Author's Note: So as it turns out, this is going to be the final chapter of this story. I thought originally that I'd have to do another chapter after this one to properly wrap things up. But last night I was so pumped to start getting this tale finished I decided to get a head start last night and began writing this chapter a little around 10:30 PM. At a little before 1:00 AM, I wound up finishing the entire second half of the final duel. I wound up with a fairly good-sized chapter, but it didn't seem like the best place to leave things. So I just decided to end the whole story here.

I should warn everyone that this chapter gets pretty steamy towards the end. I did change this story to an M rating, after all. That said, I hope everyone enjoys the conclusion of The Scarlet Empress.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL.

Chapter 18: Zero Nova

"Black Comet Dragon, attack Red Nova Dragon!" Dante commanded. "Diamond Will!"

"I activate Red Nova Dragon's effect!" Cleo quickly announced. "By banishing Red Nova from the field until the end of the turn, I can negate Black Comet's attack!"

Black Comet Dragon roared and his body began to crackle with blue electrical energy. The dark dragon took off towards Red Nova like a shooting star, but in an instant the red dragon vanished and a massive pillar of flames appeared in front of Cleo. Black Comet Dragon was forced back and the flames vanished.

"So you managed to extend your miserable life for one more turn." Dante observed. "But sooner or later I will crush you and have my revenge!"

"And what then?" Cleo asked. "Say you do manage to defeat me in this duel. What happens after that?"

"Simple. Now that Black Comet Dragon is back at my side, I will destroy this world and rebuild it to suit my own tastes!" Dante declared. "Everything that is will be extinguished and I shall stand atop the world as its king! That is my destiny! The destiny that Black Comet Dragon has shown me!"

"I don't believe it." A horrified Alyssa spoke as Dante let out another maniacal laugh. "My brother really has gone off the deep end."

"Black Comet Dragon is affecting his mind." Robin told Alyssa. "It's a creature that wants nothing more than to eradicate all life on this planet. That's why it came to Earth in the first place as a comet."

"So that thing is using Dante as its puppet?" Alyssa asked.

"Pretty much." Robin confirmed. "The only possible way to free Dante from Black Comet Dragon is for Cleo to beat him."

"You know Fairbanks, it amazes me to see just how pathetic you truly are." Cleo told him.

"And what do you mean by that?" Dante asked.

"I'll admit that Black Comet Dragon is indeed an impressive card. Perhaps its even as powerful as my Red Nova." Cleo replied. "But you've let the power of your dragon consume you, while I've bent the power of my dragon to my will. Someone as weak as you could never overcome someone like me."

"You can say what you want if you somehow manage to win." Dante told her. "I'll end my turn here." With the end of Dante's turn, Red Nova Dragon reappeared on the field.

Cleo drew her next card. "I activate the Spell card, Smashing Ground! This card destroys the monster you control with the highest DEF! And since the only monster you have on the field is Black Comet, your dragon is the one that gets destroyed!"

"I think not, for I activate another one of Black Comet Dragon's effects!" Dante announced. "Whenever Black Comet is targeted by a card effect, I can negate that effect and deal 600 points of damage to my opponent for each card in my hand. And because I currently have three cards in my hand, you take 1800 points of damage!"

A ball of blue light shot down from the sky towards Black Comet Dragon. The evil dragon fired a beam of light from his jaws and blasted the oncoming projectile, destroying in a massive explosion. Black Comet Dragon then fired to bolts of blue electricity from the large crystals on its shoulders at Cleo. Cleo was knocked back by the blast into the invisible wall created by the crystals that Dante had brought up from the ground. Cleo fell to one knee and her life points dropped to 400.

"Cleo!" a worried Rio called out.

"A nice stroke of luck drawing Smashing Ground from your deck this turn." Dante remarked. "But I'm afraid luck won't be enough to save you now."

"I… end my turn." Cleo announced as she got back to her feet.

"This isn't looking good." Thomas observed. "I'm not a huge fan of Atlas, but if she loses the whole world could be in danger from that freak."

"Right now it looks like Cleo and Dante are pretty even." Michael noted. "They both have close to the same amount of life points. But if Dante finds some way to remove Red Nova from the field, it's all over."

Dante drew his next card. "I activate a Spell card called Rising Dragon Soul Force! Since I have only 500 life points, this card gives me 500 additional life points for every dragon currently in my Graveyard. At the moment five dragons currently rest in my Graveyard, which means I gain 3000 life points!"

Five transparent white serpentine dragons suddenly rose up from the ground around Dante. The dragons went into Dante's duel disk, causing his life points to rise to 3500.

"Black Comet Dragon, attack Red Nova!" Dante commanded. "Diamond Will!"

"I activate Red Nova's effect and banish him from the field to negate Black Comet's attack!" Cleo announced.

Black Comet Dragon roared as his body once again became covered in crackling blue energy. As the wicked dragon flew in for the kill, Red Nova vanished and a pillar of flames appeared to block Black Comet Dragon's attack. Black Comet was forced back and the pillar of fire disappeared.

"Well, it seems we've reached something of an impasse." Dante observed. "For now I shall simply set one card on the field as a precaution and end my turn." With the end of Dante's turn, Red Nova reappeared.

"This can't go on forever." Thomas spoke. "Sooner or later, Dante is gonna draw a card that'll let him get Red Nova out of the way and move in for the kill. Unless Atlas can somehow power up Red Nova soon, it's all over."

"This really is starting to get tedious, you know." Dante remarked. "No matter how many times you use Red Nova's effect to block my attack, in the end you'll only fail. What do you expect to do with no cards in your hand and only Red Nova to protect you? The only way this duel can end is with your death!"

Rio's face went pale upon hearing Dante's words. "No… I-I can't do it. Not again."

"Rio?" Iris responded.

"I can't just stand by and watch Cleo die again! Not again!" Rio spoke.

"Rio, calm down!" Iris told her.

"No!" Rio cried out. Suddenly she passed out and collapsed to the ground.

At the same moment, Cleo cried out as her body began to glow with a red aura. Her Signer mark began to glow, and as she drew from the deck the card she pulled glowed with a crimson light.

"I play the Spell card, Rank-Up-Magic The Seventh One!" Cleo announced.

"What?" Dante exclaimed.

"I call forth Number 103: Rangazero and use her to Xyz Summon Number C103: Ragnafinity!" Cleo announced.

A swirling vortex in the form of a galaxy appeared in the center of the battlefield. Ragnafinity arose from the center of the vortex bringing a red crystal with gold plates on it with her.

"Did Rio loan Cleo some of her cards on the way here?" a confused Alyssa asked.

"No, she didn't." Iris told her. "I don't know how this is even possible."

"So, did Princess Merag loan you that strange monster of hers before you went into this duel?" Dante asked.

"It's more than that." Cleo told him. "I'm not fighting this duel alone."

Suddenly the aura surrounding Cleo began to take of a shape. Dante and the others could see the feint image of Rio behind Cleo with her arms around her shoulders.

"I don't believe it!" Iris spoke. "It's like Rio's somehow projecting herself into Cleo and lending her power to her."

"Well whatever's going on, it really doesn't matter." Dante scoffed. "That strange creature of Merag's will do nothing to save you."

"That's where you're wrong!" Cleo told him. "Because now I'm going to combine my power with Rio's to end this duel!"

Suddenly the dragon seal on Robin's back began to glow. At the same time, glowing crimson lines began to form in the middle of the battlefield and formed into the seal of the Crimson Dragon around the Barian Emblem.

"I use Red Nova Dragon and Ragnafinity to build the overlay network and Xyz Summon a being whose power can freeze the fires of the underworld!" Cleo announced in an echoing voice. "Arise, CXyz Zero Nova Dragon!"

Red Nova and Ragnazero turned into balls of red energy and were pulled into the center of the Barian Emblem on the ground. A moment later the ground shook and a massive pillar of crimson light burst up from the ground through the symbol. Dark clouds covered the night sky and a cold wind began to blow and cover everything in snow and ice. Black Comet Dragon instantly became covered in a thick layer of frost. After a moment the pillar of energy faded to reveal Red Nova Dragon in a new form.

The once red dragon had turned blue and black. His horns had been replaced with the black three-pointed crest that adorned Ragnafinity's head. On his back were six blade-like wings made of black armor, similar to the wings on Ragnafinity's back. On the top right wing, the number 103 glowed with a red light. The dragon's arms and legs were completely black with glowing lines of crimson energy running up the sides. Adorning the dragon's chest. On the ground around Zero Nova Dragon were three large diamond-shaped crystals with gold plates on them.

"A rank thirteen Xyz Monster?" Dante exclaimed. "I've never heard of such a thing!"

"Zero Nova Dragon is a special card that can only be summoned using Red Nova and Ragnazero." Cleo explained. "Like Red Nova, Zero Nova Dragon gains 500 ATK for each Tuner monster in my Graveyard. Which means his ATK rises from 4500 to 6000."

"So the ATK of our dragons is now equal." Dante observed.

"That's where you're wrong." Cleo told him. "While Zero Nova is on the field, the ATK increasing effects of all other cards on the field are reversed. Meaning the ATK of Black Comet Dragon has fallen to 1000."

"What?" a shocked Dante exclaimed.

"Whoa! Talk about a total reversal!" Thomas remarked.

"I activate my Trap, Diamond Dragon Shield!" Dante announced. "Since you special summoned a monster, this card switches Black Comet Dragon to Defense Mode! Black Comet Dragon cannot be destroyed in battle, which means for the time being I have the perfect shield."

"Your shield is about to break, for I activate Zero Nova Dragon's effect!" Cleo announced. "By detaching all of his chaos overlay units, Zero Nova Dragon destroys all other monsters on the field with an ATK different from their original ATK points. This power affects all monsters on the field, which means Black Comet can't negate it!"

The crystals around Zero Nova Dragon shattered into particles of red energy that went into the emblem on his chest. The dragon reared back his head and breathed out a cold blast of frozen wind that caused Black Comet Dragon to freeze completely and shatter to bits.

All the color completely drained from Dante's face. "This… this can't be! Black Comet Dragon was… was…"

"I'm putting an end to this now!" Cleo declared. "Zero Nova Dragon, attack Fairbanks directly! Burning Zero Force!"

The dragon reared back his head again and fired a massive beam of Crimson light at Dante. Dante was knocked to the ground and his life points dropped to zero in an instant. As soon as his life points hit zero, the crystal pendant hanging from Dante's neck shattered. With the duel finally at an end, Zero Nova Dragon vanished and the surrounding area returned to normal. Rio's eyes shot open and she quickly sat up. As Alyssa rushed over to Dante's side, Cleo walked over to Rio and kneeled down.

"Are you okay?" Cleo asked.

"I'm better now." Rio answered with a relieved sigh.

Cleo pulled her into a hug. "I'm sorry if I scared you back there."

A tearful smile formed on Rio's face. "I'm just happy you're okay."

"Ms. Alyssa, is Dante okay?" Michael asked as he walked up.

"Well he's breathing, but he's out cold." Alyssa answered. "I think we need to get him to a hospital."

"We'll leave the island first thing in the morning." Kazuma decided. "For now, I'm sure Faker will be able to take care of him."

"What about Black Comet Dragon?" Robin asked.

"The card isn't in Dante's duel disk." Alyssa informed them.

"Maybe it was destroyed then." Robin assumed.

"Good." Cleo declared. "That's one card that should not be in this world."

The next morning, Cleo and the others had returned to Obsidian City on the boat that Carly had rented. Right before they had left, Kazuma had checked on the original crystal tablet depicting Black Comet Dragon and found that it had shattered apart. It seemed that evil dragon had truly been slain in Cleo's duel with Dante. Upon their return to Obsidian City, the group promptly turned Brimstone and Splicer into the authorities. Afterwards they had taken the still unconscious Dante to the hospital. The doctors found that Dante was in some kind of coma, but could not find the cause. They were also uncertain about if and when Dante would ever wake up. Alyssa had of course decided to stay by her brother's side to wait for the day he finally would wake up.

Everyone else had since returned to the hotel to make plans for their trips home. Cleo was out in front of the hotel looking out at the island as Carly walked up.

"Well, Robin and I are headed for the airport." Carly told her daughter, getting her attention. "I guess you're going to be traveling to Heartland with Rio and her friends."

"Yeah." Cleo confirmed. "Right now I need to be as close to Rio as possible. Besides, there might actually be some worthy opponents for me in that city."

"I understand completely." Carly told her. "Just promise me you'll keep in touch, okay?"

"I will, mother." Cleo assured her.

"You know, you and Rio really do seem to make a good pair." Carly told her. "I'm happy for you, Cleo."

"Thanks." Cleo told her. "That means a lot."

With that, Carly said her final goodbyes and walked off. Cleo looked back out over the water towards the island. It was that island that was once the capital of the small yet great empire that she built in her former life, and the place where she and Rio had met for the first time. The things that had been left unfinished from that former life had finally been settled. Now she and Rio could move on to a new beginning. Taking one last look at the island, Cleo turned away and walked back towards the hotel.

Night had fallen on the city, and Rio was in the room she shared with Iris packing up the last of her things. The only thing the blunette had on at the moment was a white bathrobe provided by the hotel. As Rio finished packing, Iris sat on the bed watching T.V.

"I'm guessing you're going over to see Cleo as soon as you're finished packing." Iris spoke, not once taking her eyes off the T.V.

"Uh, that's right." Rio confirmed with a slight blush.

"Well, have fun then." Iris told her. "I guess you're going to be over there all night considering all you have on is that robe. Want me to come over tomorrow morning with a fresh change of clothes?"

"Um… yeah, that's a good idea." Rio agreed, her face turning even redder. "But, um, please knock first when you do?"

"Sure thing." Iris replied.

The conversation ended there and Rio finished packing her bags. She also set aside her outfit for the next day. With her preparations done, Rio quietly left the room and headed for Cleo's. She had learned her new girlfriend's room number as soon as they had gotten back to the hotel earlier that day. Within moments, Rio arrived at the room and knocked on the door. The door opened a crack and Rio saw Cleo's face on the other side.

"Mind if I come in?" Rio asked.

"Not at all." Cleo replied as she opened the door wider to allow her entry.

As soon as Cleo opened the door wider, Rio saw that the only thing she had on was a white towel. Her dark hair was also a bit damp, indicating she had just gotten out of the shower. Her heartbeat increasing, Rio entered the room and shut the door behind her, making very sure to lock it.

"So is something wrong?" Cleo asked as they both walked over towards the bed.

"No. I… just really needed to see you." Rio told her. "I guess I'm still a little shaken up from the duel you had with Dante last night. For a moment during that duel I was afraid I was going to lose you again and there was nothing I could do."

Cleo smiled and pulled her close. "But you did do something. I couldn't have won if you hadn't loaned me your strength."

"I know… but still…" Rio continued.

"Listen to me." Cleo spoke as she gently took hold of her chin. "You're never going to lose me like that again. I promise you that. This time you've got me for good."

Rio gave Cleo a tearful smile and the two of them quickly became locked in a deep kiss. For a while they explored one another's mouths with their tongues before being forced to break apart for air. Rio then pulled away and undid her robe and let it carelessly fall to the floor. Cleo blushed upon seeing Rio completely nude. With the taller girl left stunned by what she was seeing, Rio took the opportunity and deftly removed the towel Cleo had on, exposing Cleo's own nakedness.

Rio stood there, taking in how beautiful Cleo was. Her eyes fixed on Cleo's full breasts and toned abs. She was stunning enough to be a goddess. After a moment, Rio moved in and began to suck on Cleo's neck, earning some moans of pleasure from the taller girl. On reflex, Cleo put her arms around the blunette.

"R-Rio." Cleo managed to speak between moans. "Are… are you sure you want to do… do this?"

Rio pulled away and looked at Cleo with very big pinkish eyes. Cleo could see that Rio really needed to be close to her at that moment, and she had to admit that she felt the same thing. After a brief moment of silence, Cleo let Rio continue her ministrations. Over time the blunette moved down and began to kiss Cleo's collarbone, much to the dark-haired girl's delight. There was no going back for Cleo at that moment. She had become too lost in pleasure to stop.

Rio continued to move downward overtime, leaving a trail of fiery kisses as she went until she was on her knees. After a moment's hesitation, Rio leaned in and began to probe Cleo's moist womanhood with her tongue. Cleo threw her head back and let out a deep moan as Rio explored her opening. She had lost all sense of time and where she was. It was just the two of them there lost in a sea of pleasure.

As Cleo began to feel herself nearing her climax, she held onto the back of Rio's head and began to move her hips to help herself along though. It seemed like it was taking her forever to get there though, not that she was in any hurry to get there though. After what seemed almost like an eternity, Cleo finally climaxed.

Still on her knees, Rio pulled away and looked up at her. "I'm all yours. Do whatever you want with me."

A large grin appeared on Cleo's face. In that moment she became determined to give Rio a night of pleasure that she would never forget. She swiftly pulled Rio to her feet and turned her around. Pulling the blunette close, Cleo reached around and began to massage Rio's breasts, every now and then pinching her already erect nipples. The sound of Rio's soft gentle moans were music to Cleo's ears.

Eventually Cleo's right hand moved down and she inserted two fingers into Rio's wet entrance. Rio winced a bit as Cleo's two digits penetrated her. Cleo waited to move her hands to allow Rio time to get used to the feeling. At the same time she continued to play with Rio's left breast to keep her mind off the pain. It wasn't long though before Rio gave her lover the okay to begin moving her right hand.

Cleo began to pump her fingers in and out of the blunette at a gentle pace. Rio urged her to go in deeper and harder, a request that Cleo easily granted. After a long yet uncertain amount of time, Cleo began to feel Rio's inner walls tightening around her fingers. Cleo picked up her pace to help her along, and soon Rio climaxed calling Cleo's name. Before Rio could recover from her orgasm, Cleo turned her around and pushed her onto the bed on her back.

Getting on her knees, Cleo spread Rio's legs apart and moved in. Gently, she blew on Rio's still moist womanhood, causing the younger girl to moan with delight. Smirking, Cleo moved in and began to probe Rio with her tongue. Rio arched her back and her toes curled. Her fingers dug tightly into the bed sheets like a pair of talons. The feeling of Cleo's tongue exploring her felt far too amazing to put into words.

After what seemed like another eternity, Rio climaxed again, struck with an orgasm that was stronger than the last. With Rio recovering the second wave of pleasure that hit her, Cleo crawled up onto her and they became locked in another deep passionate kiss. Eventually they broke apart and Cleo sat up on top of her.

Cleo looked down at her lover with a large grin. "I'm not done with you yet, my little Snowflake."

With that, Cleo took hold of Rio's left leg and repositioned herself so that her own opening was pressed against the blunette's. She then began to buck her hips into Rio, causing both her and the younger girl to moan. Over time both their bodies became covered in sweat. Eventually Cleo picked up the pace as she felt herself coming towards the edge. Rio urged her to go faster, as it wasn't going to be much longer for her either. With one last hard thrust from Cleo, the two of them managed to hit their climax at the same moment. Rio's eyes went wide as everything went white. Then she passed out.

With a satisfied grin, Cleo got off Rio and with the last of her energy pulled the covers over them both. She then pulled Rio close and kissed her on the forehead. On reflex, the unconscious Rio cuddled up closer to her. Cleo let out a contented sigh and closed her eyes before slowly drifting off to sleep.

Rio gently awoke from her deep sleep to find Cleo's face just inches away from her own. Her cheeks reddened as she instantly recalled all the things that she and Cleo the night before. Those memories were confirmed with the feeling of Cleo's naked skin against her own.

Cleo soon woke up and smiled at her. "Good morning, my love."

"Good morning." Rio replied. The two of them shared a light kiss on the lips and sighed, reveling in the afterglow from the night before.

"So… today we leave for Heartland." Cleo spoke. "It's been a very long time since I've been to that city."

"I hope you and my brother can get along better this time." Rio told her.

"Don't worry. I'll do my best to be nice to him." Cleo assured her. "I know how important he is to you."

"Well hopefully this time he'll be a lot nicer to you." Rio replied. "Especially since he might have a girlfriend now."

"And who might this girlfriend be?" Cleo asked.

"This one girl that Ryoga and I met years ago when we were younger." Rio answered. "Her name's Hikari Fudo. My brother had a pretty big crush on her."

"Wait, your brother might be dating my cousin?" a somewhat surprised Cleo asked.

"Your cousin?" an equally surprised Rio responded.

"My father and Hikari's grew up together at the same orphanage." Cleo explained. "We may not be related by blood, but we are family. I had no idea that you even knew her."

"Are you and Hikari close?" Rio asked.

"Well… let's just say we have our differences." Cleo replied. "But we get along pretty well for the most part."

"Well right now, I'm just happy that you're coming home with me." Rio told her.

"So… how much time before we have to make our plane?" Cleo asked.

Rio sat up a little to view the clock on the wall. "We've got about an hour before we have to get ready to leave."

"Good." Cleo replied. "Because I'm far than ready to leave yet."

The two of them joined in yet another kiss as Cleo rolled so that she was on top of Rio. It was going to be a little while longer before they got out of bed.

THE END

Afterward: I really hope everyone enjoyed this story I've written. I'll admit that there are probably a few parts of it that I could've done better, and I'm sorry if this story seemed more like a 5D's fanfic instead of a ZEXAL fanfic. One of the reasons why I was never able to get my original Signers vs. Barians idea off the ground was because the idea of Cleo having a romantic relationship with Rio felt like it needed to be a story all it's own. And it was a story that I had really wanted to do for about a year I think. I don't remember exactly how I came up with the idea of Cleo and Rio as a couple, but the idea really just clicked with me.

While this story may be over, I can say that I will be doing more ZEXAL stories in the future. I will also eventually do the 5D's Alternative sequel that tells the story of how Cleo and the other second generation Signers got started. I also have an idea for a direct Vampire Papillon sequel suggested by K.I.T.T. RIDER that's just too good not for me to do, though it'll probably take some time for me to get it off the ground. In the more immediate future though, I think the ZEXAL stories I'll be doing will focus a little more on Rio, Shark, their respective girlfriends and the rest of the former Barian Emperors. For now, I'd like to thank everyone who has read, reviewed, followed or favorited this story. This really was a thrill for me to work on.

Please review and let me know what you think.