Legacy of the Tormentor : Reforged

[Umbra]

Twice in creation,

sister Northwemko

brother Garandolph

together form existence.

 

Worlds of oblivion

Northwemko sit by

let them drink her life

and give back much more.

 

The dead and living

Devil King control

and send to sister North

should they be needed.

 

Shadow unmade

deep beneath they linger

They cannot see

the reflection of evil.[align=right]

Rimuspá

First Verse

[/align]

 

”Don't rely on facts, brother. In a world like this, everything can happen.”

Yeah, it's that time of the year again: Umbra's remaking That One Fanfic of his. This one will stick closer to the original, but as anyone who read the original – a decreasing number in itself – can tell from just the Rimuspá, there are going to be significant changes. Let's get on with it, shall we?

 

[spoiler=Chapter One: Revelation]

 

June 12th, 2010

17:43

 

The sky darkened as the sun set over Red Sky City, which at some point in the past had given the place it's name. The settlers had first arrived at sunset, which according to legend had been breathtaking. The last few rays bathed the skies and the ocean in a crimson light, and from the cliff overlooking the bay it looked like even the solid rock reflected the sun's blessing. Godtouched, they called it.

 

A lot had changed since then, but the sky was still the same. The city had grown, of course, and advanced just like any other. Now, it housed about eight-thousand people; not a lot, but larger than the average hamlet. Now, one of those eight-thousand was about to experience the most important events in his life so far. His name is Jonah Morae, and he's a duelist. Today was the first day of the San Diego Regionals, which was an hour by bus from Red Sky. As we first meet him, he has just left the bus, and is now on his way back home. It's just a short walk, but it's more than enough to change a kid's life. Especially one so... tormented as Jonah.

 

A chilly wind blew down Jonah's neck as he pulled the jacket tighter around himself. It was unusually cold for June, and the wind was so strong it almost threw him to the ground. Normally, he could enjoy a summer evening with his friends, going out after a long day at work.

But no, not today. There was something sinister in the air, he could feel it. He felt as if he wasn't supposed to be here, as if he had stepped off the bus to a different world. It reminded him of his father, and that day four years ago. Just like then, he could now draw a line and say: From hereon, it goes down.

 

Just an hour earlier, back in San Diego, it had been a beautiful summer's day. The birds were singing, the sky was cloudless, and the sun shone brightly. The breeze carried the smell of salt and the warmth of the day. His last duel of the day, and incidentally one of the last few of the entire qualifiers' round, was against an opponent he knew well. They had both qualified for the Top 16 regardless of their duel's outcome, and thus it didn't really matter who won or lost. Not to anyone else, at least. Jonah had met, and dueled with, Flora Rivulet at every single larger tournament he had attended. They'd grown used to each other, to the point where Jonah couldn't feel comfortable at a tournament unless he spotted the blonde, brown-eyed girl somewhere in the hall. Now, they'd run into each other a few times, and finally it was time for their duel. Over the months passed since their first duel, they had developed a competition between them, and right now their standings were about even. A victory now would mean a significant lead. They had been assigned to Arena Five, which was thankfully outdoors; the tournament halls were sweaty and warm from the summer's heat. As the clock struck four, their assigned time, Jonah put on his Duel Disk and walked over to the Arena.

 

“Ready and waiting as always, Flora?”

The blonde girl had followed his every movement as he approached the Arena, and acknowledged his presence with a nod.

“You're late, Jon. Couldn't you just surrender so we can get this over with and be going?” A small smile appeared on her lips, and Jonah smiled back.

“I won't surrender before you do. But you're right, let's get this show on the road.”

Arena Five was an elevated concrete circle, about twenty-five feet across, and a duel field of twenty squares spread over it. As usual, the later duels gathered a bit of a crowd; defeated duelists waiting for their ride home, or future opponents checking out their competition for the day after. About twenty duelists had grouped up around the Arena, and Jonah climbed up the few steps onto the platform. Flora had already readied her Duel Disk and drawn five cards; Jonah quickly did the same, and nodded.

“Ladies first.”

Flora smiled as she drew her sixth card.

“You'll regret your politeness later, Jonah. I summon Bountiful Artemis in Attack Position!”

Flora's field lit up in a shower of light as her monster appeared. The tall, purple-robed creature, with it's snow-white skin covered in green lines and eye-less face, intimidated Jonah. Atop its shoulders sat a pair of massive scales, which moved in the passing wind. [1600/1700]

“I set three cards, and end my turn. Your turn, Jonah.”

Jonah drew a card, and looked at his hand. He had an awful lot of monsters, which would come very useful later. For now, there was only one thing he could do. Those three face-down cards were the real threat of Flora's deck, and not her monster as Jonah well knew. There were only two things you could do against decks that relied heavily on Traps. Either break them down with monsters, or get rid of the traps. Looking at his hand, and casting quick glances at Artemis out of sheer fright, he decided to go with the first.

“I activate the Spell Card, One for One! By sending the XX-Saber Gardestrike in my hand to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon a Level 1 monster!”

Placing the monster in his Graveyard, another card emitted from his Deck. He pulled it out, and slammed it onto his disk.

“Come forth, XX-Saber Ragigura!”

The crowd sighed in disappointment as Jonah's monster appeared on the field. Flora's Bountiful Artemis towered above all of them with it's majestic presence, and even frightened some of them. XX-Saber Ragigura was something else entirely. A green-scaled lizard-creature wearing red robes with a metal chestpiece, and wielding cross-shaped hatches... standing possibly two feet tall. [200/1000] If there had ever been a David and Goliath moment in their duels, it was this. Flora smiled.

“Oh, One for One into Ragigura? There's a play I haven't seen before, Jonah. Your originality truly knows no bounds.”

Jonah shrugged.

“Maybe not, but it will serve me well. Ragigura's effect activates! When it's summoned, I can add an X-Saber in my Graveyard to my hand. In this case, the Gardestrike I discarded.” The lizard raised it's weapons into the air, and slammed them together. Jonah's Graveyard flashed in a brilliant light; when the light faded, Gardestrike was in his hand. Flora nodded, understanding what he would do. Jonah continued.

“I sacrifice Ragigura to Tribute Summon XX-Saber Gardestrike!” A green light shot out from Jonah's hand, and completely shrouded the tiny lizard. Before their eyes, Ragigura's barely-visible shape grew until it stood much taller than Flora's monster. The light vanished, and Jonah's monster had changed entirely. Gone were the two maces; Gardestrike instead held a crescent-shaped sword in his right hand, the bend of the blade running down his arm. The lizard's scales were now solid armor, and overall it had become more muscular and stronger. Now, Jonah had the Goliath. [2100/1400]

“Then, I activate the Spell Card, Saber Slash! For each face-up X-Saber I control, I can destroy a card on the field. Bye-bye, Bountiful Artemis.”

Flora shook her head.

“Really, Jonah? You don't know my deck at all, do you? Counter Trap, activate! Magic Jammer! I discard a card from my hand, and your Saber Slash is negated.”

A glowing circle appeared around Jonah's Spell as it shattered, leaving Bountiful Artemis unharmed. Flora smiled.

“Now, my monsters will make short work of you. First, Bountiful Artemis' effect activates, letting me draw a card whenever a Counter Trap is activated.” Flora drew a card, and nodded. “It will come in handy later. Now, there's another monster in my hand. A monster that can only be Special Summoned when one of your cards is negated by a Counter Trap.”

Suddenly, the air seemed to grow thicker around Jonah as the field was surrounded by gray clouds. Damn. He hadn't thought of Flora bringing out her boss monster so soon. On his first turn, no less.

“I summon Van'Dalgyon, the Dark Dragon Lord!”

Regardless how many times he saw it, Van'Dalgyon always scared Jonah. The giant dragon, covered in dark purple scales and armor, appeared seemingly out of nowhere. Hovering above it's mistress, it let out a terrifying roar. [2800/2500] As it swooped over the field, bolts of lightning shot out from it and struck Jonah hard. An awed “oooh” went through the crowd as Jonah's Life Points dropped from four-thousand to twenty-five hundred. He nodded.

“You were lucky, Flora. But you won't be so lucky this time. Gardestrike, attack Bountiful Artemis! X-Slash!”

Flora shook her head once more.

“Again, Jonah? I thought you'd learn. Countering my opponent at their every step is what I do. Counter Trap, activate! Negate Attack, which immediately ends the Battle Phase!”

Gardestrike's attack struck home – and bounced off the angelic creature, accomplishing exactly nothing. “And thanks to Artemis' effect, I draw another card.” Jonah cursed under his breath. He had walked right into everything she had set up, and given her another two cards at the same time.

“I set one card, and end my turn.”

The crowd sighed. Flora nodded, and drew a card.

“I discard my Zeradias, Herald of Heaven to add The Sanctuary in the Sky to my hand. Then, I activate it!”

Van'Dalgyon's clouds faded away as the impressive hologram of the Field Spell formed around them. Suddenly, they no longer stood on an Arena somewhere in San Diego; their duel took place on the stairwell leading up to a towering white-stone temple, clouds drifting beneath. Flora stood directly in front of the stairs leading up to the temple, and a descending flight was on Jonah's left. Van'Dalgyon sat in rest on the Sanctuary's roof,

“Then, I summon Meltiel, Sage of the Sky!”

At last, a monster less frightening. Meltiel was fairly small, dwarfed by like Artemis and Van'Dalgyon; an angelic, feathered creature surrounded by a hovering circle of light, in turn circled by an orange ribbon. [1600/1200]

“I will end this here, Jonah. Van'Dalgyon, attack XX-Saber Gardestrike!”

The massive dragon, still seated atop the Sanctuary, let out a massive roar as another wave of lightning gathered in it's jaw. Still, Jonah was smiling. Flora raised an eyebrow.

“What's so funny, Morae? If you actually meant for the duel to be this easy for me, you should've just thrown it from the start. Your trap won't help you, you know. I will just negate it, and then the duel will be over.”

Jonah shook his head.

“You've been saying from the start I don't know your deck, Flo, but I do. I know roughly what cards you play, but more importantly I know your strategy. You use Artemis to refresh your hand after you've discarded for a Counter Trap, and generate some extra advantage. In addition, you know that a well-placed Trap can turn a duel around; thus, you keep a few cards that can only be used to negate Traps, to make sure you don't waste them. And since your other Traps were Magic Jammer and Negate Attack, I assumed your last one was one of those. That's why I've got this duel won, Flora. Spell Card, activate! Shrink!”

Flora nodded, confounded at Jonah's little speech and just a little surprised at his face-down card turning the battle around. Sure, she knew Jonah used the card, but more often than not she would be able to negate it. She'd walked into the trap that wasn't a trap. Van'Dalgyon would lose half of it's attack points, bringing it down to a mere fourteen-hundred. She could only watch as her dragon's lightning barely even burned Gardestrike, who in turn split her monster in half. Her Life Points fell to thirty-three hundred, and she clenched her teeth. Losing Van'Dalgyon must've been a letdown, Jonah thought.

“I change Artemis and Meltiel to Defense Position. Then, I end my turn.” Flora's two monsters went down on their knees, and its shell-wings closed in around Artemis.

Jonah nodded, and drew a card. Looking over his Graveyard, he smiled. The card he drew was XX-Saber Fulhelmknight. Thanks to the luck of the draw, or “heart of the cards” as the saying goes, a simply fantastic play formed in his head. Three plus five plus one is nine.

“I summon XX-Saber Fulhelmknight!” At the side of the larger Gardestrike, a blonde, blue-eyed warrior clad in orange, steel-plate armor appeared. It's weapon was something out of the ordinary; a series of crystals connected only by energy, forming a long and elegant whip. [1300/1100] “Let the siege begin! Fulhelmknight, attack Meltiel! Lightning Whiplash!”

The orange knight lashed out at the encircled angel, and the whip gripped firmly around it's target. Letting out a shriek of pain, Meltiel shattered in a crash of light. Flora shied a little, but said nothing. Jonah continued.

“Thanks to Fulhelmknight's effect, I can summon an X-Saber from my Graveyard! Come forth, XX-Saber Ragigura!” The tiny lizard once again appeared on the field, in Defense Position. Jonah nodded. “Gardestrike, destroy Bountiful Artemis! X-Slash!” The larger monster readied it's blade, and charged at the now sitting target on Flora's field. Practically trampling through it, Gardestrike made short notice of the fairy.

“That's it, Flora. The duel is over. You have nothing left to protect you. I end my Battle Phase, and-”

“Not so fast.” Flora shook her head. “I'm not done yet. I activate the effect of a monster in my hand!”

Suddenly, all three of Jonah's monsters started to glow. A bright, white light that seemed to... burn them from the inside. This wasn't like anything Jonah had seen before. One by one, his monsters were incinerated by the light. This couldn't be! Flora smiled, and revealed a card in her hand.

“If you destroy two or more of my monsters by battle in a single turn, and I have no monsters left after that, I can Special Summon the Tualatin from my hand.” Jonah heard a chorus of voices as... something stepped out of the Sanctuary's massive doorways. It seemed to be made entirely out of folded white cloth and a white mask, but Jonah could see the human form beneath it. Hands coming out from the sleeves. Flickering eyes behind the mask, reflecting in the being's golden ornaments. Flora continued. “When Tualatin is summoned by this effect, I can select an Attribute and destroy all monsters on the field with that Attribute. Of course, I chose the Earth attribute, as I know you run X-Sabers. In addition to the destruction, you can't Normal Summon or Special Summon monsters with the selected Attribute.” She shrugged. “I guess you were right, Jonah. The duel really is over.”

 

On her next turn, Flora attacked directly and won the duel. It was a fair game, and one that Jonah would remember; Tualatin was a dangerous monster, and it could easily turn a duel around. On the bus home, he could think of nothing but Flora and their duel. Even as he was on his way home from the station, the duel clogged his mind. That was probably why he didn't notice the man standing in the corner, casually lighting a cigarette and putting it out as soon as Jonah passed by. The man in red.

 

[Aequitas]

Very entertaining prolouge. Well written, and I'll be patiently awaiting chapter 1.

[Umbra]

Very entertaining prolouge. Well written' date=' and I'll be patiently awaiting chapter 1.

[/quote']

 

Thanks, I'm glad to hear it. Chapter 1 is in the spoiler tag; the "prologue" would be the Rimuspá, if anything.

[Aequitas]

Very entertaining prolouge. Well written' date=' and I'll be patiently awaiting chapter 1.

[/quote']

 

Thanks, I'm glad to hear it. Chapter 1 is in the spoiler tag; the "prologue" would be the Rimuspá, if anything.

 

Sorry, I'm tired today. I meant to say chapter one instead of prolouge. I'll be patiently waiting for chapter 2.

[Magnet Soldier]

Very well written and probably the only Fanfic that has actually caught my attention. A big 10/10 from me.

[Umbra]

Very well written and probably the only Fanfic that has actually caught my attention. A big 10/10 from me.

 

Thanks, that means a lot to me.

 

Chapter Two should be up within 1-2 days.

[Guest Star]

[Umbra]

 

As a matter of fact' date=' Flora didn't use Sky Scourges until her duel with Rayous near the end of the original; in her first duel with Jonah, she used a more classic Fairy/LIGHT deck, including Tualatin. It's not unlikely that Flora's deck will change as the chapters progress, but if it will be Sky Scourges I don't know.

 

Thanks for the elaborate review, I can only [b']imagine[/b] the effort behind it.

[Guest Star]

 

As a matter of fact' date=' Flora didn't use Sky Scourges until her duel with Rayous near the end of the original; in her first duel with Jonah, she used a more classic Fairy/LIGHT deck, including Tualatin. It's not unlikely that Flora's deck will change as the chapters progress, but if it will be Sky Scourges I don't know.

 

Thanks for the elaborate review, I can only [b']imagine[/b] the effort behind it.

 

I'm still a bit lost on the imagine part, but I'm sure it'll come to me. :P

 

As for the Deck, I could've sworn she used Sky Scourges at one point, but maybe it's just me. I think I was into it up until the point where he dueled the guy with the Crystal Beasts, and then I ended up leaving or something.

[Umbra]

 

As a matter of fact' date=' Flora didn't use Sky Scourges until her duel with Rayous near the end of the original; in her first duel with Jonah, she used a more classic Fairy/LIGHT deck, including Tualatin. It's not unlikely that Flora's deck will change as the chapters progress, but if it will be Sky Scourges I don't know.

 

Thanks for the elaborate review, I can only [b']imagine[/b] the effort behind it.

 

I'm still a bit lost on the imagine part, but I'm sure it'll come to me. :P

 

As for the Deck, I could've sworn she used Sky Scourges at one point, but maybe it's just me. I think I was into it up until the point where he dueled the guy with the Crystal Beasts, and then I ended up leaving or something.

 

Image... Imagine... I know, I just set a new low standard, but what can you do.

 

She does use Sky Scourges, but as I said that was later on in the series.

[Guest Star]

Image... Imagine... I know' date=' I just set a new low standard, but what can you do.

 

She does use Sky Scourges, but as I said that was later on in the series.

[/quote']

 

Oh, you should definitely have her use them again, but not unless she's evil, cuz Sky Scourges just scream 'Evil Villian' boss monster. Maybe that's just me?

[Umbra]

Norleras certainly does; not so sure about Enrise and Invicil.

[Guest Star]

Norleras certainly does; not so sure about Enrise and Invicil.

 

Invicil seems like the evil-fairy old lady whose evil, but clearly too tired to waste her time making life miserable for people. But again, that's just me.

[Umbra]

Alright, I have a few things I need to convey:

 

First, I know I said Chapter 2 would be up today, but that will not happen. I apologize. The reason is that I have decided to incorporate what I currently have of Chapter 2 into future chapters, and focus the first few chapters on introducing the main cast and developing the characters.

 

Second, I will be going away on a week-long trip starting Tuesday, which means Legacy of the Tormentor is officially on a break until March 9th, when you will have at least one new chapter within a day.

[Phantom Roxas]

Once again I am hear to read the latest version of LotT. I must say, I liked how different this first chapter was, as Jonah actually lost this time. Nice to see him using X-Sabers, though he only used XX-Sabers in this duel. I like how Flora made her appearance so early, as I found her interesting at the time of her introduction in the original. Methinks the man in the end is Khennan and/or holding his card.