I hated the duel in this chapter so much. Amusing fact: I listened to the Macarena while writing the entire thing. Not quite sure why, but it was funny as heck and kept me from tearing my hair out.
Chapter Twenty-Seven: Siblings
Despite all that had happened to them that day, concern for Angela and the fate of Teknisk Wereld hastened their steps. The climb down the mountain was far easier than going up, which helped their speed, and the unpopulated town was not a problem to walk through. Any other Judges Kai commanded were not around, much to their relief.
While walking, Kisara asked Max, "What did you mean by saying you used a Trap deck?"
"Ah, right," Max said. "Before you met Draken, we had to confront Obelisk. I was ambushed by the enemy using him, and I lost the duel. I got away with my life, but had amnesia as well. During that time, Matt helped to make me a new deck since I lost my old one. That was a Trap deck."
"Wait a second… I thought you didn't remember what happened while you had amnesia!" Hope said.
"I couldn't," Max confirmed. "However, over the past seven years, things began to come back to me. Now I know everything that happened. I forgot to say this sooner, Hope, but thanks for everything you did for me then."
"I was happy to help," Hope answered, smiling.
It was not long before they reached their destination. Malon quickly found the tablet that they were looking for, barking excitedly until they went to him.
"This is it?" Neo asked.
"Looks like it," Hope said, kneeling to look at it. "This is the gateway; now insert the key. Huh?"
"That's written on it?" Miles assumed. "What does it mean?"
"See this rectangle?" Larka said, indicating to it. "When I placed the card Dunamis Valkyria on it previously, it warped us to the sky. I'll do that again, but everyone has to hold onto me."
"Oh this is not going to be fun," Rue groaned, looking at the amount of people there.
"Maybe it will work if we make a large chain," Will suggested.
"Better than all of us crowding," Brandi agreed. "Let's link arms."
It took a moment for them all to get into position. Once they had, Larka said, "Everyone ready? It might feel a little odd, but be sure to not let go."
"We're set," Max said.
"Then here we go." She put the Dunamis Valkyria on the tablet, keeping it held in place.
Nothing appeared to happen at first, and then everyone felt light-headed and dizzy as the world began to spin…
…
"Wow… I feel like I just went through a washing machine," Rue said as everyone sat up, looking at the clouds and sky surrounding them.
"How would you know what it feels like?" Draken asked. "Unless you really have gone through one before…"
"You know what I mean!" Rue retorted.
"Ah, they are already here!"
The group turned to see the Sky Temple before them. Standing in front of the long staircase were two individuals Brandi, Mana, Larka, Miles, and Gen instantly recognized.
"I had told you they would be-" the second man responded to the first.
"Shaddup Kasmaru, I'm in charge! And I said they'd be here shortly!" the first answered. The second glared at him.
"Alamaru and Kasmaru?" Will assumed.
"Indeed," Gen replied.
"Great," Miles said sarcastically. "What are they doing here?"
"Kai instructed us to guard the temple against intruders," Alamaru stated. "So that's what we're doing!"
"To enter it, you will have to get past us," Kasmaru declared.
"Do either of you know what Kai did?" Hope asked. "He killed Seiryu to seize control of the Judges!"
"Hah! So what if he did?" Alamaru said, shrugging.
"It makes no difference to us," Kasmaru added. "We're loyal to the Judges, not one particular leader."
"So much for that idea," Gaston said.
"Then what do we have to do to get past you, duel?" Max inquired.
"Yes," Alamaru said. "In a death match!"
"We will be doing it in a tag-team format," Kasmaru stated. "So pick two duelists to face us."
Brandi looked towards Larka. "How about us? Our decks compliment each other, and they deserve payback for what they did to us!"
"All right," Larka agreed. "We'll duel them."
"That should work well," Max said.
"Be careful," Zack warned. "I do not like the looks of that pair."
"I doubt any of us do," Rue said. "They're darn ugly!"
"Did you hear that? He insulted you, Kasmaru!" Alamaru said. Kasmaru's eye twitched.
"We're ready for you!" Brandi declared, stepping forward and turning on her Duel Disk. Larka followed suit.
"Then let's begin!" Alamaru said, bringing out his Soul Monster. Kasmaru silently did the same.
"What are those things?" Miles asked.
"The one by Alamaru is Dark-Eyes Illusionist," Max identified. "Magical Mentor J is Kasmaru's."
"I guess I can understand why the two go together," Darche said doubtfully.
"Hopefully this will go by fast," Kazel said. "As we are on a time limit."
"I'd say the fact that the world isn't crumbling around us means we're not doomed yet," Draken says. "But who knows how long we have left."
Brandi: 8000
Larka: 8000
Alamaru: 8000
Kasmaru: 8000
"How should we decide the turn order?" Larka asked.
"Could one of you pick a number between one and ten?" Brandi called to the group.
"I have one!" Hope replied.
"Three," Brandi said.
"Two!" Alamaru shouted. Kasmaru put a hand to his forehead at hearing this.
"It was seven," Hope said. "Brandi and Larka get to choose."
"I knew that was a bad number to suggest, Kasmaru!" Alamaru said. Kasmaru glared at him.
"Larka, is this order all right?" Brandi said. "I'll go first, then Alamaru, then you, then Kasmaru."
"I'm all right with that," Larka answered.
"Okay, I'll start," Brandi stated. "I summon Kaiser Seahorse (1700/1650) and lay a card down. Alamaru's next."
"My move will be spectacular!" Alamaru declared. "I summon Doublecoston (1700/1650) and end my turn!"
"…Right," Brandi said, clearly not impressed. "Larka?"
"I lay down a monster and three cards," Larka said.
"Then that would mean it is my turn," Kasmaru stated. "I place a monster, and our turn order starts over."
"That means one of us can finally attack, and I'll be the one to do so first!" Brandi declared. "I sacrifice Kaiser Seahorse for Guardian Angel Jeanu!" (2800/2000)
"Hey! You can't do that!" Alamaru protested as the Jeanu appeared. "A monster that strong shouldn't be one sacrifice!"
Kasmaru rolled his eyes. "Ever take into consideration that Kaiser Seahorse works for Light Main-Types as Doublecoston does for Dark Main-Types? In other words, it acted as two sacrifices."
"I knew that!" Alamaru said in a matter-of-fact tone.
"I think it's clear who's a bigger threat," Brandi said, eye twitching at Alamaru. "Jeanu attacks Kasmaru's monster!"
"Actually, I am going to have to object to that," Kasmaru said. "Merlin's Deck Master ability activates!" A coin appeared in his hand, as if by magic. "I flip a coin and call it. I prefer tails myself, so I'll always be calling that." He showed them the coin to clarify it had a heads and a tails side before flipping it.
"Where'd that coin come from?" Rue asked, blinking.
"It was just a fancy sleight of hand," Miles replied. "I could the same thing in my sleep."
Kasmaru let the coin fall on his palm. "Tails! That means Merlin's effect works. I choose any monster on the field and have you attack it instead. I will retarget your attack to Larka's monster!"
Merlin waved his staff at the Jeanu, causing her eyes to become glazed. She turned and instead assaulted Larka's monster, which vanished.
"Darn it… Sorry, Larka," Brandi apologized.
"It's okay," Larka replied. "I lost my Ninja Master-Sasuke, (1800/1000) but I can live with that."
"I guess something good came out of it," Brandi realized. "When Jeanu destroys a monster in battle, I gain Life Points equal to the monster's attack. I'm done."
Brandi: 9800
Larka: 8000
Alamaru: 8000
Kasmaru: 8000
"That won't do!" Alamaru said. "I'm going to have to take down that Jeanu! I sacrifice Doublecoston for Black Magician!" (2500/2100)
Rue glared at the blue Black Magician that appeared. "That poser stole my signature monster!"
"Yeah, because you're definitely the only person in the world who uses Black Magician," Draken said sarcastically. "Oh wait, Gale Katar."
"That didn't need mentioning," Rue growled, shaking his fist at Draken.
"I'll play a field magic card, Spirit Separation Field!" Alamaru continued, causing the sky to become a vortex of green, blue, and black.
"What does that do?" Brandi asked.
"When a Fusion monster is destroyed by a card effect, one of its components is chosen from the Cemetery and special summoned to the field," Alamaru explained. "After that, I'll have Houdini use his Deck Master ability!"
Alamaru's Soul Monster's single eye stared at Jeanu, causing her wings to sag as she fell into a trance.
"I can only have him do this once per turn. Houdini reduces the attack of a monster by 500 and negates any effects the monster has!" Alamaru said. "Black Magician attacks!"
Normally, the Jeanu would have been strong enough to blast apart the Black Magician. However, thanks to Houdini, she fell victim to the black magic attack.
Brandi: 9600
Larka: 8000
Alamaru: 8000
Kasmaru: 8000
"Geez, they both have cheap Deck Master effects," Rue said.
"They're going to have a rough time," Will stated.
"I'm surprised Alamaru managed to pull off that move," Draken remarked. "He sure doesn't look like the sharpest knife in the drawer."
"Neither of them seem bright," Hope pointed out. "But looks can be deceiving."
"I'm done!" Alamaru said, apparently not hearing the group members converse.
Larka considered the field before saying, "I summon Dunamis Valkyria. (1800/1050) She attacks Kasmaru's monster."
"You are fortunate that Merlin's Deck Master ability can only be used on every other battle phase of the opponent's," Kasmaru said. "That means your attack goes through whether I want it to or not. You have destroyed my Troy Horse. (1600/1200) Is that all?"
"Yes," Larka answered.
"Then allow me to show what my deck can do." Kasmaru placed cards into his Duel Disk rapidly, explaining as the effects resolved. "First, I summon Skilled White Magician. (1700/1900) He receives a magic counter every time a magic card is played. Next, I activate Ancient Rule. It allows me to special summon a level five or higher normal monster from my hand. I will choose Black Magician."
"…Remind me to get that card," Rue said as he watched the blue Black Magician be summoned. "That is ridiculously good."
"I completely agree," Draken said.
"After that is Proof of Dragon Destruction," Kasmaru continued. "That allows me to search for a Buster Blader from my deck to place into my hand. Then I play Fusion, to fuse the Black Magician on my field and Buster Blader in my hand for Super Magical Swordsman-Black Paladin!" (2900/2400)
Rue glanced at Ruecian. "If you're not offended, you should be." Ruecian merely shrugged.
"His attack rises by 500 for each Dragon Sub-Type on the field or in the Cemetery. Unfortunately, there are none yet, but that will likely change shortly. My Skilled White Magician now has three magic counters, so I can sacrifice him to special summon Buster Blader from my deck. (2600/2300) Similar effect, except it only applies to monsters on your field or in your Cemetery. Buster Blader attacks Dunamis Valkyria, and Black Paladin attacks Brandi directly. I dislike leaving people with high Life Points alone; they prove to be troublesome."
Larka winced at the damage done through her Dunamis Valkyria, but it was Brandi who really suffered. The Black Paladin struck her with a powerful swing of his staff, knocking off a good portion of her Life Points.
Brandi: 6700
Larka: 7200
Alamaru: 8000
Kasmaru: 8000
After the attacks went through, the duo found another consequence to the damage they had taken. Without warning, they began to sink into the cloud they stood on. Mana and Malon did as well, with the latter yelping in shock.
"What's going on?" Max demanded.
"This would be the Life Point condition," Kasmaru explained. "As one of us loses Life Points, the victim begins to sink. When hitting zero, the person falls, with nothing to save him or her from a lengthy drop."
"Another twisted condition," Hope said bitterly. "When will they ever end?"
"Knowing our luck, never," Miles said.
Noticing that Zack had not said anything, Draken asked, "Silent with worry?"
"Basically," Zack answered. "I would be a fool to not worry."
"Yeah. At least this condition isn't a painful one," Neo said. "Until… well… you know."
Larka's legs had barely sunk into the clouds, with her knees still being above them. "Brandi? Are you all right?"
Her companion had her knees in the clouds, and looked furious. "That caused me to lose my sandals. THEY ARE DEAD! I lay a monster and a card down. Just wait until my next turn!"
"I… never said I ended… although I was about to…" Kasmaru said, blinking.
"They made a big mistake by getting her mad," Max muttered. "Watch the destruction that'll unfold from it."
"I can do better than Kasmaru!" Alamaru said. "I play a magic card, Instant Fusion! By paying 1000 Life Points, I special summon a Fusion monster from my deck that can't attack and will be destroyed at the end phase. I choose Flame Swordsman!" (1800/1600)
Brandi: 6700
Larka: 7200
Alamaru: 7000
Kasmaru: 8000
"Was that thing really worth paying 1000 Life Points for?" Mana said, watching Alamaru sink into the clouds.
"Yes, because now I play Fusion, to combine Black Magician and Flame Swordsman!" Alamaru announced. "They form Black Flare Knight!" (2200/800)
"This explains why they're called the Black Magician Brothers…" Larka murmured.
"Black Flare Knight attacks your monster!" Alamaru said, pointing at Brandi.
"You've destroyed my Compassionate Nun." (800/2000) Brandi was still seething, but the Black Flare Knight bluntly reminded her to keep her temper in check.
"I lay two cards down and end," Alamaru said.
Larka looked at the card she drew and glanced at Brandi. "I need something to weaken the monsters."
"Can do!" Brandi flipped over the card she had set. "I activate a trap card, Itaqua's Gale! This switches the position of every monster on the opponent's field, which means all of your monsters are change to defense mode!"
"Perfect!" Larka said. "Now I summon Mimic Ilusionist! (0/0) When summoned, reverse summoned, or special summoned, his stats become the base stats of an opponent's monster. I choose Black Paladin! (2900/2400) Then I play Cry of the Living Dead for Ninja Master-Sasuke! He attacks Buster Blader!"
"What? But he's not strong enough!" Kasmaru protested.
"When he attacks a monster in face-up defense mode, damage calculation is skipped and the monster is destroyed immediately," Larka informed him.
"In that case, I activate Merlin's effect and call tails!" Kasmaru caught the coin and looked at it, scowling. "Curses! Heads. I can't use it again this battle phase."
Larka gave a small sigh of relief before saying, "Mimic Illusionist attacks Black Paladin!"
Kasmaru's eye twitched as he watched his monsters be destroyed, but did not react otherwise.
"I'm going to do one more thing before I end my turn," Larka said. "I activate Solar Ray, to do 600 points of damage per Light Main-Type monster on my field!"
"Yes! I knew this card wasn't a waste of deck space!" Alamaru said, flipping over a card triumphantly. "I activate Damage Polarizer! It negates an effect that does damage and allows the players to draw a card."
"I can't believe he had a counter to that," Mana said sourly.
"I'm done," Larka said once she drew.
"All I'm going to do is lay a card down," Kasmaru said.
"It's your turn to lose a monster!" Brandi said to Alamaru. "I play Shine Spark, getting rid of your field!" The vortex vanished as the field became one of light. "It raises all Light Main-Types attacks by 500 and lowers their defenses by 400. (3400/1900) (2300/600) I summon Volt Girl (2400/400) and attack Black Flare Knight!"
"He's destroyed, but Black Flare Knight's effect causes me to take no battle damage!" Alamaru said. "In addition, when he is destroyed in battle, I can special summon a Mirage Knight from my deck or hand! He'll come from my deck, and be powered up since he's a Light Main-Type!" (3300/1600)
Staring at the golden-armored monster, Brandi muttered, "Drat. I end."
"I'll use Houdini's Deck Master ability on Volt Girl!" Houdini did so, leaving her hypnotized. (1900/400) "Mirage Knight attacks!"
The Mirage Knight cleaved through the Volt Girl with ease. Brandi instantly dropped further into the cloud, with the white mist now up to her chest. Mana was in a similar situation, and looking irritated at it.
"In damage calculation, Mirage Knight's attack raises by the base attack of the monster he attacked," Alamaru said with a savage grin. "So he was at 5200 during that time!"
Brandi: 3400
Larka: 7200
Alamaru: 7000
Kasmaru: 8000
"That's ridiculously cheap!" Rue protested.
"But he is a difficult monster to summon," Will pointed out.
"And he has a downside," Alamaru added. "At the end phase of a turn that he battles in, he is removed from the game. Good thing I prepared for that! I activate a trap card, Forced Ejection Machine! It returns a card from the field to my hand. I take Mirage Knight, so he won't be removed! Then I play Revive Fusion to special summon Black Flare Knight from my Cemetery! Can you compete with that?" Despite sinking into the cloud a bit more, Alamaru looked pleased with his play.
Brandi: 3400
Larka: 7200
Alamaru: 6200
Kasmaru: 8000
"They're in a bad situation," Gaston said with concern. "Attacking to destroy Flare Knight will only cause Mirage Knight to be summoned once more."
Larka seemed well aware of that fact, but that did not stop her. "I summon Blade Knight (2100/600) and attack Black Flare Knight with Sasuke!"
"That allows me to special summon Mirage Knight from my deck!" Alamaru declared.
"And I can destroy him," Larka said with a smile. "Mimic Illusionist's base attack is zero, so he won't get a stat increase when Mimic Illusionist attacks him!"
Much to Alamaru's horror, Larka was correct. The Mimic Illusionist tore through the Mirage Knight, leaving Alamaru open.
"Blade Knight attacks directly!" Larka said.
One swift slash sent Alamaru plunging farther into the cloud, so he was in it up to his waist.
Brandi: 3400
Larka: 7200
Alamaru: 4000
Kasmaru: 8000
"It's all your fault, Kasmaru!" Alamaru whined. "Why aren't you helping me?"
"…Are you done?" Kasmaru said to Larka pointedly.
"Once I lay this card down," Larka confirmed.
"See if you can consider this help," Kasmaru spat. "I play Revive Fusion on Black Paladin. Normally, he can only be special summoned through Fusion, but Merlin helps with that as well. He allows me to treat him as a normal Fusion monster in the aspect of getting him out." (2900/2400) Finally in the cloud somewhat, Kasmaru continued. "I play Spirit Separation Field to get rid of Shine Spark, and then activate Diffusion Wave! By paying 1000 Life Points, I can choose a level seven or higher Magic User Sub-Type and attack all of your monsters with it, and negate the effect of each monster destroyed like that! Then I activate a permanent trap card, DNA Operation, and call Dragon. That means all monsters on the field are changed to Dragon Sub-Types. This increases Black Paladin's attack by 500 for each. Counting himself, that's an increase of 2000! (4900/2400) Black Paladin attacks all three of your monsters!"
For each monster destroyed, the blast got weaker, which was the only thing that saved Larka. As it was, she barely survived the attacks, and instantly dropped, so dramatically that she thought she was finished until a sudden jerk stopped her head from going through.
Brandi: 3400
Larka: 300
Alamaru: 4000
Kasmaru: 6200
"Larka!" Zack exclaimed.
"Oh dang," Miles said, staring. "That was way too close."
"Nearly," Kasmaru said with a touch of disappointment. "It will not take much to finish you though. I lay two cards down and end my turn."
"Are you all right?" Brandi asked.
"Y-yes," Larka responded, trying to adapt to how it felt to be hanging. Malon was nearly completely submerged, and he gave a miserable howl to let everyone know it.
"This calls for drastic measures," Brandi stated. "Mana, let's use your Deck Master ability."
"Sure thing!" Mana said.
"What does it do?" Kasmaru said suspiciously.
"I remove monsters from my Cemetery to draw cards equal to the amount removed," Brandi explained. "I remove Kaiser Seahorse, Jeanu, Compassionate Nun, and Volt Girl to draw four. Then I have to skip draw phases equal to half the amount of cards I drew. Two, in this case." She drew the four cards and said, "It looks like my drawing isn't over yet. I play Angel's Gift to draw three more cards and discard two. Great! I'll discard Emesu the Infinity and Light of Hope, and then play Early Burial on Emesu!" (2500/2000)
Brandi: 2600
Larka: 300
Alamaru: 4000
Kasmaru: 6200
Ignoring how she had sunk again, Brandi said, "I equip Emesu with Power of Magicians! For each magic or trap card on my field, Emesu's stats increase by 500! I lay two cards down (4000/3500) and attack Black Paladin!" (3900/2400)
"I'll redirect it with Merlin! Tails!" Kasmaru flipped the coin, caught it, and looked at it. "…Okay, I won't. It was heads."
Brandi: 2600
Larka: 300
Alamaru: 4000
Kasmaru: 6100
"Emesu gains 700 attack points when destroying a monster. (4700/3500) That's all," Brandi said.
"I'll stop your Emesu from being so high and mighty!" Alamaru said. "I summon Magic Warrior-Breaker (1900/1000) and remove his counter to destroy Power of Magicians!" (1600/1000)
Everyone stared at him silently, until he said, "What?"
Gritting his teeth, Kasmaru said, "Why the HELL did you not destroy Early Burial?"
"Um… I forgot?" Alamaru responded.
"Man, he's even more stupid than I thought," Neo said.
Kasmaru looked fit to explode from fury, but Larka's turn interrupted whatever he was about to do. "I summon Wandering Hero, Freed (1700/1200) and equip him with Shine Castle to raise his attack by 700! (2400/1200) He attacks Breaker! I'm done after that."
Brandi: 2600
Larka: 300
Alamaru: 3200
Kasmaru: 6100
"Brandi could have blocked for Larka until she did that," Darche noted. "Now we have to hope Kasmaru will not do anything too drastic."
"Luckily for you, I am more concerned about that Emesu than your pathetic 300 Life Points," Kasmaru said to Larka. "I activate Cry of the Living Dead for Buster Blader! (3600/2300) He attacks Emesu!"
"I activate both my trap cards!" Brandi countered. "One is Astral Barrier. When you attack a monster on my field, I can make it a direct attack to my Life Points. My other is Spirit Barrier. When I have a monster on my field, battle damage done to me becomes zero!"
"Clever," Kasmaru said in disgust. "I end."
"Luckily, I can destroy Buster Blader now," Brandi said. "I play Shine Spark to destroy your field, and then attack!" (3700/1600)
Brandi: 2600
Larka: 300
Alamaru: 3200
Kasmaru: 6000
"Emesu's attack increases again, and I'm done." (4400/1600)
"Now I'll teach you to respect the power of Alamaru!" Alamaru said. "I play Lightning Vortex, discarding Mirage Knight to destroy all the face-up monsters you two have!"
Kasmaru glared at him, but said, "At least you managed to do something, but that's all I need. Let me handle them!"
"Shaddup Kasmaru! I'm in charge and I'll handle this!" He paused, and then said, "Uh, Kasmaru? I have no cards in my hand."
"…My point exactly," Kasmaru growled.
Larka looked at the cards in her hand and then at Brandi. "Will you take down Alamaru?"
"With pleasure. You weaken Kasmaru!" Brandi said.
Nodding in response, Larka said, "I lay a card down and summon Machine Dog Maron!" (1500/600)
"Aw, that's cute!" Hope said upon seeing
the mechanical puppy. "Er… for a machine, anyway. I don't
remember Larka using that card."
In a slightly embarrassed tone,
Zack said, "I got her that card, thinking she would like it."
"And I do," Larka said, trying to smile despite having fallen so deeply into the cloud. "Then I use Malon's Deck Master ability!"
Malon struggled to get his head over the cloud and howled. A Volt Girl appeared on Larka's field. (2400/400)
"You special summoned that?" Kasmaru assumed.
"From my deck," Larka confirmed. "Volt Girl attacks you!"
"I activate Merlin's effect! Tails!" He flipped the coin, caught it, and smirked. "I was correct. Now, who to target with that attack…"
The group waited in mute horror, knowing one of their friends was doomed. Or so they thought, for Kasmaru's next words were, "I redirect the attack to Alamaru!"
"WHAT?" Alamaru yelled, but there was nothing he could do to stop it. The Volt Girl zapped him, barely leaving him with any Life Points.
Brandi: 2600
Larka: 300
Alamaru: 800
Kasmaru: 6000
"But why?" Larka said in disbelief. "He's your brother!"
"And I despise him," Kasmaru said, sneering. "Going to attack me again?"
"Yes… with Machine Dog Maron…" Larka said.
"Tails!" Kasmaru flipped it, looked, and laughed. "Tails it is! Attack Alamaru to kill him!"
The Machine Dog Maron did just that, biting Alamaru with steel jaws.
Brandi: 2600
Larka: 300
Alamaru: 0
Kasmaru: 6000
"TRAITOR!" Alamaru cried, and it was the last words he spoke in his life. He and Houdini fell instantly afterwards, with Alamaru's scream fading away from the distance of the drop.
"Finally!" Kasmaru said, still laughing. "Oh how I have waited for the day that my pathetic brother would be wiped off the face of this world! Now that he is finally gone, I will begin working on the two of you! Done?"
"What a creepy bastard," Rue spat. "How anyone could do that to their own brother is beyond me."
"I'm in total agreement," Brandi said, glaring at Kasmaru.
Larka hesitated, and then said, "Yes… I am done."
"I activate a trap card, Legitimate Bloodline!" Kasmaru said. "It allows me to special summon a normal monster from my Cemetery in attack mode. I choose Black Magician!"
"I'll stop you with Tidal Wave!" Larka said. "It destroys all monsters on the field. That means Maron's effect is activated. When destroyed by a card effect, the opponent loses 1000 Life Points."
Brandi: 2600
Larka: 300
Alamaru: 0
Kasmaru: 5000
Kasmaru uneasily said, "I'm done."
"I pass," Brandi said. "Don't have any monsters to play, and I can't draw."
On the contrary, Larka was able to strike Kasmaru. "I summon Twilight Zone Female Warrior (2000/1200) and equip her with another Shine Castle. (2700/1200) She attacks directly!"
"I activate Merlin's effect! Tails!" Kasmaru cursed as he saw the result. "It was heads…"
Brandi: 2600
Larka: 300
Alamaru: 0
Kasmaru: 2300
"I refuse to lose like this!" Kasmaru snarled. "I lay a card down and end my turn."
Before Brandi could do anything but draw, Kasmaru flipped over his card. "If I'm going to lose, you're going down with me! I activate Destruction Ring on Twilight Zone Female Warrior, to reduce all of our Life Points to zero!"
Brandi: 0
Larka: 0
Alamaru: 0
Kasmaru: 0
Nobody could react to this suicidal move. All were frozen in shock, which provided enough time for the Life Point conditions to play out. Each of the duelists and their Soul Monsters plummeted through the clouds, with three of them giving startled cries and one giving an anguished howl.
"No!" Max and Zack chorused, but there was nothing any of them could do. They were already gone.
Below the cloud line, their two friends, with their Soul Monsters, continued to fall. Both Brandi and Larka knew they were doomed, and Malon's frightened yips showed he was in the same state of mind.
But Mana was not about to give in and let them all die. She mentally steeled herself, knowing this would be one of the excruciating things she had tried yet, and then teleported. Appearing next to Brandi, she grabbed her arm, and teleported towards Larka. She managed to use her free arm to snatch Larka's, and yelled, "Get Malon!" before teleporting once more. Larka reacted when they appeared next to Malon by grabbing his collar, nearly accidentally strangling him in her haste. Mana teleported one more time, her destination point being the clouds above.
The despair that had started to enter the hearts of the group abruptly vanished at the sight of Mana appearing in front of them, gripping onto Brandi and Larka. They stared with a mixture of disbelief and relief evident. Hope managed to speak, saying, "You made it!"
"Barely…" Mana murmured, her grasp on the pair releasing. She started to fall forward, but Brandi swiftly straightened up and caught her.
"Mana!" To Brandi's horror, she saw that Mana was as pale as she had been when purging the sickness from her body, the task that had nearly caused her to die. "No, you can't leave! Please don't die! After we finally found each other again… you can't go!"
For a horrifying moment, Brandi thought her words were in vain. Then Mana's eyes opened, and she gave Brandi a pained smile. "Don't worry, I'm never going to leave you again. I wanted to save you badly enough that I changed forms to have the power to do it, and to continue protecting you. It's not something I want to go to waste. Besides… I'm sick of eternal darkness."
Brandi laughed at that, mainly from having her fears dispelled. She stood up, Mana's arm over her shoulder to support her. "No more crazy teleportation stunts from you then."
"Are all of you okay?" Zack asked as the group approached them.
"Yes," Larka assured. "Thank you, Mana. You saved our lives."
"No problem," Mana said. "Just don't ask me to do that again for a while. I'm drained…"
"What a sore loser," Rue grumbled. "I hope he hit a mountain peak on his way down."
"Didn't we break the conditions by doing this?" Larka said.
"Not sure why you care about that considering who you were facing," Max responded. "But their conditions were that the losers fall. If they could prevent death, I don't see the problem. Besides, Alamaru was out first. I'd say that meant their side was the ultimate loser in the duel."
Larka nodded, not having anything to say to that.
"Nice going though," Draken said. "Now the duo of morons is out of our way."
"Good riddance," Kazel said, her teeth bared.
"And we're still intact," Gaston said. "It's remarkable what lengths Mana will go to to save Brandi."
"She is making the rest of us look like we are slacking," Gen said dryly. "Miles, try getting into a deadly situation soon so I can show my devotion."
"Very funny," Miles said, making a face at him.
"Thanks for the compliment," Mana directed to Gaston. "It's my job, right? So I'm glad to hear I'm doing it well."
Hope looked at the Sky Temple. "With its guards gone, we should be able to go in now. We'd better get moving."
The group showed their agreement by beginning to walk up the long staircase in front of it.
To be continued…