Chapter 113: Chapter 118
TW: Discussion of shootings
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"You are… going to honestly wait this entire time?" the young woman (though she was older than Joey, he realized as he glanced at her) said with a raised eyebrow.
"Well yeah," Joey said. "I don't feel like getting' run over. I mean, I like bein' out of the day hospital, ya follow me?"
The woman just stared at him blankly.
"What?"
"I… I honestly can't tell if you're a genius or a moron."
"That's what all dem specialists my school hired ta test me always used ta say," Joey replied, hands stuffed in his pockets as he rocked back and forth on his heels.
"Enough of this, Aria," a new voice said and Joey turned to find a businessman in a suit walking over to them. "Clearly he thought that he could run away from his fate… but thanks to my little trick he has already fallen right into my trap."
"Trick?" Joey said, tilting his head. "Trap? Man, what are ya talkin' about?"
The businessman smirked. "Why, what I did to bring you here, Joseph." He raised his hand, snapping his fingers, and the façade of the courthouse building slammed down to the ground. In fact all the buildings began to fall, crashing to the street to reveal they were all just made of flat balsa wood, propped up to look like a city. The cars deflated like they were pool toys and the road crumbled to dust. The sky was the last, rolling up tightly before disappearing, leaving Joey standing in a warehouse with industrial lights hung up and scaffolding all over. "My little trick in pretending to be my associate Johnson. You came here expecting to deal with him but instead you now face me." He took a step forward. "Oh… how it must burn you to know that all the plans you made to deal with him amount to nothing and now you must scramble to figure out how to counter me!"
But Joey… just stared at the man in confusion.
"Am I supposed ta know who Johnson is?"
"…what?"
"I ain't never heard of dat Johnson guy. Is he important?"
The businessman frowned. "Johnson. Member of the Big 5? Former attorney for Gozaburo Kaiba?"
"Not ringin' any bells, pal."
"You expect me to believe that you never did any research on KaibaCorp after Seto Kaiba became your enemy?"
"Why would I?" Joey asked. "You ain't duelin' me. Rich boy was the only one ta actually have the guts ta take on me and Yug so I learned about him. I don't care about his pencil pushers."
"Pencil… pencil pusher! You dare call-" The businessman suddenly stopped, reaching up and straightening his tie. "Ah, I see… trying to upset me in hopes that you will throw me off my game. A clever attempt… but a failure all the same."
"…uh huh, let's go with dat," Joey said, wondering about the man before him's sanity.
"But you can't hide your terror… you realize that of all your friends you have drawn the worst lot by coming to my attention. For I am Nezbit, the creator of the Virtual World!"
Joey looked about, now feeling a bit more impressed. "Ya created this entire game world?"
"IT IS NO GAME!" Nezbit roared, so loud and forceful it had Joey sliding back a few feet, his hair blowing out behind him like he'd been caught in a massive storm. "I designed this world for far grander things than a mere child's plaything!" Nezbit began to pace, Joey turning so that he could keep an eye on him; considering how the man's mood kept switching he didn't want to leave the freaky dude able to attack him from behind. "I designed the Virtual World setting to mimic the real world perfectly. Artificial gravity so that I would understand how objects would land after an explosion. Physics taken into account so that I could understand blow back and shockwaves. Biology carefully made for ever virtual being so that they would react to strikes and assaults just like a normal human. Crowd control that understood terror and fear-"
"What the heck did ya need all that for!?!" Joey exclaimed.
Nezbit frowned. "To better understand weapons, of course." He let out a scoff. "It is one thing to tell a general that a new semi automatic machine gun can fire armor piercing rounds into their foes. It is quite another to allow them to see it in action." He waved his hand about and Joey yelped when he saw faceless goons suddenly march into the warehouse, shoving women and children who were bound and gagged to a square painted on the floor. "With my program one is able to input any weapon that we wish to make and then see in real time how they will function, allowing KaibaCorp to better understand them before they go out into the battlefield."
And with that the faceless soldiers all drew their machine guns and pointed them at the hostages.
"WAIT!" Joey screamed but it was too late. The soldiers, without a second thought, gun down their prisoners, Joey staring in horror as their bodies were torn to bits. Some fell within seconds. Others remained standing, forms jerking and twitching with every impact before they fell to the ground in a heap. "You sick freak!" Joey roared, turning on Nezbit and trying to deck him only for the businessman to dodge his strike.
"Why do you care?" Nezbit asked. "They aren't real. Just strings of code. Do you mourn when you press the CLEAR button on your calculator?"
"Maybe… maybe dey weren't real," Joey panted, "but the people in the real world ya want ta use dem weapons are… they're real!"
"I don't want to use a single weapon on a single person," Nezbit said with a sniff. "I merely create the ways for us to test them. It is the rest of a humanity that is eager for violence. Can you blame me for what they do with our weapons? I wouldn't care if they hung them on a wall or spent their days just admiring the craftsmanship… it is their choice to use them to slaughter others."
"Ya know what dey want ta do with'em and still give'em the guns," Joey snapped.
"I never pulled a trigger. Not once."
"Keep tellin' yourself dat," Joey growled, glaring at the man. "Never thought I'd say dis but I agree with Kaiba… it's a good thing he shut all dis down."
That caused Nezbit's eye to twitch. "You… think it's a good thing that he took my work and twisted it into some fanciful little adventure game? How would you like it if all you had worked on, all you had struggled to create, was ripped away from you in order to satisfy some stunted manchild's need to reclaim the youth he squandered away?"
"If I were a sick freak who got off on watchin' people get slaughtered? I'd be glad he gave me da kick in the nuts ta stop me." Joey held out his arm and a duel disc appeared. "And knowin' that ya plan ta try and take my body? Well, I ain't lettin' that happen, bud. I'm gonna duel ya right now and I'm gonna beat ya just ta ensure ya never escape this place! That ya get to stay trapped here foreva! And that will mean I'll have made more of a difference than ya ever did!"
"Bold words… let us see if you can back them up. Aria!"
"Yes sir," the woman said, stepping forward and holding out her hand. On her wrist a duel disc that was utterly black save for the red detail work appeared.
"Hey, what's dis? I'm duelin' ya!"
"Oh, I don't duel," Nezbit said. "I am fair too cultured for such a thing. No… I will be using this digital avatar instead." He gestured at the woman who was prepping her duel disc. "This is Aria Potts… or rather an avatar created from her brainwaves. Tinkered a bit to be utterly loyal and to serve me. And to remove some of the less… desirable attributes. Still, she will be the perfect one to defeat you. She will be my champion."
Joey frowned at that. 'I don't know nothin' about dis Aria… other than she works for Kaiba and Ed has mentioned her. She worked in R&D testin' things… probably why this sicko Nezbit chose her ta duel for him.' He studied Aria carefully. 'I have no idea what she is capable of but if she works for Kaiba she must be a good duelist. So dat means I need to be on my toes and ready to defeat her.' He held out his hand and smiled when he felt a deck of cards pop into existence; glancing at them confirmed just what deck he had called forth. 'Time ta break this out in order ta take down these two.'
But before he did anything else Joey spoke up.
"And ya agree if I beat her dat's it? Ya ain't gonna pull some crap claiming ya got another champion?"
Nezbit smirked at that. "Clever… very clever. Yes." He waved his hand and a simple document appeared. "We'll keep it very basic. You defeat Aria and I will no longer be able to challenge you."
"Or anyone else," Joey snapped. "This is all or nothin' for ya! Otherwise I ain't duelin' ya… I'd rather rot in here forever than let ya go after my friends!"
"…very well," Nezbit finally said. He waved his hand and a new line appeared on the contract. It was very short, to the point that even Joey thought it was a touch too simple and could have used some beefing up. But in the end Joey nodded and placed his deck into his duel disc. "Now then, let us-"
"now now," Noah's voice called out, making Joey look about trying to find the little brat, "you said you wanted this to be on the up and up, Nezbit… and that means explaining the rules."
"I know how ta duel," Joey complained.
"Not my way," Noah replied. "In fact… I think this would make a good lesson for everyone."
~MC~MC~MC~
Selene frowned as she saw the sky change, a great screen appearing showing Joey dueling against one of the KaibaCorp officer workers.
"Attention duelists," Noah called out. "Joey Wheeler will be the first one dueling in an attempt to keep his body from being taken over by one of the Big 5. And because he is the first I will use this chance to explain MY rules for Duel Monsters."
"Your rules…?" Selene said slowly. "Hmmm… what have you set up, Noah?"
"While I did consider merely using Seto's rules for my games I decided that we needed something a bit more special. Something to take this card game to the next level. So while we will be using, for the most part, the 'Super Elite Rules'-" And Noah snickered at that, clearly bemused at the name Seto had selected for his set of rules, "-I will be introducing a new twist: The Deck Master."
"Deck Master?" Selene murmured, folding her arms just under her breasts.
"I am sure you are curious just what Deck Master refers to and I am more than happy to explain. Let's use Seto as an example, shall we?" Noah's face disappeared and above the Virtual World there appeared a crude, childish drawing of Seto. He had far too big of a head and a dark scowl on his features as the drawing held up a card. "Before you draw your opening hand you will go through your deck and select one monster. This monster is your deck master and will stand with you." A cartoony version of Lord of D. appeared on the field next to Seto. "This monster will remain out of your deck and can't be drawn. At any time you can, however, choose to summon you Deck Master to the field… but if it is destroyed you lose the duel." The Lord of D. shifted to stand in front Seto before it exploded into shreds of paper. That caused Cartoon Seto to fall to the ground and begin to flail his arms and legs, large rivers gushing from his eyes as he silently hollered.
Selene couldn't help but snicker at the sight.
"Your deck master also comes with a special ability that will affect the battle. Some of them are passive, some of them must be activated. But all will add an extra wrinkle to your duel, both in terms of your strategy… and what you will be facing off against." Noah returned to having his face plastered in the sky for all to see. "Now then, I so do hope you enjoy these new rules and remember… its only a game."
He paused.
"Well, except if you lose the duel you will be trapped in this digital realm while your foe takes your body!" And with that he threw back his head and laughed, the image of him disappearing long before his laughter did.
'So, adding a new wrinkle to the duels,' Selene thought to herself. 'One that will require a lot of thought. I imagine some Deck Masters are must stronger than others but they also might be a key piece to your dueling strategy. Losing them would make things rather difficult. But bringing them out right away, no matter when you want, seems appealing until you realize that if they are destroyed that is the end of your duel. A truly high risk, high reward.'
And she smirked.
'Oh, this will be fun!'
~MC~MC~MC~
"Man, just when I thought this game couldn't get any more confusin'," Joey muttered as he pulled out his deck and looked over his cards. 'Alright, so most of my deck relies upon each other in order to get out my stronger monsters… so I can't risk throwing any of them in as the Deck Master. I just need ta figure out though which one ta pick.' Thankfully every time he touched a card a pop up would appear and let him know what the deck master ability was. 'All In, Ante Up…' All of them had cute little names but also had powerful abilities, ones that he was half tempted to leap at… til he remembered the danger. 'I can't rush inta this. This duel ain't like any other one I've had. This is literally my life on the line! I need ta think it over carefully…'
He paused when he looked at one card in particular.
"The Gambler of Legend…" he murmured to himself, staring at the monster. It was a cowboy standing on a moonlit night with some dice in his hand, smirking as he tossed them into the air. 'Huh… this card might work. The Turn and the River ability… pay 1000 lifepoints to force both duelists to draw two cards. That's a hefty price… but it would get me out of a lot of sticky jams. And… wait!' He glanced at another card in his deck before grinning. 'Aw man… if I could pull this off then I could wipe the floor with Nezbit and his little digital stooge!'
"Have you selected?" Nezbit asked.
"Yeah, I have!" Joey declared. "I select Gambler of Legend as my deck master!" Beside him appeared the monster in question, who smirked as he nodded to Joey. "And what about you?" He asked Aria. "Find a little dolly to be your new imaginary friend?"
Aria though merely pulled a card out from her deck, tilting her head in an almost unnatural way. "No… but I think I found yours."
And with that the card flashed… and Joey could only take a step back in horror as her deck master formed.
It was well over 20 feet tall, with a thin body that should never have been able to support the great black wings upon its back or the cadaverous head that sat on its thin neck yet did so all the same. It took a step forward before throwing back its head and letting out a roar that had Joey shaking.
"It… it can't be!" Joey exclaimed.
"It is," Aria stated. "I name as my deck master… the Red-Eyes Black Dragon."
~MC~MC~MC~
'Are you sure this will work, Pharaoh?' Yugi asked as the Pharaoh looked at the walls of their prison.
'It will, Yugi,' the Pharaoh stated. 'The Puzzle has shown us that this is our only option to escape. And we can't remain trapped in here while our friends are in danger.'
'I know… I just hope we don't break our necks!'
'We won't,' the Pharaoh assured him with a smile before taking two steps back. His eyes continued to glow as he stared at the wall, seeing the points flashing upon it that showed just what he needed to do. With a steadying breath the Pharaoh suddenly launched himself forward, racing towards the wall before leaping at it. He felt his feet strike it and he was able to get about one step further up it before he threw himself away, using the wall as a push off point. He soared through the air but that only lasted a moment before he felt himself begin to plunge down. But that was fine… at the last moment he lashed out with his right arm, sending his belt which he had removed before the jump right at the ceiling where there was a seam. The buckle struck the seam, causing the two panels to swing downward and the Pharaoh grabbed on with his left hand, easily grabbing the hidden hand hold.
'You did it!' Yugi exclaimed even as the Pharaoh, shoving his belt between his teeth, biting down on the leather as he grabbed the other handhold on the second panel and worked to climb out of the room. It took what felt like forever but the Pharaoh knew it took only a few seconds to heave himself out of the trap, landing on the cool steel that made up floor of the room above his once-prison. 'That was amazing, Pharaoh!'
'Thank you, Yugi,' the Pharaoh said as he finally sat up and worked to put his belt back on. 'Now we just need to find the others and free them from Noah's grasp.'
'Easier said than done,' Yugi admitted. 'They could be anywhere… and I'm not seeing anything with the Puzzle.'
The pharaoh nodded in agreement to that statement. While the Puzzle could now show him many things when it came to defeating his opponents it only worked if he was able to observe something. The Puzzle didn't make information appear out of thin air; rather it took the information that was all around him and let him see how it all fit together to get what he wanted. And since he had no idea where Noah was keeping their friends…
'We'll just have to find them, Yugi,' The Pharaoh said before choosing a direction at random and beginning down it. 'Noah… you believed that you had removed our ability to protect our friends when you separated them from us. But all you have done is increased our drive to find them and defeat you! I swear we will put an end to your little game… and if you have harmed even a single one of them I will make sure you suffer!'
~MC~MC ~MC~
'The Red-Eyes Black Dragon…' Joey thought to himself as he stared at Aria's Deck Master. 'Of all the monsters she could've chosen she had ta go and pick that one!?!?'
It sometimes felt like, despite how short the time had been that he'd known of the card, that the Red-Eyes Black Dragon and him were forever entwined together. While Mai had been his first victory in Duelist Kingdom his battle against Rex had been the first where he'd truly felt like he had won all on his own. Mai had been right when she'd taunted him about Yugi's help… he had been relying on his friend too much. Defeating Rex on his own had taught him so much, allowed him to truly understand what it was like to be a duelist and how to battle without Yugi having to hold his hand. And that victory over the Red-Eyes Black Dragon had earned him the monster's power.
But… the Red-Eyes Black Dragon had also been there for his first loss. When he'd allowed his arrogance to overtake him and cost him nearly everything. If it hadn't been for Yugi giving him the money for his sister's operation he would have lost out on the chance to help her keep her sight… all because he couldn't handle Ed sacrificing his own wealth to do so.
And then there had been his loss of the Red-Eyes to that Rare Hunter, who had used it to taunt him in the first battle of Battle City. Later still had been when he had been forced to use the Red-Eyes Black Dragon against Yugi, risking Mr. Muto's life in the process. It was something that truly haunted Joey, preventing him from wielding the Red-Eyes Black Dragon and that deck ever since.
'A part of me will always wonder if I wouldn't have been able ta defeat Brom if I had just used the Red-Eyes Black Dragon. But… I also know that I most likely would've ended up losin' even worse if I had tried to use it. Because I wasn't ready ta use that deck. I didn't trust myself ta be able ta use it… I still don't.' He frowned as he looked down at his duel disc and then back up at Aria. 'I don't know if Nezbit know about this or if Aria always used the Red-Eyes Black Dragon… but I can't let this shake me! Because if I don't win here then they'll take my body and use it ta hurt my friends! I have ta take her down… and if that means that I have ta finally face the Red-Eyes Black Dragon?'
Joey swallowed.
'…I will.'
"Aria will go first!" Nezbit declared and Joey considered arguing why she got to go first before deciding to stay quiet; it would let him see just what her deck was like.
"I will start by tributing from my hand my Meteor Dragon Red-Eyes Impact."
"Tributing from your hand?" Joey said, startled. "What could… aw man, I know what you're doin'!" He threw his hands up in the air. "You're gonna bring out the Red-Eyes Alternative Black Dragon!"
"Hmmm… familiar with this deck, are you?"
Joey didn't say a word. 'No need for Aria ta know that I studied all dem cards that Pegasus sent ta me so I'd be ready for Battle City!' For a full week he'd spent every moment he wasn't in school going over his new deck, learning what every card could do and coming up with strategies to help him in duels. He'd then presented his work to Gramps; the old man had been so proud of him, so surprised at how much dedication Joey had put into improving as a duelist.
It was one of his proudest moments. Not just as a duelist but overall in his life.
"No matter," Aria said as she summoned the alternative version of the Red-Eyes Black Dragon to the field. It was far more detailed, with a thicker body and more defined muscles than the original Red-Eyes, and it snarled as it settled on the field, Aria's Deck Master growling either in approval or annoyance… Joey couldn't tell for sure. "It is still the first piece of your doom."
"I gotta ask, do ya say such things in real life or is that Nezbit and whatever program he used ta copy the real Aria makin' ya say that?"
Aria just stared at him.
~MC~MC~MC~
"This is the first piece of your doom!"
Cassie frowned as she looked at the sandwich Aria had placed in front of her. "Uh… thanks?"
"Welcome!" Aria said brightly before setting a bowl of soup before Cassie. "This is the second piece of your doom!"
"Shouldn't we talk about Moose being the head of KaibaCorp?" Martin asked.
"For the last time no!" Sally exclaimed.
"You're just glad because he said you could hunt the children in the daycare for sport!"
"I'm not actually going to," Sally muttered.
No one actually believed her.
~MC~MC~MC~
"Well, it don't matter how big that monster is… all that matters is how powerful it is… and how powerful mine are!" Joey drew his hand. "I'll start by activatin' Pot of Greed." He turned to Nezbit and smirked. "Ya know what Pot of Greed does, Pencil Pusher?" The businessman glowered at that but before he could say a word Joey continued on. "It allows me ta draw two more cards." He drew the two cards and considered his hand carefully. 'Alright… got a good draw… and I think I have a few different strategies ta take down Aria. And I'll need ta be careful with my hand… a Red-Eyes deck can burn off lifepoints quickly and with my Deck Master's effect burning lifepoints as well those are gonna decrease quick if I ain't careful!' Out loud he said, "I'll now set in defense mode my Imperial Bower!"
It was a set of armored warriors… or were they jesters? It was hard to tell, even for Joey. But they were his pikemen, dressed in black and red, ready to protect him all the same.
"And I'll set these two cards facedown on the field and end my turn."
~MC~MC~MC~
Seto growled low in his throat as he chased after Mokuba. Or, at least, he tried to growl. Thanks to him being trapped in the robotic dog's body his words came out instead as pathetic little yips that were so utterly cutsey that they made his teeth hurt.
He meant to call out for his brother, to tell him to stop. That he knew it was scary to find himself changed into the strange new form they both found themselves in but it was okay… he would figure out a way to get them both back their bodies. That Noah had been clear that the Big 5 and him HAD to defeat them in a duel and because they hadn't that meant that they weren't forever trapped in the robotic dog forms. In fact it was very likely that Noah would have to turn at least him back if he wished to duel him, as he couldn't exactly draw cards with paws.
He meant to say all of that.
"Yip yip yip!"
Seto mentally growled as he continued to chase after his brother, Mokuba running through the halls seemingly at random yet never coming upon a dead end. 'Noah, you are going to pay for this embarrassment… that I swear!'
~MC~MC~MC~
Yuri let out a grown as she slowly got up, rubbing her head as she did so. "Ow."
"Oh good, you're back awake; that was a hard hit," Renard said and Yuri looked over to see that the European Duelist was sitting across from her in their original cell. "It seems we weren't deemed important enough for the Big 5 or Noah to take."
"I don't know if I should be insulted or not that they don't want to force us into a virtual world and try and steal our bodies." She got up and looked over the cell. "So… we aren't staying in here, right?"
"Oh god no!" Renard said with a grin "I'm honestly mostly insulted that they thought this would hold us."
"Tell you what: get us out and I'll let you punch Noah in his smug little face first."
"He's a child."
"…you honestly think I don't know how to punch children? I used to be a cop."
Renard blinked at that. "You have a bit of darkness that runs deeper than all of us realize, don't you?" Yuri merely smirked at that Renard moved to the other door that they hadn't tried yet. "Now then, to find the captain and Mai-"
He swung the door open only to throw himself back into the room.
Beyond the opening lay spread out before him the churning ocean… only it was about 100 to 200 feet below them.
Yuri slowly stuck her head out, looking at the very smooth surface of the tower they were in. There were no hand holds. No areas to grasp and shimmy. Nothing at all.
"Well… this makes me feel a touch more respected," she admitted.
~MC~MC~MC~
Aria merely narrowed her eyes, a cruel little smile flashing on her lips as she looked over Joey's side of the field. It felt so odd for him to see such a look on her as Aria looked like someone that should always be smiling and happy. But the virtual representation of the KaibaCorp worker was grim and in a dark mood. Though not angry… rather she was determined to make him suffer.
Nezbit, in contrast, was looking rather pleased with what was going on. The businessman was standing there with a smirk on his face and Joey found himself speaking without a second thought. "Why ya looking so smug? Ain't like ya did anything. You ain't the one duelin' me… ya had ta create this duelist in order for ya ta have someone ta take me on!"
That caused Nezbit though to scoff. "Please… I am not someone that gets their hands dirty. I allow others to do that for me. Though, I have to admit… I might have to actually get a bit hands-on when I return to KaibaCorp. I've looked over the people Seto Kaiba hired and I am not impressed in the slightest. Far too young and with naïve beliefs that they can change the world… we need people that understand their place to be put in charge of departments." He shrugged before gesturing at Aria. "But no matter… please eliminate this waste of space."
"Easily," Aria said.
"Maybe not as easy as ya think," Joey taunted.
That made Aria shake her head. "You think what you have on the field is something that can truly stop me? That is a rather weak defense. I thought you might know this deck but now I'm not for sure. Because if you did understand it you would know that a pair of clowns would never be able to stand against the likes of the Red-Eyes Black Dragon and its cousins."
"Eh, maybe these guys can't… or maybe they can. Because," and Joey smirked, "I think ya don't understand my deck all that well."
Aria glowered at that.
"Do not allow yourself to become distracted!"Nezbit demanded. "Continue to push on and defeat this little Nobody."
"Nobody, huh?" Joey asked. "And what's it say about you if you're so desperate that you'll be taken this Nobody's body if ya win?"
Now it was Nezbit's turn to glower. "Let me assure you that when I take over your body, despite the MASSIVE handicap I will be facing, I will craft your existence into one that will surpass all you could ever dream of! You believe that you are destined for greatness? I have met so many like you, Joey Wheeler, and know exactly what awaits you: mediocrity. That is the cruelty of my current existence: that you are allowed to live while I am trapped here! Well, no more! I will take your body and I will use it to ensure that the world remembers me!"
'Man, what a nut,' Joey thought to himself, refusing to be fazed by the man's ramblings.
Aria held up another card. "I tribute my Red-Eyes Retro Dragon to summon a second Red-Eyes Alternative Black Dragon."
"Aw man!" Joey exclaimed. "A second one!"
"Yes, that is what I just said," Aria said. "Were you not paying attention?" On her side of the field another one of the Red-Eyes Alternative Black Dragons appeared, letting out a roar that was echoed by its brother. "And now I will destroy your pathetic defense before attacking you directly! Red-Eyes Alternative Black Dragon, attack with Molten Fire Bomb!"
But as the dragon charged up its attack Joey merely stuck out his hand, holding up a single finger. "Eh eh eh," he said mockingly, "I'm afraid ya won't be doin' that! See, durin' either one of our turns I am able to tribute Imperial Bower in order to summon directly from my deck my King's Knight and my Jack's Knight!"
The two jester knights bowed before shattering, their pieces reforming into the two new knights.
The former was a warrior who had seen countless battles in the name of protecting his king. Scarred but not afraid to do what he had to in order to defend the kingdom. The latter was young, fresh… but not naïve. He knew what he needed to do to protect his charges and would protect his prince to the bitter end.
"I suppose you've managed to stall for a single turn," Nezbit stated, "but that is all you've managed to do. We will still defeat you and claim your body… all you've done is delay what is fated to happen!"
Joey though wasn't concerned. 'Man, I am gonna enjoy what happens next,' he thought even as he held out his hand. "Ya sure about that, pal?" he asked. "Cause I've got a few more surprises for ya! Startin' with this! I activate my face down: Court of Cards!" The card flipped up and the warehouse rippled as the floor turned from bare cement to fine marble tiles, banners dropping from nowhere and a throne appearing behind Joey. "This card allows me ta summon from my hand my Queen's Knight!"
The female knight appeared, moving to stand with the King's Knight and Jack's Knight. Yes, she was a beautiful face. But she was still a warrior and a knight and many foes had died thinking that she had only used her sword to check her reflection.
"And next I activate Joker's Wild!" The trap card, which depicted a burly knight/jester, flipped up… only for the image to shift.
"Joker's Wild?" Nezbit complained. "What are you talking about?"
"Man, ya ain't never played poker before?" Joey shook his head. "I guess not… that ain't the kind of game ya like ta play, is it?" Before Nezbit could answer Joey said, "See, in poker the Jokers can be wild cards, turnin' dem inta any card in the deck! And that's the same with Joker's Wild! This card allows me ta send one Spell Card that mentions all three of my knights ta the graveyard in order ta turn my Joker's Wild into that card! So I'll be sendin' this card ta the graveyard-" He pulled out a particular spell card from his deck, slotting into his duel disc, "-in order ta turn Joker's Wild inta Face Card Fusion!"
The trap card shimmered before it turned into the spell card, which showed the three knights, now depicted like the face cards in a standard deck of cards, swirling around the portal that was found on most Polymerization cards.
"Now I can fuse the Queen's Knight and King's Knight on my side of the field…" Joey paused, "and because of this fusion card's effect I can also use a Jack's Knight from my deck-" His duel disc spat out a second Jack's Knight which Joey placed in his graveyard, "-in order ta summon my Arcana Knight Joker in attack mode!"
The monster that appeared was a more mature and more heavily armored version of Jack's Knight, wearing now dark robes and new grander armor. He lifted up his sword and let out a cry as it shined in the light of the throne room/warehouse, the monster bellowing to the world his intent to defeat all evil.
But most important of all… was its 3800 attack points.
"So ta summarize… I still have a Jack's Knight on the field that ya can attack… if ya want." Joey smirked. 'Come on… fall for the bluff.' He had nothing to protect Jack's Knight but he wanted Aria to think that he might. To think he was trying to goad her into attacking and thus cause her NOT to attack. It was a risky strategy… yeah, his lifepoints would be safe but he really wanted to keep that monster on the field to act as protection.
"…I set one card and end my turn," Aria finally said.
He considered taunting her a bit more but decided to quit while he was ahead. "Well, in that case I'll activate Joker's Wild special ability, which allows me ta shuffle my Jack's Knight back into my deck and add Wild right back ta my hand." The two cards were spat out and Joey added Joker's Wild back to his hand before inserting Jack's Knight into his duel disc's deck holder, knowing the system would automatically shuffle the entire deck. 'Alright… I got the strongest monster on the field! And with Joker's Wild back in my hand next turn I can use it ta give myself some extra protection!' He narrowed his eyes as he looked over the field. 'And Aria hasn't used her Deck Master yet… I have no idea what it can do but at least that hasn't come ta bite me on the butt. Now I just need ta focus on defeatin' those damn dragons!'
Out loud Joey said, "I'll start by settin' this card face down!" He set Joker's Wild back on the field in face down mode. "And next I'll-"
"Not so fast," Aria said, once more tilting her head in that almost painful way. Or perhaps it wasn't painful at all… or incredibly painful but she had no choice, being a digital slave of Nezbit. Joey honestly had no idea. "I activate Red-Eyes Fang with Chain."
Joey frowned as the Red-Eyes Alternative Black Dragon grasped the dragon-themed weapon. 'Why would she want ta do that? Red-Eyes Fang with Chain lets ya attack twice but even if her monster survived till the next turn it would just be able ta destroy my Jack's Knight before it was destroyed by my Arcana Knight Joker… no!' His eyes went wide in horror as he realized Aria's plan. 'She's gonna-'
"I now destroy my Red-Eyes Fang with Chain, per its own effect!" Aria declared, thrusting out her hand. "And when I do so that allows me to capture your Arcana Knight Joker!"
"My Knight!" Joey called out as the knight was grabbed by the dark chain from the Red-Eyes Fang, yanked off of his side of the field and slammed right into the chest of the Red-Eyes Alternative Black Dragon. His Arcana Knight Joker struggled to try and free himself but that only caused the chain to tighten as it began to glow, causing the warrior to cry out one final time as he went limp.
"Now, thanks to the power of the Red-Eyes Fang with Chain any monster that is restrained by it has its will stripped, forcing it to act as a weapon for the monster is has become attached to. As such your Arcana Knight Joker, and its 3800 attack points, have now become my Red-Eyes Alternative Black Dragon attack!"
That caused Nezbit to laugh. "You thought that you had this finally won! That you were going to be able to easily defeat me and walk away. But now you see that you have no hope… that I was forever destined to claim your body!"
'Man, I don't know about that… but I need ta do somethin' if I want ta win!' Joey looked at the two Red-Eyes Alternative Black Dragons that loomed over him. 'Because if I don't think of something quick I might not even have another turn!'
~MC~MC~MC~
Chaosverse Omake
He groaned as he slowly woke up.
Something was… wrong. Or, perhaps to be more accurate, something was different. He could tell that from the moment he began to pull himself from the deep sleep he'd been in. His body felt… odd. He wasn't in pain but he felt strange. Bulkier. It felt like there was more of him. So much more of him. And there was an odd pressure too… something pushing down upon his body, forcing him to remain still. And that wasn't too bad either… he actually tended to sleep better when there was weight on him. But he could also hear someone trying to get his attention.
Someone… singing?
He frowned and pressed down upon the hard stone that he was lying on, wondering how he had ended up in such a position, and as he did so he felt grit and dirt rain down on his body. It was pitch dark wherever he was but as he slowly began to push against whatever was pressing down on him the world began to lighten up. It allowed him to see more of the stone he was on, which had odd cracks and cuts in it. There didn't appear to be any walls, just more dirt. And his hands.
His eyes widened as he stared at his hands.
They were a pale gray and not quite scaly… rather they looked like textured bone. But after the middle knuckle on each finger the flesh changed, becoming to a darker grayish black and tapering off into sharp claws.
With a cry of protest that hurt his ears he shoved himself fully up and let out a cry… or rather he tried to cry. Instead it came out as a howl and at once the sky, which had been blue and bright, trembled as it began to darken, allowing him to see that rather than a sun the world he was in was illuminated by massive crystals. Under its light he looked at himself and saw that whatever had happened while he had been asleep… the human he had been before was gone.
His arms, shoulders, and thighs were covered in the same bumpy bone-like armor that surrounded his wrists and the backs of his hands. His toes were much the same as his fingers though he found himself feeling far more comfortable standing on just his claws than his full foot. His chest was far smoother than the armor on his body but felt just as hard; tapping it was like knocking on a knight's breastplate. Also he was absolutely ripped, with a 6 pack and hard pecs. Twisting his head he saw that his back was covered in gray fur, thick and spiky, widest as his shoulders before tapering down to a thin strip before it reached his huge bushy tail.
His tail.
He had a fucking tail.
A tail covered in fur that was bunched up in hard tuffs, each one tipped with black much like the ones that lined his back.
Reaching up slowly he confirmed that rather than human features his head was that of a wolf, with the fur stiff and spiked like that on his back. His fangs were a touch bigger than a normal wolf, the ears bigger and definitely stiffer, and the fur on his face at once soft to the touch yet also offering him protection greater than steel. He somehow… just knew that.
"The fuck?" he rumbled and while he understood EXACTLY what he was saying he also knew his words were coming out in deep bellowing growls.
"Lord Monu!" a beautiful voice rang out and he turned, staring at a giant moth creature that was flying near him, radiating a calming light. "Thank goodness you are awake! My husband and Kong will need your help against Biollante!"
"…what?" the newly named Monu said before looking about and realizing that he had missed the fact that he was around 400 feet tall.
"Please hurry!" Mothra begged before flying off to help Godzilla and Kong battle the truly gigantic plant-like Kaiju.
"Seriously, the FUCK!?!" Monu roared only to blink when he unleashed a beam of pure darkness from his mouth that struck one of Biollante's tendrils just before it hit Kong. The plant-Kaiju let out a screech of pain and Monu blinked as he saw the vine wither and crumble. Something in his brain told him that he had just unleashed his 'Calcification Strike' or 'Bone Beam'. Again, he just KNEW that.
"Thanks!" Kong called out
"Hurry up!" Godzilla roared impatiently.
"Well… this is happening," Monu muttered before rushing into battle.
Introducing Lord Monu, Titanus Ossis, The Fossilized Titan
The Chaos of Earth 2014