Team Mystic is in the situation they were afraid of. Yukina and Marcus went into their match against Team Void with them down a duelist, but now they lost the first duel. They have to win the other two, but Vincent and Zash are much stronger than Snyder.
"You did most well, Snyder." Diego said as he spoke with his team. "As promised, Dana's medical support will continue to be funded. You also put that traitor in his place."
"Glad to hear that." Snyder said.
"Now, let us win the next duel. Vincent, be sure to have Yukina become a beautiful piece of art." Diego said.
"I will gladly do so." Vincent said. "We also certainly have a beautiful day for our victory to be sealed." He took noticed of the clear blue sky, but then he saw a single dark cloud covering the sun. That did not seem like a good omen for him.
...
The Duel Field
"It's time for us to get ready for the second duel! Team Mystic has lost the last duel, and they can't afford another one! If they wish to stay in this, they must win this next duel! However, if Team Void wins, the victory is sealed!" Everyone was excited to see what would happen next, but Marcus was still beating himself up over what happened.
"Marcus, don't worry. We still have a chance." Cindy said.
"I know, but I can't get over what happened. I just wish I understood what Snyder was talking about." Marcus said.
"We can worry about that later. Right now, it's important that we win the next duel. I'll make sure that happens." Yukina said.
"But what about the third? One of you will have to duel twice, and that puts us at a disadvantage." Cindy said.
"Maybe, but we knew that going in. Now, let's settle this." Yukina said as she and the rest of the team walked out of the second duel. Both teams stepped forward with everyone wanting to see this duel.
"Even if they win, they're going to be at a significant disadvantage." Yuxuan said as he and his team were concerned.
"The second duel is starting up! This duel could decide the tournament right here and right now! We've got Vincent going against Yukina!" The two stared down at each other. "Let's see who will win. It's time for..." Suddenly, something like lightning struck down on the field and put the whole tournament on hold. Everyone was curious as to what it was until Yukina saw who it was and couldn't believe it. Standing there was Raika himself.
"Raika!" Yukina said.
"Raika?!" Justin said as he was laying his eyes on him for the first time in person. His sudden appearance caused everyone to be silent and wonder why he's appeared. Even Diego was curious.
"This an interesting turn of events. What do we owe the pleasure?" Vincent questioned.
"You do remember what you said to me, don't you?" Raika questioned.
"No. What?" Vincent said.
"You didn't duel me before because your deck wasn't completed, but it looks like it is now." Raika said. "I heard the chumps behind me need some sort of replacement member. If it means you duel me right now, I'll take that position!"
"Is that right?! Raika is offering to be Team Mystic's replacement member for the chance to duel Vincent?!"
"Can he really do that?!" Marcus questioned.
"He can! Raika hasn't participated in the tournament at any level! He qualifies to be the replacement!" Cindy said.
"But why?" Yukina questioned. Raika's really doing this because he has his own matters to settle. He looked up at where Diego was and plans to show him his power is his alone.
"You're challenging me? This will certainly make things interesting." Vincent said. "Very well, I'll take your challenge. I think you would make a much better canvas than the girl." Vincent accepted the challenge and went to take on Raika.
"Yukina! Are we really going to leave such an important match to the likes of him?!" Marcus said.
"I... I don't know. It seems like Raika and us have a common enemy now." Yukina said. "I don't know why he's helping us, but this sounds like it works to our benefit. I'm not saying I trust Raika, considering he once worked with Diego, but maybe we should roll with it." Marcus and Cindy weren't sure what to think of this. Should they really leave this to Raika?
"Well, it looks like it's going to be Vincent vs. Raika instead!" The two faced each other and were set to go. "Since this duel has the greenlight, let the battle begin!"
"Let's duel!" They both said with 4000LP.
"I think I'll start this off." Vincent said as he made the first move. "I'll begin by summoning Pain Painter Blue!" He started by summoning his artist with it having 900atk points. "A lovely color, don't you think? My win is suppose to have a clear blue sky, and that means no dark clouds. Next, I'll activate Mixed Colors. This spell allows me to summon a second Pain Painter to the field. I summon Pain Painter Green!" He summoned out a new artist with it wielding a fan brush with green paint on it. It also had 1200atk points. "I now activate Blue's ability! You lose 200LP for every Pain Painter I have while I gain the same amount!" His painter splashed paint everywhere with Vincent's life points increasing to 4400 while Raika's decreased to 3600. "I think I'll place a face-down to end my turn."
"My turn!" Raika said as he drew his card. "When I have no monsters on my field, I'm free to special summon Evil Prodigy!" He summoned out a dark fiend that hat really long pointy ears with a snake tail and wings. However, it only had 300atk points. "And it's special ability allows me to use it as two tributes for any fiend-type monster, so goodbye to my Evil Prodigy and hello to Malice Fiend!" He traded away one fiend and summoned out another one that had 2600atk points. "I now activate the equip spell, Evil's Enjoyment! This spell will allow my fiend to attack twice!"
"A double attack from that thing?! We're looking at over 3000 points of damage!"
"Not only that, but Malice Fiend will allow Raika to draw a card for each monster it destroys." Yukina said.
"Malice Fiend, tear those wannabe artists to shreds!" Raika called as his monster went on the attack.
"Oh please. Do you honestly think I allow something like that? You are the canvas and I am the artist!" Vincent called. "I activate the Removal Paint trap! This trap destroys all the Pain Painters I have on the field!" He claimed as his trap destroyed all of his monsters. "There's more. You're not allow to deal me any damage that is higher than the Pain Painter with the highest attack points. My Pain Painter Green had 1200atk points, so a direct attack with anything higher than that would be pointless."
"That means that Raika can't attack him directly!" Cindy said.
"Vincent managed to stop those two attacks, but he still lost his two monsters in the process."
"You think you're safe?" Raika taunted with Vincent puzzled. "Think again! I'm activating Tormented Misery! My spell causes you to lose 400LP for each monster that was destroyed by an effect this turn! Since you lost two of your monsters, you lose 800LP!" Vincent got his by a dark wave and it caused his life points to drop to 3600LP. "Since you now took effect damage, I can now summon Malice Dark Knight!" Now he summoned out a menacing knight on a dark horse with it having 1500atk points. "Since he was summoned like that, you lose even more life points. About half of the damage you just took." His knight unsheathed its sword and launched an attack that slashed against Vincent with his life points dropping to 3200.
"Amazing! Raika's attacks failed, but he still managed to deal damage!"
"I end my turn. Your move, clown." Raika said.
"Well, you are as tenacious as I heard." Vincent said. "However, you can't win!" He said as he drew his next card. "I activate Removal Paint from my graveyard! By banishing it, and sending two Pain Painter's from my deck to the graveyard, I can revive the two that I lost. Red and yellow won't work for this piece, so I'll get rid of them to bring some blue and green." He claimed as he got rid of his cards and brought out his other two painters. "Now I use Pain Painter Blue's ability to replenish and diminish our life points!" His painter splattered paint everywhere with their life points practically switching. "I now activate Pain Painter Green's ability! Your Malice Fiend now loses 300atk points for every Pain Painter I have, and you lose the same amount!" His second painter splattered paint and it hit both targets. It was burning like acid with his monster having 2000atk points now and Raika's life points dropping to 2600, but Raika didn't flinch. "Nothing? No reaction? I wonder if you can keep that up. I must create a beautiful piece with your screams of agony."
"Quit your blabbering!" Raika called.
"Fine! I overlay my two artists!" Vincent said as the two monsters came together in the overlay network. "I xyz summon Pain Painter Magenta!" He summoned out a female painter with long magenta hair and carried two brushes. It also had 2100atk points. "Now for the real creativity to begin! I activate Davinci's Darkness! Since I have this lovely color out, this spell allows me to draw one card, and will allow me to special summon it if it's a monster!" He drew his card and it ended up being thee card. "Oh yes! Say hello to Malicious Fiend: Ripper!" He summoned out his most dangerous card as his Malicious Fiend rose to the field and had 2800atk points. Normally, this would be bad, but this is Raika we're talking about.
"There it is! Vincent's most savage card! Raika might be in trouble now!"
"Now the creative process begins! I could just use Ripper's ability, and finish you with one of my monsters, but where's the creativity in that when this way is much more pleasant!" Vincent said. "I use one of Magenta's overlay units!" He claimed as one entered its brush. "I now select one monster, like my Ripper, and you now take damage equal to it's attack points. Of course, you could save yourself by destroying one of your own monsters!" Magenta attacked as it shot a series of paint that turned to energy blasts heading right for Raika's field. "It's obvious what you will choose. Sacrifice one of your monsters and runaway to save your own skin." He claimed as it seemed like that was going to happen.
"Nobody's running." Raika said as the blasts went around his monsters.
"Say what?!" Vincent said with the blasts hitting Raika. Those had enough power to end the duel right there. "Self-destruction?! No, no, no! That doesn't fit into my piece!"
"Hey, clown!" Raika called. Vincent saw the smoke clear to see Raika was still standing, but there was something else. A large and massive armored warrior stood behind him and seems to have shielded him.
"What is that thing?!" Vincent said.
"Malice Brigandine. I was able to summon him by blocking your effect damage." Raika said with his Brigandine having 2500def points. "What's more is that he can't be destroyed on the turn he's summoned."
"So that's what you were planning. Good! That's not the final piece to my art!" Vincent said. "Now let's see your expression when I attack! Ripper, destroy his knight!" His fiend attacked by launching a series of daggers and destroying his knight. Raika's life points dropped to 1300. "Magenta, attack his Malice Fiend!" Magenta attacked by using her brushes like swords with the paint burning against it and destroyed it with Raika's life points dropping to 1200. "Well?" Raika didn't even give off any expression. "Nothing? Not what I want, but you'll make a lovely painful expression in the end. I end my turn. With no cards left in your hand, I doubt you can pull off a win."
"That last turn was too close." Marcus said. "If that guy had used Ripper's ability, he would have won. I knew shouldn't have trusted this to Raika."
"Raika wasn't even the least bit concerned. Almost as if he knew it wasn't going to work." Yukina said. "I don't know how, but I think Raika is going to win."
"My turn!" Raika said as he drew his only card. "I activate Illusion of Nightmare! This allows me to draw until I have four cards!" He drew and now had a fresh hand. "Although, I will have to send each one to the graveyard at the end of my turn, but I have all that I need."
"Yeah right." Vincent said.
"I'll show you! I summon Malice Twins!" Raika said as he summoned out his fiendish twins with 1800atk points. "Next, I activate Limit Disrupt! I can now tribute summon, and my twins count as two monsters! You're not the only one with a Malicious Fiend!" He claimed as he traded away his twins and summoned Life Destroyer itself. It has been called upon once again with 3000atk points.
"Holy cow! Look at that thing!" Everyone who was seeing this thing for the first time couldn't believe their eyes.
"A battle between Malicious Fiends. Interesting, but it still won't mean you win." Vincent said.
"Oh, clown!" Raika called. "I activate Life Destroyer's ability! He drains away all of your monster's power, and I choose Ripper!" His Malicious Fiend grabbed on to Ripper and was draining away it's power with Life Destroyer's power rising all the way to 4400. "Well, that is impressive, but I'll still have plenty of life points to survive and you will be left defenseless."
"I'm not done! I still have one card!" Raika claimed. "I activate Devious Destruction! Now, when a level five or higher dark attribute monster deals damage, the damage is doubled!"
"What?! Doubled?!" Vincent said. He wondered how the tables turned against him, but then realized something as he saw his monster being drained of power. "Wait... Don't tell me... Don't tell me you just wanted to drain my fiend's power!"
"Too late for you now! Life Destroyer, take down his painter and finish this!" Raika said as he went straight for the finish. "Conquering Darkness Demise!" His monster brought out its weapon and slashed down on Vincent's painter. It caused a devastating explosion that destroyed Vincent's monster and eliminated all of his life points in one attack. He was the one screaming in agony now. "That was a bit of a disappointment. I expected more."
"No way... Vincent lost all of his life points! The winner is Raika, and that means that Team Mystic earns the win!" It was a little hard to believe, but Raika actually helped them. They're still in the tournament.
"I lost? I'm suppose to be the artist, not the canvas. Aw... Mommy..." Vincent said as this was too much for him and he ended up fainting.
"He did it! He really won!" Marcus cheered.
"I can't believe that Raika actually helped us." Cindy said. Everyone was glad that he won, but Raika couldn't care less. He looked up to where Diego was and unleashed some of the dark power right there. It caused the glass to shatter and Diego even got cut by the glass.
"See that, Diego? I told you I don't need you anymore." Raika said and just walked off.
"Raika, you are as vicious as ever. I wonder just how powerful the darkness will make you." Diego said as he was still interested in Raika.
"Raika!" Yukina called as Raika walked out of there. "Thanks, but why did you help us?"
"So that ghost would quit haunting me." Raika claimed as he left. Ghost? Yukina knew that it had to be Diego he was talking about. She looked up to the stands and knew he was staring down at her and her friends. Raika may have helped, but things with him are far from over, not as long as he's around.
"It's all tied up now with one win each. It will all be decided with the third battle!"
