In Search of a God

by YamiRuss

Bryan and Matt have searched, wondering how the god cards escaped their protection at Duel Academy. Holding only Uria, Lord of Searing Flames in his possession, Bryan is invited to a competition between the god cards. This is his one chance to return them to their rightful place, even if it means going up against the leader of the Hellfire Club himself.

11. The Zero God

Chapter 11: The Zero God

"He's fine," said the medical technician. She just finished checking Matt's vital signs and concluded that he fit the description of a healthy person. "He just passed out."

"Passing out is not something that happens when someone is 'fine,'" Bryan replied sardonically. "That happens when a 250-pound linebacker leaps over the entire offensive line and lands right on top of the wide out."

The tech shook her head. "I didn't see a linebacker."

"No. It happened in high school. The point is people don't just pass out."

"It is probably related to the cold. His body isn't adjusting as well as expected. We're moving him to a warm room. You can come with him or stay here." Matt's body was well wrapped up at the moment. The Eight of Spades picked him up and hoisted him over his shoulder like Matt was a sleeping bag. His blood pressure was low and his heart rate and breathing were normal.

Bryan didn't even have to think about his decision. "That warm room does sound nice. He'd call me an idiot if I left the tournament when he's mostly fine. I mean, what can I do to help that you guys can't do without me, right?"

"I don't think there's anything you can do that we can't in this situation." Leaving Bryan in stunned silence, she followed Eight of Spades out of the citadel.

Garry approached Bryan to see how he was. He held the same position as when he spoke to the tech, looking baffled. "Is there a certain temperature at which people find understanding rhetorical questions a waste of energy?"

"The duel's starting."

Bryan turned around and tilted his head like he wanted a hug. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." It was subtle, but Bryan was thanking him for recognizing the rhetorical question and ignoring it like he was supposed to.

"Excuse me." Bryan turned with a start to see Eldar Vanko, the old Russian man whose identity was the Jack of Diamonds within the Hellfire Club. To look at him, it was difficult to assess him appropriately. He was big, which suggested strength and a hardy body type. But he also appeared old. It was difficult to be certain if his skin was wrinkled from age or the cold. His hair was clearly silver—caught somewhere between black and white. The Russian's expression seemed numb below the nose, yet his eyes betrayed a certain harmlessness. Overall, he looked like Bryan's grandfather if he had worked out more. "No fear," he requested. "I have question about card your friend played. It was god card?"

Bryan was hesitant to respond. "You mean Zurvan? Yes. It has the same powers as the other god cards."

Eldar smiled, which looked surprising. He had such an intimidating look what with all the scars on his face and the fact that he was a big, scary, Russian man with a sort of grumble in his voice, yet that smile looked so very, very friendly. It was truly an odd sight. Bryan wasn't sure what to make of it. It was difficult not to take him seriously with eyes so genuine.

But something across the room caught his attention. Ren Bacon sneered the entire time Eldar Vanko spoke. He was too far to hear, but it couldn't be a good sign that when he spoke to the big man who always stayed behind him, he never took his eyes off Eldar and Bryan. Actually, Bryan hadn't really paid attention to the big guy before. He wore form-hugging snow gear that showed how bulky his lean body was, plus he had mirrored sunglasses to shield his identity. He was probably one of the Numbers. Likely the guy in charge of security.

Meanwhile, Joker signaled to the two duelists who would participate next. The first he signaled was Eldar. The smile on the Russian's face dimmed slightly. "Apologies. I will tell you my proposal after duel." He left Bryan and approached the Joker.

Garry whispered to Bryan, "I wonder who this guy is."

"That's Eldar Vanko." Bryan witnessed the meeting of the Hellfire Club, and Eldar was among those present. He learned the name when Ren Bacon practically accused him of lying about holding a god card. "I don't know who he is, but I heard his name when he was talking to Ren Bacon earlier."

"I wonder which god card he has," Garry marveled.

Bryan didn't recognize the second duelist. She was as heavily dressed as everyone else, adorned in navy-colored clothing with sky blue trim. By the look of her face, she couldn't be older than fifteen. She stood out among the Hellfire Club, which had so far been an old person's group. But even if Bryan didn't know her, he did recognize her company. The duelist had been standing beside Ingrid Lund, the Italian woman referred to as the Queen of Clubs. If memory served, she had mentioned handing over her god card to her Ace of Clubs in order to avoid putting herself at risk against the god cards. That little girl was one of the strongest duelists in a secret society that controlled the world.

What Bryan didn't know was what to expect if an Ace went up against a Jack. In theory, it should be as one-sided as it is in Poker…

Joker shuffled each duelist's deck and handed them back to their owners. He spoke, "Darlene Sands will draw first—Eldar Vanko, second. Any questions?"

Eldar smiled at Darlene and said, "It will be pleasure in duel."

"Quite," Darlene remarked curtly. It was clear from her lack of follow-up that Eldar was the friendliest among Hellfire, and perhaps the most naïve. Darlene saw him as nothing more than a clueless schoolboy who was in over his head up against the cool kids. "Where's your King? Does he know you're here?" Decoded, she wondered if Eldar had adequate permission to participate. After all, he represented the only Hellfire Suit that did not have their leader present for the tournament which determined who would hold all of the most powerful cards in history.

"King sick. Sends regards."

"Must be dying to miss his chance at stealing the world-famous Egyptian God Cards."

Eldar shrugged. "May be."

No more words needed exchanging between the two. They ascended the duel platforms and loaded their decks into the duel station. Within two minutes, the station was active, Life Points were added, and the duel was ready to begin.

Darlene took one look at her hand and saw a need for a new one. "I play Card Destruction." With no verbal explanation of the card's effect, she proceeded to discard her hand and drew a new one. Fortunately that card was among the first, and so Eldar was well aware that had to do the same thing. "One card face-down. Turn end."

"Woman of few words," Eldar joked, but she wouldn't laugh. He accepted that and moved on. "I play Giant Germ (2/1000/100)." The monster he summoned was a huge, spherical creature with a murky center and tiny cilia growing from its exterior.

Bryan knew the card instantly. "Giant Germ? That card summons copies of itself when it goes to the Graveyard."

"He's trying to get sacrifices ready for a god card." Garry spoke so matter-of-factly. Bryan recalled that Garry played fiend cards like Giant Germ when he dueled against Matt those years ago, plus he held Raviel, Lord of Phantasms. Giant Germ was probably a strategy Garry was so familiar with because he used it, too.

On the field, Eldar continued, "I attack directly."

"Pitiful," Darlene muttered as she flipped over her card. A creature like a dragonic zombie appeared on the field. "I play Zoma the Spirit (4/1800/500)."

Her Trap was simultaneously a Trap and a monster, moving to her monster zones to protect Darlene's Life Points. The appearance of a new monster on the field triggered a replay, which stopped Giant Germ's attack and reset the field. Because the creature assumed a defensive position, Eldar declared, "Germ attack that, then." His Giant Germ launched itself at Zoma like a volleyball being spiked. Upon collision, the zombie burst like a balloon, and noxious fumes scattered across the field.

"Zombie dragon deal 1000 damage?" Eldar asked.

"Specifically the power of your monster, twit. Are you planning anything else or can I take my turn and end this duel?"

"So soon?" he asked with a laugh. "Good. Go ahead."

Darlene 8000: Eldar 8000 – 1000 = 7000.

As obvious as Eldar's strategy was, it was too obvious for Darlene's eye. Most god cards require three monsters to act as Tributes for their summoning. Giving him the extra Giant Germs was a risky decision. What if he did have a god card to summon? But Ingrid had been certain the Diamonds didn't have any of the gods. Her word was good enough for Darlene.

"I attack with Double Coston (4/1700/1650)." Two black ghosts connected to one another at the rear appeared on the field and began hovering in circular motions. The dual-headed ghost swung across the field and obliterated the massive germ on contact. Such an attack was not without blowback as the Giant Germ left pathogens on the attacking zombie. When Darlene's monster returned to her field, the germs spread to her avatar and dealt damage.

"When you break Giant Germ," Eldar explained, "you take 500 points damage. Also I summon all Giant Germs in my deck, which is two." Two more Giant Germs (2/1000/100) appeared on his field in place of the destroyed one. It was exactly the play everyone predicted.

But Darlene did not see a failure with that play, even though she took damage and still gave Eldar more monsters. She just evened the field. With Double Coston's effect enabling it to act as two Tributes for a dark monster, now the field was set for both duelists to have two Tributes available. "I set one more card and my turn."

Darlene 8000 – 500 = 7500: Eldar 7000 – 700 = 6300.

"Very good," Eldar chuckled. He pulled one of his Germs off the display just as Darlene expected, but he only pulled one—not two! "Giant Germ is Tribute for Caius, Shadow Monarch (6/2400/1000)." The field was hit with a column of darkness that slowly parted to reveal a giant wearing black armor and a heavy cape. With broad shoulders and black armor shielding his identity, Caius was an imposing figure. He held his hand together and began to charge a Dark Core. "He banishes a monster." Caius propelled the Dark Core into Double Coston, absorbing the dual ghost into a black hole and removing it without a trace. "Now can attack."

"Wrong. I play a second Zoma the Spirit (4/1800/500)." For the second time in as many turns, a zombie with the appearance of a dragon defended Darlene's avatar, upsetting Caius's attack by triggering a replay.

"Another one," Eldar said with a chuckle. "Attack with Germ (1000)." His Giant Germ launched itself at Zoma like a volleyball being spiked. Upon collision, the zombie burst like a balloon, and noxious fumes scattered across the field. "Attack now with Caius (2400)." The colossal figure held out his right arm with the palm facing Darlene. In one swift motion he turned his wrist over and squeezed his fingers into a fist, and a tidal wave of dark shadows washed over Darlene and her avatar.

For just a moment, Darlene was unable to see or hear anything. It was a comfortable and familiar feeling. As a kid, she used to hide from her abusive father in the crawl space beneath the stairs of their mansion. Darkness settled her nerves. In that moment, she saw Eldar for what he was: An ambitious and unqualified clerk who bought his way into this tournament for a chance to press his way into an elite group, even though it was undeserved.

Darlene's resolve was firmed as the darkness dispersed. "Anything else?"

"Tough girl," Eldar admitted. "Turn end."

Darlene 7500 – 1000 – 2400 = 4100: Eldar 6300 – 1000 = 5300.

"Good. I play Vice Dragon (5/-1000/-1200), and I play Inferno Reckless Summon on top." A fierce-looking dragon with dull purple scales and spikes protruding from its head and joints burst onto the field with a wave of fire. In rapid succession, two identical dragons appeared on the field beside it, giving Darlene three monsters on the field.

"Good combo." Eldar was right about the combo's effectiveness. Vice Dragon could only be Special Summoned from the hand when the opponent has a monster and the duelist does not, but the summoning of such a high-level monster for free came at the cost of cutting its attack and defense power in half. That exchange was the key for the combo. Inferno Reckless Summon activated when Darlene Special Summoned a monster with fewer than 1500 attack points. Had her monster kept its full power, her Spell could not activate. Played successfully, her Spell let her summon two additional copies of her Vice Dragon.

But Inferno Reckless Summon also let Eldar summon multiple copies of any monster on his field. "I pull Caius, Shadow Monarch (6/2400/1000) from my deck," he said as he played a second copy of his powerful monster card. Now the presence of two powerful entities of darkness loomed over his field.

Slipping her three Vice Dragons from the field, Darlene declared, "I play The Wicked Avatar (10/?/?)." Darkness spilled from the air like a sudden downpour. As the mist covered the ground and filled the air, the shadows seemed to accumulate in one spot, beginning as a small collection and growing into an enormous, black orb. Slowly, the black orb began shifting in shape: After a few seconds of remolding, the former orb now looked like a jet-black version of Caius the Shadow Monarch (+2500/+2500). "Of all the god cards out there, The Wicked Avatar is the most powerful in contest. It was designed to destroy all other god cards."

"God-slaying god card," Eldar noted. "Then maybe it best to beat without using god card."

"You can't beat a god without a god of your own!" Darlene challenged.

Eldar motioned back toward Bryan, where Matt used to be. "Little boy did it in last duel."

"That's ridiculous. Maybe he beat those two unknown god cards with a Darklord, but The Wicked Avatar is on a whole other level. Your Monarchs won't measure up. For two turns, you can't activate Spells or Traps, and the Avatar is always the strongest monster on the field."

"It can still be target of effect cards."

"No, it can't," Darlene insisted. She dropped another card from her hand. "I play March of the Monarchs." Fire swept across the field surrounding The Wicked Avatar, scorching the land and throwing shadows on the Avatar's body. "You think your pitiful cards can still stand against The Wicked Avatar when I give it the power to resist the Monarchs?" There were undoubtedly more cards in Eldar's deck just like Caius, and many of them carried devastating effects which made them Kings of their elements. March of the Monarchs prevented any effects from targeting monsters that Darlene summoned by Tribute.

"Destroy that Germ (1000)!" she shouted. She quickly caught herself getting emotional and suppressed it. As if it helped keep her emotions in check, she brushed the collar of her coat while her shape-shifting god launched its attack. Avatar-Caius raised both arms simply, extended them toward the floating sphere, and then launched an invisible burst of energy that collided with the Giant Germ so solidly that Eldar's monster flattened with the front intact while the backside exploded. The Avatar's attack had such grace and power that it obliterated the opposing monster without damaging the spot of the attack in any way. But the attack hurt Eldar. He knelt and hugged himself tightly, betraying immense joint pain he must have felt in the moment.

Darlene calmly pressed the button on the station to end her turn.

Darlene 4100 – 500 = 3600: Eldar 5300 – 1500 = 3800.

Slowly and through great effort, Eldar climbed back to his feet, though he had to use the duel display board as a crutch. "Avatar hits good. It will be difficult opponent to kill."

"Good luck," Darlene scoffed disbelievingly.

"Spasibo. I have two Caius on field. I use both to summon Light and Darkness Dragon (8/2800/2400)." A large, two-tailed dragon emerged on the field. Standing tall on two legs and wings spread wide, the dragon's distinctive feature was its color. Straight down the middle of the dragon's body, it appeared to be the joining of a white dragon with a black dragon. Exactly half of the dragon was black or white. And as big and powerful as Light and Darkness Dragon was, The Wicked Avatar took the same form. Without Caius on the field to mimic, the Avatar (+2900) took on the shape of a jet-black, two-tailed dragon.

"Useless," Darlene muttered. She referred to the fact that no monster would ever be more powerful than The Wicked Avatar. It would always grow to be the strongest card on the field.

Eldar looked through his cards. "Hmm. I forget my plan. Turn end."

Darlene gasped. What idiocy! Maybe he thought his dragon's ability to negate effects would actually stop The Wicked Avatar from changing its attack points. Or maybe he was setting up the field for another Monarch that he hoped would destroy her god card. Was Eldar mocking her with such simplistic strategies because she was still so young? He had no clue what her power was. She was a girl who sold out her father to Ingrid Lund and became the figurehead of his company to join the Hellfire Club. To a man who had always treated her as a burden who was only capable of being sold to expand his empire, Darlene had dealt the ultimate vengeance blow. There was nothing Eldar ever did that could measure up to that!

"Avatar (2900) attacks your Light and Darkness Dragon (2800)." Her black dragon snarled and reared back. It opened its jaws, and two streams of black fire moved across the field like intertwining tendrils as they speared Light and Darkness Dragon through the belly. The tendrils separated and split the dragon in two.

Eldar wheezed hideously when his dragon was stabbed. For a moment, he held his hand over his belly as he himself had received the point of the attack. Slowly, he regained his breath. For a moment, he even appeared to be cold. Suffering The Wicked Avatar's attacks weakened his body's resistance to the cold. But he was still able to move and smile to himself.

"I remember strategy. When Dragon is destroyed, he summons Monarch from my Graveyard. Kuraz, Light Monarch (6/2400/1000)." His new Monarch stood as tall as Caius but with completely opposing strength. Whereas Caius had been shrouded in shadows, Kuraz donned full golden armor and gave off light as bright as the sun. The ring on his back held in place a mantle of golden thread that gave him tremendous size on the field.

And then The Wicked Avatar (+2500/+2500) took on the form of Kuraz's armor, but instead of producing light, it was jet-black and absorbed all light. Without any shadows on the armor at all, looking at the Avatar was like looking into an abyss… until Kuraz's light began to shine even brighter.

"When Kuraz summons, he destroys cards on field."

After wincing for a moment in the face of such bright light, Darlene growled, "You still can't target The Wicked Avatar for destruction. It has the power to resist the Monarchs."

"That is why I target Spell," Eldar explained. Kuraz's light had shone with such intensity that the March of the Monarchs effect on Darlene's side of the field dissipated, and its remnants formed the shape of a new card, which Darlene drew from the deck. "Now god card can be targeted."

"Good luck with that!" Darlene snapped. "I set one card." She again pressed the button to end her turn.

Darlene 3600: Eldar 3800 – 100 = 3700.

Eldar staggered momentarily as he reached for his deck. "God card hit harder than I think." He groaned and picked up his card. "Okay. Time to see if Monarchs more powerful than Wicked god. Kuraz is Tribute to play Zaborg, Thunder Monarch (5/2400/1000)." The Monarch in the golden armor disappeared and a new warrior appeared, clad in iron armor like that of a shogun's honor guard. The Thunder Monarch pulled two streams of lightning from its chest piece and channeled them into the palms of his hands, where he collected it for use. That was to force his body to generate more lightning. When he had sufficient levels, he forced all the collected lightning back inside his chest, which overloaded his armor and sent residual lightning energy into the sky. A heavy column of lightning stamped down on top of the jet-black form of The Wicked Avatar.

"Amateur," Darlene grumbled. "The powers of your pitiful Monarchs is nothing before a god!" She pointed out her Trap. "The Wicked Avatar can completely Overwhelm your monster!" Sure enough, her god card managed to deflect the lightning at the last second. Releasing its own aura with overwhelming intensity, the Avatar pushed all of that lightning energy right back at Zaborg, disintegrating the Thunder Monarch instantly. The Avatar's attack even added a little of its own power, which struck Eldar and caused him to grip his shoulders in pain.

The Overwhelm card negated his monster's effect and destroyed it. Eldar had to come up with something else if he didn't want to get run over completely in the next turn. "I banish Spell from Graveyard to summon Spell Striker (3/600/200)." His monster was a cartoonish warrior wearing blue armor and a red cape, wielding a wand-sized spear with a crooked head.

And as always, The Wicked Avatar (+700/+700) took on a nearly identical form.

"Avatar strong," Eldar admitted. The look in his eye betrayed his attempt at confidence. He was finally noticing how likely it was for him to lose this duel. None of the god cards was a pushover, and as the anti-god unit, The Wicked Avatar was the strongest of all!

"What now?" Darlene asked.

"Lucky. Spell Striker skips monsters." He may have lost something in translation, but Darlene got the point when his monster swung his wand and instantaneously struck her Life Point avatar directly. From all the way across the field, a swing of the wand must have opened some sort of wormhole that carried the attack all the extra distance. "Turn end now."

Darlene 3600 – 600 = 3000: Eldar 3700.

How could anyone expect to win against a god card without playing even a single Spell or Trap card? Did Eldar not have any at all in his deck? Maybe he somehow knew he was going up against The Wicked Avatar and its ability to negate support cards.

No! This was just an old man who was stumbling through the duel so far. How he kept the score so close was just a fluke. It's because The Wicked Avatar relied on skillful strength instead of brute, overpowered force like the other gods. If her god had 4000 points like so many other gods, the duel would be over already. Well, now was a good opportunity to bring the duel that much closer.

"I summon Hardened Armed Dragon (4/1500/800)." The creature was a dragon that had removed its scales in exchange for a protective skeleton and a dangerous aura. Its body consisted of nothing more than bones, muscles, and teeth, all made doubly fearsome when copied by the blackened body of The Wicked Avatar (+1600/+1600). Her skeletal dragon darted across the field and used its bony wings to rip through Spell Striker (600) as if he were fighting with cardboard. "And now you're wide open." The black Avatar used the same motion, dashing across the field as the speed of Shadow and lashed horrifically with its wings thrashing Eldar's Life Point avatar.

Darlene 3000: Eldar 3700 – 1600 = 2100.

No one got a clear view of what happened to Eldar during that attack. He leaned over toward the display with his head between his arms. In reality, he passed out for a couple of minutes with his hands frozen to the display panel. But the cold air stung him harshly and he awoke with a jolt. His joints ached terribly. If the cold were any less effective at numbing his pain, he may not be able to continue. The Wicked Avatar was perfectly able to inflict the kind of pain that would last through the rest of his life. It might have been easier to compete against a god that would simply knock him out.

"I have no new thing," Eldar announced sadly. It took him tremendous effort, but he managed to move two cards to the display. "Set one monster and set one card. Turn end."

"Then this duel is over. I play Double Coston (4/1700/1650)." She summoned to the field a dual ghost just like the one Darlene had played earlier. Now that a new monster appeared on the field, The Wicked Avatar (+1800/+1800) became a jet-black and more powerful version of that monster. "Hardened Armed Dragon (1500) attacks your monster." And then my other monsters end your life, she added mentally. Her skeletal dragon darted across the field and lashed out with its bony wings only to find the bones unable to pierce the scythe of a robed Spirit Reaper (3/300/200).

"A Spirit Reaper?" Darlene gasped. Didn't that old man just say he had no moves to make?

"Is not destroyed in battle," Eldar clarified. "All I could do to save Life Points. Unless you can attack directly?"

"I end my turn," Darlene said with a noticeable sneer. She was trying to hide her emotions, but she struggled to put up with the indignation she felt toward Eldar's attitude. She had a god card on the field. Only certain people in all the world were even capable of holding a god card without suffering a mental breakdown, and for her to do it so young! And she had to waste her time dueling against one of the Diamonds, who most certainly did not have a god card in their whole suit. It was only a matter of time, but the time was wasted, and that frustrated her. "At least do something interesting," she grumbled.

He offered a smile in return. "As you wish. Spirit Reaper is Tribute for Raiza, Storm Monarch (6/2400/1000)." The wind kicked up on the field until a veritable cyclone touched down and produced a monster wearing full green armor with metallic feathers glinting off the helmet. The Wicked Avatar began taking new form to mimic Raiza's, but that's when the cyclone shifted. "Avatar is most vulnerable while changing," Eldar explained. "Raiza has effect to expel monster from field and put back on top of your deck."

The intensity of the cyclone increased dramatically as it lifted The Wicked Avatar from the field. The whipping winds shoved aside the Shadows that drifted along the field, clearing out the influence of the Shadow Realm along with their god card representation. The field presence of the Avatar disappeared completely. And the only way for it to return was for Darlene to find three Tributes again. She had three Tributes available at the moment, but…

"Raiza (2400) attacks Double Coston (1700)." His windstorm Monarch swiped one arm in front of his chest and hurled a sharp blast of wind at the dual ghost, and then he whipped his arm back and punched the other arm straight forward. The result was two consecutive blades of wind followed by a wind tunnel that sliced Double Coston into millions of tiny pieces and destroyed it at a molecular level. "Turn end."

Darlene 3000 – 700 = 2300: Eldar 2100.

Darlene did not need to look at the card as she drew The Wicked Avatar from the top of her deck. She set a monster and switched her Hardened Armed Dragon to defense mode. With nothing else to do, she had to end her turn.

For the first time since seeing The Wicked Avatar, Eldar was able to draw and relax slightly. The cold still kept him largely numb, but relaxing did accentuate the pain he was feeling. "I use Reborn Tengu (4/1700/600)." The monster appeared to be a man as old as Eldar was, but closer inspection showed that what one might first see as wrinkles and a big nose were actually feathers and a beak. Wielding a katana and wakizashi in either hand, the Tengu was a mix of man and bird. "Tengu will destroy Armed Dragon (800)." His doubly-armed bird of prey deftly avoided the bones protecting the Hardened Armed Dragon and severed the muscles instead. Hardened Armed Dragon collapsed in a pile of bones. "Raiza (2400) attacks other monster."

Raiza slashed two wind strikes at Darlene's face-down monster, but when he started the wind tunnel, the slashes bounced right off her fleshy monster and ricocheted back at Eldar. Darlene flipped over Marshmallon (3/300/500), a monster that couldn't be destroyed in battle, just like the Spirit Reaper. But this one also inflicted 1000 points of damage whenever the opponent attacked it while face-down.

"Turn end."

Darlene 2300: Eldar 2100 – 1000 = 1100.

Darlene accidentally let show a smile when she drew her next card. She stifled it, though. It was time to bring her god card back to the field. "I play Monster Reborn to Special Summon Double Coston from the Graveyard."

Just as the hole opened in the ground, two armed sentries appeared over the hole and shoved Double Coston back into the ground. "I play Royal Oppression." The closest Eldar ever came to laughing was when he smiled and tilted his head at the same time. "You think I did not have Trap cards, did you? It only cost me 800 points."

"You don't have many more to work with," Darlene pointed out.

"I maybe don't need them."

Darlene growled as she ended her turn. At least she still had Marshmallon to defend her, and she had other ways to swarm her field. On her next turn, she'd have a way to bring her god card back to the field. That would bring an end to the duel and to her frustration with Eldar's resistance. The last assault almost knocked him out completely. The old man wouldn't be able to survive another attack.

Darlene 2300: Eldar 1100 – 800 = 300.

"Is time to destroy Wicked Avatar," Eldar announced.

Darlene began laughing hysterically. "Are you crazy? How on earth could you possibly destroy a god card? It's not even on the field! My hand is the safest place it could be!"

"Not anymore. Tengu is Tribute for Thestalos, Firestorm Monarch (6/2400/1000)." A small hole opened on the field and sucked the Reborn Tengu into a hill of fire. A fire spout started and spewed out a pillar of intense flames. When they subsided, it left a warrior wearing armor stained red by the fire. This Monarch hurled a ball of fire straight at Darlene's hand and ignited the only card she was holding: The Wicked Avatar (10). Darlene winced from the attack and tried to shake the pain from her hand. "Also inflicts damages." Discarding a monster through Thestalos's effect caused the card's owner to lose 100 points per star level.

Darlene 2300 – 1000 = 1300: Eldar 300.

Darlene couldn't believe the situation she was in. Somehow this old man managed to remove her invincible god card from the field and then send it straight to the Graveyard. Nothing was supposed to be stronger than The Wicked Avatar! It was expressly designed to destroy other god cards. How could an over-the-hill nut with a run-of-the-mill Monarch deck defeat the ultimate god?

And what did she draw? A third Zoma the Spirit! That wasn't much good now. Then again, she only needed to deal 300 more points of damage. Zoma would make that easy if Eldar was stupid enough to attack it. Even if he wasn't, she'd be able to hold onto two monsters for a while. Her deck would definitely give her a big monster soon enough. With Marshmallon and Zoma, she was protected. With only 300 points, Eldar was dead meat.

She set Zoma and ended her turn wordlessly.

Eldar drew and, without changing his expression at all, said, "How fun. I use Enemy Controller." A giant controller for a video game console appeared on the field, and Marshmallon twitched, clearly the target of the effect.

The perfect situation for Darlene. At first, she felt frustrated and furious that her only defensive monster was about to fall under Eldar's control. But then she realized that Eldar's card was actually pointless because she still had Zoma the Spirit. Eldar wouldn't be able to attack without killing himself. He just wasted his Spell card.

"Spell puts marshmallow in attack mode."

"What?!" Darlene forgot that Enemy Controller had two effects: Eldar could have taken control of Marshmallon, but he decided to change Marshmallon's battle position instead. In attack mode, the fleshy monster still wouldn't be destroyed, but it couldn't protect Darlene's Life Points, either. Thestalos (2400) hurled a barrage of fireballs at Marshmallon (300). It was like watching a tennis player do returns practice against a flaming machine gun. Marshmallon resisted the damage and deflected the fire damage, but the ricochets still struck Darlene.

Did she actually just lose a duel to the Jack of Diamonds?

Darlene 1300 – 2100 = 0: Eldar 300.

Surprise overtook every spectator. It looked like the king of the Wicked Gods in the hands of the Ace of Clubs was defeated in battle by the Jack of Diamonds wielding nothing more than the impressive but far-from-unbeatable Monarchs. It was amazing to most. One of the god cards actually fell in battle without being destroyed by another god. Well, Bryan defeated one by fusing his god with an Elemental Hero, and Matt defeated two with a card that was not a god. But in this case, it never even faced another god!

Ren Bacon didn't even notice that part. A fifteen-year-old girl losing a duel to a man with four times her experience was just the natural order of things to him. But the course of events in that duel proved his suspicion: Eldar Vanko didn't have a god card! He snuck into the tournament illegally!

It took two medics to give Eldar's heavy body enough support to make it to the examination table. A man his age had a hard enough time moving without suffering excessive joint pain and numbing cold. By the time he sat down where the medics could observe him, Ren lunged forward in a contained rage and shouted, "Eldar Vanko is disqualified!"

No one immediately understood his reasoning. Joker asked him, "Why?"

"All participants are required to possess at least one god card! He doesn't have one!"

"He does have one," Joker argued. He tossed a card through the air, and it landed in the snow right in front of Eldar's seat. The medic picked up and handed to him The Wicked Avatar. "That is his prize for defeating the Ace of Clubs."

Ren's face looked like it would literally catch fire from fury. "That's unacceptable! The rules clearly indicated only current holders of god cards could participate in this tournament. You, yourself, confessed to knowing that two Egyptian Gods and one of the Wicked Gods are not present. We've already seen the three Aesir, and you even let those two kids play their god cards that absolutely no one knew about." Bryan stole a glance at Zeke, who didn't look the least bit intimidated by Ren's rant.

"You set the invitations," Joker explained. "The list was expanded over your head."

"By the Overlord?" Ren snapped. All the members of the Hellfire Club went silent, and try as they might not to draw attention and further suspicion to Bryan, Zeke, and Garry, it was obvious those three were the only outsiders to the conversation. "Please. What can they glean from a single title? They won't live through this tournament, anyway."

Joker continued, "The decision was made. The tournament continues. Eldar Vanko proceeds to the next round."

For a moment, it felt as if that were it and everything would continue as planned.

"I don't think so," Ren grumbled. "Ace!" The big man with the mirror sunglasses stepped up and signaled to the Numbers scattered around the room. Suddenly each and every one of them drew firearms and pointed them at the leaders of the Hellfire Club, with no fewer than four pistols trained on Joker himself. Ren sneered. "I warned you not to betray me. We're going to do this the easy way. All the god cards belong to me now."

---

I got a kick out of this chapter, story-wise. The duel had a lot of uneventful turns, but that's partly because my new strategy for writing duels involves creating a duel list, shuffling the cards, and playing them as if I had them in hand. (This is probably a strategy other people have used for a long time, but it's new for me.) I hope the ending threw you a turn.

I need to take a break next week, but I'll be back in two weeks to see what happens now that Ren has taken everyone hostage.