Chapter 14: Side Switch: Shifting Arena
Zho let out a heavy breath and motioned his hand towards the group. "Who will duel me?"
"It's your turn, Shadow," Jack pointed out. "Why don't you go ahead and warm up on him before Ryu-Yami?"
Shadow laughed nervously. "No, I want to save my deck for Ryu-Yami. I would be willing to bet he is observing our duels, and I want my cards to be a surprise."
"I'm not dueling him," Izumi pointed out, tears still running down her cheeks, "I…can't bear to kill again."
"I agree," Raijouta said, "I don't want to take any more lives, even if it is necessary."
Ryu-Hikari nodded. "I would duel, however, in the case of Shadow dying to Ryu-Yami, I would like to duel him, since I am the only one here who has ever defeated him in a duel."
"Then it appears none of us want to, so we will have to decide somehow," Jack said.
"No need for any of you to step forward, I'll duel him." The group turned to see who had uttered this statement; their jaws dropped in surprise as they saw who stood before them.
"Nikki?" The group said simultaneously, looking stunned.
"You were in a critical condition! You need to get back to the hospital!" Raijouta exclaimed.
"No, I think I should be fine now. Something told me…something inside…that I needed to come here and help you all." Nikki said. "I will duel him." Nikki stepped forward and stood in the metal ring.
"I shall explain the rules now," Zho began. "This is the Shifting Arena, though I prefer to call it the Shifting Stage since I enjoy alliteration. Now, the rules here are fairly simple: loyalties shift as this field melds light and darkness, Yin and Yang, good and evil, together. On each of your turns, there is a chance your monsters will betray you and come to my side of the field; there is no dice roll or coin flip, this is completely random and we will not realize it until the standby phase. The loser of this fight will be killed, by a means that even I do not know. Any questions?"
Nikki shook her head and uttered one word. "DUEL!"
Zho 8000/Nikki 8000
Zho chanted a brief prayer before drawing his first card. "I begin with The All-Seeing White Tiger in attack mode!" 1300/500. A large white tiger prowled in the shadows around Zho, occasionally entering lit areas where the light gleamed on its radiant fur. "I then set two cards and end my turn."
Nikki chuckled a little bit as she drew. "The All-Seeing White Tiger? I have NEVER seen a duelist use that card!"
"Don't be overconfident, Nikki!" Ryu-Hikari reminded her. "He may be trying to lull you into a false sense of security so you fall for a trap!"
Nikki shook her head. "It doesn't matter much what he has face down. I play Harpie's Feather Duster!" A gigantic feather floated down slowly, and broke into many smaller feathers which wiped away Zho's set cards. "Next I summon my Skilled Dark Magician!" 1900/1700. The young mage twirled his staff exquisitely as he stood in front of Nikki. "Now attack with your Dark Magic!" The magician again twirled his staff, and pointed it at the tiger, blasting in apart with a wave of black energy. "I then set one card and end my turn."
Zho 7400/Nikki 8000
Zho looked coldly at Nikki as he drew his next card. "I set one monster and end my turn."
"I summon my Gemini Elf!" 1900/900. Nikki declared her move strongly as the twin Elves stood beside the Skilled Dark Magician. "Gemini Elf, attack his set monster!" The Elves raced forward to attack, but as they hit they were forced back as a gigantic turtle emerged to block their way.
"My Island Turtle (1100/2000) won't be breached by such monsters," Zho stated.
Nikki sighed as she set another card. "I end my turn."
Zho 7400/Nikki 7900
"I play my Monster Reborn," Zho said, taking The All-Seeing White Tiger from his graveyard and placing it on the field.
"Seems like a poor choice to use Monster Reborn on," Jack commented. "You are only restricted to one per deck after all."
"He must have some sort of strategy to go with it," Izumi muttered studying Zho's field. "I know what he's going to do! Nikki he is going to…"
"TRIBUTE SUMMON!" Zho's voice boomed, cutting off Izumi. "I sacrifice my Island Turtle and The All-Seeing White Tiger in order to summon Byakko, Tiger of the West!" 2900/2300. A gigantic white tiger growled menacingly at Nikki as it took the field before Zho. "He has several interesting effects which you will see soon enough."
That must be another of his one of a kind cards, Shadow pondered. It looks far more deadly than that Peach Boy he played in our duel. I wonder what else he is hiding.
Zho pointed at Nikki's Gemini Elf and declared, "Attack!" Byakko rushed forward and pounced, slashing his claws in a wide arc at the Elves. Nikki smiled as she activated her set card.
"My Negate Attack will stop your tiger dead in his tracks!" A thin barrier appeared to defend Nikki's monster, but somehow Byakko's mighty claws ripped through the shield and slashed the Elves to ribbons. "How the heck?" Nikki asked, annoyed.
"My Byakko destroys all Magic and Trap cards used against it, even if they do not target him specifically," Zho declared.
"That's a powerful card," Raijouta said. "Without the aid of spell and trap cards, Nikki may have difficulty destroying that monster."
"I end my turn," Zho declared as the others finished speaking.
Zho 7400/Nikki 6900
Nikki cursed silently as she looked over her hand. It's not that my hand is bad, but with Byakko on the field some of these cards are useless. I have five cards in my hand: Dark Hole, which won't work against Byakko, Magic Formula, which is useless since it won't make my magician powerful enough, Dark Magician, which I can't even summon yet, Monster Reborn, which I should save until I really need it, and finally Fairy Meteor Crush, which is also useless in this situation. "I switch my monster to defense mode and end my turn." Nikki sighed.
Zho studied his own hand before merely setting a monster. "Now go Byakko, attack her monster!" The mighty tiger raked Skilled Dark Magician using its long claws. "With that I end my turn."
Nikki now looked happy as she drew. "Since my hand isn't too useful, I might as well play this, Card Destruction so we both discard our hands and draw all new cards." Both Nikki and Zho did so, and Nikki was even more excited as she saw what she had drawn. "Time for me to get a little more serious; I summon Goblin Attack Force in attack mode!" 2300/0. The army of goblins in armor hefted various weapons as they prepared for combat. "They are weaker than Byakko, but now I will equip them with Axe of Despair!" 3300/0. A large, green axe with a zombie head appeared in the hands of each of the goblins. "Now attack Byakko!" The goblins rushed forward, but Zho looked unaffected.
"I activate Byakko's other special ability: go Power of Pain!" Zho declared forcefully. Byakko began to grow in size and become stronger (3400/2300) and slashed the goblins aside as they approached him. "By paying any number of life points any time Byakko attacks or is attacked, I can increase his attack points."
"What a cheap ability," Ryu-Hikari said. "Nikki can't destroy it with magic or trap cards, and it will be very hard to defeat in battle." She can, however, force him to pay his life points which may be to her advantage, he thought quietly.
Nikki growled angrily as she saw her goblins destroyed and her field empty. "I set one card and end my turn."
Zho studied his hand before making a move. "First, Byakko's stats return to normal (2900/2300). Now, I set one monster. Now Byakko, attack her!" The giant tiger lunged at Nikki, and slashed her with his claws. She cried out in pain and faltered a bit, but did not fall. "I end my turn."
Zho 7400/Nikki 4000
This is not good, Nikki thought. He has already taken out half of my life points and mainly with that Byakko. There has to be a way to beat it…wait! Nikki smiled as she saw what card she drew, and realized her plan could work. "I set one monster and turn it over to you."
"I flip summon my Trojan Horse," 1600/1200. The massive wooden horse from mythology pranced on Zho's field. "Trojan Horse can count as two tributes for an Earth monster, so I will sacrifice him to summon Genbu, Turtle of the North!" 2100/3400. A giant green turtle with a snake coiled around its shell appeared beside Byakko. As it did so, it seemed to take a defensive stance. "Genbu's first ability means that it switches to defense mode as soon as it is summoned; you will see the other abilities soon enough. As for Byakko, attack her set monster!" The tiger lashed out, only to destroy a small magician wearing tight-fitting purple clothing similar to that of Dark Magician.
"You destroyed my Apprentice Magician (400/800)," Nikki grinned widely as she said this. "When he is destroyed in battle, I can set any level two or lower spellcaster from my deck. Awesome huh?"
"A useful ability, but merely a way to prolong your defeat," Zho sighed. "I set one card. Your move."
Nikki became ecstatic as her turn began. "First, I will set a monster, just in case. Now I flip summon the monster that I was able to get thanks to my Apprentice Magician, the one, the only, the Old Vindictive Magician!" 450/600. An old, hunched over wizard with red robes and gray hair stood before Nikki. "Now that he was flipped face up, I can activate his effect and destroy one monster on your field, so goodbye Byakko!" The mage chanted some arcane words before releasing a blast of magic at Byakko.
Just before the blast hit Byakko, Genbu jumped in the way and absorbed the blow, taking no damage. "What? How?" Nikki was stunned.
Zho 6400/Nikki 4000
"Genbu's second effect," Zho continued as his life points decreased. "By paying 1000 life points, Genbu can negate any effect or attack that would destroy any of my monsters other than itself, as long as Genbu is in defense mode."
"These cards are way too overpowered," Jack muttered. "They are powerful, and work together perfectly."
"Nikki is in for at least two more like this, if she can last," Ryu-Hikari commented, to which Izumi and Raijouta nodded.
"What do you mean?" Shadow asked.
"Byakko and Genbu, two of the four famous Chinese Gods," Ryu-Hikari stated matter-of-factly. "Byakko was guard of the West, while Genbu was guard of the North. The other two are…"
"Don't tell me!" Nikki yelled, cutting of Ryu-Hikari. "I want to win this duel myself, don't give me any help!" The group was stunned by her outburst, but Ryu-Hikari quieted down as she finished speaking.
"Well, since that didn't work too well, I set one card and end my turn," Nikki sighed.
"My turn then," Zho smiled as the field began to shift, and Nikki's Old Vindictive Magician came under his control. "Thanks to the field's effect, I now have one of your precious monsters; however, I do not want a creature you possess, as it is tainted with your evil, so I will first activate my set Ultimate Offering, and then pay 500 life points to special summon my Skull Red Bird (1550/1200). Neither will stay for long, though, as second I tribute them both in order to summon Suzaku, Phoenix of the South!" 2500/2500. A large, beautiful red bird flapped down onto Zho's field. As it landed, its body caught on fire, but did not harm the bird in any way. "Now Suzaku, attack her set monster!" The phoenix rose into the air and flapped its wings, shooting a gust of fire at the set card, decimating it.
"My second Apprentice Magician," Nikki said cheerfully as she set a monster from her deck. "Annoyed yet?"
"Not at all," Zho retorted calmly. "Byakko, attack her set monster!" As the tiger slashed the new card in half, it was revealed as another Apprentice Magician!
"Sadly, that was my last one," Nikki said. "Luckily, I still can make use of its effect and set a monster."
"That's all for me," Zho finished.
Zho 5900/Nikki 4000
His strategy causes him to lose a lot of life points, Nikki thought. I need to just keep making him pay, and keep myself alive, and I should be able to defeat him. "For my move, I will flip my second Old Vindictive Magician and have him target Genbu!" 450/600.The blast hit Genbu, destroying the mighty turtle. Zho, however, looked unaffected as he switched Suzaku to defense mode. "What are you doing?" Nikki asked.
Suddenly, Suzaku cried out and flames engulfed Zho. As the flames left his body, his life points dropped. Oddly, the flames also took the shape of Genbu, and, as they dissipated, the great turtle was in play once again!
"By paying 1000 life points, Suzaku can resurrect any destroy monster, or, at the cost of 1500 life points, itself; to do this, though, Suzaku must switch to defense mode." Zho stated. "You should study mythology better, Phoenix die in great fires only to revive, but few know that sometimes they can transfer this power."
Zho 4900/Nikki 4000
"You still had to pay a great deal of life points," Nikki pointed out. "And my move still isn't over. I sacrifice my Old Vindictive Magician in order to summon Dark Magician Girl!" 2000/1800. The beautiful female Dark Magician emerged with a flourish of her staff. "Now I play Graceful Charity, and I already know what to discard."
What could she be planning, thought Shadow. When she dueled me, her skills were nowhere near this level.
"I now draw three cards, and discard two; the two I discard are my two Dark Magicians!" Nikki declared. Her Dark Magician Girl then began to glow, as her attack points rose (2600/1800). "My Dark Magician Girl gains 300 attack points for Dark Magician in either graveyard, so now she is more powerful."
Excellent work, she has grown a lot. Raijouta thought. I still remember back when she first started to play, she barely knew when the play a card, and now she is utilizing very high level strategies.
"Now Dark Magician Girl, attack Suzaku!" Nikki ordered; with that, her wizard charged up a blast of magic and released it at the Phoenix.
"Go Genbu! Stone Cold Defense!" Zho declared as the massive turtle blocked the way after Zho paid life points. "Your attack is nullified."
"Yes, but my main strategy was to have you pay life points," Nikki pointed out. "You can't keep it up forever. Now I set a card and end my turn."
Zho 3900/Nikki 4000
"Great job taking the lead, Nikki!" Izumi cheered for her friend. "Keep up your strategy and you can win!"
"Thanks," Nikki said, flashing a quick smile to the spectators.
"A little damage won't be enough to defeat me," Zho grunted. "I now activate my Ultimate Offering twice, in order to set two monsters. They won't be staying as I sacrifice them both for the last of the quartet of Chinese Gods, the mighty Seiryu, Dragon of the East!" 3500/2000. A long, blue dragon with long black whiskers and a dark blue mane took its place beside the other three Gods. Seiryu then shook his head, and blue ice from his nostrils, destroying Nikki's set card along with Ultimate Offering. "When Seiryu is summoned, all magic and trap cards on the field are destroyed. Also, while Seiryu remains on the field, neither of us can use continuous magic nor trap cards."
"Wow, all four Chinese Gods…" Raijouta said in amazement. "They are truly powerful monsters, but I think Nikki is up to the challenge."
"I'm not so sure," Jack, the pessimist, cut in, "even if she manages to pull out a really excellent card, she can't touch his monsters."
"Try having some faith," Izumi said, glaring at Jack. "Nikki has come out of tight spots before, we all have. Just believe in her."
"Believe all you want, the zombie-freak is right," Shadow sighed, "she doesn't have a chance of winning."
"WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME?" Jack growled, getting ready to lunge at Shadow before Ryu-Hikari stood in the way.
"Calm down and watch the duel, Nikki needs our support." Ryu-Hikari said. Jack backed away, but not before mouthing several obscene words to Shadow.
"Next, I switch Suzaku to attack mode; Now for my attacks," Zho mused. "Seiryu, wipe out her Dark Magician Girl." The dragon breathed a blast of icy air towards the Dark Magician Girl, who shivered before being destroyed. "Now Suzaku, attack directly!" The phoenix flapped its wings and Nikki was engulfed in a cyclone of fire. "Finally, Byakko attack! Now you will die!"
"NIKKI!" Ryu-Hikari, Izumi, and Raijouta cried out as the tiger rushed forward.
Nikki stood resolutely and let out a little chuckle. "I discard the only card in my hand: Kuriboh. Your attack deals me no damage." The little furry fiend jumped in the path of Byakko's claw, protecting Nikki from the attack.
"You merely delayed your demise," Zho grumbled. "Make your pathetic move."
Zho 2900/Nikki 600
No cards on the field, and none in my hand. I guess I'm top-decking. Nikki thought. I believe in my cards, I won't die here, I am fighting to save lives, I will win!
"I draw!" Nikki declared confidently, picking up her card. She grinned upon seeing the card. "I set one monster and end my turn."
"A pitiful bluff," Zho laughed. I won't even need to summon my ultimate monster, he thought as his turn began. "Suzaku, incinerate that card!" As the flames went towards the card, it flipped to reveal a shriveled, tan skinned zombie wearing a purple cloak and holding a scythe.
"Copy cat!" Jack yelled. "That's a Spirit Reaper (300/200)! A zombie! I'm the zombie master, not her!"
"Calm down," Nikki said to Jack. "My deck started as a beat-down deck, and is now mainly a spellcaster deck. I do still keep some cards that are good all around, like Spirit Reaper since it can't be destroyed in battle."
Zho groaned, realizing there was nothing he could do. "I end my turn."
Great, the Spirit Reaper will give me time to stall while I think of another plan, Nikki thought as she drew again. "I set one card and it's over to you."
Zho smiled as he saw what he drew. "It is now time for me to play my most powerful monster, one so mighty it takes all four of these Gods as a sacrifice to summon. So now I sacrifice Genbu, Turtle of the North, Byakko, Tiger of the West, Suzaku, Phoenix of the South, and Seiryu, Dragon of the East to summon my the Divine Emperor of the Heavens!" 4000/4000. A man in resplendent robes with patterns of the four Gods tributed to summon him appeared. His skin was a neutral shade, but seemed to shift colors similar to the Shifting Stage. "My Divine Emperor of the Heavens is immune to magic and trap cards, along with monster effects. If he attacks a monster in defense mode, you still take damage, so your Spirit Reaper can no longer protect you. Also, if he is somehow destroyed, I can pay 1000 life points to resurrect him. That is slim, however, because you would need to do so in battle, and with an attack such as his, that is hardly feasible for you. Luckily, he cannot attack the turn he is summoned, and every standby phase I must pay 1000 life points to keep him in play which gives me 2 turns, more than enough to destroy you. Your turn, for what it's worth."
Nikki began to sweat, as she realized the power of this monster. I just need to survive two turns…but how? Upon drawing, Nikki saw a glimmer of hope. "I set one card and end my turn."
"As my turn begins, I must pay tribute to my Emperor," Zho bowed as the Emperor touched Zho, extracting life points in the form of gold bars. "Now, attack the Spirit Reaper and wipe her out!" The Emperor drew out a long, curved sword and swung it at the zombie.
"Reveal set card: Waboku!" Before the sword hit, three priestesses stood in the way. "Your damage is reduced to 0, and you can't negate this card since it didn't target your Divine Emperor of the Heavens."
"No matter, you won't save yourself again, go!" Zho ordered, clearly with an angry undertone to his voice.
Zho 1900/Nikki 600
As Nikki drew, the field shifted and her Spirit Reaper came under Zho's control. Her friends and she groaned, realizing this might be the end. Nikki prayed as she played the card she drew. "Pot of Greed." Upon looking at the two cards, Nikki was suddenly happy. "Zho, you have played an excellent duel, but it ends here. First, I play Stop Defense on the Spirit Reaper you just took!" The zombie switched into a more aggressive stance, holding its scythe as if readying to strike. "Now I play Monster Reborn to revive my Goblin Attack Force!" 2300/0. The Goblin militia once again stood before Nikki. "Goblins, attack the Spirit Reaper and wipe out his life points!"
The group of goblins rushed forward, and continually hit the Spirit Reaper with their weapons. Though it did not die, it was pushed backwards, until the goblins also had a chance to club Zho, defeating him.
Zho 0/Nikki 600
"My…Emperor…" Zho stuttered as he fell to the ground. "I didn't even get a chance…to decimate you with him…I was defeated…so…simply…"
"Sometimes the simplest strategies are the best," Nikki said. "Let me help you up." As she walked over and extended her hand, wires came out of the ground and began to wrap around Zho, pulling him into the darkness. Some strained sounds of gasping and choking were heard, and then silence filled the room.
Cheers filled the room, and Nikki was almost crushed by a group hug. The happiness, however, was quickly interrupted by Shadow.
"In case you all forgot, the strongest enemy is still to come, so let's head out." Shadow said gruffly as he walked to the elevator. The others followed, but as they walked ahead, Jack turned around and walked back. In the darkness, he groped for Zho's duel disk, and removed the deck within, silently slipping into his pocket.
"Where were you, Jack?" Ryu-Hikari asked.
"Just picking a little something up…"
HES: Hey all, sorry this update took so long, this was actually by far the hardest chapter of this story to write so far. Coordinating the abilities of the Chinese God Cards was more difficult than you might think, especially since I wanted Nikki to stand a fighting chance. Also, though they are called God Cards, they are NOT another set of God Cards like the Egyptian ones; they are merely cards that are based on Chinese Gods. Now to answer some reviews:
Tsabo-Tvoc Phyrexian-General: Yes, at the moment you are my only reviewer; thanks for all the support! I don't accept unsigned reviews mainly because it can lead to flames; it doesn't take that long to make an account anyway, and it also is convenient to see who my reviewers are (and if they have stories, maybe check them out myself).
Next time on The Shadow Falls:
Zho, powerful as he was, is now dead, defeated by Nikki. Only one enemy remains: the elusive Ryu-Yami. Who will duel this madman? Will he or she be successful? What of Zho's deck, which is now in Jack's possession? Will the hostages be freed? Find out next time on The Shadow Falls!