[IC] - All the World's a Game

[WriggleRid3r]

Ancient City

---

"Rules?" Yuuka suddenly appeared behind John. "Make sure you don't die!"

Yuuka drew her pink flower katana she bought a long time ago and struck John's back with her Youkai strength. If anything, it would knock John out of balance to allow her continuous, relentless assault.

---

Higan

---

"Reasons?" Yukari's eyes changed. From a venerable ancient Youkai, she became a crazed Deicieder: God-killer. "What are reasons?"

'Sorry John, this is my true self.'

Yukari hopped onto the Blackbird, which began jetting itself towards the Kings. Wielding the twin blades of legend, Yukari shouted to Shikieiki: "All Aboard!"

[S121]

Australia

Lujuria was still had her arms tightly wrapped around Isaac's neck, but he could still talk.

"What happened?", Isaac asked Lujuria.







Ancient City

John was knocked off balance, but quickly regained it as he pulled out his MA5D Assault Rifle and set it to fire very weak danmaku. Right as soon as he set the weapon's ammunition type, John spun around and fired off a hail of danmaku, right at Yuuka.

[WriggleRid3r]

Ancient City

---

"Really? Is THAT it?" Yuuka laughed as she grazed through the hail of Danmaku with ease. "None of those were even close to my hitbox!"

Yuuka stood in place. Her flowery sword turned into her trademark parasol. This could only mean one thing.

"Phantastic Spring Flowers!" Yuuka declared. Large pink flowers blocked John's escape path as small blue flowers sought to bring John down to his knees.

[S121]

Ancient City

John saw that he was being surrounded, so what he did was that he created a shell of Darkness around himself and charged at Yuuka. He couldn't shoot at her from behind the Darkness, but he could at least close the distance between them and get in a good shot.

[wonderweiss]

Lujuria looked up with tears and a smile.

"I remember who I was," she said happily.



King 9: enough.

Suddenly, a cloaked ninja like woman popped in.

"Kings' court- peace keeper."

Suddenly, one giant danmaku ball floated in the air. After a while, it exploded in the form of a spinning peace sign , shooting a blinding amount of danmaku. It shot down the plane.

"Kings' court- shameful return."

A peace sign hex was casted on the floor below Yukari. Hands reached up and grabbed her, pulling her down.

King 8: I'm sorry, but you are no longer allowed back until the time has come. Don't try to come back. This is our bailiff, Akihita Monari. She manipulates direction, and if you try to come back, you will be redirected to somewhere else.

King 1: we will think of this during the final decisions in both trials.

Yukari reappeared on a building near where John and Yuuka were sparring.

[WriggleRid3r]

Ancient City

---

"Kogeki Nijunichi - Dispel!" Yuuka shouted. The shroud of Darkness began to crack and break. Through the gap, Yuuka fired a high-density flower bomb into the shell.

BANG

---

"Whoa." Yuugi looked up to find an explosion. People began to gather to Chireiden to see the spectacle. "Yuuka's sparring."

"Well she's using like... 4% of her power right now." Suika grinned.

"Yeah. I wonder if that spaceman can win." Yuugi nodded and drank from her sake dish. "After all, she is one of the five Elder Youkai."

[S121]

Ancient City

As soon as the Darkness shell broke, John tensed up and created a Corridor of Darkness in front of himself, sucking in the flower bomb. As soon as the bomb ended, John opened up a Corridor of Darkness next to Yuuka and fired her flower bomb back towards her.

"I'm going to have to get creative.", John said to Yuuka as he created Light and Darkness in each hand, ready for her next attack.

John did not see Yukari, due to the amount of flowers still in the area.






Australia

Isaac retracted his helmet back into his suit and looked at Lujuria.

"Who were you?", Isaac asked her as he helped her back up to her feet.

[wonderweiss]

"I don't know my name, but I do know that I did know what love was... Oh so many years ago..."

She looked at Isaac with a smile. "Come on. I'll tell you on the way back."

The giant snake reappeared and swallowed them.

On the tombstone, the name column read, 'Enamorada Sin Nombre.' It translates to 'The beloved without a name.'

[S121]

Australia

Isaac smiled at Lujuria, but his smile soon turned to dread as he saw the giant snake again.

"Oh fu-", Isaac said before he could form his helmet back onto his head.

Isaac was quickly put into the snake's mouth and was on another trip.



Inside Giant Snake's Mouth

It was dark and wet inside of the snake's mouth, so Isaac formed his helmet back onto his head and let the bright aqua-blue light from his visor illuminate the snake's mouth.

"Is this how you usually travel?", Isaac asked Lujuria.

[WriggleRid3r]

Chireiden

---

Yukari gasped. So the rumors of the Direction manipulator was really true.

She smiled. There was an unknown Youkai under the Ten Kings that Yukari did not know about. New challenge awaited her: to test, to analyze, to savor the victory that she wouldn't've felt before.

"Direction manipulation... Looks like another boundary to break through." Yukari looked into the darkness with thirst, oblivious to what's happening on top of the very building she was in.

---

Ancient City

---

The flower bomb exploded, sending Yuuka hurling into the air. The right side of her head was bleeding.

"Not bad." Yuuka grinned. "Creativity is something that really grants you an advantage huh?"

"Then I think I'll get creative too."

Yuuka launched rose thorns across the field like webs, forming an arena that trapped John around. The thorns grew and grew until they threatened to pierce through John. As the thorns grew, Yuuka ascended right above John with a glowing lance.

"Kogeki yonjushichi, Kaminari yari!"

[S121]

Ancient City

John was a little concerned that he hurt Yuuka, but she seemed to be fine otherwise. As for the cage around him with Yuuka and the lance up above, John decided that the best course of action would be to disappear.

All of a sudden, John fell through a Corridor of Darkness and appeared right above Yuuka, now with his helmet on and with both of his energy swords drawn. As John fell towards her, he held the Energy Swords out in front of him, aimed right for her back. If she didn't dodge them, John was ready to quickly turn them off before he could injure or kill her.

[WriggleRid3r]

Ancient City

---

"Kogeki Hachi - Shogekiha." Yuuka chanted. An electrical field paralyzed John for a second, allowing Yuuka to glide away, firing multiple pollen danmaku.

[S121]

Ancient City

As the pollen Danmaku flew towards John, he slashed at them and deflected each one, allowing him to land safely.

(That could have gone better...), John thought to himself as he quickly came up with another plan.

John quickly put away his Energy Swords and activated his thrusters, taking to the sky as he fired weak Light and Darkness orbs at Yuuka, mimicking Danmaku. John quickly flew to her flank as he continued to lay down a sparse field of Light and Darkness orbs.

[WriggleRid3r]

Ancient City

---

Yuuka took after John, her bloodshot eyes brimming with joy. "Come on, more!"

The Light and Darkness orbs zipped through her as she fired her own danmaku: tulips and sunflowers and roses.

[S121]

Ancient City

John gave a slight smile inside of his helmet when he saw that Yuuka was having fun. This was quite a dangerous game they were playing, but even John was enjoying himself.

(More? Ok, let's take it up a notch...), John thought.

John saw the flower Danmaku flying towards him, so he created larger Darkness orbs and sent them after the flower Danmaku. While he fired Darkness at the Danmaku, John then fired homing Light orbs at Yuuka as he flew in a large arc above her.