My Little Pony: Dueling is Magic!

by Wolfgang

The Invader from Home - Darkness

Author’s Note: This is where I begin to wrap things up. The final boss fight has arrived! Thank you guys so much for sticking with me through this story.

I'm really sorry that this chapter took so long to come out. And the duel isn't even finished! It's just a bit difficult to describe some of the monsters, but I'm trying my best. And the duel itself was a pain to outline because nothing seemed to flow right, but I think I finally got it.

/*********************\

Yusei gathered the six pieces of jewelery into his arms and started forward. He would have to put an end to this, and to do that, he would need to confront the source of the voice.

“On the roof,” Yusei wondered aloud. “Why the roof?”

Yusei emerged onto the roof of the castle. It was still night in Equestria, but it was much darker than it should have been. Yusei looked up at the moon and saw that it had been completely eclipsed. A black circle with a thin, soft white ring around it hung in the sky.

“What is going on?” said Yusei. Then he called out, “All right, I’m here! Who are you? Show yourself!”

The answer Yusei received sent a chill down his spine: A deep, raspy groan that echoed across the trees.

“Show yourself!” Yusei repeated.

“Yusei Fudo... I have waited a long time for one such as you,” came the voice. It was deep and raspy, the same as the groan.

“Who are you?” Yusei asked. “What do you want with the ponies in this world?”

“I am Darkness,” said the voice. Yusei looked up and saw that the black object blocking the moon was moving closer to him, seeming to grow in size. Dark jets of water shot out of the black orb and collided with one another, creating a black gas that began to take form. The black object moved out of the way of the moon and Yusei saw the thing that now stood before him.

The creature towered over Yusei; it was nearly twice his size. A black robe trimmed with a dull gold was wrapped around the creature’s body, except for an open spot in the chest. Yusei saw a ribcage. Skeletal hands emerged from the ends of the robe’s wide sleeves. A black cape with a red underside waved behind it. Two blue eyes glowed beneath the thing’s hood.

Yusei gasped as his mind flashed back to his duels with Jack.

”I activate the Speed Spell ‘The End of the Storm’!” said Jack. As he played the card, fierce winds kicked up and pushed against Yusei. Stardust Dragon and Red Dragon Archfiend roared at each other, their cries barely audible above the storm.

But the source of the storm was one card. On that card was...

“I’ve seen you before!” said Yusei. “You’re not from this world, are you?”

“I am not,” replied Darkness. “I am from your dimension, Yusei Fudo.”

“So why did you come here? What is it that you want?” asked Yusei.

“‘Want’?” said Darkness. “I want nothing. I simply follow the logic of all things.”

“Logic?” asked Yusei.

“Individuality causes pain and hardship,” it said. “It is logical. Because of the separate nature of us all, no one can fully understand anyone else. The complications of society attempt to reconcile this, but it only causes more disharmony. The universe itself constantly breaks down, always seeking the simplest form.”

“What are you talking about?” asked Yusei.

“The solution to suffering is elegant in its simplicity,” Darkness continued, “because the solution is simplicity. Everyone who enters my world is shown how their hopes and dreams will fall apart, how they will lose everything that they love and long for. They eventually realize that the pain is too much for one person to bear alone, and sacrifice their individuality. Their hearts and minds become one and they live forever, sharing all joy and all suffering. No longer separated, all who enter my world will understand one another perfectly because they will become one another while remaining themselves.”

“There’s no way that’s true!” shouted Yusei.

“It is the logical outcome of the universe,” replied Darkness. “Everything seeks simplicity.”

“But that’s not our nature!” said Yusei. “Human or pony, we all have potential! Our dreams and our futures, that’s what drives us forward!”

“And look where your ‘potential’ has gotten you, Yusei Fudo, son of Dr. Fudo. Or have you forgotten the results of Zero Reverse?”

“How do you know about-?”

“It is the darkness in your heart, Yusei Fudo. Many have blamed you for the destruction caused by your father’s work, and you fear they will continue to blame you.”

“That’s-!”

“It is the truth of your heart. My world offers relief to your pain.”

“And then what? I join your world and that’s it? No way! I still have my dreams, and I’m not letting them go. I have friends waiting for me back home. There’s no way I’m abandoning them!”

“It does not end there, Yusei Fudo. Your friends and the entire world of humanity would come next.”

“Say what?!”

Darkness chuckled. “Fate is strange at times,” it said. “When I last attempted to replace your world with my own, I was stopped by a foreign object. Now, here we are, with myself confronting another foreign object. You do not belong in this world, Yusei Fudo.”

“Neither do you,” Yusei replied.

“The darkness in your heart will allow me to take you into my world, and you shall become my emissary.” Gray water rushed out of the black orb above them, dropping down onto Yusei. Yusei covered his head with his arms. Darkness chuckled.

Suddenly, the Dragon Head mark on Yusei’s arm lit up and a red orb of light appeared around him. The dark water splashed off the orb, but did not touch Yusei. Darkness growled and the flowing water ceased. The Crimson Dragon appeared behind Yusei, crying out.

“So, the Crimson Dragon has arrived as well,” said Darkness. “Then this shall be a battle between gods. Or rather, a battle between a god and the servant of a god. You cannot defeat me, Yusei Fudo. We will fight with the ceremony that created the universe: Duel Monsters.”

“Duel Monsters?” repeated Yusei.

“That is correct,” said Darkness. “In the darkness of the void, a single card came into existence. Each side of the card had been previously determined. Your world occupied the front of the card, while mine represented the back. Eventually, stars and planets were born, and humanity rose up as the dominant race on Earth. Humans are curious, so it was inevitable that they would discover their origins, but they are also weak. Had light prevailed in human hearts, there might have been peace. But their darkness dyed the cards of your world black, allowing me to enter your world.

“The future of humanity is bleak, Yusei Fudo. It is not shrouded in darkness, but in death and destruction. Zero Reverse was a warning to the generations of the future. By constantly seeking unlimited power, you doom yourselves to extinction. Only in my world is there salvation.”

“That’s not salvation. All you’re doing to these ponies is torturing them!”

“And in so doing, they realize that their efforts are fruitless. Their dreams are folly because they come with a cost that is too steep to pay.”

“And what is that?”

“Each other. It is the same with humans.”

Yusei grimaced. “Not everyone is like that,” he said. “Some are willing to sacrifice themselves and their dreams for the sake of another. Others try to find ways to achieve their hopes without taking hope away from others.”

“The very nature of Duel Monsters teaches that this is not possible,” replied Darkness.

“That may be,” Yusei replied. “But Duel Monsters is meant to be fun. Winning and losing... those are only how the duel ends. They don’t actually matter. They shouldn’t matter. All that matters is that you have fun in your duel.”

“You speak like the foreign object who stood in my way before,” said Darkness.

“What’s this ‘foreign object’ you keep talking about?” asked Yusei.

“The boy who held a Duel Monsters Spirit within him,” Darkness replied. “Jaden Yuki.”

“Jaden?!” said Yusei. “You fought Jaden?”

“Yes. Because of him, I was no longer able to enter your world. But now I shall fight you. I will defeat you and make you my emissary to the human world. Through you, humanity shall once again enter my world, and they shall be at peace.”

“I won’t let that happen!” said Yusei as he activated his Duel Disk. “My friends are waiting for me to come home. I won’t return with a parasite like you hanging off of me just so you can destroy everything we’ve worked so hard for!”

“I spoke of the future to Jaden Yuki and I will speak it to you: What you have worked for will lead to your destruction,” Darkness replied. Yusei’s mind flashed back to Paradox’s words. “If you are so intent on allowing your ambitions to destroy your world,” Darkness continued, “then I shall pass judgment upon you. Remember for all eternity, Yusei Fudo, the duel of a god!’

“I’ve dueled gods before,” said Yusei. “Bring it on!”

“DUEL!” they both shouted.

Life Point Count
Darkness: 4000
Yusei: 4000

“From the darkness came existence. So too shall come this duel,” said the creature as five gray, leathery wings appeared on its back. “My turn.” It held up its right hand and a card appeared in its bony fingers, black smoke trailing away from it. “I summon Darkness Seed.”

The stone floor before Darkness cracked and a withered-looking plant broke through. At the top was a blue bulb with several eyes all over it. The bulb split and opened up, revealing a mouth with several rows of teeth. Two massive scythes curved around the plant from its back.

Darkness Seed
ATK/1000
LV 2

“I end my turn,” said Darkness.

“My turn!” said Yusei. I can’t hold back against this thing, he thought. Not if I want to save this world... and mine. “I activate One for One. By sending a monster from my hand to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon a Level One monster from my hand or deck. I summon Tuningware from my deck in Defense Mode!” The tiny robot with the yellow scarf appeared before Yusei and crossed its arms in front of itself.

“Next I summon the Tuner Monster ‘Junk Synchron’,” Yusei continued. The stout orange robot emerged next to the other robot, yelling, “Ha!” as it appeared. “When Junk Synchron is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level Two or lower monster from my Graveyard in Defense Position with its effects negated. Come on out, Quillbolt Hedgehog!” A third monster appeared before Yusei, this one a brown hedgehog with several bolts and screws in its back.

Junk Synchron
ATK/1300
LV 3

Quillbolt Hedgehog
DEF/800
LV 2

“Finally, when I use Tuningware for a Synchro Summon, I can treat it as Level Two,” said Yusei. “I tune Junk Synchron with Quillbolt Hedgehog and Tuningware! Gathering roars form an echoing arrow that pierces the sky! Become the path its light shines upon! I Synchro Summon Junk Archer!”

The tall orange warrior emerged from the pillar of green-white light, holding a green bow in one hand and a metal arrow held against the bowstring in the other. One of its blue eyes was covered by the thin orange plates of its mask.

Junk Archer
ATK/2300
LV 7

“Tuningware’s second effect lets me draw a card if I use it for a Synchro Summon. Next I activate Junk Archer’s effect,” said Yusei. Junk Archer drew the arrow back on its bow. “Once per turn, I can remove one of your monsters from the game until the end of the turn. Go, Dimension Shot!” The archer released the arrow. It streaked toward the hideous plant and struck it in one of its eyes. A blue glow shot out of the tip of the arrow and the creature was sucked into a vortex in the air.

“Junk Archer, time for a direct attack! Scrap Arrow!” Junk Archer took another arrow from the quiver on its back and launched it at Darkness, striking it between its ribs.

Life Point Count
Darkness: 1700

“I Set one card face-down and end my turn,” said Yusei. A giant card appeared face-down in front of him. The vortex in the air reappeared and Darkness Seed reemerged.

“My turn,” said Darkness as another card appeared in its hand. “I activate the Field Spell Card ‘Darkness’. When I activate this card, it allows me to Set five Trap Cards from my hand or deck in a random order. I cannot see the order in which these cards are placed on the field.” As the five cards appeared before Darkness, the leathery wings on its back turned jet-black.

“So you can’t check your face-downs?” asked Yusei.

“That is correct,” replied Darkness. “I now summon Darkness Eye to the field.”

Darkness’ new monster was sickening. Red stalks twisted plant-like around each other. Sitting at the end of them and held in place by deep red tendrils was a giant eye with a large black pupil. The pupil split and opened, revealing a bright blue eye beneath it. It closed and spun sideways, then opened again.

Darkness Eye
ATK/0
LV 1

“My turn,” said Yusei, trying to ignore the hideousness of the eye. But he knew he had to think about the eye. There’s no way something so obsessed with logic would summon a monster with no Attack Points in Attack Mode without a backup plan, he thought. Which means that Darkness has a Trap waiting for me. I can’t attack recklessly, but I should get whatever surprise is waiting for me off the field. “Junk Archer, attack Darkness Eye!” Yusei ordered.

“I activate the Continuous Trap ‘Zero’,” said Darkness. “If ‘Darkness’ is face-up when I activate this card, I can select and activate one of my other Set cards. With this effect, I activate the Continuous Trap ‘Infinity’. When these two Traps are activated, they allow me to activate every card that rests between them. Zero and Infinity... that which rests between them is the Darkness.” Yusei saw that there was one card between the two Traps. The other two were on Darkness’ left side.

“The card which has been activated is Darkness One. When it is the first card activated by Zero and Infinity, it destroys one card on your field. Junk Archer is destroyed.”

A thick jet of black water shot out of the card and struck Junk Archer. The jet grew larger and larger until it completely enveloped Yusei’s monster and destroyed it.

“Junk Archer!” cried Yusei. “I’m sorry, Junk Archer. I summon Shield Wing in Defense Mode and place one card face-down. That ends my turn.”

“During the End Phase of the turn, the effect of the ‘Darkness’ Field Spell activates,” said Darkness. “Every Continuous Trap I activated is flipped face-down and all of my cards are shuffled and placed in random positions on the field.”

“No way!” said Yusei.

Darkness chuckled as its Traps flipped face-down. Then its face-down cards vanished and were placed onto the field once more.

“My turn,” said Darkness. “During my Standby Phase, Darkness Eye’s effect activates. I am now allowed to Normal Summon a monster from my hand without Release. Appear before me, Darkness Destroyer.”

The blue iris of Darkness Eye glowed a pale purple as a new monster appeared next to it. Yusei gasped. The creature was massive, its skin dark gray, its body skeletal. Its ribs heaved as it roared loud and deep. Massive hands rested on the ends of two thin arms. Yellow claws jutted out of the wide paws and its feet. Thick, yellow spikes shot up from its shoulders and the middle of its wings. Lines of light gray scales ran along its arms, waist and legs. Massive horns curved away from the sides of its head. Its eyes were set deep into its demonic skull and glowed bright red.

Darkness Destroyer
ATK/2300
LV 7

“When Darkness Destroyer attacks a monster in Defense Mode, it inflicts piercing Battle Damage to the opponent,” said Darkness. “Furthermore, it can attack twice during each turn.”

“You’ll have to do better than that,” said Yusei. “Shield Wing can survive up to two battles each turn!”

“Darkness Destroyer, attack Shield Wing,” ordered the robed creature.

“I play the Trap ‘D2 Shield’!” said Yusei. “This doubles Shield Wing’s Defense Points!”

“I activate Zero and Infinity,” said Darkness. “This in turn activates the two cards resting between them. Behold, Darkness Two and Darkness One. As Darkness Two was the first card activated this way, its effect activates. One monster I control gains one thousand Attack Points. Then I can increase the Attack Points of one of my monsters by one thousand for each ‘Darkness’ Continuous Trap activated after Darkness Two. Darkness Destroyer and Darkness Seed will each gain one thousand Attack Points.”

Darkness Destroyer
ATK/3300

Darkness Seed
ATK/2000

Shield Wing
DEF/1800

Darkness Destroyer brought one of its massive hands down on Yusei’s Shield Wing. The winged reptile was pushed back, but was not destroyed. A red aura appeared around Yusei as his Life Points went down.

Life Point Count
Yusei: 2500

“Darkness Destroyer, attack Shield Wing once more,” Darkness ordered. The giant demon raised its other clawed hand and brought it crashing down onto Yusei’s monster. However, a pale white light appeared in front of Shield Wing that deflected the claw. “What’s this?” asked Darkness.

“My Trap,” said Yusei. “Spirit Force! It negates the Battle Damage I take from this fight and lets me add a Junk Synchron from my Graveyard to my hand.”

“Regardless, your monster will not survive. Darkness Seed, attack Shield Wing.” The evil plant lifted its roots out of the ground and pushed itself forward with them. It grabbed Yusei’s monster in the giant, scythe-like talons on its back and sliced through it. The winged beast was destroyed.

“Because you destroyed the monster powered up by D2 Shield, I get to draw a card,” said Yusei. Darkness ended its turn and its Traps were flipped face-down and replaced on the field.

Yusei drew another card to start his turn. “I summon Junk Synchron in Attack Mode!” he said. “I’ll also use his effect to bring Tuningware back to the field. Next I activate the effect of Quillbolt Hedgehog in my Graveyard. When there’s a Tuner Monster on my field, I can Special Summon Quillbolt Hedgehog! And now I’ll activate Doppelwarrior’s effect in my hand! When I Special Summon a monster from my Graveyard, I can Special Summon Doppelwarrior from my hand!

“Level Three Junk Synchron, tune with my Level One Tuningware and Level Two Doppelwarrior and Quillbolt Hedgehog!” said Yusei. The little orange robot pulled a cord on his chest and the engines on his back roared to life. He vanished in a flash of light and three stars appeared in his place. They traced three large circles, creating the green tuning rings that signaled a Synchro Summon. Yusei’s other monsters jumped into the rings and vanished, leaving only their stars behind.

“Souls clash and merge together to awaken a dark raging spirit! Become the path its light shines upon!” said Yusei. A line of light shot through the stars, then widened into a green-white pillar that envoloped the rings. “Synchro Summon! Let me show you what a REAL Destroyer can do! Obliterate, Junk Destroyer!”

Four arms and sharp spikes thrust out of the column of light. As it dissipated, the metal form of Yusei’s monster was revealed. Four giant metal wings swept up and down its back, their sharp edges gleaming in the moonlight. Its orange eyes flashed brightly.

Junk Destroyer
ATK/2600
LV 8

“When Junk Destroyer is Synchro Summoned, it destroys one card on the field for each non-Tuner monster I used to summon it! All three of your monsters are going down, Darkness! Go, Tidal Energy!” Water-like energy erupted from Junk Destroyer’s chest and washed over Darkness’ monsters, destroying them.

“Let’s not forget about Tuningware and Doppelwarrior,” said Yusei. “Since I used them for a Synchro Summon, Tuningware lets me draw a card, and Doppelwarrior summons two Doppel Tokens to my field in Attack Mode.” A tiny version of the black-garbed soldier appeared. Its shadow rose up from the ground and took the same shape.

Doppel Token
ATK/400
LV 1

Yusei went on. “And without Darkness Eye, you can’t check your face-downs anymore!”

“How did-!” Darkness started, but Yusei interrupted it.

“It was the only thing that made sense,” said Yusei. “You said when you played Darkness that you couldn’t check your face-down cards, but then summoned Darkness Eye right afterward. And when I attacked with Junk Archer, you knew exactly what cards to play. Either you were incredibly lucky, or you had a special effect helping you out. And since I’m not stupid, I guessed that Darkness Eye was exactly what its name implies: Your eye in the dark!”

Darkness growled.

“For someone who claims to be a god, you use a pretty cheap trick,” Yusei went on. “Telling your opponent you can’t see what you’re playing but then getting exactly what you wanted? You were just trying to make me think destiny was on your side, trying to make me think it was hopeless. You underestimated me, Darkness, and I bet you underestimated Jaden too! Battle! Junk Destroyer, attack Darkness directly!”

“You are wrong, Yusei,” said Darkness. “You have underestimated me. I activate Zero and Infinity, and with them, Darkness One and Darkness Three! I used Darkness Eye’s effect in response to Junk Destroyer’s effect.”

“So that means-!”

“Yes, Yusei. It means that I was prepared. Junk Destroyer is no more.”

Darkness One fired its jet of dark water at Yusei’s monster, blasting through Junk Destroyer’s midsection and destroying it. Yusei grit his teeth and said, “I still have my Doppel Tokens, Darkness! Attack!”

Darkness growled as the tiny warriors fired their guns at it. Tiny explosions appeared all over its robed body as the bullets struck it. Yusei then Set one card face-down and ended his turn. Darkness’ Traps returned to their face-down positions and were repositioned.

“My turn,” said Darkness. “Your underestimation of me was far worse than you initially thought, Yusei. I summon Darkness Necroslime to the field.”

A flicker of light from above caught Yusei’s eye. He looked up and saw something falling from the dark orb above. It seemed shapeless and gleamed faintly in the moonlight. It struck the ground with a splash and large drops of dark gray liquid splattered all over the stone roof. They slowly slithered back together and rejoined, forming a large blob as big as Yusei’s chest.

Darkness Necroslime
ATK/0
LV 2

“I can send Darkness Necroslime to the Graveyard to revive one of my fallen ‘Darkness’ monsters,” said the hooded creature. “Return to me, my cherished Darkness Eye.” The black glob began to twist and writhe as it took on the shape of Darkness Eye. Once it was finished, the liquid slid off the creature and seeped between the stones. The eye opened and the blue iris peered at Yusei, twisting in place without blinking.

Darkness Eye
DEF/1000
LV 1

“Did you really think I would not have compensated for such a glaring weakness, Yusei Fudo?” said Darkness. “Your judgment will continue. I reveal Zero and Infinity, and awaken the power which sleeps between them: Darkness Three and Darkness One. As Darkness Three was the first card activated by Zero and Infinity, you will suffer one thousand points of damage, and an additional one thousand points will be inflicted for each other ‘Darkness’ Trap Card.”

A ball of dark energy shot out of the card at Yusei, striking him full in the body and knocking him to the stone floor. Darkness laughed deeply as Yusei struggled to get back on his feet.

“Yusei Fudo,” said Darkness, “you will know despair as you witness the duel of a true god! I end my turn.” Darkness laughed as its Trap Cards flipped face-down once again. The Set cards on Darkness’ field vanished and reappeared in a new order. Yusei finally managed to get to his feet, though not without effort. He was bruised and dirtied. A small cut had appeared under his right eye and a single drop of blood slid down his cheek. He panted in exhaustion.

Life Point Count
Darkness: 900
Yusei: 500

Comments

[avatoa]

Holy shit dude. Did Jaden fight this creature in the third season? Because my memory is pretty fuzzy about the ending of the third season.

[Zaerosz]

332563
End of the fourth season, actually. That season didn't get dubbed, though.

[Wolfgang]

332585
This. Darkness had been discovered and unleashed by a student at the academy, but the ritual had been interrupted. It wasn't until after powerful duelists had misused the power of Duel Monsters and tainted their own hearts in darkness that the creature was finally able to break through into the human world.

And for anyone who is curious, Darkness (or Nightshroud as it was known while possessing certain individuals in the dub) appears in the artwork of this card: Speed Spell - The End of the Storm.

Jack played this card in his first Turbo Duel with Yusei, intending to finish the game with it. His pride drove him to try and finish the duel with the same card in their rematch at the end of the Fortune Cup tournament.

[maximus25]

Why do I want to make a Darkness deck now?

[Wolfgang]

332765

The Zero Infinity combo is actually truly terrifying, and I will explain why in the next chapter. It's unfortunate, though; only two of Darkness' cards were ever printed: Darkness Destroyer and one which will appear next chapter.

[Yasahiro]

I think you made a mistake. You said that since Yusei used Tuningware in second Synchro Summon he can draw a card because of its effect. BUT Tuningware was revived by Junk Synchron's effect, so he loses his own effect which mean Yusei CAN'T Draw card

[Wolfgang]

333180
I promise that's not a mistake. It's true that Junk Synchron negates the effects of the monster it summons, but only the effects that activate and/or apply on the field. A card's "status" resets when it's flipped face-down or it relocates (i.e. leaves the field). Tuningware's draw effect activates in the Graveyard, so its "status" has been reset and it's no longer negated by Junk Synchron.