Chapter 24: Minus Curse! Captured Ancient Fairy Dragon!
Power Tool Dragon is in defense position, facing Zeman the Ape King in attack position.
While Ushio, Usagi and Sakura, with Grim standing alongside her, Subaru and Velvet watch from the top of a building, powerless to help.
Demak's life points stand at 2500.
Lua's at 2000. "My turn! I draw!" Lua says. His deck shuffles, automatically. "Due to Power Tool Dragon's effect, I add a random Equip Spell in my deck to my hand!" Says Lua. "Please give me a card that will destroy Zeman the Ape King!" Lua thinks to himself. He draws his random Equip Spell, when he sees it, his face lights up with joy, it's 'Double Tool C&D'. "Here it is!" Lua thinks to himself.
Meanwhile, at the gloomy, foreboding castle of Zeman the Ape King, in the throne room, there's silence. "Ancient Fairy Dragon, we'll save you." Luca thinks to herself.
"Spellcaster! If I remove the seal and transform Ancient Fairy Dragon and Regulus into minus… their powers will be mine?" Zeman asks.
"Exactly." Says Luca.
"I understand. But if you're lying, you will be severely punished!" Zeman says.
"It's true! Ancient Fairy Dragon will belong to you, Zeman!" Says Torunka.
"Hmph! Cursed needle, free Ancient Fairy Dragon!" Zeman says.
In the sky above Ancient Fairy Dragon's mountain, a giant minus staff changes its hands and glows. The dragon in the rock begins to regain her normal, vibrant color.
"Keep it up, Zeman." Says Torunka, whispering.
Ancient Fairy Dragon is being drawn further and further out of the rock, and now looks perhaps as though she is made of glazed ceramic.
"What are you waiting for? Bring Regulus here!" Zeman says.
"Oo-oo-oo-oo-oo!" The monkey runs to do his bidding. The door to Regulus' cage is opened, the lion is still feigning sleep.
"The power to control the spirits, come to my hand! Regulus, walk ahead!" Says Luca, dramatically and overblown.
Regulus stands up and walks out of the cage.
Luca and Torunka lead him around the edge of the pool toward Zeman. "Ancient Fairy Dragon, I'll sever those chains with my fangs!" Regulus thinks to himself. Torunka's skipping along joyfully in his too-large clothes. "You're an incredible spellcaster! Now Ancient Fairy Dragon belongs to Zeman!" Torunka says. He trips, spectacularly, and knocks Luca over, too.
They're surrounded by monkey soldiers by the time they hit the ground. "Ouch!" Says Torunka. When Luca's staff hit the ground, its bandages started unraveling. Torunka picks it up, rubbing his head, and they fall off completely and the hands move back to where they were before. He laughs, nervously. "Ahaha, haha! Zeman, you fool! We tricked you so easily!" Torunka says.
"What?" Asks Zeman.
"Torunka!" Luca says. "We came to rescue Ancient Fairy Dragon! You couldn't figure that out, you idiot? Aaah!" Says Torunka.
"That rod!" "Why does he have the same rod as us?"
"Why are you saying this?" Luca asks. She rises on her knees and then trips over her robes and falls on top of Torunka. His hat goes flying, and rolls to the feet of a monkey soldier next to Zeman. Moreover, Luca herself is unmasked, her hat and veil have fallen off.
"It's that girl from Shubank City!" "She's not a spellcaster!"
"They found out!" Says Torunka. "We were so close!" Luca says.
"How dare you! You tricked me! Capture them!" Says Zeman.
"Aaaaah!" Luca then remembers something and whistles.
Then, shattering a window of glass, Cynder crashes in and lands on the floor, fiercely. She stands over Luca and Torunka. Cynder's almost high-pitched shriek echoes throughout the entire place, making the ground shake beneath her. Torunka and Luca cover their ears, it's so powerful and loud. Cynder's not happy at all, especially when it comes to protecting her, just like her mistress does.
"No!" Regulus says.
"Regulus!" Says Luca.
Regulus comes running out of nowhere, completely forgotten, evading the monkey soldiers to grab her and Tarunka on his back. They run for their lives, chased by a horde of monkeys. "Stop! Capture them!"
Cynder then takes off, able to go through the same window she crashed through.
"A-aa-aah!" Luca screams.
"I won't let you have Ancient Fairy Dragon!" Zeman says. As they flee, he points his staff and Ancient Fairy Dragon fades back into the mountain.
"Ancient Fairy Dragon!" Says Luca. "It's all my fault for being clumsy!" Torunka says. "Luca, give me the rod!" Says Regulus. "What are you going to do?" Luca asks. "Just like when you freed me from my curse, I'll combine two minuses to change it into plus energy!" Says Regulus. "But if you do that…" Torunka says. "There will be another explosion!" Says Luca. "If we don't hurry, Ancient Fairy Dragon will be sealed away!" Regulus says. "Ah!" Says Luca. She offers her staff, and Regulus grips it in his mouth.
Then, he headbutts the door of the cage he was kept in, Luca and Torunka are inside, protected from the monkeys. "Stay inside!" Regulus says. He runs toward the throne.
Monkeys surround Luca and Torunka. "Open up!" "I'll turn you into minus!" Luca and Torunka recoil from the bars. "Regulus, hang in there!" Says Luca.
"I switch Power Tool Dragon to attack position!" Lua says. Power Tool switches to attack position, 2000 attack points. "Power Tool Dragon, strike him with our greatest power! I equip the Equip Spell 'Double Tool C&D' to Power Tool Dragon! Power Tool Dragon gains one thousand attack points!" Says Lua. Power Tool Dragon's attack points rise to 3000.
"I don't care if it now has the same number of attack points as Zeman the Ape King. Since you're not a Signer, is that the best you can do?" Demak asks.
Lua swings his arm around and around. "Say whatever you want! Battle! Power Tool Dragon attacks Zeman the Ape King!" Says Lua.
As Power Tool Dragon hurtles toward Zeman the Ape King.
So, too, does Regulus. "Zeman!" Regulus says. "Aaaa-aagh!" Zeman raises his staff and it meets the one Regulus grips. He doesn't fall out of the air. Energy crackles all over the place. Zeman's glowing purple. "Stop interfering!" Says Zeman. So is Regulus, but he hangs on. "Mmmgh!" Regulus says.
"Regulus!" Says Luca. "Regulus!" Torunka says.
"Please return to us, Ancient Fairy Dragon! Mmmm-gagh!" Says Regulus. With that, he breaks off and keeps falling, toward Zeman.
As Power Tool Dragon does.
"Are you aiming for mutual destruction? No, you're not!" Demak says.
"That's right! As long as Power Tool Dragon has an Equip Spell, it can't be destroyed!" Says Lua.
Power Tool Dragon collides with Zeman, much the same way Regulus did.
And he hits again, and the staffs collide directly, huge white-out of light, the monkey soldiers are destroyed as though in battle.
Pink fire races across the floor, straight for Luca and Torunka. Her sign glows.
"It's not over! Even if I'm defeated, the minus curse returns to Demak!" Zeman says.
"Huh?" Asks Luca.
"Aa-aa-aaaagh!" And Zeman shatters, both in the spirit world.
And in the duel. "Hooray! By tributing the equipped 'Double Tool C&D', Power Tool Dragon is unharmed!" Lua says. Power Tool Dragon's attack points go back to 2000.
"All right! He finally destroyed a Dark Synchro monster!" Says Ushio. "No, this isn't good." Sakura says. Subaru and Velvet glance up at her and then each other. "Lua's in more trouble." Says Velvet. "Luca needs to come back soon." Subaru says. They go back to watching the duel. Grim lets out a deep growl. "Huh?" Asks Ushio.
"Hahahahahahaha." Demak laughs.
"Why are you laughing?" Lua asks.
"I activate my trap 'Dark Matter'. When a Synchro Monster on my field is destroyed, I can treat the top two cards in my deck as monsters and set them." Says Demak.
'Dark Matter' is a trap that summoned two monsters in face down defense position, apparently from his deck. Still they appear on the field, they're Magician Ape and Fighter Ape.
"I equip 'Power Converter' on Power Tool Dragon and end my turn!" Lua says.
"Hahahahahahaha." Demak laughs.
In the spirit world. Zeman's castle is in ruins. Moonlight and smoke filter through a hole blown through the ceiling, and smoke, dust, or mist hangs in the air inside. "Regulus?" Asks Luca.
She hears the voice of an old man. "Well well… I'm finally able to change back to my original form." The mist clears between the speaker and Luca. Torunka has transformed back into the old and powerful spellcaster he once was. He's very tall and his helmet and shoulder pads are still very reminiscent of the Dark Magician, his robe carries simple, strong designs, and he has a thick black cape. Torunka's staff has also grown taller. "Luca, are you hurt?" Torunka asks. "Who are you?" Asks Luca. Torunka laughs and winks, and she can see the resemblance between this old man and her friend. "It's me." Torunka says. "Torunka? You're Torunka?" Asks Luca. Torunka chuckles. "I'm surprised! You really were an old man! Does that mean we broke the minus curse?" Luca asks. "Mmm." Says Torunka.
"Luca!" Regulus says. They turn, he's striding toward them from across the chamber. "Regulus!" Says Luca. "You're safe, Regulus!" Torunka says. "Zeman the Ape King has perished." Says Regulus. "Really? Where's Ancient Fairy Dragon?" Luca asks. "I don't see her anywhere." Says Regulus. "What? The spirits haven't returned to normal either. Why? We broke the curse!" Luca says. "Zeman said that the minus curse was returning to Demak." Luca thinks to herself.
"My turn! I draw! Thanks for defeating Zeman, kid." Says Demak.
"What?" Lua asks.
"Now I have everything I need to summon my Earthbound Immortal card." Says Demak. He holds up the card, laughing.
"That is..." Sakura says. Subaru and Velvet cling even closer to her, trembling. Grim starts growling, as his fur stands on edge.
"I tribute the two set monsters." Says Demak.
The clenched fist appears in the sky, this one dark and pulsing purple against ripples of yellow light.
"Ah!" Lua says.
"Relax. Since you're my opponent, it won't absorb your soul. There are plenty of other sacrifices. I sacrifice the souls of spirits! Descend, Earthbound Immortal Cusillu!" Says Demak.
"It's coming!" Sakura says. "What?" Asks Ushio. The flames at the border of the duel flare. "Uugh!" Ushio, Usagi and Sakura all say. Subaru and Velvet close their eyes and cower away, clinging tightly to their mother, sobbing.
"Uuuuwaaaaaaaaahh!" Lua screams.
Through the hole blown in the ceiling of Zeman's castle, the monkey sign appears against the clouds. "A monkey geoglyph?" Asks Luca.
Purple lights ooze from the carvings on the walls, streaming up through the hole to the symbol.
"The souls of the spirits!" Regulus says. "What is going to happen?" Asks Torunka. "Earthbound Immortal is awakening!" Luca says.
Yellow lightning strikes again and again around the duel, as the flames that form the monkey symbol climb higher. Purple lights osmose from the flames and soar toward the fist.
The fist explodes into a pillar of purple light. Then that vanishes, and the earth begins to rumble. Cusillu appears, the coils of its tail a bit too perfect to be real. It raises bony fists above its thin, skull-like head.
"Aaaaaaaaah!" Lua screams.
Cusillu is huge, black, glowing with yellow light, towering above the control unit it defends. Earthbound Immortal Cusillu has 2800 attack points and is a Level 10 monster.
"Earthbound Immortal has finally appeared!" Says Ushio. "This is bad! Earthbound Immortal will attack him directly!" Sakura says. Subaru and Velvet look up, teary eyed and shaking, they're terrified. Grim's blazing red eyes are fixed on Demak, as he snarls and bares his teeth at him.
"Earthbound Immortal Cusillu is a great god, so it can't be attacked by your monsters! Furthermore, it's not affected by traps and spells!" Says Demak.
"No way…" Lua says.
"There are eight monsters in my graveyard." Says Demak. There are three Magician Apes, three Fighter Apes, Dark Ape and Zeman the Ape King in his graveyard. "Due to 'Closed Forest's' effect, Earthbound Immortal Cusillu's attack points increase by eight hundred points!" Demak says. Total attack points are now 3600. "This is what you get for foolishly stepping into a battle between the gods! It attacks you directly!" Says Demak.
"If that attack succeeds, Lua will be defeated!" Sakura says. "Oh, no!" Says Usagi. "Lua!" Ushio says. "Do something, Lua!" Says Subaru. "Or you will lose!" Velvet says.
"I won't lose! I activate the Equip Spell 'Power Converter's' effect! By sending this card to the graveyard, I gain life points equal to Power Tool Dragon's attack points!" Says Lua. His life points go from 2000 to 4000. "Power Tool Dragon's attack points become zero this turn!" Lua says.
Cusillu raises its mighty fist and pounds it on the ground.
Lua runs away, but can't outrun the whole attack, he lands on his face on the ground, covered with a blanket of dirt raised by the impact. He's down from 4000 to 400 life points in one turn. Lua's shaking, with exhaustion. "I can't lose… If I'm defeated, Luca will be…" Says Lua.
Luca seems to feel something. "Lua?" Luca asks. She then turns to Torunka and Regulus. "Lua is in danger!" Says Luca. "What?" Torunka asks.
All three glow and suddenly start to rise into the air. "We're going to be swallowed by the geoglyph!" Says Luca. "If nothing changes, the spirit world will be trapped in eternal darkness!" Regulus says. "Leave it to me!" Says Torunka. "Torunka?" Luca asks. "I'll use my remaining strength to send Luca back to her world! I'm counting on you to defeat Earthbound Immortal!" Says Torunka. "Hm. The future of the spirit world is in your hands, Luca." Regulus says. "Torunka… Regulus…" Says Luca. Torunka meditates over his staff a moment, then holds it out, bright flash. "Ahh!" Luca says.
The next thing she sees is an aerial view of the Satellite and the monkey symbol coming closer and closer.
A ball of light appears next to Lua in the duel.
Demak's mystified.
Sakura, Usagi and Ushio seem to be bracing themselves for more trouble. "What's that?" Asks Ushio. "Luca?" Sakura asks. Subaru and Velvet's eyes and mouths go wide, in bewilderment.
The bubble disappears and there stands Luca, back in her normal clothes, hands clasped, and glowing with reddish energy. She opens her eyes and sees Lua on the ground. Luca drops to her knees next to him. "Ah! Lua! Pull yourself together, Lua!" Says Luca. Lua raises his head, with effort, he's covered with dirt and scratches. "Mm. Luca, you came back." Lua says. Luca helps him sit up, gently. "You kept fighting until you were this hurt? Your opponent is a Dark Signer!" Says Luca. "I was planning to beat him by the time you returned, Luca. But I couldn't be the hero!" Lua says. "That's not true!" Says Luca. "Huh?" Lua asks. "You're my greatest hero, Lua." Says Luca. She hugs him close, crying. And Lua's crying, too.
Sakura almost smiles.
"Hahahaha. Now all the players are here! You'll fall prey to Earthbound Immortal Cusillu, Signer!" Demak says.
"You're the one controlling Zeman the Ape King and stealing the spirits' souls. I won't forgive you! Not only did you hurt the spirits, but you also hurt the person I care most about!" Says Luca. She starts detaching Lua's duel disk from his arm. "Lua, I'll take over this duel." Luca says. "What are you talking about? I said that I'll protect you, Luca! If I don't battle, then what's the point?" Asks Lua. Luca straps on his duel disk. "Thank you. You worked hard for me, so I'll work hard so that I can live up to your standards." Luca says. "Don't do it, Luca! If you battle him, you'll also be hurt!" Says Lua. "I'll be fine. Don't worry." Luca says. She stands up, ready to duel. Luca looks up and over at Sakura.
"Luca… Hm?" Asks Sakura. Her arm is lighting up, with a quiet whistling noise.
Luca's sign is also glowing.
The additional markings that run along Sakura's arms and hands, and surround her sign, also start lighting up.
As is Aki's, as she, Minako, Kakyuu, Hotaru and Jace drive through the Satellite somewhere far away. "Your mark!" Minako says.
The additional markings that run along Sakura's legs and tops of her feet begin glowing, as well.
Jack's also riding along, and looks at his glowing wing sign. "The battle between the Signers has finally begun." Jack thinks to himself.
Sakura looks back over her shoulder, as the symbolic designs on her upper back start flaring.
Yusei's riding on, too, glancing at his tail sign that's all lit up.
The rest of the symbolic designs that run along Sakura's back glow, as well. The bird-shaped symbol etched along her forehead also starts glowing. The Seal of the Crimson Dragon flares on Sakura's abdomen, as well, now that all the Signers are around. Her irises and gradation are the final things to light up, flaring in bright red and fiery red, respectively, while her scleras fade to black, with glowing red veins across her eyes.
"I won't lose because Lua and my friends are supporting me! Let's do our best, Power Tool Dragon!" Says Luca. She gets into a dueling stance, duel disk held out across her chest. Luca's life points stand at 400.
"Even though you only have a small amount of life, it's still plenty enough to offer to my god! To show respect to a Signer, I'll summon a spirit that I've been saving for a special occasion. I activate the Continuous Trap 'Cursed Prison'! I can ignore the summoning requirements and Special Summon one Synchro Monster to my field in defense position." Demak says. He shows Ancient Fairy Dragon's card.
"Ahh!" Says Luca.
"Appear, my prisoner! Ancient Fairy Dragon!" Demak says.
Ancient Fairy Dragon appears, chained and a bit worse for wear. Suspended inside an elegant metal cage.
"Ancient Fairy Dragon! Rrgh!" Says Luca.
"I end my turn. How do you like this? You and this dragon are bound by destiny, but you have to face it as an enemy." Demak says.
"Ancient Fairy Dragon, just wait! Lua and I will rescue you!" Luca thinks to herself. "My turn! I draw!" Says Luca. She adds the 'Limiter Removal' she just drew to her hand. It contains a trap with green gridlines, the spell 'Pot of Avarice', a monster that might be Gadget Hauler, the trap 'Respect Synchron' and now the spell 'Limiter Removal'. "Due to Power Tool Dragon's effect, I add a random Equip Spell in my deck to my hand!" Luca says. She pulls her equip spell and plays it. "I equip the Equip Spell 'Central Shield' on Power Tool Dragon!" Says Luca. "With 'Central Shield', attack damage to monsters other than the equipped monster becomes zero! Even if Earthbound Immortal isn't affected by traps and spells, we still have a chance! Well done, Luca!" Lua says. Luca nods. "This shield and Lua's feelings will protect me." Luca thinks to herself. She takes 'Limiter Removal' and 'Respect Synchron' from her hand. "I set two cards and end my turn!" Says Luca.
"I knew you weren't willing to attack Ancient Fairy Dragon. Earthbound Immortal can do more than attack you directly! I'll smash your toy dragon! My turn! I draw!" Demak says. He glances at what he drew. "Battle! Earthbound Immortal Cusillu attacks Power Tool Dragon!" Says Demak.
"The Quick-Play Spell 'Limiter Removal'! The attack points of Machine-Type monsters on my field are doubled!" Luca says. Power Tool Dragon's attack points go from 2000 to 4000.
"Doubled?" Asks Demak.
Cusillu's fist collides with Power Tool Dragon and the impact sends shock waves both directions.
Demak, Lua and Luca all withstand the wind.
As do Ushio, Usagi, Sakura, Subaru, Velvet and Grim. "Did she do it?" Ushio asks.
"You fools! How dare you oppose the power of a god!" Says Demak. His life points are reduced to 2100. "Earthbound Immortal won't be defeated! By sacrificing a monster on my field, not only does it avoid destruction, but your life points are halved! That's why I summoned that! I sacrifice Ancient Fairy Dragon!" Demak says.
Ancient Fairy Dragon is tributed and Luca loses half her life points, leaving her with 200. She seems to fold, spent. "Aaaah!" Says Luca. Lua rushes over to catch her. "Luca! Are you okay, Luca?" Lua asks. "I'm fine. Now I can finally fight for real." Says Luca.
"Fight for real?" Demak asks.
"I knew from the start that you were planning to send Ancient Fairy Dragon to the graveyard. I'm going to get my friend back! I activate the Continuous Trap 'Respect Synchron'! When a Synchro Monster on your field is sent to the graveyard due to your card's effect, I can ignore its summoning requirements and Special Summon it to my field!" Says Luca.
"What?" Demak asks.
Ancient Fairy Dragon appears on Luca's side of the field, wrapped in chains.
"Ancient Fairy Dragon!" Says Regulus. He appears and shatters the chains with his mighty jaws.
Ancient Fairy Dragon spreads her gossamer wings and roars to the sky. Ancient Fairy Dragon has 2100 attack points and is a Level 7 monster. Luca is uplifted at the sight of her on her field. "Awesome! You did it, Luca!" Lua says. "Mm! Ancient Fairy Dragon, we finally meet." Says Luca. "Luca, thank you for remembering the promise you made a long time ago. Thank you very much." Ancient Fairy Dragon says.
Subaru and Velvet, seeing Ancient Fairy Dragon for the first time, are wide eyed and smiling, ecstatically. "She's beautiful!" Says Velvet. "Luca did it!" Subaru says. "That's Luca's dragon?" Asks Ushio. "Yes." Sakura says, her voice menacing and echoic. "What an incredible kid." Says Ushio. "However, this duel isn't over yet." Sakura says.
"By sending 'Central Shield' to the graveyard, I can negate 'Limiter Removal's' effect that would've destroyed Power Tool Dragon." Says Luca.
"Wonderful! This is why real Signers are special. I end my turn! Now show me how someone chosen by the gods duels!" Demak says.
"Here we go, Lua!" Says Luca. "Yeah! It's our turn!" Lua says. "Draw!" Says both Lua and Luca. They draw together, the spell 'Rocket Pilder'. "Ancient Fairy Dragon's effect! By destroying a Field Spell, I gain one thousand life points!" Luca says.
"Field Spell?" Asks Demak.
The dead trees all shatter one by one.
"You did it!" Lua says. Luca's life points increase to 1200.
Cusillu's attack points decrease to their original 2800. "Rrgh!" Demak growls under his breath.
"When there's no Field Spell on the field, Earthbound Immortal's effect is negated." Says Sakura. "Well done, Luca!" Ushio says. Grim barks, as if in agreement.
"Then due to Power Tool Dragon's effect, I add one Equip Spell to my hand. I equip the Equip Spell 'Rocket Pilder' on Power Tool Dragon and 'Pain to Power' on Ancient Fairy Dragon!" Says Luca. Ancient Fairy Dragon gets a long scarf, Power Tool Dragon, a massive mounted rocket. "Battle! Power Tool Dragon attacks Earthbound Immortal!" Luca says.
"You're attacking with Power Tool Dragon even though it has fewer attack points?" Asks Demak.
Propelled by its rocket, Power Tool Dragon goes flying up Cusillu's arm toward its heart. Big bright flash of light. Lots of wind and dust.
"Luca!" Lua says. The twins cling together in the storm, Luca's life points fall to 400.
"What are you thinking? Did you choose to accept god's punishment?" Asks Demak.
"No way!" Lua says. "By equipping 'Rocket Pilder', Power Tool Dragon can't be destroyed in battle. And Earthbound Immortal Cusillu loses attack points equal to Power Tool Dragon's attack points!" Says Luca.
Cusillu has a huge hole through its chest and its attack points drop to a measly 800. "What?" Demak asks.
"Since Ancient Fairy Dragon is equipped with 'Pain to Power'... it gains attack points equal to the damage I took from Power Tool Dragon's attack!" Says Luca. Ancient Fairy Dragon's attack points rise to 2900, letting out a shriek at Demak. "My pain changes to power! Ancient Fairy Dragon attacks Earthbound Immortal Cusillu! Eternal Sunshine!" Luca says.
Ancient Fairy Dragon glows in a multicolored rainbow.
Demak recoils.
Sakura, Velvet, Subaru, Usagi, Ushio and Lua all shield their eyes, but Luca watches, unblinkingly, determined to see this through.