-Azzathoth Zwei-
Hana looked at her Shadow in worry. She couldn't say she knew exactly what happened after she was freed from her imprisonment, but she could tell a lot had happened based on what Shadow Pop wanted her to do.
She had told Shadow Hana to kill her.
The thought hurt her a lot. But that fact that she hesitated brought the white Ojamajo some comfort. The white Shadow really and truly cared about their friendship…as well as her friendship with her fellow Shadow Ojamajos.
"I will let you have the first tune, Hana-chan," Shadow Hana stated, interrupting her train of thought. "If you are going to fight, then please don't take so much time."
"Oh! Gomennasai!" Hana sputtered," Atashi no Turn! Draw!" She drew her card. For her, it was little more than a generic hand. Still, she would have to make use of it…and it wasn't too bad overall. "First, Hana-chan activates Star Sign of the Sacred!" And just like that, a brilliantly glowing version of the Sacred's insignia appeared above. "Then, Hana-chan summons Sacred Gredi!"
And as per her action, a magic knight of the stars descended (1600/1400).
"Gredi-chan no kouka hatsudou!" Hana called, "When she's normal summoned, another Lv4 Sacred can come too!" Gredi raised her staff and sent a beacon into the air. Another knight answered the signal and descended (1700/600). "Descend, Sacred Pollux!"
"But you did not normal summon him," Shadow Hana warned, "You could've used his ability to gain Gredi and use her to have a grand total of three monsters in one turn."
Hana shook her head. "Hana-chan doesn't need that many monsters," she replied. Then, both monsters transformed into golden orbs or energy and spiraled upward. "With these two Lv4 Sacred monsters, Hana-chan builds the Overlay Network!" Both monsters entered a vortex that glowed with silver and gold light. After bursting with brilliant energy, a new Sacred descended. He wielded a knuckle-based weapon (2400/800). "Descend, Sacred Beehive!"
No sooner did he descend, the Star Sign above glowed. Hana looked up at it and smiled.
"Whenever Hana-chan special summons a Sacred Xyz monster, Star Sign lets her draw a card!" The top of her deck glowed a bright gold, cuing her next draw. Two cards appeared behind the powerful Sacred. "Hana-chan sets two cards. Turn end!"
Shadow Hana looked over the field. "You have a good start," she remarked, "But it won't save you from rejoining Her will. Watashi no Turn! Draw!" The white Shadow gazed at her new card. Her lips curled into a sly smile. "It is my Standby Phase, Hana-chan."
"Un!" Hana replied, "Reverse card, open! Proclamation of the Royal Palace!" One of Hana's set cards revealed itself. When it did, a seal was placed upon the field. "While this card is out, all traps are negated!"
"Except my deck doesn't run many traps," Shadow Hana warned, "You'll only hurt yourself with it!" Hana simply smiled in response. "Fine then. I activate Hieroglyphic Seal of Gathering. And I will use it to add this to my hand." A seal marked by the Hieroglyphic Dragon's insignia appeared over her deck. She moved a card from it to her hand and then shuffled it. "And since you control a monster, I can special summon Hieroglyphic Dragon – Tfeni Dragon!" Then and there, a sphere appeared before the white Shadow. It quickly unfolded, transforming into an armored dragon (2100/1400). "Next, I summon Hieroglyphic Dragon – Giev Dragon!"
And just like that, another sphere, albeit one that was smaller, appeared. And just like Tfeni's, it too unfolded, this time changing into an armored humanoid dragon (1800/400).
"You remember this card, right?" Shadow Hana inquired. She held up Dragonic Tactics, prompting the white Ojamajo to nod. "Well…I activate the spell Dragonic Tactics! By tributing two Dragon-type monsters, I can bring out any Lv8 Dragon-type monster from my deck!" Tfeni and Giev withdrew into their spheres as their energy was taken by the spell card. A portal opened up, allowing a dagger-like crest to appear. Shadow Hana took it and threw it into the air. "The embodiment of light, now descend! Awareru, Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon!"
The dagger hovered in the air for a brief period. Then, it began drawing in countless small stars, coalescing into a gigantic shape. In a burst of light, the mighty dragon appeared. Galaxies could be seen within its eyes (3000/2500). At the same time, the orbs that were once the Hieroglyphic Dragons show a number of changes. Tfeni's had become a new sphere, one that didn't seem able to open (0/0) while Giev's was transparent and held a slumbering Blue-Eyes White dragon (3000-0/2500-0).
"Same combo as the last time-!" Hana gasped.
All three Dragons transformed into orbs of energy and spiraled upward. "And with these three Lv8 monsters, I build the Overlay Network!" Shadow Hana shouted. All three of monster entered a galaxy-like vortex…one that quickly transformed into a black hole. A twin-pronged spear appeared in the white Shadow's hands. She threw it into the vortex, causing an explosion like fireworks upon entering. "Radient Galaxy, here and now, become the striking light, and show yourself! Descend, the greatest of my Dragons, Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon!"
And just like that, a massive, red dragon descended from the vortex. Two more heads were on its wings and, just like its downgraded form, had galaxies in its eyes (4500/3000).
"And when Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon is Xyz summons using Galaxy-Eyes," Shadow Hana explained, "The effects of all other face-up cards are negated! Go! Photon Howling!"
On command, the powerful dragon let out a three-pronged howl, the waves of which encompassed Hana's entire field. Her Star Sign stopped glowing, her Proclamation of the Royal Palace ceased, and Beehive began to look ill.
"Beehive-kun?" Hana called, concerned.
"I follow with Neo Galaxy-Eyes' ability," Shadow Hana continued, "By detaching one Overlay, my Dragon can absorb all of the Overlay Units on your field!" The left wing's head devoured one of the lights orbiting the massive dragon, causing it to exude an energy that drew in the lights orbiting Beehive. "And for each one absorbed, Neo Galaxy-Eyes gains 500 ATK and can make that many attacks this turn!"
Hana looked on in awe and horror as her Shadow's dragon gathered energy from the absorbed Overlays (4500-5500/3000). She then looked up at her Star Sign and how its glow had faded.
"Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon! Attack Sacred Beehive! Ultimate Photon Stream!" Shadow Hana shouted. Neo Galaxy-Eyes drew back all three of its heads before unleashing three streams made of stars. All three slammed into Beehive, completely vaporizing him. The remnants of the attack barreled right into the white Ojamajo and blasted her to the wall, reducing her to 4900. "Gomennasai, Hana-chan, but Her will dictates that I do this. Finish her off, Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon. Ultimate Photon Stream!""
Hana looked on in horror as the mighty dragon once again reared its heads back. If this attack landed, then it was game, set, and match…and she would once again be under the control of the Verz. And she recalled everything that event, right down to her being psychotic.
She didn't want to become a psychopathic child again.
"Reverse card, open!" Hana called, "Xyz Reborn hatsudou!" At once, the gold structure depicted on the card appeared and tore open a portal to the netherworld. Beehive took advantage of it and clambered out while the structure transformed into a magenta light and began orbiting him. He knelt down, defending himself. "If you want to win, then you gotta get past Beehive-kun again!"
"You say that like's its difficult," Shadow Hana deadpanned. Neo Galaxy-Eyes' attack continued as normal, vaporizing the defending Beehive. It took the entire attack, protecting Hana from any further damage. "This is all I can do. Turn end."
Neo Galaxy-Eyes reverted to normal after that (5500-4500/3000).
"Hana-chan was lucky," Hana muttered. She looked at her field and noticed that, even though her Draw Phase was just now starting, none of her cards were returning to normal. "Atashi no Turn! Draw!" The white Ojamajo drew her card and gave it a nervous look. "Anou ne…Shadow Hana-chan?"
"Any effect that's been nulled by Neo Galaxy-Eyes stays nulled as long as it remains face-up," Shadow Hana explained, "But it only applies to those that were on the field at the time Neo Galaxy-Eyes arrived."
Hana nodded at the explanation. It helped a lot, but it also meant that some of her cards were going to remain useless for the remainder of the duel. It also meant less space to use spells and traps, but she would have to fight despite the handicap.
Hana looked at her new card. It didn't seem like the type to be able to turn it around by itself, but with the right cards…
"Hana-chan activates the spell Reinforcement! And Hana-chan uses this to add another Pollux!" The white Ojamajo took her card and added it to her hand. "Next, Hana-chan normal summons Sacred Pollux!" At once, the knight from the stars descended once again. "And during the turn he's normal summoned, Pollux-kun lets Hana-chan summon another Sacred! So come on, Sacred Kaust!"
Pollux conjured energy into his blade and sent a beacon into the air. A seemingly half-beast knight wielding a bow and arrow answered the call and descended (1800/700).
"And tice per turn, Kaust-kun can either raise or lower the level of a Sacred! So Hana-chan chooses to make Pollux-kun and Kaust-kun Lv5! Sacred Charge!" Kaust glowed with a bright light, catching both Pollux and himself in it and raising them to Lv5. Then, both transformed into orbs of energy and spiraled upward. "With these Lv5 monsters, Hana-chan builds the Overlay Network!"
Both monsters entered a galaxy-like vortex, which then exploded in a burst of rainbow-colored light. Moments later, a lava-colored sphere with two points rising out of the top and bottom emerged. It quickly unfolded itself, growing into a tyrannosaurus-like beast with fire licking out and crystals protruding from its body (2500/1000).
"Awareru, Number 61: Volcasaurus!" Hana called.
"I was half-expecting Pleiades…" Shadow Hana remarked, "Though I did give you that tactic…"
"And Hana-chan will use it to save you," Hana replied, "Hana-cha activates Volcasaurus' ability! By detaching one Overlay, Volcasaurus can destroy any face-up monster you control! Go! Mag-Max!"
One of the lights orbiting the burning dinosaur was absorbed into the crystals on its back. Then, using the energy it gained from the sacrificed Overlay Unit, launched a fire ball right at Neo Galaxy-Eyes. The blast struck through its defenses, blowing the dragon to smithereens. Shadow Hana was caught in the blast radius, getting blown to the ground as her Life Points fell to 3500.
"Shadow Hana-chan!" Hana gasped. To the white Ojamajo's horror, the dark aura surrounding her Shadow intensified, despite her Verz monster not being on the field. "Shadow Hana-chan…?"
"You will be assimilated…" Shadow Hana said…at least, it looked like it was her saying it. But her voice had a second one underneath, speaking with her and making it sound…different. It wasn't demonic per se, but it was still disconcerting. "Your hope ends here…and your meaningless resistance with it!"
"Shadow Hana-chan! You have to fight it!"
"Shadow Hana is no longer here," the thing controlling her said, "She resisted my will…and I will not tolerate another one!"
You're wrong! Hana mentally shouted, Shadow Hana-chan is still in there! Hana-chan knows it! She looked at her Volcasaurus. It turned back and nodded at her, prompting a smile form the White Ojamajo. Moments later, it had withdrawn into is sealed form. "Hana-chan uses Number 61: Volcasaurus to build the Overlay Network!"
Volcasaurus entered a red vortex, causing a burst of similarly colored light. What emerged was a semi-mechanical knight riding a wholly mechanical dragon (2600/2100).
"Awareru, Gaia Dragoon, the Thunderclap Knight!" Hana called, "Now attack her directly!" Gaia Dragoon obeyed and ushered his draconic steed forward. He charged forth, plowing right into the corrupted white Shadow and dropping her to 900 life Points. "Please! Shadow Hana-chan!"
Shadow Hana shook off the attack as though nothing happened. "Why do you insist on being friends with this Shadow?" the thing asked, "You do realize she has tried to kill you repeatedly and even succeeded once?" She scoffed. "Why do you forgive her this easily?"
Hana looked at her friend in dismay. "Because…Because she's changed! A lot!" she stuttered, "That's why Hana-chan has to save her…What would you do if your friend was like this?!" The being possessing Shadow Hana didn't answer. "Shadow Hana-chan's done nothing to you! Please let her go!"
"Now I see why this one has resisted me…she has come to…enjoy your presence. But I have made sure you won't get through to her. Ever!"
Then Hana-chan has to destroy Shadow Hana-chan's Verz card, the white Ojamajo surmised, "Turn end."
"Watashi no Turn! Draw!" The being said. It forced Shadow Hana to look carefully at the card drawn "I set one monster and one card." A reversed monster followed by a reversed card behind it appeared before the possessed white Shadow. "Turn end."
Hana took a good long look at her opponent's set monster. She felt something from it…and noticed a dark aura surrounding it. The same one that surrounded Shadow Hana, to be precise. And not just in overall color either…
"Atashi no Turn! Draw!" Hana declared. She drew her card swiftly and smiled upon viewing it. "Hana-chan summons Sacred Sheratan!" And just like that, a small knight from the stars descended (700/1900). And upon landing beside his mistress, he let out a call. "When Sheratan-san is normal summoned, Hana-chan can add any Sacred to her hand!" One of the knights that was still in her deck answered the smaller knight's call, but didn't draw any closer than he had to. "Are you ready, Gaia Dragoon-san?"
The knight riding the mechanical dragon nodded and, taking Hana's cue, charged forward and made his assault on the hidden monster. It revealed itself, but Hana couldn't get a good enough look at it. But she did notice the dark aura surrounding Shadow Hana intensify even further than it had already.
"Reverse card, open!" The possessed white Shadow called, "Forbidden Holy Spear, hatsudou shimasu! And I will target your Gaia Dragoon!"
At once, the spear flew forward, landing in the knight's hand and suppressing his in exchange for giving him a protective aura (2600-1800/2100). His power was suppressed too much…and his own lance was unable to pierce the defenses of the thing he was fighting against. Hana was hit by the resulting backlash, knocking her off balance and sending her to 4750 Life Points.
"Ow~" Hana murmured. Gaia Dragoon returned to her side, allowing a proper view of what she was dealing with.
What she saw made her gasp. Right there, on Shadow Hana's field, was a massive…thing. It looked like a chaotic mish-mash of several different aberrant monsters (750/1950). It was truly horrifying and hideous to behold.
"So then…that's the focus for your Verz corruption?" Hana surmised.
"Verz Azathoth no kouka hatsudou shimasu!" the possessed Shadow Hana shouted, "When flipped face-up, one special summoned monster you control is forced back into the extra deck!" Azathoth made a move against the dragon knight and screeched horribly, forcing Hana to cover her ears to block out the alien noise. Gaia Dragoon was affected even more by the screeching and was forced back into the Extra Deck. "Did you honestly believe you could win this turn, even with your monsters?"
Hana uncovered her ears and was thankful the awful screeching stopped. But she was horrified at the current field. At this rate, she wouldn't stand a chance whatsoever, as none of her current monster could possibly scratch it. She had no more moves to make this turn either.
"Turn end…" Hana said sadly.
The possessed Shadow Hana smirked maliciously. "Then allow me to return you to your rightful place! Watashi no Turn! Draw!" She shouted. The new card she saw made her smirk widen into a malevolent smile. "I activate the spell Pot of Avarice! With this, I return five monsters in my graveyard to my deck to draw two more cards!"
The all-too-familiar jar appeared before her. She took five monsters from her graveyard and shuffled them into her deck, allowing the jar's Avarice to grant her some new cards. She took them greedily as the jar vanished.
"Next, I summon an old friend!" The possessed Shadow placed a card onto her duel disk. Moments later, a familiar small sphere appeared and quickly unfolded into Geiv. "Geiv! Destroy that Sheratan!"
Geiv obeyed with a bit of hesitation and quickly lashed out at the knight of the stars with its claws. Sheratan retaliated with his beam weapon, but it simply tinked off the dragon's armor. He stood no chance and was sliced to death, the backlash of which found its way to Hana. It knocked her to the floor, reducing her to 3650 Life Points.
"And whenever Geiv destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the graveyard," The possessed Shadow explained, "Geiv can special summon any Normal Dragon-type monster from my hand, deck, or graveyard! …so long as its ATK and DEF becomes 0." Geiv opened a portal, drawing a sphere through it. It held a slumbering Blue-Eyes white dragon (3000-0/2500-0). "And now that his use is over, I will tribute him to special summon Hieroglyphic Dragon – Shiyu Dragon! And you remember Giev's ability, correct?"
Giev withdrew into his sphere and gave his energy to a higher level source. Another sphere appeared beside it and quickly unfolded into a larger, armored blue dragon (2200/1000). The sphere that was once Giev expanded, transforming into a gold sphere itself…one that didn't seem able to unfold. Then, both it and the slumbering Blue-Eyes White Dragon transformed into energy and spiraled upward.
"And with these two Lv8 monsters, I build the Overlay Network!" Both monsters entered a galaxy-like vortex. It exploded violently in a rainbow-colored burst, after which an all-too-familiar sealed form emerged. "Roar throughout the entire universe. Revive, from the source of all galaxies, that flows from far back in time! Manifest yourself, and lead me to victory!" she chanted. It split down the middle twice over, allowing wings and claws to extend. In moments, it had become the dragon that Hana remained afraid of, despite being friends with its master (3000/2500). "Number 107: Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon!"
The dragon gave an angry roar upon making itself known. But it wasn't directed at the white Ojamajo, much to her confusion and relief. Instead, it was angry…at Shadow Hana.
"Nani yo?! Why do you growl at me?!" the possessed Shadow demanded, "Am I not your master?!"
"You're not Shadow Hana-chan!" Hana shouted, "You're only controlling her against her will! Of course he knows you're not his master!"
The possessed white Shadow narrowed her eyes at her foe. The being controlling her clearly disdained being told off like that and it easily raised her desire to crush her. In fact, it seemed to make her want to outright kill her instead.
"I will bend it to my will!" The entity declared, "I activate Rank-Up Magic – Barian's Force! And I will use it to rank up Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon!" The Barian emblem appeared beneath the powerful dragon. He transformed into an orb of magenta energy and began spiraling upward toward a dark vortex. Suddenly, it reverted to normal and flew back down to the ground, completely unchanged…and plenty angry to boot. "WHAT?!"
Hana shook her head. "Maybe there isn't a good target that has been made yet?" she asked, "After all, Barian's Force can only rank up Xyz monsters into Chaos Xyz or Chaos Numbers that are the same type but one rank higher…"
The entity growled through its victim, twisting her face into an expression of pure rage. "Turn end…!"
Hana looked at her Shadow in worry. "Hana-chan knows you're still in there, Shadow Hana-chan," Hana said, "You must fight it!"
"And you honestly believe you can bring this Shadow back?" the entity replied, "I don't think so!"
Hana shook her head. "Hana-chan thinks she knows a way." The white Ojamajo crossed her arms. "Pororin Pyuarin Hana Hana Pii!" she chanted, "Put Hana-chan into her evil costume!" Hana's spell enveloped her in a puff of smoke. When it cleared, she was now wearing the modified version of the very costume that Shadow Hana forced her to wear while she was imprisoned; in additon to its original appearance, her gloves had bracelets that each held the blue gems normally present on her gloves and her top had her unmodified tap attached to it. It had since become a symbol of friendship between the two and, to the white Ojamajo, was the only thing that can snap the white Shadow out of possession. "Do you remember this costume, Shadow Hana-chan?"
"…Why are you wearing that-?!" the possessed white Shadow began. She was interrupted by a sudden pain in her head. Her aura fluctuated drastically and seemed to destabilize. She looked at the white Ojamajo with a new expression. "Hana-chan…?" she asked, her tone devoid of the second voice. "What is happening?!"
Hana gasped in shock. Her move worked, but for how long, she had no idea.
"If it means freeing a friend from evil, then Hana-chan will fight until the end!" she shouted. The top of her deck glowed a brilliant white…DESTINY DRAW. "Atashi no Turn!" Hana took the glowing card and then looked at Shadow Hana's field. Tachyon Dragon was clearly worried about his master. He took notice of Hana's viewing of the scene and roared accordingly. "Hana-chan wants to free Shadow Hana-chan as much as you do! And Hana-chan knows how to do it!"
The dragon narrowed his eyes at the white Ojamajo.
"Hana-chan summons Sacred Sombres!" Hana called. With that, another being descended from the heavens. He wielded a staff and had a ring of runes around him (1550/1600). "And Hana-chan will use Sombres-san's ability! By banishing one Sacred monster from her graveyard, Sombres-san can return a fallen Sacred to her hand!"
Two orbs or light, one containing Beehive and the other containing Kaust, appeared in Sombres hands. He gave a sorrowful look at the former before using his remaining energy to restore some life to the latter. Hana added the latter's card to her hand in response.
"And since Hana-chan used that ability of Combres-san, she can normal summon another Sacred! So come on, Kaust-kun!" Sombres sent a beacon into the air, calling the very knight he had just revived down. He arrived quickly and stared down the monsters on Shadow Hana's field. "Next, Hana-chan uses Kaust-kun's ability twice to raise his and Sombres-san's levels to 5! Sacred Charge!" Kaust glowed brilliantly, empowering both himself and Sombres. Then, the twosome nodded and transformed into orbs of golden energy. "And with these two Lv5 LIGHT monsters, Hana-chan builds the Overlay Network!"
Both monsters flew into a glowing vortex, causing an explosion of bright light to erupt forth. Then, a powerful knight of the stars emerged. He looked over the battlefield and brandished his blade (2500/1500).
"Awareru, Sacred Pleiades!" Hana called.
Shadow Hana's possessor regained a measure of control. "So you plan on getting rid of Tachyon Dragon with that thing?" she inquired.
Hana shook her head. "No. The Verz card is the focus for Shadow Hana-chan's corruption," she explained, "So if I kill it now…Hana-chan can free Shadow Hana-chan!" The entity gave a shocked looked followed by Shadow Hana breaking free one more time. She held her arms out, silently begging for the attack. "I know…but you must hold out for longer!" Pleiades returned to the glowing vortex, causing an even greater burst of light. "And with this Sacred Xyz monster, Hana-chan builds the Overlay Network!"
Then and there, another, even stronger Sacred emerged. It was dragon-like in appearance, but it was also clearly mechanical, having apparently been made from the fusion of various Sacred machine monsters.
"Light of the stars, unite as one! Descend and be the guide of my path! Xyz summon!" Hana chanted, "Descend from the stars, Sacred Ptolemys Messier 7!"
"Hurry, Hana-chan!" Shadow Hana choked out, "I…can't…!"
Hana nodded in determination. "Messier 7! Attack Verz Azathoth! Supreme Radiance of the Sacred!"
That one command was all it took. The ultimate Sacred monster flew up as high as the ceiling would let it and began charging its attack. Once finished, it unleashed everything it had, striking and vaporizing the aberrant horror. The light coming from it tore its way past the remnants of the monster, striking and seeming to burn off nearly the entire dark aura surrounding Shadow Hana. The part that was blown off but wasn't vaporized took a roughly humanoid shape as it disintegrated, screaming.
Shadow Hana fell to her knees, smiling. "Arigatou…Hana-chan…" she said slowly, "I give this one…to you!" And with that, she put her hand over her deck, surrendering the duel.
Hana is the winner!
Hana rushed up to the downed white Shadow only for Tachyon Dragon, who hadn't vanished yet, to swoop down and cut her off. He growled defensively at her as he prepared to protect his master from further harm.
"It's okay…Tachyon-kun," Shadow Hana said calmly, "She's not going to hurt me…" Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon turned to look at his master. It shot a questioning look at her, but the peaceful look in her eye convinced it to back down. He vanished with the rest of the monsters, though a spectral image remained. "You…you did it! And…you're wearing the outfit I gave you?"
Hana smiled sheepishly as she helped her Shadow off the floor. "Uh, yeah! Hana-chan seeing me wear this might help snap you out of the Verz's control!" she said, nearly excited, "It didn't work out as Hana-chan planned…"
Shadow Hana looked at her Light Half in gratitude. Even though they were still technically on opposite sides of the battle, she still treasured her newfound friendship with her. Enough to begin putting a wedge between her and her fellow Shadows even.
"Bravo, bravo," a voice from further down the room called, "You children really put on quite a show, didn't you?"
Shadow Hana froze up at the vice and slowly turned her head in its direction. Hana, curious, turned to face the voice's source.
It came from what seemed to be a large holding tank…except instead of water, it had magic. A lone being was floating in it, seemingly unable to move aside from apparently speaking. She stared at the twosome; a smirk could be discerned on her face.
"Who…are you?" Hana asked. She went up closer and got a better look. "Majo…Tourbillon?"
The being chuckled. "That…would be my Light Half," she replied, "My name…is Shadow Tourbillon." She seemed to take notice of Shadow Hana. "I believe you should console your panicking 'friend' here, Light Hana."
Hana turned around to her Shadow and quickly ran back to her. "Shadow Hana-chan? What's wrong?" she asked, concerned. Shadow Hana didn't say anything, opting instead to bury her face in her Light Half's chest. "Shadow Hana-chan?"
"I wouldn't bother asking her at all," Shadow Tourbillon interjected, "Considering what it took for her and those other Shadow Ojamajos along with Black Queen and Evil Rin to get me imprisoned here…it's no wonder she's too scared to face me."
The white Ojamajo clenched her fist. "What did you do?!"
"Oh nothing outside of killing those nine…repeatedly. Even Black queen is scared of me, which is why she keeps me locked up down here!"
"It…It was like a never-ending nightmare," Shadow Hana muttered, sobbing, "She didn't have magic on her side…but she still massacred us all!"
Hana stood back up. "Why did you do that?"
"I have a grudge against Black Queen and her minions were simply in the way," Shadow Tourbillon replied nonchalantly, "She decided to continue the stagnant 'We hate Light Beings' tradition after she became the new ruler…and this was long after the previous Queen of the Shadows overthrew me in the previous millennium!" She took a deep breath. "I've enjoyed this conversation. It gets so lonely down here."
Hana was about to try getting more information out of the imprisoned former Queen of the Shadows when she felt a chill in the room. She turned to try and discern the source, but all she found was a cloud of darkness forming into a door.
"Come!" a commanding voice ordered.
Hana began toward the door. Shadow Hana overcame her panic attack and cut her off.
"Maybe we should take the scenic route?" the white Shadow suggested, "After all, that door was conjured by Her…!"
Hana smiled. "Hana-chan wouldn't have it any other way!" she replied.
"I never thought I would see the day when a Light Being and her Shadow become friends…" Shadow Tourbillon remarked, "It really feels great knowing that my ideal was at least possible."
Hana gave an understanding look to the powerful Shadow before heading to the door on the opposite wall. She reached it no problem, but her hand never made it to the knob. To the two girls' dismay, a barrier was right in front of it, preventing any and all access.
"So she wishes for you to use that door and that door only," Shadow Hana surmised, "I hate when that happens!"
Hana made her way to the conjured door. Just before she touched it, she shot a sad look at her Shadow.
"Gomennasai, Shadow Hana-chan," she said sadly, "Hana-chan doesn't want to leave you here alone with Shadow Tourbillon!"
"And you can't take her with you because?" Shadow Tourbillon inquired indignantly.
Shadow Hana shrugged. "Let's go then?" she asked. Hana nodded happily and opened the door…which caused a barrier to appear and push Shadow Hana back. "Oh, come on!"
Hana shook her head. "It was never meant to be, Shadow Hana-chan," Hana said sadly, "Goodbye, Shadow Hana-chan."
"Bye bye," Shadow Hana replied," But before you go!" The white Shadow held out three cards, two of which were Number 107: Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon and Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon. "Take them."
Hana walked up to take them, but her expression spoke of confusion. "But...aren't these-?" she began.
Shadow Hana nodded. "They'll be a lot more helpful with you for the time being," she replied. Hana reluctantly took the card, hearing the roars of both Galaxy-Eyes in the process, and then returning to the door. Just as the white Ojamajo passed through it, the white Shadow's eyes shot open. "Chotto matte! Hana-chan! You're still wearing your-!" The door shut before the rest of the message could be given. She shot a nervous look at the quickly-fading door. "Nevermind…"
Featured Duel: Hana vs Verz Shadow Hana
Hana LP (8000) – Verz Shadow Hana LP (8000)
Hana's turn:
Hana has Constellar Algiedi, Constellar Star Chart, Royal Decree, Tragoedia, and Constellar Pollux as her opening hand. She draws Reinforcement of the Army.
Hana activates Star Chart. She then normal summons Algiedi and uses her effect to special summon Constellar Pollux from her hand. She overlays Algiedi and Pollux to Xyz summon Constellar Praesepe. As she special summoned a Constellar Xyz monster to her field, Star Chart lets her draw a card; she draws Xyz Reborn.
Hana sets Royal Decree and Xyz Reborn and ends.
Verz Shadow Hana's turn:
Verz Shadow Hana has Evilswarm Azzathoth, Dragonic Tactics, Hieratic Dragon of Gebeb, Hieratic Seal of Convocation, and Effect Veiler as her opening hand. She draws Rank-Up-Magic Barian's Force.
During her Standby Phase, Hana activates Royal Decree.
Verz Shadow Hana activates Hieratic Seal of Convocation and uses it to add Hieratic Dragon of Tefnuit to her hand. Since she controls no monster's, she can special summon Tefnuit so long as it doesn't attack this turn. She then normal summons Gebeb. She follows by activating Dragonic Tactics, tributing Tefnuit and Gebeb and special summoning Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon from her deck; since Tefnuit and Gebeb were tributed, Verz Shadow Hana can special summon two Normal Dragon-type monsters form her hand, deck, or graveyard and make their ATKs and DEFs 0; she chooses Blue-Eyes White Dragon and Hieratic Seal of the Sun Dragon Overlord.
Verz Shadow Hana overlays Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon with Blue-Eyes and Hieratic Seal to Xyz summon Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon; since it was Xyz summoned by using Galaxy-Eyes, Neo Galaxy-Eyes negates the effects of all face-up cards currently on the field. She then activates its effect, detaching Blue-Eyes White Dragon and detaching all materials from Praesepe and gaining 500 ATK and an attack for each material; 2 were detached, so Neo Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon gains 1000 ATK and can attack twice this turn.
Verz Shadow Hana attacks Praesepe with Neo Galaxy-Eyes, destroying it. She attacks her directly with it again, but Hana activates Xyz Reborn, reviving Praesepe in Defense Position and attaching the trap to it as Xyz material. The attack goes through and Praesepe is again destroyed.
Verz Shadow Hana ends.
Hana LP (4900) – Verz Shadow Hana LP (8000)
Hana's turn:
Hana draws Constellar Kaus.
Hana activates Reinforcement of the Army and uses it to add Pollux to her hand. She then normal summons him and uses his effect to normal summon Kaus. She uses Kaus' effect twice, raising himself and Pollux to Lv5. She then overlays Kaus with Pollux to Xyz summon Number 61: Volcasaraus. She activates its effect, detaching Kaus and destroying Neo Galaxy-Eyes and inflicting 4500 damage to Verz Shadow Hana. She follows this by using Number 61 as Xyz material to Xyz summon Gaia Dragon the Thunder Charger.
Hana attacks Verz Shadow Hana directly. She ends.
Verz Shadow Hana's turn:
Verz Shadow Hana draws Forbidden Lance.
Verz Shadow Hana sets Evilswarm Azzathoth and Forbidden Lance and ends.
Hana LP (4900) – Verz Shadow Hana LP (900)
Hana's turn:
Hana draws Constellar Sheratan.
Hana normal summons Sheratan and uses his effect to add Kaus to her hand.
Hana attacks Verz Shadow Hana's set monster with Gaia Dragon. During the Damage Step, Verz Shadow Hana activates Forbidden Lance, targeting Gaia Dragon. Gaia Dragon's ATK is too low to destroy Evilswarm Azzathoth, causing Hana to take damage. Azzathoth's flip effect activates, returning Gaia Dragon to the Extra Deck.
Hana ends.
Verz Shadow Hana's turn:
Verz Shadow Hana draws Pot of Avarice.
Verz Shadow Hana activates Pot of Avarice, returning Gebeb, Galaxy-Eyes, Neo Galaxy-Eyes, Tefnuit, and Blue-Eyes to her deck and drawing Trade-In and Hieratic Seal of the Sun dragon Overlord. She then activates Trade-In, discarding Hieratic Seal and drawing Gebeb and Hieratic Dragon of Su. Verz Shadow Hana follows by normal summoning Gebeb.
Verz Shadow Hana attacks Sheratan with Gebeb, destroying it. Since Gebeb destroyed a monster by battle and sent it to the graveyard, Verz Shadow Hana can special summon any Normal Dragon-type monster from her hand, deck, or graveyard and make its ATK and DEF 0; she chooses Blue-Eyes.
Verz Shadow Hana tributes Gebeb to special summon Su; she special summons another Hieratic Seal thanks to Gebeb's effect. She then overlays Blue-Eyes and Hieratic Seal to Xyz summon Number 107: Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon. She then tries to activate Rank-Up-Magic – Barian's Force, targeting Tachyon Dragon. Since Number C107: Neo Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon has yet to be truly made, the activation is canceled.
Verz Shadow Hana ends.
Hana LP (3650) – Verz Shadow Hana (900)
Hana's turn:
Hana uses DESTINY DRAW to get Constellar Sombre.
Hana normal summons Sombre and uses her effect, banishing the Praesepe from her graveyard and adding Kaus to her hand. Since she used that effect of Sombre, Hana can normal summon another Constellar; she chooses Kaus.
Hana uses Kaus' effect twice and makes Sombre and Kaus Lv5. She overlays Sombre and Kaus to Xyz summon Constellar Pleiades. She then uses Pleiades as Xyz material to Xyz summon Constellar Ptolemy M7.
Hana attacks Evilswarm Azzathoth with Constellar Ptolemy M7, destroying it and freeing Shadow Hana from the Verz's control. Shadow Hana surrenders.
Hana LP (3650) – Shadow Hana LP (900)
Hana is the winner!
Hana-chan learned a lot from her earlier duel with Shadow Hana and beat her. And Doremi-chan even managed to beat my opponent before! But her Verz card…unlike most of the others so far, it does compliment her deck due to sheer typing alone. It may not be the most powerful, but it's still dangerous…especially when she brings it out and kills the very Lava Golem she used to get rid of my best monsters with. My deck isn't too good against something like hers…
!em ot derapmoc sselhtrow si rewop ruoY
Golem Zwei has begun its approach…