A/N: You might want to re-read the previous chapter if you haven't done so already. I re-uploaded it with an extra scene regarding Hana and Shadow Hana. More specifically, the scene where Hana received some cards from her.
-Golem Zwei-
Aiko glared at her Shadow. Not only was she stuck having to face her Shadow, but she had to do so alone. It didn't matter to her; she was tough…and she hoped she was tougher than her foe.
The blue Shadow grinned maliciously. "Guess I'll take the first move," she surmised, "Watashi no Turn! Draw!" She gave a clear look of malevolence at her freshly-drawn card. "First, I summon Death Guide Departing the Demon Bound for the Living World!" At once, a demonic bus drove up. And upon stopping, a young tour guide emerged, flashing a not-so-innocent smile (1000/600). "Her ability allows me to special summon a Death Bus Departing the Demon World Bound for the Living world from my deck!" The Death Guide whistled for someone to come closer. Immediately, another demonic bus arrived, though no one stepped out this time (1000/1000). Then, both of them turned into orbs of purple energy and spiraled upward. "And with these two Lv3 monsters, I build the Overlay Network!"
Both monsters flew into a galaxy-like vortex. It burst with a rainbow explosion before a massive form came out. It quickly unfolded, taking pegs in and extending others until it resembled a giant, dripping golem (3000/3000).
"Awareru, Number 30: Acid Golem of Destruction!" Shadow Aiko shouted, "And I will follow by activating Dark Calling! This card allows me to banish Fusion Materials from my hand or graveyard to Fusion Summon a monster that normally can only be summoned via Dark Fusion!" The blue Shadow took two of her cards and pocketed them. Immediately, the images of two monsters, one obviously Torch Golem while the other was obscured by a dark aura, appeared. Then, they were both drawn into a vortex and merged into one. What came out was a demonic being with rock-like armor. (?/0). "Awareru, Evil HERO Dark Gaia!"
Aiko stared up at the powerful Evil HERO (?-5150/0). She knew his Original ATK was equal to the total ATK of the monsters used to Fusion Summon him. But the last time she got it out, it had more ATK than that. So why was it weaker now?
"I set one card," Shadow Aiko said, interrupting the blue Ojamajo's train of thought. A reversed card appeared behind Acid Golem. "Turn end!"
Aiko gulped. Good thing she went first, she mentally muttered, Otherwise, I think it would've been a one turn kill… She gulped at what she had to face down: Two monsters with 3000 or more ATK. "Atashi no Turn! Draw!" Aiko shouted, nervously. She looked at her new card and sighed. It wasn't the card she wanted, so she took another from her hand. "This card worked well for you…so I'll use it too! Death Guide!"
Another demonic bus drove up. The Death Guide stepped out and gave a more innocent smile and a wink.
"And I will use her ability to get another one from my deck!" Death Guide gestured for another being to come out. A younger version of her stepped out. Then, both turned into orbs of purple energy and spiraled upward. "With these two Lv3 monsters, I build the Overlay Netwrok!" Both monster entered a red vortex. A stream of similarly colored energy erupted forth as a tank-like giant wind-up toy emerged (1500/2100). It crossed its clawed arms, defending itself. "Awareru, Mainspring Naval mine – Zenmaine!"
Shadow Aiko snickered. "Can you be any more generic, Light Aiko?!" she shouted, mockingly, "Pathetic!"
"I set one card," Aiko said, ignoring her Shadow's statement. A reversed card appeared behind Zenmaine. "Turn end."
The blue Shadow shook her head. "That's the best you can do? Really?" she asked, "Watashi no Turn! Draw!" Her smirk widened as she gazed at her newest card. Acid Golem turned and leered at her. "First, I will detach one Overlay from Acid Golem!" The dripping golem absorbed one of the lights orbiting it through one of its wounds, causing it to stop leering. "Next, I activate Magic Box of Death! And I will target both Acid Golem and Zenmaine!"
At once, two boxes appeared, one of which taking shape around Acid Golem and the other doing the same around Zenmaine. Then, the one that held Acid Golem was piercing by multiple swords. When both boxes opened, Acid Golem stepped out on Aiko's field while Zenmaine was struggling, having been impaled repeatedly by the swords.
"I activate Zenmaine's ability!" Aiko called, "By detaching one Overlay, I can stop it from being destroyed!" One of the lights orbiting Zenmaine was absorbed into one of its claws, allowing it to withstand the swords and break free. It then flew back over to Aiko's field. "I guess I'll have to spare 2000 Life Points just to attack next turn then…"
Shadow Aiko shook her head. "My tactic is different this time," she retorted. Suddenly, both Zenmaine and Acid Golem vanished into dust. Replacing them was another golem, this one made of lava and had a cage hanging from its neck (3000/2500). Aiko was drawn into it against her will and immediately felt the searing heat. "My tactic is far different compared to the one I used on Light Doremi! Especially since I'm not relying on passive damage from my Golems!" Shadow Aiko smirked. "Reverse card, open! Rock Fossil release hatsudou! This card allows me to bring back any of my banished Rock-type monsters!"
At once, the blue Shadow's reversed card revealed itself and summoned a rock formation. It burst open, allowing something through. When it arrived, Shadow Aiko's dark aura intensified, prompting the blue Ojamajo to get a closer look at what had just been summoned.
It looked just like All of Justice – Catastor, except it appeared damaged and had two insectile, cricket-lke legs in place of its usual ones (2150/1250).
"Be reborn, Verz Golem!" Shadow Aiko shouted.
So this is the focus of her corruption, Aiko mentally surmised, It its anything like Catastor, then I gotta be careful…
"I activate Golem's special ability!" Shadow Aiko declared, "Once per turn, it can destroy any Lv5 or higher special summoned non-DARK monster you control!" Verz Golem turned toward Lava Devil - Lava Golem. "And I have a pretty good idea who to kill!"
Verz Golem unleashed a beam that was nearly identical to the one its un-corrupted uses. It struck the burning monster, killing it without a struggle and freeing Aiko from her prison.
"Nani yo…Why did you free me?" Aiko asked.
"For this! Dark Gaia! Attack her directly!" Shadow Aiko shouted, "Dark Catastrophe!" Dark Gaia gathered dark energy into his hands. With a psychopathic grin, he threw it at the blue Ojamajo, knocking her to the ground and dropping her to 2850 Life Points. "You're next Golem! Get her!" Verz Golem obeyed and fired its beam at the still-down Aiko. It hit hard, sending her skidding down the hall as far as he Duel Anchor would let her. Her Life Points fell to 700. Turn end!"
Aiko struggled to her feet. Getting hit by two very powerful attacks consecutively was all but guaranteed to leave a mark. And she had the feeling that one more blow like that would not only cost her the duel…but also her life.
"I won't lose," Aiko half-shouted. The top card of her deck began glowing a bright blue…DESTIMY DRAW. "Atashi no Turn!" The blue Ojamajo took her card just as she made it to her feet. She shot it a determined look. "I activate the spell Black Hole! With this, I can destroy all monsters on the field!"
Immediately, a dark vortex burst into existence and began pulling everything in. Dark Gaia and Verz Golem tried resisting it, but the suction was too powerful. Both of them were lost in the void…with the Verz card taking a chunk of Shadow Aiko's dark aura with it. She grit her teeth and collapsed to her knees.
"It's…It's over…" Aiko said, "You're no longer under the Verz's control…for now. So please, let me go on ahead and help deal with Jou-sama!"
Shadow Aiko got back to her feet. "I'm not giving up, Light Aiko," she replied indignantly, "But I have to thank you for freeing me…"
"Nani?"
"The only thing stopping me from killing you was thing controlling me." The blue Shadow snickered. "Now that it's gone…I can do things my way!"
"But you don't have to follow the Verz anymore!" Aiko pleaded.
"I didn't just begin fighting you because I was ordered to! I fought you because I wanted you dead! And if I had my way, I would've killed you without even dueling in the first place!" The blue Shadow took a deep breath. "But…I can't really do too much right now, now can I? Kisama no Turn!"
Aiko clenched her teeth. It wasn't just mind control in her Shadow's case like it had been with her and her fellow Ojamajos. In fact, it was mind control itself that had kept her from going on a homicidal rampage in the first place! But now, she had more problems to attend to. One of them would be what happens after the duel concluded. What is she going to do then? She can't really fight her Shadow, even with the Resonance weakening her from her loss. And then there was the real possibility of her losing instead, in which case her Shadow would simply kill her off.
But at least she would die free of the Verz's control.
Aiko shook her head. "I summon Sabersaurus!" she declared. At once, a large triceratops-like beast stamped in, waving the blade at the end of its tail with full intent to attack (1900/500). "And I'll have it attack you directly!" With a roar, the dinosaur rushed forward, trampling the unfortunate blue Shadow and dropping her to 6100 Life Points. "Turn end!"
Shadow Aiko got back to her feet and dusted herself off. "You really believe that's supposed to hurt?" she inquired, "Watashi no Turn! Draw!" She sighed with frustration at her new card. "I activate the spell Pot of Greed and Humility! With this, I can reveal the top three cards of my deck and add one of them to my hand!" On that note, a massive jar appeared before the blue Shadow. One side had a peaceful expression while the other had a greedy smile. She revealed her three cards: Dark Calling, Holy Barrier -Mirror Force-, and Warning of God. "I really hate when this happens…"
Shadow Aiko looked over the three cards carefully.
Aiko had a good idea about them. The first one would let her use Dark Gaia again and quite possibly swing for game. The second could easily stop her attacks cold while the third would stop her plays. She easily knocked Dark Calling out since-
"I will add Dark Calling to my hand," Shadow Aiko stated, surprising Aiko. The other two cards were sent back into her deck and shuffled. "I can't special summon this turn now…so turn end."
"Which I better kick things up a notch," Aiko replied, "Atashi no Turn! Draw!" She sighed at first, thinking she didn't have a good card. But it changed when she saw it up close. "I summon Rescue Rabbit!" And with that, a small rabbit wearing safety gear and a hard hat with goggles appeared by her side (300/100). "And now I activate his special ability! By banishing him, Rescue Rabbit can bring two Lv4 or below Normal Monsters from my deck! …so long as they are the same two."
Rescue Rabbit tore open a portal to another dimension and hopped right in. Moments later, two more Sabersauruses emerged. The two of them looked back into the portal, but Rescue Rabbit wasn't coming out. The two dinosaurs went over to their fellow; they took a cue from it and all three glared at Shadow Aiko.
"This is gonna suck," Shadow Aiko muttered.
"You could've avoided this," Aiko replied, "Minna-san! Attack Shadow Aiko directly!" Her command reached them. All three rushed forward, quickly taking it to the blue Shadow and relentlessly trampling her. She screamed as her Life Points fell to 400. "You can't win at this rate! You have to give up!"
Gasping for air, Shadow Aiko stumbled to her feet. "N…No. F**king. WAY!" she shouted, "I will defeat you! I…have too..!" Aiko looked at the blue Shadow in concern. She began snickering. "You'll lose two of your monsters at the end of the turn anyway…and that will spell my victory!"
Aiko shook her head. "It won't," she replied. The two Sabersauruses that were saved by Rescue Rabbit turned into orange orbs of energy and spiraled upward. "With these to Lv4 Dinosaur-type monsters, I build the Overlay Network!" Both monsters entered a red vortex bristling with fire. Moments later, a powerful dinosaur-turned-dragon flew out. It roared as it proudly landed by Aiko's side (2400/2000). "Awareru, Evolkaiser Laggia!" The blue Ojamajo looked at her hand and sighed. "There's nothin' else I can do now. Turn end."
Shadow Aiko snickered. "You underestimate my power, Light Aiko!" she called. The top of her deck began glowing with a blue, light-draining radiance…DESTINY DRAW. "Watashi no Turn!" The blue Shadow began panting as she looked at her new card. "This is the end for you! I activate Dark Calling!"
At once, a wall of purple smoke appeared. Suddenly, both of the lights orbiting Laggia were absorbed by the powerful dragon. He loosed a burst of fire that suppressed and destroyed the wall of smoke.
"Laggia no kouka hatsudou!" Aiko shouted, "By detaching both Overlays, Laggia can negate any normal summon, special summon, spell, or trap you try to use!" Laggia roared in triumph at the statement. "You can't win this!" she begged, "Please surrender!"
Shadow Aiko's eye twitched as her anger rose. "I'm not just fighting for myself, you know!" she shouted, "Once I beat you, I'm taking and crushing Light Queen! She did this to us, brought us under her control!" Her fist clenched. "That's why…I have to win! To save my friends!"
"Then why can't we put aside our differences?" Aiko offered, "We're trying to stop the Verz and, from the looks of things, Jou-sama is connected to it." She shot a concerned look at her Shadow. "We can win if we work together!"
"NOT ON YOUR LIFE, LIGHT BEING!" Shadow Aiko yelled angrily, "I will work with Shadows and Shadows only!" She took a card out of her hand. "This is my last resort. Resurrection of the Dead! With this, I can bring back Lava Devil – Lava Golem!" The sacred ankh appeared overhead. Then, the blue Shadow found herself trapped in the cage that hung from her massive monster's neck. "This is it, Light Aiko! Your demise!"
Aiko looked up at Shadow Aiko in concern and distress. You're truly dedicated to beating Jou-sama yourself, she thought, saddened, You're taking such a risk just to accomplish this? She looked her foe in the eye. Does…Does working with us…is it really that horrible an idea to you?
"You have two monsters and only 700 Life Points left," Shadow Aiko surmised, "My Golem has 3000 ATK while your weakest monster has only 1900! I give you credit for pushing me this far…but you're at an end! Lava Devil! Destroy that Sabersaurus! And burn Light Aiko into nothing!"
The massive Golem drew its dripping fist back and prepared to strike. Sabersaurus stood its ground, but the monster was dreading the magma that was assured to burn it alive.
"Reverse card, open!" Aiko shouted quickly, "Forbidden Holy Spear hatsudou!" Without wasting any more time, the Spear rocketed toward and into Lava Devil's hand. It took a chunk off its power in exchange for creating a protective aura (3000-2200/2500). "Gomennasai, Sabersaurus…"
Shadow Aiko fumed in both anger and dismay as the attack continued. There was no further incident, but Aiko couldn't bear to watch. She heard the anguished cries of her monster as it was crushed and burned underneath the Golem's weight. Her eyes opened just in time to see several embers splatter off the monster's fist; a few of them hit her too, causing her to scream from the burning liquid rock and drop her Life Points to 400.
Shadow Aiko looked on in horror." U…Usou…!"
"Gomen ne, Shadow Aiko," Aiko replied, "But I can't let you win if you're not going to team up."
"Turn…end…"
Aiko silently took her turn. After seeing the card, she shook her head. "I'll pass this turn."
At this point, the blue Shadow was no longer in her mind. Her own last resort had backfired in the worst possible way and her goal was a complete failure. A single tear could be seen from her eye.
"Watashi…no…Turn… Draw," she said slowly. She drew her card. And no sooner did she do so, some of the magma Lava Devil was made of dripped into the cage. Shadow Aiko didn't even respond to the pain, even as her Life Points fell to 0. And once they did, the entire monster fell apart, threatening to burn her alive. "I lost…I lost…I lost…I lost…"
Aiko is the winner!
Aiko couldn't bear to let the sight happen before her. She may have rejected her offer of teaming up, but her desire to save her own friends reminded her of Doremi. And even though she had murdered her in the past, she couldn't allow her to die like this.
"Pameruku Laliluku Laliloli Poppun!" Aiko chanted, "Save Shadow Aiko!"
Her spell did the trick. In puff of smoke, the blue Shadow was outside the cage and on the ground before Aiko. Both were caught in a fiery wave caused by the collapse of Lava Devil; the energy from the now-fallen monster. The two shrugged it off, but they no longer felt normal.
She looked up at her Light Half in confusion afterward.
"Naze, Light Aiko?" Shadow Aiko asked, "Why did you save me? Why…did…you…?"
Shadow Aiko didn't get a chance to finish her last statement. By the time she could've said anything more, she fell unconscious. Aiko picked her up and laid her by the wall; she looked at her in sympathy.
"Say what you want about yourselves and us," Aiko said, "But…We're more alike than you like to believe."
Aiko noticed a dark cloud in the corner of her eye. By the time she could turn to see it, it had already formed into a door.
"Come!" a commanding voice ordered.
Aiko recognized it immediately as belonging to Jou-sama. Common sense dictated that she was waiting beyond that door, but suspicion told her that it was a trap. She hesitated for a bit, and ultimately decided to find another route.
To her dismay, barriers appeared several meters away from the door, blocking off all other ways out. Clenching her fist, Aiko turned back to the door. She knew it was a trap and she knew she was going to regret falling for it, but she had no choice. She couldn't stay here with her Shadow. She would eventually wake up soon and would likely not return her mercy, so she was forced to go through the door.
She took a deep breath and braced herself as she opened the door…
Featured Duel: Aiko vs Verz Shadow Aiko
Aiko LP (8000) – Verz Shadow Aiko LP (8000)
Verz Shadow Aiko's turn:
Verz Shadow Aiko has Evilswarm Golem, Dark Calling, Lava Golem, Grinder Golem, and Release from Stone as her opening hand. She draws Tour Guide from the Underworld.
Verz Shadow Aiko normal summons Tour Guide and uses her effect to special summon a Tour Bus from the Underworld from her deck. She then activates Dark Calling, banishing Grinder Golem and Evilswarm Golem from her hand and Fusion summoning Evil Hero Dark Gaia; its ATK is equal to the combined ATKs of Grinder Golem and Evilswarm Golem. She follows by overlaying Tour Guide and Tour Bus to Xyz summon Number 30: Acid Golem of Destruction.
She sets Release from Stone and ends.
Aiko's turn:
Aiko has Jurrac Guiba, Sabersaraus, Kabazauls, Tour Guide from the Underworld, and Forbidden Lance as her opening hand. She draws Kabazauls.
Aiko normal summons Tour Guide from the Underworld and uses her effect to special summon another from her deck. She then overlays both Tour Guides to Xyz summon Wind-Up Zenmaines. She sets Forbidden Lance and ends.
Aiko LP (8000) – Verz Shadow Aiko LP (8000)
Verz Shadow Aiko's turn:
Verz shadow Aiko draws Mystic Box.
During her Standby Phase, Verz Shadow Aiko detaches a material from Acid golem to avoid taking damage.
Verz Shadow Aiko activates Mystic Box, targeting Zenmaines and Acid Golem; Aiko detaches a material from Zenmaines to prevent its destruction, but Aiko still gains control of Acid Golem. She then tributes Zenmaines and Acid Golem to special summon Lava Golem to Aiko's field.
Verz Shadow Aiko activates Release from Stone, reviving her banished Evilswarm Golem. She then activates its effect, targeting Lava Golem; Lava Golem is higher than Lv5 and a non-DARK monster, so it is destroyed.
Verz Shadow Aiko attacks Aiko directly with Dark Gaia and Evilswarm Golem. She ends.
Aiko's turn:
Aiko uses DESTINY DRAW to get Dark Hole.
Aiko activates Dark Hole, destroying all monsters on the field; since Evilswarm Golem was destroyed by Aiko's card, Shadow Aiko is able to break free from the Verz's control. However, Shadow Aiko refuses to surrender and keeps going. Aiko normal summons Sabersaurus.
Aiko attacks Shadow Aiko directly with Sabersaurus. She then ends.
Aiko LP (700) – Shadow Aiko LP (6100)
Shadow Aiko's turn:
Shadow Aiko draws Pot of Duality.
Shadow Aiko activates Pot of Duality, revealing Dark Calling, Mirror Force, and Solemn Warning; she adds Dark Calling and shuffles the others into her deck. She ends.
Aiko's turn:
Aiko draws Rescue Rabbit.
Aiko normal summons Rescue Rabbit. She then activates its effect, banishing it and special summoning two Sabersarauses from her deck.
Aiko attacks Shadow Aiko directly with all three.
Aiko overlays both of the Sabersarauses that were special summoned via Rescue Rabbit to Xyz summon Evolzar Laggia. She ends.
Aiko LP (700) – Shadow Aiko LP (400)
Shadow Aiko's turn:
Shadow Aiko uses DESTINY DRAW to get Monster Reborn.
Shadow Aiko activates Dark Calling. Aiko chains with Laggia's effect, detaching both materials to negate and destroy Dark Calling; since it was negated and destroyed, Shadow Aiko doesn't banish anything. Shadow Aiko then activates Monster Reborn and uses it to revive Lava Golem.
Shadow Aiko attacks Sabersaraus with Lava Golem. During the Damage Step, Aiko activates Forbidden Lance, targeting Lava Golem. Lava Golem still has more ATK than Sabersaraus and thus destroys its attack target.
Shadow Aiko ends.
Aiko's turn:
Aiko draws Monster Reborn.
Aiko ends.
Aiko LP (400) – Shadow Aiko LP (400)
Shadow Aiko's turn:
Shadow Aiko draws Return from the Different Dimension.
During her Standby Phase, Shadow Aiko takes 1000 damage from Lava Golem.
Aiko LP (400) – Shadow Aiko LP (0)
Aiko is the winner!
I would never have guessed how badly hurt she was. It explains everything, why she's so shy and timid now. I feel so bad for her. And her being under the Verz's control isn't helping either. I must free her, no matter what she does later on.
!lla uoy yortsed lliw I
Heliotrope Zwei has begun its approach…