"My turn, draw!" Yumi declared, sliding the top card from his deck with a swift motion and adding it to his hand.
"I activate Lilith's effect," His hand moved in a sharp wave, and the demoness smirked with sinister delight. "I tribute a DARK token on your field, reveal three Normal Traps from my deck, and you have to choose one of them randomly, setting it to my field while shuffling the rest back to my deck."
Lilith snapped her clawed fingers. One of the shadowy Torment Tokens on Darkness's field was instantly consumed in a burst of black flame.
Yumi plucked three cards from his deck, spreading them in a neat fan. "Here. Choose wisely."
Darkness: "..."
His eyes narrowed.
The three cards Yumi reveals are: Crush Card Virus. Crush Card Virus. Crush Card Virus.
He then shuffled the three cards and raised them out for Darkness to choose.
"Choose wisely?" Darkness repeated, his eyelid twitching violently. His empty hand clenched back over his chest, where the sting of Yumi's earlier tricks still lingered. Isn't this the same as not having a choice at all!?
He gritted his teeth. "…The middle."
Yumi smirked faintly, sliding the selected card face-down onto his field.
"Next," Yumi continued without missing a beat, "I Normal Summon Xtra HERO Shifter."
A ripple of crimson light flared on the field as a futuristic armored warrior appeared, sleek black plating outlined in red energy. The hero bore a massive shield, its edge glowing with crimson sparks.
[Xtra HERO Shifter, 1000 ATK]
"Ohhh! A NEW HERO!!" Jaden practically exploded with excitement, bouncing in place. His eyes sparkled as if he'd just discovered candy.
"Tch! Why can't he use Beast-Warrior cards instead?" Celina muttered under her breath, folding her arms with a sour look.
Alexis: "?"
Alexis tilted her head, baffled. She didn't understand why Celina sounded so annoyed, nor why Jaden looked like he'd known this was coming all along.
In truth, Alexis was the only one left in the dark. Everyone in their little circle knew Yumi was their secret card dealer, but no one ever told her, because they all assumed she already knew, including Jaden.
"I activate Shifter's effect," Yumi declared, his hand cutting through the air. The crimson light on Shifter's body intensified, the energy burning hotter across its armor. "Once per turn, I can change this card's Level from 4 to any value between 1 and 10 until the end of the turn. I'll change it to Level 6!"
[Xtra HERO Shifter, LV 4 -> LV 6]
"And that's not all," Yumi continued, snapping his fingers. "Shifter's second effect: by sending one card from my hand or field to the Graveyard, I can add a card that mentions 'Fusion Monster' to my hand."
He discarded a card in a smooth motion, then rifled through his Deck. A single card slid free, which he revealed with a flourish.
"I choose Metamorphosis!"
He then placed it down on his Duel Disk.
"Spell Card, Metamorphosis!" Yumi slapped it onto his Duel Disk. "I tribute one monster I control to Special Summon a Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck with the same Level. I tribute my Level 6 Shifter!"
The armored warrior's body twisted, circuitry cracking apart as its entire form warped. A new figure emerged, a HERO clad in sleek black skin-tight armor, adorned with golden wings and plated accents. Its crimson visor flared as it raised its head, locking its gaze squarely on Darkness.
[Elemental HERO Darkbright, 2000 ATK]
"Battle!" Yumi swept his arm forward. "Dark Law, Darkbright, attack those two Torment Tokens!"
Dark Law leapt high, spinning midair before slamming his Rider Kick straight through one shadowy token. The creature shattered instantly, dissolving into mist.
Darkbright thrust out a golden palm. A crackling orb of black lightning burst forth, tearing through the second token and exploding into shards of corrupted light.
[Darkness, LP 4000 -> 3000]
Darkness staggered, clutching his shoulder. The lightning seared across his skin, leaving smoldering trails of pain.
"Darkbright inflicts piercing damage," Yumi said calmly, his voice cutting through the smoke like a blade. "Go, Lilith! Direct attack!"
The demoness laughed cruelly, rushing forward with claws glowing dark red. She raked them across Darkness's chest in one brutal slash.
[Darkness, LP 3000 -> 2000]
Darkness's body shook, the phantom wounds making him wince in pain.
"I set three cards face-down," Yumi continued without mercy, sliding them onto his Duel Disk in a clean sequence. Three ominous cards materialized before him, glowing faintly in the darkness. "Turn end."
Darkness raised his head, fury burning in his eyes.
The shadows of Lair of Darkness twisted again. Two Torment Tokens emerged on Yumi's field, writhing and hissing in defense.
[Torment Token, 1000 DEF] x2
This overwhelming level of darkness…
A despicable Masked HERO that steals the opponent's graveyard.
A lair of shadows that turns even your monsters into fuel for his traps.
A HERO who hurls black lightning and pierces through defenses.
A demoness who sacrifices pawns just to dig out more deadly traps.
Those worthless cannon-fodder tokens…
And four ominous face-down cards, one of them clearly another virus.
Damn it!
I am the progenitor of the World of Darkness! A being born from the abyss, existing as long as despair and shadows lurk in the human heart!
How is it that this passing-through duelist… this random interloper… can wield such suffocating darkness, yet remain untouched by it!?
It doesn't make sense! No ordinary human should be able to endure such darkness without becoming tainted!
And then… it clicked.
"I see… tch!" The Shadow Rider's voice dropped, heavy with realization, like the final piece of a puzzle had slammed into place. "To think you would have grown so powerful, Darkness."
Yumi: "??"
Heh? What the hell is this old skeleton rambling about?
Wasn't your name supposed to be Darkness? Wasn't I making a joke? How come you're suddenly admitting I'm Darkness instead!?
Yumi stood there, dumbfounded. He had transferred here with Celina, half-expecting this so-called Shadow Rider to eventually crawl out from the dark. But when the guy actually appeared, calling himself Darkness instead of his English dub name Nightshroud, Yumi was interested.
After all, everyone else in this world used the dub names. The final boss uses his pawn and introduces himself in his original Japanese name. Somewhat caught him off guard, so Yumi decided to mess with him.
After all, other Duel Spirits have mistaken him for Darkness, so why shouldn't he use it to get under the Shadow Rider's skin?
But now the joke had turned on him.
Even the final boss of GX was calling him Darkness.
And the most irritating part is that Yumi had no idea why. He didn't know why those ancient Duel Spirits called him by this title. It was like being awarded some legendary nickname without ever being told what you did to earn it.
"Very well… Darkness," the Shadow Rider continued. His tone hardened, his mask seeming to narrow its gaze. "To avoid confusion, from now on… my name shall be Nightshroud!"
[Darkness -> Nightshroud, LP 2000]
Yumi: "…"
Damn it. What am I supposed to say to that?
"I-" Yumi tried to retort, but Nightshroud cut him off, diving straight into his villain monologue.
"With such overwhelming darkness in your heart, combined with your twisted mindset, an enemy to both good and evil. How foolish of me not to recognize you sooner, Darkness. In that case, I will give you my all this turn!" Dark miasma coiled around his body as his hand slammed onto his deck.
"Draw!" The card was ripped free, black energy trailing behind it in an arc of shadow.
"I activate the Spell Card, Card of Perseverance!" Nightshroud roared, slapping it onto his Duel Disk. "For every card you have on the field and in your hand, I send the same number of cards from my Deck to the Graveyard, then draw the same number of cards!"
Yumi: "…Heh!?"
If you're gonna print a card out of thin air, at least make it look subtle!
As expected of a final boss, his ability to print broken cards was on par with the protagonists themselves. If this card ever got printed in the real world, it wouldn't just get banned, it'd probably get burned at the stake.
Still, this spell was undeniably busted.
But...
"I activate Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring!" Yumi shot back instantly, discarding the hand trap into his Graveyard. "When you activate an effect that adds a card from your Deck to your hand, Special Summons from your Deck, or sends a card from your Deck to the Graveyard, I can discard this card to negate it!"
A soft shimmer filled the field. From the shadows leapt a young girl with pale-pink hair, with dog ears and tail and a flowing yukata. Her eyes glowed mischievously as she darted forward, snatched Nightshroud's glowing Spell, and sprinted off into the mist of the Lair of Darkness, vanishing without a trace.
Nightshroud: "…"
"You sick fu-" His fist clenched so tightly the knuckles went pale. His lips trembled as he bit down hard, drawing blood.
Fine!
His rage roared inside him, silent but deafening.
I'll remember this humiliation, Darkness. I'll carve it into my soul! And one day, I'll repay you in full! I'll drag you into your deepest nightmare and make sure it never ends!
Finally, after seething in silence, he forced the words through gritted teeth: "Turn… end."
"Draw!" Yumi didn't even bother to glance at the card he pulled. "Go, Dark Law, direct attack!"
"Rider Kick!"
The armored warrior shot forward like a blur, his silhouette vanishing into the shadowy mist before reappearing mid-air. With a single leap, he came crashing down, his boot glowing with black and yellow lightning as he drove a devastating Rider Kick straight into Nightshroud's chest.
[Nightshroud, LP 2000 -> 0]
The duel's conclusion echoed with a sharp electronic hum. The glowing platform beneath them shattered into light, collapsing into motes that drifted away before vanishing. The sudden shift warped space, and everyone who had been bound at the mouth of the volcano was scattered to its edge in a burst of energy.
"Heh?" Yumi blinked as he realized he was in free fall, directly toward the blazing magma below.
Right… he wasn't supposed to be standing here at all. Originally, he was meant to be just another hostage, lumped together with Syrus and Chumley. A tool. A piece of bait to pressure the key holders into dueling Nightshroud. But because he had stepped out of the orb of energy holding them, it no longer recognized him as a hostage.
The molten lake rose up to meet him, the searing heat hitting his skin even before he reached halfway down.
Raye, clad in her blazing Kagari armor, streaked out from within him like a comet of fire and steel. She caught Yumi effortlessly in her arms, her armored wings beating to hover just above the bubbling lava.
"I got ya." Her voice teased faintly, though it carried relief. With a burst of flame, she carried him up and out of the volcano's throat.
The moment they cleared the mouth, Raye's form dissolved in a shimmer of heat, vanishing back into him. Yumi straightened himself, brushing soot from his sleeve as his gaze shifted to the group gathered nearby.
At the center, Alexis was cradling an unconscious Atticus Rhodes, tears streaming as she hugged him tightly, her voice trembling as she cried for her big brother.
The Next Day
After the fall of Nightshroud, the first Shadow Rider, his true identity was revealed to be Atticus Rhodes, Zane's closest friend and, according to rumor, one of Duel Academy's strongest duelists.
Fortunately, Atticus would recover with time. Still, the sight of him now, pale, dehydrated, starved of oxygen, hooked up to an IV drip and an oxygen mask, left many uneasy. The reality of his disappearance weighed heavier now that they saw the toll it had taken.
Chancellor Sheppard gathered the key holders in his office to ask the question none of them wanted to hear:
Do they still wish to continue this war?
Their answer was unanimous. They wouldn't give up.
That decision, however, deepened their sense of responsibility. After all, the first Shadow Rider hadn't fallen to them, but to Yumi Uzushi, who wasn't even a key holder.
Everyone knew Yumi was strong. Strong enough that asking for his help would be the obvious choice. But none of them could bring themselves to do it. This was their burden, their mission. Relying on him would feel like abandoning their promise.
Inside Sheppard's office, the key holders stood across from his desk. His expression was grim.
"Hello, everyone. I know this is sudden, but this is important. Some of you may or may not have heard the rumors of a vampire on this island."
Gasps rippled across the room.
Crowler scoffed loudly. "Please. A vampire? Nothing but a campfire story. A creature from old movies, here at Duel Academy? Ridiculous!"
"I have a question."
The room went silent as all eyes shifted to Zane. His gaze was sharp. "Do you think that the vampire is…a Shadow Rider?"
Even Sheppard hesitated. "...Possibly." His eyes moved from one student to another. "Regardless, be on the lookout for anything strange. Got it?"
Everyone nodded.
"Good. Then return to your classes."
Unbeknownst to them, a sneaky Ash Blossom was clinging to the ceiling. The spirit slipped away unnoticed, just as a girl with cyan-blue twin tails, clad in a Slifer Red uniform, walked calmly from the corridor, jotting down every word she had overheard.
The little spirit darted through the forest until she reached Momoyo, who was lounging beneath a tree.
"Shadow Riders, huh?" Momoyo murmured after listening. Her smirk spread slowly. "I don't know what they're after, but if they've got the Chancellor this worked up..."
Her eyes gleamed with anticipation. "Then they must be pretty strong."
She chuckled to herself, stretching lazily. "Maybe they'll make for an entertaining duel."
Meanwhile, inside the Slifer Red dorm...
"So Crowler still thinks this is just a joke, huh?" Yumi muttered as he received Effect Veiler's report.
"This next one's most likely Camula. Jaden can handle it without me." He closed his eyes, already settling back to rest.
But his rest didn't last.
A sudden weight pressed down on him. Opening his eyes, Yumi found Effect Veiler sitting on his waist, still wearing the Slifer Red uniform. Her pale, slender hands pressed gently against his chest, her face tinged pink.
"Uh, Master..." she stammered, her voice soft, almost trembling. "I've been working really hard gathering info lately. Could I… maybe get a reward?"
Her blush deepened, the red of her face nearly matching the jacket she wore. Unlike Raye, Veiler couldn't be bold or demanding. She was weaker than the other monsters who competed for their master's attention, and she knew it.
So instead, she asked for permission, which would shield her from the jealousy of the stronger spirits who also longed to be close to him.