Hey everyone! Happy Chinese New Year! It's the Year of the Rabbit, and I've been feeling more energetic than ever. Well, that and the bad weather giving me a lot of free time.
I also got my new laptop computer set up with Windows installed, meaning I don't need to use my PC for everything, although this does take a little getting adjusted too. Haven't got a proper mouse for it yet either – no idea why anyone thinks a mouse pad right below the space bar is an improvement. Then again, never saw the allure of a touch screen either. (I'm turning more and more into my parents by the day.) Plus I'm even more distracted by the stuff that comes up on YouTube.
All jokes aside, this chapter was, again, a killer to write, so I may have made a mistake or two. Should anyone spot one, simply contact me via PM and I will do my best to fix it.
Having said that, onward!
0-0-0-0-0
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Shadowchasers
Blue Blood
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Chapter Six
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
The Interview
0-0-0-0-0
Crazy, thought Maddie
Looking over the field, it seemed her allies were on the losing end, for a moment. Seeing as they were supposed to be the heels in this exhibition match, that might not have been a bad thing overall. But the monsters their opponents were facing, that made the whole scene someone unsettling.
(Shadowchasers, Team #1: 9,250) - - - (Cauldron, Team #2: 9,100)
Red Feather had an impressive line of monsters at the moment, with Talaya Princess of Cherry Blossoms (2,800 ATK), World Carrotweight Champion (1,900 ATK), and the Synchro Monster, Circle of Faerie (2,200 ATK), plus the Continuous Spell Card Seasons of Death, which Maddie assumed would let Red swap Talaya for another Plant Princess on her next turn. Meanwhile, Francis had the adorable-but-deadly Parlor Dragonmaid and Kitchen Dragonmaid, both defending with effective Defense Scores of 1,900 due to his Dragonmaid Welcome Spell Card. Sonya had her reliable Brron, Mad King of Dark World (1,800 ATK), equipped with an odd monster called Ebonn, Dark Scimitar of Dark World. Plus she had Karnaysha (1,400 ATK), Goldd (2,200 ATK), plus a set monster due to Annah's Shallow Grave.
On the opposition's side Cora's deck was Fairy based, possibly Agents, but had no monsters in play now, while Dorisan seemed to be using Warriors, with Lord Gaia the Fierce Knight in play. (2,300 ATK) Annah, however, had pulled out these eerie monsters that she called immortals, that Maddie had never even heard of.
One of them was Revenging Reaver, which may have been intended to be a nastier, uglier version of Rigorous Reaver (3,200 ATK), while another had obviously been intended as a much nastier (and gaudier) version of Shapesnatch called Snatch-Hacker (1,400 DEF). Red had tried to get rid of it, only for its effect (or rather, one of its multiple effects) to summon the Master of Oz, the most powerful Fusion Monster in the game that had no Effect. (4,200 ATK)
"What the devil are these things?" she said out loud.
"A bad idea."
She had barely noticed the Honest Minstrel standing there. She thought it was Sypha behind that mask, but not as certain as she was about the other guests. It seemed like the outfit she was wearing was… to tell the truth, it seemed it was truly intended to be a disguise, rather than a masquerade party costume.
"A bad idea?"
The Honest Minstrel nodded, and asked, "You know what Spirit Monsters are, right?"
Maddie gave an, "Uhm, yes," in reply, and the Minstrel gave an explanation that was as brief as possible.
When Pegasus had first developed the Spirit Monsters, a "sub-Type", much like his own Toons and taking inspiration from Eastern Asian mythology, he toyed with the idea of other sub-Types. The Immortals were one of these ideas, and one of the few that got past prototype stage, even though it clearly was not successful overall. Based on very different divine beings inspired by contemporary fiction, these monsters were designed to be an antithesis of Spirits. While Spirits usually returned to the user's hand after being summoned, Immortals did their best to stay on the field, able to sacrifice other monsters to do so, while unlocking special effects by doing so.
Unfortunately, the new sub-Type didn't catch on. It was too varied in terms of core Types and Attributes, the conditions of their effects were complicated, and a notoriously bad movie using the same theme came out at the same time as the release. With no follow-up to these cards, they were forgotten much like Cyber Ogres and Iron Chains. But then, Spirits other than Asura Priest never really caught on either.
"I heard she bet someone 1,000 Sovereigns she could win with this deck."
"She just might win that bet," said Maddie with a shrug.
"So, mainlanders," laughed Annah, "what do you think?"
Red Feather looked up at Master of Oz. While her usual deadpan expression didn't falter, a bead of sweat trickled down the side of her face. "I think it's still my turn," she finally said.
Talaya Princess of Cherry Blossoms reached out with her open palm, and a blizzard of pink blossoms shot out in a flurry towards Snatch-Hacker. With no Normal Monsters for its master to sacrifice this time, ice spread over the android's casing, which cracked, and finally, burst. Its hat fell to the floor, wobbled a few times, and then also shattered.
"Well, shoot, you wrecked it," said Annah, with a chuckle. "But at least I can use this." She noted the Trap Card next to her, which she had activated as the attack had hit home. It was a scary-looking card with the most notable part of the picture being an ominous, glaring eye. "Primordial Remnant. Because you destroyed an Immortal monster, I now get to take another from my deck." She quickly got what she wanted, and the deck was reshuffled. "It has to be a lower Level than the one you destroyed, but seeing as Snatch-Hacker was Level 10, that's almost all of them."
Almost? thought Francis. How strong do these things get?
"Next turn," continued Annah, "my Master of Oz is going to have you mainlanders for lunch."
"Doubtful," said Red Feather. She set one more card into her Disk's Spell Zone. "Koalas are herbivores. My turn is over, and that means Talaya's Effect is no longer nullified from being summoned via Seasons of Death. What that means is, she gains 100 Attack Points for every Plant monster I control." (3,100 ATK) "It also means my Plant monsters other than Talya herself are impervious to destruction by card effects." She motioned to Cora. "It is your move now."
The muscular "angel" nodded and drew. "Oh yes, here we go. First, for this next monster, I have to get rid of one of my Light Monsters."
Cora took one of the Mystical Shine Balls from her Disk's discard pile, and a burning, blinding beam of light coursed down from the ceiling.
The Duel Monster that appeared now looked like Dunames Dark Witch, but with an obvious change of clothing and hairstyle. She now wore a crop top, skirt, gloves, and boots, all violet and with overlapping scale patterns. Her hair was shorter, bobbed, with bangs, and a lighter violet shade, with three hair pins shaped like half a sunburst, the same violet color and with turquoise settings. Her metallic wings were the same color as her clothes.
"Chaos Valkyria!" (1,800 ATK) "Next I'll banish Agent of Creation - Venus to summon her dark sister, Agent of Destruction - Venus!"
As she put the card away, the light did indeed dim slightly, a new angel appearing and kneeling, her eyes closed. This did indeed seem like a darker version of the agent of Creation; if one compared the original monster to an elf, this would be a drow. Her dress was also tattered and worn, with the fringes burning with dark, shadowy flames. While the three orbs were there again, they were shrouded in the same dark flames. (1,600 DEF)
"Much like the Agent of Creation, I can use her effect to summon Mystical Shine Balls for the cost of 500 Life Points each. The difference here is where I summon them from." She took the card she had banished to summon Chaos Valkyria and the other Mystical Shine Ball from her Graveyard, placing both on her Disk. Again, the two orbs of light appeared to either side of Venus. (500 ATK x2) "I guess maybe 'Agent of Reconstruction' might be a better term, but that just sounds silly. And now I'll sacrifice my two Mystical Shine Balls…"
Oh brother, a double-sacrifice, thought Francis. The two orbs vanished, and another column of Celestial light beamed down from above. What is she summoning now? Athena? Archlord Kristya?
The figure came completely into view, and it was neither Athena nor Kristya. The lovely, though powerful-looking angel looked more human than the two already on the field, with cropped strawberry blonde hair and a long, flowing dress with no sleeves, golden embroidery around her bustier, gold bangles on her arms, and a golden belt. (2,800 ATK)
"Guardian Angel Joan…"
"What?" asked Cora. She giggled a little. "Come on, did you really assume she wouldn't show up here sooner or later?"She shrugged and continued, taking the two Mystical Shine Balls, and placing them at the bottom of her deck. Then she pointed at Circle of Faerie, and Joan lifted one hand, her eyes glowing as bolts of divine lightning crashed from above, slamming into the Synchro Monster and blowing it into splinters of wood. "Ugh…" grunted Red Feather.
"Not only did I wipe out that eyesore, my team gains Life Points equal to its Attack Score."
"Now, let's see…" Chaos Valkyria lifted her hands, creating a Dark Energy sphere, and Cora looked over at Karnaysha. Nah, that isn't as fun. She pointed at Kitchen Dragonmaid and said, "There!"
Kitchen didn't budge, though she did give a cross look as Chaos Valkyria lifted the sphere and the Kanji symbol for "dark" appeared on it. Francis near-instinctively reached for his Duel Disk with his free hand to the switch that would activate a card… Then he changed his mind and shook his head, and Chaos Valkyria hurled the sphere, a super-intense burst of shadow consuming and vaporizing Kitchen Dragonmaid.
(Team #1: 7,550) - - - (Team #2: 10,300)
She set one card in her Spell Zone, and said, "thus, I will end my turn."
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Nichole lay awake on her bed in her modest room at the cathedral. She rarely went to bed this early, but she was expecting the nightmare to come again… And she wanted to get it over with.
She wasn't afraid of it now - she was bored with it. She was still keeping track of them in her log, as she was still holding out hope this might be an omen of sorts. But she was also starting to entertain a new possibility - that her dreams had gone into syndicated reruns.
Once, just once, I'd like something different…
She sighed. It wasn't like she could give up sleeping. She turned over and reached for the end table where the lamp was, next to her journal, the wine glass, and the…
Wait, what? Wine glass?
She sat up. There was a wine glass on the end table, a short-stemmed glass whose vessel was wider on the bottom than the top, holding a reddish-brown liquid. Brandy? she thought. It was hard to say for sure, as she had never tasted brandy - after all, it had only been a year ago that she had become old enough to drink. Who had put this there?
Most of the time she would be very cautious about drinking something given to her with no explanation, but as she lifted the glass, she strangely felt no worry or suspicion. No self-preservation within her told her to be cautious. Somehow, something was assuring her it was safe.
She put it to her lips and drank it. Delicious! Warm and toasty, with a flavor like toffee. Even before she drained it completely, she was starting to feel drowsy…
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Interesting, thought Ferid. Then he said softly, "Move over to him, I need to see what his next draw is."
"Who are you talking to?" Rivaldi's voice startled him. She quickly answered before he could. "Peaking at their cards with a wizard eye, are you?"
"And what if I am? What was I supposed to do, get up there so I could look over their shoulders? I can barely see ten feet with this mask. I doubt these mainlanders are skilled enough to notice it."
"Maybe, but if they are, you'd best have an excuse ready. Those who partake of this game do not tolerate cheating."
"Ugh, my dear Rivaldi, I am not 'cheating'. If I were relaying the information to their opponents, which I am not, that would be cheating."
The wizard eye focused on Annah. And I wouldn't want to either, he thought, not with 1,000 Sovereigns on the line…
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
"Good effort," started Francis, "but losing a Dragonmaid isn't as big a problem for me as it is for most duelists. As I'll demonstrate in a minute. First, I'll bring out Laundry Dragonmaid."
However, … Using the card didn't seem to do anything at first. "Laundry Dragonmaid? Oh brother, where is that girl?"
As if to respond, another maid hurried to the position in front of him (from where, it was hard to say) carrying a basket of clothing but stumbled and tripped. Parlor leapt up, catching her before she fell over, but the laundry still spilled on the floor, laundry that included… Three overly large cards.
She seemed a lot younger than Parlor and Kitchen, and her dark blue dress seemed more like that of a French maid rather than a Japanese meido. Her long tail had a fur pelt, and her short horns seemed strangely part of her bonnet.
"Very, unprofessional there," said Annah. The maid blushed a little in embarrassment. "Aw, did I hurt her feelings?"
This comment didn't seem to win much support from the spectators, especially after Laundry started crying a little, prompting Parlor to comfort her with a hug. Francis simply smiled and shook his head, then held up three cards. "Show more respect, these cards she spilled go to the Graveyard now, which as you will see, is not a bad thing." Discarding them, he pointed to the Dragonmaid Welcome Continuous Spell. "Now, if you recall, this card gives every Dragonmaid 100 extra points for each Dragonmaid present, but that isn't the only effect. Seeing as now that I have two Dragonmaids, I can use the second effect of this card to take one from my Graveyard."
Taking Kitchen Dragonmaid's card again, he held it in front of his face with a sly and crafty expression. "But… Seeing as I've already made my Normal Summon this turn, I'll save her for later. Anyone here know what Secret Pass to the Treasures does?"
Laundry stopped crying, and Cora could see a mischievous glint in her eye briefly, but only briefly as the Spell Card that Francis used circled around Laundry, screening her for a second, and when it passed by, Laundry had vanished.
"What -" Cora felt a tap on her shoulder… She turned around seeing Laundry Dragonmaid there, holding a mop… And promptly slugged Cora in the stomach with the blunt end of it.
The whole crowd laughed. "You little…" cursed Cora, but Laundry had vanished again, reappearing on Francis' side of the field, giggling.
"I'm not done yet," he said, and took Laundry and Parlor's cards from his Disk. As before, a spiral of magical wind surrounded Parlor as she closed her eyes and spread out her arms, growing and shifting into her true form, Dragonmaid Lorpar. (2,700 ATK - 2,900 ATK) Laundry Dragonmaid followed suit, conjuring an amorphous bubble of water, which enveloped her, then expanded, then shifted to a dragon-shape. The water sloughed off, revealing a blue, wingless Oriental-style dragon, the coat of fur now covering her head, spine, tail, and rear legs, the hair on the sides of her head and bangs a lighter blue. (2,600 ATK - 2,800 ATK)
"And it's still my Battle Phase! Dragonmaid Nudyarl, I think these Angels with Dirty Faces could stand to have a bath - attack Chaos Valkyria with Rinse Cycle Deluge!"
Nudyarl needed little further coaxing, spewing a wave of soapy, sudsy water, drenching the Chaos Fairy and washing her away.
"Rather, erm, unique method there," said Jaroe.
"I do believe Hester wanted this duel to be clean," said Danna with a slight laugh.
However, Francis' next strike was far from clean. As she had the previous turn, Dragonmaid Lorpar inhaled deeply, sucking up all the grit and dust like a vacuum cleaner would, and then made a ferocious exhale, focusing her breath on Guardian Angel Joan. The grime and dirt splattered on Joan's dress, wings, and face, and she grunted in disgust before she shattered.
"Well, I hope that made you feel much better," growled Cora. "Trap activate! Option Hunter! Seems Joan was able to help me one more time, because now I gain Life Points equal to her Attack Score."
(Team #1: 7,550) - - - - - - - - - - (Team #2: 12,200)
They're more prepared that I'd thought. Francis cleared his throat and spoke up. "Now that I'm done attacking, I'll reign in the high Level Dragonmaids to bring out the smaller ones again…"
Nudyarl and Lorpar vanished as he took the cards from his Disk, but what occurred next took everyone by surprise. Parlor Dragonmaid appeared again (500 ATK) but the other Dragonmaid that appeared this time was not Laundry Dragonmaid. This Dragonmaid had long, pink hair tied in ponytails, her white maid uniform having pink highlights and a nurse's hat worn over her small, curved horns. She had smaller horns on her wrists and ankles (with bare clawed feet) and her tail had pink scales on the overside of her tail. (500 ATK)
"Who -"
"Nurse Dragonmaid. I'm letting Laundry have a break for now, and with Nurse here, I can summon another Dragonmaid from the Graveyard, so I'll bring out my Chambermaid."
Using the card caused dark, shadowy, ominous smoke to rise from the spot next to Nurse, and two female eyes appeared from within… Then there was a loud coughing soundand Chamber Dragonmaid shook away the smoke. "Ugh!" she remarked and brushed the ash from her outfit. It wasn't the typical maid uniform, more like a long, black blouse with odd, glowing green highlights on the puffed wrists, bodice, peplum, flounce and feathered waist boa. Her horns and tail were partially colored the same glowing green, and she had long, platinum blonde hair. She had a feather duster, the feathers also the glowing green hue. (500 ATK)
"First of all, three Dragonmaids means 300 more Attack Points via Dragonmaid Welcome." (800 ATK x3) And then we get to Chamber'seffect. I get to take one Spell or Trap with the word 'Dragonmaid' in its name from my deck."
Chamber plucked one of the feathers from her feather duster, nodded to Francis, and then blew on it, causing it to spiral upward and glow even brighter before finally turning into a card. It fell to Francis who caught it. "Yes, and I do think I'll set this now. I'll end my turn, and again, I get to use the effect of Dragonmaid Generosity." He made two draws. "Over to you."
"Okay, I suppose that's me," said Dorisan. He drew, then went for one of his Spell Cards. "Instant Fusion! I'll spend 1,000 Life Points to summon Darkfire Dragon!" A spout of fire poured out from the card, quickly changing shape into a small Dragon made completely out of flames. (1,500 ATK) "And then I'll sacrifice it," he continued, causing the Dragon to dissolve into pixels, "to summon Soldier Gaia the Fierce Knight!"
The armored Warrior that appeared this time was large, intimidating, and impressive, clad head to toe in shining blue and gold plate armor with gold and red spires on the helmet, gauntlets, boots, shoulder guards… pretty much everywhere. He had a flowing red cape with more gold designs, a smaller one on his waist, and a long, trident with three prongs, each the size of a short sword. He had no mount, however; indeed, as dramatic as he looked, he didn't seem much like Gaia at all… (2,600 ATK)
"Now that is a sharp outfit," said Jaroe.
"And these blades aren't for show," he started. "Lord Gaia, attack…"
He stopped and looked at the three Dragonmaids. Parlor had her arms behind her back with a seductive look on her face, while Chamber looked pouty, tapping her foot impatiently. His eyes moved slowly to those set cards behind them; Francis had quite a poker face, but he wondered if those maids were trying to goad him…
"You going to wimp out again?" asked Annah, breaking his train of thought.
"Lord Gaia! Soldier Gaia! Attack… Attack the Mad King and Wicked Queen!"
Lord Gaia went first, soaring upwards on his draconic mount and making a dive at Karnaysha. Powerful bolts of burning lightning crashed, eradicating the Wicked Queen. Soldier Gaia followed, thrusting towards Brron. Dorisan was nervous for a moment, as the Mad King of Darkworld blocked with his sword, and it was torn from his grasp, spiraling through the air and embedding itself in the ground. Does that have - thought Dorisan. Then Gaia made a second strike, through the Mad King's gizzard, and Brron shattered, the sword shattering too. Guess not. He looked at his Duel Disk. Cripes, whoever made this thing didn't skimp on the details. He turned to address Sonya, "It's your move."
(Team #1: 5,950) - - - (Team #2: 11,200)
"Thank you!" she said cheerily. Drawing, she first went for her set monster, which had been summoned via Annah's Shallow Grave. Beiige, Vanguard of Dark World reappeared and stood up straight. (1,600 ATK)
"Heh, okay, remember the last turn when your Hiro's Shadow Scout made me discard that Spell? That was Dual Gate, and by playing a second Dual Gate," she flipped the card in her hand around, "I can banish both of them, and then draw twice."
Yes, that definitely could have gone better, thought Dorisan.
"It looks like I just drew Genta, Gateman of Dark World. And discarding the Gateman lets me use the gate, The Gates of Dark World, that is! And I think I'll use it now."
Taking the card from her deck, she immediately opened her Disk's Field Zone slot and played the card. A dark, cold, clammy mist exuded from her feet, slowly spreading over the field.
"First of all, this field gives all Fiend monsters 300 more Attack and Defense Points." (Goldd: 2,500 ATK, Beiige: 1,900 ATK) "It has another effect that I can use by banishing a Fiend, so I'll use it to banish Genta." She took the card back from her Disk and turned it forward. "But first, Genta's own effect summons him when he is banished."
Placing the card sideways on her Disk caused a demon to appear crouching behind a large shield. Like the others, he had bone armor, but it seemed more solid and durable, and had a mouth and throat guard. He had long tendrils on his scalp, worn like dreadlocks, and a claw-shaped visor on his brow. (1,800 DEF - 2,100 DEF)
"And then, with the field Spell's effect, I can discard one card, and then draw another. The card I am discarding is Graii, Inventor of Dark World. Which again, summons him."
Seconds after she discarded the card, a manhole with a winch appeared on the floor. It swung open, and a small, nasty imp leapt out. It had beady eyes, a large, toothy grin, wore a dirty leather apron, and held two wrenches. The top of its cranium had been replaced by a glass dome that left its brain visible. (300 ATK - 600 ATK)
"And by the way, the Field Spell gives all Fiend-Type monsters a 300-point bonus to both Attack and Defense Scores.
"Because I summoned Graii that way, it becomes a Tuner, meaning he can give his friend Goldd a Tune up! Heh, I love saying that…
The much smaller Fiend hopped onto Goldd's shoulders, using its two wrenches on the larger Fiend's horns, the odd adjustment causing Goldd's wings to unfurl and enlarge. He leapt, soaring upward through the Synchro rings.
"So, I'll Tune the Level 1 Graii with the Level 5 Goldd… And Synchro Summon Maruu, High Bishop of Dark World!"
There was a cackling laugh, a dark shadow thrown aside to reveal a fiendish, demonic clergyman wearing a torn, ragged, blood-red vestment and bishop's miter. He brandished a long golden staff entwined with a snake that clasped a ruby in its fangs. (2,100 ATK - 2,400 ATK)
"That is one sinister minister," chortled Eggman.
"You could even say the priest is a beast," replied Dollface.
"That's right." Sonya smiled broadly, but she continued. "Next, you may remember how last turn, Brron was equipped with Ebonn, Dark Scimitar of Dark World. Since he was bested that round, Ebonn's true effect can be used now. Notably, I can use Ebonn as a Tuner while it is still in the Graveyard, so long as I use only Dark World monsters as non-Tuners and banish all the materials."
Ebonn fell from the ceiling, embedding itself in the floor next to Beiige. The Vanguard grabbed it by the hilt, and then he and Genta soared upward as the Synchro rings reappeared.
"The ancient energies contained within these monsters combine to spawn eldritch Evil blackest than the darkest Shadow…"
(*2 + *4 + *4 = *10)
"Bringing out one of my best! I Synchro Summon, Blak, Executioner of Dark World!"
A very different sort of weapon - a huge battle-axe made of blackened steel with blood-red runes on the blade - crashed down, its blade embedding in the floor. But that sight was soon overwhelmed by the appearance of the Executioner himself; as his feet hit the floor, the whole ballroom shook, and the chandeliers overhead wobbled. The Fiend - more than a Fiend, a giant - had coal-black armor and stony skin, his brutish face having fiery eyes and tusks in his broad mouth. (3,300 ATK - 3,600 ATK)
"Well, this is a fine how'd you do," said Annah.
It wasn't hard for Dorisan to figure out what she was implying. He was almost starting to regret coming here.
"I have one more monster to summon, and Blak is a big help with this one, because by summoning him, I get to discard two cards. I'm discarding Oosse, Vengeful Spirit of Dark World, and Parl, Hermit of Dark World." She did so, and two more dark wells opened on the floor. "Oosse's effect summons himself, while Parl's effect summons someone I doubt needs any further introduction."
Indeed, the Fiend who appeared from out of one of the portals was Bronn, and he hadn't changed much from before. (1,800 ATK - 2,100 ATK) The other, however, looked more like a ghost than a demon, being a floating puce-colored cloak with only darkness within. There didn't seem to be anything inside. (0 ATK - 300 ATK)
"Oosse here is a secret that Brron keeps in the closet - not hard to do since, well -"
Brron grabbed hold of Oosse, then threw it over himself and put it on as one would a regular cloak. It seemed Sonya's claim was very literal.
"Now that I've Union Equipped Oosse to Brron, I can sacrifice both of them to unleash a dark - er, darker - side of the Mad King."
The haunted cloak wrapped around Brron, tightly, enveloping him completely; inside it, he started to grow and swell…
"Arise… Tutoan, True Sovereign of Dark World!"
The Fiend kept growing, the cloak straining, then tearing, and finally ripping into tatters as he threw up his arms in a roar. This new monster looked vaguely like Brron, but while not as large as Blak, was hulking and muscular, wearing slate gray plate armor covered by a blood-red tabard. He held a giant steel kanabō, a club the shape and - proportionate - size of a baseball bat covered with studs. (2,600 ATK - 3,100 ATK)
"Impressive," said Annah, "But as big as your monsters are -" Master of Oz slammed its gloves together, looking down on the three Fiends - "mine is still bigger!"
"Maybe, but Tutoan still has one advantage here, but before I get to that… Blak, destroy Soldier Gaia the Fierce Knight! Ruinous Torment!"
With a loud bellow, the Executioner of Dark World grasped his axe in both hands and slammed downward, the shockwave knocking Dorisan backwards as it blew Soldier Gaia to particles.
Ugh, well… thought Dorisan, this is at least rather… invigorating. He sat up and looked at Blak and then at Tutoan. Why did she do that? If she had attack Annah's Reaver with Blak, she could have used Tutoan to attack Gaia…
As if she had read his mind, Sonya answered the question herself. "Now Tutoan can deal with Revenging Reaver, seeing as he gains 1,000 Attack Points whenever he attacks a monster that's Level 6 or higher."
"Wait a minute," started "Annah, that…"
Unfortunately, she was cut off as Reaver was smashed flat by the True Sovereign's mighty club as his attack boosted his Attack Score to 4,100, the shockwave hitting Annah even worse than Blak had hit Dorisan - Annah hadn't the foresight to brace herself as he had.
(Team #1: 5,950) - - - (Team #2: 9,300)
"You scummy little -" she started, the last word a derogatory term that caused Hester to shout, "ANNAH!"
The Stormblade leader groaned and sat up, looking hard at Sonya. "I still get to use Primordial Remnants." She clearly had a card in mind this time, as it took her only a few seconds to select it. "Is that your turn?"
Sonya made a quick glance at her remaining hand, and answered, "Yep, I'm done, knock yourself out." Then as Annah stood up, she added, "Oh, and just so you know, that's a figure of speech."
"Har-har," said Annah. "I draw one card, and then… Pot of Avarice."
Playing the card caused the eponymous Pot to materialize in front of Annah, a pear-shaped ceramic jug with a squinting, chubby face on the front with multicolored teeth and a long, lolling tongue. Annah took her deck from its holder, and unceremoniously dumped the cards in the jug's top. Then she took five of her discarded cards - Minoan Centaur, Hitotsu-Me-Giant, Beaver Warrior, Snatch-Hacker, and Revenging Reaver - and threw them into it as well. She grabbed hold of the jar and gave it a shove, causing it to spin around a few times. When it came to a rest, she took the now thoroughly shuffled deck from its mouth.
"Yes, I caught onto this little game of yours pretty fast. I use the Spell Card, Illegal Summon!"
Sonya looked at her strangely. She had heard of this odd card, but never expected an opponent to use it - this let Annah take a monster from her deck and summon it to Sonya's side of the field, but then would require Sonya to summon one of hers to Annah's.
"I choose to give you…" started Annah, "my Dark Merrow!"
Sonya had never seen this monster at all, but one thing she was sure of when it appeared with her Fiends, she did not want it. It was muscular, bulky, and hunched over, like an ape, except it was a fish, like a small shark with oversized arms and thick legs. It had no eyes, a surefire indication that it was fully subterranean, and a wide mouth full of needle-sharp teeth. Worse, it stunk, the Solid Vision system doing a remarkably good job of creating an olfactory illusion, one that smelled like rotten fish. (0 DEF)
"Ugh, here, you can have this one." Sonya took a card from her deck, Kahkki, Guerilla of Dark World, and a short, squat, ugly Fiend with an egg-shaped body and broken teeth appeared in front of Annah, holding a long dagger. (500 DEF)
"Smells bad, huh?" said Annah, with a wide grin. "Don't worry, I'll get rid of it. See this?" She showed one of her cards, a Level 8 monster. "This is what I got from Primordial Remnant the first time; I'm guessing you mainlanders know that, for most monsters this powerful, I'd need to swap two other monsters for it. In this case, however, those two monsters don't have to be mine." Then World Carrotweight Champion and Dark Merrow were consumed in dark, shadowy flames.
"That's right, I can use yours, so long as they have Defense Scores of zero. So, everyone feast your eyes on this!" Playing the card caused a much larger bonfire of the same shadow-fire on her side of the field, and a dark, looming shape to rise behind Annah. "Another Immortal monster…Souleater the Sole Sapient Singularity!"
The monster that appeared was, to say the least, hideous. At least twelve feet high and fifteen feet wide at the base of the vaguely pyramidal body, thought it seemed this was only one part of a much larger monster. The feature that stood out most was its eye, a huge violet orb that took up slightly less than half of its body, with a demonic, vertically-slit pupil. The lower part looked vaguely like the body of a crab with oversized, barbed claws, and a dozen thick tentacles, some ending in smaller barbs, others ending in eyes, smaller versions of the huge one on the top. (2,400 ATK)
"Sole Sentient Singularity?" asked Rinaldo. "Thank the Maker for that."
"Eh, if there were more than one of them," said the Honest Minstrel, "I daresay it would be hard for them to stay close to each other long enough to reproduce."
"Okay, okay," added Sonya, "that is truly disgusting, and you're talking to someone who's been to a bullywug tribe's yaminabe party."
Just looking at this monstrosity, Maddie had to concur too. She suddenly regretted stuffing herself so much at the buffet table - this only made her nauseous, and the stench of dead fish from it was much worse than it was from Dark Merrow. Although she did consider herself fortunate she hadn't tried the crab cakes. Fortunately, one thing she - and everyone else - noticed, was that as disgusting as it was, it wasn't strong enough to defeat any of Sonya's monsters.
Nonetheless, Annah simply nodded. "Ugly it may be, but power is not always pleasant. But before I use him, I'm using the effect of Dark Merrow. Because I used it as a Tribute Summon, I can banish it and then sacrifice a monster." The Guerrilla of Dark World she had gained from Illegal Summon shattered. "I can then summon a Normal Monster from my deck with fewer Attack Points than the sacrificed monster. Then a large, metal crest-shaped shield rose next to her, with the Eye of Wdjat emblazoned on the front. (3,000 DEF)
"Fortunately, Millennium Shield has no Attack Points whatsoever. Now I can finally use this big fella -" Master of Oz shifted its legs and made some warmup jabs. "- but I think I'm going to wait to deal with your freaks, because I have someone else in mind." The huge Beast turned towards the Dragonmaids. "As a wise man once said, 'He who hesitates is lost.' Attack Parlor Dragonmaid! Thunder from Down Under!"
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Elsewhere… and elsewhen…
Nichole's feet touched down, landing roughly but safely and silently on the forested floor. She cautiously looked around. She took a minute to look at herself.
She was nowhere near Cauldron - she was, in fact, on the opposite side of the world, in a forested area of New England. She was taller and muscular than any of her allies would remember her being, and around ten years older, dressed completely in black, a form fitting black stealth-outfit. And for some reason, she did not question this at all. Cauldron was but a vague memory, one she had no need to recollect from now. Was she dreaming? Maybe. But she saw no reason to suspect so.
In front of her, clearly visible from the hill she had landed on, she saw her goal. A large complex composed of brick buildings with 19th Century architecture, with a fence around them – a fence topped with razor wire. She only had a vague idea what this facility was and why she was here. But… She would find out now.
In front of her was a small boulder covered with moss - only a loyal member of St. Cuthbert's House would see the holy rune upon it, and know it was a special vault. She softly whispered a short phrase in Latin, and there was a click, the lid of the vault opening. Inside was a parcel and a small device, a box about five by four inches with a button on it. She picked that up first.
Her mission was of the sort where communications had to be brief, covert, and clandestine, and thus all the information she had been given, up to now, had been left vague. She pressed the button with her thumb.
"Greetings Deacon Belvins." The voice was recognizable as that of Donovan Sinclair, High Patriarch of St. Cuthbert's House – despite this highly respected and lofty position, everyone called him Donnie. Again, Nichole found nothing peculiar about being addressed as a Deacon, a rank in St. Cuthbert's clergy that was much higher than the Acolyte she was. She listened while folding up the high-tech fabric that composed the parachute.
"The facility you see before you is the Jedediah Stane Memorial Psychiatric Hospital. Founded in 1876, Dr. Stane was a contemporary of Sigmund Freud himself, and with St. Cuthbert's House, once held the position I hold now. It is regarded as one of the most efficient and humane treatment centers for the mentally ill in this country, and two of its current board of directors hold Nobel Prizes in medicine.
"Sadly, we have reason to believe this reputation is unearned and undeserved.
"We have long suspected the facility of practicing unethical and illegal methods of treatment, and the worst has been confirmed. A low-ranking employee whose name cannot be divulged here came to us two days ago with horrific details of the hospital's activities, including claims that a patient was being held involuntarily for unwarranted reasons. Our interrogation methods collaborate this story, but as you are aware, information so gleaned is inadmissible in a mundane court of law.
"Thus, your mission is to infiltrate the compound to find and extract the prisoner, with minimal attention. A rendezvous will be available from this spot from midnight to one PM. Get in, and if you find the prisoner, get out as quickly as possible. If not… get out if you can.
"The package contains a nurse's uniform, a forged ID badge, and a keycard that was supplied by our informant. Needless to say, this keycard could become worthless once the informant's absence is discovered, which could be as soon as tomorrow morning. There is also an envelope containing instructions on the general area where the prisoner is held, according to our informant.
"Ms. Belvins, for matters such as this, we trust your skills and intuition. May the Wisdom of St. Cuthbert guide you."
"Understood," whispered Nichole. As she had been directed to do so many times before, she crushed the device in her hand, and then placed the broken pieces inside the vault. She then removed the package and replaced it with the folded-up parachute, the backpack that had held it, and the unused spare. She closed it, and the lid locked automatically. Anyone who chanced to pass by would again see only a nondescript boulder.
Once she put the uniform on, taking extra care to pin the badge on the front, she started down the hill to the main entrance. The note in the envelope simply said, "Braceland Unit, Wing 3, cell N-31, pw is VI6SIX". Once she had memorized it, she tore it into little pieces.
Time to go to work.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Everyone in the room could see that this would likely not end well for the mainlanders' team - normally, Master of Oz would be over eight times stronger than Parlor Dragonmaid, and the brief boost from Dragonmaid Welcome "only" reduced that advantage to five times as strong. And there'd be little stopping an attack from Souleater on Chamber or Nurse afterwards.
But then, as its fist thundered down towards the Dragonmaid, one of Francis' Trap Cards lifted up. "Clock-Out!" he shouted.
"Now what?"
Of course, even to Annah, Parlor Dragonmaid bathing in her aura of green eldritch power made it obvious what the card was doing. "This time I have to sacrifice her, but in exchange, I can bring out her true form during your Battle Phase."
Parlor's dress tore and she burst into scintillating green energy, which brought forth Dragonmaid Lorpar once again. (2,700 ATK - 3,000 ATK)
"And, this card's effect makes her the only monster you can attack!"
"Well, no skin off my nose." She nodded to Master of Oz. "Sic em!"
"Wait, don't!" shouted Cora.
Too late. "From my hand," shouted Francis, "I discard Dragonmaid Tinkhec! By doing so, Lorpar's Attack Score increases by 2,000 points!"
"Wait, what, you…" started Annah. Then she braced herself as Lorpar soared up to 5,000 Attack Points, her lethal breath literally blowing a hole through the Master of Oz. Annah covered her head with her hands as the giant crashed.
(Team #1: 5,950) - - - - - - - - - - (Team #2: 8,500)
There was dead silence for a minute. Dorisan knew this was very bad for his side, but… he couldn't help but feel vindicated now that it had been confirmed his hesitance had been a better choice.
"As another wise man said - Shakespeare, I believe - 'Caution is preferable to rash bravery'."
Damn, thought Annah. If I can only attack Lorpar, that means I can't attack at all with Souleater this turn. Dammit. She used two more of her cards, setting them in her Spell Zone. "I'll set these, and then it's your move, Plant Girl."
"It would be my pleasure," said Red Feather. "I draw one card, and again, I use the effect of Seasons of Death."
Like Chirubimé had before her, Talaya curled up with her blossom, withdrawing into the floor below. "As the winter snows melt, the spirit of Spring emerges," continued Red. The new blossom bore a bright red flower that opened to reveal a maiden with a leaf-covered dress and floral crown, her long hair verdant green. "Tytannial, Princess of Camellias." (2,800 ATK)
"Of course, and next turn we'll see summer, I suppose?"
"No," replied Red Feather. "This turn, I am unleashing the true effect of Seasons of Death, right after I use this card -" Her Trap lifted up. "- Back to the Front. It resurrects a monster from my Graveyard in Defense Mode."
The giant maple blossom sprouted again and unfolded. Chirubimé yawned and stretched, as if her short time in the Graveyard had been a short nap. (2,800 DEF)
"Now, for the true effect of this potent Spell Card." The card was indeed doing something different, the four scenes within melting into four colors, red, brown, green, and blue. "Each time I Special Summoned a high-Level Plant monster, it gained a Floral Counter, and with at least four, I can banish it and sacrifice one of my Plant Princesses to summon a Fusion Monster. Titania… Begone!"
The Princess of Camellias bowed her head, and then shattered. "Say WHAT?" shouted Cora. "Why did you -"
"Choose to sacrifice her and spare Chirubimé? It will become clear in a minute. I summon Fallen Plant Princess Rosalia!"
The entire ballroom seemed to shake for a few seconds, and a huge plant consisting of one bulbous, flower pod on a thick trunk-like stem burst from out of the ground. Blossoms opened on every part of the giant flower, and the pod slowly started to open, releasing clouds of pink pollen that smelled cloyingly sweet.
Inside the plant was a humanoid female, that most would compare to a dryad, lounging upon the center of the enormous blossom like a spoiled princess on a palanquin, with long, raven hair and a garment made of still-living fronds.
The resemblance was obvious - this was a representation of Red Feather herself. Her large, feral eyes looked at Cora in front of her, clearly pissed. (0 ATK)
"Uhm, Red…," said Francis.
Red lifted her hand. "I will handle this. These ladies just got on my bad side."
Then the dryad atop the flower threw her arms forward, and two thick vines sprouted from her flower, darting towards Cora; the Stormblade took a step back, thinking this was an attack upon her. Instead, the two vines shot towards her and crashed through the floor in front of her… And then, it yanked someone out from the floor - Guardian Angel Joan!
"HEY!"
"I will give her back." The vines pulled Joan up to the huge flower's blossom, holding her the dryad, binding her arms tightly. "I just need her now to empower Rosalia. You see, to compensate for her nonexistent Attack Score, she can steal a monster from my opponent's Graveyard, and then gain Points equal to that monster." (2,800 ATK)
"Well take your best shot, mainlander."
"Oh, I will." Rosalia stood up, producing a bow and arrow, both of which seemed made of green magical light. "But despite your monster being in Defense Mode, you aren't safe. Not only does Rosalia inflict piercing damage by attacking a defending monster, but she can swap the target's Attack and Defense Scores."
Rosalia aimed at The Agent of Destruction. "Wait, you mean -" started Cora. The Rosalia fired, Venus' Defense Score changing from 1,600 to zero as the arrow homed in, and as it struck, causing Cora to scream from the heavy blow and fall backwards.
(Team #1: 5,950) - - - (Team #2: 5,700)
"That hurt!" she cried.
Red Feather shook her head. "A shame," said Red Feather, "I had hoped you would provide a challenge - and instead you are giving me a hissy fit." She paused, allowing for some chuckling from the spectators, and then the vines holding Joan lowered, placing her right in front of the dryad on the flower. "As promised, you may have her back."
Then the vines let go of Joan, and Rosalia kicked her in the behind, unceremoniously sending the Guardian Angel tumbling back towards Cora, turning into her card halfway there and causing Cora to stumble and fumble to catch it.
Maddie noticed this had an additional bonus for her side, as while Joan's card had been returned to its owner's hand, that might make Joan harder to summon again.
"She's taking a big risk there," said Reynaldo.
"Not quite," said the Honest Minstrel. "Remember her?" She pointed to Chirubimé. "Rosalia is physically powerless at the moment, but the Princess of Autumn Leaves will intercept any attack made on her."
Red Feather waved her hand to signal that her turn was over, Cora reacting with a scowl. "Okay, you want a challenge? Well, I'm fine with that!" One of her Traps lifted revealing itself to be Miracle's Wake. A sunbeam came from above, and Agent of Creation - Venus appeared again. (1,600 ATK)
"But failing that, I'll settle for a brutal battle the likes of which this dance hall has never seen. I draw!"
She snapped her fingers, and for the third time that night, her team's Life Points dipped by 1,000 and the two Mystical Shine Balls appeared again. (500 ATK x2)
(Team #1: 5,950) - - - - - - - - - - (Team #2: 4,700)
"Now, I could summon Joan again right now, but… I have a much better idea. I'm going to sacrifice all three of my monsters!"
No way, thought Maddie. But it was true, as she thrust out her palm, both Venus and the two shine balls turned to orbs of light. This was very bad. While it was unlikely (or rather, impossible) that Cora had any of the God Cards in her deck, she only knew a few monsters could be summoned this way, and they all meant bad news…
"Gaze upon Trias Hierarchia!"
…but this one she did not know of at all.
The angel that materialized in front of and above Cora radiated divine majesty. Rather than the robes or armor worn by most celestial beings, this one wore a jerkin (over a very thin torso) with flared shoulders, wide sleeves, gloves, trousers, and boots, all of it stiff, ivory colored, and oddly metallic. He (assuming it was male, it looked… androgynous) also had a pharaoh's crown with wings on the sides. There were shining blue orbs on the crown, gloves, boots, and belt, and it had a second, loosely worn belt of gold leaves. And then there were its wings. It had six huge, feathered wings, all of them with the same ivory-metallic material covering the spines. It was perched upon a golden, hovering altar with three pulsating violet triangles in the front. (1,900 ATK)
"Impressive," said Francis. He crossed his arms, looking up at Trias Hierarchia. "But from where I'm standing, that one is all sizzle and no steak."
"I know, it seems a high cost for such a low score, and I could have even summoned it with only two sacrifices. However, to use both of its effects, I needed three." The three triangles on the altar started to glow even brighter. "For its first effect, I can, just by summoning it, destroy one monster."
Then the four triangles shot forward, spiraling into burning hot orbs that slammed into Blak, Executioner of Dark World, blowing him to dark shards. "Oh, brother…" muttered Sonya.
"And the second effect," continued Cora, "lets me draw twice."
The crafty smile when she saw the two new cards was all the proof they needed that she had gotten a good draw. "I must admit, I'm going to enjoy this. I activate… The Spell Card, Forbidden Chalice!"
The Quickplay Spell appeared and two magical wisps, one gold and one black, floated out of the card and towards Chirubimé, who looked confused as they approached. Then, they combined, and transformed into a golden cup. She looked mesmerized and reached for it.
"That's it," said Cora with a chuckle. "This cursed draught grants 400 extra Attack Points, but at the cost of your monster's effect."
This is bad, thought Red Feather, a sentiment shared by her allies. Chirubimé couldn't resist the Chalice, gulping the liquid from it with no sense of etiquette or manners, spilling much of it on her dress.
"Without her effect, my monster is free to turn your other Plants into compost. So Hierarchia, if you will…"
The violet triangles glowed more intensely as the royal Fairy turned his sights on Fallen Plant Princess Rosalia…
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Nichole couldn't help but be nervous as she walked through the hospital, one which seemed typical for the sort, even neat and tidy. It had taken a great deal of willpower and concentrated focus on her part to get inside the facility and make her way about. The badge had been enough to fool the security guards at the entrance and the checkpoint, but she knew what nurses were supposed to do. She tried to keep a facade of confidence and competence, but the building was like a maze, and she kept getting lost in its labyrinthine hallways, where she knew that at any time She could be hailed by a doctor or staff member at any moment and asked to provide assistance of a type she knew nothing about or asked why she was wandering about where she didn't belong. Asking directions would only expose her as such.
Finally, she found what she was looking for, the Braceland wing, and she didn't like the look of it in the least; it was a run down and decrepit wing of a remote outbuilding. Not much seemed to have been visibly changed in this part of the complex in the past two centuries - it was a relic from the times when the mentally ill were called "lunatics", barbarically caged and treated like animals in experiments by sadists looking for "miracle" cures. There was a prisoner here? The squalor only strengthened Nichole's resolve to save the poor thing and see the fiends responsible hauled to jail.
She saw the cell she was looking for, N-31. And she also saw a clipboard next to it with a printed name on the front…
"No…" she gasped.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
To be continued.
Next chapter, this duel (and with it, the Demonskarr Ball and Flood Festival) will finally come to a close, but Shadowchasers: Blue Bloods is far from finished. In the second half of this "arc" we'll finally find out who Xokiek is and some background on what the bad guys are up to. Plus more of Jalal's investigation onto you-know-who from the end of the first arc.
As usual, it seems I'll have to leave one new card out of the following list until then, seeing as its effect has not yet been used. Any Dark World card listed here are my own design, for any others, ask MultiplePersonas.
As always, stay safe, stay warm, and always roll high.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Seasons of Death (Continuous Spell)
Image: Similar to Convulsion of Nature but split into four images. (See previous chapter for complete description.)
Effect: While you control this card, you cannot Special Summon monsters other than Plant-Type monsters. During your Standby Phase you may Tribute 1 Level 6 or higher Plant-Type Monster you control to Special Summon 1 Level 6 or higher monster from your GY or deck with a name other than that of the Tributed monster; the Special Summoned monster cannot attack or use its effect the turn it is summoned. When a Level 6 or higher Plant Type Monster is Special Summoned, place 1 Spell Counter on this card. (Max: 4) You may banish this card and Tribute 1 Level 6 or higher and then Special Summon a Plant-Type Fusion monster from your Extra Deck.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Fallen Plant Princess Rosalia (Fusion Effect Monster)
Plant/Light/Lvl10/0ATK/3,000DEF
Effect: This card inflicts piercing damage. When this card battles an opposing monster, you can switch the current ATK and DEF of that opponent's monster until the end of the Damage Step. Once per turn, during your first Main Phase, you may select a monster in your opponent's GY and Equip it to this card; send the selected monster to its owner's hand during the End Phase. When this card is equipped with a monster, its ATK becomes equal to the ATK of the equipped monster.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Dark Merrow (Effect Monster)
Fish/Water/Immortal/Lvl2/1,000/0
Effect: If this card you control would be destroyed by battle, you may Tribute 1 Normal Monster you control instead. If this card is used as a Tribute, you may banish it from your GY and Tribute 1 monster you control. Special Summon from your deck a Normal Monster with less ATK than the monster Tributed to activate this effect.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Ebonn, Dark Scimitar of Dark World (Effect Monster)
Fiend/Dark/Tuner/Lvl4/0ATK/2,000
Effect: If this card is discarded to the GY, you may Equip it to a "Dark World" monster you control - the Equipped monster does piercing damage. If this card is sent to the GY while Equipped to a monster, you may activate the following effect: If you would Synchro Summon this turn you may use this card in your GY as a Tuner; if so, all Synchro Material monsters used for a Synchro Summon that turn are banished.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Primordial Remnant (Continuous Trap Card)
Image: A woman (wearing cargo shorts a tube top, and a bandoleer and belt holding hunting knives, a bullwhip, and pouches) with a ponytail, seen from behind in a dark jungle; she is brushing aside shrubbery, revealing an ominous altar made of gray metal in the shape of Souleater the Sole Sapient Singularity.
Effect: Once per turn, when an Immortal monster you control is destroyed by your opponent (by battle or by card effect), take 1 Immortal monster from your deck that is a lower Level than the destroyed monster. If you cannot, then during the End Phase of the turn, take damage equal to the base ATK of the destroyed monster.