DUEL TWENTY-NINE
Ember looked around the interior of the crumbling, decaying warehouse. It was hard to tell what purpose it originally served. There were no crates, no old machinery, not even an old tire lying around. It seemed completely empty. The walls were cheap plasterboard, the floor was old-fashioned wood, and the beams holding up the ceiling were covered with rust.
As she walked, the floor creaked and groaned. If she looked hard at the floor, she might have seen the odd symbols painted on it... Magical wards designed to keep the danger lurking here from getting outside.
Then she saw a door on the other end. A back door, maybe?
She rushed to it... Only for it to slam shut. She pulled on it, but it had locked with a deadbolt.
Ember slowly turned around. She saw Hebi-Na next to a switch.
“Trust me,” said the ophidia, “you didn’t want to go down there...”
Ember lifted her sword. The sword she had stolen from the guard in the shrine. It wasn’t nearly of the quality of the dwarven-forged blade that Jalal had given her (which she presumed the ophidia still had) but at least it was a sword.
“Then come and get me, bitch...” she said with a scowl. “Let’s end this between us once and for all...”
Hebi-Na paused. She looked nervously back and forth.
“Well?” asked Ember. “What are you waiting for? Aren’t you going to pounce like the beast you are? Try to tear me limb from limb?”
Normally, Hebi-Na would have. But if a fight of swords broke out, blood might be spilled. That would be dangerous. Like a shark, the danger lurking below was attracted to blood...
“Tell you what, Ember...” said Hebi-Na. “You think I’m so merciless... Well, we don’t have to fight that way... I’ll give you one last chance...”
Then, she pushed a switch on her Duel Disk, and a grapple shot out of it, latching itself to Ember’s Disk.
“What’s going on?” shouted Ember.
“We’re going to duel using a little house rule that the Duel Gangs of Satellite used a few years ago,” said Hebi-Na. “Your friend who used to hang out with Team Satisfaction might have told you how this works...”
“He’s very closemouthed about that,” replied Ember.
“Then I’ll explain it,” said Hebi-Na. “This Duel Cuff won’t let go until we duel, and a winner is declared. When that happens, it will rip free of the loser’s Disk, destroying it.”
“Your sadistic idea of fun, right?” asked Ember.
No, that’s what I want you to think, thought Hebi-Na. I almost knocked you senseless in our last duel. If I do the same thing this time, I can finish you off with my venom, and not spill any blood.
You’ll never understand, but it’s for your own good. It would be much worse if a real fight broke out...
“All right, you’re on,” said Ember.
She sighed.
Guys... she thought. I hope you’re somewhere out there looking for me...
“Duel!” they both shouted.
(Ember: 8,000) - - - - - - - - - - (Hebi-Na: 8,000)
“I’ll make the first move...” said Hebi-Na, making a draw.
“Oh, look... Here’s a card you’ll remember...”
She fit the card into her Field Slot, and once again, the towers of the Magical Citadel of Endymion rose around them.
“Not this again!” shouted Ember.
“Yes, this again,” said Hebi-Na. “Next, I’ll summon Skilled White Magician.”
In a burst of light, a mage in a white robe and a hood, holding a scepter appeared. (1,700 ATK)
“Having done that,” she said, as she played a Spell Card, “I’ll play Toon Table of Contents. This lets me take any card from my deck with the word ‘Toon’ in its name.
“I’ll choose a second Toon Table of Contents, and play that one as well.”
She played a second Spell Card.
“And heck, why not do it a third time?”
She took a third Toon Table of Contents, and played it. She took another card from her deck.
“By playing those three Spells, both my Citadel and my Magician got three Counters apiece.
“And with that, my turn is complete.”
“Uhm,” said Ember, “you do know that when Skilled White Magician has three Spell Counters, you can sacrifice him to summon Buster Blader, right?”
“I’m well aware of that,” replied Hebi-Na. “Maybe I have a reason for not doing so.”
Ember quickly made a draw. She looked over the six cards in her hand.
She was nervous. If she lost this duel, and as a result lost her Disk, she might well be defenseless. Of course, she didn’t know what Hebi-Na was planning for when the duel was over.
“I summon Evocator Chevalier!” she shouted.
In an aura of fire, Chevalier appeared, brandishing his burning blade. (1,900 ATK)
“Destroy Skilled White Magician!” she shouted.
Chevalier made a deep cut, and the sorcerer groaned before he shattered. Hebi-Na grinned.
(E: 8,000) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 7,800)
“I knew you’d attack, because you were afraid I’d summon Buster Blader,” said Hebi-Na, with an evil smile. “Truthfully, my deck has no Buster Blader. But now that you’ve destroyed my Magician, his three Spell Counters go to my Citadel.”
Ember frowned.
“I’ll end with a facedown card,” she said.
A reversed card appeared.
“My move...” said Hebi-Na.
She made a draw.
“I’ll summon the Monster I searched for with my last Toon Table of Contents,” she said. “Toon Masked Sorcerer.”
In a burst of lights and colored streamers, a silly-looking goon with a blue face, orange hair with a flower in it, and a purple suit appeared. He balanced on one foot. (900 ATK)
“I’ll throw down two facedowns, for later,” she said, as two reversed cards appeared. “And end my turn.”
Ember made a draw.
“I summon Blazing Inpachi!” she exclaimed.
A bonfire appeared on her side of the field, and the large, burning, wooden effigy materialized. (1,850 ATK)
“I activate my Trap Card!” laughed Hebi-Na, as one of her facedown cards lifted up.
“Tower of Babel!”
Another of Sonja’s cards! thought Ember.
A huge, rickety Tower rose behind Hebi-Na, next to the main tower of Endymion.
“And now, my Spell Card,” continued Hebi-Na, as her other facedown card lifted up. “Magical Dimension!
“I’ll sacrifice Toon Masked Sorcerer...”
The silly Toon vanished.
“...and Special Summon Defender, the Magical Knight in Defense Mode.”
Defender appeared, crouching behind his large shield. (2,000 DEF)
“And as per the second effect of Magical Dimension, I can destroy Evocator Chevalier.”
The Gemini Warrior shattered into pixels.
“Plus, my Citadel gains another Spell Counter, and the Tower of Babel gets one.”
“I end my turn!” said Ember, with a scowl.
Hebi-Na quickly made a draw.
“I summon Night’s End Sorcerer!” she shouted.
She played the card, and the swarm of bats flew from the Citadel once again. The young mage in the ragged cloak with the scythe appeared again. (1,300 ATK)
“You summon Tempest Magician now,” said Ember, “she won’t have enough juice to finish me.”
“Tempest Magician isn’t the only Level 6 Synchro I have,” said Hebi-Na, as both of her Monsters faded into six glowing stars. “I want to at least treat you to as much of this deck as I can...”
A column of light shot up in front of her.
“I Synchro Summon... Explosive Magician!”
The Spellcaster that appeared was dressed in a pure white robe and a conical hat, covered with golden designs. He held a golden staff, and sparks of energy surrounded him like glowing embers. (2,500 ATK)
“Now, I use his effect,” continued Hebi-Na, “and remove two Spell Counters from my Citadel to destroy one Spell or Trap Card.”
Explosive Magician blasted a bolt of burning light, vaporizing Ember’s Martyr’s Flame.
“How unfortunate...” muttered Hebi-Na. “I would have enjoyed attacking you directly...
“Oh well... Explosive Magician, attack Blazing Inpachi with burst blast!”
The sorcerer fired another bolt of plasma, and the wicker man exploded into a burst of flaming timbers. Ember braced herself.
(E: 7,350) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 7,800)
“Don’t forget, Ember...” said Hebi-Na. “If Tower of Babel gets four Spell Counters, it will flatten whoever played the fourth spell, costing her 3,000 Life Points. It has one now.
“It’s your move...”
Ember took a deep breath, and made a draw.
“Well, here’s two,” she said. “I play Fire Back.”
She played the Spell Card, and discarded Molten Zombie. Evocator Chevalier reappeared. (1,900 ATK)
“Then, I Gemini Summon him.”
Chevalier flashed with energy.
“Now, Salamandra!”
Chevalier’s blade burned with fire. (2,600 ATK)
“Next, I’ll ditch Salamandra to destroy Explosive Magician!”
Chevalier’s Attack Score fell back down to 1,900, and Explosive Magician shattered into pixels.
“Hey, wait a minute...” said Hebi-Na.
“Next,” said Ember, “I discard Flamvell Baby to increase his Attack Score again.”
She discarded the card. (2,300 ATK)
“Now wait just a...” started Hebi-Na.
Then she gasped, as Chevalier slashed at her with his blade.
(E: 7,350) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 5,500)
“It’s your move, snake...” growled Ember.
Hebi-Na looked nervous. She stopped for a minute to listen.
No, she hadn’t heard anything. They were safe for now.
She drew a card.
It was Pot of Avarice. The other card in her hand was Royal Magical Library.
She had enough Monsters in her Graveyard to play Pot of Avarice, but if she did so, the Tower of Babel would fall on her! It would be too much of a risk.
She set Royal Magical Library on her Disk, and the reversed Monster appeared.
She glared at Ember.
Ember drew a card.
“I summon Little Chimera,” she said.
She played the card, and the small, white cat with wings appeared. (600 ATK)
“And it increases the Attack Scores of all Fire Monsters by 500 points.”
Chevalier increased to 2,800 Attack Points, and Little Chimera to 1,100.
“Chevalier, attack!”
Evocator Chevalier swung his blade, and the bookshelf burst into a shower of burning paper.
“Chimera, attack directly!”
Hebi-Na grunted as the cat breathed a small fireball on her.
(E: 7,350) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 4,400)
Hebi-Na hissed angrily, and bore her fangs...
No! she thought, calming down. I mustn’t get angry! If a real fight breaks out, the curse of this place will come down upon us, and we’ll both be killed!
And our goddess will do who knows what to me in the afterlife for releasing it on the world...
Calm... Must stay calm... As long as I stay calm, it won’t wake up...
Probably...
“It’s my move!” she shouted.
She made a draw.
“I summon Defender the Magical Knight!” she shouted.
She played the card, and a second Defender appeared. (1,600 ATK)
“Destroy Little Chimera!” she ordered.
Defender shield-rushed the little Beast, crushing it.
“And that will be all for now...”
(E: 6,850) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 4,400)
Ember drew a card. She looked at the two cards in her hand.
“I set a Monster,” she said, as a reversed Monster appeared.
“Then I attack your Defender!”
Chevalier rushed at Defender...
“He’s not called Defender for nothing,” said Hebi-Na. “Once per turn, I can remove a Spell Counter from any of my cards to prevent him from being destroyed in battle. So I’ll remove one from Tower of Babel.”
Defender blocked the Warrior’s blow with his shield.
“But you still take damage,” replied Hebi-Na.
“Ergh...” muttered the ophidia.
(E: 6,850) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 3,700)
“It’s your move...” said Ember.
Hebi-Na made a draw.
“Now that it’s safe...” she said. “I play Pot of Avarice.”
She played the card, and took Explosive Magician, Night’s End Sorcerer, her first Defender, Skilled White Magician, and Royal Magical Library from her discard slot, shuffled them into her deck, and made two draws.
“I’ll set a facedown, and move Defender to Defense Mode, where he does better...”
A reversed card appeared, and Defender knelt and covered himself with his shield. (2,000 DEF)
“And it’s your move...”
“Then I draw!” shouted Ember.
She drew. She looked at the card.
“I play Brain Control!” she shouted, playing it. “I’m paying 800 Life Points to take control of your Defender!”
The sinister brain appeared, and two large arms pulled Defender over to Ember’s side.
“Oh, Ember?” said Hebi-Na, in a sweet voice. “You just put the fourth Spell Counter on Tower of Babel!”
Ember covered her head as the Tower started to topple. Stones and rubble rained down on her, and then the whole structure collapsed, sending her to the floor. Hebi-Na was almost pulled down as well by the Cuff.
Ember slowly got up.
(E: 3,050) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 3,700)
“Not to rub salt on an open wound,” said Hebi-Na, “but since Tower of Babel was just destroyed, its Spell Counters all go to my Citadel.”
Ember growled.
“I sacrifice your Defender...” she said, as the Magical Knight vanished, “to summon Thestalos the Firestorm Monarch!”
There was a huge bonfire, and Thestalos loomed over the field. (2,400 ATK)
“Now, one card in your hand is destroyed, and if it’s a Monster, you lose 100 Life Points times its Level!”
One of Hebi-Na’s two cards caught on fire.
“Heh,” she chuckled, turning it around. “That’s Instant Fusion. It’s a Spell Card.”
“Doesn’t matter!” shouted Ember. “Because now I’m gonna finish you!
“Get her!”
Chevalier and Thestalos rushed at the snake-woman...
Hebi-Na’s Trap Card flipped up.
“Mirror Force??” gasped Ember.
Hebi-Na grinned as the two Monsters were blown to atoms.
I don’t know where Hssimim got this deck, thought Hebi-Na, but it’s a good one...
Ember sighed.
“I have to end my turn...” she said.
“I draw!” shouted Hebi-Na, whipping the next card off her Disk.
“And I summon Skilled Dark Magician!”
In an aura of shadow, a black-robed twin of Skilled White Magician appeared. (1,900 ATK)
“Destroy her last Monster!” she commanded. “Black magic blast!”
Skilled Dark Magician fired a bolt of black magic at the reversed Monster. Morphing Jar appeared on the card, and cackled before it burst into shards.
Hebi-Na shrugged. She discarded the last card in her hand, and then they both made five draws.
Hebi-Na gave her new hand a look-over.
“I set one card, and end my turn,” she said.
A reversed card appeared.
“My move,” said Ember, drawing a sixth card.
“I summon the Royal Firestorm Guards,” she exclaimed.
In a burst of fiery energy, the strange, serpentine, reptilian Pyro with wing-like protrusions on its arms appeared. (1,700 ATK)
“By summoning it, I get to take four Pyros from my Graveyard and shuffle them into my deck...”
She took Thestalos, Molten Zombie, Blazing Inpachi, and Flamvell Baby from her Graveyard, and added them to her deck. The Disk shuffled it.
“...then make two draws...”
She drew twice.
She was surprised when she saw what one of the cards was.
This was the card I used to destroy Akira’s Judgment Dragon! she thought. Whoever put it in my spiritual deck must have put it in my real deck at the same time.
She took another card from her hand.
“I play Double Summon!” she shouted, playing a Spell Card. “I’ll use it to set a Monster.”
A reversed Monster appeared next to Royal Firestorm Guards.
“Then I’ll toss two cards facedown, and end my turn!”
Two reversed cards appeared in flashes of light.
“Every move you make just strengthens my Citadel,” said Hebi-Na, as she made a draw. “Playing Double Summon gave both it and Skilled Dark Magician a Spell Counter.
“I summon Magical Exemplar.”
In an aura of soft, gentle light, Exemplar appeared, with her usual serene expression. (1,700 ATK)
“Skilled Dark Magician, attack Royal Firestorm Guards!”
The sorcerer cast his dark Spell, and the Pyro exploded into a cloud of ash.
“Exemplar, the other one!”
Magical Exemplar, put her hands together, and threw a ball of light at the facedown Monster...
But the Monster that appeared was a large, fiery, winged creature, resembling a cross between a condor and a pterodactyl, covering itself with its wings. (1,800 DEF) The blast glanced off.
“Guess Neoflamvell Garuda was too much for her,” said Ember.
“Humph,” said Hebi-Na. “I end my turn...”
(E: 2,850) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 3,600)
Ember quickly drew.
“I summon Flamvell Archer!” she shouted.
Flamvell Archer appeared, aiming his bow. (1,000 ATK)
“Then, I Tune him and Garuda together...”
The two Pyros dissolved into six glowing stars...
With a roar, Flamvell Urquizas landed on the field. (2,100 ATK)
“Attack Skilled Dark Magician!” she ordered. “Fist of flame!”
Hebi-Na groaned as the Synchro socked the Spellcaster hard, blowing him to pieces.
(E: 2,850) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 3,400)
* * * * * * * * * *
Outside the theater, Gears was startled as the computer on his D-Wheel started beeping. He looked at the controls.
“People!” he shouted. “Someone in Satellite just summoned Flamvell Urquizas!
“Ember is dueling!”
“Then what are we waiting for?” asked Jinx.
The three Shadowchasers got on their D-Wheels, and started them...
But then, they were surprised as a mob of shadowy shapes started to appear on the street, blocking their path.
Shichiro turned around, and saw that more of them were approaching. He recognized them as dark elves.
“What’s going on?” he said. “Is there a party here that someone forgot to tell us about?”
The dark elves laughed as dozens more started to appear...
* * * * * * * * * *
Flamvell Urquizas rose to an Attack Score of 2,400.
“You may have destroyed Skilled Dark Magician,” said Hebi-Na, “but his Counter goes to the Citadel, giving it a total of fourteen.”
“I’m so scared,” said Ember.
“You will be,” said Hebi-Na, drawing a card.
“I play Foolish Burial.”
She played a Spell Card.
“Now, not only does my Citadel gain another Counter, and Magical Exemplar gains two, but I get to send Night’s End Sorcerer to my Graveyard.
“Next, I’ll remove the two Counters from Exemplar to summon Night’s End Sorcerer to the field.”
Night’s End Sorcerer appeared again.
“Then I’ll use its effect to remove Evocator Chevalier and Flamvell Archer from play.”
The two cards fell out of Ember’s discard slot.
“Now, I Tune both Monsters together!”
Magical Exemplar and Night’s End Sorcerer faded into six glowing stars...
Then, the swarm of bats flew down from the Citadel again, and Tempest Magician appeared. (2,200 ATK)
“Now, I use her effect!” shouted Hebi-Na. “Tempest Magician, finish her!”
Tempest Magician lifted her scythe, and made a great command...
“Not this time!” shouted Ember, as one of her facedown cards lifted up.
“Divine Wrath??” gasped Hebi-Na.
“You bet!” said Ember, as she discarded a card. “As the name implies, this card uses power from divine sources, like the cosmic being that guided me to it. She helped me escape the Venomous Tarns, and she’ll help me defeat you!
“For the cost of one card in my hand, Divine Wrath negates your Monster’s effect, and destroys your Monster!”
Lightning struck, and Tempest Magician screamed...
She was blown to pieces.
Ember sighed a breath of relief.
“I’m not through yet, little girl...” said Hebi-Na, with a scowl.
Her facedown card lifted up, revealing Call of the Haunted. In a flash of energy, Tempest Magician reappeared. (2,200 ATK)
“A fat lot of good she’ll do you now,” said Ember. “In your failed attempt to use her effect, you exhausted every last Spell Counter on the field.”
“Then I’ll add a few more,” replied Hebi-Na, taking two of the three cards in her hand. “For each card that I discard, she gains a Spell Counter.”
She discarded the two cards, and Tempest Magician glowed with a shadowy aura.
“Then I’ll play Spell Power Grasp,” she said, as she played her last card. “Now, I can place one Counter on my Citadel, and it gains an additional one since a Spell Card was played.”
“And you get a second Spell Power Grasp from your deck, I know,” said Ember.
Hebi-Na took the card.
“It’s your move, little girl,” she said.
Ember made a draw.
Her plan could not be more obvious, she thought. One of the cards she discarded was clearly Endymion the Master Magician. She wants me to destroy Tempest Magician. Once I do, the two Counters on Tempest Magician will go to the Citadel.
Then on her turn, she’ll play the second Spell Power Grasp to give it a total of six. That’s exactly enough to Special Summon Endymion himself from the Graveyard, at which point she can recover a Spell Card from there, and discard it to destroy any card on the field.
Well, it’s not gonna work...
“I summon Flamvell Gurnika!”
In another aura of flame, the winged Dragon-man appeared. He looked at Hebi-Na, and growled. (1,700 ATK)
“I seem to remember you saying that ophidia and dragons didn’t like each other much,” said Ember. “Fitting I should use him to help finish you.
“But first... Urquizas, destroy Tempest Magician! Fist of Flame!”
Urquizas lunged at the dark sorceress and punched her in the gut. She screamed and dropped her scythe before shattering into bits.
“You still haven’t finished me!” said Hebi-Na. “Next turn...”
“Not gonna be a next turn,” said Ember, as her last facedown card lifted up. “I activate Synchro Destructor.
“Since I just crushed your Monster using a Synchro Monster, you take damage equal to half your destroyed Monster’s Attack Points.”
A ghostly shape resembling Tempest Magician appeared behind Ember.
“AND, since the Monster I destroyed was also a Synchro Monster,” continued Ember, “you take the damage twice!”
A second ghostly Tempest Magician appeared behind Ember. Then, both the ghosts turned into burning energy, and flew at Hebi-Na.
“Wait, no!” she screamed.
She hollered as they struck, and they struck with such force, the old, rotted floor under her feet started to crack...
“Ember! Wait! Stop!” shouted Hebi-Na.
“Gurnika!” ordered Ember. “Attack directly!”
Hebi-Na screamed again, as the angry Dragon roasted her with his flame.
(E: 2,850) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 0)
The Field Spell vanished. Then the Duel Cuff rippled out of Hebi-Na’s Disk, causing it to spark and smoke as the circuitry inside was torn free.
But then, the floor started to collapse in. Before Ember could do anything, it completely gave way, and the two of them fell into a basement level below.
* * * * * * * * * *
Hebi-Na could not believe how stupid she had been. All this time, she had been concentrating on dispatching Ember without spilling blood, so that the danger below would not be attracted to the surface.
She had not considered for a minute that any sort of conflict might cause the rotted floor to collapse, sending them falling into the main complex.
There was no risk of the danger coming to the surface now... But now they had fallen into its territory. Now they were both in even worse trouble.
“Oof!” said Ember, as she landed on her behind.
She wasn’t hurt, but she was in the dark, and she had landed in some cold, wet substance.
“Hebi-Na?” she said, ominously.
Then she heard a click, and the lights went on. She saw Hebi-Na only ten feet in front of her, by a light switch. They were in a long hallway, with metal walls.
“How did you know there was a light switch there?” asked Ember.
“Uh... Lucky guess,” said Hebi-Na.
Ember noticed what she had landed in.
“YUCK!” she said. “Leave it to me to land in a pool of slime!”
“It isn’t slime, it’s…” said Hebi-Na.
“Yes?” asked Ember.
Hebi-Na sighed.
“Never mind…” she said.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” asked Ember.
Truthfully, Hebi-Na was checking to see if Ember had been wounded in the fall. If she had an open cut, they were more than likely doomed. Fortunately, she didn’t.
“Listen, Shadowchaser…” she said, not answering the question. “Getting out of here the way we came is out of the question… And I can’t call for help, either, because this building blocks all signals.
“So… You want to fight, or do you want to call a truce until we figure out another way out?”
Ember looked at her.
“You aren’t telling me something, snake…” she said.
“You’re better off not knowing…” said Hebi-Na. “This way…”
“I don’t recall saying yes!” shouted Ember.
“Oh?” said Hebi-Na. “Your other alternative is finding your way out of this abandoned research facility on your own. Truce?”
Ember looked at her.
“Fine,” she said. “Truce. But you’re going first. If you think I’m turning my back to you, you’re crazy.”
* * * * * * * * * *
“This is nuts,” said Jinx. “It looks like every dark elf in town is out tonight.”
Indeed there were. There were too many to count. Not all of the dark elves that had come out of the dark alleys were on foot – some of them were mounted on steeders, fiendish creatures resembling giant spiders that dark elves bred like war horses.
“And they don’t seem friendly...” replied Shichiro.
Then the crowd of dark elves surrounding them went silent. Again, a cloud covered the moon.
“I think we’re about to see what the big issue is now,” said Shichiro. “I just hope that wherever Ember is, she can hang on a little longer.”
SYNCHRO DESTRUCTOR (Trap Card)
Normal Trap
Image: Colossal Fighter screaming in an aura of intense energy.
Card Description:[/B] Activate when a Synchro Monster you control destroys an opposing Monster as a result of battle. Inflict direct damage to your opponent equal to half the destroyed Monster’s base ATK. If the destroyed Monster was a Synchro Monster, inflict the damage a second time.
Note: “Synchro Destructor” was first used by Yusei in the “Yu-Gi-Oh 5D’s” episode “Dark Signs (Part 4)”. Creative credit goes to the writers of that episode.
Next:
Shichiro: The dark elves haven’t been a problem for months, so why have they decided to attack us now? My new deck hasn’t been tested, so I can only hope it will be enough in the Turbo Duel I’m forced into.
“Spider Web” is coming soon. Turbo Duel, Acceleration!
Shadowchaser Files
Jemorille the Exile
“If all darkness were to vanish, how would we know light?” You may have heard this saying before. It’s a means of saying that some things need their opposites to exist.
No-one believes this more than the enigmatic race of extradimensional beings known as the rilmani. The rilmani are neither good nor evil, not creatures of Law nor Chaos, but exist to maintain equality between all philosophical ideas, preserving what they call a Balance. They reason, if Good were to completely eradicate Evil, how would we recognize Good? It would likely also cease to exist as well. Thus, when one side of any philosophical conflict gets too strong, the rilmani step in and help the losing side until it evens out.
The rilmani don’t help in obvious ways. They don’t form armies or strike at powerful beings directly (although some of them are quite capable of doing so). Rather, they use disguise and deception to manipulate high levels of governments, kingdoms, and even the courts of deities to do their work. And when the Balance is achieved, they vanish, never to be seen again by the ones they aided or the ones they hindered.
It is not known who – or what – rules the rilmani or gives them their assignments. But whatever does appointed Jemorille the Exile (as he calls himself) as the one in charge of maintaining the Balance on Earth roughly five-hundred years ago, and he has been doing that job ever since. Why is he an “exile”? No-one knows for sure. Possibly, he has been on Earth so long because rilmani are unable to leave this world once they are sent here.
In his true form (almost never seen) Jemorille appears as a tall human with silvery skin, stark white hair and a beard, and eyes that look like liquid metal. Just as demons exude an aura of fear and terror and celestial beings an aura of light and power, rilmani radiate an aura of calmness and serenity.
Jemorille is certainly powerful. The rilmani have powers that make them the equal of the mightiest demons. But Jemorille has acted behind the scenes most of the time in his career, as his kind often do. Time and again in the past five centuries, he has played a part in many conflicts, using subtle manipulation to bring equality to the struggles between good and evil.
The Shadowchasers are always wary of anyone who might be Jemorille, as his disguises are hard to discern. Magic cannot detect the presence of a rilmani – it’s a trick they learned countless ages ago – so he can literally be anywhere at any time. It’s impossible to tell what the status of the Balance is the way a rilmani is able to, so one never knows if a rilmani is currently aiding the side of Good or opposing it. With contacts and influences that reach worldwide, Jemorille is a valuable ally, but a deadly enemy.
Jemorille will use Duel Monsters when he has to, but his favorite game has always been chess. He sees playing the Game of Kings as an analogy to his job, the world being his game board. He is always ready to make the next move.
Story Ideas: Jemorille is a mystery wrapped in a mystery. In the past, he has posed as government advisors, military officers, terrorist leaders, and has likely even been a Shadowchaser a few times. There are some who say that dealing with rilmani is even worse than dealing with demons. At least with them, you know what to expect.
Rilmani realize that the greatest threat to the Balance would be if one of their own were ever captured and interrogated, so despite his personal power, Jemorille is never without an escape route and one or more backup routes. He likely has some sort of suicide pill (or the equivalent) that he’d use if he ever was captured anyway.
Although very powerful, Jemorille only acts in accordance to his purpose, preserving the Balance among things like Good and Evil, Law and Chaos, and similar philosophical conflicts. He has already made a difference several times. (It is even possible he had something to do with Judai’s struggle against the Light of Ruin, who threatened to overwhelm the Healing Darkness.)
Deck Ideas: When Jemorille must use Duel Monsters to solve a problem, no one deck defines him. He owns an enchanted Duel Disk that can create a deck of any cards he desires (except ones created by magic or possessed by magical beings, like the Signer Dragons). He is thus capable of devising nearly any strategy imaginable.
However, Jemorille’s strategy is almost always one that directly opposes that of his opponent in some way. This does not mean his deck will be designed to exploit a weakness in the opponent’s deck (although that is a possibility). He might use a strategy that has a symbolic opposition.
For example, against someone like Lightning who uses Divine Grace – Norsewemko, Jemorille might use a Ritual Deck that uses Norsewemko’s rival, Garlandolf, King of Destruction. Against someone like Heitmann who puts value only on high-Level Monsters, his deck would likely be Human Wave. By pitting a powerful deck against its opposite (and hopefully, winning), everything should even out.
Re: Shadowchasers: Power Primordial
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