Author's Note: Apologies for yet another long delay getting this story updated. I've been having a pretty busy couple of weeks. It seemed like every day something would pop up and force me to drop everything else in order to take care of it. Plus I've still been dealing with a little bit of insomnia. So hopefully this chapter will be worth the wait.
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL.
Chapter 29: Forest of Pain
The break between duels was nearly at its end, and many of the audience members were scrambling back to their seats after either getting more refreshments or using the restroom facilities. Meanwhile, Yuma and Astral were taking the time to check over their deck at least one more time. They had made a few adjustments to the deck earlier that morning to better prepare for facing the remaining Death Queens, but Yuma had felt that they should look everything over at least one more time. With the Numeron Code and the fate of the world at stake, Yuma did not want to leave anything to chance. Yuma and Astral were so preoccupied with reviewing their deck that they didn't notice when someone entered the dugout.
"Hey Yuma. Astral." The newcomer spoke. The duo looked and saw that it was Thomas who had entered the dugout. "You guys got a minute?"
"Thomas! What're you doing down here?" a surprised Yuma asked. "We've all been trying to get in touch with you since yesterday!"
"Sorry. I had some stuff to work out." Thomas explained. "I know about Michael though. I just got back from visiting him in the hospital. Right now though I wanted to talk to you guys about Samantha since you're about to duel her."
"What is it you wish to ask of us?" Astral asked.
"Well… to be honest I'm not really sure." Thomas admitted. "I just… I want you to know that Samantha is really important to me, even though she and those Death Queen friends of hers have done some terrible things. I don't really know what I expect you to do this duel, but maybe you guys could… get her to stop all this or something."
"Don't worry, Thomas. Astral and I will do our best to help Samantha." Yuma assured him.
"Indeed. Yuma and I are almost certain that Mitaka and even Alnia may simply be pawns for a much greater evil." Astral revealed. "Yuma and I will do whatever we can to save them from it."
"The second duel of the semifinal round will now begin!" the referee announced. "Will Yuma Tsukumo and Samantha Warren please step up on stage?"
With that, Yuma headed for the stage with Astral floating alongside him. When they reached the top of the stage, Samantha was already waiting for them at the other end.
"Hi there, Yuma." Samantha greeted with a rather sinister smirk. "I have to admit that I've kinda been looking forward to this duel. Before this is over, I'm going to make you regret passing me up for birdy-girl."
"Mitaka, Yuma and I would like to request that you simply end all this here." Astral spoke. "This conflict has gone far enough."
Samantha let out a cold laugh. "Really? You're going to try playing that card with me, Envoy? If you're really expecting me to just walk away, you're as dumb as that human brother of yours."
"Mitaka… no, Samantha… I get why you and Alnia want to destroy everything, but we think you're only being used." Yuma told her.
"I'm just gonna stop you right there." Samantha cut in. "The only thing I want to hear now is the sound of you begging for mercy. Now let's get on with this!"
"Let the duel begin!" the referee announced.
With that, Yuma activated his D-Gazer and duel disk. Meanwhile Samantha's left eye changed color and her left arm changed to its Barian form, causing her duel disk to appear. The audience members activated their D-Gazers as well and the color of the surrounding area changed.
"Ladies first." Samantha announced as she drew her first card. "I summon Dark Elf in Attack Mode!" The redhead's dark-haired elf woman appeared on the field. "Next I play the Field Spell, Forest of the Dark Elves!"
Suddenly trees with dark-grey bark burst up everywhere from the stadium floor. The branches of the trees sprouted silvery leaves, which were so thick that they blocked out the light of the sun above.
"While Forest of the Dark Elves is on the field, all Spellcaster-type monsters gain 800 ATK." Samantha announced. "Not only that, I don't have to pay the life point cost required by certain cards."
"I see. This was she does not have to pay 1000 life points to attack with Dark Elf." Astral realized.
"And thanks to the power boost from this forest, her Dark Elf now has 2800 ATK." Yuma added.
"I'll set two cards on the field and end my turn." Samantha announced.
"Looks like Mitaka's going all out in this duel." Shark observed up in the skybox.
"Still, even with the power boost from that forest card of hers, Dark Elf should still be pretty easy for Yuma and Astral to beat." Cathy assumed.
"Don't be so sure." Kotori told them. "I just know that Mitaka has something bad planned."
"What do you think Astral? Should we go all out?" Yuma asked.
"Offense may be the best defense at this stage." Astral answered. "At the very least, attacking may show us her strategy."
"Okay then!" Yuma replied as he drew his first card. "I summon Gagaga Girl in Attack Mode!"
Materializing on Yuma's side of the field was a teenage girl with light-blonde hair and reddish-brown eyes. She had on a dark-blue outfit similar to Gagaga Magician's, which included a conical hat with orange trim that curved forward. Around her neck was a long pink scarf, and her skirt had large pink diamond-shaped segments, and on the back of the skirt was a large pink bow. In place of a magic wand, the young sorceress carried a red smart phone with a large keychain that had two white skulls dangling on the end.
"Next I activate Gagaga Academy Emergency Network!" Yuma announced. "When I have a Gagaga monster on the field, this Spell lets me summon another one from my deck! I summon Gagaga Magician!" Yuma's silver-haired magician appeared on the battlefield next to his female counterpart. "I activate Gagaga Magician's effect and change his level from four to eight! Next I activate Gagaga Girl's effect and change her level to match Gagaga Magician's! Now, using my two level eight monsters, I build the overlay network and Xyz Summon one of the strongest Numbers I've got! Come forth, Number 22: Zombiestein!"
A galaxy-like vortex appeared in the center of the field and pulled in Yuma's two monsters as balls of orange energy. Rising out of the vortex soon after was a large beating patchwork heart that had two balls of orange light orbiting around it. In moments, the heart transformed into the muscular giant that Yuma had summoned near the end of his duel with Hikari.
"So predictable. I activate a Trap, one that can't be stopped by any of my opponent's card effects!" Samantha announced. "Number Bondage!"
Suddenly two thick black leather straps with silver spiked running along the sides appeared around Zombiestein's torso and bound his arms to his sides. A red ball gag had also appeared in the Frankenstein monster's mouth.
"While this little Continuous Trap is on the field, your Number can't attack, activate its effects, or change its battle position." Samantha announced. "I'd still need another Number to destroy it in battle, but that big hulk of yours is pretty much paralyzed and at my mercy. At this point I activate another Continuous Trap, Xyz Punisher!"
The balls of light orbiting Zombiestein turned into thick black chains. One of the chains bound itself around the giant's torso while the other one bound his ankles together. Yuma's Number had been completely immobilized.
"While Xyz Punisher is on the field, neither one of us can summon any Xyz Monsters from our deck." Samantha announced. "Not only that, any Xyz Monster that does happen to be on the field at the same time as this card loses 500 ATK for each of its overlay units during the end of its owners turn."
"So that means… Zombiestein will lose 1000 ATK each time I end my turn!" Yuma realized.
"Yep. And you know what the beauty of all this is?" Samantha asked. "Ordinarily I'd have to pay 1000 life points at the start of each of my turns to keep Xyz Punisher on the field, but in this case I don't have to thanks to Forest of the Dark Elves."
"An interesting combo, Mitaka." Astral admitted. "But because of your own Trap, you won't be able to summon your Number."
"Oh, I hardly need my Number to beat the two of you." Samantha told them. "I mean I could've just summoned her and killed you both right away, but that wouldn't be as much fun. Now, are you two done?"
"Dang it!" Yuma cursed. "I guess I've got no choice but to end my turn."
Suddenly the chains binding Zombiestein gave off an electrical shock, causing the giant to cry out as his ATK dropped to 3500. At the same time, Yuma cried out in pain at the sensation of being shocked as well and fell to one knee. Meanwhile, Astral let out a startled cry, as his body seemed to momentarily flicker out of existence.
"What… what did you do?" Yuma asked as he got back to his feet.
"I forgot to mention that I put a little enchantment on my two Traps." Samantha revealed. "Now you're both going to feel the same pain your Number feels in this duel. Thanks for summoning such a strong Number, by the way. This only means that I'll be able to draw out your suffering even longer."
"Yuma, we should figure out a way to end this duel quickly." Astral told him. "I'm not sure how much of this we'll be able to endure."
Samantha drew her next card. "I activate the Ritual Spell, Dark Elf Coronation!"
Two long silver torches with green flames appeared to the left and right of Dark Elf. Behind the elf woman had appeared a large polished black box resembling a coffin. Decorating the front of the casket-like box was a silver symbol resembling a rose.
"Ordinarily I'd have to sacrifice monsters whose levels totaled eight for this ritual, but I can also use Dark Elf as the entire sacrifice!" Samantha continued. "So I sacrifice Dark Elf to summon Dark Elf Empress!"
The flames of the torches flashed from green to red and the front of the box behind Dark Elf burst open, spewing out a silvery light. The light struck the elf woman, triggering a dazzling transformation. Dark Elf appeared naked momentarily in the light as her outfit transformed. Her original robes had been replaced by a black dress with a floral pattern and long tight-fitting sleeves, along with a long skirt. The dress was cut low and showed off the elf woman's ample bust, and covering the front of her torso was a piece of black armor with gold trim. On each of her wrists was a gold bracelet that looked like a wreath of thorns, and her golden crown had gained a diamond-shaped ruby on the front. The elf woman's hair long had turned snow-white, and her eyes had become red with slit-like pupils.
"Forest of the Dark Elves raised the ATK of my Dark Elf Empress from 3000 to 3800." Samantha announced. "Not only that, because I used the original Dark Elf to summon her, Dark Elf Empress lets me summon four Dark Elf Tokens to my field! Come on out, ladies!"
Dark Elf Empress glowed with a red aura and four pillars of crimson light shot up from the ground on Mitaka's side of the battlefield. When the lights faded, four new elf women identical to the original Dark Elf had appeared.
"Each Dark Elf Token has an ATK of 2000. But since Forest of the Dark Elves is on the field, the ATK of all my tokens jumps to 2800." Samantha continued.
"On the next turn, Mitaka is going to attack Zombiestein with all of her Dark Elves." Astral realized.
"Dark Elf Empress! Attack Zombiestein!" Samantha commanded. "Forest Punisher!"
A black and gold whip resembling a thorn-covered vein appeared in the empress's right hand. Dark Elf Empress cracked the whip and sent forth a bolt of red electricity that shocked Zombiestein, causing him to cry out in pain and struggle against his bindings. Yuma cried out in pain as well as his life points dropped to 3700. At the same time, Astral momentarily faded from view.
Suddenly Samantha began to chuckle as she began to glow with a red aura. To Yuma's surprise, the redhead's life points rose to 4300.
"What's going on?" Yuma asked. "How come your life points just went up?"
"It's because of another one of Dark Elf Empress's effects." Samantha explained. "As long as my empress is on the field, I gain life points equal to the battle damage that my monsters inflict."
"This is really not good!" Alit declared up in the skybox. "Yuma is totally at the mercy of Mitaka's dominatrix elves!"
"What's even worse is that Mitaka's life points are just going to keep climbing at this rate." Shark added. "If Yuma and Astral can't figure out a way to get rid of those two Traps of Mitaka's soon, they're toast."
"I'll have to end my turn there." Samantha announced. "You guys can struggle all you want, but it won't do you any good. I've got you both right where I want you."
Yuma drew his next card and scowled. "Ah! Dang it! I summon Gogogo Golem in Defense Mode and end my turn!"
Yuma's faithful one-eyed golem appeared on the battlefield next to the bound Zombiestein. The bricks that composed the golem's body had changed from blue to red due to being in Defense Mode.
"You ended your turn, huh? You know what that means." Samantha spoke with an evil smirk. "Xyz Punisher takes another 1000 ATK off that Number of yours."
As if on cue, the chains binding Zombiestein began to shock him again, causing the giant to cry out in pain as he ATK went down to 2500. Yuma cried out in pain from being shocked again as well, nearly falling to his knees again. At the same time, Astral once again flickered in and out of existence.
Samantha drew her next card with a triumphant smirk. "Now the real fun begins. Dark Elf Empress! Attack Zombeistein again! Forest Punisher!"
The empress of the wicked elves cracked her whip and shocked Yuma's Number with another bolt of red electricity. Both Zombiestein and Yuma cried out in pain as Yuma's life points dropped to 2400. At the same time, Samantha's life points climbed up to 5600.
"Attack, my Dark Elf Tokens!" Samantha gleefully ordered. "Punish Zombiestien and Yuma!"
All four of the remaining Dark Elves fired bolts of black electricity at Zombiestein, causing the patchwork giant to cry out in agony. Yuma felt the pain of the shocks and screamed as well. At the same time, Astral flickered in and out of existence like the light of a florescent bulb that was going bad. Samantha laughed with delight at Yuma's pain. Meanwhile up in the skybox, Kotori had covered her eyes. Down in the other dugout, Alnia watched with a triumphant grin.
When the attack finally ended, Yuma had fallen on his face and his life points had dropped to a mere 1200. Meanwhile, Samantha's life points had risen to 6800.
"This is the most fun I've had this whole damn tournament!" Samantha declared. "In fact I'm actually a little turned on right now. Bet you now regret picking birdy-girl over me now, huh?"
"Samantha! Stop this!" a voice interrupted. The redhead looked and saw Thomas standing at the bottom of the stage.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Samantha demanded to know, her grin instantly turning to an expression of utter fury. "You're killing my mood!"
"I can't just stand by and watch you hurt Yuma and Astral!" Thomas told her. "This… this isn't you, Samantha! I know the kind of person you really are!"
"If you're talking about that dumb little village girl I was in my past life, that girl's been dead for a long time." Samantha coldly told him. "This is who I am now."
"I don't believe that!" Thomas told her. "I know that the woman I knew… the woman who I loved in that other life still has to be in there somewhere!"
"Samantha…" Yuma spoke as he started getting back up, getting the redhead's attention. "I don't know you the way Thomas does, but I'm pretty sure that this isn't the real you either. I get why you and the other Death Queens have been doing all this. You… Chitose and Alnia… all of you are angry at the world about what happened in your past lives."
"Quit talking as if you know what makes me tick!" Samantha told him. "You and loverboy down there may have seen how I died in my former life, but that doesn't mean you really know the first thing about me."
"That's not true, Samantha." Yuma told her. "Before this duel is over, Astral and I are gonna break through to the real you!"
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