The Rise and Fall of History II: Opposing the Present

by Medigo

The world of dueling has reached its climax. Many stories have been told through these cards, and the final story brought everyone together. People are united and yet, an unknown world suffers in their shadow. The fallen one returns in the midst of their peace, pursued and still a stranger to those around. There is not much time to save both his home and his friends.

76. The Man Behind the Curtain

Redux 15: The Man behind the Curtains

Before them stood the man who bore responsibility for all crimes committed against time, against their world. "What are we in for?" December challenged him, the rest could only watch. "I don't know." Uno wished he could tell Eric what was about to happen. But he did not remember.. how his father dueled.

December's LP: 8000 Tempus' LP: 8000

"My turn is the first." The dimensional duelist inspected his hand and all potential futures. December knew what path to take. "I bind myself with the Gate! To me, D/D/D Oblivion King Abyss Ragnarok!" Of all choices, the Dark Contract with the Gate spell added the oblivion pendulum lord to Decembers hands. He placed Abyss Ragnarok (scale 5) in one pendulum zone. "Descend, D/D Savant Galilei!" Next, by activating the Galilei astronomer from his hand, December could recycle a Dark Contract on the field. The Gate spell returned to his hand while Galilei left it. "And descend, Doom King Armageddon!" December then activated Trade In to discard his other level 8 pendulum monster, and to draw two new cards. "I call upon your wisdom, D/D Savant Copernicus!" After that he normal summoned the solar systems cradle, Copernicus(4/0/0). And its effect discarded one D/D monster directly from the deck. "I send you to the depths as well, D/D Necro Slime." A slime-covered goatskull was moved to the graveyard. As it turned out, from there Necro Slime could fuse itself with one other D/D monster in the graveyard. "Combine, Necro Slime and Armageddon!" December merged the slime with the D/D/D lord and fusion summoned a blue wolf warior king(8/3000/2500). "The Dragonbane King Beowulf!"

"Abyss Ragnarok! Revive Galilei!" Once each turn, when a D/D monster was special summoned, an Abyss Ragnarok in the pendulum zone could special summon one D/D monster from the graveyard. However outgoing damage would be halved for the rest of the turn. "As I give my life.." Incoming damage remained the same and December's lifepoints dropped by a 1000 as another payment for Abyss Ragnarok's effect. The Savant Galilei(10/0/0) was revived in defense mode. "I call upon you, D/D Orthros!" And yet taking damage was the trigger for the summon effect of another pendulum monster in December's hand; D/D Orthros the bound two-headed wolf(4/600/1800). "Harmonize, Orthros and Copernicus!" Orthros was a tuner monster at that. It and Copernicus synchronized to summon a synchro monster with eight levels. "The Cursed King Siegfried!" The wolf and savant formed the pale swordsman in dark armor; the hexblood king Siegfried(8/2800/2200). "How many synchros, fusions and XYZs does this guy have?" Eric was sure this one was new. ".. one for each world he visited; a memento." Uno guessed. He was afraid to find out how many worlds those added up to.

December's LP: 7000

"Pendulum summon!" December continued his turn after he placed Leonidas the spartan Rebellion King (scale 3) in the other pendulum zone. "Copernicus, Orthros! Return!" The pendulum savant and pendulum tuner were summoned back from the extra deck. "And overlay into Caesar the Wave King!" By placing both monsters on top of each other, December could XYZ-summon the black armor lord of the ocean; Caesar(4/2400/1200). Finally a trap was placed face-down. "That was my turn, Tempus!" December announced the passing of turns, shortly before also he revealed his trap. It was called; Dark Contract with the Eternal Darkness. "I bind myself to the Eternal Darkness! As long as two D/D monsters exist in the pendulum zones, none of my cards can be targeted or destroyed by effects. And.. no monsters you control can be tributed, fused, synchronized or overlayed!" A veil of pitchblack fog fell over the duelists and the observers. "I can't see.." Alice and the others could not witness the duel anymore. But they all knew that December's field put his opponent in a precarious situation. Not many options were open for Tempus; no tribute summons and no fusion/synchro or xyz-monsters.

"An everlasting darkness that can swallow the light of the future."

"Does not exist." Tempus' voice pierced the shadows. "This power..." Adamant felt the raw energy emanating from this man in his bones. "father.." His turn started. Tempus dispelled the darkness with the crystal's glow, and placed two cards on the field. In his pendulum zones.. "He can use pendulums too!?" Eric gasped. That was the only thing that could break through Decembers lock. "I did not.." December was dumbstruck, this was a completely different strategy than the one he used against Silver. "I do not use the Pendulum.. I am the Pendulum. I am that which swings from yesterday to tomorrow." In his right zone he activated a dark dimensional sorcerer (scale 1) whose cloak contained the cosmos. On the left zone, a crimson time mage (scale 8) revealed itself. "Astrograph Sorcerer? Chronograph Sorcerer!? Uno.." Alice realized right away which cards these monsters looked like. "Space and Time are mine to command. Astrograph Sorcerer can destroy itself, Chronograph Sorcerer can destroy itself!" Tempus shattered both pendulum mages. "To give me Stargazer and Timegazer Magician, as monsters on my field.. or as pendulums!"

"Yahh!" Uno flinched as the two cards Tempus declared literally flew out of his deck. "First the crystals, now this?" The stargazer (scale 1) and timegazer (scale 8) were placed in the emptied pendulum zones, through the effect of the Astral and Chrono sorcerers. "My Son, have you forgotten? It was I who created this power, it was I who performed the first Pendulum Summon." Tempus took one monster from his hand and two from his extra deck. "And it is I who shall be the last. Pendulum SUMMON!" He pendulum summoned Astrograph Sorcerer(7/2500/2000), Chronograph Sorcerer(6/2000/1700) and a pale blue demon holding a skull-faced clock on his chest; a Time-Eater(6/1900/1700). "I created you. All your time, all your moments and memories; owe their existence to me. And I will take them back." He entered his battlephase. "Kings of the past should stay buried." The Astral sorcerer sliced D/D/D Ceasar the Wave Lord open with his dual temporal blade. The TimeEater meanwhile attacked and destroyed the defending D/D Savant Galilei.

December's LP: 6900

"You are not a creator! You destroy everything you see and all we owe you is destruction!" Before Caesar died, December activated its effect. As the battle phase ended, Ceasar special summoned itself and all other D/D monsters that were destroyed as a result of battle this turn. Though the resummoning of the XYZ-Lord and Galilei would cost him lifepoints on the next turn. "The one who can see all, sees so little." Tempus let out a heavy chuckle, that barely sounded like normal laughter. He placed two trap cards down and ended his turn. "I have seen more than any man should, because of you. And not enough." December drew his card. "Leonidas, shield my life!" During his standby phase, he would take damage from the Dark Contract with Eternal Darkness and from Caesar's effect. But after taking one hit, further damage could be averted by destroying the Rebel Lord in his pendulum zone. After December let the Dark Contract's inflict 1000 of damage, Leonidas converted Caesar's 2000 points of damage into healing energy instead.

December's LP: 7900

"You do not know the beginning, you cannot know the ending. Tell me, what future do you think you have when I may take time itself away from your hands?" Tempus flipped his first trap card: Thunder of Ruler. "He's trying to steal his battle phase!?" The thunder trap would skip the players next battle phase if it was successfully activated during Decembers standby phase. "I know what you are trying to do!" December chained with the effect of the cursed King. "Siegfried, negate!" Once each turn Siegfried could negate the effects of a face-up spell or trap, even normal traps. "Knowing the future is not the same as being able to stop the future." Tempus waved his hand and flipped his second trap. "!?" It was a second Thunder of Ruler trap. "He had another one? Aw! Now he can't attack?" January moaned. "No. It's worse than that. He cannot use his turn at all." June finally realized the horrible nature of Tempus' dueling strategy. "What? Why?" Eric didn't follow. "Because of TimeEater. It skips the opponents next main phase, when it destroys a monster in battle." Adamant never thought he would see anyone use that machine, yet there it was.

"No main phase, no battle phase.. means he goes straight to the endphase." December did not have a choice; his turn was over and his enemy's turn was upon him. "Pendulum Summon. Blue Claw Magician." And the time lord used the star and timegazer to bring another pendulum magician to his field. It was a female druid(4/1800/0) in cyan-blue robes, wielding a large four-spiked shield. "The time and power you have was my gift to you. Yet, like everything else, it is ephemeral." The Pendulum sage spun his shield and cast an energy draining spell upon Decembers D/D/D monsters. Thousand of attackpoints were stolen from the Wave King Ceasar(1400/200), Cursed King Siegfried(1800/1200) and Dragonbane King Beowulf(2000/1500).

Blue Claw Magician, 4/1800/0 Dark/Spellcaster/Pendulum
1[Once per turn: You can target 1 DARK spellcaster-type monster you control; apply this effect to that monster, then destroy this card.
● If it destroys an opponent's monster this turn, inflict damage to your opponent equal to the original ATK of that monster.]1
If this card is pendulum summoned, monsters your opponent controls lose 1000 ATK until the end of this turn.

" Tempus then activated a continuous spell, Terminal World, before he entered his battlephase. The TimeEater re-destroyed D.D Savant Galilei. The Blue Magician sent a shooting star into the Wave King to blow him to pieces. The Astrograph and Chronograph Sorcerers twisted the dimensions with their weapons to tear Beowulf and Siegfried apart. The only comfort here was that a destroyed Siegfried restored 1000 of December's lifepoints for each Dark Contract on the field. It almost nullified the 1100 points of battle damage.

December's LP: 7800

"Tch. I cannot believe this." August grunted. December was just being played with, Tempus did not even seem to take this seriously. "But he can still enter his battle phase, can't he? Even if he has no monsters?" TimeEater already 'ate' the first main phase. But Alice thought December could keep fighting if he managed to get a second main phase. "no, alice, he has no second main phase anymore." Anastasia shook her head. Because of Terminal World, neither duelist could enter their second main phase. "when father duels, the first turn is all you get." Tempus ended his turn and now it didn't even matter if December could move to his battle phase. Without main phases, a duelist could not summon anything. "..." Then there was the Eternal Darkness contract, which ticked away a thousand lifepoints each time he started his turn. And December could not get rid of it. "I.. end my turn."

December's LP: 6600

"Then, if that was all, the end will come. My son." Tempus set a trap card down and proceeded towards his battle phase. "No way!" January gasped. At this rate December was going to lose. "We can't just let it end this way." Adamant shouted as the first attacks rushed in. The Astrograph Sorcerer attacked directly. "..." December narrowed his eyes and braced for impact. The first hit pushed him back, erasing 2500 of his lifepoints. "Are you waiting?" Tempus inquired, while the Chronograph Sorcerer made the second attack with a sword pulled from another dimension. "Gh." December rolled back to evade the blade, though he still lost an another 2000 lifepoints. "I know you are not submitting, so show me what is hidden." The third attacker was the Comet magician. And that was also the breaking point for the dimensional duelist. "Juragedo!" He activated an effect from his hand. "To me!" During the battle step, he could special summon the longclawed mutant demon(4/1700/1300) from his hand in defense mode. And he would recover a 1000 lifepoints when it was summoned.

December's LP: 3100

"He made it!" Alice let out a cry of joy. "He did? Why didn't he do that to begin with?" Eric took December for a dead man right up until the end. "Because.. he wanted to break the cycle." Uno stated as he saw the Pendulum Sage pull his weapon back. Its attack was skipped, so that the TimeEater could kill Juragedo and cancel out another one of December's first main phases. "He couldn't." Tempus was too clever, he deliberately reserved the last attack for TimeEater to force as much damage against his opponent as possible. "December. Is this the best course?" June saw no hope. At best, December was delaying the inevitable. And with the Dark Contract of Eternal Darkness continuously chipping away at his lifeforce, he did not have a lof of turns left to begin with. "It is the only course. To do otherwise, would bring us damnation." Tempus' turn ended, December drew his next card. "There.. is always a chance." He let his trap card reduce his lifepoints, and skipped to the end of his main phase-less turn.

December's LP: 2100

"Chance. Fate. Destiny." Tempus drew his card. During his main phase he activated a continuous spell, Summon Breaker. "Those who utter such words, have already surrendered to a future of darkness." The next phase followed. "I do not surrender, Tempus. The centuries could not take my dream away from me; the dream that I would find you! And I have!" December dragged a card out of his hand and slammed it on his dueldisk. "I summon you, D/D/D Chaos King Apocalypse! Destroy my magic, my contracts!" Two spells or traps needed to be destroyed during the opponents turn, and the devil king(7/2700/2000) with long mechanical claws and a crystalline lower body could be special summoned from a players hand. December destroyed his Eternal Darkness contract and D/D/D Abyss Ragnarok. The natural light of the sun returned to the field of battle, bathing December in a golden glow. "I was nothing before you, Tempus. You made me! I am the only one who can unmake you!"

At last TimeEaters ceased its temporal carnage. Tempus' monsters could not destroys Chaos Apocalypse, and the second main phase did not exist. "My turn, my main phase!" At last he could activate cards from his hand, like the Dark Contract with the Gate. "To me, D/D Savant Kepler!" His continuous spell searched the deck for the astronomic pendulum (scale 10) and It was placed in the left pendulum zone. "To me, D/D Cerberus!" The three headed hellhound (scale 6) appeared on the other side. "Pendulum Summon!" Together they allowed December to release D/D/D Abyss Ragnarok(8/2200/3000) and D/D/D Leonidas(7/2600/1700) from the extra deck. And when the Oblivion King was special summoned, it could also special summon its own D/D/D monster from the the Cursed Blood King(8/2800/2200) was reborn. Yet in that time, Tempus revealed his own card. "His monsters!?" The trap, simply called Point Alfa, returned the Magicians and TimeEater to Tempus's hand.. in order to skip Decembers next battle phase.

Point Alfa, Normal Trap
Return all monsters you control to the hand. Skip your opponent's next battle phase.

"Still you reject my judgment?" The duel would start all over again if December didn't change something permanently. "Be careful. If you summon one more time.." Adamant reminded the duelist that despite everything, Summon Breaker was still active. It would immediately fast forward a turn towards the endphase, if any player made their third summon of the turn. "I am aware. The time has come, for the twin dawns!" December took Abyss Ragnarok and Siegfried away from the field, overlaying them for a rank 8 XYZ-summon. "I call upon D/D/D Duo Dawn King Kali Yuga! In Defense mode!" The horned demon Kali Yuga(8/3500/3000), with robes of black, armor of purple and a bloodred collar, sat down in a throne that was erected for the dimensional judge. "All effects on the field are sealed for the rest of this turn!" Summon Breaker was negated as soon as Kali Yuga summoned itself. "And each turn, it may break all spells or traps on the field!" The great judge detached one XYZ-material to pass his verdict across the field. Decembers D/D pendulums, Terminal World, Summon Breaker, and the Gazer Magicians; these were the ones whose lives Kali Yuga claimed.

"Perhaps judgment may fall on me one day. But that is not this day, or any day soon to come. Time itself first needs judgment." Tempus activated a card from his hand. "Astrograph Sorcerer, return to me my gazer of time." The cosmic sorcerer(7/2500/2000) unexpectedly resummoned itself to the field, and searched the deck to add a second Timegazer Magician to Tempus' hand. "What? I thought he couldn't use effects anymore?" Eric complained... and Tempus heard him. "This monster's power originates from the hand when a card is destroyed, my child." Astrograph's summon and search effect avoided Kali Yuga's effect lockdown. "Do you believe yourself to be so far above man, that you cannot even see their hatred towards you?" December's anger could not go any higher, nor could his endphase be put off any longer. "It is the opposite, my son. I can see and feel all your resentment. But all of it.. was for a purpose." December placed the Chronograph Sorcerer in the pendulum zone.

"What does that mean!?" December responded with Kali Yuga's effect again; detaching its final XYZ-material to destroy the Chronomancer. It was either that or let Chronograph special summon a Timegazer that would nullify Kali Yuga's destructive powers anyway. "That all this destruction of time served a greater goal; weakening the dimensions.. testing the limits of time and its guardians." Tempus regaled as he continued the turn and placed Stargazer Magician back in his pendulum zone. "The guardians? You want to.. fight them?" August nearly choked. Not even he would consider such an impossible challenge. "It was attempted before. Do you remember, my children?" Tempus looked at his daughter and his son. "i.. do. we harnessed their power, uno and marco did." Anastasia nodded slowly, while Uno did not know how to react. "I knew I could trust in you, Anastasia. And you, Fortuno, you have changed a lot. But you have done well."

"I set the other pendulum.. Iris Magician." Stargazer's new partner was a magical swordsman (scale 8), in knight-like robes and hat. "!?" Its colors were red.. like that of the Odd-Eyes Pendulum dragon. "You developed your spirits well, Fortuno. My own spirits evolved alongside of you." Tempus performed a pendulum summon for Chronograph Sorcerer and the first Stargazer Magician(5/1200/2400) in the extra deck and for the Time Eater and Blue Claw Magician in his hand. The latter's effect immediately depowered all of December's monsters (Leonidas: 1600 atk, Chaos Apocalypse: 1700 atk, Kali Yuga: 2500 atk). "Our Magician, Iris Magician, may double the damage that one of my dark spellcasters can inflict." Iris Magician tapped Astrograph Sorcerer with his sword. "And then it dies." Iris scattered like snow in the wind. "Even its effect is like Odd-Eyes." Alice murmured. How much help did Uno unwittingly give his father? "It is over, my son." Tempus started the battle phase. "Return to me." Chronograph Magician attacked and destroyed Chaos Apocalypse. "Ngh." One more attack would end it all.

December's LP: 1800

"I will give you one last chance to surrender to me." He extended his hand towards his opponent. "Never." That was the only word December sent back to him. "A pity." Tempus looked disappointed and groaned. "I had hoped to spare us the pain. Alas.. " Astrograph Sorcerer summoned the forces of the cosmos and cast them down upon Leonidas. "Gwaaah!" The Rebellion King took 900 points of battle damage, twice. December fall at his Kings side; his consciousness zapped out of him.

December's LP: 0

"June, January, August, December, Fortuno. The same choice is yours." 'Father' stepped forward, looming over December's body. "Join me, and we can confront those who would force past, present and future on us.. We can break time itself." He spoke with tantalizing words, and an immense weight. "What.." It was difficult, to even talk back. "What about my friends?" But Uno found exactly what he wanted to say. "They are of no consequence, they cannot aid us. Your real family awaits." Tempus' answer was illuminating. "uno..." Anastasia could already see the doubts swirling in her brother's head. "please.. don't fight him." Uno's answer was obvious too. "I am sorry, 'dad' If that's the case, I am gonna have to say no. My friends are my family too! I will not abandon any of them!" He declared with pride.

"To defy your own father. You have forgotten all you have learned." Tempus raised his hand to the sky. "father.. no." He was not going to duel Uno. "You need to be disciplined as well, you and your friends." His hand came down. "Wat!? No!" Uno screamed, as the island was buried underneath the light of time and space...

(To be Continued in Redux 00101000000...)

New Cards used by December
D/D Necro Slime
D/D Orthros
D/D/D Chaos King Apocalypse

-
D/D/D Cursed King Siegfried
D/D/D Duo Dawn King Kali Yuga

-
Dark Contract with the Eternal Darkness

Cards used by TEMPUS
Chronograph Sorcerer
Astrograph Sorcerer
Timegazer Magician
Stargazer Magician
Time Eater
Blue Claw Magician
Iris Magician

-
Terminal World
Summon Breaker

-
Thunder of Ruler
Point Alfa