his friend. Her silky, chestnut hair and her smile flashed before his eyes.
The knight readied his weapon and prepared for battle. Angmarl enjoyed this. He wanted the legendary knight of broken hearts to challenge him with his full potential. Otherwise, this battle was going to be very boring. He held out his hand and conjured a sword made from darkness.
The two warriors then circled each other to confirm combat. The robed worshippers made way, sulking into the darkest corners of the castle. Still, they chanted. It was as if the chant was all they knew how to say. All they knew how to do. What a pitiful existence.
Angmarl was the first to strike. The knight rolled out of the way, avoiding the massive sword, which crashed into the ground with tremendous force. The rotunda shook. Dust fell from the cracks above and the iron chandelier that hung from the center rocked back and forth. Angmarl swung his sword back and forth, striking the ground as he tried to get the knight.
He was fast, but he could tell the knight's speed was weakening with each tumble he took. The worshippers still chanted, but it sounded much livelier now. The knight could feel their words pounding down on him like a sack of bricks. It was a curse. They were helping Angmarl defeat him. Each second that passed, the knight could feel his strength waning.
He tried to conjure Curse of Dragonfire, but he could not. He was weak. Tired from all the fighting. It was taking its toll on him. For two decades he had been stuck in this horrible nightmare. There seemed to be no end to it.
Every beast he faced was worse than the last one. Each piece that he found was smaller and smaller. The so-called restoration was so excruciatingly slow. At this point, he figured that the quest was nothing more than a farce. The memories of her came back to him. The sunlight shining down on her as she disrobed by the riverbed, coaxing him to join her for a bath. Her silky skin. Her breasts and buttocks glistening with river water…her gorgeous smile. Too much
He let out a frustrated scream as he felt as though his heart exploded. He just had to see her again. And he was not about to let these...these...CREATURES stop him from seeing her. From seeing the sunlight again. He wanted to smell flowers again.
He wanted to eat food again. He wanted to drink something other than those bitter elixirs Della and Dante gave him to replenish his strength and prolong his suffering in this terrible abyss. He wanted peace! Was that too much to ask!
He ran for the worshippers and struck them down relentlessly. Angmarl stood still. He was stunned to see the knight do this. He was told that he was noble. He would never hurt anything more than the guardians.
He smiled. The world was breaking him.
And he soon accepted defeat. He would try his hardest, but he knew he was not going to win this fight.
Despair was beginning to fill the knight's dark soul. That meant he was weakening. Which meant the prince was never going to get the help he needed. Master Bakura pulled out all the stops with his plan. There was no saving him. There was no bringing him back. Even if he would fall now, he would be victorious. The knight was not leaving this world. He was doomed to fight here and suffer here forever.
The knight was then overcome with great power, unlocked by the madness he tried to keep contained. His sword was suddenly engulfed with the flames from Curse of Dragonfire. He slaughtered the last of the worshippers, who were begging for mercy.
He would not listen. They committed the sin of stopping him from achieving his goal. And now they were paying the price. Angmarl laughed at the knight for his cruel deeds. When the last of his followers were killed, the knight looked at Angmarl and charged at him. Angmarl held up his sword and blocked his attack, but at a great cost.
The blow was so powerful, the rotunda began to collapse. Soon, rays of sunlight shined through the cracks and assaulted Angmarl. To any other person, the rays of the sun would be a blessing. But for him. It was like being bathed in the fires of damnation.
He was weakening with each passing second. Steam billowed off his body. He was gurgling with agony. The knight saw his chance and slashed Angmarl's body repeatedly with his large blade. The rotunda echoed with the violent clash of steel against steel and the cracking of bone. Angmarl's body was breaking.
He fell to his knees gasping for air. The knight finally put him out of his misery and cut his head off. Angmarl's body twitched and writhed on the ground like a worm wriggling on the talons of a hawk. And then, it dissolved into nothing, leaving behind another rusty safe as the other monsters he had slain. The knight smashed it open with his fist and ripped it open. What he saw broke his heart.
The treasure inside. He held it tightly against his chest and sobbed. His body ached from the battle, but his grief and even a touch of joy forced him to ignore his discomfort. It was a flower. The computer on his gauntlet started to hum.
Restoration at…60%
The knight roared and smashed his fists on the ground. But he made sure the flower was not harmed. There it stood in his grasp of steel, fluttering back and forth as if it was caressed by a gentle breeze. A fiery portal opened behind him. He had no reason to worry, for it meant she had arrived.
"That is indeed a very sacred treasure," Della said, removing her hood. Long curls of golden hair flowed down to her chest and past her back. She was clad in a sacred, white robe with red designs on the front. A white staff with a bright crystal she held with her fingertips.
"Leave me!" the knight shouted. "You have been of no help. All these years, you have led me to nothing. Nothing but more agony. More fighting. More suffering. I want to go home. But I see now that it is no longer an option. You have filled me with false hope. Prince Yuri is set to come home at any moment. You assured me years ago we would complete this task before his eighteenth birthday. Now that time is nigh. And look at me. I feel the madness taking over."
"Your deeds have not gone to waste, Ser Knight." Della approached him and placed a hand on his pauldron. "Thanks to you, Master Yugi was able to cleanse the darkness The Witch-King Bakura used to cloud his young mind."
"But what of me?" asked the knight. "Too long have I wandered here. I...I cannot bear to throw myself into another battle. What terrible deed have I committed to condemning myself to such a fate?"
Della couldn't help but shed a tear for him. "You're already letting the darkness take over you?"
The knight stood up to release himself from her touch. "Do not lecture me about being strong. I have stayed firm for nye almost a decade now. I have nothing left. Each battle only restores Yuri for but a percentage. And each Fiend I face grows stronger. Yuri isn't getting any better and neither am I. I can't go on like this anymore, Della."
"I assure you this path is not leading you nowhere, Ser Knight. Please, stay strong. That flower in your grasp will be your greatest weapon yet."
"What do you mean?"
"She loved those flowers, didn't she?"
The knight looked away. He then stared up at the red sky. "Yes. She loved them. She always asked for me to touch her with them before we made love." He chuckled. "And if we were to have a daughter, she would name her after this flower. Nanaveal. Hope in the ancient Celtran language. But I suppose you know all about that."
Della smiled. "Yes. I do. Keep that flower close to you, Ser Knight. It just might be the key to open the doors out of this world."
The knight picked up his sword. "I hope you're right. If my next battle is just another fight for a percent. I will go no further."
Joey - Maplewood
October 1 - Year 18 4AOS
People ran from their homes and crowded along the Yellow Road to get a good look at the parade of knights and Duelists marching towards the town of Maplewood in heart of the county of Ravenhill for the upcoming Duel Monsters tournament offering a very hefty reward. They had spent weeks scouring Emboldor and beyond looking for contracts, and Joey thought a good old tourney was a great way to earn money for Yuri's expenses in the Standard Dimension.
There were many famous players heading to the fairgrounds, but none struck the people more than the Black Dragonknight of House Wheeler. Children pushed and shoved through the throng of villagers to get a good look at him. Ever since he slew the vile giant who lived in the mountains, he became a great hero to the people here. The villagers cheered and waved black and red flags fashioned from torn sheets or clips of cloth tied onto sticks to show their support for him.
"Ser Joey!"
"It's Ser Joey!"
"Look, mama, it's Ser Joey!"
Tristan, riding on a gray mare, grumbled, riding behind Joey and his black stallion adorned in Red-Eyes Black Dragon-theme chanfrons and cruppers. Joey waved from atop his horse like a conquering hero. His helmet, crested with a statue of his black dragon and a red and black plume, was tucked under the crook of his arm.
"All hail the conquering hero," he said glumly.
Duke sighed, twisting a lock of his black hair around his finger. "Let him have his moment. It's not often that he does, you know. Besides, everyone knows you as Ser Tristan the Brave. Just not around these parts."
"Or any parts," Joey vexed him.
Tristan growled. "Why you..."
"Hey, just joshin' ya, man," Joey said with a wink.
"Now, now, Tristan," Serenity said, riding up to catch up with him. "No fighting. This is supposed to be fun. Besides, I think you guys need a break from all that monster hunting."
Tristan was at a loss for words. Serenity rode atop a Golden Emboldorian Stallion, which took her ten years to breed. She wore a bodice corset, green with burgundy laces and short, white sleeves; a tan skirt, and polished leather boots with floral engravings on the side. Her saddle was even engraved with scrollwork and loaded with books, her purses, and her sword, which hung from the back. She had silk flowers in her hair and a black choker with a gold tag around her neck. The mere sight of her caused him to calm down.
"So, are we good?" she asked.
"Yyyyeah," he said.
"Is it a good idea to let Joey represent us?" Mai said from all the way in the back. Instead of a horse, she rode atop a brilliant white stag armored in silver steel. She drank the last gulp of wine from the leather sack around her hip.
"Have faith, Mai," said Serenity. "After this, we can finally head to Yugi's castle in the storm coasts and plan our next move."
"I just hope your artifact is worth all those months of monster hunting," said Duke, looking back at her from behind the black high collar of his cape.
"It will be," Serenity assured him. "When we finally give it to Yuri, no one, not even the Senate, will deny him his return. And we can finally stick it to Antilles for proposing that stupid law."
They, at last, made it to the fairgrounds, which appeared to them from over the hill. Already champions participating in the tourney set up pavilions along the wide grassy meadows. Serenity pointed out a great spot for Joey. There was a willow tree by the river, and the other participants were so busy trying to find spots closer to the Dueling Grounds that they hardly noticed it.
"Last one there pays the winner a gold crown!" shouted Joey. He kicked his stallion into a gallop. Tristan and Duke followed.
"Such, children," said Mai.
Even though Joey's horse was armored, it ran like the wind. Unknown to any of them, he had the horse's armor enchanted to make the animal run faster and have more stamina, even regain it quicker. Then again, so did Tristan and Duke's steeds. Before Serenity knew it, she saw them at the willow tree. She turned to look at their workers and servants, who trailed behind in a caravan of wagons and covered carts.
"We'll make set up my brother's pavilion down there," she called out.
"Yes, My Lady," said Jaque, the chamberlain of House Wheeler.
Serenity and Mai sped down the hill towards the willow tree. The three knights who raced ahead of them were already tackling one another playfully. Serenity stopped her horse underneath the willow tree and tied her to the trunk. She opened a sack of oats and fed her three handfuls before her servants arrived with a troth so the tired steed could refresh herself with a long drink.
"Good girl, Sunny," Serenity said, petting the mare's blonde mane. She wrapped her arms around Sunny's neck and kissed her before joining Joey and the others in setting up their command tent. With a little bit of telekinesis from their court wizard, Zoey, Joey's young and very obnoxious cousin, the command tent went up in ten minutes. The flag bearing the colors of House Wheeler flapped from the center pole. Scarlet and gold pennons flapped along the sides of the tent as well, the colors of the House where Joey's mother hailed from.
"All right, y'all!" Zoey hollered with her palm beside her mouth. "Bring 'em in."
The servants rolled their wagons toward the tent and unloaded their furniture. "I've got my own tent," she said pretentiously to her own band of servents. "We'll set it up over here."
Zoey then stood outside the tent with her knuckles to her hip like some sort of conquering hero. She had the dirty blonde hair that all the Wheelers had, tied into two long braids then went down to her waist. A splash of freckles on her face gave her a very innocent look, one that deceived many who tried to get the best of her. Her bright, sky-blue eyes were ghostly but completed her cute appearance. She wore a green and tan corset, heavy brown boots, and a tan miniskirt that barely covered her rump. She was small but not to be trifled with; for she spent a great deal of time training with Joey and the Black Luster Soldiers of Rassay when she visited Joey and Serenity during the summer after school let out for the holidays.
Serenity wanted to play with dolls and quilt with the handmaidens in the tower, but Zoey had other ambitions. She wanted to joust in the tournaments like the colorful knights she adored since she learned to walk. And she wanted to be an expert swordswoman; perhaps even be a guardian for the High King when he returned.
"Any word on Yuri?" Mai asked. She was helping herself to a bowl of strawberries covered in cold cream.
"Dinnae call 'im that!" she snapped at Mai when she referred to him by his cute nickname. "Yuri's a pansy's name. Not one fer a High King. I'll call him by his rightful name, Daveed, thank ya. And ya will do well t' refer t' him that way in me presence."
"She's definitely got that Highland fire in her," Mai whispered to Serenity.
Zoey ordered someone to pitch her tent right next to the river and then scratched her butt long and good.
"And their mannerisms," Serenity said in disgust. "But she's Princess of Glowerness, so that gives her some right to be pretentious."
"Not just that," Mai said, biting into an apple. "She's got their fighting spirit. Her schooling with the Black Luster Soldiers taught her enough to join her father in battle last summer. Jaime himself taught her."
"The Black Luster Soldier of the Evening Twilight?" Serenity gasped. "Wow. He's the one who saved Yuri from Anubis. I had almost forgotten about him."
"She put her skills to good use," Mai continued. "She and Jaimie fought back a rival clan who wanted control of the loch their castle resides by. See that axe she carries on her back?"
Serenity nodded.
"She used that to cut off the lead of the clan chieftain."
A blare of trumpets sounded off behind the camp. A large party of knights suddenly rode past the camp. Halberds and spears bearing banners of periwinkle and gold flapped over them. There must have been a hundred of them. A white and gold two-floored wheelhouse rolled in the center of the flood of periwinkle knights. It was being pulled by two Mad Sword Beast draped in bright blue armor edged in gold.
Some powerful Lord must be arriving, Joey thought. A curtain behind one of the windows to the coach was pulled aside. Joey couldn't make out who it was, but whoever was in there seemed to smile at him. The face was concealed behind the curtain again and the wheelhouse moved on.
"Oooh, aren't we impressed," Zoey said, mocking the caravan of knights with her fingers. "Yeah, go on! Flash yer bright colors. If you ken who this man is, you'd turn back right noo."
One of the knights stopped and pulled his visor up. "Show some respect, girl! This is the caravan of Jack Ganon."
"Ya think I don't know that?" she shouted. "I saw 'im whilst I visited Domino weeks ago."
"He defeated you, so I heard."
"Yer bum's oot the windae!" she shouted. "I dinnae lose to 'im! It was a draw, it was!"
"Says you, welp!" yelled another knight.
"Welp!" shouted Zoey. "I am da Princess of Loch Stormhammer! Yoo'd do well to respect me, Ser Knight."
"A princess?" said the other knight. "A Highland one at that. No wonder your manners are that of a lowly peasant. You watch yourself, girl. Say one more word about the Lord, and I'll break my foot up your royal ass!"
"HA!" shouted Zoey. "Thinking about me arse are we? Well, here you go!" She bent forward and lifted her skirt up, mooning the knights. "Come and kiss it, ya bastards!" she said, pulling her panties down. She laughed and started smacking her exposed rump.
"Oh, Goddesses!" Serenity groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. "I can't believe we're related."
Mai laughed and stepped forward, standing in front of Zoey's buttocks, wiggling in the wind. "Pardon her, good Sers," she said with a bow. "She's still young. For your trouble." She removed two pouches with gold coins from her belt and tossed them at the knights.
"Thank you, My Lady," the knights said, both recognizing Mai for her infinite beauty.
Mai turned around and kicked Zoey, knocking her forward.
"Wot was dat fer?" she shouted, yanking her underwear back up.
"For acting like such a pig!" Mai yelled. "That is no way for a princess to act. Who in the Shadows taught you to behave that way?"
Zoey jerked her thumb to the west.
Joey and Tristan had their breeches down mooning the knights as well and boasting about their success in the future.
Mai shook her head. "That stupid monkey."