In a city street surrounded by shops long closed for the night ran a frightened man. No consideration was given to where he stepped so long as he was away from "it". As his body got further away, his panicked mind and eyes were still stuck where they were. The street corner he just left, lite by a street lamp similar to a stage with spotlight shining on nothing, kept getting smaller and smaller in his view. Naturally, he was taking the optimal path to keep the image the same, like it was the zoomed out view of a camera. A near perfect 45 degrees off on the sidewalk onto the street.
skreeeeek KABLAM
His glaring at the street corner was interrupted by him getting stuck by a car. Frantically, he twisted his mangled body to try to bring his view back to the original perspective, prone on the floor with a body that wouldn't obey the usual commands.
The driver, another man, got out of the car and asked, "What the hell were you doing running on the middle of a street dumbass?"
Adrenaline had already been high, so the extent of damage wasn't fully grasped by the person hit. The injuries were a problem for later. The hit man yelled, "Ge-ge-ge-get back! Get back in your damn car!"
Now getting closer to the man the driver said, "Are you insane? You'll be dead for sure if I left you lying there on the street!"
The hit man continued to shift his body around in an attempt to see it, the corner where something was walking onto the spotlight. The man could not hold back his terror, "Gyaaaaaaaa!!"
What appeared now under the streetlight was a skeleton bearing a broom over its shoulder and a rake in its offhand like it was a dual wielding dangerous weapons. It had shirtless overalls that left most of its non-existent chest out for all to see and rubber boots that squeaked with each step it took.
"That's what he's afraid of?"
The sound of stomping started to join the squeaks on an off rhythm. Five seconds after the skeleton arrived there was a roughly eight foot tall giant creature behind it that was taking the corner. It was hideous in the face and deformed in shape, but was dressed in what looked like priest wear, except with a tacky addition of gold and was of the revealing sort you'd expect from a Halloween costume for adults, even though it was currently August.
"That's what he's afraid of?!"
The skeleton and horrific giant moved to surround the runner and the driver. Said driver was reaching a state of panicking and running away. But he was conditioned to not necessarily thinking such creatures were dangerous. He had just enough presence of mind to make the mistake of remaining in place. Flap. Driver looked at runner's arm and saw an active duel disk. He was in the middle of a duel. Flap. These were duel monsters, harmless holograms.
"You need to run that kid over!" said the runner, looking back at the driver who run him over. Runner was pointing at someone else, at the spot-lite corner. Flap. Thus the driver turned back to witness a new arrival whose face was obscured by a black mask, obscured by a black cloak. "I TOLD you to get back in your car so you could run him over!"
"It's far too late to do that," said the cloaked person in the voice of a young male. Flap. "Too bad for your unwitting accomplice."
"It's the flag of the Shattered Eye on that guy's clothes!" FLAP! A gust hit the the driver from above and he looked up at the moon to see it obscured by the silhouette of a winged dragon. "This is what he was what he was afraid of!!"
"[Resurrected Dragon Emperor] (ATK 3500), direct attack! Death Breath!" said the cloaked figure raising an open palm at the two men ahead.
It was too late to do anything with that realization. FLAP! The dragon with its back to the light released a torrent of black smoke from its mouth. There was no chance to move for the driver or the runner. Duel monsters were intended to be harmless holograms for visually violent games, but there were exceptions. The most well known was, during duels against the cult of the Shattered Eye.
When the smoke cleared what remained were the bones of two individuals laid out on the asphalt in the ragged remains of what the driver and runner had worn. The duel disk and car now covered in rust, yet it still displayed (Runner LP: 0).
Police sirens could be heard.
FLAP! CRASH!! The dragon landed on the road and the cloaked figure approached it. He removed two orange framed cards from the slots of his device, then the skeleton and giant disappeared. A single card remained in the device, a framed blue card that contained a dragon portrait. Said dragon depicted on the portrait was the one physically occupying space in the world and it lowered its neck near its cloaked master. Said master mounted the dragon's neck. FLAP! FLAP! Moments later, both left the scene through the air.
As the cars letting off the sirens got to the scene, they saw the dragon getting away in the distance. Pursuing seemed fruitless at this point, but some vehicles detached from the group to try. They had to navigate through cracks made by something large and abnormal that had landed there. Such a sight didn't shake officers in this city though. It was a rare sight for civilians, but not a surprising occurrence. Not in the city known as Sideris, where all kinds of duelists were attracted, where passion for dueling overshadowed its worst possibilities.
Chapter 1
High School Debut
-----
About a Week Later,
Over Seven Years After the Shatter Eye Tragedy,
On a Private School in Sideris City
-----
It was the first day for a new year at Crownwright Dueling Academy. For a blond girl with purple eyes, it was her first day as a student. But it was not her first time at the academy. She had also watched as it was built nine years ago. Looking at it, she could remember the silent beauty of its castle-like appearance before any student entered and, even at that age, couldn’t wait to be old enough to enroll. Dreams, sadly, rarely match reality.
Simply on the way to the main building there were sounds of explosions, gunfire, the clashing of steel, the roars of beasts, and things that could never be easily be explained. It was like looking through the glass of an aquarium. Only instead of ocean life, battlefields covered the grass on both sides of the walkway. Students were anxious to start dueling the second they stepped in for the first time or after the long break of summer vacation. Their harmless hologram battles left nobody hurt, but did produce a lot of noise. Fortunately the campus was large with a difficult to duel in garden buffer. So it wouldn't disturb many businesses. The closest café was two blocks away and most nearby stores were aggressively competing card shops, dueling tech stores, and restaurants that played music loud enough to block out a war going on outside its doors.
The walkway from the school's front gate to the front door would have likely have been blocked by duels playing out, if it wasn’t lined with students in dark orange, military-like uniforms. They stood nonchalantly with their backs to the happenings, keeping their eyes on the by-passers. If anyone tried to start a duel on the walkway a group of four would step between them and blow a whistle. It was plenty to kill the momentum of opponents caught in a moment of battle frenzy. Other students were being stopped by them for not wearing their uniform properly. There was the orange military uniforms worn by those enforcing the dress code, occasionally on their own who weren't part of the line-up, mostly though it was the other half of students that were wearing purple jackets with a black undershirt and white skirt for girls and a white button-up with black pants for boys. The girl who dreamed of studying at the silent castle, the one this section started with, was in a purple jacket.
Our dreamer approached a crowd congregated around a handsome boy with a big grin. A girl in orange with a beret was telling them to move to the grass for blocking the walkway with their numbers, an exchange the dreamer had stopped to witness, adding to the issue without realizing it. The boy at the center of attention noticed her and waved, before his eyes grew wide and he noticed something coming up behind her.
Noticing his shifting gaze, the dreamer turned to see someone attention grabbing pass by. She only saw him for a moment, but that was enough for the skull, dark skin, white hair, a bandana, and torn, dark orange uniform to register. That large, intimidating violator grabbed the attention of others easily as well, but those same military dressed students who were in the middle of lecturing other students watched him go by without a word.
“That was Tallis Latif!” shouted the boy being lectured in a friendly voice directed at the dreamer, while being glared at by the military girl who was trying to lecture him. “Try to avoid him Aurielle!”
“Th-thank you Clyde!” hesitantly shouted back the blond, purple-eyed girl, Aurielle, continuing toward the building at a more hurried pace. She was much more tense after her interaction with lectured boy, Clyde, who also had blond hair and purple eyes. Now she was looking worriedly at the people around her, hoping they didn't already have their eyes on her.
Clyde also did as he was told and walked toward the lawn, where directly in front of him a large robot was firing a machine gun at an enormous sea snake. The snake was able to dodge, wrap around the machine’s arm, reach its head over the machine’s head, and rip the head off with its jaws.
As that happened, a scowling member of Clyde's crowd asked him, “Who was that girl?"
"Oh come on!" said another member of the group smirking as she dramatically pushed back her glasses. "Don't you know Aurielle is Clyde's-”
------Homeroom------
Class eventually began and started with introductions. Aurielle sat, dread clearly showed on her face, like her death was approaching. Her heart sank as it came to her turn. Hesitant, all she could get out first was, “My name is Auri-”
She mumbled the rest after a pause, but the whispers of her classmates combined made it impossible to hear. The expecting stares of her classmates it seemed to be putting her in pain. So in one outburst she said, “MY NAME IS AURIELLE CROWNWRIGHT!”
The room went dead silent from her yelling before it exploded with questions. There were so many she couldn’t possibly know who to look to for giving answers since they were coming from all directions. Half of the shouts couldn’t even be understood. Some that stuck out were:
“Crownwright?! You’re the daughter of the founder?!”
“Holy shit! You must be loaded!”
“So you’re Clyde’s little sister?” “REALLY!? Introduce me!”
“I hear both those siblings are unbeatable.” “We definitely know that for Clyde at least!”
Aurielle looked to the teacher hoping he’d stop them, but he was looking at a newspaper and had his legs on his desk, completely indifferent to it all. Looking around for help, she instead spotted someone taking a picture of her with their phone. On the verge of tears, she looked straight at the ceiling, that’s how she saw her savior.
It got quiet. A second picture being taken could be heard and the camera was no longer pointed at Aurielle, but higher. The person she saw, the person whose introduction would have come after, had pretty red hair and fierce yellow eyes. Also he was standing on his desk with his arms crossed.
Looking down on Aurielle with contempt this person said, “I can’t accept this, Miss. Crownwright. I was ready to grab this kind of attention on my turn and you beat me to it. I’ll be sure to get my revenge!”
Aurielle was too dumbfounded to argue, as well as grateful for the shift in attention.
One person yelled, “Who the hell are-?”
“Yul Halvor is who the hell I’m supposed to be!” interrupted Yul pointing at himself with his thumb. After catching his breath from yelling, Yul continued his introduction with, “I know my name doesn't grab the same level of attention as a Crownwright, but soon it will. The entire world will know my name!"
Yul had looked around the classroom to see how his classmates were taking these claims as he spoke. Most appeared dumbfounded and in disbelief. Finished with the line, he took a moment to glace at the board. Written next to their teacher whose face was still obscured with a newspaper, "1. Your Name." Then a line down, "2. Something Special About You."
With his arms raised outwards Yul claimed, "My one special thing, is that I shall be the one to claim the lost crown! The title of champion of the Arena of the King! Not the fake one of the official champion! Fake 'cause our champion is a successor of an arbitrary lineage. The one who couldn't beat E-Man was handed the title after both title match combatants disappeared. So I’ll reclaim our lost glory by defeating the savage king himself, Bloody Traven!”
Nobody said anything to it. Yul’s words were like those of a madman to them. There was no area to argue against since it made so little sense. To even try might provoke this crazy person to jump on them, at this point literally.
After an awkward silence, the teacher lowered the paper for a moment to say, “We ain't got all day! Next person!”
Yul sat back down with a triumphant smile. Once there though, he saw Aurielle looking back at him with a grateful teary smile. Startled, he fell back in his chair and stared back with a raised eyebrow.
When Aurielle turned back toward her desk, she came to the realization, "I never did answer the second question."
------The End of 4th Period------
Or more accurately, a few minutes before the end of 4th period. Aurielle could feel eyes trained on her. Lunch was coming around. People were about to head towards her the second they were dismissed for the break. It'd all start with the ringing of the bell. So she couldn’t focus on the lesson. She instead was trying to make an escape plan in her notebook. She’d gotten through the whole page with crossed out ideas.
Run to the Door I'm seated right in the middle, completely surrounded.
Hide under my desk They're already watching me.
Tunnel into the room below This is a first floor classroom.
Act like I have a terrible disease to get to the nurse's office One of them will volunteer to take me there.
Jump out the window Maybe if I fake them out to the door
The bell rang. "I'll just run for it."
Her reaction time was faster than any of her onlookers. Many who gave her no mind snapped their necks back in her direction with perfect accuracy to her location, serious eyes and big smiles plastered on their faces. At least with the pretext of civility they were not as quick to their feet as her. It was possible that she might actually make it. This couldn't work everyday, but tomorrow and the day after she'd had plans that'd actually work to escape. This time was only so haphazardly planned because she didn't get a chance to survey the location.
Not even a second on her feet, she was grabbed by the arm. It was Yul, who said, “Let’s get revenge out of the way early. Buy me lunch.”
Seeing they’d have to go through the crazy guy, the mob decided to back off. Aurielle thought to herself, “I never thought I’d be happy to be bullied out of my lunch money.”
------One Lunch Line Later------
They both sat down at their own little table. Aurielle just got a salad and juice. Yul got a four course meal including the same meal sized salad, steak with mashed potatoes and mac and cheese, spaghetti with meatballs and garlic bread, and a cookie dough ice cream cup. He had to carry it all on two serving trays.
A little exhausted and annoyed Yul said, “Why didn’t you complain about any of this? Keeping these trays balanced with the crowd bumping us around around took a lot of effort. At some point, with all I ordered, it should have been obvious I was just messing with you!”
“Oh, really?” said Aurielle tilting her head. “Well, I've never eaten a lot. So I assumed most people eat a lot more than me, especially boys.”
A little worried Yul thought to himself while seeing her start eating, “It's hard to tell if she means that. She's got a perfect poker face. Did she expect this to happen and let it to spite me? I might need to do more mental training before I duel her.”
He said playing with his salad, “Well if you think you’ll have any room, take whatever you want. Even two of these is too much.”
"So it's ok?” said Aurielle grabbing the dessert. “Since you have so much to eat, it’d be best if I have this before it melts.”
Yul thought looking sad as he wanted to reach to take it back, “That had to be on purpose right? I was most excited for the ice cream, but I can’t fight that logic. I’m trapped in a prison of my own making.” He conceded saying, “I hope you like it.”
------Not Much Later------
Aurielle was the first to finish. Seeing it happen while still having half-full plates, Yul said, "I guess I should run these leftovers to my dorm fridge. Far too good to let them go to waste."
Seemingly a little frantic Aurielle said, "Well, uh, let me help you. You had trouble earlier right?"
"Oh?" said Yul looking a bit uneasy. "If you say soooo."
So they left through the side. From the moment they opened that door, they saw a black bird, over twice the size of a man, flying overhead covered top to bottom with jewels. It dove, crashing into the side of a horrifying insect of similar size. In its dying breath the insect cut through the bird with its claw. Both shattered into nothing at the same time.
A lot of things like that were happening on the side of their path where they saw many students, though far fewer than in the morning, dueling outside during their break with a lot of eating spectators.
With a smile Yul said, "It really is nice to see our fellow duelists have so much passion. There's hardly enough time to fit a match and a meal and here they are fighting their hearts out. No wonder it was so empty in there."
After a pause Aurielle said, “I like you Yul. Let’s be friends.”
Yul's expression became serious. He turned to her and said firmly, “I’m sorry, but that can’t happen Elli.”
“E-Elli?” commented Aurielle.
Yul’s face perked up a bi- lot before he said, “Yeah, Au-ri-elle is nice and all, but it’s too long to say! Let me just cut it down to Elli! It’s cuter anyway! Also this way is shorter.”
They took a corner.
Aurielle was starting to blush. Her thoughts were, “I don’t know what to say. We met for the first time today and he already has a nickname for me? This is my first time getting one, and it’s from a boy." After five seconds of letting out steam she realized, "Wait, I got distracted.” Still flustered she said, “I-If you want to call me that go ahead, but I feel we get along pretty well. Why can’t we be friends?”
“Shouldn’t it be obvious?” said Yul, still a bit cheery. “I plan to do whatever it takes to get to Traven. The better things go, the more the ‘Shattered Eye’ will be after my life.”
Tilting her head Aurielle said, “You were serious about that?”
“Yes, I’d already decided to dedicate my life to reclaiming the title of 'Duel King' from that undefeated man.”
“How will you do it? Nobody has been able to catch him for the last seven years.”
“Having come to this school, I might have a chance. There’s more people after him in this city than anywhere else. Also I, a duelist of no affiliation to the police, may be able to get information from people too afraid of the cult to share what they know with authorities.”
“Well that may be possible,” Aurielle said having calmed down completely. “If you’re only afraid of getting others caught up in your hunt, why should you need to worry about me? I AM one of the invincible Crownwrights.”
“Well…” said Yul looking away. “You can't easily predict cultists. Like this fine madman before us. I was expecting them to at least wait till the end of the day.”
Aurielle looked in front of her to see a guy dressed in a black cloak with the hood over a mask that appeared like rotting flesh and the boy's uniform underneath. She then looked to her sides and saw they were in an empty courtyard.
Yul said, "So since I doubt you're going to give us your real name. Do you have a preferred nickname?"
The cloaked figure replied, "I will end your life here, so you can call me death."
For a moment it was silent, and then there was snickering. Yul began to laugh in front of his assassin. Death tightened his fists.
"Sorry," Yul said with a giggles in-between. “Let me do you a favor and make you one too. Calling you 'Death' would be like calling a black cat a panther. So let’s call you ‘Black’ after that dress of yours. I can take you half seriously that way.”
Black raised his arm with a device, a duel disk, and gave the reply, “Do not prolong your fate with talk! Let us begin!”
Yul turned to Aurielle who said, "Yul, let me du-"
He dumped the spaghetti on the steak plate Aurielle was carrying and threw on the salad plate on the space between her arms. After leaving his remaining empty plate on the floor he to raised his duel disk saying, "I wouldn't stall things out. I still need to get my leftovers to the fridge before the end of lunch. So let's-"
“DUEL!” they shouted in unison as they both drew.
Turn 1
Black took the first turn saying, "I summon [Skeletal Groundskeeper] (Bound/Lv3/ATK 1500/DEF 0) and I'll activate [Finishing Preparation]. By showing you my ritual monster, [Phantom Knight], I can add his ritual spell, [Meeting at the Memorial], which I activate now by sacrificing the groundskeeper."
First appeared a skeleton in overalls with a rake and broom that it carried like dangerous weapons. A statue of a knight landed on it from above, sending its bones flying out in multiple directions. A spectral face turned toward Yul from the neck of the statue, alongside and matching the statue's face. A third, spectral arm appeared from the shoulder. Spectral legs stood taller than the statue, displacing the rest of the body from the statue's pose. With the ritual complete the statue faded from existence, but the ghost knight remained.
Black gave the introduction, "Behold, [Phantom Knight] (Ritual/Lv3/ATK 0/DEF 0) in defense mode, accompanied by-" During the introduction, the bones that were blown away came back together complete with the cleaning tools. Black continued, "the same [Skeletal Groundskeeper] that was sacrificed to summon him! Since he went to the graveyard I get his effect of being able to add a ritual card to my hand. I'll add [Bone Revival Ritual] for later."
The skeleton got up like it woke up from a nap and upon seeing the phantom, immediately prostrated itself. Black explained, "Bounds are monsters that are bonded to the ritual monster they are sacrificed to summon. They immediately regain life and the summoned ritual monster cannot die until they do. That's exactly what the groundskeeper is! So as long as he's around, the [Phantom Knight] is immortal! Also my knight gives him additional 500 attack points ([Skeletal Groundskeeper]'s ATK: 2,000)!"
"Well, that wall is going to be hard to break," said Yul.
"Turn end," said Black with excitement in his voice.
Turn 2
Yul immediately after drew for his turn.
"I'll summon [Growing Flame] (Lv3/ATK 1500/DEF 1300) and set one card face-down. That's all I can do for now, but..." said Yul as a fireball with eyes appeared and grew a little bigger.
"At the end of each of my turns I don't attack with [Growing Flame] (Lv3/ATK 2000/DEF 1300), it get's a little bigger in the form of a Growth Counter. For each counter it gains 500 attack points."
Turn 3
Starting his turn Black said, "What a pathetic monster you have. I guess you thought that'd stall me, but you didn't know Phantom Knight's effect did you? I'll switch him to attack mode and summon [Devoted Guard] (Bound/Lv4/ATK 1100 ->1600/DEF 1600 ->2100) which gains 500 attack from Phantom Knight. Now Phantom Knight will attack your Growing Flame! Whenever he battles his attack becomes equal to his opponent, making it a tie. But since he's immortal, it'll be one sided."
Having been calm through Black's taunts, Yul said, "You activated my trap card, [Flame Body]! This card decreases the attack of a monster on your side of the field equal to the defense of a pyro monster I control."
Black cut in, "Phantom Knight's change happens during the damage calculation. Even it you decrease it now, it will still become equal in the end. It was zero to start with anyway."
"That's all true," said Yul starting to smirk. "But your knight isn't my target! It's your groundskeeper! Did you really think I'd make a mistake like that?"
Black's reaction couldn't be seen from behind his mask. The battle started with the knight readying his sword and at the same time the fire with eyes (Lv3/ATK 2000/DEF 1300) rushed toward [Skeletal Groundskeeper], grabbing it, burning it, and making it scream (Bound/Lv3/ATK 700/DEF 0). A second later the [Phantom Knight] (Ritual/Lv3/ATK 2000/DEF 2000) swung, disbursing the fire.
A small firepit then appeared on Yul's side, it was looking at Black's monsters. Yul explained, "When [Growing Flame] is destroyed with a counter, I can Special Summon a pyro monster with an equal level to the number of counters from my hand or Deck. I chose [Living Bonfire] (Tuner/Lv1/ATK 0/DEF 200)."
"Why would you even bother with something that weak? Get rid of it [Skeletal Groundskeeper] (ATK 700)!" Black commanded. Following the order the badly burnt skeleton weakly brushed dust and dirt onto the bonfire, extinguishing it.
"Now my [Devoted Guard] (ATK 1600) will attack you directly!" As commanded the [Devoted Guard] swung his spear, which Yul deflected with his duel disk (Yul LP: 2400). Both of Black's monsters then went back to Black's side.
"Looks like I got first blood! Turn end."
Turn 4
After getting a feel of the new nick on his duel disk Yul drew for his turn. "Time for some payback. I'll summon [Flame Swarm] (Tuner/Lv2/ATK 1200/DEF 200). Attack his groundskeeper (ATK 700)!" A creepy smiling fireball that flew toward the badly burnt skeleton that tried to guard with the rake. Once the fireball landed, the skeleton exploded (Black LP: 3500) and two creepy fireballs, identical to the first, exited the explosion. Yul explained, "When a [Flame Swarm] destroys a monster in battle it summons a [Flame Swarm Token] (Token/Lv2/ATK 1200/DEF 200) exactly like it from the fuel."
Black said taking a card from his deck, "The destruction of my [Skeletal Groundskeeper] also lets me add a ritual card from my deck to my hand. I'll add my [Resurrected Dragon Emperor] to hand. Your plan all along was to get my Knight to attack mode so it could be destroyed in battle wasn't it?"
"Bingo!" replied Yul. "Next, I'll have the token attack your [Phantom Knight]!"
Phantom knight's blade touched the [Flame Swarm Token], but at the same time the token exploded. This time only one fireball left it, while the phantom slowly vanished.
"It was a tie that destroyed them both, but my token still destroyed you monster in battle. Even when [Flame Swarm] tokens destroy a monster in battle, I get a new token just like the original, which will continue the onslaught on your [Devoted Guard] (Bound/Lv4/ATK 1100/DEF 1600)!"
A third creepy fireball flew at Black's last monster that got caught in an explosion (Black LP: 3400). This time the fireball left the explosion fearful rather than joyful and the Guard still stood breathing hard with his shield up. Black explained, "My [Devoted Guard], cannot be destroyed in battle once per turn. So looks like you couldn't get all my monsters."
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"I wouldn't be so sure of that," replied Yul. "Since I have this quick-play spell, [Fire Spirit Calling]! By destroying any 2 cards on my side of the field I can Special Summon a level 6 or lower pyro monster from my deck! I'll destroy both of the Fire Swarm monsters to Special Summon [Graveyard Lantern] (Lv4/ATK 1600/DEF 900)! Finish off the [Devoted Guard]!"
The two fireballs spun together and changed form into a pale young man in robes who held a lantern with a green flame. Following the command to attack, the lantern opened and spewed flames like a flamethrower on the guard, leaving nothing but ash (Black LP: 2900).
"Did good [Graveyard Lantern], but I'm going to now use your effect," said Yul. Following that command the lantern opened again and the fire left, changing into a green vortex before him.
"I'll definitely need a stronger monster for what I assume you'll summon next turn. So I use [Graveyard Lantern]'s effect by banishing a pyro monster, namely [Flame Swarm], from my graveyard, which allows me to add [Polymerization] to my hand from my deck. I'll use right away it to fuse him with the [Slashing Sensei] in my hand."
As the robed lantern carrier and Eastern swordswoman in training clothes he named went through a green vortex, Yul announced, “Even the flame of a sweet scented candle! Can become the inferno that to consumes all! I fusion summon the [Inferno Blader Anima] (Fusion/Lv7/ATK 2500/DEF 2100)!”
The other side of the vortex burned as Anima left it and landed on the field. She had a fierce warrior’s gaze, was lightly armored, held one-blade one-handed while the other hand burned, and her hair raised, moved, and glowed similar to fire.
After setting two backrow cards Yul ended his turn.
Turn 5
Black started his turn by saying, “That was a flashy summon, is that your ace?”
Yul smiled though he seemed a bit annoyed as he said, “It’s only an aspect of my ace.”
“Aspect? I don't understand. Though since you'll be dead soon it doesn't matter.”
Black spoke playing one card after another, "First, I'll special summon [Vassal Ogre] (Bound/Lv6/ATK 2200/DEF 1800) from my hand using its own effect by revealing a ritual spell and monster, also in hand. Next, I'll play Warrior Returning Alive to add [Devoted Guard] back to hand so I can summon him (Bound/Lv4/ATK 1100/DEF 1600). Lastly, I'll finish my combo with the same ritual spell I revealed, [Bone Revival Ritual]."
During the ritual, rib bones rose from the ground, breaking through the concrete, reaching least twenty feet high surrounding both monsters Black had summoned. The ribs then crashed down, both monsters screaming before being crushed. Blackish ooze, like blood flooded out from the sides. The ribs dissolved into the ooze and the ooze began to change shape. It became a black dragon that rose to the air once in full form. Black introduced it with, “Behold my [Resurrected Dragon Emperor] (Ritual/Lv9/ATK 3500/DEF 2800).”
“In addition,” said Black playing two monsters on the field. It was the same two who were crushed by the spine, [Vassal Ogre] and [Devoted Guard]. They returned on the same spots they died in. The damage to the ground left by the ribs still there, along with the damage from the statue. Each stood on one knee with their heads down toward Dragon Emperor. Black explained, “Both of the monsters I sacrificed were Bounds. So you'll have to take them out before my dragon can die. I'll be keeping [Vassal Ogre] in attack mode (ATK 2200) and [Devoted Guard] in defense mode (DEF 1600)."
Yul had a genuine smile looked at the summons. With a friendly voice he said, “That’s pretty impressive really. Creepy, but impressive.”
“Shut up and die!” yelled the assassin Black who was unnerved by Yul’s nonchalant behavior. He pointed forward and said, “Time to finish you! First, [Resurrected Dragon Emperor] (ATK 3500), destroy his [Inferno Blader Anima] (ATK 2500)! Death Breath!”
Aurielle watched the dragon readying its breath attack. So she didn’t notice Yul as he grabbed her arm and dragged her away from the duel in a hurry, making all the plates she was carrying drop to the ground. Panicked, she fought against his grip yelling, “What are you doing!?” That ended up making Yul trip and pulling her down with him.
“Trying to keep you safe Elli,” was Yul’s response before the dragon’s black smoke breath landed on the ground. It enveloped the ground of and around Yul’s side of the field. As the smoke dissipated, they saw Anima was gone and the area they stood on, including Yul's leftovers, turned to unrecognizable rot and decay.
Aurielle's thoughts as she was on the ground were, "It still hadn’t sunk in that the attacks of this cultist’s cards have been doing real damage. Even though I'm not involved in the duel, I could easily be killed in the crossfire."
Black’s voice was filled with excitement as he yelled, “How noble of you to save her, but being so close to you she’ll still be caught in the direct attack! Saves me the trouble of having to eliminate the witness separately!”
[Vassal Ogre] (ATK 2200) began charging toward the prone Yul and Aurielle to finish them off.
"My last attack would have brought her to 1400 life points so this is the end!"
Yul (LP: 2400) yelled back at his opponent, “I don’t see how you’ll get a direct attack in while I still have a monster!”
Black looked back at Yul’s field. He saw no monsters, but there was a face-up trap. Before he could process what happened, something hit the ground behind him. It was the dragon Emperor’s head (Black’s LP: 2150). In front Yul and Aurielle, landed [Inferno Blader Anima] (Fusion/Lv 7/ATK 4250/DEF 2100) blocking the path of [Drone Ogre] who was coming in for the coup de grace.
Yul explained, “When you attacked I activated my trap card, [Half Counter], which adds half of the attacking monster’s attack points to the attack target for the turn. That means Anima gained 1,750 attack points, bringing her from 2,500 to 4,250. The reason my monster disappeared was because she was airborne to get to the dragon!”
"Dammit!" Black shouted out in frustration. “I end my turn!”
Turn 6
After that the intense exchange had played out, Aurielle finally had time to react. During the fall Yul turned around to make sure she’d be cushioned. So she landed on Yul’s chest and had been holding Yul down to prop herself up and see what was happening on the field. Now she noticed how close Yul’s blushing face was as its eyes followed the field and its lips spoke, “Could you please get off now Elli?”
Aurielle got to her feet first and helped Yul up. She noticed beside he was looking toward the sky during the whole process of getting up. When Aurielle looked up as well, she saw the dragon was still there good as new.
Yul said seeing my surprise, “I saw it earlier. The fallen head evaporated and a new one grew out of the main body. Just like Black said, that dragon is immortal as long as those subordinate Bound monsters are there.”
Black said excitedly, “It’s good to see you were listening. Your monster also went back to its original 2,500 attack points so my dragon can kill it next turn!”
Yul gave Black a spiteful glare and said, “Black is assuming he’ll have a next turn. I’ll finish him here and now!”
Following his declaration, Yul first changed Anima’s sword to a sinister looking one with the explanation, “I’ll start with the equip spell, [Blood-Blaze Blade]. As long as this card is equipped, my [Inferno Blader Anima] gains 500 attack points and inflicts 500 damage each time she defeats a monster.
"I’ll activate Inferno Blader Anima’s effect (ATK 3000). By reducing her attack points for the turn, I can give her 1 additional attack this turn for each 1,000 lost. I will decrease her attack by 3,000!” is what Yul said as he reduced his monster’s attack points to 0, effectively making those extra attacks gained pointless. Both Aurielle and Black looked at Yul confused by that last move.
“I see now your confidence has been empty,” said Black. “You are nothing but a lucky showoff. Did you even think before doing that? What good are four attacks with no attack points?”
Following his taunts, the world around the duel began to distort. Colors were where they weren't supposed to be, like coloring outside the lines. The mass of monsters moved around like they were play dough. Black twitched around saying, "What's going on?!"
Yul replied, "My monster may not have any attack points, but I'll make up for them with defense points. I activated [Inverse Universe], this card switches the attack and defense of all effect monsters on the field!"
The world then returned to normal. Black still to sounded a bit worried after seeing the changes, saying, “Nice trick to stop your monster from being completely useless, but it’s still much weaker than my [Shadow Dragon Emperor]. It has no effect so its stats stay the same!"
Yul (LP 2400): [Inferno Blader Anima (ATK 2100/ DEF 0)]
VS
[Devoted Guard (ATK 1600/ DEF 1100)] [Vassal Ogre (ATK 1800/ DEF 2200)] [Resurrected Dragon Emperor (ATK 3500/ DEF 2800)] :(LP 2150) Black
Yul responded with, “Anima may be weaker, but warriors can beat anything with tenacity and technique.”
To which Black responded, “What do you me-“
Yul cut him off with, “I mean Anima gains half the original attack of each monster she destroys. I’m happy your strongest stays at full, cause that will make this much more satisfying.”
Yul took a deep breath, as though taking in seeing the opponent’s shocked expression. With a brimming smile Yul said, “Now, [Inferno Blader Anima] (Lv7/ATK 2100/DEF 0), destroy all my opponent’s monsters! Dance of the Destroyer!”
Within five seconds, Inferno Blader Anima moved from Yul’s side to next to his opponent, which would require passing through Black’s monsters. Anima’s sword was a blazing inferno longer than the height of any monster on the field. Each of Black’s monsters had fire coming out of cuts in their bodies.
After noticing, Black looked at his duel disk for his life points. It was orangish-yellow from reflecting the light of the fire and a glare covered the screen. When he finally saw his life points were zero, he looked up to see all his monsters had been reduced to ash.
----Slow Motion Rewind----
What happened in slow motion was Anima destroyed all of Black’s monsters with her four attacks. The first two were spent destroying [Devoted Guard] (Bound/Lv 4/ATK 1600/DEF 1100) who defended against the first attack, but was slain in the second. Its destruction brought Anima to 2,650 ATK, but did no damage due to the monster being in defense mode.
(Black LP: 1650)
Next, [Vassal Ogre] (Bound/Lv6/ATK 1800/DEF 2200) was defeated in one airborne neck-slice bringing Anima to 3,750 ATK and inflicting 850 battle damage.
(Black LP: 300)
For the last attack, the [Resurrected Dragon Emperor] (Ritual/Lv10/ATK 3500/DEF 2800) tried to stop it with its fire breath, but both the fire and the dragon were sliced right through the middle. 250 battle damage was inflicted, making the total battle damage 1,100. In addition, [Blood-Blaze Blade] did 500 damage each time a monster was destroyed with it, which all three made an additional 1500, represented by them bursting into flames after Anima was finished slicing them up. That made the total damage 2,600, which was more than the 2,150 Black had at the start of the turn.
(Black LP: 0)
----Present----
Wasting no time, Yul walked up and reached out to pull off Black's mask and hood. After seeing his opponent's face he said, "You look kind of familiar. I feel like I've seen you recently."
Underneath it seemed Black didn't even realize Yul was there until his mask was off. He felt his face, so he knew it was definitely off, and tried to reach out to take it back. Immediately Yul moved away in time and tossed it to Aurielle. Black tried to run to her, but Yul grabbed him by his cloak's hood and tossed him to the ground saying, "We don't have enough time to play monkey in the middle, you especially."
Soon after hearing that said, Black was grabbed by of the military dress students lifted by the arms. A third officer, an adult removed Black’s duel disk from his arm and put handcuffs on him. It all happened in a matter of seconds.
“What's going on?!” yelled Black.
The adult said to Black, "Campus security, we are placing you under arrest. You are in violation of the Cultist Suppression Act and have shown intent to kill. That's first degree assault. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you."
In a more friendly tone he then said, "Since you lost your duel, you also lost your ability to use your monsters to either escape or fight us temporarily. We were watching, waiting for your defeat. As a teacher for the Security program. I'm glad, it was one of you Gladiators that had the first cultist nutjob to show up for the year."
"I got it!' said Yul snapping his finger. "You're that guy I cut off in my class introduction! The one who tried to say, 'Who the hell are you?""
Black stared at the ground and said, "To hell with right to silence! I'm standing in my grave!"
Staring death at Yul, Black continued, "Yes I am 'that guy'! I don't like you! You're so cocky and loud! So I thought I'd do everyone a favor and get rid of you! 'It'd be a great way to start the year on the right foot,' I thought. Disciples of the Shattered Eye, we're supposed to get whatever we want using this power that society rejects!"
Yul scratched his head. "You're so petty, you tried to kill me over that?"
Black laughed like "Hyehaha!" then said, "Yes, and I've actually succeeded in the past! I'd wait till the people who pissed me off were isolated. I'd kill them! Then fly away on my dragon once I was done! Killing with monsters, I left no evidence! I always got away with it!"
His expression then changed to one of pure grief. "Was it even worth it though? It felt good, but it's over now. It felt like I was finally becoming something! But now I'm nothing...Black...Nothingness."
The adult had continued to write as Black spoke. Once he was finished speaking, the adult received the mask from Aurielle and signaled the students to take Black away.
Black yelled as he was taken away, "In the end I was just a rogue in the cult! But surviving my attack will still get their attention! Think of it as my way of a haunting you!"
Yul yelled back waving, "Thanks for is parting gift! At least one has to have clues about Traven!"
------After 5th Period------
Both Yul and Aurielle had to write out their testimonies before leaving and received excuses for being late. Lunch was over, so the duels were as well. It was peaceful and nobody else was around. So their journey back to the classroom was as a solitary group. Though Yul seemed to be trying to keep his distance from Aurielle, she closed the distance that he put between them. They kept playing out this scene over minutes of silence.
"So...Yul," Aurielle broke the silence. "I accidentally touched your chest we both fell and noticed you have... stuff over your chest."
"W-what are you insinuating?" replied Yul, clearly fazed. He whispered to himself, "Lucky pervert."
"Well," said Aurielle looking away shyly. "I think they were bandages."
"I happened to get an injury a bit ago," said Yul shakily.
"How did you get that injury?" asked Aurielle, shifting her gaze to Yul on the edge of her eyes.
Yul faced away to hide his gaze shifting every which way for the answer he would give. After deliberating, "That's none of your business."
"It also felt different than a boy's chest," stated Aurielle.
"Why would you know what a boy's chest feels like?!" said Yul whipping back to Aurielle with a red face.
"My older brother liked messing with me by stealing my stuff," replied Aurielle with a balled up fist. "So I'd reclaim it by wrestling it out of his hands. I got a good sense of the sensation while pushing him around or hitting him."
"There went the refined lady image I had of you," thought Yul.
"It felt more like mine," said Aurielle with a suspicious glare. "Could it be that you're..."
The fright that showed up on Yul's face said it all.
"...female?"
Yul gestured like he was shot in the chest and stopped in place. "I. I'm Yul Halvor. I need to become a king. I won't settle for less." Yul mentally added to himself, "The princess is still locked in the tower."
Aurielle stopped and kept her eyes on him, then said, "That's a yes I assume."
"It means don't tell anyone."
Aurielle held out her pinky in front of Yul and said, "Then you'll promise to be my friend and I'll keep your secret?"
The angelic smile she gave unnerved Yul. How to interpret it was a mystery. Was she so lonely that she'd even resort to blackmail? Did she want to save Yul from a life of isolation? Or was she actually a devil that planned to use Yul in some unexpected way.
"After rumors spread about Yul getting an assassination attempt before the first day even ended, they will be the perfect repellant for people who approach me for my money or access to my brother."
After weighing options, Yul said, "I promise."
"The Crownwright siblings are unbeatable, huh? I suppose this is just another victory for her."
-----Meanwhile at the Principle's Office-----
Alongside the school there was a 21 story building that was part of the campus, the administrative tower. At the top floor there was a man gazing down at the rest of the school through windows that encompassed the entire wall. He was wheelchair bound, dark skinned and dressed in an expensive suit. Standing next to him was another suited gentleman older, light skinned and grey haired. His eyes were obscured by sunglasses, but up-close, through the lenses, you could see glowing red eyes. The latter man spoke as his eyes seemed to be staring off into the sky.
"The report says the student who was attacked is named 'Yul Halvor'."
"Of course it was," said the man in the wheelchair. "She really doesn't know any restraint."
The older man was tapping at the air, "The attack by the cultist included a potential bio contamination. So in addition to repairs to the grounds, we'll need to schedule tests to make sure the area is safe."
"As if my job a principle wasn't busy enough with the start of year duties," said the man in the wheelchair before letting out sigh. "Feel like I'm about to explode from the stress."
-----While Blatantly Skipping 6th Period-----
Yul spoke in a softer more feminine voice, "I was there in the Arena of the King when the tragedy happened. The damage was much lighter on E-Man's side then Traven's side. Being on E-Man's side made me in the right, since it kept me safe. I loved watching him on television and it felt like the happiest moment of my life when I was seeing him so close to being crowned the new 'king'. But then it turned to the worst. The way the arena was destroyed was like Traven was destroying the place because it would no longer be 'his'. Nowadays it stays, a ruin. Stuck in a limbo of whether it should be rebuild or demolished, stuck in time for the past 7 years. Many people seem to celebrate its decay as it was 'Traven's arena', but I always saw it as a place that should belong to E-Man."
Yul and Aurielle were wasting time sitting on the rim of a fountain in a plaza in the middle of the school.
Yul continued, "Nothing as grand had been built to replace it, like we've settled on mediocrity. Whatever gets the job done. It made my heart feel as lifeless and cold as coal. So born in me was the desire to ignite myself and this world in the heat of my passion. My parents reaction to the tragedy weren't as kind to the game though. They tried to remove dueling from my life altogether. So I removed myself from their lives. Or maybe I should say Yuliya did."
Yul switch back to his masculine voice, "In myself, I wanted to embody the ideas of the past, the manly passion for battle I saw between those two when people recall the battle for kingship. It also acts as a good mask if those two come after me. I am Yul Halvor. I respect the crown. I covet the crown. Yuliya wants the head its attached to."
"You sound a lot cooler than you did in the classroom," replied Aurielle.
"It's easier to speak from the heart when you're not keeping secrets," said Yul in her feminine voice. "Now you have a good grasp on how precious my secret is right Elli?"
"I'd say so," said Aurielle. "Thanks for sharing."
"I didn't exactly do it out of affection," said Yul as he was standing up. "Let's get going before they notice we're more late than we're supposed to be."
"I know the way if you don't," said Aurielle following close to Yul as he walked away. Yul didn't attempt add any distance this time.
Chapter Card List
Skeletal Groundskeeper
Earth/Zombie/Bound/Lv3/ATK 1500/DEF 0
If this monster is tributed on the field by a Ritual Spell card, Special Summon this card from your Graveyard at the same time as the Ritual monster. As long as this monster is face-up on the field after being summoned this way, the Ritual Monster summoned by that Ritual Spell cannot be destroyed. If this monster is sent from the field to the Graveyard or Special Summoned by its effect: Add 1 Ritual Monster or Spell card from your Deck or Graveyard to your hand.
Finishing Preparations
Normal Spell
Reveal 1 Ritual Monster or Spell from your hand, add 1 Ritual Monster or Spell from your Deck that mentions that card in its card text, except cards with the same name as the revealed card.
Meeting at the Memorial
Ritual Spell
Use this Ritual Spell to Ritual Summon "Phantom Knight". You must tribute monsters from your hand or field whose total levels equal 3 or more. If all the tributed monsters are Warrior-Type monsters, Special Summon all Normal Monsters among them at the same time as the Ritual Monster. If the Ritual Monster summoned by this effect leaves the field, destroy the other monsters summoned by this effect.
Phantom Knight
Light/Warrior/Ritual/Lv3/ATK 0/DEF 0
This card can be Ritual Summoned with "Meeting at the Memorial". This monster's ATK and DEF become the same as the ATK and DEF of the monster it battles during the Damage Step. Other monsters you control gain 500 ATK and DEF.
Growing Flame
Fire/Pyro/Lv3/ATK 1500/DEF 1300
This card gains 500 ATK for each Growth Counter on it. During the End Phase, if this monster didn't attack this turn: It gains 1 Growth Counter. If this monster leaves the field with a Growth Counter: Special Summon 1 Level 1 Pyro-Type monster from your hand or Deck with a level that is equal or lower than the number of Growth Counters that were on this card.
Devoted Guard
Earth/Warrior/Bound/Lv4/ATK 1100/DEF 1600
Once per battle phase, this monster cannot be destroyed in battle. If this monster is tributed on the field by a Ritual Spell card, Special Summon this card from your Graveyard at the same time as the Ritual monster. As long as this monster is face-up on the field after being summoned this way, the Ritual Monster summoned by that Ritual Spell cannot be destroyed.
Flame Body
Normal Trap
Target 1 monster your opponent controls and 1 Pyro-Type monster you control; Decrease the ATK and DEF of the opponent's monster equal to the Pyro-type monster's DEF. If this card is in your Graveyard: You can Banish 2 Pyro-Type monsters from your Graveyard; Add this card from your Graveyard to your hand.
Living Bonfire
Fire/Pyro/Tuner/Lv1/ATK 0/DEF 200
If you control Warrior-Type monster other than "Living Bonfire", this monster cannot be targeted for attacks. When a monster(s) on the field is destroyed in battle: Increase this monster's ATK by the destroyed monster(s) total levels x300.
Flame Swarm
Fire/Pyro/Tuner/Lv2/ATK 1200/DEF 200
Each time this monster or a "Flame Swarm Token" destroys a monster in battle: Special Summon 1 "Flame Swarm Token" in attack mode (FIRE/Pyro-Type/level 2/ATK 1200/DEF 200).
Fire Spirit Calling
Quick-Play Spell
Target 2 cards you side of the field; Destroy the targeted cards and Special Summon 1 level 6 or lower Pyro-Type monster from your Deck.
Graveyard Lantern
Dark/Pyro/Lv4/ATK 1600/DEF 900
Up to twice per turn; Banish 1 Pyro-Type monster from your Graveyard; Add 1 "Polymerization" or "Rebirth Fusion" to your hand from your Deck or Graveyard.
Polymerization (Real)
Normal Spell
Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand or field as Fusion Material.
Slasher Sensei
Earth/Warrior/Lv4/ATK 1500/DEF 1800
When this monster is Normal or Special Summoned: You can add 1 "Half or Nothing", "Half Counter", or "Half Unbreak" from your Deck to your hand. During your opponent's Standby Phase: You can Banish this card from your Graveyard and target 1 face-up monster your opponent controls; For the rest of the turn, the targeted monster will be changed to Attack Position if in Defense Position and must attack if possible this turn. Each effect of "Slasher Sensei", can only be activated once per turn.
Inferno Blader Anima
Fire/Warrior/Fusion/Lv7/ATK 2500/DEF 2100
1 Warrior-Type monster + 1 Pyro-Type monster
If this monster is Fusion Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 "Inferno Blader Animus" from your Graveyard. Once per turn: Decrease this monster's ATK by multiples of 1000 until the End Phase. This monster gains 1 additional attack during for each 1000 ATK reduced by this effect during the turn this effect is activated. Each time this monster destroys a monster in battle: Increase this monster's ATK equal to half the destroyed monster's ATK until the End Phase.
Vassal Ogre
Dark/Fiend/Bound/Lv6/ATK 2200/DEF 1800
If you control no monsters: You can reveal 1 Ritual Monster and 1 Ritual Spell from your hand; Special Summon this monster in defense mode. If this monster is tributed on the field by a Ritual Spell card, Special Summon this card from your Graveyard at the same time as the Ritual monster. As long as this monster is face-up on the field after being summoned this way, the Ritual Monster summoned by that Ritual Spell cannot be destroyed.
Bone Revival Ritual
Ritual Spell
Use this Ritual Spell to Ritual Summon "Shadow Dragon Emperor". You must tribute monsters from your hand or field whose total levels equal 9 or more. While this card is in your Graveyard, except the turn it is sent to the Graveyard: You can target 1 “Resurrected Dragon Emperor” on your side of the field; Return it and this card to your hand.
Resurrected Dragon Emperor
Dark/Dragon/Ritual/Lv9/ATK 3500/DEF 2800
You can Ritual Summon this monster with "Bone Revival Ritual".
Half Counter (Real)
Normal Trap
During damage calculation, if a monster you control is being attacked: Target that monster you control; that target gains ATK equal to half the original ATK of the attacking monster, until the end of this turn.
Blood-Blaze Blade
Equip Spell
The equip monster gains 500 ATK. When the equip monster destroys a monster in battle: Inflict 500 damage to your opponent. During the Damage Step: You can send this card from your field to the Graveyard; Increase the equipped monster’s ATK by 1500 during the damage calculation. If this card is in your Graveyard: You can equip this card to a FIRE Warrior-Type monster you control that was Special Summoned from the Extra Deck this turn.
Inverse Universe (Real)
Normal Trap
Switch the ATK and DEF of all face-up Effect Monsters on the field.