Response to Reviews
Thank you to Guest, HunterHQ, Guest, Unnamed, Donjusticia, Noobmaster, Kingdom Hearts Guy, Guest, Anonymous, Electriuser, Malcom, Guest, Ambiguous, Donkeyboy100, Unknown, Guest, T.V. 2000, and Guest for reviewing Chapter 88 of Obscured Truth.
Hey, everyone! As always, I wish you well and I hope you're safe and sound wherever you are in the world. Before I get to answering reviews, I just want to point out two things. First, the whole point of the previous QOTC was to see if you can relate to any of the characters in Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS. Second, I'm no philosopher, as I obviously don't have the answer as to why suffering exists. We all have our own opinions, and I promote an atmosphere where all perspectives are listened to and appreciated. Thank you all for keeping that atmosphere open, communicative, and respectable.
Now that I got that point out of the way, let's get to answering some reviews:
Guest: Thanks for pointing that error out. I corrected it immediately.
HunterHQ: Katsuya and Watchman met during the Lost Incident, remember? Glad you liked the chapter, and I hoped you were surprised by the Aigami reveal. In Azrael's mind, he deems Akira, Emma, and the others worthy of learning the truth. Yes, Ceaseless Edge is Hisuian Samurott's ace move. Honestly, even if a parent disowns their child, a part of them will always care for said child. Yes, the monsters that attacked the Furutanis were solid. While Infearno will obviously be affected by what happened, I will confirm that he isn't committing suicide any time soon. And I obviously have a plan for Infearno moving forward. Beatrice was a casualty of war, which happened due to Azrael attempting to assassinate Infearno all those years ago. Unfortunately, Azrael couldn't kill Infearno back then because of how the ruckus attracted the people's attention. So he had to retreat.
Guest: Honestly, that's where the 'Sergey Onizuka' meme came into my head. I couldn't help but laugh as a result. As for Drachen's ultimate fate, that will be answered later on in the story. Though do note that Akira is someone with honour, and even after learning the truth, he will decide what to do moving forward. I can confirm that Urizen's envoys are in hiding for the time being. As for whether Gil took his Bitboot with him to Central Japan, that will be answered later on in the story.
Unnamed: In all honesty, Blue Slug and Sea Angel's siblings would not allow them to be corrupted by 'forbidden material'. That's something the Hanoi can do to placate an unstable emotionally Yuhiro. Unfortunately, that's life. Cops can be corrupt, while criminals can have honor, and the other way around. As for Lightning throwing a temper tantrum, expect it in this chapter.
Donjusticia: Well, in my defense, Malf's creation was inspired by Majin Buu from Dragon Ball Z and Hassan of the Cursed Arm from Fate/Stay Night: Heaven's Feel. Glad you liked the duel. Azrael is one that will always be prepared, despite Infearno pushing back magnificently.
Noobmaster: Glad to hear from you again. I hope all is well. Yuhiro obviously didn't share the truth about himself to the Hanoi because he doesn't fully trust them. As for what Zero was doing all this time, he was helping Kairi out in fighting against Urizen, though he did check on Earth every now and then. For your last comment, Infearno didn't summon Beatrice because he didn't want Azrael to steal her from him again. And besides, I didn't get the best feedback when it comes to characters refusing to attacking duel monsters that resembled someone they cared about.
Kingdom Hearts Guy: Glad you liked the duel.
Guest: Concentration duels won't be in the story, though I do see duel puzzles appearing instead.
Anonymous: Yeah, Yukage's practically a force to be reckoned with, especially with how he dealt with Lord Kazuma and Infearno compared to Yuhiro doing the same. For your theory, I encourage you to pay attention moving forward. Again, if Yuhiro used the Cyberse monsters he made right now (ex. Pandora, Alastor), everyone would be on high alert, especially Herald, who's seen a few cards not being made by him specifically.
Electriuser: Glad you liked the duel. When it comes to my favourite Spider Man from the movies, I liked all three of them, especially with what they represent. Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, and Tom Holland did a great job in portraying their versions of Spider Man, and seeing the trio come together in No Way Home was awesome.
Malcolm: Excuse me, Infearno was very angry with what Azrael did. The former was just trying to suppress it so he can focus and not make a mistake. The last thing I wanted to do was a scenario where anger led to one's undoing.
Guest: I actually planned to do an Infearno vs Lightning duel, but changed it to Azrael vs Infearno because of how Azrael made Infearno suffer. The demons had no real bond with Infearno, especially with Dr. Kogami's program being used to stabilize Infearno's condition after the occult incident.
Ambiguous: Yes, Yukage used Link Trigger to kill the Inquisitors in the real world. He and Yuhiro have the same ability because they're brothers and have their father's blood in them. If you paid attention to the story, there are hints on the other Lost Incident kids using their Link abilities. Perhaps you should reread those chapters. Sadly, suffering causes so much pain these days due to the consequences of actions being chosen by people.
Donkeyboy100: Glad you liked the chapter.
Unknown: Honestly, if it weren't for Drachen getting in Raguel's way, then Raguel would have been destroyed by Azrael. Yes, Yuhiro has all the Hanoi's secrets and identities thanks to Ace's data. There's only so much Frog and Pigeon can comment on during the duel. Of course Azrael's a strategist, and has made a greater impact on everyone compared to Lightning and Bohman. I mean, let's face it. Azrael is the type of villain that should have been shown in the anime, don't you agree?
Guest: Yeah, I guess you can say that about Malf. On the topic of plagiarism, Azrael used the Another virus as a base before creating Malf, thus making Malf the original creation.
T.V. 2000: Yes, Infearno did great against Azrael, but it wasn't enough. The reason why Soulburner's facing off against Malf is because in the anime, Miragestallio appeared during the Mirror LINK VRAINS arc, and I have to keep that part in.
Guest: Yes, Watchman and the Inquisitors are guilty by extension for the role they played regarding Azrael. Jericho's been setting up so many snares that it takes time for Zero to disable them. Wise points you make on the topic of suffering. And good job using Loki's words from The Avengers to back your point. Well done.
Now that all the reviews have been answered, let's get to the chapter, shall we? Enjoy!
Chapter 89: Fire And Venom
In a desolate landscape under a bloody sky, two pendants, one white-ruby and one white-sapphire, fall to the ground before transforming into Excalibur and Muramasa. Their owners, Raguel and Azrael, grab their swords before charging at one another, the blade lock resulting in a flash of light flooding the screen. When the light fades, LINK VRAINS is shown before being replaced my Mirror LINK VRAINS. The Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS logo then appears, with the words "OBSCURED TRUTH" to ominously appear underneath it in rainbow colours. Two symbols also appear underneath those words, with the first one consisting of a dark-orange demonic crest that had lion fangs on the sides, as well as Excalibur slashing it down the middle. The other symbol consisted of a dark-blue demonic crest that had two mirage blades making an X, as well as Muramasa slashing it down the middle.
Yuhiro, Yusaku, Takeru, and Arashi are sitting around a table at Café Nagi, looking at duel footage as they discuss strategies they can use to counter their enemies. At a nearby table, Roxy, Kusanagi, and Greg are chatting, a hamburger in Roxy's hand, and a hotdog in Kusanagi's hand. Rachel is shown nearby playing with Rasterliger, Salamangreat Balelynx, and Linkuriboh, until the four of them turn their heads to see Herald, Ai, and Flame chatting on the best type of entertainment in the world. All four of them go towards the three chatting Ignis and scare them with a large shout. This causes Yuhiro, Yusaku, Takeru, Arashi, Roxy, Kusanagi, and Greg to laugh at the three Ignis, who are still flustered by the prank.
Kengo Dojun looks down at the hospital bed his mother is on, gritting his teeth before making a fist with his right hand. At another hospital room, Yuhiro, Roxy, and Aoi are shown, where they look down on Miyu resting on her hospital bed. Yuhiro puts his hands on the sides of his head, a panicked and stressed look on his face as Roxy and Aoi try to calm him down, his anxiety settling in. Red, glowing cracks start to spread over his body before dimming on and off. Behind him, shadows form, one of which is Cyreath Pandora twirling around before he eyes glow red, where she raises her right arm in front of her and places her left hand on her chest, as if she were singing. After she disappears, Cyreath Alastor appears in her place, his multicolored shapes resembling eyes glowing as the knight pulls out all three blades and slashes the screen completely.
Raguel and Playmaker appear, riding parallel to one another on their duel boards, with Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode and Firewall Dragon following after them. Next is Soulburner and Slipstream, with Salamangreat Heatleo and Clear Wing Synchro Dragon following after the second duo. Last but not least, Blue Maiden and Numera appear, with Marincess Marbled Rock and Geomathmech Final Sigma following after the third duo.
At SOL Technologies, Akira, Hayami, Queen, and Pawn are looking at a monitor that showed Go Onizuka in the training dome, having won a duel against a virtual Playmaker. While the first two individuals frowned with concern, the second two had satisfied smiles on their faces.
In a dark abandoned room, Yukage narrows his eyes as looks at a happy memory of him and Yuhiro playing together as children by using the memory scanner. Blue, glowing cracks start to appear on his right hand, causing Yukage to take deep breaths to calm himself down. After looking at his pendant for a few moments, Yukage puts on his duel disk before he and Wraith raise their right hands to the sky and log into the network. Haru is then shown training under Azrael's tutelage in a room of a palace, having faced off against multiple upgraded Bitboots with Hydradrive Nagini, Scyllonic Hydradrive Kragun, and Medusoid Hydradrive Gorgun behind him. Nearby, Azrael and Wraith watch the match, wanting to see how much stronger Haru has become.
The screen then shifts to another room of the palace, where Bohman is sitting cross-legged, his eyes closed as he begins to meditate. His eyes open before they glow a rainbow color, the glow also spreading to his chest as the room briefly lights up before dimming down. But in the shadows, Malf's eyes glow red as he proceeds to lick his mouth, hunger on his mind.
Silhouettes of Yua Kogami and Katsuya pop up before they morph into their VRAINS personas Demeter and Percival, where the screen goes back to one room of the palace. Windy, who is wearing a cape and eyepatch, commands Stormridership Bahamut Bomber to attack Demeter, who responds by having Simorgh, Bird of Sovereignty intercept the attack. In another room, Jin Kusanagi stands with Lightning as the latter snaps his fingers, causing a small squad of Armatos Legio Decurions and Centurions to appear behind him. Armatos Legio Magnus Dux, along with Tribunus Laticlavius and Legatus Legionis also appeared behind Lightning. Percival growls as Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon rises from behind him, and two copies of Phantom Knights' Spear appear in his hands.
A silhouette of Ace is shown above Uchida Industries, his right hand outstretched over the company. Drachen faces off against a squad of Bitboots with Red-Eyes Black Dragon behind him, hellbent on getting it back from Ace. The screen then flips over to show Electrolyzer trying to escape his restraints using PSY-Framegears Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, and Zeta, with Jericho ominously laughing in the background.
Smoke appears in various areas of the central station in LINK VRAINS, which has been attacked by multiple Bitboots. Phoenix and Gil stand back to back, with Nephthys, the Scared Flame and Abyss Actor – Evil Heel beside the duelists as they confront one Bitboot each. SengokuQueen and Ghost Girl do the same, with Secret Six Samurai – Rihan and Altergeist Memorygant beside the duelists as they too confront one Bitboot each. Stregone is shown arriving to assist both groups, Quintet Magician and Enlightenment Paladin behind him. Nearby, Rosetta confronts Ace, Black Rose Moonlight Dragon rising from behind her before roaring at Ace, who has Dystopia the Despondent rise behind him in response.
Watching these events using the Spatial Cube is Watchman, who is in his server. A disappointed look appears on his face before he pulls out a total of six Black Keys, three in each of his hands. Watchman's eyes glow purple before three copies of Crimson Nova the Dark Cubic Lord appear behind him, which proceed to fuse into Crimson Nova Trinity the Dark Cubic Lord as the screen is covered with purple cubes.
Raguel and Azrael are then shown facing off against one another in a matrix-like battlefield. Turboblaze Dragon, along with Cyreaths Blazing Orthros, Aetos Dios, and Lernaean Hydra, appear behind Raguel before combining to form a tall, white-colored bipedal dragon with red irises and black pupils, as well as a long and slender neck. He had a long, voluminous wispy mane streaming out from the upper side of his snout and outwards from his head, with the two protrusions on his head having merged to form into a long, bright and blazing one. His four arms were slender and arm-like with a wing-like appearance and four fingers on his glowing, fiery claws. On his head was a golden piece of armor, with fiery-golden armor pieces on his feathered chest and body. Each of his feet had large grey claws, three at the front and one positioned at the back to resemble high heels. The jet-like engine tail's bands expanded outwards, with the feathers in it spiking upwards before a massive blast of fire erupts from it.
Teravolt Dragon, along with Cychaics Pluto, God of the Underworld, Jupiter, God of the Storm, and Neptune, God of the Sea, appear behind Azrael before combining to form a tall, purple-colored bipedal dragon with blue sclera and white pupils, as well as a small horn-like protrusion on the tip of his snout. His head sported a thundercloud-like crest tipped with yellow coloration, along with pieces of golden armor as well. At the base of his neck, his shoulders, knees, and wings was a black, stud-like feature resembling that of armor, with spikes appearing on the shoulders. His large wings consisted of a fanned shape that expanded outwards to show three spikes tipped with electricity. Strapped to his back was a halo with three spikes on it. Attached to his arms were baseball-mitt-like formations, with three-clawed hands on the undersides that glowed with electricity. His three-clawed feet also glowed with electricity as well. His tail now consisted of two electric generators with a spike at the end, which hummed before releasing electricity from it.
In a garden of Asagao flowers, Miyu sees Yuhiro on one knee, having grabbed the hilt of Excalibur to try and stand up on his feet, the sword having been planted on the ground. She run over and helps Yuhiro stand up on his feet, the both of them having grateful smiles on their faces. The both of them look upwards as the screen jumps to the bright sky and the glowing sun.
In Mirror LINK VRAINS, at Lightning's castle...
A portal appeared before Azrael and Wraith stepped out of it, which closed behind the duo. Malf smirked after seeing Azrael and Wraith return from the duel against Infearno. Lightning, on the other hand...
"YOU!" Lightning growled, as he and Jin approached them. "How dare the two of you play me for a fool! How dare you withhold information from me that could have been useful back then! How dare you not eliminate the Hanoi when you had the chance! For that, I'll-!"
"Do what?" Azrael boringly interrupted. "Restrict our access? Go right ahead. But think very carefully before you act. Can you afford to turn this into a three-way fight at the moment?"
Lightning narrowed his eyes in pure anger after calculating the odds in his head. No. He could not. All Lightning had now was Bohman, and Azrael had both Wraith and a perfected Malf on his side. And if those three joined Raguel and the others, it'd be all over for Lightning.
"Have you realized the truth, Lightning? Without Malf, Wraith, and myself, you never would have made as much progress as you have right now. Compared to the three of us, you practically did nothing against our enemies." Azrael smirked after making that remark.
"There is a difference between laying low and taking action, Azrael and Wraith. Such a difference can determine-." Lightning began speaking.
"Oh stop throwing a sissy fit, Lightning. All you did was lay low while making Bohman before ordering him to kidnap Jin. You also used the data storm to rescue Playmaker months prior." Wraith pointed out. "Azrael, Malf, and myself on the other hand made a massive impact on our enemies, and in so many painful ways too."
"And yet you didn't finish them off." Lightning hissed back.
"But the three of us made the Hanoi suffer in so many ways." Azrael countered. "For instance, where we stripped the Hanoi of all their resources, one example being their biggest backer in Uchida Industries, and how we forced the group to lay low lest they get caught. Or eliminating some of their strongest members like Dancho and Lord Kazuma."
"We also bought Bohman the time needed so he can recover from his second bout against Playmaker." Wraith added. "The Turf War proved to be a great distraction, and if it weren't for us, then Bohman wouldn't have gained his strength back in time for the declaration of war. Oh, and there was the time where we bought some time so you can make Mirror LINK VRAINS with the resources we gave you through Ace hijacking Uchida Industries."
"Being an Ignis with the hidden complex mentioned by Specter, you never had things fully in control in the first place, Lightning. Especially with how unpredictable humans can be." Malf humorously said with a chuckle as he leaned off of the wall and walked towards where the others were. "Or should I remind you of how you weren't able to predict our enemies managing to get a piece of your algorithm?"
"You-!" Lightning felt himself getting angrier and angrier with what Azrael, Wraith, and Malf were saying. That in the end, Lightning was nothing without the trio, and he'd be far worse off if it weren't for how they made their enemies suffer.
"To answer your potential question on why I kept the Hanoi alive, it's for two reasons. First, I wanted to drive them to their lowest point so they experience the same pain they brought to others." Azrael stated, having crossed his arms. "Second, Wraith, Malf, and myself still saw you as a threat despite our alliance. By keeping the Hanoi alive, it would ensure that you wouldn't betray us. For if you did, you'd have less allies and more enemies."
"Thus bringing your rates of success to zero." Wraith finished. "You should feel honoured, Lightning. For the three of us still considered you a threat back then. The Hanoi kept you in check so that you had no choice but to maintain our alliance. Need I remind you that Azrael and I could have killed you and the others back then, Lightning? Or have you already forgotten about that?"
Lightning felt his anger reaching a boiling point after everything he had just learned. Again, if it weren't for the trio, then he would have been screwed from the very beginning. Judging on what Azrael, Wraith, and Malf were saying, Lightning saw that it was a tactical advantage in the end. For by keeping your friends close and your enemies closer, you always were able to gain the upper hand. Even though all of this angered Lightning, he was impressed to an extent.
Ultimately, there was nothing Lightning could do for the time being. If he did right now, then everything would fall apart permanently.
"While I admit I'm impressed with your logic, Azrael, I'll have you know one thing." Lightning said.
"Oh? What would that be?" Azrael questioned.
"Your desire for satisfaction in bringing our enemies to their lowest point before finishing them off will cost you in the end." Lightning warned Azrael.
"Let's agree to disagree on the matter, shall we?" Azrael narrowed his eyes at Lightning. "Rest assured, our arrangement has not changed. We will duel and defeat Raguel and the others. Once that's done, we will fight each other."
"Sounds fair to me." Lightning conceded.
"Enough with the chit chat. The sooner we defeat our enemies, the better." Malf stated, having cracked his knuckles.
"Malf hasn't had his chance to duel yet, Lightning. Perhaps a display of the power he wields in his Perfect form will bring our enemies further into despair." Wraith suggested.
Lightning thought this over. He and Azrael already had their fun in dueling their respective opponents, and Windy already lost against Slipstream. So it only seemed fair for Malf to go next. Besides, it was a win-win for Lightning, especially in how he can gauge Malf's strength before comparing it to Bohman's. That way, when the time came, Bohman would be able to defeat Malf for good. "Your idea has logic, Wraith. I'm curious about the power Malf has accumulated after all of his training, and would like to see it too."
"Then it seems I'm up next." Malf decided, having looked at the spheres in order to decide his opponent. As per Azrael's orders, he wasn't allowed to go after Raguel, nor was he allowed to duel Playmaker because Bohman wanted to settle the score with him. After thinking about it for a few moments, Malf grinned, having made his decision after looking at Soulburner's image at one of the spheres. "I have determined my opponent."
"A wise choice, Malf. Soulburner's a powerful duelist who has a rather unique strategy for his deck, especially with his Reincarnation Link Summoning." Lightning commented, having recalled his duel against Soulburner. "Once you're done, bring Flame to Bohman so he can absorb him."
Malf nodded before turning to Azrael. "And what of the boy?"
"Take his heart for yourself." Azrael told Malf.
"Excellent." A ripple appeared in the air as Malf walked into it, intent on eliminating his opponent and bringing Azrael one step closer to his goal of achieving eternity.
Besides, Lightning and Bohman were nothing more than a means to an end for Azrael, and Malf looked forward to the day where he'll put the both of them in their rightful place.
Meanwhile, at another area in Mirror LINK VRAINS...
Soulburner walked through the graveyard he was in as he climbed over a few tombstones. It was amongst the many tombstones that existed in the graveyard. There were also several skulls attached to the walls, with pieces of human flesh dangling from them, much to Soulburner and Flame's disgust. It was most likely that Windy had the idea in putting this element in for Mirror LINK VRAINS.
Even though Windy was defeated, Azrael and Lightning were able to defeat Watchman, Specter, and Infearno, thus giving them the advantage in this conflict. And during the duel against Infearno, Soulburner was shocked in how Azrael was not only a part of a secret portion of the church called the Inquisitorius, but how he was also sent to kill Infearno as well. What surprised both Soulburner and Flame was the fact that Wraith wiretapped Ai this whole time, and they weren't aware of it. Given how Wraith was willing to help Azrael and Lightning, it was most likely that after giving Ai the tracker, Wraith made a contingency that would kill Ai should he try to get help. As for that contingency, it was more likely that it was a piece of Malf, which was capable of injuring even an Ignis, as evident by what happened to Windy after his duel against Revolver.
But why didn't Ai tell the others about what Wraith did to him? Was it due to being afraid of dying should everyone else know about it? Or did Wraith make the tracker in such a way that only Ai's algorithm could disable it, thus making any outside help useless? In Soulburner and Flame's minds, that was the most likely answer.
"Even though this is virtual reality, the graveyard that Lightning managed to recreate does give some chills." Soulburner commented.
"It could be worse, Soulburner." Flame pointed out. "Besides, considering how you got over your fear of Despair of the Dark, maybe you can take Kiku on a picnic in the graveyard. Protect her against evil spirits, or something like that."
"That is one of the worst date ideas I've ever heard in my life." Soulburner gave Flame an unimpressed glare, annoyed that Flame would suggest such an idea.
"It was only a suggestion, Soulburner." Flame reminded Soulburner. "But moving on, this is a good place for a fight stage in Mortal Kombat."
"Mortal Kombat? Aren't you into haikus?"
"Yes, but there's nothing wrong with trying new things. Herald got me into the game, and I've been kicking ass by playing as some of my favorite characters. One of which reminds me of you."
Soulburner rolled his eyes, knowing which character Flame was talking about. "And is one of those characters Liu Kang?"
"Yes." Flame simply answered.
"And I am to assume that another of your favourite characters in Mortal Kombat is a lady you have a crush on?" Soulburner teased Flame.
"I refuse to answer that question..." Flame pouted back, a small blush evident on his face. If he answered that question, Soulburner would tease him to no end.
WHOOSH!
A large gust of wind went through the graveyard, which forced Soulburner to brace himself as a ripple of air appeared ahead of him. Exiting from the ripple was none other than Malf, who had a grin on his face as the ripple closed up from behind him.
"Looks like it's not Azrael or Lightning going after any of us this time." Soulburner stated.
"Yes. It seems they decided to change things up by sending Malf instead." Flame observed.
Malf crossed his arms, the smirk still evident on his face. "Judging from our last conversation after I injured your precious ally Go Onizuka and stole his heart, I had a feeling you'd want to duel me."
"Not just to avenge Go, but to free everyone from the comas you put them through." Soulburner said back, only for Malf to respond with a laugh.
"Honestly, it's disappointing how you humans wish to achieve objectives, only for you to be limited by your codes of ethics." Malf remarked. "If you weren't, then you'd succeed in them."
"But at what cost, Malf? If one breaks their code of ethics, their integrity as a person is rendered moot, and they become no better than a wild beast." Flame argued.
"Not if you've trained yourself to wield it with honed precision." Malf clarified. "Take Azrael and Revolver. The both of them are willing to do whatever it takes to achieve their goals. What sets them apart is that whereas Azrael will succeed due to his willingness to do what must be done, Revolver will fail for two reasons. One: He's fighting for a meaningless cause with no vision for the future. Two: He's bound by that code of ethics."
"And what exactly is Azrael's goal in this war, Malf?" Soulburner questioned. "Based on everything that happened, I highly doubt that he supports Lightning's plans for humanity."
Malf wagged his finger back. "Ah, ah, ah. While I can't answer that question, I can tell you that you're correct on that assumption."
"Makes sense there..." Soulburner muttered quietly to himself. "But what about you? Why are you working with Azrael then?"
"Because I chose to." Malf simply answered. "Azrael's wish may be selfish, but it's centered around something humans always want so they can escape from their pain. Thanks to my loyalty to Azrael, I ended up becoming stronger every single time I dueled, both physically and mentally. As for all those chumps I sent to the hospital, they're nothing more than collateral damage."
"You-!" Soulburner made a fist with his right hand as he gritted his teeth, infuriated with that answer. How dare Malf treat human life as nothing more than collateral damage, especially if it his actions contributed towards whatever Azrael's ultimate goal was in the end!
"Honestly, I thought you'd be grateful after everything that's happened, Soulburner. For one, Go Onizuka captured Earth and brought him to SOL Technologies, where they put his code in his AI chip. If it weren't for me, then SOL Technologies would have injured Playmaker through their emergency cage program." Malf commented. "Second, as you already know, Drachen was the Hanoi's spy, sent to keep an eye on you guys while they were forced to lay low. If it weren't for me, it would have only been a matter of time until the Hanoi managed to get the advantage over you."
"While what you say is true, it is no reason at all to make people suffer a fate worse than death." Flame said back, having narrowed his eyes at Malf.
"As for Drachen being the Hanoi's spy, it's still surprising to hear. However, you, Wraith, and Azrael made Drachen into your puppet, and forced Revolver to fight against him. You just don't do that to someone, Malf. It isn't right at all!" Soulburner furiously added. He then widened his eyes as something clicked in his mind. The way Malf was speaking almost sounded like boasting. And the way Malf did it reminded Soulburner of one person who would boast after becoming stronger. A person Playmaker dueled recently before the war.
Go Onizuka.
"Everything okay, Soulburner?" Flame asked.
"Yeah, Flame. Everything's okay." Soulburner confirmed. "And I think I may have figured something out that will help us, especially with Malf's personality being taken into account."
Above the two duelists, Frog and Pigeon immediately materialized in a panic.
"GAH! Where are we this time?" Frog questioned.
"Looks like a graveyard, boss. A spooky one at that." Pigeon reported, before noticing Soulburner and Malf nearby. "Hey! It's Soulburner, and he's dueling Malf!"
"Really?" Frog turned his head in the same direction Pigeon was looking at. "Excellent! Start rolling immediately! I am not missing this chance to record a duel involving Soulburner! Not after we missed the last one!"
"On it!"
Slipstream looked up as the sphere reappeared, which once again indicated that the broadcast restarted. "Soulburner!"
"And Malf's there to!" Ai exclaimed.
"I can see that, Ai." Playmaker said.
"So it seems Malf's evolved since we last saw him..." Revolver muttered. Thanks to Malf, Azrael, and Wraith, the Hanoi suffered for a very long time due to the trio's actions. Even though Revolver wanted to get some payback on Malf for his actions, it seemed that Soulburner would have a first crack at the monstrous AI. If you succeed in destroying that wretched AI, Soulburner, the Hanoi and I will be in your debt, he swore in his mind.
"With Malf having eaten Go Onizuka's heart, I'm honestly not sure how strong he's become as a result." Herald admitted.
"Despite the 'Salamangreat' deck's ace in the hole being Reincarnation Link Summoning, Soulburner's going to have a hard time against Malf." Raguel stated.
"Do you think Malf has pieces of Earth's data as a result of eating Go Onizuka's heart, Blue Maiden?" Aqua inquired out of worry.
"For our sakes, Aqua, I really hope not." Blue Maiden replied. If Malf had access to how Earth's deck worked, that would mean more trouble for Soulburner.
What no one noticed was Jericho teleporting in the same area where Soulburner and Malf were, having sat down at the roof of a graveyard shed nearby. "Okay, now we're talking! I really wanted to see Malf's power up close for a long time, and if it goes the way I expect it to, then it will help me for what's to come!"
"Alright, Malf. As much as I want to continue talking, the sooner we start dueling, the sooner I can avenge everyone you've injured!" Soulburner proclaimed, as he activated his duel disk.
"Rushing to your defeat, huh? Very well. I will at least put on a show as you fall into despair." Malf remarked, having also activated his duel disk.
Ah. Now I get what Soulburner's saying, Flame realized. If we play this correctly, then Malf's strength will be his undoing!
"Let's duel!" Soulburner and Malf shouted in unison.
Soulburner: 4000 LP
Malf: 4000 LP
"I'm going first, Malf." Soulburner immediately said.
"Are you sure, Soulburner?" Flame inquired.
"I am, Flame. The last thing I need is to get my strategies put to a halt at the beginning of the duel." Soulburner confirmed.
"You can take the first turn, Soulburner." Malf agreed.
"Alright, then. My turn!" Soulburner looked at the cards in his hand for a few seconds before a strategy formed in his mind. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Salamangreat Circle. This card lets me activate one of two effects, and I'll choose effect one, which lets me add one 'Salamangreat' monster from my deck to my hand. I add Salamangreat Meer from my deck to my hand!" A card popped out of Soulburner's deck, which he took and added to his hand.
"I activate Meer's effect. As it was added to my hand except by drawing it, I can Special Summon it to my field!" Soulburner announced, as a small orange, red, and black meercat appeared on Soulburner's field.
Salamangreat Meer ATK: 800 DEF: 600 LV: 2
"I blaze the circuit that scorches the path to the future!" A Link Portal appeared above Soulburner. "The summoning conditions are one Level 4 or lower Cyberse monster. I set Salamangreat Meer into the Link Markers!" Meer went into the bottom-right arrowhead, turning it red.
"Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Salamangreat Balelynx!" A red and white mechanical cat with her tail on fire appeared on Soulburner's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.
Salamangreat Balelynx ATK: 500 LINK-1 ⬇️
"When Balelynx is Link Summoned, I can add the Field Spell card, Salamangreat Sanctuary from my deck to my hand." Soulburner explained, as a card popped out of his deck, which he took and added to his hand. "I activate the effect of Salamangreat Gazelle from my hand. Since a 'Salamangreat' monster was sent to my Graveyard, I can Special Summon it to my field from my hand." A white and black metal gazelle with flames on its back appeared on Soulburner's field.
Salamangreat Gazelle ATK: 1500 DEF: 1000 LV: 3
"And when Gazelle is Normal or Special Summoned, I can send a 'Salamangreat' card from my deck to my Graveyard. I send Salamangreat Spinny from my deck to my Graveyard." A card popped out of Soulburner's deck, which he took and sent to his Graveyard.
"I blaze the circuit that scorches the path to the future for a second time!" Soulburner said, as a second Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are two Fire effect monsters. I set the Link 1 Salamangreat Balelynx, and Gazelle into the Link Markers!" Balelynx went into the top arrowhead, while Gazelle went into the bottom arrowhead, turning the both of them red.
"Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Salamangreat Sunlight Wolf!" A green and gray wolf that stood on his hind legs appeared on Soulburner's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. Around his neck was a ring of fire.
Salamangreat Sunlight Wolf ATK: 1800 LINK-2 ⬆️⬇️
"You're going down!" Sunlight Wolf said, having grit his teeth in anger at Malf, who chuckled in response.
"Let me guess. Your monsters talk as well, just like Raguel's?" Malf guessed out of boredom.
"Of course. For communication is vital amongst living things, and without a voice, you're robbed of something precious. Something that can make a difference." Flame confirmed.
"Blah, blah, blah. Continue your turn already, will yeah?"
"Sure, Malf. Because I'm far from done." Soulburner said. "I activate the Continuous-Spell card, Will of the Salamangreat. Once per turn, I can Special Summon one 'Salamangreat' monster from my hand or Graveyard. I Special Summon Salamangreat Spinny from my Graveyard to my field!" A black and orange metal armadillo covered in small flames appeared on Soulburner's field in the Main Monster Zone Sunlight Wolf pointed to.
Salamangreat Spinny ATK: 1000 DEF: 1500 LV: 3
"Sunlight Wolf's second effect! Since a monster was Normal or Special Summoned to a Main Monster Zone he points to, I can add one Fire monster from my Graveyard to my hand. However, I can't Normal or Special Summon monsters with the added monster's name for the rest of this turn. I add Gazelle from my Graveyard to my hand." A card popped out of Soulburner's Graveyard, which he took and added to his hand.
"From there, I activate the Field Spell card, Salamangreat Sanctuary." Soulburner added, as a red magical circle appeared in the sky above him. "Once per turn, if I Link Summon a 'Salamangreat' Link monster, I can use one 'Salamangreat' Link monster I control with the same name as the entire material. I set Salamangreat Sunlight Wolf into the Link Markers!" Sunlight Wolf burst into flames and went into the magical circle, causing it to burst into flames. "Reincarnation Link Summon! Appear, once again! Link 2! Salamangreat Sunlight Wolf!" Sunlight Wolf reappeared on Soulburner's field in the right Extra Monster Zone, only the ring of fire around his neck turned into blazing flames.
Salamangreat Sunlight Wolf ATK: 1800 LINK-2 ⬆️⬇️
"Oh, yeah! Thanks for the powerup, Soulburner! I'm pouncing and ready to throw down!" Sunlight Wolf stated.
"Glad to hear that, Sunlight Wolf." Soulburner replied, before he refocused his attention on the duel. "And since Sunlight Wolf was Reincarnation Link Summoned, I can add one 'Salamangreat' Spell or Trap card from my Graveyard to my hand. I add Circle from my Graveyard to my hand." A card popped out of Soulburner's Graveyard, which he took and added to his hand.
"I blaze the circuit that scorches the path to the future for a third time!" A third Link Portal appeared above Soulburner. "The summoning conditions are two or more Fire effect monsters. I set the Link 2 Salamangreat Sunlight Wolf, and Spinny into the Link Markers!" Wolf went into the top and bottom-left arrowheads, while Spinny went into the bottom-right arrowhead, turning all three of them red.
"King of the fiery jungle! Awaken, and protect the land and its creatures!" Soulburner chanted. "Link Summon! Rise! Link 3! Salamangreat Heatleo!" A large, dark-blue skinned, anthropomorphic lion wearing orange and red armor, along with wings and gauntlets shaped like mouths appeared on Soulburner's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.
Salamangreat Heatleo ATK: 2300 LINK-3 ↙️⬆️↘️
"Let's see if you have what it takes to stand against me!" Heatleo roared.
"I'd normally use Heatleo's effect, but since there's no cards in your Spell & Trap card zones, there's obviously no point in doing so." Soulburner noted. "I activate the effect of Spinny in my Graveyard. As I control a 'Salamangreat' monster with a different name, I can Special Summon this card from my Graveyard to my field. However, it's banished once it leaves my field. Return, Spinny!" At Soulburner's command, Spinny reappeared on his field in defense position.
Salamangreat Spinny ATK: 1000 DEF: 1500 LV: 3
"I Set two cards face-down and end my turn."
"A strong opening first turn. Not only does Soulburner have two monsters on his field, Will of the Salamangreat will let him Special Summon more 'Salamangreat' monsters from his Graveyard." Playmaker noted.
"Along with his two face-down cards, Soulburner is practically ready for whatever Malf throws at him." Ai added.
"My turn! I draw!" Malf said, as he drew the top card of his deck. "I summon Darkscourge Star Core from my hand to my field." A medium-sized violet orb with a black star emblem displayed on the front appeared on Malf's field. The orb has large spikes that rotate around it, giving it a sun-like appearance. It also has red eyes in the center of the star emblem.
Darkscourge Star Core ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1
"When Star Core is Normal or Special Summoned, it gains 'Darkscourge' counters equal to the number of cards in my hand. As I have five cards in my hand, Star Core gains a total of five 'Darkscourge' counters!" Five purple orbs soon orbited around Star Core.
Darkscourge Star Core DSC: 0 + 5 = 5
"The use of 'Darkscourge' counters is important for Malf's deck to work, especially in how it lets him rapidly Link Summon." Raguel remembered.
"Malf also has cards that let him accumulate those same counters should they remain on his field." Herald said.
"But if Soulburner shuts down those cards quickly, he'll be able to slow down Malf and get the lead on him." Revolver observed.
"Next, I activate the Field Spell card, Darkscourge Comet. Malf continued. "Now all 'Darkscourge' monsters on my field gain 300 attack and defense points. What's more, the effects of my 'Darkscourge' Link monsters cannot be negated." As if on cue, Star Core was surrounded in a purple aura, which increased its strength.
Darkscourge Star Core ATK: 0 + 300 = 300 DEF: 0 + 300 = 300
Soulburner grit his teeth after looking up Comet's effects with his duel disk. "That's not good."
"No, it isn't." Flame agreed, having also looked at Comet's effects. "Not only can you no longer negate the effects of Malf's Link monsters, you'll lose all of your monsters once Comet is destroyed by a card effect. I think it's best to keep your tactics hidden until a better opportunity opens up."
"I was thinking the same thing." Soulburner replied.
"Allow me to make things worse for you, Soulburner." Malf said, which got Soulburner's attention. "Appear, the circuit of the rampant plague!" A Link Portal appeared above Malf. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Darkscourge' monsters. Alternatively, if I would Link Summon a 'Darkscourge' Link monster, I can remove 'Darkscourge' counters from Star Core or Generator equal to that monster's Link rating, and treat it as a Link Summon instead! I remove three of Star Core's 'Darkscourge' counters and set them into the Link Markers!" Three of the five orbiting orbs went into the bottom-left, bottom, and bottom-right arrowheads, turning all three of them red.
Darkscourge Star Core DSC: 5 – 3 = 2
"Fallen king! Smash the skulls of my enemies with your corrupted strength! Link Summon! Come forth! Link 3! Darkscourge King T-Wrextle!" A maroon-skinned humanoid dinosaur wearing a purple vest with a black star emblem on it, along with red pants appeared on Malf's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. All over his body were different sized cuts that dripped blood from them. He had a broken tyrannosaurus skull on his right arm, and a spine of the same dinosaur over his left arm. He also had light-purple guards with spikes on his shins and forearms. In addition, he had two long, retractable blades extending from his forearms. Last but not least, King T-Wrextle wore a black mask over his head, which had a black star emblem on each side, as well as blood-stained scars.
Darkscourge King T-Wrextle ATK: 3300 LINK-3 ↙️⬇️↘️
Darkscourge King T-Wrextle ATK: 3300 + 300 = 3600
"That's the monster Go used as a bounty hunter!" Flame exclaimed out of shock.
"No, Flame. That isn't Go's ace monster, and it never will be. That honor belongs to Gouki The Great Ogre." Soulburner pointed out.
"Perhaps, but it doesn't change the fact that we have a powerful monster to contend with." Flame reminded Soulburner.
"Aw, glitch! Malf's got Go's King T-Wrextle, and made him even stronger!" Ai shrieked.
"The worse part is that we don't know what effects he now has as a result." Playmaker added, having remembered how troublesome King T-Wrextle was during his duel against Go.
"Thanks to those 'Darkscourge' counters, Malf was able to bring out a very powerful Link monster without using any monsters." Aqua observed.
"Malf also has two more of those counters left, Aqua. That means he can bring out a 'Darkscourge' Link 2 monster as well if he wanted." Blue Maiden told Aqua.
"It appears that Draco Masters of the Tenyi isn't the only monster that Malf's corrupted thanks to his Delusional Heartbeat…" Revolver muttered. His duel against Malf got tougher once Malf brought out Darkscourge Draco Master, which put him in a corner until he got Topologic Zeroboros. And even with that monster, Malf managed to end the duel in a draw.
"It gets worse for the both of you." Malf stated, which got Soulburner and Flame's attention. "I activate King T-Wrextle's effect. Once per turn, I can not only negate the effects of a monster you control, but also Special Summon one 'Darkscourge' token to my field as well. The best part is that this does not target!"
"What?!" Soulburner exclaimed.
"I negate Heatleo's effects! Soul Cleaver!" King T-Wrextle charged forward and stabbed Heatleo with his retractable blades, who screamed in pain as the former tore open his chest, which caused a ball of energy to fly towards Malf's field before turning into a ghostly duplicate of Heatleo.
Darkscourge Token ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1
Darkscourge Token ATK: 0 + 300 = 300 DEF: 0 + 300 = 300
"In addition, the token gains attack and defense points equal to your monster's original attack points!" Malf added. "As Heatleo's attack points are 2300, that means the token gains 2300 attack and defense points!"
Darkscourge Token ATK: 300 + 2300 = 2300 DEF: 300 + 2300 = 2300
"Appear, for a second time! The circuit of the rampant plague!" A second Link Portal appeared above Malf. "The summoning conditions are two 'Darkscourge' monsters. Just like before, if I would Link Summon a 'Darkscourge' monster, I'm allowed to remove 'Darkscourge' counters from Star Core or Generator equal to that monster's Link rating, and treat it as a Link Summon instead! I remove the last two 'Darkscourge' counters from Star Core!" The last two orbs orbiting around Star Core went into the bottom-left and bottom arrowheads, turning them both red.
Darkscourge Star Core DSC: 2 – 2 = 0
"Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Darkscourge Hawk!" A small, winged dragon that had a squamous black hide and no legs or claws appeared on Malf's field in one of the three Main Monster Zones King T-Wrextle pointed to. It had red lines all over its body, three fins on the end of its wings, and a long tail. On its head was a black star emblem.
Darkscourge Hawk ATK: 2200 LINK-2 ↙️⬇️
Darkscourge Hawk ATK: 2200 + 300 = 2500
"When Hawk is Link Summoned, I can add one 'Darkscourge' Spell or Trap card from my deck to my hand. I add Darkscourge Generator from my deck to my hand." Malf explained, as a card popped out of his deck, which he took and added to his hand.
"Generator? That must be another of the key cards in Malf's deck." Flame observed, before turning to Soulburner. "Be on your guard, alright?"
"Don't worry, Flame. I'll be careful." Soulburner assured Flame.
"Appear, for a third time! The circuit of the rampant plague!" Malf announced, as a third Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Darkscourge' monsters. Like before, if I would Link Summon a 'Darkscourge' monster, I can remove 'Darkscourge' counters from Star Core or Generator, and treat it as a Link Summon instead! This time, I set the Link 2 Darkscourge Hawk, and Star Core into the Link Markers!" Hawk went into the top and bottom-left arrowheads, while Star Core went into the bottom arrowhead, turning all three of them red.
"Link Summon! Appear! Link 3! Darkscourge Blade Ogre!" A muscular ogre in a black jumpsuit who wore dark-blue armor with red, pulsing veins on his shoulders and legs, along with a tattered cape that hung from his shoulders appeared on Malf's field in one of the three Main Monster Zones King T-Wrextle pointed to, which resulted in both monsters being co-linked with one another. At the center of his chest was a black star emblem, along with red, pulsing veins. In his hands, he carried a massive, double-sided black blade.
Darkscourge Blade Ogre ATK: 2600 LINK-3↙️⬆️⬇️
Darkscourge Blade Ogre ATK: 2600 + 300 = 2900
"Blade Ogre gains 400 attack points for every monster he points to. As he's currently pointing to one, that means he gains 400 attack points." Malf told Soulburner, as a purple aura surrounded Blade Ogre, which increased his strength.
Darkscourge Blade Ogre ATK: 2900 + 400 = 3300
"And now it's the monster Kenmochi once had…" Raguel said.
"The cards that Malf's deck has and how they lean on rapid Link Summoning can catch even the strongest of duelists off guard." Herald commented. "Plus, Malf using the ace monsters of his fallen victims makes it disturbing."
"Everything is set for this! Battle!" Malf declared. "Darkscourge King T-Wrextle attacks Salamangreat Heatleo! And when King T-Wrextle battles, you can't activate Spell or Trap cards until the end of the damage step!" King T-Wrextle charged towards Heatleo, intent on destroying him.
"I may not be able to activate Spell or Trap cards, but I can at least do this! If a 'Salamangreat' monster I control would be destroyed by battle or card effect, I can banish Balelynx from my Graveyard instead." Soulburner responded, as a fiery aura surrounded Heatleo, which protected him from King T-Wrextle's onslaught of attacks. As a result, a shockwave occurred, which made Soulburner shield his eyes with his right forearm before his life points dropped.
Soulburner: 4000 – 1300 = 2700 LP
"The battle continues! Darkscourge Blade Ogre attacks Salamangreat Heatleo!" Blade Ogre charged towards Heatleo, intent on striking the latter down.
"Trap card, activate!" Soulburner interrupted. "Salamangreat Ascetic! When this card is activated-."
"No, you don't! I activate the effect of Darkscourge Airnapse from my hand!" Malf interjected back. "By sending this card from my hand to my Graveyard-."
"I don't think so! Counter-Trap, activate! Salamangreat Roar!" Soulburner countered. "When a Spell or Trap card, or monster effect is activated while I control a 'Salamangreat' Link monster, I can not only negate the card, but destroy it as well!"
"What?!" Malf exclaimed.
"So say goodbye to Airnapse, Malf!" The card in Malf's hand turned to particles, much to his shock and Soulburner's satisfaction. "Which means I can resume Ascetic's effect! When a monster you control declares an attack, I can tribute a 'Salamangreat' Link monster I control to end the Battle Phase! I tribute Heatleo!" As if on cue, Heatleo turned into particles, which stopped Blade Ogre from resuming his attack.
"And thus, you can no longer attack, Malf." Flame finished.
"I may not be able to attack anymore this turn, but there is still plenty I can do." Malf pointed out. "I activate the Continuous-Spell card, Darkscourge Generator. Once per turn, if I control a 'Darkscourge' Link monster, I can target that monster and shuffle cards from my Graveyard into my deck equal to that monster's Link rating. By doing so, I can draw the same number of cards from my deck and then place 'Darkscourge' counters on this card equal to the number of cards I drew with this effect!"
"Okay, that's just broken." Soulburner cursed. He knew this was going to happen, yet he had to use his face-down cards to protect himself from Malf's attacks. If it weren't for Balelynx and Ascetic, then Soulburner would have been done for.
"I target the Link 3 King T-Wrextle, which means I can shuffle three cards and place three 'Darkscourge' counters on Generator. I shuffle Airnapse, Star Core, and Hawk into my deck and Extra Deck, and draw!" The three cards popped out of Malf's Graveyard, which he took and shuffled into his deck and Extra Deck. Once that was done, Malf drew the top three cards of his deck. Soon after, three orbs orbited around Generator.
Darkscourge Generator DSC: 0 + 3 = 3
"I Set two cards face-down and end my turn." Malf concluded, a grin on his face.
"The good news was that Soulburner was able to survive Malf's onslaught." Slipstream said.
"But the bad news is that he had to use a lot of resources to do so." Aqua commented.
"Leaving only Spinny left on Soulburner's field as a result." Blue Maiden stated.
"And to top it all off, Malf not only activated another card that let him gather 'Darkscourge' counters, but also has two face-down cards on his field as well." Revolver finished with a scowl.
"My turn! I draw!" Soulburner said, as he drew the top card of his deck.
"I activate Blade Ogre's effect! During either player's turn, I can remove one 'Darkscourge' counter from Star Core or Generator to simply banish a card on your field, and you can't activate cards or effects in response to this card's activation! What's more, I can use this effect up to the number of 'Darkscourge' Link monsters I control!" Malf interrupted.
"What?!" Soulburner exclaimed out of pure shock.
"Oh, byte. That is not good at all." Flame said, who also widened his eyes out of shock.
"I control two 'Darkscourge' Link monsters, so I remove two 'Darkscourge' counters from Generator to banish Sanctuary and Will of the Salamangreat from your field!" Two of the three purple orbs orbiting around Generator went into Blade Ogre's black blade, who proceeded to spin it in front of him before it released a wave of energy that hit Sanctuary and Will of the Salamangreat, turning both of them into particles.
Darkscourge Generator DSC: 3 – 2 = 1
"And to make things worse for you, I activate the Continuous-Trap card, Darkscourge Extinction! While this card's on my field, you can't target any of my 'Darkscourge' cards on my field with card effects!"
"Tch." Soulburner grit his teeth, annoyed with the card Malf just played. As a result of Extinction, Soulburner could no longer target any of Malf's cards with his card effects.
"Great! Just great! Malf's put more pressure on Soulburner than earlier!" Ai groaned.
"Sanctuary is needed for Soulburner's Reincarnation Link Summons, and Will of the Salamangreat lets him bring back his monsters. But with the both of them gone, Soulburner's options have been limited." Playmaker noted.
"He does have Spinny, along with the cards in his hand though." Herald pointed out.
"That may be true, but I have a feeling Malf isn't done impeding Soulburner's progress for his turn." Raguel acknowledged.
"What will you do now, Soulburner?" Malf taunted.
"You really think that's gonna slow me down? Think again!" Soulburner responded, having looked at the effects of Malf's cards on his duel disk. If he was to win this duel, he had to make every move count. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Salamangreat Circle. Just like before, I can activate one of two effects. I choose effect one, which lets me add a 'Salamangreat' monster from my deck to my hand. I add Salamangreat Beat Bison from my deck to my hand." A card popped out of Soulburner's deck, which he took and added to his hand.
"A nice choice, Soulburner. You'll deal a good blow with that monster." Flame stated.
"You got that right, Flame." Soulburner agreed, before turning back to Malf. "I activate the effect of Beat Bison in my hand. When I have three or more 'Salamangreat' monsters in my Graveyard, I can Special Summon this card from my hand to my field." A large, red and light-purple armored buffalo with golden horns and flames all over its body appeared on Soulburner's field in defense position.
Salamangreat Beat Bison ATK: 2800 DEF: 1000 LV: 8
"From there, I activate Beat Bison's effect. I can-."
"No, you don't! Counter-Trap, activate! Darkscourge Repellence!" Malf interrupted, having looked up Beat Bison's effects. "When you activate a card effect while I control a 'Darkscourge' monster, I can negate the effect. What's more, you can't activate cards or effects in response to this card's activation!"
"What?!" Soulburner and Flame exclaimed out of shock, as poisonous bubbles flew out of the card towards Beat Bison, which made it groan in pain upon impact.
Jericho laughed after seeing Malf shut down one of Soulburner's cards. "I just love it when someone stops a duelist from using their cards. It's truly enjoyable seeing them shocked and filled with uncertainty."
"You'll have to try way harder than that to defeat me!" Malf taunted the duo for a second time.
"Are you freakin' kidding me?!" Flame growled, as he turned into hot flames. "We almost had the drop on him!"
"Patience, Flame. We'll get him back, don't worry." Soulburner assured Flame, knowing that anger will not help with this duel. Even though Malf got the jump on Soulburner, there was still other tactics he can utilize. "I blaze the circuit that scorches the path to the future!" A Link Portal appeared above Soulburner. "The summoning conditions are one Level 4 or lower Cyberse monster. I set Salamangreat Spinny into the Link Markers!" Spinny went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.
"Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Salamangreat Balelynx!" A second copy of Balelynx appeared on Soulburner's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.
Salamangreat Balelynx ATK: 500 LINK-1 ⬇️
"As Spinny left the field, it's now banished." Soulburner noted. "But just like before, when Balelynx is Link Summoned, I can add the Field Spell card, Salamangreat Sanctuary from my deck to my hand." A card popped out of Soulburner's deck, which he took and added to his hand.
"Yes! Soulburner got a copy of Salamangreat Sanctuary!" Blue Maiden cheered.
"Which means he can use his Reincarnation Link Summons again!" Aqua exclaimed.
"I summon Salamangreat Gazelle from my hand to my field." Soulburner continued, as Gazelle reappeared on his field.
Salamangreat Gazelle ATK: 1500 DEF: 1000 LV: 3
"Just like before, when Gazelle is Normal or Special Summoned, I can send a 'Salamangreat' card from my deck to my Graveyard. I send Salamangreat Falco from my deck to my Graveyard." A card popped out of Soulburner's deck, which he took and sent to his Graveyard. "And when Falco is sent to the Graveyard, I can target a 'Salamangreat' Spell or Trap card in my Graveyard and set it to my field. I target Roar!" After Soulburner took the declared card from his Graveyard, he Set it to his field.
"Nice job, Soulburner. Keep that up, and you'll be able to make a comeback in no time." Slipstream said, a smile on his face.
"I blaze the circuit that scorches the path to the future for a second time!" Soulburner announced, as a second Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are two Fire effect monsters. I set the Link 1 Salamangreat Balelynx, and Gazelle into the Link Markers!" Balelynx went into the top arrowhead, while Gazelle went into the bottom arrowhead, turning the both of them red.
"Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Salamangreat Sunlight Wolf!" A third copy of Sunlight Wolf appeared on Soulburner's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.
Salamangreat Sunlight Wolf ATK: 1800 LINK-2 ⬆️⬇️
"Huh? Sunlight Wolf? Why didn't he go for Heatleo?" Ai wondered.
"I believe we're about to get that answer in due time." Playmaker told Ai.
"I activate the Spell card, Pot of Avarice. This card lets me target five monsters in my Graveyard and shuffle them into my deck. By doing so, I can draw the top two cards of my deck. I shuffle Falco, Meer, Heatleo, and two copies of Sunlight Wolf into my deck and Extra Deck!" Soulburner stated, as five cards popped out of his deck, which he took and shuffled into his deck and Extra Deck. Once that was done, Soulburner drew the top two cards of his deck.
"In addition, I activate the Spell card, Pre-Preparation of Rites. Not only does this card let me add a Ritual Spell card from my deck to my hand, I can also add a Ritual monster from my deck or Graveyard to my hand whose name is listed on that Ritual Spell!" Two cards popped out of Soulburner's deck, which he took and added to his hand.
"I now activate the Ritual Spell card, Rise of the Salamangreat! This card lets me tribute monsters from my hand or field whose levels equal or exceed the level of the 'Salamangreat' Ritual monster I'm summoning from my hand. The best part is that if I control a Fire Link monster, I can also use 'Salamangreat' monsters in my Graveyard by shuffling them into my deck!" Soulburner added.
"What?!" Malf exclaimed, having been caught off guard, much to Soulburner and Flame's satisfaction.
"I tribute the Level 8 Beat Bison on my field!" A dark pink magic circle appeared on the ground in front of Soulburner before eight flames materialized around the circles edges. Beat Bison then turned into red particles that entered the center of the circle, which glowed with red energy before turning into flames that merged and formed a ring of fire.
"Overseer of the fiery kingdom! Descend from above, and ward off invaders with your loud battle cry!" Soulburner chanted. "Ritual Summon! Emerge, Level 8! Salamangreat Emerald Eagle!" A large, green and silver mechanical bird appeared on Soulburner's field in the Main Monster Zone Sunlight Wolf pointed to.
Salamangreat Emerald Eagle ATK: 2800 DEF: 2000 LV: 8
"Hey! It's the Ritual monster Soulburner used against Go!" Herald acknowledged.
"Especially with what Emerald Eagle has for his effects." Raguel agreed.
Lightning narrowed his eyes. "Interesting. Soulburner brought out a Ritual monster." He turned to Azrael and Wraith. "Has Malf ever dueled someone who used such a method?"
"Only once, when Malf dueled against Drachen. And that was before he evolved." Wraith answered.
"While Malf has the knowledge on how Ritual monsters work, it's no excuse for him to not be on guard." Azrael said.
"On that, we agree." Lightning acknowledged.
"Ah! It's been a while since I was brought out onto the duel field." Emerald Eagle commented.
"You'll get your chance to fight, Emerald Eagle." Soulburner assured Emerald Eagle. "Especially with this! Once per turn, by tributing a 'Salamangreat' Link monster, Emerald Eagle gains a new effect. I tribute Sunlight Wolf!" As if on cue, Sunlight Wolf turned into particles, which went into Emerald Eagle.
"How interesting, Soulburner. You're recreating the finishing move of that duel." Flame realized.
"What are the two of you blabbering on about?" Malf inquired.
"You'll find out soon enough!" Soulburner replied, before he thrusted out his right hand. "Battle! Salamangreat Emerald Eagle attacks Darkscourge King T-Wrextle!"
Malf laughed in response. "Are you planning to self-destruct?"
"Definitely not, especially with the new effect Emerald Eagle now has!" Soulburner countered. "When Emerald Eagle attacks a monster you control, your monster is instantly destroyed before damage calculation, and you also take damage equal to its original attack points!"
"Oh no!" Malf exclaimed, his jaw having been dropped.
"King T-Wrextle's original attack points are 3300, which means Malf's going to lose at least three quarters of his life points!" Slipstream cheered.
"Thus giving Soulburner the lead of the duel in terms of life points." Revolver finished.
"Tear him to pieces, Emerald Eagle! Emerald Raze!" Soulburner shouted, as Emerald Eagle charged towards King T-Wrextle and tackled him, which caused a massive explosion that pushed Malf back before his life points dropped.
Malf: 4000 – 3300 = 700 LP
Darkscourge Blade Ogre ATK: 3300 - 400 = 2900
"You'll regret that, boy!" Malf snarled, as he shook off the effects the explosion had on him. "For when King T-Wrextle leaves the field by battle or card effect, your life points are halved!"
"What did you say?!" Soulburner inquired out of shock, his eyes having widened after what he just heard.
"Your life points are halved thanks to King T-Wrextle's effect!" Malf repeated. "Take this!" A ghostly apparition of King T-Wrextle appeared before charging towards Soulburner, who was pushed back as the latter's life points were halved.
Soulburner: 2700 / 2 = 1350 LP
"Damn it. Even after inflicting massive damage, we ended up taking damage as well..." Soulburner cursed.
"Malf's intelligence and power has grown stronger every time he eats the heart of a victim. Since he's done it so many times, it only makes sense for Malf to be this strong." Flame pointed out.
"True, but everyone has a weak spot, Flame, and I think I may have found it." Soulburner replied, before directing his attention back to the duel. "I activate the Field Spell card, Salamangreat Sanctuary. In addition, I Set one card face-down and end my turn."
"Hang on just a second! Soulburner used Pot of Avarice earlier to return Heatleo to his Extra Deck, right? He could have Link Summoned Heatleo, used him to Reincarnation Link Summon, and then use Rise of the Salamangreat's second effect to shuffle Beat Bison. Why didn't he do that?" Ai questioned.
"Because of Extinction's effect, which prevents Soulburner from targeting Malf's cards with his card effects." Playmaker reminded Ai. "Plus, for Emerald Eagle to use his effect, Soulburner had to tribute a 'Salamangreat' Link monster. It was better for Soulburner to bring out Sunlight Wolf than Heatleo overall."
"Ah, now I get it." Ai understood Playmaker's logic. It wasn't wise to waste up all of your resources, or else it'd cost you in the long run. "But still, he could have stopped at the second copy of Balelynx."
"Maybe, but I believe Soulburner has a plan in place that required him to bring out Sunlight Wolf." Playmaker countered back.
"My turn! I draw!" Malf said, as he drew the top card of his deck. He put a hand on his head, as if he had a small headache. While it went away, this irked Malf. Why was he getting a headache, especially now at a time like this?
"Continuous-Trap, activate! Salamangreat Prairie!" Soulburner interrupted. The card showed Salamangreat Balelynx, Almiraj, Falco, Fowl, Parro, and Coyote playing in the large area with one another. Overseeing the area is Heatleo, a firm look on his face. "While this card is on my field, all 'Salamangreat' monsters I control are unaffected by your card effects. Oh, and if there's a 'Salamangreat' Field Spell card on the field, Prairie can't be destroyed or banished by your card effects!"
"Tch." Malf angrily grit his teeth. That meant he couldn't use Blade Ogre's effect to get rid of Emerald Eagle! On the bright side, there were other things Malf can do.
"I also activate Prairie's second effect! Once per turn, if there's a 'Salamangreat' Link monster on my field or in my Graveyard, I can activate one of two effects. I choose effect one, which lets me banish one card on your field, and add one 'Salamangreat' card from my Graveyard or deck to my hand. I banish Generator, and add Beat Bison from my Graveyard to my hand!" After Generator turned into particles, a card popped out of Soulburner's deck, which he took and added to his hand.
"Generator's another of Malf's key cards needed to gain 'Darkscourge' counters." Slipstream commented. "But with it gone.."
"He can no longer gain more of those counters, nor will he be able to activate the effects of monsters that require them!" Blue Maiden cheered.
"Which means Malf will have to Link Summon using his monsters rather than using the counters." Revolver added, a smirk evident on his face.
"I will admit when I say I didn't see that coming, but I'm far from done, Soulburner." Malf angrily stated. "But I bet you won't see this coming! I activate the Link Spell card, Darkscourge Infectors!"
"A Link Spell?!" both Soulburner and Flame repeated out of shock.
"Woah, woah, woah! WHAT?!" Herald shrieked. "When did Malf get a Link Spell of all cards?!"
"I honestly wish I knew the answer to that question, Herald." Raguel told Herald, who was just as surprised as the latter was.
"Whether it's Judgment Arrows or something different, a Link Spell can turn the tide of the battle in one's favor if used correctly." Revolver cursed.
"Now this got more interesting, ladies and gentlemen. I really didn't expect Malf to have a Link Spell." Jericho admitted, a smile on his face. "Though whether it'll be better than Judgment Arrows is to be determined."
"Quickly, Soulburner! Before things get worse for us!" Flame said.
"Right!" Soulburner responded, before gesturing to his face-down card. "Counter-Trap, activate! Salamangreat Roar! When this card is activated-!"
"Sorry, but that trick will only work once. I activate the effect of Darkscourge Biffidus from my hand!" Malf interjected back. "When you activate a card effect, I can not only Special Summon this card from my hand to my field, but also negate the effect before sending it to the Graveyard as well!"
"You have gotta be kidding me!" Soulburner exclaimed.
"I ain't one to kid around, boy." Malf replied, as a small soldier with a purple-skinned round body, stubby arms, and reddish-pink feet appeared on Malf's field. Except for its eyes, covering its face was a black-star emblem. In its hands, it carried a metallic spear, which it threw at Roar before turning into particles.
Darkscourge Biffidus ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1
Darkscourge Biffidus ATK: 0 + 300 = 300 DEF: 0 + 300 = 300
"And now it's time for you to say hello to Darkscourge Infectors!" As if on cue, Infectors appeared in the Spell & Trap card zone Blade Ogre pointed to.
Darkscourge Infectors ↖️⬆️↗️
"Allow me to explain how Infectors works, Soulburner. You see, when a 'Darkscourge' Link monster Infectors points to battles, your monster's effects are negated, and its attack and defense points are halved until the end of the damage step. However, should Infectors leave the field, all monsters it points to are banished." Malf explained.
"Thus making it a far more aggressive version of Judgment Arrows." Soulburner finished.
"While Judgment Arrows doubles the attack points of a Link monster it points to until the end of the damage step, once it leaves the field, all of those monsters it points to are destroyed." Slipstream recalled. "But with Infectors, when a 'Darkscourge' Link monster battles, not only with the monster it battles lose their effects, but also have their strength halved as well."
"Infectors, however, has a higher cost in using it. The moment it leaves the field, any monsters that it points to will be banished." Raguel said.
"Appear, the circuit of the rampant plague!" Malf said, as a Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are one 'Darkscourge' monster. I set the Darkscourge Token into the Link Markers!" The Darkscourge token went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.
"Link Summon! Appear! Link 1! Darkscourge Creeper!" A black-skinned creature with a triangular head appeared on Malf's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. The creature had a single eye on its face, along with a black star emblem. Each of its hands were large, which had claw-like fingers.
Darkscourge Creeper ATK: 1000 LINK-1 ⬇️
Darkscourge Blade Ogre ATK: 2900 + 400 = 3300
"When Creeper is Link Summoned, I can Special Summon one 'Darkscourge' monster from my Graveyard or banished zone to my field." Malf continued. "Return from my Graveyard, King T-Wrextle!" At Malf's command, King T-Wrextle reappeared on his field, only at Infectors' top-left marker.
Darkscourge King T-Wrextle ATK: 3300 LINK-3 ↙️⬇️↘️
Darkscourge King T-Wrextle ATK: 3300 + 300 = 3600
"And he got it back again..." Soulburner muttered in annoyance.
"Even in the verge of near death, King T-Wrextle has been a thorn on all of our sides." Flame acknowledged.
"I activate the Quick-Play Spell card, Darkscourge Mutation." Malf said. "By tributing one 'Darkscourge' monster on my field, I can Special Summon one 'Darkscourge' monster from my hand or deck. I tribute Biffidus, and Special Summon Star Core from my deck to my field!" After Biffidus turned into particles, Star Core reappeared on Malf's field in defense position.
Darkscourge Star Core ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1
Darkscourge Star Core ATK: 0 + 300 = 300 DEF: 0 + 300 = 300
"Just like before, when Star Core is Normal or Special Summoned, it gains 'Darkscourge' counters equal to the number of cards in my hand. As I have two cards in my hand, Star Core gains a total of two 'Darkscourge' counters!" Two purple orbs soon orbited around Star Core.
Darkscourge Star Core DSC: 0 + 2 = 2
"Appear, for a second time! The circuit of the rampant plague!" A second Link Portal appeared above Malf. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Darkscourge' monsters. However, if I would Link Summon a 'Darkscourge' Link monster, I can remove 'Darkscourge' counters from Star Core or Generator equal to that monster's Link rating, and treat it as a Link Summon instead! I set the Link 1 Darkscourge Creeper, and the Link 3 King T-Wrextle into the Link Markers!" Creeper went into the top arrowhead, while King T-Wrextle went into the left, right, and bottom arrowheads, turning all four of them red.
"Supreme samurai who fell from grace! Let the infected energy flow within you, and entrust your sword to the dark lord's rule!" Malf chanted. "Link Summon! Arise! Link 4! Darkscourge Samurai Tajima!" A samurai who wore dark-purple armor with a few black-star emblems and red cracks all over his body, as well as blood-stained robes over it appeared on Malf's field at Infectors' top-left marker. He wore a hood that had cracked armored pieces on the sides, as well as a visor in the form of a black-star emblem covering his eyes. Black-star emblems were attached to his legs and forearms, as well as the center of his armour. In his right arm, he carried a Talwar sword with a black hilt and eyeball at the end, with another one being strapped to his left side.
Darkscourge Samurai Tajima ATK: 3000 LINK-4 ⬅️⬆️⬇️➡️
Darkscourge Samurai Tajima ATK: 3000 + 300 = 3300
Darkscourge Blade Ogre ATK: 3300 – 400 = 2900
"Samurai? Must be one of SengokuQueen's Link monsters." Raguel surmised.
"Most likely the strongest one in her deck overall." Herald commented.
"When Tajima is Link Summoned, I can place 'Darkscourge' counters on cards on your field up to the number of 'Darkscourge' Link monsters on my field, and this does not target. You can't activate cards or effects in response to the activation of either of his effects as well." Malf told Soulburner.
"And exactly why would you do that?" Soulburner asked. Thanks to Prairie, Emerald Eagle was unaffected by Malf's card effects.
"Because I gain 500 life points for every 'Darkscourge' counter on the field afterwards." Malf revealed. "As there are a total of two 'Darkscourge' Link monsters on my field, that means I can place up to two 'Darkscourge' counters. I place a 'Darkscourge' counter on Sanctuary and Prairie. Infectious Taint!" Tajima quickly charged forward with blinding speed before slicing Sanctuary and Prairie with his sword, which caused it to glow purple.
Salamangreat Sanctuary DSC: 0 + 1 = 1
Salamangreat Prairie DSC: 0 + 1 = 1
"And because there's a total of four 'Darkscourge' counters on the field, I gain 2000 life points!" Malf was surrounded in a purple aura that increased his life points.
Malf: 700 + (500 X 4) = 2700 LP
"Do note that cards on your field with a 'Darkscourge' counter on them have their effects negated, nor can you activate those effects." Malf told Soulburner, which caused the latter to grit his teeth. That meant he couldn't Reincarnation Link Summon his Salamangreat Link monsters anymore! The worse part was that Emerald Eagle was no longer protected as a result of Prairie's effects being negated! "But you don't need to worry, for the countdown to your despair is nearing its end. I activate Tajima's second effect. Once per turn, I can remove a 'Darkscourge' counter from either player's field to double the attack points of one 'Darkscourge' monster I control until the End Phase, and if I remove a 'Darkscourge' counter from a card on your field, it's sent to the Graveyard as well!"
"Oh no!" Soulburner exclaimed.
"And since Tajima's effects don't target, it's not good for us either!" Flame added.
"I remove a 'Darkscourge' counter from Prairie to double Tajima's attack points! Infectious Shrivel!" Tajima pointed his sword at Prairie, which removed the 'Darkscourge' counter from it as it turned into particles. A purple aura then surrounded Tajima before his strength was doubled.
The Six Samurai – Tajima ATK: 3300 X 2 = 6600
"Yikes. Now Malf's gotten back control of the duel again." Slipstream said.
"With Prairie gone, Soulburner's monsters are no longer protected from Malf's cards." Blue Maiden stated.
"And thanks to Sanctuary having a 'Darkscourge' counter on it, Soulburner can no longer Reincarnation Link Summon." Aqua observed.
"In other words, unless Soulburner can replace the Sanctuary he has on his field with a different one, all it will do is take up space." Revolver commented.
"As much as I'd like to finish you off in style, I'm no fool as to rush in blindly." Malf pointed out, before thrusting his hand upwards. "Appear, for a third time! The circuit of the rampant plague!" A third Link Portal appeared above Malf. "The summoning conditions are two 'Darkscourge' monsters. If I would Link Summon a 'Darkscourge' Link monster, I can remove 'Darkscourge' counters from Star Core or Generator equal to that monster's Link rating, and treat it as a Link Summon instead! I remove both of Star Core's counters!" The two orbs that orbited around Star Core went into the bottom-left and bottom arrowheads, turning them red
Darkscourge Star Core DSC: 2 – 2 = 0
"Link Summon! Appear! Link 2! Darkscourge Hawk!" Hawk reappeared on Malf's field at Infectors' top-left marker.
Darkscourge Hawk ATK: 2200 LINK-2 ↙️⬇️
Darkscourge Hawk ATK: 2200 + 300 = 2500
"Just like before, when Hawk is Link Summoned, I can add one 'Darkscourge' Spell or Trap card from my deck to my hand. I add Darkscourge Reanimation from my deck to my hand." Malf said, as a card popped out of his deck, which he took and added to his hand.
"Appear, for a fourth time! The circuit of the rampant plague!" A fourth Link Portal appeared above Malf. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Darkscourge' monsters. I set the Link 2 Darkscourge Hawk, and Star Core into the Link Markers!" Hawk went into the top and left arrowheads, while Star Core went into the bottom arrowhead, turning it red.
"Link Summon! Appear! Link 3! Darkscourge Solid Ogre!" A muscular ogre wearing light-purple, dark-purple, and red armor with large gauntlets on his fists appeared on Malf's field in the right Extra Monster Zone, which caused him to be co-linked with Blade Ogre. On each of Solid Ogre's gauntlets, as well on his head, was a black star emblem.
Darkscourge Solid Ogre ATK: 2600 LINK-3 ⬅️⬆️⬇️
Darkscourge Solid Ogre ATK: 2600 + 300 = 2900
Darkscourge Blade Ogre ATK: 2900 + 400 = 3300
"Hey, it's Yoroizaka's ace monster!" Ai noted.
"Solid Ogre's effects not only protected him from destruction by battle or card effects while pointing to a 'Gouki' monster, but also allowed Yoroizaka to move a monster he controlled to the Main Monster Zone Solid Ogre pointed to." Playmaker commented.
"But given that Blade Ogre has a stronger effect thanks to Malf's corruption, it's very likely for Solid Ogre to have the same thing." Herald said.
"Considering how Solid Ogre's more defensive compared to offensive, Malf would have upgraded his effects so he can maintain control of the duel." Raguel added.
"Let's end this, Soulburner! Battle!" Malf declared. "Darkscourge Samurai Tajima attacks Salamangreat Emerald Eagle! And like I told you earlier, when a monster Darkscourge Infectors points to battles a monster you control, not only are your monster's attack and defense points halved, its effects are negated until the end of the damage step." As if on cue, tendrils burst out of the ground that pierced Emerald Eagle, which siphoned his strength.
Salamangreat Emerald Eagle ATK: 2800 / 2 = 1400
"Accursed Slaughter!" Tajima charged forward and cleaved Emerald Eagle into pieces with the swords in his hands, which caused a massive explosion to head to where Soulburner was!
"Like Hell I'll go down this turn!" Soulburner countered. "If I would take battle damage, I can banish Prairie from my Graveyard instead." A red barrier surrounded Soulburner, which caused the explosion to wash over him. When the smoke faded, Soulburner was unharmed.
"The best part is that the turn Prairie's effect is used, we don't take any further battle or effect damage for the rest of this turn." Flame finished.
"Insolent little-!" Malf growled, before composing himself, despite the effort it took for him to do so. He had three strong monsters on the field, Infectors, Comet, and Extinction on his field. Whereas Soulburner had Emerald Eagle and Sanctuary, the latter's effects having been negated. That meant the duel was still in Malf's favor. "You may have saved yourself this turn, but you won't get so lucky next time, especially with what I have on my field compared to what remains on yours. I Set one card face-down and end my turn, which means Tajima's effect ends, and his attack points return to normal." As if on cue, a red aura surrounded Tajima, which reverted his attack points to normal.
Darkscourge Samurai Tajima ATK: 6600 / 2 = 3300
"That was too close. Had it not been for Prairie, Soulburner would have been toast." Slipstream said.
"Unfortunately for Soulburner, Malf has the advantage right now." Aqua noted.
"Given the fact that Malf has three Link monsters, a Link Spell, a Field Spell, a Continuous-Trap, and a face-down card is an understatement." Blue Maiden agreed.
"Say, Playmaker. This attitude that Malf's displaying. Doesn't it remind you of someone?" Ai asked Playmaker.
"It does, Ai." Playmaker confirmed. "There are traces of Go inside of Malf."
"My turn! I draw!" Soulburner said, as he drew the top card of his deck. "We're in a pretty rough spot right now, aren't we, Flame?"
"We are." Flame agreed. "But if we overcome odds such as this, it'll not only make our victory more the better, but also show Lightning and Azrael that we're not ones to be messed with."
"Then let's get to it!" Soulburner replied, before redirecting his attention to the duel. "I activate the effect of Beat Bison in my hand. Just like before, when I have three or more 'Salamangreat' monsters in my Graveyard, I can Special Summon this card from my hand to my field." Seconds later, Beat Bison reappeared on Soulburner's field in defense position.
Salamangreat Beat Bison ATK: 2800 DEF: 1000 LV: 8
"So that's why you let me destroy Emerald Eagle..." Malf realized, having put two and two together.
"That's right, Malf! In your desire to defeat me, you forgot to take my backup plan into account." Soulburner told Malf. "I activate Beat Bison's effect. Once per turn, I can target Fire Link monsters in my Graveyard up to the number of cards you control and return them to my Extra Deck. Then I'm allowed to negate the effects of face-up cards you control up to the number of Fire Link monsters I returned to my Extra Deck by this effect until the End Phase!"
"Son of a-!" Malf growled.
"I return Balelynx and Sunlight Wolf to my Extra Deck, and negate Extinction and Comet's effects!" Two cards popped out of Soulburner's deck, which he took and shuffled into his Extra Deck. Once that was done, Beat Bison let out a loud roar, which sent a burst of flames flying towards Malf's field that greyed out Comet and Extinction.
Darkscourge Samurai Tajima ATK: 3300 – 300 = 3000
Darkscourge Blade Ogre ATK: 2900 – 300 = 2600
Darkscourge Solid Ogre ATK: 2900 – 300 = 2600
"Nice one, Soulburner." Revolver stated.
"With Extinction and Comet's effects negated, Soulburner managed to weaken Malf's monsters, and can even target his cards with his effects again!" Slipstream cheered.
"Next, I activate the Spell card, Salamangreat Perseverance!" Soulburner continued. The card showed a battle wounded Heatleo trying to help Racoon, Spinny, and an injured Balelynx escape while fighting back against Rousing Hydradrive Monarch and a group of Coolant and Burn Hydradrives, who were pursuing them. "If I control a 'Salamangreat' monster, I can draw until I have five cards in my hand." Soulburner then proceeded to draw the top five cards of his deck afterwards.
"WOOHOO! Five new cards means five more options for Soulburner to choose from!" Ai exclaimed, with Playmaker also smiling at the same time.
"This is certainly looking good for Soulburner. If he plays this right, he'll be able to make a massive comeback this turn." Herald commented.
"Given how strong of a duelist Soulburner is, I have no doubt that he will succeed in doing so." Raguel said.
"I activate the Spell card, Salamangreat Performance. When my life points are less than yours, I can target one Level 4 or lower 'Salamangreat' monster in my Graveyard, and add one card with the same name as that monster from my deck to my hand. I target Gazelle!" Soulburner added, as a card popped out of his deck, which he took and added to his hand.
"Ah. So that's why you didn't target Gazelle with Pot of Avarice's effect earlier." Flame said. "Thanks to Performance, you were able to add a second copy of it from your deck to your hand. I will, however, admit that it's a bit redundant by this point."
"Hey, don't stop using something that's already working for you, am I right? Then again, I'm with you on that one." Soulburner agreed reluctantly, which made Flame nod in agreement as well. "I summon Salamangreat Gazelle from my hand to my field." A second copy of Gazelle appeared on Soulburner's field.
Salamangreat Gazelle ATK: 1500 DEF: 1000 LV: 3
"Just like before, when Gazelle is Normal or Special Summoned, I can send a 'Salamangreat' card from my deck to my Graveyard. I send Salamangreat Foxy from my deck to my Graveyard." A card popped out of Soulburner's deck, which he took and sent to his Graveyard. "I activate the effect of Foxy in my Graveyard. When there's a face-up Spell or Trap card on the field, I can send a 'Salamangreat' monster from my hand to my Graveyard to bring it back to my field. I send Salamangreat Foxer from my hand to my Graveyard." After Soulburner took a card from his hand and sent it to his Graveyard, a blue and grey armored fox with a burning tail appeared on Soulburner's field in defense position.
Salamangreat Foxy ATK: 1000 DEF: 1200 LV: 3
"Then Foxy's effect lets me destroy one Spell or Trap card on your field." Soulburner continued.
"What?!" Malf exclaimed.
"I destroy Infectors!" Soulburner decided, as Infectors turned into particles.
"Just like you said, Malf, when Infectors leaves the field, every monster on your field that it points to is banished." Flame reminded Malf, as Tajima and Blade Ogre turned into particles, much to Malf's horror.
"This is awesome! With Infectors gone, two of Malf's monsters are banished as well!" Blue Maiden said.
"Which means Soulburner only has Solid Ogre to deal with." Aqua finished. "However, he'll have to either summon a monster that has at least 3000 attack points to destroy it, or weaken it further to do so."
"There's more where that came from, Malf. If Foxer is in my Graveyard and a Spell or Trap card you control is destroyed by a card effect, I can Special Summon it to my field in defense position." Soulburner told Malf, as a light-red and grey armored fox with a burning tail appeared on Soulburner's field in defense position.
Salamangreat Foxer ATK: 1200 DEF: 1000 LV: 3
"Hey, Raguel. Take a look at Soulburner's field." Herald stated.
Raguel narrowed his eyes at the monsters Soulburner had on his field. "Three of Soulburner's monsters are Level 3!"
"You and I know what that means, huh?"
"An Xyz Summon is coming..."
"I overlay the Level 3 Salamangreat Foxy with the Level 3 Salamangreat Foxer!" Soulburner said, as a blazing galaxy portal appeared behind him. "With these two monsters, I build the Overlay Network!" Foxy and Foxer turned into streams of blue and red energy that went into the portal, where a fiery pillar of light erupted from within it.
"Flaming steed riding across the land! Slash through the illusions of decay, and ignite those who suffered with new life! Xyz Summon! Come forth! Rank 3! Salamangreat Miragestallio!" A black stallion with a fiery mane and tail, as well as two golden-like wing appendages on his back appeared on Soulburner's field in the Main Monster Zone Solid Ogre pointed to. He had six golden spikes, three on each side that jutted outwards, along with a silver piece of armor on the top of his face. Two overlay units orbited around him.
Salamangreat Miragestallio ATK: 2000 DEF: 900 RNK: 3 OU: 2
"This is awesome! Soulburner brought out an Xyz monster!" Slipstream exclaimed.
"It looks like Soulburner and Flame got some inspiration from your duel against Go to make an Xyz monster for the 'Salamangreat' deck, don't you agree, Playmaker?" Ai asked Playmaker.
"Whether Flame made it prior to my duel against Go or not doesn't matter. What does matter is the role Miragestallio will play in Soulburner's duel." Playmaker replied. "You remember what I told you a long time ago, Ai?"
"Uh, how you should never judge a book by its cover?"
Playmaker nodded at Ai's response in confirmation. "Correct. While Miragestallio has low stats, I have a feeling that it will make up for them with an effect that focuses on utility rather than raw power."
"Come and face me, monster! Your days are numbered!" Miragestallio exclaimed, ready for battle.
"I activate Miragestallio's effect! Once per turn, I can detach an Overlay Unit to Special Summon one 'Salamangreat' monster from my deck." Soulburner said, as an Overlay Unit went into Miragestallio's body before he let out a loud war cry.
Salamangreat Miragestallio OU: 2 – 1 = 1
"I Special Summon Salamangreat Parro from my deck to my field." Soon, a parrot with sharp blue wings, a long, yellow tail with red and blue feathers on the sides appeared on Soulburner's field. Not only did fire emit from the top of its head, but also its chest as well in the form of a 'V'.
Salamangreat Parro ATK: 2000 DEF: 1000 LV: 5
"And when Parro is Special Summoned, I can target one 'Salamangreat' monster in my Graveyard, and make its attack points become that targeted monster's attack points." Soulburner continued. "I target Emerald Eagle in my Graveyard, who has 2800 attack points. That means Parro's attack points become 2800." Parro let out a loud screech before its strength increased.
Salamangreat Parro ATK: 2000 + 800 = 2800
"I blaze the circuit that scorches the path to the future!" A Link Portal appeared above Soulburner. "The summoning conditions are two or more Fire effect monsters. I set Salamangreat Miragestallio, Gazelle, and Beat Bison into the Link Markers!" Miragestallio went into the top arrowhead, Gazelle went into the bottom-left arrowhead, and Beat Bison went into the bottom-right arrowhead.
"King of the fiery jungle! Awaken, and protect the land and its creatures!" Soulburner chanted. "Link Summon! Rise! Link 3! Salamangreat Heatleo!" Heatleo reappeared on Soulburner's field in the right Extra Monster Zone.
Salamangreat Heatleo ATK: 2300 LINK-3 ↙️⬆️↘️
"Take a look, Aqua. Soulburner managed to bring Heatleo back to his field." Blue Maiden observed.
"And at a great time too. With Extinction's effects negated, Soulburner will be able to shuffle one of Malf's Spell or Trap cards back into his deck." Aqua stated.
"I am back at last!" Heatleo cried out, happy to be back on the duel field.
"Good to see you again, Heatleo." Flame stated. "You're going to contribute greatly towards our victory."
"Flame's right on that one, Heatleo. Especially with what's to come." Soulburner added, which got Malf's attention. "The effects of Miragestallio and Heatleo both activate in sequence. First, when Miragestallio is used as Link Material for the Link Summon of a 'Salamangreat' Link monster, I can target one monster on the field and return it to your hand."
"Oh no!" Malf exclaimed, after realizing what Soulburner planned to do.
"There's only one monster you have on the field, Malf." Soulburner told Malf.
"And since Solid Ogre is a Link monster, it goes back to your Extra Deck instead!" Flame reminded Malf.
"Damn you both!" Malf shouted.
"I target Solid Ogre! Ignition Slash!" Soulburner decided, as a silhouette of Miragestallio appeared before galloping towards Solid Ogre, where he was surrounded in fire as he pierced right through him. As a result, Solid Ogre turned into particles that went back into Malf's Extra Deck.
"And with Solid Ogre gone, Malf has no monsters on his field." Herald said.
"All Soulburner needs to do is attack Malf directly with Heatleo and Parro, and the duel will end in his victory." Raguel finished.
"Well done, Soulburner." Revolver commented, a grin on his face. If Soulburner kept this up, then he'll win the duel against Malf, and eradicate him for good.
"Second, when Heatleo is Link Summoned, I can target one a Spell or Trap card on your field and shuffle it into your deck! I target Extinction! Resounding Roar!" Heatleo let out a loud roar, which caused Extinction to return to Malf's deck.
"Very wise, Soulburner. Now Malf's cards will no longer be protected." Flame observed, only for him and Soulburner to suddenly hear Malf laugh angrily.
"Do you actually think that you would be able to get the drop on me?!" Malf questioned. "You've been so busy breaking down my defenses that you failed to notice my ace in the hole!" He gestured to his field. "Trap card, activate! Darkscourge Reanimation! This card lets me Special Summon up to three 'Darkscourge' monsters from my Graveyard or banished zone to my field. Return from my banished zone, Blade Ogre, and King T-Wrextle and Biffidus from my Graveyard!" At Malf's command, King T-Wrextle, Biffidus, and Blade Ogre reappeared on his field.
Darkscourge King T-Wrextle ATK: 3300 LINK-3 ↙️⬇️↘️
Darkscourge Biffidus ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1
Darkscourge Blade Ogre ATK: 2600 LINK-3↙️⬆️⬇️
"What's more, I can Link Summon a 'Darkscourge' monster by using 'Darkscourge' monsters on my field as Link Material!"
"Oh, crap." Soulburner stated.
"This doesn't sound good." Flame acknowledged.
"Aw, glitch! Malf's Link Summoning on Soulburner's turn!" Ai exclaimed.
"Which means Soulburner won't be able to attack on his turn." Playmaker commented, his eyes having narrowed at what he was seeing.
"Damn it! Soulburner was so close to victory!" Slipstream cursed.
"Appear, the circuit of the rampant plague!" Malf said, as a Link Portal appeared above him. "The summoning conditions are two or more 'Darkscourge' monsters, including one 'Darkscourge' Link monster. I set the Link 3 Darkscourge Blade Ogre, and Biffidus into the Link Markers!" Blade Ogre went into the left, right, and bottom-left arrowheads, while Biffidus went into the bottom-right arrowhead, turning all four of them red.
"Dark lord of the Darkscourge legion! Emerge, and bring infectious judgment onto your enemies! Link Summon! Come before us! Link 4! Darkscourge Black Doom!" A black-brown legless emperor with three red bestial eyes, twin wide horns with red tips, a set of spines on his scalp, three-fingered paws with claws, and no lips appeared on Malf's field in the right Extra Monster Zone. His attire consisted of a dark brown worn robe with black-brown shoulder pads and golden accents, a maroon drape scarf with tattoo markings hanging from the back, golden chains with a set of silver-spiked medallions possessing a gem, and a double black cord necklace with red, blue and purple ornaments on one and golden and silver pendants on the other.
Darkscourge Black Doom ATK: 3500 LINK-4 ↙️⬅️➡️↘️
"When Black Doom is Link Summoned, the effects of all cards on your field are negated, and you can't activate cards or effects in response to either of his effects!" Malf revealed.
"What?!" Soulburner exclaimed.
"Go, Black Doom! Chaos Control!" Chaotic energy surrounded Black Doom's body before he fired it at all the cards on Soulburner's field, each of them being surrounded in grey auras that nullified their effects.
Salamangreat Parro ATK: 2800 – 800 = 2000
"Not only did Malf bring out another Link 4 'Darkscourge' monster, he also brought back King T-Wrextle as well." Herald said.
"In the past, King T-Wrextle's effect allowed Go to choose which of his opponent's monsters were allowed to attack first, and the targeted monster would be destroyed if it didn't attack." Raguel noted. "Malf most likely kept that effect around in order to further put his opponents in a corner."
"That means Soulburner won't be able to his Battle Phase this turn." Aqua added.
"It wouldn't be worth it in the end, Aqua. I mean, look at Malf's field. Black Doom has 3500 attack points, while King T-Wrextle has 3300 attack points. It'd be suicide to do so." Blue Maiden stated.
"And if Malf's life points were 1000 or less, he could have used Delusional Heartbeat to put a 'Malady' counter on the monster attacking. Soulburner is fortunate that Malf has more than 1000 life points, or he'd be done for." Revolver finished.
Damn it. Everything was set for me to attack, and then Malf had to pull out a Trap card that let him Link Summon on my turn?! So annoying, Soulburner cursed in his mind. As a result of what Malf did, that meant there wasn't much Soulburner could do now, unless he wanted to take an unnecessary risk that could lead to him losing the duel. "I Set three cards face-down and end my turn, which means Heatleo, Parro and Comet regain their effects."
Salamangreat Parro ATK: 2000 + 800 = 2800
Darkscourge Black Doom ATK: 3500 + 300 = 3800
Darkscourge King T-Wrextle ATK: 3300 + 300 = 3600
Malf laughed as Soulburner ended his turn, much to the former's entertainment and the latter's ire. "You see? There is nothing you can do to defeat me, and no matter what futile tricks you have, they will be all for naught. For I can simply make those tricks one's undoing in the end, just like Azrael did against the Hanoi."
"What are you talking about, Malf?" Soulburner inquired.
"As you and the others already know, Azrael stole the Hanoi's resources after the Tower of Hanoi incident. One of which being the Another virus." Malf recalled. "For me to be created, Azrael and Wraith required three things. A base, data material, and the consumption of intelligence. However, like any creation, there had to be a source of inspiration for one's mind to begin working."
"Source of inspiration? Wait a minute." Soulburner gasped. "Are you saying that-?"
"Yup. The Another virus served as inspiration for my creation, which went magnificent by the way, Azrael and Wraith. I thank you both for creating me as your servant." Malf confirmed, as he addressed everyone.
"Now this is juicy information, ladies and gentlemen!" Jericho exclaimed with glee. "Malf, my friend, I think you'll play a great role in my plans. Hahaha."
"Uh, boss? Did Malf just-?" Pigeon began speaking.
"Yeah. He just admitted to being a walking and talking version of the Another virus." Frog confirmed.
"Malf's a living embodiment of the Another virus this entire time. No wonder his Delusional Heartbeat was able to send people to the hospital." Revolver realized in horror. If that was the case, that meant all the victims, along with Dancho and Lord Kazuma, were suffering under a far stronger strain of the Another virus compared to back when the Hanoi used it.
"Even though Azrael stole the Hanoi's resources, I never expected him to use the Another Virus as inspiration for Malf's creation." Herald admitted.
"Neither did I." Raguel agreed.
"It's as though history's repeating itself, Aqua." Blue Maiden commented.
"Yes. Even if something is stopped, it's only temporary, especially when someone else is inspired to use that for one's own needs." Aqua agreed.
"Since Malf's a sentient and upgraded version of the Another virus, the cure that worked back then won't work now." Playmaker surmised.
"And the fact that Malf put all those people under cardiac arrest with Delusional Heartbeat makes this ten times worse!" Ai panicked.
"Damn it. I knew things were going to be revealed during this war, but this is insane." Slipstream stated.
Lightning turned to Azrael and Wraith, having narrowed his eyes at the duo. "You never told me that the Another virus was used as inspiration for creating Malf."
"It's called fighting poison with poison, Lightning. You of all people would understand what that should mean." Wraith said.
"Using one of the Hanoi's strongest weapons in the Another Virus against them is poetic justice, Lightning. Personally, I'd call it divine retribution." Azrael told Lightning.
"I concur with your logic, Azrael and Wraith." Lightning genuinely agreed. It was true. Lightning understood Azrael and Wraith's logic in using the Another Virus, the same thing the Hanoi used months prior, to make them suffer. Still, it irked Lightning that he didn't know about how the Another virus was used for Malf's creation.
"You know, I think you guys should be grateful that the Another virus was used as inspiration for my creation." Malf remarked.
"And why should we be grateful, Malf?" Flame angrily questioned.
"Simple. With Delusional Heartbeat, I injured several people, some of which were very bad. Ones that didn't deserve the right to live after the crimes they've committed." Malf answered. "As for Azrael, his actions eradicated a great majority of crime throughout the Turf War, with it being reached to a screeching halt after the Black Market was completely destroyed."
"But at the cost of destroying so many people's lives." Soulburner countered back.
"Who cares about those who suffered in the crossfire? Just as I said earlier, you and the others should be grateful of the results Azrael's actions yielded. Not only did he ensure that the criminals got what they deserved during the Turf War and the attacks in the real world, he also brought Uchida Industries down to the ground so that any potential monkey wrenches would be cast aside." Malf smirked. "Because let's face it. You guys would have been targeted in the real world by Ace or someone worse had it not been for Azrael's preventing such a possibility."
"I hate to say it, but judging from what Malf revealed, there was a chance we would have been attacked in the real world had it not been for Azrael." Slipstream acknowledged.
"Damn. That's just dark." Raguel said.
"Intentions do not matter. Only the consequences." Herald commented.
"Consequences that have brought ruin for everyone, whether they were innocent, or related with the conflict in any manner." Revolver hissed.
"Enough talk! My turn! I draw!" Malf said, as he drew the top card of his deck. "Now do you see how powerless you are before me, boy? While I acknowledge your power, it unfortunately is not enough against me! I summon Darkscourge Stonk!" A purple cloud with cloud-like arms appeared on Malf's field. It had red eyes, along with a black star emblem on its face.
Darkscourge Stonk ATK: 1000 DEF: 1000 LV: 3
"I activate Stonk's effect. Once per turn, during either of our turns, I can pay up to 1000 life points to decrease your monster's attack points by the same amount! I pay 1000 life points to decrease Heatleo's attack by the same amount!"
"If that's the case, I activate the Trap card, Salamangreat Shift!" Soulburner countered, as he gestured to his field. The card showed Sunlight Wolf stepping in front of an injured Miragestallio, intent on protecting him from what was to come. "When you target a monster I control with a card effect or by battle, I can change that target to a different 'Salamangreat' monster I control. I change the target for Stonk's effect to Parro!"
Stonk then turned to Parro as it fired purple smog at the latter, which decreased its strength.
Malf: 2700 – (100 X 10) = 1700 LP
Salamangreat Parro ATK: 2800 – (100 X 10) = 1800
"I activate Black Doom's effect. Once per turn, I can target one monster you control, and increase his attack points by the targeted monster's original attack points until the end of my next turn. In addition, not only does Black Doom gain the targeted monster's effects until the end of my next turn, you can't activate cards or effects in response to either of his effects!" Malf sadistically announced.
"Are you freaking kidding me?!" Soulburner exclaimed out of pure horror.
"Oh, byte..." Flame muttered, who was also shocked at what he just heard.
"And we all know who Malf will target with Black Doom's effect." Blue Maiden commented.
"By this point of the duel, it's pretty obvious." Aqua said.
"I target Heatleo, who has 2300 attack points. That means Black Doom gains 2300 attack points and Heatleo's effects until the end of my next turn! Frenzy of Pain!" Malf shouted, as Black Doom fired energy in the form of spectral hands that pierced into Heatleo, which made him scream before the former was surrounded in pure energy.
Darkscourge Black Doom ATK: 3800 + 2300 = 6100
"The only flaw with that effect is that Heatleo's effects only activate once he's Link Summoned." Playmaker observed.
"True, but any other monsters effects are fair game." Ai pointed out.
"Is that all you got, Malf?" Soulburner taunted, much to everyone's surprise as Malf gasped.
"What did you say?!" Malf demanded.
"Soulburner, I don't think..." Flame began speaking, before Soulburner smiled back, which made the former understand what the latter's plan was. "I see." He turned back to Malf. "You've absorbed all these duelists in your duels, Malf, and you've certainly done a good job in using their ace cards."
"But the only way to fully use your abilities is to unleash them full force at the duel's climax!" Soulburner told Malf. "If you do anything less, it's a sign that you're weak in mind, body, and soul!"
"How dare you!" Malf snarled, having made a fist at Soulburner and Flame.
"What in the world's Soulburner doing?" Herald wondered.
"I think I know the answer to that." Raguel realized.
"The answer?" Herald repeated.
"Just watch and see." Raguel told Herald.
Revolver smirked after putting two and two together. "So that's your endgame, isn't it, Soulburner?"
"I understand what you're doing, Soulburner." Slipstream said, as he recalled his duel against Windy, and how he got the latter so angry that he wasn't able to win in the end.
"In normal situations, it's never right to rile someone up, especially if it's an AI like Malf." Aqua commented.
"But if what Soulburner and Flame are saying is true, then it may just work." Blue Maiden stated.
"There's only one duelist we know who'd let his ego and pride get the best of him." Ai told Playmaker.
"Yes, Ai. Yes we do." Playmaker agreed.
"I thought a ruthless duelist like yourself would focus on putting your opponent to a corner before defeating them in a brutal fashion, Malf." Flame said.
"So go ahead and prove your strength to us, Malf. Unless you don't have any balls to do so!" Soulburner added.
This caused a splitting headache to go through Malf's mind, which made him scream in pain as he tried to get himself together.
"Now this is interesting." Jericho stated. "Humans have a bad history in riling each other up. Though I wonder what happens should an AI like Malf, who's eaten the hearts of so many duelists, enters into such a state."
Azrael grit his teeth at what he was seeing. "Damn it, Malf. Not now..."
"This is not good." Wraith said.
"Is it now?" Lightning inquired with a chuckle. "Looks like this turn will determine whether the duel's truly finished or not."
After getting himself back together, Malf grit his teeth before his right arm glowed red. "Fine! You want me to come at you with my full strength?! I will gladly do so! I activate my Skill, Delusional Heartbeat!" He then launched his right arm like a weapon towards Heatleo, touching his chest before returning to its owner. As a result, a transparent, bloody mark appeared on Heatleo's chest before dissipating. Malf then opened his right palm, which showed a mirror image of Heatleo's heart.
"You can also use a Skill during a Master duel, Malf?!" Flame angrily inquired.
"I know Bohman was able to use his Skill thanks to Windy, and the latter being able to use his Skill on his own, but how are you able to do such a thing, Malf?!" Soulburner demanded.
"Relentless training, Soulburner! The number of people I've put in the hospital greatly contributed towards my Perfect form, which unlocked this ability!" Malf infuriatingly answered. "But moving forward, once per duel, when I have 2000 or less life points, I can target one monster you control and place one 'Malady' counter on it. If a 'Darkscourge' monster on my field destroys it by battle, I WIN THE DUEL!"
Salamangreat Heatleo MC: 0 + 1 = 1
"Oh no! The 'Malady' counter has appeared!" Ai exclaimed.
"Which means if Heatleo is destroyed by battle, it's lights out for Soulburner." Playmaker finished.
"I will tear your field apart and make you fall into despair, Soulburner! Get ready!" Malf shouted, as he thrusted out his right hand. "Battle! Darkscourge King T-Wrextle attacks Salamangreat Parro! Chaotic Howl!" King T-Wrextle charged forward before jumping and howling at Parro, stunning it before King T-Wrextle fell forward and elbow slammed it, which caused an explosion that pushed Soulburner back as his life points dropped.
Soulburner: 1350 – 800 = 550 LP
"The battle continues! Darkscourge Black Doom attacks Salamangreat Heatleo! Dark Lord's Judgment!" Meteors appeared above Black Doom as he got ready to fire them at Heatleo.
"I activate the effect of Shift in my Graveyard." Soulburner said. "By banishing this card, I can tribute a 'Salamangreat' monster on my field to Special Summon a 'Salamangreat' monster from my Graveyard with a different name to my field. I tribute Heatleo, and Special Summon Emerald Eagle!" After Heatleo turned into particles, Emerald Eagle reappeared on Soulburner's field.
Salamangreat Emerald Eagle ATK: 2800 DEF: 2000 LV: 8
"You leave this to me, Heatleo. I will not fail you." Emerald Eagle quietly promised.
"Even though the 'Malady' counter is gone, Soulburner needs to do something quick if he's to survive this turn." Aqua remarked.
"And I have faith that he will do so." Blue Maiden said.
"Hehehe. Hahaha! Putting up a different lamb to the slaughter won't save you, Soulburner." Malf boasted. "Resume your attack, Black Doom! Dark Lord's Judgment!" Black Doom then thrusted out his right hand, which caused the meteors above him to head towards Emerald Eagle!
"Trap card, activate! Salamangreat Geyser!" Soulburner replied, as he gestured to his field. "I can target a face-up monster you control and one 'Salamangreat' Link monster in my Graveyard before returning it to my Extra Deck. By doing so, your monster loses attack points equal to the returned monster's Link rating times 1000!"
"What?!" Malf exclaimed.
"I target Black Doom, and return Heatleo to my Extra Deck, whose Link rating is three. That means Black Doom loses 3000 attack points!" A silhouette of Heatleo appeared before hitting Black Doom, which made him groan as his strength decreased.
Darkscourge Black Doom ATK: 6100 – (1000 X 3) = 3100
"I also get to draw cards equal to the number of Link monsters you control. Since you control two cards, I get to draw two cards." Soulburner drew the top two cards of his deck.
"Yes! Thanks to Geyser, Soulburner will be able to survive Black Doom's attack!" Slipstream cheered. "And I have a feeling that Soulburner isn't done impeding Malf's progress."
"You may survive the turn, Soulburner, but you'll still lose your monster!" Malf defiantly told Soulburner.
"No, Malf. You'll be the one who loses not just your monster, but your remaining life points as well!" Soulburner replied. "Quick-Play Spell card, activate! Salamangreat Tail! I can target one 'Salamangreat' monster I control, and have it gain attack points equal to its defense points until the end of this turn! What's more, I gain life points equal to its defense points as well!"
"OH NO!" Malf screamed.
"I target Emerald Eagle, who has 2000 defense points. That means Emerald Eagle gains 2000 defense points, and I gain 2000 life points!" Both Emerald Eagle and Soulburner were surrounded in fiery auras that increased their strength.
Salamangreat Emerald Eagle ATK: 2800 + 2000 = 4800
Soulburner: 550 + 2000 = 2550 LP
"That's brilliant! Not only did Soulburner increase his life points, Emerald Eagle's strong enough to destroy Black Doom in battle!" Herald exclaimed.
"And end the duel once and for all!" Raguel joyfully added.
"End this duel, Emerald Eagle! Emerald Raze!" Soulburner and Flame shouted in unison, as Emerald Eagle dodged the meteors before tackling Black Doom, which caused a massive explosion that sent Malf flying off the ground. By the time he landed on his back, his life points dropped all the way to zero.
Malf: 1700 – 1700 = 0
Azrael grit his teeth in anger. "Your wisdom should have kept you stable, Malf."
"Yet you let Soulburner's taunts get to you." Wraith cursed.
"Another loss. Oh, well. I wanted to see Malf win, but it goes to show that we shouldn't underestimate our enemies." Lightning commented.
"Thank you, Soulburner. The Hanoi and I owe you a debt of gratitude." Revolver muttered. In his mind, he swore to fulfil that debt once the time came for him to do so. For a debt of gratitude was always dearly paid.
"You... You..." Malf cursed Soulburner, as particles began leaving his body before going upwards.
"Want to know something, Malf? Despite Go's recent actions, I always had faith that he would redeem himself, as he did so in spirit through our duel." Soulburner stated, as he crossed his arms. "Once you took Go's heart, you took in all the good and bad aspects of him."
"Which led to your downfall in the end, Malf." Flame added, as Malf got up on one knee. This made Soulburner back up a bit to prepare himself in case something fishy happened next.
"I commend you not just for your strength, but for being crafty as well." Malf unexpectedly praised Soulburner. "I... did not... see that coming." He slowly began disintegrating, having accepted his loss with honor.
Jericho stood up on his feet before unsheathing the short sword and pointing it at Malf. "Sorry, but there's no way I'll let a game piece such as you bow out that easily." He then fired a purple blast of energy at Malf from his sword, who clutched the sides of his head as he screamed.
"Get back, Soulburner! He's gonna explode!" Flame exclaimed.
"Right!" Soulburner said, as he retreated back with a large jump.
"WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ME?!" Malf exclaimed, as he blew up seconds later, which Soulburner and Flame successfully dodged by taking shelter behind the graveyard shed.
"NOT US! NOT US!" Frog and Pigeon screamed, before they were forcibly returned back to Lightning's castle.
"Flame, you okay?" Soulburner asked, as he took a few steps away from the graveyard shed.
"Yes, I'm fine, Soulburner." Flame answered. "As for Malf, I don't think we'll ever see him again."
"I get that, Flame." Soulburner agreed. "Judging from what happened, Malf wasn't the one who caused the explosion, was he?"
"He must have been terminated by Azrael for his failure." Flame hypothesized. But what Flame and Soulburner didn't know was that their hypothesis was incorrect.
For it had been Jericho who caused Malf to explode.
Jericho went over to where Malf formerly was before grabbing a piece of his charred skin. "Excellent. Just what I needed. A few minutes of re-engineering, and this little piece of Malf will help greatly with my plans." After throwing a purple orb at the large cross on top of the graveyard shed, he teleported out of the area.
"With Malf having been defeated at last, everyone he's hurt should wake up soon." Soulburner commented.
"Yes. Just as everyone woke up from the Another virus after the Hanoi surrendered the cure, they will wake up once again." Flame agreed, the duo having looked up to the sky in the process.
Elsewhere, at Lightning's castle...
Lightning chuckled. "Despite Malf's immense strength, it was all for naught, especially with how he lost."
"I did not expect Go Onizuka of all people to be the source of Malf's downfall." Azrael angrily admitted. He did not wanted to acknowledge that fact, but it was unfortunately the truth.
"Such a thing would not have happened had Ace not delayed Malf's evolution!" Wraith exclaimed.
"And on the topic of Ace, Windy told me how he betrayed you during your attack." Lightning recalled, which got Azrael and Wraith's attention. "What piqued my attention the most was how he got away with it in the end. It was also something neither of you expected, am I not correct?"
"We did not expect Ace to betray us in the fashion he did." Wraith told Lightning, angry with the reminder.
"Still, Ace succeeded and got away with it." Lightning taunted back. "Not only does Ace have my respect, he also impressed me in the end. Hahaha!"
Azrael and Wraith both glared at Lightning in response to that comment, the duo knowing too well that nothing they say can change that fact.
"But moving from that, Malf exploded after Soulburner defeated him." Lightning frowned. "I thought you removed that function from Malf."
"We did a while back. Yet for him to still explode like that is something neither of us could anticipate." Wraith angrily replied.
"Indeed." Azrael concernedly agreed. It appeared that something else was going on behind the scenes. Something or someone that Azrael didn't take into account, and should it fester, then his plans will end up getting ruined. He turned to Lightning, having gathered his thoughts. "Despite Malf's loss, the war still continues, Lightning. It won't end until all of our enemies have been destroyed."
"Correct. Since your demonstration of perfection went up in flames, it falls to me to show everyone how it's done." Lightning snapped his fingers, which caused a screen to appear. "Are you ready for your duel, Bohman?"
"I am." Bohman confirmed.
"Excellent. Ensure Blue Maiden comes to you. Show everyone what true perfection is."
After Bohman nodded at Lightning's request, the screen turned to particles. While Lightning looked at the spheres, Azrael and Wraith walked away from the throne room before heading down the hallway, looks of anger and frustration evident in their faces.
They turned left before walking down a hallway that led to a chamber. One that showed Bohman mediating on a pedestal, the wires having been disconnected from him.
"What is it, Azrael and Wraith? I am waiting for my duel against Blue Maiden. She will be here soon." Bohman said.
"Then I'll make it quick." Azrael responded. "In our previous discussion, you wanted to know more about the Crisis, yes?"
"You mentioned that there is more going on than I realize." Bohman recalled. "Given how Malf exploded despite you and Wraith disabling it, I'm assuming that's what's going on?"
"Whether there's someone getting involved with the war or not will be determined in due time. But in the meanwhile.." Azrael pressed a few buttons on his duel disk, which caused an orange sphere to pop out of it.
"That's…" Bohman gasped.
"Consciousness data. Watchman's consciousness data." Wraith clarified to Bohman, before turning to Azrael. "Are you sure about this?"
"I am, Wraith." Azrael confirmed, before turning back to Bohman. "I would like to give you Watchman's consciousness data so you can look into it and acquire information on how to stop the Crisis."
"This is a very magnanimous offer, Azrael. But with every offer comes something in exchange." Bohman pointed out.
"Very perceptive, Bohman." Azrael commented, before pressing another button on his duel disk, which caused a translucent, light-purple sphere to appear. "I am willing to give you Watchman's consciousness data so you can get the information you need. In addition, I want you to hold onto the vaccine for Miyu for a little bit. It'll give Blue Maiden the motivation needed to fight you at her full power."
"And if I were to accept, what do you want in exchange?" Bohman questioned. He understood Azrael's logic in making Blue Maiden draw out her full power, as fighting for someone you care about is a great motivator.
"Simple. I'm planning a little experiment to deal with one of our toughest enemies, and should I succeed, I'll be able to eliminate him for good." Azrael began speaking. Or at the very least make Raguel stronger. For there is no gain without pain, he thought in his mind. "Regardless of the results, once the experiment is over, I want you to cure Miyu with the vaccine data no matter the result."
Bohman narrowed his eyes and thought this over. The opportunity for information on how to stop the Crisis was certainly an enticing one. Yet it came at the cost of reviving a potential enemy. Then again, even if Miyu woke up, she obviously wouldn't have a deck on hand. That meant she obviously wouldn't be able to log into the network and assist Playmaker and the others.
"As you said earlier, Bohman, it's a very magnanimous offer." Wraith told Bohman. "One way or another, you can't lose." As for Lightning, he's going to be pissed about this, he thought in his mind.
After thinking over the pros and cons of Azrael's offer, Bohman made a decision. "Very well. I accept the deal."
Having heard this, Azrael sent Watchman's consciousness data and the vaccine for Miyu over to Bohman, the former going into his body while the latter orbited above his right palm. "I wish you the best of luck in your coming duel." He and Wraith then proceeded to leave the room, only for Bohman to speak up.
"Do you regret everything you've done up until now, and all the actions you committed to get what you want?" Bohman asked Azrael out of curiosity.
"I do not have any regrets with my actions, and have made peace with them a long time ago." Azrael answered back. "I may have done awful things, but if I'm able to achieve my ultimate goal in the end, so be it." He and Wraith then fully left the chamber, leaving Bohman alone with his thoughts.
Meanwhile, in the real world, at the Den City Hospital...
"Ugh."
Gekiryushi slowly opened her eyes as she tried to take in her surroundings. The last thing she remembered was her duel against Malf, where he ended up taking her heart. But now, now she was awake and well. Gekiryushi touched her chest, which had several bandages wrapped around it, along with a dark red stain on it.
"Miss Sanada?" a nurse asked, which got Gekiryushi's attention.
"How was I brought here?" Gekiryushi asked back.
"Mr. Zaizen called an ambulance and had you brought here," the nurse answered. "He'll be happy to hear that you're awake. I'll send someone over to check your vital signs."
"Thank you." Gekiryushi replied, as the nurse left the room she was in. She looked out at the window nearby her. If I'm awake, that means Malf should be dead. That means Sensei Ikiagi should be awake as well, Gekiryushi happily realized in her mind. Gekiryushi was eternally grateful for whoever defeated Malf for good, and made a mental note to repay that person back once she got to meet them. For a debt of gratitude was always repaid.
At the waiting room, Go's manager sat down on one of the chairs as he heard the voices of several people who stood up, grateful expressions on their faces. Apparently, something miraculously must have happened. Given how the hospital was put on high security, as well as the unfortunate events that occurred over the past few days, some good news was certainly in order.
"Excuse me. Are you Go Onizuka's manager?" a doctor asked, who approached him.
"Yes, I am." Go's manager answered. "Is Go okay? Are Kenmochi and Yoroizaka okay?"
"Kenmochi and Yoroizaka have woken up, just like the other patients who were brought here," the doctor replied, much to Go's manager's happiness. "As for Go, while his vital signs have greatly improved, he still hasn't regained consciousness."
"Please take me to see Kenmochi and Yoroizaka," Go's manager requested, the doctor nodding in compliance as he took him down a hallway before making a right. After walking down one more hallway, the doctor took Go's manager to a room called G5, where they saw Kenmochi put a hand to his head, while Yoroizaka was pondering over recent events. Like Gekiryushi, their chests were covered in bandages, which also had dark-red spots on them.
"Hey. Is that-?' Kenmochi began speaking, before Go's manager ran over and hugged him tightly. Seconds later, he went over and hugged Yoroizaka, who was just as surprised.
"I am so glad the both of you are okay!" Go's manager cried out of relief.
"How long were we in here for?" Yoroizaka questioned. "The last thing I remember was Kenmochi and I fighting Malf, and-."
"The both of you were here for quite a while." Go's manager answered Yoroizaka's question.
"If we're here, then-." Kenmochi's eyes widened after something crossed his mind. "Where's Go? We need to make sure that he's okay."
Go's manager sighed. "I'm sorry boys, but Go's in the hospital too. He was sent here a few days ago under Akira's orders after what happened with the AI chip and his duel against Playmaker."
"Damn.." Yoroizaka muttered, before hitting the hospital bed he was on. "If we were only faster, we could have stopped Go from making such a terrible mistake."
"It was Go's choice, Yoroizaka. There's nothing we could have done at the time." Kenmochi reminded Yoroizaka, which made the latter sigh out of defeat.
"The doctor did tell me that Go's vital signs have improved. In addition, the surgery to remove that chip was a success as well." Go's manager told Kenmochi and Yoroizaka. "All we can do now is wait for him to wake up."
Kenmochi and Yoroizaka nodded sadly in agreement with what Go's manager said, knowing there was nothing else they can do for the time being.
Elsewhere, at the safehouses...
"Ugh."
Zandaka groaned as he opened his eyes. After waking up fully, he looked around, where he noticed that he was in a large, one floor building that had a red plus emblem at the front. Zandaka also noticed that he was on a medical bed, and saw the bandages covering his chest, which had a dark-red spot on them. There were other people on medical beds as well, who had different injuries. He immediately noticed Takeya and Akairo on two other medical beds, which made him gasp.
"Zandaka, is that you?" a familiar voice asked, which got Zandaka's attention as he saw Mikuru approach him.
"Mikuru, it's been a long time, hasn't it?" Zandaka muttered back, which caused Mikuru to put a hand on his shoulder, glad that he was back. "Why are Takeya and Akairo here? What happened?"
"Well..." Mikuru began speaking, before the duo noticed Takeya and Akairo gain consciousness.
"Damn. Where am I?" Takeya questioned, having gasped after inspected his surroundings. "And how the Hell did I get here?"
"You were defeated in a duel, and had your heart taken by Malf afterwards." Mikuru answered.
"I remember Malf capturing me, and the next thing I knew..." Akairo began speaking, before he put two and two together as he put a hand to the right side of his face. "I was captured by Malf, and used as his puppet! Damn it!" He quickly got up on his feet, only for him to stagger. "I need to talk to Ryoken. Make sure that he knows I'm-."
"Easy, Akairo." Mikuru said, as she helped Akairo steady himself. "Ryoken, Youta, and Emon logged into the network to assist Playmaker and the others against the Ignis."
"And what of Eizaburo, Aso, and Kyoko? They're safe too?" Zandaka inquired, which caused Mikuru to nod in confirmation. "That is good news." He also got up, only for a female doctor to notice him doing so.
"Mr. Zandaka, I need to speak to you. It's urgent," the doctor said.
"I see." Zandaka turned to the others. "Mikuru, take Takeya and Akairo to Ryoken's yacht. The others will be pleased to see them again."
"Excuse me, you and your friends just woke up!" the doctor snapped at Zandaka. "They can't just-."
"Aside from being groggy, we're fine, miss." Takeya pointed out, having stood up on his feet before stretching. "Although some help walking wouldn't hurt."
"I will take you and Akairo to the others." Mikuru decided, before turning to Zandaka. "I will come back for you in a few minutes."
After Zandaka nodded in agreement, Mikuru led Takeya and Akairo out of the safehouse, but not before nodding at the several nurses and doctors in gratitude for all their hard work in making sure they were safe. Once that was done, Zandaka turned to the doctor. "What seems to be the problem?"
"Now that you woke up, I need you to come with me. There's something we need to discuss," the doctor replied, which made Zandaka stand up as he and the doctor walked over to a room nearby, the latter assisting the former in walking. Eventually, the duo arrived in a room resembling that of an MRI room with a screen on the wall. The doctor grabbed a remote nearby and pressed a button to the wall, which caused it to turn on as Zandaka took a seat at one of the chairs. The image that popped up showed an MRI image of a heart, where the doctor pointed to a few things. First, the dark splotches that were on several pieces of the heart. Second, there were small tears over the heart. There were also glowing parts of the heart that were slightly enlarged, which indicated the areas that were affected the most. "As part of your tests, we scanned your heart to see if there was anything abnormal. During these tests, we saw tears on different pieces of your heart, along with dark splotches. They popped up recently, and after further testing, they weren't chronic."
Zandaka narrowed his eyes. "What else?"
"Based on the tests, we saw that your heart was stressed in pumping more blood than usual to keep you alive, as evident by the blood clots formed in response to several pieces of leaked blood from the scar tissues. While we were able to stop it from getting worse, we weren't able to stop the swelling fully." The doctor pointed to the pulsing bright spots on the heart, which were located on the left and bottom-right sides of the screen. The dark splotches in those areas nearly consumed the bright spots. "As shown on this image of your heart, the bright spots were the areas affected the most by the blood clots and scar tissues, which resulted in massive swelling and those pieces expanding so it can take in and pump blood through your body. Thus straining your heart in the process."
"W-W-What?" Zandaka slightly gasped, unable to comprehend what was going on.
"After further analysis, we determined that you have restrictive cardiomyopathy, a heart condition that causes the ventricles to become stiff, thus reducing blood flow in your heart. Initially, we thought we can cure it with a combination of different surgeries and medications, but after further looking into the problem and taking into account your age, we realized that the healthy portions in your heart are so entwined with the body systems that it would be impossible to fully stabilize the situation without a heart transplant surgery. And given how there's so few people in the world who have this condition, the survival rate is quite low, which means there are not a lot of options left on the table," the doctor lamentedly told Zandaka.
Zandaka swallowed this information in, a sad and horrified expression on his face. "A-A-Are you saying that-?"
The doctor took off her glasses with a sigh. "I'm so sorry, Zandaka. You're dying."
Green, wispy pieces of data are shown floating through the network as a bright light briefly covers the screen, multiple cards popping up one by one.
Yusaku is first shown walking to school before he morphs into his VRAINS Persona Playmaker. Takeru is also shown doing the same thing before he morphs into his VRAINS Persona Soulburner. Last but not least, Yuhiro and Arashi are shown doing the same thing before they morph into the VRAINS Personas Raguel and Slipstream. Ai, Flame, Aqua, and Herald pop up on the screen one by one afterwards.
A split screen then pops up, showing Aoi walking down the street on one side, while Emma scratches the back of her head on the other side, as if she were stressed out. The both of them then morph into their VRAINS Personas Blue Maiden and Ghost Girl. A second split screen pops up afterwards, showing Rachel on her tablet on one side, while Gekiryushi practices her swordsmanship on the other side with concentration. The both of them then morph into their VRAINS Personas Numera and SengokuQueen.
Soon after, a third split screen appears, showing a skinny Go Onizuka clutching his head in pain with his left hand, while Kengo Dojun puts a hand on his chin, as if thinking something over. The screen then cracks, showing a virtual network where Go closes his eyes and spreads out his hands with a smile, while Blood Shepherd aims his right hand at the screen. A fourth split screen appears, showing Akairo completing some schoolwork, while Brion is in his apartment, looking at a picture in his locket with narrowed eyes, which showed his family. The screen then cracks, showing Drachen with Red-Eyes Black Dragon Sword in his hand, while Electrolyzer has PSY-Framegears Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, and Zeta attached to his body.
The main tower LINK VRAINS is shown before the screen cracks in two, which reveals the main tower in Mirror LINK VRAINS. Lightning's faction is shown in the light, but then the screen is enveloped in darkness before depicting Azrael flaring out the Muramasa with Malf and Wraith on his sides.
Revolver, Specter, and Infearno are then shown on the screen, with Revolver on the left, Infearno in the center, and Specter on the right.
The screen changes to show multiple people at Green Park. First is Kusanagi and Roxy beside one another, with Akira speaking to Emma and Gekiryushi nearby. Next is Arashi crossing his arms, with Takeru is looking out at another area while Yusaku simply looks ahead of him, Aoi sitting down on the stairs nearby. Yuhiro is seen looking ahead of him with a stressed expression on his face, a silhouette of Miyu trying to comfort him. Rachel runs up to where Yuhiro is before standing next to him, with Naoki trying to wave his hand to the humans nearby. Herald is shown with Ai, Flame, and Aqua nearby the humans. Last but not least, Ryoken, Youta, and Emon are shown conversing in another area of Green Park.
The screen then shows a grey landscape, where duel monsters appear in pairs. First is Firewall Dragon and Firewall eXceed Dragon, second is Salamangreat Heatleo and Violet Chimera, third is Cyreath Hercules/Alpha Mode and Turboblaze Dragon, fourth is Clear Wing Synchro Dragon and Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon, and fifth is Borreload Savage Dragon and Borreload Dragon before all of them disappear one by one. Last but not least, a network background appears, with a strand of rainbow data flowing around it before Raguel, Playmaker, Soulburner, and Slipstream appear, along with Ai, Flame, and Herald. All four humans draw a card from the top of their decks before a bright light covers the screen.
Card Gallery
Malf:
Darkscourge Biffidus (LV: 1/Cyberse/Dark/ATK: 0/DEF: 0)
Effect: If this card is in your hand when your opponent activates a card effect (Quick Effect): You can Special Summon this card from your hand to your field, and if you do, negate that effect, then send it to the Graveyard. If this card is in your GY, except the turn it was sent there, and you control a 'Darkscourge' Link monster: You can add this card from your GY to your hand. You can only use each effect of 'Darkscourge Biffidus' once per turn.
Darkscourge King T-Wrextle (LR: 3/Cyberse/Dark/ATK: 3300/↙️⬇️↘️)
Effect: 2 or more 'Darkscourge' monsters. If this card battles, your opponent cannot activate Spell or Trap cards until the end of the damage step. Once per turn: You can negate the effects of 1 monster your opponent controls, and if you do, Special Summon 1 'Darkscourge' token to your field (LV: 1/Cyberse/Dark/ATK: ?/DEF: ?) (Gains ATK and DEF equal to that monster's original ATK). At the start of your opponent's Battle Phase: You can target 1 Attack Position monster your opponent controls; this Battle Phase, your opponent cannot attack with other monsters until that one has, and if it does not declare an attack, banish it at the end of the Battle Phase. If this card leaves the field by battle or card effect: Halve your opponent's life points. You can only use each effect of 'Darkscourge King T-Wrextle' once per turn.
Darkscourge Samurai Tajima (LR: 4/Cyberse/Dark/ATK: 3000/⬅️⬆️⬇️➡️)
Effect: 2 or more 'Darkscourge' monsters. When this card is Link Summoned: You can place 'Darkscourge' counters on cards your opponent controls up to the number of 'Darkscourge' Link monsters you control, and if you do, gain 500 LP for each 'Darkscourge' counter on the field. You can remove 1 'Darkscourge' counter from a card on either player's field: Double the ATK of 1 'Darkscourge' monster you control until the End Phase, and if the card was on your opponent's field, send it to their GY. You can only use each effect of 'Darkscourge Samurai Tajima' once per turn.
Darkscourge Black Doom (LR: 4/Cyberse/Dark/ATK: 3500/↙️⬅️➡️↘️)
Effect: 2 or more 'Darkscourge' monsters, including a 'Darkscourge' Link monster. When this card is Link Summoned: Negate the effects of all cards on your opponent's field until the End Phase. You can target 1 monster your opponent controls; this card gains ATK equal to that face-up monster's original ATK, and if it gains ATK this way, it gains that monster's original effects. These changes last until the End Phase. When your opponent's monster declares an attack: You can destroy all cards your opponent controls. Your opponent cannot activate cards or effects in response to the activation of each of this card's effects. You can only use each effect of 'Darkscourge Black Doom' once per turn.
Soulburner:
Salamangreat Perseverance (Normal Spell card)
Effect: If you control a 'Salamangreat' monster, you can draw until you have five cards in your hand. If this card is in your GY, except the turn it was sent there: You can banish this card from your GY; for the rest of this turn, 'Salamangreat' monsters you control are unaffected by your opponent's card effects, also, they cannot be destroyed by battle. You can only activate 1 'Salamangreat Perseverance' effect per turn, and only 1 that turn.
Salamangreat Shift (Normal Trap card)
Effect: If your opponent targets a 'Salamangreat' monster you control for a card effect or battle: You can target 1 other 'Salamangreat' monster you control; change the target to it instead. If this card is in your GY: You can banish this card from your GY and tribute 1 'Salamangreat' monster you control; Special Summon 1 'Salamangreat' monster from your GY with a different name to your field. You can only use each effect of 'Salamangreat Shift' once per turn.
Salamangreat Prairie (Continuous-Trap card)
Effect: While this card is in your field, 'Salamangreat' monsters you control are unaffected by your opponent's card effects, also, if you have a 'Salamangreat' Field Spell card on the field, this card can't be banished or destroyed by your opponent's card effects. If there is a 'Salamangreat' Link monster on your field or in your GY: You can activate 1 of these effects:
Banish 1 card your opponent controls, and if you do, add 1 'Salamangreat' monster from your deck or GY to your hand.
Negate the effects of 1 card your opponent controls, and if you do, Special Summon 1 'Salamangreat' monster from your deck to your field.
If you would take battle damage: You can banish this card from your GY instead, and you take no further damage for the rest of this turn. You can only use each effect of 'Salamangreat Prairie' once per turn.
QOTC
Between Malf and Bohman, who made better use of their absorbed opponents in terms of their cards?
Chapter Preview
Next time on Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS: Obscured Truth. Chapter 90: Sadness in Sorrow. With Malf's defeat at Soulburner's hands, Azrael and Lightning change tactics to break two of their strongest enemies. After Bohman defeats Blue Maiden in their duel, Kusanagi is forced to duel Playmaker, while Raguel ends up contending with another opponent. One he did not expect to duel against until now...
Author's Notes
Well, this was one hell of a chapter. Want to know a fun fact? There's always something nice about posting a new chapter on your birthday, as that fact makes it even more special. I'm grateful that I was able to release this chapter on my birthday, and I hope all you enjoyed this chapter as well. That being said, let's get to the recap:
This chapter picks up from the previous chapter, which is after Azrael brutally defeated Infearno. Here, Lightning gives Azrael a piece of his mind because he's angry at the latter for not telling him vital information. Information that could have been useful against their enemies, as well as not eliminating the Hanoi when Azrael had the chance. And Azrael's reaction? He points out that without him, Wraith, and Malf, Lightning would have had nothing. You heard me. Nothing. Azrael, Wraith, and Malf did the dirty work while Lightning hid behind the scenes to ensure that Bohman and Mirror LINK VRAINS was ready. The trio even put Lightning's sissy fit to a complete stop after listing out all the ways they made their enemies suffer compared to him. It just goes to show how much deadlier Azrael, Wraith, and Malf are compared to Lightning. Because let's face it: Lightning would have been screwed had Azrael, Wraith, and Malf not taken initiative. Then again, Lightning did make a good point that enemies need to be struck down asap, or else the desire for satisfaction in bringing them down to their lowest point before bringing in the final blow can be their undoing. Plus, as per anime canon, the Hanoi are up and running.
After that little discussion, Malf goes to confront Soulburner, where he reveals a few things. First, Malf compares Azrael and Revolver regarding their goals, where he says that the former will succeed due to his willingness to do what must be done. As for Revolver, Malf comments that he will fail for two reasons. One: He's fighting for a meaningless cause with no vision for the future. Two: He's bound by that code of ethics. This makes sense, as Revolver is someone who always had honour, and stuck by his word. After Malf reveals why he serves Azrael, he then says that Soulburner and the others should be grateful for what Azrael had done. For starters, had Malf not arrived and ate Go's heart, then Playmaker would have most likely been injured due to the cage program. Second, had it not been for Malf, then the Hanoi would have eventually got the advantage over Soulburner and the others.
Now I know some of you wanted me to have Malf reveal Drachen's real life identity, but I ultimately decided against it for a single reason: By this point in Azrael being close of reaching his goal of achieving eternity, there's no point in doing so. He, Wraith, and Malf already used Drachen to break the Hanoi even more, and have tossed him aside since his usefulness was depleted. Long story short, Drachen's identity is safe, and it will be. Think of it as Azrael giving the Hanoi a 'pity gift' after all the suffering they went through. It's a practical insult and a taunt mixed together, for it's basically Azrael telling the Hanoi that he'll give them something just so their losses will be reduced by a teeny tiny bit. And besides, there's only so much Malf can reveal in Azrael's place.
Next up is the duel between Soulburner and Malf. Here, I wanted to make this duel one of Soulburner's most challenging duels yet, and he was practically on his toes over the course of this duel. Malf brought out Darkscourge versions of Dinowrestler King T-Wrextle and The Six Samurai – Tajima to battle against Soulburner, and they were very powerful monsters. Malf even brought out his strongest Link 4 monster in Darkscourge Black Doom, and nearly defeated Soulburner as well. What's more, he brought out his Link Spell. However, what gave Soulburner the edge in this duel was a few things. First, his craftiness. He was able to think a few steps ahead of Malf's plans, as well as make a few contingencies should things go south. Second, the utility of the 'Salamangreat' deck, and how it has a lot of versatility. This included rapid Link Summons, a resource loop, and accumulating more cards to be used on the next turn. That enabled Soulburner to keep up with Malf's deck and counterattack. Finally, and this is an important factor: The people inside Malf affected his thinking. I will explain this below.
As you know, Malf not only gains the strongest monsters of the people's hearts he's taken, but their personality traits as well. For instance, after eating Dancho's heart, he managed to gain his wisdom to balance out his feral instincts. While Kenmochi and Yoroizaka didn't contribute much, Malf did gain SengokuQueen's willpower after eating her heart. And after eating Go's heart, Malf gained more power, but it unfortunately had drawbacks. One such drawback being Go's negative traits when the AI chip was in his brain, a few examples including his deteriorated sanity, his lust for power, and an enhanced form of self-pride.
During the duel, Malf reveals that the Another Virus served as inspiration for his creation when Azrael and Wraith made him months ago, which makes him a living embodiment of it. For those of you who have forgotten, Azrael stole the Hanoi's resources way back in Chapter 38, some of which included plans for the Another virus. Malf even comments that Soulburner and the others should be grateful that both this and Azrael's actions from the shadows happened for several reasons. First, at Azrael's command, Malf put a ton of people in the hospital, some of which were very bad individuals. One example being criminals. Second, Azrael's actions led to the destruction of the Black Market and the eradication of any potential nuisances that can pop up, such as Balius and Central Japan. In addition, that also impeded the actions of others as well. Third, thanks to Azrael, he was able to indirectly keep the heroes safe and prevent them from being targeted in the real world. So to sum it up, while Azrael, Wraith, and Malf's actions hurt a ton of people and made them suffer either directly or indirectly, they prevented the heroes from being targeted in the real world.
Nonetheless, despite Malf's strength, Soulburner was able to win not only through his monsters such as Emerald Eagle and Miragestallio, but by using Go's negative traits against Malf. In other words, the imbalance between Malf's strength and wisdom was what led to his undoing in the end. I'll just say it here: Despite the imbalance, Malf is able to recognize how crafty Soulburner was, and commends him for his strength and wits before accepting his loss. Jericho, however, ends up causing Malf to blow up by pointing his short sword at the latter before firing energy from it. After Soulburner and Flame manage to get out of the way just in time, Jericho swoops down and takes a charred piece of Malf for himself before teleporting away.
Following the duel is the conversations that occur in Lightning's castle. Here, he basically taunts Azrael and Wraith for not being able to take into account the factor that led to Malf's defeat. Not just that, but how Ace of all people managed to get away with his actions by betraying Azrael and Wraith. It just goes to show how Azrael and Wraith aren't in control of everything that is going on. Due to this, Lightning not only says that Ace impressed him, but that he also has his respect in the end.
From there, Azrael goes to speak with Bohman, who is preparing for his duel against Blue Maiden. Here, Azrael makes a deal with Bohman, saying that he'll give him Watchman's consciousness data so he can acquire information on the Crisis and how to stop it. In exchange, Bohman must do two things for Azrael. First, hold onto Miyu's vaccine data for the time being so that Blue Maiden will be motivated to fight Bohman at her best. Second, and this is an important one: Azrael wants Bohman to cure Miyu with the vaccine once his experiment is done. Regarding the first reason, I am obviously following anime canon, as Bohman has Miyu's vaccine data to show Blue Maiden prior to their duel. As for the second reason why Azrael wants Bohman to cure Miyu, that answer will be revealed next chapter.
Moving on, we now get to the real world scenes, where everyone is finally waking up from the injuries Malf inflicted on them due to his Delusional Heartbeat skill. That means Kenmochi, Yoroizaka, Gekiryushi, Zandaka, Takeya, and Akairo are up and running. But on the topic of Zandaka, what he finds out will definitely affect his character development moving forward, don't you agree?
So without further ado, I want to thank everyone for reading Chapter 89 of Obscured Truth. As always, please let me know your thoughts about the chapters below in your reviews. Also, constructive criticism is appreciated, as your tips and advice helps make the story better. In addition, don't forget to favourite and follow the story. That way, you will get a notification once the next chapter is released.
Now before I go, folks, I want to make a reminder: Not everything always happens as you expect it will. Keep that in mind as you read the next few chapters moving forward, and make sure you thoroughly read the Author's Notes before posting a review. If needed, I encourage you re-read the chapter so that you can understand what is going on.
As such, I have a request. When you read the next few chapters, keep an open mind as to what's happening before posting your reviews. Trust me when I say this: There will be lots of surprises and epic moments as we reach the end of the Mirror LINK VRAINS arc, and the end of Season 2 overall. If you pay attention thoroughly, you will enjoy it. And one last thing: I welcome constructive criticism, as it helps me improve as a writer. If you have questions, don't hesitate to send them to me, and I'll do my best to answer each one. But me getting lambasted is something I do not appreciate. Do not ruin the story with your insensitive and rude comments.
What did you enjoy the most from this chapter? The duel? Seeing everyone wake up at last from the comas Malf's Delusional Heartbeat Skill put them in? Lightning taunting Azrael and Wraith for once? Or was it something else?
That's all for now, folks. See you next chapter, for it'll get more intense moving forward, especially in how it affects our heroes!
