I'd like to start with a disclaimer.
Deviant Art is a respectable, legitimate website with responsible moderators that – usually – accepts only tasteful art and has limits as to what can be posted with Mature Content. Under no condition would ANY photograph with an unwilling model, much less one involving bondage, appear on the site. Please do not take what appears in this chapter as malicious intent towards the website.
Anyway, I'm afraid there won't be a Shadowchaser Files this time around (to say I spent a lot of time making this very important chapter perfect would be an understatement) but I promise to have one next time.
So, on with the show.
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As you might expect, we rilmani have studied the philosophies of Good and Evil extensively, and have come across some startling revelations.
As you know, fallen angels are surprisingly common. Lucifer himself was one, who fell with his whole rebellious host, taking with him Dispater, Mephistopheles, and the other original rulers of Hell who have since been deposed.
What's odd about this is, a fallen angel seems to defy logic. Angels and other celestial beings are living manifestations of Good, created via the beliefs of mortals who pursue the same philosophies. The idea that an embodiment of Good could turn to evil seems like an oxymoron. And even stranger, fallen angels are much, much more common than fiends like Tsuki who have seen the light and ascended.
Why is this true? Only the gods know. But for some reason, it seems a little different with mortals. In some cases, mortals do find evil an easier path than good, but in just as many cases, the ratio of good men turning to evil is less than the opposite.
Case in point. In the entire millennia-long history of the Shadowchasers, it had many members who were incompetent, many who had to be disciplined, and several who Jalal had no choice but to expel from the organization… But only twelve who did something so bad that they could be considered traitors to the Shadowchasers.
Now, the Determined had a history not nearly as long. They had been founded around 1880 or so. The number who had done something that could be considered treason? Zero.
Philip was about to do something that might well make him the first. A horrible mark placed upon him that at very least, would ruin five years of work.
And even so, even though the rule he was about to break was meant to prevent evil acts, he was still trying to prevent one himself.
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Chapter Twenty-Eight
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It's Still Rock and Roll to Me
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"She was here."
Dante picked up the game card on the ground in the center of the demolition site, not far from where Sofia had been grabbed. Behind him, Jeb, and Ashla – now wearing dark glasses to protect her still sensitive eyes from the sun, which had risen about two hours ago were studying the remains of the campfire and the area in general, while Opal quietly stood in the shadows in the background. Ophelia was using an odd device much like the one Voltaire had used at the farm.
"Castel the Skyblaster Musketeer," he said. "I don't know anyone else who had that card…"
"Let's not worry yet, Dante," said Ophelia. "She could have…"
Then the device started beeping loudly. Very loudly. With a red light accompanying it.
"I take it that's bad news?" asked Jeb.
"Now we can worry," said Ophelia, nodding. "A portal was opened to this spot about twelve hours ago, and seeing as there's no trace of her…"
"That's obviously the route she left through…" replied Jeb. "Okay, let's not panic yet… We don't even know where it led yet…"
"It led to Broken Reach," said a voice.
Everyone turned around as Philip pushed aside the cellophane wall and walked in.
"…and I doubt she went willingly…"
"Who are…" started Dante.
"His name is Philip Lupin," said Opal. She didn't bother coming out of the shadows as everyone turned to face him. He slowly bowed his head.
"And I think he has some explaining to do…"
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"Doesn't look very friendly, does it?" asked Drago.
I certainly did not. The factory was surrounded by a fence topped with barbed wire and razor wire, along with signs that said "KEEP OUT! TOXIC MATERIAL ON SITE! TRESPASSERS WILL BE PROSECUTED!" in Italian, French, Spanish, and English with three skull-and-crossbones symbols between the second sentence and the third.
"So the stuff they make here is poisonous?" asked Uomo.
"Not just poisonous," replied Fanciullo. "Uh, Tormento, if you would…"
The interrogator cracked his knuckles, then grabbed hold of the padlock holding the gate shut. With a swift yank, he ripped it open. Not exactly subtle, but it worked.
"Caustic too," continued Fanciullo. Tormento opened the gate, and he and Drago went in first, each pointing an assault rifle towards the main entrance. They carefully looked back and forth, then Tormento nodded.
"Powerful acids, adhesives, solvents…" continued Fanciullo. "Really dangerous stuff."
"Nitro is gonna be like a kid on Christmas morning in there…" replied Uomo. He went in next, then adjusted his goggles.
"Speaking of which," replied Fanciullo, "remember the plan… We don't want any nasty surprises this time…"
Tormento went up to the main door, then put his ear to it. He slowly tried the handle. He nodded, then opened the door, and motioned with his hand.
Then the door behind them slammed shut, and a set of portcullis slammed down across it vertically, and then a second set slammed across it horizontally.
"Well, that would be nasty surprise number one…"
Then they became aware of the terrible smell in the room they were in, the only thing evident
"What died in here?" shouted Drago. He covered his nose.
"Died in here?" added Tormento. "I smells like a hill giant shit in here!"
"I recognize it," replied Fanciullo, who was a little disgusted himself. "Skatole, and it can be found in shit. And coal tar. It stinks so bad it can be made into a malodorant."
"A what?" asked Tormento.
"Malodorant," said B.B. Hood's voice. "Like a stink bomb, but with a stench so potent, it works like a chemical weapon."
The lights went on.
They were in a large gymnasium-sized room with a concrete floor and a catwalk above them along both sides and the opposite wall. Hood was in front of them against the opposite wall, with the same cute expression, crossing her arms – not holding anything, oddly enough, not even her basket. Her small dog was at her feet, wagging its tail with just as large a smile.
"She's unarmed…" said Tormento.
"Her problem!" shouted Fanciullo. "Smoke her!"
Simultaneously, the three henchmen opened fire as the dog yelped in fright, and Bonnie… Bonnie sort of fell backwards, melting through the wall somehow…
"Hold it…" said Fanciullo. He lifted his Glock and watched as the illusion was cast aside, revealing a doorway.
"You first, Uomo, and remember the plan…"
Then came nasty surprise number two. Clearly, that was not the only exit in the room concealed by an illusion. Fanciullo found that out when he fell through one.
"Boss…" said Drago. Uomo lifted his hand. Then he waited.
"Boss…" he whispered into his collar. Some tense seconds passed.
"I'm fine…" came the reply. "Landed on my feet… She's obviously trying to separate us, so you three know what to do now…"
The three henchmen nodded to each other, and then continued through the opening in the wall.
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The four Shadowchasers looked at the iPad that Philip had brought, on which he had downloaded the three deviations, along with the discussion he'd had with the kidnapper. Jalal was watching too, in hologram form.
"These were on Deviant Art?" asked Dante. "And whoever runs that site wasn't suspicious?"
"Pfft, please Dante, have you seen that site?" asked Jeb. "Compared to some of the more extreme content this is downright tame."
"And you know so much about it because...?" asked Ophelia.
"Ahem… I plead the Fifth."
Philip nodded and pointed to it. "See that?" he said. "This barely even needs the Mature Content warning, but it does anyway, so it was seen by a moderator before it was posted. And even if it hadn't been in a private folder, it likely wouldn't look suspicious to the average viewer unless someone reported it. And if someone did that, an investigation by the moderators could take days.
"Of course, the folks holding her knew I likely wouldn't do that…"
"Where is she, Philip?" demanded Jalal, who was trying very hard to keep his temper.
"Broken Reach is the fairly large Gate Town on the Outlands that holds the most-used portal to Gehenna," he started. "It's a very large town by the standards of humans, and would be considered a town of outlaws. A place where services include the black market, murder for hire, mercenaries, and… houses of ill-repute.
"The place is run by whoever lives there with enough power to tell everyone else what to do. Currently, that would be Thingol the Mocking a sorceress – probably – who somehow has ten beholders willing to help her keep everyone there in line and act as a town watch."
"Ten beholders?" shouted Ophelia.
"Yeah, I know," replied Philip. "Ten members of a species known for hating humans and being really anti-social and egotistical, so much that seeing even two beholders cooperating is rare. But somehow, Thingol has ten, and she has an arrangement with the folks who kidnapped Sofia. And with the… creatures who rule Torch…"
"Wait, Torch…" started Jeb.
"I'll field that one…" said Opal's voice. The djinn slowly walked out of the shadows. "Torch is Broken Reach's bigger, stronger, nastier brother, the city on the other side of the portal. It's huge. And it's the best place to get contraband anywhere. They'll fence or sell anything, no matter how hot it is.
"The place is run by the yugoloths, of course. You need to get something that's illegal? They have it there. You need to fence something that's too hot to sell? You can bring it there. Expensive, yes, but most of their customers have more money than the mint."
"Slave markets…" muttered Jalal.
"Oh… yeah…" said Opal. "And that's not the only reason they sell captured or kidnapped mortal beings…"
"How do you know so much about this place?" asked Jeb.
"Djinn hate the place," replied Opal. "They're always eager to buy lamps or bottles that hold bound genies, and they rarely sell them to kind masters."
"Yugoloths are the ultimate mercenaries," grumbled Philip. "Merchants who wear sharkskin suits… They'll work for anyone, sell or buy anything, and deal with anyone and everyone, so long as they're paid, moral and ethical consequences be damned.
"Say you have two yugoloths who are low on their hierarchy who want to lay low and stay within the law. They might come to this world and go to a place where medical marijuana is legal. The more experienced one will open a clinic, and the other would open a donut shop right across the street!"
"By the love of…" said Ashla, "they'd…"
"Make a fortune…" continued Jeb.
"Actually, to them it would be considered pocket change," replied Philip, "and they'd only do it until they were tired of laying low. Then they'd go back to the big scores. They sell goods and services to both sides of the Blood War, and are one of the reasons it's kept going for eons.
"Some say they purposely try to keep it going, just to profit from it, but you didn't hear that from me. But the fact remains, Sofia is in trouble… And…"
Everyone was giving him dirty looks.
"Yeah… I know…"
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In the factory basement, a dark, cavernous place full of pipes, old girders, and empty barrels, Fanciullo carefully walked through, his special sunglasses lighting up the way.
"Lost, Mr. Cattivo?" said a husky, seductive female voice he had never heard before.
"Who's there?" he demanded.
"Someone I think you've been looking for," she purred. The lights went on up ahead and he turned to them, pointing his weapon.
"I doubt that," he said. "I came here for B.B. Hood…"
"Hood is just a hired gun," said the voice. "Maybe she does love her job a little too much, but… If you're interested in who hired her and who wants you dead, well… That's it, just follow my voice."
"Listen, I'm not in the mood for…" said Fanciullo. He stopped short as he reached the light, then shielded his eyes, taking off his shades as he did. The light suddenly got blinding.
When he could see again, he was in what looked like an arena. A weird cross between an arena and a basement storage warehouse.
"Nice, isn't it," said the female voice. "You're starting to see more about the dark secrets this place has…"
Fanciullo looked up, and saw her… What he saw on the catwalk above came as a total shock.
She was fear and desire incarnate, a caricature of one of Yugi Muto's most iconic monsters who looked as if she had taken the same path that had twisted her mentor into the infamous alter ego used by Pandora during Battle City.
Skin the texture of dark bronze spilled out of a whorish mockery of her counterpart's attire the royal purple replaced by blood red, with a plunging neckline and a skirt that almost came up to the curve of her hips. The moment she would have entered a room, the gaze of every man (and most women) would have been drawn to her in an instant. And yet...
When Fanciullo looked into her eyes he almost lost himself trying to peer deep enough into that smoldering gaze to glimpse what lay beneath the surface. Looking into her eyes was like trying to peer past the light of a fire into the darkness; and what little he could see scared him more then he cared to admit.
"Why do I get the feeling you're not just some cosplayer who took a wrong turn?" he finally said.
The parody of Dark Magician Girl let out a low husky laugh that made her chest heave up and down in a very distracting way. "Cute," she purred, "a little cliché, but still cute. Mmm, just like the rest of you. Though I have to wonder, when was the last time a woman saw you as more than just a cute little boy?"
Fanciullo's eyes narrowed as he tried to keep his body language concealed while his hand began to inch for his gun. "No wait, don't tell me," he said, snidely. "This is the part where I'm supposed to drop my pants and grovel? Who the hell are you?"
"I've been called BW a lot by colleges, associates, and acquaintances…" she said. She leaned over the railing, seductively again. "Often behind my back… I've known for a while that it stands for 'Buxom Wench'. Don't exactly like it, but seeing as I have to keep my real name a secret, maybe we should go with that, just for purposes of identification and…"
Of course, Fanciullo really could care less now, and he had gotten over the shock anyway. He aimed his Glock and fired three rounds. The odd Duel Spirit was a little surprised, but she didn't move much as the shells bounced off a glass in front of her that he hadn't noticed before.
"Bulletproof glass?" he yelled.
The Dark Magician Girl's eyes gleamed and suddenly Fanciullo screamed as his gun began to burn in his hand like a red hot poker, and as it clattered to the floor it went off forcing him to duck as the shot went wide and nearly hit him instead.
"Now, now, little boys shouldn't play with guns, someone could get hurt," she cooed wagging a finger, the whole time never moving from where she had slumped over the railing, the other hand idly twirling her staff. "Still, I'll give you credit for trying, most people are too afraid to risk a wizard's wrath."
Boy, that was pretty stupid, he thought. Never a good idea to mess with wizards…
Indeed that was a pretty useful tip. Shadowkind with magical and supernatural abilities he could handle, usually. Wizards, however, were not only powerful, they were very unpredictable.
"Where is this place?" he asked.
"You like the arena?" she asked. "This addition to the factory has been here for a while. Owners of this factory tend to hire employees on the tough side… Thugs, hooligans, ruffians, rogues, that sort of thing."
"You forgot 'scallywags'," said Fanciullo.
"They used to use this basement to blow off steam," she continued, ignoring the wisecrack. "To fight in ways that would be frowned upon in public."
"Ways that would require someone to clean blood and teeth off the floor, I imagine," mumbled Fanciullo. He had seen fight clubbing in his day, brutal matches where the loser – and often the winner – ended up a bloody mess. (Of course, he also knew of a lot of perfectly legal "mixed martial arts" tournaments that were often nearly as brutal…)
"So, if you really have so much pent up aggression, maybe what you need is a playmate?" she asked, still disregarding what he said. "Seeing as Ms. Hood is dealing with those three goons you brought with you, I know someone who's dying to see you again."
She put her fingers to her lips and gave a whistle. Fanciullo watched nervously as a door on the opposite side of the arena started to open…
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Meanwhile, Drago, Tormento, and Uomo were chasing the cloaked girl through the corridors, with Uomo purposely lagging behind this time. He was palming something small, a baseball-sized sphere wrapped in cloth.
Finally, he saw what he needed – a damper on a large air duct, with a valve. He moved to it, pushed the valve to open it, and shoved the small sphere inside. Then he continued running, leaving the damper in the open position.
"Nitro, you there?" he said softly. "I did what you said…"
In a basement below them but above the subbasement where Fanciullo was, a door marked "Authorized Personnel Only" was open, the lock having been melted by powerful acid. Inside, special computer monitors controlled the mostly automated factory, along with Nitro, who had snuck in through the loading bay (opening the door using another flask of acid), after disabling a few parts of the security system and sticking to the parts hidden by its blind spots. Not as hard as it sounded.
Now he was sitting on a swivel chair front of a large computer screen, viewing a virtual model of parts of the factory that had been constructed on a special program of his own design. Fortunately, gaining access to this computers had been much, much easier to hack into than the League of Assassins', and there were no laborers there today. Obviously someone had given them the day off, likely just to lure the boss here.
Indeed, he was like a kid on Christmas morning… Or rather he wanted to be like one. Right now, he'd have to be the sensible type of kid who wouldn't knock the tree down.
"Good," he said through a mobile headset. "You and the others know what to do… Just try not to get killed…"
"What's in that thing?" asked Drago. "What exactly are you planning to do with all these chemicals?"
"You worry about Bonnie," replied Nitro, "let me worry about the chemicals!"
As he started to type, several industrial robots and conveyor belts whirred to life in a storeroom in another part of the factory.
"Easy, Nitro…" he said to himself. "Just think of this as a video game here… Glad I'm doing this part by remote… Wouldn't want to be near all of this crud until I have to…"
Of course, it's likely nobody would; that was the reason the robots handled said 'crud' most of the time. As he directed the large machines through the virtual model, one of them lifted a canister, setting it on a conveyor belt.
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"YOU?" shouted Fanciullo, more flabbergasted than ever.
"Yo, daddy-oh!" said the man in the loud, flashy outfit, platform shoes, and oversized Afro. "Remember me?"
"Yes, Antoine, I remember you!" groaned Fanciullo, holding his forehead in his hand. "It would be kind of hard not too…"
"Well, I've been wanting to look ya up," said Antoine, giving him two thumbs up. "So I could take ya down, ya know." He stabbed the thumbs down.
"You want a rematch?" groaned Fanciullo again. "Per amor del cielo! I would think after what happened last time you'd have considered early retirement."
"I did!" replied Antoine, "but now I got the chance of a lifetime thanks to BW here!"
"And you'll do it, Mr. Cattivo," said the Spellcaster, sounding serious for a brief moment. "If you or any of your men – want any chance at all of leaving this building alive. Besides, you might want to look there…"
Fanciullo looked where she was pointing…
A security camera… Was it on? Was this being recorded? He turned around, and there was another one on the other side.
"Would be an awful shame if that got out, wouldn't it, and everyone knew you refused a duel to someone like Antoine?"
I know exactly what would happen, he thought. I'd be the laughing stock of the European underworld…
He turned to Antoine again. He didn't need this, but...
On second thought, he mused, his expression suddenly changing.
"You know…" he said. "I will give you a little credit for growing a spine, fellah… But that's all I'll give you. You want a rematch?"
He threw his left arm in front of him, his special Duel Disk activating as he did, the metal shimmering in the dim light.
"…I've really been wanting to blow off some steam lately! You're on!"
"Groovy!" exclaimed Antoine. He lifted his arm and his Disk – a much different one than the one Fanciullo was familiar with – activated. It was the same gear-like clockwork model that several of the Shadowchasers had seen, but none of Fanciullo's gang had seen it yet.
(Fanciullo: 8,000) - - - - - - - - - (Antoine: 8,000)
"Now play nice, children," said BW in a nagging tone.
"No sweat, hunny, I'll just…" he started.
"Antoine, darling," she interrupted, "has anyone ever told you what happened to the last man who called me 'hunny' or 'doll' or whatever you might think is flattering to a woman?"
"Uh not… really…" Antione said, nervously.
"That's right, and you know why?" She leaned in her voice dropping to almost a whisper as her expression suddenly turned venomous. "Because they never found his remains."
Antoine gulped, and made his first draw. Fanciullo couldn't help but smile a little.
"First I'll… throw out Symphonic Warrior Piaano," he said.
As he played the card music – piano music, naturally – started to play, a rather recognizable tune.
Beethoven's Fifth? thought the mobster. No, more like a very bad pianist trying to play Beethoven's Fifth.
A funny-looking robot that looked, for lack of a better description, like a headless torso made up of a large piano keyboard held up by two small legs resembling those of a grand piano. Its large, rubbery arms were playing its own keyboard – as best it could. (900 ATK)
"And they call me a criminal," said Fanciullo, looking at the thing. "That guy should be arrested for murdering the classics."
"Ah, heh…" said Antoine. "I'll set a facedown card and use the Field Spell, Amplifire."
As he played the card, the arena started to shake, and two huge stadium sized sound amps rose from the ground as floodlights opened above and more modern, more on-key (but much louder) music started to play. Then lasers flooded from above, creating a light show.
"The nightclub from hell…" muttered Fanciullo.
Then there was a loud shriek, and the music stopped as the amps silenced.
"Your move, chump," said Antoine, pointing to him. Fanciullo rolled his eyes, then drew, already knowing what move he was going to make.
"You know," he said. "This game has changed a lot over the years. "When it started so long ago, you were able to summon any monster of any Level directly to the field without sacrificing… Of course, back then, Effect Monsters were rare, and Summoned Skull's 2,500 Attack Points was considered incredibly high."
"What are you talking about?" asked Antoine. "You're weirding me out here!"
"The game was pretty crude back then," considered Fanciullo. "You might say, it was a child itself, one that had to learn and grow… And since I'm so fond of bringing out the 'child within', so to speak, I use the Spell Card, Ancient Rules!"
As the Spell appeared, he selected a monster from his hand. "And with it, I'll summon one of the cards from that classic decade… Bolt Escargot!"
There was a low, guttural moan and a slurping sound, and a large, slimy blue snail with a mouth full of needle-sharp teeth and spikes on its shell oozed onto the field.
It looked menacing yes… At least at first glance. (1,400 ATK)
"Honestly, Mr. Cattivo," said BW. Again, she seductively leaned on the railing. "As dedicated as some duelists are to a theme, most have limits…"
"True, it does suck wastewater," said Fanciullo, nodding, "but it still has uses. I activate Inferno Reckless Summon."
He quickly used another Spell, and a second Bolt Escargot appeared, then a third. (1,450 ATK x2) Two more pianist Symphonic Warriors appeared opposite them. (900 ATK x2)
"Now I'll sacrifice all three of them! Begone!"
The three Machines disappeared, and thunder rumbled…
"I summon Gilford the Lightning!"
With a powerful stroke, the mighty Gilford appeared, holding his sword towards the ceiling. There was a second mighty bolt, and the three Symphonic Warriors were blasted into little pieces of metal. (2,800 ATK)
"Whoa, mellow out, big guy!" shouted Antoine.
"Sorry," replied Fanciullo. "Gilford doesn't do mellow…"
The Warrior swung his blade and lightning crashed towards the out of touch Duelist. A scream echoed through the factory…
(F: 8,000) - - - - - - - - - (A: 5,200)
For the first time, the Duel Spirit looked angry. "Get up, you weakling!" she shouted.
Antoine coughed, then reached for his shades, which had fallen off.
"I'm okay," he gasped. "I'm cool… Cool beans, kitten, I just gotta…"
"Should I describe what happened to that man they couldn't find?" she interrupted, with such a stern look that he fell over again.
"What a surprise," mumbled Fanciullo. "She treats you guys like dirt and you take it. How these folks even manage to find people to work for them, I'll never know…"
"Well, see, that's the thing," said Antoine. He finally managed to stand up. "I just gotta do the boss-lady her a solid, and…"
"Antoine, quiet!" interrupted BW. "Just do your part of the job if you want your end of it."
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"Uh, she can breathe in that thing, right?" asked Ashla. She and Ophelia were studying the pictures on the iPad while Dante was reading the saved IM conversation.
"Don't worry, she's alive," replied Philip, "and she's safe for now. These creatures aren't wasteful, and for the moment, they know a live hostage is worth far more to them than a corpse."
"What's with the ruby pendant?" asked Ophelia. "Is it magic?"
Philip nodded. "It's not ruby, it's Elysium red crystal, the same stuff the sarcophagus is made of."
He noticed everyone was looking at him, so he went on. "Okay, Elysium crystals were discovered by the stewards of Mount Celestia, and they invented this unique restraint using them. You see…"
"Mount Celestia?" exclaimed Jeb. He stood up. "As in angels? They're behind this?"
"Ugh, no," said Philip, throwing his arms up. "They invented it, but ever since they did, a lot of other folks learned how to make them."
"Continue, Mr. Lupin," said Jalal. Jeb sat back down.
"Okay, now where was I…" said Philip. "Right… You probably know how elemental powers work on a system of conflict and dominance."
He pulled four cards from his jacket pocket and set them on a cinderblock in front of him. The Rock Spirit, Aqua Spirit, Spirit of Flames, and Garuda the Wind Spirit.
"Each elemental force dominates another, but in turn, is dominated by another one. Like rock, paper, scissors, but with four components. Earth swallows water, water quenches fire, fire quells wind, and wind erodes Earth.
"Now, as you also know, every mortal being's very soul has a dominant element, one that defines him, makes him the type of person he is…"
"Indeed," replied Jalal. "The Ironhand dwarves who forge the special weapons we use take that into account whenever they custom-build one, so that the element matches the user."
"Well, the Elysium Sarcophagus does the opposite," said Philip. His voice had taken a sad tone all of a sudden. "With the sarcophagus made of the element that opposes that of the prisoner, along with an enchanted piece of it worn by the prisoner, a pendant in this case, the victim is kept sedated and weakened, with any meta-biological, psionic, or supernatural powers neutralized.
"Sofia is Wind, that particular coffin is Fire… It's very, very doubtful she could ever free herself on her own.
"There are even rumors of restraints that can do… other things besides restrain."
Nobody said anything for a few minutes. Then Jeb changed the subject:
"Have you considered simply giving them this gear-thing?"
"I intend to give it to them," said Philip, his voice getting weaker, "but you don't know how these guys operate. They just love abusing loopholes. He said he'd let her go. He didn't say alive. Or in one piece.
"This guy made it as hard for me as possible… He's smart, and he's well-prepared. Almost every possible solution is one where I'd come out worse off, and in many, Sofia would take the brunt of it…"
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In another part of the factory, Fanciullo's three enforcers turned a corner and saw Hood's little dog running from them, yelping in fright towards a metal door at the end of a corridor that was wide open.
They followed it into a very large room where the stench was much worse. Or rather, they were above a large room full of large vats of chemicals being mixed by various machines while industrial robots unloaded metal containers from conveyor belts. Whether this was because of legitimate factory work of something Nitro was doing, they had no idea, but what concerned them most was the layout of the upper part of the room they were in. They were standing on a catwalk that was facing another on the far end of the room, with three bridges connecting it; the three bridges were intersected by a fourth bridge.
"How much of their budget do you think they set aside to bribe the inspectors?" asked Tormento.
Meanwhile the dog was running across the central bridge yipping in panic, while its master – who remarkably, still looked unarmed – was urging it to come.
"It's okay, Harry, it's okay," said Hood, in a soothing voice.
"Yeah, right," said Tormento. Hood picked up the dog and looked at them as they aimed their weapons. "We ain't buying this 'timid little girl' thing, and we've got ya outnumbered now."
"And your little dog too!" exclaimed Drago.
Dead silence.
"I always wanted to say that…" he said, then he aimed at the assassin. Bonnie let Harry down…
They came out of nowhere; the three assassins had no idea how they could have entered, especially since each stood more than two feet taller than Hood did; two musclemen wearing green laborer's clothing and cloaks, one with a trimmed beard and mustache with a slouch hat, the other with just a mustache and a helmet, and both armed with Tommy guns.
Even worse, as they appeared, Bonnie not only somehow got ahold of her basket, but had been able to take a similar weapon from it.
"Shit…" said Drago.
"Ash them!" ordered B.B. Hood.
Three sub-machine guns opened fire…
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
"What the hell is goin' on up there?" shouted Antoine. "Sounds like they're havin' a big party an' the fuzz are raiding it!"
"Keep dueling," ordered BW. "You mess up, you're going to be even deader than Disco is."
"Uh, yeah… ma'am…" He turned back to Fanciullo, who was impatiently tapping his foot.
"My move, Daddy-O," he said, as he drew. "Oh, yeah! I'm setting this monster, then playing the One for One Spell Card." The reversed card, then the Spell appeared. "So I'll chuck this guy…" He discarded one card. "…and bring out Darksea Rescue in Defense Mode!"
With an ominous moaning, a very large raft was seemingly rowed out in front of Antoine while hovering in midair, oared by two hooded, cloaked figures who looked disturbingly like Klansmen, with a macabre cargo of three corpses. (0 DEF)
"From my hand," exclaimed Fanciullo, as he discarded one of his cards, "I discard Maxx C! Now I get to draw once, and again every time you Special Summon this turn."
Antoine hesitated as his foe drew. "Uh…" he said.
"Keep playing, stupid," ordered BW.
"Right, right…" continued Antione. "I'm using another Spell Card, Machine Reproduction." As the card appeared, so did two more of the creepy-looking rafts.
"And, uh, that's all, I… guess…"
He's clearly more nervous than he let on, thought Fanciullo. He drew, and looked at the sinister Dark Magician Girl. Yeah, kind of obvious why… I'd hate to meet a lady like that in a dark alley.
Okay, no idea why he didn't try to Synchro Summon with those rafts, but I'd better sink a couple of them before he does.
"I use the Equip Spell, Symbol of Heritage," he announced. "Because I have three Bolt Escargots in my Graveyard, I can summon one by boosting it with this card."
A weird-looking symbol that seemed to be one of the group of heraldic crests that included the ones on Monster Reborn and Monster Reincarnation. Bolt Escargot rose up once more. (1,400 ATK)
"Then I'll sacrifice it to summon Silent Swordsman LV5!"
Antione's expression changed for the worse as the snail disappeared and yet another intimidating Warrior with an oversized sword took its place. (2,300 ATK)
"Antione…" grumbled BW.
"Eh… Oh…" said the Disco man. "I activate Gift of the Mystical Elf!" His Trap flipped up, and the blue-skinned elf appeared behind him, praying and chanting. "Now I gain three Cs worth of Life Points for every monster there is, and that's 1,800 right there."
(F: 8,000) - - - - - - - - - - (A: 7,000)
Then Silent Swordsman drove his sword into one of the three rafts, causing it to burst like a mere balloon. Gilford was about to raise his weapon to do the same – then he changed his mind, and simply gave another one a swift kick, causing it to capsize and then shatter.
Fanciullo set one of his cards, and it appeared behind Swordsman. He's got to attack directly to evolve, he thought, but hopefully, that won't be a problem…
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
B.B. Hood couldn't believe it.
Missed. She and her two "assistants" had missed three targets standing close together less than two-hundred feet away, giving Fanciullo's three henchmen time to run and take cover behind a large stack of steel girders. Even worse, now Drago and Tormento were returning fire over it.
"You morons!" shouted the one in the helmet. "Can't you shoot strait?"
"I'm a moron?" replied the one in the slouch hat. "I don't see you aiming better!"
"Shut up you two, you're both morons!" yelled Hood, who was annoyed herself, "and I'm not paying you to talk!"
"So sad when good friends argue…" said Drago. He ducked down and took another clip from his coat.
"Nitro, you there?" asked Uomo. "Just out of curiosity, how did they miss? I thought we were dead meat."
In the control room, Nitro chuckled and looked at a flash drive.
"Like I said, we gotta use the surroundings," he said into the headset. "And you can thank good old Tranello for this. He downloaded this Technomage – designed Cloak of Displacement program which I downloaded into the factory's computer.
"Simply put, I was able to use a mild illusion on the lights in that wing of the factory so that when Hood and her goons try to shoot you, they'll perceive you five feet away from where you actually are.
"Of course, Hood benefits from it too, but not nearly as much. The bright colors she's wearing dilutes the spell, meaning the difference is only about two feet."
"Nasty," said Uomo. "And I take it bright green isn't too good either…"
Meanwhile, Hood and her two helpers stopped shooting. "John, right," she said. "Arthur, left…"
They started to cross the bridge towards them. Uomo lifted his hand, and the other two stopped shooting.
Nitro, meanwhile, watched a screen where chemicals were mixing in a two vats where gauges was slowly rising.
They say a watched pot never boils, he thought, but I have to watch these… The timing has to be just right…
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
"Here are the choices I have," said Philip. "None are very good, but he knew this was a no-win situation for me…
"I could try to rescue her from Broken Reach, but trying to outsmart, sneak past, or heavens forbid, outfight ten beholders would be suicide. They're even said to have clever ways to use the powers of their eyes as a team, and one can only assume that's true… Nobody knows of any other beholders cooperating."
Jalal simply nodded. "Go on," he said.
"I could meet him and try to just give him the cog," continued Philip, "but I doubt Sofia – and myself – would escape unharmed. I could try to challenge him for her, but I can't fight him alone, and if a duel were to start, it would obviously be a Shadow Duel…"
He stopped to take his deck from the pouch on his deck.
"I might defeat him, but I'd lose Sofia. I can't save her from that thing because I'm Wind too; not even Air Fortress Ziggurat could crack it.
"I couldn't count on my… own group for help. My only recourse… Was to get help from a third party."
"Now just a minute here, Mr. Lupin," said Jalal. "If you think…"
"Mr. Stormbringer, please, I promise," he begged, "I'll tell you everything when she's safe."
THAT did it. Now he had really crossed the line. The next time Viola saw him she would kill him. He only hoped he could keep that promise before it happened.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
"Here goes!" said Antoine, making a half spin as he drew.
"I Flip Summon Symphonic Warrior Sizerrs!"
The card flipped, and an electronic keytar amplifier with the speakers and buttons arranged into a smiling, face, its long, rubbery arms holding its own keytar, appeared to the sound of digital-sounding – but still rather tone-deaf – music. (1,200 ATK)
"By flipping this guy, I get to take any Symphonic Warrior I want from my deck," he said.
As he took the card, Fanciullo noticed that music was starting to come from the large Amplifire again, but only slightly.
"Noticed the amps, right?" asked Antione. He reshuffled, and put the deck back. "See, I turned the tunes off after I used the Field Spell, but each time a Symphonic Warrior uses its effect, I get to turn the volume up one notch."
(1,300 ATK)
"Big deal, it gained 100 points," said Fanciullo, unimpressed.
"Actually, the Field Spell gives them 100 points per Symphonic Warrior," replied Antione. "So I'll summon Symphonic Warrior Drumss."
Another weird Machine appeared, this one definitely a set of drums, with legs, and two thick metal arms (with cymbals on the elbows) holding drumsticks. It quickly started to rap the sticks on itself in a very off-key drum solo, forming a rather dreadful duet with Sizerrs. (700 ATK) Its Score changed to 900 as Sizerrs went up to 1,400.
"Next I'll use the effect of a Symphonic Warrior Piaano in my Graveyard. See, by banishing it, I can change the Type of one of my Symphonic Warriors. So I'll change Drumss from Machine to Fiend.
"That means I can crank my amps up to two, so it becomes 200 points per Warrior."
(Symphonic Warrior Drumss: 1,100 ATK, Symphonic Warrior Sizerrs: 1,700 ATK)
That wasn't the only thing that happened. The music that Sizerrs and Drumss had been playing… It wasn't so bad now…
"Confused?" asked BW. "Let me explain, Mr. Cattivo. Antione's Synchro Monsters are powerful, and as a result, they have specific requirements in regards to what Tuners can be used. Drumss is a Tuner, but a minute ago, it was a Machine, and couldn't have summoned anything in his Extra Deck."
"Meaning those guys were… Out of tune, right?" replied Fanciullo. "Until he changed the Type. Yeah, funny…"
"Well, now that Drumss is a Fiend," said Antione, "they're playing better now, and Drumss can give my other two monsters a tune up! Drum solo time!"
Symphonic Warrior Drumss twirled its sticks, then played vigorously, continuing to do so as it leapt towards the ceiling and the amps continued to throb, with Symphonic Warrior Sizerrs and Darksea Rescue trailing. A spotlight fell in front of the Disco duelist.
(*2 *4 + *1 = *7)
"Let's hear it up!" he shouted, "for the one, the only… Chaos King Archfiend!"
Indeed, that was the Synchro that appeared in the spotlight. A gaunt Fiend with a blank face, flames rising from its shoulders, and smoky hair. (2,600 ATK)
Accidenti! Fanciullo thought, looking at it. When that thing attacks, the Attack and Defense Scores of all monsters switch, and neither of my two guys are all-too good at defending…
"Let's kick it!" shouted Antione.
The speakers started throbbing again, as Chaos King Archfiend looked at Gilford the Lightning with a rather primal stare. Gilford lifted his sword even as a familiar song started to play:
"Now I gotta cut loose… Cut loose… Kick off your Sunday shoes…"
And it did cut loose, charging with a stream of fire in its wake, as Gilford's Scores switched. (1,400 ATK) Fanciullo covered his face with his sleeve as flames enveloped both monsters…
Both he and Silent Swordsman looked darkly at Antione as the Archfiend skidded back to the opposite side. The lyrics stopped, but the amps continued to play at the low setting.
(F: 6,800) - - - - - - - - - - (A: 7,000)
"You the man, Chaos King!" laughed Antoine. Then he grinned and played another card, and it set behind him. "Your move, big man."
"Okay, 'dude'," said Fanciullo, sarcastically. "Assuming that word means anything to you…" he made a draw, and then rubbed his chin for a minute.
"By all means, take as long as you like," said BW, softly.
The mob boss glanced upward towards the upper floors, where he assumed the others were dealing with B.B. Hood. He didn't know what was going on up there, but he doubted it was good.
"Level Up!" he exclaimed.
Indeed, that was the name of the Spell Card he used. Silent Swordsman grew a head taller, his overcoat becoming longer, his sword becoming much longer, and his helmet becoming fancier as he evolved into his Level 7 form. (2,800 ATK)
"Attack Chaos King Archfiend!" he ordered. "Severing Slash!"
Silent Swordsman lifted the huge weapon, seemingly light as a feather in his hands.
"I activate the Trap Card, Rocket Fist!" replied Antione. His Trap Card lifted up, and a robotic, armored hand appeared on Chaos King Archfiend's right hand. (3,400 ATK)
"Give that putz a shellacking, Chaos King!"
Indeed, all Silent Swordsman got when he tried to use his sword was a haymaker to the chin. To Fanciullo's incredible shock, Silent Swordsman was blasted to little bits, his sword falling to the ground in two pieces before it shattered too.
(F: 6,200) - - - - - - - - - - (A: 7,000)
The mob boss shrugged, then took one of his remaining two cards. "I'll use Level Modulation now. I'm sure you know how this one works, right?"
Antione nodded, and made two draws as Silent Swordsman LV7 appeared again. (2,800 ATK)
"Next, the Trap Card, Jar of Avarice," he said, as he activated his facedown card.
"Hold on, hold on there, Rah-Rah," said Antoine. He looked over his shades. "Since when was Pot of Avarice a Trap Card?"
"Not pot, jar," replied Fanciullo. Indeed, the odd vessel that appeared looked like the Jar of Greed, but squatter, and with Pot of Avarice's sillier face, complete with colored, glass teeth.
"With this version, I return five cards – of any type – to my deck, then reshuffle, and draw once," he explained.
As he said, he took Silent Swordsman LV5, Ancient Rules, Inferno Reckless Summon, Level Up, and Level Modulation from his Disk, then slipped the five cards back into his deck. The auto-shuffler rearranged it, and he made a draw.
Then he took both his cards, set them, and then nodded to his opponent.
Rocket Hand has another effect, he thought, but this guy couldn't be that stupid…
"Far out!" said Antione, as he drew. "I'm using Rocket Hand's second effect…"
Okay, maybe he is… thought Fanciullo.
As its name suggested, the robotic fist blasted from Chaos King Archfiend like a rocker. Silent Swordsman ran in front of Fanciullo as if to shield him; unnecessary, of course, seeing as he was the actual target.
"UGH!" grunted Fanciullo, dodging the explosion.
He looked up… His monster had been blown to pieces again, but Chaos King Archfiend wasn't in the best shape either. He was down on one knee, exhausted, and little remained of his flames except smoke. (0 ATK)
"Hope it was worth it," he said. "Now he's stuck in Attack Mode with no Attack Points at all."
"That's okay," said the Disco duelist. "He doesn't have time for an encore anyway. But he still has time to help me and another friend bring out the next guest. I summon Symphonic Warrior Basses."
As its name suggested, this Symphonic Warrior was a walking electric bass with a face, playing another electric bass – badly, much like the others were. (600 ATK) –) (800 ATK)
"I'll use this guy's effect first, which increases the Level of a Symphonic Warrior by an amount equal to that of the number of cards in my hand. I got two right now, which means Basses can increase his own Level from 2 to 4.
"Then I'll banish another Piaano from my Graveyard, and change its Type from Machine to Warrior.
"And since I used the effects of two Symphonic Warriors, my amps raise the volume to four."
Indeed, the huge speakers became slightly louder as Basses went up to an Attack Score of 1,000.
"Then… I'll use Falling Current…"
As he played the Spell Card, the music suddenly changed. Fanciullo recognized the tune… Handel's Water Music.
But it wasn't the drastic change of genre that worried him… More the fact that Symphonic Warrior Basses was playing well now. He remembered what that meant last time.
"The Spell makes a monster Level 3!" laughed Antione. "So my bass is in Tune now, and once again, Symphonic Warrior Basses can give Chaos King Archfiend a tune-up!"
"Per amor di Dio…" cursed Fanciullo, as the musical tuner soared towards the ceiling gracefully as Chaos King Archfiend followed. He only knew of one Synchro Monster that had this kind of Tuner requirement…
(*4 + *3 = *7)
"I Synchro Summon my most triumphant Samurai… Driven Daredevil!"
Indeed, it was just as Fanciullo had feared. A long-haired, disheveled man in torn clothing and wild, unkempt hair who likely hadn't shaved in a week, holding two long katana blades and a spear strapped to his back. He wore armored boots and shoulder guards, but they didn't seem to fit as well as they should. (2,400 ATK)
Fanciullo knew how powerful this Synchro was, and he also knew he was wide open for a direct attack. Still… He couldn't help but find that last comment a little funny…
"You actually said 'most triumphant'," he said. "Antione, have you suggested going into comedy? You aren't all that convincing this way."
Antione looked at him over his shades.
"How's this for convincing, prude?" he shot back. "Attack him directly! Driven Wind!"
Shit… thought Fanciullo.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
"There we go!" said Nitro.
As the gauges on the metal cauldrons he was watching on the screen moved to just the right amount, he hit the enter key, and then opened a new window on the screen, where a new code had been entered. He took hold of the mouse, pointed, and clicked.
In another part of the factory, the furnace that provided the heat to the complex – which was turned off when not in use – started to heat up. The boil on the cauldrons started to simmer down, but as the factory started to get warmer, the air in the wing where Fanciullo's other henchmen were started to take on a rather… eerie feel to it.
Speaking of which, Bonnie and her two helpers had spread out on the central bridge, with her in the exact center, Arthur to her left, and John to her right. Bullets ricocheted off of the brick stacks that the three mobsters were hiding behind, which was a barrier that clearly, the three assassins had never foreseen.
Bonnie held up her hand and they paused firing.
"No good, boss-lady," said John, "they have too much cover."
"Come out from behind there you cowards, or we're coming in after you!" demanded Bonnie.
"Yeah, we'd like to see you try it!" dared Tormento.
"Go get them," she told Arthur.
"ME?" he said. "Uh… John owes me a favor…"
John turned to him, very angry. "Look, I told you…" he started, in a threatening tone.
"Abbot and Costello live," said Drago. "By the way, I gotta congratulate you guys, you are the first machine gunners I have ever seen with outfits louder than their weapons."
"Ooh!" fumed Arthur. He and John opened fire again; then Bonnie coughed a little, then jammed a new clip into her gun.
"Just stay down!" warned Uomo. He started rummaging through his satchel…
Below, Nitro was typing on a third screen.
"Time for the secret ingredient," he said, quietly.
In a sealed vault not far from the control room, where the locked, airtight door said "DANGER! HIGHLY VOLATILE CHEMICALS!" A special industrial robot that was of superior design than the others, programmed with much steadier hands, slowly lifted a small canister the size of a mailing tube. It gently set it down on another conveyor belt.
Nitro typed a code which deactivated the seal around the vault for one minute, and the conveyor belt slowly moved the canister out of a hatch, towards the room where the large vats had been mixing.
Nitro himself grabbed his briefcase and leapt out of his chair; the last part of this little experiment he could not trust to do by remote control. Much to his regret.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
"Admit it," laughed Antoine. "You thought I was a joke last time, but now I'm serving a heaping helping of hurt right now!"
(F: 3,800) - - - - - - - - - - (A: 7,000)
Fanciullo got up. He looked at him and Determined Daredevil.
"Fine, I admit it," he said. "Think I'll order a second helping."
Antione snickered, then set both of his remaining cards in Spell Zone. "That's all for now," he said. "But I'm pretty sure Driven Daredevil can stay around for the next act."
No kidding, thought Fanciullo. He's very hard to kill the usual way. He never loses; the most an opposing monster can manage is a draw…
Well, here we go…
He drew, then played a card, causing Avatar of the Pot to appear with a loud chortle. (1,200 ATK)
"Whatcha gonna do with that square?" asked Antoine.
"I'm going to discard my Refurbished Pot of Greed," replied Fanciullo. As he discarded the card, a cracked and chipped Pot of Greed that looked like it had been broken and hastily glued back together again appeared floating next to him.
"And since it's considered to have the same name as the real Pot of Greed, Avatar's effect lets me draw thrice."
He took three cards from his deck, and used one hand to spread them out so he could look at them. Okay, he thought. This just might be enough.
"I activate the Spell Card, Card Advance," he said, using one of them. "I can use this to take the next five cards on my deck, then look at them, then put them back any way I want…"
"This guy is out of whack," said Antoine, under his breath.
"I know, and I don't like it," growled BW. "He's up to something."
Fanciullo made a few adjustments and put the cards back, then grabbed a second of the ones he had drawn. "Card Advance also lets me make a second Normal Summon this turn, so long as it's a Tribute Summon.
"So I'll sacrifice Avatar of the Pot…"
The grinning jar-genie chortled again, then disappeared in a cloud of sand.
"…then summon Taunting Haunt."
There was a sly, girlish giggle, and a slim, feminine figure appeared in the shadows. Antione was surprised by the seductive silhouette at first…
Then she slowly came out of the shadow, a young female (calling her a "girl" or "woman" just didn't seem right) jester – or maybe an erotic dancer with a jester theme. While the red and blue outfit definitely had a jester-like pattern (her boots and top were blue on the left, red on the right, with those colors switched with her shorts and hair, with stars on all the blue parts, other than her hair) it consisted of a plunging V-neck bustier with ample cleavage and ample midriff, short-shorts, and knee-high boots. She had makeup, but it was slight; a star on her right cheek, a moon on the left, and bright lipstick. Her hair was tied in very long pigtails, and she had long elf-ears.
But her skin was pale… Very pale, and her sea green eyes stood out as she looked at Antoine with a sweet smile… (1,800 ATK)
"Wow, she's…" started Antione.
"AHEM!" interrupted BW.
"Ah-heh…" he said, nervously. Taunting Haunt made a seductive pose and smiled at Driven Daredevil with a come-hither look. He grunted a little. Fanciullo simply played his last card, and it set behind her.
He nodded to Antione, and he looked at her again. He drew, fumbling a little. It was hard to take his eyes off of her.
"Uh, I…" he started. Then he covered his eyes and shook his head. Taunting Haunt giggled.
This is some sort of bogus spell she's using! he thought. Gotta get rid of her…
"Driven Daredevil, attack Taunting Haunt!"
The Samurai didn't hesitate, maybe because his will was much stronger. Still, the jester's smile never wavered, even as the katana sliced through her waist cutting her in twain.
(F: 3,200) - - - - - - - - - - (A: 7,000)
"So much for her," he said. "Phew!" He wiped his brow, then set the card he had drawn. "I think I'll uh… I'll uh…" His hand hovered over the two cards his hand now consisted of; he was still nervous, not just from Fanciullo's monster, but from BW's cold look. Even though she was looking at him from behind, he didn't have to see it to feel the fear it caused. Indeed, he was almost too afraid to turn and face her.
"Yes?" asked Fanciullo.
"I'm done!" said Antione, quickly.
"Not yet you aren't," his opponent replied. His Trap turned up and around. "This one is called Session Draw. It works like this…
"When I draw on my turn, I get two draws. If both are monsters and the same Level, I get to use them to make an Xyz Summon. If not, the second one goes to the Graveyard.
"NOW I'll draw, and like I said, twice."
He drew two times, then turned them forward. The two cards were Toy Magician and Star Drawing. Both were Level 4.
"Oh, this is sick, dude!" he moaned.
"Minor setback, Antoine," said BW. "Just being an Xyz Monster doesn't give it any advantage over Driven Daredevil."
"This one does," replied Fanciullo. The plastic wizard doll appeared first, then a young child wearing a pink dress and cape with a space helmet, holding a wand tipped with a star.
Then the Overlay Network opened behind Fanciullo and his monsters, and the two Spellcasters dissolved.
"You know how much I like toys?" said the mob boss, as a huge, hulking shape started to rise out of the shadows. "Well, this one isn't recommended for children under the age of ten. I Xyz Summon Googleheimer G. Googolplex!"
There was a haunting, chilling laugh as a… thing wheeled its way out of the shadows, a hulking giant riding a… tricycle?
Indeed it was, but said giant was like a mish-mash of toys cobbled together, a teddy bear with a Rubik's cube in place of a head (which was revolving like a turntable) and a toy monkey with cymbals on the top. (2,300 ATK)
Antoine pulled down his shades to get a better look at Fanciullo's monster, clearly having a hard time wrapping his head around it. "Man, I don't know what the cat who came up with that card was smoking when they made it, but I want some."
"Uh… yeah," interrupted Fanciullo. "I suppose. But before I show you what it can do, I can draw one more card, seeing as I used Star Drawing to summon it."
He drew, looked at the card, and then turned back to the huge Xyz.
"You see, not only does Googleheimer have an advantage over Synchros, but Rituals and Fusions too. I can get rid of an Overlay Unit, and…"
The Rubik's cube stopped turn, and the surface facing forward revealed what looked like a face, a bronze mask. It looked simple – oval with two holes for eyes and crescent shaped mouth… But the shape of the eyes… Despite or perhaps because of the simplicity, the expression made an evil smile that was chilling to look at.
The mask let out a horrible cackle, and Driven Daredevil's sword's fell to the floor with a clang, followed by his clothing and a lot of unidentifiable goo.
"On second thought," yelled Antione, "maybe that stuff's a bit too strong for my taste!"
"Oh, don't worry," said Fanciullo, "in exchange for Googleheimer destroying your monster, it has to give you one of mine…"
The Rubik's cube rotated again, and a new mask appeared that was a little more pleasant. Sure, it looked like a skull, but at least the smile seemed sort of friendly.
"Specifically, one that's Level 6 or higher, from my Graveyard."
Unfortunately for Antione, he wasn't sure that was a good thing, especially when Taunting Haunt appeared in front of him. (1,800 ATK) Again, she made the seductive pose as she casually looked over her shoulder at him.
"I… I really don't want her…" he said, lifting his hand defensively.
"Fear not…" said Fanciullo. The cube rotated again, and the mask this time wasn't creepy or friendly, but looked like a snarling, angry face with a huge mouth, and was made of rock.
"Because now that Googleheimer has its game face on, so to speak, I'm attacking! Monster Mauler!"
What happened next was bizarre. The thing's mouth opened wider, two grapples launched from it hooking Taunting Haunt around the waist. Then it slowly started to drag her towards it…
BW's expression quickly changed as she realized what was happening, and the face turned ferocious, the mouth sprouting sharp teeth. Antione covered his eyes as it drew the lady jester in…
There was a loud crunch, then a lurch, and she was devoured.
(F: 3,200) - - - - - - - - - - (A: 6,500)
"That… That's not right man!" shouted Antione.
"I know," replied Fanciullo. "That's why I'm on this side, because Googleheimer isn't finished yet."
The Rubik's cube spun around again, revealing a fourth face, this one a calm, serene, female one with its eyes closed.
"You see, because that monster was mine, I gain Life Points equal to half of Taunting Haunt's. In exchange for all this, Googleheimer himself can only attack monsters…"
"Thank God…" mumbled Antione, finally daring to look.
"Yes, a lot of folks have that reaction to its drawback," said Fanciullo. The face disappeared, and the cube slowly started rotating again. "Unfortunately, Googleheimer may be finished for this turn, but I'm not. You see, Taunting Haunt still has to use her effect, and it activates when she's destroyed by battle while my opponent is using it. She returns to the field… On my side!"
Again, the jester appeared, her grin far more devious as she looked at the Disco man… And now she was holding a large mallet. (1,800 ATK)
"And while Googleheimer can't attack directly, she sure can! After all, nothing says style like a demon jester seductress holding a hundred-pound hammer!"
"No, stay away!" screamed Antione.
Taunting Haunt squealed with glee and leapt across the room, holding the weapon over her head. Seconds before it crashed down on him, Antione was starting to have second thoughts…
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
"So what exactly are we to do?" asked Jeb.
"I think it's obvious," replied Ashla. Everyone looked at her as she lowered her sunglasses from where she had been sitting and watching.
"Rock, paper, scissors, right? If Sofia is a rock, and that coffin is the paper that covers rock, we simply have to have a scissors that cuts the paper." She punched her left palm with her right fist. "And obviously, if the coffin is enchanted by fire magic, you need to use water."
"Exactly," said Philip. "We have to confront this this guy with a either a potent source of water magic, or confront him in his Shadow Duel with powerful Water Attribute monsters. Enough exposure will break the enchantment on both the sarcophagus and the amulet, making it no more effective as a restraint than Styrofoam. If Sofia is as resourceful as I remember, she may even be able to free herself once that happens."
Ophelia looked at her Duel Disk. "Well, maybe I can…" she started.
"Wait…" said Dante. He stopped and thought for a minute. "No offense, Ophelia, but as good as your deck is, I know someone who might be much better at this…"
He turned to Jalal.
"Because if this guy is as savvy as Philip says, he may be prepared to smash scissors with his own rock and bring a deck that's a perfect counter… We need someone special…"
"Who did you have in mind?" asked Jalal.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
"No fair!" yelled Arthur. "They're usin' grenades!"
More like incendiary flares, actually, and both he and John had to duck as Uomo hurled them from his cover one after another.
"Don't hide behind me you imbeciles!" shouted Hood. Then she started coughing more, as she had for the past few minutes, only worse. John and Arthur were coughing a little too.
"Nitro?" whispered Uomo into his headset. "What in the world is going on? Is there any reason they're starting to get sick?"
Meanwhile, Nitro himself was on the main floor of that place where the chemicals had been mixing in large vats. His briefcase was opened on a metal workbench, and he was now wearing rubber gloves, a filter mask, a lab apron, and had switched his glasses for protective ones.
"That would be the round thing I told you to put in the heat vent," he replied. He grabbed hold of a winch and started to turn it. "A little alchemical mixture that about ninety-two percent of humans are allergic to. I take it Hood and her two goons are among those ninety-two percent."
"That was your big plan?" exclaimed Drago.
Nitro stood back as the chemicals from the big vats started to be piped into one smaller one. He turned, and a hatch on the wall opened.
"NO…" he replied. "That was the preamble. Now keep them busy until I give you the word. If I don't get this exactly right, I could blow us to the moon."
He slowly and carefully took the small canister from the vault out of the hatch.
"Not very reassuring," said Drago. He reloaded his rifle again. Then he coughed a little himself.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
"You know, Mr. Cattivo, it's a shame, really," said BW. She looked at him softly, her eyes looking as close to warm as they could. "I rather like your style. Our organization could have used a man like you, had things turned out different, and we hadn't ended up on opposite sides.
"I mean, all this is nothing…"
"Shut up," interrupted Fanciullo.
She stopped, not exactly offended, but surprised.
"You were about to say 'nothing personal', right?" he asked. "Normally, I might have agreed. Normally, I might have been willing to negotiate with you or whoever it is that runs this organization of yours. After all, I have nothing against your methods, as you can plainly see…"
He nodded towards Taunting Haunt.
"But Tranello was the closest thing I've had to a friend in my career, and Belsito, well, he did get on my nerves a lot, but he's always shown complete loyalty. That's rare in this business. Sometimes I wonder what I ever did to earn it…"
"Who'd have ever thought that the dreaded Fanciullo Cattivo had a soft side?" asked BW.
"Trust me, this is very personal!" shouted the mobster. "And as for 'being on opposite sides', frankly, I don't even know why we are on opposite sides. What in the name of Saint Bane the Scourger is in that book that's so goddam important?"
BW looked at him for a minute. She looked at Antione, who was getting up.
"Well, I guess there's no harm in telling you that…" she said. "But let's finish this duel first."
"You'll tell me what this big deal is if I beat your, uh, lickspittle here?" asked Fanciullo.
"He's not my lickspittle," she answered. "Not yet at least." She shrugged. "And this isn't some wager. I'll tell you either way.
"It's still your turn, if I recall."
(F: 4,100) - - - - - - - - - - (A: 4,700)
Fanciullo was a little worried about this. He didn't even know what the meaning of this duel was.
He threw both his remaining cards into his Spell Zone, and both appeared behind his two monsters, concealed and reversed.
"I'll end my turn now…" he said.
"All right!" said Antione. He made a draw, then quickly looked more confident. "All right! Copaseptic, man!"
His set card lifted, revealing the Trap Card, Graceful Revival. "First I'll use this, and summon my bass back."
As he said, Symphonic Warrior Basses appeared, again playing just as badly. (800 ATK) –) (1,300 ATK)
"Next, I'll summon Deskbot 003," he said, and played the card he had just drawn. What looked like a toy robot action figure with a Super Sentai style set of armor in yellow and black appeared, with… some odd energy weapons. The one on its left arm was a ruler, while the one on its right was a drawing compass. (500 ATK)
"His effect lets me summon Deskbot 002."
Another toy robot appeared, this one wearing green armor with a different style helmet, with a weapon shaped like a ball point pen on one arm, and a spring pen on the other. (500 ATK)
"Are those guys going to save us from the Dark Empire or help file our income tax?" asked Fanciullo, almost ready to laugh.
"Anyway…" continued Antione, "I can use Deskbot 002 to take yet another Deskbot from my deck…" Another card slid out of the center of his deck, and he pulled it free.
"But I'm not gonna use this one yet. First I'm gonna set these guys."
He set both the cards in his hand into his Spell Zone, leaving him with only the one he had searched for.
"Next, if you recall when I initiate the effect of Basses, its Level by one for each card in my hand. Then I'll banish the last Symphonic Warrior Piaano and Symphonic Warrior Drumss from my Graveyard, the first one to change Basses from Machine to Fiend, the second to change it from Wind to Dark."
Dark? thought Fanciullo. There's no Synchro that requires a Dark Fiend… But…
Then he noticed that the amps had suddenly gotten much louder over the last minute or so. And for good reason; given that Basses not had an Attack Score of 1,600, it meant that those three times he had used the effects of those Symphonic Warriors had raised the volume to the seventh intensity.
"Time to use the effect of my Field Spell!" laughed Antione. "I have to lower the volume to zero, but I get to banish one of your cards for each Symphonic Warrior I have…"
Taunting Haunt gave a little shriek of surprise as Googleheimer simply vanished.
"Your little bunny is lucky I only had one," he continued. "But she isn't gonna like it when my big star comes out… I tune together Symphonic Warrior Basses and my two Deskbots…"
As the three monsters flew towards the ceiling, a very distinctive, ominous tune started to play. Fanciullo recognized it; Black Sabbath's Iron Man. Not a very subtle way of saying that what was coming was not pleasant…
(*2 + *2 + *3 = *19)
Two roman candles burst in front of each giant amp, and Antione moved aside as a dark figure in armor and a cape stepped forward. Its eyes flashed and it produced a huge scythe. (2,800 ATK)
"Dark Highlander…" said Fanciullo. Even Taunting Haunt was frightened now.
"Oh yeah, she should be scared," replied Antoine. "Attack with Savage Reaping!"
This time it was even hard for Fanciullo to keep watching. The horrid Fiend leapt as it lifted its scythe, and sliced through Taunting Haunt, bisecting her cleanly with one cut…
(F: 3,100) - - - - - - - - - - (A: 4,700)
"Heh… Your move…"
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Nitro put the now-empty flask on a table, and then pulled a lever next to the vat where he had poured it, causing the mixture of the combined chemicals to pour out of the vat into a drain at the bottom.
He yanked the rubber gloves off, picked up his briefcase and started running… through a door that led to the west wing of the factory.
Of course, Uomo and the others were in the east wing, as was the tank where that that mixture would drain into.
As he ran, he kept an eye on his watch's second hand.
Meanwhile, at that east wing, not only were Bonnie and her two assistants coughing harder, pausing every now and then to shoot, Tormento and Drago were coughing now and then too. Even Uomo was starting to feel the effects of the allergen.
"Nitro!" he whispered into his headset. "Just what's the percentage of non-humans that are allergic to that stuff?"
No answer.
"Nitro?" he repeated.
"Shut up!" came the response. "Be ready on my signal!"
"Damn it…" said Uomo. He slammed his satchel to the ground and started rummaging through it. "Who put him in charge anyway?"
He lifted something recognizable out. This was a grenade. Not a flare like the ones he had been throwing before, but an actual military issue concussion grenade.
"Get down!" he shouted.
"We are down!" replied Tormento.
"Then stay down!"
"Hold your fire!" said Bonnie.
They stopped. Bonnie stopped to listen.
"On three," said Nitro's voice. "One… two…"
As Uomo stood up, Bonnie aimed her weapon… Then he threw…
Bonnie stopped. The explosive sailed over her… Behind her…
It landed behind the bridge, and a small sound was heard as it landed in one of the chemical vats below.
"Heh…" said Bonnie. She aimed again. "Air-ball…"
Then the explosion came. And it could be described with one word: Fire. Like a powerful backdraft in a burning building, flames filled the entire room. The three mobsters felt the incredible heat from their hiding place, and heard a scream come from Bonnie as the ignited chemicals erupted in a potent flashover…
"How do like that, assassin?" yelled Tormento. "Consider this a little preview of Hell!"
The flames started to subside. Uomo and Drago started to stand up. Their clothes were burned, but they had managed to escape serious injury.
Which was more than could be said for their foes. Judging the looks of Bonnie's two henchmen – or what was left of them – they had clearly come with no protection whatsoever. Bonnie herself had clearly used a lot of magical protection, but while it had shielded her life from the death blaze, she was on the floor, he clothes burned, groaning in pain. And now she was truly unarmed.
"She's alive…" said Dragon. He cocked his gun. "Should we fix that?"
"Remember what the boss said?" replied Uomo.
Then nodded, and he turned to Tormento. He rolled up his sleeves and walked towards her.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
The blast was heard – and felt – in the arena where the duel was taking place. Indeed, the entire factory shook. Both duelists, the Duel Spirit, and even Dark Highlander looked surprised.
"What was that?" demanded BW.
"You're asking me?" asked Fanciullo.
BW looked upward for a second. Then she turned towards Antione.
"Try to finish this quickly," she said, with a very serious and stern tone, "something has happened…"
"My move, remember?" said Fanciullo.
He drew a card, then started thinking to himself.
Okay, Fanciullo, thought the mob boss to yourself. You brought out three of your big guns already, and Antione has shrugged all three off.
It's time to face reality… His material may need serious work, but he's learned a thing or two about Duel Monsters from… from whoever she is…
"I use Magical Spring!"
A Quickplay Spell Card appeared, and the Spring of Rebirth appeared behind him with its sparkling waters cascading over the angel statue.
"Now I get to draw once for every face-up Spell and Trap you have. And you have two at the moment. Then I have to discard a card for every face-up Spell and Trap that I have…"
"And you have none," said BW. "Clever…"
"It has one other condition," said Fanciullo, as he looked at the two new cards. "Until the end of my next turn, Antione's Spells and Traps can't be destroyed nor countered."
He set one of his cards in his Spell Zone, and then waved his hand.
"No monsters?" asked Antione.
"Maybe, maybe not," replied Fanciullo. "I ended my turn…"
This might work, but only if he does what I think he will…
"My pleasure!" laughed Antione. He drew, and played the card he had searched for last turn. "I summon Deskbot 004.
This new Deskbot had red armor, and was armed to the teeth, although its weapons weren't much of an improvement over the others. Although, it seemed to specialize in coloring, having a sword and gun composed of a multi-tipped colored pens and pencils, with a quiver of paint brushes strapped on its back. Its legs were tubes of paint, its feet were paint rollers, and it had watercolor paint trays on its chest and hip armor. (500 ATK)
"And wait until you see what he can do! Dark Highlander, attack that monster!"
A nightmarish laugh came from the Fiend Synchro again, but then one of Fanciullo's Traps activated. "Afraid I'll just as soon leave that a mystery," he said. "I activate Punch-In-The-Box!"
The Trap burst, and a large jack-in-the-box appeared in front of the set monster, its crank turning and playing the familiar "Pop Goes the Weasel", but a little faster than usual. When it opened, instead of a jack, a boxing glove on a spring popped out, sailing towards Dark Highlander and punching him in the stomach. He dropped his scythe and fell on his behind with an "OOF" and a crash.
"This Trap not only stops Dark Highlander from attacking, it gets rid of your other monster."
Deskbot 004 shattered. Dark Highlander grabbed his weapon, his face angry as he stood up. (2,300 ATK)
"And as you can see, it also weakens him by 500 points."
"Bah…" said Antoine. "End…"
"All right!" exclaimed Fanciullo. "Draw!" He drew a card, and then quickly set another one in his Spell Zone.
"End…" he said.
"Uh…" said Antione. He drew. Then looked at Fanciullo, who was looking at him with a shit-eating grin.
Something is wrong here… thought BW. This is way too easy… Eh, who cares? I wouldn't be allowed to help Antione with this if I wanted to. And I really don't want to anyway. No matter how this ends, I should be able to do my part of the job.
"Dark Highlander," shouted Antione, "attack him directly!"
The demon lifted its scythe. Fanciullo looked it straight in the eye without blinking…
The monster brought it down, striking the short Shadowkind with a mighty crash…
(F: 800) - - - - - - - - - - (A: 4,700)
Fanciullo looked up. He hadn't even flinched.
"No way, man…" gasped Antione. "Who… who are you?"
Fanciullo said nothing.
"Come on, tell me!"
"I wasn't aware I was required to answer…" said Fanciullo. "From my hand, I Special Summon Tragoedia!"
With a horrid roar, an incredibly ugly non-humanoid Fiend with several long, spiked legs and gripping claws, with spurs all over its body appeared.
"That's no toy!" shouted Antione.
"Not a problem, Antione," said BW. "With only one card left in his hand, it's a lamb in lion's clothing."
(600 ATK)
Then there was a loud clank. The door behind him – the one he had come through – was kicked open.
"Boss!" yelled a familiar voice.
"Drago?" replied Fanciullo, turning around.
"Look at what we caught," said Tormento, as he and Uomo followed Drago in.
Fanciullo and his two foes were shocked at what Tormento was holding. Or rather who. Indeed, it was B.B. Hood.
Her clothing burned, bruises all over, and her hands restrained by a pair of cuffs, with Uomo keeping a gun about six inches from her head.
"Nitro's idea worked like a charm, boss," said Tormento. "He just mixed up the chemicals in the west wing of the factory, and then piped them into the vats of solvent in that room she planned the ambush in which were a, uhm… Cata… Cata…"
"Catalyst," said Uomo. "Long story short, he rigged them to explode and we got them good."
"B.B. Hood how the hell could you let this happen?" shouted the Duel Spirit. "You told me you could…"
"I was wrong, okay?" groaned the assassin. "This isn't exactly a bowl of cherries for me either!"
Uomo held the gun closer and pulled the pin down.
"I'll shut up…" moaned Hood. "Shutting up now…"
"Just give the word, boss," said Uomo.
"A minute or two Uomo," said Fanciullo. "I feel much better now, and I want to finish this duel."
"Uh…" said Antione. He looked up at BW.
"Do it," she ordered.
"Okay, okay, I end," he said.
Fanciullo drew a card. "Got it!" he said.
"First, I use Call of the Haunted…"
His Trap Card opened, and once again, Taunting Haunt reappeared. (1,800 ATK)
"Then, a second Trap Card, Give and Take. I'll use it to summon my Bolt Escargot… To your side of the field."
The second Trap opened, and the huge snail appeared next to Dark Highlander. (1,500 DEF)
"EEWW!" shouted Antione. "Gross, man! I don't want this!"
"Well, fine," replied Fanciullo. "Because Give and Take also adds Bolt Escargot's Level to the Level of one of my monsters, which means Taunting Haunt is now Level 10."
"Next, I'll use the effect of Tragoedia, and discard Silent Swordsman LV5…" He discarded one of his two cards. "To take control of one of your monsters of the same Level. Bolt Escargot, get over here!"
The slimy Thunder obeyed, moving to its master's side as quickly as it could – for a snail. Then, he used his last card.
"Finally, the Spell Card, Southern Cross, which makes Bolt Escargot the same Level as my other two monsters, 10."
As he played the card, the arena turned into a display of the night sky with an emphasis on the constellation Crux, or the Southern Cross, the southern hemisphere's equivalent of Polaris.
Still, as beautiful as it was, Antoine was almost in a panic.
"Guy looks like he's about to shit his pants," said Drago.
"I think he knows what the boss is trying to summon," added Tormento.
"Quickplay activate!" screamed Antione. "Burial from a Different Dimension!"
The spell lifted up, and Antione grabbed three cards from his jacket pocket – Symphonic Warrior Drumss and two copies of Symphonic Warrior Piaano – and fed them into his discard slot.
"Good for you," said Fanciullo, "but good luck stopping this…"
The Overlay Network opened again, and Tragoedia, Taunting Haunt, and Bolt Escargot were drawn in, one after another.
"Know what the difference is between a little kid and a big kid?" he asked, as the room started to shake. "The price of their toys! Not to mention the size. And they don't get any bigger than this…"
A huge robot landed behind him with a crash that shook the whole room.
"The Superdimensional Robot Galaxy Destroyer!" he laughed. "Just the Christmas present to get the kid who wants to grow up to be a genocidal madman with plans for world domination!"
(5,000 ATK)
"Well… Maybe not… I detach one Overlay Unit to use its effect! Galaxy Breaker!"
The huge droid started to glow with overwhelming light. Antoine struggled to hang on as his set Trap Card was atomized and the twin amps around him shattered and collapsed into a pile of junk.
He slowly looked up. Unfortunately, the robot was powering up for another blast. He braced himself again, as a pulsating beam tore through his side of the field…
Antione looked up again, and coughed. The bolt that had nuked Dark Highlander had made his hair stand on end, literally.
"Uh…" he groaned. Then he shook his head back and forth quickly.
"Antoine…" scolded BW.
"Ugh…" said the duelist. "I'm fine... What was I doing here again? Hey! Who's playing with the lights?"
"Lord, almighty…" groaned Fanciullo.
"Let's see, got up, showered, had breakfast…" he continued. Then he snapped out of it. "Oh, right! Boy, that's a…" He gulped. "That's a big one…"
(F: 800) - - - - - - - - - - (A: 2,200)
"My turn is done, Antione," said Fanciullo. "That feeling you have right now? I believe it is an acute stress response to the move I just made. Also known as 'fight or flight'.
"If I were you, I'd choose flight. And I'd recommend it. Since we have what we came for, we might not chase you. Might."
Antione stopped. He looked at Fanciullo. Then he looked at BW.
He slowly moved his shivering hand towards his deck, moving his palm over it…
Then he changed his mind, and drew a card. He took a deep breath and felt his chest.
"Think he's choosing 'fight', boss," said Drago.
"Some people never learn…" said Uomo.
"I summon a second Symphonic Warrior Basses!" cried Antione.
He played the card, and the small robot appeared. It was silent this time. It looked up at the much, much larger Machine. (600 ATK)
"Th… Then I banish Drumss again to make it Fire Attribute…"
Fanciullo twitched a little. Antione played another card.
Instant Fusion? thought Fanciullo. What's he up to?
Indeed, that's what it was. The Disco duelist's Life Points dropped to 1,200, and a monster appeared, a rather typical choice for Instant Fusion. The bare-chested man in jeans with combed up hair held back with a bandana holding an electric guitar was obviously Musician King. (1,750 ATK)
Okay… This is new…
Antione used his final card. "I use Polymerization!"
"Say what?" said Fanciullo.
Indeed, Antione was fusing the two monsters together, and as the two merged, the room darkened… And then a bonfire came from the same spot…
"What…" said Fanciullo.
"I Fusion Summon Psycho Musician – Lord of the Wasteland!" shouted Antione.
The monster that appeared… It looked like a young Gene Simmons, sort of, but with makeup that was even more extreme than usual, the stage costume replaced by armor. Not regular armor, jagged metal armor, with diabolic wings on the ankles and wrists, and two curved horns on the left shoulder guard.
The monstrous parody of the Kiss founder snarled, revealing sharp fangs… (2,500 ATK)
"What is going on, Antione?" exclaimed Fanciullo.
"Heh, you might say I… sold my soul to rock and roll… So to speak," chuckled his opponent.
"Ugh…" muttered BW. She covered her eyes with her hand and shook her head again.
"Ahem!" continued Antoine. "I use Lord of the Wasteland's effect… By banishing two of my Machines from my Graveyard, I can reduce one monster's Attack Score to zero."
"Wait…" said Fanciullo. He turned around. "Impossible…"
It was very possible, it seemed. Superdimensional Robot Galaxy Destroyer was shaking and quivering… (0 ATK)
"Attack with Thunderous Bloodfire!"
The Lord of the Wasteland lifted his hand… From the darkness above, thunder rumbled… Then lightning crashed down to his hand…
"No…" whispered Fanciullo.
Then he shouted as the lightning stuck the center of his robot, sending him tumbling backwards. There was pain, yes, but the pain to his body was nothing. He had felt worse, and it would heal…
(F: 0) - - - - - - - - - - (A: 1,200)
The far worse wound to his pride, well… That would take much longer…
"No… Way…" said Drago.
B.B. Hood snarled, and kicked him hard in the leg. As he screamed and let go of her, Uomo lifted his gun, only to get one in the groin.
At the same time, BW leapt up on the railing, then somersaulted to the floor, Tormento pointed his gun at her, but she waved her hand, and he fell over, crashing into his two partners, knocking Hood on her stomach.
"Come here!" she shouted to Hood.
Of course, she knew that Hood's hands were bound so the order was a formality. She leapt and grabbed hold of the assassin, yanked her to her feet, and half-dragged her as she ran towards the other side of the room.
"The boss is gonna kill us!" protested Hood.
"Get off of me, lard-ass!" yelled Uomo.
"Would you rather they do it?" asked BW. "Antione! Come on, stupid!"
Uomo scramble to get his weapon as a Lloyd's Beacon opened at the end of the room. BW and Hood vanished through it.
"Catch ya on the flip side, folks!" laughed Antione.
Uomo tried to aim, but Antione dove through the portal and it slammed shut. He fell back on one knee and dropped the weapon.
"Boss!" said Nitro's voice.
As he walked in, Fanciullo got up.
"You… you okay?"
"Well, I'm alive…" said Fanciullo.
He looked where the portal was.
"Exhausted, embarrassed, humiliated, and probably lacking most of my self-respect, but alive…"
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Still at the demolition site, everyone was tensely waiting. Dante was throwing cards into his hat that was set on the ground. (Not dueling cards, of course.) Philip could do little but pace.
Then Jalal's hologram appeared again.
"He can be there," he said, "and I think we have a plan…"
"Thank goodness," said Philip. "Now I just to say I'm…"
"Mr. Lupin, I do not want apologies or excuses now," said Jalal. "A Shadowchaser has been kidnapped and my priority is seeing that she is recovered, safely.
"Until then, we do this according to protocol. But rest assured, we will discuss this matter very thoroughly later."
"Yeah…" replied Philip.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
SOUTHERN CROSS (Spell Card)
Normal Spell
Image: Ten stars forming a constellation of a cross in a night sky above a tropical shore.
Effect: Select 1 face-up monster you control. Until the End Phase of the current turn, that monster's Level becomes 10.
Note: "Southern Stars" was first used in the Yu-Gi-Oh Zexal episode "An Imperfect Couple (Part 1).
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
SESSION DRAW (Trap Card)
Normal Trap
Image: A robed figure seen from above, standing in the middle of a large room with a blue and green checkerboard pattern on the floor, with two cards flying upwards in a spiraling patter above him, leaving trails of light.
Effect: During your next Draw Phase, draw 1 more card in addition to your normal draw. If you draw a monster with both your normal draw and by this effect and they have the same Level, you may Xyz Summon this turn using those 2 monsters from your hand, and may not make any other Xyz Summons this turn. If either card drawn is not a monster or the cards are monsters of dissimilar Levels, send the second card to the Graveyard.
Note: "Session Draw" was first used in the Yu-Gi-Oh Zexal episode 140
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
TAUNTING HAUNT (Monster Card)
Fiend/Light/Effect/Lvl5/1,800/1,800
Effect: If this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard while controlled by a player other than its original owner, Special Summon it to its original owner's side of the field in Attack Position.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
GOOGLEHEIMER G. GOOGOLPLEX (Monster Card)
Fiend/Earth/Xyz/Effect/Rank4/2,300/1,600
2 Level 4 monsters
Effect: This card cannot attack directly. Once per turn, you can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card to destroy 1 face-up Fusion, Ritual, or Synchro monster your opponent controls. If this card destroys an opposing monster as a result of battle while it still has Xyz materials, increase your Life Points by an amount equal to half the destroyed monster's base ATK.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
PSYCHO MUSICIAN – LORD OF THE WASTELAND (Monster Card)
Fiend/Fire/Fusion/Effect/Lvl7/2,500/1,200
"Musician King" + 1 FIRE Machine-Type Monster
Effect: Cannot be summoned except by Fusion Summon and only with the above-named Fusion Material Monsters. You can only control 1 "Psycho Musician" monster. Once per turn, you may banish 2 Machine-Type monsters from your Graveyard to reduce the ATK of an opposing monster to zero.
This card is based on a character from the comic book KISS Psycho Circus which is a copyright owned by Image Comics and Todd McFarlane Productions.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Jemorille: It was more than Philip had expected, but not as much as he'd hoped for. It was clear that the Shadowchasers didn't trust him, but then, he had barely given them a reason to.
Fanciullo's gang had finally gotten the better of B.B. Hood, but it seemed a pyrrhic victory. The assassin still lived, and the strange force behind her had proven their point, a thug who had been laughable the first time they had met defeating him the second time.
The only thing they had discovered was a new face on this conspiracy… The strange Duel Spirit who was called a Buxom Wench by allies behind her back, an insult she didn't seem to mind…
Of course, "Damned Magician Girl" wasn't much better, and that was her true title.
Jalal had a plan which, like Nitro's, involved an attempt at an out-gambit. Hopefully, it would pay off.
"Like a Rock" is next.