Yu-Gi-Oh! D.T.
Chapter 2: Mysterious Stranger, Emergence of a Black Flame
November 12, 3050 9:37 PM
The man in the black cloak gazed deeply at the bright, full moon. Its shine was compelling, pulling him in and showing him a light glimmering in the darkness, like his mentor once did. He was young at the time, still living with his parents. His mentor had taught him all there was to know about dueling, from the basics to every cheap trick in the book. His deck was the very essence of the moon, confident and shining until the very last moment.
And when that moment came, his world turned black. The man in black knew that a shining light couldn't last forever. Every now and then, there occurred an eclipse, eliminating every source of the light in the night sky and shrouding the Earth in utter darkness. It seemed almost ironic that his mentor disappeared on the very night of a lunar eclipse.
The man shook off the disturbing memory and returned to his duel runner with a cheeseburger in his hand. He carefully unwrapped the paper covering and took a bite. Since he was a child, he had never liked the taste of fast food. Maybe it was because the last burger he had ever liked was one made by his mom.
He broke off this line of thought as well. With everything he'd done, the last thing the man wanted to think about was his tragic past. But as of late, it was the only thing on his mind. Sighing heavily, he quickly finished off his burger and drove into the darkness of the night, trying to empty his mind of everything.
November 12, 3050 10:03 PM
Eric stood up wincing from the stinging pain on his cheek. He glanced into the faces of each and every member of the Dark Chasers. They were smiling wickedly, the kind of smile he hated the most.
"What's the big deal?" asked Eric. "You promised you would let me go if I won."
"Why not stay a while?" asked a skinny teen. "Those rare cards of yours must be lonely."
"You don't want to do this," Eric said with a slight quiver.
"Let's get him."
Fearing for his life, Eric ran through the front door and dashed at his top speed. He never looked back and he didn't care where he was going, as long as it was away from the Dark Chasers. He ran as far as his legs could take him, but after a couple minutes, they completely gave out. He wheezed loudly as he slowly came to a stop and made a last ditch effort to save himself by leaping behind a pile of trash cans in a nearby alleyway. Expecting them to catch up to him at any second, Eric closed his eyes, praying with all his might that they wouldn't find him.
Minutes passed but aside from an occasional rustle from the night wind, nothing happened. It was then that he realized that they had probably lost him. Sighing of relief, Eric fell backwards, breathing heavily as he lay on the cold, hard concrete.
These guys are the real deal, he thought.
Eric mentally patted himself on the back for running because he knew he didn't stand a chance in a fist fight; he had never won a single one in his life. In kindergarten, he used to always get his cards stolen by his peers. They knew he was too weak to fight back, so they freely picked on him, first for his cards and then for entertainment. Looking in retrospect, Eric thought that it was perhaps because of his preference to keep to himself. Perhaps he came off as stuck-up and pretentious when he repeatedly won duels without ever acknowledging his opponents as friends. Perhaps he had brought this upon himself.
In spite of Eric's unpopularity, however, there was one student from another class who actually came up to him one time and returned all of his cards. Apparently, he had fought the bullies and taken his cards back with the intention of returning them to Eric. This was the single nicest thing that anyone had ever done for him, enough for the solitary Eric to regard this stranger as his very first friend. From that point on, they spent everyday dueling each other, with the bullies never touching him again in fear of his friend. Unfortunately, this period of time that Eric had very fond memories of was brief, as his friend moved away the very next year. To this day, he couldn't find out who that person was. It was too long ago and Eric had no idea where he moved to. The only clue Eric had was a card that he had used: a fiery lion.
As he finished reminiscing about his childhood, Eric slowly and cautiously made his way back to his small apartment. Deciding that he had had enough excitement for one day, Eric collapsed on his bed, smiling and telling himself over and over again that he was still alive. Never more tired in his life, Eric took in the fact that he was home in his soft bed and fell into a gentle slumber.
November 13, 3050 12:15 PM
Eric awoke to a loud banging the next day at noon. Feeling groggy and lethargic, Eric opened the door to find a young man about his age standing at the doorway with a serious expression on his face. He had black, medium length hair that seemed to conform to the shape of his head, a notable feature being a curly bang that stood out above the others. Eric could tell that he was quite athletic, as his muscles were even apparent through his fancy red blazer, which bore a recognizable emblem: a red upside-down triangle inside a yellow circle.
Something besides the way he dressed gave the impression that he was rich. After a few moments of observing the young man, Eric finally realized that it was the way he was looking at Eric's apartment room with an expression of condescending disdain. Indeed, his room was rather plain and most definitely devoid of any luxuries, without even a television screen or a laptop computer lying around. It was just a simple rectangular space with old white paint that was peeling in certain areas. His bed was a cheap twin-sized foam mattress covered by a cotton bedspread and thin sheets, lying on a creaking vinyl floor. Even the single window that exposed the street outside his first-floor apartment was becoming opaque with dust. With glaring eyes, Eric watched as this man turned back to him.
"I hear you do odd jobs," the man said in a deep, gruff voice. "I have a special job for you."
"I feel a bit tired right now," Eric replied. "Can you come back tomorrow?"
"No," the man instantly rejected, "I need your assistance immediately. I received information that you made contact with a Dark Chaser gang. Is this true?"
"Yeah," Eric said, annoyed at his persistence but suddenly curious about what he had to say. "Just yesterday. Why?"
"I heard a rumor that a high ranking official of the Dark Chasers was heading in the direction of this city," the man explained. "I think it has something to do with you."
Were they really going through that much trouble just because of one loss? thought Eric.
"You're interested in the Dark Chasers?" Eric asked.
"Interested?" the man said, his face darkening. "I'm the one who's going to annihilate them all."
It appeared that these words had the strange effect of making the atmosphere tense with silence. In the first minute that they've talked, he had already said something both puzzling and threatening, and with an intense expression at that. Eric immediately sensed that this man was not normal. However, aside from his inability to make normal conversation, Eric also felt a strange vibe from this man, something that almost seemed inhuman.
"What are you, a cop?" Eric asked, interested in this man's motives.
"The police can't do anything against the Dark Chasers," the man said bitterly. "I fight the Dark Chasers because I'm the only one who can."
When he said this, Eric suddenly formed an extremely negative opinion of this man. He was probably some rich, self-righteous wannabe hero who sought nothing but self-glorification. Or maybe he was some lunatic who watched an action film and couldn't distinguish between fiction and reality. In the worst case, this man could be a Dark Chaser using a ruse to lure him out of the safety of his apartment. Whatever his deal was, Eric didn't like him.
"That kind of thing is too dangerous for me," Eric replied. "Please leave."
He noticed the man furrowing his eyebrows. The air became tense with silence once more as the two merely locked eyes, glaring at each other in a battle of will. Despite the man's attempt to intimidate him, Eric held his ground, refusing to budge an inch. This psychological battle continued for nearly a minute, until the man finally relented and spoke up once more.
"Very well," he said. "Sorry to disturb you."
The stranger closed the door as he walked back to the street. Eric watched him from his window, waiting until he saw the man drive off on his shiny red duel runner before falling back on his bed. Although Eric was interested in who that man was and what he knew about the Dark Chasers, he preferred to solve his own problems alone. He believed that he had the responsibility to resolve every conflict he encountered with his own power, not relying on anyone else to bail him out. Since he was the one who was tricked into dealing with the Dark Chasers, he felt that he had to confront them by himself. With the knowledge that a big shot Dark Chaser was coming, he decided that he would challenge and defeat that big shot to make them all respect him and leave him alone.
November 12, 3050 1:33 PM
After another hour of sleep, Eric put on a gray jacket and strapped on his duel disk, a unique aluminum model with a coat of ultramarine paint and a yellow crest in the shape of a crescent moon. This was a special duel disk that was custom made by his father, who had passed away fifteen years ago. Every time Eric dueled with it, he not only felt his father watching over him, but also the connection between him and his cards, as if they were symbiotic. This was a big reason why he regarded his cards as his best friends. However, since he graduated from Duel Academy and moved to Truesdale Town four years ago, he hadn't had an opportunity to use it even once.
Excited by the idea of dueling with his own duel disk again, Eric hurriedly threw on some jeans and put on his black sneakers before dashing out the door. He headed through the alleyways in a winding pattern, keeping an eye out for any Dark Chasers who might still looking for him. That was when he realized what that stranger from earlier was up to. Dozens of individuals dressed in black uniforms scoured the city, probably in search of that high ranking Dark Chaser the man spoke of. Eric's brow furrowed as he recognized the emblem these men bore on their uniforms: a red upside-down triangle inside a yellow circle. Several conjectures ran through Eric's head, the most likely of which was that the man in the red blazer was the leader of some anti-Dark Chaser cult.
A romantic rich guy pretending he's some kind of hero, thought Eric, just the type of person that mindless people would follow. Doesn't anyone think for themselves nowadays?
Sighing with annoyance, Eric put on his hood to hide his face and walked past the soldiers. Minutes later, Eric found himself standing at the front door of the Dark Chasers' rusty hideout. Taking a deep breath, Eric opened the front door and entered into a room full of hostile eyes.
"Saving the us the trouble of finding you?" one of them asked.
"I challenge the big shot I hear you guys brought in," Eric said.
For the second time he stood facing the Dark Chasers, Eric had made another serious mistake. Ignoring his words, the gang members surrounded him one by one, laughing and giggling as they made repulsive gestures at him. Then, without warning, they all jumped on him. Fist after flying fist, Eric was pounded on and bruised like an apple thrown on the floor time and time again. Even when he curled his body into a ball to protect his precious duel disk and cards, he felt each blow landing on him with the force of ten trucks, causing him to shout in blinding agony. What happening in the course of minutes felt like hours as Eric waited for this seemingly endless storm of pain to subside. Only when Eric was near the brink of collapse did the gang stop hitting him. His head fuzzy and his body stinging with sharp pain, Eric looked up and made out a dark figure through his tear-filled eyes. He was large. It wasn't the muscular large but the other one, the fat large.
"I heard you defeated one of my gang leaders," the fat man chuckled with a raspy voice. "Well done. Not many can do that. But now, I'm going to teach you the true meaning of pain. Get up, you son of a bitch."
Eric struggled to stand up, trying to withstand the jolts of pain that shot through his body every time he moved. With one eye black and blood drooling from both corners of his mouth, he made an effort to turn around and run, but he couldn't. He was completely exhausted and the pain was too much. Raising his head, Eric suddenly saw a glass beer bottle flying at him.
It's over, he thought. I'm going to die.
Eric closed his eyes and resigned himself to what he thought would be the most unfulfilling death ever.
Sorry, dad.
Seconds passed.
He didn't feel a thing. Eric wondered if he was so tired that he couldn't feel the pain. Or maybe they had beaten him up so badly that he died before the bottle ever reached him. The black void he was staring into almost convinced him that he was in fact dead. However, the mad aching of his fresh bruises reassured him that he was still alive. When he heard the sound of breaking glass, he slowly opened his eyes to see what had happened. To Eric's surprise, what stood before him was a man in a red blazer, puffing out his chest in a upright and rigid stance as though he were some kind of superhero. This was the same man he had met that morning. It appeared that he had somehow intercepted the attack and tossed the bottle aside before it hit him.
"Are you okay?" he asked Eric in a superficial tone that lacked even an ounce of sympathy.
"Fine," Eric muttered, angry at himself for enabling this man to play the hero. "How did you know where I would be?"
"I don't know," he replied. "Something just told me that you were here and that I needed to save you."
Before Eric could ask what he meant, several Dark Chasers charged at the man simultaneously, aiming their fists straight at him. Eric started to turn his face away, not wanting to see someone else share his fate. However, to Eric's complete and utter shock, the outcome was drastically different. Like the protagonist of a kung fu movie, the young man easily defeated the Dark Chaser goons with a series of swift strikes and kicks, knocking them unconscious without breaking a sweat. The rest of the gang backed off after this shocking display.
The more time he spent with this man, the more surprised Eric became. Somehow, this man had come to his aid in his most critical time of need. This same man also managed to beat five fully grown men without even breaking a sweat. He knew this man was strange, but now, he seemed completely inhuman.
"Who the hell are you?" Eric exclaimed.
"I am the inextinguishable flame of justice," the man said.
If he weren't so tired and writhing in pain, Eric would have slapped himself on the forehead for asking a question he should've known would be responded to with a weird and arrogant remark. Once again, he had enabled this pompous bastard to further inflate his already humongous ego.
"I don't care who you are," the fat man barked, "but nobody gets away with insulting Captain Earthquake!"
Turning his attention to the corpulent mass that stood at the center of the gang, the young man's demeanor changed drastically. The solid composure that Eric likened to a righteous hero figure was suddenly replaced by the savage aura of a wild beast hungering for blood. Eric watched in terror and shock as the man's eyes grew sharp with bloodlust and a wicked smile appeared on his face.
"No matter how many of you Dark Chasers I fight," the man laughed, "I can't ever get used to your terrible codenames. Earthquake sounds like something straight out of a comic book."
"I guess I need to teach you some manners," Earthquake growled, shaking his fists.
"Bring it on," Gareth grinned excitedly. "I'll take on as many as you want. I'll beat you down so hard you'll-!"
"Duel him!" Eric interrupted, scared of what he might do.
Upon hearing these words, the young man suddenly ceased his speech and turned to look at Eric. When he saw the fear in Eric's eyes, he seemed to realize how frightening he was becoming. Steadying himself and taking a deep breath, the man slowly poised himself back to his original refined posture.
It seemed as though this man wasn't the only one his words had affected, as somehow, the entire room became silent. With all the physical fighting that was going on, Eric's request seemed so outlandish that one would almost want to laugh. When two men, one of whom was already beaten to the brink of death, were surrounded by dozens of vicious gang members, it seemed almost ridiculous to settle the dispute with a simple card game. However, the intensity of his eyes showed that he was completely serious. No one spoke and no one laughed.
"What did you say?" asked a skeptical Gareth.
"I said to duel him," Eric panted, wincing from his injuries. "Violence isn't the right way to do things."
"Even though they didn't hesitate to beat you up?" the man asked in disbelief.
"It doesn't matter what they do," Eric said, coughing out blood. "I won't ever use violence, and neither should anyone else. We're duelists. We settle things by dueling."
Something seemed to click in the man as he heard these words. Perhaps it was the innocence and naivety of Eric's thinking. Or perhaps it was the sheer temperance he demonstrated to be able to forgive those who had done something unforgivable to him, a level of temperance that the man himself was not capable of. More than likely, however, what had affected him was jealousy towards someone who, in the most delicate of ways, had bested him in the field of gallantry. To his understanding, forgiveness was a virtue only allotted to the strong and the wise. Although Eric seemed to hold neither of these characteristics while the man wanted to believe he held both, it was only Eric who ultimately possessed and exhibited this virtue. Regardless of the reason, Eric's words appeared to have convinced him.
"Very well," the man smiled. "You heard him. Let's duel."
"And why should I duel a punk like you?" asked a frowning Earthquake.
"Because if you don't," the man said, "you'll get my fist in your face instead!"
"Hmph!" Earthquake grunted. "I'm not afraid of you. If it's a duel you want, it's a duel you'll get! Get ready to cry, shrimp!"
"Bring it on, rock head," the young man taunted, completely unintimidated.
Waving his hand, Earthquake signaled for one of his underlings to help him put on his extra large-sized duel disk. As it was attached on his burly arm, the duel disk appeared to be less of an instrument to play cards and more of one to chop wood with. On the other hand, the young man walked outside the warehouse and came back a minute later with a standard-sized crimson-colored duel disk already equipped. Taking their positions about six meters away from each others, the two duelists synced their duel disks, which flashed once to indicate the start of their game.
"Duel!" both said simultaneously.
"Wimps first," mocked Earthquake.
"Losers second," retorted the young man. "I summon the Tuner monster Red Tinker in defense mode."
A scarlet, imp-like creature emerged onto the field from a pool of lava on the ground.
(Red Tinker: Level 2/FIRE/Fiend/ATK-1000 DEF-1300/Effect-If a card you control is destroyed, look at the top card of your opponent's deck. If it is a monster, deal 500 points of damage to your opponent)
"I set 2 cards face down," the man said calmly. "Turn end."
"You talk big but you play small!" laughed Earthquake. "I summon Boulder Golem in attack mode!"
Rocks descended from the sky, reforming to compose a large behemoth. Despite the ease with which such a powerful monster was summoned, the man in the red blazer seemed unimpressed.
(Boulder Golem: Level 5/EARTH/Rock/ATK-2500 DEF-2000/Effect-This card can be Special Summoned from your hand if you control no monsters and your opponent has exactly one monster. If it is summoned this way, it cannot attack this turn)
"A 2500 ATK beater that can be summoned for no cost," the man grinned. "Too bad it can't attack this turn."
"So you know the card," Earthquake snickered. "But my turn's not over yet. I summon the Tuner monster Brick Breaker."
A Japanese karateka adorned in a while gi fell onto the field from the sky, striking a standard fighting stance.
(Brick Breaker: Level 3/EARTH/Warrior/ATK-1800 DEF-1600/Effect-This card can only be used to Synchro Summon Earth attribute Rock monsters)
"I tune level 3 Brick Breaker with level 5 Boulder Golem," Earthquake declared. "Gargantuan rocks clash loudly on this Earth! Form the invincible force of the ground! Synchro Summon! Crush them, Colossal Rock Giant!"
The karateka threw a punch at the rocky behemoth, shattering it into a pile of rocks. Unexpectedly, the rocks floated in the air and attached themselves to the karateka one by one, slowly forming a tall pile of heavy boulders. After a few seconds, a rumbling began from inside the mound, the precedent to a rocky explosion that revealed a titan composed of golden stones.
(Colossal Rock Giant: Level 8/EARTH/Rock/ATK-3000 DEF-3500/Effect: When this card destroys a defense position monster, deal piercing damage)
"Colossal Rock Giant," Earthquake laughed excitedly, "attack Red Tinker for piercing damage! Pounding Fury!"
Colossal Rock Giant clasped its hands together, raised them to the sky, and slammed down, crushing Red Tinker and leaving behind a gigantic crater. A loud rumbling noise could be heard as the ground shook with intense magnitude, a visual effect that Eric had guessed to be the cause of Earthquake's codename. Yet, despite the threatening animations and the loss of nearly half his Life Points, the young man didn't even bother to flinch. (2300/4000)
"Upon Red Tinker's destruction," the man said, "the top card of your deck is revealed. If it's a monster, you take 500 points of damage."
"The top card of my deck is the monster Gravi Smasher," Earthquake said, wincing as his Life Points decreased. (2300/3500)
(Gravi Smasher: Level 3/EARTH/Rock/ATK-1600 DEF-800/Effect-If this card destroys a monster in battle, you can destroy one Spell or Trap card on the field)
"I set 1 card face down," Earthquake said. "Turn end."
"My turn," announced the man. "I activate Surrounding Fire!"
(Activate this card during your Standby Phase. Your opponent cannot activate any effects during your Battle Phase)
A ring of flames formed from thin air, enveloping both duelists. Earthquake raised an eyebrow, alert but unshaken.
"This turn," the man smirked, "you can't do anything during my Battle Phase."
"But you can't do anything either," chuckled Earthquake. "Not with those weak monsters of yours."
"We'll see," the man replied. "I summon Cinder Runner in attack mode!"
A minute, orange hamster dropped softly from the sky, scurrying around in circles before its owner.
(Cinder Runner: Level 1/FIRE/Beast/ATK-0 DEF-0/Effect-This card can attack your opponent directly. Each time this monster attacks, it gains 500 ATK. If it deals 0 damage to your opponent, they lose 1000 Life Points)
"Cinder Runner can make a direct attack," the man explained. "Scorching Charge!"
"Have you lost it?" Earthquake cackled. "That thing has 0 ATK!"
Despite its opponent's words, the hamster-like creature sped at an unimpressed Earthquake and tackled him, dealing no damage. However, Earthquake suddenly made a raspy gasp, watching in shock and dismay as his Life Points decreased. (2300/2500)
"What?" Earthquake exclaimed. "How?"
"When Cinder Runner deals no damage," the young man smiled, "you take 1000 damage."
"How dare you use such a dirty trick against me!" roared Earthquake, his face beet red.
"I never thought I'd hear that from the leader of a group that's notorious for its dirty tricks," the man shot back.
"Shut up!" Earthquake shouted, clearly simmering with rage.
"Cinder Runner gains 500 ATK every time it attacks," the man said. "Turn end."
"I'll make you bleed, you son of a bitch!" shouted Earthquake. "My turn! I summon Gravi Smasher in attack mode!"
The monster that had been revealed through Red Tinker's effect, a shirtless muscle man, slammed onto the field, pummeling the ground with its large fists.
"Then," Earthquake continued, "I activate my Trap card, Earth Collapse! This will destroy all monsters with less than 2000 ATK at the end of each turn!"
(At the End Phase of each turn, destroy all monsters with less than 2000 ATK)
"Trying to destroy the Gravi Smasher you just summoned?" the man taunted.
"Shut up!" Earthquake yelled. "I equip Gravi Smasher with Rock Blaster! Just like your pipsqueak monster, this card gives Gravi Smasher 500 ATK every time he attacks! That means he won't be destroyed by Earth Collapse!"
(Equip this to a Rock monster. It gains 500 ATK every time it attacks)
"Ooh," the young man said with a mocking tone, "so you're going to evade your Continuous Spell's drawbacks with an ATK boosting card. Not half bad."
"You won't be laughing for long," Earthquake chuckled spitefully. "Gravi Smasher, attack Cinder Runner!"
"I activate my Quick Spell Burst into Flames," the man declared with a snap of his fingers. "Your monster loses 800 ATK and if it still has higher ATK, I negate all battle damage this turn and draw 1 card."
(When your opponent's monster attacks or is attacked by your Fire attribute monster, decrease that monster's ATK by 800. If its ATK is greater than that of your monster, you can negate all battle damage this turn and draw 1 card)
Gravi Smasher caught on fire and writhed in pain, but still had more than enough power to annihilate the weak Cinder Runner. The stranger grinned suspiciously as he drew his card.
"You saved yourself for now," Earthquake growled.
"Oh," the man smiled, "I did more than that. Since Gravi Smasher's attack was decreased, its ATK is now 1300, which means it gets destroyed by Earth Collapse."
"You son of a-," Earthquake snarled, completely shocked at the turn of events.
Gravi Smasher fell into the Earth as miserably as its owner sulked.
"Turn end,"Earthquake muttered, shaking with rage.
"This guy," Eric said completely aghast, "he's planned everything from the very moment Earthquake revealed Gravi Smasher! He predicted exactly what his opponent was going to do. It only looked like he was at a disadvantage but he was in complete control. In one move, he avoided damage, drew a card, and used his opponent's strategy against him. He's totally toying with Earthquake!"
"My turn," said the young man boldly, pleased at his psychological victory. "I summon Guardian of Flames in attack mode!"
A massive fire erupted from thin air, smoldering a while before dissipating to reveal a muscular fighter clad in crimson armor.
(Guardian of Flames: Level 3/FIRE/Warrior/ATK-1800 DEF-1200/Effect-You can redirect an attack on a Fire attribute monster to this card)
"Next, I activate my Spell card Revival by Fire! This lets me Special Summon 2 Fire monsters from my Graveyard. Come back to me, Red Tinker and Cinder Runner!"
(Special Summon up to 2 Fire attribute monsters that were sent to your Graveyard by your opponent)
In a very ritualistic manner, two metal goblets materialized, containing nothing but a small flame. Without warning, those flames burst into gigantic pillars of fire, revealing the two fallen monsters after subsiding.
"Since Cinder Runner was just summoned," the man smiled, "its ATK is back at zero, which means you'll be taking another 1000 points of damage. Cinder Runner, direct attack!"
Earthquake let out a small yelp as his Life Points finally fell below his opponent's. (2300/1500)
"Now," the young man grinned wickedly, "I'm tuning level 2 Red Tinker with level 1 Cinder Runner and level 3 Guardian of Flames. Searing flames engulf the world. Be born from the smoldering fire! Synchro Summon! Roar, Leoferno!"
The young man's three monsters condensed into fiery orbs, which danced around the field in circular motions before colliding forcefully against one another to create a tremendous explosion of flames. What stood in the aftermath of the chaos was a majestic lion with a blazing mane of fire.
(Leoferno: Level 6/FIRE/Beast/ATK-2400 DEF-1800/Effect-If this card destroys a monster whose original ATK is greater than that of this card, deal 1000 points of damage to your opponent. When this card is destroyed in battle, you can deal 800 points of damage to your opponent or Special Summon a Fire attribute Tuner monster from your Graveyard)
Compared to this savage beast, the large and bulky Earthquake looked incredibly small. In his eyes was the unmistakable look of absolute terror.
Eric was deeply affected by what he saw as well, but in a much different way. This monster, this flaming red lion, seemed to ignite something in his soul. A distant memory from long ago. The bright image of his very first friend.
Could it be? Eric thought. Could this man be him?
"I activate the Continuous Spell Kurohouka!" the man continued with a malevolent grin. "All of my monsters become Dark attribute and gain 200 ATK and DEF."
(All Fire attribute monsters on the field also become Dark attribute monsters and gain 200 ATK and DEF)
Eerily, the flames on Leoferno's mane and tail changed from a passionate red to a shadowy black. Eric gasped in shock as the bright image of a card he had always admired was shattered by the murky darkness which consumed this once fiery lion. The young man himself seemed to be corrupted by this card as well, as savage eyes and a devilish grin began to re-emerge on his face.
No, Eric thought. There's no way it's him. He would never do this.
"I now activate Prodigy of Fire," the man smirked. "This card is treated as a monster and a Spell."
In a similar fashion to the rest of his monsters, a fire erupted from out of nowhere and replaced itself with a monster, this time an adolescent boy carrying a fireball on each hand. By Kurohouka's effect, even the flames of this innocent child became black with evil.
(This card is treated as a monster and a spell (Warrior type/Fire/Level 4/ATK 1700/DEF 1200). If this card is destroyed as a monster, deal 500 points of damage to your opponent. If this card is destroyed as a Spell, discard 1 card from your opponent's hand)
"H-heh," Earthquake stuttered. "You summoned a bunch of monsters but none of them can do anything to my Colossal Rock Giant."
"Who says I need to?" the man cackled. "I'll just end my turn here. Now, when Earth Collapse activates, Prodigy of Fire is destroyed. But, Prodigy of Fire activates a different effect depending on how it's destroyed. Since Earth Collapse destroys Prodigy of Fire as a monster, you take another 500 points of damage!"
Earthquake looked absolutely mortified. He controlled the strongest monster on the field, whose strength was uncontested. Yet, his opponent was winning, beating him with nothing but cheap effect damage. It was petty, but it worked. Earthquake's morale dwindled at the same rate as his Life Points. (2300/1000)
There it is again, Eric said bitterly to himself. I hate that he's sacrificing his monsters to do it, but he's winning. This guy's completely taking advantage of Earthquake's cards He's focusing on reducing Earthquake's Life Points because he can't beat his monsters through sheer force. He's not trying to beat his opponent in the duel. He's trying to destroy his spirit.
Just as he thought this, a glimmer of hope appeared in Earthquake's eyes as he appeared to have gained the same idea.
"Heh!" Earthquake smirked. "You're dealing me a lot of damage, but you can't beat my monster! And after I do this, you'll have no chance of surviving to the next turn! I activate 3 copies of the Equip Spell, Gravel Power, giving Colossal Rock Giant 1000 ATK each!"
Rocks descended from the sky, piling onto Earthquake's monster to triple its original towering size. In fact, Colossal Rock Giant grew so large that it stood taller than a typical skyscraper, boasting a massive 6000 ATK. Yet, the young man seemed completely unfazed.
(Equip this card only on a Rock monster. It gains 1000 ATK)
"There's no way you can win now!" Earthquake laughed. "Colossal Rock Giant, attack Leoferno!"
"Naive!" the man laughed mischievously. "I activate Fire Wall! All battle damage is halved and my monsters can't be destroyed!"
(If a Fire attribute monster is selected as the target of a card that destroys a monster or about to be destroyed in battle, halve all battle damage. No monsters can be destroyed this turn)
Colossal Rock Giant, the word colossal itself an understatement, swung its enormous fist at the comparatively miniscule Leoferno, only to be intercepted by a giant wall of smoldering black flames. As Earthquake looked into his opponent's beastly eyes, his face grew pale as though the life had been sucked, or rather burnt, from his soul. (600/1000)
"T-turn end!" Earthquake whimpered, trying to avoid the condescending eyes of an opponent he could not scare or defeat despite his best efforts.
"My turn," the young man said with a savage smile. "You said I can't beat your monster through sheer power, right?"
Earthquake, a shivering mess who had long lost the will to fight, gave no reply.
"I'll show you just how much you underestimate my power," the man chuckled. "I summon the Tuner monster Ticking Time Bomb!"
A small, round bomb dropped softly from the sky, sprouting a pair of almost cute-looking arms and legs.
(Ticking Time Bomb: Level 2/EARTH/Thunder/ATK-800 DEF-300/Effect-If this card attacks, you take no battle damage. When this card is destroyed in battle, destroy all spell and trap cards on your opponent's side of the field)
"Ticking Time Bomb," the man laughed, "attack Colossal Rock Giant!"
"What?" Eric exclaimed, thinking that he'd gone completely insane. "Why would you do that?"
It was too late. Ticking Time Bomb jumped and attached itself to the behemoth, squealing softly as it exploded in flames. As expected, the towering behemoth stood unscathed. At least, that was how it appeared at first. Suddenly, the rocks that composed the titan began to fall, leaving Earthquake's once humongous monster a crumbling mess. Earthquake watched in absolute terror as his ace monster collapsed before his eyes, shielding himself in fear despite the fact that the descending rocks were only holographic. Only when the golem reached its original size a minute later did the destruction end.
"What happened?" Eric asked, completely dumbfounded.
"When Ticking Time Bomb attacks," the man explained, "I take no damage and all my opponent's Spells and Traps are destroyed."
"You still had that up your sleeve?" Eric exclaimed, wondering just how far ahead this man had thought.
"I'm far from finished," the man grinned. "Now, I Special Summon Blazing Sky!"
In one blinding flash, the entire atmosphere was set on fire, painting the very image of Hell itself. If that wasn't bad enough, Kurohouka's effect turned those flames pure black, completing the man's visual demonic nightmare. This proved to be too much for Earthquake, who appeared to be on the verge of losing his mind.
(Blazing Sky: Level 4/FIRE/Pyro/ATK-0 DEF-0/Effect- This card can be Special Summoned if there is a Fire attribute monster on your side of the field. As long as this card remains on the field, all Fire attribute monsters gain 500 ATK and DEF)
"Blazing Sky gives all Fire monsters 500 ATK and DEF," the man smiled devilishly. "Combined with Kurohouka, Leoferno now has a total of 3100 ATK, enough to take down that giant."
Eric's jaw was left hanging, not to say it wasn't hanging throughout the whole duel. This time, it was from the realization that the young man could've destroyed Earthquake's monsters anytime he wanted. He just chose not to so that he could torture his opponent longer.
"Leoferno," the man laughed, "attack Colossal Rock Giant! Infernal Impact!"
Leoferno engulfed its entire body in black flames and began its charge, picking up enough speed to leap and blast through the giant, which melted pitifully from the intense heat. (600/900)
"When Leoferno destroys a monster whose original ATK was greater than his," the man smirked cockily, "you take 1000 points of damage!"
Without any mercy, the black lion breathed a torrent of dark flames at the now kneeling Earthquake, securing the victory that had been determined long before this turn. (600/0)
The field cleared to uncover the Dark Chaser captain bawling and quivering on the floor like a helpless animal. His gang had already run away in fear, having succumbed to despair even before this hellish conclusion. Having gained the satisfaction of defeating and psychologically torturing his opponent, the young man returned to his original civilized composure. Turning around, the stranger stared down triumphantly at Eric, who was still heavily bruised from his earlier beating. Both stood with their eyes locked on each other, neither saying a single word.
In this duel, Eric had come to acknowledge this man's dueling skills. Yet, at the same time, he felt a little fear and a great deal of rage towards his cruel methods. No matter how strong he was, this was a man Eric simply could not respect. Whoever it was that stood before him now, it wasn't the same person he had befriended and admired long ago. If that child was his heavenly savior, then this man was a demon from Hell.