Pain. He knew nothing else. It assaulted all senses, it left him numb. Pain. It lingered in his mind, it did not allow him to focus. Pain. He both loved and hated it. Suffering meant he was still alive, but in an unpleasant state of existence. And yet he fed off of it. Pain. His name became synonymous with it. Pain, pain, pain, would it ever stop? Pain.
"Welcome back, Shishima," an old man spoke, snapping him out from his entranced state.
Shishima was resting in a comfortable armchair, the sweet scent of cinnamon greeting his nostrils, the burning fireplace offering him a warm welcome to The Writer's cabin. As always, his host sat at the opposite side of the table, wearing the same navy blue bathrobe as before, with a smile on his face that managed to come off as both innocent and unnerving at the same time.
"What happened to me? I feel terrible," Shishima admitted in a rare display of weakness.
"I am so sorry to hear that. Perhaps you should try a cup of tea?" The Writer offered and gently pushed a teacup into his guest's clawed hands. "Every time we met, you always refused it. I'm starting to think my recipe is not at all appealing."
Shishima blinked and suddenly his vision became clearer and the pain began to dissipate as quickly as it assaulted him. That was when he realized where he had ended up.
"It's you again. What do you want now?" he coldly replied.
Obviously offended by his guest's shift of tone, The Writer spoke back, "I just wished to check upon my creation, to see if all is well."
"If that truly is the case, then know that things couldn't be better for me! I've achieved all of my goals in the Twilight Kingdom and am now living happily with Nekohana on Earth. For all intents and purposes, I'm satisfied."
The old man raised an eyebrow, surprised by the demon's attitude. "Satisfied, you say? What about Hajime?"
Shishima frowned as he lifted the teacup. "He's not doing so good."
The Writer pressed further, "Why are you so concerned for his well-being?"
Shishima sipped some tea, taking the time to think up an answer. He found the taste oddly sweet, but hardly objectionable. "The mortal is my main source of entertainment. But after our blood oath, things have changed. My powers of sensing emotions seem to have gone haywire while around Hajime: sometimes I can both feed off of his pain while suffering alongside him."
"Perhaps it may be empathy?"
"No, it's much more, it's as if we now share a soul bond, for lack of a better term."
Upon hearing that notion, The Writer smiled once more, this time betraying his fascination with the matter at hand. "How very interesting! Shishima, I have been away from my creation for quite some time. The last thing I have witnessed was Ben coming clean to Hajime about his crush."
"Keh, that Ben is another hard piece of work, one I'd rather stay away from. Let him be Hajime's problem," Shishima admitted and sipped more of the delicious tea. "Still, if you are curious as to what happened after that, I will indulge you..."
The Writer rested his elbows on the table and his chin against his clapped fingers. "I'm all ears, my friend!"
Six months had passed since the great revelation that Ben had dropped upon Hajime. By the early weeks of June, the summer's heat had gotten to a point where people were forced to stay indoors, seeking the chilling comforts of air conditioning. However, Hajime was not content merely with spending his leisure time inside his family mansion. Having finished his exams and forwarded his dissertation thesis, he only had to wait for the end of the month to present the work to his professors and thus finish his master's degree studies. Until then, he decided to take Ben and head over to the mountain resort in the village of Akufuko. Despite the place holding bad memories, since it was there that Hajime and Sayo had confessed their feelings, only to have their relationship abruptly end when Shishima revealed her true nature, it was still the closest mountain resort to Sagakin.
Besides an outdoor hot spring, the hotel they booked also had an indoor pool for those who wanted to truly cool off. Being the early hours of the morning, the pool was empty. While Hajime sat on a table and enjoyed a massage from the hotel's staff, Ben went for a swim. Holding his breath, he sank into the pool's depths and allowed himself to float underwater like one of the many marine mammals he saw in nature documentaries. During those solemn moments, he felt freer than ever, as if he was flying and the world beneath was all his. For the first time in what seemed like forever, he could be anything but the workaholic who was always relied upon. He was one with the water: cold, calm, ever-moving, free.
Looking back at the past months, Ben was most grateful that Hajime did not kick him out after he foolishly overstepped their boundaries. One would have expected him to retreat even more into his introverted attitude, but strangely enough, the opposite happened. As their investigation of WEB continued, Hajime began to open up about the various issues which plagued his mind, and Ben dropped the snarky act and started offering genuine support. It felt almost like dream: one moment they were fully focused on solving the case at hand, in the next they were assuring each other that they were safe and they would have each other's back, no matter what. At times, Ben felt like he was no longer alone in the world, as if Hajime would always be by his side. There were no romantic undertones, at least none he could easily pick up, but it was still amazing to fully feel at home somewhere. However, all was not peaches and roses. Hajime kept avoiding a certain topic during their discussions, and Ben decided the time had come for them to confront it. Emerging out of the water, he caught his breath while slowly swimming to the edge of the pool.
"Hajime, do you have any news regarding Audra?" Ben asked while drying his hair.
"She's in her ninth month of pregnancy. The baby should be delivered any day now."
"Your wife? My congratulations, sir!" the masseuse commented.
"It's more complicated than that..." Hajime nervously replied.
Ben climbed out of the pool and walked over to the masseuse, saying, "Let me handle him. I know exactly how to help him relax."
The young woman shrugged. "If you say so." Then she took her leave while Ben climbed on top of Hajime, taking notice that they were both wearing the same cyan swim trunks. After cracking his palms, he grabbed Hajime's shoulders and gently pinched them. No matter how much effort the latter put into his field work, he was never a fan of rough massages.
"What will happen after you become a father?" Ben asked, a small degree of worry seeping out of his voice.
"I'm not sure yet. Ever since Audra broke the news to me, my whole world's turned upside down," Hajime confessed.
The past few months had forced Hajime to face many unpleasant things. How ironic that it all began with a non-consensual kiss from Ben. Hajime could not believe how easily his trust had been shattered, and yet after hearing Ben's entire life story and understanding the context of his actions, said trust began to rebuild. There was a metaphor he had read up during his Psychology courses; it was known as the Hedgehog's Dilemma, referring to a group of hedgehogs who grew cold during winter and could not huddle up to keep each other warm for too long due to their spines. It was an allegory to man's desire for intimacy and how it led to weak relationships, disappointments and emotional pain. Because humans were imperfect, so much so that in their attempts to seek comfort with each other, they ended up harming one another, whether willingly or unwillingly.
It was no secret that Hajime had been hurt and had also hurt others, the latter often unwillingly. No matter how good his intentions were, in the end he was an extreme individual. After the incident with Paul which fully changed him from the sociable child he once was into the mistrusting introvert who graced the world, he never noticed that on a subconscious level he was very uncomfortable towards most men. The only exceptions to this were his father who had softened up over the past decade, his best friend Ken who helped him come out of his reclusive shell, his friend Jack whom he trusted due to their common enemy, and lastly Ben, who was the most reliable man Hajime had ever met. But there was another issue at hand, one which cut deeper than his deeply-rooted mistrust of his own gender.
"I'm sorry," Ben finally broke the silence between them.
"For what?" Hajime asked, taken aback by his friend's apologetic tone.
"For everything. I shouldn't have crossed the line back then the way I did."
"Ben, why are you still harping on this? I told you we should leave it behind us!"
"Because I keep seeing how bloody confused you are when it comes to me and your own girlfriend, Hajime! Don't think I haven't noticed how much you are treating me with kiddie gloves and how you're trying to distance yourself from Audra again!" Ben raised his voice, causing Hajime to get up from the table and turn to face him. "Listen, if you want to start a family with her, I will step aside. At the end of the day, you deserve to be happy."
"Ben, I don't know what to say right now..."
"I suppose this is what love truly means - putting your crush's happiness above your own," Ben reflected with a bittersweet smile.
"I never wanted to tell this to anyone, but you ought to know," Hajime began as he turned his side to Ben, staring blankly at the pool. "The reason that butler had pulled the moves on me way back when was because he caught me watching a hentai. It wasn't any regular hentai either, it was yaoi."
"You can't be serious..."
Hajime nodded, a pang of guilt in his voice as he resumed, "I am. My hormones were kicking in and back then I was curious about both sexes. It was the only time I ever watched that kind of hentai, because we both know what happened after he caught me. And now, after all this time, I think I'm finally starting to realize why I feel so uncomfortable around men. Perhaps, on a subconscious level, I do feel a slight level of homosexual attraction. But because of the trauma I've endured, that attraction has long since been buried and will probably never resurface again."
Instinctively, Ben reached out and grabbed Hajime's hand. "I understand. No matter what decision you make, I will respect it."
In response, Hajime pulled him into a tight hug. "I want you to stay, I don't want you out of my life, even if I do end up marrying Audra. For now I'm not entirely sure of my feelings towards you, but I can at least say that you are a really close friend, almost like a brother."
Ben hugged him back, whispering, "That will have to suffice, then. Thank you, Hajime."
"Well, well, look who we've got here!" a familiar voice interrupted their moment. They broke their embrace and turned around to see none other than Jack. Unlike them, he was not at all dressed for a swim, instead wearing his typical cowboy attire. "Howdy there, partners! I never expected to bump into y'all at this hotel!"
"Jack, what a surprise!" Hajime greeted while walking up to him. The two shook hands and he continued, "What are you doing here?"
"Just having a day off and I decided to spend it somewhere chill. Lori is sadly not too fond of the mountainside, she's more of a beach girl, so she didn't want to join me."
"Isn't that a shame? Still, I'm happy you could join us, man. You want to go for a swim?"
"I'd rather treat the two of you with a cold one. Want to dress up and join me at the bar?"
"That sounds like a good idea indeed!" Ben interjected.
In a matter of minutes, the three of them were toasting inside the empty hotel bar and each enjoying a pint of beer.
"So, Jack, you said you came to Japan on a business trip," Hajime brought up.
"What about it, partner?" Jack innocently wondered.
"It's been six months already. Does your boss plan to relocate you to Japan or what?"
"Haha, I wish! Nah, he told me that I'll have to return to the States by the end of this month." Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that Ben was beginning to feel dizzy. That was when he shifted his tone from jovial to ominous, "After my mission is complete."
Hajime blinked, dread beginning to build up as he also took notice of Ben's state. "What mission?"
"Capturing you for WEB, of course," Jack admitted, his smile turned from friendly to malicious as they both witnessed Ben faint.
Hajime reached for his gun, but the dizziness began to overtake him. The drug Jack had slipped in their beers was really potent. "How could you...?" was all he could utter before fainting next to Ben.
"You betrayed us first by joining forces with Shishima," Jack coldly whispered and then he pulled out his cell phone and made a call. "I got them, boss. You can send in the helicopter."
A white owl landed on a tree branch and observed the Kage mansion which was bathed in moonlight. The winds began to change direction on that calm summer night. Sensing that something big was about to happen, the bird let out an ominous hoot.
Count Kage set aside the book he had just finished reading. He sat alone in the dining room, waiting for his meal to be brought. Unwillingly, his mind wandered to Hajime and the dilemma he was facing with Ben and Audra. In hindsight it was all too amusing to ignore, since Ben was encouraging Hajime to explore a side he had suppressed for so long. The Twilight Kingdom youkai did not have to worry with such trivial problems - having multiple relationships was a normal occurrence and hardly anyone was consumed by jealousy. Only mortals were foolish enough to torment themselves with monogamy.
"Dinner is served!" Hojo announced and he placed a plate in front of his master.
The steak smelled great. Pork was at its best when seasoned with sauce and garlic. It still was not a good substitute for human meat, but Count Kage did not complain. He used his fork to pick up a morsel and took a bite, then he immediately felt the burn. Spitting it out, he growled while getting up from his chair:
"Ayumi used sacred salt to season this steak!"
All of a sudden, Hojo poured a bucket of holy water from behind, causing the count to shriek violently. He collapsed on the table, his wounded body convulsing in agony. His hands twitched as he tried fighting the pain, a losing battle which ended with him dropping dead.
"Did it work?" Ayumi asked as she sneaked into the dining room.
"Yes, the count is dead!" Hojo joyfully replied and they both embraced, giggling maliciously.
"Finally, now with him out of the way and no other heirs, we can inherit the Kage clan's fortune! Just as we planned when the real Count Kage was still alive."
"And since that fool Shishima brought us back to life as demons, we are now both rich and immortal! What more could we ask for, my beloved Ayumi?"
Hojo leaned in to kiss her, but then she gasped loudly as the tip of a scythe came out of her chest. The beautiful maid looked at her co-conspirator fearfully before also dropping dead in his arms. The butler was shocked to find Borof floating mid-air with the aid of his flapping wings. While his white plush face was usually goofy, this time around his expression was akin to that of an unhinged murderer.
"You will pay for this betrayal," Borof threatened as he raised his bloodied scythe for another strike.
Before he could an attempt an attack, they were both startled by the sound of the table crashing against the floor. They turned around to find Count Kage, still alive and well, staring them down with his eyes now turned black with glowing red pupils.
"I am the great Shishima, conqueror of the Twilight Kingdom!" he proudly declared, and with that he dashed across the room.
He grabbed Hojo and bit him with his sharp fangs, blood seeping out from the wound, and with enough pressure he managed to rip his neck in half. Next to Ayumi's corpse fell Hojo's head and body, Shishima's essence coming out of them and going back to its owner, their youthful appearances rotting until they became a pile of bones. As Count Kage inspected the damage inflicted to his skin, Borof was quick to notice something out the window and said:
"Milord, you should come see this."
His master joined him and they both saw that the mansion seemed to have been surrounded by black helicopters, each painted with the dreaded WEB symbol. Of course they had to come after him at the worst possible time. Had those two traitors not made their move so hastily, the count would have thought of a plan to combat the intruders on the spot, but in that moment he was too angered to think clearly.
"What should we do, sire?" asked a concerned Borof.
"Count Kage, we are aware of your secret identity. You and your staff are now under WEB's custody. Failure to comply will result in immediate death," spoke an Eastern European man from inside one of the vehicles.
An armed platoon emerged from the helicopters, pointing their weapons at the mansion's windows and doors. They stood in position, readying themselves for the worst. Out of the blue, all the lights inside went off. A chilling breeze blew upon the gathering, sending shivers down their spines. Knowing what was about to unfold, the white owl flew away.
With a metallic screech, the front door swung open, much to everyone's surprise. Two pairs of red eyes glowed in the darkness, greeting them. And then out of the mansion emerged the count and his vassal.
"So even you now dare to face me?! You puny mortal souls..." Count Kage growled at them, making no effort to conceal his identity.
In the span of a second, he appeared before two soldiers and grabbed them both by their necks, slamming each other's heads with such brute force that their skulls were torn open. Borof jumped as well and thrust his scythe into the nearest soldier's neck. Bullets and lasers were fired upon them, tactics which were ultimately ineffective against the two wraiths. All the while, WEB's leader sat comfortably in the furthest back helicopter and watched with intrigue how his men were being slaughtered so easily. Any lingering doubts that Count Kage was Shishima were long since gone.
Unseen by all, a Shinto priest sneaked out of a helicopter and approached the bloodied count as he was pulling the heart out of a soldier's chest. Mentally uttering a prayer to the gods with full conviction, he tossed a handful of sacred salt upon Count Kage's head. The latter shrieked like a wounded beast and dropped the dead body. He turned to his surprise assailant, letting his top hat fall off and revealing that his head had turned into that of a lion, covered by purple fur, with a black mane surrounding his neck and two sharp horns coming out of his scalp. Fear overtook religious conviction and the priest ran back to the helicopter, Shishima following suit. Blinded by pain and anger, the demon could only think of killing. He grabbed the priest tightly by the neck and shoved him against a helicopter. Barring out his fangs, he was on the verge of claiming another victim when all of a sudden another figure emerged from the helicopter and emptied an entire bag of sacred salt onto him. At that point the pain had become unbearable, and Shishima dropped the priest, tearing off his expensive clothes to expose his furry body and leather wings as he collapsed on the grass. Before blacking out, his right hand got enveloped in a purple aura and caused Borof to disappear back into the creature world, the only safe place he could think of.
Hajime awoke in a padded cell. His thoughts were a blur, but he swore he kept hearing the voices of both Ben and Audra yelling his name. Once he got a better look at his surroundings, he had the shock of seeing that they were right there by his side, the three of them having their arms tied behind their backs. Before he could even ask them anything, a door opened and a familiar voice spoke:
"They're finally awake, boss!"
Jack stepped into the room, standing tall and stern, a sharp contrast to the laid back cowboy he was back at the Shirayama mansion. Glistening in the neon lights was a small golden badge on his chest with WEB's symbol. The sight of it disgusted Hajime to no end, who shouted, "Traitor! How could you do this to us?!"
"I have nothing to say to any of you," Jack coldly replied and stepped aside to reveal his employer, the head of WEB.
He was a man of short stature, in his early forties. There was no sign of any hair on his clean head, his blue eyes were akin to those of an inquisitive beast, ever curious to its latest prey. He wore a beige suit comprised of a matching jacket, pants and tie. That and the white cotton undershirt seemed to have been made of the finest of cottons. His black shoes were made of crocodile leather and shined brightly in the room's light. He held his right hand behind his back, and with his left hand he rubbed his round chin as he walked from one corner of the room to another, studying the three prisoners with a hint of a smile on his neutral face.
"Hajime Shirayama, after all these years, we finally meet face to face," his voice was odd, there was a heavy accent that sounded like it belonged to an Eastern European country, but the way he pronounced his words, the way his tongue rolled was unmistakably British, Ben being the first to notice this.
"And to whom do I owe the pleasure?" Hajime sarcastically replied, trying to keep his cool.
"I go by many names all around the world, but in Japan I am known as Reo Gumo. You may call me Mister Gumo," he said and stopped in front of Hajime. "Are you surprised we got you to come to our headquarters, Mister Shirayama?"
"Frankly, I can't see what your organization would want with the likes of me. I still can't fathom why you've been targeting Shirayama Industries all this time."
"The answer is quite simple: revenge. You see, we've been monitoring Shishima's activity ever since Sagakin disappeared off the map five years ago. After he ensnared our planet, we began hatching a plan to capture him. But then you had to jump in and play hero, no different from a bratty child on the playground. Before we knew it, our biggest resource had vanished from our world. Of course, we all knew that Shishima would never be truly gone, so we started targeting his Spawns cult in the hopes that they would lead us back to him. But once that trail went cold, you became our main target, simply because we saw just how obsessed he is with you."
"That contradicts your whole notion of revenge," Hajime remarked.
"Not quite. Unlike these two, your family is truly wealthy and thus a part of the elites, whether you like it or not. However, you are still too young and naive to the greater scope, which is why you had to be taught a lesson." Mister Gumo then turned to Jack and said, "Bring him with me, I wish to give him a little tour of our facility."
"Sure thing, boss!" Jack nodded and grabbed Hajime by the right arm, pulling him up on his feet.
"Don't worry about your friends, Mister Shirayama. They are in good hands and you will soon join them back here once we are done," Mister Gumo reassured him and motioned for them to follow him outside.
Hajime's eyes widened as Jack led him outside. "If you dare harm them..."
"Their safety relies entirely upon your actions. Don't give us a reason to punish you and no harm will befall them," Mister Gumo calmly explained as they walked out of the padded cell into a well-lit corridor. Beneath, a metallic floor. Around them, cavernous walls. Above, bright neon lights hanging from the cave's ceiling. As Jack and Hajime followed his lead, he continued, "I can't deny that you have quite an impressive resume, Mister Shirayama. Especially when compared to your father and grandmother, none of them engaged in espionage nor trained their bodies and mind as well as you did. These are attributes that we here at the World Elite Bureaucracy do appreciate. For far too long the chain of power had been held by the old and the decrepit. I for one believe it is time for our younger generations to seize it, since we are brighter and much more capable than a bunch of flabby bellies."
"What are you talking about? In the upper echelons, money equates power, but if you are born there, you only accumulate more as you age!" Hajime reasoned.
"And this is where your logic is flawed," Mister Gumo corrected him, a snide smirk on his face. "The old are still physically frail and live in constant fear of losing everything they have accumulated. Would you believe me if I told you that I am the head of WEB and now lord above the world's six richest families?" Hajime remained silent, staring at him in disbelief. "It is true. All I had to do was scheme my way to the organization's very top ten years ago. Once I was admitted in their circle since I became the seventh richest man on Earth, it was all a matter of biding my time, manipulating the economies of certain countries and assassinating the right people. Simple numbers, Mister Shirayama. In a matter of five years, I had those faux aristocrats eating from my palm."
"Sounds to me like you have everything a man can dream of," Hajime remarked, making no effort to hide his disgust.
"That is indeed true. But alas, you are an intelligent individual, so I am certain you know the saying 'What goes up must come down'. At most I have a couple of decades ahead of me to fully reap the benefits of my scheming, until another ambitious youngster comes to pull the same tricks on me and take over. It is the nature of our species, the son must murder the father and take his place as the rightful heir. Which is where your friend Shishima comes into the equation." Mister Gumo stopped in front of a large window and exclaimed, "Open shutters!"
At his voice command, a computer raised the shutters and revealed a large operating room wherein Shishima was strapped to an operating table, surrounded by a large circle of sacred salt and with countless tubes attached to his body, connecting him to various machines.
Hajime gasped at the sight of it all. "Shishima, he's..."
"Stable, unconscious, all mine," Mister Gumo continued. "You were a fool to think he was a threat to humanity. No, he is so much more. He is a resource, a force of nature to be tamed by man's ingenuity. Just like we conquered plagues, natural calamities and are now spreading our reach into the vast cosmos, so shall we conquer this supernatural monster. We will analyze each and every molecule of his body until we learn the nature of his powers. But unlike his petty cult of murderers, we will not approach him from a religious angle. After all, such superstitious beliefs are but the opium of the masses, as Marx once said."
Hajime shook his head, a look of dread on his face. "You have no idea what kind of danger you're messing with..."
"As a matter of fact, Mister Shirayama, we quite do. Ever since Shishima revealed himself and made Sagakin vanish off the face of the Earth, our organization knew he was the kind of danger we wanted in our own hands. With such powers we can tighten our leash around the planet much easier rather than waste our time with the same old informational and economic warfare. And, on a more personal level, once I manage to harness Shishima's powers, I will solidify my position at the top of WEB's hierarchy for generations to come. Old men can be toppled, but an eternally young man will never falter."
"You are mad!" Hajime uttered, a part of him disbelieving what he was hearing.
"An expected answer from your position of ignorance. But worry not, Mister Shirayama, for I am not an unfair gentleman." Mister Gumo motioned for them to follow him once more as he entered a large room which had only two dueling tables. "While I have a vested interest in you, do know that your friends Ben and Audra are here just as a ransom, in case you decide to misbehave. I now wish to test your capabilities as a duelist. If you manage to defeat me, I shall liberate one of the two prisoners, at your choice."
Hajime regarded his captor as Jack untied his arms and pushed him to a dueling table. "What guarantee do I have that you will keep your word?"
"Oh, it's quite easy - we have ways of erasing one's memories. The freed prisoner will not remember anything about this place, WEB or even your capture. After all, we are very interested in your cooperation, so harming Ben or Audra is only on the table if you give us no other option," Mister Gumo explained as he shuffled his deck.
Hajime took out his own deck and shuffled it as well. It was an upgraded version of his Light Water Galaxyshield deck in which he added the new Light Jokers that Jack had gifted him in the early winter. Five blue rectangular panels materialized above each duelist, this marking the beginning of their match.
"I expand DG Parthenon ~Where Dragons are Created~ and draw a card," Hajime said and a temple resting on marble pillars, the faceless head of a dragon made of purple crystals floating in the middle appeared behind him. "Now we can only play three creatures and three spells per turn."
"I cast Emergency Typhoon." Mister Gumo drew two cards and discarded Codecommand Death Marriage.
"I summon Gelacho's Memory and draw a card." The hologram of a gentleman with two large lips instead of a head appeared by Hajime's side, holding a sketchbook with a drawing of three similar creatures.
"I summon Nasuloscha, Flashy Doll." An eggplant puppet wielding a large wooden club decorated with multicolored buttons appeared by Mister Gumo's side, allowing him to search his deck and put Ballcadeia NEX, Lord of Demon Dragons into his graveyard.
"I cast Goten! Ginga MAX and set Absolute Shield Knight as a face up shield! With his effect, I check the top two cards of my deck, add one to my hand and set another Ginga MAX as a face up shield as well."
"Prepare to witness true power, Mister Shirayama - graveyard evolution, I evolve Ballcadeia NEX into Death March, Reaper Puppeteer." A blue jester marionette appeared, holding various smaller stringed puppets with its long fingers. "Then I cast Dragon Pulse Technique - Fortress Destroyer and with its effect I can return a card that costs 6 or less into its owner's hand. I choose to return my Death March, but his evolution bait remains!"
"What the?!" Hajime murmured as a torrent of water surrounded the small marionette and made it disappear, then out of it emerged a gigantic hybrid between an angel, a demon and a dragon with three pairs of wings: white, blue and red. Its body was covered by a brilliant golden armor, its head had blue demonic horns and the red face of a dragon, and its arms were covered in scorching flames.
"I degenerate Ballcadeia NEX, Lord of Demon Dragons!" Mister Gumo announced. "While he is in the battle zone, you cannot cast spells. Since he's an evolution creature, I can attack with him straight away! With his effect, I search my deck and bring out Gyou Kinari, The Wicked Evil!" A three-headed dinosaur with green scales and a funerary mask painted on its chest also emerged as the titanic chimera dashed ahead. "Ballcadeia NEX, break all of his shields!"
Hajime took cover as his shields were all shattered by the creature's flaming hands. He immediately checked the cards he received in his hand and said:
"Shield trigger, I summon Mage of Cursebreaker and-"
"And with Gyou Kinari's effect, I shall use your creatures' enter the battle zone effects instead!" Mister Gumo countered. "I set Shikumi of the Shadow World as a face up shield, thank you."
"Shield trigger, I summon Corile's Vision!" The hologram of a Cyber Lord appeared by Hajime's side. "This is a tamaseed, not a creature, so I get to use its effects - I send Nasuloscha to the bottom of your deck and you draw a card!" A blue wave came from the hologram, making the eggplant puppet vanish in a matter of moments. "Then another shield trigger, I summon Slotton's Memory!" The hologram of a golden slot machine robot holding a sketchbook with a drawing of itself also appeared by Hajime's side. "I bring out MAX the Johnny from my hand!" A robotic cowboy made of blue crystal, wielding a golden and a sapphire sword arose.
From a corner in the room, Jack smiled beneath his hat. "Too bad you picked the wrong side, partner..." he muttered under his breath.
"A Star MAX Evolution creature. Very well, show me what it can do, I end here," Mister Gumo announced.
"My turn begins then - Galaxyshield 4, I set Lightning Sword Paladin as a face up shield. MAX the Johnny attacks you and he gains +2000 for each of my tamaseeds since they have either the Jokers or RexStars race. That means he's now a 16000 powered triple breaker, but before he breaks your shields, he will grant me as many shields as you lose!" Hajime said and the cowboy first swung his golden sword which granted his owner three more shields, then he swung the sapphire one at the opponent, hacking three shields. "Don't think you can easily break through my defense! While Lightning Sword Paladin is in my shield zone or in the battle zone, whenever one of my shields would be broken, I may discard a card instead and save it. You just gave me a handful, thank you."
Mister Gumo smiled at that remark, his confidence intact. "Merely child's play. You will soon bow down to my superior strategy, Mister Shirayama. Grave evolution - I evolve Death Marriage into Death March, Reaper Puppeteer. Then I summon HEAVEN Kid, White Knight Elemental and send the card of Death March to my shield zone face down." The blue jester puppet reappeared, followed by an angelic dwarf in blue and golden armor who was wielding two purple swords. The puppet was then hacked into pieces and transformed into a new shield, freeing the card beneath. "I degenerate Codecommand Death Marriage!" A purple angel wielding rainbow-colored shields and with a golden demonic head coming out of its chest emerged from the puppet's remains. "Ballcadeia NEX, attack! With his effects, I shall destroy your Mage of Cursebreaker and bring forth Gigandydanos, Big Tree King from my deck!"
"Gigandydanos?!" Hajime exclaimed as he lost his blocker and was soon face to face with the giant tree creature shaped after a moose. "But that's Sayo's trump card..."
"Winning strategies do not care about themes and story flavors, Mister Shirayama. Now, Gigandydanos puts all cards from your hand into your mana zone, meaning you cannot use Lightning Sword Paladin's effect to save any of your shields. Go, Ballcadeia NEX, break all of his shields once more!"
Hajime once more took cover as each of his shields was shattered. After checking the cards, he spoke back:
"Shield trigger, I summon Gelacho's Memory and draw a card. Then you must choose one of your untapped creatures and tap it!"
"I shall tap HEAVEN Kid. Gyou Kinari, todomeda!"
"I discard MAX the Johnny so I won't lose the game!"
"Death Marriage, todomeda!"
"I tap Gelacho's Memory, Corile's Vision and Slotton's Memory to bring out Savark MAX! Since I brought out another Star MAX Evolution creature, MAX the Johnny goes back to my hand." A dragon made of purple crystal, with wings of light, dressed in a military uniform and wielding a sapphire sword appeared in the battle zone and the robotic cowboy vanished into thin air.
"So even his trump card's gotten a Star MAX Evolution form," Jack remarked with a low tone.
"Savark MAX, block Death Marriage!" Hajime ordered and the dragon blocked the path of the angel-demon hybrid, pushing it away with his sword. "With his effect, my creatures can't be destroyed while blocking! And now my turn begins, I-"
"At the start of your turn, Gyou Kinari shall revive your Mage of Cursebreaker tapped in the battle zone and I will now use its effect to set Sir Leopol Deenay, the Ice Fang / Emergency Typhoon as a face up shield," Mister Gumo intervened. "Please continue."
"I summon another Slotton's Memory and bring back MAX the Johnny! Savark MAX goes back to my hand," Hajime said and the robotic cowboy reappeared, the crystal dragon then vanishing. "Slotton's Memory gives MAX the Johnny blocker until the start of my turn. My five tamaseeds also give him +10000 power!"
"But still, that 20000 is still smaller than my Gigandydanos's 50000 power, meaning you can't attack me."
"I... end here."
"Good. It's high time you bowed down to your superior, Mister Shirayama! I attack with Ballcadeia NEX, destroy MAX the Johnny and bring out Genmu Emperor, Infinite Dragon from my deck!" The titanic hybrid creature fired a torrent of flame from its hands which destroyed the robotic cowboy, then an eyeless shadowy dragon joined his army of behemoths. "While Genmu Emperor is in the battle zone, all of our creatures and spells which cost 5 or less lose their effects. Ballcadeia NEX, todomeda!"
"I tap Gelacho's Memory, Corile's Vision and Slotton's Memory to bring out Savark MAX who blocks the attack!" Hajime said and his partner once more reappeared, using his sword to stop the direct attack from connecting. "Savark MAX won't be destroyed while blocking due to his effect!"
"Gigandydanos, todomeda!"
"I destroy Savark MAX to prevent the loss!" Hajime declared, the crystal dragon vanishing in an explosion as quickly as he came.
"Gyou Kinari, todomeda!"
"I discard MAX the Johnny to prevent this loss as well!"
"It seems you've reached the end of the line, Mister Shirayama. I must admit, you have mastered the art of defense quite well. But still, there is much more you need to learn," Mister Gumo assessed him. "All in due time. Until then... Death Marriage, todomeda!"
With a powerful thrust from the creature's shields, Hajime collided with a wall, being knocked unconscious once more. Jack walked over to him, ready to tie his arms once more, and asked:
"Shall we confiscate his deck, boss?"
"No, pack it up and put it back in his pocket. I wish to face off against him one final time when we shall decide his ultimate fate."
"As you say. Do you want me to take him back in his cell?"
"No, have him brought to my main office. There is much more I need to show him," Mister Gumo concluded as he slid his own deck into his pocket and left the dueling room.
"That was quite the story!" The Writer exclaimed and then finished the remainder of his tea. "And I am to presume that you are back here because of the current pathetic state you've found yourself in."
"Don't act all innocent! We all know whose fault it is for my being in such a pathetic state!" Shishima countered as he also set his empty teacup down.
"Well then, I wish to pose a question to you, my friend: what would you do in that point if you had my godly powers?"
"I no longer want your powers!" the demon shrieked back at the old man, much to the latter's surprise. "I'm very much happy with the power I've currently got. It took me a while, but I've finally come to realize just how much of a bad influence you are on me, you manipulative geezer!"
The Writer frowned, visibly disappointed. "I am sorry you feel this way."
"I want you to leave me alone from now on! I am the maker of my own destiny, and I've got no interest in your cheap tricks or your stupid cosmic games!" Shishima declared as he rose from the armchair.
"Very well, my friend, have it your way. But be warned, one day you will beg me for my help. And that day will come sooner than you think."
With those parting words said, Shishima's sights grew blurry as The Writer and his cabin vanished. The next thing he knew, he woke up while strapped to an operating table, surrounded by research bots who were collecting data for Mister Gumo's scientists. Through a glass window he saw him, the blue-eyed bald man was staring at him as if he were the biggest consolation prize, his smile stretched from ear to ear.