Xero Freeze Turn 7: Intersection (2)

[ShadowBlade]

All righty; here it is, everybody. Plenty of fun stuff this time around. Let's get to it. I'll have Silver Wire updated as I get more free time this week. I have quite a bit of schoolwork to do.

Well, enjoy!

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OP - Blow Me Away
**
Yu-Gi-Oh! Xero Freeze
Turn 7: Intersection (2)

Slade faltered in stance as he gaped at the impending assault of a dastardly machine. The sinister scientist Kozaky controlled his mad Giant Kozaky (2500 ATK/2400) with the pushes and pulls of switches and levers. Swarms of dueling enthusiasts surrounded the sunken platform, urging on the impatient Tomko who commanded the two fiends. Slade’s Solar Militant Shinsuke (1300 ATK/600) held out his electric, dark-green sword, preparing for the attack. Solar Guardian Yuna (900/1600 DEF) sat to the right of Shinsuke, glaring at Giant Kozaky with worry and distrust.

“Giant Kozaky, wipe out that pathetic weakling!” commanded the easily agitated Tomko. He curled his hands together in a ball, rubbing them together to warm them. His bald head slithered to the right as he sadistically gazed at the mechanical menace’s drill.

Come on, Slade, Estelle urged, still disguised as Savanna Mysterio. You should be able to guess from my duel that if you take any damage here, you’re going to be at a huge disadvantage.

As the drill came down toward Slade’s field, the teenager reacted, “You’ve triggered the effect of my Militant!” The lightning on Shinsuke’s weapon emitted a faded sparkle. “When Shinsuke is attacked, I can declare the type of the card on top of my deck. If I guess the type correctly, I can play it accordingly! If it’s a monster, I get to summon it; if it’s a spell, I can activate it; if it’s a trap, I can set it.” Slade whipped his disk arm in front of his face, manually holding the top card.

“A gamble?” inquired Tomko.

“Nah, I’m going to win it no matter what.”

The man’s infuriated eyes lit up. “How!?” he demanded.

“I told you that you would have wanted to know the effect of Solar Sign Neptune. While it’s an Equip Spell Card, if the equipped monster is attacked, I can pay 500 Life Points to look at the top card of my deck!”

(Tomko: 4000) (Slade: 4000 ---> 3500)

Tomko gritted his teeth, now fully understanding the ploy.

Slade whipped the top card out of his deck, spinning it around. “Solar Sign Venus is a Spell Card, so I will declare Spell Card and activate it!” The replica of the planet Venus soared over the battlefield. “I’ll activate Solar Sign Venus as a Continuous Spell Card so that I can send it to the graveyard and activate its effect!” The replica immediately shattered, spreading chunks of the ruined terrestrial planet about the field. “When Solar Sign Venus is sent to the graveyard while I control ‘Solar Guardian Yuna,’ I can negate one attack.”

Several of the pieces impacted Giant Kozaky, temporarily shutting down its drill and stalling its movement. The mad scientist Kozaky panicked, reversing the machine’s direction and backing out of the battle. The determined eyes of Shinsuke settled as the warrior lowered his weapon.

“Lucky little punk,” mumbled the muscular Tomko.

Slade pointed out to his opponent, deeming, “It looks like your plan failed after all. But that’s the beginning, because next turn I’m going to take out your Kozaky.” He grinned a bit, remembering, “Giant Kozaky needs regular Kozaky to survive on the field. You don’t have your Barrel Behind the Door, so you won’t be able to redirect any damage once Kozaky is gone.”

Tomko snorted at the comment, retaliating, “You think it’s that easy to get through me? You’re going to have to learn the hard way what it’s like to duel against someone like me.”

Slade held down his hand, squinting viciously at the large man and waiting for his rebuttal.

Tomko struck a card on his hand, prompting it to fly into his back row. “I activate the Equip Spell Card Raregold Armor!” Reflective, tin-like armor attached to the rough body of the large menace, barely able to wrap around its dome structure.

Slade’s eyes shook as he recognized the card. “Shoot,” he hissed aloud.

“That’s right, league scum. Now you can’t attack any other monster than Giant Kozaky. So, it looks like your plan is the one that’s a no-go.” He folded his arms, waiting for Slade’s comeback.

However, the teenager could only sink his head and admit, Well, he’s got me there. I’ll have to destroy Raregold Armor first or plow through Giant Kozaky somehow.

“I’m gonna set two more cards then.” Tomko emptied his hand onto the field, huffing, “Now hurry up and take your turn. Next time, Giant Kozaky is coming right for you.”

The crowd above the duelists began getting rowdy, waving their arms and chanting for Tomko. Slade grimaced as he looked upon their distant, unforgiving eyes. The teenager grappled his next card, soon yanking it in front of his eyes.

---------------
Alyssa maintained a confused and worried expression as she sat in the back of Dante’s squad car. She ran her fingers along the cage-like window separating her from the front seat, biting her lip in nervousness. Dante glanced in the overhead mirror, noticing the girl’s distraught face. He turned back to the road, slowing to a stop outside the station.

“All right,” sighed Dante as he exited the vehicle and opened the back door. Please step out and we’ll go inside. We have a few questions that we want to ask you.”

“I really don’t know anything about the murder,” Alyssa muttered, almost in a defeated fashion. “Slade and I were both out on that night and I don’t know why he would have any kind of key like the one you’re talking about.”

“Well, that may be fine and true. But, just for the sake of it we need to take you inside so that we can document your answers in our records and match them up with other testimonies.”

Dante led Alyssa into the station. The girl was surprised to see Crystal sitting at a nearby table. Jericko and Crystal looked up at the two as they entered. Crystal perked up as she saw her friend, standing to walk towards her.

“Crystal, what’s going on here?” Alyssa asked.

“I don’t know,” answered the timid girl.

“All right, that’s enough for now,” alerted Dante as he tapped Alyssa on the shoulder. “You two can talk after the initial interrogation. Just to be safe, we can’t let you two exchange any information before questioning is over. Do you understand?”

Grunting, Alyssa slowly nodded her head and accepted, “All right.” She waved to her friend as she walked through the white hall, disappearing around the corner with the dark-skinned officer.

“Do you two really think that we’re behind this?” Crystal wondered in a moping manner, turning to Jericko.

Jericko held up his hand, correcting, “Now, it would be a little odd for you to be involved with the Society of Sin and then be attacked by then.” He stood, taking a small Styrofoam cup and filling it with coffee from a nearby machine. “There is suspicion involving Alyssa, Estelle, and Slade. But, we seem to be having trouble finding Slade and Estelle.” He held up his communication device, questioning, “Anything yet?”

A crackle sounded through the device before a distant voice answered, “Not yet, sir. Neither of the two has arrived at their apartment yet. We have smaller search parties looking around some of the local duel clubs.”

“Anyway.” Jericko paused as he put away the device. “It doesn’t look good for at least one of those three. It’s hard to explain the presence of the key being in Slade’s apartment.”

Growing anxious, Crystal pleaded, “But I don’t know where they would have found anything like that.”

“Calm down.” He held up his hand. “That’s what we’re trying to figure out. We just want to know where the key came from.”

Crystal turned away in fear, staring out the window and into the night sky. What if one of them really is involved in something like this? she asked. She closed her eyes, shaking her head as though she denied it. No, there has to be some other explanation.

---------------
Slade surveyed the field, still holding his drawn card in front of his eye. He observed the shifty facial features of the impatient Tomko and his loyal fans as they awaited the next move.

If he did manage to set Barrel Behind the Door between those two cards, Slade pondered with a curious gaze, Trap Cards like those will definitely mess me up no matter how I try to fight them off.

“Come on, then,” urged Clive as he watched Slade think. “Let’s see what we’ve got ‘ere.”

“Trap Card, open!” commanded the teenager. “Cosmic Jump! With this card, I’ll return a face-up ‘Solar’ monster to my deck and replace it with a new one.” He waved to his Solar Guardian Yuna as she dissipated from his zone. “Yuna will go back to the deck, making way for this guy!”

The tall, thin figure ascended to the field. He wore an open, dark-blue and white vest to show off his perfectly chiseled body. His arms were covered in silver, various patterned chrome appendages. Enlarged, artificial crystals covered his knuckles. He had dark pants with a double-pronged, silver and blue belt. A similarly colored headdress matched his hair. He had a fierce, well-toned face with gleaming, cerulean eyes.

“Solar Advent Tesou (500/700 DEF)!” Slade held out a card from his hand. “Now, I tribute my Solar Militant.” Slade inserted Shinsuke and Solar Sign Neptune into his graveyard.

A tall, muscular, thin man appeared on the field from a flurry of wind. He wore his dark, reflective, sleeveless clothing with a flapping cape. Several parcels were attached to the belt around his waist. Two of the bags dangled open, revealing various weapons and gadgets. A knife was also strapped to the bottom of his right leg, near his perfectly polished boots. The man had a tan, heroic face and brown eyes. His dark hair was cut short and spiked. In his right hand, he held an old, long and thick buster sword.

“Go, Solar Breaker Daisuke (1600 ATK/800)!”

“Arms Monster…” grimaced Tomko with a dark leer.

“One tribute allows me to activate a Level 1 Arms Force Card – a card that requires one tribute for ‘Solar Breaker Daisuke!’” He flicked a card out of his extra deck. “I equip the Twin Swords of Frost and Flame, increasing Daisuke’s power by 400 (1600 ---> 2000 ATK/800)!” The pair of ice and flame swords descended from the air, entering the holsters of the Solar warrior. Daisuke unleashed the weapons from their sheaths, spinning them around in a battle pose.

“Big deal.”

“Oh, it’s more of a big deal than you think.” Slade’s confidence began building as he relayed, “But, before I get to that, Shinsuke’s effect plays out. When he’s tributed for a ‘Solar’ monster, I can add one ‘Solar Sign’ card in my deck to my hand.” He slid the card in his hand, yelling, “Now, I activate Tesou’s effect! I’ll drain his attack points and add them to Daisuke (Tesou= 500 ---> 0/700 DEF) (Daisuke= 2000 ---> 2500 ATK/800)!” The heavenly and majestic, violet aura fluttered from Tesou, embedding into Daisuke’s body.

The buff man gritted his teeth, grumbling, “2500 attack power…!”

Slade’s eyes widened as he acknowledged, “Right, now our monsters are even in power. The only difference is that Daisuke won’t be destroyed by battle.”

“He what!?”

The teenager strutted two steps before explaining, “Twin Swords of Frost and Flame have two Twin Counters, one for each of them. If Daisuke would be destroyed by battle, I can give up 200 of his attack points and one Twin Counter instead.” After observing Tomko’s flustered expression, he held out his hand and commanded, “Daisuke, attack Giant Kozaky!” He held his head down, pondering, I guess this is where we see if he has Barrel Behind the Door or not. He kept his fingers crossed behind his back, anxiously watching Daisuke leap into action.

The Solar Breaker traversed the field, ignoring the taunting and deafening jeers of the crowd. He slammed both swords against the surface of Giant Kozaky, causing some steam to spew from the wound. Reacting quickly, the mad scientist pounded on buttons, lifting the machine’s drill and mallet arm into the air. They came down at Daisuke. The warrior blocked the mallet, holding up his twin swords to defend. The drill caught him off guard, knocking the fire blade from his grip. Daisuke retaliated by jamming the ice sword into one of the paneled eyes of Giant Kozaky, leaving the machine in a frenzied wreck. Kozaky leapt off his creation just in time to witness its explosion. Bits and pieces scattered about as Tomko held up his arm in defense.

All right, Slade! cheered Estelle. She grew a concerned look, wondering, But, does Tomko have Barrel Behind the Door set?

Slade and the onlookers waited for Tomko’s response. The rest of the machine collapsed, starting a chain reaction of eruptions.

Daringly, Slade decided to heckle, “Since Giant Kozaky was destroyed, you receive 2500 points of damage!”

“Oh, you think so?” Tomko snorted back as he gaped at his face-down card. “You little punks need to learn that you can’t have your way here.” The Quick-Play Spell Card lifted. “Spell of Pain!” A sharp streak of black lightning impacted the blasts, hurling them across the field. “You’re going to take that damage instead of me!”

Slade cringed, He has more cards than just Barrel to reflect damage!? No wonder he can constantly draw them. The teenager ducked, taking the full brunt of the assault. Smoke soared throughout the battlefield, temporarily blinding everyone on the lower floor.

(Tomko: 4000) (Slade: 3500 ---> 1000)

“Well, so much for that comeback,” commented Clive. He nudged Estelle, asking her, “And this bloke contends for one of the titles now?”

Estelle, using her Savanna persona, responded, “Well, Slade was able to strike back at least. In the league, he’s not bad at all. He’ll have to realize that things are a bit different around here, though.”

“I guess we’ll wait and see, then.” The Black Kaado tournament organizer peered at Tomko, remembering, “I remember when Tomko first came around ‘ere. Nobody thought he’d be a top contender. But, won his first tournament.”

“Nostalgia?”

The man nodded. “Just a bit, yeah. I’m probably gettin’ a bit old for this if I’m starting to have nostalgic moments.”

“At 26?”

Clive rolled his eyes, snapping back, “Nao; sod off.”

Slade emerged from the explosion, wiping his chin and shaking off the damage. “All right, then,” he coughed. “I probably should have expected something like that. But, I still have Life Points.”

“We’ll fix that soon enough,” Tomko retorted with a smug look.

“Well, I feel a bit better for at least doing damage to you.”

Tomko’s expression changed as he demanded, “What are you talking about!?”

Slade pointed to his Solar Breaker, revealing, “When Daisuke (2500 ---> 2300 ATK/800) is equipped with Twin Swords of Frost and Flame and he destroys a monster by battle, you receive 200 damage for each Twin Counter on my swords.” Daisuke leapt across the field once more, jabbing Tomko in the gut with his remaining weapon.

Tomko rubbed his belly, grunting at the hit.

“Plus, I gain that many Life Points.” A bright, blue aura surrounded Slade for a moment.

(Tomko: 4000 ---> 3600) (Slade: 1000 ---> 1400)

Tomko glanced at his disk arm, grimacing at his dropping Life Point count. “Little brat,” he hissed.

Slade clenched his fist, urging, “You’re just like any other duelist; you have a weakness.”

The buff man held down his head, muttering, “Just like any other duelist; I wouldn’t be caught dead parading around for the authority like you puppets.” His breath quickened as a distant voice echoed through his ear. He straightened, retaining his usual, relentless stare.

“I’ll set a card.” Slade shoved one of his two cards into his back row. “That’ll be all for now.”

Estelle focused on Slade’s recently set card, thinking, He didn’t use his Solar Sign card from Shinsuke’s effect. He must be setting a combo. Now’s his chance to strike back against Tomko.

“Peh,” mumbled Tomko. “Come on” He let the Holo Mat take his next card. He twitched at the card, mumbling, “I wanted something that would be good for this turn.”

Slade shrugged, asking, “What’s wrong, Tomko? You were talking pretty big just a while ago. Did you not draw anything?” Slade paused, glancing at Clive and remembering, Though, considering that Tomko and I feel some of the same feelings about the government, maybe I shouldn’t be pushing at him this much. He let loose a small grin. Still, it’s fun to poke at opponents.

Tomko started matching Slade’s smirk, chuckling, “I never leave myself wide-open for attack, like you just did a while ago.” He glimpsed to his right, piercing a hole through his set card. “I’ll just have to use this earlier than I wanted, is all.”

The eyes of the teenager blinked as he wondered, “Use what?”

“A small hand rejuvenator…Reckless Greed!” Tomko’s Trap Card showed itself, sparkling brightly as pieces of gold and silver dropped around him. The top two cards of his deck ignited with similar colors, drawing into his hand. “I get a small boost.”

Slade steadied himself, recalling aloud, “That may be, but you’ll have to give up two of your Draw Phases to use it.”

Tomko eyed the first card drawn through Reckless Greed, insisting, “Oh, I don’t think that will pose any problem.” He whipped it into his Monster Zone, prompting a horizontal reverse card to appear in front of him.

A set monster? Slade exhaled sharply as he began to sweat. Could it be another Giant Kozaky?

“I also toss these down!” Two reverse cards, this time Spell or Trap Cards, formed next to him. “Then, I order Kozaky to switch to defense mode.” The scientist huddled over. “Now, if you’re still up to it, take your next turn.”

“Now the real fun begins,” Clive figured as his interest increased. “Let’s see if this Slade bloke runs into any of Tomko’s traps.”

Gah, murmured Estelle. The only way to learn these traps is to experience them, which Slade hasn’t. I can’t help him, so he’ll have to run into them or somehow think fast enough to avoid them. She looked at her brother only for a moment, sighing, Well, he’s probably doomed.

“Here we go!” Slade shouted as he drew another card. “All right, now I’ll use that Solar Sign I got last turn. But, first, I open my Trap Card – Dream Shooter!” The Continuous Trap Card rose to his left. “Now when I discard a ‘Solar Sign’ card to add a ‘Solar’ monster to my hand, I can Special Summon that monster!” He pushed the card into his graveyard, causing a small flicker of light to emit from his deck. “I discard Solar Sign Mars.”

The pale-complexioned girl with flowing and light-violet hair ascended. A similarly colored strap was worn around her neck. The same colors outlined her skin-tight black dress. Her eyes were large pools, matching the multitude of violet on her. She had faded, almost transparent stockings worn up to her thighs. She spun her chain weapon from its light-blue, chrome stake.

“Then, I summon Solar Splitter Tanya (900 ATK/900)!” He directed everyone’s attention to Dream Shooter. “Now, it’s time for a bit of extra draw power; I get one card for each ‘Solar’ monster I control, just by sending Dream Shooter to the graveyard!” The card burst as Slade’s top three cards glittered in a blue corona. He picked them up, folding them out and commentating, “Not bad at all.”

“Those cards come at a price!” One of the buff man’s Trap Cards whipped open. “Activate New World!”

“New World!?” gasped Slade loudly. “That’s really rare. How did you get that!?”

Tomko gazed at Slade as though mocking the teenager’s intelligence. “New World plays out when you draw cards outside your Draw Phase.” He held up his disk arm as its bottom display suddenly read ‘draw 5.’ He berated, “Your move was pretty foolish. But, thanks to it, we each draw until we have five cards in our hand.”

“Well-done,” nodded Clive in a calm manner. “That’s five whole cards for Tomko. He played that one perfectly.”

Well, shoot, Slade garbled as he reached to his deck, only able to draw once more. My own Dream Shooter shot me in the foot there. He sighed. Great, now I’m telling myself lame jokes in the middle of a duel. I need to hang out with ‘Lis more.

“Now our hands are even,” Tomko snorted. “The only difference is that my hand will stop you dead in your tracks.”

Just what I needed; more Kozaky cards, Trap Cards, and Effect Damage probably. Way to probably give yourself the loss, Slade. The teenager fumbled with his cards as he insulted the play under his breath. “All right,” he exhaled, thinking over his next move. “I activate Star Sign Sky. If I have two or more ‘Solar Sign’ cards in my graveyard, I select one of them. If the monster written in the text of that card in my graveyard, I Special Summon it!” An image of Neptune floated behind him. “I pick Solar Sign Neptune, letting me Special Summon Solar Militant Shinsuke (1300 ATK/600)!” The green-armored Shinsuke returned to the field, shoving his weapon into the air.

“Slade’s assembling quite the army there,” Clive pointed out with intrigue.

“They’re all just weakling monsters,” huffed Tomko in response, having overheard the comment.

“We’ll have to test that theory,” Slade insisted, taking another card out of his hand. “But, I’m not quite done yet. Now I’m going to use Solar Sign Mercury, sending it to the graveyard as a Continuous Spell Card to boost Tesou’s attack power by 500. Then, I’ll switch him to attack mode (0 ---> 500 ATK/700)!” Tesou stiffened his stance as he prepared for battle. “Daisuke, attack his face-down monster!” He ignored the jeering of the crowd as his monster prepared for battle.

Daisuke soon leapt into the air, spiraling towards Tomko’s hidden monster. He stabbed through the card, giving rise to a weakened creature wrapped in bandages. It had bulgy, yellow eyes and a short, bulky figure. Daisuke’s eyes widened as the mummy suddenly grappled him by the neck, choking him.

“What?” gasped the teenager.

---------------
Dante walked out of the interrogation room with a distraught expression. He and Alyssa marched down the hall, entering into the large, rectangular room once more. Jericko stood and Dante immediately pointed down the hall.

Dante tapped a fellow officer on the back, asking, “Hey, watch them for a minute, will you?”

“Sure thing,” the tall, light-skinned peacekeeper replied.

Dante led Jericko down the hall. As they turned the corner, Dante held his fingers to his nose, rubbing it in disdain while he groaned.

“Nothing?” the rookie assumed.

“Only three people have regular access to that apartment,” the veteran reviewed aloud with himself. “One of them had to place the key there. We can’t do anything until we get Slade and Estelle in here. Please tell me they’re on their way.”

Jericko tilted his head down and to the right, shrugging in disappointment. “We still can’t find them. They aren’t in any local clubs and nobody knows where they might be.”

Alyssa lightly gulped as she heard the comment from around the corner. Well, she thought, I do know where he is. But, if I told them what he was doing, he and all those people there would be in major trouble. I don’t get what their deal is with this key though. What does it do?

“No good, then,” Jericko breathed, leaning his head against the wall.

“We can’t let them leave right now,” alerted Dante with a serious expression. “At the same time, we can’t really lock either of them up. There’s no evidence they’re involved with any of this. I just need to hear the testimony of Slade and Estelle so I can decide what to do next.”

“Do you really think we can solve this?”

The veteran shook his head. “I don’t know. But, with the key being involved, I’m not going to give up. This case may give me the answers I’ve wanted for so long. Plus, if we can disable the Society of Sin, crime rate will drop in this area drastically. We must follow our leads at all costs.”

Worried, Alyssa leaned towards Crystal, whispering, “Does this have to do with the murder thing?” She glimpsed over her shoulder, ensuring the third officer was preoccupied with his laptop.

“I don’t know,” the nervous Crystal answered. “I just hope Slade is all right.”

“Ladies,” called Dante as he approached them. “Just as a small reminder, if either of you knows where Slade or Estelle are, we can get this over with a lot faster and you two can be on your way. Don’t feel afraid to let us know where they are just because of your close relationships with them.” He put his hands on his hips. “So, we’ll ask you one more time. Do either of you two know the whereabouts of Slade or Estelle?”

“No,” Crystal solemnly answered, turning to her friend.

Alyssa maintained an innocent expression, replying, “No, sir.” She cringed at the thought of lying to an authority figure.

Dante shook his head, figuring, “All right, then. We’ll just wait here while our search parties continue.” He went around the corner once more, this time rejoining Jericko in the far set of offices.

“Anything yet?” Jericko groaned.

“A check of the license plates on that D-Wheel confirms it was Slade’s,” Dante mumbled. “Alyssa was driving Slade’s D-Wheel. It would be a little farfetched to claim she didn’t know where he was. Still, even with that assumption, we can’t prove anything.” He snapped his fingers, grunting, “Can’t quit yet, though; I’m sure we can solve this somehow.” He squinted as he peered out the window and into the moon. This isn’t the best situation. Slade is out there somewhere. If he’s not in a club or a friend’s house, then there is a good chance he’s somewhere he shouldn’t be. Could a regular-looking teenager like that really be involved with something as dastardly as SoS?

---------------
The clanging of metal sounded throughout the rooftops as Kajidoh nervously paced, rubbing his hands together and cackling under his breath. Vath leaned on the concrete wall at the back of the building, near the only door. Kajidoh brushed by several of the pillars on the unfinished skyscraper, swinging around and steadily increasing the volume of his laughter.

“Excited a bit?” Vath wondered in his ominous, calm tone.

“Of course!” hollered the anxious man as he swooped around another corner, facing the tall man. “It’s about time we got to run around and do something worthwhile! Once we have possession of the key, we’ll rule over the night.” He imagined himself whisking through the city in a hover board, sending vicious monsters to terrorize opponents. “Think of how many potential opponents that is! Think of how many timeless duels there can be!” He started shaking his fist excitedly. “I can feel this one, Vath. I can feel it. After we pull this off, I’ll finally be able to look for my greatest rival! No more lurking in the shadows or dueling only during stealth missions gone wrong!”

Vath tilted his head, agreeing, “The concept certainly does boast merit.”

Kajidoh glanced at his partner, considering, “You know, if you ever grew into the age of technology you could join me.” He pointed to the moon, urging, “Join me up there, Vath. Join the age of speed, wind, and flight! Put that old thing down and get with the program!” He pointed an accusing finger at the large, dark-blue device worn around Vath’s arm.

“The duel disk still represents the competition as significantly as the modern Holo Force.”

“Sometimes I don’t think you belong in this age.” Kajidoh crossed his arms. “I don’t get how you can use those old devices. For being a young adult, you seem like you’re old enough to have been around before Old Era was wiped out.”

Vath continued observing his duel disk, allowing, “Well, perhaps I am after my time. These things happen.”

The shorter of the two men shrugged, leaping onto the ledge of the massive, unfinished building. He stared down the multistory drop, feeling his heartbeat increase. “Instead of having fun, you just sit around and read books. Where’s your desire and passion for competition!? We’ve been huddled in the darkness for far too long. I want to accomplish something!” Tempting the fates, he stepped closer to the ledge’s end, gazing at the insect-like vehicles that sat on the street corner. He became mesmerized with the view, stating, “You’ll never know what it’s like to live until you challenge Death in the face.”

Vath watched his energetic associate lose his thoughts to the entrancing vision of the drop. “Well,” he started, despite figuring that his words would fall on deaf ears, “perhaps there are those of us who have no reason to tempt the transcending winds of destiny without philosophical purpose.”

Kajidoh noticed a neon street sign flashing at the club across the street. A small, elevated platform dangled above the sign. As Kajidoh stared at the platform, he suddenly envisioned standing on it with Vath. Vath padded a rag with water against the window, scrubbing vigorously. Trying to outsmart the tall man, Kajidoh chuckled, “That’s just like you, Vath. If we were window washers, you would just stand around and clean the window as you were told. I would be looking through the window to see what’s on the other side because it’s more interesting.”

Vath closed his eyes. “True,” he acknowledged before rebutting, “However, sometimes one must wash the window before they can view what is on the other side.”

The short man smirked at the counter. He hopped backwards from the ledge, landing on the concrete once more. He approached Vath, soon hearing a light beep in his pocket. Vath and Kajidoh glanced at each other, nodding with serious expressions. They moved behind the door and glimpsed over the ledge, setting their sights on the medium-sized police station behind the other end of the building.

**==**
Card of the Day:

XFZ-045
Solar Advent Tesou
WIND / Warrior / Effect / Level 3 / Atk 500 / Def 700
You can reduce the ATK of this card to 0 to increase the ATK of 1 face-up "Solar" monster by the amount reduced. When a "Solar" monster you control is attacked, you can change the target of that attack to this card.
(ART: http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b3...dventTesou.jpg)

[ShadowBlade]

**==**
Organization of the Day:

Name: The Black Kaado
Type: Duel Monsters company (unofficial)
Description: The Black Kaado, run by an unnamed CEO, presents duelists with an alternate to the Holozone League style. The Black Kaado was formed in retaliation of the Sunset government, supposedly after its founder was unjustly banned from league competition. On Black Nights, when it is illegal to be outside due to the X-V.eX scare, the Black Kaado hosts its Dark Tournaments, handing out various (and likely stolen) prizes to those who are brave enough to enter and win.

**==**

“Too bad for you,” Tomko croaked in a confident manner. “The monster you just attacked was Grave Squirmer. When this card is destroyed in battle, it will take one card on the field with it!” His eyes widened as he proclaimed, “Your Daisuke is going to join my little Squirmer in the graveyard.” His Grave Squirmer released a terrifying screech as a hole broke open beneath it and the Solar Breaker. The horrific mummy dragged Daisuke belowground, burying him in the dirt.

“Darn,” hissed Slade as he watched his monster’s premature burial. To his surprise, a second hole in the ground suddenly opened below the feet of Shinsuke. “What’s this!?”

“I’ve just activated a Trap Card!” Tomko breathed heavily as the card lifted. “Michizure! Now that one of my monsters has been destroyed, I can take another of your monsters to the graveyard!” A massive, black hand grabbed the foot of Shinsuke, tripping him into the spreading chasm. The ground closed as the Militant descended to his demise.

Slade’s eyes shook. He’s taking out my monsters left and right. He snapped his fingers, remembering, “But, Daisuke was lucky enough to still destroy Grave Squirmer by battle. That means since there was still a Twin Counter on my Twin Swords, you take 200 damage and I gain 200 Life Points.”

(Tomko: 3600 ---> 3400) (Slade: 1400 ---> 1600)

Tomko brushed it off, insulting, “Even Savanna was more effective against me tonight, and she didn’t even damage me.”

Well, things are going slowly for sure. I’m barely touching him. But, I do still have two attacks on me. He clutched his fist, ordering, “All right, Tesou, take out that Kozaky! It’s about time for the mad scientist to go down.”

The Solar Advent darted for his target, jumping over the claw swipe from Kozaky. The scientist turned, only to be dealt a thunderous blow to the skull by Tesou’s elbow. Kozaky fumbled backwards, struggling to kick back at the warrior. Tesou blocked his punch, delivering a stiff kick to his head. Tesou smashed his own head into Kozaky’s, delivering an uppercut to fell the scientist.

“You’ll run out of luck soon,” hissed the muscular man.

“Until then, Tanya will attack your Life Points directly!” Slade nodded at the Solar Splitter, prompting her to lunge forward. She whipped the chain around Tomko, constricting him and whiplashing him.

(Tomko: 3400 ---> 2500) (Slade: 1600)

Good shots, Slade, Estelle thought quietly.

“Well, Slade’s getting’ ‘em pretty far down,” Clive couldn’t resist commenting. “We haven’t seen this in a while.”

“Now I think you’re just trying to taunt Tomko,” Estelle joked in a half-serious tone.

“It’s all part of the game, Savvy,” he insisted. “You play it all the time with those blokes in the league. I figured I might as well take a crack at it to see why the devil you’re so into it.”

Tomko mumbled under his breath as the cube above him updated his score. Several of the vintage Black Kaado fans booed and grimaced at Slade’s string of battle victories. They circled the area like vultures, judging Slade by all his movements and words. Their distant, unforgiving eyes refused to avert their gazes from him.

I guess these guys don’t like me whomping on their hometown hero, the teenager assumed as he returned the harsh stare at the daunting audience. Even so… He took a card from his hand, triumphantly calling, “I’ll set one card face-down, and finish off there.”

Tomko chortled to himself. “My turn!” He rotated his disk arm for Slade to see. “Because of Reckless Greed, I won’t draw this turn. But, I won’t need to as you’ll soon see.” He whipped a card out of his hand, calling, “I’m going to seal off your attacks and take victory the easy way!”

In an objective tone, Slade bellowed, “Easy way!? What are you doing over there? I thought you wanted to stomp me in the mud!”

The buff man shrugged, admitting, “I seem to have no monsters on hand. But, I can still wipe you out whatever way I wish. That’s more than good enough and pretty much the same as stomping you in the mud, so I’ll take it!” He manually placed the card on his field. “I activate Psycho Panic!” A Continuous Spell Card took to his field, giving off a strange and bubbling, red corona. “With this card on the field, all the attack power of your current monsters will be doubled.”

“Doubled?” Slade questioned in a baffled manner, turning to his two Solar monsters (Tesou= 500 ---> 1000 ATK/700) (Tanya= 900 ---> 1800 ATK/900). The dumbfounded teenager muttered aloud, “Gah, what’s he up to over there? Is he going to steal my monsters and use them against me with boosted stats?”

“No,” Tomko answered, having heard the question. “You won’t have to worry about that anyway. Psycho Panic only increases their attack power if they’re on your field. But, I have a much better use for those higher stats.” Another Continuous Spell Card ascended next to his first.

Slade’s eyes twitched as the card appeared. “No!” he spat. “Not that card!”

“Messenger of Peace!” Tomko crossed his arms and laughed sadistically, taunting, “I bet you didn’t think I would be a man of peace, but look at me now! While this card is on the field, all your monsters with 1500 or more attack points will be unable to take a shot at me.”

Darn this guy. His deck must revolve around the OTK of Giant Kozaky. If that backfires, he can run off into stall. Mumbling for a moment, Slade perked up and reminded, “Well, Tomko, I suppose you can stop my monsters from attacking. But, what good will it do you? You’ll need a win condition otherwise you’ll eventually deck out or run out of Life Points from paying for Messenger of Peace each turn!”

“A typical league scum mistake; you think that everybody needs to use Battle Damage to win. Didn’t you pay attention to my duel with Savanna? I win by Effect Damage.” He flicked a third card from his hand, this time letting the Holo Mat take it to his field. A large, horizontal, oval-shaped machine rose far behind him to cheers and chants from the crowd. A small, glass window on the side revealed the waves of electricity surging through it.

Slade’s arms twitched as he admitted, “Well, that’s a pretty good substitute.”

“I play Wave-Motion Cannon! During every one of my Standby Phases, this card becomes more powerful! Once I fire it at you, you’ll take 1000 damage for each of my Standby Phases that it was on the field!” He stroked his goatee, remarking, “If you had any doubts, there’s my win condition.”

Now Slade’s in trouble, Estelle muttered, somehow keeping a mellow and nonchalant expression for her peers.

“Wave-Motion Cannon,” Slade repeated as he rubbed his chin. I’ll have to destroy that fast. With only 1600 Life Points, I can only last a couple of moves. He glimpsed at his deck, murmuring, It would be nice if I could draw Disable in the next move or so.

“I thought you were just going to beat me,” Tomko reworded in an egotistic manner. “You don’t look up to the challenge now. Is something wrong?” He snickered once more before setting another card out of his hand. “I’ll put this face-down, just to mess with you even more.” The reverse card materialized in front of him. “Now, show me if you can even do anything.”

The teenager accepted the challenge, immediately pulling out his next card. He frowned as he noted, Not Disable; shoot. I really need that next turn. He folded the card in his hand, remembering, Wait, but I still have Tesou that can attack. He moved two of the cards in his hand, revealing the third behind them. I also have this card…! He sent the monster onto the field, proclaiming, “Well, Tomko, it looks like I’m still in this thing, stall or not!”

A thin, elf-like female with revealing, dark clothes rose to the field. Two layers of straps on her arms were attached to the sleeves covering only her forearms. Her front was a black tank top, leading down to her long and skin-tight pants with a similar shade. A quiver of arrows was strapped to her back, serving as ammunition for the long, thin, arched bow she wielded. A pink energy field surrounded the arch of the mystifying weapon. The woman had long, black, string-like hair that waved behind her, contrasting her pale skin.

“I summon Solar Archer Leena (700 ATK/1000)!” Slade clamored with an increasingly confident face. “Thanks to that Psycho Panic of yours, Leena’s attack power is now doubled (700 ---> 1400 ATK/1000). Too bad for you that this is less than 1500, which means Leena can attack!” The Solar Archer began arming her bow, pointing it straight at the buff individual. “You left yourself pretty open there, Tomko; get ready for 2400 points of damage.”

Tomko maintained a blank expression, as though expecting Slade’s defiant decision.

Slade snapped his fingers. “Leena, Tesou, direct attack!”

Leena loaded her bow with one of the dark-tipped arrows, sending it at Tomko. Tesou also dove across the field, attempting to land an elbow shot to the large man’s skull.

“Think it’s that easy?” The overconfident man revealed his set card. “I activate Direct Border!” A transparent pane of glass shielded him, repelling the attacks of the two monsters. “No direct attacks involving 1000 or more attack points will scathe me.”

Slade’s eyes widened at the turn of events, grimacing, “Darn it. I would have won.”

“Won?” snorted Tomko. “Not a chance. How would you have won with only those two attacks anyway?”

“Because I still have Leena’s effect to use!” Leena started aiming another arrow. “She will deal 200 damage to you for each ‘Solar’ monster on my field.” With that, Leena’s arrow traversed the field, shooting through the Direct Border and piercing Tomko’s side.

(Tomko: 2500 ---> 1900) (Slade: 1600)

Tomko brushed of the assault, thinking, 600 a turn is nothing compared to the one shot my Wave-Motion Cannon will be. Next turn, he’ll bring me down to 1300 points and be forced to end his turn. Then, all I have to do is launch the Wave-Motion Cannon and deal 2000 points of damage! I would have had him beat already if it wasn’t for that stupid Arms Force Card.

“I guess I’ll set one more card.” Slade shoved the card into his back row, quickly running out of options. “That’ll be all for now.”

“’For now,’ you say?” Tomko chortled incessantly once more as his lower display read, ‘skip Draw Phase.’ “This was the last turn of Reckless Greed. But, it won’t matter because I can just launch Wave-Motion Cannon next turn.” He extended his arm. “During my Standby Phase, I pay 100 Life Points to keep Messenger of Peace in play.”

(Tomko: 1900 ---> 1800) (Slade: 1600)

Well, he’s down below half. But, it won’t matter if I can’t take him out next turn. Right now, if he launched his Wave-Motion Cannon it would do 1000 damage to me. I still have one more turn to survive. But, I need to draw Disable or something that will help. He peered at his deck, hissing, Give me something I need, darn it!

Come on, Slade, Estelle urged with a worried tone. Do some super cool combo next turn or something! You can’t just go out like this!

Tomko eyed his only remaining card, analyzing, If I use this now, I can pretty much drop his chances of destroying my Messenger of Peace or Direct Border. The problem is that I risk giving him something he needs. He considered the possibilities, soon asserting, I’ll take my chances. The final card rose next to him as he hollered, “Activate Illusion Twist!” He held out his hand to Slade, explaining, “I can play it as long as my Life Points were decreased this turn. They were thanks to Messenger of Peace, so now I get to look at the top five cards of your deck!”

“Top five?” Slade folded away his hand cards, picking up the top five and spinning them around. “There they are.”

Tomko squinted across the field, observing each one and noticing the front one. “Haha, I had a feeling you would be able to slip out of this lock somehow! But, now I can stop you in your tracks!” He started walking towards Slade, continuing, “I get to select two of those cards and send them straight to the graveyard. Then, you can rearrange the order of the other three as you like. It looks like your order will become significantly worse.”

“The order?” Slade glanced at his own cards, widening his eyes with fury as he spotted the top card. “Disable was my next card…!”

“That’s right!” Tomko ripped the card from Slade’s hand, shoving it into the graveyard. “And that’ll be the first card I take out. You won’t be destroying my lock with any of these now!” He stared at the other cards, naming aloud, “Solar Guardian Yuna is back. Then there’s Open Horizon, Solar Sprinter Dash, and Synchronized Orbit.” Tomko studied the cards carefully, going over the possibilities.

Slade peered at his disk arm, pointing out, My first set card is Solar Assault. It’ll let me Special Summon a ‘Solar’ monster as long as it’s the top card on my deck. So, even if he picks Dash or Yuna, I’ll be able to Special Summon one of them when I choose the order of the other cards. I would have four monsters and Leena could take out 800 of Tomko’s Life Points. He cringed, realizing, But, Yuna’s attack power will be doubled and I won’t be able to attack with her. Tomko will still have Life Points and I’ll lose to Wave-Motion Cannon. He imagined being blasted by a white nova from the enormous machine.

Aha, I know which one to pick. Tomko’s eyes widened with a dastardly and suspicious glee.

But, Dash is there. It looks like I need to get him on the field next turn, or I’m pretty much sunk. A Level 3 Arms Force Card is the only thing that can pretty much save me now. I need my Chrono Sword. He envisioned the card, a prominent and golden weapon with a thick blade and a dark handle. Obviously if Tomko doesn’t pick him, I can just draw him next turn. But, Dash could be sent to the graveyard. He glimpsed at his second hidden card, suddenly piecing together, My other set card is…

“I’ve had enough of your little Arms Force monsters, Slade!” Tomko whisked Dash into his hand, pushing it into Slade’s graveyard. “Your Dash monster can rot in the grave with Daisuke. I’m not going to have anymore Arms Force Cards ruining my good time! Too bad.” He strutted back to his field, flaunting his muscles and bobbing his head. “I knew you couldn’t be anything special. I shouldn’t have expected any sort of challenge from this. You’ll lose just like every other sanctioned puppet that tries to cross my path.” He stopped on his field, holding out his arms and spinning around. “Take your turn!”

“On the End Phase, Trap Card, open!” Slade’s hidden card whooshed to an upright position. “Wish Comet!”

“Hmm?” grunted Tomko, caught off guard.

“This card returns one ‘Solar’ monster in my graveyard to the top of my deck!” Dash ejected from his graveyard, returning to the deck with the power field surrounding the Holo Mat. Slade reached for his deck, instantly grappling his ace monster and mumbling, “All these fancy duelists have their Destiny Cards that they can Destiny Draw whenever they want. But me? I have my Solar Sprinter.” He picked up the card, yelling, “Draw!” The image of the sword flashed through his head once more. “First things first; Leena will inflict another 600 damage to your Life Points!”

The archer let loose another arrow, striking Tomko in the abdomen.

(Tomko: 1800 ---> 1200) (Slade: 1600)

Slade sent the monster from his hand, hollering, “Now, I make a triple sacrifice!”

Collecting winds collided together and expanded, giving rise to a tan man with long, spiked and violet hair. His upper-body was covered only in a brown vest, showing off his thin figure and muscular abs. He had long, matching pants with two belts hanging off his waist. Each of the belts contained a sword sheath; however, neither sheath held a weapon. The warrior performed a back flip and extended his gloved hands in a battle pose.

“Solar Sprinter Dash (1100 ---> 2200 ATK/700)!”

“What good is it!?” harped Tomko.

“With three tributes, I get a Level 3 Arms Force Card!” The card flew out of his Extra Deck. “Long ago, they say a powerful magician sacrificed himself in order to banish a great evil. Sometime after that, an apprentice of the magician harnessed his power in a sword. It sounded cool enough when we learned about it last year in history class. So, I put together some of my spare Duel Points and made a new Arms Force Card depicting the sword.” He showed off the art of the card, deeming, “Now, Level 3 Arms Force Card – Chrono Sword!”

A blinding light shone above the battlefield as the majestic, golden and fiery sword Slade imagined dropped from the sky. Dash grappled the candy cane-shaped handle, swinging around the weapon as though to test it. The reflective and patterned, metal blade almost danced in the warrior’s hands.

“Chrono Sword…” Clive and Estelle muttered to themselves.

“Chrono Sword raises the equipped monster’s attack power by 1200 (2200 ---> 3400 ATK/700)!” Dash seemed to absorb the essence of the weapon in his hand.

“What are you planning to do with that?” Tomko demanded as he watched the warrior’s attack power skyrocket. “Even with such a high score, Dash still can’t attack! Next turn, Wave-Motion Cannon will launch and take you out!”

“Didn’t you hear the story I told? The magician sacrificed himself to defeat the evil.” Slade maintained an excited stare on Dash’s Chrono Sword. “Dash isn’t going to power his way through you at all.”

“Do you mean you’re going to sacrifice the sword!?”

“Bingo.” The teenager snapped his fingers. “Chrono Sword can be sent to the graveyard to do one of three things. It can reduce the attack power of a face-up monster by 1200, destroy a monster with 1200 or fewer attack points, or…”

Tomko started to sweat, bellowing, “Or what!? Out with it already!”

Slade grew a big grin, revealing, “You talked about Effect Damage earlier. Well, 1200 is your lucky number tonight.”

“W-what!?” Tomko let out a displeased growl, assuming, “1200 attack power, 1200 stats, 1200 damage!?”

“You’re just nailing those bingos. Dash!” Slade turned to his monster, nodding in defiance of the loathing crowd. “Sacrifice the Chrono Sword and let him have it!”

Curse the King! Tomko’s fist trembled uncontrollably. I can’t lose to this slime! Him and his little Arms Force!

Dash returned the gesture to Slade, holding the brimming weapon to his face. With one swift motion, Dash released the sword in a perfect, horizontal line. The weapon ignited with a blaze as it pierced through the Direct Border, cutting into Tomko and shattering with an out-facing explosion. Clive, Estelle, and most of the shifty crowd remained stunned and in silence as the cube above Tomko displayed the four-lettered word despised by all duelists.

(Tomko: 1200 ---> 0) (Slade: 1600)

---------------
Jericko and Dante frantically spoke over separate radios to their search parties, attempting to find any trace of Slade or Estelle. After more unsuccessful attempts, the two threw down the communication devices and glared at the Hourglass key. They shrugged at each other, departing from the office and heading back to the front room. Dante gripped the key as he exhaled in slight frustration. Alyssa and Crystal turned to the two as they returned.

“Well, ladies,” Dante addressed in a stern tone, “we are still unable to locate Slade or Estelle. Once again, if you two know anything about their whereabouts, you should feel obligated to let us know.”

“Withholding information can only hurt you in the end,” Jericko warned ominously. “So, if you know anything, please tell us.”

“Just know tha –” Dante stopped as he looked to the front doors. He squinted upon seeing four figures heading for the entrance. Curious, the veteran wondered, “Jericko, did any of your search parties mention they were coming back?”

“No,” the rookie answered. “Why do –”

Before Jericko could fully respond, the windows of all the front doors and windows shattered. Jericko, Dante, the third officer, and the girls dove for the floor as glass shards spread throughout the room. The four shadowy figures soon stepped through the broken entryway. Dante and Jericko leapt to their feet, reaching to their holsters for their pistols. However, the clicking sounds of other weapons stopped them in their tracks.

“I would advise against such actions,” suggested Vath from beneath his hood.

“Too slow, pigs,” Jackson taunted as he and his two minions pointed pistols at the quartet.

“These guys…!” winced Crystal.

“You three,” Dante grunted. “Now, hold on a minute here. You’re making a huge mistake if you go through with this. If you start shooting, we’ll have no choice but to use deadly force. Just put down the guns and serve your time for the crimes you’ve committed.”

“Listen to this pig squeal!” Jackson cackled, causing his two henchmen to laugh with him. “What’s wrong, officer? Don’t think I’m serious about it?” He turned to the third officer, suddenly pulling the trigger and splattering his blood on the floor. The fallen peacekeeper collapsed to the ground, motionless.

Alyssa and Crystal huddled together in fear, turning away from the grim sight. Dante and Jericko’s eyes widened as they each stared with distraught faces at their lost comrade.

“R…Rob!” Dante called. “Rob!”

“The key,” Vath declared, opening his right palm.

Dante faced the cloaked Vath, grinding his teeth together out of rage. “You…why are you doing this!?”

Jackson aimed the pistol for Dante’s head. “Nobody cares about your little friend. You gambled with your life as soon as you picked up that key. You should take solace in the fact that you two will live if you hand it over.”

“Two?” Jericko repeated, concerned over the statement.

Vath pointed at the two terrified ladies. “They will be joining us tonight, orders of the High Priest,” he explained.

“No…” Alyssa and Crystal both uttered in fear.

“There is no negotiation!” Jackson cried. “Hand everything over!”

Dante sulked, kneeling to the ground and relinquishing control of the key. He slid it along the floor. The artifact was soon taken into Vath’s hands. The tall, cloaked man bowed as a means of thanks. As the two goons motioned to Dante and Jericko’s weapons, the officers gave up those as well, throwing them into a corner. The lackeys maintained their aim on the police as Jackson walked towards the young ladies. He brought out several pairs of handcuffs, grabbing their arms in a tugging manner.

“Come on,” ordered Jackson as he finished his handiwork. He lifted them both to their feet, leading them from the station.

Duel disk… Dante noticed as he stared at Vath’s arm. He must be Vath Zervies. They really are SoS.

“Farewell,” Vath calmly wished, taking the spare weapons before leaving with his prisoners and allies.

As the coast cleared, Dante and Jericko lunged for their fallen ally. They surveyed the damage done, shaking their heads as they realized a fatal wound had been dealt. They nodded at each other, pressing an emergency button on the side of a table. A loud siren sounded. The two kicked open a closet door, rearming with additional weaponry and their disk arms. They quickly rushed out of the building with their guns drawn, pointing in every direction.

“How’d they get away so quick?” Dante hissed.

“Up!” Jericko clamored, pointing to the heavens.

Dante glanced up to see the four men escaping on hover boards. He fired several shots at Jackson and Vath, knowing he would miss Alyssa and Crystal for sure. However, his pistol failed him as the group disappeared beyond several more structures. Jericko sprinted for the squad car, flipping open the trunk and taking out two Security hover boards. He threw one to Dante who immediately landed on it, activating it with the panel below his foot and taking off into the night. Jericko started to follow, catching sight of a fifth cloaked man out of the corner of his eye.

Dante rose to the height of the unfinished skyscraper. He was able to see Vath and the others retreating in the far distance. As he sped up to gain on them, he heard the sound of a hover board not of the same model. He gasped, tilting his head to catch a chortling Kajidoh rushing straight for him.

“Duel Mode,” sounded the mechanical voice in Dante’s hover board. The Holo Force on his disk arm activated, creating the Holo Mat in front of him.

“What!?” wheezed the officer as his speed stabilized to dueling regulation. “A hacker?” He navigated through the sky, trying to stay at the same altitude as the other Society of Sin members.

“Lucky Seven!” Kajidoh shouted. His distant voice blurted loudly out of a speaker on Dante’s hover board. As Kajidoh’s disk arm display read ‘Draw 7,’ the menace held out his hand, pulling seven cards from the top of his deck into his hand. After he did, the screen read ‘Deck Locked.’

“Darn it,” hissed Dante, repeating Kajidoh’s action. He held seven cards.

“Duel!” both cried.

(Dante: 2000) (Kajidoh: 2000)

“Discard two Machine monsters of total Level 8 or more!” the officer panicked, shoving two cards into the graveyard.

A large, sky-blue-painted tank rose next to Dante. It had two treads on its sides, as well as a rotating wheel in the middle. It had two human-shaped arms and hands with five, metallic fingers. The left hand grappled a long, silver-barreled cannon. A small, dome-shaped head ejected from a slot on the top-middle. Red eyes lit up on the tank’s mug.

“Special Summon, Machiners Fortress (2500 ATK/1600)!” Two reverse cards also appeared to the left and right of Dante. He swerved around another corner, trying to concentrate on the match and pursue the other Society members as closely as possible. They vanished through an alley, causing the officer to shake his head as he entered it. He almost clashed with the wall, pulling up to narrowly avoid it and fly over the fence.

Kajidoh performed a 360-degree spin, licking his lips before shouting, “Stray Lambs!” Two round, fluffy Sheep Tokens appeared to the man’s field. They soon dissipated, making room for a reverse monster. A Spell Card appeared next to the madman as he called, “Book of Taiyou! Come, my monster!”

The card flipped face-up, giving rise to a massive, pitch-black-bodied dragon. It had enlarged, bat-like wings. Spikes and strange, orange, bulb-like eyes covered its body. Two curved, clawed bones extended in front of the mammoth, longer than its two four-clawed hands. The dragon’s menacing, four-eyed face let loose a daunting screech.

“Behold; Gandora, the Dragon of Destruction (0 ATK/0)!”

“Gandora!?” cringed Dante.

Four concealed Spell or Trap Cards backed Kajidoh. The amused and hyper man held out his arm, deeming, “Death Scream Laser!”

As the two men rose above the city buildings once more, Gandora drooled as it howled once more. The bulbs on its body ignited, unleashing paper-thin lasers of matching orange tints in all directions. Every other card on each duelist’s field was cut apart by the unrelenting beams. One beam struck the bottom of Dante’s board, causing it to short-circuit and begin losing power. The officer struggled to stay in the air, thinking of the kidnapped Alyssa and Crystal. Dante hopelessly pounded on the accelerator numerous times, finally lucky enough to recover. However, as Dante glanced behind him, one of the dragon’s large bones collided with his board, forcing it out of control.

“Dante!” puffed Jericko as he caught up with the duo.

“Come up! Up!” Dante pleaded. “UP!” He braced himself, wiping out on the roof of a small business.

(Dante: 2000 ---> 0) (Kajidoh: 2000 ---> 1000)

Jericko grunted, soon focusing on the overconfident Kajidoh. He peered over his shoulder. Dante is down, and there’s no other backup around. He turned off the safety of his pistol, lowering back into the city to follow the cloaked men. He landed in a vacant alley, looking around him. He saw a half-opened manhole as he explored, deciding to enter the underground area. He used a flashlight from his pocket, shining it in the sewer as he climbed down the ladder.

Jericko saw several shadows moving around the left corner of a distant portion of the sewer. He gave chase, at the same time trying to muffle his footsteps. He treaded the filthy waters of the underground in order to reach the path on the other side. The brick walls he passed all blended together, making the location appear as a labyrinth. He proceeded down the corridors of the venue, making a left, and then a right. He made several more twists and turns as he followed the shadows, suddenly coming to an eerily long path lined with dirt walls. Fallen bricks lined the entrance.

He moved through the hall, eventually reaching a round, metallic door. The officer slid it open, entering into a rectangular, brick-floored chamber. Vath, Jackson, and Kajidoh turned, facing the officer. Jackson clutched his fingers near the trigger of the gun. Jericko pointed the weapon at the three.

“Where are the two girls?” he asked.

“They’re being taken to the dungeon,” responded Jackson, almost in a calm tone. “Were you followed?”

“No, Dante is down.”

Jericko, Jackson, and Kajidoh suddenly unleashed sadistic grins. Jericko and Jackson sheathed their weapons as Jericko walked towards the trio.

“Well-done, High Priest,” Vath complimented, bowing to him once more.

“Rise, Vath,” Jericko insisted as his voice gained a raspy tone. “Do not feel modest, for this is a time of celebration.” He extended his hand, patting the tall individual on the shoulder. “Let me hold it…just for a moment before I have to go aboveground again.”

“Of course,” agreed Vath as he dangled the Hourglass key. He dropped it into Jericko’s hand.

“Ah, so smooth…” Jericko rubbed the key against his face, whispering, “This is our Holy Grail now, my loyal subjects. Once we have opened communication with the Undergod and have possession of the Hourglass itself, the misguided Sunset public will beg for mercy.”

“Perfectly executed,” Jackson snorted with glee. “Can Slade die yet?”

“No, not just yet.” He twirled the key in front of his eyes, determining, “Dante does suspect him. But, this event will weaken the case against him unless we continue pounding away at him. Circumstantial evidence can only get so far.”

“Especially if my men are your so-called ‘witnesses,’” joked Jackson as he patted himself.

Jericko blanked stared at the key. “If Victor Spade falls, the knowledge of his feud with Slade may serve as our greatest weapon against him yet.” He handed back the key to Vath, crossing his arms behind his back and casually walking towards the rotatable entryway. “We will see to that tomorrow.”

“How much damage should be done to the girls?” Kajidoh coyly wondered.

Just before leaving, Jericko tilted up his head, mumbling, “Beat them within an inch of their insignificant lives if you feel the need. However, leave both breathing. I have faith that once the Undergod senses the key within our grasp, he will come to us. Only then will we decide who dies.” He whipped out his arms in a V-shape. “Oh, Almighty Undergod Ruk. Hear our dark prayer and show us who we must sacrifice to your cause.”

The four men left in separate directions. Jericko rolled the door shut, stepping through the sewers once more. His cunning and dastardly expression transformed back to his benevolent, officer persona.

**
EP - Away
**
RANDOM XERO FREEZE TRIVIA

Fine, Cyber. Haha. Well, everybody deserves to win at least one prediction. Good work.

This is the end of XFZ's "intro arc," though I'm sure with these developments most of you could agree on that already.

Chrono Sword is remaining evidence of the original “Legend of the Chronicle” deck to be used by Slade. The deck was homage to Chrono Trigger, using time-warping mechanics to level up cards.

Today’s new concept: Lucky Seven Duel
- Derived from Magic the Gathering's 5-Card Blind (5CB); players have 2000 Life Points and use 7 of their own cards as resources. Players do not draw cards and Effect Damage cannot be inflicted. Each player has 2 turns to inflict the most Battle Damage, or eliminate all of their opponent's cards from the duel. Random / die roll effects are automatically given the least favorable result to the player. A game lasts 5 turns, with each player having two Battle Phases through standard rules. There is no Draw Phase or Main Phase 2.

[Gladiator King]

woot, first post. . Anyways, great chapter... and the plot is thickening already.

[Junior]

looks like you're alive and well, and still going strong with fanfictions.

[Twisted Fate]

*to the Black Eyed Peas, I Got A Feeling* Cyber and I had a feeling Oooh Hoo That Jeriko was a bad guy, That Jeriko was a bad giy, The Jeriko was a bad, bad guy.

well, a good chapter, and now Slade is going to be mad when he gets back, though he did beat Tomoko, who's deck is an interesting one, not to mention Chronos Sword is a cool card, i cannot wait for turn 8, what is to come with Alyssa and Crystal, How will Slade react to their capture, What will Dante think, and will Jeriko's true alliance be revealed? fin out next time on Xero Freeze Turn 8(i was an announcer like poster at times on Duelists of the Light, I just melded it into my post here)

[GuardianBlaK]

holy hell, did not see Jericko being the freaking High Preist of the SoS. dastardly clever. Good win for Slade. Tomko is a good "old school" duelist. i hope he becomes a regular part of the Xero Freeze cast of characters. Slade gets more interesting by the minute. His connection with this key, and the way the SoS is trying to kill him can only mean there is more than meets the eye. sorry, bad Transformers reference.

okay, enough rambling, i better get back to writing my own fic. lol. see u next turn!

[magicbullet]

Jericko's the High Priest? Interesting. I have a feeling that Vath will duel Victor to try to "take him out". I guess we'll just have to see.

[S_Guard1224]

Awesome. Everything I was going to say has already been said though.

[ShadowBlade]

Well, I'm doing a lot of planning for a Let's Play of The Legend of Zelda: Parallel Worlds and have a discrete math test tomorrow. So, while I did update the Silver Wire episode guide, I'll wait until vacation (Thanksgiving Break this week!) to update CACs. Anyway, let's have a rundown of the comments. Sorry I didn't induce more conversation this week like usual, but I've been pretty busy.


GK: Yep. The plot will start to move pretty fast now that we're out of the intro arc. Hopefully you guys will continue to enjoy it! Thanks for the reply.


Juni...JUNIOR! It's Junior! Junior's still around! Very good to see you again after all this time. Thanks for stopping by as always.


DeckMaster: I should probably know what that references, but I don't. Boo. Wait a minute, all those lines are from the preview of Turn 8! Nah, I kid. Glad you enjoyed the duel and the decks. I always felt Tomko should've been an old school duelist for some reason; didn't really feel like he needed many CACs.


BlaK: And now Jericko will feast on your soul. Or maybe not, I don't know. Tomko definitely isn't done, though. I didn't spend the time on his backstory to fade him out after one duel. The Transformers reference is lost on me, though, since I haven't seen the second one yet. *gets chased by angry mob*


Magic: Interesting prediction. We shall see if Vath actually does something!


Tyking: Eh, repeating things isn't always the best. But, sometimes if you can throw a little twist on the review it's still good to give one. Thanks for the reply as always.


Thanks to everybody for their usual feedback and comments. Here is our preview for Paralle - Turn 8.

Next time on Xero Freeze...

Jericko plans to eliminate Victor and place the blame on Slade. But, what dastardly scheme does he have up his sleeve in order to attempt to accomplish this? Will Victor fall prey to the dirty trick or will he see through the High Priest? Plus, Slade has won the Dark Tournament and claims his prize. Will Slade find out about Jericko's scheme before it is too late? Or will Victor and others fall to the growing conspiracy? In addition, what has become of Alyssa and Crystal, and what plans do SoS have for them?

Find out in Turn 8: Broken

[Twisted Fate]

and a wonderful preview, if you dont know my referance, listen to Black Eyed Peas's song: I Got A Feeling, that Transformers referance also doesnt have anything to do with Transformers 2, Optimus's Phrase is, i quote: "show theres more to you then meets the eye" unquote

[SebastiaanZ]

Much better as Turn 6, but that I already told you.
I never got used to the Kozaky stuff, but I liked the way you used them. Tomko is a well built character, an old-school duellist. And Slade is just wow, well done. But is it me or are you still getting used to the Synchro`s? I mean we haven't seen many since Turn 1, or maybe non at all but I might not remember them all.

Developments are interesting. With the Key in possession of the SoS. Well, Jericko being the High Priest was quiet a surprise. And he now has possession of the girls, see how Slade will react on that.

As for the preview, interesting, very interesting. I see a duel between Victor and one of the SoS members coming. See if Ancient Guardian can take them on. We'll see, I'd like to see Victor win of them too. And I wonder what the Championships Rare card of Slade will be. A synchro finally? Oh, wait I remember you mentioned he had a Synchro, but something was wrong with it, right?

Well, we will see. After all that happened this week, including that so muched BTZ incident on YCM, it would be good to see a new turn of the real master himself.

Sep out

[Twisted Fate]

SebastianZ, what is wrong with the Synch is Slade doesnt have the needed Tuner anymore

[ShadowBlade]

It's actually that Slade has the Tuner. He lost the Synchro Monster.

Sep: It's interesting you bring that up, really, though the last Synchro we saw was Crystal's Dizzy-Fuzzy Cannon in Turn 5. Synchros aren't around much because the card game isn't as much of a part of the main story as it was in BTZ. Synchros will shine infinitely more in DYH than they ever could here, simply because I don't have many plans for them. For now I'm pretty much messing around with design and speeches, to gauge what I may need to change for DYH.

XFZ will be...much stranger than BTZ as far as progression goes from now on. This is pretty much where the "experimental writing" begins because of the pace change. But, I have faith that it will be fun in the end. We'll see how I do!

[Cyber Phoenix]

Hoho! I was right! Called it from...what, Turn 1 or 2? My skills of prediction are slowly regenerating for the last season of LOST! Ah well. At least now I can stop making my outrageous claims. Watch as Jericko somehow isn't a bad guy and is just an undercover agent or a double-double agent (Triple agent?). That would be funny. Only problem now is how Eve is going to play into this. Is Jericko's daughter the same as him or does she oppose him?

Anyways, Kajidoh absolutely demolished Dante in that duel. It seems like the duel was almost unneccesary in my opinion. Could've just had Kajidoh dow some fancy maneuvers that caused the peace-keeper to crash. And no, not Officer #3! He was my favorite one since Turn 2! I really need to stop getting attached to minor characters!

Nice storyline so far ShadowBlade! I look forward to seeing more!






Still can't believe I called it.

[Twisted Fate]

hey, Cyber read my first post, i called it(after you, but i knew it) and i fit that fact into a song

[Cyber Phoenix]

Originally Posted by deckmaster717

hey, Cyber read my first post, i called it(after you, but i knew it) and i fit that fact into a song

Um, yeah, I saw it. I don't think it was necessary to remind me of your post though.

Anyways, Turn 8 of XFZ is out, so let's just move onto that.

[Twisted Fate]

already have, post 2(still cant beat Glad King though)