Chapter 24: Escape from The Underworld
The advantage Cary Strickland drew from having once been student assistant to the headmaster of Duel Academy was that almost all professors felt indebted to her. Asking favors was no trick for her. The advantage to being cunning and a bit of a wordsmith was that she could get really big favors by convincing faculty members there was no feasible alternative to her suggestion.
Today's docket comprised sending two responsible seniors to visit a known den of dueling degradation. (Perhaps the alliteration distracted them from the legal ramifications.) They flew out on a Kaiba Corp. helicopter to the west coast of the United States where they boarded a passenger flight toward Philadelphia. Once there, they disembarked and were greeted at the airport by the great Dave Strickland—star graduate of Duel Academy known throughout as the most versatile user of Exodia the Forbidden One.
Dave was dressed in his old Academy uniform to make himself easy to spot. The blue coat and pants still fit well, though the coat had gotten a bit tighter in the belly since graduation. His complexion had cleared almost completely, as well. He was growing into a fine-looking man with a slight taste of "celebrity status" in his life.
His eye showed recognition as the two current students approached. Their use of the Academy garb was just as effective as his. "Hello," said Dave. "You must be the two lucky students I'm here to meet." He looked from the male student to the female student. "Alister and Jessica, right?"
Alister nodded. "Yes, sir."
"Always so prim and proper," Jessica teased him. From his uniform being perfectly pressed to his well-set ponytail with nary a strand of hair out of place, Alister acted as though he were always on display. His girlfriend put on a much bigger grin as she offered Dave a short hug. "It's great to see you again, Dave, even if you don't remember us."
"I remember you as the tag team phenomenon everyone was talking about my junior year," he replied. "It was the first time a couple freshmen ever won the school's two-on-two tournament."
"We work best as a team," Alister admitted, putting his arm around Jessica for a shoulder hug. His hair was stark black and hers was honey blonde, and his complexion was thoroughly tanned whereas hers was merely sun-kissed. Their differences might make them seem mismatched, yet somehow they complemented one another perfectly. "Kind of a surprise to see you involved when we're talking about underground dueling."
Dave winced. "You're surprised to see me? Imagine my surprise when Andy's contacts in the underworld turned out to be my cousin! I'm sorry you two got dragged into this mess. I wish I could handle it on my own, but I have neither the interest in dragging my reputation through the mud nor my public record through jail. Odds are not good I could effectively steal this card from the woman who holds it."
"It's okay, Dave," said Jessica, reassuring him in his decision to ask for help. "We understand how important it is to retrieve these new god cards and return them to Duel Academy." It still sounded bizarre to her to say aloud. Jessica had always thought of the god cards as nothing more than collectibles. But Bryan Knight had spent the past several weeks constantly asking around about new gods, always curious what news people could tell him. There were few secrets where he was in the loop. His sincere belief in "magic" god cards wasn't enough to convince her, nor were the rumors of the god cards dragging students to the Shadow Realm, but when someone as genuine as Dave was fearful, it gave her pause.
"Whether it's a portal to another world," Alister mocked, "or a valuable trinket, we're not leaving without that card. Just show us where to find it."
With a concerned look, Dave said, "You do realize that participating in The Underworld could undercut your future dueling careers even before they get started, don't you?"
"Our reputations won't be at stake here," said Alister. If he didn't dirty himself up or sweet-talk his way into the VIP box, he would stand out like a Yugi Mutou impersonator in a dive like that.
"You do know how things work in The Underworld, right?"
"We know the story you told Andy, at least as he told it to Cary. Seedy underbelly hosting the dregs of society who actually draw blood from one another with depleting Life Points. At first we expected it to be like Vic's Duel Club, but even he has some decorum. There, amateur duelists just pay for a chance to feel the glory of dueling with high-level decks."
Jessica added, "Neither of us is going to get beat up over this card, nor would either of us be any use trying to beat up someone else. Can you imagine what it would do to my dainty hands if I punched someone? We're meeting an old friend."
"Another contact? Who?" Dave asked.
Jessica said, "A former Duel Academy student. Romulus Malligan."
"Malligan? I don't know that name."
"He was a freshman the year after you graduated," she continued.
Dave shook his head and he tried to process the thought of adding yet another person to this situation over a card that may not even be what he thought it was. "Why did he leave?"
Clearing his throat first, Alister answered, "Officially, he decided it wasn't for him. But if the rumors hold any clout, he was widely feared for attacking women—in a stalking, duel-in-the-dark kind of way, possibly ending in some form of assault."
"Seriously?" Dave was visibly exasperated by this news. Hard to blame him, though. "Do you trust the kind of guy who would attack women at night?" He looked to Jessica primarily for reassurance.
"Weird as it sounds," she said, "Cary says he's honorable. The darkness within him is way deeper than in most people, but he's fighting it." She shrugged. "I don't know, either. It sounds weird, but Cary trusts him and we don't have much other choice."
Dave's head shook once with purpose. It was the same move as if there were a tic in his shoulder. "Well, I've turned everything over to you. I trust Cary's instincts, and so this is your arrangement now. Do what you think is right."
Because the flight got into Philadelphia early in the morning, Alister and Jessica took the chance to do some sightseeing in one of the nation's colonial capitals, viewing such sights as Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. They had not completed their historical tour before jet lag set in. If they were to remain alert upon meeting up with Dave that night, they needed sleep. Cary's network of contacts put them in touch with another Duel Academy alumnus who had a spare room for them to borrow until their return flight. (Saving money as much as possible was one of the stipulations to Cary's deal with the administrative staff.)
An hour after sunset, Dave escorted the young duelists to the building where they would find The Underworld. He vouched for them with the Ving Rhames-looking bouncer and then took off. No need for him to be spotted in such a shady place twice within the week when it could tarnish his professional dueling reputation.
Inside, the couple found themselves overwhelmed by stimulation. First the smell overtook them: The place reeked of booze, smoke, and blood. The second overbearing factor was the look of the general populace, from trashy women dressed in skimpy clothes to drugged-out men wearing mere rags drenched in blood. The sounds also overcame them in the form of pained shrieks and raucous jeering. It was exactly how Jessica had pictured Guantanamo to look on the inside.
She nudged closer to Alister and whispered, "I'm scared."
He held her firm. All the noise in the world couldn't prevent his understanding what she'd said. "Me, too, sweetie."
And then they spotted Romulus. His muscular body was like a concrete stanchion built into the ground, with people walking around him just so they didn't have to collide with his bulk. His hair had possibly grayed more than Jessica remembered, but his expression was stony as ever. If he ever looked happy in his life, it wasn't an event she had witnessed. A Duel Disk decorated his arm. It was still the same Academy-issue Duel Disk he received as a celebratory gift from his father upon acceptance into Duel Academy.
Romulus made eye contact with the two and held it for a moment. "There he is," Jessica said. She and Alister started in his direction, but Romulus broke his gaze and walked away. "Where is he going?"
"I don't know. I guess we follow him."
As expected, Alister's flawless appearance turned several heads and earned him a few catcalls, despite Jessica being right there with him. Short of the elegance of catcalls, Jessica struggled to ignore blatant attempts to hook up with her as if she were a sexual object and nothing more. Only five minutes and both students were ready to leave and block out all memory of that place.
Romulus never slowed to let them catch up. He walked straight to a strange cage that stretched from the floor to the ceiling. He exchanged words with the burly guy outside the cage, who let him step inside. The cage was promptly locked behind him. Standing across from him was a woman with a slightly husky build. She wore a sports bra and torn yoga pants, revealing a sinewy body that, while not perfectly fit, clearly had some muscle beneath her skin. Jessica feared that if she were ever punched by that woman, her head might disconnect from her neck.
"Is that her?" Alister asked. "The one with the god card?"
"I don't know. She doesn't seem bothered by the idea of dueling against a man. Cary told us the woman with that card was practically fearless, so it fits. I guess…" She paused as she looked around. The environment did not offer her any comfort, but there was a section near the VIP box where few of the undesirable elements loitered. "…we just find someplace to watch?"
Alister agreed. "I suppose so. If Romulus wins and is as trustworthy as Cary claims, he should find us after the duel."
Nestled at the side of the room but still with minds unsettled, Alister and Jessica watched cautiously as the duel before them unfolded.
Romulus took the first turn. He gave his hand the once-over and maintained his sneer on his opponent. "D.D. Survivor (4/1800/200)," he said as a blond man dressed in segmented metal stepped onto the field. He briefly held up a card before placing it face-down in his Spell/Trap Zone. The shifting of the lights on the Duel Disks indicated the end of his turn.
Romulus had never been much of a talker back at Duel Academy, but his opponent was an arrogant chatterbox. Amber Tag had the build of a woman in the military, which was the only place she ever truly felt at home. The Underworld offered a next-best-thing for her because, unlike with the military, repeatedly punching annoying people in the face did not carry a penalty to eject her from the organization. Her knuckles ached each day from the previous night's beating, and she thrived on that feeling. Luckily for her, tonight's opponent looked like a scrappy one!
"I'd venture a guess, based on your monster there, that you like to swarm the field with cards that have been banished from the game. So I'm sure you know how it feels to be swarmed. I'm going to activate Black Whirlwind!" The wind kicked up around the field, creating a cyclone tinted black by the billowing down caught within the wild gusts. "This card brings another Blackwing monster to my hand anytime I summon one to the field. Can you feel the swarm coming?" If she hoped for a reaction from Romulus, she was barking up the wrong whirlwind. He was stoic. "Well, I'm going to play a second one!" The whirlwind intensified slightly, but no discernible difference occurred on-field from her duplicate Spell.
Romulus shook his head. He had been told Cary was looking for some card that resembled a bird, and here his opponent played a Blackwing deck. Oh, well. Any card as powerful as Cary hinted and he would probably know it when he saw it.
"I'm summoning Blackwing – Bora the Spear (4/1700/800)." A humanoid bird wielding an oversized lance appeared on the field from outside the whirlwinds. "With his summoning, I get to move not one but two Blackwings to my hand as long as they have fewer points than Bora does." She pulled out her deck to look around. "Now, let's see…"
Suddenly lightning struck the sky. It was difficult to see at first, but the whirlwinds weakened as one of the cards fell from the field. "Mystical Space Typhoon," was all Romulus uttered. His Spell destroyed one of Amber's Spells.
She grunted in reply. Her initial reaction—hidden well but easily spotted to those paying attention—was surprise and fear. The anger that followed must have been prompted by her own contempt for feeling caught off-guard during a duel. "Fine. I just move one Blackwing to my hand: Zephyros the Elite. But I can choose to Special Summon from my hand Blackwing – Gladius the Midnight Sun (3/800/1500)," a second humanoid bird seen dual-wielding broad-bladed arming swords in a defensive stance. "I will set one card down and then end my turn."
Romulus 8000: Amber 8000.
Romulus nodded just once to acknowledge the start of his turn. Drawing from his deck, he immediately played the same card. "One for One," he announced. Dropping Necro Gardna into his Graveyard, he summoned Mad Reloader (1/0/0)—a small fiend monster with four horns curling around its head—from his Deck in defense mode. The indication Romulus gave of an attack was pointing from his D.D. Survivor (1800) to Bora the Spear (1700).
"I think not," said Amber. "My face-down card is Black Sonic. With this, a vortex appears and protects my monsters from battle by banishing yours from the game!" A flurry of black feathers swept into the vortex alongside the blond warrior.
But even though Romulus had no other moves to play for that turn, his D.D. Survivor did. During the End Phase, the air within the arena rippled as a curtain. The blond warrior pushed the curtain aside and returned to the field in attack mode, as his special effect granted.
"That's no big deal," Amber brushed off the play with nonchalance. "I've got one better." She drew her card and played it straight into the Field Spell slot on her Duel Disk. "I'm going to activate Mystic Plasma Zone, a card that increases the attack of all Dark monsters by 500, in exchange lowering their defense by 400." Within the swirling storm already surrounding the duelists, dark clouds descended. Jolts of lightning hopped from cloud to cloud and occasionally to the ground, lighting the arena with sporadic flashes of blue and white. "Now I'm going to summon Blackwing – Zephyros the Elite (4/+2100/-600)." Both strengthened and weakened by the added electricity in the air, the third birdman came armed with clawed gauntlets sharp enough to rend a tree trunk in a few swipes.
The Black Whirlwind grew more intense momentarily. "Remember the effect of my other card? When I summon a Blackwing, I can move a weaker one from my deck to my hand—something like Gale the Whirlwind. Actually, I don't think I like that card in my hand. I might just be able to summon it to the field since I already have a Blackwing." The smallest of the bunch, Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind (3/+1800/-0) was notable by the distinctive green down on its head when the rest of its feathers were blue. "Cool, huh? Sad how your swarm deck isn't doing a thing against mine? Even cooler is this!" Gale flapped its wings forcefully, whipping up a smaller storm localized around D.D. Survivor (-1150/-0). "Gale's effect cuts your monster's power in half! Aren't you impressed?"
Romulus hardly moved. One would have to shake him to be sure he was awake.
"Fine," Amber said with a grumble. She squeezed her fist until her knuckles popped loudly. "Then I'll get your attention myself. I want to tune Gale (3) with Zephyros (4) to summon the Synchro monster called Blackwing Armor Master (7/+3000/-1100)." Her two monsters resonated in a storm of vibrating plumage until they emerged united as a larger birdman, bulky with sinewy muscles and red markings accenting the black armor. The darkness of the storm agreed with him; it blended him well with the backdrop, increasing his ferocity. "Attack D.D. Survivor," she commanded. Armor Master took flight across the field, allowing the winds to carry him aloft to gain greater speeds, ending in a devastating blow that annihilated the metal armor worn by his opponent.
A creepy grin crawled across Amber's face. "You were the first to lose Life Points in our match," she said to her seemingly hapless opponent. "Do you know what that means here, in this place?" Romulus offered no words, but he braced himself. Amber folded her cards in her hand and trotted across the field until she stood before her opponent. Following suit with her monster's attack, she pulled back and whipped her fist into Romulus's belly just beneath the ribcage. As he doubled over, she sauntered back to her side of the field.
There was notable pleasure in her voice as she spoke, "Now attack Mad Reloader (0)." Bora the Spear (+2200) launched with his enormous lance cutting through the winds like a rocket, easily piercing the defenseless fiend. The holographic spear reached through the monster and might have pierced Romulus directly, had it any mass. But Amber had mass, and her monster's effect pierced any defense to inflict damage regardless. "It's time for another beating!" she shouted excitedly. The first punch had only been a warmup. For this follow-up strike, Amber ran full-speed and thrust her open hand toward her opponent's neck.
Romulus could hardly breathe for a full minute after the attack, coughing and wheezing regularly as he struggled to catch his breath.
"You survived!" Amber rejoiced aloud. "Many people do not take a hit like that so well. I admire you for that. I am going to enjoy the rest of our duel."
Romulus 8000 – 1850 – 2200 = 3950: Amber 8000.
Through great effort, Romulus managed to finish his portion of Amber's turn. When his Mad Reloader was destroyed, he had the opportunity to discard two of his D.D. Scout Planes from his hand to draw two new cards from the deck. Amber had no other moves, and so he began his turn, seated on the floor until he felt renewed.
"Allu—!" was all he spoke before the phlegm in his throat blocked his airway. With a heavy cough to clear passage, he tried again. "Allure of Darkness." Darkness surrounded his deck as he drew two cards. He banished a card from his hand as recompense for the two drawn. "Banisher of the Radiance (3/1600/0)," he said, stopping twice more to clear his throat. His monster was a gleaming, almost robotic fairy with red wings. He placed two cards face-down on the field and leaned back to continue his recovery. As his turn came to a close, D.D. Scout Plane (2/+1300/-800) entered the field through an opening in the void. Using the effect of Allure of Darkness, Romulus had banished the monster, but its effect brought it back to the field in attack mode.
"Oh, please," she mocked him. "Don't get up on my account. I can always deliver your beating while you lie flat on your ass. Can't we, Bora?" Her lance-wielding birdman rocketed through the whirlwind again toward Banisher of the Radiance.
"Ghosts from the Past," said Romulus as his Trap Card rose from the floor. Astral forms of two D.D. Scout Planes wrapped cables around the lance of Bora the Spear, relieving all the physical pressure behind his attack and leaving it harmless. By the time Banisher felt it, the attack was nothing more than a pinprick. Banisher struck out in retaliation, grabbing Bora's plumage with sharp claws and channeling energy of an orange hue into the birdman's body. When Bora disappeared, he did not descend into the Graveyard but rather fell into the void outside the duel. In effect, the Ghosts from the Past card had reduced Bora's attack points to 0, making Banisher of the Radiance strong enough to destroy Bora instead. And as long as Banisher remained on the field, all cards would not go to the Graveyard but would be instead banished from the game.
Romulus slowly pushed himself up. Amber's expression remained stern but for the very instant she betrayed a look of worry. She should worry; after all, Romulus outweighed her by a hundred pounds, and he had just dealt her some Battle Damage. Rubbing his neck as a reminder of his pain, Romulus approached Amber at a mere amble until he was close enough to plant an uppercut into her belly. Though he felt a strong abdomen under his knuckles, she buckled under the force of his strike, struggling herself to catch her breath.
"Sucks, doesn't it?" he spat at her. He walked back to his side of the field and sat down while he waited for her to recover.
And she recovered quickly, but she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of looking weak. Fighting the tensing muscles in her abdomen, she stood as straight as she could manage. This was the difference between them: She was strong enough to feign invincibility in front of a crowd, and he was strong enough not to care as long as he survived.
"Cheap shot," she grunted, "but it felt amazing. I thrive on the adrenaline rush of dueling in this way! Ready to suffer even more? Armor Wing (3000) attacks Scout Plane (1300)." Her warrior soared like a bird toward his mechanical target, but he never reached it. A fiendish monster adorned in broad, spiked armor intercepted the attack.
"Necro Gardna," Romulus told her. By banishing it from his Graveyard, he negated her monster's attack.
She growled in reply. It seemed that as much fun as it was to hurt people, it was less fun to be hurt back and then to be stopped from having more fun. "Fine. I am going to set one card and end my turn.
Romulus 3950: Amber 8000 – 1600 = 6400.
As Amber ended her turn, the two additional D.D. Scout Planes (+1300) Romulus had banished reappeared on the field beside their third brother.
Now Romulus had the cards he wanted. He drew another one, anyway. "D.D. Warrior Lady (4/1500/1600)"—a blonde woman dressed in silver clothes, making her more agile than her D.D. Survivor comrade.
Pointing to his three Scout Planes, Romulus simply said, "Overlay. Do you know that term?" On-field, the three monsters faded and gave rise to a lanky, faceless fiend. Its body parts were connected—oddly enough—by the void. Its torso presented a sort of mouth, with fiery eyes on its pectorals. Its faceless head bore only the number 96. "Xyz summon Number 96: Dark Mist (2/+600/-600)."
From all the way outside the arena where they stood to watch a duel between Synchros and Xyz, Alister and Jessica realized the true face of The Underworld. Vic's club gave amateur duelists a chance to imagine a life where they shined on the duel field. The Underworld brought together disgraced duelists—people with very real skills and a lack of interpersonal compassion. This place was infinitely more dangerous than anything Vic had to offer.
"Time to attack," said Romulus. Dark Mist began its approach toward Blackwing Armor Master (3000), standing just as tall as the musclebound aeronaut but with significantly less size and intimidation. As Dark Mist ambled, Romulus removed a card from his overlay. "Dark Mist has an effect." By discarding D.D. Scout Plane from his Xyz monster (Banisher of the Radiance banished the card instead), Armor Master's (-1500) power was slashed in half while Dark Mist (+2100) gained all those lost points. Its fiery pecs brighter than ever, Dark Mist rent its opponent with two swift swipes.
But Armor Master was not gone. Despite being overpowered, his armor held strong and prevented any grievous injury. In the scuffle to defend himself, one of Armor Master's feathers became lodged in between Dark Mist's fiery pectorals.
"My monster isn't destroyed by battle," Amber gloated. Romulus started to stand, but she interrupted him. "Ah! He doesn't take any Battle Damage either, so you just sit your ass back down. You're way too eager to punch a woman, anyway."
"I'm not done, either," he pointed out. His blonde D.D. Warrior Lady drew from her waist a small machete glimmering as a beacon of light energy. She rushed to the invincible Armor Master and thrust the blade into his gut. The armor did not protect him from the strike, nor was the blade intended to inflict physical wounds. Both monsters were unscathed as a hole to the void opened, drawing each party connected to the light blade into the depths. Due to her effect, D.D. Warrior Lady banished herself and her opponent from the duel. "Now, Banisher (1600) attacks." With another fierce strike of orange energy, the fairy attacked Gladius the Midnight Sun (1300), who deftly deflected the strike with an impressive dual-wielded parry.
"Once per turn, Gladius is not destroyed in battle," Amber explained. She felt a sudden pain in her jaw. She pressed her palm into her cheek to alleviate the pressure.
With a nod, Romulus ended his turn. D.D. Scout Plane returned to the field, having once more been banished to the void only to reappear in attack mode.
Amber still appeared uncomfortable as she drew her next card. That expression all but disappeared the second she laid eyes on it. Romulus had seen identical sparkles in the eye of every duelist who drew his or her trump card.
"The effect of Zephyros activates in my Graveyard," Amber explained. "I can return one of my cards to my hand—" She chose Gladius. "—to summon Zephyros (+2100) back from the Graveyard. The only punishment is a paltry 400 points of self-inflicted damage. And do you remember how I summoned Gladius the first time? Well, he can be Special Summoned as long as I have another Blackwing on the field. So now I have two monsters to Tribute and I haven't even used my Normal summon yet. Luckily I have a Field Spell all ready." Her grin was sickening, but mostly because of the level of coy hubris behind it.
The two Blackwings disappeared in favor of a giant hummingbird as tall as the caged arena. The distance from the top of its head to the tip of its beak was practically the same. Its body was blacker than the storm with orange markings matching the glow of its aura. Wings stretching from one end of the arena to the other, and tail sweeping the back of the cage, appeared to be flat—almost two-dimensional. The creature could have been a simple 3D rendering from some artist's sketchpad. "Meet Earthbound Immortal Aslla Piscu (10/+3000/-2100), guaranteed the most powerful monster you will ever face."
Having come from Duel Academy, Romulus scoffed, which hurt his ribs as a reminder of the pain he already suffered. Odds were pretty good it would happen again. He was reasonably certain this was the card Cary wanted him to find. As expected, he knew it once he saw it.
"Where did you get that card?" he asked.
"Just ask around, you newb. This card is what I'm known for down here. No one has ever been able to beat it! It can't be destroyed in battle and it gets to strike directly! It's a perfect match to a born fighter like me."
"Did you find it in a booster pack?" The direct question didn't net him the information he wanted. Maybe acting dumb would help.
"You really are a newb," she mocked. "This card is one-of-a-kind. You think it would come from any old booster pack? This is the kind of card that comes from some old sage who wants to keep it out of dangerous hands and gives it to you for safekeeping."
"Is that how you got it?"
"Sort of. There was a guy here a few months ago. He offered me a chance to buy the card from him. Said it might even elevate me to the professional level. It looked like a good card, so I humored him. He wanted a thousand dollars. The price quickly dropped when I told him I didn't have that kind of cash. When I said I'd give him twenty and he said we had a deal, I figured it was a fake card or something, else the guy was just desperate. But the card turned out to be legit. I squashed a lot of posers down here, though I'm still waiting on the scouts to call me up."
"Who was the guy?"
Amber snickered. "Why? You want to see if he got another one?"
"It can't hurt. I'm just curious."
"Well, I haven't seen him in a while. I've looked this card up online and I've never seen anything else like it. I wouldn't hold my breath on there being another."
"Did he tell you anything about the card?"
"Hah! You ask a lot of questions all of a sudden. Are you that nervous about getting your ass beat?"
"Yes? I just want to know the story behind the card."
"Well I don't know one. I only know its five effects and how to use them to take out anyone in my way. Like this way: Aslla Piscu doesn't have to deal with other monsters at all. It can attack you directly!" Despite the card being a hologram, Amber and Romulus both felt the air shift as the giant hummingbird flapped its wings. And that beak looked awfully dangerous, like an epee with the cork taken off.
Something Amber said stuck with her opponent. He thought to himself, Why would you say you're lucky to have a Field Spell? Knowing that the worst thing to happen would be reducing the damage he was about to take, he activated, "Mystical Space Typhoon." Once again, a bolt of lightning struck through the storm. But instead of making the storm more menacing, the lightning reduced its intensity.
"No!" Amber yelled. "If you destroy the Field Spell, then my monster will be destroyed with it!" She growled as she flipped her face-down card. "I play Icarus Attack. By sacrificing my monster, I can destroy your Mystical Space Typhoon and my Mystic Plasma Zone."
Romulus narrowed his eyes as he tried to piece together the logic of that play.
Amber just watched as all Aslla Piscu disappeared right before the storm and the lightning vanished. But the orange light that had surrounded Aslla Piscu's body did not fade entirely. Not until Aslla Piscu's wings reached over the field and dropped, piercing all three remaining monsters and dropping around Romulus like a cage. "At least this way Aslla's other effect activates. Tributing my monster means all your monsters are destroyed!" Romulus watched as the light consumed Dark Mist, Banisher of the Radiance, and D.D. Scout Plane. It burned so brightly it damaged his Life Points.
Romulus put his hands up defensively as Amber approached him. His chest was already burning before she hit him. "Hang on. That wasn't Battle Damage. I didn't get to hit you for Effect Damage when you used Gladius's effect."
She sputtered dismissively. "That's because I did that to myself. This is damage I dealt to you." He tried to imagine his abdomen like a washboard, as solid and tight as it could possibly be. But he couldn't predict Amber's attack order. She kicked the side of his knee, not as hard as she could have, but hard enough to make him stumble. As he did, her palm thrust upward from under his chin, and then her other palm slammed into his chest. No single attack hurt intensely, but the combined force threw him to the ground and knocked the wind out of him while leaving him with lockjaw symptoms and only one loadbearing leg. "Three hits for three monsters is fair, don't you think?"
As if her personal attacks were all that dropped him. It was Aslla Piscu that destroyed his monsters, and one of those wing blades caught him in the chest. It was a slow-growing damage, but its intensity lingered past the blunt trauma of Amber's fists.
"By the way? My turn is done."
Romulus 3950 – 2400 = 1550: Amber 6400 – 400 = 6000.
The intensity of three consecutive hits versus one harder hit was less in absolute comparison with what Romulus had already suffered, but with his endurance already reduced, the pain lingered. Recovery took almost two minutes before he could sit up again. When he did, he took solace in the fact that Amber had no cards still protecting her.
"Wind-Up Rabbit (3/1400/600)," he spoke. A robotic bunny pieced together from red and white struts and springs hopped onto the field. Romulus pressed a button on his Duel Disk and the Rabbit bounced across the field until it stood before Amber. In one swift maneuver, it hoped into the air, drop-kicked her with its elongated feet across her entire torso, and landed deftly on the ground with all the grace of its namesake. The direct attack earned him a chance to attack his opponent, but Romulus was feeling the pain calling him to lie down. Resisting the temptation, he climbed to his feet and crane-kicked Amber in the chest. The force thrust her into the cage wall and she rebounded into a face-plant.
On his way back to his seat, Romulus thought, Oh, that hurt.
Perhaps Amber was made of sterner stuff than Romulus was. Or perhaps she borrowed strength from the spirit of the Earthbound Immortal in her deck. Either way, she was back on her feet in much less time than it took Romulus to attack.
Romulus 1550: Amber 6000 – 1400 = 4600
She rubbed the sore spot on her chest. "A crane kick? Really?" She seemed disgusted by his choice of movie motivation. "You're going down now, punk." She drew her card and considered her options for a moment. "I'm going to put one card face-down on the field and end my turn."
"That's it?" Romulus blurted out. "After that arrogant drivel, you're going to pass this turn?"
"Damage me like a man and I might act like you're any kind of threat!"
His expression fell, but Romulus was otherwise undeterred by her taunt. He still knew what he had to do to win this duel. Once more, Wind-Up Rabbit (1400) hopped across the field and drop-kicked his opponent. Romulus took the crane kick stance once more, but this time he stepped into the kicked instead and planted his other leg into Amber's stomach. The force was just as strong as before, this time doubling her over at the waist. She just caught herself before smashing her nose into the floor, but her knees hit the ground until she found her breath again.
A single card appeared face-down in front of Romulus when he found his seat.
Romulus 1550: Amber 4600 – 1400 = 3200.
Amber had the look of a Greek fury. No matter what she drew, she wanted to deal damage immediately. "I am going to put another Black Whirlwind on the field," she said, reinforcing the strength of her downy storm. "And then I'm going to use Allure of Darkness. You used this card just a few minutes ago, and now it's my turn." She drew two cards and looked over them for just a moment.
"Macro Cosmos," Romulus interrupted. A series of stars appeared throughout the air. The duel arena looked as if the feather storm granted a vision into blackest space, with white lines connecting the stars as if to mark the pathway to a higher plane. The portal covered the Graveyard; all access to it would be blocked and any cards bound for it would instead be banished from the game.
"That's just not a big deal," said Amber. "I'm summoning Blackwing – Gladius the Midnight Sun (3/800/1500)." Her dual-wielding birdman reappeared on the field, this time in attack position. Two complimentary cyclones caught the wings of Blackwing – Oroshi the Squall (1/400/600) and carried them to Amber's hand. "With Gladius on the field, Oroshi can be Special Summoned. Luckily that's true for both of them. These monsters become stronger than yours by doing what Blackwings do best: tuning." Oroshi (1) and Gladius (3) resonated much the same way Gale and Zephyros had before, this time forming a Synchro monster that was unlike any Blackwing before it. The resonance continued as quasi-particles took the form of a golden exoskeleton of a dragon. With each particle oscillating at the same frequency, sound waves resembling a dragon took form beside the exoskeleton. "This one is Phonon Pulse Dragon (4/1900/800). And his attack will be just as devastating as you can imagine."
The shriek of the Phonon Pulse crumbled the Wind-Up Rabbit (1400). Amber ran hard, timing her attack perfectly so that she clotheslined Romulus just as he clamped his hands over his ears for protection for the sonic screech. But without a monster to protect him, Romulus was open to another attack from Oroshi. The small blackbird fluttered overhead for a moment. The sac beneath its chin inflated as large as it would go and the weight of the bird collapsed on top of Amber's opponent. As it did, she clasped her arms together and slammed them down on Romulus, thumping him over the head and shoulders. She rolled and stretched her shoulders as she felt them tightening from all that exertion, but she was in better shape than Romulus.
"Get up from that," she grumbled as she returned to her side.
Romulus 1550 – 500 – 400 = 650: Amber 3200.
And indeed, Romulus took his time getting up. But nonetheless, he did get up. His right shoulder hung low as if popped, his breathing was labored and shrill, and everything below the neck ached fiercely. But the duel wasn't over, and he wouldn't give up.
He drew his card from a supine position, but the motion was obvious enough for anyone to see he was still playing. "Turn end," was all he said.
"That's all?" asked Amber incredulously.
"Are you disappointed?"
"Annoyed, yes. You refuse to lie down and give up, yet you put up a pitiful fight." She displayed clear anger as she practically ripped her card from her deck. "Hmm. This might seem weird to give you Life Points, but I just see it as more opportunity to beat you senseless. Upstart Goblin gives me one more card from my deck and you gain 1000 Life Points." A fat goblin with green skin ran through the field and stole a card from Amber's deck to offer her. When it noticed that Romulus could see it, the goblin offered him a healing potion to look the other way.
With a new card in hand, Amber resumed. "This time I'll be playing Terraforming, which lets me take a Field card from my deck." She looked through the remained of her deck and said, "I'll take Mound of the Bound Creator. And, what the hell? I'm going to activate it now." Three rock pillars sprang from the ground, linked by a chain that wrapped around and through each pillar. "Now that I have a Field Spell again, this is a good time to play Escape from the Dark Dimension and revive Aslla Piscu (10/2500/2500)!" Rising like the sun bringing its orange glow over the horizon, the black hummingbird descended through the void to reclaim its place on the field. Somehow, its glow appeared even more intense this time.
Perhaps it was the orange light coming from Amber herself. It was pale, sure, but the spiritual connection between her and the card was unmistakable to anyone from Duel Academy who had witnessed the effects of the god cards. Little room remained for doubt that these Earthbound Immortals were gods, just as Bryan had initially suggested. What was indiscernible was whether Amber retained control over herself, or if whatever dark force dwelled within the card also drove her actions.
Jessica crossed her fingers. Romulus couldn't be in a more hopeless situation. Nothing protected him on the field from an attack. Amber was chomping at the bit for her chance to deliver the final blow, but the real damage would come from that Earthbound Immortal. It was no mere hologram. Even if it lacked true, corporeal substance, its spiritual might was as powerful as any physical attack.
"Don't worry," Alister assured her. "It's just a card."
She nodded, her hesitance apparent. "Right. Of course it is." She didn't sound certain, but then, neither did Alister.
Within the cage, Amber excitedly shouted, "Attack him directly!"
The tip of that beak looked like the nose of a swordfish or the horn of a narwhal—not something Romulus wanted to see puncture his body. He reached for his Duel Disk as soon as the hummingbird shifted and slapped down the last card in his hand. A timepiece monster appeared on the field: the body an X, a fiendish face, and the pendulum of a grandfather clock. One arm held a bell as it swung toward the other arm. When the arms clapped, the bell rang and Aslla Piscu stopped in place.
"Battle Fader," Romulus uttered. The effect of summoning said monster from his hand was to end the Battle Phase when a direct attack is declared. Even if a monster would be unable to defend against an Earthbound Immortal, and her god was protected from effects due to Mound of the Bound Creator, the player's turn could still be affected. "Done now?"
Romulus 650 + 1000 = 1650: Amber 3200.
Amber need not even answer the question. She had no more cards to play. "One lucky turn will not save you," she growled. "If you're smart you'll quit now, before I can finish throttling you."
"I've long since proven I'm not a smart man," Romulus uttered. Slowly he rose to his feet. Though pain wracked every nerve ending he could think of, he moved deliberately as if nothing ever bothered him.
His opponent's eyes were filled with an indignant fury at the sight. "How can you still stand after all that? What pushes you like that?"
"Wrath drives me," he answered simply. "Women like you disgust me, and I have committed many a sin in the name of my personal brand of justice. But there is a grander scheme here. This contest is atonement for my sins." He drew his next card and, with no other options, played it.
"Pot of Duality," he spoke. He felt some relief by the appearance of the two-faced jar. The green face with the hideous countenance turned his direction as he took three cards from the top of his deck: Exchange, D.D. Designator, and D.D. Dynamite. The choice was obvious: Exchange's effect would disappear when used, and D.D. Designator would banish a card from Amber's hand while offering no protection from Aslla Piscu. The jar rotated to the silver face bearing the slight smirk. Romulus kept D.D. Dynamite in his hand and shuffled the other cards back into his deck. He set his card face-down and ended his turn.
"You're pathetic," Amber sneered. "Mound of the Bound Creator forms a protective barrier to keep Aslla Piscu safe from targeting effects, so your Trap can't do a thing to stop us." The outlook was bleak, with the Earthbound Immortal's body growing more and more brightly as it stared down its horrific beak toward its defenseless prey.
And then it attacked.
"They say that gods are flawless," Romulus muttered. "That the reason we can't kill the gods is they exist by laws we can't comprehend. But even though the divine opponent is beyond our reach, we can always achieve victory against another human! D.D. Dynamite!"
Aslla Piscu continued to attack, but Amber stumbled when she heard Romulus activate his card. Her gaze darted from side to side until she spotted behind her the bomb formed by combining a dozen sticks of dynamite. But the fuses stretched through the void to a different dimension and could only be lit by the spirits of her own banished cards. She combed through the pile of cards that had been banished: Bora, Armor Master, Gladius, Zephyros, Icarus Attack, Allure of Darkness, Oroshi, Gladius, another Oroshi, Upstart Goblin, and Terraforming. Eleven cards! But then…
Eleven fuses burned quickly through the void gate and ignited the dynamite sticks directly behind Amber. At 300 points per explosion, Romulus was right—that the weakness of a powerful card was its human player.
Romulus 1650: Amber 3200 – 3300 = 0.
The pointed beak of Aslla Piscu lost substance at the exact moment it would have pierced Romulus's heart. For once, it passed through as harmlessly as a real hologram. The duelist loosed a sigh of relief. Collecting his cards, he shot Amber a look. Her reaction showed she knew exactly what he wanted. His last card damaged her Life Points eleven times. This final barrage would be brutal.
Romulus was slow on approach, building anticipation with each step. Amber clenched tightly as if her skin could be hardened into armor. Her assailant stood before her for a moment and let her imagination run away with her before he finally broke the tension. He leaned over her and peeled the card Earthbound Immortal Aslla Piscu from her Duel Disk.
"This was our original deal, if you recall." He turned away from her, only glancing back to say, "You should let go of your anger. One day at a time, I'm learning to do so, too."
Alister and Jessica left The Underworld with a new card tucked securely away. Neither of them had been truly prepared for how awful that place was. Romulus hadn't even been in the worst shape at the end of a duel when compared with some of the duelists in the other cages. Bruised and battered though he may be, at least most of his blood was inside his body.
Escape had been simple. Despite the rowdy, apoplectic atmosphere within that den of degradation, there existed a grudging respect for what Romulus had earned. He had hobbled outside where Alister and Jessica had failed attempts to appear completely detached. Fortunately for them, their faces were largely unknown and would not be remembered in that night.
"Where are you going?" Jessica had asked.
"Hospital," was the only answer Romulus gave. He had said no more to them lest he be associated, but he did shove the card into Jessica's hands before going too far. "Tell Cary I would have fought harder if she had sent Lili instead."
The bewildered couple exchanged glances. "Isn't she gay?" Alister asked.
Jessica shrugged. "I don't what he's talking about."
Dave found the couple meandering in the general direction of his apartment—part of the plan to ensure they didn't get lost on the return trip. "Was it successful?" he asked.
"It was," Jessica answered without indicating where she held the card.
"Good. I worried your other contact might not come through, but I guess I was wrong."
Alister said, "He's a former Duel Academy student, so we knew he had the chops. Luckily, he seems healthier since he left." He noticed the look on Dave's face and added, "Sorry. Long story, and I don't even know the whole thing, anyway."
"Well, I hope you're better with stories, Jessica," Dave said, "because I spent some time talking to the bouncer while you guys were in there, and I have an interesting one for you to take back to Cary."
Sorry to be out so long. If you read my plea, then you know the dilemma I've been dealing with. Luckily I have had a few offers to help with writing duels. Today's duel was presented by my buddy Howard, who has better dueling chops than I ever did and very entertaining notes to help me put everything together.
I thank nodqfan for the encouragement to continue the story. This arc nears an end where all the loose ends will be tied just in time for brand new threads to fray in the sixth and final arc. I still welcome anyone who would like to help me with duels. And if Sundown17 happens to be reading, I would like to get more details on your review because I don't quite understand your concern and I don't see a way to message you.
Trivia: I've been working on the duel from notes for longer than a week, and that's after I had already written the exposition section. That it takes so long to write everything out on top of developing a harrowing duel is the reality of what wears me out.