Chapter 72: Live Free or Duel Trying
(Blade Knight POV)
The air was dark with the smoke from the burning battle. Blade Knight took Jaden along with the pretender up to the castle gates, accompanied by Jinzo and his cadre of duel spirits, leaving the sputtering, ineffectual Dragonmaids at the inn. Their procession was slow, but undisturbed. Blade Knight's power and reputation were well-known across the realm, and especially within the walls of the capital city. It was well that no one accosted them, for he would protect this cargo swiftly and sharply.
In one stretcher laid the burnt frame of Jaden Yuki, the newly crowned king of duel spirits, lord and master of the sacred darkness, and most importantly, a naïve boy of seventeen years who was as malleable as clay and held as much potential as a blank canvas.
Besides him, Blade Knight looked down at his own body from the outside, that which was robbed from him by the interloper, the reincarnate who wore his flesh and name as if were his own. But soon enough, that would no longer be the case…the uncaring universe had dealt him an injustice, so he would right the wrong with his own two hands. The gods made the world unfair to amuse themselves – justice was the occupation of humanity alone, and it was only by man's own hand that justice was forged.
The gates opened for him, which was a good sign. Yubel was likely still cleaning the guest bedrooms or whatever ridiculous chore Jaden assigned her. Keeping the clingy, ultraviolent demon out of everyone's way for at least a short time was quite shrewd, more than he would have expected from the silly boy. Yubel was far too powerful and unhinged to dismiss entirely, but that too would change in due time…it was not going to be long now.
As they ensconced themselves within the safety of the dark violet castle walls, the spirits began to file off towards their respective duties, leaving Blade Knight and Jinzo to deposit the two boys in the infirmary. There, they would convalesce under the care of fairy monsters such as Spirit of the Breeze and Dreamsprite. The recovery period would be quick despite the extent of their injuries, partly due to the arcane healing spells done by the sprites and partly because of the potent energy both boys wielded.
As the fairies huddled around them, placing Jaden and Jamie into capsules of bubbling, restorative teal liquid, Blade Knight removed his helm and looked upon them with an intense stare.
"The one you seek is within our grasp at last. I am surprised that you have stayed your hand this long." Jinzo daringly commented, stirring Blade Knight from his reverie.
He turned around to face Jinzo, his green irises glimmering with barely restrained rage as always. "Jinzo, it is time I told you the truth, not just regarding the nature of my plans, but Yubel's as well. You have earned my trust, for the loyalty you've shown. That is a precious resource these days, so I hope you will not misspend it, for the cost of wasting it is direr than the one to acquire it."
Jinzo's eyes widened, or would have if they were not mechanically fixed in place. "I am honored…please, let's talk."
They stepped outside, moving through the halls onto a nearby balcony overlooking the metropolis below, orange lanterns burning from within the houses and shops like fireflies. "Yubel's desires have always been plain, it is her methods and how far she is willing to go to achieve those desires that laid in doubt. But the walls have ears, and it is not so hard to piece together everything once you know the end goal. Tell me, why do you suppose Yubel has had duel spirits from across the desert come to the city?" The knight set his helmet down on the nearby table and spoke deliberately, placing keen emphasis on each word, knowing that everything was stake now.
Jinzo shrugged. "To swear oaths of fealty to our new king?"
Blade Knight sighed, frowned and shook his head. Duel spirits were never quite as clever as humans, with a few notable exceptions. They played decks based off of themselves, seldom considered any other strategy on the dueling field, and their thinking outside of battle was often similarly straightforward. Perhaps that was why even a creature of low cunning like Yubel could dominate them so efficiently.
"No. Yubel is intent on powering a spell, a spell that will do nothing less than reshape the universe in her image."
Comprehension seemed to dawn on Jinzo's mechanical face, although again it was difficult to tell for certain. "You speak hyperbole. Yubel rules this dark dimension in truth if not in name. Jaden is a boy, and he is too susceptible to her…charms to be reliable. She possesses immense power, perhaps enough to rival the Dimension Dragons, or even the Egyptian Gods themselves. And with each duel spirit she absorbs, her power only magnifies. What need for a spell does she have, when she holds the universe in the palm of her hands already?"
"If only it were as simple as obtaining power. No, she is motivated by something even more selfish and destructive – love. The spell Yubel plans to utilize is Super Polymerization. Not only to merge dimensions, but to fuse her and Jaden into one being, so they may be together forever. Doesn't it make your heart flutter?" He offered a rare smirk, a coping mechanism in the face of annihilation.
"Super Polymerization…a spell like that would require such sacrifice…" Jinzo realized it now. "Is that why duel spirits have been brought inside the walls?"
The true Jamie nodded gravely. "The power must be harnessed within the shell of a card, and the duel energy granted formed from battles, as well as the blood offering of fallen duelists."
He glanced back, thinking of Jaden and Jamie. "Those two have done much to power the formation of Super Polymerization by battling so fiercely. And every duel within the gates will only fuel the ritual. Even if we survive somehow, the fused form of Jaden and Yubel will be unstoppable. We will live the rest of our days under Yubel's caprice, with all the joys that entails."
"Why are you telling me this? Is there any way to stop it?" Jinzo wondered, cold tendrils of despair unfurling through the parts of him that remained organic.
"Yes, but it will be a close thing…when the fusion is initiated, I plan to hijack the spell and use it for another purpose…to fuse myself and the lion, and reclaim my true body once more." Blade Knight admitted, knowing the dangers of airing this to Jinzo. If the android spoke a word of this to Yubel, it would mean his certain demise. But he also knew Jinzo had spent many long days as Yubel's chew toy whenever she was displeased, and he held no love in his cybernetic heart for her.
"And if you are fused with him, your own fighting power will be multiplied exponentially…" The android mused, appearing to be on the same page as his ally. The strength brought about the fusion would allow Blade Knight to overpower Jaden and Yubel, if needed, which would allow Blade Knight to return to his old life without further interruption. Blade Knight saw the way Jinzo held himself with trepidation, and wanted to soothe his concerns.
"Power is only necessary insofar as it secures one's personal freedom and right to pursue their self-interest. Power for the sake of power is madness, a shackle one binds themselves within in the absence of a worthy goal." When he spoke next, Blade Knight felt as if he was convincing himself as much as Jinzo. "He's the one who stole my body and life from me. Fair is fair."
"Fair is fair…" Jinzo looked a little scared at the intense look in Blade Knight's eye. "But aren't you concerned about what will happen when those two wake up? They could start fighting again. Worse than that, Lancaster is wily where Jaden is naïve. And Ra preserve us all if Yubel gets involved…" Jinzo aired his worries.
"There are risks, but we're stretched too thin to keep an eye on everything. For now, we need to back up Hank and handle Jamie's friends. With luck, we can dispatch them quickly, then return to conduct the fusion. Hopefully Yubel is still busy cleaning the guest bedrooms as Jaden directed." The two rushed off towards the vaults.
"Smartest thing that kid's ever done." Jinzo wheezed.
"Indeed, and luckily Jaden agreed with me that the lion is not to be harmed. I will not have my vessel tarnished before I can reclaim it." Blade Knight smirked beneath his helm.
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(Jesse Anderson POV)
They crawled like rodents through the dank, dirty tunnels connecting the Dragonmaid manor to the vaults of Yubel's castle, but Jesse would have done much more and worse if it meant saving Jade. In blissful ignorance, he pressed forward, only rivaled in determination by Aster Phoenix, who was equally committed towards rescuing Sartorius…even if no one else in the group was.
Behind them trailed the bloodthirsty Zane Truesdale and calm Erin Reid, the four of them making an unlikely group, fellow travelers who found themselves together on this path, albeit for different reasons. And yet, the one who had brought the disparate duelists along on this voyage into the dark deserts was not with them. Something had held up Jamie Lancaster at the Dragonmaid's hotel, and they decided to press on without him. Time was of the essence, and although it didn't sit well with Jesse, it was the sort of ruthlessness that Jamie himself seemed to approve of. "Though he is a hard man to read." Jesse mused.
Jesse was stirred from his thoughts by the blinding gleam of gold that assaulted his vision as they suddenly emerged from the tunnels into the castle's vaults, buried deep within the mountain that overlooked the former Dark World city. The cave walls sloped upwards into high ceilings, where even the smallest noise echoed and grew into resounding waves. Piled high amidst the stalagmites were bars of precious metals and stacks of sleeved cards that stretched from the alcove they entered from to the doorway up to the main floors across the chamber.
"Wow…I guess those Dragonmaids weren't setting us up after all." Erin blinked, her dark blue eyes raking in the unfamiliar images on the cards before them. The four of them could have spent hours, days even, reading all of the cards within the place, so many of them carrying a different array of abilities than the ones they were accustomed to.
Zane crouched and picked up a stack of twenty new playing cards, his every-hungry gaze devouring the sight of them. "Hehe…I think it'd be a good use of our time to take as many of these with us as possible. The more power I can amass, the better." Even now, the kaiser was quickly pocketing select cards that he expected to be useful.
For his part, Aster didn't appear too curious about the cards, and Jesse suspected he would rather win with his father's Destiny Heroes or not at all. Nonetheless, the gray-haired man decided to look over some of the cards since they were stopped for a moment.
A few of the cards seemed to work with Jesse's Crystal Beasts, but they did not resemble Duel Monsters cards as he knew them. The monsters possessed two effects, and their coloring shifted on a gradient from the typical brown of effect monsters to the sea-green of spell cards. They also had a number in the center of their frames next to blue and red prisms. "Hey fellas, what do you think of them Pendulum thingies?" Jesse asked, slightly confused at how they were supposed to work.
"Tch, they look unwieldy. Between the monster effect and the spell effect, it's too much to remember. In the heat of a battle, you're bound to miss something." Zane opined, not thinking much of the densely worded cards.
Erin scratched her chin. "I don't know…having two effects at your disposal is surely better than one. And if you build your deck around these pendulum scales, you can summon a lot of monsters at once. It is a little more complex than what we've seen before, that's for sure."
"A half-step, perhaps." Aster added sharply. "Any duelist worth their salt should be able to adapt to these. After all, they share the weaknesses of spells as well as their strengths. But they are certainly not something that we have not observed in the human world. I would have fought these in the pro leagues if they existed. We ought to take some back for study and replication."
Jesse half-listened while he roved through the other packs of cards in the vault. They felt no guilt over plundering the place. Any advantage in battle would be welcome and probably much-needed. The northerner's eyes glazed over a bit as he rapidly read over the card effects, until he came across one that nearly caused him to trip over himself. "HEAVENS TO BETSY!" Jesse exclaimed, his seafoam eyes glimmering like gems as he raised the card in his hand skyward.
"What'd you find?" Erin wanted to admonish Jesse for yelling out while they were in enemy territory, but the look of boyish excitement on his face had too much of a charm to it. Aster and Zane gathered around as well.
"Lookie there…the Rainbow Dragon." Jesse said in awe, only to notice no reaction from his other friends. "Hello, people! Didn't you just hear me? It's the Rainbow Dragon!"
"Are we supposed to know what that is?" Zane chuckled a bit. "It looks pretty, but is it much good in a fight?"
"Oh, it is in my hands, don't you worry." Jesse grinned. "This card is a legend up at North Academy. Back in the day, Headmaster Foster found an ancient lithograph in the glaciers, when they were first building the school. Ancient symbols were inscribed on the stone. Upon translation, Foster and Maximillion Pegasus concluded it was a long-lost ka spirit, invoked by the sorcerers of the Scandinavian lands, the same way that the pharaohs summoned Ra. It's the ultimate form of the Crystal Beasts."
"You're saying this has power to rival the gods?" Erin said, feeling a bit of Jesse's wonder rub off on her.
"Well, I don't know about that. But this is definitely a big find! I never imagined the legends were really true, and I never thought I could find something so beautiful in a place like this…" He face softened for a moment before he remembered the task at hand. "Let's spend a few more minutes here, then move on. We've gotta save Jaden."
"And Sartorius." Aster pointedly cut in.
"Um, right. Him too. Sorry." Jesse looked away under the stony gaze Aster leveled at him.
"We will save Sartorius, or die trying. End of story." Aster turned to them and spoke with grim, absolute determination. However, his aura was slightly deflated as he followed up with, "Now then, did you guys see a bathroom around here? There's nothing worse than having to deal with that nonsense in the middle of a fight, especially with how wearily long these duels can be."
"I think there's one over there." Erin pointed out with a tanned finger. "Hopefully it's not just for the female duel spirits. We wouldn't want to break the rules, after all." Aster nodded his thanks at her and gave no heed to her jibe before going around the wall of the vault and entering the lavatory.
Once he was gone, Erin turned to Zane and Jesse and gave them each a meaningful look. Jesse liked Aster, and felt sympathetic towards his pain. This was a man who had very few bonds in his life, and even fewer healthy ones, as his mother and father were ripped from him at a young age. His fierce, unbending loyalty to Sartorius was understandable. Sartorius had practically raised him, and he was his only real friend for many years. There was just one little problem in that Sartorius would have blown the Earth to space dust if Jaden hadn't stopped him, brainwashing or not. Aster and Sartorius' sister Sarina were probably the only two people on Earth who had any sort of goodwill towards him.
"Well, are you two ready to die for Sartorius' sake?" Erin questioned blandly, seeming to read his thoughts.
"After all he's done for us, the answer to that question should be obvious. I'd like to gut that sniveling worm myself, but then Jamie would fail his mission." Zane sneered.
Jesse was more tactful. "I was hoping that saving Sartorius would…coincide with rescuing Jaden."
"Which is to say that you wouldn't take one step out of your way for him." Erin smiled sharply, and Jesse blushed. "That's what I thought. So how should we proceed?"
They shrugged, likely assuming that Jamie would handle those details. Although Jesse wanted to support Jamie in his mission, as he seemed an alright sort, he was disquieted at his apparent willingness to hand Sartorius over to Kaiba. The white dragon was not known for his mercy, and the idea that would show any to Sartorius, who essentially enslaved him for a time, seemed unlikely. Jamie's hands were submerged in blood, and by extension so were Jesse's, and Erin's, and Zane's…but the crystal beast user could convince himself he was doing the right thing because of Jaden…if Jaden came home, the hardship would be worth it.
While they waited for Aster to return, the three duelists continued to gather cards, peering over them and learning their effects, admiring their artwork all the while. Their heads spun with all of the new information, and they felt like kids again.
Erin spoke up, "I collected some Melodious cards for Jamie. Strong ones, too. He'll be glad for them. Maybe they'll make him smile like he used to." She said sadly. Jesse nodded. He had only ever seen Jamie smile when he was angry, so he assumed she was referring to a different sort of smile that he perhaps shared in more intimate moments. Nevertheless, the new Melodious cards would surely take his deck to new heights, and maybe it would help keep them all alive.
He was shaken from his thoughts by a sudden THUMP from one of the corners of the chamber, followed by a contingent of duel spirits, some twenty strong, charging into the vault. At their head was not a spirit at all, but a human, dark-skinned with bright, expressive amethyst eyes partially hidden beneath a red ball cap. He wore a dull red jacket, a plain white undershirt and jeans, inconspicuous compared to the vivid, colorful appearances of the duel spirits around him, which included Meda Bat, Mystic Horseman, and Air Eater among others.
"Oh, for pete's sake!" Jesse exclaimed as the assailants stormed the chamber, surrounding them in a wide circular formation. Despite his life being in immediate danger, he was sure to mind his words and avoid bad language.
"More beef for the grinder..." Zane was not so cautious, looking bored as he immediately activated his duel disk.
"Blade Knight was right, the intruders would come through the vaults after all…I wonder how it is you three rats got in here…" The capped man murmured.
"Four rats." Aster walked out from behind the outer wall, his arms raised in a challenging motion. "It looks like things got out of hand during my five-minute absence."
The man in the center of the throng took off his hat to reveal shockingly white hair tied into a ponytail that contrasted greatly with his dark skin. As he got closer, Jesse observed the man was branded with Egyptian hieroglyphs burned into his face and neck, their meanings unknown to him. The man's duel energy immediately stood out to Jesse's...layered with deep, demonic forces that reminded the northman of his own. Indeed, he heard the spirit of Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder cry out as it seemed to feel kinship with the mysterious assailant, or more likely one of the cards in his dueling deck.
The other man turned to regard Jesse as battles began to break out between the other humans and the duel spirits. Aster, Zane, and Erin fought the opposing forces with the utmost ferocity and speed, neither side sparing any quarter. Meanwhile, the unknown man approached Jesse almost lackadaisically, his eyes glimmering with cleverness. "Our Sacred Beasts call out to each other, boy."
(Erin POV)
"You know what I miss most about home?" Zane Truesdale idly commented as him, Erin and Aster clambered through the castle pathways, bounding up steps and deftly maneuvering hallways in an attempt to find Jaden and Sartorius.
"Our friends and family?" Erin Reid dryly guessed as she hefted a torch above her head to light the way. For her part, the surfer held out hope that there was some hint of sentimentality in Zane's blackened and charred heart, and wondered if he would answer her rhetorical question in the affirmative. Perhaps he was a kind man beneath it all…
"Huh? Hell no." Zane responded incredulously, as if she was crazy for even asking that.
Erin chuckled and shook her head, feeling foolish. "What, then? You're already getting your taste of battle here, so what else is there to life?"
"I miss cooking." Zane said with some slight wistfulness in his devil-may-care tone. "I used to love doing that. Trying new recipes, learning what I enjoyed and what I didn't. We've been eating horribly since we got to this damned desert. Funny how you never value something until it's long gone."
"We'll be back home soon enough." Erin rolled her eyes.
"I could use a steak. Oh Ra, a steak would be heavenly. A rare steak, a bloody steak…oh boy…" Zane indulged in daydream. Meanwhile, Aster was in stony silence, utterly focused on the task at hand.
"Halt, intruders!" Two duel spirits crossed their path at last, shaking Zane out of his reverie. Erin raised the torch an inch higher to shine a light on their assailants. Battle Steer and Ghost Beef stood in front of them. "You humans are under arrest in the name of his majesty, Jaden Yuki!"
Erin smirked, a sneaky notion occurring to her. "We'd be glad to hear the king's judgment, if you would take us directly to him."
"He's a busy man! You'll rot in the dungeons for a time first, to teach you a lesson about trespassing in the royal castle!" Ghost Beef mooed.
"Aww, that's too bad. I guess we're gonna have to do it the hard way." The brown-haired girl grinned as she activated her duel disk.
"The dungeons..." An idea seemed to occur to Aster, and he suddenly ran off. "I'll keep in contact through the PDAs! I just need to check something!" He shouted back at Erin and Zane.
"Damn it, don't run off on your own!" Erin called, but Aster was already down the hall. "Stay alive, you idiot..." She thought fondly before her attention was forced back on the spirits in their path.
Meanwhile, Zane was staring at Battle Steer and Ghost Beef hungrily, his gaze longing and his mouth watering. Baring his teeth in a leer, he cackled, "Looks like beef is back on the menu after all!", the unexpected words giving the duel spirits pause as they activated their duel disks.
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(Jesse Anderson POV)
"It's bad luck for you that I just found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow…my deck is on a new level now, thanks to your vault!" Jesse engaged in playful boasting.
"Cards you've barely read and have no idea how to use. Forgive me if I am not overly concerned." Hank said calmly, even as the raging blue aura of Raviel surged around him. The rogue Ishtar possessed the Sacred Beast for long enough that controlling its power was almost natural for him.
The northerner grinned at his opening hand. "I'll prove it, starting with this - the spell Crystal Bond! This will let me add a Crystal Beast from deck to hand, then place a different one in my spell and trap zone as a crystal. I'll add Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus, then place Advanced Crystal Beast Emerald Tortoise on the field!"
A dark blue crystal formed by Jesse's side, joined a moment later by the white-winged workhorse of his deck, the horn atop its head sharp and long. "I'll normal summon Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus (1800/1200)! Its effect will place Ruby Carbuncle on my field as a crystal!" To Jesse's left appeared a round red stone in contrast to the jagged blue sapphire to his right.
"From there…I activate the continuous spell Opening of the Spirit Gates! This will let me add my Sacred Beast to my hand." Jesse's normally breezy and clear teal aura darkened with black clouds and the stench of thick ozone in the air. "Now, by offering my three continuous spells as sacrifices, I'll call upon the master of the skies that dwells deep within the earth, Hamon, Lord of Striking Thunder (4000/4000)!"
With a piercing cry, the skeletal monster unfurled its wings fully in the open space of the vault, its sickly yellow skin standing out amidst the piled-high gold bars almost like a decaying autumn leaf amidst a tree of rich green foliage. Static curled around its frame as rows of teeth bared down at Hank. "I'll throw down a face-down and call it a turn." Just like his opponent, Jesse had grown accustomed to wielding the demonic energy of the Sacred Beasts, and would not be overwhelmed especially so early on.
"Very well…" Hank drew, his amethyst eyes glimmering in the torchlit chamber. Jesse's hackles were raised, as he had no clue what sort of cards his opponent was playing. "I'll start things off with my own Opening of the Spirit Gates!" With a smirk, Hank retrieved Raviel from his own deck.
"Then, I'll normal summon Dark Beckoning Beast (0/0)!" Hank's first monster was a little wyvern, similar in appearance to Jesse's Hamon with its webbed wings and sharply ridged features. "This monster's effect will add a monster that mentions one of the Sacred Beasts from my deck to my hand. And then, it lets me normal summon another fiend monster with zero attack and defense points. Come forth, Chaos Summoning Beast (0/0)!" From a putrid ooze of darkness emerged another herald of the demonic beasts, this one slithering along the ground and leaving a trail of black sludge in its wake.
"By sacrificing Chaos Summoning Beast, I can call forth the monster that secured my freedom from the hegemony of the Ishtar clan! This creature let me break my shackles and rid myself of the outdated bonds of the past…arise, Raviel, Lord of Phantasms (4000/4000)!" The blue titan took shape from gathering shadows, but there was nothing ephemeral about the strength it wielded, its legs thick and tall as tree trunks, with sharp talons protruding from its fists.
"And that's not all. By banishing Chaos Summoning Beast from the grave, I can add this field spell to my hand - Fallen Paradise!" The golden shine of the castle vault faded to gloomy gray and brown as the stone beneath their feet faded to dirt, and a gnarled, leafless tree spiraled up from behind the Ishtar. Glowing yellow eyes peered out from the gaps in the wood, and a single red apple materialized in Hank's hand, which he took a bite of immediately.
Swallowing, he smirked as Raviel gained a translucent aura that shone with multiple shifting colors. "While this field spell is active, Raviel cannot be targeted or destroyed by card effects. Of course, the same protection doesn't apply to your Sacred Beast, I'm afraid. And beyond that, having a Sacred Beast on my field lets me draw an extra two cards per turn." Hank's ponytailed white hair stuck out all the more in the bleak landscape as he replenished his hand.
"Raviel, crush his Sapphire Pegasus!" The ex-tombkeeper commanded, Raviel's fist crashing down on the helpless beast.
Jesse was quick to respond. "I'll play my continuous trap, Crystal Brilliance! This boosts all of my Crystal Beast's attack points by their defense points!" With that, Sapphire Pegasus' power rose to 3000, not enough to withstand Raviel's punch but able to stave off some damage at least. Jesse's feet skid back and he grunted from the impact as his monster reformed itself as a gem in his spell and trap zone. (Jesse 3000/Hank 4000)
"I'll set three cards face-down and end my turn." Hank smirked. Jesse frowned, realizing he should have played Hamon in defense mode. He didn't expect his opponent to call forth Raviel so quickly, and imagined his Crystal Brilliance would be sufficient for defense.
"If I don't get rid of either Raviel or that field spell fast, he's gonna overwhelm me with card advantage." Jesse thought carefully. However, the card he had drawn gave him an idea. "I'll activate my Crystal Brilliance's second effect. By sending itself to the graveyard, it'll revive a Crystal Beast in its place. I summon Crystal Beast Ruby Carbuncle (300/300)!"
His familiar made its presence known, its eyes matching the deep red jewel at the end of its tail. "When Ruby hits the field, I can free all of my Crystal Beasts from their continuous spell forms, playing them on the field as monsters!" As quickly as it had been placed there, Sapphire Pegasus returned to the field.
"And Sapphire Pegasus will let me place another Crystal Beast in my spell and trap zone…" Jesse thumbed through his deck, settling on one of his old friends, the Crystal Beast Amethyst Cat. Its bejeweled form shone as it rested at Jesse's side.
"I must admit, you are using those cards well…Yubel warned me of a duelist with a unique deck like yours, able to gather the seven colors of the rainbow quickly under one banner." Hank mused, though he did not appear fearful.
"So you and Yubel chat a lot, huh? I gotta say, I never would have thought another human would be buddies with her. I've never met Yubel myself, but I haven't heard the nicest things, ya know? Not the best reputation, given the absorbing of souls and devouring of flesh and all." Jesse said casually.
"I have no doubt that Yubel's reputation is well-earned." Hank replied with dark, sharp humor. "But you wrongly assume that it is my choice to follow her. Life does not always give us such a choice. I know that more than most, for I have spent my life constantly in the absence of such freedom."
"What? Are you saying that Yubel conscripted you? In that case, why do you fight for her?" Jesse wondered, taking a moment to catch his breath from the lull in the battle.
"Indeed, the same power that freed me from my prior captors chained me to my current ones." Hank gestured to Raviel. "Yubel wants all duel spirits everywhere to swear fealty to her and Jaden, especially spirits as mighty as the Sacred Beasts. When I defeat you, Hamon and your Crystal Beasts will serve as well. And those who do not serve will die."
Jesse frowned. Jamie told him about Hank and his circumstances, even though they did not expect to run into him here. It was merely a story to pass the time around the bonfire at night. He didn't expect the rogue Ishtar to stand before him like this. The man did not particularly care to hide his emotions, and Jesse could perceive the sadness in his violet eyes even as his aura raged around the vault. "So you're forced into it…" Jesse murmured.
"There is no place for me anywhere else. My family and that pig Seto Kaiba will hunt me if I return to the human world. Yubel made a place for me. And I'll say this much - Yubel never branded my skin or make me swear oaths to a dead man like the Ishtar clan did." Hank snarled, the momentary sorrow in his eyes hardening. "So don't think you can talk me into going back. If you really want to toy with my life you'll have to defeat me in battle like the others did!"
Jesse felt another pang of sadness course through him. Hank had never once been master of his own fate. He was born into the strictures of the Ishtar clan and made his escape as an adult only by the happenstance of Raviel falling into his hands. And then, when he finally found freedom, he was captured again by the forces of Yubel. Jesse didn't know what he would do if he was in that situation…was there even a chance to do things differently in that sort of life, where the branching paths only seemed to narrow with time? Jesse didn't know. But one way or another, the duel was on, and perhaps battle would unveil the truth as it often did.
"My draw." The northman knew that to win, he might need to tap into some dark places…he just needed to make sure that darkness didn't consume his soul. "I play the spell Foolish Burial Goods, sending the trap card Rainbow Bridge of Salvation from my deck to the grave. Then, by banishing Rainbow Bridge of Salvation, I can add a Crystal Beast and a field spell from my deck to my hand!"
"And now…I activate Advanced Dark!" The barren landscape envisioned by Fallen Paradise on Hank's field was suddenly ablaze as blue flame encircled the two duelists, causing Jesse's seafoam eyes to take a darker cobalt hue. "This turns all of the Crystal Beasts in my field and graveyard dark-attribute. And in addition to that, it lets me summon some of the new cards I just took off your hands! I normal summon Advanced Crystal Beast Amber Mammoth (1700/1600)!"
The thundering, broad-tusked beast had a spiked ball and chain at the end of its tail, and shiny black armor covered its thick legs and trunk. "He'll help protect my Crystal Beasts from targeting effects!" Jesse smiled, only for his good cheer to fade as wispy shadows began to rise and take shape from the back of Raviel.
"Each time you normal summon, Raviel summons a Phantasm Token (1000/1000) to my side of the field." Hank smirked. "And now that you have, all of the pieces for my strategy are fully in place!"
"Huh, what do ya mean?" Jesse suddenly found himself on guard as his adversary revealed a trap.
"I'll activate Crush Card Virus! By sacrificing my Phantasm Token, I can destroy all monsters on your field and in your hand with 1500 or more attack points!" Hank cried, his demonic apparation scattering apart into a cloud of virulent particles, the disease fast-acting as it tore through Jesse's Sacred Beast along with his mammoth. At the very least, Amber Mammoth was given a second life as a crystal. "And not only that, but I can check each card you draw the next three turns, and if it has over 1500 attack points, it's destroyed too."
Jesse gasped as his field was suddenly cleared of monsters, until an idea occurred to him. "And from there, your trap lets me destroy monsters with 1500 or more attack points in my deck, right?"
"Up to three, yes." Hank frowned, wondering if this would be beneficial to Jesse in some way.
"In that case, I'll destroy my Crystal Beast Rainbow Dragon, Crystal Beast Topaz Tiger, and Crystal Beast Amber Mammoth from my deck." Jesse said. "Then, I'll play Rare Value. Since I have both Amethyst Cat and Advanced Amber Mammoth on my field as crystals, you send one of them to my grave and I draw two cards."
Hank wordlessly gestured to get Advanced Amber Mammoth off the field, giving Jesse some additional resources. With a smirk of his own, Jesse was ready for a sudden reversal. "Since you activated a monster effect during my main phase, I can play Triple Tactics Talent! This lets me take control of your Raviel until the end of the turn!" There was risk in playing with demonic powers of this magnitude, and Jesse wasn't used to wielding Raviel.
"Impossible!" Hank swore. However, despite being protected from targeting and destruction by Fallen Paradise, Raviel was still bound by the golden gunbai fan that manifested in Jesse's slim hand, and it was slowly dragged over to the northman's side. Jesse felt his muscles tense and his duel energy struggle beneath the weight of Raviel, the fiend not particularly happy about being wrested from his master's yoke.
After subsuming the beast to his will, Jesse forced a smile and said, "Well lookie there…you have 4000 life points to your name, just the same as Raviel has in attack power. And no other monsters on the field to protect ya…this one's over! Raviel, attack directly with shimmering skyscraper!" Fierce azure blades of energy surged from Raviel's fingertips as its massive fist flew towards his former master, capable of finishing the duel in one blow.
"How absurd! I activate Storming Mirror Force, returning Raviel to my hand!" Hank remained cool under pressure, his wall of wind avoiding the deadly blow while returning the Sacred Beast to his grasp. With their fields clear of monsters, Jesse and Hank took a moment to give each other a nod of acknowledgement, both men caught up in the thrill of the dance.
"You're not too bad, Ishtar." Jesse's smile was quick to return despite his opponent getting the better of him in that exchange. "I'll set one and end my turn."
"Wait until you see what I can really do." Hank drew, his angular jaw working as he thought. "I activate the spell Tokusano Shinkyojin. By discarding my level ten Raviel, I can draw two more cards." Tossing aside his Sacred Beast, both duelists no longer had a way of getting them back.
"And then…I'll rid myself of Fallen Paradise to play a new field spell…Lair of Darkness!" The arid dirt of his prior land fell apart, giving way to hard cave walls, stalactites bejeweled with obsidian dripping from the ceiling. In the dim shadows, demonic ghosts cackled with sparks of green flame spewing from their maws.
"And a set card will end my turn as well." Hank said, and Jesse perceived that his deck, and playstyle in general, was more methodical in nature. Lair of Darkness was an oppressive field spell that slowly wrested control of the game from the opponent. Jesse readied himself to become more aggressive.
"My move!" Jesse drew, only to pause as Crush Card Virus allowed Hank to see what he had drawn. Since it was a spell, Jesse was allowed to keep the card. "I activate The Beginning of The End!" Jesse revealed. "Due to Advanced Dark's effect, all of my Crystal Beasts become dark-attribute. And you let me load up my graveyard with Crystal Beasts thanks to your Crush Card Virus. Since I have seven different dark-attribute monsters in my grave, I can banish five of them to draw three cards!" Jesse banished his Advanced Crystal Beast Emerald Tortoise, Advanced Crystal Beast Amber Mammoth, Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus, Advanced Crystal Beast Ruby Carbuncle, and Crystal Beast Topaz Tiger to draw.
"And now…" Jesse carefully read over his new cards to ensure he knew what he was doing. "I'll set the pendulum scales!"
"What?!" Hank's calm facade lapsed as he was taken off-guard. "How do you know about that? That power was meant to belong to the spirit realm alone!"
"Not anymore! I set Crystal Keeper (Scale 2) and Crystal Master (Scale 5) in the pendulum zones!" Placing them on his leftmost and rightmost spell and trap zones, two translucent duel spirits appeared above Jesse. On either side of them, their masked forms waved a staff and wand, multicolored light streaming through the air in a rainbow arc. On the left side, a blonde man wearing light elegant cotton cape and jacket not unlike Jesse himself raised a sword, while on the right, a figure with long teal hair was garbed in tight, strapped gear, a crystalline scepter in its hand.
"Now let's see if I'm understanding this…I mean you have to admit, these pendulum monsters are a bit complicated." Jesse paused, his dramatic speech fading to somewhat confused murmurs as he read over the cards again.
"Not really. If anything, their complexity is highly overstated." Hank rolled his eyes. "I understood them within thirty seconds of reading them."
"Well damn, Hank, not everybody's as smart as you!" Jesse protested. "Just so I have this right, if I have scales two and five on the field…"
"That means you can pendulum summon level three and level four monsters from your hand or face-up extra deck, since those numbers are between two and five." Hank coached his opponent with a note of impatience.
"Now hold on a second, you just said face-up extra deck."
"When a pendulum monster would be sent from the field to the graveyard, it goes to the face-up extra deck instead. So if you were to discard a pendulum monster from your hand for example, it would still go to the graveyard."
"And what happens when they're face-up in the extra deck?" Jesse pressed.
"Nothing really, I mean certain cards can interact with the face-up extra deck, but it surprisingly doesn't come up that much outside of pendulum-specific support." Hank continued calmly, but clearly holding back his annoyance.
"And my pendulum scales are treated as spells on the field, so they can be destroyed with something like a Mystical Space Typhoon?" Jesse followed up.
"Yes, but they are not continuous spells, an important distinction. Anyways, are we ready to continue our life or death battle now?" Hank took a sharp inhale.
"Um…I think so. You're right, these actually aren't that hard to learn at all." Jesse let out a sigh of relief.
"Like I said, anyone with half a brain could learn them in one minute. Thirty seconds if you have a whole brain. If you survive this fight, we have some additional training resources up in the labs." Hank offered, before seemingly remembering himself. "Erm, were you about to pendulum summon, or…?"
"Oh yeah, I was! From my hand, I'll pendulum summon Advanced Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus (1800/1200) and Crystal Beast Cobalt Eagle (1400/600)!" The gem beasts of light and dark stood alongside each other, the first monster a fierce white-winged steed with an obsidian horn on its brow while the other was a sleek bejeweled bird of prey.
"Upon summoning, Advanced Sapphire Pegasus will place my banished Advanced Emerald Tortoise back in my spell and trap zone as a crystal." Jesse retrieved the monster before both of his beasts took off. "Now, I'll attack directly!"
Hank was quick to respond. "I don't think so. I reveal my face-down trap, Darklight! By sacrificing a dark monster with 1500 or more attack points, I can destroy all monsters special summoned this turn!" A blue orb of energy formed in Hank's palm, and he raised it upwards to block the oncoming strikes of Jesse's monsters.
"How are you gonna do that when you've got no monsters…huh?" Jesse trailed off as his Advanced Sapphire Pegasus suddenly burst into flames, the conflagration also burning away his Cobalt Eagle. Advanced Sapphire Pegasus reformed as a crystal, but Jesse had to send Cobalt Eagle to the graveyard due to his pendulum scales, set card and two crystal beasts taking up his entire backrow.
"While we duel inside the Lair of Darkness, what's yours is mine. I can tribute your monsters as if they were my own, once per turn. And since both of our field spells make your monsters dark, I can certainly use them as fodder for whatever I please." The vagabond replied blithely.
"...I end my turn…" Jesse suddenly found himself feeling a grain of fright as his Crystal Beasts were effortlessly wiped away once again. His fears compounded as an inky black ghost sidled up to him.
"At the end of each of our turns, Lair of Darkness summons a Torment Token (1000/1000) in defense mode for each monster that was tributed this turn." Hank explained as he drew his next card, and Jesse wondered why his opponent's field spell gave him monsters to defend with.
"Time to end this…" Hank said with solemnity. "I'm sorry it has to be this way, friend, but in this dimension, it's kill or be killed. If I don't cut you down now, Yubel will surely not spare me the same mercy."
Jesse felt saddened as he recalled the fate that likely awaited Sartorius in the event that they were successful in their mission. Yes, it was a harsh and brutal world, and even Jesse had to admit it, though he preferred to focus on the good and beautiful. But how much of it was reality, and how much of it was due to the choices every man and woman made each day? Was it the world that was cold, or was it man? Jesse wanted to believe the latter…because of it was the hand of man that shaped the world, another man could reshape it, make it kinder and better. In this cold pit of gold and silver, Jesse had to believe some things could change for the better, and perhaps that hope would carry him through this dark night.
"I activate Allure of Darkness, drawing two cards before banishing a dark monster from my hand." Hank smoothly withdrew his next cards before pitching one already in his hand. "And then, I'll reveal my remaining trap, Escape From The Dark Dimension! This will summon the dark monster I've just banished. Return to the field, Darkest Diabolos, Lord of the Lair (3000/2000)!"
From the dark depths of the cast vault formed a vicious, terrifying dragon, broken steel chains around its ankles and talons clanging noisily against the precious metals it was surrounded by. Deep red wings unfurled, and poisonous clouds emanated from each of the monster's scales. As it took its place next to Hank, he laughed. "Diabolos cannot be tributed or targeted with card effects. And by sacrificing one of your Torment Tokens, I can activate its effect to place the remaining card in your hand on the bottom of the deck!"
Grasping one of the black ghosts, Diabolos crushed it like an overripe fruit between its metallic claws, the devilish miasma encroaching upon Jesse. He was forced to put back the remaining card in his hand, and without any monsters on the field to protect him, things were looking bleak. "Enough of this! Diabolos, attack directly and end this duel!" Hank declared joylessly, with grim finality.
"Not yet! I reveal my face-down trap, Rainbow Path! By sending my Advanced Crystal Beast Emerald Tortoise from my spell zone to the grave, I can negate your attack and add Rainbow Dragon from my deck to my hand!"
"Hmph, that won't help you...face it, that Rainbow Dragon is no good in a duel. That's why we stuff it down here in the vault, none of our spirits could even use it. And with most of your Crystal Beasts banished due to playing The Beginning of the End, you won't even be able to summon it. Face it, that thing makes for a poor coaster and a worse card in a duel!" Hank crossed his arms as he ended his turn, unworried about his opponent. He was slowly squeezing the life out of Jesse, and was sure he could finish the job next turn.
Jesse was aware of this too, and needed this next draw to be a big one. "I activate Burial From A Different Dimension! This will put three of my banished Crystal Beasts back into the graveyard. And just like that, I now have seven Crystal Beast monsters on my field and graveyard once again..." Rainbow aura began to surge around Jesse.
"We've been through a lot. It feels like we've been walking through this dark desert for years. And there's plenty of times where I've almost lost my life. But I'm grateful to have been chosen for this mission...grateful to fight for the one I love. And I'm even more thankful that you guys left this card down here to gather dust, because that decision ensured I could compete my deck at last! With seven Crystal Beasts on the field and in the graveyard, I summon Rainbow Dragon (4000/0)!"
Appearing in shimmering rays of light was a white, angelic dragon inlaid with every gemstone known to man, and many unknown. It was larger than any of the Sacred Beasts, and seemed somewhat constricted even in the wide open space of the cellar. And yet its light shone no less brilliantly, the teal horn on its head the same color as Jesse's hair, as if they were made for each other.
"Ah...I have never seen this monster summoned...it's beautiful..." Hank was overcome all of the sudden by the presence of the ultimate Crystal god, its downy white wings furled around both duelists.
"No one has. You are the first one to see this power in the past several thousand years. And you'll be the first to be defeated by it! I sacrifice Rainbow Dragon to upgrade it further, taking the form of a fusion monster! Appear, Rainbow Overdragon (4000/0)!" The brilliant light of the rainbow blinded them both, and when it cleared, the dragon's scales became brilliant white to match its wings, with a purple underbelly that shimmered every color. "By sacrificing Rainbow Overdragon, I can shuffle all cards on the field into the deck!"
With a piercing, divine cry, the burning light of the Rainbow Dragon cleared away the Lair of Darkness, leaving both duelists with nothing on the field. Although Hank was shaken by the presence of the Rainbow Dragon, he recovered enough to stammer, "Well...it is no matter...I can rebuild, and you have no cards on your hand and field. Your god is false...!"
"No, I don't think so...I just cleared away the storm, that's all. This is the rainbow that will truly herald the end of the dark night." The seven Crystal Beasts along with the Rainbow Dragon itself appeared behind Jesse in their crystalline forms, translucent. "I banish Rainbow Dragon and seven Crystal Beasts from my graveyard to bring forth its full power! Ultimate Crystal Rainbow Dragon Overdrive (4000/0)!"
Just as suddenly as it vanished, the dragon returned to the corporeal plane, only this time even more brilliant, larger, and more powerful. Its effect unified the disparate crystals beneath its wings. With seven Crystal Beasts, both the dark advanced gems and their light counterparts, banished, Jesse's new ace monster rose to 11,000 attack points, even though it was strong enough to vanquish any duelist in one blow already.
Hank did even hear Jesse call out the attack, his senses overwhelmed as the blast of rainbow energy fell upon him. And yet, when it made contact, he did not feel pain...the attack left him standing, dazed but standing, and left with a sudden lightness of being. It smelled of spring in that dusty chamber, fresh flowers and grass greeting Hank in defeat...a more graceful defeat than he could have hoped for. (Jesse 3000/Hank 0)
With the deed done, Rainbow Dragon turned back to Jesse, briefly nuzzling him with one of its soft wings. "Thank you...it's an honor to meet you at last." Jesse smiled as the spirit began to fade into the ether. Then, he looked upon Hank Ishtar, and the contradictory expression of both defiance mixed with resignation on the man's face filled Jesse with emotion. Not a difficult thing to do normally, as Jesse was a man who wore his heart on his sleeve. But it was even more pronounced in this case, as he held another human being's life in his hands.
Having spent a lot of time with him lately, Jesse wondered what Jamie Lancaster might have done. After all, he was grappling with his own dilemma. Even if he hadn't spoken about it, Jesse could tell that delivering Sartorius to sure torture and death at the hands of Seto Kaiba did not sit well with the young apprentice, his thoughts dwelling upon that subject like a coin circling a drain. But Jesse could not be sure if Jamie's conflict arose from moral uncertainty, or whether it was due to prideful defiance against Kaiba's often petty demands. Jesse figured that Jamie would have likely killed Hank rather than deliver him back to his former captors, even if they were family.
Then, Jesse thought of Jaden. Where Jamie was murky and turbulent as a storm cloud, Jaden's light shone even through the mind's eye, and Jesse felt stirrings in his heart at the thought of his smiling face, the innocent way Jaden would so effortlessly make his heart beat a little faster, and the simple way he approached life. Jaden, there was no doubt what he would do, and that is what Jesse would do as well, because he loved him.
"Hank Ishtar…listen to me. You fought with honor, and I'm not gonna kill ya. If you go through the secret tunnel that we entered the vault through, you'll come to the manor of the Dragonmaids. They helped us, and they can help you too. They can help you disappear. I'll send one of my duel spirits with you, to help you along and keep you safe." As Jesse spoke, the spirit of Sapphire Pegasus spread its wings around them both.
"What are you saying...?" The rogue looked up in confusion.
"From there, maybe you can work for the Witchcrafters, they live out beyond the castle walls, far away from here. I mean, they might want you to do some weird experiments, but they weren't bad people. They could throw a mean party." Jesse laughed as he recalled the memory, so recent and yet so long ago it seemed.
"Why…? You're sparing me. I just tried to kill you." Hank spat out the words in utter unfamiliarity.
"The world has enough killers. Too many. I won't do it…maybe you'll stab me in the back later, or spread evil and wickedness through the world…I can't control that. But even if you do, I won't regret this. Because a guy like you should keep going, and maybe you'll see there's more to life than the little you've experienced so far. I want you to see the world with your own eyes. That's my hope." Jesse picked up Hank's duel disk.
"Nothing personal, but I need to deliver Raviel back to Central Academy. They really want it back." He plucked the Sacred Beast out of the duel disk before returning it to Hank. He replaced Raviel with a Monster Reborn spell.
"You'll need this, it's dangerous out there." Jesse handed him back his duel disk. Hank still looked a bit confused, but slowly seemed to be accepting the situation, the tension gradually lifting from his bronze features. "And I probably wouldn't go back to the human world, if I were you. There are a few places in the spirit realm where humans can go. You're better off there."
"Heh, well if Yubel finds me, I'm a dead man. If I go back home, I'm a dead man. But life burns more brightly in the looming shadow of death. So I'll choose to treasure it, for however long it lasts….thank you, Jesse Anderson. For my life." Hank nodded slowly. "I owe you a debt that cannot be repaid."
"You can repay me by living well, and going in peace." Jesse smiled, a feeling of lightness and joy spreading through him even in this hellish dark dimension. "Farewell."
"Yes, farewell…" And as Hank Ishtar delved into the tunnels, accompanied by Sapphire Pegasus, he too felt a weight lifting from him. The cursed name of Ishtar no longer meant anything to him, or his equally ridiculous first name. He was nothing more than a wandering vagabond now, with no allies, capital, or power. But he was alive, and there was hope of freedom. And that was something more than he had before. In losing everything, he had gained much.
"Freedom...maybe one day, I'll finally hold it in my hands." The vagabond vowed to himself as he turned his back on all that had come before.
XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx
(Jamie Lancaster POV)
I awoke in darkness, a sudden panic gripping me as I trashed about inside the healing pod, the teal liquid spilling onto stone floors as I opened the glass entryway. The fairies and other duel spirits in the room scattered. As my memory returned to me, I wondered if they were off to report me to Yubel or whoever else was running things in this hell dimension.
It had felt like years since I had last moved. I gazed into a nearby mirror, noting the scars and lack of definition on my frame from the months of hardscrabble living as we traveled through the desert. When this all began the sight of my sandy blonde hair and green eyes used to shock me, but not anymore. It was mine, and this body was mine.
"Jamie…" Sonata's voice called to me as she emerged from one of the stone walls. "I was able to stay in hiding, watching over you…they brought you to Yubel's castle alongside Jaden. Jaden wanted to heal you for questioning. He was here, but he left a few minutes ago."
I said nothing as I clothed myself, the spirits under Jaden and Yubel's command bringing me an unflattering beige smock and baggy trousers to wear. It was a far cry from the elegance of the Obelisk Blue uniforms or Kaibacorp's apparel. The green-haired girl pressed, "What's our next move?"
Finding my voice, I raggedly asked, "Where are the others…?"
Sonata gulped. "Fighting. Yubel has many lieutenants and duelists under her command. I don't know what Jaden's plans are or where his head is at." Her tone was concerned, yet mystified, as if for the first time even she could not see my soul.
"Jamie, can you still do this…?"
I nodded, feeling my fingers coil into a fist, feeling my duel energy began to rise as I attached my duel disk to my arm. "Always. I don't care how long it takes or how many setbacks there are…I won't stop."
Feeling the energy signatures spread throughout the castle, I growled, "We need our friends alive, and we need to capture Jaden and Sartorius. But that's not enough for me. The nice guy shit isn't cutting it anymore. I want this castle razed to the bedrock, and I want my enemies to suffer by my hand. Let's go."
We emerged from the healing chamber to find two duel spirits guarding the door, a pair of Mountain Warriors. "Oh great, more duel spirits. Let me guess, you guys have been ordered to keep me from leaving this room." I assumed, my patience at its end.
"Uh, well-" One of the Mountain Warriors began to explain, but I wasn't having it.
"No, it's fucking bullshit! All of you duel spirits ever want to do is fight, I've had it! I've absolutely had it, ok? Just give it up! I don't want to duel you, and that's that! So just let me through!" I lapsed into a full-on rant.
"Uh, ok." The second one said, and to my surprise, they actually did stand aside, causing Sonata and I to shoot them quizzical looks.
"Fine, let's just put up our duel disks, and - wait, what?"
One of them stammered, "We have orders not to impede you until either his majesty or Blade Knight returns, on both of their orders. Go as you please, but we will warn our superiors of your movements."
"Oh. I, uh…sorry for assuming, I just…yeah, I'll be going now." I sheepishly waved as I ran behind them, Sonata flying by my side.
"That's a bit odd. They're giving me a free run of the castle…but why?" I wondered aloud.
"I'm not quite sure myself, Jamie-kun." Sonata mused. "But I overheard one of them talking beyond the door of the medical chamber while you were passed out. Somebody said something about making sure your body was in good shape for the upcoming dark ritual. I'm sure it's probably nothing."
I chuckled at her sarcasm. "Well, it will be nothing, because we're not going to let these people do any weird ritual shit to us. We have a job to do, and we're going to see it through, no matter what." I took a moment and entwined by hand with hers, my duel spirit that stayed so loyal to me even though I didn't deserve it.
"We need to link up with our friends, beat Jaden and Sartorius within an inch of their lives, and then drag them back to the human world. That is all..." I said with utmost determination.
"While you were asleep, your PDA Kaiba gave you had an alert. The dimensional portal is ready to open at your command. It looks like the tournament they held back on the island generated enough duel energy after all." Sonata explained. "We can leave as soon as our mission is complete."
"Huh, I wonder who won that thing…I guess we'll find out soon enough. But first, let's wreak some havoc." I grinned, my longing for battle flaring up once more.
"That's the spirit, Jamie-kun!" Sonata sang as we barreled down the hallways of Yubel and Jaden's castle.
A/N
Hope you enjoyed. Thanks for waiting. 7.5 years since we first started this thing. With this chapter, I have posted more than 1 million words of fanfiction in my life. It's all on here so you can recalculate if you doubt me. I'm glad I didn't post the outline after all lol, never say never. I don't know if we are "back back", but I did manage to get this out anyways. Not the biggest duel, I know, but this is just where we were at in the story before I went on break. I'll answer any questions if you don't remember what's going on. If you're interested, I did do some yugioh related stuff in my profile in the meantime, mainly duel one-shots. Those duels are probably better than this one as I wrote about half of this chapter in one night so I probably goofed on all sorts of things. But I just get too excited. Happy Thanksgiving to those who celebrate. Farewell for now, and thank you for your time!