Wow, that didn't go as planned. Being at my dad's on vacation, Kingdom Hearts 2 coming out, and school threw off my whole writing schedule. Ouch. But we get let out for summer in three weeks, so all's good.

Heinskitz is not my character. I give much thanks to Habado for making him and translating all his lines. Yes, they can be a bit hard to read, but the general meaning should come across well enough.

Chapter Six: Messenger

Brandi slowly came to, opening her eyes. The sight instantly threw her into confusion. She recognized the area as the volcano, in the last cavern, where they had run into Madura some time ago. The two problems with that were how she had ended up here and why she had her arms and legs pinned to the wall with metal clasps.

What happened…? We were… at the spring… then… we were attacked! Mana! Larka! What happened to them? Brandi's gaze swept across the room worriedly. Her eyes locked onto a figure.

Leaning against the wall nearby was a young woman. She wore a white gi and black sandals, along with black socks that fell just short of her knee caps. Her short brown hair was rather scruffy, as though she didn't pay too much attention to it, and her green eyes glanced up at Brandi, alert at once.

"Ah, Brandi, you are awake at last," the woman said as she straightened.

Brandi stared at her in shock. "You know my name?"

"All of us know who the members of your group are," she replied. "I am aware that you are Brandi Driger, sister of Max Driger. That is why I wished to meet you."

"Why are you interested in Max?" Brandi asked warily.

"For personal reasons, nothing more," she said. "My name is Ouka, and I am going to ask a question. It should not be hard for you to answer."

Brandi regarded her silently.

"Where does Max get his strength from?" Ouka inquired. "I have seen him fight in the Coliseum. He is strong, and that interests me."

"His strength?" Brandi considered whether it would be safe to answer, but could not think of any reason why it would hurt to. "Well… it is to protect. He feels like he has to protect everyone close to his heart," Brandi said. "That's the only way I can really explain it…"

Ouka pondered that. "That is it? The only thing?"

"It is the main factor," Brandi answered.

"…Hm… I will have to think about this," Ouka stated, turning away. "That was all I wanted to know. Thank you." Then she walked out before Brandi could respond.

A moment later, Obsidian entered, glancing over his shoulder. "Wonder what that was about… oh well. Not my concern." He turned back to Brandi as he came up to her. "So, you are Brandi. I wonder how long you will be able to endure…"

"What are you talking about?" Brandi said uneasily.

"It is merely a consideration that needs to be taken into mind," Obsidian stated. "If we need to show you to your friends to convince them of what choice they should make, you should be in a much worse condition, wouldn't you agree?"

"…Who are you?" Brandi asked nervously.

"I go by the name Obsidian," he replied. "But all you need to know me as is your torturer." He took out a card and inserted it into his Duel Disk. "I see no reason to not start now."

Before Brandi could respond, an electric force slammed into her, causing her to scream out. A few seconds later, it vanished, leaving her hanging limply.

"How pathetic… you cannot even withstand one assault," Obsidian said. "Now I have to actually moderate myself to make sure you do not die." He made a few adjustments to his Duel Disk, and then inserted another card. Once more, lightning erupted from it, connecting with Brandi. She cried out again.

As the electricity began to fade, she thought, No… I can't let this… happen… it's not only my life that is at risk!

"Quite an enjoyable experience, no?" Obsidian commented as he inserted yet another card.

From outside of the cavern, in another one that had an invisible barrier over it, Mana was able to hear Brandi scream for a third time. The sound filled her with despair.

Brandi… it's just like before… I'm unable to help her again… she thought, trying to rise but failing. The Energy Drain was still affecting her, and she knew that by the time it was gone, it would be far too late to save Brandi.

…

Larka also had trouble regaining consciousness. It took a few moments for her to finally force her eyes open. Her surroundings sent a wave of fear through her. She was lying on the ground in a large cavern. All around her, emerging from the ground, were parts of corpses that ranged from rotting limbs to bleached bones. The rancid scent of old blood and decay instantly made her feel sick, for more reasons than one. She also saw a rock towards the back of the room that had a coffin upon it. Whether it was empty or not was impossible to tell from her position on the floor. Apparently, there had once been two tunnels that led to the room, but one was completely blocked off by rocks. The other seemed clear enough.

Deeply frightened by this new area, Larka attempted to sit up, but found it impossible. Her arms were bound behind her back, and her legs were tied together, making it extremely difficult to move. She gave up after a few attempts and returned to her original position, trying to calm down.

What is this place? Brandi, Mana… what happened to them? What's going to happen to me? Larka tried to shift her thoughts to thinking of a way to escape, but they kept going back to those grim questions.

Larka did not have long to think about those though. A few minutes after she had woken up, she heard footsteps coming from the tunnel. Then a man came into the room. Although she did not recognize him, dread seized her once more. From the spotless lab coat to his malicious eyes behind wire-rimmed glasses, the man was the final piece of the gruesome puzzle that the area constructed.

"It seems she has awakened," the man said, stepping aside to let another in. "You may speak with her, but only for a moment."

"That is all I need," the second man relied. A jolt went through Larka as she heard the voice. When the man came closer, her suspicions were confirmed.

"K-kai?" Larka said nervously.

Kai halted in front of her, staring down with cold eyes. "Larka Luna, correct? Let me ask you something. What do you think of this area? Do you feel it fitting for yourself?"

"W-what do you mean?" Larka stammered.

"I assume you noticed all of the corpses here," Kai said. "This is practically a cemetery. Surely that is a comfort to a murderer such as you?"

"A m-murderer? I… I'm not…" Larka started to say.

Kai cut her off by roughly grabbing her hair, yanking up her head harshly. He ignored her soft cry of pain and snarled, "I had a brother who was an official. He worked under one of the higher officials, Abram. Recognize the name?"

Larka's eyes widened. "H-he was… part of…"

"That's right. You slaughtered his entire group that night, except Abram himself, who you apparently killed later anyway!" Kai glared at Larka, who was frozen in fright. "You were the one who murdered all of those people, and one of them was my own brother! Do you think I should just let the one responsible for it go without retaliating?"

"I… I didn't want to… kill anyone…" Larka whispered.

"What kind of pathetic excuse is that supposed to be?" Kai abruptly let go of her hair, causing her to fall back to the ground with a soft thump. "If you even feel regret, which I doubt, it would not cancel out what you have done! It would not bring my brother back to life!" Kai gave her a final piercing look. "Be thankful that we were ordered to keep you alive, or I would have revenge for what happened then. As it is… I have personally arranged that you undergo torture from Crucio. By the time he is done, you will be wishing I had killed you." Kai turned away and walked back towards the tunnel.

"You are finished?" Crucio asked as Kai went by him.

"Yes. I trust you will do your worst," Kai said as he left. A few seconds later, he was out of sight.

Crucio shook his head. "Orders to keep you alive, eh…?" He walked with deliberate slowness over to Larka and grabbed her around the waist, pulling her up. "How useless! Do they not know how this will turn out?"

Larka did not respond; fear seemed to have finally stolen her voice. Crucio carried her over to the coffin, laying her in it. Larka stared up at him, terror overwhelming her as he spoke again. "Whether your friends agree to surrender or not, you will die in the end anyway. Then there is always the chance of you somehow escaping… or even more likely, being rescued." His eyes gleamed as he looked at her. "Surely you have a loved one you are praying will save you?"

Zack… Larka thought.

"That is precisely why it is too risky to keep you alive, when you are to die either way," Crucio stated as he slipped a card into his Duel Disk. He held up a hand, and in it appeared a dagger.

"This is Dagger of Butterflies-Eruma," Crucio said as Larka paled. "Do not worry… your death will be swift. Perhaps so swift that it will be painless. But how am I to know? After all, I have never died!"

Larka had no time to react to his words, except for a single thought: Zack! Then Crucio brought his hand down, the dagger piercing into her. She felt a sharp pain, along with blood staining her, her blood, and then she was falling into a deep darkness, far deeper than any time she had fainted…

Zack…

…

"This is as far as we can go together," Zack said as they reached the foot of the mountain. "Good luck to both of you."

"Same to you," Hope replied. Max merely nodded.

Without further exchange, they split apart to head their separate ways.

…

"GAH! I can't stand this!" Rue shouted as he turned and smashed his head into a rock wall. Then he fell back. "Ow… pain… at least this'll preoccupy me…"

"Geez Rue, I'd think you'd want to keep the few brain cells you have," Miles commented.

"I repeat what I said earlier: Rue has a brain?" Draken said.

"I hate you both," Rue grumbled, sitting up.

"It wouldn't be any fun otherwise," Draken said with a grin.

"Only half an hour has passed since they began going down," Kazel said. "Be patient."

"Rue? Being patient? You're kidding, right?" Neo joked.

"I can be patient!" Rue protested. "It's not like I'm distracted by the smallest-hey look, a bird!"

Everyone else sighed. Then Will said, "Miles, you heard nothing else about this Heinskitz guy? Nothing at all?"

"Nope. Just that he's apparently a moron," Miles said with a shrug.

"It's too bad you couldn't have followed them," Darche remarked.

"Yeah, but I had to contact you guys ASAP," Miles reminded him. "Besides, the chances of being caught didn't appeal to me."

"You really need to get stronger so that you can fight your way out of situations," Draken said.

"Hey, it's not like I don't try! I actually do exercises to increase my strength!" Miles declared.

"Really? What do you do?" Rue asked.

"I started by holding a five-pound potato sack with each hand every day," Miles explained. "Then when I could keep those up, I moved up to ten pounds, and continued until I had reached the fifty-pound potato sacks."

"He speaks truly," Gen confirmed.

"Whoa!" Rue said with an amazed look. Then he frowned. "Hey wait. If you did all that, why are you still weak?"

"Well, it probably would have helped if I had actually put potatoes in them," Miles said with a grin.

Everyone besides Ruecian, Kisara, and Gen face-faulted. Ruecian merely shook his head while Kisara looked confused.

"Again, I hate you," Rue growled from his position on the ground.

"I know, that's why it's so great to say stuff like that," Miles said, laughing.

"He certainly seems as lively as ever," Darche commented to Gen.

Gen smiled at that. "This is the first time since the banning that I've seen Miles be carefree again. It really hurt him to be separated for so long. I mean, he never actually changed the way he acted, but… his heart wasn't into it until now."

"I can understand that," Darche responded.

"Dang it! I'm bored again!" Rue complained.

"We need some amusement. Like having a flamboyant duelist come and proclaim himself to be some ridiculous title," Draken commented.

At that moment, a man suddenly leapt up from the path and landed in front of them in an odd position. His arm was thrown up and his wrist bent down, almost as though he were pointing at himself.

The new arrival wore a black shirt with white letters that said, 'One by one, the penguins steal my sanity'. Over that was an unbuttoned, mainly blue and red shirt that was in a Hawaiian design of sorts. Going with the surfer attire were blue swimming trunks and brown sandals. His blond hair was slicked up the front in a ridiculous fashion, and his blue eyes were pretty wide compared to most.

"I am Heinskeetz Velvet-Trrainah of Dolfen!" he said with a hilariously-hideous German accent.

The same people from before face-faulted again. "This is why you should be careful with what you wish for," Draken muttered as they got up.

Rue's eyes twitched. "Did he say DOLPHINS? ARGH! BAD MEMORIES… FROM ATLANTICA… IN KINGDOM HEARTS… RETURNING… HATE… DOLPHINS…"

"Joo! How can joo ATE DOLFENS? Zat ees so heedeecoolusly-" The last words he said sounded more like shrill squeaks than anything. Then he frowned. "Oh, right. Joo vooldn't oonzerstand ze booteefool langvage zat ees 'Dolphlandeec'! Neverzeless… joo haff no right to talk of my precious dolfens een such a vay-"

"I think the penguins are done," Will commented.

Heinskitz was in such a frenzy that he didn't seem to notice Will's remark. "-and zus, joo shall sufferr from ze wrat of Heinskeetz Velvet-Trrainah of Dolfen-"

Rue's eye twitched again. "Who gives a damn about you? Seriously, I think your new name should be Fruitcake. No, more like Captain Fruitcake."

This caused Heinskitz to go into a rapid stream of words in 'Dolphlandic' that they could only assume were horrible curses. Then he spat out, "Joo veell pay for zis most heedeous crime of neglecting my full title! Lookie, come fort and elp me!"

"…Do I have to?" they heard someone say.

"Pleeeeeaaaaase?" Heinskitz begged in a disgustingly over-sweet voice.

"…I hate you so much," the voice said as the speaker stepped into view.

Nearly everyone's jaws dropped at the Soul Monster. The white… face-like… thing… before them was at least a story tall. Despite having short arms and feet, it still seemed like a giant face; its mouth and nose were huge, while its tiny eyes came out on stalks. It wore a red speedo and a small yellow crown.

"WHAT THE HELL?" Rue yelped. "YES, I'M SAYING IT AGAIN! THIS SITUATION CALLS FOR IT!"

"My poor eyes," Miles groaned, covering his face with his hands. "I am now blind."

"What he said. Someone tell me when it's over," Draken concurred, copying Miles.

"Yeah, yeah, same reaction as always, can we get to the point?" the Soul Monster snapped, staying behind Heinskitz.

"Zees is Lookie, my best friend! He's a lot betterr zan loossers like joo!" Heinskitz declared.

"…No wonder that idiot ended up this way," Darche muttered.

"That only proves my point that you deserve the name Captain Fruitcake," Rue said.

"Joo haff crossed ze line by eensulting my precious dolfens!" Heinskitz pointed at Rue. "I challenge JOO!"

"…Can you even duel?" Rue questioned.

"Of course!" Heinskitz replied, looking offended. "I am a grayt zooleest!"

"Actually, he might not be lying," Miles said, glancing out from between his fingers. "Seiryu said the only reason they kept him around was because he was a good duelist."

"Seiryu? Oh, right! I vas supposez to tell joo guys to soorrender, or vee'd keell joor friends!" Heinskitz said.

"OLD!" Rue, Draken, and Miles chorused.

"We are already well aware of that, and it will not cause us to surrender," Will stated.

"Vell zen… zere ees no reesen to haff to old back!" Heinskitz punched the air. "Less go, Lookie! Ve veell show zese dolfen aters vy eet ees rong to go against zem!"

"If we did not have our orders, I would never agree to this," Lookie grumbled.

"Fine then. If it's a duel you want, I'll give you one. Bring it on, Captain Fruitcake!" Rue turned on his Duel Disk.

"EENUFF VEET ZAT HEEDEECOOLUS NAME!" Heinskitz turned on his own Duel Disk.

"Better him than us," Draken commented.

Ruecian just shook his head before stepping next to Rue.

Rue: 8000

Heinskitz: 8000

"Who goes first?" Miles asked.

"Me," Rue and Heinskitz both said. Then they glared at each other.

"How are we going to determine it?" Will said.

"A staring contest!" Heinskitz declared.

"You have got to be kidding," Rue said flatly. Then he abruptly smiled. "Sure, why not."

"Rue's going with this?" Draken said in disbelief.

"…Whatever works," Will said with a shrug. "All right. Ready, set, go."

They stared at each other for about thirty seconds before Rue suddenly yelled, "OH MY GOD! A DOLPHIN IS DYING BEHIND YOU!"

"VAT!" Heinskitz turned around instantly and saw the path down the mountain, bare.

"Hah! I win!" Rue said triumphantly.

"Joo cheeterr!" Heinskitz accused.

"You never said we couldn't do that," Rue pointed out. "So I'm going first."

"But… but… FINE! BE ZAT VAY!" Heinskitz pouted.

"I will," Rue grinned, drawing six cards. "Hm… I'll summon Skilled Black Magician (1900/1700) and end my turn."

"He must not have gotten a very good hand," Draken commented.

"Maybe he is withholding his cards for next turn," Kazel suggested.

"Normally, that would be a valid idea. But this is Rue we're talking about," Miles reminded her.

"Ah, yes. You have a point." Kazel nodded wisely.

"Some friends you are," Rue grumbled.

"I lay tooh cards down and a monsterr een zefense!" Heinskitz declared.

"My turn? I summon Doublecoston. (1700/1650) Then my Skilled Black Magician attacks your defense monster!" Rue said.

"Joo haff zestroyed my Zemon-Vorld Fameeliar! (1600/600) So hees effect acteevates!" Heinskitz informed him. "Ven ee goes to ze Cemetery from ze feeld, each playerr chooses vun level zree or lowver normal monster from hees or er zeck, reveals eet, and puts eet een hees or er and. Zen ve shuffle."

"That won't help me at all," Rue said with a sigh. "I don't have any monsters that fit the criteria."

"But I do! I get Polite Eentruder Grreen!" Heinskitz showed him it.

"…What the hell are you smoking and where can I get some?" Rue said.

"What is Polite Intruder Green?" Kisara asked.

"One of the ugliest and most utterly pathetic cards in existence," Neo replied. "I can't imagine why someone would want to use it."

"Because he's a moron?" Draken offered.

"I would not be so quick to dismiss it," Will stated. "He might be using it in some kind of combo."

"Either way, I attack you directly with Doublecoston," Rue said.

"I acteevate my trap card, Cry of ze Leeving Zez! Zat revives my Zemon-Vorld Fameeliar!" Heinskitz retorted.

Rue shrugged. "Big deal. Doublecoston attacks it."

Rue: 8000

Heinskitz: 7900

Rue watched him search through his deck. "Going to get another pathetic monster?"

"No! I get Polite Eentruder Jello!" Heinskitz disagreed, showing him it.

"Jell-O? Where can I get some?" Miles asked.

"I just asked if you were going to get another pathetic monster, quit lying!" Rue said. "I'm done."

"I'm not lying! Zey're not patheteec! Just meesoonzerstood!" Heinskitz protested. "I summon Polite Eentruder Grreen (0/1000) and lay a card zown."

"Wow. He really is ugly," Miles said, wincing.

"They all are," Neo said. "All three of them and the Polite Intruder King, anyway. I wanted to stab out my eyes after I saw them for the first time."

Rue shook his head. "Talk about denial. I sacrifice Doublecoston for Black Magician. (2500/2100) He attacks Polite Intruder Green!"

"Joo'll regret zat! I acteevate Oly Barrier-Mirror Force!" Heinskitz countered.

"…Ow. I do regret that." Rue watched his two monsters be blown up by the reflected blast. "Drat. I lay a card down and end my turn."

"Time to bring oot my super-zuper-inzestructible combo of zoom!" Heinskitz threatened.

"Wow. That sounds threatening," Miles commented.

"I play Ground of Eenacteeveety!" Heinskitz said. "Zoo joo stop me?"

"Why would I? All that does is take up two of my monster slots," Rue said. "I can still summon up to three monsters, and that's more than enough to take care of you."

"Excellent! Now I acteevate my trap card, Ze Polite Eentruding Trio!" Smaller versions of the three Polite Intruders popped up on Rue's side of the field in defense mode. (0/1000) "Zat geeves joo zree Polite Eentruding Tokens! Ven zey are zestroyed, ze controller of zem takes 300 Life Point zamage."

"Let me guess; there's something about them that I don't know of that will own me," Rue said.

"Since zey cannot be sacrificed to summon, all fife of joor monster slots are feelled until I zestroy vun!" Heinskitz pointed out.

"…Why do I always have to be right about things like that?" Rue groaned. Then he blinked. "Wait! That means you can't attack me without freeing up my monster slots!"

"Vell of course not! I'm not ready to attack yet!" Heinskitz said, as though this were obvious. "I summon Polite Eentruder Jello!" (0/1000)

"Don't even comment," Draken said to Miles.

"Darn it," Miles muttered.

"Zen I acteevate Lookie's Zeck Master abeeleety! By paying 500 Life Points, I can get a Polite Eentruder from my zeck or Cemetery. I get Polite EEntruder Black from my zeck!"

Rue: 8000

Heinskitz: 7400

"Whoo hoo, you got another useless monster! Congratulations!" Rue said sarcastically. "I lay two cards down and end my turn."

"Zey aren't yooseless! Just for zat, I'm going to get rid of joor cards!" Heinskitz said. "I play Tempest! EET GON' RAIN!"

"AW HELL NAH! My own Deck Master ability stops that!" Rue declared. "By discarding a card-in this case, Jewel of the Wise-Ruecian negates and destroys your magic card!" Ruecian sliced apart the card.

"Cheaterr! Zat's just not fairr!" Heinskitz complained. "I play Cyclone-"

"Negate it. I discard Black Magician Girl." Ruecian cut apart that one too.

"I ate joo!" Heinskitz shouted. "I summon Polite Eentruder Black (0/1000) and end my turn!"

"Might want to hide your eyes," Draken advised to Kisara, who was looking a bit sickened with six Polite Intruders on the field.

"Hah! I play my own Cyclone to destroy Ground of Inactivity!" Rue announced. "Then I summon another Skilled Black Magician! He attacks and destroys Intruder Black!"

Rue: 8000

Heinskitz: 5500

"Joo zestroyed my precious Polite Eentruder Black!" Heinskitz whined. Then he drew, his eyes lighting up at the card. "Zees veell make joo sufferr! I pay 500 Life points to retriefe Polite Eentruder Black from ze Cemetery and summon heem!"

Rue: 8000

Heinskitz: 5000

"Yeah, that's going to really make me suffer," Rue said sarcastically.

Heinskitz pointed at Rue for the third time. "He veell! For now I play Polite Eentruding Delta Oorreecane!"

Rue blinked. "What's that?"

The three Polite Intruders Heinskitz had formed a triangle. A violent windstorm sprang up at once, tearing apart everything on Rue's field. He was barely able to remain upright due to the fierce gales.

"Ven I haff Polite Eentruder Grreen, Jello, and Black on ze feeld, I can acteevate zat! Eet zestroys all cards on ze opponent's side of ze feeld!" Heinskitz said.

"…I cannot believe such a card exists," Rue said in disgust. "Cannot."

"BELIEVE IT!" Miles yelled. Then he got hit over the head by Will's book. "Ow! You didn't have to do that!"

"Yes, I did have to." Will returned to reading.

"Why are you reading while Rue is fighting for his life?" Gen inquired.

"By ignoring them, I am hoping to preserve my brain cells," Will explained without looking up.

"Ah. Good idea," Gen agreed.

"You eliminated my Claymore Mine and Magic Cylinder," Rue said.

"Ze Polite Eentruder Tokens got zestroyed also, so joo lose 900 Life Points!" Heinskitz added.

Rue: 7100

Heinskitz: 5000

"Oh my gosh! You can do basic math!" Rue said in fake astonishment. "Maybe I misjudged how stupid you are!" He paused. "…Nah."

"Vee'll see oo ze stupid vun ees!" Heinskitz retorted. "I play Fusion! Polite Entruder Grreen, Jello, and Black form Polite Eentruder King!" (0/3000)

"GRAH! NOW THERE ARE TWO OF THEM!" Rue exclaimed as it appeared.

"Anyone got a rusty spoon?" Draken asked. "I'd like to stab out my eyes now."

"No, but I wish I did," Miles replied.

"So does it actually do anything? Besides stand there and look ugly?" Rue asked.

"Ee ees not ugly!" Heinskitz cried. "And eee hass an effect! Up to zree of joor monster slots cannot be used vile ee ees oot!"

"Great, it's The Polite Intruding Trio all over again, except without the retarded tokens on my field," Rue said with a sigh. "Why couldn't I have just had a few cards in my hand to negate those magic cards? Why?"

"Because you planned that out horribly?" Neo suggested.

"…Yeah. Thanks for pointing out the obvious," Rue muttered.

"Zen I play Angel's Geeft to zraw zree cards!" Heinskitz looked at them. "I zeescard Zez Veet Ohnerr and Ojamagic, so Ojamagic is activated!"

"What does it do?" Rue questioned.

"Ven eet ees sent to ze Cemetery from my and or ze feeld, I can put vun of each Eentruder een my and!" Heinskitz explained. "So I get a Polite Eentruder Grreen, Jello, and Black from my zeck!"

"Oh boy, more disgusting monsters!" Rue said with false enthusiasm. "Anything else to go with this wonderful turn?"

"Actually, yes! I play anuzer Ground of Eenactivity!" Heinskitz said. "So now all of jojr monster slots are feelled again!"

"…Screw you. Seriously," Rue growled, his eyes twitching. "May I go?"

"Of course!" Heinskitz said formally.

Rue looked at the card he drew in annoyance. "I pass."

"My plan cannot fail! I summon Polite Eentruder Grreen!" Heinskitz said.

"Oh yeah? I'll tear apart your plan!" Rue glanced at his hand. "…After I pass again."

"I summon Polite Eentruder Jellow and lay a card face-zown!" Heinskitz continued.

"…Okay, I'll ruin it next turn," Rue sighed. "Pass for the third time in a row."

"I summon Polite Eentruder Black!" Heinskitz looked at the trio and King on his field fondly. "Aren't zey cute?"

"Gag me," Rue grumbled as he drew. Upon seeing his card, he grinned. "At last! Not exactly what I was thinking of, but this works perfectly! I play Double Magic! By discarding Book of the Sun, I can take one of your magic cards from the Cemetery and use it!" He thought for a moment. "I don't want to destroy your other card in case it's another Ojamagic though. So I'll take Cyclone and get rid of Ground Collapse! Then I play Early Burial, to revive Black Magician!"

Rue: 6300

Heinskitz: 5000

"With Black Magician on the field, I can activate Thousand Knives to destroy one of your monsters! I'll take out Polite Intruder King!" Rue said. "Then Black Magician attacks Polite Intruder Green!"

The Polite Intruder Green was so feeble that the dark magic attack tore through it instantly, hitting Heinskitz full-force.

Rue: 6300

Heinskitz: 2500

"Ow zare joo keell my precious Polite Eentruder Grreen!" Heinskitz exclaimed. "But I veell acteevate Crowd Tacteecs! Eet's a permanent trap. Each end phase allows me to choose a number of level two or lowver normal monsters from my zeck eekval to ze number zat ver zestroyed by battle and special summon zem."

"Yay, more Polite Intruders! Seriously, my hate for those things has gone through the roof. I end my turn," Rue growled.

"Joo ate dolfens and Polite Eentruders… joo are vun of ze most despeecable perrsons everr!" Heinskitz said. "I use Crowd Tacteecs to get Polite Eentruder Grreen! On my turn, I play Revive Fusion, an equip magic card! By paying 800 Life Points, I bring back Polite Eentruder King een attack mode!"

Rue: 6300

Heinskitz: 1700

"I summon Polite Eentruder Jello, and zen play ze magic card Ojamoosle!" Heinskitz sniffed and wiped his eyes. "Eet zestroys all of my Polite Eentruders besides my King…" The other four exploded. "But eet ees for ze greater good! My Polite Eentruder King's attack raises by 1000 for each vun zestroyed!" (4000/3000)

"Oh you have got to be kidding," Rue said as the Polite Intruder King got ready to attack.

"I am not! Polite Eentruder King attacks Black Magician!" Heinskitz declared.

The huge Polite Intruder King leapt forward, flattening Black Magician in a belly flop.

Rue: 4800

Heinskitz: 1700

"What a way to go," Miles winced.

"I'm so sick of this…" Rue grumbled, drawing. Then he smiled. "Now that's what I like to see! I summon Magic Warrior Breaker! (1900/1000) He comes with a magic counter, but I'm going to remove it to destroy your Revive Fusion! That removes your Polite Intruder King from the game! Then Breaker attacks you directly!"

Rue: 4800

Heinskitz: 100

"No! Joo can't zoo zees! Not to my booteefool Polite Eentruders!" Heinskitz cried.

"I just did," Rue pointed out.

"Prepare to be faced by my greatest monster zen! Lookie, come fort!" Heinskitz said.

"…I am not saving your sorry ass," Lookie stated.

"Oh come on! Vee're going to zie if joo zon't!" Heinskitz pleaded.

"What? I die too? Screw that." Lookie went onto the field in defense mode. (0/3000)

"I am not letting this go on any longer," Rue snarled, drawing. He looked at it and smiled again. "I think my deck's tired of it too. I summon Injection Angel Lily!" (400/1500)

"Vat can she zoo to stop ze almighty Lookie?" Heinskitz asked scornfully.

Rue couldn't resist mocking him. "Zees." He indicated to Lookie. The Injection Angel Lily sped forward and jabbed him with her needle. Lookie bloated before falling backwards.

Rue: 2800

Heinskitz: Deck Master Defeated

"No! Zees cannot be! My dolfens… I'f failed zem!" Then Heinskitz was crushed by his dead Soul Monster, who faded away shortly afterwards, leaving Heinskitz's corpse.

"Neo, burn it," Rue said at once.

"Can't we just throw him into the deleted area?" Neo suggested.

"No. That isn't good enough. Burn him I say!" Will hit Rue over the head with his book. "Ouch! Fine, fine, throw him off!"

"Am I glad that's over with," Draken said as Kazel grabbed Heinskitz's corpse and threw it into the white. "My brain couldn't take much more of that."

"More importantly, we have defeated the duelist Seiryu wanted to send at us," Will stated. "Now all we need to do is wait for the others to return."

"Sounds good to me. I don't feel like doing much else after that mess," Miles said, rubbing his head. "My brain and eyes need time to recover."

"I hope they are doing okay…" Kisara said worriedly.

"They'll be fine," Draken assured. "Max is strong as heck and Hope's able to support him well. Zack's powerful too, and Angela... is Angela. Geez. I'd hate to get in her way."

"I believe she was more concerned about Brandi and Larka," Kazel stated.

Draken frowned at that. "Well… not much I can say there…"

"There's no sense it worrying over it," Miles commented, leaning against a rock wall. "We've done what we could. It's up to those four now."

"Yep. So until then…" Rue glanced at Miles. "Staring contest?"

"I'm not as stupid as him," Miles retorted.

"Then free duel me or something. Anything to get my mind off everyone else," Rue said.

"Fine, I will," Draken said, activating his Duel Disk.

Will settled down to read again as Neo said, "Back to normal life."

"What is normal?" Will asked, his eyes on the pages.

"…Good question," Neo admitted.

To be continued…