In hindsight, this story seems pretty lame to me, but I can't stop writing it now; I want to see more. So...

Enjoy!

Chapter 7

Eye of the Storm

Brennden had planned on packing up and running away. Both of his parents agreed that their home was no longer safe; Brennden hadn't told them about Carl and the demon worshipers of course, but it was plain that whatever was happening was dangerous. However, only a few minutes after they'd returned to their house to gather a few belongings, hell broke loose. Now there was nothing to do except wait… and make a phone call.

"Hello?" Relief flowed through Brennden; Petunia was still safe. "Petunia? It's me." "Brennden!" the girl on the other end of the line yelled. "Are you alright? The news says there's some sort of mass terrorist attack in your neighborhood." Brennden sighed as he looked out of his window at the ensuing chaos. "I'm fine, but trust me—you don't know the half of it."

That was an understatement. How could Brennden tell his girlfriend about the purple flames surrounding his house, the white and black robed figures fighting just beyond those flames and the duel monsters aiding in the fight? He didn't really understand what was going on himself. Why were these people after him? Sure, Carl had said something about him being a "chosen duelist" or something along those lines, but that still didn't explain much.

Even more mysterious was the envelope someone had slipped under his front door. Inside was an Xyz Monster—Number 10: Illuminknight—and a note which read, "Embrace the power this card offers you, and you may survive. Signed—A.H. 96, the Chaos Hunter." Freaky. It wasn't even a particularly good card.

Brennden snapped back to attention as Petunia asked him a barrage of questions. "Petunia, Petunia, please calm down," he said, but his girlfriend just jabbered even more. "Calm down? Calm down?! There are terrorists around your home! How am I supposed to keep calm?!" "I know, I know," Brennden replied, "but I… I have something extremely important to talk to you about."

A chill seemed to seep through the phone as Petunia quietly asked, "W-what is it?" "I… know a bit about what's going on…" Brennden said, choosing his words carefully. "You know those conspiracy nuts who think this is all related to the Yu-gi-oh card game somehow? Well, they're right; I was attacked by… a nutcase with a Yu-gi-oh deck earlier today."

"Be serious!" Petunia suddenly yelled over the phone. "I mean come on, you're surrounded by terrorists, and you try pulling a prank on me?!" "I am being serious!" Brennden retorted with a bit more force than he'd intended. Calming himself down, Brennden continued, "Look I'm not worried about me; I'm worried about you. The guy who attacked me said he'll come for you once I… he'll come for you soon." Brennden barely stopped himself from saying 'once I'm out of the way,' but he knew if he didn't keep talking, Petunia would demand that he finish his original statement, so he quickly added, "Look, the terrorists are with him, okay? I'm looking out my window, and I can see the same purple fire around my house that was in Newark earlier. And yes, I was in the middle of that too. That nutcase I mentioned is the one who made the fire." Brennden paused and sighed here. "Look, I… I don't expect you to believe any of this. I just want… for you to promise that you'll take your Yu-gi-oh deck with you everywhere—the other one that you're old boyfriend gave you. You still have it right?"

Brennden heard a sob on the other end of the phone. "Y-yes, I still have it. …A-and I believe you…, but if I learn you were joking, we're through!" "I know," Brennden replied with a sigh of relief. "I know, but that doesn't matter to me as much as making sure you're safe. I gotta go now, bye." "Wait!" click

Brennden felt bad about hanging up like that, but he couldn't deal with the inevitable questions. Plus he was afraid that if he talked with Petunia any longer he'd let it slip that Carl was the nutcase he'd been referring to. If there was one thing that would've ruined every ounce of faith Petunia had in his sanity or sincerity… or both, it would've been blaming the terrorist attack on her ex-boyfriend. That was something she'd have to find out for herself.

Assuming Brennden didn't take him out first.
.

Finish it, finish the deck.

You must discard more power; obtain the power that you discard.

Finish the deck, and release my immortal might.

Darkness, darkness, cover the world in darkness.

Darkness… World…

"That's it!"

Carl woke up from his unconsciousness with a shout that had startled everyone else in the room. Of course, Jake and Corbak were the only other people in the snake-themed soul restoration room. Still, seeing their shocked faces was far more gratifying than it would be to see the same expression on anyone else.

As the two struggled to regain their composure, Corbak hesitantly asked, "…What's it? Did you realize something while you were outside your body." "Yes," Carl said enthusiastically. "I know why I don't have my Earthbound Immortal yet, and why my decks power is erratic. It's because it's not finished!"

Jake and Corbak shared a look. "That's… an interesting theory. However, it seems Konami has its own explanation," Jake stated glumly. The mention of the company that made the duel disks and the Chaos Spawn cards surprised Carl, so he waited for Jake to finish explaining before continuing his own theory. "Turns out you cheated during your first duel with the duel disk system," Jake continued and then quickly added, "not intentionally, of course. It's just… you remember that Tribute to the Doomed Spell and that Dark World monster you use?" "Yeah," Carl replied. "Actually, that's part of what I was going to ment-" "It's an illegal combo."

Jake's statement made Carl do a double check. "What?" "Your combo—discarding Goldd to play Tribute to the Doomed and then summoning Goldd—is an illegal combo," Jake explained. "You see, Dark World Monster effects only activate when their discarded by card effects, but Tribute to the Doomed discards it as a cost. Apparently, there's a difference between an effect and a cost, so until you send a letter to Konami acknowledging that you cheated, the duel disks are going to rig your duels against you."

Carl's jaw dropped for a moment, and he closed his eyes as he suddenly became fully aware of his post-soul-replacement headache. "Remind me why we let Konami exist anyway? It would be so much easier if we made all the rules." "Because Konami's people are the only ones who know how to create the duel disks and duel runners; all our efforts to reverse-engineer these marvels have ended in disaster." Corbak said, grimly. "Though believe me, if and when we figure out how to make our own duel mystographic systems, that'll be the day we storm Konami and make our own rules."

"But until then," Jake said, getting back on topic, "you've got a letter to write." "Maybe," Carl conceded, "but there's more to it than that. Part of the problem is that my deck is half wrong; it's not supposed to be a Zombie deck, it's supposed to be a Zombie/Dark World deck."

Both Corbak and Jake blinked at that. "What? That sounds a bit… abnormal." "It's what my demon told me while I was unconscious," Carl clarified. "Goldd by itself doesn't cut it; I need to put more Dark World stuff in my deck." Carl slowly pushed himself up off the altar and added, "C'mon, take me to wherever you hide all the good cards; I'm going to need a good three hours to get it just right."

Jake bit his lip and looked at Corbak. "I'm not sure… Can he alter the theme of his chosen deck like that?" Corbak shrugged. "Well, his immortal said to do it… Besides, he is the Deck Builder. If he can't change his deck when he wants, who can?"
.

Jake rejoined Corbak on a balcony overlooking his island a couple hours later. "How is our Deck Builder doing?" Corbak asked, not bothering to greet his stooge. "He's being as meticulous as a painter; I doubt he'll be finished before nightfall," Jake replied. "He really is a Deck Builder—there's no way I could sit around that long just organizing cards based on possible combos and whatnot."

Corbak nodded and continued to stare out across the sea at the sunset. The sight gave Jake a bit of déjà vu, causing him to remember how he had stood on this same balcony with Carl the day Carl had agreed to join their cause. Even so, Jake was too troubled to reminisce for long. Before he could voice his concerns, however, Corbak said, "You want to know what the Jesuits had to say about Carl's father possessing the Sphinx cards." Jake did a double take and then nodded. "Y-yes, of course. They are the ones tasked with taming and containing the Chaos Spawn after all, and the Sphinx set has been in circulation for several years now. Shouldn't they have obtained those cards?"

"They did obtain those cards and sealed them away a long time ago," Corbak replied grimly, "which is why I'm just as concerned as you are. Someone must've leaked those cards back out to the public. But who? Not Solus; he would've kept them under his 'protection' like he does with his three pieces of Exodia and the various other Chaos Spawn he's collected."

"If I may ask," Jake interrupted, "exactly what are the Chaos Spawn cards? They're not daemons, but they don't serve God either, so exactly where does their power come from?" Corbak turned and glanced at Jake for a moment. Then he turned his gaze back to the view and sighed. "The Chaos Spawn… are the gravest mistake the daemonic race ever made. In ancient times, the daemons used to breed with humans, and the resulting monstrosities, the Chaos Spawn, plagued the world as its demigods and dragons and whatnot, and upon their deaths, they became like the daemons but could only appear to humans who were aware of their existence. Unfortunately, while the Chaos Spawn are creatures of darkness, they hate the daemons who forced them to exist as much as the God that condemns them, so they are neither with us nor against us."

Jake grunted his understanding of the situation. If the Chaos Spawn hate both sides in the conflict, it would explain why they seem to have no allegiances. "So, the Sphinx cards are probably using Mr. Colburn to lash out at every other duelist they encounter; that's why Solus hasn't recruited him yet." "It's more than likely that Solus tried to recruit Mr. Colburn but failed due to the influence the Sphinxes are exerting over him," Corbak agreed, "but that still doesn't explain how he got the cards in the first place. It's not as if anyone knew he was a chosen duelist before we found the Deck Builder, but it can't just be a coincidence that he came to possess these stolen Chaos Spawn…"

Corbak turned to leave. "In any event, the Jesuits are looking into it, and this will all be meaningless if we fail to secure Carl's full cooperation. This time, make sure he has his Immortal before letting him leave the Island again; Solus' forces are trying to break through our perimeter to rescue and recruit the boy, Brennden, even as we speak. We can't afford to lose this particular chosen duelist to Solus due to another time-consuming fiasco; if Carl doesn't win this time, kill Brennden yourself."

"Understood," Jake acknowledged as Corbak trudged off to deal with other matters.