Yu-Gi-Oh! DF, Special #3 Begins!!! Second Chapter is Up!!!!!

[legendhiro]

wow, i never actually expected to post here again, despite promises of another special. but here i am anyway. this story is a new pilot if you will. my old readers will remember that sarah takes over the duel force, now much smaller that before, after john and most of the others leave. well, here is her first (and last?) test as leader. if you like this story (which will be a total of five or six chapters altogether), there may be another, so let me know. and as always, rate, hate, comment and appreciate, and generally let me know what you think.

 

welcome my friends to possibly the last adventure of the duel force that you all know and love, or maybe the first of many adventures of a new duel force: Special #3: The Dark Elite!

 

***WARNING***

 

if you have been with the duel force from the beginning, prepare to have your minds shaken with some serious, continuity-changing knowledge. if not, go back and read the whole thing. seriously. its actually pretty good.

 

 

 

[spoiler=Chapter One]

 

Just Another Night…If You’re Us

 

 

Hey. I’m Sarah. If you’ve been following the adventures of the Duel Force, then you know me already. I’ve never written anything before that was meant to be read by anyone but my teachers, but I know my brother wrote all about his time as leader of this team, so I feel I should write about my time as leader too. And come to think of it, I have helped him write stuff that I saw and he didn’t, so I kinda know what I’m doing.

 

Anyway…

 

The Duel Force is different now. Don’t know who we are? Then you probably aren’t a Duelist. I’m pretty sure most serious Duelists at least know of us by now. But they only know us as a larger than average Duel Monsters team from the United States, the members of which participate in tournaments at various levels and usually do well. You probably also either went to or watched on TV the Great Duel Force Tournament. The final duel in the tournament, featuring my brother John no less, was awesome. Not nearly as good as some of Yugi Muto’s duels, but still very cool. That duel is what made my brother famous enough that Seto Kaiba invited him to his new duel school thingy. He figures that my brother being there will attract other American Duelists.

 

What you might not know about us is that a few years back me, my brother, my cousin Jen, and John’s friend Tucker were discovered my Maxamillion Pegasus. Yes, the Maxamillion Pegasus. But we weren’t discovered the way you might think. See, in Pegasus’ travels, while searching for new, historically based themes for Duel Monsters, he became something of the world’s greatest mythology buff. At some point (I’m not sure when) he came across an ancient legend that implied that the four of us would be the ones to free twelve ancient magical artifacts to find their rightful owners (four of which would be us), so that those twelve people could hold onto the artifacts until their original owner could return and destroy his evil side. He also told us that a group called the Duelists of the order was trying to beat us to these Souls so that they could harness them for their great power.

 

Crazy, right? That’s what I thought. Then Karen, Monty and Lawrence showed up with some magic borrowed from their unnamed master. That little bit of power was enough to turn Duel Monsters into a freakin’ powerful weapon. It could lock you into a “Shadow Game” where if you refused to play by the rules, you’d be destroyed, and if you lost, you’d be hurt, killed, or worse, depending on your enemy’s intensions. After that, I was a believer. We fought Karen and her buddies a couple of times. Meanwhile we freed the Souls and expanded our team with other Soul Bearers. Turns out Karen, Monty, Lawrence, and even their master’s pet, Max, were all good guys (though in the case of Max and Lawrence still not too good) and were Soul Bearers too.

 

John beat the leader of the Order, and soon after the Duelist, the original owner of the Souls, and his dark side Blackheart popped up and renewed their fight. The good Forgotten Duelist won, leaving us alone with the Souls. As long as the Souls exist, they have to be protected. Their powers could be too dangerous in the wrong hands. So we each continue to get stronger. There’s a lot more too it, but you’ll have to read what my brother wrote to get the true scope of it.

 

Anyway, recently John decided that sitting in limbo is a bad thing. He disbanded the Duel Force and moved on with his life. He and Karen went to Duel Academy, which just opened this year. Kimi went back to Japan to go to some special finishing school or something. Monty and Lawrence are touring the world. Rocky went to find and join the Duelist Elite, who’re like the Luke Skywalker to the Order’s Darth Vader. Tucker went on to college, for all that’ll be worth, Jen joined a Pro Dueling team on a country-wide tour, and Max became kinda a real life Batman. He supposedly goes around wearing a cloak and calling himself the Reaper.

 

Lame.

 

Anyway, like I said, the Duel Force is different. John, Karen, Max and Tucker are all more or less gone. They were our strongest. As much as it wounds me to my core to admit it, I probably couldn’t even beat Tucker anymore. And I only say ‘probably’ because Tucker is still a hot-headed idiot, even if he is very powerful.

 

I know I can’t beat John or Max, or Karen when she actually tries. I know this. Still, I’m stronger than most. I have a really good deck, and I know how to use it. Plus I have the Soul of Water, which gives me the power to use Shadow Games, and to manipulate water and even ice, even outside of duels. My remaining team-mates are all strong too, and most of them have magical items like mine. My cousins Kristin and Amanda have the Souls of Mettle and Wind respectively. The only member of the new and, dare I say, improved Duel Force without an item is my brother’s old student/apprentice Jenna. She’s never had an item, which is probably why John would never let her on the team while he was on charge. I still don’t get his reasoning, though. Even without any kind of item, Jenna is super strong.

 

When John left, that was it for the old DF. So I took command. I’ve been trying to find people who want to join us, and we’ve had a few tryouts, but I have a little issue with people I don’t like and, you know, being nice to them. So needless to say, our new additions haven’t worked out. That’s what happens when most everyone on Earth is stupid.

 

But I’m rambling.

 

The story I want to tell first takes place during a break at Tucker’s college, so he was in town. Much as I hate to admit it, he and I are friends, so we were hangin’ out at my house. It was getting late. “Well,” said Tucker finally, “I gotta go. I wanna stop by old man Wilson’s card shop on the way back to my dad’s hellhole of a place.”

 

“No way,” I said. “I wanted to head to Wilson’s, and there’s no way I’m walkin’ with you.”

 

Of course, in the end, I ended up walking with him anyway. As annoying as he is, it’s not worth it to waste energy arguing with him. He’s no smart enough to form an intelligent argument, and the conversation ends up going in circles.

 

So we walked to Wilson’s cards together. Wilson had been holding a few packs for me. He picks a few packs from every shipment and saves them for me and my friends. Tucker just wanted to browse. It was closing time, but Wilson knew us. He let us hang out just after closing all the time. He’s kinda like a mentor to all of us I guess. I think Wilson might actually be a Duelist himself. I’ve never seen him duel, but he’s pretty old. Sixties or seventies at least. No doubt he’s been around since the game started. As we approached the store I wondered, not for the first time, if Wilson is very strong.

 

We arrived at Wilson’s shop. All of the lights were still on, which is weird. Wilson usually turns some of the lights off after closing to save on energy. As we walked up to the door I noticed that Wilson was still at his place at the counter, and that there were two figures inside with him. One was a larger guy with short-ish brown hair cut into a Mohawk. The other guy was a little on the short side with rusty brown hair. They were both trolling around the store in a more than slightly suspicious way. I stopped Tucker from entering and pointed the two goons out to him. Like an idiot he hadn’t seen them yet, but once he did he was on his toes, just as I was, and prepared for trouble.

 

Wilson was watching the two guys too, but he still seemed to notice when we arrived. His expression grew much more relaxed. Tucker and I slowly entered the building-.

 

-Just in time to be almost mowed over by the larger guy with the Mohawk as he barreled from the building, his arms full of Mr. Wilson‘s stuff. The rust-haired guy tried to follow, his own arms full as well, but he was stopped by Tucker. Tucker’s Soul flashed, and his eyes lit up like fire.

 

“You got this guy?” I asked him. He nodded, and I ran off after the larger guy, determined to recover my friend’s property.

 

 

Tucker

 

 

Sarah was gone, after the Mohawk guy. She had the Soul of Water, so I know she’d be able to handle herself, at least until I could wrap things up at Wilson’s and catch up. I looked into the eyes of the rust-haired guy who had been with the Mohawk guy and said, “Put back everything you took, or face a Penalty Game.”

 

It was only then that I actually stopped to think that my foe might not know what a Penalty Game was (not that I really know either). But to my surprise, instead of confusion, I saw understanding on the face of my enemy. Wilson seemed even less confused. Wilson understanding something isn’t too rare. He’s been around the block. But some random shoplifting kid? Unless he wasn’t a random shoplifting kid.

 

What is going on here?

 

That’s when my opponent pulled out a gunmetal-colored rod with a sphere in each end, like a baton. A Shadow Item baton. Its ends lit up with Shadow fire. My Soul of Fire glowed, and a flame began to form in my hand, but I’d been caught off guard and Rusty wasn’t slow. He swung his Shadow Baton right at my head. I braced for the hit, but it never came. Instead Wilson jumped between me and my opponent and caught Rusty’s arm in the iron grip of his deceptively frail-looking hand.

 

“No active Shadow Items in my shop please,” said Wilson. He looked right at the rust-haired kid, “If you want to fight, we’ll take this outside.”

 

The ancient-looking man looked back at me through inch thick glasses and said, “Go and help your friend. I’ll handle things here.”

 

I blinked away confusion and nodded. I turned and started running after Sarah, somehow sure that the old man would be fine.

 

 

Wilson

 

 

I let go of the rust-haired young man’s arm and stepped behind the counter of my store. He watched me carefully, trying to size me up. Trying to decide if he should risk turning his back and running away, or he should stand and fight. Which was more dangerous. I’d seen that look on so many people before.

 

“I picked this up awhile back,” I told the young man as I lifted a long dust-covered box from behind the counter, “but I haven’t needed it until now.” I blew the dust away from the box, revealing the Kaiba Corporation logo. I placed the box down on the counter and opened it, revealing the Duel Disk inside.

 

“Back when I wasn’t much older than you,” I told the young man who had tried to steal from me, “there were no Grand Championships, or Duel Disks, or grand Duel Academies on private islands in the middle of the ocean. Pro Dueling as a type of sport was a brand new concept. Duel Monsters itself was a new game, just recently created by the very young Maxamillion Pegasus. Didja know he’s almost fifty? Aged well, that one,” I fiddled with the Duel Disk, trying to get it on my wrist. “Me, I didn’t age so well outwardly, but my inner strength is still there.

 

“See,” I continued, finally fixing the Duel Disk in place and reaching down into the space behind the counter to find my deck, “almost as soon as the game of Duel Monsters came out some of the more intuitive people around saw the connection between the game and magical hooey. Started buildin’ up Shadow Charms or Shadow Items, whatever you choose to call ‘em. There were three of us. Me, my late brother Tom, and young Shannon. Tom called her Shay. She was a natural. Good kid. You met her daughter a few minutes ago. Her kids are strong, like her.”

 

I laughed as I reminisced, and finally my hand fell upon the cards that I hadn’t touched in so long, “Her son thinks he taught her how to duel. Guess he’ll never know it was the other way around. You woulda thought that how fast she caught on woulda given it away, but it never did.”

 

We were far past the point now where any sensible kid would have cut his losses and run. I glanced down at the little black metal ring on my finger. Good, that means that I haven’t lost my stuff. I haven’t lost my ability to mesmerize with the power of my words

 

“Now,” I told the young man, “why don’t we step outside and fight this out. You win, you get my entire inventory.”

 

That snapped the kid out of his stupor, “Alright, you’re on!”

 

 

We began the duel quickly, as soon as we stepped out into the my shop’s parking lot. “My move first,” my opponent asserted.

 

“I’d rather we decided that the old fashioned way,” I replied. I pulled an old coin out of my pocket, “I prefer tails if you don’t mind.”

 

I flipped the coin and caught it expertly on the back of my hand. I showed tails to my opponent. He scowled. I rolled the coin off my hand, down my finger, and onto my Duel Disk. I might need it again later.

 

“I begin,” I said, “with a set monster and a face-down card.”

 

“Now I go,” my opponent snapped impatiently. Kids these days. No patience. “I play ’Pot of Greed’ to draw two new cards,” he drew, “and then play ‘Mystical Space Typhoon’ to destroy your Trap card.”

 

A gust of wind ripped my ‘Mirror Force’ in half.

 

“Next I Special Summon two copies of ‘Gilasaurus’ from my hand, and tribute them both for the ‘Black Tyranno’!”

 

Two human-sized brown dinosaurs appeared, and were immediately replaced by a massive black tyrannosaurus (ATK“ 2600).

 

“While you only control defensive monsters,” my opponent explained quite unnecessarily, “my ‘Tyranno’ can attack directly! But first I equip him with the Spell cards ‘Axe of Despair’ and ‘United We Stand’!”

 

The dinosaur was surrounded by a magical aura, and axe-shaped bones sprouted from its powerful tail (ATK: 2600+800+1000=4400).

 

“My monster attacks,” the young man commanded excitedly, and his dinosaur reached over my hidden monster with his tail and struck me personally. My Life Points plummeted (8000-4400=3600).

 

“You see old man! You can’t overcome my power, no matter how long you’ve been playing this game!”

 

I sighed at my foe’s impatience yet again. He seemed not to notice.

 

“I set a card,” he concluded, “and end. Go!”

 

“A monster like that is nothing to me, young man,” I began, "After all, I've faced a monster just like it many times before. Allow me to show you the benefit of wisdom over power. I summon ‘Skilled Dark Magician’.”

 

A robed sorcerer appeared, with thick padded shoulders and a padded chest. In his chest padding and in each shoulder there was a darkened crystal. He carried a staff tipped with a fourth crystal, alight with magical energy (ATK: 1900).

 

“I flip-summon my ‘Apprentice Magician’,” I declared. A second, younger sorcerer appeared. “When my ‘Apprentice Magician’ arrives, I can activate a Spell Counter on my ‘Skilled Dark Magician’.”

 

One of the three crystals attached to my primary monster lit up.

 

“Next I play ‘Pot of Greed’ to draw two cards, and to light up the second Spell Counter.”

 

I drew, and the second crystal lit up as well.

 

“And finally I activate ‘Magical Dimension’. I tribute a monster to summon a magician and destroy your monster.”

 

A metallic frame appeared. A coffin-like box hung within the frame, suspended by chains. The coffin opened, and the ‘Apprentice Magician’ fell inside.

 

“You won’t defeat my dinosaur so easily,” said my young opponent. “Reveal ‘Shield Sphere’,

protecting my monster from your Spell effect.”

 

“My new monster still appears,” I countered as a spherical barrier appeared around the enhanced dinosaur. “Behold my ‘Time Wizard’!”

 

A cape-wearing, staff-wielding living clock appeared at the ‘Skilled Dark Magician’’s side (ATK: 500). He unleashed a blast that broke the dinosaur’s barrier, but did nothing else.

 

“And don’t forget,” I said, “another Spell means another Counter.”

 

The third crystal lit, “I can now tribute my ‘Skilled Dark Magician’ to summon the greatest of sorcerers,” the dark-robed sorcerer was promptly replaced by the purple-clad, green-staff-wielding ‘Dark Magician’, easily the most iconic card in the game (ATK: 2500).

 

“I play ‘Second Coin Toss’,” I continued, placing the Continuous Spell into play.

 

“What are you planning?” my opponent asked. I couldn’t tell if he recognized the effect of ‘Time Wizard’ but not ‘Second Coin Toss’ or vise versa, but he obviously got one or another, because he was sweating.

 

“Just watch. Activate the effect of ‘Time Wizard’.” A spinner on the end of my ‘Time Wizard’’s staff began spinning. “You’ll notice the skulls and castles on my monster’s spinner. If the spinner stops on a skull, I lose my monsters and Life equal to half their total Attack. But if I succeed, well, you’ll see. Plus, if I fail, ‘Second Coin Toss’ lets me replay any chance-based effect with only two outcomes once per turn. I’m sure you know what that means.”

 

I waited as the spinner slowed, and finally stopped on a castle, “Looks like I don’t need my Spell. Go, Time Magic!”

 

‘Time Wizard’ raised his staff, and time itself rippled around us. My ‘Dark Magician’ aged, his hair turning silver. He grew a long beard, and his standard garbs evolved into thick, layered robes. His more mobile staff morphed into a thicker, sturdier staff made of twisted wood embedded with jewels (ATK: 2800).

 

“When ‘Dark Magician’ becomes the ‘Dark Sage’ I can move any Spell from my deck to my hand. A Spell like ‘Megamorph’, which doubles my monster’s power.”

 

A dark aura flared around the ‘Sage’. His strength was almost palpable (ATK: 5600).

 

“Next I place a card face-down and play ‘Mage Power’ to empower my Spellcaster further (5600+2000=7600).”

 

“My monster will take the brunt of your attack and I’ll make a comeback next turn,” my foe insisted. I smiled and pointed at his dinosaur. He looked up at the dinosaur that stood over him, surprised to find his beast aged into fossils. He stared in horror as his monster collapsed, turning to dust.

 

“You see,” I explained, “my ‘Time Wizard’ didn’t just age my monster.”

 

My smile faded, “I finish it. My monsters attack.”

 

‘Time Wizard’ and ‘Dark Sage’ unleashed a combination attack (Total: 8100). My opponent fell to his knees, humiliated by his loss, and fearful, as he should have been.

 

I walked over to stand over the young man. “Now drop the Shadow Item,” I said, “and leave, before I do that to you in a Shadow Game.”

 

My opponent dropped his Item, stumbled to his feet, and ran.

 

[spoiler=Card of the Day]

Wilson kicks ass. 'Nuff said.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next Chapter Holy Crap, He Has a Sword!!!

 

Sarah catches Mohawk, and finds that she has bitten off more than she can chew. Then things get worse when she actually has to be saved...by Tucker!

[legendhiro]

bump. come on, seriously, say something. i know there are people who read this.

[legendhiro]

the next chapter is ready, and so i am posting it.......now!

 

 

 

[spoiler=Chapter Two]

 

Holy Crap, He Has a Sword!!!

 

 

 

Sarah

 

 

I was on that guy. I might not look like the typical “fit girl”, but I’d bet money I’m in better shape than most of you who’re reading this (no offense). The various sports I play see to that. Anyway, I expected to catch the Mohawk guy pretty quick, but he was wicked fast. Luckily I had an ace up my sleeve.

 

You see, I told you about the powers of the Duelist’s Souls, but I never really specified what those powers are. Each Soul gives its wielder the power to Destiny Draw (draw any one card from their deck that they need) once per duel (we only use that one against bad guys, promise). The Souls probably give us powers in other games, but I don't really know. Anyway, on top of that, they give each of us the power to do things outside of games. Magical stuff based on the element that our Soul represents, as well as the aspect of our personality that the Soul represents and that connects it to us. For example, my brother John has a dark side. He can be as wicked as any of our enemies, lazy, and un-serious to the point of endangering himself and others. His Soul is the Soul of Darkness, to represent this. The power of his Soul is based on how well he balances his two halves. He can manipulate darkness, making it into solid forms, moving through it to any place on earth, or even into the minds of others. He can read or control minds, since everyone has some darkness in them. The more balanced he is, the more powers he has, and the more powerful his abilities are. Max can control fears of himself and others, giving himself control over the very livelihoods of those around him. His Soul is life, and its power comes from how well he controls his fear and therefore how strong his mastery is over his own life. He can bring peoples' fears to life. The more powerful the control, the more realistic those fears become. According to him, he can even kill weak people, or keep people from dying. Even Tucker has a but load of power. His Soul is the Soul of Fire. It feeds on the power of his determination to make and control flames. The more determined he is, the stronger his powers are.

 

But me? Until recently I couldn’t really do anything, ‘cept create, like, little bubbles and stuff. Not for lack of trying. I couldn’t figure out why my powers wouldn’t work. It was like the others had powers built in, but I didn’t. Then it hit me. My Soul is Water, the element that represents fluidity of thought. Creativity in action. Maybe I had to actually go out and make stuff up as I went along. You know, think outside the box.

 

So I did. I ran around behind old buildings and the like, playing around with my abilities. Now I have almost a full rage of control over both water and ice! I can make ice so solid its as hard as metal, freeze the water vapor around someone to slow them down, or condense the water around me into water needed for my attacks. And I can do this thing.

 

“Come on, Water Skates!” I said, and water instantly formed under my shoes, creating a low friction barrier under each one. I slid on those planes of low friction like skates, careful to keep the distant form of Mohawk in sight. As I did I grabbed my cell phone from my pocket and called Jenna. “Call the others! Have them meet you at Wilsons. Tucker is there. Wait for me! Something’s up, and I got a bad feelin’.”

 

I saw Mohawk turn a corner into an alleyway. I followed, obviously. By now I was only a few yards behind him. I turned the corner, and he was in my face! I dissolved my Water Skates and dropped quickly under a swinging object.

 

Is that a sword?!

 

I turned toward my foe. He’d overexerted himself and overreached, so his back was to me. I swept my fingers through the air and summoned Ice Bullets that I flung at his back, sped up by the power of my Soul. They wouldn’t be fatal. Probably. But before my attack could reach the target, he spun and slashed my Ice Bullets out of the air with his sword, and I saw.

 

Not a sword. A Shadow Item!

 

It wasn’t even very long. Just a gunmetal-colored rod with a black leather grip. Just the hilt of a sword. What made it look like a whole sword was the long black blade made of shadows that extended off of it.

 

It was a Shadow Sword.

 

I ducked under my opponent’s next swing and summoned up a Water Burst, launching it at Mohawk’s chest. But it was hasty, and it didn’t have the power it could have had. It served its purpose, though, and threw off Mohawk’s next swing long enough for me to swing around behind a dumpster. I summoned up some water behind the dumpster and expanded it enough to push the dumpster a few feet away from the wall. Far enough that by the time Mohawk had circled the dumpster to face me, I’d always squeezed behind it and circled around behind him again. I summoned a splash of water around Mohawk’s legs and promptly froze it, attempting to seal him in place, but a single swipe of his Shadow Sword shattered the ice and freed him. But I’d bought myself enough time to use my real technique. I summoned up a huge ball of water and condensed it into a long, super hard, sharp edged stick, like a sword of my own, harder even than steel. Mohawk swung his weapon. I swung mine. The attacks met and our blows deflected each other with enough force to shake the alleyway around us.

 

“You’re pretty tough for a kid,” said Mohawk.

 

“I’m a teenager actually,” I said, “and I know.” But I was just blowing hot air. My arm was throbbing. If I had to deflect another blow from that sword, my arm might as well fall of it’d be so useless. This guy was way stronger than me. Like, way way.

 

But remember that hot-headed idiot I told you about? I take back everything bad I ever said about him (so far).

 

“Back off!” Tucker demanded from behind me where he had just appeared around the corner of the building. He lunged past me, throwing a spinning kick at Mohawk’s head. Mohawk stepped back and swung his sword, but Tucker stepped around it with ease, stepped in close, and was on that goon. He swung a first, which Mohawk blocked. He swung another fist in rapid succession, winging Mohawk in the jaw. Mohawk stumbled back, giving Tucker time to summon up a ball of flames as big as his giant, thick head. He released the fireball. It took everything Mohawk had to deflect it with his blade.

 

“Who are you guys?” Mohawk asked, his voice gruff. He stood facing us. Tucker watched and waited in silence.

 

“Fine,” said Mohawk, responding to our un-forthcoming attitude, “I’m out of-.”

 

That’s when he saw the Soul of Fire hanging around Tucker’s neck, and he smiled. He glanced over at me and saw my Soul as well, “Oh, this is perfect. You guys are the Duel Force? A couple of kids? There’s gotta be more of ya. We’ve been hopin’ to run into you. That’s why we were out tonight. We knew you guys like to play hero, so we decided to hit up some card places. I can’t believe it. I always thought you guys’d be older.”

 

“What do you want with the Duel Force?” I demanded.

 

Mohawk’s smile widened, “Catch me and you’ll find out.” The blade of his Shadow Sword disappeared, and he seemed to melt into the shadows all around him, hidden amongst them. I could see the movement of his body, but it took all of my concentration. I might have been able to follow him, but I didn’t bother. Instead I let my icy weapon dissolve and started rubbing my arm, “OWWWWW!”

 

“You okay?” Tucker asked, genuinely concerned, looking at my sore arm.

 

“Yeah,” I said, “I’m fine, but my ARM HURTS!”

 

I grumbled for a minute before I finally began to calm down, “I’m okay. We gotta get back to Wilson’s”

 

“We aren’t going after that guy?” Tucker wondered.

 

“Not yet. But don’t worry, we will.”

 

 

Tucker and I started heading back toward Wilson’s card shop. We’d gathered the stuff that Mohawk had taken. He’d dropped it in the alley before the fight. We were walking at a normal pace when I said casually, “So, you sure handled that thing at Wilson’s quick. I called up the others and told ‘em to meet you there ‘cause I thought you’d take longer. Not that I’m complaining. You kinda saved my but.”

 

“Oh, yeah,” Tucker replied, “I didn’t take care of anything. Wilson said he’d handle it, so I let things be and came after you.”

 

I was shocked, “You left that thug alone with an old man?”

 

Tucker shrugged dismissively, “Wilson seemed to know what he was doing.”

 

“Just when I think there’s hope for you,” I said, “you go and win yourself the idiot of the year award!”

 

Needless to say, I started running.

 

 

We got back to Wilson’s so fast that it had to be a record. To my pleasant surprise, Wilson was inside the store, completely unharmed with my young but tall and gangly dark-haired cousin, Amanda, my very curvy, long-light-brown-haired other cousin Kristin, and the most unique of the unique, my second in command, Jenna. She was wearing a fleece-lined sky blue vest over a red-and-black-striped long-sleeved shirt, a denim skirt, and knee high purple-striped socks. There wasn’t a single part of her outfit that didn’t clash with her frizzy brown hair. My friends/family/team-mates were talking with Wilson, laughing, and generally having a marry time. I stepped inside, “Mr. Wilson, are you okay?”

 

“Of course, young lady,” Mr. Wilson replied. “That little pest was exactly that: a pest. He was no challenge to me.”

 

“Sarah,” Kris asked, “why don’t you make me come down here more often? I love it here!”

 

“You say that every time I get you to stop in,” I answered. Kris is nice and reliable, but more than a little spacey some times. She thought Mr. Wilson was hilarious and just generally awesome, but she could never trouble herself to come down to his shop.

 

Weird.

 

Anyway…

 

“I called you guys together this late because I had a bad feeling about the thugs that I’m sure Wil has talked your ears off about by now, and I was right. Before he ducked out, Mohawk told me and Bonehead that he was specifically looking for us.”

 

“You know,” said Tucker, “the comments hurt.”

 

Jenna spoke up next, “By ‘us’, do you mean you and Bonehead-”

 

“Come on!”

 

“-or do you mean the Duel Force?”

 

“I mean,” I answered, “the Duel Force. He recognized us by our, uh,” I glanced at Mr. Wilson, “by our you-know-whats.”

 

“You mean your Duelist’s Souls?” Wilson asked. Before my surprise could even register, he explained, “Your brother John told me about ‘em. And I have been around the block. I know a little about magic items myself, ya know.”

 

I felt like maybe Wilson wasn’t sharing the entire extent of what he knew, but I didn’t care. I didn’t have time to wonder.

 

“We have to move, guys. These two goons are after us-.”

 

“There’s only one guy left,” said Wilson. “The one I beat isn’t comin’ back.”

 

“Okay,” I said, “this one guy is after us. We need to confront him, or maybe both of them, and see what’s up. We’ll have numbers on out side, so it should be a breeze.”

 

“Maybe I should sit this out,” said Jenna. “I don’t have a magic item like you guys do.”

 

“Actually,” Mr. Wilson cut in, hopping up from his place at the card table and grabbing something off of the counter, “I have a solution to that particular problem.” He reached out and handed Jenna the rust-haired punk’s Shadow Baton.

 

Needless to say, I was impressed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next Chapter You Know Things Are Bad When...

 

Sarah and the Duel Force have another run of potentially fatal bad luck, and again Sarah must be rescued by an old friend (sigh).

[Stigma_Horrizone]

Sarah's playing with water.............sweet!!(edited)

[legendhiro]

shhh, don't call it waterbending.....the copyrights...

[senron]

Yay this new special is AMAZING!

Shush, if they hear you say their name they'll come.

Oh, I think the old friend is Max. It won't be John because it wouldn't refer to him as 'friend' and it would say Tucker if it meant Tucker. So, that only leaves Max with the ability to get there and be the 'old friend'.

[legendhiro]

good guess ever-wise senron ^_^

[legendhiro]

bump and all dat. new chapter soon.

[legendhiro]

so, i've been trollin' the site, gettin' used to the new format and fixing any problems it has caused in my own threads. i'm pretty sure i've got everything. i wanted to let my readers know that now that i've become comfortable with this format, new chapters will resume within a day or two. and, or course, once this special is over, i will resume work on my two spinoff series.

[legendhiro]

several days of no internet and heavy procrastination later, the next chapter is finally here!

 

 

[spoiler=Chapter Three]

 

You Know Things Are Bad When…

 

 

“I like that Wilson guy,” said Jenna, beaming, as we walked back to the alley where Tucker and I had fought Mohawk.

 

“You only say that cuz he gave you a magic artifact,” said Amanda.

 

“Its better than just any old Shadow Item too,” said Jenna excitedly. “I can actually use this one right off the bat!” She removed the Shadow Baton from its place tucked into her knee-high sock and twirled it expertly.”

 

“You handle that thing like a pro,” said Tucker, impressed by Jenna’s proficiency. “Do you think you can use it as a weapon?”

 

“Oh yeah,” Jenna replied frankly.

 

“I could do that too,” said Amanda. Her dark hair was cast over her eyes. She didn’t seem to mind.

 

“No you couldn’t,” Kris countered. She did care that her hair was in her eyes and was busy putting it up into a ponytail.

 

“Shut up, guys,” I said. “We’re here.”

 

I turned a corner. My friends followed. We found ourselves alone in the alleyway, evidence of the earlier battle still strewn about. A bashed dumpster here. A long gash in the solid brick of the wall there. The usual.

 

“Okay,” Tucker wondered, “we’re here. Now what?”

 

“Watch and learn,” I told him, “if it’s possible for you to learn.” My Soul of Water flared, glowing faintly, and suddenly every bit of water vapor hanging in the air around us lit up. Most of the water vapor glowed like clear diamond, but some, which formed a distinct path away from the alley, in the direction of Mohawk‘s retreat, glowed a bright cerulean blue.

 

“What is this?” Tucker asked, amazed.

 

“Aqua Memory,” I replied “When I hit Mohawk with my Water Burst I made hid some of my magical energy in it, tagging him, in case he got away. That energy rubs off on any vapor Mohawk steps through, causing it to stay in one place for a little less than a day. It retains some of that energy about half that time. Lighting up my Soul causes any water vapor around us to light up. Water vapor saturated with my magical energy lights up blue. We can follow this trail and have Mohawk and his pal cornered in no time.”

 

I was beaming with pride.

 

“Cool,” said Amanda. She sounded jealous, and she probably was. Amanda’s Soul is the Soul of Wind. it’s the Soul of quick action, and it’s fueled by how quickly she reacts to a dangerous situation, and is only really good for anything once things heat up. She has power at par with any of us during a fight, but right that moment the best she probably could have done was create a strong breeze. She likes her Soul, but sometimes she gets jealous of those of us who can use our powers any time.

 

I led the way, following the path created by my Soul, my team following at my heels. It wasn’t long before I deactivated the visual aspect of my Aqua Memory power and started going by what my Soul itself could see. The magical trail led us through the more run down sections of the city’s edge. Not the safest place for kids at night. At least not normal kids. In fact, it wasn’t long before someone attempted to mug us, and Amanda got a chance to display her power by promptly blowing him to the top of a four story building. Just for the fun of it Kris used the metal manipulating power of her Soul of Mettle to disconnect both the building’s fire escape and roof access ladders. That guy would probably be up there for days.

 

Anyway…

 

It wasn’t long before it became clear that we were headed for the warehouse district, which is essentially just six run down warehouses. They haven’t actually been used for anything in years. At least nothing either official or, ya know, legal. We followed the path of my Aqua Memory to the door of one of the warehouses scheduled for demolition. The notice on the door was dated two years earlier, so it was safe to say that any and all kinds of officials had forgotten about it.

 

“They’re in here,” I said, gesturing toward the warehouse’s heavy door.

 

Kris closed her eyes and concentrated. Her Soul glowed faintly, and after a second she announced, “The door was locked. Its not now. I did it quietly. No way the guy heard. He shouldn’t even know we’re here.”

 

“Well we can’t have that,” I said with a wicked grim. “What do you say we announce our presence.”

 

I cracked my knuckles and focused. My Soul glowed and water formed in the crack along the edge of the massive steel door. I waved my hand, and the water expanded, forcing the door open. The five of us stepped inside the dark warehouse, the automated streetlights outside the only source of illumination.

 

“Time to light this place up,” announced Tucker. He snapped his fingers, meaning to produce a flame, but instead he produced only some sparks.

 

“What the…”

 

“Guys,” said Amanda through chattering teeth, “is it just me or is getting cold in here?”

 

I looked down in the low light, “The floor is frosting over!”

 

“The cold is keeping my fire out,” explained Tucker. “Sarah?”

 

“I’m on it.” I waved my hand, trying to disperse the ice, but nothing happened. Something should have happened.

 

“Well that’s just strange,” said Tucker.

 

“Yeah,” I agreed, “and I’m not likin’ where this is goin’.”

 

The creeping ice thickened, and the ice in one point formed into a spike and stretched toward us almost to fast for me to react. I threw up my arms, creating a wall of water. Behind me Jenna held up her baton defensively, and Kris flinched, too shocked to do a thing. It was Amanda that saved us. Almost as soon as the spike formed Amanda reacted, creating a blade of wind, tinted with the green energy of Amanda’s Soul, and shattered the oncoming ice. Then she focused and her Soul flashed green, creating a small, green-tinted tornado around us that shattered the closest of the ice, buying us some time. The ice was still creeping closer, but it was still a ways away.

 

“Any ideas, Boss?” Jenna asked.

 

“Yeah, Boss,” asked Tucker, “what are we doin’ here?”

 

“I don’t know,” I said honestly. “I didn’t expect anything like this. Just stay on your toes.”

 

“Can do,” Kris replied, having recovered from her previous shock. Determined to redeem herself, Kris activated her Soul and scrap metal from around the warehouse flew to her arm and attached as if her arm was magnetic. A wave of electricity ran down her new robotic armor and collected in her hand.

 

I smiled, Guess Kris has been practicing with her powers too.

 

Amanda called up a ball of swirling air, tinted by her green aura, I surrounded myself with multiple floating water balls that I could expand out to form various attacks, and Jenna held her Shadow Baton at the ready, its ends lighting up with Shadow fire.

 

“Best I can do is create a wave of heat around my hands,” said Tucker.

 

“Stop whining,” I commanded, “and get ready.”

 

The ice seemed to stop creeping, but I only felt more threatened. Like I was in a safari in the path of a tiger about to pounce. I grumbled, Something’s coming.

 

Suddenly my water balls froze and shattered, leaving me defenseless. Then the ice suddenly sprung forward, creating multiple thrusting spikes, most of which were aimed at me and Tucker. It was all I could do to avoid the spikes without dying. Tucker held his hands like knives and slashed at the spikes as they neared him, splitting them in two with a burst of heat. Kris shattered two spikes with a burst of electricity. Amanda shattered the few spikes bound for her with a single burst of compressed air, and Jenna shattered a crap load of spikes with a forceful twirl of the Shadow Baton.

 

“This is stupid,” I said. “I’m no sitting duck.” I ran into the darkness around us, forming my extra strong ice blades in each hand. I called back to my friends, “Spread out and find this guy!”

 

Amanda ran in a different direction alongside Kris. Both were hit by a fleeting high kick launched by a slender form that retreated instantly back into the darkness. They were sent sprawling. Tucker moved to follow them and found his legs frozen in a block of ice that quickly crept upward to encase his hands as well. Jenna had her baton blown from her hand by a strong burst of wind that also served to knock her over.

 

That’s when Mohawk reappeared, stepping out of the deeper darkness with his sword held high. He struck. I defended, but the force of his blow brought me to my knees. I expected Mohawk to strike the final blow, but instead he stepped back and simply stood over me. “Pity,” he said, “I really thought that taking on the Duel Force would be more fun than this.”

 

I thought he was just talking smack until something surprising happened. A voice came from within the darkness, “I’m sorry, Baby.”

 

A tall, lean woman dressed in leather, with dark green hair, wearing dark green eyeliner and lipstick of the same shade, stepped up beside Mohawk and hung on him possessively. I noticed that she wore a deep emerald green crystal pendant. She asked, “Want me to torture them a little and see if I can spice things up?”

 

“Don’t bother.” Mohawk replied. I’m just gonna finish them off and get it over with. I’m gonna kill the pathetic excuse for a leader, and then I’m gonna kill the one who stole Jimmy’s baton and scared him off,” he looked up at Jenna. “You can have the water Soul if you want. I like the fire one.”

 

“No fair,” came a third voice, this time a male voice, from within the shadows, “I want the fire one!”

 

“Don’t you think that the metal Soul would suite you better? Or maybe the wind Soul?” Mohawk asked. As he spoke a tall disheveled man with erratic eyes, long(-ish) unkempt red hair and chin stubble appeared.

 

“But I like fire,” the man whined.

 

“You will take the Soul I tell you to take, Snap!” Mohawk cried, and the man seemed to shrink back, defeated.

 

“Yes, Mask,” Snap replied sheepishly.

 

“I want the baton,” came yet another voice, and a young male figure about my brother’s age (so about seventeen or eighteen) with long red-blond hair, wearing a white shirt and black jeans emerged from behind Mohawk, or I guess Mask. He had his hands placed nonchalantly in his pockets, and he wore a cool smirk across his face. “You know I’ve never liked the idea of the Souls. They’re too powerful. They make things too easy.”

 

“Works for me, Scourge,” Mask told his compatriot. He turned to look behind his back, “What about you, Warp?”

 

“I’d prefer the metal Soul,” came a final male voice, and I noticed a dark-haired man in his forties wearing glasses and an old lab coat standing at the edge of the light.

 

“Frost?” Mask asked, looking deep into the shadows into the very back of the room. I squinted, and I could barely make out the form of a young woman with pale blue hair, staring blankly ahead. I could feel that she was the source of the ice, and when I looked closely, I could see a blue crystal hanging around her neck. She remained silent in the face of her leader’s question. Mask laughed mockingly, “Of course you don’t care. Okay,” he continued, “so its settled. I get the fire Soul, Scourge gets Jimmy’s baton, Snap gets the wind Soul, Warp gets the metal Soul, Frost gets nothing-.”

 

“And I,” said Princess Leather, “get the water Soul, right now!”

 

And while I knelt there, dumbfounded by how completely I had underestimated my enemy, the green crystal around the leather-bound woman’s neck began to glow, and a spinning blade of emerald-green-tinted wind formed, hovering just above her palm. She prepared to unleash it. I was too stunned to move. Too stunned to fight back.

 

“NOOO!!” I heard Tucker cry. There was a burst of heat and a flash of red light, and I heard the ice that had been encasing Tucker shatter, snapping me out of my stupor. I saw Tucker lunge past me, acting heroically with little regard for himself, causing Leather to recoil and her attack to collapse. She jumped back out of Tucker’s reach, and Mask charged forward. But he was too late. Tucker kicked Mask’s sword to the side and summoned up a fireball, letting it fly at the defenseless swordsman. But just before the attack could hit, Scourge moved himself into the path of the fireball. A disk-shaped pendant that he wore flashed, and a disk-shaped energy shield appeared, deflecting the fire.

 

“I don’t know how you overpowered Frost’s cold, Fire Boy,” said Scourge, “but know that my shield can deflect any magical attack.”

 

“That’s not true,” spoke yet another new voice, “ just ones as straightforward as his magical attacks.” Suddenly I felt a cold but reassuring presence beside me. Of course I recognized him at once without even looking. Even if I had, I wouldn’t have been able to see his face, thanks to the dark cloak that he wore, clasped around his neck by a metal disk embedded with the amber-colored Soul of Life.

 

I smiled at the arrival of Reaper, better known as-, “Max!”

 

“Who the hell are-.” Mask began, but Max raised his hand, his Soul glowing. A look of fear overcame Mask, causing him to stumble back and almost fall over. But his composure was quickly restored and he looked at Max with a hatred that normal people usually reserve for Tucker. Max lowered his hood, revealing fierce blue eyes, a head of short, self-cut blond hair, and a confident smile, “I told you. That was a taste of my Wave of Fear. What did you think?” he asked rhetorically. Then he looked over at me, “Hey kid. I was planning on busting these guys tonight too.”

 

I smiled again. “Great minds,” I replied, feeling that Max had been watching over us all night, waiting for a chance to make his presence known.

 

Or maybe not. How should I know?

 

I let Max help me to my feet, and I looked Mask in the eye, “How does it feel, seeing the tables turning before your eyes? Can you still beat us when it’s a six-on-six fair fight? Or should we settle this in a game, keep things less messy?”

 

“That sounds good to me,” Mask replied arrogantly, eager to prove himself in the aftermath of Max’s magic. But despite his tough front, I saw a bead of nervous sweat form on Mask’s brow. “We defected from the Duelists Elite to pursue our own power,” Mask explained. “All of our hard work will not go to waist. We’ll beat you, and your powers will be ours.”

 

As our two teams paired off, me against Mask, Amanda against the girlfriend, Max against Scourge, Tucker against the silent Frost, Jenna against Snap, and Kris against Warp, I looked Mask in the eye and shot him a smirk that would have made my brother proud, “We’ll see about that.”

 

 

 

 

 

Next Chapter Beating Up Some Jerkbags Using Trading Cards, Part 1

 

I think the name says it all...

[senron]

Liked the chapter. I loved how everybody has really improved their powers beyond just being good at card games. I like this band of defectors. In the sense that they seem to be fairly frightening villians. And I'm glad that Max showed up. So, is the rest of this special going to just be their duels and maybe some flashbacks? Or, can we expect some other villian that has orchestrated this from behind the scenes or something like that?

[legendhiro]

just the duels. i don't want to get to deep into something in a special akin to a movie length episode of a tv series. but if i do decide to do a sort of duel force revival with this cast of heroes, then who knows!

[Aviv: D's Knight]

when will the next chapter be up?(I'm not accustomed to waiting for these.)

[legendhiro]

a few days. a week tops. i've been busy as of late.

[legendhiro]

sorry guys. i just went on a week-long vacation. unbeknown to me, my cabin had no wi fi. its a little late to post tonight, and the next chapter could use another readover anyway. my plate is pretty full tomorrow, but i hope to get the next chapter up monday. i'm also planning a preview of my next full series (if three books constitutes a series ;) ) that will take place eighteen years after the end of DA, and will only tie loosely back to the original Duel Force (more or less).

[Aviv: D's Knight]

good because I'm leaving on a yearlong trip Tuesday.

[Stigma_Horrizone]

sweet.

[cybernerd1234]

this is legend!

[legendhiro]

so, funny story. this is the first time since my last post that my login has worked. i have no idea why. anyway, the next chapter is ready, but i'm at my sisters where i don't have access to it. hopefully my login will work on my computer when i get home tomorrow. sorry all!

[legendhiro]

so, another funny story.

 

uh...

 

well...

 

i figured out why i haven't been able to get onto this site lately. looks like i somehow reset my firewall settings to block this page.

 

oops...

 

anyway, this time off (for lack of a better term) has given me a chance to rethink some stuff related to this book. i have mentioned that i am considering one more story of the duel force, of sarah's duel force, following this special. i want anyone who reads this (all two of you ;) ) to be in the place to offer your opinion on this subject at special's end, so i have expanded the next two chapters into at least three or four, added a few more twists, and created an opening for the introduction of a new character. the next chapter, which is now very long, is not quite finished being re-written, so i plan to release it in two parts. the first will be up shortly, and the second will be up soon. probably tomorrow. for real this time.

[legendhiro]

and here it is!!! part two has been added.

 

 

 

 

[spoiler=Chapter Four, Part One]

 

Beating Up Some Jerkbags Using Trading Cards, Part 1

 

 

Tucker

 

 

“You guys were seriously in the Elite?” I asked my opponent, the girl called Frost. I was feeling more inquisitive than usual.

 

Yes, I just insulted myself. I guess Sarah’s attitude is rubbing off on me.

 

Anyway, I asked my question, and my opponent didn’t speak. She didn’t look me in the eye. She didn’t react or respond at all. She was, no pun intended, as cold as ice.

 

“Guess you don’t talk much,” I told the girl. I looked her over for a minute. She was pretty, between mine and Sarah’s ages. She didn’t look mean, but she’d attacked Sarah and the others and frozen me. She was our enemy.

 

“If you don’t wanna talk,” I declared, “Then I’ll go first. I summon ‘Blazing Inpachi’.”

 

A giant man made of connected logs appeared, his entire body alight with flames (ATK: 1850).

 

“I set a card and pass,” I said, waiting for any kind of reaction from my foe. Finally, she responded. Her face grew more determined, and she drew an opening hand of six cards.

 

“I summon my ‘Blizzard Dragon’,” Frost declared, and a pale blue-gray-skinned dragon appeared at her side, its wings folded tight at its sides, its head sitting a foot or so above its master’s (ATK: 1800).

 

“My monster can freeze an opponent’s monster in place for one full turn.”

 

“No way,” I said. “My monster’s flames will protect him!”

 

Frost ignored me. Her dragon breathed a stream of super-chilled air that surrounded my monster, suppressing his flames. Patches of ice formed across my monster’s body. The ice immediately began to melt. It would be gone by the end of my turn. But until then, my monster couldn’t do anything.

 

“Okay,” I said, “point taken. My move. I summon ‘Thing in the Crater’, defense mode, and end my turn.”

 

As the smoldering, shadowy humanoid figure of my monster appeared at my side (DEF: 1200), I thought to myself, I’d better play things cool for now. I’ve never seen that dragon card before, and I’ve never fought an ice-themed deck. If John were here, he’d feel things out and take it slow, so that’s what I’m gonna do. After all, who knows how many more cards this girl has that I’ve never even seen.

 

If I screw up now, I’ll be proving right everything Sarah’s ever said about me. Better safe than sorry.

 

 

Jenna

 

 

My opponent was a freaky one. Mask had called him Snap. It was obviously some kind of codename, but as I watched my opponent’s face switch with hyperactive energy, I realized just how appropriate a codename it was.

 

“I don’t know as much ‘bout you as you guys seem to know about us,” I admitted, “but that’s not gonna stop me from doin’ my part to take you guys down. I get this game rolling by setting a monster. I pass.”

 

By making such a simple move, I was daring my opponent to attack. It was a tactic good against novice Duelists, tricking them into falling for some kind of trap. Any experienced Duelist would wait to attack until their position was more secure, just to be safe. I was testing the actual integrity of my opponent’s erratic-seeming mind.

 

“I won’t be drawn into attacking so easily, no no,” my opponent said hastily. “No, instead I’ll mimic your play by setting a monster of my own, and I’ll improve upon it by setting three more cards!”

 

“Too bad for you, my move was only a bluff,” I said. “I was testing you. You passed, except that you played way too many face-down cards. You are setting up a combo, which means there’s about a fifty-fifty chance that my monster will survive an attack. A chance that I’m gonna take. Flip-Summon the fierce, piercing beast, ‘Gyaku-Gire Panda’!”

 

An aggressive-looking panda appeared at my side, holding a stalk of bamboo in his right paw.

 

“My monster gains extra Attack for every monster my opponent controls (ATK: 800+500=1300).”

 

“In response to your Flip-Summon,” Snap countered, “I reveal my Continuous Trap card ‘Synthetic Seraphim’.”

 

“All that does is summon monsters,” I said. “You’re goin’ out of your way to help my monster out. ‘Panda’, attack!”

 

My monster charged, with sharp, outstretched claws raised high.

 

“Reveal,” said Snap over-excitedly, “the Counter Trap card ‘Negate Attack’, stopping you monster in its tracks!”

 

A vortex appeared in the path of my monster. It swept him up and tossed him back to my side of the field.

 

“Activating a Counter Trap,” Snap explained, “activates my ‘Synthetic Seraphim’, and summons a ‘Seraphim Token’ in defense mode!”

 

A tiny ceramic angelic creature appeared at my foe’s feet (DEF: 300). My ‘Panda’ roared as his power rose (ATK: 1300+500=1800).

 

He knows my ‘Panda’’s power, I thought. I even told it to him! Why would he risk summoning a monster, especially one with such low defense? What is his strategy? What is he planning?

 

“I end my turn,” I said, still wondering.

 

“Then it’s my turn,” Snap announced ecstatically, his voice cracking with excitement. “I Flip-Summon my ‘Cat of Ill Omen’! This lets me move any Trap from my deck to the top of my deck!”

 

He fanned out his deck and picked a card, replaced his deck, and placed the card atop it.

 

“Reveal,” Snap continued, “the Trap card ‘Jar of Greed’. I add the card I just searched to my hand, and I finish with two face-down cards.”

 

Great, I thought. One of those cards could very easily be the card he just added to his hand, and that card could be any Trap in the game! I have no idea what he’s planning, so I can’t even make a guess what card it is.

 

This sucks!

 

 

Max

 

 

“You can’t overcome my powers in a duel,” said my opponent, the mysterious Scourge, “even if your powers are stronger than mine out of a duel, and we never settled whether or not they are.”

 

“Your pride astounds me,” I remarked. “Your barrier pendant was ineffective against my Wave of Fear, just as your deck will be ineffective against mine, Fear of Death.”

 

I drew my opening hand, “I summon ‘Emissary of the Afterlife’ (ATK: 1600).”

 

A fiendish-looking grim reaper appeared, carrying a decorated scythe.

 

“Additionally,” I continued, “I set two cards. Your move.”

 

“Then the real battle begins now,” Scourge replied. “I summon ‘Familiar Knight’!” A relatively simple-looking knight appeared, wearing silver-gray armor and a long red cape, his sword drawn and held in a defensive posture (DEF: 1400).

 

“That’s nothing,” I replied, drawing my next card. “I attack your ‘Knight’ with my reaper’s Screaming Sickle!”

 

‘Emissary’ slunk forward like a shadow and sliced the ‘Knight’ in half.

 

“When ‘Familiar Knight’ is destroyed,” Scourge explained, “we each Special Summon a Level Four monster from our respective hands. I know all about your deck. I know that it actually contains very few monsters that are exactly Level Four, and because one of the few monsters is already on your field, I’m betting that you don’t have an appropriate monster in your hand. That means I get to summon a monster, keeping the ratio of monsters on the field at one to one. I’ll begin my turn as if you never even attacked. Through the effect of my ‘Familiar Knight’, I summon ‘Armageddon Knight’!”

 

A new swordsman appeared, this one wearing scraped and dented rusty-brown armor, goggles, and a tattered red scarf (ATK: 1400).

 

“When this particular monster is summoned,” Scourge explained, “I can discard a Dark monster from my deck. A monster like ‘Marie the Fallen One’.”

 

His card ejected from his deck, and he added it to his Graveyard.

 

“Well,” I said, “you were right about the cards in my hand. But you were wrong. I will be summoning a monster. And thanks to you, it will be exactly the monster I want! Just the monster I need! I activate ‘The Clinging Darkness’, allowing me to summon the ‘Spirit Reaper’ from my deck!”

 

 

I smiled, full of pride, as I was surrounded by a lingering smoky fog, “If you’ve really read about me from my time with the Duel Force, then you know that my ‘Spirit Reaper’ being on the field is very bad for you.” The dark smoke coalesced, taking on the form of a cloaked reaper that emerged suddenly from darkness like the hand of death itself (DEF: 200).

 

“I end my turn,” I taunted. “Just try to kill me. I’ll be over here, laughing as you fail.”

 

[spoiler=Chapter Four, Part Two]

 

 

Amanda

 

 

“You seem like a nice girl,” said my leather-bound slut of an opponent in that voice that adults use when they’re being condescending to kids, “so why don’t you just gimme the Soul and leave. If you can get out the door before I get bored I probably won’t chop you up into pieces.”

 

“You’re a slut,” I said frankly, “and a b****.”

 

“Why you!” my opponent cried, her crystal Shadow Item flashing. Wind tinted with emerald-colored energy formed around her, forming a swirling disk (like the Destructo Disk in Dragonball Z). She threw it at me. I raised my hand and dispersed her attack with a burst of my own green-tinted wind.

 

“Play nice,” I said, because I’m awesome like that, and because I wasn’t scared at all (more or less).

 

“I’m Gale of the Dark Elite,” my opponent spat, “and I will not be bested my some child!”

 

I smiled a bit, “We’ll see.”

 

I drew my opening hand, “Activate ‘Pot of Greed’ to draw two cards.”

 

I drew again, Just what I was hoping for!

 

“Next,” I continued, “I place three cards face-down and summon ‘Birdface’.”

 

A humanoid bird with feathered arms and the head of a hawk appeared, hanging in the air to my side (ATK: 1600).

 

“And finally,” I concluded, “I play the Spell card ‘Card Destruction’ to discard my last two cards and draw two new cards.”

 

“Maybe you didn’t know,” Gale remarked in an almost seductive voice that I took to signify renewed confidence, “but I also get to throw out my five cards and draw five new cards.” She looked over her brand new hand, “Prepare to lose, little girl!”

 

“Why,” I asked casually, “did you draw the five pieces of ‘Exodia’? ‘Cuz that’s the only way you’re gonna beat me!”

 

“You little brat!” Gale exclaimed. “I activate ‘Monster Reborn’ to revive one of the monsters that you were so kind as to discard for me, my ‘Storm Shooter’! I line the birdman up with your face-down card on the end!”

 

The heavily-feathered yellow and blue birdman appeared at Gale’s side, facing my hidden card (ATK: 2300).

 

“My monster uses Wind Burst,” Gale explained, “to return the card to your hand.” A blast of compressed air launched from the birdman’s flapping wings and blasted my card off of the field.

 

“I summon another birdman,” Gale declared, “the ‘Sonic Shooter’.” Another monster, almost identical to ‘Storm Shooter’ but slightly smaller and with a pale violet body and brown wings, appeared hovering alongside Gale’s first monster (ATK: 1300).

 

“‘Storm Shooter’ kills ‘Birdface’ with Storm Bullet!”

 

Gale laughed as my monster was shredded by a blast of compressed air launched with a SNAP! from the birdman‘s flapping wings (8000+1600-2300=7300).

 

“And I’ll follow up with my ‘Sonic Shooter’’s Sonic Burst!”

 

‘Sonic Shooter’ blasted past me, catching me in his slipstream, nearly knocking me on my butt (7300-1300=6000).

 

“Destroying ‘Birdface’ lets me search my deck for a ‘Harpie’ monster,” I declared, removing my deck from the loader and taking a card from it, “and I turn the tables in this duel with my key card, the card that will lead to my defeat this turn!”

 

“That’s impossible,” my opponent stated, absolutely certain of the truth of her statement. If only she knew how wrong she was.

 

“My key card,” I continued, “is the Trap card ‘Hysteric Party’! I discard my the ‘Harpie’ that I added to my hand, ‘Harpie Lady 1’, to revive her and the two ‘Harpie Queen’ cards discarded by my ‘Card Destruction’!”

 

I saw a moment of fear flash behind my opponent’s cold eyes “Wha-?”

 

On my field appeared three beautiful women, all with feathered wing-arms and bird legs. One had long orange hair and green feathers (‘Harpie Lady 1’ ATK: 1300) and the others were taller and more elegant with long green hair and white feathers (‘Harpie Queen’ ATK: 1900 (each)).

 

“My ‘Harpie Lady 1’ raises the power of my Wind monsters by three hundred apiece (ATK: 1300+300=1600/ATK: 1900+300=2200 (each)). I also play ‘Elegant Egotist’ times two to summon ‘Harpie Lady 2’ and ‘Harpie Lady 3’ from my deck to tribute for ‘Harpie’s Pet Dragon’!”

 

Two more ‘Harpies’ appeared and were promptly replaced by a large red dragon wearing a golden necklace and crown, as well as a leash-like chain (ATK: 2000).

 

“As a Wind monster,” I explained, “my ‘Dragon’ gets the bonus from my ‘Harpie’. She also gains an additional three hundred Attack for every ‘Harpie Lady’ I control.”

 

The dragon’s power rose before my eyes (2000+300+(300x3)=3200). “You’re kidding!” Gale screeched disbelievingly. I ignored her.

 

“Finally,” I finished, “I reveal ‘United We Stand’, equipping it to my dragon, raising her Attack by another eight hundred for every monster I control!” Gale’s eyes widened and she stared on in horror as the Attack power of my monster grew even further, empowered by the mere presence of her peers (3200+(800x4)=6400).

 

“My monsters attack at once!” I commanded. My dragon breathed fire, incinerating the ‘Storm Shooter’ (8000+2300-6400=3900), ‘Harpie Lady 1’ shredded ‘Sonic Shooter’ with her powerful claws (3900+1300-1600=3600), and my remaining monsters swiped at my opponent’s exposed form (3600-3800=0). Gale fell to her knees, shocked. I walked over to her, “I’ve never done this, but I guess its pretty easy. My Soul knows how to do it.”

 

I held up my palm, aiming it at my foe’s forehead, and my Soul flashed as I called, “Penalty Game Mind Wipe!”

 

Gale slumped over, unconscious. I reached down and yanked the crystal Item from her neck.

 

“You’re still a really bad person,” I said to her, “and not even magic can change that, but at least without your memories of the Shadow Items you won’t be able to hurt people anymore.”

 

I put the crystal Item in my pocket and walked away.

 

 

Kristin

 

 

I stood facing the lab coated warp. He looked smart, but I got a feeling from him. A feeling that as smart as he was, he wasn’t a very imposing gamer. A gamer, especially someone who plays Duel Monsters, has to be able to use their intelligence and instinct together to form a structured deck with a working strategy. When it comes to doing just that, there’s no one better than me, and all the smarts in the world wasn’t going to do anything to change that.

 

“Me first,” I insisted. My opponent didn’t object, so I drew my opening hand. “I summon the multi-armed weapon drone ’Mechanicalchaser’!”

 

My monster appeared, levitating at my side, each of its many arms ending in a different weapon (ATK: 1850).

 

“To finish my turn,” I concluded, “I place two cards face-down. Go.”

 

“Well then,” Warp announced, “I begin with the Spell card ’Dark Hole’, a Spell that creates a singularity to swallow your machine.”

 

“Singu-what?” I asked. “Speak English!”

 

Warp smiled darkly and pointed straight up, “It means black hole.”

 

I looked up just in time to see a black vortex crackle open. I could feel its excess gravity pulling me toward it, and I saw the much more substantial effect on my monster as it was pulled inside and literally stretched into a strand of molecules. The vortex closed afterward.

 

“Not cool, man,” I told my opponent. He ignored me.

 

“I set a monster,” warp concluded, “and two face-down cards. Your move, young lady. Make the best of it, because you won’t get many more.”

 

Now it was my turn to ignore him, “Here I go, I draw, and I begin by fusing my ‘Roboyarou’ with my ‘Robolady’ by means of ‘Polymerization’.”

 

A male, humanoid robot in blue mechanical armor appeared alongside a female humanoid robot in largely identical pink armor. The two monsters merged and formed a slightly larger, darker-skinned male figure in blue armor with pink shoulder pads. A dual-ended lance with pink metal hand guards appeared in his outstretched right hand.

 

“I present my ‘Super Roboyarou’,” I announced. My monster brandished his weapon (ATK: 1200). “’Super Roboyarou’ is a machine designed for monster-on-monster combat. His programming allows him to predict the offensive and defensive moves of an enemy capable of fighting him, and allows him to calculate the optimum angle of attack, raising his offensive power in battle by one thousand. I’ll have him attack your monster.”

 

‘Super Roboyarou’ charged his lance with energy and lunged at the hidden card (ATK: 1200+1000=2200).

 

“Attacking with your scrap metal mandroid triggers my Trap, ‘Hidden Singularity’, and reveals the face-down ‘Gravitic Orb’.”

 

Oh crap!

 

“When ‘Gravitic Orb’ is flipped, the battle positions of your monsters are changed,” Warp explained, “and ‘Hidden Singularity’ destroys any monster that changes to defense mode during the Battle Phase.”

 

 

An orb of dark energy appeared. My monster thrust his lance through it, causing waves of heavy gravity to wash over him, forcing him to defend himself. An instant later a small black hole opened up and my monster was swallowed up inside.

 

“During the Damage Step,” I declared, “while the damaged ‘Orb’ is still in play, I reveal ‘Hidden Barrel’, dealing you twelve hundred damage.”

 

A hidden gun appeared from the ground at my side and fired at my opponent, hitting him square in the chest (8000-1200=6800), and the energy of my foe’s ‘Orb’ faded away. “At least my move wasn’t a total loss.”

 

Well this is interesting, I thought. Our monster zones are both empty, and his Life is lower than mine, but its his turn. This match could go either way.

 

Cool.

 

 

Sarah

 

 

“I’ve heard good things about the Duelists of the Duel Force,” said Mask. “I hope you are as worthy as I’ve heard, or else this will be even more boring than I already expect it to be.”

 

“Don’t worry,” I said sarcastically, “I’ll make this duel interesting for you. After all, that’s what I live for.”

 

I drew my opening hand and continued seriously, “I begin with ‘Ocean’s Keeper’, the Goldfish Warrior!”

 

A four and a half foot tall, three-eyed goldfish appeared, standing on his tail and grasping a trident in his fins (ATK: 1500).

 

“Next I place a card face-down and change the battlefield with ‘A Legendary Ocean’!”

 

I played my card, and the ground below mine and Mask’s feet became disguised by a hologram of a deep ocean, a golden city visible far below the surface.

 

“This Field Spell card lowers the Levels of monsters I control and monsters in my hand by one. It also boosts the power of Water monsters by two hundred. Monsters like my ‘Ocean’s Keeper’ (ATK: 1500+200=1700). And to secure my advantage, I play ‘Field Barrier’, protecting my Field Spell from being replaced or destroyed.”

 

The hologram of my Field Spell was encased in an energy barrier. The hologram of my second Spell appeared alongside it.

 

“You don’t like to leave yourself open, do you?” Mask asked mockingly.

 

“Being prepared is what I’m good at,” I replied, filled with pride.

 

“It’s that attitude that will lead to your defeat,” said Mask, equally prideful.

 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I demanded, annoyed.

 

Mask chuckled, “You’ll see.”

 

He drew to begin his first turn, “I summon my ‘Melchid the Four-Faced Beast’.” A strange, levitating creature appeared. It was essentially a central core body with four faces, each looking in a different direction, and each wearing a different, menacing mask (ATK: 1500).

 

“Thanks to your Field Spell,” Mask declared, “my monster isn’t even equal to yours in this form, so I’ll increase his power with ‘Mask of Brutality’!”

 

The mask on the face of ‘Melchid’ that was facing me was replaced by a round tribal mask with an orb in the forehead and small hands reaching out from here the eye holes would have been (1500+1000=2500).

 

“My monster attacks and kills the ‘Ocean’s Keeper’,” Mask declared. His monster charged full speed at mine, tackling him and crushing him. The four-faced monster continued through toward me.

 

“Nice try,” I said, “but I have this!” The water at my feet churned and finally sprung up, forming a wall of violently rotating cyclones that deflected the excess battle damage, “I reveal ‘Tornado Wall’! As long as I have access to water, my Life Points are safe from battle damage of any kind. And on top of that, when ‘Ocean’s Keeper’ is destroyed, I get to add the ‘Cranium Fish’ in my deck to my hand!”

 

A card ejected from my deck. I added it to my hand.

 

“There’s more than one way to damage you’re Life Points,” said Mask. “I told you that your preparedness would lead to your destruction! Activate ‘Mask of Dispel’, equipping it to the ‘Field Barrier’. While equipped, it will drain away five hundred of your Life at the start of each of my turns.”

 

A mask like the one from “Scream”, but darker, appeared attached to my ‘Barrier’ Spell.

 

This guy’s pretty good, I thought, and he seems well prepared, just like me. But I’ve already gotten my ass kicked by this guy and let him lead me and my team into a trap. I will not let him get the best of me again, no matter what!

 

 

 

No Card of the Day this time. There are too many to choose from.

 

 

 

 

 

Next Chapter Beating Up Some Jerkbags Using Trading Cards, Part 2

 

The name says it all...

[senron]

Awesome new chapter. Can't wait to see this. Though, I don't care whether you write another book of this or not. If you do, great, and I'll definetly read it. If not, you'll have more time to write the other ones which is just as good.

[legendhiro]

thanks senron. i always appreciate your opinion.

[Goldeneagle]

Wow... I just read through every single chapter of every book of the series in the past week, and it is the best fan fic I have ever read. I can't wait to see what comes next. 11/10

[legendhiro]

chapt. four part two has been added to the post above!

 

Wow... I just read through every single chapter of every book of the series in the past week, and it is the best fan fic I have ever read. I can't wait to see what comes next. 11/10

 

thanks dude! i have two more fics out there. they are shorter and aren't finished yet, but you might like 'em. the links to 'em can be found in my signature.

 

new chapter tues. (hopefully, as there is still some stuff that isn't finalized yet and might take some time to get just right)