Chapters Yu-Gi-Oh! Friendship is Dueling Side-Story: Beautiful Monsters
Abyss sighed as she returned to Thunder’s house from the party Burst and his friends had thrown. She had been given a second chance by the God Cards, but it came with a hefty price. Abyss had to find someone who could love her despite her unleashing the evil monsters Burst and his friends had fought and destroyed. All so her own son, Blitz, could try and play hero. Thunder Force then noticed Abyss looking sadly at a mirror.
“Is something wrong Abyss?”, Thunder asked.
“Well, I met a boy at the party.”, Abyss said sadly as she gazed into the mirror. “He was pretty cute.”
“Isn’t that a good thing?”
“But he’s just a young guy.” Abyss sighed as she gazed hard into the mirror. “And with all I’ve done, he’d probably run away if he even knew half of what I did. After all, who could love a monster like me?”
Fang's house...
Narico looked at the bathroom mirror, and ran his hand over the purple scar on his right eye. Narico sighed. This scar brought plenty of bad memories of Equestria. Memories of the Changeling hive. Where he was born, and where he never wished to return. Narico’s mind drifted to the past, and how he had become scarred. Like any other nymph, Narico was born from an egg and raised by Queen Chrysalis. However, one thing set him apart from the others. He felt no hunger for love, and didn’t need to feed off it. Among his own kind, he was an outcast and left the hive. At that time, Narico began to think maybe there were better ways than stealing love. If he didn’t need to feed, why not try to give others the same benefit? But in the hive, Chrysalis’s will is absolute. Her word unquestioned. And Narico paid the price for speaking out against her.
“But if I don’t need to feed, why not try to find a better way?!”, Narico shouted at Chrysalis! “Aren’t you tired of the hunger? Aren’t we all tired of hiding?!”
“SILENCE!”, Chrysalis hissed. “You DARE to tell me what to do? Your queen? Your mother?!”
“Don’t you dare try to guilt trip me Chrysalis!”, Narico growled! “Haven’t you once thought of there being a better way?! You could’ve explained out kind’s plight to that alicorn you mimicked, but no! What did you do?! Send the hive to invade Canterlot and got out flanks handed to us!”
“BECAUSE WE ARE BEYOND THOSE PITIFUL PONIES!”, Chrysalis screamed! “They’re little more than a food source for us, and that’s all they deserve to be!”
“And yet they live better lives than our entire race!”, Narico spat!
“It’s time you pay for your defiance.” Chrysalis fired a bolt of magic that scarred Narico’s right eye! “Even among us, you have no place.”, Chrysalis said coldly. “You speak so highly of ponies, so we’ll leave you to their mercy.” Chrysalis then summoned two Changeling guards. “Throw him into the Everfree Forest.” The guards carried Narico off, and dropped him at the edge closest to Ponyville. Fortune smiled upon Narico as he still retained his shapeshifting abilities. Narico took the form of a black coated stallion with a teal mane and blue eyes. A mare came across him, and nursed him to full health. During his time in recovery, Narico grew quite close the mare who was helping him recover. They started as friends, but soon became much more. It didn’t last. Narico thought that with how close they’d gotten, it was time to reveal himself. One night, Narico dropped his disguise in front of the mare. But she ran in fright. All the ponies knew of changelings was that they had invaded Canterlot and stole the love of ponies to feed. Narico fell to his hooves and wept.
“Why?”, Narico sobbed. “I know we’re all from one hive. But is it so hard to believe that we can change how other see us?” A shooting star streaked across the sky. “I wish…I wish I was in a new world! One where I would be accepted.” A single tear fell down Narico’s cheek. “One where I wouldn’t be alone…” A brilliant light enveloped Narico, and he soon found himself in a new body. A human body. And from the looks of things, he was just a little boy. At that time, Fang picked up on his scent and led his parents to find Narico. Narico was surprised that they didn’t find his insect eyes odd. Of course, it made more sense when fang showed Narico his wolf ears and tail. Fang’s family adopted Narico as fang’s little brother, and they had been close ever since. Yet even after all that time, Narico still felt the love of another was missing. Narico’s mind then jumped to that girl he saw at the party today. Narico dropped his disguise and revealed his compound blue eyes. Even with the disguise gone, the scar was ever present. “That girl. Abyss. If I were to show her my real face, would she run away too? Could she love what everyone else sees as nothing but a monster?” Narico then headed off to bed. “I guess we’ll find out when I start dating her.” Narico slept hoping that the next day would bring him the answers he needed.
Yu-Gi-Oh! Friendship is Dueling Side-Story: Beautiful Monsters
Saturday soon came, and both Narico and Abyss were preparing for their dates. "Well, today's the day Narico.", Fang said with a proud smile. "Hope you last long in your duel against her!"
"I'm more worried that she'll hate me if I win...", Narico muttered.
"You'll be fine! Now have fun!"
Narico made his way over to the duel park, and found Abyss waiting for him. She was wearing a black skirt with a light grey shirt, and had her black hair tied into a ponytail. She smiled when she saw him. "Hi Narico! You ready to duel?"
Narico blushed lightly. "Y-yeah! Sure I am!" Both of them activated their duel disks and their date began!
Narico: 8000 Abyss: 8000
"L-Ladies first.", Narico said nervously.
"I draw!" Abyss smiled at her card. Looks like Moon gave me some good cards to use! "I summon a monster in defense mode and end my turn!"
Time to see what's in my cards. , Narico thought. "I draw!" Nice! "I play Future Fusion! I'll send fusion materials from my deck to the graveyard for a fusion summon! Now I have to wait until the second standby phase after Future Fusion's activation to summon my monster! But in the meantime, I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior! And since he's been summoned, I can place one spell counter on him to boost him by 300 points I'll attack your face-down now!" Breaker charged at Abyss's face-down monster, and cut it to ribbons! "I end my turn with a face-down."
Sorry Narico. But you've actually helped me out quite a bit. , Abyss thought as she drew her next card. Nice! "First I banish Amarylease from my graveyard! Now I can normal summon a monster for one less tribute! Then I'll play the spell card Card Advance! This lets me conduct a normal summon and a tribute summon in the same turn! I summon Hardened Armed Dragon and tribute him to summon Yubel!" Hardened Armed Dragon vanished in a flash of light, and Yubel stood in his place! "I end my turn with two face-downs!"
"Nice to hit the field again.", Yubel said with a smile as she stretched.
Narico was puzzled. Why would Abyss summon a monster with no attack points? No time to worry about that now! "I draw! I discard a card to activate Lightning Vortex! This lets me destroy all monsters you control!" A wave of lightning hit Abyss's field, but Yubel was still standing! "What?!"
"Since I used Hardened Armed Dragon as a tribute for Yubel, she can't be destroyed by card effects!"
"No matter! I'll just attack! Strike down Yubel, Breaker!" Breaker charged at Yubel, but his attacked bounced right off of Yubel and into Narico's life points! "Agh! What...what was that?"
"Yubel's effect. She can't be destroyed by battle, and I take no battle damage from attacks involving her. Also, if you attack her, you take damage equal to the attack of your monster."
"I guess I'll end my turn.", Narico said with a small smile.
Narico: 6100 Abyss: 8000
Abyss smiled at Narico. "I draw and end my turn."
"Now that my second standby phase has passed, my fusion monster takes the field! Arcana Knight Joker!" A monster clad in black and gold armor hit the field!
Abyss smiled. "I activate my trap! Battle Mania! Since it's your standby phase, all monsters you control are switched into attack mode! Then they all have to attack! And I've only got one attack target on my field!" All of Narico's monsters charged at Yubel, but their attacks bounced off her and were reflected back into Narico's life points!
"Your monster's like a living Magic Cylinder! I haven't even made a dent in your life points!", Narico said in amazement. "I guess I'll end my turn."
Narico: 400 Abyss: 8000
"I draw!" Abyss looked carefully at her cards. Hmm. Narico's only got 400 life points left. And there's no way he'd risk attacking me again. However... Abyss then saw a card of interest. It won't stay that way! "I play the spell card Terraforming! This lets me add a field spell from my deck to my hand! Now I'll activate the field spell! Savage Colosseum! Then I'll attack your monster and end my turn!" Yubel fired a blast at Arcana Knight Joker, but it had no effect. "Since I attacked, I gain 300 life points at the end of the damage step."
"Hope I didn't scratch your armor handsome.", Yubel said with a wink. Arcana Knight Joker blushed!
"I draw!" Even if I attack, the life point boost isn't worth it! And there's probably more to her field than a small life point gain. It seems to reward attacking, but what about defense? "I'll switch my monsters into defense mode and end my turn."
"Good move Narico.", Abyss said with a smile. "Now your monsters won't be destroyed at the end of your turn by Savage Colosseum's effect." And by making his monsters switch to defense mode, Yubel's effect won't do much good. But there's always another way to win. "I draw! I play Enemy Controller! I tribute Yubel to take control of Arcana Knight Joker!"
"Sorry Narico! She's jacked in good!", Arcana Knight panicked!
"Darn! No spell cards in my hand!"
"Now that he's on my field, I'll be sure to make good use of my other trap! Call of the Haunted! This revives Yubel! Now I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Call of the Haunted! Now that Call of the Haunted is destroyed, Yubel is destroyed too! This lets me special summon Yubel-Terror Incarnate from my hand, deck, or graveyard!" As Yubel was destroyed, she transformed into a stronger form that resembled a dragon! "Now I'll end my turn to activate her effect! All other monsters on the field are destroyed!" A wave of destructive energy wiped out all other monsters except for Terror Incarnate!
"Pretty destructive effect. Now I'll activate my trap! Compulsory Evacuation Device! This returns your monster to your hand!"
"You just helped me again!", Abyss said with a smile. "Now that Terror Incarnate's left the field, I can special summon Ultimate Nightmare from my hand, deck, or graveyard!" An even more fearsome looking version of Yubel stood on the field!"
"I'm not done yet! I summon a monster in defense mode and end my turn!" Just gotta hope she takes the bait.
He sure knows how to protect his monsters. Narico's pretty adaptable. , Abyss thought with a smile. But this is Yubel's best form for a reason. "I'll attack your monster with Ultimate Nightmare! Now her effect activates! When she battles a monster, regardless of position, that monster's attack points are dealt as damage! Go Ultimate Nightmare!"
"I don't think so! I activate my trap! Mirror Force! This destroys all of your attack mode monsters!" A barrier formed around Narico's monster that reflected Ultimate Nightmare's attack right back at her! Destroying her instantly!
"I guess I forgot that Ultimate Nightmare was still vulnerable to card effects. I end my turn. Good counter Narico."
"I'm very adaptable!", Narico said with a smile. "I draw!" Narico grinned when he saw the card he drew! "Time to test this new card out! I play the spell card Shuffle Alliance! I banish Jack's Knight, King's Knight, Queen's Knight, and Arcana Knight Joker from my graveyard! Now from my deck I special summon Shuffle Paladin Ace!" A monster clad in a white cape and white and silver armor carrying a sword and shield took the field! "Now for his effect! Since she's on the field, all other cards on the field are shuffled back into our decks!" A wave of light forced Abyss to shuffle Savage Colosseum back into her deck! "Now I'll attack you directly! Supreme Shuffle Slash!" Abyss cringed as Shuffle Paladin Ace slashed into her life points! "I end my turn."
"Quite the ace monster.", Abyss said with a giggle.
"A good gamer saves their trump card for the final move.", Narico said with a smile.
Narico: 400 Abyss: 3800
Narico's brought out his ace. Now it's time for mine. , Abyss thought. "I draw! I play the spell card Soul Charge! I pay 1000 life points to revive one monster from my graveyard! I revive Yubel! Now I play Nightmare's End! I banish Yubel!" A swirl of light enveloped Yubel! When the light faded, a new monster stood in Yubel's place. "This special summons Yubel the Dream Guardian!" This version of Yubel looked like a reverse coloring of Abyss. This Yubel had wings that were made of the night sky itself and pitch black skin, pale white hair, and the same teal eyes as Abyss! "I end my turn."
"Well then. Let's see what your new monster can do!", Narico said as he drew a card! "Attack her monster Ace!" Shuffle Paladin Ace charged at Yubel the Dream Guardian, but her attack bounced off a barrier and she faded from the field and returned to Narico's hand! "What was that?!"
"It's Yubel's effect. When she's attacked, that attacking monster is returned to my opponent's hand after the damage step. Also, she can't be destroyed by battle and I take half the damage I would take." Abyss winced as her life points dropped. "But on the plus side, she gains attack equal to the damage I take!"
"I guess I'll end my turn.", Narico said with a defeated smile.
Narico: 400 Abyss: 1550
"Here I go! Let's finish this Yubel! Dream Finale!" Yubel the Dream Guardian fired a blast of energy that wiped out the last of Narico's life points! "You did pretty good. I can't remember the last time I had such a good duel."
Narico blushed. "Gee. Thanks. Sooo, what now?"
"Sugar Cube Corner sounds pretty good. I could use something sweet to celebrate my victory!", Abyss beamed.
Yu-Gi-Oh! Friendship is Dueling Side-Story: Beautiful Monsters
Narico led Abyss to Sugar Cube Corner, and the two got ice cream. "Try not to eat it too fast.", Narico warned. "It'll give you brain freeze for days." Narico shivered at the memory of when he made that very mistake.
"I'll be fine.", Abyss said with a giggle as she licked away at her ice cream. The two soon finished, and headed outside. Abyss then decided to test the waters. "...Narico?"
"Hm?"
"Have you ever had a secret that you've wanted to tell someone, but you feel they'll hate you because of it?"
Narico's mind was panicking! Does...does she know my secret?!
Abyss sighed. "I suppose I should tell you...the me you see right now is a lie. In truth, I'm much older than you. Or at least, I was."
Narico mentally breathed a sigh of relief. "So...what's your story?"
"Ever since I was little, all I wanted was to find a guy who was worthy of me. All that mattered to me was that one desire. I thought I'd found the one, but he turned out to be quite disappointing to me. But at the very least, he gave me a son. I raised him to think that all that mattered was pursuing his own desires no matter what. So long as you acheived them. Soon, I found a man worthy of me. But he missed his old family. However, he still helped to raise my son, Blitz. It was then that Blitz gained his desire. The desire to be a hero. And I sought to help him. I've had dark powers since I was small, but I always kept them under control. However, many evil duel monsters were drawn to me. I had no use for them, so I kept them in a collection. I gave my son the evil cards and he gave them to duelists who resonated with them. Blitz planned on defeating those duelists when they came into power so he could be seen as the hero. But Burst Stream, the current champion, thwarted him at every turn. My son was outraged, and soon confronted Burst. Blitz lost to Burst, and I haven't seen him since then. It was then that I confronted Burst and his friends. But I lost, and was destroyed. That is, until the God Cards gave me the life you see before you. My new life came with a price. I had to find someone who could love me. One who would keep me close despite all the awful things I did. For the first time, I see how messed up I was." A tear fell down Abyss's cheek. "How I turned my son into a monster..."
Narico blinked. "...You're not the only one who's yearning for someone to love them despite who they were, or what they are." Narico then rubbed his scar. "You're not the only one who lied."
Abyss was confused. "And...what secret do you have?"
"Abyss. I'm not even human." Narico took a deep breath. "I was born in a world called Equestria. My race was known as the changelings. A group of creatures that fed off of the love of other sentient beings. But I was different from the others since the day I was hatched. I never felt any hunger. No constant nagging in my stomach that compelled me to hunt for love. We changelings, like our name implied, could shapeshift into other forms in orde to hide ourselves and gather love. Such was the law of our queen. Chrysalis. But my unique condition got me thinking, what if she was wrong? What if there was a better way to gain love than stealing it? But in a hive, the rule of the queen is absolute." Narico rubbed his scar once again. "The queen is in a way our mother. And I paid the price for defying her. She had me cast out of the hive, and left to the mercy of the ponies. Fortunately, I was able to take the form of a pony version of myself. A mare found me, and treated my wounds. She and I became good friends, and over time...we became so much more." Narico gave a sad sigh. "I thought after all that time, there was no longer any need to hide what I really was. Another grave mistake. The mare ran away screaming. Her last words to me were "Monster." Because my kind was known only for the misdeeds they'd commited, I was hated just because of what I was. I was an outcast. Exiled by my own kind, and hated by the ponies. There was no place for me in that world. That is, until I was brought to this one. Fang and his family adopted me. Let's just say Fang's ears and tail aren't cosplay. But ever since that awful night, I've never dropped this disguise. I thought that if I ever did find another love and reveal myself, they'd only fear me like that mare. Even if I have a heart full of love, nobody believes that a changeling can change." Narico dropped his disguise in a flash of green flame. Revealing his bug-like pale blue eyes. "So now you see me for what I really am. And from here, it's your choice. Go ahead and run. Scream. Call me a freak. Maybe no one belives that my kind can change, but I won't change who I am." Narico closed his eyes, and heard footsteps. She's gone. Just like my first love. I guess I can't change how people see me no matter where I am. Narico then felt a war sensation on his forehead, and opened his eyes to find Abyss kissing him!
"That mare was a fool to leave you.", Abyss said with a loving smile. "Just because you chose not to hide who you really were, she denied the fact that you were still the same per...pony she'd come to love. All she saw was the body, and not the heart. And in my search for love, that's what I came to value more than anything else. Let's end our isolation together."
Tears fell down Narico's face as he held Abyss tightly. "Why...why am I crying?"
"Because you're so happy.", Abyss said as she returned Narico's embrace. "Because you don't need to hide anymore."
Yu-Gi-Oh! Friendship is Dueling Side-Story: Beautiful Monsters
Monday soon arrived, and Narico was waiting for Abyss at the school entrance. He wasn't kept waiting long as she ran up to him. "Morning Abyss!"
"Hi Narico! Say, you can still shapeshift right?"
"Yeah? What'd you have in mind?"
Abyss grinned. "Our friends will find out soon enough..."
Moon was humming to herself when she was at her locker. Then she noticed Burst kissing Abyss. On the mouth. And her jaw dropped! However, she was also surprised when Burst showed up right behind her. "Moon? What's got you so...." Burst froze when he saw what looked like himself kissing Abyss! "Um...did you CLONE me or something?"
"But...you! There! Abyss..." Moon's eyes then narrowed. "Changeling."
Sunset had a smile as she got to her locker and unloaded some of her books. She was also pleasantly surprised when Gold showed up. "Nice to always see you in the morning handsome."
"You too sunshine.", "Gold" said with a flirty smile. "So would you care to show me a new context of the term 'sun-kissed'?"
Sunset blushed. Gold had never been this flirty before, but she leaned in to oblige him.
"Uh...Sunset?" Sunset's eyes snapped open to find ANOTHER Gold staring at her. The other Gold burst into laughter, and vanished in a flash of green fire to reveal Narico! Abyss has also come out of her hiding spot to admire the prank. Moon and Burst soon arrived on the scene, and Moon, Gold and Sunset had less than amused looks on their faces. The three of them screamed out a single word.
"CHANGELING!" The three subdued Narico who blinked and trembled.
"...FANG HELP!", Narico cried out! Fang rushed up to Narico!
"Narico! Guys, what're you doing to my adopted brother?!", Fang shouted. Moon, Sunset, and Gold were dumbfounded. "I...guess I'd better explain things now." Abyss and Narico watched Fang explain to the others.
"Um...could you please let me go?", Narico asked nervously.
"I should've guessed he was a changeling. His color scheme was dead giveaway.", Moon said with a facepalm. "But he and Abyss DO make a cute couple."
Narico and Abyss blushed! "WE'RE NOT OFFICIAL YET!" Burst and his friends shared a laugh.
"Yeah. THAT'LL last."
Yu-Gi-Oh! Friendship is Dueling Side-Story: Beautiful Monsters
Abyss was walking in the hall way with Narico on her mind. She then noticed Moon chatting with Burst. She’s got experience with someone loving her despite her past. Maybe she could give me some advice!, Abyss thought with a smile. “Um, Moon?”
“What’s up Abyss?”, Moon asked.
“Well, I met a boy I like at that party yesterday. You know how to get someone to love you despite your past. Any tips?”
Moon smiled. “Listen Abyss. You can’t escape or try to ignore your past. But you can show him that despite all that, you’ve changed for the better. That’s how Burst came to love me.”
“Thanks Moon!”, Abyss said with a smile as she ran off to find Narico. At the same time, Fang and Narico were having their own conversation concerning Abyss.
“So how am I gonna get Abyss to love me despite my secret Fang?”, Narico asked.
“First, let her get the chance to know you. When you’ve really built your relationship, that’s when you can drop your disguise. From then, let it be her choice Narico.”
“Maybe…I shouldn’t do the ‘drop my disguise’ part. The last time I did that, my love ran away screaming. I don’t want to lose someone else that way again!”
Fang sighed. “Look Narico. If you keep letting that fear dominate your life, you’re never gonna know if she really loves you no matter what!”
“I guess you’re right.”, Narico said with a frown. “I’ll ask her on a date at lunch today.” The day went on like normal, and lunch period soon arrived. Narico slowly approached Abyss, and spoke to her. "Um, Abyss?"
"Oh. Narico. What's up?", Abyss asked with a smile.
"Well, I was wondering...if you're free this weekend...would you like to go on a date with me? Just one duel and we'll see how things go from there? What do you say?" Narico blushed as Abyss took a moment to consider his offer.
"Sounds like fun. We'll meet at the duel park at noon. It's a date!"
Narico pumped his fist into the air in triumph! "YES! I promise you won't be disappointed!"
As Narico left, Abyss smiled. "He's pretty cute when he's excited. Maybe things aren't going to be so hard after all."