His expression hardened. "Fine. I'll drag you out of her one way or another. Draw!"
Yumi swiftly drew his card, now taking things more seriously, seeing how a student was being controlled by a duel spirit instead of acting on a teenager's impulsiveness.
"I'll remove the two copies of Take Over 5 from my deck and the one in my graveyard to draw three more cards." Three cards vanished from his duel disk, as he swiftly drew three cards.
"Trap card open! Call of the Haunted!" Right after Yumi finished his draws, the possess Rio quickly activated one of her face-down cards. "This lets me bring back one of my monsters in Attack Position!"
The ground shook, and the massive Earthbound hard-to-kill chicken rose once more.
"Rise, my soul! Earthbound Immortal Aslla piscu!"
[Earthbound Immortal Aslla piscu, 2500 ATK]
Yumi simply ignored it and continued with his play. "Spell card, Double Fusion! Paying 500 Life Points, I can perform a double fusion!"
[Yumi, LP 4000 -> 3500]
From his hand, the familiar duo of Avian and Burstinatrix appeared, diving together into a swirling vortex.
"Fusion Summon, Elemental HERO Burst Wingman!"
The FIRE hero descended, his gaze locking onto the evil spirit possessing the innocent girl. His fists instinctively clench with righteous fury.
[Elemental HERO Burst Wingman, 2100 ATK]
"Now, Burst Wingman and Sparkman, double fusion!"
Sparkman materialized beside his comrade. Together they leapt into the vortex, merging in a storm of light.
"Come forth, Elemental HERO Shining Blaze Wingman!"
From a blinding flash emerged a new hero, boots shaped like talons, hands encased in clawed gauntlets, a visor obscuring half his face, and white flame fur running across his chest into blazing white wings.
[Elemental HERO Shining Blaze Wingman, 2500 ATK]
"I'll Normal Summon, Elemental HERO Airman!"
A gust of green wind appeared as the air hero descended onto the field.
[Elemental HERO Airman, 1800 ATK]
"I'll activate Airman's effect, to destroy Spell and Trap cards equal to the number of different HERO monsters I control." Yumi said, but the possessed Rio quickly cut in.
"I'll chain it with my Quickplay spell, Mystic Wok. I'll tribute Earthbound Immortal Aslla piscu and gain Life Points equal to my attack points." She said with a smirk as the massive chicken got sent to the grave by its own user.
"And, when Earthbound Immortal Aslla piscu leaves the field, destroy all of your monsters and inflict 800 points of effect damage for each one destroy!" She said, smiling like she just won the duel.
The ground shook cracks quickly formed, coming directly toward Yumi's side.
"I'll activate Sky Striker Ace - Stardust's effect when an effect or a card is activated that would destroy a card. I could remove her from play, negate, and destroy that card."
Stardust's body glowed before turning into bright stardust that disappeared from his side.
"Wh-What...?" She uttered, shocked that she was counter again.
Yumi simply continues, "Then by the end of this turn, she will be summoned back to my field."
Instead of letting the chain result here, Yumi pulls out another card.
"Quickplay Spell, Mask Change!"
Airman's body erupted in light, reshaping into a sleek, green-armored figure with a crimson scarf fluttering in the gale.
"Henshin! Masked HERO Blast!"
[Masked HERO Blast, 2200 ATK]
"Blast's effect, when this card is summoned, I get to halve one of your monsters' ATK."
With only one monster on the field, Yumi didn't even need to point out who was going to be the target.
With that, the chain finally resolves, starting with Blast's effect.
[The Tripper Mercury, 2200 -> 1100 ATK]
"Now, Airman's effect resolves, I get to destroy your two back row cards and field spell!"
Three HERO monsters stood on Yumi's field: Blast, Shining Blaze Wingman, and Yumi.
[The Tripper Mercury, 1100 -> 900 ATK]
Then comes Stardust's effect, negating Aslla piscu's destruction effect.
[Possessed Rio, LP 1000 -> 3500]
The possessed Rio's composure cracked as her defenses shattered before her eyes.
"Th-This can't be..." The possessed Rio murmurs before trying to escape by giving control back to Rio, hiding back inside her body.
For a second, Yumi's eyes flashed crimson before fading back to gold, making the spirit unable to leave.
"Shining Blaze Wingman's effect, he gains 300 ATK for every Elemental HERO in my graveyard." Ghostly images of Avian, Burstinatrix, Sparkman, Burst Wingman, and Airman appeared behind him.
[Elemental HERO Shining Blaze Wingman, 2500 -> 4000 ATK]
"Shining Blaze Wingman's effect, target a monster I control, and it gains 1000 ATK until the end of this turn. I'll choose Zero."
White flames surged from Blaze Wingman, wrapping Sky Striker Ace - Zero in white blazing flame.
[Sky Striker Ace - Zero, 3000 -> 4000 ATK]
Pulling out another card, Yumi slid it into his duel disk, "Equip Spell! Sword of Promised Victory! I'll equip this to Zero!"
The high-tech sword in Zero's hand turns into the brilliant golden sword once wielded by a noble and righteous king.
"Sword of Promised Victory's effect activates! I can banish up to thirteen monsters with different names on my hand, field, or grave to increase the equip monster's ATK by their original ATK until the end of this turn." Yumi said as Zero held the sword tightly in both hands, holding it upward.
"Seal Thirteen! Decision start!"
Avian, approve.
Burstinatrix, approve.
Sparkman, approve.
Airman, approve.
Blast, approve.
Burst Wingman, approve.
Shining Blaze Wingman, approve.
Raye, approve.
Roze, approve.
Necro Gardna, approve.
With each approval, the sword only glows brighter, getting stronger.
[Sky Striker Ace - Zero, 4000 -> 20,000 ATK]
"W-Wait, please! My Lord, you don't have to do that; I will leave and won't come back. I swear!" She stammered, desperation bleeding into her voice.
"Battle," Yumi said coldly. "Zero, finish this!"
Zero lifted the blade up with both hands, without making any attempt to move forward, she swung the blade down. The possessed Rio's pleas went unanswered.
"Excalibur!!"
The blade fell like judgment itself, sending a massive golden sword beam down, cleaving through The Tripper Mercury in a single strike.
[Possessed Rio, LP 3500 -> 0]
With the duel coming to an end, the evil spirit within the Earthbound Immortal card also left Rio's body.
"I think that was a bit overkill," Momoyo muttered, eyeing the 20,000 attack points monster slowly fading away.
Yumi didn't answer. He was already kneeling beside the fainted girl, sliding her deck from its slot. His eyes narrowed when he found it, Earthbound Immortal Aslla piscu, its card edges glowing faintly before crumbling into ash.
Exactly as he suspected. If you hit a Duel Spirit hard enough during a duel, you could actually kill it. GX had shown that much, when Jaden and his friends traveled to the Spirit World, where losing a duel often meant death. A clean hit from Zero, fueled with Yumi's own Spirit Energy, was devastating enough to shatter not just the monster, but the spirit behind it.
Shadow Game logic. The more pain you inflict, the slimmer the chances your opponent walks away alive.
Unless, of course, you're blessed with the power of friendship, or the one thing stronger than Exodia.
Plot Armor.
However...
Momoyo broke the silence. "Is it just me… or does she look paler?"
When Asalla piscu forcefully takes control of Rio, it drains away her life force to fuel its own power. As someone who has been messing around and using Spirit Energy, Yumi, of course, would recognize that the spirit is trying to drain all of her life force to sustain its own presence in this world.
"No… you're right. Her life force was taken by force," Yumi said quietly. He placed his hand on Rio's forehead, closing his eyes. Spirit Energy began to flow from him into her, slow and steady.
It was the same technique Midori-sensei used to empower a card, but here, it was like pouring warmth into a flickering candle. He could simply just left Rio to lie in the nurse's office for a few days and hope that she would make a full recovery.
Still, he needs to know where she even got an Earthbound Immortal card and a Legendary Planets card. The Earthbound Immortal only appears one those who have died, and they serve as a way to bring them back from the dead, but Rio is clearly not dead, and the card seems to influence and later on, possessed her instead of giving a second life.
Seeing that Rio's breathing has become somewhat steady, Yumi pulls back, feeling a bit hurt that his Spirit Energy used to print cards has been used to help Rio recover.
"Can you help me bring her to my room?" Yumi asked. Carrying an unconscious girl wasn't exactly his strong suit.
Momoyo smirked. "Nope. If you're trying to bring a woman into your bed, don't invite your older sister. I might get jealous."
Yumi: "..."
Ignoring her, Yumi summoned… himself.
Card Yumi appeared, ready to assist in carrying Rio inside instead of leaving her sprawled out on the field.
"Tch! Can't even lift an unconscious girl," Yumi scoffed at his card self's weakness.
"You're no better!" Card Yumi shot back. "You can't carry her either, so stop acting superior."
"Let me," Raye said, stepping forward and scooping Rio up with ease, cradling her like she weighed nothing. "See? Light as a feather."
Yumi: "..."
Card Yumi: "..."
Both followed in silence.
"Why are you tagging along?" Yumi asked when he noticed Momoyo trailing behind.
"Duh, my brother's about to have his first time. Why wouldn't I want to watch?" she replied shamelessly.
Yumi: "..."
Card Yumi: "..."
Raye: "..."
"What's with those deadpan stares? Don't tell me… you already did it?" She asks, noticing the gaze of the two Yumis.
Yumi: "..."
Card Yumi: "..."
Raye: *blush*
"Wait... no way! You actually did it with little Raye here?" Momoyo grinned, looping an arm around each Yumi's neck and pulling them into a playful headlock, pressing their faces against her chest.
"Didn't think you had it in you."
"Spirit Energy is just another name for Life Force," Yumi said calmly. "There's more than one way to transfer it."
The method that Yumi and Raye use to transfer Spirit Energy is a bit special... The intimate action between a Duel Spirit and its Duelist helps increase the love and bond between them, making them stronger and letting their heart connect.
A stronger bond with a Duel Spirit mostly meant that they would show up more to aid you when needed.
The love between a Duelist and their Duel Spirit could come in many ways.
Yugi's Dark Magician is his most loyal servant, who continues to serve him even after being dead.
Kaiba's White Bride came from a woman who, in Kaiba's past life, he saved her, and she developed feelings for him; even sacrificed herself to protect him then, and even after when he was reincarnated.
Jaden's Yubel, loved him even after his reincarnation, even after being sent into space; she fully believed the reason he hurt her was because he loved her, so she hurt him thinking that it would show him her love.
So that's why Yumi found this method of his completely normal.
With almost every card Yumi owns being made from his own spirit; they would naturally want to protect him and return to him in a way.
"Damn, and here I thought I was the playboy. Turns out you're faster than me," Momoyo teased. Raye's face burned, and she dropped Rio onto the floor.
"We're getting off track," Yumi muttered, pulling The Tripper Mercury he took from Rio's deck. "I need to know where she got the Earthbound Immortal… and this."
The door clicked open. The Duel Spirits vanished just as Celina stepped in, taking in the scene: Yumi on the desk, Momoyo in a chair, and an unconscious girl on the floor.
"The hell happened here?" she asked, resisting the urge to kick Yumi only because Momoyo was present. Who's kick has shattered both metal and bone from the guy who tried to hurt her little brother.
"She was possessed by a spirit and tried to steal Raye from me," Yumi said plainly. "I beat her up, now I want to know where she got that cursed card."
Celina clearly didn't buy it, but since Yumi hadn't touched the unconscious girl, she just climbed onto her bed and waited.
Hours passed. Rio didn't wake. Momoyo eventually left to hunt down Zane. Yumi and Celina killed time playing cards until hunger drove them to get food. When they returned, Rio was still there on the floor.
"Are you sure she isn't dead?" Celina asked, poking her with a ruler.
"I hope not." Yumi knelt, checking her breathing. "Still breathing."
With nothing else to do, they went to bed, leaving her on the floor.
The next morning, Yumi awoke to something heavy on his chest. Assuming it was one of his forty Kuriboh, he shoved it aside.
A thud hit the floor.
"Oww…" Rio groaned, sitting up and rubbing her head. Her eyes widened when she saw Yumi and Celina staring.
"Uh… hi. I'm Rio Kastle. Nice to meet you," she said timidly, recalling fragments of last night event.
"Good. We need to talk," Yumi said.
The three gathered on Celina's top bunk to discuss what had happened.
Rio Kastle was a first-year Obelisk Blue, and she had a twin brother in the same dorm. Like many girls at Duel Academy, she'd originally wanted a normal school life, friends, duels, and a bit of fun. She was strong academically, athletic, and skilled with cards… but always a step behind Alexis Rhodes.
That one step was all it took. A few classmates started mocking her, calling her a "Cheap Copy of Alexis."
It got under her skin. She tried changing her style, her mannerisms, anything to stand out, but no matter what she did, the comparisons kept coming.
Then came the Miss Academy event. She saw Raye take down Alexis in front of the whole school, the crowd cheering her name. Something lit up inside Rio. She pictured herself in Raye's place, humiliating Alexis and earning that admiration.
That spark became an obsession.
She began trying to figure out how to become Raye, even going as far as making her own homemade cosplay of Raye. But without the real card for her to observe Raye's full outfit, down to what color of panties she wore. Rio couldn't feel satisfied with her work, thinking that if Alexis tried, she could do it even better and easier, especially since she already has blonde hair.
As her feelings and desires reached a boiling point, she began hearing a voice telling her to just do it and take Raye away by force. Originally, she resisted, but the more she tried, the harder it got, leading to her finally cracking and deciding to at least try.
Mercury had been a gift from her parents; her brother owned a similar card, but the other card? She swore she had no idea it was even in her deck.
Yumi: "..."
Raye: "..." *slowly raises her sword, ready to bonk Rio*
"That's rough," Celina said with an encouraging smile. "Don't let them get to you, they're just jealous and trying to drag you down."
"That doesn't sound like friends at all," Yumi added flatly. To him, the constant put-downs sounded less like teasing and more like bullying.
"I… don't really have many friends," Rio admitted, lowering her head. Even here at Duel Academy, she hadn't found anyone she could truly call one.
"Honestly, what's so special about Alexis anyway?" Yumi asked, genuinely baffled. "Besides a pretty face, she's nothing special."
"Well, for starters… her family's rich," Celina replied.
Yumi: "..."
"She's like the school idol, and she's good at a lot of things too," Celina added.
"Except winning the duels that actually matter," Yumi said immediately.
Celina: "..."
Rio: "..."
Celina suddenly felt an almost physical urge to pin him down and step on him for insulting her childhood friend.
Rio, on the other hand, just stared at him, a strange warmth blooming in her chest. For the first time, someone wasn't seeing her as "Alexis's copy." They just… saw her.
Before she knew it, her eyes were watering. She blinked quickly, hiding it behind a smile.