The last, or to say, the last few things Atticus Rhodes remembered before being transported into a different world entirely was when he approached his best friend, Yusuke Fujiwara, in a dimly coloured room as he was in the center.
Several scratches on the walls.
Several books were thrown around.
And the one thing that caught his attention the most was Yusuke standing on a pentagram, blood spilling from his arm as he was almost wanting to summon a Monster, as they were taught by their Professor, Lymann Banner.
Before Yusuke could complete the ritual, Atticus ran towards him, his actions faster than words, his instinct faster than anything in the room.
Trying to stop his best friend from doing something rash.
But it was all for naught.
As the last drop of blood that came from Yusuke's body, the one drop that Atticus couldn't stop, fell on the ground, activating the pentagram on the wall, as a massive pillar of dark energy enveloped the two.
Atticus, trying his best to save his friend from getting hurt, tried to reached out, but the surge of dark energy enveloped both of them as it took the two of them away in completely different areas. Atticus saw Yusuke for the last time, one where he flew to world completely devoid of life, filled with crystals as a ghost, resembling of that of the Grim Reaper, attaching himself onto him.
Atticus saw his best friend disappear.
The same as himself.
The world where he appeared was completely different.
The sky was black, there were three Suns all at the same time, the entire world was if it was covered in sand, and the buildings were that of Ancient Egypt, filled with pyramid-like structures. This world was different from all of them and that was something that he knew.
He didn't know a way out.
He didn't know if there were even people out there.
And yet, he wanted to go home.
To see his friends.
To see his sister.
To be… free.
He had to try.
He has to live.
He had to.
Atticus walked for what felt like an eternity for his entire being. His feet were aching for rest, his face covered in sweat, his clothes were taken off just so that he doesn't die from the heat, and yet, he ventured on.
And yet there was this one feeling of sadness in his head, a seed of despair that wanted to grow and fill his entire being, almost as if it was darkness calling him.
But he shook it off.
Atticus shook everything off as he found life in the form of a beautiful young lady that called herself Yasmin, who he was too tired to even try to flirt with her (which was shocking even for him), as when he tried to explain his situation, she thought of his situation, and though as how she pities him, knew what must be done.
Yasmin gave him a place to rest for a moment, to talk to someone that was known as the Gravekeeper's Chief, the highest ranking man where she comes from, as Atticus rested.
Atticus tried to think of a way to get out.
Atticus, however, didn't have the strength to fight.
Atticus has felt something.
Atticus felt as though his head was hurting, how it feels as though small wisps began to appear around him.
That wasn't the only thing he felt.
He felt as though he heard beeping around him, but nowhere where he looked, he could find the source. It was almost as if they were in his head.
"So… this is what I had to endure, huh?" Atticus thought to himself as he looked to the ground, "A world where there are almost no one there, a world where there is nothing to look around for. Nothing. Heh… sucks to be here, right? I do wonder how it is going for you in the other side, Yusuke. Hope they are treating you better than me."
"I… just want to be home… I want to be home with everyone, not be in this god forsaken Pyramid. This tomb, whatever it is, nothing of the sort, I want to be home. With my friends…. with my family… But it is almost like that won't be possible." Atticus thought to himself as he could hear footsteps around him, "Heh… Sorry, Zane. Sorry, Yusuke. Sorry, Lexi… I'm sorry if I must've worried you guys."
"Intruder." Atticus' ears perked up as he then looked up and saw several spearmen threatening to stab him with their spears if he makes one blunder, "Speak. Why have you came to this sacred tomb?" said a man.
The man was a tall dark skinned man with brown eyes and dark beard, wearing a black keffiyeh to protect his eyes from the sunlight, wearing a black scarf, a large white robe as the ends were purple, a purple shirt, dark green pants and tight brown coloured pants. Atticus knew that this man held power unlike others, even without knowing who he was, he knew that he was the one that Yasmin was talking about.
"Okay… okay, relax…" Atticus tried to get up, as he saw the spearmen continuing to point their spears at him, "I'm not here to hurt anyone."
"You aren't?" asked the man in charge.
"Y-Yes! I'm here because my friend and I, who he is not here with me, I promise, and I, uh, just wanted to go home. I have no ill thoughts about anyone here, I just want to go home. That's all." said Atticus, being as truthful as he was.
The man looked at him, piercing through his eyes to see if he was laying any deceptions in his eyes, but he sighed, knowing that no matter how much he didn't want to admit, he was telling no lies.
"I can tell by your words, you hold no ill." said the man, but the spearmen didn't budge.
"So… we cool?" asked Atticus, trying to pass off as chill as possible.
It didn't work.
"No, we aren't 'cool' as you say." said the man.
"Oh come on! Why?! I just told you that I won't do anything horrible to any of you guys!" yelled Atticus as the man glared at him.
"Because you have traversed the sacred tombs of which I protect. Even though you hold no ill, you still have forsakened our laws. Those of whom walk the tombs, shall be punished, severely." said the man, shocking Atticus.
"Are you serious?! I just told you it was an accident!" yelled Atticus.
"That's true, which is why I pose a challenge." said the man.
"A challenge?" Atticus raised his eyebrow.
"If you beat me in a game of my choice, you have the freedom of going home with your life intact… but if you so lose the game, you will also lose your life." said the man as Atticus sighed.
"So it's gonna be like that, huh? Fine! What is the game of your choice?!" yelled Atticus as the man smirked, causing everyone to back out.
The man then threw two objects at him.
Atticus caught them and looked at them as he then gasped. "My duel disk? My deckbox? How did you-"
"We have ways that even our own men don't even know how to explain. So, what will it be?" asked the man.
"You have no idea who you are talking to." Atticus placed the duel disk onto his arm and then planted his trusty deck into the duel disk. "I was known as one of the strongest duelists in Duel Academy! Of course I will accept!" yelled Atticus with a new source of determination.
"Your talk is rich, let's see how shall it fare." said the man as he pulled out his own deck and planted it onto his ancient looking duel disk. "I'm the Gravekeeper's Chief. Many have fallen to me and you won't be any different!" the Gravekeeper's Chief boasted loudly, exclaiming himself as a prideful man.
They were then seen on opposite ends, both on a platform above a pit of spikes.
Atticus was now battling for his life, a new feeling he had, but he was still confident in his own skills.
The two yelled, "DUEL!"
Unbeknownst to all, a man was looking through a computer screen, the light shining so hard that it revealed the man's glasses only. "This test… the Nightshroud Test… I hope it works, Kagemaru. I don't want to see my students like this." he said. Hoping that this duel will result in Atticus' victory.
Gravekeeper's Chief: 4000 lp
Atticus Rhodes: 4000 lp
Turn 1.
"Since you have stepped foot into my own domain, I shall start!" yelled the Gravekeeper's Chief as he drew the first 6 cards of his deck, as Atticus drew the first 5 cards of his deck. He looked over his hand and smirked, seeing a card that would be perfect for someone against an opponent like him as it destroyed all of his opponents before. However, he had no cards that paired well with the card.
No matter.
There are still cards he could use for latter use.
"I will place 1 monster face down," a card was then set horizontally in front of Chief as then he took a card from his hand, "And then I will set 1 card face down," a card was then set vertically in front of Chief. "That ends my turn."
Turn 2. Atticus - 4000 lp - 5 cards
Atticus smirked, "Is that all? Then this will be easier than I thought! I draw!" yelled Atticus as he then drew the top card of his deck as he looked at his hand. He smirked, "Okay, this will be the best option I can make! Thank you Seto Kaiba for the new cards I got!" he thought to himself as he then took a card from his hand.
"I will start by normal summoning my Black Dragon's Chick!" yelled Atticus as then a massive red coloured egg. Then they saw cracks happening throughout the entire red egg as then a small black coloured whelp breaking through the egg as its claws were placed on the top of the egg as it briefly whisps around its small maw.
(Black Dragon's Chick: Level 1 - Dark Dragon - Attack: 800. Defense: 500.)
"That's the start of your play? By summoning a whelp?" asked Chief with a smirk on his face, "You must not think highly of your opponent."
"Trust me when I say this, this is me going all out! As I activate Black Dragon's Chick's effect! By sacrificing it," Atticus began as then the small whelp then fully cracked the egg as it was then engulfed by massive red coloured flames that burned through everything it previously had, "So I can special summon my favourite monster! Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" Atticus slammed the card onto his duel disk.
The flames then went out, revealing it to be one of the most legendary dragons in the entire game. The dragon had obsidian coloured scales that covered the entire dragon as its claws were sharper than all of the weapons ever formed, as its eyes were crimson shining through all of the darkness ever conceived. The legendary dragon then roared with power.
(Red-Eyes Black Dragon: Level 7 - Dark Dragon - Attack: 2400. Defense: 2000.)
Joey Wheeler's Ace, the former monster of Rex Raptor, was in the possession of Atticus Rhodes, as the man smiled looking at his favourite monster in his deck to the point he promised he would make a deck styled over him, and he did after years of collecting cards.
"You think a monster like that shall bring me to my knees?!" scoffed Chief as he looked through his hand with a smirk on his face.
"If he won't, then I don't know what will! Especially since he will go all Inferno Fire Blast on you!" yelled Atticus as he played a Spell card of the same name, "Here's how it goes: If I control Red-Eyes Black Dragon, I can deal 2400 points of damage, equal to its attack, for the price of not attacking for the rest of turn!"
"You will trade your attack for effect damage?!" Chief gasped as Atticus grinned.
"That's right! Go! Inferno Fire Blast!" yelled Atticus as then his legendary Dragon then opened up its maw to reveal a fireball with malicious dark energy forming inside of its mouth, red thunder appearing all over it as it could melt stone itself as it was then shot straight towards the Chief, ignoring the Set card entirely, making him scream in agony.
Chief: 4000 - 1600 lp
Atticus: 4000 lp
"AGH!" Chief then gritted his teeth as it was then revealed that, although some of his clothing were charred, he was still fine as he was breathing deeply, "This… is… nothing to me."
Atticus smirked, "Well, I hope it didn't go horribly for you then. That's all that I can do for now." said Atticus as he concluded his turn.
Turn 3. Chief - 1600 lp - 5 cards
"You think that you would have fun with me? Just because you have a monster with 2400 attack points? How naive you are! My turn!" yelled Chief as he drew the top card of his deck as he looked at it as he smirked, "This will be the start of your demise! I'll start by flipping over my monster!"
On Chief's field, a card was flipped over to reveal a dark skinned woman with black coloured eyes and black hair that were styled in braids and in a ponytail. Her clothing only consisted of a black robes with green robes styled into them, "Reveal yourself, Gravekeeper's Spy!"
(Gravekeeper's Spy: Level 4 - Dark Spellcaster - Flip - Attack: 1200. Defense: 2000.)
"Now, Gravekeeper's Spy's effect is now active! When she is Flipped over, I'm able to special summon 1 Gravekeeper's monster with 1500 or less attack points from my deck," a card popped out of Gravekeeper's Chief's deck as he then took it with a smirk on his face, "Appear, Gravekeeper's Curse!"
On his side of the field appeared a dark skinned man that had a metal band on his forehead with dreadlocks, of which had golden jewelry. The man held a golden necklace and gauntlets around his arms, as his robe had purple coloured robes. He carried a blue and yellow coloured orb staff that irked with dark green cursed energy.
(Gravekeeper's Curse: Level 3 - Dark Spellcaster - Attack: 800. Defense: 800.)
"Now the effect of Gravekeeper's Curse activates! When he is summoned, you lose 500 life points!" yelled Chief as then Gravekeeper's Curse closed his eyes as he began to mumble to himself as the green aura begins to harden even harder, "Weaking Spell!" yelled Chief as then a rough sound began to play to the point that Atticus had to cover his ears.
And even then, Atticus could still hear the incredibly painful screech that began to destroy his eardrums as he screamed in agony of real, actual pain being inflicted to him in this one turn, to the point that once the horrible sound ended, he looked over at his index fingers and he widened his eyes to see actual blood come out of it.
Chief: 1600 lp
Atticus: 4000 - 3500 lp
"Is… this my actual blood?!" screamed Atticus as he looked at it.
Chief chuckled to himself, "It is. Why do you ask?"
"Because this… That…. I feel actual pain from that! How?!" yelled Atticus as he looked over to Chief to which he chuckled to himself.
"It's simple. This… is a Shadow Game." said Chief to which Atticus widened his eyes from that fact, "All the damage that you take in this duel is not only for show, but it is real."
"N… No way! Those exist!? I thought they were only made up during Battle City when Yugi dueled Marik!" Atticus exclaimed.
"FOOL! These types of duels have been played for generations before us! The only reason why I took the full blunt of that attack from your dragon was because I took deadlier attacks from my previous victims! You will not be any different!" Chief exclaimed as if that was a fact.
"I… Gotta get out of here and quickly!" Atticus had never felt a rush of getting out of a duel as quickly as possible, and from that sounds of it, it seems as though Chief was deciding to go all in.
"Now, let me play my Spell card, Necrovalley Throne!" yelled Chief as then a card popped out of his deck to which he took it, "Thanks to this card, I'm allowed to normal summon 1 Gravekeeper's monster from my hand in addition to my regular Normal Summon! I summon my Gravekeeper's Descendant!"
On Chief's field appeared a dark skinned man with short, semi-spiky blonde hair with golden eyes. He wore a bandana over his forehead, a black coloured jacket with golden lining. He wore a tight leather sleeveless shirt with golden lining. He wore tight black shorts that showed his tight calves. Then, he carried a golden scepter with a snake's head.
(Gravekeeper's Descendant: Level 4 - Dark Spellcaster - Attack: 1500. Defense: 1200.)
"The effect of my Gravekeeper's Descendant will now be activated! I can tribute 1 other face-up Gravekeeper's monster on my side of the field in order to destroy one monster you control!" Atticus widened his eyes as Curse was then transferred into dark purple energy as Descendant pointed his staff at Red-Eyes, "Destro Spell!"
A beam of purple energy was then shot straight towards Red-Eyes Black Dragon, making the legendary dragon roar in anguish, "Red-Eyes!"
Chief then smirked, "Now, you're left defenseless."
"... no. That won't be happening! Since a Level 7 or lower Red-Eyes monster was destroyed by a card effect and sent to my graveyard, I'm allowed to summon Red-Eyes Retro Dragon from my hand!" yelled Atticus as he took one card from his hand as he then slammed the card onto his duel disk.
On his field appeared a metallic, more robotic dragon than before, as it was clear that it was aged through several years. The metal parts of it began to rust, however, there were still crimson coloured around the body, unwavering to time as its eyes glew red, almost as if it was truly alive. There were gears around the hips of the monster. It was in Defense Mode.
(Red-Eyes Retro Dragon: Level 4 - Dark Dragon - Attack: 1700. Defense: 1600.)
"Then! Since my Red-Eyes Retro Dragon was summoned like this, I'm allowed to special summon all of the destroyed monsters as possible! Appear, Red-Eyes!" yelled Atticus as then from the pits of, above the spikes, reammarged his favourite monster.
(Red-Eyes Black Dragon: Level 7 - Dark Dragon - Attack: 2400. Defense: 2000.)
"So you had a countermeasure in place if your dragon fell?" asked Chief, admittedly annoyed that his combo was stopped and actually worsened his strategy.
"Of course. I'm not going down that easy." said Atticus.
"Well, spare your confidence because I still have a Normal Summon that I have yet to perform!" Chief took a card from his hand, "I will now tribute my Gravekeeper's Spy in order to Tribute Summon my Gravekeeper's Visionary!"
On his field appeared a monster that almost outranked him. It was a monster, sitting on a throne before he stood up, blasting the throne into mere pebbles. His head was that of the Egyptian God of Anubis, wearing black robes with golden lining, which paired up nicely with the armour it had around his shoulder pads and front stomach. It had purple coloured gauntlets that reached its knuckles. It had white coloured robes as at the end had almost feather-like features. It carried a golden snake-headed staff.
(Gravekeeper's Visionary: Level 8 - Dark Spellcaster - Attack: 2000. Defense: 1800.)
"My Gravekeeper's Visionary can be Tribute Summoned by tributing 1 Gravekeeper's monster." smirked Chief as then Visionary's staff's snake head began to glow its eyes, "Visionary's effect allows it to gain 200 attack points for every Gravekeeper's monster in my graveyard!" Then visages of Spy and Curse appeared beside Visionary as he looks at Red-Eyes with narrowed eyes.
Gravekeeper's Visionary: 2000 - 2400 attack points
"For my final turn, I shall activate the Spell card known as Foolish Burial! This card allows me to send 1 monster from my deck to my graveyard!" yelled Chief as he then sends a card from his deck, of which it was previously popped out off, to then send it, "THEN! Gravekeeper's Recruit activates! When it is sent to the graveyard, I'm allowed to add 1 monster with 1500 or less defense, and I shall add my Gravekeeper's Spiritualist!"
A card popped out of his deck to which he took it. Recruit then appeared as a visage next to Visionary, fueling him.
Gravekeeper's Visionary: 2400 - 2600 attack points
"Those attack points-"
"They are higher than your dragon of yours! Visionary! Send Red-Eyes Black Dragon to its after life!" yelled Chief as then Visionary glew its eyes as did the snake-headed staff, "Taewidhat Alakhira!" Visionary then pointed its staff straight at Red-Eyes, shooting a black coloured spell that had an visage of a snake as it bit down Red-Eyes' nose, as then… several snakes emerged from the darkness, biting it down, making Red-Eyes' flesh begin to melt.
Red-Eyes, after a few seconds of being bitten, was rotten to the ground.
And Atticus screamed as he clutched his heart.
Chief: 1600 lp
Atticus: 3500 - 3300 lp
"Do you see now? You have no chance of defeating me." said Chief as Atticus looked up.
"I'm not… giving up just yet!"
Chief looked at him and felt something different about him.
The other challengers weren't this determined to survive. Most either gave up after experiencing an attack from Visionary or Oracle, and yet he continued to fight back against him.
He felt something in him.
His determination, his fire to continue forward.
And yet.
There was a drop of what appeared to be despair. Darkness.
Chief was silent as he looked to his hand.
And knew that was all that he could offer for now.
"I will then set a card face down," a card was vertically set behind Descendant and Visionary, "I have no more turns for now, your move." said Chief as Atticus got back up and placed his fingers on the top of his deck.
Turn 4. Atticus - 3300 lp - 2 cards
Atticus, despite having a hand advantage, knew that he was outmatched in pure power. He knew that he had to have a strategy in mind if he wanted to survive the next turn, so he had to build a decent board.
Atticus placed his fingers on the top of his deck, "My turn! I draw!" yelled Atticus as he drew the top card of his deck as he then looked at it, and then he had a wide smile on his face.
"Alright! Time for me to summon a new monster that I added to my deck previously! I will send 1 Level 5 or higher Normal Monster from my hand or deck," a card popped out of Atticus' deck to which he took it to reveal a second copy of Red-Eyes Black Dragon, "And send it to the graveyard so that I can special summon this card onto my field and increase its level! Appear, Red-Eyes Black Meteor Dragon!"
As then, a blazing inferno was felt throughout the entire arena as Atticus and Chief looked at the source of the blazing inferno akin to the Sun, as the figure flew upwards and unfolded its wings to reveal its true form and it was different from usual. The obsidian black scales were that of a combination of charcoal and actual obsidian, with the red being that of molten lava cracking through its shell, melting stones by just breathing too hard, as the wings had the texture of both as the span of the wings being that of lava. Its eyes glew with a deep orange colour. The monster roared, knocking back Visionary for a few feet back.
(Red-Eyes Black Meteor Dragon: Level 6 - Dark Dragon - Attack: 2000. Defense: 2000.)
Red-Eyes Black Meteor Dragon: Level 6 - 7
"Your dragon has different forms?" asked Chief, both out of shock and curiosity.
Atticus smirked, "That's right. My Red-Eyes deck isn't filled with only one copy of the monster, but a whole collection of them that are stronger than the last! He is my true partner!"
"A partner… one that shall be inscribed with the same tomb as you." said Chief, still confident that he will win this duel.
"I'll see about that! Especially when I have this new monster activated from my hand!" Atticus took a card from his hand and revealed it, showing that it was a small dragon whelp that was covered in obsidian-like black metal as its wingspan were barely bigger than a normal sized human, as the eyes were barely even shown. Its claws weren't even fully developed.
"Black Metal Dragon's effect allows me to target 1 Red-Eyes monster on my side of the field and then I can equip this guy from my hand or field, so go!" yelled Atticus as then the small whelp appeared onto the field. It immediately began to fly towards Black Meteor Dragon and once it arrived, it planted itself onto its back, ready to strike at everyone. "Thanks to him, my Red-Eyes Black Meteor Dragon now gains a total of 600 attack points!"
Red-Eyes Black Meteor Dragon: 2000 - 2600 attack points
"Now my monster has the same attack points as my Visionary!" Chief stated.
"That's right. Even though it will be a better move to attack it now, I have a feeling it has a different effect other than attack gain, I will decide something else," Atticus then pointed at Gravekeeper's Descendant. "I will attack him!"
Descendant knew what was coming as it then walked a few feet backwards out of fear.
"GO! Red-Eyes Black Meteor Dragon attacks! Black Meteorite!" yelled Atticus as then Black Meteor Dragon roared in power as then it flew upwards in the sky, blazing through and even outshining the 3 Suns that the Gravekeeper's had, as then the massive black dragon then flew downwards to pile drive into the monster, shattering it into pieces. Making Chief cover himself from the dust particles.
Chief: 1600 - 500 lp
Atticus: 3300 lp
Chief slid his foot forward, unwavering on what he must accomplish, "This is nothing! I activate my Trap card, Rite Of Spirit! This card allows me to special summon 1 Gravekeeper's monster from my graveyard! Appear, Gravekeeper's Descendant!" yelled Chief as then a tomb appeared out of nowhere.
A hand pierced through the tomb as the man got up, glaring at the massive dragon in anger.
(Gravekeeper's Descendant: Level 4 - Dark Spellcaster - Attack: 1500. Defense: 1200.)
Atticus gripped his hand. He knew that it was better than nothing since he dealt massive amounts of damage in one turn, but at the same time, he didn't really damage his board to the point of him being neutral.
Atticus looked at his, the sole card being that of his Paladin of Dark Dragon, a strong Ritual monster, but unable to be used at the current moment.
Atticus sighed, "That's all that I can do. Your move."
Turn 5. Chief - 500 lp - 3 cards
"My turn, I draw!" yelled Chief as he drew the top card of his deck as he then played immediately after, "I'll begin by playing Akashic Record! This card allows me to draw 2 cards from my deck, but if I played them at any point of the duel, they are banished instead!" Chief exclaimed as he drew the top 2 cards from his deck and he smirked.
"I drew Card Destruction and myself! Gravekeeper's Chief!" yelled Chief as he revealed the two cards he just drew, shocking Atticus.
"Wait, WHAT?! You have yourself as a card?!" yelled Atticus before he then began to piece together everything what he has known.
He introduced himself as the Gravekeeper's Chief, and the deck he has played shared the same title/archetype as him, which meant that all of the monsters that he had to fight were real people, judging by how expressive they were compared to regular holograms. And with what he has heard, it might be possible that Yasmin was also a Gravekeeper's monster, it is just that he hasn't seen her.
He has heard these certain things before, a different world where all of the Duel Monsters lived on as real people. Combined together by archetype, or hated by the same reason.
How certain monsters were on their own or were friendly with other similar beings.
And there were cases of people able to see Duel Spirits. That's what Yusuke believed he did.
That was one of the few subjects that Lymann Banner taught to his students, and while he didn't believe that they were real, he was interested in the subject to the point that he joined his sub-class of monster summoning and how to use Alchemy as a gateway for those certain monsters, and yet that never happened. But, it was weird at how Banner knew a lot. Hell, one of the last things he could remember before being sent here was when Banner told him about Yusuke's whereabouts, almost like he planned it…
But, that wasn't possible.
Banner was known as the nicest teacher in Duel Academy, giving those of the Slifer Reds hope that they could be someone like him.
It can't be possible for someone like him to do this to someone… right?
Atticus breathed in, "Tell me." Chief looked at him before continuing on with his turn, "Have you heard of a lady named Yasmin? Who wore similar clothing to all of you? What happened to her?"
"Her? Well… it was simple. She told me about your situation." He revealed, shocking Atticus, "Before you have any ill will to her, she wanted to give you a chance of your way to home. She was the one that persuaded me into having to test you out despite breaking the laws of our sacred tombs. She wanted you to live, and hoped that you would be the first one to win against me."
"So… it is all thanks to her, huh?" Atticus asked, it was almost unbelievable that the one that brought them here was also his savior at the same time.
"That's right. It would be wise to thank her for being the sole reason why you are still alive." said Chief.
Atticus sighed before smirking, "Well, I guess it feels nice to have a beautiful lady helping me out before I die." He rubbed the side of his mouth.
"Enough chit chat. I shall continue on with my turn." Chief exclaimed while pointing at his Descendant. "I shall activate the effect of my Descendant! By sacrificing my Visionary, your Retro Dragon shall bite the dust!" yelled Chief as Visionary disappeared into a flash of purple energy, transferring his energy into Descendant, "Destro Spell!"
Descendant shot the powerful beam of purple energy straight towards Retro Dragon, with the explosion causing Atticus to shield his eyes for a moment.
Once the explosion died down for a bit, Chief remained stiff as he looked at his hand, "It has been a while since an opponent made me do this…." Descendant then disappeared, "I shall tribute my Descendant in order to summon myself!"
Gravekeeper's Chief leaped forward onto the arena, glaring at Red-Eyes Black Meteor Dragon. He was now ready to fight full force against his opponent.
(Gravekeeper's Chief: Level 5 - Dark Spellcaster - Attack: 1900. Defense: 1200.)
Atticus sweatdropped for a bit, "You don't see that everyday."
"And it is for good reason. I will then activate my effect! When I am Tribute Summoned, I'm allowed to target 1 Gravekeeper's monster from my graveyard and special summon it!" yelled Chief as a ball of dark red energy formed in his palms as he then threw it at his side, "So come out, Gravekeeper's Visionary!"
A portal was then formed from where he threw the ball of red light as then Gravekeeper's Visionary jumped out of it, glaring at its opponents.
(Gravekeeper's Visionary: Level 8 - Dark Spellcaster - Attack: 2000. Defense: 1800.)
Gravekeeper's Visionary: 2000 - 2800 attack points
"Now, I will then activate the Spell Card, Gravekeeper's Stele!" A card appeared behind the two powerful Spellcasters as Chief continued on with his explanations, "With this, I'm allowed to add 2 Gravekeeper's monsters from my hand to the graveyard." said Chief as he then took cards from his duel disk, revealing them to be Recruiter and Spy.
Gravekeeper's Visionary: 2800 - 2400 attack points
"That won't matter to me for I play Card Destruction!" Atticus narrowed his eyes, "With this, both players are allowed to discard their entire hand and draw cards equal to the amount of cards in their hand." Chief explained as he discarded 3 cards from his graveyard, which happen to be Spy, Spiritualist and Recruiter, while Atticus only discarded 1 card, that being Paladin of Dark Paladin.
Chief drew 3 new cards while Atticus only drew 1 card, as Chief continued with his plays, "Then, thanks to Recruiter being sent to the graveyard, I'm allowed to add 1 Gravekeeper's monster from my deck to my hand as long as they have 1500 or less defense points." Chief explained as he added Gravekeeper's Headman.
Atticus gritted his teeth as he then saw 5 visages appear beside the two. Knowing what happens next.
Gravekeeper's Visionary: 2400 - 3000 attack points
"Now, I believe it's time for battle!" yelled Chief as Visionary glared at Red-Eyes Black Meteor Dragon, "Visionary will strike your Red-Eyes Black Meteor Dragon!" yelled Chief as Visionary pointed his staff straight towards Black Meteor Dragon, "Taewidhat Alakhira!"
Once the spell was made, Visionary shot a beam of purple energy of which it then took the form of a serpent, that had the image of Apep, as it then flew straight towards the obsidian coated dragon, as once it made contact, the fangs were then deeply enriched straight into the body of Black Meteor Dragon, as the dragon roared in agony, as several other serpents formed out of nowhere to bite down it and Black Metal Dragon, causing all of them to melt into a puddle.
Atticus sweated for a bit as he looked at the damages.
Chief: 500 lp
Atticus: 3300 - 2900 lp
A card popped out of Atticus' deck, "When Black Metal Dragon is destroyed while equipped to a monster, I'm allowed to add 1 Dragon monster from my deck." said Atticus as he then took Red-Eyes Soul from his deck.
"It is my turn now." Chief smirked as from his palm, he began to pour out magic that he knew from when he was a child, forming a small red orb that was so dense to the point it would weigh more than anything on the planet. "Wrath of the Royal Family!" he roared as he then threw it straight to Atticus, making him roll the back of his eyes from the sheer impact.
Atticus dropped to his knees, shielding his stomach. "Not… bad…"
Chief: 500 lp
Atticus: 2900 - 1000 lp
Atticus then began to breathe in and out as he clutched his stomach to the point he couldn't even stand up. "Not… yet… I'm not done yet…" he breathed in and out, almost as if he wasn't telling that to Chief, but rather… to himself.
Almost wanting to believe that this was going to end in his favour, it was going to end in his victory.
That was what he wanted, and yet there was a small drop of… fear in his body that he wasn't so sure of.
But there has to be a way.
There has to be.
Chief looked on, and saw small whisps forming around Atticus' body, wondering what they might be, but then he saw them disappear once Atticus stood up.
"I have to admit, you're dealing this far better than any one of my opponents." Chief complimented him, however, it almost felt moot once he took a card from his hand, "That's why I must make you unable to perform a task that you might be able to do! With this Spell Card, Gravekeeper's Inscription, I'm allowed to make it so that effects in the graveyard aren't possible until the end of your turn."
Atticus blinked for a moment.
Before realizing what that meant; "WHAT?!" He yelled out loud, knowing that he wasn't able to add Red-Eyes Fusion from his deck by banishing Red-Eyes Black Meteor Dragon from his graveyard.
"What do you think the name Gravekeeper's come from?" Atticus gritted his teeth, "They come from the fact that we make sure that nothing can touch the graveyard, not the effects of Spells, Traps or monsters! We are making sure whatever is in the graveyard stays in the graveyard."
Atticus gripped his fist into a ball, knowing that no matter what, he knew that most of his options were now almost at an all time low. Even for a turn, he had to find a way to get out of this situation.
Chief took 2 cards from his hand, "I will allow you to go next after I set these two cards face down." a card was vertically set behind Chief and Visionary.
Turn 6. Atticus - 1000 lp - 2 cards
It was now or never. His graveyard was now locked out for an entire turn that he could not affect even if he tried to do anything.
He has to find a way to draw into his Red-Eyes Fusion Spell card, which would be the perfect card that will have him the winner, or he has to draw a card that would protect him for the turn.
"My turn… I draw!" yelled Atticus as he then drew the top card of his deck and then he looked at it.
Then his smile was wide open once he saw the card.
It was his Swing Of Memories Spell card.
A card that allowed him to Special Summon 1 Normal Monster from his Graveyard, a card that would be the best card that would deal with this situation so that he may clear the board, or even fully defeat Chief due to him having only 500 life points remaining.
Atticus smiled as it was not only an amazing card for his deck, but it was also a good reminder of why he must continue fighting, why he must continue dueling. It showed why he loves this game, and it even reminded him of his younger sister, Alexis, and their bond. It was her favourite card, after all.
Atticus, however, took a card from his hand first, "I will now play Cards of The Red Stone! I will discard 1 Level 7 Red-Eyes monster from my hand," He discarded Red-Eyes Soul, "Then I'm allowed to draw 2 cards from my deck!" yelled Atticus as he then drew the top 2 cards from his deck, which he nodded since they were the perfect cards for a comeback like this, even with little protection. "As well as I have to send 1 Red-Eyes Monster from my deck to the graveyard such as my Red-Eyes Flare Dragon." A card popped out as he then sent the card to the graveyard.
"Alright! This will be the perfect cards for my comeback! I play The Black Stone of Legend!" yelled Atticus as then on his side of the field appeared a rather large stone that was in the shape of an egg, cracking through every single second of its life span, as it then glew to a crimson degre.
(The Black Stone Of Legend: Level 1 - Dark Dragon - Attack: 0. Defense: 0.)
Chief raised his brow, "That will be your defense?"
"Oh you got that wrong! I will activate his effect! His effect allows me to special summon 1 Red-Eyes monster from my deck that is Level 7 or lower!" his deck began to shine as did the black stone, "I will sacrifice it as its tribute!" roared Atticus as the stone then erupted into a pillar of flames, an inferno that may never die down.
"From the stone appears the Legendary Dragon himself! Red-Eyes Black Dragon! My ACE!" yelled Atticus as then from the Inferno came out his favourite monster in the whole game.
(Red-Eyes Black Dragon: Level 7 - Dark Dragon - Attack: 2400. Defense: 2000.)
"I'm not done yet! I activate Swing Of Memories!" a Spell card appeared right next to Atticus as he began to explain, "With this, I'm allowed to special summon 1 Normal Monster from my graveyard!"
"Wait, but Gravekeeper's Inscription makes it so that-"
"You only said that I can't activate cards from the graveyard, not reviving them!" yelled Atticus with a smirk as his graveyard began to shine like the sun for a moment, "Appear! My second copy of my partner! Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" Atticus roared as then from the shine, a godly dragon appeared from it, flying beside the other Red-Eyes as the two dragons looked at each other before roaring with enough power to make Chief shield himself for a moment.
(Red-Eyes Black Dragon: Level 7 - Dark Dragon - Attack: 2400. Defense: 2000.)
Chief now looked at the two monsters with wide eyes and he looked at his life points and then to himself.
He was now at the exact moment where he would lose the duel.
"I can't even activate Necrovalley Temple! I don't have my Field Spell up!" Chief thought to himself as he gritted his teeth.
"I managed to outdo it! With a field that I thought would be detrimental, I pulled though all of my limits to summon two copies of my favourite monster in my deck!" yelled Atticus as the two dragons roared once more for their master's wishes.
"Now! Time to end this! Red-Eyes Black Dragon! Attack Gravekeeper's Chief!" The Red-Eyes that was summoned thanks to the effect of Swing Of Memories glared at Chief as its eyes began to glow with a crimson glow as it opened up its maw, seeing as though it began to create a ball of fire that would melt everything in its way. "INFERNO FIRE BLAST!"
Red-Eyes shot the powerful ball of fire straight towards the Graveekeper's Chief as he walked a couple of feet backwards, but then planted his foot forward, trying to be unflinching, "I won't allow this! Go, Command Silencer!"
A totem pole appeared from out of nowhere as it was one of his set cards, as it then began to screech with enough voice to make Atticus cover his ears to stop them from bursting as it managed to stop the insane fire blast from going anywhere near the two monsters, "My Command Silencer allows me to negate 1 attack you perform, and if that happens, your Battle Phase ends as well as allowing me to draw 1 card from my deck." Chief then drew the top card from his deck.
The totem pole then disappeared as Atticus gritted his teeth, but then sighed, "Fine. I'll set a card and call it a turn." said Atticus as a card was vertically set behind the two dragons.
Then, the Red-Eyes that was summoned thanks to Swing Of Memories began to fade away, "During the End Phase of activating Swing Of Memories, the monster summoned returns there." Atticus turned to the fading Red-Eyes, "Thanks, partner. You did everything that you could." he said with a warm smile on his face. Red-Eyes growled in a tone that showed gentleness, almost like it was thanking him.
It disappeared, making the other Red-Eyes determined to live through the next turn to beat their opponent.
Turn 7. Chief - 500 lp - 3 cards
"My turn! I draw!" yelled Gravekeeper's Chief as he then looked at the card he just drew from his deck as he then looked at it.
He then smirked.
"Perfect. I discard from my hand the card I just drew! Gravekeeper's Command!" He said as he discarded the top card from his hand as then a card popped out of his Deck, "Thanks to this monster, I'm allowed to add the Field Spell from my deck. It is known as Necrovalley!" He took the card and revealed it to his opponent, "Then Visionary gains more fuel to his attack points!"
Gravekeeper's Visionary: 3000 - 3200 attack points
Chief then looked at the Field Spell card with glee, smirking and chuckling to himself the more he looked at it.
Atticus looked at him with sweat coming down from his face with narrowed eyes. Knowing that this will not end good.
The Field Spell Zone then popped out, "I shall activate it! Go, Necrovalley!" yelled Chief as the entire terrain changed to a world that was that of a canyon, Atticus was now standing on a slab of rock with the spikes turning that into a river and the temple itself changing into the terrain. From the side, the Sun was shining, ready to cast down on the loser.
"This is what makes all of my opponents fall to their knees. All of them couldn't handle the power of this Spell! The power of the Gravekeeper's!" Chief boasted with enough confidence that made Atticus unsure if he was even being cocky, or, he was telling the truth. "Effects from the graveyard are unable to be activated and cards can not move outside of the graveyard, keeping them shut forever! What is in the graveyard, stays in the graveyard!"
Atticus gasped in horror as that meant that he couldn't add Red-Eyes Fusion from his deck by banishing Black Meteor Dragon from his graveyard, and most of his deck were rendered useless and dead hands. Most of them had effects that allowed him to special summon from his deck and/or allowed him to get effects that come from them being destroyed. Almost all of his deck was remained useless to be used.
"However, that is only a downside to you only." said Chief, shocking Atticus, "Because, my effect allows me to make my graveyard be unaffected from Necrovalley!" yelled Chief as he then took a card from his hand, "Now, I shall show you the difference to what I mean! Appear, Gravekeeper's Headman!"
On Chief's field appeared a dark skinned man with purple eyes and gray coloured hair. He wore golden earrings that had a ruby and sapphire, as had a turban that was separated into three pony tails. He wore a gray coloured shirt with a white coloured robe. Then on top of that, he wore two different robes, one was a black coloured robe that reached down to his feet and the other was that of a jacket, of which it was silver with green roves around it and the edges being golden. The man had golden gauntlets and carried a golden Anubis-headed staff.
(Gravekeeper's Headman: Level 3 - Dark Spellcaster - Attack: 500. Defense: 1500.)
A card popped out of Chief's graveyard, making Atticus grit his teeth, "When Headman is summoned to the field, I can target 1 Level 4 Gravekeeper's monster in my graveyard and special summon it in attack or face down! I shall summon my Gravekeeper's Spiritualist!" Chief roared with power as he then took the card and slammed it onto his duel disk.
On his side of the field appeared a dark skinned woman that wore a black and golden cat-like mask , as she had braided hear with the ends having blue, red and yellow clothing. She wore black and golden lined outfit around her hips and chest that revealed her mid-waist. She had a purple cape around her shoulders that began to fade in a light blue way. She wore baggy white coloured pants. She carried golden accessories around her arms and legs. She carried a rather big black and golden lined eye that had a red iris. She carried a golden staff.
(Gravekeeper's Spiritualist: Level 4 - Dark Spellcaster - Attack: 1500. Defense: 1500.)
"It is incredibly important for me to mention about my deck that you shall know. My deck has a Fusion Monster," that simple fact made Atticus that sent shivers down on his spine as Spiritualist grabbed her staff, "And it is due to my Spiritualist."
"No way." Atticus said as even though he knew that a lot of duelists use Fusion Monsters, especially in his year, but even he has Fusion Monsters?!
Chief had a small smirk on his face, "I haven't lied, have I? I will show you my Fusion Monster! During my Main Phase, if I control Necrovalley, I can use Spiritualist's effect to fuse her and other monsters either from my hand or field as Fusion Materials for a Spellcaster Fusion Monster!" yelled Chief as Spiritualist made her staff glow into an emerald shade. "Spiritual Fusion!"
Spiritualist and Headman were then formed into red and blue particles of ancient debris as they were then began to spiral around the Necrovalley Canyon, as Chief then began to chant, "Ancient Sorcerer of time, one that looks over at the tomb of the sacred, casting spells onto those that walked over the sacred tombs!" The two spirals hit each other dead on to form a figure, "I FUSION SUMMON!"
The figure revealed himself to be a handsome, young, dark skinned man with silk-like long white hair as his eyes were as blue as the energy that surrounded him. He wore golden accessories that were around his arms, neck, and stomach that emerald and rubies. He had a great physique, showing off muscles and his well trained body, wearing a cut down robe, wearing it more as a vest. His robe was under his hips, as they were dark blue with golden lining. He carried a scepter that had the end have the shape of a star, with the points being rubies and emeralds. "GRAVEKEEPER'S SUPERNATURALIST!"
(Gravekeeper's Supernaturalist: Fusion - Level 7 - Dark Spellcaster - Attack: 2000. Defense: 2000.)
"This… is your strongest monster?" asked Atticus, in shock of how powerful they truly were.
Chief smirked, "That's right. Supernaturalist has the power that has rivaled several ancient dragons that tried to destroy my sacred tombs, but he was able to stop all of them. You won't be so different." said Chief as he then grinned. "Here's the thing, my Gravekeeper's Supernaturalist gains 100 attack and defense points equal to the number of Levels of the Fusion Materials, however… that is not all."
A card was activated behind them, "Necrovalley Temple is now activated for the first time! If I control Necrovalley and a Gravekeeper's monster, your monsters lose 500 attack and defense points!" Atticus gasped, "Then! Necrovalley allows my Gravekeeper's monsters to gain 500 attack and defense points as well!"
"That much power?!" yelled Atticus in shock, as he knew that he shouldn't forget the effect of Visionary as well. Gaining 200 more attack points for the amount of Gravekeeper's monsters in the graveyard.
Gravekeeper's Chief: 1900 - 2400 attack points/1200 - 1700 defense points
Gravekeeper's Supernaturalist: 2000 - 2800 - 3300 attack/defense points
Gravekeeper's Visionary: 3000 - 3200 - 3700 attack points/1800 - 2300 defense points
Red-Eyes Black Dragon: 2400 - 1900 attack points/2000 - 1500 defense points
Atticus looked at everything on the field and the current position. Everything that the Gravekeeper's Chief has built upon was to have a field that was stacked with several monsters that could end someone's life.
Atticus knew that if he survives this turn, he has to top deck a card that will be the perfect end for any of the monsters.
And yet… a seed of despair begins to grow the more he looks at the field.
"My Supernaturalist has the effect to make is so that my Necrovalley and itself be immune by destruction from card effects if I have my Necrovalley Field Spell up!" yelled Chief as the entire terrain gained a blue coloured aura that managed that was the same colour as Supernaturalist.
Chief was silent for a moment.
"Now."
Atticus was ready.
A ball of energy began to charge straight up on top of Chief's hand.
"I shall attack your Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" Chief then threw the ball of energy straight towards Atticus and his favourite monster. "Wrath of the Royal Family!"
"TRAP CARD OPEN!" Atticus roared with all of his might as the Trap card revealed itself, "NEGATE ATTACK!"
A barrier was formed around the two.
"With this, I can negate your attack and end the Battle Phase!" yelled Atticus with all of his might as the red ball of red energy hit the barrier dead on, stopping it.
Chief looked at what had happened and narrowed his eyes. He looked at his hand: Royal Tribute, a perfect card for anyone that has a monster that they want to keep for later and it usually quickly ends up being a victory for him, and Gravekeeper's Oracle, a monster that was known to be his strongest monster in his deck, but didn't have a way to use it. Both were fantastic cards, but he knew that they aren't usable at the current moment either his opponent having no other cards in his hand or that he used his Normal Summon for the turn.
He saw Atticus looking at his deck.
And then he knew what to do.
"That is all that I can perform. Your turn." said Chief as then a card popped out as he then took it, "Now the effect of Supernaturalist activates once more. I can add a Gravekeeper's or a Necrovalley card from my deck to my hand during the End Phase, I shall add Gravekeeper's Guard."
Turn 8. Atticus - 1000 lp - 0 cards
Now, it was now or never for Atticus Rhodes.
There was a good chance that no matter what he drew, no matter what card he got, there was a chance that… nothing would happen.
But he had to go through with the duel.
He had to push forward for the duel just so he could earn his freedom and life.
So he can go through with everything.
So he can see everyone he loves again.
So that he can live.
So he can…
… live.
There were times where Atticus wanted to give up, and there were times where moments of doubt in his heart if he could pull through.
Everything he had done.
Were almost rendered useless.
Every single move he wanted to make, they were all almost a mystery, a rumour.
Atticus saw that his life points were almost gone, one attack and he will lose the duel and his life. His graveyard was locked by a Field Spell card that he can't destroy no matter what he does. He was surrounded by monsters that were stronger than his Red-Eyes. His only defense was his favourite monster. There were no cards left in his hand that he could move forward with combos. There were almost no cards in his deck that wouldn't be detrimental to his survival.
He doesn't want to die and yet… and yet! There was strong part of him that no matter what he thought, there would be nothing that he can draw.
He can imagine his defeat.
Him drawing Red-Eyes Reborn, unable to play it and be destroyed by the Gravekeeper's.
Atticus wanted out.
Atticus wanted victory.
Atticus needs- no. He wants to live.
He wants to LIVE!
But there is an issue.
No matter what, fear took over him, almost unable to even draw a card from his deck.
Out of nowhere, he heard something.
A laugh. And it didn't sound like a human laugh, it sounded that of a God's.
"So… it seems that you wish to win, is that correct?" asked a divine being inside of Atticus' head as he looked around, but saw nothing except for confused looks around him.
"Who… Who is this?" asked Atticus with caution, "What are you?"
The being chuckled. "So you wish to know my name?" Atticus sweatdropped.
"Yes… I want to know who you are." he looked around, but saw nothing that could be lead.
"Don't bother looking around." Atticus widened his eyes as he stopped, "I see every movement that you make. Every time you breathe, every time you blink, every time you think, I see everything around you. Everything that you do, I see with my eyes. There is nothing that I don't see. My eyes are around everything. Every human, every animal, every spirit. All that lives is what I can see."
"How- How is that even possible?" Atticus muttered, his mind not even comprehending what he heard.
"Because that is what I am. Born from the dawn of time, when a card of mystical power created the first vision of the universe that you see now." the being continued. "I was born the moment the first fruit was eaten. I was born from the first sign of despair, darkness in one's being. Despair, suffering, anguish, selfishness, abhorrence, misanthropy, all of it created me, molded me into a being. Even what humans and spirits call hope, bonds and love were what made what I am."
"What… What the hell are you then!? You haven't even told me what you are!" Atticus screamed, shocking everyone around him.
"Who are you talking too?" asked Chief. That question fell on deaf's ears.
"Who am I? I go by many names. One who sees all. The Shifting Mound. Truth of the World. Darkness. But you can call me… Nightshroud." the being now known as Nightshroud introduced itself.
"Nightshroud?!" asked Atticus.
"That's right. I looked over your existence, all of existence for millenia. How humanity managed to grow and yet destroy itself at the same time." Nightshroud began, "Wars were formed, famine created, conquests of different nations and death were rampant for several millennia. The moment I saw the first murder, I saw the true nature of humans, and yet… the fascination of them grew the more I watched."
Atticus remained silent as he heard the divine being speak.
"How they were able to perform atrocities for several millennia, every day, and yet… there were beings like you that were made even years after the first murder." Nightshroud spoke in genuine interest, "How humans create friendships over simple tasks, how they can protect the weak and fight for other people's honor, loyalty for a single person to a country. All of it interests me even if I don't understand it. Even if they are sinking in despair. More and more."
"The same was said for Spirits." said Nightshroud, remembering The Supreme King's rule and the battle against the Light Of Destruction. Gentle Darkness against The Light.
"That… doesn't explain how I can hear you!" Atticus yelled at him.
"I can explain that. Remember the pentagon before you were sent to this world?" asked Nightshroud as Atticus began to think about everything that happened before he went there.
And then his eyes widened when he saw Yusuke standing on top of it with blood dripping out of him, "...no."
"That's right. Your friend, Yusuke Fujiwara, was the reason you can see me. Why I can talk to you. This is all his fault." said Nightshroud.
"That's… not true! He would never do this!" Atticus roared at him, but Nightshroud wasn't impressed.
"Believe what you want. However… It seems that you are in a duel. A duel for your life." Nightshroud spoke as Atticus shrugged it off.
"Stay back! I don't need your help! I got this!" yelled Atticus as he tried to ready his duel disk.
"Is that right? Then why are your hands shaking?" asked Nightshroud as Atticus looked down to see his hands shaking out of pure fear. "Are you doubting your skills? Are you questioning would you win this fight? This duel?"
"Shut up…"
"I can lend you a hand."
"I don't need it."
"I doubt it. Thanks to him, almost all of your options are left out. Almost like he wants to seal all of your moves."
"I can do this."
"Then why… why did I sense your sense of despair in your heart?" that was the question that Nightshroud needed to get a sense of what Atticus feared. "Why did I sense what you deeply desire? Your will to live?"
"Shut up…"
"If you accept my power, you shall win. This duel will be yours to take and nothing or no one can stop you once you take my power." Nightshroud tried to persuade him.
"I SAID SHUT UP!"
"What about your loved ones?" A reaction was made from that and Nightshroud saw everything that was going on in Atticus' head, "So that is what you want? Bonds? Love? Hope? The essence of a human that created more despair, darkness in people? That is what you desire?"
"No… I don't…" Atticus tried to focus, but he grabbed his heads while spinning them around, concerning the Gravekeeper's greatly.
"Lies. I hear everything. I sense everything. I see everything. I know everything. You want to see your family again? Do you want to see your friends again? Once you take my power, all of it shall be yours! You will be granted power almost unthinkable! You will see everyone you care about if you take this power! Zane Truesdale! Yusuke Fujiwara! And even… your younger sister, Alexis." Atticus stopped for a moment as he then closes his eyes.
"I'm sorry, Lex. I gotta. I gotta take everything so I can see you all!" Atticus thought to himself.
"What will it be?" asked Nightshroud, making it sure that this deal shall be on his soul forever.
Atticus removed his hands from his head and closed his eyes, "I'll take it."
"Perfect. Now, to seal our deal." Nightshroud spoke a simple sentence, "I am thou, thou art I…"
Atticus opened his eyes to reveal a bright orange hew as he screamed with an almost animalistic sound to it, almost as if he was getting possessed by a God.
Once he placed his hands on his eyes, they all saw a mask form around his eyes. The mask covered his upperface, the lens were teal coloured, a red gemstone was on the top of the mask and the mask's design was a close resemblance to that of Red-Eyes.
Atticus, now at his lowest, will grow at his highest. Grabbing the mask with all of his might, tearing it off clean as his face was covered in blood.
However… as soon as he did so, he was covered in inferno, crimson fire that would've melted stone within seconds, but Atticus stood there unflinchingly, allowing the pain to go over his body so that he can allow the other being's powers to be poured in.
Lyman Banner, who was watching this duel from a monitor, stood up as he walked to pick up a mask, "It seems as though the Nightshroud Test was a success."
Once the fire was extinguished, Atticus' new attire was completely different. He carried the mask on his face with confidence. He wore a tight black shirt that wrapped around his body, his leather pants had blue coloured outlines. He wore a dark green coloured jacket that had lime coloured streaks around it, as the sleeves were wrapped around his index and middle finger. The inside of the jacket was purple.
This was no longer Atticus Rhodes.
This was Nightshroud all in, with a mere fraction of his real power.
"What… What happened?!" yelled Chief as he couldn't even find the words of what happened, shocking even Supernaturalist.
"What happened? I'll tell you what happened. The Atticus you knew was a mere playtoy compared to me. You were merely dealing with some lacky, while was waiting for him to agree with my terms. You can call me, Nightshroud!" yelled Nightshroud as he then placed his fingers on the top of his deck.
The top card, of which it was Red-Eyes Fusion, changed into something more dangerous.
Nightshroud drew the top card of his deck with a smirk on his face and then he looked it.
Nightshroud then had the darkest smirk on his face, "This is perfect." Red-Eyes, who was looking at the being that possessed his master in the first place, snarled in anger at what it had done, but it didn't matter, as it felt as though it began to fade away from existence. "I sacrifice my Red-Eyes Black Dragon."
The Dragon roared in anguish, as it wanted revenge for what happened to it and its master.
Nightshroud then took the only card from his hand as all of Necrovalley began to shake, "What… What is the meaning of this!?" yelled Gravekeeper's Chief as even he couldn't find balance at what is happening.
"Oh this?" He cackled, "This is the summoning of my strongest monster." then Chief then dropped his jaw in horror as he saw a massive dragon fly through the Necrovalley's ground, shattering it in seconds as it unfolded its wings. "With Red-Eyes being tributed, I can special summon this monster from my hand!"
The dragon eclipsed all of what Atticus had summoned up to that point. It was Red-Eyes evolved. It had magma coming out of its own skin as it dropped remains from its wings and knees. The wings evolved into three way wings that were like a Titan's claw as they were sharp enough to cut through mountains. Its spikes grew tremendously. Its eyes evolved into the deepest shade of red imaginable. Its breath alone melted stones. "Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon!"
(Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon: Level 9 - Dark Dragon - Attack: 2400. Defense: 2000.)
"Such a ferocious beast!" Chief took a step backwards before shaking his head, "That won't make a difference! Necrovalley Temple shall make it weak!"
Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon: 2400 - 1900 attack/2000 - 1500 defense points
"You think something as pointless as that will make a difference?" that one question made Chief wonder what he meant by that, "That won't do anything! My Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon gains 300 attack points for every Dragon in my graveyard!"
"But-"
"I didn't say anything about affecting the graveyard, did I? Your Necrovalley negates effects that would move a card from the graveyard or effects from it. But this time, it won't matter." said Nightshroud as his duel disk began to glow in a red manner. "All of my dragons shall fuel my Darkness Dragon!"
3 Copies of Red-Eyes Black Dragon, Red-Eyes Black Meteor Dragon, Red-Eyes Retro Dragon, Red-Eyes Soul, Red-Eyes Flare Dragon, Black Dragon's Chick and The Black Stone of Legend all appeared beside him as Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon roared with enough power to shake everyone and almost set on fire.
Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon: 1900 + 300 x 9 = 1900 + 2700 = 4600 attack points
"Those attack points- They're-"
"More than enough to beat you." Nightshroud pointed his index finger straight towards Chief, "My Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon will attack you! Infernal Darkfire!" yelled Nightshroud as then it opened its maw with malicious intent.
Chief stayed his ground, as he saw what will happen. Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon began to form a fire intended to take him out completely as he saw lava becoming a mix of the ball of flames that would've eradicated even the mightiest of monsters as the dark energy began to swell, almost condensing it into a singular point.
The ball was shot straight towards Chief.
"ASEM!" Supernaturalist revealed Chief's real name as he used his staff to create a barrier that was strong enough to at least divert the damage a bit as the ball of fire made contact to the barrier, creating an incredibly big explosion that knocked almost everyone off their feet.
Nightshroud was the only one standing there.
And he was the only one that was standing after the dust settled in.
Asem aka the Chief, had his back laid on the floor, Supernaturalist tried to stand up and Visionary was flat on his stomach.
Nightshroud smirked darkly as every other Gravekeeper looked at him in horror.
Chief: 500 - 0 lp
Nightshroud: 1000 lp
NIGHTSHROUD: WINNER!
The entire terrain changed back into normal, as Necrovalley's canyons began to shrink down to the size of pebble.
Many of the Gravekeeper's that weren't in the duel all ran towards Asem, as they all looked at him in worry. Spear Soldier looked around for any injuries, Cannonholder was running to get some medicine and Assailant was in shock at what happened.
"Chief!"
"Are you alright!?"
"Shall we punish him?!" the Gravekeeper's yelled their concerns at him as Asem was groaning.
"The duel is over, it was a fun one after all." said Nightshroud as he turned around to go home, but then he raised his brow as he saw all of the Gravekeeper's Guards blocking every exits to stop him while Ambusher carried his dagger in his palm, glaring at him, "Oh ho? So are you going to attack me?"
"That's right," Nightshroud then glanced behind him to see Visionary beginning to stand up after being laid on the ground, "What you have done was treason against our kind. Our own culture. Almost murdering our chief in the process of our tradition, for that," Visionary pointed his staff, "You shall pay."
Nightshroud merely smirked as he moved his hand towards his duel disk, "Is that right? Then go ahead. I would like to see you try."
"You asked for it." Visionary began to omit purple energy, speaking the language that only Gravekeeper's could understand, but Nightshroud remained in his position as he went towards his deck. Then he shot the massive serpent at Nigh-
"Ruya, that's enough."
With the simple command of the Chief, Visionary stopped the attack as he heard his real name being mentioned. Visionary turned to Asem.
"Asem, but he inju-"
"I don't want to hear it." said Asem as he was being healed by Supernaturalist with his magic, "This man won the duel against me. He may have injured me in the process, but that is the way of a Shadow Duel. Despite never losing a duel before this, we all must know how we shall act. We are prohibited from harming them. Am I understood?"
Ruya, upon hearing those words, conceded. "I understand. My apologies."
"All is forgiven," said Asem as Supernaturalist managed to recover most of his wounds, "Thank you, Jinnat."
Supernaturalist nodded, "It is all for our duty, Chief."
"If it isn't too big of a hassle, may you carry me to the victor? I need to give him something." Asem asked for a favour to which Jinnat nodded.
"It's the least I can do." he said as he then wrapped his arm around his shoulder and began to carry him. While he wasn't immobile, Asem's injuries still burned a bit too move them after getting attacked with enough force like during the duel.
Nightshroud raised a brow as the two began to approach him, "Honouring my victory after getting hit by my strongest monster? I can respect that." said Nightshroud.
Asem looked at him as they were quickly approaching, "Honour in the Gravekeeper's name is sacred no matter what, which is why we must always be obliged to fulfill someone's request. When an intruder comes, we give them a duel of courage so that they may leave if proven worthy."
Now they were near each other.
Asem then began to search for an item inside his robe, until he found the one he was looking for, and it was revealed to be an ancient medallion with half of it being gone. It was tied by a rope. "Here, take this Shadow Charm with you."
"Shadow Charm?" asked Nightshroud as he took it. He looked at it with interest.
"It is a sacred artifact, a Relic that allows the user to be granted immunities from outside forces during a duel. It can work to protect the soul of the user." explained Asem as Nightshroud looked at it and noted that half of it was missing.
"I'm guessing there is a half missing?" asked Nightshroud with a brow raised.
"It is for someone else that passes this challenge. You were the first one to win against me, you deserve the first piece." Asem said.
Nightshroud then wrapped the Shadow Charm around his neck like a necklace, "I'm guessing if there is someone else that beats you in a duel, I can duel that person and get the last piece of if it, shall I win?" Nightshroud asked a genuine question as Asem nodded.
"Of course." he said.
"I see. I pray for the poor fool that beats you in a duel." Nightshroud then turned around, "Well, I'm off. Good luck to all of you."
Before he can disappear, all of them heard clapping.
They looked over to see a cloaked man wearing a mask.
"What a spectacular duel. All of you." said the cloaked man.
"Who are you?! Another intruder?!" yelled Asem as the rest of the Gravekeeper's locked their weapons straight at him.
"At ease, everyone. I did not come here to intrude. I'm only here for one person." They lowered their weapons once they heard that. The man turned to the winner, "Nightshroud. I'm Amneal, and I want you into the group of elite duelists known as The Shadow Riders."
Nightshroud decided to play a fool. He knew exactly who this man was.
"Shadow Riders?" asked Nightshroud.
"A group of duelists who are willing to risk their lives battling and dueling the Key Keepers in order to steal and require the Sacred Beasts from Duel Academy." said Amneal.
Nightshroud was admittedly impressed at what he heard.
The Sacred Beasts were nothing to scoff at. They were some of the strongest monsters in the entire game, able to suck out the spirits of monsters, at the same time, destroying the Spirit World with just their summon.
Nightshroud disappeared.
And reappeared next to Amneal.
"I have to admit, you've had me at The Sacred Beasts. I will help all of you if I can require them." said Nightshroud as he and Amneal shared looks between each other.
"That will happen if you suceed." he said as he placed his hand onto his shoulder.
Nightshroud looked at the Gravekeeper's for the last time, "Good luck to all of you. You are going to need it."
Then they all disappeared.
It was now revealed.
How Nightshroud was awakened.
Authors Note:
And scene! There we go, that is how I did it.
Okay, so why did I do this one fic, you may ask? Outside of trying to get back into Yugioh (Kinda worked, a bit), I had kinda of an Idea. I was reading Yugioh Zexal: Light and Ice by FrozenLuinor14, and I kinda wanted to write a One Shot duel with some cool action and cards with a bit of a plot. I wanted to try a small Shark vs Yuma duel, but I stopped once I thought it would be to similar, but I thought about something that happened in Canon, but we never saw: Nightshroud vs Chief!
I wanted to do this as a test run for writing two different decks and characters I've never written before, while trying to keep the story as serious as I can with every character. Not to mention, as much as I do like Atticus Rhodes/Fubuki Tenjoin, I hate that he never won an on screen duel. I hate that fact so much. So I gave him a duel where did won, even if he could've won if he followed his guts and not listen to Nightshroud. I went with a mish mash of Atticus from the Manga and Anime, with Manga style skill with Anime Deck.
ALSO! Since the whole continuity of Season 4 and 1 is fucked beyond belief, I decided to make it a combination of everything we truly know about it. The test from Banner of summoning Nightshroud, him winning against the Gravekeeper's Chief and how Yusuke was gone.
This is more or less the Canon of Yugioh GX, but with Modern Decks (Sans the Summoning Methods). Nightshroud here is kinda like what I would imagine what he would've been like if Season 4 was ever dubbed. His Persona 5 Royal-like awakening aside, I think I would call this an upgrade over my previous GX One Shot Duel. Kinda want to do another one, but no ideas.
Gravekeeper's Chief's name is Asem, which means protector in Arabic. Visionary's real name is Ruya which means Vision or Dream, as it symbolizes the act of seeing or perceiving beyond the physical realm. Jinnat is Supernaturalist's real name, as it represents spirit or supernatural being in Arabic Folklore. I decided to give the prominent Gravekeeper's names because I felt like Yasmin being the only one with a name was a bit weak, IMO.
Now, I kinda use Fanfiction net as to only update stories and read them since there are so many fucking bots.
I think that is about it so see ya'!