Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V: In a New World Redux

by SakushiRyu

Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V is about to air, and an excited youth can't wait. But when the episode starts, he is suddenly thrown into a Yu-Gi-Oh! series, ARC-V itself! Watch as he makes friends, rivals, and foes in this isekai and discovers his role in a war between dimensions and gods from the past, present, and future! (Rewrite of "Yu-Gi-Oh Arc-V In A New World") (Cover Art made by AiraAura)

23. The Arrogant Kaesar

The first chapter of the second half of the Synchro arc is completed at last! Phew, this took longer than expected to finish, though it makes sense since this isn't only the longest chapter of the story, but any chapter I've ever written! It also contains the new Opening and Ending (as promised in Chapter 15) and it's much different from its predecessor, so get your reading glasses ready, dear readers! I've updated Mythos Anthology as well, so make sure to give it a look if you wish to know more about the past of Vince's Mythorrors.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter!

- In response to Aisalf's review:

"Tiamat already appeared as a 'Mythorror' Monster, more precisely, as one of Demiurge's servants in Chapter 8. She'll reappear in this chapter too, as a matter of fact."

- In response to LucasVAMP's review:

"I already have some angels and demons planned to be used by Vince, though they'll appear after the Synchro arc."

[Using Anime/Manga Effects.]

---

Harald's POV

FLASHBACK

Fate was absolute. This has been my credo since I was a young boy, drilled into me by Father. As the years flowed on, however, I realized I would've reached the same conclusion, even without his teachings. Why? Because the world always seemed to obey fate in the end.

There was no such thing as disobeying fate. Who can tell if fate itself wasn't influencing you to declare that? That's something you hear a protagonist say in a show for dramatic purposes when they find themselves in a crisis, as simple as that. It wouldn't be fate if you could avoid its control. The Norns just won't allow it.

Mother birthed me and died of peripartum cardiomyopathy. Unbeknownst to Father, despite my young age, I noticed how his eyes darken in sorrow when her name was spoken, so I asked Sebastian about her.

"Her heart may have been filled with love, but alas, it was weak. Problems began coming to light in her early adulthood. But she appeared unperturbed by all this. When she held you for the first time in her arms, she laughed out of pure joy. I was deeply moved by her display of love and shed tears alongside your father. She wouldn't stop teasing me about it. It's a shame she left us so early."

Father received a prophecy from the gods in his sleep and frantically relayed it to the first person he found in front of himself, after which he died of cardiac shock. The sight of him on the floor, clutching onto Sebastian's legs as if they were his last anchor to his sanity, his blown-wide eyes, and frenetic yelling will forever be etched into my memory.

"Your family's history runs deep with the gods. I don't believe your father's distress was a result of the prophecy per se, but instead, of what he saw. At heart, there might have been a sense of achievement at being handpicked by the gods to be conferred with precognition. He was a good man... He was my friend. It's a shame he left us. May he and your mother happily reunite in their new lives."

Sebastian's family, on the other hand, has been in our service for generations. He was born and raised to be my butler, a task that would only be terminated with his death. He was a no-nonsense man with a big heart. I wouldn't want anyone else as my butler but him. I remember he cried when I had first told him this after Father had passed away.

You come into existence with a clear purpose, whether to birth a certain someone, to witness a disaster, or to serve another. My parents, nonetheless, lived good lives. Sebastian accepted his role and is readily serving me. They were forced to obey fate, but they found happiness. I wanted to be like them.

"Harald-bocchama." Sebastian greeted me when I set foot in our mansion's basement, where roots covered the walls and coiled around each other to form a pillar in the center of the room. Father once told me the giant tree one step away from our residence was a branch of Yggdrasil itself, hence why our ancestors chose to live here. My butler and I were the only ones left who knew of this room and my family's connection to the divine. "This is Odin, a family secret passed down through the ages."

A card shined among the roots, depicting an elderly man clad in robes and armor and holding a golden spear. It was merely a card, yet it radiated unparalleled might, as was to be expected from the highest god, the Father of the Aesir.

"According to the prophecy your father foretold, a final battle to determine the survival of the world will take place in the unforeseeable future," Sebastian explained. "That's when you must battle as a Duelist and protect the world. That is your duty. When you become a Duelist worthy of this card, Odin's eye will open, and its true power will be unleashed. When that happens, Harald-bocchama, you will become Odin's true successor."

I was only a child, but I felt needed. I was part of something big. I was so happy... A little scared, too. I felt alive. This was my destiny! I didn't fight it at all; I welcomed it.

Once I reached adulthood, I traveled around the world on a Duel pilgrimage. During my journey, I learned firsthand what was really happening in the world. Struggles enveloped the people of the world, who were powerless. By improving myself, I could now see the truth: fate was an unfair monster. Curse it as you may, it won't lift a single finger to make your life better.

So I'll make the most out of my destiny. I must obtain the Aesir's power to stop the Arrogant Kaesar, but I won't limit myself to that. No, I'll fight to help those who abhor their own powerlessness, their own fate. I wasn't a mindless chess piece on a board; I will fulfill my destiny my own way.

When I returned home and Odin opened his eye for me, I was overjoyed. I almost allowed my tears to spill freely like Sebastian. The gods saw something in my beliefs. I won their trust, and that was more than enough for me. I will save the people of this world!

Then why... Why wasn't I able to save the foremost person who was dancing in the palm of our demise's hand?

END OF FLASHBACK

---

Opening:

(Saa ima da, kazase yo kirifuda. Kono mirai wa kimi no mono sa!)

(Now is the time, hold up your trump card. This future is yours to take!)

A white light bordered by colorful rays flashes on the black screen, almost as if it's the exit to a dark tunnel. A myriad of cards then flies out of this light and past the camera, which then turns to the side in time for a gloved hand to catch an unknown 'Mythorror' card.

Vince, who's wearing his Riding Duelist attire and riding a D-Wheel, comes into view and swings the card to the side, prompting the camera to follow his movement and reveal he's being followed by Yuya, who holds up Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon's card.

The two line up as the cards around them pick up speed, becoming rainbow streaks, and with equally excited expressions, slam their cards onto their Duel Disks, to which the camera zooms back and the story's title forms over the screen before different panels slide into view and snap together.

Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V: In a New World Redux

The panels shake lightly as they depict Vince in his casual attire holding up his Duel Disk and an Action Card with that arm's hand, Riding Dueling, and a close-up of his smiling face as he looks down at viewers, all colored in different hues of brown. Yellow streaks move around the screen, and each time they pass Vince, his cheerful and kind expressions become callous and savage and scales jut out of his body, signaling Demiurge's at the wheel.

The panels retract and quickly snap back together, now showing the four Yu-boys. Yuya's part is colored green with red streaks and he's shown in profile, Yuto's in light purple with gray streaks and he's looking up to the right, Yugo's in yellow with blue streaks and looking in the opposite direction of the aforementioned youth, and Yuri's in violet with pink streaks and staring directly at the camera. They sport serious expressions which turn into smiles when the streaks pass them, except for the Fusion alter ego who grins wide.

The same scenario from before repeats itself. The new panels show the Bracelet Girls looking in the opposite direction of their respective Yu-boy, except for Serena. Yuzu's part is colored dark pink with white streaks, Ruri's in dark purple with lilac, Rin's in aqua-green with light green, and Serena's in indigo with light blue. Serious looks turn into smiles when the streaks pass them, whereas the Fusion counterpart also closes her eyes.

(Giragira moeteru. Samenai yume demo miteiru yō ni.)

(Burning bright. Like you're still watching an unending dream.)

We see Aki before her D-Wheel in the pits, wearing her Riding Duelist attire and staring at the helmet in her hands in resolution. A smile graces her face when she raises her head and looks outside, ready to head out and Duel. The scene cuts to Serena who's in the same scenario, calmly typing something on her D-Wheel's display panel while keeping her helmet under an armpit.

(Karada ga motomeru. Tsuyoi yatsu ga iru basho wo.)

(Your body yearns for it. A place where those who are strong are.)

Somebody adjusting their gloves is shown next. The camera moves back to reveal its Harald's hand, which he then clenches with a glare, causing the Ansuz rune to come to life on his right eye. The shot cuts to a close-up of Vince's face as he equips his helmet and lowers its visor with a smirk.

(Kurakura yureteru. Tashika na mono nado koko ni wa nai kara.)

(Shaky, wavering. What you're looking for is nowhere to be found.)

Lastly, there's Yuya. We see him insert his deck into his wrist holder and turn it to the side, triggering an auto shuffle. He then picks up his helmet and walks out of the pits with his trademark smile, coming face to face with the large crowd in the Duel Palace.

(Tada tada motomeru. Chikara no afureru basho wo.)

(But you're still seeking it. A place overwhelming with power.)

From his position, Yuya can spot the area where Jack's exclusive room is situated, and the camera teleports there to reveal the said man sitting in his throne, resting a cheek against his fist while keeping his other hand on the armrest, staring into the camera impassively.

He isn't alone, though. Hiding in the shadow of his throne with her arms crossed under her chest was a tall, blond-haired woman, wearing a black cloak. There's a close-up of the lower part of her face as she turns her head halfway around and shows us a secret smile.

(Tsugi no tatakai ga boku wo matteru.)

(The next battle is waiting for me.)

The camera moves upwards, showing the following characters in the said order: Valkyrie with the image of the Executive Council above her, a line of Duel Chasers and Obelisk Force members with their Duel Disks raised and activated, a grinning Sergey and a frowning Barrett, and lastly, Roget and Akaba Leo with the shadows of the Hall of Dominion and Academia behind them respectively.

(Atarashii hibi no aizu ga kikoeru.)

(I can hear the sign of new days coming.)

Philus steps into view sporting a wide grin before moving to the back with a spin, his surroundings now black. He then raises his arms above his head and quickly swings them to the side, causing the shot to turn into a still image and a purple, feminine silhouette with glowing red eyes to appear behind him, which looms over a scowling Manek in the foreground.

Different slides are shown in quick sequence, the background in each of them still black: Vince covering his left red eye with a hand and grimacing in pain, him hunched over and his eyes shadowed by his bangs, him covering his right green eye with his other hand and smiling, and finally, him staring into the camera with a cruel grin as his red eye glows, scales now jutting out of his body.

(Saa ima da, kazase yo kirifuda! Kono mirai wa kimi no mono sa!)

(Now is the time, hold up your trump card! This future is yours to take!)

The camera jumps back, causing the slide to come to life, and showing Demiurge standing on a lone platform in the middle of a galaxy, Mythorror Gods Balor, Camazotz, and Supay on duty behind him. The Synchro Monster leaps forward and the camera pans to show Ren throwing an arm forward, prompting the mermaid Monster beside him to block the attack with her trident.

Balor runs past them, but he's intercepted by a halberd-wielding humanoid machine and Antinomy, who's standing at his ace's side with his arms crossed. He calmly watches the two Monsters clash with their weapons, sending sparks flying, while Supay rushes past them.

A new, colossal machine suddenly descends from above, prompting the Xyz Monster to halt. The scene cuts to Isaac, who's standing on his ace's left shoulder, and he slowly adjusts his spectacles.

(Sono egao de sekai wo yuraseba sono ato wa jibun shidai da yo!)

(Whether your smile can shake this world is all up to you!)

Serena punches the air in front of her and her mouth moves in a silent "Go!", to which the camera moves backwards and to the right, revealing Aki, Jack, and a battered Harald behind her. Their clothes abruptly sway in the wind as an unknown 'Lunalight' Monster jumps over them and throws a fist forward that collides with Mythorror Gnostic Valravn's, sending a shock wave rippling outwards.

A majestic, 'Black Rose'-like dragon soars past them and spins to a stop, spreading her wings wide before unleashing a tide of divine energy that Mythorror Gnostic Phobos blocks with one of his armored hands. A blazing, demonic dragon then zooms out from behind her and lets loose of a torrent of flames from his mouth, which disperses upon coming into contact with the barrier of sound waves created by Mythorror Gnostic Kerberos's howls.

(Egakidase, sono monogatari wo! Kimi koso ga shujinkō darō!?)

(Write a new chapter in this story! After all, aren't you the hero!?)

An 'Aesir' Monster whose size far outclasses that of any other god used by Harald up until this moment rises up from behind the demonic dragon, thrusting his golden spear forward and bisecting the stream of chaotic energy fired by a never-before-seen 'Mythorror Gnostic' Monster who rivaled him in size.

The camera pans to show an angered Demiurge extending his arms to the side, to which the former moves backwards and reveals the silhouette of his Duel Monster form towering over everything. The movement stops when it passes the blond-haired woman from earlier, whose cloak wildly sways in the wind, and the spirit of a young man floating in a sitting position beside her.

She raises a card, prompting the man to vanish, and swings it down onto her Duel Disk, engulfing the entire screen in a blinding flash of light. When it dissipates, we see the Lancers who participated in the Friendship Cup, Yugo, Crow, Aki, and Harald gathered at the starting line in the Duel Palace as paper confetti rain down from the sky.

---

Turn 23:

The Arrogant Kaesar

---

"I don't know anything about Arrogant Kaesars and whatnot, so don't—" Vince suddenly slumped forward, like a puppet whose strings have just been cut, and fell silent.

There: at that moment, the hair on the back of my neck stood up, my instincts screamed at me, and the runes on my eyes burned. Not because of that abnormal action, mind you. It was like my body only now figured out I was staring at my nemesis. Was that uncomfortable shift in the air from earlier, which Freyja pointed out for first, a prelude to this?

A deep chuckle suddenly reached my ears, and by the way Vince's shoulders were lightly shaking, I realized in surprise it came from him. "I've endured this charade long enough." he raised his head high in a show of superiority, putting his right eye, which went from green to red, at full display. "Playtime's over."

His voice and eye are different? "So you're finally revealing your true colors." the world will finally come to know of its prophesied enemy. I knew it was only a matter of time until he dropped the act and—

"How peculiar. You said the same thing as that foolish Ritual Beast girl." I blinked in confusion. What did Hashima Daphne have to do with anything? "I guess I'll use the same words myself, then. There's but one role I will always play, and that's the role of Demiurge, in other words, me!"

"So your true name is Demiurge." Freyr noted.

"True? Listen to me when I talk." the god driving behind me growled. "That pipsqueak and I are two separate entities. You were pointing your fancy weapons at the wrong adversary this entire time. The one you must fear...is the great me!"

My heart sank to my stomach. "No... You're lying!" Freyja, who sported the same expression as me, accused.

"Why would I!?" Demiurge remarked with a deranged look. "You worms are all the same and will never change! Instead of facing reality, you want to convince yourself that you're knights in shining armor who would never mistake a bystander for a villain! News flash: that's exactly what happened! Tell me, how does it feel to have degraded someone who just wished for a friendly Duel to the point of making them cry!?"

He laughed, entertained by our distraught expressions. "S-Seriously, what's going on...?" Melissa was at a loss, but not me and the Aesir. We knew exactly what was unfolding right before our eyes, and it was our fault.

It wasn't a one-time thing. It didn't happen twice or thrice, either. On numerous occasions did Vince demonstrate immense and palpable care and love for his Mythorrors, whom he even dubbed his children. The feeling, moreover, was strongly reciprocated.

In the first round, when Vince caught Nekomata in his arms and showered her with attention, as well as his words to Ren following that, left me speechless. A small part of me even doubted he was the Arrogant Kaesar, but I immediately dismissed the thought. He had to be the one, after all, a prophecy is absolute. It was all a façade, I reasoned. The Aesir were of the same opinion.

We discarded that thought too quickly. We were careless. The infighting between Vince's and Demiurge's forces, which we could discern from one another due to the animosity the latter didn't bother concealing, Vince's genuine interest in my cards, his soul as an Entertainment Duelist, and his love for his children which nearly brought us to tears...were all signs which we ignored.

And I was the prime culprit. I urged Vince to remove his mask and be true to himself, which he did, but...instead of the monster known as the Arrogant Kaesar, a tired kid who abhorred his Monsters' fates was exposed. The amount of guilt, shame, and anger that I've felt at having betrayed my own beliefs was indescribable.

The same applied to the Aesir. "You used that human as a gate to enter this world." Tyr glared daggers at our foe.

"Took you long enough to put two and two together!" Demiurge sneered. There was no reason to believe his words, but everything still fell into place. The prophecy didn't affirm the Arrogant Kaesar was a youth encircled by the divine, either. Vince was just a container, a vessel whose kindness has been exploited. "You won't get the chance to apologize to that pipsqueak. Not only because he will never return, but also because I will personally shuffle you off this mortal coil!"

"Don't get ahead of yourself." Njord warned him. Guilt, shame, and anger tug at our hearts, but we won't be blinded by them. Our goal was clear: defeat the Arrogant Kaesar and save Vince. We didn't know if a person could reawaken after their body was used as a gate, but we won't give up without trying. We'll make amends with Vince and his children after that.

"What I speak of is your inevitable end! I admit, I'm surprised I appear in your prophecy despite me hailing from a different universe, but I guess that's just a reinforcement of this truth." what did he say? Different universe? But that...shouldn't be possible. "It was incredibly satisfying to see that pipsqueak lose his cool when I revealed what I did to my previous vessel and that I hurt the human actor instead of him, seconds before sealing him in his own consciousness. The sight of you realizing you couldn't live up to your destiny when your Life hits 0 will be the cherry on top!"

Previous vessel? He hurt Manek Wierrd? What other atrocities did he commit before arriving here!? "He's trying to really make it personal." Freyja brandished her scythe with a smirk. "Dear me, I'm feeling motivated now."

Hoh? "You usually proclaim that when you go in search of Odr." Freyr smiled upon seeing her sister in high spirits, never taking his eyes off our foe. "What piqued your interest?"

"Vince-kun and his children... I'd like to chat with them a little more." she admitted. Her smirk turned to one full of mischief, which wasn't a good sign. "And I think he's cute. Do you think I can make him mine...?"

"Sister." Freyr warned her with a side glare.

"Ah! Sorry, sorry!" she giggled sheepishly. "I should focus on what's important, right?"

"I'll say..." Njord sighed in exasperation. Even so, catching the Belle of the Aesir's attention was a noteworthy feat. Congratulations to Vince for accomplishing that as a duck takes to water.

"You imbeciles appear to be in seventh heaven." Demiurge's chuckle interrupted us. His eyes began glowing as he slowly took hold of the sides of his helmet. "I'll open your eyes to the hopeless situation you're in."

CRACK!

Our eyes widened in horror as he pulled his hands in opposite directions, causing his protective headgear to split in the middle like mere paper and fall to the ground. But that wasn't the end of it. Oh, if only it was.

Horns, dark like the void lined with crimson, sprouted out from the sides of his head and curled upwards, stretching to the Heavens up above like damned leeches. Blood trickled down from them, painting Demiurge's forehead and cheeks red, and he licked his lips when a drop ended on their edge. He then wiped it off with his hands and pulled his hair back, even causing it to turn black with crimson highlights and lengthen so it would wildly blow in the wind.

He shoot to his feet, maintaining his equilibrium while standing on a moving D-Wheel without any problems, and ripped his upper suit apart. Jagged, black scales emerged from his cheeks, arms, shoulders, and sides of the abdomen, crimson lines traveled on his body before coalescing on his torso to form a slitted eye, and his fingers faded to black as claws replaced his nails.

I suddenly saw Father on the floor, clutching onto Sebastian's legs, yelling incoherently with trembling eyes. Was this...what he saw in that dream that shattered his sanity?

"I'm finally outside for real." the Arrogant Kaesar fell back to his seat. His eyes widened and he grinned like a Cheshire cat. "I haven't fully altered this body into mine yet, but haste makes waste, eh? Humans! You can be frightened now. What you're gazing at...is a god in the flesh!"

Why you...! "You twisted that human's body into a stomach-churning sight." Tyr spoke with unmistakable venom in his voice. His anger and disgust were shared by all of us.

"Ha! What does it matter?" Demiurge snorted. "That pipsqueak is no more, anyway!"

"I-I thought his helmet had to do something with his different voice and eye color, but this..." it was impossible to miss the fear seeping out of Melissa's voice, as if her shaking hands and legs weren't already a telltale sign. Considering my own body's reaction, it's no surprise she was reduced to that state. "How in the world did Vince turn his body into that!?"

"That isn't Sakushi Vincent anymore!" I cried out, prompting her eyes to widen. "What you're gazing at is the very demon I mentioned in the prophecy, who's been hiding inside his body until now!"

"B-But, if that's really the case, this Demiurge will—"

"Correct. I will destroy everything, starting with you humans." the reporter visibly quivered at the Arrogant Kaesar's words. She must've realized this was the real deal.

"As I've said," I intoned with a glare. "You won't hurt anyone."

"I wonder how long you will last." ignoring my threat, the god cracked his fingers. "Do your best to entertain me, little Samaritan~. Ore-sama no turn!" he gripped the top card of his deck, which flashed purple in response. "My omnipotence will dye the future of this world in darkness. Even the cards I draw are proof of my eminence! Dark Draw!"

"Dark Draw?" what did he do? I highly doubt it was a special effect meant to draw extra attention to himself. His card glowed—No, wait. Just as that body wasn't his to begin with, those cards followed the same principle, except for those that were his servants. If he had cards of his own, then—"That's from your deck?"

"An insightful mongrel, aren't you?" damn cheater...! Did he have no pride? No, knowing him, he'd probably pat himself on the back for possessing such an ability. His arrogance and powers completely twisted his idea of common sense. "When a god fights, you play by their rules. Don't think we'd lower ourselves to your levels, human! I activate the Spell Card Supreme Kaesar's Draw!"

A card, which depicted a purple silhouette with a red left eye and a fanged grin on a ruined wasteland with a purple sky and black clouds, appeared. Its arms were raised upwards as red lightning flashed between the clouds and five cards floated in its hands.

Njord raised an eyebrow. "You...made cards which feature yourself?" it caught me off guard as well, but considering his personality, we should've seen it coming. "Also, Supreme Kaesar? Since when?"

"Always." Demiurge specified as a matter of fact. "However, no matter where I go, all worms are apparently hell-bent on addressing me as the Arrogant Kaesar instead. Don't get your knickers in a twist: anyone who dared tarnish my name in my presence hasn't seen the light of another day, and you lot are no exceptions."

We'll see about that, demon. "Through my Spell's effect, all other cards from my hand, field, Graveyard, face-up Extra Deck, and Banish Zone are shuffled into the Deck!" cards flew out of the said locations and piled on his Deck and Extra Deck slots, except for the Action Card Vince discarded with Ammit's effect which burst into dark particles, and flashed purple. "Next, I draw five new cards! Dark Draw!"

"What?" he swapped out Vince's deck for his and then performed a Dark Draw? It put my mind at ease to learn he won't force Vince's children to do his bidding, but my relief was short-lived. His ability wasn't limited to replacing cards. "Even draw manipulation? And you can cast it repeatedly...!?"

Our foe chuckled ominously, prompting me to scowl. It seemed what I told Vince applied to him as well: beating him will be even harder than I predicted.

"B-Because Harald didn't inflict any damage to Vince, Demiurge's Life Points stand at 4000!" Melissa had enough courage left to continue her task as a commentator, a feat I commend her for. "With five cards in his hand and an empty board, he made himself a fresh start for the Duel!"

"Let the real Duel commence!" Demiurge proclaimed. "I summon Mythorror Gnostic Capricorn!"

A magic circle, which depicted the Capricornus constellation consisting of dark blue stars connected by a line of the same color, materialized before him, from which a merman swam out. He had a tanned, muscular body with patches of black scales here and there like his user, short, black hair, two golden horns that curled around the back of his head, and dark blue spikes with crimson tips jutting out of his back and going all the way to the tip of his abnormally long tail.

Mythorror Gnostic Capricorn: Dark / Fiend / Pendulum / Tuner / Effect / ATK: 1200 / DEF: 800 / LV: 3 / SC: 1

Vince's deck, better yet, his family, consisted of colorful Mythorrors, each with their distinctive aura, personality, and credos. Demiurge had his own retainers who didn't shy away from making themselves known, be it through their words or auras, and more than probably joined his cause for their personal reasons.

But this servant's aura... My scowl deepened. It was a duplicate of Demiurge's, though not on the same scale of power of course, implying his very existence was tied to the god's own. His god who, in all likelihood, was responsible for his creation in the first place. It would explain why he also felt lifeless, like a soldier without any free will, an empty shell containing a measly fraction of his energy.

Was this a living being, or just a weapon? "You have no respect for life." I rebuked, unable to keep quiet any longer.

"Thankfully, otherwise, it would've been contradictive to call my three Magi's creations the Stars of Destruction." maybe a more accurate way to phrase myself would've been 'You have no respect for anything'. "If he's Normal Summoned, Capricorn's effect activates. I draw a card, and if it's a servant of mine, it's Special Summoned in attack mode and its Attack becomes 0. Anything else is sent to the Graveyard."

"I won't let you. Freyja, activate your effect!" the goddess nodded to my words, conjuring her golden aura. "Once per turn, during either of our turns, I can target one Monster you control and negate its effects until the end of this turn. Fólkvangr's Invitation!"

"Dream on! I activate the Quick-Play Spell Solemn Command!" Demiurge shouted. "When exactly one 'Mythorror' Monster I control is targeted by an opponent's card effect, that card or effect is negated and my Monster gains 600 Attack until the End Phase!"

A lightning bolt suddenly shot down from the sky and washed over the Belle of the Aesir, causing her to gasp in pain and lose her aura. At the same time, our foe's servant gained an eerie aura as his eyes flashed.

(Capricorn: 1200→1800 ATK)

"Sister! Are you all right?" her brother immediately rushed to her side, while the rest of us waited anxiously for her reply.

"Y-Yes, don't worry." nodding again, Freyja straightened back up. "He took me by surprise, that's all."

"Capricorn's effect resolves! Dark Draw!" Demiurge ripped another card out of his deck. "It's Mythorror Gnostic Virgo! Serve me!"

A pale-skinned woman clad in a shoulderless ball gown consisting of dead roses emerged from a new magic circle, which depicted the Virgo constellation made up of brown stars connected by a line of the same color. A large, black thorn pierced out of her left shoulder, while a pink rose with an actual eye instead of a pistil bloomed on her opposite shoulder. Her pale, burgundy hair was braided into a loose ponytail and had vines growing in it, and when she opened her eyes, I was met with green and red, a mocking imitation of Vince's eyes before the demon took over.

Mythorror Gnostic Virgo: Dark / Fiend / Pendulum / Effect / ATK: 1500 → 0 / DEF: 1200 / LV: 4 / SC: 10

"Curses." Tyr caught on to how deep our predicament truly was. "His draw-manipulating ability nullifies the risks associated with effects that require him to draw, always guaranteeing himself the best possible result."

"You forgot to mention it has no casting limit." Njord earned himself a glare from the General through his comment.

"Muninn no kōka!" I abruptly declared. "If you perform a Special Summon while I control a god and Muninn is in my Graveyard, through his effect, I can return him to my hand!"

"See if I care! I tune the Level 4 Virgo with the Level 3 Capricorn!" as the merman's body morphed into three green rings that surrounded the maiden and turned her into four stars, Demiurge chanted. "Bearer of feared and untold sins. Flood the world with the purest of evil, and lay the foundation for my empire! Synchro Summon! Serve me, Level 7! Mythorror God Azi Dahaka!"

A bright beam shot through the rings, from which his servant emerged with a resounding roar. It was a bipedal dragon with a demonic appearance like the King's Scarlight Red Dragon Archfiend, but in this god's case, he possessed three heads, each with tusks protruding from his lower jaw, three horns spiking backwards, and solid orange eyes. His scales were a deep shade of indigo, smooth and shiny in a similar fashion to a fish, paired with blue tattoos and claws. Instead of wings, he had a dorsal fin with a grayish-blue membrane, and his long tail ended with a crooked claw.

Mythorror God Azi Dahaka: Dark / Fiend / Synchro / Effect / ATK: 2500 / DEF: 2000 / LV: 7

"His replacement for...Ereshkigal, was it?" Freyr remarked.

"This is...affinity for water? No, for rivers." Njord's brows jumped. Oh, he could tell from a simple glance? Impressive. I wonder, was it because he's a god of the sea, or because of that monster's appearance? "But it feels unnatural."

"As if they weren't mine to begin with, right?" Azi Dahaka's central head inquired, followed by eerie chuckles from the other two heads. "That is the case. You see, my powers used to belong to Anahita, the yazata of the rivers, which I rightfully inherited with the assistance of Demiurge-sama."

Considering the evil grin on the said god's face, it was easy to deduce what had really happened. "You usurped her position." Njord scoffed.

"Lies!" his right head snapped, while the other two bore their teeth. "I venerated her and Vayu like the gods they were, but they ignored my prayers, refused my requests! His Majesty was different. He saw potential in me, saw strength in my blasphemous heart, and helped me obtain these powers and body!"

"I am going to erase you puny humans from the world, alongside those useless yazatas! Nay, from all existing worlds!" his left head proclaimed, prompting the other two to laugh.

"He lost his benevolence..." Freyr noted grimly. Azi Dahaka, huh? He and I were similar in one regard: we both sought the gods' trust in our beliefs. I earned it, for I pledged my loyalty for the greater good, but he didn't, because he embraced his heart's malice. It's scary how a detail could diverge our fates to such an extent.

"Enough of the history lesson." Demiurge admonished us. He then revealed a card from his hand. "I, using the Scale 7 Mythorror Gnostic Cancer, set one of the Pendulum Scales!"

He placed his card on his energy blade, causing a pillar to appear on his left. It contained a tanned, macilent man with patches of black scales on his body like Capricorn, long, brown hair, and dull green eyes. He wore a simple loincloth with shells strapped to it, and six, large crab legs stuck out of his waist beside his human legs, and six smaller ones came from his back and wrapped around his chest in a ribcage-like formation. Oversized pinchers covered in black and red spikes grew from his shoulders, and lastly, black tendrils waggled out of a hole from where his heart would be.

Mythorror Gnostic Cancer: Dark / Fiend / Pendulum / Effect / ATK: 800 / DEF: 1200 / LV: 2 / SC: 7

"Demiurge sets one of his Scales!" Melissa exclaimed. "He must be aiming for its Pendulum Effect!"

"Correct!" the god confirmed, to which his Monster burst into particles. "Only once during every three turns, by destroying this card, I can add up to two different servants of mine from my Deck to my hand!"

After doing so, he revealed them. "And now, using the Scale 1 Mythorror Gnostic Howard and the Scale 5 Mythorror Gnostic Sagittarius, I set the Pendulum Scales!"

He placed the cards on the ends of his energy blade, causing the word [PENDULUM] to flash between them and two pillars of blue light to appear on his left and right. The first pillar contained a young man with pale skin, neon green eyes, and messy, dark moss green hair that reached his waist, possessing four, green-scaled tentacles protruding from his back, each with a large, black claw-like object on its tip, and wearing rimless, circular spectacles and a black hooded robe decorated with blue trims.

Mythorror Gnostic Howard: ATK 0 / DEF 0 / LV: 7 / SC: 1

The second pillar had a centaur in it, who had a toned, fair-skinned body, silver hair kept in a braid, solid brown eyes, and black spikes with red tips jutting from his back. He wore light gray armor on his chest and waist, the bestial part of his body was devoid of everything with the exception of his bones, and he wielded an ancient recurve bow of the same size as him.

Mythorror Gnostic Sagittarius: Dark / Fiend / Pendulum / Effect / ATK: 1800 / DEF: 200 / LV: 4 / SC: 5

"This time, he sets both Scales!" Melissa's eyes widened in panic.

"I can now simultaneously Summon Monsters from Levels 2 to 9!" Demiurge spread his arms wide. "Battalion of mythical creatures and gods! Obey my commands, and let my power become the supreme authority which repels the light! Pendulum Summon! Be reborn: Capricorn, Virgo, and Cancer!"

A portal opened between his pillars, and three beams shot out of it before revealing the said Mythorrors in Attack Position.

"Virgo no kōka!" Demiurge stated. "Only once during a turn, if she's Normal or Special Summon, I can gain 200 Life Points for each of my servants I control, and if I do, you take that much damage! Leeching Thorns!"

So he'll begin with effect damage. [Altering the course. Altering the course.] good, right on time.

"Oi, oi, this again?" our opponent, on the other hand, sighed in exasperation, still sporting a carefree grin. "I warn you, it will take more than just some random cards someone helps you collect to prolong your suffering."

"You're being too assumptive." I pointed out as the Duel lanes began changing. "Action Cards are unpredictable by nature, yet they're capable of turning the tides of a Duel through a single effect nonetheless. Underestimate them at your own risk, Arrogant Kaesar."

"Pfft." the god shook his head next. "Don't trash talk me, you impudent worm!"

Our D-Wheels safely carried us to the new road, enabling me to collect the incoming card from a floating bubble. "Akushon Majikku: Blessed Gem!" a card, which depicted a drawn, green crystal that had a sacred, yellow fire burning inside it, appeared. "I gain 600 Life Points!"

A soothing, green aura enveloped me at those words.

Harald: LP 2400 + 600 = 3000

Virgo sombrely extended her right hand towards Demiurge, causing black vines to creep out of her dress and over the said hand, reaching out to coil around one of his arms. The eye of the rose on her shoulder and the vine's thorns suddenly glowed in unison, enveloping him in the same type of aura.

Demiurge: LP 4000 + 800 = 4800

She then released her master's arm and threw the vine in my direction like a whip, right when its thorns expanded in size, striking my back and drawing a grunt from my mouth.

Harald: LP 3000 - 800 = 2200

I felt something wet trickle down my back. "Harald-kun!" Freyja gasped in concern at the cut now visible through the torn suit.

"Thank you, but I'm fine." I reassured her, equipping an unfazed smile despite the stinging feeling on my back. "I'm honored the Belle of the Aesir is concerned for my well-being."

"Don't joke with me in a situation like this..." I managed to calm her a little, but as expected, I couldn't fool her.

"Harald uses an Action Card to minimize the damage!" Melissa reported, relieved I wasn't intimidated by our foe and that the course continued to alter in my favor.

"Recognition at the smallest of feats, unbound hope... You humans sure have it easy." the demon behind me sounded amused, but he then bellowed, "Which is why you're just witless curs! I activate Howard's Pendulum Effect, targeting Azi Dahaka for it! Howard is Special Summoned to my field and the targeted servant gains 500 Attack for this turn!"

The Magus left his pillar as the dragon's ATK rose to 3000.

"Taste despair! I activate Sagittarius's Pendulum Effect as well, targeting Azi Dahaka for it!" Demiurge threw an arm forward. "All Monsters you control with Defense equal to or less than my target's Attack are destroyed together with Sagittarius! Kaus Shot - Eradication!"

"All of them? So easily!?" Melissa voiced my thoughts. None of my gods had more than 3000 Defense... On cue to this new problem, the Duel lanes shifted again. "A-Alright! An Action Card is coming up!"

A sphere of energy flew out of Azi Dahaka's chest, which then entered one of Sagittarius's spikes and made it gain a dark blue glow. He plucked the said spike without any signs of discomfort and fired it with his bow, its glow bursting outwards as destructive energy.

I collected the Action Card the moment we reached the new road. "Akushon Majikku: Protective Wings!" a card, which depicted a pair of white-feathered wings shielding a mechanical Monster, appeared. "If a card would be destroyed by a Spell or Trap Card or its effect, it is not destroyed. Since Pendulum Cards in the Pendulum Zones are treated as Spells, the Aesir are protected!"

The same white-feathered wings emerged from my gods' backs and folded in front of them, blocking the burst of energy. Tyr also slashed the makeshift arrow with his sword before it could hit any of our surroundings, after which their wings and Sagittarius vanished.

"How lucky you got there." Demiurge commented. "But in the end, struggle is just struggle."

"It isn't luck." I earnestly corrected him. "I'm carving my destined path with the Norns' guidance and the Aesir's strength."

"It's inevitability, eh?" the black-haired god snorted. "Funny. The pipsqueak said almost the same thing when he fought the Constellar boy for the first time. And look how he ended up! So don't assume some fate-altering hags and third-rate gods will save you from me! I release Virgo and Capricorn, and fuse them!"

"A replica of Hashima Daphne's distinctive Fusion?" I looked back in surprise.

"You humans aren't the only ones who can learn special tricks." his Monsters turned into red and blue energy respectively, which then spiraled into a portal as he chanted. "Two stars that mark the dawn of destruction. Become one in the mystic whirlpool and give rise to my new servant! Contact Fusion! Be free, Lord of Pain trapped in a distant realm! Mythorror Old One Uitzilcapac!"

To emerge from the portal was a rangy, dark yellowish green-skinned centaur with a bald head, three brown eyes with slitted pupils, the third being situated horizontally on his forehead, pointy ears, and black claws, clad in a black hooded robe decorated with yellow trims. The bestial part of his body consisted of a hexapod lizard, its scales colored like his skin, and an extra mouth right where his waist would be, filled with vicious fangs that made it impossible to be closed.

Mythorror Old One Uitzilcapac: Dark / Fiend / Fusion / Effect / ATK: 2000 / DEF: 2200 / LV: 6

His replacement for Xolotl. I narrowed my eyes at the horrific monster. My gaze shifted to the side by accident, allowing me to notice Howard was doing the same thing, albeit with shaking hands. He's...scared? Of Uitzilcapac?

"I activate his effect." Demiurge snapped me back to attention. "Once per turn, I can target one Monster I control and declare a number from 1 to 7. I target Cancer and declare 7!"

His Fusion Monster grinned wide and began chanting in an unknown language, causing a dark aura to surround the 'Gnostic' servant and to make him convulse in pain.

I grimaced. "What a repulsive sight." harming your own comrade or retainer for the sake of success... I couldn't stand it.

"Hihihi, Demiurge-sama once said victory stands on the back of sacrifice." I couldn't stand the Old One's obnoxious giggle, either. "I wholeheartedly agree, especially if I get to see your contorted faces and I can get my revenge!"

"For this turn, Cancer's Level becomes 7 and he can only be used as material for the summon of my servants." Demiurge went on as if nothing was wrong. "I now overlay the Level 7 Howard and Cancer!"

His Monsters turned into purple beams and entered a swirling galaxy, from which a pillar of light shot out.

"Staunch guard dog of the Underworld, under my lead, let none escape the clutches of death! Xyz Summon! Howl, Rank 7! Mythorror Gnostic Kerberos!"

A magic circle suddenly appeared at the tip of the pillar, and black stars lit up one by one on it, followed by a black line which connected them all, revealing the Cerberus constellation. The three-headed, black-furred hound with sharp fangs, a single orange eye and a spiky collar for each of his heads, obsidian claws, and red circuits running along his body emerged from the circle.

Mythorror Gnostic Kerberos: ATK 2900 / DEF 2500 / RK: 7

That Monster's effect can lock the gates of the underworld... "Another canine, huh?" Tyr sighed in exasperation.

"First Synchro, then from Pendulum came Fusion and Xyz...!" Melissa gulped. "Humanity's enemy is showing no signs of stopping!"

"Earlier, I openly told who I was, but you still confused me for the pipsqueak." Freyr tightened the grip on his staff when Demiurge zeroed in on him. "Me, a god, confused for a soft-hearted sucker? You will be the first to die. Battle! Uitzilcapac, crush him!"

"As you wish, Your Majesty!" the reptilian entity threw his arms to the side, summoning a swirling void encircled by a pink portal in front of his hands. They moved, swallowing his arms up to his elbows, and an identical, albeit oversized, portal opened above and under the Shepherd of the Aesir.

Figuring out what was going to happen next, Freyr jumped back and avoided Uitzilcapac's giant hands which shot out of the portals and tried to squash him between his palms. They went after him like drones, forcing the god to continue jumping up towards the sky to escape them.

I narrowed my eyes at our foe. "What are you scheming?" mutual destruction? Take advantage of Acclaimed Frith?

"This. By using an Overlay Unit, I activate Kerberos's effect!" his middle head devoured a light orbiting his body. "Until the end of this turn, you can't Special Summon Monsters from either Graveyard! Infernal Lock!"

That effect? Why now? "The effect of Cancer, who was sent to the Graveyard as an Overlay Unit, activates!" my eyes widened in surprise. "I target your puny god and equip him with my servant! A Monster equipped with Cancer can't attack and its effects are negated!"

A countermeasure for his effect? "Agh!" Freyr spat blood as crab legs suddenly burst out of his back and lodged into his chest in a ribcage-like formation, almost as if Cancer corrupted his body. This moment of distraction permitted the Old One to catch him with both hands, squeezing him to draw out a second cry of pain for good measure.

"Brother!" Freyja prepared her scythe, but her father restrained her by the arms.

"Remember how this card game works." he scolded her. "You can't help him right now, but he won't die either!"

Uitzilcapac giggled. "Exactly! No need to cry, miss. I'll only torture him a little, that's all!" that earned him a death glare from us.

[Altering the course. Altering the course.]

"Hoh? It seems whoever's responsible for the road switcheroo got scared and rushed to your aid." Demiurge commented. He nonchalantly aimed a finger at the shifting Duel lanes and let loose of a shark-like grin. "Since you got lucky in the first two tries against me... I guess the third time's the bane. Wreck that moving piece of junk!"

"What did you say!?"

Much to our dismay, his servants earnestly carried out the order. Uitzilcapac conjured a new portal above the forming road and in front of Azi Dahaka, who thrust his tail into it. Naturally, it emerged from the other portal at a much bigger size, and he proceeded to slash the road apart like sheets of paper. There weren't any houses built under the bridges and those areas were restricted—thank the gods—or else the falling metal would've crushed everything and everyone to dust.

"Th-There's nowhere to go!" Melissa screamed in dread. "Has he lost his mind!? At this rate, they'll both fall!"

"For the love of Yggdrasil...!" Tyr grumbled before leaping under the course and positioning his shield between the destroyed ends.

"I'm in your debt, General." I thanked him and safely crossed the makeshift lane, which he immediately removed and returned to my side. The Action Card was nowhere to be seen, as Demiurge planned; it was probably cut to pieces.

"Let's go! Harald made it across with the help of his god!" the reporter beamed in utter happiness. "A true display of camaraderie between a Duelist and a Duel Monster, to be expected from humanity's guardians!"

We looked at the Arrogant Kaesar in unison then, exactly on time to see him drive off the road—and fall. We were stunned into silence. His retainers left him behind without so much as a word, though judging by Azi Dahaka's chuckling and Uitzilcapac's widening grin, we'd be fools to entertain the idea he just died, no matter how much we'd wish for it.

WHOOSH!

We raised our gazes to see what had soared into the night sky, and our eyes widened. Two bat-like wings, which had black scales and purple-veined, crimson membranes, emerged from Demiurge's back. His hair grew out and now reached his waist. His boots were gone, revealing scaly feet that ended in crimson claws.

I tightened my grip on the handles, to the point it hurt. How dared he twist Vince's body into that? "He...H-He's flying...!" Melissa muttered in shock.

Demiurge extracted his deck from his wrist holder, inserted it into his Duel Disk, which he removed from his D-Wheel when we couldn't see him, and tore the former off. "I told you I'll take my time turning this body into mine, yet you're still flustered," he then equipped his Duel Disk. "I can't stand those who don't listen to me."

Followed by a beat of his wings, the demon sped through the air and was back at chasing me together with his servants. To race on par with a D-Wheel without any problems...just how fast was he?

I mustn't let him intimidate me. Focus! "Torappu hatsudō: The Sacred Runes!" a card, which showed the god Wotan behind a round, transparent barrier that had runes engraved on its border, appeared. "I banish one card from my Graveyard and apply an effect based on its type. It will be Blessed Gem, a Spell."

The same barrier materialized behind me. "I take no battle damage for the rest of this turn!"

"Harald assures himself another turn!" Melissa shouted. "That said, the battling Monsters' Attack Points are the same. It's a tie!"

"Azi Dahaka no kōka!" he had something up his sleeve, I knew it. "If a servant of mine battles a Monster, it gains 600 Attack and Defense during damage calculation only! Aži's Complot!"

A dark aura enveloped his Fusion Monster at those words.

(Uitzilcapac: 2000→2600 ATK, 2200→2800 DEF)

He then immersed his waist-mouth into a portal, reappearing behind my god via a different one and ominously engulfing us in its shadow. Freyr gasped when he was hurled into the enlarged mouth, and the portal promptly closed afterwards, leaving nothing to the imagination.

(Uitzilcapac: 2600→2000 ATK, 2800→2200 DEF)

"Dammit..." I whispered in frustration, feeling the Ingwaz rune fade from my left eye.

"Battle!" Demiurge exclaimed in glee. "Azi Dahaka, kill the sister!"

(Azi Dahaka: 3000→3600 ATK, 2000→2600 DEF)

"Your sins won't go unpunished!" with tears forming in her eyes, Freyja spun the scythe in her hands and advanced for first. The opposing Synchro Monster fired a torrent of water from his mouths, but she effortlessly sidestepped two of them and bisected the last.

She managed to cross the distance between them, and she was about to cut off his heads with a single slash when something stabbed her through the stomach. Looking down, she saw Azi Dahaka's tail, which emerged from one of Uitzilcapac's portals behind her. The last thing she saw upon looking back up was the dragon's opened jaws, and she was blasted in the face with another water attack and exploded.

"Weak! Weak! Weak!" he sang using all heads.

(Azi Dahaka: 3600→3000 ATK, 2600→2000 DEF)

"This turn's final Battle! Kerberos, attack the lousy general! Infernal Ululate!"

(Kerberos: 2900→3500 ATK, 2500→3100 DEF)

Obeying his master's command, the guard dog's heads howled in unison, unleashing several sound waves that washed over Tyr and ensued another explosion, even damaging the road in the process.

(Kerberos: 3500→2900 ATK, 3100→2600 DEF)

"H-How horrible...!" that's an understatement, Melissa. Njord seemed to be on the verge of bursting a blood vessel, and I shared his anger as the only rune left on my eye was his.

"If I get my hands on any of you," he gritted his teeth, eyes burning with fury. "You'll regret ever being born."

"A threat? Directed to the great me?" Demiurge's expression morphed to one of genuine shock, but he quickly recovered and laughed blithely. "Know your place, trash! Ah, actually... I will help you learn it immediately."

What's he—my eyes shot open in understanding once I saw what was coming up: the Duel Palace.

Due to his size, Njord couldn't enter the gate with us so he flew over it, and Demiurge's Monsters opted in doing the same. I didn't bother exchanging any words with my opponent, instead, I sped up, wishing to reach the grounds as soon as possible as his words echoed in my head.

"Aaagh!" my fears were realized when I heard a panicked scream.

The Tide of the Aesir was busy fending off Uitzilcapac's hands and portals, granting his brethren the right to do as they pleased. Azi Dahaka had his sights set on a section of the Commons' stand, while Kerberos growled down at some Tops in their seats. They were scared witless, standing at death's door. Melissa was urging someone to do something, and that stung.

I was supposed to be that someone. I was the Aesir's wielder, humanity's shield. It was my destiny, but here I was, staring helplessly at my nemesis who's seconds away from killing an entire stadium. It was still his turn, and the Duel couldn't be forcibly stopped either. I didn't have the means to stop him... It felt like I was drowning in a dark pit; I was in despair.

"Stop!" needless to say, I resorted to the only thing I had left: pleading. "Your opponent is me! The Duel isn't over yet—"

"And!?" the Arrogant Kaesar cut me off, and I involuntarily wondered, how in the name of Yggdrasil had Vince tolerated this monster? "A mongrel like you doesn't decide for me the order in which I should execute my prey! Shut up, and learn your lesson! Do i—"

An unknown roar silenced every person in the Duel Palace, and Scarlight Red Dragon Archfiend suddenly burst through the window of the King's exclusive room, followed by Red Wyvern. The former grasped Kerberos by his middle neck and mercilessly slammed him to the Dueling grounds, while the latter unleashed flames from his mouth at Azi Dahaka, compelling him to dodge and fly away from the people.

They did it. "It's the King!" Melissa, as well as the crowd, went wild. "The King came out of nowhere and saved his people! Oh, I'm going to cry...!"

"Insolent, wannabe king butting into my business..." to say Demiurge was annoyed would be an understatement. "You have some nerve, let me tell you that."

"Do I? In that case, let me tell you something myself." Jack stood in front of his now-broken window, arms folded across the chest and his expression as impassive as ever. He appeared completely unaffected by the demon's presence, quite a remarkable feat. "You're getting too ahead of yourself, self-proclaimed Supreme Kaesar."

His face contorted out of the blue, as if disgusted by what he had said. "From whatever angle I look at it, even sound-wise, the only title which suits you is Arrogant Kaesar. Not that it's hard to figure out why considering the travesty you're coercing us to watch."

"Oh, really?" Demiurge's mocking tone didn't falter, but it wasn't hard to miss the twitch of his right eyebrow. "Once I'm done with this human, you'll be next, mark my words."

"Continue your turn instead of fantasizing what you'd do after the Duel's over. We don't have all night." Jack rolled his eyes, ignoring the god's fuming. He then addressed yours truly. "You said you must defeat him with the aid of the Aesir to ensure the survival of this world. So live up to your words."

"I don't need to be reminded of my destiny." I informed him, but wouldn't anyone think as much after hearing me plead with the enemy? Not to mention, I owed him thanks for rescuing the crowd. "And it goes without saying I will."

Satisfied with my answer, Jack nodded and walked away from the window, his trench coat blowing behind him. His dragons also vanished, and a thought crossed my mind: our Duel Disks didn't notify us of any intrusion, which meant he was already Dueling. But who would challenge the King in his very throne room?

A question for another day. I told myself as we left the Duel Palace with our Monsters. I'll make this bastard pay for what he put the audience through. For toying with me, Vince, and our Monsters. I will fulfill my destiny!

"I place two cards face-down and end my turn!" Demiurge concluded at last. With it over, Azi Dahaka's ATK returned to 2500 as well. "If you're so eager to meet a martyr's death, then be my guest. I'll make an example out of you of what happens when my patience runs dry!"

"Likewise." I said stolidly and drew my new card. "Watashi no turn!"

"Because of Demiurge's vicious assault and Kerberos's Infernal Lock, Njord is the only god remaining on Harald's field!" Melissa recapped as her helicopter kept following us. Heh, seeing Jack had apparently boosted her morale and she was back in the game. "How will be counterattack!?"

"I summon Dis of the Nordic Alfar!" the gray silhouette of a long-haired woman with solid, blue eyes and a club-tail appeared beside me.

Dis of the Nordic Alfar: ATK 400 / DEF 1200 / LV: 4

"If she is Normal or Special Summoned, I can send one card that lists 'Nordic' or 'Aesir' in its text from my Deck to the Graveyard." I reminded the viewers. "I choose Vordr's Condolence! Next, with the presence of his comrades on my field, I can Special Summon Ivaldi the Nordic Smith from my hand!"

A dwarf with a wild beard and hair and wearing a blacksmith's attire appeared, swinging his hammer over his shoulder with a hearty laugh.

Ivaldi the Nordic Smith: Earth / Warrior / Effect / ATK: 1500 / DEF: 700 / LV: 4

"He, too, has an effect that triggers on Normal and Special Summon," I explained. "I can add one 'Nordic Relic' card from my Deck to my hand!"

"Don't hold back, Harald!" the son of Ivaldi reassured me, twisting a strand of his beard between his index finger and thumb. "Just name the relic you need, and yours truly will worry about the rest."

I smiled at that. "Much appreciated. It will be my second copy of Nordic Relic Hlidskjalf!" he snapped his fingers, causing a card to eject from my deck. "Which I activate! I Special Summon one 'Nordic' Monster from my Deck! Join us, Meili of the Nordic Ascendant!"

A tan-skinned young man with the same orange eyes and dark green hair as his brother Thor, although, in his case, his eyes weren't solid and he kept his hair in a small ponytail on his left shoulder, appeared next. He wore a loose-fitting light blue tunic, a silver belt, and brown pants and boots, held an ornate silver spear, and had two white-feathered wings sprouting from his back.

Meili of the Nordic Ascendant: Light / Fairy / Effect / ATK: 100 / DEF: 2000 / LV: 2

"Alright, it's finally my turn." Meili assumed a battle stance. "Let's get rid of this guy so Vince and his kids can return!"

"You're also interested in them like my daughter?" Njord blinked twice.

He shrugged. "They struck me as a nice bunch. Definitely nicer than these jerks." you could say that again.

"Meili, activate your effect." he burst into a cloud of particles, which then entered my GY slot. "With the presence of a god on my field, I can release him to target two other Nordics in my Graveyard and return them to my hand. Gullinbursti, Huginn, come back!"

After doing so, "Using Njord's effect, I summon the Tuner Monster, Gullinbursti of the Nordic Beasts in addition to this turn's Normal Summon and set!"

"Aye!" the said god conjured a whirlpool on the highway course, from which the boar with golden fur emerged and huffed heatedly.

Gullinbursti of the Nordic Beasts: Tuner / ATK 300 / DEF 100 / LV: 3

"Upon Normal or Special Summon, his effect activates!" I placed yet another card onto my energy blade. "I Special Summon one 'Nordic' Monster from my hand! Flock to me, Huginn of the Nordic Beasts!"

The pitch-black raven with azure eyes and small stones of the same color jutting out of his head in a horned crown formation twirled into existence and bowed.

Huginn of the Nordic Beasts: Tuner / Effect / ATK 500 / DEF 500 / LV: 3

"The Arrogant Kaesar laid bare his true desires at last!" he remarked upon taking notice of Vince's altered body and aura.

"Not in the way you think." Muninn corrected him from his card. "This is Demiurge, not the youth you've last seen before heading to the Graveyard. Long story short, there's been a huge misunderstanding."

"Oh..." Huginn placed his wings together as a person would do with their hands, and his eyes sparkled. "So that young warrior was but a fan of mine!?"

"Perish the thought." sadly for Muninn, his twin brother was too concentrated on his inaccurate realization to listen to him.

"Amazing! Even without Pendulum Summoning, Harald has gathered five Monsters on his field!" Melissa exclaimed, smiling wide. "By the looks of things, two new gods are about to join the fray!"

Demiurge loudly scoffed. "At least running your mouth isn't the only thing you're capable of. Good, otherwise, I would've had no reason to give you a chance at entertaining me."

"Don't try to sound like everything's going according to your plans." I warned the god, allowing a smirk to form on my face. "The Aesir and I are only getting started. I activate Dis's other effect. Twice per turn, I can target one 'Nordic' or 'Aesir' Monster I control and increase or reduce its Level by one. I target Gullinbursti and Huginn!"

Following a haunting giggle, the female spirit flew around the said beasts, causing them to gain a brownish-orange outline.

(Gullinbursti: Level 3→4; Huginn: Level 3→4)

"I tune the now Level 4 Gullinbursti with the Level 4 Dis!" as the boar's body morphed into four green rings that surrounded the spirit and turned her into four stars, I chanted. "Goddess shrouded in death's scent, exert the authority bestowed upon you by the All-Father and plunge our foes into darkness! Synchro Summon! Descend, Hel, Deathkeeper of the Aesir!"

A bright beam shot through the rings, from which a woman with long, pitch-black hair emerged, brandishing the deformed, obsidian sword she held in each hand. On the left side she had pale skin, a crimson eye, and luxuriant hair, while on the right side, she had withered, bluish skin, a milky-white eye, and desiccated hair. She wore a black, sleeveless and hipless, form-fitting jumpsuit with violet and silver trims under a cloak of the same colors and a helmet with horns that twisted backwards like branches.

Hel, Deathkeeper of the Aesir: Dark / Fiend / Synchro / Effect / ATK: 3000 / DEF: 3000 / LV: 8

I felt the Haglaz rune come to life on my left eye. "My, my, is that how you taught your pooch to behave in front of a ruler of the Underworld?" she sighed in response to Kerberos's abrupt snarls. "If you wish to see a proper guard dog, look no further than my dear Garmr."

"And what made you think I care?" Demiurge raised an eyebrow. "The only god my servants must respect and obey is the great me. You're of no importance to me."

"Ugh, so gauche." this time, Hel rolled her eyes. "Harald, continue playing so we can remove this arrogant oaf from my sight as quickly as possible."

"Of course, my goddess." I nodded and did as I was told. "I tune the now Level 4 Huginn with the Level 4 Ivaldi!" while they underwent the summoning sequence, I chanted. "Blow away the blizzard with a breath, o queen of the sunless island. Accompanied by the eternal song of the mountains, let the hunt begin! Synchro Summon! Descend, Skadi, Huntress of the Aesir!"

A bright beam shot through the rings, from which a fair-skinned elderly woman with brown eyes, long, brown hair that faded into silver and blue ends and was kept in a waterfall braid, wearing blue lipstick, a hooded, brown fur coat with a cream interior, two black belts around her waist, brown pants, and black boots with wooden skis, and holding a crossbow emerged.

Skadi, Huntress of the Aesir: Wind / Beast-Warrior / Synchro / Effect / ATK: 3000 / DEF: 3000 / LV: 8

The Jera rune appeared on my right eye next. "Now that I'm here, we can have a three-on-three battle." she rested her weapon on her shoulder. "This will be a good hunt."

"And for the finishing touches, I activate this," I raised a card from my hand. "Behold! This is the field where the fated Twilight of the Gods takes place. A dreadful place on which battle surges and the gods themselves succumb to death! Field Spell: Vigrid, the Foretold Battle-Surge!"

Dark clouds converged above us and spiraled together to form an ominous hole in the sky, followed by flashes of lightning illuminating the night and sparks of fire falling down like rain. I sensed the Aesir tense up, after all, this was the same location where they had once drawn their last breaths. But as soon as it happened, everything returned to normal, and my gods calmed down as well.

"All Monsters who hail from the Polar Star World gain 300 Attack and Defense," I explained as my gods assumed their battle stances. "I proceed with the activation of Vigrid's other effect. Only once during a turn, I can draw a card for each Aesir I control, in this case three!"

(Njord: 2500→2800 ATK, 2000→2300 DEF; Hel: 3000→3300 ATK, 3000→3300 DEF; Skadi: 3000→3300 ATK, 3000→3300 DEF)

"Let us fight!" I threw an arm to the side. "Skadi, attack Azi Dahaka! Silver Storm!"

"You fool! I activate the Continuous Trap The Final Problem!" the demon's face split into a wide grin. "Once per turn, I can activate one of four effects, and I choose the third! By targeting Azi Dahaka, his Attack becomes double his original Attack! Sadly, you won't take any battle damage involving him this turn, but you still lose your pathetic goddess."

"Harald walked into Demiurge's trap!" Melissa gasped.

"That type of play isn't enough to overwhelm an Aesir." our foe's eyes widened a little. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell Inexorable Downfall!"

A card, which depicted the All-Father pushed into a corner by Fenrir the Nordic Wolf, who had his fangs viciously closed around one of his arms, appeared.

"If my god battles your Monster, instead of using Attack Points, they will recourse to their Defense Points for this damage calculation." I stated, smirking. "Counting Aži's Complot, Azi Dahaka's Defense reaches 2600, but Skadi's 3300-Defense surpasses that amount!"

"Damn human!" the mentioned dragon roared in anger, unleashing torrents of water from his mouths.

The Huntress mirrored my smirk and calmly took aim. "There's no escape once I have my sights on you." what she fired, however, wasn't a simple arrow crafted from wood or made of ice or energy.

It was a cold storm that froze everything in its path, from the road to the enemy's own attack, with such speed I doubt Azi Dahaka even had the time to process things before he was reduced to an ice sculpture and shattered. The shards rained down on Demiurge, who shielded himself using a wing.

"Why you...!" he growled through gritted teeth.

Demiurge: LP 4800 - 700 = 4100

"Inexorable Downfall's effect continues. Since Skadi defeated your Monster in this battle, I can target one Spell or Trap Card you control and destroy it." his Continuous Trap burst into particles.

"A reversal, this time from Harald!" Melissa's smile returned. "He removed Azi Dahaka and that troublesome Trap from the field one after the other!"

"Battle." I went on without a delay. "Hel, attack Kerberos! Soul Reap!"

"By using an Overlay Unit, I activate Kerberos's effect!" the Xyz Monster's right head devoured the remaining light orbiting his body. "I banish one other Mythorror from my field or Graveyard to increase Kerberos's Attack by that Monster's until the End Phase. If you couldn't do so much as defeat your foe, then make yourself useful as a sacrifice! Infernal Banishment!"

He had multiple effects? "Another reversal!?" Melissa held her head in disbelief. "B-But, even if Kerberos gains Azi Dahaka's Attack, it luckily won't be enough to deplete Harald's Life!"

"That won't happen." I calmly chimed in. "At this moment, I activate Skadi's effect. Once per turn, when my opponent activates a Monster's effect during my Battle Phase, Skadi can negate that activation and destroy that Monster! Pure Blizzard!"

"Give him a good scolding in my stead, will you?"

"Fret not." Skadi reassured the Deathkeeper as her eyes began glowing. "That was the plan."

With a flicker of her free hand, the Huntress conjured—as its name suggests—a pure white blizzard around the guard dog, freezing him over from head to toe. He also shattered and rained down on us like snowfall.

"A replay now occurs!" I turned my D-Wheel sideways to glare at our foe. "Hel, your new attack target will be Uitzilcapac!"

The Fusion Monster wasted no time in summoning a series of portals around my goddess, ensnaring her inside a globe. Scaly tentacles shot out of them in unison, but Hel dodged each and every one of them with graceful maneuvers and slashed at them while she was at it, prompting them to retreat and for their portals to close.

"Is that all?" she inquired once she was free, to which Uitzilcapac visibly panicked. "Then get lost."

She crossed the distance between them with a leap and swung her swords down in unison, creating an X-shaped cut on the Old One's abdomen. He gasped in pain, seconds before exploding and nearly sending his user crashing into the side of a building. Njord was incredibly displeased that didn't happen—if I had to be honest, we all were—but the Old One's death brought a smirk to his face.

Demiurge: LP 4100 - 1300 = 2800

"He did it!" Melissa cried out full of hope. "If Harald's last god's attack is successful, he'll OTK Demiurge!"

"Accept your punishment, you vile demon!" I shouted at the top of my lungs. "Go forth, Njord! Prime Flood!"

"Vanish!" aiming his oar at Demiurge, Njord conjured a wave and let it drop in his direction.

"Pests like you shouldn't dream of killing me!" Demiurge snapped. "Kauntā Torappu ōpun: Divine Mercy! This turn, all battle damage I would take involving direct attacks becomes 0!"

A transparent barrier appeared around him, blocking the wave from touching him. I scowled; I was so close to ending this then and there... Sigh, no use grieving over spilled milk.

"You avoided the damage, but you lost your servants." I rubbed salt into the wound. "And my turn isn't over yet. I enter my second Main Phase and activate Hel's effect. Once per turn, I can target one 'Nordic' or 'Aesir' Monster in my Graveyard and Special Summon it in Defense Position. Return from Mist!"

Hel slashed the air in front of her, opening a dimensional rift from which the Belle of the Aesir jumped out with her trademark, alluring giggle.

(Freyja: 2000→2300 ATK, 2500→2800 DEF)

"Moreover, if I summoned an Aesir this way, I'm allowed to activate its effect when it is resurrected by its own effect." I stated once the Gyfu rune shone back to life on my right eye. "I can look at the top three cards of either of our Decks and place them back in any order I wish. I choose to do so for mine."

"What does the future have in store for us?" Freyja wondered as golden particles danced around my deck.

I preferred using this effect to temper with my opponent's deck, but it would've been pointless in the face of his Dark Draw. "This will do for now." I told myself. "I set a card and end my turn."

"Harald ends his turn once again controlling four gods!" Melissa cheered. "In contrast, Demiurge controls no cards and his hand's empty! The tides have greatly turned in his favor!"

"Heh...heh heh, hahahaha!" the laughter of the monster flying after me, as obnoxious as it was, silenced us. He glared at me, sporting a crazed look. "What are you all getting elated for, damn monkeys!? Watch! This is how you truly turn the tides in your favor! Ore-sama no turn! Dark Draw! I begin by activating Solemn Command's effect from my Graveyard! During my Standby Phase, if I control one or no 'Mythorror' Monsters, I can banish this card to negate the effects of one Monster you control!"

My frown deepened. "What?" a lightning bolt shot down from the sky and washed over Freyja, causing her to yelp.

"My daughter again...!?" Njord was there to support her, glaring at our foe. He sealed Fólkvangr's Invitation before I could attempt to use it.

"How rude, treating a lady like this." Freyja added.

"Spare me your whines." he scorned. "I activate the Spell Card Anansi's Triumph! Since I control no Monsters, I can draw a card for each Special Summoned Monster you control! You control four such Monsters, so I draw four new cards! Dark Draw!"

"He even refreshed his hand?" Melissa clicked her tongue.

"Why do you have that card?" I demanded bitterly. "It belongs to Vince. From the outset, weren't you Dueling with your deck?"

"I've never said that, haven't I?" Demiurge playfully asked. "The only Monsters in this deck are my servants, yes. I have no use of those weaklings my vessel commanded. But why would I discard his Spell and Trap Cards? As surprising as it may sound, his support cards weren't all trash, not to mention, the idea of using them against their referenced god's or goddess's consent sounds irresistible!"

Why you—"Solemn Command, The Final Problem, and Divine Mercy follow the same principle," he explained. "I rather avoid affirming whenever a Spell or Trap I use isn't mine, if not, I'd be forced to listen to your irksome accusations."

"...Just proceed with your turn." was all I said, railing in my anger.

"You don't get to tell me what to do." why bother complaining if you'll do what I've said anyway? "I activate the Spell Card Hephaestus' Gift. Since I control no Monsters, I can draw a card and add the face-up Capricorn from my Extra Deck to my hand, who I then summon!"

After performing a Dark Draw for the umpteenth time, the Mythorror born from the Capricornus constellation reappeared.

"Through his effect, I Dark Draw!" Demiurge showed his new card to us. "Serve me, Mythorror Gnostic Pisces!"

A magic circle, which depicted the Pisces constellation consisting of dark blue stars connected by a line of the same color, materialized before him, from which an amphora with a white and a black eel-like creature depicted on it emerged. Water gushed out of it, expelling those exact eels hidden inside it which bared their razor-sharp teeth at me. One had white scales, yellow eyes, and long fins with holes in them, while the other had black scales, crimson eyes, and jagged bones running down its back.

Mythorror Gnostic Pisces: Dark / Fiend / Pendulum / Effect / ATK: 2300 → 0 / DEF: 1200 / LV: 7 / SC: 1

"Pisces no kōka!" Demiurge gestured in my direction. "Only once during a turn, if it's Normal or Special Summoned, I can target one card we each control and destroy them. I target Pisces itself and Skadi!"

"Not on my watch." I retorted. "I banish Huginn from my Graveyard to prevent my goddess's destruction!"

Hearing my words, his fish didn't concern themselves with Skadi, and instead attacked each other in cold blood, coiling their bodies together as they tore at each other's scales like the mindless, ravenous beasts they were. Before their show could grow too graphic for the audience, their bodies broke into particles.

"Alright!" Melissa cheered. "Only Demiurge's Monster was destroyed!"

"Exactly!" she recoiled at our foe's words. "Pisces's other effect activates now that it was destroyed by a card effect! I can target up to two other servants of mine with different names in my Graveyard or face-up Extra Deck and Special Summon them in defense mode!"

A large GY Portal opened above him, from which Azi Dahaka and Uitzilcapac emerged and obediently bowed to him to avoid invoking his fury.

"I tune the Level 7 Azi Dahaka with the Level 3 Capricorn!" while they underwent the summoning sequence, he chanted. "My prideful Windmaid soaring in the sky. Hoist up the squall of anger, become the storm that blows away all opposition! Synchro Summon! Serve me, Level 10! Mythorror Titaness Aura!"

A bright beam shot through the rings, from which a fair-skinned young woman with a scar starting at her forehead's left side and running over her right eye to her right cheek, a crimson line tattooed across her nasal ridge, cold green eyes, and green hair that reached her bare feet and had wing-shaped bangs at either side of her head, wearing a white peplos and riding a lion-shaped cloud emerged, aiming a spear enveloped by raging winds at me.

Mythorror Titaness Aura: ATK 3300 / DEF 2500 / LV: 10 / SC: 1

"I fervently await your orders, Demiurge-sama." Aura shot a condescending glance at the Fusion Monster, who replied to it with a glare. "I'll get the results you require."

"Their internal conflicts didn't stop with Vince and his children?" I thought out loud, repulsed by their near-inexistent efforts at any form of solidarity.

"The Arrogant Kaesar is the only factor keeping them together." Hel snorted at her own words. "And what a great job he's doing at it."

"I place a card face-down." he then revealed two cards from his hand. "I, using the Scale 1 Mythorror Gnostic Hevelius and the Scale 11 Mythorror Gnostic Scorpio, set the Pendulum Scales for the second time!"

The two pillars of blue light reappeared on his field. The first pillar contained a young man with fair skin, piercing yellow eyes, and medium-length, curly, brown hair, wearing a steampunk-esque monocle on his right eye and a form-fitting, black jumpsuit decorated with yellow trims and silver rings intertwined around his waist.

Mythorror Gnostic Hevelius: ATK 2400 / DEF 0 / LV: 7 / SC: 1

The second pillar had a pale blue-skinned man with soulless gray eyes in it, who wore silver armor on his shoulders and waist structured to resemble bones and a dragon skull-shaped helmet. Some parts of his chest were burned off and had black tendrils waggling out of them, and an oversized skeletal tail pierced out of his lower back, ending with a black spike and having several veins of the same color running along its entirety.

Mythorror Gnostic Scorpio: Dark / Fiend / Pendulum / Effect / ATK: 2200 / DEF: 1700 / LV: 5 / SC: 11

"Due to Scorpio's continuous Pendulum Effect, my servants gain 500 Attack." a sinister aura surrounded his Monsters for a few seconds. Talk about a nagging effect...

(Uitzilcapac: 2000→2500 ATK; Aura: 3300→3800 ATK)

"Before Pendulum Summoning however, I activate the Spell Card Card in Pandora's Box!" the demon stated. "I can draw until I have five cards in my hand since I have three or less cards in my hand counting itself and my opponent controls more Monsters than I do Mythorrors! Dark Draw!"

"How much draw power does he have!?" Melissa's eyes widened in incredulity. "If, hypothetically speaking, Demiurge runs a forty-card deck, he went through one-fourth of it in this turn alone!"

"When a god fights, they fight to prevail. Be crushed like the worthless insects you are!" he grinned like a Cheshire cat. "Using my set Scales, I can now simultaneously Summon Monsters from Levels 2 to 10! Pendulum Summon! Be reborn: Virgo, Sagittarius! And from my hand: Mythorror Gnostic Leo!"

A portal opened between his pillars, and the beams shot out of it before revealing the said Mythorrors in Attack Position. Leo was a tan-skinned, muscular young man with wild, crimson hair comparable to his namesake's mane from which two lion ears sprouted, golden fur stretching across his back, and a lion tail with a crimson tuft on its tip, wearing a ragged loincloth with bones strapped to his waist and standing on all fours. He snapped his fangs and black claws at me aggressively.

Mythorror Gnostic Leo: Dark / Fiend / Pendulum / Effect / ATK: 1900 → 2400 / DEF: 200 / LV: 4 / SC: 6

"A full field..." I scowled, knowing well the implications it was about to bring.

"Virgo's Leeching Thorns activates." Demiurge's eyes, however, traveled to the Magus in his Pendulum Zone. "Hevelius's Pendulum Effect also activates. Only once during a turn, if the attack or the effect of my Mythorror would deal damage to you or make me regain Life, I can double that amount!"

My eyebrows jumped. "He'll regain 2000 Life Points?" Skadi muttered. "So Harald will—"

"And! Scorpio's Pendulum Effect!" Demiurge interrupted her. "Only once during a turn, if my servant inflicts damage to you via battle or its effect, you take 500 damage!"

I instantly sped up. "2500 damage in total!?" Melissa gasped. "Harald has 2200 Life...! He won't make it!"

There! I exclaimed in my head upon spotting an incoming Action Card as Virgo's black vines creeped out of her dress and reached out for her master.

"Learn to stay still, human." Aura raised her spear, and I felt the wind pick up around me, ensnaring me.

"I enjoy the sight of iron-willed women such as yourself." Freyja commented, already on the move to aid me. "You're beautiful, too. A shame your chest hasn't developed well..."

"What did you say!?" the Titaness cried out enraged. The distraction proved useful, causing the winds to dispel and allowing me to safely collect the card in a floating bubble.

"Drag Chute! This turn, you cannot gain Life Points!" the vines withered away. "Moreover, you take 300 damage for each of your Monsters that were destroyed this turn. You destroyed Pisces earlier, meaning you take 300 damage!"

A ray of energy shot out of the Action Spell, but it was absorbed into a portal that opened in front of Demiurge out of the blue.

"As long as I control Uitzilcapac, I take no effect damage!" the god revealed his effect-damage-countermeasure.

I was glad whoever kept altering the course had understood it wasn't needed anymore. My chances of obtaining Action Cards rose if the bridge wasn't destroyed by the demon's followers each time it altered.

"THESE are what a true maiden's breasts should look like!" we blinked in confusion when Aura continued from where she left off, gesturing at her chest. "Yours are just like Artemis's, large and voluptuous, a disgrace compared to mine!"

A now perplexed Freyja put an arm under her breasts and lifted them up a little, evaluating the Titaness's words. They were indeed...ahem...more prominent compared to her Vanadis persona, I admit. "Hm, I don't see any problem with them." she admitted sincerely. "In fact, whenever my beloved Odr and I bed, he—"

"Freyja!" her father cut her off harshly. The other gods only sighed in unison.

"SILENCE!" Demiurge roared. Aura immediately inclined her head, only now perceiving her mistake in letting me catch an Action Card. "Uitzilcapac, change Virgo's Level to 5!"

The Fusion Monster did as he was told, tormenting the 'Gnostic' servant as a result.

"Next, I activate the Spell Card Persona Coalesce!" he declared. "I Fusion Summon one 'Mythorror' Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck by banishing one Monster from my field and one Mythorror from my Extra Deck who shares the same Summoning Method as a Monster my opponent controls!"

Uitzilcapac and Mythorror God Camazotz turned into red and blue energy respectively, which then spiraled into a portal as he chanted.

"Lord of Pain trapped in a distant realm! Hunter lurking in the darkness! Become one in the mystic whirlpool and give rise to my new servant! Fusion Summon! Serve me, Titaness binding oaths for the deities! Mythorror Titaness Styx!"

The giant woman with grayish blue skin, cold light blue eyes, and shoulder-length blue hair whose tips slightly floated as if she was submerged in water, clad in a golden-trimmed black bodysuit that left her shoulders, hands, hips, and feet exposed, a long, blue strip of cloth attached to each of her wrists that connected to her hips, as well as a veil on her head and a waist cloak composed of flowing, grayish waters appeared next.

Mythorror Titaness Styx: ATK 2900→3400 / DEF 3000 / LV: 10 / SC: 11

Two Titans...will he invoke the third as well? "By releasing Leo, I activate his effect!" I guess we shall soon find out. "I target one of my servants in my Graveyard or face-up Extra Deck and Special Summon it with its effects negated. Return to me, Kerberos!"

Leo burst into particles and formed a GY Portal from which the three-headed guard dog jumped out.

"I activate the Quick-Play Spell Rank-Up-Magic Horrific Force!" it seemed I was correct. "Through its effect, I can Xyz Summon one 'Mythorror' Xyz Monster from my Extra Deck that's one or two Ranks higher than a 'Mythorror' Xyz Monster I control by using it as material!"

Kerberos turned into a purple beam that entered a swirling galaxy, from which a pillar of light shot out as he chanted.

"Avatar of destruction, with my will as your beacon, punish those who choose the path of light and hope! Rank-Up Xyz Change! Ravage, Rank 8! Mythorror Titan Perses!"

To emerge from the portal was the giant man with scarred, charcoal skin, slitted purples eyes, and a white beard, wearing an obsidian corinthian helmet and armor from his waist to his feet, leaving his toned upper body embellished with tattoos on constant display, and wielding an obsidian claymore.

Mythorror Titan Perses: ATK 3500→4000 / DEF 3000 / RK: 8 / SC: 4

"Would you look at that, it's Surtr'sknock-off." Hel scorned in a low tone, not wishing to ruffle the Titan's feathers and start yet another tedious argument.

"Call me to the battlefield, Harald, and I'll show you a real avatar of destruction." the said jötunn urged me.

"I will see to it as soon as possible, sir." I said dutifully.

"If you're done mumbling your goodbyes, accept Perses's effect!" the Titan slashed the light orbiting his body with his weapon, causing it to ignite with raging flames. "By using an Overlay Unit, he'll destroy as many Monsters you control as possible, and you take damage equal to half the Attack of one of the destroyed Monsters! Savage Feast!"

"Harald's in a pinch again!" Melissa tightened the grip on her mic. "The Monsters he controls with the highest Attack are Skadi and Hel, both with 3300 Attack. If he doesn't do anything, Hevelius will double the damage and he'll lose!"

"I activate the Continuous Trap Nordic Relic Svalinn!" a golden shield materialized in front of my gods, blocking Perses's claymore from touching them. "This shield can withstand the heat of the sun itself; your flames won't reach me. With the presence of an Aesir on my field, only once during a turn, I can negate the effects of all face-up cards you currently control until the end of this turn!"

"What?" Perses gritted his teeth.

"My, how rude." Hevelius, on the other hand, sported a lighthearted smirk.

(Aura: 3800→3300 ATK; Styx: 3400→2900 ATK; Perses: 4000→3500 ATK)

"You aren't out of the woods yet! I activate the Spell Card Carpo's Benevolence!" Demiurge stated. "I Dark Draw two cards, then discard one Mythorror from your hand!"

After doing so, "Watch closely. This Summoning Method was also born in the Standard Dimension! I activate the Ritual Spell Horrific Occultism! By releasing Monsters from my hand or field, I can Ritual Summon a 'Mythorror' Ritual Monster from my hand or Graveyard!"

I whipped my head around in surprise. "R-Ritual!? Another unknown Summoning Method!?" Melissa voiced my shock. To think he had something like this up his sleeve. "And he's summoning it from the Graveyard? Then the card he discarded was...!"

"I release Virgo and Sagittarius!" a magic circle materialized above him, and as his Monsters turned into particles and were absorbed into it, he chanted. "A storm of violence and decay. Take the shape of a dragon, and engulf this world in your shadow! Ritual Summon! Roar, Level 9! Mythorror Gnostic Kulshedra!"

Blue stars lit up one by one on the magic circle, followed by a blue line which connected them all, revealing the Draco constellation. Seconds later, a huge, serpentine, female dragon flew out of it, her gender evident from her protruding chest: she had dark purple scales, two black horns erupting from the back of her head, which spiraled backwards and had faded, red tips, a forked tail, two bone wings, and a myriad of mouths from one end of her body to the other, brimming with skewer-like fangs. She filled the entire night sky above us, and when her stormy eyes landed on me, her roar shook the Heavens.

Mythorror Gnostic Kulshedra: Dark / Fiend / Ritual / Effect / ATK: 3000 / DEF: 2800 / LV: 9

"Were it not for the wings, I'd say this is Jormungardr's knock-off..." Hel's tone wasn't as airy as when she joked earlier.

"S-So many giants!" Melissa, who's been seeing too many Monsters of such size lately, commented. The cameras were probably having a hard time getting a good shot of them, too. "A battle of giants! But it's fine! Harald can withstand Demiurge's onslaught!"

"You should've phrased it as a question!" the Arrogant Kaesar front flipped onto the ground and leaped forward, leaving behind a small fracture in the road. He surpassed me and grabbed the incoming card in a bubble. "Resurgence!"

An Action Spell, which depicted several blue arrows with segmented wings pointing upwards, appeared.

"All Monsters I control gain 500 Attack until the end of this turn!" not...good, but still bearable.

(Aura: 3300→3800 ATK; Styx: 2900→3400 ATK; Perses: 3500→4000 ATK; Kulshedra: 3000→3500 ATK)

"Battle!" all my gods assumed defensive stances at that. "Perses, crush Skadi! Ultimate Disaster!"

"Better luck next time, eh?" the said goddess begrudgingly accepted her defeat.

But not without putting up a fight. She fired a cold storm from her crossbow, but the Titan easily melted it away with a swing of his weapon, unleashing a crescent-shaped slash of fire in the process that washed over her. Skadi exploded with a pained cry and made my D-Wheel wobble due to the shock waves.

Harald: LP 2200 - 700 = 1500

"Hahaha! With her out of the picture, I activate Kulshedra's effect!" Demiurge rejoiced. "Only once during a turn, if you take battle damage, 800 points of your Life also perish! Infernal Cataclysm!"

I ground my teeth together. The battle damage I've suffered just now was the highest I'll be inflicted this turn; I would've negated it using the GY effect of Vordr's Condolence had I known what she's capable of...

Followed by a roar, Kulshedra bit the side of her own tail, and her eyes flashed. The wind concentrated around me once more, but I wasn't able to fully prepare myself before it became a miniature tornado that ripped a few holes in my suit and drew a pained gasp from my lips.

Harald: LP 1500 - 800 = 700

"Harald!" Njord shouted in concern.

"Worry about yourself first! Battle!" Demiurge threw an arm forward. "Styx, attack him! Oceanid Breaker!"

Styx's veil and waist cloak extended towards us. "If I would take battle damage, I can banish Vordr's Condolence from my Graveyard to activate its effect!" I quickly stated. "The damage becomes 0!"

The Tide of the Aesir formed a wall of waves in front of himself, however, it amounted to nothing as the Titaness's own waves assumed a spear-like shape and pierced through it and my god's chest, destroying him. For some reason, Styx furrowed her brows instead of exulting at her victory.

"Father!" first it was her brother, and now her father. This really wasn't Freyja's day, or better yet, anyone's day.

"Onto the next Battle!" the cause of our problems shouted. "Aura, remove Hel from my sight! Raging Tempest!"

"All you want, Your Majesty." the Titaness obeyed his command, creating three tornadoes around herself by drawing a circle in the air with her spear, which she then launched in my goddess's direction.

"Annoying bootlicker." the Deathkeeper clicked her tongue and dodged the attacks with quick steps, reducing the distance between them to retaliate.

She didn't expect Aura's hand to lunge out and seize her by the neck. "Big words for a crone who lost." she snorted at her insult, and mercilessly drove her weapon into her stomach, ensuing another explosion. I hissed when the flames licked at me, ruining my suit further.

Harald: LP 700 - 500 = 200

"He only has 200 Life remaining...!" Melissa blanched. "B-But! Freyja is in defense mode, so he won't take any damage from the next attack!"

"Pain isn't always needed to install despair." Demiurge turned his head to glare at me. "Go, Kulshedra! Chaotic Guidance!"

The serpentine dragon plunged at the Belle of the Aesir, who easily dodged with a high jump, prompting one to wonder if she was even aiming for her in the first place considering she then carelessly crushed into the side of the bridge. Aura decided this would be a good opportunity for revenge and trapped Freyja inside a whirlwind, turning her into easy prey for Kulshedra.

"What's this?" I watched in a daze as the dragon's tail grasped my goddess and carried her over to our foe's side.

"She captured me...!?" Freyja grunted, squirming in an attempt to break free.

"Is it of your liking? It's my servant's effect," Demiurge explained. "At the start of a battle in which Kulshedra attacks an opponent's Monster, I can take control of it, at the cost of sending said Monster to the Graveyard during the End Phase. I can't attack directly the turn I use Perses's Savage Feast, so I'll settle for these results."

I never wished so fervently in my life that a glare could kill. "You...!" how dared he, a vile animal whose only concerns were his own twisted desires, control the Aesir?

"What? There's still some fight left in you? Let me guess, because your third-rate gods will resurrect during the End Phase?" the demon's grin widened to the point it could hurt. "You're as daft as a brush, mongrel! I activate the Spell Card Mazda Yasna! By targeting three Mythorrors in my Graveyard, I can target three Monsters in yours, and shuffle them all into our respective Decks!"

"What!?" I gasped out.

"I target Howard, Cancer, and Azi Dahaka, then the three gods I've defeated!" Demiurge listed in glee. "I end my turn, resulting in Resurgence's and your stupid shield's effects expiring. My servants' Attack Points remain the same though, by virtue of Scorpio's Pendulum Effect. As for the useless woman..."

I could only watch as Freyja was thrown into one of Kulshedra's mouths, which closed with a deafening snap, and met her brother's same fate from a couple of turns ago.

"NOOO!" Melissa screamed in dread. "That effect didn't destroy Freyja, and the destroyed gods were removed from the Graveyard! Harald can't revive any of them! H-How is this possible...!?"

"Ha! Devising methods to keep those gods dead comes as easily for me as inhaling the same air as you filthy monkeys!" the Arrogant Kaesar laughed. "You're nothing compared to the great me, a god who pushed a world to the verge of annihilation—twice at that! If you wish to prolong your suffering, by all means, go ahead. However, if you bore me, not even your wails and pleas will stop me!"

A fiend who only seeks to please himself; look at the state he's reduced me to. My suit was torn and burned. My back was dyed red. My cherished and faithful gods were defeated, the soothing warmth of their runes gone from my eyes. My LP were like a candle in the wind... We didn't underestimate him, not even once, yet his strength exceeded our expectations. That I accept.

And that's where I draw the line. This was no longer just about my destiny. I refuse to lose to scum like him. Losing to someone like Yuu or Vince—to formidable heroes—could be considered an honor. But this? When the time comes, how will I face my parents if I lose that one time I absolutely mustn't?

"Soon, you'll stop running your mouth, demon. As a matter of fact...you'll stop tormenting us altogether! Watashi no turn! DRAW!" I yelled with an irrepressible rush of determination. Now that I wasn't on the defensive anymore, I calmly checked the effects of his servants, thinking out my next steps. "I can see it... The path to victory! First I activate the Spell Card Nibelung's Treasure! I take the Equip Spell Nibelung's Ring from my Deck and activate it on your side of the field, equipping it to Aura!"

The silver ring with runes engraved on it materialized on Aura's index finger. "My powers...!" she gritted her teeth in frustration.

"Are gone. Due to its effect, the equipped Monster cannot attack, be released, change its Battle Position, or activate its effects," I explained to the viewers. "Nibelung's Treasure then allows me to draw five cards! I summon Dverg of the Nordic Alfar!"

An orange silhouette of a long-haired, bearded man with solid, cyan eyes and a club-tail appeared, taking shelter behind me.

"Don't worry. I won't put you in harm's way." he murmured soothingly to my reassuring.

Dverg of the Nordic Alfar: Earth / Warrior / Effect / ATK: 100 → 400 / DEF: 1000 →1300 / LV: 1

"Thanks to Dverg's effect, I'm permitted to perform an additional Normal Summon or set this turn, at pact I summon a 'Nordic' Monster." I raised a card from my hand. "Come to me, Valkyrie of the Nordic Ascendant!"

A sword-wielding valkyrie appeared beside us, flapping her white-feathered wings.

Valkyrie of the Nordic Ascendant: Light / Fairy / Tuner / Effect / ATK: 400 → 700 / DEF: 800 →1100 / LV: 2

"Her effect activates upon Normal Summon." I slid two cards into the GY slot. "By discarding two cards from my hand, I can Special Summon two Einherjar Tokens in Defense Position."

"Gather, warriors of Valhalla!" Valkyrie pointed her weapon at the sky, conjuring two portals around her from which two armored warriors whose bodies seemed to be composed of mist emerged.

Einherjar Token: Earth / Warrior / Effect / ATK: 100 / DEF: 1000 / LV: 4

"I tune the two Level 4 Einherjar Tokens with the Level 2 Valkyrie!" as the female's body morphed into two green rings that surrounded the soldiers and turned them into eight stars, I chanted. "The all-seeing and all-powerful king who rules the Heavens of the North Star. Now, show your might that reigns over the gods of Asgard! Synchro Summon! Rule over the gods of Heaven and Earth! The highest god, ODIN, FATHER OF THE AESIR!"

A bright beam shot through the rings, connecting Earth to the Heavens, from which an equally sized elderly man clad in robes and armor and holding a golden spear slowly emerged, illuminating all Creation with his golden aura.

Odin, Father of the Aesir: Light / Fairy / Synchro / Effect / ATK: 4000 → 4300 / DEF: 3500 →3800 /LV: 10

"L-Lok at the size of that thing...!" Melissa's mouth hang open in shock, a sentiment also shared by Demiurge who glanced at my god with widened eyes for a split second. "It even surpasses Sergey's Infernoid Tierra and Abaddon... Is this Harald's ace?"

"Yes. My strongest Aesir, Odin." the Ansuz rune glowed brightly on my right eye. "And this is only the beginning. Watch the power of the supreme Polar God of the Star World! Odin, activate your effect! Influence of Rune!"

Raising his spear high, Odin released a discharge of magical energy that enveloped my field.

"Until the end of this turn, all 'Aesir' Monsters I control are unaffected by my opponent's Spells and Traps." I stated. "Next, I activate the Spell Card Rainbow Bridge Bifrost! When I have 2000 or less Life Points, I can Synchro Summon a god by using one 'Nordic' or 'Aesir' Monster I control and two others from my hand or Deck!"

"Synchro Summoning a god through an effect!?" Melissa's smile returned. "And by using materials from the Deck!?"

"Behold, the shimmering path which connects us to the divine, to the future!" a bridge burning with multicolored light stretched down from the sky, and two Monsters descended on it before undergoing the summoning sequence with Dverg. "I tune the Level 1 Dverg and the Level 4 Byggvir of the Nordic Servants with the Level 5 Svartalf of the Nordic Alfar! Whimsical god born from the stars, show us your absolute power and laugh at the world! Synchro Summon! Descend, Loki, Lord of the Aesir!"

A loony giggle echoed around us, followed by the sky suddenly parting and the ultimate trickster pulling himself out of it.

Loki, Lord of the Aesir: Dark / Spellcaster / Synchro / Effect / ATK: 3300 → 3600 / DEF: 3000 →3300 / LV: 10

"Bad evening, ladies and gentlemen!" he bowed to our foes in an exaggerated manner. "You've been quite naughty to my esteemed wielder. Not sad to say, we shall repay you in kind, right, Harald-kun?"

I nodded, the Laguz rune coming to life on my left eye. "Indeed." Odin chimed in, his anger perceivable in his calm tone, prompting Loki to roll his eyes. "They'll be punished for all the sins they committed and schemed."

"A second Level 10 Synchro Monster!" Melissa's awe brought a smirk to my face.

"Dverg no kōka!" I gestured to the side. "If this face-up card on the field is sent to the Graveyard, I can target one Nordic Relic in my Graveyard and add it to my hand. I choose Hlidskjalf, which I activate to Special Summon Beyla of the Nordic Servants from my Deck!"

Joining us on the battlefield was a fair-skinned woman with solid, light blue eyes and blond hair kept in a twist ponytail decorated with daisies, wearing a white shirt, a dark brown apron dress, a brown waist pouch, and white shoes, and having a cow tail peeking out under her dress. She cradled a clay pot in her hands, an unknown flower blooming from it, and an oversized bee accompanied her.

Beyla of the Nordic Servants: Wind / Beast-Warrior / Tuner / Effect / ATK: 900 → 1200 / DEF: 1200 →1500 / LV: 4

Loki glanced at her slyly, to which she winced but otherwise paid him no mind. "I proceed with the activation of her effect." I moved on before he could say something. "I discard a card to target the 'Nordic' Monster, Byggvir in my Graveyard and Special Summon him in Defense Position!"

"Fertile lands, gift us life!"

Her chant conjured a GY Portal, from which a fair-skinned man with solid, green eyes and short, spiky brown hair, wearing a gray shirt, brown work overalls, and dark brown boots emerged. Bovine horns sprouted from the sides of his head, he kept a barley straw in his mouth and held a sickle.

Byggvir of the Nordic Servants: Earth / Beast-Warrior / Tuner / Effect / ATK: 1800 → 2100 / DEF: 300→ 600 / LV: 4

"Husband and wife standing side by side, how cute." Loki commented, earning himself a glare from the newly summoned Nordic Servant. Odin cleared his throat warningly.

"What do you plan in doing with two Tuners?" Demiurge raised an eyebrow.

"Through his effect, Byggvir may be treated as a non-Tuner when used as material for the Synchro Summon of an Aesir." I revealed my strategy. "As such, I tune the Level 4 Byggvir with the Level 4 Beyla! Notorious giant bathed in fire, unsheathe your bright sword and set march with the scathe of branches! Synchro Summon! Descend, Surtr, Doom of the Aesir!"

The Sowilo rune appeared on my left eye as a muscular giant whose body was composed of molten rocks and wild flames stepped out of the pillar of light. He wore obsidian gauntlets, faulds, and sabatons, as well as a helmet which covered his entire head except for the tiny, crimson glow radiating from where his eyes should be and had two horns, and held an obsidian sword with a glowing blade.

Surtr, Doom of the Aesir: Fire / Pyro / Synchro / Effect / ATK: 3000 → 3300 / DEF: 3000 →3300 / LV: 8

He and Perses seemed locked in a staring contest before they gave an irritated, "Hmph." in unison.

"Harald busts out a third god!" Melissa punched the air with delight.

"Surtr's an Aesir in name only. He's a jötunn, to be precise." she blinked twice at my sudden correction, a little confused. That made me chuckle. "Moving on, I activate Byggvir's effect from my Graveyard. I banish him alongside Beyla and Meili to perform a Synchro Summon!"

"This time he's using materials from the Graveyard!?" the reporter gasped.

"When the door to the world opens, the ancient war god will raise up his magical Hammer! Shake the earth and appear with the roaring thunder!" the Thurisaz rune appeared on my left eye. "Synchro Summon! Descend, Thor, Lord of the Aesir!"

The ocean around the track parted, and the hammer-wielding god slowly emerged from it together with the roars of thunder.

Thor, Lord of the Aesir: Earth / Beast-Warrior / Synchro / Effect / ATK: 3500 → 3800 / DEF: 2800 →3100 / LV: 10

"You called in the big guns for a four-on-four battle, huh?" Demiurge snorted. "Like the toy of the Different Dimension Daemons, is copying your opponent all you can bring to the table?"

"I'm unsure who you're referring to, but as expected, you're still unfazed." I remarked in exasperation. "I wonder for how long that will last. I activate Vigrid's effect, drawing four cards as I control four 'Aesir' Monsters. Now I activate Surtr's effect, inflicting you 400 damage, plus an additional 100 points for each Aesir under my control!"

"Feel it on your skin: Muspell Sparks." Surtr ran a hand over the blade of his sword, brushing off a large number of fire sparks that gathered around Demiurge as a tornado and made him huff in discomfort.

Demiurge: LP 2800 - 800 = 2000

"Then, all Monsters I control gain Attack equal to the inflicted damage until the end of this turn." I added as each of my Synchro Monsters obtained a fiery aura.

(Odin: 4300→5100 ATK; Loki: 3600→4400 ATK; Surtr: 3300→4100 ATK; Thor: 3800→4600 ATK)

"For the final nail in your coffin, I activate Thor's effect, targeting Aura for it." the said god silently aimed a finger at the Titaness. "Until the End Phase, Thor gains my target's original name and effects! Effect Absorber!"

"He dealt damage, increased his Monsters' Attack, and now tries to make his opponent's effect his own!" Melissa cheered. "Harald's on a roll!"

"Naïve! Kauntā Torappu ōpun: Supreme Kaesar's Control!" a card, which depicted Demiurge's silhouette form looming over a male youth with a chimeric body, who gripped the sides of his head in pain as his bangs shadowed his eyes, appeared. "Because you activated an effect which targets my servant, I can Dark Draw a card and reveal. If it's a Level 6 or higher servant, I can apply one of two effects."

He drew and revealed another Ritual Monster. "Level 12! I choose to apply the first effect, namely, I take no battle damage for the rest of this turn! You can't touch me!"

I suppressed the urge to punch something. "Congratulations." Loki mocked the fellow Lord, who scowled. I was at fault too, though. "You helped him survive Harald-kun's turn!"

"It's all right." I reassured them, prompting Thor to continue with his effect. He striked Aura with a lightning bolt, and she grunted as her strength vanished. "He may survive, but he can't escape fate. Battle! You won't take any damage, but you'll still lose your followers! Thor, attack Perses! Thunder Pile!"

Perses bared his teeth, calling forth a burst of flames from the tip of his claymore at my god who easily dispersed them with an upwards swing of his hammer. Thor then brought it back down on the Titan, shattering his weapon that he raised in an attempt to protect himself and smashing his face in.

"Thor's newly acquired effect activates!" I threw an arm forward. "If he destroys an opponent's Monster by battle, I gain Life Points equal to half that Monster's Attack or Defense, whichever is higher. Perses had 4000 Attack!"

Green particles swirled around me for a few seconds.

Harald: LP 200 + 2000 = 2200

"Do it, Loki! Attack Aura with Vanity Bullet!"

"Impossible...! Me!? To a human and an inferior god—" she didn't get the chance to finish as the black hole Loki fired from his pointer finger pulverized her on contact.

"Nobody taught you it's bad to be so full of yourself?" he blew at his finger as if it was a steaming gun's muzzle.

"Keep the pace, Surtr! Attack Styx with Heaven's Break!"

Styx's veil and waist cloak assumed their spear-like shape and seemed ready to strike, but Surtr's sword emitted a bright flash just then, momentarily blinding her. That allowed him to cross the distance between them and slash her across the chest, resulting in a blast of wild flames.

"The last one!" I pointed at the sky. "Odin, attack Kulshedra! Heaven's Judgment!"

The serpentine dragon shot forward with an angry roar. "What a pitiful creature." the Father of the Aesir drew his spear back. He narrowed his eye, "Begone." and thrust his weapon upwards, impaling Kulshedra's head with extreme precision and lighting up the night sky as her huge body exploded.

"Harald wins the four-on-four battle!" Melissa cried out with a happy grin. "Demiurge lived through it thanks to his Counter Trap's effect, but he lost all his Monsters!"

"Unfortunately for him, I still have something left to do." I revealed with a grin of my own. "I activate the Spell Card Fimbulvetr!"

A card, which showed a pair of cloaked figures walking through a forest bombarded in all directions by a severe snowstorm, appeared.

"I am permitted to destroy one Aesir on the field, treating it as if being destroyed by an opponent's card effect." Loki tipped his hat before leaving the field in a shower of snowflakes. "I set two cards and end my turn. You know what happens now, right? Surtr's effect expires, and the Attack of my Aesir decrease."

(Odin: 5100→4300 ATK; Surtr: 4100→3300 ATK; Thor: 4600→3800 ATK)

"Next, Loki resurrects!" the sky parted once more so the ultimate trickster could return to the battlefield. "If summoned this way, I can target one Trap Card in my Graveyard and return it to my hand. I target Eir's Mercy."

"Big deal!" came Demiurge's obnoxious retort. "Nothing you accomplish amounts to anything if I have so much as 1 Life Point remaining. You destroyed my formation once and I easily rebuilt it, even stronger than before. What stops your dumb brain from realizing I can do it again!? I'll punish you for your arrogance, impudent worm—"

His words were silenced by a horn's echo that resounded across the entire City. The Aesir tensed up anew, for this sound signaled the countdown to their deaths in the past, a sound that caused even Yggdrasil to shudder and groan. I hated forcing them to remember and feel this way, but we made up our minds together a long time ago.

We have a duty we must fulfill—at all costs.

"The one who'll be punished is you, Arrogant Kaesar." I spat with all the animosity in me, after which the god Heimdall materialized on Thor's left shoulder, blowing his horn for the second time.

"What's this?" Melissa blinked twice.

"A card I discarded through Valkyrie's effect, Gjallarhorn," I raised a hand and clenched it. "This Continuous Trap works very differently from others. If I resurrect a Level 10 or higher Aesir during the End Phase, I can place this card face-up in my Spell & Trap Zone directly from my Graveyard. At the end of my third End Phase after its effect's activation, Gjallarhorn and my Aesir are banished and my opponent takes damage equal to their total Attack!"

One of the gems on the horn lit up. "Bahaha!" Demiurge burst out laughing. "Effect damage? You honestly believe Uitzilcapac was my only counter against that!?"

"Counter? The countdown to your death? Please." hearing my relaxed tone, he whipped his head around in surprise. "Gjallarhorn's damage cannot be lowered, changed, negated, or canceled. In other words, like fate, it is absolute!"

"Wh-What a terrifying effect! A sure-hit finisher!" Melissa exclaimed. "No matter what he does, the moment Harald's second turn from now ends, Demiurge will lose!"

As if I'd give him that much time to ramble on. "No. He's only got one turn left." I corrected her. "The other card I discarded through Valkyrie's effect was Ragnarök. In my next turn, I will banish this Trap from my Graveyard, altering Gjallarhorn's effect activation to my second End Phase!"

"Harald continues to build the pressure!" the reporter gasped in a mix of shock and happiness. "He backed Demiurge into a corner! He destroyed the evil god's formation and built himself a rock-solid field! This is it, folks, we've reached the climax of this nail-biting confrontation!"

"...Heh." following a short silence, the demon's shoulders began shaking, and he threw his head back in a bellow of laughter. "It appears to me you still don't know why you should despair! But that's fine. Totally fine!"

He fully turned around, somehow managing to fly backwards. "Now that I'm finally outside for real, I'm in a really good mood, notwithstanding the fact you're incapable of living up to any of my expectations and you're boring me. So I will teach you...the meaning of true despair! Ore-sama no turn! Dark Draw!"

"Your threats don't scare me." I whispered to myself while he focused back on the road. As Melissa said, I created a good field. I won't lose!

"Using my set Scales, I Pendulum Summon! Be reborn: Capricorn, Virgo, Pisces, Leo, and Styx!" a portal opened between his pillars, and five beams shot out of it before revealing the said Mythorrors in Attack Position, strengthened by Scorpio's Pendulum Effect.

I scowled. A full field again? As long as his Scales remained set, he can endlessly revive his servants and access his Extra Deck for much stronger ones. Pendulum Summoning...what a troublesome adversary.

"I activate Virgo's Leeching Thorns, boosted by Hevelius's and Scorpio's effects." Demiurge stated rather lazily. "However, you will negate it with that shield of yours, correct? You only have 2200 Life Points after all, heh heh."

I scoffed but did as he said, thus negating all his effects and returning his retainers' ATK to normal.

"I activate the Spell Card Book of Horrors." a card, which depicted a hideous grimoire with a cover made of leather and shaped like the screaming face of a blindfolded woman, appeared. "This spellbook belongs to me, in case you're wondering. A token of gratitude from the Lord of Pain for accepting him into my army."

"All I can feel oozing from it is madness..." Odin commented warily.

"Hah, that's precisely what the Cthulhu Mythos is about!" Demiurge grinned wide. "Since I control at least three Mythorrors, I can Dark Draw two cards! Next, I activate Mythorror Goddess Tiamat's effect from my hand, discarding her to return Horrific Occultism from my Graveyard to my hand, which I activate! I sacrifice Virgo and Styx!"

The same magic from earlier materialized above him, and as his Monsters turned into particles and were absorbed into it, he chanted.

"From the frenzied depths of chaos, encircle the world with your body, and feast on the sun! Ritual Summon! Behold, my mightiest Star of Destruction! Mythorror God Apophis!"

Blue stars lit up one by one on the circle, followed by a blue line which connected them all, revealing the Serpens constellation. If Kulshedra could fill the entire sky above us, then the serpent which emerged from the circle was capable, as Demiurge told, to encircle Earth. The underside of his body shined with golden scales, while the upperside had lapis lazuli scales divided into segments that moved up and down in a wave-like style in unison with his breathing. He had crimson eyes and pupils swirling with light and dark energy, two protruding fangs, and two large, golden forcipules.

Mythorror God Apophis: Dark / Fiend / Ritual / Pendulum / Effect / ATK: 4000 / DEF: 2000 / LV: 12 / SC: 10

Thor tightened the grip on his hammer. "Now that's...Jormungardr's knock-off." Hel spoke up from my Extra Deck. I wasn't one to talk, but how many Monsters of such size did he have!?

By how his grin widened, it's obvious Demiurge's pleased with our reaction. "Apophis no kōka." he collected an Action Card and slid it into the GY slot. "I discard a card to target and banish one card on the field! It will be Vigrid!"

"A cheap trick." Gjallarhorn is unaffected by his card effects, provided that the Foretold Battle-Surge isn't removed from my field. It will take more than that to best us. "I banish Nordic Relic Járngreipr from my Graveyard, which I discarded through Beyla's effect, to avoid your effect from targeting Vigrid!"

"By putting a card in his Graveyard to good use, Harald successfully protected his Field Spell!" Melissa cheered.

"I don't give a flip about your stupid Field Spell!" Demiurge shouted defiantly. I see, that was an attempt to bait my set cards. "Apophis's effect continues! One Fear Counter is placed on each face-up card you control! Eyes of Chaos!"

The energy inside the serpent's eyes burst forth like fire, conjuring a purple mist around my Monsters and my cards.

"I activate the Spell Card Amun-Ra's Splendor." his god hissed vehemently upon hearing that name. "I Special Summon Scorpio from my Pendulum Zone in defense mode with a new effect!"

The said Mythorror jumped out of his pillar and followed him.

"I tune the Level 5 Scorpio with the Level 3 Capricorn! Fear born from bloodshed. Gain the blessing of the god of darkness and become the roar of the king of beasts! Synchro Summon! Subjugate, Level 8! Mythorror Gnostic Phobos!"

A bright beam shot through the rings, which then formed a circle. White stars lit up one by one on it, followed by a white line that connected them all, revealing the Leo constellation, and the centaurian lion galloped out of it with a resounding roar.

Mythorror Gnostic Phobos: Tuner / ATK 2400 / DEF 2900 / LV: 8

"Thanks to Scorpio's inherited effect, since he was used as a material for the summon of my servant, I can Dark Draw a card." Demiurge's eyes flashed dangerously. "Time for a favorite effect of mine. During my Main Phase, I can lower Phobos's Level by 2 or 3, and even if I don't—I tune him with a Monster you control that has a Fear Counter, by treating yours as a Level 2 Synchro Monster!"

"What did you say!?" I cried out in shock. Such an effect in the late game was disastrous. In addition, due to Apophis, each of my Aesir possessed a Fear Counter...!

"I tune your precious ace with the now Level 5 Phobos!" all we could do was call out Odin's name as we watched powerlessly as the lion's body morphed into five green rings that turned him into two stars with a gasp of pain. "Synchro Summon! Serve me once more, Mythorror God Azi Dahaka!"

The three-headed god leaped out of the bright beam, laughing madly and proudly displaying his 2500 ATK.

"Odin has fallen!" Melissa's eyes widened in horror and concern. "And since it was used as material, Harald can't revive it during the End Phase, either!"

"How does it feel to have witnessed your ace, the supposedly 'highest god', become my stepping stone!?" Demiurge took great pride in our pained expressions.

I bit my lip until I tasted blood. He disrespects everything and everyone, abides only to his own pleasure, took control of an Aesir, and now used one as material? Odin, no less? "The Father of the Aesir won't fall. None of us will until you're dead, vile demon!" I shouted at the top of my lungs. "Torappu hatsudō: Vidar's Vengeance!"

A card, which showed the god Vidar, a thin, pale-skinned man with shoulder-length black hair that had gray strands and wearing a ragged, black cloak, dark brown pants, and brown boots, with his sword in hand and his back facing the viewer as he walked towards a snarling Fenrir, appeared.

"I'm permitted to activate it because an Aesir under my control left the field by your card's effect. I discard Eir's Mercy and target Odin in my Graveyard!" an ominous aura flowed out of my Trap, which swirled together to form a GY Portal. "Odin revives in Attack Position!"

A blinding beam shot out of the portal, vanishing between the clouds which parted seconds later as my ace returned to my side.

"Moreover, I gain 100 Life Points for each Level he has, and this turn, you cannot attack any Monsters I control, except Odin!"

Harald: LP 2200 + 1000 = 3200

"Don't act all high and mighty just for summoning back a weakling!" Demiurge spat. "I activate Persona Coalesce's effect from my Graveyard, banishing it to Special Summon the face-up Sagittarius in my Extra Deck with his effects negated!"

The said servant reappeared beside him from his signature magic circle.

"I overlay the Level 4 Leo and Sagittarius!" his Monsters turned into purple beams and entered a swirling galaxy, from which a pillar of light shot out. "Immeasurable misfortune for the ignorant who dare oppose me! Arise, sinful god of Hell! Xyz Summon! Rank 4! Mythorror God Erlik!"

Jumping out of the pillar was a well-built, dark orange-skinned elderly man with solid black eyes, short, black hair and a mustache of the same color, and protruding lower canines. He wore a horned pig mask that covered his upper face, a loincloth with bones strapped to it, golden rings around both wrists, and a bear hide on his back, holding a golden hammer in his hand similarly to Thor.

Mythorror God Erlik: Dark / Fiend / Xyz / Effect / ATK: 2400 / DEF: 1500 / RK: 4

"The Egyptian god's replacement."

"Who are you calling a replacement?" the newly arrived god retorted to Surtr's observation. He rested his hammer against his shoulder and gestured at his face in an over-flaunting manner. "If anything, he was my replacement!"

Was it a trait or a requirement to have an inflated ego to be a part of Demiurge's army? "By using an Overlay Unit, I activate Erlik's effect." the said god stated. "I place one 'Mythorror Gnostic' Pendulum Monster from my Graveyard or Deck in my Pendulum Zone, along with Fear Counters on face-up cards you control equal to that servant's Scale."

A card ejected from his Deck, "Mythorror Gnostic Gemini, Scale 9. In view of Odin having no Counters, I will dump them all on him!"

To appear in the pillar of light on his right was a Monster composed of two chibi twins. The boy had crimson eyes and spiky, black hair and wore a black hooded robe decorated with yellow trims, while the girl had light blue eyes and short, white hair and wore a black dress with identical trims to her brother. Like their creator, they had jagged scales on their cheeks, colored the same way as their hair, and slitted pupils.

Mythorror Gnostic Gemini: Dark / Fiend / Pendulum / Effect / ATK: 0 / DEF: 0 / LV: 2 / SC: 9

"A part of me is glad they aren't female twins." Melissa admitted in a low tone, squinting her eyes at Gemini. "I don't think I would've been ready for a sudden, Shining reference..."

"What the Hell are you on about?" her words' meaning was lost to the demon. "Bah, who cares. Here comes Gemini's Pendulum Effect! By using Monsters I control and Gemini as materials, I can Fusion Summon a servant of mine from the Extra Deck!"

The twins and Pisces turned into red and blue energy respectively, which then spiraled into a portal as he chanted.

"Two stars that mark the dawn of destruction. Become one in the mystic whirlpool and give rise to my new servant! Fusion Summon! Fly down, apex predator armed with jet-black wings! Mythorror Gnostic Valravn!"

A purple beam shot out of the portal and formed a circle in the sky. Purple stars lit up one by one on it, followed by a purple line which connected them all, revealing the Corvus constellation. The half-wolf and half-raven knight then flew out of it with an ear-piercing scream.

Mythorror Gnostic Valravn: ATK 2800 / DEF 1700 / LV: 8

"That Monster...!" I gritted my teeth as I recalled his effects from Vince and Ren's Duel.

"Valravn's continuous effect." Demiurge grinned viciously. "In his presence, all Monsters that have a Fear Counter have their original Attack and Defense halved!"

"Brilliant...!" Loki groused as he and the other Aesir were robbed of their strength.

(Odin: 4300→2300 ATK, 3800→2050 DEF; Loki: 3600→1950 ATK, 3300→1800 DEF; Surtr: 3300→1800 ATK, 3300→1800 DEF; Thor: 3800→2050 ATK, 3100→1700 DEF)

"No way! Harald's Synchro Monsters became easy prey for his opponent!" Melissa was filled with panic at the mere sight, however, noticing my calm expression, she realized she had no reason to. "Right, he can only attack Odin this turn, so if it's destroyed, he won't be able to declare other attacks... Even if he attacks with Apophis boosted by Azi Dahaka's effect, it won't be enough to delete Harald's Life!"

"Why are you getting elated again, damn mutts!?" the Arrogant Kaesar swiped the last card in his hand into his Duel Disk. "Eizoku Mahō: Upper Sky of Aether! When this card is activated, I place Aether Counters on it equal to the total sum of Levels on the field!"

(Upper Sky of Aether: 0→65 Aether Counters)

"Get out of here! Sixty-five Counters? On a single card!?" the real question was what he'll use them for, Melissa.

"By removing five Counters, I activate Upper Sky of Aether's effect!" and we're going to find out. "One Mythorror God I control gains 500 Attack until the End Phase. Obviously, I select Apophis!"

(Upper Sky of Aether: 65→60 Aether Counters; Apophis: 4000→4500 ATK)

Not...good, but still bearable. "I'll bury you alive, mortal." Demiurge vowed. "Due to their shared effect, my servants—some while only on the field, others everywhere—are also treated as owning an additional Attribute besides Dark. I enter the Battle Phase, allowing Apophis's other effect to come into play!"

His serpent hissed, followed by a chuckle from Erlik. "The effects of your pathetic Monsters with the same Attribute as my servants are negated during the Battle Phase! I command Light, Earth, as well as Dark, therefore, Odin, Thor, and Loki are cursed!"

I frowned. "What?" my Three Polar Gods grunted as their eyes grayed out.

"Battle! Go, Apophis! Devour the old geezer!" Demiurge threw a hand forward. "At the same time, I activate Upper Sky of Aether's other effect, removing five Counters from it to decrease his Attack by 1000 until the End Phase!"

(Upper Sky of Aether: 60→55 Aether Counters)

"5100 versus 1300!" Melissa's eyes widened. "Harald will lose if this attack hits!"

"I won't permit that to happen." my eyes hardened. "Torappu hatsudō: Nordic Relic Megingjord! I target Odin, making his Attack and Defense become double his original Attack and Defense until the end of this turn! His Attack won't surpass Apophis's since Valravn halved it, but I won't fall into the hands of defeat, either!"

"What...a surprise." the demon truly sounded taken aback for a second, but that illusion vanished as soon as he glanced backward, revealing his deranged expression. "Till the very end—you proved to be an utter disappointment! Upper Sky of Aether's other effect: during the Battle Phase, when you activate a card or effect, I can remove all Counters from this card to negate that card's or effect's activation!"

His Continuous Spell glowed brightly, causing Megingjord to gray out. Despair's nails sunk into my heart at that moment, and I sucked in a sharp breath. Impossible...I...!?

"Harald!" the Father of the Aesir grunted when the clouds around him suddenly assumed chain shapes and tied him up.

(Upper Sky of Aether: 55→0 Aether Counters; Odin: 2300→1300 ATK)

Right. I haven't lost yet! I scolded myself for spacing out and quickly outstretched my left arm for an incoming Action Card our foe decided to ignore, only for it to be roughly jostled up. It happened in the blink of an eye. I stared at Demiurge, whose face was now inches apart from mine.

"HARALD!" the other Aesir yelled as well, trying to rush to my side to separate the god from me, but they were all obstructed by one of his servants.

"I've had enough of you." Demiurge retracted his other hand, balling up his fist, "So you don't get the chance to prolong this farce." and punched my captured arm with inhuman force, effortlessly breaking its bone.

"GAAH!" a pained cry tore through my mouth before I could stop it. Satisfied, the Arrogant Kaesar released my arm and flew away, leaving me to cradle it with gritted teeth. "Damn you...!"

"B-Breaking your opponent's arm during a Duel...!" Melissa wanted to finish her sentence, probably do something to help me too, but she was scared. After witnessing this, who wouldn't be?

"It's what? Illegal? Bahaha!" Demiurge burst out laughing. "In Standard, there's a school where they incite their students to behave this way! This is perfectly legal! And I'm a god! I do what I want, periodt! Advance, my Star of Destruction! Ra's End!"

A dark aura enveloped his Ritual Monster as Aži's Complot came into effect, raising his ATK to 5100. Swirling, chaotic energy gathered between his forcipules, and with a deafening roar that shook all Creation, he fired it at Odin, piercing his entire torso. My god cried out in pain as his body exploded, and I did the same when the shock waves washed over me, causing the front of my D-Wheel to emit steam and slow down.

Harald: LP 3200 - 3800 = 0

Winner: Demiurge!

The demon, however, wasn't done. He stopped my D-Wheel by planting a foot on its front, faintly bending the metal, and before I could evade, he seized me by the neck, holding me up as he did earlier with my arm.

His happy expression was abhorrent. My Monsters had to vanish with the Duel's end. Melissa was shouting for help. I felt powerless...angry and ashamed. A question, one I never believed I'd ask myself, kept ringing out in my head.

I've failed my destiny?

"You're no match for the great me. Now then..." he raised a fist again. I couldn't free myself, so I poured all my remaining strength into a glare. A warrior never begs for their life. "You're the first in this universe who'll die at my hands. Any last words?"

I spat on him. His eyes flashed with anger. "You pest...!" he seethed and prepared to strike.

I'm sorry, everyone. I closed my eyes. I couldn't save any of you.

...

But the end never came. I opened my eyes in confusion, which then widened upon seeing a dart sticking out of the god's right shoulder, injecting some sort of liquid into him.

"You have my gratitude, Mr Harald. If you hadn't distracted him, he might have sensed me."

Demiurge released me, and I gasped in pain as I landed on my D-Wheel and trampled to the ground. He removed the dart from his shoulder and crushed it in his grip, turning around to face the mysterious speaker, a young man with an ugly scar on his face, long, silver hair that had pale light blue bangs falling over his right cheek, wearing glasses and a long jacket.

"Ah, please, abstain from damaging my equipment." he sighed in exasperation. "They don't come cheap nowadays."

"You shot me. The great me; a god." the demon growled out. "Who you are is of no importance to me. Don't expect any sympathy from me, mongrel, especially when I'll get my hands on you and your toys!"

"Sure." the man deadpanned while slinging his tranquilizer gun rifle over his back and walking towards us.

"Hoh? You're approaching me?" Demiurge spread his arms, grin back on his face. "Instead of running away, you're coming right to me? Even though you're seeing in person the miserable state I reduced my previous opponent into!?"

The man halted and quirked an eyebrow. "Are you...making a reference to some sort of media?" like Jack, he, too, was completely unaffected by the demon's presence. "You should try that with Genesis, instead. He's the one who always understands them."

"Genesis?" Demiurge furrowed his brows, but they jumped seconds later and he began laughing. "You're a lapdog of Genesis Omega Dragon!? Heh heh, if that's the case, I really can't wait to break you—"

He took a step forward but stumbled. "What...!?" his own eyes widened in confusion.

"What's happening!?" Melissa was at a loss, a sentiment shared by all viewers.

"My new sedative took effect within a minute. Good." the man resumed walking. His expression didn't change, but it wasn't hard to spot the relief in his tone. "I won't have to resort to drastic measures. How kind of you to commit to this experiment, Arrogant Kaesar. Genesis always bolts away whenever I ask for his help."

"I'll kill you...!" the god took another shaky step. "M-My legs...! I'm losing the strength to move my legs...! A-And this nausea...! Me, Demiurge, feeling sick...!?"

"I told you to keep the references for Genesis." the man knocked him off his feet with a push, causing him to crawl and grumble on the ground. My gaze lingered on our foe before moving to the man. His method of putting him to sleep was...efficient, to say the least. Moreover, for him to know someone tied to the demon...

"Who are you?"

"I'm Isaac." he met my gaze and adjusted his spectacles. "A friend of Ren and Antinomy. By extension, your ally. Surely there are many things you'd like to know, and worry not, we'll answer your every question. But let's move somewhere else, first."

I didn't get the time to reply as a magic circle with a futuristic design materialized under us. Ren vanished into the same portal after his and Vince's Duel, which meant he wasn't lying. My ally, huh? He did save me from Demiurge's wrath, and I couldn't feel any animosity rolling off him. In their respective Duels, Ren and Antinomy gave the impression they're good people, too. Sigh, very well; if this was the only way to get my answers and perhaps a second possibility to fulfill my destiny, then I welcome it.

A swirling portal of white energy opened in the circle, causing everything to go white.

---

Ending:

Kimi wo Mamotte, Kimi wo Aishite (Bleach's 19th Ending)

Gray clouds cover the sky like a blanket, and it's drizzling as we watch a sea's waves crash into the side of a tall cliff, on top of which stands a lone figure. The scene fades into a close-up of the said person, revealing it's a translucent-bodied Vince who's scowling at the sea.

(Love You! Hajimete atta no wa mushaburi no ame datta ne.)

(Love You! Remember, it was raining buckets back when we first met.)

The young man who floated beside the blond-haired woman in the Opening walks into the shot, not as a spirit though, and stops next to Vince. He smirks when the aforementioned youth runs forward without so much as a warning and follows him, prompting the camera to turn upwards and show the cards of Vince's Mythorrors raining down from the clouds in bubbles, rapidly flying past the camera and after them.

(Kimi wa! Ame no naka de mou wakaru naiteita.)

(And you! Were crying so hard I could tell, even under that rain.)

We find ourselves inside an ultra-modern yet devilish laboratory. Vince is talking with D/D/D Oblivion King Abyss Ragnarok in the background on the right, his gesticulating acting as a telltale sign of his nervousness. Baphomet and Tindalos stand at his sides, the former intently staring at D/D Berfomet who's beside Abyss Ragnarok, while the latter curls their tail around one of their user's legs.

In the foreground in the center, Orthrus and D/D Orthros are growling and holding a staring contest while D/D Cerberus looks from one to the other in confusion. Ixtab and Charon are also present in the background on the left, silently watching everything unfold. The goddess leans against the test tube behind her and folds her arms, causing C/C Critical Eye, which is submerged in some sort of liquid in the container, to suddenly open its eye.

(Love You! Sabishii kokoro wa kitsusou ugoki wa attate.)

(Love You! Even those times when you find yourself seized with feelings of loneliness.)

The scene cuts to the inside of a circus tent. Vince, who's in the foreground, looks to and fro with a frown before walking out of the shot, followed by Stargazer Magician and Timegazer Magician. In the background on the right, Ammit and Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon are balancing a ball on their snout and beak respectively, to which Performage Trapeze Magician and Abyss Actor - Superstar, who're tutoring them, clap their hands.

In the background on the left, Performapal Hip Hippo, Fey, and Adaro, who's sporting a pair of legs instead of his usual tail, are cuddling Fluffal Bear with euphoric expressions. They soon morph into horrified faces as Edge Imp Sabres bursts out of the bear's stomach, and they hightail it out of there.

(Boku wa! kimi no ichibyou boku o ki ni shiteiru yo.)

(I! Care about your each and every second.)

This time, we're in a town square, The Grand Spellbook Tower easily visible in the distance. Vince sits at a table in front of a café with Hierophant of Prophecy and The Phantom Knights of Break Sword, whose stead rests together with Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon under the shadow in an alley. The youth's expression twists into a frown at something the Spellcaster says, but he remains silent.

At the next table sits Huldra, Mozarta the Melodious Maestra, and Gem-Knight Lady Brilliant Diamond. Their conversation is interrupted by Reynardine who steps out of the café with a tray and places the girls' orders on their table. Mozarta leans towards Brilliant Diamond and says something with a mischievous smile, prompting her to giggle and the Mythorror pair to blush profusely.

In the foreground, Lunalight Cat Dancer's watching with her hands on her hips Nattmara, Nekomata, and Blue Cat perform a Natarajasana. Blue Cat pulls it off without a problem, Nattmara's a little sloppy but otherwise correct, and Nekomata's cheeks are bloated as she's holding her breath to maintain her balance. Though, she ultimately loses it and tumbles on top of Blue Cat, drawing everyone's attention and even jolting awake Break Sword's stead and Dark Rebellion.

(Kimi ga namida o nagasu kanashimi wa wakura kara.)

(Because I understand the sad things that make you cry.)

We find ourselves in Cosmic Sanctuary. Aylith and Ereshkigal are talking with T.G. Hyper Librarian and Constellar Pleiades in the foreground on the right, but considering the way the latter two shake their heads, they're in no luck here either.

One of The Many-Mother's Infant and Adult children are running in the background with Vylon Sphere, playing tag. Saleos and his stead are also there, both looking up at the giant humanoid machine with a '7' engraved on its chest in front of them, more precisely, at Vince who's standing on its shoulder and surveying their surroundings.

(Boku wa soba ni itain da kimi no namida o subete uketomeru!)

(I want to stay by your side and shoulder all of your tears!)

The scene cuts to the Naturia Sacred Tree which, due to its enormous size, doesn't even fit into the shot. Ritual Beast Ulti-Cannahawk, who has Vince sitting on the hawk's back together with Elder, suddenly soars into view and we tail them. The Tamer speaks up, to which the youth nods, causing the camera to zoom out and freeze again as they fly past it.

Moments later, Raidraptor - Rise Falcon with Shadow crouched on its back and Assault Blackwing - Raikiri the Rain Shower carrying Coco on his back also come into view and fly past the camera, followed by Hi-Speedroid Kendama and Clear Wing Synchro Dragon who cause the screen to shake due to their speed.

(Kimi nokoto mamoru yo boku wa kimi wo kurushi meru subete nokotokara!)

(I will protect you, from all the things that distress you!)

This time, we're on a mountain trail hit by a furious blizzard. The mermaid Monster from the Opening is leading the way for the group, her tail replaced by legs like in Adaro's case. An ice dragon's coiled protectively around her and uses his wing to shield her from the storm. Snow's a few feet behind them, using her veil to protect her face, followed by Willauk and Vince, who use their arms to shield their faces, and lastly by Imperial Army's General, who walks as if nothing was wrong or obstructing their vision.

Out of the blue, Willauk slips but manages to grab on the side of the trail and not fall to his doom, eyes like saucers and face pale like the snow around them. Vince and the General, who saw the entire thing since they were behind him, panics and rushes to help him climb back up respectively, quite the comedic sight considering the notable difference in their sizes.

(Hokani nanimodekinakunattemo bokuwa kamawanai!)

(Even if that'll be the extent of what I can do for you, I don't mind!)

We find ourselves in a majestic hall. Vince is talking with Odin in the foreground on the right, although here he shrunk his body so it would be close to what we'd classify as human-sized. The youth speaks sporting a humbled look, and the god listens attentively.

In the background on the left, a man and a woman possessing traits of Black Rose Dragon and Scarlight Red Dragon Archfiend respectively were energetically addressing a sheepish Xolotl. Nokk was standing between them, almost as if acting as the god's bodyguard in case the two invade his personal space.

Succubus and another god enter the hall from the far back, the two engrossed in a friendly conversation. Upon noticing the latter, Xolotl panics and runs in his user's direction, catching the others off guard.

(Kanpeki niwa dekina ikeredo demo zettai kun wo shiawase nisuruyo!)

(Even if not perfectly, but I'll definitely make you feel happy!)

The scene cuts to Yamatochi and Superheavy Samurai Warlord Susanowo training with bokkens in a large clearing in a forest. XX-Saber Gottoms and Twilight Ninja Shingetsu are overseeing their exchange of blows in silence, unlike Seth who's loudly voicing his opinions. Masked Warrior - Eternal's also present, leaning against a tree behind them and staying in its shadow.

Yateveo and Predator Plants Drosophyllum Hydra are holding their own contest on the other side of the screen, although in their case, they're showing off to each other how well they can blend in with their surroundings. That said, they're interrupted by Lindworm and Starve Venom Fusion Dragon as their own spar accidentally gets too close to them, prompting the plants to hiss at the two in anger.

(Bokuwa chikau yodonna toki demo kimi wo mamoru kara!)

(I swear it, no matter what happens, I will protect you!)

Vince abruptly runs across the foreground, drawing everyone's attention and a surprised cry from Seth. The shot turns to his POV as he leaves the forest and reaches a shore, the sky filled with gray clouds. There, on top of a rock in the middle of the sand, sits a male youth with a chimeric body, his back turned to us.

Different slides are shown in quick sequence: Vince dashing towards him with outstretched hands, a close-up of the male's head as he turns it around halfway with a confused look, and him completely turned around as Vince reunites with him at last, citrine irises visibly sparkling as he smiles and blushes in happiness.

The camera shows the cloudy sky, which begins to clear and let the first rays of sun pass through.

---

Fan-made Cards:

Action Cards:

Blessed Gem

Action Spell

Gain 600 LP.

Protective Wings

Action Spell

If a card(s) would be destroyed by a Spell/Trap or its effect: That card(s) is not destroyed.

[Trivia: this card's the Spell/Trap-oriented version of "Protective Wind".]

Resurgence

Action Spell

All monsters you control gain 500 ATK until the end of this turn.

Demiurge:

Supreme Kaesar's Draw

Normal Spell

Shuffle all other cards from your hand, field, GY, face-up Extra Deck, and Banish Zone into the Deck, then draw 5 cards. You can only activate 1 "Supreme Kaesar's Draw" per Duel.

Mythorror Gnostic Capricorn (Dark/Fiend/Pendulum/Tuner/Effect/ATK: 1200/DEF: 800/LV: 3/SC: 1)

Pendulum Effect: You can only Pendulum Summon "Mythorror" monsters. This effect cannot be negated. The first time each "Mythorror G" monster you control would be destroyed by a card effect each turn, it is not destroyed. You can destroy this card and 1 card in your other Pendulum Zone, then target 1 "Mythorror G" monster in your GY; Special Summon it.

Monster Effect: This card is also treated as a WATER monster while on the field. If this card is Normal Summoned: You can draw 1 card, and if it is a "Mythorror G" monster, you can Special Summon it in Attack Position and its ATK becomes 0, but if not, send it to the GY. You cannot Summon monsters during the turn you use this effect, except "Mythorror G" monsters. You can only use this effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Capricorn" once per turn.

[Trivia: Concept credit goes to Coolfireblast.]

Mythorror Gnostic Virgo (Dark/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect/ATK: 1500/DEF: 1200/LV: 4/SC: 10)

Pendulum Effect: You can only Pendulum Summon "Mythorror" monsters. This effect cannot be negated. If a "Mythorror G" monster you control is destroyed: You can Special Summon this card in Defense Position. If your "Mythorror G" monster(s) would be destroyed: You can activate this effect; it is not destroyed. You can only use each effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Virgo" once per turn.

Monster Effect: This card is also treated as an EARTH monster while on the field. Cannot be destroyed by battle. If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can gain 200 LP for each "Mythorror G" monster you control, and if you do, inflict that much damage to your opponent. You can only use this effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Virgo" once per turn.

[Trivia: Concept credit goes to Coolfireblast.]

Mythorror God Azi Dahaka (Dark/Fiend/Synchro/Effect/ATK: 2500/DEF: 2000/LV: 7)

1 Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner "Mythorror G" monsters

(This card is also always treated as a WATER monster.)

If your "Mythorror G" monster battles a monster, your monster gains 600 ATK/DEF during damage calculation only. The "Mythorror G" cards in your Pendulum Zones cannot be destroyed or be targeted by your opponent's card effects. If a "Mythorror G" monster you control attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing damage to your opponent.

[Trivia: Azi Dahaka is the most significant and long-lasting of the ažis (the Avestan word for "serpent" or "dragon") of the Avesta, the earliest religious texts of Zoroastrianism, said to possess all possible sins and evil counsels.]

Mythorror Gnostic Cancer (Dark/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect/ATK: 800/DEF: 1200/LV: 2/SC: 7)

Pendulum Effect: You can only Pendulum Summon "Mythorror" monsters. This effect cannot be negated. The ATK/DEF of your "Mythorror G" monsters cannot change by your opponent's card effects. You can destroy this card; add up to 2 different "Mythorror G" monsters from your Deck to your hand. You can only activate this effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Cancer" once every 3 turns.

Monster Effect: This card is also treated as a WATER monster while on the field. (Quick Effect): You can discard this card, then target 1 monster on the field; halve its ATK/DEF until the End Phase. If this card is sent to the GY: You can target 1 monster on the field; equip this card to it. You can only use each effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Cancer" once per turn. A monster equipped with this card cannot attack and its effects are negated.

[Trivia: Concept credit goes to Coolfireblast.]

Mythorror Gnostic Sagittarius (Dark/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect/ATK: 1800/DEF: 200/LV: 4/SC: 5)

Pendulum Effect: You can only Pendulum Summon "Mythorror" monsters. This effect cannot be negated. You can target 1 "Mythorror G" Ritual, Fusion, Synchro, or Xyz Monster; destroy all monsters your opponent controls with DEF equal to or less than that target's ATK, then destroy this card. You can only use this effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Sagittarius" once per turn.

Monster Effect: This card is also treated as a WIND monster while on the field. Your opponent cannot attack this card if you control other "Mythorror G" monsters. If this card is Normal Summoned: You can destroy up to 2 Spells/Traps on the field, and if you do, inflict 400 damage to your opponent for each destroyed card. You cannot activate Monster Effects during the turn you use this effect, except the effects of "Mythorror G" monsters. You can only use this effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Sagittarius" once per turn.

[Trivia: Concept credit goes to Coolfireblast.]

Mythorror Old One Uitzilcapac (Dark/Fiend/Fusion/Effect/ATK: 2000/DEF: 2200/LV: 6)

2 "Mythorror G" monsters

(This card is also always treated as a LIGHT "Mythorror G" monster.)

You can also Special Summon this card (from your Extra Deck) by Tributing the above cards you control. (In which case you do not use "Polymerization".) You take no effect damage. Once per turn: You can target 1 monster you control, then declare a number from 1 to 7; its Level becomes that number until the End Phase, and if you do, this turn, you can only use it as a material for the Summon of a "Mythorror G" monster.

[Trivia: Uitzilcapac, also known as the Lord of Pain, is a lesser known Great Old One of the Cthulhu Mythos of H. P. Lovecraft, a sadistic entity trapped by the Elder Gods in a remote dimension of the Space-Time continuum.]

Mythorror Gnostic Pisces (Dark/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect/ATK: 2300/DEF: 1200/LV: 7/SC: 1)

Pendulum Effect: You can only Pendulum Summon "Mythorror" monsters. This effect cannot be negated. (Quick Effect): You can choose 1 of these effects to apply for the rest of this turn. You can only use this effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Pisces" once per turn.

- You take no effect damage.

- You take no battle damage involving "Mythorror G" monsters.

Monster Effect: This card is also treated as a WATER monster while on the field. If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can target 1 card each player controls; destroy them. If this card is destroyed by a card effect: You can target up to 2 "Mythorror G" monsters with different names in your GY or face-up Extra Deck, except "Mythorror Gnostic Pisces"; Special Summon them in Defense Position. You cannot Summon monsters during the turn you use this effect, except "Mythorror G" monsters. You can only use each effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Pisces" once per turn.

[Trivia: Concept credit goes to Coolfireblast.]

Mythorror Gnostic Scorpio (Dark/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect/ATK: 2200/DEF: 1700/LV: 5/SC: 11)

Pendulum Effect: You can only Pendulum Summon "Mythorror" monsters. This effect cannot be negated. "Mythorror G" monsters you control gain 500 ATK. If a "Mythorror G" monster you control inflicts damage to your opponent by battle or by its effect: You can inflict 500 damage to your opponent. You can only use this effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Scorpio" once per turn.

Monster Effect: This card is also treated as an EARTH monster while on the field. You can target 1 Set card on the field; destroy it, and if you do, apply 1 of these effects for the rest of this turn, depending on the type of the destroyed card.

- Monster: This card gains ATK equal to half that monster's ATK.

- Spell: This card becomes unaffected by the effects of Spells.

- Trap: This card becomes unaffected by the effects of Traps.

You can only use this effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Scorpio" once per turn.

[Trivia: Concept credit goes to Coolfireblast.]

Mythorror Gnostic Leo (Dark/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect/ATK: 1900/DEF: 200/LV: 4/SC: 6)

Pendulum Effect: You can only Pendulum Summon "Mythorror" monsters. This effect cannot be negated. If your "Mythorror G" monster(s) would be destroyed: You can destroy this card instead, and if you do, you can place 1 face-up "Mythorror G" Pendulum Monster from your Extra Deck in your Pendulum Zone, except "Mythorror Gnostic Leo". You can only use this effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Leo" once per turn.

Monster Effect: This card is also treated as a FIRE monster while on the field. If this card is Normal Summoned: You can activate this effect; for the rest of this turn, all "Mythorror G" monsters you control will gain 500 ATK. (Quick Effect): You can Tribute this card, then target 1 "Mythorror G" monster face-up in your Extra Deck or GY; Special Summon it, but negate its effects. You can only use each effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Leo" once per turn.

[Trivia: Concept credit goes to Coolfireblast.]

Mythorror Gnostic Kulshedra (Dark/Fiend/Ritual/Effect/ATK: 3000/DEF: 2800/LV: 9)

(This card is also always treated as a WIND monster.)

You can Ritual Summon this card with "Horrific Occultism". This Ritual Summoned card cannot be targeted by your opponent's card effect. At the start of the Damage Step, if this card attacks an opponent's monster: You can take control of it, but send it to the GY during the End Phase. If your opponent takes battle damage: You can inflict 800 damage to your opponent. You can only use each effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Kulshedra" once per turn.

[Trivia: this card's a reference to the Draco constellation and the kulshedra, a water, storm, fire and chthonic demon in Albanian mythology. Concept credit goes to mekyaku.]

Supreme Kaesar's Control

Counter Trap

When your opponent activates a card or effect that targets a "Mythorror G" card(s) you control: Draw 1 card and reveal it, then if it was a Level 6 or higher "Mythorror G" monster, apply 1 of these effects for the rest of this turn.

- You take no battle damage.

- You take no effect damage.

You can activate this card from your hand if you control a "Demiurgus" monster. You can only activate 1 "Supreme Kaesar's Control" per turn.

Book of Horrors

Normal Spell

For the rest of this turn, all "Mythorror" monsters you currently control will be also treated as "Mythorror Gnostic" monsters, then, if you control 3 or more "Mythorror" monsters, you can draw 2 cards. You can only activate 1 "Book of Horrors" per turn.

[Trivia: "The R'lyeh Text is gone? Where is it!? We must retrieve it at once!—I'ihnga'z o'os o'g!?—The Lord of Pain was freed? Who did it!? And why!?—O'os vhnga'z goahg...!?—The Lord of Pain stole the book and gifted it to his new master?—Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn."]

Mythorror God Apophis (Dark/Fiend/Ritual/Pendulum/Effect/ATK: 4000/DEF: 2000/LV: 12/SC: 10)

Pendulum Effect: You can only Pendulum Summon "Mythorror" monsters. This effect cannot be negated. Each time a card(s) your opponent controls with a Fear Counter leaves the field or becomes an Xyz Material, they take 300 damage and you gain 300 LP for each counter it had.

Monster Effect: (This card is also always treated as a LIGHT "Chaos" monster.)

You can Ritual Summon this card with "Horrific Occultism". The effects of your opponent's monster with the same Attribute as your "Mythorror G" monsters are negated during the Battle Phase. You can discard 1 card, then target 1 card on the field; banish it, also, place 1 Fear Counter on each face-up card your opponent controls. If this Ritual Summoned card leaves the field, except as material: You can place it in your Pendulum Zone. You can only use each effect of "Mythorror God Apophis" once per turn.

[Trivia: this card's a reference to Apophis, the ancient Egyptian deity who embodied chaos and appears in art as a giant serpent, and the Serpens constellation. 2nd Monster Effect credit goes to UNHOLY LIGHT.]

Mythorror God Erlik (Dark/Fiend/Xyz/Effect/ATK: 2400/DEF: 1500/RK: 4)

2 Level 4 "Mythorror G" monsters

(This card is also always treated as an EARTH monster.)

You can detach 1 material from this card; place 1 "Mythorror Gnostic" Pendulum Monster from your GY or Deck in your Pendulum Zone, also, place Fear Counters on face-up cards your opponent controls up to its Pendulum Scale. You can only use this effect of "Mythorror God Erlik" once per turn. If your "Mythorror G" monster battles a monster with a Fear Counter on it, your monster cannot be destroyed by that battle, also you take no battle damage from that battle.

[Trivia: in Turkic mythology, Erlik is the god of death and the underworld, sometimes referred to as Tamag (hell).]

Mythorror Gnostic Gemini (Dark/Fiend/Pendulum/Effect/ATK: 0/DEF: 0/LV: 2/SC: 9)

Pendulum Effect: You can only Pendulum Summon "Mythorror" monsters. This effect cannot be negated. "Mythorror G" monsters you control cannot be targeted by your opponent's card effects. You can activate this effect; Fusion Summon 1 "Mythorror G" Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your field and this card as Fusion Material. You can only use this effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Gemini" once per turn.

Monster Effect: This card is also treated as a LIGHT monster while on the field. If this card is Normal Summoned: You can target 1 "Mythorror G" monster face-up in your Extra Deck or GY; this card gains ATK/DEF equal to that target's ATK/DEF. If you would use this card for a Fusion or a Tribute Summon of a "Mythorror G" monster, you can treat it as 2 monsters. You can only use each effect of "Mythorror Gnostic Gemini" once per turn.

[Trivia: Concept credit goes to Coolfireblast.]

Harald:

The Sacred Runes

Normal Trap

Banish 1 card from your GY, then apply 1 of the following effects, depending on the type of the banished card.

- Monster: Draw 1 card.

- Spell: You take no battle damage for the rest of this turn.

- Trap: You take no effect damage for the rest of this turn.

You can only activate 1 "The Sacred Runes" per turn.

[Trivia: this card's a reference to "Wotan's Judgment".]

Meili of the Nordic Ascendant (Light/Fairy/Effect/ATK: 100/DEF: 2000/LV: 2)

You can Tribute this card, then target 1 of your "Nordic" monsters that is banished or in your GY, except "Meili of the Nordic Ascendant", or 2 if you control an "Aesir" monster; add that target(s) to your hand or send them to the GY. You can only use this effect of "Meili of the Nordic Ascendant" once per turn.

[Trivia: in Norse mythology, Meili is a god, only known for being the son of Odin and brother of Thor.]

Hel, Deathkeeper of the Aesir (Dark/Fiend/Synchro/Effect/ATK: 3000/DEF: 3000/LV: 8)

1 "Nordic Alfar" Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monsters

Once per turn: You can target 1 "Nordic" or "Aesir" monster in your GY; Special Summon it in Defense Position. If you Summoned an "Aesir" monster this way, you can activate its effect when it is Summoned by its own effect. Once per turn, during the End Phase, if this face-up card you controlled was destroyed by your opponent's card: You can Special Summon this card (from your GY). If Summoned this way: You can target 1 card in your opponent's GY; banish that target.

[Trivia: in Norse mythology, Hel is a goddess who presides over the underworld realm of the same name. The rune that appears on Harald's left eye is the Haglaz, which represents the h-rune, "H" standing for "Hel".]

Skadi, Huntress of the Aesir (Wind/Beast-Warrior/Synchro/Effect/ATK: 3000/DEF: 3000/LV: 8)

1 "Nordic Beast" Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monsters

Once per turn, when your opponent activates a monster's effect during your Battle Phase (Quick Effect): You can negate the activation, and if you do, destroy it. Once per turn, during the End Phase, if this face-up card you controlled was destroyed by your opponent's card: You can Special Summon this card (from your GY). If Summoned this way: You can target 1 Spell in your GY; place that target on top of your Deck.

[Trivia: in Norse mythology, Skadi is a jötunn and goddess associated with bowhunting, skiing, winter, and mountains. The rune that appears on Harald's right eye is the Jera, which represents the j-rune, "J" standing for "Joetnar".]

Vigrid, the Foretold Battle-Surge

Field Spell

All "Nordic" and "Aesir" monsters on the field gain 300 ATK/DEF. "Gjallarhorn" face-up in your Spell & Trap Zone is unaffected by your opponent's card effects. Your opponent cannot end your Battle Phase and you can enter it disregarding any effect that would not allow you to. If you control a monster whose original name includes "Aesir" in it: You can draw 1 card for each of those monsters. You can only use this effect of "Vigrid, the Foretold Battle-Surge" once per turn.

[Trivia: in Norse mythology, Vígríðr, sometimes modernly anglicized as Vigrid, is a large field foretold to host a battle between the forces of the gods and the forces of Surtr as part of the events of Ragnarök.]

Inexorable Downfall

Quick-Play Spell

If your "Aesir" monster battles an opponent's monster: Instead of their ATK, apply their DEF for this damage calculation. If the opponent's monster is destroyed by this battle: You can target 1 Spell/Trap on the field; destroy it. You can only activate 1 "Inexorable Downfall" per turn.

[Trivia: this card shows Odin's final moments before being consumed by Fenrir during the events of Ragnarök.]

Surtr, Doom of the Aesir (Fire/Pyro/Synchro/Effect/ATK: 3000/DEF: 3000/LV: 8)

1 "Nordic Alfar" Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monsters

Once per turn: You can inflict 400 damage to your opponent + 100 for each "Aesir" monster you control, and if you do, until the End Phase, all monsters you control gain ATK equal to the inflicted damage. Once per turn, during the End Phase, if this face-up card you controlled was destroyed by your opponent's card: You can Special Summon this card (from your GY). If Summoned this way: You can make your opponent discard 1 card.

[Trivia: in Norse mythology, Surtr is a jötunn and a major figure during the events of Ragnarök. The rune that appears on Harald's left eye is the Sowilo, which represents the s-rune, "S" standing for "Surtr".]

Odin, Father of the Aesir (Light/Fairy/Synchro/Effect/ATK: 4000/DEF: 3500/LV: 10)

1 "Nordic Ascendant" Tuner + 2+ non-Tuner monsters

Once per turn: You can make all "Aesir" monsters you control be unaffected by your opponent's Spells/Traps until the end of this turn. Once per turn, during the End Phase, if this face-up card you controlled was destroyed by your opponent's card: You can Special Summon this card (from your GY). If Summoned this way: You can draw 1 card.

[Trivia: Did some changes to this card's IRL effect for convenience's sake, fusing it with its anime effects. The rune that appears on Harald's right eye is the Ansuz, which represents the a-rune, also "Ansuz" means "One of the Aesir".]

Rainbow Bridge Bifrost

Normal Spell

If you have 2000 or less LP: Immediately after this effect resolves, Synchro Summon 1 "Aesir" monster, using only 1 "Nordic" or "Aesir" monster you control and up to 2 "Nordic" monsters from your hand or Deck. You can only activate 1 "Rainbow Bridge Bifrost" per turn.

[Trivia: Instead of creating a new card, I decided to give this card an actual effect and use it in a Duel.]

Loki, Lord of the Aesir (Dark/Spellcaster/Synchro/Effect/ATK: 3300/DEF: 3000/LV: 10)

1 "Nordic Alfar" Tuner + 2+ non-Tuner monsters

Once per turn, when your opponent activates a Spell/Trap or its effect during your Battle Phase (Quick Effect): You can negate the activation, and if you do, destroy it. Once per turn, during the End Phase, if this face-up card you controlled was destroyed by your opponent's card: You can Special Summon this card (from your GY). If Summoned this way: You can target 1 Trap in your GY; add that target to your hand.

[Trivia: Did some changes to this card's IRL effect for convenience's sake, fusing it with its anime effects. The rune that appears on Harald's left eye is the Laguz, which represents the l-rune, "L" standing for "Loki".]

Byggvir of the Nordic Servants (Earth/Beast-Warrior/Tuner/Effect/ATK: 1800/DEF: 300/LV: 4)

If this card is used as Synchro Material for an "Aesir" monster, you can treat it as a non-Tuner. If this card is in your GY: You can target up to 2 other "Nordic" monsters in your GY; immediately after this effect resolves, Synchro Summon 1 "Aesir" monster banishing this card and that target(s). You can only use this effect of "Byggvir of the Nordic Servants" once per turn.

[Trivia: in Norse mythology, Byggvir is one of Freyr's servants and the husband of Beyla, mentioned in the prose beginning of Lokasenna where Loki degrades him for being of slight stature and a gossiper.]

Beyla of the Nordic Servants (Wind/Beast-Warrior/Tuner/Effect/ATK: 900/DEF: 1200/LV: 4)

For a Synchro Summon, you can substitute this card for any 1 "Nordic" Tuner. You can discard 1 card, then target 1 "Nordic" monster in your GY; add it to your hand, OR, Special Summon it in Defense Position, but you cannot Special Summon monsters from the Extra Deck, except "Aesir" monsters, while it is face-up on the field. You can only use this effect of "Beyla of the Nordic Servants" once per turn.

[Trivia: in Norse mythology, Beyla is one of Freyr's servants and the wife of Byggvir, mentioned in the Lokasenna where Loki accuses her of being filthy but the reason for this is unclear.]

Thor, Lord of the Aesir (Earth/Beast-Warrior/Synchro/Effect/ATK: 3500/DEF: 2800/LV: 10)

1 "Nordic Beast" Tuner + 2+ non-Tuner monsters

Once per turn: You can target 1 monster your opponent controls; until the End Phase, this card gains that monster's original name, and replace this effect with its original effects. Once per turn, during the End Phase, if this face-up card you controlled was destroyed by your opponent's card: You can Special Summon this card (from your GY). If Summoned this way: You can inflict 800 damage to your opponent.

[Trivia: Did some changes to this card's IRL effect for convenience's sake, fusing it with its anime effects. The rune that appears on Harald's left eye is the Thurisaz, which represents the th-rune and sound, also "Thurisaz" means "The god Thor".]

Fimbulvetr

Normal Spell

Destroy 1 "Aesir" monster on the field, disregarding any effect that would not allow you to and treating it as if being destroyed by an opponent's card effect. You can only activate 1 "Fimbulvetr" per turn.

[Trivia: in Norse mythology, Fimbulvetr is the immediate prelude to the events of Ragnarök.]

Gjallarhorn

Continuous Trap

If you Special Summon a Level 10 or higher "Aesir" monster from your GY during the End Phase while this card is in your GY: You can place this card face-up in your Spell & Trap Zone, and if you do, this End Phase, the Special Summon of your "Aesir" monsters cannot be negated. (This is a Spell Speed 3 effect.) At the end of your 3rd End Phase after this effect's activation: Banish this card and all "Aesir" monsters you control; inflict damage to your opponent equal to the total ATK of all banished monsters. This damage cannot be lowered, changed, negated, or canceled.

[Trivia: Did some changes to this card's effect for convenience's sake.]

Ragnarök

Normal Trap

Send 1 "Gjallarhorn" from your Deck to the GY. You can banish this card from your GY, then target 1 face-up "Gjallarhorn" you control; its effect activates at the end of your 2nd End Phase, instead.

Nordic Relic Járngreipr

Equip Spell

Equip only to an "Aesir" or "Nordic" monster. It gains 500 ATK, and during the Damage Step, the effects of monsters it attacks are negated. If a card(s) you control that lists "Nordic" or "Aesir" in its text would be targeted by your opponent's card effect, you can banish this card from your GY instead. You can only use this effect of "Nordic Relic Járngreipr" once per turn.

[Trivia: in Norse mythology, Járngreipr are the iron gloves of Thor.]

Vidar's Vengeance

Normal Trap

If an "Aesir" monster you control leaves the field by your opponent's card or is Tributed by your opponent: Discard 1 card, then target 1 "Aesir" monster in your GY; Special Summon it in Attack Position, and if you do, gain 100 LP x its Level, and if you discarded a Trap, your opponent cannot attack any monsters you control this turn, except that one. You can only activate 1 "Vidar's Vengeance" per turn.

[Trivia: in Norse mythology, Víðarr, sometimes anglicized as Vidar, is a god among the Aesir associated with vengeance.]

---

This Duel is among my top five favorites I've ever written. The stakes, the interactions, Harald and the Aesir's resolve, Demiurge's madness, and the Dueling action made it a very enjoyable ride for me. I hope you readers also had fun reading this!

I've decided to put more emphasis on Demiurge's strength this time around, avoiding the use of his avatar and raising the level of his brutality. Harald, on the other hand, didn't hold back and used his three iconic Aesirs, as well as all the fan-made ones I devised for him. Though, my old readers should know there's one last Aesir that will debut in the decisive fight against the Arrogant Kaesar! I can't wait!

A massive thank you to the people who submitted concepts for Demiurge's cards and to Haoh Ryu Z-ARC who reviewed the Opening this time as well. I was debating between Kimi wo Mamotte, Kimi wo Aishite and zero (the first ED song for The Case Study of Vanitas) for the Ending, but ultimately went with the former since it fits perfectly the scenes I envisioned.

Reviews really make my day and it's a great way to communicate with you readers, and maybe find out errors I can avoid making. Please review, and with that said, here's the chapter's last scene!

---

Several cards appeared on the screen before turning around, revealing the 'Aesir' Synchro Monsters. They suddenly glowed, and Harald emerged from them surrounded by his cherished and faithful currently-human-sized Monsters. He felt both overwhelmed and deeply moved by their concerned gazes.

"Oh, Harald-kun." Freyja brought her hands to her mouth as she stared at the said man's bandaged arm and back. He went through so much in this Duel and still lost... She made grabby hands at him. "Come, let mommy hug you."

"Give him some space." Hel poked her cheek with the back of one of her swords, though the goddess continued closing and opening her hands at him. "Your hug would risk damaging his body even further."

"Eh!?" that seemed to snap Freyja back to attention. "I don't hug that hard, Hel. Here, let me show you!"

The Deathkeeper, however, wanted none of it, so she shoved the person next to her into the hug, instead. Njord grunted in surprise as her daughter, sporting a smile so bright it could illuminate the moon and with her eyes closed, raised him a little off his feet and squeeze him tightly in her arms—to the point a loud CRACK echoed around them.

Harald and the others turned white as a sheet as they stared at Njord, his mouth opened in a silent scream. Freyja, somehow, didn't hear his spine breaking.

"Nah-ah, not today." Loki whispered, taking a big step back.

"Hm? Father? Tsk, tsk!" Freyja shook her head lightly upon depositing him. "My heart swells knowing you want a hug, but there's no reason to cut in line! I have enough hugs stored up for everyone present and then some—Are you all right, father?"

"I-It's been...a long day." the Tide of the Aesir wheezed out, holding his back with a hand. "I-I'll go...and lay down over there for a little."

Freyja gasped. "Oh no, you were hurt this badly during the fight!?" the others sweatdropped at that.

"L-Let's see what we can do to help him, OK, sister?" Freyr suggested, prompting her to walk after him, followed by her brother.

"Welp, with that out of the way, I guess it's time for the Secret of the Chapter?"

"Indeed." Harald nodded to Skadi's words, and they turned towards the viewers. "Ironically, it's about the card which spelled our defeat, Upper Sky of Aether. SakushiRyu took inspiration from The Weather Painter Cloud when designing it, an understandable choice considering—"

"For the love of Yggdrasil!" Tyr abruptly exclaimed in exasperation, staring in the direction the three walked off. "She wants to hug him instead of using medicine or healing magic!"

"Stop her!" Odin commanded, prompting everyone to run away and the screen to fade into black, followed by the words [To Be Continued...].