Redux 31: Ultimate Hatred Creates Ultimate Love
"You two?!" Eric was not sure if it was good news that suddenly August and June were here. "Hello to You too, Eric." But a lot had happened, and perhaps they were not the biggest threat anymore. "Why are you with them?" Still this situation begged for answers, Adamant thought. "Let's just say we found each other. I fell into this world a few days after August did. While living here was doable, not knowing where everyone else was.. not so much. Lucky me, these three tracked down the power of my crystal and came to pick me up." She ticked the crystal earring in her left ear. "Waitwait.. you're another one of those zodiac timetravelers? Weren't there four of you?" Tory asked. "We couldn't find January and December. They are undoubtedly confined to the other world." August grunted. "Uno.. you wanted to find them?" This was a big shock for Alice; Uno never told any of them his plans. "I felt It was the only way to find Marco. They're not here for you or me, believe me." Uno assured her, while August glowered in the background. June was all smiles though. "I am willing to bargain. Of course it is much easier for me, when I can simply read your minds to understand what is going on.."
"and what is going on?" There was still the puppetking and his surrounding army to deal with. "you.. have a pendulum too. i do not see it, but I know it. how?" Anastasia's eyes were glued to him. "So this is the crystal you did not count on. Well no matter who he is, he's made himself our target too." August activated his dueldisk. "You think you can stop me?" Martel finally spoke. "I have so many already, more than you!" His puppets all drew their cards to take them on. "Just what do you want with us anyway?" Uno wanted an answer for once. "Everyone asks me that, when they cannot understand! When you are mine, then you will not have to ask!" He ranted. "Oh I want to ask right now. Hmm, the power to see through the minds of others is pretty strong, Martel." June grinned and a glowing image of a golden eye appeared on her forehead. "But now that I stand face to face with you, I can spot its flaws too. You are the lynchpin." She pointed one finger forward. "Bang." A line of energy traveled from her hand to Martel. "KyAhh!" And it spread from his head like a spiders web. In that moment, all the duelists around him passed out and dropped to the ground.
"Mom!" Erics mother and Alice's father collapsed as well. "What... did you do to my pieces?" A wide-eyed Martel rasped. "I cut your threads. Every mind you infested, I cleaned up. Your next thought will be to ask me how I could do that, and the answer is simple.. I have been doing this game for a very long time. Your power may be as old as mine, older even perhaps. But you limited it with your own understanding, you are still a boy in the end." June said while August advanced. "He should not be able to do such things to begin with. To transform lives into nothing more than data and energy is a right given only to the guardians of time. Which you should also know, Fortuno Nisell." He gave Uno a judging look. "Yeah.. I know what I did, August." Because of him, the Union possessed that same ability. "Yet, that at least I can understand. But how did this kid learn the technique?"
"Hard to say. He's keeping those thoughts buried deep. We'll need to flush them out." Not even the telepath had the answers yet, but a quick duel would sort that out. "This is not the end." However, the puppetking was not going to play their game. He took his black-eyed puppet and.. "that doll." ..lost it to Anastasia. "No!" The lady Nisell summoned a Kozmo Dark Lady monster who swatted the doll out of Martels hands. "Give her back!" He shouted petulantly as Anastasia picked the doll up. "i was right." She pulled out one of its button eyes to reveal the purple crystal underneath. "Another pendulum?" Uno gasped. That explained how Martel could escape so many times. How did he never sense this? "... this is not yours. how did you get this?"
"It is mine now and I want it back!" Martel clapped his hands. The templar drones all switched to offensive mode. "More of those fakes?" August scowled. "He must have used the enforcers to change their orders before he came here." Adamant guessed as he activated his dueldisk too. There were five drones, one for him, Uno, Anastasia, June and August. "Well, he's not teleporting away now. Alice, Eric, Tory, take your parents and Stonewell and get out of here. We can deal with him." Uno didn't want to get them in harms way anymore. "Uh, right." Eric was not going to disagree, with his lifepoint total. "They're not leaving until they give me that crystal back. You can use his to escape.." August took the doll from Anastasia. "Oh, ah, yeah, this was yours." Alice gave him Eric's pendulum crystal in return. "You will not take that from me too!" But the incensed puppet king made a sudden jump for the two during the exchanging of crystals. "Ah!" Panicking, Alice pulled the doll back. Martel was almost upon her when she and several others flashed out of the room.
...
"Oh man that was close!" Alice's unscheduled transport took Eric and his mother, Alice and her father, Tory and the unconscious Stonewell with her. "Wait...This is still inside the palace?" Eric recognized this room with white clean walls. It was the infirmary. "Sorry. It was the only thing I could think of right away." All that talk of Martel and his victims put this area in her head. The room with Bishop in it was not far from here. "Well, there doesn't seem to be anyone around. And we avoided that Martel guy.." Tory peeked around the corner, the halls were as empty as they could possibly be. "Gah!" Until Martel dropped to the floor in a flash as well. "Give.. it back." In his hands he held a red crystal. "Dammit! He took August's crystal and followed us!? Give it a break alrea... Grghah.." Eric shouted, which only strained his tired body more. "She is tied with me. Wherever she goes, I will know."
"So we can't run?" Even if Alice would use the doll's crystal again, he'd be right there with them. "Why would I run from an opportunity like this?!" Tory yanked Stonewells dueldisk from his wrist and replaced his deck with hers. "Heck, let's see how you like it!" She knew how to activate the barriers from watching Stonewell use them. Tory quickly put one up around herself and the others. "You're not getting to Alice while I am around, Martel! I wonder how good of a duelist you are without your puppets?" She taunted him and drew her cards. "I did not lose everything, fool." Martel took one card from his belt and placed it in his dueldisk. "Huh?!" Tara the queen duelist materialized in front of her king, and intercepted the challenge of Tory. "My queen is always there for me. She only needs to defeat you, and the barriers will fall."
Queen's LP: 8000 Tory's LP: 8000
"Fantastic." Tory groaned. "Ggh. Tory, you gotta let us help you! This guy wont play fair!" Eric had first-hand experience of Martel ambushing others in the middle of their duels. She'd stand more of a chance with more allies. "You're already almost dead, Eric. Don't get crazy. Alice, don't you get any ideas either. You're gonna have to get everyone to safety if this goes sour." She warned them both. The barrier gave them no choice anyway. "I owe this bastard one. So let him try." She drew five cards. The Queen drew five as well and received the first turn. "My queen, you know what I want to see." Martels puppet normal summoned her first monster; a red crystal bird called Crystron Rosenix(4/1800/1000). "Ho?" Tara discarded a card from her hand too, Crystron Prasiortle, to special summon a monster from her hand. "Crystron Sulphafnir demands one Crystron from the hand." Martel helpfully explained as the sulfur dragon(5/2000/1500) crystallized. "And then it destroys one card she controls. And when it is destroyed.."
"Yeah yeah! It can summon a Crystron from the deck! I can read, Martel!" Sulphafnir targeted its own body for the destruction effect, and shattered into fiery shards of glass. The destroyed Crystron summoned another tuner from the deck, the citrine robot Crystron Citree(2/500/500). "I get that you know your puppets decks inside and out. But so do I! Stonewell warned me about her moves. I know your nontuners can destroy themselves to summon tuners from the deck and all that stuff!" She stated before Tara did just what she described. Rosenix destroyed itself, and special summoned the clear crystal robot and tuner Crystron Quan(1/500/500) from Martel's deck. "You do not know thing about us." Martel hissed while the queen activated Machine Duplication. "Okay, that's new." The spell summoned two duplicates of machines with 500 attackpoints or less, two more Citree tuners(2/500/500), from the deck. Finally, Crystron Prasiortle's effect activated from the graveyard; banishing itself to special summon a Crystron from the players hand. The last of the three tuners appeared; the metallic grey-bodied and blue-crystal haired Crystron Rion(3/500/500).
"Then.. who was she? Why did she have to be yours?" Alice wondered openly, unable to look away from this poor woman. "Don't bother asking him. This guy's warped. It's beyond obvious that she doesn't like being used like this!" Tory figured it was her turn, once the silent duelist stopped moving entirely. "I set the scales of Abyss Actor Extras and Abyss Actor Twinkle Littlestar!" The ghostly cyclops trio (scale 3) haunted the red pendulum zone. A little pinkhaired girl (scale 9) wearing an oversized purple dress and hat claimed the blue pendulum zone. "The Extras can summon themselves from the pendulum zone. And they can tribute themselves to move a new Abyss Actor from my deck to the pendulum zone!" The back-up actors(1/100/100) left the pendulum zone for the monster zones. And they sent themselves to the extra deck, so that Abyss Actor Leading Lady (scale 2) could take the other corner of the stage. "Pendulum summon: Superstar and Extras!" Together the female actors introduced their biggest star(7/2500/1800) from her hand and resummoned the Extras from the extra deck in defense mode.
"Abyss Actor Superstar! Get me Abyss Script Fire Dragons Lair and set it!" Tory searched her deck for the spell she wanted with Superstar's effect. The spellbook landed face-down and was quickly flipped face-up. "Fire Dragons Lair targets my superstar! Now he'll banish three cards from your extra deck whenever he attacks!" She tapped her pendulum monster as well. "And Abyss Actor Twinkle Littlestar here lets one my Actors attack three monsters in one turn! Care to tell me how many you have?!" She entered her battle phase. "More then you can touch. My Queen, begin.." As Martel commanded, the Queen activated her tuners effects. "Heh?" Crystron Quan special summoned a nontuner from the womans hand; Crystron Smiger the black quartz tiger(3/1000/1800). It then immediately tuned itself with that monster to synchro summon a machine; Crystron Quandax the white tiger knight(4/1800/2000). "Tory, she can use those tuners effects during your turn!" Eric shouted.
"Too late to tell her now." Martel laughed as the Queen activated Crystron Citree as well. Citree special summoned Crystron Rosenix from the graveyard and synchronized with it. The banished rose bird and citrine tuner formed a different kind of machine; Powered Inzektron the mechanical claw-bug tank(6/2500/1600). "My queen wont take any damage, during the turn this card is summoned." The Inzektron raised a field of energy around its master. "So what? I still get to use Fire Dragon lair's effect!" Thanks to he Superstars Script and Twinkle Littlestar, Tory could banish up to nine cards from the extra deck. "If I can't reach your lifepoints, I'll target your synchros!" Tory declared her attack, getting impatient. "One more, my queen." So the puppet was forced to activate Rions power. That tuner could special summon banished Crystrons like the green crystal turtle Prasiortle(2/500/2000), and immediately tune with them. The materials were returned to the deck, and their five levels combined into the amethyst angel; Crystron Ametrix(5/2500/1500). "!?" Ametrix' effect forced Superstar into defense mode. "Bah! Keep smirking. I can't wait to wipe that expression away." Tory placed three cards in her backrow and let her turn end.
"Warped, was I? You are just as vulgar as Stonewell." Martel's smile widened as his Queen started her turn. "I do not need to step in. My queen is clearly superior by herself." Tara banished Crystron Smiger from the graveyard to take a Crystron trap card from the deck; Crystron Impact. Next, Tara normal summoned Crystron Thystvern; the amethyst eagle(4/1500/1500). "See her splendor." The two remaining Citree tuners joined hands with Ametrix. "That's not an Accel synchro!" Tory gasped. "It's double tuning!" The three monsters melded into each other, forming a synchro angel forged from gold. "Crystron Gliongandr. When summoned, all opposing monsters are banished." This Crystal lord opened its wings to release a curtain of deadly light. It fell upon the Superstar actor and his Extras; permanently casting them into another dimension. "Tory!" Alice banged her hand against the barrier. "It's too late!" Even if Eric or her could step in now, Tara was already moving to attack. "You're mine!" Martel declared as Gliongandr attacked directly, knocking Tory against the barrier with its tail.
Tory's LP: 5000
"Hfff. Thanks for..triggering Leading Lady." Since she took damage, she could activate her pendulum monsters effect. The Leading Lady waved her wand to pummel the golden synchro. It(0/3000) lost attackpoints for each lifepoints Tory lost. "How pointless." Leading Lady could not use this power on anyone else besides the attacker. Powered Inzektron, Quandax and Thystvern were free to finish Tory off. "Heh. You think so?" Until Tory activated her trap card; Echo Oscillation. "I'm not finished with you, Martel!" The trap destroyed her pendulum, Abyss Actor Leading Lady, to draw a new card; a very lucky card. "I can special summon Battlefader from my hand, which stops your direct attack and ends the battle phase!" Powered Inzektron came to a screeching halt, when the clockbells were sounded by the arrival of the demon Battlefader(1/0/0). "Fool. Your hunger for revenge is misplaced. He would say the same if he saw you now."
"What? No he wouldn't! Don't believe him, Tory. This is all just a game to him!" Eric yelled. "Oh I know what he wants, I know him, your friends, your parents, better than any of you ever can.." Martel retorted. "But.. that doesn't mean you can use them! You know they wouldn't want this!" Alice could not imagine her dad turning against her, not in a million years. "They do not know what they want, they want to be free. 'Tara' was full of pain before me, she deserved better. She deserved me.. now she has nothing to worry about anymore. Anger and your strength, is nothing before the bonds we create." While the King spoke, the Queen let Thystvern selfdestruct so that its effect could special summon a second Crystron Quan(3/500/500) from the deck in defense mode. And she was about to end her turn. "Just shut up." However Tory flipped her last card before she could do anything. "I am tired of people pushing us around, you're as bad as anyone else. And I wont let anyone get away with that anymore!" It was the quintessential spell and trap destroyer: Mystical Space Typhoon. It targeted Crystron Impact and shattered it. "!?"
"I'm not as dumb as you think I am, Martel. I can see that Quandax can synchro summon during my turn! That's why you summoned Quan as your tuner!" Cryston Impact could have unbanished Rosenix, which then could be tuned with the Quandax and Quan tuners to form a second Crystron Gliongandr to banish her monsters. "If you really knew my Eric, you would know me as well! Too bad.. that's gonna cost you your queen!" Then during her turn, she activated her second trap; Abyss Actor Backstage. This card could add any two Abyss Actors from the deck to the extra deck. "I send Abyss Actor Evil Heel and a second Abyss Actor Superstar!" Now there was a proper cast for her next pendulum show. "I set the scale Abyss Actor Sassy Rookie! And Pendulum summon my monsters!" The sassy clown (scale 2) was the new partner of Twinkle Littlestar. Together they summoned back the Leading Lady(4/1500/1000), the new Superstar(7/2500/2000) and the headless yet masked devil Evil Heel(8/3000/2000).
"When Evil Heel is summoned, one of your monsters loses 1000 attackpoints for each Abyss Actor I control!" The demon opened the mouth on its torso and spewed out a debilitating acid to 'depower' the Powered Inzektron(0/1600). "Twinkle Littlestar will target Evil Heel this time, so he can attack your three monsters! Though none of my other actors can attack now. But you better believe he is going too hit hard!" She entered her battle phase. "Evil Heel attacks Gliongandr!" Twinkle Littlestar tossed three plush stars towards Evil Hell, who threw them away like razor discs. The first sliced right through the golden synchro, as if it were made of butter. "Rgh!"
Tara's LP: 5000
"Once each turn, when my opponent takes a hit, the Leading Lady can take just as many of your monsters attackpoints away!" The heroine used her brush to splatter Quandax(0/2000) with bright stars, making it as weak as the previous victim. "Evil Heel will attack her too!" The second shot cracked the mechanical synchro of clear crystal. Tara's lifepoints dropped by another three thousand. "And of course, one is left! The third target, Powered Inzektron, blew up when Evil Heel slammed the last star into its tank-body. The resulting destruction overwhelmed Tara and drove her against the walls. "No!" Martel cried out in vain, feeling the threads around her sever with the last drop of her lifepoints. "Now Tara has what she really needs.. So who is next, Puppetmaster? Or are you out of puppets?"
Tara's LP: 0
"No. He has not." A not too unfamiliar voice responded. "Wh.." Tory noticed her dueldisk was not disengaging yet, though she assumed that was merely due to the nature of Martels battle royal system. "That's the guy!" Eric coughed. "My bishop." Martel saw his old puppet walk into the infirmary. "Mr Bishop? What are you.." Alice was shocked to see him pick up Tara's dueldisk and use it as it was his. "He has come back for his king, of course." Martel had a relieved smirk on his face. "You.." Tory couldn't believe what she was seeing. "I'm sorry. Your duel with him is over, miss Tory." He inserted his cards into the disk and assumed his own lifepoints. "Because.. I want him for myself!"
(To be Continued in Redux 030: Blood from a Stone)
New Cards used by Tory
Abyss Actor - Extras
Abyss Actor - Twinkle Littlestar
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Abyss Script - Fire Dragon's Lair
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Abyss Actor Backstage
Echo Oscillation
New Cards used by 'Queen' Tara
Crystron Prasiortle
Crystron Rion
Crystron Gliongandr
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Powered Inzektron
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Machine Duplication